#'we'll look the other way if you're discreet'

[the-fallen-blue]

We, as a queer community, really need to get better at teaching our history to our youngest members. Because you cannot go forward without knowing where you have been, because you cannot know what you have if you don't know what it cost, and because I never want to see another damn fic where a character who lived through the 80s and 90s in the military acts like Don't Ask, Don't Tell was some cruel oppressive assault on their rights that they hate and resent their superiors for.

[rubberbandgirlme]

so. i've replayed the demo once more, and this scene baffled me at first, his indifference and displeased face like?? hello??? what happened to our knight in shining armour?? and then i realized it's one of the very few moments he lets himself be real.

it's clear that leander doesn't like getting involved when he might look bad to one of the parties, so this is such an honest and raw reaction when he has to act, when he has to choose between the loyalty of his followers and the potential gain of doing 'business' with mc, and he hates it. also the way he slides back into his good guy mode in the last sprite is just so tasteful 🤌

i think he chooses to take mc's side not because he likes them so very much, but because it's the path of least resistance: bloodhounds are most likely to stay loyal anyway, someone mentioning the senobium is obviousy not a big deal — well, not big enough to go into a fight with your leader, — and the bandaged hands, on the other hand (what a lame pun!!!!!!! sry), are a very promising tidbit (remember that information is currency). like i'm sure leander guessed there was something wrong with mc from the start, just didn't know the details. btw mc noticed his act — the practiced speech of help offering and his suspicion about mc needing a magical solution.

also i'd like to pinpoint that he's the only one eliciting that vital piece of information from mc to potentially gain leverage. it's not like we as players have any choice here but hear me out: even ais and vere (!!!) are showing some kind of respect regarding mc's hands. ais stops mc before they undo their bandages and vere is 'careful not to disturb them' when grabbing mc's arm. did leander reaalllyyyyyyy have to go that far (also if mc hesistates to touch him, he will grab their hand himself :DDD)??? he wants to make sure you need to trust him and him only like dude. i'm still not over the piece of a dialogue below i mean how can he be so honest and manipulative all at once?!?????

"you were right to hide this from me (but now i know). that curse of yours... it's unlike anything i've ever dealt with (i can't help you). i can tell you're discreet (praising) but you'd best not go showing that off to anyone else (so that only i know your secret)"

and the most fascinating thing? i don't think he's a genius mastermind or anything of sorts, he just gets people, operates on an intuitional level, it comes to him naturally, and most of the times he believes that he's doing good.

tl;dr leander is one of the most interesting characters i've ever come upon and it's captivating to see him slip out and back into his goody two-shoes persona and i hope we'll get more moments when he's raw and real soon 👀

[ghouljams]

I’ve had this wonderful, terrible little brain worm about Cowboy!Price who is just awful about chasing Duck around the farmhouse whenever she’s home. Large, calloused hands catching her hip whenever she walks past. A swat on the ass at any small opportunity. Just… Price loving his wife.

I think you mean wonderful worm, because it's absolutely correct. They're both terrible with each other, absolutely cannot keep their hands to themselves. Couple of horny teenagers stuck in the honeymoon phase.

You're humming along to the radio, finishing up some dishes, when Price's hands grab your hips. His calloused palms drag over your shirt, pulling you back against him. He slots his hips against yours, moving with you to the music. You tilt your head so he can kiss your neck, enjoying the way he curls around you, the way his hands move to cup the softness of your stomach, dip to squeeze your thighs before dragging their way around to squeeze your ass. You swat at his arm with a laugh, and turn to meet his smile.

"A man can't appreciate his wife?" He asks, his eyes sparkling with mischief. You shake your head, and raise a wet hand to scratch his beard in retaliation. He tugs you in for a kiss, and the smacking noise he makes when he pulls away makes you swat him again.

"We have a full house," You remind him. Price hums, pulling away, but not without giving you a swift swat to your ass.

"you think I can't be discreet?"

"I didn't say that," You turn back to your work, "but you've never been before." Which isn't necessarily true, he was plenty discreet the one time your jobs overlapped. At home though, well, your kid has gagged over your husband kissing you more times than you can count.

"We'll see," Price mumbles, in that lovely tone that tells you you're in for a treat.

-

It starts with Price whistling at you. The sound piercing through the house, loud enough to startle you awake before he's grabbing you and pulling you close. You'd barely gotten downstairs, still in one of his shirts and a pair of shorts, and now you were crowded against the couch with your husband murmuring in your ear. His jeans rub against your thighs, and his beard scratches your tired skin, lighting up every point of contact before his hands slide up under your shirt.

You yelp and he clamps a hand over your mouth, mumbles something about being discreet as he tugs on your nipple with calloused fingers. You press back into him and try to stifle your moans with little luck.

You're only too glad none of your guests make their way out of their rooms to investigate the noise. Especially with the way you end up on your knees, lashes fluttering as John pushes his fat cock down your throat and holds it there. You count the seconds without air, letting the static fuzz of background radiation crowd your ears, blood rushing to your brain to convince you against choking. He lets you go when your vision starts tunneling, and gives you a short breath before repeating the process.

"Tha's it love," He coos down at you, "every inch."

He licks the drool off your chin after he finishes down your throat, and goes out to tend to the farm.

-

Then it's the spanking. Every time you move past him it's another swat to your behind. Sometimes hard, sometimes soft, always appreciative when they leave you. It's constant. He passes you in the kitchen, spank. You get up to grab something, spank. You're walking through the grocery store, spank. Picking you up from work, grabbing you in the barn, in the morning, before bed, coming out of the shower, the pantry, the kitchen, the shed, anywhere and everywhere, spank, spank, spank.

Even- No, especially, when there are people around. Like he's making a show of it. You shoot him a look and he just raises his brows, spanks you again.

He bends you over the counter while you're getting out vegetables for dinner and spanks you until you're whining, the feeling muffled by your clothes and just at the edge of painful. The worst sort of teasing.

"Never been discreet my arse," He grumbles, smoothing his hand over the swell of your ass, "should pull these down right here, but we got a full house apparently."

-

"I dunno," Goose tells Gaz in the barn, "Daddy's playin' some game, best to just leave it alone."

"Makin' it hard to walk around the house," Soap chimes in, scratching a barn cat, "Worse than walkin' in on my mum an' da." Gaz shivers.

"You don't have'ta deal with it, you're shacked up with Ghost," Gaz retorts.

"Don't have'ta-" Goose gasps in affront, "I grew up with them thank you! But no, I'm not comin' back 'til 'e's done."

"When's that gonna be?" Gaz grimaces. Goose shrugs.

"Whenever he's done I guess."

-

You wonder if you're losing it, or if he is, it takes until Price is pushing your face against the come starting to cool on the couch that you realize what's going on. The soft "clean it up baby, wouldn't want anyone thinkin' I'm not discreet," is what really makes it click into place. (you do lick up the mess, but in for a penny...)

When he finally lets you up you catch him by the belt loop and pull him back in before he can scurry off to do whatever he was putting off by fucking you.

"I was wrong," You admit. That catches his attention, makes him tip your head back with a firm finger under your chin.

"About what sweetheart?"

"You've always been careful when we have company," you sigh.

"Oh," The patronizing tone in Price's voice makes you shiver, "if you knew everythin' I wanna do to you all the time, you wouldn't 'ave doubted that."

"So you'll stop?"

"I didn't say that," He lets you go, and plucks his hat off the coffee table, "think you could still use a few lessons in how good my manners are. Don't you?"

[disneyprincemuke]

there doesn't seem to be anyone around

alternatively: others finally find out they're together

in which they're simply not discreet enough about sneaking around in the paddocks

(series masterlist)

"like we really shouldn't be doing this here if we don't want anyone finding out," logan struggles to speak, being pressed up against the wall in a discreet location of the paddocks.

the smaller girl leans up against him with a smile. "but i missed you all weekend. it's been so busy. need a makeout break, actually."

"we can just do this in my room," logan grins. "or yours, if you want - your room's much bigger than mine anyway. i can tell them i've got a headache and we'd get 15 minutes tops."

she takes a step back, hands on her hips as she tilts her head. an expression on her face that logan can't fathom. "do you wanna kiss me for good luck on the race or spend the entire time thinking of me?"

"i think of you during the race regardless," logan shrugs with a teasing smile. "what's your point?"

she throws her head back with a soft groan. she stomps her foot into the ground. "i just really want a kiss from my boyfriend. can you just- please, logan?"

"hm, that's not my name though."

"babe, we'll get caught with all your waffling," she points out tiredly. "the longer we're here the more suspicious it gets."

"okay," logan scoffs, taking a step towards her. "kiss?"

"yay," she grins. "i've always known you can't resist me."

"you're so right."

she smiles widely, resting a hand on logan's wrist as he tenderly grabs her face. she hums in satisfaction when their lips meet, gently walking forward to press logan's back against the cold wall. she bunches up the material of his fireproofs in her hands as she deepens the kiss, logan taking it upon himself to tangle his hands in her hair.

for a moment, it seemed that the world had melted away around them. it just felt like it was their world the way they were encapsulated in their kiss.

"oh sor- oh god!"

"oh, my god," she mutters, jumping off logan to the other wall. she wipes her lips on the sleeve of her fireproof suit, completely smudging her lipstick on the material.

as if her lipstick had not already been smudged all over logan's lips.

her eyes widen at the realisation of who's caught them red-handed in the act. it's one thing to be caught by the people who already know about the relationship in secret. but it's a completely different conversation when it's the biggest gossip of the grid.

"max, what the hell are you doing here?" she scolds, throwing her arms up into the air. "seriously?"

"what am i- what are you doing here?" max exclaims, turning around briefly to see if anyone had followed him this deep into the paddocks. there was no denying what he's seen now, especially with logan's lipstick-stained mouth. "i knew it! you're dating, aren't you?"

"man," logan mutters, shyly looking at her. "i told you."

"not the time," she scolds, holding a hand up to her boyfriend as she maintains her argument with max. "who even goes here?"

"i was running away from helmut! i just needed time to be alone before the race so i came here, and then i saw you," max rambles. he turns to point at logan, "and you! kissing! no, making out!"

"you weren't supposed to see that!" she shrieks, balling her hands into fists on her side.

"you're in a public area!"

"discreet public area!"

"still a public area, if you ask me!"

"yeah, but-"

"give it up," logan says softly, shaking his head. at that point, he'd wiped the lipstick off his lips on the sleeve of his dark fireproofs. "he literally saw us lip-locked, i don't think there's any arguing you can do to get us out of this one."

she turns to logan, an appalled expression on her face. "yeah, but he wasn't even supposed to be here!"

"we're not supposed to be here," logan states. he turns to max with a shrug. "yeah, we're dating."

max nods, slowly processing this new information. all the while trying to get the image out of the younger girl being pressed up against a guy. "how long?"

"two years."

"two- what?" max cries. "and nobody's found out? you've been able to hide this from the motorsport world for two years? there's absolutely no way!"

"lissie caught us like a year ago," she confesses, dropping her head in shame. "we were on vacation in a resort somewhere and she walked past us at the lobby."

"and nobody else has found out? you guys aren't being very discreet participating in a whole makeout session in the paddocks," max says, still trying to make sense of the entire situation. "really?"

"you believed us for like 6 months," logan shrugs.

"it's kinda obvious you're into each other," max shrugs, taking a sip from the red bull in his hand. "i guess i'm not that surprised if you put it that way."

"i'm surprised you're not with dumb and dumber," lando jokes as they walk the streets of japan with the sun shining brightly above them. "didn't get an invite to join them on their date?"

"funny," oscar laughs with a sarcastic smile. "no, (y/n)'s feeling a little under the weather and logan didn't feel like coming out - too cold, he said."

"interesting," lando says, surprisingly buying his lie.

of course, he wasn't invited on their date. but after a busy week spent apart due to differences in schedule, oscar made the decision to step away from their plans to give them some alone time together.

all oscar asked for was they bring him something back and joked about how generous he was to grant them alone time before they had to pretend they weren't hopelessly down bad for the other during the entire race weekend.

plus, there's always tomorrow to visit the ice cream parlour she'd been eyeing for a while before flying here.

while they never disclosed their location, oscar rapidly blinks his eyes trying to clear his vision of this couple up ahead that strangely resembles his best friends. and the girl is surprisingly wearing the same thing oscar last saw her in before he left the hotel room to meet lando.

oh, my god, that's actually his best friends out on a date.

the clear clue was when the guy rests his arm on her shoulder and she turns around to shove it off her while leaning forward to try and bite him.

"actually, lando, i think i saw this store i wanna go into earlier," oscar says quickly, hoping that lando hadn't spotted the couple hugging up ahead. "it's a couple blocks back, but i think-"

"hey, isn't that (y/n) and logan?" lando says excitedly, pointing at the same exact couple he'd just been analysing. "i thought you said- oh, they're kissing. why would they be-"

lando stops himself mid-sentence, turning to oscar with wide eyes, a loud elongated gasp and a dropped jaw. oscar, in turn, looks up at him with the guiltiest expression and he presses his lips together politely.

"george owes me 50 bucks!" he cheers, turning back to the couple in the queue for some sushi. "i knew it! they're dating! but... why would they..."

"(y/n) was scared of the backlash from the public. ya know," oscar shrugs, also turning to watch them with a scowl on his face, "woman in motorsport. being a woman in general dating somebody on the grid..."

"how sweet of logan to accommodate to that!" lando awes, a hand on his chest as he watches them sway side to side while she leans into his taller body. "aw! and here i thought i wasn't the only one with struggles to bag a girlfriend, and here they are crushing my hopes and dreams."

"sorry you had to find out like this. i was sworn to secrecy two years ago when i caught them kissing at the doorstep of her house."

"oh, wow. they're together a lot longer than i thought."

"how long?"

"i thought they'd just gotten together a couple months ago. i didn't know they were long-term." lando turns to him. "am i supposed to carry on like i don't know about them?"

oscar shrugs. "you can ask her if you'd like. she always jokes about the grid finding out eventually, anyway," he states. "she's actually more surprised that nobody's found concrete evidence until like... three weeks ago when max caught them making out in the paddocks. you guys had her questioning your intelligence."

"max what?" every time oscar speaks, lando learns something new that inadvertently blows his mind. "max found out before me? that grandpa caught them making out before me when i've spent the entire season trying to prove to george that they're definitely dating? i've even got a powerpoint!"

"unlucky timing, really," oscar shrugs simply. "are you gonna tell her?"

lando lets his linger stare before he shakes his head. "i'll let them keep their secret for a while longer. they're cute together, actually."

oscar smiles. "i know. i've never seen logan this... down bad for anybody in the entirety of our friendship."

lando hums, finally tearing his eyes away from logan who's holding a cup up to her lips for her to drink while she holds a box of sushi in her hands. "okay, i'll keep quiet for her sake."

"dude, i swear he's got a girl in there that's not (y/n)," alex whispers, pointing at the door of logan's driver's room. "listen to her giggle - that's not (y/n)."

"but i haven't seen her all day, mate. how sure are you she's not just snuck inside without you noticing?" george whispers back, pressing his ear against the thin wall to listen in like his best friend.

"he's sworn to hell and back that they're just best friends," alex explains with a roll of his eyes. "if i were him, i'd have given in the fifth time i asked because i asked him five times during pre-season testing in bahrain."

"but doesn't he always visit her room? you don't think she does the same?"

he's heard many speculations about the relationship of the two rookies. admittedly, lando's powerpoint dedicated to proving the existence of a possible secret relationship has changed his mind over the past couple of months. he actually kinda believes it now.

he would believe it wholeheartedly if they don't act like they aren't really close on race weekends. she's typically sighted with max or even lando, or just sebastian for a majority of her time on the paddocks. though, carrying her things for her when he didn't have to does make a compelling case.

"no, he almost only exclusively travels out to see her," alex says with a sigh. "you think we should knock and ask?"

"he's never going to tell you over the door. are you dumb?"

"he might - you don't know that."

"what are you two doing?" a deeper, sterner voice comes from behind them. alex doesn't even turn his head, just keeps his ear against the door to listen in on the happenings inside the room. it's strangely quiet now.

"he's trying to see if logan's got a girl inside with him," george explains to james, looking visibly tired of alex's antics. when james raises an eyebrow, george just shrugs. "he heard someone giggling for a mere millisecond."

"actually, i'm curious too," james mutters, shoving his hands inside his pocket. "anything yet?"

"no, they're very quiet," alex says slowly, nose scrunching as he tries to predict what would happen next. "oh, i hear footsteps. wait. someone's heading for the door."

alex quickly jumps from his spot, george makes a run for alex's driver's room and james simply stays where he is with his arms folded over his chest now.

the door opens, revealing a familiar face that everyone expected. logan lifts an eyebrow, watching the two friends scrambling to their feet and his team principal standing across his door. "hello."

"hello," james grins. "they were wondering if you've got a girl inside. claimed to have heard a woman giggling? i mean, unless it's a ghost, then i don't know."

"i was on a call with (y/n). she's still back at the hotel," logan laughs. he keeps his head on the inside handle of the door, poking his head out to look at alex. "nice try, dude."

but george can see a nail poking out from where he's standing, holding logan's wrist with a firm grip. he tilts his head to get a look at the gap of the door and the wall. there he sees it: he can make out the figure of somebody hiding behind the door.

"no way there wasn't anyone in your room," alex scoffs stepping up. he briefly scans the room from the outside with a frown when he doesn't find a trace of anybody else who could have been there. he sniffs. "your room smells like girl perfume!"

it almost wants to make george burst into laughter and yank the girl from behind the door. and then he catches her eye, eyes widening at the familiarity of it all.

he might not have recognised it if they hadn't spent the entire day pushed up against one another on a couch for panel interviews.

he just gasps audibly, catching the attention of the two other men in the room. logan's head snaps to george in worry before the tiny pixel of a manicured nail behind the door disappears. he can see her, from that very tiny gap, shaking her head profusely at him.

"i need to go find lando and pay him 50 bucks," george mutters, walking out of alex's driver's room. he pushes himself past the three men with his head dropped in shame.

"what for?" alex asks, taking his attention away completely from his previous hyperfixation. "that's a lot of money."

"i just owe him some money. i'll be right back."

— bonus: how her family eventually found out

the door rattles with the sound of a key being inserted into its lock. behind ciara who's scrambling to get the door open, she's bolting down the street to the best of her ability to catch her.

when ciara finally gets the door to unlock, she immediately screams for her mother, who answers that she's in the kitchen. she bolts inside, completely forgetting their house rule of no shoes in the house.

"mum, you'll never guess what i just saw!" ciara screams.

"she's lying!" the older girl screams, stumbling into the kitchen disheveled from the running. "don't listen to her!"

"mum! i saw her kissing logan at the mall!" ciara screams, pointing behind her where the couple stands. her older sister has her eyes narrowed down into a glare as she locks her jaw. logan, however, stands behind her with his hands in his pockets.

he just knows better than to interfere with their fight. (he once got in the middle of one when he was 17 and accidentally got smacked in the face which gave him a bleeding nose)

"we were not!" she retorts, stomping her foot on the ground and staring at ciara. she turns to her mother with a tired sigh, scratching her cheek. "mum! you can't possibly be listening to ciara!"

"she's got a boyfriend without telling us!"

"we can kinda tell," her mother answers in dismay, pouring the apple into a clean bowl.

"what?"

"yeah. what?" ciara scoffs, furrowing her eyebrows.

"you guys have been awfully closer since... well, for a while now," her mother shrugs with a small grin on her face. "also, you left a polaroid of him kissing your cheek at the beach on the entryway table. i'm the one who put it back into your room - not blythe."

she came from all giddy one evening from their first date, and blythe immediately guessed that she was seeing someone. the scream that erupted from blythe usually calm lips almost woke the entire house when she nonchalantly guessed logan correctly. they spent the entire night in her bedroom recounting the events of the night.

blythe has been covering for them for a while now.

"you're not mad?" ciara asks.

"she's an adult - she can make her own decisions," her mother shrugs with a smile. her eyes snap to the taller boy standing behind her eldest. "and i practically watched logan grow up - he's a good kid. i'm happy for you."

"she gets to have a boyfriend but i don't?" ciara scoffs, throwing her arms into the air. "she had a boyfriend at 16, by the way!"

the older girl scoffs, before turning on her heel. "you're 14, you nutjob. you don't have a case to begin with."

[lauraryuguji]

Enzo Vogrincic x Reader.

There you were, sitting elegantly next to Enzo at one of the many premieres that the new series generated. Your fingers trembled momentarily with the new anxiety, but it became something normal.

"Oh, a question for Enzo now." The woman said smiling as she opened a small piece of paper. "In principle, you and our guest of honor would never have played a romance in this series, but what does that mean?"

Enzo smiled before looking at you embarrassed and answering calmly. "Well, I didn't like her at all... I mean, it was a bit of jealousy since we shared a particular friend and suddenly she and he did everything together."

The presenter nods as she lets out a sincere smile.

"But our director came in one day and said that the show needed this spark of chemistry that we had. I was like, really? I hate that girl."

You laugh embarrassedly before covering your face with your hands, Enzo slipping his arm over her whispering some apology.

"But we'll get through this, my tantrum can't last long."He massages her back.

"That's magnificent, a real enemies to lovers." The presenter says gently. "The next question is for you."

You nod; everyone admired how you could be so discreet off camera and so expressive on stage.

"Did you know about this hatred of Enzo?" She asks.

"Actually, there's a scene where he says he hated me... and that scene wasn't in the script." You smile. "Coupled with his treatment, I might have had an idea."

"Let me defend myself." He laughs, raising his hands in surrender. "It was only a three-week hatred."

"But after that, Enzo became a very dear friend." You smile again, but notice how he looks at you differently.

The presenter finishes, you and Enzo wave to the camera before being released and heading to the dressing room. It was a short walk, but the air seemed thicker. Enzo throws himself down on the sofa and takes off the microphone, you remain standing, untangling yourself from the wires.

"What's wrong?" you ask him, and he doesn't even make a point of looking at you, turning his head the other way.

"I don't like the way the phrase 'Enzo dear friend' sounds." Enzo puts his feet up on the table.

"What did you want me to say?" his voice is always so soft.

"I don't know, maybe that I'm not your friend? That I'm more than your friend and less than a boyfriend?" he groans, staring at the ceiling."You know that's stupid, you're being immature." She shakes her head.

"Yes, I'm an immature shit for loving someone who doesn't have the guts to tell me they're with me." His words are like knives, and you're his target.

"Don't say that." The soft voice murmurs.

"It's not the truth?" For the first time he looks at her. His eyes are filled with confusion, heat, pleading.

"You know it's not." She looks at him. "Just stop and think about what you're saying."

"It's what I've been thinking for a long time." He stands up abruptly.

He waits for her to say something, he mentally begs her to tell him he's wrong, he begs her not to let him say those things. But she doesn't, she stares at the floor and doesn't even move when he walks past her and closes the door with a loud bang.

[munchmemes]

hozier lyrics, hozier (expanded edition)

❛  i should've worshipped them sooner. ❜

❛  we were born sick. ❜

❛  the only heaven i'll be sent to is when i'm alone with you. ❜

❛  i'll worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies. ❜

❛  good god, let me give you my life. ❜

❛  there is no sweeter innocence than our gentle sin. ❜

❛  it's toying somewhere between love and abuse. ❜

❛  no more alone or myself i could be. ❜

❛  [i/you] lurched like a stray to the arms that were open. ❜

❛  i lay my heart down with the rest at [your/their] feet. ❜

❛  i wonder if it's better now having survived. ❜

❛  i'm so tired trying to see from behind the red in my eyes. ❜

❛  no better version of me i could pretend to be tonight. ❜

❛  [they/you] found me just in time. ❜

❛  cause with my mid-youth crisis all said and done, i need to be youthfully felt cause i never felt young. ❜

❛  it'd be great to find a place we could escape sometimes. ❜

❛  we tried the world and it wasn't for us. ❜

❛  you knew who i was with every step that i ran to you. ❜

❛  would things be easier if there was a right way? ❜

❛  honey, there is no right way. ❜

❛  i fall in love just a little bit every day with someone new. ❜

❛  there's an art to life's distractions. ❜

❛  love with every stranger, the stranger the better. ❜

❛  all i've ever done is hide. ❜

❛  when you kill the lights and kiss my eyes, i feel ike a person for a moment of my life. ❜

❛  but you don't know what the hell you put me through. ❜

❛  it feels good to be alone with you. ❜

❛  there are questions i can't ask. ❜

❛  now, at last, the worst is over. ❜

❛  i know that you hate this place. ❜

❛  there's something tragic about you, something so magic about you, don't you agree? ❜

❛  there's something lonesome about you, something so wholesome about you. ❜

❛  innocence died screaming. ask me, i should know. ❜

❛  there's something broken about this but i might be hoping about this. ❜

❛  we'll lay here for years or for hours, your hand in my hand. so still and discreet. ❜

❛  i'd be home with you. ❜

❛  any way to distract and sedate. ❜

❛  i'm somewhere outside my life. i keep scratching but somehow i can't get in. ❜

❛  don't you stand there watching me, won't you? ❜

❛  don't you join in, you're supposed to drag me away from it. ❜

❛  i'm so full of love, i could barely eat. ❜

❛  [they/you] are sweet as can be. [they/you] give me toothaches just from kissing me. ❜

❛  no grave can hold my body down, i'll crawl home to [them/you]. ❜

❛  you never asked me once about the wrong i did. ❜

❛  [you/they] would never fret none about what my hands and my body done. ❜

❛  if the lord don't forgive me, i'd still have you and you would have me. ❜

❛  why were you digging? what did you bury? ❜

❛  i will not ask you where you came from. i will not ask and neither should you. ❜

❛  just put your sweet lips on my lips. we should just kiss like real people do. ❜

❛  i know that look, eyes always seeking. ❜

❛  i will not ask you why you were creeping. in some sad way, i already know. ❜

❛  you know better than to smile at me like that. ❜

❛  i know who i am when i'm alone. ❜

❛  you don't understand. you should never know how easy you are to need. ❜

❛  don't let me in with no intention to keep me. ❜

❛  it can't be unlearned. i've known the warmth of your doorways. ❜

❛  i'll find my way back to you. ❜

❛  my heart is heavy with the hate of some other man's beliefs. ❜

❛  screaming the name of a foreigner's good is the purest expression of grief. ❜

❛  i feel no control of my body. i feel no safety in [your/their] arms. ❜

❛  all that i've been taught and every word i've got is foreign to me. ❜

❛  it looks ugly but it's clean. ❜

❛  your fight and fury is fiery. ❜

❛  it's worth it, it's divine. i have this some of the time. ❜

❛  you called my name til the fever broke. ❜

❛  i heard a scream in the woods somewhere. ❜

❛  i turned and ran to save a life i didn't have. ❜

❛  i need you to run to me. run to me! ❜

❛  when i was a child, i heard voices. some would sing and some would scream. ❜

❛  don't you ever tame your demons but always keep them on a leash. ❜

❛  you've done me wrong for a long, long time. ❜

❛  after all you've done, i never changed my mind. ❜

❛  please, try to love me. ❜

❛  my love will never die. ❜

[cemeteryspider]

A Helluva Rescue

Fizzarolli x Succubus! Kingpin! Reader x Asmodeus

Summary: Inspired by season 2 episode 6, "Oops". Luckily Ozzie puts his best man/woman on the job to get Fizzie home safe

Trigger Warnings: Violence, guns, abduction, sexual themes, strong language, and general dark themes

Word Count: 1860

Being a famous Hellborn gave you some perks that so many did not have the gull to dream about. It gave you access to powerful people, and you climbed your way to the top of the Hellborn food chain. This is how you met the Sin of Lust, Asmodeus. You often provided protection for his dancers and other employees when they left the Lust Ring. Or when you personally delivered goods from other rings to the sin.

After a few years of this you met Fizzarolli, who's spunky attitude you had come to adore. You found yourself at Ozzie's nightclub more than you'd like to admit, and one night you had a red envelope with gold lettering sitting at your usual seat.

I have a different proposal for you tonight, meet me backstage after the show and we'll discuss

~Ozzie

As anyone who wanted the Sin and his imp could imagine, the rest was history.

Despite your relationship with Fizz and Ozzie you spent most of your days in Greed. Dominating the heart of Greed Ring, your empire sprawled amidst towering skyscrapers that gleamed with the opulence of wealth. The air reeked of ambition and desperation, the constant hum of financial dealings echoing through the crowded streets. You reveled in the cutthroat atmosphere and the relentless pursuit of wealth that defined this particular part of Hell. 

Still many days were spent traveling to other rings. You went to the Pride Ring a couple times a year, and looked after some business dealings there. Though you couldn't own a human soul, it didn't mean you did have proxies to deal in them for you.

The Envy Ring granted you access to different sorts of people who were willing to spend money to get things from unsavory means. You want authentic blood sapphires, you got it. You want real human teeth, it'll be x amount. You want to get your nails done by Pride's top sinner without ever stepping foot there, well you were sure it could be arranged.

Your favorite place however, was the Lust Ring. Not for the slobs who insisted that just because you were a succubus you wanted to bang, but for your loving and doting partners.

~~~

Ozzie large hands massaging your back, "Oh darling, these knots are deep, you simply must come visit more often"

Fizz's jokes at the club, "I know you're jealous, the people I bang are 1000 times hotter than you losers"

The pampering, the caring, and god the sex was amazing.

~~~

This time however, Ozzie called you while you were in a meeting with a new client who was in debt to a loan shark. Quickly you had your assistant take over the meeting and you stepped out into the hall.

"What is it Ozzie-bear"

"Hey Doll, Fizzie had some meeting in Greed today and I was wondering if you could maybe send someone to look after him, ya know, without him knowing"

"Why didn't you send people with him, Ozzie?"

"You know how he gets sugar, he gave me the puppy eyes"

With a little smirk and a roll of your eyes, you told him you would get your best and most discreet people on the job.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"No biggie Ozzie, gotta keep our boy safe and sound"

After a quick good-bye, who are you kidding with either of your boys, good-byes were never short. A long string of I love you's and see you laters was given before eventually the new client and your assistant left the meeting room.

~~~

Seated behind your lavish desk, you sifted through an imposing mountain of meticulously organized papers, each document representing a different facet of your empire. When your phone starts to buzz. 

"Boss, something bad just happened, Fizzarolli got into a fight with some imp then they were both grabbed, me and Hen are going up to find him but-" Two shots could be heard from the other end, and two thuds presumably the two hellborn you hired to protect Fizz.

You growled as you crushed the burner phone in your fist.

"Jazz, get my jacket, I gotta teach some bitches a lesson"

~~~

Fizz started thrashing on the floor of the cage they were put in, and Blitz looked as though he was about to explode. Then you waltzed in the door with your tail swinging in circles from your right hand.

"Hey Crimson, Hey Striker, long time no see boys' ' You jumped on a crate and crossed your legs. "I hear you have somethin' of value"

"Hey, Darlin', I sure missed yer face", Striker walked up to you and took your hand in his and placed a long wet kiss to your knuckles.

Internally you groaned, but you were going to get Fizz out of this no matter what. You pressed your lips together and crossed your legs a little tighter, "Mhm, Could say the same about you, Striker".

Striker chuckled a little and got back to business, discussing prices for Fizz like he was a slab of meat.

"I don't know Striker, we have a pretty lucrative contract on the books" Crimson teased.

Your brows scrunched, who could it be, and how did they get the word out so quickly. It took you less than an hour to get from your office to this dump.

"Hmm, I think I could find a quick buyer for the real deal Fizzarolli, I'll pay double what the other guy is paying" With that everyone in the room looked at you. Their eyebrows raised and a sly grin on their face.

"Double and I get to spend the night with ya, that's offers always on the table for you babe," As Striker propositioned, a flicker of irritation crossed your face – a testament to your aversion to these negotiations 

"How about I see the merchandise first?" You tapped his nose with your fingernail and gave him a smirk.

"Anything for you sug" With a quick nod the cage descended from the ceiling and you hands went to the guns on your hips.

Two goons dragged Fizz and another imp from the cage and tossed them at your feet. You almost let your emotions get the better of you when Fizz hit the floor with a groan.

"Can someone untie them? I want to see the merchandise before I buy it, and I haven't got all day" Again another nod from Striker, and the two were untied.

Fizz had his hands over his eyes and was silently crying to himself. Despite you wanting him to look at you, to give him some reassurance, you also hoped he didn't just in case he revealed your relationship with him. Unlike Fizz and Ozzie, your relationship to them was more discrete. The other imp was still shouting, and you saw a gun holster, minus the gun, on his hip as well.

"I'd take the other imp, off your hands as well, he'll make a delicious snack for whoever buys Fizzarolli" Striker walked up to Crimson and started to discuss pricing on Blitz, with the right numbers Striker would give him to you because, as you learned, everything has a price.

You stalked over to Blitz, though the affiliation with guns was the only thing you knew about him, walked around him for a moment, quickly cutting the tape that still bound his hands with your sharp fingernail. Making eye contact with him you pressed a finger to your lips and shoved a gun in his hand without anyone noticing.

A smile spread across Blitz's face as you grabbed Fizz and threw him over your shoulder and started to make a run for it. You shot everyone you saw on the way down the stairs, while Blitz covered everyone behind you.

Once Fizz was safely in the car you continued to cover Blitz until he made it as well. However, before you could get in the car and signal to the driver to get away Striker pressed the hot barrel of his gun to your temple.

"Well sugar, I guess this is checkmate" But just before he could pull the trigger, Asmodeus appeared, snatching the gun from his hands and throwing it across the street.

"Just what do you think you're doing?" Ozzie growled in Striker's face. Ozzie grabbed him by the throat and squeezed. You just put a hand on his huge forearm, and he threw Striker to the ground.

With a growl the great Asmodeus shrunk and fit himself into the limousine with the two imps and succubus.

The driver peeled out of the place as soon as the door was closed and you collapsed into the nearest seat. Fizz huddled in a dark corner, his breaths coming in rapid gasps as panic gripped him. Your heart sank at the sight, a mix of worry and determination flooding your thoughts. Despite the familiar smell of wherever he was, he couldn't shake the danger of the gunfight or being held captive so quickly. Blitz stood over him leveling the gun at your forehead.

"Does ANYONE want to tell me what the FUCK just happened"

~~~

The screeching tires signaled your escape, but the tension lingered in the air, still adrenaline was high in all parties involved. 

You explained the situation to Blitz while pulling Fizzarolli in between you and Oz who smiled up at the both of you.

"Ah Fizz you could've just told me you were fucking them", Ozzie, sensing Fizz's discomfort, shot Blitz a stern glance, causing him to back off immediately.

Blitz was waiting for the car to stop where he could get out and call someone who's name was Loona.

Once that happened you, Fizz, and Ozzie snuggled up in the backseat with both Fizz and Ozzie tearing up.

"I'm so sorry that happened Froggie, you will be getting a full escort the next time you even leave the mansion" Ozzie coddled Fizz all the way to bed and you tucked him in and told him that you and Ozzie had to talk business for a minute.

"Thanks for the save back there Ozzie, I would've been done for, if it wasn't for you" The slight burn on your head pulsed, a persistent reminder of the close call, but you dismissed it, not wanting Ozzie to worry unnecessarily.

"Sweetheart, you didn't tell me you were hurt" He grabbed your right shoulder and inspected the bullet wound that must've just grazed you, and the small burn on your temple you tried to hide with your fingers.

"I didn't even notice it Ozzie" Still he sat you down on his desk and bandaged you up.

"There, Doll, all better" You smiled as he kissed the white bandages, and picked you up to take you to bed. "By the way, Doll, you did all the heavy lifting".

You snuggled in a little closer to his chest and breathed out content with the moment.

"Breakfast tomorrow?" You mumbled already falling asleep.

"Always, pancakes with extra whipped cream" He set you between him and Fizz where you usually slept.

Your boys tangled their limbs with your and scooched as close as they could to snuggle up with you.

[thegreathuxton]

Pillow talk, please.

Anything for you, nonny. 🥰

(18+ AGED UP CHARACTERS)

DEAD DOVE, DO NOT EAT. (You have been warned)

Anthony Lockwood x fem!Reader

The talking always starts before you even reach the bed.

Lockwood is a gentleman, so he'll keep it discreet and won't do anything too risky.

But, man, your face will be all red by the time he gets his hands on you.

Once you're alone, he is absolutely filthy.

He really does keep it quiet. He doesn't want anyone but you to hear him, and he wants no one but him to hear you.

Super big on praise. If you don't like being called a good girl, get out.

He's always up against your ear or has his forehead pressed to yours, staring into your eyes and watching your expressions as he moves.

"Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey," he says in rapid repetition. "Don't hide. Let me look at you..."

He grabs your wrists and slowly brings them away from your chest and places them above your head. He keeps them there with one large hand. "That's it, sweetness. Good girl..."

He presses a soft kiss to your lips and then lets his hand trail down to your chest. He takes one mound and palms it almost greedily.

"Prettiest tits I've ever fucking seen," he mutters against the skin of your neck. "Can't understand why you'd want to hide 'em from me." His hand keeps moving, trailing down to your warm cunt and sliding two fingers between the lips. Your back arches. He grins. He lets one of your hands go free but keeps the other right where it is, above your head. "Put your fingers down there for me," he whispers in your ear, teeth grazing your lobe. "Spread those lips nice and wide. Lemme see your pretty pussy... That's it... nice and easy, hm? Fuck, we'll have to wash these sheets tomorrow. You're dripping like a faucet."

Your fingers have replaced his, and you've spread the lips wide open. He leans back and gazes down at it, smirking.

"This beautiful body," he murmurs, "it's all mine, isn't it? Say it for me..."

You repeat what he wants. He's pleased enough. He slides his middle and ring finger into your entrance, all the way to the knuckle. You moan, and he places his hand over your mouth gently, of course.

"I'm gonna make you come on my fingers, alright?" He says and places a kiss on your forehead. "Just lay back and relax for me, love. This will only take a few moments..."

[difeisheng]

for the last first time

A sequel to @ilgaksu's ficlet, which you can read here. We're both terrible enablers of each other, which results in things like us spontaneously deciding to start a fic series at a time when both of us should have been asleep. You can also find both our ficlets on Ao3 here.

This investigation should have proceeded like any other. Or at least what Di Feisheng would consider any other, with precedent set by all the cases he's been dragged into solving: make observations on your own as much as possible, be discreet, then ask around for clues if necessary. By simple inquiry or by interrogation, whichever is required. Being at Fang Duobing's side, day in and day out, means that Di Feisheng is expected to try the former first, excruciating as it is. Fortunately he doesn't often have to make conversation himself, not when Fang Duobing has enough words for both of them, and probably one person more. 

    There's nothing much left for Di Feisheng to do, in such cases, but wait until he's done. Standing in contentedly threatening silence, while Fang Duobing's pleading dark eyes work to whatever confession-eliciting effect they seem to have, alongside the charm of a person who acts like they have patience for other people and genuinely seems to mean it.

    And this is where today deviates from that standard of 'any other', because asking around for clues, more often than not, demands venturing into places where lips are likely to loosen with wine, or food, or money. These Di Feisheng can tolerate, the hazy chatter of a tavern or anonymous sea of a marketplace. The disappearance of this particular local aristocrat Fang Duobing is looking into, however, has led them somewhere else, areas in which the man liked to spend his time. As it turns out, brothels draw everyone from the peasants to the magistrates, and so there information can be traded for alongside pleasure.

   For some, anyway. Di Feisheng straightens his posture, grips his blade more tightly, and shuffles his stance to look out at the bustling street. The lanterns strung between buildings, casting a warm glow over the city as dusk crests over the horizon. The sky, settling from blue to inky violet. The calls of street vendors and clusters of people finding their way home or out of it.

    Essentially, facing anywhere that isn't the sweet-faced girl outside the door of the brothel behind him, probably no more than twenty and, based on her expression and the lilting beckon of gongzi when Fang Duobing parted with Di Feisheng here, wanting more from him than as much indifference as he can politely project.

    Why did Fang Duobing insist on paying a visit during the evening? Oh, he knows— It'll be easiest to find information when it's busy, and we'll be less conspicuous, he'd said to Di Feisheng's blank stare that morning— but really, they couldn't have tried for before every courtesan had settled into their evening routine?

    You're not shy about this, are you, A-Fei? Fang Duobing had smiled then, as though he wasn't still half-draped over Di Feisheng with the sheets a tangled mess, the underrobe sweat-clinging to Fang Duobing the only clothing on either of them. And Di Feisheng had turned over in demonstrative answer, had bitten another blossoming mark into Fang Duobing's clavicle that was only barely hidden by his collars when they rolled out of bed—

    And apparently his plan for Di Feisheng's reluctance was to let him stand outside this pleasure house by himself.

    (No, he's not shy. It's simply that this many years on, Di Feisheng has never known need to navigate an establishment like this. For all that Fang Duobing never seemed to grow close to them, women still have a better chance at turning his head. Or at least of him being able to convincingly pretend as such.)

    (Only a single instance of life and death could draw that act out of Di Feisheng. He would, to the point of being poisoned instead, rather not relive that again.)

    "Gongzi, wouldn't you like to come inside and warm up?" the girl at the top of the steps calls, presumably to him. "I'd hate for you to catch cold. Winter will be here soon, you know." Di Feisheng closes his eyes, and bites back clipped words, about how he's faced things far worse than autumn wind. Even while making a quiet joke of himself lurking outside a brothel. What's taking Fang Duobing so long?

    From behind him comes the gentle clink of stone jewelry, soft, light footfalls along the ground toward him, and it seems this time Di Feisheng can't use mishearing the girl as an excuse. What can he think of to say, as a soft rejection, between this moment and the one when she'll approach him? Too late, that instant approaches; Di Feisheng turns, readies something (nothing) on his tongue—

    And it's Fang Duobing who's there, a whirlwind in the next breath, grip like iron landing on Di Feisheng's forearm. "A-Fei," he says, half-breathless, eyes wide in the dawning dark like he's seen a ghost. Before Di Feisheng can form a single sentence he's being hauled up the steps, past the startled form of the girl, stumbling after Fang Duobing by instinct.

    "What are you doing?" he manages to get out, stopping before he's pulled through the doors. Only years of balancing in far more precarious situations keeps Di Feisheng from tripping over the threshold. The sign above declares this place the House of Scarlet Delights, in well-kept paint. He glares at Fang Duobing, trying to shove the boy's arm off of him.

    "A-Fei," Fang Duobing says, again, more insistently and this time tinged with the inflection of every bit the heir to a wealthy estate, one that signifies he expects to be listened to. Because he seems to have forgotten any other way to communicate, apparently.

    Di Feisheng, for his part, had forgotten that Fang Duobing is comparable to himself in stature and strength, and so it only takes one off-guard yank with renewed vigor for him to nearly fall forward through the doorway.

    The noise of laughter and music crashes over Di Feisheng, from a gentle ebb outside to being struck by a wave. Everywhere in this place is colour, in clothes, lights, art and hangings along the walls, but none of it is of interest to himself. Nor to Fang Duobing, who pulls him through scattered groups of other customers as soon as Di Feisheng is steady on his arm, without time for surprise to settle. His grasp slides down Di Feisheng's wrist, then laced with his hand, in his hasty steps a pace ahead.

    Later, Di Feisheng won't be sure if it is the people around him who part in his path, or whether it is the first caught sight that urges him forward without thought through everyone else, until he stands before a low dais at the opposite end of the hall. And there, a slim figure kneeling with a flute in his hands, jade-green and vaguely familiar, is... is....

    "It's him," Fang Duobing says, faraway sound like Di Feisheng is underwater along with the rest of the room, and he doesn't need Fang Duobing to state the obvious, anyway. Not when Di Feisheng would know the set of those shoulders, the wear of the hands that wield the flute like they once did a sword, anywhere, draped in black and green silk though they are. Not when he would be able to recall the amused smile of his eyes, and the shape of his mouth when it held some unasked-for remark, even if he were without his memories, and knows for a fact that he did once. The unfamiliar rouge touched to his lips, the fall of his hair, snow-white like the morning after a winter storm, could never distort any of that.

    The musician tilts his head, a charming performance calculated, and at his sight brushing across Di Feisheng's, time seems to freeze.

    All that's left in the world is Di Feisheng, and Fang Duobing's hand a lifeline aligned with his own, and relief-joy-relinquished grief all at once, at someone who is dead twice and somehow alive before him again.

    Li Xiangy— Li Lianhua, Di Feisheng tries to speak, or whichever one it is. No sound works its way from his throat.

    The figure kneeling before him glances forward, gaze falling level with Di Feisheng's own, holding him there. Fox to prey.

    There is nothing, in this moment, he truly needs to say at all.

[haesunlover]

long to be home. (chapter one)

pairing: huang renjun x female!reader

series genre: fluff, angst, suggestive, eventual smut

word count: 4.8k

chapter warnings: fluff, angst, slightly suggestive, talks of smoking, daddy issues, english dialogue is in italics, korean dialogue is normal, renjun is so hot it makes me sad, i want a renjun in my life, mentions of stealing cars, swearing.

a/n: ahh, i'm so sorry for taking so long to update! i've had this in my drafts for a while but i had a (very expensive) family emergency hence my long absence. but i'm back now and hopefully updating more often! please enjoy.

renjun had a concentrated look on his face as he fixed your cap and mask, "remember, my love. we need to be extremely discreet. no mask or hat removals unless absolutely necessary. at least until we reach the flight lounge."

you nodded your head, leg shaking up and down in the car as it pulls up to the airport drop off zone. the anxiety is really start to bubble up at this point. renjun can instantly tell and grabbed onto your hand that was in your lap, giving a quick squeeze for assurance.

the driver put the car into park and jumped out of the car to help unload yours and renjun's bags. the two of you exited the car, seeing that there was barely anyone around which instantly put half your mind at ease. renjun made his way from his side of the car towards you on the path, grabbing his bags. "you ready?" he asked.

you grabbed your bags as well, letting out a sigh. "as ready as i'll ever be."

the jets roared to life as the plane began to take off the incheon runway. the loving boyfriend renjun is, booked first class tickets for the two of you, so you could feel more relaxed about the upcoming few days. thankfully, the plane was a quiet one with only about ten other passengers on the 3am flight. 

as the plane began to ascend, renjun turned to you in the daybed the two of you were sharing. "alright, let's go over the plan again. your friend picks us up, takes us to the hotel, we get checked in and then.." renjun trailed off, waiting for you to finish his sentence.

"we get dressed and go surprise my mum."

"wait, she doesn't know you're coming?" renjun asked surprised. "i thought everyone would know you're coming."

"i thought i'd be nice to surprise her! i haven't seen her in nearly two years." you said, pouty.

renjun laughed, throwing his head back. "what if she's not home?" he asked, still laughing.

you thought about it for a second, "then i'll just let myself in."

he kept laughing, just a lot softer this time. "baby, how are you supposed to let yourself in?"

you hold up your index finger to his lips over his mask, giving him an playful annoyed look. "it doesn't matter. we'll figure something out."

renjun nodded, grabbing your wrist and pulling it down onto the pillow where your heads were resting. "alright. and.. have you spoken to your father about coming?"

your face dropped at his question. "uh, no not yet. i'm honestly not sure if i want to see him." you mumbled, recalling the memories of your father in the last year of being in australia. as if watching your already broken family fall apart even more wasn't bad enough, your father turned into a man you didn't even recognise anymore. he turned from an emotionally unavailable father into a drunk, drugged up angry narcissist. 

your boyfriend nodded, putting his arms under his head. he just stared, waiting for you to continue at your own pace. "i vowed never to see him again but.. at the same time i want closure? i absolutely resent him. i bet you, we could go to any place in australia and he would've ruined it for me somehow. he's done that much damage." you resumed.

a sigh left renjun's lips as his hand comes up to rub circles onto your waist. "i understand. have your siblings seen him since everything went down?" he asked.

"i don't think so." you replied.

"that's alright. you guys do what you have to do."

"ugh, i love how supportive you are. no matter what. i love you so much." you sighed, wrapping your arms around his head and neck, pulling him to your chest. he reciprocated the hug, nuzzling into your chest. 

"is there anything i need to know about your family before i meet them? it'll be the first time. please give me a run down on them so i don't mess up. saying a quick hi on the phone is very different than actually meeting them." he mumbled into your top.

you pulled away, "oh baby, you might wanna sit up for this. it's a lot."

he sat up on the daybed, following your actions. "alright i'm ready."

"my mum, sooyoung, she is.. pretty much me. we have the same personalities. please don't go into shock about how we treat each other. it's just how we roll."

renjun nodded intently.

"my step dad, david, is australian. i've only met him once when they came to visit before me and you even met. he's super lovely. he treats mum well so that's all that matters. there is one problem though. he only speaks english."

your boyfriend ran his hands over his face, groaning. "shit, i'm not confident enough to have full conversations in english."

you leaned over, grabbing his hands away from his pretty face. "baby, trust me. you'll be fine. you speak english really well. if you get stuck, i'll be there to translate. or mum or my siblings." you assured him, giving the backs of his hands a quick kiss.

he let out a deep breath, nodding his head. "alright, tell me more about your siblings."

"well.. let me make it easy. think about pokemon. sunhi, my older sister, is the original, boring one. jae, my younger brother, is the next evolved one. kinda boring but also kinda fun. then i'm the most evolved because i think i'm the best sibling." you explained, hoping not to sound too crazy.

renjun stared at you confused, his mouth slightly agape. you mumbled a quick, 'what?' due to your confusion from his reaction. "did you really compare you and your siblings to pokemon?"

you nodded your head excitedly, "yeah! trust me, it'll make sense once you meet them. they will definitely torment you for the first few hours so just brace yourself for it. they would just want to approve of you. i also have two stepsisters but i've never met them personally. all i know is that they like dolls and kpop."

your boyfriend sighed, eyes flicking around the place as he mumbles to himself, trying to absorb all of the info. "okay, i think i got it. i just hope they like me." he pouted, feeling a bit nervous himself. 

"oh my baby, come here." you said, pulling him into a quick hug. "you'll be fine."

"they know i'm an idol, right?"

"uhm.."

"right?"

after clearing customs and baggage claim, you and renjun walk into the waiting area of the international arrivals lounge at the airport. the sun was starting to set as the time was around 5pm. the lounge was packed and loud with people sitting and standing all over the place.

"shit." you whisper under your breath, the mask helping to muffle the sound. "can you see lia?" you asked, pushing the trolley away from the main door to try and have a better look for her. all of a sudden, you hear a squeal and see a bright green poster wave in the air.

"found her." renjun laughed, walking towards the sign. finally lia emerged from the sea of people with a bright smile on her face. she comes running to you, to which you embrace her in a big hug. her giggles vibrate on your chest before the two of you pulled away.

"hi guys! welcome to australia." she exclaimed excitedly, showing off the sign. you and renjun inspected it before you gasped and quickly snatched it out of her hands. renjun tried to grab it off you, wanting to have another look.

"please, i wanna see the photos!" renjun argued playfully before you finally gave up and let him look at the sign again. glued onto the sign was big, bold letters reading 'welcome home' along with photos of you and lia from the two of you were in high school, many years ago.

"lia.. you are off to a bad start." you sighed with your face turning extremely red.

"y/n, you were so cute with your little glasses and high ponytail!" renjun cooed, rolling the poster up and putting it with your luggage. "hi lia, i'm renjun. it's so lovely to finally meet you in person." he formally introduced, holding his hand out for lia to shake.

"oh renjun, as long as you treat y/n well then there is no need for formalities." she smiled, pushing his hand away and pulling him into a hug instead. renjun sighed and hugged her back, happy that he's already got the approval of someone important. "besides, you've heard so many of mine and y/n's in depth and gross stories over the phone that i think it'll be weird for you to be so formal."

renjun pulled back from the hug, nodding his head with an embarrassed look plastered on his face, "yeah, i think you're probably right about that."

"should we get this show on the road?" lia asked, waving her car keys. 

"oh shit. renjun, did we pack any helmets? we'll need them with her driving." you groaned.

"hey!"

after getting checked in and ready at the hotel, the three of you piled into the car and began your adventure to your mum's house. music hummed softly in the background as stared at the streets passing by. 

"are you ready to meet them, renjun?" lia asked, peering at your boyfriend through the rearview mirror. you looked over your shoulder for renjun's response.

he let out a shaky breath, nodding his head slowly. "i think so. it's my first real relationship so i've never had to meet anyone's parents before."

you reached your hand back, placing it onto his knee and giving it a gentle caress. "you'll be fine, baby. just be yourself."

he smiled gratefully, placing his hand on top of yours. "do i look okay? first impressions are vital."

you scanned over his outfit quickly, taking in the black trousers and green blouse unbuttoned slightly. "you look amazing in anything, renjun. it makes me so envious." you sighed, turning back around to face the front. "do i look okay?"

lia shakes her head, laughing at herself. "you look like shit."

you quickly punched her arm, "shut up."

she squeals at the sudden attack, still laughing. "i'm kidding dude. you look cute." you glance down at yourself, hoping the blue, floral wrap dress was appropriate enough for the upcoming reunion.

"i hope so."

"why are you so nervous?" lia asked, finally starting to calm down.

"it's just so weird to be back. what if it's awkward? i left everything behind. besides being anxious about that, i feel like i've gone back to when i lived here and i'm the helpless teen girl who had no idea how to deal with any of her shit." you sighed, throwing your head back into the seat.

lia hummed, understanding your point. "it makes sense. i can't exactly comment about how you're feeling, well, because it's your feelings. but your family won't be awkward around you, i promise you. you didn't leave them behind, you left to move forward in your life. they know that. but you also gotta remember the good stuff too."

you let out a flabbergasted laugh, "what good stuff? my head is clouded with all the shitty stuff."

"remember how we used to steal your sister's car? all the late night maccas runs we had? the adventures we'd have when you needed to get away? all the times we'd go to the beach after school instead of studying?" she asked.

"you stole your sister's car?" renjun exclaimed, leaning forward in between yours and lia's seats. 

you nodded, reminiscing the times. "you'd understand why we'd steal her car when you see it." the roads became more familiar and soon enough, the street you grew up came into view.

"you ready, y/n?" lia asked, turning down the street. you hummed, nodding once more with your best friend parking on the driveway.

"ready as i'll ever be." you sighed, getting out of the car.

the white two-storey house stood in front of you. everything was still the same. the trees surrounding the front of the house, the doormat, garden gnomes from your childhood tucked into the maintained gardens, the single frangipani tree leading the way to the back of the house.

everything was still the same except now when you look at the house you once loved and called home, an uncomfortable feeling sat in your chest. 

[flashback to 2018]

"i'm not fucking doing this." you mumbled, grabbing the clothes inside the wardrobe and throwing them roughly into the suitcase laid out on the bedroom floor.

"y/n.. what are you doing?" jae peeked into the room, concerned plastered all over his face. your older sister, sunhi, standing behind him with a knowing look. 

you laughed tiredly, "i'm leaving. i'm not staying one moment more. they're arguing again. i can't stand it any longer."

sunhi lightly nudged jae out of the way, moving towards your shaking figure. mascara stained your cheeks from all the tears that couldn't seem to stop. your breath began to go the same speed as your racing heart.

hyperventilating, sunhi grabbed onto your arms gently and led you to your bed. "slow down. breathe." she instructed, sitting next to you and holding you close.

after several moments, your breath finally slowed down. you looked to your older sister, silently asking her for help. "i.."

"you're leaving for good? it's about time." she finished your sentence, knowing her sister intuition would be right. 

you nodded, defeated. "i can't be here anymore. i can't stand being in this house much longer. i can't stand being near that asshole. i need to leave. "

the screaming finally stopped down stairs. it was silent for moments before the sound of the front door slammed, echoing through the house. the three of you sat on your bed, watching your father from the floor length windows. he kicked his car's tire and yelling out a profanity at the top of his lung before finally getting into his car and speeding off.

"mumma?" jae jumped off the bed and left the room momentarily. he called out, leaning over the stairs. "you here?"

a quiet exchange happened on the stairs between jae and your mother. soon enough, they both came into view with jae's arms holding onto her. the colour drained from her face, seeing the scene of her daughters huddled together and a suitcase not too far away.

"you're leaving?" she asked, tears in her eyes. her eyes were already puffy, clearly emotional from the previous argument.

your eyes softened at the sight of her. "mum, i can't stay around him any longer. he treats us like absolute shit. i can't believe you only just realised what a fucking awful person he is. we've all been telling you for years."

she shook her head making her way to the bed. she sat next to you and pulled jae, her big baby, to sit upon her lap. "i know. he's gone for good. i promise."

a wave of emotions hit you. happiness, grief, anger, relief.. you fall back onto the mattress, all of your pent up feelings coming out in the form of loud, violent sobs. soon after, the other three joined laying down on the mattress, forming a cuddle pile with sniffles and cries coming from everyone.

minutes passed until the crying finally slowed down. sunhi cleared her throat, making everyone give her all the attention. "i think y/n should still go."

you shot up into a sitting position, staring at your sister as if she had grown another head. "he's gone so why would i need to leave now?"

everyone followed, sitting up as well. "y/n.. you have so much potential. you need to go, spread your wings. you can't be stuck here all your life. your passion and energy is so much bigger than anything you'll find here. go." sunhi continued sadly, giving a soft smile.

your eyes faltered from her face, down to your lap. you looked down in shame for even considering leaving after the past month that had just happened. the last month, filled with arguments, threats and tears which tore your family apart. "i can't go."

"why not?" your mum asked, shaking her head in confusion.

"mumma, he's gone now. i don't need to leave. i don't want to leave you alone."

she sighed, cupping your face. "my baby, you need to go. i won't be alone. i'm fine. my strength is you guys. your happiness is my happiness. you've been talking about going to korea for ages. so go there. find yourself. if it doesn't work out, then come home. we've always got a place for you. but i know it'll work it so please just go. for me.." 

you looked into her eyes, tears brimming them once more. you had to do it, not only for yourself but for her too.

a hand brushed against your back, snapping out of your daze. "you okay?" renjun asked quietly as you turned to look at him. 

you flashed him a tight lipped smile, nodding your head. "yeah, i was just thinking."

"be excited. you get to see your family for the first time in years!" lia gushed, coming on the other side of you. you couldn't help but smile at your best friend's optimism.

nodding your head and taking a deep breath, "let's go."

the three of you moved towards the front door with you opening at softly as possible. as you ventured into the house, you spot your mother hunched over in the kitchen with her back turned to you. a smile crept onto your face as the aroma of vanilla and butterscotch wafted through hall.

seeing her made all thoughts of worry and anxiousness fade away. finally reaching the kitchen, you placed your chin onto your mum's shoulder. "smells good, mumma." you smiled.

her head snaps to look at you with shock written all over her face. she screamed, dropping the mixing spoon into the bowl causing a loud clatter. she throws her arms around your neck, jumping up and down excitedly. "my baby!" she exclaimed still jumping.

by the time the two of you parted, tears filled both of your eyes. "what are you doing here?" she asked, cupping your face and scanning over your face. "goodness, you've grown so much."

a laugh fell from your lips, "mum, it's been two years. i haven't changed that much. i'm here to see you guys. we had a break and thought it was time to come home."

"we?" she asked, tilting her head in confusion. your mum looks over your shoulder to see renjun. a gasp fell from her lips as she rushes over to greet your boyfriend properly for the first time. renjun bowed down respectfully, staying like that for a few seconds. 

your mother grabs his elbows, making him stand back up before embracing him tightly into a motherly hug. you wiped away a stray tear that sneakily fell out. your heart fluttered at the sight of two of the most important people to you together. 

the two exchanged quiet words that you couldn't quite hear but that didn't matter as you saw jae descend from the stairs, "y/n?" he asked confused.

he came into the kitchen, trying to process the fact that you are standing in the same room as him for the first time in years. you stared at him in shock. he finally grew into his face and body. the cute little boy you grew up with was now a tall, handsome man. the curls that he used to try and gel down as a kid now fell nicely around his head. tattoos lined over one of his arms and he clearly found his style.

"jae? holy shit, you've grown up so well!" you exclaimed, pulling him into the biggest hug you could give. he reciprocated but with a hint of a hesitancy. he pulled back after a few seconds, still somewhat puzzled.

your little brother finally said something, "what the fuck are you doing here?"

everyone in the room, including yourself, laughed at his lack of a verbal filter. "i'm here to see you guys and also i need inspiration to keep writing my show."

he nodded his head, staring at you this time with happiness. he was never one to verbalise his love for anyone but his looks meant more than words. jae turned over to look at renjun who still stood with your mother with an arm wrapped around each other.

renjun's eyes widened and smile dropped as jae made his way towards him. the size difference between the two made you chuckled. your boyfriend stood up straight, trying to look the slightly bit bigger than he is but still jae towered over him.

jae scanned renjun up and down as if he was analysing him. your brother maintained a stoic face for a few more seconds before asking, "do you treat her well?" to which you boyfriend nodded straight away. "do you promise to keep taking care of her now and in your future?" and renjun nodded once more.

"i promise you. she means the world to me." renjun said with confidence now, a big smile on his face.

jae nodded his head, smiling at bit before extending his hand for renjun to shake. "then welcome to the family."

as the two exchanged greetings, the sliding door connecting the kitchen and patio opened. in came sunhi, david and two little girls covered in sweat and dirt.

"holy fuck, i'm sweating my tits off out there." sunhi sighed as she kicked off her shoes. she takes off her cap and throws it onto the table, smiling as she looks around at everyone. 

her eyes finally fall on you and her smile drops. it takes her a few seconds to properly register before she jumps into your arms. "geez sunhi, we're not little kids anymore. it's not easy to carry each other anymore." you wheezed as she clings all her limbs around you.

"suck it up." she whispered, holding on tighter.

"i missed you so much." you sighed, closing your eyes as you enjoy the feeling of being able to hold your older sister again.

after a few minutes, she finally lets go and stands for herself again. sunhi stares happily for a few seconds before patting your cheeks gently. "welcome home, little sis."

your stepfather, david, came over and gave a quick hug before gesturing to the girls next to you. "welcome back, y/n. this are my twin daughters, jade and mila."

you smiled, hugging each of the girls. "hi girls. i'm y/n. i'm sooyoung's daughter. it's lovely to finally meet you."

both of the girls smiled shyly before mila nudged jade. "is that your boyfriend over there?"  jade asked quietly as she pointed back to renjun.

"yes, it is." you smiled proudly. "would you like to meet him?"

the two girls nodded their heads as they moved to either side of you. as the three of you started to walk the short distance to renjun, mila spoke up. "he looks like a member from nct."

you brought your hand up to cover your mouth as both you and your boyfriend laughed in sync. renjun held back the rest of his laugh with an amused smile as he waved. "hi girls. it's so nice to meet you. i'm renjun. from nct."

jade and mila's jaws dropped, looking between you and renjun. "what the fu-"

"mila!"

"what the fudge?" the ten year old tried to cover her slip up. "are you really him? so that means you know mark lee?"

your boyfriend nodded, laughing. "he's my best friend."

"he's actually going to be here in a few days. so will all the members of nct dream." you said before turning to your mum and siblings to continue, "mark, one of the members, is rina's boyfriend. she's coming too."

sunhi clapped her hands in excitement, "no way! i haven't seen rina in years. i fucking miss her so much."

rina was practically apart of the furniture when she lived in australia. on school mornings, she was there before you even woke up and was with you until it was time for her to return back to her house. even on days when you weren't home, rina still made sure to come see your family.

"i'll need to make a lot more food. when are they coming? we'll have a party! to celebrate you coming back home and to welcome the newcomers to our family." your mother gushed excitedly.

"they'll be here in two days." lia said, coming into the kitchen.

jae shook his head in confusion, "where did you come from?"

"oh, i was filming the little reunion." she smiled, waving her phone. "hi everyone, i'm here too."

nobody was really surprised as she was there often to check up on your family for you. "we'll have a barbie. i'll go to the shops tomorrow." your mother started rambling as she walked to the whiteboard on the fridge and jotting down what she wants to make.

"alright, mumma. let me know what time tomorrow and i'll go with you. in the meantime, i'm gonna go show renjun around." you excused the two of you, sliding your hand into renjun's.

the two of you made your way to the front of house, back to the front door. you go through the hall, showing all the rooms he'd need to know. "my room was upstairs. should we go have a look?" 

renjun let out a hum in affirmation, following you up the stairs. "baby, your house is huge."

"i know right. it felt like a mansion when i was little. my room was just up here." you smiled as you turned right at the stairs. you halted, seeing the wooden letters you painted and stuck on the door when you were seven. you pushed down the handle, opening the door. 

everything was the same. the bedsheets, the posters and photos on the wall, the desk and piano, the reading nook. everything.

you stood still, eyebrows furrowed together. "they left everything the same. from the day i left. i thought they at least would've changed it into a storage room or something else." you muttered as you entered the room.

renjun walked closer the photo wall, inspecting each photo. "is that you, lia and rina?" he asked, smiling brightly and pointing to a photobooth strip taken while ditching school one day. you walked closer to him, leaning your head on his shoulder. you hummed softly, reminiscing the memory. "you guys look so different now."

you laughed, looking at him. "years of braces, accutane and dancing does that to you. gosh, lia still has her baby face. i'm so envious. she doesn't age." you mutter as you inspected the photo closer.

"thank you." lia said, coming right next to you out of nowhere. both you and renjun jumped and stared at her in silence. she flashed an awkward smile, scratching the back of her neck. "did i interrupt something?"

renjun analysed her for a few seconds longer before saying, "now that i've actually met her in person, she reminds me of jisung. those two would get along great."

your head shot towards your boyfriend with wide eyes, "right?! i've been saying that to rina since i met jisung! they'd be a great couple."

"and that's my cue to go. i don't need a partner." she said, grabbing her keys out of her pocket. "sunhi said she'll take you guys back to the hotel later. i need to get back home. i've got an assignment due tonight. we'll talk later." lia gave a hug to each of you two but lingered for a bit longer while holding you.

"thank you so much for today, lia. message me when you get home safely. we'll plan something for tomorrow." you smiled, staring at her lovingly while cupping her face. 

she nodded and grabbed your hand, swinging it for a few seconds before leaving the room.

a sigh fell from your lips. "it's so weird to be back. i wonder.." you mumbled, opening the wardrobe and grabbing down a box filled memento from your childhood. digging around, you felt the small carton of the box you were looking for. you quickly pulled it out with a smirk plastered on your face, turning around to show renjun.

"cigarettes?" he asked, shocked.

you laughed, nodding your head. "rina and i would have a cheeky ciggy some nights."

"i didn't know you smoked." 

you cocked your head, "there's a lot of things you don't know about me."

he squinted his eyes, looking you up and down. "i don't know whether to be scared or turned on. or both?"

a loud laugh fell from your lips at the same time a knock came on your bedroom. "come in!"

the door handle pushed down and in came a familiar face you didn't expect to see, especially not today.

[ouiouibaguettt]

Not so secret now?

Ingrid engen x Vera Nilsson (oc!)

warning: none i think / just slight kiss 

not so sure about this, leave request if you want!!!

Masterlist

─ ⋅◈⋅ ━─┉┈◈❖◈┈┉─━ ⋅◈⋅ ── ⋅◈⋅ ━─┉┈◈❖◈┈┉─━ ⋅◈⋅ ─

Narrator’s POV:

Vera Nilsson, our 22 year old Swedish prodigy, arrived at FC Barcelona in the 2020/2021 season and played her magic and won the hearts of the fans and the team.  She was a great help for the victory in the Champions League having made 2 assists and a goal but this one was offside.

//

The 18th of October 2021, is a very important date for Vera and Ingrid. The Swedish and Norwegian youngsters have become very close since Ingrid joined the team this summer. After two months of flirting they talked and got together on this date.

They were like a couple of teenagers. Soft kisses, shy caresses, they showed their love in private but when they went out with the team they were just best friends in the eyes of everyone. But looks don't deceive, they weren't as discreet as they seemed. For example, when a guy or girl comes up to Ingrid and flirts with her, Vera will stare at the person and automatically force a smile and say that everything is fine when Mapi and Leila decide to question her about the looks.

//

On 21st May 2021, it is the Champions League final in Turin. Vera was really nervous, as tonight's match was against Olympique Lyonnais. This team has already won the competition 7 times. As she and Ingrid do their a pre-match ritual, Vera sat in front of the Norwegian who was sitting in her seat, Ingrid did the young Swedish girl's hair. It was a way of expressing their sweet words like "I love you, and you're going to be amazing on the field" or "no matter what you do, I'll always be proud of you".

//

Vera couldn't believe it, the team had lost. She was frozen, that's what the rest of the team thought when they saw Vera sitting on the floor with her eyes fixed on the goal where she missed her shots that were so precious. According to her, it's all her fault if she had managed to put them in tonight would have been different. Still staring at the goals, she paid no attention to Ingrid, who came to land in front of her.

//

Vera's POV:

"It's all my fault, I let the team down, I didn't do the club and the shirt justice, I'm a disgrace" I said through my shirt while holding back the tears.

"No, you're not, Min kärlek, you did the best you could, okay? I’m really proud of you. You don’t have to carry the whole weight of the team all by yourself you know. And we're a team, as we often say, we win together and we lose together so don't worry, we'll get the trophy back next season. " Ingrid said, putting her hands on my cheek so that I could finally meet her gaze, a gaze filled with love.

"Stop looking at me like that" I say, turning red. "Like what?" she said. "Like you want to kiss me in front of all these people, and you know very well that I won't reject you” I say. “Vera?” she says. “Yeah?” I say. She look at me before she leans in and her lips met mines. After what seemed like an eternity, we pulled away to put our foreheads together.

“Not so secret now are you?” we heard Mapi and Leila ask.

“I guess not” I say locking eyes with Ingrid. “jeg liker deg” says the norwegian. “jeg elsker deg også“ I say with a little smile who had appeared taking the place of the frowns on my face.

We did loose tonight, but I ended up winning the love of my girl. Perhaps it was a blessing in disguise. Lyon we'll see each other again don't worry.

─ ⋅◈⋅ ━─┉┈◈❖◈┈┉─━ ⋅◈⋅ ── ⋅◈⋅ ━─┉┈◈❖◈┈┉─━ ⋅◈⋅ ─

Min kärlek (swd) = my love (eng)

jeg liker deg (nwg) = i love you (eng)

jeg elsker deg også (nwg) = i love you too (eng)

[punsmaster69]

4/JAN/20XX

"YOU... WANT TO?"

"yeah. let's go shopping."

i can see.

i can walk.

i can speak.

that's all i need.

i'll rest once we're home.

——

"YOU'RE SURE ABOUT THIS."

"yep."

"WE CAN STILL TURN AROUND IF YOU'RE NOT-"

"i'm good. c'mon."

——

"OH! LOOK AT THIS ONE."

papyrus held up a plush dog with a bow.

"you want it?"

he turned the stuffed toy in his hands, looking it over again.

"toss it in the basket, then."

"WE'LL HAVE TO SORT THROUGH WHO'S STUFF IS WHOSE."

"eh. i'll just cover it all."

"besides, i've only got a shirt so far."

i pulled the shirt from the bag and held it where he could see it.

"..........."

"𝘉𝘖𝘕𝘌 TO BE WILD..."

"it's cool, right?"

"...DO THEY HAVE OTHER SIZES OF IT?"

"probably. let's look."

it's been easy enough keeping him distracted. though, he questioned why i was opening my phone so much, so i've had to be more discreet about that.

grillbs says setup is going well.

——

paps looked at his phone with a frustrated expression.

"WHY IS 𝘕𝘖𝘉𝘖𝘋𝘠 RESPONDING TO MESSAGES TODAY??"

"dunno. anyway, check out this hat."

"A COWBOY HAT!"

"i'm the 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗳."

"sans serif."

"......"

he set a plastic crown on his head.

"AND I'M PRINCEPYRUS."

"what orders giveth thee, your majesty?"

putting his hand to his chin in thought.

"I COMMAND THEE..."

"TO GIVE ME A HUG!"

"hey, you knocked my hat off."

"IT'S FINE."

"I'LL PICK IT UP IN A SECOND."

behind his back, i checked my phone to check for updates on the party.

grillby said they were done with everything.

go time.

i yawned dramatically.

he immediately snapped to attention and looked at me.

"...LET'S GO HOME."

"THAT'S AN ORDER!"

"can't say no to an order."

——

"feels like we forgot something."

paps paused at the door.

"I DON'T THINK SO...?"

"definitely had to have."

"WHAT DO YOU THINK WE FORGOT?"

he opened the door, revealing the living room to be strung with various birthday-themed decor.

"birthday boy" was marked out from a sign strung on the banister, changed to read "birthday skeleton".

cupcakes with red icing and star sprinkles were neatly displayed on the table.

a big box with a bow slapped on top sat in the center of the room.

"...someone's birthday."

a unanimous,

"Happy birthday, Papyrus!"

he was utterly shocked.

"H-HUH?"

"WAIT, IS IT?!"

whipping out his phone to check the date.

"What? You forgot it was your OWN birthday??"

flowey looked incredulous.

"That's new. Normally you wouldn't have shut up about it all day!"

"and we didn't have spaghetti for breakfast this morning. he even forgot about it being spaghetti day, too."

undyne laughed.

"Sans, you distracted him TOO well. He even forgot what day it was!"

"NO, I..."

"I KNEW WHAT DAY IT WAS, I GUESS THE EVENTS JUST DIDN'T REGISTER THIS TIME."

"WAIT, DISTRACTED?"

"yup."

"I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN THAT YOU WOULDN'T OFFER TO GO SOMEWHERE WITHOUT A MOTIVE."

tori pat the top of the large box.

"Would you like to open your gift?"

mettaton started,

"You mention Gyftmas already being gift-full each birthday..."

and alphys continued.

"B-but it wouldn't feel fair to not get you ANYTHING."

"We got something to help with your stress!"

frisk exclaimed.

papyrus opened the box to a stuffed bear with socks on.

"Socks courtesy of Asgore."

alphys noted.

that bear is almost exactly the size of me.

which i know because he immediately looked at it, at me, then held it up to compare.

"Wow! You might as well replace the whole brother with that."

"It'd be just as mobile, too."

"Now, Flowey. That is not 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘺 nice."

"I'M NOT REPLACING SANS WITH A STUFFED BEAR."

"would you replace me with a real bear?"

"No way. That could never work!"

undyne shook her head.

"A real bear would do stuff like hunt and talk about politics and whatnot. Sans doesn't do any of that."

"It couldn't 𝘱𝘢𝘸sibly replace him."

"......"

"THIS IS UN𝘉𝘌𝘈𝘙ABLE."

——

they forgot to mark which cupcakes were chocolate and which were vanilla, so we got to play flavor roulette.

oh, and frisk gave paps a birthday hat. one of the pointy ones, y'know.

"Just felt necessary."

——

did i mention napstablook's got a birthday playlist going? pretty sick.

——

group board game session. it's what paps requests every year without fail.

usually he and undyne get into a financial deathmatch that lasts all night with that one money game, but he says he wants to do something else later tonight.

they're instead having their yearly deathmatch in a game ironically about the opposite.

i don't think they read the rules cards.

with that statement being applicable both past and present tense, either pronunciation of 'read' works there.

everyone else is, uh. you know.

playing the game as intended.

mostly.

pretty sure flowey is stealing pieces from frisk.

and grillby might be secretly 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 them pieces.

and i think mettaton brought his own branded pieces. and cards that work in his favor.

and i think alphys is still re-explaining the game to tori as they play.

——

[Toriel's handwriting.]

Frisk clapped their hands together.

"Any last things you want before the day's over, birthday skeleton?"

Papyrus sat and thought it over for a moment, before swiveling to point at Sans.

"....?"

"I WANT YOU TO GO TO BED."

"oh."

"let me-"

"NOPE. PLEASE PUT THE JOURNAL DOWN."

"I will finish it for you."

"Goodnight, Sans."

" 'Night, Sans."

He held a surprised and confused look on his face, but shrugged and got up.

"...alright."

"goodnight, i guess."

"EVERYONE."

"THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. GET HOME SAFELY!"

"Aw. We're leaving?"

Frisk pouted.

"We must go home at some point, my child."

"As soon as I complete this entry for Sans, then we will."

"Have a good night, Papyrus."

"GOODNIGHT!"

Papyrus visited Sans' room, presumably to bid him goodnight.

Oddly, he left Sans' door open when leaving.

He soon bolted out of his own room (Also leaving that door open,) with a book in his hand, and entered back into Sans'.

(He closed the door behind him that time.)

...Requesting a bedtime story, perhaps.

Everyone else has made their way home at this point. Reasonably so, as it is getting quite late. It is certainly time we do as well.

I will leave this on the couch for Sans to find in the morning.

Goodnight.

[sportswriters]

swing for the fence - m. chapman

pairing: matt chapman x female!reader | f, a, s | co-workers to lovers | wc: 1,734 | note: 18+ so minors do not interact!! speaking of matt, i'm sad there's no content for him, so i'm here to start something :D hope you like it!

i'ma throw it at you, boy better swing for the fence, oh boy my curves can be unusual to hit better swing for the fence, boy no coaching or no preparation, can get you ready the pressure's overwhelming, can you be real steady? (baseball, by leikeli47)

“help the giants clinch the playoffs, then we'll talk.”

that was your best answer so far to matt's flirting. since he moved to the team, you've been seeing each other a lot for business matters, that's how you got kind of close. you caught right away that he was a genuine guy — despite being talented and hot as hell —, so you couldn't help but giggle when his attempts started getting creative at the end of every meeting. 

“don't think we're gonna make it?” matt arched a brow.

“i think you need to make a lot of good runs. don't you think you're too busy to worry about me?”

“i'm sure when you get to know me better you'll know that i'm able to manage time and energy for everything that matters to me.”

silence. absolute silence. the staring contest was unbearable.

until someone called for you, taking both of your heads out of the gutter. the matter was not finished — a whole world of possibilities building up from there.

a few weeks later, the san francisco giants were one of the last teams to clinch the playoff spot. the crowd went wild, the staff hugged each other like they just won the world series. it was special, this feeling, it was unique.

the first date was at your favorite restaurant, located on the terrace of a building near your apartment. a small dance floor invited mostly couples to show off their teamwork. the smiles you were used to giving because of him turned into laughter, which made you want the evening to double in length. the second date was at a craft fair; matt was looking for new interests to make the most of his free time, so you helped him choose different materials to test which would be chosen — or prioritized. you accused him of luring you into a trap when you found yourself signing the list of participants for a pottery class. matt explained that, according to his research, it was an activity that would help you both get away from your work obligations for a while.

when you had the day off after another series, you went out for ice cream with the intention of returning home and chill for a bit. matt kissed you as soon as you crossed the threshold. you giggled and made an effort to break away from him, taking him by the hand to your bedroom. with all the lights off, you turned on only the yellow lamp next to the bed. the discreet light managed to highlight matt's hungry eyes on you. 

he could hardly focus on anything other than your body, especially your lips, which had already got him hooked since the second date. the way he kissed slowly and intensely, the way your tongues touched, the way his teeth gripped your lower lip made you light up. matt let out little sighs, showing himself to be just as affected as you.

“there's a matter i need to get rid of before we go on to what you've imagined," you said, trailing kisses down his jaw. your bodies were pressed together, his hand firmly on your hip allowing you to feel his cock slowly hardening. “i want to cum riding on your thigh. you have no idea how much i want that.”

matt turned his face away to look at you, his pupils dilated. he didn't even seem to be on this dimension. while you patiently fiddled with the buttons of his dress shirt, he took care of his own belt and pants, failing to hide his eagerness. 

“it's not that I'm nervous, it's just that i can't wait to feel you like this.”

you smiled, using one hand to pull down the straps of your dress while the other caressed his chest.

“it's okay to be nervous. it's a delight to know that you want this as much as i do.”

matt moaned softly, throwing his head back when you touched him over his underwear while running the tip of your tongue over his chest. he bit his lip, caressing your sides before removing your bra and panties. even though you held eye contact, you were still surprised when matt pushed you up — you only had to cross your legs around his hips. you squeezed his flexed biceps and pulled him in for another kiss.

matt sat back against the headboard, positioning you comfortably on his right thigh. the mere contact of your wetness with the man's warm skin drew a long moan from both of you. slowly, you began to move back and forth, your moans muffled by his lips. matt rested his open palms on your hips, not pressing down, just signaling that he would be there when you needed support.

your right hand moved down from his chest to press the bulge inside his pants. when matt threw his head back in a sigh, you took the opportunity to kiss his neck, tracing his pulse with your tongue. the excitement spreading between your bodies, the heightened sensitivity to the gentle, firm touch, the sounds of the bed, the deliciously uncontrolled shivers. some time later, when matt felt your movements slowing down due to apparent tiredness, his hands went up to your waist, holding on tightly, helping you to move more quickly on his flexed thigh.

“so good," you whined, seeking out his lips without interrupting the movement of your hand over him. “so close.”

matt grabbed the back of your neck, his fingers tangling in your hair, causing you to stare at him wide-eyed, completely lost in your own mind. “look at me. let me listen to you while you get there.”

you did your best to keep your eyes open, which proved more difficult than you imagined with that growing feeling in the pit of your belly. matt lowered his head to nibble one of your breasts, causing your movements to falter a little. you felt like a train without brakes, even though you knew the man beneath you would be right there to catch you. his firm fingers in your hair were showing you exactly that.

you moaned his name as you came. then, when you closed your eyes to enjoy the euphoria, he took the opportunity to press small kisses on your shoulder, waiting for you to come back. you couldn't decide if the delay in giving in to him had increased the intensity of that pleasure, or perhaps matt could have provided it many months before.

you both had the next morning free of work, so you spent a long time savoring each other. after recovering from a delicious orgasm on matt's thigh, you moved away just so he could lie almost flat on the bed, then got on all fours to suck him off while he struggled to keep himself sane inside your mouth as he caressed your ass that was upright. he pounded in you slowly, just like the way he kissed you when you first arrived. you could feel the climax building slowly, feeling like you had all the time in the world.

after showering, he ordered a nice takeaway, since you were both too tired to cook. then, you had sex on the kitchen table — him from behind, you leaning over the table, clutching the edge of the furniture as if it was the only thing keeping you from hallucinating. this time, matt ate you out like a starved man, then thrust into you, displaying an athlete's stamina that surprised you beyond belief.

at the end of that week, you started with the excuse that he had to concentrate on training. you couldn't risk your own job if someone thought he wasn't a hundred percent focused on the game because of you — even more so with the giants advancing so well in the playoffs. two weeks passed and that was enough for matt. he could feel your distance, he couldn't bear the feeling of going back to stage zero. he didn't understand what had changed, you gave him no reason.

but matt wasn't stupid. he wouldn't be the kind of person to walk into your office without considering the surroundings. so he decided to text you: "can i come and see you? give me any excuse to arrange a private meeting. please." so you did, after some thought, of course. you were aware that you couldn't run away forever, not when matt's job was to be damn fast. and passionate, passionate as hell.

“can i go straight to the point?” he said, the distress in his low voice. “i miss you, i don't know what happened to make you push me away like that. i thought i'd proved that you could trust me with this matter.”

“you're right, i'm sorry," you said. “the talk around the office is about the expiration date of your contract. i realized that i can't keep nurturing something that will disappear as soon as the season is over.”

matt looked stunned, to say the least.

“you're right, matt. i'm sorry i didn't warn you before.”

“y/n, people will talk about business, you know that. but real negotiations are private, and besides, my stats have been great for most of the season.”

you were trying so hard to show little or no emotion. why on earth were you talking to the man you like as if you were in a business meeting?

“i've seen it happen before. contract extensions aren't something directors usually do. it's temporary, we have to be realistic.”

matt got up from his chair and walked over to you. he took your hands so that you could stand up and come closer. the contact with the warmth of his skin after so long made you shiver. you tried to look away, but he placed his palm on your cheek and gently brought you back.

“i know you're trying not to be optimistic, so i'll do it for both of us. we don't know what's going to happen with the contract, but we do know that there's something real between us.”

“matt…” “i want you, i want what we have. i believe that's enough to make it work, no matter what happens in the future. i want you now, y/n. can you tell me that you're in this with me? can you tell me that you want me as much as i want you?”

[koinotame]

\o/

hi! it's me, nana / koinotame!

if you're wondering why i went inactive and then deleted, my mental health kind of (really) tanked... and i ended up deleting my blog in a fit.

it's getting better bit by bit though! and i've been wanting to get back into writing (and talking abt my unhinged/yan ideas i can't really talk to anyone else abt), so. here i am! for now, at least

as for my previously posted writing, there's some good news and some bad news: the bad news is that everything i wrote directly into tumblr (99% of snippets, a lot of ask answers, most exact content warnings, etc) is gone. the slightly less bad news is that iirc there were very very few posts of mine that weren't reblogged by anyone at all, so they're probably still out there? feel free to send them my way if you find any and i'll rb them. @/midnight-remembrance also has reblogged a couple of them! there's a couple snippets i have saved in some places, so i might repost those on my own as i find them, but there's very few of those. the good news is that anything longer (proper writing — oneshots, hcs, yan alphabet responses and so on, prompt responses, etc) is safely backed up where i originally wrote it! some of it is also on my ao3, which is the same username. feel free to send me asks about any you'd like to see again and i'll repost them! i might not post them if i feel too embarrassed about/wish i hadn't posted them, and i might rewrite/heavily edit some of them, but i think there's only a handful that fall into the former category and none of them were particularly popular. either way, no harm in asking!

as for some other updates: i'm a little divided on whether i want to keep posting explicit nsfw or not so we'll see. i might just keep it out of main tags. idk yet. regardless of what decision i make, this blog is still strictly 18+ and that will not be changing. since we can reply from sideblogs now, this is a sideblog and not my main now. why? sometimes i prefer to check up on a blog frequently instead of following them for a couple of reasons, but this felt very awkward when they were following me. so this being a sideblog relieves a bit of that stress. if this makes it sound like i have severe brain worms, it's because i do. to that effect though, if we interact every so often feel free to consider us mutuals regardless of whether or not i'm actually following you =w=b tbh i.............. am not really into genshin anymore. i might post about it here and there but i just Do Not (really) Care about it anymore. scara aside to some degree i also have no clue what's going on post inazuma lol whatever projects or commitments to writing or etc i had made beforehand. i forgot all of them so just pretend that never happened ok? ok i'll also probably be posting more sparsely, but we'll see! and (this is obviously the most important bit) i have no clue where i put the mika edit so we're back to my og classic pfp. the header scales terribly and is temporary, please ignore that too

all that aside, as a treat for anyone who sees this in time,

*roughly 6/22 done, but fairly quick to write. roughly one paragraph per character (sneak peek line: "it's not too hard to be discreet with his unique magic when someone really deserves to fall face down a flight of stairs. or three. oopsie. odd they don't remember it, huh? well, he had nothing to do with that.") **more realistic isn't quite the right word(s)... probably won't post this one to the main tags regardless. won't be doing all of the characters (only important/relevant ones) and won't be writing more about/expanding on, so this one is just like. a one off experiment sort of thing. overall less violent than most takes on the au + leans a bit (or lot, depending on how you look at it) more on the religious aspect of self aware aus. i wrote a couple paragraphs a while ago, then rewrote them, but i'll only finish/post them if there's interest for it (sneak peek line: "aether has deluded himself and cast You aside entirely on his own—and when You finally grace them with Your real presence, zhongli is certain aether will be the first to fall from Your grace.")

i have one other new thing immediately ready for posting that'll get posted in a couple of days but that one's pretty silly

[raaorqtpbpdy]

Phantom Boy (3)

When the Doctors Fenton lose their son in a lab accident involving a ghost portal, the distraught parents will do anything to get him back. Even if it means breaking the immutable laws of life and death. But that thing? That’s not their boy.

First Chapter | Previous Chapter

Chapter 3: A New Home (Read it on AO3)

[Warnings for mind control and abduction]

When Danny was finally released from the thermos, it was into a world of green, as far as the eye could see. He could only assume that he'd been sent to the Ghost Zone... like the no-good ghost he was.

It was strangely beautiful, in an eerie sort of way. The air itself seemed to thrum with an invisible energy that made Danny feel more and more ghostly with each passing second. His body felt looser and lighter, as if his insides had turned to smoke. Something in his chest grew colder and colder, though not unpleasantly so, and pulsed. It felt almost like a heartbeat, but backwards or inside-out, if that made any sort of sense. He didn't exactly hate the sensations, but subsequently, he also felt less and less human.

The wound on his leg healed rapidly with his newfound energy, even his jumpsuit somehow fixed itself. He found that it wasn't the slightest struggle to maintain his ghost form, even when he was tired. It almost felt like he couldn't change back to a human. His heart sank at that realization. He was forced to wonder if he was still human at all. And why he even wanted to be, anymore.

He drifted aimlessly for what felt like hours, though it was impossible to tell how much time was actually passing. There was no going home, even if he could find the Ghost Zone side of the Fenton Portal. That place wasn't his home anymore anyway—or rather, it had never been his home. It had been Danny Fenton's home, and evidently, he wasn't Danny Fenton.

So who did that make him, then?

His time spent lost in the swirling green currents came to an abrupt end when his back hit one of the many huge rocks floating around. There, he finally met someone. Multiple someones, actually.

Granted, he hadn't been there very long, but the Ghost Zone seemed to him to be as vast as outer space, populated with many objects, all so incredibly distant from each other that to a tiny little being like Danny, it appeared mostly empty. For this reason, he'd assumed it would take a lot longer for him to meet an actual person, let alone four.

The first was a young woman dressed like a rock-star, with flaming cyan hair and a guitar slung across her back. Her three companions were a hulking metal man with fiery green hair; a green old man with wild white hair, wearing tinted safety glasses and an old fashioned lab coat; and a little boy dressed like a cowboy, riding a skeletal horse. They stood behind her, watching curiously from a safe distance while she leaned down to look right into his eyes.

"I don't think I've seen you around before," said the only girl in the group. "What's your name, kid?"

"I'm... I don't really know."

"You're new, huh?" she said with a thoughtful tilt of her head.

From seemingly nowhere, familiar music began to play, drifting in from the far distance like a circus train chugging slowly into a station.

She tensed and looked off to where the music was coming from. "Oh no," she said abruptly, then grabbed him by the wrist. "You'd better come with us."

"What's that music?" Danny asked, but the other three all shushed him.

The metal ghost looked around tensely, while the scientist ghost pulled open one of the floating doors and ushered them all inside. Past the door was a huge engineering lab, not dissimilar to the Fenton Works lab, but much bigger.

Danny waited until the door was closed behind them all before asking, "What is this place? And who are you guys?"

"I am Technus! Master of all technology! And this is my lair!" said the scientist ghost, gesturing broadly to the lab. "Unlike my colleagues', my lair is discreet, and out of the way. We'll never be found here."

"I'm Ember," said the rocker girl. "That's Skulker and Youngblood." She gestured to the robot ghost and the child ghost in turn.

"And this is Skelton!" Youngblood said, patting his horse on the head.

The horse nodded and said, "Pleased to meet you."

Danny blinked in surprise. He hadn't expected the bone horse to speak. "Uh... same here," he said.

"And what about you?" Ember asked him. "Oh, you said you didn't know yet. Man, you must've died pretty recently, then. That's rough. We can help you pick a name."

"You seem to be wearing some kind of protective jumpsuit," Technus observed. "Perhaps a name that reflects your scientific background, like... Technus Junior! You could be my assistant!"

"Uh... no thanks," Danny refused.

"There aren't many ghosts as young as you, except Youngblood, obviously," Ember noted. "How about Baby-Pop?"

"Baby-Pop?" Danny pulled a face and shook his head again.

"You should pick a name that tells people something about you!" Youngblood suggested. "Like I'm young, and Ember has fire hair, and Skulker's a hunter. Something like that."

"You're a ghost now. Your name should strike fear into the hearts of your enemies," Skulker told him. "You should choose something threatening, like Oblivion, or the Annihilator! Tell me, ghost boy, what strikes fear deep into your core?"

Danny thought back to just a few hours before, to overhearing his parents calling him an abomination, a freak of nature.

Something that told people about him... something that struck fear into his core.

He's not our boy. He's just a phantom boy, a painful reminder of what we've lost.

He felt an ache in his chest at the memory of those words. Without his bidding, his hands clenched into fists at his sides momentarily, then fell open as cold despair crawled down his throat.

Yeah... that'd do it.

"What about... Phantom?"

"Ooh, I like it!" Technus said.

"That's pretty metal," Ember agreed, nodding with approval.

"It's got more of a classic feel to it, without undermining its inherent fear factor," Skulker added, considering.

"It suits you," Skelton told him.

"Darn tootin'!" Youngblood exclaimed. "That's one mighty fine name, bookeroo!"

"Buckaroo," Skelton corrected.

"Are you sure?" Youngblood asked, and the horse nodded. "Oh, okay. Buckaroo, then."

"So, why did you guys drag me in here out of nowhere?" Danny—Phantom asked. "Did it have something to do with that circus music?"

"Circus Gothica," Ember said solemnly. "The ringmaster, Freakshow, has a powerful magical artifact that can control ghosts."

"He is human, and he enslaves our kind for the entertainment of his, as well as to pillage riches for his own personal gain," Skulker explained with an angry sneer contorting his steel face. "His circus train can pass through the Ghost Zone to shorten the travel from one location to the next, and to give him the opportunity to enthrall more ghosts to join his wretched show."

"Since ghosts don't need sleep, he forces the ghosts under his control to perform non-stop," Technus added. "And when they're not performing, they're doing physical labor, or being forced to steal for him. No ghost can stop him without falling prey to his magical artifact, and no human has ever tried."

"Humans are evil," Youngblood said. "They don't care about us. They're either afraid of us, or they hate us, or they laugh at us in Freakshow's stupid circus."

"Oh... I see." Phantom swallowed. If that was how they felt about humans, he'd better not let them discover he was still sort-of alive.

"Yeah," Ember said. "Word to the wise, Baby-Pop, if you hear 'Entry of the Gladiators', that's your cue to exit the stage. Once you're under Freakshow's control, there's no getting out of it."

"I'll keep that in mind," Phantom said. He looked around the lab, trying to come up with a conversation topic that wasn't such a downer. If this was Technus' lair, he couldn't help wondering what the other ghost's lairs were like. They were probably related to their various interests and personalities, he assumed. "So, what do you guys do around here?"

"Well, once the circus is outta town, we can do whatever we want," Ember said. "Youngblood likes to play pretend, Technus is working on some kind of power-enhancing exoskeleton—"

"Ecto-skeleton!" Technus corrected.

"Skulker likes to go hunting—trap and release, of course," she continued, ignoring Technus' interruption. "And I've got a concert coming up pretty soon."

"You appear to have rather small hands," Technus observed. "I could use your assistance with my experiments."

"As long as I'm not the experiment," Phantom agreed. "I have some experience with labs. It could be fun."

"Excellent! Let me show you my designs!"

As long as they were all in his lair anyway, Technus put everyone to work. Youngblood's cowboy costume shifted into a mad-scientist outfit, and his horse, Skelton, into a skeletal mouse nesting in the boy's hair. After a short while, Ember poked her head out the door to listen for music.

"Freakshow's gone," she said. "His circus must be back in the human world again."

"Excellent," Skulker said. "I have prey to stalk." He and Ember said their goodbyes and left the lab.

"Is it okay if I stay here and play scientist some more?" Youngblood asked Technus, who readily agreed. The three of them worked together on Technus' mech suit, with Phantom suggesting some improvements, and Youngblood parroting scientific-sounding terms he didn't really understand.

After a while, Youngblood got bored, and convinced Phantom and Technus to play astronaut with him instead. It had been years since Phantom had played like that, but becoming an astronaut had always been his dream, and it was a lot of fun to goof around with Youngblood in a little space-suit and chimp Skelton.

There were no rules in the Ghost Zone. There were no responsibilities. Everyone did whatever they wanted to do, things they enjoyed, hobbies they didn't have enough time for in life, work they were passionate about. Phantom remembered his parents'... the Fentons' theories about ghost obsessions, but looking around, he honestly thought that none of these ghosts were halfway as obsessive as the Fentons were. They were just having fun passing the infinite time they now had.

Phantom was, too.

Time passed strangely in the Ghost Zone, but Phantom estimated it was about a week before Ember's concert, and, thankfully, no one found out the truth about him during that time. Back in the human world, he didn't think he could have stayed in his ghost form for this long, but that wasn't a problem here.

It was the ectoplasm in the air, he learned, that energized him, and made his ghostly powers stronger and more prominent. Maybe, under different circumstances, that would have made him uncomfortable—actually, he still wasn't sure how he felt about his human traits seeming to fade the longer he stayed there—but the truth was, he rather liked being a ghost.

He liked the freedom, and the lack of any sort of pressure or expectation. Among other ghosts, who were all happy and comfortable, he also felt happy and comfortable.

As Phantom, in the Ghost Zone, he felt accepted. He felt like he belonged.

Almost nothing in the Ghost Zone was time sensitive, so when something happened that was, a lot of ghosts dropped everything to accommodate it. Ember's concert was one of those time sensitive things. Technus finished up his work for the day and just relaxed until it was time for the concert to start. Skulker came back from his hunting trip hours early to watch his girlfriend perform. Phantom was excited for it too. It had been a long time since he'd been to a concert.

An open-air stadium drifted into view, and the ghosts all crowded in, the venue expanding to accommodate them all. Then Ember took the stage with the rest of her band. The music thrummed and the crowd was pumped, and Ember sang her heart out. Phantom was having the time of his afterlife dancing along with his new friends.

She was ten songs into her set when the people sitting at the back of the stadium started to get antsy, and for good reason. It couldn't be heard near the stage, but "Entry of the Gladiators" was playing outside. Word spread as the ghosts near the exits told the ones sitting in front of them, who told those sitting in front of them and so forth. Some ghosts were already starting to disappear, evacuating to the safety of their lairs.

Suddenly, Ember stopped singing. Her hands stilled on her guitar and she cut off the rest of her band. As a musician, she prided herself on her sharp ears, and before the message had reached the front row, she heard the approaching circus music of a familiar foe's black train.

"The concert will resume at a later date!" she announced. "Everyone get to someplace safe! The circus is coming!"

Immediately, the concert-goers did as she said, disappearing and flying away. If they didn't all have intangibility and flight, some of them could have been trampled in the ensuing chaos. Phantom and a few others hung back to help herd people out. Ember herself stayed onstage to keep everyone calm and direct them to the exits while her band left the stage. That was her downfall.

Phantom pressed himself against a wall to stay out of sight and watched as the train flew directly over the stadium. Most of the ghosts still in the stadium ducked for cover, but Ember looked straight up in horror at the ringmaster, Freakshow, clinging to the side of an open boxcar. His skin was so sickly pale he almost looked like a ghost himself, and he wore a long black coat, a top hat, and a wicked, wicked grin. In his hand, he carried a staff with a glowing red orb on the top, and when he shouted down to Ember to come to him, she complied.

The few ghosts still in the stadium, hiding under chairs or against the walls—Phantom included—could only watch as she joined his horrible circus. They were all too afraid to do or say anything, lest they too were enthralled by that wretched human's magical staff. They stayed hidden until the train's caboose disappeared and the circus was gone, back in the human world.

He hated it.

Phantom had already lost his friends once, when the Fentons sent him to the Ghost Zone in the First place. Being unable to do anything as another one of his friends was taken from him was too much to bear.

Next Chapter

[super-unpredictable98]

All Shook Up | Killing Bono AU

Chapter 2: Shaking Things Up

Warning: Strong language

(General Masterlist) | (All Shook Up Masterlist)

The next morning was cold, but Joyce was all ready to show the McCormick brothers what she could do. She put on her best outfit, did her makeup and hair, all while Gloria watched from afar with the most judgemental look on her face. 

"So, you like the malnourished one then?"

"What? No! I'm auditioning for their band, they are about to get signed with a super hot label and I wanna be in on it."

"Oh, so the cleavage, the sexy lipstick, the short skirt with fishnets... that's all for the audition. You're definitely not interested in that kid."

"I- I'm not not interested. He's cute."

"Oh my God! You slept with him!" Gloria gasped. "That's why you were home so late! You were getting down and dirty with the neighbor!"

"I was not!" Joyce exclaimed. She wasn't a prude or a virgin by any means, but because of her upbringing, she wasn't able to be as free as her roommate. Her parents always taught her that nobody wants to eat a candy bar that everyone has already touched and licked, so she was more discreet about who had tasted her candy. "I was actually not, he was totally high on cocaine, drunk as a skunk, I didn't think it was right, you know?"

Gloria nodded, she had to agree. Sex with someone in that state sounded horrible, she knew from experience. 

"So when are you planning on sleeping with him?" She asked.

"I don't know if I'm gonna sleep with him! If it happens it happens, I don't have any plans."

After carefully tuning her bass and placing it back in its case, Joyce made her way across the hall to their door. She knocked, but there was no response. She tried again, once more nobody opened the door, in fact it was so silent, it didn't seem like anybody was home at all. 

She frowned and thought about going back to her flat, but she couldn't stop thinking about Ivan, something must've happened for him to break a promise. At least she hoped so, they barely knew each other, but from their brief interactions, she didn't take him for a guy who would make a promise only to break it the next day. 

Hours passed and she was still sitting in front of their door when the two brothers finally came, both looking like hell. 

"Fuck! Joyce, I'm so sorry I- How long have you been here?" Ivan yelped. 

"Ever since the time we scheduled for my audition."

"You told her she'd get an audition?" Neil hissed, angry that his brother went over his head.

"Yeah! I think she'll be good," he argued. "But it doesn't matter anymore, the fella we were negotiating our contract with was kicked off the label and so were we. Literally, we were thrown out of the building."

"I'm sorry it didn't work out," Joy frowned, almost losing the last bit of hope she had in her to make it in London. 

She was about to get back to her flat and watch as Gloria made fun of her for being so naive and trusting, but instead, Ivan took her hand to stop her. "Hey, since you're ready and you're here, why don't you audition anyway? We'll have to start over with the band, so it's like a fresh start."

"You still want me to?" She asked.

"Course, we still need a bass."

"Okay then."

Joyce followed the two brothers inside and set everything up. They did as well, preparing to play something and see how she would fit in with their sound. 

"Do you have any preference?" Ivan asked, getting his guitar. 

"Um... I'm sure you guys know U2?" 

"NO!" Neil shouted like a crazy person. "We're not playing U2!" 

"Shit, okay," she nearly jumped back. "Sorry, I didn't know you were not a fan. Maybe Queen then? Another One Bites The Dust?" 

"Brilliant," Ivan smiled, trying to make up for his brother's exaggerated reaction. "You wanna sing too?" 

"Yeah, of course," she stood in front of the mic.

Joyce started playing and they quickly followed. Even Neil had to admit she was good, she had good rhythm and she played the bass well, but the real surprise came when she opened her mouth to sing.

"Steve walks warily down the street with his brim pulled way down low. Ain't no sound but the sound of his feet, machine guns ready to go. Are you ready hey are you ready for this? Are you hanging on the edge of your seat?"

Her voice was an explosion that filled the entire room, it was full and deep, raspy but without straining. Ivan gave Neil a wide-eyed look and Neil simply rolled his eyes, not ready to admit his little brother was right about something. He took pride in making the decisions for the band, even if most (if not all) of them turned out to be wrong.

"Jesus..." Ivan breathed once the song ended. "It's like you're the lovechild of Stevie Nicks and Janis Joplin! Are you kidding me right now?" 

"Thanks," Joy smiled shyly, looking away from him so she wouldn't blush. 

"Yeah, it was okay," Neil nodded with a sigh. "I mean, might not be the right fit for our band but-"

"Not the right fit? Neil are you going insane or you still drunk?" Ivan chuckled, still agape. "You dragged me all the way from Ireland, I believed your bullshit and now we're right back where we started. If you're serious about getting signed then you have to let Joy in! She's our best chance to make it big."

"Can you read sheet music, Joyce?" Neil asked. 

"Yeah, what do you have?" She asked, taking his notebook. 

"Can you sing this?" 

"The sun is shining on the sea today, you're living your life the easy way. You left behind, the world again. So be a tourist, hear the call-"

"Fine! Fine, you're in!" He grimaced, hating how great his song sounded in her voice. "But we'll be singing too, don't think you'll get all the solos just cause you can sing!" 

"I didn't expect to, thank you so much, you guys!" Joyce squealed, clapping with excitement. She couldn't believe it was actually true, she was sure they could be great, she believed that more than anyone, even Neil. 

To celebrate joining the band, Joy suggested going out for a drink, but none of the boys wanted anything to do with alcohol after the night before. Instead, they settled for some fish and chips, only... Ivan had other plans.

"Hey, Neil!" He hissed while the girl brought her bass back to her flat. "You gotta say you don't feel well or something, say you don't wanna go."

"What? Why?" Neil barked.

"Because I wanna go out with her."

"Have you thought about, I don't know, asking?"

"I am asking!" 

"Not me, you twat! Her!"

"Well I did, but I was way too high to remember, just please please stay home? C'mon, please!"

"Fine... not like I wanna spend time dicking around with you two. I have to write some more material to show to the labels."

"You're the best brother in the world!" Ivan shook Neil by the shoulders just as Joy came back. 

"Yeah yeah," he huffed. "Hey, so I'm a little under the weather, you know? Still kinda hungover, you two go."

"Maybe we should all stay and talk about the band?" Joyce asked, but Ivan was already halfway out the door. 

"Nah, he'll be fine. Neil is a real grumpy arsehole when he's hungover, it's dinner time anyway."

Gloria watched as they made their way down the stairs, and that stupid knowing grin on her face made Joy want to kill her. It's not like that was a date... right? Of course not. It was a friendly band hangout.

Ivan insisted he should pay as a welcome treat, even though he probably had way less money than her. He just couldn't be that type of guy who wouldn't pay on their first date. In his mind that was a date... right? Of course it was.

"We only need a drummer now," he murmured, covering his chips in vinegar. "Do you know anyone?"

"Not really, I haven't made any friends since I arrived."

"Why did you wanna leave the States?" He asked. "They have a pretty big music scene there. Why didn't you move to LA or something?"

"I always liked London, all my favorite musicians are from England... well, except Bono."

Ivan shook his head with a smile. As much as his brother resented their friend, he couldn't bring himself to feel the same way. The bastard was talented, it's not like he didn't deserve it. 

"We went to school together, back then when we still called him Paul."

"You're kidding!" Joyce grinned.

"No, I swear! I'd say ask Neil, but I wouldn't if I were you. I sorta auditioned for his band once, but it didn't work out."

"So you could be in U2 right now?" 

"I suppose, if things had been different... we only played together once, it wasn't really a thing."

"So you're happy with our band?" Joy leaned over the table without even realizing it. 

"Yeah! Even more now that you're here to shake things up."

She thought for a moment, not noticing when Ivan also leaned closer, their faces only inches apart. He was ready for a kiss, he thought that's what she wanted, but she simply laughed. Shit, she has such a cute laugh... he thought.

"This should be our name."

"What?"

"Shook Up! You're not the McCormick brothers anymore."

"Y-yeah! That's a pretty cool name," Ivan cleared his throat, embarrassed and hoping she didn't notice how eager he was. 

"So, will you kiss me now?" She asked with a smirk.

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