#He seems rude but is always so !! considerate!!

[crowned-clown-rising]

A little bit of me over-analyzing Nevra :) again

Something I've noticed about Nev in New era is that almost every time he is giving orders, he uses expressions like "I suggest…" "If everyone agrees…" "If it's okay with you…" and is open to new ideas and suggestions, which… I love of him.

I wasn't sure whether he did it just to give the people he's commanding a false sense of control and keep them appeased or bc he genuinely is being considerate, but now I'm inclined to say it's genuine. Because!! hear me out!! the moments when there is really no other choice he never asks for anyone's permission. He can be quite assertive like that. (Like when Erika complained he hadn't asked her opinion on flying on dragon back and he goes something like "Because I didn't ask lol. You just have to.")

[hazelfoureyes]

for your consideration:

a reader who’s genuinely more powerful than Alastor is. maybe they’re royalty or another overlord or maybe they simply just have a more commanding presence than him, but in any way, he hates it. he goes out of his way to try to one-up them (much like how he did with Lucifer), but the reader never falters, ever-calm and ever-in control. it infuriates Alastor to no end— not only because of the simple fact that he isn’t the strongest person in the room anymore, but also because the reader never treats him like he’s lesser than them. they treat him like an equal, and it makes him even angrier.

when they fuck for the first time, it’s a last-ditch attempt for Alastor to regain control— and it fails, because even though Alastor is on top with his nails digging into the reader’s skin, doing his very best to cause the pain he knows he can cause, the reader still just stares up at him, taking it like they always do. no tears fall from their eyes, no pleads fall from their lips. Alastor is dissatisfied— very much so. so they do it again. and again. and again, until it’s something of a game between them. until one day, the reader’s composure finally shatters.

they’ve had enough of Alastor’s attitude and disrespect, and they tell him as much. they pin him down, snarling about his god complex and his twisted sadism and how long they’ve been waiting to put him in his place. and Alastor finds that no matter how much he struggles, he can’t get that control that had been so rudely snatched from him back. but the thing is— a part of him likes it. really, really likes it— that loss of power that should be his and his alone, being held just out of his petulant reach. it brings him a sick feeling that he’s never felt before and can’t get enough of.

that part grows and grows until he’s the one crying and begging and squirming weakly underneath the reader, both his smile and his mind threatening to break as the reader fucks him relentlessly. no matter how many times either of them cums, the reader doesn’t stop, not until Alastor is screaming his apologies, over and over and over again. he hates it. he loves it.

when it’s all over, and when the reader has settled, Alastor makes them promise that they will never speak of this again. without a hint of smugness, the reader agrees— but maybe the next time Alastor is acting up, the reader will only have to give him a look. and he will know.

I know this wasn’t a prompt necessarily but don’t think you can come into MY HOUSE and lay a feast in front of me and not expect I’d dig in 👏 face 👏 first 👏 so here’s me just kinda riffing off your DELICIOUSLY WRITTEN MESSAGE. NO TIME TO EDIT A CUTE REPLY IMAGE

Wrapped around Your Finger (Ace Alastor bottoms for a GN!Seraphim Reader short smut)

Warnings/Promises: 🗣️ ALASTOR GETS FINGERED, Gender Neutral Reader x Alastor smut, hate fucking, bondage, initial dubcon, Ace Alastor, scratching, kinda degradation kink, Angel Reader, Reader is a good friend, Protect Angel Dust at all costs

minors dni

⨯ . ⁺ ✦ ⊹ ꙳ ⁺ ‧ ⨯. ⁺ ✦ ⊹ . * ꙳ ✦ ⊹⨯ . ⁺ ✦ ⊹ ꙳ ⁺ ‧ ⨯. ⁺ When Lucifer introduced a defected Seraphim to the hotel, Alastor’s smile dropped. You had feet yet to him you seemed to glide through the hotel halls effortlessly. You were impeccably dressed, ever polite, well mannered, clean. It was driving him mad. Yes, Alastor knew the importance of being well groomed. He exalted manners and gentility. He disliked grime and thought a lack of personal hygiene was an actual sin. But the sight of you, every fucking day with that ever present soft smile on your lips? Your gaze, always gentle as you listened to sinners explain their dreams of redemption. Nails on a chalkboard. Every room you were in, all eyes turned to you. It was if the air itself was pulled into your charms.

Every one in the hotel either feared Alastor or, at least, failed to hide their annoyance when He’d sneak up on them or touch them without warning. Of course, not you. Alastor shocked himself with his antics in attempt to make you react to him at all. Charlie would pull him aside weekly, asking what the actual fuck? “Why did you say that? They know they aren’t from here, we all know that, but telling them they are most unnatural creature to ever exist in Hell? And I don’t think it was an accident you knocked their drink over. Al, you are being a bully.” Yes, and he was sorry. Sorry he was so ineffective. Not even a fucking knitted brow so much as flashed at him when he spilled your drink down your chest. You smiled, you had the audacity to smile at him and say, “Whoops. Your monocle isn’t prescription, huh?” He only had one option left to push you beneath him—-rip you to pieces. Any thing to get you to look at him differently than all the other weak souls mulling about in hell.

Alastor had seen you fight, when an overlord came to the hotel to taste seraphim blood, all of the Pride Ring saw your power. Arms out stretched, a glow came from your palms, yellow and bright. With the speed of someone enjoying a breakfast on the patio on a Sunday in hell, you knelt down and pressed your palms into the ground. A flash of light and power rung out from you and blinded everyone watching, but Alastor could see you as he melted into the deepest shadows your light created. White and gold glowing shards erupted from the dirt, fracturing the grounds of the hotel lawn as they formed a jagged but intelligent line straight for the demon. The overlord barely recovered from the blinding effect of your power before a glass-like piece shot from the ground and straight through his chest. It was over in seconds, and you had never dropped your soft grin.

He was prideful, but not stupid. A test, a little experiment first. When you watched sweetly from the sidelines and Charlie directed yet another meaningless activity, Alastor stood opposite you. Your eyes flitted from person to person, your smile small but genuine. Were you glowing? He had had enough. He reached his shadow appendages out and wrapped one around your ankle, as it gripped and prepared to drag you to the floor in what he hoped would be an embarrassing display, nothing happened. As the tentacle touched you, it dissipated. Your light entirely erasing the shadow.

He felt his mind breaking. Every night he paced, feeling your overwhelming presence in the hotel even at such a distance. He decided to try the one thing he’d never tried. Atleast, not since coming to hell. You were always so accommodating, maybe to a fault? He found you in kitchen, alone, making yourself some sickeningly sweet drink. Your body froze when Alastor pressed against you from behind. But, you didn’t make a sound. “Apologies, I don’t think I can suffer any longer.” He ground his hips into your ass, “I never do this, a gentleman through and through. But you see, as a deer demon, sometimes there are periods of—- unbearable discomfort. I can’t focus on redemption like this.”

Alastor was shocked when you swiveled around, eyes closed from your smile, and said, “I came here to help. What can I do?”

He couldn��t understand it. Bent over the counter in the common area, his nails cutting lines down your sides that healed with a frustrating speed, you just sighed into him. Little moans, soft exhales. He slammed your hips against him, the sound ringing through the kitchen. But still, your eyes were closed but not clenched. Your sounds small and even. The only thing keeping him hard was your hand, reached back and digging nails into his thighs. The tiniest hint of your true feelings. He’d bury his mind where your hand tore his skin and find release. Happy to see you at least a little less perfectly assembled after.

Alastor would find you at the most inconvenient times, in the most public settings, and find some excuse to need to fuck you. At one point a sinner even walked in on you two, and to Alastor’s palpable dismay, you apologized to the sinner for blocking the ice machine.

Your resolve finally snapped, however, when Alastor stepped past a line he didn’t know you had. Alastor had you, uncharacteristically, in your bed. He always spoke during sex but now, now it was genuinely grating you. “You’re such a whore, coming to Hell just to eat demon cock. If you drowned in cum you’d probably respawn as an even bigger slut than Angel Dust.” You sat up, one hand on his chest and the other under his armpit, and flipped him onto his back. Alastor’s arm moved to push back, but he found both wrists held down to the bed with a signature glow.

“If you knew Angel half as well as you pretended, you’d know how fucking stupid you sound.” Your hands gathered his cum from earlier that evening, slowly dripping out of you with the sudden change in position. “He’s the whore? Who stalks this hotel, hungry for any ounce of attention? A petulant child willing to embarrass others just so teacher notices them?” Your hand began to pump his cock. Alastor thrashed, he hated people handling his dick, but that was overshadowed by his disgust of having his semen spread over his skin. The sensation made his skin crawl and he would have gone soft but when he met your gaze he only grew harder in your fist. Your eyes were alight, figuratively and literally. The rage on your face made his smile drop entirely. You looked like you hated him. “If he is a whore, then you are Mary Magdalene. I’ll wash your feet for you, sinner.” You used your knees to spread open his untethered legs.

“I know you, Alastor,” the fingers of your other hand slicked through the lathered cum dripping down his ass and began to massage at his hole. “Your greatest sin wasn’t murder. It was pride. Never could let anyone see the famous Radio star with even a hair out of place. You’d drop your morals for even a taste of an improved social image. Even in death, you abuse and hound others who dare to make you feel less than how you demand you look from the outside.” He wanted to say anything, argue, roar, but his jaw was locked in place. Your eyes never left his, and soon his vision was darkening around your luminescent stare. A finger slipped into him, slowly but with resistance.

“Tell me to stop.” Your hand slowed to let his muscles relax around your digit before picking up speed again, curving your palm over his head with every pull upward, “Tell me to stop and I will. I’ll go right back to who I always am, and always will be. I’ll smile at you every morning and move out of your way with a nod in the halls. Say ‘stop’.” Your words were threats, not idle or hollow and it made Alastor’s thighs twitch. Go back? Return to looking at him like you truly wanted the best for him despite how dirty his hands were? Soft eyes threatening to make him melt into a lesser, weaker man?

You were in him to the knuckle, finger prodding and twirling.

His eyes were wide but focused on you. Alastor thought his soul would evaporate, your face a sneer he’d never been so lucky to even imagine before now. He could feel you around him, in him.

A tiny, halted, “S-,” was forced through his teeth.

Stop?

Slower?

He shook his head, eyes fluttering closed.

“God, you’re pathetic. What about a sorry? Can you manage a single apology for your comments tonight? I’ll let you roll me back into the mattress, for a sincere ‘sorry’.” Alastor's knees hitched, his head fell back, and he came over your knuckles with a pained groan. But you didn’t stop. You’d get your reply, eventually.

Alastor gave a threat of his own when you finally got your apology, half screamed through his third orgasm, and let him flee your bed. You nodded and agreed, yes yes, this never happened blah blah yet another example of your enormous pride.

After that night, any time Alastor wanted to yank on Husk’s chains, or double speak someone into a deal, he’d pause and look around. Expecting your two golden lit eyes to be staring, ready to flip him onto his back and drag several more apologies from him.

༻Masterlist༺

[lxvebun]

A millennium of unsaid I love you's

Synopsis: love is the most twisted curse of all. Yuuji wonders if it's twisted enough to have even Sukuna in its grip.

Content: Sukuna x gender neutral reader. Fluff+little angst. Lovesick!sukuna, I repeat, Lovesick!Sukuna he's so in love with you it shows in everything he does!! Mentions of character death but its open for you to decide. Slight mention of canon violence. Around 1k words♡ eng is not my first language, lmk if there are any annoying mistakes♡♡

"Have you ever been in love?" Yuuji wonders out loud, not necessarily expecting a serious answer. It's a little past midnight if he's reading the blurry red numbers on the digital clock correctly, and despite sleep clouding over his eyes, he can't seem to find rest. Blankets are carelessly kicked to the edge of the bed in an effort to relieve himself from the summer heat but it doesn't do much to help him ease into that sleepy state either.

(Talking to Sukuna seemed a lot more interesting than counting sheep)

The question hangs in the air for a moment, silence twists around it like a vine, and just before it completely swallows it up, the answer floats across his mind similar to a thought but eerily spoken in a different voice.

"Yes"

It's said quietly, almost as if trying to maintain the tranquility of the summer night, but this is Sukuna we're talking about. He doesn't take others into consideration. There's something else that keeps him from voicing his answers out loud.

(Perhaps it's the way he can't talk about you without sounding like a love-sick devotee)

"How!?" Yuuji blurts out before thinking, not realizing the question is rather rude until a sharp flash of pain surges through his body, a little corrective behavior sent from Sukuna, no doubt. "Sorry, sorry. I just didn't expect it, that's all.

It's quiet for a bit. Yuuji takes the time to admire the stars and moonlight shining through the sliver of the curtains. It feels like the moon is extra radiant tonight as it spills a wonderful illuminative light across the room. 

"I don't know"

There's not much he doesn't know, but to this day it's still a miracle to him that you weaved yourself so effortlessly into his very being. Managing to do so without an ounce of resistance from him. Partly believing you were some kind of heavenly punishment sent to bring the king of curses to his knees. To rid the world of a darkness that never should have existed in the first place.

(He'd let you)

"I just was"

There's another part of him that theorizes that maybe you were something that remained of his human self. A soulmate to complete his when his soul wasn't half as dark and twisted as it is now. Born from the same star, hearts carved from the same moon. A red string binds you to him, regardless of the form he takes. How cruel of fate to tie you to a monster and keep it that way.

Quietness tunes back in as Yuuji's thoughts drift elsewhere. For a second, Sukuna thinks he's done with his late-night interrogation.

"What were they like?"

He's not indulging Yuuji, really. But his heart beats back a little warmth into his soul every time he thinks of you. Every time he thinks of your voice, how his name sounded so syrupy and sweet falling from your lips, a stark contrast to how it's usually uttered.

Every time he thinks of your touch, how you always handled him with a gentleness he probably doesn't deserve. As if under all the scars and cursed markings he was made of the most delicate porcelain. Even when you were angry, it never bled violence into your touch.

Gods, your entire being shined so brightly he could pick you out from among the stars. You dug yourself into his chest, ripped out his darkened heart oh so deliciously, and buried yourself in its place. As if you always belonged there.

Just thinking of you stains his mouth all too sweetly, a millennium of unsaid I love you's building up in the back of his throat. He swallows it down.

"They were beautiful" he speaks aloud this time, voice booming around the room. Yuuji flinches a little at the intrusion "And that's enough of your questions tonight, brat"

"Just one more, please"

.....

Yuuji takes the silence as compliance.

"Are they gone?" He puts it into softer terms. Sukuna's a little annoyed at the consideration.

He doesn't know... and he's not sure what hurts more, being oblivious to your fate, or assuming that you have passed. Surely, Uraume would have taken care of you. Then again, are they even around still? A dullness grows in his chest, splinters its way through his ribs, and weighs down into his lungs suffocatingly so at the uneasiness of not knowing.

Looking through Yuuji's eyes, he catches a glint of a star beaming down into the split in the curtain. Shining an ethereal light so brightly he has to avert his gaze.

( he could pick you out amongst the stars. He refuses to believe it's you)

The ache lessens again as the starlight seems to clear his head. You're bound to him by a string of fate, there's not a single universe out there where you're not with him. Even if it's cruel of fate to do so, even if those thousand years apart have turned him into someone almost unrecognizable. You'll be together again. Perhaps your soul is just waiting for the right moment to appear.

"they'll be back" is all he says, and the finality in his tone urges Yuuji to keep his mouth shut despite the whirlwind of questions still racing through his mind. Memories that don't belong to him flicker through Yuujis's mind as Sukuna seems to dream off. They're blurry and foggy and disappear all too quickly for him to make sense of what he's seeing, but he can feel the overwhelming presence of love dripping from the edges. He doesn't question why his heart starts to race too.

Sukuna has been a rot in his side from day one. but if there ever exists an opportunity to save everyone, if he could give him his happy ending should you come back, he thinks he'll grant it to him.

Thank you for reading angels!!♡ i had a lot of fun writing this so I hope you enjoyed this too!

[artificial-transmutations]

ATArena

Alexander's phone dinged with a notification, just as he left the exam. It was a beautiful summer afternoon, and he was still talking with a few other students, so, naturally, he ignored the unexpected noise. Even though Alexander was certainly a digital native, he found it rude to check his phone while in company of others. He didn't particularly enjoy his current company: He found Christopher the guy that was currently bragging about how easy the exam was slightly annoying, but that wasn't a reason not to show good manners.

Only after their ways split, Alexander unlocked his phone and saw the notification: "Your watched App, ATArena, is now available."

ATArena? Alexander didn't remember he had watched an app with that name. Still, the notification seemed genuine and lead him to the app marketplace where he could initiate the download. The description was sparse: "An epic battle with a revolutionary matchmaking algorithm that will extend into real life!"

That sounded like an AR game of some sort. Alexander had enjoyed the big Pokeman Run hype some years ago and certainly didn't mind giving this app a try.

When he opened the app for the first time, it asked him for the usual: His real name as well as his nickname. Alexander put in the same for the latter that he used everywhere: Lex_88. A short busy spinner appeared and finally, a message box greeted him:

"Welcome to ATArena, Lex_88! A suitable opponent has already been found. Connecting now..."

After he tapped "Ok", a chat interface opened:

TopShot joined the game.

TopShot: Hi.

Alexander didn't know how to react exactly. He was socially awkward, but ignoring the unknown other player would be rude. So, he just typed:

Lex_88: Hi.

Before any of them could type anything else, a popup opened:

"Battle available! Tap to play."

Alexander tapped the button and wondered what would happen now. Was this some kind of word puzzle or quiz against each other?

What opened though, was a simple depiction of three six-sided dice. When Alexander tapped them, a roll animation appeared until they settled at 14 eyes in total. Not bad!

"Lex_88 rolled: 14. TopShot rolled: 10. Lex_88 wins!"

The screen changed to a wheel of fortune now, which was already in motion. When it came to a stop, it showed a muscled arm emoji and the sparkling word "Bicep size" appeared on his screen.

Immediately, Alexander felt a weird tingling in his upper arms, accompanied by a tightness in the sleeves of his sweater. He locked his phone and scratched his arms but stopped immediately when his fingers met unexpected resistance. His upper arms seemed to have... swollen? What was happening?

Still on the university campus, Alexander made a dash for the nearest restroom and pulled off his sweater. He could hardly believe his eyes: His biceps had grown *considerably*, straining the seams of the t-shirt he wore underneath. When he moved his arms, the muscles bulged and contracted. It was a surreal feeling for sure. Was that the doing of this game?

Alexander unlocked his phone again saw a new message:

"Challenge! Record a video flexing your guns and upload it to social media!"

When he dismissed the message, he typed a message to his opponent.

Flex_88💪: Holy shit! My arms just grew!

Alexander stopped for a moment. Flex_88💪? That wasn't his nickname. Yet, when he scrolled up, it clearly appeared that way - that was the name saying "Hi." in the message before. It wasn't that far off from his usual nickname, which was... Flex_88💪. What was he even thinking about? That was just his screen name that he used almost everywhere, because of his biceps, obviously. His last message didn't make much sense, though. He added a:

Flex_88💪: I mean, they're pretty big, as always. Never mind!

It didn't feel good to brag, but there didn't seem to be a way to delete the message. But he might as well do the challenge now. It wasn't that unusual for him to post pictures and videos of his arms on social media, so, he recorded a short clip, made sure to crop out his surroundings and his face and sent the video to his LaterGram profile.

Just as he was done, TopShot had answered:

TopShot: Uhm, good for you, dude.

TopShot: Seems like you've won the last game.

Flex_88💪: Yeah, but it was pure luck. I'm sure you're gonna win the next one.

As if on cue, another "Battle available" popup opened. This time, Alexander's roll was pretty bad. The dice showed 2-5-2, bringing him to a meager 9, a bit below the expected value.

"Flex_88💪 rolled: 9. TopShot rolled: 9. Tie! Both win!"

Apparently, TopShot wasn't having a very lucky day, either. The wheel turned and showed a drop emoji. Alexander was still thinking about what could be the meaning of the drop, when the word appeared: "Libido".

Libido? So, this was an 18+ game? Still, Alexander felt hot all of a sudden. His cock was stiffing up and he realized that it had been ages since his last jerk-off. Hornyness clouded his mind, when the next popup opened:

"Challenge! Use a pick-up line on someone you fancy."

Alexander was usually way too shy to approach another guy, but in his current situation even thinking about sending someone a pick-up line seemed like a good idea. He could just send that TopShot guy one, he had the advantage that Alexander didn't know him and probably never would meet.

He thought about his options and decided that a classic would be the best choice.

Flex_88💪: You know, my arms aren't the only thing big right now ;-)

It only took a moment for the other player to respond.

SwitchHit: I know what you mean.

SwitchHit sent an image.

Alexander hesitated only a bit before he opened the image. Yep. It was a picture of a tented boxershorts, snapped from a hastily opened pair of pants. Alexander could feel his cock throb. If he wasn't in public... No, he had to restrain himself. Even though he was still horny, which really wasn't unusual for him, he took a breather and tried to fight his boner down. He had just masturbated before he left for class, it was just amazing how needy his cock could be. His phone dinged as he readjusted himself and left the bathroom.

SwitchHit: Looking forward to the next game. I mean it's just dice rolling and stupid challenges, but it's fun.

Even though Alexander agreed, something seemed off. Had SwitchHit changed his screen name? No, didn't seem that way.

"Battle available!"

Alexander immediately rolled his dice and hardly could believe his eyes: three sixes, a solid 18.

"Flex_88💪 rolled: 18. SwitchHit rolled: 15. Flex_88💪wins! Critical!"

15 was a pretty good roll, but nothing could beat Alexander's 18. He grinned as the wheel stopped on "Confidence".

"Challenge! Approach a local gym and negotiate a free trial using nothing but your charm and confidence. "

Xander grinned. Yeah, that was an awesome idea. He was originally on his way home, but finally joining a gym was long overdue. Luckily, there was one right on his way. Half an hour later, he had a full two month free trial and also a protein shaker as a gift. It had been easier than Xander had thought.

Suddenly, he remembered the game.

Flex_88💪: Hey SwitchHit, you still there?

SwitchHit: Yeah, sorry, I didn't want to message so much. Sorry!

Xander rolled his eyes. That guy needed to grow some balls. He was just about to reply, when the next battle was available. Xander really had to admit, what SwitchHit said was true: It was kind of fun!

This time, Xander rolled bad: The three dice showed a measly 8 points. Unsurprisingly, SwitchHit won.

"Flex_88💪 rolled: 8. SwitchHit rolled: 14. SwitchHit wins!"

Damn, this was the first time Xander lost. The wheel landed on a brain-emoji, and, unsurprisingly, it was labelled with "Smarts".

Xander scratched his head. What did that mean? Would he have some penalty challenge now? He would see soon enough.

"Challenge! Skip reading your usual news or books for the day. Instead, binge-watch a reality TV series."

Xander scratched his head again. Did he really want to do that?

Well, of course he wanted to! That sounded like a fun evening. Why would he read books?! He didn't even own books!

Flex_88💪: Man, those challenges are really ez. I need to watch some TV this evening, not read sum bokshit.

Xander typed the message as he arrived at his apartment. He fixed himself a quick dinner and sat down on the couch, turning on the TV.

SwitchHit: I agree. I have to read some Ovid tonight, which I find rather light literature.

Flex_88💪: Whatev you say, man. Hey, by the way, what's your name?

Flex_88💪: Mine's Xander.

SwitchHit: I don't know, I probably shouldn't share my real name on the internet.

Flex_88💪: Aw, come on. As if I could find out where you live with only your real name.

SwitchHit: ...Right. I'm called Chris.

Flex_88💪: Like Christian? Christopher?

SwitchHit: No, just Chris.

Flex_88💪: K. Hey, that pic was pretty hot back then.

They chatted a bit during the evening and exchanged some more pictures of tented pants. Xander was only half paying attention to the reality show on his screen, as one of his hands was more or less constantly in his pants. Still, it was just friendly teasing, no downright cyber-sex.

Eventually, Xander had finished the season and went to bed. SwitchHit - Chris - had called it a night an hour ago, but he still had to finish the last episodes. Good thing he didn't draw the book shit. That would've taken a week, not an evening.

When Xander woke up the next morning, the next battle was already waiting for him. He rolled the dice as he crawled out of bed, again rolling abyssal. Only six eyes were visible on his dice.

"Flex_88💪 rolled: 6. SwitchHit rolled: 10. SwitchHit wins!"

This time, the wheel landed on "Personality". Weird. That was a pretty vague category.

"Challenge! Show someone their place."

Xander raised his eyebrows. What a weird challenge. Anyway, time to for groceries!"

Xander drove over to the store in his old and cheap car. However, when he arrived, another visitor to the gym took the parking spot directly in front of the entrance. What an asshole!

Xander parked and got out of his car, quickly approaching the unsuspecting guy that just stole *his* spot.

"Hey, asshole! What do you think you're doing?!"

The man, a young guy with glasses and a bit on the nerdy side, looked up, surprised.

"What's your problem?"

"I'm the problem. Your problem. You just took my parking spot."

"Your spot? Don't be ridiculous."

Xander's hands balled into fists. That guy was really annoying!

"That was my spot, asshole. If you don't get your ass moving, I'll *make* you move."

"Alright, alright, chill down. Geez."

The other guy got in his car and parked in another spot. Xander nodded satisfied. He had shown him. Oh. Right, the challenge.

Entering the building (without moving his car), Xander checked his phone and sent SwitchHit a message:

Tank: Man, people are crazy today. Some asshole took my parking spot and I had to show him.

SwitchHit: Sorry to hear that.

SwitchHit: Did you change your screen name?

Tank: Nope. It's Tank, as it has always been. Because I'm a fricking TANK!

SwitchHit: Yeah. That makes sense.

"Battle available!"

Xander was collecting stuff from the shelves when he rolled the dice in-between. He rolled a solid 14, but Chris beat him by one point.

"Tank rolled: 14. SwitchHit rolled: 15. SwitchHit wins!"

Xander cursed loudly, making a few heads turn in the shop. The wheel turned and finally landed on a heart shape. "Empathy" it read. Another one of those fuzzy words.

"Challenge! Cut ties that hold you back!"

Xander scratched his head. What was that supposed to mean? He really wanted to win this game, so what did he have to do now?

As he thought about this, another message popped up, this time from the chat group with his closest circle of friends, who were planning their next meet-up. If Xander thought about it, he was really annoyed by those guys. They were all nerds and losers who always had shit ideas like board games and stuff. Without a second thought, Xander replied to the group.

Tank: I'm not coming. Those gatherings are a waste of time. Get lost, losers!

With that, he left the group and blocked the numbers of his so called friends. He had better things to do.

"Battle available!"

Like that, for example. Chris, who went by the silly nickname of CuddleBug, was at least a horny bastard like Xander himself. With a tap, he rolled the dice.

"Tank rolled: 12. CuddleBug rolled: 10. Tank wins!"

Oh yeah! The roll wasn't even so great, yet still he won. Xander smiled even broader when the wheel landed on a muscular torso, labelled simply: "Muscles."

In an instant, Xander felt his whole body swell up. No wonder. Axel basically *lived* in the gym. As he looked down, the fabric of his shirt had turned almost transparent with the sudden expansion of his muscles. It wasn't just his torso, of course. Axel didn't skip leg day, so his quads and hamstrings grew to impressive size, too. His shoulders were getting broad and wide, as well, to the point where he had difficulties reaching his back.

"Challenge! Show your gainz, buy a muscle shirt!"

Axel could have slapped his forehead. Why didn't he think of that himself - and sooner? He needed to share that thought.

Tank: Hey Chris, what ya tink? I should get a muscle shirt, huh?

Tank sent an image.

CuddleBug: Omg, yes. That will look awesome. I wish I had muscles like that.

Axel grinned. Right. No wonder that Chris agreed, Axel's muscles were a sight to behold. Good thing he was already in a store. He quickly bought a few muscle shirts, enough to replace his usual wardrobe. After paying for his purchase, Axel put on the new shirt right on the parking lot before squeezing himself into his car.

"Battle available!"

The game was pretty fast-paced. Axel tapped to roll the dice and was pumping his fist, when one after another, all three dice ended up showing a six.

"Tank rolled: 18. CuddleBug rolled: 4. Tank wins! Critical!"

"Ha! Yes!" Axel cheered and the wheel spun until it showed "Dominance".

A surge of excitement and satisfaction rushed through Axel's veins. He felt *good* all of a sudden. And *powerful*.

"Challenge! Assert your dominance! Challenge a gym bro today!"

Axel grinned. Yeah, that was exactly his thing. He needed to get to the gym anyway. That free membership was hard earned. Also, Chri- Kit seemed to like his gains. Time to make some more.

It was still early afternoon, and the gym wasn't packed with visitors yet, when Axel arrived. There were a few regulars, as always. A short dude with a moustache that looked like a wannabe porn star and a big dude with a neckbeard were currently occupying the bench press, while a girl in her 40s did lat pulls.

Confidently and arrogantly, Axel readjusted his half-hard cock and approached the big guy.

"Yo, man. You're pretty buff. But I bet I can still take you easily. Wann wrestle?"

The large dude looked at Axel for a moment. Axel could see a vein on his neck throb.

"You little shit. You think you're better than me, huh? Fine, let's do this."

In the pocket of his gym shorts, Axel could feel his phone vibrate.

"Ha. Lead the way, I'm gonna wipe the floor with you."

As he followed the big guy to the mats, Axel checked his phone.

"Battle available!"

Great! Before he kicked some ass, he could play some more! While walking, he rolled the dice and scored a 15!

"Tank rolled: 15. CuddleBug rolled: 9. Tank wins!"

He didn't have time to watch the wheel this time, so he didn't notice that it landed on "Stamina." He also didn't see the challenge, which simply read: "Kick some ass!"

The big guy was already waiting for him on the mats, but Axel felt incredibly cocky. This was gonna be easy!

"No rules, no limits, no mercy." Axel said and the other guy nodded.

"That's the way it's gonna be. No mercy, punk."

"Bring it, tubby."

The big guy was the first to charge and he was surprisingly fast for his size. However, his speed and strength were no match for Axel's new found muscles. Even though they wrestled for a few minutes, Axel found himself not even tiring much. Finally, he was able to flip his opponent around and lock him on the ground. He tried to struggle, but Axel held his arms and legs firmly in place.

"Give up, man. You can't win."

The big guy tried to wiggle out of Axel's grip, but to no avail. He could struggle and shout as much as he wanted, but Axel was the one on top.

Finally, the guy gave up and admitted defeat.

"Ha! Loser!" Axel cheered and got up. He had a full boner now, both from the sweaty wrestling as well as from the display of dominance, but he didn't hide it. Instead, he headed to the showers and let Kit know of his triumph on the way.

XxBeastxX: I just *dominated* some fuckin weakass in the gym. Wrestled him down and he was crying and everything.

Kit answered right away.

CuddleBug: You're awesome.

CuddleBug: I wish I could have been in this place.

XxBeastxX: Ha. Course I am.

XxBeastxX: Huh? Whatya mean?

CuddleBug: Nothing. Never mind.

Axel was about to answer, but yet another "Battle available!" message popped up.

This game was seriously addictive! Axel rolled the dice and had a 10, which was decidedly less than what Kit had.

"XxBeastxX rolled: 10. CuddleBug rolled: 11. CuddleBug wins!"

"Damn." Axel said, but the wheel landed on "Generosity." He was almost glad he lost. Otherwise, the challenge would probably have been something like "Donate to the homeless" or some shit. What did the homeless ever do for him?

Instead, the challenge was:

"Challenge! Sell something of sentimental value!"

Huh. Well, Axel didn't really have anything he would consider "sentimental". His old PS2 that he got from his uncle for his 10th birthday was a bit sentimental, but other than that... Oh! His old car would probably qualify.

Axel thought about it. On the one hand, his old car was a piece of shit, and he shouldn't care much about it, but on the other hand... It would be a shame if he would have to say goodbye to his baby. Would it? No, not really. It was a pain to squeeze into it anyway. And if he played his cards right, he would even get some good money for it.

The decision was easy, and after showering, Axel drove to the nearest car dealer. It was a hard bargain, but in the end, he managed to persuade the guy to buy his car. It wasn't a high price, but it was more than what the piece of crap was really worth.

Just as he finished the contract, his phone dinged. It was rude, of course, but he didn't give a flying shit about that and checked his phone. It was from Kit, of course.

TwinkyKit: I just donated some money to the homeless. That felt good!

Axel snorted. Of course, how pathetic.

XxBeastxX: Good. Maybe now they won't be so fucking lazy anymore and work a little.

"Battle available!"

It seemed like the game always interrupted their chats. Well, anyway. He quickly rolled the dice, while the car dealer waited patiently to return his attention to him again. The dice turned out lower than Kit's again and after reading the wheel result and the challenge, Axel looked back up to the car dealer. For a split second, the "Money" challenge was still visible on the screen: "Challenge! Buy a muscle car! You know you want it!"

Damn right he did. Jax had always wanted to have a muscle car. He just never had the money. Bullshit. He never had the balls to take on some debt to buy one.

The car dealer was more than willing to help Jax chose and set up the necessary credit paperwork. He didn't even read this shit and selected a car immediately. A shiny, silver beast with a huge engine. It was a bit pricy, but it was worth it, at least to Jax. After he received the keys, he messaged Kit.

XxBeastxX: While you were busy giving money to some crackheads, I got myself something new. Check this out!

XxBeastxX sent an image.

XxBeastxX sent an image.

The first image was the car of course. The second was a dick pic, for good measures. Jax didn't really care that he was still at the car dealer when he lowered his pants for a moment to snap the pic.

TwinkyKit: OMG. You're such a stud.

XxBeastxX: Thanks, Twinky.

XxBeastxX: By the way, show some respect!

He drove back home, feeling great.

At home, the next battle was already available. Jax grinned and rolled the dice. He could hardly believe what he saw: 3 single eyes. He rolled a fucking 3.

"XxBeastxX rolled: 3. TwinkyKit rolled: 3. Tie! Both lose! Critical!"

What a pathetic roll, for both of them!

The wheel landed on "Impulse Control". This was getting interesting. It was true, Jax was notoriously bad at controlling himself. He just bought a new car, on a whim. So whatever challenge was coming his way shouldn't be too hard.

"Challenge! Get that tat!"

Jax didn't think much about it. Sure, why not. He would probably regret it, but that was something future Jax would have to deal with. He started his shiny new car again and drove to a nearby tattoo studio.

When the artist asked what kind of design he wanted, he only thought for a second, before deciding: "A dragon, obviously!"

As the artist started working, he massaged his dick with his other hand, earning him a condescending look from the artist. He couldn't help it though. Kit... Kitty would surely love his new tat.

When he sent a pic later, he was proven right:

TwinkyKit: OMG! That's hot.

TwinkyKit: I wish I had one, too.

TwinkyKit: I mean: Sir.

Jax smiled and was about to type a reply, when another "Battle available!"-message distracted him.

He quickly rolled the dice and grinned at the result: 15! That beat Kittys sorry little ass for sure, and he was right. Kitty had a mere 7 points to show. This time, the wheel landed on "Aggressiveness."

If possible, Jax felt even more powerful and manly. The challenge read "Start a bar fight!" and that was exactly what Jax wanted to do this evening. Well, that or fuck some ass, but really, a good bar fight was probably even better tonight.

He quickly messaged Kitty.

Ass_Crusher🍆: Talk to you tomorrow. Gonna kick some ass now. Think of me when you jerk off tonight, boy!

Kitty responded almost instantly, with a picture of his uncut dick.

TwinkyKit: I will, Sir! Have fun.

Jax drove to the nearest gay bar, a shady joint called "Diesel". The music was loud, and the lights were dim. Jax didn't mind the atmosphere, though, instead, he went straight to the bar and ordered a double shot. He downed the drink and ordered a second. Just as the bartender placed the glass in front of him, he grabbed it and threw the liquor right into the bartender's face.

"The fuck?! What are you doing?!"

"What do you think, asshole?" Jax answered, his voice dangerously calm.

"You can't do this!"

"Yeah, I can. And you're going to shut the fuck up."

With those words, Jax slammed his fist in the bartender's face, who immediately fell to the ground. There had been really no reason for him to punch the bartender, but it had the intended effect: From one moment to the other, there was a barfight in full swing.

Of course, everyone tried to overwhelm Jax, but he fought back with vigor and stamina. Several black eyes and a broken nose on his enemies later, the patrons and the bar's bouncer managed to throw Jax out, but still, Jax had a great time, kicking ass and punching dudes. Before someone could call the cops, Jax went home, happy and content.

When Jax woke up the next morning, he almost didn't notice any bruises anymore. Instead, he grabbed his phone while he was doing his morning piss and checked ATArena. Yep, there was another battle available. Time to see if Kitty was already up.

He rolled the dice and only a minute later, Kitty's results came in. Easy win. Jax had rolled only a ten, but Kitty didn't beat him with his pathetic five. However, Jax laughed out loudly, as he saw the wheel's result: Dick size.

"Challenge! Show your assets!"

*That*, Jax could do. He watched as the cock in his hand grew longer and fatter by the second, instantly forgetting that it had once been smaller. No, Jax always had a big, fat and juicy cock, the biggest, actually. With a few last strokes, Jax sent a pic of his cock, the tip glistening wet.

Ass_Crusher🍆: Check that out. That's what a real cock looks like.

Ass_Crusher🍆 sent an image.

Ass_Crusher🍆 sent an image.

Ass_Crusher🍆 sent an image.

Jax sent several more images of his magnificent rod, both naked and wearing tight underwear. As if there was another kind. For Jax, all underwear was tight.

Finally, Kitty responded.

CrushersToyBoy: Fuck. You're so hot, Sir.

CrushersToyBoy sent an image.

Jax smirked. Kitty's own cock was tiny, especially compared to Jax' equipment. It didn't matter much, though. Kitty didn't need it, he needed to have his ass crushed.

Ass_Crusher🍆: I know, babe. I know. You know what I'll do with it now?

"Battle available!"

God dammit. This was getting annoying.

Jax quickly rolled the dice, scoring the top available score! 18 points! But apparently, Kitty was just as lucky, rolling an 18, too.

"Ass_Crusher🍆 rolled: 18. CrushersToyBoy rolled: 18. Tie! Both win! Critical!"

Jax didn't even need to read the attribute to feel it. It was "Libido, again." His already mostly hard cock surged up, becoming a firm steel pipe in his pre-cum soaked underwear. There were no pants on earth that could hide his constant arousal - on some days, even a firm pair of jeans left nothing to imagination and showed a wet patch where his cock was constantly leaking pre. He was a walking and breathing sex machine and Rex knew it. His name was fitting, too. He was a fucking king among men. And today he was going to breed the fuckable ass of that twink.

Ass_Crusher🍆: Get ready, boy. I'm cumming over and I'm gonna split open that ass of yours.

Rex closed the game and deleted it. There was no point in wasting his time with some stupid mobile game. He got back into his car and revved the engine. Oh yeah. Time to get some ass!

What a great game! I know I wouldn't mind playing if ATArena popped up on my phone, would you?

[bakuhatsufallinlove]

Omae: Complexity of Self-Expression and Intimacy with the Japanese “You”

(Update: I have written a follow-up to this post wherein I exhaustively examine Katsuki's "you" pronoun usage, including every time he uses omae. Please be sure to read both posts! :D)

The anime adaption of chapter 322 is rapidly approaching, so I wanna talk about something really interesting: as far as I can tell, Izuku is the only person Katsuki has ever used the pronoun omae (おまえ) towards in-canon. Furthermore, he has only used omae towards Izuku on three occasions.

The first time is after Deku vs. Kacchan 2 in chapter 120.

The second time is right after his apology in chapter 322. (Katsuki actually uses omae four times in a row in this scene.)

(We'll get to the third time later, just you wait.)

Why does Katsuki address Izuku differently in these scenes? To answer this, we’re gonna commit some language nerdery.

First, let’s be real about the fact that Japanese pronouns can be complicated. There are a ton of them. You learn the common uses—like you could say that, broadly, omae tends to be used by guys for their friends and romantic partners. But the reality is that in a high-context language like Japanese, pronouns can come across wildly differently depending on who uses it, to whom, with what tone, and in what context.

It is difficult to generalize real-life usage, so to be clear, I am talking about MHA as a piece of media. I could try to tell you that omae is rude but also friendly but also condescending but also comedic but also confrontational but also affectionate—and so on, but that wouldn’t help you understand what Katsuki’s omae to Izuku means and why it feels significant.

The thing is, Izuku and Katsuki can each say omae and mean completely different things, because their normal way of speaking tells us how to interpret their words.

When Izuku speaks, he is polite and considerate. He uses the boyish first-person pronoun boku (僕). In Japanese, avoiding second-person pronouns is the polite thing to do; you use the person’s surname and an appropriate suffix instead, and this is the tactic Izuku uses to address others. When he does say “you,” it is usually the familiar kimi (君) towards Katsuki.

We see Izuku use omae in only a few circumstances: he uses it towards himself during inner monologues when he is trying to figure out what to do or compel himself to act, and he uses it when he faces All For One.

Both of these involve what I think of as “tough talk”—Izuku talks tough to himself to push past his fears and be a hero. With AFO, he is talking to a villain, someone he has to defeat. From someone like Izuku who speaks with such politeness and humility, omae reads as aggressive and confrontational.

Katsuki, on the other hand, is always aggressive and confrontational. He uses the masculine, somewhat boastful first-person pronoun ore (俺) and the second-person pronoun temee (てめえ) towards just about everybody. Temee is an extremely rude, combative word; Japanese descriptions usually point out that it reads like fightin’ words—it’s what you’d call an opponent, someone you are confronting, challenging, or belittling. As mentioned, you’re supposed to avoid “you” words to be polite, so the fact that Katsuki whips out temee constantly and makes up insulting nicknames instead of using anybody’s real name is just like, damn, dude!

Unlike Izuku, Katsuki sounds like he is challenging everyone all the time. This means that, coming from him, omae actually seems gentler.

After Deku vs. Kacchan 2, he opens his sentence with omae, and Izuku looks startled by this.

They just had a huge, emotional fistfight, and Katsuki… isn’t addressing him as an opponent, like he always has before. For once, he is addressing Izuku not as his enemy, but his equal.

This scene is the first time Katsuki properly grapples with the truth of their mutual weaknesses and comes to an understanding about it. It leaves him frustrated and unsure, but he walks away seeing himself and Izuku as being on the same side.

Because he takes All Might's words to heart: they are two halves of what makes a hero. They need to learn from each other and push each other to truly reach their best—as rivals, not enemies.

In chapter 322, Katsuki talks Izuku through how he felt about him all these years. He goes over all the things he's had to face to see how wrong he was, to see his own weakness and Izuku's strength. The whole time, he uses the "you" word he always has: temee.

But when it comes time to tell Izuku his true feelings, he calls Izuku by his given name, apologizes, and then right away he says this:

This is a direct call-back to the core question that Katsuki posed to Izuku during Deku vs. Kacchan 2: "Is my way of admiring All Might wrong?"

The second half to that question has always been, implicitly, "Does that mean yours is right?"

Here, Katsuki acknowledges Izuku fully as All Might's successor and affirms that Izuku's path is not wrong, using omae to tell him so. And then he uses it three more times to convince Izuku to come back with them and fight together, "because saving people is how we win."

To me, omae in this scene comes across with such softness. He's speaking with more humility than we've ever seen, both in what he's conveying and his word choice. (There is a whole other conversation to be had about Katsuki's word choice for "I'm sorry," but that is for a different time.)

This omae is not just a sign that he sees Izuku as his equal, it's expressing care for him. Katsuki sacrificed his life for Izuku, telling him, "Stop trying to win this on your own." He is trying so hard to make Izuku understand: Come back, I was wrong. Come back, I care about you.

Which brings us to the third time Katsuki uses omae: chapter 362.

That's right, the infamous "Can I still catch up to you?" / "Can I still reach you?" line uses omae.

Here's the thing that's unique about this omae: it's in Katsuki's head. This is internal monologue; he isn't talking out loud to Izuku, he isn't trying to convey something to him face-to-face, he is just thinking about Izuku.

The word choice isn't for anyone else's benefit or any external purpose: this is just how Katsuki sees him.

I can't overstate how soft, vulnerable, and sincere this moment is for Katsuki. And what gets me about him thinking of Izuku as omae is, it makes me wonder, "How long has he thought of Izuku this way?"

When did Izuku stop being temee in his head?

Changing how you address someone is a big deal in Japanese. Whether it's a name or suffix change (Deku -> Izuku) or a pronoun change (temee -> omae), it represents a significant shift in the emotional dynamics of a relationship.

It crops up a lot in media as a dramatic moment of intimacy, sometimes even being a part of love confessions. This heightened drama is exactly what we see with Katsuki's apology when he calls him Izuku.

Katsuki addresses only Izuku with his given name and omae, and in the whole run of the series, he only uses omae in a few select instances. I would argue that this is really important, subtle character writing.

Looking at the scenes, at least to me, each omae reads as progressively more honest and intimate. Each time Katsuki uses it, he is reaching for Izuku. Each time, it means more.

[reqxxyt]

the minute i fell

pairings: charles l. x f!reader

summary: in which Charles and Carlos make a bet to get with the photographer of Ferrari, a reserved introvert, but finally getting the chance to speak to her, Charles realizes he already lost.

warnings: i had no idea how to end this.. very rushed ending

wc: 2.1k

masterlist requests are open!

[unedited]

_________ ׂׂૢ་༘࿐

The duo sat on the paddock floor, laughing along as others passed them in the ferrari garage not taking into consideration of their conversation. 

“I’m telling you, I am amazing with the women” Charles claimed while Carlos gave him a non convinced look, not accepting his claim. A familiar figure caught Carlos’ eye ready to prove Charles wrong. 

“What about y/n?” Carlos said, a bit quieter as the two turned analyzing her movements as she was adjusting the camera settings, ready to pack and leave. Charles’ gaze longed as he was about to reject the proposal before he heard the spaniard next to him say “Or you could always prove yourself wrong” 

Charles competitive spirit flamed as he just nodded, turning his gaze away from the girl towards Carlos just nodding his head making the other just smirk, already loving the idea of how this would turn out.

It was well known in the garage that y/n didn’t like to be bothered, very quiet and reserved to others. Everyone at some point tried to be friendly towards her but her blunt responses would cause them to turn away, thinking she didn’t like them, didn’t like anyone. 

So when Charles got up he automatically crossed off all of his starter questions knowing it would only end the conversation in 2 seconds. On the other end, the girl was exhausted, having dealt with trying to capture the best moments of the weekend with a constant headache and jetlag. But the job overweight the cons everytime, she was only ever quiet because she was too focused on her job, not allowing anyone to interrupt her during her time. Yes, she already knew most saw her as rude, but she didn’t mind that, at least they stopped pretending to be nice the first week. 

“Capture all the good moments?” at first she thought Charles wasn’t speaking to her, still focused on tuning some camera settings until she heard him clear his throat in front of her finally making her look up. He waited for a proper response but all he received was a tight smile and a barely noticeable nod. The girl was about to gather her belongings, thinking the conversation was done but instead he kept talking to her, “Maybe I’ll get an early preview?”

“Yeah, maybe” she said simply, getting her tote bag and ready to walk out, but Charles didn’t seem to give up almost blocking her exit before she scurried next to him and squeezed outside. 

“What are you doing later tonight?” he ran up to her, catching up to her fast pace clearly catching the hint but refusing to give up this early after Carlos doubted him. Y/n simply shrugged mumbling a soft “don’t know” 

“What if-” he was interrupted with y/n turning and catching him off guard as she finally grew annoyed and said “What do you want, Charles? Seriously, do you find it entertaining to talk to someone who doesn’t want a conversation right now?”

Charles stood, stunned at her questions, finally gathering his thoughts after a couple of moments, commenting “This is the most you’ve spoken. Improvement” the corners of his lips twitch upwards as she sighed, growing more irritated that that was the portion he focused on more. Before he could say anything more on her ‘improvement’ she turned saying a simple “Goodnight” leaving Charles to think to himself while his teammate was trying not to laugh a few feet away seeing Charles’ failed attempt with front row seats. 

A couple of days later

Y/n would be lying if she said she didn’t hate the plan for today, it consisted of having to do a photoshoot with the two drivers. She was hoping to not have to interact with Charles but the way the past couple of days had gone he would definitely try something. 

She had finally finished adjusting the lighting on the scene, seeing the two drivers walk up to their designated areas and before she  could even wrap around the strap on my neck, she spotted Charles with messed up hair. The photographer looked around, hoping to find their hairdresser but found them nowhere near, with a heavy sigh she walked to Charles and trying to keep the most distance, leaned upwards and adjusted the strands that stuck out not daring to make eye contact or take a smell of his fresh cologne.

Charles tried his best to keep her in that same position, praying her gaze would lower to his own, thinking eye contact could help him with achieving this stupid bet he already began regretting and having doubts of his own, but he refused to accept defeat. Seeing her simply turn around after finishing made him internally frustrated, trying to come up with another idea while she was still here. 

After the first set, Charles subconcecially ran his hands through his hair, not realizing he had messed it up until he heard her steps forward him replacing his hand with her own as she ran through it, trying her best to fix his mess. In that moment, Charles felt his own heart speed up, realizing just how pretty the girl was from up close, with a focused gaze having her nose scrunch before leaning back down. This time, she glanced back at him, making direct eye contact but stepped back forcing herself away from him. 

“Fix your shirt Leclerc” she commented, waiting on him as she walked back to her original position. Charles looked down only seeing it tucked in slightly. His innocent smile grew with curious eyes as he asked 

“Why not fix it for me?” he immediately noticed the way her cheeks got pink, whether that be from the bright sun or his question he doesn’t want the answer to, wanting his own delusions to be the true meaning but she just glared at him, ignoring how the sun somehow made his eyes look perfect at the current angle. 

“That would be considered inappropriate” she said, looking back down, ready to take the next set right after he could fix it but she just looked up at him seeing his innocent smile. She turned to Carlos, asking him to fix it and he did with no obligation, she just smiled to herself afterwards before taking another couple of photos, checking them afterwards ready to take the final set at the next location. 

The two followed the girl to the next location with a safe enough distance where she couldn’t hear their whispered conversation. 

“No luck?” Carlos asked even though already knowing the answer but wanting to hear it from him and finally admit to defeat but Charles only refused, saying “it’s only been a couple of days”

Carlos just hummed before the two finally caught back up to the girl, waiting for them by the two cars. She instructed them where to stand, giving them simple instructions thinking it shouldn’t be that difficult completely forgetting she was dealing with an irratating Charles today. He stood a couple of feet away from his position, 

“Can you scoot to the left a little, Charles?” she asked, trying her best to appear polite and surprisingly he did as he was told with no obligation. She took the first picture, making sure there was no odd glare anywhere before finally getting back down to take more shots. Taking the final picture, she concluded the day with a simple ‘perfect’. 

The girl was looking through them all, making some adjustments not appearing to notice the Monacan driver walking up to her, only managing to spook her with a simple greeting, only earning a glare right after. 

"Do you need something else" she asked, putting her camera down to face him and while the gesture may have meant little to the photographer it meant an advancement to Charles, making eye contact was his specialty. 

"Just making sure I look good" he said with his charming smile, she only nodded mumbling a barely audible "You always do" but Charles had heard, not so clear but he could make up the mumble, making his smirk grow just by a millimeter. 

"Is it too late for you to fix my hair" he asked with a hint of mischief in his tone but she only stared blankly, not the slightest amused, ready to walk away from the conversation but he grasped her wrist before she could take a step holding her back, sending a strange sensation to both. 

"Terrble joke" he apoligized, knowing he was giving her a hard time. He sighed, debating the options before finally admitting, "Truth is, me and Carlos had this bet going on for the past couple of days, now thinking about it, it was stupid. I won’t bother you again, just please don’t hate me"

"I already knew" she shrugged not appearing the slightest suuprised meanwhile Charles nearly had his whole jaw agape of the reveal. "I was waiting for when you would tell me"

"You knew? Since when?" he didn't know whether to feel embarrassed or stupid. Definetly both.

"The first day" she said ready turn now before saying "Don’t worry, I could never hate the prettiest driver"

The next day had been quite normal, considering Charles stopped bothering the girl, but he couldn’t stop thinking about her. The girl he couldn’t get, had started off as a bet where he would have her fall for him, turned to him falling for her. 

“Hey, Charles?” Her voice made his heart spike up, turning to see her with a small smile. “Mind helping me with something?” 

He nodded, waiting for her request as she fiddled with her ear, taking out a single earring. 

“I lost my earring earlier, mind helping me look of it?” he noticed her earring, one similar to another he had spotted not too far, a golden stud with diamond specs. He just nodded, observing it in her hand before replying with a simple sure. Without saying much else, he headed to the last place he saw it last with the girl trailing behind him. 

“I think I saw it earlier around here” he informed, starting the search with her. “I’ve never seen you wear jewelry before” he attempted to make a conversation and while the girl hesitated, she decided to reply with interest, “I don’t. Normally I am not allowed to, I only wear them on formal occasions really. But the one time I tried wearing it, i seemed to have lost it”

Charles only chuckled, searching the area with more detail. “It sure looks pretty, gift, I assume?” he wanted the conversation to last a lifetime, hearing her voice made him both comfortable and on suspense. 

“Yeah, my mother gave it to me. The only gift she gave me and I’ve lost it” her voice filled with sorrow and Charles immedietly filled terrible, ready to apoligize for even bringing it up but all she gave him was a reassuring smile, “It’s okay, I just need to find it is all” 

The search continued, lasting an hour before the girl gave a tired sigh, feeling her eyes trickled with water but she refused to cry, at least not in front of someone. She was ready to give up, clinging onto the one that she hasn’t lost yet hoping to anyone that could hear to allow her to find the gift. Meanwhile, Charles refused to give up not needing her frowned expression to be the appearance she gives him everyday because he couldn’t find her precious item. Not too long afterward, he finally spotted it, underneath a rug, he immediately grasped it letting out a soft yell, enough for her to hear him 

“Found it!” immediately, she went to him observing the earring before confirming it and thanking him, excitement struck her as she leaped forward grabbing the sides of his face pushing her lips to his. 

Charles arms fell to his sides, still needing time to react before closing her in his embrace wanting to deepen the kiss, eager for more, still ensuring to keep grasp of the earring. The kiss only lasted a minute before the girl finally brought herself back, bringing her hands to her sides, no longer looking at the earring but needing a positive reaction from the driver she as well was having a headache about the past couple of days. 

Seeing no reaction, she immediately grasped the earring thanking him silently but before she could turn away, he grabbed the sides of her face pulling her back in for another taste, she immediately melted in his arms, almost dropping the earring. After the two separated, their eyes wouldnt dare leave each other for a second, Charles lifting a corner of his mouth, feeling all types of adrenaline while the girl in his arms tried her best to calm down not sure if she was liking the rapid pace her heart was going. 

“Hope this isn’t part of your plan Leclerc” was all she could let out, with a shaky breath. Charles only smiled, reassuring her

“I lost the minute I started falling” 

[mechaknight-98]

Instinctive insight (NSFW) FT Chaehyun

Authors note: I am unsure of a preface so here goes. Chaehyun buys a zoo where the narrator (you) work and hijnks ensue

PartII

Sexual chemistry is a weird thing. First, you're minding your business as a zookeeper when the new owner comes in and next thing you know you have her folded like a pretzel calling you daddy as she takes a hot load into her pussy then the next thing you know you're helping said new boss run the zoo better like the two of you didn't just fuck each other brains out. Oh shit… I'm getting ahead of myself. Let me start from the beginning

As I worked on next week’s schedule at the zoo, my coworker and friend, Zahir, strolled in with an air of excitement.

“Hey, Dino. Heard about the new boss?” he asked, brimming with curiosity.

“Yeah, I heard she's the new owner, taking over from Old McDonald,” I replied, my tone neutral.

“E I E I Oh,” Zahir quipped, a familiar inside joke that never failed to elicit a chuckle.

Curiosity piqued, I inquired, “What's the new boss like?”

“She's a Korean girl, a former idol,” Zahir revealed.

“Really? That's unexpected,” I remarked, raising an eyebrow in surprise.

“Yeah, quite the change. She's due to arrive in an hour or two. You're probably the best bet to understand her. Could you stay to interpret?” Zahir requested, his eyes hopeful.

“Hmm, I'm not sure. I was planning to spend time with Tony today. Haven't had the chance since the promotion,” I explained, feeling torn.

“Fair enough. But what about Alucard?” Zahir countered.

“Alucard's always my priority at the start of each shift, given his popularity,” I assured him.

“True, he's practically your trademark here. By the way, did you get taller?” Zahir teased, noticing a change.

“Maybe I did, maybe I didn't,” I replied cryptically, leaving the question unanswered.

After successfully arranging for Zahir to cover Marie’s shift next Thursday, I completed the schedule. With that task done, I made my way to Tony’s enclosure, treading cautiously as always.

“Hey buddy, sorry I haven't been around. How are you?” I greeted him, though his silence conveyed more than words ever could.

His gaze, concealed beneath armored scales, seemed to communicate, “You always make sure to take care of Alucard.”

“Well, he may be popular, but I'm here now, aren't I?” I replied, preparing his food.

His head tilted inquisitively, silently questioning my sincerity.

“Yeah, really,” I affirmed.

Now, you might be wondering why I'm conversing with a Magnamalo. It all goes back to my early days at Old McDonald's Zoo. Each hire was entrusted with caring for an egg and a baby animal. I was given Tony, and over the years, we formed an unbreakable bond.

Currently, Tony is undergoing his transformation into a scorned Magnamalo in preparation for finding a mate. This meant heightened aggression and physical changes.

After spending a couple of hours with Tony, I sat on a nearby rock, feeling a sense of tranquility despite his imposing presence. As I finished up and secured the enclosure, a voice startled me.

“So, you're the illustrious Dinovaldo,” the voice said, catching me off guard. I turned to find a young Korean woman standing before me, likely the new boss. Surprisingly young, perhaps even younger than me, she exuded confidence beyond her years. Her round face framed by soft brown eyes and shoulder-length hair added to her allure.

Normally, I'm a sucker for a pretty face, but inexplicably, a surge of unfamiliar emotions washed over me, leading me to behave rudely. “I didn't expect you to be dressed so... casually,” I retorted, though her attire was perfectly appropriate.

She smirked, seemingly relishing the tension, and took a step closer. “For someone known for thoughtfulness and consideration, you're quite the jerk,” she remarked, her voice tinged with amusement.

I matched her proximity, a malicious smile playing on my lips as I felt a strange tension building between us. “Maybe if you weren't such an eyesore, it wouldn't be an issue,” I snapped, though secretly acknowledging her undeniable attractiveness.

“Well, what are you going to do about it, Daddy?” she challenged, our closeness heightening the tension until we both yielded to other, more primal feelings, breaking the touch barrier simultaneously. We found each other in a fiery kiss that consumed us both. My hands found themselves wrapped around her midriff and as my fingers sank into her soft flesh she moaned into the kiss. We broke it and all of the animosity we shared mutated into a virulent lust and desire. Wordlessly we go to a nearby employee shack used for helping the animals give birth and continue pursuing our bodies’ desires. I kiss her again and she melts into the kiss. I run my hands through her hair. The softness of her midriff pushes me to continue my exploration of her body. I slid my arms down to her ass, I grab her right leg and lift it as she wraps it around my waist

“How forward. I love it Daddy!” the woman says. I smile at her. Her eyes scream encouragement for me to continue so I do. I unbuckle my pants and pull my erect dick out.

“You are so soft I'm going to call you Marshmallow,” I say as I fiddle with her skirt before moving her panties to the side and plunging my sex into hers.

“Oh god yes Daddy,” Marshmallow says Euphoric. I was going to move until she said.

“No, give me a second to adjust,” Marshmallow says panting. While waiting I go back into kissing her which Marshmallow greedily accepts. She smells like a wildfire and it drives me wild. When the need for oxygen overrides our need to breed we break the kiss again. “Okay go,” Marshmallow says and I take off. I begin to pull out but her vagina sucks me in further. It's perfectly accommodating and welcoming. As barely get halfway out Marshmallow screams

“Ram it back in Daddy!” being the good daddy I was. I give her what she wants. She moans as her pussy sucks me in almost vacuum tight. Her nails dig into my neck as I thrust and a puddle of our combined juices lay beneath us as we continue. I look into her eyes and we see each other in a new light.

I cup her sizable bust as I whisper into her ear, “Do you want to cum?” Marshmallow nods

“Are you close?” I ask and am answered with another nod. I pick up the pace and begin to play with her clit. Marshmallow moans I feel her other leg wrap around me I smile into another kiss as the heat between us intensifies.

“Does daddy like my pussy?” Marshmallow said as her voice hitched

“Yes, I love the way it sucks me in as it never wants me to leave,” I say to a euphoric Marshmallow

“Well, it's true I don't want you to leave my pussy. I could duck this perfect cock all day and night.” Marshmallow moaned.

“God you're so hot,” I say to her breathless. “This soft body is perfect,” I say.

Marshmallow’s walls tighten and I realize she likes the body appreciation. So I try something to push her over the edge. I continue my thrusts in and out of Marshmallow as I begin praising her body like crazy.

“I love this tummy it's so soft and pillow. I just want to hug you and keep you close forever. These tits divine the perfect size to grope and squeeze.” I moan into her ear. I hear Marshmallow scream before she reaches her release. Her pussy becomes unbearable tight and forces mine

“Cum with me. Cum in me.” Marshmallow moans. Her words send me fully over the edge and I fall into the abyss with her. I shoot string after string of hot semen into her fertile pussy and she seemingly milks me for more and more as her orgasm intensifies. As our gazes lock, a strange sensation envelops me, stirring within like a tempest. We hold each other's stare, the air crackling with an inexplicable intensity. A wave of possessiveness washes over me, consuming my senses, and I can sense the same emotion reflected in her eyes, a silent acknowledgment. We are bonded and no one else would satisfy us.

After our copulation, We stand there, our intense gaze softened by the passage of time, yet the undercurrent of possessiveness only seems to strengthen. Eventually, we settle into new seats, and Marshmallow finds her way onto my lap.

“So, Marshmallow, huh?” she remarks playfully.

“Yeah, what about it?” I respond with equal playfulness.

“I like it, but my name is Chaehyun,” she reveals.

“Noted. I'll make an effort to use your real name in public,” I promise.

“Why hide your affection behind a nickname?” she teases.

“Not ashamed, just protecting our little secret,” I assure her, my fingers gently tracing through her hair.

“It's too late for secrecy now, Daddy,” she teases back.

“So, does this mean we're officially together?” I ask a hint of confusion in my tone.

“I think we are past that. I mean you did just cum what feels like a gallon in me.” Marshmallow teases

“Yeah, I'm sorry about that. I have no idea what came over me.” I apologize

“You're fine. If I didn't want it, I would've stopped you. Besides, it was reassuring because I felt a surge of emotions when meeting you too,” Marshmallow says, her tone adorable.

“Okay. So, what's next? Because I'm technically off the clock. Should we grab lunch?” I inquired, my mind swirling with conflicting feelings.

Marshmallow beams. “I'd love to,” she replies gratefully. I nod, but then the reality of the situation hits me.

I begin to scramble around the room. “Wait, let me tidy up first,” I insist, hastily organizing everything and dusting Marshmallow off. I can sense her smile as she watches me work. Once finished, I turn to her.

“Why does it look better than when we came in?” Marshmallow remarks with a smile, perching herself on a table, her feet dangling adorably.

“I know how it's supposed to look, and I know how to make it that way, no matter what,” I explain. Marshmallow nods before gracefully sliding off the table with my assistance.

“What a gentleman,” she teases.

“Well, I try,” I respond, eliciting another smile from Marshmallow.

We slip out of the zoo unnoticed and head to a nearby steakhouse. We get seated and order our drinks. Marshmallow’s hand slips into mine and fits perfectly as we continue to feel each other out.

“So, I heard you raised the Zoo’s only male Magnamalo from birth,” Marshmallow brings up as we settle in our seats and receive our drinks. I nod.

“Yeah, Tony and I have been together since I was 16 when Old McDonald hired me.”

“So, you've been at the zoo for 10 years,” Marshmallow concludes, smiling warmly at me. Our drinks arrive, and Marshmallow's face lights up even more after taking her first sip, mirroring my own enjoyment. As she sets her drink down, her expression shifts to one of intense focus.

“You know, Old McDonald…” Marshmallow begins.

“E I E I Oh,” I interject, prompting a chuckle from Marshmallow.

“What was that?” Marshmallow asks, amusement evident in her tone.

“Just a reflex from an old inside joke,” I reply, feeling slightly embarrassed.

Marshmallow squeezes my hand, her touch radiating tenderness and care, melting away my defenses. I can't help but smile goofily in response.

“As I was saying before I was rudely interrupted,” Marshmallow teases, her eyes sparkling with affection. I playfully kiss her cheek, earning a happy smile in return. “The previous zoo owner relied on you for almost everything. Can I?” she continues, her eyes bright with curiosity.

“Sure, but first, I have some requests,” I respond.

“Oh, and what might those be?” Marshmallow inquires.

“Well, I know you're not just a former K-pop idol but also a renowned megafauna researcher with an impressive list of achievements. While I may not have the same level of expertise, I've raised or helped raise almost all the animals in the zoo, especially our big-ticket boy, Alucard.”

“Another one of your naming conventions?” Marshmallow teases with a smirk. I nod before continuing.

“I need you to trust my expertise with them, and please refrain from belittling me or flaunting your credentials. Given how our bodies reacted today, I'm not sure what might happen if things become confrontational. I'm open to constructive discussion, but if it turns into a challenge, I'll stand my ground firmly,” I explain, adopting a serious tone to convey the gravity of my request.

Marshmallow's smile widens. “You understand!” she exclaims excitedly, leaving me momentarily puzzled.

“Understand what?” I inquire.

[ozzgin]

I can't get your yakuza headcanons out of my mind, Daitou's got me in a chokehold and I'm not complaining, like--

in regards to that doodle you made to show height difference between reader and the boys [I love your art btw (●♡∀♡)] - I can't picture myself in reader's style, I'm currently going through my goth phase in my 20s lmao; picture a big bitch with tattoos and messy hair who's listening to nothing but 2000s hits and screamo bands - so I'd like to request a headcanon of how Daitou would react to a gender-neutral reader like this :D I also like to incorporate the idea of them once being in a famous band that he's a fan of! (sorry if this seems like a lot, I have a huge imagination hehe)

but if he's more into the cute and helpless type, I'll just walk my ass out the door and yeehaw my way into another yandere's arms ✌😔

That's on me for not drawing the reader inserts as cartoonish cinder blocks :') In truth I'm a little bit embarrassed seeing how many likes that doodle has gotten, it was something I put together in a hurry and the clothing was meant to be baggy, shapeless, with not too many folds for the sake of simplicity. I myself am more of a pilgrim goth, just to emphasize the randomness of the choice.

Drawing reader inserts always leaves me a little anxious. If I use a light shade of gray, will people think I'm excluding poc? Will plus sized readers feel like they've been disregarded? What about masculine readers? As someone who's demiromantic I always struggle taking appearance or gender into consideration, because to me it has no influence whatsoever. Which is hard to express when you want to offer blank slate visuals as an extra to the story.

What I'm trying to say is that all of my characters would like you for who you are. Sure, they find your looks cute, but it's not the defining reason. Maybe you have similar traits to them, maybe you're the complete opposite and they find it intriguing. You could be a buff man and Daitou would be just as grateful to have someone who isn't afraid of him. I usually stick to a female reader for bigger stories to avoid messing it up long term, but in the grand scheme of things it makes no difference. I always imagine reader to be a shapeless blob that provides the dialogue I need for the story mood. There's no concrete preference or type for any of my OCs. I mean, ideally you'd like them back and not hang them upside down above a BBQ pit but I feel these are sensible requirements (?).

And now for the actual headcanons since my ramble is over.

First encounter is comically awkward but for reasons you’re unaware of yet. You’re obviously used to people staring at you (more so in a country like Japan), so you were expecting the curious glance every now and then. On the other hand, being under scrutiny, from a man even more unusual looking than you at that, is odd. Mildly uncomfortable. You’re shifting yourself from one leg to another, hoping to be done with the introductions soon.

On his end, Daitou is anxiously fidgeting and trying his best to focus. He’s seen this face before and he can’t shake off the familiar feeling. Where the hell…He obviously can’t downright gawk at you, and he isn’t sure how to politely formulate a question. After several sheepish peeks, it finally dawns on him: weren’t you part of that band he really likes? No, what would the chances be? Then again, how many people out there would look exactly like you? Is it rude to ask? He has no idea. He resumes his mumbled description of the apartment and hands you the papers to be signed.

Back at his place, he finally digs through his merch and sprawls out the available clues. “I didn’t know you were into this kind of music”, Kazuya comments as he looks over the man’s shoulder. He’d come over to ask about the new tenant. “I’m pretty sure it’s them.” He concludes, confidently placing his index over a CD cover. “Huh? Who? The tenant?” Kazuya holds back his chuckle. “Why would a celebrity show up for a shady apartment offer? You’re tripping, man.”

“I’m sorry, this is getting ridiculous.” You finally exclaim, annoyed by the persistent stares of the now two men facing you. You’re standing in front of the apartment building, arms crossed, huffing at the tall scarred man and his blonde friend. “No, I’m sure of it. Even the tattoo is the same.” Daitou turns to whisper to Kazuya, oblivious to your complaints. In turn, Kazuya lightly elbows him, mouthing something about being rude. “Just ask them, man.” He adds, this time louder. “Ask me what??” You groan. “W-were you…um…in this band by any chance?” Daitou manages to blurt out, searching his pocket for the CD case and ceremoniously laying it under your eyes.

Ah. It finally clicks and you exhale, relieved. You confirm their suspicions and show them some backstage photos to solidify your claim. You ask Daitou if he wants an autograph or something, then swiftly scribble your signature on a piece of paper and hand it out to him. He holds it with a wide, childish grin. “You’re a weird one, you know? You could’ve just asked. I guess I didn’t expect to find a fan in the wild, especially here.” Daitou carefully folds the souvenir, eyes lidded with nostalgia. “Oh yes, it’s great. Drowns out the screams.”

[twstowo]

Can you do a Riddle and Ace x sensetive reader with separation anxiety?

♡︎Bestie, I had to go read about separation anxiety because I had no idea that was a thing. I tried writing about it as best as possible, so I really hope I did it justice.

⋆⋅☆Riddle

He is attentive and will understand that something is going on, from the moment you always seem reluctant to leave him or from the fact that you are always worried about his well-being. He will talk to you about it if he sees that the situation is becoming out of hand, and even if he doesn’t understand your point, he tries to be understanding of it, even if he needs to ask for help from Trey.

If you call him in the middle of the night because you had a nightmare about him leaving you, he will actually listen to you and try to reassure you that he isn’t going anywhere. He even sends you messages every day to reassure you that everything is fine and asks you about your day.

⋆⋅☆Ace

Ace is probably one of the worst people to deal with this problem, since he doesn’t understand the suffocating grip that separation anxiety has on you. He will probably believe that you are overreacting when you get so distressed when he is not with you, or by the fact that you are always worrying that something bad might happen to him.

When you start refusing to be away from him, he finally snaps and asks what is wrong with you. It will probably come off as rude, but it’s just that he never had anyone being so clingy. Please do explain how you feel, and he will listen. He still won’t understand why you act in such a way, but will try to be considerate of it while trying to be more patient with you.

[thenightfolknetwork]

Hello! You have a problem. You were cursed by a witch to only be able to communicate in second person. This is annoying, but manageable. However, the curse turned out a bit strong, and anyone who tries to talk to you will ALSO only be able to communicate in second person while communicating with you.

You will be honest, you kind of totally deserved the curse. You were rude to the witch on your date and acted VERY self-centered and didn't ask her about herself, very bad etiquette, etcetera. You're honestly fine with just riding the curse out at least for a while longer, it's a good reminder that you aren't perfect and growth is a constant process.

But you're pretty sure that the extra-strength whammy is probably very disconcerting for anyone you're trying to talk to, especially if they're not expecting it, and it's making your job as a call center tech support advisor VERY confusing for everyone involved. And you'd just text the witch to go, hey, you understand that curses are meant to be inconvenient and this is all part of the lesson and whatnot, but you don't think it's fair to strangers who need help with their iPhones, so could you maybe adjust that a bit? But he blocked you on Grindr and you don't know how to get in contact with him elsewise, so you're making a hail mary by trying to call into TNN.

You're pretty sure you don't actually need advice but you'd appreciate it if maybe you could get the word out that if anyone knows a witch in Southpoole with a rocking body, GREAT tongue, bit of a lisp, and mottled brown scales, PLEASE have him contact you about this and also you're sorry--no, sorry, YOU'RE sorry--agh, whatever, you get what you mean.

You can certainly see how- Ah. Yes, you see the problem. You had been somewhat optimistic the curse might not extend to this more removed form of communication, but it seems you were mistaken.

You can certainly get the word out on your platforms – if any of your other followers recognise the individual in question based on that rather… enthusiastic description, please do encourage them to get in touch with the author of this letter at their earliest convenience.

.You say you're willing to ride out the curse until its natural end. That is entirely up to you, of course. However, you would like to note that mild to moderate curses can often be lifted by other practitioners without too much trouble.

If the curse grows overly wearisome or hasn't lifted by itself in, say, two months time, you recommend seeking out a local practitioner and having the curse ended that way. As always, do make sure any practitioner you hire for such work has a proper license, and steer clear of anyone making overblown claims about their abilities.

Finally, while you are generally of the opinion that curses are a rather tasteless way of handling interpersonal conflicts, you must allow, they can be rather effective.

You hope you have learnt your lesson as well as you claim, and that you will be more considerate in the future – or at the very least, save your rudeness for dates who can't call on dark powers to inflict weird suffering upon you in retaliation.

[justabigassnerd]

Hidden Talent

Pairing - Pete 'Maverick' Mitchell x daughter!reader

Word count - 1,615

Warnings - little pinch of angst, mostly fluff, an unpopular trope I guess, don't like it don't read it

Summary - after some convincing, you finally take part in karaoke night and surprise the Daggers and your dad

A/N - I guess I should apologise for disappearing again... I'm so sorry I've been picking up a lot more shifts recently at work so I'm in a permanent state of exhaustion right now and I'm trying to get myself writing for y'all it's just a fight right now. I know this trope isn't popular but like... it was a request so just scroll if you don't like it and yes I chucked Taylor Swift in there because I was listening to her music while writing so yeah. anyway I won't ramble anymore, as per y'all please send in requests, feedback, and enjoy!!

Karaoke night at the Hard Deck had very quickly become popular among the Daggers when Penny implemented it every Saturday night. It usually consisted of the Daggers singing various songs off-key while a few drinks in. It was great entertainment for you, watching the people your dad worked with to be up on their feet singing the likes of Celine Dion and various attempts to sing the whole of Bohemian Rhapsody.

Each of the Daggers had invited you to get involved on multiple occasions but you always turned them down, saying you got stage fright and that seemed to get them to back off enough although they did reconvene together and whisper about how uncharacteristic it was for you, the daughter of Pete Mitchell to experience anything like stage fright.

One night, you were hanging out at the Hard Deck with the Daggers and watching Jake sing what he has dubbed as one of his favourite country songs, but you weren’t too sure how serious he was about it since he claimed almost every country song as his favourite. As Jake sang, beer bottle in one hand, microphone in the other, Bradley sidled up alongside you in front of the bar where Penny had just handed you a soda and spoke up.

“You going to sing anything?” He asks, keeping his tone as casual as possible.

“Not a chance.” You reply with a slight laugh tagged onto the end as you glance up at Bradley. You knew if you went up there and sang you might get made fun of. You were sure you could sing, after all you had made the school choir but that didn’t stop you from being terrified that the Daggers would tease you and then somehow word would spread to your dad, and you’d become a disappointment in his eyes.

“Come on. Just one song? Please?” Bradley pleads, making you roll your eyes with a light scoff. Since your dad and Bradley had made up, Bradley had no issues stepping in as an annoying yet loveable big brother to you.

“Bradley… have I ever said yes?” You question, raising an eyebrow as Bradley falls silent for a moment before speaking up.

“Just this once and then I’ll never ask you to do it again. Promise.” Bradley insists, nudging you lightly with his elbow, chuckling when you squirm at the tickling sensation that came with the friendly nudge.

“I’ll do it if you and the Daggers promise not to make fun of me or tell dad.” You say after a brief moment of consideration and when at first you saw Bradley light up at you saying you’d do it and then when he heard the rest of your sentence his expression shifted.

“You’d think we’d make fun of you?” Bradley asks softly, eyes regarding you gently as you begin to feel guilty for your words at the crushed look on Bradley’s face.

“Well… you guys always tease each other when you sing so I just assumed you’d act the same towards me. I don’t mind the teasing I’m just nervous enough at the thought of singing in front of you guys that any teasing might just- I don’t know.” You try explaining, not really knowing how to say what you want to say without sounding rude. You never minded a bit of fun with the Daggers, you were able to keep up with their usual banter with ease but there was something so terrifying about singing in front of them. You had grown more passionate about singing the more you did it at school and you weren’t ready for everyone around you to make fun of your interests and passions.

“y/n/n, I promise we will not make fun of you. We can go and speak to them now to get all of them to promise.” Bradley offers, making you nod with the slightest of smiles on your face as you follow Bradley from the bar to where the Daggers had congregated.

“Hey, y/n! Is everything, okay?” Reuben asks as you approach, all of the Daggers noticing how you stuck to Bradley’s side.

“Is something wrong?” Bob asks worriedly, eyes flicking between you, Bradley, and the other Daggers to try and figure out what was wrong.

“Do you want to tell them of should I?” Bradley asks quietly, glancing down at you softly.

“I’ll tell them.” You say, taking a small step forward and addressing the group who give you their undivided attention.

“Bradley has coerced me into singing a song tonight. But I will only do it on two conditions. One, you don’t make fun of me if I sound awful or anything. Two, no one tells dad about it. I’m not ready to potentially embarrass or disappoint him.” You say clearly, the way you command the group eerily reminding them all of Maverick and how he could control the group much easier than any other superior officer. After you finish speaking, the Daggers all exchange looks once more before softening.

“I promise we will not make fun of you, kid.” Jake says sincerely, as the rest of the Daggers agree and give you their own promises to not make fun of you or tell your dad. They were all a bit confused as to why you were so shy about your dad knowing about you taking part in karaoke night but since you didn’t want him to know, they promised they wouldn’t tell him. With their promise secured, you cross to Penny and tell her what song you want to play, and Penny is quick to find you a karaoke version before letting you take the stage.

As the opening bars of Fearless play, you divert your attention away from where the Daggers are sitting and instead focus your attention on the furthest wall to keep yourself distracted as you begin to sing.

When you started to sing, the Daggers exchanged looks of shock and awe. They had no clue what to expect when you took to the stage, but you had taken control of the stage and sung your heart out.

Unbeknownst to you and the Daggers, Maverick had entered the Hard Deck, ready to pick you up but instead of finding you talking and laughing with the Daggers, he saw you up on the small karaoke stage singing. You seemed so happy and confident as you sang, and Maverick couldn’t help but feel his heart surge with pride at the sight. He had no idea you could sing so well. You had never sung in front of Maverick before, not even in the car or singing around the house.

“Hey Pete.” Penny’s soft voice shakes Maverick from his stupor, and he turns to face her as you sing in the background.

“Did you know y/n could sing like that?” Maverick says, awe written across his face as he speaks, making Penny softly laugh at the expression.

“No, I didn’t. And neither did the Daggers by the looks of things. She’s never taken part until today.” Penny says, nodding her head in the direction of where Maverick’s squadron was sat, all of them looking just as shocked as Maverick was, and constantly turning to whisper to each other about your performance.

When you finished the song, the Daggers were quick to cheer and the second you stepped off the small stage Mickey and Javy grabbed you into a hug.

“That was amazing y/n/n!” Natasha says excitedly, pulling you into a hug the moment Mickey and Javy released you from their hug. You couldn’t help but laugh at how everyone was scrabbling to give you a hug or congratulate you. When the group finally dispersed, you came face to face with your dad and you stiffened slightly, worried about what was to come.

“Hi, dad.” You say nervously, trying to anticipate his next words.

“Hi y/n. I didn’t know you could sing like that.” Maverick says, a smile soon breaking out on his face which makes you relax and smile in return.

“That was amazing! I’ve got one talented kid.” Maverick continues, pulling you into his arms gently, holding you close as you wrap your arms around him with a grin.

“Thank you, dad.” You say softly, squeezing him a little tighter as you feel him press a kiss to the top of your head before pulling away.

“I hope we’ll get to hear more of your singing from now on. You can’t keep a talent like that hidden away now.” Maverick says, unable to wipe the grin from his face as you shrug lightly.

“Well, I did make the school choir… maybe you and the others can come to some performances or something?” You suggest, and Maverick wasted no time in agreeing.

“I’ll be there for every performance I can be.” He swears, making your smile widen as you go in for another hug, grateful that your dad was supporting your passion instead of shooting it down like you had feared.

“Hey, pops! Stop hogging the future superstar!” Jake calls over to you and Maverick, making you both laugh out loud as you pull away, turning around to look at him and the rest of the Daggers as Bradley steps forward.

“I just think the most important thing is I finally found myself a singing partner.” Bradley says proudly, slinging an arm around your shoulders and pulling you close to his side as everyone chuckles.

“Bold assumption that I want to be your singing partner there Bradley.” You say with a laugh as Bradley’s jaw drops in mock shock.

“Come on! At least one song a week. Deal?” Bradley bargains, everyone falling silent and awaiting your response.

“Okay. Deal.”

[colourstreakgryffin]

Thank you for taking my request earlier <3

I again have a request if you don't mind ^^

Tsugikuni brothers (yes, I simp for them-) hcs (separately) with the s/o who is awkward with people at first but after getting comfy likes to talk alot and is an absolute chatterbox that barely shuts up? Like the reader also likes to make the people close to them laugh by purposely saying stupid things? But their friends sometimes exclude them or don't pay attention to them when they are trying to say smth?

TvT I mean that's literally who I am and that what's happens to me mostly so yea-

Let me know if you are not comfy with writing it or so ^^

Oooh! No, don’t worry. This very cute! I definitely will do this one too, and hey, I’m like this in real life tbh!

Michikatsu Tsugikuni and Yoriichi Tsugikuni

Yoriichi is a awkward and antisocial man himself so he isn’t that bothered nor pushy over your own shyness as he understands it fully. To him, you seem very nice and he won’t force you to talk to him, take your time

Michikatsu, on the other hand, is as quiet and antisocial as Yoriichi, but he is able to hold conversation so you’re own social issues is a bit annoying, not enough to make him despise you tho, just enough to make him scowl

Yoriichi and Michikatsu are equally quiet so when you start to open up more and begin to be much more talkative and shape into the chatterbox you are under that cute exterior. Both brothers are considerate and will never be rude towards you but act different

Yoriichi loves listening to you ramble on and on as long as you want, and he will always be your listener. He also really adores that you feel comfortable with him enough to talk your heart out

Michikatsu needs silence however but he just doesn’t have the gut to even ask you to tone it down. It’s half a annoyance and half a joy, he does likes hearing how excited you are and how you rely on him

The Tsugikuni Brothers are just raised polite and considerate so no matter what, you want to talk to them? They’ll let you talk and rant and even dump, the closer you are to them, makes them even more willingly to hear you out. It’s how they are by nature

Yoriichi is so flattered and flustered when you say stupid things and try your best to make him laugh. He may force out a laugh at times but that’s because he just adores you and your happiness is his to his core. Most of the time, your attempts make him genuinely laugh

Michikatsu is not much of a jokester, he is very serious but with the way you always say such stupid things and suspect him to laugh with waiting eyes, he always laughs. No matter what, to him, you’re adorable and he wants to make you happy

Both Tsugikuni Brothers are extremely protective over you and your health, so when you tell them about your friends excluding you, out of the blue, from conversations or ignoring you, they are equally outraged

Yoriichi calmly and politely discusses a plan with you, to talk to your so-called friends about their treatment over you since he just can’t stand you being upset or hurt. They don’t realise what they do to you so he must make them realise himself

Michikatsu won’t let that shit slide, god no, he is immediately going to your so-called friends and talking them down for mistreating you. You’re a pure being and he will protect your purity forever. He doesn’t tell you about what he does but it’s all for you

“Dokusha… are you okay? You look a bit upset? Would you like to sit down and have lunch with me, so you can also tell me about everything of today. I’d love to hear it and I’ll try cheer you up”

“Dokusha. I can sense you’re uneven and irritated over something? Aren’t I always the one you tell your issues to? Spill to me about every detail right now, don’t hesitate”

[hopepetal]

So @applestruda and I, as well as a friend of ours, have been watching Fantasy High together. That made me think. What if some of our sillies played DND?

--

Grian smiled, the kind of smile that always preceded a prank or something equally as dastardly. “You find yourself traversing through the forest, surrounded by trees that stretch–” And he reached up with an arm to show the great height of the forest– “right up to the sky, it seems. There's a muggy, sort of humid air, and you can hear that the birds are calling for potential mates in the distance.”

Impulse nudged Jimmy with a grin. “Hey, lover bird, sounds like your kind of crowd.”

Jimmy flushed a bright pink, spluttering out, “No, what the– oh my gosh, Impulse, that's so rude!” to laughter from around the table.

Even Grian had to hide a chuckle, before going back to describing the scene. “And you see, as you're trekking through this jungle– Pearl in front, slashing through the vines and smaller underbrush with her sword– you find that the underbrush suddenly stops, and there is a huge lake of what seems to be quicksand blocking the path.”

“Can I jump over it?” Pearl asked immediately, to which Grian, after a moment of consideration, shrugged.

“It's worth trying,” he answered, “give me an acrobatics roll.”

Pearl took up one of her starry blue die and rolled it, peering at the number when it stopped moving. “14– 18, with acrobatics.”

Grian thought for a moment, before shrugging and nodding his head. “...yeah, that works. You, take a few steps back, get a running start, and you jump over that quicksand like its nothing. It's– definitely not nothing, you probably just broke a human world record for long jump with half the effort, but hey, that's the fun of not being human!”

“I feel targeted,” Impulse joked, earning a round of giggles.

“Right, then. That's Pearl's turn.” Grian turned to Jimmy. “Do you wanna try doing the same thing, or are you gonna look for another way...?”

Jimmy grabbed his die, shaking it eagerly in his hands. “Oh, we're jumping this thing, baby.” He released the die, glanced at the number, and let out a horrified exclamation. “Nat one! That's– no, oh no, that's not–!”

Grian already had an evil grin on his face. “So, you go to jump over this huge thing of quicksand– and it's huge, man, you don't even know why you're doing this– and you land right in the middle of it, flat on your face, and begin to sink.”

Jimmy groaned, burying his head in his hands as the table laughed. “Oh, this is awful, this is awful...”

Tango fumbled with his die. “Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, can I– can I roll to help him, or something?”

Grian snickered. “Go ahead.”

Tango rolled, and screeched. “Oh no! I got a nat one! Ohhh, no!”

The whole table started dying from laughter, Scar almost falling out of his chair, startling Jellie in the process. Tilly barked once, her tail wagging as she panted heavily.

Grian wiped tears from his eyes. “Ohhh, boy. Oh man.” He giggled, his wings shaking as he tried to calm himself. “Right. So, you see Jimmy sinking face first into the quicksand, and you quickly jump out to help him– falling straight into the quicksand yourself, almost landing on Jimmy in the process.”

Tango pulled his knees up to his chest, burying his face in his knees as he wailed. “Oh, nooo! I'm so sorry, Jimmy!”

[ineffable-endearments]

I was rethinking the bookshop meta I wrote a while ago and realized I was not thinking big enough.

The bookshop has always been Aziraphale's version of Crowley's plants (his trauma reenactment), but also, absolutely everything Aziraphale does in Season 2 is a re-creation of Heaven's role. Crowley's behavior also encompasses everything, not just his plants.

I've seen it suggested that centering Aziraphale and Crowley's trauma histories is reducing their characters to behaving like just reactive victims instead of survivors with agency. Or worse, it's "excusing bad behavior." I don't agree with either of these, because I feel that part of Good Omens is about how large, powerful systems affect individuals, and so the context of every character's decisions matters a lot to the overall themes of the story. Everyone starts out working within a system they believe to reflect reality and then has to learn how to break free of it. You cannot really illustrate that without having the characters start out being genuinely trapped with different ways of coping with their reality.

This is an attempt at a pretty big-picture meta. Although it isn't a plot prediction, it's how I think some of the series' themes are going to progress. It starts out perhaps a little grim, but in the long run, it's how Aziraphale's character growth and relationship with Crowley can simultaneously be massive for them as individuals, a crucial part of the overarching narrative message of the series, and symbolic of a change in all of Heaven and Hell, all while allowing the themes to continue to prioritize human free will.

In short, it's about Aziraphale's problems, but it's also meant to be an Aziraphale love post.

All of the below exists in tandem with Good Omens as a comedy of errors. Just because there are heavy ideas does not mean they will not also be funny. Look back on how much of Season 2 seemed silly until we started to pick it apart! One of the amazing things about Good Omens is how it manages to do both silly and serious at once! (I feel like that's maybe a little Terry Pratchett DNA showing through. "Laughter can get through the keyhole while seriousness is still hammering on the door," as Terry himself said.)

Aziraphale has really embraced his connection to Crowley in Season 2, and he has also become considerably more assertive toward Heaven and Hell. These are both major growth points compared to the beginning of Season 1.

However, again, we have the concept of growing pains...Aziraphale is starting to re-create Heaven's role in his relationship with Crowley and humanity. It's really obvious with the Gabriel argument and the I Was Wrong Dance, but I think we see it all over the place: he seems to feel any serious dissent is a betrayal. He also seems to assume there's a dominance hierarchy and he, of course, is on top. Now that he's decided to take control of his own future, then surely that does mean he's the one in control, right?

With all that said, he still seems to have trouble being direct about the feelings that make him most vulnerable. He manipulates people and engineers situations in which he can try to get his emotional needs met rather than saying things outright (case in point: the Ball).

Like I pointed out in the bookshop meta: subconsciously, he's playing the role of God, modified with what God would be if She were everything he wants Her to be. He's generous, almost infinitely sweet, always does what's best for people...or, at least, what he believes is best for people. During the Ball, Aziraphale influences the people around him to be comfortable and happy even when they're not supposed to be, and he limits their ability to talk about things he thinks are too rude or improper for happy, formal occasions.

Doesn't this pattern sort of make sense for an angel who's just discovering free will? Like, at the end of Season 1, he made an enormous choice to stand against Heaven and realized he could survive it. Now he's gone a bit overboard with exerting his own will. Unfortunately, while he's learned to question upper management, he's still operating on a fundamental framework of the universe where there have to be two sides and there has to be a hierarchy. Also, since Aziraphale is on the Good side, he of course has to gear his desires into what's Good rather than just what he wants, so he sometimes thinks he's doing things for others when really he's doing things for himself. (For example, matchmaking Maggie and Nina started out as something he wanted to use to lie to Heaven, but by the time he was commenting "Maggie and Nina are counting on me," he seemed sincere, like he had genuinely convinced himself this was for them and not for himself.)

Aziraphale knows Heaven interferes in human affairs, ostensibly on God's behalf. He thinks She should be intervening in ways that are beneficial. What I believe the narrative wants him to learn is that God and Heaven shouldn't be manipulating people at all, not even for Good, and in fact there is no real meaningful hierarchy.

Anyway, a top-down, totally unquestioned hierarchy is the primary social relationship Aziraphale has known, and it's certainly been the dominant one for most of his existence: you're either the boss or the underling, and if someone seriously questions you, they don't have faith in you - they don't respect you.

No, his relationship with Crowley has not always been like that, but they've been creating their relationship from whole cloth, so how would he know it shouldn't become that way, now that it's "real" and out in the open?

No, human relationships aren't like that, but Aziraphale clearly does not see himself or Crowley as human. As the relationship approached something that seemed like it must be "legitimate," Aziraphale would naturally look for a framework to fit it to. And again, the only one he has is the shape of "intimacy," or what passes for it, in Heaven. What has "trust" always meant in all his "legitimate" relationships? It has always meant unquestioning obedience, of course. What have the warm fuzzies felt like in Heaven? Well, praise from the angels above him is nice, so that must be it, right?

Aziraphale even describes being in love as "what humans do," separating out that relationship style. Someday, I think he'll realize he favors the shape of love on Earth, something that's more inherently equal, more give-and-take. Look at how he idealizes it from afar at the Ball. But I think that, like Crowley before Nina pointed it out, Aziraphale maybe hasn't 100% grokked that it can and in fact should work that way for him and Crowley, too. Just like people can desperately want to dance without knowing how to dance, or can desperately want to speak a language without knowing the language, Aziraphale does not instinctively know how to have the kind of relationship where he can be truly vulnerable and handle Crowley's vulnerability as well.

Aziraphale is downright obsessed with French, known as the "language of love." He's trying to learn it the Earthly way. He's not very good at it, but he wants to be.

This pattern is still present during the Final Fifteen even if we assume Aziraphale is asking Crowley to become an angel again out of fear (and I find it very hard to believe that fear doesn't factor in at all). He's still building his interactions off of that Heaven-like framework: he asks Crowley to trust him blindly, he tries to assume a leadership role with a plan Crowley never agreed to and couldn't follow anyway, and he tries very hard not to leave room for an ounce of doubt. He also suggests making Crowley his second-in-command and obviously does not register that this could possibly be offensive. Again, I think this is because for Aziraphale, there has always been a hierarchy in Heaven, it's started to transfer to his relationship with Crowley, and breaking out of that assumption about relationships is going to take more processing than a single argument can do.

As I mentioned in another post, I don't believe Aziraphale had a real choice about whether he accepted the Supreme Archangel position. I think he could sense that he was not getting out of it and chose to look on the bright side, to see it as an opportunity. And instead of looking realistically at how that would feel to Crowley, he tried to sweep Crowley up to Heaven with him using toxic positivity, appeals to morality, and appeals to their relationship itself. Again, mimicking what Heaven has done to him.

To me, "they're not talking" is a big clue that Aziraphale's approach with Crowley is going to be the mistake the narrative really wants him to face. "Not talking" has, thus far, been presented as the central conflict of Season 3! After losing the structure and feedback Heaven gave him, Aziraphale started creating Heaven-like patterns in his relationship with Crowley, and breaking out of those patterns is what he needs to do. Discovering first-hand that Heaven's entire modus operandi is bad no matter who's in charge is how he can do it.

Look, either you're sympathetic to Aziraphale's control issues or you're not. Personally, I am. He's trying so, so hard to be good. I think trying to figure yourself out (which Aziraphale is clearly doing) is hard enough, and when you start balancing what you want for yourself, what you think are your responsibilities, and what other people are actively asking of you, you're bound to fall into the patterns that have been enforced for your whole life or for millions of years, whichever came first.

It is very easy to assume that people should Just Be Better, but it's not actually that simple to be a thinking, feeling person. My anxiety tends to move in a very inward direction and Aziraphale's moves outward. But I'd imagine the desperation and exhaustion are the same.

Unlike Nina, Aziraphale became a rebound mess. I don't think it occurred to either him or to Crowley that there could be any soul-searching, anything but carrying on with the new normal after their stalemate with Heaven and Hell.

Now, instead of getting rejected by Heaven and surviving it, Aziraphale needs to be the one to reject Heaven. It needs to be a choice. And that choice is going to come from realizing that Heaven isn't just poorly managed but also represents a bad framework for all relationships.

How could this happen? Good question. We're obviously not supposed to know yet, although I think picking at existing themes within the narrative could possibly give us hints.

It's possible Aziraphale's character development trajectory will be akin to Adam Young's in Season 1. Please see this stellar post by eidetictelekinetic for more thoughts about it, but basically, in Season 1, Adam saw that the world was not what he wanted it to be and decided his vision was better; as he ascended to power, he took complete control over all his friends and then soon realized that's not what he wants because there's no point in trying to have relationships with people who can't choose you. It's that realization that leads Adam to conclude he doesn't want to take over the world and to reject the role he's expected to play as the Antichrist. Maybe Aziraphale's trip to Heaven is an attempt at a control move during which he'll realize he's defeating his own point.

Aziraphale clearly wants to be chosen. From the very beginning, he's wanted to be special and cared for - just like Crowley has.

Incidentally, I think Aziraphale and Crowley are going to represent pieces of the bigger picture here, and this - first imitating and then rejecting Heaven's relationship style - can both symbolize Heaven's transformation and directly start it (probably in an amusing, somewhat indirect way, like when he handed off the flaming sword to Adam).

If I'm right - which I may very well not be - I think this would all be so, SO cool. Like, "An angel who is subconsciously trying to be a better God" is a concept with so much potential for both tender kindness and incredible darkness. Add to that the comedy-of-errors aspect of "...but even deeper down, he'd much rather just be super gay on Earth" and you have, in my opinion, a perfect character.

I think this could work for Crowley as well. It's obvious that in the Good Omens universe, at least so far, Hell is all about detesting humans and punishing them; Satan seems to genuinely hate humans (unlike in some of NG's other works). Our perspective on this could change, but it potentially puts Crowley in a complementary position to Aziraphale, as a demon who is trying to be "better" than Satan. But this isn't about being "morally better." It's about things having a point. Crowley's exploits usually have a point: they test people. And you can pass his tests! He sincerely likes making trouble, but Crowley doesn't live to punish.

But, once again, the above paragraph would describe a transient phase for this infinitely charming character. Because, again, I think the point will be that in the end, Crowley's deeper-down desire, moreso than testing Creation, is watching it grow with a glass of wine in hand.

[digitaldiarystuff]

Patient

note: since you don’t like me and give any suggestions 🥺 i came up with something and i’m sorry but it angsty i can’t help it

————

summary: you and ruben were in the same circle, hanging out often but for some reason, after all this time you couldn’t break the ice between you two.

pairing: Ruben Dias x Y/N

genre: angst/ fluff

————

“I didn’t expect this many people.” you said to your best friend Sasha as you entered the house, your friend was hosting a get together at his place since it was holiday season.

“I thought it’d be just us, too.” she said and held your hand hoping not to lose you in this crowd.

You had a friend circle, contained about 10 people and their partners and you were considerably close. You had known most of them from work or university but there were some strangers to you until they entered the circle. You also were the only single at least until Ruben Dias came along. Now there are two singles. And he was walking towards you with a smile.

“Hey guys” he said in his trademark stoic tone, sometimes you thought he was a robot.

“Heyy” Sasha said and hugged him.

“Hi” you said after and also hugged him, feeling his abs brush against your front and quickly pulled away.

The thing is, your friends always thought you’d be a good couple. They even said it out loud in many occasions but it couldn’t be far away from the truth, Ruben acted like he was incapable of being in a relationship. He was so good looking with a big career but he was so emotionless sometimes that you felt weird around him. There were rare looks you catch with his intense gaze following you or one or two times saw him checking you out but other than that, nothing. You on the other hand, of course noticed his bright smile and toned body and maybe even called dips the moment you laid eyes on him but that was 6 months ago and there weren’t any progress. It wasn’t like he was cold or rude to you, he just was, neutral. He never let his hand wander around on your waist whilst walking you out or did anything to make you question your friendship other than looks. He was always polite, a true gentleman but that’s it.

At first you felt insecure because when everyone tells you you’ll definitely hit it off and become something at a point you kind of believe it but when Ruben never seemed into you, you felt like you were beneath him. Of course he had all the models in the world, why would he want anything to do with you? But then you accepted not everyone needs to get along or have a relationship when they’re single so you let it go. There were times when you couldn’t get your eyes off of him just admiring but that’s all.

Ruben walked you to your friends with a smile on his face, hand on the small of your back and his touch made fireworks go off inside of you. Okay you were mad about him.

“Heyy, happy holidays” everyone cheered and you looked at the crowd wondering where you can sit. It was very tight, every girl was on their boyfriends lap which made you curse, being single sucks. Ruben looked at you intensely, once again making your heart rate go up but didn’t say anything.

“Are you going to stand there all night or sit on Ruben’s leg Y/N?” a very drunk friend of yours asked as you shot daggers at her.

You looked back at Ruben but he was now on the floor.

“You can sit on my seat. I don’t mind being on the floor.” he said and your hopes once again crushed. I mean it’s Ruben you wouldn’t expect him to pull you to his lap and make out with you but he wanted nothing to do with the idea even sitting on the floor because of it.

“I could sit on the floor.” you said now, feeling guilty and bad. Maybe he thought you were too heavy.

“I… We couldn’t let you sit on the floor in that dress.” he cleared his throat and said smiling, you looked at yourself. You were wearing a long black dress with a deep slit on the side. You didn’t even realize if you tried to sit down you would’ve given a show to everyone in the party and blushed. Did Ruben make a small comment about not wanting you to flash people or was he just being nice? It was impossible to tell.

You sat down behind him and it felt good, having him occasionally lean against your exposed leg making your heart jump. You realized he had a few shots despite not drinking often, considering this was a holiday party. Maybe that’s the reason he was slightly more affectionate towards you.

You spent an hour all catching up with your friends sharing stories and it was the most fun. You also had many glasses of wine making you a little drunk. That’s when your friend Amanda started talking to you.

“Y/N I found the perfect guy for you. He goes to our gym and single and handsome.” her boyfriend gave her a look but she shrugged whispering “So handsome” You laughed a little and asked her to tell a little more.

“He just moved to Manchester and he’s a doctor, he’s originally from London and…” she kept listing this new guys’ information but your gaze turned to Ruben. He was seemingly listening to Amanda but he looked a little distraught, you took in his features. You didn’t want anybody else but knowing there’s no hope, you nodded to Amanda.

“He sounds amazing, when can I meet him?”

“Uhh, what about right now?” she said and stood up greeting a man you’ve never seen before.

“Hi Jack.” and hugged him, Jack was a beautiful blond man with curly hair and pearly white teeth and he wasn’t much muscular but in good shape. You couldn’t believe you were looking at a complete opposite of Ruben.

Amanda introduced you and he warmly shook your hand, kissing it afterwards. You heard a scoff behind you but didn’t glance back. He asked if you wanted to find a quiet space to talk some more and this was so different than what Ruben did, he was much more forward whereas you needed to beg Ruben for anything. You decided it wouldn’t hurt to get to know this handsome doctor and took his invitation.

You got out into the backyard and sat on the sun beds talking about your lives and interests. He was really into you, anyone could tell, after months of questioning yourself if you’re not good enough maybe this was what you needed because you soon fell into his sweet talking and found yourself kissing him. Feeling affection and appreciation was what made you do it but you didn’t realize Ruben coming to the backyard to get you. As soon as you pulled away your eyes found Ruben’s. It was the first time you could see right through him and he was feeling sad, turned away without saying anything and left.

You quickly excused yourself from Jack and trailed behind him, hoping to ask what happened. Was he sad because you kissed Jack or did something else happen?

You couldn’t find him with your friends so you started to knock on every door in the house and finally heard his voice. “Occupied” he was in the bathroom.

“Can I come in?” you asked but didn’t hear anything back. Just as you were turning back he slowly opened the door.

“It’s all yours” he said without even glancing at you and tried to move past you.

“Ruben are you okay?” you asked and based on his reaction, he didn’t think you’d ask that.

“Yeah, yeah I’m fine.” he shot a fake smile in your way.

Just as he was trying to escape again, you held him by his wrist and pulled him back in the bathroom locking the door in the process.

“Ruben” you said looking in his eyes softly as you placed one hand on his arm. “Talk to me, are you okay?”

“Yeah, it’s just” he trailed off but you weren’t ready to give up yet, this was the most emotional you’ve seen him and you needed to know if it’s because of you.

He nervously looked at his fingers.

“It’s just, I thought something but I was wrong, that’s it.” he shrugged.

“What did you think?” you pressed.

“I thought, never mind Y/N we should just go back inside.” he tried to leave again and this was your breaking point.

“You know what, I think we should do because I also thought something and it was wrong.”

“What was?” he turned around and asked you.

You thought about beating around the bush but you were just fed up.

“I thought I saw your face fall when I kissed Jake, I thought you cared but now that I’m here standing with you. I don’t think that’s true.” you whispered and he came to you as soon as he saw your tears trying to wipe them off but you didn’t let him.

“Y/N, I…”

“No Ruben, it’s not your fault it’s mine. There’s a handsome doctor waiting for me outside and I’m out here wasting my time.”

“You consider this as wasting time?” he questioned

“Yes I do! Because no matter what I do you’re never going to want me back and it’s the healthy thing for me to move on.” you said and this time you were the one trying to escape the room and he pulled you back smashing his lips onto yours. You kissed him back with everything you had because you’ve waited for this moment for months. He finally showed you he wanted you and you couldn’t fight the urges. As his hands stayed on your back, yours wrapped around his neck and you kissed and broke up and kissed again. He never let you pull completely back afraid if you’ll leave.

When you finally realized what you were doing you freed yourself from his grip looking at him like ‘what now’

“I thought I was being patient, like slow play but I never realized how any moment some doctor who looks nothing like me can steal you away. I’m sorry if I couldn’t show my feelings towards you, but in reality I’m just obsessed and I’m a coward for not telling you.” he said in one breath and you were shocked. Everything you wanted to hear from him, in one sentence.

“Ruben, you are a coward.” you said and his smile fell thinking he was too late. “But I happen to like you.” you smiled and leaned into him and he kissed you while frantically spinning you around. This was the happiest you’ve seen him and honestly, yourself.

“So, it was the handsome doctor who eventually broke you. Were you jealous?” you teased and his face turned serious.

“No. I knew you’d choose me, also can you stop calling him handsome?” he asked as he led you out the bathroom to your friends, hand in hand.

[vaguely-concerned]

Silly Garashir ficlet, Teen and Up-ish, mostly banter! CW: copious amounts of blood but like. Purely in a comedy capacity (don’t worry none of it is Garak’s)

“Good god,” Julian breathed, unable to do anything but stare for a moment. 

“Oh, don’t worry, none of this is mine,” Garak said, dripping puddles of crimson onto the floor, calm blue eyes the only thing peeking out from the solid layer of blood covering his face and upper torso. “The gravest injury has been to my wardrobe, I assure you. As you might have gathered, I encountered our suspected evildoer as they sought to make their escape.”

“From the looks of things, I’d hazard it’s more accurate to say that they encountered you,” Julian said. He shook himself out of his momentary petrification and raised the medical tricorder to make sure Garak’s reports of being unharmed hadn’t been greatly exaggerated, as would sometimes be the case with him. 

“However you would prefer to frame it,” Garak said, dipping his chin modestly and blinking globs of blood from his eyelashes. “I’m sorry to say I couldn’t ascertain many details about them, neither in terms of species or other identifying details. They were masked and coming at me with a knife at the time, which in the moment tends to blot out other considerations in one’s mind.”

Despite himself, Julian grinned at the performative airiness of Garak’s tone. He did seem to be basically fine. “I think that’s understandable under the circumstances, Garak. Odo’s probably going to track them down pretty quick, if they’re leaving a trail of blood across the station. Do you, er… want a handkerchief or something?” 

“It’s very kind of you to offer, but I don’t think that’s going to do the job in this case.”  

“No,” Julian had to admit, “no, you’re — probably right. I’ll let you go for a thorough sonic and peace and quiet once I’m done with this. I’m sure Odo will want a word with you later, though.”

Garak parted his lips to say something, and grimaced. “Ugh. Well, if it’s any help in figuring out the identity of our culprit, that’s definitely the taste of Napean blood. As you mentioned there will of course also likely be other clues, like them bleeding profusely as they sprint across the Promenade, but I always strive to be helpful wherever I can.” 

“Garak!” Julian yelped, shooting him an alarmed look and continuing his inspection of the tricorder readings with renewed worry. 

“Hm? Yes? You can run whatever tests you want on it to be sure, of course, but I am quite certain in my conclusion. There is a… distinctive tang to —”

“That’s so medically unsafe, you can’t go around ingesting —” 

“Well, I hardly meant to ingest anything, Doctor, but it did end up all over my person in a way that makes it hard to entirely avoid,” Garak snapped, though he tolerated Julian going in for a second, even more thorough examination without complaint. “Maybe if this person hadn’t so rudely insisted on venting the contents of their arteries straight into my face during our tussle — ”

“Yes, yes, I understand, sorry, I wasn’t suggesting you did it on purpose or anything, but it does mean I really do need to monitor you for any allergic reactions or bloodborne… wait, wait, hang on, how do you even know what Napean blood — ”

Smiling in a way that aimed for beatific and missed it by way of too many bared teeth, in a manner that would probably be quite unsettling if Julian wasn’t so used to (so fond of, whispered a treacherous little voice in the back of his head) Garak’s face, Garak dabbed daintily at the worst of the blood dripping off his nose with his sleeve and said: “Do you really want to know, or is this your outsized curiosity running ahead of your better judgment again?”

“I’m going to be wondering about it all night, but no, I don’t think I want to know, actually. If I come back in a week and still can’t put it out of my mind, feel free to tell me, though. Or use that time to come up with a good story, I don’t mind.”

“Never any but the best for you, my friend,” Garak said fondly.