#I really liked my city college I wish Regular College was like that. sigh

[seilon]

why does my local city college have so many more course/program options than my local state college this fucking Sucks

[wisedelusionalmarshmallow]

@rosekillermicrofic, September 6th - Book, T, Word Count - 721

It was a really regular day today at the bookstore where Barty works.

Like really regular.

Like 'all of his regulars came in today' regular. 

The couple who comes here every two weeks to buy two books. Barty learned that they trade the books once they’re done with them and then have bookclub-style date nights. Which is really cute but totally not his thing.

The old ladies who come here for an actual bookclub. Barty had to stifle a laugh at today's choice, some 'murder mystery’ that was a lot more romance than their usual mystery or horror selection.

The one young boy who spends all his weekly allowance on the newest Batman and Spiderman comic.

Even the young woman with the service dog. Barty always has good conversations with her, even though he can never remember her name, and isn’t too keen on asking for the fourth time.

The entire day, Barty was waiting for the ball to drop. Waiting for a call from his boss telling him a shipment got delayed or that he’ll have to cover for Avery again because somehow he’s always sick the day there’s a concert playing in the city over. Figure that one out.

But none of that happened.

It was half an hour to closing when Barty heard the doorbell chime, signalling someone had just entered the store. 

Now, he doesn’t have the best view of the door from where the counter sits—his manager trying to get more stock shoved on the shelves rather than worrying about the safety of the store—so he doesn’t really see the customers until they ask a question or come to check out some items.

That’s how he found himself leaning over his counter, trying to figure out the new scheduling system on their computer. He'd been putting it off all day and just needs to get it done before the store falls into more chaos than it already is. But he just can’t even get past the sign-in. His manager left a sheet of employee codes, but every time he would input it, nothing would work.

That’s when the stack of computer science textbooks appeared on the counter in front of him. Ah, the customer was ready to pay. But if they’re taking computer science, would it be rude to ask for help? No, right?

Ugh. Whatever. Without even looking up, Barty talks to the customer. “Hey man, I’m gonna guess you have some sort of experience with computers or whatever... Um, this—” he turns the monitor and points to the screen. “—is not letting me sign in, like at all. And I kinda need my schedule.” The customer laughs a little and that causes Barty’s head to shoot up. Holy—

Fuck! Why did he have to be hot? Barty awkwardly smiles at the man; he thought he would look like just another college nerd, not a literal Greek god.

He quickly surveys the issue. “Are you forgetting your password?”

“Nope. I have it right here,” Barty smiles, very nervous and flustered about the situation.

“Hmm.” The customer places his head in his hand, surveying the screen before looking down to the keyboard. “Ah.” He reaches forward and clicks a single key. Caps Lock. Could this day get any more embarrassing?

“Thank you,” Barty sighs. Then turns the monitor towards himself again and enters the password, the little ding coming from the speaker, and the application finally loads. He looks over to the books on the counter before looking up at the man’s face again. “I wish I could give you one of those for free, but my boss didn’t really like it when I did that last time.”

“I’ll just take your number instead then,” he says casually.

Barty’s ears go red. Oh my god, did he just ask for my number? Ohmygodohmygod. “Uh–I. Sure.” Barty grabs out a new roll of receipt paper, the closest thing to scrap paper that he has right now, and rips off a piece, quickly scribbling out his number, praying he remembers all ten digits correctly.

He hands the paper off and smiles at him, waiting for the customer to say something and then leave. Except they just stand there in silence. Staring at each other.

That is, of course, until the ball drops. 

“...you gonna ring me up?” 

[dinsdjrn]

gone from austin | j. miller | part three

brothers best friend!pre-outbreak!joel x f!reader

summary: Joel Miller: the one that got away; right person, wrong time. Now you’re back in Austin and it hurts just as bad, as if you’d never left five years ago

warnings: 18+ Minors DNI, no use of y/n, alcohol consumption, light angst.

a/n: well i've only tried to write this three times, not loving it but anyways posting it to get it out there.

prev part | next part || series masterlist | main masterlist

Part Three | June 2002

I took my love, I took it down. 

It felt weird to be in your scrubs again, weird but good. You hadn’t accepted any full time work, just a locum position at the children’s hospital in South Austin. They had brought up full time hours and you had politely declined. You wish you could have claimed leave indefinitely, but E.I. doesn’t take ‘ accidentally ruined my personal life’ as a claim sadly. 

Casual work was good though, it meant you could buy your own groceries and help Jake and Kels here and there. It also distracted you from your grief; grief of the lives you could have had that slipped away from you. It had occurred to you that you were most likely at fault for your own misfortune, it's happened twice now that your life has blown up just fantastically. You faced the music and accepted that the common denominator both times was you, and in time you would continue to do what you did best, run. 

You didn’t focus on your own personal anguish for long, there were treatments to be ordered and patients to be seen. It felt good to work your twelve and then go home, satisfied with your work. You had even begun to make friends with some of the other doctors and nurses in the emergency department. They knew you weren’t a permanent fixture, but it still felt good to meet new people and have more of a circle that exceeded your brother and his buddies in Austin.

Toward the end of your shift you were desperately looking forward to a nap. You were used to a bit more of a schedule in day surgery, consulting in emergency was pure and utter chaos. The shifts went by fast and left you feeling the good kind of tired at the end of the day. 

You were just finishing up your shift, typing out the last few notes for your patient's medical records when your cell started buzzing on the desk.

“Hello?” you answered. 

“Hey!” Kelseys voice sounded on the other end of line. 

“Hey, is everything alright? I’m just finishing up at work. I’ll be home in an hour or so, just depends on the bus.” 

“Uh, yeah! I just wanted to see if you had any plans after work.” 

“Uh-“ you thought about a small white lie. Knowing Kels was about to convince you to do something. 

“No, I was just going to go to bed.” You admitted. 

“Okay,  well I’m going to pick you up from work and we are going out tonight,” She said excitedly.

“Kels…” You warned. 

“C’mon! It will be just like old times, I promised Tommy I’d convince you to go. Sarah’s gone to her friend's house for the night and Jake and Tommy wanted to get everyone to Gus’ Pub. Just like old times,” 

You sighed, Gus’ was your favourite back in the ‘90s they always had the best atmosphere. You had made yourselves somewhat regulars in college. 

“Ugh, I was really looking forward to going to bed.” You grumbled.

“That’s not no, so I’ll pick you up in thirty!” She said excitedly, hanging up before you could protest. 

You leaned back in your chair letting your head fall backward as you sighed, groaning toward the end. You loved Jake and Kelsey, you appreciate everything they’ve done for you, but you had a sneaking suspicion Kelsey was doing everything in her power to keep you here. To remind you of the love that you once felt for the city and the people in it.

You stood from the desk in the doctors lounge and made your way to your cubby. You had come to work in jeans and a T-shirt that would be more than fine for Gus’. You changed out of the soiled scrubs throwing them in the laundry bag and tried to fix your post-dayshift hair. 

You placed your beeper in the storage bin and made your way out of the building waiting for Kels to arrive. You liked that you could finish a twelve hour shift and still have daylight pushing the horizon at nearly nine at night. 

By the time you had arrived at the bar Jake and Tommy had clearly started the party without you. Joel was laughing at their shenanigans from the bar stool you’re sure he claimed as soon as they’d arrived. 

“God damn it, Tommy. Don’t you have anything better to do than be a complete jackass,” You heard Joel scold his brother. 

Tommy and Jake laughed at the outburst, Tommy smiling and tipping his beer in Joel’s direction.

“Where’s your sense of humor, old man,” Tommy teased. 

“Well shit, look who showed up!” Tommy drawled as you and Kels approached them. 

“Alright, soldier boy, I told you not to start without us,” Kelsey rolled her eyes at the younger Miller brother. 

You smiled at the four of them, they fell so easily into a dynamic. As much as you tried not to feel like an outsider, you were, you chose to make yourself one. So you would watch Jake hug Kels from behind as he, Joel and Tommy shot the shit. You nursed a beer in the stool next to Joel, keeping to yourself. It stung to feel like an outsider where you were once welcome, but you smiled politely and tried to look engaged. 

As the night continued you watched Kelsey pull Jake to the dance floor and Tommy flirt with a bachelorette party that had waltzed in shortly after eleven. You and Joel sat in a bit of an awkward silence unsure what to say to one another. 

Your last conversation had left a sour taste in your mouth, but it wasn’t cause to be blatantly rude to him. 

“So,” he stared awkwardly. 

“So,” you responded without much more enthusiasm. 

“Jake said you were back workin’ again.” 

“Uh, yeah, just casually while I get my shit together.” 

“Saint David’s?” He asked.

“No, No. I’m at the Dell Children’s now,” You smiled. 

He looked at you confused. You had once gone on a rant wishing Dell had a surgical ward that expanded beyond emergency medicine so you could work at your alma mater. You’re surprised he remembered such a small detail, at least you think that was the source of his confusion. 

“I’m in the emergency department, surgical consulting,” you clarified. 

“Ah,” he said, clearly nodding along without fully understanding.

“How’s the contracting business going?” You asked. 

“Other than Tommy being a pain in my ass, it’s been a’right. Work puts food on the table, can’t complain.” 

Another awkward silence fell between you. 

“So, when are you heading back to Toronto? Once you get your shit together?” 

“Never, if I get it together correctly.” 

“Oh damn, sorry, Jake told me some shit happened. I was jus-” he said looking at you apologetically. 

“It’s okay, Joel. You can always buy me another drink as an apology,” you teased. 

Joel waved the bartender over and out two more beers on his tab. 

You laughed telling him he didn’t actually have to do it, but he insisted. 

You began to fall into a comfortable conversation, talking about surface level topics, but it wasn’t awkward by any means. One of you just had to bring something up by accident to break the tension. The drinks helped lighten the mood as well. 

You weren’t sure how long you and Joel were in your own little world for before Kelsey came and pulled you onto the dance floor. 

It was so nice though to have a normal conversation with Joel, to feel less like you were at odds and more just trying to figure each other out again. So much has changed in five years and neither of you were sure where to start. Now that you started again, maybe you could relearn what it meant to be friends. 

It was nearing midnight and you were tired from dancing with Kelsey and Tommy. Joel and Jake had been hanging out at the bar when the new Dixie Chicks cover of Landslide came over the speakers. You can see Joel’s eye roll from where you’re standing, you walked toward the two men. Kelsey pulled Jake onto the floor for a dance. 

You didn’t want to make things awkward for Joel so you started singing along poorly, you grabbed his hand and spun yourself around. He chuckled at the gesture. You both looked down the bar to see Tommy sweet talking to one of the bridesmaids from earlier. 

“It is just us Miller, may as well enjoy the song!” You laughed. He shook his head at you.  

“ Time makes you bolder, even children get older, ” You continued to sing along poorly, Joel took another swig of beer and crossed his arms laughing at you. 

“C’mon old man, it’s a classic!” You laughed, grabbing his hand trying to pull him off the bar stool. 

“No, the classic involves Fleetwood Mac, this is a rip off, darlin’,” You rolled your eyes at him. 

“Ever the critic, Joel Miller.”

It was nice to be able to dance and laugh like this again. It had been months since you felt any semblance of normalcy. Yet here you were shooting the shit with Joel, enjoying yourself, and for once it felt like everything was going to turn out alright.

Joel did stand and smile at you for the last course as he swayed along with you. As the song came to an end Jake and Kelsey made their way back to you. 

“Alright, I’ll be back in a sec,” Joel said, placing his empty on the counter and making his way to the bathroom. 

“I’m going to go find Tommy,” Kelsey said, letting you and Jake have a moment together. 

He put his arm around your shoulders and pulled you into a brief hug kissing your head.

“I’m glad you came out tonight,” Jake smiled at you, taking a seat on Joel’s stool. 

“Me too, but I won’t lie I’m pretty tired,” you chuckled.

“Yeah, I can imagine.”

“So,” Jake's tone shifted more seriously, “You and Joel were getting cozy tonight.” 

“Well yeah, everyone else was a little busy. No sense denying there’s a history there, Jake, it doesn’t mean I can’t be friendly.” 

“I don’t know. I just don’t want to see either of you get hurt again,” He sighed. 

“We have boundaries, Jake. He’s a good man.” You grew frustrated. 

“He is a good man,” He pinched the bridge of his nose. 

“He’s just not good for you,” he placed his hand on your shoulder in reassurance. 

You went to protest against your brother's statement but were cut off. 

“It’s hard to watch you hurting. Austin causes you to hurt, Joel causes you to hurt. If I could convince you to stay I would, but I know you, and I know your heart isn’t here.” 

You sighed in defeat, he was right. Jake usually was, and his own wish for you to stay was proof of that. He knew you weren’t capable of being just friends with Joel, and he knew that if you stayed you would just get hurt over and over. If you stayed here tonight, if you stayed here in Austin, if you stayed in Joel’s life. For now, the only resolution you were capable of was turning in for the night with Kelsey. 

“I want to go home now,” You said to him, waving Kelsey down. 

“Want me to come with you?” Jake asked in earnest. 

“No, you have fun with the boys! I know Kelsey, she's probably pretty close to done anyway.” 

You told Kelsey you were ready to go just as both Miller brothers had made their way back to you. She nodded in understanding, flashing a look at Jake and Joel. The taxi ride home was quiet and spent it with your head resting against the window. 

The day finally catching up to you and fuelling your exhaustion you couldn’t wait to curl up in your bed and sleep this feeling of uncertainty off. 

It didn’t take you long to get comfortable and fall asleep once you were home. You placed your cell on the nightstand next to you just in case Jake called needing you or Kelsey. The boys were notorious for getting themselves into trouble and you had made a habit of having a phone nearby. 

You had fallen asleep easily, but it didn’t last long as the cellphone rang next to you, pulling you from your sleep. 

“Hello?” You answered your phone through a sleep ridden fog. 

“Uh, hey darlin’, I didn’t mean t’ wake you,” a familiar voice came through the receiver of your cell. 

“Joel?” 

“Yeah,” he confirmed. 

“How’d you get my number?” You questioned, still confused, your voice laced with sleep. 

You looked over at your alarm clock, 1:54am. 

“And why are you calling me at two in the morning?” You continued. 

“I, uh, I asked Sarah for it after your gals night. Y’know? Just in case she uh- wanted to chat with you.” He only answered the first part. 

“Figures.” You laughed. 

“Is she there waiting to talk to me now? At two in the morning?” You questioned, still foggy from your early awakening. 

“No, no, uh shit.” He whispered, “This was all me.”

You hummed lightly. 

“You ran outta there tonight without even sayin’ goodbye. I was worried something happened to you,” He admitted. 

“Oh,” You said. Your heart rate grew quicker, not wanting to tell him the real reason you had left so abruptly. 

“Uh- no. It just wasn’t really my scene. Kelsey asked if I wanted to go home and I agreed.” 

“Well, I was sad to see you leave so soon. I definitely thought I would be getting another dance outta you, you know to real music,” 

You faked a gasp. 

“I’ll have you know, Mr. Miller, The Dixie Chicks are very much real music and you didn’t seem to mind it,” you laughed. 

“I was just putting on a show for you darlin’,” He mused. 

“Well Joel, if it means I can get going back to bed, I’ll own you a dance to real music next time,” you mocked.

You heard a soft sharp inhale through the phone. 

“I’ll hold you to it,” He said softly, the tone of the conversation felt like it had vastly changed. 

You couldn’t see Joel but you knew when intensity laced his tone, making the tension palpable in the air, this was one of those times. 

“Well, I ain’t gonna keep you. I just wanted to make sure you were alright,” 

“Thank you. I’m good, Joel. I, uh-“ you paused, “I had a lot of fun tonight. It was really nice to hang out.” You admitted. 

“Yeah uh- yeah. It was just like ol’ times,” There was a pause between you both for a moment. 

“Goodnight, old man,” 

“Alright, that wasn’t very nice of you darlin’,” Joel said, chuckling.

You laughed quietly along with him. 

“Night , Joel,” you said, yawning through the phone. 

“G’night beautiful. Don’t be a stranger, okay?” 

You hummed in response, ending the call and placing your cell phone back on the nightstand. 

It was nice to connect with Joel, but your brother's voice echoed in your head. 

I know your heart isn’t here. 

You tossed and turned, the moral dilemma causing your stomach to turn. You wanted to let Joel in, it felt so good to dance with him, watch him laugh. It was your own personal drug, you were addicted to the feeling of being close to him. Yet you knew you couldn’t betray him again. Jake was right, you were only capable of hurting one another. 

The part of you that wished Austin could be home forever was the part that pushed you away the first time. You were determined to leave in one piece this time. 

Can I handle the seasons of my life? Cause I’ve been afraid of changing.

tags: @thetriumphantpanda @fruit-frogs @harriedandharassed @skysmiller @beskarandblasters @wand-erer5 @missgurrl @casa-boiardi @undrthelights @wishyoudaskme @reader-without-a-story @morning-star-joy @cupofjoel @sinsofsummers @cavillscurls @tightjeansjavi @whichwitchwanda @dugiioh @readingfan @patti7dc @spidermanfrog

[sadboyeddie]

Once In A Lifetime

October 12th: Sugar Daddy -> older Rockstar!Eddie

Kinktober 2022

Summary: Eddie has an offer that’s hard to refuse

Warnings: (Minors DNI 18+ only) smut, older man/younger woman, everyone is above the age of consent

A/N: this one kicked my ass lads

6.2k Words

Masterlist

You let out a tired sigh as you slump into your regular seat in the lecture hall, arriving just a few minutes before the lesson starts.

Today had been a long one, but thankfully this was the last class for the day and it was relatively easy going.

Professor Byers enters the room and chucks his messenger bag on the desk before clapping his hands to garner the attention of the students.

Photography wasn’t something you wanted to make a career out of, although at this stage you’re not really sure what career you’ll end up with, but you enjoyed the serenity of taking pictures.

Professor Byers was as laid back as they come, but he was passionate about photography and you felt that every time he’d explain different subjects and techniques.

He was currently mid sentence talking about the current project he assigned that will be more than half of your grade, you wanna drop your head to the table with a groan, not having found the inspiration to even start the project.

And it was due in two weeks.

By the end of the class Professor Byers has noticed your slouched posture, it’s a small class and you’re one of his favourite students, always eager to learn more.

When the class ends he asks you to stay behind so he can talk to you. You feel anxious, you like Professor Byers and you don’t wish to disappoint him.

“What’s going on, kid?” You let out a dramatic sigh making the older man smirk before leaning against one of the tables.

“I can’t find any inspiration,” you groan, “I took your advice and went for a walk somewhere I’ve never been but still nothing!”

Jonathan nods his head, all too familiar with what you’re experiencing.

“You usually shoot scenery and landscapes have you ever thought about trying something different?” He voice is soft and understanding.

The project was pretty simple, you had to take a series of pictures that tell a story, something interesting that will grab the audiences attention.

All the projects Professor Byers makes are always pretty easy, wanting students to enjoy the assignments instead of dreading them.

“I don’t really have a lot of people I can photograph,” you admit, a little embarrassed.

You moved to the city to go to college and you spent all your time either in class or working shifts at two separate jobs, you never had time to keep up with friendships or even find them.

You didn’t mind though, always preferring your own company, or maybe that’s just something you convinced yourself.

Once again Jonathan understands, maybe that’s one of the reasons he likes you and wants you to succeed, because he sees a lot of familiar traits in you.

“I have a friend who needs some photography work done, I was gonna do it myself but I think this would really help you.”

Your eyes light up at the suggestion but you’re a little hesitant on the idea, “won’t they prefer their pictures professionally done?”

“Give yourself some credit, kid,” he chuckles, “and it’s not for some fancy wedding it’s just promo pictures for my friends metal band.”

“You have a friend in a metal band?” The question slips through your lips without permission and you immediately go to apologise.

“That’s surprises you?” He doesn’t look offended, exactly the opposite.

And it did surprise you, Professor Byers seemed more reserved and from an outside point of view it seemed like he would have surrounded himself with people more like him.

“You don’t seem like the type to enjoy metal music,” you shift awkwardly from side to side.

He laughs at your response and nods his head, “yeah I’m more into classic rock but I have to admit their music is pretty stellar.”

You snort at the use of ‘stellar’ and move the conversation on, “who’s the band?” You’re curious if it’s a local indie band.

“Corroded Coffin,” his smile is small but holds some pride behind it.

Your mouth drops open and your eyes blow wide at how casually he just slipped that information.

“Corro— Corroded Coffin?!” You weren’t super into metal, you did enjoy some of the classics.

That’s how you discovered the band, you were looking through Spotify for a decent playlist and they had a few covers in there, when you went to their page they had four albums worth of their own music.

You enjoyed a lot of it and after doing some research you found out they were quite popular in and out of the metal community.

“Yeah, you heard of them?” There’s a smirk playing on Professor Byers face.

“Uh yeah!” You grin causing the older man to huff a laugh at your excitement, “how are you friends with them?”

You didn’t mean for it to sound so shocking but again it didn’t really seem like his type of crowd.

“I went to school with them,” he shrugs, moving around his desk to grab his bag and pulling out a red and black card.

“Awesome,” you mumble.

Professor Byers hands you the card, Eddie Munson scribbled across in a sharp font, his phone number beneath it.

Eddie Munson, the lead guitarist, one of the most attractive men you ever seen, and you have his phone number.

You try to act nonchalant as you run your fingers over the slightly raised words, mind working a mile a minute to take in all the information. You can’t believe this is happening.

“Are you sure?” Your voice comes out slowly as you reaffirm.

“Yeah, they’re finishing the last leg of their tour back home before they take a break,” he slips the strap of his bag over his shoulder. “I’ll let Eddie know what’s happening, send him a message tonight and he’ll probably invite you to the show.”

You gape at him as he bids his farewell and leaves the classroom, your feet unable to move as you replay the conversation over in your head.

Invite me to the show?

You’ve always wanted to go to one of their concerts but the tickets were always sold out. You could only afford the cheapest ones but they were usually the first to go, you found a few scalpers online but they were charging almost triple the original price. You just couldn’t afford it.

When you do finally move you rush back to your studio apartment, twenty minutes off campus, you could t afford on campus housing unfortunately.

You throw you bag on the rickety old chair near the door and fall back on your lumpy mattress, still not believing what happened.

Corroded Coffin. Corroded Coffin.

You scroll through your playlists finding the one you made of all your favourites of theirs and play it in the background while you fumble around your apartment.

When should you message? Professor Byers said tonight but what time tonight? What should you say?

-x-x-x-x-x-

By the time seven rolls around, the time you finally decided on, your apartment is spotless. Granted it’s very small but still.

You cleaned every surface and even reorganised your cupboards.

You sit in the center of your bed and stare at the black screen of your phone. Taking a deep breath you open your message app and type out a greeting.

It’s almost ten minutes before you settle on something that you didn’t cringe while reading.

Hi, is this Eddie? 

You add in your name and where you got his number and press send before you can erase and retype something else.

After a few seconds your phone vibrates in your hand and excitement shoots down your spine

It sure is babe, Byers informed me of the situation

‘Babe’ you squeal at the name.

I thought you’d text sooner

You sit there and mentally kick yourself for taking so long.

Sorry! Had a few assignments I was working on

You tell him the small lie, not wanting to admit that you spent the last three hours over thinking and freaking out.

that’s fair, I never went to college so I can’t relate haha

You smile at your phone and how casual this all seems and before you can type a new message he sends another through.

so down to business :P what’s your class schedule like?

Mondays and Thursday I have classes from 9-4, the rest of the week there’s only a few lessons a day but I can do a few of them online

sounds good babe

…

what’s tomorrows classes?

business studies is the only one I have to be there in person for

what time?

8-11:45

great! I’m not out of bed before midday haha

…

come on by after class

He sends the address for the studio they’re rehearsing at tomorrow and you chat a little more, he tells you his security will escort you in and other minor details about tomorrows meet up before you both call it a night.

You fall asleep easy, usually it takes you a while to settle your thoughts, but tonight you slip away into unconsciousness, mind conjuring up different scenarios with the metalhead.

-x-x-x-x-x-

The next day goes by in a rush of excitement, you honestly thought it would drag on and on and on but thankfully it doesn’t.

You order and Uber, not trusting the buses in your city, thankfully there’s enough money in your monthly budget for the fare.

When you arrive at the studio your heart is hammering against your chest and your hands are shaking, you can’t believe this is actually happening.

You enter the lobby and sign in with the receptionist, she’s about your age and gives you a distasteful look, before calling someone.

A few awkward minutes later a man with fantastic hair and an even better smile hops out of the elevator and walks towards you with a smile.

“You here for Eddie?” His voice is kind and you nod, “great, I’m Steve.”

He holds out his hand and you quickly slip yours into his grasp and shake it, cheeks aflame with nerves.

“So, you’re his security?” You make conversation as he swipes an access card against the elevator panel.

“I mean technically,” he shrugs, “we’ve been friends since school so I think he keeps me around for nostalgia,” he chuckles.

You wring your hands together and flex your fingers on your camera bag as you bite your lip, this does not go unnoticed by the taller man beside you.

“Don’t be nervous,” his voice is soft, “I know it sounds like a cliché but he’s just like anyone else,” he assures you.

You can’t help but snort before smiling up towards Steve, “really?”

“Okay, he’s a little weird but there’s no need to be intimidated by him,” he turns towards the door as the elevator stops, “if anything he’s the one that gets intimidated by beautiful women.”

You watch as Steve steps out of the metal box, and before you can question what he means he opens the door to a cozy little room.

There’s couches lining the back wall and the coffee table is filled with a range of alcoholic beverages and snacks.

One band member, Jeff, is laying on one of the couches doing a crossword puzzle and Gareth is on the ground with his back slumped against the couch as he scrolls through his phone.

No sight of the lead guitarist.

“Where’s Eddie,” Steve surveys the room for the older metalhead.

“Here he is,” a deep voice comes from behind you.

You turn quickly and instinctively take a step back with how close he is, he lets out a chuckle as your eyes slip down to his chest, shirtless and covered in many tattoos.

“Like what you see, princess?” He teases with a smirk.

“Eddie, play nice,” Steve rolls his eyes and slides into a chair.

Hi, I’m—,” you start to introduce yourself but he interrupts.

“I know who you are,” his smile is not unkind but it’s intense, “that your camera?”

You look down in shock momentarily forgetting the reason why you are even here.

“Ah, yes!” You mentally scold yourself.

“It’s a bit dingy, sweetheart,” he reaches out and takes it in his hands to examine it.

You’re a little offended at his words, you know it’s dingy, it’s second hand and all you could afford but it does the job.

“I know,” your voice is a little clipped.

“I didn’t mean to offend, princess,” he gently passes the camera back to you, “just an observation.”

You go to apologise but he brushes passed you and formally introduces you to the rest of the band.

“Alright, so if you could just take pictures of us in our natural element, babe, that’d be great,” he chuckles, gesturing around the room.

You click the camera on and snap a picture of Eddie, bare chest and bare foot smiling in the center of the room.

He nods in approval as ideas swirl through your mind for your class project.

By the end of the day your memory card is full of pictures and short videos, you sit on one of the sofas and flick through the shots determining which to keep and which to trash.

It’s dark out now and you really should be heading back to your apartment and upload these to your laptop, it’s a pretty outdated computer so it’s gonna take a while to get them all on there.

Jeff and Gareth are nowhere to be seen and Steve excused himself to take a phone call twenty minutes ago, leaving you and Eddie alone in the room.

The metalhead, who’s now wearing a Metallica shirt, much to your disappointment, is sitting on the opposite couch strumming a tune.

“I haven’t heard that one before,” your voice cuts the serene sound as Eddie looks up with a smile.

“It’s something I’m working on,” he shrugs, pen tucked behind his ear and a notepad on the cushion beside him.

“It’s pretty,” you regret your words almost instantly. Pretty?

“Pretty?” He snorts, placing the guitar down, “I would exactly describe metal music as ‘pretty’, babe.”

“Sorry,” you flush with embarrassment, “I just meant it’s nice is all.”

He shakes his head with a smile, not at all offended by your choice of words.

“Well, I better be off,” you tuck your camera into the bag before pulling out your phone to order an Uber.

“How are you getting home?” He stands along with you.

“Uber,” you wave your phone in your hands.

“You sure?” You locks his guitar in its case and slings it over his shoulder before walking towards you, “I can give you a ride? Or Steve?”

“Oh! No, that’s fine,” you immediately decline, not wanting to embarrass yourself any further.

Eddie stares at you with an unreadable expression on his face before he finally nods, letting it go.

“Okay,” he gestures for you to leave the room first before flicking the light off and locking the door behind him.

Steve meets you both at the elevator instantly apologising for the long phone call, Eddie shrugs it off and you all descend to the lobby together in a awkward silence.

“Am I giving you a ride?” Steve asks as he pulls out his keys and you all make your way outside.

When you turn to Steve you miss the look that crosses Eddie’s face, a little upset with Steve’s offer even though he offered the same thing upstairs.

“No,” you smile, “I already got an Uber.”

“No problem,” he says his goodbyes and leaves for his car.

“Aren’t you going with him?” You question as you stand by the curb.

“I drive myself, sweetheart,” he gives you his signature smirk as he waits beside you.

“You don’t have to stay,” you’re glad he did though, a little nervous about standing around at night alone.

“And leave a fair maiden by herself? Any brute could come along and do you harm,” the look he shoots you is playfully and dramatic and you can help but giggle and play along.

“Oh my!” You exclaim, hand on chest, “my hero!”

He gives you a wink just as a car pulls up to the curb.

“Your carriage, m’lady,” he bows as he opens the rear passenger door and you once again can’t contain your girlish giggle.

“Thank you, good sir,” you bow your head in a nod and slide into the car.

“Text me when you get home,” he points a finger at you playfully but his words are stern.

“F’course,” you nod, your heart doing somersaults isn’t our chest.

He closes the door with a thud and only leaves for his car when you’re out of sight, a smile playing on his lips as he starts the ignition.

-x-x-x-x-x-

When you arrive home you place your camera bag on the bed and pull out your laptop from under your pillow.

home :)

good girl ;)

You feel your heart in your throat as you read and reread the two word text, you feel a warmth spread between your legs at the message, not to mention the winky face. Lord.

are you home?

stopped for food first

…

burgers and fries

that greasy stuff will kill you ;)

You bite your lip as your thumb hovers over the ‘send’ button, contemplating erasing the winky face. Fuck it.

…

…

…

That’s it you overstepped, you made it weird.

Just as you go to chuck your phone on the bed it vibrates in your hand.

-incoming call: Eddie Munson-

“Hello?” You sit on your bed, blood loud in your ears as your heart hammers away.

“You worried about my health, sweetheart?” His voice is warm over the phone and you smile into the receiver.

“Maybe…” you find you have a lot more confidence when you’re not face to face with the man.

“How’d I get so lucky?” His chuckle crackles along the long and you hear distant sounds of cars.

“Are you driving?” You ask alarmed.

“Loudspeaker, pet,” you can hear the amusement in his tone and can’t help but huff a laugh.

“Sorry,” you mumble.

“Don’t be,” he brushes you off, “s’nice actually.”

You go to question him further but you hear the ignition cut off an assume he’s made it home.

“Well I guess I’ll see you tomorrow?” You’re voice is hopeful and you pray it doesn’t sound as desperate to him as it does for you.

“No doubt,” he answers cooly, “how do the pictures look?”

“Oh!” You completely forgot about your previous task, “I haven’t really started looking through them all yet.”

“Tsk tsk tsk,” he lightly scolds, “naughty girl.”

Fuck. There he goes again.

You clench your fingers into a fist and rub your thighs together to alleviate some of the pressure.

“My computers slow,” you pout as you enter your login details, “it might take me the better part of the night to upload them.”

“Shitty laptop, dingy camera,” he lists off, “I bet your apartment is crappy too.”

“And what if it is,” you’ve started to pick up on his personality and try matching your energy with his.

“Hey, I get it,” he reassures, “I used to be like that. I grew up in a one bedroom trailer with my Uncle, didn’t graduate until I was 20 and had to sell weed just to get by.”

“Oh my god,” you gasp, “damn, that sucks.”

Eddie’s boisterous laugh on the other end of the line sends you into your own set of giggles.

Usually when Eddie tells his sob story it’s met with pity not with a ‘damn that sucks’. It’s refreshing.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to be insensitive,” you feel like a school girl taking to a crush. You’re seconds away from kicking your feet and twirling your hair around your finger.

“You weren’t,” he assures.

“So how’d you get to where you are today?” Curiosity getting the better of you, “working hard?”

You hear his snort of amusement on the other end before he answers, “nah, I had a Sugar Daddy.”

You assume he’s joking because surely you would’ve heard about that.

“You what?” you inquire further.

“I exchanged certain favours in return for money,” he’s no longer laughing, his tone light but serious.

“Like a prostitute?” You flip down on your bed now that your laptop and camera are set up.

“No, not exactly,” you hear rustling on the other end that sounds like he’s getting changed, “it wasn’t always sexual favours.”

“Huh,” you desperately want to ask who and seek out more information but that is a little intrusive.

“Have you ever thought about it?” His question is casual but it has your breath catching in your throat.

“I’m not rich enough to support someone,” you joke.

“No, you dork,” he chuckles, “obviously you’re experiencing some financial hardships.”

“I don’t know if I could do that sort of exchange, especially with a stranger,” you admit.

“It doesn’t always have to be sexual, princess,” he assures, “when you start with someone you can create a contract and have a list of hard nos,” he patiently explains, “as for the stranger I’m sure you’ll be able to find someone you know or you could at least meet with the person a few times to get a feel for them.”

“The only rich person I know is you,” you say without thinking, instantly filled with regret.

The line is quite and you consider hanging up and and just moving to Alaska or something.

“And?” His voice sounds curious.

“And?“ you splutter, “and what?”

“And,” he huffs a laugh, “would that be something you’d be interested in?”

“I—,” you take a moment to reach over and grab the half empty water bottle on your nightstand, mouth completely dry, “what do you mean?” Your voice barely a whisper.

“I mean,” he’s volume mimics yours, “I will pay for all of your finances in exchange for favours on your end.”

“That’s crazy,” you say at normal volume, “why would you wanna do that?”

“You’re cute and sweet,” he states, “you got a good head on your shoulders and I fully believe you can make it far in this world you just need a little help.”

“I mean—,” you try to find a reasonable response, you want to deny him because you’ve always been independent, but maybe your pride can take a backseat for this ride, “is this a joke?”

Eddie smiles into his phone, excited to know that you’ve mentally already agreed.

“Absolutely not,” he promises, “let me take care of you, baby.”

He knows you’re probably slightly overwhelmed at the moment so he decides to ‘ignore’ the small whimper you let slip at his words.

“Okay,” you agree before you can stop yourself, “I’ll do it.”

“Wonderful!” Eddie’s excitement is contagious as you chuckle along with him, “we’ll work out the finer points tomorrow, baby.”

“And you’re sure?” You ask again.

“Yes, princess,” his voice is firm, “I wouldn’t have offered if I wasn’t.”

“Just checking,” you smile.

“Go to sleep, silly girl,” he playfully scoffs, “I’ll call you in the morning.”

“Promise?” Your voice suddenly shy.

“Promise.”

-x-x-x-x-x-

It’s been exactly one month since you started this… situation?

And it’s been great!

It had taken a lot of reassurance on Eddie’s end and thank god the man had plenty of patience, you were constantly double checking every time he bought you something.

When he gave you his credit card you all but shoved it back into his hands until he all but forced it on you.

You tried not to abuse his money, only buying the essentials but Eddie was like the devil on your shoulder encouraging you to just let loose, treat yourself.

He bought you a new camera and a laptop the second day into the arrangement and he was slowly trying to convince you to move to a better apartment.

So far it’s only been a ‘take take’ relationship on your end. When you and Eddie sat down to discuss the details you established that you weren’t entirely sure about the sexual nature of this, and he promised and even signed a contract that stated any sexually contact will be initiated by you first.

It’s not that you didn’t want to, it just you were nervous. After all it is Eddie freaking Munson.

You finished your class assignment a few weeks ago and received a pretty great grade, Eddie also invited you to keep taking pictures of them because he enjoyed the style.

As much as you tried to decline, he gave you a pay check.

Tonight was the last show of the tour before they settle down for a while to relax and work on some new music.

They decided Hawkins was the perfect location for the final concert, they rented a pretty large field and had a stage set up, like a small festival.

You go over to the few trailers that have been set up for the boys and walk into Eddies. 

“There you are, baby!” Eddie’s voice comes from behind and you spin on your heel just as he wraps you in a hug, “missed you,” he mumbles into your hair.

“Eddie, it’s been less then twelve hours,” you laugh but return the hug with enthusiasm.

“And?” He scoffs.

“And nothing,” you smile, “I missed you too.”

“That’s my girl,” he leans back and boops your nose before reluctantly pulling away.

“You excited for the show?” You ask as you take a seat on the small couch.

“Excited for it to be over,” he groans as he slumps on the couch next to you, pulling you into his side automatically, “don’t get me wrong, I love performing but it’s been a very long eighteen months.”

You nod along with his comments, not fully understanding what it’s like to travel around like that.

“My Uncle Wayne is coming to the show,” he smiles, “he’s excited to meet you.”

“You’ve told him about me?” You look at the older man in shock.

“F’course,” he chuckles, “I’ve been told I talk quite a bit about you actually.”

You playfully shove him but nerves start swelling up inside you, Eddie hasn’t really spoke much about his personal situation since the first night he brought it up but from what you gather Wayne is the most important person to him.

“Don’t worry,” he taps your shoulder, “he’s a very easy going guy.”

Eddie’s words bring very little comfort as you slowly begin to dread the meeting. It’s not like this is a relationship but if you’re being honest it’s the closest you’ve really gotten to one.

You see him daily, call and text all through the night, you eat together (mainly in private because you’re not good with all the attention on the street from fans), he’s very affectionate with the pet names and the cuddling, you were the first to initiate the cuddling and he almost seem relieved that you wanted his touch.

The point is you’ve fallen for the guy, it’s was inevitable really, but there were many factors standing in the way: the arrangement and the fact he is almost fifteen years older then you. Not that you minded but society always had to have a say.

“What’s got you so distracted?” His voice pulls you from your increasing negative thoughts.

“You,” you’re honest, “thinking about you.”

He seems pleased with the answer and squeezes your shoulder with a smile.

“Good,” he lets out a sigh before standing, you immediately miss his warmth, “I better get ready.”

“Awesome!” You stand and make your way to the door, “I can’t wait for the show.”

He grins as he watches you move towards the exit before stopping you, “you gonna watch me from backstage?” His voice is hopeful.

“Of course!” You reassure, you always do.

“Good, here,” he walks over to the chair where he’s thrown a leather jacket and a denim vest.

“What’s this?” You ask as he carefully hands you the clothes.

“This used to be what I wore in high school,” he looks a little red at the admission, “never really took it off, played my first show in this.“

You run your fingers over the worn out threads on the back of the vest, admiring the obvious hand stitching done by Eddie. You trace Murray, the mascot for Dio, and smile at how well maintained this is.

The leather jacket has chains and safety pins around the cuffs and you snort at the handy work.

Eddie watches with a soft expression as you handle his jacket with care.

“This is awesome, Eds,” you go to hand the bundle of clothes back to the metalhead, assuming he would be wearing it for tonight’s show.

“No,” he gently pushes your hands back, “I want you to wear it for me.”

Your breath catches and once again you go to protest but by now Eddie is familiar with this routine.

“I’m positive,” he says before you speak, “I want to see you wearing my clothes.”

You let out a speechless nod, not trusting any words at the moment.

“Good girl,” he chuckles at your shy reaction as you turn away slightly, “off you go,” he ushers you to the door, “I got rehearsals.”

-x-x-x-x-x-

The show was fantastic, not that you had any doubts, they pulled out all the stops and had an explosive end, literally, they had firework canons set up on stage and went out with a bang.

By the end of the concert you were a little more that hot and bothered, Eddie had stayed on your part of the stage, facing you when he had guitar solos so you could watch his finger work.

He picked up on your little obsession with his fingers the first week in, noting how you would subtly glance at his hands before just full out staring when you thought he couldn’t see.

When he came marching off stage with the rest of the band, hyperactive and sweaty you all but dragged him back to his trailer.

He was momentarily shocked, usually you went in for the hug, but he watched with a smug grin as you lead him away. Finally.

As soon as the trailer door closed behind him your little bit of control was instantly ceased.

Eddie firmly grabbed your arm and pressed you to the door, watching as your pupils dilate and your tongue comes out to wet your dried lips.

He swallows as he watches the movement before snapping himself out of it, “you want this?” He pushes his body against yours and you nod, “tell me, baby,” he rests his forehead on yours, “tell daddy what you want.”

You let out a moan and close your eyes, “I want you, Eddie,” your breathing coming out in hot pants, “please, daddy.”

With that Eddie slams his mouth against yours, pouring out all the heat and desperation he’s been feeling for the past month.

You wrap your arms around his neck as he pulls you in close, pushing his tongue past your lips and against your own.

He grips a handful of his jacket you’re still wearing and pulls you closer as he walks you both backwards before he’s pulling away and sitting on the couch, patting his lap with an inviting smirk.

“Take your throne, princess.”

You don’t need to be told twice.

You straddle his legs, bunching the skirt of your dress around your thighs so it doesn’t restrict your movements.

Eddie wastes no time in reattaching his mouth to yours, this time the kiss is slower but no less hungry.

He slides his hands over your hips and drags you lower until you’re grinding over the bulge in his pants, you both let out simultaneous groans at the contact.

You place your hands on his shoulder and with his direction you lift your hips more before bringing them down with a little more force, he moans into the kiss before nipping your bottom lip and pulling back.

He buries his head in your neck and starts to suck a bruise into the skin, you let out a whine at the softness of his lips as you tangle your fingers through his damp, sweaty hair and gently tug, the action causing Eddie to snap his hips up harder.

After a few minutes of grinding on each other you feel like you’re going to explode if Eddie doesn’t fuck you, you reach down and undo his belt and zipper, the older man gratefully lifting his hips just enough to free his leaking cock.

Eddie pulls away from your neck and presses a gentle kiss to your lips before lifting your dress up far enough so he has access to your panties.

“Tomorrow I’m gonna take you out on a nice date, roses and chocolates, and then fuck you in the car,” he promises as he rubs a thumb on your thigh close to your heat, “but tonight I’m gonna fuck you on every surface in this trailer.”

You moan at his crass words, “promise?”

“Promise,” he slides his hand forward, fingers slipping beneath the material of your panties.

You let out a sharp cry when the pad of his finger makes contact with your clit before fingering some of your arousal and spreading it up your folds and over the nub.

You rest your head on his shoulder and watch as his hand plays with your pussy, your underwear is obscuring the view but there’s something really hot about seeing his hand in your panties.

You take his neglecting cock in your hand, Eddie lets out a hiss at the feeling, you run your fingers over the weeping tip before spreading his precum down his length.

He bucks his hips up to meet your thrusts as he pushes two fingers deep inside you, instantly starting to scissor them.

“Ed-die,” your voice cracks and your pussy clenches around his digits,” please fuck me.”

“Don’t wanna hurt you,” he moans, “at least not on the first night,” you whimper at his deep chuckle.

After a few more thrusts of his fingers he’s pulling them out of your panties, he slaps your hand off his cock and wraps his own, slick with your desire, around his length.

When he’s deemed you and himself ready he helps you kneel above his lap as he moves your panties to the side and lines his cock up with your entrance.

Your eyes snap shut and your head falls back as you let out a long moan, when you’re fully seated on his cock you take a few seconds to accommodate the tight fit, your walls burn from the stretch.

You can feel him twitching inside you and it causes you to squeeze your pussy around him.

“Fuck, baby girl,” he groans, grip on your hips hard enough to bruise, “can I move?”

You barely nod before he’s snapping his hips up, you cry out and hold his shoulders for dear life.

He keeps your hips in place as he pistons his cock into you, his breath is coming out in harsh pants and the scrunched up look of concentration on his face has you reaching a finger out to trace the wrinkles on his forehead.

At your touch his facial features soften but his pace is still harsh.

“Play with your clit, princess,” his voice is strained, “show daddy how you touch yourself.”

You whimper and his request and immediately comply, taking your right hand off his shoulder to massage the engorged nub between your legs.

His eyes are trained on your fingers, taking note of every movement and action your hands make and committing them to memory.

When you spit on your fingers and rub the saliva around your clit he lets out a debauched moan.

The trailer is filled with moaning and breathless whines as the smell of your combined arousal fills your senses, you can feel your impending release and try to hold off just a little longer.

“I can feel you clenching, princess,” Eddie notices your hand no longer rubbing your pussy, “don’t fight it, cum for me.”

You fall forward as he moves his hands from your hips and envelops you in a tight embrace, holding you against his chest as he snaps his hips up and continues as best he can with the rough pace.

You bite down on his shoulder to muffle your scream, Eddie hisses at the pain but his cock jumps inside you and the motion causes you to cum around him, your body spasms against his as you’re forced to ride out your high, his thrusts not slowing down.

“Just a bit more, sweetheart,” he grunts as he bucks his hips up one last time, his cum spilling inside you and painting your bruised walls, “fuck!”

Your body is stuck to his with sweat and your breathing is laboured, he runs a soothing hand up your back, tracing the divots in your spine.

Before you both can fully come down the door to the trailer swings open and in walks Jeff and Gareth.

They dramatically cry out and cover there eyes as Eddie hurls a cushion in their direction and you bury your face in his neck.

He chuckles and kisses your temple as you shiver slightly, cold air slipping through the briefly opened door.

“I guess I forgot to lock the door,” he groans though you hear the amusement.

“Yeah, no shit, Munson,” you giggle.

“Oops.”

[vlad-theimplier]

WIP Wednesday: Custos Custodium

This scene is mostly just for fun, inspired by hunting around Jensen's apartment for food other than cereal and wondering what kind of takeout he'd get. I make no apologies. Check out the whole thing at https://archiveofourown.org/works/55686901/chapters/141357007

“Wow,” Malik said through a mouthful of cheese, “this is terrible.”

“Yeah.” Jensen chewed, swallowed, and downed half his beer. “You know how they say there’s really no such thing as bad pizza? They’re wrong.”

“Bleh. At least the veggies are edible. What’re you up to tomorrow?”

“Work. Some of us keep regular hours, you know.”

“Sorry I couldn’t make it down on the weekend. But I figured as long as I was in the neighborhood—”

Jensen shook his head. “Glad you’re here. Wish I weren’t tied up.” He eyed his half-eaten slice and picked a dubious circle of cured meat off it.

“Well, I’ve been meaning to look around the city some more. I think I have all the papers I need.”

“This is definitely not real pepperoni. I think it’s got caraway in it. And maybe sage.” He wiped his greasy fingers. “Let me see. Passport, Aug permit, commercial pilot’s license… you have your flight plan?”

“Do I need it?”

“You want to use the CPL instead of a visa, you need a flight plan taking you out of Czechia.”

“Jesus, fine. You got a printer? I don’t want your asshole local cops poking through my phone.”

“I do, yeah, and then you should be good. Anyone tells you to get a permit authentication card, they’re scamming you—let me know.”

Malik rolled her eyes. “Remind me why I flew out here?”

“Figured you wanted to show off your bed head to someone other than Maggie.”

“Yeah, screw you. You realize yours goes flat on the side you sleep on? From the gel or whatever?”

Self-conscious, he brushed his fingers along the side of his head—not that they could feel his hair. “You realize I carry a stun gun? I can make your hair do that whenever I want.”

“You wouldn’t.”

“I might.”

She matched his glare for a good five seconds before snickering. “Okay, you might, and I might deserve it sometimes. Although I’d think scooping your metal ass out of midair might get me a little grace.”

“That’s why I’d only do it if you deserved it.” Jensen scowled at his pizza, and caught her doing the same. “Pitch it? It’s pretty damn bad.”

“It is. But do you have literally any other food in this place?”

“Sure. I got, lemme see, Augmentchoos and Frogy Kousnutí.”

“Bless you.”

“The Augmentchoos have a carefully calibrated glycemic index to, uh…” He picked up the box and read off the back. “To ‘provide your augs with the all-day performance you need.’”

“Uh-huh. Sure. What about the froggy things?”

“Well, they look like little frogs. Think there’s Vitamin D in the lily pads.”

Malik sighed and slid her doughy pizza into the trash. “Fine. I’ll try the froggy friends. I have no idea how you don’t get, like, scurvy or something, eating this stuff.”

“Limes in my cocktails.” He poured two bowls of processed grains and green food dye, then fetched the milk. “Say when.”

“Ooh, big health-food guy we got over here. That’s plenty.”

“What do you think?”

“Think I’m getting hopped up on sugar.”

“Hopped up—Christ.” He sighed and grabbed a bottle from the cabinet. “Even it out with some bourbon?”

“Sure, why not? It’ll be like college all over again. Except I don’t have class to cut in the morning.”

Jensen chuckled and raised his glass. “Na zdraví.”

[fqiryspit]

𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦 𝐠𝐢𝐫𝐥 ; 𝐞.𝐣𝐚𝐞𝐠𝐞𝐫

𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐰𝐨 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐦𝐞𝐞𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐬𝐭 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠?

.

summary: y/n went to bed to fall into a new world where she met a boy, Eren. every night she would spend with this imaginary boy, but what happens when one wants to stop dreaming?

playlist

Chapter 6: 𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙜𝙤

masterlist

Eren Yeager x Female Reader. College!AU

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【ＥＲＥＮ'Ｓ　ＰＯＶ】

Saturday, 10:30 pm

Friday I told Y/n the words I regret most in my life

"I hate you"

I couldn't hop into bed any faster, I had so much to say to Y/n

slipping back into my dreams I waited and waited.

I need to apologize to y/n

I need to fix all this

I need her 

I made the setting a deep murky forest, with animals all over, fog so thick you couldn't see your feet, deep trees covering the sky with cloudy weather, just for Y/n.

I wore black jeans and a loose gray cardigan over a black shirt, my hair tied back with a couple of strands falling out framing my face.

placing a picnic blanket at a clearing, I sat down, fiddling my fingertips as I waited for Y/n

only, she never showed.

after a while...I woke up

I felt funny when I woke up.

I felt lonely...

that hasn't happened in a while.

Sunday, 11:00 pm 

maybe she was just mad?

she has to show tonight

I tried to make the setting calm, this time I made it an old library 

I smiled as I remembered how she shifted the setting to an ancient library when I was panicking...

how she calmed me down so fast, how she knew what to do.

thinking about how we were both wrapped up in that blanket as we read together, the sound of thunder crashing outside was a nice background for the reading, only I knew nothing about the book since there was such a pretty girl in front of me, who would ever take their eyes off her?

pacing back and forth I tried to add more things to Y/n's liking...

I made the lights go out, only a single candle next to a book...

a storm raging outside, I made two cups of tea.

I picked up the tea and tried the drink, for it to taste like nothing.

fuck, I forgot I can't taste anything...

but the warmness in my stomach was replaced with a memory tea cant do

ᶠˡᵃˢʰᵇᵃᶜᵏ

"boba!" Y/n screamed making me jump

"boba?" "let's get boba!"

"Alright?" I chuckled as she walked down the street, the empty roads and the buildings of new york city were much more comforting than expected 

"Do you know where you're going?" I asked for her to scoff at me

"Obviously, I just made one over here." and soon enough we were at a boba shop

"milk tea with boba is a staple" Y/n grinned as she stabbed her straw into her boba

she put her plush lips against the straw, sucking the boba pearls into her mouth where she chewed them only for her face to turn

"It has no taste"

"Oh, wanna get another one?" I scooched my drink over for her to try

"No like, it doesn't taste like anything" she tilted her head at the drink

"here!" she stuck the straw into my mouth for me to try

I blush madly at the indirect kiss, something so simple but made me go crazy

and yep, taste like nothing

"Aw, that's disappointing" I giggled 

"I guess you can only do so much" she shrugged. my brows furrowed a bit when she said that

what does she mean?  is she aware she's a figment of my imagination?

or is she saying there's only so much I can do? sense I'm the one dreaming?

ᶠˡᵃˢʰᵇᵃᶜᵏ ᵒᵛᵉʳ

Y/n didn't show that night either

I woke up with a feeling of dread,

Y/n's really gone...

*

【Ｙ／Ｎ'Ｓ　ＰＯＶ】

Monday, 10:00 am

You were back to having regular dreams again...

You were slowly starting to forget features of Eren...

what was his nose shape again?

what was his laugh?

how tall was he?

all slowly slipping away

laying in your bed, wrapped up in your sheets you wish Sasha was back in town to come into your room and rip you out of bed

you sigh and get up, taking a shower that's louder than your thoughts.

your mind was empty, the silence was piercing.

you stayed in the shower for an hour, just so you didn't have to turn off the water and be met with the silence again 

the warmth of the shower drowning your skin as the pitter patter~ sound of the water crashing against your body filled up your mind so you didn't have to think about what was making you feel so empty in the first place

Eren

Eren was gone.

he was the one thing that you looked forward to every night

every night you'd fall into a world

a world better than this one.

and now that world is gone, and you don't know why you're still in this one.

stepping out of the shower, you wrapped a towel around your body that was somehow colder than you. you stood there in the middle of your cramped bathroom as you stared at the water falling from your nose onto the floor

.

you put your hair into a low bun to get it out of the way as you put on dark green cargo pants and a black tank top just for it to be covered with a black jacket.

you looked out the window to see thick dark gray clouds hovering over woods outside your dorm

you quickly walked over to the kitchen and made yourself some iced coffee 

sitting by the window you pulled out your sketchbook and took a sip of your iced coffee, 

you really are lucky to get this view 

the thick woods with the deep tall oak trees and the gray sky setting the mood perfectly 

you started drawing a face, not really having anything in mind

soon you drew a puffy button nose with blush on it spreading to her cheeks with pointy ears and wings. yes, you were drawing a fairy.

so lost in your drawing you didn't even notice how it started pouring outside

you sadly looked at the rain, then at your empty iced coffee

yes, you love the rain. It's just you were planning to go to the cafe today 

you decided fuck the rain, you wanted cake. you're gonna get cake.

you grabbed your umbrella and packed the tan tote bag that you snagged from your art class in the tenth grade

throwing your sketchbook and pencils in the bag you ran out of the dormitory, giggle the entire way as you sprinted to the cafe praying you wouldn't slip on the soaked pavement 

your nose taking a light pink from the cold as you finally made it to the cafe, your lungs getting filled with the scent of warm pastries and freshly brewed coffee as you wrapped the strap around the umbrella and put it into your bag

you order a tiny piece of chocolate cake and a small hot coffee due to the weather

you pulled out a chair next to the window for the view of the rain falling onto the cars speeding by.

you munched on the cake as you mindlessly started sketching 

it was a male this time

he had big doe eyes and hair that was tossed up in a bun.

then you remembered. and realized how stupid you look right now. so hung up on an imaginary boy to the point you started subconsciously drawing him

your head planted into the book and mentally groaned, then you heard a chair start to pull out

you look up to see a blond man with a light pink nose -probably due to the cold weather- and the brightest bluest eyes you've ever seen in your life

"U-uh can I sit here?" he shyly asked

"Oh sure" you smiled at him. usually, you'd get annoyed at people sitting next to you at cafes but you weren't with him, you actually admired by his sense of style with his white-collar under his dark green knitted sweater.

"thanks" he sat and took a sip of his coffee

"I'm Armin by the way"

Chapter 7

˜"*°•.˜"*°• see you soon •°*"˜.•°*"˜

an: omg next chapter will be better

taglist!: @alienvarmint

(if I missed anyone or you’d like to be a part of the tag list you can message me or just comment!)

[maria-akira]

how you meet the ahs boys + their reaction while you're having a class - PART 1

—♡—

hey yall im back again 🧍🏻‍♀️ is this what you call a headcanon?? idk BAHAHSHHA. anyways i've had this idea in my mind for a while and i wanted to share it to yall, so i hope you guys like it 😌

these also have a little back story on how you guys meet !!

also, special mention to @tatestripedsweater for helping me give ideas with jimmy's part !! thank you so much mwah 🥺❤

warnings: none! just pure fluff <3

please excuse any errors !

—♡—

~♡ TATE LANGDON:

before the pandemic, you and your family have moved into the murder house.

the house gave your family a very odd vibe, but nonetheless all of you had to bear with it because it was sold for a cheap price.

but when the pandemic arrived the country, you were stuck at home 24/7. thus, classes were online.

you met tate because of your father. tate was one of his patients and the both of you grew close.

"Y/N, what are you doing?"

tate would randomly barge in your room while having a class and you would jump out of shock.

"Jesus, Tate. Stop scaring me like that!"

tate would giggle and lay on your bed, observing the lesson that the teacher rambled about.

while you're writing notes, he would stand up and take a chair from some part of your room and sit beside you.

knowing that tate is clingy, you would warn him not to bug you and behave while you listened in class.

of course, he doesn't listen and he would place his head on your shoulder and eventually would cuddle you.

"Taaate, please let me focus."

luckily, you always keep your camera off.

"Mmm, no. I enjoy bugging you."

~♡ KIT WALKER:

one time, you were driving to school on your own and you were almost running out of gas.

luckily, you saw a gas station nearby and decided to get a fill before heading to school. and there, you met kit.

when you first laid your eyes on kit, you thought that he was the prettiest man ever. you couldn't let this chance slip, thus, you exchanged numbers with him.

you talked all day and night, the both of you were so inlove with each other and you finally decided to introduce him to your parents.

your parents loved him and you were so, so happy.

but when the pandemic came, it affected your relationship with kit.

since all schools and unis were closed down, everything went online.

when kit stayed over, he couldn't spend a lot of time with you because you had to attend classes early in the morning, till afternoon.

"Can you stay in bed with me for a little bit, darling?"

unfortunately, you woke up late that day and you missed 10 minutes of your first class. and just like that, you were stuck to your desk until afternoon.

"Kit baby, I'm sorry. I'm late for my first class. Maybe later, okay?"

as much as kit hated this whole online class thing, he would always find a way to cheer you up.

thus, he would cook you breakfast and bring it over to your room.

"C'mere, I'll feed you while you listen and write down notes."

~♡ KYLE SPENCER (PRE DEATH AND POST DEATH) :

PRE DEATH:

madison, your friend, had bugged you all week to go with her to this college frat party near your house.

you weren't the party type. you loved staying at home, watching netflix or reading some sort of fan fiction on wattpad.

but you hated being single. so, this was your chance to actually get a boyfriend.

when you arrived at the party, you immediately hated it. everything was so loud and everyone was drinking, it was definitely a new sight for you.

you were sitting on a couch that was in the balcony, with a red cup that was filled with punch. you loved being away from the commotion.

this is where you met kyle, it was love at first sight. the both of you had so much in common and you thought that he was the man of your dreams.

you exchanged snapchats and from there, you were partners-in-crime.

you and kyle had stopped going to parties ever since the pandemic arrived, which means you got to see each other less.

since the both of you were students, both of your classes went online.

one time, kyle had no classes for a day and he decided to surprise you.

that day, you were having an online presentation. both your camera and microphone were on.

"Rene Descartes was the Father of Modern Philosophy—"

as you were presenting the slide show, you were cut off by kyle's presence infront of your desk.

"I brought you food, baby!"

you would shush him and suddenly turn off your mic.

"I'm so sorry, Miss. My boyfriend arrived and I—"

kyle would go beside you and kiss you on your cheek, your classmates and teacher cooing over it.

"Miss, you better give my girlfriend a good grade."

POST DEATH:

*pretend that he survived the bus accident and had a coma, because we arent involving witchcraft here*

kyle and his fraternity were on a bus that was going to some college event at school.

on the way there, you guys snapped each other and his friends would talk to you as well.

unfortunately, they got in an accident and the bus was flipped over.

a few students, including kyle, survived the accident.

when you heard this news, you cried your heart out and you didnt talk to anyone in your family.

you and your family visited the hospital and you rushed to kyle's room, it broke your heart to see tubes in him, with machines that beeped like there was no tomorrow.

when the doctor said that kyle was in a coma, your heart sank in the deepest part of your body.

this made you stay 24/7 with him until he was discharged.

when he was discharged from the hospital, he was not his usual self. the bubbly, energetic kyle was gone. instead, he was so confused with everything.

kyle's mom made him stay with you until he got his memory back, and you were more than glad to help.

but this took a toll on your studies because your classes were online due to a pandemic.

everyday in class, you would let kyle sit beside you and let him observe what you were doing.

"We're in Science class, Kyle. You were really good in Science, you helped me alot with my homeworks."

most of the time, you would help kyle develop his speech and his writing. but it was difficult for you.

"S-Sci... S-Sci-en.. ce?"

"Yes, Kyle! Good job, now one more time."

~♡ JIMMY DARLING:

ever since you were a kid, you loved going to carnivals, your parents would always bring you there every weekend.

there were carnivals almost everywhere, and your family brought you to all of them.

to you, each carnival was unique. the clowns and magicians in each carnival had different tricks up their sleeve.

but as you grew up, these carnivals slowly went out of business. except for one, which was elsa's cabinet of curiosities.

you decided to visit it one day just for a trip down memory lane, you never really had expectations for this place.

when you arrived there, there were a few people that were seated.

the show started and it instantly made you smile, they reminded you of your younger days. oh how you wished to be a child again.

you watched through a few acts, and the last act was a man named jimmy darling

when he came on stage, you locked eyes with him. there was something about him that really struck you.

after the performance ended, jimmy ran over to you and got your number. from there, you always talked and you would visit him regularly.

the regular visits stopped when the pandemic struck the country, forcing entertainment establishments, schools and unis to close down.

for the mean time, all your classes went online. you told jimmy that he could stay with you until things went back to normal.

on an early tuesday morning, you were in english class. jimmy was with your parents preparing breakfast, and you were falling asleep while your teacher discussed about the odyssey.

unlike tate, jimmy would always knock on your door. as his mom always taught, never enter anyone's room without knocking.

jimmy would giggle at your sleeping sight, your head lowered and your hair messed up.

"Hey, sweetheart, wake up! You're in class."

jimmy's timing was perfect. as he woke you up, you were called by the teacher.

"Miss Y/N, Do you think Odysseus was loyal to his wife?"

obviously, you panicked. but jimmy was there to save you. since jimmy was fond of reading, he finished the book and he whispered the answer to you before you could turn on your mic.

"No, Ma'am. Odysseus had an affair with Calypso and Circe."

once you got your teacher's approval, you turned off your microphone and let out a sigh of relief.

"You're lucky that I'm here to help you."

jimmy would joke and you would jump up to him, tackling him into a hug.

"I'm always lucky to have you, baby."

~♡ DANDY MOTT

at a young age, you were exposed to different types of fabrics. denim, silk, corduroy, neoprene. they name it, you've probably seen it.

your mother worked as a fashion designer. she managed to open a shop in the city and it was a great success for you and your family.

your mother has styled famous models. because of this, the shop was promoted and broadcasted all over the country. one day when you came from school, you saw a long line outside the shop.

that day, the staff count was low. there were only 5 employees instead of 10. you didn't exactly know why, so you decided to help.

after what felt like several hours, the long line finally dissolved into 2 customers, which was a mother and her son. they looked through the shop and the mother instantly loved everything.

her son, on the other hand, was trying on this lilac tux that your mother made.

you assisted her son and when you locked eyes, the both of you smiled. you entertained him throughout his shopping spree and the both of you never broke eye contact.

this was how you met dandy. he made the first move by getting your number, and of course you gave it back.

from there, the both of you talked day and night, even when you were in school.

since dandy's mother, gloria, loved your mother's shop so much, she would invite you and your mother regularly to her mansion.

gloria and your mother got along very well, and it was like gloria was your second mother.

so when your mother went to paris for a fashion show, she let you stay in gloria's mansion until she came back.

but to your dismay, your mother was not able to come back due to a pandemic that was all over the world. flights, establishments, and schools closed down.

of course you were sad, but you didn't worry so much because gloria treated you like her real daughter.

classes were online and you were forced to attend them everyday in the shared room you had with dandy.

since you had to get ready for class early in the morning, you would quietly get out of bed because dandy was sometimes a light sleeper.

it was around 8am and you were in math class. in your school, cameras were required to be turned on at all times. you thought this was a shit rule, but you had no choice to comply.

you were drawing some circles with a compass for an example that was being discussed by your teacher, when all of a sudden dandy was beside you.

"Dandy, sweetie, what are you doing up so early? Go back to sleep.."

dandy would pout at the lack of attention that you were giving him. since he loved holding your hand, you let him hold your other hand that you didn't use for writing.

"You're doing Math instead of cuddling with me!"

—♡—

i'm actually super proud of this omg !! i hope yall enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it 🥺❤

—♡—

[bungeenomin]

Professional- Jung Jaehyun

genre: ceo!jaehyun x reader angst, smut and full (in that order)

word count: 7k

summary: when you and your ‘no strings attached” fuck buddy that you happen to catch feelings for, end on bad terms, you completely block him out of your life, that is until four years later, when you get a job working for one of the biggest ceo’s in Korea, Jung Jaehyun becomes your boss, and you his assistant

warnings: angst(gets resolved), slight degradation, dirty talk, unprotected sex(wrap before you tap), rough sex, thigh riding, slight overstimulation, orgasms

4 years ago

“Fuck Jae i’m gonna cum” you moan loudly in his ear, resulting in a grunt escaping from the back of Jaehyun’s throat as he picks up his pace. 

“Mmh cum with me baby” Jaehyun moans, and that’s all it takes for you both to come undone together, moans and swear words bouncing off the walls as you come down from your high. 

Jaehyun’s pace finally comes to a stop as he throws his body down beside you, still panting. This was a regular night for you and Jaehyun. For about six months now you’ve been fuck buddies and at least four times a week you end up in one of your dorms. Quick fucks whenever either of you wanted them or needed them, or late night fucks. Even though you were fucking each other with no strings attached, it never became awkward between you too, although the small crush you had on Jaehyun did make the whole no strings attached thing slightly more difficult. You never meant to catch feelings for Jaehyun, it just, happened. 

“I”m gonna go clean up, i’ll be back in a sec” Jaehyun said, caressing your cheek softly before getting out of the bed and moving to the bathroom. 

You didn’t mean to look at Jaehyun’s phone while he was gone. You really didn’t. You heard a phone notification and while checking if it was yours, you accidentally picked up Jaehyun’s, who had the same model phone and happened to not have a case on his either. 

“What the fuck” you whisper to yourself as you see the message displayed on the screen. 

‘Baby i miss you :( come over, i wanna pick up from where we left off the last time ;)’ the text read. You almost forget how to breathe as your eyes begin to swell with tears. You know, no strings attached, but for the last six months, you and Jaehyun had been exclusively fuck buddies. You know you would certainly tell him if you were letting someone else stick their dick in you, yet here he is, fucking other people and not having the audacity to even tell you. 

With tears streaming down your cheeks, you get up and start collecting your clothes from the floor and dressing yourself as fast as you can. You just want to leave and never have to look at his stupid face that you’re so obsessed with ever again. Jaehyun walks back into the room as you pull your shirt over your head, confused as to why you’re suddenly in such a rush to leave. “Hey, what’s up? where are yo-”

“What’s up? Why don’t you check your fucking phone Jaehyun” you spit, anger seeping out of you. Jaehyun gives you a concerned look before picking up his phone, his face dropping when he see’s the message on the screen. “Yeah Jaehyun, that’s whats fucking up, except, you didn’t even feel the need to tell me” 

“Y/n- we said no strings attached” Jaehyun says, not knowing what else to say. 

“There are no fucking strings attached Jaehyun! Funnily enough i fucking hate you right now, but don’t you think i have the right to know that my fuck buddy is fucking someone else?” you question. 

“I didn’t think it matt-”

“Of course it fucking matters Jaehyun. But you’re such a fucking self absorbed fucking prick that all you care about is getting your fucking average ass dick wet. Fuck you Jung Jaehyun” you spit as you walk towards the door, “if i never see you again it’l be too soon”. 

After that night, you didn’t see Jaehyun again. You blocked his number and all his social media platforms. You completely cut him out of your life. It hurt, but it didn’t hurt half as much as what he did to you. You know, what he did shouldn’t have mattered, but it did, and that wasn’t very no strings attached of you. You shouldn’t have fallen for Jaehyun put you did, and before you could even tell him, he broke your heart. You hated him for that. 

Present day

Your legs are decorated with goose bumps as you walk in your black, skin tight pencil skirt through the busy street. The cold winter air is intense, but you know that first impressions are everything, and so here you are, freezing your ass off to make a good first impression on your first day of work.

Honestly, you still can’t believe you’ve got this job. You applied for it late one night just by chance, not at all thinking you could get a job as the ceo of one of the largest companies in Korea’s assistant.

You take a shaky breath, before pushing the large doors open and stepping into the building. The interior is more expensive than you expected. Modern design, glass chandeliers, velvet couches, glass cases full of awards and pricey looking ornaments and antiques. It’s so beautifully decorated.

“Ah you must be y/n!” an older woman in sophisticated clothing says, a clipboard in her hand.

“Yes! That’s me. I’m starting work here today” you reply, a gentle smile on your lips.

“Yes of course!” the woman replies as she begins walking, motioning for you to come with her, “I’ll bring you to Mr. Jung’s office right away. I have to warn you though, he can be, well, difficult. He’s a very determined and work orientated man”.

If you weren’t nervous before, you certainly are now. This job would be just perfect if the ceo was bearable. “Good luck” the lady whispers, as she opens the door for you. “Mr Jung, your new assistant is here” she announces, before leaving you to your own devices.

As you take a step into the large office, you see a tall man, facing away from the desk and looking out at the beautiful view of the city the office has. “It’s funny isn’t it? How people meet again” the man states, not moving from his position.

You know what voice. Hell, you wish you didn’t but you do. You never wanted to hear that voice again, or see that face, and now he’s your boss? The male quirks an eyebrow and turns to face you at your lack of response, and there he is. Jung Jaehyun.

“Yes” you reply quietly, completely shell shocked at his presence. After all these years. Jaehyun from college is one of the most successful ceo’s in all of Korea, typical. 

“Ah ah, yes sir to you. Where are your manners?” Jaehyun replies, a smirk on his lips. 

“Yes sir”

“Much better” Jaehyun replies, moving to his seat. “Your desk is there, take a seat” he points towards a large desk, although much smaller than his own, placed not too far from his desk, but far enough for you both to have personal space.

“Let’s get a few things straight” Jaehyun starts as soon as you sit in your seat, “other people don’t run my company for me, i run it. My company has no shareholders, it’s entirely mine, so don’t even consider thinking you can help me with my business. Your job is not that hard, a child could do it. All you have to do is keep track of my meetings and schedules, i’m a busy man y/n, if you forget, consider your self fired. I don’t have the time to work both of our jobs. You’ll accompany me to meetings, you are to write down every detail that is spoken about. I never do business on the day, i go home and reflect, which is why you better have every last detail on that paper. It’s also your job to go through my emails, but nothing to do with business deals, that’s none of your concern. My business deals are in my own email, so don’t worry. The email i’m going to give you is for promotional deals, sponsorships and the likes, deal with them accordingly. Don’t fuck it up y/n, it’s simple work. If i had two of me, i would do it myself but unfortunately, that’s not the case and well, here you are. Oh and lastly, if i want coffee, that’s on you”

He’s changed. He’s changed so much. He’s not the Jaehyun you knew. Not your Jaehyun. Well, the Jaehyun you knew was never really your Jaehyun. He made sure of that. Maybe this is still old Jaehyun, and he was just nice to you so he could get his dick wet. Maybe. 

“Do i make myself clear, y/n?”

“Yes sir” 

“Great, you’re only in for an induction today really so just set up your desk and go i guess” Jaehyun says monotonously, his eyes back in work mode as they stare at the large computer screen in front of him. 

“Oh, okay sir” you reply, taking your stationary out of your bag and displaying it neatly on your desk. 

“See you tomorrow” Jaehyun says, eyes failing to lift from the screen that illuminates his face. “My coffee better not be on my desk a minute after 8am, i’m very punctual, so 8:01 won’t do”

“Yes sir” you reply, trying your best to keep your calm, “see you tomorrow” and with that, you leave the man to his work in the office, releasing a sigh you didn’t know you were holding in the second you exit the room.  

When the next morning arrives, you do everything you can to make sure you don’t piss off Jaehyun. You arrive fifteen minutes early to set up your computer and get his coffee, but of course, by the time you reach the coffee machine, there’s a line. 

You check your watch as you quickly walk towards the office, coffee in hand, and just as you reach the door you see the time switch to 8:01. Of course. You open the door, in hopes that you will have beaten Jaehyun to the office but you didn’t. He is sat at his desk, looking through stacks of paper work, wearing a serious expression. 

“Late on your first day? We really aren’t getting off to a good start now, are we dear?” Jaehyun questions, the same serious expression displayed on his face as he looks over the frame of his low hung glasses at you. 

Dear. 

“I’m sorry sir” you reply, before walking towards his desk to place his coffee. 

“Let it be the only slip up” Jaehyun grumbles, his focus now back on the documents in front of him. He was never much of a morning person, but from what you saw yesterday, you aren’t sure if he’s much of an evening person now either.

“What’s todays schedule?” Jaehyun questions a few minutes later, taking a small sip of his coffee, and humming in satisfaction. 

“It says here you just have a call with Mr Wang at 9am sir” you reply, as you read the schedule, insuring you weren’t missing anything. 

Jaehyun leaves out an unsatisfied scoff at that, “Fine, it’ll be on speaker, write the details. He’s very persuasive so i will need a lot of reflection before signing anything with him, make sure you write down everything”. 

So you did. You felt as if your hand was going to fall off due to how quickly Mr Wang spoke, but you got everything written down. You typed it all out in a neat format so Jaehyun would understand it perfectly. 

Jaehyun was on his third cup of coffee since sitting down to reflect on the business deal that Mr Wang had offered him, and the man looked stressed. Heavy sighs left his lips over and over again as he weighed out his options, desperately trying to make a decision. He looks so attractive when he’s worked up. He always has. Any time he was stressed during university, he would call you over and just fuck it out of his system. He’d never do that now though. Not anymore. 

“More coffee?” you question hesitantly, looking at the empty cup sitting on his desk, as Jaehyun sits with his head in his hands. 

“No” Jaehyun simply replies. “There’s a bottle of whiskey over in the cabinet, bring it over with a cup”. 

It would be nice to hear a please from Jaehyun, but right now, you know he’s up to his eyes with stress. 

“Here you go sir” you announce, leaving the glass and bottle in front of him. 

“Are you done your tasks?” Jaehyun questions, pouring himself a glass of the alcohol. 

“Yes sir” you reply. 

“Go home then” Jaehyun responds, chugging the drink down his throat in one gulp. 

“Thank you sir” you reply, to which Jaehyun just nods. The atmosphere between you two is unexplainable. Weird. 

Day two of working with Jaehyun is no better. He’s narky. Worse than yesterday.

“Coffee” Jaehyun demands, as he’s busy writing on the documents in front of him.

You bring him his coffee, leaving it in front of him and go back to your work.

“The coffee isn’t nice” Jaehyun announces, shoving the drink further away from him.

“Would you like me to make you a ne-”

“No, you’ve put me off the whole idea of it now” Jaehyun huffs, eyes flicking between the documents and his computer screen.

“Sorry” you sigh, before returning to your desk. 

“Sorry what?”

“Sorry sir” 

“That’s what i thought”

The nice lady who greeted you on the first day was right. He is a lot. You never thought he would grow into such an arrogant person, but here he is. 

“Sir, you have a call with Mr Huang in ten minutes” you announce as you look at the schedule in front of you. 

Jaehyun nearly chokes when you say it. “Ten minutes? You have one fucking job and you decide to tell me ten minutes in advanced? You’re fucking useless” Jaehyun shouts, very pissed off at this point, before storming out of the office. 

Ouch. Jaehyun never, ever raised his voice at you before. Never. Jaehyun would always be so calm, so collected. He never once called you anything degrading, outside of the bedroom that is. After sex, he would even go as far as assuring you know that you are none of the derogatory names he called you, always praising you. This hurts, a lot. 

A few moments later, Jaehyun enters the room again, arms full of files and a freshly made cup of coffee, one he made himself after your previous attempt. His face still carries anger. 

“Do you want me to help you carry th-”

“No, your help isn’t necessary. Just note down the meeting details” Jaehyun cuts you off bluntly, before beginning the call.

A week into the job, and it’s been one hell of a week. No matter what you do, Jaehyun seems to be angry at you. No matter how hard you try, it’s not enough for him. Slightly feeling like deja vu. 

“Mr Jung?” you question sheepishly, standing in front of his desk. 

“I prefer sir, but what?” Jaehyun responds, still focusing on his work. 

“I know you don’t like me and that’s okay, but, is this personal? or is it that you just don’t like the way i work?”

Jaehyun quirks an eyebrow, dropping his pen, folding his arms over his chest and staring at you intensely. “So you’re getting bold?” 

“I-”

“I’m your boss, and you’re speaking out to me”

“It’s not like th-” 

“Then what’s it like? Hm?” 

You stay silent, regretting ever opening your mouth. 

“To me, y/n, it seems one of us is being extremely unprofessional, and that someone is certainly not me” Jaehyun starts. “I hate unprofessionalism, it’s something i will never be. You don’t get to come up to me all soppy because i think you’re not doing a good job. I didn’t ask you to do a shit job, nor do i pay you to do a shit job. So change. I don’t want this unprofessional shit from you again, do i make myself clear?” 

“Y-yes sir” you stutter, “i’m s-sorry” 

“Mhmm” Jaehyun responds. Jaehyun returns to his work, accidentally pushing one of the documents he was working on off the side of the desk, pages going everywhere. 

“For fuck sa-”

“It’s okay sir, i’ll pick them up” you reply, bending down to gather the documents before Jaehyun could get up. 

Jaehyun can’t help it. He can’t help but to look at your ass in that skirt he finds oh so sexy as you are bent down beside his desk. Lewd thoughts begin to fill Jaehyun’s mind, thinking back to old times with the two of you. His mind also strays to thinking of how good it would feel, fucking you at his office desk. But Jaehyun is a professional man after all, as he claims. 

Jaehyun awkwardly clears his throat and returns his gaze to the work in front of him, right before you stand up and hand him the documents. “Here you go sir” you smile softly, allowing the documents to sit carefully on the desk, completely oblivious to Jaehyun’s antics only moments ago. 

“You can go no” Jaehyun announces, rubbing his temples, you assume to relive some stress. “Tomorrow, i have a lot of work to get through. I’ll be working extra hours, and so will you. Probably working until midnight or after”

“Oh” you reply. That’s a lot of overtime. You are always so drained by the end of a 8-6 hour day with Jaehyun, you can’t even imagine how you’ll feel by the end of tomorrow. 

“You’ll get payed accordingly, don’t worry. Just clock in and clock out and you’ll get payed for the hours you work, and receive double pay for the hours you work after 8pm” Jaehyun looks up at you, waiting for you to approve. 

“Okay sir” 

“Good. Well, see you tomorrow then, you can go”

The second you leave the office, a deflated sigh leaves your lips. As if the embarrassing discussion you had to have with Jaehyun wasn’t enough, now you have to deal with him for hours extra tomorrow. At least you’ll get good money for it. 

What you aren’t aware of as you exit the building, is the state you left Jaehyun in. As soon as you leave the office, Jaehyun locks the door, ensuring he has no surprise visitors. When Jaehyun returns to his desk, he unbuckles his belt, ridding himself of his slacks and boxers and sitting in his seat, bare legs against the cold leather. 

Jaehyun throws his head back the second his hand meets his hard length, finally getting some well needed release. A small, airy moan escapes Jaehyun’s lips as he runs his thumb over his angry tip, collecting up his pre cum before he starts lazily pumping his length. 

Jaehyun releases heavy breaths, with one imagine in his mind as he pumps his dick faster, his grip tightening. “Mmh fuck” he groans, the images in his mind making him harder and harder by the second, as his pace just quickens. Jaehyun is quick to unbutton his dress shirt with his free hand, knowing where this is going. 

“Fuck y/n” he moans deeply, getting completely lost in his pleasure, images of you and him performing far from professional ministrations cloud his mind. 

“Mmh wanna fuck you so good” he groans, as he feels his dick twitch in his hand. “Fuck” he breaths out, squeezing tighter, teasing his tip again. 

Loud moans and groans fall from Jaehyun’s lips as he reaches his high, his load covering his toned abs. “Fuck” he breathlessly sighs, running a hand through his hair. 

Jaehyun is very glad he soundproofed his office now. Moaning your assistants name certainly isn’t professional, and Jaehyun has a reputation to uphold, even within the four walls of his own company. 

The next morning, you are determined for this day to go well. It’s too long of a shift for Jaehyun to be in a pissy mood. 

Today, you reach the office before Jaehyun, coffee in hand. You leave the coffee on Jaehyun’s desk, before heading to your own and setting yourself up for the day. 

Jaehyun is surprised to say the least that you were for once, in the office before him, coffee waiting for him. Maybe his talk with you finally knocked some punctuality into you. 

Jaehyun didn’t say anything to you, but what you’ve come to learn with Jaehyun is that silence is better than words. When he’s silent, he has no complaints, or at least none prominent enough for him to voice. When he speaks on the other hand, he is complaining, the vast majority of the time. 

Before you realise it, it’s already 9pm, three hours past your usual finish time. “Take a break” Jaehyun says, before standing up from his desk and walking to the couch on the other side of the large office, taking a seat and admiring the night time view of the city. He always found it relaxing, just watching the world go by, even if it is full of hustle and bustle. 

Jaehyun looks over at you, as you just silently sit at your desk scrolling through your phone. He returns his gaze to the window before speaking up. “You can come here”.

You whip your head around to face him, kind of shocked at his words. “Oh, uh, it’s fine, don’t worry i wi-”

“Y/n” Jaehyun says, turning his gaze to meet yours. “Come sit here”. 

You take a deep breath, although a shaky one, before standing up and making your way over to the couch, sitting on the opposite side to Jaehyun. Not daring to look at him, you also look out at the beautiful view, a small smile creeping onto your lips at the sight of the city. 

“Nice view, isn’t it?” Jaehyun questions, throwing you back. He hasn’t tried to speak to you at all unless necessary since you got here. 

“Yeah it’s really nice. You’re lucky you got such a beautiful building” you reply nervously, which doesn’t go unnoticed by Jaehyun. 

“I am” he replies, “one of my dads associates happened to be selling it when i was buying and gave me a good deal on it”  

“I see” you reply awkwardly. What is even happening?

“Mmh. I’m very proud of this place. Very proud of my company” 

“You should be. It’s a beautiful building and the company is so successful. You built it by your self from the ground up, that’s something to be proud of sir” you reply, eyes now staring at Jaehyun’s side profile. 

“I’m very proud. This company means the world to me” Jaehyun replies, your eyes still glued to his side profile. 

“Are you just going to stare?” Jaehyun questions, with a raised eye brow, causing you to panic and blush, breaking your gaze on him immediately. 

“No sir, sorry i wasn’t s-staring i was jus-”

“Just what?” Jaehyun questions, amused at how easily flustered you are. Still are. 

“There was just something, on your face” you lie, trying to play it off. 

“Then come get it”

“What?”

“Come get it off my face then” Jaehyun states as he stands up from his seat, waiting for you to do the same. 

You stand up, looking Jaehyun in the eyes, as he nods, signalling he meant what he said. Obviously, there isn’t anything on Jaehyun’s face but you’ve gotten yourself into this situation. You take a step forward to be directly in front of Jaehyun, your eye contact not once breaking. Your eyes move to Jaehyun’s cheek, where you decide to pretend to wipe. Grabbing onto Jaehyun’s forearm with one hand, you wipe his cheek with the other. 

“There” you whisper. Your bodies are dangerously close. Jaehyun has still not taken his strong gaze off of your face, causing the air between you to be heavy. Your eyes meet his again and you feel so small, so vulnerable, your stomach full of butterflies. 

“Back to work” Jaehyun announces, stepping past you and walking back to his desk, a smug smirk on his lips, leaving you in shock behind him. 

A couple of more hours pass by, and before you know it, it’s 12:30 am. Jaehyun sighs, taking off his glasses and pinching the bridge of his nose. “You can call your boyfriend or whoever to collect you if you don’t drive here yourself”. 

“Oh, i don’t have a boyfriend sir” you reply, internally slapping yourself for so unnecessarily announcing that. “I’ll be walking home sir”. 

Jaehyun looks up at you, his eyebrows knitted. “Don’t be ridiculous, you can’t walk home by yourself in the dark at nearly 1 am. I’ll drop you home” 

“No sir honestl-”

“I said i’ll drop you home” Jaehyun replies sternly. “No if’s or but’s”  

The drive home was short as you don’t live far, but none the less, it was awkward. Neither of you speaking, the only noise being the radio quietly playing, and the sound of the cars engine. 

“Thank you for the lift home sir” you smile gently, as you step out of the sleek, black, expensive sports car. 

“It’s no problem” Jaehyun replied, and you could have sworn you saw his lips turn up at the edges slightly. “I’ll see you Monday” and with that, he drove off into the night.  

The next week to come was surprisingly bearable. It’s Friday, and you’ve gotten through the week without any big issues with Jaehyun, no big arguments, no leaving work feeling like busting into tears. 

Just like last Friday, Jaehyun has asked you to stay behind with him for a few hours, to finish up everything before the weekend.

“Let’s take a break” Jaehyun announces as he stands up, stretching before moving over to the couch like last week. You assume just like last week, you have permission to sit on the couch with him, and so you do. 

“Did i say you could sit on the couch with me?” Jaehyun questions. 

“Oh sorry sir i-”

“I’m kidding, chill” he chuckles softly, something you certainly haven’t seen in four years. Something you missed so dearly. 

Jaehyun drapes his arm over the back of the couch, stretching it passed your shoulders. You turn your head away, nervous that he’ll see how red you are. 

“It’s nice to see you still blush over the smallest of things” Jaehyun teases, eyes on the view ahead of him, and to him, the view isn’t the city. 

“Do not” you pout, turning to look at him to see him already staring at you. 

“Cute” he simply says, tapping your pouted bottom lip with his finger. “But you were always cute” he continues, eyes locked on yours. 

He places his hand on your cheek, caressing it gently. “You were always cute, but i always found you so sexy, even now, you look so sexy for me every day. Make it so hard for me to concentrate baby. Always wearing those fucking skirts and dresses that drive me crazy. Then if that wasn’t enough, bending over in them right in my face baby. So naughty of you, distracting your boss like that”. 

Jaehyun’s eyes are dark, bold, looking at your shocked eyes. Were you hearing him correctly?

“Sir i-”

“Shh baby, no talking. Bosses orders” Jaehyun winked before kissing under your ear, sucking on it lightly. He remembers you love getting kissed here. His mouth moves lower on your neck, leaving open mouthed kisses in his trail, as he sucks harsh marks all over your neck. 

“S-sir, we shouldn’t be doing this” you whisper breathily, although your words contradict your actions as you grab Jaehyun’s toned thigh. He’s bulked up more since university. 

“Who’s the boss here baby?” Jaehyun asks against your neck.

“You sir”

“Mhmm, so listen to me like a good girl. I’m saying it’s okay, as long as you wan-”

“Oh course i want to” you cut him off, your voice a whisper. 

“Mmh, so needy for me, are you gonna be a needy slut for me?” Jaehyun questions, eyes now back on yours. 

You nod, feeling so small under Jaehyun’s burning eyes. That’s not enough for Jaehyun though. 

“Words princess” he says sternly, placing his pointer finger under your chin, ensuring all your attention is on him. 

“Yes sir” you whisper. 

That’s all Jaehyun needed to hear, as he pulls you in by the back of your neck, connecting your lips for the first time in four years. A small gasp escapes your lips the second he pulls you in, Jaehyun using that opportunity to slide his tongue into your mouth. He never changed, always impatient when you were kissing, adding tongue as soon as he possibly could. 

You move yourself to straddle Jaehyun’s lap, your lips never leaving each others, kissing each other with such hunger. “Mmh, you want me that bad huh?”

“Yes sir, so bad” you mumble against his lips. Jaehyun groans, lifting your skirt up to your waist to reveal your bare ass, a stringy thong the only thing covering it. 

“So sexy for me. Just me right?”

“Yes sir, only you, no one else” you breathe out. “Sir, can i please ride your thigh?” you ask shyly. 

Jaehyun places a chaste kiss on your lips, “how could i say no when you ask me so nicely doll?”

Jaehyun helps you to pull off your thong, leaving your lower half completely bare, before he places his hand on your waist helping you align your dripping heat with his thigh.

A soft moan escapes your lips the second your heat touches his thigh, before you even begin moving.

“Mmh i missed your pretty noises” Jaehyun whispers in your year, nibbling softly, his voice sensual, driving you crazy.

You place your hands on Jaehyun’s broad shoulders for support, before you slowly begin rocking yours hips against him, heavy breaths and whimpers escaping your lips.

Jaehyun can feel your wetness already through his slacks, proud of how wet you already are for him. “Good girl” he mutters against your neck, dragging at your shirt to have more space to suck on.

As you pick up your pace, you can’t help but throw your head back in pleasure, as Jaehyun flexed his thigh muscles underneath you. “Mmh sir, feels so good” you moan, as Jaehyun now unbottons your shirt, moving his mouth further and further down your chest, littering your skin in hickeys. Marking you as his.

You’re so lost in your pleasure, so close to coming undone that your pace slows down, not being able to push through the feeling of the knot forming in your stomach.

Jaehyun notices, grabbing your hips and pushing them back and forth quickly against his thigh, resulting in loud moans and swear words to spill out from your lips.

“F-fuck sir, i’m gonna cum fuck, feels so good, i need to cum sir, please let me cum for you”

Jaehyun moves his thumb to your sensitive clit, rubbing clockwise circles around it at a rapid pace, “cum for me baby girl, show me how much of a good slut you are for me”

He didn’t have to tell you twice, as you come undone on Jaehyun’s thigh, completely soaking his slacks. Jaehyun deciding to tease, continues to stimulate your clit after you came down from your high.

“F-fuck fuck fuck stop, sir i already came stop” you moan at the overstimulation. You forgot how much he loves it.

Jaehyun finally pulls away his hand, bringing his fingers to your lips and immediately shoving them in your mouth, allowing you to suck on them.

“You taste so good baby hmm?” Jaehyun states, more so than questions, as you nod your head in agreement. “Such a good little slut for me angel. I missed you so so much, did you miss me?” Jaehyun questions, as he unclasps your bra, throwing it on the floor before latching his mouth around and running his flat tongue over your hard, sensitive nipple, squeezing the other one between his fingers. 

“Mmh fuck sir, yes i missed you so so much” you moan, tangling your fingers in his hair and pulling on it, causing Jaehyun to release a small moan against your nipple, the vibrations causing your eyes to roll to the back of your head. 

“Sir” you moan, “this is so, wrong, so unprofessional”

“Fuck being professional” Jaehyun groans, lips still on your nipple.

Jaehyun moves back up to your lips, kissing them softly before whispering darkly, “I can’t wait to fill you up so good. Gonna make sure you can’t walk tomorrow doll”

“Sir please, fill me up, fuck me hard, i need you so badly” you whisper, need present in your voice. 

“So pretty and needy” Jaehyun coos, tucking a stand of hair behind your ear. “I can’t wait to hear you screaming for me”

With that Jaehyun practically rips his shirt off, pulling his slacks and boxers down almost as fast. You’re taken by surprise when Jaehyun grabs you in his arms, carrying your body back to his desk. Once he reaches the desk, you’re more surprised when he pushes everything off of his desk and onto the floor, placing you down on the desk. “Wanna make you feel so good baby girl” Jaehyun mutters against your neck, as he pumps himself in his hand.

“You always do” you whisper, pulling on his hair gently.

With no warning, Jaehyun aligns himself with you, snapping his hips inside of you, a scream leaving the back of your throat at his sudden action.

“Mmh fuck sir i forgot how big you are, how well you fill me up” you moan, pulling Jaehyun almost impossibly closer to you.

Jaehyun’s pace is ruthless, slamming his hips into you, filling the room with sounds of skin on skin and loud moans from the both of you. “So tight for me doll”

Jaehyun decides to change position, moving you from your seated position on his desk to having you bent over it, ass on perfect display for him. “So fucking sexy” he grunts, before pounding into you from behind, hitting your g spot with every strong thrust.

“F-fuck sir, feels so fucking good” you moan loudly, grabbing onto the desk for support as Jaehyun pounds into you mercilessly.

“You look so fucking good like this, bent over and needy for me. You need my cock so bad don’t you?” Jaehyun moans, his head throw back in pleasure, always finding great motivation in praise from you.

“Yes sir, fuck i need your cock so badly. No one fucks me like you do, you fill me up so good” you moan, knowing it’s driving him crazy.

“Fuck” Jaehyun moans out breathily, feeling his dick twitching inside of you. He knows he’s close.

Jaehyun grabs you by the ponytail, pulling you up so your back is against his, his pace not faltering for a second. Jaehyun’s hands immediately find their way to where they know you need them, one hand pinching your left nipple harshly, while the other hand is rubbing quick circles on your clit, your eyes rolling back in your head in pleasure.

“F-fuck sir i’m gonna c-cum fuck” you moan, grabbing onto Jaehyun’s forearm, looking for any sort of support.

Jaehyun groans in your ear, “mmh cum for me pretty girl” and that’s all it took for you to come undone. Both you and Jaehyun fill the room with moans, as you release your loads together, fucking each other through your highs. You feel weak as you grab onto Jaehyun with all you can. You always enjoyed sex with Jaehyun, but this, this was nothing you’ve ever experienced before.

Jaehyun places a soft kiss on your forehead, “let’s lay down, mhm?” Jaehyun questions, to which you nod in response, not recovered enough to give him a proper answer.

Jaehyun carried you in his arms back to the couch, before laying you both down, cuddling you in his arms. “You did so good for me my angel” Jaehyun whispers sweet words of praise as he runs a hand through your hair.

“I missed you a lot sir” you reply, looking at him with a soft smile. You really did miss him, but you can’t help but be thankful for how things worked out all those years ago. Everything happens for a reason, and who would have know what would have happened if that day didn’t go how it did. You may have never gotten to meet Jaehyun as a fully grown and matured adult.

“Don’t be silly my baby, you know it’s Jaehyun” he replies, a loving smile on his lips.

“I know your name is Jaehyun obviously but you wanted me to call you sir” you pout.

“I did, because it’s professional. But, i will let you in on a little secret. I have every one else call me Mr Jung” Jaehyun chuckles softly, placing a kiss to your nose as you scrunch it up.

“Why do you make me call- oh” you blush, realising why he makes you and no one else call him sir.

“You know i always liked it when you called me that” he teases, poking at your side, causing you to roll your eyes.

There’s silence for a few minutes before Jaehyun finally speaks up, “hey y/n?”

“Mhm?” you reply, drawing little love hearts on Jaehyun’s chest. 

“Did you mean it when you said i have an average sized dick?” 

“What?”

“The last time we fucked, and you were angry at me, you told me my dick was average sized”

“You fucking dork” you giggle slapping his chest lightly, “how did you even remember that?”

“It bruised my ego” Jaehyun replies jokingly.

“Well tell your dick’s bruised ego that it’s much bigger than average” you giggle against his chest

“Will do” Jaehyun replies, a small chuckle leaving his lips. 

This time, it’s you that breaks the silence that washes over you “I really did miss you” you pout against his chest. “I like this. A lot”

“Yeah?” Jaehyun questions.

“Yeah” you reply. “I like having sex with you, i like cuddling with you, i like joking with you, i like talking with you”

“Well then, i guess i’m gonna have to correct my past mistakes and act on it, hmm?”

You look up at Jaehyun, seeing his genuine eyes. “You want to act on it?” you ask, looking at Jaehyun with doe eyes.

“There’s nothing i want more than for us to work out. The day you started hating me, i hated myself. I never forgave myself for losing you, before i could even call you mine. I’m not going to let that happen again. Life brought us back together, and this time, i’m not letting you go”

4 years later

“Ah Mr and Ms Jung, welcome back from the honeymoon” you receptionist happily exclaims, as you and Jaehyun walk hand and hand into the company building. 

“Thank you very much” Jaehyun smiles appreciatively. 

“Was it a nice break?” 

“It was beautiful” you reply “it was so nice to get away for a week, leave work behind. But we’re back and have our company to run” you giggle. 

“Mhmm, all three of us” Jaehyun smiles, wrapping his arms around you from behind and placing them on your stomach, where the tiniest bump has made itself present. 

Your receptionist gasp, eyes glowing with excitement, “You don’t mean you’re expecting, do you?”

“We are! Baby Jung will be making an appearance in a few months” you smile, placing your hands atop of Jaehyun’s, your fingers playing with his wedding ring. 

A lot has changed in the last four years. After this crazy world dragged you back together, you and Jaehyun worked perfectly. Dating not only the love of your life, but also your best friend was the easiest thing to do. Within only a few months of dating, you moved into Jaehyun’s apartment with him, which a meek year and a half later turned into you both buying a house together. 

With the company expanding rapidly, and Jaehyun deciding he wants you to be his forever, Jaehyun gave you half the company. He knew he couldn’t handle it all on his own anymore, and he knew that you both balanced each other out, one of you always bringing something to the table that the other didn’t, making you perfect to be ceo’s together. 

As soon as he signed over your half of the company to you, he was quick in proposing to you, wanting to make you each others officially for the rest of your lives. Three weeks before the wedding you were both blessed with finding out that baby Jung was going to be with you in nine months time, the news putting you both on cloud nine. 

The wedding was a beautiful, expensive and elegant day. Very you and Jaehyun. You celebrated the day with close friends, family and work associates, and you could never in a million years have dreamed of how magical the day was. Now, here you are sat where you and Jaehyun’s second chapter began, on the couch in the office, looking out at the beautiful view of the city. 

“Good to be back?” Jaehyun questions, as you lay your head on his shoulder, his arm wrapped around you. 

“Very good” you reply squeezing his free hand. 

“Who would have thought this would be our life, huh?” Jaehyun states, a lazy smile on his face, mind replaying all the memories you’ve made together. 

“I know” you sigh contently, “who would have thought?” 

“I love you Ms Jung”

“I love you too Mr Jung” 

With that Jaehyun leans in and presses a gentle kiss on your lips, which ends up turning into a slightly more heated make out session. Jaehyun hums in satisfaction as he brings one hand to squeeze your covered boob, causing you to pull away. 

“My Jung” you dramatically gasp, “that’s not very professional of you”

[eunoiaflow3r]

hard 2 face reality // spencer reid x fem!reader

spencer reid x reader

aaron hotchner x reader

part one - part three

a/n: a lot of people asked for part 2 to “not ur friend.” omg i didn’t expect it to blow up like it did. sorry this isnt the fluff conclusion you guys wanted...but i’m willing to make this a series maybe? idk it’s up to you guys. thank you for your feedback and support. (see notes at end)

also i tagged all the people who commented on part one.

warning(s): language. angst. not proofread. will be mistakes.

word count: 2.9k wow.

request(ed): yes. very requested. thank you @yeah-just-ignore-me-thanks for this idea.

summary: after hearing something she shouldn’t have, she has to deal with explanations and tough decisions.

hard 2 face reality by poo bear ft. justin beiber and jay electronics.

—————————————&————————————

sometimes it’s hard to face reality...even though you might get mad at me.

It’s ironic sometimes.

The twists and turns of life and the paths it puts you down. Sometimes you believed in fate but right now it only felt like a pain in the ass. Whoever was controlling your strings you hoped they would just give you a break, but no. There was always something more.

Last night, you had a dream. There was a memory within the dream. You and Spencer were cuddling on the couch watching a movie and his fingers were combing through your hair. From where you were, it was more like you were witnessing it instead of actually living it. You were just watching yourself fall harder for the man behind you. You were content. Happy even. You forgot all about your issues and problems and conflicts. You forgot about what Spencer said and the things he had done. You just forgot.

You watched as he took his fingers out of your hair and pushed you away. The you that you were watching was confused and so were you. Why would he do that? What was wrong with him? This wasn’t the memory.

Dream Spencer got up, put his shoes on, grabbed his bag, and was halfway out the door. Before he left completely he said, “We’re just friends. You’re not enough for me. You never will be.”

Dream you just sat there and stared blankly.

Your eyes opened and you stared up at your ceiling in sorrow. The tears just kept coming and you tried to keep yourself quiet but it was so hard, and you were so tired. You hated to admit it but you were in love with him. You were in love with a man who didn’t feel the same way. A man who did nothing but play you and pretend you were nothing. A man who lied.

How did this happen?

How did you end up in a position where you were in a cold bed crying about a man who was unphased? Someone who didn’t find anything wrong with their actions? How could you love someone who would never find the way to love you back and treat you right no matter how hard you wished? No matter how hard you hoped?

How could you do this to yourself?

And to think - in a few hours you’d have to wake up and see him again. After everything you realized and have come to terms with you’d have to see the man who was responsible for the ache in your heart.

————————————&———————————

When Spencer woke up the first thing he thought about was work. How he didn’t really want to go but he knows he has to. He thought about how heart wrenching the case he’s been on for the last week has been. He thought about how today he might actually be able to solve it...and then he thought about you.

He’d be seeing you.

Hotch invited you to help with the case. He figured your skill set would be exactly what they needed to solve it.

And yeah, you there definitely was for the better of the case but was it for the better of him?

He had no idea what to do. You were mad at him. You weren’t answering his phone calls or his texts and he figured out that you heard the conversation and he gets that maybe calling you a grandmother was wrong, but really what did he do?

He knew he missed you. He missed being able to rant to you, and you consoling him. He missed the movie days you guys had...but he could watch them on his own...right? He could figure out his own problems...he didn’t need anyone to help him. Especially not you. Not someone getting upset about the smallest of things.

That was so rude of you. Why would you ignore him? Why wouldn’t you reply to his texts are calls?

He thought that that was pretty selfish of you.

And yeah sure, maybe calling you clingy was a lie but was that really something to ignore him over? To throw it all away for?

Should've been adjusted to my life, had the opportunity to stay away for the last time...now you’re standin’ right in front of me. It hurts me to know that I lied. Tryna protect your feelings... you read in between the lines
Hope your heart has started healing

You arrived.

He saw you, bag over your shoulder, going straight towards Hotch’s office and ignoring him.

Not even a hello? Not a good morning? You hadn’t even looked at Emily or Morgan either. What had they done? What had he done?

From what he could tell you had been crying, but you covered it well. If it was anyone but him they wouldn’t have been able to tell but he could. Did you miss him too? Were you hurting?

———————————-&————————————

“Is something going on between you and Reid?”

Hotch was looking at you expecting an answer but you didn’t know what to tell him. According to Reid nothing had ever been going on.

“No. I’m really just trying to focus here.”

Hotch nodded. “Good.”

Truth is, it was very hard to ignore Spencer. He seemed so oblivious that it made you feel sorry for him. But you couldn’t. You wouldn’t feel sorry for him. He wasn’t the one crying his eyes out at night and cussing out rom coms when they came on the television.

And you could tell he didn’t feel the same. He didn’t look how you felt. He looked conflicted, but he didn’t look sorry or hurt. His normalcy pained you. Had you really meant that little? Maybe you were over exaggerating things. No. You deserved an explanation - but you weren’t ready to hear it.

A while ago...

“Okay Y/N cover your eyes!”

You giggled. “No, Spencer why?”

“Just do it! I promise you’ll like it.”

You were sat criss crossed on the couch and Spencer was behind you with something in his hands. Before you could look at it he told you to close your eyes and he hid it behind his back. You smiled and closed your eyes waiting for whatever the surprise was.

You felt his fingers move your hair out of the way and you felt a coolness along your neck.

A necklace.

“Okay open.”

You could feel him grinning. You opened your eyes and looked down at your chest. You nearly gasped. On the end of the necklace was a miniature glass sculpture. When you met at the museum you told him that they were your favorite.

He remembered.

You held it in your hand and turned around to kiss him. He was a bit surprised but held your face in his hands and kissed you back.

“L/N!” You were snapped out of your head. “Are you alright?”

“Yes, I’m fine. Sorry.”

The necklace. You can’t believe you were still wearing it. It felt like the only thing holding you together which was strange since glass was so fragile. The metal necklace part felt like it was burning you. The happy memory burned you. You took the necklace from under your sweater and ripped it off your neck. You couldn’t wear it anymore. It hurt you, but you couldn’t hold on.

Reality is kinda hard to face, like actual facts is for flat-earthers. Rains a requirement for flowers to grow, and pains a requirement for power to grow. It’s a miracle how one can change, from one what was just hours ago.

When you got home that day you were happy and running on adrenaline. Yeah, you had to see Spencer...but you helped solve a case. You helped save someone. It was tiring, and gruesome just like what Spencer said but the feeling you get after helping someone? Unexplainable.

After changing out of your work clothes and into some jeans and a shirt, you’d thought you’d treat yourself to dinner. Maybe that would help you forget. Forget and move on. Besides, it was a nice little diner and you used to be a regular. You had wanted to bring Spencer but he never wanted to go. He never wanted to go out.

His loss.

When you got there the familiar scent of vanilla and cinnamon wafted through. You had missed this. When everything was so simple and uncomplicated. When you could be you. Not wondering if today was the day Spencer would decide to come over or not. Or to even call. You could finally breathe. You weren’t in your stuffy apartment. You weren’t in a Spence filled work place. You were where you considered home in a city away from it.

“Y/N, hey!” Em the waitress called you over. You would consider her a friend. You two had always talked when you came through.

“Hey!” She went in for a hug and you hugged her back.

“Where have you been?”

You sighed. “Busy.”

She nodded. She understood. From there she asked you where you wanted to sit. You were just going to request the counter since you were alone, but when a little boy came up to you yelling your name, and wrapped his arms around you...you didn’t have the time to answer. It was little Jack.

“Hey buddy!” You hugged him back.

You looked around for Hotch. What a coincidence. He smiled and waved you over. You and Jack walked over to the booth and Hotch stood and hugged you. “I’m so sorry about Jack.”

“Oh no, it’s fine!”

About two years ago Hotch hired you to babysit Jack every once in a while. You needed the money. You were making enough from the paintings you sold but you needed more to finish college and save up. You weren’t going to some big expensive college or anything but still.

A little while later you met Spencer and it just became and inside joke.

“Would you like to eat with us?” Hotch asked.

“I don’t want to intrude Hotch...”

“Aaron.” He corrected while smiling. “Please, join us.”

And you did. You ate dinner with Aaron and Jack and you were having fun. This past month you had been moping around feeling sorry for yourself but you were actually happy. There was still that pain in your chest, and a part of you that longed to call Spencer and talk to him - but you wouldn’t. You couldn’t.

After dinner Em invited you to go clubbing with her on Saturday. At first you were going to turn her down but you thought...why not? You didn’t have to stay up waiting for Spencer to call anymore. You didn’t have to cook or plan to order in in case Spencer decided to stop by. You didn’t have any plans.

“Sure Em, I’ll be there.”

“Great.”

She walked behind the counter and looked from you to Hotch. Like a suggestive look. Like a “ask him too!” look. And you weren’t ready for anything, and wasn’t even sure if you liked Aaron that way, and you still were in a gray area with Spencer...but you thought it’d be rude not to ask.

“Aaron...”

He nodded, urging you to go on.

“Do you want to go with me Saturday? I mean...I don’t really want to be alone..Em has a girlfriend and it might be fun.”

He laughs and scratches the back of his neck. “Yes Y/N I’ll go.”

When you got home and ready for bed you had this weight in your stomach. There was a lump in your throat, and your fingers tensed. You thought about Hotch and it made you feel like you were cheating on Spencer. But you weren’t. You and Spencer weren’t together. There was no need to feel guilty.

He didn’t.

———————————-&————————————

That Saturday came soon enough and you weren’t sure if you were ready. Physically yeah, you showered and got ready...but emotionally? Mentally? Was this a date? Had you asked Aaron out? Were you ready for that? Had you moved on from Spencer? No, of course not. But Aaron wasn’t a distraction either. You could never do that to him no matter how bad you felt. Never.

Your doorbell rang and when you opened it you were surprised to see Hotch...not in a suit. It fit him and you could admit it...he looked...really good.

“You clean up nice.” You said laughing a bit to yourself.

He looked you up and down. “So do you.”

He looked a bit taken aback and you could see he was a bit flushed and that made you a bit happy. You liked giving people that kind of reaction. It gave you just a bit of confidence you needed. Especially tonight, where you’d try not to think about Spencer.

When you got there you were glad it wasn’t too busy. The music wasn’t that loud either and you were glad because then you got to dance without immediately getting a headache. Your first dance was with Hotch but then he saw one of his friends from college (he’s a lawyer now) and then started talking to him. You didn’t mind. You actually kind of liked being alone. It gave you you time to think. But not about Spencer.

No. Not tonight you wouldn’t.

You wasted too many tears on him to be thinking of him while you were supposed to be having fun. He didn’t deserve your thoughts. He didn’t deserve your tears. He didn’t deserve movie nights, or cuddles, or sex, or kisses, or waiting, he didn’t deserve -

Spencer.

Spencer Reid.

You thought you were dreaming, but you weren’t. He was just a little bit away from you with JJ on his arm. “Just coworkers.” You wanted to say it didn’t hurt you, you did, but your heart broke. In a million little pieces. Had he not want to get serious with you because he was in love with her. It makes sense, everything about that makes sense but it didn’t hurt any less. It didn’t make the tears in your eyes stop, it didn’t make the ache in your chest dim but at least it made sense.

Know it hurts to see the truth in your face, circumstances bring you down to your knees. Go on and cry an ocean, but don’t drown in it. Enough to put your heart at ease. Oh don’t lose your self esteem. I apologize for being a man. It’s way harder than what it seems.

You grabbed your bag from Hotch and told him you needed to go outside for a minute. He asked you if you wanted him to go with you but you needed to be alone. You wanted to be by yourself to fight these tears. You couldn’t cry in front of him.

He gave you his coat which was much too big but still appreciated.

Once you were outside you took your phone out to check your face. Your nose was red but the few tears hadn’t ruined anything. You were fine. You were going to be okay. Everything was alright.

Until it wasn’t .

“Y/N?”

Fucking Spencer.

You turned around to see Spencer Reid walking towards you with a confused look on his face.

“Hey.” he said. Hey? Hey?? What the hell were you supposed to say to that? Hey?

He cleared his throat. “Things are weird, right?”

“Weird?” you scoffed.

“Y/N, it’s been a month! I don’t understand what I did! You just stopped talking to me even after I tried to apologize! What more can I do?”

He stopped for a second, “Is that Hotch’s jacket?” He stepped forward to take a look at it but you flinched away. “Don’t tell me that’s Hotch’s -“

“You were hiding me Spencer. You said the equivalent to hanging out with me was of visiting a grandmother. You never wanted to hang out unless it was on your terms and you called me clingy and suffocating when I NEVER asked you for more. I NEVER went out of my way to ask you for anything and you treat me like this? Like I’m replaceable? After everything we’ve been through? After all we’ve talked about and experienced? What’s your excuse for that Spencer? What could you possibly have to say that would explain that?”

He opened his mouth and closed it again.

“If I were to have called you and said ‘Yup, everything is fine Spence we can go back to normal.’ It would have gone back to normal! YOUR normal! A normal where I’m hidden like a side chick but you get to be in public with JJ on your arm! Fucking JJ! And yeah, we never put a label on it but YOU made it clear that we weren’t to fuck other people. That was YOUR decision! She was the girl you said I didn’t have to worry about and here we are.”

Spencer was silent. He looked to the floor, and said nothing. His fingers ran through his disheveled hair and his lip was quivering.

“So this is because of JJ?” he asked.

“Fuck you.”

————————————&———————————

He watched as you walked into the club and back out again with Hotch. Before you went in his car though you walked over to Spencer and put the necklace into his hand. Silently you walked over to Hotch and got in the passenger seat.

Spencer didn’t know what to do.

This was your necklace. He gave it to you. It was yours to keep. Yours to wear, cherish, and hold. Why would you give it back? It was supposed to make you happy and help you remember him. Instead it was in his hands unworn but the girl he had hurt. What was he supposed to do?

JJ found him outside but he said nothing to her the whole ride when he took her home. He was thinking about you. He was thinking about what you said. You were right.

When he got home he looked at the box of things you gave him. There were polaroid pictures of the two of you and he started shaking as he cried. What had he done? How could he have been so selfish?

You were right.

You were right.

Truth was he did like JJ, and he had been hiding you. He had been treating you unfairly. He had been a jerk and he had done every single thing you said he did.

He was all of the names you were calling him in your head.

Every single one.

He held the glass sculpture necklace in his hands and could feel his tears running down his face falling on it.

Even though he fucked up, and had something weird with JJ, he realized...he was in love with you.

Sometimes it's hard to face reality.

—————————————-&————————————-

literally wtf is this. what in the love triangles - anyway. ik you guys wanted fluff so...part 3? idk. should reader have a thing with hotch? should she choose hotch or reid?

feedback always appreciated. it pushed me to write this.

taglist: @hotchsbabygirl @pinkdiamond1016 @thefemalestorywriter @sizzlingclamturtlesludge @samyilf123

comment tag list: @peculiarinsomniac @mgg-theprettiestboy @187-reid @realalpacorn @wooya1224 @minami97 @studywithrosie01 @yeah-just-ignore-me-thanks @meowiemari @thedaughterofhotchniss @reniescarlett @lovelyspencerreid @ashwarren32 @fantastic-fans @unabashedlyswimmingtimemachine @psych0crybaby @drreidsconverse @castbyfox

[neonacity]

HYACINTHE | Chapter 2: Jaemin x Reader

Summary: 

Na Jaemin is far from being your typical 20 year old. Instead of slaving through college, he wastes away his hours cracking safes. Weekends that should be spent partying with friends consist of illegal races on good days and small scale bombings on bad ones. Na Jaemin is far from being average, unless you consider being a member of Seoul’s top organized crime family normal.

There is no such thing as a sense of normality and peace in his trainwreck of a life, so when he met a barista who was brave enough to call out his dangerous taste in coffee, he was like a moth to the flame. Everything about her is normal, which means she is forbidden to him, in all sense of the word. So why, then, does he always find himself at the front steps of her shop, breaking all his personal rules even if he wishes he could stay away?

A/N + Disclaimer: this is a side story to Black Daisies, my main mafia fic feat. 0T23. While the plot is based on the main story, this can also be read as a standalone fic. As usual, this is purely a work of fiction and in no way am I implying any member of NCT to behave the way I write them here. tw: crimes, heists, potential death, mentions of drugs and other illegal activities.

PAIRING: Jaemin x Reader

CHAPTER 1

FIC TRAILER

MASTERLIST

------------------------

"So you want to be a doctor?" Jaemin asked as he took a bite off the crust of his pepperoni and cheese pizza. He could have easily eaten it like any other person, but of course, he refuses to be normal and chooses to do even this his way.

I shrugged and tucked my legs under me with a sigh. We were currently sitting on an expansive field of grass overlooking a cluster of abandoned factories, the first place that Jaemin actually asked me to hangout with other than his regular visits in the cafe. It was a couple of minutes of drive away from the city—and is honestly kinda sketchy looking—but at twilight, the place transforms into a peaceful sea of green with the clear night sky watching over it. 

"I'm trying to be a doctor. A surgeon, to be exact." 

He turned and gazed at me quietly for a few seconds, his slice of pizza halfway into his mouth.

"Trying?"

"Yes. Getting into the medical field… It's tough. And expensive. I can take the endless studying, but the money… that can be so hard to get by sometimes."

"Why? How much is it?" He asked innocently, a small frown etched between his eyebrows. Jaemin wasn't lying when he said he doesn't know how to do friends. In fact, there's a lot of things he doesn't seem to know. Normal ones too, almost as if he lives in a bubble of his own. It has always intrigued me, how someone can be so out of touch with things, but of course I never took it against him. 

"Hmm… really expensive. Usually students like me can get loans but that will have us strapped into long years of paying them off even after finishing our studies. I did get a partial scholarship though so that helps, but the day to day academic expenses are just expensive so you know…"

"Doesn't your job at the cafe cover that?"

"No way," I answered quickly with a short laugh. "Well, barely. But it isn't comfortable. If I want to get a side gig that can pay for everything, I might as well work at a strip club. Or find a sugar daddy," I answered off-handedly as I popped a french fry into my mouth. 

"You don't want to go to strip clubs. They're dangerous."

I choked a little at how seriously he said that. 

"Why do you sound like you know so much about them?" I grinned and teasingly wriggled my brows at him. He didn't answer, taking another bite of his pizza instead. 

"Just… don't even think of doing that, okay?"

"Jaemin, do you really think I can pass off as a stripper? Relax. I know that's one job I'm underqualified for."

"Overqualified. You're too pretty to be one."

He said that so casually I didn't even know what hit me until he had moved on to another topic. 

"You know if you need money, I can help."

I gave him an odd look, still reeling from that compliment he just gave. 

"How?"

"I can give you money." 

I blinked at him.

"In exchange for what?"

"Nothing. I can just give you money."

I stared at him like he had grown another head. 

"Why?"

He looked at me like I was asking such a common sense question. 

"Because you need it."

"Jaemin, you're not my sugar daddy. Is this how you always offer help to your friends? Because I am seriously so concerned for you right now."

"Well, if you want, I can also be your sugar—"

I slapped his arm before he could even finish what he was trying to say. 

"Ow! That is not very sugar baby-like of you."

"I'm going to wring your neck, I swear." 

He flashed me his grin and dropped himself back on the grass, his arms behind his head. It was dark, but the moon threw just enough light on the curves of his face to compliment his features. His eyes twinkled back at the stars looking down on us and I forced myself to look away after realizing how much my heart started beating harder in my chest just by staring at him. 

I don't know when I started feeling this way towards him, but it is for sure not the first time I noticed where my emotions were going. It is odd… how these things happen. One day everything was going well like normal, until all of a sudden there is a skipping of a pulse after a smile, a flushing of the cheeks when he laughs. Everything is normal, until one day, it's all just free fall. 

Of course, I'm not stupid enough to do anything about it though. Jaemin has been nothing but a good friend, but the fact that I still know nothing about him is a big factor, at least for me. Lately, I felt like he was trying to open up more of his world to me—case in point, these quick escapes to this field—but there are still barriers there, walls that seem too steep to be broken down. 

"I wanted to be a surgeon too…" 

His voice was so quiet that I barely caught it when he spoke again. I looked back at him and caught the pensive look on his face, the same one he would always have whenever he thinks nobody is looking his way—that expression of longing that seems to overwhelm him every time he retreats into his own world. 

"You can still be one though… it's not too late yet," I whispered as I leaned back so that I was laying beside him. I rolled to my side to face him better, my eyes scanning his moon-washed features.  

He chuckled and briefly looked at me. 

"I wish it could be that easy, but it's really complicated."

"Why?"

He rolled on his side as well so that we were facing each other. The stare he gave me was so intense, it felt like he was pouring his heart out to me, except he can't do it with words. I tried my hardest to meet his gaze, my own way of telling him that he can if he wanted to... That I am his safe space.

"Didn't we agree on not asking questions?" He asked in a soft whisper. 

"I never agreed to such a thing." 

"But you've been trying your best." 

That made me purse my lips. My gaze moved away from his momentarily as I tried to weigh my words. 

"Until when can I not ask questions…?"

"Until when can I ask you to do it without you leaving me…?"

Our eyes met again. In that exact moment, I knew we were both on the same page despite the unsaid words and the secrets. 

"Until I can, Jaemin."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

------------------

"Hi, hi! What's your specialty here?" 

It took me about three seconds to register the boy currently beaming at me by the counter. I was going through some inventory so I had my back turned to the door for a little bit but I sure was expecting to hear the small bell by the entrance ding to alert me of new customers. I was about to open my mouth to answer when another boy strolled towards us, coming from the area where we have our pastries on display. There were… two of them I didn't notice? 

"Yah, Chenle. They have cheese bread. Buy me some." 

I softly cleared my throat and tried to plaster on my well-practiced service smile.

"Um… hi. Welcome to Brick and Beans. Would you like to have a cold or hot drink? I can recommend our best-sellers for each." 

"What does Jaemin-hyung usually order?"

My smile dropped and I stared at the duo in front of me. Who are these kids? 

"I'm Jisung and this is Chenle. We're Jaemin-hyung's friends."

The taller of the two answered as he seemed to have picked up my confused expression. I nodded slowly, my eyes scanning the visitors. They look just a little bit younger than Jaemin, maybe about two to three years tops, as noticeable from their more careless, youthful air.

"Did… Jaemin recommend our place?" 

The pair exchanged glances before they both broke into giggles.

"Yeah, I guess you could say that."

"What the hell are you two doing here?”

The three of us whipped our heads towards the source of the voice by the door. Standing there was Jaemin, his face tensed as he stared at the two boys in front of me. It’s obvious from the looks of his reaction that he did not, at all, recommend this place to his friends. 

I was about to call out to him when the door pushed open behind him again to reveal two other boys.

“Yah… I told you to distract him, Jeno-hyung!” Chenle whined while Jisung pointed at his friend as if silently telling everyone that it was all his idea in the first place. The one I assume is called Jeno shrugged and dug his hands deeper into his pockets. He looked almost the same age as Jaemin but with a more muscular build that reminded me of some of the athletes at my uni. 

“I tried. Haechan slipped. Go blame him.” 

My gaze moved to the other one standing on Jaemin’s right at that moment. He is a little shorter than the other two boys crowding the door but there is something about him that seems wilder than the two. His eyes sparkled as they met mine and his lips twisted up into a slight smirk as he knocked back the lollipop he had into the other side of his mouth. He crossed the space between the entrance and the counter quickly with long quick strides and leaned his hand into Chenle’s shoulder to peer down on me. 

“Ah, so that’s why this is your favorite place, Jaem. How selfish of you to keep it all to yourself~” 

“Um…” 

Jaemin finally moved to approach us quickly, his eyes moving between me and the three boys in front of my counter. The boy called Jeno wandered into the cafe, looking at the bags of beans and tea packs we have on display at the far side. 

“I’m sorry, I had no idea they were coming,” he told me apologetically, his face strained. I couldn’t really understand why he was so worried but I gave him a smile to assure him that everything is fine. 

“Hey, it’s okay. I have no customers anyway so I’m glad your friends came over.”

I have a feeling there is more to his anxiousness than I could understand. 

“She’s right. We’re just here to have some coffee,” the boy, Haechan, said as he winked at me. “So what do you recommend, miss? I won’t have anything Jaemin loves to get, if it means having his death concoction.

That made me laugh a bit. Jaemin’s frown deepened.

“Well, we have really good Chia tea and some hot chocolate. Our cocoa is sourced from the Philippines so—”

“According to online reviews, their blueberry cheesecake is bomb,” said a new voice that followed the opening of the cafe door for the third time in the past ten minutes. All of us looked around to see a new visitor with black and blonde hair falling over his eyes. His thin frame was covered by a light jacket and he glanced up from his phone to talk to us as if he was right there with us from the beginning.

“Do you have it right now?” 

“Uh… yes.”

“Seriously, who else did you crackheads invite?” 

Jaemin turned to Haechan and the rest of the guys with an expression I couldn’t quite paint.

His answer came with the cafe door dinging open again. 

“Yo, man. Am I late?”

Jaemin gave one look at the boy with blue hair, groaned, and cursed silently to himself. 

-----------

“Go back there and hangout with your friends,” I nudged Jaemin slightly by the shoulders as he continued to fume silently beside me. I was finishing the orders of the group and he seemed to still be adamant in keeping his distance from them for as long as he can. 

“I don’t hangout with assholes.” 

I chuckled. He looked like a toddler throwing a tantrum.

“Hey, language. Why are you so pressed, anyway? They just came by to visit. I’m glad I have customers.” 

For a moment, I thought he was not going to give me any answers again. Jaemin simply stared  at me, his arms crossed over his chest for a few full heartbeats. 

“I don’t think I should get you any deeper into my life as it is,” he finally said quietly, voice just loud enough for me to hear over the humming of the espresso machine. I looked up at him, surprised by his words and the fact that he actually replied to my question. 

“I suppose I cannot ask what that means…?” 

He gave me a small tight smile. Just then, the microwave beeped to tell me that the food I was heating was ready. We both looked at it and Jaemin took the chance to push himself off the counter he was leaning on to grab a tray. 

“I’ll take care of it. We’re making your job harder today, at least let me help serve those dorks.”

I nodded and wordlessly let him put some of the drinks on his tray. I did the finishing touches on the blueberry cheesecake the guy called Renjun ordered before loading it on mine. 

When we both walked to the table that the rest of his friends chose, the boys had already busted the jenga game that we usually offer to our customers. Jisung, Chenle, and Haechan were in the middle of sabotaging each other with their pulls while Renjun and Mark—the last newcomer—were peering over Jeno’s shoulder who I assume was playing a game on his phone.

“Here are your orders. I added extra powdered sugar on your chiffon cake, Jisung,” I said with a smile as I arranged everything on their table. The youngest boy looked up at me with sparkling eyes as if I’ve given him the world. The others took their orders after giving their own variations of thank you. 

“Thank you, noona,” Jisung said before turning to Haechan to “whisper” in his ear.

“I like her.” 

“She can hear you as clear as day, Jisungie.”

“Well, if you need anything, just call out to me alright?” I said with a polite smile, already feeling a little bit more relaxed around the group. I’m sure Jaemin has his own reasons to feel anxious about his friends being here, but they all seem like your regular boys to me. I’ve always wondered what kinds of acquaintances he has and I’m glad to know these are the ones he has around. 

“Wait, can’t you hang out for a while?” Haechan asked as I took the trays with me. Jaemin was quick to answer, throwing dagger glances at the other. 

“She has work.” 

“There are no customers.” 

“You can go back if someone comes. You’re only serving us right now, anyway,” Renjun quipped as he took a bite of his cake. My eyes moved to Jaemin just in time to see his jaw tighten a little bit. He did look a little bit resigned though so I decided to compromise.

“I guess I can stay for a few minutes. I haven’t had my break yet,” I said with a slight smile. Mark patted Jeno’s thigh to give way for me to sit on the space where he had his leg up.

“So, are you and Jaemin-hyung dating? For how long now?” My ass haven’t even touched the seat yet when Chenle shot the question. I looked at him, completely taken aback. 

“Chenle, you don’t just ask people that out of the blue,” Mark said, despite the small playful smirk that he tried so hard to hide. He turned to me apologetically then, “I’m sorry, he doesn’t go out often.”

I was too taken aback that I failed to notice how Jaemin didn’t even try to deny Chenle’s assumption. I glossed over it and chose to take another route instead. 

“Do you guys all live together?” I asked with genuine interest. Jaemin did say that he doesn’t get a lot of chance to socialize but it seems like it applies to all his friends, too.

“We all live in the...same apartment, yes,” Jeno said carefully. 

“Oh… roommates.” 

“We grew up together, actually,” Renjun pointed at Jisung who had his upper lip covered with powdered sugar as he shoveled cake into his mouth. “Jaemin birthed him.” 

“That’s right,” Jaemin said so seriously with a straight face beside me. 

“So you’re also childhood friends.”

“I guess you could say that. Chenle and I both came from China but we grew up here.”

I nodded, already invested in knowing more.

“Are you studying? Or are you always here?” Haechan asked me as he deftly removed a block from the Jenga tower he had reassembled. 

“Mm, yes. I’m on pre-med right now.” 

Jeno gave a low whistle and lowered his phone a bit to look at me.

“You’re going to be a doctor?”

I smiled. “Hopefully a surgeon, yes.”

“So does that mean you’ll be stitching up wounds and getting bullets off flesh and things like that?” Chenle asked. I laughed at how specific the situations he gave were. 

“I can actually do them right now, but yes. My father used to be a doctor too and I helped him around his clinic before he died so I know the basics.” 

“I didn’t know about that…” Jaemin spoke up beside me in a quiet voice, breaking his silence.

“About what?”

“About your parents.”

I laughed. “You never asked.” 

“So are you living alone?” Mark followed through. 

“Right now, yes. I lost my parents a couple of years ago but I do have an auntie living right in the next city.” 

“Man, so you’re working and studying at the same time. You’re tough.” 

“Thank you, but it’s not really anything new to college students like me. How about you guys? Are you in college?” 

The boys exchanged quick looks with each other. 

“We’re all, uh, home schooled,” Renjun finally answered. 

“Oh… I see. That makes a lot of sense.” Just then, my eyes drifted to the clock on the wall. I started slightly after realizing that my fifteen minutes of break is up.

“I have to go though, sorry. I’m alone right now so I have to work on multiple things,” I said apologetically as I picked myself up from my seat. I gave everyone a quick smile before retreating behind the counter. 

I didn’t look back to see how Jaemin stared at me as I left and how he finally caught Mark who was staring at him in return. 

The two boys didn’t have to speak to understand each other, but the younger one easily got what his captain clearly told him with his gentle gaze. 

Be careful. 

----

Chapter 3

[dat-town]

wish you were here

Characters: Mark Lee & you

Setting: wish dragon au (and a bit of aladdin because mark even has a tiger in their garden like jasmine did. don’t ask why, just blame the regular mv), childhood best friends to lovers (at least there’s potential?)

Genre: fluff and humour

Warnings: mentions of a sick animal and a wild animal kept as a pet in a huge garden (just like jasmine’s tiger, it’s very tamed)

Summary: A magical teapot, a dragon that wants everyone to be happy and an old friendship being revived. Oh yeah, have I told you that you have 3 wishes?

Words: 6.4k

For @restlessmaknae​ 💕

When your mother told you you got delivery to your childhood home, you certainly did not expect this: a brown box as big as a small watermelon with your old Canadian address and MARK LEE scrabbled next to your name as another recipient but no sender. Not to mention, the first stamp on the thing was dating back to the early 2010s. Where the hell was this package for 10 years? And what would you and your old neighbour slash best friend have gotten together?

Okay, first things first:

You and this clumsy, kind of cute kid, Mark had been quite tight while growing up. You were born in the same year, only a month apart, and his family lived in the house next to yours in the suburbs of Vancouver, so it was kind of natural. You two might have been against the world kind of comrades, playing hide and seek when you were six and wondering about whether time travelling was possible through black holes at twelve. But no matter how close you used to be, you fell out of touch when Mark's family moved to the other end of the world, back to Korea, their roots when you were fourteen. You slowly forgot about him, and started university in the city, moving away from home, so nothing really reminded you of him ⎼ and your stupid, big fat crush on him that you had no courage to tell him about in middle school ⎼, nothing until this box.

You put the delivered package on your kitchen table while you make some dinner for yourself out of what you have gotten during grocery shopping earlier just before you picked up the mysterious stuff at the post office. You eye it suspiciously over your pasta, really not wrapping your mind about what it could be but instead of annoying yourself with this pointless curiosity, you put your fork down and stand up to open it. It’s a struggle at first, the box being secured with multiple adhesive tapes over the years but when you finally get rid of all that and can look inside of it, an intense feeling rushes through you… immerse disappointment.

“A teapot? For real? What were we thinking?” you furrow your brows taking the small, green and pretty old teapot into your hands. It looks like a piece of a traditional Asian set with its jade colour and dragon pattern. It couldn’t have been in a much better shape 10 years ago either seeing how wayworn it is but still, you expected something more… exciting? Something funny that might or might not give you an excuse to look up Mark Lee on the internet and message him for the sake of old times. But how lame it would be to befriend him on Facebook only to tell him that you got delivered a teapot under both your names. Hah, you would rather not embarrass yourself like that.

You shoot one last glance at the teapot before leaving it on your counter and going back to your food, you successfully forget about the whole ordeal. You carry your life on with only one small difference: Mark Lee back on your mind after long, long years.

It was just a small crush, you tell yourself, sighing as you look into the mirror, absentmindedly wondering how he’s doing. Does he think of you sometimes as well? Did he go to music college like he has always wanted? Is he happy? You wish he was even if he’s half a world away and with that thought you think it’s time to go to sleep despite the upcoming weekend days. You don’t want to mess up your sleep schedule over some boy but as soon as you pull the blanket over your chest and close your eyes, something explodes in your kitchen.

You jump out of bed faster than lightning, in slight panic over the fact that your neighbours will hate you for bothering them late at night and your landlord would kill you if you managed to blow up your microwave. But the sight that welcomes you is like no other that you imagined. The whole room is covered in thick pink glittery smoke. Like your worst Barbie nightmare.

“What the⎼” you cough, waving your hands to clear the air and once it dissolves into nothingness with its weirdly cotton candy smell, there’s a boy in the middle of it all, sitting cross legged on your kitchen counter so casually as if he owned the place. His pink-ish purple hair hangs into his eyes and he seems to find your coffee machine strangely interesting. You grab the first thing you can ⎼ a blender ⎼ and hold it up in defensive before yelling at the boy: “Who the hell are you and what are you doing in my apartment?”

The stranger’s mouth pulls up in a charming smile, his eyes sparkle as he turns his attention to you, hopping off the counter. He’s all thin and long limbs, so you hate how you hate to look up at him as he walks towards you before bowing ceremoniously.

“Hello, sorry for the sudden appearance, I just couldn’t wait any longer! I’ve been stuck in that teapot waaay too long. I didn’t mean to be rude or anything. My name is Taeyong, I’m a wish dragon and you’re my new owner,” he smiles and what he says makes absolutely no sense.

“A wish dragon?” you mumble in shock, looking around to see if this is just another prank of Johnny. You wouldn’t be surprised to see him jump out from under one of the cupboards. Or maybe you just fell asleep and you’re dreaming. Yeah, that seems like a realistic scenario.

“Ah, yes! I know I don’t look like it but modern times require modern solutions. Most people freak out because of my dragon form, so human it is,” the boy who seems only a few years older than you grins as he’s chatting and you have to give it to him, he takes this role pretty seriously. “You have three wishes as my owner. You can ask for anything as long as it’s not about death or love.”

So you got yourself someone who thinks he’s basically a genie? Oh gosh, is he that drunk?

“Aha, very funny. I’m too tired for this prank, so I would appreciate it if you left the same way you came...” you point towards your window because there’s no way he came through the door. Putting down your blender because the guy looks pretty harmless despite his crazy blabbering, you move to go back to your bedroom.

“No, no, no, I can’t do that,” the boy, Taeyong as he introduced himself, appears in front of you within a second and grabs your shoulder as if he could shake some sense into you. He looks pretty desperate. “I can only get a new owner if I fulfill all wishes of yours. It was super stuffy in that box the last decade, you know.”

At that excuse you let out a laugh.

“You don’t even fit it the⎼”

“You were saying?” Taeyong is suddenly nowhere near ahead of you but instead a small creature, supposedly a dragon, in the size of your palm flies in front of your eye level. “It’s magic!”

Okay, now that sight makes you feel like it’s you who is drunk. Or worse.

“Am I dead?” you have to ask in a small, uncertain voice, trying to think back what could have happened. Maybe that explosion literally blew your apartment up? But it hurts when you pinch your arm and turning back into his human form, Taeyong wants to prove the very same thing. Not the hurting but the not dead part, obviously.

“No, you’re very much alive and a happy owner of a wish dragon. Not permanently, of course, but still,” he tells you as he drags you onto your couch in the living room. As if sitting down could help processing all this.

So you have a wish dragon in your home, a magical creature that can casually switch between its dragon and human form and he says you should wish for three things, so he could leave and you could go back to your old, boring life without magic and things that scare you to death at 11PM.

“Can I ask… why? Why me? I’m not really owner-material,” you whisper because heck yeah, you even managed to kill your cactus before. Taeyong purses his lips as he sits down, a hand at his chin.

“Well, it’s unusual indeed to have a peasant girl, no offence, as my owner but as far as I know, you and your friend asked for a sign that magic was real.”

Oh, you remember that, being so obsessed with shooting stars and other stuff like that, you two used Mark’s brother’s computer to browse the internet, trying to find evidence about all that. You were kids wanting to believe in a world beyond the one you knew. But...

“That was like 10 years ago,” you furrow your eyebrows, not getting the timing.

“Well, sorry, you weren’t put on the top of the Heaven wish list and the shipping from Shanghai to Vancouver isn’t the fastest either,” Taeyong shrugs as if it was supposed to be natural. As if that was the most unbelievable thing. Well, delivery services are sometimes a pain in the ass, that’s true but getting a wish delivered by Heaven was something you would have never thought of and it all drains down on you. Strangest realisation of your life.

“So… it’s all real,” you whisper ahead of yourself: magic, dragons and all that. You could basically see your old best friend’s I told you so smile and let out a soft chuckle. “I wish Mark could meet with you, too.”

At that the guy ahead of you claps his hands and rubs them together, creating the same purple smoke from before. You look at him alarmed.

“Your wish, my command,” Taeyong grins and lifts his hands and before you could make a sound of protest because gosh, you didn’t mean it literally, you feel the ground move under your feet and you’re falling, into the darkness but despite shutting your eyes automatically, fearing the impact of the crash, nothing comes. Only the smell of soy sauce in the air and warm sunshine on your skin… Wait, what?

Your eyelids fly open and you notice in shock that you’re not in your flat anymore, ready to sleep. Instead, you stand in the middle of a goddamn street somewhere in Korea based on the signs still in your PJ shorts and tee. Oh my gosh! You hide in an alley right away and yank the seemingly proud Taeyong with you.

“I didn’t tell you that I meant right now! I can’t meet Mark in my PJs and I need my phone and wallet to function anyways. Not to mention, I don’t speak Korean at all...” you ramble panicking, the realisation that you’re indeed on the other side of the Earth due to some magic is yet to register. But the awkwardness from the stares you have just gotten has already turned you bashful.

Listening to you, the wish dragon seems sheepish and slightly embarrassed as he scratched his nape, his colourful hair falling into his cast down eyes.

“Oh… sorry. I got so excited over the wish that I didn’t think about it! It’s been a while since I did teleport magic but hey, I still have it in me. Anyways, sorry. Phone and wallet, you said? Here you go,” he pulls out something from his pants which magically seems to be indeed your belongings. That definitely makes things earlier.

“Uhm, thanks. Where are we exactly?”

“Ah, well you mentioned your friend Mark Lee, so we’re here. Well, one bell away because I did remember that it’s rude to intrude other’s houses without permission first,” oh now, you know, you snicker internally and gulp because hell, even if you wanted to see Mark, you wouldn’t have thought that the meeting would come so soon. You didn’t have enough time to prepare yourself mentally.

“So… you’re telling me that this… is where Mark lives?” you point at the impressive apartment complex on the corner of the street but Taeyong shakes his head.

“Nope, This is where your Mark lives,” he says and before you could object about the ‘your’ part, the dragon points at the other side of the road at a luxurious house with a huge garden, basically a palace. Seeing the beautiful fountain, the modern and yet traditional Korean style building beyond the fences makes your jaw drop.

“Hahaha, alright for a magic dragon you must have made a mistake. There’s no way the Mark Lee I know lives here,” you look back at Taeyong finding it funny that the kid who used to wore his favourite tees until his mother basically threw them out would live at such a place.

“Mark Lee, korean name Minhyung, supposed to be 22 years old internationally soon. Bad eyesight, contagious laugh, clumsy but has surprisingly good reflexes, gets embarrassed easily. Sound familiar?” Taeyong crooks a brow at you as he reads the information off from a parchment he just took out of his pants. Everything he listed is just so Mark that you’re left in disbelief.

“Uuh… that sounds about right.”

“His father hit it big in 2016 with a tech company, their net worth has too many zeros to count,” Taeyong explains, seeing how surprised you were over the fact that he lived a lavish life like this. Not that he doesn’t deserve it! Mark is such a sweetheart, so of course, you would only want the best for him but as if half the world wasn’t enough, now you have another huge gap between you.

“Gosh, I really can’t believe this. How am I supposed to just ring the bell and say hello after so much time?” you sighed with your head in your hands. “Argh, I need to buy some clothes and change.”

Taeyong approves the idea based on how enthusiastically he hollers, you wonder why nobody on the street seems to pay no attention to him. Maybe only you see him, just more reason for you to be crazy.

“Good idea because we’re having dinner with Mark!”

“What?” you look up in shock, not following through. Taeyong grins down at you, flashing a giddy smile and with a twirl he’s changed from his baggy, casual clothes to something more chic but still laidback.

“Your wish was him meeting me, so I arranged everything. I can't meet him without you and the teapot there, you know,” he explains as if it was supposed to be obvious. You aren't ready yet though.

“You just want to eat all the fancy delicious food he has,” you squint at him suspiciously and the dragon stays silent, so you must be right. He laughs nervously.

“Maybe, but can you blame me? I haven’t had a feast since a literal decade!” he hollers and somehow you really cannot find it in yourself to be angry at him. You are in Seoul for god's sake after all and magic is real, you can put up with the inconvenience of buying clothes and making yourself look decent before dumping all this surprise on Mark.

An hour later you stand in front of the gates of the Lee mansion and nervously you wipe your sweating hands into your dress. You can totally do this, you just say hi to an old friend, it's not like you're afraid he wouldn't remember you, hah, of course not–

"Y/N!" 

You whip your head at the call of your name to the source of that all too familiar voice. Sure it's deeper than you remember but there's no mistake in whose it is. Plus, who else would call your name in South Korea of all places.

"Mark, hey!" you wave the boy who just got out of one of the fanciest cars you've ever seen in your life. And yet, despite the Prada suit and expensive shoes, styled hair and Swiss watch on wrist, Mark Lee still has that goofy little smile and the doe eyes that used to make you weak in the knees. Hah, who are you kidding? They still do.

"Oh my god, dude, you… you got pretty," Mark jogs up to you and having no filter like always he blabbers immediately only to stutter as his ears turn red. It was so him talking before thinking, so you didn’t really mean to dwell on his words. Although you felt your cheeks dusted with pink soon enough. "I mean, it's really good to see you! I was so surprised to see your name in my calendar for today's dinner! You should have told me you were coming to Korea, I would have picked you up at the airport."

His calendar? Ah, of course, he must have been busy and all that. You wouldn’t have been surprised to see an assistant run after him at this point, so you wonder how your wish dragon magically put you onto his list of important people to meet. Gosh, it was so weird.

"Ah, I have a funny story about that…" you chuckled to yourself but before you could have get out anything, even a please, can we go to a more private place? Mark’s eyes zero on the guy next to you and his eyes grow comically wide.

"And uhm, who is your friend?" he points at Taeyong who waves him in exchange with a kilowatt smile. He looks back at you with his mouth agapé. "Oh my god, you came to invite me to your wedding?"

He says oh my god way too many times for an eloquent rich kid, he really is the Mark Lee you knew.

"No, never! I mean, of course, I would invite you but Taeyong and I– I literally met him on my way here," you explain hastily cursing yourself for the silly lie. You came to tell him the news not to try to make it believable. 

“I heard there’s food,” the wish dragon pipes in very helpful and you shoot him a disapproving glance he doesn’t notice. Luckily, Mark doesn’t seem to mind.

“Oh, yeah, of course, dinner! Come on in, let’s get you two settled,” he grins albeit a bit awkwardly as he leads you through the gate after opening it with his card.

On the way through the very, very, very big garden, he’s chattering about how he misses the Vancouver weather, especially on humid, hot days like this and talks about how he thinks the fountain in their yard is a bit too much but his mom loved it and then before you know it, you sit by a huge dining table with fine food in front of you. Suddenly you can’t decide whether you're grateful for Taeyong’s shameless presence – he digs into the jjigae right away – because at least the situation isn’t awkward because of your silence or you’re annoyed by it because you must seem like a weirdo because of him. That’s why you decide to rip off the bandage and tell Mark as soon as the last maid has disappeared too.

“Okay, so actually I came here because I have a surprise,” you speak up, probably too serious because the boy almost chokes on his food due to how fast he turns his head towards you.

“More surprise?” he coughs out and you offer him a glass of water which he takes with a smile.

“You literally won’t believe this one!” you assure him and wait until he gulps down the drink. Only then you point to Taeyong and tell him that your childhood wish has come true. 

Mark almost falls off his chair this time.

Not after you tell him that though. He laughs at that with that wheezing laugh of his as if you told the joke of the century then pats you on the shoulder murmuring That was a good one, bro and turning back to his food. But then you look at the magic dragon pointedly and Taeyong puts down his chopsticks with an exaggerated sign. Then he flexes his magic: turning into his dragon form among additional sparkles and Mark suddenly looks like he’s about to faint. He reaches out to tap on your shoulder while not taking his eyes off the wish dragon.

“Am I dreaming?” he whispers and honestly, you totally get his reaction while Taeyong mumbles something about ‘people these days not believing in dragons’ as he shows off all the things he could do: gift riches, make one stronger than they are, giving skills of whatever one wants. He starts rambling about how this one Chinese emperor became wealthy thanks to this, how that one actor in martial arts and all this before changing back to his human form and he continues eating his pasta like nothing ever happened.

“I can do this all day,” he shrugs as if he didn’t just perform the coolest magic tricks.

“This… this is the best thing ever!” Mark exclaims with those sparkles in his eyes you missed so much. He was always so excited about new things and it automatically makes you smile how he bombards Taeyong with million questions like: ‘So you are the wish dragon that grants wishes?’ or asking him about his scales, his unique color, how it feels to live in such a small teapot, how old he is and the dragon glows under all the attention. Can’t blame him but Mark has always been so curious about the world, it’s endearing.

“So your first wish was to meet me?” he turns to you after long minutes of interrogating Taeyong and suddenly, under the spotlight you don’t know what to do with yourself. You can feel yourself blushing because you didn’t necessarily mean to wish for that but it’s not like you’re regretting it, it’s just… you don’t want him to misunderstand.

“I thought you should meet him, too, after all the package was delivered for the two of us,” you look down, trying to sound nonchalant while picking your food, avoiding Mark’s gaze. No matter how open armed he welcomed you, you still aren’t convinced that it’s okay to be here because the more time you spend with him, the more you would like to stay a part of his life. “It’s just… I wasn’t really sure we could ever meet again. We didn’t keep contact after you left.”

With dropped shoulders, you try not to sound too downhearted because of what happened because you know all too well, it wasn’t his fault, it was a family decision and look at him, it did good for him! He seems happy, they live in a practically mansion but most importantly, he didn’t seem to change with the wealth. He might wear expensive clothes but under it all he’s still the boy with the most loveable smile.

“I… I was thinking about you a lot, I just thought you forgot about me,” Mark admits with a sheepish smile, tucking his hair behind his ear shyly. He really still is the same and it’s playing silly little games with your heart. If this was a cheesy Disney movie, a slow bgm would start to play as you look into each other but your moment is broken when Taeyong accidentally kicks into his chair as he stands up. At first he looks alarmed but then giggles.

“I will just… go. Don’t mind me,” he disappears like smoke with a wink, leaving you two alone at which Mark lets out a woah. You chuckle at his cute reaction, heart doing somersaults in your chest.

You thought it would be awkward, just the two of you alone after long years but Mark has this thing that he makes people feel comfortable around him, so it’s actually quite nice. You catch up on everything and anything that comes to your mind: old neighbours, studies, friends, what are you doing now and what would you like to do, too.

After finishing the delicious dinner, Mark offers a home tour which you would never refuse and you jaw drops at the huge crystal chandelier in their living room as well as their swimming pool but your favourite place in the whole mansion is Mark’s room because it’s just so him. You can’t describe it well but the moment you step inside, it feels like home. It’s cozy to the point it makes you want to cuddle a pillow. It has colours of pastels, a synthesizer here, a guitar there, posters of singers framed on his wall and vinyl records hanging down. His window has a view of sunset and Namsan above their green garden and although you haven’t been in Seoul before, you’re pretty sure it’s your favourite place in the whole damn city, too.

“Wait, there’s someone I would like you to meet,” Mark suddenly exclaims while you’re looking through his pictures and he pulls you out of his room, out of the house, into the garden: You giggle all the way as he’s being so secretive about it but then your steps halt unexpectedly and the hand you have in Mark’s yanks him back.

“Mark… why is there a tiger in your garden in the middle of Seoul?” you ask as quietly and as immobile as you can. You don’t want to attract the sleeping animal’s attention to yourself. But to your biggest surprise, the boy just laughs, his thumb caressing your skin soothingly.

“She’s Jasmine and she won’t hurt you,” he reassures you but needless to say, you’re not too calm and you’re pulled close to the wild animal that lifts its huge head towards you lazily. “She was abandoned by her mother as a cub and she was outcast in the zoo because she’s a bit sick, so she has always been weaker than her siblings. Dad made a donation and we have raised her since she was young.”

You hiss when Mark reaches out without fear but the tiger basically purrs as he strokes down his fur at the neck. You watch in awe as this big wild animal becomes a soft cat under the hands of Mark Lee. When the boy encourages you to pat her too, you hesitate but he promises you that it’s gonna be alright and you take a leap of faith. 

“What’s her sickness?” you wonder aloud as your fingers get lost in the soft fur of the tiger. You hope she’s not in a lot of pain.

“It’s an immune system thing, not sure what exactly but she wouldn’t have survived this long in the wild,” the boy tells you and his mouth curls up in a smile when Jasmine licks your hand. It seems like you’re tiger-approved. You look into its warm brown eyes and your heart churns at the thought of her condition.

Mark tells you stories of Jasmine, about that one time she crashed his birthday cake or how much she likes to swim with him in their pool during summer and gosh, you could listen to him go on and on forever. You’re only reminded of the reality, that all this is just a possible one-time thing, a weekend getaway with magic when Taeyong shows up in swimwear, ready to crash in said pool.

“I guess he might have been bored in that teapot,” Mark laughs, not minding at all. He even offers you to join but you have a better idea.

“Taeyong, I have my second wish!” you call out for the wish dragon who’s suddenly much more excited about that than the water. He’s beside you in a moment, beaming and curious. You glance at Mark with a soft smile before looking at your personal genie confidently.

“I wish Jasmine would be healthy,” you whisper, playing with the tiger’s furry ears which she seems to enjoy. You were a little bit afraid the dragon would say it’s not possible, that he can’t cure sickness but to your relief, he just grins.

“Your wish, my command,” he nods and puts a hand over the animal. Nothing but a smoke of purple signals the magic being done but you believe in it and so does Mark by the looks of it. He reaches out for your hand and squeezes it gently. 

“Thank you,” he smiles and you smile back. He used to be your best friend after all, it’s the least you can do for him.

Mark convinces you to stay the weekend and there’s no way you could tell no to him, not when he clears his schedule just for you. He never complains about how busy he must be working for his father’s business while being a music major at a local university. All he ever talks about is the places he wishes to show you and he takes you around Seoul as if he was your certificated tour guide. It’s lovely how enthusiastic he is about it while what really matters to you is the time you spend together. He makes sure you two take a million photos to remember by, Taeyong posing on half of them since he joins you on your little trips and sometimes it’s just the two of you watching the wish dragon being genuinely in awe by modern technology, 10 years is a long time after all.

On the last day before you have to go back to Vancouver (thanks to Taeyong’s kind offer to take you the same way you came back since he misunderstood you, you don’t have to sit through a 10+ hours flight and you have more time), Mark not only tries to make you breakfast despite having an in-house chef (his eggs are ugly as heck but you appreciate his efforts and can’t help but coo at his dreamy smile under that grey hoodie when you tell him it tastes yummy) but he also introduces you to his friends in Korea. Of course, they tease you (mostly Mark) about where he has been hiding you but it’s all chill and fun you’re not quite ready to say goodbye. But you should go because the more you stay, the more you don’t want to leave. You’re lucky enough for this chance to reunite with Mark but all good things end eventually.

“Let’s not disappear from each other’s life again, okay?” the boy grins at you as you’re ready to go, Taeyong already working on his magic.

“Yeah, let’s not,” you agree easily, looking forward to your video chatting and constant texting even if it’s from the two opposite ends of the Earth with a terrible time zone difference.

You glance at the wish dragon who’s drumming with his fingers while pursing his lips as if he was waiting for something and you let out a huff before working up the courage to actually do something about these feelings inside of you. You might have regretted not confessing in middle school, you have spent years wondering about the what ifs, so you don’t want to make the same mistake twice but still, you want to give Mark a chance to ignore it all if he wants to. So you step forward and wrap your hands around him as you hug him close. It’s obvious that your action takes him aback, he suddenly doesn’t know what to do with his hands and his body tenses under you but it all melts as you say those words that have been threatening to fall from your lips all this time:

“I have missed you.” you confess, honest and based on the hitch in his breathing, Mark must be surprised. You can’t blame him though, you just wanted him to know. You step back with a weary smile, his big Bambi eyes on you but before he could say anything you nod at Taeyong and you feel yourself falling, purple fog pulling you in. A few moments later you’re back in Vancouver, in your apartment, without him.

The first few days pass in a blurr, you can still barely believe what just happened. Your weekend with Mark feels like a too good dream but Mark kept his side of promise and texted you almost immediately as you left. He sends you selfies, songs that remind him of you and you talk about your days like you never did before. Still, it feels like you’re dancing around certain topics which are basically the elephant in the room and maybe that’s why Taeyong tries to cheer you up in his own way. Though, he soon realizes that you not being happy isn’t the problem, you are happy, you just… miss Mark more than you ever did.

“Enough of moping, you still have a wish left!” Taeyong exclaims, throwing himself onto your bed. “Come on, close your eyes, imagine what you want the most in the world and make a wish!" he singsongs. However, before you could even just indulge him, your phone pings with a new notification.

fullsun00 tagged you in their post!

You click on it right away, wondering what Mark’s friend Donghyuck is doing online at 1AM. The uploaded post turns out to be a photo of you and Mark when you all hang out near Han river. You were too busy at the time laughing at how the boy almost lost his whole scoop of ice cream before he could have had a single bite to notice his smile while looking at you. Based on his caption Donghyuck apparently wasn’t.

fullsun00: just old friends, they say. friends my ass @buttercupyn @onyourm__ark

You click your tongue wondering what Mark thinks of the callout but you press like on the post anyways. You put your phone aside before you could see how his other friends join the teasing in the comment section.

“Actually, I do have my third wish,” you speak up as you turn to Taeyong before he could make a remark on your tinted cheeks.

You’ve been thinking a lot about it during the past days. You could wish for anything but you’re at a point of your life where no riches or fame would make you happier because you’re happy enough just the way it is. It might not be perfect but you don’t want to be selfish and you want to make decisions you won’t regret: like catching up with Mark, curing his tiger and bringing happiness into the life of somebody who only ever served other people in his life.

“Ooh, what is it?” Taeyong claps, giddy as if he was waiting for this to happen. He probably did.

“I wish you would go on a vacation and enjoy life,” you tell him but unlike his usual reaction, this time the dragon’s smile fades and he blinks at you, confused.

“You could ask for anything in the world and that’s what you want? Are you sure?” he furrows his brows, not quite believing your words but you just smile, knowingly.

“Yes, Taeyong, I’m sure.”

“Your wish, my command,” he bows with his hands put together and with a twirl suddenly he’s in a Hawaiian shirt and sunglasses, looking as ready for a holiday as one can be. You chuckle and tell him to just go, you’ll be fine.

You’re fine, you really are. Life goes on, you study and work, you laugh with your friends, you video call with Mark regularly and his friends are regulars on your social media, too. It’s just sometimes the feeling of missing something hits you harder than other days. Especially when you’re looking through the pictures you have from your Seoul weekend.

“I wish you were here,” you whisper ahead of you at one particularly good photo of Mark and the sunset, smiling at you behind the camera. You miss his smile, the cute wrinkles around his eyes when he crunches his nose, the sound of his laughter, his hand on your wrist… you miss him.

Ding-dong.

You stand up startled at the sound of your flat’s bell, running to the door to open it even though you have no idea who it could be so early on a Saturday morning. Not having a better idea, you expect it to be either a neighbour of your landlord but on the other side of your doorstep stands a boy who you thought was a continent away. He’s dressed semi-casually this time, his shirt tucked in his jeans, hair lightly falling onto his forehead and a nervous smile on his thin lips.

“Mark! But I⎼ I don’t even have more wishes,” you blink, taken aback, looking around to look for Taeyong in case he came back. But your behaviour just manages to confuse Mark instead.

“What?”

“I just wished you were here,” you blurt out without thinking, your words only processing later in your brain and it’s then when heat creeps onto your cheeks. Mark tries to but can’t really hide his growing smile at that.

“Really? I’m glad then. I just took my new private plane on a test drive,” he says bashfully, a silly excuse for real.

“All the way to Vancouver?” you tease, watching Mark fumble with the hem of his shirt. Your heart beats overtime just because of the fact that he’s there. 

“Well, what can I say? I did miss the weather here,” he plays along with a shrug but he’s more serious when he looks deep into your eye and adds: “And you left without letting me answer.”

Oh yes, you did. You were kind of afraid of his reaction but seeing how he was ready to travel across the world just to see you, maybe there’s no reason for you to be so afraid. It feels like deja vu but a reversed one in a way as Mark gently pulls you into a hug, his lips grazing your hair with a whisper that makes your heart skip a beat: “I have missed you too.”

You really wouldn’t wish for anything more.

[hannie-dul-set]

sins of lust [yoon jeonghan]

“lust /ləst/ — the mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the spirit is life and peace - romans 8:6″

LUCKY 7′S MASTERLIST

PAIRING | yoon jeonghan x female! reader GENRE | college! au, borderline smut, angst WARNINGS | nsfw themes obviously lmao but no actual doing the dirty because i can’t write smut for shit, swearing, jeonghan is the literal devil WORD COUNT | 4.5k

a/n: I’M SO VERY SORRY THATTHIS IS SUPER LATE ; - ; but anyways!! this is my last piece for our luck 7′s collab with @haokyeom​ :D this was,, very out of my comfort zone but i still do hope that you enjoy :’>

Your mother had always told you to never trust strangers.

“They’re like foxes,” your mother had once said as the both of you gazed through the window of your small cabin beside the thick walls of trees in the woods. Her hands rested gently over your small shoulders, and you two eyes the coat of orange fur speeding through the outside, a familiar stuffed animal hanging limply by its mouth. You had accidentally left it outside while you were playing.

You frowned upon seeing the animal disappear into the trees, and even at your young age, you knew that it was lost forever.

“They take what they can without a hint of remorse. You wouldn’t even know until you see them running away,” you looked up at your mother who stared into the distance with eyes stained in sadness. You turned around, hugging her waist and burying your face into her stomach, and she released a laugh as she patted your head. “My Y/N’s a smart girl, right? Never forget mommy’s words, okay?”

And you did. For eighteen years, you had lived with only the company of your mother, your homeschool teachers, and your precious cat, Salem. There were times when your grandparents would visit, usually during the holidays, but you weren’t exactly close with them (they didn’t seem to like you, either). It was only when you had finally entered college when you were given the chance to actually mingle with other people, especially people that were your age, and it was the first time that you had left to live on your own outside of your homey cottage beside the woods.

Initially, your mother was against the idea of you living in your campus’ dorms, especially the fact that you had to live with another person that you knew nothing of. You weren’t keen on the thought either, but it was far more reasonable than commuting every single day to the city all the way from the middle of nowhere.

At least your roommate was never around.

‘Staying over at Johnny’s xx,’ you sighed upon seeing the text message, and you stepped forward in the light when the person before you did as well. It was only the third week of the semester and you were already wishing for things to go back as they were.

A part of it was your fault for being socially inept, generally avoiding people and not even talking to anybody unless talked to. Your mother’s words rang into your head every single time, and naturally you had built up a wall. This wall was what made you feel comfortable, made you feel safe— you don’t trust anyone here, and it would be better to finish your studies without getting personally tangled with other people.

“Hi! What can I get you?”

Though, there were indeed times where you wished that you were at the very least not so awkward.

“A regular americano,” it took you so much strength to squeeze that out of our esophagus, relieving the tightened airway with a breath of relief when the barista nodded at your order and jotted it down. Hurriedly, you went to sit at an empty table, your racing heart making you move quicker than necessary. God, you wondered how many more trips to campus cafe would it take until you finally got the courage to order without feeling you were being held at gunpoint.

You huffed, squeezing your eyes shut. At least you didn’t stutter today, so that’s improvement.

Stop deluding yourself, Y/N. You’re still—

“Whoa. Careful, now.”

A thud. The feeling of warmth fluttering over your shoulders. An unfamiliar sweet voice seeping into your ears. And you looked up.

“Are you okay?”

His steady grip had left your shoulders but the traces of his warmth were still buzzing over your clothed skin like mini fireworks erupting when he made contact, and when you met his concerned eyes, it felt like you were about to reach the climax of the light show. He didn’t say anything, only waiting for the confirmation to fall from your lips with a worried look on his face. Your heart was still racing, but it was in a completely different rhythm. 

You had once felt your heart threatening to bounce off of your chest out of fear, and at times due to excitement. Your pulse rising due to nervousness was already like an unwanted friend to you.

But this.

What is this?

“Miss?”

“I, uh—” the man shot you a smile that was devoid of any malice despite you being a stuttering and mess that was frozen in place. Heat rushed to your cheeks while you were trapped underneath his gaze. You wanted to move but it felt like your mind was completely detached from your body, soaring above your head because you can't seem to grab a hold of it. But with enough willpower, you managed to squeak out a small “sorry’ before shuffling away to the farthest seat possible with your head down.

When you sat yourself on the seat, the first thing you did was look up to the direction of the male, only to see an empty space. You bit down your lip, hastily taking out your laptop from your bag and just move on from what happened, but the racing of your heartbeat refused to let it go. Was this… normal? You let out a choked groan, removing your hands from the keyboard to bury your heated face into your palms. There were times where you hated that you were so sheltered, and this was one of them.

If only your mother wasn’t so protective of you, if only she let you live a normal life, if only—

Your phone started buzzing.

Slowly, you sat up and took out your phone from your jean pocket, and the pace of your heart was slowed down by a surge of guilt.

‘How were classes today, honey? I hope you drank enough water today. Even when I’m around, you always seem to forget. The weekend is just around the corner. Are you coming home?’

You smiled. Of course, your mother had only wanted what’s best for you. Finally relaxing your muscles, you adjusted your position on the chair and silently tapped on our phone.

‘Classes were fine, mom. And that was before! I’ve been drinking a loooot of water, you know? Do you want me to…’

The next day had come. You quietly entered the near barren classroom, the early morning rays leaking through the open glass windows on the wall. You liked this class mainly because not a  lot of people are enrolled in it— even if it meant sacrificing a few more hours of your sleep. The less people to deal with the better.

I’ll just take a nap later after lunch. You thought to yourself as you let out yawn, your palm hovering over your mouth as you did. You arrived a little earlier than usual, so there was still an ample amount of time to review for a test for a different class before your professor arrived. You recalled your conversation with your mother yesterday, and you were slightly disheartened when you told her that you couldn’t come home for the weekend because you had a lot of things to finish that required you to be on campus. Even if you wanted to go, you couldn’t risk lagging behind your work.

A few more people entered your peripheral as you were scanning your notes, and you took this as a signal to put it away. You pulled your bag over your lap and tucked in your notes neatly before pulling out your laptop. More people started flooding and you noticed that the seat beside you was now occupied.

“You seem fine today.”

You jolted, the familiar voice entering your ears causing the veins underneath your skin to start buzzing. The moment you turned your head to your side, you were met by a small smile from the man that you bumped into yesterday. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.”

“I-it’s fine.”

Has he always been in this class? You’ve never seen him here until now. Then again, you didn’t really pay attention to the faces around you. The gap between your chairs seemed a little too close for your sanity, so you scooted a bit farther to the left.

“Are you feeling alright now?” his voice caused you to abruptly freeze as you tried to discreetly move your chair without being exposed, and you bit down your tongue. As if he noticed the sudden distance between you two, he thoughtlessly moved his chair closer. “You didn’t look too well yesterday considering how dazed you were.”

Why was he talking to you? A lot of people did try to befriend you during the first few days, but it gradually stopped upon them seeing how dismissive you were. “O-oh, I’m fine, uh— sorry for bumping into you,” he had his elbow propped on the table, his cheek resting on his palm as faced you, a seemingly permanent smile on his face that you’ve been desperately trying (and failing) to avoid. Maybe isolating yourself from the rest of the world dulled down your ability to perceive normal human emotions like the stuttering of your heart was trying to tell you.

Jesus, you thought that you were going crazy.

“That’s good to hear,” he hummed, turning his attention to the laptop screen before him. “My name’s Jeonghan, by the way.”

Jeonghan. You repeated in your head. Why did finding out his damned name feel like 200 pounds of gratification? Maybe you were really going insane. He cocked his head to your direction, the curve of his lips that never disappeared aiming directly at you, but they did not part to say anything. Jeonghan looked like he was waiting for you, which caused you to intermittently panic because why in the world was he just staring at you like that?

“It’s not fair that I gave you my name but I don’t know yours.”

Oh.

“Y/N,” your cheeks flared as you spoke, diverting your eyes from him out of embarrassment. “It’s Y/N.”

He released a light laugh before nodding in affirmation, and you swore your heart was trying to run away from you in condonation. It felt like hours had passed it between the seconds of your small exchanges, causing you to wonder when your professor was going to enter and distract you from the fervent blows on your ribcage.

It didn’t seem like your professor was arriving any time soon— the guy was always late so you weren’t even remotely surprised but for the love of god, he could’ve made an exemption today. Your eyes flickered over to Jeonghan’s space on the long table, and you saw him scribbling indecipherable doodles on what was once a blank sheet. You bit the inside of your cheek, debating with yourself over and over again until one side of your mind finally overtook your senses and sensibilities.

You jumped into the ocean when you’ve never even stepped into a lake.

“I—I never noticed that you were in this class until today.”

It took a lot from you to say that one simple sentence, the words barely squeezing past your throat, and you realized just how pathetic you were. Luckily for you, Jeonghan didn’t seem to mind the lapses in your voice, the diversion of your eyes, or the way your fingers nervously thrummed over the white coated desk. Even if he did, he didn’t say anything about it, only sending that angelic smile on your way.

“Really? I’ve noticed you since the first day,” he started. “To be frank, I’ve been meaning to talk to you for a while now, but you always looked like you didn’t want to be bothered.”

“You— you wanted to talk to me? Why?” 

He shrugged. “You seemed cute,” there was a slight pause before he continued. “And I was right.”

You blinked, gawking at him. Jeonghan was saying such— such unprovoked things without a hint of shame while your face was flaring like it just made contact with the sun. In the middle of you trying to recover, your professor had finally decided to walk in, capturing the attention of Jeonghan and everyone else inside the class. You released a breath that you didn’t know that you were holding and lightly tapped both of your cheeks in attempts to lower your ever rising temperature. You caught the male beside you laughing a little, and when you slightly turned your head to face him, you were struck defenseless with a playful wink.

It was quiet for the rest of the class, but you couldn’t focus. Not when your mind was making a lot of noise, not when your heart was about to explode inside your chest.

And definitely not when the pretty boy beside you kept on shooting you glances in between. 

“Do you like movies?”

Jeonghan asked the moment he sat down beside you, and your brows raised at his sudden question. It had been a week since your first encounter with him, and within those few days, you’ve been seeing more and more of him. You weren’t sure if it was a coincidence or if he’d been deliberately trying to squeeze himself into your life.

But what did you know? Nothing. That’s why you let him.

“I do,” you answered, a small smile tugging at your lips. You remembered the times when you and your mother would watch countless movies in just a single day when you were feeling sad. You couldn’t leave the house easily, and when you did it was nothing but forest, forest, and more forest. Sometimes you were lucky to come across a wild hare, or sometimes even a small deer. Which reminds you— it’s been a while since you’ve gone home. You took a mental note to schedule some time for you to go back there.

Your curious eyes flickered over to Jeonghan. “Why?”

“There’s a film festival this weekend,” he leaned back against his chair, legs crossed and arms swinging lazily at his sides until he raised one hand to your face, a finger poking your cheek. “And I’m taking this pretty girl with me.”

“What?”

You gaped, dumbstruck. His lips were pressed into a brazen smile as his eyes were gleaming at you while you were still frozen in shock. He didn’t even ask you— did he think that you were just going to go with whatever he’s saying that easily?

“I—I haven’t agreed to anything!” you rebuked with a quick stammer, which caused a frown to replace the previous smile on Jeonghan’s face.

“But I thought you said you liked movies,” he sat down straight, the legs of his chair making a noise upon meeting the floor. The unabashed pout on his face, accompanied by the confused furrowing of his eyebrows, soon dissipated from his features when he let out a sudden gasp. “Wait, are you saying you don’t want to go with me?”

“I-it’s not that! I’m just—”

You couldn’t come up with any words to follow, distracted by the pained expression that Jeonghan wore. Was he just overreacting to mess with you? Was it fake? Or was he really hurt? Your ineptitude to social cues made you want to rip your hair out of your scalp. Once more, you quickly looked at him before snapping your head away, harshly biting down your lip before taking in a sharp inhale.

“Okay, fine!” Jeonghan’s face lit up, the corners of his lips tugging upwards. “I—I’ll go with you.”

You refused to look at him with how much your face was heating up, but you heard him let out a satisfied hum. It was quiet for a moment, giving u the opportunity to relax your shoulders and release your breath. Looks like the professor is late again. You dug into your bag to take out your notes, relaying yourself before class actually starts, but your actions were halted when you felt a thin, cold object pressing lightly against your arm. You looked over to see a phone, and the phone was attached to a hand, and a hand which belonged to a Yoon Jeonghan who was twinkling at you with an expectant gaze.

“Your number.”

Any moment now you swore that you were going to melt.

Within seconds, you snatched the device from his hands, rapidly smashing down the few digits, and you shoved it back to him at the speed of light. How you wanted to throw yourself out of the window, right now. A quick buzz in your pocket distracted you from your internal meltdown, and you took your own phone out, expecting a text from your mother, but instead—

‘See you on saturday, pretty girl :) hehe <3’

You shot up to meet the smug smile on Jeonghan’s face, and you bashfully looked back down at the message on your phone, feeling a smile of your own blossoming on your face.

It was late at night when you two finished.

Jeonghan insisted on bringing you home, protesting when you said that you said you could make it your way back at the movies, protesting when you said that you can walk through the campus to your dorm building alone, protesting when you said that you can head upstairs by yourself, and now when you had finally reached your floor, he stopped protesting— but he didn’t seem to how any signs of leaving just yet.

“Did you have fun?” he asked in a quiet tone. It was near midnight, and neither of you expected that the festival would go on for this long. You nodded, laughing a little, back pressed against the door leading to your room. Perhaps you were feeling a little loopy and tired from all the movies you watched, some of the scenes that stood out to you still replaying in your head.

He smiled, a few tufts of his hair shadowing over his eyes. “I’m glad.”

“I took note of a few of the films that I really liked! I’ll probably rewatch them with my mom when I get home,” you beamed, and he chuckled at your enthusiasm. “What about you?”

You almost regretted that you asked. Jeonghan was silent for a moment, a pondering look on his face as his eyes stared at the side before quickly flickering back to you. His lips were curved into a playful grin as he ever so slowly closed in on you, causing you to melt yourself into the wooden surface of your door as your heart violently thundered.

“Do you want me to be honest?” he asked in a teasing tone. His face was barely hovering over yours, and you felt your nerves screaming at you to rest your racing pulse. He didn’t do anything, though, seemingly waiting for you to respond to his question, but all you could manage was a small nod. “I wasn’t really paying attention to the movies.”

Your breath hitched and your mind was a whir. What was he doing? The waves of your senses were pulsating in an uneven rhythm, causing you to stumble over your own presence of mind as it was gradually slipping away, replaced by a haze of an uncharted storm of emotions overtaking you.

Heat was rising and you didn’t know what to do.

“I would have paid attention if it wasn’t for this pretty girl distracting me the entire time.”

“Jeonghan!”

You exclaimed, your voice being louder than expected. “I-it’s getting late. Isn’t—isn’t it time for you to go?”

There was a nervous smile on your lips as you stared up at him, eyes quivering when you tried to meet his clouded gaze. You waited for him to go, to step away from his closeness so that you’d finally have enough room to breathe, but dropped an unexpected question.

“Do you want me to go?”

The silence was deafening.

Jeonghan waited for you to say something, but the answer was something you yourself did not know. He waited until he derived the answer from your lack of response, sending you a nod and a smile before turning away. Your eyes were shaky, teeth sinking into your bottom lip in your moment of an unprecedented assault of hesitation, head filled with white noise because you couldn't think— therefore you listened to the fever stirring your restlessness.

You grabbed onto the sleeve of his coat at the last moment.

There was a glint in his eyes when he turned around, a knowing look on his face as if he had been expecting it. Swift steps and an even swifter heartbeat chased after you and once again Jeonghan was mere centimeters away from you, his warm breath igniting fire against your skin. “You could’ve just said so, pretty girl.”

He didn’t even give you the chance to breathe when he captured your unguarded mouth with his.

The air brushing against your fevered skin felt different, especially when Jeonghan was all up against you, ravishing your parted lips until you felt your senses slipping away. God, you’ve never done anything like this before and your conscience belatedly rang in your ears the moment you felt his hot tongue claiming yours as his own. You let out a faint whimper, the voice at the back of your head yelling at you that this was wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong. This was wrong.

You barely knew him— ten days wasn’t enough for you to know him. But you were too drunk over this foreign heat of emotion unfurling in your core to listen to your better judgement. You shouldn’t have stopped him from leaving, you shouldn’t have let him graze his teeth over your skin, let his hands roam all over your your body, let the feeling him pressed roughly against you being the only thing your dizzied mind could think of

But fuck, it felt so good.

You blindly reached for the door knob as you let Jeonghan trail wet kisses on your neck, and with a clicking of the lock, the both of you disappeared into the darkness of your room.

You said that the first was going to be the last— your mother’s words like playing a mantra in your head to bring you to the edge of guilt. But a week had passed yet that “last” never seemed to surface.

“H-hi, mom. Yeah, I—I’m fine, don;t worry. My classes just ended and—ah!”

You bit down your tongue after releasing the uninhibited noise, gulping down when you realized that Jeonghan had no intentions of stopping his ceaseless attacks from your jaw all the way down to your chest. There was fear trickling in your veins as your mother was still at the end of the line, possibly hearing the indecent sounds coming from her own daughter. You tried your best to remain quiet, but it started to become impossible when you felt Jeonghan’s teasing fingers brushing over your clit. You stared at him with wide eyes, suppressing the violent waves crashing over you, but all he did was smile at you and kiss you cheek before pressing his fingers down.

A loud gasp fell from your quivering lips.

“Mm? Shouldn't you be keeping quiet, baby?” he mumbled into your jaw before pressing a down kiss, and you let out a shaky breath. The hand that you were using to hold your phone returned to your ear, and you were welcomed by the worried voice of your mother.

“O-oh, it was just Salem! The little guy suddenly jumped— jumped on my lap,” you trailed off with a hint of nervous laughter, and you met the mischievous glint shining in Jeonghan’s eyes. He removed himself from you, causing you to close your eyes in relief and let out a sigh. “Home? Ah, I—I don’t think I can go there soon, but I’ll make sure to— oh my god.”

You were too focused on your conversation on the phone to notice that Jeonghan was now buried between your legs, nipping at your inner thighs. You slapped your hand over your lips, suppressing your moans from his bites, kisses and licks. He shot you a look of warning, and your heart stopped when you felt his hot breath hovering over your core. Quickly, you fumbled out a farewell into your phone.

"S-sorry, mom, I—I have to go—"

Another week had passed and you started to feel the consequences of your decisions crashing over you like falling debris. Jeonghan and you still met frequently, but "good morning" and "good night" texts slowly fizzled into conversations consisting only of "can I come over?" and "are you free?". It left a heavy feeling in your gut when coffee dates and movie theatres were forgotten, replaced with nights in his or your room, and suffocating scenes in his car. You couldn't help but think that maybe you should have thought things through.

But you were weak.

Today was no different.

You were buried in your bed, thick blankets covering your figure as you watched Jeonghan swiftly pull a shirt over his head. He had an evening class after this and you couldn't blame him that he was in such a hurry. Even when knowing this, you still wanted to take your chances.

"Jeonghan."

You called out to him in a quiet voice, small and fragile and lacking in firmness. He stood in the middle of the room, ready to leave but he turned around to look back at you— even if it was stupid, it bubbled the faintest shimmer of hope. You pulled the covers closer to yourself, looking down at the crumpled white sheets as you pressed your lips together before saying.

"I like you."

He didn't say it back.

Instead he smiled at you, feet padding against your wooden floors as he walked up to you in bed, pressing a small kiss on your forehead before ruffling your already messed up hair.

"I'll see you tomorrow, pretty girl."

But you didn't see him tomorrow.

You didn't see him at all after that.

The seat beside you in class was now occupied by an abhorrent emptiness that made you want to drag your nails against your skin. You tried searching for him in the crowded walls of the large classroom, but he was either not there or hidden by the enormous mass of bodies. He left you with a heavy heart and the only one you could find yourself to blame was yourself. Your mother's words never stopped ringing inside your head since then.

It was like fate was laughing at you when you saw him again at the campus cafe— just like the first time you met him. You were in a hurry to leave when you accidentally bumped into him, your coffee nearly spilling from your hands. You parted ways without anything exchanged.

Your mother had always told you to never trust strangers.

Maybe you should have listened to her words.

[high-functioning-lokipath]

SH - John Watson x Reader - Better Late Than Never - Words: 2,679

A/N: This was the prompt: Reader went to med school with John, she liked him but never told him so. John gets deployed and they lose contact. A few years later they meet again because of a case.

"C'mon, Y/N," John laughed. "If you don't study for the test tomorrow, I won't give you the ice cream I bought!" 

"Is it Death By Chocolate?" You replied, raising your head only slightly from it's spot on the floor. 

"Maybe," He replied with a smirk. The two of you were in your dorm, trying to study for the quarter finals. You were in your 6th and final year of med school. You'd met about halfway through your 2nd year and had instantly become close friends. Small displays of affection were normal between the two of you, the type that best friends would share without giving a second thought. John didn't have a clue, but you had developed quite the crush on him. You never told him, though, for fear of messing up the one good friendship you had. 

"John!" You groaned, dramatically sprawling out further on the carpet. "I think my brain has died." You had been trying to remember everything you'd studied and were coming up blank. 

"Hm, I'm studying to be a doctor, not a coroner, but I would say time of death was somewhere between 6 years ago and now," He teased, leaning over you from his nearby perch on your futon. Pretending to be mad, you threw your foot up and kicked his leg. 

"You git!" You exclaimed with a grin.

"Oi!" He replied, dramatically tumbling to the floor next to you. You both lost yourselves in a fit of giggles. You stopped laughing and just stared at him when your brain caught up with your eyes and you had one of your "moments". He looked so happy lying there next to you, laughing his head off. His hair was a mess, his jumper had gotten abit twisted and was creeping up his torso, and his eyes were bright with tears of laughter. "You ok, Y/N?" He asked when he noticed you had stopped laughing. 

"Yeah, just thinking," You replied quickly. 

"Ok, as long as it's nothing serious," He said. "Really, if anything is bothering you, you can talk to me. You've been zoning out more often recently so," He looked away, a bit embarrassed. "I was worried."

"I'm fine, John," You replied, not having the guts to tell him what was really on your mind. 

About a year later, only 3 months after graduation, John called you. You still kept in touch, although you lived in different cities now, and your feelings hadn't changed. John had dated a few different girls but nothing ever worked out. You, though? You had gone on one date but left halfway through when the guy wouldn't shut up about himself and asked if you were splitting the check. John had told you he had applied at a small clinic near his apartment so you assumed his call was to update you on that. "Hey!" You said, picking up immediately.

"Uh, hey, Y/N," He said, sounding fairly upset. "Look, I," He sighed. "You remember that I enlisted a few months ago?"

"Yes," You replied, a lump forming in your throat. 

"I've just gotten my deployment letter. They're sending me to Afghanistan. I leave this Friday." Silent tears streamed down your face and you found yourself unable to reply. "Y/N? Are you still there?" He asked.

"Yeah," You choked out. "Yeah, I'm still here, John. I, well, I guess I should wish you well then." You pinched the bridge of your nose and breathed deeply, trying to get ahold of yourself. 

"Look, I know you're not a fan of the military but can't you at least congratulate me? This is something I wanted after all."

"Is it? Is it really?" You nearly yelled. "You didn't sound all that cheery two minutes ago when I picked up the phone! Besides, how could I congratulate you when all I can see is you getting blown to bits out there!"

"Sorry," He replied immediately. "That, that wasn't fair of me to ask." You both were silent for a moment before John spoke up again. "I'll write." 

"Not with that handwriting you won't, " You replied, falling back into your regular banter. 

"I'll try to make it legible for you," He promised. You nodded, though he couldn't see you, and started crying again.

"Alright," You said. "Can I drive over Friday and see you off?" 

"Best not," He said. "I think it's better for both of us, yeah?" You reluctantly agreed. The two of you chatted for a few more minutes before saying goodbye. Shaking off the foreboding feeling that had settled on you, you continued with your day and started planning your first letter to him. 

The first few weeks went well, his letters arriving regularly on Friday's without fail. Then one week it came on Monday instead, the next on Wednesday, and soon two weeks passed without a letter. When you finally received it, he said that they had gotten to a point where it was getting harder and harder to safely send a receive mail. He asked for you to stop all letters and promised to find you again when, or if, he got home. That night you wrote him one final letter but, of course, never sent it. You were determined to move on with life now but you promised yourself to never forget him.

"Good morning, Molly," You said walking into the hospital with her. You'd moved to London and gotten a job at St. Bart's, working in the outpatient clinic. A few weeks after starting there, you'd met Molly while on break. You exchanged numbers and started meeting in the cafeteria if you both had breaks at the same time. In time you met Sherlock. What an experience that had been. He immediately deduced which department you worked in, how long you'd been there, where you went to college, when you went to college and he even figured out that you'd been in love with someone in uni and never got over them. Needless to say, you were impressed. Ever since then he texted you occasionally for confirmation on medical related hypotheses.

"Good morning, Y/N," Molly replied. 

"Have you heard from Sherlock recently? I haven't gotten any texts from him in the past few weeks." Molly chuckled and nodded. 

"I've heard from him. He has a new flatmate. A doctor too!" 

"Wow!" You replied. "Good for him! Let me know next time he comes by so I can meet him. I'd like to know who my replacement is," You teased. Molly giggled and you continued chatting as you walked over to the elevator. As the doors were about to close, you heard someone yell.

"Hold the lift!" You slammed the open doors button and Sherlock ran in. He nodded at you and you let go of the button. The doors started to slide closed again when another person called out.

"Sherlock!" You froze hearing that voice. You tried to get the doors in time but missed.

"Y/N?" Molly asked, worriedly. "Are you ok? You look like you've seen a ghost!" You nodded and leaned on the wall, trying to get yourself together. You decided to ride up to Molly's floor and see if Sherlock's friend came up on the next lift. Sherlock kept staring at you, confused, while you sat there waiting. A few minutes later, he came storming in the door. 

"Sherlock! What were you thinking? Why didn't you hold the lift for me? I had to wait for the next one which happened to-"

"John," You gasped, amazed that it actually was him standing in front of you. "John!" You exclaimed, jumping up and running over.

"Y/N!" He replied, a grin spreading on his face. His smile faltered quickly though. "I," He said. "I need to be going. I forgot I had an appointment. Yeah. That's it. I'll see you at the flat, Sherlock." John quickly limped out the door and off to the elevator.

"He's the one, isn't he?" Sherlock said after a few moments. You nodded sadly. 

"Why'd he run off like that?" You asked. 

"Well it's obvious he didn't have an appointment. That leaves two possible reasons for his lying. One he could be-"

"Oh shut up, Sherlock!" You cried. "I know why he left. I-" You cut yourself off, choking back a sob. "Just sod it all! I need to go to work. I'll see you at lunch, Molly." You ran off, down the hall and to the elevator. 

"Molly, I know that look in your eyes," Sherlock said once you'd left. "What are you planning?"

"The perfect set up. Now help me-"

"Molly," Sherlock interrupted her. "I may not understand a lot of things related to the topic of human relationships but I can tell you this, if either of us were to get involved, we may be maimed." Molly nodded in agreement.

Weeks went by and you worked harder than ever, taking extra shifts whenever you could. Your boss finally told you to take a week off to recharge. After much arguing, you relented and headed home for a week. Being alone all day, however, left your mind wandering. Thinking back to what might have been. To occupy your time, you decided to catch up with one of your good friends who lived nearby. You hadn't had the chance to hang out in some weeks but you texted each other every day. When you didn't hear from her yesterday, you worried but figured she probably was just tired. "Maybe she'll have some good advice for me," You told yourself. Knocking at her door, you checked your phone again to see if she had replied yet. Now you were really worried. You grabbed your spare key to her apartment and went in. 

"What do you want?" Sherlock said, answering his phone.

"Sherlock, it-it's Y/N. Can you," You paused, taking a shaky breath. "Can you come down here please? I need your help. Lestrade's already on his way."

"On my way," He replied, grabbing his coat and scarf. "What happened?" As you explained to him everything, he grabbed John's coat and tossed it to him. John was mildly confused of course, but went along. 

"I went in and found her in the bathroom," You told him. "I'm probably missing something obvious. I'm sorry," You cried.

"No, you're doing fine," Sherlock said genuinely. John looked at him surprised as they got into the cab, still not aware of who was on the other end of the call. "We'll be there in 7 minutes."

"We?" You asked. But Sherlock hung up before he answered. 

"Y/N?" Greg said, coming up behind you. "I hate to say this but, we're going to need a statement. Do you want to wait till Sherlock gets here?"

"No, it's alright. Let's get it over with." A few minutes later, you'd told Greg everything you knew and he'd gone inside with the others to investigate. A cab pulled up and Sherlock rushed out. "Sherlock!" You exclaimed running up to him. As you approached, you saw another person getting out of the cab. "Why did you bring him?" You hissed.

"He's my assistant, flatmate and, if I have deduced correctly, a friend of both of us," Sherlock said.

"Look, that was years ago, I don't even know if-" You started whisper-yelling. You got cut off though when John walked up. You noticed he was limping again. 

"John," Sherlock said. "I believe you're acquainted with Y/N. You're much better with people than I am," He stated briefly before going into the apartment.

"Y/N, I'm so sorry," John said once Sherlock left. You nodded, sitting down on a nearby bench before your legs gave way from exhaustion. 

"She was a good friend of mine. I don't know what could have happened." John was quiet as he sat down next to you.

"Sherlock will figure it out. If anyone can, it's him," He finally said.

"That is for certain," You replied with a dry chuckle. "So how did you meet Sherlock?"

"Oh, well, you remember Mike Stamford?" 

"From uni? Yeah, I remember him."

"Well, he introduced me to Sherlock. We were both in need of a flatmate and he matched us up." John paused for a moment, brows furrowed. "That sounds much too much like a bad dating ad. Mike got us together."

"Nope, that's worse," You replied chuckling.

"You understand."

"I think so," You finally replied. "So," You paused. You were so desperate to ask him more but you weren't sure if this was the best time. "Oh, well, nevermind. Glad that worked out." You quieted again, staring off down the street. John looked at you for a moment before clearing his throat.

"Right, yes. So, what have you been up to?"

"Work. I got a job at St. Bart's about 2 years ago. That's how I met Molly and therefore Sherlock." You were silent for a moment before adding one more thing. "I've missed you, John."

"I've missed you too," He admitted. "I'm sorry I didn't write or call when I got back. I-" He sighed and absently rubbed at his leg. "I couldn't. I was scared, if I'm being honest."

"Why? What happened?"

"You know we got sent into a very dangerous area. That's why I had to stop writing to begin with. But then, well, I got shot."

"Your leg?" You asked since he had been limping and rubbing at it. 

"Ah, shoulder actually. The limp is psychosomatic. It comes and goes when I'm particularly worried or upset."

"Oh, I'm sorry," You said, not completely sure of what to say.

"I've been back in London for about a year. I looked you up actually. I found out you were working at Bart's. That's why I ran into Mike that day. I was in a park nearby, trying to work up the nerve to go and see you."

"Why didn't you?" You asked. He looked away, embarrassed. "Sorry, I shouldn't have-"

"No, it's ok. I should be honest." He ran a hand through his hair and chuckled nervously. "I was afraid of what you'd think of me. I didn't come back as some 'war hero'. I'm a washed up medic who can't even walk correctly."

"It's psychosomatic, right?" You asked, tilting your head slightly.

"Sherlock says so."

Well then, you have nothing to fear." He looked at you questioningly. "You know I never cared about the military so I could honestly care less if you came back known as some 'war hero' or not. You're not washed up, just look at you! Out here solving mysteries with the world's only Consulting Detective, Sherlock Holmes! And you can too walk right! You're just too scared to."

"I'm not so sure-" You interrupted him by leaning over and planting a kiss on his lips. Pulling away with a giggle you got up and ran a few feet away. 

"You'll have to come here to get another!" 

"Oh, you devil," He grinned. He got up and walked over to you quickly, picking you up, spinning you around and giving you another kiss. You laughed happily and leaned on his shoulder. 

"See? You did just fine!" 

"I suppose I did, didn't I?" He chuckled. 

"Oh, John," You giggled. "I should have told you a long time ago. I love you, John Watson." He smiled from ear to ear.

"I love you too, Y/N L/N. But a crime scene isn't really the best place to do this at."

"Why not? We giggle at murders all the time?" Sherlock suddenly butted in.

"How long have you been standing there?" John yelled.

"Well," Greg suddenly said, a few feet away and holding up his phone. "This video is already 4 minutes long, so," He trailed off.

"John," You said, not taking your eyes off the two other men.

"Yes, love?" He asked as you reached for his hand.

"Let's get 'em." You then spent the rest of the afternoon chasing Sherlock and Greg around the neighborhood, enjoying their girly shrieks, until Mycroft showed up and put a stop to it. Later that evening, you and John were enjoying some Chinese takeaway back at your apartment.

"I really can't apologize enough for leaving you in the dark, Y/N," John said. "I should have written," He chided himself.

"It's alright, John," You assured him. "Actually, you just reminded me of something. Wait here a moment." You ran off to your room and pulled an envelope out of a small box in your desk. You returned to the living room and held it out to John. "This is for you. It was my last letter but," You paused, blushing lightly. "I never mailed it."

My Dear Captain Watson,

I hope you're doing well. I hope you're staying safe and helping as many as you can. I hope -

Oh what am I writing. John, there's something you should know and I wish I could tell you in person but better now than never I suppose.

I love you.

There. Feel free to never write me back again or return this with a 'Dear John' letter. Well, you know what I mean. I wish I could have said it better or sooner but I was scared to lose your friendship. Now I'm more scared of actually losing you.

John, please return safely. Even if we never speak again. The world should not be without John Watson.

All my love,

Y/N

"Y/N," John said, tears in his eyes after reading your letter. "Why didn't you send it?"

"Well, you had asked me not to write anymore since it was dangerous and," You paused, shaking your head sadly. "I chickened out again."

"Well, I guess what they say is true then." You looked at him quizzically as he pulled you close to him and leaned his forehead on yours. "Better late than never."

Sherlock BBC Taglist

@lucywrites02

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[ddaehyeon]

。✧ hyacinth; park serim + reader

— pairing: fashion designer!park serim + photographer!reader

— genre: angst, slight fluff, exes au, post-breakup, slightly suggestive (one scene only!)

— word count: 7.1k

— warning: arguments, heartbreak, mentions of anxiety and emptiness

— summary: years had passed since you broke up with serim; life had been continuously patching up ever since. his name had marked several clothing lines, while your studio was well-known in the small city you lived in. who would’ve known that a sight of him on a bus stop would be enough to bring back wounds you thought had long ago healed?

— navi: playlist | video teaser | cravity masterlist

— a/n: my wips suffered from a major slump and this is quite an overdue fic (i also have another overdue fic help) but i hope someone would still at least read this though >< the first ver of this didn't satisfy me and though this ver didn't satisfy me that much, i feel like after rewriting almost half of the fic, this one's better. i'll do my best to pull something better soon!

autumn must be the most magical part of the year. the leaves experiencing a color alteration, scarlets and golds carpeting the ground— a yearly harvest of the earth where everything was gradually being taken away. long gone was the heat of the summer; the chilly evening breeze sure was much friendlier than of winter. the season served as a comforting quilt. it was such a great time for warm drinks that could lift up the mood even for the wariest.

you let go of a breath as you stared at the window, the sun was setting. the color fleshed out in the sky golden, jiving well with the surrounding that was already of the same palette. with an indoor shoot for a seasonal issue of a magazine, it sure was a tiring day. the sound of camera clicks still ringing in your head, along with the hushed talks and chitchats coming from the staff members and the models.

at first, you were hesitant to accept the project. afraid that you’d bump by one of the renowned fashion designers in your region, park serim. but then, you couldn’t just chicken out when a hefty sum was to be paid. the relief you had when you saw that his name wasn’t on the list of designers was almost the same kind of relief you'd have after preventing big trouble from occurring.

“i finished placing back the props in the room.” hyeongjun’s voice was still as bright as it was this morning as if not touched by any fatigue. he was one of the photographers you hired in your studio, offering only fine shots. “i’ll be going home early, just send me a message about what time tomorrow’s shoot will be!”

“thank you, junie.” a smile was on your brim as you nodded on his words, watching him pack his camera and leave afterward.

silence melted in the room as soon as hyeongjun stepped out. alone in your photography studio, you sat on a stool used earlier by one of the models. the room was dimly lit with only one of the umbrella lights open. it was only by then that you realized your thighs were already stiff from the nonstop work earlier. you wanted to go home and just be in the comforts of your bed.

pulling out your phone, you dialed your brother’s number, frowning when it took him quite a while to pick up. was he busy or did he just forget that he was supposed to pick you up tonight?

jungmo would always fetch you by your studio after his working hours concluded. with the two of you living together in the same house, your brother just found it ideal— bringing you to your work every morning and giving you a drive home every evening. it might seem like he was babying you, but it was a gesture you grew fond of.

“y/n?” jungmo gasped on the other line. it seemed like he was outside, music playing in the background which mingled well with the peals of laughter. “shit, i forgot to tell you.”

you raised a brow, questioning his words. “what’s the matter?”

“can’t fetch you today.” you can already envision the pout he had on his lips. “i’m at a party with allen and woobin, catching up with my colleagues. i’ll make it up to you tomorrow, i promise!”

“alright. i’ll just ride the bus then.” it was your turn to purse your lips. you can’t bring yourself to complain about it though. “have fun! just stay in woobin’s apartment tonight, don’t drive!”

“i will, i will,” jungmo replied, a call of his name following. his friends might’ve been looking for him already. “text me alright? get home safely, y/nie.”

at the end of the phone call came another sigh from you. a tightlipped smile braced your lips as you stood to turn off the remaining lights. you retrieved your camera and placed it back in one of the drawers. making sure everything was back to its place, secured; you gave the place one final look. something you’d do every single day before going home. a reminder of the thing you loved the most. a reminder of what could have been.

the sidewalk wasn’t as empty as you imagined it to be, maybe you weren’t used to walking to the bus stop anymore. strangers of different day occurrences exchanged various looks that shared one same element, tiredness.

when the wind blew, fallen leaves danced along with it. the slight coldness making you tuck your hands inside the pocket of the cardigan you were wearing. you loved the cool breeze, but not when you knew you had to stay out on an open shed with it as your companion. cold weather could be your friend, a company for a better evening sleep. but rather a harsh fellow when you had to be alone, when loneliness can easily be injected to your senses.

tracing the path, a memory went to play in your head. way back in college, this was the same sidewalk you’d walk in with your ex-lover. a camera on your hand while he had a roll of satin in his arms. it was such a usual view for the two of you as you talked about how the day went, ranting about the monotonous lectures, gushing over how you missed each other’s company and how you wished that the two of you could get back to your shared apartment as soon just so you can snuggle on the couch.

you glanced at the sky, the cloud hiding the few scattered twinkling stars. a faint smile spread upon your lips, only to disappear when your gaze went back to the bus stop. the male that passed by in a form of fleeting memory earlier was standing right in front of you as if fleshed out from your mind. a lavender-colored paper bag was hanging on his arm, the logo of his product line delicately stamped on the middle. his phone was resting on his other hand, if he was scrolling through sns or texting someone, you weren’t sure.

the magical feeling he used to offer long gone, your stomach twisting into several knots. a cold sensation went down in your spine as a familiar tug came to pull your heartstring. he’s back? what is he doing here? he lives here again?

your thoughts were loud in your head, but none of it was pulled out loud. each word ending up as a lump in your throat. the air was thickening, your heart beating fast, not out of excitement, but out of the clashing thoughts that left you so nervous and confused. it had been years, how come a single sight of him made you feel like all your resolutions are gone? how did a single sight of him become enough to shatter the glass that protected you from the ache that night had caused you?

it was cold. but no, it was no longer because of the autumn breeze.

“serim?” the name was uttered in the same way you would before everything came crashing, yet it held a much weaker tone. you can’t even remember the last time your voice came to wrap around the syllables of his name.

the male turned his head to look at you, a brow raised as he stared at you. no obvious emotion, his eyes held no recognition.

and his reply? it sent a shiver down your spine, your stomach flipping in a horrendous manner.

“who are you?”

for a moment, the air caused such a nauseous feeling— thin and hard to inhale. it was only three words, yet it was powerful enough to serve as a punch in the gut.

how can he forget?

how can he forget how the two of you first met?

not that it was a very momentous event, just a regular struggle faced by two college students that needed someone else to accomplish a project for a major subject. there were no butterflies involved, nor did sparks fly the moment you met. regardless, up until now, that day burned fresh in your mind.

“i know someone from that department,” woobin said without even looking at you, his eyes focused on his book. though you weren’t sure if he was really paying attention to the words written there as he kept on diving in the conversation every now and then.

“and who might that be?” the dreadful task of having to pair up with the design department had been inhabiting your mind ever since it was given to you. pressure rising as you saw your other blockmates having no hard time getting themselves out there and communicating with the department they weren’t really accustomed to. you still have a month and a half, you were sure you can still make it. it was just a photoshoot anyway, featuring your partner’s designs.

“park serim,” woobin finally answered as if he had to think hard of the person’s name. “i think no one had asked him to become their partner, he’d be available to do it.”

desperate to get over with the task, later that day, you found yourself by the catwalk the design students would take. it was a path that connected their building to the main gate directly. your building wasn’t exactly far away from theirs, but still of a different building. with their building equipped with supplies and machineries for final products, yours were of computers, lightings, and screens.

you stared at your phone, his instagram profile opened. earlier, you already took the pleasure of checking his works out and without much filtering, him as well. he sure does love taking pictures of himself; something that could work perfectly with him being your subject. once satisfied, you left him a dm that was probably one of the most awkward sentences you had ever typed in the entirety of your life.

a notification popped out as you look at your screen, which was shortly followed by another. it was only of common courtesy to follow him before asking him for a favor right? you did that before messaging him and now he followed you back and replied to your dm. unlike you, he didn’t spend much time wandering in your profile. well, as if he had so much to look unto aside from the sceneries and some stories posted.

‘you were the person woobin was talking about? i’ll be out in two minutes. see you in the catwalk.’

it wasn’t too long of a duration, you allowed yourself to simply jump from a social media to another, mindlessly scrolling and liking some post every now and then. only lifting your head up when a wave of students began getting out of the establishment. most were holding mannequins with unfinished clothing attached to them, some were holding rolls of fabrics you weren’t sure what to call.

with squinted eyes, you tried to look for him among the crowds. woobin said that serim was a fashion design major, so he’d probably be holding the same thing as the other students that came out.

and he was.

leaning on his shoulder was a mannequin, asymmetrically dressed in silk. it wasn’t sewn yet, only supported by sewing pins. an arm wrapped around a roll of what seemed to be linen of pastel blue color. there was also a paper bag hanging on his arm which seemed to have some extra fabric and maybe some other supplies.

you walked towards him with a wave to which he gave you a confused look at first, the frown melting away when he realized that you were the one who messaged him not even an hour ago.

“you’re y/n?” he asked, merely to confirm.

you nodded your head and offered a hand in carrying the paper bag. something he didn’t refuse to. “so…” unsure of how to bring up the means of meeting with him after his class, your voice trailed.

“what do you need anyway?” he supported your words as he traced the path of the sidewalk. “take pictures of me or take pictures of the clothes i make?”

“both.” a chuckle left your lips, laced with nothing but sheer abashment, at the same time mentally cursing this project. you were okay with taking pictures, but the negotiation that comes with it wasn’t a task you were so used to doing.

serim hummed, saying an almost inaudible ‘i see’ before taking a big step and stopping in front of you to do a curt observation. his gaze trailing from toes up to your shoulder. “i’ll agree to do it, if you’ll model for me for a project.”

blinking your eyes multiple times, a baffled frown came to mask your countenance. “what?”

“i need a model that will wear the dress i’m doing by the end of the semester,” serim uttered nonchalantly, proceeding to turn his back to you and resume walking. “that would be quits.”

“i’ll do it,” you said, despite still being hesitant. having close to zero knowledge about how such a presentation would work, you were so close to disagreeing. but then again, it would only be a good way to repay him, right? and perhaps the other fashion design students would ask you of the same thing if you try to team up with them.

turning to look at you, there was a curve that formed on his brim. “that’s a deal then.”

how can he forget how the two of you confessed to each other?

two months. it took two months of random meet ups, daily conversations, and occasional hanging out to get to know each other. the awkward messages of checking up on each other’s side of the project turned to asking about each other’s day, sharing rants about academic life or life in general. the occasional hanging out turning to planned dates and spontaneous ones when the two of you both have the time to spare.

you’d usually stay in his unit as he worked on the dress for his project, a clothing that perfectly suits your figure. late night talks induced by the slightest energy given by coffee the two of you had clung into in hopes of being able to finish what was due.

it seemed like time flew by and before you knew it, you were in the backstage. serim was pacing back and forth, more nervous than you were. he wasn’t the one that was going to the stage, but sure his body was restless.

“are you alright?” you asked him once the two of you were left alone in the dressing room.

this was enough for serim’s movement to come to a halt. even when his eyes landed on you, it was obvious that his mind was floating. in fact, it even took him hot seconds before he was able to commit to a verbal response. “i am.”

“you are?” a smile broke out of your countenance which was eventually followed by a chuckle. “are you sure with that?”

your laughter was adequate to ease his nerves a little, a curve appearing on his lips. “i am.”

one of his classmates who was in charge of the flow came knocking to the door, signalling that you should be on standby.

“i’ll do my best,” you said, walking toward the door. it would be a definite lie to say that you were not at all nervous. a deep breath taken before twisting the knob, stopping when serim called you. it was covered with a bit, yet noticeable hesitation that it made you cock a brow for a moment.

“good luck.” it was all that he uttered, along with a gesticulation of him raising both fists. though serim’s mind spoke of different words, words he had little courage to let go of. at least not yet at that moment.

you gave him a smile, nodding your head afterward. “thank you.”

and off you go.

roaring crowds and camera clicks; the auditorium set up for the use of the fashion design students as they exhibit their works through their chosen models. formerly, you’d find yourself among the crowds, snapping pictures and admiring the clothes done by the other students. but this time, you found yourself clothed in a floral print silk-blend asymmetrical dress designed by serim himself.

the lights were blinding, being always part of the photographers, you were quite accustomed with how you were part of the persons behind the camera lense. serim was in the dressing room, watching the runway from the screen that displayed the live broadcast. some of your friends were among the crowds, your older brother even telling you before the show started that he’d be sure to take pictures of you.

fortunately, the few days of practice didn’t go to waste, no major mistakes happened when you modeled serim’s design. perhaps the only problem was you were a little stiff, something too trivial for some audience to notice.

as soon as you stepped by the backstage, serim’s proud smile welcomed you. unable to rest in the dressing room once he saw you getting out of the stage, he practically ran to meet you behind the curtains.

his eyes were filled with adoration, not just for the dress he finished making, but for the overall beauty you radiated. without much thought, he walked closer to you, soon wrapping you in an embrace. tight, yet gentle.

“you did well, y/n,” serim whispered, not letting go.

a soft chuckle was heard from you, your cheeks burning. “you did well,” you corrected. “please, it’s your design.”

“thank you.” releasing you, a smile lingered on his visage. “i’ll make you a better dress in the future.”

“you don’t have to, but thanks,” you replied before the two of you sunk into silence. regardless of how the surrounding was of heavy music and cheers, peace had found its way to emanate in the dimmed part of the area.

no words spoken, yet feelings poured when serim leaned closer. his lips easily capturing yours enough to make your heart pound in your chest, louder than it did while you were in the catwalk.

serim broke the kiss, his lips still close with yours. his eyes were of another glow when he uttered a set of words, familiar yet foreign. “i love you.”

once again, you were under his spell. soft kiss turning into a sloppy one once he guided you to a more secluded area. it would be such a waste to rip the dress off given that it was an original design, yet as the person who sewn each part of the clothing you were wearing, serim had his way to resolve the small dilemma.

the surrounding was silenced, your body frail under each of his touch, breath taken away, chest heaving. sure, it was a night you won’t be able to forget.

how can he forget about how the two of you practically lived with each other for years?

the exuberance exuded while the two of you carried several boxes into an empty unit you called home. maybe it wasn’t really about the place, but it was who you were with. his arms served as a shelter. his hand caught tears of both happiness and sadness. his lips pressed affection that no one else could offer. everywhere with serim was of comfort, of tranquility— a home.

living with another person, being under a single roof wasn’t exactly the easiest thing to adjust to. throughout the first few months of living together, your head was filled with memories of sheer trial and error as the two of you tried to learn the curves. this included adjusting for each other or at least compromising for what the other likes that the other doesn’t. silly mistakes became such a fond memory.

the smell of burnt food that wafted in the air when the two of you decided to stay on the balcony while cooking dinner. astonished by the stars and the almost endless stories that passed on both lips the meal you were preparing was left neglected. that night, the two of you shared bitter food of dark exterior, quite hard to swallow. but the laughter that filled the house after the incident lifted up each other’s mood. despite the bad-tasting meal, it was probably one of the best dinners you had in that apartment.

it didn’t end there. who would forget about the laundry disaster that rendered one of serim’s white long sleeves saturated with colors you weren’t sure what to call. the mixture of forget-me-not blue and azalea pink stood as the most distinguishable pigment along with the other colors. serim only let out of a chuckle at what occurred, even joking that maybe the two of you could start a business of dying white clothing in such a way.

the best memory thus far was a late-night run by the convenience store when the two of you were chasing a morning deadline. a grumbling stomach that broke the mutual silence the two of you exchanged, along with a suspecting look that ended up with laughter.

“let’s buy some food,” serim suggested, removing the tape measure from his shoulder and settling it to the mannequin.

you hit save on your laptop, the editing could wait for a few minutes.

pulling yourself off the chair, you gazed at him with a smile. it wasn’t a surprise that he had the same beam, as bright as the morning, regardless of how the evening was already crawling onto the whole city. sometimes, you wondered how a simple smile could give you so much energy. what kind of magic does a beam flashed by the person you love hold?

a few snacks picked up by the convenience store; a bag in his hand, your hand on the other as the two of you walked back to your unit. the evening sky and the soft gush of wind amplifying the peacefulness provided by the city. no words were exchanged, yet the silence was enough of a word.

deadlines momentarily escaping the mind as you allowed yourself to be engulfed by his presence. his soft voice breaking the silence, the phrase that left his lips drew a curve on your lips. “i love you, y/n.” you weren’t looking at him, but you could perceive the smile he had. “so much.”

“i know,” you replied.

serim’s steps became slower as he looked at you, waiting for the actual response. with a tilted head and shining eyes that reflected your figure and the street lights, his gaze didn’t waver.

a chuckle left your lips, finding yourself lost in his eyes for a moment. “i love you too, serim.” you squeezed his hand, cueing him to continue walking. “so much.”

sighing out of content, a radiant smile decorated his lips.

at that moment, the two of you wished nothing more but just to be next to each other for as long as life would grant you.

how can he forget about your first anniversary?

it wasn’t grand, just the two of you sitting by the balcony. the bouquet he bought abandoned on the dinner table as the two of you gushed over plans you were sure were realistic enough to be achieved. your eyes twinkling with mirth, a lifetime with him sure was the ideal one you’d want to spend.

“y/n,” despite being just beside you, serim called.

you looked at him with a brow raised, catching his eyes on yours. “mhm?”

a smile simply spread onto his lips before he broke the gaze. his hand seeking for an item inside the pocket of his hoodie, a small box retrieved afterward. there, a necklace sat. the pendant was of a ring that was not entirely decorated with fancy stones, rather a lone blue sapphire stone was on it.

“the pendant is a promise ring,” serim explained before scooting closer to you. his hand reached for the back of your head while the necklace rested on your skin. he locked the jewelry on your neck, pressing a gentle kiss on your forehead after.

you were silent the whole time, not because you didn’t like the gesture. but because you were sure words wouldn’t be enough to express the satisfaction and light feeling that was blanketing your heart.

serim had a faint smile as he admired the necklace for a moment. just like you, his heart was in an ocean of peaceful joy. lifting his head to look at you directly, he gave your lips a light peck. “i’ll buy you a better one once we’re ready for it.”

“thank you.” your countenance mirrored the same expression serim had— of joy and serenity. “i love you so much.”

“i love you too.” serim leaned in for another quick kiss, swift yet lingering. “i can’t wait to spend a lifetime with you.”

the evening droned on and on with the two of you staying by the balcony, exchanging conversations about the future. two hearts in one home, seemingly able to find the path where both can hold each other’s hand. minds filled with dreams where the other can also be spotted. a considerably spacious studio apartment became the foundation of your plans and dreams.

aspirations that soon became the neglected cause of why your relationship with him gradually crumbled down.

how can he forget about your very first fight?

gazes that held no definite emotion, silence that cut through the air— it was all an unfamiliar experience, hard to swallow. something that you weren’t able to forget easily as it was the first time you’ve ever seen serim with such a cold expression.

the coaster of shows on the television had long passed, a few recaps played. something that wasn’t really able to get a hold of your attention. your mind drifting elsewhere and the few notifications appearing on your phone were the only ones that managed to pull you out of your daze momentarily.

“where’s serim?” for the nth time that day, you asked. the room was quiet with only a few chatters from the screen in front of you. the evening was growing older and older, but you haven’t received any message about serim's whereabouts. neither had he sent you a message the whole afternoon.

worried, you opted to stay up and wait for him. even prepared a meal that can be easily heated so he can have something to eat once he arrives in case he hasn’t eaten anything yet.

with the door clicking, you were quick to get off the couch. the faint footsteps signaling you right away.

“you’re finally home,” you said, a smile easily located on your brim. only for it to melt away at the sight of serim’s stern look. his gaze piercing through, enough for chills to trace your spine.

he walked past you, not even offering you the regular hugs and kisses he would do every time he’d arrive. all that was left were cold stares. something you attempted to break. and heck did you regret doing so.

“why haven’t you been answering your phone? have you already eaten?” the worry you had accumulated coming through in waves of questions.

a sigh was emitted out of his mouth as he went to get himself a drink. it seemed like a verbal response was not an option for him since he continued to ignore your questions. at this point, it was as if there was no one else in the room. it was like you weren’t there.

“did something happen, serim?”

a minute. it was all it took for the entirety of your relationship to come to an unknown turn. the curve strange, it crawled to the skin with such a frigid touch enough for your stomach to flip horribly.

“can you give me a break?” serim hissed, a glare shoot in your direction. his voice growing power word after word. your breath was taken away, how can words suffice to make you feel so small? he placed his glass on the sink, the item almost meeting its demise. he turned to look at you once again. “can’t you see, i’m tired?”

“i waited for you.” the words spilled out of your lips, disappointment hugging your tone.

“who told you to wait for me?” serim snarled and before you knew it, you were already standing on the same page. similar expression, different cause. yours were anchored in concern, while his were of fatigue from the whole day of heavy workload. those seemed to have lulled both of your senses, blinding each other.

“oh well, i was just worried about you because you didn’t send me a message the whole afternoon up to this point.”

“do i really need to report my actions to you?”

“no, but you have to at least tell me if you’re going home late.” your voice gradually softened, a tear held back.

no, you can’t cry. no, not in front of him. no.

“i was worried,” you broke out. but it wasn’t enough for his fumes to dissolve. like gasoline poured into flames, each of your replies only intensified the exasperation boiling in his stomach.

“i’m going to rest.” serim sigh was audible as he stormed off to your room, leaving you with tears in your eyes.

a minute.

it only took half a minute for everything to fall out of its order. that fight wasn’t the last one and each passing day, the unit you once called home was stuck with unfamiliarity.

it was no longer a home.

how can he forget about that night?

cold meals by the table had your eyes fixated on them. the date encircled in red, a supposedly special day that turned bitter. different from how you used to spend it before—of laughter and warm touches— serim wasn’t there. he was far too involved with projects that your shared unit only became a short shelter. words were barely exchanged, yet alone gazes. you still sleep on the same bed as him, but no warmth was offered.

you weren’t sure which was better, to continue living with him even if it felt like you weren’t living with him or to have him gone in your life for real. regardless of the turns that occurred, the continuous erosion of your relationship, you couldn’t find it to yourself to let go. still tied by your attachment to the former serim.

a sigh left your lips, desolated gaze trailing on the table. you tried. but it seemed like those attempts were futile. it takes two people’s efforts. you can’t revive a relationship alone.

switching place, you went to the living room and sat by the couch. the place dimly lit by a lone lampshade. the city lights filtering through the window. the air gradually thickened around you, it held your throat in a vice grip. the photographs displayed by the shelves were foreign to you, despite how it was simply you and serim. it was like you were staring at completely different people. smiles had long been taken away, touches had melted, flutters subsided— all that was left was a terrible feeling of helplessness. something that seemed to guide you to nowhere. you were lost.

before, you were sure of how the story was to be written. how the chapters were to unfold. but right now, you weren’t even certain what would be on the next page. it was like the next ones were torn from the spine, gone. oh hell, you weren’t even sure what page you were on right now or if the story was bound to be written in the first place.

serim’s arrival went unnoticed at first. only until you heard the clink of the glass meeting the sink did you turn in his direction. an empty gaze was earned and for some reason you found yourself offering him a faint smile. a small gesture packed in pain that was quick to course through your senses.

sighing had become his way of greeting. dark circles under his eyes and the disheveled look emanated how his work had been weighing him. but your mouth was closed regardless of how you wanted to speak of reassurance and praise. it was strange, the inability to speak of warm words around him. why were you so held by fear?

“serim,” you called, breaking the floating silence.

he looked at you, eyes deep like he was examining a piece of fabric. it was enough for your stomach to churn. the stillness continued after your call. you weren’t sure how to continue it; it was as if his name was unnatural in your tongue. not only was your breath sucked, but also all the possible words had dissipated.

yet again another sigh as he tore his gaze away, stepping towards the bedroom. “i’m so tired, y/n,” he uttered, setting a line for you to not cross onto. “very tired.”

resurfacing on your brim was a smile. your eyes weren’t exactly skillful of lying though as tears soon gathered on it. heart hollowed in emptiness as if a scream would echo on its wall. likewise, your voice decided to betray you— shaking. “serim, i’m getting tired too.”

for a swift moment, serim tried to come up with an answer. but just like you, comforting words seemed to be an unfamiliar language. even aware of how a look would be inadequate, he only stared at you. his eyes don’t speak of words nor radiated comfort— it was vacant. lowering his head, he carded his fingers on his hair before letting go of a breath.

serim finally stepped inside the bedroom.

and that was how the two of you parted ways.

how can he forget about you?

it went on and on in your head, the question continuously striking.

a gush of autumn breeze pulled you out of your daze. serim was still looking at you, his eyes slowly lightening with recognition. a few blinks and he spoke. “oh, wait.” he tilted his head to the side. “y/n?”

you weren’t exactly sure what kind of answer to give, but you gave it your best to offer a faint smile. “yes.”

still— despite how other people were walking on the sidewalk and how vehicles passed by the road, the surrounding seemed to come to a stillness you didn’t ask for. denying and pushing away the feelings you’ve long ago tried to bury and made yourself believe that you’ve healed from only brought a new wave of pain. as if you were its child, sadness came to hug you.

just in time, the bus arrived as if to save you from further drowning in emotions you didn’t wish to engulf you in. to your surprise, serim also boarded in. while you chose to sit somewhere just nearby the driver, he went to the last row.

usually, your rides on the way home were the most relaxing ones. a time to just stare at the window and watch the night spread into the city. it will always be accustomed by jungmo asking you on and on about how your day went and also sharing about how his day went. but your brother wasn’t around for that kind of support right now. and you can’t blame him for it. you can’t blame anyone for this unexpected meeting with the person you never knew you’d ever meet again.

the ride was sickeningly slow, all you wished was to get home and allow your voice to echo in your room. to release the emptiness if it was even possible to empty something that was already vacant. the sky held no comfort. its color dissipated and all that was left was an empty canvas that like a broken record, played memories. it was silly how despite those quick memories popping in and out of your mind, questions still managed to penetrate.

serim was living in another city, why did he ride the same bus? was he to meet his new lover? maybe to meet an old friend?

or did he perhaps mean to meet you? this was a guess you despised. the hope it brought that maybe an answer for all the questions formed that night were to be given tasted bitter in your mouth and offered restlessness in the heart.

an urge to talk to him surfaced, but then you asked yourself why. why would you want to talk to him? for what?

despite being curious about the reason why he left that night, a certain fear crawled onto your senses. the fear of knowing.

what could knowing his reasons possibly bring you?

the time when the two of you loved each other wasn’t of the best timing. two newly graduates seeking career growth, wanting nothing but to achieve various goals. those were dreams drawn with the other person placed as a part of it. however, during the process of achieving those, that same person where the aspiration was rooted gradually disappeared from the mind. the path the two of you promised to take together came at crossroads and you ended up taking something different from what he preferred to go to.

at first, there was a powerful yearning that made the two of you grow more fond of each other. but it was slowly replaced by numbness towards it, making love such a foreign word.

you understood. but it wasn’t something you had fully accepted.

a familiar shed came to flash on the window, your stop nearing. and when the vehicle finally came to a halt, you gave serim a final glance. he was looking at you, not moving from his seat. dismissing the contact, you walked down the bus and began tracing the sidewalk with heavy steps.

disappointment curled into your stomach when you arrived near your house, realizing that the recurring questions will not be answered. however, fate played its game. anxiousness arose when once again you heard your name wrapped around serim’s voice.

you turned to look at him, his lips hesitant to let go of a word.

serim was also in deep thoughts, mind all over the place despite how he already had the resolution to talk to you, not to explain and justify himself, but to apologize for the damage done.

“i’m sorry for that night,” serim began, the initial words already clinging into his chest, weighing down. “i should’ve been more honest with you and trusted you more with my struggles.”

there was nothing serim wanted but to prove himself worthy of you. achieve things that could make you be proud of him and deem him as someone who deserves you. working up to late hours, diving into designs in order to perfect his craft. the thing was, he forgot that you already loved him even when he was simply that serim. that you loved him as park serim.

blinded by the goal, the mean diminished. as he was too caught up with it, he was no longer striding towards it for you, but for himself.

“it was selfish of me to decide for something we both should be deciding for. i left that night thinking it was better that way without even considering how you will feel,” serim continued, his voice weakening. he lifted his hand as if to hold you, but stopped midway. it fell to his side as he breathed in. “i’m sorry. i’m really sorry.”

“i was hurt, but you were probably hurt as well.” the way those words left your lips ever so calmly surprised you. “it wasn’t the most pleasant experience, but i hope we both learned from it.” a smile became evident on your visage. “promise me one thing serim, do not make the same mistake with your future lover.”

“i will not,” serim replied.

both of you never really imagined the end of your relationship and as the page of it was torn years ago, an ending was deemed impossible to earn. closing a book would never be that easy, but some stories were meant to end— yours included.

“also, this is for you.” serim handed you the paper bag he was holding. “i told you years ago that i’ll make you a better dress, and here it is. i figured that i wouldn’t be able to keep the promise laced on the ring i gave you before but i at least want to have one of my promises kept.”

you looked at the item for a moment before turning to serim once again. “thank you.”

“i also want you to know that i truly loved you.”

never at once did you doubt serim’s love for you. the thing about it is that people will grow and know love from a better perspective. know how to best keep it. know how to best show it. but it will not change the fact that back then, you felt that it was love.

serim had a single flaw and that was to hold everything to himself to the point that those created a wide gap between the two of you. the distance far enough that reaching his hand became impossible despite how you wanted to hold him.

and maybe during that time, parting was the best solution. and up to this point, it was too.

“it’s nice seeing you again, serim.”

“likewise, y/n.” a genuine smile crossed his lips. “goodbye?”

“goodbye.”

tonight, you gave him a piece of your heart. it was his, to begin with. whatever he was to do with it— keep it, throw it, crush it— it was a decision for him to make. keeping something that shouldn’t be there would only bring further destruction, it’s way better to have an empty spot in your heart rather than keep a damaged one.

the breeze embraced you. the goodbyes uttered were to serve as a beginning. there were new questions that formed and you knew there were tears that were yet to be spilled. but it was a start. opening a buried wound would never be pleasant, but it was way better to open it yourself than have it bare you.

staring at the newly planted hyacinth in the neighboring flower bed, you let go of a sigh. they will bloom in the spring. and you hoped that you would experience the same.

[ssa-babygirl]

Out of My League [Part 2]

Pairing: Spencer Reid x Single mom!Reader

Word count: 4.5k (ohohohoho i went OVERBOARD with the dialogue here I am sorry for all the useless exposition)

Summary: Most things have changed in the last 10 years, but it’s safe to say that a few things stayed exactly the same. Mixed POV

Warning(s): Mentions of past bullying, mentions of cheating, mentions of kidnapping, general criminal minds stuff, cursing, VERY VERY BRIEF MENTION of a miscarriage and leukemia like it’s one sentence and that’s all

Author’s Note: The moment yall have been waiting for! They grow up so fast!! I’m going on a quick trip this week and then heading back to school a few days later, so the next part may take a little longer, but I’m super excited to write it!!

[Previous Part] [Series Masterlist]

Las Vegas, Nevada, 2004

(Spencer’s POV)

My first case out on the field was not a pleasant one. Well, it rarely is, that’s what happens when you work for the FBI to catch serial killers. For the first couple of weeks at the BAU, I helped them consult on cases, but they weren’t sure I was ready to go out on the field with them. After I got my weapon certification, Gideon told me he wanted me to come along on the next case because I was familiar with the area. There had been a series of child abductions near Vegas, my hometown. I would have been much more nervous about traveling had I not been able to see my mom while I was there. I hadn’t visited her in a while and the guilt was gnawing at me.

The first day was brutal. Hotch made some of us go back to the hotel late at night, but it was hard for us to sleep. JJ hated working cases about children, so she went to have a quick drink at the hotel bar, where she promptly forgot her purse and had to call me from her room to go get it for her. I had no hope of getting any rest that night, so I figured I’d take a walk down the hall and try to clear my head. 

There was no sign of the purse at first glance, no small black clutch on the bar like JJ said. But there was a woman cleaning glasses behind the counter, maybe she knew where the purse was.

As I approached the bar, the woman’s features took a familiar shape and triggered a distant memory. Seeing her face again was like coming home after a long drive without a map, squinting through the dark and hoping the headlights would get brighter when finally, you’re pulling onto a road that you know by heart. 

I didn’t need to look at her nametag, I already knew who she was, but judging by her polite smile borne solely out of the courtesy required to work in the service industry, she didn’t recognize me. In her defense, I had grown about a foot and a half since the last time she saw me. And I got a freaking haircut. 

“Y-Y/N?” 

She looked up from her rags and scrunched up her face in confusion.

“Okay, so you definitely know me, and I am so sorry about this, but I can’t quite place it. You look so familiar, though, I just… I meet a lot of people with this job, I’m so sorry, I forgot your name.”

I grinned, she still had that same habit of apologizing every five seconds, “I don’t really have that problem, eidetic memory and all.”

Her eyes widened, “Spencer? Spencer Reid!”

I laughed and nodded.

“You’re so tall now! What has it been, like, 10 years? Oh my goodness, come here.” She awkwardly leaned over the bar and hugged me. She still used the same shampoo. 

“How ya been, kid?”

“I’m good! H-How are you?”

“Doing fine, thanks. What brings you back to good ol’ Sin City?”

“I’m here for work.”

“Oh, and what are you doing now?” She leaned on the counter and gazed up with curious eyes, “Helping the doctors at Area 51?”

Good to know she still had jokes, “No actually, I’m with the Behavioral Analysis Unit of the FBI.”

“Woah, you’re a fed now?”

“Yeah, we’re investigating a series of--”

“Kidnappings. Yeah. Scary shit. Can I get you a drink?”

“No, I’m good.”

“You close to catching the guy?”

“Unfortunately, no.”

“Any of the kids turn up?”

“Unfortunately, yes. We found one boy this morning. He… didn’t make it.”

Her face dropped to a look of worry I hadn’t seen since she took off my blindfold that day on the football field, “Name. I need a name,” her voice grew hoarse.

“I can’t really disclose that information.”

“Spencer, please. Every day my kid comes home from school and asks me if I was watching the news.”

I couldn’t deny the way my heart sank at the news, but I could sure as hell ignore it, “Y-You have kids?”

“One. Little Jamie. His best friend, Robbie, is missing.” Robbie Carter, age five, he’s been missing for the past two weeks. He’s likely dead, but we still haven’t found him.

“Every time someone misses school he gets scared they got taken too. Baby Boy doesn’t understand flu season yet.”

“How old is he?” I had to get her mind off of this. I don’t want to worry her.

“Five. Just started kindergarten. Wanna see a picture?” Seems like I succeeded. 

“Sure.”

She whipped out her phone and pulled up a picture of Jamie on his first day of school, backpack far too big for his body. Y/N was posed next to him, the picture too small to show that she was crying ever so slightly.

“Adorable, right?”

I couldn’t stop the grin spreading across my face, “Cute kid. Looks just like you.”

She looked back at the photo and smiled softly, “Except the eyes. He’s got his dad’s eyes.”

I glanced down at her hand holding the phone and was greeted with a pleasant surprise, “I’m guessing Jamie’s dad isn’t in the picture?”

Offense flickered across her features for a second, her eyebrows twitching and lips pursing, “How’d you know?”

“No ring.”

“You do work for the FBI.”

“Would you mind telling me what happened?”

“You know, you’re supposed to be the one spilling your sorrows to the bartender, not the other way around.”

“You don’t have to tell me, just thought we could catch up, I haven’t seen you in ten years.”

She sighed, returning her phone to the front pocket in her apron, “Remember Kyle Brothers?”

“Oh, do I? Yeah, of course, I remember your high school boyfriend, Y/N. What tipped you off, the eidetic memory, or the fact he used to beat me up after gym class?” It was more like the intense rage and jealousy I had when they got back together after football season ended.

“God, see, I always knew he was an asshole, but it never seemed to faze me, I’m so sorry about that.”

“You did what you could. And you apologize too much.”

“Sor--”

She froze mid-word and made a face as she realized once again that she was about to apologize yet again. I stifled a chuckle, but she laughed and grabbed a rag from the counter to finish cleaning the glasses.

“So Kyle?”

“Yes, Kyle. We broke up again before college, I was going out of state and didn’t wanna do long distance, you know all that. I was in a really bad place during my senior year of college, so after graduation, I decided to move back home for a bit, spend some time with my mom--”

“How is she?”

“She’s great! Moved to D.C. with my dad a while back.”

“I should visit her, Quantico isn’t far.” 

She returned a genuine smile, “She would love that.”

“Sorry I interrupted you, keep going.”

“You’re fine. Long story short, moving back home for a few months turned into having a one night stand with my ex. Which turned into us getting engaged nine months later while I’m exhausted and holding my son.”

“Well, that’s a fun birth story for Jamie.”

“Yeah, ‘Happy Birthday, sweetie, your father proposed to me while you were, like, an hour old and then cheated on me six months later.”

“Seriously?”

“Yep.” She popped the p, “Came home and heard two things: Jamie fussing in his sleep from the playpen and bedsprings squeaking in our room.”

“I’m guessing that you guys were done for good after that?”

“Nice detective work.”

“Technically, I’m a profiler, not a detective, as they typically work in local police departments and I work for the federal government, not a precinct--”

“Jesus, kid, you’re gonna put the poor lil lady to sleep,” I turned around and saw Morgan crossing the lobby to the bar, still in his work clothes.

“If I'm yawning it’s from my double shift, not his rambling. It’s been a while since I heard a good Spencer Reid knowledge dump.”

“You two know each other?” He leaned on the bar and I could sense him turning on the classic Derek Morgan charm.

“I could ask you the same question.”

“Uh, Y/N, this is SSA Derek Morgan, we work together, Morgan, this is Y/N L/N, we went to high school together.” The “I had a huge crush on her” was silent.

“Nice to meet you, doll,” he reached out a hand to shake yours. His eyes lingered on you for a bit too long, and I recognized the look in her eyes from the way she talked to Kyle in the halls before our study sessions, and I didn’t like any of that one bit.

Derek turned back to me, “JJ sent you down here a while ago, she’s looking for you.”

I glanced at Y/N and tried to hide the cocktail of emotions in my mind, “I guess I just lost track of time.”

He probably caught onto something because his regular teasing smirk flashed on across his face, “You guess, sure, loverboy, I’ll be in our room. Nice meeting you, Y/N.” He left and she waved, watching him as he left.

“JJ?” She asked, turning back to me.

“Coworker of mine, she left her purse down here and sent me to get it for her.”

“Oh, Blondie from earlier?”

“Yeah.”

“She seemed nice. So pretty!” She reached below the bar and pulled out the small black purse that was left behind about an hour before, holding it up to me and cocking an eyebrow.

“Yep.” 

“How long have you two been working together? Long enough to be more than coworkers?”

I laughed uncomfortably, “Uh, n-no, actually this is actually my first case on the field, before this I only really helped the team consult on cases, but this one was urgent and I wanted to visit my mom so they brought me along.”

“Well, send Diana my love.”

“Of course. And if you hear anything from Jamie about another missing kid, give us a call.” I reached into his pocket and pulled out a card, sliding it to her and leaving with a sympathetic smile, wishing I could say more.

              (Reader POV)

About a week after you ran into Spencer, you were closely following the story as it unfolded on the news. Another kid had gone missing, the second in two weeks. His name was Drew Olson, he was a year older than Jamie. They didn’t find a body yet, so there was still hope. Robbie hadn’t turned up either, which was the best news you had about him. No other bodies have shown up yet, and the cause of death for the boy they found was starvation, so the guy probably didn’t want to hurt these kids.

Regardless of whether or not the situation was actually dangerous, the school still increased security, since two of the victims were students. The pickup line was heavily monitored by teachers and faculty to make sure all students went home with their parents. You had gotten there a bit later than usual, forcing you to the back of the crowd where you couldn’t see the kids as they came out of the building. 

When you finally got up towards the front, there were only a handful of kids left.

And Jamie wasn’t one of them.

Panic started to twist your stomach into knots, but the rational part of your brain clawed at the inside of your skull saying he was just inside, he was waiting in a classroom, he was safe.

You pushed through to the teacher that was keeping track of names on her clipboard. She was younger, just about your age, and wore wire-framed glasses that complimented her dark braids. She gave a warm smile and asked for your child’s name.

“Brothers, Jamie Brothers.”

“Alrighty, let’s see--” she paused as her finger stopped over a name highlighted by a bright green, indicating that the child had been picked up: Jamie Brothers.

“He’s not here.”

“What? What do you mean he’s not here?” The part of your brain that said he was safe fucked right off and left you a shaking mess on the pavement. The teacher reached an arm out and held you by the elbow as your knees buckled beneath you. Other parents’ attention was suddenly directed towards you. 

“Ma’am, the sheet says he was picked up already.”

“But by who? Not me! So who the hell took my son?” All eyes were on you as you didn’t even bother to control the volume of your voice. 

“Mrs. Brothers, please remain calm, I’m sure there’s been a mistake, I can send someone in to find him inside the school.”

“Please…” You whimpered, unable to find your breath.

...Give us a call…

Spencer’s words echoed in your mind and you knew what you had to do, so you scrambled through your bag for the card you were given the week before. You frantically cursed under your breath as you searched for your wallet. You finally found it, taking it out with your phone so you could call the number on the card. It rang once, twice, three times before an unfamiliar voice crackled through on the other side. 

“Agent Hotchner.”

“Are you with the FBI?”

“...Yes, who is this?”

“My name is Y/N L/N, Spencer Reid gave me this number if I knew anything.”

“Do you have information regarding the recent abductions?”

“My son’s been taken.” You could feel the lump in your throat nearly restricting any words from coming out.

“Hold on, ma’am, where are you?”

“I’m at the school, he’s not here. I came to get him and he’s not here, I don’t know what to do!”

“Miss L/N, stay put, we’re on our way.” The call ended with a click and suddenly the world went quiet. There was nothing but the rush of blood pounding in your ears. All you could do was stare blankly at nothing in particular as the phone fell from your hand, hitting the pavement, your knees following quickly behind. You felt the bruises on impact, but you couldn’t care less about how much pain you were in, not when you felt this numb. Your pain didn’t matter anymore, all that mattered was that Jamie was missing and you were powerless to help. The remaining parents surrounded you, all clutching the shoulders of their children, their safe children, the ones they didn’t have to call the fucking FBI to pick up from school today.

When your brain was able to process information again, you noticed the school parking lot had filled with police cars, including two large black SUVs. You squinted through the inappropriately bright sunlight and the bitter tears in your eyes to see a tall man in a dark suit approach you. Behind him, a scrawny young man in a plaid buttondown was following closely.

You recognized him right away this time.

“Spencer,” your voice was barely a whisper as you attempted to stand on your shaking legs. You looked straight past the man in the suit and scrambled over to him. Before you could even reach him, his arms were stretched out to you, enveloping you in a tight hug as soon as you were close enough.

Your heart had to be beating out of your chest, and you were sure he felt it against him. The tears running down your cheeks stained his shirt, soaking him to the skin as he cradled your head against his chest, trying to do whatever he could to make you feel safe again, no matter how scared he was.

The man in the suit was now joined by an older man in a brown jacket and the man you met at the bar the other night, Derek, you think his name was. The suit turned to you and Spencer and introduced himself as Agent Hotchner, the man you spoke to on the phone. He asked you to describe what happened when you arrived, if you saw anyone who looked out of place, if you saw evidence of a struggle. Spencer’s arms never left your frame the whole time you spoke.

“Thank you very much, Miss L/N, I promise we’ll find your son, we have time on our side. Reid, stay with her in the meantime, Morgan, go question the parents, Gideon and I will talk to the monitors and see if they knew who picked Jamie was picked up by.”

“Yes, sir.”

All the men left to complete their tasks except for Spencer, who was supposed to stay put with you. The second you were alone with him once again, your face returned to the spot on his dampened shirt where it had previously been. One of his hands was planted firmly on your upper back, the other stroking your hair between his fingers.

It’s strange, really. Last time you saw him he was just a kid. A brilliant, sweet, small kid. The kid who’s hair you’d fuck with. The kid you held after his bullies hurt him. Then you don’t see him for over a decade and suddenly the roles are reversed. He was tall enough to rest his chin on your head now, which you had mixed feelings about, but you couldn’t deny it calmed you down. Almost as much as his quick yet steady heartbeat drumming right in your ear. The kid was still skinny, but his hugs were still warm. 

“You’re alright, we’re gonna find him,” he whispered into your hair, but you had a feeling those words weren’t only for you. After a few minutes, the three other agents returned to where you and Spencer stood, alerting the two of you that the team would be heading back to the police station where you were welcome to wait with them. Derek figured you were too shaken to drive yourself, so he offered to let you ride along with him and Spencer in the SUV, which you did not hesitate to accept.

Once at the station, you were greeted by the blonde from the bar. What was her name again?

“Jennifer Jareau, I’m the press liaison for the team. You can call me JJ.”

She sat with you while Spencer worked with the others on the case. You wanted to be updated whenever progress was made, but she told you that wasn’t totally possible. Regardless of how against the rules it was, she still gave you the profile. The unsub likely worked with children and knew them and faculty well enough to enter the building and take the kids without being noticed. They may be a parent going through a loss, as no evidence of sexual assault or any physical violence was found on the only body save for light ligature marks on the wrists. Due to the relatively nonviolent nature of the crime, the unsub could be a woman. They likely live alone since they are keeping several young boys in their home. Although this likely wasn’t the work of a pedophile, a trafficking ring could not be ruled out yet.

You suddenly understood why the victims’ families aren’t supposed to know the profile. You thought it would make you feel better, but it only made you feel worse. JJ opened up another box of tissues for you, got you water, and offered you snacks, but there was no way you could get anything down. Every sound, every person that passed the window, every buzz of JJ’s phone sent your stomach plummeting down a death drop. You had just calmed yourself down from yet another panic attack when you saw agents strapping on kevlar vests and putting their guns into their holsters.

They knew where the kids were.

              (Spencer’s POV)

I wasn’t allowed to see her before we left. I couldn’t tell her where I was going, I couldn’t tell her that Jamie would be okay, I couldn’t tell her anything. I barely spoke to her since we got back to the station, and that was hours ago. Now I-- we just have to leave her there again.

This was my first time going out on the field in this capacity. I’d never had to step out of that SUV with my gun out, ready to shoot anyone who threatened the lives of my team or any hostages they may have. I’d never had to strap on a kevlar vest and worry about the potential bruises that may be left behind by being hit with bullets. I’d never had to worry about not coming back before.

“Don’t be worried. If your hands shake you won’t get a clear shot,” Gideon reminded me in the car, as if I’d be able to get a clear shot with a steady hand anyway.

The unsub was a woman named Harriet Yanonovich. According to hospital records pulled by Garcia, our new tech analyst, her son had recently passed after a short and sudden battle against leukemia. This came shortly after Harriet had a miscarriage that triggered a chemical imbalance, degrading her mental health, which resulted in the trigger, losing her job at the elementary school that the boys had each been taken from. I would have felt bad for her if she hadn’t taken my friend’s son away from her.

But she did, and now I just have to hope she didn’t hurt him.

We arrived at Harriet’s house fairly quickly. Hotch sent Morgan and me around the back, he and Gideon would take the front. As we rounded the back of the house, we discovered that she had a storm cellar under her deck. The doors were closed with a heavy padlock. Morgan aimed his gun to shoot it off the chain.

“Don’t do that. The bullet would ricochet and hit you in the knee.”

He lowered his weapon, “You got a better idea, pretty boy?”

“Yes, actually.” I quietly crept onto the deck, lifting the welcome mat from in front of the sliding glass door into the absolute wreck of a kitchen. Under the mat was a simple looking key. 

“She’s a school teacher going through a depressive episode, not a criminal mastermind.”

“Alright then, genius,” he rolled his eyes, “Let’s see if it even works.”

I inserted the key into the lock, hearing a click and turning it with little difficulty. The shackle popped open. I gently removed it from the chains, trying my hardest not to make any noise that would alarm anyone in the cellar. Unwrapping the chains from the handles, I turned back to face Morgan.

“I accept your apology.” I attempted to muster my smuggest smile, but it was hard to mask the dread and worry on my face.

“Yeah, yeah, open up.”

He grabbed one handle and I grabbed the other, sliding the metal doors open and revealing a staircase into a shadowy basement.

“You first.” Morgan nudged my shoulder.

“What? No way! Morgan, this is serious!”

“So go! It’s your girl’s kid!”

He was right. Not about Y/N being my girl, because she wasn’t (though the thought did briefly replace the anxiety in my heart with pure light that I hadn’t felt since I was twelve), but I was still doing this for her. This case wasn’t just a job for me. This was for Y/N. For Jamie. Y/N deserves to see her son again, I owe her that much.

Derek would learn about my fear of the dark much later, but from how fast I jumped down those stairs into that cellar, he’d never been able to tell.

Against the farthest wall, there were four young boys all curled up in a corner. From the limited light, I could see they were all covered in varying levels of filth, the cleanest boy baring the face I had seen on Y/N’s phone screen. The boys all looked terrified, the two dirtiest looking thin and weak against the ties that bound them to a water pipe. I called up to Morgan to come down and lowered my gun.

“I’m Dr. Spencer Reid with the FBI, I’m here to help you guys, okay?” The boys all nodded. Morgan helped me untie their wrists.

“Do you know where Mrs. Yanonovich went?”

“She said she was going upstairs, and that we have to be good or else we wouldn’t get any supper,” Jamie piped up.

“How long you been down here, kid?” Morgan asked.

Jamie shrugged, “Couple hours.”

“Did she hurt any of you?” The kids all shook their heads no.

Hotch’s voice crackled over the radio, “We have her in custody, any sign of the kids?”

“Yep, we found them in the cellar. All are alive, but we may need a medic on standby at the station for some of them.”

“Are they hurt?”

“No, just malnourished. Definitely dehydrated.”

Morgan and I led the kids out to the surface, the setting sun creating a glare off of the tin cellar doors. We were greeted by Gideon and police rounding the corner to the backyard. The kids ran out the gate towards the police cars, eager to be home soon. 

               (Reader POV)

“Okay, I’ll let them know.” JJ hung up and turned back to you, a relieved smile gracing her face. You stood up, desperate to hear the news she had.

“They found the kids, Jamie’s safe.”

You couldn’t stop yourself from lunging at the woman you barely knew, wrapping her in a bear hug as delighted laughs left your lungs. You felt tears of pure relief drip down your cheeks as she squeezed you back, also letting out a deep sigh.

You waited impatiently in the bullpen, anxious to see Jamie unharmed and to give the team your gratitude. When they finally arrived, you saw your son walking hand-in-hand with Spencer and the older agent you believed was named Gideon. Spencer pointed over to you with his free hand and smiled, causing Jamie to drop their hands and sprint into your arms crying “Mommy! Mommy!” You immediately lifted him up and covered his face with kisses. The two of you held onto one another so tight, you were surprised either of you could breathe. Spencer came over to you, smiling with eyes you couldn’t quite recognize. 

“Thank you, Spencer.”

“No need, Y/N. I’m glad I could help. I just wish I could have met Jamie here on better terms!”

You adjusted your hold on Jaime to free one hand, stretching it out for Spencer to take it in his own. You squeezed it gently, smiling into those hazel eyes that had somehow never looked warmer before, despite the deep shadows under them.

“Thank you.”

His pursed lips twitched slightly and you noticed the tears brimming his sunken eyes. The poor boy needed sleep and a lot of it soon. He squeezed your hand back, sending shockwaves up your arms straight to your heart, which hadn’t felt this light since you were seventeen years old.

Taglist~~~

Lmk if you wanna be added! Some names didn’t work so if you don’t see your name as a tag just dm me a url and I’ll try to fix it

@lawnmoa @ellvswriting @baby-pogue @rottenearly @confused-and-really-hungry @thatsonezesty13 @deni-gonzalez @irjuejjsaa @randomfandomshitposts @bisoner @moonstarrnghtsky @smurfflynn @eldahae​ @t0xicllama​ @undeniablyyou​ @staplernpaper​

[khaleesiofalicante]

I really said fuck classes who needs notes anyway (i do I have 5 tests in the next two weeks)

before I post my live blog here, I feel like people really underestimate how bad rumors are and how much they fuck with your mental health. they don't lose sleep over them, they don't think twice. but these things are harmful as fuck. they leave wounds that take so long to recover from because you keep on thinking about these lies who to others are "just words"

I've been there. it's not fun. I wish I had the courage back then to stand up to those rumors which I have now. these things never leave you. others might move on but the healing process is a journey that is long and hard. I wish more people understood just what effect their words can have.

Yeah, he knew a thing or two about family members going overboard with glitter.

IT'S RAFAEL CENTRIC GHSYGUJDUYDFUIKFDUIDFIUDF

TAVVY

TAVVY

TAVVY

DCSUIHDCSUIDUYUDICUIVSDUIHFVSUILFBUHKIFSV

I feel like I keyboard smash A LOT

“You will never drink even if you are not riding the bike,” Dad had pointed out – all Consul Voice and threatening glares. “The legal age for drinking in New York is 21.”

“But it’s 15 in Idris!”

“Well unfortunately for you, we are in Exile,” dad had grinned.

DAD ALEC UHIKSFDUIHKSGUIKSDVUIHKDVUHIKSVD

Max had a habit of ‘borrowing’ things and selling them on eBay. In his brother’s defense, Bapak had so many clothes that he never noticed when things disappeared. But Rafael did since he had a habit of wearing his father’s clothes.

The warlock – not the shadowhunter.

He wouldn’t be caught dead in one of those sweaters.

Now that Rafael was 18, he was almost as tall as his father.

The shadowhunter – not the warlock.

I AM SCREAMING

I love how he's clarifying which one he's talking about

“Do you know I used to have a crush on Lily Chen?” Tavvy blushed. “But then I found out she made out with Helen once and it kinda got weird.”

Ah yes. I remember. Does Rafael know that Alec also walked in on them?

ARCHITECT TAVVY

SDHDVUHDFSV,YDSFVUYVSFFUSVFUVFS

SHADOWUNTERS ATTENDING MUNDANE COLLEGES

“Dude, college kids don’t give a shit,” Tavvy laughed. “You could walk into a lecture covered in runes, holding a seraph blade and they wouldn’t give you a second look.”

“Cause they are chill?”

“Yes. But mostly cause they are dead inside,” Tavvy chuckled.

Surprisingly that's exactly what my grade 6 prefect told me (DAMN WHY AM I ALWAYS REMEMBERING GRADE 6 IT'S BEEN YEARS. that was a horrible year *shudders*)

ANJALI IS A CENTURION

LMAO THIS IS WHAT RAFAEL MEANT WHEN HE SAID HE WOULDNT WANT TO GO TO THE SCHOLOMANCE FOR PERSONAL REASONS

I still ship them.

“The meeting is going to go perfe-What is SHE doing here?”

Well, that was a quick change-

Unlike Aunt Maia, Lily did not like to be called Aunt Lily. So, Rafael respected her wishes. Max of course continued to call her Aunt Lily and sometimes Abeula Lily since his brother had a pathological condition of pissing people off.

THAT'S SO MAX OMG JHSXUHSCUHISDHUHUKIDVS

great now I miss Raphael

I HAVE A CLASS IN 7 MINUTES STOP MAKING ME CRY

that is so thoughtful of him though...

tears.

“There are no photos of Raphael,” Lily sighed.

“Because he is a vampire?” Tavvy asked sympathetically.

“Because he is Raphael,” she grinned. “Vampires can most certainly take photos. You should follow me on Instagram. My handle is simp_for_carstairs.”

Of course, it is. No one is surprised.

Tavvy picked one up, took a large bite and it threw it back immediately. “Holy shit, that’s spicy!”

“White,” Lily and Anjali snorted at the same time.

white people and their bland foods smh

“She is not wrong,” Lily nodded seriously. “I’m a Jem Carstairs fan first and a vampire second.”

As she should be

UHDSUHDFSUHFDH ANJALI AND RAFAEL COMPETING ABOUT WHO'S LILY'S FAVORITE

He observed Anjali’s long dark hair spilled over her shoulders as her eyes stayed on Lily – sharp, protective and beautiful.

"Beautiful"

I AM NOT LETTING THIS GO

I'm THE DAMN CAPTAIN OF THIS SHIP

FUCKING RUMORS

I'm GONNA KILL SOMEONE

“Shadowhunters are awful gossips,” Anjali said. “Let’s not waste our time with this nonsense.”

There was something in her voice. Something he couldn’t put his finger on.

No, wait I want to know what was in her voice.

But no. It couldn’t be. They weren’t dating.

YET

Rafael was sure there was something more than friendship between them. But David was polite to a fault and Max was an oblivious little shit. So, obviously nothing had happened yet.

OH MY GOD THESE TWO

But this was different. He would tolerate rumours about himself. But he would not tolerate rumours about his family.

I and Rafael will beat up the people who spread these rumors together :D

“She once told me she likes sipping tea more than drinking blood.

I-

same.

NOT THAT I DRINK BLOOD-

RAFAEL LMAO NO

"I hate her she's so annoying"

continues to daydream about her and how tall she'd be without those boots, lies to tavvy about her dating someone

Why did he do that? What was the purpose? Did he not want other people to date just because he wasn’t dating anyone?

And he calls Max oblivious.

oh class started

shit

IDC IDC I'LL STILL BE READING

LEXI AND SELENA ARE AT THE ACADEMY

JACE HYPER FIXATING ON THINGS BECAUSE HE'S BORED IS SUCH A MOOD

“David and I added rosemary to this one,” Uncle Jace wiped his hands on his apron. “It has definitely improved the taste, hasn’t it?”

“Save me,” David mouthed from behind the man.

LMAO POOR DAVID

“Empty nest syndrome,” Rafael chuckled. “I’m glad neither Max nor I had to leave home. My fathers are much worse.”

He remembered his first sleepover at the institute. His parents had waited for “an excruciating hour” before crashing the institute and joining the sleepover themselves.

yup, that's them.

“David,” Rafael grinned. “Are you afraid of my father?”

“What? No! He is the just a regular person…who can throw me in the silent city any time he wants,” David rambled and then shook his head. “Where is Max?”

He tried to sound nonchalant. But Rafael noted the way the other boy’s eyes fluttered every time he said Max’s name.

Just the way a crooked smile appeared on his brother’s lips every time someone said David’s name.

Idiots

ok, there is so much to unpack here.

DAVID HAS A VALID REASON OK??

These two are such IDIOTS HUSDUHISCUIDSVCUIHVSDUHI

“Max said Bapak is biased, and that he needs an unbiased tutor. Uncle Ragnor volunteered,” Rafael chuckled. “God bless the poor man.”

“Max isn’t that bad,” David replied.

“Looks like you’re biased too, David,” Rafael winked and picked up a spare bow from the training room.

of course, he is.

G-FORCE KJHSDCUISDYUKDFSUYKDSVYUSFD

oh shit

oh shit

WHO DID WHAT THIS TIME

what's the rumor and who do I need to kill

He didn’t know her well. But she knew a lot about him. Just as she knew a lot about the twins. She was one of those people who was oddly invested in his life just because Rafael happened to the Consul’s son.

what is her problem?

what the fuck

I need a minute

I need a minute to digest that

I'm so glad I closed my camera in class

what the actual fuck did she just say

tell me I'm hallucinating

times like these I wish I was Jared 19

no, because I'm actually speechless right now

Paige and Irene need therapy

OH SHE WENT THERE

“Paige, that’s enough!” the Dean snapped at her. “How dare you talk to him that way? You talk about warlock corruption but where all of you when Valentine exploited Jace and Clary? Where was this moral obligation when Valentine lied to his children and played with their feelings as if they were nothing but toys to be controlled and manipulated? I’m sick of shadowhunters victim blaming children instead of holding people like Valentine accountable.”

THANK YOU

SAY IT LOUDER FOR THE PEOPLE IN THE BACK SIMON

I feel like we all focus so much on the "incest" and hate on clace we forget that this part of the story was literally an abuser seeing that the victim was recovering and took the only thing which made him happy from him

I can't believe this

“Children have been suffering for a long time now, Paige,” Uncle Jace said now, his fists balled at his sides. “Where were you when Alec proposed the child protection bill? We didn’t see any of you supporting it.”

“We had other priorities,” the older woman replied. “People were dying! It was not the right time for a new law. We could have always signed that bill later. There was no rush!”

OTHER PRIORITIES MY ASS BITCH FUCK YOU

hey just realizing Rafael is the token straight

I'M SORRY IM TRYING TO DISTRACT ME

“The Cohort who made children kill themselves to prove a point?” Uncle Simon asked dryly. “That Cohort?”

I am so close to either crying or killing someone or both.

This was Max’s spot since it had the best Wi-Fi coverage.

yeah trust me I spend all the time in the guest room because it has the best wifi coverage or the study.

MAX IS SMOKING TOO

YOU FUCKING IDIOTS

oh wait

oh they might be alec's

yeah

For the next thirty minutes, Max paced around the room, threatening to portal all the shadowhunters to hell.

Then he went on about a plan to attack the cohort and portal them all to hell too.

He kept talking about portalling people to hell.

MAX YES LET'S DO IT!!!!

But here is the thing about people, they don’t get to you. You get to them.

They simply say something and leave. They probably don’t even mean the things they say or lose sleep over it. But it wasn’t the same for you. You obsess over it. You stay awake at night and let it consume your dreams.

YES! To others, it's just words. meaningless. to you, the effect can be so so deep. it's not easy to always brush them off.

NO MAGNUS

THAT'S IT

MAX AND I ARE PORTALLING PEOPLE TO HELL

WE'RE DOING IT

why do we hurt others?

my teacher: ill take a test on this chapter. all 20 units

me: softly crying because people are little shits and they hurt others.

“Fuck everyone else,” dad hissed. “They’ve hurt our family enough.”

EXACTLY. LEAVE THEM ALONE.

“I am simply being honest with you,” Dad interrupted. “I could never be okay when you are away from me. But I will manage. Max is going to raise hell though. So, that’s going to be fun.”

AS HE SHOULD

Neither Rafael nor Max would never admit it out loud, but on the day of that sleepover, on the day their parents had crashed the institute bcause they had missed the kids too much…Rafael and Max had been only a moment away from calling their parents to come pick them up.

He's right though.

it'll take time. lots of it maybe.

BUT THE ACTUAL AUDACITY.

It fucked with his mind so much.

Rafael...ALRIGHT WHERE ARE MY FLAMETHROWERS

“DAD! BAPA! WAKE UP! RAFE IS TRYING TO RUN AWAY!”

MAX REMINDS ME SO MUCH OF MY LITTLE BROTHER

He had forgotten about the bloody paperwork. Shadowhunters on their travel year had to notify the Clave and get their paperwork in order.

Well, it shouldn’t be a problem since the Clave was standing across the hall.

EXACTLY

Because it was killing him. It was killing him not to be lying on the couch, his head resting on his Bapak’s lap just like every other Saturday morning.

It was killing him not to touch, not to love, not to care.

GET MY FLAMETHROWERS AND CANNIBAL GOLDFISHES WE HAVE SOME WORK TO DO

(goddamn every class I have taken so far the teacher has told us there is a test coming up it's 9 am in the morning.)

His brother growled at that like the little feral animal that he was.

that's adorable actually.

“Fine,” Max rolled his eyes. “Does this mean I can also travel? There is a Twenty One Pilots concert in Sydney and-”

“Nice try,” Dad said. “But no. You are staying here.”

“Excuse me, but what about my healing?” Max demanded. “I’ve been traumatised by this thing.”

“You can go to therapy,” Rafael winked at this brother.

Therapy is boring but useful so-

He needed to survive this. So, he decided to go back to the place he had learned how to survive in the first place.

He needed to go back home.

UGLY CRYING WHILE TAYLOR SWIFT PLAYS IN THE BACKGROUND AND MY HISTORY CLASS IN 2 MINUTES

I'm so proud of him for this...

I still say we kill these people.

JOAQUIN AND JULIETTE

UHISDCUIHFSDUGUIDFVDSDVFJHGDFVHUKDVHUKVF

Camilla Alvarez.

well well.

OH THEY KISSED

“Right,” Rafael had said. “Gap year. Besides, I do talk them. My brother threatened to paint my room in hot pink if I don’t text him every day.”

hands max a pint of paint HAVE AT IT

Max: Also – New Rumour. Dalliance between Lily and Tavvy.

Rafe: OMFG WHAT

Max: They are running with it and freaking old n*philim out.

AS THEY SHOULD UFUHIFUIHFUIHKFU

THE CENSORED N*PHILIM I'M SCREAMING

“He is hot.”

He laughed out loud. “Yeah. I hear that a lot.”

“Your dad looks kinda scary,” she pointed out.

Rafael laughed again. “Yeah. I kinda hear that a lot too.”

I'm liking this ship...

I'M STILL LOYAL TO THE RAFAEL AND ANJALI SHIP

but I'm happy for him. I'm glad he's getting the space he needs

Dad: Jst found legal age fr drnkng in Buenos Aires is 18.

Rafe: ????

Dad: I hv friends thr.

Rafe: ???

Dad: Thy r watchn u.

Rafe: Creepy but okay.

HJSDCGUIHJGSDCYUICVXUHVUHKDV

THE BOY'S DRINKING Y'ALL

Do it

MILA IS GOING TO NY!!

I like her. she's nice.

He was leaving soon. He didn’t see the point in lying to her. “I ran away from home. Kind of.”

“Why?”

“I hurt someone I love,” Rafael confessed. “The person I love most in the world.”

honey, it wasn't your fault... hugs

Shit. Why wasn’t Bapak going to the accords signing? He had been there for every single one since the very first time.

no no no no is something wrong?? I'm worried.

“You look taller,” Rafael told his brother who hadn’t grown an inch.

LMAO

Max and I are vertically challenged.

“Rafe, go to talk to him. Or I will tell everyone you’ve been smoking in the balcony!”

So, he was going to pin this on him, huh? This little shit.

well-

“You’ve progressed from freaking to fucking,” he pointed out.

“That’s not the fucking point, Rafael!” Max said in exasperation.

“You did it again,” Rafe pinched Max’s cheek. “My little brother is all grown up now. Linguistically I mean.”

“Dick."

I CAN'T WITH THESE TWO

When he had gone back to Buenos Aires, the place was completely different - even the shadow market.

There were no abandoned children in the streets. There were no racist and ignorant leaders exploiting innocent downworlders.

There was only growth.

His father had done that. Alec Lightwood had helped Joaquin and his people create a new world in Buenos Aires.

This shows how much people can flourish under good leadership if they really try.

YOU KNOW I'M SUPPOSED TO BE TAKING THESE NOTES DOWN, NOT CRYING OVER THIS.

“I will protect our family. I will protect our friends. I will protect those who ask for my protection. But I will not tolerate their hate. I will not turn my head and pretend it doesn’t hurt. Because it does hurt and that’s not okay.”

Rafael smiled at that. “Yeah. Yeah, that’s not okay.”

“The accords is important. But so am I. There is no point in signing a treaty that is meant to value equality if I have to sign it while being surrounded by those who refuse to respect me or my identity. I simply cannot do it, Rafael. I hope you understand.”

I'm sobbing like YES YOU DONT OWE THEM SHIT. THESE UNGRATEFUL BITCHES.

“It’s taken me a while to realize this. But I don’t owe the nephilim anything,” Bapak said firmly. “It’s about time they realize that too.”

YES EXACTLY

“I’ve known shadowhunters for a long time, Rafael. Good ones. Bad ones. All kinds of them – and shadowhunters have always defined themselves by their love. Not by your weapons. Not by your runes. Not by your last names. Not by your laws. Shadowhunters have always defined themselves by love. So, don’t ever let them take that away from you.”

I want this on a T-shirt. These damn shadowhunters and their love.

“Like the Accords Hall kiss?” Rafael grinned.

“It’s the stupidest thing your father had ever done – which is really saying something,” his father laughed. “But it’s also the bravest thing I’ve ever seen him do. And that’s how I knew.”

affectionate sigh that's alec.

“Good. Max is sitting in the porch and singing All by Myself,” Tessa chuckled and closed the door. “Just thought you should know!!”

Rafael giggled at that. “He must have given you hell.”

“Nothing I couldn’t handle,” Bapak shrugged, and Rafael raised an eyebrow. “Fine. I might have promised to buy him a car when he turns 18.”

“You’re hoping he would stop aging by then, aren’t you?” Rafael chuckled.

Max is so dramatic I aspire to be like him.

Blue banners when the lost return, the shadowhunter rhythm said.

Rafael had returned home – and he was no longer lost.

I'm ok I say as I cry during my history class

I'm so proud of him.

“Well, that needs to be rectified immediately,” Dad said in the Consul Voice and literally yelled. “I am about to kiss my son – on both cheeks! You better gossip about this too!”

“Oh my god, stop!” Rafael giggled and tried to escape.

“YAS!” he heard Uncle Jace yelled from somewhere. “GIVE US A FOREHEAD KISS TOO!”

THEY ARE SO DRAMATIC I LOVE THESE IDIOTS SO MUCH.

THEM ADDING TO THE ACCORDS AS THEY SHOULD OMG

“The hell is hate speech?” someone asked.

Do you not have a dictionary you uncultured swine

“There is a very clear difference between free speech and hate speech,” Cristina Rosales pointed out. “The fact that you don’t seem to know that is all the more reason for us to include this provision.”

YES CRISTINA

“By the angel,” an old man gasped. “There is no need to be so emotional. The younger generation can be such snowflakes.”

What if I just strangles him

“Discriminatory language?” a woman demanded. “What does that even mean?”

“Calling vampires bloodsuckers,” Lily Chen answered.

“Calling warlocks demon spawns,” Ragnor Fell pointed out.

“Calling werewolves fleabags,” Maia Roberts declared.

“Calling faeries half-breeds,” Kieran Kingson all but yelled.

The fact that they have had to deal with this shit for YEARS. (also why Kingson? isn't Kieran the king?)

THE QUEEN HERSELF IS HERE Y'ALL

“Which one of you shitheads said hate speech is harmless?” Anjali demanded, her voice booming over everyone and everything else.

YES ANJALI

Anjali had a grin of her own. “While that might true, Paige, there is most certainly a law on child protection. You didn’t just hurt Magnus Bane. You also hurt his son. Section 7 of the Child Protection Bill states that any person who physically or emotionally injures a child through ill-treatment, neglect, abandonment or abuse is guilty of breaking the covenant.”

“Damn straight!” someone yelled from the crowd – it sounded suspiciously like Kit.

CALL THESE BITCHES OUT YES

“Rafael is not a child!” someone yelled again. A lot of them this time. “It’s still not illegal. The law doesn’t say so!”

“By the angel, for someone who is obsessed with the law you people seem to know nothing about it,” Anjali said in exasperation. “The child protection law defines a child as a person under 18 years OR younger. The incident happened when he was still 18. It’s illegal.”

YES ANJALI FUCK THESE PEOPLE

“I’m the Inquisitor’s daughter,” she said. “Next time, think twice before you quote the law at me.”

SHOW THEM, QUEEN

How did she know his birthday????

ahem

“So, if you do hurt him emotionally, you can still be implicated. You will face charges and you can possibly be stripped of your runes,” Anjali pointed out seriously. “Now I ask you again. Does anyone else have to say anything about him?”

There was absolute silence then.

“Didn’t fucking think so,” Anjali spat. “I literally had to mention the stripping of your marks for you to respect another person’s basic rights. If you give half the value you place on your precious runes to other people, we wouldn’t be in exile right now.”

The Cohort looked terrified – of Anjali or their future in the Clave, Rafael didn’t know.

“People are dying,” Anjali said, her voice heavy now. “Our people are fucking dying, and you seem to be more bothered with who is sleeping with whom. Shame on you. Shame on all of you!”

She turned to the Council. The Inquisitor looked like he was going to cry from pride. Rafael’s dad looked half terrified but mostly impressed. Lily was blowing kisses at Anjali. The other downworld leaders looked quite pleased.

Shadowhunters are so fucking bigoted and narrow-minded. I'm seething right now.

also, alec looking scared-

“THAT’S THE BEST SHIT I HAVE EVER SEEN IN MY ENTIRE LIFE!” Emma Carstairs yelled.

“Goddamn, I wish Magnus was here to see this,” Uncle Jace grinned. “That was satisfying as hell.”

“No worries, I recorded the whole thing!” Kit put up his hand.

YES YES AND YES

“Fuck the Cohort,” Rafael giggled.

“Actually, I would prefer you use the word screw,” his father pointed out. “Screw the Cohort!”

“Oh my god, Dad!” Rafael rolled his eyes. “I am allowed to swear once in a while.”

“No, you are not,” Dad said firmly – this man was so not ready to meet Max’s new persona. “As your friend pointed out, you are still a child.”

Alec seeing Max curse left and right: 👁️👄👁️

"She hates me!"

“Rafael, she stood up for you in front of the entire Clave. She fought the Cohort. It was incredibly brave. I wish she had spoken to me before without causing all the chaos. So, it was a little stupid of course. But still brave.”

Stupid but brave.

YESYESYESYES IT'S HAPPENING!!!

ANJALI WHO HURT YOU

WHO DARED TO

Names. Give me names NOW

Jaime no...please no not Jaime.

please please, please

ok, I searched it up. And he can get treatment. He can live. It doesn't have to be serious. please, Jaime...

“If you ever tell anyone you saw me crying, I will drag you to Idris and drown you in Lake Lyn.”

This is such an Anjali thing to say.

OOO MILLA (Mila?) MESSAGED!!! Is there gonna be some sort of love triangle here??

me who despises love triangles (aside from TID of course): ...

BUT SINCE IT'S YOU I'M SURE IT'LL BE AMAZING. I'm still nervous about this though...

UHCUHDVUKDVHUKVHUVHM I LOVED THIS CHAPTER SO SO SO SO MUCH IT WAS A LITERAL ROLLERCOASTER AND ANJALI QUEEN I LOVE

see ya on Friday!!

OKAY I AM LOVING THIS ENERGY BUT PLEASE FOCUS ON YOUR CLASSES FJKSDFHJKSJFHKD I PROMISE THE STORY IS GOING TO BE HERE WHEN YOU GET BACK LOL.

But I am so glad you like it. Amidst all your screaming and chaos, I always find very perceptive and profound observations. It's fantastic! I love it so much!

Thank you for enjoying LBAF - and good luck with your tests!!!