#SIGH….LOVE THIS FIGMENT OF MY I

[cherrylight]

have i mentioned how much i love five because i do. a lot. he means so much to me. i need to walk around in a circle and scream

[yueebby]

how i met your mother  — gojo satoru

contents. fluff, meet ugly, established relationship, highschool!gojo in flashback, gojo just loves his wife and everyone is sick of it

notes. this is apart of my indulge me series but everything can be read as a standalone!

“you forgot to give me a kiss this morning,” your husband pouts from your lap before puckering his lips out, “i’ll need a thousand more to compensate!” 

just a couple meters away from you, paper crinkles harshly as nanami, your fellow colleague, flips the page on the newspaper he’s reading. you hear a heavy sigh leave his lips.  “i missed it when you both hated each other,” he readjusts his glasses with one hand tiredly. he’s disappointed, but not surprised with satoru’s behavior.

this comment causes itadori, who happened to be hanging out in the teacher’s lounge to perk up.

“gojo-sensei and gojo-san hated each other?” he sits up straight on the couch. the pink haired boy looks between you and satoru, who is purring happily as you play with his hair. “i can’t imagine that..” he mumbles quietly. he was, unfortunately, a first hand witness of gojo’s love for you.

the white haired male that was comfortably nestled in your lap looks up at you, “ah! she tried so hard to resist my charms, but this handsome face won in the end!” his loud boast leads you to cover his mouth with the palm of your hand.

“that couldn’t be farther from the truth,” you press your palm harder against his mouth, determined to silence his protests. 

nanami easily ignores his senior’s muffled whines while itadori looks at his sensei in pity. marriage must be tough, he thinks.

you only lift your hand off of his mouth with a shriek when satoru decides to lick your palm. he smirks proudly at himself causing the other two males in the room to grimace at the strange display of affection. 

“darling, you hated me?” his eyes blink up at you innocently, blue eyes on full display. you purse your lips together, resisting whatever game he was playing at. from the moment you stepped into the lounge with him, he insisted on taking his blindfold off. he argues that he has to see you with his own eyes or he’ll die. you argue that he’s dramatic. nonetheless, satoru was cute so you’ll let him get away with it. 

“hate is a strong word– i just didn’t like you very much. we got off on the wrong foot, might i remind you.” 

2005 — year one at tokyo jujutsu tech

meet at 1 chome-1-1 dogenzaka, shibuya city, tokyo

that was written in the letter addressed to you from yaga. the bustling streets of tokyo, filled with the cacophony of hundreds of conversations and the rush of oncoming traffic, were a stark contrast to the serene country life you had enjoyed. 

the sheer mass of people in the street made it nearly impossible for you to spot your teacher and future classmates, but the heavens above must be on your side because you spot a dark uniform in the corner of your eye, similar to the one you’re wearing.

a jujutsu tech uniform! without wasting a second, you weave your way through the crowd to the tall figure. upon closer inspection, you find that it was a boy with snow hair, a juxtaposition to the dark fabric of his uniform.

“excuse me, but are you by any chance from–” you tap on the abnormally tall frame from behind.

“not interested.” he doesn’t spare you a glance before walking away. it takes you a minute to process what had just happened. did he just–? that must have been a figment of your imagination. you feel as though you were shell shocked.

another voice joins the conversation, “oh, gojo, you found her.” it was another guy with a uniform just like the white haired boy and yours. he has notable bangs, you think. 

“did i? she must be a real weakling. i couldn’t even sense her cursed energy,” gojo now turns back to look at you.

a surge of irritation courses through you, your grip on your skirt tightening. this guy must be some spoiled brat that came from a special lineage. you shoot him a sharp glare from the corner of your eyes, only to find out that he too had a sharp gaze on you.

a low whistle comes out of his mouth. 

 “oh,” there is a noticeable change in the tone of his voice. from your peripheral vision, you notice him take off his round sunglasses. “hey.”  you want to laugh.

out of pure pettiness, you recycle his previous comment, “not interested.”

thankfully, another student arrived, this time it was a girl with short brown hair. she waved at you politely, to which you happily smiled. it was nice to know that there were some people left in this world with manners.

soon after her arrival, yaga comes.

“hello, i’m [last name] [first name] from kyoto. please take care of me!” you bow before everyone but gojo or whatever his name is. you come to find out that mr. bangs is actually geto and the pretty girl is ieiri.

“you didn’t tell me she was hot,” gojo not-so-quietly whispers to geto. the hand over his mouth is in vain because you can still hear him clearly. both ieiri and geto make a distasteful face. 

you look around confused. it’s not everyday you receive such a brash compliment, “...thank you?” 

there’s a slightly horrified look on gojo’s face when he realizes that you had heard him, but he recovers quickly, replacing it with a cheshire grin.

“say, have you been to shinjuku? i’m sure a country bumpkin like you wouldn’t know, so allow me to–” 

there’s only so much patience in your body. with a deep breath and your best passive aggressive smile, you utter, “no thanks.” 

he blinks. once. twice. you assume he is not used to rejection with the way he has yet to process it. 

a soft chuckle leaves his mouth, “playing hard to get, i see. i like a challenge.”

“that’s not really the case.”

“one date,” he announces with a playful smirk, raising a single finger in emphasis.

you’re on the verge of shaking your head in rejection, but before you can, yaga intervenes, swiftly and unceremoniously slapping the back of gojo’s head.

“kids these days,” he mutters under his breath while gojo rubs the wound painfully. you snicker.

gojo straightens up when the sound of your laughs reaches his ears. his eyes track the sound waves back to your face, only to be disappointed when he sees that your attention is on geto. 

unlike gojo, geto was trying to salvage what was left of a good first impression. the black haired male smiles awkwardly, leading you away from his strange friend, “so you’re from kyoto? why didn’t you attend the jujutsu tech there?”

from behind you, there’s an incredulous, “eh? and lose a beauty like that to the kyoto guys?” 

you’re nearly certain that a blood vessel is about to pop. but you swallow your frustration, choosing to answer the only sensible boy you’ve met today.

“i’m trying to avoid clan matters, so kyoto is the last place i want to be,” you explain to geto who nods understandingly. 

what you don’t see is the sneaky wink he sends back at a fuming satoru.

2018 — present day

your recollection must not have been accurate, because your husband is sulking by the end of your story. 

“hmph. that’s not how i remember it.” he crosses his arm with a huff.

“how do you remember it? do tell.” you look down at him. there’s a cheeky glint in his eyes, like you’ve just walked into his trap.

there’s a cheeky glint in his eyes, like you’ve just walked into his trap. “i remembered cherry blossoms falling and more hearts floating around,”

you smack his shoulder.

“be serious!”

he waves his hand in the air to stop your playful attacks, “fine, fine!” 

you know that he’s secretly enjoying the attention.

“well, i’m quite the looker so it was common for girls to constantly gush over me y’know?” he grins. you did not find that amusing, retracting your hands from his hair. he immediately grabs your hand and places it back on his head.

“let me finish!”

you resume your handiwork on his head reluctantly. “go on.”

there’s a content smile on his face, “i thought you were just trying to hit on me! it was only after i took a good look at you, i realized that you were totally hot.”

“i can’t believe i married you.” you roll your eyes, but there is no malice behind the action.

“hah–” his mouth is wide open. “i’m a total catch, ya’ know?!” 

“mhm, yeah. you are a catch toru,” you coo while pinching his cheek and he blushed furiously. 

the two of you are too engrossed with each other to notice the horrified look that has settled on nanami’s face. one peaceful afternoon, he thinks. one peaceful afternoon is all he asks for.

extra notes- 

yuji respects gojo as his teacher, but he still can’t believe that gojo was able to pull you.

there have been multiple occasions where you had forgotten to give satoru a goodmorning kiss, each time he finds you and forces you to actually give him a dozen to compensate. it doesn’t matter if he was on a mission or teaching (he’s annoying like that).

gojo’s the pride of the gojo clan so he was spoiled rotten, hence the reason why he was so sure you were into him.

this is only the start, as your high school years go by, he only falls harder.

[pucksandpower]

Fairytale

Charles Leclerc x Princess of Monaco!Reader

Summary: Charles Leclerc has everything he could ask for (off the track, at least) including a fairytale romance … except no one actually believes that his girlfriend is really his girlfriend

Charles sighs as he walks into the drivers’ lounge, bracing himself for the inevitable teasing. Ever since he had casually mentioned having a girlfriend, and more specifically who the girlfriend in question is, his friends have been merciless.

“Wow, if it isn’t Prince Charles in the flesh! Back from another romantic getaway with his imaginary princess,” Max laughs as he enters.

“Come on mates, lay off,” Charles pleads half-heartedly. He knows it is useless.

“I just don’t get it,” Lando chimes in. “There’s no shame in admitting that you’re single. We’re racing drivers, we don’t exactly always have time for relationships.”

“Maybe his standards are too high,” Pierre suggests. “He’s actually holding out for real royalty or something.”

The others laugh as Charles feels his face grow warm. If only they believed him.

“You know what you need?” Carlos grins. “A nice Spanish girl to set you up with. My sister’s friend Elena is single, I could give you her number.”

Charles rolls his eyes. “I told you, I have a girlfriend. Why is that so hard to believe?”

“Because we’ve never seen her!” Max exclaims. “You talk about her all the time but she never comes to races or appears in photos. She might as well be a unicorn.”

“Maybe she’s just embarrassed to be seen with Charles,” Lando teases.

Charles frowns, stung by Lando’s words. If only they knew the truth. The reality is that his girlfriend is extremely famous in her own right and values the little privacy she has left too much to be seen at races. Her life is already public enough without adding the scrutiny that anyone connected to a Formula 1 driver inevitably receives on top of it. Besides, she has her own royal duties to attend to.

“Come on guys, that’s unfair,” Pierre says gently, noticing Charles’ discomfort. “If Charles says he has a girlfriend, we should believe him.”

“Thank yo—” Charles starts to say with relief. At least someone is on his side.

“Even if she is imaginary,” Pierre adds with a smirk.

Charles groans and puts his head in his hands as the laughter starts up again. He can’t really blame them for not believing him.

You are basically a fairytale princess — beautiful, elegant, and kind. Not to mention an actual member of the royal family. Her Serene Highness Princess Y/N Grace Stephanie Caroline of Monaco is the type of girl people write epic poems and songs about. Charles can hardly believe his luck that you had chosen him.

“Alright, that’s enough,” Daniel interrupts, taking pity on Charles. “Leave the poor man alone.”

“We’re just joking,” Max says defensively. “Charles knows we don’t mean anything by it.”

Charles gives Max a tight smile. “Sure.”

“Tell you what,” Daniel says, clapping Charles on the shoulder. “Bring your mystery girl to a race soon. We’ll all get to meet her and then you can finally prove these jokers wrong.”

Charles sighs. If only it were that simple. You have been tempted to attend races in the past but the scrutiny both of them would come under is just too much. You treasure the privacy your relationship allows. But maybe Daniel is right. Maybe it is time for you to finally meet his friends. After all, you are the love of his life. There is nothing to hide.

“Alright, deal,” Charles says finally. “I’ll ask her.”

The others exchange surprised looks, not expecting him to agree.

“Can’t wait to meet her,” Carlos says with a wink.

Charles rolls his eyes again but smiles. One way or another, he is going to prove to them that his amazing girlfriend isn’t just a figment of his imagination.

***

Charles is still thinking about you when he is suddenly accosted by Silvia, Ferrari’s Head of Communications, after practice.

“Charles! Just who I was looking for,” she says briskly. “I need to discuss something rather important with you.”

Charles suppresses a groan. Conversations with Silvia are never fun. “What’s up?” He asks with forced cheerfulness.

Silvia lowers her voice. “It’s about your relationship status. We feel it would be beneficial if you were seen dating someone … compatible.”

Charles’ eyebrows shoot up. “Compatible?”

“Yes. A model. Or perhaps an actress. Someone who would look good on your arm and boost your image.”

Charles folds his arms defensively. “What’s wrong with my girlfriend?”

Silvia waves a hand impatiently. “Yes yes, this alleged princess you keep mentioning. The problem, Charles, is that no one has seen her. No one knows if she is actually connected to you in any way. So, as far as we are concerned, for all intents and purposes, you are single.”

Charles frowns. This again. “I keep telling you that she’s really my girlfriend. Y/N is just very private.”

“Private women don’t date Formula 1 drivers,” Silvia says bluntly. “If she really was in a relationship with you, she would be here. But since that is clearly a figment of your imagination, we need to take steps.”

Charles feels his blood boil. How dare Silvia insult his relationship with Y/N? Question their connection?

“Here are profiles of suitable options,” Silvia continues, shoving a surprisingly heavy folder at him. Charles doesn’t open it.

“No.”

Silvia blinks. “No?”

“My relationship with Y/N is off limits,” Charles says firmly. “My personal life is exactly that — personal. Not to be exploited for PR.”

“Don’t be foolish,” Silvia snaps. “This is bigger than you. Your image reflects on Ferrari. We need to be able to control it.”

“No. What you need to do is back off,” Charles shoots back.

Silvia’s nostrils flare. Clearly she isn’t used to such defiance. “Charles, be reasonable—”

“I am being reasonable,” Charles interrupts. “I won’t pretend to date someone just because the team wants me to. I’m with Y/N. I don’t care if you believe me or not.”

Silvia shakes her head in disgust. “You’re making a big mistake. Don’t come crying to me when this blows up in your face.”

She storms off, heels clicking angrily against the floor.

Charles takes a deep breath, adrenaline pumping through his veins. He can’t remember the last time he stood up to Silvia like that. It felt good but also nerve-wracking. He knows she won’t let this go easily.

His phone buzzes and his heart leaps when he sees it’s a text from you.

Heard you had a rough day. Wish I could be there to make it better. I love you 💋

Charles smiles, the tension in his shoulders easing. You always knew just what to say and when to say it.

He quickly types back.

I wish you were here too. No matter what anyone says, they can’t change my feelings for you. I love you so much ❤️

He hits send, imagining your smile as you read his text. It doesn’t matter what his team, the media, or even his fellow drivers think. His relationship with you is real and authentic. Someday he’ll find a way for you to be by his side. But for now, your private moments together are enough.

Charles knows staying with you is the right decision, PR be damned. You are his soulmate — the fairytale princess he never expected to find but thanks God every single day that he did. Your love is worth fighting for. And someday, when the time is right, he’ll finally be able to show the world that what you have together is very real.

***

Charles groans as he notices multiple missed calls from his brothers. He has been avoiding their calls lately, knowing they would just tease him mercilessly about his girlfriend. But he knows he can’t dodge them forever.

Taking a deep breath, he calls Arthur back.

“Well, well, well, if it isn’t Prince Charles himself, taking time away from his busy schedule of dating princesses to spare a chat with us commoners,” Arthur says slyly upon answering.

Charles rolls his eyes. “Very funny. What do you want?”

“We just wanted to check in on our brother and see how life with Monegasque royalty is treating you,” Lorenzo chimes in. Charles realizes he must be on speaker.

“Oh yes, Princess Y/N,” Arthur says in an exaggerated swoony voice. “Our brother’s one true love since he was 15 years old and had that giant poster of her plastered on his wall.”

Charles feels his face flush. He knows exactly what poster Arthur is referencing — a stunning photo of you in a ballgown from a high society event years ago. Teenage Charles has ripped it out of a magazine and hung it up reverently in his room, gazing at it longingly.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” he sputters. “I never had a poster.”

“Oh really?” Lorenzo laughs. “I seem to recall you cutting out every picture you could find of her and keeping a little scrapbook.”

Charles cringes internally. Okay, maybe his teenage obsession had been a bit … enthusiastic. But he can’t help that he had recognized you as his dream girl even then.

“Alright, so maybe I had a tiny crush on her,” Charles admits. “But it is not crazy that we ended up together.”

Arthur cackles. “You used to kiss her photos goodnight before going to bed! You were completely obsessed!”

“Remember how he tried to sneak into that royal gala at Salle des Etoiles to see her?” Lorenzo adds. “He was totally insane.”

Charles grimaces at the memory. Okay, not his finest moment.

“Face it Charles, you’ve been in love with the imaginary idea of Princess Y/N since you were in nappies,” Arthur teases. “No shame in admitting she wouldn't even give you the time of day now.”

Charles feels his frustration rising. Why does no one believe him?

“Because your so-called relationship makes no sense!” Lorenzo says, accurately reading his silence. “She’s a literal princess and you’re … you.”

“Gee, thanks,” Charles grumbles. He knows his brothers are just teasing but it still stings.

“Come on, just admit you made the whole thing up to get everyone off your back,” Arthur prods.

Charles sighs loudly. “For the millionth time, what we have is 100 percent real! Just because it seems unlikely doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. I don’t care if none of you believe me, I love her and she loves me.”

His brothers are silent for a moment.

“You alright there?” Arthur asks, his voice softening.

“Yes, I just wish everyone would stop questioning my relationship all the time,” Charles admits. “It hurts.”

“We’re only joking Charles, we don’t mean any harm,” Lorenzo says gently.

“I know,” Charles replies. “Doesn’t make it any easier to hear constantly though.”

“You’re right, we took the teasing too far,” Arthur says. “We’ll lay off from now on.”

Charles smiles slightly. “Thanks. And someday soon I will prove to you that it is real.”

His brothers are silent for a moment.

“Keep telling yourself that,” Arthur finally laughs.

Charles groans and runs a hand through his hair in frustration. Clearly nothing he says would convince his stubborn brothers that his relationship with you was real and not merely a childhood fantasy.

“Alright, well, I should get going,” Charles mumbles, eager to get off the phone.

“Chin up, we’re only teasing,” Lorenzo says lightly. “Have fun with your imaginary princess!”

Arthur and Lorenzo explode into more laughter as Charles quickly hangs up, his face burning. Someday, he will prove to them and everyone else that his amazing girlfriend isn’t just a figment of his imagination. No matter how long it takes.

***

Charles sinks into the familiar couch in his sports psychologist’s office, exhausted after a long day on the simulator and endless teasing from his team.

“Rough day out there?” Dr. Anderson asks kindly, noticing the strain on Charles’ face.

“That’s an understatement,” Charles sighs. “The car is just so slow this year. We keep trying new setups and tweaks but nothing helps. And the strategy is somehow even worse than the pace. It’s like the team wants me to fail.”

Dr. Anderson nods sympathetically. “That must be very frustrating. Tell me more about how it’s impacting you.”

Charles launches into a tirade about the endless issues with the car, the incompetent strategists, and the lack of proper communication from his engineers. Dr. Anderson listens patiently, letting him vent his pent-up anger and disappointment.

After a lengthy rant, Charles finally runs out of steam. “Anyway, it’s just been a terrible season,” he concludes glumly.

“I can certainly understand why you feel that way,” Dr. Anderson says. “It sounds like the team is letting you down in many ways.”

Charles nods, feeling some of the tension leave his shoulders after unloading. It helps to talk about it with someone whose job is not to judge.

“Is there anything else bothering you lately?” Dr. Anderson asks gently. “Any other sources of stress?”

Charles hesitates. He and Dr. Anderson have been working together for years, ever since he joined Ferrari. He knows he can open up to her.

“It’s just … well, besides the team stuff, no one believes me about my girlfriend,” he admits.

Dr. Anderson raises her eyebrows. “I see. Tell me more about that.”

Charles explains the endless teasing from his fellow drivers, the manipulation attempts by the PR team, and the doubtful reactions from his own family. How despite his best efforts, no one seems willing to accept that he is really dating Princess Y/N of Monaco.

“It’s so frustrating!" He bursts out at the end. “I don’t know what else I can do to convince them that we are actually together.”

Dr. Anderson purses her lips, jotting down notes. “I can understand why their doubt would upset you. It must be painful to have your relationship questioned.”

“Exactly!" Charles exclaims, throwing his hands up. “You get it. I knew I could talk to you.”

Dr. Anderson gives him a sympathetic smile.

Charles leaves the appointment feeling much better, confident that his psychologist believes him and is on his side.

As he is exiting, Charles notices Dr. Anderson’s notebook left open on her desk. Before he can stop himself, his eyes scan the page and focus on his name.

He feels his heart sink as he reads.

Charles Leclerc: deflecting from pain of difficult season by creating elaborate fantasy relationship. Fixation on celebrity crush indicates deeper self-esteem issues. Recommend to confront delusion directly in next session.

Charles reels, shock and anger swirling through him. Not even his own psychologist believes him! She thinks he is living in some weird fantasy.

Swallowing the bitter taste in his mouth, Charles straightens his shoulders and walks out. He has never felt more alone and frustrated in his conviction. But he refuses to give up. No matter what anyone says, his love for you is real. And one day, somehow, he will prove it to the world.

***

Charles is back at his family home in Monaco during a rare few days off. He is puttering around the kitchen while his mother cooks dinner.

“Oh, by the way, Y/N is coming over for dinner tonight,” Charles mentions casually. “I want you all to finally meet her.”

Pascale laughs lightly without looking up from the stove. “Of course, sweetie.”

Charles frowns. “I’m serious, maman. She’ll be here in an hour.”

“Mhmm, I’m sure she will,” Pascale replies indulgently. Charles huffs in annoyance.

Just then, his brothers come into the kitchen, freshly showered after playing football outside.

“Hey Charles, how’s life with your imaginary girlfriend?” Lorenzo immediately teases.

“She’s actually coming over for dinner tonight,” Charles says tersely.

Arthur lets out a loud laugh. “Yeah right! Good one.” He grabs a piece of bread from the counter, still chuckling.

Charles throws his hands up in exasperation. “Why does no one ever believe me about her?”

“Boys, that’s enough,” Pascale chides gently. “Let your brother dream.”

Charles opens his mouth to retort but just then, the doorbell rings. His eyes widen.

“I’ll get it!" He yells, dashing for the door. He takes a deep breath before swinging it open to reveal you standing there casually in jeans and a sweater, looking effortlessly gorgeous.

“Surprise!" You laugh, pulling him into a tight hug. Charles melts into your embrace, all his stress and frustration fading away.

“You have no idea how happy I am to see you right now,” he murmurs into your hair.

You pull back to smile at him tenderly. “I’ve been looking forward to this for ages. I want your family to know how much I love you.”

Charles grins and takes your hand, leading your into the kitchen where his stunned family waits.

Pascale’s mouth is hanging open in shock. The piece of bread Arthur is holding falls to the floor with a dull thump.

“Y-your Serene Highness,” Pascale finally manages to stammer out, hastily wiping her hands on a towel. “What an honor, we weren’t expecting you ...”

She shoots an accusatory look at Charles, who throws up his hands defensively. “I told you she was coming!”

Pascale flushes. “Yes, well, I didn’t think … that is … we would have prepared ...”

You step forward gracefully, immediately putting Pascale at ease. “Please, just call me Y/N. I’ve been dying to meet Charles’ family.”

As you effortlessly charm his mother and brothers, Charles stands back watching with a satisfied smile. The shock and sheepishness on his family’s faces is vindicating after so many months of teasing and disbelief.

Charles has never been one to say “I told you so” but … I told you so.

***

The cheers of the crowd are deafening as the chequered flag waves for Charles at the Monaco Grand Prix. He can hardly believe it — finally, a win at his home race!

As he pulls into parc fermé and jumps out of the car, the emotions hit him. Pure elation at ending the long wait for a home victory. Relief at overcoming the team’s doubts. But most of all, excitement for what comes next.

The podium ceremony.

And with the Monegasque royal family presenting the trophies as usual, Charles knows exactly who will be handing him the winner’s trophy.

He can barely stand still through the anthems, eager for his moment with you. The weekend has been agony, so close to you yet having to pretend that there is nothing between the two of you.

But not anymore.

At last, the royal family walks onto the podium led by none other than Princess Y/N. Charles’ heart skips a beat at the sight of you gliding towards him in a figure-hugging red midi dress, sunlight glinting off your carefully styled hair. You somehow manage to become more and more beautiful every time he sees you.

Stopping in front of him, you give him a subtle wink before launching into the customary congratulatory speech. Charles nods along, not hearing a word as he zones out while admiring the stunning woman he gets to call his own.

At last, you turn to pick up the trophy. “It is my honor to present this trophy to our victor, who represents Monaco with pride in everything he does, Charles Leclerc,” you announce, holding it out to him with a brilliant smile.

In that moment, Charles throws all caution to the wind. As he accepts the trophy, he reaches out and pulls you into a passionate kiss.

The crowd below erupts in shocked cheers and screams. You melt into the kiss for a blissful moment before gently pulling back, your eyes sparkling. Charles grins at you breathlessly.

“Worth the wait?” He murmurs.

“Absolutely,” you whisper back, squeezing his hand. “I’m so proud of you, mon amour.”

Turning back to the roaring crowd, Charles wraps an arm around your waist and thrusts your linked hands into the air in triumph.

Looking out at the paddock, Charles sees the priceless dumbfounded looks on his fellow drivers’ faces. The Ferrari PR team looks ready to pass out in horror. Reporters are screaming questions and snapping photos frantically.

But Charles only has eyes for the radiant princess at his side. At long last, he has made your love public for the whole world to see.

Later, after celebrations around the circuit have started winding down in favor of moving to lounges and clubs for the night, Charles and you escape for a private moment together.

“That was quite the reveal,” you say with an amused quirk of your eyebrow.

Charles laughs. “I know, subtlety has never been my strong suit. I hope you don’t mind.”

You caress his face tenderly. “Of course not. I’m happy to finally be by your side. No more hiding.”

Charles kisses you deeply, all the love and longing of the past months pouring into it.

When you finally break apart, foreheads touching, he murmurs, “No more doubts. No more teasing. They all know now that you’re real and all mine.”

“Forever yours,” you whisper back. And seal it with another perfect kiss.

***

“I can’t believe it. I just … actually can’t believe it,” Max mutters, staring at the large screens around the paddock that are showing you and Charles gazing adoringly into each other’s eyes during the post-race interviews.

“Lord Perceval … dating an actual princess,” Carlos muses in disbelief.

“And not just any princess, his teenage celebrity crush!" Lando exclaims.

“I guess we owe him an apology,” Pierre says sheepishly.

“Big time,” Daniel agrees. “We gave him so much crap for making her up.”

“Speak of the devil,” Max mutters as Charles strides into the room, hand-in-hand with you.

An awkward silence descends on the group. Charles clears his throat, enjoying their obvious discomfort.

“I believe you all know my girlfriend, Her Serene Highness Y/N Grace Stephanie Caroline, Hereditary Princess of Monaco and Marquise of Baux. But you can just call her Your Serene Highness or Princess Y/N,” he says politely.

The guys mumble greetings, not quite meeting your eyes. You smile graciously. “You can just call me Y/N. Any friend of Charles is a friend of mine and there’s no need for titles around friends.”

Charles narrows his eyes. “Actually I don’t think that will be necessary. I believe they should maintain protocol and address you properly.”

You shoots him a look. “Darling, it’s fine, really. I want your friends to feel comfortable around me.”

But Charles crosses his arms, not budging. “No, it’s not fine. I must insist that they observe the formal mode of address for royalty.”

The drivers shift awkwardly again. You pull Charles aside with a soothing smile.

“What are you doing?” You whisper. “I’m trying to put them at ease.”

“I know but they deserve to squirm for a bit after how much they mocked us,” Charles whispers back petulantly.

You bite back a smile. “Don’t be silly. I know their teasing hurt but let’s move past it. Can you really blame them for thinking it sounds like a made up fairytale? Put yourself in their shoes.”

Charles sighs. “I guess you’re right ... I just want them to respect you.”

“They will, in time,” you say gently. “But forcing them to be overly formal won’t accomplish that. I’m still just me.”

Charles nods reluctantly. “Okay fine, we’ll do it your way.”

You turn back to the drivers who are trying to act natural and pretending that they didn’t just listen in on your conversation with a bright smile. “I’ve heard so much about all of you,” you say. “Charles speaks very highly of his fellow drivers.”

“We’re, uh, happy to finally meet you too,” Max manages to get out.

“Yeah, congrats mate,” Daniel offers weakly.

More awkward silence follows. Charles smirks, deciding to twist the knife a bit more.

“I know you all had your doubts about me landing a catch like Y/N,” he says casually. “But I can’t blame you. Even I can hardly believe someone so incredible would fall for me.”

He gazes at you adoringly as you blush prettily while the drivers fidget uneasily.

“Anyway, as you can now see, she’s real and we are happier than ever!" Charles concludes brightly.

“We’re really sorry for not believing you,” Lando bursts out sincerely. “And all the teasing.”

The others chime in with apologies and congratulations. Charles graciously accepts, reassuring them no hard feelings.

After you have throughly charmed them all and departed, the group surrounds Charles excitedly.

“Alright, you have to give us all the details,” Max demands. “How did you meet? How did you get her to go out with you? When did it get serious?”

Charles just laughs. “It’s a long story. But the important thing is that she’s the only one for me. Despite everyone doubting us, our love was real from the start.”

“Pretty epic to have a real life princess as your soulmate,” Pierre says dreamily.

“Just remember you knew me back when you all thought she was imaginary,” Charles jokes.

“We’ll never live it down,” Carlos groans goodnaturedly.

Charles smiles, feeling lighter and happier than he has in ages. The long struggle to prove himself has been worth it. Now he has everything — the win, the girl, and the utter shock and joy of proving to the world that even his wildest dreams can come true.

And this is only the beginning for him and his beloved princess.

[ssahotchnerr]

hi my love!! how are you?🩷

i saw your requests are open and i wanted to ask for more jealous!aaron if you’re up for it! maybe one of the girls (probably jj or penelope) set up reader on a date and they are talking about it on the jet ride home from a case. she’s not too sure about it but wants to give it a chance…rossi and derek are hyping her up too maybe! and our man aaron is just watching thinking he’s lost his chance but little does he know she’s only going to try and get him out of her mind.

wishful thinking

these kinda plots >>> 💓 cw; bau!reader, sooo much mutual pining (they're both idiots), a touch of jealous!aaron, slight angst wc; 1k

part two

You weren't being too subtle.

As the others were settling down, getting situated for the ride home, your priorities laid elsewhere; admiring Aaron and the handsome, beautiful, handsome features he possessed.

The way his cowlicks were tousled gently over his forehead, just begging to swept back. His chiseled jawline, one your hand yearned to span across. His enviously long eyelashes. His lips-

Penelope suddenly sitting next to you pulled you from your trance, causing you to jump. It had been one of those rare instances she was needed in the field, offering her specialities on sight rather than stationed back in Quantico.

The expression she bared was rather eager, complete with a pair of googly eyes.

You laughed shakily, a faint blush creeping onto your cheeks - hoping your longing stare hadn't actually gone noticed, "May I help you?"

"So," Her grin widened, "are you excited!?"

You grimaced slightly as your mood instantly deflated. You uneasily crossed a leg over the other, "I don't know."

"Excited for what?" Morgan inputted from above; headphones in hand, twirling the headband in a circle around his index finger.

You offered a sigh in response, so Penelope took the initiative to answer for you.

"You know James Cameron? From Homeland Security?"

"Yeah, what about him?"

"He's expressed quite the interest in our fellow crime fighter." Penelope's excited grin turned back towards yourself, also nudging you with an elbow. "And so I've honorably claimed the role of Cupid and someone," More wistful eyes pointed at you, "has a date Saturday night."

"He's a catch." JJ expressed enthusiastically, dramatizing a swoon as she sat across from the two of you. "Tall, dark, handsome."

"I can vouch I've heard nothing but good things about him." Morgan teasingly ruffled the hair on the top of your head, "Way to go kid."

You offered a meek smile, squirming ever so slightly in your seat. It took everything in you to not let your gaze drift back elsewhere. "Thanks but... I'm not so sure I want to go."

"What's not to be sure about? He's smokin', successful. It'll be good for you, too. When's the last time you put yourself out there?" JJ pointed out, arching an eyebrow in emphasis.

You shrugged, your chin landing in your palm.

Clearly you couldn't go into the specifics; the truth being you had your eyes on someone else. A particular boss you all shared, sitting just a few feet away.

The whole dating scene, you've been hesitant due to said feelings. The only reason you had truly considered going out - was to get Aaron out of your mind. You've spent countless, sleepless nights thinking about him, picking apart every little interaction; the way he looked at you after you had a breakthrough at a profile, admirable enough to make you want to burst at the seams. Walking alongside him, hands centimeters apart, softly grazing his skin. The concern he showed following an unfortunate brawl with an unsub - he had almost reached out to cradle your face. But, all of which could have been entirely figments of your imagination. Wishful thinking.

But regardless, they had given you the slightest amount of hope. Which is why you waited, but you couldn't do so forever; the probability of you and him - highly unlikely.

You had two choices; to continue holding out for the impossible, or to pursue the realistic.

You peered over at Aaron, consumed entirely by the file in his lap. It didn't appear he was paying attention, and that stung. All things considered.

The truth is, he was, and disliking every single bit of it. While it looked as if he were working, he was merely scribbling on a scrap piece of paper, enough to wear it down and produce a hole; silently brooding and anxiously waiting to hear where the conversation went. The more it carried on, however, the more jealousy burned in the middle of his chest. The two of you were close, you understood him like no one else, but that itself was the issue.

He feared if you got too close, if you really, really knew him, he would damage you somehow. Or worse, you'd end up similarly to Haley - unsatisfied and yearning to leave him behind. And so, he had refrained from being proactive.

In addition, right now, part of him didn't know what hurt more; the fact you were going on a date with someone who wasn't him, or the fact that you hadn't mentioned it.

"I say go for it." Dave offered, "Trust me. I am an expert, after all."

Emily bust out laughing, "Okay."

"What do you think?" You asked over their laughter, your voice detrimentally small. "Hotch?"

Aaron's head lifted, his eyes immediately latching onto yours. It kept circling in his head; You missed your chance. You're missing your chance.

Despite the ongoing internal conflict, one he could resolve in a few simple words, he panicked.

"I don't see a reason not to." He rushed out, your heart plummeting into your stomach at his words. "Of course, don't do anything you're not comfortable with. But there's no harm in seeing if there's a connection."

Even as he spoke, he didn't sound like himself - as if someone else were doing the talking. Extremely feigned, forced. Speaking from his mind rather than his heart.

"Okay," You bit your lip, looking directly at him as you spoke. "I will."

As the others switched topics, your eyes stayed with Aaron's. A silent exchange drifted between the two of you, Spencer's current tangent seemingly miles away. Hurt, betrayal, a touch of something else too.

You exhaled deeply, turning to look out your window.

Whatever it was, it didn't matter now. Did it?

[monzamash]

easy to please lando norris x you rating – mature (sexual themes, coarse language) blurb for ✨monzamusings✨

thinking about u, the text read. above it, there was a photo – dark, a little bit blurry, possibly a figment of your weary imagination. a hand pressing down on black cotton, tanned and veiny – a hand you immediately recognised. fingers too, gripping the thin material and an outline that had you sitting up in bed, lazy smile slipping across your flushed cheeks as the picture came into focus. lip bitten. baby, was all you sent in reply. your eyelids fluttered shut momentarily, loosing the battle to sleep until you felt your phone buzzing, resting in your slack hand. they were coming thick and fast and bringing you back into the present. your fingers tingled from the sensation when you held it up and nearly dropped the bright screen on your squinting forehead. don’t baby me i miss u can i call please???? winky face emoji.

you sighed sharply into the plush pillow beside your head, wondering whether or not you had the energy for it. the appetite was always there. hell – all you could think about was him; even in the mundane moments, he was everywhere you looked – your work, your friends, the cheesy rom com that made you cry before wrapping yourself up in a blanket and falling asleep. you missed him. the back and forth, the will they won’t they bullshit nearly sending you into a spiral of complete and utter confusion. the future was uncertain; the distance between where you were and wherever he was in the world unbearable but what you did know was that you loved him, missed him. and he was yours.

heartbreakingly so. alright romeo but make it quick always am hehe. dickhead.

the phone call connected after one, maybe half a ring – there was no pretence anymore with you and lando. this was routine now, the late night calls across oceans, and it was always the same. whispered, i miss you's and i love you's, strangled moans, hands frantically chasing the high of what you knew felt like heaven together, by whatever means necessary, the best dirty talk you could ever imagine, barely tiding you over until you could be close enough to feel each other again.

“hi pretty girl.”

“hi boyfriend”

“ugh, i love it when you call me that. say it again…”

and you did, over and over until the late night giggles took hold and lando couldn’t breathe – the goofy smile scrunching the corners of his dry eyes, fatigue and exhaustion lingering in his hoarse voice.

“you should be sleeping.”

“i would be if you were here,” he stated matter of fact, not even a blinking, “i think i got used to having you with me over winter break… spoiled me too much and now i'm ruined for life.”

“so dramatic.”

“i’m being so real,” he yawned and by the soft grumble on the other end, he was definitely stretching out his sore, weary muscles like cat. there was a beat and a click of the tongue before lando spoke again, the ominous silence already making your eyes playfully roll.

“so… what are you wearing right now?”

“unbelievable…”

“you cant blame a man for asking, especially in my hour of need… show me pleeeeease” lando whined, toothy smile no doubt lining his chapped lips.

“what if I’m not wearing anything?” you taunted, snapping a quick photo and sending it through without a second thought.

lando quickly peaked, side-eyeing the screen sneakily and sighed when he realised you were pulling his chain, “i'm wearing some shirt you left behind because it’s hotter than satan's asshole here in london at the moment.”

he groaned more to himself than to you, eyes scanning your curves under the thin material, fixated on how unconstricted you were under the shirt he recognised, breasts pert. lando was restless and you really did deserve more than the desperado ‘what are you wearing’ pick up line but god, he wanted to know, no, he needed to know because if he didn't find out, he feared he may never recover.

after all, it was you that had him sick in love. and perpetually horny.

“think i might like you in my clothes more than naked…"

“you’re a sicko.”

“mmm you make me like this… and no bra, like are you trying to kill me?”

“always.”

you cupped your chest over his shirt and took another photo, teasing the gorgeous man waiting for your every move with bated breath. he’d sucked in his bottom lip, you could hear by how shallow his breathing had become, reminiscent of a panting dog – the sound alone quickened your heart rate. the image of him sitting in a hotel room alone, hand pressed to his aching cock thinking about you, parched to the point of a sleepless night was dizzying.

and it was easy with lando, the familiarity of his voice and the rhythm you effortlessly fell into. all remnants of consciousness melted away with him.

“wish i was there with you baby,” he whispered and you nodded, smiling, even though he couldn’t see how happy it made you to hear him say it.

“me too,” you sighed, relaxing into the stillness until your loud, obnoxious doorbell shook you from the peaceful silence.

“fuck!” you cursed, frozen in place.

“what?” 

“someones at the door…”

“what time is it there?”

“like 11pm… should i ignore it?” you were already grabbing the cardigan you'd thrown over the end of your bed and halfway to the door, curiosity winning out.

“nah, nah. you’re on the phone with me – answer it,” he encouraged, “i wanna make sure it isn’t your side piece coming ‘round when i’m not there.”

“ha-ha, actually my other boyfriend is already here, i've been trying to get you off the phone this whole time...”

"hmm, lucky cunt." he mumbled.

lando made you brave, stupidly brave so you swung the door open without hesitation, locked and loaded with a line of interrogating questions for the person interrupting the precious time you had with the man you love.

but you were hearing double as you held the phone to your ear and looked up – you knew that mess of frazzled curls and tired eyes anywhere, peering back with a smile the size of the moon curling at the corners of his lips. he was bundled up in a hoodie, one you knew would feel warm to the touch and smelled like him.

you had to be dreaming.

“better go tell your other boyfriend to pack his shit and get the fuck out of our house.”

“lando…” tears welled in your eyes as you lunged into his open arms.

“hi pretty girl…” he chuckled, picking you up without hesitation and hooked your legs around his waist, carrying you over the threshold.

“why didn’t you say you were coming home?”

“surprises are sexy, no?” he asked, voice deliciously low. he knew your answer.

“very sexy.” you moaned and pressed firm, fiery kisses into his strong neck, “you’re so sexy – all of this is sexy… god, i love you.”

“love you too sweetheart – let’s go to bed.”

“to sleep?” you asked, with doe-eyes and a devilish grin.

“yeah, i flew eleven fuckin' hours to just sleep… oh and by the way," lando narrowed his eyes and pointed to the crinkled shirt hanging from your shoulders, you looked a mess.

"i want my shirt back right now.”

you hummed and twirled down the hallway, “you’re gonna have to pry it off my cold, horny body, norris…”

“mission accepted,” lando confidently stated, chest puffed as he started stripping his hoodie from his body and inched closer and closer to where you were stood and all you could do was admire the gorgeous man stalking towards you.

oh, and blink a few times to make sure you definitely weren't dreaming, "i can't believe you were sexting me in the back of a cab."

“i know," he chuckled, "it was getting a bit much by the end there, so i walked the last couple of blocks to calm myself down."

you couldn't suppress the moan building in your throat at his touch and his confession – your mind was running wild, "that's so hot."

"you are." he quipped, hands slowly tracing your sides and cupping your chest in his warm palms.

"this is way better than phone sex.”

lando shrugged as you ran your hands down his toned stomach, thumbs circling the indents just above his hips, “i’ll take anything with you – it’s all good to me.”

“you’re easy to please.”

“well, you make it easy – god, look at you,” he exhaled, brushing the loose strands of hair from your face and all you could do was smile.

“i’m glad you’re home, ya goof. it doesn't feel right without you here."

“me too, baby. meee too.” lando smiled and planted a longing kiss to your pouty lips.

more writing...

bit of backstory with this blurb; it was originally going to be a follow up to another fic i wrote called lost in japan and then got buried in the wip graveyard. somehow it resurfaced in my doc folder right when i needed it and i feel like it still kinda fits in the lost in japan universe - selfishly i love those characters. anyways, i hope you enjoyed it 💋

[girltomato]

sweet girl: i was looking for that

max verstappen x fem!reader

warnings: swearing

max almost steals a book from a random lady because there's a picture of the pretty girl he bumped into on the back cover

fc: phoebe dynevor

sweet girl masterlist

melbourne, november 2021

In all honesty, Max had forgotten about that night in that fancy club and that beautiful woman. He had much more important things to focus on like winning the world championship. The pressure was on and the energy amongst the Red Bull team was electrifying.

The way it all happened was a complete coincidence, one stranger's mistake dredging up the memories he had desperately shoved to the back of his consciousness.

A book had been left on a table in the Red Bull energy station. Normally he wouldn't even blink as he pushed it aside and took a seat but the author's name had him spiralling. Y/n, was all be read and he could already smell the phantom whiff of her raspberry perfume, he could feel the warmth of her hand in his, wiling away the buttery feeling on his jeans. Maybe he was being paranoid, he never got her surname, maybe this was another Y/n.

Nope, he flipped the book to read the blurb and there was her face smiling up at him. The same sparkly eyes and the sweet smile he had fantasised about for weeks after their chance encounter. Shit, she was real. He had truly convinced himself she was some figment of his imagination.

“Oh, I was just looking for that.” A woman rushed into the room, charging towards him at a speed he didn't realise was achievable in high heels. He handed the book over to its rightful owner begrudgingly, committing its author name to memory - not that he could ever forget now he had a full name to put to the face that had entranced him. I suppose they both had been looking for that book whether they knew it or not.

“Good book?” he queried, as the woman put the book back into her handbag.

“The best I've ever read.”

It was later that night when he was finally home alone and free from paying eyes that he opened his phone and searched her name.

Search : Y/n L/n

Google didn't teach him anything new apart from her age. He already knew she was an author and he was pretty sure he could sketch her face blindfolded and drunk. So next was Instagram.

liked by harpercollinsuk, yourbff and more

yourusername it's finally here!! after years of work, mousetrap is now available everywhere. this has been such a long time coming and i have legions of people to thank for helping me reach this point. i am a published author that's so crazy!!!!

view all comments

yourbff so fuckin proud!!

⤷ yourusername ugly crying, couldn't have done it without u🤍🤍

yourmother my babies dream came true, so proud of you sweetheart. can't wait to read it.

⤷ yourusername love u mama💖

harpercollins you are incredible, so glad you're part of the family.

⤷ yourusername 🥰🥰

There was no harm in liking the post, right? She had a public page and he technically had just stumbled across her book and before going on an internet deep dive. And following her didn't really mean anything, maybe he just really enjoyed her books or something. With a sigh Max locked his phone, he needed to get some sleep before qualifying tomorrow. Nobody had to know he fell asleep to the memory of her laughter that night.

maxverstappen1 liked your post

maxverstappen1 followed you

okay it's here!!! thank u all so much for all the love so far and to everyone who voted on the poll, it means the world. random lady will be making return in future parts. unrelated, i've been working on my fem!driver oc and she will be making her debut this weekend i think, very excited.

as always, likes and reblogs are greatly appreciated. have a wonderful day/night lovely people🤍

[wonustars]

Rain or Shine Cafe

Ⱄ pairing: kwon soonyoung x f!reader Ⱄ wordcount: 10.5k Ⱄ genre: fluff, cafe coworkers au, suggestive

Ⱄ reblogs, likes and comments are always appreciated ♡! tumblr is based on reblogs not likes, and they help writers like me to get better reach. thank you!

Ⱄ summary: with no umbrella in hand on a rainy day, you felt like your life couldn’t get any worse. losing your glasses while it’s pouring cats and dogs, well maybe your life really was the worst. thankfully a faceless stranger was there to pick up your glasses and hand you his umbrella. you weren’t able to ever thank him for his act of kindness, but the sweet memory stays with you for awhile.

Ⱄ tags/warnings: cafe coworkers!soonyoung and reader, dancer!soonyoung, reader wears glasses, set in vancouver canada, they develop feelings quickly, reader is a little type a, mentions of other svt members, mentions of alcohol, hoshi tiger agenda is very present, allusions to sex, making out, grinding, groping, heavy petting (thth host voice activated), if anything is missing here lmk!

Ⱄ note: it's finally here!! this is my fic for the world tour @svthub collab hehe. thank you to my two lovely beta readers @junkissed and @highvern who helped me so much (ily both sm) ♡!!!!!! and also to the svthub members who helped me when developing the banner for this fic :) i hope you all enjoy this fic because i loved writing it and hoshi is just so silly. its all fluffy and cute and no smut which is a first for me but i hope it's still enjoyable for u all hehe. talk to u soon - anna ♡

Today was one of those days. The birds don’t sing in your wake, the sun doesn’t shine as bright. You weren’t sure what had been the catalyst to such a terrible day; maybe it was forgetting your umbrella, losing your glasses under the gloomy sky, or the rain that pitter-pattered against the pavement and mocked your misfortune.

It wasn’t until a faceless stranger entered your blurred field of vision, offering their umbrella and picking up your glasses. Before you could even thank them for their help, they whisked away so quickly that it was like they were a figment of your imagination. 

That small kind gesture had stuck with you for days, wondering if you would ever be able to meet them again. You desperately wished you could see what they looked like, but from the softness of their voice to their gentle touch, you had a feeling that their personality was just the same. 

˚∗˖⁺⑅ ˖⁺⑅˖◛

Working a shift at Rain or Shine Cafe is always the highlight of your day, especially after spending so many hectic hours at your university. The cafe was always serene, the customers were kind, and you liked how calming it would get once the Vancouver rain started to pour in. The droplets hit the glass windows in a rhythmic pattern that could probably put you to sleep if you allow. 

Rain or Shine Cafe was like your little haven from the busy city and university town. You were working the evenings while your boss, Seokmin, would cover the mornings. It was a little bit complicated with only the two of you, but you didn’t mind. You liked being the only person during your shift, it meant that you were practically your own boss. 

It wasn’t until the day that Seokmin decided it was time for a new hire, your safe space seemingly turned upside down. 

“Y/n, I’ve hired a new person, you’ll have to train them okay?” Seokmin informs you the moment you clock in. 

Giving him a defeated sigh, you knew it was time for a new coworker to join you. Although you hate the idea, you feel bad at how hard Seokmin works in the mornings, and on the rare occasions when you’re sick, evenings as well. 

“I don’t know Seokmin… are you sure I should be the one training them?” your tone wavers, if anything the owner would be able to do a better job than you at training the new hire. 

“What! You’ll do great, you’re my best employee after all,” he gives you a reassuring pat on your shoulder. 

With furrowed brows, your eyes bore holes into his back as he headed back to his office. 

“I’m your only employee!” you shout back while he can still hear you. 

The idea of having to train a new person after spending so much time finding your rhythm while working at the cafe doesn’t particularly thrill you. With many many prayers to the universe, you just hope they aren’t a pain in the ass to deal with. 

˚∗˖⁺⑅ ˖⁺⑅˖◛

Soonyoung wasn’t sure what to expect on his first day, and he was especially nervous because he’d never worked at a cafe before. Although his coordination is great when it comes to dancing, he isn’t so confident in his coffee-making skills. 

The moment he walked through the door, he saw your face shining against the afternoon sun, his heart beating so fast he thought he might have to go to the doctor for a serious case of heart palpitations. He can’t help but curse at himself silently, knowing that he is going to be extra nervous because of his extremely pretty coworker. 

As he approaches you he starts to feel a sense of familiarity bubbling at the bottom of his stomach. Wondering if he’d seen you around before, but he quickly scratched that idea knowing that there are millions of people living in the Greater Vancouver area. 

Clearing his throat he tries to get your attention as you delicately refill the pastry shelf with almond croissants and bagels. Your eyes turn towards the figure in front of the counter, assuming it’s another student from the university wanting to order. 

“U-uh hi,” Soonyoung blurts out, his pillowy cheeks turning red under your gaze. 

“Hi, what can I get for you?” you ask him, trying to ignore the awkwardness between you two. 

“Oh! I-I’m not here to order, I’m the new hire?” He tries to explain, but you can tell he feels a little unsure about being here at the cafe. 

“Oh. Soonyoung right?” 

“Yeah, that’s me, but uh- you can call me Hoshi,” he chuckles, scratching the back of his head. 

The words ‘play it cool’ keep repeating in his mind as he continues to talk to you, not wanting to make a bad first impression with his gorgeous new coworker. 

“Ah, I see, Hoshi,” you say apprehensively while nodding your head, yeah I’m not calling him that, you think to yourself. 

Seokmin told you that the new hire would be coming in for his first shift today, but he didn’t mention anything other than that. 

At first glance, Soonyoung wasn’t the type of person you expected Seokmin to hire. His dark clothing, bright blond hair and piercings along his ears didn’t scream “barista”. The aura around him screamed men’s fashion influencer just from the way he dresses. Although his clothes were casual you could tell there was still thought put into his outfit, from the baggy dark wash jeans to his graphic tee and earrings. 

“How about you come around the counter and clock in so we can get started,” you add as you finish placing the pastries on the display shelf. 

Scratching the back of his head he walks over only to hover behind you, a meek expression washes over his face. 

You turn to him with a quizzical eyebrow, not sure as to why he’s just standing there like a lost child in a supermarket. 

“H-how exactly do you clock in?” Soonyoung mumbles while twiddling his thumbs. 

“Seokmin didn’t show you where to clock in?” You question him. 

There was a part of you that had a feeling that you might have to teach him every little thing around the cafe. When Seokmin told you the new hire was coming in today, you were hoping that they would at least have a little bit of background knowledge. 

“U-uh no he pretty much hired me on the spot and told me to come in today,” he mutters, feeling a little embarrassed by your judgement, “this is actually my first job ever.” 

“Ever?” 

“Yeah, so I’m not sure why he even hired me, but I needed a job so I didn’t turn it down,” he continues, the blush on his soft cheeks becoming more apparent. 

You sigh deeply, this shift is going to feel a lot longer than you initially thought. Knowing it’s his first job means that you’ll have to train him a little slower. As you walk to show him where to clock in you silently pray that he’s a fast learner. 

Soonyoung can tell that you’re not excited to train him, and he feels bad that he doesn’t have the experience to be good at his job right away. But he’s determined to learn quickly, not wanting to disappoint you or Seokmin. 

He spent most of his time in university being able to pay for his expenses from his dance scholarship and the little money he was given from his parents, but unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to fund his trip for his and his dance troupe’s upcoming competition. 

They had entered a national competition taking place in Seattle and although the commute was only a two-hour road trip, there were so many other fees that he couldn’t afford unless he found a way to earn money. Plus if he wanted to fund both his dance trip and tiger collection, it was either he get a job near his school or he would have to resort to selling feet pics online. But getting a job at the cafe seemed like the safer and more logical option. 

“Well now that you’ve clocked in, this is your apron and the tag that Seokmin made you,” you inform him while handing him his things. 

Soonyoung doesn’t say a word, only nodding while listening to you explain how everything works at the cafe. 

“First we need you to learn all the drinks that we serve,” you explain, pushing the double doors that lead back to the main room of the building. 

“Okay, I can do that, it can’t be that hard right?”  Hoshi shrugs, trying his best to act nonchalantly to mask his nervousness. 

…

“Wait-No! That’s wrong,” your voice raises in panic as you watch Soonyoung put a fresh shot of espresso into the plastic to-go cup. 

Freezing, his eyes go wide as his mouth forms an ‘O’ shape and you start to scramble with panic. The plastic started to shrivel from the heat of the coffee. 

“I’m sorry! I didn’t know it would melt!” he exclaims, pouring the contents into the sink. 

It had been an hour of teaching Soonyoung how to make the drinks that were on the cafe menu, and he had somehow made a mistake every single step of the way. Thankfully today is a slower day in the cafe, allowing Soonyoung to observe your routine on serving customers. 

“It’s fine, how about we take a break and I'll show you how to use the oven to heat the pastries,” you sigh with defeat. 

Soonyoung’s face drops a little because he knows that he’s disappointed you. He wishes that he was good at his job the same way he is with dancing but his naturally good coordination and reflexes can only take him so far. 

“If a customer asks for a pastry they can have the option for them to be toasted in the oven, you just need to use the tongs and place them onto the rack,” you explain, demonstrating the steps that you would usually take, “then you don’t want to set the timer for more than twenty seconds or it’ll burn.” 

Soonyoung nods along, trying to follow your instructions closely, but he can’t help but get distracted by your features. Your hair is tied up, and glasses perched on your nose as you try to concentrate. He knows that it’s important to pay attention but he can’t help but feel attracted to you. There was a certain familiarity to you that he couldn’t seem to pinpoint. He hasn’t felt like this about someone he just met ever, and it’s not helping that you’re the one teaching him how to do his job properly. 

If he could stare at you during his whole shift instead of working, he would. 

“Does everything make sense so far?” you pull him out of his thoughts, staring at him expectantly. 

“Yeah, the pastry stuff seems like the most simple thing so far,” he comments, watching you put the croissant into a bag to eat after you’re off work. 

“How about we go back to making more test drinks? Just so you can get the hang of it,” you offer, wanting him to get more practice just in case it’s a busy day the next time he comes in for a shift. 

“Sure, you’re a great teacher by the way, I’m just new to all this,” he comforts you. 

“Thanks, and don’t worry too much, you’ll get better with time,” you pat his shoulder. 

You give him a smile of gratitude. The past few hours had you doubting your knowledge, patience, and teaching skills all at the same time. But his words of reassurance make you feel him warm inside. 

The way Soonyoung’s cheeks puff as he smiles makes you giggle. There was something about his soft features that made him so endearing, which made you feel a little bad for raising your voice at him earlier while he was trying to learn. 

Sure, he’s not the smartest when it comes to working at a cafe, but you have faith that he’ll be able to learn as time goes by. From the looks of it, Soonyoung seems determined to do better, that or he’s faking it. Either way, you owe it to Seokmin to show him everything you know. 

˚∗˖⁺⑅ ˖⁺⑅˖◛

“So…” Seokmin looks at you expectantly while you get ready to start your shift, “how was it?” 

“Well… he’s definitely new,” you sigh as you put on your apron and clock in. 

Seokmon gives you a concerned look, he felt a little bad for handing Soonyoung over to you knowing he had zero experience working in a cafe, but he trusted you, his best (only) employee to be able to train him well.

“Everything went well though, right?” he asks you, trailing behind you like a lost puppy. 

You can’t help but laugh at the way he follows you to the counter, wanting to hear every detail about what happened during your last shift. 

There wasn’t much to say other than the fact that Soonyoung wasn’t very good at his job, but you don’t want to be an asshole and rat him out when you could tell how eager he is to do his job properly. Instead, you decided to lie to your kind, and very naive boss. 

“Oh he’s perfect, honestly you made the right decision in hiring him,” you force a smile. 

Seokmin’s eyes light up with excitement, you could practically see his imaginary tail wagging back and forth with happiness. He trusts you so much that he never thought to hire anyone else, meaning this was a big step for him and the cafe. You could already start to feel the guilt seep into your nerves as he stared at you with so much trust.

“Really? Oh, thank god, I was so nervous when he told me he’s never had a job in his life before, honestly Y/n, I’m so happy and I’m sure things will–” Seokmin is cut off by the jingle of the bell above the door. 

Both your heads whip around as Soonyoung enters the cafe with a bright smile along his lips, refreshed from the last time he was in and ready to work a real shift this time. His clothing was more appropriate for work, a simple black tee shirt and black pants, his blond hair reflecting with the sun, giving him a halo effect. 

You wish you had met Soonyoung in different settings, then you would be able to admit how attractive he is. If only he wasn’t such a clutz, then maybe you would have a full-blown crush on him. 

“Afternoon Soonyoung,” Seokmin smiles at him. 

Fridays were always the busiest days at the cafe, even during the evening. You're just hoping that the odds were in your favour and Soonyoung actually retained all the information you told him last time you saw him. 

“Afternoon everyone!” he exclaims cheerfully. 

Waving at him you watch him descend to the back to clock in for his shift, your stomach churns with anxiety because you aren’t sure how well today is going to go. 

“Okay Y/n I’m off, you’re in charge as always,” Seokmin declared before leaving. 

… 

About half an hour into your shift, the pace of the cafe started to pick up and the line was starting to get longer. As the clock hit three-thirty, all the university students started to pile into the tiny building. 

You were starting to sweat and because Soonyoung still doesn’t know how to make all of the drinks you put him on cashier and pastry duty. It seems to be the only way that you were able to get through to all the customers in a timely manner. 

“Is there really only two of you?” A male customer whines at the back of the line, clearly annoyed by the wait. 

“Yes, unfortunately, this is usually the busiest time of the day for us,” you try to explain politely, but your anger issues start to creep up onto the surface. 

The overstimulation from the heat of the coffee as well as the chatter of customers was causing your patience to thin. You didn’t want to have to argue with anyone today, especially because you had a newbie working with you. 

“Could you at least hurry it up?” He scoffs, eyes rolling with annoyance. 

You don’t reply to his complaints, because if you were to start talking you would probably end up starting a fight mid-shift. 

“Dude, you can’t talk to her like that,” Soonyoung retaliated, obviously annoyed with the whiny customer. 

“What’d you say to me?” the customer fumes, coming to the front of the counter. 

The two men size up each other while you stand there a little shocked at how fast Soonyoung was to defend you. 

Soonyoung scowls as he stares at the asshole who was yelling at you. He wasn’t expecting people to get so angry over coffee but he wasn’t going to let someone disrespect you. 

“I said, you can’t talk to her like that,” he seethes, looking at the customer up and down with his chest puffed out, “if you’re so sick of waiting then go somewhere else.” 

“You know what I will. I don’t want some slow bitch making my drink anyways,” the customer retorts. 

“Fuck you! And don’t come back!” Soonyoung yells at his descending figure and turns at you silently asking if you were alright. 

His soft eyes had your heart palpitating, you never took him for the type of person to defend you from mean customers. If you weren’t fully attracted to him before, now you are. There was something about the way his demeanour had changed while trying to protect you that made you look at him in a different light. 

… 

By the time it was closer to the end of both you and Soonyoung’s shift, the amount of customers coming in slowed down considerably, allowing you to rest after what had happened earlier. 

The sun was down and it was nearing eight in the evening. While you were cleaning the counters and organizing for the morning shift, Soonyoung was mopping the floors and putting the chairs back in order. He looked peaceful as he was cleaning, you couldn’t help but stare. 

Soonyoung’s jawline is sharp as he appears to be deep in thought, and you allow yourself to admire the way his biceps flexed under his shirt as he swayed the mop back and forth. The veins along his forearms popped with each movement he made, you practically had to pinch yourself in order to not get caught ogling at him. 

“Uhm, I just wanted to say thanks for earlier, you didn’t have to do all that,” you speak up, catching his attention, “I appreciate it.” 

Soonyoung chuckles while shaking his head, giving you that same smile he did on the first day. The one that made his eyes look like a cute emoticon, and his cheeks puffy as if he were a hamster. 

“It wasn’t that big of a deal, I wasn’t going to let that asshole talk to you like that,” he shrugs nonchalantly. 

“Yeah I know, but still, thank you,” you reiterate, heat starting to creep up your neck as you recall the way he acted earlier.

“Of course,” he continues to smile before he says something you didn’t expect, “also, I know we’re not all that close, but me and my friends were going to go to the bar down the street. Do you want to join us?” 

Your eyes widen in shock, an answer flying out of your mouth before you can even think properly, “Sure!” 

“Okay, cool!” his eyes lit up at your acceptance to his invite, “we’re going to watch one of my friend’s shows, so you can meet me here again at like, 10 pm?”

“Are you sure they’re okay with me coming though? I don’t wanna impose,” you ask with uncertainty. 

“Yeah, of course, they’re chill,” he reassures you before going back to finish his task. 

Turning around you silently scream at the thought of going out with Soonyoung, being able to talk to him off work hours, it made you blush deeply. You don’t understand why you’re reacting this way all of a sudden as if you weren’t constantly annoyed by his clumsiness just a week ago, but you’re not opposed to the feelings of your developing crush on your coworker. 

˚∗˖⁺⑅ ˖⁺⑅˖◛

This was the first time in Soonyoung’s life that he had been wrecked with nervousness. Not even when he was performing on stage did his nerves get the best of him. You were just so pretty, and the more he worked with you, the more he wanted to get to know you, to interact with you outside the cafe and learn more about your personality. 

“Soonyoung!” he hears you call out for him, forcing him to look up from the pavement. 

His heart beats out of his chest, and his palms start to sweat. Your hair is down and frames your face. As you start to get closer he allows himself to appreciate the view in front of him. The moonlight shining above, the stars twinkling beautifully and yet he can’t seem to take his eyes off of you. 

Your outfit suited you so well, a short skirt, an oversized graphic tee and a pair of knee-high boots. So this is what you look like outside of work, Soonyoung thought to himself. He already found you attractive in your work clothes, with your brown apron and baseball cap. But seeing you like this made his mouth go dry, forcing him to gulp like a starved man. 

“H-hey! You look really good,” he stutters and he curses at himself silently from how nervous he is. 

“Thank you, you too,” you blush, a timid expression falling on your face, not being able to meet his eyes as you play with the keychain on your bag. 

“Are you ready to go?” he asks, his head nudging in the direction of the bar. 

You nod with a smile, following his steps toward your destination. With clammy hands, you grip the strap of your bag while you and Soonyoung walk in perfect harmony. This is the first time you’ve gone for a night out in a while, and your body is filled with nervousness and excitement at the thought of being able to spend more time with Soonyoung. 

… 

“Hoshi! The show is about to start, what took you so long?” a brown-haired man calls out, walking towards the two of you. 

His eyes widened with curiosity, realizing that Soonyoung hadn’t come to the bar alone tonight. 

“And who is this?” he asks, observing you closely with a glass of beer in his hand. 

“Y/n, this is Seungkwan, Kwan, this is Y/n,” Soonyoung introduces the two of you, and you can only reply with a shy wave and smile. 

“I see,” he mutters, taking a sip from his glass. 

Seungkwan’s eyes are boring holes into your face and it causes your cheeks to heat up. 

“She’s my coworker at Rain or Shine,” Soonyoung adds, before giving Seungkwan a pointed look. 

Seungkwan, although usually friendly, is very intrigued as to why you were brought over to hang out with Soonyoung and their friends tonight. It wasn’t a normal occurrence for Soonyoung to bring anyone new to Vernon’s shows, especially a girl. He concluded that you must mean something to Hoshi, and not just because you’re his coworker. 

“Ohh okay, it’s nice to meet you,” Seungkwan smiles and that allows you to let out a breath of relief that you didn’t realize that you were holding, “but we should get to our seats, the show is about to start.” 

There’s a collective agreement and the three of you head over to a reserved table that’s located closer to the stage. It must be a perk to know the band that was playing because it had the best view in the bar. 

As you reach the table you meet with a few more people sitting around talking and drinking. Your naturally introverted attitude increases tenfold when your eyes lay on the group of men talking loudly and laughing with each other. 

“Soonyoung’s finally here! And he’s brought a friend,” Seungkwan announces, his back facing you and you don’t catch the way his eyebrows wiggle suggestively. 

The group’s conversation is cut off and they go over to greet you and Soonyoung. They were all so tall and attractive, you didn’t expect it at all. But it somehow makes sense that someone as good-looking as Soonyoung would also have good-looking friends. 

“Y/n, this is Chan, Mingyu and Minghao,” Soonyoung introduces you, pointing everyone out one by one. 

“Hi, I work with Soonyoung at the cafe,” you greet them with a small wave. 

The three men smile at you warmly before you sit down, and Mingyu is the first one to talk to you. You’re awestruck at how attractive he is, his wide smile and sharp teeth poking out added a charming factor to him that you wouldn’t notice if it were anyone else. 

“Hi, did you want something to drink?” he asks you, his voice husky and warm. 

“A diet coke and rum is fine,” you tell him and he nods before getting up and heading to the bar. 

Watching him walk away, you turn your attention back onto Soonyoung who seems to be deep in conversation with Chan. Seeing him laugh and talk with his friends is new to you, and it makes your stomach flutter at how concentrated he is. 

“No I can’t give you the leftover pastries, stop asking me, I literally just started working there,” Soonyoung groans as Chan begs him for leftover almond croissants. 

A giggle escapes your lips as you watch how desperate Chan is for a free croissant, you’ve never seen someone so passionate over bread before. 

“I can give one to Soonyoung next time we close, we always have leftovers,” you chime in, giving Chan a warm smile.

Chan practically lights up with excitement and Soonyoung rolls his eyes at the fact that his younger friend is somehow always able to get what he wants. You can’t help but smile at how eager he is over such a simple thing.

“Are you sure? You don’t have to do that,” Soonyoung looks at you. 

He watches as you give him a reassuring smile, your eyes reflecting the bar lights. There are so many things that he got to learn about you today. The way you get shy meeting new people, yet you’re kind and willing to get to know his friends. You were tugging on his heartstrings and he didn’t want to stop getting to know the little things about you. 

“Yeah, it’s fine, Seokmin always lets me bring some home after my shift is over anyways,” you wave your hand, letting Chan know that Seokmin is a chill manager. 

“Really? Thank you Y/n,” Chan gives you a look of gratitude, going over to hug you. Laughing at his sudden burst of affection, you pat his back while telling him it wasn’t that big of a deal. 

The lights in the bar started to dim and you see Mingyu coming back with your drink. He places it in front of you and says not to worry about paying for it. There wasn’t much arguing coming from your side, who are you to refuse a free drink? Instead, you thank him and pay attention to the band coming out onto the stage. 

“Oh yeah, whatever happened to your ‘beautiful stranger’? Did you ever find her?” you hear Chan ask right before the band performs. 

There was a pause in the air and Soonyoung’s words were drowned out by the music. You are grateful for the fact that you couldn’t hear his answer. Honestly, you didn’t want to know what he had said in response. Instead of worrying over something you had no right to worry about, you allow the music to take over you. Paying close attention to the melodic singing flowing through the speakers. 

… 

“Thank you for inviting me out tonight, I enjoyed it,” you break the silence on the walk home to your apartment. 

Soonyoung offered to walk you home and you refused but he insisted that he wouldn’t be able to sleep properly if you walked alone at this hour. The time was nearing one in the morning and you were able to meet the rest of his friends after the show. They were all nice to you, except for that first moment with Seungkwan, but he warmed up shortly after. 

The descent to your place was relatively quiet, the two of you admiring the Vancouver skyline and high mountains. Sometimes you forget that you live in such a beautiful place, a city that never sleeps. You watched Soonyoung appreciate his view and you smiled inwardly at how content he seemed. 

Watching him interact with his friends earlier warmed your heart, he looked so happy being around them it made you forget how bad he is at his job, and that he’s a little clueless when it comes to working at the cafe. You felt bad about getting angry with him so quickly, but as you started to understand him more, you realized that there’s more to him than his clumsiness. He’s a bright person, he has the resemblance of a ball of sunshine. Always smiling, eager to bond with his friends, to laugh and to make thoughtful memories. 

You realize how much you had envied him in that moment. It’s easy for him to get along with everyone, and the fact that he’s able to go out without overthinking the smallest things. You just wanted to be as carefree as Soonyoung. 

“It's no problem, I wanted you to come, and they all loved you!” he chirped, eyes turning into slits from a wide smile. You blush at his outward personality. 

“Well, this is me,” you motion toward the entrance of your apartment building.

 You were a little embarrassed at its homely nature. All the nicer apartments surrounding your tiny building. But you couldn’t help but think that it had a charm to it that the modern buildings in Vancouver didn’t have. 

“Have a good night Y/n,” Soonyoung grinned as you two stood there, the breeze flowing through your fingertips while you stared into his sparkling eyes. 

“Have a good night Soonyoung,” you repeat him, and he doesn’t say anything else, pulling you into a hug. 

Soonyoung wasn’t sure if you like to be hugged, and he was hesitant at first, but with the way you were staring at him, he couldn’t help but want to hold you. He understands that you aren’t that close, but he knows he wants to get to know you more. 

As he holds you in his arms, he breathes in your scent, and it’s addicting. You smelt like a rainy day, reading books against the window sill and drinking a warm cup of tea. You felt like home to him, he finds it odd that he thinks of you that way so early on in your friendship, but he can’t help it. Soonyoung doesn’t want to deny his growing feelings for you. 

Although you were surprised by his actions you didn’t hate the way his arms felt around you. Strong and muscular, holding you tight while you breathe in the scent of his cologne. He smelt good, like roasting marshmallows over a campfire, or a beach day where the sun warmed your skin in the best way. 

There's something comforting about Soonyoung’s demeanour, his personality, his everything. Why was he so nice to you? Why did he express so much interest in someone he barely knows? You didn’t know and you were too shy to ask. 

He pulls away and opens the first door to your building for you, making sure you enter safe and sound. But before you could get to the door with the lock he asks you a question. 

“Uh, Chan and I have a dance showcase coming up next weekend, did you wanna come and see me perform?” Soonyoung asks while blushing. 

“I’d love to!” You answer back, and he just nods, letting go of you so that you can go up to your apartment and rest. 

“I’ll text you the details! Good night!” He yells from down the sidewalk, arm flailing to wave goodbye. You can’t help but giggle at him, your cheeks heating up at his goofy personality. 

As you enter your apartment, your mind travels back to the question Chan had asked Soonyoung before the band started performing. Who was this beautiful stranger that he was talking about? It made your stomach churn at the possibility that Soonyoung wouldn’t be available if you decided to tell him about the crush you’d developed. Sighing at the thought, you try to not let it affect you. You’ve only known him for a short time, and there’s no reason for you to feel jealous of someone you’re not even sure that he knows.

˚∗˖⁺⑅ ˖⁺⑅˖◛

“How was your weekend, kiddo?” Seokmin’s presence welcomes you into his cafe, giving you a dazzling smile. 

“It was fun, me and Soonyoung went out with his friends,” you blushed as you recollected the time you got to spend with him. 

Seokmin walks up to you, his eyes panning over your body, eyebrow quirked up. He taps his chin acting as if he’s in deep thought before moving closer, sniffing you and you almost slap him square on the cheek. But he’s quick to avoid your hand. 

“I smell a crush!” He points his finger at you, his tone accusatory. 

“What?! Pfft, I don’t have a crush,” you deny his allegations, but your forehead starts to collect sweat out of nervousness. 

You didn’t think that Seokmin would put you on the spot like this, but it would feel awkward to admit that you have a crush on your coworker. Who just so happened to start working here less than two weeks ago. 

“Don’t lie to me, I can smell it on you! You have a crush,” Seokmin sang, dancing around you teasingly. Poking at your cheeks like you were a grizzly bear he’s trying to provoke. 

“Okay! Okay. Maybe I do have a crush, but it doesn’t mean anything,” you sigh, admitting your feelings so that your boss, nearly ten years older than you, would stop prancing around like a lunatic for all the passersby to see. 

“Why? What if he likes you back,” he wiggles his eyebrows, and you cringe at him. 

Leave it up to Seokmin to disregard professionalism in the workplace. If anything he was more like your surrogate dad that liked to be filled in on the latest drama. 

“He doesn’t,” you deflate, moving over to clock in and put on your apron. 

You know for a fact that Soonyoung couldn’t like you back, his mind was too preoccupied with much more important things, and some other girl who he doesn’t even know. 

“What are you? A mind reader?” Seokmin teases you, not wanting to see you pretend to be so apathetic.

Of course, you couldn’t read minds, but it was clear that Soonyoung’s interest lay somewhere else.  You don’t even know what to say to Seokmin at the moment, how do you even explain your feelings properly? Yes, you have a teeny crush on your coworker, but that’s all it should be, right? It wouldn’t be realistic to date him. 

The chime of the bell hanging on top of the door breaks your thoughts, “Good afternoon to my amazing boss, and my amazing coworker!”

Soonyoung is practically skipping through the door with delight, and it makes you smile. He always seemed so cheerful coming into work. It warms your heart. 

“Ahh good to see you Soonyoung,” Seokmin smiles, watching his figure disappear into the back. 

He turns to you and makes a face, his eyebrows wiggling while his lips widen into a shit-eating grin. Seokmin can’t help but tease you, he finds it cute that you have a crush on Soonyoung. In all the years that you’ve been working for him, there hasn’t been a time where he’s seen you so smitten over a boy. 

You roll your eyes at him, shooing him away before Soonyoung comes out and realizes why your boss is teasing you. 

… 

Once Seokmin had left, you and Soonyoung were left to fend for yourselves. Although today wasn’t as busy as the last time you were working with each other, it wasn’t a shift with Soonyoung if there wasn’t at least one thing that went wrong. 

You were minding your business, restocking some of the supplies in the storage room. As you were peacefully putting new syrups on the shelves, there was a high-pitched scream coming from the front part of the cafe. Your eyes widen at the sound, and you come rushing to the counter. 

“What happened?!” you stumbled in, your chest heaving as you tried to get to Soonyoung as fast as you could. 

“I-Uh-,” Soonyoung seems to be at a loss for words, you can he the audible gulp before he continues, “there was a spider, and I tried to kill it but I lost it.” 

A wave of relief washes over you as you realize that no one is hurt and the building is not on fire. Your eyes travel to where he’s crouched behind the counter, hands gripping the marble while his eyes peek over to observe the spider crawling across the floor. You can’t help but laugh at how terrified he is over a small insect. Instead of cowering away in fear beside him, you walk over to where the spider had begun to crawl up the leg of one of the chairs. 

“Y/n be careful! You could die if you get stung, and then we would have to call 911, and what if you don’t make it? I’d feel so guilty, I would carry the weight of my guilt as I grow old, we would hold memorials for you–Oh." His sentence comes to an abrupt stop as he sees you grab the spider with a tissue and place it back outside onto the pavement. 

“It was just a daddy long legs, no need to be afraid,” you reassure him. 

Soonyoung sighs in relief before standing up, patting down his clothes to get rid of the imaginary dust. He wipes his forehead as if he were the one to take care of the insect problem. 

“If there’s anything else wrong just call for me, I’ll be in the back,” you announce, hoping that would be the first and last incident for the day. 

Soonyoung nods, giving you a thumbs up as you walk into the back. You let out a breath of relief, giggling to yourself, recollecting the memory of him crouched behind the counter. The redness on your cheeks doesn’t seem to fade at the thought of him cowering over a small spider. 

No matter what Soonyoung does, you can’t help but find him endearing. And when he’s not, you find him undeniably attractive. How does this happen? How does one guy who once annoyed you turn into someone who has you completely flustered? It feels odd falling for someone so fast, and you’re just hoping he’ll feel the same. Especially because no one has had this effect on you before. 

The more you think about your budding feelings for Soonyoung, you’re constantly reminded of the fact that he’s searching for someone he thinks is his soulmate. You’re apprehensive, but at the same time, he might never find her. So what’s the point of trying to fight these feelings knowing you’re competing with someone he isn’t sure even exists? 

˚∗˖⁺⑅ ˖⁺⑅˖◛

There were tingles all over your body. Today was the day of Soonyoung’s dance showcase. Although you were excited to see him in his element, you were still nervous. It’s only been a month since you two met and him working at the cafe, but even then, you still feel like a stranger to his outside life. You weren’t sure why he invited you, but you’re grateful that you’ll be able to witness this side of him. 

As you make your way into the auditorium of his University, you find yourself in awe at the amount of people in the crowd. It was obvious that his dance team was well-liked at his school, causing admiration to bloom within your chest. 

Looking around for a familiar face, you spot Seungkwan and Mingyu sitting in the front row that’s reserved for close friends and family for the people on the dance team. You make eye contact with them, their hands motioning for you to come and sit with them. 

“Y/n! You came, Soonyoung is going to be so excited,” Mingyu exclaims, pulling you into a bone-crushing hug. 

You laugh at how excited he is to see you, your cheeks turning red at the mention of Soonyoung. As you pull away, you say hello to Seungkwan before taking your seat between them. 

The three of you make a little small talk until the lights start to dim and the spotlight glows against the stage. Your heart is beating out of your chest as you spot Soonyoung walking onto the stage. His hair and makeup were styled, his outfit complimenting his muscular arms perfectly. You’re thankful that the background music was loud enough, hoping that neither Seungkwan nor Mingyu heard the enormous gulp you took the moment your eyes laid on their best friend. 

“Good evening everyone! Thank you all for coming to our showcase tonight, I hope you enjoy the performances we prepared,” Soonyoung speaks into the mic, his eyes gleaming under the bright stage lights. 

Your breath is caught in your throat once again, Soonyoung’s confidence exuding from where he stands. He looks so handsome under all the bright lights as if he’s born to be on stage. To dance or to entertain, he has the charisma to make the audience laugh and cheer for him. 

You’re hot in your seat, your hands starting to sweat as he continues to charm the crowd. 

“Everyone has worked so hard for this, and you all get a sneak peek at our performance for the National Dance Competition taking place in Seattle!” He informs the crowd, his smile widening as he unveils his dance troupe's little secret. 

As he walks off stage you can’t help but stare in awe, anticipation swirls in your stomach as the lights start to dim once again. The dancers fill up the stage, indicating the start of the performance and you can see the outline of Soonyoung’s frame from where you sit. 

Soonyoung’s eyes blaze in the stage lights as the spotlight is cast on him. The dancers are behind him in their rightful positions as the music starts to play. With your mouth agape, you watch his body flow with the music. The strong bass of hip-hop flows through the speakers with every move Soonyoung makes along with his dance crew. The rest of the crowd sits there cheering them on while you’re left speechless. 

The serious gaze he holds, as he dances, makes your knees weak, especially because you can tell how passionate he is about his craft. He was made for dancing, born to tell a story with his limbs as they move languidly with the beat of the song. 

As the routine comes to an end you can’t help but feel lucky to see Soonyoung in his element. Far from the man who you’ve witnessed make the most silly mistakes while working, he’s so different on stage. Although you’ve come to appreciate his presence at the cafe, seeing him dance instills a profound sense of pride in your stomach. 

With each passing second the dance routine comes to a close, Soonyoung spots you in the front row as he continues to move on stage. His eyes widen as his gaze sets upon you before sending you a flirtatious wink. He goes back to facing the centre of the crowd, your whole body enveloped in heat. 

The song ends and you’re left sitting there with shocks of electricity passing through your entire body. Your crush on Soonyoung has turned into something deeper. 

…

Your palms sweat profusely as you stand at the entrance of the auditorium, an almond croissant in one hand and a bouquet of yellow flowers in the other. While you stand and wait for Soonyoung to come out of the dressing room, your mind is filled with thoughts of his performance. The image of him on stage doesn't leave your thoughts, not even for a second. 

“Y/n!” You hear a voice call out for you, pulling you out of your light daydreaming. 

Turning your head in the direction of the voice, your eyes land on Soonyoung, his tall figure making its way over to where you are. Your breath is caught in your throat as your gaze focuses on him. Bareface but his hair still styled, he looked breathtaking.

“Soonyoung! Hi, you were amazing up there,” you tell him breathlessly. 

  He smiles bashfully at your compliment, his cheeks turning red at your appreciation. Soonyoung doesn’t take compliments well as it is, but when it’s coming from you, he becomes even more flustered. The twinkle in your eyes never leaves as you smile at him. 

Pulling you into a hug, your shoulders tense in surprise at his sudden burst of affection, but you don’t hate it. You don’t mind how he likes to express his gratitude towards you. Instead, you embrace it, relaxing as his strong arms hold you close. You don’t ever get tired of how good he smells. Warm, bright, and comforting, like the sun personified.  

“Thank you for coming, you don’t know how much this means to me,” he mumbles while his arms are still wrapped around you. 

Your face buries itself deeper in his chest as you hear him talk, wanting to hide your already burning face from him. He makes you feel like you’re important like he would’ve been disappointed if you didn’t show up tonight. 

Pulling away, Soonyoung smiles at you, the same smile that reaches his eyes in the most adorable way. And then he notices the bouquet of flowers that are held tightly in your grasp. His eyes widen, cheeks red, he’s never received flowers in his life before, but he’s happy you’re the first. 

“Is that for me?” he asks, and you nod shyly, “thank you! You didn’t need to get me something, I invited you remember?” 

“I know but I wanted to thank you for inviting me, think of it as an advanced congratulations when you win the dance tournament next month,” you say as you hand him the bouquet. 

“Also, the croissant is for Chan, I know I promised to get him one,” you add. 

His laugh rings through your ears delightfully, finding it cute that you make good on your promises. Even the smallest things like getting a croissant for his best friend, he admires everything about you. The fact that you’re so earnest and willing to share so much with the people he cares about. He falls for you more as each day passes. 

Soonyoung knows it hasn’t been long since he’s met you, but he doesn’t care. He knows that he likes you, that he wants to take you out, shower you in all his love and affection, and do whatever it takes to see you smile. He doesn’t care about time unless he can spend the rest of it with you. 

˚∗˖⁺⑅ ˖⁺⑅˖◛

When Soonyoung asked to hang out after his dance showcase, you couldn’t help but happily oblige. The way he looks at you, how he shows that he wants to spend time with you makes your stomach flutter. How could one possibly say no to someone like him? 

As you two walk over to his apartment, your palms begin to sweat again, even with the cool Vancouver breeze that flows between you. You think about how close you two have gotten since that first day in the cafe, and you can only smile to yourself. He makes you feel wanted, like there's more between you than just friendly coworkers.

 Although you want to tell him how much you’ve grown to like him, there's a part of you that still holds back, just because of that little comment Chan made all those weeks ago. 

“We’re here!” Soonyoung announces, stepping into the front entrance of his apartment. 

It’s considerably nicer than the one you live in, making you feel slightly intimidated by the high-rise building. You tried not to let it show, but you didn’t fully realize how different you two were until now. He’s outgoing, a ball of sunshine. You tend to prefer living in solace, keeping to yourself whether it be at work or school. 

“Your place is nice,” you comment as your eyes follow the expanse of the building's height. 

“Thank you! Let’s get inside, I think it’s about to start raining,” Soonyoung ushers you in, already noticing the way the clouds start to thicken in the evening sky. 

The ride up to the elevator is peaceful, you two enjoy each other's company in silence while you continue to admire the building. As he leads you to the front door of his apartment, your breath gets stuck in your throat once more. You knew Soonyoung was a stylish individual, but you didn’t think that a person in university had much knowledge of interior design. 

In short, you found his home to be comforting, the furniture and decorations suited his personality perfectly. It felt warm, it felt like a home. 

If only you knew, that Soonyoung was just as nervous as you. His heart beats faster as your eyes look over his apartment. He cleaned it this morning in hopes that you would say yes to coming over. Otherwise it would’ve embodied a pig stye, and he couldn’t have the girl he has feelings for thinking that he was a slob. 

“Your place is beautiful, Soonyoung,” you mumble as you continue to look around. 

“Really?” He acts shy, scratching the back of his head. 

“Yeah! I like it, it suits you,” you turn back to him, flashing him a warm smile that makes his cheeks heat up. 

Soonyoung releases a breath that he didn’t realize that he was even holding, happy to know that your first impression of his home is positive. Usually when he has his friends over they tell him it can get a little messy, especially when Mingyu visits. His best friend is always helping him clean up the place because of his natural tendency to declutter any space he’s in. 

“Do you wanna watch a movie? Or maybe just talk…?” Soonyoung stutters a bit, his head all over the place because the girl he has been crushing on is in front of him. Not while his other friends are around, and not in a workplace setting either. 

He doesn’t know how to act when you’re around, he’s typically not a shy person, but when you’re around all his thoughts fly out the window. 

“Uhm, talking is just fine with me,” you laugh at how red his face has gotten. 

There was an obvious tension in the air and it was hard for you to ignore, but you’re just happy to be alone with him. For once, his friends weren’t here or Seokmin, it was just you and Soonyoung. 

He grabs your hand as if he had no control over his actions, guiding you over to his couch. You two sit there, a little closer than what would be considered friendly for coworkers. His eyes twinkled against the ambient lighting. 

“What did you want to talk about?” you ask innocently, trying to ignore the rising tension between you. 

Soonyoung shies away from your gaze, your eyes becoming the size the saucers the more you stare at him. He wants to tell you how he feels, although he isn’t sure that you feel the same. He wants to take his chance with you while it’s still in front of him. 

“There’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you, and I’m actually really nervous but I just need to say it,” he lets out another puff of breath, trying to calm his nerves. 

The beating in your chest increases with each word Soonyoung says, and you don’t know how to feel. You’re nervous too, but you want to hear what he has to say. You feel his hand over yours, squeezing it softly. He’s not sure whether it's to soothe himself or you, but it's working. 

“I like you, I know we didn’t meet that long ago, but every time I see you I get so happy, and I love how all my friends like you, and you’re just so beautiful, I can’t keep it to myself anymore, but if you don’t feel the same–,” He blurts out, redness crawling up from his neck to his cheeks once again. 

Before you could even register anything past the words ‘I like you’, you pull him into a hug, which is not something normal for you, but Soonyoung is the exception. You can’t help but want to hold him in your arms, your own personal ball of sunshine that has been crafted specifically for you. 

“I like you too,” you whisper in his ear as you hold him close. 

Soonyoung gasped in surprise at your declaration, and you could practically feel him vibrating in his seat with excitement. 

He pulls back from the hug with the biggest smile on his face, eyes brighter than the stars that have been covered by the rain clouds swirling outside his window, “You do?” 

“Yes, I do like you back,” you giggle while intertwining your fingers with his, “but I’ve been holding back ever since that night at the bar.” 

Soonyoung raises an eyebrow, trying to rack his brain as he thinks of every moment that happened between you that night, but nothing comes to mind. 

“Wait why? What happened?” He asks, curious as to why you two have gone this long without confessing to each other. 

“It was something Chan said…” you trail off, staring at how your fingers are laced between his. 

“Fucking Chan,” he curses at his best friend, “what did he say exactly?” 

“Well he didn’t really say anything, but he just asked you a question on the stranger who you’re convinced is your soul mate or whatever,” you shrug your shoulders, trying to act like such a simple thing didn’t torment you for weeks. 

Soonyoung eyebrows raise even more and his mouth forms an ‘O’ shape, and he starts to connect the dots. He didn’t think that would be the reason you hadn’t told him. If anything, he thought it was because he was not very good at his job at the cafe or that you just weren’t sure about your feelings. 

“Oh, that… well I got over it a long time ago. It happened at the front of the cafe, this girl lost her glasses and it was raining and everything. I didn’t see her face because she walked away so fast I didn’t get a chance to act on it.” He recalls the moment between him and the stranger, “I was going in for my interview with Seokmin so I picked up her glasses and gave her my umbrella.” 

Sitting quietly beside him, your heart plummets to the bottom of your stomach. This whole time, the person who helped you on what you considered one of your worst days to date, was Soonyoung? You aren’t even sure what to say but it's almost laughable. As if the universe had known that you two were meant to meet one way or the other. 

“Soonyoung, that was me,” you reveal to him, and his eyes widen. 

“THAT WAS YOU?” He practically jumps out of his seat, hands now placed on your shoulder, inspecting every corner of your face, “now that I think of it, your glasses do look familiar.” 

Bursting out laughing, you can’t believe that he would react in this way. He looks like he’s just been let in on an ancient secret, “to be fair, I didn’t know it was you either, I’m practically blind without my glasses so I didn’t see your face.” 

“Oh my god, we’re meant to be,” he mutters to himself, his hand covering his mouth in shock. 

Soonyoung is elated, to say the least, he gave up on his beautiful stranger the moment he laid his eyes on you. But to find that you are his beautiful stranger. Well, now he knows that he can’t ever let you go. 

“I hope you know we’re locked in for life now,” he stares at you earnestly, taking both your hands in his and you look at him quizzically, “Sorry baby, but we can’t disappoint the universe after all the hard work they put into our love story.” 

You giggle at him, even when it’s just the two of you, he’s just as silly. That's what you like about him though, the fact that he makes you laugh and smile practically on command. You’ve never laughed this hard with anyone before, Seokmin probably being the only exception, but you don’t want to think about your boss right now. 

“Baby? Eager aren’t we?” you tease, and Soonyoung blushes hard, moving away from your peering eyes as he lets go of your hands. 

“I can’t help it, you’ll just have to get used to it,” he shrugs, acting nonchalant, but you can see the way he side-eyes you, wanting to still see your reaction. 

“Does this mean you’ll take me out on dates? And all the other couple stuff,” you whisper in his ear, your hands circling his bicep as he faces away from you. 

“W-well duh! Of course, I’m gonna take you on a proper date, I need to show you how good of a boyfriend I can be!” he exclaims and another giggle slips past your lips. 

Squeezing his muscular arm tighter, you can feel his pulse increasing under your touch, “boyfriend? When did I say anything about you being my boyfriend.” 

Those few words break his act and he turns to you in shock, he looks like a deer in headlights. Soonyoung is embarrassed about how ahead of himself he’s gotten but he doesn’t want to date anyone else either. If you’re not going to become his girl, then he’d rather just give up on dating altogether. 

“I want to be your boyfriend, like really really bad, but only if you’ll let me,” he declares, eyes piercing into your soul with all seriousness. 

Watching his demeanour change once more makes you gulp involuntarily.

“I want to be your girlfriend, like really really bad,” you echo his words. 

Gasping, Soonyoung can’t contain his happiness, pulling you into a tight hug, and showering your cheeks with kisses. Giggling in his arms, your stomach begins to hurt at how much he can make you laugh in such a short amount of time. 

Your body heats up at his affection, feeling the way his plush lips press against your skin. You haven’t felt something like this in a long time, but the fact that it’s Soonyoung makes it better. 

Getting up from the couch you stand in front of him, and he’s confused as to why you pulled yourself away. Did he take it too far by kissing you like that? He can feel the apprehension rising within himself as he stares up at you. 

“Do you wanna show me to your room?” You ask, and Soonyoung has never stood up so fast in his life ever before. 

Taking your hand in his, he leads you to his bedroom. As he opens the door you're met with at least twenty different tiger stuffed animals staring at you. Soonyoung on the other hand isn’t phased at all, if anything, he takes pride in his plushie collection. 

“Do you… collect all of these?” you ask him, and he just smiles and nods. 

You decide to have a conversation about the plushie collection another day, but you do find it cute that he’s into something seemingly harmless. 

Sitting on his bed, he doesn’t take his place beside you right away. Instead, Soonyoung carefully turns each tiger plushie around so that they’re all facing away from his bed. He turns back at your figure sitting on his mattress, a shy smile across his lips. 

“Can’t have them witnessing what we’re about to do y’know,” he giggles before turning the last tiger around. 

Once he is finally done, he jumps into the bed and smothers you tightly in his strong arms. You’re not over the whole tiger thing, but at least he’s happy, you think to yourself. 

“Now where were we?” He looks at you, eyes still glittering even in the dim lighting of his room. 

You shake your head and smile at him, pushing him down so that he's lying with his back against the bed. Each of your legs moves over his hips, hands feeling up his chest. 

Leaning closer, you two share your first kiss, and it’s everything you’ve hoped for. The two of you move together in perfect sync as he grabs your sides tightly. 

“You’re a good kisser,” you mumble against him, and he just smiles as he pulls you into another kiss. 

His hands move lower on your body, your skirt hiking up your thighs as he grips at your flesh. Your skin is so soft, and he can’t get over how sweet your lips taste. Soonyoung knows if he were to miraculously die now, he would die a very happy man. 

Soft moans leave your mouth as he gropes your ass under your skirt, feeling the way your lack of clothes leaves more for him to grasp at. He can’t stop touching you, exploring your body like it’s his and his only to discover. The fact that you even agreed to let him be your boyfriend was enough for him, but also getting laid on the same night, well, Soonyoung could really die a happy man. 

The kiss becomes heated with each second that passes, but Soonyoung just wants to let you know how much he likes you. You invade his thoughts relentlessly, not that he’s opposed to it at all. But he likes the way you smile at him every time he tells you how much he wants to be with you. 

“I’m so happy you’re mine,” he whispers to you, your smile widening even more. 

“I’m happy you’re mine too,” you repeat his words again, giving him the same reassurance he gives you. 

Out of all the people you could fall for, you’re happy it was your clumsy coworker with an oddly large tiger collection. You’re thankful for the fact that out of all the people, he was the one to help you on that rainy day. Even when it’s gloomy outside and the clouds cover every inch of the sun’s rays, Soonyoung still glows under the grey sky. Rain or shine, you want him no matter how good or bad the weather is.

Ⱄ a/n: if u want more of them please lmk hehe, and if u liked this story please leave a like or a reblog hehe it is very much appreciated :3 thank you ♡ p.s rain or shine is an actual ice cream shop in bc heheh

Ⱄ perm tag-list: @christinewithluv @todorokiskitten @peachescreamandcrumble @minwonfairy @oneandonlyluvv @ihrtmingyu @tigerhoshii @sleepzyy @luveveryonewoo @thepoopdokyeomtouched @chan-s-laptop @aksweet7 @leah-rose03 @woofie-nctzen-fanarts @gyuguys @crystal-rhyming @jenoxygen @hoshhhiiiii @babigriin @bouclesdefeu @mingyuecstacy @iluvseokmin @odevote118 @wonvsmile @suga-bitch @chickpea-jimin @lar3ine @bias-recs @hanniebub @iluvmingi @vapidlynn @aaniag @yogurttea @blurr3db3rry @lovejoshua @woozixo @drunk-on-dk @noiceoofed @angelfeverdream @leahhhher @hanniebwii @yuyunhoo @whowantshota @hannniiiiiehae @afslme @writingbarnes

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The Vow Spoken Through Time - Part 5

Daemon x Rhaenyra x Wife!Reader

Series: Series Masterlist

Warnings: MDNI, description of a panic attack, mild angst, mentions of smut

Tags: marriage, poly relationship, arguments, Caraxes, Daemon being hopelessly in love with his wives, Queen!Rhaenyra is trying her best out here

Words: 2.3K

Description: Y/N is having a rough morning. She's fired. She's hungover. She's in a stranger's bed. She's waking up in a new world? She's married?!

Rhaenyra and Daemon's day started normal. Waking up next to their darling wife before tending to their duties. The difference? Their wife is speaking in riddles and has no memories of them.

Check out more works in my Masterlist!

You shiver, pulling the sheets tighter around your naked form. Warmth clung to the bedsheets from Rhaenyra and Daemon, but as you blindly felt for your lovers…they were nowhere to be found. Sighing, you try to warm up and fall back asleep, but the damage was already done. “So much for sleeping in,” you mumble, wiping your eyes and yawning.

A muffled noise filters into the room, and you slip out of bed to investigate. Hushed voices are coming from the adjoining room. You can make out Daemon and Rhaenyra’s voices, but not their words. A twinge of guilt hits you as you press your ear to the door. You should probably go back to bed, they wouldn’t have left if they didn’t want privacy for their conversation. But some rational voice in the back of your mind rooted your feet to the ground–logically, their conversation had to be about you.

“We cannot keep them away forever,” Daemon hissed. “Sooner or later, they are going to realize that these ‘diplomacy missions’ are simply meant to deter them from King’s Landing.” 

Your brows furrow….who are they sending on diplomacy missions? Rhaenyra had introduced you to the entirety of her small council. They were all well accounted for in the Red Keep. “Daemon, I refuse to have them here while y/n is in this state.”

“My queen, the children have already begun sending ravens. If you wait any longer they will send dragons.” 

“She did not remember us, Daemon,” Rhaenyra’s voice raised. “You remember how you felt those first weeks? How do you think the children will react when they find out their mother does-”

“Mother?!” you throw the door open, eyes wide in shock. Both Rhaenyra and Daemon whip around to see you. 

“My lo-” 

“No,” you hiss, cutting Rhaenyra off. “Don’t ‘my love’ me. When were you going to tell me we had children?!” Your mind races. You had children? With Rhaenyra and Daemon? What if they’re both right? What if your other life is just some figment of your imagination–the result of some traumatic brain injury you sustained in a fall? 

Daemon steps towards you, hands up as if you’re some wild animal ready to bolt. “Breathe.”  

You can’t focus. Your chest is heaving with every breath. Your eyes dart around as you struggle to ground yourself. Tears prick at the corners of your eyes. Fuck, what if it’s not real? What if you’re not real? 

“Daemon-” 

Arms wrap around you, a hand moving to the back of your head to pull you, face-first, into Daemon’s chest. You tremble, unable to even vocalize sobs as silent tears trail down your cheeks. Rhaenyra hugs you, hands squeezing your waist in silent support. “Let it out,” Daemon murmurs. “We will stay as long as you need.” He bows his head, placing a kiss at the crown of your head.

You have no idea how long the three of you stand there. When you finally regain your composure, you lightly push them back. Neither of them speak; they both simply stare at you, waiting for you to say something. “I want to see them.”

“Absolutely not.”

“We leave at once.”

Daemon and Rhaenyra answer at the same time, heated looks exchanged. 

“My love, you’re in no state to meet them,” Rhaenyra says. “How are we to tell the children you do not remember them?”

“They will understand,” Daemon argues. “They are her flesh and blood. Seeing them might even help her remember who she is.”

“How am I supposed to ever remember them if you never allow me to meet them?” you cut the tension between them. “At least let me make new memories.” You grab Rhaenyra’s hands, pleading.

Rhaenyra sighs, kissing your hand quickly. “I cannot go with you, but it is an afternoon’s ride by dragonback to the children.” 

“Thank you,” you whisper, dropping her hands to hug her tightly. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry I don’t remember our family. I’m sorry I remember another life. I’m sorry I can’t be be-”

“Hush,” Nyra says, “it’s not your fault. We should be apologizing for keeping this from you. We thought if we waited, things would return…to normal.” You choke back a sob at that. Normal. 

“What if they hate me?” 

Daemon snorts before Rhaenyra can offer any encouragement. “Hardly. Lucerys threatened to melt the iron throne if he had to go another month without seeing you.” 

“My darling wife, our children could never hate you,” she assured. “Daemon and Caraxes will return you safely to me by the morrow.”

You kiss Rhaenyra deeply, running to get dressed. “What do I wear for a flight?” you call to them.

“Clothes are recommended,” Daemon teases, “but they are always optional around me.” 

“You are such an ass sometimes, my love,” you chide, rummaging through the drawers. You slide on a pair of trousers and throw a thick gown over your head. “Lace me up.”

Daemon rolls his eyes, but laces up your gown anyway. “You are going to freeze if you don’t grab a cloak.” His fingers make quick work of your laces before moving to plait your hair back.

“Then I shall steal one of Rhaenyra’s on the way out,” you shrug. “She won’t mind.” 

Daemon hums as he ties off your braid. “Say your goodbyes and steal your cloak, little thief,” he says, kissing your forehead. “I will meet you outside the dragon keep.”

You nod and begin looking for a sturdy pair of boots as Daemon leaves. “I heard you were looking for a cloak.” Rhaenyra’s voice startles you. She’s standing in the doorway, black cloak in hand. “I have one of my riding cloaks here, it will keep you warm and protect you from the elements.” She walks up, tossing it over your shoulders and pinning it to your gown. Her hands smooth down the fabric gently.

“Thank you, Nyra. Not just for the cloak,” you begin. “I know this isn’t easy for you.”

“No, y/n. Daemon is right. There is no use delaying the inevitable. It was unfair to keep it from you, even if we did it out of love.” She embraces you in a tight hug. 

“Now don’t keep our husband waiting,” Rhaenyra says as she pulls back. 

You practically run to the dragon keep. Even though Rhaenyra and Daemon had shown you through the Red Keep, you had yet to actually see a dragon. Your lovers thought it would be too soon to let you close to the dragons in your state. You could hear Caraxes before you saw him. His screeches were ear piercing, but they were nothing compared to the first glimpse you caught of him.

Instead of fear, you found yourself in awe of the great beast before you. Caraxes towers above everything, his red scales glittering in the light. His wings flap in restlessness, head twisting and turning as if he was looking for something. You watch as his nostrils flare, he had caught wind of you. Caraxes head whips towards you and the second he sees you, he lumbers over. You freeze as his massive head swings into your side, pushing you under his wing. Caraxes releases a cat-like purr that rumbles through you as he nuzzles into you. 

You instinctively reach out to pet his head, gently scratching at his scales. “Aren’t you just a handsome boy?” you giggle. This was the fearsome dragon of war Daemon goes on about? “Such a pretty boy, how could anyone be afraid of you?” you coo at the dragon as you scratch under his chin. Caraxes is trilling and purring, preening under your attention.

“I leave you alone for a moment, and you are already trying to steal my dragon?” Daemon teases as he walks around Caraxes to greet you. 

“It’s not my fault,” you laugh. “This precious baby boy just wanted some attention.”

“He was growing restless after not seeing you in months,” Daemon says. “It will be hard to get him from your side now.” Daemon pats at Caraxes’ neck in greeting, as he pulls you away to mount the dragon. Caraxes lowers to the ground as far as he can, making your ascent easier. Daemon helps you up, climbing up after you and securing you both in the saddle. 

Daemon slides an arm around your waist and whistles for Caraxes to take off. Your breath catches in your chest at the weightless feeling. Caraxes climbs up into the skies with just a few strong beats of his wings. The wind tears through your hair, and you’re thankful that Daemon took the time to braid your hair and make sure you had a cloak. You let go of the saddle, stretching your arms out and leaning back into your husband. A giggle escapes as you move your fingers in time with the air currents. 

“I don’t know how you could ever want to come down,” you yell over the wind.

“It’s hard,” Daemon leans down into your ear. “But when my beautiful wives are waiting on the ground below, nothing could truly keep me away. Not even this.” He kisses your neck, nuzzling into the skin that peeks out of your cloak. His arm around your waist tightens as his other hand slides up your thigh, shifting your skirts up. 

You groan as his hand cups your core, the heel of his palm grinding into your clit. “It is a shame that you have no memories of your first flight,” he purrs. “You were terrified of heights, and demanded I distract you.” Your hips twitch involuntarily into his grip, and you gasp softly.

“There’s no way in hell we are doing anything up here,” you whine. “It’s a long way down.” 

Daemon hums into your ear as he continues to caress you through the trousers. “You truly think Caraxes or I would let you fall?”

“Caraxes?!” you bat Daemon’s hand away. You had forgotten the dragon underneath you for a second. “What the fuck Daemon, he’s going to know what’s going on!”

Daemon goes silent in a moment, shocked, before he laughs. You twist back to see him wiping a tear from his eyes. “My love, you never fail to surprise me.” 

You slap his chest lightly, “don’t tease me, Daemon!”

He simply shakes his head, hand retreating as he smooths your skirts back down to cover your trousers. “Forgive me, dear wife. I only wished to distract you from your worries.”

His words sombered the playful mood as you remembered what waited for you at the end of this flight–your children. “Tell me about them.”

“Well, we have several. There’s Baela, Rhaena, Jacaerys, Lucerys, Joffrey, Aegon and Viserys.” 

“Dear gods, please tell me Rhaenyra took a turn birthing this mob of children.” You wince. How did you manage to have so many children in your five year marriage.

As if sensing your question, Daemon clarifies. “Baela and Rhaena are both daughters from my previous marriage. Their mother, Laena, died giving birth to our third child.”

“Will they be there as well?”

“No. They are both staying at Driftmark with their grandsire for the summer. Aegon and Viserys are both in the nursery at the Red Keep.”

You gasp, “how did I never find out about them?”

“The staff were counseled to keep their silence if they wanted to keep their heads,” Daemon says causally.

“I am rather confused,” you admit. “We’ve only been married for five years, how did we manage five children in that time?”

“Jacaerys, Lucerys, and Joffrey are all children from Rhaenyra’s first marriage. Aegon and Viserys are the only children who survived in our short five years.”

“Survived? What do you mean?”

Daemon sighed, squeezing you tightly before he began. “You….struggled to become pregnant. When you did, it was a hard pregnancy. Rhaenyra and I were terrified of losing you. You barely survived the birth, but-” His voice cuts off. You place your hand over his, waiting for him to find his words again. “Visenya was stillborn.”

You stare off into the skies. It was surreal. You, or at least another version of yourself, had been through so much. The rest of the flight passed with Daemon telling you stories of the children. Moments like these were hard, but precious. Daemon rarely let his guard down to show any vulnerability, but when he did you found yourself drawn even closer to him.

Daemon yelled a command, urging Caraxes to land. The dragon soared through the clouds, gliding down. You peak over the side to catch a glimpse below. The only things you can make out are two dragons laying in a clearing. 

Caraxes lands surprisingly light, but you still jolt forward at the sudden stop. Daemon braces you as he untangles the saddle ties from you. Caraxes lowers, stretching a wing out for you to climb down. You slide down, thanking him with a pat. 

“Mom!” Before you can turn to look for your sons, a figure jumps into your arms. You instinctively catch them. “I missed you.”

“Joffrey, give your mother some space.” Daemon chides.

The figure, Joffrey, wriggles deeper into your arms. You pick him up, setting him on your hip. He was certainly too old for a nursery, but not too old to be carried. You look up to see Jacaerys and Lucerys standing a few feet away. 

“I trust your journey was well?” The tallest brother–Jacaerys–asks. You silently thank Daemon for giving you a crash course on the flight over. There was some tension, as if they both assumed they were in trouble.

“No need for formalities, I’m just happy to see my boys.” Jacaerys and Lucerys sigh in relief before running up to hug you. “We have so much to talk about.”

NOTE: Thank you so much for all the love on this series!! I work a full time job and spend my evenings writing-so all your support makes it so worth it! As you have noticed, this chapter is smut free (alas). Trust me, there are PLENTYYYYYY of scenes ahead (bc I'm down bad for these two). In the meantime, I hope you all enjoyed a little Caraxes content! ~ Lacie <3

Taglist: @syraxnyra , @avalyaaa , @angeliccss , @clocksonthewall79 , @sia2raw , @forma-lina , @lorarri , @imoonkiss , @ba6ysworld , @abaker74 , @aniisbavk1 , @different-tale-student

Want to be added to a taglist? Click HERE!

[kitscutie]

Hi, I wanted you to make a fanfic about Rafe (obx) in which he dates a pogue, he is very ashamed of her for being poor, I wanted something with a lot of anguish and maybe a happy ending?

favourite crime (rafe cameron x fem!reader)

pairing: rafe cameron x fem!reader

warnings: starts with smut, middle is angst, happy ending!

summary: you and rafe are dating but keeping it secret so that his family doesn't stop him from seeing you since you're a pogue. at least that's what he told you.

a/n: requests are open!

word count: 2.7k

join my taglist here.

"Fuck baby." Rafe said as he sat below you shirtless, your hips grinding down into his rhythmically. The two of you had been together for four months now. Boyfriend and girlfriend.

You were no longer just his friendly hook up whenever Ward pissed him off or Barry wouldn't give him his fix of coke, you were his.

His hands gripped your waist tightly, knuckles turning white from pleasure even when you were both still clothed from the wait down, well you both had underwear on at least.

"Get these off." He grunted, lifting you up onto your knees as you straddled him to wean your underwear down lour legs and into his pocket. He had a collection at Tanny Hill now. Not for him but as a way of keeping some of you here which was useful since you spent ninety nine percent of your nights here.

"You eager or something?" You joked knowing you were in fact the desperate one. You had been working at the Country Club all day and you could only put up with so many stuck up bitches before a tether within you snapped.

"Mhm, believe whatever you want princess." He mumbled, occupied in pulling his own boxers off. "My desperate girl." He smirked as his hand caressed your face, your own body settling down onto his as your bare skin finally met.

"You gonna get to it, or keep me waiting?" You asked, leaning down to bit the very tip of his thumb in a way that always drove him slightly crazy.

With that he chuckled, eyes darkening as he flipped you over, him now on top of you. Two of his fingers circled you clit slowly, too slowly making you more desperate than you were to begin with.

"Rafe." You whined, hips bucking in an attempt to increase the speed of his digits.

"Patience, pretty girl. I always give you what you want, huh?" You nodded in response, eyes closing as you gripped his hair when he slipped them inside with ease. You were already dripping and needy for him, he knew that. He loved it.

"Mhm, I do. So you're gonna be good for me, alright?" He once again asked, knowing you couldn't respond even if you wanted do though he enjoyed watching you squirm. "Think you've earned this?" He questioned, hand leaving you to pump at himself much quicker than he had touched you.

Your hand reached to pull his own away and towards your face, growing impatient. "Please?" You asked, giving him the eyes you knew no man could resist.

"Okay, baby." He finally gave in, lining himself up at your truly dipping entrance. This was all you had wanted all day and it was finally coming true, no longer just a figment of your day dreams.

You sighed out in both relief and pleasure as he pushed his cock into you. He pinned your hands down above you head with his own, fingers interlocked. It was subtle reassurance that no matter how wrapped up in the moment you both were it was just the two of you together.

"Fuck." He moaned, hips pushing into yours like they did each time you fucked, skilfully and measured. If Rafe was good at one thing, it was sex.

You bit your lip to contain your moans, no one was home and they never were when you came over seeing as your relationship was completely secret until he overcame the fear of what Ward would say.

He despised Pogues, as did Rafe but you slowly came to learn it wasn't the general idea of Pogues it was specific ones like John B and his friends, mostly JJ.

Rafe didn't hate you, he couldn't even if he tried.

"Love having you under me like this, so needy." He teased watching as tears dripped from beneath your eyelashes the harder he fucked into you. "Look so beautiful, my girl."

"I love you so much." You finally spoke though it was whispered and strained. With that Rafe knew you were close and so his skilled fingers once again found your clit drawing tight hard circles into the skin.

"Love you too baby." He grunted as he reached his own climax alongside yours. He kept going, even as he grew tired letting you ride out your high that he knew you needed.

Once it was over and you winced with sensitivity he pulled out slowly, allowing your body to adjust to the empty feeling which made you whimper just as much as being overstimulated.

He flopped onto the bed beside you, pulling you close to your chest even though the two of you were damp with sweat, hair stuck to your skin.

"You're it for me, you know that right?" He said into the silence and darkness as he gently stroked your hair.

"And you me." You responded placing a feather light kiss to his chest, even though he would never ask, that reassurance was like a weight lifted off of his shoulders.

You were his, no matter what.

The next day you left him early with a kiss to his forehead and an 'I love you' whispered into the dark room.

You had to work and though you wished you could spend every second of everyday in that room with that boy you didn't have the money to do so, you never wanted Rafe to feel pressured to support you, especially not when you were still both so young.

You had currently been at the Country Club for almost six hours when a new table came in, one which you recognised all too soon. It was Rafe joined by Kelce and Topper. You weren't sure whether or not they knew about you but you felt safe to assume Rafe wouldn't mind you introducing yourself. They wouldn't tell Ward, not if he didn't want them to.

"Hi!" You smiled, walking over with a pep in your step, happy to see your boyfriend especially after expecting to be separated all day.

"Uh, hello." Chuckled Kelce, never having encountered such a happy and forward worker at the Club. Usually it was full of moody Pogues.

You saw the red growing in Rafe's cheeks and the way his eyes refused to meet your own and yet you assumed innocently that he was simply nervous.

"I'm Y/N, Rafe's-" You cut yourself off, expecting the previously mentioned to finish your sentence though he never did. Simply glaring at you as though you were scum.

"The fuck..." Topper muttered clearly surprised. He wasn't dumb, he knew how that sentence should have ended and he also noticed that Rafe never did finish it.

"You're fucking a Pogue man? She need the money or something?" Kelce added and you felt your heart drop, eyes immediately turning glassy with tears. You were a sensitive girl, you knew that but a comment so harsh was unnecessary and it stung twice as hard when Rafe remained silent.

"I-I'm sorry...what?" You stuttered, though the three stayed silent. "Rafe?" You turned to him hoping for comfort, reassurance, anger at Kelce literally anything but you received nothing, not even a look.

"I'm sorry, what's your name again?" He asked, voice strained with what you assumed to be guilt but it didn't matter what he felt because those very wards felt like a stab to the heart, made even worse as Kelce and Topper laughed, heads flying back.

They praised him and shook his hand, impressed by his ability to be so memorable to one of his 'hookups' yet not even knowing your name back. It must've been common for them.

"Okay then." You said, pulling your apron off as the tears flowed freely. "Fuck you." You spat at the sun-kissed blonde before you walked hastily out of the Country Club, you didn't care about your job in that moment, you only cared that the one person you had ever let hold y our heart had just squished it between his fingers with no regard for you at all.

Your mind flashed through every memory of you together, trying to rationalize why this could have happened, was it you, did you do something wrong, say something wrong?

No, you concluded, this wasn't you. Rafe Cameron could never love and you were foolish to think you would be the one to change him.

Lying in your bed, head buried in one of Rafe's sweatshirts had become your new norm, your knew comfort. You hadn't spoken to him since that day which was only around seventy six hours ago but you had never gone one day without him never mind three.

You heard his car park up outside though he never ventured inside, not until now. He had a spare key and so you expected it at some point though not so soon, you thought he didn't like you, didn't love you, that it was over.

His footsteps echoed throughout the empty house, your parents at work. They matched the rhythm of your heavy heart, it felt hollow now without him there to fill it up, this was your life now, how would you cope?

The door to your room opened slowly, almost hesitantly.

"Hi baby." He whispered as he sat down beside your head, hand reaching out to stroke your head and you knew you shouldn't but you leant into his warm touch, desperate for anything.

"I uh- I'm sorry for the other day, I'm such a dick and I just panicked 'cause I didn't know how the guys would react-" He spoke but you cut him off.

"To you dating a filthy, good for nothing, gold digging Pogue right?" You said coldly and he noted that your voice lacked its usual emotion.

"That's not true," He tried but once again, you wouldn't let him lie.

"No. It is Rafe. It is true and you know it." With that you sat up to face him. Your eyes were red and puffy, your face pale and the mascara from that very day was still streaked all over your cheeks. "I know it." Your voice faltered as the tears began to flow again.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart, truly I'm sorry. I know it's not okay, I know I'm stupid and that I hurt you and all I want to do is make you feel better again. I- I um, told them about you, everything from start to end. My family too. Realised I can't hide the biggest thing in my life from them. The best thing in my life." He added and you perked up at this, now intregued.

"What'd they say?" You spoke, voice still quiet from the sadness instilled within you.

"Well, Top and Kelce are sorry though I know that doesn't mean much right now. My family took it better than I thought they would, they want to meet you." He said and it was clear he was filled with relief by their responses.

"And what about you? Do you want me to be with you? To meet them? For everyone to know your with me?" You asked insecurely, hands twisting in the blanket that was over you out of anxiety.

"Fuck." He sighed, ashamed of himself, of the way he had made you feel. He pulled your head gently into his chest, choking up at the tears you released.

"I thought that was it. That we were done and that you had fucked me over yet all I could think about was you. That I loved you and had I hurt you in a way that made you do this. I just wanted you there for me, holding me." You whimpered, the hurt in your chest making it's way up your throat making you sound small and weak.

"Never baby, I meant what I said. You're my forever, my everything I wanna marry you with some big stupid fuckin' ring one day, I just- I was scared of my dad of what he might do it's not you it never was. I love you with everything within me, you're my girl 'till the day I drop dead." He said and you almost felt full again, the words that had once fuelled your nightmares being replaced by his sweet ones, stitching your broken spirit back up.

"You promise?" You asked leaning up to place a kiss on his lips.

"Promise." He replied leaning his forehead against your own.

Rafe Cameron never broke promises, especially not when it came to you.

[icarusredwings]

Thinking about Logan fighting with Wades Hullicinations and while it doesn't do shit, Wade finds it extremely romantic.

(Warning!! Mentions mental health issues such as ending your self and harmful intrusive thoughts.)

He just wakes up in the middle of the night to argueing and obviously, he gets all upset and ready to slash some face only to find that Wade's arguing with himself again.

You just see his shoulders, arms, and hair on the back of his neck go down as he rolls his eyes, rubbing his face because he's eepy.

"What the fuck are you doing?"

"T-trying to win an argument agaisnt this limp dicked fucker." And he just crosses his arms and glares at an empty seat, and some tears staining his cheeks. It's obvious it's been a while.

"Oh my god- Wade, It's 3 in the morning! There's noth-" But he sees him tilt his head and glance at the chair multiple times, more tears forming.

Logan sighs heavily and is like, "Fine. Where is he? What the fuck is so important that hes saying it at 3 in the morning?"

At first, he doesn't answer, and he just stares at the chair as more tears form.

It hits Logan now that this isn't like one of the jokey times about the films he makes in his head rather a more damaging kind. He comes over and pulls his chin up and is like, "Hey! Litsen to me, What is that garbage of a person telling you? Hm?"

He pats his cheek, and Wade cries more, trying to nuzzle into his hand, mumbling all the intrusive thoughts that his brain is subconsciously telling himself through visual and auditory falsehood. That no one loves him, how he doesn't deserve to be alive because of all the bad things he's done, how even Mary Puppins thinks the world would be better without him, etc etc. A load of bullshit bassically.

"What!? No! Why would it tell you that?"

Wade just shrugs and looks at his lap, thinking Logans is going to yell at him for believing it and be disappointed in him, but instead Logan just gets up and goes ape shit on this poor chair, kicking it across the room, stabbing it, hitting it, etc.

All while Wade is watching in awe, not because Logan is getting the shadow man but it's the point that he would go so far and make a fool out of himself just to bring him peace of mind.

During the fight, he glances to the hullicination and is like "Oh you're so fucked when he finds you." And in Wades head it turns to him with a look of worry.

Then logan stands up, panting and is like "Did I get him!?"

Wade can't help but to sniffle, wipe his tears and giggle because yeah, watching your boyfriend beat the fuck out of a random chair for you was hilarious. Al wouldn't be happy in the morning to find it in peices, but he was extremely happy. "Ppfft- you gottem Tiger!"

Logan nods, looks at the mess he's made, shrugs it off, and goes back to the bedroom with a yawn. "Good... If they weren't such a bitch ass coward they'd show their face now wouldn't they? But they're too scared. And do we litsen to pussies?"

"I-"

"Do not say yes."

"No(?)"

"Atta boy. Now come on. Im fucking tired."

Wade turns to the not so scary, anymore figment of his imagination and is like, "This isn't over asshole. He'll kill you ❤️" Then runs off to bed like, "Can I get big spoon!? "

From there on, Wade will tattle on the thoughts, sometimes swinging at them himself, calling for Logan to beat them up. So far, Logan has broken multiple chairs, a coat rack, and has put about 27 holes in the wall just so Wade can get a good nights sleep. He never actually gets them, but its the distraction and thought that counted.

"Logan.. they're back.." "Show me where."

When your boyfriend is delulu, Violence is the Solulu.

[cranberryjuice-posts]

I’ll crawl home to her

Pairings - Abby Anderson x Fem! Teacher! Reader

An - i love this trope of Abby with a teacher like, her coming home after a long day of patrolling and clearing out infected and her just wanting to be in your arms and hear about your day

An pt 2- hozier is slowly taking over my life him and mitski will be my downfall

Palestine aid link

Abby leaned back in the bed of the truck, her cheeks bright red from exhaustion and the heat. The setting sun blaring down on her and her group after a long day of patrolling.

She hated days like these. Having to leave you before you woke up, just to be out all day until the sun set. Manny chuckled “ahí va ella” Abby looked over at him unamused. “What’s that supposed to mean”

“Nothing Nothing Just pointing out something” he continued. The blond sighed annoyed before looking behind her at the fast moving scenery. Secretly she wondered what the world would of been like if it hadn’t ended— would she of met you, would you both of still been happy, maybe you would of met her dad.

Pushing that thought aside Abby lifted her hand waving at the guys on guard to let their group into the base. Once off the truck she avoided multiple people to not get stuck in conversation.

After turning in her guns Abby made a b-line straight for your apartment. The only thing that really mattered to her right now was to be at her home. In your hallway she hesitated before opening your door. Letting out a tired sigh she walked in.

“And that’s what I’ve been saying, I told Julia that it doesn’t matter if back in her day if—“ you stop mid conversation with Mel to see Abby standing in the doorway.

Mel took note of Abby’s exhausted appearance, patting your shoulder “I’ll see you tomorrow ok” she gave you a soft smile before leaving. Once mel was gone you opened your arms waiting for Abby to walk over.

Abby quickly pulled you into a hug taking a deep breath in just to take in your subtle perfume. “Rough day” You asked leaning back some to take a good look at her worn out face. “Yeah, just.. a lot” she sighed.

You nodded leaning up kissing her gently before stepping down, grabbing her hand and walked her over towards your bed. Abby swore up and down your kisses were the sweetest thing ever— so sweet she would get toothaches.

Setting Her on the bed you silently grabbed your first aid kit to help clean some of the cuts on the girls arms and body. Not once asking her about the people she had killed, or even wondering about the wrong she had done, only wanting to help take care of her. “Shit abs your running a fever” you frowned pulling your hands away from her forehead. “I’m gonna make you some tea ok” kissing her cheek you walked towards portable stove you had recently got preparing a fresh pot of tea.

Abby admired your figure from afar, the long grey military sweat pants that didn’t quite fit you as they were Abby’s, your dark bra and how you had your hair pulled up. She had always liked when you wore your hair naturally down but didn’t mind seeing it pulled back either.

You started to hum a lullaby as you turned the stove on. Slowly moving back and forth Abby almost thought you were nothing more than a dream, like you were a figment of her imagination.

Returning back to the blondes side you helped her out of her clothes— giving her a clean set that you had lying around from earlier times she stayed over.

After a few minutes you placed some of the tea in a mug, handing it to abby you started to stitch up a deep cut in her bicep. It amost made Abby cry how you never worried About what her hands and her body had done, never asking about who or what she had killed, only ever concerned about her no one else

Once she was taken care of you took the now empty cup from her and set it aside. Pulling the covers back you laid down in bed, taking your bra off mainly because you knew Abby liked the skin on skin connection. Waiting for the blonde to strip out of her shirt, you laid down allowing her to fall ontop of you.

You started to undo Abby’s braid as she lightly kissed along your collarbone. Raking your fingers through her hair you started to whisper. “I get it sweet girl.. I get it, it’s ok”

Massaging the girls head you started to tell her about your day. Soft and sweetly showing Abby your love “So I had taught my class about world history today, and we had—“

Abby started to doze off quickly falling asleep. Even if she had died on an assignment No grave could hold her body down she’d still crawl home to you.

[instant-delusions]

hii omg may i request xavier smut where he comes home from a hunter mission and catches reader humping his pillow while wearing his hoodie? and it ends with him making reader ride his thigh/dick (or both! i can take him 🤗)

OOOOHHHH MY GOOOD! I LOVE THIS ONE SM 💗💗 I haven't proofread this much cuz it's exam season for me 😭

ɢᴏᴏᴅ ɢɪʀʟ ɢᴏɴᴇ ʙᴀᴅ!

₊✩‧₊˚౨ৎ˚₊✩‧₊

xavier x afab! reader

cw: thigh riding, pillow humping, cursing

you were trashing in xavier's comfy bed, checking your phone every ten seconds to see if your boyfriend finally messaged you. though, unfortunately - nothing. pressing your power button to shut your phone, you see your pouting reflection.

obviously, you knew you were being melodramatic, xavier was off on a mission, and it is hardly realistic that he'll put up his hand, saying something like "hold on, wanderer. my gf texted me." it was impossible to deny you were craving his attention astronomically, though - seriously, look at you. you were in one of his white hoodies, breathing in his fragrance and cuddling his pillows with furrowed brows. it was almost pathetic.

groaning, you opened the messenger.

₊ ⊹

y/n: xavier when r u gonna be back??

₊ ⊹

nothing once again. sighing, you closed your eyes and laid back, his scent becoming more intense with every second of his absence. it reminded you of the times he leaned down to whisper things in your ear or when he nuzzled into your nape, like a golden retriever. breathing in deeply, your lungs filled with his green tea laundry detergent. you can't get enough of him, missing the feel of his weight against you, his lips on your skin, his voice, his hands, him, him, him - even if it's just hours he's gone.

it's almost surprising how quickly your neediness melted your brain, your warm body almost uncomfortable on the bed. figments of memories filled your mind, xavier in his hunter uniform, focused look and swinging his sword - confident in his strength. xavier carrying you to your apartment after one too many tequila shots. xavier kissing your shoulder with his hand on your naked waist. xavier squeezed between your legs, pupils blown wide with lust, his pale skin with a peachy blush. whining, you squeezed your legs together, feeling a familiar pang of pleasure in your lower stomach.

god, you feel dizzy with want, the line between appropriateness and shamefulness blurred. turning around, you got on your knees and grabbed the headboard with a hand and one of his starprint pillows to bring in between your legs. quickly, you got rid of your 'shorts' (one of xavier's boxers).

testing the waters, you roll your hips slowly, feeling how the pillow softly stimulated your clit. a soft gasp escaped your lips, thinking about how xavier has his head on this every day, sleeping innocently. another whine fills the room, and you bite down on your lip, smearing your pussy sloppily on the fabric. "fuck", you drag yourself up and down with a harsh arch of your hips, feeling the knot in your tummy tightening - the imagination of xavier beneath you painting your thoughts. a soft 'ping' comes from your phone, but you didn't hear it at all.

₊ ⊹

xav♡: almost there

xav♡: sry for not txting

₊ ⊹

you slowed your hips a little to drag out the pleasure, soaking the light blue pillow in your creamy liquid. humming a low "mmh" at the intense feeling, you barely even made out the clinking of keys, or the steps.

xavier just got into the apartment - noticing your shoes at the entrance, he smiled to himself, excited to see you. the mission was insanely exhausting, and he couldn't wait to feel you ease his mind. lazily, he took off his dusty, slightly blood-stained uniform and threw it somewhere on the ground, stepping through his apartment in boxers. suddenly, his ears quirked up, hearing whining from his bedroom. confused, he raised an eyebrow and quickly made his way over, opening the door without a second thought.

the sight he was greeted with got his jaw slacked - you in his hoodie, his pillow between your thighs and your beautiful face contorted in pleasure. for a few seconds, he just stood there with the doorknob still in his hand, drinking in the way your hips moved and then stilled with realization, you looked back at him with your mouth open.

"xavier?!" you exclaimed, face red and eyes wide with shock. said man got over his initial confusion quickly, his body tensing with the need to please you - it's like what he was born to do. with a few strides, he crawls onto the bed, grabbing the pillow and throwing it onto the floor. "Sorry, you seem to have missed me a lot. I'm here now, I'll make it up to you."

Your eyes fixed on him. You were barely able to comprehend what was happening, everything went by so fast. "Xav...?" he grabbed you by the waist, guiding you onto his naked thigh. Feeling his muscles flex under your soaked, panty-clad pussy had you moaning out, pathetically grabbing his arms in an attempt to ground yourself. "There you go. I'll take care of you." The hunter guided your hips up and down his thigh, feeling every crevice and bump of your cunt through your underwear. "What..." You started, eyes rolling back in pleasure. "What bout you?" you babbled on. "Don't worry." eyeing his growing bulge, seeing his cock needily strain against his boxers, you questioned his response. Though you definitely were not in enough control of your mind to do anything about it, but weakly grind against his thigh. "Fuck, fuck, fuck." Xavier looks at you, thinking about how nothing is hotter than your face right now, mouth open, eyes scrunched in pleasure, your blush. Everything because of him, everything for him - with a smile, he tucks a strand of hair behind your ear, his hand tightening on your waist. "That's it, cum for me, baby." he almost pleaded, leaning in closer to hover his lips over yours.

Instinctively, you caught them, kissing him feverishly while grinding on his thigh harder. With a few more chopped strokes of your hips, you started shaking with your orgasm, feeling like your soul fell down from the cosmos, right back into Xavier's bedroom. He pressed his lips to yours once more, smiling cutely at you. "Better?" he asks, rubbing circles on your back comfortingly. Weakly, you nod, letting your head fall onto his chest, your arms snaking around his middle.

"I missed you. Let's cuddle."

[twstgarden]

❀ ❝ 𝟭𝟮 𝗽𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗲𝘀 ❞

━ idia shroud x gn! persephone! reader ━ idia wonders how he got lucky with you, and everyday, he wonders if you really are there by his side and not just a figment of his imagination. (f/n means first name)(reader can be yuu or an oc)

requested by: @glass-anna11 request type: scenario requester’s message: “Hello! May I please request for fluff relationship with Idia and a Persephone-like S/O please?" florist’s note: hello, dearie! of course, i love idia, not sure if this is fluffy though. apologies~

this work does not contain spoilers for chapter 6, ignihyde’s arc.

do not steal or translate without my permission.

ko-fi here if you want to support me

idia was still not convinced that you were his. you were the epitome of perfect to him: kind, sweet, and drop-dead gorgeous. not to mention, you also can be wise and mature when you need to. the contrasts between your personality paired with the affection you gave him were enough to make him think he was dreaming.

'the gods must be playing a joke on me,' thought idia as he watched you hum a tune to yourself while making some flower crowns, seated on his carpeted floor surrounded by flowers you picked in heartslabyul's garden.

god forbid you'll ever get in trouble for that, but knowing you, you might've asked for permission before picking their flowers. his console rested on his hands while he was waiting for his game to load, his eyes stuck on your radiant beauty.

however, the sounds of his game's background music playing made him resume his concentration back on the screen, and he once again tried to distract himself. it took a few hours until he tore his gaze away from his game and noticed you were no longer in the same spot as you were before.

he wondered where you were, and as soon as he finished playing, he got out of his seat and looked around, "n/n...?"

did you leave? have you gotten bored of him? have you gotten tired of being the one to take initiative? did you find someone else that's better suited for you - someone that is not a gloomy, underworld keeper like him?

thoughts flooded his mind, and just as quickly as they came, they instantly disappeared the moment you entered the room with two cups of instant ramen in hand, pausing your tracks as you two stared at one another for a while before you smiled.

"i went to make some instant ramen while you played. i thought you might be hungry, so..." you trailed off whilst he stood there with eyes wide open as if he had seen a ghost.

"...why are you so caring?" mumbled idia, making you tilt your head a little. "what do you mean?" you asked before placing the instant ramen cup on his desk while you ate yours.

"i mean, why are you so kind to me?" asked idia once more as you paused eating your ramen and set it down, realising he was still in disbelief that someone was actually taking care of him like this no matter how much it seemed like he was not returning the gesture.

you cupped his cheeks, still smiling sweetly at him, "because i love you, idia."

love.

you love him.

he stayed silent for a moment, his thoughts running wild again as he looked into your eyes, seeing nothing but genuine feelings. he eventually held your waist - in a rather awkward manner - as he smiled a little at you.

a soft sigh left his lips, growing nervous as he was about to take the next step. with one arm around your waist, he used his free hand to reach out at the drawer behind you, opening it and grabbing something that you did not see.

"hm? what is that?" you asked, curiosity brimming your mind as you eyed his enclosed hand. he took his arm off from your waist as he gulped, placing a hand under your chin to make you look at him as he presented the candies in his hand, "would... you like some?"

thinking it was just him being nervous about offering things to you, you shrugged and smiled at him, grabbing the 12 candies in his hand as he eyed you for a bit while you spoke, "sure, thanks!"

you then looked at the candies. it was red in colour and round, just like the other hard candies that idia casually eats when he is bored. not caring about what flavour it might be, you unwrapped the treat and popped it in your mouth.

"hm... tastes... like pomegranate...?" you mumbled, making idia nervous as he spoke, "are you not fond of it?" you smiled and replied, "no, i did not mean it like that. it tastes great!"

idia sighed in relief as he smiled at you, awkwardly wrapping his arms around you once more as he said, "that's a relief... they're local candies from my hometown." you hummed in response as you continued tasting the pomegranate candies, "from the island of woe? huh, they taste great."

"yes..." trailed idia as he thought to himself, '...so they are unaware of the island of woe's tradition relating to pomegranates... how do i tell them that offering pomegranates to someone is equivalent to a declaration of love without sounding so awkward?!'

© twstgarden 2024 || please do not steal, translate without my permission, or use this to train a.i.

[inkspiredwriting]

Unspoken Jealousy

Five Hargreeves x Fem!reader

Warnings: none

Number Five stood in the middle of the living room, staring intently at a complex blueprint spread across the coffee table. He was deep in thought, muttering to himself as he connected the dots of his latest plan. Y/N, his wife, watched him from the doorway, a hint of a smile playing on her lips. She admired his brilliance and determination, but today, something else gnawed at her.

“Hey, genius,” she called out, trying to sound casual. “What’s got you so engrossed this time?”

Five looked up, a grin spreading across his face as he saw her. “Just working on a new project. Trying to make sense of this time anomaly I noticed.”

Y/N walked over and sat beside him, glancing at the blueprints. “Another day, another time anomaly, huh?”

He chuckled. “Something like that. You know how it is.”

Y/N nodded, but her mind was elsewhere. Lately, she had noticed Five talking more and more about Dolores. It was never in a way that suggested he still had feelings for her, but the mere mention of her name was enough to spark a pang of jealousy.

“Five,” Y/N began, hesitating slightly. “Can I ask you something?”

“Of course,” he replied, looking up from his work.

“Why do you talk about Dolores so much?” she asked, trying to keep her tone light. “I mean, I get that she was important to you, but it feels like she’s always there in the background.”

Five’s expression softened, and he reached out to take her hand. “Y/N, Dolores was a coping mechanism for me when I was alone in the apocalypse. She kept me sane when there was no one else. But she’s just a memory now, a relic of a time I’d rather forget.”

Y/N sighed, her jealousy turning into a deep-seated insecurity. “I understand that, but sometimes it feels like I’m competing with a ghost.”

Five’s eyes widened in surprise. “Competing with a ghost? Y/N, you’re my wife, the person I love most in this world. Dolores was a mannequin. She wasn’t real. You are.”

“I know that,” Y/N said, her voice tinged with frustration. “But it doesn’t change how I feel. Every time you mention her, it’s like a reminder that there was a time when I wasn’t enough to keep you sane.”

Five moved closer, cupping her face in his hands. “Y/N, you are more than enough. You are everything to me. Dolores was a figment of my imagination, a way to survive. You are my reality, my anchor. I’m sorry if my talking about her makes you feel less important. That was never my intention.”

Y/N leaned into his touch, tears welling up in her eyes. “I just want to be the one you rely on now, the one you talk about.”

“You are,” Five whispered, kissing her forehead. “You’re the one who brought me back from the brink, who gave me a reason to keep fighting. Dolores was my past, but you are my present and my future. I promise to be more mindful of your feelings.”

Y/N wrapped her arms around him, holding him close. “Thank you, Five. I needed to hear that.”

They stayed like that for a while, wrapped in each other’s embrace. The blueprints and time anomalies forgotten, Five and Y/N took comfort in their love, reaffirming their bond. It wasn’t always easy, but they knew they could face anything as long as they had each other.

From that day forward, Five made a conscious effort to let Dolores fade into the past where she belonged. He focused on the present, on Y/N, and the life they were building together. And though the scars of the past would always be there, they were just that—scars. They would heal, and with Y/N by his side, Five knew he could face whatever the future held.

In the end, it wasn’t about erasing the past but about making sure it didn’t overshadow the present. Five and Y/N found their way back to each other, stronger and more united than ever. And that, they realized, was all that mattered.

[1nthedarknessofthenight]

﴾ i drink your blood and i eat your skin, part nine.

pairing: hwang hyunjin x f!reader

genre: vampire au

word count: 17K

warnings: suggestive

masterlist

playlist

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Was is it love or was is it obsession? Or perhaps it was the need to possess someone, so the only thing they could see, hear or taste was him. Your fingers grazed over the page that you kept reading over and over again. “And you, their best beloved one, are now to me, flesh of my flesh; blood of my blood; kin of my kin; my bountiful wine-press for a while; and shall be later on my companion and my helper.” Your frown deepened at those words.

Were you just as blinded as her? There wasn’t any love, only the need to dominate. Were you just as blind as Mina was too blind to see the truth? This portrait of love — this obsession was completely different from what you have seen with your own eyes. You thought that maybe reading would make you feel better, see that you are not alone, but it only made your thoughts worse. Her supposed lover was nothing more than a greedy man. He didn’t love her. He didn’t.

Though somehow you feel like it didn’t reflect your situation at all, the story progressed into something completely different than you thought it would. You thought it would make the fog disappear and help you understand him better, but the confusion is only greater now. He is not the same as the man in the book. He wasn’t cruel to you. He wasn’t a bad man. He saved you, was nothing but kind to you. He was a real person afterall, more than a few words in a book, more than a creature thriving from the fear of the innocent.

You can’t just let words on paper tell you how to feel. You just have to go to him and…then maybe you could finally see him for he truly is.

You close the book, sighing at sight of all the other books on the nightstand that were still waiting for you, placing the one you were holding on the rest of them. Your right hand played with the soft fabric of the sheets — cold. Your eyes then flicker to the spot next to you, caressing the dent left behind and somehow you just don’t have the heart to smoothen down those wrinkles.

You remember the way his cold skin felt on yours, so piercing that you don’t even remember any fabric separating you two. He isn’t here, but it is like you could still feel him. You hate yourself for pulling away, so abruptly that you were yourself hurt by your own lack of touch. You just can’t help yourself from thinking that one day he would just vanish, like he was just a figment of your imagination. That you would touch him and he would turn into nothing — but you already now that won’t happened…You have touched each other, hands on each other’s skins, delicately grazing in a sense of eagerness…hunger. You could see it sometimes in his eyes, just for a split second, like he didn’t actually want you to see it. Maybe to not scare you away...but it only made you want more.

For how long can you pretend that he isn’t the only thing you can think about? From the moment you met him, there wasn’t a time of the day when you didn’t thought of him, dreamt about him. From his voice, to his simple smiles, eyes and lips…you hope this isn’t turning into what you think it is. You did feel this emotion easily, too easily and you are determined to stop it from ever coming out again, as you only got hurt in the process. But this feels different from any other time, because it felt like it wasn’t only coming from you. You don’t know what to do…you really do say that a lot. You didn’t even know him and if you did get to know him, would it change — or would it become even more difficult to ignore?

You have to keep yourself occupied, so you wouldn’t think so much, but every time you were with him, it seemed like you didn’t think at all. Almost like you were comfortable enough for him to think for you. After all those moments, when you finally got your moment alone, you always thought about what you should have said instead. However you realize that each time you spoke to him more and more, you would become more honest with your answers, but still being bashful enough to say more than a few words. You think that sometimes your own words confuse you, because you kind of got used to not talking so much. But he did listen every time. Carefully going over each syllable that would fall from your lips, looking at the smallest of changes in your expression.

Letting your feet carry you to the closet, you become highly aware of how quiet it is. Every step you took, the floor creaked under your feet that high pitched noise echoing in the silent room. Somehow you hated it, the silence. You did get used to it, but everything that happened yesterday made shivers ran down your spine. Your eyes would stare around each corner of the room, just waiting for something or someone to jump right at you.

The feeling of being watched made goosebumps appear on your skin, anxiety stabbing you in the heart that only seemed to acrease on speed. The thing that scared you the most was the fact that you didn’t want to be alone. Your eyes started to play tricks on you, making you see things that weren’t truly there, but you just knew that somehow there was something — someone just lurking. Creeping up on you and the thought made you feel like a scared little girl. Was it the need of being protected that made you want to be closer to him? You hate that somehow it wasn’t the only thing.

He did make you feel safe — still remembering how it felt to be in his arms. You think you are slowly starting to lose your mind…

Your fingers wrapped around the handle to the closet, opening it, ready to pick the robe hanging on the inside of the now open door, but your hand only glazed over it. Your eyes were dead set on a piece of clothing that you thought, you would never see again. You didn’t even realize it till now how much it was imprinted in your mind. You don’t even register your own hand, falling on the soft fabric of the shirt, however as you do that you almost jump away when you suddenly feel something touch your fingers. You know that it is slightly inappropriate for you to run through his closet, but you simply thought it was yours and you were already pulling the shirt from the hanger.

You could remember exactly how the fabric shined under the moonlight that night. How it almost mirrored the river and how it got stained with…blood. Your lips parted as you see the stain at the front of the shirt. It still felt wet, fresh, but your fingers weren’t coated in the red liquid, it was only the cold fabric tickling you. You take in a deep breath, smelling the irony smell from the blood as well as the smell of him. Why did he not throw it away or at least washed it? It made you feel a little uneasy and it wasn’t because you were holding something stained with someone’s blood.

It was the thing that he probably kept it like this because of you…He kept it like a trophy.

You started to become slightly sick at the thought of him just keeping it like this for you. The shirt started to get wrinkles from your tight hold as it burned your skin. You can’t forgot when he basically told you that he stalked you every night after that. You don’t think he redeemed himself enough to win your trust. Maybe it was just his nature, but you can’t help yourself from feeling relief wash over you as you put the shirt back in the closet, closing the doors quickly after that, like it would jump on you.

A heavy breath leaves you then, before deciding to just ignore this little information. Should you ask him why he kept it? And also admit the fact you were basically going through his stuff? You couldn’t possibly survive the embarrassment. You will keep quiet for now, maybe to see if you would get even something more creepy out of him. This definitely isn’t the only thing that he didn’t tell you…

You walk away from the closet to the other, opening it and realizing that you didn’t even took the robe. Though as you stare at the gleaming fabric of those dresses Hyunjin was so happy to give you, you completely forgot about your usual option of attire. ‘I wish to see you in them…’Your fingers hover over a dress that particularly spoke to you, tugging it to you. The soft yellow and pink color reflected in the light, multiple layers spilling over your fingers. So soft to the touch and light — you couldn’t help, but sigh at the feeling.

As you took it off the hanger, even knowing this is a gift for you, you somehow know that he will be the one getting the most pleasure from seeing you dressed in it.

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Your lips puff out as you exhale, flickering away the loose piece of your hair that fell into your line of vision. The door, still closed, like a barrier, seem to mock you. It was calling you a coward. You stood few feet from it, the distance almost feeling like it was truly miles away. Somehow it was, because you felt like you were doing a big step. You spend a good time putting yourself together — and it seems like it was only for him. However after putting that dress on, the soft pink and yellow fabric spilling around you, hair brushed and pulled loosely up, you realize you also needed this.

Were you only this nervous, because you were scared of what he might think of you? You have never seen yourself like this. The expensive dress hugged you so well and you become highly aware that he somehow had to sneak in to your own home to know your exact size. Was it thoughtful and nice or just borderline creepy? Both you think…You are really being nervous because of him. That scared you more than him telling you, he didn’t like what he was seeing.

You take a careful step forward. Feeling your legs get heavy, hands clamping together, sweat pooling inside your palms. You still can just walk away, dress back in to your nightgown and just lay back into the bed. You are your biggest enemy right now, waiting to see if you truly have the courage to let him see you like this, knowing that it was mostly just for him. You really can’t do this…not going further, but back. Back to being your old self again, scared and just surviving. You can finally go and do something about this thing you were calling life. And what do you even know? Maybe if someone truly is trying to kill you, this might be your only chance. As silly and overdramatized as it sounded, it is the truth. So you do take a step. Each one feeling lighter and lighter, the ringing in your ears clearing up and the fog before your eyes disappearing as you got closer and closer to your destination, before you finally stood right before it.

Your eyes fall firstly to the light peaking under the door, before following the length of your skirt, fingers immediately smoothing down the invisible wrinkles. Your hand exchange to the handle, seeing yourself in the reflection of the gold, letting you get a last look at yourself, before you would open it. However you wondered if you should knock firstly. Battling with yourself, you decided to just let yourself in, but before you could do that a muffled sounds came from behind the still closed door.

Frown falls on to your face, fingers just grazing the cold metal of the handle. From what you could hear, there were probably multiple people talking at once, almost sounding like they were having an argument. Before you could stop yourself, you were already listening in, trying hard to ignore the fact that you are literally eavesdropping right now. The hushed voices were too quiet to pinpoint at least the topic of the conversation, making you press your ear to the wood. You want to justify yourself that you are only listening to know if it is a proper time to come in. The mumbling voices died down at your move, making confusion strike you, little frustrated of not getting anything. The cold wood touching your ear suddenly seem to burn you or maybe it was just the embarrassment as you almost jump right out of your skin when there is a sudden booming voice piercing through the silence.

“You know…it’s not very nice to listen to someone else’s conversation.”

You cringe at the fact you were just caught, feeling so stupid of even trying, because you sometimes forget the fact that this house has ears everywhere. They probably already knew about you from the moment you step out of the bedroom and you just had to embarrassed yourself further.

You take a step back, hand tugging at the top of your dress, like there is an invisible collar choking you. You were actually ready to just turn around and leave, running down the hallway in embarrassment and falling down on to the soft bed in hopes it would swallow you whole. However you don’t even have time to take another step back as the same voice, now softer, like just knowing about your own inner battle, spoke up and you know your heart could be heard pumping even through the door. “Come in.” You think you do recognize the voice, but hearing it in such soft tone as well as also through the heavy wooden door, you can’t put a face to it.

Do you want to? You are now acting like if you wouldn’t embarrassed yourself, you would be already inside, fully confident in yourself. There probably isn’t a way out of it now it seems. It would only be rude of you to just walk away and ignore their invention. You were so curious about what they were talking so passionately about till now…You start to feel sick, anxiety bubbling inside you the more you just stand there. Your eyes fall back to the handle, hand reaching out and twisting it, hearing a satisfying click. The sound echoes a little in your head as you open the door wider, before finally stepping inside.

The second you close the door behind you, you finally look up. The room was lighted only by the big fire place right behind the long table where they all sat. Your eyes, before going to them, look around the room. It seems like every room had its own personality — this one made you feel safe, however the authority and dominance radiating from the men before you, made you also feel so little. On the walls were few paintings and you let your eyes travel to each one of them, but one particularly stood out to you.

On the painting were the same eight men who sat just a few feet away from you. The painting was almost the whole size of the wall and seemed recent, but what can you know — they probably never changed since. Their eyes held power, the real ones piercing through your skin, giving you a real sense of how truly powerful they feel.

Your head turns to them, stopping on the man who sat on the left end of the table. You remember him from yesterday. Longer blond hair, eyes darker than a night, but they seem to flicker golden the longer you would look into them. He looked the youngest out of everyone, but those eyes were telling you that he has seen more than you could ever imagine. Next to him was the dark haired man you met at the stables and not like his friend on his right, you did know his name. Seungmin, his eyes held the same color, right hand playing with a cup that held a suspicious red liquid. However he held a small amusement at your silence, almost like enjoying the attention you were giving him and as the right corner of his lips started to turn up, you had to look away to the next one.

This one also smirked at you, but it was softer, sweet even. His features were delicate, cheeks round, eyes hidden behind his hair. You almost thought that you haven’t met him before, but as his head tilted ever so slightly at your stare, you realize you did know him. You have met him briefly, well seen him. You didn’t know his name either, but you were sure this man was with Minho the night at the club. Remembering the way he calm down the usually, cold man when he was upset about something. You at that look at the said man and of course he didn’t mirror the happy expression as the man next to him. You didn’t expect anything else from him, but you note that he was the one who spoke up when you were behind the door. It was like his eyes were just telling you it was him, still slightly shocked about the fact that he could even talk in such tone as his face didn’t seem to match it. Maybe it was just a mask, still being careful around you, though you both know, you wouldn’t be able to do anything.

At the center of the table sat the man you had just few ocounters with. On the day you were basically kidnapped — you don’t think you will ever forget or forgive about that and also yesterday when it happened. You from the moment you first saw him just knew he was somehow in charge here. Everyone here was…but he looked like the leader. Almost scary aura radiated from him as he looked you up and down with his brown eyes. The way the fire gave him a halo around his head, made you again unable to look any longer at him, because he was simply too intimidating. So your eyes then fall on the man on his left. Now, how can you not remember him? The man who held you hostage in his arms, the man who made you feel so useless and weak under him. You remember the way he was so smug about the whole situation, finding it even funnier when you try to wiggle out his grip and he reminds you of that time again as the corner of his mouth lifts ever so slightly. Your own lips purse at that, already knowing he is thinking about that memory.

From the same day, you remember the man with even longer hair than the first one. You think that out of everyone, he seemed the most happy with your presence — other than the man with puffy cheeks. Felix, if you remember correctly. You remember his name, because he was the one who was the first to show you real kindness. When you felt scared, he made you feel safe in this foreign house. You do have to thank him for that someday. Your own face softens at the bright smile he sends your way, eyes twinkling in the orange light of the room. You just couldn’t help yourself from giving a small smile in return, but it fell as you looked at him.

Hyunjin couldn’t look away from you the moment you stepped inside the room. If he did need to be breathe, it would only be taken away from him simply by the sight of you. You were a breath of fresh air, delicate as a flower. You do remind him of that as his eyes kept trailing over your figure that was wrapped in a dress which he specifically picked out for you. It warms him from the inside, head completely clean of every thought. The colors complimented you so well, looking even more beautiful in the soft orange light coming from the fire place.

His lips were parted, simply in awe of you. He realized, he was starting to get soft. Just a look it all took for him to feel at your mercy. When his eyes fell onto your features — that beautiful smile you just shared with his friend still lingered on your lips, softly bitten and pink. He can’t argue with the fact that he was also slightly jealous as you haven’t given him such a soft and bashful smile before. Though he felt small pride at the fact that he wasn’t the only one mesmerized by you.

Your heart skipped a beat the moment when you first looked at him. The blue eyes of his, you become quite found of, held softness so deep, you couldn’t help but feel giddy inside. He didn’t say anything to you yet, but his eyes told you everything you needed to know. He liked what he was seeing — he liked…you. In a sense of you dressing up for him, you have to remind yourself…

A cough coming from the man at the center of the table, makes you snap out of your thoughts, head turning to his direction. “Please–“ He spoke up, hand gesturing to the empty seat right next to Hyunjin, almost like it was meant for you all along. “–as you were so eager to join us.��

An embarrassed sound comes out of your mouth, hearing that only made him more amused. “I didn’t mean to…” You say, rather quickly. Looking around the table, before a sigh leaves your lips. “But if I’m part of this conversation shouldn’t I be present also?” The man next to Minho gave you a grin in return, the whole table a little shocked by your sudden statement. You actually just had a small feeling that the conversation was about you, but by their reaction it seems like you assumed right.

You then make your way to the chair meant for you, eyes completely everywhere, but him. Hyunjin at your closeness quickly stood up from his seat, straightening his back, before going around the table to pull out the chair for you, making you momentarily stumble as the movement was so quick it almost scared you. A short laugh leaves you at your own doings, expecting the gesture by looking up at him. You did meant to only glance at him, but as he was already looking at you, it made you jump slightly. The closeness your faces were in made time froze, but you do quickly got yourself out of it at the realization you two were not in fact alone, a whole audience right before you. Not like something would happened if they wouldn’t present.

Hyunjin wraps himself around your natural scent. The way your hair was up, made you completely bare for him to take in. His eyes just for a split second flicker to the prominent vein in your neck, skin looking so soft that he has hard time controlling his hands. His knuckles turn white as he let himself stand behind you, his own casting a shadow over you. These quick moments that felt so long for both of you, weren’t definitely missed by the others. He, other than you, did look at them, almost rolling his eyes at the obvious teasing looks.

A laugh, so quiet you couldn’t possibly hear it, was released from the youngest’s lips, a few smiles being shared in return. You look up, eyes traveling to the man who held the most authority. He looked at you with a hard stare, but the furrow in his eyebrows told you, it wasn’t anger, but concern instead. Concern over you.

The more you look at each other, the more the others seem to notice the change in the room. “Y/N.” He says and at the sound of your name you remember his. Chan. “Someone knows that you are here and I won’t sugar coat this situation any further…you are in danger and not only you, but also your closest.”

Air gets stuck in your throat. How did you not think of that? A new sense of fear strikes you, eyes wide, frightened. You felt horrible that you didn’t think of this yourself. Your mind was till now so occupied, basically only thinking about your own safety first. You know that if you would voice out your thoughts about how horrible you are starting to feel, because you didn’t even think about your loved ones, Hyunjin would immediately shot those thoughts off. You are grateful for him being so concern about you, but he just needs to understand that you are also concern about others. You could feel his stare at the back of your head and you are sure that he already knows about your feelings.

You can’t breathe from the thought of someone hurting Mia or the Johnson’s, eyes unwillingly stinging as you look up from the glossy table to Seungmin. “This someone only after few days of you being here, knows about your presence and position.” He says, red lips pulled in a thin line. Even if he didn’t seem like the type to show emotions often, you could just feel the worry radiating from him.

Those nights that you spend here, felt so quick and blurry in some way to you, but they were probably enough for someone to notice you. You can’t help, but feel confused. You know about their powers, but you didn’t spend so much time outside for anyone to see you, but even in the few minutes when you did, this someone certainly wanted you to remember that day. The logical and frightening truth probably is that they already knew about you from the beginning, maybe even right after Hyunjin made his appearance…

“But how?” You breathe out, looking over the whole table, throat dry. “I mean, why my presence matters anyway?”

Chan shakes his head at your words. You should know that you do matter, you are significant. The brunette looks at his family, before again looking at you. “After being on this earth for more than a millennium, we all made a lot of allies as well as enemies and those who seek revenge, now have seen a new light, hope…” He clasps his hands together, gesturing at you. “And you are it, Y/N.”

Your head swirls, fuzzy from his statement. Goosebumps rise all over your body, feeling how the fingers behind your head tighten around the headrest, wood cracking slightly. “It also doesn’t help that you are human.” Continues Minho, stating the obvious for the whole room.

It is quiet after that, the only noise being the flames licking at the wood in the fireplace. Were all their enemies so scared of them that they didn’t have the courage to even try going after them firstly? You can’t question this person’s motives as you are easier, way more weak opponent. However you are simply not getting over the fact that going after you, is meant to hurt Hyunjin more.

His lost half, soulmate held captive, tortured, only held alive for them to ease their thirst or just killing you — it makes him sick to his stomach.

The dark haired man is again the one slicing through the silence as he takes his cup before him, sighing into it, throwing back anything that is left. “Or we can make it easier for you — you know just a little pain and…”

You don’t know if it was meant to be just a little teasing remark, but you weren’t really in the mood as well as the others. Your whole body vibrates when the man behind you growls at those words. The noise came from the back of his throat and if you would just turn around, you would quiver at the horrifying sight of his eyes turning completely red. “Now it’s not the time for jokes, Seungmin.” Hyunjin sneers, looming over you, like caging you into him and you could feel his scent really pulling you into him.

The man that just joked, gives him a funny look, but you can’t miss the brief look at others who are also a little shocked, but not surprised. They have never seen Hyunjin so protective over someone like that, but they can’t judge him, because Seungmin’s words were really not fitting.

Though you can’t keep yourself back from thinking about the offer. You don’t think you could, you actually feel like this is the first time you felt alive as wild as it sounds. The thought of how long you will stay alive did come over you. Hyunjin is immortal and you are just a human. Would he let you live? Get old? You don’t want to think further, because you are still not close enough to each other to even think about this. But you do wonder if in the future, you would really think about this offer…

The thought of death leads you to the present. You were close to it multiple of times since you met him and you really can’t stomach that something like those things or even worse would happen to your friend Mia or the Johnson’s family. Your lip quivers, but you still held your unshed tears, knowing that they won’t help you in this situation, knowing that they would only make you feel deeper, make you blind. You need to think and quick about how to safe them from this person. You don’t even care about yourself anymore.

“So because of that my family — my ehm…there are in danger just because of me?” You whisper, already knowing the answer. Your voice unwillingly broke at the end, not missing everyone’s darkened expressions.

You swallow the lump in your throat, breath momentarily hitching as you feel a brief touch at the back of your neck, making you turn your around. Hyunjin leans over you, giving you a look of determination, his fingers still playing with the short hairs at the back of your neck. “We will protect them. I will make sure that the best of my men will be there to protect them, at night and even at day.” His voice is firm, letting the weight off your shoulders slightly fall as he sounded so confident in himself.

You give him a look, sort of sweet for a split second, catching the frown on his face soften. “This is so….I just don’t understand.” You really do say that a lot, your brain really can’t take all of these things at once, finding this whole situation — reality quite insane. Why did everything became worse? Now you are scared even more, because someone you didn’t even know wants to intentionally hurt you and more.

Hyunjin’s blue eyes flicker to the wrinkles on your forehead, wishing that they won’t become permanent. He couldn’t say this, but he also feels lost. He thinks that before all of this it was already hard for him, but now someone is trying to hurt you again. And he thinks that he maybe will not be enough. They were so close to you…He will not stop fighting for you, he will protect you, even if this someone could be anyone, he will protect you. Hyunjin knows that it is wrong to feel like this somehow help him and you get over the less important things, letting each other see both of yours more vulnerable sides.

He again, straightened his back, but he lets his body rest on the side of the armrest of your chair. The subtle move and you letting him be so close to you, meant so much for him. His gaze falls on to his dear friend, blond hair tugged behind his ear and by that he could see the concern on his soft features. Everyone is concerned for you, but him being the closest to him — he couldn’t help, but feel the most determined to eliminate this danger. “What should we do?” Felix cuts the tension.

“What can I do?” You join in. You can’t let them get into this without you. You know that this is probably their issue to solve, but you are still relevant.

“Nothing.” Says Minho, looking at you like you just grew second head. “We do nothing.” He looks around the whole room, his words shocking you and you definitely weren’t the only one confused about his verdict.

Hyunjin stares at him with wild look, scoffing at his statement. “I’m not going to sit here and wait, knowing that there were this close to her.” He says, voice raised, but you don’t have the courage to say something to him to calm down, because something tells you that maybe you shouldn’t be taking this lightly at all. Yesterday you try to block out everything that happened, but it was only the beginning to this horrible person’s plan and that did make you fear for your literal life.

“If they wanted her dead, they would’ve done it by now.” Says now the man who you only met the first day here, the one that hold you captive in his arms, but it all seems so long ago to you now. He held his head high, hand rubbing his chin. “They are seeking something more.”

You did already know that but hearing it like that makes you shiver from the unknown. “Yes, but if we do stay quiet, we will only give them time to build an alliance with everyone we’ve ever wronged.” Points out the vampire next you, looking up at him, just catching him stumble over his words. Though he held his voice leveled, the look of distress can’t be missed. You are starting to feel even worse, knowing that all of this is just because of you.

“Hyunjin’s right–“ Speaks up the man with puffy cheeks, leaning over the table to see you properly. “This isn’t just about her anymore.” What did you got yourself into? What did you get them into?

The man in the middle sighs, clasping his hands, gaining everyone’s attention. “So we shall do the same…we will make even more powerful army.” Chan then glances at you, reaching his hand out to you, like he wanted to touch you. “We will protect you.”

The way he voice out those words made you feel like there is something more to it. The undertone didn’t come unnoticed, everyone’s mood shifts into something you couldn’t quite understand. There was a hidden meaning in his statement and they all seem to be on high alert.

“If you’re referring–“ Starts off Minho, but he is only caught off by the elder.

“I am.” Chan says, making his brother only blink at his answer.

Confusion from your side is obvious, watching how the room turns glum. You can’t help, but look at each one of their faces. Some had their lips pulled down, others try to keep their faces as hard as possible, but in all of their eyes shined the same thing, completely different from the emotions they are showing. You turn your head, trailing your eyes from the hand wrapped on the armrest, going up to the length of it, before you stop at Hyunjin’s face. He didn’t turn his head to you, his Adam’s apple subtly bobbing up and down as he could feel your hard stare. They all looked unsure, sad…scared. Your lips part at your assumption. Can there even be something for them to be frightened of? Maybe it is not it fully, they are hiding something though, you will have to know sooner or later.

“What are you talking about?” You ask, eyes going everywhere around the room and Minho is the one to answer to you, eyes reflecting the flames in the fireplace.

“We are talking about the first ever vampires.” He sighs through his nose, head hanging low. “The same vampires that created us.” You choke over your answer, before realizing that you don’t even know what to say to this information. You sit up straighter, invested. The first ever vampires…

“We were their first ever creation and that made us equal. We are known as the second strongest vampire clan.” Chan continues, you holding your breath. “The original vampires can’t be killed, because it would also mean that every other vampire that was ever created would die with them…their blood bounds us all together.”

“Every vampire yearns for power.” Hyunjin says, looking down into your wide eyes. “They can’t kill the strongest, so the only option for them is us…it’s not the first time someone tried to take over everything we made.”

“The originals don’t care about anyone.” Says the blonde at the far end of the table, but his eyes are set on the table before him.

“We became unusable for them after a while…” Says Minho through gritted teeth, the man with soft features putting a hand on his shoulder, but he only shrugged it off.

You have never seen Minho since you met him so emotional, it only answers your question if the vampires that created them were somehow close to them. Your head spins slightly from all of the things you just heard. “So someone is trying to get to you, through me?” You ask, whispering, but you know all of them could hear you.

You are just stating the obvious and you can’t help, but become again concern, but it was now for them. Someone is trying to use you, knowing that at least one of the members of the second strongest vampire clan would try anything to prevent them from hurting you. Something is telling you that Hyunjin would not be the only one protecting you. If something would happen, each one of them would protect the other. You don’t know him for that long…but just the thought…the thought of something happening to him makes your heart ache. You can’t breathe simply at just the thought, hand pressing into your chest. You could feel your heart jumping wildly, awful, painful feeling coming over you. “But why?” You breathe out, mostly to catch your breath that was stolen from you.

“Jealousy must of the time…why were we picked over them?” Felix answers you. “But also, because we couldn’t control our hunger for many years, creating vampires unknowingly, because we killed their loved ones…” His teal eyes, flicker to the man next to you, before going back to you.

“We’ve done many terrible things, all of us.” Chan explains, listening to the sudden rapid beating of your heart, not ignoring this subtle sign. By it they could tell that your feelings you were expressing were genuine. “And also — no one likes being told what to do after some hundred years or so, they want new rulers.”

“We take orders from the originals.” Says to you the strong man next to him. “We have a list of every vampire ever created and take responsibility for keeping humans unknown of our existence.”You still at that, leaning your back into the chair as if to make yourself smaller. You are not scared that they would do something to you, but you just know that them going against the rules, because of you maybe meant even a bigger threat to their undead lives.

Hyunjin could feel your body go solid for a second, leaning his own on the back of your chair to possible tell you to not be frightened, but as Minho speaks, his efforts go completely unnoticed by you. “You’re human and you know about us, but maybe if we would talk this through with them, they wouldn’t have to kill you.”

Everyone could hear the small noise coming out of your mouth, noise of complete fright. However you feel that death is really becoming such a close friend to you in some way or another, but you still don’t feel charmed by it. You feel like both ends are slowly closing around you, your fate sealing right before your very eyes. “Kill me?” If you all would just wait, there is a high possibility of this person to just snatching you from them as they were already so close to you. If you would all come begging the oldest vampires for their mercy, it would also lead to possible death.

You don’t even hear the room anymore, eyes wide open, staring into the palms of your hands. You think you are drowning yourself slowly into the thought of death. You can’t help the small tears of horror forming in your eyes. You don’t hear anything for a moment, their voices just a high pitched ringing sound.

Hyunjin never felt so defeated before while looking at your state. So pathetic of him to not be the only one to protect you, but if it meant for him to visit his past to save your future, he will do it. Your hands shake from your nerves, so many emotions seeping out of you, intoxicating the air in the room. His hand travels from the chair to your high cheek bone completely unknowingly to him till his cold skin touched your burning one. He feels your body melt at the subtle touch and before you can’t even react yourself, your head tilts up to look up at him.

The ghost touch from the tip of his fingers move the fine hairs away from your sight, blurry eyes gazing into his. They were suddenly so deep in color that you for a moment stop the thoughts running through you, calming your racing heart like a sweet melody. A voice cuts in to the shared moment of vulnerability, your hearing suddenly clearing, not even realizing the conversation still kept going.

“If we tried to hide her, it would only raised more chaos. We all know the rules, because we helped creating them.”

Everyone knew the high possibility of all the vampires taking this opportunity to strike, but at what cost. This all could lead to something greater than your death. You could be the leading cause of a massacre, you could result the death of him, them, your loved ones and possibly even more people. You are starting to see the cost you will bring if this doesn’t go well planned. Even creatures like vampires, had their own rules and would happen if they would be free? You really do not want to know.

You swallow your unshed tears, eyes still on the man before you. Hyunjin doesn’t look away from you, even for a second, chest rising, like showing you to take deeper breaths. It did help you find your ground again. You are starting to feel more leveled with your emotions and it is only because of him.

As you calm down a little from the rollercoaster of emotions, you just realize how much silent it is. Everyone seem to be deep in their own thoughts, lost. Every thing they will have to do has to be well planned, though everyone seem to notice that anything still will be risky. They are walking on the edge. You can’t hide the fact you are angry with yourself that you could bring them to their possible downfall. Everything they did to make vampires live at the edge of society, unknown to normal people could be turned.

The blonde at the end of the table chew on to his lip, before his teeth nip dangerously too deep at it as something comes over him. He wants to laugh at his own idea — maybe thinking too deeply about this situation is not the key. Less is more. Even with your decisions, you sometimes have to take the obvious option. His brothers could make out the sudden shift in him, as they all lived together for so long, they are basically one.

“Why should we hide her?” He says, gaining all of their attention. “We should celebrate…perhaps a ball.”

The faces gained are obvious disbelief and confusion with his request, but they don’t immediately disagree. However you probably out of all of them seem to be the most against it, as it is maybe too risky and little provocative. “A ball?” Repeats the other blond vampire, testing the word on his tongue.

The other shrugged, the uncertainty in his tone obvious to him, because he also isn’t so sure with his own idea, but he still will stand by it. “Isn’t there supposed to be a celebration ball after a vampire finds his soulmate?” Celebration like these weren’t so unknown amongst vampires, it is almost like a tradition. Though as finding a soulmate is so difficult, near impossible, there wasn’t a ball like this in a very long time. Considering that one of the oldest, most powerful vampire did find himself amongst a human, it would really pick up the interest.

The vampire, on the left of the leader frowns. “Yes, but wouldn’t that be provoking?”

Minho humms in thought. “Maybe.” He says, starting to see what his younger brother meant by this idea. “But it sure would pick up their interest and give us some leverage.”

Your eyes follow them, each word however making your confusion bigger. The pull at your eyebrows is noticed by Hyunjin who answers those racing thoughts in your head. “Every time a vampire finds their soulmate there is celebration.” The word, the status of your relationship rolls out of his lips with a different tone that you do pick up as also his ocean blue eyes gave away how much this simple word means to him. “Before they take their vows for an eternal life together.”

He says the words slowly, each syllable piercing through you like it was some kind of a spell. He before saying that felt unsure, perhaps even shy voicing them out to you. Your breath hitched, eyes widening while still looking into his. He knew about this, but didn’t tell you. Maybe because to not make you uncomfortable, seeing as you till a day ago let him in just a little. You just started to become vulnerable, deciding for yourself if you even want to have something with him.

You don’t want to say you are now forced to be by his side, you don’t want to say that these walls around you are slowly cracking…However the thought of marriage, vows that are maybe totally different from the normal ones meant everything. It would mean that you will be forever his…

Your lips parted, a small noise coming out of you, you are simply speechless. Hyunjin watch the small reaction, taking it as maybe not so good one. He can’t judge you. He is immortal, he lived multiple lives, but you are still on your first one. And maybe even your last…No, he won’t let anything happen to you. Just the memory of your tear stained face, your scream of terror ripping out of your chest makes him sick. If you do not want him, he will understand, even if it hurts to see you so against it.

You never knew that they would be even the possibility of you getting married. Meeting someone who would love you till death will do you apart. But you did meet someone, he was death. Walking in the shadows, living and thriving at night, while you roamed through the day, surviving. Could you really marry him? Let him be the one to possible lead you to your death and then never see the light again. Would you let him turn you after a while? Would you truly love him even after he would turn you?

You drown in your thoughts again, falling silent, joining the others who also didn’t have anything else to say. They felt like this should be discussed in a private matter, maybe even romantic, but all of them knew there isn’t much time. The others feel bad for you two that you didn’t even have the time — time to get to know each other, fall for one and other. They don’t want to say that there is not hope for you to see the truth and for Hyunjin to expect your possible loss. Every vampire in the room knew about how important the thing that happened to you was, they do not wish for your death, but they also can’t let themselves fall.

“As said we’re quite old fashioned.” Cuts the tension the man next to Minho, laughter way to sharp and inappropriate, so it only dies down hallway at the reactions sent his way. Minho pinches him at that, making the other yelp dramatically, though it does ease the tension in some way.

Your vision set on the palms of your hands is dimmed as Hyunjin steps before you, blocking the light of the fire. “Y/N…” He calls out to you and to your own shock you do look at him with sorrow expression. He looks stressed, chest rising with heavy breaths that you knew he doesn’t have to take, eyes wide, trailing all over you. “It doesn’t mean that we would be married, just because of this situation — I don’t want you to think that I’m only using you–“

The urgency in his voice to and justify himself is heard and you do believe him, it is just…absolutely crazy. “No…I understand.” You mumble, gaze falling back to your hands, because you couldn’t watch his face fall even more.

There is some truth to your words, you really did understand and you were so eager to help just minutes ago, but this? Is this really the solution to this problem? It seemed risky, plan incomplete. They will put themselves into spotlight, showing off and provoking their enemy who could also possibly be at the event. The original vampires, if they would attend, will determined if you should live or not and if you somehow do, it still wouldn’t mean they would protect you. Well, if the enemy won’t get to them first.

“It is done then…” Chan says, his voice echoing around the room, making you look past the vampire before you to him. “There will be a ball as soon as possible, so it won’t seem like we’re hiding this information — your presence from the higher.” He ends his speech, not missing the small mumble from the raven haired vampire, still gripping your chair which you sit on.

“Something tells me that they already know.”

────

What happened after that became a blur, you could see from the corner of your eye how all of them stood up, walking their separate ways. Some stop to watch the fireplaces, some went to pour themselves drink and others just left. Hyunjin was one of them. You didn’t miss the way he look at you. So empathic for you, but he himself couldn’t help, but feel sad. You watched him stand up to his full height, how he pulled his long black hair back behind his ears, how he didn’t spare you another glance.

He always gave you a moment of peace to think and you hold yourself tightly to the chair, so you would do the same for him. You realize how difficult it actually is to hold yourself back. You want to tell him the truth. That you don’t in someway feel oppressed from the idea of you being his, but you just couldn’t…because you can’t accept it yourself. You can’t let these sudden emotions change everything that happened so far. However you do not want to overthink again, because you do it all the time. You want to talk to him.

You stand up, stumbling momentarily as your feet felt like jelly, while looking around the room. From the still two unknown men standing next to the fireplace gazing into it, to Chan drinking with the man that you for a split second met at the club. They stood next to a small stool, on it few glasses holding different colored liquids, but the one in the leader’s hand you could recognize as whisky. The crystal clear glass twinkles, inviting you. You decided to at least talk a few words with him, let him see that you are more than just a scared little girl, but you just know that these creatures always knew more about the person than the person themselves.

You pick up the front of your dress, making your way around the table to the two men drinking. You are sure that they are all waiting for your next move, counting your each step, listening closely to your heart — even if none of them still didn’t look at you, it felt like you are being analyzed. The aura they all radiate is unbearable, yet alluring — like a poison. You wonder if it comes with the gift of eternal life or if it just comes from the heart.

As you stop in front of Chan, he pours himself another glass, head still turned away from you. However the one next to him doesn’t look away, big doe eyes glaring into your soul and you are having a really hard time to look away from such intense gaze. The older fills his drink hallway, cocking his head into your direction, looking at you like he didn’t already feel your presence. “You want some?”

You stumble for a second over your answer, the amber color does look delicious, but you really don’t have the appetite and also it wasn’t your drink of choice. “No, thank you.” You say simply, watching him pull the glass to his plump lips, swallowing it all in one go. You are not sure if you should be impressed as vampires don’t probably feel a thing, only the subtle burn at the back of their throat as you learned in the past. Finishing his drink, he sets the glass back down on the table and then again looking at you.

From your past encounters, you weren’t so close to each other, so you are more obviously taken back by the vibrant color of his eyes. They looked dark from far away, but up close they look like dripping honey, like the liquor inside his glass. By the look of his, you realize that he is giving you a silent question mark, like he just knew you wanted to say something. You blink rapidly, waking yourself up, hair at the back of your head standing up at his gaze, but mostly at the vampire’s next to him. “I just…I’m sorry, I don’t know what to say exactly, but thank you, it is–“ You shutter over your words, eye screwing shut in small embarrassment. “I know the risks you are taking for me. You don’t even know how much this means to me…” You laugh shortly, feeling your cheeks burning when from the corner of your eyes, you see the other two vampires at the fireplace turn to your direction. “All of you are family and I am so sorry that when I came into the picture — I just ruined everything…I don’t want anything to happen to you, all of you. I kind of wish that Hyunjin never met me-“

“No.” Chan says, stopping you for continuing, making you jump at his voice. He sounded angry and when you look up at him in shock, you see it with your own eyes. “You really don’t know what this means to a vampire — to a person to find their soulmate do you?” He stays quiet for a split second, you only shaking your head softly. “When we become death, everything is more vibrant, clear, with our powers we also see the truth. There is nothing left for us to do. We are only lost souls roaming the earth, taking other’s energy and life to somehow fulfill our own.”

You see something in his eyes, something hidden, but you do not dare to even move at his sharp words, eyes falling onto the man next to him. “Soulmates exist. Humans can’t have soulmates as they do not feel the connection, they do not cross death and come back, they don’t have the ability to see beyond. As a vampire you see a new light, you can feel it, see it.”

“It was a bond known between two undeath people, but never a human and a vampire. The fact you can feel it too, even if everyone can tell you are trying to hide…it is extraordinary.” Explains to you further the blonde, scaring you as he stood right behind you. Turning to him, you glance briefly to the last man next to him who watch you closely like everyone else in the room. “You and Hyunjin are the perfect balance. Maybe your fate is already being written, maybe you are meant to become like us…but what if not? This bond maybe is so strong that it can defeat death itself.”

“Do you now see how important you are? You are not just a normal human to us and everyone will see that. We won’t let anything happen to you.” Chan says to you. You can’t help the warm feeling spreading inside of your chest. “You do not have to apologize or be greatful. You are family now.”

You feel tears forming in your eyes. How can you not be grateful? They are all so kind to you, you have never felt so appreciated and seen. Your mouth opens, but you can’t find the right words. He said not to thank them or apologize, maybe because these words were so little and not meaningful for creatures like them. You think that even if you kept saying these words, it wouldn’t be enough. You believe them, but you do not know if you believe with their statement. Nothing about you is extraordinary…however you can see this thing between you two. You thought the same as him, maybe you are just too good at hiding your feelings that you become blind yourself, but the fact is that you somehow you can’t be compelled by him. You don’t know why, but both of you know that this meant that you two are meant to be together, he can’t make you feel things for him because — you somehow already do…At the night on the bridge you could feel it so greatly, but now you are only trying to make these things go away — what if this would only end up in another heartbreak?

You flash the man before you a small smile, knowing that if you would even dared to say one of those forbidden words, he wouldn’t let you go till you learn otherwise. “Where do you think I could find him?” You want to shake your head at your own idea, sheepishly fidgeting under their gazes. You think you do need to see him, you think he needs you. He let you take the first steps, simply because to not overwhelm you, but you are slowly becoming unsure of these feeling you are so desperately trying to hide. You need to see for yourself if you are really being honest with yourself…but also you want to see him. You can’t let him just walk away from you anymore.

The blonde comes into your line of vision, a teasing smile spreading across his face. His eyes twinkle almost teasingly at your question, but not so surprised by it. “His workroom propably, he’s there all the time — go down the stairs, turn left, it’s the door with a painted flower on it.”

You take all of the information to your heart, silently repeating the words to yourself, because you just know you would forget otherwise. You give a nod in return, stopping yourself before you could even mutter a thank you, but you do catch the small smile of amusement on Chan’s lips. You leave silently at that, head turning to give them a last small look, because you just couldn’t resist. They really could mesmerize you by their own presence alone.

Your footsteps didn’t feel heavy as the other times you walk your way through the house, but you can’t help yourself from going back to the conversation. Learning about your importance, seeing that your existence could harm your closest. You trust Hyunjin and the others with keeping their word that they will protect them, because they all know how even not blood related family can be the most important thing in the word.

You need to talk to Mia. You need to hear her voice. You know that you can’t say anything to her, but you need to make sure everything is alright and that they she just didn’t disappear. You do not have much friends, but the ones you have were always in your life, you didn’t even realize it till now. You are so used to their presence that being without them is like losing a part of yourself. However the last part already became known…

If it comes to the question yes or no, you don’t want to say the first option only because you had to. You want to get to know him, he’s not seducing you, he’s actually just being himself. Maybe this magic pull he held is just the bond. Though even if you could feel it yourself, the need to think of him every moment when he’s not with you, needing him to look at you when he is — you really need to know if this isn’t just some kind of a trick. Is he smitten with you only because of the bond or is a truly you?

Your head starts to throb, so many thoughts at once that you didn’t even realize you already walking down the stairs. The whole house in some way feels so empty, unknown, because they were so many different wings, rooms and stairs leading to somewhere you do not known. You only been down here, when you ran out of the main door which you walk past right now or the other time when you actually took your first walk outside. Now you don’t even want to think about going outside, even if the gardens look absolutely breathtaking.

With the curtains closed, you only see a small streaks of orange light coming from the sides, letting you take a peak at the setting sun. You are starting to feel like one of them, because the day would go so fast for you, the night really is the more lively one by of the bunch. You don’t stumble over your feet, because of the few candles lit around the house. You wonder if they just don’t like electricity or are just really old fashioned, but you do appreciate their old spirit.

You are thankful that they didn’t do anything to this magical place. You could just tell by a single look that it was just kept in touch, loved. You really are surprised that you didn’t know of this place before this, you are sure it would be very popular in some sense, but also this meant that you must be somewhere completely cut off from any civilization.

The door wasn’t really hard to miss. The description gave to you was spot on, but it lack the depth. You have never seen such a beautiful painted door before. It was a red rose, petals springing out while the thorns and leaves went up to the edges of the door. The details, outlines made of gold and when you came closer to inspect it more, you realize that the whole piece was molded. You couldn’t help but trace your finger over it, marveling at the colors that in some places were faded, maybe from the age.

You smile softly at the soft detail of the handle — a smaller rose at the end of the handle which look like a few tangled stems. At the sight you however don’t let yourself in or maybe again eavesdrop again, because you know better than that, so you raise your hand, knocking carefully on the door. Few pieces looked particularly sharp and you don’t want to risk cutting yourself in a house full of vampires and also you are scared to even touch it more than that because you don’t want to destroy it by your clumsiness.

You hear noises on the other side of the door, loud footsteps, stopping before it. You gasp out as the door swings open so wildly that it knocked the air out of your lips, hair falling into your eyes. However you could still see Hyunjin’s face controlling into a small shock at your appearance, like he couldn’t just feel you through the wood.

“Y/N?” Is he really that surprised to see you? “Do you need anything?” With his next words he closes the door a little, not letting you have even a glance inside. He frowns down at you, thinking that something must have happened and it kind of did, but it was way more simple than he expects. He doesn’t see your bashful expression, his concern blinding him. “If there’s anything you need, just ask one one of the servants, I can’t right now-“

“Oh…” The noise stops him from continuing, watching the way your fingers bunched up the fabric of your dress. He still can’t believe how beautiful you look…”I came here to…talk.” You swallow the last word, but he could still hear it.

“Talk?” He repeats, tasting the word on his tongue with a concentrated face.

You want the ground to swallow you whole, because how difficult is it to talk? Nervously you fidget even more as he straightened his back, standing up to his full height. The way he towered over you is too much for you to handle, because he looked too good looking down at you. “Yes, I wanted some company, but if you don’t have the time—“

Hyunjin hides his shock behind his long hair. Is he even worthy of your company? You probably don’t even know how much your words warmed him. His cold heart jump at your honesty as yours pumps so fast, because you were actually nervous. He thought that maybe after that you would go back to your isolation. Talk to him only if necessary. Because the conversation held back in the room felt like something you wouldn’t like to talk about anymore and maybe you don’t…you really want to talk to him…

He is taken back by your words, mind swirling, eyes going back and forth at your expressive gestures, because you are simply becoming even more embarrassed. For once you did the first move and he just told you he didn’t have time for you, but how wrong you were about….

He stops you with his hand, mouth hanging open as he shakes his head at your expression. “I would really appreciate your company.” He says, a small smirk on his lush lips. You feel your tense shoulders relaxing at his answer, watching closely as he moves out of the way, opening the door wider. “Please, come in.” His hand is still holding the heavy door for you, even as you take a step in, the top of your head catching his outstretched arm. You hold your breath as you pass him so closely, you just know he did that with an intention.

The room is a little bigger than you expected, because a work room simply isn’t supposed to be so big. Though you quickly realize why it is like that, separated into sections it. Everything, everywhere — on the walls, on stands, on the multiple tables were paintings and drawings. You wish for more light to see fully on the canvases, because you become simply speechless at the sight alone. You walk around, finding different angles, even more art to look at.

You stop before one of the tables. On it there were scattered many drawings. Flowers, animals or just a small details of a person’s face. You can’t help yourself from going through them, hands just grazing softly over them, to not destroy them. You were simply in awe at each one of them. Every single one of them had their own character, they were all so beautiful…But then as you moved out of the way more papers, you came across a one that immediately spoke to you.

It was a drawing of the Moon, light scratches on the paper indicating its light that mirrored on a river. On the left edge of the paper is a bridge, still unfinished and on it you could make out a small figure. You quickly realize who it was — you. He drew you at the night you two met…he drew the moment you kept repeating inside your head. You reminisce the peacefulness yet tension there was when your eyes met for the first time. How it felt to be seen for the first time.

A smile spread over your lips, simply because you found it quite endearing. “I presume you drew these.” You say, turning around, only finding him leaning closely to you on his main desk. However you do not know that he didn’t look away from you since the moment you step inside this room. He listened how your heartbeat slowed down to a pleasant thumping.

Hyunjin if he could, would blush under your praise, but even in his small bashfulness, he can’t look away from your beautiful smile. “Yes.” He answers, proudness prominent in his voice as he also looks around the room with you.

“They are all beautiful.” You breathe out, taking it in. Every painting in the house, in the corridor you passed through is probably his, you find it absolutely amazing. “You are very talented.” You do not know where the confidence in your voice came from, but you don’t even think twice about it, simply too distracted at the moment.

The vampire is also stunned by the sudden compliments send his way, a fizzy feeling warming up his insides. Your presence and that you choose to be with him meant so much, you can’t even imagine. Lights of the few candles he lightened up, made your dress shine, skin looking so soft to touch. He wish to paint you like this — he wishes to paint you at any given moment. You are just too mesmerizing to not be painted. His eyes travel to your bare neck, listening to your pulse that jumps dangerously too loudly to his ears at the moment. He looks away from your neck, like the sight of it burned him, throat dry, thirsty. Those thoughts were forgotten for a moments when he hears you shuffling through paper, hand just grazing at a one particular drawing.

Your fingers brush against it, seeing just a glimpse of someone’s strained neck, before it is grabbed from you. You gasp at Hyunjin’s sudden appearance, his moves so quick and shift that you are left slightly spooked. His speed made some of the drawings on the table fly away, but he payed no mind to them as the drawing you were looking at is pushed tightly to his chest. “Thank you for your compliments, painting has always been a passion of mine…” He says, smiling sheepishly, a short laugh following from his lips. You just nod your head at his weird behavior, watching him lean over the table to your side, opening a book to just put the drawing inside of it. He snaps the book shut, looking up at you as he slowly straightens his back.

Shiver runs down your spine, tickling the back of your neck as your wide eyes stare up into his. He was so close, so so close. If you would even take a breath in, your chest would graze over his. Your eyes fall onto his neck, watching his Adam’s apple jump, because if you would tilt your chin up, his chin would touch your head. His hand still lingering on the closed book, made its way back through his drawings to his side, but you could see it from the corner of your eye stopping next to yours. You can’t believe you are so taken back just from this. You already touch each other like this, but it still was only, because under a certain situation. Never just to feel each other…He could sense the air around you shifting, how your shoulders tense up, he by that figured you are becoming uncomfortable, so he steps away from you. He had to so say that these tensions between you two are slowly killing inside.

He clasps his hands behind his back, walking back to his main desk, turning to you, now a decent distance between you two. “I see you are learning to enjoy my gifts.” Hyunjin remarks, eyes traveling down the length of your body. Your response is small laugh, because you are still finding your ground, back leaning on the table. You stay away from him to not go absolutely insane, but his next words almost make you. “You look beautiful.”

Such simple words, but to you they meant a lot. You did struggle with your self image, because you always thought that the way you look was the leading cause of your loneliness. So that word made you simply speechless, because he is the literal definition of it. The way he voiced out those words…made you for once really feel like it. “Thank you…it is a beautiful dress.” You say, looking down at your body. The pink and yellow fabric shifts with any small movement of yours, looking back at him, only for your eyes to fall onto his desk.

A silent gasp leaves you at the sight of your favorite flowers. You love any flower, because they all have their own uniqueness, but a traditional rose held your heart. He follows your gaze immediately, noting the way your eyes light up at the sight of the bouquet. “You like roses?” It came out more as a statement, because it was his favorite flower also.

You nod, smiling at how his features softened. “I love roses, but I must say, I prefer white over red.” A different kind of smile is send your way, his fingers taping at the table, like deep in thought by this almost useless information.

You just realize how quiet it is, it almost felt awkward between you two with all these stops before moving on with the conversation, but you prefer it this way. You finally had time to think, before answering, but you know yourself too well — it won’t stop you from saying whatever. You stay at your spot, both hands balancing your body while you watch him walk to an another, smaller table.

His back turns to you, preventing you to fully see what he is doing, but then you get a glimpse of a bottle, the glass winking at you. The context still unknown to you, till he pours it into his glass. The thick liquid, could be recognized even from far away, but you still ask just to be sure. “Is that blood?” The word rolls out of your tongue in displeasure and he just gives you a small look. His fingers played around the rim of his glass, rolling the liquid around like it was just a glass of wine. You didn’t need any conformation from him as he tips the glass to his lips. “Did you…?” You wonder, watching him take another, longer sip.

He knows what you are asking and he immediately shakes his head. Hyunjin could feel your small expression of what seemed like betrayal and disgust. He himself feels disgusted by the idea of betraying you and not keeping his promise, it hurts him a little that you would even think that. “No, I haven’t touched anyone…if that’s what you are asking.” Smacking his lips, his tongue licks at a small drop rolling down the corner of his mouth. He sees the immediate relief, how your grip on the table loosens. He then let his eyes linger on your neck again. So pretty, unmarked, you really shouldn’t tease him like that with your soft looking skin. “—if you are not offering yourself…”

Heat raises to your cheeks and you just know that he could see the blood traveling to your face under your skin. His comment wasn’t meant to be said like that, it should’ve been a small joke perhaps. Though when he said those words himself, he couldn’t fight his sultry tone. Your hand momentarily raised to your neck, his eyes following the movement. You don’t know if you should be even breathing as every move of yours made him so hopeful. You know about his desire to drink from you, maybe it is only his nature, but you could tell it meant something more. Your hand falls to your side again, deciding to let his comment be forgotten, but it still lingers a little as you try to distract yourself with looking at a painting behind his head.

The colors on it are dark, way too dark to make out the scenery. With only the few lit candles in the room, you could however make out a small house, a cottage, its windows painted dimmed orange color. In the background is something you couldn’t quite make out, but it did help your heart to stop beating so fast. Though you think again about yesterday when from the corner of your eye, you see him finish his glass. The woman who he drank off…

“I saw human and even vampire servants…” You say, instead of just saying what you wanted to say, but this small statement of yours still needed to be explained.

A smirk falls over his face, too quick for you to catch, the darkness also not being really helpful to you. You just hope that he couldn’t feel the jealousy radiating from you as you thought of the woman who he had bitten. “We only hired humans to look after you when we cannot…feeding from them is quite optional.” No, he did know your intentions, he knows why you asked him that. Embarrassment is understandable from your side, but he didn’t see it as he realized that even with more people in the house, he couldn’t protect you.

“So you compel them to stay and feed from them?” You mumble, again asking a very obvious question. He only gives you a small nod in return, but you only start to feel more bad for them. They just manipulate normal people for their pleasure. They stole someone’s freedom…”So you really keep innocent people here under your spell, feeding from them till they one day bore you?” Your words almost spit out of you.

He almost feels like a child caught doing something, he shouldn’t. You are right in one way, but you still don’t know that the humans here really don’t mind being here. They feed from them, yes, but they still have some heart to provide them with anything they want. They are not as cold hearted as you think, you should be thankful that you are not a possession of some other vampire clan. “They let us themselves, trust me the blood tastes better when the person is not opposed to it. They give us their blood and help and we give them anything they want in return…besides it’s not that often. We enjoy more going out — playing with our food.”

You frown at that not quite getting what he is saying, but the small amused raise of his eyebrow isn’t missed. “How so?” You ask, after learning that these people here are safe, not really held captive if you can even say that, makes you feel at ease.

Hyunjin can’t fight the small amusement, because you always don’t see the obvious, however you really do have a particular eye for details. He looks up at you through his eyelashes, the darkness making his eyes shine like eyes of a predator which he is. “Someone likes the chase, the thrill of seeing someone scared and completely hopeless, but more so it’s the immense pleasure of seducing someone.”

Your lips form into thin line, mainly because that the thought of him doing that to someone is making your skin crawl — you don’t want to admit it however. His voice was laced with honey, but you quickly learn that this is the way he speaks. Does he speak to his victims like this? Lurning them into his arms? If you would look at it from far away, it made you sick that vampires just use human for their pleasure only, they find thrill in their weakness. “And then what? Kill them?” The frown on your face deepened, looking at him.

He cocks his head slightly, like thinking, but both of you knew that he already had an answer ready for you. Hyunjin could see right through you, knowing exactly what you are going to ask by just a look into your eyes. “Sometimes yes…” He says in honesty. “But we prefer not to — I look at humans as equals as much as it is amusing with our nature. I was a human once too, I just simply take what I need and then make them forget.”

Forget…simple word, but you did not do that when he asked you to. After his statement you feel yourself relaxing slightly. Maybe you are looking too much into things way too quickly. You judged too hard, only being proven otherwise by him after. You have to stop seeing him like the creature that he is and see him as a person who once had dreams, like you. He was once just like you, he knows how he would react in your position — maybe he would be even more dramatic, overreacting and overthinking more than you do.

When you met him, you found yourself in a completely different world. The world of supernatural beings that you only saw on a screen. You did wonder if vampires were the only ones, because when you learn something new, you always need to know more. “Are there any other supernatural beings?” You wondered out loud. There is so much you want to ask that you forget about this most important one of them all.

“Yes.” Your breath comes out jagged, small excitement rising in your chest as well as fear. “They are werewolves and witches who created us.” You can’t believe that humans do not know of their existence other than you now, were humans this ignorant?

Your eyebrows knitted together at the last sentence and in curiosity you had to take a small step closer to him. “Why?”

He knew that you would ask, but it is important that you know. It would help him get closer to you, get you to trust him. He doesn’t see it as him being manipulative to get you close enough for him to finally feel a part of you, but he can’t help, but feel needy to answer as you did come closer to him. Though it hurts a little for him to go back to his past. “There are many types of witches, good and evil, they all take their power from the Earth.” He sighs a little, head hanging low, eyes full of emotions. “Mother Nature turned their back on them when half of their clan was murdered by werewolves. They seeked revenge so they created us, making us and werewolves the perfect rivals for each other.”

You are in disbelief that this is how vampires were created, but it somehow made a prefect sense. They were created from revenge. “Werewolves existed before you?” You asked him, walking closer to him, away from the table till only the tips of your fingers touched the wood.

The small excitement is obvious to him, even if you try to hide it. His future was painful, talking about it is painful, but as he told you more, he felt better somehow. You made him realize that is not so important as the present — future with you. “Yes…there’s actually one in this house right now, but he prefers not to speak of it.” Hyunjin whispers to you as you lean ever so slightly closer to him, him looking up to the ceiling like he could just tell that the person is listening to the conversation.

You don’t hide your shock at that. A vampire and a werewolf? Your childish excitement is interrupted by a sudden feeling of fear of the unknown. It felt like the first time he told you about their own species, your head started to hurt a little from this much information. “Who?” You ask him, the word also coming out as a whisper. It was so silly to even try to be quiet, but he found it cute when you imitated his tone of voice.

“Chan.” Your eyebrows jump for a second to your hair line, not even realizing you were standing right at the edge of the table, just a few steps away from him. “He was a werewolf before he was turned. He was the first one to be turned by the originals, so that’s why he became our leader.” The one word came out from his mouth with a weird undertone, but you don’t comment on it. “Werewolves are going extinct and so are witches, because of our hunger for blood and power.”

You gave him a look of understanding, but you know that he still was holding back, not telling you the whole truth. Your mind goes back to the man upstairs, the one who held the most authority and confidence in his steps. He seemed to be the type to somehow not be moved by anything, but hearing this about him, makes you realize that he is more than just their leader. “So he is a hybrid?”

It was a silly question perhaps, watching him immediately shake his head. “No, his werewolf side died that day with him.” You suddenly feel bad for him, it must have been so painful for him, either of them, but turning into your own sworn enemy must be painful to even imagine. “However being an Alfa made some of his followers still believe he was, even after turning, not their enemy.” You nodded, him seeing the small downside turn of your pink lips.

It was quiet for a moment after that. You are thankful a little, because you needed to sort out your thoughts. Some things were still unanswered. Though the main thing that kept your mind occupied were the first ever vampires, the ones who turned them. You don’t want to ask if they all knew each other, but something told you that they did. Your heart burns at the fact he was killed by someone close to him, turning into the creature of the night. You can see how much it hurts him to reminisce his last moments as a human. It must have been so scary for him…

Your fingers played on the table, body swaying back and forth as you change your weight on your feet. You then make your way closer, justifying yourself that it was only because you wanted to take a closer look at his drawings. Hyunjin held is breath as you passed by him, simply to not intake your scent. He watches your fingers nibble carefully on the paper, caressing it so softly he wishes it would be his skin instead. A candle on the table illuminates your most prominent features, loose hair from your up-do falling into your eyes. He can’t believe he is doing that — his eyes fall quickly to the empty glass next to him, swallowing the saliva forming in his mouth, though throat even drier than before.

“How many are there?” You ask him from the other side of the table, at his silence looking up at him. Only your look makes him snap back into reality, gazing at you with half lidded eyes, but you ignore his weird behavior. “The originals…” You continue.

“Seven.” He says, blinking at your pursed lips, like in thought, already answering you further before you could even form the next question. “Seven of us were turned by the originals…”

“But who is-“ He hates that you are really asking him that. He should’ve known better, your curiosity is immense.

Hyunjin is not the one to make your question die down hallway, your voice became little, because as you gaze at him, it became clear to you. “Felix…. I turned him.” The silence between you is heavy as you watch him slowly lose the mask of strength. Your heart burns for him, because you feel for him. He lets you see him vulnerable and part of you is feeling bad that you had to remind him of the darkest parts of his past. “I-I couldn’t control my hunger and almost killed him…I couldn’t bare the thought of him being gone, so I gave him another life…I was so selfish—“

His breath is heavy, fighting back the tears at the memory when he almost lost his dear friend, only to make his fate even worse than death. He knew it was selfish of him, he felt like one of them, because they showed him what it is at need to become a vampire. His blond friend forgive him way too quickly, he didn’t hate him for a split second for what he did. He should’ve. Hyunjin is reminded with what he did by every look at him, he could never forget how his friend’s droopy eyes looked into his. How they lose light while he slowly realized what he had done. He couldn’t let the person he loved die by his hand, so he gave him another life instead…He couldn’t watch the way your beautiful eyes dimmed from his state, you should not feel like this. He doesn’t deserve your tears.

You haven’t seen him show emotions that much, but when he did, it was overwhelming. Every emotion he let out strikes you in the chest and now you can’t, but feel sorrow, sad from the way he seems to be hating himself for a thing like this. He was scared, confused, he is not responsible for doing those bad things, but you do understand him. You can’t even breathe from the thought of something like this happening to Mia and You, but the way out of it is not beating yourself like this. You didn’t know what came over you, it was way too bold. You should’ve known better and let him calm himself down, but how could you keep yourself from him when he looks like this?

You made your way around the table, hand falling onto his shoulder in comfort. He jumps at your touch, eyes wide, shocked by your presence. He is not alone…”I am so sorry” You say, your apology also meant for your bold move. You didn’t know what else to say to him, because that is truly how you felt about him. Your hand falls from his shoulder while he looks at you with a completely different look in his eyes that made you want to back away. You translated it as a plead for you to step back, but as you do that, his hands grip your upper arms. Your lips parted into a silent gasp at the painful grip, eyes wide in small shock when you are turned around to be only pressed into the table.

Your breath becomes heavy, matching his as you try to wiggle out of his painful grip, but he doesn’t even want to look at you. His head hung low, your back digging into the table in the hopes of taking a deeper breath, more than just a few shallow gasps. He pressed himself into you and the way he breathed so deeply, makes you scared of what he might do. You shouldn’t have touched him, you think you angered him by taking a side with his blond friend, but you still stand by the fact he shouldn’t feel responsible for what he did.

The silence could eat you alive, your gasps of air and his heavy breaths were the only thing filling up the room. You could feel his chest rise, his dark blue shirt rubbing at your skin, the tips of his fingers dangerously digging into your exposed skin. You ignore the pain, scared to even look away from him. You don’t however feel as scared as you should be, you quickly learn. You are scared, only because you don’t know what made him like this. You wiggle a little in his grasp, thighs bumping into each other and by your restraint, you hit the painful spot on your leg. A small hiss leaves you and you almost jump when he finally looks at you.

Your wide eyes meet his. You think you will never get enough of the color and the red outline of his iris. Your noise of pain made his grip loosen around your arms and you could feel your skin bruising under his fingers. You watch his face as it falls into a frown, looking at you in small concern. “Does it hurt?”

You do not know what to say, because you think he is not really referring to his painful grip on your body. “What?” Comes out of your mouth, because his expression is making you confused. You hold your breath, sighing through your nose in relief when his left hand releases you, but you only become more frozen from what he does next. His left hand travels down the length of your arm, before stopping at your skirt and you are left speechless when he starts to lift up the fabric.

You stood there in shock, heart jumping maybe not so much from fear anymore as he bunched up your skirt, just to stop at your waist. It draped over you enough to not reveal anything too scandalous, but you do want to instinctively run from him. Just barely his fingers touch you and you are already feeling like you are on the edge, before you would simply crumble at his feet. You close your eyes, not being able to handle his eyes on your skin that no one has ever seen, but when you feel his fingers on the same spot your eyes fly open.

As you look down, you realize what he meant. His long fingers graze over the bruise on the inside of your thigh. His touch makes you feel hot, head fuzzy, but he didn’t mirror your expression. Hyunjin felt sick to his stomach at the purple color of your skin, where his hand gripped you in anger. Even if he didn’t linger his hand there for too long, it was long enough for it to bruise. “Does it hurt?” He asks you again.

His cold skin tickles you, watching his fingers dance across the sensitive skin. “A little…” You whisper the truth. He doesn’t show his reaction nor he says anything to your answer, the hand gripping your skirt, keeping it up, makes the material of his trousers brush over you. You don’t really understand his reaction. Yes, he did hurt you, but you do forgive him, because they are way more important things than something like this. You know that he didn’t mean it that is important. Now you just have to keep his mind out of it, because you can’t let him feel bad anymore. “Do you have any idea why I cannot be compelled by you?” You question him, trying to ease the tension.

He answers you, though not clearly, like he just didn’t simply want to be rude. It is a good question you are asking, but it is a little too much for him to think about as there is only a one thing on his mind right now. “Maybe…it is because you…” He speaks up, before looking up at you with desperation. “What are you doing to me?”

Air gets stuck in your throat at the look he gives you, feeling the tension around you suffocating you or was it just his body pressing into yours? “I don’t understand.” You rasp out, shaking your head, trying to look away from him, but his expression won’t let you.

“Just by your touch, only by a look, I become your slave…and your smell—“ You gasp, freezing when he leans his head closer to your neck, moving the loose hair away from it with a quick flick of his wrist. You couldn’t breath, short gasps ringing in the air as he leans closer to your pulse, nose ticking the soft skin. “I had to stop feeding from someone, because any time I would, I would only think of you instead—“

You gasp softly, you don’t even know if you are still frightened or something less — something more raw. You could feel each word, lips bumping into your skin. You feel adrenaline piled up inside your chest, heart beating so fast that you think you are going to pass out. The graze of his soft lips, the feel of your skin, he can’t help the animalistic growl realising from the depths of his chest. The noise makes you gasp again, almost whimper as it vibrates over your skin, awaking goosebumps all over your body. It was so erotic, you have never been in this situation before, only in your dreams, but this was real. You could feel him against you, taking in the smell of your sweat forming on your hair line and also what seem like an arousal. You did try to stop it, but this situation made you thirst for more, tummy rumbling in a well known feeling. You couldn’t help it, there was a beautiful man before you, simply breathing from your scent alone and you can’t hate yourself for enjoying it.

“Hyunjin.” You whisper, hands grabbing his shirt, scrunching the fabric on his chest. Your fingers touch his skin briefly, shaking, but deciding to scrunch up the silky material in your hands instead. To pull him closer or away? You don’t know.

At your move he pulls himself away from the crook of your shoulder and when he looks at you, you can’t help, but whimper at the state of him. You have only seen him like this from far away, too far from you to fully look at those veins around his crimson eyes. Your hand just had to graze over one, the one right under his eye. You could feel it, but you know there is actually nothing pumping the blood inside his body. You don’t feel scared, even after your eyes fell onto his fangs, sharp tips peaking out from his flushed lips.

Hyunjin watched you in awe as you don’t seem to be frightened by his appearance. He always thought this side of him was never appealing to look at, but you — you looked him like you have never seen something so beautiful as his true form. Your thumb caressed the skin under his eye, like scared you would hurt his delicate features. He hates himself for needing to pull away from you, but the sight of your pulse was becoming really hard for him. He already let you see him like this, now he could just lean in and take a bite…maybe you would even like it. However he felt this was already too much, more than enough for today, so he pulled away from you.

Your hand falls back to your side, his leaving sensation that felt little too delicious. You watch him turn away from you, making you realize your dress was still at your waist. You quickly pulled down your skirt, feeling your ears burning, trying to calm down from the whole situation. “Are you…are you alright?” You ask him, breathing still heavy as his, but when he looks back at you there is no sign of his true nature.

“Yes, I apologize for my behavior…” Hyunjin breathed out, hand running through his already messy hair.

You want to shake your head at yourself, because you only feel disappointment by his actions. He looked like nothing happened, you don’t know if he is only acting like this to safe you from the embarrassment which you are now feeling or just doesn’t want to talk about the fact that he just let you willingly see him like that. Though you have to address the big issue in this room. “You are hungry.” You stated and he looks at you like you just grew a second head — the answer is obvious.

That is the thing he doesn’t want to talk about. “Please don’t–“ He says, shaking his head. “Don’t want to even think about it…”

You sigh at his tone, the need for warm blood is shining in his eyes. “You can feed from someone. Yesterday I didn’t mean it like that and would definitely be against it, if I truly knew how difficult it would be for you…” He let’s you talk, staring at you as you take a small step closer to him. “So please feed, before either of us do something stupid.”

“But you are against it…in what way I must now.” He frowns, because he could tell even know, how you somehow despised the idea and also he always only thought of you, but it would really help him get back on his track.

“I just–“ You sigh again, nervously biting at your lip. “…biting someone in the neck isn’t it for you…”

“Arousing?” He finishes for you, raising his eyebrow. “No….not when it’s not you.”

You cough lightly, choking on your own spit. He still wears a straight face, even as your reaction was a little dramatic. Your head is starting to spin from him, because how he could he just do and say a thing like that? “S-so you will feed, yes?” You say hopefully, clasping your slightly shaking hands before you.

He sighs in small displeasure, because he knows that even if he will feed again, it won’t tame his hunger. “Yes, maybe I should now seeing that I already finished my last drop.” He says, eyes momentarily going back to the red stained glass.

He doesn’t want you to leave him right now, but he will take the risk to preserve both of yours sanities. You also don’t want to part ways so soon, but you have a lot of things that need to be sort out and those were mostly your emotions. Maybe, you are a little relieved as you leave him in his workroom, because you know that you will find each other again…

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taglist (still open);

@babrieeee @akaligogrrr @hyuninslutbbgirl @satosugu4l @rockyhedgehog @lovemeorleavemetonight @dandelions-143 @skzfelixlove @syedazarintasnim @rylea08 @ahluvisyou @oddracha @what-am-i-doing-here2503 @annairacheyenne @dabiscrustyfeet @blankdyean @chartrucewhore @shuporanporang @palindrome969

i tried to get anyone but for some of you it just doesn’t work for some reason, it keeps telling me that your block doesn’t exist, I honestly don’t know what I’m doing wrong, I’m sorry :(

[katszumi]

“haji?” his name escaped your lips in a whisper.

the lamps from the street lit up the night sky, the stars from above doing it’s best to keep the night awake. still, darkness surrounded the area, only dark figures could be depicted from their eyes.

you could only guess it was close to midnight from the way the moon shone and the cold slap of wind that gushed your way. however, the quick warmth of your face and the rapid throb inside of your chest disregarded the chills.

iwaizumi analyzed you, his eyes wandering your body as if you were a stranger.

“haji, what are you doing here?”

his lips parted, he wanted to answer you, but he wasn’t even sure why he ran to your house at midnight. he just needed to see you.

“my flight is tomorrow.” he announced like you hadn’t known. all of the third years celebrated one final time before his departure, resulting in endless laughter and tears. as much as he didn’t want to admit it, he didn’t want to leave japan behind, because you were still here.

“i know. that’s why you should be getting some sleep, you have a long day tomorrow.” you forced yourself to swallow; to eat away the gnawing feelings that were in the back of your throat aching to come out. you didn’t want to put that burden on him, especially at a bad time like this.

iwaizumi dryly chuckled. of course you were trying to care for him, but he could see the wistful look you gave him. he could tell you were tired due to the bags under your eyes, but your eyes were wide with adoration and hope.

he took a step forward, “you’re too kind, you know that?” his words soft. “can i sleep here tonight? i can’t wake up to an empty room, i just can’t.” he rambled.

without hesitation, you widened the door for him to come inside. you knew it probably wasn’t a good idea for him to stay, but, who were you to tell hajime iwaizumi no?

quickly, iwaizumi welcomed the warmth of your home to his body. his eyes traveled the rooms nearby, he took a mental screenshot, because who knew when was the next time he’d be here or if you even still lived here when he’d come back. he wanted to remember as much of you as he could, but he knew the figments of his memory just wasn’t enough.

he followed you to your bedroom, the two of you sitting next to each other on your queen-sized bed. he always loved the size of your bed, it seemed to fit him more than his own bed at home.

“i’m sorry for knocking at your door so late.” he apologized, his eyes finally settling in to the dimly lit room. he could now make out your features that he was so infatuated with.

“don’t worry about it. i’ll always answer the door for you, haji.” and god, he loved the way his name fell from your lips. like you were destined to say only his name only.

iwaizumi sighed, “america is going to suck without you or oikawa there. it’s like i have to start all over again, just without the company of you two.” he confessed.

your hand found his, gently grabbing it and rubbing circles against his rough skin. you could feel the callouses that were starting to form on his palm, most likely from lifting weights.

he allowed you to fiddle with his hands, he found solace in your touch. his eyes closing for the first time tonight.

“you’ll do great in america. you’ll find new friends and new company to keep you busy. who knows, you might even find someone you’re interested in.”

immediately, his eyes flew open, his head turning to face you. haven’t you realized that it was you he was interested in. it was you that won his heart years ago.

“wha���“ you said from his sudden turn, wondering if you said something wrong, but he interrupted you before you could finish.

“i don’t want to do that. i don’t want to find someone i’m ‘interested’ in. it’d be useless anyway.” he murmured the last part.

now your ears piqued at his comment.

“what do you mean it’d be useless?”

he paused. “i’d be searching for you in every girl i’d meet.” iwaizumi declared. “that’s why i’m here, y/n. it crushes my soul that i’m leaving you behind. i want you by my side, i feel empty whenever you’re not.”

you could’ve sworn that you heard a sniffle emit from the male beside you, but you knew not to comment on it, or he’d probably end the conversation right there.

you cupped his cheek with your hand, a half smile forming on your face. only you were able to see this side from him; the affectionate, tender side that no one else have been able to witnessed.

“it breaks my heart you’re leaving me too. but i know you’re destined for great things. but i know you’ll be able to visit and i’ll always be a call away. it hurts me knowing my two soulmates are moving thousands of miles away. but i can’t be selfish, haji. it’s not about me.” you protected your feelings, because you knew if it turned into more, the morning would be too much of a heartbreak.

iwaizumi shook his head. “but i want you to be,” he pleaded. “i don’t want to get on that plane tomorrow morning with regret because i didn’t have enough courage.”

“courage for what?” it was a stupid question. you knew what he meant, but you were so nervous.

“to tell you i love you.” his eyes searched you for any discomfort, the words almost causing him to have a heart attack. iwaizumi knew he was bad with feelings, especially with how he dawned this proposal onto you a night before he leaves for another country.

but if he didn’t tell you now, he wasn’t sure if he would even board the plane tomorrow morning.

disregarding your feelings before, you leaned into his touch, your nose touching his. you could feel his breath hitch, the warmth of him radiating onto you. your free hand cupped the other side of his cheek as you pressed your lips onto his. years of emotions spilled from the delicate kiss you shared, like a river overflowing its bank.

and you two laid there, peppering slow kisses on each other’s faces, wiping the tears that slipped from both of your eyes.

iwaizumi knew more than before that he was so terribly smitten with you, but he wished that his final hours with you weren’t ticking away with a plane ticket to america with his name on it.

—

ahhh there’s nothing like a man who’s bad at expressing feelings till the last minute🤌🏽