#along with the popper burns from last night

[notsoterriblymisanthropic]

a cool thing about poppers is how if you sniff them enough they literally make your skin go red. that's how you know they're really good for you and god wants you to huff them more often.

[slyfoxann544]

𝑳𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝑴𝒆 𝑨𝒈𝒂𝒊𝒏 (𝑺.𝑻𝒐𝒅𝒐𝒓𝒐𝒌𝒊/𝑲.𝑩𝒂𝒌𝒖𝒈𝒐𝒖 𝒙 𝑹𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒓)

𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲: You definitely thought your first confession would end differently than the way it did. One can only wonder, how does one measly little crush turn in to a life or death situation? 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭: 3975 𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: Angst (light fluff in the end?) 𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: Mentions of blood

A/n: Part two of At least you're happy. I do accept requests

✩｡:*•.───── 🥀 ─────.•*:｡✩

"So what did you want to talk about?", the boy in front of me asks.

"Oh-it's nothing. It doesn't matter anymore", I say biting back the tears.

Crumpling the piece of paper in my hands the water works start flowing.

At least you're happy

✩｡:*•.───── 🥀 ─────.•*:｡✩

You stood there clutching the letter you oh-so-lovingly wrote as big heavy tears began to fall down your face.

'Of course it's HER. Why wouldn't it be HER? It was so stupid of me to even think I had a chance when there was someone like HER.'

As you stood there rewinding the last few minutes over and over in your head, you started to fell a tightening in your chest. It soon started to feel like you were being suffocated.

At lightening speed, you run out of the classroom and rush over to the bathroom, slamming the door of the first empty stall shut. You bend over as you're thrown into a coughing  fit, your letter laying forgotten on the bathroom floor.

It was painful, the back of your throat burned as you coughed out the contents your body had rejected. It had stopped for a moment only to start back up again instantly and you had started to feel light headed from the lack of oxygen.

Finally after what had felt like hours of hacking, it stopped and you opened your eyes only to see petals of autum bellflowers covered in BLOOD in the water. You step back horrified.

As you stepped out from the bathroom after discarding the contents you coughed out (along with your letter), you continued to try calm yourself.

'Someone must have just lost control of their quirk.'

'Yeah! That's it! That's fine! This is fine! I'm FINE!', you tried reassuring yourself as you entered the locker rooms for hero training. Although even you knew that the chances of this were quite slim.

"Sooooooo, How'd it go?!", your pink haired friend asks instantly spotting you, catching the attention of certain members of the Dekusquad.

You only look at her with a sorrowful gaze in response, enough for her to understand. She leans in to hug you but, you stop her earning a hurt expression from her.

Assembling in the training ground after changing, you go to join your friends, only for your eyes to land on a certain heterochromatic boy and the black haired girl next to him, acting all lovey-dovey.

It made you SICK, literally.

Feeling another coughing fit coming you quickly rush to the bathroom to empty out the contents, much to the concern of your friends.

"So, do you think it's working?", Uravity asks.

"Looks like it.", Yaoyorozu answers as the boy next to her only sighs.

"I don't know. I have a bad feeling about this."

✩｡:*•.───── 🥀 ─────.•*:｡✩

Last night⌛

"Alright everyone! This time we've got the perfect plan to get Y/n and Todoroki together!", a certain brown haired girl exclaims with determination in her eyes.

"Yes! This time we're sure it'll work!", Yaoyorozu joins only for everyone to look at the two dumbfounded.

"What?", Shouto asks utterly confused as Midoriya sighs.

"Is this really what this is about?", Iida asks as Tsuyu nods.

"Of course!", the two girls exclaim making everyone groan.

"Now listen up! The plan is that Momo will pretend to be Todoroki girlfriend to make Y/n jealous.", Ochako starts and the black haired girl continues.

"After seeing us together she'll finally realize her feelings and make her move. And then they'll live happily ever after!", she says with starts in her eyes as a confetti popper is launched in the background only for dead silence to follow.

"I don't think this is a good idea.", Shouto says.

"I agree.", Iida says in his support and Tsuyu nods

"Yeah I don't think-", the sweet natured boy attempts to reason only for him to be cut-off before he even began.

"Oh come on guys! Don't be such party poopers.", Uravity says.

"Yes, I believe this plan is at least worth a try.", Momo joins earning mumbles of agreement as the half-n-half hair coloured boy sighs.

"Alright, but I have a bad feeling about this.", Todoroki says finally giving in.

✩｡:*•.───── 🥀 ─────.•*:｡✩

"Bye Y/n! Get well soon! We love you!", you disconnect the call after you wave goodbye to your friends, finally letting the fake smile drop.

Today was day three of you coughing out petals.

 For the past two days you'd desperately been trying to reassure yourself  that it was only a quirk malfunction, that it was anything but THAT. But there was no running from it now.

There no denying that this was anything but, HANAHAKI. You were sure of it, because this was just the way your mother had died after your father left because he was cheating on her.

'Talk about like mother like daughter.'

Your friends of course, knew nothing of this. You'd taken sick leave since yesterday in hopes that proper rest would help wear off the 'effects of the quirk' quickly.

"So this is it I guess.", you say to yourself, chuckling as tears begin to fall. The fact that you were gonna DIE, finally sinking in.

Now, you weren't like one of those movie characters that would've been happy about this, making some dumb and corny dialogue like, 'I'd rather  die than live without you'. You had no intentions of dying because things didn't work out with some boy. These things happened, you knew that. Sure it felt like shit at the moment but it wasn't something that would make you wish for death. Life was gonna go on and you you would find someone else. But not anymore.

There was of course, the option of the surgery, but it was exorbitantly costly and you didn't even have that sort of money in your dreams so that pretty much unavailable.

"I can't believe this.", you scoff. 

"I'm gonna die"

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One week later⏳

Ringgggg, Ringggg

With great difficulty you open your eyes to see the contact name light up.

Incoming call from: Pinkie pie💗

Not having the energy to answer you continue to stare at the phone screen for a few minutes before it stops ringing. The lock screen then lights up.

30 Missed calls from 7 contacts

'Here it comes', you think as another coughing fit takes over, the feeling having become way too familiar for your liking, and you bend over the bucket you'd dragged out a day ago.

It's only been 10 days since you started experiencing Hanahaki, but you already felt dead.

You chest ached, your throat burned, and there were tears in your eyes every time you coughed. You felt lightheaded 24/7 and you entire body was numb.

It had gotten worse in the past 4 days, when you had coughed out your first flower. You couldn't even answer your phone anymore, as your voice wouldn't even come out now, and you throat hurt like shit whenever you did try to talk, neither did your arms have the energy to do so. Even the plates of food that were left untouched had started to pile up now.

All you did at this point was cough out petals. You couldn't even sleep because of how frequent it had become, the bags under your eyes being clear indicators of this.

Your friend shad rightfully started to worry as you wouldn't answer their calls anymore and would only text back short replies.

Once again you start to hack out flowers, now falling down in an attempt to bend over.

"Oi dumbass.", you hear a familiar voice say. "Open the door."

"Bakugou?", you breathe out, your voice barely above a whisper.

His tome softens, "Look, I-the idiots are freaking out, and I am too, so-just answer me please so I know you're alright."

You start coughing again and when he doesn't get any response he only sighs putting his head against the door.

"Look, I know you're awake. Listen, I-if this has anything to do with Icy-hot just tell me. I'll beat the crap outta him. Just open the door please. You're scaring us.

'Oh poor, sweet Bakugou', you think. If only he knew. If only your friends knew. 

But they didn't. 

Because you didn't tell them. 

You didn't tell them anything.

 Which was why they were so worried. 

So upset.

Because of YOU

You thought you'd be doing them a favor by not telling them. You'd told yourself it was better this way, but it'd only made it worse for THEM.

'They deserve to know. I don't wanna die all alone.', you say to yourself as your begin to try stand and move to the door slowly.

Hearing movement from your side mad ethe ash blonde's face light up, only to go back into worry mode when he hears you fall down as your legs give in from under you.

Propping yourself on your elbows you crawl over to the door slowly as you begin to cough again. Finally you unlock the door falling limp on the ground.

The light that enters with the opening of the door was painful to say the least. Falling on your back you shut you eyes close.

Meanwhile, the small amount of happiness Katsuki had initially felt on you unlocking the door faded away into a look of horror as his gaze fell on the bloody mess in your room and then finally....You, who only smiled at him.

Rolling over, you attempt to get up only to fall onto your knees coughing. Snapping out of his shock, Bakugou goes to support you as you fall over bloodying his clothes and hands.

"No, no, no, no, no.", he says taking you into his lap, making you face him, taking your bloodied hands in his.

"Y/n, what-?"

"Icy-hot happened.", you manage to force out with a sad smile.

"No. This can't-No. It can't be-you-you can't. I-", there were tears in his eyes now.

"But it is.", you say as tears start to well-up in your eyes. 

"I'm dying.", you choke out as he begins shaking his head, making you reach out as your tears finally escape.

"No. Don't you dare say that. Don't you dare think you're getting rid of me that easily"

"I don't wanna die Katsuki.", you say crying and he begins to sob. "I don't wanna die either, I don't wanna leave you guys either."

"But.", you say pulling yourself together. "There's nothing we can do about it. I am dying"

"No, you're not! Not on my watch.", he says desperately. "OI! DEKU! KIRISHIMA! ASHIDO! KAMINARI! ANYONE COME QUICK!"

You direct his gaze down back at you, "Hey, Katsuki. Listen, it's gonna be OKAY.", you try reassuring him as a trail of blood flows out your mouth and you start coughing again.

"No No No No No No.", he cries. "This can't be happening. Y/n, no!"

"You know Katsuki, I love it when you smile.", you slur. "You should do it more often.", you say breathlessly

You vision starts to blur and Katsuki's voice becomes distant as you eyes start to close.

"No Y/n! Please no! You can't. Please no! I love you, please!"

✩｡:*•.───── 🥀 ─────.•*:｡✩

Katsuki wondered how it ended up like this. 

It wasn't SUPPOSED to end up like THIS.

He'd had feelings for you for quite some time now, but all his hopes were bashed to the ground, the day he found out you liked Half-n-Half of all people.

'It's fine.', he'd told himself, what mattered to him the most was your friendship at the present, so it didn't matter.

He'd been mentally preparing himself from then on for the day you'd finally confess to icy-hot. And when the day had finally arrived he'd told himself to support you in his own way, and no one could even begin to imagine how much he had to restrain himself to not beat the crap outta that Half-n-half bastard when he'd heard you crying in your room, as you belittled yourself.

It pained him to know that you couldn't see how amazing and charming you were. How beautiful your smile was and how it could light up his whole day. How there was a certain grace in the way you did everything. How amazing you were in everything you did and how he'd thought you'd make a great hero. And how that half-n-half bastard doesn't deserve you if he couldn't see this.

He wanted to go talk to you, maybe this could've peen avoided that way, but Racoon eyes told him not to. To give you some space. She told him that you just needed some time alone and then you'd be fine. She'd known you longer than him after all. So that's what he did, even if everyday of not seeing you was torture, whatever to make you feel better as soon as possible. Although he still came to try check on you when he came to give you your food. But that was it.

If only he'd known.

Curse him for listening to others for once. If he'd have gone with his gut instinct for once maybe things would've turned out differently. 

Maybe then they could've prevented this. Maybe then you wouldn't have to suffer so much. Maybe then those pretty eyes of yours wouldn't have had to shed so many tears. Maybe then he wouldn't be sitting in shock covered in your blood right now, Maybe then he wouldn't have been surrounded by your friends crying as your teachers called and ambulance with you in his lap as he desperately tried to wake you up. Maybe then he wouldn't have felt this sense of dread and the fear of loosing you as you were carried to the hospital.

Maybe then, the two of you could've had your happily ever after.

✩｡:*•.───── 🥀 ─────.•*:｡✩

"Oh man it feels good to be back!", you exclaim happily looking at the familiar school building in front of you as you were accompanied back by Mr. Aizawa.

You'd finally been discharged from the hospital after the two weeks of recovery since your surgery were over, in the duration of which you were not allowed any visitors other than your teachers.

You'd only seen your friends when you'd woken up in the hospital room after the operation had taken place, (the cost of which UA oh-so-generously bore, after all they couldn't rid the world of an amazing upcoming hero) and boy did they look horrible.

They all had terrible dark circles under their eyes and their faces and eyes were red from all the crying. Needless to say they were all there. Except of course, a certain heterochromatic boy who was banned from seeing you by the Bakusquad (not that you were aware of his missing presence anymore).

The surgery had removed the flowers growing in your lungs along with your memories of the person who was the cause of those and all the related ones. The last two weeks of your life were hence a blur, and you had to be briefed as to why you were here. (They left out a whole lot of course)

You still didn't know the name of the person who was the reason you were in the hospital, but you decided to leave the matter alone as it didn't matter now because, YOU WERE BACK.

The thought of finally seeing your friends again made you ecstatic. So much so, that you tackled them as soon as you saw them in the hallway. Seeing you immediately washed away any traces of worry that were on their faces as they tightly clung onto you.

Obviously, few tears were shed. (Okay, a LOT of tears were shed.) They let you go for a minute, giving Katsuki an opportunity to engulf you into another hug, smiling as tears escaped his eyes.

"Okay, Kats-uhm nice to see you too but I kinda can't breathe.", you say.

"Whatever idiot.", he mumbles as he hugs you tightly, as if you'd disappear if he were to let go.

Catching a sight of you, your classmates rushed to your side relieved of your well being.

"Todoroki! Look! Y/n's back!", Iida exclaims gaining all the attention of the boy next to him, his eyes widening in shock.

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2 Weeks ago ⏳

It'd been quite a few days you'd called in sick and your short and obviously false replies it was clear to everyone that you weren't getting better anytime soon. 

Todoroki of course was very worried and somehow couldn't help feeling guilty. Of course, your sickness and their plan could've been entirely unrelated but still a part of him couldn't help but feel this was his fault.

Hence, he decided to do something to make you feel better. So, he set out to buy you somethings, that included you favorite chocolates and a small bouquet.

A bouquet of Autum Bellflowers.

Shouto knew these were his mothers favorite flowers, he'd developed a liking to them too. He just hoped that you'd like them.

Shouto smiled to himself contently as he looked at the small bag in his hands. He just hoped you'd appreciate the gesture. Hey! If things went nicely maybe he'd even tell you how he felt. Maybe even offer to take you on a date after you recovered. 

However, the faint vision of a happy future he had begun to envision soon shattered as he saw the entrance of your room.

The inside was way worse though. It was all covered with blood and the very same flowers he was holding right now. The shock made him drop the gifts he had so fondly gotten for you. He only ran about mindlessly trying to find out what had happened.

One of the teachers on the floor filled him in and he sprinted out of the building running all the way to the hospital  in a panicked frenzy as if his life depended on it. What were mere minutes felt like hours to him as he ran to the floor of your room. 

He bumped into quite a lot of people on the way, but that didn't matter. The only thing on his mind right now was You.

How this was all his fault. How much you'd meant to him. How he didn't want to loose you.

Outside your stood Principal Nezu, Miss Midnight and Mr. Aizawa who was nervously pacing around. Mina was being comforted by Miss Midnight while Denki, Sero and Kirishima sat blaming themselves trying desperately to stop the tears. 

Bakugou though. Bakugou sat quietly in the corner with his head hung, his clothes and hands still bloody.

The sound of footsteps grabbed everyone's attention as the heterochromatic boy came to a halt.

"Todoroki, you should-", Midnight was cut off by Mina grabbing the boy by his collar.

"What are you doing here?", she spat venomously.

"I-", the sound of a loud slap cut him off.

"You're not wanted here.", she says letting go and retreating.

"Todoroki you should head back.", Aizawa says.

"Please! I just wanna see her! I just wanna know how she is!", he says earning a sarcastic chuckle from the ash blonde who'd been silent this whole time.

"Oh yeah? So you care now?", Bakugou says. 

"Fine then, I'll tell you.", he answers getting up. "The doctors say she might not make it past the night, They says it's too far gone to be treated by that true-love bullshit you might be thinking of trying. They say even with the surgery there's a chance she might not live. They say even if the surgery is successful she might loose the ability to feel emotions. THEY SAY THAT THERE'S A CHANCE WE MIGHT NEVER SEE HER AGAIN"

There was little distance left between the two now. Tears that made their way upto both their eyes threatened to spill any moment now.

"I-"

"Let me guess. You're sorry?", The blonde scoffs. " Well, your sorry won't change anything now. It won't change how she suffered for days. It won't change how scared she looked when she cried that she didn't want t die. It won't change how lifeless she looked as she fell unconscious and it definitely won't change how she might die tonight."

Katsuki's tone was harsh and his words were bitter and cut deep, but every word was true.

He was the cause of this and that was that. Remorse wouldn't change anything now.

And so, the peppermint haired boy was led back to the dorms where he would continue to suffer.

For two weeks he continued to blame himself. For two weeks he continued to be miserable. For two weeks he continued to be unable to sleep or eat. For two weeks he continued to try  visit you and for two weeks he was denied the permission to even set foot on the same floor.

✩｡:*•.───── 🥀 ─────.•*:｡✩

Todoroki's eyes widened in disbelief on seeing you. There you were. Looking as beautiful as ever. He thought he'd lost you but there you were.

For two weeks he had longed to see you face. Every passing day felt like years.

Letting his emotions take control he rushes over, pushing past the crowd to pull you into a tight embrace.

Meanwhile you only stood there stiffly, shocked at the sudden action. Slowly, you pull away from the boy giving him an awkward smile as you step back.

"Uhm-", you begin confused. "Do I know you?"

You could actually see the moment hear the moment his world came crashing down. The sound of his heart shattering into tiny pieces could almost be heard in the background, your words being daggers aimed straight at it.

"What-", he begins to say only to be interrupted by Bakugou.

"That's no one important.", he says putting an arm around your shoulder.

"Oh, are you sure..?", you ask earning a yes from him. Just then Iida comes saying Principal Nezu wanted to see you.

"Oh, okay then." you say turning to the half-n-half hair colored boy in front of you. "Well, I'll see you around then I guess.", you say giving him a smile.

"Wait Ashido!", Shouto says grabbing onto her shoulder as you all leave. "Is this a joke?", he says shaking. "Why's she acting like she doesn't remember me?", he asks on the verge of breaking down into tears right then and there.

The girl only looks at him with anger and hate in her eyes as she yanks away her shoulder. "It was one of the perks of the surgery.", she says. "The surgery removed the flowers and the memories of the one who caused them. It's better this way if you ask me.", she answers and joins the group while the boy only stands there in shock.

'She doesn't remember me?'

✩｡:*•.───── 🥀 ─────.•*:｡✩

"Where were you?", you ask your friend as she jogs up to you and rejoins the group and joins Kirishima and the others in their conversation.

"Oh, it's nothing.", she answers as you nod looking at Bakugou who'd been staring for a while.

"What?", you ask giving a confused smile. "Is there something on my face? Or wait do I look dumber than usual?", you ask playfully.

"Nothing.", he says smiling softly as he reaches out to take your hand in his and you let him.

"Awww, did you miss me so much?", you tease and he looks away blushing.

"Shut up.", he mumbles.

"Oh come on Kats, you know you love me.", you continue teasing as he explodes red and starts stuttering making you chuckle.

'Well that's something you don't see every day'

"Well then, I guess you wouldn't mind joining me when I go check out that new café that's opened.", you ask him looking down.

Katsuki only smiles softly. This. This was the moment he'd been waiting for so long. 

"Sure."

Two weeks ago he thought he'd lost you. It was a miracle when the doctors informed them the surgery was a success and now he finally got you back. And this time he was never gonna let you go.

You could finally have your Happily Ever After.

Icy-hot already got his chance and plundered it. Even he knew that which was why he only stood back with a sad smile on his face.

Everyone looked happy.

You looked Happy, which was honestly all he cared about.

 He wanted you to have a bright and happy future, even if it meant he wouldn't be in it.

As long as you were happy, it was all that mattered. 

He would do anything to protect your happiness and well, if it meant that he had to removed from the equation, then so be it.

Still, he couldn't help but wonder

'Is there anyway, you would Love me again?'

[siempre-bucky]

there's glitter on the floor after the party

Druig x Reader

Summary: You and Druig get a quiet moment after Sersi and Dane's New Year's Eve party, reflecting on the thousands of years you'd missed apart and wondering if you'd be together forevermore.

WC: 1.9k

A/N: here's a fluff fest based on taylor's new years day. I love his song, I love druig...it checks out. Let me know what you thought ♡

"3...2...1...Happy New Year!"

Most of your hearing hadn't returned when you woke up on new years day, the ringing still prominent as you buried your head into the soft pillow. The ringing lead to the insatiable headache which was all brought on from the ungodly amounts of liqueur you consumed the night before. A pained grumble escaped your lips as you rose from the bed in Sersi's guest room. Your blurry eyes scanned the room; Kingo was passed out on the floor below you, Sprite cuddling the other white pillow beside you.

7:38. The clock on the bedside table read in glowing red letters, only adding to the pain behind your eyes. Your party dress that was shimmering from the morning sun was still intact on your figure, you wish you'd taken it off when he gave you the chance. You could still hear the soft moans of his, ceasing when you told him that you shouldn't be doing that. It was supposed to be left in the past.

You made your way out of the room, carefully stepping over the snoring Eternal below you. Your bare feet connect with the cold hardwood floor of the hallway. Gold and silver balloons, glittering streamers, and forgotten noise makers cover the floor in front of you. Sersi really did know how to throw a party; you chuckle to yourself, pretty sure that everyone was still passed out in her living room.

Said living room looked worse than the hallway; empty cups and bottles litter Sersi's nice apartment, your friends strewn out on the long couch and armchairs. A fond smile tugs at your lipstick-stained lips. That smile quickly faded when you took the mess in, you knew the party was great and the trash was worth it, but you couldn't stand looking at it.

Making your way into the kitchen to grab a trash bag, you learned that you weren't the only Eternal awake. Druig sat by himself at the small kitchen table in the corner, nursing a cup of coffee. His brown hair disheveled, a few pieces of shiny confetti in the strands, his tired eyes glued to his phone. Until he heard the door open and saw you standing there in all your glory. "Morning," he smiled up at you.

His raspy morning voice, mixed with his thick accent made your knees weak. Your eyes land on his parted pink lips and it took you back to last night, "Morning," you breathe, barely managing to get the single word out.

"10 seconds!" Phastos shouted as he looked outside the window, a massive billboard displaying the countdown outside their high-rise complex.

Druig turns to you with a playful smirk, his fingers fiddling with the sequins of your dress. The touch of his hand on your lower back ignited a fire you hadn't felt in so long. "I hear people kiss at midnight now," he whispers in your ear, the smell of cheap beer tickling your nose.

"Is that what humans do now?" you laughed, swirling around the strawberry at the bottom of your champagne glass. The abrupt sounds of cheering, fireworks from across the street, and the poppers from inside the apartment startled you. Druig was able to calm all that with a swift movement; the hand on your back drew you closer, his soft lips covering your own. Confetti and glitter fell round you, your eyes flutter shut and you let your lips glide along with his.

"Couldn't sleep?" Druig questioned, voice muffled from the coffee cup. You run your tongue along your burning lips as you pull out a large black trash bag from the cabinet underneath the sink.

"The sun was too bright, and my head hurt," you respond, "You're up early too?"

Druig places his cup down with a small clink against the wood, "I rise with the sun, you know that, m'love." His face shifted as he called you the loving name he once used all the time, his eyes flickered away and back to his phone.

You hummed quietly, trying not to act like you saw the sudden look of regret. You nodded in his direction and left the room wordlessly, clutching the plastic bag tightly in your shaky hand.

"Where to start?" You asked yourself as you surveyed the living room again. Bottles. You shrug your shoulders and start cleaning off the coffee table, trying to keep quiet as the noisy brown bottles hit the bottom of the black bag.

You could finally almost see the bottom of the mess when you heard the clang of beer bottles behind you. Turning around you saw Druig bending over, collecting numerous cups and bottles in his arms. His blue eyes look up at your worried glare, "Just wanted to be useful," he joked, making his way over to you.

You smile and hold open the bag for him, your eyes watching his every move. Absentmindedly, your hand reaches up and comb through his hair, glitter falling into the bag. His head whips up and you retract your hand, "Sorry," you mutter.

Druig laughed, "Ehm... Sprite had too much fun with the confetti bombs last night. Thanks," he told you through his laughter. His laugh. If you were able to capture it on tape and hold it close you would have. It was the type of laugh that you were able to recognize in the most crowded of places. You missed it.

Druig giggled boyishly as you land on the soft, well-made bed. His torso hovered over yours while his face buried itself in the crook of your neck, his warm breath tickling the soft, sensitive skin. His fingers slide up your exposed thigh, slipping underneath your dress. "Druig," you giggle, arching your back.

"Yes, Y/n?"

"You giggle when you're drunk," you pointed out. Your observation only made him laugh harder, letting his chest fall on top of yours.

You took a step away from him, looking to the ground to avoid his glace. Polaroids were scattered on the rug. With a grumble you bent over, resting your half-full bag next to you. You pick up the first one you see; Sersi getting a piggyback ride from Phastos. Cute, you remark in your head, setting it carefully on the table.

The image on the next one knocked the wind out of you. You were looking at the camera, laughing at something the person behind the camera said. Druig stood closely next to you, lazily holding a beer bottle in one hand while the other was wrapped protectively around you, his forehead resting on your temple, the lines his face made when he laughed on full display.

You almost felt sick looking at it. Not because it was repulsive, but because you missed him. That photo proved that the closeness you shared didn't go away so easily over the thousands of years. No matter how much you forced yourself to leave that behind. Like he left you behind.

Druig could feel something was wrong with you. He watched closely discarded the polaroid on the ground and walked out to the balcony, the sliding door closing with a soft click. He walked over and saw the photo of you two together, picking it up he swiped away the loose confetti covering your faces.

He had a photo similar to that one tucked away in a box back in the Amazon. He held on to the memory of a picture Phastos took of you two when he invented the camera. It was a candid one of you two laughing. Phastos was going to throw it away until Druig stepped in, asking to keep it. It was the only thing he kept after Ajak let you all go. But he should have kept you. The regret kept him up at night, the photo only soothing the pain a little.

Tucking the polaroid in the back pocket of his jeans, he carefully stepped over the garbage so he could make his way to the glass door. You didn't look at him when he stepped out, the cold morning air hitting his face. The man stood a good distance away from you, looking down at the street as you stood together in silence. You placed your hands on the stone balcony, fingernails tapping the railing.

He watched people walk home from their parties, guys struggling to walk a straight line, girls with sore feet carrying their heels, he also noticed a few people out walking their dogs. "I like that picture of us," he finally spoke.

"Keep it," you respond shortly.

I already have a picture of us. Druig bit the side of his cheek, hands coming out of his pockets to rest upon the railing. The sounds of the London morning help soothe the silence.

After a while the silence became uncomfortable, "Are you going back to the Amazon after this?" you asked, turning your head to the side soo you could look at him.

Druig shook his head, inching closer to your side. "No," he managed. "I'm going to join a few of the others to find some of the other Eternals out there."

After all this time he was finally going to leave that place, why couldn't have been this easy back then? Your eyes dart away from him. His velvety voice asked what you were going to do. You didn't know anymore. You longed to go with Druig... you always wanted to. It killed you when he left the first time, barely giving you a chance to accompany him. "I-I felt like going too. That's if you'd want me there..."

There's a shared look of understanding between you. Before you knew it, Druig was standing at your side. His hand cautiously covered your own, his fingers wrapping around yours.

He gently squeezed your hand three times. I love you.

You removed your burning hand, moving your whole body to face him. He looked down at you with regretful eyes, the alcohol-fueled confidence from last night not there to help him out. You didn't get a chance to talk about your past relationship on the Domo, or fighting the deviants that raided his village. You almost missed it when Ikaris tried to kill him. "I've never stopped loving you."

"I should have held on to you tighter," his voice sounded like it was breaking as he admitted it.

You felt a prickle behind your eyes that weren't from the hangover, "I shouldn't have given up so easily, Druig."

"I'm sorry," he whispers.

You sniffle and take a step closer, "We both made mistakes."

"I don't want to make that mistake again." Druig wrapped his arms around your shoulders as you press your head into the center of his chest, your hands sliding around his thin waist. He covers the balls of your shoulders with his palms to gently push you away.

It was muscle memory from the night in Tenochtitlan, you grab his face and kiss him soundly on the lips. The last kiss like this was when he left you, and when you let him walk away in that fire. It was eager the way his lips moved with yours, he missed it as much as you did. His hands roamed your back while your thumbs pressed into his cheeks. He held on to you tightly as you deepened the kiss, the tip of your tongue touching the softness of his bottom lip.

Sure you kissed last night, but this was so much better; it was a promise of a future together, on the Domo, the Amazon, another planet, London.... where ever. As long as it was you and him.

forevermore.

[erodasfishtacos]

could u please do like a harry x youtuber/influencer!reader and like lots of fluff🥺

Hi bubbie! Here you go :)))

Word Count: 4k

Warnings: Language

Harry was panicking. His mum and sister were going to be here in less than two hours and he’s burnt the eggplant parmigiana he had worked tediously on. 

He grabbed what he had left in his fridge - ground beef, shredded cheddar cheese, and a little bit of bacon. 

It was the type of foods he usually strayed away from so sometimes when his shopper would bring this stuff home - he’d avoid it and admittedly sometimes it would go bad sitting in the fridge.

The singer pulls up YouTube onto his phone - hoping something would come up when he typed in the ingredients on the search bar.

He clicks on the first video by cookingwithnofucks. A chuckle at the name as an advertisement plays.

A cute, bubbly girl appears on screen in a beautiful modern kitchen. She has a shirt on that says ‘fuck the patriarchy and eat pizza’. A high ponytail and minimal makeup.

“Okay - today we’re making a cheeseburger casserole,” the girl chirps, “It’s a heart attack in a dish but it’s so fucking good.”

Harry finds himself smiling as he crinkles his nose - it sounds absolutely disgusting but he’s intrigued more by the girl on the screen.

“Shit, I forgot to introduce myself. Hiii, if you’re new - I’m Y/N and I do cooking shit. Subscribe to my channel and all that jazz,” she titters while cutting open her beef package.

Harry follows along step-by-step, shaking his head as she doesn’t describe the instructions nearly well enough and is generally all over the place.

It’s a fucking cooking channel and at one point the meat starts burning. She just laughs and says, “s’just a little crispy!” 

The casserole turns out looking even better than Y/N’s to be honest. It’s done in just the right amount of time for him to shower before his family arrives.

He makes sure to subscribe to her channel - eyebrows raising when he sees that she has 16 million subscribers.

Harry wanted to spend longer, looking at her social media but there was a fixed time so he locked his phone and went to get ready.

**

Anne - always the sweetheart just tells Harry that the casserole is delicious even as a bit of grease runs down her fork from the fatty meats.

Gemma wasn’t as kind, grimacing at the casserole and remarking, “You truly are turning into an American, huh?”

**

Laying in bed that night, Harry swipes back onto YouTube. Going back to the page he just subscribed to - under a pseudonym. He clicks on another video.

“Uh, okay. So I’m cooking...fuck, it’s called unicorn bark. It looks like a magical animal puke but it looks delicious so we’re going to try it.”

Harry realizes he’s been watching this girl cook for nearly an hour. Different videos from desserts to dinners.

She curses like a sailor, fucks up almost every recipe, and makes a mess everywhere. But she’s smiling and talkative which makes him quite memorized by her.

**

“I hate editing,” Y/N groans, letting her head fall dramatically against the desktop. Her best friend and dog looked at her oddly.

“I keep saying you need to hire someone, you stubborn bitch,” Laney retorts, clicking through her Instagram feed.

“Fuck off,” she tells her friend with no real heat. The video was almost fully edited - how to make spicy as fuck jalapeño poppers.

There is a calm silence for a while until Laney gasps, “Holy shit.”

“What is it?” Y/N asks, not really caring as she clicks her mouse to trim a segment.

“Harry fucking Styles just followed you on Instagram and Twitter!” Laney shouts, her dog - Rufus popping his head up in confusion.

Y/N looks at her friend to see if she’s really serious and sees no signs of deception. “Oh my god,” Y/N replies. She loved Harry Styles in One Direction and as a solo artist - a fangirl if you will.

Y/N was a well-known influencer and has run in the circles of many celebrities. She’s even met Liam Payne but she’s never been able to bump into Harry.

Her alerts tell her it to be true, she swallows as she looks back up at Laney, “He dm’ed me.”

“Open it! What did he say?” She squeals, squeezing herself on the chair next to her, peering over her shoulder at the phone.

Y/N is a bit nervous, trying not to have a mini aneurysm as she opens the message thread.

HarryStyles: Hello. Just wanted to let you know that your cheeseburger casserole recipe saved my ass last night. Cheers x

“He’s totally coming onto you,” Her friend states instantly, bouncing excitedly - she also had a bit of a crush on the singer.

It takes the two of them a minute to cool their shit before Y/N manages a reply.

Y/N/LN: Well I guess it’s only fair. Your songs have made a few of my nights much better. I’m a bit of a slut for Fine Line.

Harry laughs behind his screen at the cheeky reply he gets back. He’s usually never this forward - especially on social media where he likes to fly under the radar.

HarryStyles: Well if you fancy my music that much, I totally love for you to come to a show. I’m performing in New York City in two weeks.

“This has to be a joke, right?” Y/N sputters to her friend, eyes wide at the invite to a concert she already had tickets to.

Y/N/LN: I’m not going to lie, I already have tickets to the show. However, I don’t have any backstage passes to meet the man of the hour. Do you know someone who can hook me up?

It does wonders for Harry’s narcissism to know that she already had tickets for his concert. Was he really going to do this? He hasn’t met up with some like this since his One Direction days.

He had to remind himself - she may just be friendly and take this as a totally casual interaction. Which would be normal, Harry really shouldn’t be so infatuated with someone he’s watched cook on social media.

HarryStyles: I think I can arrange that. Shoot me your number? I’ll have them sent digitally to you with instructions on how to get backstage.

Y/N is a bit dumbfounded at how fast they agreed to meet up. A harmless backstage tour - he could just be a fan of hers and totally not interested, right?

**

Over the next few weeks, they never really stop texting. Harry sends her pictures of the recipes he copies off her channel - that usually always look better than the original. He sends her clips of him goofing around during tour rehearsal. FaceTimes her when he’s finally home for the night.  

She sends him videos of her watching Harry Styles Best Moment Part Five. A few photos she snaps throughout the city of him on billboards and buildings, in Times Square. YN facetimes him when she’s frustrated with filming or watched a sad movie.

It didn’t make sense to either of them how seamlessly they’d clicked - especially without meeting. They were a perfect balance for each other. Harry - laidback, organized, level-headed. Y/N - eccentric, all over the place, adventurous. 

Jeff had told him that he’s been gaining media attention from his social media interactions with Y/N. They like each other’s photos, begin following each other’s friends, and comment goofy things on their posts.

“Listen, I have a great idea,” Y/N begins - which Harry learned is never good. “You should film a video with me sometime.”

Y/N knew she was going out on a limb and instantly regretted the questions she’d been building the courage to ask for days when it’s quiet on his end. There’s static for a moment and Y/N needs to fill the silence.

“It was - I was just, uh, I know you’re probably too busy. I was -“ She stutters, embarrassment flooding her.

Harry cuts her off, “I’d love to.”

“Yo-you would?” She asks timidly. Was she really going to have Harry Styles in her apartment? If so, should she take down her poster?

He laughs sweetly, “Why do you sound so surprised? I can’t wait to come to New York, love.”

Y/N giggles, “Not the fact that you’re performing in front of a sold out crowd at MSG? I don’t think seeing me will top that.”

“I’ve been looking forward to meetin’ you in person since I came across your channel. You so lovely,” Harry replies, his voice a little softer but more serious.

“I’m nervous,” Y/N admits, picking at a thread in her jeans.

“Me too,” Harry murmurs, despite not wanting to admit it - he wanted her to know this was new territory for both of them. He didn’t want her to think that this was something that he did often. But a little too prideful to admit it’s the first time he’s ever done something quite like this.

“What if you don’t like me?” Y/N whispers, she...well she didn’t compare to the models he’s been seen with before. She’s regretfully fell into the rabbit hole of looking up his past flings and relationships.

Harry barks out a disbelieving laugh, “You can’t be serious, darling. I’ve been gone for you since I saw you burn that ground beef.”

**

Harry was having a bad day - scratch that. An awful one. He tried to go get coffee at eight in the morning and got bombarded by fans, he left the shop without even ordering. They followed him back to his car and it took him fifteen minutes to pull out.

His favorite Mickey Mouse Gucci suitcase he was bringing along on tour had busted. The zipper unraveling and the trim falling off as a result. It was a one-of-a-kind.

Then he’d been stuck on a Skype meeting about tour merchandise with a group of business partners for the last three hours - all he wanted was a fucking nap.

When Y/N’s contact vibrated across his screen, he’s itching to answer but declines as he needs to give these people his attention.

When she calls again, Harry feels a prickle of annoyance. It’s not even at her - to be quite honest. It’s just the shitty day and everything’s piling up.

He always got like this before he kicked off a tour - stress level maxed out and his ability to handle minor incidents nearly shot.

I’m busy

Okay! Sorry, just have a super exciting surprise for you, bub! 

I really do not feeling like talking. I’d rather be left alone.

Oh, alright. Hope everything’s okay! Do you still want to facetime later?

Harry leaves her on read because he doesn’t want to slip up and take out his frustration on her. He’d been known to do that and he didn’t want her to think he was anything but besotted with her.

**

Y/N feels a little hesitant as she begins the uploading process to her channel. The red loading bar told her it’d be twenty-minutes before it’s going to be posted to her 16 million subscribers - one of them being Harry himself. 

Twenty-minutes for her to back out and cancel the upload. She starts having doubts about it when Harry never replies to her text which is unlike him. 

She takes Rufus out to avoid staring at the loading screen with unnecessary anxiety and uneasiness.

**

Harry is just getting home from a business dinner with the touring company’s management team. The tension and anxiety from today piling up on his shoulders and he just wants to call Y/N and crash in bed. 

He tosses his keys in the little bowl in the entry and kicks off his dingy white vans to the side. His phone dings with an alert from Gemma.

You two are the literal cutest ever. It’s quite gross.

Harry slides onto a stool in his kitchen, confused by the text message before she’s sending the link to him.

Fine Line Inspired Cupcakes!

Harry isn’t quite sure why his heart starts pounding furiously in his chest. A sinking feeling in his stomach when he realizes that this was probably the surprise she was excited about.

He clicks on the thumbnail.

“Hiiii, it’s Y/N. Okay, well today we are going to bake some Fine Line inspired cupcakes. And if you haven’t listened to the album - get your ass out from rock you’re living under and stream it on Spotify!”

She has her hair down in long, waves and a loose cropped shirt that says TPWK in rainbow embroidery.

Harrys mouth is dry and he can’t take his fucking eyes away from the screen. 

“Soo, I was thinking the first batch would be cherry flavored? ‘Cause he has a song titled ‘Cherry’. Let’s start there. First - I need to find my measuring cups.”

In true Y/N fashion, she scours her kitchen - cussing and yanking stuff out of her neatly organized cabinets before huffing and storming off to the side.

She comes back into view, a little frazzled but smiling when she holds up the ring of plastic measuring spoons, visible bite marks notched into the material.

“My asshole of a dog had a little snack,” Y/N shows the camera before shrugging, “Let’s get this shit started. Okay, you’re going to need one cup of sugar - no wait, two? I can’t read my fucking handwriting.”

Harry’s absolutely enamored by this scatter-brained, giggly girl who manages to produce cute blue and pink cupcakes that very vaguely resembled his album cover. His heart felt a million times too big for his chest.

He was enraptured for the entirety of the thirty minute video without taking his eyes away once.

To be honest, he hadn’t felt this way since his last relationship which was over a year ago at this point.

It’s not even a thought as he’s requesting a FaceTime with Y/N. 

She answers after a few rings. She has a green face mask painted on her nose, chin, and forehead with gold eye masks under each eye. She is so fucking ridiculous it’s not even funny. 

What is even more ridiculous is how gone Harry is realizing he is for her. She was quirky, unfiltered, carefree. If he was honest - he hadn’t met a girl like that in a very long time - especially a well-known influencer.

“Hi! How was your day, grumpy?” Y/N asks brightly, making a goofy face as the mask begins to tighten and crack on her skin. Not holding the earlier conversation against him and deciding to just move forward. She understood how stressful it can be.

“M’sorry. I was a bit grumpy,” He admits, “I loved your new video, darling. Did you make those just f’me?”

He can tell she’d be blushing if her face wasn’t covered, a bit bashful as she mutters, “You already know I did it for you.”

“You’re too sweet to me, only six days until we meet,” Harry replies, voice taking on a slow, lazy drawl. 

“Six days,” Y/N repeats, eyes crinkling as she smiles with excitement.

**

“Is this outfit too much?” Y/N panics. Even though there’s literally nothing she can do about it - they’re already walking towards the backstage entrance of the massive arena. It’s still about two hours until the show starts but Harry requested her to come earlier.

Laney sighs, “For the millionth time, you look fucking sexy and Harry’s going to want to rail you right when he sees you.”

Y/N shoves her lightly with a faux annoyance as they meet up with a burly man who’s blocking the entrance to the backstage hallway and rooms.

She gives him their names and pulls up the passes on her phone before he’s nodding with any expression and letting them pass.

They’re not quite sure where to go from here so they begin to wander down the long hallway toward what looks to be the main area that people are milling about.

Y/N is nearly on the ground when someone rounds the corner without looking and walks right into her. Both of them let out huffs of air as they collide and attempt to stabilize themselves.

But there are large hands grasping her arms and holding her steady. In typical Y/N fashion she’s already cursing, “fuckin like a brick wall, look out next time.”

Then she’s looking up to Harry staring back down at her with an amused expression. He doesn’t let go of her and instead tugs her against his bare chest. He’s warm and a bit sweaty - like he’d just worked out. He was only in a pair of thin, running shorts, nike tennis shoes, and a little clip holding his hair off of his face.

Y/N can’t help but wrap her arms around his waist, returning the embrace and amazed by how right it feels to be in his arms. Her face tucks right against his collarbone and it’s like they’d known each other for years.

Pictures and videos don’t do this man justice. He’s gorgeous - sharp edges and dark inked skin. Tall and muscular but dimples that are carved in his cheeks. 

“Nice to meet you, m’Harry,” Harry rumbles, removing one hand from Y/N’s shoulder to reach out his hand to her friend.

Laney shakes his hand before asking, “Laney. I’ll leave you two lovebirds be. Where’s the food?”

Harry chuckles against Y/N’s wavy hair, “Down the hall to the left.”

Laney’s trailing off without another glance, she was very food motivated despite her skinny frame. Also not wanting to intrude of the very personal first moments of their meeting.

The popstar pulls back to look down at the girl he’s fallen for in mere weeks. She’s as beautiful as he thought she'd be - if not more. He can’t help himself, “Would it be too forward to kiss you?”

Y/N smiles widely, running a hand along his jawline, “I’ve wanted you to kiss me since you stayed up on FaceTime with me until two in the morning as I cried after watching The Notebook - despite me seeing it a million times.”

Harry ducks forward to press his lips softly to her, large hands come to cup the side of her face as they connect. He’s so gentle as he moves his mouth against hers. In true Y/N fashion, she’s bold and has no hesitation slipping her tongue into his mouth.

He’s so fucking in love with her. It doesn’t make much sense - it’s definitely not logical but he’s realizing that’s okay.

“Oii, get a room!” Someone shouts from down the hallway teasingly.

Harry flips them the middle finger and pulls back, pink lips swollen and puffy, dimples on full display, “Let me take you out to dinner after the show, darling.”

“You going to wine and dine me, Styles?” Y/N giggles, unable to contain the pleasant warmness he’s spreading through her body. 

“Mmm, have t’make sure you’ll want to keep me,” Harry murmurs happily against her lips once again, pressing kiss after kiss to her to make sure she’s real, “Definitely want to keep you.”

Y/N bites teasingly at his bottom lip, hand planted on the soft but firm skin of his stomach, “You’re never getting rid of me, hope you know that.”

“Was hoping you’d say that, now let me introduce you to my band.”

                                  -- ---- ---- -- 1 year later - -- --- --- --

“Hi bitches! Today is a super special day. We have the one, the only Harry Styles filming with us. I know that’s not really that special since he’s on here all the time with me. But we’re celebrating our one year anniversary!” Y/N smiles, bumping hips with Harry who stands dutifully next to her. 

Anyone viewing can see the absolute heart-eyes and adoration he has for the girl standing next to him. He’s still as lovestruck and gone for her as he was the first time they met. Harry’s fans were thrilled - for the first time in years, he’d opened up again.

They weren’t very public on social media beside’s tagging each other in memes and posting the occasional picture. Y/N was constantly uploading cooking videos from wherever in the world she was with Harry on his tour, she’d also begin making vlogs about different foods she’s been experiencing.

---

“Okay, so here in Peru - they’re known to have this really fucking spicy beef with noddles. So obviously, I’m going to make Harry try it first,” Y/N laughs as she props the camera up on the side of the table on a napkin holder.

Harry - who has a concert in a few hours - frowns at the steaming dish in front of him, “Darling, I don’t want to try it first. It’s going to burn my mouth. Not gonna be able to sing.”

“You’re sucha baby sometimes,” Y/N rolls her eyes, slurping up the noodles with her fork while making a silly face at her boyfriend. She pulls back, straight-faced, “It’s not hot at all. Tastes amazing, though.”

Harry takes that as an initiative to shovel a spoonful into his mouth. It only takes half a moment until his taste buds erupt in fiery flames from the spices, “You bloody little brat, y’tricked me! It’s so fuckin’ hot!”

Y/N smiles widely, laughing much too loudly in the restaurant when Harry chugs the glass of water next to the plate while glaring at his love. “I’m sorry, s’just to easy with you, lovie,” She replies, leaning over the table to press a kiss to his lips. 

He’s a sucker for her and kisses her right back despite his mouth being an inferno. His heart was on fire for her and that burned much more intensely.

---

“No, love. The instructions say baking soda, not baking powder. They’re not the same thing,” Harry sighs, attempting to read her scribbled, sloppy handwriting. She’d already spilled milk on half of the paper.

“S’interchangeable, right?” Y/N hums, cracking an egg into the bowl and Harry automatically knows to look to fish out the eggshells that’d she’d let slip in because she sucks at cracking eggs but always wants to do it.

Harry reaches over her, grabbing the vanilla extract and a teaspoon, “It’s not, baby. Lemme do this real quick.”

“Will you make me a grilled cheese after this?” She asks, nuzzling into his side and wrapping her arms around his waist as he finishes adding the wet ingredients to their bowl. Harry stopped questioning her thought process a long time ago.

Harry swipes his finger into the mixture of icing off to the side and rubs it right onto her nose, cackling at her pout and squeaking when she pinches at the fleshy skin of his hips. She in turn dips her finger into the sugary cream and pops it right into her mouth.

Harry eyes darken, watching her lips purse as she sucks off the icing. It was a dirty move on Y/N’s part and she knows it. It has her boyfriend dragging an icing-covered thumb along her collarbone before leaning down to slowly lick up the sugary trail with his tongue.

When Y/N slides her fingers into his hair and lets out a pretty moan, Harry’s standing back up, trailing over to the tripod and saying into the camera, “We’ll be back after a little commercial break,” and is then turning off the record button.

It takes little to no time for Harry to have Y/N’s bum on the countertop, mouth on her neck, and hand in-between her thighs.

And when they finally posted a very edited final cut of the video - well there may be a couple of fans who notice the how flushed Y/N is halfway through and a lovely purple mark on Harry’s neck that wasn’t there in the beginning of the video.

[writeformesinpie]

A Cookie Club

Chapter Three: The Head Start

Akatsuki x Fem!Reader

Word Count - 1.2k

Genre - Crack/Harem

Summary -

You’re forced to return back to the Akatsuki after your attempts to switch clubs fail. They are determined to make sure you don’t leave.

The Reverse Harem Crack Fic where you end up on wacky adventures with the Akatsuki who have all made it their mission to get in your pants. Who will win your heart?

Warnings -

Eventual smut, suggestive, slow burn

<Chapter One> <Previous Chapter> <Next Chapter>

A Cookie Club Masterlist

Anime Masterlist

   “You know why I'm here. I've been here every day for the last week. Please, tell me some good news,” you asked every muscle in your face imploring, both hands pressed against the table in front of you. The woman behind the desk rolled her eyes as she continued to chew gum with her mouth agape. She typed at a snail's pace, using only her lavender-manicured index fingers. She sighed, giving you the same, sad smile as she had the previous days. You didn't bother to wait for an answer this time. You knew that there was no hope. You were stuck in the Akatsuki club. You took a deep breath. “Thanks anyway.”

   You dragged your feet along the concrete floor, inching your way over to room 1408. The corridor seemed longer than last time. Each step echoed with the sound of mockery as you stumbled down the walkway. The Funeral March tune was playing on repeat inside your head before you realized how melodramatic you were being. You shook your head with a chuckle and opened the door, ignoring the horrid banner above it.

   “About time! We almost gave up on you,” Deidara pouted, dragging you inside.

   “I don't know what kind of clubs you were apart of before, however this one requires at least 5 hours of attendance per week. Did you even read the requirements before joining?” Pain glanced at you from behind his laptop with a sigh.

   “But the rules change whenever they contradict a point you are trying to make,” Konan snickered, slapping him in the face with a paper crane before walking over to you. She pushed Deidara aside with a tight smile before wrapping an arm around your waist. “I can tell we are going to be fast friends.”

   Deidara growled as steadied himself against the bookcase he had been thrown into, “What the hell, Konan! I saw her first.”

   “Saw her first? What are we, kindergartners?”

   “Welcome back!” The soft pangs of party poppers drew your attention to Tobi who met your gaze with a warm grin. “The others had given up hope but Tobi knew you would return!”

   “Oh, hi Tobi.” You waved at him with a sheepish grin as you ignored the tangerine-haired man with his fancy Mac laptop. Who did he think he was anyway? He acted like he was in charge of something much more important than he was. It’s just a stupid Magic club.

   “You think you can just slink back in here and everyone is gonna just accept that?”

   “Give it a rest, Pain, no one cares. She's here now and that's all that matters.” Konan flashed her dazzling white teeth before pulling you into a tight embrace. “We should go shopping! Don't best friends go shopping together?”

   “I guess so,” you replied, biting the corner of your mouth. Why is she being so kind today? Was she just having a bad day last time? Is she always like this?

   “Great! Then it’s settled. Girls night out,” she purred against your ear, still holding you to her chest. One of her hands was twirling in your hair while the other had slipped down and was groping your ass. It surprised you, provoking a gasp, but it wasn't unpleasant.

   “I don't think so,” Pain warned, placing himself between you and Konan. At her raised eyebrow he stumbled, “Well, you see, because… we already have something planned. Yes. A field trip. A club field trip.”

   “First time I've heard about it,” Sasori smirked as he ran a hand through his soft, red hair. His sensuous eyes wandered over you with gentle urgency. “However, I look forward to it.”

   “As do I.” Hidan slithered out from the shadows somewhere behind you and brought your hand to his mouth. Pressing his lips against your skin with a soft moan, he began to kiss up your arm. He reached your elbow before Pain shoved him against the wall. The pair glared at one another while you positioned yourself behind Konan.

   “You can go home.”

   “What? Why?”

   “Why? We do not molest our teammates.”

   “What? I was talkin’ to her. Right?” Hidan looked at you with a flash of anger and confusion before throwing his hands up. “Fine. I'll leave.”

   “It’s fine, Pain. He was just being friendly,” you murmured, your hand now entwined with Konan’s. “I'm just not used to so much contact. All at once.”

   Deidara grabbed your free hand and rubbed it against his face with a tortured expression. “You poor thing. Mhm. What kind of life have you been living?”

   “Don't worry,” Konan cooed, tightening her grip on your left hand. “We'll make sure you get so much love and attention that you can't stand it.”

   “That's okay.” The laughter that followed was forced but you hoped it didn't sound as nervous as you felt. What is wrong with these people?

   “Right. Even so, we're going to Kakuzu’s place. Hidan should still go home. Things are easier when you two aren't together,” Pain insisted, amusement reaching the tips of his lips.

   “Fuck you, Pain. Don't think this puts you ahead or anything,” Hidan snarled as he slammed the door behind him.

   “That was… unpleasant. I apologize. You shouldn't have had to deal with that.” Pain’s eyes glistened with concern. It was the first time you had really seen him. You'd looked at him before, of course, but you hadn't stopped to notice how attractive he was under all those piercings. In fact, the piercings may have only added to the allure. The strange shade of purple that seemed to swirl within his eyes, the harsh tangerine hair that matched perfectly with his milky skin and the firm imprint of his body under his tight t-shirt. You had to admit, this man was sexy. Even if he was also one of the most annoying people you had met, there was something about him that drew you in.

   He held out his hands in a beckoning gesture and you felt an immense pressure to glide to his side, almost as if you were being pulled by a magnet. Before you realized it, you had let go of both Deidara and Konan and had placed your hands within his. He was smiling and the sight sent a shiver down your spine, but you ignored it as you smiled back.

   “Should we get going then?” Konan creeped up behind you, her arms circling your waist once more. This time she rested her chin on your shoulder. She poked her tongue out toward the other club members as she dragged you toward the door. “Let's use my car.”

   “Oh, okay. Sounds good!" You skipped out the door behind Konan, the faint sound of growling resonating from the room behind you.

   When you made a move to turn and investigate the noise, Konan chuckled, “Ignore them. They're just angry because we got a head start.”

Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this content! If you did, please consider liking, commenting, reblogging and/or following, and check out my masterlist for similar content. Have a great day!

[cloveroctobers]

i was wondering if you could do an imagine where olivia is sexually assaulted and after her behaviour around the house drastically changes until she eventually tells jordan + her parents? i just wanted to see a protective, baker family imagine that focused on her :))

TW: mentions of s******* assault, trauma, bodily fluids, college parties, panic attacks, depression, etc…

A/N: took me a minute to decide if I wanted to write this piece since it’s slightly triggering for myself and can be to others. Not overly detailed ofc but I hope when I do fully get back into writing we’ll have some happy moments to come! Especially for my girl Liv.

SOMETHINGS WRONG — O. Baker

Olivia Baker felt like she could make a list of what she can now label herself as which held negative connotations:

The pill popper

The drunk

That mixed girl

The other twin

The girl with no solid friends

The boyfriend-stealer

The wannabe woke girl

And now the victim

She couldn’t get her mind to grasp that. That this happened to her, that she let this happen to her. If she was in her right mind she would realize that this isn’t something she could ever blame herself for but she knew others would, if she ever let them know. But she wouldn’t, she couldn’t.

What was supposed to be a fun weekend in Atlanta turned into a moment she wouldn’t forget. It was all fun and games, it actually felt like the one true moment in time where she felt free and happy. Surrounded by good people with good intentions, which only consisted of Spencer, Jordan, and Simone. These were her main people, her right hands, and her go-to but that seemed to fade the night her life drastically changed—yet again.

The events that occurred that night were burned into her mind in spurts. Olivia couldn’t piece them all together but she knew. She knew something was wrong with the way that she felt even though she was dressed as if nothing occurred. She knew the moment she pulled herself off the floor in her own drool to look at herself in the mirror that something was wrong. She knew it in her appearance and in the way that she felt. Her confirmations were proven correct when she decided to use the bathroom, what she felt, and what she saw.

She was gagging and struggling to breathe. Olivia Baker knew something happened to her when she realized she woke up alone on the cold bathroom floor. She was doing so well and thought she was stronger than this, how could this be added to the things of what happened to her or what she allowed to happen to her? Her mind was weak, somewhere in the night she let her guard down and now she was here. It all felt like her fault.

What will they say about her now?

Olivia’s experienced a handful of trauma in her teenage life before but THIS…this was something else. She felt like she was going to pass out again until she found the strength to let the anxiety take its course in subsiding. Pushing herself up with a huge whimper and wince, she began searching the bathroom for her phone as it was not on her body. She remembered the first thing she wanted to do was document this because as soon as she got back to Simone’s aunt’s house she was going to wash away the filth she felt.

Perhaps that was another mistake but she couldn’t erase what she felt beneath and on her skin. It felt like Olivia was moving in slow motion searching the fancy bathroom, stumbling and shoving items out of the way in search of her device. When she slipped on something in the bathroom, she failed to catch herself, her cheek colliding with the tile floor, she knew that would leave another bruise along with the rest on her body. Her eyes connected with the object which looked to be covered in what appeared to be blood.

With a shaky finger she reached out to it, and recoiled back as her finger became coated in the copper stench. That’s when the tears began to cloud her vision and she wanted to cover her cries but she felt frozen, like she did hours prior. So she cried until her body ached internally and furthermore externally, and with a shaky breath those came to a halt when she heard something rattling.

She moved painfully slow, ripping the shower curtain back to see her phone tossed in the stone shower face down. Swallowing, she picked the phone up to see that the now missed call was from Jordan. She had over thirty missed calls and fifteen text messages. Blinking Olivia unlocked her phone and opened up her camera and angled her phone before hearing multiple shutter speeds.

At least that part of her mind was still functioning. She thought to herself bitterly as she went over to the mirror once again, setting her phone down on the counter to call a Uber back to Simone’s aunt’s house.

This was just another scar in her story, she guessed. So she rinsed her face, and gave Simone a call first…feeling as if this was the best option out of the three…when all she really wanted to do was call her mom.

“Olivia!” Simone greeted, “Girl, where the hell are you? Last night was so crazy and Jordan was trying to stalk you but realized you turned off your location, which he said is something you’d never do but I figured since you went off with Othello and them you would be fine.”

It took a minute for Olivia to respond. Her vision still locked on her reflection as that name sent something through her. Making her eyes close shut as she heard the voice introduce itself with that name but she couldn’t connect the face to it. However it seemed like Simone was familiar with who Olivia disappeared off with.

“I’m in a Uber on my way back to your aunt’s house.” Olivia knew she sounded like herself to Simone but her face was stoney and she did not feel like herself…as to be expected.

Simone nodded, “okay…cool! I’m glad you got back to one of us because we were getting a little worried.”

“Worried I’d relapse?” Olivia stated but cleared her throat knowing Simone didn’t deserve the brunt of her trauma, “Please tell me Jordan didn’t call our parents.”

Simone chose to ignore that, wishing later that she didn’t—however her and Olivia were still trying to build their relationship as in-laws so they were still feeling out each other’s temperaments and personalities, “No. I persuaded him not to…although I know that would have changed if you didn’t show up at some part today and I don’t blame him. Him and Spencer are getting a little stir-crazy without you. So please bring your butt here so my aunt can take us to this flea market she keeps going on about.”

“Alright,” Olivia breathed out a laugh that felt humorless to her, “I should be there in ten according to the ride but we all know down here in the south it’s really thirty minutes.”

“Tell me about it! It’s always ‘oh, it’s right down the street!’ But why we still driving tho?!” Simone laughed, “see you soon. I’ll let the boys know you’re on your way.”

And with that they ended the call.

Olivia shoved the clothes she worn that night back underneath her bed, still unwashed and out of sight. She went searching under her bed after her black oil pastel pencil slid off her bed. It was always in the back of her mind that the clothes rotted underneath the place where she lay her head. Sleep no longer existed to her but it’s not like a good portion of concealer didn’t help hide her puffy bags.

Olivia was violated going on about three weeks now and she was expected to go on like everything was okay. That was the challenge. And it was exhausting and moments throughout her day felt like someone would hold onto her throat and squeeze for minutes at a time.

She kept up with her therapy so that nothing about her seemed suspicious. She had thoughts about her pills and the thoughts about sipping alcohol made her stomach turn—so perhaps that part was a good thing. Her dad moved back into the house so the family dynamic was shifting yet again, her mom made it her mission to not have any booze in the house and any over the counter medication that was addressed to any of them in the house would be under only her and Billy’s care.

Those wouldn’t be strong enough for Olivia anyways, and that thought alone made her laugh bitterly but she was glad someone was taking the initiative to her health. Liv was not to have any access to it. It might not have been said but Olivia Baker always paid attention to everything.

She was doing well at hiding, almost flawless in her mind; that something had changed her life for the worse. Whereas with her pill popping/partying had been out in the open and her drinking was slightly undercover, Olivia thought she was doing well acting like her assault didn’t take place—yet the signs were there however it was cautious on how to approach. She had been careless, leaving her phone unlocked when she went off to the bathroom and with iPhone’s broadcasting your memories with photo’s was what lit the flame.

Laura was sitting at the island previously with Olivia while the boys were seated on the couch watching some game. She was sipping her voss water when Olivia’s phone let out the alert, which was closer to Laura’s view. At first Laura thought they were nudes but when she picked the phone up to click on the photo’s, she felt her heart drop to her stomach. A gasp unknowingly left her lips, causing Billy to look over his shoulder at his on-again wife.

“Laura, baby? Are you alright?”

Before she could say anything else Olivia walked back into the room, rubbing the hand cream further into her hands as she made her way over to her mom. When Laura snapped her head up to stare at her daughter, Olivia immediately stopped in her tracks feeling her mother’s eyes almost stinging her skin.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” Olivia tilted her head to the side, wondering why the blonde woman appeared distraught.

Laura wanted to hold the phone up but felt a protectiveness come over her not wanting to gain the attention of the two men in the house, even though Billy already had his body turned sideways at the exchange.

“Olivia, what is this?” Laura whispered, pointing at the phone.

It didn’t dawn on Olivia right away what her mother could be possibly be talking about, in a sense she tried to forget but when she looked back at her art pieces, once she completed them in her sketch book, she realized unconsciously it’s not something you can just forget.

Laura swiped against Olivia’s phone at each picture making Olivia sharply turn her head to the side and swallow the lump that formed in her throat.

“Who’s in these images, Olivia?!” Laura didn’t mean to raise her voice, but she wanted answers.

Now she gained the attention of Jordan who broke his eyes away from the commercial playing on the television.

Olivia chewed on her chapped lips not wanting to say anything. She didn’t want anyone else adding this to their list of things to worry about when it came to her. It was ironic really, Olivia Baker was always involving herself in everyone else’s issues but pushed her own pain to the side. She vowed with Spencer that they would start to only worry about themselves this senior year and yet Olivia seemed to not do that. In a sense…she going to therapy, she was picking back up her old hobby to ease her mind but the huge problem about this was she wasn’t talking about it. To anyone.

“Olivia—

Laura seemed to take a different approach, using what she learned in family therapy to level her tone and to not make her daughter feel cornered. However she was highly concerned and she wanted to hear what she already suspected from these pictures. She kept her eyes trained on Olivia who reached out to the island to balance herself, now feeling the room spin. Laura pushed the bar stool back and went to Olivia’s aid but she flinched, ripping her body away from her mother which made Laura let out a small sob.

“What’s going on?” Billy asked, now getting to his feet.

Laura didn’t want to show Billy the pictures but with the way she was clutching Olivia’s phone to her chest made the man snatch the phone from his wife’s grasp.

Billy on the other hand was furious. He rubbed at his face and Olivia didn’t want to see the expression on his face so she kept her back to the both of them now. It was when Jordan towered over Olivia, hoping that he could get an answer out of her opposed to what their parents were failing to do, he didn’t touch her but he paid close attention to the way she was acting right now and how his father was trying not to scream in the kitchen.

Something was wrong. Jordan could feel it more than sense it from what his parents were demonstrating, and yeah they were twins but they haven’t radiated the same energy off the other since they were kids. And who’s to know that might have just been in their heads like many people tried to argue but Jordan and Olivia were extremely close as kids, they shared a whole womb together so they had to share more connections outside in the world too? Their bond was much stronger as children but they were making their way back to each other as they got older. Yes they were their own people but it’s undeniable if they said energy was never a factor in their relationship as twins.

Jordan was calm as he peered down into Olivia’s for eyes, patient, waiting for her to say what she willing to say. Everything was silent to her ears, Olivia blocked out Billy wheezing out his frustrations as he crouched down in front of the island and Laura’s cries.

Olivia felt so small.

Jordan knew before Spencer said something that Olivia was acting a little off. He tried to be better as a brother in paying attention to her as she always did for him. He was worried when she disappeared off with some kid named after Shakespeare that Simone used to spend summer’s with as a kid. Sure Simone said he and his friends were good people but they were also a year or two older, settling into the toxic part of college life. He was the last one with Olivia after they watched some performances with Spencer and Simone already on the dance floor with other people.

“You let Liv go off with these people we don’t even know?” Jordan remembers Spencer saying to him after he got off the dance floor.

Jordan didn’t like how Spencer said this to him so he replied back with, “you were just on the dance floor with someone you don’t know. None of us control my sister, Spence. She’s allowed to hang out with whoever she wants. Plus Simone says Oscar is good people.”

“That’s not what I meant and you know that man,” Spencer tried to come correct, “Simone said she only spent summers with othello,” He informed Jordan of the guy’s actual name which Jordan sucked his teeth at, “so that doesn’t mean she really knows him all that well either.”

“Are you trying to question my girl, right now?” Jordan furrowed his brows, always looking for a fight due to his impulsiveness.

Spencer raised his brows, “I’m not questioning nothing. I’m just stating the obvious. We don’t know nobody out here, we not from here. We just have to be smarter is all I’m sayin’.”

Jordan didn’t like to be wrong but he felt like he wasn’t completely wrong? Sure his big brother instincts should have kicked in stronger but he was too focused on some corny dude pushing up on Simone. That was a little foul now that he thought back on it, Olivia should have been just as important—and she is. Which is why he wanted to do right in the present.

He noticed before Layla pointed out a couple of times that Olivia was bringing out the darker fashion choices and that it was nice to see sometimes, since she “did it so well.” He noticed before Simone told him to tell Olivia that she would be over to help her straighten the back of her hair out and he noticed that she was wearing eyeliner in her waterline again.

He noticed the long showers and staying outside in the rain, he noticed she’s been slacking on her podcast and scribbling in her old sketch book. He noticed her listening to nothing but Fiona Apple, Billie Holiday, old Alicia Keys songs, and Fefe Dobson instead of her usual song choices like: Aaliyah, Jorja Smith, Billie Eilish, H.E.R., Doja Cat, and Mereba. He even fought with himself at night standing outside her closed door to say something. He did remember asking her one night at dinner, which she barely ate, if she was okay and with a smile that didn’t reach her rimmed eyes…she said she was.

To Olivia it was silent as she admitted her truth about what happened to her in Atlanta, but to the rest of the Baker’s it was loud and clear. Over the course of three weeks, she gathered it all. The memories came back when they needed to and the fact that he reached out to her twice since she returned home was appalling. Olivia didn’t know if it was the guilt—that might have been a stretch…she didn’t know the piece of shit of a person at all, the audacity, or the curiosity on his part to see what she was going to do about this. If anything. She gave no information away in the DM’s, in fact she barely sent anything back.

There was no weight that lifted from her chest as she spoke her secret into the air, she still felt pain that she tried to numb down but it just felt like another burden she inflicted on her loved ones and she hated that idea. That she caused this. Most days she felt numb but she knew anger was brewing along the horizon.

Jordan went to Olivia who stepped back, which felt like Jordan just got punched in the gut. And he’s taken a lot of hits before in his eighteen years of life but this one might have been the worse blow he’s experienced. And that’s coming from a guy still healing from a concussion.

“Oh, god. I’m so sorry, Liv I—.” She heard Her twin say to her but it sounded like she was under water.

Life has been that way for awhile now, if you truly asked her.

‘I don’t want pitty.’ Her inner thoughts hissed. That was last thing she wanted. She was now coming to terms that she wanted this emptiness to vanish, if that was what this even was. She wanted to be back to where she was or at least as a kid where she didn’t have to worry about a damn thing. She didn’t want to endure what she’s been feeling since she entered her teenage years. Olivia Baker wanted so much more out of this life but lately it seems as if her purpose was to only be handed out shitty lessons instead.

What lesson was this? To showcase how the world can take away anything it wanted and leave you to deal or not deal with the aftermath afterwards?

The anger was indeed setting in.

Olivia didn’t realize that eventually Jordan put his arms around her and she gripped onto him for dare life. Her body didn’t shrink into itself like it commonly did weeks after what happened whenever someone touched her.

Her parents kept their distance picking up on the fact that she didn’t want to be touched but her other half held onto her and that seemed to be a step in the right direction for now. Instead Billy and Laura held onto each other too, their heads whirling around with how to further provide the best possible care for their daughter.

[horansqueen]

New Angel - Chapter 16

story masterlist [x]

chapter 1  ☆ chapter 2  ☆ chapter 3  ☆ chapter 4  ☆ chapter 5  ☆ chapter 6  ☆ chapter 7  ☆ chapter 8 ☆ chapter 9 ☆ chapter 10 ☆ chapter 11 ☆ chapter 12 ☆ chapter 13 ☆ chapter 14 ☆ chapter 15

NOTES

☆ written from Niall’s pov ☆ i don’t proofread, I never do, I hate it. ☆ AU comedy/fluff/smut/romance ☆ 2.6k ☆ i accept requests and ideas for this story, so message me in my inbox! ☆ if you want to be notified when this story is updated (or be taken off the update list) CLICK HERE

NIALL

I blinked a few times as I stared at my best friend who was simply raising her eyebrows at me with a begging face. It was the third day of us spending time together and if I wanted to be honest, I was not completely over the fact that we had seen Grace the day before. I couldn't take it out of my mind of all evening and Millie and I didn't have a long night. We just ate, watched a movie, and I went to bed. I knew my friend was totally aware of what was happening and I suspected that she didn't mention it because she also needed some time alone.

Last night, right after we ate, Louis had came back. He was alone, fortunately, but he barely talked to us. He just grabbed a bag of chips and locked himself in his room, resulting in Millie and I both a bit confused, angry and sad after seeing the person we still had feelings for on the same day.

That's why today, I wanted to do something else and stop thinking about Grace for a while, but Millie's suggestion was not something I would have thought about, ever.

"Mill, I can't dance."

"Oh yea, I'm not really good either. That's why they call it a dance class."

I rolled my eyes and sighed but she took a step closer, intertwining her fingers together in an attempt to beg me.

"Please please please!" she continued, moving her chin up as she sent me puppy eyes. "I have a wedding to attend in a few weeks and I'm gonna have to dance!"

"Like the way you dance in sweatpants in the living room?" I joked, my lips curling into a smirk.

"Exactly! What if a pretty boy asks me to dance and I keep stepping on his feet?" she argued, getting closer again and tilting her head before grabbing my arms. "Please, Niall! Maybe I'll dance with the love of my life! Do it for the pretty boy!"

Her arguments made me chuckle and I rolled my eyes. "Fine, fine! But I don't do it for the pretty boy, I do it for my best friend!"

"How lucky are they!" she replied, smiling more.

"It's you, silly!"

Her eyes roamed on my face for a few seconds and I held my breath when she threw herself in my arms. Her arms wrapped around my neck, choking me slightly as she jumped a bit, bringing me up and down with her.

"Thank you thank you thank you thank you!"

"Yea yea," I replied, trying to hug her back without much success. "Now please I can't breathe!"

I cleared my throat when she pulled away and frowned for half a second at the odor reaching my nose. It smelled like candies, a mix of sugar and fruits, and I just smiled when I remembered how much Millie loved candies. She had probably eaten a few not so long ago and the smell had stayed. I didn't know why but I liked it. It was a good change from the very expensive perfume Grace was wearing.

"What do I have to wear?"

"Clothes, preferably." she let out with sarcasm, a smile on her lips.

"You're missing out, I look amazing naked."

She chuckled and rolled her eyes. "Yea, I'll never know." she pointed out, making my lips curl more. "Just bring comfortable shoes, I guess."

I expected the evening to be long and boring, but dancing with Millie was actually quite entertaining, like everything we did together. I grabbed her hand and pulled her closer to make her twirl, and surprisingly, the movement was graceful and in perfect rhythm. She ended up facing me with a large grin as I stopped her with my hand on her waist. She laughed, shocked by what we had just accomplished, but I sort of thought it was only luck. In fact, I highly doubted we could do it again,

"That was great! You're so good at this!" she let out.

Her hand was on my shoulder and her thumb brushed lightly against the skin of my neck, making me shiver.

"Thanks, but I don't think we'll be able to do it again." I admitted with a chuckle, shaking my head.

"Don't be a party popper okay?" she argued, raising her eyebrows and tilting her chin down. "You need to stay positive!"

Once again, I rolled my eyes as the music started again. We tried dancing one more time but I had a hard time remembering where to put my feet and after a while, we just started laughing together. In the spur of the moment, I moved farther, holding her hand, before pulling her back to me and making her twirl again. When she stopped moving, facing me, my hand squeezed her waist slightly and she chuckled, her eyes getting bigger, once again amazed by how perfect that movement was.

"See? We did it again!"

"Okay, you were right, we're really good at this!"

"It's a gift!"

---

As soon as we stepped foot out of the building, I reached for Millie's hand and made her twirl again. The smile she was now permanently wearing grew even bigger as mine did the same. She giggled and squeezed my fingers before letting go of my hand and we walked to my car in silence.

I waited until she put her seatbelt on to start the car and as I drove, I could feel her gaze on me.

"Thanks for coming with me, Niall." she let out gently, leaning her head on the bench.

"No problem, T'was fun!"

I was surprised of it myself but this evening had been pleasant and my stomach actually hurt from laughing so much. I glanced at my best friend as I turned on our street and realized that it was always fun with Millie. We got along great and we made each other discover things that we definitely wouldn't have by ourselves. I liked that. I liked knowing Millie was helping me becoming a better version of myself, and I hoped I was helping her do the same thing.

"You promised you'd cook for me." she pointed out as I unlocked the door.

I chuckled, walking to the kitchen and opening the fridge. "A promise is a promise!" I let out loud enough for her to hear as she joined me. "What would you like to eat?"

"Spaghetti. I'm in that mood."

I got back up and turned to her, raising my eyebrows and sending her an amused smile. "Are you serious?"

"Very."

"I'm ready to cook for you and you literally ask me the easiest meal ever thought of?" I argued before shaking my head and chuckling low. "Alright!"

Millie sat on the counter while I cut a few vegetables for my sauce before boiling water. I handed a mushroom to my friend who grabbed it and quickly ate it, making me smile again.

"Are you gonna help me at all?"

"No."

"You're such a lazy ass!" I laughed, making her shrug.

"I was always the one cooking with Louis when you weren't there. I hate cooking."

I looked up at her and my lips curled on the right sadly. It was the first time on that day that one of us talked about a love relationship and it made me feel a bit down. We were doing so well without them, yet we couldn't help ourselves from mentioning them. It made sense, after all. We used to spend so much time with them that we could link many memories, activities, discussions and thoughts to them.

"You should add that to your list."

Millie scoffed but still sent me a small smile. "What? That I can't cook?"

"No, that he wouldn't do it."

Millie stole an other mushroom from the plate and I slapped her fingers quickly, making her frown as she let out a quick 'ow!'

"You need to find yourself a boyfriend or a girlfriend that can actually cook."

We remained in silence for a few minutes and my gaze kept moving from my sauce to my best friend. I could see emotions appear and leave on her face and somehow, I wished I could read her mind.

"Actually, Louis didn't do much of the things I enjoyed." she admitted, making me frown a bit. "I asked but most of the time he said no, or he canceled, or he didn't show up. That's why it means so much that you came with me today, Niall. No one else would have done that for me."

I felt my heart break a bit in my chest and turned to her, placing my hands on each sides of her thighs before tilting my chin up to look in her eyes. She seemed sincere, sad, and slightly embarrassed, and I moved closer until my stomach pressed against her knees.

"Louis is like a brother to me, but he was an ass with you. He never treated you like a real girlfriend and it's a fucking shame. Mill, you deserve so much better, do you realize that?"

Her eyes traveled gently on my face, her traits softened and she moved a lock of her behind her ear. I was staring at her, making sure she knew how serious I was, and she finally nodded very slowly.

"Now." I let out louder, pushing myself away with my hands before turning back to my sauce. "You taste this and tell me if it's good."

I grabbed a spoon quickly and gathered some sauce in it before bringing it up to her, my hand right under it in case it would drip. I stared at her as she tasted it slowly, licking her lips and tilting her head on the left.

"So? Verdict?" I insisted, raising my eyebrows up.

"Perfect."

"I would have been insulted if you hadn't used that word." I admitted with a smile. "This is the easiest thing to cook.”

Millie laughed and got down from the counter to help me prepare the plates and we finally sat together at the table. I ate slowly, watching her do the same, and when she leaned against her chair, I grabbed my beer and took a sip.

"Okay, it's time." Millie let out with a sigh, taking a paper out of her pocket and unfolding it.

I found it a bit funny that we both kept our lists in our pockets. I thought it would end up obsessing me or that I'd always feel it burn against my thigh but most of the time, I forgot about it to enjoy my day and I was pretty sure it was the same for my best friend.

I moved closer, leaning slightly on the table to see what she was writing.

'He can't cook'

'He never did things that would have made me happy'

I breathed in and reached out for the sheet, sliding it slowly to me. Millie looked up and frowned but I just had to do it. I didn't know much about the relationship Millie and Louis had together. I knew they were close, I knew sometimes they were very cute with each other, and that other times they barely acted like friends, but I didn't know how hurt Millie had been through this whole relationship and somehow, I felt like she didn't know either. I felt like she was just realizing that she was better off without him.

I took the pen from her hand and quickly scribbled something.

'You deserve better. You deserve the best.'

I added my name right next to it to say it came from me and when she read what I had written, she smiled fondly and tilted her head. I could read in her eyes how grateful she was and I mirrored the same loving smile to her for a few seconds before taking my own list out of my pocket.

"Okay, my turn."

I stared at the name of my ex girlfriend written on top and sighed low, closing my eyes for a few seconds. The more I thought about it, the more I found it ridiculous to go back and date someone who's only good point was that I actually loved her. Love was not everything and despite what everyone thinks, it doesn't heal everything, especially if the person you love is the person who also broke you.

What actually took me out of my thoughts was the sound of my phone. I jumped slightly, a bit too deeply lost in my thoughts, and searched my pocket quickly. I held my breath and felt my lips part when I saw the name written on the screen. Summer. Suddenly, I felt extremely guilty. Once again, I had sort of forgotten about her. I only had written one bad thing on the list about her and had been too focused on the way I felt for Grace and spending time with Millie to even take the time to message Summer. I could always pretend I just didn't want to bother her but I couldn't lie to myself.

'I miss you, I can't wait to see you'

The words made me swallow and the cute little emoji with hearts around its head made my heart skip a beat. Unfortunately, it was out of guilt, and not out of excitement.

"Who is it?"

"Summer." I replied low.

"Oh."

Millie had only whispered her word and it made me believe that she had realized too that we had barely talked about Summer in the past few days. I held my thumbs over the letters, not really sure what I should type back. I didn't want to lie, and I didn't want to say the truth either. It made me remember that I hadn't even touched myself at all since the last time I had sex with Summer and it surprised me.

"D'you miss her?"

I looked up at Millie who was raising her eyebrows at me, waiting for an answer. If I could be honest with someone, it was definitely her, and I shrugged a shoulder.

"I mean, not really." I confessed, making my best friend's lips part too. "I'm not to the stage that I actually have feelings for her, and sex with her is good but not... flabbergasting, you know? Plus, we've been super busy doing a bunch of things, I didn't really have time to miss her."

"But you had time to miss Grace."

I sighed and looked down before nodding. "I guess."

"You know, Niall, you don't have to justify yourself with me. You feel what you feel, and that's it. It's not like you can control your feelings. You can only control the way you react because of those feelings. That's what shows who you are as a person."

I closed my eyes and swallowed hard, trying to keep my tears in. It was the third day and I only had about four more to decide who I wanted to be with. Of course, I could always take more time, but how unfair to both girls would that be? I couldn't just keep them around for weeks until I make a decision. The problem was, I had no idea who I wanted to be with. I had no idea what to do.

"Tell me, Mill, which one should I pick?" I asked in a murmur.

I felt Millie's hand on mine and my eyes fluttered open to stare at her fingers squeezing mine.

"I can't choose for you Niall, you know that." she explained softly. "Just don't force yourself to do anything. It's your life. Your feelings. In the end, you need to take this decision for you."

I looked up in her eyes and held her hand tighter. She was right, I knew it, but I felt like I would never be completely happy, no matter which choice I'd make.

[pars-ley]

Little Blue

Pairing: Jungkook x Female reader

Summary: A wild party ends with traumatic events for your best friend but as the night continues you realise just how much your support has always meant to him.

Genre: One-shot / Triggering topics / Friends to Lovers!au / College!au / Smut / Angst / Fluff 

Trigger warnings: Drug use (spiked drink but not with roofies) / Sexual assault / Attempted rape (no actual rape) / Violence (someone gets punched)

Warnings: Unprotected sex (you know the deal, wrap it up) / Finger foreplay / Ever so slight female cum play / cumshot (pearl necklace) / Language

Word Count: 5.5k

Notes: This was a request I had serious anxiety about and wasn’t sure whether to do or not but after some careful consideration, I decided to take a serious route with it and use it to bring awareness of these situations, the repercussions and the aftermath. I wanted to highlight how these topics (that happen everyday all over the world) can be, not just for male victims but all victims. That they are serious and wrong, no matter who the affected party are and that it is the victims choice how they deal with it after these types of horrible events transpire. Please do you not read if you think you will be affected by any of the warnings.

Here are some links for anyone who has been affected by the type of events that are written about in this story:

http://www.nationaldahelpline.org.uk/  https://rapecrisis.org.uk/ https://www.victimsupport.org.uk/ https://www.rainn.org/statistics/victims-sexual-violence https://www.survivorsuk.org/ Most of these are English links but they have a lot of helpful information in them. The last link is specifically for male victims.

Beta read by @unoriginal-username15432​ Thank you so much for all your help and confidence boosting when I came to you an absolute wreck, you’re amazing. Thank you to @ditttiii​ @moccahobi​ @sugarly-laysa​ @joheun-saram​ for reading and giving me feedback and encouragement to do this right. Your help and support means the world to me 😘

You watch as Veronica slips a little blue tablet into a drink, looking on as it fizzes wildly in a spiral, inside the see-through glass. 

I had no idea she was a pill popper. That would explain a lot.

Staring after her as she carries two drinks into the living room, beyond my view, swaying her hips confidently with a smug grin stretched across her full mouth. At least, you hoped the pill was for her.

Which poor, unsuspecting soul would be her victim?

You would have to keep two watchful eyes on her tonight, as much as the thought pained you of having her not only in your sights but in your mind, it was necessary to hinder whatever evil she was plotting today.

Hating Veronica was easy. Avoiding her was not. Not only was she an unremarkably, average student at your university, she also seemed to be at every party. That stumped you however, as you had yet to meet a single person who genuinely liked her.

Her personality consisted of bullying, harassment and being the worst spoilt princess. She always got what she wanted, one way or another and she enjoyed making other people suffer in the process.

"Hey, y/n?" Hoseok’s voice calls out, lighting up your dark thoughts. He has that ability, like a gift from the sun itself. Turning and raising an eyebrow in expectation at his question.

"Have you seen Jungkook?" He asks, closing the distance between you, bringing his sunshine smile and almost blinding you with it.

Shaking your head, you reply, "No, not for a while actually." That was unlike him, usually, your best friend was glued to your hip, you were inseparable, especially at parties like this. 

"We're betting which one of us will be the first to get laid tonight, we want him in on it." He babbles excitedly and with that he enveloped the sun with a dark cloud, as you’re reminded how clichéd horny, young adults can be.

Rolling your eyes, you down your drink, wincing at the burn as the fiery liquid cascades down your throat. You welcome the numbness that follows and it makes you forget the things you should be doing. The idea of Jungkook hooking up with anyone, now overtaking your gin hazed brain, turning your insides into snakes as they churn relentlessly in the pit of your stomach. 

"I can't find him anywhere. He didn't leave, did he?" He shrugs, continuing his alcohol induced thoughts when you don’t respond.

Swallowing the snakes down, keeping your secret down along with them. "I don’t think so, I'll go see if I can find him."

Hoseok nods. "Thanks." He said as he heads off with a grin, taking the sunshine and leaving you dulled by the implication of his words.

You survey the living room, only his face in your mind as you frantically scan the crowd.

With no sign of him, you head out and away from the noise that feels like a ruthless power tool, ramming itself repeatedly into your brain.

You climb the stairs, each step causing your anxiety to grow as a thousand images of what you might find race through your mind. Even when you blink, you can still see them behind your closed eyes, like a projector flickering a private tortuous movie just for you.

Checking the upstairs bathroom, you find a girl draped over the toilet, her head in the bowl, heaving the contents of her liquid stomach and unleashing it with force. Quickly closing the door, for your sake and hers, you continue onto the other rooms. 

Please, don’t let me find him in any of these rooms with another girl. Please, don’t let my dreams and wild fantasies evaporate instantly before my eyes.

You pray to yourself as you scan the empty rooms filled with darkness and focus on the ones with closed doors and invisible ‘no entry’ signs.

Muffling an apology to a couple entwined in the sheets and with each other, a mess of limbs and moans as you quickly retreat and continue on. Unease sitting in the pit of your stomach, growing with each move  you make forward, with one less room to check.  

It’s not until you hear muffled talking in one of the end rooms, the pit turns into a volcano, threatening to erupt. You listen at the door, hoping it wouldn’t be Jungkook’s voice you heard whispering through the grainy, wooden barrier between you. 

Your hopes were dashed, when you hear him cry out, “No, let me go!” You would recognise the sound of him in distress anywhere. Your body alights like a beacon at the sound of his anguish.

Flinging open the door you freeze, unable to move, unable to do anything except stare at the sight of him on top of a girl, her legs slither and wrap themselves tightly around his waist. 

The serpent of temptation. Who was Eden’s evil mistress?

Though the two of them were fully clothed, it didn’t cease to stop your heart from shattering into tiny fragments before the scene and send them darting into the concealed female beneath him. Your eyes burning a hole into her face, covered with her long, dark hair. When she blows it away you feel like all the air in your lungs has been driven out by a ghostly fist. 

She’s not supposed to be up here, she’s supposed to be downstairs where I was surveying her. Fuck. Veronica.

Veronica. Little did you know, her unfortunate victim, or poor, unsuspecting soul, as you deemed to refer to him earlier, was none other than Jungkook. Your Jungkook.

Confusion furrows your brow. 

He hates her, he hates her as much as you do, so why on earth would he be…

“Come on Kookie, you clearly want me. I can feel your dick, it’s hard as rock.” She whines at him, her tongue hissing sin into his ear with every word. The sound of her poisonous voice makes your blood run hot in your veins.

“What I want is for you to let me go.” He pleads with her, attempting to pull his body away from her but to no avail.

You watch, rooted to the spot. Confusion muddling your mind. 

The little blue pill.

Suddenly, it all makes sense and it’s now laughable at how blindingly obvious the answer is. 

“No. I want you.” She says hard and firm, her hands snaking under his hoodie, touching his bare skin with her scaly fingers, travelling down to his crotch.

“I don’t want you.” He retorts, through gritted teeth, struggling from the vice grip of her iron clamped calves and halting her hand before it can go further.

“Whats going on?” You hear a hoarse, wavering voice interject. When both their eyes land on you, you realise the words must have escaped your mouth.

Jungkook’s eyes pop when they see you, a deer caught in headlights. Panic stares back at you, alarmed and frantic.

Veronica's legs fall open onto the bed,  immediately releasing him from his cage.

He jumps up and over to you, faster than you thought possible, unless it was you who was moving in slow motion. "Y/n, it's not what you think…" He insists, arm on yours, face in your eye-line. Does he think that will stop your angry glare reaching her?  

"What I think…" You spit through gritted teeth, as you stalk around the bed. “Is that she’s trying to take advantage of you.”

“Then yes, it’s exactly what you think.” Jungkook says quietly, somewhere behind you. Your eyes are too full of red rage to notice if he’s even still in the room.

She slides herself off the edge of the bed, her bored expression doesn’t fool you. The fact she stands to square up to you, shows you foiled her plan of getting him to bite into that bittersweet fruit.

“This doesn’t concern you, y/n.” She growls, her hands balled up into fists either side of her taut body.

“Did you drug him?” 

You wait, watching her reaction. The way her eyes widen for a moment, clearly not expecting your question. The way she no longer meets your eyes with her glare, she can hardly look at you at all, and that’s all you need, to know you’re right. 

“W-what?” She stutters, attempting to pick herself back up after faltering.

“You heard me. Did you give Jungkook the drink with the pill in?” You take one last step towards her, your limbs tense and still like stone. Every muscle in your body coiled tight and ready to spring, hands shaking with rage at your sides. 

You were so close, her rapidly increased breathing fanned your face, the scent of vodka strong enough to make your eyes water.

Tensing her jaw as she grinds her teeth, her eyes narrowing in disgust at you. 

At me!?

“He’s not your boyfriend! And it was just Viagra, jeez! One little blue, that’s all. Why don’t you mind your own business!” She shouts, face red with anger as she shoves you hard on the shoulder. 

You steel yourself, so you were ready for the impact,with feet planted firmly into the carpet.

Better luck next time, bitch.

You reel forward, lunging at her, all your power driving your fist into her face. Knuckles smashing into her cheek, hard, as a loud thud echoes across the room. She falls backwards, landing against the bedside cabinet. 

Strong arms suddenly encase you, pulling you away.

“Y/n.” Jungkook gasps into your ear but you can hardly hear him through the pounding of blood in your ears, as anger threatens to overtake you completely.

“Drugging someone and trying to force them to have sex with you is attempted rape! You sick bitch.” You scream at her, violently fighting the arms that hold you, furious tears spilling out of your eyes and leaving wet trails down your cheeks in their wake.

“Let’s go, please y/n. I want to go.” He begs. Even though the temptation to pound her face into the ground is almost all consuming, you listen to Jungkook and let him guide you away. 

It’s not about me, it’s about him. He’s my priority, not her. 

You wipe your damp eyes with your shirt sleeve as you leave the room, hand entwined with his, as he leads you away, down the stairs and out of the house. Not a second glance to anyone. 

Once outside in the cool, crisp air you can feel your head start to clear, your fury dies down into fierce concern for your friend. 

“Hey, you ok?” You squeeze his hand.

He nods, looking mournfully at the ground. “I’m sorry y/n, I didn’t mean to ruin the party.”

Your heels stop in their tracks as you tug on his arm and spin him to face you. Cupping his cheek and forcing him to meet your gaze, “It’s a dumb party, they’ll be plenty of others. You have nothing to be sorry for. It’s her who should be sorry.” You practically growl. 

The corners of his mouth pull up in a slight smile. “Thank you for sticking up for me...and for being there for me, always.”

You squeeze his hand again and continue walking. “You want to stay at mine tonight?”

He nods, eyes back on the ground. 

You both walk along in silence for a few moments. He rubs roughly at his face and asks, “How did you know she drugged me?”

“I saw her slip a pill into a drink. She disappeared and I was looking for you, I put two and two together once I found you.” You look over at his solemn expression. “What happened?”

“She bought me over a drink, it was uncharacteristic but I thought maybe she was just trying to be nice. She left me to it, so I drank it. I started to feel...something, so I went upstairs into the bedroom and she burst in. She straddled me and pushed me onto the bed but when I rolled over to get up, she pinned me with her legs.” He scratches the back of his neck as you head up the stone steps in your apartment building. “I didn’t know what to do, I wanted her off me but I didn’t want to get physical and hurt her. It was kind of scary.”

Your heart felt heavy with empathy for him, like a rock slowly sinking down into the pit of your stomach, but with it rose the anger in your belly. 

If you didn’t hate Veronica with burning passion before, you certainly did now. 

She will pay for this. I will destroy her reputation and make her life hell, for Jungkook.

She should be arrested and rot in a cell, but it is not your place to do it. 

Besides, if you knew anything about Jungkook, you had a feeling he just wanted to move on and forget about it. You, however, could hold a grudge for a millennium.

You unlock your front door and head into the kitchen, relief of being back in your apartment floods you and flows like waves through your limbs.  

Jungkook heads off to the living room. 

As you boil the kettle, tea being the cure for every possible mood or trauma in your family, you peek out at him.

Where you usually find his muscular branches draped all over your couch, quite content, today was a different story. He sat awkwardly looking out the window, knee’s shaking and hands constantly wiping down his thighs, palms rubbing against the rough material. 

Once they’re done, you place the two steaming mugs of tea on the coffee table and join him on the sofa. Wrapping your arms around his waist and leaning your cheek against his shoulder, this wasn’t an unusual action between the two of you but today... he flinched under your touch. 

Gently, he removes your hands and slid himself to the opposite end, grabbing a pillow and cradling it in his lap. His eyes fixed onto your woven rug, as if it held all the answers he was searching for.

Although you tried not to let it get to you, you couldn’t completely ignore the pain in your chest from his rejection. Even if you wholly understood why. 

He’s been through something major tonight and he was bound to be feeling a mixture of emotions right now, it still hurt not to be able to comfort him like you yearned to.

“Y/n,” His quiet voice whispers into the silence. Cheeks flushed, knuckles white from his grip on the pillow, as he leans forward, burning a hole into your floor. You angle your body towards him and wait.

“How long...until...the pill...wears off?” He asks so quietly, you have to strain towards him to hear.

Heat inflames your cheeks as you’re hit with the realisation that Jungkook is sitting, at arm's length away from you, with a very solid erection.

You instantly clamp your thighs shut to try and halter the intense throbbing in between your legs. Your core ablaze with liquid heat, as you try to push the image out of your mind, now was, absolutely, not the time. “Um, I’m not sure.” 

He looks up at you, with eyes so intense they bore right into you, every thought you’ve had, every secret laid bare and for a moment you want to tell him, you want to tell him what you desire more than anything. But you break the stare and find yourself closing off once again.

“Why don’t we do something to take your mind off it?” You ask, not sure if your question was for his benefit or yours. “I could put on a film? Or we could play some video games?”

“Video games sound good.” 

You rush over to the playstation, grabbing two controllers and bringing the console to life with the tap of a button. 

Letting out your drawn-in breath, relieved to have something to distract you both from the penis in the room, you use this time of setting  up the game to calm your racing heart and try to extinguish the unwanted thoughts that have come to life in your mind. The what if’s and maybe’s are not a road you should be exploring, not if you wanted to keep Jungkook in your life.

Your turn to hand him a controller but as you do, your foot catches on the edge of the rug and you feel yourself falling forward, grabbing anywhere that you can to stop yourself from smashing face first into your hardwood floor.

You manage to grip onto something; his hoodie, whilst his hand, thankfully, finds your elbow and steady's you. 

Straightening yourself up and being only inches away from jungkook, you find yourself lost in a daydream of what might be. His scent swirled everywhere, fresh like the outdoors, as if you were standing in a meadow with the green breeze caressing your face and encircling you in a floral cage.

Your eyes roam up to his face. When his tongue shot out, wetting his mouth, you couldn’t help but pull in your bottom lip and pinch it between your teeth. All your blood raced down to your core, igniting a heat there that had you breathing hard. No, now is not the time to make your confession.

When your eyes finally met his, you were taken aback by the fever in them, as you stared deeper into his ebony pools, you could almost feel yourself drowning in desire.

He reaches up to your cheek and gently trails his fingertip down, stroking your moist lips. You let out a whimper, unable to hold it in, but still trying to keep your feelings enclosed in the prison you built for them long ago.

“Jungkook, I—”

His lips are on yours, smothering your important words down into a pit of lust but as your tongue dances hungrily with his, it’s not your words that feel important anymore. 

His strong hands are on your back, pulling you to him, warmth from his touch searing through your clothes but you want more, need more. 

You grab his top and pull him even closer, your wild mouths a clash of tongue and teeth. His solid erection pressed against your lower stomach is enough to make your core throb with violent need.

Is this right? Considering recent traumatic events, this felt wrong. This is not what this moment was supposed to feel like.

He pulls away, leaving you gasping for air and clarity. “Y/n, tell me if you don’t want this. I don’t want to make you uncomfortable, I’ll understand.”

He searches your face vehemently, looking for the source of your hesitation.

“I do, I really do but are you sure you want to do this?” I press. “I want to be here for you, with everything that’s happened, I just want to make sure you’re ok?” You insist.

He meets your eyes again, pleading with you. “I want you, y/n. I need you. I don’t want to think about what happened tonight anymore. I’m ok, honestly.” He smiles at you, the sight pulls on your heart and has it doing wild somersaults in your chest. “I want this.” He brings his forehead to yours, the moment so gentle you wanted to hold him close and never let go.

You hesitantly lift your mouth to his; wondering and worrying that you’ve fallen asleep at Hoseok’s house party and all this will be a dream. His moist lips meet yours in a frenzy and as your core ignites like dynamite, slowly, you start to return his hunger. Easing yourself against him, you loosen into the kiss, your concern gradually falls away along with the walls you spent years building to hide your devotion for him.

His hands wrap around you, pulling you closer still. You break the kiss once again to lift his t-shirt off, over his head in one fluid movement, desperate to see and feel underneath. You run your hand over the smooth planes of his chest and the bumpy muscles down his stomach, moaning in sheer appreciation. 

Finally, you can show him what he means to you and how he makes you feel inside.

Your hands find their way to his belt, yanking the leather open and whipping it out of his belt loops, making a loud crack echo through the room. 

His eyes gawk widely at you, surprise glittered in them. His chest moving fast from his rapid breaths, as he closes the slight distance between you and fumbles with the top button on your shirt, giving up quickly and wrenching the material apart, buttons flying and tapping as they scatter the floor all around. 

His hands are on your breasts, massaging, tugging them out of your bra, cool air hitting them, making your nipples pucker into hard buds. He unclasps your bra with one hand, yanking it off aggressively.

“God, y/n.” He lets out a tortured whine. Before his mouth is around your nipple and all you can feel is warm and wet slowly sucking pleasure out of you. 

The noises that escape your lips shock even you. 

His hands run up the length at the back of your thighs, your feet coming out from under you as he carries you to the bedroom, with your legs wrapping tightly around his waist. 

Your hands finger through his silky hair, lips on his face, throat, whatever skin they can find.

Your back finds the bed as he climbs on top, towering over you, and all you can see is Jungkook. He glows like the large moon on an inky night, finding you and giving you some semblance of relief from the relentless darkness.

You're at the button of his trousers, popping it open and pushing them down his strong thighs with your feet. 

He gives you a lingering kiss that then trails quickly past your bare chest and down your stomach. 

Pushing your skater skirt up so it fans out across your ribs, he hooks a finger under the hem of your pale, pink panties and looks up at you with a questioning gaze. All you can do is eagerly nod your head in response, giving him permission.

He slowly peels away the lace that covers you, when the air hits you can feel just how wet you are, a coolness spreading across your exposed folds.  

This is it, everything I've fantasised about during lonely nights with wandering fingers or meaningless hookups with nameless men, picturing his face and his hands instead.

He moans, biting his lip as he stares at your most intimate area with insatiable hunger. 

His fingers sliding their way from your entryway to your swollen bud, the moment he touches it your body jolts with delight.

His digits slide into you before you have a chance to catch your breath, beckoning inside you, stroking the rough spot that sends shudders of pleasure throughout your body.

He sucks in a sharp breath with a hiss. “You’re so fucking wet, y/n.” He groans, jutting his hips against the bed. “I need you, so bad.”

He withdraws his fingers, making you feel empty and even more needy. Your body alight with electric lust and your heart aching with unspoken love.

What if this ruins everything? What if he’s only using me, in his current situation?...Honestly, do I really care? 

You didn’t. Not in this moment, watching him lick your arousal off his digits as he pulls out his generous erection. The tip pink and angry, begging to be touched and glistening with precum. 

He was your living fantasy and he was perfectly acting out every scene you’d created in your mind. 

You grip his big shoulders, fingernails making crescent moons in his skin, and pull him down onto you. Your legs wind around him, pushing him to line up to your slick entrance as his eyes boar hungrily into yours. 

He seems to hesitate for a moment, his stare searching for an answer to an unasked question but you don't want to think about regrets or repercussions right now. 

“You ok?” You ask, breathless. 

He nods, “Are you sure you want to do this?”

Using your feet against the top of his thighs, you push him into you, answering with actions instead of words.

He moves slow, allowing both of you to savour the feeling. Bolts of pleasure shooting through you, like lightning illuminating the night sky. 

Your walls stretching over him is truly euphoric, a moment you have waited years for, as he slides deep into you, reaching everywhere possible.

"Oh my god." He exclaims when he's leveled in you. "Fuck, you feel incredible."

His words cause a shiver of added need through you, your hips start rocking and rotating under him on their own, you’re blind with lust, heat encasing every part of your body. 

All you can smell, feel, think is him. He is your undoing and you're more than ready to be undone. 

He groans loudly as you writhe under him, encouraging him to move, pleading with him to move.

He slowly retracts his hips, anticipation causing you to quiver before plunging deep and hard, tearing a gasp from your throat with each thrust.

“Holy shit, Jungkook!” 

He smirks at you. The sight is enough to make you clench around him, causing him to jolt and groan, biting his lip so hard you think he might draw blood. 

He moves onto his knees, tilting your pelvis higher and as he glides back into you, he reaches new places, new depths, new pleasures. 

His thumb finds his way to your sensitive button as he massages it with your slick arousal. 

Your body is on fire, his touch igniting a trail behind him.

You can feel yourself nearing the edge, torn between being eager to jump off into the precipice but not wanting the journey to end yet. 

“I want you to make you cum.” He whispers, as his punishing rhythm on your swollen bud builds the pressure deep down inside you.

The sounds coming from your mouth don’t sound like they belong to you, they’re desperate, needy sounds, full of bliss and torture at once.

He bucks into you, hitting that sweet spot with each forceful thrust, your legs trembling around him as you gasp for air. Incoherent words escorted by his name, stumble off your lips as he incessantly thrums on your clit.

“Cum for me.” He whispers again, his eyes watching your face with fascination. 

At his words, your body jolts and back arches as your orgasm ripples through you, sending waves of pleasure cascading around your nerves. 

Every fibre of your being alight with electric thrill. 

Your loud moans echo, filling your bedroom, as you grind against his rock hard dick while your walls clench tightly around him.

“Shit, y/n!” He exclaims, as he abruptly withdraws from you and spurts his warm, liquid lust across your stomach while his fist gently milks him. 

Your pulsating core eases, replaced with tingling satisfaction as you try to even out your rapid breaths. 

He collapses on the bed beside you, pants mimicking yours.

But as you come down from your high,  floating back to earth and reality, a rock lands in the pit of your stomach. 

You just had sex with your best friend. Your best friend, who you have been in love with since you were kids, unbeknown to him.

What the fuck do I do now? Where do we go from here? 

A wave of nausea washes over you as your mind is filled with an all consuming dread. 

As a million thoughts race through your crowded mind on how to try and save your friendship, he brings over a flannel and starts gently wiping his orgasm off of you, being so attentive you want to cry.

All the years of holding in your feelings and unspoken words, the love for him blooming inside you like a flowery meadow in spring, now threatens to overflow and spill out revealing you.

When he returns, climbing back onto the bed, he angles himself to the side and props himself up on his elbow, facing you. 

His fingertips skate across your stomach, tracing small circles and sending goosebumps shivering along your skin.

You look up at his perfect face, innocent eyes meeting yours and you’re overwhelmed by how much you just want to protect him and keep him safe from anything that hurts him.

You put your arms around him, hugging him tightly, as if that will be enough to fix it all.

I wish.

"I won’t ever let anything happen to you again.” You say against his chest.

His fingers come up, stroking your hair softly. “I know, thank you, for being there for me. I will always protect you too, you know that.”

You feel him kiss the top of your head and sigh. “Y/n, about what just happened.

Oh no, here it comes. I have to do something, I have to protect myself from what he’s about to say.

"Kook, listen," You cut him off, before he could tell you what you were dreading to hear; that it was a mistake, a momentary lapse in judgement, a friend helping out another friend. 

If you hear those words, you don't think you could hold back the emotion that's currently pricking at your eyes. 

I need to take control of this situation. Hopefully, I can salvage some part of this friendship.

You take a deep breath, preparing the words, when his finger on your lips catches you off guard. 

"How about you listen," he raises an eyebrow, challenging you. When you close your mouth, he continues, "I have waited for this moment for a long time, so however you're about to shoot me down, could it wait until tomorrow? So I can at least enjoy this feeling of pretending what might have been." 

There's a sadness in his eyes as he speaks, a pleading in them. 

His words run over and over in your mind, while you try to reason with yourself that he can't possibly feel the way you think.

Surely, he can't mean he has feelings for me? I can't afford to give myself hope with that thought.

You swallow it down, along with any words that were fighting to come up. 

You watch his hand, his fingertips tickling faint lines up to your chest, making your nipples pucker in response, they finally come to rest against your lips, tracing the edges.

"Can I kiss you?" He asks, "One last time." 

Last!? It can't be the last time, we've only just started. 

It can't be the last time I'll ever get to feel his soft lips against mine. 

I can't go back to pretending not to want more, not to care, not to love him so much it kills me inside. Like a poisonous ivy plant squeezing my lungs and capturing my heart, I've had a taste of what it's like to live and breath free of that, with vibrant tiger flowers blooming in place of it and I don't want to stop feeling this way.

You find yourself leaning up and crushing your lips to his. 

He's frozen with surprise for a moment, before his hands wind around your waist, scooping you up and pressing onto you, bodies almost one.

His lips trail down your neck.

"Jungkook?"

"Hmm." He moans into your throat, the vibration making you shudder.

"I don't want it to be the last time." You hear the words escaping your mouth, as if you're watching from the outside and no longer in control of yourself.

His head snaps up, doe-eyed and mouth shaped in a little o. "You don't?" 

You shake your head. "Not at all."

He beams at you, taking your face in his hands and touching his lips to yours so passionately, it brings all your emotion flying to the surface. 

"God, y/n, I am so in love with you, I have been for years." he smiles against your lips and you can't help but mirror it in response. "Please, put me out of my misery and tell me you feel the same."

You can feel his hands shaking against your face and suddenly feel incredibly stupid for not realising his feelings sooner.

Who would have thought? Not me, clearly.

"I do. I definitely do." You pull him behind the neck, bringing him down to you, so close not even a sheet of paper could get between your skins. 

As you kiss, tongues dancing wildly together, hot and hungry for each other. 

His body weighing down on you, making you crazy with desire again.

"I want you." You say between kisses.

"You can have me as much as you want, I'm yours." He says, leaning his sweaty forehead against yours. "Besides, that pill hasn't worn off yet."

Arousal shoots down to your core like a bullet at his words. 

You push him, flipping him over and straddling his muscular body. "Well, lets see what we can do to take care of that."

As you lean down to kiss him once again, knowing that...he's mine. And I'm his.

[phoebe-lou]

A Forgotten Birthday

Fandom: The Umbrella Academy

Pairing: Number Five x reader

Summary: After saving the world from the apocalypse, Five struggles with living a simple life causing a strain on his relationship.

Word Count: 2009

__________________________________

5...4...3...2..1! Happy Birthday to me.

Sunlight shone throughout my room, and a gentle breeze drifted through the open windows. Looking over at the clock which now read 6.00am, I allowed a smile to grace over my lips. I had been restless all night and had been sat up worrying about Five like usual. I hoped today would be different, giving both of us one day to take a break from his obsessive apocalyptic nature.

Rolling over on my side, I was shocked to find the other side of the bed empty and Five's early morning 'signature' coffee missing. Letting out a frustrated sigh, I peeled back the duvet and groggily trudged over to the bathroom. After gently splashing some cold water over my face and brushing my teeth, I tossed my crazy-ass hair into a messy bun like a boss, and began the trek to the kitchen.

Expecting to be greeted with breakfast and a fresh cup of coffee, I found non other than a half-naked Klaus passed out on the table, and Five no where in sight. For fucks sake. I rolled my eyes and began making Klaus some breakfast as he'll need some hangover food to soak up all the alcohol. I decided to just throw in some toast and pour a glass of orange juice, as Klaus began waking up and mumbling something about his ass and chocolate pudding?

"Morning sunshine." I said with an amused smile on my face, whilst Klaus began to groan and pulled himself up into a sitting position.

"What rude bitch opened the blinds this morning?" He said after accepting a glass of orange juice I handed him.

"That would have been you, and your amazing Picasso skills last night I'm guessing."

Klaus looked up at the blinds to see that someone had cut them up to make some clothes, since there was underwear shaped holes missing.

"I was wondering what I was wearing, it's definitely not yours or Allison's."

"I think the yellow 'blind' underwear, really complements your eyes." I laughed winking at him, as I took the toast out and began buttering it.

"Danke."

"So what year is it again?" Klaus mumbled as he began munching on the toast I put in front of him.

"You mean the date Klaus?."

"Yeah that."

"It's __________ (insert birthday🥳)."

"Holy shit!" Klaus shot up, knocking his chair over and throwing the toast to the ground. Then sassily marched over to me, where he pulled me into a giant bone crushing hug. Jesus how does he wake up so fast?

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY YOU SEXY MIDGET."

"I'M ONLY 4"10, FIGHT ME BITCH."

"ALSO BEN SAYS HAPPY BIRTHDAY."

"TELL HIM I LOVE HIM."

*Meanwhile Ben just rolls his eyes*

"There is way too much Klaus and Y/N in here, this early in the morning." Diego huffed as he began filling up the kettle, not even bothering to comment on Klaus's attire.

"Good morning to you too Antonio Banderas." Klaus laughed and high-fived me.

"Besides it's only 7.00am." I smiled.

"Whatever."

"Oooo whose got your panties in a twist?."

"Anyway, Happy Birthday Y/N." Diego huffed.

"Awww you remembered, I knew you loved me really." I said forcing Diego into a hug which he eventually gave into. Suddenly another pair of arms wrapped around us. Diego became alarmed and shouted "What is wrong with you?!"

Klaus innocently smiled "I just wanted to be part of the moment."

"What's wrong with who?" Trust monkey boy to enter at this moment.

"I'll take this as my leave." Diego shrugged Klaus's arms off him, then subtly tilted his head at me, towards a card he placed by the microwave. Before marching off, after I gave him a beaming smile and a wave.

"Happy Birthday kid."

"Thanks Luther but you know I'm 28 years older than you."

"And your even more immature than Klaus, and trust me that's saying something."

"Rude. Hey don't agree with him Ben, you're supposed to be on my side." Klaus began to have a one-sided argument with 'Ben.' While I took this as a chance to slip out the kitchen and get ready.

*2 hours later*

Yes I'm high maintenance, and looking this gorgeous takes a while.

I finally finished my outfit my adding my new moon necklace, which was a birthday present from Luther (that was probably picked by Allison).

I sprayed some perfume and let my h/c  hair fall down. Mission was ago. Find Five. Get drunk. Party. Have an awesome birthday. Go back a few steps and whoop Five's ass for no breakfast in bed. Perfect.

I looked through the entire house, where there was no trace of him so decided to head over to Griddy's Doughnuts. As I opened the front door, I walked into Allison and Vanya who immediately wished me a Happy Birthday and began planning a girls night out. Just what I need after putting up with all this shit, Five keeps throwing at me.

*Flashback* - Warning Mild Smut ⚠️

I was lounging across Five's bed pretending to read this boring romance novel, whilst Five was consistently writing long, complicated equations all over his wall. I wasn't expecting this is what he meant when he invited me over to spend sometime together. My patience was wearing thin, as I tried to tell myself that he was just not used to having a life outside of the apocalypse. But I went through it with him, so if I can learn to adapt, he should to.

Sneakily looking over at him, I came up with a plan to draw his attention away. Gently placing the book on the bed, I slowly walked towards him and placed my arms around his neck. It was no shocker that he immediately tensed up and his brows began to frown deeper.

"What do you want Y/N?"

"Not much." I whispered in his ear, as I ghosted my lips over his neck. "Just a little bit of attention."

Five sighed and tried to focus on the equation he was working on, which had now proven difficult as I began to pepper kisses along his jaw.

"Come on, enough."

I ignored him and began to drag my soft kisses down his neck, sucking a little harder until I found his sweet spot. Got you.

"Y/N...." He drifted off, as the pen dropped from his hands.

"Hmm?" I smirked and began grasping at his dark hair.

He finally turned around and smashed our lips together sloppily, as our tongues began fighting for dominance. He obviously won. His hands began to gently slide up the bottom of my top, just resting above my hips as he began to draw circles on my skin. Suddenly blue sparks surrounded us as I found ourselves teleported onto his desk.

He shoved all of his work out the way and began making out with me again. I gradually lifted my arms up, as he began to pull my top off...

"Y/N?"

"Y/N?"

"Y/N?!!"

My eyes fluttered dreamily as I looked over at Five who was frowning at me.

"For gods sake, did you fall asleep?! I wanted some help with these equations as you're the only non-idiotic person I know. Ugh forget it, of course it doesn't matter if there's another apocalypse." He whined sarcastically, and turned back around, continuing his work.

Five's writing came to a stop and as I launched my book at the walk near his head.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" He shouted, finally exploding with frustration.

"You're an ass." I mumbled. He rolled his eyes and teleported away, probably before he did or said something he'd regret.

I preferred dream Five.

*Flashback over*

Arriving at Griddy's, I locked the car and walked over to the entrance and went inside. Surprise, surprise my 'affectionate' boyfriend was sat with a mug of coffee writing equations on napkins.

"Well, well, well good afternoon handsome." Five looked up irritated and forced a smile.

"What is it?" Was he joking?

"I thought we were going to spend the day together, you said you had something planned last week."

"We'll have to reschedule or something."

"Hahaha very funny grumpy-ass." He didn't look very amused, as he sighed and took a long sip of coffee.

"Can we talk later, I'm kind of in the middle of something?"

Alarms were going off. He had forgotten. Maybe he needed a little more convincing and a few hints.

"Well today is kind of a special day." He looked blankly at me before he gave me a genuine smile.

"Is it national coffee day? Thanks for reminding me gorgeous." He smirked and winked. Was he for fucking real?

"Maybe you should get some cake with that coffee."

"The sweetness ruins the bitter taste I like." You bitter old bugger.

"Isn't there something you're forgetting Five? Some sort of special day, for a special girl."

"Shit. You're right. Meet me at the house in 20 mins." With that he teleported away. Well my work here is done. I'm expecting a decent last minute party though.

After wasting 30 mins shopping, I decided to head back and see what Five had done. As I entered the house it was really quiet, until I reached the living room....

Where Five sat lounging on a sofa drinking margaritas with Dolores.

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!!"

"Well when you say about a special day for a special lady, I remembered-d that it's been some years years since we found the lovely-y Dolores." He smirked cheekily at me and offered me a glass.

"Are you drunk?"

"No...."

"......."

"Maybe..."

"......"

"Yes..."

Just at the wrong time everyone came rushing in with party poppers, and balloons shouting 'SURPRISE.' I looked down to the floor with angry tears burning down my cheeks, I couldn't believe him. Everyone could sense the tension in the room, except for Five who still looked completely clueless.

"What's goin-n on? He slurred.

"Check the calendar..." I whispered.

I couldn't stand everyone looking at me with such pity so I went straight to our room, crying myself to sleep early.

*A few hours later*

I woke up to knocking at the door.

"Go away."

Hearing the familiar sound of Five's special jump I buried my face into my pillow.

"Can we talk...?"

"...."

"Please... Y/N."

"...."

"Can we just..."

"WHAT?!" I hissed, ripping the duvet off me to glare at him.

He straight away noticed my red, blotchy face, and long tear lines causing my mascara to run down my face.

"I'm sorry..." With that Five burst into tears. I'd only ever seem him cry twice so I wasn't sure what to do.

"I'm sorry-y... I've j-just been trying-g to be ready f-for something bad to happen-n again, as I know the c-commission wants order-r. We've both been-n to hell and b-back, and I can't imagine-e loosing you. I j-just wanted to keep-p you safe, but I've b-been so wrapped up in d-doing all these possible equations-s, that I've p-pushed you away.... Then I've been-n so preoccupied that I forgot-t your b-birthday..."

"Oh Five." I wrapped my arms around him as he began to sob into my chest. I whispered soothing words as I gently rubbed his back.

"You'll never loose me, and I'm not upset about my birthday that much. I honestly just miss spending time with you, and can't believe you prioritised coffee and a manikin over me you ass!" At this Five chuckled and began to calm down.

"You know I don't say it enough... but I love you Y/N."

"I love you too Five."

"Did you want to have that amazing party you've been telling me about?"

"Actually can we just spend the rest of today cuddling and watch a move?"

"Anything you want love."

"You were totally jealous of Dolores."

"Shut up Five."

_________________________________________

Hope you enjoyed it, let me know what you think 💖☂️

[peachyydesires]

im so excited for the fourth of july event!!! can i get 😈 with keiji please??

a/n: hi there anon!! tysm for requesting, i’m really excited too! here’s the beloved man himself <3 

😈Alcohol Use (Anything to do with alcohol)

⭑*•̩̩͙⊱••••✩••••̩̩͙⊰•*⭑

★oh no.. you just KNOW this man is drinking the entire party

★he was the one that picked out the drinks for the bar, so he’s basically there 24/7 getting refills 

★he won’t get completely smashed until later into the night when the alcohol really begins to kick in 

★you can guarantee that he embarrasses himself at least 5+ times; he’ll do the stupidest stunts, such as diving into the pool, chugging cans of beers, nearly burning his fingers off with a sparkler, etc. 

★it’s no big surprise when his friends start to play pranks on him, especially considering the fact that he won’t remember anything in the morning 

★pushing him into the pool, throwing last-minute water balloons from earlier at him, blowing confetti poppers in front of his face, really anything is fair game at this point

★the more… responsible ones of the group would try to keep him from drinking any more, but somehow he just keeps appearing with drinks in his hands

★honestly it’s probably sou secretly sneaking him drinks from the bar just so he can see him embarrass himself more for the fun of it 

★someone like sara or kai would try and keep him away from the minors (specifically gin) so he wouldn’t influence them but honestly everybody’s seen it all already

★then again he’s pretty much the life of the party along with q-taro so nobody gets mad at him in the end

⭑*•̩̩͙⊱••••✩••••̩̩͙⊰•*⭑

   “Pleaase? Just one kiss, right here?” Keiji pleaded, tapping his lips impatiently as he leaned closer to you with a tipsy, gleeful smile attached to his face. He easily toppled over you, and while usually, you’d be eager to kiss him, you refused to do so in front of everyone, especially while he was drunk. 

   “No, you stink. I’m not kissing you when you have alcohol-breath... How many drinks did you even have?” You asked, pinching your nose as his scent wafted over you. No matter how much you loved him, you still never got used to the wretched smell of alcohol that he would sometimes come home with.

   “Uhhhh, I don’t know… Maybe, like..” He began counting on his fingers, a somewhat thoughtful look on his face as he counted before responding, “Counting shots, 20-ish?” 

   You groaned, grabbing his hand again as you began walking towards the backdoor, “You’re going to be absolutely miserable tomorrow morning. What did I tell you about drinking tonight?” You scolded.

   “Whyy would I be miserable, sugar? I got you right here with me.” He hummed as you looked over your shoulder, noticing his goofy, drunken smile that lit up his tired face. You sighed, shaking your head as you just couldn’t stay mad at him no matter what.

   After the fireworks had gone off, you had momentarily lost your boyfriend, Keiji, amid the crowded chaos in the backyard of the house party. You didn’t know how or when he had gotten absolutely wrecked, but when you found him he was singing Kumbaya with Sou, and you weren’t exactly sure how that had even happened.

   You had managed to drag him away from Sou, but whenever he got drunk he would become extremely needy for affection, constantly begging for hugs and kisses from you as you urged him that it was time to leave. 

   You lead him through the house, mumbling goodbyes to your scattered friends as you tried to keep Keiji from embarrassing himself any further. But before you could get out the door, your boyfriend suddenly tugged at your hand and beelined for the nearby couch.

   “K-Keiji!” You shrieked as he pulled the two of you onto the sofa, “We need to go home, dummy!” 

   “Noo, aren’t you… aren’t you drunk too?” 

   “Well, yeah, a little bit, but not a-”

   “Exactly, you can’t drink and drive, cuutie,” He interrupted as his hands began to freely roam over your body, eventually settling themselves on your stomach as he wrapped his arms around your frame and pulled you closer to his body. 

   Despite him being shirtless after diving into the pool, he was surprisingly warm. It was quite the enticing invitation, as you didn’t want to take the long drive home just yet. You sighed, knowing there was no way out of his arms once he started getting clingy as you rolled over onto your stomach.

   Your cheeks burned at the thought of someone seeing the two of you passed out on the couch, but there was no other option as you hid your face in his chest and prayed that you wouldn’t be easily recognized, “You owe me for this one, Keiji.” You grumbled, your voice muffled by his skin.

   His embrace only got tighter as he rolled onto his side and pressed a light kiss to your forehead before resting his chin on the top of your head. He let out a breathy sigh, completely at ease as a relaxed smile stayed glued to his face.

   “Ooof course, my little lady. Anything for you.”

[mcgrillzdumpinc]

At the Crossroads

Summary: There is another world, one filled to the brim with all assortment of spirits, ghosts, and monsters.  Jiang Cheng does not expect to come to know this world after suffering a car crash, but at least he has his siblings and his boyfriend, Nie Huaisang, along for the ride. Written for the SangCheng 2020 Winter Exchange!

Pairing: SangCheng, WangXian

Rating: T

Warnings: Referenced child abuse, physical injuries, referenced severe injuries to a child, car crash

Word count: 7011

It starts, as so many stories do, with a car crash.  Well, to be more accurate, it starts with a fire to the Jiang parents’ house followed by a desperate escape from the city by the Jiang children. They weren’t home when the fire started, so all they have are the personal affects they were carrying that day. No toothbrushes, no suitcases, only the clothes on their backs and whatever happened to be in their pockets and purses.  They withdraw money from ATMs and buy what they need with the cash.  They run desperately, perhaps fruitlessly, in Wei Wuxian’s beat-up van, hoping they can make it to their mother’s side of the family on the other side of the state.

Jiang Cheng crashes the car on the sixth day of the trip.  On barely any sleep and a limitless amount of anxious energy, he fails to see the truck turn into his lane until it rams into his side of the van.

When Jiang Cheng comes to, it’s to the face of his boyfriend’s older brother. “We heard what happened,” Nie Mingjue says.  “We won’t let those Wen-dogs get any closer to you.”

Some time later—Jiang Cheng loses track of the days—he’s discharged from the hospital. He’s given more than enough pamphlets to read—on concussion recovery, what to expect when he starts physical therapy for his broken leg, as well as general information on what to expect with the cracks in his ribs and his broken arm.  Nie Mingjue promises to help Jiang Cheng set everything up back home, including the physical therapist, before shepherding his wheelchair-bound body into a private jet.

“Your brother and sister are already back in our home,” Nie Mingjue explains for the third or fourth time.  “Their injuries weren’t as severe.”  He settles into a seat next to Jiang Cheng and orders them both some water.

“What about the Wens?” Jiang Cheng asks.  “Why the hell did they come after my family?”

Predictably, Nie Mingjue goes silent.  No matter what Jiang Cheng says or does, the man refuses to release any information on the people who razed his home.  If it weren’t for the heavy amount of pain killers coursing through his system, Jiang Cheng would probably have decked him with his good hand.

“Your father is still in the hospital,” Nie Mingjue eventually says, after the plane has set off.  “His chances are looking good for a full recovery.  Your mother—”

“Is dead?”

Nie Mingjue sighs through his nose.  “Is missing.  Where the hell did you get the idea that she’s dead?”

“Because she’s stronger than my dad.  Anyone who would hurt him wouldn’t allow her to live.”

“Have better faith in your parents.  We don’t know where Yu Ziyuan is, but we know for certain she isn’t with the Wens.”

“Because they’d be gone if she was?”

Nie Mingjue snorts at that and orders a small meal for them.  “You’re damn right.”

~~~

Jiang Cheng is rudely awoken by Nie Mingjue when they arrive at the Nie mansion. He doesn’t even remember leaving the plane, but he guesses that should be expected.  He’s been sleeping a lot since the accident.

Wei Wuxian, Yanli, and Huaisang are all there to greet him, waiting in the foyer with party poppers.  Jiang Cheng curses loudly when Wei Wuxian pops his right in his face.

“Happy to have you here with us!” Wei Wuxian cheers, picking pieces of paper out of Jiang Cheng’s hair.

“You couldn’t have found a nicer way to welcome me?” Jiang Cheng growls.

Yanli chuckles as she pulls Wei Wuxian aside to hug her younger brother.  “Welcome back, A-Cheng.  We’re all very happy to see you doing well.”

Jiang Cheng returns her hug with his good arm, burrowing his nose into her long hair.  “Same here.”

From what the doctors told him, Wei Wuxian and Yanli suffered much less than him. The car had rolled off the road and into grassy embankment.  Yanli, in the passenger seat, suffered a herniated disk in her upper back, a sprained wrist, a slight closed fracture to her skull, and various bruises along her right side.  Wei Wuxian, meanwhile, merely bore a concussion and broken leg.  They were all due for physical therapy and a long time on painkillers, but Jiang Cheng would certainly be in recovery much longer than them. Not that he minded, really.  He would rather it be him than either of his siblings.

“A-Cheng,” Huaisang pipes in.  “Are you hungry?”

“We didn’t eat on the trip over,” Nie Mingjue answers, which is a lie.  While Jiang Cheng barely touched his plane meal, he knows Nie Mingjue quickly packed his own away.  Without Jiang Cheng voicing the truth, Nie Mingjue pulls his younger brother into a side hug.  “You gonna cook for us?”

Huaisang scrunches his nose and pushes himself away from his older brother. “Ugh, why would I do that?  I’ll go ask the cooks to start something for all of us.”

With a quick peck to Jiang Cheng’s cheek (followed by a retching sound from Wei Wuxian), Huaisang hurries off towards the kitchen.  Yanli follows him after pressing a kiss to Jiang Cheng’s forehead.

“With all that love, you’ll recover in no time,” Nie Mingjue jokes dryly.

“Oh, would you like to join in on the love pool, da-ge?” Wei Wuxian teases. “Between the four of us, I’m sure Jiang Cheng will be flying in a month!”

“Hey! Who gave you the right to call him da-ge?” Jiang Cheng chastises.  If his brother wasn’t standing on his crutch well out of Jiang Cheng’s reach, he definitely would have slapped him.

“Huaisang did!” Wei Wuxian answers.  “Just last night he said ‘We’re all simply didi and meimei to my da-ge’.” He takes on a peaceful, almost Buddha-like, stance as he recites Huaisang’s words.

“That’s not permission!” Jiang Cheng argues.

“He was right, though,” Nie Mingjue chuckles.  “You’re all around my didi’s age, after all.  You can call me da-ge.”  With that, he takes the handles of Jiang Cheng’s wheelchair and begins pushing him towards the kitchen.  Despite the crutch, Wei Wuxian manages to keep up with Nie Mingjue’s long strides.  “Now, then, let’s get some dinner.”

~~~

The following weeks in the Nie mansion are nice.  Before the house burned, the siblings were spread about, steadily finding their own lives away from the nest.  Wei Wuxian practically lived with Lan Wangji as he built his music career, Yanli was doing well for herself as an art curator, and Jiang Cheng was learning the how to run his family’s ship building company.  They met for weekly family dinners and texted often, but that was the extent of their contact.  So despite the uncertainty that lays outside Nie walls, it is rather nice to have his siblings around and nearby.

Best of all, though, is Huaisang.  Jiang Cheng began dating him after graduating college, so they’ve been together for nearly two years.  Truth be told, before his world went to shit, Jiang Cheng was heavily considering asking Huaisang to move in with him.  And now that he’s here, he’s got the shared-house experience with his boyfriend.  Sure he’s stuck to a wheelchair, and he can barely do anything because of a concussion, and there’s a near-constant dull pain on his entire left side, but—Huaisang.  Huaisang is here and Jiang Cheng’s stupid besotted mind can barely focus on anything past that when it’s just the two of them.

One morning, though, as Jiang Cheng rouses with his head against Huaisang’s back, he hears a sniffing sound.  Turning over, he finds himself face to face with a dog.  A chow chow, specifically, with its large nose shoved in his face.

“…Hello?” Jiang Cheng whispers.  He’s not certain if he’s dreaming, but he can hear Huaisang snoring next to him and can feel that dull pain in his left side.  So he’s betting on being awake.  He reaches out to touch the dog, but it backs away before he can touch it.

With some distance between them, Jiang Cheng can see the dog almost in full. Massive and bulky with long reddish-orange fur blanketing its frame.  It stares back at him with a quiet, knowing look.  The longer Jiang Cheng observes it, though, the more he realizes that the chow chow is…off, somehow.  Its eyes are a bit too big, nose too long, paws larger than its body should allow.  Its tail stands on full alert, unmoving, as it—damn it all—it maintains eye contact with Jiang Cheng.

“Can you hear me?”

The voice invades Jiang Cheng’s brain, echoing and throbbing.  He screams.

“You can!  You can hear me!”

The dog’s tail begins to wag and its maw opens.  A dark blue tongue lolls out over too-sharp teeth.  Jiang Cheng swears there is a void where the back of the dog’s throat should be.

“What the fuck… What the fuck is happening!”

Jiang Cheng’s yelling rouses his bedmate.  He hears Huaisang sit up, mumbling out a, “What the hell are you shouting for?”

“The dog!” Jiang Cheng screeches.  Without taking his eyes off the apparition, he reaches behind him to touch Huaisang’s arm. “There’s a fucking—I don’t know what it is—a ghost dog?  And it’s speaking to me!”

He feels Huaisang’s arm tense.  The air is silent, tense, as Nie Huaisang peaks over his boyfriend’s shoulder.

“He can see you, Buttercup?”

Before Jiang Cheng can process that, the voice echoes in his brain again, splitting his head apart.  “Yeah! Isn’t this exciting?!”  The dog—Buttercup?—bounces on its front paws. “We don’t have to hide from him anymore!”

“Okay, what the fuck, stop doing that!”  Despite his throbbing head, Jiang Cheng still manages to raise his voice. “It hurts, damn it!”

“Okay, don’t worry, A-Cheng.”  Huaisang rests his hands on both of Jiang Cheng’s shoulders and squeezes.  “I’ll explain everything soon.”  A kiss to the temple, a surefire way to make Jiang Cheng relax in his boyfriend’s hold.  “Buttercup, speak only to me for now, okay?  This is still new for him.”

Jiang Cheng would object, but the pain in his head has reached his eyes and it’s hard to focus past that.  He’s worried for a second that the concussion has worsened, but he’d sooner take the chance to rest than figure out if he needs to return to the doctor.  He closes his eyes, desperate for the early morning sunshine to disappear.  Huaisang continues speaking, but Jiang Cheng can’t make out the words.  He hears the bedroom door open, but he doesn’t know if somebody came in or left.  All he can know is the ringing in his ears and the grounding touch of Huaisang.

When Jiang Cheng comes to again, he’s seated at the dining table.  Looking around, he recognizes he’s in the private dining hall.  It’s smaller than the dining hall reserved for entertaining guests.  The walls here, like the rest of the house, are arching and high, painted in a green-grey.  A bull’s head is mounted on the wall opposite of Jiang Cheng, but that is thankfully the most morbid of the decorations.  The rest of the room is covered in framed greyscale pictures of people Jiang Cheng doesn’t know.  Decorative plates are lined up next to the entrance door.  On the wall closest to Jiang Cheng, to his left, is a scroll depicting an artfully painted crane.

The table he’s sitting at is a nice mahogany, dark brown wood shining in its lacquer.  Egg drop soup has been served in front of him.  Looking up from the food, Jiang Cheng realizes that he’s not alone at the table.  Huaisang is sitting with his older brother across from Jiang Cheng.  At the far left side of the table, Yanli is sitting by herself, staring into her bowl with a tight gaze.  At the far right is Wei Wuxian sitting next to Lan Wangji.  They both look guilty as hell—well, as guilty as the stone-faced Lan Wangji can look.  Everyone has a bowl of soup, but it seems nobody has dug in.

“Ah, you finally came to,” Nie Mingjue speaks up.

Four pairs of eyes immediately turn to focus on him.  Huaisang breaks into a bright smile and reaches across the table, taking Jiang Cheng’s right hand.  “We’re starving, A-Cheng.  Let’s eat while we explain what’s going on.”

Jiang Cheng slides his eyes to meet Yanli’s.  She smiles and nods approvingly.

The soup is still passingly warm, thankfully.  While Jiang Cheng sips up the chicken broth and bits of tofu, Huaisang releases his hand to settle in his seat.  He has the audacity to look ashamed, which irks him, because in Jiang Cheng’s very correct opinion, his boyfriend should only be happy.

“Do you want to start?” Huaisang asks his brother.

“You’re better at talking,” Nie Mingjue quips.

Huaisang makes a huge, put-upon sigh.  “Okay, well… let’s start with Buttercup, huh?”

At her name, the dog suddenly appears to Jiang Cheng’s right.  Straight out of thin-air.  Jiang Cheng swears he can see space still settling around her form.

He expects to hear her voice echoing in his head again, but there is only silence in his ears.  Huaisang, though, stares at her and says, “Yes, Buttercup, everything’s fine now.  Please be silent while I start explaining.”  He goes quiet again, snorts seconds later, before starting to talk again.  “Okay, well… There’s a lot, so buckle in.”

“Can I get another serving of soup?” Wei Wuxian suddenly asks.

Before either Nie can answer, or Jiang Cheng can scold his brother for eating so fast, Lan Wangji takes Wei Wuxian’s bowl and walks towards the kitchen. Jiang Cheng rolls his eyes as Lan Wangji passes.

“Anyway,” Huaisang starts.  “Um… A-Cheng, Yanli-jie… This is Buttercup.  She’s a hellhound.”

“There’s nothing hell-like about her,” Jiang Cheng immediately interrupts.  Were it not for the headache-inducing voice and ability to appear out of nowhere and general wrongness, she’d actually be rather cute.

“They’re not actually from Hell, Jiang Cheng,” Wei Wuxian immediately responds.

“What?  You already know about this?!”

Wei Wuxian has the decency to look ashamed.  “Well… yeah… This’ll come up, promise!”

“Yeah, believe it or not, your brother factors into this whole mess,” Nie Mingjue says.

“That’s not surprising at all,” Jiang Cheng deadpans.

“I have to agree…” Yanli mumbles.

“Not fair, jiejie!” Wei Wuxian cries.

“Strange things happen around you, A-Xian,” Yanli responds with her best tired smile.

“Can I continue now?” Huaisang asks, an exhausted edge to his voice.

“Yes” and “Sorry” respond to him in chorus.  Lan Wangji returns to the room with a steaming bowl of soup and silently serves Wei Wuxian, who wastes no time digging in again.

“Great, thank you, as I was saying…” Huaisang flicks out his fan and begins gently fanning himself.  “We just call her type hellhounds.  Really, she’s a spectral dog.   Cadejo, barguests, grave hounds, etcetera.  You’ve heard of them in plenty of myths and folktales.  Buttercup is one of them.”

“I have one, too,” Nie Mingjue says.  With a whistle, another dog appears in the room.  This one is larger and longer than Buttercup. It holds its head high, regal as it stares down the Jiang siblings with too-knowing, too-bright brown eyes. Shadows settle around its form into long, stringy fur, darker than night yet seemingly fluffy.  Its jaw is too large to fit perfectly on its face and its lengthy tail disappears into the wall.  In time, Jiang Cheng realizes that it looks like an Irish wolfhound drawn with near-perfect memory.  “This is Baxia,” Nie Mingjue introduces with a proud smile.  “She’s a quiet one, but she’ll warm up to you all in no time.”

“It is nice to meet everyone,” a deep, rumbling voice echoes in Jiang Cheng’s brain.  There’s much less pain this time, but his head still protests at the intrusion.

“Don’t speak yet, Baxia,” Nie Mingjue softly reprimands. “They’re still new.”

“She was speaking?” Yanli interjects.  The Nie brothers look at her with twin expressions of surprise.

“Huh… That’s interesting,” Huaisang mumbles.

“Maybe damage taken plays a role?” Wei Wuxian asks.

“Maybe,” Lan Wangji replies.  “Her skull wasn’t fractured like Jiang Cheng’s.”

“But there was still head damage,” Nie Mingjue adds.

“Mind cluing us in to your conversation?” Jiang Cheng grumbles.

“Sorry, A-Cheng, I promise this will make sense soon. Yes, Yanli, Baxia was speaking. These spectral dogs… they’re from what we call the Otherworld.  This is a lot to take in, but basically every folk monster you can think of more or less exists and they all come from the Otherworld.  Spectral dogs are some of the most plentiful and usually attach themselves to people like us.”

Jiang Cheng puts his spoon in his empty bowl.  “And who’s you?”

“Sovereigns,” Nie Mingjue answers.  “That’s what the Otherworld folk like to call us.  We…” he clears his throat, “we have a few abilities that allow us to interact with them.”

“It differs from person to person,” Huaisang continues. “Yanli, I think you only have what we call the Sight ability.  You can see Otherworld creatures and talk to them, but you can’t hear them.  You need to having the Hearing.  Which, Chengcheng, you definitely have.”

Frustration builds in Jiang Cheng, pounding against his chest and gripping his throat.  He taps the table, just a distraction, just an attempt to channel the fury inside him. “And why am I just now learning about this?”

“Would you have believe us if we told you?  Oh, Jiang Cheng, by the way, there’s this whole spirit world that is super real and only a select few people know about it!  Wow!  Sucks that you can’t see these spectral dogs!” Wei Wuxian exclaims.

Which reminds him—“Why aren’t you freaking out at the dogs?”

Wei Wuxian grins at him, stupidly smug.  “I’m too cool to worry about ghosts.”

“Wei Ying does not register them as real dogs,” Lan Wangji explains, much to the protests of Wei Wuxian.

“They…certainly don’t look real,” Yanli agrees.  Jiang Cheng reaches out to take her hand.  She accepts, clammy skin sliding over his cast.

“We would have liked to tell you,” Nie Mingjue says as he stands up.  “But there is only so much the human brain can believe without physical proof.”  He lifts his right hand and, in seconds, a spectral human appears in the room.  Space shifts around her, light passing through her body.  Jiang Cheng tries to study her features, but there is a strange barrier, a mist, which obscures her.  As she nears him, the air turns cold, freezing him down to the bones.  She takes his and Yanli’s empty bowls and carries them towards the kitchen.

“Was that a ghost?” Yanli asks, a tremble to her voice.  Jiang Cheng rubs his thumb across her knuckles.

“Yes, and da-ge just exercised what’s called the Control ability.  It allows a Sovereign to manipulate creatures from the Otherworld,” Huaisang explains.

Jiang Cheng nearly snaps at his boyfriend.  But when he looks up, he is met with the expression he hates the most from Huaisang—stone-cold, hidden behind layers of thick skin, only his lips and eyelids moving.  Jiang Cheng can’t read him when he’s like this.  He only has experience to rely upon, and experience tells him that he needs to be kind now.  If he is not, then his boyfriend will likely shutter away, further and further from Jiang Cheng until months of reconciliation attempts finally bring him back to the Huaisang that Jiang Cheng cherishes the most.

The early days of their romance were not kind.  Huaisang’s life has not been kind.  As Jiang Cheng digests this new secret, he believes he may have found another piece to the puzzle of why, exactly, this stone relief of his boyfriend exists.

Swallowing down the anger at his tongue, Jiang Cheng instead says, “So you don’t just have a ghost maid?”

Nie Mingjue snorts.  “No, and she’ll likely be very angry at me later for that.”

Huaisang’s eyes dart to Buttercup.  In a few seconds, he says, “Buttercup would like you to know that all Otherworld creatures have feelings like us.  They do not take kindly to being controlled.  But there are some vicious creatures we have no choice but to fight. That’s why Enchanters like da-ge and Lan Wangji are very vital.  Ah!  Enchanters is what we call people with Control.”

All attention shifts to Lan Wangji, who hums before saying, “I am not as powerful as Mingjue-ge or Xichen-ge.  But I can control low-level spirits, like sprites.”

Yanli lets a shuddering exhale.  “I believe a break would be beneficial.  May I be excused?”

A frown tugs at Nie Mingjue’s lips as he steps around to Yanli’s side of the table. “Of course, Yanli.  Allow me to guide you to the gardens.”

She takes the arm he offers her and stands up, releasing Jiang Cheng’s hand. “Gladly, Mingjue.”  Cradling her forehead, Yanli walks away with Nie Mingjue, Baxia trailing after them, leaving the four boys and Buttercup to themselves.

“Can I speak alone with A-Cheng?” Huaisang asks.  Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji are quick to agree.

With just the two of them, Jiang Cheng finds it easier to hold back the anger still boiling in his gut.  Gripping the edge of the table, he manages to bite out, “I’m not mad at you.”

That brings a spark to Huaisang’s eyes. “Really?”

It’s still hard to talk about his feelings.  But, well, he’s nearing twenty-five and therapy is proving wonders. “I’m mad at the situation, a-and not knowing so much, but, um… I’m not mad at you.”

“That sounded painful for you.”

That’s snark.  Jiang Cheng chuckles, “Believe it or not you could tell me you’re an alien and I’d probably still love you.”

The stone on Huaisang’s face melts into awe and adoration.  Smiling back the tears in his eyes, Huaisang replies, “I love you, too, puppy.  More than anything.  I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you sooner.”

Jiang Cheng sighs and leans back in his wheelchair.  His grip on the table relents.  Huaisang stands so he can come sit beside him.  “Can you at least tell me why you all can see these things?” It’s still new to him and Yanli, and some of the things they said earlier hinted that it is not an in-born ability.

“It varies by person, but the most common catalyst is near-death experiences.” Despite the strain it must put on his back, Huaisang leans out of his chair to rest his head on Jiang Cheng’s shoulder.  “Some people are born with their abilities, like the Lans.  Some of the Wens we know were also born with it, like Wen Ning and Wen Qing.  But… well, you know what happened to Wei Wuxian when he was a child, right?”

There were a few months between Wei Wuxian losing his parents and being found by Jiang Fengmian.  Jiang Cheng gulps before responding, “He doesn’t tell me much about it, but I was there when he was in recovery.  Don’t think I’ll ever forget when I watched the doctors re-do his bandages and I could see his muscles.”

“Yeah.” Huaisang takes Jiang Cheng’s hand and kisses his knuckles.  “Things didn’t look good for you, either.  I’m surprised Yanli-jie gained the Sight ability, but I guess head trauma counts as a near-death experience.”

“…And you?” Jiang Cheng whispers.

Huaisang goes silent.  Thankfully, though, no stone grows on his face.  In time, he answers, “Dad.  When he got really sick.  He got violent towards me and da-ge.  Our moms tried to protect us, but…”

But when it came down to putting him in a mental institution, Huaisang’s extended family refused to endorse his admittance.  And when it came to divorce, to removing the children from their abusive father, the extended family pulled their strings and the mothers—“Strangers,” Huaisang once spat, recounting the words of a cousin—were pushed out of the family without their sons.

It wasn’t until Nie Mingjue was twenty that the mothers were allowed back into the family.  That was twelve years ago.  While they no longer live in the mansion, Jiang Cheng has met them on multiple occasions. He can understand why losing them impacted Huaisang so heavily.

“I’m sorry,” Jiang Cheng says with a kiss to his boyfriend’s forehead.

“Things are better now,” Huaisang swears.  “Plus, I gained a few new friends.”

“Like Buttercup?” Jiang Cheng asks, looking over to the spectral dog.  She is sitting patiently, staring very directly at the couple, but her tail wags with the attention.

Nie Huaisang laughs.  “Yes, exactly like Buttercup.”

~~~

The next few weeks are… a lot, to put it shortly.  Between physical therapy, losing the cast on his arm, finally being cleared of his concussion, moving from wheelchair to crutches, and long nights with Huaisang, Jiang Cheng is being caught up on everything his brother and boyfriend have been hiding from him.

To start, those who can interact with the Otherworld—“Sovereigns and Enchanters,” Huaisang reminds him—are part of the Praeter Society.  The name is different depending on region, but its English name is Praeter.  There are already plans to induct Jiang Cheng and Yanli once they have finished recovering. And, as it turns out, most of their acquaintances are already part of the Praeter society.  It sounds so hilariously convenient that it takes quite a lot of arguing to convince Jiang Cheng that, no, nobody is lying to him about the members.

“My theory is that gaining the abilities has a lot to do with proximity to other members!” Wei Wuxian adds unhelpfully.

“How does that work?” Yanli is the only one who bothers to ask.

“Thank you for asking, jiejie.  You see, I think we all carry energy from the Otherworld—”

“Back to the subject at hand,” Huaisang interrupts.

The worst surprise, though, is who else in Jiang Cheng’s family is a member.

“My mother?!”

“We call her the Queen of the city,” Nie Mingjue informs him with an insufferably amused smirk.

“To be more accurate, she has a role of Leader for this area.  There are only a few others with the distinction,” Huaisang explains as he pinches his brother’s cheek.

“Your father is a member, too, but he never graduated past the Sovereign status,” Nie Mingjue adds, unperturbed by his brother’s pinching.

Then, the actual worst information comes to light.

“Wei Wuxian, you’re responsible for our house getting burnt down?!”

“Hey! Not responsible!” Wei Wuxian defends. Lan Wangji puts his arm around Wei Wuxian’s shoulders and levels a heavy glare Jiang Cheng’s way.

“He really isn’t, A-Cheng,” Huaisang soothes as he rubs the back of Jiang Cheng’s neck.  “We’ve heard the story multiple times by now.  It was an honest accident.”

See, a week before their house was attacked and Jiang Cheng’s entire life changed, Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji had been visiting Wen Ning and Wen Qing at the Wen estate.  Despite their bad relations with Wen Ruohan and his brood, the couple were allowed on the premises with the promise that they would never leave Wen Qing’s sight. They kept the promise, since Wei Wuxian was under the watchful eyes of at least two responsible parties (the Wen siblings).

Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji followed the Wen siblings around the estate, trading stories and enjoying the company.  But as evening approached, Wen Ning excused himself to go to the restroom, only to not return over thirty minutes later.  Worried, Wen Qing went to search for him.  Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji tailed after her.

As it turned out, Wen Ning was simply bait in a trap laid by Wen Chao.  The unscrupulous cousin in question wanted to play a prank on Wei Wuxian in retaliation for years of Wei Wuxian outdoing and mocking him at every turn.  The Wens have a peculiar practice of studying spirits and the like from the Otherworld.  All their many experiments were kept in a section of the estate.  And that sacred place was where Wen Ning was found.

The problem here is that Wen Ning is easily possessed.  And in this section of the estate were countless spirits and beasts, most hostile.  Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji had no choice but to fight back.

And the real problem none of them were aware of until after the fact is that many of these spirits were the ghosts of ancestors.  Moreover, decades of experimentation were lost to indiscriminate exorcism.

“So they decided to burn our house?!”

“It’s the Wens, what the fuck do you expect?”

Jiang Cheng sighs.  It’s a lot to take in.  Honestly, if he were learning all this a year ago, he’s pretty sure he would’ve flown off the handle and probably tried to expel Wei Wuxian from the family.  But that was before therapy and many deep talks with Huaisang about life, death, and family.  So as it stands right now, he’s pissed, but he’s taking it in stride best he can.

“Do we at least know where Mom is, then?” Jiang Cheng asks once he’s managed to calm down.

Wei Wuxian frowns and replies, “We’re pretty sure she’s laying low and digging up dirt on the Wens.  We’ll need irrefutable proof if we’re gonna give them what for.”

“But she’s safe?”

Wei Wuxian grips his brother’s shoulder.  “Of course.  It’s Madame Yu.  We both know a tornado couldn’t bring her down.”

~~~

About two months into recovery, Jiang Cheng and Yanli are given the clear to begin induction.  Jiang Cheng still has to use crutches, but thankfully there’s no grand ceremony that’ll require him to stand or walk much.

In fact, it’s a very informal process.  Fast-food restaurant informal.

“My apologies if you were expecting somewhere nicer,” Jin Guangyao says with his usual placating smile.

“It’s fine.  We love the shakes here,” Yanli replies.  It’s hard to tell how genuine she’s being.

The history between the Jiangs and the Jins isn’t bad, but it isn’t great, either. Yu Ziyuan and Madame Jin get along like sisters, but it’s not the same story for their children.  Jiang Cheng doesn’t know the exact story between Yanli and Jin Guangyao, but he knows that the two don’t tend to stay in the same room together unless Jin Zixuan, the only person they both like, is present. But Jin Zixuan isn’t present. It’s just Jin Guangyao, Jiang Cheng, Yanli, and an exhausted Huaisang.

“Please don’t fight,” Huaisang begs.  “We’re in public and A-Cheng kept me up last night.”

Yanli smiles in the way only a sister can.  “I’m happy to know you two are getting along so well.”

Jiang Cheng sputters.  “Not like that!  We were watching a movie!  Spirited Away!”

“Twice,” Huaisang clarifies.  “The first time through, A-Cheng kept asking if any of the creatures are real, so we had to watch it again.”

As it turns out, the little charcoal helpers are real, but very rare.

“Ah, that’s one of my favorite movies,” Jin Guangyao says.  An employee stops by their table to deliver a truly massive burger to him.  “What was your favorite part, Jiang Cheng?”

Jiang Cheng glances at his sister.  “…We can talk later.  I’ll text you.  Anyway. Praeter induction.”

“Right!”  Jin Guangyao takes a sip of his beverage and begins with a simple run-down of roles in the Praeter.  There are Leaders, like Yu Ziyuan, who are charged with protecting certain areas. Organizers, like Jin Guangyao, who keep tabs on all Sovereigns and Enchanters in an area.  Searchers find possible Sovereigns and Enchanters.  And, finally, the Fighters, who are the main line of defense against Otherworldly dangers.

“Since Miss Yanli is limited to the Sight ability, we would like her to take on a Searcher role,” Jin Guangyao continues after devouring his burger with impressive speed.  “For you, Jiang Cheng, it’s up to you.”

Huaisang’s grip on Jiang Cheng’s hand tightens.  “I think he should be a Fighter.  He and Wuxian would make a good team.”

Jiang Cheng took up sword fighting classes with Wei Wuxian when they were kids. He’d definitely call their teamwork in tournaments pretty impressive.

“Or he could be a Searcher like you, Sang-di,” Jin Guangyao easily replies. There’s a coldness in his voice that sets Jiang Cheng on edge.

Nie Huaisang goes silent.  He glares at Jiang Cheng with the ‘you better agree with me’ look.

“I’ll just be a Fighter.  Wei Wuxian can show me the ropes.”

Jin Guangyao smiles in that annoyingly placating way.  “All right, then.  When you’re completely healed, we’ll send you on your first mission.”  He reaches into his bag and pulls out a manilla folder. “Now, Miss Yanli, would you like to go over your role as a Searcher today?”

“I think I’m fine for now,” Yanli says as she puts a hand on Jiang Cheng’s shoulder. Her grip is tight.  “I’d rather wait until my brothers are healed before I start anything.”

Jin Guangyao nods and replaces the manilla folder.  “Very well.  You have my number, so call me when you’re ready.”

The three of them leave Jin Guangyao in the restaurant.  As they walk back to the car, Yanli and Nie Huaisang’s grips are still tight on Jiang Cheng.  He’d really like to know what has them so on edge, but as he sees their sullen expressions in the reflection of car windows, he decides to ask another time.

~~~

‘Another time’ turns out to be a whole month later, when he’s been deemed back in full health and has returned to regular exercise and swordfights with Wei Wuxian.  Jiang Fengmian has been discharged from the hospital, as well, but he’s deemed it better to focus on re-building the house.  In addition, Yu Ziyuan has resurfaced, armed with testimony and physical evidence of the Wens attacking her home.  There will be some time, however, before mundane courts will bring the Wens to justice. It will be longer still for the Praeter society to differentiate and weed out those in the Wen who still pose a threat to other Praeter members.  So, in the interest of safety, the Jiang children will remain under Nie protection.  Thankfully, Jiang Fengmian and Yu Ziyuan are the type to check in daily, so Jiang Cheng doesn’t miss them as much as he thought he would.

One chilly night, Huaisang crawls into bed next to Jiang Cheng looking like some haunted version of himself.  Before Jiang Cheng can ask what’s going on, Huaisang whispers, “They’ll kill them, you know.”

“What do you mean?” Jiang Cheng asks, hand hovering cautiously next to his boyfriend’s wrist.

“The Wen.  Those who the courts don’t manage to catch, they’ll be under strict scrutiny by the Praeter.  Those who don’t pass the test will die.”  He gulps. “Wen Qing and Wen Ning will be fine, I can promise you that, but if there’s anyone else there you care about, you have to tell me now.”

Jiang Cheng’s hand floats to Huaisang’s cheek and rubs away a tear.  “You say that like you’ll be there.”

“I will,” Huaisang admits through a cracked voice.  “It’s my job as a Searcher.  We find people with the abilities.  We figure out if they are a threat.  We kill those who are.”

Jiang Cheng gazes at his boyfriend.  Moonlight is pouring through the window next to the bed.  Huaisang looks beautiful in it.  He also looks so small and weak.  He’s open, no stone in sight.  Jiang Cheng cups his cheek.  “Have you…?”

“No,” Huaisang immediately replies.  “Not yet.  But—”

“I’ll still be here if you ever do,” Jiang Cheng swears.  “I’ll be here until the end, if you’ll let me.”

Huaisang gasps.  He stares down at Jiang Cheng, mouth as wide open as his eyes.  Soon, disbelief makes way for soft, breathy chuckles, the type that fill Jiang Cheng’s lungs with sunlight.  “Careful, A-Cheng.  I’ll fall further in love with you.”

“What if I want you to?” Jiang Cheng asks, guiding Huaisang down until their lips ghost against each other.  “I love you, A-Sang.  I’ll stay with you if you’ll stay with me.”

“When did you get so eloquent?” Huaisang teases, his eyes crinkling.  “I love you, too, A-Cheng.  I want to stay with you.”

“Good.” With that, he kisses him, deep and meaningful.  Everything about this new world is strange and Jiang Cheng can barely keep up.  But none of that matters, since that he has Huaisang by his side.

~~~

There’s a wraith terrorizing the town.  Because of course there is.

“Those are tricky creatures,” Yu Ziyuan advises over the phone.  “Only very strong Enchanters can control them.”  In the background of the call, Jiang Cheng hears his father grunt in affirmation.  “Make sure you don’t go alone.”

“It’s my first hunt,” Jiang Cheng replies.  From his end of the call, he watches as Huaisang sketches out a map based on reports from Jin Guangyao.  They’ve stationed themselves in a parlor room while the rest of their team prepares for the hunt.  “Nobody will let me out of their sight.”

“I certainly won’t!” Wei Wuxian shouts from another room.

“Was that Wei Wuxian?” Yu Ziyuan asks.  Jiang Cheng confirms.  “Tell him that he can expect a lashing if you so much as get a cut tonight.”

Jiang Cheng relays his mother’s message.

“Nooooo!” Wei Wuxian whines, knowing full well that Yu Ziyuan is not being serious. “I promise, Auntie, I’ll take extra special care of Chengcheng!”

“He says he’ll abandon me at the first sight of the wraith,” Jiang Cheng lies. He hears Huaisang snort.

“It’s not good to lie,” Buttercup reminds him from her position at Huaisang’s feet.

“Don’t lie,” Yu Ziyuan scolds.  The line goes silent for a few moments before Jiang Cheng hears his father’s voice.

“Be careful, A-Cheng.  Stay close to Wei Wuxian, he’ll protect you,” Jiang Fengmian advises.

A familiar jealousy rumbles in Jiang Cheng’s chest.  He squashes it in favor of watching his boyfriend draw.  “I will.  Either me or Wei Wuxian will call you when the wraith is gone.”

“Good,” Jiang Fengmian comments.  “Pass the phone to Wei Wuxian.  I want to talk to him.”

Barely restraining a decades-old frustration, Jiang Cheng calls Wei Wuxian over to take the phone.  When his brother disappears into another room, Jiang Cheng moves to sit next to Huaisang.

“Drawing maps or doing math, which is more boring for you?” Jiang Cheng teases.

“Ugh, don’t remind me of math!” Huaisang complains.  He steals a kiss from Jiang Cheng before saying, “But math. The maps are still kind of fun.”

Jiang Cheng hums and sneaks a hand onto Huaisang’s lower back, rubbing his fingers against the cloth of Huaisang’s shirt.  Huaisang leans into the touch with a happy rumble.  “Will you be coming with us?” Jiang Cheng eventually asks.

“Of course I will!” Nie Huaisang exclaims.  “They try to have a Searcher on hand for most of these exorcisms.  I’ll have to keep my distance when we find the wraith, but I’m not going to abandon my boyfriend.”

Jiang Cheng grips the back of Huaisang’s shirt and lays his head against his shoulder. “Speaking of boyfriends…”

“Oh my god, are you going to propose before your first exorcism?” Huaisang interrupts.

Jiang Cheng does not blush, thank you very much.  “N-no!  I—” his voice drops to a whisper, “I was going to ask you if you wanted to get an apartment together after this all blows over.”

“Oh thank god you only want cohabitation,” Huaisang sighs.

“…Is getting engaged to me so bad?” Jiang Cheng mumbles, eyebrows knitted together.

“N-no…” Huaisang stutters.  Jiang Cheng peers up and catches a splash of red highlighting Huaisang’s freckles.  “It’s just too soon, is all.  But…”  Huaisang twists in his chair so that he’s facing Jiang Cheng, a fiery determination in his eyes.  “If you ever do want to get married, I’m all for it.”

Jiang Cheng smiles and kisses Huaisang.  “I love you.”

“I love you, too, A-Cheng.”

“Break it up, lovebirds!” Nie Mingjue shouts.  He lumbers into the parlor room with a massive and stuffed duffel bag slung over his shoulder.  “You got that map done, didi?”

“Almost,” Huaisang replies, taking pen to paper.  “Just a few more minutes.”

“Good,” Nie Mingjue says with a nod.  He turns his attention to Jiang Cheng and tosses him a sword in a purple sheath.  “That’ll allow you to fight beings from the Otherworld.  Wei Wuxian and Wangji have one, too.”

“You bet we do!” Wei Wuxian exclaims as he and his boyfriend bound into the room. Wei Wuxian holds up two swords, one in a red scabbard and the other in a white scabbard.  Much to Jiang Cheng’s immediate annoyance, the red scabbard has been thoroughly decorated, so it looks like a group art project where nobody could decide on a theme.  “We’re going to have so much fun, Jiang Cheng!”

“Fucking gross,” Jiang Cheng grumbles.  “Hey, A-Sang, can I go on a different mission?  One that doesn’t involve eyesores?”

“A-Xian is not an eyesore,” Lan Wangji instantly objects.

“You’re all eyesores when it comes to fashion,” Huaisang mutters.

“That’s fair,” Wei Wuxian says with a good-natured laugh.  He slips Jiang Cheng’s phone back into its owners hands.  “Hey, you got that map done yet?”

“Just finished!” Huaisang responds as he holds up several large sheets of paper. Each one details a different area with notes on where and when the wraith has appeared.  “I think we should start with the church, since it pops up there the most often.”

“Agreed,” Nie Mingjue pipes in.  “Jiang Cheng, you ready?”

Jiang Cheng looks down at his sword, then over at Huaisang.  All of this is, to a certain degree, still new.  Still scary.  If this happened a year or two ago, he probably would have run into it headfirst, determined to prove himself good at something, anything.  But so much is different now.  There’s a strangeness he has to tackle, but he has the good sense not to tackle it alone.

Jiang Cheng takes Huaisang’s hand, squeezes, and says, “Yeah, I’m ready to go.”

[amrynth]

New Years Waterworks

(For @docholligay‘s January Same Prompt Party.  The prompt is Usagi and New Year’s Fireworks.  Enjoy!  Ao3 here)

It was the day of the New Year’s fireworks show and the snow was not supposed to stop until Monday.  She knew that it was silly, knew that there were bigger problems in the world that she and her friends ought to be solving (such as who had the crystal star goblet on the back of their daydream tablet).  But Usagi was inconsolable because she had been looking forward to seeing the fireworks ever since the location had been announced.  She had even talked her dad into getting them special press passes so they could be closer.  And now it wasn’t going to stop snowing and there was no point.

A freshet of tears welled in Usagi’s eyes and she hiccuped in a half-hearted effort to keep them from overflowing.

“Really, is that any way for a highschool student to behave?” Luna asked, curled on the bed with her back against Usagi’s pillow.

“Luna, lighten up,” Makoto said, dropping to sit on the bed. She’d only just returned from downstairs. “I mean, it’s New Year’s. Usagi’s been looking forward to this.”

The final reminder was what pushed her over the edge; a squeak and then a wail and then all the waterworks from Usagi. “What’s the point of being the cha-champion of justice if I can’t even watch fireworks?”

“Don’t cry Usagi, look. I’ve nearly finished the prototype.” Ami didn’t completely ignore that Usagi was in tears, but she tried not to look directly at Usagi so she didn’t get sucked into the depths of her despair.

As though on cue, Usagi’s tears dried immediately and Ami had her full attention. “Can we see it?”

“Yes. In just a few… now. Minako, would you get the lights?” Ami asked.

“Ban-banbanban!” Minako made a show of it, and the lights in Usagi’s room went out around all of them.

Luna, Makoto, Minako and Usagi all looked up expectantly while Ami fiddled with her phone before setting it in the center of the table she and Usagi were sitting at. For one moment it seemed like nothing would happen and Usagi was, once again, on the verge of tears. But a flash of light stopped the tears from coming and then the hologram kicked in and all five of them were watching small, slightly grainy fireworks silently explode in the middle of her bedroom.

“Ohh look at that one!” Usagi was enchanted, tears forgotten and her attention almost completely on the light show. It wasn’t a real firework show, but it was close enough to the real thing to let her briefly forget about the show they hadn’t been able to see.

Makoto’s phone abruptly started to beep and interrupted the magic. “Sorry. That’s the cookies, are you ready to pause this and do some decorating?”

The table was nearly knocked over in Usagi’s haste to get to her feet. To be fair, anyone would flip a table for Makoto’s cookies fresh from the oven. “Luna, watch my phone okay? And answer if Rei calls, my hands are going to be busy and you don’t even eat cookies.”

Behind her, Ami, Minako and Makoto exchanged looks as Usagi went downstairs and went on, at length, about why she didn’t understand how Rei could be so bossy about everyone else being punctual but not even make it to their fireworks cancellation party on time.

“Punctual is a good word, Usagi,” Ami complimented her, trying to interrupt her rant before she got a full head of steam going.

“It was on your vocabulary quiz last week,” she admitted.

Makoto pulled the tray of cookies from the oven and, satisfied that they were golden brown, set them aside to start cooling. The cookies themselves looked more like flowers than they did fireworks, but once they were decorated at least some of them ought to look right.

“Rei is going to be so jealous she didn’t get to eat hot cookies,” Usagi said, snagging a cookie as Makoto put it on a rack to cool.

“You’re going to burn yourself,” Minako said, a cookie already halfway to her mouth.

“Hot. Hot! Ah Hot!” Usagi juggled her cookie from hand to hand and barely saved it in time to shove it into her mouth.

It was still hot.

“Why didn’t Minako burn her hands?” Usagi wailed, cradling a cup of cold water Ami had given her.

“Volleyball calluses,” Minako declared, swallowing her perfect temperature cookie and showing off her hands.

Usagi hiccuped. “Can I learn volleyball?”

Minako shrugged. Usagi had proven to be bad at most sports where balls were involved and she didn’t want to get her hopes up.

“Here. Decorate some cookies,” Makoto said, setting a plate of fireworks cookies at places around the table, the icing all ready to go.

For the second time that night, Usagi quickly forgot about all her troubles, laughing with her friends as they each decorated their cookies with varying degrees of success. Usagi’s were fast and messy but she used a lot of colored sugar to make up for it because she liked that it looked like sparkles. Ami’s decorations were precise and small for the proportion of her cookies and she was only halfway done by the time everyone else had finished their plates. Minako picked colors she thought would make Usagi laugh and it worked, but it made for some cookies that were a little odd in the end. Makoto’s came out beautifully, she used a toothpick to blend her frosting colors and emulate shading, with perfectly manipulated sugar to create fireworks.

“Let’s go check with Luna and see if Rei is on her way,” Usagi said, glancing over toward the fifth plate with undecorated cookies.

They all trooped back up to Usagi’s room, where Luna hastily jumped back onto the bed in order to pretend she hadn’t just been watching Ami’s holograph fireworks show while the others were gone.

“Did Rei call?” Usagi asked, picking up her phone from where it lay on the bed. One missed call and a text from Rei letting her know she was on her way and would be there soon. Oh she was going to give Rei such a bad time when she got there. “But what’ll we do until she gets here?”

“Are you ready?” Minako asked.

Usagi’s interest was immediately piqued and she pulled her feet up on the bed with her. “Ready for what?”

It was precisely the question Minako had been waiting for. She lowered the lights and her phone was already set up so the flash was on as a spotlight. “For the Minako Fireworks Special Extravaganzathon!”

“Extravaganzathon isn’t actually a word,” Ami quietly corrected while settling on the bed beside Usagi.

“Well not with that attitude it’s not,” Makoto collapsed to sit on the floor with her back against the bed.

The Minako Fireworks Special Extravaganzathon was, in fact, a re-enactment of the New Year’s fireworks complete with pompoms and spangled handbags for effect. Minako had just finished the first musical number when three out of four phones lit up with a text message.

Usagi wasn’t fast enough to see who had texted Ami, Minako, and Makoto when they stopped to look at it. But Minako turned the lights back up. “Stay tuned for part two another night. There’s a big group dance at the end, it’s an interactive Extravaganzathon!”

“Sorry Usagi, but I’ve just remembered a project we need to work on,” Ami said, face turning red in a way that Usagi immediately knew meant she wasn’t being completely truthful.

“You’re leaving? But Rei isn’t even here yet,” Usagi said, her voice wavering in a way that threatened tears.

“Sorry Usagi,” Makoto said, smiling ruefully. “I’ll leave the cookies and supplies so you can decorate some more if you want.

“I’ll see you off,” Luna said, aware of the impending tears and not wanting to be in the room anymore.

Usagi watched them go and heroically kept her tears to little hiccups and sniffles until she heard the front door close as they all left. As soon as they were gone though it was a no-holds-barred wail that would have sent the fiercest youma fleeing if they had been fighting the enemy. She missed when her phone buzzed and only looked up from her tear-soaked pillow when a snowball hit her window with a soft thump. She sniffed and realized there was a text on her phone from Rei.

/Crybaby Usagi, come outside./

She got up on her knees and peered out the window but couldn’t see anything around the condensation. The solid circle of snowball that had stuck was a reddish blob. Usagi wiped her nose and thought about refusing to go out for about five seconds. But seeing what had kept Rei for so long was at least more interesting than crying herself to sleep. Usagi pulled her coat on and ran downstairs to pull her boots on at the door and stepped out completely prepared to get hit with a snowball.

Instead the sight that met her was Rei with a wide, red umbrella in the middle of a part of the driveway that had been very recently cleared of the still-falling snow. Usagi jogged the short distance over to her and the shelter of the umbrella from the snow.

“Been crying?” Rei asked, taking in Usagi and her puffy eyes.

“Well someone didn’t even bother to show up until everyone else got bored and left,” Usagi said, sort of wishing she’d rinsed her face at least. Rei looked beautiful with a flush of cold on her cheeks and the sparkle of something in her eyes.

“Well I had errands to run,” Rei said, her temper getting the better of her for a moment. She lifted a paper bag Usagi hadn’t seen in her hand until now, offering it to her.

Usagi took the bag before it could hit her in the chest and peeked inside. There was a pretty pathetic collection of children’s fireworks inside; sparklers and poppers and those little expanding snakes that it was far too wet with the snow to even set off. Warmth bloomed in Usagi’s chest; Rei must have been running around the whole city to even find this much in the way of fireworks they could set off in the driveway. No wonder she had been so late to make it to Usagi’s house.

Careful of the bag and its contents, Usagi threw her arms around Rei and hugged her, close to tears again but for a completely different reason than before. They had to huddle together under the umbrella and balance it along with a lighter to get the fireworks lit, but soon enough Usagi was setting off small, noisy firecrackers by throwing them into the cleared space of the driveway. When she ran out of noisy firecrackers, Usagi found sparklers in the bag and focussed all her attention on not letting the colorful light fall from her string.

The spark fell from her string and Usagi bit off a short, soft noise of objection as they both watched it fall into the snow and sputter out. After the frustrations of the night, Usagi felt new tears welling in her eyes. Before she could cry properly, one of Rei’s hands turned her chin up and the sparkler was completely forgotten as they kissed.

“Reeeiii,” Usagi said, turning pink and dragging her name out into at least four syllables. “Anyone can see us.”

Rei laughed, but she was just as flushed in the face. “Dummy Usagi, I just wanted to make sure your New Year’s was memorable. Besides, no one is going to see us.”

“But your hands are so cold!” Without further ado, Usagi took Rei by the hand and dragged her, umbrella and all, into the house.

“That’s how you do it,” Minako murmured with stars in her eyes and snow in her hair. The three of them were crouched in the bushes, not willing to go home until they too got to see the fireworks display they had helped coordinate with Rei.

“I can’t believe we’re still here,” said Ami. She had her hands over her eyes and her back to the driveway, but had been unable to resist peeking when the couple had kissed. “This is completely inappropriate.”

Makoto sighed dramatically, gazing at the lit window of Usagi’s room. “I never realized just how much Rei reminds me of my Senpai.”

[psyleedee]

Sweet, Spice and Everything Not Nice.

(Inspired by the iconic™ hot chilli Jen/Danneel/Misha moment but Destiel).

dean/castiel, secret relationship, accidental coming out, crack, humor, implied blowjobs, poor sammy.

-2k words.

-psyleedee.

There's a new diner opened up just a mile away from the Bunker, and already, Dean has heard so much about it. Last Tuesday, when he went for a milk run and stumbled into Ms. Davey, she was strangely keen about the new chilli poppers the diner was serving. Dean had smiled and brushed her off with a sure, I'll try it out, and he'd gone his way. Come Thursday, he'd stumbled into Chris, the local pawn shop owner, and they'd fallen into easy conversation, before Chris had spoken up about the diner. Said they had the best damn chilli poppers he'd ever seen. Dean didn't need anymore convincing.

Turns out Sam did.

And after weeks of goading Sam and riling him up to the point where he slammed a fist on the table and said Jesus Christ, Dean, you say the word chilli poppers again and I'll shove one right up your ass, Dean had succeeded. So what if it meant his dignity had crumbled to ash? At least he'd get to eat some good, greasy food, the one he's been craving for so long.

Besides, he oughta' take Cas out on a date too.

Ever since they ended up drunk in bed one long, fateful night ago, things have been slightly different between the two of them. For starters, they smile at each other a lot. Even when they're not looking at each other in tandem. They always end up on the same side of the couch or the dining table, thighs pressed together, hands brushing. They argue a lot, over the most mundane things, like washing the dishes or doing the laundry, but sometimes, after a hunt, when Dean is gushing blood, there will be this one broken glint in Castiel's eyes when he tries to heal him. And that night, they'll make slow, gentle love in Dean's car, away from the rest of the world.

However, there's a slight catch.

Sam doesn't know. He knows nothing. At least Dean hopes so.

And hey, not like they're trying to hide stuff from Sam, 'cause come on, they're practically breathing up each other's neck with only the three of them in the bunker, but it's just that Dean has a specific plan in his mind.

A plan about coming out to his brother. And it'll be heartfelt, of course, 'cause this is not just him establishing his relationship with Castiel, but also him coming out as bisexual. Sure, forty's a little late to figure out your sexuality, but better late than never, yeah?

So that's how it goes.

Maybe they can have a nice, brotherly chat over beer and chilli poppers.

"So, here we are. At last," Castiel says, as they stand against the Impala, all three of them, studying the creaky wooden sign which reads: Donny's Diner– home to the famous Habanero Chilli Poppers.

Okay. They're at the right place then.

"Habanero? Is that like, hotter than jalapeños or somethin'?"

Dean asks, as he stuffs his hands into the pocket of his jacket, and glances at his brother.

"I don't know," Sam says, so Dean turns to Cas, who almost passes as a rugged, buff lumberjack with the way Dean's flannel and AC/DC shirt hug his chest. He has his arms folded across him, a thoughtful gleam in his eyes as he studies the diner.

"I was too busy leading armies in Heaven to really pay attention to the chillies on earth."

"God," Dean sighs, exasperated, "-just say no."

Castiel's lips twitch in the slightest of amusement, and Dean hates the smug look spread across Castiel's face.

Okay, fine, he loves it.

Whatever.

"Let's go eat some fucking chilli poppers," Sam sighs, and Dean, ever ready, follows behind him. Castiel joins them, and all three men enter the diner, which in truth, is a normal, rustic style place. The tables are wooden, the chairs quite simple, a single order station at the front, and a few women, dressed in black shirts and jeans, running around with trays in their hands. It seems casual and laid-back, just the way Dean likes a diner to be, and at once, he quirks his bottom lip, already impressed by the minimal decor and the light chatter in the diner.

"Hi!"

Both Cas and Dean jump a little at the loud, enthusiastic, squeaky voice from in front of them, and standing before them is a young, short woman, with a pixie cut and cute, black-rimmed glasses on her nose. She reminds Dean of a high schooler. Maybe she is.

"Erm, hey."

"I'm Dana, and I'll be your server today. Follow me please, I'll grab you guys a seat."

Dean smiles at her, and the trio follows her along to a booth at the corner of the room. Sam slides in one side, while Castiel and Dean slip in across him. Dana allows them to settle for a moment before piping up again. Seriously this girl has got some real hard enthusiasm for a waitress.

"So, do you guys have anything in mind already? Since a lot of people come in here for the poppers, but if you want, I can get you the menu."

Dean shares a look with Sam. Dean shares a look with Cas.

We'll have the poppers. Oh, and uh, Dana, are the poppers uh, spicy? Like, reeealll spicy? Or spicy spicy?"

Dana chuckles, and shrugs.

"On a scale of one to ten, I'd say a solid eight. But you don't need to try them if you don't want to. We have normal jalapeño poppers. Those aren't as spicy."

"We'll have the really spicy ones, since Dean has been so insistent about them," Castiel says, and the waitress nods. He turns to Dean with a challenging spark in his eyes, "-or are you scared, Dean? I mean, you haven't been known to be quite tolerant towards chillies."

"Shaddup," Dean grumbles, and watches as Sam sends him a silly look, before turning to the waitress.

"The habanero poppers, please."

Sam smiles, and the waitress walks away with a brief nod.

Dean turns back to Sam, who fixes him a dry glare, before turning to Cas.

"Alright, I'm gonna' go use the restroom for a minute," He says, and glances at Dean, after which he proceeds to slide out of the booth and walk away.

Alone at last.

Dean shifts his weight onto a single thigh and turns in his seat to face Castiel. Castiel looks at him with a soft, tender expression, before reaching out to twine their fingers together.

"Are you happy, Dean?"

"'Course I am, Cas. Are you?"

"With you I always am."

"Sap."

"I prefer the term honest."

A smile spreads across both of their faces, before Dean leans in, and presses his lips to Castiel's, who melts at once, giving in to Dean, hands grazing Dean's jaw as they kiss, tender, longing, passionate, hot... Okay too hot, abort, abort.

Dean clears his throat and backs away, glancing around the diner to find a few curious pair of eyes on them, and he sends each one a glare, linking his arm around Castiel's back to show them what's theirs. Castiel shakes bis head with a hopeless smile, and steals a peck off Dean's lips, just in time, since Sam returns not a moment later.

Dean jerks his hand away. Castiel seems a bit hurt.

"So, what'd I miss?"

"Nothing," Castiel scoffs, and looks away, setting his chin on his fists on the table.

Sam looks between Dean and Castiel, and as much as Dean hates the way Sam is suspicious, he doesn't say much.

Patience, Sammy, patience. Dean's going to come out soon. He promises. Or something.

Dana returns just in time to soothe the rising tension at the table, and at once, the prominent scent of spices, oil, and chilli wafts around them, tickling Dean's nostrils in the best of ways, and he follows his nose to find a steaming, hot plate of sizzling habanero poppers held in Dana's hand. There's almost eight to nine poppers on the plate, and each one looks downright delectable.

"Alright, I would advise you to grab yourself some water, because these can be very spicy, and we don't want another paramedic in this diner."

"You have a paramedic in this diner?"

Dean asks, incredulous as he stares at the plate of poppers.

Dana laughs. "Uh-huh, over there, that's Kenny, he's the medic."

"Woah."

Castiel sighs, and watches as the waitress sets the tray down before them.

"Anything else I can get you? Besides a huge jug of water?"

Dana smirks, and all three men gulp at once, eyes fixed to the plate of poppers.

Man up, Winchester.

"Nothing, honey."

Dean smiles, and Dana returns it before walking away.

Now.

The poppers.

Before Dean can even speak, both Sam and Castiel are swiping their hands at one, holding it up and staring down at it.

"Guys, I don't think that's it's a good idea to–"

Gone. The poppers are gone. The ones in Sam's and Castiel's hand? Gone. In their mouths.

Dean stares, wide eyed, awestruck, torn between looking at Sam and Castiel, but then–

"Oh my god," Castiel gasps, mouth stuffed full, chewing on the popper, and Dean watches as his fists clench on the table.

Yup. Dean is not touching those poppers with a ten-foot pole.

"Jesus," Sam mutters, and holy shit, the guy's actually red, and fuck, so is Cas, they're literally burning red at the cheeks and the nose, and Sam's drooling, wiping his nose, there's tears at his eyes, Castiel is swatting the table, groaning, tears streaming down his face as he chews on the popper–

This is a fuckfest.

"Dude, what's happening?"

Dean yelps, shrinking away from his brother and boyfriend, as they pant, gasp and cry.

"Hot, hot, hot– too hot," Sam cries out, and Dean almost feels bad for the bugger. Serves them for being impatient.

"Dean, oh my god, argh, hot, hot, this is the hottest thing I've ever put in my mouth?!"

Castiel screams out, banging his fist on the table, and yes, Dean knows the time isn't right, but obviously Castiel has had hotter things in his mouth before, and those things are sitting right next to him, so how dare he.

"Excuse me?" Dean scoffs, to which Castiel sends him a dry, enraged glare.

"Food, Dean! Food."

Castiel squawks, and slaps the table, but a loud, deafening yelp catches both of their attention.

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?!"

Sam bellows, and oh. Oops.

"I don't wanna' listen to you talk about your sex life when I'm literally dying?! Dean, what the fuck are you sitting for, ask for some water?!"

Wow. This Sam is... Not nice.

Dean falters, trapped between two impatient, burning, overreacting men, and he rises up from his seat, watching as Dana scurries towards them with a water jug, but she doesn't even have a moment to react before Castiel is snatching it out of her hands and oh, oh god.

Castiel holds the jug above his face, and Dean jumps away from the table as the water gushes out, pouring into his mouth, over his shirt, everywhere, and before Castiel can even quench his thirst, Sam is grabbing the jug, pouring it over his face just like Castiel, the water drizzling every where, and a horrified, stricken Dean simply glances up at Dana, who seems... Strangely calm.

"Oh, it's more common than you think. I'm used to it," She says, and Dean wonders vaguely, if they're paying her enough for this, before providing help in the most menial form ever, by tossing his handkerchief to Castiel.

"You, Dean, are not getting away with this. You're the reason we almost died?!"

He growls, and yanks Dean onto the chair.

"Dude, I didn't ask you to pop it into your mouth literally a second after it came out."

Dean yells, shrugging away in defense, when a loud gasp draws their attention to Sam.

"You guys are fucking each other?"

Oh. Uhm. Cat's out.

"Yes, we're fucking each other, Sam, now could you pass that jug over here?"

Dean stares at the two of them, completely normal, going about passing the between the two of them.

That was... Not how he planned on coming out. Nope.

"Yeah, uh, Sam, Cas and I are dating. And uhm, I'm bi."

Sam shrugs, and holds the jug above his face, when it seems to click him.

"Wait. Was I not supposed to know that?"

Dean rolls his eyes.

"No, you weren't. How'd you know?"

Sam laughs.

"I don't know, maybe the oh my god, faster Dean, or the oh, you feel so good, coming from your room each night might have something do with it."

Dean blushes. Hard. Too hard. Castiel doesn't seem the slightest bit bothered. I mean, well, save for the water he's practically guzzling down.

"Whatever."

Dean grunts, and slides back in next to Castiel, who pushes the jug away, and slumps back against the booth.

Silence follows both Sam and Castiel's heavy pants.

Only for Castiel to grin again.

"That was awesome, I'm trying another."

[britishboystm]

American Girl- Matthew (Here Are The Young Men)

A/N: Might make this into a series? Also yes for those wondering I have been working on Boy in the Basement, I should have it posted tomorrow or Friday. Also if there are any Irish readers, I am so sorry😂 I tried my best for the characters to sound authentic but idk it might sound weird.

Warnings: swearing, heavy drug use and drinking, sexual content but not complete smut

Part 2

—

I woke up feeling like shite. After last night's carnage of drink and drugs I felt like my head was swimming. Almost like a fish tank.

But I knew if I stayed in bed all day my da was going to lay into me.

“Matthew, get your sorry ass down here!” The last thing I needed with this fucking headache. The sun slightly burned my eyes as I hesitantly opened them, making me squint and groan in pain.

Did the speed Rez score always do this? My head hurts too bad to think about it. I slowly get myself out of bed and threw on a shirt before walking downstairs.

“Morning Matthew.” My ma tried to be pleasant. I groan in return.

“See this is the problem. You think he’s going anywhere, doing god know what every night? The fact that the school let him graduate is beyond me.”

I chose to ignore him as he flails his arms and yells at no one in particular. I just sit there and eat my cereal.

“Do you hear me Matthew?” My da says, sounding defeated. All I hear is whooshing and ringing in my inner ears. Oh yeah, that speed definitely had something in it.

“I’m meeting up with Kearney and Rez.” I show no emotions with my words. With that I get up, bring my dishes to the kitchen and head back upstairs to change. He starts yelling at me again but it all just sounds like white noise.

—

“Fuck this place.” Kearney says as he hands me the spliff and exhales two big clouds of smoke from his nostrils, similar to an angered dragon.

“Yeah, fuck it.” I wanted to give a smart or witty response but I couldn’t find anything in my hazy brain, let alone sober.

“Suck my cock Dublin!” He yells out to the ocean, suddenly standing up and throwing his arms in the air. I laugh slightly and take another swig of my canned Guinness.

“You lads want to go roam the upper streets?” Rez tries to get the group on a walk. He hasn’t said much, his eyes hiding behind his darkened sunglasses even though it was a bit overcast. I didn’t ask.

“And fuck with the richies? Hell yes!” Kearney jumps up slightly in excitement. He didn’t have much going on in his life. Hell, none of us did.

We got on the DART and made our way uptown to where the nicer neighbourhoods were, along the coast. I think Kearney has something against some girl from school who rejected him once. She happened to live in the area so he led the way. He was on a mission.

Once we made it, we start roaming the streets. Dublin didn’t have much to offer so this was class act entertainment for us right here.

“Cara, Cara? Where are you, you bitch?” Kearney was acting like a raging lunatic. I couldn’t help but cringe at his drunken state. I was messed up too so I didn’t pay it much mind.

As we passed rows and rows of big houses, I ended up drowning out Keanreys babbling to admire how nice they were. I sometimes dreamed about living in one of them. Fat chance though, with the way I finished school. A joke of an education I got.

The three of us stayed silent most of the way and were almost about to turn around when Kearney started yelling again.

“Ey, you! Didn’t you go to our school?” Rez and I turn our heads to see a girl, receiving the mail out front. She looks over and leans against her door frame.

“Who’s asking?” She yells back. She wasn’t Irish. She was American.

“Your next fuck, love!” He grabs his crotch and sticks his tongue out. She raises her eyebrows before letting out a laugh.

She had a nice laugh.

She continues to laugh and bends over slightly, overly showing just how funny she found his comment, clearly trying to hurt Kearney’s pride before closing the door behind her.

She was something else.

Kearney turns around, a proud smirk on his face.

“I’m in, boyos.” We both roll our eyes and grab Kearney, walking away before we got in any trouble.

—

Once we had gotten back from fucking around in uptown, we settled in Jen’s living room with some spliffs and MTV music videos playing on the telly.

Since Jen and I’s awkward hook up, it felt weird hanging out with her. I notice her flirting with Cocker who had showed up from fuck knows where. It’s obvious she is trying to get under my skin. I attempt to ignore it by focusing on the hash in front of me but it’s actually making it worse. Thinking about the hash mixed with the vodka we were passing around made my stomach hurt.

“Remember that girl in uptown earlier. God the arse on that one.” Kearney groaned suddenly as he threw his head back on the back of the couch. A feeling of anger bubbled inside of me.

“And an American none the less. I would love to just-“ He pretended as though he was eating her out.

I didn’t say anything, hoping Christina Aguliera in assless chaps would settle my nerves. It didn’t. All it did was make me think about the girl’s arse that Keanrey wouldn’t shut up about.

“Problem Connelly?” Keanrey smirks and raises his eyebrow at me. He knew he was taunting me. All the heads in the room turned towards the small confrontation, waiting for an answer since there wasn’t anything else interesting happening.

I shrug, not wanting to start anything. Especially when I was high off my rocker.

“Actually I’m going to head out.” I don’t even bother looking back at them as I attempt to lift myself off of the couch and towards the front door. A wave of faintness hits me from getting up too fast. The hash settling in nicely.

“Aww, Connelly I was only joking! I still got some poppers that we can split. Stick around!” I open and close the door behind me, starting the travel home.

—

I laid awake, thinking about that American girl in uptown. She seemed familiar from school but was never in any of my classes. Probably in all advanced ones. I knew there was an American since people always talked about her like it was super interesting, but I never saw her in person. Now I have.

She did have a gorgeous arse. A gorgeous face as well. These images came into my thoughts, thanks to Kearneys observations from earlier.

It was as though my hand had a mind of its own as it travelled into my boxers and started to stroke my dick.

Nothing but her bending over in laughter showing off her tits filled my mind. Then the smile she gave before she swiftly shut her front door had me speeding up my movements.

I imagined her laying in my bed, while I went down on her, that smile making an appearance. Then once more where she took my load in her mouth, looking up at me with an innocent look in her eyes.

Beads of sweat dripped down my face and the sound of my groans and heavy breathing filled the room. I wanted to know her name so bad so I could say it while I finished.

Once I finally hit my peak, my cum ended up all over my stomach and hands, my head collapsing on my pillow in exhaustion.

I felt too lazy to grab the usual hand towel I used for these occasions so I wiped myself off with a pair of boxers I had laying around on my floor.

I tried to steady my breathing as I thought about the American girl. I hadn’t even talked to her before and this was what she was doing to me…

Fuck.

[ba-responds]

Catharsis (Villain!Deku x Fem!Reader) Chapter One

A/n: Here’s chapter one! 10 pages with over 3K words. I got a bit carried away with this one. It may be a little all over the place, but eh. Enjoy!

This story will contain dark themes! Please read the warning!

Summary: An unexpected death of a loved one can lead to a sudden influx of emotions. Those same emotions can become repressed, as denial and disbelief comes into play. In this time, one would seek a means of catharsis, a release from those strong, repressed emotions. But what would you do if that means of catharsis, the same release you sought so hard for, becomes addicting? To the extent, that you feel you can not live without it? What if it can’t live without you? **WARNING: This story MAY contain; bullying, suicide, depression, torture, manipulation, mentions of sexual assault, and MORE! You have been warned.

Masterlist

Prologue II Chpt 1 II Check Masterlist for next chapters!

Chapter One: Broken Ribs and Grieving Baskets

You first met Izuku because of his mother, Inko Midoriya. You were around seven years old when you moved to the Shizuoka prefecture, more precisely Musutafu, near tears as your parents moved boxes into the new house you’d be living in. The house was a plain looking two story townhouse, in which one side is connected to another home. A moving van sat out front, the bright coloring on the side spelling out the name of the moving company, but you didn’t care to even attempt at reading it. You sat pouting on the curb behind your parents parked car, refusing to help with the moving. 

You missed your old home. You didn’t want to leave it yet.

You felt hoodwinked. 

Your parents told you that you would be moving to a new house and going to a different school long before the moving process started, but the reality of it didn’t hit your kid mind, until everything was packed, and your mother was telling you to say goodbye to the old house. Hell, you gladly helped pack everything you could from the old house with no issue, and even bragged to your classmates about moving, but as soon as it was time to actually leave, the waterworks started.

“I don’t wanna say goodbye!” you had cried suddenly, grabbing onto your father’s leg, tears streaming down your chubby cheeks. You dad patted your back soothingly, as he sighed lightly, probably expecting this to happen sooner or later. He knelt down to your height, using his thumbs to wipe away your tears.

“We have to, we’re going to the new house,” he muttered softly, bringing your head to rest against his shoulder. “This house will miss you, just like you’ll miss it, but you have to say goodbye.”

“No!” you wailed, stomping your little foot on the ground, before hugging your dad closer. You mom, who bend down yo your height as well, whispered encouraging words into your ear for a few minutes, before they finally dragged you away to the awaiting car.

And now, here you sat, on the dirty curb outside your new home, clutching a small toy popper. Flipping the toy inside out, you quickly set it on the ground and waited for it to pop up. After a few seconds, it did, flying a few feet into the air, before gravity took ahold of it once again. It rolled a few feet away from you, making you stand up to get it. Squatting down, you repeated the process of flipping the toy inside out, letting it pop, then chasing after the small toy.

It was a quick and simple process that easily caught your full attention, forgetting for a few minutes why you were sad earlier.

Flip.

POP.

Grab.

Flip.

POP.

Grab.

Flip.

POP.

Grab.

Flip.

POP.

...And down the gutter it went. 

You stood still, eyes trained on the shallow gutter your toy just went into. You could see the bright color of the toy, but you knew that you would never be able to reach it. You took in a deep breath, tears already gathered behind your eyes. Just as you were about to let out a wail of pure anguish at losing your toy, a voice cut you off.

“Oh, here sweetie. Let me get it,” the gentle voice cooed from beside you. You turned your tear-filled gaze to the woman beside you. She was young looking, maybe a bit younger than your own parents, with short dark green hair. She gave you a bright smile, before kneeling down beside you, her gaze turning to the grates of the gutter before you.

“T-Thank you,” you mumbled, wiping your arms across your face before looking back at her, wanting to see her get your toy. 

She held a hand out, making small movements like she was pulling the object towards her hand from a far. You watched in amazement as your popper rose out of the gutter, and eventually into her hand.

“Your quirk is like mines!” You breathed out, eyes twinkling as if you just met a hero. She seemed surprised at your sudden burst of awe. You watched as she smiled shyly, her face tilting down slightly in embarrassment. 

You leapt up, staggering a few steps back before holding a hand out towards the small toy still in her hand. Your arm lit up in your favorite color, the color seeming to run through your veins underneath your skin, creeping farther up until the colors were dancing across your neck and starting to seep onto your face. Concentrating, you willed the toy closer towards you, only for it to make it about half a foot, before plopping to the ground as the color faded from your skin.

With a large beaming smile, you turned your gaze from the toy towards the older woman, waiting for the praise she was sure to give you. 

And you were correct. She gave a small gasp, before clapping lightly, amusement clear in her eyes.

“Wow! What a great quirk!” She praised, picking the toy back up and holding it out to you. Still beaming, you graciously took it from her, clutching it towards your chest as warmth spread through your body at the compliment. You muttered a bashful ‘thank you’ as you watched the woman stand up, her slender fingers smoothing out the dark gray skirt she had on. 

“Well, I have to go pick up my son from school. How about I bring him back this way so that you could meet him?” She questioned, giving you a gentle pat on the head. You nodded ecstatically at the thought of making a new friend in this new place. She giggled before stepping away with a wave and a promise of being back in a few. You waved back, slightly disappointed that you couldn’t show off the little control you had over your quirk, before jogging to your new home to wait.

You sat contently on the curb behind your parents car once again; this time deciding to fiddle with the popper in your hand instead of letting it fly and pop around again. You could hear your parents joke around behind you as they gathered the last of the boxes to carry inside.  

“Mom, I’m hungry,” You called, not bothering to look back. You head your dad mutter something along the lines of “Hi hungry, I’m dad” before your mom answered you.

“We’ll head out to get something to eat in an hour, let us bring these last few boxes inside and rest a bit.”

You nodded silently, your attention now locked on the popper once again as it pinched the delicate skin of your finger, causing you to hiss.

Ten minutes passed of you boredly picking at the pavement.

And it was a long ten minutes.

Looking up and down the block again to hopefully find something to cure your boredom, you nearly jumped up at the sight of the woman from before. She was heading your way, this time with a small boy holding her hand. The boy looked just like her, with dark curly green hair, wearing a light blue sweater over a white collared shirt, dark pants and bright red shoes. 

A new friend!

You stared at him as they came closer, before shooting up when they were about 10 feet away. He stared at you too, watching in confusement as you held out your hand. His mom pushed him forward slightly, encouraging him to meet you.

“Hi,” 

“...Hi,”

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

But that was all in the past. 

The care-free past that you shared with the boy.

And now here you were. Sobbing pathetically in your bed.

Chest heaving, you struggled to keep in your pitiful cries. It felt as if you had been crying continuously for years; your eyes burned, and cheeks felt sore with the constant, furious rubbing to clear away the tears. You cleared your throat softly, wincing at the stinging from it being sore. Eyeing your bedside table, you tried to remember where you last had the bag of cough drops, concluding that you should have a few inside the drawer to the table. Sucking in as big of a breathe you could manage with your broken ribs, you heaved yourself up from your propped-up position on your bed. 

A wave of exhaustion passed you, the lack of sleep you’ve gotten over the past two weeks, catching up to you again. With a shaky breath, one arm went instinctively around your torso to stabilize yourself as you reached into the bedside table’s drawer. Your fingers found the small white-wrapped cough drop, immediately fiddling with it to get the pesky wrapper off. Popping the sweet medicine into your mouth, you turned your gaze to your phone, clicking it on to check the time.

It was still early in the day, barely past six in the morning. You guessed that you may have gotten a good two hours worth of sleep the night before; your racing mind and the seemingly never-ending pain from your broken rib hindering the process of falling asleep. 

Despite that, you decided to get up earlier than usual, to ensure that there would be plenty of time to slowly get ready for school, knowing that your freshly broken rib would slow the speed of your usual morning routine dramatically. Despite the fact that your rib was broken over a week ago, it still felt as bad, if not worse, than it did the day it happened.

Not bothering to attempt the wipe the dried tears on your cheeks, you slowly stood up from your comfortable bed. Taking small breaths as to not irritate your ribs, you carefully made your way out of your room, and to the nearest bathroom. 

You winced as the floorboards gave off a slight creak, pausing in your steps, hoping that your parents wouldn’t wake up due to the small noise. When there was no indication that that has happened, you continued to the bathroom, sighing in relief as you closed the door behind you. Making your way over to the medicine cabinet, you pulled down the pain medicine that was prescribed to you from the doctors. Taking the recommended 2 pills, you set the rest on the counter, hoping that you would remember to bring it with you to school. 

With slight hesitation, you looked up into the mirror in front of you, taking in you battered form. The bruises Katsuki gave you had faded for the most part, but the healing cuts remained.

“Bakugo- He doesn’t deserve to be called by his first name--Not anymore” You thought to yourself bitterly, feeling your throat clenched in anger. Tears of frustration crept into your eyes, but you didn’t dare let them fall. “He doesn’t deserve my tears.”

Turning away from the mirror, you stepped closer to the bathtub, taking a deep breath as you prepared yourself to slowly lower your body into the filling tub of hot water and epsom salt. Biting your tongue, since you couldn’t bite your lip because it was still healing, you gently lowered yourself into the water; your jaw dropping open as waves of pain coursed through your body because of your broken rib, your arms shaking as they barely held your weight. Finally sitting down, you let out shallow, and shaky breaths as you mentally pleaded for the pain to go away

After a minute, the pain finally lessened into a dull throbbing, which was good enough for you at the moment. Stretching your legs as far as you could, you rolled your shoulders, trying to let your muscles relax as you began doing the deep breathing exercises the doctors recommended. Closing your eyes, you focused on how good the hot water felt, letting the tension in your body slowly go away as much as it could. Resting your head back, you felt a brief wave of restlessness take over, you eyes becoming half lidded as you glanced around the bathroom. With the comforting heat of the bathwater, and the little amount of sleep you had gotten over the last week, you felt yourself slip into unconsciousness, not having the energy not to fall asleep.

Unruly green hair, and beautiful green eyes.

Freckled cheeks, and a bright smile.

Ordinary perfection. 

Deep seas, and filled lungs.

Bloated bodies, and police sirens.

The death of a beautiful soul.

Waking up with a start, you gasped for breath as you clutched your side, pain shooting throughout your body from the sudden movement. Tears welling up behind your eyes once again, as you quickly wrapped a hand around your mouth, muffling the onslaught of sobs that burst forward. 

“Why? Why would you do that, Izu?” You couldn’t help but wonder, tightening the one-armed grip you had around the front of your torso. Your body burned with pain, and the deep sobs that racked your body didn’t help in the slightest.

Why?

“It hurts.”

The walk to and from school is the hardest for you. Every time you left your home and got to the end of the block, it would seem as if a fresh wave of emotions overtook you as you had to force yourself to go straight, and not turn with the intent to meet Izuku a few blocks down. Your heart would ache, and chest would tighten as you would walk alone. 

Entering the school only the second time since... the incident, you walked with your head downcast, attempting to avoid all the pitied stares, and sympathetic whispers. Of course, after being away from school for a little over a week, your presence would cause a slight stir in your homeroom, not to mention the addition of the bruises and cuts on your face.

Upon entering, most conversations seemed to hush, but a few continued. You refused to look anyone in the eyes, and quietly made your way down the aisle and to your seat. However, before you could reach your seat, a colorful sight was caught in the corner of your eye. Taking a quick glance, you realized what they were.

Flowers.

Dozens of them.

All of them colorful, beautiful, and not missing a single petal as if they were never actually touched. 

All covering the seat and table of one specific desk. The one diagonal to the left of yours.

Izuku’s.

Your fist clenched, along with your heart. A flicker of fire seemed to ignite in your chest as you quickly took your seat, squeezing your eyes closed as you tried to regulate your breathing,

“All those flowers. All of those fucking flowers. All from students and staff. The same fucking students and staff that stood by and did nothing when Izuku was bullied. The same ones that did nothing, but torment him further. Just for being quirkless. The same ones that pushed him into it. The same ones that are the reason for what he did.” 

Your chest hurt. The pain was worse than ever before.

You sat alone during lunch, opting to sit outside, leaning against the same wall that Bakugo threw you into only days before. Your lunchbox sat untouched beside you as you stared blankly down at your phone; not particularly looking at anything, but staring at it none-the-less so it would seem like you were busy.

Instead, your mind was a war zone of emotions and thoughts. There was so many things you wanted to do, but you knew you couldn’t.

Well, more like shouldn’t.

You wanted revenge. You wanted to make all the students hurt inside like you were. No, you wanted them to hurt inside much worse...like what Mama Midoriya must be feeling. The pain of loss; the pain of regret; the pain of feeling as if you should’ve done more.

The pain of guilt.

You wanted to scream; You wanted to cry; You wanted for this pain inside to stop.

But it wouldn’t.

The ringing of the class bell snapped you out of your dark thoughts, causing you to let out a soft sigh. Grabbing ahold of wall behind you, you carefully stood up, wincing once again as you broken rib stung with a searing pain. After standing up and gathering your bearings, you snatched up your still full lunch box, unzipping it and dumping it into the trash nearby; just the thought of eating seemed to make your stomach churn.

As the last class of the day came to a finish, you silently packed your belongings into your bookbag; not noticing the way your classmates seemed to look at you in worry. Soon after, a body stepped in front of your desk, the room suddenly quiet. Looking up, you noticed a brown, short haired girl standing nervously in front of you, as most of the class seemed to wait with bated breaths.

“U-Um, (L/n), w-we, the class, wanted to g-give you this. W-we know that this is a hard time f-for you, losing someone so close to you, s-so we hoped this will at least make you feel a little bit better,” she stuttered out loud for the class to hear, pulling out a small basket, that held a small assortment of cookies, books, fruits, and other things. You felt your heart begin to pound harshly in your chest, as you stared at the grieving basket held in her hands. Your fingers twitched before your fist clenched, as you snapped your eyes up to her fast, finally meeting her gaze. Taking a deep breath, you narrowed your eyes, making her blink slightly in shock.

“So, you’re telling me that you want me to accept this basket, this fucked up excuse of a grieving basket, as an apology from the class for years of torment? For years of fucking bullying? For all the shit in the past you’ve put us through? A fucking basket?” You growled out, standing abruptly, causing your chair to fly backwards. From underneath your uniform, a faint glow could be seen, as your quirk began to activate, the glow coming from all across your body, as the thin lines of color had began to grow brighter.

“Not to mention, none of you even had the guts to actually apologize for the hell you put us through. I’m not even the one who deserves the fucking apology, its Inko Midoriya, whose son’s body the police pulled from the fucking ocean.” 

By now, some of the empty desk and chairs began to levitate a few feet off the floor. The girl in front of you, stared with wide, guilty eyes, tears close to falling. She took a measly step back, her mouth opening, but no words coming out. Tears were falling freely from your eyes, your chest heaving, the pain from your rib momentarily forgotten, as rage seemed to overtake your body.

“IT WAS HER SON WHO TIED WEIGHTS TO HIS LEGS AND THREW HIMSELF INTO THE OCEAN. IT’S HER WHO HASN’T BEEN ABLE TO LIVE WITH HERSELF SINCE. IT IS HER WHO HAS TO LIVE INSIDE THAT HOME ALONE NOW. ALL BECAUSE SOME STUPID FUCKING KIDS WOULDN’T LEAVE HER SON ALONE; WHO MADE THIS SEEM LIKE HIS ONLY OPTION. SO FUCK YOUR DAMN BASKET, AND FUCK EACH AND EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU MURDERS. I HOPE YOU ALL ROT IN HELL”

With your last words, you shoved the girl away, as the desk and chairs under your control slammed into the walls around you, some of them clipping the sides of your classmates, who all let out a small scream of panic. Snatching you bookbag, you stormed towards the door, your telekinetic quirk shoving away anything in your way, people included. As you reached the door, the figure standing to the side of it caught your attention. You glared in hatred at Bakugo, baring your teeth.

“Especially, you.” You hissed.

Despite pushing all of you hatred, anger, sadness and frustration onto Bakugo and the rest of the class, you knew the truth behind your feelings.

You blamed yourself.

It's your fault.

Why couldn’t you just be there for him?

Why didn’t you see his pain?

Why didn’t you do more?

There seems to be one question that lingers in your head that could sum up all that has happened in the past.

Just, why?

[bree-sasbdb]

Kiehran’s First Birthday

I spent most of the first half of the night helping Hafwen out with stuff around the house and decorating for Kiehran’s birthday. Nerville had arrived with the cakes just as I was heading downstairs to clean up and get ready for the party. His cake was adorable. It had the dinosaurs from Dinosaur Train on it as well as the train. The second cake was smaller and just for Kiehran. It continued the Dinosaur Train theme, Kiehran loved the show so I had gone with it as his birthday theme. After I looked at the cake I hurried downstairs to shower and change clothes. Hafwen told me that she would change Kiehran. I put on a pair of jeans and a lightweight sweater with my Ugg boots. I had made sure to put on the invitations that the party had a casual dress code. 

When I got back upstairs I took the dogs out to use the restroom and to burn off some energy. I was watching them play when the patio door opened and Joshanah walked out. We exchanged hellos then she joined me watching the dogs play in the snow. They seemed to love the snow. I started shivering in my coat so I called them in and we went inside. Hafwen and Nerville were waiting just inside the door to towel them off. I was just getting ready to ask where Kiehran was but Joshanah’s mother, Isla walked in carrying him. Nerville took the towels away and Hafwen washed her hands as she told us that dinner would be ready soon. 

I greeted Isla then the three of us walked into the living room where Batair and Siddell were. Batair hugged me before I greeted Siddell. I noticed all the presents and I looked at everyone as I said, “You didn’t have to get him that much. You guys are going to spoil him.” Isla said, “That’s our intention.” I grinned at her and shook my head. Nerville walked in then and told us that everything was ready. As we walked into the dining room Joshanah walked up to me and put her arm around my shoulders she said, “You’re stuck with us and so is Kiehran. Get used to it.” I wrapped my arm around her waist and said, “There’s no one I’d rather be stuck with.” We hugged a one-arm hug as we walked to the table.

As they got seated I put Kiehran into his high chair before taking my seat. Nerville brought me Kiehran dinner and I started feeding him as Hafwen brought in our food. When Hafwen returned with the last two dishes I told her that the meal looked wonderful and thanked her. She had made us a roast dinner with all that came with it. We had mash potatoes, gravy, green beans with bacon pieces, orange and fennel salad, and homemade dinner rolls. It smelled incredible. We started serving ourselves as Hafwen and Nerville left the room. I had tried to get them to join us but they told me it wouldn’t be appropriate with those that were going to be here. I tried to tell them that they wouldn’t say anything but they still refused so they would eat their dinner in the kitchen. I had accepted it reluctantly but I told them that they would be apart of the party when we did the cake and I wouldn’t take no for an answer because without them this day wouldn’t be the same. I told them that if any of those invited had a problem with it then the one who did could leave. As we ate I fed Kiehran some potatoes and gravy as well as a bit of the meat. 

When dinner was over we gathered in the living room so he could open his presents. The first toy he opened was a Smart Shots Sports Center it came with a basketball and a soccer ball the bigger piece had a net for the soccer ball as well as a basket for the basketball. It made noise and kept score as he made baskets and goals. He received a guitar and drum set that were plush but they lit up and played music. Next he got a Chase n Go Ball Popper which when you pushed a button balls started popping out the elephant’s trunk. It came with four balls and as I looked at it I knew it wouldn’t just be Kiehran chasing the balls. Joshanah’s parent got him a Busy Buggy that he could ride on or push. They also got him a Jumbo Caterpillar Plush that used different fabric for each segment and also made different sounds as he touched it. Joshanah bought him a Wood Name Puzzle with his name spelled right on it. I bought him a 100 Animal Book it identifies animals, makes sound effects and offers fun facts about animals in both English and Spanish. He received three bags of Mega Blocks, a Go! Go! Smart Wheels Launch and Chase Police Tower that had lights, noises and sound effects as he played with it. I bought him a Kai Teddy Bear as well as a Take-Along Shape Sorter, Edushape Small Sensory Balls, a Sesame Street Peekaboo Cookie Monster, Wooden Puzzles, a tunnel he could crawl through, and some clothes. Joshanah’s parents got him a B.Zany Zoo that was a big wooden cube that he could sit next to or stand up and play with different things, all four sides and the top were different. They bought him some clothes as well. Joshanah and Siddell’s had bought clothes as well but their final present was a Radio Flyer Classic Wagon Walker. Keihran was excited about everything. 

He started getting fussy though so we decided to get to the cake and ice cream. I stripped him down to his diaper since I fully expected him to be a mess by the end of this. I put him in his highchair that Nerville had brought into the eat-in area of the kitchen. We sang “Happy Birthday” to him as I had lit the candle in his cake and brought it before him. Joshanah and I helped him blow out his candle then I removed it before I moved the cake closer to him. He looked at me then tentatively touched the cake. He got frosting on his finger and he brought his finger to his mouth. He laughed when he tasted the frosting and reached for the cake again. When I didn’t stop him he put his hand in the cake grabbing a handful before he brought it to his mouth. He said, “Mmmmm” as he ate the cake. After that it was a free for all as he started using both hands. 

The rest of us ate our cake and ice cream as we watched him. He played more than he ate the cake. He started fussing and rubbing at his eyes after a bit so I knew he’d had enough. Hafwen took him and said she’d bath him and get him ready for bed. Nerville started cleaning up while the rest of us went back into the living room to talk. I had had Nerville recording during the party so that I would always be able to see this day.

When Hafwen returned with him he was clean and snuggly. She handed him to me as well as his bottle. I handed him his bottle, he snuggled against me and settled down. We talked for a while longer and then they got ready to leave. Kiehran had fallen asleep in my arms. I got up so I could walk them to the door. We said our goodbyes and I thanked them for all his presents. Isla told me if I needed anything to just ask. I told her I would as she and Batair walked out the door. Joshanah hugged me and kissed Kiehran on the head as she said her goodbyes. I told Siddell goodbye, I watched as they walked to their car and got in. I shut and locked the door as they pulled away. I looked down at Kiehran as he slept in my arms and all I could do was smile. He was loved by many people but most of all he was happy. 

#KiehransFirstBirthday

#SASBDB

#SaintsandSinners