#also i ate like nothing yesterday so i felt so awful after getting home

[godfistgonnalive]

GOODNGIHT. FOREVER 😈😈😈😈😈😈😈.

[ohmytomorrowisthursday]

Until I Fall - Part Three

Levi Ackerman x Fem Reader.

Eventual romance but this is a slow burn, definitely angsty and darker. It will also focus a lot on Hange, Erwin and the original scouts. Eren and the 104th training corps will be around but I’m focusing on the older characters in here. Your self insert name is ‘Azeria Becker’ pronouns She/Her/Hers. Using a name because don’t like using ‘y/n’.  

Cannon universe. I wrote this for myself but I hope that you enjoy it, too lol <3

As you stood in front of Levi on that final day, you couldnt help but remember every last moment of your time in the scouts. How had you gone from that scrawny young rookie trying to fight titans to Erwin’s right-hand soldier who overthrew the government and was about to charge to your death? It was never fair, you’d never get enough time together. Standing before him, his eyes full of the sadness of the truth, it hurt too much to say Goodbye, don’t forget me. I’ll love you forever, so instead you said the only word that you could manage to speak; Survive.

cw: imagine literally every awful/gory thing that happens in SNK. Death, violence and gore. Drinking, sex.

You can find all chapters here. Or, if you prefer it the wattpad version here

The year was 844.

The first time you had ever heard of Levi Ackerman was when you were still in Training Corps. Everyone was talking about the three criminals that they had let join the Scouts while the rest of the soldiers had to endure years of hard training. Everyone was annoyed. “What makes them better than us Azeria?” Ilse groaned one day to you during lunch, “I mean, we’ve been working towards this for years and they let them in- just like that? It’s not right.”

You swallowed a big bite of yam. “I’d just like to see how good they really are if they’re not going through training.”

“Mmmhmm!” Ilse agreed, as she ate her food.

“And,” you added, “I’m going to fight them, too.” 

But you’d never get the chance. Two of the new recruits were killed on the 23rd expedition outside of the walls. The third member of the squad was the lone survivor. He killed two ten metres and one abnormal on his first expedition. He was the lone survivor of his entire squadron.

A few months later your training was over and you joined the Scouts, second highest in the class only to Ilse. On your first day in the dining hall you searched for the short, dark haired man that you’d heard of. You finally found him, sitting next to Hange. He looked like a stone statue; face hardened like a rock with eyes that could kill someone. 

Shortly after, the Scouts embarked on the 25th expedition outside of the walls. You had been assigned to the squad riding next to Levi’s. You managed to assist in two kills but watched as Levi single handedly took down four titans. He was faster than anyone you’d ever seen, skilled, sharp and calm. You watched the way he held his blades and enacted spin kills. He killed titans so quickly, so effortlessly. How? You felt so weak; after all of this time, all of your training, you were nothing but fodder next to him. 

When you got back, you had lost nearly fifty of the 300 Scouts. Many of them trained along side you; they were your friends. You couldn’t understand how so many were lost on these expeditions until you finally left the walls. There was no way that humanity was ready to fight these monsters. They always seemed to win, and after so many years of fighting it seemed like no one knew anything about them. You were helpless. It felt like too much to bear. You had lost friends, soldiers, people who had families waiting at home. Commander Shadis rode at the front of the pack, emotionless, hardened. You wondered when it would be your turn to turn into them too. 

Early the next morning you went to a wooded clearing with your ODM gear. There needed to be a way to catch up to Levi’s movements; you wouldn’t let what happened yesterday to ever happen again. You’d be the best fighter in the world if it meant protecting people. You spent the whole morning trying to mimic his movements, trying to hold the swords in a backward way, spinning and slicing as fast as you could. It was no use. You just weren’t fast enough. You clung to the side of a tree, panting and exhausted from pushing yourself so hard. How did he do it? It was inhuman. 

“What are you doing?” A raspy deep voice called out from the far corner of tree shade, you couldn’t make out who it was. “Who’s there?” You called, hopping down to the ground by the voice. 

Levi stepped out of the woods into the clearing, bearing the same cold emotionless face he always seemed to wear. He was in his scout uniform, but seeing him without his jacket or cape was strange. He looked a lot smaller now that he was disarmed. He seemed un-phased by the most recent expedition.  

“Oh,” You said, trying not to seem embarrassed, “I’m practicing.”

“Hmmmph,” He laughed, “It looks like you’re trying to copy me. Poorly, at that.” 

“What? No! I-“ You were flustered and pink in the cheeks. He smirked, amused. It was the first human emotion you had seen on him. “How did you learn to fight like that?” 

He flicked a fly away from his shoulder, “A serial killer taught me.” 

“…What?” You asked. “Why did you come here?” For a while he paused and stared at you. The sound of the breeze and the birds surrounded you, the trees felt like a wall. 

“I heard noises coming from here and thought someone was hurt. I didn’t expect to see some brat tangled up in ODM gear. What’s your name?” He finally spoke to you. “Azeria Becker,” you said. “And you are Levi Ackerman, right?”

He nodded, “Mmm. I saw you fighting in the squad next to me yesterday. Not bad for your first time out. But you can’t hesitate so much.”

“Thank you,” You said, rubbing the back of your neck. You felt shy, and you didn’t understand why.

"You look old to be a new recruit," He stated. It was true, you werent a kid like most of the trainees. "I'm eighteen. I worked as a mechanic for my family before I decided to join." His faced changed to annoyance or boredom, and he turned to walk away, waving you a careless goodbye, "Welcome to the scouts, kid."

“-Wait!” You called out, reaching for his shoulder. When you touched him he looked disgusted at your hands. “What?” He replied back.

“Teach me how to fight like you.” He paused, looking at you with is cold grey eyes, they seemed more tired now that you stood closer to him. You realized this was the closest you’d ever been to him, which made you blush. He was just a man. But even still, he was just as intimidating. So this is what the best scout in history looks like. You wanted to be like him so badly.

“Tsk. I wont,” He finally shot. You let out a defeated breath. You didn’t realize how much you were hoping he’d say yes to your request. “Why not?” You asked, crossing your arms. Now he was pissing you off. 

“Because, you can’t fight like me. I learned to fight out in the real world; you learned to fight in training camps with other brats who have never had to put their life on the line. It’s not the same. You will never be able to do what I can do because you don’t have my experience,” He looked so un-phased by saying such mean things to you. You weren’t a brat. Your face began to feel red with tears. He stepped closer to you, tightening his focus on your face. 

“I can’t teach you how to fight like me,” He said, this time quieter. “But I can help you better yourself.”

You paused, eyes widened. “Y-you will?” Why did he make you so nervous? He looked out into the trees and brushed his dark hair out of his face. “Tsk. Why not. I can’t have a bunch of rookies holding us back.”

“Thank you!” Your eyes were wide and you couldn’t hold your excitement in. He rolled his. 

Faster than you could blink, he suddenly pulled a knife on you, holding it inches from your face before you could catch his arm with yours. You were shocked. Looking into his eyes he still held the same calm face. Your heart was beating in your chest. “Rule one; never let your guard down. Be prepared to fight. Losing focus is the difference between saving one of your soldiers and dying.”

He pulled his hand away and slid the blade back into his harness, pulling out a handkerchief to wipe his arm where you grabbed him. “We meet back here tomorrow morning. And clean your uniform you look like shit.” 

With that, he walked off, leaving you alone in the clearing. The afternoon sun sent rays through the trees and all that was left was your heart thumping in your years, still shocked from the fact that Levi had just threatened you with a knife. You couldn’t stop thinking about his eyes and their blade-cutting stare. You needed to prove that you were worthy to fight along him. You needed to prove it to yourself. 

chapter four here

[adzeisval]

Let me see

A young Edward Teach meets Izzy hands. Also on AO3.

Edward didn’t know what to do and so he ran away from home. Surely someone would figure out that he had killed his father. Sure the old man had been a drunk and all but if the body washed up with rope marks around his neck? Better just to start anew. He couldn’t…he couldn’t lie to his mother either. 

He stowed away on a ship and hopped off on the first stop another small island like where he was from. He rather liked being on the ship and thought about trying to get work on one. No one could catch him if he was always on the run. 

Edward’s stomach rumbled. He had to take care of that first. Stealing was wrong but he had to eat something. He figured he could find something, maybe something someone else had thrown out. He walked along the docks and searched for food, or somewhere to bed down. 

Edward heard a strange strangled cry and went toward it. He went through an alley into a narrow courtyard and saw a group of three boys taunting and kicking another boy on the ground. Edward felt his temper rise and before he knew what he was doing he picked up a rock and threw it at the largest boy.

“Hey!” 

“What the fuck!” 

“Leave him the fuck alone!” Edward said. 

“Fuck you,” the leader of the boys said. The two younger ones took off and the older boy glared at Edward, kicked the boy on the ground one last time and ran away. Ed watched to make sure the boys were gone before approaching the boy on the ground. 

The boy hadn’t gotten up, hadn’t moved at all. He was still curled up and shaking on the ground. Edward knelt, worried the boy was badly hurt. 

“Hey, they’re gone,” Ed said. The boy looked up at Ed then curled up even more.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” Ed said, folding his legs under him so he could just sit with the boy. After a few minutes the boy managed to sit up, revealing what he had been curled around, a crust of bread and an apple. 

“I’m Edward, what’s your name?” 

“Izzy.” The boy, Izzy, voice was raspy and it sounded like it hurt him to speak. Ed could make out horrible bruising on Izzy’s neck, but it didn’t look like the boys that had just been kicking him had done that, the bruises were starting to fade. 

Izzy looked at Edward then passed him a piece of the bread and broke off a chunk of the already split apple and handed it to him, “Thank you.” 

“You’re welcome, and thank you Izzy.” 

They ate and Ed noticed that it was hard for Izzy to swallow. They sat after they ate and it was starting to get dark. 

“Do you know a safe place to sleep?” 

“Yes,” Izzy said. He stood up stiffly and limped a bit as he lead Ed through the streets. He lead Ed to a barn behind an inn to a pile of hay. It didn’t look very nice but it was better than nothing. Ed was still hungry but again the food that Izzy had shared was better than nothing. 

Ed settled down to get what sleep he could but noticed that Izzy was still staring at him. 

“I won’t hurt you Izzy, we can watch each other’s backs,” Ed said and Izzy nodded. 

The next morning Izzy was coughing a little and rubbing his throat. Ed reached a hand out to Izzy who backed away. 

“Sorry. Just…let me see?” 

Izzy was shaking slightly when Ed touched his neck. Ed was gentle as he could be. He couldn’t imagine how bad the bruising had been at the start. He could make out outlines of fingers on the sides of Izzy’s neck. Someone had wrapped their hands around Izzy’s neck and choked him. Ed was in awe that Izzy survived and managed to get away from his attacker.

“Who did that to you? Wasn’t those boys yesterday.” 

“My father. Tried to kill me. Ran away.” 

“Fuck. I’m sorry Izzy. My dad’s an asshole too. Or was. I ran away too. Maybe we can stick together and help each other?” 

“Yes,” Izzy said.  Edward smiled, it felt good not to be alone

[soramei]

Intentional - Part 5

Pairing: Bang Chan x Reader (she/her)

Summary: Landing your first real job at JYPE was something short of a miracle. You were prepared to face the new struggles of this elusive career whilst moving to a new country, however, nothing could have prepared you for him. Will stolen glances, secret touches, and hushed nights spent in the recording room ever be enough for the both of you?

Genre: idol!bang chan au, forbidden relationship, coworkers to eventual lovers, slow burn

Warnings: cursing, eventual smut

Word Count: 4.0k

Masterlist

A/N: yeah so about that upload... i was really busy this whole week but i hope to start uploading mondays again! thanks for understanding!!

Taglist (reply to be tagged!): @planetdemon​ @hvunvely​ @fluffybitch0325​ @fashi0nablee @juststop88 @straykisz @theultimaterad @margaritas-en-la-montania @meowtella

There was a pause in the phone call.

You started biting your nails, instantly regretting what you had just done. Basking in your stupidity, you could only wait for his response, for it was too late to retract what you had just said. Your day must have been worse than you thought. It must have been so bad that you had the nerve to ask Bang Chan — an idol, a person with a strict schedule, somebody who you had an argument with — to come over to your pathetic little apartment.

You kept nibbling on your fingers.

“I’ll get my jacket.”

You froze, eyes wide.

“Huh?” You were bewildered. You weren’t even expecting an answer, much less this.

“It’s cold this late at night,” he explained, “I’ll be there soon.”

You didn’t know what to say. You heard rustling on the other side of the call.

“Wait, I’ll tell you my address,” you blurted out.

“You did,” he said.

You frowned, trying to remember if you did or not. That’s right. You blushed at the memory of your first day of work.

“Oh yeah, umm, I’ll hang up now.” You awkwardly said, hanging up before Bang Chan could fit another word in.

You were a statue in your own apartment, clinging on to the last words exchanged on your phone. In actuality, you didn’t know why you asked him to come over. It was just blurted out in the moment. Or maybe it was a result of your extremely frustrating day. Either way, you felt extremely embarrassed that you did so, especially so late at night.

You started boiling some water, still trying to rationalize what you had just done. This was normal for friends, right? Na-eun and Yoojin came over just yesterday and you were friends with both of them. You knew for a fact that you two were friends, but you still couldn’t find an explanation for the strange feeling in your chest whenever you were around him.

Turning your phone on, you checked your face in the selfie camera. It was a miracle that your makeup didn’t smudge off. You thanked your new ‘CLIO’ foundation cushion, it looked like all that time you spent doing your makeup didn’t go to waste. You stared at your reflection for a couple more seconds before turning your phone off. Why did it matter what you looked like anyways? You wiped off any remaining lipstick with the back of your hand.

The kettle started rumbling, letting you know that the water was ready. You took out your mug to prepare some tea. It was a bad idea to have tea this late at night, but there was something about your mother’s tea that could knock a grown man out.

Sipping your tea, you turned on Youtube to an episode of a Korean web-drama that was getting really popular. It was another one with some rich CEO and a clumsy average girl, but you still watched, fully enamoured. On the recommendations list, there was a video with Felix — the other person you saw at the cafeteria on your first day — on the thumbnail. I can never escape from work, you thought to yourself, rolling your eyes.

You clicked on it anyways, just to pass the time. Watching through the video, you were shocked by the production value. Well, that, and Bang Chan. Whether it was hair and makeup or just his acting, he was so different from the person you knew in real life. You were in awe by his natural charisma gleaming at you through the screen as it was a rare quality that few people you knew possessed. Embarrassingly, you found your eyes drawn to only him in every group shot. He looked good in an apron.

You got distracted by more random videos before clicking back on your drama. The next episode was just about to start when the buzzer to your apartment rang.

It was Bang Chan.

Hurriedly, you shuffled towards your door. With your hand on the handle, you took a deep breath before opening the door.

“Hey,” you smiled.

“Hey,” he smiled back. He was leaning over you, his forearm on the doorframe. His coat was bulky, almost engulfing his whole upper body. He was wearing the same beanie you saw on multiple occasions, and in his hand was a white plastic bag.

You stepped aside, silently gesturing for him to come inside. He took your hint and sauntered in the room, head turning left and right to observe his surroundings.

“It’s not much,” you blushed, realizing how small your apartment really was. You could basically see all your belongings from the center of the room.

“No, it’s cute.” Bang Chan looked at you, taking his hat off. His dimple peaked out. “I brought some leftovers from that barbecue place. The kids and I went there after our shoot today.”

So that was what the bag was. With only food on your mind, you rushed to help hang Bang Chan’s coat before setting the table up.

The food was really good. They were leftovers, but it was so good. Stuffing a bite of pork belly in your mouth, you sighed. Where was this food earlier today?

“It’s good, right?” Bang Chan asked whilst chewing on a piece of meat. “I’ll take you next time.”

It was like he read your mind. You nodded eagerly in response, to which Bang Chan replied with a smirk.

“So, uh,” he scratched the back of his neck, “how was your date today?”

You rolled your eyes, not wanting to remember that embarrassment of a night. It was such a pity too, because that man was probably the most gorgeous man you’ve ever witnessed. You swore he had just stepped out of a webtoon when you first met him.

“It was alright,” you shrugged. It was difficult to reflect on the date without putting a damper on your mood, but maybe vocalizing it would have helped ease your discomfort. “He compared me to a model, you know.”

Bang Chan chuckled, making you look up in confusion.

“Was it because you looked exactly like the model?”

“No,” you replied.

His face immediately fell. “You’re kidding, right? Y/n, tell me you don’t believe anything that loser said. He’s got to be something below garbage if he was comparing two women.”

“Thanks, Chan.” You tried to force a grin on your face. “I appreciate it.”

There was a pause.

“I know my opinion means nothing, but Y/n, I think you’re beautiful.”

You stared into Bang Chan’s eyes, frozen like a statue. Your heart was beating so loud that you could hear it more than you could feel it. He stared back at you from across the table; mouth parted, breaths uneven.

You’ve received many compliments before, to which you would always reply with a smile and a quick ‘thank you’. However, it felt as if your brain malfunctioned in this moment and your heart was the only thing keeping you alive. You could still feel your body, but you couldn’t think.

“Thank you, Chan.” You awkwardly coughed, blushing profusely. Immediately focusing your eyes at the table, you couldn’t bear to keep looking at him.

The two of you ate in silence, with only the tapping of chopsticks adding to the ambience of the room. You wanted to make conversation with him, but you did not want to be the first one to break the silence. It frustrated you that you were so shy right now as you’ve never been like this back home.

To heck with it, you thought. There was no need to be shy around him.

“So,” you still couldn’t look him in the face, “any shows you’ve been watching lately?”

Small talk was good. You could do small talk.

“Actually, I’ve been wanting to watch this Transformers movie for quite a while.”

“Transformers?” You’ve never heard of that one. It must’ve been an American movie.

“Seriously?” his eyes widened. “You’ve never seen Transformers before? Oh, we’ve gotta watch it now.”

“You wanna?” you smiled. “I haven’t used my TV since moving in.”

“Mhm, let’s do it.” He stuffed the rest of the leftovers in his mouth before standing up and clearing the table.

You watched him clear the table in a trance. You should have offered to help since it was your own home, but watching the veins on his hands appear and disappear was way more interesting. Watching him, you suddenly remembered the hoodie.

“Oh, that’s right!” You exclaimed, shuffling over to the bag with the hoodie in it. Taking Bang Chan’s black hoodie out, you held it up to him with both hands.

He looked down at you and chuckled.

“Keep it,” he took it from your hands and slipped the hoodie over your head. “At least until you buy a new jacket.”

“I will.” You rolled the sleeves of his hoodie higher to show your hands. You turned the light off, leaving only the floor lamp to illuminate your apartment. Grabbing the remote from your coffee table, you summoned Bang Chan over to the couch.

You turned on the TV, fooling around with the remote control for a few seconds before giving up.

“I give up.” You sighed. Pouting, you handed the remote over to Bang Chan. He took it from you and started reading the buttons.

“Netflix, right?” Bang Chan asked, to which you nodded. “There we go.”

He scrolled through the titles, looking for the coveted movie. Once he found the movie, he quickly selected it and turned the subtitles on. That was nice of him, you thought. Although you also studied english in university, it was nowhere near the level of watching a full english movie.

The title sequence started and you tried to immerse yourself in the movie. You watched in awe, surprised at the fast pace of the action already.

Fully engrossed, you started to sink your back into the couch. Half-way throughout the title scene, you felt Bang Chan stretch his arm behind you to rest on the back pillow. Suddenly, you started feeling too aware of your surroundings. You sat up straighter.

Throughout the whole movie, you caught wafts of Bang Chan’s cologne everytime he moved. He smelled like safety and familiarity.

You turned your head up a little to get a glimpse of his profile, mapping out every edge and curve of his face. The light illuminated the tip of his nose, along with his dewy cheekbones and chin. The plum of his lips were let slightly open, allowing his teeth to peek out slightly. You unconsciously let out a sigh.

“Something wrong?” He turned his body to face you.

You shook your head and focused on the movie.

The rest of the movie was pretty good, although it lost you at parts. You watched the end credits in silence, not knowing what to say.

“So,” Bang Chan cleared his throat beside you, “I should get going now. Since it’s late.”

You turned your head to face him, not realizing how close the two of you had physically gotten throughout the movie. Looking up at him, your face was inches away from his. His face was almost enveloped by the darkness of your apartment. You heard his breathing get heavier.

“Yeah,” you breathed out, “you should.”

He didn’t get up though.

You heard his staggered breath as you kept looking in his eyes. The end credits had long been over by now. Your own breath was just as shaky and you heard your heart beat out of your chest.

He started leaning in. Slowly.

Your eyes widened. You gulped, your nerves snapped you back to reality all of a sudden. Wasn’t he supposed to be your friend? This wasn’t what friends did… Right?

Clearing your throat, you leaned back shyly.

“You should go. I don’t want the others to notice you’re gone.”

Silence.

“Yeah.” Bang Chan’s lips flattened in a line. Without another word, he stood up and walked towards your door.

You followed him in silence, hoping to at least send him off. Wrapping your arms around your torso, you watched as he put his boots on in the dark. He tied his laces, and with a nod, he opened the door and stepped out.

You were left with a sour taste in your mouth and a cloudiness in your head. Still standing in front of your door, you tried to process what had just happened. However, you couldn’t. All you could think about was the soft curls of his hair, the delicate threads of his eyelashes, and his lips. The dusty rose of his lips. The parting of his lips. Inviting you in.

You were frozen, looking at nothing particularly. The only thing on your mind was Bang Chan.

The door opened.

“Hey, sorry, I forgot my jack-”

His sentence never got a chance to complete itself as you rushed to him, wrapping your arms around his neck. As your lips touched his, you felt a fire ignite in you like nothing you’ve felt before. Your fingers clawed at the nape of his neck, wanting more. Wanting to be closer.

Almost immediately, Bang Chan responded. He was taken by shock at first, but his hands didn’t waste any time to grip your waist. You felt the muscles of his shoulders tighten as he pulled you closer.

He moved you back into your apartment by the waist, lips never leaving your own. You blindly shuffled backwards, only focused on trying to get closer to him. If that was even possible.

You ignored the clunking of his boots against your clean floor, allowing him to guide you to the couch. A whimper left his lips as you used your hand to comb through his hair, pulling it. His soft brown curls were silk against your fingertips.

The back of your legs hit the couch and he turned you around so he could sit on the couch. Your lips finally left his. You gasped for air, trying to steady your deep breaths.

Bang Chan’s breathing was synchronized with yours, his equally as unsteady. He reached his hands out again, grabbing your waist and pulling you on top of him. You were a ragdoll, responding to whatever he wanted to do to you.

With each knee on either side of him, you gripped his jaw and kissed him again. The fire inside of you instantly reignited. It was addicting.

The two of you didn’t dare to separate from each other, only parting to gasp for air every now and then. Even in the dark, you could imagine the plum of his lips and the threads of his eyelashes. This drove the fire in you more.

“What if the boys realize you’re gone?” you breathed out the next time you parted from his lips. They were most likely sleeping, but the thought still worried you.

“Fuck them.” Bang Chan exhaled. Grabbing the back of your neck, he reconnected his lips with yours. You gladly complied.

His sloppy kisses slowly moved from your lips to your jaw, then to your neck, eliciting a soft whimper from your throat. This seemed to only edge him on as kept leaving sloppy kisses against your neck, all the while running his hands up and down your waist.

His cologne surrounded you, keeping you safe. Soon later, the adrenaline left the two of you, leaving only the sound of heavy breathing to fill the room. You brushed your thumb under his eye to which he deeply inhaled.

“Chan?” you said. He was leaving kisses all over your collarbone.

“Hmm?” He didn’t seem to pay much mind to what you were saying.

“It’s half past three. I really think you should get going.” You didn’t want him to leave, but you were almost sure he had another packed schedule for tomorrow.

“Mhmm.” Your words went in one ear and out the other as he made his way up your neck again. You couldn’t help but close your eyes and let out a small moan.

“C’mon, get up. How did you even get here, by the way?” It took everything in you to break away from his touch, but you were starting to get sleepy.

“Taxi.” He said, helping you get up from his lap. He stood up after you, brushing his hand against your waist one last time before making his way over to his jacket.

“You’re allowed to ride a taxi?” You tilted your head, sceptical.

He slipped his jacket on.

“No.” He peppered little kisses on your cheeks. “You don’t know how long I’ve wanted to do that now.”

You giggled, pushing him by his shoulders out the door. He played along, pretending to stumble with every step he took back.

“Text me when you get home,” you said, repeating what he said to you on your first day of work.

He nodded in response and winked before turning around to head home. As soon as the door shut, you slapped both hands against your face. Your little act of impulse had spun your head in spirals. You didn’t know whether to feel relieved at the fact that Bang Chan reciprocated your impulsive actions, or to worry that you had not only just kissed your coworker — but also a freaking idol. No one — not Manager Chen, your friends, or even anyone in the general public — could know about this. If they did, both your careers would be screwed.

You doted on this thought as you got ready for bed, only the worst possible outcome came to mind. If either your manager or his manager knew about what happened tonight, you could get fired. Or even blacklisted. You sat in bed, nervously biting your nails.

Your phone buzzed.

Bang Chan: Hey, I got home. Nobody’s awake… ^^

Bang Chan: Don’t think too much, alright? It’s late, go to sleep…

You felt relief reading his text. For some reason, he knew you were overthinking your actions. You decided to listen to his words and go to sleep.

The next day, Sunday, was very uneventful compared to the day before. You texted Bang Chan back when you woke up, but because of his busy schedule, he hadn’t had the time to reply yet.

Yoojin called in when you were eating lunch, asking about your date. You told her the truth, explaining how there would definitely not be a second date with that man. She sounded disappointed and vehemently tried to set you up with another man in her pool. You politely declined, thinking about your restless night with Bang Chan.

You finished some work ahead of time to free up the next week. Since you were invited to work with Manager Chen at the content shooting, you assumed that you could lessen your work stress ahead of time.

The shooting days were allocated for Friday and Saturday, with there being an overnight stay at the mountains. Whilst you didn’t know the arrangements for Stray Kids, you were informed that the production crew booked a small lodge for the team. You were excited to not only see a behind the scenes of a real shoot, but to also possibly form a closer relationship with Manager Chen.

You were thankful that you did some work ahead of time as Monday’s workload was so much lighter than usual. People were still coming to you with their ideas for the project, but with your other work done, you had the time to go through everybody’s ideas.

You didn’t hear from Bang Chan the whole day, which was nothing out of the blue. You remembered him showing his schedule to you once. The amount of things he had to do everyday had your eyes bulging out from their sockets. All of a sudden, you were thankful for your nine-to-five job.

The next couple of days ran the same way as your Monday, with you easily breezing through your workload. Since you had more time during your breaks at work, you took to exploring the part of the building that you could. You admired all the art, the trophies, the awards and memorabilia. Of course, you also spent more time with your new friend Na-eun.

On Thursday, the day before the shoot, you were helping the producers by translating some notes for the script. All was going smoothly, when you got a text.

It was from Bang Chan.

You weren’t going to lie; you were curious as to what he sent you. He was basically silent the whole week so far, and if you were being honest, you missed hearing his voice. And seeing his face. And feeling his hands brush against your waist.

Bang Chan: Come to my recording room… I’ve got something to show you.

Your eyes lit up right away, curious as to what he wanted to show you. Quickly checking the time, you decided to take your lunch break then and there. After all, you didn’t have much work left for the day anyways.

Locking up your computer, you zoomed inconspicuously past all the other cubicles and made your way to the elevators. You weaved through the hallways of his floor, praying that your memory didn’t escape you. It seemed like your memory was on your side today as you found yourself in front of a familiar set of doors. You didn’t bother to knock before going in.

Inside was Bang Chan: feet up on the desk, drinking from his iced coffee, concentrating on his producing software. You smiled. He looked so comfortable, even in an ‘office’.

He had his headset in, and didn’t seem to notice that you had entered. You went up behind him and tapped his shoulder. He turned around, and immediately threw his feet off the desk and stood up upon seeing that it was you. You smirked.

“I should really put a ‘please knock’ sign on the door.” He cursed under his breath. He reached behind you to close the door.

You giggled.

“So, what do you have to show me?” you wondered aloud.

“A new song. Since the filming is tomorrow, the producers put me on a time crunch to finish the song by today.”

So that was why he was so busy, you thought. You didn’t realize how the sudden filming would have impacted his schedule for the month. Especially since it would take up two whole days.

He let you sit in his chair, and hovered over you to press play on the song. His chair smelled like his cologne.

As he was playing the song, your eyes drifted up to see his face. The face — even after only four days — you missed. The dark circles under his eyes were prominent. That, along with his disheveled hair, told you that he truly was dedicated to his work. You imagined him sitting where you were, two in the morning, sipping on his iced americano.

“You like it?” His eyes drifted towards you, resembling a puppy bringing a ball back to its owner.

“It’s amazing. I don’t know how you managed this in just a few days,” you said. And you were sincere too. You couldn’t imagine yourself doing any of this.

“Eh, you know, late nights.” he shrugged. “Wanna see another?”

You nodded, and the two of you began listening to another one of his songs. You listened in silent wonderment.

However, the silence didn’t last long as the two of you soon found yourselves on the couch: hands all over each other, lips the same. You were lying underneath him, his arms resting on either side of you to hold his weight up. Your lips never left his as you ran your hands up and down his defined biceps.

The two of you couldn’t stay away from each other. The sound of the songs that he had put on shuffle filled the room, along with a fleeting sigh of moan every now and then. Bang Chan’s hand had started wandering up your blouse when, all of a sudden, the door opened.

“Hey, I have the lyrics h-” He stopped mid-sentence, eyes wide.

Crap.

[floralseokjin]

PBN drabble; A surprise

warnings; smidgen of angst, fluff!!  word count; 1.6k

author’s note; i know i’ve missed a lot of the in between, and i will try to catch up on those drabbles at a later date, but the need to write this was too much. it’s been an idea of mine for ages, finally had to share!! please enjoy the surprise 😘

5:15. 

Yoongi would be home any minute now. Your gut turned, a new kind of sick twisting your insides. For the past four days you’d felt awful. Throwing up a handful of times too. Yoongi was hellbent it was the steak you’d eaten on the weekend. You weren’t so sure. The restaurant you’d had it from was your favourite. You always ate there. 

No. This was a different kind of sick. You’d had food poisoning before, it was horrific. It wasn’t stomach flu either. Yoongi was fine, so it wasn’t catching. This was different. More of a constant nausea. It reminded you of carsickness. You used to suffer with that a lot when you were kid. 

You hadn’t thought much of it at first, maybe you were just tired or something, under the weather, but then Seulgi and her logic had suggested something yesterday afternoon. Maybe you were pregnant. Of course she’s been joking around, but you couldn’t shake it. What if you were?

You’d stopped taking the pill two months ago, wanting to try another form of contraception after giving your body a few months break. You’d been told your periods could be irregular to start off with, so while the first had come on time, you hadn’t thought much of the second one being late. Some of the signs had been there. Bloating, painful boobs, tiredness... just no actual period. A quick google search told you they were also early signs of pregnancy. Impossible. Surely? You’d been using a condom every single time. Although maybe they weren’t the most effective. What if one had split without you both realising? 

This morning Yoongi had already left for work by the time you’d woken up, still feeling rough. Your heart had sunk. There was only one thing left to do. Just to put your mind at ease. You needed to take a pregnancy test. Calling out of work (for the third day in a row), you’d gotten showered quickly, making the short walk to the drugstore in record time. You were being stupid, you kept telling yourself. You repeated it over and over again as you walked home. Over and over again as you rushed to the bathroom and peed on the stupid stick. There was no way you were pregnant. There couldn’t be. 

Could there? 

Waiting those three minutes for the results were the most nerve-racking (and longest) of your life, but nothing could prepare you once you saw those two pink lines. It was like your world had stopped. This wasn’t real. It couldn’t be. You immediately threw up. Whether it be from actual morning sickness, shock or panic. All three probably. 

You weren’t ready to have a baby, surely? Yes, you and Yoongi spoke about it from time to time, but it was mostly done in jest. You loved one another but that didn’t mean you were all set to have a baby. You’d been together 4 years, living together for just over one. What would he say? What would you even tell him?! 

You spent the rest of the day numb. Curled up on the sofa, the television playing to itself. You wanted to call your mom, you wanted to tell Seulgi, but you knew Yoongi should be the first to know. So alone, your thoughts orbited around all your anxieties. 

Hearing his keys in the front door, a fresh wave of nausea turned your gut. You heard him in the entry way, kicking his shoes off, his keys landing in the bowl on the little side table you’d both picked out. You’d made a home for yourselves so easily, the thought comforted you for a quick second, but then you saw his face come into view, stood in the doorway. 

“Hey,” he greeted softly, a puzzled look on his face. “I thought you were at work.” 

“I called out.” Your voice was hoarse, you hadn’t used it in a few hours. 

As you cleared your throat, Yoongi’s frown deepened. “Are you still feeling sick?” He rushed over, taking a seat next to you, an arm wrapping around your shoulders. 

You leaned your head against him, letting your eyes flutter closed. Comforted by his warmth, his smell. Maybe this whole thing wasn’t so bad. You were in this with the man you trusted most in this world. The man you loved so fricking much. He loved you too. Always had. 

“It was that steak from Bruno’s, I’m telling you.” He was adamant, stroking a hand through your hair, fingers combing through the tangles. You’d been so out of it today you hadn’t even brushed it. “We should call them up, get our money back.” 

You pressed your face into his warmth, taking one last moment for yourself before you moved, left him, creating a distance between your bodies. “It wasn’t the steak.” 

You could hear the concern in his voice when he said your name. “What’s wrong?”

You shoved a hand in your hoody pocket, fist clenching around a stick of plastic, psyching yourself up. Beside you, Yoongi rubbed your back, getting more and more worried. He chuckled awkwardly. “Come on, babe, you’re scaring me.” 

You didn’t want to scare him. You found your voice, removing the test from your pocket as you spoke. “I’m feeling sick because I’m pregnant.” 

Saying the words out loud for the first time felt weird. Yoongi stiffened up beside you, eyes wide as he stared at the test in your hand. Hesitantly he took it from you, bringing it closer. You didn’t miss the way his fingers trembled. 

“What are we going to do, Yoongi?” Your voice was a whisper. “I don’t understand how it happened. We always use protection.” 

You didn’t think he heard you, still staring at the stick. “You’re pregnant?” You nodded as he finally tore his eyes away and looked at you. You watched the beginnings of smile twitch at his mouth. “We’re going to have a baby?” 

For a moment your chest felt lighter. “If you want to,” you heard yourself say. 

This time he broke out into gummy grin. Despite still looking and sounding dazed, he seemed...happy? Excited? “Of course I want to!” He exclaimed, in his own little world as he stared at the test again. 

He was holding it in both hands now, as if it was the most interesting thing in the world. “You’re pregnant,” he pretty much awed. Your heart swelled. After feeling heavy all day it was  a very much welcomed improvement. 

“Wait–” He turned his head, suddenly realising something. “Do you want to?” Your earlier behaviour had only just dawned on him, now his forehead creased with fresh concern. 

“I’m in shock.” You answered honestly. “We didn’t plan for it. I thought maybe you’d...” You petered out. Why had you been so worried to tell him again? Taking his arm, you smiled. It felt like a weight had been lifted from your shoulders. “I want to too.” 

Suddenly you found yourself embraced in his warmth, a bear hug of sorts, Yoongi’s arms squeezing you tight. You felt his lips at your crown and closed your eyes, gripping his sweatshirt, safe and sound. 

“Shit. We’re having a baby?!” He laughed in amazement, over your shoulder. He was still clutching the test. 

“I’m fairly certain.” You chuckled, a hand rooting around inside your hoody again. “I took three tests.” In a bid to be sure, you’d driven to a drugstore ten minutes away. All three had given you the same result. You were definitely pregnant. 

Yoongi broke away, laughing at what he’d just heard, eager to see the evidence. He held them all, gazing at each line and cross and even the word ‘pregnant’ in small black font. “Fuck. How did you piss so much?” 

The laughter bubbled from your throat. Of course it did. He had that ability. No matter the situation he could always get you laughing. You were even more thankful in this moment. 

“Anxiety.” (Although, you had read it was an early symptom of pregnancy too – peeing a lot.) 

Despite your laughter, a couple of tears trickled down your cheeks. Yoongi caught them immediately. “Hey, don’t cry,” he murmured, dropping the tests in his lap to reach for your face and kiss them away. 

“They’re not sad tears,” you reassured. You hadn’t cried all day but seeing Yoongi so happy was what got you in the end. 

His eyes were still filled with concern though, pushing the hair out of your face, searching for something in your eyes.. “Were you worried about telling me?” 

“I don’t know why,” you confirmed. It seemed silly now. All your worries seemed pointless. Why had you been so scared at the prospect of raising a child? Of course you could do it. Especially with Yoongi at your side. 

Yoongi understood you. He rubbed your upper back. “I know it’s a shock but it’s not the end of the world.” You smiled thankfully, letting his words soothe you. “In fact, you could say it’s the beginning of the world.” His happy little grin got you, giggling at his lame ass line. 

He leaned in, rubbing his nose with yours. “Our world.” You cupped his face as he pressed a kiss to your mouth, letting your eyes close briefly before he pulled away. “I love you,” he sang softly. 

His eyes were twinkling, the happiness he felt obvious. “I love you too,” you sang right back. 

Chuckling under his breath he was still amazed. “We made a baby.” 

Running your fingers through his dark hair, you grinned and confirmed. “We made a baby.”

[justthehiddleswrites]

Accidently Married | Tom Hiddleston x OFC | Chapter 4 | You should worry about the people you care about. I mean, I worry about you all the time.

A/N:  Tom makes certain comments about an ex (who is unnamed).  It is a fictional girlfriend, take from it what you will.  Keep your hate to yourself.  

SERIES MASTERLIST HERE

Pairing: Tom Hiddleston x OFC (Molly Bishop)

Summary: Tom is stuck in a news cycle from hell; Molly is stuck in the dead end job of bartending with a pile of student and credit debt.  Tom has an idea to solve all their problems.  Get married, get the paparazzi off his back, divorce after a year and Tom pays off Molly’s debts.  Tom has everything figured out, that is until he sees Molly as more than a just a friend and so does someone else.  In this vying for affections who will win, the handsome Brit or the boy from Boston?

This Chapter: Molly is making friends and life is settling into a routine until Molly gets sick and Tom takes care of her.  

Warnings: fake marriage, smut (vaginal sex), mentions of:  child abuse/neglect, foster care, substance abuse, cheating.

TAGLIST IS OPEN! PLEASE LET ME KNOW IF YOU WANT TO BE TAGGED!  THANK YOU FOR READING!

–

Molly left that afternoon with two new numbers in her phone and a lunch date for next week.

“Can’t believe you are having lunch with my mother and sister without me.” Tom pouted on the way back.

“Once they heard I wasn’t working and didn’t know anyone, they insisted. Was I supposed to say no?” 

“You could have scheduled it when I could come.” 

“But you are so busy. And talented.” She poked his side. 

“I’m driving here, darling.”

“Sorry, but just one question…” They pulled up to a red light.”

“What?”

“Are you ticklish?” she attacked his side and Tom squirmed and giggled.

“You will be the death of me.” He panted as Molly stopped when the light was green.

“Note to self. Tom is very ticklish.” 

“No, no notes to self. That is something you can promptly forget.”

Molly batted her eyelashes. “But real husbands and wives would know these things about each other. We have to pull this off for an entire year, right?”

“Fine, but expect revenge.” Tom wagged a finger at Molly. 

“I’ll sleep with one eye open.” 

-

Over the next several weeks, Tom and Molly fell in a routine. The marriage certificate came in the mail and they applied for a family visa for Molly to stay there.

“I didn’t think you would want to become a citizen.”

Molly smirked. “No, not right now.”

A new debit card came in for Molly. 

“With great power…” Tom handed it over.

“Yeah, yeah, Loki.” she tucked into her wallet. “I am burdened with glorious purpose. To keep you well fed.” 

Molly had a standing date with Emma every two weeks, much to Tom’s consternation. They continued running together in the mornings. Tom, more often than not, ended it with a kiss. 

“This is becoming quite the nasty habit, Mr. Hiddleston.” she commented one morning.

“Then stop me, Mrs. Hiddleston.” He pecked her lips again. 

Molly blushed. “You just love what they are saying about us in the papers.” She pushed Tom away and towards the door. 

“I will admit the good news is definitely a perk. Plus, you are such lovely company.” He went to hug her, but she pushed him away.

“You are all sweaty, Tom. Take a shower and I will make breakfast.”

“French toast?” he asked hopefully.

“You ate the last of the bread yesterday.” 

“Pancakes?”

“I think I can swing pancakes, if…” She held up a finger. “You also eat a side of fruit.”

“Deal.” Tom headed towards his room wearing a huge grin. 

Molly shook her head as she grabbed a mixing bowl out. “Lunatic.”

-

One morning, Molly wasn’t awake when Tom got up to run. She almost always beat Tom up, sipping a cup of tea in the living room, reading a magazine or one of the books from his shelf. There was a small stack building on a side table of the ones she finished reading. But that morning, no half-drunk cup of tea perched precariously on the coffee table. No crossword puzzle half done in pen. 

Tom peaked into Molly’s bedroom. The covers, in colors of navy and grey, just like his, pulled up tight around her. There were a few prints of classic travel posters on the wall. 

“Molly, darling.” He called out. Usually that was all it took to roust Molly from her sleep and get her going for the day. Today, nothing. Tom stepped into the room. He felt like an intruder in his own home. 

“It’s time for our run, love.” He said a bit louder this time. 

Molly rolled over, groaning and coughing. Tom’s brow furrowed. He didn’t like the sound of that cough. Tom sat down on the edge of the bed and rocked Molly gently by the shoulder.

“Are you feeling okay, darling?” He hoped it was just allergies or waking up in the morning. But then she woke up.

“Uggh, Tom?” Molly croaked out before rolling onto her back. She was pale. So much more pale than usual. She coughed again, covering her mouth. 

“It’s me, Molly. Are you feeling alright?” He repeated. “That’s some cough.”

“I’m fine, fine. It’s just,” She waved him off and pushed up to sitting, only to fall back onto the pillows. “oh, that’s not good.” 

Tom placed the back of his hand to her forehead and replaced it with his lips, checking her temperature. She was running hot. 

“You have a fever. I’m making you an appointment to see the doctor.” He stood, but Molly caught his wrist. Her palm clammy against Tom’s skin.

“No! It’s just a cold. Go on your run. I’ll be fine. I just need some sleep.” She insisted.

“Are you sure? It’s no trouble.” 

“Go. I’ll be fine.”

Tom leaned down and kissed her very warm forehead. “I’ll keep it short. Go back to sleep.”

Molly nodded and rolled over. Tom tucked the covers around her and headed out. He barely made it to the end of the street before he returned home. It confirmed his fears when he stepped back inside and heard Molly coughing. Tom grabbed the phone and searched for a number and called it.

“Yes, Urgent Care? Do you have any appointments today? Name? Molly Hiddleston. Thank you.”

-

Tom helped Molly get dressed, averting his eyes when appropriate. Her entire body burned under his fingertips, but Tom noticed her shivering. She stumbled to the car where she slept the entire ride over to urgent care. Tom did his best to fill out the paperwork.

“What do you put for family history?”

“Nothing. Unless there is a place for mental illness, then check that. That’s all I know about. Mom didn’t chat much.” Molly muttered, leaning heavily against Tom. “Meth does that…” Her brow furrowed and she coughed again. 

“Shh, darling.” Tom soothed her. “Only happy thoughts.”

Molly hummed and smiled. “Happy thoughts.” More coughing. 

It took twenty minutes before they called Molly back. They didn’t let Tom back with her. He alternated between sitting with a bouncing knee, pretending to read on his phone and pacing the waiting room, making the other people nervous. After forty-five minutes, before Molly returned with several papers in her hand. She coughed again.

“Upper respiratory infection,” cough. “Along with a sinus infection and a viral infection.”

Tom smiled. “Triple threat. Let’s get you home.”

Molly’s hand, holding the papers, flopped up. “I have prescriptions and they want to see me again in two weeks. To make sure I don’t get pneumonia.”

Tom’s eyes widened. “That’s a possibility?”

Molly nodded. “It’s all in here.”

Tom took all the papers, skimming them, including a script for antibiotics as well as a cough suppressant. It all sounded grim. “Let’s get you to bed and I will take care of getting these filled.”

Molly coughed and nodded. “Thank you.” 

She fell back asleep in the car. Tom carried into the house, not having the heart to wake her up again, and settled her into his bed, which was bigger, more comfortable and the bathroom was right there. Once she was settled and asleep, he headed off to the pharmacy. While waiting in line, Tom dialed Luke. 

“Luke, is there anything absolutely pressing in the schedule for the next three days?” he asked after Luke picked up. 

“Nothing I can’t reschedule, why?”

“Molly’s ill.” He bit his lips and sighed. “The doctors are afraid it might turn into pneumonia. And I…”

“Consider your schedule cleared until Monday. And tell her I hope she feels better soon.”

“Thanks, Luke. I’m worried about her.”

“That’s because you love her, Tom. You should worry about the people you care about. I mean, I worry about you all the time.” Luke chuckled.

Tom paused at Luke’s words but pushed it away. Of course he cared for Molly. That has the tendency to happen when you live with a person for nearly three months. Especially someone as congenial as Molly. Congenial wasn’t the word. Lovely. Molly was lovely. He laughed it off. “I worry about you too, Luke. I got to go.”

“Take care of her. Bye, Tom.” 

After picking you the medicine, Tom popped into the grocery store and picked up some soup, drinks, and Molly’s favorite cookies. When he got back, she was still asleep. And still coughing. He put away the groceries and then checked on her.

“Darling, I’m back with the medicine. Time to take it.” He helped her sit up, Molly groaning the entire time. She swallowed the pill with a sip of water, gagging.

“That’s awful!” she coughed. 

“Now the cough medicine.” Tom poured out the cough syrup and handed it over to Molly. She hesitated, sniffing it first. “Take the medicine and get a biscuit.” He held up a package of cookies.

“They’re cookies. I thought I ate the last of them.” she moaned, downing the cough syrup. Her face contorted. Tom smiled and handed her two cookies. “Good girl. Now rest. I’ll check on you in a few hours.”

“Don’t you have work?” Molly muttered as she laid back down. Tom pulled the covers over her, putting the cookies on the nightstand. “You had… interviews… or something…”

“My schedule is clear through the weekend. I am at your disposal.” Tom rubbed Molly’s back, and she purred. 

“You don’t need to do that.” She half-heartedly complained, dozing off.

“And leave you to fend for yourself? What kind of husband would I be? It was no trouble. Now sleep, darling.”

“Mmm… kay.” 

-

Tom busied himself with absolutely nothing. He flitted from reading a book to watching a TV show to peeking into the bedroom. At one point, when Molly was particularly quiet, he seriously contemplated putting a mirror under her nose to just make sure he was still breathing. He managed to get her to eat half a bowl of soup. 

“You need to eat, love.” he scolded.

Molly coughed and croaked. “Says the man who considers chocolate a food group.” 

“Look at that, some humour.” Tom smiled. “Eat please.”

“Yes, sir.” She slurped the soup off the spoon before falling back asleep. 

Tom, worried, did the unthinkable. He called his mum for advice.

“She’s coughing. A lot. And all she does is sleep.” Tom ran his hands through his hair. 

“Is she eating, love?” Diana asked. Tom could feel the smile across the phone.

“A bit, but not as much as usual. I brought her soup.”

“Soup is good. And she is taking her medicine?”

Tom nodded. “I set a timer.”

“Of course you did. And the fever?”

Tom blinked. “What about her fever?”

“Has it broken?”

“I don’t—”

“Tom!” Molly’s bedraggled voice called out.

“I gotta go. She needs me.” Tom hung up the phone and sprinted to the room. 

“Molly! What is it?” He noted she was shivering.

“I’m cold.” she chattered. Tom grabbed the blanket at the foot of his bed. 

“Is that better?” He tucked it under Molly’s chin. Tom touched her forehead. Hot.

“Much.” 

“I’ll let you rest.” He patted her shoulder and stood. Molly reached out for him.

“Stay.” She coughed. “At least until I fall asleep. Please lie down. Just five minutes.”

Tom’s heart broke in that moment for Molly. That confident woman he grew so fond of seemed so small in that moment.

“Of course, I’ll stay. Anything for you.” Tom crawled on top of the covers next to Molly. He laced his fingers in hers. He heard her exhaled, and he exhaled too. 

“Sleep well, darling.” But Molly had already fallen asleep. Tom soon followed.

-

Molly woke the next morning in sweat soaked pajamas and on top of drenched sheets. She still coughed, but her fever was gone. As she blinked her eyes open, Molly realized she wasn’t in her bed, but Tom’s. And Tom was there too. Asleep next to her, fully dressed, holding her hand. She had vague memories of Tom bringing her soup and her asking him to stay. And some very not safe for work dreams. 

“Fever dreams.” she muttered. “Tom…” Molly rocked his shoulder.

“Huh?” Tom sat up. “I guess I was more tired than I thought.”

“It’s hard to be a nurse. I think your sheets may need washing.” she smiled.

Tom pressed his lips to her forehead. “No fever.” His spirits lifted. 

“It must have broken last night.”

“Feeling better?” he asked.

“Yes.” 

Tom noticed their hands still laced together. He let go and stood up. He made a poor attempt at smoothing out his sleep wrinkled clothes. “Up to move to the couch? And maybe some movies?”

“I would like that.” She slowly sat up and got out of bed. “But first a shower.”

Tom frowned. “First medicine, then shower.”

“Nurse Ratched.” Tom didn’t smile or budge. Molly sighed. “Fine, medicine, the shower.”

Tom grabbed the bottles and dispensed the medicine, which she took still gagging. “And a biscuit.” He handed her a cookie. 

“Cookie.” She popped it into her mouth and headed off to her room and Tom went to his own bathroom. 

-

Once they were both showered and dressed, Tom popped his sheets into the laundry and made a makeshift bed on the couch for Molly.

“You pick the movie.” she offered. “That way if I fall asleep, you won’t be bored.” 

Tom picked The Jungle Book. “One of my favorites as a child. I still watch it when I feel under the weather.”

“I don’t think I have seen it.”

Tom’s mouth fell open. “That is a travesty.”

Molly shrugged her shoulders. “You know, group homes, foster care…”

Tom stopped. “Well, we are going to watch this right now and you can listen to the vocal genius that is George Sanders as Shere Khan.”

“More of a vocal genius than you?” Molly raised an eyebrow while she settled onto the couch. 

Tom blushed. “A man-cub, how delightful.” He purred deep in his chest, sending shivers through Molly.

By the end of the movie, Molly’s head was in Tom’s lap and his hand in hers. They watched Disney movies for the rest of day, alternating picking the title. Tom made sure she took her meds on time and ate more than just cookies.

“I will eat a meal if you do.” Molly chided.

They both ate soup and Tom also ate a sandwich. It was late when they finished up Robin Hood. Molly stretched and sat up.

“I should go to bed.”

“I can put the sheets back on the bed.” Tom moved, but she stopped him, squeezing his hand.

“My bed. But I will keep the door open so you can spy on me.” She smirked. “I can’t take your bed again.”

“It’s fine if you did. I don’t mind sharing.”

“I know but…” She glanced away. “We should keep our own space. To keep things from getting complicated.”

Tom nodded. “Right. No complications here.” he lied to her and to himself.

Molly hugged Tom tight. “Thank you for everything, Tom.”

“My pleasure.”

She coughed a bit as she headed off to her room. Tom turned off the TV and cleaned the dishes before going to bed himself. He spent most of the night tossing and turning.

[that-bi-bitch-writes]

A Cursed Reality-JJK x M!Reader (Ch.2)

Question: Do you guys prefer longer chapters or shorter chapters? I’ve been making an effort to write longer chapters but if you hate reading them I’ll write them less.

Warnings: fluff, comparison of Inumaki’s speech to a disability/handicap, cursing. Dislike of Maki (Not me. wrong bitch. I love her)

Previous || Next

Chapter Two:

[Name] actively dislikes hanging out with the second years. Not that they’re bad people in any way, it’s just he’s anxious and awkward, and even after spending a year familiarizing himself with the school and the people in it, there’s like a small group of people he would invite to his birthday party.

That and he just doesn’t care for Maki Zen’in. And it is most definitely mutual. To him, she’s just pretty. She also won’t die in a battle between her and a curse below first grade. But that’s about the end of her appeal. Of course, Panda is fun to tease but he typically plays the peacemaker between the second years. [Name] would rather not care about people in peace.

There’s no dramatic reason to it all, it’s just [Name] didn’t really come to Jujutsu Tech by choice so he hadn’t intended on making friends. He obviously failed considering he befriended Inumaki within his first day and they have some homoromantic vibes going on in their friendship.

That’s not to say you can’t platonic cuddle with your best friend but when you longingly gaze into each other’s eyes and he’s the only friend you’ve made besides an annoyingly hyper 30-year-old because no one else understands you like he does… And it kind of goes both ways considering you’re the only person he trusts himself enough to have a full-on conversation with.

Yeah, it’s not looking very good for the argument that they’re not gay. They’re not though. At least not now.  

“[Name]”

“Yeah toge?”

“You look like you’ve got something on your mind” Inumaki responded. And although he had plenty of experience saying words, having a conversation without using safe words felt a little weird. It was an aspect of who he was now and [Name] being immune to the cursed speech wouldn’t erase the problems he had with talking and it didn’t make [Name] his savior or soulmate.

Luckily [Name] was both lonely and not a complete asshole because he had no problems adapting to the switch between Toge’s ‘onigiri glossary’. Learning it was actually a really fun experience because it turns out Inumaki did not have the exact translation of all his safe words. He would just say an ingredient and [Name] had to fill in the blanks. There was a lot of trial and error and a lot of [Name] smiling down at Inumaki’s concentrated face.

“I was just thinking.” [Name] broke the contemplative silence.

“Hmm”

“You know” [Name] started again “... They say it was believed people kept their souls in their throats” and as Inumaki gave a confused denial (“fish flakes”) [Name] was internally panicking on whether or not he should keep going with this specific train of thought or make a joke to deflect from the very real and emotional but corny statement he was about to utter.

“Ah fuck it. I want to exercise the curses in the world or at least enough to keep you safe so you don’t keep damaging your soul when you use your cursed technique”

“Sujiko”

[Name] looked at Inumaki. And as if breaking off pieces of his soul didn’t matter to him, Inumaki spoke, a short sentence that stunned [Name] into silence

“I love you”

If Gojo hadn’t come in, they might’ve kissed.

“[Name]-kun!!!”

Aaaand [Name]’s sentimental mood was gone. Don’t get him wrong, Gojo definitely would get an invite to [Name]’s birthday party, but the man was like 30 running around being overly cheerful and with that teasing nature he was definitely repressing some trauma. He also definitely had some of the worst timing

“What is it Gojo?”

“No sensei at the end? So mean!

“Fushiguro was sent out to find a cursed object but he’s been out all day with no calls back home or anything. Of course I plan on going to check on my beloved student, but I am busy for the next hour or so. Can you please check on him? For your favorite sensei?”

“My favorite sensei is actually Nanami and he’s not even a sensei but yeah I’ll check on the emo kid”

‘You’re pretty emo yourself dude’ Gojo thought to himself

“Ah Thank you [Name]-kun. You’re a lifesaver” Gojo called out behind him as he left to do whatever it is crazy white haired ‘old’ men do.

‘He’s/I’m totally not doing this for free’ both [Name] and Inumaki thought at the same time.

[Name] got up suddenly and started getting ready to leave paying no attention to Inumaki who watched him get ready with a casual interest. Before [Name] headed out, he turned to look at Inumaki with a serious and concentrated expression.

“Toge.”

“I love you”

“What the hell happened here?”

“....”

“Fushiguro-kun, if you please”

“Well I only know half of the story so it’s best if we hear it from Itadori”

All eyes whipped to the shirtless Yuji who had just gotten control of his body back from Sukuna, the apparent king of curses.

“I’d say it started when I went to school this morning but I think it started a little earlier for Fushiguro. Right Fushiguro?” Yuji asked

‘I swear I’m going to explode if someone doesn’t tell me the how we got this far I mean Fushiguro is bleeding from his head, this pink haired enthusiastic kid is possessed and I can’t tell if he’s too sweet to care or if he lost a few of his brain cells when he and the little emo first year wrecked this building’ [Name] thought to himself.

Clearing his throat he began “Well okay Fushiguro has a lot of really bad injuries so is it okay with you if he just quickly shares his part and then you take over?”

“Ohh Yeah that makes sense” Itadori awed and both he and [Name] turned their attention to poor Megumi who was bleeding from his forehead.

“Yesterday I was sent to retrieve a special grade cursed object and when I got there it was gone. Gojo sensei told me I couldn’t go home until it was recovered. The next day I stalked around the school and investigated when I saw Yuji for the first time.”

“Oh I remember that. It’s my turn to take over now. Uhh. I was in the occult club with my senpais Sasaki and Iguchi and we were asking the spirits about which animal the Student Council President was weaker than ( a fish) and then he burst in the room because he didn’t approve of our club-”

“Fast forward please” [Name] interrupted

“Fushiguro found me after my grandpa died and told me Iguchi and Sasaki were in danger because of the finger so I led him to the school where they said they were going to peel off the seal”

“And that’s why we’re here” [Name] surmised

“So what’s the situation”

“Gojo-sensei”/ “Old Man what are you doing here?” Megumi and [Name] called out

“I wasn’t gonna come but the higher ups got involved. I knew you’d all be fine though, I sent [Name] here to deal with it.”

“That’s true” Fushiguo mumbled

“I’m glad you all have faith in me” [Name] started “But that means I came here for absolutely nothing”

“... So did you find it?” Gojo asked

“Um sorry.... I ate it”

Gojo who didn’t hear the whole introduction and [Name] who didn’t quite get to the eating of the finger part in the story turned to Yuji in shock

“For real”

“For real”

“Haha you’re not kidding. They’re combined. How does your body feel?” Gojo asked Yuji

“Okay”

“Can you switch to Sukuna?”

“Sukuna?” Yuji asked

“The curse object you ate”

“Oh yeah. Probably”

“Ten seconds” gojo said “Take control again after ten seconds”

“I dunno about this”

“Don’t worry. I’m the strongest Jujutsu sorcerer”

Megumi looked to [Name] after hearing a curious “hmm” but [Name]’s face showed no anger or displeasure.

“Megumi hold onto this will ya” Gojo’s voice bled through Megumi’s thoughts of who would win between [Name] and Gojo. Give it a year or two and it might actually be [Name].

“What’s this?” Megumi asked

‘It better be a fucking weapon’ [Name] thought ‘Because if he sent me out because his important business was shopping he’s gonna regret it’

“Kikufuku Mochi” Gojo replied casually before feeling bloodlust leaking from [Name]. He’ll just have to make it up to the second year somehow

“Behind you” Fushiguro called out and [Name] sucked his teeth hoping Gojo would get hit at least once. He did not get his wish once

“I’ve got a student watching so..I hope you don’t mind if I show off a little bit” . And after that Gojo commenced kicking Sukuna’s ass. Sukuna tried to monologue a little as he sent out a powerful attack, but he missed Gojo on account of Gojo’s infinity dispelling the attack. By the time Sukuna realized Gojo was unharmed it was time for Yuji to switch back.

“Oh was everything okay?” Yuji asked as he came to his senses.

“Oh what a surprise” Gojo responded “You really can control it”

“Yeah, but he’s kind of annoying”

“It’s a miracle that’s the only side effect” Gojo said right before knocking Yuji out with one finger

“If he wakes up and isn't possessed, he might have potential as a vessel. Okay question for you two. What do I do with him?”

“Even if he is a potential vessel… He must be executed under jujutsu regulations…

“But I don’t want to let him die”

“Is that a personal opinion? Gojo asked

“Yes, a personal opinion. Please do something about it.

Gojo smiled and the two of them turned their attention towards [Name] who had been silent throughout the whole experience.

‘Besides being a little too excitable, he’s not bad. Like a puppy. I’d keep him as a pet.’ [Name] thought

“Don’t kill him” he said

“A precious student's request. And one from my favorite second year? Of course. Leave it to me!” Gojo said before lifting Yuji up.

[Name] still a little upset he was called away for nothing, raised his hand in front of his mouth so gojo couldn’t see what he was doing and whispered

“Fall over”

“Aak! [Name]-kunnn”

Fushiguro was shocked to see Gojo faceplant on the ground with Yuji on his shoulder. If the combination of Fushiguro’s wide eyed expression and the sight of Gojo in pain made [Name] giggle a little, he’d never admit it.

[miss-melon]

Hey!! Can I please request Mondo with a fem! Reader who's in the midst of depression and struggling to look after herself. Thank you so much💕💕

Absolutely anon, I know this struggle personally and I want to make sure I do this request for you. 💕

REQUEST: Mondo with a fem! S/O who has depression

‼️TW: DEPRESSION‼️

“Ugh...” you mumbled as you woke up. The time has come for you to start another miserable day on this godforsaken planet. You grunted and just sat down in your bed for what felt like hours. You didn’t have the motivation to get up, you never did. You don’t even remember the last time you ate. Maybe two? No, three days ago? Well, aside from some skittles that just so happened to be sitting on your nightstand. Nothing really mattered to you, every time you tried to get out of bed to go do something as simple as taking a shower, you just gave up and laid back down. You just didn’t care about anything anymore. A lot of time passed consisting of you just sitting in bed staring at the ceiling when your phone started buzzing. You looked over for a second and just shrugged it off. A few minutes went by and more notifications came in. You sighed and grabbed the phone and saw that you had some texts from your boyfriend, Mondo Owada.

Mondo: hey doll I haven’t heard from ya in a little while and I know you’ve been in a rough state of mind so I just wanna know if you’re doing okay

Mondo: Y/N please answer i’m getting super fucking worried over here

Mondo: please answer me baby I need to know that you’re alright

Mondo: im coming over

You put your phone down and continued to sit in bed waiting for Mondo to arrive. Mondo has been your boyfriend for a long time and while he was a big, strong and intimidating guy, he always had a soft spot for you. He treated you like a princess and always tried to be there for you when you were having a rough time. You used to always tell him when you were having a bad mental health day, but recently you just stopped. You didn’t really care if he payed attention to you anymore. At least, that’s what you always tried to tell yourself, truth is, you really wanted him to be your knight in shining armor but you didn’t want to be a burden to him.

After about 20 minutes you heard him unlock your door. You sat in your bed and waited for him to find you, when he opened the door he looked at you with worry and his jaw dropped. “Jesus Christ Y/N... when was the last time ya fuckin’ ate somethin’?” You shrugged at his question. “I had some skittles yesterday but besides that i’m not sure...” Mondo buried his face in his hands. “Have you seriously not been taking care of yourself all this time? You’re fucking joking right?!” He said with his voice full of emotion. His words startled you and also made you feel awful, you looked down in shame. “I-i’m sorry Mondo...” You suddenly felt a pair of strong arms wrap around you followed by a kiss on the head. “Hey, i’m sorry for losing my cool, I just- i’m just so fucking worried about you... I love you so much and it kills me to see you like this.”

Mondo had never really shown this side of himself before, you were taken aback. He never liked to show this much emotion in front of anyone because he always liked to keep up his strong and manly persona. You realized that if he was willing to act like this around you that he genuinely really did care about you a lot. After a couple seconds of him holding you, you heard quiet sobs coming from his direction. Mondo was... crying? You were even more stunned, you knew that he loved you but not this much, you never thought you were worthy of love so now that someone was expressing it to you, you were super overwhelmed with every emotion in the book. You began to silently cry with him as you crawled into his lap and clung onto him like a baby koala. You two just held each other for a while until Mondo finally spoke up. “Now, how about we order some food or somethin’? I’m gonna stay here with you today.” You looked at him and nodded. “I love you Mondo.” You said quietly. Mondo tightened his grip on you and whispered. “I love you too babydoll.”

THE END.

_______________________________________________

I really wanted to make this story special because this subject hits super close to home. I put a lot of work into this and I hope you enjoy it. 💕

[thenextchapter22]

Stuffies

PART 3! Sick Cuddles!

Description: You are in sick and need of lot of hugs and cuddles!

or….adventures and cute stories with a reader/MC who carries stuffed animals around all over Devildom.

Pairing(s): NONE!

Word Count: 2,436

Link to my AO3: Click Here

Author’s Notes:  So sorry for the long wait, I am super happy to be writing again! Enjoy the fluff~

Part One Part Two

_+_

This was the worst ever. You would think the common cold had no place in the Devildom but how wrong you were.

You coughed into your forearm and groaned. “Whyyy me,” you moaned.

Lucifer sighed. “Because you decided to go on a midnight stroll with Mammon. With no coat, might I add.”

You glared halfheartedly at him, but he glared ten times stronger back. He was too powerful. You sniffled and melted back into your bed, laying against a stack of stuffed animals and fluffed up pillows. Everything was sore, and you were freezing. So cold that even the multitude of fluffiness around you did nothing.

The Avatar of Pride hovered over you, his arms crossed and stern looking. “Just rest for now. I have Solomon preparing some medicine that you’ll be able to take.”

You stiffened. “So-solomon…?”

He chuckled. “Don’t worry. While his food is terribly inedible, he is one of the best potion makers we have around. I trust him in this.”

“You won’t let me die, will you Luci?” you said, then sneezed violently. So bad your entire head shook.

He made a disgusted face, but afterward he nodded at your question. “I won’t let you die.”

You reached a hand out, clenching and unclenching it, and whispered, “Come here.”

Lucifer looked a little scared at first, because Lucifer did not seem to like anything to do with colds at all, but he did lean down, probably feeling bad for you. So you took your chance and grabbed his oversized sleeve and tugged. He wasn’t ready for that and stumbled into your bed, and you held on to him like he was a giant stuffie. You hummed at his warmth.

“What are you doing!?” he shouted, struggling immediately. He was clearly not trying to hurt you but also trying to get out of your clutches. He pulled back far enough to be able to look at your sickly expression and furrowed his brows.

You shushed him, “My head hurts, I’m cold, just snuggle me for a bit… please?” Being sick was awful, and all you wanted was a hug. Couldn’t he allow you that much?

Lucifer was the only brother you hadn’t gotten a pact from yet, so you couldn’t exactly force him (not like anyone else would reject your hugs, especially Belphie or Asmo).

Lucifer was stiff and looking out of place in his full outfit while you were in pajamas and a haphazard blanket thrown over you. Still, soon enough he sighed for the umpteenth time as he looked at your face, which you hoped showed the misery you were feeling. “I will allow you ten minutes. That is all I will allow, understand?”

That was plenty enough time, you would no doubt fall asleep by then. He hummed. His hand came to rest on your lower back a moment later. Then he scooted backwards until he was sitting partially up on the bed, and you lay in his lap instead.

You smiled and pulled your blanket over yourself more and pressed your face into his chest, feeling his body heat start to overcome your own coldness. “Thank you.”

“Rest now. Your medicine will be here soon.”

You fell asleep to his soft touches on your head and back, warm and comforted.

_+_

“Noooo…” you cried. You clutched to your chest Po and avoided the spoonful of medicine being pushed at you. “It stiiiinks…”

Solomon sighed. Luke laughed. They both came by to check on you, and Solomon to drop off the potion. It wasn’t going so well for you at all. But, Luke was like an cuddle bug and because he was an Angel this sickness couldn’t get to him so you could snuggle him, too. He currently lay beside you, giggling.

“You have to drink it, or you won’t get any better,” Solomon said. He tried to push the spoon at you again, but you pursed your lips together and moved your head.

“I can just sleep it off, please don’t make me,” you sniffled.

Luke pet your arm. “Solomon, isn’t there any other way?”

“No, Luke, she has to drink this. Twice a day. For the next three days.”

You sobbed. “Why meee…”

The door burst open, and in came Beel. His twin was being dragged right behind him. “I heard you were sick. Are you eating?”

Belphie yawned. “I can put you to sleep, too,” he murmured. He took a seat on the other side of the bed, and over took your pillows and stuffies. You let him, he was warm and smelled like chamomile and it was comforting.

The sorcerer in the room sighed from where he stood at your bedside, hovering with a potion bottle in one hand and spoonful of the same substance in the other. He looked frustrated, but that didn’t mean you felt sympathy. You were not taking that stuff. “She just needs to drink this and go to bed. A little help would be great,” he said dryly.

Beel frowned at the potion. “It smells.”

You nodded sadly.

“But if she has to,” Beel continued.

You gasped. “Beel, no!” You were betrayed.

Belphie chuckled. “Here we go.”

What did that mean?

Suddenly, Beel was on the bed on his knees. You were so shocked you gasped, and in that shock he had taken the spoon from Solomon and shoved it between your open lips. You tried to move away before anything could happen, but his hand held the back of your head and his hand was so big and he was so strong you were defeated.

You swallowed, and then cried. Belphie and Luke both hushed you and pet your head and arms, Beel getting off the bed and doing the same.

“That—was—icky!” you cried. Your mouth tasted like sour candy, and you hated sour candy.

Beel shushed you. “You did such a good job,” he said. He put his hand on your forehead, and it was hot. “You need to rest, your fever is high and you need to sleep. Belphie?”

“On it,” the younger twin said.

You were put on your side, Belphie behind you, and Luke took this as his time to move. He frowned at you but let the twins do their job. Still, he handed you Po, who had fallen off the bed, and you thanked him.

Belphie’s voice was in your ear, and you couldn’t recall what he was saying exactly but the intention was clear: go to sleep. And you did, with a terrible taste in your mouth.

_+_

“She looks so pale, poor lovely,” Asmo pouted.

“We should give her something to eat,” Beel said.

“Can she even eat?” Mammon asked.

“Of course she can, dufus,” Satan responded. “She can have broths and tea, and probably some crackers and juice. And of course she needs to rehydrate so lots of water.”

You felt surrounded and like a Zoo animal. You were laying on the common room sofa, having had 2 days of drinking Solomon’s nasty potion and lots of bedrest. Lucifer gave you permission to leave the bedroom as long as you stayed in this one room.

So of course, everyone came to see you. You came in around noon after waking up late, and had been in here quietly for a few hours before they came home from RAD.

“Ah, she looks so cute with her stuffed doggy, though, doesn’t she?”

You whimpered when Asmo said that, and pressed your face into Fido’s belly. He just cooed again. You didn’t know what it was, but right then you just wanted to be left alone and to breathe. You’d been cramped in your room for so long and now you felt cramped again. You felt a tear slip out of your eye, and tried to push yourself further into the couch.

“Enough. She needs to rest still. You all need to stop hovering around her and speaking as if she is not there.”

Lucifer came in the room and Simeon was behind him with a tray. The Angel had come over to check up on you and make sure you were taking your medicine as Solomon was out on an errand for Diavolo as of yesterday.

The brothers mumbled but moved away, wandering around the room.

“Sit up, please,” Simeon asked gently. You did, with some help from him maneuvering your blankets and pillows. He gently wiped at your cheek from the little tear drops that fell, and gave you a soft smile. “Here you go, darling,” he said, setting down over your lap a tray with warm soup and water. There was also a cup of steaming tea that smelled of honey.

“This is the last one and you have to take it.” Lucifer handed a potion bottle to Simeon along with a spoon, the Angel having taken a knee beside you. “She won’t do it herself, so you must force it on her.”

You glared at Lucifer, and he just raised a brow back but you saw a small smirk on his lips. He was not wrong…

Looking around at the brothers doing little things, Satan pretending to read, Asmo looking at his reflection in his hand held mirror but occasionally looking over at you, Beel and Mammon talking but pausing and glancing over at you and then acting all flustered when they saw you noticing them. It was overwhelming, and you still felt a little embarrassed being sick and fussed over like this.

You grabbed Fido and squeezed him for comfort.

Simeon hummed. “They’re just worried, lamb.”

You nodded. “I know, I’m just…”

“Tired? Wanting to be well again?” he guessed.

You nodded again. “Yeah…”

“Poor dear.” He pet your hair from your cheeks, and felt your forehead. “Still a bit warm, but you shouldn’t have a fever as of tomorrow.” He held out the spoonful of terror with an angelic smile. “One more, okay?”

You sniffled. “Okay…” You let him spoon feed you the potion, and you swallowed it with a grimace. He gave you water and you swished it around to which Simeon just laughed. “Ugh.”

Lucifer took the potion back from him. “Drink your tea and eat the soup. What you can’t stomach tell Mammon take away, this is partly his fault after all.” He titled his head at Mammon, who fussed but agreed. “And drink all the water as well, you’re obviously dehydrated.”

“I will, I promise.”

Lucifer gave his nod of acceptance. “Good girl. Simeon, let’s leave her be. She’ll be watched by my brothers for now.”

Simeon bid you a soft goodbye and a get well soon. Then it was time to eat. You struggled a bit, but ate half the soup and drank all the water. The tea was nice and tasted good, felt good on your throat, too.

Beel helped you settled back down while Mammon took the tray away. You thanked Beel for adjusting your blankets and pillows so they were fluffed up. He said, “I do it for Belphie’s bed all the time. Sometimes he forgets, and his neck hurts the next day.”

Satan glanced over at the tray before Mammon took it to set on a table in the corner of the room. “Not bad,” the blonde demon said. He quickly took a spot at the end of the sofa, and put your feet in his lap. “You should have eaten more, but that will do I suppose.”

You giggled when he tickled your ankle. “I’m full, Satan, I can’t eat anymore.”

Asmo half sat at the head of the couch, and he started to play with your hair. “Don’t force her to have any more or she might throw up.”

You tilted your head to let Asmo begin braiding your locks. “Mmm…” It was luring you into sleep, the soft touches on your scalp. Also the full stomach helped with that.

Asmo smiled down at you. “Go to sleep, dear,” he said. “The best medicine is a full 8 hours of beauty sleep~”

“No it isn’t,” Mammon said, leaning over the couch. “The best medicine is laughter.”

“Well, are you going to tell her a joke then?” Satan asked.

They proceeded to argue back and forth, and you yawned. There wasn’t time to ask them to stop, because sleep was coming fast. “Goo’night.”

They stopped arguing, and gave you soft ‘goodnights’ of their own. Even though it was 4 in the afternoon… And you went to sleep just like that.

When you woke up that night, you had been put back into your bed. Beside you lay your favorite trio of stuffies, Louie, Po, and Fido, and on the nightstand was a glass of water. You reached for the water and drank it all.

The clock said it was an hour past midnight. You were sleepy, but not from the sickness. In fact, you felt much better. But you wanted to cuddle someone…

You crept out of you room, after grabbing the smallest stuffie, Louie, to take, and knocked on Levi’s door. He was the one up at this hour a lot just like Lucifer.

“Password?”

You smiled and gave it. He heard your voice and opened the door, and was shocked to see you. “I—are you still sick, are you okay? Do you need anything? Water, or maybe some more tea? Lucifer told me that tea makes your throat feel better when humans are sick—”

“Levi,” you stopped him before he really rambled. You reached for him and hugged him. “Can I sleep in your tub-bed with you?”

He flinched, but then relaxed and hugged you back. “S-sure, c-come on it. I wasn’t going to bed soon because I have a game releasing in an hour but I can still cuddle you?”

You hummed, that sounded nice. “’kay…”

He climbed into his tub first, and then reached for you to lift you up and lay you in with him. Sometimes you forgot how strong he was. It took some expert maneuvering but you found a spot right between his shoulder and neck and snuggled in, Louie tucked in your arm. It was soft and warm. He put a fleece blanket over you both and that was even better.

Levi’s hand went up and down your back. “Sleep, little one,” he said, unlike him in the moment. He pet your hair and a soft rumble came from his chest.

The blue light from his fish tanks gave you a strange comfort and it lulled you to sleep along with his caresses. You did hate being sick, but all the cuddles were a big benefit.

[delaber]

Late

Rafael Casal x Reader

Note: this is my first time writing a fluffy fic. Also my first time writing about pregnancy. I usually stay the hell away from both but this request was just too sweet. Thank you @lonelydance. Let me know what you guys think!

Words: 2.2K

Warnings: pregnancy fic obviously.

Tagging: @exrthangel @theatrenerd86​ @lonelydance​ @ohsoverykeri​ @summerofsnowflakes​ @ramp-it-up​ @alexander-hamilhoe​ @honeysucklechocolatedrippin​​ @riiyy​​ @mysearchforgratification​ @janthony-stan @sillyteecup​ @biafbunny​ @einfachniemand​​

It had started out innocently; you had only taken a small handful of the mozzarella cheese and it was just to get your screaming appetite to calm down, but before you had really had time to stop yourself, you had snacked the entire bag.

"Woops," you mumbled to yourself as you realised that you were standing with an empty bag in hand, still chewing on the last bit of cheese. Frantically, you searched the fridge, but quickly remembered that you had only bought one bag and that there was nothing to put on top of the homemade pizzas you had promised Rafa. You cast a sidelong glance towards the sofa where your boyfriend was breathing heavily in his sleep. He had been stressed from work all week and you hated that you had to wake him up and send him to the store for more cheese for the third night in a row - but he had been the one to insist on only buying one bag at a time after all.

As silently as possible, you tiptoed over to him, careful not to wake up Mía who was snoring beside you on the kitchen floor. She had been following you around all day - for some reason highly alert - without straying further away from you than a couple of feet. Although she was very cute, she had also been very annoying. Luckily, you managed to tiptoe your way out of the kitchen and into the living room without waking her.

You sat down next to Rafa on the sofa and ran a hand through his hair, "Wake up, love," you kissed his forehead.

He shuffled a little, his eyes fluttering briefly before his eyelids fell back down, "five more minutes," he mumbled sleepily, "I just need to wake up. I'm so tired..."

"I know love," you ran your fingers through his hair one more time.

"Come here," he said and pulled you down to him, nuzzling against your neck, "mmmmh you smell so nice..."

You kissed his knuckles and pushed your backside up against his chest as you enjoyed the heat radiating off him. His lips quickly found your shoulder and he kissed you softly before he slipped a hand under your shirt and gently cupped your breast.

You yelped loudly at his touch and pulled away from him, apparently waking up Mía in the process. She came running into the living room, immediately by your side with a small growl.

"Am I not allowed to touch you anymore?" Rafa mumbled and kissed your neck, while Mía was snarling slightly on the floor in front of you.

"Of course you are. I'm just really sore today," you whispered and let Mía lick your arm to try and calm her down, "I don't know if I bruised a nipple or something."

"Oh, I'd love to give you an examination," Rafa smirked against your neck, "but in the meantime I'll just enjoy my other friend," his fingers pinched your other nipple.

"Aw fuck, Rafa! That's really sore too!" You said loudly, making Mía bark.

Rafa sat up straight and looked down at you, "babe, are you okay?" he asked, concern flooding his voice.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just really sore," you said, carefully examining your breast with one hand while using the other to nuzzle Mía behind her ear to get her to stop barking.

"Do you need me to get you something?" Rafa asked, ignoring Mía completely.

"No I'm fine -" you hesitated but was reminded of your snacking problem, "actually... We kinda might've run out of cheese for the pizzas."

"I bought an entire bag yesterday," he arched an eyebrow at you.

"I - uhm - I accidentally ate it all."

"You ate it all?" He chuckled, "babe, I don't mind your snacking but you're eating all of our groceries these days. What's going on with you?"

"I guess I'm just really snack-ish," you laughed and got up from the sofa, determined to finish prepping for the pizzas. Mía was silently following close by.

"Alright, I'll run to the store," Rafa said as he walked over to the closet in the hallway and pulled on a pair of sneakers and his jacket. He took a look at Mía and decided to pull out her leash too.

"Mía," he whistled and waited patiently.

Mía was sitting on the floor beside you, and when she heard Rafa call her name, she turned her head slightly, shot him a lazy look but otherwise didn't move a muscle.

"Mía!" Rafa tried one more time, and even pulled out a small treat for her, but she didn't budge.

"What's the matter with you, girl," Rafa walked to her and put her on the leash, slightly tugging her towards the front door. Mía started barking like crazy and didn't move her legs at all, causing Rafa to accidentally pull her across the floor as she slid on her paws, "what the hell is the matter with you?!" He exclaimed, "you love going outside!"

He let go of the leash, and watched Mía take a few fast-paced strides back towards the kitchen, wagging her tail vigorously when she resumed her position next to you.

"Aw, boo," you said and petted her, "you don't want to leave me, do you?"

"She's been acting crazy all week," Rafa ran a hand through his beard, "did you notice? She stays close to you and she'll barely let me touch you."

"No," you laughed, "are you sure you're not just making this up because you're jealous that your two girls are getting along so well?"

"No, I'm serious," he said and took a step closer to you, "come here, I'll show you," he said and put his hands on your ass, giving it a light squeeze.

At the touch, Mía started barking once more but stopped as soon as Rafa stepped away from you.

"Look," he said and repeated his movements while Mía resumed her barking whenever he put his hands on you.

"What's up with you, girl?" Rafa said and petted Mía behind her ear, "you're being crazy. I can touch you but I can't touch my girlfriend? Are you jealous or something?" He mumbled.

He picked up the leash, stood up straight and started tugging on Mía once more. Still, her legs didn't budge.

"Here, let me try," you said and took the leash from Rafa's hands. "Come Mía," you said softly, and started walking towards the front door with Mía trodding loyally along beside you.

"Crazy dog," Rafa mumbled behind you.

"Aw boo," you laughed when you turned around and saw Rafa's crestfallen face, "are you sad you're not the alpha anymore?"

"No, I'm wondering if I should take her to the vet. Could you keep an eye on her while I run to the store? I'm not going to force her to come along, but if she's still weird when I come home later, I'm acting on it," he said and walked over to you with intentions of giving you a goodbye kiss.

Mía started snarling the minute he was within a two-foot radius from you.

"Okay Mía, you ass," he mumbled in defeat as he stepped away from you and out the door.

"You're being silly," you petted Mía when you were finally alone and went back into the kitchen to make your famous pizza sauce.

You were opening a can of tomatoes when a horrible stench hit you like a truck. Something in the kitchen was smelling all sweet and warm and for some reason, it made you nauseous. Had the can of tomatoes gone bad? Anxiously, you inched your face closer to the open can and gave it a small sniff. Without warning you felt the heartburn, the taste of sour stomach acid thick in your mouth. It was disgusting and you had to leave the kitchen to get away from the stench of the tomatoes. Mía followed you to the bathroom were you retched and emptied the contents of your stomach. You coughed a few times and noticed Mía whimpering beside you. You petted her while whispering, "I'm okay, love. I'm good."

Desperate to get the taste of vomit out of your mouth, you opened the cabinet to fetch the toothpaste that was located next to the tampons ...speaking of tampons - weren't you supposed to be using one right now? You looked at your watch to check the date; it was the 20th.

You were four days late.

And you were never late. Fuck!

You were staring at yourself in the mirror when it all fell into place; the excessive snacking, your sore nipples, Mia being overprotective, the nausea...

...It couldn't be because...

...Could it?

You were staring at yourself in the mirror. Were you imagining a slight bump? No, you couldn't be...

Slightly panicked, you knew you wouldn't be able to think of anything else before you'd made sure, so you pulled out your phone from your back pocket, and dialled up Rafa while your pulse was quickening with each passing second.

When he finally answered his phone he sounded cheerful, "don't worry! I bought two bags," he chuckled, "snack away, my love."

"No, Rafa, I need you to get me something else," you said nervously.

"Yeah? What's up?" he asked quietly, "is everything okay?"

"Could you grab me a - uh - a pregnancy test...?" you mumbled and buried your face in your hands without really knowing why.

Rafa went completely silent on the other end, "...what do you need a pregnancy test for?" He said slowly.

"Are you serious?"

"No - uhm - just a little surprised," it sounded as if he was giving himself a mental shake, "are you sure you're...?" His voice trailed off.

"That's what the test is for, love," you said quietly.

"Of course. Of course. I'll - uhm - I'll grab you one. ...Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes. Just hurry back here..." you whispered.

"I'll be as fast as I can," he mumbled before he hung up.

You were looking at yourself in the mirror, trying to imagine yourself pregnant. Carrying Rafa's child. Your future together. You hadn't been together that long. What if he didn't want this? What if you didn't want this?

How long you stood there, looking at yourself in the mirror while stroking your belly you had no idea but suddenly, you heard Rafa call for you from the hallway.

"Babe?" He sounded concerned, "where are you?"

"Bathroom," you called out to him and immediately, he came running.

"Are you - are you okay?" He panted.

You nodded, "yes. Are you?"

"A little surprised. We were so careful," he mumbled, "well apart from..."

"My birthday. I know," you sent him a look.

"Shit," he ran a hand through his hair, looking positively panicked.

"Rafa, are you okay?" You asked him carefully.

"Yes. I just don't know if I'm supposed to laugh or cry."

"Me neither," you said quietly, "I have no idea what I'm hoping for."

"We - we can talk about that later. Just... take the test," he handed you a small box.

"Now?"

"Yes," he nodded, "we have to know, right?"

"Okay," you said nervously. Of course you knew you needed to take it asap. You were just nervous about the result, "do you think you could give me some privacy?"

"I'm not leaving you," Rafa shook his head, "no chance."

"Well, if you want to strip away the very last piece of privacy between us," you said as you pulled down your shorts and sat down on the toilet.

"If you're pregnant, there are not going to be any secrets between your body and me anyway," he said slowly.

You pulled off the cap on the test and pulled it between your legs so you could pee on it.

"What do we do if it's positive?" You looked up at him as you flushed the toilet after you.

"We take it one step at a time," he nodded slowly.

"Okay," you whispered, still in a state of shock. Your heart was beating fast in your chest as you glanced at your watch, watching the seconds slowly tick by. "It's been a minute. We should check it," you picked up the test without looking at the result, "here, you do it..."

"Me? Are you sure?" He stammered.

"Yes, please Rafa. I can't do it," you whispered.

Rafa took the pregnancy test from you with a gulp and shot you a doe-eyed look before he turned his attention to the stick in his hand. Slowly, he turned it over so he could read the test result. At first, he was staring at the result with huge eyes, but slowly, his hand went to his lips and his eyes started watering.

"What does it say?" You said in a raspy voice even though you already knew.

Rafa looked up a you with a tender expression on his face, his eyes all soft and wetted with tears, "baby, you're pregnant..." he said quietly with the biggest smile on his face.

"We're having a baby?" You blinked a few times, your hands flying to your stomach. A weird bubbly feeling creeping up through your body.

"We're having a baby," he laughed and pulled you in for a bear hug, "oh my god, we're having a baby!"

And you immediately knew; this was happiness in its purest form.

[sunflowerim]

I LOVE YOU 3000!

-PART 41

Harry was shook. It's like every good thing that had been happening came crashing down at once. And he couldn't even tell Louis. He'd understand. Of course he would, but he'd also get mad at his manager and he couldn't afford to see what would happen if Louis told his manager off.

How was he supposed to spend time with Louis and hide something this big? Louis would see right through him.

Harry checked the contract that was mailed to him. 2 month contact. Ends after the Oscars.

He had to manage everything for two months. He just didn't have a choice. He'd probably have to avoid Louis for the time being.

Tears welled up in his eyes at the mere thought of it. Harry had begun to feel like Louis was somewhat his family, and Louis came with the package of two adorable kids and a furry friend, who absolutely loved Harry. He couldn't do this alone. Harry really needed to see Louis, to hug him, to feel the assurance that no matter what, Louis wouldn't be mad. With a hard heart, he discarded that thought and at once set off for Niall's apartment- the only person he could turn to at this moment.

He crashed into Niall's apartment and over a tub of ice cream told him everything that had happened.

Niall was furious.

"How dare he? I could talk about his bitchy attitude on the radio and we'll see how THAT affects him."

"No Niall," Harry said between hiccups. He'd been crying for too long, "don't do anything. He told me not to tell anyone. And I suppose it'll be normal after 2 months."

"2 months Harry. You do realise that's long. 2 months brought you and Louis closer than ever and the same time could ruin things too."

"Don't say that," Harry whispered, breaking down again.

"I'm sorry Harry," Niall said, wrapping Harry in a comforting hug, "but you should talk to him-"

"I can't-"

"Then how do think you'll go on about this?"

"Perhaps I really need to cut down our interactions for a while."

"Not to be that person, but don't you think after yesterday, Louis will be expecting more of your presence?"

"I'll tell him I have work. I'll do anything. I don't want his career to come to harm because of me."

"I appreciate that Harry, but do you think you guys can talk it over?"

"No Ni, I just can't tell him about this."

"Okay okay," Niall continued in a soothing voice. "In that case I won't ask you anymore. Now let's bake something. It always gets your mind off things."

-

In the two days that followed, Louis actually got really busy at work, and Harry didn't have to make excuses for staying away. Although Louis did ask if Harry could come over and stay the night, but Harry excused himself saying that he was visiting his sister and so Louis didn't suspect a thing.

-

But on Wednesday, things changed a bit. Louis got off work in the evening and asked Harry if he wanted to grab pizza. Harry couldn't come up with a good excuse in time and truth be told, he didn't want to. He was already miserable and wanted to see Louis badly. Louis agreed to meet Harry at his house and when he finally reached Harry's door, he was surprised.

"What is all this?" Louis teased, "hoodie, beanie, sunglasses, mask, were going for pizza Harry, not to some mission as undercover agents."

"Oh I know, it's just, paps seem to get everywhere and I'm kinda tired, so-"

"Aw you poor thing, come here."

Louis spread his arms and Harry enveloped him in an instant, hugging Louis like his life depended on it. He didn't wanna let go, for the fear of not being able to do this again was eating him from inside.

Louis seemed to sense it.

"Everything okay Haz?" he asked, stroking Harry's curls. Harry's face was buried in Louis' neck and he hummed in response and Louis hugged him tighter.

After what felt like an eternity, Harry finally let go.

"Leave your car here. Let's walk."

Louis smiled but his brows furrowed the slightest. Harry seemed off.

They slowly walked down the lane to the pizza place 2 blocks away, their held hands swinging between them.

Louis tried to ask Harry if anything was bothering him, but Harry shoved it away, saying it's nothing and he was just tired.

For a moment Louis wondered if Harry regretted last night and was slowly distancing himself because of that. But that couldn't be right. Harry wouldn't be walking with him if he really did regret that.

Putting his worries aside, he tried to focus on the perfect weather and thought about staying back at Harry's place. Maybe some cuddles could make Harry feel better.

As they approached the destination, they suddenly heard some squeals. Looking to their right, they saw an excited bunch of people in the park next to the restaurant, running in their direction. They'd apparently spotted Harry over the fence and it surprised Louis how they'd managed to recognise him in this get up. Louis knew Harry was tired and tried to tug Harry inside quickly but to his surprise, Harry shook his hand free of Louis and stepped back. Louis was taken aback. If he could see Harry's eyes, he'd probably understand how apologetic Harry was, but those were hidden behind his shades.

"You go ahead, I'll come in a while."

Louis nodded and left, unable to give a proper reply, head clouded by a thousand thoughts.

Before disappearing inside the restaurant, Louis turned around once and saw Harry, mask off, talking to the fans and taking pictures, a smile plastered on his face.

He ordered a milkshake for him as he waited for Harry to join him.

As much as he tried not to think about what happened, it all kept coming back.

Why did Harry leave his hand like that? People already knew they were friends, it wouldn't have been a big deal.

Was Harry embarrassed of Louis?

Did he not want to be spotted with him?

Did Louis do something wrong?

Louis racked his brain to think of something he might have done that could upset Harry, but nothing came to mind.

The minutes were getting longer and Louis was growing impatient waiting for Harry.

His worst fears came to action when he got a call from Harry.

"Hey Lou," he panted, sounding exhausted.

"Harry, where are you? It's been almost thirty minutes, are they not leaving?"

"There's been a bit of problem, they weren't leaving, so I had to tell them that I'm heading back home. I didn't wanna crowd the restaurant. So I walked back towards home."

"Wha- are you kidding me?"

"I'm really sorry Lou, I'll make it up to you I promise. Please don't be mad."

Louis could feel Harry was lying, because the excuse was downright stupid.

Maybe his concerns were actually right. Maybe Harry was indeed avoiding him.

Louis cut the call with an abrupt "Yeah." He didn't know what to feel. Harry had left. Just like that. He was obviously upset at the fact that Harry was avoiding him, but he was more mad at himself. Why did he expect so much from Harry? Louis was clearly not Harry's type.

He tried to reason with himself, thinking that there surely must be a misunderstanding, something that was going on that Louis wasn't aware off. With the little hope he had left in him, he stood up and left for home. At least he's got Cliffy.

Harry, a sobbing mess, went straight to Niall's. He silently hoped Louis wouldn't be mad at him. He knew he'd upset Louis and that's the last thing he'd planned on doing but Harry didn't really have a control over things happening in his life anymore.

As if things could get any worse, even Niall wasn't home and his phone was out of reach. So Harry waited. It was an hour before Niall arrived and found Harry at his doorstep.

"Jesus, what happened?"

Harry burst into a sob upon seeing Niall and between hiccups and sobs managed to tell Niall everything.

"I told you to talk to him Harold. Avoiding him isn't a solution."

Niall let them inside and eventually stopped talking about it. Instead he made Harry a cup of hot chocolate and they both watched re-runs of How I Met Your Mother on the telly in silence.

Back in his apartment, Louis ate his dinner quietly and went to bed early. He didn't have a proper word to describe how he was feeling.

Last weekend had been so special. What changed.

He logged in to twitter from his burner account before going to sleep and the first post he saw, turned his emotions around pretty quickly.

Harry looked happy. Not uncomfortable, as he seemed with Louis. Maybe Louis was the problem.

For a brief second he wondered if he should talk to Zayn or Liam about it but then decided against it because Louis didn't like discussing problem of these type. If there was a misunderstanding, Harry and Louis would figure it out themselves.

PREVIOUS / NEXT

INTRO

[missgarnet]

Baby Daddies Chapter 1

Pairing: ot7 x reader

Word count:2.6k

Genre: fluff, and a little bit of chaos

Summary:  So... no one tells you what to expect when you and your friends with benefits are about to have a child. (All plans are thrown out the window when your 7 closest friends find out they're going to become dads.)

Warnings: Jin is the ultimate mom friend, pregnancy, Jungshook, 

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4

Link to ao3

In hindsight, you probably shouldn’t have texted the guys that you were still sick as a way to avoid them. Especially when Jin was the biggest mom friend on earth and had insisted that they come to drop off some soup and make sure you were still alive. It wasn’t exactly a lie per se, but there was something you were definitely leaving out.

You slipped on a robe before answering the door, squinting at the bright lights in the hallway. “Y/N, no wonder you’ve been avoiding us. You look awful and your apartment is a wreck. When was the last time you cleaned, or opened the windows? That’s it you need fresh air and light,” Jin starts nagging as he pushes past you into your home.

The other boys trail behind him with various pots and tupperware containers that Jin had forced them to carry. They set them on the kitchen table as they start tidying the space around them. Your apartment wasn’t that messy, but you hadn’t been feeling well and the eight of you had a habit of taking care of each other when one of you was sick. It was a miracle you’d been able to have so much time to yourself before they insisted on taking care of you this time.

“Hey Y/N, why do you have these,” Namjoon asks holding up the box of pregnancy tests you left sitting out on the counter. “I thought you were on birth control.”

“I am, but it doesn’t always work so it’s good to have them just in case.”  You cursed under your breath, realizing that you had to tell them eventually.  “Joonie, you know how you said you wanted to be a dad a while back. Well… there’s like a one in seven chance that you’re going to be very soon”

“What do you mean one in seven?”

“I mean if you do the math, there’s seven of you guys, one of me, and now there’s a positive pregnancy test. I haven’t been with anyone else in years, and we’ve all been friends with benefits a little too often. And here we are.”

“So how are we going to figure this out?” Namjoon asks, trying his best to figure out how to handle the unusual situation the eight of you were currently facing.

Jungkook raised his hand, “We should do rock paper scissors to decide who gets to be dad.”

“That’s not a bad idea,” Jimin chimes in, “but is the winner or the loser responsible for all of this.”

The boys contemplate this for a moment as you sit there in shock, are they really about to decide who’s the father by rock paper scissors? Sure you’ve used it to make big decisions before, but this felt a little extreme by comparison. Somehow they’d decided to flip a coin to decide if having a kid with you was winning or losing. “Guys, I know this is a surprise but if you don’t want this you can just say so. I’m not going to force you to be there for anything just because we slept together.”

“It’s really not a surprise, Jin and the maknaes were making bets on how long it would take for you to tell us” Hobi interjected from his comfortable position on the couch.

“I took the test yesterday, how could you know before I did?”

Yoongi lifted his head from Hoseok’s lap, “Jungkook was worried because you kept feeling nauseous in the car every morning after breakfast. Taehyung was saying that your boobs felt bigger the last time you hooked up and then Jin pointed out that you’ve been gaining a lot of weight over the last few weeks. I wouldn’t be surprised if you were further along than you thought.”

“I don’t know if I should be insulted or feel flattered that you guys noticed all that.”

“Why not both?” Jimin suggested.

“You know what Jimin, that’s a great idea. I’m going to take it as a complement but also Jin might want to watch what he’s saying, especially since we both know who ate all the dumplings when I bought us dinner last week.”

The guys laughed as Jin began ranting about how he deserved more respect as the oldest, complaining about how you young people have no manners.

After a dinner where Seokjin had continued to sneak more and more food onto your plate, you were finally able to leave the table feeling as though you needed to be rolled into the other room.

“So what do we do now?” Namjoon asked, taking out a piece of paper to take notes.

“What do you mean, it’s friday night. We do the same thing every week.” Jungkook replied, oblivious to what Namjoon actually meant.

“First off, I don’t think that’s what they’re talking about,” you tried to explain.  “And I don’t think we’re going to be able to have our usual friday nights for a while.”

“Why not, we can still hang out the way we did before you got pregnant.”

“I know,” Namjoon added, “but some things are going to have to change because there’s parts of our routine that Y/N can’t really do anymore. Just think about what we normally do on friday nights.”

“We play video games, eat junk food unless Jin cooks, drink a beer and watch Yoongi cheat at monopoly.”

“And how does that end for you?”

“Making out on the couch, maybe sleeping with Y/N or one of you guys. And then there were a few times we all slept with each other.”

“Koo, I think what he’s trying to point out is that there’s some things I really can’t do right now.”

“So we can’t play mario kart anymore?” His sad little doe eyes were enough to melt anyone’s heart, and you found yourself falling for them time and time again. Of all the guys he was the hardest to say no to especially when he used that adorable pouty voice of his.

“Oh honey, of course we can.” You said as you took the corner of the couch, pulling Jungkook to sit with you. You tucked yourself between his arms as he pulled you on to his lap in a tight embrace.

You patted the spot next to you, waiting for one of the others to join you. What surprised you was how differently the guys were acting towards you even though they had just found out. Normally the eight of you would just fling yourselves onto the couch piling up into a group by literally throwing yourself onto one another. Instead they were being extra cautious as Jimin gently sank into the cushions next to you, taking your hand in his, he raised it to his lips pressing a soft kiss to the back of your hand.

Tae was acting equally as strange most of the time he would be the first one to throw himself into the pile, tightly wrapping his arms around the nearest person. This time he was careful not to put any of his weight on you as he curled up with everyone, resting his head on Jungkook’s chest he looked up at you with the brightest of his boxy smiles.

“I have an appointment tomorrow, I guess if one or two of you want to go with-”

The guys immediately erupted into arguments of why they should be by your side.

“I’ve known her longer.”

“I got with her before you did”

“Just saying, I’d be the best parent here.”

“That’s enough, Y/N needs one of us who can be there for her during all of this. I could take some time off work, or I could be a stay at home parent! Then you could keep working and I could be the best dad.” Jin argued.

“No, you’re not taking time off work for this," you sighed. “We are going to go about things the way we normally act, without making any major changes to how we are now. If you guys want to argue about this or come up with crazy ideas then you can stay home. I’ll take Yoongi and Jungkook if they want to go but the rest of you are staying.”

“Y/N, you need someone there who’s going to listen to the doctors and take notes on how to help with everything. Why shouldn’t that be me?  I didn’t do anything wrong.”

“Jin, you started a betting pool because you thought I was pregnant instead of just asking, and the rest of you did nothing to stop him. Honestly I’d be okay with taking Hoseok before any of you, but I don’t want to explain to the doctor why my emotional support person keeps fainting.”

The next morning the three of you packed into the car with Jungkook in the back and Yoongi in the driver's seat still bickering with Jin over the packed lunches he kept forcing into the car. It seemed fine when he handed you the first bag, but as he continued to pile tupperware into the car insisting that his future child needed all the nutrition they could get.

You were trying your best to stay calm and not start overthinking everything, but maybe reading WebMD in the waiting room wasn’t helping. As the three of you entered the office you couldn’t help but worry, you weren’t ready for all of this. Even Jungkook’s amusement at the various medical equipment and diagrams in the room wasn’t enough to distract you.

“Hey, what’s this?” Jungkook asks, pointing at one of the 3D models lining the shelf.

“Well, Jungkook when a man loves a woman very much-” Thankfully whatever response Yoongi had planned ended up being cut off when the doctor opened the door.

“Hi Y/N, how’s everything going today?” Dr. Nam asked as you mumbled your usual reply. “I see you brought someone with you, or I guess I should say sometwo?”

You could feel the heat rising to your face as you tried to explain your current situation “Yes, these are my… um... My friends?”

“Ah, so that’s what the kids are calling it these days.” The doctor couldn’t help but chuckle as she took in your flustered expressions, “There’s nothing wrong with having multiple partners, especially when it’s a healthy relationship with people you care about. Besides, you’ve said enough during our last visits to prepare me for all of them showing up one day. I must say I’m a little shocked that the one with the nice shoulders isn’t here.”

“I didn’t say that much about them”

Dr. Nam just hummed in reply as she went back to reading through your chart. “With the information you have here, I think it might be best if we go ahead and do an ultrasound. You’ve had quite a few missed periods, and while it might be from stress that makes it a little more difficult to figure out a due date. This at least gives us an idea of where we’re at, and when we can expect certain milestones.”

It seemed as though she could sense the discomfort and worry as the odd machine was wheeled forward. It didn’t help that Jungkook kept nervously glancing at it as if it were some kind of wild beast. The gel was colder than you had expected, and you couldn’t help but shift in discomfort as the doctor spread it across your lower abdomen. Without a word Yoongi reached out and took your hand in his, doing his best to comfort you.

“I’m going to turn the sound on, please keep in mind that we might not be able to hear a heartbeat just yet and that doesn’t mean anything is wrong.” She turned on the machine and slowly guided the sensor across your skin. The room fell silent for just a moment before you could hear the quick little heartbeat sounding out from the speaker. You're not sure which one of you started crying first but it was clear that none of you were leaving with dry eyes.

She turned the screen towards the three of you showing you the image you had been holding your breath for. “It’s a little difficult to hear, but if I move this a little further to the right we have a second heartbeat.”

“It has two hearts?” Jungkook yelled in a sudden panic.

“Of course not, two heartbeats means two babies,” your words slowed as the realization began to hit you. “It is two of them right? Not like a mutant baby with two hearts- because I’d be okay with that too.”

Dr. Nam shook her head at the two of you already jumping to the panicking phase she’s seen so many first time parents going through. “No, you are not having a mutant baby. You have two perfectly healthy babies on the way and based on their development and a couple measurements I would say that you’re around 10 weeks along, maybe a little more. Everything looks good, but if you have any questions or concerns please call me at any time.”

As the three of you headed out of the office, Yoongi was the one to accept the little care package that the nurses had prepared for you. Meanwhile you and Jungkook were trailing behind him like little ducklings, still in shock from finding out about the twins. You soon found yourself being packed in the backseat of the car with Jungkook as Yoongi drove around aimlessly.

“Put the phone down,” Yoongi called from the front seat. “The two of you already look traumatized, we don’t need to make it worse by going on WebMD again.”

“It’s not WebMD, I was on google and I found a parenting blog for twins.”

He sighed as he glanced back at you in the mirror, taking in the look on your face as you continued to scroll through the website. “Why do I feel like that’s even worse?”

“Because, I’ve been to one appointment and I’m already failing as a mother. There’s all these things that we’re supposed to be doing that I didn’t even know about. Like journaling, we’re supposed to be writing things down so we remember after the baby comes. And I’m starting prenatal vitamins way later than I should have. I didn’t even know I was pregnant until a couple days ago. One of the blog women knew the week of. It’s been ten weeks and I hardly noticed anything different,”

“That’s it,” he said as he pulled the car over. “You are not going to sit here putting yourself down when we both know it’s not your fault. There are more important things than a journal or whatever some random stranger is saying on a pregnancy blog. What’s really bothering you?”

“What if I’m not a good mom?”

“If you're going to keep saying that I will call Namjoon and make him join this conversation.”

“No,” you whined. “He’s going to start off all sweet and encouraging, and then he’ll end up going on another philosophical rant about the meaning of life.”

The two of you laughed at the idea, Namjoon tried his best to be supportive of all of you but he often got lost in his own thoughts. “C’mon, what’s going on?”

“I’m just not ready for things to change so much. It’s only been a few days, everything is already so overwhelming, and it’s only going to get more complicated when all of them find out we’re having twins.”

“You don’t have to tell everyone yet. It’s okay if you want more time, I’m not going to say anything and Jungkook looks like he’s already been scared silent.”

[victoria-daydreams]

Of Vices and Virtues

Chapter Five: A Place to Call Home

AN: I’m genuinely blown away at how many people like this story. I might’ve said this already, but let me know if you want to be on a taglist so you can be alerted when new chapters are posted.

Trigger Warnings: none

Word Count: 4.2k

Chapter Six: Training Day

I awoke for what felt like the first time, the sun burned brightly in my eyes and I scanned my surroundings extravagant yet classic furnishings lined the lush room, I lay in the middle of the huge king bed adorned with what seemed far too many big white fluffy pillows. I laid in my bed debating if it was really worth it leaving the comfort of the warmth from the blankets. My debate was ended when two brisk knocks echoed in my room.

"Come in!" I called, rolling over onto my other side to see who was entering.

It was Raven, once again, and she was holding a pile of gray clothes.

She walked into my room with a smile on her face, "Morning! You look rather comfortable," Raven commented, with a chuckle as she walked into my room.

"Oh, I never want to leave this bed Raven!" I exclaimed laughing, stretching out my limbs. "This has to be the most comfortable bed I have ever slept in," I added, grinning.

"I'm glad you like it," Raven said happily. "Charles says we have to wear these to training," She sat down on the bed and passed the clothes to me. It's the plainest sweatsuit I have ever seen in my life and a pair of sneakers that hopefully fit my feet. I turned my nose up at the drab and plain garments that I was given. Raven just laughed at my disgusted expression. "Yeah, that's sort of what I thought. Here," she said, this time passing me a grey sleeveless sweatshirt top and a men's wifebeater. "It doesn't match your fashion sense, but I think you might prefer this," I smiled gratefully as Raven got up and walked out of the room.

I slipped out of the blankets and planted my feet on the cool wooden floors and stretched out

"Breakfast is being served!" Raven called from over shoulder from the hallway.

I pushed myself off the edge bed and made my way to the bathroom, but stopped briefly to look at my reflection in my vanity mirror. I pouted at what I saw, I'm not sure what I was expecting really, my face still looked pretty awful, but not as awful as it did yesterday. I sighed and continued my short journey to the adjoining bathroom, flipping the lights on as I entered and stopped at the sink. I twisted the brass knobs and toss some water onto my face, the water awakening me even further. I opened the medicine cabinet to find a toothbrush and toothpaste inside just waiting to be used. With a quick brush of my teeth and drying my face off, I left the bathroom and entered the bedroom taking a seat on the stool in front of the vanity.

I tugged my nightcap off tossing it onto the vanity, I pulled the rollers from my black locks one by one, letting the curls fall against my shoulders. I combed my fingers through my hair styling it to my liking before getting up and flicking my hand to close the door so I can change into the plain sweats that were given to me. Where the sweats lacked in the fashion department they more than made up for it in the comfort department. Although, I didn't luck out with the sneakers, they're a bit tight for my feet, but hopefully I can stretch them out.

I opened the door walking out of my room and down the long hallway slowly making my way to the stairs, and onto the kitchen which I could tell was bustling with activity. The smell of toast, bacon, and eggs wrapped around my nose.

I roamed the hallway of the enormous mansion, as I picked out little details and artifacts set on tables. I glimpsed at the old photos of Charles and his parents, relatives, and such. My hand lightly trickled over a silver frame of Charles and Raven smiling at each other, as they sat on a picnic blanket, behind them settled an enormous pond with a dock and boats. The photo must have been set up, but they looked so happy together, and it made my heart warm. I continued on to the grand staircase, beginning my descent.

"Why are you walking so slow?" Erik asked, from the bottom of the steps gazing at me almost amused. "Do you think you're in the Miss America Pageant?" he questioned, arching a brow and lightly chuckling.

I smirked at his comments and straightened my posture before placing one hand on the banister letting it glide along as I used my other to mimic my best impression of the Miss America wave with a smile on my face; keeping my poise as I descended the last step right where Erik was.

"Now where's my crown, Lehnsherr?" I asked, my lips forming into a smirk and playfully tapping him on his chest before walking past him the smirk still on my lips. "You better not have crushed it!" I chirped, looking over my shoulder referring to his powers.

Erik let out a short laugh and pushed himself off the banister following after me with a grin on his face.

Walking into the kitchen with Erik not far behind, I saw Raven and Charles by the stove cooking away at a traditional breakfast. Sean, Alex, and Hank were all seated at the large kitchen table. Sean looked half dead as he ate his bowl of cereal and Alex had to nudge him slightly to wake him up. Hank looked nervous as usual, Moira immediately looked up from the newspaper she was reading when she heard me enter the room, smiling at me warmly.

"Claudia," Sean called drowsily, causing me to stop and turn my head in his direction. "How is it that even in the plainest clothes, you're still exceedingly beautiful?" he wondered, a boyish grin appearing on his face.

I shook my head at the red-haired boy, "Your attempts to woo me Sean, will always amuse me," I chuckled warmly, clutching both of my hands over my heart much to the disappointment of Sean.

"Good morning, Claudia!" Charles greeted happily, taking his eyes from the stove where he just finished with the egg he was cooking.

Raven placed a plate in front of me, "Hope you brought your appetite, Dia!" she grinned.

"I don't what has gotten into her today, but she's a bit more chipper than usual," Charles smiled, as his "sister" glared at him.

"I'm just glad I finally have another girl to talk to instead of you," Raven explained, and I laughed at the two bickering back and forth.

"I hope the rest of your night was well?" Charles asked sitting down in front of me with his own plate.

Raven and I looked at each other simultaneously and smiled at each other before giggling like two schoolgirls remembering what we discussed yesterday. Charles' eyes darted between us, confused as to why we were laughing.

"What are you two giggling about?" Charles asked, a smile creeping on his face.

"It's nothing Charles," I reassured, mirroring his smile. "It's just an inside joke, right Raven?" I asked, deflecting the attention to her.

Yep!" Raven agreed also smiling. "Let's eat!" she encouraged.

~~~x~~~

Charles wanted to train with the younger mutants first due to them not having a lot of control of their powers unlike Raven, Erik, and I since we fairly mastered our mutation. Raven and I took it upon ourselves to build up our cardio and decided to run laps around the mansion, the gravel driveway that surrounded the mansion was perfect for running.

My sneaker-clad feet crunched against the gravel, my feet hitting the ground in the shoes that were much too tight for my taste. Raven and I ran around the mansion grounds my hair dancing across my shoulders as I did, much to my annoyance.

"You've got to let me borrow one of those," I insisted, as I matched pace with Raven on the end of our third lap.

"Here," she slid another black hair tie from her wrist and handed it to me, which I took with a grateful expression and used it to tie my hair up as we jogged beside one another.

"There. How do I look?"

"Pretty, but bruised," Raven admitted with a huff of laughter.

"Ugh, I know," I groaned looking up as we rounded the front of the mansion, watching how the clouds moved in the sky to show glimpses of the sun that promised to shine later on.

Raven squinted her eyes at my face, "If you squint, you can see the bruises starting to turn yellow," she commented, with a smile trying to find a bright side.

"Wonderful," I deadpanned, rolling my eyes, as we came to a complete stop, both of us were catching our breath. "Come on, let's go inside for a well deserved break," I suggested breathlessly. Raven agreed with a nod and the two of us entered through the back door of the mansion.

Making our way through the back foyer hallway stopping shortly so that we could grab towels to wipe off the sweat. As we entered the living room I spotted Charles leading Alex somewhere who had a naked mannequin underneath his arm, causing me to raise a questioning eyebrow.

"Do I want to know what you're planning to do with that?" I asked mirth laced into my question, wiping the small amount of sweat that formed on my forehead.

Charles smiled, "The mannequin is for target practice for Alex's session," he explained, nodding his head toward the mannequin. "Have a nice run?" Charles asked, shoving his hand into his pant pocket.

"Refreshing, thank you for asking," Raven beamed, before making her way to the kitchen for a drink.

"We're going to the bunker for this session, do you want to join us?" Charles questioned, beginning to walk in the direction of where this bunker is supposed to be.

"There's a bunker in your home?" I asked back in shock, quickening my pace to catch up with them.

"My stepfather took the possibility of a nuclear war quite seriously," Charles began, looking over at me as we made our way under the mansion and led us down another set of stairs. "He was quite a strange fellow, anyway that's why he had this bunker built down here," he continued, as he opened the door to the bunker and switch the lights on. The lights flickered to life one by one illuminating the empty, spacious room. "Thought we could use it as a practice room of sorts," Charles stated leading us to the end of the bunker where the mannequin would be placed.

"You don't think I'm gonna blow through the walls?" Alex asked, unsure that the plan was a smart one.

"He had this place built to withstand a nuclear bomb," Charles chuckled. "I think it can handle you, Alex," he reassured, as Alex placed the mannequin down onto the floor.

"You know, when I do this bad things can happen," Alex warned us, as we walked back to end we entered through.

"That's because you can't control it. It controls you," Charles pointed out. I made note of what Charles said, it was quite useful in a way. "That's why we're here, Alex. It's why we're training," he reminded, giving Alex a pat on the arm. "Now, Claudia, I want you to stand beside Alex and observe for me,"

"Observe?" I gave him an incredulous look. "Charles, have you seen Alex's power in action? I want to live, thank you very much,"

"Claudia is right," Alex agreed, glancing over at me. "If you're serious about me doing this, you might wanna get back," he looked from Charles to me.

I complied and followed Charles to the doors, "Shall we shut the doors?" I questioned, secretly pleading he said yes.

"Yeah,"

"Oh thank God," I breathed out, closing the doors shut and I looked to Charles who just nodded.

"Whenever you're ready," Charles called out to Alex.

"I think you're secretly trying to get rid of me Charles," I suggested grinning, and leaned against the door with my folded across my chest.

"Blasphemy!" Charles cried, with a grin on his face. "Now love, why would I ever want to put an incredible woman like you in harm's way?" he inquired, leaning against the door frame.

I bit my lip, smiling through the action and shook my head. I opened my mouth to respond but then a loud bang echoed in the bunker, Alex had aimed at something. The green light by the door turned to red and the two of us smiled, hopeful. Charles opened the door and we were both about to step inside until we saw the fiery blaze in front of us.

"Oh, my God!"

Charles grabbed the fire extinguisher as I attempted to go all the way inside the bunker to witness the full carnage of Alex's power, but Charles ushered for me to stay outside. What do you know, chivalry isn't dead after all. Alex and I looked around at the flaming walls, watching Charles run around with an extinguisher, an action that Charles didn't take so kindly.

"Alex, for God's sake, pick up a fire extinguisher and help me!" Charles barked angrily at him, pointing at the other extinguisher.

My eyes were almost comically wide, there was so much anger in Charles' voice that it didn't even sound like him. His words were spat out harshly as if they burned. I’ve seen him lose his temper, but not like this.

"Why are you yelling at me? I warned you!" Alex shot back, in an angry, defensive tone.

"I'm sorry Alex, but in the field you could've killed one of your teammates!" Charles argued, the anger still flaming his words.

That's when I was barraged by a feeling of pain and betrayal so intense it took my breath away and I place my hand on my chest to catch my breath.

Alex turned from the extinguisher, "He asked me to cover him!" Alex snapped, and I realized who's emotions just assaulted me and why they came onto me so abruptly.

Alex inferred that Charles was talking about Darwin.

"Charles," I began, lifting my barrier temporarily. "He's taking the comment the wrong way,"

Charles looked at me, the realization shining in his eyes, "Alex, that's not what I meant, I'm sorry," Charles apologized softly, focusing his attention on Alex again.

"I didn't want to get involved, it's not my fault!" Alex shouted, running out of the bunker and brushing past my shoulder.

I pushed myself off the door, "Alex!" I called after him, knowing it pointless, he's still sensitive about Darwin's death.

I sighed and turned back around and entered the fiery bunker just as Charles let out a sigh of his own, putting the extinguisher down.

"Well, that just went lovely," Charles letting out another sigh, raking his hands through his brown locks in frustration.

"Hey, you didn't mean it that way," I objected, walking over to him and stopping when I was in front of him. "Charles, please don't beat yourself up, you had the right intentions," I reminded.

"What good are they if I'm just going to yell at him for not being able to control his power?" Charles challenged, bringing his hand to his face and dragging it down. "How bad is the damage Claudia?" he asked, his blue eyes shining brighter because of the flames.

"You definitely struck a chord," I began, Charles opened his mouth, but I raised my hand silencing him. "It's nothing that you can't fix Charles. Just give him time," I explained gently, reaching out and rubbing his arm soothingly wanting to ease the stress and fear away from his shoulders. "I think Alex can control it, the matter is convincing himself that he can do it without hurting anyone," I added, giving his arm a squeeze.

Charles took my hand in his own, "Claudia Walker, what would I do without you?" Charles asked, with a grin slowly forming on his face as he placed quick kiss to the backside of my hand.

I laughed briefly looking down and back up to Charles' trademark handsome grin, "I don't know Charles, let's hope we never have to come to such a situation," I stated, slipping my hand out of his. I turned around and grabbed the other fire extinguisher that was still mounted to the wall. "Now let's put this fire out, we could make a game out of it!" I suggested chuckling, looking over my shoulder

~~~x~~~

Once the fire was all put out, the two of us walked back upstairs. Alex left most likely taking refuge in his room, whilst Charles searched for Sean and I went to speak to Alex. I jogged up the flight of stairs and walked down the wooden hallway trying to determine which room is Alex's, if we had name tags on each door this process would be so much easier. I lowered my barriers to find Alex's emotional trace.

He was the personification of guilt.

I stopped at a door at the end of the hall, I knocked on the door twice, "Alex?" I called, but I didn't get a response. "Alex, I'm coming in, if that's alright with you?" I asked, and the only answer I got was silence.

I twisted the doorknob, pushing the door open and there sat Alex on his bed with his head hanging low, I closed the door behind me and took a seat next to him on his bed He didn't acknowledge my presence and I wasn't offended by it, he was mainly thinking about Darwin. Alex took a deep breath, closing his eyes as he did so. I couldn't help but feel sorry for him, he thought it was his fault. I didn't even know how to convince him that it wasn't. It's probably a lost cause, but I wasn't giving up.

"Alex, please stop blaming yourself," I frowned, rubbing his shoulder soothingly. He turned his head to look at me, jaw clenched, his expression unreadable. I felt like I was talking to a brick wall, there was no getting through to him. "Alex," I begged. "When are you going to realize it was not your fault. It was Shaw's. Okay?" I couldn't help but think I got through to him for a second, before he pushed himself up from the bed and walked towards the window.

He looked out his window, hiding his emotions perfectly, most likely with experience.

"It was my power that killed Darwin," Alex spoke somberly, his arms crossed against his chest. "Nothing you do or say, can change that," he added, looking me straight in the eyes.

I was speechless, I didn't have any comforting words to tell him, and I understood that it wouldn't change his mind, not in the slightest. I stood up from Alex's bed sighing, making my way to the door. I opened the door, glancing at him one last time and he just turned his attention back to staring at the window and I left the room with a soft click of the door closing.

I traveled from the way I came before and walked back down the stairs and into the living room which Charles, Sean, and Moira were currently in.

"Ah, there you are Claudia! Come on, we were just about to head out," Charles stated, motioning for me to come with them. Charles picked a pane of glass, which I guess just happened to be lying around in the mansion, we walked outside to the perfectly trimmed lawn. "How is he?" Charles asked quietly, only loud enough for me to hear him.

"Still very upset," I answered, just as quiet and locked eyes with Charles. "I tried my best, I'm sorry Charles," I stated, giving him an apologetic smile.

"I know you did," Charles reassured, and walked ahead of us to set up the glass on a stand whilst Moira and I made small talk. Moira came to join us since she had nothing to do in the house.

Charles his way back to the three of us, Moira handed Charles and I thick earmuffs to protect our ears from the sonic blast of Sean's scream. The three of us slid on the earmuff simultaneously, once our ears were protected Charles gave Sean a thumbs up to Sean. Sean let out a whistle-like scream and the window of glass shattered with the shards of glass falling to the ground. All three of us still winced at the sharp, high-pitched sound even with the earmuffs on. Sean smirked watching the shattered glass fall.

"Alright, now that's pretty impressive, but now it's important to learn control," Charles told Sean beaming, as we all pulled off our earmuffs. "What you're doing is incredible," "What you're doing is hitting a pitch of sound waves that have the same resonant frequency as the glass," he pointed to the, now broken window in front of us. "That's why it shatters," Charles explained, clearly getting into his professor mode.

"That was pretty remarkable Sean," I complimented, Sean looked at me and grinned, his cheeks turning rosy red.

"Think of this like any other muscle in the body," Charles gestured to his neck. "You can control it," I smiled at Charles' analogy and nodded in agreement. "This time try higher frequency, much higher," he suggested, slipping his earmuffs back on.

"There's no glass," Sean stated, pointing to the window pane, but Charles couldn't hear him with the earmuffs on.

Charles lifted the earmuff off his ear, "I'm sorry, what?" Charles asked confused.

"There's no glass," Sean stated, repeating himself.

"Trust him, he's a professor," Moira reminded, with a grin.

I smiled as well and both of us placed our earmuffs back onto our heads.

Sean inhaled deeply bringing his shoulders to his ears ready to let out another sonic scream, but Charles stopped him by placing his hand on Sean's chest making Sean exhale all the air he just inhaled. Sean rubbed his throat pausing momentarily before letting out an ear piercing shriek, but this time it was different. The frame of the window began to bend backwards due to Sean's scream, a feat that I would've been impressed with had it not been for the sudden wave of nausea that struck me. I squeezed my eyes shut and breathed shallowly, hoping to tame the horrible feeling in my stomach. However, I felt it was a losing battle.

I dropped down to the ground as tidal waves of nausea came crashing over me, I gagged hard but nothing came out. I opened my eyes to see that I wasn't the only who was being effected by Sean's scream. Charles and Moira had the same symptoms of me just as Sean's body dropped to the ground out of exhaustion.

"What happened?" Sean asked, out of breath.

"Fluids in the ear canal, apparently the disruption causes na-nausea," Charles explained, choking back a gag. "Could come in quite handy, well done," Charles congratulated, and lightly hit Sean on the stomach.

~~~x~~~

I was determined to prolong working out as much as possible so I went to go see Hank's new lab. It was a large room with a high angled ceiling, a beautiful brick fireplace sits unused in the far corner. An oriental rug sits on the floor in front of it. Beyond the rug, there are two old-fashioned red arm chairs and an oak bookcase filled with books on biology and genetics stood tall next to a wide blackboard. I focused my gazed to the center of the room which was full of the latest technology that science could offer us.

That's when I saw something that caused me to knit my eyebrows together in confusion. Hank had a magnifying glass and was looking at a blue, scaly woman. She looked a little familiar.

It reminded me of when Raven shifted.

I stepped in further into the room, "Raven?" I called, unsure if that was actually who I was looking at.

The blue woman looked up, looked scared, and promptly shifted back to the Raven I was familiar with. "Dia...what are you...what are you doing here?"

"Prolonging the inevitable," I answered, still staring at her with curiosity. "Is that what you really look like?"

Raven looked scared again, "Yeah..." she responded, trailing off.

“Neat...may I see again?"

"Neat?" Raven repeated in disbelief.

I folded my arms against my chest, "What? The world is filled with people who are various shades of color," I pointed out, slightly shrugging.

"Dia..."

"Alright, fine. I admit, blue skin is not something you see everyday. But, you're Raven," I turned to Hank for support. "It's not a big deal right?" I asked, sending him a an a reassuring smile so that he would back me up.

Hank looked uncomfortable, "I'm working on a serum to fix our physical...deformities,"

A flash of disappointment hit me from Hank, but I chose to ignore it—at least for the time being and Raven just looked hurt.

"Oh..." I answered, trailing off awkwardly. After a long moment of silence I started to slow back away from the two of them. "You know what...I'm gonna go workout now," I announced, pointing to the door behind me before I quickly exited stage right and away from the lab.

Chapter Seven: Specialty

[xpeachesncream]

off the grid | two

summary: it was as simple as swapping places with a stranger from across the world to get away from everything back home. that is - until you meet Jimin. things become more complicated as he unfolds a new chapter in your life that you were initially trying to avoid.

pairing: reader x pjm

genre: post-college au, christmas/holiday au | angst, fluff, smut (to come)

words: 3191

chapter warnings: cussing / mature language, definitely inaccurate depiction of transportation, events and whereabouts in South Korea since i only did my research thru the internet, jimin is cute as fuck for being such an angel

> series masterlist <

You tried sleeping in after Namjoon and Yoongi's call, but you couldn't fall back asleep no matter how exhausted your body still felt. Instead, you sat up in bed, scrolling through the pictures you took from your stroll in the nearby streets yesterday. You didn't get too far, yet you came back with so many small goodies already. You kept stopping by every shop on the street, and you ate such delicious food that you were contemplating on getting more today. But, you were also determined to travel a little bit further and start some real adventures for yourself.

You got yourself washed up and ready for the day. You did your usual of prepping a very light breakfast for yourself, just to give you enough fuel to kick off the morning. While doing so, surprisingly unsurprised, you were certain you heard Jimin's voice in the hallway. You stared at the door as you stood and ate some cereal on the kitchen island, waiting for his knock to come.

"Knock, knock." He says, following with two soft knocks. You walked over, bowl in hand, as you opened the door to see Jimin standing there with a huge smile on his face and another tupperware in hand. "I come bearing gifts?" He steps in as you shut the door behind him.

"Aw, thanks! More food?"

"Yup."

"Assuming your parents still don't know Yana isn't here?" You chuckled.

"Not at all." He scratched the back of his neck and laughed nervously. "But I'll deal with it later."

"Mm, you should probably deal with it before Christmas rolls around, sir."

"Yesma'am." He salutes you playfully. "Did you eat the stuff that I brought yesterday?"

"Sure did, for a night time snack." He chuckled as he placed the new tupperware in the fridge.

"Body still adjusting?"

"Pretty much." You say as you begin to wash your bowl.

"What's your plan today, Miss Y/N?" You softly chuckle as you wipe your hands down.

"Just roam around."

"Let me know if you need anything, or if you need anyone to show you around." He held out his hand, signaling for your phone so he can put his number in.

"I may just take you up on that offer."

"Good." He smiled. "Well, I'll catch you later? I'll leave you to your peace." You nod as you follow him to the door.

"Thanks again for the food."

"No problem. Eat up." He taps the door frame before shutting the door close. You look down at your phone and see Jimin's contact info still on the screen. Or should we say, "PRINCE CHARMING 🥵😍" since that's what he decided to name himself?? Let's not forget to peep the little tidbit he put in the notes: "My name is Jimin but you can call me tonight ;)" Who even uses the 'Notes' section under the contact's info?

His use of emojis and cheesy lines made you laugh to yourself, but you left it anyways. You were highly thinking about taking up his offer on having someone show you around, but you kept reminding yourself that the whole reason you came here was to do this solo. But, god, there's only so many things you can achieve as a solo newbie in a place like South Korea. Would it truly hurt to get some help or advice from someone?

On your way to the train station, you came across a lively farmer's market. The cold was biting at every inch of your body no matter how bundled you were, cheeks rosy and glowing. Being that the farmer's market was booming at this time, you figured checking out the station map could wait. Long aisles of stands with colorful fresh fruit and vegetables had you stopping almost every second to try samples. Fruit and veggies certainly tasted fresh, and it was a nice feeling on your tongue. None of that pesticide, wax-covered bullshit back home. There was music playing in the background, one being a street artist playing his violin in this cold. You threw some change into his case and continued down the aisle, where more vendors were selling their own art and home-made goods.

You spent quite some time here, as it seemed like the booths would never end. It eventually did, and it brought you right to the train station that would bring you to Myeongdong. Luckily, it was a simple, straightforward trip and you'd be on your way to more exploring. You planned to get some lunch first though because you can most definitely hear the street food calling your name.

As you continued down the street with your food in hand, you heard someone call you by name from behind.

"Y/N?" You turned your attention towards the street behind you to find Jimin pushing his way through the crowd with a huge smile on his face.

"Are you following me, Park Jimin?" You chuckled. He was wearing the same outfit you saw him in this morning, which was a thick sweater and leather jacket, dark grey jeans and boots. He had a hat on and some oversized glasses, which you thought fit his frame perfectly well.

"Definitely. Just had to make sure you knew what you were doing out here." He laughed. "Enjoying yourself?"

"Yeah, it's great. Do you come here often?"

"To be honest, not really. But the guys and I had nothing else to do today, plus-"He holds up a bag. "Ma put in a request for some stuff she was looking for since I was going to be here."

"That's sweet of you." You smiled toothlessly, watching as he beamed from ear to ear. Definitely a mama's boy, and a handsome one at that.

"Yeah, I do what I can." He shoved the bag down back to his side and tugged on his own shoulder bag. "Where are you headed after this?"

"Honestly? Wherever the wind brings me." You shrugged.

"You should tag along with me and my friends. We're uh, not doing anything fancy besides going to the comic cafe." He snorted nervously, hoping you wouldn't be one to label him as a dweeb this early on. "It's near the Dongdaemun Night Market. I think you'll enjoy grabbing some dinner there."

"Yeah, I'll come with. That sounds fun." You began to walk alongside of him as he walked back towards the opposite end of the street.

"Sorry, were you done looking here? I could accompany you while you keep looking." He paused to look down at you.

"No." You instantly shook your head. "Uh, I think I'm all good." You took one last look behind you, a little unsure since there was a store you still wanted to check out before leaving. You didn't wanna burden Jimin and his friends though, this wasn't their plan.

"You sure?" He smirked.

"Maybe not?"

"Let's go, I can tell you still wanna look around."

"Jimin, I can go alone-"

"It's not an issue, Y/N. Besides, Jungkook and Taehyung are still wandering around." He nodded towards the one shop you were eyeing. "Come on." You smiled toothlessly and followed him into the store.

"By the way, nice contact name." You showed him his contact info on your phone, making him laugh.

"Yeah, it's gold isn't it? Trying to stand out. I'm surprised you kept it."

"Your work of art. I don't meddle."

"Ah, touché. I like a girl who can appreciate good art." He winked, causing your cheeks to heat up as you blushed and looked down at the ground below you. He stepped into the clothing store and slowed his pace to let you lead the way. The one thing you were eyeing were the puffy jackets and coats because who can have too many outerwear? Jimin bit onto his bottom lip as he watched your eyes light up at the coats in front of you, touching everything you came across.

"These are so cute. I want it all." Jimin chuckled.

"Looks like you'll be needing another luggage to go home with you." You hung onto a beige colored puffy jacket, then reached out for a plaid coat.

"There's so many colors, I can't decide." He pointed to the plaid coat next to the one you had reached out for.

"That color would look nice on you." You smiled at him and nodded.

"Thanks. That makes it easier."

"You do have enough warm jackets for your stay right? There's a possibility it'll snow soon."

"Yeah, I think I'll be alright?" He nodded.

"I don't know Y/N, that doesn't sound convincing." He did a quick head tilt. "Make sure you get something warm then, please. The cold bites down here. I wouldn't want you to be miserable for the rest of your stay." He leaned against the rack. "Like that." He pointed at a thick parka. "Might be good to have that in your stack."

"Ou." Your mouth formed an 'o' shape as you grabbed the olive parka and swung it over your arm.

"Well, that was easy." He laughed.

"I trust your word." You began to quickly scan the rest of the floor, making sure you wouldn't miss anything. But also, you didn't wanna take too much time off of Jimin's hands.

"Ayo!" You hear someone call from behind you. You continue to walk the floor, hearing Jimin's laugh from behind, followed by a couple of unfamiliar voices. "Stop being a creep."

"I'm not being a creep, you idiot." Jimin laughed and shrugged off his friend. "I'm helping Y/N out."

"She's here?" You turn to look at the three boys standing behind you.

"Y/N, this is Jungkook and Taehyung." You smiled softly and shook their hands. "I really apologize about them in advance."

"Hey, nice to finally meet you!" Jungkook smiled as he pushed Jimin aside. He was also very attractive, standing just an eensy weensy bit taller than Jimin. He had tattoos on his hand and his wavy, black hair was parted, falling down on either sides of his face and right at the eyes. He had big, doe eyes and a good build. Even though he was wearing baggy layers, you could tell his ass lived at the gym with the way his shoulders were built and how his collarbone was sharply poking out from his shirt.

"Sounds like you've heard of me." You chuckled.

"Jimin won't stop bringing up your name."

"Don't listen to him. He's making that up." Jimin's cheeks turned slightly rosy.

"That's not nice to lie, Jimin-ssi." Jungkook pinched his side, making him laugh and playfully hit him back. You scrunched your nose at how cute the interaction was, not feeling out of place at all between the two.

"Hey Y/N, Taehyung." Taehyung shows off a boxy smile as he gently shakes your hand. He looked like an artist, pulling a Jack from Titanic who was ready to draw one of his french girls kind of vibe - clad in brown pants, a black turtleneck, a long coat and low cut sneakers.

"She's gonna come along with us."

"Cool! Preparing yourself for the weather?" Jungkook asked as he quickly checked out the men's shirts across from you, while Jimin and Taehyung continued to talk and laugh on the side.

"I was warned by Jimin." You chuckled.

"He's right, it can be freezing here. Do you need any help carrying your stuff?"

"I'm good! Thanks. I think I'm about done anyways." Your mouth curved into a small smile before you walked off to the registers, grabbing a scarf on the way over just because. You definitely did not anticipate to spend like this already, but hey, self-care am I right?

"Let me hold that for you." Jimin takes the paper bag from you.

"You don't-"

"Is it like this in California or something?" He laughed.

"What?"

"Feeling shy when someone offers to hold your bags?"

"It's just not a consistent thing, I guess? At least not that I've experienced much. It could be different for others." You spare him the details. Now that you think of it, Romeo has never offered to carry your bags like that. Ever. He obviously lacked a lot of common courtesy.

"Interesting." Is all he says as he shrugs and continues on. You clutched onto your bag strap as you followed the three, suddenly questioning how you got from going around solo to now tagging along with your home swapee's brother and his friends. Jimin slightly slowed his pace to catch up to you, pulling you out of your thoughts when he shared a small laugh. "You okay? Suddenly having regrets?"

"No, I'm good." You chuckled as you tugged into the strap harder.

"Do you ready any comics?"

"I used to when I was younger. Now I just don't have time to even find a good read."

"That busy, huh?"

"I guess so. Or I guess, sorry, I just don't find the time so it's partially my fault."

"No need to apologize. You should make more time for yourself though."

"Yeah, I know." You looked up at him and smiled toothlessly. He returns the favor before opening the back passenger car door for you, allowing you to situate yourself first. As you fasten your seatbelt, Jungkook adjusts his rearview mirror before starting the car and switching its gears.

"So, what's California like?" Taehyung asked as he whipped his head around from the passenger's seat.

"You never said exactly where you were from." Jimin chimed in as he cocks his head to the side to look at you.

"Los Angeles." The boys collectived oo'd and aw'd together.

"I've been there before!" Jungkook rose one hand off of the wheel. "I did a summer dance camp there and spent time with my family going around. Like Universal Studios, that was fun." He excitedly bounced in the driver's seat.

"Did you like it?" He nodded happily.

"Very much so. I'd love to go back. You should take me with you when you go back." Jimin threw a piece of crumpled paper at the back of his head.

"I'll keep that in mind." You laughed.

"The views are amazing and-" Jungkook continued to reminisce on his memories, but was abruptly cut off by Taehyung.

"I wanna hear what it's like from Y/N, not you." Jungkook popped Taehyung on the side of neck.

"It's busy." You chuckled. "It's busy and usually always hot. Lots of people, lots of cars, lots of things to do. People are always on the move."

"Does it feel any different being here?"

"Yeah, it does. I can't really explain it." Although Seoul was just as lively and the hustle and bustle was apparent, Los Angeles just felt like.. life was moving way too fast. Like no one really had time to appreciate life as much as they do here. There's always things that need to get done, and you're more worried about other people than yourself. No one took the time to just slow down.

"I imagine so. I've seen a lot of things about LA. Lots of Hollywood stars and famous people." Taehyung continued to look at you, resting his head against the head rest.

"Yeah, that's definitely the it thing there."

"Maybe we can all go back with Y/N."

"I don't have a big place but I'm sure we can make it work." The rest of the ride included the boys loudly singing along to the songs that came up. If you weren't mistaken, you could have sworn you heard Jimin's angelic singing voice pop out every now and then. He tried to keep it lowkey. Keyword: tried.

At the comic cafe, Taehyung and Jungkook went their separate ways to find what they were looking for while you stayed near the entrance, looking at the cute stationary items. Jimin had left you to browse but came back to your side as soon as he found what he needed, worried you'd feel lost and out of place. You reassured him and told him he didn't need to rush, but as you were picking up quite quickly, it was just in Jimin's nature to be that caring.

Time had gone by so fast, you didn't even realize how hungry you were. Dongdaemun Night Market was crowded as hell; so crowded that you had to try your best to squeeze through without being rude.

"Y/N, hold onto me." Jimin looked back, holding out his arm for you to hook onto. Jungkook led the way, with Taehyung holding onto his shoulders as they navigated through the crowd. Jungkook looked back at you both, pointing towards one of the food vendors. "Are you okay with eating some tonkatsu?"

"I'm down for whatever." You said, feeling a little flustered from the crowd. Jimin signaled a thumbs up to Jungkook before turning towards the seating area. He was able to snag a table so that you both could sit and wait, instead of being in the crowd.

"Sorry, I forgot to mention that it gets really busy here."

"It's alright, thanks for guiding me through the crowd."

"You feeling tired or anything?"

"A bit." You yawned into your elbow.

"We'll get you home after so you can rest up." Sooner or later, Jungkook and Taehyung come back with two trays, both loaded with tonkatsu rice bowls and sauce.

"Here you go." Jungkook smiled as he placed your bowl down in front of you.

"Oh, thank you! How much do I owe you?"

"Don't sweat it. My treat." He shook his head.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive, Y/N. Please eat." He chuckled. The rest of dinner was pretty quiet, as everyone was hungrier than expected. They would break the silence every now and then, talking about the rest of their friends and what they had been up to.

"What are your friends like, Y/N?"

"Well, to be honest, I don't have too many." You chuckled. "Not many I can actually call friends, at least."

"That's valid. That's like us, too." Jungkook responded.

"I met both of my bestfriends in high school. I'd meet people through them, but that's about it. They're really cool though, I think you all would get along with them quite well."

"What are their names?"

"Yoongi and Namjoon. They're all I really know. We've done almost everything together and we've always stuck by each other. They've always had my back and protected me."

"That's good. It's nice to have people like that in your life." Jimin says.

"What about you guys?" Taehyung adjusts the heat in the car before whipping his head around to face you.

"You should hang out with us more so you can meet Hoseok and Seokjin-hyung." Taehyung smiled. "They're super social and they always have good energy. They're fun to be around."

"Sure." You chuckled. By the time you were getting really comfortable with the warmth in the car, you had arrived back home. Jungkook and Taehyung greeted you goodnight before Jimin had shut the door and walked you upstairs.

"I know we didn't do much, but I still hope you enjoyed yourself."

"I did, thank you. Seriously."

"Did you wanna, maybe, hang out again?" He shyly asked as he scratched the nape of his neck. He was cute nervous, and there was no way you could say no to him. Besides, you were sure Jimin could help you explore more. "I just have to help my mom and dad out at their cafe tomorrow morning, but I should be good by lunch time."

"Yeah, I'd love to."

"I promise I won't disappoint." He laughed. "Goodnight, Y/N. See you tomorrow?" You nodded as you walked in. He gave off one last big smile before descending down the steps.

And you weren't gonna lie to yourself. He was so damn attractive. Everything about him so far was just different. You couldn't help but feel a little bit excited to hang out and spend more time with him.

[meixdoll]

The way back home.

Kaelumi Drabble. More of a character study about Kaeya.

Comfort / Stablished relationship

—————————————————————-

In the big scheme of things, it all sometimes ends up being quite different from what you originally grasped on a smaller onlook. This was a piece of valuable information he had come to learn recently, and since then, tried to tackle smaller issues with this perspective in mind, whether they’d be snippets of chatter the wind carried to his ears, clearing a misplaced hilichurl campsite or tackle down pesky deskjob, like today.

He couldn’t get his mind around how Jean managed to do a job this tiresome and yet, at the same time, this incredibly boring. Just sorting out the reports about incidents implied reading facts through the eyes and handwriting of soldiers that sometimes gave as much importance to the details that truly mattered as one would give to the gravel beneath one’s boots. Not to be unfair to his men or anything but a lot of them had absolutely no imagination or skill to be making an incident report worth reading, and he had to at least skim trough them all. This was exactly the sort of duty he had been continuously avoiding since he was given the option of becoming Acting Grand Master. But now, in an odd twist of fate, Varka had to go through early retirement, leaving now Grand Master Jean on charge, relying as always in her right arm Kaeya Alberich, now Grand Commander of the Knights of Favonius, to alleviate some of the job involving the surprisingly heavy duty of protecting Mondstadt. One would think that a land of peace such as this one required no nonsense involving chivalry or anything of the sorts, but alas, he was there at a late hour doing some overtime reading (or trying, poor him) through some of the world’s most boring incident reports.

The bell from the cathedral broke the stream of his rambling thoughts, making him painfully aware of his body. He rubbed his good eye and let the piece of paper fall softly on the desk. No matter how much overtime he did, there was no way he would finish sorting out all of that before tomorrow, so it was probably best to leave it as was. “Heh~” he scoffed. He definitely could see the bigger picture now, after all. He had changed. And still he was no less upset with having to admit he did felt tired. Today, in particular.

The street was dark and wet when he finally left headquarters. A chill ran through his skin, making him take a sharp breath, tasting cold air and wet grass, and he stared back at the building looming over. To be frank, there was a time when it had felt like home, until it didn’t. Then again, with Master Crepus dead and Diluc not talking to him, “home” was somewhat of a really foreign thought to him, no matter where he slept. He tried to keep calling the Order’s premises “home”, and when he couldn’t, tried to get something he might call “home” to himself by buying a place to absolutely no avail. It was comfortable, but not really anything he would give a status over simply just a house. Until it wasn’t.

Kaeya disguised a little smirk behind a gloved hand, pretending to warm it with his breath, even though there was no one around. Maybe he wasn’t that different after all. He set up foot down the city stairs to the lower levels, thinking again over the recent past happenings. Being nostalgic wasn’t something very common when it came to him, and the gloomy atmosphere of late night Mondstadt after an autumn shower was perfect for lingering about sweet nothings from the past. He made it all the way to a bannister where he could see the roof of Angel’s Share tavern.

He sighed when he thought about just around two years ago, when he would stop by and get face planked on the taverns table, if his estranged brother wasn’t around. If he was, he would be happy to pester him for a bit before Diluc decided he had enough and asking Charles to replace him at the counter. Some time had passed since he was living that reality everyday, before the incident that changed everything.

Now, he was at least partially confident that he would be amicably greeted by his brother, who would try to annoy him with insisting on serving him a soft drink until he’d finally pour him a glass of wine and slip some finger food that Kaeya absolutely hadn’t ordered right below his nose.

Reconciling many years of antagonizing with each other on the heat of the battle had been the most uninteresting and corny way of giving closure to an awful chapter in their lives, and yet reminding the “don’t get yourself killed, you ass” Diluc yelled, swinging his claymore, still made the corners of his mouth twinge upwards. He then reached another flight of stairs. To the left he would be on his way to the tavern. The younger version of him would undoubtedly be on his way there already. But his younger himself was desperately trying to get back some sense of normalcy out of his brother’s cold gaze. The present himself however was sore from desk hours and so tired that he would probably fall face first on the counter with simply smelling the wine. Tonight he needed something different.

“As you did yesterday... and the day before, no?” he thought, messing with himself, just to mess with someone, really. He hadn’t changed that much. He turned to the right. Mondstadt’s night life could miss him for another day.

His house was one of the tiniest ones, but for himself and his need for privacy and away from his job was just the right fit. Privacy, specially, was something he wouldn’t have back at the headquarters bedrooms. His affairs and misdeeds outside service hours were best kept secret and hidden away. More than a place to crash it indeed had been, but not exactly of the cozy variety. Coziness was yet again a foreign concept that he heavily associated with Master Crepus´s care, small Diluc and Jean running around saying nonsense about pet turtles and the strange yet comfortable clothes he had been given after being taken in as a Ragnvindr. He hadn’t felt coziness and comfort since father’s death, hadn’t felt the homely warmth, the yearning for your own safe place being embraced by someone dear close to the fireplace after getting inside all muddy and with a scraped knee. Things change over time. But then again maybe they don’t. A clear display of that was the joy and relief he felt when he noticed the familiar glow of the lit fireplace in the living room shining through the window. Things had changed because his place was now a proper home, and hadn’t changed because no matter how short he made his absence be, he was on a constant edge, fearing coming back to an empty house, to darkness and the hard crumbles of breakfast bread he had left over the kitchen counter that morning. And every time he came back, there were signs, all over the place, that he had nothing to fear, that there was someone patiently waiting to see him closing the door behind him.

He was truly a foolish man, he sighed, and pulled the heavy auburn door open.

A jingle broke the heavy silence laced with lumber crackles, and he almost regretted allowing the idea of hanging a handful of tiny bells over the door frame, that right now, by contrast, made an awfully sharp noise. The living room opened up to his right hand, and his eye shot straight to the bundle of cushions and blankets plopped on the couch beside the window. A pair of intense gold eyes glistened, blinking a pair of times and once again after two tiny and delicate hands rubbed the sleepiness away from them. Lean legs shifted, and a book fell to the carpet.

“I wasn’t sleeping!” She said, groggily. Kaeya chuckled.

“I think I’m gonna have to scold you then, since it’s about past midnight, miss Lumine”.

Still wrapped in blankets, the girl made a little pout and raised an eyebrow at him, as a reproach for his use of the honorific, which made him laugh softly.

“That’s a very accurate impression of Master Diluc, you’re incredibly talented”

“I may not be in the need of throwing an attitude towards Sir Kaeya”, she said, emphasizing the honorific, “if he wasn’t treating me like a kid”.

Still smiling, Kaeya got rid of the heavy blue jacket and the fur collar, propping them in the couch arm rest. He sat down near her bundled feet and undid the buckle around his neck, and then took his gloves off.

“I would never do that, ace.”

Still feeling the dizziness of sleep, Lumine couldn’t get a sharp retort fast enough, and limited to a little smile, bashfully removing the blankets off her. She liked the nickname way more than she would admit, even before the familiarity with the knight grew at an alarming speed.

“Where is Paimon?”, he asked. The little bug was usually the first one at the door, sharing a thorough summary of everything she had eaten today. Her absence was pretty telling about just how late he had come home today.

Home.

Lumine suddenly jolted and stopped moving, grimacing. “Ah... about that.” Kaeya playfully tilted his head towards her. “I kinda wanted to make dinner tonight since you’ve been very tired lately so...” she only stopped talking for an instant while he scooted just a little closer to her. How ridiculous it was, she thought, that he could still get on her nerves with so little. “So I did. But...” Kaeya brushed off her face a misplaced lock of hair, and urged her to go on. “But you were taking so long she just didn’t listen and ate your share as well.” Kaeya pursed his lips, holding back a laugh. “She obviously started feeling ill, so she went upstairs, and hasn’t been back since”.

Kaeya swiftly picked the book from the floor. “So no dinner for this poor knight”, he reproached out loud in a truly pathetic voice.

Even though Lumine knew he was half-joking, she made a move to stand up, “I can fix you something quick now if you want... I’m...”

Unexpectedly, she felt the light plop of a book down on the top of her head. She swiftly threw a cushion to his chest on revenge, laughing. He was also laughing, sincerely, not the curated and affected one; truly laughing. He did that a lot, lately.

Still laughing, he softly wrapped his arms around her waist and let his weight take them both down to the couch. Lumine’s face went as red as an apple in zero seconds, but what he was really interested in, was the drumming of her heart beating faster and faster into his left ear.

It came with no surprise to her, she knew now that he was not in the least the cold, charming and cunning person he usually made everyone believe. Still, some displays of affection startled her greatly simply because of their spontaneous nature, leaving her hot faced and unsure of what she should do for a few moments. This time, however, she cradled his head softly, burying her fingers in his hair. “Was your day this big of a nightmare?” She whispered. Looking down she could only see his blue locks and his good eye closed, face buried deep into her chest.

“Nah. I got to finish like this. It’s really not bad”. He muttered, enjoying the caresses she was giving him.

The warm embrace of someone loved, by the fireplace. Somehow different but still.

It was home.

“Ah, says the handsome Mr. Kaeya” she said, jokingly, reliving one of the first conversations they had.

“Ah, so you DO have feelings for me.” , he started. She waited for the next bit, but then felt the slow and regular pace of his shoulders moving up and down, and chuckled.

This change of pace in her life was indeed pretty different to what she was expecting. But it wasn’t bad at all.

To her too, it was home.

————————

Thank you all for reading! This was supposed to be a Drabble to get my writing muscles stretched but it ended up being kinda lengthy. I’m sorry. I hope you like my awful writing.

[dykeninthdoctor]

love you (to the moon and to saturn)

oh this got out of hand but have 2.2k of tony and kids

No one ever said Tony Stark wasn’t impulsive, and Tony himself has never disagreed, because he knows he’s impulsive, but he thinks things through, more often than not, and he calculates the answers to problems before the problems even arise.

So, when he meets five-year-old Harley Keener in a Malibu home for boys and immediately decides to adopt him, it’s safe to say he’s thought it through, but it’s also safe to say it’s the most impulsive decision Tony’s ever made.

-

It goes like this.

-

“Tony. You need to do something. Being locked up in your workshop for hours on end to build different models of a suit you’ve already perfected isn’t healthy and I know your therapist has told you the exact same thing. So pick something, or I’ll choose for you, and I know you don’t want that.”

“The suit’s not perfected,” Tony mutters, avoiding Pepper’s eyes.

“Maybe not, but you need something else to do, because you’re ignoring the work the board needs from you.”

“I’m not ignoring it!”

“Oh, because having JARVIS flag it as priority twelve isn’t ignoring it?”

“It was a mistake letting you know my organizational system.”

“I created your organizational system, asshole.”

“Ooh, call me asshole again,” Tony teases, because he hates the way he knows she’s looking at him and it’d be so much better to see a blush or a smile. Instead, he gets her hand under his chin tipping his gaze up to meet hers and a kiss on the forehead.

“You know you can’t deflect around me. Maybe it’ll work with Jim–“

“It doesn’t.”

“You’re right, it doesn’t, he just humors you, but Jim’s not here, so you’re stuck with me.”

“Stuck with you? Oh, my dearest Pepper-pie, I could never be stuck with you.”

That gets him a laugh.

“Find a different nickname,” she tells him, and Tony almost thinks he’s gotten away with that deflection–almost–but then she gives him a look, and he knows he hasn’t.

“I’ll pick something.”

“I know you will. Ask JARVIS for the options.”

-

It goes like this.

-

Tony spends a few hours–yes, hours, because he knows his therapist and Pepper are right, even if he doesn’t want to admit it–going through the selection of different “charitable” distractions Pepper’s curated for him.

There’s a few that catch his eye, more than a few, because despite what people think, Tony wants to help even when it’s not possible, and Pepper knows that too, so of course everything she and JARVIS picked are things he wants to do.

The home for boys, though, is the one that jumps out the most.

JARVIS makes a knowing noise when Tony tells him, and his coding abilities hurt sometimes, because damn if it doesn’t sting that it sounds just like his namesake, and damn if that isn’t the exact reason Tony chose what he chose.  

-

It goes like this.

-

Tony starts going to the home every other day, Monday-Wednesday-Friday schedule, spending hours with children who don’t care what his name is or what his weapons did, who only care about the fact that he gives them all nicknames and actually listens when they talk about LEGOs or butterflies or the monster in the closet.

When the kids look at him with awe in their eyes, awe that has nothing to do with who he is, it makes working on the suit easier. It makes everything easier.

There’s seven-year-old Alex, who knows the name of every type of flower out there, and beams when Tony brings him a different flower from the local shop every day.

There’s five-year-old Robbie, with his quiet love of dinosaurs, who screams loud enough to burst eardrums when Tony brings him a shirt with the different eras of dinosaurs on it and a book about the Paleolithic era.

There’s nine-year-old Carter, whose memorization skills almost rival Tony’s when it comes to any cartoon, and when Tony finds the complete collection of the Calvin and Hobbes comic strips for him, he doesn’t stop talking about it for days.  

And there’s so many more, who call him “Tony” and make it sound like they actually care, because they actually do, who help him forget about scorching desert heat and freezing water filling his mouth, who let him be just Tony without anything else.

And then there’s Harley.

-

It goes like this.

-

The door is open when he gets there on Friday for him to drop into a crouch in the doorway, ready for the rush of boys who fling themselves into his arms. After they’ve all gotten their hugs, and Tony’s given Alex his new flower–snapdragon, today, a purple one since it’s his favorite color–Carter whispers in his ear, “There’s a new boy, he came yesterday. Mam said his name is Harley, but he won’t talk to us. He’s really little, like–“

The distance between Carter’s hand and the floor is less than a foot, but no one ever said kids were good at measurements. Tony just nods, though, and lets Carter grab his shirtsleeve to lead him inside.

“What time did he come in?”

“Before dinner, but like, he didn’t eat, so maybe he already ate dinner–Alex tried to talk to him, but he wouldn’t say anything, so I don’t know. He looks really sad, Tony, but he won’t answer our questions. Oh!” Carter says suddenly, stopping in the middle of the hallway; Tony stops with him and trips over a collection of spare…engine parts? “He didn’t let Alex touch him either.”

There’s a rush of emotions in Tony’s chest at that, and when Carter’s hand slips off his shirt and into his, he takes it gratefully; children are better at reading emotions than any adult Tony’s ever met, and there’s no point in lying to him.

“It reminded me of you,” Carter whispers. “Of the story you told me about your dad.”

And that’s the kicker.

Every boy in the home has a piece of Tony in the way they move, or the way they speak, or the way they don’t speak.

“Okay,” Tony says, and crouches down again to be at Carter’s eye-level, ignoring the way his knees protest at the movement. “I’ll see if he’ll talk to me, okay?”

Carter hugs him, and Tony hugs him back.

“Thanks, Tony.”

“You’re good at taking care of your friends,” Tony tells him firmly. “I’m proud of you, kiddo.”

“Thanks, Tony,” Carter repeats, softer.

Tony ruffles his hair. “Course, kiddo. You wanna take me to see Harley?”

Carter nods his head towards the door Tony hadn’t realized they stopped outside of. “He’s in there.”

-

It goes like this.

-

Carter lets go of Tony’s hand after Tony forks over the candy he promised to bring last time and runs off to–fairly and equally–distribute it to the other kids. Tony watches him go with fondness swelling in his chest before turning back to the door and knocking a pattern lightly against the old wood.

There’s no response, but Tony wasn’t expecting one, and he opens the door quietly, pushing the engine parts in the doorway into the room with his foot.

It’s empty at first glance, the three bunkbeds in various states of disarray and LEGOs scattered on the floor, a Star Trek poster half-taped to the wall–Tony makes a mental note to bring more tape next time, and more posters, and a DVD of Star Trek seasons one through three–and clothes overflowing from the hamper shoved in the corner like an afterthought.

Then he hears a tiny sniff and the sound of fabric against skin from behind the clothes, and it’s like he’s five again and hiding from Howard in his closet.

“Harley?” he calls out softly.

Again, no response, but when he shifts down to his knees again and the floorboard underneath him wobbles, the noises stop.

“My name’s Tony, I’m here to say hi.” He pauses, then adds, “Your friend Carter sent me.”

There’s another sniff and a quiet exhale, and then the clothes move, and Tony’s face-to-face with liquid blue eyes and a freckled nose surrounded by a tiny mop of blond hair.

The kid–Harley–freezes. Tony freezes.

“‘m sorry,” Harley mumbles, and it sounds wrong, not just the words–because Tony hates when an unneeded apology falls from a kid’s lips, rotting fruit from the purest of trees–but the way he says them, like they’re clunky on his tongue. “Didn’ realize you were s’ill ’n here, ‘m sorry.”

“Don’t be,” Tony starts, but Harley keeps talking like he didn’t hear him, hands–tiny hands–shaking at his sides and eyes–scared eyes–focused on the floor.

“‘m sorry, Mis’er S’ark, I didn’ mean to–“

Then it clicks.

Tony raises his hands, slowly slowly slowly, to sign, “You don’t have to apologize.”

The rambling stops, and Harley’s eyes finally lift to meet his.

“You know how to talk to me?” he signs, hands moving almost too fast for Tony’s rusty knowledge of ASL to pick up, but the gist is clear, and Tony’s heart breaks.

“Yes. I do,” Tony tells him.

Harley beams.

-

It goes like this.

-

Through silent conversation, Tony learns about Harley, learns about a car crash that sounds all too familiar, learns about Harley’s affinity for engines, learns about this child, this child who shines as bright as the arc reactor in his chest, and the thought that maybe, maybe, this is what Jarvis felt, creeps across his mind.

Even if it isn’t, Tony looks at Harley, and understands, for the first time in his lifetime, why Jarvis was always there for him.

He adopts Harley on the spot.

-

It goes like this.

-

There’s paperwork to fill out, and questionnaires to answer, and pamphlet after pamphlet, but a two-month process gets condensed down to two hours, because he’s Tony Fucking Stark, and Harley’s eyes filled with tears when he realized what was happening.

With Harley’s tiny hand clasped firmly in his, he finishes signing the last document.

“All done, bud,” he finger spells.

“Thank you,” Harley signs, “Thank you thank you thank you–“

When he picks Harley up and settles him on his hip, it feels right.

“Time to go home, kiddo.”

-

It goes like this.

-

Pepper drops everything she’s holding, including the One Tree Hill mug that Tony bought her despite her protests that she didn’t like the show, when she sees Harley sleeping–and most likely drooling–against his shoulder.

Tony winces. “Hey, Pep.”

“Hi, Tony. Why are you holding a kid?”

“His name’s Harley.” “That doesn’t answer my question.”

“Well, I–“

“The real answer, Tony,” she says, before he can even think of an excuse.

“He’s like me,” he says suddenly, without meaning to, but despite that, he does mean it, because Harley’s like him in every movement he makes, every word he speaks, and after all, that’s why Tony brought him home.

The crease between her eyebrows smooths out momentarily, before reappearing with force.

“How much like you, Tony?”

“I had Happy throw out every bottle before we came home,” Tony answers with, and it’s enough for Pepper.

“You can’t do this on your own.”

Harley snuffles against his shoulder. Tony’s gaze immediately shifts to him.

“No, but I can try.”

“No, you self-sacrificial idiot, I’m calling Jim and Roberta.”

-

It goes like this.

-

When Momma Robbie sees Harley–who’s curled up on his chest watching a cartoon with subtitles on while Tony “rests his eyes” on the couch–she just gives Tony a Look, kisses both their cheeks, and tells him that she wishes he’d waited until Jimmy was home, which. Is something Tony doesn’t need to unpack while Harley’s there.

Harley falls in love with everything about her, including, but not limited to: her cooking, her hugs, the way she signs, how she tucks him into bed, her kisses…the list is so endless Tony almost gets jealous, because that’s his kid.

Then again, Harley sits by his side in the workshop for hours on end, content to build his own miniature robot–a companion for Dum-E and U–and it’s him Harley comes to after a nightmare.

The nightmares are hard, for both of them. Most nights, Harley will crawl into his bed, face stained with tears, and fall asleep to the light of the arc reactor.

“’s a star. Our nightlight,” Harley mumbles, half-asleep, one night and for once in his life, Tony doesn’t hate the arc reactor.

The nightmares get easier when Rhodey comes home, three weeks and a day after Harley’s first day in the mansion. When he gets his first look at Harley–in the lab, playing around with his new bot while Tony builds his hearing aids–his face goes eerily blank, before he comes to hug Tony tightly. “He’s you, genius,” he murmurs, and Tony almost cries, because of course Rhodey doesn’t have to ask.

Again, something to unpack later.

Harley adjusts to Rhodey’s presence like he was there from the first day, like he was there when Harley didn’t want to talk at all, like he was there when Harley didn’t stray from Tony’s side, like he was there when fear was the primary emotion in Harley’s big eyes, not joy and comfort and safety.

Harley lets Rhodey in just as easily as he let Tony in.

That Tony cannot fault him for, and maybe the fact that Harley’s like him isn’t a bad thing.

Maybe Tony can guard him from the worst parts of it all.

After all, that's what Jarvis did for him.