#and Bug of course. Bug whenever and wherever

[omaano]

🎨 Art Summary 2024 🎨

I did the thing I missed out on last year and picked a clone to represent each month :3 it wasn't too hard considering how I've spent the majority of my time drawing them (finally with some OCs - mine and others' - hell yeah!).

In 2025 I really want to wrap up the Hades AU, finish up the poly sketch requests for good, and play around with my art style: simplify a few things and work on my fear of empty spaces. Gotta learn how to hit that nice balance between noise and calm spaces in my art 💪

Thank you everyone for supporting me this year, through commissioning me or leaving very nice and heartwarming comments in the tags ❤️❤️❤️ (I do read and often save many of them for future support ❤️)

[3rosx]

Boothill x Fem!Reader, angsty smut headcanons because his lightcone story was leaked and it's kinda sad so of course I had to make something out of it.

Boothill likes kissing you, he likes the feeling of your warm mouth on his. The way his mechanical heart would need to run more power whenever you ask him to lean down so you could place your soft lips wherever you'd like, and the tingly feeling his face gets after you do. Because his head is the only thing left of him that's human, the only part of him that can feel things while the rest of his body is just a big chunk of metal and wires that keeps him functioning.

Boothill likes giving head, likes the feeling of your thighs squishing his cheeks when you squirm. He loves it when they shake right against him when you're close to cummin' and goes even harder on you just too feel those plushy legs suffocate him.

Boothill hates that his body doesn't feel anything, yes he does feel arousal, but it's different from the way normal people with normal parts do. When he get's aroused, his system gets all bugged and runs on more steam than usual. His metal body gets all hot, like a laptop that's been running for days. It didn't bother him that much at first, he just had to take a few breaks when he gets too hot when he's eating you out. It was fine at first.

But times goes on and he starts to wonder if you're fine with how things are, even though you assure him time and time again that you are okay with it. As long as it's him. But even if you're okay with it, there's still a thought in his head that he's not giving you enough. You deserve more than he could give you. You might be fine with it now, but who know? After a few or so years you might think that this arrangement isn't enough for you and leave him for someone who can, someone whole and not broken like him.

[sigmasemen]

WHEN YOU GO ON A DATE WITH THEM. (1/2)

multiple blue lock characters x reader

tags: romance, cute relationships, established relationships, fluff.

taglist: n/a currently

characters: alexis ness, akira endoji, ryusei shidou, nijiro nanase, ranze kurona, michael kaiser, bachira meguru, rin itoshi, chigiri hyoma.

word count: 2668

extra notes: i originally had sae in this but he didn’t make it into the 9 character count i usually do.

ALEXIS NESS:

- Ness is very strategic about dates and things of the sort. He always thinks about the best ways to make you feel special, how to plan things out for you to enjoy yourself, he's particular.

- Though he tends to stick to romantic dinners in a nice restaurant, private to just you and him, sometimes you suggest something a bit more daring. Like, "Let's go to a yoga class!" or "Let's head over to the local water park!"

- But, arguably, his favorite non-romantic-dinner-date is definitely when you two went out shopping. Not to a mall or anything, just a town square, traditionally built with intricate patterns in the rocks.

- Ness, at first, was just window shopping and letting you pick everything. Whenever you looked at something for a prolonged second, he grabs it, buys it, and gives it to you. Especially if it's matching.

- He's a bit touchy on dates. Mostly wrapping his hands around your waist, occasionally glaring at people who stare at you for too long then pressing a firm kiss onto your lips, face, wherever he can reach.

- Ness enjoys taking you to fancy wine and dine restaurants, though gets confused if you order something more normal. He always gets you extra food just in case. (On most dates though, he's cooking for you.)

- At the end of the date, he walks you home and has his usual V-shaped smile plastered on his face while he waits for you to tell him bye. He then leans down, presses a kiss on your hand, then trails kisses up to your cheek and smiles.

- "I will see you soon, my love." He then walks off, leaving you dazed (with, of course, a soft smile on your face.)

AKIRA ENDOJI:

- Akira blushes bright red whenever you do literally anything slightly cute on the date. If you give a small giggle, he'll grip the table with a huge grin and bright blush on his face.

- He holds open every door for you, pulls out your chair, adjusts your outfit when people are looking. He'll do anything for you and your praise.

- He loves his first date with you. He remembers you went to a garden, and as he was chasing you around in there, he somehow stumbled into the fountain. He looked sad that he had ruined his appearance, so you jumped in right with him.

- He adores going on as many dates as he possibly can with you. You're practically going on one every other day.

- Akira, whenever you're going up an elevator or doing something before a ride, will bounce on his heels and smile as he's excited.

- Each date is extremely eventful though. You cannot say you've ever had a bland one. Whether the idea is skydiving or Akira just accidentally does something dumb, it's a 50/50 chance.

- One time, you went to a zoo and stepped on a bug. You didn't really care, however your (lovely) boyfriend's arms and legs were wrapped tightly around you as he stared at the guts of it. Then proceeded to act cool until he saw another one.

- He enjoys when you touch the tuff of orange hair in front of others because he practically chirps like a bird.

- Always buys souvenirs after every. Single. Date.

- He also loves going on coffee or hot chocolate dates in the winter because you always shiver and he gets to give you his coat. He's very proud of himself after that.

- At the end of each eventful date, you lean on his shoulder while listening to music with him. He fools with your hand until you both fall asleep.

RYUSEI SHIDOU:

- Oh expect the most eventful dates to the point your legs are trembling after from running around with him.

- He adores to pamper you and give you all his attention on dates. And grab your ass. Also a very important part.

- Most dates include going to parks and beating kids on the jungle gym, going to a carnival and competing to see who's better (if he wins, he gives you the stuffed animal regardless), going to rave concerts, or staying home and fucking. Whatever he wants that day.

- He actually took you to see A Clockwork Orange. You didn't understand what he saw in it, especially considering the foulness of it... However, he explained how he fucking loved the gore. Weird, but you had learned to accept it after seeing that kick to the face Rin got...

- Shidou adores randomly slapping your ass on dates and making you yell. He finds it hilarious and will press kisses all over your face as a thank you for letting him.

- He sometimes invites you on sudden notice to feed strays with him, which then spirals into a long and loving date.

- You teach him how to slow dance. He does it to impress you, but beyond that he'd suck.

- Always asking you to wear revealing outfits but accepts it when you don't. He enjoys how you gawk at his muscles when he flexes though.

- He also finds it fun to take you to cat cafes and to place all the cats on you, then take a picture and run.

- He buys you a lot of small trinkets, especially clips and plushies. He even gets a custom plush of him to put on your phone. (He has one of you on his too.)

- All dates end back at his place after a few rounds, having you curled up against his chest. For once, even though he feels empty as usual, he enjoys the sight of you on his chest. His breath and your face made you both drift to sleep.

NANASE NIJIRO:

- Nanase is over the moon when you ask him out on a date. He's a bit scared to ask you out on dates but he appreciates when you ask him. The only time he ever asked you to take him out on a date was when he asked you to prom. (His mother was dolling him all up while he looked a bit embarrassed.)

- Most dates have you two holding hands or interlocked arms.

- Also getting dirty.

- Nanase sometimes takes you on remote dates to picnics so you can remain distant from everyone as it's nice to have just your company around.

- He loves dates where you two get to go on adventures together to try new things. Like rock climbing! (You found out he had a fear of heights with that.)

- A few times on your dates, he'd say a metaphor wrong to a snow cone vendor and you'd just giggle and kiss his cheek.

- He's very much a gentleman and will hold open doors for you constantly.

- Tried to slow dance with you when it was getting dark and it was raining, except he slipped and you both fell. It took a while for you to stop laughing.

- Usually you buy large drinks early on in the date to quench your thirst for the entire date.

- Whenever the date ends, you walk him home and shake hands with whatever parent is there at the time. You then wave and walk home. (He's texting you the entire way home to make sure you get home safely.)

RANZE KURONA:

- He practically rushes to ask you out as he doesn't want any other guy to come sweep you up and take you away. 

- Dates usually are random, he'll go anywhere you want to go. The aquarium is the main spot. Not because he picked it, but because you did. You'll stare at the sharks for a few prolonged moments, then look at you and trail your fingers along his teeth.

- You always wear lipstick to your dates so you can press a kiss onto his cheek.

- He usually dresses pretty casual for dates. Shorts and a tank top. You always go all out and it's cute to see your contrasting styles.

- Sometimes you'll bring a Nintendo switch and show games to him that he enjoys.

- Most dates are actually at either of your houses as you two like having alone time together. Sitting in bed together, sharing his jacket as you lean against his shoulder and keenly watch the movie you had put on.

- He enjoys playing music in the background when you two do work out dates. By the end, Kurona is still going while you're face first on the ground.

- Kurona hates going to restaurants and instead picks up fast food for you two. He's always trying new things at places. Though he especially likes snowcones from a certain corner store.

- Dates ends with silent walks late at night, content with each other's company and nothing more. Though, not much more is needed for you to be satisfied.

MICHAEL KAISER:

- Oh how he loves to spoil you rotten and pamper you. He sometimes runs his hands down your back and tells you how good you look. Asks you to wear outfits he specifically buys for you.

- He constantly takes you slow dancing and tells you that he has to show you off to the town. You're used to a lot of attention but it's even worse when Kaiser is flaunting you. Kisses you for the paparazzi.

- He pampers you a lot. Mostly dates on the town where he can show you off. Or he takes you in a helicopter and flies you around, taking you across buildings sight seeing.

- He loves how the cities reflect in your eyes and will randomly kiss you because of it.

- Always takes you to big, nice musicals and plays after renting out the entire theatre. He enjoys comparing you and his relationship to one of the relationships in the show.

- He adores feeding you German cuisine, says he made it but he most definitely did not.

- Most dates are very formal, however he doesn't mind any sort of date with you. He adores the look you get in your face after you've been pampered silly. 

- You have at least 50 different pieces of jewelry encrusted with a blue diamond or sapphire that he bought for you.

- Kaiser sometimes randomly reaches around your waist and presses firm kisses onto your neck, mumbling how beautiful your body looks in the outfit you have on. He just chuckles when you get embarrassed.

- All dates end with him dropping you off at home in some extra way, then telling your parents how great you were. He always has to make a grand gesture towards them as well.

[jellykyunnie]

˗ˏˋ Yandere! Sung Jinwoo x Best Friend! Reader ◛⑅·˚ ༘ ♡

ₓ˚. ୭ ˚○◦˚𝕊𝕦𝕟𝕘 𝕁𝕚𝕟𝕨𝕠𝕠˚◦○˚ ୧ .˚ₓ

・┆✦ Entry : 024 ✦ ┆・

‼️[ TW: stalking, obsession, gaslighting(?), gore, body horror, BLOOD, yandere Jinwoo au ]

‧₊˚ ☁️⋅ Cai Bot Link ♡𓂃 ࣪ ִֶָ☾.

╰┈➤ ❝ [ Wherever you go, I'm always right there even if you try to hide ] ¡! ❞

"You're just imagining things" Jinwoo says, his nonchalant grey eyes glancing up at you. "You just don't sleep enough."

That's what he always says whenever you rant about the nagging feeling of several eyes watching you.

And you, being the stupid fool that you are— Believed his words.

Jinwoo is a smart and logical person, he's always able to make things just make sense.

So you never really questioned anything whenever he drops his opinion.

But of course, your instincts were never really wrong in the first place.

The itching terror crawling beneath your skin whenever you're alone, the weird chills tickling your spine when you walk in a dark place— It wasn't just your imagination.

The culprit?

He's staring right at right your face with those casual grey orbs.

Jinwoo has placed a bunch of shadows to trail you around, ten maybe 20,... Maybe. Who knows how many he has really placed?

Oh but one thing was for sure, there's at least two of his most powerful line of shadows safeguarding you.

Their duties were two simple orders: Make sure you are safe and sound and eliminate all forms of danger.

Eliminate All Forms Of Danger.

Sure, it could be just some bugs you're terrified of, or making sure you dont come across any dangerous plants along your way.

But their most important task was to murder anyone who tried too hard to come close.

Jinwoo was normally level-headed, he can take seeing you talking to someone else for at least 2 minutes, 5 when he's in a really good mood.

Past ten?

Hah.

'That fucker better start counting his hours' was the only thing ringing inside Jinwoo's head.

He was a jealous man, he'd be quiet but his gaze would grow darker. His ebony locks hovering over his steely gaze, his tongue pushing his inner cheek out as he tries to hold his temper, his foot tapping the floor impatiently as he counts the seconds the bastard went pass ten minutes.

78 seconds.

Jinwoo counted exactly 78 seconds when the conversation finished and your attention would return to him.

Immediately, that hard expression on him would go gentle.

He became quite the actor no thanks to you. jinwoo doesn't want you to have a peek of what he truly is as a person.

Though you were best friends, Jinwoo was a bit handsy with you. Just a bit.

His fingers lightly brushing against your fingers, your cheeks, mostly your ears actually.

Why?

Everyone reacts a certain way when their ear gets tickled.

And he reveled in the shudders and yelps you give him whenever he teases you.

The more you gave him your many expressions, the more and more he drowns in the black hole that is you.

Whatever you do, even the littlest things, his instincts would suddenly go haywire.

Mostly he wants to cherish you, pamper you, baby you like the adorable thing that you are.

Other times? Jinwoo wants to break you apart. Watch you sob, wrists bound, legs incapable of moving— He wanted to imprison you in the land of eternal death. Have you rot in his domain where he wouldn't worry about anyone or anything else breathing the same air as you other than him.

He wanted to love you and break you, and he knew that well. Jinwoo knew of his adoration and destructiveness when it comes to loving you.

You were really like a black hole, sucking him into the void and drowning him in a sea of emotions he never can quite understand.

Perhaps the system had really screwed him up in the head.

The pressure of being a monarch, of protecting this world, of being a vessel of war for several years— He had become twisted and completely paranoid to the point that he just wants control on everything.

And he wanted complete control of you too.

But he stopped himself, several times, he stopped himself.

Jinwoo tried to cut himself off of your life, to delete your memories of him.

But whenever he tried to he could never do it.

Everytime he did, he would just get frustrated and never finish the job.

The more he tries, the deeper he falls into the abyss that is you.

And now here he is,...

Alone in an alleyway, with the beating rain above his head, the water droplets gently dripping off of his black locks. His hand was bloodied as he held the head he had brutally ripped off of the bastard that dared to go pass the ten minute limit. The mangled corpse on the floor had organs spilling out with exactly 78 cuts on it's skin so deep it must have sliced the bone too.

And just like always, you're a witness to this hell.

Scream, cry, throw up— Whatever you do, you would just draw an amused smirk on Jinwoo's handsome features.

His lips would scrunch up on one side, his eyes glowing an ominous color of monarch violet as he lightly tips his head to one side. The stench of blood permeates through the air as the crimson liquid pooled and spread along with the puddles beneath your feet. Everything was now much more terrifying than what it was earlier

You wanted to run, you were afraid of whatever demon that is in front of you.

But Jinwoo wouldn't give you that chance, after all, he is suddenly in front of you— Right at your face.

His eyes were so out of it even though they are focused on yours.

The blood splatters on him was bone-chilling and sickening and yet somehow it made him more handsome.

Jinwoo is always wearing an empty and bored gaze, and yet somehow this psychotic side of him was alluring and dreamy.

Like a fragrant poison you knew would kill but attracted you even still.

"Sssh" Jinwoo purrs sweetly, cradling your face with one hand and then lightly kissing your lips for a short while. "I only did what I needed to do."

" You just listen to me like you always did and forget this ever happened like we've always done"

Forget? Forget how—

Suddenly, your body would go limp and he would catch you. An arm gently wrapped around your waist as he cradles your sleeping form.

Jinwoo would chuckle, pressing another light kiss on your lips,... then your forehead, your temple, your cheek, and once again your lips.

He held the kiss a little while longer.

He loved that expression on your face to be honest, how it scrunch up in terror and disgust. How you would pale oh-so immediately that he can't help but be giddy and want to kiss your pretty little face over and over— Smothering you like the lovely little thing you are.

He has done this so many times.

First, it was some people getting too close.

Second, it was your friends.

Third, these random people who would talk to you for more than ten minutes.

Time and time again, he would bloody his hands for selfish reasons.

Jinwoo wants to be the apple of your eye just as you are to him.

After all, he lovingly placed a legion of shadows in you so that he could watch you the second you are away from his physical body.

"God, I love you so much" He'd whisper, his lips against your hair as he inhales your scent in.

. . . . . . . . .

"Hey," Jinwoo casually greets you the next morning at school, your cute expression in a complete daze from having your memories wiped once again the night prior. "It's a long weekend after today, how about I take you out to dinner?"

ʚ(੭´͈ ᐜ `͈)੭ .｡✧･ﾟ: ~♡ —! stories written by kyunnie; translations, reposts, plagiarism are strictly forbidden.

[m1d-45]

snapshot

summary: short, soft moments with your lover, featuring tighnari and neuvillette (separately) in that order.

word count: ~1k composite

-> warnings: big mention of bugs in tighnari's ! none shown but theyre discussed, as are bug bites. none for neuvi.

-> gn reader (you/yours)

taglist: @samarill || @thenyxsky || @valeriele3 || @shizunxie || @boba-is-a-soup || @yuus3n || @esthelily || @turningfrogsgay || @cupandtea24 || @genshin-impacts-me || @chaoticfivesworld || @raaawwwr || @ryuryuryuyurboat || @undrxtxd || @rainswept || @wanderersqt || @rozz-eokkk

< masterlist >

bug bites were common among forest rangers. a special bug repellent was included in every pack, a black bottle with plain instructions. tighnari put effort into making it easy to apply and easier to understand, constantly finding new ways to promote its usage. if gone untreated, even small beestings can become serious. add onto it the fact that he was the one that inevitably had to treat them, and he had every motivation to ensure it was used. he made sure that spares were easily accessible, included demonstrations in training, and emphasized the importance of proper application before every patrol.

so why in teyvat did you keep getting bit?

every time, without fail, you returned from patrol scratching your wrist or ankle or wherever you inevitably got bit. and every time, he had to be the one to drag you to the medical hut. at least if you acknowledged the severity of the situation and brought your injuries to him on your own, that’d be understandable. he understood that the feeling of lotion wan’t bearable for everyone—he was in the process of transforming it into a mist to make it even easier—and he’d be happy to find ways to keep you inside if that was the case. there was no shortage of small chores to be done, and with collei now in full recovery, you could easily take her place.

but no. of course not. that would be too easy. his partner happened to be the most stubborn ranger on the squad, with the worst affinity for bugs he’d ever seen.

“how does this always happen to you?”

you shrug, pulling his mint plant off the shelf and beginning to tear off a few leaves. part of him is proud you at least know the proper treatment, though it’s quickly overshadowed by the angry swelling on your hand. he takes the leaves and nudges you toward the chair, searching his drawers for the rest of the poultice.

“how long ago did you get bit?”

“maybe half an hour.”

“half an-” he twisted open the tin with too much force, sighing. “and you didn’t come back immediately why?”

he can hear the smile in your voice. “it wasn’t that serious.”

“…what color was it?”

“yellow.”

“really?”

“and striped. probably a wasp.”

he didn’t know how you had the energy to be sassy, tearing the leaves into shreds and mixing it into the tin. your eyes were red with tears and you hissed when he spread the medicine over your wrist, clearly in pain. the area around your bite was hot to the touch, and he could feel his ears pull back in worry.

“why do you insist on going on patrol?” why do you insist on getting hurt?

“it’s not a big deal.” i don’t care about my pain.

“it is.” i do.

he wiped off his hands and grabbed a roll of bandages, wrapping your hand. your fingers flinched whenever he pulled it too tight. how could you insist on putting yourself at risk like this?

he taped down the end, holding your hand in his. “if it gets too itchy, come back to me, okay?” will you let me care for you?

“of course i will.” i’ll try.

he brought your hand to his, pressing a kiss to your knuckles.

maybe this time, you’d mean it.

rain was common in fontaine. gutters lined every road and fountains sprayed wherever there was enough room to put one. carved bricks channeled water out of the plazas, every inch of the city designed with rainfall in mind. steep roofs fell over wide awnings, thick greeting rugs in front of every building. when it rained, it poured, though no puddles lay in the streets. sharp lights cut through the dense fog hanging over ivory walls, lighting up the city even when the clouds blocked out the sun.

but the world did not come to a standstill merely because the weather asked it to. boots were sold covered in waterproof wax, many-layered skirts designed to flick off water in a single twirl. fashion was as beautiful as it was untouchable, the very idea of something being vulnerable to waterlog appalling and confusing. who would create such a thing? who would wear it without an umbrella? and, entirely separate from that: who would ever consider leaving the house without an umbrella?

umbrellas were as vital to fashion as they were to the ever-changing weather. they came in every color and shape, made to match every conceivable outfit one could wear. and if, by some miracle, you couldn’t find one that did, there were a plethora of boutiques offering custom embroidery. the steambird was eager to comment on the shifting designs across officials’ umbrellas, trends flowing in and out of their fashion column like the tide. everyone who worked in the court that had stepped outside on a rainy day—which was about as common as the sun rising—had their appearance meticulously documented; unless they refused being in the paper, of course, in which case other less-reputable sources picked up the story instead.

all were reported on, making the front page if not the headline. all, but one.

the iudex did not carry an umbrella. he also declined to entertain any questions as to why, merely stating that simple fact and moving on with his day. his hair clung to his face, even his suit darker with water. he walked down the less crowded roads so he wouldn’t bump into anybody, seeming entirely unbothered by the rain. sometimes he’d turn a palm toward the sky, as if checking that it was still there, and then continue on his way.

you always hated this habit of his. no matter how many times he insisted that he wouldn’t get sick, it was always worrying to open your door and find your lover soaked from head to toe. no water slips from him to your floors, not even from the soles of his boots, the click of his heels and your worried tone the only sound in the house. it was already late as it was, and there was no point to fuss about details at this hour.

“what happened?”

he shed his coat, suspended droplets hovering in the air around him. “the marechaussee phantom were called to mount automnequi; a melusine was badly injured by a rogue mek, and a fisherman had to pull her from the sea. i paid her a visit after work.”

that would explain things. he lets you wipe off his face, careful not to smudge the eyeliner that never seems to fade. already, the rain was beginning to let up, lightening from a downpour. rain in fontaine was as fickle as it was frequent…

“is she alright?”

“of course. the gardiennage provides excellent doctors.”

“then there’s no need to worry.” cupping his now-dry face in your hands, you pressed a quick kiss to his lips. “she’ll be back in her feet in no time.”

the slightest of smiles crossed his face, his hands keeping yours on him. outside, the skies were clearing, pale blue quickly streaming through the clouds.

perhaps umbrellas would fall out of fashion soon, if rains could cease before they truly had the chance to begin.

[sohnric]

millennium bug – e. sohn

pairing: eric sohn x fem! reader

genre: 90s au, twenty-five twenty-one au, brother's best friend au, childhood friends au, fluff, slice of life, coming of age. older brother! sunwoo. essentially just eric being baek yijin. oct-nov scenes inspired by weak hero class 1. no plot just vibes im sorry

warnings: minimal swearing and thats all lol

word count: 19k

a/n: posting a fic for a new fandom is always so scary pls be nice to me deobiblr bc im literally abt to cry. also yes i am calling this a 2521 au bc the plot is so heavily inspired it might just be one. a special thank you goes out to @csenke for dragging me into stanning this group i am enjoying myself 🤞

there are some pros and cons to not having friends growing up. cons: you're always forced to tag along with your brother and his group wherever he goes. pros: his childhood best friend is kind of hot.

JUNE OF 1999

Being Kim Sunwoo’s younger sister is no bed of roses sometimes.

Sure, you get the occasional excitement of having him bring you rollerskating with you down the hill or the ever so rare moments of him defending you in front of your mother when you two have done something wrong (while never saying he was in on the bad act as well, of course), but more than often, you are met with his disgusted looks and insults whenever the two years older boy passes by your room and casually bangs at the door just to spite you.

His snarky looks are especially ones to remember. Maybe it’s because he offers them to you often– much like in this very moment, completely unprovoked, and completely not by your fault.

“But mum–”

“I already told you, Sunwoo,” your mother looks at him with a stern look in her eye, the one that makes chills run down your spine, “you can go if you take Y/N with you.”

“But nobody’s bringing their sister! Mum, come on–”

“Take it or leave it, young man.”

And see, your brother may be 19 years old, but he’s still in need of getting permission to leave the house if it includes an overnight stay. It’s an unspoken rule he always follows, since he’s usually granted the right to leave, but the result of his conversation was different than what he expected this time. And see, you may be just two years younger than him (one year left until you are an adult), but even though your mother is too busy to take care of you and entertain your slowly adultling self on most days because of her highly demanding job, she always makes sure that you don’t stay alone for long, and that’s exactly why (you realize, contrary to your brother) she insists on making you tag along on Sunwoo’s trip to the beach house with his friends.

The male grunts and turns on his heel, not giving your mother another response– and with this, you know she won. And that means you’ll have to pack your bag soon, because you know that there’s no way Sunwoo would miss going to the beach house with his friends– even if it meant making his little sister tag along.

And sure enough, Lee Juyeon’s minivan pulls up into your driveway only a few hours later, and the sound of the honking outside is enough for your older brother to aggressively drag you outside of the house, shutting the door behind you and hollering an angry “Bye mum!” to your mother. Your figure is handled with the least amount of care possible as you’re thrown towards the white van, the door opened and 5 heads already peeking out with expecting eyes, waiting for your brother’s arrival.

“My mum made my stupid sister go with me, so I hope we have space for one more,” Sunwoo huffs as he throws his bag into the trunk, slamming it with more force than was necessary (boy does he know how to throw a scene), an encouraging voice of none other than Juyeon– the driver himself– landing in your ear. 

���Sure, just hop in!”

With that, your feet finally unglue themselves off the ground and bring you into the vehicle. You’re familiar with his friends– since a scenario like this hasn’t happened for the first time and you had to spend your fair time with Sunwoo’s circle growing up, mainly because you never really had many friends yourself. You’re not close with any of them, though, and you’re sure you haven’t seen half of them for ages. 

Lee Juyeon is the responsible one of the group. You’re comfortable with the fact that he’s the driver, since you’re not entirely sure if you’d trust any of the other men in this space behind the wheel (you fear the day your brother gets a driver’s license. You'd bet a million dollars that he’ll die while driving recklessly one day). Next to him on the passenger’s seat is Choi Chanhee, his best friend, carrying a map in his hands and twirling it in all possible directions to get his friend on the right track. In the three-seat behind those two is Ju Haknyeon, Ji Changmin and your brother himself, and in the very back of the whole van, almost in the trunk, you’re sat next to Eric Sohn– your brother’s childhood best friend.

“Hi guys,” you offer a greeting to all of them, settling into the uncomfortable leather seat (that’s peeling off, just by the way), watching as the rest of the men pay you no mind and ignore your voice, falling into a comfortable conversation with each other.

Sighing, because this always happens– your brother gets too annoyed because he has to bring you with him all the time, and you imagine his friends aren’t fond of the fact either– you settle deeper into the seat and cross your hands on your chest, looking outside of the window. You can’t imagine enjoying your trip now, since you feel like you’re a nuisance, a child they have to take care of (yes, it embarrasses you just the tiniest bit, you have to admit. Although, you do enjoy getting out of the house from time to time), and the fact that your feelings were probably more than justified and also true has you pouting, an unsatisfied feeling weighing at your lungs.

“Hi,” a voice resonates from your side, the sight of a smiling Eric peering at you taking you off guard. You didn’t expect anyone to react to your greeting– not so delayed anyway– and the sight of your brother’s best friend carrying on in the conversation with you has you shocked beyond belief. “Excited?”

Finding yourself hum in agreement– how much you are still excited for the pool and for the sun, you’re not really sure– and although you are upset, something about his open and nice demeanor has you visibly relaxing, the sparkles inviting themselves back into your eyes. “I’ve never been to the beach,” you admit, seeing Eric gasp at you in surprise.

“Really?” he asks. “I go every year with my parents.”

“Well,” you hum, “you know how my mother is…” you sigh, chewing on the inside of your cheek. It’s easier to joke about it than to actually let the fact get to you– with your mother being the main news anchor, she is too busy to actually go on trips and form bonds with her own children sometimes. That’s why you spent most of your childhood at Eric’s family’s house in the first place– this is what made you the closest with Sunwoo’s same aged friend. His parents were nice enough to let you stay over and have sleepovers whenever your mum had to leave suddenly and take week-long trips abroad, or have emergency shifts during late evenings. 

Eric hums, sympathizing with you. “Well, at least you get to experience it now!”

“Yeah,” you awkwardly nod, playing with the hem of your jean shorts. It’s the shorts you made yourself by cutting the legs off your favorite pants after you grew out of them and they got too short, and they’re starting to look a little worn-out now. Maybe you should beg your mum to get you some new clothing.

The conversation between the boys grows in volume, doing nothing to help you to relax in the crowded vehicle. You can’t really find a place to fit yourself in and talk, the topics too unfamiliar for you and the feeling of not even being welcome in the discussion sitting heavy on your chest, when a finger bears itself to the flesh of your thigh, making you snap your head around to gape at the source of the contact. Eric looks at you with a boyish grin, sparkles evident in his eyes.

“Wanna see something?” he asks.

“Sure.”

The male digs around his backpack, hands searching through the contents of his bag for only a couple of seconds– since he’s the neat one, contrary to your messy brother– before he takes out a small gadget: a square with a little screen on top, a silver, circular button space sitting big in the very middle of the device. Eric throws the thing into your lap, smiling when you take it into your hands and examine it with curious eyes.

“Have you seen one before? My dad got it for me last week,” he boosts, satisfied with your reaction to it. 

Your mother’s job pays quite well– meaning that you usually have the latest gadgets, the latest trends– but if you’re being honest, you haven’t seen one of these in real life before. Yes, you caught a glimpse of an ad for it in the town center, on one of the big billboards while passing by to get to school in the morning, so you know that it’s an MP3 player, but still; this was your first time touching one and examining it in real life. 

“How does it work?” you ask, watching as the boy scoots from his seat to the middle one, so he is now sitting directly next to you, before he takes out wired headphones from the first department of his backpack and turns the little square over in his hands, finding where the jack goes.

“You put those in,” he says, plugging in the headphones, “and then you press this…” he explains, taking the device out of your hand and pushing on the power button for a few seconds, “and then it should play.”

Watching him with expecting eyes, the boy finally puts the MP3 player back into your hold. Then, his fingers swiftly put the respective earphones into your ears– like you’d do to a little kid that has no idea how they work, making you a little flushed at the action– and after that, you’re left with the sound of an unfamiliar song playing in your ears, making the sound of the chatter in the van completely tune out. Eric keeps on watching you, a sense of pride in his eyes as you nod at him, all excited with the new explory, before he takes one of the earphones out of your ear, grinning.

“Cool, isn’t it?”

“Yeah,” you nod. “The song is good,” you dumbly say, watching as the boy next to you pridefully nods at the compliment, resting his back against the car seat. 

“It’s the H.O.T album. My dad says they’re good,” he mumbles, moving the headphone he took from you and placing it into his ear, making you nod at him in acknowledgement. The action has your insides bubble with disappointment, thinking that the fun is over as you reach for the other earphone as well, offering it to the male.

Eric looks at you with a shocked pout, shaking his head. “No, we can share!” he says, pointing towards your ear. “If you want, of course.”

The action has you smiling, a shy nod escaping out of you as you reach and put the earphone back into your ear, letting yourself fall deeper into the car seat, listening to the song from Eric’s MP3 player. You’re grateful for his presence– he didn’t have to keep up a conversation with you. He could ignore you, just like the rest of his friend group always has. Maybe it was something about the two of you growing up together that always made the boy at least a bit more affectionate towards you than the rest.

You spend the car ride to the beach house with Eric leaning on your side, listening to music and his occasional blabbering about how his previous days went. 

Somehow, you're glad the seat beside him was the only vacant one when you arrived to the vehicle.

YOUR SEVENTH BIRTHDAY, 1989

You don't quite remember when you met Eric for the first time, if you’re being completely honest. The first memory you have of him is of your seventh birthday party, although you’re almost certain the boy’s been present at some point of your life before– at one point, you think you saw a picture of him and Sunwoo, two chubby toddlers, watching you as you laid on a blanket on the ground somewhere in your photo album. As far as you’re concerned, he may as well have been there when your mother brought you back from the hospital– although you think he must have been too young for that back then.

The first memory you have of Eric Sohn is the day you turned seven– a gloomy, sad day that in the moment, you prayed you wouldn’t have to remember in the first place.

It was already established that while your brother is the social butterfly, you don’t have a big friend group. Actually, you could count the number of your friends on one hand, and since the amount wasn’t as big, your mother allowed you to invite them all over to your house to celebrate your birthday with you. 

She baked a cake, she decorated the living room, hell, she even took a day off from work– something you deemed special, for it doesn’t happen often– and as you sat on the floor of your living room, the cake standing proud on the small coffee table, waiting for your friends to arrive, you hummed a song under your breath, the clock slowly passing the time you agreed for them to come over and celebrate.

At first, you didn’t mind it– everybody gets late sometimes, it’s okay. It was just a birthday party, and you had a lot of time. Not everything had to be set on schedule.

But the closer the clock moved to being one hour, than two after the time your friends were supposed to come, you grew worried. Your mother’s nervous pacing around the living room and her heavy sighs as she sat next to you on the floor, smiling at you in what you can only explain as sad way made you more and more anxious about the fact that you only had three friends, but all three of them seemed to not care enough to come celebrate your birthday with you. And as your mother finally took the final bow in the form of a soft hand on your inner thigh, her tone gentle as she called your name– “Y/N, I think we should light the candles,” you began to tear up.

You were supposed to eat the cake with your friends. You were supposed to hear them sing the birthday song to you. You were supposed to turn on the radio and dance around with your classmates, eat the sweets and unwrap the cheap, but heartfelt gifts they brought along with them to celebrate your birthday. 

But none of these scenarios were happening, and you felt incredibly, incredibly lonely and sad. Forgotten, if you will. Not cared for, definitely.

Hiding your face into your hands, you started to cry. This disappointment was too big for your small heart to take, and you no longer cared about the cake, the candles, the seaweed soup your mother cooked for you to celebrate, the gifts, or the party. All you wanted to do was hide in your room and never come out– something about the whole situation felt deeply embarrassing, and to this day, the moment before the whole day turned around still makes you feel a bit ashamed of yourself. 

Too busy crying, you didn’t notice your older brother watching you with big bambi eyes, a worried glance sent your way each time your sobs grew louder and louder. And maybe the boy only wanted to taste the cake (he’s been bugging your mum about it since the very morning, but he was always sent off with a scolding look telling him that he’ll get a slice when everyone arrives), but no matter what his true intentions were, his actions still managed to pull your seventh birthday party together in a way you never imagined.

The sound of the front door faintly resonated in your brain somewhere in the middle of your aimless sobbing, but you paid it no mind, thinking it was just Sunwoo going out to the yard to kick the ball. See, your older brother had never really known what to do when you cried growing up– it didn’t matter if he was the reason for your tears or if anyone else was. If he was the reason for your emotional outbursts, he tried to shut you up with his palm and get you to stop crying before his mother found out and gave him a scolding, but if someone else was, the small boy sometimes turned angry at the source. Kicking his classmate that once made a snarky comment about you and made you tear up or punching his friend when he was too harsh with you was all he knew to do in these situations, so he wasn’t the one to comfort you with words or hugs. It was only natural for him to escape in this situation.

You were brought to a state of shock and surprise when a hand landed on your shoulder, a familiar voice breaking you from your emotional turmoil.

“Why are you crying? We have to eat the cake!” you heard, your big, sad eyes meeting the small figure of the boy living next door, your brother nervously stepping from one side to the other right behind his best friend. “Can you light the candles, Mrs?” Eric politely asked your mum, pointing towards the cake waiting sadly at the coffee table, the figure of your mother leaving your side only shortly to get the matches from the kitchen and illuminate your face with the small flames.

Confusion mirrored your features as you watched your brother and his best friend sing the birthday song to you while your mum lit your candles, both boys clapping and dancing around, acting silly just to get a laugh from you. You didn't know how Eric got there, but you guessed there are some good sides to having him as your neighbor. The energetic boy did his best to brighten up your mood a bit, and when you blew out the candle, making a wish, Sunwoo even went as far as smashing your face into the cake to bring in the full birthday authenticity.

That got him a slap to the back of his head from your mother, as well as made you stand up from your position– no longer making you look like a disappointed bulk of pity– and chase him around the room, icing falling off your nose to the laminated floor. You got your revenge and smeared the chocolate all over his forehead (he let you chase him down only because it was your birthday and he really, really hated to see his sister cry, but he won’t ever tell you that) and as the three of you sat back down to the floor, watching your mother slice the cake and offer it to you on small white plates, you realized you suddenly weren't as sad anymore.

“What did you wish for?” Eric asked you, mouth full of cake and face messy with chocolate.

“I can’t tell you,” you hummed, eyebrows furrowed. “Then it won’t come true.”

“You probably wished for that doll you saw in the store the other day,” Sunwoo snickered as he swallowed, having you glare at him and send a sharp kick to his shin, unwatched by your mother (thankfully), as the boy fought you back, having no mercy.

Music suddenly filled the room as Eric stood up and put the radio on, his 9 year old brain smart enough to know how the device worked, his small figure dancing away to the songs playing on the single radio station you could play without carefully sorting out the antenna so it faced the north, and truly, you didn’t know how it happened, but it had you standing up and dancing around, exactly how you'd imagined doing with your friends from school.

The day wasn’t ruined– quite the opposite, really. It was one of your favorite birthday parties, and ever since then, Eric was invited to every single one you had after. And while Sunwoo may act like he doesn’t hate anything more in this world than having a younger sister, every time you feel like a burden to him, you remember this very afternoon.

You will never tell anyone what you wished for that day– but just to let everyone in on the secret, 

it was to somehow, just like Sunwoo, find someone like Eric for yourself as well. 

JUNE OF 1999

Standing at the side of the pool, eyes squinting from the inevitable force of the sun, you’re starting to regret your decision of coming along just a little. See, you usually don’t protest whenever Sunwoo aggressively drags you around and brings you everywhere he’s supposed to, because even though you love to see your brother angry (especially when you’re the reason behind the emotion), you’d also hate to see him miss out, but now, as the scorching hot sun is having no mercy on every exposed inch of skin– and believe me, there’s a lot of it, since you’re wearing your swimming trunks– and the sweat on your forehead is no longer culminating in beads, but rolling painfully slowly down your forehead, you do admit you’d be a little bit happier in the shade of your little room than here, watching the guys play volleyball in the comfort of the freezing cold pool.

And as the only female around the house, you settle with the patriarchy and bring out a small folding chair and a camping table alongside with a big, sharp knife, struggling to hoist up the giant watermelon you got in a grocery store on your way to the beach house, with the intention of cutting it and serving it to the guys later. Who knows, maybe they’ll like you a little more after that. 

The knife sinks into the thick green skin of the watermelon easily, and so as you accompany yourself with the excited (and not so excited screams coming from the losing side of the game– mainly your brother himself), you cut up the fruit into halves, then quarters, and as you stare at the moon crescents settled on the camping table, you decide to play nice and cut up the fruit into smaller triangles as well, to really get on everyone’s good side.

The yearning for male validation awakes in a woman pretty early on in life. It’s an inevitable misfortune.

“Told you Sunwoo’s all talk but no game!” you hear Haknyeon yell out as the game seemingly ends, the younger boy lunging at him in the pool, fighting him for the truthful words. Glancing at the commotion, you notice the guys slowly getting out of the pool, making you heave out in victory– you’re finally gonna have your turn in the pool. Well, if they don’t decide to occupy it again before you even get a chance to get in.

“Y/N! You cut up the watermelon?” Eric asks a very obvious question, walking up to you with beads of water all over his half-naked body. His dark hair is damply sitting against his forehead, making him look like a wet puppy, but as the male gets closer to you, he drags his palm through the locks and pushes them back, revealing his forehead– a sight sweet to your eyes, but you refuse to pay it much attention in the heat of the moment. It’s just the sun making you delirious as the idea of finding him attractive flashes through your brain, that’s all. 

“I did! Take one,” you smile, watching as the rest of the guys walk over to your little stand– while also obnoxiously swatting out water out of their hair like dogs, refusing to use towels like normal people– and finally, there it comes: appreciative smiles appear on their faces as they each take a piece, biting down on the fruit with delighted sighs.

Sunwoo walks up to you with a surprised look on his face, sighing as he messes with your hair. “If I knew you’d be our servant, I wouldn’t have even minded you going in the first place.”

“You do something nice for people and they jump on the chance to exploit you,” you hum, shaking your head in disbelief. “That’s just like you, Kim Sunwoo.”

“No, that’s just me having older brother privileges.”

“I hope you choke on that, you know,” you bite at him, pointing towards the piece of sweet watermelon in his hands, the smile on his face turning bitter. There’s a satisfied look on your face when your brother does, indeed, choke on a watermelon seed a few seconds later– and they say dreams don’t come true.

“You didn’t have to,” you hear Eric speak up from the other side, your head turning to face the male, his features appreciative and warm. “Thank you,” he beams. There’s redness on the tip of his nose and his forehead, signaling his quickly approaching sunburn, and you can’t help but laugh out at his clueless, Rudolph the red nosed reindeer self. 

“What’s so funny?” he asks, furrowing his eyebrows at you in question.

“Nothing,” you peep, “you just look like you forgot to use sunscreen,” you mumble, watching as the male gasps and touches his face, a horrified expression overtaking him when the skin under his fingertips burns to the touch. 

“I didn’t forget! It must have rubbed off in the pool,” he mourns, “I must look stupid!” 

“Only a little,” you tease, a grin overtaking your features. See, there’s something about the fact that you’ve known Eric for the entirety of your whole life that makes you more prone to teasing him– you’re familiar with your dynamics and just how far you can go, so his next actions startle you just the tiniest bit as the male looks sternly at you, throwing the half-eaten watermelon slice to the camping table. You thought you had the risks calculated– apparently, you didn't.

“What did you say?”

Examining his features, seeing no signs of anger– just the stoic, fakely-offended face of your brother’s childhood best friend– you shrug. “That you look a bit stupid with your face like that.”

“Oh, okay,” he nods, “you’re going down for that.”

“What do you mea–”

Your words are cut short when the male lunges at you, his arms enveloping your thighs and holding you up. The contact of his cold skin from the pool and your heated figure makes goosebumps appear all over your body, your hands instinctively reaching around him to support yourself as he walks closer to the pool– his intentions are suddenly painfully clear and you start to panic. 

“This will teach you to respect your elders,” Eric huffs, the turquoise surface of the water slowly coming into your point of view.

“Stop! Stop-stop-stop,” you squirm, kicking your feet and trying to take down the predator, “I’m sorry! I’m sorry, alright?”

The male takes a halt for a split second– making you foolishly believe he’ll let you off– before he breaks out into a devilish grin and continues to walk to the edge of the pool. “Too late.”

“Eric!” you scream, the volume of your voice resonating through the whole beach, your heart thumping wild against your ribcage with the awaiting process. You’re not even sure what you’re scared of anymore– you can swim and you bet the water will feel nice against the scorching sun– but still, you’re absolutely terrified as the male has no mercy on you, carrying you steadily towards the water. “At least let me tie my hair first! You can dump me in after, I promise,” you mourn, trying to buy yourself more time.

“Alright,” he nods, waiting at the very edge of the pool, leaving you to take the purple scrunchie off your wrist and gather your hair together, preparing to tie it into a bun so it doesn’t get in your way when you’re in the pool. The hair tie is just at the tips of your fingertips, the first loop over the hair ready to be done, when a scream cuts out of your throat.

The feeling of falling suddenly overtakes your body, leaving you no time to prepare yourself for the impact of the cold water against your skin and all up in your nose, since you didn’t pluck it when you were dumped into the pool. The fall only lasts a split second until you’re below the water, the force of it resonating in your ears, and when you finally act on your instincts and stand up in the pool (it wasn’t even that deep in the first place, only reaching to your upper stomach), you cough out all the water and pray to gods you don’t throw up chlorine into the freshly cleaned pool. After you’re done catching your breath and getting oxygen into your lungs again, you do your best at getting all the hair out of your face. 

There is laughter landing into your ears as soon as you manage to get all the water out of them by leaning your head to the side and violently slapping each one, and when your eyes look up, you see an amused Eric Sohn bending over in his waist at your disheveled appearance. 

Grunting and pointing a finger to the criminal that almost made you drown, you huff out. “I’ll kill you! Just you watch.”

Your scrunchie nowhere to be found, forever lost somewhere outside of the beach house, you think, as it flew off your hand in the impact of the attack, shock makes your figure shake alongside of the coldness of the water, making you audibly sigh. 

Yes. You do regret coming along just a little.

JULY OF 1999

Somewhere along the way, Eric Sohn starts acting as if he’s your second older brother. Sure, you’ve known the male your whole entire life and he’s seen you grow up, but it took him 17 years of your life to come to a point where he gives you equal amount of attention whenever he’s over at your house than he does to your brother, and even asks Sunwoo if you’re coming along with them whenever they leave to hang out somewhere else. It’s a change that comes naturally and slowly, and you welcome it unknowingly– the revelation shocks you on a hot summer day, though, when the idea finally comes to you in full force.

You would even argue and say Eric acts more like your brother than your actual sibling does– he asks if you’ve eaten and listens to you when you talk (which Sunwoo never does, well, except from when he’s arguing with you). Eric even compliments your outfits sometimes and lets you borrow his MP3 player from time to time– Sunwoo would never share his things with you, no matter how hard you pleaded and threatened to tell your mum. Yes, your brother's an adult and you’re one year away from becoming one– you still resolve your conflicts through your only parent, though. Some things, you never grow out of.

“I wanna try using the skateboard now, Sunwoo,” you order sternly when the boy finally reaches your destination. You’ve been sitting on the sidewalk for quite some time now, since your brother and his friend decided that they’re gonna try out their new skateboards on the hottest day of the year. Your town doesn’t have fancy skateparks and ramps like the ones you’ve seen in the music videos on TV, so you don’t really know what initially made the two buy those things, but you do admit that even driving up and down the road in front of your house does seem a little fun– so much you’d love to try it.

“What a shame we all wish for things we can’t have,” he shrugs ironically, shaking his head at you from his position above. The male reaches down for his bag, taking out a water bottle and putting it against his plush lips, all while you glare at him from below, still seated in your initial position. Eric comes up to you two, squishing at the soft plastic bottle in Sunwoo’s hold, making the water splash your older brother in the face, leaving a winning grin to be shared between you and the shorter boy, an expression that makes you all warm on the inside. See, at least Eric always has your back.

“You can try mine, if you want,” the latter shrugs, offering you a smile.

“Really?”

“Yeah,” he nods, “why not?”

“I don’t know,” you shrug, “I just didn’t expect you to offer, since as you saw, my dear brother just refused when I asked…” you mumble, standing up from the sidewalk and taking the skateboard into your hand. Eric offers it to you with an outstretched arm and watches as you put the board on the floor, squinting at it with much examination.

“Do you know how to ride it?” he asks.

“No,” you shake your head, “but I mean, if Sunwoo can do it, how hard can it really be?” you joke, seeing as the said boy glares at you, finally finishing his water and dropping the bottle to the ground. 

“I’ll remind you of that statement when you eat shit on the pavement,” he shushes you, rolling his eyes. 

Not paying more attention to the grumpy being that is your own brother, you relocate your attention back to the skateboard on the heated road. You’re lucky you live on a street where cars don’t often drive by, since your neighborhood is on the very edge of the town, so you don’t really fear being run over by a pickup truck. What you do worry about, though, is your lacking sense of balance, which you discovered when you learned how to ride the bike for the first time. While your brother was a professional in no time, it took you weeks to get it right, and so with the idea of riding a board that provides you zero sense of security, you get a bit worried for your own life.

Dragging your hair out of your face and aimlessly trying to tuck it behind your ears– there’s no use in trying though, as the strands slip out just as fast as they found their place– you keep staring at the board only a few centimeters away from your feet, mentally calculating your next move. There’s a noise of a backpack being opened and rustling around in the background of your miserable thoughts, and when you look up to see what’s going on, you notice Eric offering you a small, purple bundle of fabric. 

“What’s that?” you ask, even though the answer is clear as the day– you recognise your own scrunchie with no problem. You’re just surprised to see it in his hold. You thought it was forever buried somewhere in the beach house, since you weren’t able to find it after you got out of the pool, no matter how hard you tried.

“Oh,” he shrugs, amidst a little too nonchalantly, “I found it and figured it was yours, but I forgot to give it back to you then… it seems like you need it now, though,” he offers you an explanation, lips pressed into a thin line that slightly signifies a smile.

“Ah,” you gasp, nodding as you take the hair tie out of his outstretched palm, gathering your hair into a bun and tying it up on the crown of your head– the staring contest you’ve been having with the board is much clearer now, when you don’t have your messy strands in the way. The idea of Eric keeping your scrunchie after finding it at the beach house makes your stomach do a weird kind of turn– you guess it made you a bit weirded out, if you’re being honest.

“Want some help with that?” he asks, pointing towards his skateboard.

Nervous, cracking your knuckles as you meet his eyes– he looks a bit amused, but still genuine– you nod, admitting defeat. There’s no way you’re getting on top of that board without help and not falling down. It’s always better to be safe than to be sorry, and so when Eric laughs airly at your composure and takes a few steps closer towards you, you let the male lead you, finding comfort in his secure words and actions.

Eric offers you his arms to hold when you try to get on the skateboard. He is peering at you from under his eyelashes when you put one of your legs onto the wood, his grip on your forearm getting firmer when you try to get your other foot on as well– and you must admit that you suddenly don’t feel like you might die anymore when there’s someone holding you and standing by your side. 

“See? It’s not that hard,” Eric mumbles, his voice low and reassuring from the proximity. You notice your hands sweating a little when his palm envelopes yours– damn the sun and its unbearable heat making you embarrass yourself– but he doesn’t mention it as he firmly holds you and meets your eyes. “I’m gonna drag you around a bit so you get used to it before trying yourself,” he says before taking a few steps forward, preparing to be your own type of personal driver.

Having him instruct you and help you around makes you feel more comfortable on the board. Sunwoo would never do such a thing for you– he’d enjoy watching you fall down and break your neck and possibly die– so you’re more than happy to have someone in your life that takes care of you in ways your older brother refuses to. 

The skateboard moves forward a little, starting slow, but then picking up speed as Eric jogs a little, making you laugh at the action. He does not have to go above and beyond, but he still does– but you guess it’s good for him to let out his energy somewhere. After a while, he looks back at you and meets your eye with a warm gaze, making you nod at him reassuringly and hold up a thumb of the hand he’s not holding right now, signaling that you’re okay and enjoying yourself. That has the male let go of your hand and let you take the road with the laws of physics, moving forward by yourself with the force he created. 

It’s nice. It’s fun. 

Yes, you totally understand why Eric and Sunwoo wanted skateboards after seeing them on TV. Hell, you want one now.

“Try it yourself now!” Eric encourages you as the board naturally comes to a stop under you, and his smiling face is enough for you to take initiative and nod, relocating one foot off the wood and placing it on the floor, then kicking it and making yourself move on the simple vehicle.

A moment of surprise envelopes you like a warm hug when you manage to not fall off and keep your balance, the joy of it making you try to go faster on the board, kicking once, twice against the pavement with the sole of your old, beaten up shoe. “I’m doing it!” you yell, glancing back at Eric standing on the sidewalk, watching you with excited eyes. The male offers you a victorious holler, something that makes you break into a laugh, makes your confidence blossom in marvelous ways.

Confidence rises in you so much you try to take a U-turn and go back to your teacher– perhaps showing off that you really got the hang of it now, or something– but as you try to maneuver the board and turn right, there it comes: the moment where you realize that you were, once again, too overly-confident in your abilities that are, sadly, very poor. Your body sways from side to side, your poor balance laughs at you and points an accusing finger at your attempts, and, well, to put it frankly, your whole life flashes in front of your eyes and the moment plays in slow motion as you lose the board from below your feet– the wood flying somewhere to the opposite side of the road, not at all where you meant to go in the first place– and your body inevitably comes crashing to the ground.

Awaiting the hard pavement meeting your nose and breaking it, you brace yourself with palms outstretched in front of you, the last remains of self-perseverance entering the sane parts of your brain in what you think are the last seconds of your miserable life. Another moment of surprise greets you when your yelp is muffled against something soft and your hands don’t hit the hard pavement, your ears filled with a grunt that belongs to another human swiftly chiming in and catching you before you fall.

Firm hands hold your waist– the touch somehow familiar, enveloping you in a strange sense of deja vu– and even though your body goes limp in terror, the male has you back on your feet in no time, his palms on the exposed skin of your stomach. The realization has you burning up as you look up and meet Eric’s eyes, gasping at the closeness of his face to yours. 

“You okay over there?” he asks as you unconsciously study his face– you never noticed his nose looked this nice up close– before you wake out of it and nod urgently, breaking away from his hold. You’re not gonna try to calculate the effort he must have put in just to chime in and catch you from where he was standing in such a short moment, but something about the passing thought of it has you weak in your knees from gratefulness. 

“Uhm- yeah,” you nod, kicking the pavement with your stained shoes, “I just… miscalculated my skills, that’s all,” you sheepishly hum, hearing the boy snicker at your shaken-up composure.

Watching him take off and retrieve his skateboard from where it wandered off against the curb– much to his golden retriever energy– you sigh and prepare to go sit back on the sidewalk, having enough of new experiences from the shock still lingering in your fingertips. You take a glance down the road, seeing your older brother cruising on the street– when and how he got there, you truly have no idea– when you hear Eric, who seemingly has different ideas for your next actions, call at you from the middle of the pavement.

“Where are you going? Come back!” he asks, having you look at him in surprise, mouth agape and eyes big, staring at him. He now has the board under his shoulder, but puts it back on the road and points at it, shrugging to himself. “I’ll push you down the road, it’s gonna be fun!”

“Eric, I’m literally going to die–”

“No, you’re not. Come on, I promise,” he says, but still, he doesn’t have you convinced. Your feet move against your best conclusions, though, and when you come to a halt right in front of your companion, he offers you a boyish grin. “Sit down on it, that way you’re more balanced. I swear you’re not gonna fall off, okay? I got you.”

“You promise?”

“Yes,” he nods, determined.

“Pinky swear,” you mumble, holding up your pinky finger– all thoughts of seeming childish pushed to the side in the desperate moment– and the male in front of you shakes his head in disbelief, breaking into a laugh.

“Cute,” he huffs, “yeah, okay. Pinky swear,” he nods, interlacing your pinky with his and bumping his thumb against yours, the seal foolishly making you feel more secure as you follow his order and take a seat on the skateboard, your hands gripping the bottom of the wood so hard your knuckles turn white.

“Okay, ready? 3, 2, 1–” he chants as he pushes you, two steady hands coming in contact with your shoulder blades, force making you move on the board, wheels taking you down with gravity. The sound of Eric’s shoes hitting the pavement fills your ears as you go faster, and as you finally get to the part of the hill that takes a downwards slope, he offers you a final push, sending you down the road. 

Wind makes your hair fly back, your surroundings blurring as you yelp and scream, but you can’t say you’re not enjoying the ride. Eric was right– it was fun, you liked it, and something about the gesture had you all warm on the inside. The breeze has you cool down a little in the summer heat, and the board continues to move even as you pass your older brother standing at the bottom of the slope, away from your trajectory. 

Body relaxing when the skateboard finally slows down, you let out a heartfelt laughter. Turning back and seeing Eric jog down the road with a humongous grin on his face, you offer him two thumbs up above your head, watching as he returns the gesture and makes his way back to the two of you on the bottom of the small hill.

The truth is, this was the day you realized Eric Sohn has always found his way to make you feel included and safe. 

You can’t help but feel grateful.

AUGUST OF 1999

“Sunwoo, you have to tie a knot here and then– no, you dumbass, you’re doing it completely wrong,” you mourn as you watch your older brother with a mess of thread in his lap, a focused scowl on his face. There’s a fan standing across from you, blowing cold air into your face, but you still feel yourself grow heated with frustration as Sunwoo just can’t help but not understand the art of making friendship bracelets. It’s not like you’re forcing him to do them– he was the one that asked you to show him how to, muttering something about offering one to his classmate Yeji once he’s back in school– so in theory, he should be putting in effort, no? 

Or maybe he is. Maybe he’s just… incompetent.

“I don’t get it,” Sunwoo hums under his breath, sighing as he leans against the sofa in your living room, the two of you sitting on the floor accompanied by his best friend squinting at you from the opposite side, a comic book in the latter's hand. The myth of men not being able to multi-task is quickly thrown into the bin as you watch Eric pay equal amount of attention to the comic book and the dialogue between you and your brother, and when Sunwoo seems to give up on the art of making friendship bracelets, his best friend can’t help but laugh.

“You’re giving up already? This is how you want to get a girlfriend?” you poke your brother to his side and take the threads off his lap, examining the mess of a safety pin and meters of yarn, all knotted up and not coming along in the shape you taught him to at all.

“It’s not to get a girlfriend, I just-”

“Sure,” you roll your eyes, huffing as you roll his poor attempt at friendship bracelet into a ball and throw it to the corner of the room, making a mental note to pick it up and throw it to the bin later. “You know what, just give her this one and pretend you made it,” you mutter, taking a bracelet you'd already made to demonstrate in between your fingers and throw it into Sunwoo’s lap, the older one catching it and examining it under his nose.

“That looks pretty good,” he hums, making you snort at his appreciative comment. The bracelet is pink and red, the colors just screaming romance and cute energy, which is exactly what a girl needs to be swayed by your brother. You can’t really believe a bracelet will make her swoop into his arms, because truthfully, with your brother’s face and manners, every living thing is keeping a fair distance, but hey, it doesn’t hurt to try, does it? Maybe his classmate is… majorly blind? That might do it?

“Of course it looks good,” you scoff, “that’s because I made it,” you nod, averting your gaze towards your lap, threading your fingers through the yarn you attached to a safety pin on your sweatpants to keep the growing friendship bracelet in place. 

“Then why is the one you’re making right now so ugly?” Eric asks, pointing towards the creation. 

Glancing up at the male slowly, mentally throwing all different kinds of curses at him for daring to talk badly about your craft, you huff. “What do you mean, ugly?”

“The colors… they don’t… they don’t really go together,” Eric sheepishly admits, scratching the back of his neck, quickly averting his gaze from you and gluing it back into his comic book. You think that if he doesn’t stop being a smart-ass and throw jabs at your artistic choices, he’s gonna have to protect his comic book with his own body– and you bet he’d do that, because he borrowed it from the library. The fees for damage are high.

“That’s just… not true at all,” you muse, but groggily take a look at the creation once again, but now, thanks to the remark, seeing it in a completely different way. Shades of orange, brown and purple stare back at you amidst a little disappointedly, and as you thread the yarn and make a couple of knots to end the bracelet, you can’t help but feel a pout growing on your face from the realization. Eric might be right. It does look a little bad…

“Whatever. Your taste is just bad,” you snap as you finish off the craft piece, unclasping the safety pin and sliding the bracelet off the inside, freeing it from the hold. Eric laughs a little at your frustrated state– similarly to what you do when you manage to get Sunwoo upset– and with that, you sigh and put the bracelet on the coffee table.

“I’m going out to the store to get some chocolates,” you say as you stand up, goal clear in your mind, “have fun, losers.”

“You’re still collecting the stickers from these?” Sunwoo asks, a mischievous smile growing on his lips. The teasing is inevitable and coming very soon, and there’s nothing you can do about it– you’re fully aware, which only further makes you want to escape the situation more quickly. Rolling your eyes at your brother’s antics, you move towards the door. 

“Yes, Sunwoo, I am. They’re cute and make me happy, do you have a problem with that?” you point an accusing finger at the male, having him shrug, tongue poking the inside of his cheek.

“You’re such a kid,” he huffs, averting his gaze from you when he lands the comment, the jab coming straight at your fragile heart.

“Okay, then,” you note, “I’ll just have my pretty and cute bracelet back, and you can get your girlfriend something else-”

The male quickly regains his previous composure, swatting his hands in hurry just to make you halt in your sentence. His eyes are big and his mouth is a little agape in terror as he tries to save his ass, plea written all over his face. “I was just joking! Don’t be so petulant… go get your cute stickers, they’re so fun!”

Humming to yourself, your face is tugged up into a victorious smile. “That's what I thought. So, as I was saying, have fun, losers.”

“Wait!” Eric suddenly calls for you, making you turn on your heel in the middle of your escape, eyes peering at the male. “Don’t I get a bracelet too?”

The request catches you off guard. There’s a certain kind of spark in Eric Sohn’s eyes as he asks the question, and you can’t really place it in any category, but it has you nervously shrugging at the preposition. You’re not really sure why Eric would want a bracelet from you, but to avoid confrontation and also the weird leap of your heart surely leading you into cardiac arrest, you only shrug and move back inside of the living room, chewing on the inside of your cheek as you scan the surroundings, searching for something.

“Sure,” you nod, taking the ugly bracelet off the table and offering it to him, “you can have that one.”

You hold a staring contest with the older boy for a couple of seconds, his head undoubtedly swirling with arguments and comments about the apparel of the friendship bracelet, but he’s smart– he must know the survival of his beloved comic book must be at stake. So, he only nods and smiles at you, outstretching his hand to you and nudging his head in its direction.

“Okay,” he hums, “tie it for me?”

A second comes by– a heartbeat, really– in which you chew on your bottom lip and gasp at the request, but still, you nod and come closer, crouching down to be at his level and taking the thread into your fingers. You wrap the bracelet around his wrist, making sure to leave a bit of wiggle room before you tie a knot, bringing the ends together, all while feeling the eyes of Eric glued to your face, watching every micro expression flash through your unsettling composure.

When you’re done, making a move to hide your hands behind your back and standing up, your limbs bump into each other and send an unspoken sense of electricity all through your body. The sensation is so strange you don’t meet anyone’s eye before you leave the room, yelling out a goodbye as you hurriedly open the front door and run out to get fresh air (it’s August, though. The air is humid and only makes your head spin more).

You clear your throat before you take off to the grocery store. It's only when you're halfway there that you realize you'd forgotten to bring your wallet with you. It's okay, though– you take this chance to walk around, regaining your casualty.

You bet Eric will take the bracelet off in a matter of a week.

SEPTEMBER OF 1999

The leaves start turning orange and the weather a bit colder when you become hyper-aware of your shifting composure whenever Eric Sohn is around. The way you feel heat rushing to your cheeks whenever he calls you cutie, a nickname he’s had reserved for you since you two were little kids, the way you feel weak in your knees whenever he casually brings his arm around your shoulders or when he bends down to tie your shoelace in the middle of the sidewalk. You don’t really know what those sudden changes are, yet, you feel a bit embarrassed by them whenever they take place. You don’t think it’s normal to feel this way around your brother’s best friend, and the more you hang out with him, the more you wish you read less books as a child– because now, you’re also hyper-aware of the title those feelings may have. 

Still, it only comes to you on one September afternoon– you wake up from blissful unawareness and jolt with the quickly opening pit in your stomach at the strange revelation.

“Eric! Sunwoo isn’t home, though?” you mumble, confused as you notice the boy standing on your doorway, a plastic bag in his hand and a red Nike jacket enveloping his frame.

“I know, he said he’s hanging out with Juyeon hyung today,” he nods, “I brought you something, though,” he says, holding up the bag and making sure you get a chance to see it, offering you a boyish grin.

“Oh?” you gasp, furrowing your eyebrows at the male. When you do nothing to invite him inside, he does so himself– slightly nudging you in your side as he passes your figure and enters your house. He acts like he owns the place, and by the amount of time he’s spent in your home, you’d think he does– he doesn’t, though. The only thing he owns is just a lot of audacity.

The male takes off his shoes in the entryway and walks his way over to your room– a surprising act, considering he’s spent the least amount of time in this very place– and when he’s sure you’re following his every move, he empties the contents of the bag to the middle of your freshly made bed. Watching as approximately ten items fall out of the plastic, your eyes widen with surprise as you recognise your favorite chocolate– the mini bars with stickers inside, the ones you collect and stick into your journal and look at in the middle of the night, giggling to yourself and kicking your feet at the adorable pictures in your make-shift collect book.

“Woah,” you gasp when the male looks at you, seemingly awaiting your response, and when he gets the wished outcome, pride overtakes his features, shrugging to himself.

“My mum got some for free because she bought a lot of cabbage for kimchi yesterday,” he explains, “I thought of you when I saw them, so I bought you some more.”

“I- you-” you stutter, emotions too big for your own good swelling all inside your fragile, little self, hands running into your hair and tugging at the roots to wake yourself up from the dream. “You didn’t have to!”

“We got them anyway, and I know you like the stickers,” Eric shrugs, scratching the back of his neck, completely ignoring the fact that he said he bought you some more, your heart skipping a beat at the sentiment. Clearing your throat, you tentatively take a step closer to your bed, gathering a bar of chocolate into your hand and opening it, taking a bite.

“You can have the stickers if you give me some chocolate,” Eric says close to your ear, almost as if he was creating a masterplan, to which you eagerly nod and plop onto your bed, moving the bars of sweets into one pile. As you continue to munch on the first one, you unwrap the sticker and look at it, praying to yourself as if you were checking if your lottery ticket was worth any cent– hoping you get a sticker you don’t own yet.

The image of a cute panda would cheer anyone up even in their darkest moments– not you, though, as you mourn and sigh, disappointment clear in your features. 

“What?” Eric asks, eyes big pools of worry.

“I already got that one.”

“Ah,” he nods, seemingly understanding– much to your surprise, “well, we got 9 more tries, let’s get to eating.”

Wrappers are rustling in your bed sheets as you and Eric eat the concerning amount of chocolate, gathering the stickers in a little pile on top of your notebook, promising each other to not look at the stickers as you go and just make a grand reveal at the end. Eric’s full cheeks are a sight you enjoy, telling him he looks like a squirrel– to which he sends a light flick to your forehead, telling you you don’t look much different– and soon enough, the nine bars left disappear from your plain sight (you only had 3 and Eric ate the remaining 5. He’s a growing boy, though, so you understand. He needs to get his undying energy from somewhere.).

“Ready for the reveal?” you ask, locking your gaze with Eric.

“Ready as I’ll ever be.”

With that, you get to the pile of stickers in the middle of your bedsheets. Looking at the first one, there’s a happy squeal cutting out of your throat, the image of an adorable yellow duck warming you up with euphoria. 

“You don’t have that one yet?”

“I don’t,” you nod, “this is just perfect.”

Eric nods and watches you with a certain kind of warmth in his gaze as you open up your notebook and stick the newest addition to your little sticker farm– or a ZOO, however you wanna call it. The next sticker from the pile is added as well– a brown, big bear– and the next one too, the most adorable colorful parrot slapped to the corner of your page. 

The rest of your stickers are the ones you already own, though– a displeased look takes over your features at the knowledge, but still, you can’t help but beam at the fact that you have 3 new additions to your collection, and they were a gift from Eric Sohn himself. Someone who doesn’t make fun of your childish habit. Someone who feeds your little interest, watches you with excitement in his eyes as you indulge. Someone not like your brother. 

Someone you could never see the way you see your brother.

“What do you do with the duplicates?” Eric asks, pointing to the sad pile on the top of your notebook. His figure is closer to you now, since he wanted to watch you stick the animals into your notebook, his crossed legs almost pressed against yours on the small bed.

“Well, usually, I just throw them out,” you shrug, “but since you’re here…” you muse, the idea plopping into your head like the newest discovery you should probably patent, peeling the back of one of the dog stickers off and swiftly turning towards your companion, mischief sparkling in your eyes.

You put the sticker on his left cheek, making the boy jump. “Hey!”

Giggling, taking another one of the stickers and pressing it to the middle of his forehead, Eric starts to fight you, your bodies wrestling on the bed. You don’t think he puts much effort into getting you off him– that, or he’s insanely weak– and in no time, his face is adorned with all different kinds of animals, his hair messy from tussling in your bedsheets. The image has you laughing before you realize you’re basically straddling him on your bed, his big eyes gaping at you from below, his appearance enough to make something in your brain short-circuit and make you leap off him, clearing your throat.

Heat rushes into your cheeks as you take a seat next to him, playing with your fingers. You pray for anything to come and ease the awkwardness you caused, and sure enough, today must be your lucky day. “Hey, look here!” 

You call for the boy as you swiftly take your polaroid camera off your bedside table– the one that belonged to your dad, the one you fought with Sunwoo about, the one your mum said was yours because Sunwoo is too careless with his things to keep it safe– and snap a picture of the puppy-like boy, laughing at the fact that now, you have the image of him looking dumb and covered in stickers forever. Or at least until he doesn't take it away from you– which he attempts quickly.

“Hey!” he yelps again, huffing as he lunges at you, trying to take the picture out of your grasp as you drop the camera into your soft sheets. Your feet take you to the living room, navigating through furniture, and when you don’t hear footsteps follow you, you think you’re safe– Eric does have a lot of energy, but chasing you around gets tiring for him quickly when he knows you'll never let him win.

Entering your room once again, prepared to find him on your bed like before, you’re taken by surprise as a shutter sound goes off right after you open the door, a polaroid picture taken of your face making you temporarily blind at the flash.

“Eric!” you whine, hating that there’s a picture of you standing shocked at your doorway now forever in the universe– not really caring that the boy just got you back with the exact stunt you pulled on him just a few minutes ago. Before you get a chance to blink out the blind spots in your vision caused by the flash and run after him, though, you feel him gently press you out of the doorway and slip outside, the sound of the front door opening and closing after him resonating along his slowly disappearing, amused laughter.

Serves you right, doesn’t it? 

Sighing, you shake your head and take a seat on your bed, the picture of the boy still in between your fingertips. You only take a look at it when your vision comes back to normal, and as the image of Eric covered in stickers, hair messy and cheeks rosy below the animal print comes into your sight, the revelation arrives the same second a starstruck smile plays with your features.

And with that, you’re absolutely terrified. 

Throwing the polaroid picture onto the bedside table and lunging yourself into the sheets, you scream into your pillow and wish for the feelings to disappear– because in what world does a crush on your brother’s best friend ever come to a happy ending?

OCTOBER OF 1999

Once October hits, you find yourself home alone more often than you’d like. Sure, you don’t mind having some me time to read comic books or watch the TV uninterrupted in the living room, but still– alone turns lonely pretty quickly, and somehow, you start to regret the fact that you’ve been relying on your older brother and his friends for so long instead of making some connections on your own.

Sunwoo started to play soccer at school– something is telling you that he might go far if he keeps it up– and that’s why he’s been stuck at practice every single day, coming home late in the evening all tired, but happy, so you’re not really complaining. Eric works in the little bistro downtown now, since he wanted to make some money and not rely on the allowance Mrs. Sohn gives him every month, and it’s not like you were that close to begin with, but the fact that the boy is now too busy to meet you is making your spirit fall just the tiniest bit. And with your mother always being at work, you find yourself alone in your room, laying in your bed and staring at the ceiling. 

Sometimes, you journal. About anything and everything, really. You don’t really think you’re ever gonna read back the entries once you’re older, since they would just be a reminder of how miserable and boring your teenage years really were, and that’s why you allow yourself to be authentic. On most days, you write about your assignments for school. Sometimes you bad mouth a classmate or two– gossiping with the diary pages, because you don’t really have any human beings to do so in real life– and seldom, you allow yourself to get into topics that evoke the slightest bits of existential crisis in you.

Topics like college. Growing up. Your lack of hobbies and social interaction with the outer world. The newly found crush on Eric Sohn…

Okay, maybe you do write about the boy with brown hair and dark eyes a little too often. You can’t help it, though– when he’s not giving you any new interactions to dwell on, you have to just pick apart the old ones. You think it’s a natural reaction.

And that’s exactly what you’re doing one October afternoon, the lamp in your room on, since the evening comes faster when the weather is colder, as you’re laying in your bed and kicking your feet back and forth, chewing on the end of your pencil. The sound of your doorbell resonates through the house suddenly and startles you, making you jump awake from your delirious delusions.

Mentally going through the list of possible visitors you could have– because it can’t be your mother or your brother, since they never forget to carry their house keys– you’re lost, not really finding any fitting candidates. Furrowing your brows, lost in thought and frankly, a bit confused, you plant your socked feet onto the wooden floor and walk over to the front door just in time for the bell to ring again. Scratching the back of your neck in nerves, thinking of precautions you could take for your own safety– since your front door doesn’t have a peep hole and you don’t want to open the door to a complete stranger– you clear your throat and yell over the door.

“Who is it?” you ask.

“Delivery!” a voice calls through the door, making you huff. 

“I didn’t order any food?” you yell back, confused. “Sir, there’s another house behind ours, sometimes the mailmen get confused and we get their mail. Maybe try there?” 

“The address is right, though?” the voice calls again, and somehow, it sounds kind of familiar… no, it can’t be, you dumb goose. You’re just imagining things because you’ve spent the last 20 minutes writing about the curve of his nose into your diary.

“There must be a mistake-”

“Come on, Y/N, open the door,” the voice on the other side mourns, the mention of your name making you jump, completely startled. The tone the man says it in is sweet like honey, though, so familiar in your ears, that you mentally want to slap yourself– so you weren’t dreaming. It is him.

Dragging your hand through your hair to smooth it down, praying you look at least a little presentable– although in your stained sweatpants and the Pokémon shirt you inherited from Sunwoo when he grew out of it, you doubt that’s even possible– you open the door and try to offer Eric a warm smile. “What are you doing here?”

“Food delivery,” Eric shrugs, pointing with his thumb in the direction behind his back, where his bike undoubtedly stands up against your gate.

“Oh…. but I already told you I didn’t order anything,” you mumble, confused. Studying his face– because a girl can indulge when she has the opportunity, am I right? – you notice his hair has grown a little longer, falling into his eyes. You bet it’s hard for him to see, but you must admit it looks nice, and you almost tell him, before you catch yourself and break away from the sentiment. 

The male snickers. “I know, I was just joking,” he says, “I did bring you food, though.”

“Why?” you ask, confused when he bends over and picks up a plastic bag off the ground, a container of food inside, the warmth of the contents making condensation appear all over the red sack. 

“We made this by mistake and it was just gonna be thrown out if nobody took it,” he shrugs, “and I figured you haven’t eaten yet– or if you did, you just had those cold kimbap rolls from the store– and I wanted to get some warm food into your stomach.”

“Ah,” you gasp, nodding at the explanation. It does explain the source of the food really well, but truthfully, it explains nothing about the fact why Eric thought of bringing you the food instead of taking it home with himself– he’s a foodie if you’ve ever seen one. The idea of him worrying about if you were fed or not is equally as strange and interesting in your head– still, you clasp your hand around the bag and take it, the smell making you involuntarily hungry. “Thank you.”

Eric only nods at you, a smile beaming at his face. “Well,” he sighs, “I’d love to stay longer and hang out, but I’m still on the clock, so…” he mumbles, taking a hesitant step backwards towards his bike, eyes never breaking contact with yours.

“Oh, right,” you nod, “that’s okay. Have a fun day at work!” you muse, watching him as he grins and finally retrieves back his bike, opening up the gate to your property and escaping, waving at you as he gets on.

“I’ll see you soon!” he calls as he rides off, your eyes following him until his figure disappears behind a corner, your ears buzzing with excitement and your lower lip trapped between your teeth with the innocent promise.

Walking back into the house, you grin as you close the front door behind you and carry the food into the kitchen. You quickly get the containers out of the damp bag, putting them onto the wooden table, and gasp when you find a sticky note on the very top one, a messy handwriting scribbled in a rush, but stuck to the food with care.

Eat well and don’t skip meals, Y/N-ie!! – Eric x

Not being able to battle your smile anymore, you decide to open up the containers and stuff your mouth with the food instead– only to find your favorite dish inside, staring back at you in what seems to be a dream that’s too good to wake up from. 

And sure, you are delusional, but are you delusional enough to believe that this wasn’t all a coincidence? You’re not so sure.

Still, you eat the food with feet kicking back and forth as you sit in the silent kitchen, the empty house no longer feeling so lonely. When you’re done, you throw the trash out– everything but the sticky note, which you glue into your diary a few minutes later, hoping to keep the memory forever.

NOVEMBER OF 1999

The world around you is dark as you step outside of cram school, your eyes are tired and your skin is prickled with goosebumps in the chilly air. You despise going to cram school, but your mother told you you have to– since you didn’t have any athletic features that could get you far in life like Sunwoo, you had to be good at studying, or else you won’t get into university. There was a lot of work ahead of you, but since you didn’t really have anything else to do in the day, you didn’t protest and went anyway.

The days are usually very long and you get off very late, resulting in you being tired almost all the time. When you get home, you undress yourself and change into your sleep clothes and doze off until the morning, when you have to wake up and go to school again– it’s an exhausting cycle, but you know you have to endure it for your own sake.

Walking down the steps that lead out the cram school building, you stretch your body and huff, cursing at yourself for the fact that you didn’t bring a jacket– you forgot that evenings get really chilly, and frankly speaking, you didn’t have much time to think when you were rushing to get ready in the morning. You’ll just have to get through it, you think to yourself as you walk in the direction of your house– the last bus to your neighborhood already left an hour ago, when you were in the middle of revising division– your sneakers kicking the stray rocks below your feet as you tug the sleeves of your hoodie lower, desperately trying to feel more heat.

“Do you never watch where you’re going? That’s gonna get you in trouble one day, you know,” you hear a familiar voice say, the joking tone making your heart skip a few beats as you place the owner of the saccharine voice to its face. Looking up, slightly alarmed at being caught in such a distressed state, you gasp.

“I was… watching my step, I guess,” you shrug as you come into a halt in front of him, shivering both under Eric’s gaze and the cold weather at once. “What are you doing here? Deliveries?”

“I just got off,” he says, “so I figured I could stop by. Sunwoo said you’re going to cram school, I thought you might enjoy some company on your way home.”

Gaping at his explanation, you nod, completely startled. The idea of your brother talking about you in front of Eric, the boy you have a very embarrassing, very big crush on scares you, to say the least. See, it doesn’t really matter that the boy grew up with you, pretty much seeing you at your lowest whenever he was around over at your house when you were both just little kids– the image of Sunwoo telling Eric about finding you sobbing at your comic book (the scene got too sad, nobody can really blame you) or about how your favorite jeans ripped right before you had to go to school one morning is terrifying. You don’t really want him to know about these things. He may act like your brother sometimes, but you never really saw him in that light in the first place.

“Well, then,” you clear your throat, “it’s… it’s good to see you,” you say. Eric shows you his boyish grin as your lips utter out the words, and you can’t help but mirror it, your eyes locking with the male. As if you just took a step back, your eyes see him in a light you’ve never seen him before– as if this was your first time meeting your brother’s best friend– and something about the sentiment has your stomach feeling all uneasy, heat rushing to your face. His hair is styled in a way that tells you that he didn’t really style it (or if he did, it looked truly effortless in your eyes, so props to him), pushed back a little and revealing his forehead, a few of the strands carelessly falling into his eyes. His jawline is sharper than how it was when you first met the boy, and with the realization of a foolish teenage girl, you have to admit that Eric Sohn grew up to be a very attractive, attentive man.

“You’re cold?” he says, although the sentence sounds more like a statement rather than a question, before he shakes his head at your antics and heaves out a sigh. “You should’ve taken a jacket with you when you went, you know it gets cold in the evening,” he scolds you. In those times, he reminds you the most of your brother– because although you and Sunwoo act like you hate each other sometimes, you know the older male still cares about you. He just hates showing it, which translates in his scolding tone whenever you do something wrong or against his wishes. 

In those times, Eric reminds you the most of the way your brother treats you, and you somehow hate it. You despise the fact, because that means he must only see you as someone like his younger sister– he never had one, so maybe he just likes to compensate for it by taking care of you all the time. Maybe he feels responsible to do so because of Sunwoo. The thought makes you equally as nauseous– you’d never want him to hang out with you just because he feels like he has to. 

“I didn’t have time in the morning,” you grunt, rolling your eyes at him. You avert your gaze from the male, for it makes you slightly uncomfortable after your previous thoughts, so when the noise of a zipper being pulled down and the weight of fabric on your shoulders brings you back to reality, you snap your head around at him all alarmed. 

“What? Wear it,” he says, head shrugging towards the direction of his jacket on your figure. “You’re gonna catch a cold if you don’t.”

Trying to wrestle out of the red material, you squirm in the hold of the windbreaker– Eric’s hands gripping each side of the jacket, as if predicting your next moves, making sure it stays on you and doesn’t fall down. His strong arms tug you closer to him to make your fight more difficult– and he’s successful with his efforts, because the proximity of him and his smell engulfs you and unarms you, heat rushing to your cheeks as you halt in your movements.

“Stop,” you mourn, “I don’t need it.”

“Yes you do,” he insists, “so stop being a baby about it and wear it.”

Staring into his eyes, as if to mentally tell him to stop what he’s doing– to stop how he’s treating you, how he’s making you all weak in your knees and sleepless at nights because of how much you think of him and hope he’s doing well each day, to stop being so gentle with you and taking care of you, because it brings all sorts of both doubts and delusions into your head– but he doesn’t back down. You’ve known him for quite some time, you should already be aware of just how stubborn he can be.

“Arms in,” he hums, holding on to the jacket and waiting for you to wear it properly. One thing about you– you can always admit your defeat. So, with a sigh, you put your arms through the sleeves of Eric’s red windbreaker, shrinking a little under his firm gaze. He looks at you with a look full of something you can’t decipher, and it’s all making you so, so insanely lost in the many thoughts and feelings swirling around your head, not helping your current state.

“I already have a brother, y’know,” you mumble in a moment of weakness, looking at your feet– your dirty white sneakers almost touching his from how close you are standing right now, “so you should stop treating me like one.”

A moment of silence overtakes you two, and you suddenly feel like you’ve done something wrong. Still, Eric’s hands are holding on to the sides of the opened jacket, keeping you close to him. “Hm?” 

Clearing your throat and shaking your head, you snicker to yourself. “Forget it.”

“No- I mean,” he blurts out, tone of voice a little nervous, “do you see me as your brother figure?” he asks, tone of voice more quiet now, more gentle.

Breathing in the crispy air, taking a moment before you reply, you shake your head in disapproval. “No,” you say, “no, I don’t. I- I don’t think I do,” you say, scared of what your answer will bring out of him. You don’t really know why, but at this moment, you feel insanely fragile– as if any bad move could make you break in his hands, waiting for him to glue you back together. 

Metaphorically, he does just that. “Good,” he nods, leaning down towards you, hands gripping the zipper of his jacket and zipping it together, making sure no cold can get to your bones as his fingers tug it up towards the very top, under your chin. “Because I’ve never seen you as my sister either.”

His answer once again startles you– but when you take a step back from the situation, you think it was in a good way. His hands grip your shoulders for a second as his eyes meet yours and he offers you a warm smile. “Come on, let’s get you home,” he says, tugging you towards the fence where you find his bike, his motions guiding you like a rag doll sucked out of all life.

“Hop in,” he motions towards the back of the bike, where the basket would usually be– Eric moved it towards the front, though, leaving enough room for you to sit at– and as you do, he takes a seat in front of you and looks back at you over his shoulder. “Hold on tight so you don’t fall.”

Like in a trance, your arms sneak around his middle– this was the first time you had this kind of physical touch with him, and just the thought of it makes you want to scream your throat out– before the male takes off on the bike, riding towards your neighborhood. With the cold wind slapping your face, you foolishly rest your cheek on his shoulder blade and close your eyes, enjoying the closeness of his body keeping you warm. 

If anyone asked you about the action, you’d tell them you were just tired.

DECEMBER OF 1999

Socked feet make their way through the room, the sound of footsteps resonating on the laminated floor, as the short male comes up to you with a bowl of potato chips in his right hand and a bottle of soda under his left arm. Eric Sohn sighs at you, shaking his head in disbelief, before he places the items onto the coffee table and takes a seat next to you on the floor, opening up the bottle and pouring the three of you drinks.

“Can’t believe I’m spending New Year’s Eve with you losers, of all people,” Eric snickers, having you roll your eyes at the male and grumpily furrow your eyebrows at his sentence.

“No one’s stopping you if you wanna go, y’know,” you grunt as you take the filled glass off the table, taking a sip of the sweet drink and sighing at him. If he’s gonna take a leap into the new year with you while making you annoyed, he may as well leave now and do whatever his initial plan was– once again, no one’s stopping him if that’s what he wants to do.

“I’m just saying,” he shrugs, “it would’ve been so much more fun if we all went to Juyeon hyung’s. Everyone’s there celebrating, but we’re stuck here in your room.” 

“Well, Eric,” your brother smiles ironically at him, shrugging to himself, “it’s not like it’s my fault you’re not over at Juyeon hyung’s right now. You chose to spend the new years here with me. My mother prohibited me from going there, not yours.”

The argument has the male shrug, his eyes averting your brother’s gaze once his comment gets a bit too honest and realistic. It’s true and he’s right– it’s not like Eric’s mum told him he can’t go celebrate with his friends, because she didn’t. Eric’s mum trusts him and wants him to have fun and do what all the kids his age are doing. Your mum, on the other hand, is making you and Sunwoo stay home for New Year’s Eve to celebrate with your family, because, as she quoted, New Year’s Eve the only time she gets time off work, and she wants to spend it with her kids– forget the fact that you’re currently sitting locked in your room with your friend, protesting the family time just because you can– and when Sunwoo told her she has to stop treating him like a little kid, she told him she has all the right to do so, because he is her kid. And that’s how the party he was supposed to attend with Eric (the party you foolishly thought you’re gonna have to tag along to, not hating the sentiment as much as before now) got canceled from your brother’s plans.

“Well,” Eric chews on the inside of his cheek, “I did it for you two. Be grateful.”

“Whatever,” you hum, “let’s turn on the TV. I bet there’s some variety show on.”

Eric heaves out a sigh as he reaches for the TV remote, clicking the power button and making the boxy device in front of you light up. Your mum got you a TV in your room when you complained about being too bored one November day, and although the box of entertainment didn’t really help like you imagined it to, you’re glad it’s of service at least today. Instead of the expected variety show, though, there’s news on– the face of the old announcer looking at you with a serious look on his face, the professional tone making chills run down your spine, for he reminds you a bit of your mother when she scolds you. You think that’s a common news announcer trait. 

“As the year 2000 approaches, computer programmers realize that computers might not interpret the 00 in the software as 2000, but 1900. The softwares currently running only use a two-digit code for the year, excluding the 19. The data was excluded because the data storage is costly and takes up too much space. Activities that were planned on a daily basis could be damaged or flawed,” the announcer says, making the three of you look at the screen with interest. Maybe it’s true that when you get older, you get more interested in news– you think it’s good to know what’s going on around you, although the topic discussed right now might not even concern you in the slightest.

“Banks, which calculate the interest rates on a daily basis, could face real problems. Interest rates are the amount of money a lender, such as a bank, charges a customer, such as an individual or business, for a loan. Instead of the rate of interest for one day, the computer could calculate a rate of interest for minus almost 100 years!” 

“Oops,” Eric lets out next to you, a reaction so far away from what a real adult would think of the situation. See, you are all just kids, after all.

“Centers of technology, such as power plants, are also threatened by this issue. Power plants depend on routine computer maintenance for safety checks, such as water pressure or radiation levels. Not having the correct date could throw off these calculations and possibly put nearby residents at risk,” the announcer continues, the information coming out of his mouth suddenly making you hyper aware of the reality you’re experiencing right now.

“Do we have a nuclear power plant nearby?” you ask in a hushed whisper, watching as the men next to you almost comically widen their eyes, shrugging.

“I’m not sure,” Sunwoo peeps.

“The worst of all, this software and hardware issue could cause such a big problem in nuclear energy facilities, where nuclear bombs and missiles could be set off, causing the world to go into utter chaos, or worse, an end,” the announcer concludes, the last word making you gasp in terror. 

“An end?” you chirp, sitting up straight in your seat as you look at the two men, now equally as terrified. There’s something in Sunwoo’s gaze that makes chills run down your spine, the reality crushing down on you with heavy measures. 

“I knew I shouldn’t have fought with mum. What if the last words the two of us exchanged before we die are the harsh words I had said yesterday?” your brother mourns, seeing as his best friend chews on his bottom lip, lost in thought.

“What did you say to your mum?”

“That- that I’ll never forgive her for ruining this for me,” he mumbles, his voice breaking at the end, “and… other things,” he adds, the hint of incoming panic making his best friend frantically wave his hands around and try to make your brother relax before he has to deal with the breakdown. If the world is ending, this is not how any of you want to go.

“It’s okay, don’t worry,” Eric says, clearing his throat and pointing to the TV, “look! The show is on, we should watch before the year ends,” he proposes, taking the remote into his hand and turning the volume up to hopefully drown out Sunwoo’s thoughts and have him focus on something else. And it works– noting that your brother has an attention span of a 5 year old– he can hardly remember what he was worrying about just 30 seconds ago.

Still, the thought keeps bouncing around your head like a child in a bouncy castle. The words of the news anchor keep repeating in your brain, making your ears ring as you look at Eric from the corner of your eye, watching his angelic face. Oh how you hate disturbing the peace now that you’ve all calmed down– but still, you can’t deal with the worries alone. Checking the clock hung above the TV, noticing there’s at least 5 minutes left before midnight, you clear your throat, feeling your whole body on fire.

“Do you really think the world is gonna end?” you ask, cracking your knuckles in a nervous manner. Looking at Eric, pupils shaking, you find your brother’s best friend seemingly lost in thought. The music of the variety show program serves you three as a background sound now, none of you paying attention to the TV anymore, instead, focusing on all the things you've done wrong in your life and how somehow, this feels like karma for all of it.

“I dunno,” Sunwoo shrugs, “I mean- they said it’s possible! It was on the news, and they wouldn’t lie on the news…” he nervously mumbles, scratching the back of his head. 

“That’s what’s worrying me,” you sigh, “we shouldn’t have turned on the TV.”

“It was your idea in the first place!”

“And I’ll carry the burden into my grave,” you admit, gulping as you press a forced smile onto your lips.

Momentarily looking back at the TV, you desperately want to keep the thought of the world being over out of your head before you spend your last minutes on this earth going crazy– but now that you started, you can’t keep thinking about it. “Man, the world can’t end yet. There’s so many things I haven’t tried yet! I’m too young to die!”

The men don't reply to that– you presume they’re too busy trying to find other things to occupy themselves with instead of the inevitable– which has you dissatisfied as you throw your body back into the sofa, heaving out a sigh. Seconds go by painfully slow but also painfully fast at the same time, given the circumstances, as you listen to the cheerful song playing in the background and nudge your friend into his upper arm with your pointer finger, feeling his arm encircle your shoulders and pull you closer to him. The contact of his fingers on your upper arm makes you squirm and break out into a smile, feeling a particular lightness in your stomach at the action, a sensation that has you in shock. 

“I’m gonna talk with mum before we die,” Sunwoo suddenly calls as he stands up from his seat on the floor, sighing to himself, “I can’t go with the thought of her being upset with me,” he sentimentally adds before he’s out of the door, rushing towards the living room.

The space falls into momentary silence now that your brother is gone, having you chew on your bottom lip with nerves. You think now is the time to beg for forgiveness with the higher forces– I'm sorry for not studying well. I'm sorry for being rude and ungrateful towards my mum. I'm sorry for being greedy– when the sound of Eric’s voice resonates through the place as he speaks up again, waking you up from the anxious slumber, the clock now striking 2 minutes before midnight. “What would you wanna do before you die?” he asks.

The question is simple. You presume he wants simple answers– things like getting into college, getting a good job and making a lot of money, growing old– but as you lean away from him and get back to your place on his left, your eyes locked with his, you’re left clueless. There are so many things you have yet to achieve, and the idea of not being able to pushes a burden to your chest, but at this very moment, you can’t really name one. 

Shrugging, you chew on the inside of your cheek as your eyes scan his face. His firm eye contact has you a bit flustered, making you shrivel in your seat, and as the sound of the TV morphs from the song into a countdown from 55, you’re overwhelmed with the thought that your friend is insanely pretty– and he always has been, you just hated admitting it to yourself for the past few months, despite still being fully aware– and that now, when the world ends, you’re dying unkissed and alone.

Well, not completely alone, since Eric’s here. And he’s always been here– your whole life, since you can remember, and he’s here now as well, even though he should’ve been at Juyeon’s house. As the clock strikes 30 seconds away from midnight, your eyes involuntarily travel down to his chapped lips, all air knocked out of your lungs, the thoughts in your brain picking up on speed the closer you come to the end.

You’re dying soon. You’re dying in 30- now 29 seconds, and you’ve never kissed anyone before. You’re dying before you get a chance to hold hands with someone and have a partner, and you’re dying before you get a chance to tell Eric how you feel about him. There’s 28 seconds left until the end and you’re just staring at him like a coward, because you don’t really let yourself indulge in the silly warmth of your heart whenever you’re around your friend, but god, you can at least admit it to yourself before you die.

And as the clock gets closer and closer to midnight, now only giving you 20 seconds before it all ends and a missile lands on the top of your house, blowing up the whole town and making you all disappear, Eric’s question repeats itself in your brain. What would you want to do before you die?

The answer is suddenly painfully clear as you take action– leaning towards the boy on your right, face closer to his than it’s ever been before, your eyes counting all his eyelashes and focusing on his surprised, yet unmoving face– and as you hear the countdown reach 15, you close your eyes and press your lips against his. 

The contact makes you weak in your knees as your hands reach to his face to steady him, your own firework show erupting in your stomach, and suddenly you’re completely content with dying tonight– because at least you’re with Eric, at least you did something. You kiss your friend with something close to an unsaid confession, your lips staying on his throughout the rest of the countdown, the taste of soda you’ve both been drinking the whole evening mixing in the contact of your skin. You’re not sure you’re even doing this right– again, you’ve never kissed anyone before– but it doesn’t matter to you much as you let go of your worries, aware of the fact that in a few seconds, nothing will matter anymore when neither of you are going to be around to say anything to each other after the kiss is over.

The countdown rings in your ears– coming down from 5 as you scoot yourself closer to Eric, 4 as you run the pads of your thumbs along his cheekbones, 3 as you still in your movements, 2 as you notice your knees bumping into each other on the ground and finally, 1 as you get ready to die, kissing your first and only love– when the sound of cheers and fireworks from the TV fills your ears instead, the world around you stilling and completely unchanged.

Your kiss started in 1999 and ended in 2000. Your love for him passed a century.

Eyes fluttering open and your mouth letting go of his, the image of the boy with his lips slightly parted, eyes closed and cheeks rosy comes to you in the yellow light of your room, making your heart fall down to your stomach. He looks absolutely angelic, his hair slightly messy and the fabric of his shirt a little disheveled in the front, and even though you’d love to indulge in your foolish desires and kiss him some more, you’re quickly taken aback with the noise of the door to your room opening and making you jump away from Eric, your brother appearing out of thin air in the presence of your room. It serves you like a weird kind of reality check, Eric’s eyes opening and looking at your brother, and even though you two haven’t been caught, the male clears his throat and bites down on his lower lip, looking almost guilty.

Oh no. What have you done?

Suddenly, you feel insanely silly.

JANUARY OF 2000

“You’ve been awfully quiet the whole day,” Sunwoo mumbles from beside you, his whole body engulfed in a pile of snow, “not that I care, but are you okay?”

“I thought you liked it when I don’t talk,” you mutter, playing with the frozen white all around you, seated on the red plastic sled at the top of the hill. You got tired after dragging it up from the bottom, and when you noticed that the rest of Sunwoo’s friends– Eric included– are still on their way up, you figured you could use up the time to relax and sit around for a while. It’s been quite some time since all of Sunwoo’s friends gathered to hang out at the same time, which made you surprised to see that your own brother invited you to tag along with them as they decided to go sledding on the second day of January, using up their break to best of their abilities. Which is also why you didn’t say no to the invitation– you thought sitting at home and moping around wouldn’t help you much.

“I do,” he says, nodding, “that’s why I’m asking what’s up– so I know what to do when I need to shut you up later,” Sunwoo hums, making you roll your eyes at the masked worry.

Shaking your head in disbelief, you scoff. “It’s nothing.”

“Sure,” he shrugs, “so you’re just going through puberty?” he teases, to which you take a handful of snow into your palm and lunge the white at him, satisfaction running through your veins when the snowball lands into his unsuspecting face, the male coughing and swatting his arms around to defend himself.

“Hey!” your brother screams at you once he gets the ice out of his eyes and his mouth, his body jumping into a standing position before he chases you around, the bubble of a laugh escaping your throat for the first time these days– they’re not wrong when they say malicious joy is the best kind of joy.

Running at the top of the hill, not really looking where you’re going– instead looking over your shoulder to see Sunwoo’s actions, preparing yourself to duck if he decides to turn your small quarrel into a snow fight– your legs get tangled with the red sled you left before you started a war with the angered man, a yelp cutting out of your throat as you get prepared to fall over and knock your teeth out.

Your body comes in contact with something half-firm, half-soft, and as your feet slip and the snow-covered ground disappears from below your legs, two arms wrap around your waist and steady you, making sure you don’t get hurt.

Turns out Eric Sohn is there to catch you every time you are about to eat shit. You hate this kind of deja vu.

As you open your eyes (that you had closed on instinct, not wanting to see your own death) once you’re sure you’re safe and sound, the world around you invites itself into your ears in an overwhelming noise. The laughter of Sunwoo’s friends– some hollering at your fall, some at the redness and last remains of snow covering your brother’s face– and the hushed arguments over who’s going down first– with Haknyeon screaming that he’s stealing Sunwoo’s (yours) sled and Juyeon following him. After all those happening in the matter of a few seconds,  you realize you’re left on the top of the hill alone with the male, terror shaking through your insides.

Clearing your throat and taking a step back from him, you tuck your hands into your pockets and avert your gaze from Eric. You two haven’t spoken since you decided to kiss him on New Year’s Eve, and with the awkward tension in the air, you don’t feel like doing so ever again in your whole entire life. 

“Thanks,” still, you hum.

Eric seems a little more light-hearted than you, shrugging as he replies to you. “Haven’t I told you to start watching where you’re going?”

“I’m not good with listening sometimes,” you mutter, huffing. Taking a look around yourself– noticing that there are no sleds left on the top of the hill, therefore, if you wanted to escape the situation, the only way down would be to roll around like a human version of a snowman, you once again admit your defeat, standing around nervously and shifting your weight from one foot to the other.

The silence is uncomfortable. It makes you want to dig a hole in the snow and bury yourself alive, to suffocate under the weight of the icy cold and never see Eric’s face again. You know that you ruined whatever friendship you had with the male– by being stupid and foolish, not really thinking about consequences (because there were supposed to be none and you were supposed to be dead), and the weight of the guilt makes you want to puke and hide away. 

Still, Eric comes out of his way to talk to you. Honestly, you’re kind of surprised– he should be disgusted with you. Realistically, he should be the one avoiding you, not the other way around.“They’re gonna take long to walk back up,” he notes, “wanna get hot chocolate with me?”

“I’m good, thanks,” you shake your head, not once breaking eye contact with the overwhelming white of the hill.

“Come on,” he sighs, “it’s just around the corner. They built a hot chocolate stand because they knew kids would come sledding here. Honestly, it’s an astute business tactic, but I promise the hot chocolate actually tastes nice,” he says, nudging you slightly with his arm, as if to make you look at him and change your mind.

“Thanks, but no,” you definitely say, chewing on the inside of your cheek.

“Are you avoiding me?” he asks, tone of voice casual– as if it was the most normal thing in the world, as if nothing ever happened and he was genuinely curious about the reasoning behind your actions.

“I’m not, I just don’t really like hot chocolate,” you sheepishly mutter, trying hard to avoid the topic.

“So you are avoiding me,” he hums, as if it wasn’t obvious before– and not only because you’re a bad liar. Plus, you love hot chocolate. Somehow, you think Eric knows.

“Look, Eric,” you sigh, running your hand through your hair, “can’t you just drop it?”

“No,” he shrugs, shaking his head, “and that’s why we’re talking about the reason why you’re avoiding me over a cup of hot chocolate. Let’s go.”

His persistence is terribly overwhelming sometimes. You wonder how the male does it. “I already told you-”

“You owe me for the stickers and the meal and everything,” he corners you, and you know you can’t argue with that. He’s kind of right, you suppose– you never paid him back for all the chocolates or for the free meal he brought you that one evening. And that’s exactly why you find yourself sighing as you follow him, mentally preparing yourself for the talk.

You hate how he can always get his way. Walking up to the stand, you crack your knuckles in the pocket of your jacket, nervously coming up with possible arguments to tell him. I didn’t kiss you on purpose, it was an accident. I only did it to know how it feels. We are both supposed to be dead, it’s not my fault the world didn’t end like it was supposed to! Each sentence sounds more stupid than the previous one, and so with that, you shake your head, wiping the thoughts away, smiling at the elderly lady in the stand. You’re just gonna have to be honest, you figure. 

“Two hot chocolates, please.”

Rummaging through your pockets to find your wallet– you do owe Eric, so it’s only natural for you to pay– you’re caught off guard as the male next to you swiftly takes out his own and unzips it, preparing to pay for you. 

“I thought I owed you?” you mumble, hand reaching to tug at his forearm to stop him, to which Eric only grins at you and sighs.

“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean you have to pay,” he says.

“I think that’s exactly what that means.”

“Just take it,” he huffs as he brings out a note from his wallet, the force making something else fly out and fall to the ground with it, having the boy swiftly crouch down and pick the item up, attempting to hide it before you get a chance to see. And now, you don’t have 20/20 vision, but you recognise your face when you see it– that, and you also recognize the small white sheet to be a polaroid picture, and as far as you’re aware, you’re the only one who has a camera in his circle.

The boy hands you the drink with red-tinted cheeks. The idea of him carrying a picture of you that he took back in September makes you flush as well, and when your gloved fingers accidentally meet as you take the cup from him, he forces out a laugh. “We can talk about that after you tell me why you’re avoiding me.”

His nonchalance has you relaxing only for a few seconds. The boy walks with you as you try to heat up your cold hands on the boiling surface of the cup, and when you see a bench a few meters away from you two, you instinctively take a seat.

“So?” he becomes you, eyebrows rising as he takes a sip from the melted sweetness.

Sighing, you try to come up with the best way to go around this. Do you apologize? Do you promise to never do it again– and you won’t, even though you want to so badly and his lips look surprisingly soft today? Furrowing your brows at the war in your head, you place the cup on the bench next to you and put your head into your hands, hiding away from him when you realize the only way to do this is to be completely, utterly honest.

“I’m just so embarrassed, Eric.”

The only noise meeting your eardrums in the moment is the faint yelling of the crowd sledding in the background, your companion remaining quiet for a bit. When he sees you won’t explain yourself, he goes ahead and asks the question. “Why?”

“Do I really have to spell it out for you?” you sigh, not believing his so casual composure.

“Maybe,” he laughs, the airy sound taking all breath away from your lungs.

Well, not all of it, since you have enough oxygen to go on a tangent, it seems. “Because I kissed you, goddamnit. And- and I don’t even know why I did it, honestly, I’ve never thought of kissing you before! It’s just- when I heard the world is ending, I realized I hadn’t had my first kiss yet, and that just felt like such a miserable way to die, and then you asked what I wanted to do before I die and I couldn’t think of anything else,” you say, progressively taking out your head from your hands and facing the male, big eyes staring into his soul. 

To your surprise, he doesn’t seem mad. Or disgusted. Or any of the reactions you expected, really. Eric stares at you with a soft, but amidst a little star-struck look in his eyes, and you’re suddenly painfully aware of every slight shift in his composure.

“Did you kiss me because you wanted to kiss me, or because you thought the world was gonna end?” he asks, awaiting your answer.

And if you’re being honest, 2 days after New Year’s Eve, you do admit the thought of the world actually ending sounds a bit stupid. Why did you even believe that theory? Why did they talk about it so seriously on the news? They tricked you into ruining your own life. 

But still, nothing can be done about it now. “Both,” you admit, shrugging, “I… I kissed you because I really didn’t want to die unkissed, but also… I wanted it to be you, y’know? Like… I thought we were really going to die, and so I thought kissing you might be a nice way to go. I really wanted to spend my last moments with you, I guess,” you sheepishly say, averting your gaze from the male.

Eric offers you his silence again after you’re done explaining. While you do admit you feel a little tense to hear what he has to say, you also realize you feel lighter now that it’s out in the universe and out of your system. A major weight was taken off your shoulders with the confession, and suddenly, you’re kind of glad that your friend was so assertive and insistent on talking about this– who knows how long you’d go before managing to face him. You think you could honestly go on… forever.

Taking a sip of the luscious liquid, you feel your body warm up once the anxiousness slips away from your bones. The boy next to you hums, making you face him with expecting eyes. “Then why were you avoiding me?”

Sighing, you shake your head. “I just told you. I’m starting to think you’re the one that’s bad at listening.”

“No,” he laughs, “that’s still you. Because if you were good at listening, you’d remember me telling you that I’ve never once seen you as my younger sister.”

Shrugging, kicking the pile of snow in front of you with the tip of your winter boots, you’re not quite following. “So?”

“So you should’ve realized that I’m not doing all of this,” he theatrically swings his arms around, “for nothing, you know?”

“All of what?”

“Taking care of you. Feeding you, helping you collect those stupid animal stickers, walking you home…” he mumbles, sighing. “Keeping your picture in my wallet,” he adds with a playful tone, making you smile.

“I thought you were just being a good friend,” you shrug.

“I don’t keep a picture of your brother on me at all times,” he says, tugging off his gloves. The sleeve of his jacket rides up a little as you watch him take his cup of hot chocolate off the bench, surprised (and flooded with warmth) to see the ugly friendship bracelet you made still adorning his wrist.

Grinning to yourself, excitement welcoming itself into the tips of your fingertips, you shrug. “So?” you mirror your own question from a little while ago, wanting him to say it to you instead of relying on your own brain– you think there’s still a possibility of you just being too delusional to see the reality for what it really is. You need to make sure you’re not imagining things.

“So,” he starts, sighing to himself as he turns a little in his seat to face you, “you should stop avoiding me, because I liked the kiss. And you. And we should probably do it again, because I didn’t get the chance to kiss you back the first time,” he says, once again taking all oxygen out of your lungs with the casualty of his preposition.

Locking his eyes with you, having you two staring at each other like two rays of sunshine warming up the cold January, he grins. “How does that sound?”

“Good,” you breathe out, “very good.”

The male takes it as an invitation as he scoots himself closer to you on the bench, his body turning a bit to face you. His free hand cups your cheek, leaning closer to lock his lips with you like he asked you to, your eyes fluttering close at the proximity, the fuzzy feeling in your stomach already expecting to kiss him again. The situation feels a little too idyllic to be real, though– you should’ve expected it to get ruined again.

Something cold and wet comes into contact with the side of your face, and when you sharply open your eyes, you see Eric staring at you with shock and terror in his eyes, the snow dripping down the side of his face as well. Whoever threw the snowball has good aim, you think– managing to target two people at once (even though your faces were that close to each other that it probably wasn’t even that hard), and before you get a chance to look around and see who cut off your kiss, there’s a scream coming from the left side of the two of you, the sound of feet quickly darting in the snow landing into your ears.

“Eric Sohn, what the fuck do you think you’re doing with my sister?” the voice hollers, and before you get a chance to react, the said male fastly stands up from the bench and runs to the other direction, laughter resonating all throughout the place as Sunwoo and his friends chase their shortest friend down.

Snow starts falling as you watch your brother tail his childhood friend, and with a foreign sense of warmth, you get reminded of the birthday wish you made while blowing out the candles on your seventh birthday.

You wished for someone just like Eric. You didn’t know the universe would be so kind to give you him instead.

[razzellyn]

Cuddles!!

No tricks this time!! Just fluffy cuddle session!!!

Part 2!!!!

MCB

Part 1 here!!!

Notes in the end!!!

°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Dexter

• Oh he's a cuddle bug. He doesn't act like it, but he's very cuddly at times. He also doesn't really mind when someone sees you two, still would prefer to be in private though.

• Sometimes the two of you cuddle while nature/bird watching. He often points out the little creatures that the two of you could find and then share fun facts about them. He yaps like that only to the people he trusts.

• More often than not he bombards you with kisses all over your face. How? By pressing his face against yours of course!

Fleta Z

• He's a bit hesitant for some reason, but once you've convinced him he's actually very into it. He also takes this time to learn more about you! Maybe even sway your heart with a compliment or two.

• Not overly cuddly, but he will smother you in affection. In fact, he's not leaving you alone until you give him his daily hugs.

• Soft kith after every cuddle/hugs. No backing out from him! He will hunt you down (not literally). Quite the gentleman while he kissed you. Very gentle indeed.

Wild Guardy

• What's a cuddle?

• Jk, he knows what cuddle is. He just doesn't know what to think of it. You'll have to slowly introduce him to the concept too, start by holding his hands and then side-hug him, etc.

• Overtime he does gets comfortable and decided to cuddle. He's awkward and terribly nervous about it, but he's doing great. Be patient with him okay?

• He usually asks for cuddles when either of you are stressed out about something or just having a terrible day in general. Surprise him with a peck on his cheek too, that helps him greatly.

Buffalo Crush

• Absolute cuddle bug. You might be crushed under his strength, but don't worry, he always apologizes after. Oh and please hug him daily, he loves it.

• He is also the one to DRAG you to a cuddle if he thinks you haven't spend much time with him yet. Though he will be a bit shy about it at first. He just loves being close to you okay!!!

• Unfortunately he's hard to be pushed away once you do cuddle. It was either him or the world. The world, which means letting him hug you to death. Him, which means leaving him to sulk in the corner.

Buster Gallon

• He'll make a comment about how it's a waste of time and is a useless thing to do, but then when you pull him into a hug he puts his entire weight on you and cuddles you like crazy.

• The cuddle doesn't end until he says so. Well you could just bribe him with a kiss or two if you want to be freed, but that's a 50/50 chance. He's tired of Black Dan's bullsh t man let him be.

• He also lets go when someone randomly comes in on you two cuddling. If they make fun of you two, he's hunting them down. If they don't make a single comment, he just lets them be. He's got a red face though so that's something.

Black Hook

• It's also a 50/50 situation with him. He'd either be immediately into it or he thinks it's stupid and leaves. Let's be real, his actions depends on his mood.

• That being said, despite being the leader of his team, he's quite gentle with holding you. Unless he's been feeling a bit down, he's going to cuddle you until death.

• Don't expect to be treated like a royalty though, he's a pirate not a servant. He's going to cuddle you whenever and wherever he wants to. Yes, even in mid air, however that works.

Heavy Iron

• Definitely thinks he's better as a big spoon than a small spoon. Well he's true, but he's definitely more 'cuter' as a small spoon. He won't admit it but you will.

• He'll hug you when he feels like it, or you're genuinely in one of your less preferred moods. That being said, if he was also in one of his preferred moods, a quick cuddle does well in calming him down.

• The same as the two above, it's a 50/50 situation with him unfortunately. He's not exactly a lovey dovey type so... don't expect much out of him.

°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

First of all, i would just like to say

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Secon of all, i am SO SOSOSOSOSOS SORRY for being gone for MONTHS

eugh I'm so lazy at times and so busy at the same time it's FKALRBSOCNW

No srsly I'm so sorry

I'M SORRY

I'm sorrryysyaurhisyroah 😭😭😭

Anyways hope y'all like this part 😋

[yestrday]

do any of the hybrids have jobs or tasks that keeps them occupied throughout the day? I know aether is sort of a butler for the mc, and zhong li is the secretary of mc's father. but what about hybrids like ayato and thoma, who have experience in elite society, do they just sit around at home or do they actually do business-like work 😭 or hybrids like ajax or itto, it sounds like they mightve been strays and just lived in the wild, so do they do anything now besides fight and play w other hybrids (like be in charge of gathering food, meet up with former gang members, etc)?

while the hybrid had their own unofficial tasks, everyone was organized into groups the moment zhongli entered the scene.

aether is his own catgeory. he likes to call himself a butler, but it's really just him being your housepet. he takes care of you— wake you up, remind you of meetings, gossip to you about the going-ons in the manor, and basically just trail after you wherever you go. he helps out the manor's staff when he's not doing anything.

the executive team is actually a one-man team of zhongli, as he is on orders from your father to raise you into a fine heir. he's tasked with communication between you and your father, and also manages the house staff and hiring. he's expected to report to your father about the happenings in your house and keep your 'pets' in line. xiao is often considered an unofficial member of the team since zhongli often orders him around to send messages on his behalf (most of the hybrids don't use gadgets) as well as stalk... err, keep an eye on them.

the education team consists of zhongli (again!), neuvillette, ayato, albedo (haitham?). they're a team under zhongli's management who are tasked to educate you on subjects and topics that are in line with your father's vision for you. ayato was picked specifically to educate you on social manners and etiquette, though he does a scary job at education.

the manor management team works closely with the manor staff in... well, managing the manor! xingqiu has stationed himself as a part-time librarian with the amount of time he spends in there. tighnari takes care of the garden while zhongli's had kaveh draw up plans whenever renovation or a new place had to be built. freminet is not really part of this, but everyone tends to come to him whenever they need a mechanic. the house staff love baizhu for his gentle demeanor and medicine.

the security team is your group of glorified stalkers, who consist of those who are most adept to combat. xiao, cyno, and sometimes aether stalk you from the shadows wherever you go. gorou is more concerned about making the manor more secure and wriothesley stays with him (he just likes staying at the manor). razor means well. childe likes to consider himself part of the security team, but the actual people don't really consider him as such. heizou's not really part of them, but they often call for him whenever they need to sleuth things out.

the information team is organized a little later, should you officially assume the title of heir and start your education on how to run the corporation. those within here are your pawns to use. aether, lyney, and kaeya are good at words and can make anyone reveal information with their irresistible charm. heizou, of course, for the sleuthing. you can send diluc on solo missions, who can use his formidable combat to infiltrate and beat the shit out of any fancy pants you need dirt on.

they don't really do much, these guys. itto is, well, itto, and he means well but there's not much he can really do, so sometimes he'll help the others out with the occassional odd job to gain some pocket money. bennet means well too, so zhongli has decided to take pity on him and let him help out with the house staff. venti doesn't do chores, sorry, and kazuha likes to help out with security every now and then but that's it. don't even bother asking scara. chongyun also means well but he's kind of like a bug repellent but instead of bugs it's evil spirits. thoma is just ayato's butler. mika does a lot, actually, so you have to remind him to take a rest whenever he gets exhausted from rushing to and fro the manor.

[desi2go]

A tiny bee

pairing: Hyunjin x reader

warning: fluff

author's note: this idea came to me as I saw a clip of one of the BTS members, hiding for a bee. It's short but I hope you'll like it.

Saying that Hyunjin likes bugs is a big lie. At the latest when he sprayed the mosquitoes with insect spray and meanwhile performed a dance routine, you couldn't deny that he loathed insects more than anything.

Well, you didn't like insects either, at least when they suck your blood.

As one of their make-up artists, you nearly followed them everywhere. On concerts or shooting videos, you were always there, making sure that they looked fabulous.

Stray Kids was filming another music video for their upcoming album. As always, you applied Felix's and Changbin's make-up, chatting with the friendly members. The only one left was Hyunjin. He already waited for you for the touch up.

When Felix and Changbin were finished, they walked to the others, leaving Hyunjin and you alone. You turned to him and started working.

Quickly, you grabbed another brush, blending the concealer in. Hyunjin watched you curious through half closed eyes. He always did that, observing you.

At first it was spooky but you got used to it. And you couldn't deny that there wasn't some tension between you, but not in the bad way. He liked to talk to you and spend much time with you whenever he could or so it seemed. And you grew fond of it as well, always searching for his companion wherever you had time.

You tried to keep your professionalism but sometimes it was hard when you work so close to the person you find extremely attractive.

Carefully, you brushed some of his hairs away, grabbing another brush.

In this moment he squirmed, jumping towards you and hid his face between your neck and chest.

You felt his hot breath against your skin even through the fabric of your shirt was between it.

"What is wrong?" You asked him, eying the environment and placing your hands on his shoulders.

He just squirmed again towards you. Then, you heard it. A bee. Just a tiny bee. Carefully, you shooed the bug away with your hands as it wanted to sit on Hyunjin's hair. After some attempts, you had successfully chased it away.

"Is it away?" He mumbled.

You laughed. "Yes. I successfully defended you against a tiny bee"

He brought some distance between you, looking you in the eyes while he pouted.

"It can sting!" He defended himself. Amused you smirked.

"You're dramatic. The bee probably is more afraid of you" you stated.

He wanted to return something when Bang Chan came towards you. Giving you a smile.

"Hyunjin, what is taking so long?" He questioned. From behind him, Seungmin's head popped up.

"I saw him cuddling with Y/n!" He shouted teasingly. Hyunjin rolled his eyes.

"I wasn't. I was scared! There was a bee" he defended, crossing his arms.

Chan giggled. "Of course. But please do the cuddling later. We are already behind the schedule" he scolded with a knowing smirk.

You and Hyunjin blushed, you played with your brushes, adjusting them to keep you distracted from the redness that crept up your face. While he looked around, suddenly finding the environment extremely interesting.

"Just admit that you like y/n and you want to be near her!" Seungmin added.

Hyunjin quickly shot up and walking past Bang Chan, giving Seungmin a bold look.

[pyrettawychwiggin]

SFW Alphabet with Nanami Kento (Jujutsu Kaisen) - Gender-Neutral

Summary: this is a SFW alphabet for Nanami Kento from Jujutsu Kaisen.

Paired With: gender-neutral. I've kept the physical descriptors of 'your character' to be relatively ambiguous where I can. I will try to also specify differences between sorcerers and non-sorcerers where it's required.

Rating: GEN/TEEN — SFW - with some vague references to what could be considered mildy suggestive, but very little. I may do a NSFW alphabet for Nanami, but just like the one I did for Crow, that will mainly be posted on my Ko-Fi/Patreon.

Warnings: possible spoiler alert, possible mentions of violence and injury, swearing, some mildly suggestive themes in places.

Note From The Author: I love reading these little SFW (and in some cases, NSFW) alphabets for fictional characters. It's so cool to see how others interpret the characters and how they would handle things. So here's my own rendition for my favourite JJK character (and current fictional obsession) - Nanami Kento ♡

Some of the entries may be long. So be prepared for a lengthy read, y'all. I hope you have as much fun reading it as I did making it! Ready for a little overtime? Let's get started!

A = Affection (How affectionate are they? How do they show their affection?)

Anyone who's met Nanami - be it a passing stranger or a colleague - would tell you that he comes across as cold as ice.

However, those who are close to him know better; he is very distant, yes, but his watchful eyes are always looking out for the people around him. He cares about people far more than he lets on, and he takes the safety of others very seriously.

As for his 'affection' - it's hard-earned. He's not a touchy-feely guy in general, and while he comes to realize he appreciates physical touch with his partner more than he had ever expected, his natural love languages have always been acts of service and gift giving.

For you - his romantic partner, he can and will make the impossible happen if you wish it. You'd get very accustomed to hearing him say the words 'I'll handle it' - and you can trust that he really will, no questions asked.

He loves to feel your touch, of course, but he's especially fond of making sure your needs are met, and whenever he can take some weight off your shoulders, he'll do so without hesitation.

It may be surprising to others to see just how affectionate he can be when it comes to you. He's checking in on you constantly, opening every door, sliding out chairs, draping his jacket over your shoulders; some have even witnessed the rare sight of a smile on his lips as he whispers in your ear. He always maintains some form of physical contact with you when you're out and about; a firm hand on the small of your back, gentle fingers interlaced with yours and tucked into his pocket for warmth, a protective arm curled around your shoulders, or a strong hand on your thigh while you're en route to wherever you're going.

Honestly, if people are surprised to see how affectionate he can be with you in public, they'd be floored by how affectionate he can be when you're in private 👀

B = Best Friend (What would they be like as a best friend? How would the friendship start?)

He is the kind of best friend that everyone should have in their life - real ride-or-die type of friend. He's a good listener, he gives great advice, and he's not afraid of calling you out on your bullshit if you're in need of a reality check.

You never have to wonder if he's being real with you because frankly, that's just who he is. He won't mince words to save your feelings. That being said, he's not heartless. If he knows that his usual dose of brutal honesty may be more than you're prepared to hear at the moment, he knows how to choose his time properly.

C = Cuddles (Do they like to cuddle? How would they cuddle?)

He was just as surprised as anyone else when he realized he was a closet cuddle-bug. Even with his closest friends, he's not one for hugs and physical displays of affection. Before you two started seeing each other, the most he would manage is a firm handshake - maybe a pat on the back for a student who's done particularly well, but even that's a rare occurrence.

But with you?

Totally different beast. He manages to keep things relatively subtle in public so as to not make you or others uncomfortable, but when you're alone together, he's always pulling you into his chest for a hug, resting his head on your lap, slow dancing with you, etc. He especially loves to rest his chin on your head or shoulder to read along with whatever you're reading.

Hell, when you run your fingers through his hair, it's a surefire way to put him to sleep within minutes.

He realized he was in trouble the first time you two had gone on a work trip together. You were seated side-by-side, and while you two were very close, you weren't romantically involved, yet. The flight was much longer than what you were used to, and you wound up falling asleep, unintentionally resting your head on his shoulder.

His heart doesn't race often, but when he felt the weight of your head pressed on his arm and looked over to see you fast asleep - well, he knew he was hooked. Being careful so as not to wake you, he draped his jacket over your shoulders and ensured your rest was undisturbed until the plane was about to land.

D = Domestic (Do they want to settle down? How are they at cooking and cleaning?)

Nanami is a domestic man at heart, and while he could never allow himself to go fully domestic while he's a sorcerer, he would greatly love the domestic life with the right person.

He's neat and tidy by nature, and he's a fantastic cook. He's also open to different dynamics depending on where you find meaning. If you are a homebody, he's happy to be the sole income earner, but if you're a worker bee like himself, he's happy to support your career however he can.

As for kids, again, never while he's a sorcerer - but if not for that, he'd be so down.

E = Ending (If they had to break up with their partner, how would they do it?)

It would be unlikely that Nanami would ever choose to break up with you once you'd started dating, but if he did, it would be characteristicslly business-like. He'd sit you down, calmly explain his reasoning and leave no room for error or misunderstanding. He doesn't enjoy this, but if he has to break up with you, he wants to make it as quick and painless as possible. He's also one to cut ties afterward - if he's ended a relationship, there is no going back, and he has no intention of giving you reason to believe otherwise. After all, if he broke up with you, you can bet there was a damn good reason.

If you'd been married and for whatever reason got divorced, it would not have been Nanami's choice. If he marries, he's marrying with the intention of forever. As a divorced man, he has a hard time being around you. He tries to maintain a 'normal' exterior, but the moment you give him a sliver of hope to try to win you back, he's all in. He may not be married to you anymore by law, but in his heart? Always.

F = Fiancé (How do they feel about commitment? How quick would they want to get married?)

Nanami is a monogamy-or-nothing kind of guy. If he's with you, he's with you, and that's all there is to it.

Even when you first started dating, anyone who saw the way you two were with each other would have sworn that you were a long-married couple. Commitment looks good on you two.

When it came to marriage, Nanami was very conflicted. He was already going against his better judgememt when he started a relationship with you despite the fact that he was still a sorcerer ('This might be the most selfish thing I've ever done'). Getting married, though? He'd basically be signing a paper saying 'why yes; I'd love to make you a widow.'

But by the Gods, does he ever want to. He knew he wanted to marry you within the first year of your relationship. He'd decided that the day he asked for your hand in marriage would be the day he'd resign as a sorcerer. He carried a ring in his pocket for nearly three years before he finally asked you.

He'd ask you on your anniversary. You'd be at a lovely villa by the seaside on a couple's vacation, enjoying drinks by sunset. He'd then surprise you with ownership papers for the villa signed by himself on one line; on the other, he'd written your first name with his last name. You'd look at him wide-eyed as he'd get down on one knee beside you.

'I've spent my whole life chasing after some sense of meaning. I couldn't find it as a salary man, and I couldn't find it as a sorcerer. Then there was you. I found meaning in you. I found meaning in us. Now, it doesn't matter to me what I do for a paycheque - as long as I can enjoy a long life with you, I'll have no regrets. Will you do me the honour of marrying me?'

G = Gentle (How gentle are they, both physically and emotionally?)

Physically, Nanami is very mindful about how he treats you. He's very aware of his strength, and fortunately for you, he has meticulous control of that power. He tends to err on the side of gentle touches for the most part. Brushing his fingers over your cheek, parting a strand of your hair away from your face, lacing his fingers delicately between yours; even when things are getting a bit spicier, he's very adamant that you tell him verbally if you want 'more.'

Emotionally, gentleness is something that Nanami needed to work on a little bit; and even now, he'd incredibly blunt. He's always on your side, but in a way that means he will still call you out on your bullshit. The two of you have needed to establish a 'are you looking for support or solutions' disclaimer before certain conversations because simply agreeing with someone and telling them what they want to hear doesn't really come naturally to him.

That being said, even if he calls you out, he's never mean, callous or unfair. He maintains a certain matter-of-fact level of tact.

H = Hugs (Do they like hugs? How often do they do it and what is it like?)

Before you started dating, Nanami was not a hugger. Even for his closest, longest-standing and most-trusted friends, he really doesn't do hugs.

With you, on the other hand, he's become much more open to that physical affection. He's a bit more subtle in public, but when you snuggle into his chest, he can't help but wrap his arms around you and chuckle.

At first, his hugs were admittedly a little awkward. He wasn't used to showing (or being shown) that kind of affection, really - so it would take him a few seconds to decide what to do with his hands as he awkwardly tried to make sure he wasn't touching you somewhere that would make you uncomfortable. You also noticed he'd almost stop breathing as if he was concerned the rise and fall of his chest would disturb the moment.

Over time though, he became so used to them that his day didn't feel complete without holding you at least once. His hugs are now warm and all-encompassing, and nothing makes you feel safer than being wrapped up in his arms. He especially likes to rest his chin on the top of your head while you bury your face into his chest.

I = "I Love You" (How fast do they say the L-word?)

Nanami is a repressed hopeless romantic at heart; even he didn't realize how quickly he could fall for someone until you two started exploring your relationship together.

He knew he loved you within the first couple of months of your relationship, but even he felt that voicing that so early would be too soon. For the most part, he likes to take the lead on romantic gestures, but this is the one time he wanted to wait until you'd said it first.

When you finally told him you loved him, he was taken aback at how much he needed to hear those words from you. All he do in the moment was holding your face in his hands and say 'I've loved you for longer than I think you realize.'

J = Jealousy (How jealous do they get? What do they do when they get jealous?)

He's not a particularly jealous man - mainly because he has the utmost trust in you not to give him a reason to be envious.

On rare occasions, someone else (usually Gojo) will try to make him jealous by pretending to flirt with you, but he mostly just finds it amusing to watch his partner expertly shut that shit down.

Any 'jealousy' he harbours usually presents itself as pride; making sure it's very clear that you're with him when you're out. If someone seems to be eyeing you a little too much, he takes the opportunity to pull you closer to him and plant a sweet (sometimes spicy) kiss behind your ear while maintaining direct eye contact with whoever he's sending that message to. You didn't even realize he was doing it at first. One day, when you noticed this, you teasingly said 'Nanami, darling - are you...jealous?' He chuckles and says 'I'm just making sure they're very aware of who's taking you home this evening.'

If you have a different partner before the two of you start seeing each other, this is when he feels that envy really creep up on him. He can't deny that it's there, but he makes a point of ensuring it doesn't become a problem, mostly keeping it to himself save for feeling a little grumpy throughout the day after seeing you two being sweet together. He would never act on that jealousy, though.

K = Kisses (What are their kisses like? Where do they kiss you? Where do they like to be kissed?)

Nanami is a shockingly good kisser, and he loves kissing you whenever he can, and his kisses have range.

He loves to take his time with them, slowly raising his hand to cup your jaw to pull you closer while his other hand snakes around your waist to pull you in close, pressing his lips to yours and just sinking into the moment with you.

He loves heavy, passionate kisses after having been apart from you for too long, pressing his body against yours with carnal need, grabbing a fistful of hair in his hand and reveling in the feeling of your tongue on his.

Slow, soft trails of kisses across your neck and shoulders when he's standing behind you, his hands resting on your hips.

He's putty in your hands when you gently catch his tongue or bottom lip between your teeth - it never fails to get a low groan out of him.

He specifically loves when you trail kisses along his chest and back.

L = Little Ones (How are they around children?)

Children are initially intimidated by Nanami, thinking he looks mean or scary - but he's actually very nurturing by nature, and protective of children in general.

The patience he tends to lack when it comes to other adults, especially the incompetent ones, is seemingly reserved for kids, because he is incredibly patient with them.

While he's very open to the possibility of having kids someday, he is very adamant that this could only happen if he retired as a Jujutsu sorcerer - he refuses to bring a child into the world and all but condemn them to see their father meet an untimely (and likely violent) demise. If you were to get unexpectedly pregnant with his child however, he would resign as a sorcerer without a second thought.

He would be a fantastic father. He'd look out for and support his kids through everything and anything, he'd offer advice and guidance, he'd encourage them to be the best they could be, and he'd be willing and able to administer stern verbal discipline if needed. His approach on raising his children is simply 'communication is everything.' He ensures early on that his little ones see the value in talking to the both of you, no matter how difficult the conversation may be, and finding solutions together as a family.

If he had a son, he'd take it upon himself as his own personal responsibility to raise him to be a proper gentleman. If he had a daughter, he'd be the sweetest girl-dad you've ever seen (he'd be the type of girl-dad who would go out of his way to learn how to do her hair, and to read up on memstrual cycles, etc). If his child turned out to be non-binary, he would be supportive and protective of their well-being. Home would always be a safe space to freely express and find themselves.

M = Morning (How are mornings spent with them?)

He's a busy man - and you can be a busy couple - so most mornings don't allow for much dawdling. You both have a routine, though. The alarm goes off and he lets out a deep breath before turning it off, rolling back over to nuzzle his forehead against yours ('It's morning, love.')

All too soon, he's out of bed not long before you - you both get started on your usual morning getting-ready routines; whoever's ready first gets a pot of coffee brewing and gets started on breakfast (sometimes it's you, sometimes it's him). If you have to go you separate ways for work, he never leaves without a kiss and an 'I love you.'

If you work together or if he's able to drive you to youe work first, he always enjoys his morning drive with you.

On the rare occasion that the two of you get to enjoy a lazy morning, the routine is similar, but much slower. He lingers in bed with you for a while. If he's awake before you, he'll snuggle with you and watch you sleep for a few minutes before planting a soft kiss on your forehead and sliding out of bed to get breakfast going.

N = Night (How are nights spent with them?)

Nights with him are quiet and comfortable. He has an evening routine that quickly became your evening routine as well (hence the his-and-theirs sinks he had installed in his bathroom right before you'd started living together; he loves getting ready for the day with you, and he loves getting ready for bed with you). When the two of you settle into bed, you've grown accustomed to the sight of him sitting up against the headboard with his reading glasses, taking in a chapter of whatever he's reading; sometimes you'll even read together. If you haven't both accidentally fallen asleep already, he sinks under the blankets with you and pulls you in close to him by your waist, planting a soft kiss on your neck or your forehead before falling asleep. You never need to worry about being cold, either - the man is a furnace.

Some nights can be a little lonely, though - if he has to work late (which he makes a point of trying not to do now that he has you to come home to). He'll come home late to see you curled up on the couch, fast asleep after trying to wait up for him. With a frown, he lifts you carefully into his arms and carries you off to bed to tuck you in with a soft kiss on the forehead and a whisper ('I'll join you in a moment, love.') He wishes you'd stop waiting up for him like that; but he's touched that you do.

O = Open (When will they start revealing things about themselves? Do they say everything all at once or do they reveal little things slowly?)

The man is an enigma. On one hand, even as best friends, he seemed to be rather sparing with personal details about himself.

Once you start seeing each other though, this changes fast. Your first few dates were chalk full on conversation; learning about each other, talking about what you like, what you don't; your life goals, your fears - everything.

Once you two become an item, he isn't one to withold anything from you - if you want to know something about him, he's an open book to you and you alone. The way he sees it, he wouldn't be in a relationship with someone that he didn't trust completely - he knows you would never use this information against him in any way.

P = Patience (How easily are they angered?)

Nanami has self-discipline; but he's not a particularly patient man. He can be irritable sometimes, and some people just get under his skin more than others (*cough* Gojo *cough*).

He prefers to find the quickest and most efficient way to handle things, and can get frustrated when others don't do the same.

Q = Quizzes (How much would they remember about you? Do they remember every detail or forget the minor things?)

His mind is a steel trap. He remembers every detail to an eerie degree. He doesn't just know your favourite colour - he knows the damn hex code. He's memorized your favourite poem off by heart. He knows your mother's birthday, your ring size, your insecurities, your passions, and all the places you love to be kissed the most.

R = Remember (What is their favourite moment of your relationship?)

One of his favourite memories is the first morning you two spent together. You'd been in a relationship for about half a year when you stayed over at his place for the first time.

Unsurprisingly, he was awake before you were, but he vividly remembers opening his eyes to see your sleeping face beside him, the rays of the morning sun scattering around the room and painting you in a golden light that took his breath away. You were breathtaking; and he remembers thinking to himself:

'This is what I want to wake up to every morning for the rest of my life.'

S = Security (How protective are they? How would they protect you? How would they like to be protected?)

This man is fiercely protective of you. Fortunately, you never need to worry about anything while you're out and about with him - that comes with the scary dog privilege - but if anyone, and I mean anyone, were to so much as threaten a hair on your head, he'd be between you and that threat so fast your head would spin.

He's always got his eye out for you - 24/7.

Nanami himself is rarely (if ever) in need of protection, but he'd be lying if he said seeing how fiercely protective you are of him in return didn't give him butterflies.

T = Try (How much effort do they put into dates, anniversaries, gifts, everyday tasks?)

He makes it look effortless, but Nanami is one of the most thoughtful and considerate partners you could get. He plans dates and events down to the last detail and he always has a backup plan if things go sideways.

He never - n e v e r - forgets your birthday or your anniversary.

He also loves getting you gifts; even if there's no reason or occasion. He's always bringing you little treats he knows you like, and if he comes across something he knows you'd like, it's as good as yours. He loves to spoil you rotten whenever he can.

His thoughtfulness extends to the way he treats you at home, too. He's always happy to offer a massage, to run you a warm bath, to throw together your favourite meal, you name it.

U = Ugly (What would be some bad habits of theirs?)

This should come as a surprise to no one, but the man is a notorious workaholic. If there were one thing between you two that would lead to a possible breakup/divorce, this would be the reason.

To his credit, this is a conversation he had with you very early in the relationship. You knew from the get-go, that it can sometimes be difficult to find time to spend together. For him, it's a balancing act that sometimes has him spreading himself far too thin, and can sometimes lead to him being irritable and grumpy, or just far too tired to do much of anything.

V = Vanity (How concerned are they with their looks?)

Nanami's no slouch - he puts a fair amount of effort into his appearance and keeps himself well-kept. He actually rather enjoys fashion in general - this makes him a useful and fun partner to have around when you're shopping or putting an outfit together - he actually enjoys the whole process. He especially likes to coordinate his ourfit with yours when he can.

In his line of work, though, things can get a bit messy - he won't lose sleep over a hair being out of place or getting dirt or blood on his clothes.

He does prefer to shower after most shifts, though. He doesn't mind the sweat and grime of the day, but he prefers not to soak in it if it can be avoided.

W = Whole (Would they feel incomplete without you?)

Nanami is a pretty independent guy; he's been on his own in his personal life for a very long time, so he's used to managing on his own. Even after the two of you start seeing each other, he's not one to be rendered useless without you, but as he puts it:

'I can't think of a single situation that wouldn't be made better with your presence.'

That is to say he doesn't need a partner - he specifically wants you as his partner. To him, this is infinitely more important than blind dependence.

If he were ever to truly lose you, however - be it to a breakup or if you were to tragically pass away, he would be an absolute wreck. The poor guy would either spend his time fighting to win you back, or work himself into an early grave in an attempt to distract himself from the loss.

X = X-tra (A random head-canon for them)

He has a rigid dental hygiene regimine, and he is incapable of ending or starting his day properly without brushing and flossing.

Y = Yuck (What are some things they wouldn't like, either in general or in a partner?)

He is initially uninterested in having a romantic relationship with another sorcerer; but the heart wants what it wants, and what it wants is you - sorcerer or no.

He has a number of pet peeves though, too. This includes (but is not limited to:

- being rude to waiters/store clerks

- eating in bed (he'll tolerate it on occasion as long as you're not leaving crumbs or anything, but he'd reeeeeeeally rather you just didn't)

- being consistently late to things

- poor dental hygiene (he doesn't care if your teeth aren't straight or 'perfect' - but he will nag you to brush and floss if you don't already)

Z = Zzz (What are some sleeping habits of theirs?)

Nanami is an early bird, originally out of necessity, but now it's simply habit to wake up with the sun. On the rare occasion that he gets to sleep in, however, he will take the opportunity to snuggle with you in bed for a while.

Wach night, he specifically likes to throw on some reading glasses and read a chapter or two of a book - he likes it even more if it's a book the two of you are reading together. Having you curl up against his chest under the covers are you read together sometimes ends with one or both of you dozing off partway through a paragraph.

He's a very light sleeper, and while you'll occasionally hear a low mumble or two from him in his sleep, he's silent otherwise. He prefers to sleep on his side, especially if he can keep an arm draped over your waist throughout the night.

He usually wakes up feeling as though he got no rest at all because he often dreams about work, feeling as though he just worked an entire shift in his sleep.

He gets the cutest bedhead most mornings as well ♡

(Artwork by ChaChaChia0)

That's all, folks! Thanks for reading. You take it from here - see you next time ♡

~ Pyretta Wychwiggin

[jqmalikhsgib]

astrology

four

you were currently in the kitchen making breakfast for you and jack. jack was still resting in his bed.

its been two months of taking care of jack and its been the best two months ever. jack was an easy child to take care of. he mostly played with his toys and watched cartoons. from time to time you’d get jack to do something educational—besides his homework of course—and he enjoyed it!

today you and jack were heading to a museum. you’d promised him if he got an ‘a’ on his spelling test you’d take him to see the dinosaur bones this weekend. he passed with flying colors! you had been proud of him. instantly putting the test on the fridge for display.

when you finished breakfast you walked upstairs. you gently knocked on jacks door. he was sleeping peacefully. you smiled before walking over to the small boy. running your fingers through his blonde hair.

“jacksters? come on, baby. breakfast is ready.”

jack slowly opened his eyes. “hi, yn!” he said quietly.

“hi, jack. come on, let’s eat, hmm?”

“carry me?”

you laugh before picking the eight year old up. you head downstairs. you sat jack down before making him a plate of eggs, toast, grits, and a glass of orange juice.

“eat up!”

you sat right beside him. you both sat in silence as you ate your breakfast together. for the next couple of hours you made sure jack washed his face, brushed his teeth, and got dressed for the day. you got ready right after.

once you both were well dressed, you allowed jack to watch cartoons for a little while. you still had time to go to the museum.

when it was time you help jack out his shoes on before walking out the door.

“you excited, buddy?!”

“yeah! its been a long time since daddy and i went to see the dinos!”

“yeah?”

jack hums. “last time we went is when mommy was here.”

you frowned. your heart breaking for jack. you knew he missed his mother. you made sure to tell him wherever she is she’ll always love him whenever he missed her and aaron wasn’t around.

jack would tell you she’d like you. you had no idea why, but that made your heart feel full. knowing that if haley was here she’d take a liking to you.

aaron had opened up a little more about his life with haley. she sounded like a lovely woman. always taking care of aaron and jack’s needs. putting them before herself. even after the divorce. she still adored her family.

she was a saint.

“okay, buddy! we’re here. ready?”

jack nods enthusiastically. you laugh as you get out of the car and help him out as well. when you got inside you watch jack as his eyes widened. you smiled.

jack seemed to be extremely excited. the both of you walked around. when he gets near the bug area he makes a face.

“bugs are gross! daddy says he ate a caterpillar once as a dare in high school. he got sick and had to go to ‘mergency room.”

you made a face. picture a teenage aaron eating a caterpillar wasn’t what you thought you’d ever had to picture. of course he did though. teenage boys are dumb.

after about two hours walking around the museum, jack got a little tired. you decided it was time to head back to the house.

you placed the small boy in his car seat before driving back to the house. when you get home you see aaron’s car outside.

you pick a sleeping jack up and walk back inside. you see aaron in his office. you nod your head when he sees you. he gives you a smile before you head upstairs to set jack down.

“how was the museum? i thought id be back in time to go with you. i know how much he wanted me there. sorry i couldn’t make it.”

you shrug your shoulders. “its fine! we had a good time. he told me you ate a caterpillar before.”

aaron groans at the memory.

“yeah. i caught him trying to eat one. i had to stop that from happening before he ended up getting his stomach pumped in the hospital. if i could go back id scold my younger self in being a dumb idiot.”

you laugh. “im sure you weren’t that bad.��

aaron scoffs. “i was the worst! always doing something just to get my dads attention or my mom to give me some physical affection. it was pretty fucking stupid.” aaron shrugs his shoulders.

he did do some crazy shit in his day for his parents affection. his dad was an attorney. he was a pretty good one at that. he wasn’t really around his family. he’d be off ‘working’ for someone.

reality was, he’d been cheating on his mom for years. it wasn’t like he didn’t know. he wasn’t hiding it. its why they had another child in the first place. sean was suppose to be the baby that fixed his parents marriage. aaron and his mother knew deep down his father wasn’t gonna change.

he was a manipulative, narcissistic, arrogant man who mentally abused his family until he got sick.

his mother was no better though. she’d been raised in a high class society. she was just as arrogant as his father. she thought haley wasn’t in their ‘class’ to be apart of this family. its the main reason why aaron cut ties with his parents.

last he heard his father got better and he’s still an cheating asshole while his mother keeps up this perfect family image.

young aaron was lonely and wanted his parents love. he’d do anything for it.

“i know what that’s like. wanting your parents attention.”

aaron gives you a sad smile.

the two of you sat in comfortable silence for a few minutes.

“should we order a pizza for dinner?” you asked.

aaron hums.

“sure.”

you smiled before grabbing the phone and ordering dinner.

shitty fucking ending but i want them together already!!! —which is gonna happen sooner than you think ;)—

[quillpokebiology]

Hello! I found a small Swablu hiding in the sanctuary and she doesn't look like a regular Swablu. I checked your blog and found that she looks a lot like an Iridescent Swablu. I took her in, but I'm wondering if I have to take care of her differently than you would a normal Swablu?

(@pkmnwhispererstella)

Of course! Since she's still a Swablu, a lot of the care will be similar. But there are some things that are different.

Iridescent Swablu Care Tips

They like water a lot, and need somewhere where they can play in it. No, bathtubs don't count, stop using bathtubs. But pools in your backyard or small ponds they can swim in. Unlike standard Swablu feathers, their wings are too thick to shrink in the water, so they are still able to fly. Chlorine does no damage to their feathers

Just because they can handle dirty water doesn't mean they should live in it, and they do poop in the water. Please clean out their pools

While you can potty train them, birdmon are known for popping whenever and wherever. Please be aware of this

Their feathers collect more dust than standard Swablu, so please bathe them regularly

They eat small fish, seeds, berries, and small bugs

While they are able to fall asleep in the water (their feathers keep them up), they would prefer to have a separate area for bedding. They can sleep inside or outside, but they like soft bedding. Blankets for inside and things like grass and Combusken shavings for outside. Oh, and they should have a birdhouse or a Combusken Coop if they live outside

Swablu are very social, and they can get sad if their aren't any other pokemon around. Iridescent Swablu do well with other flying types or water types

I hope these help! Take good care of the little guy!

[sketchfanda]

Commission:Chestnut Stud:Jagua MILF

Jagua del Toro was quite a slice of paradise for being a resort on an island off the coast of some middle of nowhere third world country, but diamonds in the rough as they say. Especially when you had the hottest beaches and even hotter bitches and one such fine example of hotness was not having herself a good day. Now Cassandra Garcia was a woman of mature age, the kind of which certainly designated her as a high quality class grade MILF, and in experience she was more than used to having ups and downs but this was ridiculous!! The nerve of those bastards, whoever they were, stealing her swimsuit, her gearbag with her clothes, even her towel!! All while she had been taking a shower to boot, she swore to herself she’d hunt those thieving perverts down and make them suffer, she knew for damn sure they likely snuck some pictures and videos on their phones if they had any!!

But right now, she had to focus on maintaining her dignity, as she was currently ducking and weaving in between and among bushes and trees on the beach. Taking cover wherever and whenever she could, hands covering her most intimate parts, a challenge particularly with her quite sizeable boobies of course. She just had to leave her cellphone at home today or all days, damnit she’d even consider calling that damn trickster minx Maya for help even if it meant owing her a solid!! She felt like some damn stupid college kid having to run around streaking like this, if anyone saw her, her dignity and reputation would suffer!!

it didn’t help the tropical Caribbean quality air was making her exposed skin feel all tingly in certain places, blushing as she suppressed any urge to moan or shudder. Damn it all she didn’t need to start feeling horny now of all times, if she could just get her hands on a robe or towel at least then she’d be in the clear for some modesty. If even just a single brat saw her, she’d never live it down, the rumours alone that would spread would be severe especially when facts got distorted and context was removed. When lo and behold, the diner owner spotted an opportunity just for what she was looking for….

Just by another public showering area, where beach goers could go change in and out of swimwear and wash off the sand and saltwater, much like the stall she had been using prior, she saw a blonde babe departing from her own gearbag, no doubt to have a a swim or go soak some in some sun rays. Just the moment she needed, as the naked milf streaked on over just managing to escape any risk of being seen or caught as she began to open the bag and search it. All she needed was just a towel or robe, besides she doubted that girl’s clothes could fit her admittedly thicc, meaty frame. Only for Murphy’s law to pick a time to remind her what a bitch it could be right then and there as a shower stall door opened, a five foot bald runt in swimshorts stepping out, none other than a familiar face many of us all know….

Krillin::*Clad in his swimshorts,having just finished changing as he was emerging from the stall, unaware at the moment what he was about to witness.*”Hey babe sorry to keep you waiting, I-“*Whatever he was about to say went off the rails on his train of thought as his eyes bugged out, jaw dropping at the sight of naked woman who seemed to be trying to raid his wife’s beach bag. The lovely mrs.Garcia blushing, looking like a deer in the headlights as her worst nightmare seemed to be becoming a reality. Before either of them knew it, she was glaring at him as she charged and tackled him, shoving him back into the stall as she pinned him up against the wall, hand over his mouth to keep him from screaming.*

Cassandra:”Stay quiet or….or I’ll smother you with my breasts!!”*She couldn’t believe what she was saying, hell what was she even doing right now? She was naked in a beach shower stall with some random shorty, who caught her trying to steal, far as she knew, his wife or girlfriend’s stuff and this was now happening? Christ she knows Maya would never let her hear the end of this and live it down if word got out.*”you listen and you listen well to me, little man. I’m not having a very good day and I’m in serious need of cover so…so…”*Whatever the MILF was about to say as she explained herself to the man she had maybe a foot or just 8 inches over him, as she couldn’t help but notice the quite sizeable tent he was pitching in his swimshorts.*”…….Are you seriously hard right now?!!”

Now really she shouldn’t be surprised Krillin was getting a boner at this moment and time, he had a thicc, hot piece of ass alone in a confined space with him in all her naked pornographic glory after all. Last thing she had even wanted was to give this rando a show and yet any anger or Indignation was crumbling and giving away to a growing arousal the more she stared at it. Her body remembering how it’d been way too long since she had truly experienced and enjoyed the touch of a man, the primal thrill of raw, uninhibited no strings attached sex. Her pulse racing as her pussy quivered and gushed with need and thirst, soaking her thighs with slick, sticky warmth as her free hand was cupping and stroking that erection, all the while she was unaware she had pressed her tires up against his face, delivering on that smothering.

Before either of them knew it, she was kneeling on the floor, his shorts tugged down as she was stroking his cock, assaulting it with licks and kisses. Krillin groaning as this seemingly random naked hottie slobbered all over his shaft, the look of primal lust in her eyes as she gazed up at him making his spine tingle. One moment this woman was threatening him and the next, she was doing this, he was no stranger to this sort of experience but hot damn what a woman!! Specially as soon as she sandwiched his dick between those meaty marshmallows of hers and started stroking him off with a heavenly titfuck, sucking on the exposed tip whenever it came near those luscious lips of hers.

The pleasure of course was skyrocketing as those cute little puffy inverted nips of hers popped out, milk proceeding to gush from them as they added some flavourful lubrication to his length and girth. The short king feeling his mind go numb with ecstasy as his hands fidgeted about to grasp and grip Something, one hand grabbing the shower tap and turning it on, causing hot steamy water to spray and rain down on the lair. Which only served to fuel the growing spark of lust and passion between the pair, Cassandra gasping, panting and moaning as her pussy juices dribbled and flowed to mix with the shower water. Her arousal reaching such a level that she was soon performing intense fellatio on what was quite frankly, the biggest cock she had ever seen, lips latch around that slab of meat as she suffocated herself with deepthroating inch after inch of that beast.

Krillin had thought this woman had been intense before but the sight of this woman outright unhinging her jaw, pink glowing hearts of lust twinkling in her eyes as she bobbed her head like some lewd metronome. He couldn’t help but buck his hips, much to her horny delight as he proceeded to facefuck her, balls smacking her chin as she slobbered all over that jackhammering cock. Her pussy gushing like a waterfall at seeing those muscles of his lex and ripple, her brain becoming a borderline bitch in heat, as if growing a desire to have this compact Adonis mate and breed with her. Her neck swelling with a rising bulge from how deep that meat was getting as her pussy got an oral preview of what it could soon come to expect as her tastebuds dazzled with the taste of his pre on her tongue.

But of course Cassandra had found thst Krillin was as good at giving pleasure as he was at receiving it, as she was experiencing first hand while he was kneeling beside her. Suckling on her MILF tits, drinking uo her quite delicious milk while he probed her slit with his fingers, her nectar soaking up to his wrist. Coaxing deepthroated moans out of her lucious lips which not too long had sucking off his cock, pulse racing as he groped one tit with his free hand while sucking on the other, switching uo between the two. Her arousal skyrocketing as any doubts about this sudden act of spontaneous intimacy wwre further pushed away into the back of her mind, thinking nothing less than to want this short king to utterly destroy her.

But ooh once Krillin had finished warming her up and had his fill of her natural milk, she was finding her world being rocked to pieces, the walls and ceiling of the shower stall echoing with her moans and cries of lust. The heavy smack of skin slapping, primal and animalistic mating mixed with the splash of showe water as Cassandra was bent over and pressed up against the wall, Krillin jackhammering her from behind as he held her by the waist. Thrusting and pumping his cock away like the erotic jackhammer it was, grunting as he felt the tightness of the MILF’s pussy embracing his snatch with intimate desire. She was no virgin but tip it was clear that she had never taken anyone of his length and girth before and hit damn she was loving it, this feeling like she’d be ruined for other men from this point on!!!

Cassandra:”Yes yes yes yes!! Fuck me yku golden god of man! Destroy me so I never so much as think of another man!! Make me your brood mare!!”*The horny MILF hollered, among other such obscene dirty remarks when she could manage to form sentences as Krillin now took her in a mating press. The compact stud shiting between having his tongue dance with hers in a sloppy kiss or latching his mouth onto those meaty milktanks of hers as he had her bent like an accordion, plowing her lik an erotic butter churn. Cock plowing away into her greedy snatch as he splashing juices mixed eit the shower water going down the drain, those smooth heavy balls of his slapping her ass, making those twin booty cheeks jiggle and clap like jelly. She was so horny right now, she wouldn’t even mind Maya showing up and joining in, that’s just how good Krillin was giving it to her!!!*

Krillin had been with his share of horny women before, more so especially after marrying 18 and satisfying her personal quirky kink and some of those encounters had been as spontaneous and random such as finding this naked woman trying to go through his wife’s bag. But some of them had maybe at least half the level of sex drive Cassandra had, as she seemed intent on wanting him to use her to unleash a Kama sutras worth of positions. Currently enduring the force of her currently riding him cowgirl style, groping those bouncing titties and slapping that titanic booty as she was like a woman possessed. An expression of raw desire and lust adorning her sexy face as if she was driven to have her proclaimed golden god of a man not stop until it was guaranteed she would have a child from him.

Orgasm after orgasm, minutes passing into hour after hour to postion after postion, from prone bone to missionary and spread eagle to name a few of course. The amount of times she came too many to keep count whereas the times he would blow his load were few but relished with delight. The fact he was cumming inside her raw and bareback without a condom hardly a bother or a problem to her, if anything it would’ve felt wrong to her to have such a glorious cock be restrained with such insignificant rubber!! No an alpha male like this had to be enjoyed the proper way, mourning a bitch like herself to mate and breed!

Android 18 certainly stood by such a concept, as she secretly stood by the doorframe of the stall watching on with voyeuristic delight at seeing ankther sexy bitch enjoy the experience omly her husband could provide. One hand down the front of her thong and the other growing her tits with shameless abandon, waiting for the right moment to invite herself into this little soiree. She had wondered how and why Krillin had seemed to be delayed coming out of the changing rooms so imagjne her delight to come back and hear the familair sounds of her man being the natural born stud he was. Her arousal only increasing once she had a direct look inside, finding her hubby tapping quite the hot sexy piece of ass.

If Cassandra had been a horny bitch in heat before, it had only skyrocketed when 18 finally joined the fray, the fact she found herself getting it on with a married couple only making it all the swerter and spicier fo her. Eventually the trio laid together ina tangle of limbs, basking kn the afterglow as they recovered, ready to go again soon as they got their eager guy back. That is,in a more cozier, private and intimate setting lkke 18 and Krillin’s hotel room which they most certainly did, all night long and well into the sunset. That is after the short king and his golden goddess of a wife did a small favour for her on the way on over.

That being finding snd beating 7 shades of shit out of the thieving trolls who had swiped Cassandra’s bag and swimsuit, as well as taking their phones and deleting the pictures and videos. After 18 of course made and sent herself some copies, no reason to deny her Krillin some wet dream material for their eyes only after all. The MILF of course was only all too happy to express her gratitude as well as provide contact details with the lair, after all an encounter like this was too good to be a one time thing. Who knew such a brief bout of misfortune could lead to such unexpected but welcome delights?

Suffice to say, those who knew Cassandra Garcia personally Especially her employees at Boobters were a little puzzled and perturbed by the beaming smile and the distinct glow she was giving off. But hey who could blame her for feeling like she was walking on sunshine when she had the best sex of her goddamn life?!! Especially when she already had a date planned in mind with 18 and Krillin later on today, after all she wants to make the most of the time they’d be here during their vacation. As well as give them plenty of reason to make Jagua a go to destination for them, she didn’t want to be kept waiting too long for next chestnut fox after all, that little man was addictive…….

[lazerinth]

Ramblings of 02 below the cut

Some slightly detailed information about the scale options I picked for 02 (answered in order from how they appear on the template);

02 wouldn’t care about being little spoon or small spoon, but technically she would small spoon most of them time. She would sleep curled next to Nil with her arms around them and her head close to their chest to hear their heartbeat. She likes knowing Nil is there and is soothes by their heartbeat.

She just likes to steal Nil’s clothes because of Nil’s scent. Next question.

Doesn’t technically use pet names. Nothing cutesy. It’s actually condescending at first, the way she refers to Nil as ‘little cat’ or ‘timid kitten’.

She likes being around people, sometimes. For the most part, 02’s species like to be alone.

She doesn’t grasp what affection and intimacy is, so anything she does is an accident of how she genuinely feels. 02 mostly clings to Nil later (eg; an arm around their shoulder, leaning against them, etc).

02 does not know what a confession is. If she confesses feelings, it’s an accident and she’s unaware what she just did, so it’s a 50/50 chance.

Will murder troublesome bugs with shoe or bare hands. Maybe tries to eat them.

She can manage space ship control through a mix of experience and dumb luck. She would be the same with a vehicle.

She eats fragile souls, of course she can’t cook lmaoooo.

02 would not understand PDA. She is just the type to shamelessly cling to someone whenever and wherever she feels like. Someone teach this weirdo some boundaries.

Later on in the story, she would kill for Nil. Enough said.

She has been around many other humans and crewmates before over the years. How else would she eat souls otherwise? In the time, she’s had some… intimate-ish encounters.

Now, some slightly detailed information about the extra three options I picked for 02 on the template;

02 horny level? To be fair, maybe. It’s not like she would know, though.

02 awkwardness level? It’s difficult to be awkward when you don’t care about anyone’s opinion on you, especially if you’re planning to eventually eat their soul anyway.

02 jealousy level? Later in story… It would be unwise to get too close to Nil with 02 around. Even if 02 isn’t around, she will smell a different scent on Nil, she will know who was near Nil🤭

💛 🍀 Any extra info you want on Nil, head on over to Zero’s blog ( @devilcat210 ) for that 💛 🍀

[tomorrowsgardennc]

flower update // october 28th 2024

we actually did all this work yesterday, but it took every last spoon hubs and i had to do it. so i post today what we (finally) did!

we dug holes. a lot of them. but look at the difference here:

clay on the left, which is the entire yard. but ACTUAL SOIL on the right, where a bradford pear tree was when we first moved in and fell down within a month of moving in lmao. it was huge and shaded the entire front yard. i do miss it. but of course it fell down right after we bought the house. that was 2016, and the trunk was not removed but chopped up and decomposed in place. and this was the result.

the best damn soil in the entire front yard.

hubs was a sweetheart and knows my fight on finding good soil and he said he would dig up every last grain of it and put it wherever i meeded LMAO! but instead the flower we planted there will be the best damn flower out of all of them. speaking of all of them...

ta-daaaaa!! all but the cacti are in the ground!! we had to draw a line somewhere because we were both getting tired so i said the cacti can be the ones to wait. but here is the final list:

white rose of sharon (hibiscus)

purple/pink hydrangea (dwarf)

pink butterfly bush (dwarf)

spanish lavender 

false sunflower (native)

spotted bee balm (native)

prickly pear cactus (edible)

now that they are all in their final homes i'm thinking of getting a couple more spanish lavender and false sunflowers... just to scatter them about more. OH and that massive gap that keep bugging me near the right side 😤 is actually where the water line from the city leads to the house. no plants, no raised beds, nothing will go over that line. not just because it's smart but because it's old and needs replaced and costs 8 grand to do so... ain't nobody got money for that. cheaper to just never cover it and when it leaks to pay for a patch. even get a discount if i pre-dig the leak area 🫠 only happened twice so far... didn't want to jinx it by putting an amazing flower over the line.

another important line: what will eventually be the white split rail fence that goes behind these babies!! probably won't be until spring market sales when we can do it. but fences can go in whenever - perennial plants needs to go in now!

another to-do list item for later is the ground cover. we decided yesterday between digging holes to have a mix of wild violets and false strawberries. they're already covering about 20%ish of the front anyway... but next spring ill collect wild violet seeds from the back yard and spread in the front, and i'll buy more false strawberry plants. the wild bunnies adore the false strawberries, and that was enough to sell hubs into the idea. he wants to feed nature, too, and as naturally as possible. since we already have some growing in this area i will not be laying down mulch. just gotta kill the grass every time it starts to get tall.

[castielmd]

Castiel and nature.

Instead of watching season 10 like I should, I find myself wondering how Castiel perceives and feels about nature. Feel free to drop canon evidence or something. This is all what I imagine without having done research in canon.

This post likely has little structure, I just went wherever my mind led me.

[Disclaimer: self-indulgent headcanons.]

———

Inspiration for this post

What I remember as remarkable for my "Castiel loves nature" propaganda is Castiel returning to heaven in S6EP20 — and choosing the one heaven of an autistic man, which features a lot of greenery and soft rain. Adding to that is the starting point of the episode: Castiel on a bench with a beautiful scenery surrounding him. There's trees, snowy landscape with flowers breaching through and a river.

And of course, the love for bees, that is mentioned later.

——

To start this post off, I say Castiel retreats to nature whenever he wants to remember, reflect or think. His time on earth is a lonely one. It didn't necessarily start out as that: he had his garrison, Uriel and all the others. But then they got killed — and he got dragged into all kinds of storylines, most prominently stopping the apocalypse. Shunned from his home, he's mostly isolated and between the Winchesters and whatever duty is bestowed upon him [or he feels is put on him]. He has nothing but himself and the memories he carries.

— Sea.

Nature provides comfort, it does not actively seek out to harm him. Nature also persists, and it is soothing. The seas may have changed their size, may have differently shaped shores now — but they are still the same wild, untamed waters where Castiel watched the tiny, grey fish drag itself out of. Still, endless, ever-lasting blue.

He's standing at a salt-crested cliffside and watches the tides crash against it. The sound has remained the same, and it's a song of serenity. It is honest and it is true. For a moment, his mind is at ease and there is nothing but a steady rhythm. He can close his eyes and there's still a flood pushing against his grace - washing over it, never drowning. He can almost feel the presence of his sibling next to him again.

He doesn't need to breathe, so he takes a dive sometimes — and he sinks until he can't anymore. He can still hear just fine, and there is chatter around him. The sea's inhabitants are in a frenzy but soon Castiel mixes into nature. He becomes a part of the seabed. His eyes are still closed but his grace spreads miles through the sea [It does trouble the navigation systems of ships]. He still sees. Not searching anything, just observing — existing in true freedom if only for a tiny moment. He's guided back to the surface by a bunch of curious fish.

— Forest.

Castiel enjoys forests — he walks the forged paths of desire quietly. There's much more to hear than what meets the eye. Leaves rustling, the fluttering of many wings — he makes it a pastime to tell the different species apart. Bees, birds, dragon-flies, bugs – they all have a unique sound to them. It takes him down the memory lane; the comforting rustle of his siblings arriving, his own wings cutting through time and space, through different dimensions. After the incident of the fall, the silent walks in the forest get a melancholic touch.

His shoulders ache and the burn spreads through his body whenever he sees, hears, feels wings spreading. He isn't oblivious to the shifts in the air. He, too, wishes to partake in flight - now rendered bound.

He can hear hooves thrumming on solid ground, notices the shifty animals moving through the underwood. He can spot a woodpecker in an instant. Castiel aches whenever he sees a pack move through. It leaves a bittersweet touch. Sometimes, he isn't sure if he's moving in the right direction — but he keeps moving regardless.

In rare company, he likes to exchange knowledge about the animals they encounter. He knows something on everything, tiny tid bits here and there. He sat by as the first forest creatures were lifted out of the earth's core, observed them taking their frail first steps and watched them stumble through the ages. He's in awe at what they have become, into what they have evolved. Adaptation is something he marvels at. Perseverance despite all the odds; he's had his favourites that he would've loved to see thrive. Some made it, some didn't. He mourns the loss of what he once cherished but at the same time embraces the novelty bestowed upon the world.

Sometimes, he meets a hiker. Other times, he meets someone like him: wandering peacefully for the sake of admiration and distraction. They turn after passing him, surprised at the replenished feel in their aching joints. Their mind is lighter now.

Castiel enjoys the rough bark of an oak tree against the palm of his hand. The beating heart inside the massive plant isn't lost on him. He knows the age of it as he takes it in and quietly acknowledges its will to grow roots in a spot for 400+ years. He respects the silent strength it requires to remain. His imprint nutures the giant — it will continue to thrive for quite some time.

He likes the smell of rain-soaked soil. More than once has an animal led him to a pond, a river, a lake. They drink in peace as Castiel stands by. Soon, the clearing is swarmed by animals. He leaves then, but some will follow anyway.

He always takes a moment to gaze wistfully at the small body of water, feel the onslaught of humid air on his skin. The weeping willow near the shore creaks as its branches shift, shadowing his figure, shielding. He remains untouched by the rain as everything gets washed away.

He enjoys the chatter of the animals, tunes in if so desired. They tell stories of hunters, of family, of survival. They chime about the blazing sun, the noisy neighbour occupying the branch above them. They whistle about love and mating, they weep about the loss in their tribe. Castiel remains an observer; there is nothing he can do to bring them solace but carry the stories with him to whoever may want to listen.

The animals are aware of his presence as it fills the forest with warmth. His grace caresses the vegetation gently: roots deepen and new sprouts breach the earth where he steps. It nudges fledglings to attempt flight and they whisper about him. It's comforting to be seen in a way that matters.

Sometimes, he will talk to them too. He'll tell stories of the past and introduces them to their ancestors and their lives. They are intrigued, naturally, and are intent listeners. On days of particular distress, he will rest against a tree. A squirrel scrambles down to brush against his hand. It listens as Castiel ponders on freedom and choice — on mistakes and regret. They part ways in silence: Castiel now with a pine nut in his pocket and a colourful leaf in his hair.

One day, he picks up an injured bird, a broken wing sealing its fate. Castiel will always decide to work a miracle — no matter the cost. He always chooses life for others over death. As it flies away, recovered, his being longs to follow. Later, they will meet again. As he sits on the broad branch of a tree, it'll settle on his shoulder and it'll drop a twig in his lap. More will follow.

He has a collection of shiny things that various birds have left for him.

The forest remembers what he's done for it, knows the shine of his grace. It's fluctuating, simmering down and then it sparks up again, emerging brighter than before — its impact will never escape its memories. There will always be a path for Castiel to walk. His being resonates with the heartbeat of nature — both swelling, heaving and softly engulfing every organism within a mile-wide radius. He embraces the life around him. His head is filled with tunes only he seems to hear. They are breathing as one.

— Mountains.

Sometimes, he climbs a mountain by foot. He doesn't tire and the journey is worth it. He'd almost say it is better than reaching the peak.

The air up high is clear and the view across the landscape is astonishing. The forests spread wide and above him, heaven is opened up. Nothing but the endless sky. But he knows what lies beyond, he knows what the cameras of the people around him can't capture, no matter how advanced technology gets. If he strains hard enough, he can almost see it, too.

Up on the mountain hills, the call to heaven is the loudest it has ever been. To Castiel, it's the tune of a piece he knows inside out. He comes here when he feels especially lost.

— As "human".

As human, he cannot understand nature as deeply as he did then. He misses the stories he'd hear and yearns to brim with nature's energy again. His hand against the tree now only feels the roughness of it, not the pulsing life. Yet, the wonder remains and admiration defeats deprivation and overload all the same.

Nature cradles him softly and the whistles still soothe the ache in his heart, despite the lack of understanding. The splatters of rain meet his skin with the same patterns they always have, the waves split on the rocks like they've always done. The oak tree still towers in the same spot. The wind jostles the trees and he will think of home.

— Fin.

Nature is a space of comfort despite the hardships he's facing. And if it isn't a forest or the sea, it is a park, a measly row of withering bushes sporting their last ditch attempt at leaves and flowers. Castiel admires it — even in the most unfortunate circumstances, they will seek out life. With desperation and with fear but nonetheless it is a reach of hope. He takes this knowledge with him.

———

The world at first seems overwhelming to a dying star, but much like Earth's heart, he perseveres.