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wosospacegirl · 2 days ago

Text

Stuck with you - part 15

Summary: Y/n’s used to Alexia’s overprotectiveness and the pressure of her career, but Kika? The shy, socially awkward teammate who’s starting to make her feel things she didn’t expect.

Warnings: Kika and Y/n are flirting and for the first time, it doesn't feel awkward <3

Word count: 5.3k

a/n: hii, this will be my last post (writing) for a few days, I'm going on a small writing break, but I hope to be back this weekend!

When Y/n and Kika left the stadium, it was like everything between them had changed.

It was a bit weird, going from being teammates to being… something else entirely in less than a few hours. But it felt right, somehow, like it was meant to be.

Hours before, Y/n couldn't even look at Kika without thinking her brain had stopped working, and now Kika was holding her hand as she showed Y/n around the streets of Lisbon, as if they were on a date, as if it was a normal thing, as if they were a couple.

"I have to come back to the hotel tonight," Y/n told Kika as she cleaned the crumbs of Pastéis de Belém from her lap. "Everybody's taking the same flight back to Madrid."

Kika had taken her to this pretty shop–it had a blue building facade, and it said it had been selling pastéis de belém since 1837.

Y/n looked at it, mesmerised, as Kika talked with the woman at the counter, asking for some coffee to go with it.

Y/n didn't miss the way Kikas' hand never stopped holding her, not until they had found themselves a comfortable table outside.

They were sitting right outside of the shop, eating pastéis de belém while Y/n drank her hot (black) coffee, burning her tongue on the way, while Kika had hot chocolate.

Kika was talking about how many times she had been at that same shop, but, for some reason, the chocolate was even sweeter now.a

She winked, and Y/n flushed, but not enough for Kika to notice. At least, she hoped so.

As Y/n felt a warm breeze hitting her face, she noticed how she had enjoyed being in Portugal so far; that she enjoyed watching Kika being in her element, being in a place where she was the one showing her cool places instead of the other way around; being in a place where Kika dominated the language, the culture.

Barcelona welcomed Kika as if it were her home, but Y/n knew nothing could replace the place where you grew up, nothing could compensate for the feeling of being around people who spoke the same language, experienced the same things, people who had the same understanding and background as you.

Y/n wondered what she could do to make Barcelona more of a home to Kika.

She took a sip of her coffee while Kika chewed on a pastél de belém; the people around them were talking fast about subjects that seemed both serious and frivolous at the same time, but Y/n couldn't understand it.

"You'll have to teach me some Portuguese," Y/n said finally.. "I know just a little bit."

"I'll teach you Portuguese if you teach me Spanish," Kika said back, leaning more into her chair.

The sun was hitting her face perfectly, as if it was designed to shine bright on her. It was utterly unfair how someone could look that good with hot chocolate spilt on their collar and cinnamon powder on their cheeks.

Y/n rolled her eyes as she brushed the cinnamon from Kika's cheek, who stopped eating mid-shew, watching Y/n with her brown eyes. "Come on, your Spanish and Catalan are great, you don't need any classes!"

Y/n pretended that touching Kika's cheek didn't make her thumb burn. She tried to be cool and casual about it.

Kika finished eating, then she looked around, leaning in, her face close to Y/n.

"I'll do it if you'll be the teacher," she said in a low voice, clearly trying to sound smooth.

"Wow, you know how to flirt," Y/n lifted her eyebrows. She wouldn't mind teaching Kika anything, and she meant that.

"I do, yeah," Kika agreed, sounding a bit cocky. "But I wanna know how to flirt in Spanish too."

Y/n opened her mouth to speak, but Kika interrupted her. "And no, not the 'guapa' thing, I already know that one, I want something different, more unique."

Y/n put her pastéis de belém down in faux hurt. "Oh yeah? You never said guapa to me."

Kika hummed, putting her index finger on her chin. "You are right, sorry. Eres muy guapa," she said slowly, as if to make sure she got the words right. [You are very beautiful]

You smiled and took another bite of the pastél de belém. "Gracias, eres muy guapa también," you answered. [Thank you, you are very beautiful too]

"How do I say that in Portuguese?" Y/n asked. "How can I say somebody is pretty?"

Kika thought for just a second. " Tu és linda," she said, but it was way too fast for Y/n to understand.

Also, Y/n got confused whenever Kika talked; her lips always moved in such an embarrassingly seductive way that made Y/n forget the whole point of the conversation.

"Tu és li-nda?" Y/n repeated, sounding a bit unsure, trying to replicate the way Kika's mouth had said the sentence. "Ugh, I hate to sound stupid."

"Not stupid," Kika said, taking her hand and beginning to play with Y/n's fingers. "Be patient with yourself, go again. Tu és linda." She said more slowly this time, as if speaking every syllable perfectly.

"Tu és linda," Y/n said again, her gaze lingering on the way Kika had laced their pinkies together.

"Yes, congrats!" Kika smiled. "You know how to flirt in Portuguese, you ate pastéis de belém with some coffee–you are a proper Portuguese now."

Y/n didn't know what came over her, but seeing Kika sitting in front of her, her brown eyes looking so warm in the sunlight, her skin so beautiful and soft, her lips so kissable, it was like her brain was acting on impulse, but Y/n did it all almost premeditated.

She mimicked what Kika said moments before, leaning in towards her.

She took Kika's hand in her own, watching her (long) fingers–she had some leftover black nail polish on, which looked pretty against her skin.

"Maybe I would be even more Portuguese if I started dating a Portuguese girl," Y/n said, not looking at Kika until the very last minute. "Don't you think?"

Now it was Kika's turn to be flushed. She looked at Y/n with her mouth slightly open, but then it turned into a grin.

"Did you ask me to take you here just so you could ask to be my girlfriend?" Kika tilted her head; she looked even more adorable now.

"Maybe I even locked both of us in the locker room so I could kiss you," Y/n said playfully, shrugging her shoulders. "Who knows?"

"You can't just beat my team in our own country and ask me to date you," Kika joked.

"Why?" Y/n asked, faux innocence in her voice. "Think of it as damage control."

Kika laughed, truly laughed. "How can you think that saying 'damage control' is something okay to do when you're asking somebody to be your girlfriend?"

"Because I know you," Y/n said, matter-of-factly ", and I knew you would laugh."

"Because you have a very good sense of humour?"

"No, that's not on me," Y/n said. "You just laugh very easily. It's good–I like to see you smile."

"Okay, now you're being way too romantic," Kika said.

"I know, it's so different from the grumpy me, but I promise she'll come back. She's just happy to not be around football players all the time."

"So all you needed to do to lose your grumpiness was a vacation?" Kika asked.

"Vacations and…" Y/n took a second to continue, "...a Portuguese girlfriend, which you still haven't said yes to."

"I kind of like the grumpy you," Kika said. "If I say yes to being your girlfriend, will I lose her?"

"No," Y/n said. "As soon as I step foot in Spain again, I'll go back to my rules of no vulnerability, no talking about feelings, and no smiling at team pictures."

"Promise?" Kika gave you her pinky finger, which you intertwined.

"Promise," Y/n said. "You can't keep the cranky out of me."

"Good," Kika said. "I like you that way… that being said, yes, I want to be your girlfriend."

Y/n thought she was going to melt by the way Kika was looking at her, as if she liked her, as if there wasn't anywhere else she wanted to be but here.

"Great," Y/n said. "Girlfriends then."

"Yes," Kika said. "Namoradas, novias."

"I like all those words," Y/n said cheekily.

Turns out leaving your very new, very hot girlfriend behind wasn't as easy as Y/n thought it would be.

She had dated a girl before Kika, but she was rather obnoxious, so Y/n was even relieved whenever she left the house to go do something.

But now with Kika, things were very different.

Y/n and Kika were sitting at the back of a white tram, watching as the city drifted by.

They were going through a very narrow street surrounded by old, yellow buildings that stood close together, creating a comfortable, cosy, and charming atmosphere in this part of the city.

Y/n didn’t know much about the history of Portugal, let alone Lisbon, but she could tell the area was very old. The bright colours gave it a fresh, modern look without taking away the details that made it so unique.

Kika's head was on her shoulder; she could feel her breath on her collarbone. She didn't mind how it tickled her skin, she wanted her warm air even closer.

"We're dating," Kika said, her cheek brushing against the fabric of Y/n's shirt.

Y/n made a mental note to wear more cotton shirts if Kika was going to lie her head like that from now on, the fabric she was wearing was rough, and she didn't want Kika's cheek to get irritated.

"Yes," Y/n agreed, still looking out the window, seeing children with their grandmas and stray cats disappearing between the cracks of the buildings. "We are."

"I wanted to date you for a long time," Kika said, almost in a whisper, but Y/n could feel the way her lips were tugging into a smile.

"Yeah? Since when?" Y/n asked. "Tell me and then I'll tell you when I realised I liked you."

"I realised I liked you when I saw you arguing with Alexia once. I think it was my fourth or fifth time training with everybody," Kika said.

"Oh come on," Y/n said. "Really? Me fighting with Alexia? That's when you thought, 'Oh, I would really like to date this girl?'"

Kika laughed and pecked Y/n on the lips, which left Y/n a little bit dazed.

"Yes," Kika said. "Well, I was new and I didn't know much about the team, but I knew who Alexia was. I had never got a chance to talk to her before, and I thought she was going to be this dominant presence at training. I thought everybody respected her, but then I saw you rolling your eyes at something she said–"

"Oh, so you think disrespect is hot?"

Kika placed one finger on Y/n's lips, shutting her up. "Shh, let me finish, yeah?"

Y/n didn't like how she felt her whole body get warm, but she nodded to Kika, and she continued.

"And I saw that you weren't just Alexia's golden girl… I had always heard what people say about you and Alexia in the media–about how she protected you inside training and stuff like that, that you had special treatment. But that day, I noticed that if Alexia wanted to give you special treatment, you wouldn't accept it."

"For some reason, I thought that was hot," she continued. "That you didn't let yourself be someone else? I think? People wanted you to be the Princess of Barcelona, but you just continued to be yourself and to talk back when you thought it was necessary. That made me fall for you."

"Oh," Y/n said.

"Yes," Kika said. "That and seeing you walk out after training all sweaty–I gotta say that flipped something in my brain that I haven't been able to turn off since."

Y/n rolled her eyes playfully at Kika. "Now you're being ridiculous."

Kika kissed her cheek. "You aren't the only romantic one."

"Saying that you fell for me when you saw me in a training bra all sweaty isn't romantic," Y/n said.

"For me," Kika cupped her jaw and brought her in for a kiss, whispering against her lips, "it's a proper love confession. You wouldn't know it–it's very Portuguese."

"Yeah?" Y/n smirked, kissing Kika back, but the kiss was broken quickly because they were still in a very public location.

"Now it's your turn," Kika said, taking her fingers in her hand and playing with the rings she was wearing. "When did you realise my beautiful personality was so captivating that you wanted to date me?"

"I realised I liked you when you said you liked rodents," Y/n said cheekily.

"What?" Kika asked, completely confused. "I've never said that."

"Yes, you did," Y/n chuckled. "Back when you first moved in and Alexia invited you to come have dinner with us, when I told you about Cerdito."

"Oh," Kika's face fell. "Your guinea pig… the one that died."

"The one that was assassinated," Y/n corrected. "By Alexia."

"She's a murderer," Kika nodded, kissing Y/n's knuckles, one by one. "Haven't you thought about getting another one?"

"I have," Y/n said. "Now that I'm moving out–"

"What?!" Kika interrupted, clearly confused.

"Oh! I haven't told you yet!" Y/n said happily. "Well, one of the things that happened at camp was that I had a fight with Alexia–"

"As usual," Kika murmured under her breath.

"And then we made amends, but I realised I needed my own space," Y/n said. "I'll be moving out at the end of this season. I want to have everything ready before the next international break."

"You'll have a lot of work to do," Kika said. "Moving is so annoying. It was a pain in the ass moving from Lisbon to Barcelona–a lot of packing to do."

"Yeah, I figured it would be hard," Y/n said. "I'll have to do a lot of shopping too. I have nothing besides the things in my room."

"We can go shopping together," Kika said. "I have a list of everything I bought when I moved in. I'll give it to you."

"Thanks," Y/n smiled. "My first stop will be at the pet shop, though."

"Are you buying a guinea pig before you even have a freezer?"

"Yes," Y/n said. "It's all about necessities."

They continued to talk as the tram neared Y/n's stop by her hotel.

Y/n didn't like how her lungs felt like they were contracting, like someone was slowly squeezing all the air out of them.

Her hand was on Kika's thigh, fingers tracing absent patterns on the fabric of her pants. Kika was looking out the window now, seeing the view, a nostalgic look in her eyes–one that Y/n wanted to find out more about.

She wanted to hear more about Kika, wanted to ask about her childhood, about her friends, family, her time at Benfica–she wanted to stay here in Lisbon with Kika.

Stay in this beautiful, historical, warm city that made the best pastéis de belém and well, the best girlfriends and footballers too.

"I'll have to hop off soon," Y/n said, her voice quieter than she intended.

"Yes," Kika said, turning back to look at her. "Or else you'll lose the flight."

"I think I want to lose the flight."

"I think the federation will give you the biggest earful of your life," Kika said, but her smile was soft.

"You're right," Y/n laid her head on Kika's shoulder, breathing in the scent of her shampoo and the sunscreen she was wearing.. "I have never minded earfuls, though."

Kika chuckled.

"I'm not usually bossy," Kika began, "and I know you aren't keen to listen to others, but I really think you should be a good and professional footballer and go catch that flight with your team."

"My team doesn't have you, though," Y/n said, the words coming out more petulant than she had intended them to.

"When the club season starts again in exactly two weeks," Kika said, her fingers finding Y/n's and intertwining them, "I'll be back on your team."

"I guess you're right," Y/n mumbled against her shoulder.

"Your last stop is coming, Promessa." Kika kissed the top of her head, lips staying there longer than necessary. Maybe Y/n wasn't the one who had a hard time at goodbyes.

"Promesa? New Portuguese word unlocked," Y/n said, lifting her head to smile at Kika. "What does that mean?"

"It means promise," Kika said casually.

"...and?" Y/n asked, confused about why she was being called that, even though it sounded beautiful coming out of Kika's lips.

"And...nothing," Kika said, kissing her forehead as she got up on the tram and tugged Y/n to do so. "It's what they called you here, the Portuguese media."

Y/n tilted her head as she walked through the aisle of the tram, her hand still firmly in Kika's. "Portuguese media called me Promessa?"

"Sim," Kika said, "A promise to futebol, because you've been playing with the seniors since you were very young. I've always wanted to call you that, but I didn't know if you would like it."

Y/n thought for a second, warmth spreading through her chest. "I think I would like whatever you would call me."

"That's good to know, Promessa," Kika said, the nickname rolling off her tongue like she was used to calling her that.

She pressed a button on the wall of the tram, and it slowly started losing speed.

"This is your stop," Kika said, her voice sounding a bit reluctant now, just like Y/n 's.

"Just go straight into this street and you'll find your hotel. If I didn't have to go back to mine, I would walk with you."

"Well," Y/n pecked Kika's lips, trying to memorise the feeling since she was going to stay a few days without touching them. "I'll go then."

"We'll see each other in two weeks. It's your birthday–don't think I forgot."

Y/n rolled her eyes, but she wasn't really annoyed. "I hate my birthday."

"Something about that doesn't surprise me," Kika said, watching as she stepped out of the tram, her eyes following Y/n's every movement. "I'll make it good this year, though, I promise."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

Y/n waved as the tram followed its route, Kika's face pressed against the window as she blew kisses, her smile bright even through the glass.

Y/n was a lovesick idiot, but right now it didn't annoy her. Right now, standing on a Lisbon street corner with the taste of Kika's lips still on hers and the promise of seeing her again in a week, being a lovesick idiot felt pretty damn good.

Y/n found the hotel easily.

The moment she stepped inside, Kika texted:

"Did you get lost?" Y/n rolled her eyes and typed back. "No, I'm here."

It looked a bit dry, though, so she added a <3 At the end.

She suddenly felt this urge to use the word girlfriend, so she did.

"Thanks, girlfriend."

Kika replied instantly, "Welcome, namorada ;)"

Y/n moved through the hotel lounge, watching the same people who had been working there since earlier that day, when she first left to play the game against Portugal.

She stepped into the elevator, her eyes going straight to the mirror, focusing on her reflection. Trying to forget she was in a cramped space that could stop working at any given time.

She looked at herself, taking in her eyes, her hair, her lips and her cheeks. She realised she couldn't see her own body anymore without thinking about Kika.

About how Kika had kissed her lips, how she had touched her hand, how she had laid her head on her shoulder, how there was still a faint smell of Kika's shampoo on her shirt.

Kika was all over her, and Y/n couldn't unsee it. She wondered if others could see it.

The elevator made that irritating noise Y/n hated so much, and when the door opened, Y/n quickly walked right past it and went straight to her hotel room.

Jana was already there, halfway done with her luggage for the flight they had to take in less than two hours. She turned around when Y/n appeared; her face relaxed instantly as soon as she saw Y/n.

"Oh, thank god you're back," she said dramatically, throwing herself onto the mattress. "I was so scared that I would actually have to call the police and–

Jana turned to look at Y/n (really look) and then she sat back on the bed, her mouth slightly open, her elbows holding her body's weight.

"Okay, I can see it in your face that something happened!" Jana got up from the bed, looking at Y/n closely, her nose almost touching as Y/n pushed her face away grumpily.

"Get off," she grumbled.

"Dios mío!" Jana said, and as if Y/n were in her own nightmare, Jana let out the highest-pitched scream ever known to humankind. "You two kissed! Right?! Oh god!"

"Ay!" Y/n said, rubbing her ears and looking at Jana angrily. "Why the fuck are you screaming like this?"

Y/n wasn't the only one ready to complain about Jana's scream.

Soon after, Vicky and Alexia showed up, flinging their bedroom door open as if there was a fire inside.

"Who screamed!?" Alexia asked, exasperated, looking around the room as if searching for danger, then looking at Jana and finally landing her eyes on Y/n.

Her posture completely changed. If Y/n wasn't so stupidly in love, she would have noticed Alexia was smirking.

"OH, hello, lovergirl," Alexia said, leaning against the door while crossing her arms.

Y/n instantly turned to Jana. "You told her I was going to see Kika? I told you to lie!"

"No! It wasn't me!" Jana shook her head vehemently. "I swear, I didn't even talk to anyone, I pretended I had tonsillitis so I wouldn't have to talk."

"It was me, actually", Vicky chimed in, chin up, like a petulant younger sister.

Y/n looked at her, holding the bridge of her nose.

"Why?" Y/n questioned. "And how did you even know about it? I didn't tell you I was planning to talk to Kika after the game."

"I just heard it," Vicky shrugged. "Sometimes you and the other girls all talk as if I'm not there. You should change that habit, you know…I'm everywhere."

And with that, Vicky just left, as if she hadn't just been acting mysterious seconds before. Alexia was looking at Vicky confused, as if wanting to ask more about the whole I'm everywhere thing, but then her attention was back on Y/n.

Her smile was back on her face. "So…?"

"So what?" Y/n asked casually, as if nothing had happened. She took her luggage from beside her bed and began folding her clothes and packing her items.

"What happened?" Alexia asked impatiently.

Y/n's back was facing Alexia, but she could see the way la reina was rolling her eyes.

"Not much," Y/n shrugged, picking up some of her training jerseys that she had left in the hotel's wardrobe. "How was the bus ride back to the hotel?"

Alexia completely ignored Y/n.

"So you were out for–" Alexia looked at her watch, "six hours with Kika and nothing happened?"

"Yep," Y/n agreed. "We just walked around the city. Lisbon is a very historical city, you know."

"Oh, I bet you were very curious about Lisbon's historical site," Jana murmured, but shut right up when Y/n gave her a cold look.

Alexia was quiet, although she kept looking at Y/n with that well-known look on her face. The one Y/n hated because it made her feel seen, exposed, as if her feelings were stamped on her face.

Y/n continued to pack, as if Alexia's presence wasn't filling the entire room, as if she had more important things to do, which in reality, was partially true.

She continued to put all of her belongings in the suitcase until there was nothing left of hers in the hotel room.

And Alexia was still there, the smirk holding thigh to her lips.

Y/n was growing irritated.

"Alexia?" Y/n said slowly after a few minutes had passed.

"Sí? Mi pequeña?" Alexia said sweetly, way too sweetly. [Yes, little one?]

Y/n tried to ignore, just for a moment, how long it had been since Alexia last used that nickname.

"What did we talk about regarding boundaries and not intruding into my life?"

It was like Alexia had received a cold shower. Her demeanour changed, and her eyebrows furrowed in that typical way when she was annoyed, looking a bit too much like Y/n.

"Fine," she said after a few seconds of holding eye contact. "Perdón," she mumbled as she left the room, closing the door behind her. [sorry]

The door wasn't soundproof, and Y/n could hear Alexia mumbling things under her breath, but she didn't care about that.

She had a flight to catch soon, and her suitcase still wasn't closing properly.

"Can you–" Y/n was struggling, trying to close her suitcase without letting half her clothes spill out. "Can you sit on top of it? Please?" she asked, looking at Jana.

Jana agreed, and soon after, Y/n's suitcase was closed and ready to go.

She was still sitting on top of her suitcase, looking at Y/n with arms crossed.

"So…?" Jana said, waving her hand. "Tell me? Por favor?" [please]

"Huh?" Y/n said from the bathroom, grabbing her toothbrush and other hygiene products and putting them in her bag. "About what?"

"Are you dumb or just pretending to be?" Jana said exasperatedly. "Tell me everything that happened!"

Y/n walked to her bed and started making it, trying to leave the room at least somewhat organised.

"We kissed," Y/n said bluntly without looking at Jana, feeling her cheeks get warmer already.

"Oh my god!" Jana said, the happiness in her voice crystal clear. "Where? In the locker room?"

"Yes," Y/n said, getting the fitted sheet into the right position on the mattress.

Jana waited, as if Y/n was going to give more details without being asked.

"...Well, how was it!?" Jana asked. "Can you please drop this whole mysterious act and talk to your best friend about how you just kissed the girl you've been pining over for an embarrassingly long number of months?"

The sheet just wouldn't fit on the mattress right. Y/n wondered if she was doing it correctly, trying to get the corners to fit.

"We got stuck in the locker room. The door just wouldn't open." Y/n explained, her face scrunched when her pinky finger got stuck between the mattress and the wooden bed frame.

"Ohh," Jana said slowly, in an understanding tone. She got up from her bed and went to Y/n's side, lifting part of the mattress so Y/n could finally free her pinky finger and fit the sheets on. "And you're claustrophobic."

"Sí," Y/n said, now moving to the pillows, fluffing them before putting them in position. "I had an anxiety attack."

"Was it bad?" Jana asked, the enthusiasm on her face turning to something more empathetic, rather than curious. "Like the one you got when you were younger?"

"It was worse, I think. I thought I was gonna die," Y/n said. "Worst feeling of my life."

"Well, okay," Jana said as she took her luggage and bag. "We just lost the romantic atmosphere we were going for, but it's okay–"

"Then I asked if I could kiss her," Y/n said, and this time, Jana didn't have to wait or pry for more details; the word stumbled out of Y/n, as if, deep down, she wanted to share it with someone.

"She said yes, and then we kissed some more, and now we're dating. "Y/n heard a loud crash from the other side of the room and realised Jana had dropped the luggage she was carrying.

"You are what?" Jana asked in a very calm, very dangerous voice.

Y/n gulped, looking around, as if Jana's scary look wasn't directed at her. "Um, dating? I mean, Kika and I….we are dating."

"Dating?" Jana repeated.

Y/n nodded. "Sí, novias."

"Novias?"

"Okay, now you're the one being dumb," Y/n rolled her eyes. "Do you want the translation to more languages too, or…"

"Were you seriously not going to tell me this?" Jana asked.

"I just did!"

"Yeah!" Jana opened her arms and gestured around the room. "After you reorganised the entire hotel room like a crazy person! And stop it–"

Y/n didn't realise she was also fluffing Jana's pillow until Jana took it from her and placed it on the bed.

She looked around and saw that Jana was right about reorganising the room. She had cleaned the whole room, put everything in order–it was like she and Jana had never been there.

Y/n shrugged. "I stress clean sometimes."

"You are impossible," Jana rolled her eyes. "What's next? You're going to tell me you're moving away?"

"Well, about that–"

Jana froze, mouth agape. Then, she took a deep breath, as if trying to recoup herself.

"Being your friend is very hard," Jana said, a soft expression on her face. "I wouldn't change it, though, but you are going to spend the entire flight updating me on your life, got it?"

Y/n knew she had nowhere to hide. She grabbed her bag and suitcase and walked out the door as Jana followed her, leaving the hotel room behind.

"Okay, I'll tell you everything."

And she did.

The talk on the aeroplane wasn't as bad as Y/n thought it would be. Almost everybody was sleeping while listening to music on their headphones, so Y/n talked freely with Jana the whole flight to Madrid.

They were back at La Ciudad del Fútbol in no time. They were going to have a home game against Germany in three days, and that would be the last match of the international break. After that, they would all have a one-week vacation.

The vacation was already booked by Alexia. She had invited everybody from Barcelona and a few close friends from the Spain team, like Laia and Leila.

That meant Y/n would have to pretend not to be in a relationship with Kika for a whole week while they were vacationing in Ibiza in front of a lot of people.

Y/n wasn't sure if she would be able to do it. She wasn't sure at all.

a/n: We are going to Ibiza guys! <3

feel free to share any ideas of what you guys want to happen in Ibiza, I have two scenes ready. One where Kika's jealous, and another one where Kika finds out Y/n used to have a crush on Leila.

I have a lot of uni work, so I won't write for a while! <3

Tag list: @footy-lover264 , @fortifyde, @naomigirmadefender , @neutraiise , @milkveed, @browercc , @ace-of-baked , @ikzzzya , @sky-the-trans-guy00 , @knight-16 , @wosohk04 , @evaissleepy13 , @papimapileon , @unpoppablebubbles @whiskeredshrimp-blog @goodloe-e @liloandstitchstan @s0ciety-cxv @dfwspky @karmajn @awosofavs @wosofavfanfics

#woso x reader #woso fanfic #kika nazareth x yn #kika nazareth x reader #kika nazareth #stuck with you

331 notes · View notes

m4mmonthebest · 2 days ago

Note

oooo i need a fic where the reader is slobbering on Chance’s dick and he’s a moaning mess. ALSO MUTUAL MASTURBATION WITH CHANCE OMG

All very valid and spicy options.

You'd be playing with Chance, a common occurrence by now, usually dealing with a lot of flirting during your playtime. You decide to be very bold when he says if you roll the dice over 18 you can do anything you want.

You roll a nat 20. You aren't sure if that was your luck or if Chance had something to do with it. Either way he seemed happy enough, congratulating you with a slight blush coating his face.

"Anything I want?" You ask.

"Anything you want! You roll the dice, all is fair game..."

"I want to blow you."

He stays in the same spot for one minute. You begin to worry until he gives you the biggest grin, glasses shining with determination.

"W-well! Who am I to deny your well earned action! .... Uh.... Guess I should... T-take my pants off haha..."

He tries to look as if he isn't being affected. After all he was the one that brought the whole thing up. He is usually very bold with his advances, but one thing is saying stuff and another thing is committing to it.

He slides his pants off rather clumsily. You thought he should've been wearing underwear although thinking about it you don't see the reason why.

You kneel in front of him, hands resting over his big thighs. Seems like all the flirting up to this point was working, as he is already half hard.

"Excited?" You say with a sultry voice.

"Yes!!! Um- I mean- yes. Yes I am."

You begin to tease his inner thighs, licking and biting softly into the sensitive skin. He can't help but to give small grunts. You go further up and up leaving a trail of kisses which just makes him get increasingly more worked up.

You're now face to face with his dick. Not long but rather chubby, although you know with your drive it will get a bit longer. You lick a stripe down his cock and he whimpers, though he quickly covers his mouth.

Masterful licks make his semi hard dick into a full erect one. It's glistening with your saliva, which now clumps at your hand as you stroke him slowly. You put the tip to your mouth and suck and lick. You can feel his muscles tense under your hand resting on his thigh. He lets out small moans, cute ones which just make you want to see him break even more.

You pick up the pace, your head bobbing into the length as your hand massages his balls. He becomes increasingly louder, calling out your name in the process, he begins to pant, reminding you of an excited puppy.

"Hm! Ah-ngh...."

Looking into his eyes you can see his dilated pupils looking straight at you, his face is entirely red, and covered in sweat. He places his hand on top of your hair, not daring to pull on it.

You command him to keep his hands to his sides, which he quickly does apologizing.

You take him deeper and deeper, each time eliciting deeper and whinier moans. He bucks his hips on accident and the look you gave him made him shiver.

"S-sorry... I'm sorry..."

You decide to let it go this instance, but you are determined to overstimulate him now. As a little punishment of course.

You begin to concentrate on the head of his cock, which makes him twitch and jump on his seat, his hands forming fists on each side of his thighs.

"Ah-! P-please-That's-too much!!"

You keep abusing his head, stroking the rest of his cock faster and faster. You can feel it pulsating, ready to burst at any moment, you are also able to hear it, as his moans are louder than ever.

"I-I'm gonna c-"

You stop every single movement.

He looks like a kicked puppy, which is cute to you.

"Beg me to let you cum." You begin to stroke him slowly, painfully so.

"P-please..."

"Please what?"

"Please let me cum! I'll be good!! P-please? Please! I won't m-make ah! Make you angry ah! Again!"

You can see tears forming on his eyes as he bites his lip.

You decide to spare him, for now, and begin to work your magic again. It's not difficult to bring him to the brink again, quite easy actually.

He cums inside your mouth, which you don't swallow as you have a better idea. You caress his face and kiss him deeply, your tongue playing with his, sharing his own seed with it. He moans deeply into the kiss, liking the degrading bit of it all.

"Good boy Chance. Good boy."

(Not sure if I will be making the other one you asked, but I'll think about it! Please enjoy)

#date everything nsft #date everything #date everything smut #date everything x reader #date everything game #date everything suggestive #date everything chance #chance date everything

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pagesfromthevoid · 19 hours ago

Text

I Think He Knows | j.t.

Joaquin Torres x Avenger!reader

There’s always a lingering question between them in these moments. Will they cross that line finally? Who’s going to be the one who does it? But neither of them ever do. Sometimes it’s an interruption, sometimes it’s one of them backing down.

Word Count: 8.6k

Warnings: kidnapping, angst, pwp, Joaquin has a pacemaker (his heart literally had to be restarted in BNW, you cannot tell me he doesn’t??), SMUUUUUUT (p in v, oral (f receiving), fingering, cockwarming if you squint).

Author's Note: This came to me in a dream. I don't have much else to say. Also, I'm so sorry if the Spanish in this is...bad. I tried my best. Let me know how to improve it!! Reader's codename is Glimpse.

Talk to Me! | Coffee?

2024

“So…,”

She looks up from adjusting her gear, the roar of the plane’s engines almost drowning him out.

“What’s it like, y’know, being an OG Avenger?” He asks, leaning against the hull of the plane.

Bucky makes a disgruntled sound beside her while she gives Joaquín a slow, crooked grin and a raised brow –the kind of look that says she’s already figured him out and isn’t sure if she’s impressed or just amused.

“Oh, it’s great,” she says, and the look Bucky gives her is one of warning as he stands up. Then she’s leaning forward some, and clasping her hands together in a snarky little clap. “Everyone I love is either dead or in hiding. My closest friend fucked off to the forties with his ex-girlfriend’s aunt. And, oh, the general public doesn’t particularly like me because I’m the only one in the public eye still, so I’m easy to blame.”

Joaquín stares at her for a moment, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. “Oh.”

“It’s great,” she repeats, giving him a painfully fake smile. “Love it.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t –,”

“Give me a ‘chute,” Bucky orders, interrupting the stammering of the officer.

Joaquín shakes his head. “Oh, no. We’re too low for that –,”

But the soldier doesn’t let Joaquín finish his sentence before he’s tearing off his sleeve and throwing himself out of the plane. Joaquín looks horrified for a moment before he turns to her, frowning deeply.

“Do you…can you jump out of a plane without dying?”

“You wanna find out?”

“I really don’t,” he practically begs.

“Too late, flyboy.” And she’s grinning as she falls backwards out of the plane with a salute.

Joaquín stares down as she falls, bracing for her impact, but it never comes. Actually, she’s nowhere to be seen as he pulls back into the plane and looks up with a hard exhale.

“Dios mío,” he breathes out. “I might be in love.”

2027

For the last week, Sam has been complaining about two things: the New Avengers and her absolute refusal to get involved in the issue. She insists it's because she’s not going to choose a side; she’s known both him and Bucky long enough to be friends with them both. He insists she’s a liar and just likes watching the two of them argue.

She doesn’t deny this.

However, she’s not really sure why Sam is so concerned with whether or not she chooses a side. She literally lives in D.C. and works with him and Joaquín on a regular basis. Less than six months ago, she helped stop Ross and Stern and prior to that, she ran missions with both him and Joaquín overseas.

To be fair, there’s a two part explanation for why she’s stuck around D.C. as long as she has. One, because prior to this New Avengers nonsense, she fully intended to join the team. However, the second reason is much more selfish –though, she’d argue that she deserves to be a little selfish after the hell that has been her life.

And that selfish reason comes down to Sam’s very attractive, very confident partner.

When they met three years ago, she didn’t think much of Joaquín Torres. A little jumpy, way too hyper –but he meant well. Even then, she thought he was cute. And he helped tremendously with the Flag Smasher situation –proved he wasn’t just some fanboy with a hero complex (though he might still be a fanboy, deep down). But as she continued to work with them after Sam officially took up the mantle of Captain America, Joaquín just kept growing on her.

When she settled into her life in D.C., it was Joaquín that became her closest friend in the capital. He helped find her an apartment that wasn’t the worst, and had given her a list of the best places to eat around the area. Then insisted he take her whenever they got down time. He calls it Team Bonding.

She calls it Not Dating.

“What’s the plan for dinner today, Glimpse?” He asks as she pops into their base of operations. He’s not looking at her when she appears, though he never does anymore. The signature whoosh sound that follows her appearance gives her away, now that he’s trained to hear it.

“I was thinking that ramen place in Petworth?” She suggests, plopping down on the couch and looking at her phone. “It’s the next on the list, but your list seems to keep getting longer.”

It’s a passive observation; the list he gave her when she first settled in had maybe thirty restaurants and they’d hit about half of them. However, every time she opens the Google sheet he made, somehow there’s always two or three more that weren’t there before.

He turns around in his chair, leaning back as he looks her over. Feeling his eyes on her, she glances up from her phone with a soft smirk.

“Gotta find ways for you to keep me around, cariño,” he grins.

Her eyes are glued to her phone, though she’s not actually looking at anything. Every single time he says something affectionate or flirty in Spanish, her brain sort of short circuits. She took Spanish in high school, but it never really stuck. There’s a handful of phrases she knows, and she’s learned some from working with Joaquín –anything she’s learned from him is either flirty or inappropriate, however.

“Oh yes,” she chuckles in response, kicking her feet up on the couch. “Because I only keep you around for your food recs.”

“Food recs, good looks, witty banter…,”

“You’re just the whole package, aren’t you, Torres?”

“Your words, not mine,” he points out, pushing himself out of his chair.

Sitting beside her, he lifts her legs to rest on his lap, one hand lingering just above her knee. They share a look –a knowing one, like they both are aware that they’re playing with fire. It’s always like this when they’re close; hyper aware of how it feels to touch one another in a way that’s nothing short of unprofessional. Sometimes it’s a hand on her knee when they’re seated together. Sometimes it’s her fingers brushing the nape of his neck when he’s at his computer.

But they never make it past the touching.

“I feel like I’m interruptin’ something in here,” Sam announces as he walks into the room.

Sam is aware of how she feels, and while he doesn’t necessarily tease her about it –he’s annoying about it.

While she doesn’t jerk away from Joaquín, she does move her legs away from his touch. His fingers drag across the fabric of her jeans as she pulls away, like he refuses to give up that closeness. But she’s standing up and pocketing her phone.

“We’re going to that ramen place,” she offers, and Joaquín is throwing his head back against the couch. “You in?”

“No go,” he responds, shaking his head. “We’ve got some intel we need to review –remember what happened last month?”

“Yeah, Bob,” she snickers, recalling the picture of the New Avengers in the papers. “Isn’t he just…a guy? I thought Bucky had that handled?”

“Not Bob,” Sam corrects, rolling his eyes. “Dude isn’t just a guy either. Not that point though –the other thing that happened last month.”

“Krane?” Joaquín asks, frowning deeply, standing now.

She groans, rubbing the hell of her palm into her eye. “Fucking Krane.”

Dr. Lenora Krane –the reason she has powers and the reason Nick Fury brought her on board in 2015 after just barely being seventeen. While the New Avengers were off handling Bob, Valentina Allegra de Fontaine was bribing the Senate to pardon the doctor in order to put her to work for the U.S. government on a military base in California. However, that lasted as long as anyone could have predicted: last month, the reformed doctor went off the grid and no one has been able to find her since.

Until today, apparently.

Joaquín shifts into work mode with ease, sliding back into his chair and opening the files Sam has sent over. She sits on the arm of the chair, reading over the files as they pop up. Grainy photos and half-assed security feeds show her in Manhattan shortly after the Bob incident, but she seems to be making her way down to D.C. again.

Even in bad photos, seeing the woman who made her life hell for most of her teen years makes the hero’s skin bristle.

Taken from the children’s home she had grown up, under the guise of being a foster parent, Krane made it seem like her life was going to be great. But then the experiments started and only ended when Maria Hill infiltrated the lab she was kept in. Hill took her under her wing, kept her out of the system, then gave her a place amongst Earth’s mightiest heroes.

The rest is history –though it seems like it might be repeating itself.

“What’s her deal?” Joaquín asks, looking up at her now as he leans back in his chair. “You think she’s here for you?”

His arm wraps around her from behind, linking his thumb through a belt loop since she’s using his arm rest as a seat. It’s comforting, though, whether he means for it to be or not.

If Sam notices, he doesn’t say anything.

“I mean, I am the reason that she lost all her work and went to jail for nearly ten years,” she points out, crossing her arms over her chest as she glances down at him. The look on Joaquín’s face is genuine concern, and it makes her heart ache. “She’s had a long time to plot her revenge against me.”

“Which means you are in danger,” Sam concludes, looking down at her with deep concern. “I’ve already talked to Barnes, you’re going to stay with him and his team of assholes. Differences or not, that Tower is the safest place –,”

“I am not going into hiding,” she counters, shooting up from the chair. Joaquín’s fingers are still caught in her belt loop and she yanks him out of his seat as she jumps up. “Joaquín –,”

“Sorry, shit,” he complains, letting her go finally and shaking out his hand. “She’s right though, Sam. We can’t just send her away, she’s an Avenger.”

“More importantly, I don’t want to uproot my shit and go hang out with Bucky. His team is weird. And Walker is there.”

“I thought you didn’t have a preference?” Sam argues, brow raised as he looks between her and Joaquín.

“You know damn well I’d rather be here than there,” she snaps back, pointing at him. “I am more than capable of handling myself, Sam. You know that.”

For a moment, there’s a tense silence in the room. There’s no reason to pick a real fight over this, but she doesn’t like being made to feel small when she’s been doing this since 2015; it’s not her first fight and it most certainly won’t be her last.

But finally, Sam nods in agreement. “You’re right. I can’t bench you –but I can at least make sure you’re not alone. One of us will stay with you.”

She’s about to argue that she doesn’t need a babysitter, but Joaquín is throwing his hand in the air.

“I volunteer as tribute!”

Sam and her both look at him like he’s lost his damn mind. Joaquín has enough self-awareness to look sheepish as he drops his hand and clears his throat. Then he tries to shrug nonchalantly.

“I mean –I can stay with her. Not a big deal.”

Covering her face with her hand, she shakes her head. There’s definitely a blush burning her cheeks, and his excitement doesn’t help the feelings that simmer just below the surface.

“Smooth, kid,” Sam sighs, and she can just hear the eye roll in his voice. “I’ll get a notice sent back to New York –S.A.B.E.R. is working on pinpointing her next location. Until then, you two go grab whatever you need from Torres’s place. Joaquín, when you get to her apartment, set up security protocols.”

“Heard,” he replies, sitting back down to transfer whatever data he may need to his laptop. Sam has disappeared back into his office, already on the phone. Then he grins up at her. “I got you, hermosa.”

Without thinking about it, she lays her hand on his shoulder gently. Their eyes meet, and she squeezes. “I don’t doubt that, flyboy.”

And she doesn’t. Not for a second.

It’s her that interrupts the moment this time, though, pulling away with a wave of her hand. “Okay –I used my powers to get here, so we can do that or you can drive.”

“Oh fuck no,” he immediately says, pushing his chair away from his desk to gather his cables. “Last time you quantum jumped us, I threw up.”

“It’s not quantum jumping,” she reminds him, rolling her eyes. “It’s teleporting. And you only threw up because you weren’t ready.”

“Nope. I’m driving.”

“But I’m faster.”

For a second, he stands up and she thinks he’s going to counter her again. Instead, he hands her a rolled up set of cables, and she takes them without question. With a sudden yank though, he’s pulling her closer and resting his free hand on her hip. Her hand immediately hits his chest as a way to keep herself upright, but the sudden closeness makes her heart pound in her fingertips –or maybe that’s his heartbeat.

“Faster isn’t always better,” he murmurs, leaning down into her space.

She’s about to respond –something wildly inappropriate, probably, but she’s not 100% sure because all thoughts have scattered the moment he pulled her in –when Sam walks back through the doors. With that distinctive whoosh, she’s on the other side of the room, cables in hand and for once, a blush burning her cheeks.

Joaquín is trying to hold back a smug grin.

Sam is unimpressed by them both.

-><--><--><--><--><--><--><--><--><--><-

“I always forget how tiny your place is,” Joaquín comments as he drops his bag on her coffee table.

If she rolls her eyes any harder, she’s certain they’ll get stuck that way. Setting their dinner on the counter –burgers, which she’s bitter about because she really wanted ramen –she takes out their respective meals.

“I’m gonna go change, feel free to get comfortable.”

Joaquín is looking around her apartment as if he hasn’t been there before, though she can feel his eyes as she walks into her bedroom. When she comes back out –an old band t-shirt and sleep shorts replacing her jeans and top –he’s looking over the photos she’s hung up on the wall. She grins and taps his shoulder as she passes by, returning to the kitchen to take out plates for them.

When he seems to have gotten over his surprise, he’s behind her with a hand on her lower back. The touch is warm, and secure, and she doesn’t flinch away from it. With no real threat of interruptions –no one to walk in on them or alarms to go off –the only thing standing between them is…well, them.

“The couch is a pull out, so you should be relatively comfortable,” she explains, glancing up at him over her shoulder.

He’s reaching over and stealing a fry, hand still pressed against her back. The whole thing feels a little more domestic than she’s used to, but she’s not going to be the one that pulls away this time. Not as she turns around, and his hand is pulled around to rest on her hip again.

Joaquín looks down at her, eyes searching, but not in a way that demands answers. It’s quieter than that –curious, cautious, like he’s waiting to see if she’ll bolt.

She doesn’t.

“Didn’t think you’d hover this much when you volunteered to babysit,” she teases, glancing at him as she grabs another fry, tone light but not pushing him away.

“If it’s not welcome, I can leave you be,” he replies, his voice low, steady. His hand is still on her hip though, anchoring her.

She doesn’t move. Doesn’t joke it off.

“It’s welcome,” she says instead.

He studies her for a beat longer, something unreadable flickering behind his eyes. But his face breaks out into that boyish grin she thrives on seeing. “Okay,” he says, quieter now. “Good.”

But still, neither of them moves to close the space. The silence hums in the air, in the stillness, in the way his fingers stay at her hip like he doesn’t want to let go. Like he’s waiting for her to make the move.

She doesn’t know why he never does –not when he’s always the one who flirts first, who pushes the edge of that line just enough to make her wonder. And now, with nothing stopping them, it’s somehow harder. Closer. Sharper.

It’s him who pulls away this time, moving through her kitchen with ease as he opens her fridge and pulls out a beer. For a moment, she looks to whatever divine powers might be out there and silently wonders why the hell they keep dancing around this –and why the hell she can’t just man up and do it herself.

Nothing answers, of course.

“So what do you usually do when you’re home, all alone?” He asks as he takes what’s left of his food into the living room and drops onto the couch; he’d eaten half his burger on the way over. “Besides think about me, of course,” he adds for good measure, winking at her.

One more eye roll, then she’s joining him on the couch, sitting with her legs crossed under her. Her knee is brushing his thigh and he makes no move to get away. “Honestly, between watching trashy T.V. or reading trashy romance novels, I’m not the most exciting of people.”

Joaquín scoffs, shaking his head. “I don’t believe that for a second. An OG Avenger and you don’t do anything exciting outside of work?”

“Being an Avenger isn’t half as exciting as you think it is,” she reminds him, giving him a pointed look. “You learned that the hard way, remember?”

Even if he pretends it didn’t happen, she can’t. Not when she sat in the hospital with Sam for days, worried that Joaquín wouldn’t wake up. She’s had a lot of close calls in her life, and she’s lost a lot of people in the last ten years. Watching him plummet into the ocean from the security feed of his mask scared the living hell out of her, and that’s most certainly contributed to their dialed up flirting recently.

She’s not afraid to admit she thought she almost lost him. Truth be told, she told him that in the hospital when he woke up. But then he told them both how he just wants to be like them –to be a hero, to do right by the world. How he wanted to get out of Miami and prove himself worthy –and she couldn’t scold him for being reckless. Couldn’t argue with him that she almost lost him. Because he knew that. He knew the risks he took, and it wasn’t her place to remind him.

“Yeah, yeah.” He brushes it off. Always does. “When Krane is handled, I’m gonna take you out and show you how to use your down time.”

She raises a brow, a smirk tugging at the corner of her lips. “Is this you finally asking me out, Torres?”

For just a beat, maybe two, they stare at each other. She’s crossed the line, finally. Pushed them to confront each other; to act on whatever these feelings they both clearly have are. Their food is long forgotten on the coffee table, and his hand is resting on her bare knee.

“What if I am?” He asks, leaning in closer.

“If you are, I’d say it took you long enough.”

A grin breaks out over his face, and Joaquín doesn’t waste any time as he wraps a hand around the back of her neck and pulls her into a kiss. He’s pulling her into his lap, and she’s on her knees straddling him. Other hand sliding up her shirt, he groans as his fingers skim below her breasts, realizing she isn’t wearing a bra.

“No sabes cuánto he deseado esto…,” he whispers against her lips, and even though she’s not sure what he’s saying, it sends a shiver down her spine. Taking advantage of his mouth being open, she licks into it, deepening the kiss as her hands trail down to the hem of his shirt.

Just as she manages to pull his shirt over his head, glass shatters. They yank back from one another, looking at the broken window. It’s a split second –panic, a flash bang rolling into her living room. Joaquín is covering her with his body, just as a whoosh surrounds them. She’s not positive where she’s sent them, but they land with a thud against gravel and roll off one another with a groan.

From the rooftop of the neighboring apartment building, there’s what’s supposed to be a disorienting bang and a flash of light. Her apartment lights up, and she sits up on her knees as they both watch smoke pour out of the broken window. Joaquín kneels beside her, feeling on the brink of throwing up from the sudden teleportation. He reaches out to touch her shoulder though, making sure she’s okay.

“Fucking Krane,” she hisses, standing up. He watches her from the corner of his eye before looking back at the apartment. The D.C. air is frigid, and police sirens are echoing in the night as they approach the apartment building. “We need to call Sam –,”

“Both our phones are in the apartment,” he interrupts, reaching out to take his shirt from her. There’s a heavy feeling in his chest; another screw up. Another mistake that could have been avoided, just like when he tried to take down that missile. Only this time, it’s not his life that’s in danger. It’s hers. “Mierda –this is my fault.”

“How is it your fault?”

“I didn’t set up the security protocols.” He slips on his shirt, then reaches out to take her hand. There’s no hesitation when he does this; just takes her hand and pulls her close as he leads them across the roof of the building. “We need to get outta here. If Krane is nearby, then you’re in danger and I don’t have…anything.”

The realization sinks in that the wings are at base, but his computer –his government issued computer, with thousands of gigs of data and files on it –has been compromised. If Krane gets a hold of that, and he can’t wipe it before she gets into it, then it’s more than just her that’s in trouble.

“Fuck,” he groans, running a hand through his hair. “My laptop –,”

“I can get it,” she quickly reassures but he’s putting his hands up. “Joaquín, that’s my whole job –in and out –,”

“The apartment is compromised,” he counters, shaking his head. “I can’t let you go back in there.”

“In and out,” she argues and he’s caught between not wanting to screw something else up and keeping her safe. He knows she’s good; she’s an OG. She’s been doing this long before he came along. But if something happens to her…

Except, she’s not giving him a chance to argue. She never does, because he’s not usually the one arguing against her. But that sound –that whoosh that has trained his brain to listen for –echoes in the air. And then she’s gone.

“Dammit,” he hisses, pounding his fist once against the wall.

He waits, watching from the edge of the building.

Seconds. That’s all it should take.

She’s done this a thousand times. Disappearing across rooftops, slipping into sealed rooms, snatching intel mid-conversation without a whisper. The police are surrounding her apartment complex, guns drawn. No one has come in or out of the building since she entered, which is…bad.

So why isn’t she back?

He paces on the rooftop, trying to calm his breathing. One beat. Two. Five. He stares at the spot where she vanished, willing the air to whisper with that tell-tale signal again. His ears are still ringing from the flashbang thrown through the window barely five minutes ago, and it sets his teeth on edge. But…

Nothing.

“She should be back,” he mutters aloud, to no one. “Why aren’t you back?”

His pulse hammers in his ears. She always makes it back. She’s cocky about it. Makes jokes. Teases him that she’s always going to be faster, always going to be a step ahead. Because she is, and he knows she is. In the three years he’s known her, he’s not once thought he’d ever be better than her. Because he’s too amazed by her –how could he want to be better when everything she does is so graceful and damn near perfect?

All he had to do was protect her, and somehow…he blew it.

Sam’s going to kill him.

-><--><--><--><--><--><--><--><--><--><-

The guilt has been a slow bleed. Every hour without a lead makes it worse.

Joaquín hasn’t slept. Not really. A few hours here and there, usually when Sam physically pries him away from the screen or the chair or the growing pile of coffee cups that he’s surviving on. But even when he does sleep, he dreams of her –trapped, bleeding, calling for him. Every time, he wakes up choking on guilt.

She’s been missing for seventy-six hours. Seventy-six hours since she vanished inside that apartment. Since she dove into danger to retrieve his laptop –his responsibility –because he hadn’t done his damn job in the first place. He was too distracted. Too busy being in love with her to remember that she’s not invincible.

Joaquín drags a hand through his curls, fingers catching as he stares at the rows of code on his screen.

“Come on, come on…,” he mutters, cycling through yet another security node.

He’s torn apart every digital trail Krane has ever left –fake aliases, ghosted emails, the occasional off-the-grid bio signature from a black market medical clinic. None of it points to where she’s keeping her. But Joaquín isn’t just looking for Krane anymore.

He’s looking for her. For the woman who scared the hell out of him by jumping out of that plane three years ago. Who teases him about his stupid restaurant spreadsheet; who kisses him like she’s just as wrecked as he is.

He almost had her. Finally. And now?

Now all he has is silence. And a red blinking cursor on a map overlay.

But then –,

Something pings.

It’s small. Barely a whisper in the code. But Joaquín freezes, eyes narrowing. He backtracks, isolates the data string, and enhances the feed. It’s a signal bounce –from his laptop. A handshake request that shouldn’t exist, buried beneath three layers of dummy networks. Krane must have booted it, just briefly. Just long enough to trigger the dormant emergency protocol he’d hardwired into the system during a long forgotten all-nighter.

He stares at the screen as coordinates materialize. They’re fuzzy. The GPS is spoofed, bouncing between old S.H.I.E.L.D. black sites, but there's a pattern to the chaos.

“She’s not hiding you,” he says under his breath, breath catching in his chest. “She’s parading you. Daring us to come.”

He should feel fear. Hesitation. He doesn’t.

He locks onto the most consistent coordinate. An abandoned logistics warehouse 40 miles outside Richmond. Nothing special. No heat signatures from satellites. But something about it hums wrong. Quiet in a way that feels intentional.

That’s where she is. He knows it. He feels it in his bones.

Sam’s voice breaks the moment. “Any progress?”

Joaquín turns slowly, eyes still lit by the screen. “Yeah. I think I found her.”

-><--><--><--><--><--><--><--><--><--><-

She’s strapped to a reinforced medical chair, wrists restrained in a way that numbs her fingers. Her powers are suppressed –some kind of electromagnetic field layered into the restraints, maybe nanotech. It doesn’t matter. The result is the same: she can’t phase. Can’t jump. Can’t fight.

It’s like trying to scream with no voice. Like being a kid again.

Krane stands over her, monologuing in that smug, academic cadence that always made her want to tear her own ears off. She’s pacing now, dragging her fingers along the edge of a steel tray holding tools that aren’t exactly designed for healing.

“…quantum stability, neural mapping, synaptic plasticity,” Krane is saying, like she’s checking off items on a list. “You’re a blueprint with legs, nothing more,” the scientist finally concludes, looking over the hero with the same sadistic smile she’s always had. “You think you’re going to save the world again. But you’re just a failed experiment clinging to a label.”

She doesn’t respond. Not because she’s too weak –though Krane’s been dosing her with something, and her limbs feel like sandbags –but because she’s saving her strength. Waiting. Waiting for the moment when the sedatives slip, when the field flickers, when Krane makes a mistake.

Because the doctor always does.

But if she’s being honest, that’s not the only reason she’s quiet. The real reason –the part that burns low in her chest, white-hot and ugly –is this: she let Krane take her.

She didn’t fight back. Not really.

She had a window. A second and a half, maybe two. Enough time to jump. Enough time to leave. But she didn’t. Because the second she started to move, Krane said Joaquín’s name. Said it so calmly, so casually, like she hadn’t been watching them through the drone in his laptop camera.

“You go for this computer and I send a kill switch to your flyboy’s pacemaker,” Krane said, having picked up the laptop. There’s a remote in her hand –small, round, blinking. “You know he has one now, right? After that nasty fall into the ocean? Poor thing –you know, we had to restart his heart.”

“We?” She asked, looking at the doctor in disbelief.

“You should have read the file carefully, Glimpse,” the doctor scolded. “I’m reformed, remember? And before you, I was a very decorated military doctor.”

It was bullshit. It had to be. But she didn’t know for sure.

And that split second of hesitation –of imagining Joaquín’s body hitting the floor because she called Krane’s bluff –was enough. Enough for Krane to sedate her. Enough for the world to blur.

Enough to lose.

And now, here she is. Chained and doped up in some forgotten corner of Virginia, reliving the worst years of her life like it never ended. Except this time, she’s not a little girl. She’s not powerless. And she knows that there’s at least two people looking for her.

And she knows neither of them will stop until they find her.

Her eyes flick to the blinking red light on the wall. A low pulse, like a heartbeat. It wasn’t there five seconds ago. That light isn’t part of the baseline infrastructure. She knows this place. Knows how Krane likes her labs –clinical, sterile, and absolutely under her control.

That flicker is out of place.

That flicker means hope.

She doesn’t smile. Doesn’t move. Doesn’t give Krane the satisfaction of knowing something’s changed.

Across the room, Krane is talking again –some self-righteous, pseudo-academic garbage about neural mapping and genetic anomalies and “weaponized empathy.” Her voice cuts through the silence like a scalpel. Her eyes are wild now, hands moving faster, yanking wires from machines and double-checking restraints that don’t need checking. Because something’s wrong. She can feel it.

And Krane knows it, too.

She tracks the shift in Krane’s energy with careful, weary eyes. There’s a tremor in her hands now. That smug detachment has begun to crack.

Good. Let it crack.

The moment comes in a shudder of metal. A deep, violent boom rattles the concrete walls as the lab door explodes inward in a spray of steel and sparks. The force of it echoes through her chest, more felt than heard. For a second, the light above her sputters out –then returns, flickering.

The first figure through the smoke is Sam. Wings half-folded, shield in hand, eyes like fire. He moves with that signature precision: not so much charging as cleaving through the space, knocking aside a pair of armored guards with brutal efficiency. They hit the wall hard and don’t get back up.

Joaquín follows half a beat later, sliding through the debris like a storm wrapped in a man’s frame. He’s dropped the wings for speed and brute force, shoulder-checking the last guard so hard the man’s body crumples like foil. He doesn’t slow –his eyes are already locked on her.

For a moment, she’s not Glimpse, a former Avenger. She’s just the girl strapped to the chair, covered in bruises and half-drugged, barely upright –but seen. Found.

And Joaquín looks at her like she's the only thing in the damn world worth saving.

He’s at her side in seconds, hands already on the restraints, breath coming fast and shallow.

“Hey,” she says, voice dry, mouth cracking into the ghost of a smile. Like this is just an everyday thing for them.

“Hey,” he breathes, eyes scanning her face like he’s checking for fractures. She’s certain she looks worse for wear; if the bruises on her arms are any indication, she’s certain her face isn’t much better.

“Jesus, I –,” but he doesn’t finish. Just rips the cuff open with a grunt, tosses it to the floor, and moves to the next.

Her fingers twitch back to life. Painful, sluggish –but working.

Behind them, Krane shrieks. She’s at the far end of the room now, fumbling for something –another syringe, or maybe that damned remote again. Sam crosses the space in two strides and kicks it out of her hand before grabbing her by the collar and slamming her into the wall with controlled force.

“You’re done,” he growls.

Krane gasps for air, blinking like she can’t process how quickly the tables have turned.

Joaquín finishes unfastening the last restraint, and her body sags forward –only for him to catch her, arms steady around her frame. She doesn’t collapse, though. She uses his grip to pull herself upright, standing on legs that shake but hold.

“I’ve got you,” he promises.

“I know,” she answers, but she’s pulling back some. Steadying her stance. She doesn’t need a full recovery. She just needs a little bit of spite and one shot.

“I can walk,” she adds, looking up at him.

Joaquín looks like he wants to argue, but doesn’t. Just stays close, hand at her back as she half-limps, half-strides toward the scientist that Sam has pinned to the wall. Half crazed, clawing at Sam’s hands to release her –Krane looks certifiably unhinged.

Finally, her outsides match her insides.

“You don’t understand! All my work –everything I’ve worked on –it’s her!” The scientist screams, bucking against Sam’s hold. “I can change the world with her!”

And then she hears it: the click of a syringe behind them. Krane kicks Sam away, more force behind the movement than he expected. Still sneering. Still trying. The doctor lunges, chemical cocktail in hand –some desperate move to keep control. The scientist is aiming for Joaquín, but she’s not half as fast as the Avenger.

Even if the drugs are weighing her down, and every muscle in her body is screaming at her not to, she shifts her weight, ducks under Joaquin’s arm, and slams her fist into Krane’s jaw with everything she has.

It’s not graceful. Not elegant. It's not powered or calculated.

It’s just…personal.

Joaquín lets out a low whistle as she nearly drops to her knees, but he catches her immediately. With ease, he’s lifting her into his arms, and she’s pressing her forehead into the crook of his neck with a wrecked sigh. All the strength she had left was put into that punch, and with Krane down –she’s able to finally drop her guard and give into the exhaustion.

Vaguely, she’s aware of Sam telling Joaquín to get her out of here. But her body is exhausted, and finally quits on her as Joaquín promises he’s going to get her out of there.

-><--><--><--><--><--><--><--><--><--><-

Luckily, she’s only in the hospital two nights. One night to clear her system of whatever drugs Krane had given her, a hook up to an IV to get her body regulated again, and another night for observation. Outside of drawing a little more blood than she should have, Krane didn’t intend to kill the hero –she intended to use the hero as a blueprint for more.

Her apartment is still out of commission –smoke damaged and a crime scene, naturally –so he takes her back to his place. Sam brings her some clothes, and Joaquín zips her into his hoodie, saying she’s going to stay with him until she’s 100% again. He waits for an argument from her, but it never comes; she just slips herself into the passenger seat of his car and tells him to drive slowly.

The first few days are easy enough; she spends most of them asleep in his room, tucked into his bed like she belongs there. He makes her get up to shower and eat, but otherwise he lets her chill and recover from everything. He tries to leave her be during the day, especially when she’s asleep, but sometimes he just lays in there with her. Letting her curl into his side as he watches whatever is on T.V., holding her through the recovery. Maybe they should have talked about what this is between them, but Joaquín thinks there’s no reason to anymore.

By the end of the week, she’s up and moving.

More than that, really.

Joaquín stepped out to help Sam with the last few details with Krane. He’d been gone maybe an hour –two tops. Left her in bed, sitting up and scrolling through her phone with a kiss to her temple and a promise to get dinner when he got back.

So imagine his surprise when he walks into his apartment and she’s standing in his kitchen, wearing one of his T-shirts and nothing else, cooking dinner. There’s music playing, and she’s singing along as she scrolls through the instructions on her phone. Joaquín can’t help it as he stares, arms crossed over his chest. This is the most awake she’s been in days, and the thought that maybe he has even a little influence on that makes him smile.

Pushing off the doorframe, he slips in behind her and wraps his arms around her waist, chin resting on her shoulder. “Mírate...mi cielo,” he murmurs against her ear, grinning as he looks over the ingredients on the counter. “Need some help?”

She glances up at him, and the smile she gives him could knock him out if he really wanted it to. “I’m almost done –you can take the pan out of the oven though.”

He hums, debating. “If I do that, I gotta let you go. And I don’t think I wanna do that.”

“At least turn off the oven so it doesn’t burn,” she counters, but she’s reaching over to do it herself.

The motion is innocent enough –but combined with her bare legs and his shirt and her ass brushing against him as she does it…Joaquín’s grip on her waist tightens some, cock twitching in his jeans, before he turns her around and presses her against the nearest clean countertop. She raises a brow up at him, but there’s a smirk on her face as her arms wrap around his neck.

“I take it you’re not hungry,” she teases but she’s cut off as he lifts her onto the counter.

“Oh baby, I’m starving,” he reassures, hands sliding down her waist now to grip her thighs, parting them so he can stand between them; pressing the growing bulge in his jeans against her center. “But I’m gonna need to start with dessert.”

“What are the odds one of us gets kidnapped again?” She jokes, pulling him closer by the back of his neck.

“Let’em try to take you from me again,” he promises, fingers trailing up her bare thighs and over the front of her panties.

He nearly groans at the wet spot he feels, toying with her carefully through the damp fabric. The sigh she lets out, coupled with how her head tilts back, encourages him to pull her closer to the edge of the counter and kneel down between her legs. Slipping them over his shoulders, he presses open mouth kisses on the inside of her thighs before finally kissing the fabric that’s slick.

Her hands find his hair almost instantly, and he grins against her as he pulls the ruined garment down her legs finally. With how much they’ve teased each other over the years, and how often he’s thought about this exact moment, he wants to take it slow. Wants to drown himself in between her legs. But now that he’s here, all thoughts escape him as he licks a stripe from top to bottom, groaning at the taste. Then it’s entirely useless to consider what he’s going to do next, because all he wants is to feel her cum on his face as he dives in entirely.

The fingers in his hair tug, and the gasps coming from her lips only push him further into her as he sucks on her clit. With two fingers, he spreads her wider, allowing both a better view and more room as his tongue laps up into her entirely, taking in every ounce of her that he can.

“Fuck,” she breathes out, and her legs are shaking. “Joaquín, please –I need –,”

Mouth still on her, he looks up through his lashes at the mess she is. Then, he pulls away just enough for her hips to chase his mouth but his fingers are what she meets. She writhes under his touch, fingers tightening in his curls as he spreads his spit and her slick all over her.

“What d’you need?” He asks, teasing, barely touching her now as her hips buck off the counter. “Gotta use your words, cariño.”

“Touch me,” she begs, chest heaving as she tries to catch her breath. “Please, I need you to –,”

“Like this?”

His finger slides inside with ease, and the feeling of her clenching around just the one is enough to spur him on and he pulls her into a messy kiss. Her frantic yes, yes, yes’s are swallowed as he licks into her mouth, letting her taste herself on his tongue. Then, he slips another finger inside and she bites at his bottom lip, causing him to groan in response. Her grip on his hair tightens, hips moving against his hand, a silent plea to keep going.

“You gonna cum for me, baby?” He murmurs into the kiss, breaking it only to trail wet kisses down her jaw and over her neck. She’s nodding frantically against him, eyes screwed shut as he picks up his speed and brushes her clit with his thumb.

That seems to be her undoing as she cries out, clenching around his fingers tight as he feels her drip down his hand. He doesn’t pull away, but slows down his movements, easing her through the orgasm as her body shudders and falls limp against his chest. When she’s finally come down is when he finally slides his fingers from her sensitive core, causing her to shudder at the feeling.

“You good?” He asks softly but she’s dramatically falling back onto the countertop with a sigh.

“I’m…much more than good,” she manages to say, leaning on her elbows to look up at him.

Her eyes are trailing over him now –taking in the slick that he’s certain is on his face, down to his hand that’s still wet from her orgasm then to his dick that’s too hard to hide at this point. The gears are turning in her head; he can practically see them as she sits up and reaches for his belt. He’s about to stop her, tell her that she doesn’t need to return the favor, but then he’s swept up in a whoosh and they’re falling back into his bed.

“Fuck, I hate when you do that,” he complains, but there’s no bite in his tone as she reaches out for him.

“You’ll get used to it,” she promises, tugging his shirt off over his head.

Joaquín doesn’t hesitate to toss it to the side, fumbling with his belt and jeans next to kick them off. Then she’s throwing the shirt she has on into the pile, and he leans back into the pillows, staring shamelessly up at her. Every curve, every scar, every freckle –he’s staring like he’s trying to memorize every inch of her skin just in case she suddenly changes her mind.

But she doesn’t.

Thank god, she doesn’t as she finds herself straddling his hips with her hands on his chest. Joaquín sits up, wrapping his arm around her waist and pulling her into him, trying to get as close to her as possible. Her hips roll against him as she pulls him in once again, kissing him like her life depends on it. His hands are guiding her hips, dragging her against his cock in order to coat him in the remnants of her first orgasm.

The head of his cock catches her clit, and she gasps into his mouth. Joaquín grins into the kiss, unable to help himself, as he looks up at her again. His other hand gropes her chest, pinching and twisting at her nipples as he bites at her bottom lip.

“Joaquín, please,” she sighs, breaking the kiss just enough to breathe over his lips. She’s reaching between their bodies now to grasp his hard cock in her hands. “I need you –I need –,”

“What do you need, cariño?” He teases, trying to keep his hips from bucking up into her. “Take what you want, baby. C’mon…,”

She nods frantically, rising up onto her knees above him. Joaquín’s gaze drops to her hand around him, where she’s guiding his cock into her soaked core. As she slowly eases him into her, one of her hands shoots up to grip his arm, digging her nails into the skin to distract from the stretch. Joaquín’s head falls back again as she sinks down on him, his hands dropping to her ass just to hold something. Because if he doesn’t –shit, he’s going to lose any semblance of control he has.

Her grip on his arm tightens as their hips meet again, sinking him entirely inside her as she tries to adjust to his size. Joaquín groans as her walls clenched around him, and his hips involuntarily buck up –causing her to cry out in surprise and lurch forward, her hands gripping his shoulders tight. With her tits in his face, and his hands grasping her ass, Joaquín is done for –fuck control, he needed to ruin her.

Joaquín trails his fingers down her arms before wrapping them back around her hips, holding her tight against him as he pistons up into her. Not expecting that, a surprised cry leaves her lips as he catches her mouth with his again. He pulls her up, and she gets the hint as she rises to meet his thrusts, bouncing on his cock to bring herself closer and closer to the edge.

“Been thinking about you like this for so long,” he admits. He punctuates his last word with a hard thrust up that has the tip of his cock grazing a spot so deep inside her it makes her drop her face into his neck, crying out his name again.

“Fuck, Joaquín –you feel so good– please, god– please, please–,” Her words die in her throat when he yanks her down particularly hard, pressing her hips down to meet him and holding her there in slow, hard grind. She lets out a choked sob of his name, clenching hard around him and stealing a low moan from the back of his throat.

She moans again, and Joaquín jolts up some as he feels her tongue trailing over the vein in his neck and over his jaw. Her mouth is on his again, and he can feel her tightening around him as her wetness starts to smear between their bodies. The sound of their skin slapping against skin only urges him forward, each thrust becoming messier and harder. It’s almost too much as his one hand dipped between their bodies, fingers fluently toying with her clit.

“Ven para mí,” he manages to breathe against her lips, nipping at her bottom one. “Cum for me again, baby, please –need you to cum on my cock –,”

Between the touch on her clit and the thrusts up into her, Joaquín can tell she’s close and he’d be damned if he came before her. Kissing her harder –all tongue, and teeth, and spit –he speeds up his thrusts in time with his fingers on her clit. She bites his lip for a moment before she gasps, closing her eyes tight as her body tenses up under him, only to spasm around him as she comes undone again. The only sound she makes are airy gasps of his name, begging him to keep going. Joaquín isn’t far behind as he thrusts up into her a few more times before his hips stutter against her.

“Where –,”

“Inside –god, please,” she insists, holding tight to him as if afraid to lose his touch. “Pill -,”

Joaquín doesn’t think twice as he nods, taking hold of her jaw to kiss her again as he tenses up below her. He rolls his hips once, twice –then groans into her mouth as he fills her deep. She’s grinding against him still, riding out both of their orgasms now, as they both slowly come down.

Then she drops against him, breathing heavily. Joaquín’s hand drops away from her jaw, pulling her back with him as he collapses on the bed. Her forehead presses against his neck, tucked just under his chin as she tries to catch her breath. He closes his eyes for a moment, taking a breath himself, as he savors the moment of her skin against his, holding her close to his chest.

They lay like this for a while –basking in each other’s touch, enjoying the warmth both are feeling. Joaquín is still buried inside her, still half-hard, but he makes no move to pull out. Not when she’s laying on him like this, melting into his touch. Just as he’s about to say something –ask her if she wants to take a bath or something –both their phones ring. The same ringtone, for the same person –texting them both at the same time.

“You think he knows he’s always interrupting?” She asks, but her voice is hoarse.

“There’s no way he doesn’t,” Joaquín responds, but he doesn’t move from the bed. Instead, he pulls her closer and pulls the blankets up over them both. “He can figure it out without us.”

“You know he’s gonna show up at the door,” she points out, but she’s pressing herself somehow closer to him as his arms tighten around her.

“I don’t even care –I got my girl in my arms. He’ll understand.”

-------

Taglist: @messrkarmaismygf13 @thecowboyfiles (you asked me to share with the class so here we are)

#joaquin torres #joaquin torres x reader #falcon x reader #falcon #danny ramirez #danny ramirez x reader

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renedvds · 2 days ago

Text

selfless sacrifice . KANG DAE-HO

PAIRINGS: Kang Dae-Ho / PLAYER 388 x fem!reader

WARNINGS: death . squid-game-related violence . dae-ho lives past hide-and-seek . english isn't my first language, so i'm so sorry for any mistakes . maybe ooc? dae-ho and the reader were already in a relationship . mostly proofread but there might be mistakes .

AUTHOR'S NOTE: wtf was season 3

what if dae-ho survived the starry night? he has you, his support, but his injured ankle becomes a problem when he has to face the next game.

word count: ≈3.1k

"You okay?" You asked, shifting your gaze to your lover with concern. "Take a deep breath. Tell me if you need a break."

You swung Dae-Ho's arm around your shoulder and helped him make his way to the next game. With an injured leg, the chances of him surviving a game that requires physical activity were extremely low. All you could hope for was for the next game to be mentally challenging and not physically draining.

"I'm alright," he replied and forced a smile. Trying to push away his anxiety, he asked. "What do you think the next game will be?"

You chuckled, the sound coming out as strangled and breathless. As much as you wanted to be the one to protect him this time, it was hard to hide the strong anxiety. "I don't know. Maybe they'll make us play in pairs."

"Like what? Cards? Marbles?" He asked, a soft smile on his face, enjoying the small, genuine moment between you and him. "It's very unlikely, though. The last game was in teams."

"Hurry your asses up! There are people who actually care about the prize trying to make their way to the next game!" Player 100 shouted from behind you, giving Dae-Ho a slight push to make him go faster.

You couldn't help but roll your eyes at the usual idiocy coming from the man, "Don't worry about him."

You made your way up the stairs with Dae-Ho to the next game. Once you made it to the top, you leaned back against the wall to watch your breath and then checked on Dae-Ho's ankle.

"Hey! I'm supposed to be the one checking on you," he said, making you shift your gaze from his ankle to his face. He continued. "I don't want to drag you down in the next game. What if it's a free-for-all arena? I'm basically just extra weight."

His attempt at a joke didn't humor you. Instead, it fueled your irritation. "Stop talking about yourself like that. You're not extra weight, and I'm gonna carry you with me everywhere I go."

"You're so selfless," he commented. "Put yourself first once in a while. I wouldn't blame you if you choose to leave me behind, really."

Your conversation was interrupted by the loud creak of the doors opening. You instinctively wrapped a protective arm around Dae-Ho and walked forward to the next game, anxious with the uncertainty of survival.

Once the crowd dispersed around the platform, you look a long minute to inspect the arena. Your stomach revolted with a sense of nausea, anxiety, and adrenaline as your eyes landed on the thin bridge and the long fall down.

"Shit!" You cussed and looked at Dae-Ho. "Dae..."

You couldn't finish your sentence after your eyes found his hopeless gaze. His eyes, devoid of their usual spark, now held nothing but emptiness as they stared down at the cliff, then at the bridge, then at the dolls holding the rope, and then at you. His breath hitched in his throat, and soon enough, he was panicking.

"[Y/N]... [Y/N]," his voice cracked, his stutters blocking his throat. His trembling, sweaty hand found yours, desperately trying to cling onto you to soothe his anxiety. "I'm not— I... I'm not going to make—"

"Dae-Ho!" You shouted, trying to pull him away from his panic. "Don't you dare think that way. We don't even know what the game is!"

As if on cue, the speaker announced the rules and introduced the new game. It should've been obvious from the start, and yet you decided to cling onto the small glimmer of hope that this wasn't the actual game.

However, your hope shattered right after.

"Welcome to the fifth game," the robotic voice announced, devoid of any emotion or sympathy for the players. "The game you will be playing is Jump Rope."

Dae-Ho let out a soft "no..."

"You must cross the bridge as you jump over the rotating rope and get to the other side within twenty minutes. You may decide on the order amongst yourselves."

The voice dimmed and the players murmured amongst themselves. Dae-Ho stumbled backward and let go of your hand. You immediately turned around and watched as he slumped against the bench. You couldn't stand watching him suffer like this.

"Dae-Ho," you called, gently approaching the panicked man. He held his hands close to his ears to block out noise and kept his knees close to his chest, slowly rocking back and forth in despair.

The song began, blocking out your words with the loud chant of the dolls as they swung the rope.

"Knock, knock. Who's there? Your little friend. Come on in."

"Little friend, little friend. Turn around. Little friend, little friend. Touch the ground. Little friend, little friend. Touch your toe."

"Little friend, little friend. Now away you go."

Jun-Hee sat down next to Dae-Ho, cradling her baby in her arms. Gi-Hun glanced at him and then shifted his gaze to the former pregnant woman and her child.

"How's her ankle?" You asked, but once Jun-Hee lifted her pants and showed her violet bruise, you had to look away and bite the inside of your cheek in horror.

"The game will be over in twenty minutes," Gi-Hun spoke. "You can leave the baby until then and then pick it up afterward."

You were about to agree with player 456 until a masked guard interrupted. "All players must make it across the bridge within the time limit. Any player who fails to cross within the time limit will be eliminated."

"She has a baby! The baby is not a player!" You tried to reason, but another guard had pointed a gun at your head. Dae-Ho slowly placed his hand on your shoulder, and once you locked eyes, he begged with his gaze for you to stop it.

"Everyone here is a player," stated the guard, brushing off the inhumane treatment toward the newborn.

All you could do was give Jun-Hee an empathetic look and mentally wish the best for her. Your attention shifted to Dae-Ho again. Time was limited, the clock was ticking. He couldn't stay in the same place for twenty minutes without moving an inch.

"[Y/N], I'm not making it out alive..." he whispered, his voice cracked as his throat closed up. He could already feel his tears pool his eyes, threatening to spill like an endless cascade of sorrow. "I can't— I can't do it— You have to go and... and leave me here... I'm sorry, I'm a coward. I really am a coward..."

"No!" You shouted but softened your tone after he flinched. "Dae-Ho, I'm not leaving you!"

You wrapped your arms around him and he returned your embrace immediately. He continued, "I can barely limp with this leg. [Y/N], I don't wanna die yet..."

"Stop talking," you shushed him, fearing that if he said another word, you'd collapse and give in to your death. You didn't mind the disgusted stare from player 100 or Nam-Gyu's fight with Min-Su. All you wanted was to comfort your lover, who was far too deep into the idea of dying alone.

"I promised you that I'd get us both out of here," he began. You tried to shush him again, but his pained voice remained persistent. "You... You told me that you wanted to raise two cats... together... in a new house..."

You let out a choked sob and tried to distract yourself by watching Nam-Gyu desperately reach for Thanos' cross necklace. However, a second after he opened the cross, he stayed still. The rope knocked over his feet, and he fell to the endless cliff, welcomed by the harsh surface of the floor, coating the beautiful yellow flowers with crimson.

"Player 124, eliminated."

The speaker's voice was like a hammer constantly hitting your head. You let go of Dae-Ho right after hearing the elimination and placed your hand on his shoulders, shaking him to bring him back. "Wake up! We have to go! Now!"

"I said I can't go!" He shouted back.

Nevertheless, you offered your hand.

Dae-Ho looked at your hand and then at you. "[Y/N], this will not work..."

"Try it," you said. Finally, he accepted your hand and stood up. "Try to jump without my help."

Although you might've appeared to be confident in your decision, you tried to best to hide your anxiety and shaky voice from him. If you gave out the slightest bit of uncertainty, he might give up on trying.

After all, he is only trying to protect you. To save your life by letting go. He always wanted to die heroically.

Dae-Ho took a deep breath and steadied himself on his feet. As he prepared himself to try his first jump, you heard a slight commotion and turned your head around, watching Gi-Hun cross the narrow bridge with Jun-Hee's baby.

"I can't watch this!" You closed your eyes shut and turned to Dae-Ho, opening your eyes again to look at him.

The room erupted into cheers when Gi-Hun made it to the other side. You sighed in relief, feeling a new sense of hope. If Gi-Hun could do it with a baby in his arms, perhaps Dae-Ho could do it with an injured leg.

But he failed to land properly after his jump, his foot almost twisting as he fell to his knees. You helped him get up to try again - you were not leaving him behind.

However, every attempt turned futile. Players were already crossing the bridge, the timer had gone down twelve minutes, and you and Dae-Ho were still trying to find a way to cross.

"I can't do it," he stated. You couldn't hear any more hope in his voice - he'd already given up, devoid of his usual charming, cheerful encouragement. "[Y/N], you need to go. You can't wait for me and die. You can't die here!"

Always the kind-hearted soul he is, he was ready to stay behind while you crossed to the other side. The fall was long, survival chances were low, players were already being pushed off, and in the blink of an eye, you had only six minutes left to escape death.

With such a small amount of time, you turned to look at Dae-Ho for help - except he didn't, because he only gave you one option, and it was to leave him behind.

"I can't..." Your heart ached with unimaginable pain, the mere thought of leaving Dae-Ho threatened to slice your heart open. You didn't want to let go. You couldn't. He was all you had left in this survival game. Without him, who were you even living for? He was your last glimmer of hope, the thread that kept you from snapping.

He took a deep breath and cupped your face with his hands, trying to steady his breath to make himself look good for you. "H— Hey, hey, hey, listen. I'm scared too, okay? I really don't wanna die..."

His voice cracked. Despite his fear, despite the uncertainty, he wanted to be your encouragement and shield even during his last moments - all to protect you, all to finally be useful for once. "But if I don't get to dream of a tomorrow, I want you to live yours."

"What about those promises we made?! I don't know what to do— Nothing will be the same for me! I can't live without you!" You snapped, your tears rolling down your scrunched face, bubbles of saliva forming in your mouth as your throat closed up, unable to let you choke out any more words. "I can't do it! I'm going to fall! I don't want to do it!"

"Then live for yourself, not for me!" He wiped your tears as he let his own fall free, vulnerability showing with his voice. He softly pressed his forehead against yours and held your hands. "You can do it, okay? Look at me."

Your eyes finally met his. He forced a smile and gently wiped your tears with his thumb. You leaned into his touch, trying to savor every moment with him, knowing that this was the last time you'd feel his touch. Dae-Ho's hands slid around your body, trapping you in a protective embrace as he gently rocked you side to side.

His head rested on top of yours. He whispered, his voice weak and trembling, "You can do it."

Four minutes left on the clock, and many players still hadn't made it to the other side yet. The jumping rope swung in an endless loop of doom above the abyss. Dae-Ho kissed the crown of your head before letting of of you.

And that's when you knew your time with him was up.

"[Y/N]," Jun-Hee called. You turned your head to her and noticed she'd been watching you from a distance, her own eyes welling up with tears. "Go."

She wasn't going to be able to make it to the other side either.

Dae-Ho gave you a small tap on the shoulder, and you knew it was time. You approached the doll and fixed your gaze on the other side, trying to ignore the dangerous distance you had from the floor, and the way your legs trembled like jelly, and the way your vision blurred, and the sudden revolting nausea in your stomach, and your unfocused gaze, and your labored breathing, and the way your heartbeat echoed in your ears, and—

"Breathe," Dae-Ho said from behind you, his tone soft and gentle, trying not to scare you. "I know I can't give a lot of advice, but... just... don't look down, okay? Look forward. Pretend you're just jumping rope. The best way to cross is to block out any distractions."

You let out a weak hum to acknowledge his words and finally stepped forward. The rope swung again. You jumped in time, keeping your balance by only a little. Three minutes left on the clock.

On the other side, Gi-Hun shouted and screamed at the remaining players. He waved his hand and helped the ones closer to him to get to safety.

You advanced slowly with a steady balance. Your arms were spread out, your body slightly to the side, and you had your stronger leg in front of the other. "The best way to cross is to block out any distractions," you mentally tell yourself.

You blocked out that voice and labeled it as a distraction. The more you remembered Dae-Ho was on the other side, helpless, the more your motivation drained out. Two minutes and thirty seconds left. You were the second last player on the bridge.

Dae-Ho and Jun-Hee cheered for you on the other side, and their voices brought a small comfort in the moment of adrenaline. You jumped across the small opening in the bridge and reached the second part, earning loud cheers from your lover. One minute and fifty seconds left.

"Jump! Come on!!" Gi-Hun shouted and extended his hand. You stayed jumping in place to glance at the clock for a few seconds. One minute and twenty-five seconds.

You could do it. Player 333 was in front of you. He jumped forward a few times and ran towards the other side once the distance was narrow enough. He grabbed Gi-Hun's hand and reached safety.

Player 333, pass.

Just you and once minute left on the clock. Gi-Hun extended his hand again. "[Y/N]!! Come on!!"

Finally, you sprinted towards the other side and grabbed Gi-Hun's hand. You tripped on your step and fell to the floor. It took a moment to register what had happened until the speaker voice affirmed:

Player 067, pass.

"YES!! [Y/N]!!" Dae-Ho grinned from the other side. You stood up and approached the edge of the platform, but you kept a safe distance. All you wanted was to see Dae-Ho.

"I did it!!" You shouted, a joyful smile forming on your lips. "Dae-Ho, I did it!!"

Jun-Hee smiled at you and gave you a thumbs-up, to which you replied with a bigger smile and another thumbs-up. You were safe, you made it.

The moment of euphoria died down as the countdown began. In the blink of an eye, one minute turned into twenty seconds. Dae-Ho's and Jun-Hee's twenty seconds alive.

Your smile dropped and your heart clenched. You were so lost in the adrenaline of victory that you had forgotten that Dae-Ho was still on the other side, away from safety.

"Dae-Ho!!" You shouted. "Come! Try it! Do it, please!!"

Jun-Hee stepped up. Gi-Hun begged her to cross the bridge, but with only ten seconds left, she gave you and player 456 a sorrowful gaze and stepped off the platform. It happened so fast you barely got time to process.

Player 222, eliminated.

On the other side, Dae-Ho met your gaze, his own tears rolling down like a never-ending waterfall as he smiled softly at you, knowing he'd be gone soon, dying a heroic death. "[Y/N]! Thank you for everything!"

And in the next second, a bullet fired and the speaker announced.

Player 388, eliminated.

You dropped to your knees, your eyes fixated on Dae-Ho's lifeless body falling down the long cliff. His body hit the ground, the sound haunting your ears.

Some may call it selfless. Others will deem it as idiotic. But to you, his sacrifice meant everything. Because after all, Dae-Ho only wanted to protect you. After failing to protect other people in his life, other participants in the game, and other players in the rebellion, his sacrifice proved what his cowardly actions couldn't.

And you? You lost your lover. You lost your future with him. But you earned a promise.

If you couldn't live for Dae-Ho, you had to live for yourself. And deep down, you know that's what he wanted, too.

extra note: im so embarrassed of my writing this is probably so corny💔

@renedvds on tumblr . 2025/06/30 . do not repost or translate my work .

#dae ho squid game #squid game #squid game x reader #dae ho x reader #dae ho x you #dae ho x y/n #kang dae ho #kang ha neul #squid game 2 #squid game 3 #jun hee #gi hun squid game #squid game x you #squid game x y/n #squid game season 3

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cheerfulmelancholies · 3 days ago

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Elliot stared at the blurry mass of writhing shadow and smoke, indifferent to the power of the being before him. It wasn't that he wouldn't feel threatened by an immensely powerful being beyond the realm of humanity's conceivable physics—rather, because the entity was so outside the range of human understanding, all Elliot could do was tilt his head at it in befuddlement.

"I don't get it," he said plainly as the massive being shifted about almost as if it were vibrating in place. Its only discernible features were the several ruby red eyes dotted about its form. "You made it sound like just looking at you would cause complete agony, but you're just, like, a giant blob of darkness. With too many eyes." Said eyes narrowed at him as a voice echoed both within his mind and the air around them.

"You should be trembling in fear, paralyzed by the mere sigh of me," it rumbled, observing the tiny speck of the mortal standing beneath itself with rare curiosity. "Yet you gaze upon me like I am little more than one of the fauna of your world."

"Well…" Elliot started, trailing off as he scratched the back of his head. "I'm just not sure what exactly I'm looking at here. I know being incomprehensible is the point and all, but… maybe you're doing too good a job at that."

Quaz'el'Far, in all its infinite wisdom from eons of roaming realities on a whim, for once felt unsure of what to do. What a strange statement. It had never witnessed a mortal with immunity to its unknowable horror, much less one that would act so calm in the face of something like itself. "I do not understand," it admitted, reluctant to make such a statement.

"Welcome to the club, buddy," Elliot sighed. He glanced around at the empty space he'd been brought to, a pocket dimension that was supposed to be punishment for the human mind. Apparently. Though it was rather lackluster. While he'd heard of white rooms being hell on the psyche, he didn't think an eldritch being would rely on something so… boring. If he strained his eyes hard enough, he could almost make out the faint shapes and colors dancing around the white void, but even then it did little more than give him a slight headache from the effort.

"How is it that you see me, yet you remain unaffected by my presence?"

Elliot redirected his attention to the mass of shadow, matching the slow blink of its eyes with his own. "Look, Quail-uh, Que-hmm… Listen, Q, I'm sure whatever freaky powers you have outside of teleporting people to empty voids are absolutely terrifying. It's just… looking at you, you just look like a vibrating blob of shadows and eyes. That's it. Maybe you're supposed to be more than that and my tiny human brain can't handle it so it just… fills you in with stuff it does know."

The human brain was funny like that.

It was an interesting statement, and one that Quaz'el'Far spent considerable time pondering. These humans had evolved to such a state that they could simply ignore its mind-shattering form in favor of something they could understand? A sharp jolt pulsed through its body, the feeling unfamiliar until it recalled the reactions of the many mortals it had destroyed.

Fear was an unfamiliar concept to the unknowable being, and it found that it did not care for the feeling.

Elliot, growing bored of both the conversation and being stuck in the nowhere space, continued. "If, uh, if we're done here, can I maybe go now? I'm gonna be late for work…"

What nonchalance! As if an all-seeing god meant nothing! Quaz'el'Far drew itself back from the perplexing mortal, eyes gazing through the timelines in an attempt to pinpoint when humanity had begun to obtain this… this disgusting indifference.

No matter how many timelines it parsed, how many universes it peered into, there was no other mortal with such mental fortitude as this one. The concept that one mere human could be capable of such an ability staggered it. If this human could withstand its presence, what else was it capable of? It didn't want to learn.

Inhuman eyes blazed as the great Quaz'el'Far stared down at the mortal in fear and disgust. "You may return to your life, mortal," it began as it opened a portal beside the horrid abomination. "My apologies for having kept you."

"Oh! Uh, no worries. Thanks, mate!" With a wave, Elliot stepped through the swirling mass of color and warmth. As it closed behind him and he found himself back in front of his apartment complex, he wondered if the portal was also supposed to be some incomprehensible horror his mind shouldn't have been able to fathom. It was a good thing humans were so good at putting things together with limited info. So when he glanced at his phone and saw the time, he already knew before he started jogging to the bus stop that he'd be late, would walk in mildly sweaty, and John would chew him out for his tardiness yet again. The entire interaction with the weird shadow monster was already pushed to the back of his mind, waiting to be forgotten like his lunch box already had been.

You bear witness to a horror beyond your comprehension. However, because you don't comprehend it, you....just don't get it. The horror in question is terrified by this.

#idk I wrote this in a day #my writing #writing prompt #writers on tumblr #creative writing #nothing like a dumbass being immune to the horrors simply because he's a dumbass #I kind of want to tie this into my other wip #save for later

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zozo-01 · 1 day ago

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"humanity will never lose hope (but you're not that human anymore, are you?)"

Or: Finding out that you lover never changes, no matter which world you stand on in 12.4k words.

Oh my God, of course my first full fic in a year is over ten thousand words. Oh well, I love Phainon and I love Kevin, so that this as my love letter to both of my favourite Hoyo men.

Shout out to @baeshijima who I've been torturing with snippets for the last few months and @horrorscoupes and @gingerbreadmonsters who I have also been sending snippets to, except they have no idea what's going on. (Join the dark side please I beg.)

CW: Angst, Hurt/Kind of Comfort, Bittersweet Endings, Alternate Timeline, Not Canon Compliant, kevin kaslana haunting the reader for the rest of over, phainon is so clueless and in love, Unrequited love, more two people using each other to fill the void, Mentions of Self-Harm, Suicidal Ideation, we love self-deprication!, Marriage, Thoughts of Motherhood, Kevin's reader uses she/her pronouns, Phainon's reader uses they/them pronouns, Amphoreus has me aching for more, reader is the PE's Herrscher of the End, she Kiana'd the Herrscher and that's how she's still alive, Writing this before the ending of amphoreus so I could be very very right, or very very wrong

click here for the ao3 link!!!

It was just your luck that the lance that struck you out of the sky had separated you from your companions. Seriously, doesn't this planet know that it's common courtesy to radio in before you deem the flying object as a threat? This was not a good look for Amphoreus, and you shiver to think about how the rest of your trip will go.

For once, you would appreciate it if the Express could take a nice vacation by the beach. Or in a metropolitan area. Literally, anything that doesn't have to include saving or dooming the world you're standing on. You'd like to think that you've had enough world-altering missions for a lifetime.

Stumbling out of the rubble of the train car, you take in your surroundings. Perhaps back in its heyday, Amphoreus must have been a gorgeous place, with marble statues littered across the land of the heroes that have long protected their home. It reminded you of the Ancient Greek ruins that you were obsessed with. It's strange, to see familiar sights on every planet you visited, yet being so far from home. You wonder if those ancient ruins survived the destruction you brought on.

(The Honkai never left behind survivors. Even those who lived to tell the tale had their souls ripped from them. You were no exception, but that didn't mean that you wouldn't take back what was rightfully yours. Your journey to heal from your past felt like a glacier. You hope that your current comrades— no, friends, could help you move on from your past.)

You wander around the temple, not sure of what to do next. Worry filled you for your companions, not because they weren't capable, but because of the collective stupidity that seemed to arise whenever young members of the train were trailblazing. In theory, March being back at the train and Dan Heng's rational self should be enough to keep them safe, but Stelle has become such a wildcard, you don't put anything past her. She and her bat were capable of putting the entire world at risk. You were surprised that no one had come up to you to arrest you because of something she did.

At the end of the day, those two were your companions and it was best to put your trust in them. You just hope that they don't do anything stupid without you knowing. At least with you there, there would be an adult to make sound decisions. You chuckle to yourself, wondering when during your life you of all people decided to become the responsible one.

To be honest, you always felt odd about considering the younger Express members as peers. Because yes, you seem roughly the same age, with your youthful looks and durable limbs, always eager to seek out the next challenge. But if anyone looked into your eyes, really looked into your soul, they could see that time has ravaged you in ways no mortal should have gone through. Fifty thousand years is a long life to live for anyone, let alone a human. Yet you spent that time in isolation, your only company being the monster you swore you'd never become.

(You had only two reasons to endure. Your love for humanity and your love for him. The world survived, no thanks to you. He wasn't as lucky.)

Enough pondering, there were more pressing matters that you needed to take care of. Like finding Stelle and Dan Heng and figuring out how the hell to get out of here without causing too much trouble.

You were careful to walk through the ruins of the land, flinching at the crumbling stone surrounding you. The lack of light didn't help either in finding out where to go. You were hoping that eventually, there would be some ruckus– loud whining from Stelle or maybe Dan Heng's dragon guiding you to the rest of your team. Unfortunately, no such sights or sounds have reached your senses. Or maybe it is fortunate that no chaos started. Yet.

Part of you wanted to use your powers to just fly up and track Dan Heng and Stelle. It would be so easy and would waste unnecessary time. Time that you could be spending on figuring out what the hell was the deal with Amphoreus and how to contact the Astral Express. You can almost hear Welt reminding you why that's a bad idea, not that you don't disagree with him.

"We don't know what effect your Herrscher powers could have in this place and it looks like this universe doesn't even know what the Honkai is. We don't want to start another eruption."

You sigh. What a shame. All the power in the world and you're relegated to using some watered-down version of it in the form of Aeons and their paths. You wouldn't have had it any other way.

Absolutely would you never dare to use your true powers in this relatively peaceful universe. There is lingering fear left in you over the events of your rebirth. You wish you could say that you didn't remember anything, that the evil sealed within you had granted you the mercy of losing consciousness when they took control. But destiny did not care that you didn't choose this fate, it punished you all the same.

The bodies of your friends, dare you call them family, carelessly slewed across the grey land. Hands that once held yours in dance with music in the air, could barely hold onto their weapons that they swore they'd use to save humanity. One by one, they fell like the brightest shooting stars until a garden of corpses surrounded you and your beloved. He was covered in blood, of his own and his friends, with burning anguish in his glacier eyes. You remember teasing him that red was never his colour.

The ring on your finger was a cold reminder of his warmth. Your eyes tear up as the blue diamond reminds you of his eyes.

You strengthen your resolve and wipe your tears. Enough about the past! What's done is done and all you can do is prevent it from happening again. He's not here anymore and there's no use crying about it right now. You made a promise to his descendant that not only will you live, but you will live long enough until the Honkai has been properly defeated and that your powers will not be passed down to you in the next cycle.

(You'll do your crying when you're alone in bed, pretending that his arms are wrapped around you. Oh, how you would sacrifice planets to bring him back if only to see him one last time. Hopefully, should you be granted another chance, your reunion will be less bloody. One could argue that you aren't at your best when you have your lover's lance piercing through you.)

Why is it that being on Amphoreus is causing these memories to flood your brain again? Perhaps it is because this is the first time since you joined the Express that you have been left alone in your thoughts. Ever since your self-imposed imprisonment, you detested the silence, having been left alone with your thoughts for far too long. It's part of the reason why you loved Stelle's presence. Never a dull moment with her and it was enough for you to push down whatever feelings would bubble up.

Very rarely did you wish that you were more Herrscher than human if only to get rid of those pesky feelings that leave you gasping for air. Disgusting.

Maybe the quiet is doing you some good, giving you the time and space to properly process your emotions instead of dismissing them for later. You let yourself indulge in the good memories, reminding yourself that your past wasn't entirely doom and gloom. That's what made the tragedies of your life all the more painful. The sleepovers you had with Elysia, the pointless yet invigorating debates with Su and the wheat fields you and Kevin would walk down as children.

(Wait a minute, you never knew Kevin as a kid. You had met him shortly after he joined Fire MOTH. And even so, both of you grew up in metropolitan areas with no farmland in sight.)

(These weren't your memories, so who did they belong to?)

Before you can think too hard over the maybe false memories, you hear the screams of children coming from the ruins ahead of you. Without thinking you rush ahead, your heroic instincts taking over.

You turn the corner and find a young boy and a young girl, with the boy standing in between her and the stone monster. He raised his flimsy sword to try and fight the monster off, with fear and resignation in his eyes. You knew that look all too well. Even if he doesn't make it out of here, he can make sure that this little girl can get to safety. Fat chance kid, there will be no more dying kids on your watch.

"Hey!" you yell at the stone creature to catch its attention. Thankfully, it was enough to take its attention off the kids and onto you. You don't feel any fear as it hulks over, its loud footsteps and towering figure doing nothing more than making you chuckle. Silly, silly monster. Didn't it know that it sealed its face by facing something more terrifying than itself?

You didn't think twice before throwing your sword towards it, following the sword to make sure it landed on its target. You use the handle of your weapon as a pushing-off point for a backflip, making sure its blade sinks as deep as it can into the monster. The monster crumbles back into the ground as you approach the two children, kneeling down to make yourself less threatening.

"You kids alright?" you ask, eyes tracking their faces for any visible injuries. Luckily the children didn't suffer any severe injuries, the worst only being what you assume are going to be sore limbs from all the running they did today. Their nods of agreement quelled any lingering worry that you had. You add another mental note about the things you learned about Amphoreus so that you can somewhat communicate with the locals.

But before you can ask them why they were out here alone, the statues that you didn't notice earlier crumbled their hard shells to reveal the monsters within them. Now you're surrounded by five statue monsters and with two children to look after. On the bright side, these two might be easier to take care of than your fellow Trailblazers.

"I don't have time for this," you mumble to yourself, pushing the children behind you. It was just your luck that you had to face off against enemies in this world, with no knowledge of what you were going up against and with no backup. (No, the little boy and his poor excuse of a sword do not count as backup in your books.) It mattered little though, you have gone up against the worst in the past and you will continue to encounter worse in the future.

More and more statues stalk closer towards you, with their clunky movements causing the children to quiver in fear, mumbling something about Nikador's wrath, whatever that meant. Part of you was considering using your natural powers to make quick work of the statues, already annoyed that you've wasted enough time here. Sure there are consequences if you accidentally triggered an eruption, but those can be dealt with later.

With a snap of your fingers, portals opened around you, orange in colour and slicing their way into this universe. Out came a lance for each creature and in a blink of an eye they crumbled before you, turning back into the stone they came from. That was one problem done thankfully, and if all of Amphoreus' enemies were that easy to deal with, then you should have no problem traversing the rest of the planet, if you could even consider it a planet. You just hope that you won't have to use any more of your powers.

You turn around to make sure the children you are protecting are okay, but instead of fear, you are met with excited expressions, like they hadn't almost died from a falling rock. The young girl started jumping and dancing around, while the boy pumped his fist in the air.

"That was so cool! The way you summon those flying lances and beat those titankins. You have to be a Chrysos heir– no a Demigod! Just like the ones mom used to tell us about!" The child went on about Titans and prophecies that you couldn't wrap your head around entirely. This is not what you meant when you had wanted a crash course on Amphoreus history.

"I'm… not a Chrysos Heir, just someone trying to find her way through this area." You didn't want to break this kid's delusion, but it would be better than trying to lie your way and break his heart later on.

(Come to think of it, why didn't they immediately single you out as someone beyond the stars? You clearly don't look or sound like you belong here, but these children were willing to believe that you were one of them. You were about to introduce yourself as a Trailblazer, but something told you that it would land you into major trouble later on. Besides, do these people even know of the Trailblaze? Let's not confuse them anymore.)

"Oh," the boy visibly deflated, but immediately perked back up. "But that doesn't matter, thank you for saving us!" The young boy and girl launched themselves at you to give you a hug. You didn't know what to do except give them an awkward pat on the back. Still, they endeared you enough to earn a small smile on your face.

"It's not a big deal," you said as you kneeled down. "As long as you two are safe, then that's all that matters. Where are your parents though?" You wonder what parents would be neglectful enough to leave their children in a monster-infested area in this eternally dark place.

You regret asking that question so casually though, as the young girl's eyes tear up and she lets out small sniffles. She puts her hand over her mouth to quiet herself, but it doesn't do much to muffle her cries. The boy on the other hand looked away to the distance and bit his lips, trying to keep it from quivering. You commend his attempt to put on a strong front in front of his sister, but you could see right through his facade.

"Our parents were killed by the Black Tide while we were trying to escape to Okhema," the young boy murmured, almost like if he said it quietly enough, he could somehow will them back to existence. It's a hope that you had before.

You didn't know how to comfort them. Even before your exile, your military upbringing always made it difficult for you to comfort civilians. In your line of work, where death is so common it could be counted as a part of your squadron, all you could do was bury your feelings along with your comrade and pray that you won't have to bring home another corpse. And that was the best-case scenario, better than having to look into their infected eyes and do the honours for yourself.

(Elysia was always good at comforting people, and you miss having her presence to take over in situations like this. Even Kevin's awkward fumbling when it came to this was charming enough to make people laugh and make them feel better. Not you though. No one wants comfort from a monster.)

You shake your head. You're not a monster anymore and these kids need more comfort than you need pity.

"I'm sorry for your loss, but we have to keep going." You wipe the tears falling from their faces, letting them put the full weight of their heads into your hands. With a softer voice, you continue. "I know it's hard, but it's not safe here. We'll go to Okhema and figure out the rest there, okay?"

They nod their heads and you can see the resolve building itself in their eyes. The boy picked up his sword and raised it in the air with a triumphant cry.

"Yeah! We'll get to Okhema and make the Black Tide pay for taking our home!" he loudly declared. Without waiting for you or his sister, he strutted away in what you hope is in the direction of Okhema. Not that you would stand a better chance if they relied on you on where to go.

"I'm sorry about my brother," the girl sighed. "Once he gets something in his head, he doesn't stop until he makes it come true." This sounds like an issue she's been long aware of.

"It's okay," you say as you stand up with a smile. You hold your hand out to her for her to hold, and once she does, you both take off to follow the brother. "As long as you stand by his side, you two will be able to do anything."

"That's right!" she hollered out, jumping in place before holding onto your hand. Their bond endeared you, your heart always warming when you see family stick together. You wonder about your own family back home, before you were thrown into Fire MOTH. They had long since passed due to the Honkai, slightly your fault. But your new family, the Flame-Chasers, had effortlessly taken their place. For longer than some of these planets have been around when you think of family, you think of the twelve shining soldiers standing in front of you. Ready were they to die for humanity, and you wished you were given the blessing to join them. Not yet though, you still have old debts to pay and retribution to collect.

Taking these kids to Okhma has given you two things. The first was company to stop you from slipping into your thoughts and musings. With how loud and talkative they were, there wasn't a silent moment left for you to fill.

The second was some of the answers to the questions you have about this world.

The most important thing you learn is the names of the two children you saved. The young boy introduced himself and Aris and his younger sister as Pallas. Both hailed from the distant lands of Castrum Kremnos but never got to visit their homeland, as it had been infected by the Black Tide many years ago. Their ancestors had moved the Janusopolis, which was deemed safer due to the protection of the Titan, Janus. However, even that mighty city fell, as you were walking on her ruins today.

They mention the Black Tide, an evil that apparently has been taking over the entirety of this world. Apparently, it infects every living thing it touches, turning its lifeforms into dark and twisted versions of themselves, hellbent on consuming and destroying everything in its path. Supposedly it has no master, acting with no drive except the sole desire of annihilation. (If there was a camera nearby, you would have stared into it, asking the audience if they thought this was funny to them.)

They spoke of the twelve Titans that ruled over Amphoreus, the miracles they brought on and the devout worship from its peoples. As Children of Castrum Kremnos, both Aris and Pallas worshiped the Strife Titan, Nikador. Aris especially was excited to tell their tales of war and battle and of honour and sacrifice. Pallas had to be the one to solemnly let you know that the Titan had been infected by the Black Tide in their eternal battle with it. Now all that remains is a mindless beast that attacks anything living.

Finally, they explained the Chrysos Heirs and Demigods, the thing they accused you of being. Apparently, there was a prophecy that there would be twelve Chrysos Heirs, beings of golden blood, who would assume the authority of the Titans and lead this nation to an era of eternal peace.

The more and more they told you about the world that you crash-landed on, the more uncomfortable you were over how eerily similar your life was to this universe's destiny. You knew that parallel universes meant parallel timelines, and that your story would be remixed across dimensions. You remember how Acheron reacted to your presence and your solemn sigh when you found out that you didn't survive in her story either. But you're one crazy coincidence away from grabbing your Trailblazers and nopeing the fuck out of this planet. You do not need to be traumatized– or you suppose retraumatized.

(You come to the realization that in every universe, within every timeline, you do not get a happy ending. Your only regret is that it seems like you keep on dragging your lover into your doomed destiny. Misery does indeed love company.)

On the bright side, Aris and Pallas did answer some of your questions. That still didn't solve the issue of your missing companions. You only hope that they haven't gotten into any trouble.

The marble gates on Okhema greet you and your mini companions, and relief courses through your veins because finally, something is going right. Aris even ran ahead in excitement, ready to take on his new home. But he didn't see the falling stone in his peripheral vision, his tunnel vision set on the crumbling gate. Luckily you did, jumping into the air to slice to rock before it could fall on the poor boy.

Of course, just your luck. Trouble had to find you first.

You were skeptical that Okhema was considered a safe haven when all you could see were those same stone monsters that you saved the children from. Titankin, you remember Aris calling them that.

You push the two children behind you, eyes darting back and forth between the Titankin surrounding the three of you. You could see the guards past the hordes of statues, but you had a feeling that they wouldn't be able to get to you in time. No matter, you get cornered once, you get cornered a thousand times.

Through the gaps of the stone wall closing in on you, you can see what you assume are Okheman guards trying to fight off the Titankin. You were just about to summon more of your lances, but before you could, you and the children were surrounded by a wall of red crystal.

You couldn't see through the solid red crystal, but you could hear the sounds of the Titankin crumbling back into the stone they came from. There was the sound of a man grunting, but it was so soft that you assumed that he wasn't exerting too much effort like these stone statues were nothing to him.

(Jealousy bubbled in you. That would be you had your powers not come with destructive consequences.)

A moment later, there was silence. The three of you stayed still with bated breath, eager to discover the result of the battle. One crack appeared in the crystal, followed by another. You throw yourself over the children to prevent them from the shards of the crumbling wall falling around you.

You look up and in the distance stands the man who was responsible for this destruction.

Blond hair with red dyed tips, he had a tall stature with muscle and scars you could assume he only gained through constant battle. The fabric pooling around his lower body did nothing to hide the red markings on his chest, a warning for his enemies to stay away. But what captured you were his eyes. A deep red with a fire that you have only seen in one man, a very long time ago.

Kalpas…?

You dare not speak his name out loud, not wanting to make this more real than it already was.

But it seemed like you weren't the only one staring at a ghost.

A look of recognition? Of longing? Of fear? You couldn't tell because it disappeared just as quickly as it appeared. He only gave himself a split second of vulnerability before he reminded himself that he was a soldier and this was a battlefield. The only reunion either of you has time for is the one you will have with death. This was a sentiment you are all too familiar with.

"Lord Mydeimos!" Aris exclaimed. You trusted his judgement enough to give this man the barest amount of benefit of the doubt.

Mydeimos looked you up and down, taking note of your foreign clothing. His eyes singled out the golden ticket pendant you have, and you could only assume that he'd seen the ticket recently.

"Your comrades are on their way to Nikador at Marmoreal Palace," Mydeimos stated. You sighed with relief. Dan Heng and Stelle were alive and they had some sort of help with them. Still unnerved over the ghost standing in front of you, you looked back at the two kids standing behind you, your mind already set on your next steps.

"She can't fight Nikador! She's not an Heir," Pallas cried out, moving to stand in front of you. She was trying to stop you from what she believes is you throwing your life away. Her older brother joined her protest, saying how it would be better if Mydeimos went and fought Nikador himself.

"You'll look after the children?" you ask, but it is more of a command than a question. You made sure to reflect the light of the sun against your blade, making it visible and knowing what would happen to him if the children weren't safe.

He gave no response except for a quick nod, and that was enough for you, so long as he understood the consequences of his failure.

The children were in tears when you told them that you would go to Marmoreal Palace. They cry and plead for you to stay and have someone else deal with this, but you were never good at letting other people help you.

"I will be okay." You gave them a hug, trying to pour a little bit of relief into their bodies so they'd stop worrying. "Stay with Lord Mydeimos, he'll keep you safe," you ordered them both. You pull away from the hug and they nod, having learned that following your directions has kept them alive so far.

"This is not a goodbye. I will find you two again." This wasn't going to be another empty promise that you were going to break.

"You better come back to us!" Aris demanded, before running to hide behind the blond man, Pallas following closely behind him.

Before you could ask where the fuck Marmoreal Palace even was, a golden thread appeared out of nowhere, leading your eyes to a large building on the horizon. Well, that answered your question.

Mydeimos may have mentioned something about Aglaea guiding your way, but you didn't care to stay and listen. Immediately, you run off to follow the golden thread, hoping that you'll be able to get there in time to save their asses once again.

But even at your top speed, it still took you time to run over to the Palace. Time that you used to absorb the fact that you just saw Kalpas again. It was one thing for you or Kevin or Elysia had counterparts across the universe, but Kalpas? It meant that there was a chance that the rest of the Flame-Chasers were alive. That you would see him again, even if it's not the man you fell in love with.

It was one thing to hear Acheron's story. This is going to be a whole trainwreck that you weren't emotionally prepared enough to deal with. But then again, how do you prepare to see the friends that you carelessly murdered? Were you ready to face your sins, Destroyer?

You don't know which outcome you hope for more. That your past would just leave you alone and die just like your world did. Or that you would see your friends again, albeit in a completely different scenario. You would do anything to see Kevin, yes, but only if it's your Kevin. The boy who would hold all your shopping bags in one hand just so that he can keep one hand free to hold you. The man who held you to his chest to stop you from ending your life prematurely. Who held you in your final moments.

That's who you want, not some cheap imitation that could never reach your man. No offence to this world's Kevin.

You hear the grunts inside the palace before you see the mechanical creature surrounded by the fountain and the same golden thread that guided you here. To be honest, the Titan didn't seem that impressive. Sure it's massive, but size never equals power and you know that one slash from your greatsword would be enough to finish it off.

(History may remember the Judgment of Shamash as Kevin's weapon, but you and the sword knew who was its true owner. He was just keeping it warm, sharp and ready for your return.)

Your greatsword feels like home in your hands, and you revel in her power coursing through your veins.

("She's just as beautiful and destructive as you are." An amused voice spoke up, followed by strong arms wrapping around your waist. A mop of white hair tickled the skin on your neck. You wish you could bottle this moment and experience it for an eternity.)

You could see your two companions, as well as a white-haired knight fighting against the Titan. You knew what your next action should be.

Without a chance to hesitate about your own decision, you charge forward toward the Titan, flames blazing behind you. They gave you enough speed and strength to slice Nikador in half. You don't see their dismembered body, but the thud on the ground gives you the impression that you won the fight.

It was strange that they went down so easily, but your worried thoughts were cut off by your gray-haired chaos machine jumping into your arms.

"You're alive!" Stelle held you up in her arms, squeezing the Herrscher core out of you. You could feel your lungs collapsing in your chest with the strength of her hug. It was only when Dan Heng came over to pry your favourite baseball player off of you that you could finally breathe.

"It's good to see you too," you say with fondness. Things are always lively when you have your fellow Astral Express members around, and you know your mission on Amphoreus was just about to get more interesting. "I trust that you have been keeping out of trouble." The guilty look on Dan Heng's face and the nervous chuckle from Stelle made you sigh. You wouldn't have your idiots act any other way.

"Well, we had help," Dan Heng explained. "We were lucky to meet some of the locals before fighting the Titankin." You're grateful that they were able to have more guidance than you did. Not that you weren't thankful for Aris and Pallas. You should probably check on them sooner than later.

"Please! We did most of the work anyways." Stelled crossed her arms, a pout on her face. She pointed to someone or something behind you with an accusatory point. "The only thing Phainon did was steal my bat and break Cloud Piercer!"

You sigh, already knowing that Stelle added her usual dramatic flair to what has happened. You make a note to ask Dan Heng for a more accurate recount of events. This poor Phainon didn't have to catch her backhanded comments, especially if he was keeping them safe.

You turn around to thank this white knight, but you can't get the words out once you see his face.

Snow white hair. Piercing blue eyes. Even his clothes were a close replica of Kevin's. You almost didn't want him to speak, in fear that he also sounded like him. This was it, the one thing you feared. Knowing that there were alternate versions of your lover. A million lives that he can lead. A million heartbreaks waiting to happen.

It seems that this Kevin– Phainon had the same thoughts going through his head. But unlike you, his body couldn't hold the weight of his pain. He fell to his knees and it took everything in you to not hold him to your chest. The familiar words of comfort lay at the tips of your tongue, but they wouldn't be heard by the person who they were meant to, just a familiar stranger.

"Starlight..." his voice wobbled. Your soul left your body, leaving behind an aching heart at the sight of his watery eyes. Or maybe it was just your tears blurring your vision. Another memory you kept buried forced its way into your consciousness.

("Starlight, really?" You raise your eyebrows at the cheesy name. "Can't you be a little less romantic?")

(His laugh or the heavenly trumpets filled the air. He took a string from your hoodie (that you were borrowing from him) and kissed it, his old habits never leaving him. Kevin knew he was able to touch you, the sub-zero temperature not affecting you. But ever the gentleman, he did everything he could to keep you safe. Really, that should have been your job.)

("Your eyes sparkle under the stars, and you are the only light who is keeping me tethered to this world." He let go of the drawstring and pulled you in for a kiss. You put your hands around his neck and swayed in his arms, overwhelmed by the rare peace your snowstorm brought you.)

("You're making it harder to pull away from you," you mumble against his lips. You had to go to a briefing for a solo mission in an hour, but you weren't ignorant of the double meaning of your words. You knew he was too smart to let it go over his head. With every Herrscher that fell, you could feel the Honkai tightening its grip around your soul. Despite everything you could do to fight it, everyone knew it was only a matter of time before the Honkai took over and you reset the universe.)

(You had it drilled into your conscious that it would be better for you to die in some corner if only to buy this world some time.)

(He absolutely hated that sentiment, going borderline feral any time someone brought up that cursed plan. The one time that you had brought it up, you weren't allowed to leave his bed for a week, for fear that if he let you go, you would go to the void and he would have no choice but to follow you. You never want him dying on your behalf. Humanity needs its hero and you were not selfish enough to take that away from it.)

("So don't go," he growled, kissing you with more passion this time. He pulled you closer, chest firmly pressed up against yours. Even if he knew what was to come, you know that he would forsake any prophecy to keep you here.)

(This kiss was everything you wished you had time to tell each other. I love you. I want you. I miss you, even though you're standing in front of me. I'm scared. I don't know what's coming next. I wish things were different.)

(I love you. I love you. I love you.)

(For the longest time, you thought that this would be enough for you. That you could hold onto these memories to keep you warm.)

"Ms. (Y/N)..."

Dan Heng's voice snapped you out of your trip down memory lane. You didn't even realize the golden-haired lady appearing right in front of you.

You clear your throat and wipe the tears from your eyes. This was all getting too much for you, and you were desperate to break something to make you feel better. That didn't exclude you. But your team needed you to be on your best behaviour, even if it was just to have a steady leader to guide them through this mission.

"I'm fine, Dan Heng," you whispered to him. You knew he wasn't a fool to miss your shaky smile, but you were thankful that he had the tact to at least ask about it later.

"New allies of Okhema, welcome to Amphoreus." The golden-haired lady spoke up, her voice soothing your early stress and anxieties. It reminded you of how Aponia used to casually manipulate the Fire MOTH soldiers to stop harassing you, saying that it was only in her interest to have someone in power indebted to you. Looks like you were finally getting the chance to pay her back for everything she has done for you.

"While this welcome banquet is far from elegant, it has helped to remove any misgivings we had," she— Aglaea, continued. You side-eyed Dan Heng and Stelle, hoping that her doubts were due to her own skepticism and not any actions taken by the two. "From this moment forth, you shall be treated as distinguished guests of the holy city and the Chrysos heirs."

'Nice to be welcomed from the start,' you thought to yourself.

There is something odd about her beautiful eyes, seeming unfocused. They look like they were looking through you rather than at you. The whispers from two trailblazers behind you confirmed that they picked up on that fact too.

"Curious about my eyesight?" she asks, and you note her heightened perception. Typical of someone who is the alternate universe version of Aponia, and you make sure to tell the other two to keep your unflattering thoughts to yourself. Especially Stelle. Lord knows what's going to come out of her mouth.

She went on to explain how every Chrysos Heirs had an ability that was unique to each individual. How she doesn't rely on traditional sight to perceive the world around you. Perhaps it wasn't the exact same manipulation that Aponia was able to achieve, but it did make you feel wary of someone who can 'hear' conversation from across the city.

There was something else about her eyes that you noticed. They were seemingly dead, with no emotion in them. But they still looked at you with a sad longing— it made you feel sick to your stomach. Can these people stop looking at you with pity? Do they not know of the disaster that you would bring to them?

You tried to ignore the gaze Phainon was giving you, his icy eyes giving off heat that could only rival the sun.

"A manifestation of Nikador…" Phainon spoke up with disdain in his voice. You were so close to ripping his vocal cords out just to end your suffering. How dare he steal your lover's voice and force you to listen to it. An indignant and petty part of you hoped that he was suffering as much as you were. You had a feeling that he was. "Could it be that my trial has not arrived yet?" he asked, more to himself than to anyone else.

"By following the threads of fate, you have begun to write the opening chapter of your story. How do you feel?" Aglaea countered his question with her own.

"Truth be told, I don't feel any different," he answered. "I anticipated a greater challenge." You roll your eyes, of course, he would say that. Were all versions of Kevin so willing to take on the greatest challenge on their own?

You tune out the rest of their conversation, not really caring about the plans they had to counter the invasion.

What? The plan was a success and there were few casualties. Back in your world, this was seen as a blessing.

Besides, you need more time to process truly what the fuck is going on. You try not to, but you can't help but spare small glances towards Phainon. It aggravates you how truly and utterly similar he was to Kevin. He would always joke with you that it would always be you two in every universe, that his soul was tied to yours for eternity. Mei would pipe up with some smart and cynical comment about how technically every possibility exists under String Theory.

("Mei!" he whined, sending a glare to the poor girl. "I was trying to woo her!")

("You're such a dumbass," you said. It didn't stop you from smiling like a fool. "I'm already your partner, you don't need to woo me." You ruffle his hair and pinch his cheek. God, he was adorable— and he's yours. Just yours.)

("But I want to treat you right, starlight," he pouted, forehead resting on yours. "Want to be the man that is deserving of you." For him, you would relive every single awful and forced action the Honkai put you through for him.)

(Before you could say anything, a beach ball hit the back of your lover's head. He rubbed it and glared at the idiot who was dumb enough to ruin his moment with you.)

("You're a dead man Su!" he yelled, racing straight towards the scholar. You were scared that he was going to use his full might against the poor man. God. You love your man so fucking much.)

You scoffed, thanking the Lord that Welt wasn't on this mission. The old man would have suffered heart attack after heart attack for every new revelation.

Your amusement wasn't as quiet as you thought.

"Is something funny?" Aglaea asks, raising her eyebrow towards. Oh fuck, it would be so embarrassing if you were the one who started the trouble.

"It was nothing, my lady." You clear your throat. "My mind tends to wander." The smile Phainon gave you didn't go over your head. Even Aglaea shook her head in amusement.

"Distinguished guests, since you have spared no effort in aiding the holy city, I will naturally take care of you as well." How sweet of her— oh, like hell you're going to take her offer her at face value. But still, you could use a little R&R. "I've woven many unforeseen events into the tapestry of fate, this is but one instance." Always the wildcard, never the intended.

"Thank you for your hospitality, my lady." You bowed your head in appreciation. You glare at the other two the same way a mother would glare when her children forgot to thank someone. Thankfully you trained them well enough to pick up on your signal. You turn back to Aglaea. "Truly it was our pleasure to help out however we can."

"You can find me at Marmoreal Market after you've grown tired of listening to her tales," Phainon offers, but he hesitates to look you in your eyes. You didn't take any offence since you were struggling with the same thing. "In any case, I owe you my hospitality."

"We look forward to you treating us, Phainon." The softness in your voice wasn't intended, but it bled its way regardless of your best effort. "Just to warn you, this one will make a dent in your wealth if you treat us to food," you quip while pointing to Stelle, earning you a pinch and a pout from the baseballer.

He didn't say anything to respond, but he walked away with a wistful and painful smile on his face.

"Now then, where should we begin?" Aglaea said, and you don't miss the challenge in her voice.

After placing the Trailblaze Beacon down, Aglaea took you to the centre of Marmoreal Palace. You stand underneath the fountain listening to the spirit water tell the story of this land. Many of the details lined up with what Aris and Pallas had told you, but it filled in some of the gaps that they had left out. You hope that they have found a safe place for them to stay.

"The way up from here leads to a bath that the Council granted exclusively to the Chrysos Heirs," she explains as your group walks back to the waterfall. "I'm willing to make an exception, considering you're guests from beyond the sky…"

"But you have your traditions to maintain," you finish her thought with your arms crossed.

"Precisely," she confirms. Her eyes lingered on Stelle, clearly wanting her to go to the baths with her. But you think that she wouldn't do anything without your express permission.

"Go up with her Stelle, me and Dan Heng will wait down here for you." You didn't take your eyes off of Aglaea with a clear intention in your eyes. If anything happened to her, you would tear Amphoreus up with your own bare hands. You found yourself giving out more threats than you have in past missions. You couldn't help it, this world is designed to aggravate you to no end.

These people may have the skin of your family, but they were still unknown threats to you. Not that it mattered. You killed your friends once, and you could do it again.

(Yes, princess, the voices spoke up in your head. Return to your roots. Return to the purpose of your existence.)

"You have a considerate partner." She gestures to the elevator platform. "Follow me." You watch the two go up and away to the private baths.

Not even a second goes by when Dan Heng voices his concerns.

"Are you alright?" he hesitantly asks. "Ever since you saw Phainon, you've been more distracted, and don't think I didn't see the threat in your eyes that you've been giving everyone."

"It's complicated," you sigh. The truth was going to come out eventually. "Do you remember how me and Welt were taken aback when we met Acheron?" You turn to look at him as you wait for his answer.

"I do, Welt said that she was like someone you met on your world," he answers.

"That's right." You bite your lip trying to find the words to say your next thought. "Being on Amphoreus… It's like that but so much worse," you confessed. "The people you've met were people I deeply cared about back home." You shudder at your own vulnerability, but you trust Dan Heng more than you feel the pain when bringing back these memories. You opened your mouth to try and explain your weird relationship with Phainon, but you couldn't will your mind turn its thoughts into sound.

"I see…" You didn't expect him to know how to respond, but he ponders for a response anyway. "Do you think your past might give us some insight into this world?"

"If it does, then I know that this world was fucked before we even stepped foot here," you scoff. The dark thought of killing your alternate self on this world, just so that you could prove that this and any planet with you on it was better off dead.

Dan Heng puts a hand on your shoulder, and you smile at his awkward yet endearing attempt at comforting you. It kind of makes you wish March was here as well, her bubbly energy always giving you a sense of levity to any situation.

"I may not know your whole story, but me and Stelle will stand by you no matter what." If anyone knew what it was like to have a horrid past, it would be Dan Heng. The experience of being hated for something you never did was something you both shared, and it warms your heart that you have found people who will stand by your side no matter what. A luxury you weren't afforded often, but one you cherish all the same.

You nod your head with a smile, not trusting your voice to stop itself from breaking down into tears. It helps that Stelle was heading down to the two of you, another welcome distraction from the warring thoughts in your head.

Stelle starts to tell you what Aglaea had told her. Most of it was extra information added to the fairy tales that the children have told you. You had a feeling that this world was not aware of what lies beyond its firmament, but you didn't know it was something that was outright hidden from them. Whatever, their world, their rules. You have no intention to break them.

But one fact has surprised you, a pit falling in your stomach and your heart somehow aching more than it has been.

"This is Amphoreus' Flame-Chase journey — a band of heroes dedicated to slaying the gods and reclaiming the twelve Coreflames for the world to start over anew."

The Flame-Chasers haunt you wherever you go. Your past digging its claws into your flesh. Your eternal punishment for the sins you have committed. You wonder if this version of you has realized their destiny, the burden they must carry to the end.

"Hm, there's still a lot about this situation that we don't know." You cross your arms and look up to the private baths. "Why don't you two go and talk to some of the locals? Get a feel for the situation."

"And what will you do—" Dan Heng started to ask before Stelle cut him off.

"Oooooh, you're going to talk to Phainon! I saw the heart eyes you were giving him– Ow!" You're thankful that Dan Heng had the tact to elbow Stelle. You love her, but her mouth really had a way of getting into trouble.

"I want to check up on something." You hold both of their shoulders and plead with them. "Do not, under any circumstances, get into any trouble. I may not know Aglaea all that well, but she doesn't seem like the type to tolerate the slightest subordination." You shudder when you think of how Aponia would act when something didn't go her way.

"Don't you worry, I'll keep Dan Heng out of trouble!" Stelle yelled out before walking out of the baths. Dan Heng sighed and assured you that he would keep an eye on her, before following her.

You give yourself a second, trying to let your brain catch up with the last few hours or so. Your heart clenched and started beating erratically, panic and adrenaline flooding your system. This was getting too much for you to handle and you were one wrong encounter away from collapsing onto the floor in a catatonic state. But you couldn't give in to your fear, you have people depending on you. People who trust you to not let them down.

("Breathe, Starlight," he whispered into your ear. His cold arms kept you grounded amongst the field of corpses around you. "I got you, nothing is going to happen, I promise." He smiled and you almost believed him. But despite the heavens he tried to move and the hell he tried to raise, he was still mortal and you were his God. There was nothing he could do to change your fate.)

(Huh, there wasn't blood flowing from the corpses, but a weird orange energy. That wasn't exactly how you remembered how the battle went.)

You must have zoned out for quite a while because before you know it, you walk through the same streets you ran through to get to the battle. Despite the chaos that was occurring a couple of hours ago, everything seemed to go back to normal. The vendors went back to selling their produce, the lovers were walking through the streets with wistful smiles and the children were playing like they should.

"Ms. (Y/N)!" was the only warning you got before you almost collapsed under the two children you saved.

"I'm glad that you're ok!" you smile as you bend down to give your two kids a hug. Joy replaced the earlier panic, happy that there was something good that happened during your time here. "I trust that Lord Mydeimos took good care of you?"

Aris nodded while explaining how cool Lord Mydeimos – apparently he insists on just being called 'Mydei' – was, with his amazing strength and incredible knowledge on the battlefield. He tried, and failed, to recreate the fighting moves that Mydei used.

"He said that if I practice enough, I can be an even better warrior than him!"

"You still have quite a ways to go before you will reach Mydei's level."

Phainon's voice came out of nowhere, giving you a bit of a scare. He stood in front of the children, a smile on his face and hands on his hips. The children were happy to have another one of the Chrysos Heirs giving them attention. Phainon didn't seem to mind, laughing as the children took their turns treating him like a jungle gym.

You thought about having children, once upon a time. You'd crush those ideas before they could turn into something tangible, for fear that you would pass down your Herrscher curse to your children. Would this be what your life would be like if you weren't forced to bear the world's burden?

"Aris! Pallas! It's time for dinner!" You look up to see an old woman calling out to the children. Thank goodness the children had someone in Okhema to take care of them. You weren't ready to become an impromptu mother to two kids, especially with your grown children to take care of.

"Coming Grandma!" the kids respond, but they don't leave without almost knocking you over again with another hug. You make them promise again to stay out of trouble, and that you will always be there for them if they call out your name.

"Those kids seem to like you." Phainon took his place next to you, eyes scanning Marmoreal Palace for any trouble that he may need to help with. He didn't look at you, and you don't think you have the heart to look at him.

"Oh you know, save a child's life and they feel indebted to you for eternity," you chuckle, trying to relieve your nerves and the awkward tension in the air.

Neither of you know what to say. You could see Phainon opening and closing his mouth, trying to find the right words to say. Your own brain started to hurt with the amount of thinking you were doing, wanting to gather the answers you needed while protecting your own heart. There was only one way for this to end and that was in shared vulnerability. But you don't think you have it in you to be vulnerable in front of another man, even if he looks and sounds eerily like your dearly departed.

Luckily, Phainon was willing to bite the first bullet.

"Your ring is beautiful," he spoke up, eyes focusing on the blue gem around your neck. You instinctively hold it in your hand, finding relief in its biting cold. "The man who must have given it to you must have cared about you dearly."

"He did…" you trail off with a smile, letting yourself revel in the good memories without letting the bad ones taint what you have left of him. The cold from the gold brought you more comfort than you care to admit.

"If you don't mind me asking– and of course if you don't want to answer I completely understand–" Phainon goes on a tangent about not wanting to make you uncomfortable but that he was really curious. About what, he hasn't even told you yet. You put a hand on his shoulder, slowly and with hesitation, giving him enough time to pull away if he pleases to do so.

"It's alright, Phainon, just ask me what you wish to know," you reassure him with a smile.

"Were you married to someone back home?" His hands started fidgeting with his own ring finger like he was missing something there. (It just so happens that the ring you hold was an exact match for the one he was going to give his partner.)

It's the question many people ask you when they see the ring. Who's the lucky guy who captured your heart, many would ask. You'd always counter that you were the lucky one for having Kevin choose you. He was and forever will be the greatest thing that has happened to you, and you will carry that with you wherever you go. You may not have had the wedding of your dreams, but you were his. In sickness and health, till death do you part and a little bit beyond that. You don't need a legally signed paper to tell you what your soul already knows.

("Things are getting out of hand out there," he said as he knelt down to one knee. "I may not be able to give you everything that you deserve, but let me give you this one thing." He pulled the ring out of his pocket and your eyes started to blur with tears. "My heart, my love and my soul will forever belong to you. No matter where life takes you, I want you to remember that I will always be with you as long as you wear this ring." Ice started to form on his cheeks.)

("So, Starlight, my sun on a cold winter day, will you do the honours of marrying me? In this life or the next?)

(You never answered a question more quickly in your life.)

"That's hard to explain." How else can you explain that not even the day after, your closest friend and confidant revealed that she was also a Herrscher and that she sacrificed herself for future generations. How you lost your mind and became a force of destruction, ending all life in sight. That it took the combined power of all the living Flame-Chasers just to seal you away. That you spent the last fifty thousand years in exile only to be released with the death of your lover.

Phainon has a bright heart, and it reminded you of Kevin's before the responsibilities as the Deliverance took its full toll on him. Who were you to reveal him to the true horrors of his fate before he was ready? So you tell him a sanitized version until he is ready to hear your whole story. Until you're able to recount your life as objectively as possible, without driving yourself mad with what-ifs.

"We didn't know how much time we had left, so he proposed to me with hopes that we'll get married once the threat to our world was over." A bitter side of you wished to demand more time, and you've come to just appreciate the time that you had. You continue with your story, "he was right. The day after the proposal, our entire world fell apart." You don't add the fact that you were to blame for its destruction.

If the Amphoreus version of you will play the same role that you did, then you wish to preserve their image in Phainon's mind for a little bit longer.

"My apologies, I didn't mean to bring up such awful memories." Phainon was so chivalrous, it made you want to shake him by the shoulders and tell him that it's okay if he doesn't appear heroic for two seconds. He better learn this lesson before he burns himself out.

"The thing is that in between the awful memories – and trust me, there were some shit times – there are memories that I will cherish until I die." Your first birthday party after the eruption you caused, the night Kevin confessed his feelings for you, the brief hope you had when you thought your powers were under your control. These are the memories that shine through the despair you felt. And now with the Astral Express, you can create new memories that will drown out the darkness that you carry.

"You learn how to continue to live despite everything," you smile softly as you turn to look at him. Phainon's eyes were wide and hanging off of every word that you were saying. Maybe to him, the words you were saying were the Gospel he would hold close to his heart, letting them imprint themselves onto his soul. Or maybe, he was blurring the lines between you and someone else.

"Even when it hurts?" His voice stuttered, more broken than what you expected. His heart had already gone through unimaginable pain, you fear. Your instincts kicked in, wanting to shield him away from the world that had nothing but cruel plans for him.

You couldn't protect your Kevin, but you could at the very least protect Phainon.

(It's too late, for his fate was sealed thirty-three million, five hundred and fifty thousand, three hundred and thirty-six cycles ago. But with you here now, perhaps you can create enough disruption to end his suffering. You of all people should know what it's like to be locked away. You would do anything to prevent another from suffering the same fate.)

"You have people that rely on you, Phainon," you remind him. "For people like– for you, there is no break from your fate, as unfair as that sounds."

His shoulders slump and his lips start to pout. Clearly, this wasn't the answer that he wanted to hear, but you wouldn't want to lull him in a false sense of security.

You continue to look at him, trying to see past the ghosts that haunt you. For all the similarities Phainon and Kevin share, there were some differences. Kevin carried himself with calculated confidence, always trying to seem like he was in control. He'd only confide with you in private that most of it was a ruse to psych himself into believing in the future. As time went on, he became even more of a recluse, and the rare smile he'd share on some occasions was all but gone.

Phainon on the other hand wore his heart on his sleeve. He smiled freely, he cared fiercely and he wasn't afraid to hide any of his emotions. You wish to keep him like this, happy that at least in one world, you were able to see your lover before disaster.

You only met Kevin after he'd joined the Fire MOTH, and you didn't get to really know him until years after your deployment. You never got to meet the carefree version of him from Su or Mei's stories.

"There was a boy and a girl that I knew, once upon a time." Your voice had piqued his attention and all traces of that sad, puppy expression had disappeared. You continue on with your story.

"The girl's fate was sealed from the moment she was born. A terrible darkness was sealed inside of her, and it was only a matter of time before it would take over her being." You take a deep breath before you continue. "We call these beings 'Herrschers'." How could a word mean nothing to one person, but chill you to your bones?

"But despite what her destiny had decreed, she did everything in her power to fight against the darkness. It was almost futile, but she held such a deep love for humanity that it fueled her desire to win." Would the bright-eyed rookie all those years ago be proud of who you are? Of all the damage you caused and tried to fix and undo?

"The boy on the other hand had all the choice in the world." You almost lose yourself in another memory, catching yourself before you do. "He could have lived his life in relative peace, but he chose to fight."

"Because he too had a deep love for humanity?" Phainon asked.

"You're not wrong, but not exactly. He gained a new reason when he fell in love with the girl." You look towards the Dawn Machine, the closest thing this planet has to a sun. "He promised to keep her safe from fate, to defy anything that stood in his way."

Before he stood on his knee to ask for your hand in marriage, he stood before you, vowing to keep you away from anything that would bring you harm, including yourself.

("Even when the Honkai makes you unrecognizable, I will always fight to find the woman I love within." A knight swearing to his princess, an oath written in blood and stardust. There was no one that would come in between him and you, the beautiful end. You make a silent oath to yourself to never let him have to choose between you or the world.)

"In the end, they both failed to achieve their goals. The darkness that she so desperately tried to conceal did exactly what she was afraid of." The distant screams and prayers have become white noise to you. "And the boy couldn't save her from her fate, and so he had to kill her. And her revival only could happen after the boy killed himself. " You were glad that your last sight was of Kevin's face. You only wish his eyes weren't blurred by his tears. You only wish that you were there to provide him the same comfort.

Phainon took a sharp breath, not expecting the story to end so bleakly. The light in his eyes started to dim and his hands were shaky at his side. If he thought you were going to give him hope that everything would be okay, then he was speaking to the wrong person.

His voice is solemn, unlike the cheerful tone he had thus far.

"Are all of our fates destined to be that bleak?" he asks with a woeful tone. You could tell he didn't want to accept such a notion, but sometimes there is simply nothing you could do except to welcome the inevitable.

That was not the lesson you wanted Phainon to leave with.

"Maybe yes, maybe no," you muse with a smile. From the corner of your eyes, Phainon tilts his head at your light tone. You continue on with the moral of your story. "If you ask the girl, she'd probably tell you that she doesn't regret a thing."

"What do you mean?" Phainon is skeptical but doesn't shut you down.

"She met the love of her life, had a great group of friends that she called family, and even if it was for a brief amount of time, she was able to help protect her home. Sure, she wishes things ended differently, but she's come to learn that that's how life goes sometimes." You didn't know when you became so optimistic, but it was leagues better than being miserable all the time.

You miss him. Desperately so with an ache in your soul. Sometimes you stay up in the middle of the night, feeling the faint connection between your heart and his. But you have since grown without him, and slowly, you were filling the void with new friends and new loves. Himeko's awful coffee. Welt's science jokes that no one gets but him. The trio and all the chaos that they get into.

You wish Kevin could see you now. He'd be crying to see the woman who's so haunted by her past being able to let go and find peace. It's a long process, and a very slow one, but the best time to start is today.

Just as Phainon brings you hope that there could be a version of your story that has a happy ending, you hope that your story shows him that there is life beyond tragedy. That even the darkest times cannot stay forever. He just needs to persevere through all of it, and you know he will.

When you arrived on Amphoreus and learned of its peculiarity, you were scared that all the little healing that you had done was for nothing.

Now? It was just a sign of how far you have come. That you weren't sobbing at the sight and sound of Phainon. Truthfully, you think that you have gained a new friend and you are thankful for that.

"That was… a beautiful story," he sniffles as wipes his tears. You didn't mean to make the poor man cry, but at least he was comfortable sharing his emotions with you.

You thank him and continue to gaze beyond the horizon, a sense of peace that you haven't felt in millennia overcoming you. The awkward energy gave away to two people basking in the painful reminders of what it means to be human. A human who feels too much and a monster who doesn't feel at all, or at least that is what you tell yourself. You were coming to terms that maybe you aren't the monster everyone thought you were.

"When I first saw you, I couldn't help but compare you to my partner," he confesses with shame. "I was so… furious that you were just standing there while they were gone." His fists clenched, not with anger but with determination. "But now I understand that you too have lost your lover, and that our pain is shared."

"However, I am sorry, I refuse to share our destiny." He stood with a fire in his eyes. "I will not lose Amphoreus or my partner to the Black Tide or any other threat that comes in the future."

Echoes of the past whispered in your ear. "Humanity will never lose hope for as long as they call me their hero, their Deliverer."

"Good," you snark, and a little bit of your old self starts to bleed through. "I expect nothing less, Deliverer."

He smiles and pounds his fist against his heart, another oath made to you. Hopefully, this one will be kept.

"I, Phainon of Aedes Elysiae, swear to you that I will see the Flame-Chase to the end, and that I will grant Amphoreus the happy ending we all deserve," he said with conviction, the same that you have heard from over the years. The desire to save your home isn't exclusive to one dying world, and you can extend your desire to other people.

"Then Phainon of Aedes of Elysiae," you start as you place a fist against your own heart, "I, (Y/N) of the Trailblaze swear that I will help however I can save Amphoreus from the Black Tide, and bring you to the Era Nova." You will not let another dying world fall.

In his excitement, Phainon lunges towards you and gives you a hug. His arms wrapped your back and lifted you up in the air. Your surprised shriek let him know that while this hug wasn't unwelcome, a warning would have done you good.

With renewed vigour, you and Phainon continue to walk through Marmoreal Market, with him pointing out all the stalls and the stories behind each of them. You laugh at his dramatic recreation, completely enchanted by the way he carries himself. In another life, he would have made for a fine historian.

It wasn't until you passed a funeral home that Phainon spoke up to ask you another question.

"Have you ever thought about death?" he asks with such innocent curiosity that it almost distracts you from the morbid question.

"Do you think I'm going to die soon?" you counter with a question of your own, happy with the panic you caused him. He stopped and turned around like a deer in headlights, and he let out another ramble to excuse himself.

"No! That is definitely not what I meant," he trembled in place, his hands waving around in surrender. "It's just that I've always thought about it – you know being a warrior, you never know when your time will come – and it's something I ask everyone. Though I understand if that seems odd, especially to an outsider. Please forgive me!" How he said that in one breath was a miracle. You need to calm him down before he bows– oh, there he goes. Bobbing his head up and down like he will be able to repent his sins.

"I haven't given it a lot of thought to be honest." Your voice snaps him out of repentance and gives you his utmost attention. "All I know is that I wish to be buried in a wedding dress," you smile. "He better have planned the biggest party for me."

"If I were to die alongside you, I expect an invitation as well." That much was obvious, but you hope he survives longer than you do if only to enjoy the happy ending he rightfully deserves. You also don't want to face the wrath of Amphoreus you for taking their man away from them so soon.

You were not his. He is not yours. The eerie similarities don't make up for the history that you share with your respective lovers. But in the shared details of your story, you find comfort that there are people like you, who face trials and tribulations beyond human comprehension. But at the same time, different enough to avoid the same doom you had to go through.

This is supposed to be a romantic story after all.

Just when you thought that all could end well, Lady Triannon comes running towards you, crying out to yourself and Phainon.

"Snowy! Come quick! Aglaea is going to execute Grayie and Dan Heng!" You don't respond, just running after her to save your idiots from their own poor decision-making.

You didn't think your life would come to this, but like you said earlier, you wouldn't change it for a damn thing.

–

(Beyond Calamity's Gate, there is an emanator waiting for their lover to fulfill the prophecy to set them free. They could only hope that he would be able to stop them from destroying the land they have come to love, and become the hero he was meant to be.)

(In another universe, there stood a man on the moon who barely escaped Death's hands. A girl with your eyes told him that you were okay, just exploring beyond the stars. He thinks that you deserved it after the sacrifices you made, but that didn't stop his longing to be with you again. He will find you, just like he promised all those years ago.)

given that all of this was written before 3.4, forgive me for the hopefulish ending ;-; mayhaps i'll write this from phainon's pov one day hehehe

may phainon wanters be phainon havers in the year of our lord 2025!!!

#phainon hsr #phainon x reader #phainon x you #honkai star rail #kevin kaslana #kevin kaslana x reader #kevin kaslana x you #honkai impact 3rd #tricking everyone to love kevin hehehe #zo writes tingz #this is zo speaking

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scarletttries · 3 days ago

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Smutty Ghost Thought

Inspired by this post in which Johnny helps the reader get ready for a night with his hot masked friend.

I don't even play CoD or write Ghost but something about this set up is absolutely living in my mind right now so sharing here too 👻💞

After a couple of weeks of 'practicing' you let Johnny know you're ready for him to set you up with his cute friend in the ghost mask, and surely enough Ghost's more than happy to meet you at a bar just outside of the base. You two barely finish your first drink before you suggest heading back to your place for the next one and suddenly your nails are digging into his biceps as he carries you across to your bed, not letting his bare chest leave yours for even a second as he climbs on top of you. His mask is pulled up just enough for his lips to cascade hungry kisses from your open lips down your torso, and then your underwear is gone and his tongue is frantically lapping at your core, bringing you to the edge before you can even get his pants down.

The way he's groaning and panting between your thighs makes it hard to remember why you brought him here, but you're not about to waste all your efforts training with that dildo so the next time he makes you see stars you drag his covered face back to your lips, his tongue quickly diving between your lips as you start undoing his belt, the intimidating bulge in his pants twitching as your fingers work against his buckle. You can feel Ghost tense up, start trying to pull himself away from your sweet kiss so he can manage your expectations about what's about to happen.

"It's - uh-" he's not sure he can conjure up the words as you nip at the exposed parts of his neck and gently roll him onto his back so you can finish getting the rest of his clothes out of the way. He's surprised at how little you react to his size as it springs free, your face nothing but determination and beaming joy as you pump him in your hand, moving to straddle his thighs as he watches helplessly. "Sorry - it's" he tries again, using his bulging biceps to sit himself up so he can look you in the eye to explain. You look so pleased and warm as you plant a soft kiss against his lips and start to line his length up with your entrance, taking your time to run his tip over your wet folds and throbbing clit.

"Don't worry Simon, I knew you'd be big. So I've been practicing." You say the words like he should know what they mean, his eyes glazing over behind his mask as you start to slowly slide the head of his cock inside you, moving with soft, careful bounces that pull the air right out of the usually composed soldier's lungs.

"Practicing?" He splutters out the words with a moan, gripping your thighs with all his strength just to try and keep his composure as he watches himself disappear inside you at a tortuously slow pace.

"Yeah, someone told me how big you were so I got this a toy your size and I've been practicing fitting it inside me. It's been pretty fun, and I've been thinking of you a lot." The confession came with the same wide eyed innocence with which you might admit to put a note in someone's locker, Simon's swimming head barely able to comprehend the mental image of you fantasising about this moment. As he stared at you, mouth agape, you brought his hands gently to your chest where they began obediently kneading at your breasts and grazing your sensitive nipples. Just about regaining the ability to form a sentence, he has to hear you say it again,

"So you're saying you've been fucking yourself on a toy this big, and making yourself cum thinking about me, so you could go out with me?" He sounds drunk as the words spill from his lips, the feeling of your tight walls slowly lowering around him as you arch your back into his touch almost enough to finish him off right there. You look so perfect as you sink down on his lap, nails digging into his shoulders as your lips slowly part into a blissful smile.

"Well yeah - I like you Simon." It's too much for him as you take in his final aching inch and look him in the eyes and smile so sweetly, his name sounding wonderfully familiar in your saccharine confession. He's been in countless dangerous situations, but Ghost's sure he's never felt quite as unprepared as he does right now. He doesn't know what he possibly could have done to deserve this, but he knows he's going to do everything he can to make sure you feel his appreciation. He's still groping your chest needily so you don't move yet, watching the gears turn in his head as his aching heart implores him to say the words back. In one swift move his mask is dragged off his face and thrown halfway across the room, your smile only growing as you lean in closer to appreciate every new detail of his expression.

"I like you too, love." The words are quieter than he intended them to be, but his lips are so close to yours that you hear them clearly, then suddenly his tongue is in your mouth and his hips are bucking up into you and his fingers are playing with nipples when they aren't rubbing soft circles over your clit. You may have practiced fitting his enormous cock inside you, but nothing could have prepared you for the overwhelming pleasure of bouncing in Ghost's lap while he does everything he can to thank you for taking a chance on him.

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justslightlymental · 21 hours ago

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"All of them Goddamn" Saja Boys x Reader Part 2

ill be so honest guys I feel like I butchered the start but oh well! I don't know for sure how long in the actual movie it took for them to defeat them yada yada. But in this AU i'll just say it took like a few months. Anyway, this doesn't have smut in it, IM SORRY BRO OKAY. im lowkey thinking of making a part 3 cuz this shit ended weird ok. ALSO reader is pregnant, if u dont like that LEAVE. its not my fault bro had unsafe smeggs in part 1

also yes im working on my other requests about them, those will be full on smut trust :33333 -

IT had been weeks since our last encounter. And oh boy… I’ve had these terrible headaches, these terrible stomach aches. The many times I’ve had to dip out of rehearsals just to empty my stomach. My energy levels have gone down the drain. I thought about reasons for a very long time, I was perfectly fine before the “Saja Boys” fiasco at the bathhouse, and a week or so after I was fine. But the more I thought about that night the more I realised how irresponsible and lust driven all of us were. Literally all of them splattered my insides white and NONE of us had any kind of protection, oh my fucking god. “What if I'm pregnant. What if im carrying the child of a fucking demon.” I spoke to myself quietly, sitting in my bed, stressing the fuck out. It all made sense, and I honestly wish it didn’t. How am I supposed to bring this up to THEM? How am I supposed to explain my predicament to my bandmates?? To our manager?? I can’t just fucking go up to them like ‘Oh yeah.. By the way, I'M pregnant and the father must be one of the Saja boys. Hell no. We had enough trouble overall with losing our fans day by day to them, and figuring out a song to completely wipe the demons out and strengthen the Honmoon up for good. Wait… If we defeat the saja boys and actually succeed, what about this possible child I might be carrying?? I mean maybe I’m not pregnant- But with everything happening there is a 98% chance I am. If we kill them- my child- or well their child too will forever be fatherless OH GOD what if the baby dies too?? I have to take a test, like badly. “Hey, I'm going out!” I said to the girls after emerging from my room, dressed very casually. “Alright, be safe okay?” Rumi said back, before turning back to her movie.

“Oh! Can you bring back chicken noodles?? I’ve been craving them!” Zoey yelled out from the kitchen. “Will do, bye bye!” “Byeeee!” Mira said, not looking away from her book.

The evening breeze was chilly, the hoodie I wore could only do so much. Feeling the cold sweeping through the tiniest openings. I walked faster, wanting to get to the sweet warmth of the pharmacy, which shouldn’t be too far now. As I finally reached the store, immediately feeling relieved and speed walking to the intimacy section, looking through all the different tests. I kept my hood up, trying to stay as hidden as possible not wanting any scandals to happen.

”Would you like some help?” A kind pharmacist said from next to me, a smile on her face. ”Uhmm… Well, anything that's trustworthy..?” I answered awkwardly.

We had a lovely conversation, she was really easy to talk to. The average auntie, well at least she looked the age… Thankfully she did not recognize me, internally sighing in relief. As I finished shopping and walked out. I was immediately met with the cold and once again began my walk back home.

Though as I was walking it felt like I was being watched, the hairs on the back of my neck rising like I was spiderman. I tried to walk faster, taking different routes but in the end a sudden smoke appeared out of nowhere, scaring the ever living shit out of me. Currently I was in an alley too so his shit truly was not ideal.

”Well well well, look who it is.” A deep voice called out and I immediately recognized it.

”Jinu??!” I said shocked, clutching the bag into my chest.

”And don’t forget about us!” Another voice said and four more men appeared right next to Jinu.

Oh for fucks sake.

”I'm not in the mood.” I scoffed.

Okay well between you and me I was very much in the mood but I also did not want them knowing about my… predicament.

”C'mon doll we all know that’s a lie.” Abby said, walking closer to me, throwing his arm around my shoulders.

”No really, please.. Just let me go.” I sighed, my emotions in overdrive. “What’s the matter?” Mystery asked, seemingly the only one with the social skills to actually pick up on my mood. “It’s nothing, just a bad day.” I quickly said, wanting to get out of this situation before my ‘possible’ secret gets revealed. “Why do you smell so good right now?” Romance spoke up, suddenly appearing right beside me, literally inhaling my scent. “Now that you mention I smell it too.” Baby said, eyeing me up and down. Oh shit, I literally forgot they are demons. Does this basically confirm my suspicions and fears? Can they smell the change in my hormones or some shit? That's lowkey creepy, but whatever. “Just let me go.” I said once again, walking past them. Obviously they wouldn’t let me go that easily, hearing their footsteps behind me. I was seriously fed up. “You’re hiding something aren’t you? Maybe in that bag of yours?” Jinu caught up with me, tilting his head in a mocking way. “Did you pick up some toys to use incase we all met up again?” Abby joked, others giggling with him.

I chose to ignore them, as much as I honestly wanted to get down on the floor and get absolutely ravished by all of them. Getting home and doing this test and then crying my eyes out was much more favorable. Though I don’t think they took me ignoring them very well, the next thing I knew they had stopped in their tracks, making me turn around, their faces rid of any humor or smiles. “Fine if you’re going to act like a brat. Don’t bother crawling back to us begging for more.” Jinu scoffed, all of them agreeing with him. “The entitlement is crazy!! See if i fucking care!” I yelled out, baffled at how these men… No these DEMONS were acting. No other words were exchanged as I turned on my heel and practically ran off, holding in the tears. This is how everything was supposed to go. Obviously they wouldn’t hold any emotional attachment to me, what was I expecting? A nice dinner date in the city's most luxurious 5 star restaurant?? They are demons for fucks sake, their whole thing is to just lure people in and then eat their souls. But why did it hurt so much? It’s not like they actually took advantage of me or anything, I gave them my full consent and was reckless. And now I'm paying the price for one night of pleasure. I thought, staring at the 3 positive tests in my hand. Makeup already ruined, eyeliner mushed around my cheeks, tears still flowing down freely. My emotions were all over the place, It wasn’t on my plans to become a young mother to a fucking half demon baby. Yet despite all of that I couldn’t help but already feel attached. This child was innocent, who am I to blame it for being conceived by my own foolish desires and actions. I had decided, no matter how foolish or bad, I was keeping this baby and that’s final. The next few weeks were awful, between the writing, composing of songs and rehearsals not to mention rivaling against Saja boys. AND struggling with the amazing side effects of pregnancy, thankfully I wasn’t showing yet, so I could still use our performance outfits no matter how flashy or tight they were. Things had been going south though. The Honmoon was weakening due to our lack of progress, demons appearing left and right. Fans leaving and going for Saja boys. They were practically everywhere, we were being overthrown quickly.

“Alright girls! I know everythings all ‘saja’ ‘saja’. But we are going to turn it into ‘Huntrix!’ ‘Huntrix!’ alright?” Bobby said with a smile placing a bunch of posters in front of us at our table. “There’s a bunch of fans outside who literally SLEPT on the sidewalk just to see you. “Happy fans… Happy Honmoon!” We all looked at each other and clicked our pens together, sitting at our fan event table. And so the fans bursted in and so did 5 random… sleeping bag things..? “And who do I owe this to?” Rumi asked with a smile, going to pick up a poster to sign it. “To your biggest fans…” The male said, they all revealed themselves as Saja boys. Oh for FUCKS sake. All of the attendees went crazy yelling out their band name. “Oh Saja boys It’s an honor! Table please!” Bobby said, as they brought a table down for the boys. “Joint meeting??” Half of the people lined up for us moved to the boys table. We looked at each other baffled, Rumi staying silent for a moment before standing up and announcing the boys would be seated with us and the people immediately lined back up. “WHAT?!” All of us whisper yelled.

“We need all the fans we can get…” Rumi said, sitting back down in her seat. I was now forced to sit between Baby and Jinu. Neither of them didn’t seem to pay attention to me, but I could feel glances my way ever so often. Forced to listen to them shamelessly flirting with my bandmates, forced to sit in absolute misery and worst of all.. Forced to suffer my raging hormones, oh god they smelled so good. The fan event started off good, signing posters and albums, having short chats with the fans, doing cute stuff yada yada. I was doing a pretty good job with ignoring the boys, no matter how much I wanted to oogle at them. Jinu made it very clear they don’t want anything to do with me anymore. “Hello! I hope you’re doing alright!” I smiled sweetly at the next fan in front of me, a guy my age I assumed. “Oh my god!! I can’t believe I’m finally meeting you!” He beamed with happiness, taking my hands in his. Oookayy.. could’ve asked for permission first but i’ll let it slide… Happy fans.. Happy Honmoon I reminded myself. “I can’t believe I'm meeting you! Thank you for supporting us!” I smiled back, a little forced. “I’ve been a fan since the first day, you’re my favorite! I love you so much!” He continued, moving closer to me. “I appreciate that!” I cringed internally at how close he was getting. “Would you like me to sign anything?” The fanboy gasped letting go of my hands to dig into his bag, probably for an album. I couldn’t help but notice from the corner of my eye how Jinu had turned his head towards us both, watching the interaction clearly not amused. It was then when I felt a hand land on my thigh, inching ever so closer to my core. My eyes widened for a moment before I calmed myself down, acting normal for the fan. “Please sign my album!” He asked, handing it to me and so I did.

“You’re so amazing!!! Pleaseee marry me!” The guy said, lowkey freaking me out now. This also caught the attention of my bandmates but also all of the Saja Boys. And if looks could kill this fellow would be buried deep within the earth's core. I forced an awkward smile, trying not to yell at this guy, not wanting to scare any of the other fans who might I add also started watching the interaction. “Hahaha- Thank you- umm I’m sorry but-” Before I could continue a hand slammed in front of me, making me flinch. “I think it’s time you move on.” It was Jinu and he was pissed, in fact they all were pissed I could feel the atmosphere changing. Everyone was dead quiet, the guy looked like he would piss his pants at any moment, before quickly snatching the poster and fleeing the whole event. It was pretty fucking awkward after that but it wasn’t long until things seemed to return to normal. “Thank you…” I muttered to Jinu, not sparing a glance. He didn’t reply but he didn’t need to, another squeeze to my thigh was all I needed. Maybe everything was not lost between us after all, maybe he did care, maybe they all did. They just didn’t know how to express themselves… I don’t know, maybe I’m just delusional holding onto the smallest thread of hope. One thing is for sure though, I need to let them know. After the fan event fiasco I was sitting in my dressing room, just staring into the mirror. The frown on my face was evident as a hand rested on my stomach. The thoughts in my head racing, I was so conflicted. Everytime I saw one of the guys I felt weak in my legs, my heart thumped against my chest, and I just felt… weird. Was I really falling in love?

And how would that end huh…

I was suddenly pulled away by my thoughts due to my door opening, in walked all of them. Without an invitation of course!! We just stared at each other without saying a word, the air heavy around us. I don’t know for how long we just stood there in silence, but it felt like our eyes were having the conversation for us entirely.

“Why did you come here.” I asked bluntly.

“To check up on you, are we not allowed to care?” Jinu asked with a frown, hands folded in front of his chest. I let out an amused scoff, looking away from them, gathering my words. “That’s rich coming from you. From all of you.” I said a hint of venom in my tone. “From what I gathered last time we happened to bump into each other you all were only after ONE thing. Sex. It’s very funny suddenly seeing you ‘care’, or being interested in how I'm doing. Hey it’s okay though! It was a really nice one night stand, I can't believe I expected more.” It felt relieving to finally get my feelings out, really it did. “What? Got nothing to say? Because I was right?” I asked, staring at their faces, all of them seemed to avoid eye contact, nervous almost. “It’s.. not that… I just- We’ll we just… The truth is-” Jinu tried but couldn’t get the words out of his mouth. “We all like you!” Baby Saja yelled out. “We didn’t know how to tell you, or how to find you..” Romance continued, scratching the back of his head. “I guess the moment we saw you again.. Asking for that was like.. a way to try and forget..” Abby said, his face red. “We thought you would never like us back.. Since you know… we are demons.” Mystery quietly said Honestly their confession shocked me, you mean there’s actually hope?? They actually have feelings?? No fucking way. It almost brought me to tears, fucking hormones. “I- I’m shocked… Truth is after our ‘thing’ I couldn’t stop thinking about you all…” I mumbled, all of their heads snapped towards me. “It was torture trying to sleep that night…” I giggled quietly, remembering. “You drive us crazy… And today seeing that boy touch you… It made us mad, it's weird.. It feels like an instinct, to protect you from everything and anything…” Jinu said, others agreeing. “I feel like I need to be close to you… at all times, something is pulling me in.” Baby said, walking closer to me. All of them followed, I backed towards the counter where all my makeup was laid. I stared up at them, all of a sudden remembering the last time and immediately felt like my panties had just been dipped into water. “I want to be close to you all too…” I said, eyes never leaving theirs. Suddenly nothing else mattered, all I wanted was to have a taste of them again, to feel them touch me, mark me, claim me. Jinu’s hands landed on my shoulders, he leaned in slowly, our lips connecting in a sweet kiss. It wasn’t messy like before, but instead a passionate one. As we separated he looked me deep in the eyes, his hand caressing my cheek. “I’m sorry about that day.” He said. “It’s okay…” None of us shared another word, but that was okay. Though I still felt terrible, as they all got close to me. I was keeping this secret from them, but I was afraid, so afraid. What would they think? What would everyone think? I didn’t want this moment to end in more unnecessary fighting and drama, I just wanted everyone to be happy. If it meant keeping and going through this by myself I would do it.

Romance pressed his lips against my neck, his teeth just slightly gracing my skin. Baby on my other side, his hand caressing my arm, leaning against me, enjoying the warmth of my skin. Abby took Jinu’s place in front of me, kissing me deeply, pressing himself up against me. Softly moaning into his kiss, playfully fighting his tongue with my own. Mystery had taken Romance's side and was now running his fingers through my hair, kissing my cheek and neck. After a little bit more making out with them and touching each other up we separated, even if we didn’t want to. But time was not on our side, soon the girls would come looking for me and we would be busted big time. “We’ll see each other more right?” I asked hopefully, the fact is I felt myself not wanting to leave their side for even a moment. “Yes, definitely. It hurts us to be away from you darling.” Jinu said. “Let us mark you… be ours forever..” Abby asked, almost desperate. “Please, I need everyone to know you are mine and theirs.” Mystery said, his voice whiny. The rest agreed, and how could I say no to them? Even if my mind tried telling me no. For deep down in my heart I was afraid of all these feelings, what happens if we truly seal the Honmoon up for good? My heart would be broken beyond repair. “Yes.” In a flash their human forms disappeared, replaced by their demon counterparts. I used to loathe them, to hate them but now I feel like I preferred seeing their true selves. I felt even more connected to them. They placed their hands on my chest one by one, each time a mark flashed over my chest, a purple hue traveling along my veins down my arms before disappearing. Each time I felt a surge of emotions, feelings like a piece of their lost souls merged with mine. I'm sure they felt more alive, I could see this light in their eyes I had never seen before. “You are ours now and we.. are yours.” - YEA ILL MAKE A PART 3 MAYBE YEAH (i will)

#saja boys x reader #saja boys #kpop demon hunters #huntrix #jinu x reader #romance x reader #abby x reader #abs x reader #baby saja x reader #baby x reader #mystery x reader

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