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ncssian · 3 years

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A Favor: Part Twenty-Eight

Nessian Modern AU

Masterlist

a/n: the beginning of the end :,) if u made it this far i think ur cool

***

“Where do you see yourself in five years?” Lana asks.

Nesta closes her eyes, letting the picture swirl and take shape in her mind.

This time last year, she would have imagined nothing. Nothing but a desk in a busy law office, and maybe a nice apartment if she was lucky. That would be it. But now she sees…

“Somewhere with good food and good music,” she muses. “Maybe a sea breeze.” The sun-faded buildings of Portofino fade into the foreground of her imagination. “There are lots of people with me,” she hears the sound of children shrieking and Cassian’s rumbling laughter, “but it’s okay, because I love every one of them.” Her eyes open. “Is that a good answer?”

A near invisible smile tugs at the corners of Lana’s lips. “You tell me, Nesta. Do you like what you see?”

“It’s a little too cinematic if you ask me,” Nesta says nonchalantly, picking up her bag from the ground, “but I suppose all dreams are that way.”

“It’s a good dream,” Lana says. “A worthy dream, and one you deserve to chase.”

Nesta shrugs lightly, not too worried about the burden of the future for once. “Maybe I will.”

“In that case, congratulations on completing your final therapy session,” Lana says, setting her notebook aside. “You’ve made some amazing progress this year.”

Nesta gives her therapist her signature what’s-wrong-with-you look. “I’m going on vacation, not firing you for good. I’ll see you again in two months.”

“Two months can be enough to lose all your progress, if you forget everything you went through to get here.”

Nesta isn’t stupid. She knows that she isn’t suddenly desperate to make babies or be maid of honor at her sisters’ weddings or some bullshit. She knows that the image she just dreamed up, with Cassian and kids and her unburdened heart, is likely more than five years away. If it happens at all, it could be ten, even twenty years of hard work away.

She’s not nearly finished growing yet. “I’ll see you in two months, Lana,” she repeats.

Lana smiles at her fully this time. “Enjoy your summer, Nesta.”

***

The air is different in the Smokies.

Nesta rolls the truck windows down so she can inhale it, relish it. Wind whips her hair every which way as they drive down the winding freeway cutting through the lush mountains, and something about the look on her face makes Cassian chuckle and press down on the accelerator.

Nesta watches the red needle on the speedometer cross ninety, then one hundred. She can barely feel the June heat with how fast they’re going.

In the end, it was Feyre and Elain that reached out and invited her to the Tennessee summer home. Cassian had made it obvious that he wouldn’t push her to go if she didn’t want to, and at first she really didn’t want to. But Feyre had looked so hopeful when she asked Nesta to come with them, and even Elain had revealed a glimmer of eagerness that Nesta would say yes.

So against all odds, she agreed to go.

Exchanging one mountain home for another isn’t much of a getaway, but Nesta can’t help but be excited. Even with the unhappy memories of her childhood, she loves these hills more than any other.

The pure exhilaration of being back in Tennessee overcomes her at some point during the drive, knocking her out in the passenger seat where she sits. In her drowsy state, she distantly hears the windows being rolled up, before feeling Cassian’s hand guide her head to rest against the glass. The rest of the drive is warm and sunny, enough to lull her into a deep sleep.

The next thing Nesta’s aware of is the crunch of gravel and the feeling of the truck tires slowing to a stop. Fingers brush against her heated cheek, and then Cassian is murmuring at her to wake up.

Blinking her eyes open, Nesta twists around to see their destination.

For a moment, she thinks she’s still dreaming.

“Welcome to Holly House,” Cassian says with a grin. The house in question is quaint and sprawling at the same time, the way most upper class Southerners like their houses. The whole thing gleams with a fresh coat of white paint under the afternoon sun, complemented by a sky blue wraparound porch. Colonial style windows and proud columns decorating the facade of the building makes it look like the setting of a fairy tale.

Beyond it, Nesta can see cherry blossoms. Pink, fluttering cherry blossoms that fly off their branches and swirl through the air, some of them disappearing into the thick woods behind the house. Woods that Nesta has walked countless times before.

“The rest of the guys won’t get here until tomorrow afternoon,” Cassian is saying to her, “so we have the whole place to our—”

Nesta isn’t listening anymore. She unbuckles her seatbelt and shoves open the truck door, hobbling outside on unsteady feet to make sure she isn’t hallucinating things. But no, this is…

“Cherrywood,” she breathes, eyes wide in disbelief.

Cassian gets out of the truck, coming up beside Nesta to slip his hand into her shorts pocket. “What’s wrong? You okay?”

“This is Rhysand’s summer home?” Nesta points at the house. “This place?”

Cassian looks around at the building grounds in confusion. “Has been for the last two decades, yeah.”

It’s been eleven years since she last stepped foot on these grounds.

With wonderment in her voice, she utters to Cassian, “I’ve been here before.”

At his puzzled look, she explains, “I lived just on the other side of those woods.” She points to the trees. “There’s an old cracked road that hasn’t been maintained since it was first paved, and you can follow it straight to the poor side of town. Whenever I wanted to get away, I would come down that road and trek through the woods, and I’d end up here. I stopped coming because…” she trails off.

Because she got caught that one time.

Cassian seems to realize it at the same moment as her. His hand slips out of her pocket. “You…”

Nesta remembers a tall boy with shocked eyes and shaggy hair, and she shakes her head slowly in forceful denial. It can’t be true. It’s too much of a coincidence.

But he points at her, then her feet. “You—with the size six Converse,” he sputters. “It was you.”

Before Nesta can confirm or deny it, he grabs her by the wrist and starts tugging her along, up the porch stairs and inside the house.

Even with Rhysand and Feyre’s renovations, it looks undeniably the same as all those years ago. The living room is to her right and the farmhouse style kitchen and dining area is to the left, though she speeds by it all as Cassian pulls her farther inside the house, to the closet beneath the curving stairs.

He lets go of her hand to search the small closet, muttering, “I know they were here somewhere.” But the closet looks like it was stripped empty for renovations, with only bolts in the walls indicating that shoe racks used to hang there.

Cassian turns and heads for the stairs, and Nesta blindly follows him. She also wants to go upstairs, wants to see if the bay window looking out onto the garden has stayed the same.

Like he read her mind, he leads her straight to the room she used to spend hours reading in. It’s smaller than all the other bedrooms in the house, but it’s always been her favorite because of the view.

As Cassian keeps looking for whatever it is he’s looking for, upturning boxes and checking beneath furniture, Nesta drifts toward the bay window. She looks from the cherry blossom trees outside, to the full-sized bed, to Cassian, and a weight drops even heavier in her gut. She has to reach out and grip the edge of the dresser for support.

Finally, Cassian pops out of the closet victorious. In his hand are a pair of ragged shoes that Nesta hasn’t worn in a long, long time.

He comes over and drops them with a thud at her feet.

“Whose room is this?” she asks with a rough voice, still staring down at the shoes.

“Mine,” he answers simply.

“Oh.” She met him before. She met him before.

When Nesta dares to look up and meet Cassian’s eyes, what she finds there nearly robs her of breath: wonder, astonishment, and unwavering fealty. He breaks into sudden wholehearted laughter, which dazes her even more.

“What’s so funny?” she demands.

Cassian gets out between laughs, “What was it Rhysand said about Feyre? When they found out they were close to crossing paths when they were younger?”

Nesta’s earth-tilting shock slowly slips away, replaced by a stern look. “Don’t say it.”

He pretends to remember. “I think it was fate.” A wicked smirk pulls at his lips at Nesta’s resigned sigh. “But I have another word for it, too.”

“Don’t say that, either.” She pleadingly holds up her hands, only for Cassian to snatch one out of the air and intertwine his fingers with hers.

“Soulmate,” he says quietly, now less amused.

Nesta swallows thickly, not having any words for him. All she knows is that he is never going to let her live this down.

“Imagine if we’d gone to the same high school,” Cassian says to her later that afternoon as they lounge in his old room. “Fuck, I could’ve saved myself so much time with all those random girls.” They’ve been swapping childhood stories for the past hour, as if they might find more instances in their history of a red string tying them together.

Nesta doesn’t need coincidences or fateful run-ins to know that a string has always been wrapped around her ring finger, pulling her to Colorado and to that cabin. But for Cassian’s sake, she’ll gladly amuse him. “I would have been a freshman while you were a senior,” she says matter-of-factly. “It never could have happened.”

He hums in thought, head propped up in his hand, elbow propped up against the bay window seat. “Maybe if you were older. You would have been the smart, quiet girl, and I’d have been the player jock, and as soon as we locked eyes in math class, I’d be head over heels in love with you.”

Nesta cackles from where she sits in the window seat above him. “Now you’re just writing fanfiction.”

Cassian grins up at her but doesn’t send a rebuttal her way. The conversation falls into a lull, until Nesta has to reach out and ask, “What are you thinking?”

His smile turns a little sad. “That I wish we weren’t doing this right before I leave for another country.”

Right. That’s what’s been hanging over them the entire trip to Tennessee: that as soon as they get back to Colorado, Cassian is going to be on a plane to Milan.

Getting Keith O’Connell to quit—how exactly Cassian went about accomplishing it, he still won’t tell Nesta—left Rhysand at square one with his search for a team leader for his overseas venture.

When Cassian brought up the idea of taking the job to Nesta, he sounded like he hoped she would shoot him down, talk him out of it. He both wanted to go and was reluctant to leave, like his very soul was glued to his home and he didn’t want to unstick himself.

So Nesta, being his home, had to do the unsticking for him. She nearly accepted the year-long Milan position herself for Cassian’s sake, and it took weeks of coaxing and convincing to put him at ease about the whole thing.

“But we promised to go together for the first time,” he kept saying.

“We’ll still go together one day, and it’ll still be our first time there with each other,” she reassured him.

Eventually, he relented to her and Rhysand’s pressures with a single condition. “I’ll do six months. Not a year.”

Only Nesta knows deep down how much Cassian needs this opportunity. Though Cassian must know it a little bit too, because he wouldn’t have taken the job if he didn’t.

Nesta might have needed him in order to come out of her shell, but now he needs to get away from her in order to find his own shell. Something he can call his own, unburdened by his loyalties to the people he loves. So he can find who he wants to be for himself, without always being attached to her hip.

Rising to her feet, Nesta raises her arms in the air in a full body stretch. Her back and legs ache with being curled up in that window seat for so long without movement.

Dropping her arms, she holds out a hand to Cassian still sitting on the floor. “Come on,” she urges him. “Let’s go outside. I haven’t seen a Smoky sunset in years.”

“But it’s not evening yet,” he argues while taking her hand.

Outside, they explore the garden that leads into the woods while waiting for the sun to slink down the sky. Cherry blossoms ride the summer breeze wherever it takes them, resulting in Cassian sniffling and scratching at his neck as they walk hand in hand.

“Rhysand wanted to take these trees down and replace them with a flower garden for Elain,” he tells Nesta as they walk. His sinuses sound clogged, but he’s refused to go back inside until he’s explained every inch of the land to Nesta. “I convinced him not to because it would ruin the view from my bedroom window. Didn’t I make the right choice?” He throws a grin in her direction.

Nesta’s swallow is tight at that grin. “The view from your room was always my favorite part about the entire place. So yes, you did good.”

His eyes widen at that tidbit of information, and she can almost see him tucking it away as more Soulmate Evidence.

They stroll through the woods for a while, and Nesta points out the path she would take to get to Cherrywood—she still insists on calling it Cherrywood, even when Cassian argues that the house’s original name has been around since the sixties.

“Show me the rest of the way?” Cassian asks her, face lit up in boyish hope. “Show me where you ran away to that day I found you.”

Nesta almost expects the memory of the rundown apartment complex she grew up in to feel like being shoved into sludge: dirty, cold, and slimy. Instead, she finds she has no problem with looking back at her old home, no matter how many ugly memories she holds from there.

However, the dappled sunlight streaming in through the trees overhead has turned from yellow to dark gold, and she shakes her head in apology to Cassian. “Another day,” she promises him. “It’s almost sunset.”

They walk back to the house, rounding it until they reach the front. At the bottom of the hill that the house is perched on stands a pier that leads all the way out to the lake. Green mountains frame the lake from both sides, creating the perfect cradle for the sun to sink into.

They go all the way out to the edge of the pier, as if they’re trying to get as close to the sunset as physically possible. Dragonflies lazily swoop by as the lake is gradually painted in a hundred different colors.

Once there’s more darkness than light in the sky, Cassian nudges Nesta with one of the arms he has around her. “Look.” He points.

Along the shoreline of the lake, little dots of light have lit up to welcome the evening, their blinking glow so small that Nesta almost doesn’t catch it. Fireflies.

Nesta watches the insects flit in and out of the long grasses of the lake shore, getting tangled in the weeds and wildflowers. In that moment, she remembers something Cassian once confessed to her not long after his birthday.

I want to see more beautiful places with you.

Nesta ticks this beautiful place off the long list in her head—the first place out of many that she plans to see with Cassian.

More beautiful than the scene before her is the man in her arms. The man who was kind enough to understand a woman who barely understood herself, and to be her friend when she had none. The man who is extending his kindness right now by not having made any breaking-and-entering jokes about Nesta so far, though she’s sure he’ll pull them out eventually.

Discovering that she once found Cassian, just to let him slip by running away from him, only to find him again over a decade later—it comforts the tiny part of her that’s loath to say goodbye to him in two weeks.

Like Cassian is thinking the same thing, he murmurs into the dark, “I can’t wait to come back to you.”

Nesta huffs in amusement. “You haven’t even left yet.”

“I know.” After a moment, he adds in a low voice that not even the fireflies can hear, “Thank you for convincing me to go.”

She reaches up to squeeze his bicep. “Always.” And then she adds what she really wants him to hear: “Don’t come back until you find what you’re looking for.”

“I better find it quick then,” he jokes. Still, he nods in promise against the side of her head.

The only sound after that is the chirp of cicadas and the occasional lap of water meeting the pier beams. Nesta and Cassian stay outside in the June heat long after the sky turns ink blue.

***

a/n: next chapter is just some ic bullshit so take all ur bittersweet sentimentality here and go

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#nesta archeron #nessian #cassian #ncssianwrites #a favor #nessian au #nessian fic

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alreadyblondenow · 4 years

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One is a big number | Lee Taeyong

❤︎ Taeyong x female!reader ❤︎ Very fluffy, Smut, Smut, Tiny bit of angst, Highschool AU, Strangers to lovers, Love Alarm universe, Love Alarm au? ❤︎ 1/4 for LOVE MONTH SERIES: Boys Don’t Cry One is a big number | You and your words | Sweet | He loves me, he loves me not |

Summary: Under the universe of Love Alarm, you rang Lee Taeyong’s Love Alarm loud and proud and you as a new girl at the school, has his attention more than anything else.

Word count: 7,682k

Warnings: Protected sex, loss of virginity, touching, teasing, making out, corruption, goodbye innocence, mentions of first base to home run, taeyong having a boner while kissing, all that high school exploring in bed while Taeyong’s parents are not home, Trusting an app regarding love, swearing, mentions of alcohol, mentions of other idols

A/N: PURE FICTION. PURE FICTION. PURE FICTION. This will be very fluffy because I wanted to start February on a light note. hehe. Also, this is inspired by First Love by NCT 127 under Loveholic’s single. It’s a good thing that I finished this before they announced that First Love is all about your first... love... hahaha so I had time to incorporate in more with my fic. As always, I enjoy writing for my Bubu. Happy reading!

For NCT-WRITER’S FEBRUARY EVENT, LOVE ALARM @nct-writers

Can you still remember your first love? The day you met and the day you realized you officially like that person?

When that one person hold your hand for the first time? Did he kept you close and kept you warm?

When that one person kissed you for the first time? How did it feel?

When you had your first fight, how did you fixed it?

Do you remember the time when you realized that, that one person is slowly slipping into your hands?

When that one specific person broke your heart?

Do you remember it?

It’s been over four years since Love Alarm has been launched and they’ve been using it for almost everything. The world seemed to have progressed a lot now that we have Love Alarm in our phones but did it really made our lives easier? Especially when it comes to love?

Walking to school on a beautiful day, your first day as a transferee... what could possibly go wrong? As you enter the school premises, you see students holding their phones like they’re waiting for something or someone. Perhaps they’re waiting for someone to ring their Love Alarm? Who knows?

“He’s here!” A rather excited student exclaimed and brought out her phone and grabbed her friend. You being the only clueless student right now turned your back too to see the man they’ve been waiting for.

He was like a celebrity when he stepped on the first few steps upon the school’s entrance. Lee Taeyong, a senior. Very good looking, smart, athletic, and voted junior prom king. He literally looks like an angel walking in the middle of the school’s entrance together with his friends who look liked angels too. Their Love Alarm rang so much as they walk in front of the new and old students, making fun of each other and having a bet on whose Love Alarm will ring the most.

You looked at him. You looked at his face like you don’t already know that it’s impolite to stare at someone, but you still did because Lee Taeyong is handsome. And you’re not immune to his charms. What a good way to start school, you thought. It’s only the first day but you feel like you’re going to have a blast as long as you see Lee Taeyong around.

From there on Lee Taeyong has become your crush and your heart thumps so hard whenever you ring his Love Alarm every morning like the other girls. For you, there’s no shame in ringing his Love Alarm, you’re glad it does that. At least you’re being honest to him in silence and let the alert from Love Alarm do the talking. But even though you ring his Love Alarm again and again and again, you never wish for him to ring your Love Alarm back, no. He deserves someone perfect like him.

Day by day and whenever you see him around, you look at him to feed your heart and eyes then look away again and ignore him as if you didn’t ring his Love Alarm loud and proud. It frustrates him you know, but in a good way. He now recognizes you as the new girl who rings his Love Alarm every day but seems to don’t care about him enough. In other words, you’re not like the other girls.

You know that good feeling when you go to school and you’re looking forward to seeing your crush even just for a few seconds? That’s what Lee Taeyong feels for you. With just a couple of weeks of ringing his Love Alarm, you had the man thinking about you and wanting to know you. Sometimes he can’t understand Love Alarm. He is completely sure that he likes you already and he is very interested in you, but he can’t ring your alarm.

Have you ever had that good feeling when your crush is around and you are free to look at him no matter how long you want and whenever he caught you staring you just avoid his eyes? It’s like playing chicken but you’re both enjoying the game, he smiles at you and brings up his phone as if he’s telling you ‘Thank you for ringing my Love Alarm again’ and you just smile at him, completely clueless that he’s starting to flirt.

“Why don’t you just ring her Love Alarm back?” Doyoung asked.

“Cant. For some twisted reason, I can’t ring her Love Alarm. That’s why I can’t make a move and can only flirt back, I want to trust Love Alarm” Taeyong says, eyes completely glued to you but you don’t know that because you’re busy reading.

“Maybe you don’t really like the girl?” Doyoung blurted out. Lee Taeyong didn’t really want to admit it with his friend but maybe he’s right.

“The Lee Taeyong flirts back now huh? And to a new girl? Interesting” Johnny swings his arm to his friend and ruffles his hair. Teasing him for flirting back at you because he saw Taeyong smiled in your direction.

“Am I not allowed to flirt?” Taeyong snorted and turned off his Love Alarm when he saw the place getting crowded already. “It’s senior year, I need to change” he added.

“So changing your relationship status is a good start? Hmm. Okay, I agree with you on that. But don’t waste your time if you're unsure,” Johnny explains. But Lee Taeyong doesn’t care, he looks at you as you gather your books thinking of many ways to start talking to you and secretly wishing he can ring your Love Alarm back. But for now, he just can’t.

While you were studying at the library, you can’t help but remember how Lee Taeyong thanked you for ringing his alarm.... he fucking thanked you, that must be something? He isn’t thanking every single person who rings his alarm, just you. You smile at that thought which you think is crazy but a girl can dream. Then again you remember that you’re studying and shook your head for the nth time to stop yourself from thinking about your senior.

When you finally focused on studying and finished tons of school work, you didn’t notice that it’s already dark outside and that going home alone would be scary but you have no choice. You walk and walk and walk until you finally reached that scary alleyway you’ve been trying to avoid but it’s your only way home.

“Hey- don’t go there”

A familiar voice warned you before you can even start walking, you turned around and wish that you were wrong but you weren’t. It is as if the world heard you thinking about Lee Taeyong and the universe made you meet in an unexpected way. “It’s dangerous there, where are your friends? Is that your way home?” He asked the question like you two were close and talking already, his face looked cold but funny how he makes you feel warm.

“Yes, this is the only way. Usually, I go home when the sun is still up but I have to study” you explain.

“I have no choice then. Let me walk you home, my conscience will not let me sleep if I just let you-“

“I can take care of myself, I can easily call my dad. If I refuse your offer, will you still think about me?” You don’t know where the sudden bravery came from but you’re glad you did it.

He was completely shy, blushing and keeping his head down. And that’s the push that Lee Taeyong needed. He held out his hand and introduced himself properly like a decent person would and you did the same. Both hands are shaking because of nervousness but that’s understandable you both thought. “This isn’t how I imagined meeting you officially-“

“So you do think about me?” You further tease the blushing man and finally admits the truth and said, “Yes. I do think about you. A lot” it was silent for a few seconds before he started again, “I wish I could ring your Love Alarm too, you make me nervous you know that? Whenever I’m in school I look forward to seeing you, even just for a few seconds” he came closer to you as you grip your bag tightly and the butterflies in your stomach won’t stop flapping their wings when Lee Taeyong put strands of hair behind your ear so he could see you clearly under the lamppost light.

Either way, you still let him walk you home and cherish every second you could have with your crush. You feel like you’ve won something like you’re winning this nonexistent race with the other girls, you feel happy for yourself. He told you about his day, you told him yours, he made you laugh, you make him shy for no reason. And when you and Taeyong finally reached your house, you exchanged numbers. Now you can tell that you’re winning something. His attention and interest.

“I hope I can ring your Love Alarm,” he says again, looking at you like it’s going to be the last thing he’ll do.

“That’s fine, ring mine when you’re ready. We can’t rush romance, even when Love Alarm is involved” you watch him let out a small laugh and you think he’s so handsome even when he’s cute.

“Usually girls get offended when someone they like can’t ring their Love Alarm, but you... you don’t mind waiting”

You didn’t want to end the moment yet but it’s getting pretty late and he needs to go home too, you told him to stop flirting and go home safe so he can flirt with you some other time. And for the last time, just to wrap this wonderful night, he tilts his head and smiled so sweetly to you and told you ‘good night’

That moment you had with Lee Taeyong felt like a pretty damn good song but just like every song, it needed to end. But you will never forget about it.

After that momentous night with your crush, Lee Taeyong has become a whole entire playlist and a well written album wrapped into one. Every love song you listen to was suddenly all about him he and the man was head over heels to you. He was texting you nonstop even during class, calling you after school and will probably end later at night, and getting the tiniest chance to flirt with you in the morning before you both head to class and meet again by golden hour to walk home together.

Not long after a week of flirting and getting to know each other more, he finally rang your alarm in front of many students in school accidentally. Your eyes went big and Taeyong was as shocked as you are. It was like you have this 10-meter radius for yourselves only and you were both giggling when your Love Alarms went off together. It was a happy moment, definitely one for the books. “Finally” he whispers, standing close to you, not caring if a lot of people are watching. Let them watch, Lee Taeyong thought. So they know you belong to each other now and you have Love Alarm on your side.

“Are you free this weekend?” He asks while walking you home.

“Free, but I have to study. What do you have in mind?” you answered as calmly as you could because you have a hunch that he’s going to ask you on a date.

“Well, now that I can finally ring your Love Alarm, I want to take you out on a proper date” you knew it, “movies?”

“Sounds fun, as long as it’s scary” he nods and took his phone out of his pocket.

“Can I ring your Love Alarm again?” He requests which you gladly gave in and opened the app. You two waited for a few seconds for Love Alarm to work its magic.

Waiting

Until the number ‘1’ appeared on your screens and says “Someone within 10-meter radius loves you”. Taeyong sighed in relief and swing his arms around you for a hug and a kiss on the forehead. “That scared me” he admitted.

Unconsciously, he doesn’t know what his hug and kiss can do to you. While his heart calms as he hugs you, yours is beating so fast like you just ran a mile. There’s that winning feeling again.

On your first date, he took you to the movies and as promised the movie was scary. It was so scary that he had enough opportunity to hold you close and hold your hand the whole time. The moment your fingers intertwined, you felt some kind of electricity flowing in your body and the movie house suddenly felt warm. “I know, I felt it too” he whispers and went back to watching the movie.

The next few days with Taeyong was something you’ve never imagine that will happen in your high school life. He has become the epitome of new things and first times.

He is the first guy to hold your hand in public. Swinging it high, up and down, holding it tight, and he even kisses it whenever he feels like it. Not a day goes by that he didn’t hold your hand or kept you close to him ever since you made it official through Love Alarm.

He is the first guy to sweep you off your feet, through his sweet words and gentleman gestures. “Can I flirt with you later?” he asks, putting a bottle of juice in front of you before he goes to his next class. ‘Flirt with you’ simply means he wanted to spend time with you before he walks you home.

Still in your school uniforms, Taeyong brought you somewhere quiet where the river is calm, and just looking at it makes you calm your nerves too. “The sun feels nice, let’s watch the sun go down,” he says lying comfortably on the ground and enjoying the warm grass underneath his body.

“How’s your day?” you sat beside him and Taeyong was quick to cover your legs with his school coat. He grunted while covering your legs as he remembers how stressful being a senior is.

“Was having a bad day, when I talked to you earlier. School has been kicking my butt” he says and lies again beside you. “How about you? How's being a new student so far?”

“So far so good, I have a handsome senior who just made my high school life more interesting”

He handsomely giggles in front of you, so close that your lips are just inches away. “You’re flirting,” he says.

“You said you wanted to flirt with me?” you bite back.

“Mmm-hmm. Can I flirt a little differently today?” he came even much closer to you but you didn’t pull away because you know exactly what he’s talking about.

And just as you expected, he kissed you. Softly. Holding your chin as he moves his lips on yours while the sun goes down. Your eyes were shut and all you did the whole time your boyfriend was kissing you is return the kiss and savor the feeling of being kissed for the first time.

When the kiss was over, he did not pull away immediately but looked at your lips for a few seconds as if he wanted to kiss it again but even more fiercely this time but he knew this is not the right time for that. So instead, he kissed your nose and your forehead and flashed a sweet smile at you. Something that you will never forget like the kiss you just shared a few seconds ago.

After that day, kissing became an everyday habit to you and Taeyong and you both love it whenever you get the chance to share a kiss privately. Well, he does kiss you in public, but those are nothing compared to the ones you share inside his room after school and his parents are not yet home. Lee Taeyong’s lips are simply addicting but little did you know that your boyfriend is even more addicted to kissing you.

“Just one more kiss” he pulls you close to him begging for another kiss before he watches you go inside your house. “One more please” he pouted like the baby that he is.

You crashed your lips on him and feel both of his hands hold the sides of your head so you won’t pull away from him so easily. But when you do, he simply asks for another kiss and then another other, until you’re basically making out in front of your house.

“Mmm” he moans like he’s not planning to stop kissing you soon.

“Tae-“ you giggle and tried pushing away and finally, he stopped. Lips swollen, slightly panting with a…. hard cock.

“Sorry about that. I- I have no control over that, I’m sorry” he apologizes and tries to hide his boner. You let out a small laugh and fixed his ruined hair with a few pat.

“You don’t have to be shy, I’m your girlfriend. See you tomorrow, okay? Go home safe!” you slowly walk towards your house, waving your hand goodbye until you see him walk away.

Just like any new couple, you and Taeyong crave for each other in many ways. After exploring enough with kissing and teasing each other whenever one of you gets too turned on, soon you talk about different levels of physical intimacy freely without being awkward.

Given that Taeyong is more experienced than you are because you’re a virgin, he knew exactly what to do when it comes to expressing his physical needs to you and making sure that he doesn’t pressure you with anything.

“So how do I know if what base are we on?” you asked innocently.

“First base is kissing. Open mouthed kisses, tongue- basically, the things I already did to you or the things we did already” he explains, hands on your waist as you both lie on your sides facing each other.

“I’m guessing we're way past first base then” you smirked and made him shy.

“Yeah. Way past first base” he smirked back at you and hovers on top of you. “The second base is more on touching” he emphasized the word ‘touching’ and better explain it by moving his hand from your leg up until he reaches your inner thighs under your school skirt and run up a finger on your slit unexpectedly which made you curl in no time and curse at him. Not because you didn’t like it, but because it felt good and he immediately stopped the teasing.

You glared at him as if you’re telling him through your eyes to touch you again, be he just snorted and kissed your cheeks. “Don’t hate me. I’m just waiting for the perfect timing” he explains and enjoys how you’re so annoyed but horny.

You let out a sharp sigh and made him continue again. “Third base is giving head or fingering. Oh, you’re going to love third base” he teased you further by just using his words. You pushed him away from you playfully but your boyfriend is strong and caught your hands, “okay okay. Enough teasing, home run is having sex. And come on I have to get you home before I could no longer stop myself”

He’s not lying because you see the growing tent in his crotch. He’s been stopping himself by teasing you. You sat up when he got out of his bed to change into some much comfortable clothes but when he got back, you teased him by putting on a show. Lifting your skirt slowly just before you reveal your panties and as expected, he stopped you.

“Don’t tease me, I don’t have a condom right now” it was a warning but it sounded more like he’s begging.

“I’m just joking” you kissed him on the cheek and got up from your comfortable position to fix your wrinkled school uniform before you head home.

Tonight, you attend a party with Taeyong for the first time and his Love Alarm kept on ringing the moment he stepped into the room.

Every day, Lee Taeyong rings your Love Alarm and you ring his too.... together with the other girls and quite frankly, you don’t know how long you can stand those girls who fantasize about fucking your boyfriend. He’s your own private buffet, for goodness sake.

“Don’t drink anything unless I’m the one who gave it to you, okay? I’ll get you something- Doyoung!” he made sure you won’t be alone and called his friend before he leaves.

“So you’re the lucky girl. Hi, I’m Johnny” he offers you his hand for a handshake and accepted with a smile.

“Don’t mind Johnny, hi I’m Doyoung. Taeyong’s best friend,” you shake his hand and smiled at them, hoping that you don’t look awkward. They made small talk, asked you how you’ve been and how’s your Junior year going so far which you answered too seriously. Soon, you feel Taeyong’s cold hands on your shoulders and hands you a drink before he shoos his drunk friend Johnny away.

It was a fun night, but it can be better if the other girls can respect your relationship. You wanted to snap so hard but instead, you focused on how Taeyong kisses your nape, shamelessly while you watch his friends play beer pong and he’s standing right behind you, hands on the front pockets of your jeans like he’s telling those girls he belongs to you.

But the warm feeling was shortly cut off when they heard Johnny shouting and drunkenly pushing himself to walk straight so he could get a hold of his girlfriend. Everyone heard it. The words, “Johnny were through. I’m breaking up with you” were heard on every corner of the place even under loud party music.

After hearing those words, you looked at Taeyong like you’re telling him through his eyes that you’re scared. But Taeyong and his other friends were quick to get Johnny and stopped him from making a scene.

Everything happened so fast. One second Taeyong was beside you, but now you're in the middle of the place alone and watching your boyfriend and his friends carry Johnny outside.

“Johnny didn’t ring her love alarm today,” Taeyong sits beside you after leaving you alone for a few minutes to talk to his friend. “And if he’s going to be honest he fell out of love. But he wasn’t ready to let her go and wasn’t sure about his feelings, he’s just being paranoid because he’s going to graduate soon” he let out a sharp exhale before he continues, “We're going to graduate soon. I guess Love Alarm caught him having second thoughts for her already”

“Do you want to leave now?” you asked your boyfriend. He can only nod because he still feels weak about what happened to his friend.

The supposedly warm night with Taeyong became cold and quiet. Not because there’s something wrong with your relationship. But because you were both scared of the idea of breaking up. He wanted to tell you he saw the look in your eyes when you heard the words but he figured enough sadness for one night, wrapped his arms around you and told you “I will never let you go” and kissed you on your temple.

Few days after the party is exams week so you and Taeyong didn’t see each other that much. But by the time it’s over, he waited for you outside the school and you know he’s the one waiting for you because he rang your Love Alarm.

While walking to his house, it suddenly rained so hard that the raindrops hurt your skin. But instead of avoiding the rain, Taeyong pulled you in the middle of an empty street and kissed you under the rain.

It was so sweet.

His arms were perfectly wrapped around your body while yours is placed behind his lower back. You tiptoe unconsciously so you could reach him well. “I love you,” he says and lifted you off the ground effortlessly for a tight hug.

“Here wear this” He left some clean clothes on his bed for you to change with while he puts your wet uniform on the dry cleaner.

When you’re finally dry and clean, you cuddle with Taeyong in his bed wearing his big clothes and listening to the sound of rain with no lights on, but the gloomy sky outside.

“I saw the way you looked at me the other night” he started. And you tighten your embrace to him as you remember the words and the whole scenario.

“I'm just scared and not because I’m doubting your love” you admitted. “I never thought about it you know. That things can go wrong someday-“

“No, no. Then I’ll love you, even more, every day. Don’t be scared please, trust my love” he says and kept you close by putting his legs on your thigh. His big hand is placed under your shirt, drawing small circles on your tummy to give you more comfort.

“I’m guessing this is second base then?” you teased him to change the mood.

“Do you want to proceed to that level? Hmm?” he rolls on top of you, teased you, and kissed your neck in a way that seriously turned you on in no time.

“If you’re brave enough to do it, then go right ahead. I give you my full consent” you reached for his lips and kissed him deeply. You felt him smile during the kiss and also felt his hand slowly lifting your shirt or rather his shirt. Hands roaming your body like he never touched you before, squeezing your butt cheeks and kneading your clothed boobs. To be honest, he’s shy to put his hand inside your clothes but to his shock, you put yours inside his, bravely touched his body, and shamelessly put your hand inside his sweatpants and touched him.

That made him swallowed his shyness and knead your unclothed breast under the shirt that you’re wearing. Brushing his fingers on your nipples softly, pinching them to make giggle.

After a few minutes of intense touching, he was slightly tugging the sweat pants that you’re wearing and asked you, “Do I still have your consent if we proceed on third base?” He whispers oh so sexily beside your ear which made you remember what he told you, ‘you’re going to love third base’ and that is enough for you to nod and give him further permission.

He kissed you on the lips, his way of saying ‘thanks’, and proceeds to lift your shirt and suck your nipples which made you moan his name and grip his locks so tight that he needed to reach for your hands and intertwine them with his.

Lee Taeyong showed you who is in bed and you can't help but think that you’re the luckiest girl on Earth.

“Hey, you okay? You’re spacing out, I think should-“

“Don’t stop” you moaned and grabbed his head for a deep kiss. You reach for his hand and made him knead your boobs while you kiss and grind on each other and in a matter of minutes you felt him putting his hand inside your panties while he distracts you with the way he kisses you. He flicks his fingers once and you curled immediately, legs wide open so he could freely move his hand. But soon his patience went thin and removed your panties, throwing it on the side of the bed before spreading your legs even more wider.

“Do you like this side of me?” He whispers on the shell of your ear and bit it eventually making you tickle and giggle with parted lips.

“I definitely do” you moan out.

And for the main event under third base, he kissed your body all the way down until he meets your wet entrance. Kissing your inner thighs first before he proceeds to drive you wild with his tongue.

First, he parted your wet folds, looked you straight in the eye, and licked you like you’re his favorite flavored ice cream. “Tae-“ is all you can moan out and decided to put your hands above your head and grab hold of his headboard. Which he didn’t like so he stopped and told you, “touch me, I like that”

And so you did. Gripping Taeyong’s locks as he makes you feel good with his tongue. Putting a finger inside your cunt and flick his tongue faster together with his finger, making you cum in no time and crushing your boyfriend’s head with your legs. “Stop- stop” you cry out because of over sensitivity. “You weren’t going to stop eating me unless I told you so”

He smirked and hummed because you’re right. He gave you a few minutes to catch your breath, taking that time to strip himself naked without you noticing. And when you finally came back from your high, he kisses your lower stomach and there you see your boyfriend all naked and really horny.

“I want to have sex,” he shamelessly told you, touching your body with care while he waits for your answer. “Can we have sex?” he kisses you more like he’s persuading you.

“Do you finally have a condom?” You asked with a smile.

He did not waste any time and get the condom from his drawer, putting it on in front of you. Putting it on in between your wide open legs and very wet slit.

“Put your arms around me,” he said and you followed immediately. He ran his protected cock on your wet slit, just to make him hard even more but the feeling for you is very different. You are very much aroused, very horny and it already felt good. So when you feel him poke your tight hole and slowly push in finally, your eyes shut close and feel every inch of Lee Taeyong’s cock go inside you oh so fucking slowly until he’s entire inside.

He grunted and moan directly on your ear and told you, “virgin no more” and kissed you on your temple before he rolls his deep which made you both crazy and even more horny for each other.

Your tight walls were so wet because of the foreplay that his cock was sliding in smoothly, hurting you good and stretching you right before he fucks you harder.

“Fucking thin condoms, I feel like I’m fucking you raw,” he said in between thrust and rolling his tongue on your nipple, tugging and biting it as he pleases.

When he sees you smiling through the pleasure and felt your body more relaxed, he put his mouth on your mouth and made you catch his moans as he fucks you harder and faster, enough for his bed to creak, your body to be dragged on the mattress and your nails to dig on his skin.

He came hard and had a great orgasm, slowly thrusting deeper as he rides his high and showers you with kisses. Truth be told, he didn’t want to cum just yet but your tight walls did its magic on him.

The moment he pulls out to discard the condom, he went back to kissing your weak body and told you to “Calm down,” oh so sweetly, and eventually giggled when he saw you still breathing heavily.

“How can I calm down if you’re kissing me like that?”

“Okay I’ll stop,” he says and pulled down your shirt to cover your exposed body, reached for your panties, and helped you wear them again then covered you with his thick sheets. “Better?”

“Yes, thank you” you smiled weakly at him and watched him get dress again before he joins you under the covers.

“What are you thinking?” he asked, hoping that you’re okay. “Are you hurt somewhere?”

“How many girls did you bring here before me?” You watch your boyfriend’s eyes get big upon hearing your question, “I’m joking. And no, nothing hurts. I’m just processing everything that happened. How about you? What are you thinking?”

“I’m thinking about you, how I want you to be the last girl I have sex with in this bed” it was a joke because he only brought a total of two girls into his room. His first girlfriend and you.

“Buy a new bed or I’m breaking up with you,” you said with a straight face but he clearly knew you’re joking.

They say that being close with your partner emotionally, physically, and even sexually can strengthen a relationship. And right now, as you celebrate seven months of being in a relationship with Taeyong, you believe in that saying because you’ve been closer than ever after being intimate for the first time. In other words, the sex was a good way to strengthen your relationship.

“Why do you love reading so much?” he asks, totally jealous over reading a good book rather than talking to him.

Taeyong is busy nowadays because he’s graduating in a few weeks and he’s part of the prom committee because he has seriously good leadership skills. That’s why maybe he wanted more attention.

“Oh! I'm gonna miss you when you graduate” you pinch his cheek and sat closer to him. “Will you be fine being away from me?” You teased him but your question was serious.

“No, I will not be fine. I will miss you every day- can we please talk about something else before I start crying?” he attacked you with kisses on the cheek but the moment was cut off when Johnny pullovers to fetch your boyfriend.

“Have fun shopping for prom decorations with the boys rather than being in bed with me” you whisper to him while you both wear your bags and walk towards Johnny’s car.

“I love you, go home safe, okay? I’ll call you as soon as we're done”

During your walk alone, it felt nice to do something without Taeyong for once. Not that you wanted him to be gone, no. It’s just that nowadays, things have been becoming like a routine and less of a relationship. You go to school, see him before class starts, see him again after school, and go home together. Then you do it again the next day. Like you don’t have any more doors to unlock in this relationship.

But what do you expect? You’re high school students.

“Are you done studying?”

“I can’t study tonight, my brain feels tired” you whine through the phone, eyes closed and thankful that it’s going to be the weekend tomorrow. “How about you?”

“Well, Johnny accidentally broke a few lights so we need to fix it before we go home. I’m tired, I miss you”

“Mmm. I’m tired too...” your voice was a little groggy.

“And? Do you miss me too? Can I see you tomorrow?”

“Tae, we just saw each other five hours ago and no, I want to enjoy my weekend by staying home and watching Netflix”

“So you’re not having fun when we're out together?-“

“I never said anything like that” you opened your eyes because the conversation is getting pretty serious, “Don’t be angry, I just want some time for myself you know? We see each other every day, talk through text every hour, it’s like there’s no more room to breathe” you wish you can properly tell him what you’re feeling but those are the words that came out from your mouth.

“Time for yourself, huh. Okay” and just like that, he ended the call. No ‘good night’ or ‘i love you’. And even though you’re sleepy and things escalated quickly, you heard the tone of his voice like a mixture of, annoyed and hurt.

Instead of having a good night's sleep, you stayed up all night thinking about what you said to your boyfriend. Analyzing every word and repeating the scenario in your head, over and over again. If telling him what you want was wrong, then you don’t know what’s right anymore.

On the next day, you sent him a few messages telling him that you’re sorry and that you didn’t mean to put it that way. You even told him you wanted to see him, hoping that he will finally get back to your messages. But still, he never replied. The whole weekend.

Come Monday, you didn’t get to see Taeyong in the morning like you usually would because you and your friends did your group project together last minute. And the truth is, you’re starting to hurt because you feel bad for being honest even though you didn’t intend to hurt him like that.

“I think you’re being too clingy” Doyoung protest to his friend during lunchtime.

“Girls love clingy boyfriends-“

“Well, unfortunately not your girlfriend. Give her some space, don’t make her all about you, you know?”

“I just want every time I could get with her before I graduate. B-but, yeah. Now I’m giving her the time that she wanted for herself-“

“But you’re hurting her. She’s worried, she just wanted you to return her messages dude” Johnny pats his back and gave him the look like he’s saying ‘fix this before Love Alarm screw the situation further’

And while Taeyong is enjoying his lunch with his friends, you’re with your friends at the school bleachers watching the other sections use the field. Talking about hot boys, prom dresses, and what to do after prom.

“Did Taeyong asked you to prom already? Was it romantic?” you see the excitement of your friend as she asked you the question and see the others wait for your answer.

“N-no. He hasn’t” the once cheerful faces were replaced by disappointment. Come to think of it, maybe he will not ask you to prom because of this stupid fight. You shook your head and returned the question to them and pretended that you care who’s taking them. But deep inside you envy them.

School was always exhausted and you don’t know why you’re suddenly tired. Usually, after school and you meet Taeyong outside, you still have a lot of energy left. And maybe that’s it, Taeyong’s cheerful energy and happy aura are the ones recharging you after a day in school. That’s when you realized that you don’t need to push him away just so you can breathe.

Speaking of the devil, you see him leaning on Johnny’s car the moment you stepped out of the school grounds. Head down, hands inside his pockets, and waiting for you.

The moment you stepped inside that 10-meter radius, his Love Alarm rang and he knew it was you. But the problem is, your Love Alarm didn’t ring this time.

Taeyong didn’t notice it. Taeyong didn’t notice that your Love Alarm was silent. He still welcomed you with a tight hug, kissed your face one too many times, and said his sorry sincerely. It felt nice that you are now okay, he’s talking to you again and on top of that he apologized. Of course, you didn’t want to ruin that peace anymore and pretended that you’re not hurt.

Few days went by and Taeyong hasn’t rung your Love Alarm and he’s too busy to notice it. Senior year is making him busy and you have nothing against that. Yes, you do miss him but he calls you before you sleep and quickly apologizes whenever he feels like he’s being a clingy boyfriend again.

“N-no. Please, be clingy. I’m sorry for that night, I don’t know what I’m thinking” you sounded desperate but he doesn’t know why.

“Okay, just making sure we don’t fight again”

And few days before prom, he still hasn’t asked you yet while your friends all have dresses already and plans for that night. It sucks, but you don’t want to get mad at Taeyong for not asking you to prom because he’s busy.

On a quiet afternoon after school, you’re waiting for Taeyong outside the school while reading a book, and page by page you digest every word just so you could stop thinking about prom. And just as you least expected it, your boyfriend asked you to prom on page 127 of the book that you’re reading.

“Will you go to prom with me?” -T.Y

Then it hit you. You started reading this book on the day prom was announced so basically he asked you ever since day 1 and he has been waiting for your answer for weeks already. He just keeps on giving you more reasons to ring his Love Alarm loud proud, while you give him nothing to make him ring yours.

“Finally. Hi”

You didn’t know he was right behind you and his kiss brought you back on Earth. He was smiling handsomely and proud because his surprise worked on you, even though it took you a while to answer his question your reaction was worth it.

“You know my answer Tae. And to be honest I thought you forgot about asking me” you finally admitted, but your lack of faith in him didn’t hurt him one bit.

“Perfectly fine,” his arms swing around your waist and pulled you closer to him while you're sitting on the bench. “I’m free now and I don’t have prom committee duties. Can I flirt with you tonight?” the way he said it sounded just like old times, like the days when you were just starting as a couple.

The flirting was continued in his room of course, with his thick curtains down, Netflix playing and hands intertwined the whole time. And after the movie, you two cuddled in bed with you on top of him and just listening to his heartbeat.

“Does your heart beats for me?” you asked soft, hoping he would tell you the truth.

“Of course, you’re my first love” true. Even though you’re not his first girlfriend, you’re the first girl he ever loved.

“Your Love Alarm says otherwise Tae. I think I’m not giving you enough reasons to love me” you admitted. “You haven’t rung my alarm ever since our first fight”

“W-what? Maybe it’s off?” He was panicking, shaking because maybe it’s true. With quick movements, he left you on his bed to get his phone then looked for your phone in your bag and opened the app to see if what you’re saying is true.

His rang, of course, but yours didn’t.

“Tae it’s okay- It doesn’t matter. You know you proved to me that you love me even if you can’t ring my Love Alarm” you went beside him and hugged him from behind. Feeling his frustration and anger to himself but your hug helps him a lot. “You tell and show me you love me every day. I can feel it in how you kiss me, how you treat me with respect and how you’re always patient with me. Come on it’s okay, don’t ruin your day”

To make him feel better, you talked him out of his sulking and convinced him to go back to bed with you which eventually worked. You’re now sitting on top of him, grinding on his crotch, only wearing your panties and his hoodie. You can tell by the way he kisses you that he’s more than sorry about not ringing your Love Alarm and that makes your heart sad too because he didn’t do anything wrong.

“Let’s turn this night around,” you said before removing the hoodie that you’re wearing and making your boyfriend grip your boobs and play with your nipples while you kiss him and distract him as you undo his pants.

“Clever” and finally he smiles and puts one of your nipples in his mouth, hands inside your panties and spreading your ass cheeks before he inserts a finger in your wet slit.

After that night, Taeyong had a hard timing accepting that he can’t ring your Love Alarm again even though you told him so many times that it’s okay. Sometimes your conversation escalates too soon and he just ends up arguing with you. Soon fighting has become a weekly thing for the two of you whenever he brings up Love Alarm again. But that’s okay, couples fight and that’s normal.

On prom night, you purposely did not bring your phone so Taeyong will not try to make your Love Alarm ring. It’s going to be a beautiful night and you didn’t want to ruin it for him. You danced with your boyfriend and went crazy with him on the dance floor, you dance with your friends and ate good food. In other words, you had a great time.

And when the slow song started to play, everyone’s Love Alarm kept on ringing and people started to confess their feelings. It was amusing to watch and of course, you’re happy for them. But amidst that busy dance floor, that busy place, you and Taeyong had your own 10-meter radius and you don’t need Love Alarm to feel that you love each other.

“I’m sorry for giving you a hard time these past few days” he started, swaying you under slow music and not caring what's happening around you even though people are very loud and excited. “Let’s stop using Love Alarm. That app lies. I know all too well that I love you and even though I can’t ring your Love Alarm, I sure know how to love you”

“Mhmm. You do” oh you wanted to kiss him so badly but the teachers are looking.

“You still love me right?”

“Of course Taeyong. What kind of question is that?”

“I know, I just want to hear you say it” he came closer to you and kissed you on your temple when the teachers looked away, “You look beautiful tonight” he added and dance with you more, looking straight into your eyes and thanking you secretly for liking him first.

Now it's his turn to like and love you forevermore.

#nct-writers #neosmutcollective #cznnet #neowritingsnet #kpopscape #kdiner #kwritersworldnet #neoalarm #nct smut #taeyong smut #lee taeyong smut #lee taeyong x reader #taeyong x reader #taeyong fluff #taeyong angst #nct 127 smut

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themightyappreciation · 2 years

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"when will Ben, Devi, and Paxton realize they can all kiss each other???" Throuple agenda, yesssss! 👍👍👍👍👍👍👍 Pls talk more about what they would be like if they were all dating.

polyamory is always my solution to love triangles but it just super works for these three tbh.

so for me, I envision Ben and Devi getting together first. They’ll both be at Sherman Oaks for senior year, and without Paxton to set off some of their poor decision making skills, things go pretty smoothly. Though I think Ben goes on a few dates with Margot before this happens. I like her so much so I hope she sticks around in the fourth season.

Okay so senior year trials and tribulations occur but what this? Devi and Ben finally together? With no (or few) outside sources of chaos affecting them? Wowza. Things are good. I imagine both of them texting Paxton while he’s at school, for updates, pictures of campus food, sneak peeks at what college work is actually like (Paxton is an undeclared major going in but I think it would be cool if he ended up as a counselor of some sort because he’s learned to really enjoy helping people and it’s kind of been the resolution of his current character arc but I’m open to discussion).

This is where Ben and Paxton start bonding even more. We’ve seen that Ben does pretty well text flirting because of course so I imagine Paxton notices Ben’s real confidence shining through and thinks “oh cool here’s another guy I can bond with even though we’ve had weird experiences in the past” and then that progresses.

I think things get weird when Paxton is back from school for winter break and asks to hang out with both of them and they have a meal and no one can agree on who sits next to him so he sits in the middle and its now a competition for Ben and Devi.

Anyway there’s tension and jealousy (but of who??? everyone!) and then they kiss mwah.

As for while they’re dating? Just dweebs. Absolutely dorks.

#nhie #never have I ever #Ben gross #paxton hall yoshida #devi vishwakumar #bendaxton #what is there ship name

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negasonicimagines · 3 years

Text

Love Shouldn't Hurt

trigger warnings: abuse, self-hatred, depression, and any other content warnings that come with the Deadpool franchise

request: Love love love your fics!! Can you please do one where Reader is a human and Ellie saves her from an abusive relationship and they fall in love?

notes: this was… a hard one to write. as someone who’s experienced abuse on a few different levels from a partner, you aren’t alone. you may feel like no one else would’ve loved you before, and that no one else will love you after what you’ve been through, but they will. if you’re struggling with abuse, please reach out to someone, anyone. even me, if you really don’t feel comfortable talking to someone you know. it can and will get better. things might not be okay now, but they will be. you are so loved.

i modified the request a bit, i hope that’s ok. i just adore a good best friends-to-lovers piece. sorry for the cheesy title, but i hope y'all are glad i'm semi-back. trying to write more since i'm in a better place and this is a good creative outlet for me.

synopsis: Ellie’s thrilled to return to her hometown after her senior year at Xavier’s is complete. She’s most excited to see you again. But, what happens when you aren’t the you she knows and (secretly) loves?

Ellie’s favorite part about coming home in the summer is seeing you.

Maybe that’s wrong; maybe she should be excited to see her family, or to be back in her own room, or to be away from the chaos at Xavier’s…

But it’s true.

This time, though, as you come out of your house (next door to hers, the only perk of living in suburbia is that you’re so close) you don’t skip along like you used to. Your smile is… Different.

“Hey, Ellie,” you say, and even your voice sounds different. Normally you’re grinning like an idiot, brimming with a puppy dog disposition that acts as a foil to her catlike aloofness. At the risk of sounding like a creepy teenage boy, where’s her hug?

“Are you okay?’ she blurts.

“Yeah, of course,” you laugh it off, your fake smile growing wider. You don’t wanna tell her? Odd. The two of you had drifted apart over this last school year, more than usual. It was normal for one or both of you to get carried away with your studies or other friends and forget to respond to a text every once in a while, so she hadn’t thought much of it. She knew once summer came, you two would fall right back into your routine of slumber parties nearly every night, catching up on all the crazy shit that’s happened in your lives during your time apart and making some more crazy shit happen together.

“...Okay,” Ellie decides to respond. Your phone vibrates, and you flinch, instantly pulling it out and quickly texting back. Your fingers are like lightning. You quickly lock your phone and slip it back into your pocket.

“How’ve you been?” you ask her. “How are things with Yukio?”

“Oh, we broke up almost as soon as we started fucking dating. Thought we’d work out as more, but decided pretty quickly that we were better off as just friends. Our future plans didn’t really line up, among other things. Other than that, I’ve been pretty good.”

“That makes sense,” you say, but you sound even more tense. “Uh, if we happen to run into Vivien, can you not tell her that? She’s the jealous type, and she knows we’re close, so…”

Ellie feels an odd twinge at that, more than just jealousy. Her mom always told her she had good intuition, so she presses further.

“How are things with you two?” she wonders.

“Oh, just great! She really is the best, words aren’t enough to describe it,” you answer enthusiastically, but it still feels so… Off. Maybe it is just jealousy making Ellie feel awkward. Envy was always her worst sin, coveting what she can’t; what she shouldn’t have. You’re her best friend, you always have been. It would probably end like it did with Yukio, burning fast and bright, but once the initial excitement is over… It’s over.

“That’s awesome,” Ellie says. “So, what were you thinking of doing today?”

“Oh, uh, whatever you want is fine,” you chirp.

“Breadstix?”

“They don’t have a lot of vegan options,” you remind her.

“You like it, though. I’ll cope.”

“But-”

“No ‘buts,’” she insists. “I don’t know why you like that place so much, the breadsticks they’re named for are pure shit, but I’ll just cope and get a salad.”

“Last time you ordered it, they put cheese on it, even though-”

“I remember. I’ll just send it back again, it’s not a big deal,” she insists once more. “Why are you arguing so much? It’s your favorite local place that isn’t fast food.”

You sigh.

“Fine, let’s go,” you cave, letting her pull you along to her car. You sit in the passenger seat, buckling your seatbelt as she starts it. She buckles her own, passing you her phone. You look at it as if it’s a foreign object.

“You always pick the music. What’s with you?”

“Have you ever considered that maybe I don’t like making all the decisions all of the time?” you bite back.

Ellie stammers, not sure how to respond.

“Hangry, huh?” She decides that must be the reason for your change in attitude. It’s already eleven, and you’re an earlier bird than she is. You likely skipped breakfast knowing the two of you would be eating when you hung out. She takes her phone back and just picks one of your playlists on Spotify.

You’re quiet on the short drive there, and it makes Ellie feel even more uneasy. Your chatter-- which she usually pretends is meaningless to her --is sorely missed.

You’re texting again, intently focused on the screen as if the task is difficult.

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

“I said that I’m fine,” you quickly answer, locking your phone again and tucking it back in your pocket.

“I’ll drop it for now, but… If something was wrong, you’d tell me, right?” Ellie asks.

“Yeah, of course,” you agree, but she doesn’t feel better.

“Cool,” she replies, parking outside of the restaurant. The two of you get out, it’s early in the lunch rush so you’re still able to be seated pretty quickly. Your drinks arrive just as swiftly, and Ellie catches you texting with that determined expression on your face again. “Seriously. What’s going on?”

“Just Vivien. She wanted to hang out today, but I didn’t know that until I told her I was gonna be with you. She’s just a little disappointed.”

“Well, she can join us, I’m sure-”

“No, no, it’s really alright,” you quickly reassure her. “I- These days, I don’t really spend time with anybody but her. I’m surprised she even let me- That came out wrong, she-”

As you continue to stumble over your words, the pieces continue to fall into place for Ellie, brows knitting closer and closer together.

“Is she hurting you?” Ellie asks. Xavier’s sex education isn’t just about the mechanics, it’s a pretty progressive class. They had a whole unit on abuse. Ellie’s pretty sure she’s seeing signs of it right now.

“No, of course not! I mean, every relationship has its challenges, but-”

“She is, isn’t she? Why didn’t you just tell me?”

“‘Cause I knew you’d look at me like that,” you sigh, giving up on the lie.

“Like what?”

“Like… That. So disappointed in how pathetic I turned out to be. I mean, you’re Negasonic Teenage Warhead, for fuck’s sake, I… It must be so- I-”

“Hey, hey, no, that’s not it at all. I’m disappointed in myself, I should’ve fucking known something was wrong, I mean, I did, the second you came out of your house, but before that… I should’ve checked on you more. I’m- I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault I let it get this bad. She- She’s just- When it’s good, it’s good, y’know, but- I don’t know. I love her.”

“Those PSAs are right, though. Love shouldn’t hurt.”

“It always does,” you murmur, and you give her a meaningful look. If only she knew what the meaning of it was.

“Well, it shouldn’t,” Ellie insists. You’re picking at your pasta. You usually inhale it. Ellie almost asks what’s wrong, but she knows what it is. She’s sure Vivien’s taken every opportunity to break you down. “Eat, please. Or it’ll be a waste of my money.”

“Who said that you’re paying? You don’t even like this place.”

“I said I’m paying. Making a decision so that you don’t have to make them, isn’t that what you complained about earlier?”

You sigh in defeat, eating an actual bite instead of just twirling it around on your fork.

Ellie digs into her salad, she can’t help but fondly smile at you despite the situation. She’s missed you so much.

“When are you gonna do it?” she asks.

“Do what?” you wonder, as if you’ve forgotten the context of the question.

“Leave her.”

“I can’t,” you quickly say, but Ellie still catches a fearful tremor.

“Why not?”

“There’s nobody else. I mean, yeah, you and I are still friends, but… When you reject so many offers to hang out, people stop asking. They stop talking to you altogether, eventually. And… She’s the only person who’s ever wanted me, y’know? And now she’s the only one who ever will.”

“That’s not true,” Ellie says.

“It is.”

“It’s not, I swear,” Ellie insists. “I- You’re gonna need some time to heal, after everything, but… I do.”

“You’re just saying that. There’s no way, after all these years, that you finally-“ you stop yourself.

“Finally?” Ellie asks.

“That you finally love me the way I love you.”

“You mean…? I just thought… I’ve loved you just as long, but I thought you only saw me as a friend, and I didn’t wanna ruin that. The way things went with Yukio just reinforced that- That fear.”

You nod.

“Well, I guess that settles it. You’ll- I’ll call her. I can’t do it in person, she’ll… Y’know.”

“I know,” she gently responds.

You call Vivien.

“Hey, I… I can’t do this anymore. Us.”

You flinch. Ellie can hear the sounds. The yelling. And then the crying. And then the yelling again.

“I mean it. You’re right, you can do better, so… Go do better. We’re not good for each other,” you say with a shaky sigh. “Mhm. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. I know. I know. It’s not like that. Yeah. Goodbye, Vivien.”

“I’m proud of you,” Ellie says softly, and you just scoff, rolling your eyes before you sink your teeth in your bottom lip. You cover your mouth. “Hey, hey, you’re gonna be okay.”

“Will I?”

“Yeah. I might be ‘Negasonic Teenage Warhead,’ but you’re Y/N. Twice as strong without the annoyingly long codename.”

“Yeah, right,” you scoff again, eyes watering. “I just- I just don’t know why I wasn’t good enough.”

“You’re perfect, she’s just… Some people just don’t… It’s hard to explain. I have a- He’s not my friend, I can’t believe I almost said that, thank the fuckin’ lord he didn’t hear me… I know a guy who deals with those kinds of people. He told me that most of them, they… They don’t ever change. Maybe they could, with help, but due to the ego that makes them abusive in the first place, they’re never gonna get that help. The world’s better off without them. There’s nothing you could’ve done.”

“That- That makes sense,” you admit. “I just wish we lived in a world where love was enough.”

“Me too,” Ellie sighs, and you take a sip of your drink. She mirrors your action, realizing that she’s actually quite thirsty. The two of you finish your brunch in a heavy silence. It feels like you both should be talking, but nothing feels right to say. That’s okay, though, Ellie’s just missed you so much. As depressing as the current mood is, there’s a bit of hope. You’ll be back to your regular self eventually; a stronger, more mature version, and Ellie will be there to shower you with the respect and affection you deserve when you’re ready.

#tw abuse #cw abuse #negasonic teenage warhead #negasonic teenage warhead x reader #negasonic teenage warhead imagine #ellie phimister #ellie phimister x reader #ellie phimister imagine #lesbian x reader #lesbian imagine #lesbian fanfiction #wlw x reader #wlw imagine #negasonicteenageimagines

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jangmi-latte · 3 years

Note

(Twst Anni!) Oneshot form please! I know I can choose up tot wi characters, but in this case, I’m just gonna choose one for Vil (i cant think of any other lines that appealed to me): “Beautiful flowers are poisonous. But isn’t that just another one of their charms?”

╰──➢ “Beautiful flowers are poisonous. But isn’t that just another one of their charms?”

❥ ara ara you geared something in my brain. may our waiter, vil schoenheit, treat you with this anniversary special dessert!

Another hit bashed his sides as he fell to the ground. No pain did adhere to his figure yet the disappointment of failing yet another training session made him scowl to himself. His foil was thrown across the room in a sign of defeat. His father sighed while you kept yourself sitting on the chair in worry. “Vil,” his father began, helping his son up and continuing, “It’s time for you to rest. You’ve done enough for today.”

“I want to continue, papa,” came his struggling grunts while he stood up. Patting down the dust on his pants, he walked to pick up his foil. However, his papa prevented him from going any further with a tight grip on his wrist. “I said, that’s enough.”

“But I’m not tired--”

You wanted to run and comfort the boy -- your best friend. His father had already removed his fencing mask off of him. “Vil. You need to rest. You’re already frustrated enough to continue.”

Mr. Schoenheit’s eyes glanced at you, nodding his head over at his son while his hand laid at the small of his back. Vil’s face was cast down, hands balled into fists with teeth gritted in frustration. You looked at the older man and quickly set your feet down on the floor and ran over to your friend.

“Let’s go outside, Vil. The sun can calm you down."

Vil looked at you in the eyes, his expression not even fading — gazing down at your hands holding his. He doesn't know what he’s feeling but immense frustration. Towards who? Himself. He brought you to his home to show you how much progress he did with fencing and yet he just wiped the floor with his failure. The shame of failing his own ability. How did he word his statement again?

“Come to my house! I’ll show you how much stronger I got with fencing!”

Stronger, huh.

“I’ll make you something to drink.” Mr. Schoenheit placed a hand on his son’s head, “You go outside with y/n. It will help you greatly.”

Now both of you sat at the porch of his home, listening to the white noises his little village made whilst drinking some nutritious smoothie. It was quiet between the two of you. No awkwardness, no uncomfortability, just feeling the presence of one another. You gazed at Vil, his blonde locks covering his face yet you could see how he stared at the pavement below him. His lips remain locked around the straw as you watch him subconsciously swallow down his smoothie.

“Vil?” you called.

“Hm?” he responded yet his eyes never left where they desire to look.

Your mouth ran dry; what did you want to say to him? Think, y/n. How can you emotionally support your friend who was disappointed? “You did great back there.”

Really, y/n?

“You’re only saying that to make me feel better,” he exhaled, taking his time to finally glance at you. His glass is now empty and yours still half full. You tripped on your words, scratching the back of your nape. “I didn’t do well. I know that. I just need to try harder.”

“But you really did better. It’s okay to fail, you know. You’re still ten years old.”

“You speak as if you’re any older than me. I’m fine, y/n.”

“You don’t look like it.” You placed your glass on the steps beside you and scooted closer to Vil. “You’re stubborn, you know that. I saw how you wanted to cry back inside and yet you didn’t let yourself. If you want to cry now, then I have a shoulder for you to cry on!”

Vil shook his head in denial, twirling his straw as he looked away. “I don’t like showing signs of weakness. You’re being ridiculous.”

“Sheesh.” You gave up, huffing in defeat while you slurped on your smoothie. You know it’s useless to get into Vil’s head. When he’s determined to do something, you know he wants it to happen. Despite seeming weak already, he wants to stay strong. How poisonous. Even you wanted to keep on going through his head.

You already saw his success by being a child influencer. You were there -- or at least try to be present -- during his stage plays. His movies? Oh, Vil would use his dad’s phone just to contact you and how everything is going. What else does he want? Surely, he would tell you about this and that and how the world of media is different from his little village in his homeland. He failed just ONE round of fencing and now he’s sulking.

Why won’t he tell you his objective this time?

He could beat you in fencing himself. Even his dad would wince every time Vil would attempt to playfully punch his arm. He’s that strong already. What else, Vil. What else do you want?

You wish to know the answer eight years later.

You sat in Pomefiore’s lounge, the leg over your other, swinging in boredom as you scanned through endless magicam content. Epel was so close to looking like a pile of hay with his hands tugging on his hair countless times. Looking at your junior, you sighed and placed your phone down. “Magical pharmaceuticals? That’s Iodine. It can be used to revive dead plants. Wait, why are you studying this? This is for second-years.”

“I wanna prove something to Vil-- I mean, my senior…” he admitted laying his head on his arms in distress. “He said the first step into being stronger is to be smart. So I...well..borrowed some books from other second-years.”

“Be smart? I don’t think Vil would say something like that…” you said.

“I ‘on’t know! I didn’t understand a single w’rd he said s-so I assumed that!” he burst out as he sat back with a scowl on his face. You sighed, scooting closer to the boy and wrapping an arm around his shoulder. Just across the room where the both of you sat were Vil and Rook. You can’t hear what they’re talking about yet you could see how focused they both were as they communicated with another third-year.

“Epel, you know…” you began, rubbing his arm in a comforting way, “Whatever Vil told you, he just wants you to do well.”

“But ‘e’s too harsh!”

“Not everything is going to be easy and Vil just wants to see you work hard. You wouldn’t be able to carry that interviewer’s luggage if it wasn’t for him working out your arms right? He just finds a way to gear you up.”

“He succeeded alright…” he mumbled, following your gaze over to his senior. As he looked at Vil, he remembered how he turned down his magic wheel design in order to bring out his full potential in creativeness. Admittedly, he often misunderstands Vil’s words into something much cruel but people learn from mistakes, right?

With a deep inhale, Epel stood up and collected the books. “Alright! I’ll prove to Vil that I’m gonna be the best. Someday, I’ll… I’ll…”

“Think about it Epel. You still have a long way to go.”

“Ahhh…” he moaned and nodded. “I’ll be back! I still have some flowers to pick for the experiment! See you, y/n!”

You waved at the departing boy. Adorable. No small body can hold such a big ambition. And just what was still the answer to your question about Vil? What does he want?

“That boy,” you heard the dorm leader sigh as he and Rook walked closer. The latter chuckling to himself as he sat beside you. “He complained again, didn’t he?” he questioned. Nodding as a response, you laid your head on the arm of the couch as Vil eyed you.

“He misunderstood me again, no?”

“He understood afterward. No biggie,” you grinned.

“Either way, you conveyed my message--” He moved his hand, swatting the air in a sign of disregard, “But that won’t be the last time I’ll persuade him to do better.”

“We know,” You and Rook simultaneously spoke. You mentioned how Vil could even tolerate Epel’s attitude and how immune he is to his personality. You remembered how both yourself and Mr. Schoneheit are immune to Vil’s determination and non stop hard work. Is there a difference? Maybe there is, maybe none. That’s a Pomefiore student after all.

No harsh or rude words can knock them down. Determined? Hah! That’s a battle with oneself against the world. How poisonous would a flower be if its beauty and ability are showcased to everyone. Nothing can destroy something so elegant yet powerful when they are their own poison. Being poisonous is something to brag about.

“He’s cute but he’s the first student in Pomefiore that can fight you Vil.”

The young man laughed to himself, smirking your way in delight. “That’s a challenge I am looking forward to. After all, beautiful flowers are poisonous. But isn’t that just another one of their charms?”

#twisted wonderland #twisted wonderland x reader #twst #twst x reader #vil schoenheit #vil schoenheit x reader #pomefiore #pomefiore x reader #rook hunt #epel felmier #epel felmier x reader #rook hunt x reader #night raven college #disney twisted wonderland #twst imagines

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edie-baby · 3 years

Text

Les Fleurs du Mal Chapter 1| Pierre Gasly

Summary: Sava Dvorakova had big dreams for Formula One. An opportunity of a lifetime comes around, so she takes it and runs. She proved just about everyone wrong, and is awarded a very controversial seat on the F1 grid. There’s smiles and grins, hugs and kisses, love and laughter. There’s tears and sobs, fights and break ups. There’s evil where you least expect it, hidden in the garden of eden. The Flowers of Evil.

Warnings: a lot of swearing, shitty parents (they’re a recurring theme), sexism, i ignored a lot of actual f1 rules because i couldn’t be bothered writing it into the story tbh, yuki is fcking adorable, a lot of smut eventually, like a lot.

There were hundreds, thousands, maybe even a million girls who have dreamed of making it into Formula One. It is the pinnacle of motorsport, the highest calibre and the most competitive of its many engine-based counterparts. Many women over the years have tried to make their way into the sport, but as each season becomes more competitive, it seems as though the women of motorsport keep slipping through the cracks. Perhaps it’s a timing thing - they weren’t in the right place at the right time - or perhaps it’s a sexism thing, or maybe the female drivers just simply are not at the same level that a lot of the men are at.

Sava Dvorakova feared being one of those women. One that would try their hardest, but were still unable to make their mark on a sport they had very clear passion for. The seventeen year old had been karting since her fifth birthday, progressing through the levels the Czech Republic had to offer before she moved onto European championships. Nearly every weekend of the year, Sava was in her kart, racing against boys three years her senior and thrashing them each time. However, she didn’t get the opportunity to progress into single-seaters for many years.

It was September 2020, just like any other race weekend when it happened, Sava piled into her kart as the marshalling for her heat was called. Her uncle patted the top of her helmet for good luck, a tradition the two had kept for about twelve years at this point, and she made it out onto her starting place - pole position as usual. Sava pulled clean moves the entire race, defended her position without being reckless or desperate, and had perfect pace. As she pulled back into the pits under her team’s marquee, she spotted her uncle speaking with an older man in a button up and slacks, something quite odd for a normal karting weekend. Sava hopped out, practically ripping her helmet and balaclava off as her footsteps increased in pace to get to her uncle. He scooped her up into a hug, spinning the girl a few times and congratulating her on another victory for the season.

“Bunny, this is Doctor Helmut Marko, he’s the director of Red Bull Racing. He’d like to speak with you about a driving opportunity.” Sebastian, her uncle, stated clearly, his excitement spilling into his eyes as he stared at his seventeen year old niece. Her dyed-pink hair sat matted to her forehead, the majority of it spun into Dutch braids down her back that would be tucked into the back of her race suit before the next race, her cheeks were flushed red, and her bottom lip was cracked in places from how much the Czech nibbled on it on and off track. Sebastian almost laughed at the situation she had ended up in.

“Dr Marko, it’s lovely to meet you. I have an hour until my next heat, so if you would like to speak urgently, there is a small cafe about a hundred metres from the track. If you’d like less of a time constraint, I will be completely free after 4pm today.” Sava told the man in front of her, Czech accent so thick the Austrian could barely understand her.

“It should only take about 10 minutes, so if you’d like, I can buy you and your uncle a coffee at the cafe while we speak.” Dr Marko offered. Sava nodded calmly, her uncle much more vocal about his excitement. Sava excused herself to change into less sweaty clothes, returning in a halter-neck singlet and a pair of ripped skinny jeans. Her trusty combat boots stepped over all of the tools, debris, and shit that was scattered around the pits as she made it back to the two men.

“So, Sava, what is your goal in karting?” Dr Marko began almost immediately after the trio had sat down in the cafe.

“To make it into formula one and win multiple world championships.” Sava responded confidently, barely a second between the question and her reply as it was something she had thought about for a very long time.

“So why aren’t you already driving in single seaters?” Dr Marko questioned further, and from the corner of her eye, Sava could see her uncle tense up.

“Because no one’s willing to give me a chance in the big leagues because they know I’ll do a lot better than half the boys on the grid.” The seventeen year old replied. Helmut seemed impressed with the rapid fire, confidence laden responses he was receiving.

“Well, I’m willing to. Jehan Daruvala, a Red Bull junior currently driving for Carlin in formula two is unable to attend the last three races of the season because of health issues. I want you to take his seat for those races, and if you’re as good in a single seater as you are in that kart, I’ll make sure you have a seat for next year.” Helmut laid out, and Sebastian audibly choked. Sava smirked at her uncle’s reaction, and stared into the eyes of the man offering her a fast track to her dreams.

“I’d love to. When and where is the next race?” Sava chuckled, her uncle’s recovery from his choking fit was slow, and Helmut looked on in amusement. He had seen many similar reactions from the drivers he was propositioning, but it seemed as though this duo had reversed the normal roles.

“The weekend begins on Thursday in Italy. You’ll be racing in Mugello.” Helmut told the pair dryly. Sebastian began coughing once again, Sava simply rubbing his back soothingly while she nodded.

“I’ll need to make arrangements with my school, but I presume you’ll make travel and accommodation arrangements from Prague to Mugello?” Sava continued her calm conversation, though she could feel her natural bubbliness and excitement ready to burst through.

“Yes. There will be a Carlin race suit and boots in Mugello when you arrive, as well as a helmet and teamwear. You’ll have a personal assistant for the time you’re in Jehan’s seat, to keep up with the media and to navigate the paddock. I’ll have all of the relevant information forwarded to you tonight, and there will be a contract for you to sign upon your arrival in Italy.”

“Then I’ll see you there, sir. I best be on my way, I’ll need time to change back into my race suit before my heat is called in about half an hour. It was lovely to meet you, and I look forward to meeting and exceeding your expectations.” Sava concluded, standing up to give her new boss a handshake before she turned on her heels and practically sprinted out of the cafe. She speed walked back to the track and into the changing rooms before letting out the ear splitting squeal she had been holding in since she won her race forty five minutes ago.

It was easy enough to sort out her absence with her school, as there were no assessments due and Sava was already miles ahead of the rest of her peers, so her teachers had no qualms with letting their champion out to represent the country.

The issue however, was with her parents. Her father, a man she had been emancipated from for over a year, decided he would give her grief for throwing away her education to take someone’s spot for a few weeks before they would inevitably drop her once they realised how bad she was. Her mother wasn’t much better. As her legal guardian, she technically did have the right to stop her daughter from going into the F2 seat, but after a gruelling discussion and many threats from Sava to emancipate from her mother as well, she conceded.

So, on a very sunny, very early Thursday morning in September, Sava hopped onto a plane with an overnight bag to begin catching her dreams. Unfortunately, Sebastian had work during the week, but would be flying out to Italy on Friday night to watch his niece’s races on Saturday and Sunday. But, Sava arrived in Italy as bubbly and excitable as ever. Her pink hair was split into her iconic high pigtails, a white crop top, and pastel pink pleated skirt and trusted combat boots covered her form, black duffel bag thrown over her shoulder with some clothes for the weekend, and all of her travel documents. The PA standing with her name printed on a sign was very confused when a very small, very pink teenage girl bumbled over to her and said ‘Hi, I’m Sava. But everyone calls me Bunny’.

“I’m sorry, I expected someone a little more gritty.” The twenty-something woman spoke, her blonde hair in a high ponytail with a Carlin shirt and dark wash jeans. Sava guessed the PA expected someone who looked more like herself.

“It’s okay, I get that a lot. Most people don’t recognise me out of my race suit, so I definitely don’t expect someone who’s never seen me to anticipate my looks. What’s your name?” Sava’s Czech accent, combined with her hyperactivity meant she talked extremely fast, and often it was all nonsense, and she simply spoke for the sake of speaking. The PA took a few seconds to process the words Sava had spoken before finally replying with a simple ‘Amelia’. The two made it to the car that was waiting and travelled to the track in silence, Sava taking in the sights, and Amelia tapping away at her phone. When they got out, Amelia handed Sava a paddock pass, explaining the importance of it and demonstrating how to use it at the gates. They walked through to the Carlin garage, one half working away excitedly, while the other side seemed rather dead.

“Everyone, can I have your attention please? This is Sava Dvorakova, she’s our reserve driver for the rest of the season. Make her comfortable, and make sure she feels welcome!” Amelia yelled, very quickly causing silence to spread over the entire garage.

“Hi! I’m Sava, but most people call me Bunny, so feel free to do either! Or if you’d like, Dvorakova works just as well, but it’s a bit of a mouthful so I understand if you mispronounce it. I’ll also probably respond to ‘hey you’ so anything works. I’m really looking forward to working with you all and giving you some good results this weekend!” Sava giggled at the end, her fists clenched in front of her chest as she gave a small cheer with her hands and the entire garage remained silent for a few moments before breaking out into whispers, their eyes trailing over the teenager’s body. The anxiety in Sava’s belly bubbled, and she began playing with her hands until she was approached by a boy who was a little taller than her with a friendly smile on his face.

“Hi, I’m Yuki. I drive the other Carlin. It’s nice to meet you Bunny.” Yuki introduced with a smile and fist bump. He was unbelievably pleased to meet a driver who was smaller than him, though he supposed that her being a girl wouldn’t ease all of the teasing he got from other drivers on the grid. The two chatted about their background in racing, and Yuki gave Sava a few pointers on handling the car she was about to drive for the first time ever.

“Sava, I have all of your race gear to try on, and later on you’ll need to do a seat fitting as the mechanics are just going to modify one of Yuki’s seats since you two are similar height.” Amelia stated, breaking up the conversation between the two youngsters. Sava apologised to her new friend before practically skipping behind Amelia. She received a few weird looks from others in the paddock, including a few F1 drivers she recognised from TV and her Instagram feed. She wasn’t sure why they were in this paddock, but supposed a few of the younger guys had only recently come out of F2.

When she got into a Carlin motorhome, race overalls and her flame-retardant undersuit were thrust into her hands by Amelia, and then pointed toward a tiny bathroom within the motorhome while the PA continued scrolling through emails, updating social media, and answering calls. Sava pulled the suits on excitedly, and though it was a bit tight in the hips, thighs and chest, she thought it looked pretty damn good.

“So, I think this was definitely made for a guy with less boobs and smaller hips, but the fit is still really good.” Sava joked to Amelia when she stepped out, only to see Helmut Marko standing alongside her new assistant. She went red instantly, her shoulders tensing and sliding up toward her head.

“Yes, well, we can certainly fix that before the next race, but right now, I believe you’re needed for fittings in the garage, so throw on your helmet and get down there.” Helmut ordered. Sava quickly snatched up her balaclava and helmet, threading the two onto her arm as she began undoing the pigtails to braid them on her way back to the Carlin garage while Amelia and Helmut stayed behind to talk.

If Sava thought she was getting weird looks on her way to the motorhome, she was getting even weirder ones on the way back from it. From what she could tell, it seemed more like mechanics, engineers and other personnel from other teams and she couldn’t see any drivers she recognised before she slipped into the Carlin garage, one braid half finished, and her helmet banging against her head every time she moved her arm. Yuki laughed at her struggles, ambling over to thread the helmet and balaclava off her arm while she held the half finished braid precariously. Sava thanked him with a quick smile and continued braiding, her tongue occasionally poking out the side of her mouth in concentration. One she was finished, and the long braids were tucked into the back of her suit, she pulled on the balaclava and helmet in record speed, and then was ushered into the F2 car to begin the tedious process of trying and changing one of Yuki’s seats to suit her height and posture.

After about an hour of fiddling, she was allowed to take the helmet off, and was beginning to doze off in the cockpit while a few of the employees debated different ways of measuring and fixing the seat nearby. Amelia came into the garage to find the new driver fully asleep in her car with everyone still talking around her. She took a photo and uploaded it to Carlin’s Instagram story, tagging the driver and writing a quick word about the reserve driver they hadn’t officially announced yet. She giggled slightly, and when two of the mechanics came back over to lift the seat out of the car, they accidentally lifted the driver out with it. Amelia took more photos of the seventeen year old comfortably in her race suit, curled in her seat while two mechanics held the entire ensemble up above the car.

Suffice to say, Carlin’s Instragram was flooded with adoring new fans, angered stans, and a few cheeky formula one drivers on private accounts.

#pierre gasly #Pierre Gasly fanfic #Pierre Gasly imagine #Pierre Gasly x reader #formula one #formula 1 #f1 #f1 fanfic #Daniel Ricciardo is a lad #there's some lando flirting #I couldn't help myself #gasly #pg10 #call me eden

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yuta-nakamots · 4 years

Text

Walk You Home - l.jn

Pairing - Idol!Jeno x Idol!Reader

Genre - Fluff, friends to lovers, kinda crack-ish

Warnings - None (please feel free to let me know if I should add any though)

Summary - You met Jeno when you were a trainee and he had lent you his shoulder to cry on. He became one of your closest friends and one of your best supporters, eventually merging the two and becoming your best friend. Your friendship with Jeno was something you wouldn’t trade for anything, maybe aside for an actual relationship with him.

Word Count - 8.3k

A/N - this is inspired by a dream i had two months ago so it’s not really the best storyline lmao but let me know what you guys think. character inspo drawn from @t-aeycng as Soojin because she is truly a wonderful person and you should definitely check out her work as well

You ran up the stairs, stepping onto the stage overlooking the sea of fans, the largest audience you’ve ever performed in front of. You looked away from the crowd and your eyes instead settled on Jeno’s face, wanting nothing more than his comforting frame against yours but that was something you didn’t think you would ever tell him.

Three years ago, when you first joined SM Entertainment, you had left your home country in hopes of pursuing your passion of getting to perform in front of thousands of people. It was spring when you first arrived, you thought it was quite fitting as you were beginning a new chapter of your life just as the Earth was too. When you first came to Korea, you had little knowledge of the language and culture and were immediately labeled as an outcast among the other female trainees. They didn’t exactly mistreat you in any way, they just didn’t include you in activities because they didn’t know you or have any way to communicate with you.

You spent your days holed up in practice rooms and even on the days where you had training sessions with the other girls, most of them barely made any effort to talk to you, excluding one person. Her name is Soojin. From the time you first saw her, you knew she was going to be popular. She was beautiful no matter what angle you looked at her from and she had a personality to match.

After a particularly difficult dance class, all the others had left for the cafeterias, talking about how the teacher was so harsh this time around. The only ones left behind were you, packing up your things, and Soojin who was still practicing what you were taught that day. Right as you were about to leave, she called out your name.

“Do you want to eat together?” She asked, speaking slowly and carefully enunciating her words so you could understand. You were frozen in shock and all you could do was nod your head and shyly say yes.

From that day on, Soojin was essentially your guardian angel. She made sure to introduce you to everyone and include you when they went out together, she helped you develop your language skills and taught you how to get through the weekly tests the trainees were put through. You clung to Soojin the way a baby cub does to its mother.

During the holidays, she told you she wouldn’t be staying at the company and instead, going home to her family. She graciously invited you over, to which you declined, not wanting to embarrass yourself and your elementary speaking skills. You were unsure how you’d function without her, but you’d soon become grateful for that week because that was when you met Jeno.

It was already 9pm yet you were still in a practice room, not quite able to perfect a run in a song you were preparing for the weekly exams. You were tired and lonely, feeling more homesick than ever now that you were left on your own without Soojin to comfort you. You sat down, deciding to let yourself rest for a few minutes as you scrolled through social media and saw your friends and family posting pictures of their festivities together, causing tears to escape from your eyes and you let yourself fully break down, feelings of loneliness and yearning tearing at your heart.

You didn’t know how you missed the sound of the door opening, but suddenly there was a warm hand on your shoulder and a simple “hey” spoken from someone with a warm and rich voice. You looked up and immediately froze on the spot. You had seen other senior artists around the company before but they had never talked to you before, as you were only a trainee and they probably didn’t even know your name, yet here was Jeno, squatting down in front of you, his eyes searching yours to find the reason why you were crying all alone in a practice room.

“Are you okay?” That was all Jeno asked, his hand leaving your shoulder as he sat down in front of you. He waited for a bit as you tried to calm yourself down and dry your tears. “I’m Jeno, but I suppose you already knew that. Your name is?”

“Y/n,” you said, your breath almost catching in your throat as you involuntarily hiccuped, “I’m a trainee and I’ve been in Korea for six months” you told him, just as Soojin had taught you.

You saw Jeno’s features soften as he started to piece together why you were crying. “Your Korean is pretty good for coming only six months ago,” he said before continuing on, “but you shouldn’t be crying alone in a practice room.”

You looked up at him, telling him that usually, you’d be with Soojin but she went home and you’re not really close to any of the other trainees. He nodded his head, seeming to understand your message through your basic Korean. “I really would like to stay and comfort you, but my members are coming soon because we have to practice for one of the end-of-year festivals.”

You pushed yourself off from the ground to unplug your phone from the stereo and pack up, understanding where he was going with this but he followed you, not yet done talking. “If you’re okay with it, I’d like to give you my number so you can contact me whenever Soojin’s not around.” You turned to face him, shock evident on your face. “You won’t be bothering me, I promise,” Jeno said, trying his best to reassure you, “aside from practicing and performing I really don’t do much so you’d be welcome to text me anytime you want someone to talk to. I’d hate for you to go through this alone.”

He fished his phone out from his pocket, opening up a new chat and handing it to you, “here, you can even send the first message so you know that it’s me.” You accepted his offer and typed in your own number along with a short message to let you know it’s Jeno and hit send before handing him back his phone, feeling your own buzz in your hand, and light up showing the message you had just sent.

Unknown Number > y/n 9:15pm: Hello, this is Jeno

Jeno helped you gather your belongings and walked you to the door, even holding it open for you. You gave him a shy ‘thank you’ before stepping out into the hallway and he smiled at you saying that he’ll text you once his own practice is over not even a second before sound of his members coming down the hallway can be heard from their obnoxious yelling and giggling.

Jeno kept his word and as you were getting ready for bed that night in the empty dorm, you received another message from him.

Jeno > y/n 10:31pm: Y/n I just ended my practice and I’m heading to my dorm now. What are you doing?

Y/n > Jeno 10:32pm: Thinking about my next exam. They’re difficult.

Jeno > y/n 10:32pm: Ah, I remember those 10:33pm: I didn’t like them either but it feels good when you look back and see your progress

You maintained the conversation until he told you he arrived at his dorm building, to which he told you he’d text you after he washed up and ate dinner. He indeed texted you, but you were already fast asleep, the crying from earlier finally catching up with you. From then on, not a single week went by where Jeno didn’t text you.

Jeno always made sure to check up on you after an exam, asking how you did, encouraging you when you didn’t do so well, and praising you when you did do well. He even treated you to dinner a few times to congratulate you whenever you earned a B or better. He was pretty much your stand-in Soojin for whenever she was gone or got too busy with other things. He was just as patient as she was when it came to teaching you Korean and explaining things to you, his signature eye-smile showing whenever you repeated a new word back to him.

Soojin was surprised when you told her about your new friend when she came back to the dorms, almost kicking your door down in her excitement to see you, but she later held your hands in excitement saying “I can’t believe my y/n made her first friend on her own! And it’s Jeno! THE Lee Jeno from THE NCT Dream of all people! Maybe I should leave you more often” she joked before flopping down on your bed next to you to hear more about your relationship with Jeno.

Within another year and a half, you had debuted in SM’s newest six-member girl group, with Soojin as your leader, and Jeno wasn’t shy about showing his support for your group. When you coincidentally promoted alongside NCT Dream, he always made sure to wish you good luck before you went on stage and gave you tips after monitoring your performance. On one of the music shows, Jeno and the boys had won first place and they all insisted on keeping you and your group on stage with them.

Jeno’s face lit up when you danced the chorus of the song with him and he burst out in laughter when you imitated his own rapping part. There was something about you, the way you smiled as you clowned him, the way your eyes shone when he complimented your dancing. Jeno was beginning to fall for you.

Fans of both of your groups had noticed your close relationship, and though dating rumors were inevitable, most of them found the two of you to be quite cute together. You had seen a few of the compilation videos they had made for you and him though you only watched a handful of them and never dared to show them to Jeno, not wanting him to get the wrong idea because unbeknownst to him, you were falling for him too.

When the next SMTown concert was announced to be in your home country, you were overjoyed at the thought of being able to go home after two whole years away. You immediately texted Jeno to express your excitement and he matched it, jokingly telling you that he couldn’t wait to meet your friends and family.

A few days later, Jeno texts you asking if you’re free to hang out.

Jeno > y/n 4:38pm: are you free on Wednesday night? 4:38pm: Jaemin wanted to go grocery shopping after practice 4:38pm: Soojin said you guys are running low on toiletries so you can come too if you want

y/n > Jeno 4:47pm: yeah I’m free but I have practice on Wednesday night too

Jeno > y/n 4:50pm: really? What time?

y/n > Jeno 4:51pm: I think Soojin said 7

Jeno > y/n 4:51pm: wait really? That’s when I’m supposed to have practice I think 4:52pm: Renjun and Jisung both said 7 as well 4:52pm: did they tell you which room you’re in?

y/n > Jeno 4:54pm: I think it’s the basement one 4:54pm: don’t know why they have us in that huge one though

Jeno > y/n 4:55pm: no way! We’re supposed to be in the basement too! 4:56pm: do you think they mixed up our schedules on accident?

y/n > Jeno 5:00pm: I just asked my manager, he said that’s the one we’re supposed to be in

Jeno > y/n 5:01pm: that’s what mine just said too! 5:02pm: y/n, do you think...maybe...just maybe…

y/n > Jeno 5:02pm: what, Jen? just say it lol

Jeno > y/n 5:02pm: we’re working together for a performance?!

When you arrived at the basement practice room, the largest one in the building, sure enough, Jeno was in there waiting for you along with the other members of Dream. You ran to him and hugged him out of the sheer excitement coming from the idea that you’d be getting to perform together.

You and Jeno were so overly happy that it made Haechan gag while Jisung plugged his ears with his fingers and made a pained face at Chenle. However, your hug had the opposite effect on Jeno. He felt a burst of butterflies rise from the bottom of his stomach and he excused it as simply being excited to perform with you after having seen your hard work through your trainee days.

The dance your groups would be doing has a little bit of a darker sexy vibe which was something your group had never tried before. While it was something completely new to you, the boys had already done it before so they had fun showing you guys the right expressions and laughing as you and your members tried to copy them.

The type of dance was a little more provocative too and it wasn’t exactly your forte but you tried your best. You caught Jeno looking your way a couple of time but you figure he’s just trying to make sure you’re doing okay. Eventually, you give up trying on your own and you turn to go ask him for help during a break, slightly surprised to see that his eyes were already on you.

“Jeno, I don’t get that one move, the one that goes like this” you say and show it to him, his eyes glued to your figure as he tries to analyze what you’re doing.

You saw his tongue peek out from between his lips, a common habit of his when he’s really thinking, which doesn’t happen very often. “I think you’re being a little too loose with your movements, try tense up your arms and do it sharper” he explained, showing you through his own example.

You tried it again but you could tell you still weren’t doing it right from the way he sighed and moved to stand behind you. You felt the warmth from his chest seeping through both of your shirts and you had to fight the urge to just lean back against his strong shoulders but luckily you’re snapped out of your short daydream by Jeno’s hands wrapping around your wrists to guide your movements.

He ran through it a couple of times and you quickly caught on thanks to his teaching. Just as you turned your head to thank him, Jeno wrapped his arms around your body, embracing you in a hug and bringing his head to rest on your shoulder. Shocked by the close proximity of your faces, you both jump away from each other and start apologizing as your cheeks start to heat up. Fortunately, you were saved from your embarrassment when you hear Soojin calling everyone back from their break and you scampered away to stand with your members.

The head choreographer began pairing people up and you almost let out a squeal when she said you and Jeno would be together. There were no intimate portions of the choreography except for one short moment when you had to stare him down as you circle around each other as if you were ‘two lions about to fight’ as Haechan had explained it.

You and Jeno couldn’t help but giggle and make faces at each other every time that part comes up until both of you got yelled at and caused everyone to have to do push-ups as a punishment, angry glares being cast your way from your members.

The next time that part came up, you’re just slightly startled when Jeno completely switches to his performance mode and looks at you with a sultry glint in his eyes. You’ve seen this look thousands of times before while he’s up on stage whether it be from the sidelines or through a screen, but there was something different when you see it up close and you know his eyes are on you.

You took it as an opportunity to learn from him and try to give him the same gaze back during the following run through and when his eyes meet yours, you see them instantly shift away to somewhere behind you and you let out a slight smirk, finding it amusing how Jeno could still be so shy when you’re merely copying his own actions.

During the final run of the day, his gaze locked with yours and doesn’t wander away for even a second, almost as if he’s challenging you to look away first. You had to remind yourself that it’s just an act that he’s putting on for the sake of the performance, he’s not actually challenging you, though you almost wish he was. As soon as it ends, you’re broken out of the trance that is Lee Jeno himself while he went straight to his members, not even bothering to talk to you and give you feedback like he usually did.

You didn’t know what just happened, but you could feel there was now some sort of tension separating you and Jeno.

As all of you were monitoring the run on the large TV, Renjun laughed while saying “Jeno and Y/n look like they’re about to fight.” Your members giggled at his joke and one of them even calls it a ‘lover’s quarrel’. You didn’t dare look over at Jeno but you could feel his now-familiar gaze locked on you.

As your groups continued practicing together and the concert drew closer and closer, the tension between you and Jeno only grew worse, neither of you interacting with each other aside for during the dance itself. You found yourself itching to talk to him and tell him about the cute hat you saw in a store the other day, or how Soojin almost burnt the kitchen down while cooking dinner the week before. You didn’t have the guts to talk to Jeno, not when his jaw was squared shut and he wouldn’t even look at you unless it was during the dance.

During a break in one of the last rehearsals in Korea, you were playing around with your members and trying to do different tricks like backbends, roundhouses, aerials, and such. You knew these were Jeno’s specialty and you were taken aback when he didn’t come over to show off his skills and instead Jaemin did, though he was nowhere close to being as good as Jeno as he clumsily fell over from the handstand he was doing, causing you to have a fit of laughter.

Jeno doesn’t know why he feels so upset to see you laughing because of his groupmate and he especially doesn’t understand why he feels angry when Jaemin tries to spot you as you do a handstand and end up falling and dragging Jaemin down with you, both of you almost scream-laughing as your bodies lay tangled with each other.

It only gets worse when later that week, as Jeno is eating dinner with the other members, he sees Renjun’s phone light up showing a message from you telling him to enjoy his meal. Jeno didn’t even know the two of you had exchanged numbers and it was starting to drive him insane when your name kept popping up on Renjun’s phone throughout the night and not once on his own.

Renjun catches him staring, to which he leered, “what, lover boy? Are you mad that you can’t keep y/n all to yourself? Just relax, I’m only texting her to learn some phrases before the concert.” Jeno didn’t respond, not wanting to expose the fact that he didn’t even have you anymore, best friend or not.

He finished eating and excused himself from the table, leaving to go wallow in his own self-pity because he had unintentionally broken your friendship. He had realized his own feelings for you during that one dance practice but proceeded to distance himself from you out of fear that acting on his feelings would ruin your relationship, leading to the exact opposite to ruin it. Jeno cried himself to sleep that night hoping that the phrase ‘distance makes the heart grow fonder’ would hold true on your end, that you were missing him just as much as he was missing you.

The next time you saw Jeno was at the airport when all the company was getting ready to leave for your home country. He was wearing a simple outfit consisting of a plain black t-shirt with his black joggers along with a black snapback and his glasses to complete his plain yet oh so attractive full black outfit.

You were sitting in the lounge area with your members and one of them pointed him out and commented on how good he looks. You glanced over just in time to see him momentarily take his hat off and run a hand through his soft, light brown hair before placing his hat back on his head.

You felt a slight shiver go up through your spine as you watched him do such a simple action yet you were unnerved to hear that one of your members found him attractive even if you did too and you knew thousands of his fans did as well. Maybe distance made your heart grow fonder of him, given all the time the two of you spent away from each other and just wanting your best friend back. A few minutes later, after zoning out for a while, you were brought back to reality by your phone vibrating, showing three messages from Jaemin whose number you had gotten through Renjun.

Jaemin > y/n 8:16am: what rows do you guys have? 8:17am: we have 13 and 14. I’ll be sitting with Jisung 8:17am: he overpacked his snacks so now I have some of them. You’re more than welcome to come over and help yourself to them

Y/n > Jaemin 8:18am: we’re 16 and 17 8:18am: i’m not that hungry right now but I just stop by during the flight

You indeed took Jaemin up on his offer about halfway through the flight when your members were complaining about not liking the food being served. You mentioned how Jaemin had snacks he didn’t mind sharing and they immediately begged you to get them from him. You had forgotten to wear a hoodie so you were snuggled into the airline blanket for warmth, not wanting to leave your spot, but you ultimately lost a game of rock paper scissors so you had no other choice but to shake off the blanket and brace yourself for the cold.

As you trudged your way up a few rows, you easily find Jisung due to his large frame, though he was asleep while Jaemin was nowhere to be found, presumably having gone to the bathroom. You didn’t even bother looking around you to see where the other members were, your only goal in mind being the snacks in Jaemin’s bag because the quicker you found them, the quicker you could go back to your warm seat.

You opened up the overhead compartment and spotted Jaemin’s bag, though it was almost out of your reach. You raised yourself onto your tip-toes as you struggled to reach it when suddenly there was a warm hand on your waist and someone against your back. You froze, watching as the stranger easily grabbed the backpack and brought it down safely, handing it to you.

You turned around only to find Jeno looking down at you. It felt like a whole minute passed as you both just stared at each other, neither of you wanted to speak first, when really only a few seconds went by before Jaemin came walking down the aisle.

“Ah, y/n, you came!” He exclaimed, taking his backpack from your hold and unzipping it, “Sorry, I was in the bathroom, but I’m glad you were able to find my bag” he said, opening it up and showing you all the snacks he had. “Did you want some too, Jeno?” he asked, noticing Jeno’s presence behind you.

“No, I just came by to ask Jisung something,” he stated, “but I’ll come by later since he’s asleep” he said, already turning to walk back to his seat.

Once he was out of earshot, Jaemin sighed before telling you, “he’s been acting really weird lately. Even in the dorms, he’s all quiet and moody and none of us know why.”

“Maybe he’s on his man-period” you quipped while you took a few snacks from the bag while Jaemin rolled his eyes at your immature joke. You thanked him for the snacks and made your way back to your group members who were overjoyed when you handed them the bags of chips and dried fruit, all the bags opened within mere seconds. You only ate a bit, preferring to wait until you got to the hotel where you could eat room service food instead.

About an hour later, Soojin, who was sitting next to you, got up and told you she was going to the bathroom. You hum in response to let her know you heard. Not even a whole minute passes by before she sits back down next to you. You looked up from the game on your phone, asking her “did you even wash your hands-”, but you stopped midsentence when you realized you were looking at the face of Jeno, not Soojin.

Before you could say anything else, Jeno already blurted out the words, “I’m sorry.” You were still in shock, continuing to look at him with wide eyes like a deer caught in headlights. Jeno continued on anyways, “look I know I’ve been really cold and distant towards you for the past few weeks but that’s because...because-,” you noticed him fidgeting with his hands and you shifted in your seat to face him and look him in the eyes, “because I have feelings for you” he said, his words coming out almost too fast for you to process.

“Y/n, I didn’t want my feelings to ruin our relationship because I truly do treasure what we had, or had, as best friends, yet I allowed myself to break us apart somehow and I really do feel like shit because of it-”

“Jeno, it’s okay-” you began, cutting him off.

“No, y/n, it’s not okay,” he interjected, resuming his previous thought, “especially since you are finally returning home after two years away, I want you to be happy during this time,” his hands now shifting to play with a loose thread hanging from his shirt, “and I want to be able to be with you and share that happiness because I still remember the broken-hearted girl who was crying by herself in the practice room from homesickness.”

“Jeno, I...wow, I don’t know what to say” you mumbled, letting yourself fall into your seat, your thoughts running wild in your head.

“I know this is extremely sudden, but I just want our old relationship back. I want to stand by your side and watch you smile. I won’t even bother asking you to be my girlfriend because I know you’re going to reject me so don’t worry about that” he stated, dejection obvious in his voice.

Your head snapped up to face him, “what if I told you that I wouldn’t reject you?” Now it was Jeno’s turn to be stunned speechless. “I need some time to think this, to think us over” you confessed, motioning between the two of you to get your point across. “I need time, but I’m willing to be friends first before anything else” you conclude.

Jeno was wringing out his hands and picking his nails while smiling as he whispered “thank you” before he froze when you pulled him into a hug.

“I missed you” you murmured into his ear.

Jeno allowed himself to sink into your embrace before telling you “I missed you too.”

Both of you stayed there, enjoying the feeling of finally holding each other after being apart for so long until you pulled away to grab your phone just as it was about to slide off your lap. The display lit up and you realized you’ve been talking to Jeno for well over ten minutes, which made you worry about Soojin as she still hasn’t returned from the bathroom yet.

“I think I’m gonna go check on Soojin” you said, taking the blanket off of you as you stood up from your seat.

Jeno grabbed your hand before you could step out into the aisle. “She’s in my seat with Chenle,” he reassured, “I ran into her when she was leaving the bathroom and I asked her if she’d be okay with staying with Chenle for a bit while I talk to you.” You peered over the rows in front of you, and you found Chenle’s blonde head indeed next to your leader just as she playfully shoved him, no doubt playing that kart rider game everyone was obsessed with recently.

As you sat back down, relieved at knowing Soojin was okay, you shivered due to the few seconds you were exposed to the cold air hitting your skin as you searched for her. You do your best to steel yourself and not show Jeno that you were cold, knowing that he’d scold you, but he already knew you’d be cold when he saw you in the airport only in a t-shirt and leggings.

“You’re cold, aren’t you?” he says, more of a rhetorical and sarcastic than anything, answering his own question muttering “of course you are” as he leans back to take off his hoodie, unintentionally flashing you his abs in the process causing both of you to shy away from each other as he hands you your saving grace of the flight. You gratefully took the hoodie from him, letting out a sigh of relief when you pull it down over your body and feel its warmth made from Jeno’s body heat.

Jeno stayed with you for the rest of the flight and only leaves to go back to his seat when the flight attendant announces that the plane will be landing shortly. Luckily, your members were asleep and hadn’t witnessed your exchange with Jeno but they knew something was up when they saw you in the hoodie you certainly did not have on earlier.

Soojin smiled at you as she returned to her seat, buckling herself in while telling you “I’m glad you and Jeno are talking again. Not gonna lie, it was pretty awkward during rehearsals.” She only chuckled when you shrunk into the hoodie, pulling the strings of the hood closed over your face to hide your embarrassment.

By the time you arrived at the hotel, you were dead tired. You just wanted to shower and go to sleep which is exactly what you do once you reach your shared hotel room with Soojin.

You crawled into your bed, freshly showered and already half-asleep, ready to succumb to your exhaustion. Right as you were about to doze off, you heard your phone go off, pulling you out of your near-sleeping state. You reached around for it and turned it on silent once you got your hands on it, reading the notification that had rudely awakened you.

Jeno > y/n 12:13am: You looked really tired earlier so I’m pretty sure you’re already sleeping, but I hope you rest well. Only one more rehearsal tomorrow (today? Because it’s already midnight??) and we’ll be performing in front of your friends and family the day after! Let’s do well :)

y/n > Jeno 12:16am: I was almost about to fall asleep but I’m not mad only because it’s you 12:17am: Let’s show them the most powerful best friend duo in the world

You saw that Jeno had immediately read your message but you didn’t bother waiting for his response, already drifting off to sleep once again, though you wouldn’t have gotten a response anyways because Jeno thought you just friend-zoned him.

From the start of your day, you were already swamped with activities, shooting tons of videos in your native language to thank your fans and prompt your group while also being an in-house translator for your other members as they shot their own individual videos. It wasn’t until after the full rehearsal started that you were finally allowed some time to slow down and rest. Your group had already finished the first performance in the show and now you were in the on-deck area waiting for NCT Dream to meet you guys for your short joint rehearsal before going on stage.

You heard them coming before you even see them, the infamous “hi everyone! This is Haechan cam with 37.5% viewer ratings” greeting ringing out from the hallway. You and your members didn’t know he’d be filming so you hadn’t done anything to take care of your appearances like hair and makeup but all of you respectfully stood up to greet him and the other Dream members.

Your members grumbled amongst themselves as Haechan left the camera filming during your on-stage rehearsal, saying how they hoped this section wouldn’t get aired because none of you looked good without your hair and makeup done as you all fell into formation. You hadn’t noticed Jeno’s presence behind you, “I think you look nice, don’t let the girls tell you otherwise”, his short affirmation startling you, barely having time to shoot him a quick smile before the music started playing.

You didn’t bother doing facial expressions since it was only a rehearsal and you already felt so drained. When it came time for the dreaded eye contact portion with Jeno, you were expecting the normal fierce look but instead, you were met with his eyes smile as he made faces at you, almost making you laugh. Jeno’s heart fluttered when he saw the grin you were holding back, happy that he was able to brighten your day, even if it was only for a few seconds. If this was all he could do to lift your mood, then that was what he would do.

The previous night, Jeno had convinced himself that no matter what happens between the two of you, friend zone or not, he was going to make sure you were happy and fully enjoyed this short trip because you deserved it. You were home, and home was the whole reason why he had met you crying in the practice room on that fateful night. He told himself that he’d deal with his own unrequited feelings later but for you, he’d temporarily push them aside so he could watch you flourish in the place you loved so dearly.

Bringing you back to the current moment, as you walk out across the stage alongside your members to meet the boys of Dream in the middle. You look into the ocean of people, admiring the colors of the lightsticks and their almost hypnotizing effect paired with the screams from the audience.

You are beyond nervous, Jeno could tell that much from the way you struggle to find his face, even more so to meet his eyes. During the performance, when you again gazed over at him, ready for his predatory look, you saw another batch of his funny expressions, though this time you didn’t try to hide the smile that crept onto your face as he ruined his image.

To Jeno, he doesn’t care about all the bad pictures he’d see of himself or the whooping he’d get from the performance directors later. He was willing to endure it all if it was for you.

By the end of the concert, you were spent, all your energy thrown out of your body from dancing and rapidly switching between languages to translate all too frequently. When you joined all the senior artists for the final stage, you let your body go on autopilot as you wandered around, trailing behind your group as you tried to read all the signs and banners the fans were holding up.

You were lost in your own world until you felt two very strong and familiar arms wrap around your waist, almost scaring you enough to jump off the edge of the stage. You hear Jeno’s laugh from behind you and you whip around ready to beat him up for nearly shoving you off the stage but you stop in your tracks when he extends his arms out to show you a large banner of your country’ flag with the words “We Love You Y/N” stitched onto it.

You felt your heart swell with pride as you immediately took the item from Jeno and turned to face the audience, doing your best to hold it up, though your arms alone weren’t enough. Jeno grabbed the end of the flag that was almost touching the ground as he laughed at you while helping you to fully show the flag and thank the fans.

After you let them take a few pictures, you wrapped it around your shoulders and happily skipped off to rejoin your group, Jeno hot on your tracks as all the artists go into a line to do the final bow all together. As you ran past your members, Jeno snatched onto you, pulling you into the line right where your two groups met, lacing his fingers with yours as you both raised your arms up to bow to the audience. If only both of you could feel what the other was feeling, you’d know that the tingle of excitement you both felt was not one-sided.

When everyone came together for the group picture, you ended up getting smashed between the countless members of NCT alongside Soojin whose hand you had grabbed onto during the bow. As the cameraman started to count down, you were suddenly lifted into the air, feeling hands on both sides of your hips. You looked down to see Jeno on one side and Soojin on the other as they held you up, causing your smile to grow wider just in time as the camera flashed.

After they put you down, you turned around and caught Soojin leaning it to whisper something into Jeno’s ear, a simple “I will” was all he said in response. Once Soojin had already walked away, you were about to ask Jeno what she said, but he acted faster, almost aggressively pulling you into a back-hug with on arm around your waist, the other being used to wave at fans and point out the signs with your name and pictures on them.

You don’t know if it’s the close proximity of your bodies or simply the excitement from being able to pick out your own fans and thank them, but you felt a rush of adrenaline as you walked with Jeno. You looked up at him, admiring his side profile, finally understanding why his fans always called him a prince as you felt your palms grow sweaty and your heart skip a beat. Maybe you had just realized your own feelings for Jeno.

Once the two-day concert was over, you stop by at your manager’s hotel room to ask if you were allowed to go out for the day, the urge to visit your hometown feeling stronger than ever. He graciously said yes, telling you to let him know if you needed any help and to be sure to take someone else along for safety measures. You thanked him and ran off towards the elevator, hitting the number of the floor you knew Jeno was on rather than heading back to your own.

You excitedly jogged down the hallway to his room and knocked on his door after double-checking his text message to make sure you had the right room. Jaemin opened the door, greeting you with his loud “ohoho!”

“Jaemin shut up, oh my gosh,’ you gasped, not wanting someone to file a noise complaint, “I’m here to ask Jeno about something.”

Jaemin pulled you into the room while yelling “yah, Jeno Lee, your girlfriend is here!” much to your embarrassment. Just as you were about to whine at him and deny Jaemin’s statement, you saw Jeno shoot up from where he was lying on his bed, grabbing the blanket in a failed effort to cover his naked torso and he flung himself off the bed, looking for a shirt to put on. You swear you could see a faint tinge of pink on his cheeks as he rummaged through his suitcase but you don’t know if it’s from the lighting of the room or if he’s actually blushing. You choose to believe the first option, not wanting to give yourself false hope.

You sat down on Jeno’s bed as you asked, “do you wanna go out with me?” to which Jeno froze in place as he tried to process your words. “I mean, would you like to go and spend the day with me because I want to go home and show you where I grew up” you blurted, quickly rephrasing your words as your own cheeks began to heat up.

Jeno only grunted a response, letting you know that he did want to go with you as he threw a shirt over his head. Jaemin let out a laugh of excitement while clapping his hands and squealing “eeheehee my babies are going on their first date together! Make sure to bring Nana some delicious snacks!”

“Yeah, we’ll get you the strawberry ones you love so much” Jeno said, causing Jaemin to pout as he flopped onto his bed. Before Jaemin could pester either of you any further, Jeno was already grabbing his things and pulling you out the door.

On the elevator ride down to the lobby, Jeno asked “so where exactly are we going today?” You pulled your phone out of your pocket and showed him pictures of your favorite restaurant from you old neighborhood as you searched up the directions on google maps. You started telling him about all the memories you had there and how good the food was, and though Jeno was listening to you, he was really only paying attention to your face. He loved the way the edges of your crinkled when you smiled, the was your eyes shone when you talked with so much excitement.

Once both of you were in one of the company vans and you had already given the directions to the staff member who’d be driving, you decided to take a nap in your seat, already dozing off before you had even left the hotel parking lot. Jeno took a moment to admire your sleeping form next to him, finding you just as beautiful as when you’re awake. He took a few pictures of you, not wanting to let this moment go to waste before he too allowed himself to drift off into sleep.

You woke up to Jeno gently shaking you and telling you that you’re outside the restaurant, your half-asleep state barely even remembering which country you were in. You took a few seconds as your brain started functioning again and you wasted no time in yanking the door open and thanking the staff member as you jumped out of the van, Jeno following your actions as you nearly ran into the restaurant.

The second you set foot through the entrance, the sounds and the smells brought back so many memories and you almost teared up though you quickly brushed it off as you switched into your native language and asked the hostess for a table for two. As you followed her through to all so familiar restaurant, Jeno looked around, admiring the artwork scattered across the walls as he said the phrase ‘so beautiful’ in your language.

You whipped around when you recognized the words he just whispered, “how do you even know how to say that?”

“Oh, I uh, learned it for you,” he stuttered sheepishly, his hand going to scratch the back of his head, “I wanted to be able to talk to you and the fans better so I’ve been learning it on the side” he explained, a slightly awkward silence falling upon both of you as you sat down at the table, thanking the hostess as she handed you the menus.

The silence was quickly broken when Jeno started asking you about the different dishes, his mind overloaded with the foreign language, and all the different options. You tried your best to explain them to him, though he ultimately ended up just letting you choose his food for him, trusting your judgment more than his at this point.

Lunch with Jeno consisted of him being amazed by the food and cutely repeating phrases you were teaching him and you taking pictures and videos of him, wanting to save this moment into your memories.

Once both of your stomachs were full and you had fought with Jeno over who’d be paying the bill, Jeno won, of course, you took a breath of fresh air as you walked out of the restaurant, reaching your arms up over your head while yawning as you felt the beginning of a food coma start to take form.

You made Jeno call the staff member to pick you up and take you to another location you thought Jeno would like as you skipped down the road to one of your favorite parks. He ended the call after he sent the address of the park and ran to catch up with you. You heard him coming so you kept skipping along until he got closer and suddenly stopped, essentially brake checking him and cracking up as he slammed into you, nearly knocking both of you to the floor.

As you grab onto him to stop him from actually falling face-first into the floor, you interlocked your fingers with his and pulled him over to the playground you used to hang out at with your friends all throughout elementary and middle school. It stopped before high school though because this was also where you had your first heartbreak the summer before your freshman year.

One humid summer night, you were here with your crush and you had finally worked up the guts to ask them out thanks to the confidence of starting a new chapter of your life. You were undeniably broken when they rejected you and walked away without even bothering to tell you why. You sat on the swing set, allowing your tears to fall in silence.

You tell this story to Jeno as you sit at that same swing set, his strong arms gently pushing you forward every so often. “How about I make this place a happier memory for you?” he suggests, moving to stand in front of you, his hands grabbing the chains of the swing to stop your momentum.

You let confusion overtake your face as your feet settle on the dirt beneath the swings, fully stopping your movement and looking up at Jeno. “Y/n, I just want you to know how utterly thankful I am to have met you,” he began, making sure to hold eye contact with you, “you’ve brought so much joy and happiness to me without even knowing it and i’m glad to be your best friend. I would’ve never thought that we’d become so close due to our backgrounds but that’s what makes our friendship so special.” He pauses, trying to carefully piece together his next sentence. “I know I told you that I have feelings for you, but even if I can only stay by your side as a friend, I’m more than happy to do just that as long as you are happy-”

You abruptly stand up, cutting him off midsentence as you let your hands go to his which were frozen in place from where he was previously anxiously playing with the hem of his shirt. “Jeno, I’d like to give us a chance.” His eyes widened as he looked at you, not believing what he was hearing. “I’d like to give us a chance if it’s okay with you” you confess as Jeno smiles at you before pulling you into his embrace.

You hug him back, letting yourself get lost in his scent, your head resting on his shoulder. “Does this mean I’m your girlfriend now?” you ask, giggling into his chest.

You lean back slightly to see him nod as he said “Y/n, the girlfriend to the one and only Lee Jeno”, his cheeks turning a light shade of pink. He still held onto you, not even bothering to pull away when he pulls his phone out of his pocket to answer a call from the staff member who’d be picking you up.

Once he ends the call, he kept his phone out to check the time and you felt all giddy when you see that his wallpaper is a picture from the concert of him and Soojin holding you up as if you were Simba, your laughter caught and preserved in time. “You know, Jeno, one day I’m gonna be able to hold you up like that” you muse.

“Mmm, I wouldn’t set your hopes too high” he teases. You were about to hit him but he took off running towards the company van.

You chase after him yelling “Lee Jeno, this isn’t how you treat your girlfriend!”

He only laughs as he shouts back, “best friend first, girlfriend second” causing you to roll your eyes as you continue to run after him.

@nct-writers

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peaches-writes · 4 years

Text

'christmas ornaments’

skz of christmas day 4: christmas party with hyunjin

member: hyunjin wc: 1.3k genre: fluff, bare minimum soulmate au, established relationship au, college au, comedy warning: explicit language note: pls i wrote this during midterms

Okay, okay, okay, socks! Where are my socks—ooh, a cookie! This doesn’t look two weeks old, I think I can eat it? Wait, wait, that’s not what I’m supposed to be looking at! What am I looking for? Um....uhhh....

Socks? You try suggesting to the voice in your head, letting out an actual chuckle in your physical setting so he won’t hear it from your thoughts. Baby, you’ve been looking for socks the past three minutes.

Right, socks! Thanks Y/N! Hyunjin physically puckers up on his side and telepathically sends you a kiss with an imagined sound and you burst out laughing in your head as a response. Bruh, where’s my kiss back?

Maybe if you’re already on the way to the party like you said fifteen minutes ago, you’d be getting all the kisses you want, dumbass. You point out with a roll of your eyes, bursting into more giggles when he starts whining in between unconsciously narrating whatever he is doing as he prepares to leave his dorm. Next to you in the backseat of Yeji’s car, Jeongin looks up from his phone to give you another comical judgmental stare over your ‘weird’ soulmate connection. What’s taking you so long, anyway? You’re probably just dressed in a white robe like one of the three Kings or something.

Excuse me, I made a lot of effort with my costume! The boy huffs, his train of thought finally shifting focus from looking for his socks to actually wearing them. You assume he’s finally moved on from it. It’s going to blow your mind and win me the best costume award at the party!

“So what’s hyung’s costume?” Jeongin asks as if on cue, sitting up properly when the edges of his Northern star costume starts to wrinkle ever so slightly. When you shrug and shake your head in response, he scoffs and adds, “I’m telling you, he’s probably coming in as baby Jesus.”

“That or as a Christmas tree.” You supplement, Hyunjin quickly protesting in your head at this comment. “He’s yelling at me, hold on!”

Y/N, we as a society have progressed past the need to dress up as Christmas trees! Hyunjin simultaneously exclaims matter-of-factly, informing you in between that he’s now on his way out of his dorm. On that note, I saw Minho come out his room in a Christmas tree costume a while ago because he really doesn’t give a shit so of course I wouldn’t let myself be caught in the same thing.

You sigh, feigning exasperation. So what are you? Honestly, I’m surprised you managed to keep this from me for two weeks.

There’s a large pause after, a faint echo of Minho and Jisung’s voices yelling at Hyunjin to get in the car filling in for your boyfriend’s lack or response until he’s settled enough to think, Like I said, you’ll find out with everyone else later!

You shake your head in disapproval in front of Jeongin this time, crossing your arms over your carefully constructed mug costume. “He’s really laying it on thick this year, Innie.”

Your annual Christmas party at the Campus Radio’s club room is officially communicated to the student council under your senior Chan’s name but it’s mostly you and your friends calling the shots on the specifics. In particular, it’s usually Minho and Jisung who decide on the costume theme—which just so happened to be Christmas ornaments for this year.

Because of this, you arrive at the club house seeing all of your friends and blockmates filling the large expanse of the designated dance floor with their life-sized ornaments. You see Chan waddling around as a snowman, Felix handing cookies around as Rudolph, Chaeryeong in her Mary-inspired attire, Sana in a replica of Mariah Carey’s Christmas album outfit, and even Changbin comically showing up as a Christmas Ham wearing one too many questionable-looking fishnets and patterning his red cheeks to the food’s netted texture.

“Y/N!” Felix bounces up to you and Yeji with his Tupperware or cookies and a bright red clown nose on his face. It makes the two of you giggle, especially at how it still sort of makes him look like a clown despite the antlers that go along with it. “Ha, I see you’ve brought some milk! Care for a cookie to go with it?”

You look down on your big red and green mug covering your casual attire from your waist all the way down to your knees with a laugh, taking out a bit cookie cut-out from under the Japanese paper ‘milk’ wrinkled around the rim of the mug. “Sorry, Lix, I already got my own cookie!” You joke, the punchline effectively toppling over the boy in laughter. You take a cookie from his Tupperware anyway and return your fake one back inside its designated pocket lining the inside of your costume mug. “So, has Hyunjin arrived yet?”

“You tell me.” Felix pouts. “We’ll start the program in five minutes and from what I remembered he volunteered himself to host.”

“He probably chickened out.” Yeji teases with a shrug, earning her a disapproving frown from you. “What? Why do you think he’s being all secretive with his costume?”

“Maybe they’re just stuck in traffic or something.” You point out, whipping your head around for your any signs of a dramatic entrance from your boyfriend and his two roommates. “When we turned to campus, they were already out of their dorms.”

And, as if on cue, the main double door entrance where you previously came from bursts open with a loud thud and releases bright light and cheap smoke effects from the other side (you’re quite sure it’s just from Chaeryeong and Chan grilling meat right outside).

“Ho ho ho, Merry Christmas everyone!” Santa Claus Jisung prances in the room with a red Jansport bag of your program’s game props and mini prizes. Minho the Christmas tree trails along with red and green balls for dangling earrings. “Did you guys wait long?”

“Hi, guys.” Minho waves curtly with his most passive smile before smacking the back of Jisung’s head. A few of your friends then crowd around the two when Jisung starts handing out pre-program candies.

“And where’s your boyfriend?” Yeji nudges your side as the two of you watch your two friends in secondhand embarrassment.

Yeah, Jinnie, where are you? You ask back to your boyfriend, peering around for any sign of him.

I’m over here! Hyunjin answers telepathically to you almost immediately, his voice growing louder as he now approaches the door. Prepare yourselves!

In front of you, Hyunjin then decides on making his dramatic entrance with the goofiest grin on his face that makes you, Yeji, and Felix smack your hands up to your temples in unison.

Of all the Christmas ornaments Hyunjin could pick, he just had to go as the whole Nativity scene. Balancing a life-sized diorama of Jesus’ birth right in front of his body—complete with stick, Styrofoam, and cellophane figures of the Mary, Joseph, and the Three Kings—your boyfriend’s head fits right on the scene as a replacement to the baby Jesus Christ while his hands hold the sides of the manger’s pillars all the way down to his waist.

“Hey, guys, sorry we’re late!” Hyunjin announces dramatically, briefly covering his face with his hand at the sight of everyone giggling at his costume. “Got a bit stuck in traffic—and I might’ve also gotten stuck on our car before getting here—but is everyone ready for the program?!”

Hyunjin gazes over to you last, his comically confident grin turning into a more sheepish one at meeting your eyes. So? Like it?

Jesus Christ, Hyunjin, you pretend to cover your eyes in front of him which makes him laugh instead of sulking as you intended.

Ha, see? You’re already getting into the joke of it! He points out, gesturing to his head stuck on a mini manger made of plastic straws. You’ll have to tell him that he looks like a baby lion with this set-up later. Get it? Because I’m supposed to be Jesus in this costume?

Just get to MC-ing, Hyunjinnie...and we’ll have to talk about you stealing my Best Costume Award later!

december 20 (kim seungmin)

skz of christmas (masterlist)

m.list

@skzwriternet

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maybeimamuppet · 3 years

Text

dance with you

“Jan, calm down, you’ll think of something,” Damian comforts, patting her back gently as Janis lies face-down on her bed and lets out a groan.

“Damian, prom is in a month! And it has to be perfect, it’s our senior year,” Janis huffs into her pillow.

“You’ll think of something perfect. You could... fill her locker with ping pong balls that say ‘prom’ and then when she opens it and they all fall out say ‘I finally got the balls to ask you to prom’?” Damian suggests.

Janis chuckles at that, finally poking her head out. “Is that how Elijah asked you?”

“Maybe,” Damian mumbles. “I thought it would at least make you smile.”

“You got me, then,” Janis says. “Ugh, why is this so hard? I had an easier time with the ACT.”

“Feelings.”

“Gross. I don’t want ‘em anymore,” Janis sighs.

“Just think of stuff she’s into. Like animals or math. You can borrow Pippa if you need to.” Damian says as Janis leans against his shoulder.

“Animals... math... I can probably work with that,” Janis says, a hint of a plan forming in her mind.

“There‘s my Janjan. You go Janjan. Ask the girl you’re already dating to prom,” Damian teases.

“Shut up! You know Caddy loves those tacky promposal things you see on YouTube, I gotta do something dorky,” Janis says. Cady really does love them, she gets so excited every time someone at school gets promposed to, the tackier the better.

“And you’ll think of something perfectly sappy and gross. I have faith.”

“Thanks, D.”

————-

On Monday, Janis uses her study hall period to hunt down Kevin G. Cady is in English on the other side of the building, so unless she goes really out of her way to go to the bathroom there’s no chance of her finding out what Janis is up to.

She finds Kevin in the library, reading what appears to be a math textbook cover to cover. Janis puts on some fake confidence and marches her way up to his table, sliding into the chair across from him.

“Yo, Sarkisian, how ya been?” Kevin asks, closing the book and looking up at her.

“Um... fine. Listen, can you help me with something?” Janis says hastily.

“Depends,” Kevin responds. “What do you need and what do I get out of it?”

“I’m trying to think of a way to ask Caddy to prom, is there any sort of, like, equation or something that would spell out prom if she solved it or something? Something math related I could do?” Janis pleads. She had decided getting animals involved was a little more risky than she was willing to try.

“Oh. Uh, I don’t... actually know about that. I can check with Norbury and get back to you?” Kevin says.

“Sure. Just, would you be able to do it soon? Like, sometime this week? I wanna give her time to get everything prepared, and prom is less than a month away.”

“Sure thing, Sarks. Don’t stress, Africa never shuts up about you. She’ll say yes.”

“Thanks, Kevin. I really appreciate it.” Janis says, relieved.

“Anything for Heron. We��d be a fuckin’ wreck without her.”

—————

On Wednesday, Janis is sitting in art when none other than Kevin comes barreling through the door, making a beeline for her.

“Yo, Picasso, Norbury and I have somethin’ for ya,” He calls.

“Really?” Janis asks, tucking her paintbrush behind her ear.

“Yeah. Um, Norbury got really excited when I told her you were trying to think of a good way to ask Africa and did a lot of research. They have a strange relationship. Anyway. She found this dope series of equations that spells ‘prom’ once it’s graphed. Norbury said you can ask her during Mathletes practice on Friday using it, if you’re into that.” Kevin says.

“Oh, that’s perfect. I’ll talk to Ms. Norbury, I have a free next. Thank you, thank you, thank you,” Janis says. “I owe you big time.”

“You wanna design a new logo for my DJ business?” He asks with a slightly creepy wink.

“Sure. Uh, how long do I have?” Janis asks, pulling out her sketchbook to get going.

“As long as you need, I... um. Don’t get many gigs. Also, don’t fuck it up with Heron, please.” Kevin begs.

“I’ll do my best,” Janis says, determined not to.

Janis heads to Ms. Norbury’s classroom next, knocking on the doorframe. This is her plan period, so there’s nobody else there.

“Oh, Janis, hello. Kevin told me you might come by,” She says once she looks up.

“Um, yeah. He said you found something I could use to ask Cady to prom?” Janis says nervously. Ms. Norbury is one of the sweetest teachers at their school, but Janis always gets anxious when she talks to adults.

“I do indeed,” Ms. Norbury says, pulling out a sheet of very complicated looking numbers and letters. “This looks like this, once it’s been graphed.” She flips the page over to reveal a graph with what looks like ‘prom ?’ in cursive.

“This is perfect. Can Caddy really solve this kind of stuff?” Janis asks, looking at the equations again.

“She can,” Ms. Norbury confirms. “She’s my MVP, so to speak. If you’d like, we have practice this Friday after school, we can squeeze this in at the end.”

“That would be great,” Janis breathes with relief.

They decide that Janis would drop by on Friday morning to drop off a few supplies, and then show up before Cady in the afternoon. She would hide in the classroom storage closet until Cady solved her graph, and then pop out with prom balloons and some flowers.

It’s just tacky enough for Cady to love, and not quite tacky enough for Janis to hate. It’s perfect.

———

Friday rolls around quicker than Janis is quite ready for. She wakes up two hours early to head to the party store and get the balloons, and then to the convenience store next door to grab a bouquet of pink roses, one of Cady’s favorite flowers.

Ms. Norbury looks rather startled when she comes barreling into the room in a frenzy, but shoots her a wink as she stuffs everything into the closet and dashes back out the door to meet Cady like normal.

She’s just barely gotten her breath back under control when Cady comes bouncing through the doors, auburn curls in a ponytail today. As always, she looks for Janis by her locker, smiling as she spies her and comes up for a hug.

“Hi, Jayjay,” She says, wrapping Janis up tightly.

“Hi Peanut,” Janis says back, kissing her forehead. “Did you take your medicines today?”

“Mmhmm! Did you take yours?” Cady answers. Cady almost always remembers, Janis almost always forgets.

“No,” Janis answers, looking around as she pulls the bottle from her backpack as if she’s committing a felony. She’s not, but they’re technically not allowed to carry their own medications. “Did you have breakfast?”

“No,” Cady mumbles. She struggles sometimes to recognize physical sensations, occasionally forgoing a meal or forgetting to stay hydrated, especially if she’s sucked into an activity or a routine.

“Eat one of your Kälteens, then,” Janis says once her pills are down and the bottle hidden away in her bag again. Cady does, offering one to her too. “Thanks, babe.”

“Are you okay, mpenzi? You look nervous,” Cady says worriedly. Shit.

“Yeah I’m fine, everything’s fine! All good,” Janis says rapidly, shoving a large bite of her bar into her mouth and grinning at her like a chipmunk.

“Okay...” Cady says, clearly not believing her even slightly but also recognizing it’s not something Janis wants to talk about.

The warning bell rings then, Cady pouting as she hugs Janis goodbye. “Bye, Butterfly. Have a good day,” Janis says, pecking her lips gently.

“Bye, Bluejay. I love you,” Cady says, blowing her another kiss as she walks away.

“I love you too!” Janis calls after her. And that makes this afternoon much easier, she thinks to herself.

Janis is almost relieved when school finally ends, the nerves having been building inside her as the day went on. Luckily Janis has study hall in the science wing directly above the math wing, allowing her to rush down and get to Ms. Norbury’s room before anyone else. Cady has English on the other side of the building, so she’s commonly the last one to arrive at practice.

She opens the cupboard where she’ll be spending the next hour or so, luckily spotting an outlet so she can charge her phone to keep herself busy. Ms. Norbury agreed to film for her, so she has that covered. She makes sure no light shines out and sits on the ground, peeking under the doorframe as Cady enters, calling a hello to everyone else.

They all mill around and chat for a while before Ms. Norbury enters again with their practice problems for the day. Sometimes they practice competition style and other days they just make sure their problem solving skills are still up to snuff. Today is the latter. Cady greets Ms. Norbury as well, asking about her day and complimenting her blouse.

The boys all sit down first, having been informed of the plan, leaving Cady the seat with the best view of the cabinet Janis is in so she’ll be able to see the reveal right away.

Janis watches her work for a while, having to hold on a chuckle as Cady’s brows furrow in concentration and she taps away furiously on her calculator. She’s so cute. She finishes first, taking the time to double check her work before going to Ms. Norbury for the answer key.

“You finished, Cady?” Ms. Norbury asks, taking her worksheet to check over it.

“Yeah, I’m not sure about number eight though,” Cady says, rubbing her sleeve against her lips nervously.

“You got it correct, Cady. We’ve talked about this. Confidence,” their teacher chides gently. “I have some bonus things for you to work on now, we need to work on graphing practice more. Here you go.”

Janis perks up at that, standing quietly and grabbing hold of her balloons and flowers. There’s just a big enough gap between the door and its frame that she can still peek and see what Cady’s up to.

Cady taps away on her calculator again, plotting all the points down with her pencil carefully. Her brow gets progressively lower with her confusion as she goes, starting to realize something might be up here.

Her head snaps up when she finishes connecting all the points and sees what it spells, Janis taking that as her cue to step out of the closet. That’s a hell of a metaphor, she thinks, bracing herself for Cady’s reaction.

Cady gives an excited gasp when she sees her, scrambling out of her chair and rushing to leap into her arms. Janis drops the balloons and flowers to catch her, glad she had the foresight to go for a balloon weight. “Cady Heron, will you go to prom with me?”

“Of course I will, goofy,” Cady says, sounding a little choked up. “This was perfect.”

“Good,” Janis says, setting her down gently and pressing their lips together. She forgets they’re not alone until the other Mathletes start whistling and cheering, and Ms. Norbury gives an audible coo. They both break apart, blushing violently. “I love you.”

“I love you too. How long were you in there?” Cady asks, pointing to the cupboard as she bends over to pick up the abandoned roses.

“I dunno. About ten minutes before you got here, I think. I wasn’t paying attention to the time.”

“You hid in a closet for an hour just to ask me to prom?” Cady asks, hugging her tightly again.

“Apparently I did, yes.”

“You’re such a dork, I love you. I’m so excited! We get to match this year,” Cady squeals, bouncing up and down.

“Treat that one right, Africa! She’s committed,” Kevin hollers from behind them.

“Oh, I absolutely will,” Cady purrs, leaning in for another sweet kiss.

————-

Damian insists on taking them both shopping, individually of course, so as not to ruin the reveal. Cady gets to go first, since she didn’t get to pick an outfit for Spring Fling last year. Cady would decide the color scheme, and Damian would pass that information to Janis when it was her turn.

“This is fun!” Cady cheers, lugging him around the mall happily.

“We haven’t even gotten to the store yet, Cads,” Damian says, huffing slightly. For how small she is, Cady moves very quickly. He can’t tell if it’s the autism, the bisexuality, or some leftover instinct from Kenya, but he’s exhausted.

“I know, but I like hanging out with you! You’re fun,” Cady says as she swings their arms back and forth happily.

“Aww. You’re fun too, Cads.” Damian responds, touched. “So, do you have any ideas of what kind of dress you want? Wait, do you even want a dress?”

“I want a dress, yes,” Cady giggles. “I think a suit could be fun, but I didn’t get to wear a dress last year. I think I want a long one? But I don’t like when they have long sleeves, they’re usually lace and it’s too itchy.” She looks at him questioningly, as if asking his approval for her opinions.

“Okay, we can work with that,” Damian says as they enter.

“Whoa,” Cady blurts, immediately slightly overwhelmed by all the colors and big poofy skirts.

“Yeah, it’s a lot,” Damian chuckles. “Do you wanna split up and look or stick together?”

“Stick together,” Cady says hastily, pressing closer. “I trust your fashion sense more than my own anyway.”

Damian thinks that’s probably a fair assessment. “Okay, I think your sizes are over here.” He starts flicking through a rack, and she roots through the one next to it. They have to be a bit more particular due to Cady’s sensitivity to certain fabrics, but they get several good options.

“Oh, this is great,” Cady says as Damian hands her a gown. “My cousin had some Broadway star take her shopping for her prom last year and it didn’t go very well. Turns out a future Broadway star is much better.”

“Wait, your cousin had a Broadway actor take her prom shopping? How did she swing that?” Damian asks.

“Oh, her school turned their prom into some big civil rights thing, they wouldn’t let her go since she’s a lesbian and wanted to take her girlfriend. They came down from New York to bring attention to it and stuff, I think. Her name is Emma.” Cady says, grabbing another dress from the rack.

“Emma? Wait, does she live in Indiana?” Damian asks, excitement building.

“Yeah, why?”

“Emma Nolan is your cousin?! Janis and I each watched her video, like, fifty times. We donated to her campaign thing for the inclusive prom,” Damian says.

“Oh, really? That’s so sweet, I’ll tell her. She’d love to meet you guys. I’ve told her a lot about you,” Cady says, now weighed down by a mountain of heavy dresses.

“Oh my god, yes please, she’s such an icon. Anyway, give me these, I can’t even see your face anymore. Let’s go pick your dress!” And with that, the pile is transferred to Damian and they head towards the changing rooms.

The first dress she tries is an amethyst color, and mermaid style. She likes how it looks in the mirror, but it’s so tight around her legs that she almost falls flat on her face when she goes to show it off. Damian catches her and immediately turns her around to go try something else.

The second one is an emerald green, with a shorter skirt and long (but thankfully not itchy) sleeves. She’s more into the length than she thought she would be, and the color suits her. Damian takes a photo so they can compare it to her other options.

The third dress is a beautiful yellow color, and has a sweetheart neckline and thin straps. It reminds her of her costume from Beauty and the Beast. She absolutely loves it, but it turns out to be way too large and her whole chest is pretty much exposed. Oh well.

Her fourth option is a periwinkle two-piece contraption with a very complicated top piece and a long poofy skirt. She likes the color and the way it fits, but the neckline makes her feel like she’s choking and the material of the skirt is very itchy. Damian claps when he sees her in it, though, so she decides to keep it as an option.

The fifth time turns out to be the charm. It’s a royal blue gown, the bodice tight and embroidered with a large flower pattern, and a skirt that flares out at her waist. The short sleeves hang just off her shoulders, and it makes her feel like a princess. This might be the one.

Damian’s eyes go wide as he spies her coming from behind the curtain, gasping at the beauty of it. “This one this one this one,” he repeats excitedly, clapping his hands in between. “What do you think?”

“I really like it,” Cady says, turning to look at herself in another mirror. “The material is really nice. And the color is so pretty.”

“It makes your eyes pop. And it goes so well with your hair,” Damian says as he comes up behind her, laughing as she starts moving her hips to see how the skirt swishes.

“The swish is good,” Cady giggles. “Do you think Janis will like it?”

“She would love anything you feel good in, you know that,” Damian says. “But yes, I think we’ll be lucky if she doesn’t pass out when she sees you. You look gorgeous, Little Slice.”

“Thank you. Oh, wait, can you take a picture to show my mom? She wanted to come with us but she got stuck with a work thing,” Cady asks. “I think she said someone brought in a sick elephant and they had to decide what to do with it.”

“An eleph- okay, sure. Smile,” He responds, taking her phone and snapping a few photos. “There you go. Wanna go get some boba?”

“Ooh, yes!” Cady squeals.

————-

The week after is Janis’ turn, Damian taking her shopping along with both of their mothers and Juliana. It’s much easier shopping for suits. There’s less variety, so they don’t have to decide from as many options.

Damian goes first, he and his date Elijah having decided on an emerald color scheme for their outfits. He tries on two options, a slate grey suit with a green button up underneath, and a fully green suit with a black button up.

He looks great in both, but Julie in her typical brutally honest fashion says he looks rather like a tree in the full green one. Janis’ mom whacks her on the back of the head and tells her to be polite, but Damian just laughs and agrees with her, going with the grey ensemble.

Janis’ turn. Damian tells her that Cady’s dress is a royal blue, and that’s all the detail she gets. She grins, trying to imagine what her girlfriend will look like on the night, wondering what style of dress she chose. Janis does love Cady in blue.

Their group wanders aimlessly for a minute until Janis finds a black pantsuit in her size, Damian grabbing a soft blue crew neck t-shirt as an option to go under it, as well as a white button down and cobalt skinny tie as an alternate.

She heads to the changing room, tugging the curtain closed and staring at her pieces for a second. She decides to try the more traditional button down and tie first, fumbling with it for a second before giving up and heading out, asking her mom to tie it for her.

Janis looks in the mirror once her mom loops it around her neck correctly, grinning at what she sees. She looks hot. The thin legs of the pants make her look even taller than she already is. They’re a little long, so she’ll have to get it tailored a bit, but the fit other than that is perfect. The dark blazer accentuates her shoulders, and the length of the sleeves makes her feel like a boss bitch.

She turns around to see what her little crew thinks, finding Julie already in Damian’s lap and wide grins on everyone’s faces.

“You look beautiful, hon. Very sophisticated,” Ms. Hubbard says, her own mom sneakily wiping a tear away and nodding in agreement.

“Go see what you look like with the t-shirt instead,” her sister demands. She does, heading back to change before pulling the blazer back on. She looks in the mirror again. The t-shirt is a little less formal, but she still looks very dapper.

“Which do you like better, baby girl?” Her mom asks. She has to think for a moment. The shirt allows her to match more with Cady, and is more comfortable. But if she wore a tie, Cady could use it to pull her into kisses, which she’s always wanted to do.

She decides they’ll be doing plenty of kissing anyway, and goes with what she feels more comfortable in. “I like this. I think once I have my accessories and makeup on and stuff it’ll still be fancy enough.”

“I think so too,” Damian says, removing her sister from his lap to stand. He heads to change back into his so their moms can take pictures of them together.

Janis’ phone pings right as she’s about to hand it over for a photo. She pulls it back to check, grinning a little when she sees a message from Cady.

Caddy Cakes: Hi lovey!!!! 🥰📷 Did you pick an outfit yet??

Jellybean: hi baby

Jellybean: i just picked my suit, no you can’t see it yet

Caddy Cakes: D:

Caddy Cakes: Just kidding, I know. I have a request

Jellybean: 🤨

Caddy Cakes: Can I see you in heels????? Pleeeeeeaase?? Just for prom night and then I’ll never make you wear them again 🥺🥺

Caddy Cakes: Sent a picture: Pwease?

Jellybean: you gotta stop doing the puppy eyes

Jellybean: fine. i’ll talk to damian

Caddy Cakes: Oh yay!!! Ok I’ll let you go now. I love you!!!!! Mwah!

Jellybean: i love you too baby 📷📷

She clicks her phone off and stares at it for a second, realizing what she’s just gotten herself into.

“What happened?” Damian asks, concerned something is seriously wrong.

“Caddy wants me to wear heels,” Janis whines as she buries her face in his blazer.

“You are so fucking whipped,” Damian teases. “We’ll find something.”

Their moms finally finish taking photos and they head to the shoe store, Janis looking longingly at the flat men’s dress shoes Damian chooses from. Once his are picked, they head over to the high heels. Janis stares incredulously at the height of some of them, very glad she escaped the Plastics before the heels got this high.

Juliana suddenly comes running at her holding a box, nearly tripping over her own feet and falling on her face until Janis reaches out to steady her. Julie shoves the box at her, Janis taking it curiously and looking to see what her sister has found.

She pulls back the tissue paper to find a pair of stiletto heels (which concerns her, thin heels are not a good way to introduce yourself to them), about four or five inches high and the same royal blue as their color scheme.

“These are huge, Jules,” Janis says incredulously. “Pretty, but... damn.”

“They’re the only ones that match,” Juliana pants, still out of breath from dashing around the store. “I checked everywhere.”

Janis looks at them again. Maybe if she practiced wearing them she could do it. “I’ll try them. You gotta help me, though, or I’m gonna fall on my ass.”

Juliana giggles at that but nods as Janis heads over to a bench to sit, tugging off her comfortable boots. She immediately regrets agreeing to this, but does kind of understand the appeal once she stands up for the first time.

With the height of the heel she’s roughly six and a half feet tall and feeling like she can grind the patriarchy to a pulp under her foot. Of course, it all flies out the window when she tries to take a step, since her entire gait has to shift.

Julie grabs her hands to steady her, guiding her slowly down the aisle like she’s teaching a baby how to walk. Unfortunately, Damian and their mothers come back at this point, all of them immediately bursting out laughing at the sight.

“Oh, baby girl, you’ll have to practice,” her mom giggles.

“Those shoes are perfect, though,” Damian says excitedly.

“I picked ‘em!” Juliana says proudly.

Damian looks impressed. “Nice, squirt. You have a knack for that.” Juliana beams proudly as Janis messes up her hair, immediately losing her balance.

“Who fucking invented these,” she grumbles crankily under her breath.

“Language, Janny,” her mom chides warningly, despite knowing she swears all the time.

Janis looks sheepish, turning away. “Sorry Mama.”

“Alright, let’s go get you kids fed and head home,” Ms. Hubbard says.

“God, yes please,” Janis breathes, yanking the shoes off her feet and stuffing them

back in the box.

————-

The day before the dance, Cady insists on all three art freaks (plus Juliana, who had her own middle school dance on the same night) going to the spa together.

It’s a lovely place, very clean and bright. Janis decides to get her nails all painted the same royal blue shade to match their outfits, Cady gets a glittery silver, and Juliana gets a purple to match the dress she had picked. Damian felt left out and decides to get his painted green.

Since they’re not getting any kind of fancy processes done, they’re all led back to sit next to one another in massage chairs to wait for their nail technicians. The hostess offers them a drink of their choice, Damian and Julie choose a cola, Cady gets water and Janis asks for a Sprite.

While they wait for their drinks, their nail techs come to get to work on them. It turns out that part of the package is hot stone massages on their legs, and warm lotion massages on their arms while they get their nails painted. Janis nearly falls asleep in her chair, lulled by the soothing warmth of the lotion and the repetitive motion of the chair.

She’s startled back awake by the lady returning with their drinks, learning that they had run out of Sprite and offered a Mountain Dew instead. She says it’s fine and takes it, finding the contrast of the drink and the sensations she’s experiencing very funny.

Once their nails are all painted, they’re led over to a drying station in the middle of the room, sitting on benches and sticking their hands and feet under fans to blow their nails dry. Cady leans her head on Janis’ shoulder while they wait, Janis kissing her hair and pressing her cheek against the top of her head.

“I can’t wait to see you tomorrow,” Cady whispers. “I’m so excited.”

“I can’t wait either, Peanut. You’re going to look so beautiful,” Janis responds softly, pulling her into a sweet kiss once her nails are finished and safe to use again.

Cady looks sad to see Janis go once they have to pay and leave, but cheers up a bit when she’s reminded that they get to spend the whole night together tomorrow.

————

On the day, Janis’ mom helps her get ready. The dance doesn’t start until nine, but she and Cady are going out to dinner with Damian and Elijah first, so she has to be ready early.

She’s lucky that her mom appreciates her style. She applies some natural looking makeup around her eyes, which is a bit different than Janis normally does, but she does have to admit it’s a nice look. She’s surprised when her mom gets to the lips, pulling out a blue lipstick, so dark it’s almost black. It’s perfect.

Janis thinks she looks sort of like a model when she looks in the mirror as her mom starts working on her hair.

“I’ve missed doing this for you,” her mom says as she starts brushing out her hair.

“You can anytime, Mama. I hate doing it,” Janis huffs.

“You always did, baby girl, you always did,” her mother replies. Once she finishes brushing it, she applies a few products to get her natural wave back into it, and then starts slicking it to the side with some gel. Once it’s finished, all her hair is resting over her shoulder. It’s a very elegant look. “There.”

“Mama, are you crying?” Janis asks, turning around to hug her.

“No,” her mom sniffs. “Yes. You’ve just... grown into such a beautiful young lady. Feels like the years have gotten away from me. Won’t be too much longer before I’m doing this on your wedding day.”

Janis laughs at that. “You’ve got a while, I’m nowhere near ready to be married yet. I love you.”

Her mom squeezes her, brushing a hand against her cheek as she lets her go. “I love you too, baby girl. Go put your suit on, I’ve got to help your sister now.”

Janis heads to her room, tugging on her now perfectly tailored suit pants, then her royal blue t-shirt, her blazer, and necklaces. She decides to forgo the shoes for as long as she can, leaving them resting on her bed. She slides her fanciest rings on as a finishing touch and heads to look at herself in the mirror.

It’s strange. She’s wearing a suit, but she looks more feminine than she has in a long time. Even in comparison to her suit from last year’s Spring Fling where she wore a skirt, it’s a more feminine look. She decides she’s into it. She looks good.

She heads downstairs right as Damian and his date pull up outside. Juliana goes rushing up to hug him, looking beautiful in her lavender dress. Janis is glad her sister and best friend get along so well.

“Looking good, guys,” she says as her sister finally releases him. Elijah wound up choosing the option Damian didn’t, looking quite handsome in his green ensemble. He’s shorter than Damian, so he looks less like a tree.

“So do you! You look so good, Jan,” Damian says, pulling her into a gentle hug so he doesn’t mess anything up.

“Thanks,” Janis says shyly, spinning around to show off with her shoes still in her hand. “When’s Caddy coming? I wanna see her.”

“She texted me and said she’s gonna be a couple minutes late, she shouldn’t be too much longer,” Damian responds, checking the time on his phone. “Oh, speak of the devil.”

Cady’s parents pull up then, Cady’s door opening before the car even comes to a complete stop. Janis gasps when she sees her girlfriend in her dress for the first time.

Before she even has time to fully process it, her jaw hanging open, her girlfriend is in her arms, hugging her tightly. “Janis, oh my god! You look incredible!”

“So do you,” Janis says, pulling back for a second to see her. “You look like a princess.”

Cady really does, her long auburn hair has been braided into a thick crown around her head, the remaining strands tied in a bun on top of her head and two little pieces hanging out to frame her face. Her makeup is heavy around her eyes, silver shadow on her lids and eyelashes dark. She looks very ethereal. Her lipstick is more natural, and Janis likes that she can still see her freckles through her face makeup.

“You look so hot! Very, um, sexy businesswoman going to a fancy thing,” Cady says, reaching out to feel her blazer. Janis realizes when she doesn’t have to reach as far that their height balance is off, thrown by Cady’s shoes.

“Thanks,” Janis laughs. “I think.”

“Put your shoes on, I wanna see,” Cady demands, pointing to the heels Janis is still holding in her hand.

“Fine,” Janis pouts as she rests them

on the ground and steps into them carefully. Cady reaches out to steady her at first before letting go once she’s more stable. Janis has been wearing them around the house all month to get used to them.

“Jesus, you’re tall,” Cady giggles, looking up at her. “Oh, wait, I have your-um. Thingy.”

“Boutonnière, baby. Thank you,” Janis laughs as Cady tenderly pins it on. “Here’s your corsage.”

“Why thank you,” Cady says as Janis slides it on her wrist and kisses her knuckles. “Now come on, we gotta take pictures. I want to kiss you but I can’t mess up your makeup until those are done.”

“Okay, Peanut, let’s go,” Janis chuckles, taking her hand and stumbling slightly as she heads over to Damian, Elijah, and their parents.

They take every cliché prom photo in the book, all awkward poses and cheesy smiles. Janis nearly breaks her ankle trying to do their jump shot in those shoes, but Cady somehow does and lands it perfectly, reaching out to steady Janis with a chuckle.

They take one more jokey shot of each other with the wrong dates, Cady with Damian and Janis with Elijah looking at each other confusedly before switching back to who they’re meant to be with.

“Alright, you crazy kids, get out of here,” Damian’s mom demands, shoving them towards their Uber that had pulled up. None of them were into the idea of renting a limo, but none of them wanted to drive either.

“Be safe!” Janis’ mom adds.

“Make good choices!” Cady’s mom pipes up. Her dad and Cady both roll their eyes lovingly.

————-

As they pull up to the restaurant, everyone clambers out quickly. Damian and Elijah head in first, Janis and Cady following hand in hand a few paces behind them. Just before they reach the doors, Cady tugs on Janis’ hand, hauling her backwards.

“Wha- oh, okay,” Janis stutters, gasping as Cady looks around quickly before fisting a hand in her t-shirt and pulling her down for a hot mess of a kiss. Turns out the shirt works just fine. Janis kisses her back just as hard, wrapping her arms around Cady’s waist to pull her closer.

When they finally break apart, their lipsticks have fully blended together. “Glad we made it to the dance before we ruined our makeup,” Cady chuckles breathlessly, pulling two makeup wipes out of her clutch to get rid of the evidence. Damian looks at them knowingly when they walk in several minutes late suddenly missing lipstick, but neither of them care.

It’s a fancy restaurant, and their table is next to a water feature. Janis immediately sticks her hand in it, causing water to splash everywhere for a second until she pulls it out.

“Janis, what? Why did you do that?” Cady asks in exasperation as she grabs a napkin from their table to dry Janis’ hand.

Janis looks down sheepishly. “I wanted to see if it was real.”

“Well now you know,” Cady says, dabbing at the splash marks on her suit and wondering how a fountain could be fake. “And I’m sitting next to that. You get the outside.”

“Sorry, Caddy.”

“Don’t be sorry, my love. I just worry about your regard for social norms and sense of self preservation sometimes.” Cady comforts, kissing her cheek gently to cheer her up.

“Oh, speaking of which, I got a great idea for senior pranks,” Janis says excitedly. Damian and Elijah both lean in across the table, as if they’re plotting something for the mafia. “I’m gonna get a cow and stick it on the second floor, and then put chickens in the elevator. Cows don’t go down stairs, so they’ll try to put it in the elevator and find the chickens.”

“Where are you going to get any of these things?” Elijah asks. It’s a fair question.

“My mom knows a guy, one of her old classmates is a farmer and he said I could borrow some of his livestock,” Janis explains.

“I- wh-“ Cady stutters, trying to find a response to this. “If you get expelled before you can graduate I’m not gonna help you.” Her own plan was just to stick a bunch of plastic forks in the football field. Gretchen and Karen had already agreed to help, too.

“I won’t get caught. It’ll be fine,” Janis says, sounding as if she already knows it won’t.

“That’s actually kind of genius, Jan,” Damian says. “I’m gonna put a speaker in the gym playing the chorus to It’s a Small World on repeat and then put a bunch of cups full of water in the way of it.”

“Nice!” Janis cheers, high-fiving him.

“You guys,” Cady pleads, looking as if she’s witnessing a murder plot. “You’re gonna get in trouble.”

“That’s the fun of it, Peanut! The risk,” Janis says boldly. “Plus, Regina knows how to hack the security cameras so there won’t be any proof. Unless someone rats me out.”

Cady thinks she might, just to save herself the headache. She feels as if she’s gotten a very telling taste of her future. “Jesus Christ.”

Cady and Elijah make exhausted eye contact periodically throughout their meal, exasperated with their respective partners. Once they finally finish eating, Cady has to haul Janis away from the fountain by the tail of her blazer to stop her from reaching into it again.

“Come on, Jayjay. No fountain or I’m revoking your little spoon rights for a week.”

“Fine.”

————-

A few minutes after nine, their group strolls into the school. Janis and Cady head to the bathroom to reapply their respective lipsticks before going into the main dance.

Janis stops Cady before she can put hers back on, pressing her against the wall gently and kissing her soundly again. Cady grips the fabric of her blazer at her waist, having to restrain herself from messing up Janis’ hair.

Janis checks under the doors to make sure they’re alone before coming back, pulling Cady flush against her and sucking on her lower lip. Cady groans softly, making Janis want to fast forward through the dance and take her home.

Cady gives her one last good smooch before pulling back, both of them panting slightly. “We should go in,” She breathes, ghosting the words over Janis’ lips. “We have time for this later, we only get one senior prom.”

“Fine,” Janis pouts, kissing her gently one more time before heading to a mirror to finally put her lipstick back on.

They head hand in hand into the gym, looking around at how it’s been transformed. The theme this year is a Night Under the Stars, so they’re surrounded by dark balloons, gold decorations, and glow in the dark stars stuck to the ceiling. Janis is reminded of Cady’s speech from last year’s dance. Maybe that served as the inspiration.

“Whoa,” Cady says excitedly. The school puts much more funding into prom than Spring Fling, since it’s supposed to be a kind of final memory for the seniors. It actually looks quite nice. “I’m gonna go say hi to Regina and Gretchen and Karen really quick, I’ll be right back.”

“Okay, Butterfly. I want punch, I’ll be over there.” Janis kisses her quickly and sends her on her way.

She people-watches as she sips slowly from her cup, wanting to get as much punch as she can before someone inevitably spikes it. Damian and Elijah have already been lost to the mob of dancers, but she can spy them just across the way. Regina looks strangely nervous in her baby pink dress. She’s been wary of large crowds since the bus incident. Gretchen and Karen look adorable as ever together, in royal purple dresses that are slightly different styles.

Janis is working on her third cup of punch when the DJ announces a request for Born This Way by Lady Gaga. She and Damian lock eyes from across the room, nodding slightly. Damian sometimes choreographs dances to his favorite songs, and almost always drags Janis into learning them. They both have backgrounds in dance, and can do them quite well. Janis figures they might as well go out with a bang.

They meet in the middle of the floor and start their routine. Damian is a talented choreographer, having spent hours studying for his various shows. The routine is actually very well put together.

People gradually start realizing what’s happening and stop dancing themselves, surrounding them to watch and cheer them on. It’s a nice feeling, if a bit strange for them. She spots Cady with the former Plastics watching her excitedly, and shoots her a cheeky wink before continuing her moves.

When the song finally ends, they pause in their ending pose for a split second before standing and blushing scarlet. Everyone claps for a short while, looking rather stunned as they head back to their friends. “Well damn,” the DJ says into his microphone. “Did not expect that. Uh, here’s the Macarena.”

Cady wraps Janis in a tight hug once she finally reaches her, yelling, “Janis, what the hell?! I had no idea you could dance like that, that was incredible!”

“Thanks,” Janis pants. “I’ll teach you sometime.”

“I’m such a klutz, good look with that,” Cady giggles. “You need more to drink, you must be exhausted.”

She leads Janis over to the table, pouring them both one more glass of punch. “We should go see who the prom court is, too.”

Prom court worked a bit differently than Spring Fling, in that it was a secret until the night of the dance. Student council made nominations, which allowed some of the less popular students to make the ballot, and then whoever attended the event got to vote.

“There’s two winners of each this year? That’s different,” Janis mumbles on seeing the sign at the voting table.

“Regina said it’s because there’s a lot more LGBT+ couples that are out and coming to events together now, and should both be able to win. They’re doing it from now on,” Cady says. “And look at who’s on the ballot.”

Janis does, surprised to see her own name listed, along with Cady’s and the three former Plastics. “I’m an option?”

“You are,” Cady chuckles. “And Damian is up for Prom King, too.” Sure enough, Damian and Elijah are both listed along with all the Mathletes.

Janis is stunned. It doesn’t make up for the years of torment they faced at the hands of these kids, and she doesn’t think for a second that she’s going to win, but it’s a nice gesture at least. A start.

They’re each allowed to vote for two people for each category. Janis votes Cady and Karen for queen and Damian and Elijah for king. Cady votes Janis and Gretchen as queen and also votes Damian and Elijah as king.

Once they slip their papers into the boxes, the DJ announces a slow song. “May I have this dance?” Janis asks in a suave voice, reaching out a hand for her girlfriend.

“You may,” Cady giggles, taking her hand and following her onto the dance floor. Janis kisses Cady’s knuckles gently before letting go to hold her by the waist, Cady grinning up at her as she holds onto Janis’ neck.

“I love you,” Janis murmurs as they start swaying softly to the rhythm of the song. Cady pushes up briefly to brush their lips together.

“I love you too,” she whispers when she pulls away again. “I’m so glad we got this night together.”

“I am too. We’ve come so far in a year, it’s crazy,” Janis responds.

“Crazy indeed,” Cady chuckles. “I’m so lucky.”

“I’m the lucky one, baby,” Janis says, surprising Cady by dipping her. She squeals and clings tighter to her neck, but giggles when Janis kisses her quickly and pulls her back up.

“You’re so smooth,” Cady teases as the song ends.

“Thanks,” Janis responds as she kisses her again. “God, my feet are killing me.”

“Take your shoes off then, Jellybean. The ticket lady will hold them for you,” Cady says. “Mine kind of hurt too, we can just walk around barefoot.”

They both sit on the bleachers to take their heels off, breathing a sigh of relief once they’re back to their normal height. Now that they’re free, they meet back up with Damian and Elijah, letting loose and dancing crazily to the loud music, jumping up and down as they laugh. It’s freeing, dancing like nobody’s watching in a room packed with people.

After several songs, the DJ announces that it’s time to reveal the winners of prom king and queen. All the nominees head up on stage next to him, Janis and Cady holding hands as they make their way up.

They announce the kings first. “Your nominees for prom king are: Damian Hubbard, Elijah French, Kevin Gnapoor, Marwan Jitla, and Tyler Kimble!” The DJ calls dramatically. “And your kings for tonight are... Damian and Elijah!”

Janis and Cady both cheer happily as their friends receive their crowns, clapping for them excitedly.

“Moving to your nominees for prom queen! Caddy Heron, Janis Sarkisian, Regina George, Gretchen Wieners, and Karen Smith!” Cady pouts a little at the mispronunciation of her name. “And your prom queens tonight are... Caddy and Janis!”

Janis blinks rapidly, stunned. They’re handed the tiaras to put on each other, Cady having to pop up on her tippy toes to reach that high. Janis places the crown tenderly on Cady’s head, sliding it in place around her updo. Cady bravely decides to pull her down into a brief, sweet kiss. A few people clap for them then, which is nice.

They’re led off stage after that, Janis still in shock. How the hell did I win? These people all hated me. If Cady finds out later that Regina had threatened everyone into voting for them, she’d take that secret to her grave.

They decide to stick around for one more slow song, this time with Cady leading. Janis leans down and presses their foreheads together, looking into Cady’s clear blue eyes happily.

Cady tries to dip her, too, nearly dropping her on the ground until Janis barely manages to pull herself back up at the last second. Cady looks very sheepish, until Janis kisses her cheek gently to make her smile.

“Can we go home?” Cady asks quietly once the song is finished, pressing close to Janis. “I feel buzzy.”

‘Buzzy’ is how Cady had taken to describing the feeling of being overstimulated. She surprisingly isn’t feeling too overloaded, given the amount of noise and the lights, but knows it will get to be too much for her soon.

“Of course, baby. Go get our stuff, I’ll go tell Damian,” Janis answers, kissing her sweetly and pushing her towards the door.

She heads to fetch Damian, who is deep in conversation with Elijah. She doesn’t want to interrupt, but he spies her lurking and waves her over. “Caddy and I are going home, she’s tired.”

“Okay, I’ll come say bye,” Damian says, kissing Elijah on the cheek and standing to follow her. Janis leads him over to where Cady is waiting with her bag and both pairs of their shoes.

“Bye, little slice,” Damian says, wrapping her in a hug. “See you later.”

“Bye, Dame,” Cady responds, leaning into his embrace as best she can. Damian heads back to his date then, Janis leading Cady by the arm out the doors gently. She taps into her phone to order their Uber home before sitting down on a bench and pulling Cady into her lap.

“Did you have fun, Peanut?” She asks, kissing Cady’s forehead as she squeezes her tightly to help with the sensory overload. Cady nods against her shoulder, too overwhelmed to speak unless she absolutely has to. “Good.”

It’s a cold night for springtime, and Janis notices Cady start shivering slightly in her embrace. She pulls away for a second to tug off her blazer, wrapping it gently around her girlfriend and pulling her back in. Cady kisses her jaw a few times in thanks.

————

Once they get back to Janis’ house, Cady leads Janis quickly up towards her bedroom, desperate to get out of her now heavy and uncomfortable gown. Janis hands her some makeup wipes as she pulls out Cady’s emergency sleepover pjs from her dresser, as well as some shorts and a sweatshirt for herself.

Cady takes the pjs once all her itchy makeup has been removed, but tugs gently on the hem of Janis’ sweatshirt, silently asking for one too. Janis goes to fetch another one, kissing her cheek as Cady heads to get changed.

Cady is scratching at her head when she returns, trying to relieve some of the ache caused by her hairstyle. “Help?” She asks quietly, barely above a whisper. Talking takes energy she doesn’t have to spare at the moment.

Janis nods, gesturing for her to sit between her legs as she removes the crown, starting to unravel the mess of pins and ties holding up her hair. Cady breathes a sigh of relief once her long curls are flowing down her back again, and her eyes flutter shut as Janis starts stroking a brush through them gently to remove any excess product.

Once she’s finished, Cady ties her hair up loosely so it’s not in her face before turning to face Janis. “Now you.”

Janis switches spots with her, taking a wipe to take off her own makeup as Cady starts gently brushing the gel and hairspray out. They’d still have to shower tomorrow, but that can wait. They’re both exhausted.

Once Janis’ hair is sufficiently soft, Cady lies down and pulls Janis to lie on top of her. Janis was worried about squishing her the first few times, since Cady is so much smaller, but Cady had explained that the pressure didn’t hurt and actually was very helpful when she was upset.

Janis tugs the duvet over them gently, kissing Cady goodnight before tucking her face into her shoulder and closing her eyes.

“I love you.” Cady mutters quietly, rubbing Janis’ back.

“I love you too, baby. Sweet dreams.” Janis says back, popping an eye open to look at the two tiaras resting on her nightstand. She grins happily before shutting her eyes once more and drifting off to dreamland.

Tonight belonged to us.

hope you enjoyed! if you want to check it out, I put some images of their outfits and such in this chapter of my work on wattled (titled cadnis oneshots so I can get some f*cking sleep). I'm sorry I didn't put them here, but I frankly do not have the energy.

requests are still open! please leave them either here, on my wattpad, or on my ao3. I've been getting a fair few recently (thank you all!) so it may take a few weeks for yours to be published, but I am doing my damndest to crank these out and will get to everyone's eventually.

thanks for reading!

lots of love,

ezzy

#cadnis #paint by numbers #space safari #cady x janis #cady heron x janis sarkisian #cady heron #janis sarkisian #damian hubbard #regina george #gretchen wieners #karen smith #mean girls #mean girls musical #mean girls broadway

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janeyseymour · 3 years

Text

me shitting on my shithead ex

TWs: abuse, domestic violence, manipulation, panic attacks, probably others... so if this doesn't sound like something you wanna read, feel free to skip.

it’s literally just me bitching about my shithead ex. Mum is not “Mum” here. I’m a cold, bitter person in this. I let my rage out, and truly channel a bitch here.

Alright listen up mama has a lot of ✨trauma✨

Sooooo…. My life is one big trauma and I love that for me lmao

My family life was shit for a while, and I was a whole shitshow in myself until… well I’m still a shitshow honestly, but uh, we can dive into that another time if you want lmao I have enough baggage to share with this story right here. My family situation is a whole other story lmaoooooooooo

Well, senior year I meet this boy. And he was real sweet (this is shithead ex).

We dated for 2 1/2 years. 2 1/2 very long years. I wore rose tinted glasses for the first year and a half. Like I said, he was sweet.

Well, for the first 9 months that we dated, he didn’t have a job. He ended up getting a job at a local deli… only to lose said job 2 months later. For the next however long we dated, mans went through 5 other jobs… dick’s sporting goods, a waitress at a local restaurant, real estate agent, caretaker of dogs, and finally working with his father who said if he wasn’t his son he would have fired him too.

Mans also “went to college” for a semester, failed, and told me that he didn’t know why he wasn’t getting his grades… man didn’t attend classes, didn’t pay for said classes and failed… that’s why.

I was able to overlook this for a while. 1 1/2 years actually.

Well, rose tinted glasses came off on my 19th birthday. My friends wanted to hang out, and he literally stopped me from going. I wasn’t allowed to see my friends because “I don’t like your friends” okay well I didn’t fucking ask… “You’re gonna fuck them” … no I’m not??? They’re like my brothers, and I was in love with him… not them??

All we did was fight from then on… things like “you’re not allowed to wear that… other boys will look at you…” “why would you wear that out? you look like a whore” “why do you insist on eating healthy can’t we just get a burger and be done” “you shouldn’t drink all of that coffee it's bad for you” “why cant you ever stay awake?” “you’re letting yourself go.” “are you fucking kidding me”

Manipulation was strong. I tried to leave so many times but couldn’t. It was the “I can’t live without you babe” and “No one would ever love someone as broken as you”

I was abused for the last year of that relationship because I was so scared that I wasn’t good enough and I would never be capable of being loved again. Because well, he loved me, right? If I left… I don’t really know. (LMAO I really am Jane in this way… and he truly was my HenRat)

And then it got physical. I was going to school full-time, working crazy amounts of hours at my job, and really only had time to see him late at night after work. We would settle in on his couch, and I would either do homework or we would watch television. He didn’t like when I did homework. Oftentimes when we would watch tv, I would fall asleep. I was EXHAUSTED. 18 credits worth of school and babysitting and working at a gym almost full time is a hard feat, let me tell you. He didn’t like that. He would shake me awake. Now, I don’t bruise. I just have a skin complexion where I dont bruise. I would fucking bruise… and he knew it. I would tell him it hurt me. He would do the usual “oh baby I’m so sorry it won’t happen again” only for it to happen again. This led to panic attacks... terrible anxiety.

And then it was the “come on babe we never do anything anymore” to which I would reply with “can we please just not? I’m tired and I just want to relax”… and he wouldn’t take it for an answer. Rough nights for me… physically, mentally, emotionally.

It took me a year to get out of that relationship. Now, for being as young as I am… that’s a long time. Covid hit, we were all quarantined, and I stopped seeing him (even though I was working in public) because “my dad is high risk”. Best two weeks of my life, not having to see him. I didn’t FaceTime him, I barely even talked to him other than “morning” and “goodnight” texts. I drove to his house one day after work and literally said “we can’t keep doing this. We’re both miserable, and I can’t do this anymore. We have to break up.” And I drove away and never looked back. And I don’t regret it one bit. I do regret not getting out of that relationship sooner.

That being said, it has left me royally fucked. I see every red flag, every hint of any red flag, and I refuse to put myself in that situation again.

I’m genuinely content with the progress I’ve made on myself, and I refuse to let anyone ruin the progress I’ve made.

So, thank you shithead ex for more trauma to add onto my already extensive list of traumatic things that have happened to me. You truly deserve to get wrecked, and I am so much better off without you. I’m better than I ever thought I could be. truly, get fucked.

Despite all of the absolute SHIT I’ve been put through in this very short time I’ve been alive, I still do my best to come out of it stronger, better, and with as much love in my heart as I can (although I guess it’s pretty ironic i say this considering this is just one big rant about how I fucking hate someone)

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beca-mitchell · 4 years

Note

Favorite in-progress bechloe fics you're reading that you think should be a 'must follow' for people? (Other than your awesome fics which would of course also be on such a list). I've exhausted my backlog of completed stuff so now I'm looking to delve into the incomplete stuff. Thanks! Love you and your blog and your fics! 😁

okay, but you’ve been warned, they’re all incomplete! 😉 Here are just a few. I’ve been doing my best to keep up with fics, but there’s been a lot going on! But there were just a few that piqued my interest.

The Greater Share of Honor

by Wheresthemuse (27 chapters, 90,723 words)

Summary: Hundreds of years after the first manned mission to Mars, mankind lives among the stars and is embroiled in a decade long conflict with a mysterious foe. This story follows a squadron of pilots on the front-lines of the war who are fighting to save mankind. Bechloe (slow burn) and Staubrey.

You Drew Stars Around My Scars (But Now I'm Bleeding)

by NeedleToTheGroove (1 chapter, 4,092 words)

Summary: After a rough senior year, Beca's just trying to start over at Barden University. She has a past that she doesn't want to share with her new friends and secrets that she can't tell a soul. But then she meets Chloe and everything changes.

Could This Be Something Real?

by @katyperrymyteenagedream (4 chapters, 5779 words)

Summary: Beca takes Chloe as her date to the grammy's and now the world thinks they are together

Hold You Dear

by @lastchildofkrypton (4 chapters, 15,335 words)

Summary: Beca and Chloe have gotten more of a handle on balancing work, their relationship, and raising Beca's little sister; at least they think they have. Add a wedding to plan, a new dog, and Beca's blossoming stardom and things are sure to get a little chaotic.

**sequel to Days of Plenty**

Backseat Romance

by Snowflake19 (2 chapters, 8,023 words)

Summary: Chloe loves Uber. Ever since she was in her teens, she considered the profession of taxi driver to have something inherently romantic. The idea of bringing people from one point to the other, fleetingly being a part of their life, and actively helping them go about their lives… That was something that really connected with Chloe.

Are You The One?

by BlackLightning1212 (9 chapters, 141,472 words)

Summary: What happens when you put 20 singles together in a house, supply them with plenty of alcohol and endless free time, put them through challenges and dates to give them the chance to find their Perfect Match...and throw in a million dollar reward? Fic based off the MTV show Are You The One?

Broken Clocks

by @anastasia-93-daybidaylove (4 chapters, 27,990 words)

Summary: Beca lives in LA; she's a music producer, about to release her first solo album, successful and accomplished. The life she'd always wanted. Chloe lives back where they used to; she has a completely different life than Beca's, quiet and peaceful. The life she'd always wanted. It's been a long time since the were Beca and Chloe; whatever that means anymore. But life has decided to bring them together once more. How much will it succeed?

Red Hair

by @asweetmelodytrickling (18 chapters)

Summary: Now a multi-award winning recording artist, Beca Mitchell has it all. Except the one girl she so desperately, secretly pines for. Chloe Beale is finally journeying through her dream at Vet School, but she is far from the woman she was back at Barden.

#bechloe #fic rec #Anonymous #ask

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sliceofsky · 3 years

Text

introducing : cary o’hare

〔 scott foley, 49, cis male, he/him ) cary o'hare was seen listening to “ just haven’t met you yet ” by michael buble. cary is the town’s weatherman and known to be bubbly & insecure

𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚋𝚊𝚜𝚒𝚌𝚜

full name ~ cary michael o’hare birthday ~ OCTOBER / 15TH / 1971 job status ~ employed as a weatherman at the local news station relationship status ~ (currently) single orientation ~ gay (closeted)

𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚋𝚒𝚘

tws for : strained family relationships , homophobia , discussion of sex

cary o’hare was the first born child of the upper-middle class o’hare family, named after his mother’s favorite movie star. it was one of the rare concessions at the o’hare patriarch gave to his mother, and he’d never let her forget about it.

from a young age, cary was the picture of raw charisma. grocery store trips took forever, with his mother being halted at every aisle by enchanted older women who wanted to catch a glimpse of the adorable baby cary. his cuteness almost made up for how busy his mom was at all hours of the day, especially when his younger sister became cary’s irish twin, born a little over 9 months after cary was.

his younger sister becomes the bane of his existence as soon as they’re both conscious enough to get on each other’s nerves. they’re close enough in age that the competition is always there, fueled by the teachers, friends, and extracurriculars that they share. they found their niches soon enough: cary was good at sports, while his sister was good at dancing (which elementary-age cary would vehemently insist was the exact OPPOSITE of a sport). their father would go to cary’s games, but not his sister’s recitals, a fact that he accepted without much thought.

cary’s world, until middle school, was very small. the only people on his mind were him, his family, and his ever-shifting cast of close friends. there wasn’t much room in that world for insecurity or introspection, not when his biggest issue was the occasional fight he and his sister would get into over who’s turn it was on the remote. this all changed when cary was introduced to a fact about himself that made the world so much scarier: people were talking shit about him behind his back. it was the little things, of course- a comment about how stacy from english told someone who told someone who told someone that she thought he was short, or hearing a rumor about himself filter through the grapevine. it was startling, and cary reacted in kind, putting much more thought into his everything. he began to think about the way he dressed, and the way he smiled, and the way that when he answered questions in class, people would remember whether he got them wrong or right.

suddenly, nothing was more important than his image. he wanted to smell nice, but not too nice, or else his dad would make some mean spirited quip about his son being fruity. he also needed to date girls, but not too many girls, or else they’d think he was a jerk. it was a careful, obsessive balance that he kept, one that dictated everything about the way he acted.

against all odds, his mission was successful. he was generally well-liked. he had middling grades, and he wasn’t especially happy, but things were working. even the fact that his parents still picked his closest friends based on whether or not mr. o’hare liked their parents couldn’t break his stride. only one thing could truly break his stride, and that was the events of sleepaway camp, the summer before his sophomore year of high school.

sleepaway camp was fun. too fun. he was fast friends with jonah, who lived in a town four hours away from cary’s. over their three week stay at camp timber lake, cary and jonah ended up doing everything together. they shared secrets, snuck out of the cabin late at night to explore the woods, and on one memorable instance, went skinny dipping in the lake. near the end of their time at camp, things changed, suddenly and without warning- cary would blame the full moon. if you interrogated him, he’d insist that the only reason he kissed jonah was because the moon was full, it was the last night of camp, and they were alone in the woods in the dead of the night. he’d also insist that he didn’t mean anything by it, and that it didn’t mean he was gay. the truth, however? temporary insanity didn’t push cary to kiss jonah, and it wasn’t the reason that jonah pushed cary away with a horrified look on his face. much to cary’s relief, neither of them ever spoke about it. it became a secret just as soon as it became a memory, one that cary would agonize over for years after the fact.

cary walked into his sophomore year of high school with this secret heavy on his chest, paired with a desperate need to distract himself from it. he loaded his plate with all kinds of new activities, but the first one (aside from his regular slate of sports) to catch his fascination was learning to drive. he liked driving. he liked being the friend who knew how to do it, and he liked having jovial conversations with his dad about different types of vintage cars. he was the first of his friends to learn how to drive, and he used it to his social advantage.

3 girlfriends, 2 state championships, and 1 prom king crown later, cary was a senior in high school, choosing between two football scholarships while desperately trying not to think about the gay thing. he would ask his parents for advice, if not for the fact that his dad would kick him out for even considering “the homosexual lifestyle” while his mom would tell him to “not think about it and move on”. he picks his college based on a coin flip, and keeps his mouth shut.

college is a new beast for cary, who’s suddenly thrust into a whole new world. the only time he’d lived somewhere other than the o’hare house (lovingly referred to as the o’house) was at sleepaway camp, but uni? that was a sleepaway camp where there were no rules. his major was undecided, and his time was mostly spent juggling gen eds, the football team, and the rowdy parties that he was invited to.

the thing that made him decide his major, funnily enough, was a pregnancy scare. he’d hooked up with a cheerleader, more because she was a cheerleader while he was a football player than for any other reason, and three weeks later, she called him in tears, talking about a late period. on the drive to the doctor’s office to check, they got to talking about how they landed in this position. she admitted that she slept with him because he “reminded her of a weatherman”, and his career path was set. once his former hookup was given the clean bill of “not pregnant”, cary felt free to go along his way, rocking every public speaking class and doing pretty-okay on his meteorology courses, his road in life officially planned.

cary didn’t realize that he was capital g Gay until he actually had sex with a man. the process itself was undignified, beginning with eye contact across a dance floor and ending in a stranger’s bed. he was in a strange city, telling all of his friends that he was sick in the hotel while they were out at a bachelor party. he was paranoid at the gay bar, until he let himself get swept up in the music, and consequently, the spirit of lighthearted experimentation. even if when it happened, he’d already graduated from college, it still counted, right? either way, the end product was the same: him, in a stranger’s bed, trying to catch his breath. the guy’s name was paul, and the sex was unlike anything he’d ever felt before. it was electricity, and nerves, and magnetism, and cary was left without a doubt over the fact that he was exactly what he feared.

the years after that encounter moved in a predictable pattern, a cycle that he couldn’t break. first, he’d find some success in his career. then, he’d find a nice girl and try to make it work. then, the relationship would crash and burn. finally, he’d break again, and allow himself a weekend of gay debauchery. sometimes the cycle would take a few weeks to complete, and other times it would take a few years. this cycle filled up years, and then it filled up two decades, until he was 42 years old and truly exhausted.

his parents wanted him to get married. more than anything, they wanted him to get married. it was one of the few things his mom and his dad agreed on, and in a way, they bonded over it. the whispers about why the local weatherman was a perennial bachelor certainly didn’t help his nerves, neither did the scores of posts from his high school and college friends announcing marriages and pregnancies.

the big break from his cycle came in the form of hazel robson, a fellow member of a book club that he joined (he wasn’t super into reading, but the flow of a book club was deeply calming to him). their relationship blossomed over the book club pick of “love in the time of cholera”, following an especially insightful note from hazel. he asked her out to coffee, wanting to learn more about her opinion. their initial coffee date was legendary, their conversation lasting through two cups of coffee and an extended walk in the park. cary loved seeing the world through hazel’s eyes- she talked about literature with such a vivid intelligence that it was practically contagious. cary left that first date invigorated, like he was scores more intelligent just from having been in her vicinity.

cary couldn’t put into words exactly why it worked so well with hazel, even though he didn’t like her that way. he knew, logically, that he was gay, and that he’d never wake up and love hazel the way she deserved to be loved. emotionally, however? he still kind of hoped that that day would come. their relationship continued to progress, without the dramatic endings that he’d gotten used to. what they had wasn’t going down in flames like his attempts at romance before- it was working. when he proposed, it was at the coffee shop where they had their first date, and he refused to let his guilt show on his face.

things were exactly how his parents wanted it: he was married to a lovely woman, his career was booming, and the for-fun football team that he was a part of kept him in shape. it should’ve been perfect, but cary couldn’t help but feel restless. incomplete. not even his pre-game catchphrase (”my name is cary o’hare, and we are gonna win this thing fair and square!”) could keep that itch of the unfulfilled at bay. it only got worse when he met the living embodiment of everything he couldn’t have: liam lexington.

his father joked that a wandering eye was a normal part of being a married man, but cary suspected that his dad didn’t mean it like this. liam was bold, attractive, and shameless- cary couldn’t quite tell if he wanted to be him or be with him. he decided on the former, after some meaningful eye contact/hand on knee action at an applebee’s post-game celebration. it escalated into a torrid affair, one that he pointedly refused to talk about with liam or anyone else.

it all fell apart on his 46th birthday. hazel walked into their house, ready to deliver his birthday surprise, only to walk in on liam delivering his birthday surprise. first there was the yelling, then there was the crying, until finally there were divorce papers. right after they both signed, there was a long stretch of silence, standing across from each other. then, cary broke the silence. “you know, hazel, i know it doesn’t feel like it right now, but i think one day, you and i are going to laugh about this. i know it’ll be far off in the future, and you hate me right now, but… one day, maybe when we’re old, we’ll be sitting on a porch, and we’ll be laughing about what happened.”

the official party line for the cause of the divorce was the question of kids, leaving cary right back at the start. he was a childless divorcee, and no longer his dad’s favorite. he’s gotten back into the routine of being single and publicly straight, something helped by his now-ex wife moving away. now that she’s back in town, and cary is finding less and less reasons to stay in the closet? it’s about to be a wild year for cary o’hare.

#sero.intro #CARY O'HARE º ᴡᴇ ᴄᴀɴ ᴡᴏʀᴋ ᴛᴏ ᴡᴏʀᴋ ɪᴛ ᴏᴜᴛ #info : intro

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bluehairedboyhcs · 4 years

Text

Old Polaroids

This one is a little weird because it’s not quite a fic and it’s not Headcannons either. It’s supposed to be a conversation. If that makes sense? Anyway I hope you enjoy it because I worked hard on it. 💙

You, Sal, and Larry had spent the entire day in his room sorting through trash and packing his things into boxes. Larry has finally decided to move into the house with Todd, Neil and Sal. The three of you were sweating and tired but the excitement of Larry moving in with the rest of the boys was enough to keep you going. Todd was on his way with more boxes and coffee.

As you were sifting through piles of math notes from high school and song lyrics that were never finished, you stumbled across a stack of Polaroids, the one on top was an old photo of Larry.

“Oh my god guys, look at what I found”

The two boys huddled around the Polaroids you held in you hand.

“Holy shit, this was the night I slammed 2 beers and half a bottle of rum!”

“Yeah, and you felt the overwhelming urge to smoke on Ash’s roof”

“Hey, it’s nice to have a roof cig every once and a while. The view is always great no matter where you are”

Laughing, you hand the photo to Larry and shift your attention to the second photo in the stack.

“Speaking of roof cigarettes, this is you on our senior trip to the beach.”

“Yeah, That’s not a cigarette.”

“I should have figured.”

Chuckling, Larry looked fondly at the picture taking it from your hand.

“Ashley took this one. We couldn’t even see the beach but the view was still good. We were talking about senior year ending and how she was leaving Nockfell. She snuck a photo of me because she wanted to remember that conversation.”

“That’s a good memory. She took it because it was an emotional moment?”

The look of fondness dropped from his features and an annoyed one took its place.

“No! She tried to get a picture of me crying! You can’t even see anything! She even labeled it ‘Larry’s Silhouette’!”

Sally burst out into laughter, snatching the photo from Larry. He studied it to see if there was any hint of wetness around Larry’s eyes.

“So you stole it because she caught you crying?”

“No!”

The two of them took turns bickering and grabbing the photo from eachother. They carried on for a while and you just watched in amusement. They finally settle when Larry grabbed the photo and stuffed it into his pocket.

“I took it because I didn’t want her to have the satisfaction, not because there were visible tears!”

“I don’t know dude, I think I see a little shimmer under-”

“Shut up!”

You heard a knock at the door and looked in its direction. Todd was peaking in with a smile.

“Am I interrupting something?”

“Todd!”

Todd walked in with a drink carrier full of coffee, setting them on the dresser.

“The boxes are in the living room”

His eyes traveled to the three of you and settled on the pictures in your hand.

“Hey! Are those are Polaroids from high school?!”

“Yeah, Y/N found a bunch of them while sorting through Larry’s stuff.”

Larry handed Todd the two pictures. He looked over them and smiled to himself.

“Oh my god, I remember this first one. You were so drunk. Isn’t this the night that made you swear off alcohol for a year?”

“Yeah it is! I still can’t drink more then 3 beers.”

Todd smiled and motioned toward the rest of the photos in your hand.

“Can I see the rest?”

“Sure.”

Todd takes the pictures and looks through them.

“Hey it’s me.”

“Gross it’s got dirt on it.”

“Oh yeah that one was on my floor for a while. After I stepped on it I decided I should probably put it away with the others”

“You didn’t clean it off?”

Shrugging, Larry grabbed the photos. A wide smile spread across his face.

“The treehouse.”

“I took this one.”

Sal peeked at the picture and his eyes brightened.

“Wow that’s right after you showed it to me.”

Larry handed the stack to Sal with his eyes still focused on the picture of the treehouse. Sally took the stack and flipped through them.

“Oh my god.”

Todd grabbed the photo and laughed.

“Wow so much angst.”

With an eye roll, Sal looked at the photo again.

“I was really into Nirvana back then. I gave it to Larry because I thought it looked cool.”

“I think it’s looks cool Sal.”

Sal looked down at his feel shyly and shifted his weight, passing the stack to you.

“Thank you, Y/N.”

“Don’t lie to him it’s so bad.”

You try to punch Larry in the arm and he moves backward to dodge you. After you miss, he laughs

“Shut up, crybaby.”

With a glare, Larry closed his mouth not wanting to bring that topic back up again.

“Hey Sal look”

“Oh I didn’t know she took that. Larry why do you have this one?”

“Because it’s a really cool picture!”

Sal squinted at Larry.

“Oh so this one’a cool but mine isn’t?”

“Look at that light dude. You can’t tell me this one isn’t cool!”

Sally rolled his eyes again.

“What else is there Y/N?”

“There’s this one. Larry, did you take this?”

“Yeah I did. After we found Megan I wanted to see if that ghost hunting trick really worked and it did. You can see the light orbs in the picture.”

Your eyes widened realizing that he was right.

“Oh please, that’s not real they’re just light flares. You yourself even said ‘the lighting is so cool’.”

Larry looked at the photo again.

“Either way it still looks cool.”

“Of course it does. ‘Ooh pretty light I want’.”

Larry and Todd playfully argued for a while while Sal laughed and backed Todd up. You sat on Larry’s bed looking at the final photo fondly.

“Hey Y/N, you alright?”

You turned your attention to the boys and smiled at them. Your eyes watered and they could tell you were upset.

“I’m okay... I just miss her a lot.”

Sal sat next to you, wrapping his arm around your shoulder for a side hug.

“Yeah, we all do. Has she said anything about when she’s going to visit us again?”

Todd sighed and sat on the floor in front of the two of you.

“I haven’t heard anything unfortunately.”

Larry shifted uncomfortably and rubbed his neck and you eyed him suspiciously.

“Larry?”

“Haha I wasn’t supposed to tell you guys this but...”

Your breath hitched. No way was he actually going to say what you think he was going to say.

“What? Spit it out!”

Larry jumped and stuttered out a response nervously.

“Okay! When I told her I was moving into the house with you guys she said she wanted to help. She’s on her way.”

“What!?”

“Larry! It was supposed to be a secret!”

Your head turned to the door where a short haired Ash was standing.

“Ashley!”

“Ash!”

“Hi, Ashley!”

“Sorry Ash...”

You jumped up and tackled her in a hug almost trampling Todd in the process.

“I missed you so much!”

Ash laughed and looked around the room.

“I missed you guys too. Now, why are we so mopey?”

Everyone held up the photos in their hands.

“No way! I forgot about these!”

All of you reminisced for hours and completely forgot about the main objective of packing Larry’s things. Later in the night when you realized you hadn’t made much progress you all agreed to finish the next day, there was too much to talk about.

I hope you enjoyed this little fic hybrid thing. I hadn’t seen this kind of thing done before and I thought it was a cool idea. Let me know what you guys think!

Thanks for reading! 💙

#ash campbell #ashley campbell #ashley campbell x reader #larry johnson #larry johnson x reader #sal fisher #sal fisher x reader #sallyface #todd morrison

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ranwing · 4 years

Text

KADAM FIC: LEARNING TO FLY (20/20)

Title: Learning to Fly Series: A New Direction (was Season Four Remix) Pairing(s), Characters(s): Kadam, Kurt Hummel, Adam Crawford, Burt Hummel, Rachel Berry, Santana Lopez, Carmen Tibideaux, Cassandra July, Artie Abrams, Tina Cohen-Chang, Elliot “Starchild” Gilbert, Dani, Adam’s Apples, Original Characters Rating: PG13 (rating may change) Genre(s): canon divergence. Parts: 20/20 (Completed!)

Summary: As another school year starts at NYADA, Kurt seemed to have it all. The respect of his teachers, a group of wonderful friends and best of all, getting to live with the man that he’d come to love. So of course the universe would throw a few curve balls in his direction.

Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four, Part Five, Part Six, Part Seven, Part Eight, Part Nine, Part Ten, Part Eleven, Part Twelve, Part Thirteen, Part Fourteen, Part Fifteen, Part Sixteen, Part Seventeen, Part Eighteen, Part Nineteen

On AO3

A/N - Whoo... Cannot believe that this monster is finally finished! This series has been such a labor of love for me, and the level of support I've gotten from my readers has left me humbled and deeply appreciative. You guys have been wonderful in encouraging me to continue writing and bringing my stories out to be ready.

I have more planned for this series, and so many other story ideas that I want to explore. I again want to thank everyone who's read my stories. Every reblog and comment just makes my day. Thank you, everyone.

Kurt sealed the last box closed and sat back on his bare mattress with a satisfied sigh, letting the depleted roll of packing tape fall to the floor. Finally, he thought contentedly. The instant that he’d finished his last exam that morning, he was on the phone with Adam to let him know that he was ready. All he needed was a few hours to get the last of his belongings packed up.

He looked about his dorm room, the bare cinderblock walls looking as sterile as they had when he’d first arrived now that they’d been stripped of his decorations. It felt almost shocking at how easily the room had shed his efforts at personalization, making it very clear that this had been at best a transitory accommodation. While living there it hadn’t been the ordeal he’d feared and he’d enjoyed the convenience, Kurt was glad to be leaving. He missed having his own space.

With the tests done and the spring term officially at an end, many other students boarding in the dorms were also making their preparations to leave and the common area was a hive of activity. There were parents picking up their freshman children, listening to stories about how tough NYADA was and their relief that they’d survived the first year. Upper classmen weren’t quite so effusive, but there were plenty of hugs as they bid friends and classmates goodbye until the fall. There was even a senior or two, taking one long last look at the school that had trained them before they left for the last time.

He spotted Jamie walking into the common area, pulling his suitcases behind him and waved him down.

“Hey, Kurt… So, this is it,” the taller man surmised with a tired sigh.

Kurt nodded understandingly. The last few weeks of school were always the hardest and everyone needed a bit of a break before starting on their summer jobs and projects. Kurt was just thankful that he and Adam would have a few days to settle and regroup before they found their lives uprooted again. It seemed like they were going to be in a constant cycle of racing and pausing for the foreseeable future.

“Heading home for a bit?” Kurt asked, seeing the travel pillow looped through the handle of one of Jamie’s bags.

Jamie nodded. “I definitely owe the folks a visit since we were so busy with the show this spring,” he answered. “And my internship with the community theater starts next week, so I’ll have a few days to relax. Figure that should keep me busy this summer.”

“Yeah, we start rehearsals next week,” Kurt said, running a hand through his hair. Part of him wished that he could have taken a few weeks to just unwind since this past year had left him little time to take stoke of all he’d accomplished, but he didn’t have that luxury. The experience he gained with the Garrison festival was just too valuable to pass up. Not to mention getting the chance to work with Adam and his closest friends.

Jamie offered a consoling smile. “Maybe it’s better to just keep moving,” he theorized. “You don’t lose momentum.”

Kurt chuckled tiredly. “Like we need excuses to burn the candle at both ends,” he answered back. Nobody studied at NYADA if they wanted to take it easy. “Are you dorming again next term?”

Jamie smiled and shook his head. “No. Katya and I decided that it’s time to move things forward,” he stated happily. “Her roommate is moving out over the summer so we’re going to share the apartment.”

“Congratulations!” Kurt pronounced, happy for his friends.

“Well, it’s a little overdue,” Jamie admitted ruefully. “Fortunately, she got fed up with the prima donna she was living with and dropped some suggestions that she might want to find someplace else to live before school starts in the fall.”

“That’s great. I’m really happy for the two of you,” Kurt insisted.

“Thanks. You’re heading over to your new place now?” Jamie asked.

Kurt nodded happily. “Like you said, it’s overdue.”

“Well, good luck this summer,” Jamie wished, reaching out to pull his friend into a hug. He and Kurt patted one another’s back, savoring the contact before they separated for the season. “I’m looking forward to hearing all your war stories.”

Kurt knew that this would be the norm for their lives as they continued to develop and grow in their careers.. Connecting, making friends in their industry, then separating depending on where work took them. It made him want to keep those connections even closer since they could be so tenuous.

The next two years would be difficult ones, as they continued to build towards what they hoped would be fruitful professional careers. Kurt knew that not all their classmates would return in the fall; some falling out because of the increasing pressure to grow and succeed or to take their chances on finding work. As talented as his classmates were, Kurt thought that there were a few who very possibly have progressed as much as they were going to and he wouldn’t be terribly surprised if they didn’t show up in September.

But he had no doubt that Jamie, Katya and Analisa would be there when he returned in the fall. Along with himself and Rachel, they had repeatedly proven themselves, rising to the occasion and showing that they wanted to be better. It probably wasn’t a surprise that the five of them had come together; not just as respected peers, but good friends.

“You too,” Kurt said. “Text me when you start at the theater. I’d love to hear how they do things.”

“I will,” Jamie promised. They’d have plenty of stories to share in the fall. “I’d better get moving if I’m going to catch my plane. I’ll see you in September.”

Kurt hugged his friend again before letting him go to meet his transportation to the airport. Around him there were other partings of friends with many tearful goodbyes and promises to keep in touch over the summer. For all the competition that the school fostered among the student body, it was nice to see that it also helped create real and lasting friendships.

It wasn’t much later that his phone chimed, advising of a text message. Kurt fished his phone out of his pocket and smiled at seeing the message from Adam. Taking up the handle of his suitcase, he walked out the front doors of the school where he saw his boyfriend standing next to a sensible rental car.

“Hi,” Kurt greeted happily, hurrying over and turning his face up for a kiss.

“Hello, sweetheart,” Adam answered, obliging his lover and pulling him in for a lingering embrace. “Do you have a lot of stuff?”

“Just this and a few boxes with my books,” Kurt confirmed. “I’ll start bringing them out.”

“Need help?” Adam asked as he moved to open the trunk.

“No,” Kurt assured him. “It won’t take me long. I’ll be right back.”

It took a few trips to transport all the boxes out of the room, and Kurt knew that it was telling that when he carried the final box out and closed the door behind him that he didn’t look back.

The drive to their apartment took nearly no time at all, Adam pulling in by the hydrant in front of their building so he could quickly drop off Kurt and his things.

“I’m just going to run the car back,” he assured Kurt. “Are you okay to get everything up yourself?”

Kurt mentally appraised the small collection and nodded. “I think so. They’re not too heavy. I’ll be okay.”

Adam smiled and kissed Kurt again. “Give me about half an hour,” he promised. “Wait for me if you need help.”

Once Adam had driven off to return the car, Kurt took on the task of bringing his belongings upstairs, knowing better than to leave his belongings sitting out on the sidewalk. Once they were safely behind a closed front door, he hurried upstairs to unlock their apartment door before carrying the boxes up one at a time.

He shoved the boxes into a corner of their bedroom and had his suitcase open, sorting through his clothes and tossing his laundry into the hamper to take care of later. There was no real rush to deal with his books, but Kurt couldn’t help from smiling that Adam made sure to leave the top two shelves of the bookcase open for him. The bust of Shakespeare sat atop the bookcase where the Bard of Avon had a clear view of the room and seeming to offer Kurt a subtle smile, welcoming him home.

Kurt wandered about the apartment while he waited for Adam’s return, reacquainting himself with all the things that he’d loved about their new residence. Adam had left the air conditioner running, so the apartment was comfortable, and it hadn’t escaped Kurt’s notice that the bed was freshly made up. Opening the fridge revealed a selection of cheese and fruit for them to share when his lover returned, along with a bottle of wine with a label that caused Kurt to raise an eyebrow in surprise. It was a pricier vintage than they usually indulged with and usually only for special occasions. Kurt supposed that this would certainly qualify so he wouldn’t complain about Adam spending so much. His lover had already collected a selection of take out menus from the local restaurants, so they’d have plenty of options if they decided to stay in and… celebrate.

The main living room was just as he’d remembered, with the windows letting in plenty of sunlight through the filtering blinds, brightening the space and drawing one’s eye to the exposed brick wall that was Kurt’s favorite feature. While they still needed to consider getting some kind of dining set, he was pleased to see that what furniture they did already have suited their apartment nicely.

He felt a sudden need to sit down on every piece of furniture, like a cat wanting to make sure that his scent was everywhere to mark his territory. Adam would be highly amused that that little flight of whimsy, but after being apart for so long, Kurt couldn’t deny the need to all but rub himself against the chair he sat in as he waited for Adam to return.

He perked up when he heard a key in the front door lock and smiled brightly when Adam stepped inside, looking a bit rung out from the heat. “Hey,” he greeted from his spot in his chair.

Adam smiled and stalked over to him, leaning down to give him a warm kiss. “Hi, love,” he answered back. “Settling in?”

Kurt shrugged. “I haven’t started tackling the boxes yet,” he admitted, not ashamed of procrastinating a little. “Just wanted to enjoy being here for a moment.”

“Got room for me in there?” Adam asked, nodding towards the chair that Kurt was currently occupying.

Kurt nodded with a smile, getting up so that Adam could sit and settling in his lap. He cuddled in happily as Adam wrapped his arms about him, enjoying the feeling of their first real shared moment in their new home. Not that they hadn’t spent a good amount of time there since Adam returned to New York getting “reacquainted”, Kurt considered with a mischievous smile, but this was different. Kurt wouldn’t be hurrying back to the dorms because of an early morning class or staying for the weekend like an out of town guest. They were both finally home.

“This is nice,” Kurt cooed happily, nestling into his boyfriend’s embrace.

Adam sighed in contentment, glad to have this quiet moment before reality intruded again. They did have to shop for their housewarming party, as all of the Apples still in the city were impatient to celebrate the return of their old leader and offer their best wishes for their new place. And they had a bare week before rehearsals started in Garrison. But for now, this small space in the universe was just for them.

“I was thinking about staying in tonight,” Adam suggested, resting his cheek against Kurt’s hair and taking in the scent of his lover. “I know that we wanted to explore the neighborhood a bit more, but I’d kind of like to just have a quiet evening if that’s okay with you.”

Kurt smiled, nodding. “That’s just what I was thinking,” he answered agreeably. They’d have plenty of time go check out the local places in the coming months. For now, they just wanted to have a little time to themselves, cocooned in their private sanctuary. “Sounds perfect.”

“I’ve got a bottle of one of your favorites in the fridge,” Adam informed him. “I wanted to celebrate tonight.”

“I saw,” Kurt answered with a smile. “Why don’t I crack it open while you get our snacks set up?”

Adam smiled and gave Kurt a quick kiss on the tip of his nose before letting his lover climb off him. He couldn’t resist offering the lovely backside in his face an affectionate pat as he sent Kurt on his way.

They were going to be okay. Kurt was as confident about that truth as he was in the law of gravity. As Adam put together a plate of cheese and fruit for them to enjoy, he got out the corkscrew from their utensil drawer and deftly opening the bottle of Australian white. He carried the bottle along with two of the good wine glasses that Elliot had given as a housewarming gift to the couch where he poured the wine and waited for Adam to join him.

Settled there, Kurt allowed a feeling of warm contentment to wash over them as they nestled together, feeding one another and enjoying gentle kisses between sips of tart wine. He was keenly aware that their lives wouldn’t allow for many moments like this in the coming weeks. Rehearsals would keep him busy while Adam learned about the practicalities of staging a large production. Their lives going forward would be a constant cycle of rehearsals, productions, classes and day jobs. Lulls like this needed to be cherished, because they were all the more precious for their rarity.

There would be plenty of time for them to worry about work and their careers. At that moment, all Kurt wanted to do was savor their time together.

* * *

“I’m not going to take no for an answer, man,” Elliot insisted to Adam, taking a sip of his beer.

“Elliot, Kurt’s starting rehearsals next week,” Adam reminded him. “I wanted him to have some down time before he starts. This past semester was really rough on him.

“And I just got back. We’re still barely settled.”

“I know,” Elliot granted. “But this isn’t like our usual show. It’s our last one before everyone heads home for the summer and I promise, it’s going to be really informal. No crazy costumes or anything. It’s just a chance to give our audience a bit of fun before we take a break and to show our thing.”

Adam sighed, looking about the crowded room for Kurt to come rescue him since he was closer to Elliot, but the younger man was currently occupied with Mei, Tommy and several other of the older Apples. They appeared to be regaling one another about their experiences from the spring musical and the weeks in class that followed. He managed to catch Kurt’s eye and made a pleading face, hoping that Kurt would be the voice of reason. Kurt nodded in understanding and excused himself from their friends before bouncing over to them.

“Hey, did you tell Adam about the show?” Kurt asked Elliot, sinking Adam’s hopes for a quick resolution to Elliot’s request.

Elliot grinned and nodded. “I’m trying to tell him that it’s not going to be as intense as our last ones,” he assured Kurt. “It’s more like a big jam session with our best fans in attendance. You do what you do best, and they eat it up.”

Kurt’s eyes were shining brightly at the prospect of another stage to command and looked to his lover. “It was a lot of fun,” he assured Adam. “It’s like Callbacks, but with a better band. Everyone’s going to be there, and I’ve even convinced some of the Apples to join in.”

Adam sighed reluctantly, knowing that he’d lost this one. It was very hard to tell Kurt no much of the time and it wasn’t worth an argument over something so silly. If he was being totally honest with himself, he missed singing with Kurt the past few months and it wouldn’t hurt to keep his pipes in practice.

“Maybe Niall and Cynthia would enjoy the show,” he suggested, offering Kurt a smile. He knew that he’d lost this one and at least he could be cordial in his defeat. “He’d enjoy watching me make a fool of myself and we did promise them a chance to get together.”

Kurt’s smile widened when he realized that Adam had come around and pressed a quick kiss on him to thank the older man for his agreement. He hurried back to their friends, probably to announce that Adam would be performing causing the Englishman to sigh. He didn’t miss the knowing grin on Elliot’s face.

“Oh, stop looking so smug,” he groused, mildly annoyed that he didn’t have a graceful way to withdraw without disappointing Kurt.

“I promise, you won’t make a fool of yourself,” he assured Adam.

Adam knew that, but that didn’t change the matter of him just not fitting in with that sort of crowd. “I’m not the showman that you and Kurt are,” he admitted. “I’m afraid that I’m going to be something of a wet hen in your group.”

“Bullshit,” Elliot laughed, his blue eyes flashing. “You’ve got your own strengths as a performer and I missed seeing that while you were away.”

Knowing that he’d been beaten, Adam allowed himself to smile courteously. It was hard to hold a grudge with Kurt’s and Elliot’s enthusiasm. “If you say so,” he granted. “So… Kurt was telling me about the job you got lined up…”

Whatever misgivings Adam might have felt about performing in such a venue, he didn’t have very much time to dwell on them. Not with Kurt’s excitement over both the planned evening and starting rehearsals in Garrison. Niall and Cynthia happily accepted the invitation, looking forward to a night out with friends. The four of them spent some time before the show at a tapas bar near the venue. Small plates of tortilla and Iberico ham and glasses of red Rioja shared with good company made him feel much better about the evening.

The show wasn’t scheduled to start until ten, giving the two couples plenty of time to reconnect and discover that they got along beyond reasons of necessity. To be honest, Adam enjoyed making friends with another couple which was a refreshing change from just hanging out with a large group of mostly singles. Perhaps Rachel and her new beau would be nice to socialize with as well.

By the time they arrived at the nightclub hosting the Hellfire Circus, Adam was nicely relaxed from the wine and more enthusiastic about the chance to perform. Then again, how could he be reluctant to perform with his Kurt? As promised, it was a much more low-key event than the Valentine’s Day show and he hoped that he wouldn’t stand out in a negative way.

Thankfully everyone was casually dressed, with even Elliot wearing jeans and an old Queen t-shirt. His sole concession to his usual performance style was a bit of artfully smudged eyeliner that made his already brilliant eyes stand out even more. He was helping Dani and the band set up while Santana watched, offering her usual stream of unhelpful commentary.

“Thank God, there’s a bar,” Niall pronounced.

His wife gave him a nudge that was just shy of being gentle. “Behave,” she reprimanded playfully. “You’d think that we haven’t been drinking wine all night.”

“Wine isn’t drinking,” Niall insisted with more seriousness than was probably warranted, but Adam felt himself nodding in agreement. Kurt rolled his eyes, muttering under his breath about idiot Englishmen.

Elliot gave a whistle and called the performers over to him, signaling that they would be starting shortly. Kurt looked to Cynthia and said, “We’d better get over there. Try to get seats up front if you can. Don’t think that we need to worry about a splash zone tonight.”

She smiled and gave her friend a quick kiss to his cheek. “Break a leg,” she offered before taking her husband’s hand. “Come on, you. If I get you a beer, maybe you’ll stop complaining.”

“And no beer for you,” Kurt warned Adam, taking his arm and pulling him in the opposite direction of the bar. “I need you sober for our set.”

“Darling, would I ever embarrass you?” Adam demanded teasingly, offering his lover a crooked smile to assure him that he wasn’t even mildly offended. He knew that Kurt’s habit of trying to control his environment sometimes had him stepping on toes without meaning to and he knew that the younger man wasn’t trying to insult him. Kurt knew that Adam certainly wasn’t a heavy drinker by any stretch and could count the number of time’s he’d gotten totally pissed since they got together on one hand.

Kurt’s cheeks took on a warm flush of pink when he realized that he might have overstepped. “I’m sorry,” he said sincerely, giving Adam’s hand a gentle squeeze. “You know that I always get stupid when I have performance brain.”

Adam bent down to press a quick kiss to his lips. “It’s okay,” he reassured Kurt. “You’ve already built a relationship with this bunch and I’m stepping onto your turf here. I’ll be following your lead.”

Kurt sighed, looking quite repentant for his gaffe. “I really am sorry,” he insisted. “It feels like we need to relearn one another a little bit.”

Adam nodded, in complete agreement. They would have to learn one another’s ways again after so long and discover the kind of men that they had grown into over the past months. They both had undergone many deep changes and had discovered much about themselves while they were apart. Teaching one another who they were would only make their relationship stronger. It would be like revisiting those heady early days of their romance, when everything felt so exciting and new.

Unquestionably they would end up jostling more than a little bit as they did so. Both of them had developed new habits and boundaries that their partner would need to navigate, and they’d probably be stepping on one another’s toes more than a few times. While that was probably inevitable, Adam had no doubt that they would manage without too much in the way of hurt feelings. They just needed to make sure that they communicated with one another; that when something bothered one of them, they didn’t stay silent and allow hurt feelings to fester. There shouldn’t be anything that they couldn’t handle if they spoke like the mature adult men they were supposed to be.

“Hey,” Adam said, pulling Kurt into his arms. He bent his head to kiss his lover soundly, making it clear that he really wasn’t at all upset. “We’re good. And I can’t wait to see you singing again.”

“You are such a damn pushover,” Kurt groused good naturedly, his mood resolved by the older man’s assurance that his misstep was a minor one.

“Nah… I just have the good sense to know what’s worth raising a stink over,” Adam claimed loftily. “But if you insist on submitting my application for sainthood, I won’t complain too much.”

Kurt gave a huff, nudging Adam playfully with his body.

Elliot waved the last stragglers over to him as the band finished setting up. “Come on guys,” he demanded, his smile absolutely brilliant with the excitement over having the chance to perform again. “Let’s get this show on the road.”

Much like the show that Adam had watched online while he’d been traveling, the show boasted a wide array of talents. The dancers were all phenomenal, easily among the best he’d ever seen while the fire eaters were trying out some new tricks to amaze their audience. The singers ranged in ability from generally good to amazing, each of them giving the audience their best efforts.

Elliot was a remarkable showman and lead the company with a ringmaster’s flair for the dramatic. Besides his own remarkable talent, he had a definite knack for staging a show to its best advantage. Even without the bells and whistles that the group normally employed, the show was engaging and showed a clear ebb and flow as it was building towards a climax. Elliot had organized the show to show off the best qualities of each performer, giving everyone a moment to shine while at the same time keeping the energy coherent and engaging.

To say that it was an enjoyable show would be a definite understatement of the grandest proportions. After performing a gorgeous duet together, Artie and Tina rejoined their friends looking extraordinarily pleased with themselves. “You look like you had a good time,” he complimented with a smile.

Artie looked a bit winded from his performance but looked very happy. “It’s been awhile since I’ve had a chance to sing like that,” he admitted. “We don’t have a lot of opportunities to sing at school unless it’s for a project and I’m out of practice.”

Tina wrapped her arms about her boyfriend’s shoulders from behind and leaned in with a big smile. “You’ve still got it, babe,” she assured him, pressing a kiss to his cheek.

Kurt was seated at his side, his head resting on Adam’s shoulder as they watched the other performers. Whatever misgivings Adam might have had were fading away as he watched several members of the Apples performing a playful rendition of “You’ve Got Another Thing Coming”, giving the classic metal number a peppy, boy-band vibe. Seeing his friends welcomed and having a place to show off their creative spirits outside of their club was gratifying and he was starting to think that Elliot was a really good, smart bloke and that he could really get behind the idea of this cabaret.

It was pretty mindboggling just how talented everyone was, and his Apples fit in perfectly. Santana and Dani did a sultry duet of “Cheek to Cheek” that had just enough sexual heat without going too far, and Santana was proving why she was so popular at her piano club. They finished with a kiss that was sure to set all the straight men up with material for their spank banks but clearly wasn’t done at all with their audience in mind.

“Hey Rachel,” Elliot called out to the young woman, who’d been enjoying the show between heated kisses with her boyfriend. “You’re up.”

She looked up at Elliot, and it took all of Adam’s control not to chuckle aloud at the sight of her pink lipstick smeared over the face of the young man who’s lap she was occupying. She gave Neil another quick kiss before getting up and after a quick makeup check, hurried to take her spot on the stage. Dani took up her guitar to strum out an accompaniment to her song.

“Drinking wine and thinking bliss, is on the other side of this,” she sang, her voice rising sweetly on the guitar notes. She looked to Kurt and offered him a soft smile. “I just need a compass and a willing accomplice. All my doubts that fill my head, cascading up and down again. Up and down and round again, down and up and down again.

“Oh, I’ve had my chances and I’ve taken them all,” she assured the audience with a world-weary wisdom. “Just to end up right back here on the floor. To end up right back here on the floor.

She looked up at her audience with soft eyes and a gentle, bemused smile and she seemed to contemplate the mistakes of her life. “Pennies in a well, a million dollars in the fountain of a hotel. Fortune teller that says maybe you will go to hell. But I’m not scared at all,” Rachel promised. “The cracks in the crystal… the cracks in the crystal ball.”

After months of watching Rachel sing every song as if her life depended on belting every note out at full volume, Adam thought that this was a refreshing change. She had such a lovely tone to her singing, and he felt that she was drawing him into her performance instead of just demanding that he admire what she could do with her voice. It was a far richer, more nuanced presentation than he could remember seeing from her.

Rachel offered her audience a sad smile as she considered the regrets of her life. “Sometimes you think everything is wrapped inside a diamond ring. Love just needs a witness, and a little forgiveness…”

That was certainly true, Adam thought, pulling Kurt close to him. Rachel certainly had plenty to look back upon, people that she had hurt and things that he was sure she wished that she had done differently. To see regret and doubt portrayed so sincerely hinted that Kurt’s friend had undergone a great many changes while he’d been away.

“And a halo of patience and a less sporadic pace and I’m learning to be brave in my beautiful mistakes,” she assured them, her expression one of sadness but determination. “Oh, I’ve felt that fire and I’ve been burned. But I wouldn’t trade the pain for what I’ve learned. I wouldn’t trade the pain for what I’ve learned.”

Adam was glad for her. She seemed to have finally found a place of peace within her. That she was secure enough to know that she could fail and be able to get up again, to know that she could make mistakes and learn from them. And that she would have people around her ready to help when her own strength failed. The misgivings that he’d had about her previous one-sided friendship with Kurt eased because it was clear that she had grown in ways that he wouldn’t have considered possible when he’d first met her.

He was happy not just for Kurt, because he knew how much Kurt’s friendship with Rachel meant. His greatest happiess was for Rachel herself because she seemed to be so much more content.

She shook her head sadly, seeming to look back on her past and her mistakes. “Irony, irony… this hate and love, hate and love. What it does to me, what it’s done to me… what is done… done…”

Dani began to play more strongly, her fingers dancing over her guitar’s strings and Rachel’s voice rose to match it, the two artists playing off one another and building up to the song’s climax. “Pennies in a well, a million dollars in the fountain of a hotel,” she sang, stealing her shoulders with determination. “Broken mirrors and a black cat’s cold stare. Walk under ladders on my way to hell, I’ll meet you there.”

Rachel reined her voice back in, returning to the gentle introspection. “But I’m not scared at all, hmmm…” she assured the audience with a gentle smile. “I’m not scared at all… of the cracks in the crystal, the cracks in the crystal ball…”

Dani played the final notes with a soft flourish and the audience applauded for the young women who’d offered such a gentle but emotionally rich performance. Adam nodded approvingly, giving his respect to the young woman who continued to surprise him so thoroughly. Kurt was grinning brilliantly, applauding for his friend and giving a loud whistle to express his regard. When Rachel stepped off the stage to make way for the dancer set to perform next, Kurt was already on his feet to greet her and pulled her into a warm embrace.

“That was amazing!” he praised effusively, hugging her so tightly that she was lifted off her feet. “Absolutely gorgeous.”

“Really?” she asked, clearly wanting his approval. “I tried to copy a bit of what you do, but I wasn’t sure if it would really carry over.”

He smiled reassuringly, pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead. “It was stunning,” he promised.

Elliot came over, resting his hand on Kurt’s shoulder. “You guys are up next,” he advised, keeping an eye on the flow of the show. “The stage lights are set to hit you once Ruthie is done. You’d better get to your marks.”

Kurt nodded, then turned wide, excited eyes to his partner. “You ready?”

Adam smiled confidently. “Born ready, darling.”

The Englishman took his place by the stage, giving the audience little cue that he was set to perform at any time. Kurt was already on stage, hidden in the darkness while he waited for the belly dancer to finish her set. Adam was glad that they set up their performance like this, so he’d have a chance to watch Kurt for a little bit.

Once Ruthie shimmied off the stage in a trail of flowing veils, a spotlight hit Kurt who was sitting on a tall stool. He had one leg crossed over the other and giving the audience an impish smile as the band began to play his music. Adam couldn’t resist tapping his foot to the engaging rhythm and couldn’t help from smiling at seeing Kurt’s shoulder’s shimmy just a bit in time with the music.

“I look up to the little bird, that glides across the sky.” Kurt sang, using that gorgeous upper register of his. He turned his gaze upward, as if watching that imaginary bird in flight. Adam was once again struck by how easily Kurt commanded the attention of his audience, with just a few gloriously sung words.

“He sings the clearest melody. It makes me want to cry,” Kurt trilled, allowing just the slightest bit of grit color his bright notes. “It makes me want to sit right down and cry cry cry…”

He slipped off the stool and strode to the center of the stage, his movements perfectly in time with the music. “I walk along the city streets. So dark with rage and fear,” he sang. “And I… I wish that I could be that bird and fly away from here. I wish I had the wings to fly away from here.

“But my my… I feel so low! My my… where do I go?” he asked, looking to his audience as if they had the answers. “My my… what do I know? My my… we reap what we sow.”

He stood at the front of the stage, legs apart as if bracing himself to the ground. “They always said that you knew best,” he accused, pointing a finger accusingly. “But this little bird’s fallen out of that nest now. I’ve got a feeling that it might have been blessed, so I’ve just got to put these wings to test…”

Adam couldn’t help from nodding in agreement, thinking how apt the lyrics were for Kurt. Whatever boundaries he’d faced all his life, Kurt had long since surpassed them. He didn’t know of anymore more courageous and so willing to put everything on the line for what he wanted. Kurt had always amazed him in his ability to strive towards his goals no matter how steep the odds against him were. He certainly did not need any coaxing before taking wing.

Watching Kurt absolutely command that stage filled Adam with pride. That this remarkable creature was in his life was a gift that he would always treasure. If he could help Kurt reach his potential in any small way, by supporting him and keeping his aspirations in mind while chasing his own dreams, that would be a fine exchange to ensure that Kurt stood by his side.

Kurt moved about the stage with an ease and confidence that normally one would expect in only the most seasoned performer, dancing in time to the music and giving the impression of pride that a young bird might have when discovering his own strength in flight. It was so engrossing that Adam nearly forgot that he had his own cue coming up. If he missed it, Kurt would be so cross with him.

“For I am just a troubled soul,” Kurt advised the audience, his hips gyrating in time with the beat. “Who’s weighted… weighted to the ground.”

“Weighted to the ground,” Adam sang in counterpoint, his warmer tone highlighting the brightness of Kurt’s voice. “Weighted to the ground.”

Kurt smiled at hearing Adam’s voice coming in to support his. “Give me the strength to carry on,” he pleaded, turning his gaze to where his boyfriend was sitting. “Till I can lay this burden down.”

Adam stood, leaning casually up against a post as he watched his lover. “Lay this burden down,” he intoned, giving Kurt a nod of support. “Lay this burden down.”

“Give me the strength to lay this burden down down down, yeah,” Kurt sang, his eyes shining brilliantly, He moved towards Adam, circling about as if showing off how well he could fly to his more mature mate. “Give me the strength to lay it down.”

“Lay it down. Lay it down, yeah!” they sang together, Adam stepping up to join Kurt but not taking away from Kurt’s moment in the spotlight. His time was coming soon enough.

“But my my… I feel so low,” Kurt insisted, wanting Adam’s support so that he could fly on his own but not wanting to be carried. Adam knew that was the last thing that Kurt would ever want. “My my… where do I go? My my… what do I know? My my… we reap what we sow.”

Watching Kurt do what he’d learned he was capable of was both a gift and a privilege and Adam was grateful beyond belief that he had gone to that Winter Showcase performance and had Kurt shoved into his life. Whatever the future might hold for them, Adam knew that they would have the strength to meet it. All of the success in the world wouldn’t mean very much if Kurt wasn’t a part of his world.

“They always said that you knew best,” Kurt accused those who’d tried to hold his back. “But this little bird’s fallen out of that nest now. I’ve got a feeling that it might have been blessed, so I’ve just got to put these wings to test!”

The audience applauded, giving Kurt the respect that he deserved, and Adam had the pleasure of seeing the most telling change in his lover. He couldn’t help from thinking back to that night when he saw Kurt perform for the first time, and how shocked he’d been when the audience of industry luminaries rose to their feet for him. Now he only seemed pleased as he nodded his thanks for their ovation, accepting it as something he deserved. Adam felt his chest swell with pride for Kurt, thrilled to see the confidence that Kurt was now displaying.

The band began to play the music for their second song and Adam let himself slip easily into his role. Stepping forward to stand just behind Kurt, he placed his hands gently on the younger man’s shoulders.

“Into the distance, a ribbon of black. Stretched to the point of no turning back,” he crooned over the softly lifting music. “A flight of fancy on a windswept field. Standing alone, my senses reeled.”

He traced a gentle finger down Kurt’s arm to take his hand. “A fatal attraction is holding me fast,” he sang as he leaned in, seeming to whisper some great secret into the younger man’s ear. “How can I escape this irresistible grasp?”

Kurt turned his gaze up to meet Adam’s, his eyes questioning what his older lover had in mind. Adam just smiled reassuringly, .Kurt’s voice rose up to join Adam’s, using his high range to accent Adam’s warm tenor.

“Can’t keep my eyes from the circling sky,” they sang together, as if alone in the room. “Tongue-tied and twisted. Just an earth-bound misfit, I…”

Adam released Kurt, allowing him to drift away, as if needing to find his own way while Adam watched him from afar. There was the trust that he could render aid if Kurt required it but trusting the younger man to be able to take care of himself.

“Ice is forming on the tips of my wings,” Adam sang, watching as Kurt danced and looked very much like a young bird in flight. “Unheeded warnings. I thought, I thought of everything. No navigator to find my way home. Unladsened, empty, and turned to stone.”

The past months had been so hard for the both of them, being apart and forced to find their own way in the world. Adam had felt cast adrift and lost at times, unable to help Kurt as he struggled with the pressures that were only increasing as he continued to grow.

“A soul in tension that’s learning to fly. Condition grounded but determined to try,” they sang, instinctively knowing how to fit their voices together so that they sounded best. Neither one overpowered the other. Instead, they melded in a harmony that showcased the finest qualities of both. “Can’t keep my eyes from the circling skies. Tongue-tied and twisted, just an earth-bound misfit, I…”

Kurt then moved back towards Adam and they began to move about one another, drifting in lazy circles in time to the music. When they’d been working out their choreography, Adam had noted that it did resemble something of a mating flight and very well suited their choice of material. They had accented that impression with their clothing choices, the shades of tan and grey they both wore resembling a hawk’s plumage as they moved together.

There would come a time when Kurt would have to fly off on his own for a time in order to chase his dreams. Adam knew that well, because Kurt would not be satisfied to just wait for opportunities to come to him. He would fight and run towards any openings that they world might present. Adam had to be strong enough to let Kurt do so, ready to return the support that Kurt had shown him and be confident that Kurt would indeed return to him. They would continue to face challenges as they continued to discover just how much they were capable of.

He reached out to cup Kurt’s face in his hand, gazing at that much-loved visage and knew that he would never try to clip Kurt’s wings now that the younger man was starting to truly discover just how high he could fly. They would take to the air together.

“Above the planet, on a wing and a prayer,” he sang softly, his words as much a promise as a performance. “My grubby halo, a vapour trail in the empty air. Above the clouds I see my shadow fly, out of the corner of my watering eye.

“A dream unthreatened by the morning night, could blow this soul right through the roof of the night.”

Kurt understood what Adam was saying and his eyes were all but glowing with happiness that he had found someone to fly with. He fell into step with Adam, letting the other man guide him through their dance as their voices rose up together.

“There’s no sensation to compare with this. Suspended animation, a state of bliss… Can’t keep my mind from the circling skies. Tongue-tied and twisted. Just an earth-bound misfit, I…”

Kurt nearly laughed when Adam lifted him up above his head with a sudden heave, holding him there as the music swirled around them .The younger man stretched out his arms as if they were wings, tossing his head back as Adam held him aloft, confident that his lover wouldn’t drop him. As the music drew to a gentle conclusion, Kurt was lowered to the ground, finding his place back in Adam’s embrace.

The cheering and applause around them didn’t matter so much. Not when they could gaze into one another’s eyes and see their futures there. Not just of stages to command and roles to play, but of the security of having a nest to return to.

Then stepped off the stage together, Adam keeping one arm about Kurt’s shoulders to keep him close. Elliot smiled and nodded his approval before moving on to make sure that the next acts made it to the stage and Adam was happy to admit that he was enjoying himself. He always did enjoy performing and watching other talented people. He could understand why this group had such an enthusiastic following, as some of the performers wouldn’t have so many venues to show off their skills. That was the very reason he’d founded the Apples; to give people a chance to experiment and perform outside of the normal school sponsored venues.

But it was seeing Kurt’s response to all this that made him glad to have joined in that night. Seeing the way anticipation lit up in the younger man’s eyes and the sheer joy he felt performing alone made overcoming his reservations worthwhile. Adam knew that for Kurt, music was another language that he was naturally fluent in. Whereas singing was something that Adam had always enjoyed and had some decent talent in, Kurt absolutely lived and breathed for it.

After the last act finished, they had the opportunity to socialize and relax with their fans. This was a new experience for Adam; he was very familiar with the gatherings and kind words at the stage door, but he rarely had a chance to really meet and have conversations with an audience about what they thought about a show.

As if to make up for his earlier misstep, Kurt got him a beer from the bar and offered it with a smile and a kiss. “Enjoying yourself?” he asked, remembering Adam’s earlier misgivings and the older man had about participating.

Adam nodded, not reluctant to admit that he’d made the wrong assumption about the cabaret. “It was fun,” he assured Kurt without reservation. “And I’d missed singing with you.”

“Me too,” Kurt admitted. He cocked his head towards the cabaret regulars. “They’re not to scary, are they?”

“Not at all,” Adam agreed. “I’m glad we did this.”

Kurt smiled broadly and leaned up to kiss Adam soundly. “Let’s go find Niall and Cynthia,” he suggested. “I’m curious to see what they thought.”

The venue turned into quite the party as performers and spectators mingled, enjoying this last get together before the cabaret’s summer hiatus. Niall clapped his hand on Adam’s shoulder, offering his friend a warm grin.

“That was bloody fantastic, mate,” he insisted while Cynthia was offering her regards to Kurt.

“Thanks,” Adam said thankfully, sipping at his beer. “It was all Kurt’s idea. I just followed his lead.”

“Nah,” Niall corrected. “You held your own there. Didn’t know you were that much of a singer.”

Adam shrugged. “I’m not. Not the way Kurt is,” he insisted. “But I can hold my own in the right crowd with the right material.”

He caught up Kurt in his arms, pulling the laughing young man to him and pressing a sound kiss to the top of his head. “This one, on the other hand…”

Kurt swatted Adam’s arm. “You’re such a goof,” he complained playfully.

They mingled a bit more with the audience and Adam found that the crowd that had attended was both knowledgeable and appreciative, which was always a pleasure for a performer. He noted a man eyeing Kurt with an air of resignation, but who’d raised his glass to toast his partner. Kurt had seen him and nodded his thanks, seeming to recognize him.

There was probably a little bit of a story there, Adam decided, but not an important one. He’d ask Kurt later, but had a feeling it was something that they’d be able to share a laugh over. After all, if someone didn’t admire his Kurt, then it was obvious that they had no taste. He’d be more offended if Kurt didn’t garner the interest of others.

It was nearly three in the morning by the time they’d returned to their nest, the pair of them happy and laughing as they fell into bed together. Adam pulled the younger man close, burying his face in his hair and felt utterly and completely at peace.

He had no idea what the future might hold for the both of them. There would be triumphs and successes and times when nothing would work in their favor. They would have weeks together and months apart as they worked in a profession that offered nothing in the way of stability.

But together, they would fly.

* * *

Rachel's solo - "Crystal Ball" by P!nk

Kurt's solo - "Little Bird" by Annie Lennox

Adam's solo - "Learning to Fly" by Pink Floyd

#kadam fic #kadam #kurt hummel #adam crawford #elliot starchild gilbert #rachel berry #santana lopez #dani (glee)#original characters #not blaine or klaine friendly #nyada students #omg! it's finally done!

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artificialqueens · 4 years

Text

Signed, Sealed, Delivered, Chapter 1 (Crygi, Jan x Nicky) - Joley

ao3 link

“Mail call!” Crystal called out, even though it was only her and Jan in the apartment. She sorted the pile out between the two of them, ending up with two slightly messy stacks. “Looks like you got an international package!”

That brought Jan barreling out of her room, nearly slipping on the rug on her way in. She grabbed onto the counter to support herself, taking a gasp of air before standing upright. “Oh yay!” She grabbed the package with the enthusiasm of a kid on Christmas morning and took it back to her room along with the rest of her pile, not bothering to close the door behind her.

Crystal chuckled, looking over to see her cat perched on the couch, staring into Jan’s bedroom with something of a perplexed expression. “It’s nothing for you, Tic. But maybe she’ll let you play in the box,” she mused before her gaze drifted back to her pile of mail, sifting through what inevitably turned out to be nothing but junk. With nothing else of her immediate interest, she wandered into her roommate’s room, sitting on the bed while Jan was at her desk. “What’d you get?”

Jan carefully opened the box, gliding the box cutter down the tape seams so she didn’t have to rip and yank and risk tearing anything inside. She took the neatly folded letter out first, holding it to her face and taking a deep inhale. The scent of patchouli and vanilla wafted into her nose and made her smile. It was the smell she most associated with Nicky, every package and letter she sent came laced with the aroma of her perfume.

“Bonjour, mon petite poupée,” she started to read, ignoring the way Crystal started to laugh at her butchering of the French phrases. “I hope spring is as beautiful there as it is here. I have sent you a box of macarons—I enjoy them year-round, but my mother always loved to bake them the most this time of year. I wanted to send you some of hers, but hopefully bakery ones will suffice. I��d love it if you FaceTime or Skype me when you get them, I want to see your live reaction, and I sent you enough to share with Crystal, so be nice. Until then, câlins et bisous, Nicky.”

Jan smiled broadly as she finished reading the letter, noticing the lipstick kiss print that Nicky signed off every letter with, and gently set it aside. “Okay, it’s like nine at night where she is, she’ll still be up,” she said as she took the pastel box tied neatly with a white lace bow out of the package. “Oh look, this is so cute.” She took out another piece of paper where Nicky had hand-drawn each macaron and wrote the flavor next to it, making a color-coded guide. “Isn’t she so sweet and thoughtful?”

“She told you to share, so yes.” Crystal chuckled, running her hand through her hair to look presentable while Jan called Nicky on Skype.

Nicky answered the call right away. “Hi Jan! Hi Crystal!” She greeted them with energy even though she was dressed for bedtime, wearing a black tank top and white cotton shorts (the latter not being visible in the frame). Her hair was damp, air-drying, and draped over her desk chair. “Did you get my mail?”

Jan nodded, holding the box up for her to see. “Just did. Thank you so much, Nicks. That’s so sweet of you.”

“Of course, I’m still making my way through the gift basket you sent for my birthday. I have opinions on all the different Oreo flavors.” Nicky giggled. They had gotten into a discussion about all the different flavors of the cookie, and she had become obsessed with the idea of trying the variety. So, when her birthday rolled around, Jan had painstakingly arranged a cookie bouquet (along with a few other treats) with as many flavors as she could find.

In the year they’d been communicating, Nicky had both come to expect Jan to go the extra mile and would still be surprised every time. The university course that had brought them together through its pen pal program certainly didn’t require an exchange of presents, but it started with Jan not being to help herself and (unbeknownst to Nicky) progressed into an ever-present desire to impress her.

“We can get to that next, I’m really excited to try these. Which one is your favorite?” Jan asked as she took the bow off the box without untying it and opened it up. “Oooh, it still smells fresh-baked.”

Nicky grinned as she watched her, opening up a bottle of rosé and pouring herself a glass. “I am partial to the red velvet and the apricot.”

Jan licked her lips. “You know I love red velvet.” She plucked the deep red cookie from the box before handing it to Crystal, who was making grabby-hands at it. She waited for her friend to choose and set the box down on her desk. “On three.” She counted down, then took a bite. “Holy shit.” She covered her mouth, not wanting to talk with her mouth full. “Nicks, these are delicious. You’re gonna have to send these on the regular.”

Crystal was enjoying herself just as much. “Is there a word for like, food horny? You know, like it tastes so good, I’m kind of turned on?”

Nicky snorted and Jan looked down and pinched the bridge of her nose. “Just say you like it, Crystal.”

“I do,” she confirmed, then looked down at her phone. “Anyway, gotta go. Bye Nicky, thanks for the cookies!” She waved at the screen before darting right out of the room.

Jan chuckled, knowing exactly what propelled Crystal out of the room so quickly and shouted “Tell Gigi I said hi!” after her. Then she faced forward again, her attention effortlessly returned to Nicky. “Anyway, how have you been?” “No complainings,” Nicky hummed, aimlessly strumming her fingers against her glass. “Did you get around to listening to that study playlist I sent you?”

“Oh my god yeah, I forgot to say anything because I kept listening to it after I was done studying and fell asleep,” Jan admitted with a laugh. “You have impeccable taste.”

She twirled her slowly drying hair around her manicured finger. “Tell me something I do not know, darling.” She winked.

Jan’s breath hitched in her throat and she covered it with a cough. Nicky exuded a seductive beauty so effortlessly and it didn’t take much for Jan to get flustered. If their friendship wasn’t exclusively long distance, her crush would have been impossible for Nicky or anyone else to not pick up on. Hell, Crystal only knew because she had been aching for the release of gushing about her feelings and her roommate lent a willing ear. “Last time I did that, we ended up talking about juice boxes for an hour,” she retorted once her body had unclenched.

Nicky chuckled softly at the memory. It was so easy for them to go off on tangents about the smallest things. It was probably her favorite part of her conversations with Jan, everything flowed so easily, awkward silence simply didn’t exist between them. “That is true,” she conceded. “But I’ve got to go eat dinner. We’ll talk tomorrow, yes?”

“Go eat.” She never quite grasped how Nicky always ate dinner so late at night, but she had all but memorized her schedule by now. “Au revoir,” she cooed, just because she knew it would make her laugh, and waved as she ended the call.

——

When Crystal got the text ‘come hang out, im done with class,’ she was out the door before she even sent ‘ok.’ Gigi was a junior while she and Jan were seniors, but all of them going to the same university had their schedules aligning relatively often. But she and Jan were living off-campus, so she didn’t want to waste any time on getting to her.

“Hey.” Gigi smiled, greeting her best friend with a hug. “Come on, we’re going on a coffee run,” she said, leading the way. Her direct nature was something Crystal had appreciated—she didn’t ask questions, she made statements, and it came off as harsh to some, but Crystal was terrible at making daily decisions, so she was happy to leave it in her hands.

“Sounds good. You should come over soon, Jan got these amazing French cookies from Nicky. I think she’ll let us steal some,” Crystal mused, linking their arms as they walked.

“Cool.” She nodded. “Has Jan told Nicky she’s in love with her yet?” It had come up in conversation in the past, leading to Crystal giving the entire backstory of Jan and Nicky’s relationship. Luckily, Jan hadn’t held it against her and could live with one more person knowing the truth.

Crystal laughed softly and shook her head. “Nope. But, you know, you can’t push someone to admit how they feel if they aren’t ready.” Her tone was a bit strained in the remark, looking straight ahead as she spoke.

But Gigi didn’t notice the shift in her voice anyway. “That’s stupid,” she said flatly. “They’re like, four thousand miles apart, what’s the worst that could happen?”

“Feelings are feelings.” She shrugged as they entered the café. Of course, she could relate to what Jan was going through, but as far as she was concerned, her situation was worse. A pen pal could be out of sight and out of mind, she reasoned. But having a crush on your best friend made day-to-day life excruciating. She was constantly torn between the desire to distance herself so her emotions didn’t overwhelm, and the powerful urge to spend as much time and be as physically close to Gigi as possible. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the latter would always win. “So, how’s your final project going?”

Gigi let out an exasperated groan. “God, I’m killing myself making a dress for the wedding I’ll never have,” she lamented. “I never want to see white lace again once I’m done with it.”

Crystal winced, averting her gaze. “You don’t think you’ll ever get married?”

“Not the takeaway here, Crys,” she rolled her eyes, but there was still fondness in her expression. “Listen, I’ve made it this far in life without a relationship, maybe that’s just my destiny. I’ll just be far too busy taking over the fashion industry to worry about it.”

It wasn’t a personal rejection, but it was painfully difficult for Crystal not to take it as one. Her heart ached and her chest felt heavy with a sudden sadness, coupled with her active efforts not to let it show. “No, yeah, I get it.”

Gigi rubbed her arm gently. “Don’t let my cynicism ruin that hopeless romantic in you. It gives me hope in this cold, dark world.” She looked into her eyes, silently offering the apology she was just a little too proud to verbalize.

Crystal lightened back up, though she was embarrassed that Gigi had such a hold on her emotions without even realizing it. “I’ll do my best.”

——

Crystal returned to the apartment just as the sun was setting. Coffee had turned to dinner and time had just slipped away from her. But when she got inside, she went right over to knock on Jan’s door, bouncing on the balls of her feet.

“Come in!”

“Jan, I had an idea!” Crystal let herself in and sat at the desk, as Jan was now in bed with her laptop.

Jan closed the laptop and set it aside. “I’m scared already,” she joked.

“No, no, no, I’m totally serious, and it’s a good idea,” Crystal insisted, shifting to sit cross-legged on the chair. “You and Nicky are like, a million miles apart and that really sucks, right?”

“Yes, thank you for reminding me.”

Crystal waved the comment off and continued. “So here’s the plan—you tell her there’s a big event that you’re going to this summer and you want her to come to visit. Dunno what the event would be, but we can worry about it later.”

The brunette tilted her head to the side. “Like graduation?”

“That’s not enough time. It has to be something that’ll happen in like, a month or something,” she explained. “But you guys will just be so excited to be together that you’ll forget about the event entirely, problem solved.”

Jan stared blankly at her friend, wondering if she had become delirious from too many all-nighters. But then she shrugged, what did she have to lose? “I’ll talk to her about it in the morning, then. It couldn’t hurt to bring up…”

“That’s the spirit!” Crystal clapped her hands together. “Let me know how it goes!” And with that, she left the room with a spring in her step.

And Jan did sleep on it, weighing out the pros and cons of creating an elaborate ruse just to get the girl she was pining after to travel overseas. It wasn’t that they hadn’t talked about visiting each other, but they could never ‘justify’ it, there was always something else they needed to focus on, or the finances just wouldn’t allow it (she wasn’t about to ask her parents to send her to France when they were already paying her bills). The more she thought about it, the more it seemed like a decent idea.

After breakfast and a shower, Jan called up Nicky on FaceTime. “Are you busy? I’ve gotta ask you something.”

“You have my undivided attention,” Nicky assured.

Jan smiled, sitting down on the couch. “So, I’ve got this big event coming up next month, and I know we haven’t been able to arrange a visit yet, but I think this would be the perfect opportunity. I really want to see you.”

Nicky tilted her head in curiosity. “I want to see you too. What is the event?”

“A wedding,” Jan answered confidently. She had decided that it would make perfect sense for the time of year.

“I love weddings.” Nicky’s face lit up. “Whose is it?”

Fuck. Why hadn’t she planned one step further? “It’s…” At that moment, she somehow forgot the name of everyone she had ever known for a brief moment, and she wanted to yell at Crystal for giving her this stupid idea in the first place and—

“Crystal and Gigi’s,” she blurted out.

Nicky knew Crystal had a romantic interest in Gigi just from passing conversations, but she had never quite pieced together the nature of their relationship. She was a little surprised at how serious it apparently was, but decided there was no need to question it. “Oh, good for them. I’ll have to double-check, but I think I will be able to be your plus one.”

Jan didn’t realize she had been holding her breath until she exhaled in relief. “Great! I’m so excited, I’m sure Crystal will be thrilled to hear it.”

“Send her my good wishes, I have to get to class, though,” Nicky replied, exchanging goodbyes before the call ended.

“What am I gonna be thrilled to hear?” Crystal asked as she tossed her bag into her bedroom. The door was always left open so TicTac could go in and out as he pleased. She had just returned from class, dried paint splotches still staining her fingers and palms.

Jan’s face froze. Yet another issue she had not accounted for. “Nicky is going to come visit.”

Crystal beamed triumphantly, getting ready to rub her brilliance in the other girl’s face. “See? I told you it—”

“She’s visiting for your and Gigi’s wedding.”

She blinked, looking at her incredulously. “Mine and Gigi’s what now?”

“Look, I panicked, it was the only thing I could think of. And this was your idea anyway, so if I’m going down, you’re coming to hell with me,” Jan got up as she spoke, pacing around the room as she desperately tried to figure out what to do next. “Just go with it, please.”

It had taken another moment for Crystal to fully process the information. How was she supposed to tell Gigi? What was she going to do if she couldn’t get her on board? But she didn’t want to compound Jan’s panic and make everything worse. “Well, Gigi does have a wedding dress in the works…” She looked over at her friend who was still on the verge of an anxiety attack and rushed to her side, wrapping her arms around her. “Listen, we’ll make this work. I don’t know how, but we will, I promise.”

Jan took a few deep breaths, allowing herself to be calmed down. She hugged Crystal tightly, hiding her face against her shoulder. “Where do we go from here?” Her voice couldn’t reach above a whisper.

Crystal chewed her lip as she rubbed Jan’s back. “I guess first thing’s first—I have to tell Gigi we’re getting married.”

#rpdr fanfiction #jan sport #nicky doll #gigi goode #crystal methyd #crygi #jan x nicky #lesbian au #university au #college au #signed sealed delivered #joley #s12

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