#anyways I actually do wanna see if i can draw more of those casual daily activities someday! and share em :)

[theamalgaverse]

Helo, I bring question for all: what do you guys do on a daily basis?

OH HEY UH answering for all of them because it's pretty hard to sum *all* of their daily activities through art!

The best way I can describe it is that, many times, they do a lot of things that regular friend groups do. Drink, make up games, play games, gossip, contemplate the existence of life, and overall just… live!

Of course there are many spice ups. Some take in fights (like street fighter…..), music performances by many (gotta compensate for all the rhythm game peeps) and the occasional moments where blood is shed and there have to be emergency medical assistance in need. Not to mention, on some days they can volunteer to fight Voidstryders whenever necessary.

But the most common way I’ll draw their daily happenings is that it’s whatever scenario i want to shove them in. Example:

[sugar-petals]

SuperM Fluff & NSFW Notes

↳ 🌹aka some of their romantic antics plus random 18+ imagines 👋

warnings ⚠️ rated (super) m, boyfriends hc, porn mentions, partial fem!reader, sex toys

FLUFF

since baekhyun knows how to make scented candles, he creates one for you as a birthday present with your favorite fragrances.

every entry in mark’s diary involves fond thoughts about you.

taemin kisses you more than his cat kkoongie on a daily basis so let that sink in. his smooch obsession is getting out of hand.

lucas, having giant fingers after all, learns how to knit in order to make you a warm scarf. he’s still a bit clumsy with it and had to call kun for advice, but the result is surprisingly proper and quickly becomes your favorite item. it’s a little huge but well, he thinks in his dimensions. lucas’ next project is a beanie.

ten overwhelms you with pet names. in fact, he seemingly seems to come up with a new one each day.

kai is a candlelight dinner, rose petals and music kinda guy. he does every old-school thing in the book.

taeyong can cuddle endlessly in bed. he just doesn’t wanna leave.

lucas gladly shares his sweaters. they’re ginormous so, perfect cuddle material.

baekhyun is already a fool. so — when he falls in love, he becomes an even bigger fool. or, the contrary happens: he becomes dead silent around his partner because he’s so enthralled. he can take this more seriously than you think.

mark likes to write little cards and many many texts to express his love.

lucas is the type who can help you put on your jeans when they were shrinking a bit too much in the dryer. he’s pretty sexy like that and things can get really touchy.

cheesy fucking kai, and there’s only one guy who would do this, has actually lowered himself over a puddle once so you would have a bridge. brushed it off like a daily workout rep.

not one shower missed without baekhyun joining you. yes, it’s not always sexy time, he likes it when you shampoo his hair and whisper sweet nothings. and obviously: it’ll all devolve to a laughing fit.

taeyong is the type who wants to be proposed to.

taemin will get a motorcycle license and take you for a frequent ride. he loves getting those kind of back hugs.

both ten and lucas are great at making bracelets. wayv’s dorm is fully equipped with charms, strings, and pearls, so expect matching ones for you.

we’ve seen it, that one’s his favorite move. kai wraps his hand around your shoulder when you walk together.

mark will ALWAYS share his melon.

making you swoon on a DVD evening is lucas’ favorite hobby. he will buy you the most sugary-sweet romance movies. he will often browse streaming sites to select the latest sentimental plots. all these dramas seem to have a male lead who is suspiciously tall and lanky.

if you allow him, taeyong customizes your white tees with his cute drawings.

since taemin swims in money thanks to his profession as the god of kpop (yes, this is a registered job name because i say so), he can fulfill you any wish. he’s stingy and pouty when the shinee hyungs can pay, and the motherfucker baekhyun is even richer since his albums have been taking off so he opens his mochi wallet when superm is gathered, but you... are a different case. taemin will humbly empty his entire pockets when he overhears you gushing over something. there’s a voice in his mind going: must splurge!!

mark loves christmas, you establish an annual tradition to stage a whole couple evening.

baekhyun likes to play charades and especially do karaoke with you. he’s always cutely wiggling his butt and dances like a drunk uncle. he hits the high notes anyway and makes sure you score 100 points.

taeyong can make out with you while at the same time making sure that the milk doesn’t get burned on the stove. kiss’n’stirr multitask tyong alert. gotta make sure the cocoa is served in time, you know.

all the members enjoy playing board games. yep, imagine the fun and sheer chaos.

lucas has the funniest laugh ever indeed. he’ll react to all your jokes, no matter how lame they might be. intensely reassuring.

taemin’s hand is basically glued to yours.

taeyong and mark are the kinds of boyfriends that spoil their partner with skincare. fancy a nice face massage with a nice fragrant oil?

baekhyun has been baking heart-shaped pizzas ever since you started dating. he just can’t make them round anymore.

mark will join you on anything you’re currently bingewatching. 

kai sometimes — only half-jokingly — goes down on both knees bowing forward with his hands on the ground just to show how much he wants to thank you. in case you didn’t notice: this guy treats you like a deity.

ten usually gets confused glances from the other members whenever he gets the current date wrong: he simply loses track of time with you.

lucas makes a habit of buying you flowers every other week. but on unpredictable occasions, and he arranges them in places you’d never expect.

taemin will build you a weird-looking snowman to make you laugh, and give it an even stranger name. ten will build one that looks like you. kai doesn’t build snowmen, he just stands there challenging you to throw snow balls at him.

mark will hang out with you at the beach constantly bringing his guitar. he’ll serenade you all the time.

returning from three months of touring, baekhyun has once climbed your balcony when your parents were in the other room. yep, he was that desperate to see you. somebody give this man a rope and helmet.

taeyong writes down heartfelt confessions on 365 folded slips of paper so you can open one every day. your reactions will range from ‘awwh!’ to straight-up tears.

ten does regular couple yoga with you. a mildly challenging form, not the circus acrobat version. he’ll do the difficult parts anyway. you can pretzel this guy up, he’ll do anything to make you laugh.

when it rains you hook your arm around his, and lucas always holds the umbrella. even the wildest gush of wind can’t make it turn inside out. you arrive home entirely dry. xuxi is so cute, he’s also a great source of cooling shadow in the summer without even trying.

taemin’s skinship overdrive doesn’t stop with endless hand-holding, back hugs and kisses. he wants to lay down in your lap whenever he can. he looks damn pretty with his hair splaying there. if you work on your laptop, you can pretty much count to ten and he’s already nestled there.

kai does pushups with you on his back. it’s a staple. each time he does one, he says ‘i love you’. he increases his count every day.

NSFW

it’s no secret that taeyong is great at acting or pulling off any outfit and costume. expect roleplay of the finest kind — literally. he looks good in a firefighter uniform. you’ll be burning up pretty much automatically.

taemin can’t keep his tongue in. it’s terrible. he’s always in the mood for head. his sloppy noises are the absolute worst, it turns you on way too fast.

lucas had some major problems finding condoms that fit him.

ten and taemin are so switchy, they have an unresolved power struggle going on. begs for a dominant third party to help them out.

kai owns expensive latex gear.

baekhyun may be the king of vocals and breath technique, but if you push him far enough he does get hoarse.

taemin often jokes how kai will one day break his dick from fucking too hard.

meanwhile, mark’s dick is already falling off – from fucking too often. this guy has some major hormones going for him. no surprise, a guy who can promote in four kpop groups at the same time is a stamina king.

taeyong likes eating pussy with another party involved. three’s a crowd my friend. sometimes it’s taemin who unleashes his spit waterfall power, sometimes it’s baekhyun who preoccupies himself with nibbling at the inner thigh while taeyong digs in.

taemin owns the most underwear.

mark takes valerian drops because he is so nervous in bed. it never really goes away, it’s his nature.

taeyong keeps a lube collection. a different flavor for all occasions. he likes associating certain scents with specific body parts.

kai has a heels kink. he literally goes wild over it.

taemin likes to have sex with favorite glasses on.

taeyong and kai are the most likely to cry during sex. baekhyun as well if you rough him up enough. 

mark gets rock hard the fastest, followed by kai. he’s a grower.

taeyong gets the best inspiration for a song when he gets a casual dick riding.

taemin watches extremely x-rated erotic thrillers and bdsm flicks that are heavy on the plot. he gets more invested in the characters and actors than you think. since his japanese is amazing? of course he also owns a giant 90s hentai collection. 

when he’s jerking off, baekhyun chokes himself. a) because he’d make too much noise otherwise and b) because asphyxiation is his favorite thing.

kai feels pleasure in his every cell. he cums the hardest. and, as you can expect, his body expresses it the most extremely, accurately, passionately. if you’ve seen it even once, you’ll never look at him the same again.

taemin has less experience than his discography claims, but more than you’d think. he researches sexual techniques as well. you can brace yourself.

mark has not just a tiger inside, but a freak inside, waiting to be unleashed.

sex while gaming is a go-to activity for baekhyun.

lucas has the best stamina when it comes to getting head.

taemin throws his head back during sex. and no, he doesn’t T-pose. i’m kidding — of course he does. but only when he’s on his back.

taeyong tends to grip a pillow when he cums.

or he humps one when he’s by himself.

ten has the best taste in sexy time playlists.

baekhyun has the best taste in singing his own playlist along.

oh, the things kai has bought at a gas station at 3AM.

baekhyun sucks strap the best. he can open his mouth the widest, drools a lot, and makes the best noises unsurprisingly.

how to turn on lee taemin? he likes getting slapped.

since he’s the most avid and most diverse eater, lucas’ sperm tastes the best. he’s shove 50 fruits into his system just to give you a sweet experience.

mark is absolutely a starfish. 

kai wears fishnet tops if you fancy it.

curiously, baekhyun out of all people doesn’t announce when he’s cumming. you’ll hear it, though.

taeyong’s dildo collection is one for the books.

taemin has visited a pro dominatrix a couple times. needless to say, he was the #1 favorite client at the dungeon. having fully submerged into a fantasy world, taemin was one whip crack away from falling in love with the mistress. but then covid happened and the venue closed.

mark’s dick looks really pretty.

taemin can grind on the strap at every humanly possible angle. he’s almost always ready to take it. he carries a prep kit.

kai — that fucker — knows how to make you wet the most with his bare hands. prepare for the thigh ride of your life, too.

taeyong, baekhyun, and taemin have the best arches. kai is coming for the top three as well. ten’s arch is so good, it can’t be considered one anymore.

baekhyun knows every adult movie out there. theoretically, nothing can shock him. in reality, he melts in your hands.

taeyong is so sexually active with you, he has quit eating garlic.

kai will exploit your muscle kink in any way he can.

taemin, being a devil, has that one button on his phone that he can press when you go out for dinner. he’s OBSESSED with getting you off. once you head home, it’s basically running down your thighs.

ten has once opened a condom with scissors to scare away a date that grew weird on him by the time it got to the do.

lucas is too tall for doing missionary normally.

this will surprise nobody: mark is great at constantly keeping up the dirty talk.

baekhyun’s car is sort of like a brothel on wheels. he can’t count how many times he got down and dirty in there. he cleans it all up by himself.

kai can technically grip you the hardest but he’s the gentlest and great at caressing the whole body.

taemin has the easiest time saying what precisely he wants. he is also the best people reader — most your wishes he can pretty intuit. taemin observes your interests well.

ten likes his hair pulled and makes angelic noises when you do so.

baekhyun likes camgirls and erotic chats with strangers online. he spends a lot of money for nsfw internet encounters.

[seijorhi]

hello, i love your writing and was hoping if u could write a yandere kuroo x reader where he corners her in a corner and kenma is there and is getting off from it 😳 thank u !

Asdfghjkl this was supposed to be posted on Sunday I’m sorry, bby!! I hope it’s worth the wait! 💕 also, loved this request so thanks for sending it in 😊

Kuroo Tetsuro x Female Reader, Kenma Kozume x Female Reader

TW dub con, coercion (kinda?), stalking, humiliation

Helping Hand

There’s a certain peace you find in the looming stacks of the library after the sun sets. It’s quieter then, less people milling about. You don’t have to fight for space or books, and considering you have midterms soon and essays coming out of your ears, that makes it the perfect study environment.

It’s only a little after eight, the library’s still open for another two and a half hours, but on the fourth floor it’s almost a ghost town - just how you like it. There’s a professor tucked away in the back corner, piles of books built up around him, an older librarian with her trolley, slowly re-shelving books, and two other guys around your age sitting huddled at a table a few down from yours - the textbooks and highlights spread across their desk having been long since abandoned in favour of literally anything else.

Honestly, you’d wonder why they’d bother coming to the library at all if it wasn’t an almost daily occurrence. Most days you were there, so were they - usually together, although it wasn’t uncommon to see just one of them camped out between the stacks as you made your way to your desk. The duo, one tall and lean with a shock of messy dark hair that always looked like he’d just rolled out of bed, and the other smaller, more reserved, with bleached hair and dark roots in serious need of a touch up, seemed to prefer this time to study too - not that they ever seemed to actually do all that much studying.

Usually the blonde ends up absorbed in his switch while the other casually thumbs through whichever book is closest.

So long as they were quiet and didn’t disturb you, who were you to judge?

You don’t really remember when they’d started to appear, only that they’d quickly become a fixture in your refuge - distantly familiar presences like strangers travelling on the same bus to work each day. They smile (well, the dark haired one does) and nod whenever you happen to look up from your notes and catch their eye, and while you’ve only spoken a handful of words to the both of them, they always seemed nice. 

Nicer than the clearly overworked professor muttering away in the corner at any rate, which makes them the logical choice to approach when you find your bladder uncomfortably full halfway through your self imposed study session. Realistically, you know at this time of the night nobody else is likely to make their way up to the fourth floor, much less have any interest in your shitty, old laptop or the five whole dollars in your wallet - yet you find you making your way over to the twosome’s table anyway, a faint blush dusting across your cheeks.

“… don’t want to,” you overhear the blonde mutter, his attention wholly focused upon the game in his hands. “Things are fine, why change that?”

His friend sighs, “Because you can deny it all you want, but I know you better than that. I know I’m not the only one who wants more. You can’t just sit back and…” he trails off suddenly, hazel eyes flickering over to you in surprise. 

Confused by his friend’s sudden silence, the blonde lowers his game and glances up - only to still at the sight of you.

You swallow down your nerves, plastering what you hope is a friendly enough smile across your face, “Hi, uh… sorry to interrupt you guys, but would you mind watching my stuff for a few minutes while I go to the bathroom? I won’t be long or anything, I just don’t like leaving my stuff out in the open,” you say with a sheepish laugh, well aware that you’re rambling like an idiot. 

It’s the dark haired one who answers, a wide grin breaking across his face as he nods, “Yeah, no worries. We’d be glad to.”

You smile back, ignoring the faint fluttering in your stomach (he does look kind of cute grinning like that), thanking him again before rushing away in the direction of the bathroom.

It doesn’t take long for your thoughts to drift away from the duo back to the essay you’re mid-way through drafting. You have a sinking feeling that the argument you’re trying to use in the fourth paragraph is essentially a just rehash of the point you made in the first. By the time you unlock the stall door and make your way over to the sink to wash your hands, you’re starting to debate the merits of scrapping the whole thing and starting fresh with new ideas.

You still technically have time, it’s not due until the end of the month, but you just kind of want it done so you don’t have to think about it anymore. Then again, that’s kind of your feelings towards the semester as a whole. 

Who are you kidding? University’s kicking your ass this year.

The ancient hand dryer’s almost deafening as it clicks on - it masks the sound door swinging open and the footsteps that echo out from the tile floors.

It’s only when your eyes flicker up to mirror that you see that you’re no longer alone-

Standing right behind you is the guy from before; the tall, dark haired one. 

- and jerk in surprise, stumbling backwards with a choked yelp.

It doesn’t hit you right away - no, that’s relief that has you drawing a hand over your chest and letting out a shaking laugh. “You scared the hell out of me!” you say, bracing yourself over the sink to try and calm your breathing.

No, it doesn’t hit you quickly. Realisation is slow - creeping through your veins like ice as your eyes flicker back up the mirror. 

He hasn’t moved. 

He’s smiling, grinning really, but there’s something… something off about it. It doesn’t quite meet his eyes… Why isn’t he saying anything?

W-why isn’t he moving away?

Your heart, still hammering from his shock of his sudden appearance, squeezes uncomfortably and your eyes slowly widen.

“Wh-”

A rough, calloused palm slaps across your mouth, smothering whatever words you’d been about to speak. “Ah, ah. Gotta keep it down, sweetheart.”

He winks at you in the mirror, taking a tiny step towards you and you squeak, breathing in sharp, shallow pants through your nose as a warm, muscled chest presses against your back. “You’re a nervous little thing, aren’tcha?” he chuckles. “Relax a little - promise I don’t bite.”

With one hand wrapped around your lips the other creeping across your waist, his words don’t exactly bring you a lot of comfort. 

It makes no difference either way - you’re paralysed, shaking and trembling, but utterly unable to move as he noses at the column of your throat, his warm breath tickling your skin.

You could scream, but there’s no guarantee anybody would hear you. You could try and fight him off, but he’s taller than you, and you’re willing to bet stronger as well.

Will he hurt you if you try and resist?

Is he gonna hurt you anyway?

You’ve heard the stories before about men who follow women into empty bathrooms and the awful things they do, but you never...

Those things don’t happen in places like this. The library is supposed to be safe, he- he’s been-

Your stomach drops.

Weeks. 

He’s been visiting the library with his friend, sitting across from you for weeks.

His eyes bore into your reflection in the mirror like he can hear every terrified thought that passes through your head, and with excruciating slowness you’re forced to watch as his lips brush a kiss against your cheek, lingering and sweet - a mockery of tenderness. 

A scared little whimper is all you can manage, and even that is swallowed up by the sound of the bathroom door squeaking open once more. 

Your heart skips a beat, eyes widening.

A faint burst of hope flickers to life.

You might not be a fighter, but this might be the only chance you have. You shriek again, the sound woefully muffled, and writhe against your captor’s tightening grip as slow footsteps round the corner.

Please, you think as tears stream silently down your face. Please help me.

What little hope you have is quickly - brutally - extinguished as your would be saviour steps into view.

Your legs shake and you’re almost positive that if it wasn’t for the strong arms wrapped around you, you would have crumpled to the floor.

It’s his friend, the blonde, hands shoved into the pockets of his hoodie, watching the scene before him - you struggling against an iron grip, gagged and terrified - like it’s nothing out of the ordinary. 

Your captor chuckles, relaxing his grip as his hand drifts upwards to palm at your breast and you want to die. “Glad you finally decided to grace us with your presence.”

“Shut up, Kuroo,” the blonde groans as he makes his way over, but he barely glances at his friend before his catlike eyes come to rest on you.

Your cheeks are burning, a potent mix of shame, nausea and dread churning in your stomach as you’re crudely felt up, but under the blonde’s attention you freeze.

While his face is a blank mask of apathetic disinterest, those golden irises are piercing in their intensity as they study you.

The glint in his eyes is as unmistakable as it is stark; anticipation - like a house cat watching a golden canary flit restlessly in its cage.

The hiccuping sob comes unbidden, choking at your throat as you wail against the palm at your lips. You’ve never wanted to disappear so badly in your entire life, to slap yourself awake and realise that it’s nothing but a stress induced nightmare because this can’t be happening.

Why you?

What could you possibly have done to deserve this?

“Relax,” Kuroo repeats, leaning down over you again, “we’re not gonna hurt you. Just wanna have some fun, that’s all.” You think he’s going to try and kiss you again, but instead his tongue darts out and he licks at the silvery tear tracks, groaning softly.

You shoot the quiet blonde a desperate, pleading look. He hasn’t lifted a finger to stop what’s happening, hasn’t done anything other than stare at you, but even as his lips twitch into the faintest hint of a smile you hold out on the shadow of a prayer that maybe, just maybe-

Kuroo follows your wide, panicked gaze and almost snorts. “You’re barking up the wrong tree there, baby. Kenma’s not gonna help you. He wants this just as badly as I do.” His thumb slides across your cheek, brushing away more tears, “C’mon, on your knees.”

He doesn’t give you a choice - the hand on your shoulder forces your shaking knees to buckle and you fall down to the bathroom floor.

The tiles are cold against your bare legs, but the shivers that wrack through you have little to do with the temperature. It’s far too late to regret the short skirt you’d thrown on that morning.

Kuroo hums appreciatively, lifting his palm to tap it a few times against your cheek like you’re an adorable little puppy who’s just learned its first trick, “It’s a good look for you, baby, but I think it’d be even better without this-” his fingers tug at the collar of your top and his grin widens, “- in the way.” 

Yet he makes no move to take it off for you. One look into his eyes, the glittering amusement darkened with lewd desire and you know that he won’t.

He wants you to do it, to play along in their fun - to be an active participant in your own humiliation.

And really, what other choice do you have?

It’s impossible to ignore the bulge straining against his jeans as your trembling fingers grip the hem of your top and reluctantly yank it upwards. There’s a sharp inhale - Kuroo you think - and a whistle as it comes off, baring your lacy bra and the soft skin underneath to their hungry gazes. 

Only for a moment. 

Staring resolutely at the floor you’re quick to try and cover what little modesty you have left, bringing your arms up to wrap around your chest-

Except a hand catches at your wrist and tugs it back, and when you glance up you find it’s Kenma’s. 

“… Don’t,” he murmurs. “I want to see you.”

You let your arms drop, hands clenching into shaking fists in your lap, fingernails biting into your palm.

The sound of a zipper being pulled undone is almost deafening in the quiet bathroom. Fresh tears sting at your eyes, but you can’t bear to look at either of them as Kuroo reaches inside his pants and frees his cock.

The hand that cups your cheek is surprisingly gentle as he coaxes your face back towards him and the achingly hard member in his grip. “See Kenma, I told you - change ain’t always a bad thing.”

His dark eyes flicker back to you and he grins, “Open up, sweetheart.”

[youngwings-writes]

Infinitely Ordinary

Lee Felix x OC

Summary: "𝕀 𝕣𝕖𝕞𝕖𝕞𝕓𝕖𝕣 𝕨𝕙𝕖𝕟 𝕀 𝕝𝕖𝕒𝕣𝕟𝕖𝕕 𝕙𝕠𝕨 𝕥𝕠 𝕤𝕝𝕠𝕨 𝕕𝕠𝕨𝕟"

Busy. Busy worrying, working, just trying to survive. That was the daily life of Jordan Johnson. The world never seemed to slow down; not for her...not for anyone. Finally deciding to take matters into her own hands and get some much needed R&R, she jets off on a trip to South Korea. While there, she unexpectedly meets her soulmate. Will they be able to find happiness together, or will his status get in the way?

Genre: Fluff

Length: 2k

Chapter 4: Sunshine

"So... I guess we're soulmates?"

I froze.

Obviously, I had come to that conclusion on my own already, but to hear Felix saying it was a whole other thing. Like, this is the boy I've been admiring from afar for years. I knew so much about him, but he probably didn't know I existed until 60 seconds ago.

I didn't trust my voice at this point, so I simply smiled and gave a shy nod in response.

"I know this is really sudden, but I'm not sure the middle of a dog cafe is where we should be discussing such a serious matter... is there any possibility we could go to wherever it is you're staying and continue getting to know one another?"

"O-of course! That's no problem at all. Just let me pull up directions again so I don't get us lost," I began fumbling with my phone, trying not to look as nervous as I felt.

Soon enough I had the directions to my apartment pulled up on my phone. Felix and I grabbed our drinks and made our way out into the streets of Seoul.

"It doesn't seem like you're from around here, where are you from?"

"Phoenix, Arizona, born and raised," I said with a hint of triumph. Arizona isn't exactly the classiest state, but to survive the summers was definitely a feat.

"Oh! I actually went to Phoenix not that long ago with my mem- my friends! I didn't get to see much of it before we left though."

I could tell he was going to say his members, but he stopped himself. I know he went to Phoenix. Hell, I saw him while he was in Phoenix. My friends and I pooled together enough money to get all four of us P5 tickets to their concert. Still not sure how our broke college student selves pulled that one off.

Should I tell him?

Well, he'll find out eventually, so why not bite the bullet and tell him now?

I took a deep breath.

"Can I tell you something, Felix?"

His head turned to face me, one eyebrow cocked in curiosity.

"Yeah, what's up?"

"I want to be completely transparent with you, especially since we're apparently soulmates... I know who you are."

I could see him grow stiffer. I continued.

"My friends and I were at the Stray Kids concert in Phoenix. I've been a Stay since before debut. The last 10 minutes has my head absolutely reeling. I never thought that I would meet you or any of your members, let alone have you turn out to be my soulmate. If this makes you uncomfortable, I'm so sorry. It's probably strange hearing all of this; learning that your apparent soulmate knows so much about you while you know so little about them. Not to mention it's probably overwhelming. I mean, we're both still growing up, plus you have the stress of being an idol on top of it," I let my mouth run.

Everything came out like I had just opened the floodgates. I was beyond nervous to hear what he had to say, but also relieved to have said what I did. The last thing I want is to have kept the fact that I knew Felix before he knew me a secret. He deserves to know the truth and not feel like I just used the fact that he's my soulmate for my own personal gain. Keeping him in the dark and using him like that would just be fucked up.

"Okay, wow. First of all, I just wanna say thank you for telling me everything. I also want you to know that the fact that you know who I am doesn't make me uncomfortable. Actually, I'm both flattered and relieved. I won't have to explain being an idol and what that entails for us, so that makes things a lot less stressful. This is completely new territory for both of us, we just need to trust one another and make adjustments as we go," he said as he flashed me a reassuring smile.

"Besides, the fact that you know more about me than I know about you only means I have to spend more time with you and work to know you faster. Plus you get to know a side of me not everyone knows."

"And I'm hoping that side isn't some secret dark side you've been hiding to save face," I gave his shoulder a nudge.

The remainder of the walk to my apartment was relatively quiet. There was a bit of small talk here and there, but nothing extreme. For the most part, we just strolled along in a comfortable silence. It was... suprisingly nice.

One of my personal fears has always been making a fool of myself in front of others or making things awkward; especially with people I looked up to. To be experiencing such a comfortable peace with Felix seemed unreal. Bonus points for only mildly making a fool of myself in the very beginning.

Self improvement baby :)

Even with my poor navigation skills and even worse sense of direction, we made it to my apartment building without any problems.Entering the glass double doors, Felix and I made our way to the elevator. The elevator doors opened with a soft ding and we stepped in. Pressing the button for the third floor, we began our ascent.

When we arrived in front of my door, I almost made the move to input my phone password on the keypad. Force of habit. Realizing what I was about to do, I pulled out my phone and notes app, punching in the number I knew I would've forgotten otherwise. Just as before, a soft beep and click were heard as the door unlocked and we may our way inside.

Shedding our shoes (or feet prisons as my sister would call them), we made our way towards the couch in the small living area the rental possessed. Since we both still had food and drinks from the cafe, I rushed to the kitchen to get plates and utensils for the two of us.

Upon returning to the couch I saw that Felix had already began unpacking our leftovers. I set the plates down and started helping him plate the treats.

"So, you said that you've been a Stay since pre-debut, right?"

"Yeah. I think it was around December of 2017 that I found Stray Kids."

"Wow. Was it random that you stumbled across us, or did you find us through another group?"

"A little bit of both. I first started listening to K-Pop back in 2012, but didn't really get into it until around 2014. From there, I got into F(x), Shinee, and BTS, but I was still more of a casual listener than anything. In 2016 I got into GOT7, Day6, and Twice, so I obviously knew about your label. Funny enough though, I found Stray Kids because one of the people I rode the bus with was talking about how they were upset with how the survival show was going. I think it was right between when you were eliminated and the finale..."

I felt kind of bad bringing up the part about his elimination. I had absolutely no clue if it was still a touchy subject or not. Seeing how far he's come and where he is now, I really hope it isn't and that he doesn't beat himself up over it. JYP's reasoning for it all was complete bullshit anyway.

"Well, that'll make for quite the introduction, huh?"

"For sure. I may not have been there from the very beginning like some others had, but there was definitely some intense feelings of pride seeing you all standing on that stage being told you would debut together."

"I don't think I'll ever forget that moment. Getting there was beyond difficult, but having experienced all I have now, I can 100% say it was worth every second." Felix's eyes shimmered as he spoke. Anyone could tell that he was thinking not only of his members, his brothers, but his fans as well.

Being such a music fanatic, I've seen some bands that you can tell don't care about their fans. While this was way more common in the Western music scene, it did happen in the Kpop world as well. Despite that, I could confidently say that Stray Kids genuinely care for Stay; I could say that before I discovered Felix was my soulmate.

"So do you have any other hobbies or interests besides Stray Kids?"

"Nooo, not at all," I quipped back, my voice oozing sarcasm. A small chuckle was elicited from the freckled boy's throat.

"In all seriousness, music is one of my biggest hobbies. I did musical theatre from age 5 until age 11, I was in choir throughout all of my middle school years, and played trombone in middle school and high school. I don't play a lot now, but I still find the time every now and then. When I wasn't taking part in local musical endeavors, I was at some concert with my friends or my sister. Other than that, I enjoy reading, writing, photography, baking, and cosmetology."

"Quite the artist, aren't you?"

"In every sense except painting or drawing, yes. Ask me to do either of those and I will go running for the hills. Why I can do makeup, but I can't paint or draw I will never know."

"I guess the only explanation is that life is just weird like that sometimes," he laughed again. I always loved his laugh before, but hearing it face-to-face was literal heaven. This boy is straight up an angel, and no one can convince me otherwise.

We spent the next hour or two in my temporary home, conversation continuing to flow. I always knew and acknowledged the fact that idols and other celebrities are normal people just like you and me, but I couldn't help but freak out a little when I met anyone. Of course the same applied to Felix, but I think I got over the shock value faster than I normally would. I didn't really dwell on the fact that he was a world famous idol for long; I honestly almost forgot about it.

Normally, it takes me a while to warm up to people and feel comfortable with them, but Felix seemed to be an exception. The more we spoke and got to know one another, the longer I felt I had known him. Talking with him almost felt like talking with my best friend since preschool.

Just as conversation was beginning to die down a bit, Felix's phone buzzed from the table. He quickly picked it up and checked the notification. I watched him read the words sprawled across his screen, his smile slightly falling.

"Have to go back to the JYP building?" I inquired.

"Yeah. We have a performance in a few days, so we've been drilling pretty hard lately. I'm honestly kinda surprised that I didn't get called back sooner. It's been a few hours since I left," he explained while rubbing the nape of his neck.

"Well, I've already kept you here longer than I probably should have. I don't want to get you in trouble with your members or any staff."

"I suppose you have a point... but how about you come with me?"

"...come with you?"

"Yeah, come with me to JYP, meet my members, watch us practice. Everyone there has to meet you eventually since we're soulmates and all, so why not take care of it sooner rather than later?"

"I don't really have any other specific plans for today, so it could work. But are you sure bringing me won't get you in trouble?"

"As long as it doesn't interfere with our work, you should be good to go. I'm sure you'll be fine. It's not like you're gonna run around wreaking havoc or anything."

"Okay, let's head out then."

We quickly cleaned the living area, grabbed what we needed, and made our way back to the entrance of my building. Hailing the closest cab, Felix and I got in. He gave the cab driver the address to the JYP building and we were on our way.

I guess I'm meeting the rest of Stray Kids now.

<prev�� |  next>

[all-of-the-imagines-for-eve]

Forget About It ~ Sweet Pea (Part 4)

A/n: I’m mega enjoying all the feedback on this. I’ve had this idea in my head FOREVER, like when I FIRST made this blog primarily Twilight and Riverdale, which is to say literally the beginning of time lol. I’m so glad that I finally got it written and that you guys like it :)

Warnings: It gets a little heated like twice. Violence. Bullying. Angst. Lots of angst. Depression. Fluff too :)

Word Count: 4252

MASTERLIST

'Cause I feel like a bad joke- walk the tight rope to hold on to you. I gotta know, was it real? Or a love scene, from a bad dream? I don't think, I can forget about it! Gotta know was it real?

Tall Boy didn't get kicked out of the Serpents, even when it got brought up several times. Serpents I wasn't at all close to brought it up. I stood up for him. I brushed it away or waved it down, taking the death glare from my friends every time I did so. Every time they asked I said it didn't matter. He hadn't broken Serpent law because at the time I wasn't official, and they could hate them all they wanted, but if I wouldn't stand against him, they had no case so they should just shut up about it. What they didn't know was that I didn't believe him. I didn't trust him enough to be out of the Serpents, worried he'd run to someone else like the Ghoulies (or maybe someone even worse) in revenge if they did kick him out. So he stayed.

My defending didn't stop Tall Boy talking endless shit about me. In fact, it seemed to fuel it. When I was established as a Serpent better, and people saw how good of a person he was and heard what Tall Boy had tried to do to me, everyone shut him up really fast. Soon he had no one to talk to. But people like Tall Boy didn't seem to be able to sit down and shut up and have any kind of sense or decency. When everyone stopped listening to poison about me, he started talking about Jughead. And he seemed to have a LOT to talk about. After I caught him talking I faced him. "Hey Tall Boy." He turned to face me as I stood from my chair. "I don't like you talking shit about my family."

He scoffed. "Family?" He paused upon seeing me a venomous glare. "Jughead's only half a Serpent. He'll always have his head in the North Side."

My eyebrows rose, a hand going to my hip. "He's proven his loyalty same as the rest of us. What's your complaint? That's he's too nice?" I leaned against the table, palms flat as I leaned forward. "I know you're opposed to anything good, but I think you of all people are really qualified to be able to talk any bad about another Serpent, don't you?" My eyes glinted, and his glare darkened. "One of the biggest reasons you're still here is because I stuck up for you. Don't make me regret it."

From what I'd heard, he'd stopped most of his talking after that. I didn't want him to stop. The pettier and more childish he looked the fewer people would believe him. But I didn't want him talking often, and I definitely didn't want him to get enough balls to actually allow himself to talk shit like that with me so close by. I knew he was doing it to bother me and that is something I just won't tolerate.

Things were going pretty good, though. Sweet Pea and I seemed to be toeing the line. Neither of us would close that last bit of distance. He wouldn't ask me out, and it made me unsure if he just didn't want to. I'd made myself clear, why wasn't he? Despite that though we still cuddled at night, holding each other close and waking up to each other's skin and smell and warmth. At school, everyone saw us as a couple, and I could see it in the way boys avoided looking at me too long, and girls lost interest in Sweet Pea a second after they looked over. We weren't on the market. We were spoken for, taken. It felt that way to me too. We didn't kiss after that first night, but we did flirt a lot more, and we got more touchy and present around each other. Closer and more aware, as if there was a tangible rope or a magnet, drawing not only our bodies together but our attention to each other as well.

As for the others, Fangs and I developed a quick and fun sibling bond. He gave me piggyback rides and messed up my hair and teased me on a daily. In return, I shouted loudly about how single and hot he was to passers-by and moved his things so he would look for them forever before he'd find them. We played little pranks on each other, harmless and brief but absolutely hilarious to us. Toni, likewise, became like my sister. She gossiped to me, getting me caught up on everything I'd missed in the Serpents and even on the South Side in general. Jughead came to me and apologized not soon after our fight but I'd long since forgiven him, and we were back on track, though I was living more with Sweet Pea than anything. No wI was stealing Sweet Pea's shirts instead of Jug's, leaving Betty to take up the practice for me. The small box of clothes I'd started to gather from my friends started when Jug told me to keep the two shirts of his that I absolutely adored, ones he didn't really wear anyway because they were worn and a little small on him. Next was Fangs' flannel he lent me one night when I had only a tank top on from when I'd first come to the South Side and it had been cold. I'd told him that I only had Jug's two shirts when he asked what the holy hell. Was doing out at night in just a tank top and he hadn't hesitated to hand over his flannel, which I thought was the actual cutest and I loved him for it. Toni found out from Fangs the next day that I was short some clothes and immediately took me to her house to see which of her clothes I fit, insisting that she'd wanted to get rid of some clothes anyway. So I got two new pairs of pants, three shirts, a pullover, a zip-up jacket, and two more flannels from her. Seeing everyone else's clothes on me drove Sweet Pea to give me three of his shirts right off the bat, jokingly teasing that those were mine but his closet was open for me just as much. I basically stole another of his jackets and he didn't even question it. My little box made me feel incredibly loved. It was all I had of my life in the South Side as I had never gone back to my house to get anything. The times I'd visited, my father had seen me turn slowly more and more Serpent, telling me that my room was still as I'd left it as if it was waiting for me.

That was the problem though. It was a room that I associated with a person I no longer was. The clothes and bed and things belonged to someone else. I felt like I was invading just going inside, but actually putting on anything from there? No thanks.

Plus my friend' clothes were REALLY comfortable.

In summary, life was good and every day that passed, I was more Serpent. I got my own Serpent jacket and the day came that I was to get my tattoo. I'd been so excited but now, seeing the needle made me want to throw up. It had been about two weeks since my dance and despite my growing confidence, I was outside the tattoo shot, bent over with my hands on my knees and trying not to throw up. Sweet Pea rubbed my back, trying to soothe me. "We can come another day," he assured gently, his tone giving away his disappointment despite his efforts.

Standing tall, I inhaled through my nose and exhaled through my mouth. "I have a fear of needles," I admitted finally. "Every time we come it's going to be like this." I looked at my friends and saw the heartbroken looks on their faces. "I'm still getting the tattoo," I snapped and they tried to cover their expressions from before. I rolled my eyes, putting on my tough girl act. "Seriously I just need you guys to be patient with me."

I went to move toward the store but Sweet Peat caught my shoulder. I looked at him. "If you're not ready..."

My eyebrows rose, a smirk curling on my face. "I'm ready." There was something under my words. Something lighter and flirtier. It was good for me to divert my attention to something less terrifying. It was bad for Sweet Pea though, his hand falling from my ar as he blushed, swallowing. Toni and Fangs cleared their throats, trying not to laugh. "Are you?" He looked away and I swallowed, trying not to hide my disappointment. Every day my flirts got more serious and every day our back and forth lasted less and less time. I moved into the store, getting back in the chair. I'd run out before to get some air but as I sat back down, the tattoo artist came back to his chair.

"You good?" He asked. I nodded. He picked up the needle pen and I closed my eyes, tilting my head away and groaning as my eyes closed.

Fingers traced against my skin and I opened my eyes to see Sweet Pea in a chair he had pulled up next to me, his hand reaching for the one of mine that was limp against my stomach. "I'm right here, okay? Squeeze if t hurts, but keep talking to me. It'll be over before you know it." My eyes widened with adoration and his face softened as well, our eyes locked. I opened my mouth to say something but then the buzzing of the needle started and I tried not to imagine it any bigger than I knew it was. I was already shirtless, wanting my tattoo on my upper chest, just off from my shoulder and below my neck. "Hey, talk to me. I want to hear that pretty voice of yours."

I chuckled, the sound strangled and breathy as I tried to organize my panicked thoughts. "Breathe slower please, I need you to be more still," the tattoo artist said.

"What's your name?" I asked, looking over.

He smiled a little. "Dylan." When I raised my eyebrows he smiled a bit wider. "They used to call me Tracer. You wanna know why?" I nodded and he began talking, his casual tone and friendly smile combined with Sweet Pea's touch doing wonders to make me forget the needle as the buzzing of the needle became simply another noise and the pain was a distant thing in the back of my mind. Dylan was a retired Serpent and as he told me his half hilarious and half epic stories of all the trouble he'd gotten into in his youth, I felt Sweet Pea not holding back. His right thumb went up and down my arm as his left hand held my hand so that my arm was vertical. He kissed my knuckles every time I gasped or flinched or winced or showed any sign of growing or sudden anxiety or strain. When he did, I was instantly calm again.

When Dylan was done, everyone cheered. Fangs messed up my hair and Toni whooped and hollered, offering me my shirt as Dylan pat me on the back and gave me instructions on how to care properly for it. My tattoo was wrapped up and we left. Sweet Pea and I parted with Fangs and Toni, ending up in his trailer.

That's when I lost it. "Oh my GOD Sweets I got a tattoo!" He grinned, laughing so loud and genuinely that his lips parted and his head tilted back. "I'm a Serpent!"

My hands grabbed the lapels of his jacket, pulling him closer in my excitement. We grew quiet as our eyes met and the lacking proximity between us was noticed. I leaned against the wall behind me and he followed my tilt, his hand raising to brace himself so he didn't crush me. His other hand rose to allow his thumb to caress my cheek, his eyes ripping away from mine to roam my face slowly and purposefully. He seemed to be memorizing me. "You've come so far." His voice was soft, his breath falling across my face and making me smile. He seemed to want to say something but was struggling with saying it. "You scare me," he finally choked out. I went to say something after he paused but he cut me off. "You're one of us, I know, but you're... I didn't count on ever meeting someone like you. I hated North Siders until I met you. Until you changed everything. You proved me wrong on everything I thought. You're absolutely amazing." He leaned closer. "You know they're right, you're not a South Sider." My throat shut and my body seized. "But that's okay," he added gently. "Because you still chose us, and you're a Serpent. That's all that matters. And, Y/n, you're the only North Sider I would trust with anything, but also I would trust you with my life. My- my heart."

"Sweets-" My eyes grew wide.

"I don't want you to think that being a North Sider is bad. You're still part of us. You're still a Serpent and that will never change. You're here, no matter where you came from. I need you to know that."

My eyes watered. "Okay." There was a pause. "Do you like me?"

Sweet Pea chuckled breathlessly, his lips quivering as he tried to form words. I frowned. "So much," he breathed. "I like you so much it scares me. Scares me like needles scare you. I've NEVER felt this way about anyone before. I'm really all in it for you and I'm just terrified I'm going to wake up one day and you'll be gone and it'll all just be a dream."

"I'm not going anywhere," I whispered. We were nose to nose now. I hadn' realized he'd been leaning in. "If you're dreaming so am I, and I'm having the same dream."

His nose brushed mine and the moment was so tender and intimate that I inhaled sharply, my eyes fluttering as I tried to keep them open. "When I saw you after Tall Boy... I thought I lost you. The feeling that I felt- it still makes me sick. You started to fill my nightmares, every sleep bringing ugly images of you broken a little bit more. I was a little bit slower. It took us just a little longer to take Tall Boy's goons and get to you. You're pale and cold and I know you're not going to open your eyes again. You're not going to say my name or laugh and I- I've..." His words cut off as he took a shaky breath in and then let it out again. "I can't lose you, okay?"

"You won't lose me," I assured. "And I won't lose you. No matter where you are, I'll always be yours." I swallowed. "You don't scare me. Maybe it's because you make me feel so safe, though. I've ever felt so safe. Archie was always too nice and too good and too unaware. If he wasn't nearby I felt exposed and so I followed him everywhere like a lost puppy. But with you, I walk tall and look people in the eyes. I feel you by my side even when you're gone. You're everything I've ever wanted and more."

Sweet Pea smiled and then his eyes flickered to my lips. He didn’t pause leaning in to kiss me. The room exploded with heat as we collided, first soft but soon passionate. Our kisses grew quicker and then we were suddenly full on making out, his body pressing me against the wall. My hands rose to entangle in his hair and the hand of his that wasn't on my face dropped to my waist, fingers quickly slipping under my shirt and gripping my bare waist. His head tilted, our noses smooshing and we both inhaled deeply to make up for it. The hand on my waist trailed to my back and then down, finding a hold on the back of my thigh. He pulled my leg up his waist, tugging on me. His other hand dropped from my face to move against the back of my other thigh. I jumped up as he went to move me, helping him as he tried to hold me up. He pushed me harder against the wall, his body rolling into mine. I released a stuttering gasp, my fingers pulling on his hair and making him groan softly.

His lips left mine to move to my neck. Yellow and faded purple still decorated my neck from when Tall Boy tried to strangle me what seemed so long ago but really wasn’t. Just two weeks ago. It was almost gone but not quite and as his teeth ran over the skin, I winced, a hiss slipping through my lips. He jerked back, my arms going higher and the skin where my new tattoo was stretching. I gasped, wincing again. “Sorry,” Sweet Pea grunted. He slowly put me down.

“No,” I whined, pulling him into a kiss again. I kissed him hard and he shivered under my touch as one of my hands fell, going under his shirt and pressing against his stomach. His breath caught.

His hand caught my wrist and he leaned back, both of our eyes opening as we looked at each other. “Y/n,” he whispered. I groaned, letting my head fall against the wall. “I want you,” he assured me.

A sigh from me. “Then what?” I asked.

“You’re hurt,” he reminded me. “And, I mean are you really ready?”

Lifting my head, I looked at him. “Yes, Sweet Pea, I am. I want you. I want to be with you. And you keep stopping me.”

His face went red. “What if I’m not ready?”

Oh. I paused, relaxing and looking at him. “Sweets…” He went to ull away from me but I pulled him closer, kissing his cheek softly. “That doesn’t change anything between us. You’re allowed to not be ready. I’m sorry.” I tugged him gently, wanting him to stay with me but giving him the option of leaving if he really wanted. He leaned closer, his forehead pressing against mine. “I…” I swallowed. “I-” I wanted to say I loved him, but it didn’t feel right. Maybe I did, but this wasn’t the moment to say so. “I’m glad we met. And I’m glad I’m here. With you.”

He let out a few breaths that were almost laughter. “Yeah never thought I’d be glad a red-headed psychopath decided to lose his shit on the South Side, but here I am.” We both and he kissed me against, short and sweet and tender. There was a pause and then he whispered, “I want to be with you too. For real. I’m tired of being scared. I want you to be taken, spoken for, and I want people to know.”

My grin was brilliant as I pushed him away so we could see each other. “Sweet Pea are you asking me out?” I teased. He shrugged, smirking, jokingly playing it off like it was nothing. My grin widened and he couldn’t help but follow my lead, smiling just as brilliantly. “I would love to.”

He leaned down suddenly, scooping me up. I shrieked, clinging to him, and he laughed. He walked us to his room and dropped me on the bed. I grabbed a pillow, cursing his name as I chucked it at him, trying to seem mad through my laughter. He kicked off his shoes and crawled in next to me, pulling the blankets over us. I cuddled into him and he held me tightly, pulling me as close as he could. We fell asleep mid-conversation, nodding off while we talked quietly to each other.

-

Laughter rang out as Sweet Pea juped, bouncing me as I rode on his back. I’d begged and he had finally obliged after I’d given him a kiss. It was in that situation, happy and very much together, that we were found. “Y/n.” I looked over to see Archie and my eyebrow rose. We were at school, he should be too. Why was he here? Sweet Pea, hearing my name and sensing my sudden change in mood, looked over as well. When I attempted to get down, he let me, his hand on my back to lt e know he was there if I needed him. I hadn’t been anxious but if I had been, that alone would have made it disappear.

Moving to my brother, I placed a hand on my hip. “What’s up, Archie?” Archie reached out, his fingers tracing over my nearly gone bruises and my Serpent tattoo, which was out for everyone to see after it had its time to heal. He looked upset and I stepped back, out of his reach. His hand fell and he swallowed.

He met my eyes. “Come on, dad’s waiting for us in the car.” He turned to leave.

My eyes widened. “What?”

Archie turned back to face me, his expression was dark. “Dad heard about you almost getting killed out here and he’s done playing games.” I scoffed and Archie put his hands in the air, palms facing me. “If you don’t believe me, come ask Dad yourself. He’s waiting in the car just like I said. We came to bring you home.”

My shoulders straightened. “I am home.”

Archie glared at me. “Yeah wel,l then we’re bringing you back to the North Side, Serpent.” He spat the word, refusing to call me by my name. It had the same edge to it as when Archie pulled out a gun that first night I met Sweet Pea. The feeling of disowning and letting go. I wasn’t his Y/n anymore, just as he had long since stopped being my Archie. We were different now, twisted and distant. Impossibly far away from each other.

Just as I was about to argue with him, Sweet Pea pulled me behind him. “She isn’t going anywhere.”

Archie immediately grew angrier, stepping up to Sweet Pea even though he was shorter. Toni was on the scene, her small frame sliding between the two huge boys and pushing them apart. “What is going ON here?”

Fangs and Jughead were suddenly at my side. “I’m taking her home.” Four vices rose angrily and he backed up, putting his hands in the air again. “My dad’s orders! There’s nothing any of us can do. She’s fifteen, he’s her legal guardian.” He sighed rubbing his face. “Come on guys…”

Pushing through all my friends, I faced Archie. I turned my back to him, loing at the four people that meant absolutely everything to me. “I can visit okay?” They all looked at me, as hurt as I felt. “I don’t want to start a war ad ruin the little relationships I have left. I’ll just… I’ll find a way.”

Toni was the first to step up. She gave me a hug, telling me to keep my head down. Jughead was next, his hug accompanied by a good luck wish. Fangs’ hug was harder as he whispered that I’d always be welcome back. Sweet Pea was last. I felt Archie’s on me as he took my hands, leaning down so our foreheads touched. There was a pause and it was too quiet. Like there was a wall of glass between us. “I’m sorry,”  choked out. “I’m sorry-”

“Hey,” he soothed. “You’re spoken for, so am I. That won’t change. We’ll figure something out, okay?” I nodded. His hand left mine, fingers grazing my tattoo. I smiled. “No matter where you are,” he whispered. He kissed me and even though it was brief, Archie cleared his throat. “I’ll bring your bx if you want.”

Though a little laugh came out, I was crying. “Thank you.” I leaned away, locking eyes with him. “Wherever I am.” It was a promise, and now we’d both made it. I squeezed his hand one last time before I pulled away altogether, pushing past Archie roughly as I made my way to the car. My dad was waiting in the driver’s seat. As I approached our eyes locked and we both waved. He could tell how upset I was- not that it was hard to, since my eyes were red from crying. He motioned to the passenger seat and I took it, closing the door after me. Archie took the backseat without complaint. My dad started the car and it was quiet as I watched South Side High disappear.

Finall,y my father spoke. “You have a new tattoo. How did that happen?”

“Same way it always does. I did the initiation, I got the tattoo.”

He looked at me. “And the bruises?”

I was quiet for a long time. “Don’t blame the Serpents,” I whispered. “Toni, Fangs, Jughead, and Sweet Pea saved my life.”

“Your life wouldn’t have been in danger if you weren’t there,” Archie grumbled.

“Bullshit,” I snapped. My dad jerked in his seat. “The Black Hood is still running around killing people last I heard. The Red Circle didn’t get him?” That shut Archie up.

A few moments passed and my dad sighed. “Okay, look. There’s tension and danger and we’ve all been through a lot. But we’re a family.” I caught Archie’s eyes in the rearview mirror and we both held the same look in our eyes. We had the same parents and even some similar features. We came from the same bloodline and had lived in the same house nearly all our lives. But we weren’t family. I was a Serpent and he was Hiram and Veronica Lodge’s lap dog. We were on complete opposite playing fields. “And we’re going to figure this out,” our dad finished, knocking us out of our glare down. “My best friend was a Serpent. FP Jones himself.” Archie scoffed and I tried not to verbally attack him for the way the look on his face communicated a little too well on how he felt about FP. “Y/n, you’re allowed to be a Serpent, you already did what was necessary. If you wish, you can wear your jacket and even have friends over.” I looked over at him. He returned my look. “But if anything happens under my roof that you at all even think I couldn’t approve of, I will cut you off, do you understand me?” I slowly nodded my head, too relieved to care about what he was insinuating. Drugs? Sex? Fighting? It didn’t matter right now.

“But dad-” Archie began.

Dad shook his head. “I allow you the same freedoms Archie,” he finished. “I don’t want to hear anymore on the issue.” We were silent for the rest of the trip, but I knew what would happen. I’d be locked in a prison. Somewhere that wasn’t mine with people I didn’t really know anymore, who definitely didn’t know me. This was going to be complete Hell.

-

FTL: @chipster-21 @bitchyseawitch @alexa-playafricabytoto

Story tag list: @reblogserpent

[dkronpa]

Chapter 3: Journey to Despair, Grave Secrets, Grave Lies ~Daily Life Part 1~

THE LONG AWAITED CHAPTER 3 BEGINS

My bad for it taking so long I had a bad case of writers block half-way through but I have the whole plot for this chapter totally ironed out now. I’ll write as often as possible and hopefully I won’t leave you guys hanging like that again

Enjoy~

-Chapter 3 Daily Life: Dream Sequence-

 It’s cold. Really cold. Winter, I think. No snow but the wind is biting at my skin. I’m staring at a car.

 No, I’m staring at what’s under the car. The blood coming from underneath and the hand stretching from underneath. There’s someone crying nearby. Where am I again? What am I doing?

 Why didn’t I do anything? Why? Why?

 Whywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhy-

 -Chapter 3 Daily Life: Ryuu’s Room-

 “Ugh!” I jolted up in a cold sweat. What was that? A dream? No…a memory? But surely something like that would be easy to recall, but I don’t remember that kind of event at all…it must have been a dream. “Y-yeah, a dream.”

 I let out a shaky sigh and grabbed my E-Handbook. It was close to Monokuma’s morning announcement, so I may as well get ready.

 …but should I even bother? After what happened yesterday…we could all be out of the killing game by now if I hadn’t spoken like that. It’s my fault we’re all still in the killing game…Hachi-san killed Irunami-san so we could all escape and I made both of their deaths in vain.

 Even so…I should try my best to show face, shouldn’t I? Come on Ryuu. Pull yourself together.

 -Chapter 3 Daily Life: Short numbered-

 By the time I got to the cafeteria, I expected everybody else to be already eating breakfast though when I entered the room, there were a few people missing from the group. “Huh…? Is this everyone that showed up?” I asked everyone present.

 “Shinko and Yokozawa said the same thing, they don’t feel like they can trust anybody here. So, they’ve locked themselves in their rooms and are refusing to leave. They’ll probably leave later to get food; they can’t stay in there forever.” Sly-san answered.

 “Hmm? You went to check on them?” Asano-san inquired.

 “We need to keep track of the group in this situation. Don’t read into it when it’s nothing deep.” Sly-san said.

 “Graves-san isn’t here either…” Ram-san noted.

 “I met her in the hallway earlier. She said she was going to keep her distance for a while. Doesn’t know who to trust anymore.” Kurohiko-san answered. This group really broke up after last night. And with those three not present right now…it really feels empty in here than how it used to be…

 “Oi, Nagata. Did you sleep alright? You look exhausted.” Okanaya-san looked at me with worry. I instinctively touched the dark circles under my eyes. Ram-san looked over with concern as well.

 “It’s nothing. Bad dream is all, woke me up early.” I murmured.

 “One bad dream is not such a terrible thing, Nagata-sama. After all, it is better to get your bad dreams out of the way so that your eternal dream will be an enjoyable one.” Ishikawa-san smiled.

 “Jesus, do you ever talk about something less terrifying? You realise what situation we’re in, right? We don’t wanna hear you talk about death all the fuckin’ time.” Okanaya-san snarled.

 “I was not attempting to make anyone uncomfortable.” Ishikawa-san replied.

 “Well you are, so shut up already.”

 “Okanaya, that’s enough.” Sly-san said. Okanaya-san grumbled under his breath but dropped it. This group is starting to show cracks. Today it may only be three people that don’t show up, but what about tomorrow? What about the day after that? Will I even live long enough to see the day after tomorrow? What am I supposed to do-

 “N-Nagata-kun…” Ram-san put her hand on mine.

 “Sorry. I’m fine.” I lied with my best fake smile. I’m not sure if she believed it or not but Ram-san nodded slowly not letting her concern disappear from her expression. I wonder if anyone’s stealing glances at me? Do they hate me?

 “Geez, what’s with the tension in here? So gloomy, it’s like you guys lost your chance at something suuuuper important.” Monokuma said, doing his stupid sudden appearance shtick. I’m over it. “…not even a yell from the pansy? Alright then. I was gonna wait until everyone gathered to tell you, but it seems like this is about as good as it’ll get.”

 “Let me guess. Another building has opened up?” Sly-san said.

 “W…wow, you aren’t just gonna let me have my moment, huh…?” Monokuma looked down with a sad expression. “Yeah…you got a new building. Feel free to explore it at your own discretion. Or don’t. Doubt you’ll find anything useful there anyway.” Monokuma shrugged before disappearing again.

 “Eh? Why did he say that? About not finding anything useful there…?” Kurohiko-san asked.

 “Probably because we won’t find anything useful.” Sly-san said.

 “Or he is using reverse psychology in order to compel us all to investigate the new building. I feel as though that is a much more plausible answer. What shall we do?” Ishikawa-san said.

 “It’s probably for the best that we investigate. The more we learn about this place, the better. Shall we all head over?” Kurosaki-san asked.

 “Will you be included in that group? If so, I’ll pass.” Sly-san folded his arms and leaned back into his seat.

 “I suppose it’s just the rest of us then! Have fun, Herr Knives!” Kurosaki-san smiled and gave Sly-san’s back a firm slap as he walked past him. I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone get so angry that quickly.

 “Don’t touch me so damn casually!” Sly-san yelled. There was a moment of shock seeing as he’d never lost his cool before. Though he regained his composure just as quickly as he lost it. “…if you start pushing everybody’s buttons then you’ll just end up dead.”

 “O-oi, Sly! No need to say stuff like that! I get your pissed, but…” Okanaya-san said warily. Sly-san crossed his arms and looked around the room.

 “If you all want to be around that then be my guest. Just don’t cause any trouble for me.” Sly-san stood up and made his way for the door.

 “Sly-sama, please wait-“ Ishikawa-san attempted to call out to him but he was already out the door by the time she found her voice. Even Sly-san is distancing himself from the group. Even though we said we’d all work together at the start of all this!

 “Ah…that’s a shame.” Kurosaki-san murmured. “Shall we? We should investigate the building now.” He made his way for the door. There was this lost look in his eyes as if a difficult thought was stuck in his mind.

 “I don’t think I’m ever going to understand what goes on in his head.” I said to nobody in particular. Ram-san gave me a look of concern, though she understood what I mean. I’m sure of it.

 -Chapter 3 Daily Life: History has its eyes on you-

 I walked to the building next to the Leisure building with Ram-san and Okanaya-san. To say the building exteriors differed would be an understatement. In contrast to the leisure building which appeared more like a fancy gym, this building was designed to appear like a medieval castle with four spires at each corner of the building and iron bars on the windows instead of glass and curtains.

 The only part of the building that seemed out of place with the rest of it was the front door. A card reader was attached to the wall next to a glass sliding door that had no handle for us to open it with. “A card reader to get into the building? How come the other buildings don’t have this?” Okanaya-san asked.

 “Are you wondering about my design choices?” Monokuma suddenly appeared next to us, me and Ram-san jumping slightly. “It’s a card reader, just use your E-handbook on it already!”

 “But why is it only on this building?” Okanaya-san asked again.

 “I like to give a unique thing to each of my buildings! The dorms are underground, the leisure building had the massive ventilation system…and this! The history building has a card reader to get in and out of it!”

 “History building?” Ram-san repeated.

 “Yep yep! This building has got all kinds of good stuff! There’s an archive filled to the brim with cool books to read! There are many exhibits throughout the floors for you to check out too! I’m sure nerds like Nagata will enjoy it!”

 “H-hey!” I protested.

 “Anyway, you guys get the gist, right? You gotta use your E-handbook to get in and out of the building! So…I’ll see ya later!” And with that, he was gone.

 Okanaya-san sighed and pulled out his E-Handbook. “What a pain in the ass. This is so unnecessary.” He held his E-Handbook up to the card reader. The LED light above the reader went from blue to green and the door slid open.

 The three of us walked in to be greeted by the discomforting atmosphere. The hallways were dimly lit by the fires of torches decorating the walls. I know Monokuma likes his themes, but this is way too much.

 “Should we look for those exhibits that Monokuma mentioned?” Okanaya-san asked. Ram-san and I silently agreed and began making our way through the hallway of the building. I stuck close to Okanaya-san, as did Ram-san, though she was holding onto his sleeve and looking around nervously at the walls. There were odd red stains here and there decorating the stone…I didn’t want to think about it.

 We entered the room at the very end of the hallway to find it decorated with displays of different weapons across the walls and in glass cases. It reminded me of a museum with how it was laid out. The head of Graves-san popped out from behind one of the displays and grinned widely at us.

 “Yo, dudes! Can you believe this place?! How cool is all this?!” She cheered brightly. “I dunno how Monokuma managed to do all this. Some of these weapons are can’t get acquired by the public and some I’ve only seen drawings of. I never thought I’d get to see these kinds of old weapons for myself!”

 “If that’s all true then I really worry about Monokuma’s sources.” I murmured.

 “Ah…like whoever’s running this killing game? Someone rich, for sure. They’d need billions if they wanted to set something like this up. Not to mention actually constructing this area for us to play in…”

 “Play?” Okanaya-san repeated.

 “Well, duh! You ‘play’ a game, right? Even if it’s a killing game, it’s a game, nonetheless. So, we’re the players and we’re playing…right?” Graves-san spoke so casually about it that it actually threw me off a little. I suppose she’s in the same boat as Sly-san and Kurosaki-san. They all seem to have been through a lot to get to this point, so I shouldn’t be surprised if they aren’t so easily phased by the situation.

 “Either way, the real problem is knowing who had the ability to set it up.” I jumped a little when Yokozawa-san spoke. How long had he been there?! He clearly noticed my surprise and formed a look of irritation. “Pay attention to your surroundings. I’ve been here the whole time.”

 “Oh yeah! I totally forgot I followed you here!” Graves-san said.

 “I don’t blame you. I don’t stand out, so it’s not like I’m worth remembering.” Yokozawa-san threw his arms up as if he were joking though I’m pretty sure he was being serious…

 “Yokozawa-kun, we heard you weren’t going to be leaving your room anymore. Why are you out here? In fact, we heard you were going to keep your distance from us too, Graves-san!” Ram-san asked.

 “It’s a new area. Even if I don’t wanna get involved with all of you, I should still investigate as new areas open up to us. Never know when we might find a hint about our situation. Unfortunately, I got spotted by Graves-san and now I can’t seem to shake her off.”

 “Hey now! I know you appreciate the company! It can’t be too fun being alone all the time. Plus I have the same reasons for being here as Junpei, so I thought it made sense to go about with him.” Graves-san said.

 “Speak for yourself. I don’t mind being by myself, in this situation, it’ll probably be better for my health if I keep my distance.” Yokozawa-san replied. “You’re all trouble for me…keep out of my way, alright? I don’t wanna end up like the others.” The blogger shoved his hands into the pockets of his hoodie and strolled out of the room.

 “Hmm…he’s definitely lonely.” Graves-san nodded slowly.

 “You can tell?” Ram-san asked.

 Graves-san seem to take her time deciding her reply, “I guess…I used to be pretty lonely.” She muttered.

 -Chapter 3 Daily Life: Fields of Knowledge-

 We made our way up to the second floor and made our ways to the room marked with a book on the ElectroID maps. It was easy to predict that when we entered that the room in question was going to be a library, tall walls filled to the bring with books almost like an archive that was started as far back as the stone ages.

 “Th-this is incredible…! Did Monokuma prepare this for us?” Ram-san asked, taking in the view.

 “So many books…I guess we at least have something to occupy our time with. Though I’d rather find a clue to a way out of here.” I said. It was an impressive collection though; I couldn’t deny it.

 “These are all most likely history books if this is the history building…even so, I want to have a look around and see if we can find anything useful.” Ram-san said.

 “Good idea! Alright, Nagata, you take the centre part, I’ll take the left! Ram, we’ll trust you with the right side of the room!” Okanaya-san ordered out his instructions and without waiting for a response, ran off into the shelves of books.

 “At least he’s always prepared to work.” Ram-san said before walking to the other side. I walked down the centre aisle of books. They were categorised by subject. Middle Ages. Roman Empire. Medical Studies. Even some 20th century crime novels. Even if Monokuma placed these here to give us ideas for murder, I still might read them at some point.

 As I was nearing the end of the line of bookshelves, I felt myself step on something. Moving my foot out of the way revealed a polaroid photo laying on the middle of the floor.

 “Wh…what the heck…?” I murmured as I picked it up. The photo showed Kibe-san, Hachi-san and Irunami-san all sat in a line together holding up peace signs to the camera, a large window with the sun shining in was in the background and in the corner of shot I could make out what seemed to be a classroom desk.

 What the hell is this…? Did those three know each other before we came here? No, I’m sure Irunami-san would have mentioned knowing those two before coming here.

 “Whoops!” Monokuma suddenly dropped down from atop the shelves. “Can’t believe I left this lying around, silly me!”

 “E-eh? This belongs to you?”

 “Umm…in a sense! A-anyway, give it back!” Monokuma quickly snatched the photo away. “Memories are important, you know! I wanna keep this one, so stop being so selfish!” Without making any sense, he jumped atop the shelves once more, most likely disappearing as he always does.

 What was with that photo? The way Monokuma talked about it…is it a real photo? Not faked? A memory…

 “Oi, Nagata!” I snapped back up and saw Okanaya-san waving at me from the end of the line of bookshelves. “What’re you standing around for?! Come on!” Whatever that was…I have a bad feeling about its implications…

 -Chapter 3 Daily Life: Report back!-

 We all sat down in the cafeteria. Or…all those that were still coming here. “Ah…we’re really short on people now…” Kurohiko-san commented.

 “It can’t be helped. Plus without Tomoe-chan, we don’t have anybody here to give us maps to visualise our new locations…it sucks.” Amaterasu-san said.

 “If it sucks so much, try to show it, will you?” Kurohiko-san sighed.

 “If I may take the lead for our reports, please?” Asano-san waited to hear if there were any objections. “N…no? G-good. Shall we discuss our findings on the history building…? Myself, Kurohiko-kun, and Amaterasu-san all worked together when investigating however we could not find any such clue as to how we can escape.”

 “So, the usual.” Okanaya-san sighed.

 “That doesn’t mean there wasn’t cool stuff to see! On the first floor this had this amazing display of different weapons from across the ages! I’ve never seen anything like it! I love the history of weaponry!” Graves-san said cheerfully.

 “E-even though that was all put together so it would be easier for us to kill each other…?” Ram-san said.

 “Weapons can still be interesting, even if they aren’t being used.” Graves-san replied.

 “It’s definitely less jarring than the torture room on the third floor. Filled with different kinds of instruments of torture. Iron maidens, stretchers, pliers, saws…it’s nasty.” Amaterasu-san said in her usual monotonous voice.

 “T-torture stuff…?” Graves-san gasped. “I can’t believe I never went to check it out! I’ll need to rectify this mistake as soon as possible! The stretcher is one of my favourite torture devices, it should have been used in a Saw movie, for sure! I’ll take Junpei to see it!”

 “Something tells me Yokozawa-sama would most likely decline that offer.” Ishikawa-san said with a giggle. “It is clear Monokuma-sama is far more direct now about wanting us to kill each other if he’s put all of that together. He also gave us supplies to make murder easier to commit.”

 “What do you mean? There’s more?” Kurohiko-san paled a little. “G-geez…isn’t there already enough…”

 “A room also on the third floor contains things such as special poisons, common things people are allergic, trip wires, chemicals, and far more.” Ishikawa-san explained. She was silent for a moment before pursing her lips, “I…feel as though we should steer clear of that building at all costs. It is far too dangerous to go near…”

 “Oh…? I’m afraid I can’t agree to that. After all, that library is far too important to stay away from.” Kurosaki-san said. He was being unusually quiet this whole time, it was a little unnerving. “That library has a lot of valuable information if you know where to look. I plan on studying the contents there further afterwards…but I feel as though a clue to our situation is hiding in there. Somewhere in those books.”

 The photo Monokuma snatched away from me came to mind. I could say something right now, but if I do…would that have good consequences? People might suspect the people in the photo are suspicious. But we all saw their bodies…

 Kurosaki-san’s eyes flicked towards me. Does he know what I’m thinking? Do I look suspicious? How does he always seem like he knows what’s going on…?

 “Very well, the library may be okay…but perhaps we can board up the other rooms? We should at least take some defensive procedures.” Ishikawa-san said.

 “You think Monokuma would allow something like that? Don’t be an idiot. He’d change the rules in a heartbeat so that we aren’t allowed to block the entrances to the rooms in any of the buildings.” Kurosaki-san argued.

 “He has a point. Monokuma’s goal is to kill all of us. No way he’d let us block our own access to the weapons.” Amaterasu-san said. Ishikawa-san fiddled with the sleeve of her dress and silently conceded defeat.

 “If that’s all, are we done here? I plan on heading back into the library and continuing my studies…” Kurosaki-san stood up and made his way for the door. His hand resting on the door-handle, he looked back at the group, giving me a once over in particular. “We all have things we’re hiding…I wonder who’s hiding the fact that they’re the reason we’re here.” And with that, he left.

 “What a prick. It would so much easier if he was one of the ones who died.” Okanaya-san cursed.

 “Okanaya-kun, you can’t say something like that!” Ram-san puffed her cheeks out and glared at Okanaya-san. The tour guide took a moment staring at Ram-san’s face before letting out a sigh. Something about that expression seemed to stop him from arguing. “…ah, sorry, I just yelled at you like that!”

 “No, it’s fine. You’re right…my bad.”

 “…can I ask you guys something?” Kurohiko-san spoke.

 “Is something wrong?” Ishikawa-san said.

 “…if I’m honest, a lot is wrong. We’re falling apart as a group. Four of us are keeping their distance…Kurosaki-san…he just gives me a bad energy…I don’t know what to think anymore…”

 “Kurohiko-kun, that is not the attitude to have.” Asano-san said. “I will concede that our position as a group is less than ideal but if we act like that then our situation will never improve. For now, we should give those people space to collect their thoughts before we try to ask them to re-join us in our routine.”

 “…if you say so…” Kurohiko-san nodded.

 “You guys are something else.”- Graves-san folded her arms –“I only came here to see what everyone had to report…but now I just don’t understand you all even more. So frustrating…”

 “Graves-san?” I said cautiously.

 “…oh well. Nothing I can do about it.” She shrugged, making her way for the exit. Guess it was going to take more to get her to come back into the group properly.

 “She has a darkness inside her, do you not think? Right now, I would say Graves-sama is our biggest worry.” Ishikawa-san said.

 “She’s a secret agent. Other than Sly-chan, Karma-chan is the one who’ll have the easiest time killing someone. Scary.” Amaterasu-san added. Yeah…scary.

 -Chapter 3 Daily Life, The Cards in your deck-

 The usual. We stood in the gymnasium after Monokuma made his announcement. Even those who were keeping their distance had turned up, though clearly not happy about the situation. Shinko-san was angrily tapping a rhythm with his shoe.

 “That motherfucker barely even waits before giving us a motive. I’m sick a’ this shit!” He growled.

 “Shinko-sama, do not give into those emotions of yours. Us 12 have been able to resist the past two motives. I am sure we will all be able to do it again. If we have faith in each other and work together, we will prevail.” Ishikawa-san reassured.

 “God, that way you talk pisses me off. You can spout the same fuckin’ speech all you want, but if there’s a motive, someone will give into it. It’s just how it goes.” Shinko-san replied. Ishikawa-san pursed her lips and glared at Shinko-san. An unusual thing for Ishikawa-san to do but I suppose Shinko-san and Ishikawa-san have always been like oil and water…

 “Yikes! Such a thick juicy tension! Can I get a bite?” Monokuma laughed into his paws. “I’m kidding of course! Tension is way too full of calories for a bear of my size!”

 “Can you just quit with the jokes? They don’t even make sense now.” Amaterasu-san said.

 “Not my fault you stoic chicks don’t get humour.” Monokuma shrugged. “Anyway, guess what time it is, kids! Motive time! And for todays motive…” Monokuma produced a set of cards. Each with the name of one of us written on the front.

 “Ah…didn’t we already do something like this?” Graves-san asked.

 “No! This is different! Just take it!” Monokuma handed out the cards to the corresponding student. I opened mine up to find a list of names…a list of familiar names. The names of my parents, my siblings, and one or two of my close friends.

 “Oh…? It’s laid out like a polling card.” Ishikawa-san pointed out.

 “It sure is! Because this motive is a game of choice! You each have a list of the people who are closest to you on the outside world, your job is tick one of those names as a sacrifice!”

 “…sacrifice?” Sly-san’s expression clouded over in an instant. “That better be a joke.”

 “Huh? Why would I joke? In 48 hours, you gotta have a name ticked on that card! If you don’t pick somebody…everybody on that card is gonna be sacrificed instead! And, well…you know the method in which you can prevent it from happening, right? It’s pretty obvious how to save everyone on that list.”

 “E-everyone…?” I felt my hands begin to tremble. My family…? My friends…? One of them…or all of them…?

 “Hey. I said that you better be joking.” Sly-san stepped forward.

 “H-hey, Sly-kun…” Yokozawa-san warily.

 “What.” Sly-san spun around, glaring at Yokozawa-san who stepped back from Sly-san’s glare. “Monokuma-“ He turned back to find the bear gone. “…dammit.” He clicked his tongue.

 “H…how the hell am I supposed to pick…? H-how can I pick…?” Kurohiko-san whimpered.

 “If you don’t know who you’re gonna pick, don’t pick. Simple as that.” Graves-san said. “I dunno if I’ll pick. Would I be fair to pick one person over the other…?”

 “I can’t allow that…I can’t allow her to get hurt…” Sly-san murmured. “I won’t let her die. I’ll do what it takes…”

 “Oh-ho? Herr Knives is getting so riled up! How unlike you!” Kurosaki-san smirked.

 “If you’re gonna kill, try and kill me! I’ll give you a real good fight!” Graves-san said.

 “D-don’t just say stuff like that, no way Sly-san would kill, r-r-right?!” Kurohiko-san panicked.

 “I’ll kill anyone if I need to. I have no issues with killing any of you-“

 “Enough!” A hush fell across the room, Asano-san held her arm in the air to grab everyone’s attention. Her arm was trembling a little with everybody’s eyes on her. “…w…we cannot fight like this. It is exactly what Monokuma-kun wants us to do. I’m sure there is a way out of this without killing anyone…we have 48 hours to figure something out so please do not be so irrational…please. I am sorry.”

 “Haven’t you learned yet? There isn’t an alternative. Unless someone dies every single person on these lists is in danger.” Shinko-san said.

 “I choose to believe otherwise.”

 “Then you’re an idiot. Faith like that will get you killed.” Shinko-san shook his head. “…I don’t need this. I’m going back to my room.”

 “Shinko-kun, wait!” Ram-san tried but he ignored her call for him and left the gymnasium, Sly-san and Yokozawa-san leaving silently afterwards.

 Ram-san forced a small smile, “U-um…maybe we should cool off for the day…h-how about we all go to the pool or have tea-“

 “No!” Ishikawa-san suddenly yelled, “I…no! I won’t…” She mumbled to herself before shaking her head and powerwalking of the room.

 “E-even Ishikawa-san…I am sorry, I thought maybe I could help…” Asano-san sighed. “It seems my decisions are not helpful-“

 “H-hey now, don’t say that. Even if things don’t work out the way you thought they would, doesn’t mean it’s your fault. Those guys are all really scared…I am too, b-but hearing you trying to be optimistic helped me a little…s-so, um…wh-what’s my point again? I can’t even remember…heh…” Kurohiko-san rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

 “Yeah. Good work, Mami-chan.” Amaterasu-san added.

 “O-oh…th-thank you, both of you.” She bowed slightly. I noticed in the corner on my eye that Ram-san was staring at Asano-san with awe.

“Asano-san…is really impressive, isn’t she? Even though she was taught to do what others said…she had the courage to speak up like that when someone needed to say something. Hey, Nagata-kun, isn’t Asano-san cool?” She smiled up at me.

 “…yeah, she is.” I nodded. I think I wanted to be able to do what Asano-san just did.

[felicityb-reviews]

Kim Jonghyun - Feature Spotlight

Hello, babies!! My name is Jace (aka Felicity B), and welcome to the debut Feature Spotlight (aka your January surprise)!! Today we will counting down some of my favorite songs by the one, the only - Kim Jonghyun. Jonghyun is someone who was important to me, because he was somebody who fought tooth and nail to be happy and himself. And that's so important to someone like myself, because I have depression. It's actually the reason I created this blog - if I could keep myself occupied, doing something I love (talking about myself), then maybe the bad days won't seem so bad. Sometimes it's a fight for me to hold myself together, so seeing someone like Jonghyun, who was very open about the state of his mental health, throw his everything into being happy and free inspired me to do the same.

I figured if there's one thing I can do to honour him, it's to keep his memory alive through his music. And so that's what we're going to be doing for the month of January!! Today's Feature Spotlight will be drawing from Jonghyun's solo material, but the next three weeks will be dedicated to SHINee's discography. The next two Friday's will be lists featuring music from SHINee's Korean discography, and the final week will be music from their Japanese discography. I can't wait!!

Before we begin, we are some rules (I guess) I used to create this playlist -

The order is nothing special, sis; I don't like ranking songs, it feels Wrong™.

No feature tracks /Edna Mode Voice. Anything that has a music video AND was promoted on daily music shows is disqualified. These lists are for spotlighting b sides and music casual fans might have skipped over.

These lists aren't meant to a "The Best of". They're just a collection of songs I happen to like a lot, and think other people should list to, as well. Please do not get hung up on your favorites not being here, this is just my opinion, baby.

So now that we got all the rules out of the way (watch someone try me on this bullshit), let's begin with...

Hallelujah (BASE)

Hallelujah is a song that feels like it lives and breathes. No one created and arranged song to be what it is, it spawned into being the way it is. And boy is it an experience. The arrangement is sparse, but that's okay - it makes you pay attention to the few elements that are there. It's just an amazing listening experience, sis.

Inspiration (SM STATION)

Inspiration is about sex. Straight up. This song sounds like what I'd expect a filthy and rough fucking to feel like. But beyond that, this song is interesting because, despite how musically uncomplex it is, it sounds like there's way more going on than there actually is. Sometimes listening to Inspiration is like listening to a Hitchhiker song; idk if that was Jjong's intention, but I like it.

AURORA (She Is...)

AURORA is another one that sounds like sex, but it's quite the opposite of Inspiration. Where Inspiration is rough, AURORA is soft. Where Inspiration feels like pure need, AURORA feels like a soft want. Yes, that's cheesy af, but it gets my point across. AURORA feels like coming home to bae and relaxing into the sex cause y'all can. A brilliant track, if I do say so myself.

(And just so y'all don't get it twisted, Kim Jonghyun is the Kpop King of Funk; I will entertain no one else in this position.)

Suit Up (She Is...)

Oh look, another song about sex!! What can I say, songs about sex are great. Especially, Suit Up. Suit Up trades in the Funk elements of AURORA for a soft RnB back drop that is oh so effective. Suit Up is the Ultimate™ in soft sex songs (it's literally about having sex for the first time as a married couple). If we aren't dancing to this at my wedding, know I've been kidnapped and replaced by aliens.

Wouldn’t It Be Like That? (Fine) (The Collection ~Story Op. 1~)

First of all, that title is extra as all hell. But I'd expect nothing less from Kim "King Of The Drama Gays" Jonghyun. Secondly, this is a very straight forward acoustic RnB song. But that's what I like about it - it's no muss, no fuss. Jonghyun is extra as all hell (as all the members of SHINee are), but he knows when to scale it back. And he does so very nicely here.

Orbit (She Is...)

Orbit is (surprise, surprise) another Funk song. And, for those of you who remember the She Is... teasers, the first of the songs we heard. Not quite what we were expecting with its left of center arrangement, but then again, that teaser was just weird as hell. Anyway, underneath Orbit's quirky arrangement lies a very standard Funk song. But as was the case with Fine, I am very much okay with that. Orbit gives me happy brain tingles.

Love Belt (featuring Younha) (BASE)

Oh Love Belt... you make me happy brain tingle so hard. If Jjong had elected to go for a more bombastic arrangement for this song, it would have gone completely wrong. This is a love song that plays fast and loose with it's major elements. But thankfully, Jonghyun decided to scale it back (notice a trend here), and let the vocals shine. And speaking of vocals, how you doin' Miss Younha?!?!?!? Such a lovely addition to song. In fact, I'd say her voice goes with it better than Jjong's, but I'm not trynna fight with Blingers today.

No, ma'amsir!!!

Just Chill ( The Collection ~Story Op. 2~)

In case y'all haven't clockt my boring ass, I quite like what I love to call Acoustic Coffee Shop RnB Midtempos. They're pretty self explanatory - RnB songs you could listen to at a coffee shop. If you can't quite place the sound (even after listening to this list), just wait for Spring; you'll be bombarded with them. Anyway, I say all that to say that Just Chill is an excellently written Acoustic Coffee Shop RnB Midtempo. There's just a lil Funk thrown in their to keep your ears interested as the rest of you blisses out to the pure happiness of the track. It's just so good, sis.

Déjà-Boo (featuring Zion.T) (BASE)

THE KPOP KING OF FUNK MEETS THE K-RNB KING OF FUNK!!! FUCK Y E S!!!

Deja Boo is a song I was not fond of, at first. I thought Jjong and Zion.T sounded really awkward together, but (obviously) the song has grown on me quite a bit. It's just a really cute and endearing song by two very cute and endearing people.

02:34 ( The Collection ~Story Op. 1~)

02:34 has a few false starts (for lack of a better phrase), before she actually gets going. First, you think she's gonna be a ballad; then, you think you're getting a Funky uptempo; and finally, it resolves into an Acoustic Coffee Shop RnB Midtempo. You'd think Jonghyun was playing basketball with hard he jooks us with that intro, sis. But I digress. 02:34 is a nice RnB midtempo with a touch of melancholy to it that keeps it interesting.

I’m Sorry ( The Collection ~Story Op. 1~)

Oh look, a ballad. How quaint. You'd have thought the hardest part about doing this list would've been the uptempos, but it was actually the ballads that got me. Jonghyun has some very arresting ballads in his corner. Take I'm Sorry, for example. It's got the piano and strings that you'd expect from a song like this, but he throws out the classical ballad formula to do his own thing. And instead of using this as an excuse to show off his vocal prowess (we know that Kim Jonghyun can blow), he gives us a very breathy delivery that relays the emotion of the lyrics effectively.

Blinking Game ( The Collection ~Story Op. 2~)

Blinking Game is, in many ways, a spiritual successor to Happy Birthday (a song that features on the first Story Op album that I was unable to fit on this list, but a very lovely song, nonetheless). They're both caberet songs - downtempo little ditties I can see Jonghyun performing in a club for his boo thang. He's sat at a piano with a band playing behind him, and he's got this content little smile on his face. A lovely image. But back to Blinking Game. Despite not feeling like a ballad, it's got the pulse of one; it doesn't have anywhere urgant to go, sis. I'd say it meanders in a circle, like a slow dance, till it ends. A really nice song to relax to.

Elevator ( The Collection ~Story Op. 2~)

Listen to the first 10 seconds of this song, and you'll realize why this song is on this list. Idk if this is a standard diatonic progression or modal (my theory is not that good), but that progression makes my brain happy tingle like mad cray, fam. And then when Jonghyun sings... GIRL, WHEN HE SINGS OVER IT!!! It feels like I've disintegrated into a mass of star dust. God, this song is just so GOOD!!! I said that Jonghyun has some arresting ballads in his collection, but this one takes the cake, guys. I simply lack the words to fully describe the feeling this song invokes in me.

And that's it, guys!! Don't forget to tune back in on Wednesday at 6pm EST for my debut Review Roundup, featuring new songs from this week; and the first part of the SHINee Feature Spotlight on Friday at 6pm!! I hope you all have a lovely night (or morning if you happen to reading from, idk... Japan!!)!!

And he's the songs in a playlist, in case you wanna listen to the songs as you read my blathering. Love, you guys!!

[tokyohseok]

Mafia!Jooheon

Liability

pairing; jooheon x reader

genre; angst, fluff

words; 6.1k

Knock, knock, knock.

“What crime are we committing today,” you sighed to yourself. “Come in,” you yelled to the person on the other side of your bedroom door.

“Get dressed, we’re going out,” one of your father’s delinquents ordered.

“Wanna tell me where we’re going?” You asked, slipping your coat on, though you don’t know why you bothered to ask such a silly question when you knew it would never be answered anyway.

“You’ll find out when we get there,” he said in such a monotone voice, it was hard to believe he was a real person and not a programmed machine. Not that you saw much difference between the two anymore.

It didn’t take you long to get ready: you were so used to it that it just became a quick, daily routine. Before hopping into the passenger seat of your dad’s van, you checked the time. 12:09am, it read. You groaned as you hopped onto the seat, wishing you were anywhere but there.

“Do you really need me for this one?” You complained to your dad, who was driving you and his delinquents to a place still unknown to you.

With no expression or tone, he simply stated, “It’s essential.”

Eventually, your dad pulled up to a filthy alley in a run down estate. While everyone else in the van was one-by-one getting out, your dad told you to wait a minute so he could speak to you in private.

When the only people left in the van were you and him, he began talking. Starting with a deep sigh, he began, “This meeting is important, and most of all dangerous. If I weren’t positive they would go looking for you there, I would have left you at home… It’s essential that you stay quiet and try to just blend in, okay?”

“Got it,” you nodded with little worry. If it was the first time hearing him recite this speech, you may have been a lot more nervous. But it wasn’t the first time.

Nonchalantly, you jumped out of the car, hiding yourself within the crowd of tall, butch men that followed your father’s steps into the alleyway. You couldn’t see much since a bunch of broad shoulders blocked your vision. You wondered if the close proximity everyone seemed to have to you wasn’t in the slightest suspicious. You listened attentively as your father spoke to, what you assumed was, the leader of one of your rival mafia’s. Their conversation was the same old, same old. However, curiosity got the better of you and you slowly and stealthily went up on your tiptoes to see the other group of criminals. They had about the same number of people as you did; if not, even more. Though, they were a noticeably younger bunch, on average. For a quick moment, you made eye contact with one of the younger looking men. He furrowed his eyebrows briefly. Feeling your heartbeat start to increase, you casually went back onto your heels to divert any suspicion. As if you couldn’t control yourself, you peeped through the gap between two men and at the young man from before. Perhaps you should have expected it, he was also looking straight back at you. Suddenly your heartbeat quickened in pace but you spent your life in the mafia, it was no chore by now to control your expressions even when in critical danger. For a moment, you thought you had pulled it off as he looked away seeming rather disinterested after just a moment longer. However, that was a prediction too fortunate to be true. With a swift nod of the head in your direction, he diverted the attention of two men (around the same age as him) onto you. Acting as if you didn’t see them, you turned your head to the side slightly and hid back behind your dad’s delinquents, cursing in your head for being so stupidly curious.

You tugged on the sleeve of the man standing next to you. Not knowing the situation, he shook you off discreetly not wanting to inflict any attention on you…which only you knew it was too late to worry about that now.

After a few moments had passed, you were beginning to wonder if he really did recognise you, or if he was just talking to his friends because he was surprised to see a girl among a mass group of mafia members. I was so obvious, though? You thought, beyond confused. You were taught to never think you’re safe, so you didn’t let your guard down just yet, even if the meeting was beginning to come to an end.

“How’s your daughter doing these days?” A man on the opposing side questioned all of a sudden. At the mention of you, your heart began beating out of your chest.

“I’m not quite sure what that has to do with the topic of the meeting,” your father gritted his teeth as he replied.

“I suppose you’re right,” the man smirked. “Maybe we should bring this meeting to a close…your daughter’s legs must be tired from standing for so long.”

The hesitation before your dad spoke again was clarification enough that they had found out. That snitching bastard, you scowled referring to the young boy you made eye contact with.

Suddenly the protection around you got tighter, with a tall, muscular man standing close to you at every angle. All you could see was the black of their clothing.

“The meeting is over, there is no reason to bring my child into matters not concerning her.” Your father was so desperate to protect you from them, but both of you knew it was a hopeless case. In terms of experience, they didn’t stand a chance against you. However, in terms of stamina and numbers, it was a losing fight.

The leader of the opposing group signalled for his guys to make a circle around you all. You noticed his gaze kept scanning the crowd, giving you the assumption that he didn’t actually know where you were. Though, the more you thought about it, the more it began to seem like useless information. Whether he saw you or not, his guys had surrounded you all: there was nowhere to run.

For longer than you would have hoped, you stood in the centre of this huge group of brutal, scarred faced men feeling completely depleted that you couldn’t do anything. All around you, people were getting pushed, punched and kicked. At first, you flinched every time someone yelped in pain, but it happened so often that you got used to it.

Taking a deep breath, you tugged the sleeve of one of the men standing next to you, “let me out,” you stated simply.

“What?” He cried, then fixing his volume so he didn’t draw too much attention, as if it mattered now anyway. “I can’t let you do that.”

“I can’t let anyone else get hurt because of me. Just tell my dad I know what I’m doing.”

“If you do this, your father will kill me.”

“If I don’t do this, they’ll kill you,” you looked him in the eyes pleadingly. “Let me do this.”

He simply nodded and you squeezed your way through the human wall. Once you were out in the open, you could really feel the breeze pinching your skin. Or at least you thought it was the breeze. What once was the cold touch of the wind against your arms, turned into the cold touch of a rough hand. You flipped your head round to be met with the boy you made eye contact with before. While you prepared yourself to be turned in immediately, he surprised you.

“Are you crazy? Why are you ratting yourself out?”

“Are you one to talk about ratting people out?” You retorted spitefully. Considering he didn’t look particularly out of your age range, you would have thought he also grew up unwillingly in the same environment as you. You hoped maybe he could relate to you and that he would show you some mercy. Though, because he grew up in the environment he did, of course you could never expect him to know the definition of the word.

“Jooheon!” A boy hissed behind the one gripping your arm. For a moment he didn’t notice you standing there. That moment was significantly brief.

“Are you crazy?” The other boy questioned your sanity just like the one in front of you. Now you were beginning to wonder if you really were in your right mind or not. Clearly not.

“If you’re going to turn me in, can you do it quickly, please? My people are kind of being slaughtered right now.”

“If I were you, I’d run while you still have the chance,” Jooheon suggested. “Take some of your tough guys over there and leave.”

“And let my dad get beaten to a pulp? Not to mention those tough guys, I’m not a coward.”

“Whatever you say,” he shrugged, before going on his toes and yelling over, “She’s here!”

Despite you urging that reaction, you couldn’t help but resent him for telling everyone your whereabouts. However, with his signal, all the barbaric grunting came to a halt. You searched the crowd for your father. When you finally found him, he face was red and bloody. You felt so sorry seeing him so broken.

A man, roughly the same age as your father, approached you. Your dad followed closely behind him yelling, “leave her alone!” He was ready to throw a few punches but was held back by two strong men. If his energy hadn’t already been so recklessly used up, he could have easily fought against them.

“What a pretty child,” he cooed, attempting to stroke your cheek with the back of your hand, but you desperately pulled away. He laughed cynically at your reaction. “This was somewhat too easy… Perhaps… you didn’t hand yourself in, did you?”

You avoided eye contact, also trying not to look at your father too.

“Y/N,” you dad whispered in disbelief. “What did you do?”

Swallowing to hold back your tears, you stood taller. “Let them go and I’ll go with you.”

“Y/N!” Your dad screamed, his cry sounded like a command to stop, and it was.

“You’re rather gutsy for a young girl, aren’t you?” The man chuckled. “I can acknowledge that.”

While he seemed like he was going to let you free with just a warning, he looked behind you at Jooheon demanding, “Take her to the van.”

Jooheon hesitated for only a second, not long enough to cause suspicion that he was wavering, though you noticed it all too clearly.

You could hear your dad kicking and screaming as your back turned to face him. You forced yourself not to cry, despite it being one of the hardest things you had ever had to do.

As you sat in the dull van, surrounded by unfamiliar faces, you felt completely lifeless. All you could hear in your head was the cries of men in pain and agony from the brutal beatings.

Jooheon looked over to you from time to time to see if your expression would ever change, but it never faltered even once. Without anyone noticing, he took out his phone and earphones, putting the earphones in each of your ears and he clicked, Royal Rumble.

As he snapped you out of your daze, you first wanted to detest and throw his phone out the window of the van. However, after really taking in the song that was playing, you swallowed your urges. While the sweet song played in your ears, you completely forgot the previous haunting sounds.

You looked at Jooheon; his skin was glowing under the dim moonlight coming through the dusty windows. Considering the rings and earrings, you suspected that he wasn’t expecting a violent encounter this evening. Something screamed different when you looked at him, compared to the men that always surrounded him.

Eventually, you were caught staring as he turned to you, discreetly pulling the earphones out of your ear and putting them in his pocket. He unbuckled your belt before announcing that you were there. A brief moment later, the van door slid open, revealing two young men. They were smiling, in an amusing way.

“She’s either really gutsy, or really stupid,” the one with plump lips laughed.

“Shut up,” Jooheon smacked them both on the back of the head as he climbed out of the seat, then turning back to help you out too.

If he hadn’t of been the one to rat you out, you may have begun trusting him by now. Except he did rat you out, and you suspected that’s why he was being discreetly helpful. So you refused his help. You had to remind yourself that no matter how these men treat you, you’ve grown up with enough people just like them to know that everything they do or say is a liability.

Jooheon rolled his eyes as you walked passed him without giving him a second look before swinging the van door shut and following behind you.

“You don’t know where you’re going,” Jooheon stated quickening his pace only slightly to walk in front of you, grabbing your arm as he did so to stop you from walking left when you should have turned right. When you were about to pull your arm from his grip, he let go.

Furrowing your eyebrows and thinking aloud, you blurted, “you’re rather odd.”

He chuckled momentarily, “I’m odd?” He huffed, amused, “says the girl that turned herself in to the mafia.”

“I’m in the mafia too, you know!” You defended. Pouting, you mumbled, “I bet I could kick your arse right here.”

He stopped in his tracks and turned around to face you, “then do it.”

For a moment you were caught off guard. You expected him to huff it off. Truthfully, you had no confidence going up against him. Although you were far more skilled and stronger than the average girl your age, you still didn’t compare to him.

“See, I would…except I’m quite tired, you know, after being kidnapped and all,” you shrugged as though it was a shame.

“Can you call it kidnapping when you got in and out of the van on your own accord?” He questioned, tilting his head, and then continued to walk ahead of you.

You sneered, raising your fist threateningly in the air briefly before letting it drop back down to your side.

It didn’t take long from there for you to reach the bedroom you would be being held captive in for the meantime, though you had no idea how long ‘meantime’ was. Once you were in the room, you flopped onto the bed. Jooheon whistled once: at the noise you lifted your head. Suddenly your hands instinctively went up to catch whatever he had just thrown at you.

“If you need anything, call me on that. If you get annoying, I’ll block your number,” he said before shutting the door behind him after he left. Your head flopped back onto the bed the moment the door closed.

What have you gotten yourself into, you sighed. “I’ll be home soon, Dad,” you smiled through the pain in your chest, mostly trying to convince yourself. You fiddled with the old flip phone to distract your thoughts, but it wasn’t working. That night you cried yourself to sleep thinking about your dad and how worried he must be, not knowing what happened to you.

“Breakfast,” Jooheon somewhat announced as he barged into your room without knocking, a tray of food in his hand. “Sleep well?” He asked, placing the tray on your lap.

“Would have slept better if I had been in my own bed,” you grumbled, still trying to fully wake up.

“And whose fault is that?” He retorted.

“Yours, you little snitch.”

He huffed in amusement, “just eat, hm?”

With his hand on the doorknob, Jooheon was about to leave until you called him back. He turned round with raised eyebrows.

“Do you think I’ll be able to go home eventually?” You asked with upmost sincerity.

Jooheon hesitated for a moment; you noticed his regretful expression before he quickly smiled reassuringly, “I promise I’ll do what I can to get you home soon.” Then he left.

While you wanted to believe him, you knew these types of people all too well. Don’t trust a single one of them. Everything they do or say is a liability.

At least three times a day Jooheon would come uninvited into your room to give you food, or sometimes just simply company. Often he would sneak in some type of gaming device, or books, so that you weren’t completely bored out of your mind. The past few weeks you had really got to know him and become somewhat fond of him. But you never let yourself get too close. It was only a matter of time before his attitude would switch and suddenly he would become a member of the mafia once again.

“Can’t you sneak me out of this suffocating room for just 20 minutes?” You whined to Jooheon, going out of your mind being cooped up within the same, bland four walls. “I’m so sick of this stupid room, and this horrible food.”

“20 minutes may be too ambitious,” he regretted to inform you.

“10?”

He considered it for a minute, “maybe it’s doable…” At the sight of your suddenly brightened expression, he couldn’t bring himself to keep you locked up any longer. “10 minutes,” he announced, “that’s all.”

“Okay!” You cheered, jumping off your bed and slipping on some slippers, “let’s go.”

Jooheon laughed at your enthusiasm and unlocked your bedroom door, telling you to stay behind him at all times. The moment you stepped foot outside the room, you breathed in the new air.

“Here,” he spun around to face you, taking the cap off his head and putting it on yours. “It’s not exactly the most foolproof disguise in the world, but it will probably fool some of the knuckle heads around here.”

You laughed a little before realising the close proximity of you both. You looked up into his eyes, your heartbeat fastening.

“Are you falling in love with me?” He teased.

You whacked him on the arm, “now I only have 8 minutes, thanks a lot.” Avoiding his question, you hurried in front of him.

Just a moment later he grabbed your arm, pulled you close behind him, and asked, “didn’t I tell you to stay behind me?”

Your heart was beating so fast you felt like you were going to die. “7 minutes,” you reminded him, but your real aim was to snap you out of your own trance. Liability, liability, liability! You repeated in your head to slow your heart down. With the reminder, you were able to peacefully continue on your forbidden trip outside your room.

Your time of freedom outside your room was coming to an end so you and Jooheon were heading back when you heard people chattering at the end of the corridor. Jooheon pulled you into a narrow hallway to hide: to cover your face, he placed his forearm on the wall above your shadow and pushed himself close to your chest. To any passer-by it would have looked like two young lovers showing public displays of affection. Despite the proximity making you go crazy, it worked for diverting suspicion. As if the position you were both in hadn’t been enough to send your heart into overdrive, you noticed that, even after the people had been and gone, Jooheon didn’t even budge. He stared intently at you.

“Do you remember what I promised you a few weeks ago?” He asked suddenly.

You couldn’t tell if your mind had gone blank because of the circumstances or because you really could not remember.

“I promised I would do whatever I could to get you home soon,” he said. Then he sighed, as though there was a confliction between his head and his heart. “Ah,” he huffed, “what do I do?”

You looked at him, unsure of what he was talking about.

“I don’t know if I want to keep that promise anymore,” he whispered unintentionally. As though he was completely hypnotised, he leaned his head down, his lips closing in on yours until they eventually came in to contact. You completely forgot where you were in that moment. It seemed like you hadn’t been cooped up in a terrifyingly bland room for weeks only now getting a 10-minute getaway. Jooheon made you feel so safe and secure despite the likability that you could get caught any moment.

He smiled sweetly as he pulled away but not going very far. With one more peck on the lips, he grasped your arm and took you back to your room that now somehow seemed so much lighter.

After assuring you were safe back in your room, Jooheon announced that he had better get going, but before you let him leave you asked, “can’t we leave together?” The question wasn’t unexpected, but it was tricky nonetheless. “I know you have people here you care about, but we both know that I’m not just going to be let out of here anytime soon. However much they’ll charge my dad, I know he doesn’t have it.”

“There’s something I haven’t told you,” Jooheon sighed, sitting on your bed. “The big boss we all follow orders from, the one that’s keeping you here… He’s my dad.”

Your mouth fell open without much control from you. “How could you not tell me this slightly vital information?”

“Because it doesn’t change anything,” he defended.

“You can’t speak to him? Reason with him to let me go home?”

“Anything I say won’t change his mind. You don’t understand, Y/N. I’m his son, not his dictator.”

“I miss my family, Jooheon. Did you think about that? Rather than giving up before you’ve even tried, am I not even worth giving it a shot?”

His eyes widened, “that’s not it–“

“You know,” you cut him off, feeling cheated. “I’m beginning to wonder if you really like me or if I’m just someone you can play around with when you’re bored.” You stared him in the eye and he could see the pain in your heart through your pupils.

“If there’s one sincere thing about me,” he begun sternly. “It’s my feelings for you.”

“You have a funny way of showing it,” you grumbled, pulling your bed sheets over you and turning away from him.

Jooheon reached his hand out to comfort you but hesitantly pulled it away.  With a surge of energy, he pushed himself off the bed and stormed out the room. He passed through halls upon halls before he met the room he was looking for. Taking a breath first, he knocked firmly on the door. When he heard his father yell ‘come in’, he made his way to the mighty wooden desk his father was sat at.

“What do you want,” his dad, Mr Lee, asked in a monotone voice. “I’m busy.”

“Can you let her go?” Jooheon plucked up the courage to ask.

Mr Lee laughed cynically, “don’t tell me you’ve actually found someone you’re fond of, Son?”

“What do you even need her for? A kidnapping was never what you intended, so why can’t you just let her go now?” He was desperate to prove himself to you, to make sure he did anything he could to make you happy: even if it meant standing up to his worst enemy.

“When have I ever done anything without good reasoning? Trust me, Jooheon. I know what I’m doing. It’s better for everyone if you just stay patient.”

“I promised her,” he confessed, though somehow it sounded like a plea. “I promised her I’d get her out as soon as possible.”

His father sighed, becoming agitated. “And if you just sit tight for a little while longer then you’ll be able to keep your promise.”

Jooheon furrowed his eyebrows, “what do you mean?”

“I know you think I don’t listen to you, Son. And I know you don’t think I care about your feelings, but I just need you to trust me this once, okay?” When Jooheon nodded, “now I want you to stop seeing her for a few days. If you really like her, then stay away from her for a short while, hm?”

Once again, Jooheon nodded. Though he still couldn’t comprehend a single thing, his father’s reasoning seemed so sure and solid that he found it impossible to argue. So he stayed away. In fact it didn’t just end up being a few days, a few days turned into two weeks.

Every day you waited for a specific someone to hand you your meals. And every day you were disappointed. Eventually, you gave up and didn’t even turn to face the door anymore. You were beating yourself up for letting your guard down despite warning yourself over and over again. “Everything they do and say…is a liability,” you whispered painfully.

Just as you shut your eyes to go to sleep, your door burst open. Three men in surgical masks and black caps ran through the door, scanning the room before they laid their eyes upon you. The first thing you thought was that it was people coming to help and get you back home, except something was off. You analysed their appearance: they weren’t wearing your symbol. They weren’t your people. You backed up to the wall, nowhere to run since one of them was blocking your only exit. Your eyes searched the room, looking for anything that would help. Then you remembered the flip phone Jooheon gave you. You had never once used it since he had given it to you, meaning something would have to be off for you to make use of it all of a sudden. If he didn’t show up with some urgency, then you would really have to accept he didn’t really have any feelings for you at all. You slid your back against the wall, as though you were merely just backing away from the mysterious strangers, and to the drawers next to your bed. Hastily you opened the middle drawer and speed dialled Jooheon’s number. From there, you tried to fight them off as best as you could until Jooheon got there…if he would even show up, that is.

Little did you know you weren’t the only one coming face to face with intruders. Jooheon was fighting his own battles when his phone buzzed in his pocket. His first thought was you. With one strong punch, he knocked out the guy he was battling it out with and reached into his pocket, pulling out his phone. Your name flashed up on the screen and that was all it took for him to shoot off to your room like a rocket.

“Jooheon!” Hyungwon stopped him. “What are you doing?”

“I’m going to need your help,” he said before sprinting off again. Hyungwon sighed, following closely behind him.

“Y/N!” Jooheon yelled continuously as he approached your room. He ran to your door noticing it had been kicked in. Seeing you squabble with three large, henchmen made his blood boil. Followed by Hyungwon, he ran into the room, setting his sights on the masked men. Without even a second of hesitating, he ran in front of you. One of the men he punched so hard that the man stumbled back into the wall. Then he turned to his left and kicked another guy in the gut, also causing him to stagger backwards. As though he was completely possessed, he fought the men off with so much energy and strength that it seemed hard to believe it was even Jooheon. Within no time he had all three men on the floor, grunting in pain, with only minimal help from Hyungwon.

Taking no interest in the limp henchmen on the floor, he turned to you immediately grabbing your shoulders and inspecting you for any injuries.

“Are you okay?” He asked desperately, his tone weaved with the upmost concern.

You shook him off, staring him blankly in the eye. “It took getting attacked for you to come see me? Is that all I’m worth to you?” You were trying so hard not to shed a tear; the lump in your throat was almost as painful as the quarrel you were in the middle off. “I really thought you were different. It seems you’re just a liability like the rest of them.”

He wanted to clear everything up that very moment, but got interrupted.

“Jooheon!” Kihyun panted, swinging his head round the doorframe. “We’re going to need your help.”

Jooheon faced you with apologetic eyes, before switching his focus to Hyungwon. “Take her out of here, don’t let anyone see her! And I swear to god, if so much as a hair is gone from her head,” his expression darkened and his voice sounded so serious, “I will kill you.” Hyungwon gulped as Jooheon ran out the room with Kihyun in tow.

“Come on,” Hyungwon said finally, taking you elsewhere.

You had both been speed walking for what felt like a lifetime, constantly looking nervously over your shoulders. “Where are we going?” You sighed impatiently.

“All this trouble for one girl,” Hyungwon grumbled. “How bothersome.”

Shocked and offended, you cried, “Are you blaming me?” When he didn’t reply, you continued, “If you brutes didn’t keep me trapped here for so long and just let me go home already–“

“You don’t understand,” he huffed, feigning amusement.

“Because I’ve been isolated by myself in that grubby room for over a month! How do you expect me to understand anything when no one says a word to me!” You snapped suddenly.

“Can you keep it down?” He hissed, clasping his hand over your mouth. Immediately, you peeled his hand away, throwing it to his side. “Listen,” he exhaled, prepared to reason. “I’ll explain everything if you just follow me – silently – for a little longer.”

You rolled your eyes but agreed that you would comply nonetheless.

Hyungwon hadn’t lied about the walk only being a little longer: within 5 minutes, you arrived at what looked like a garage.

“Here?” You raised an eyebrow questioningly.

“This isn’t part two of your kidnapping if that’s what you’re thinking,” he retorted. “This is the safest place in the warehouse.”

Before he had even opened the garage door, you started pushing him for answers. “Now that we’re here, tell me everything: what’s happening?”

“You should go inside first,” he said, pushing a button on a remote that opened the door.

You waited for it to lift high enough then you ducked under it, waiting for Hyungwon on the other side. Facing him, you demanded again, “tell me what’s happening.”

“Turn around, idiot,” he nodded his head behind you.

At first you were confused and even after you spun your head around you were still bewildered.

“Dad,” you whispered not believing what your eyes were seeing. Your father stood at a run down table with papers plastering it completely, with men hovered over his shoulder. He stared back at you with tears in his eyes. Wasting not even a second, you ran to him, letting him embrace you. Now accepting that he was really there and that those three goons hadn’t knocked you out, you questioned it. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m sorry I had to trick you,” he begun. “But these people aren’t our enemy. They didn’t take you away out of spite or ransom, I asked them to fake a kidnapping.”

You knitted your eyebrows together, “why would you do that?”

“There’s another mob, one that really are our enemy. If they had got a hold of you, we wouldn’t just be facing a kidnapping: they would have killed you. You don’t need to know the details of it all, it’s not important. But they were always watching, including during that night a month ago. So we formed an alliance with Mr Lee to fake your kidnapping.”

“Why couldn’t you have just told me what was happening? Why did I have to be trapped in that room the whole time?”

“Because, like I said, they were always watching. We were hoping to keep you hidden long enough for them to think you were dead, but a rat squealed that you were still alive and it was all just a set up. Which is why the warehouse is in a bit of chaos right now,” he sighed. You looked closely at your father. The circles under his eyes were all but small, and his skin was rough and pale. It was clear he hadn’t slept in a while.

Although you hadn’t gotten half the answers you were hoping for, you saw how stressed your dad was and how whatever happened has not affected him kindly. So you didn’t pry. You didn’t need to: you were just happy that you could finally see your dad again.

What was once a bliss, happy reunion had been flipped in an instant when the shutters of the garage door lifted and through boys, one of which were limp and bleeding, came scuffling through the entrance. Your heart sank at the sight.

When other noticed, they shuffled hastily around you, moving tables for him to lie on and gathering towels to stop the bleeding. You, on the other hand, couldn’t move. While your head was screaming at you to go to him, your body just wasn’t complying.

“Y/N!” Your dad shouted at you from the table Jooheon was lying on.

Quickly, you gathered yourself together, wiping your wet eyes and taking a deep breath. Hesitantly, you made your way over to him. He groaned in agony when your dad applied pressure to his wound to stop the bleeding, his eyes shut tightly to try and ease the pain in his abdomen. Your emotions kept changing seeing him so hurt and fragile on the makeshift bed. At first you were stunned, which then changed to concern, then you started feeling angry.

“How could you let that happen to him?” You yelled, crying, at Kihyun and Wonho, whom had carried him in. They ducked their heads in shame. Seeing them look so defeated also caused a shift in your emotions. You turned back to Jooheon and held his hand. At the touch he opened his eyes barely, looking at you leaning over him.

“Why are you crying?” He asked hoarsely while smiling.

“You’ve been stabbed you idiot! What do you expect me to do,” you sniffled.

“Don’t worry about me, it doesn’t even hurt,” he continued to smile so he could reassure you.

“Liar,” you stated simply, though his playful attitude put your heart at rest.

“You must really like me,” he joked, grinning with his eyes shut.

You laughed unwillingly.

Suddenly becoming serious, he spoke again, “I’m so sorry, Y/N. I’m sorry I left you alone for so long. But I swear I never lied to you when I said I like you. I took a blade for you after all.”

You pushed his shoulder lightly but he still groaned through his chuckles.

“I swear I won’t leave you again,” he said quietly and sincerely. You nodded holding his hand tightly. He used what little strength he had to lift your hand to his lips and pecked the back of your hand.

“There,” your dad sighed. “He’ll be fine, nothing major.” Your dad walked to the head of the table, looking Jooheon in the eyes, “If you hurt my daughter you won’t be so fortunate next time,” he warned.

“Yes, Sir,” Jooheon gulped.

When your dad’s phone buzzed in his pocket, he stepped away from the table to take the call. You took note of his expressions, but he just kept nodding. Though the call didn’t last long.

“Seems we’re safe for now,” he announced putting his phone in his pocket again. “Though I think we’re going to have to do a bit of tidying up,” he exhaled. “You stay here and look after him,” he ordered you.

After everyone left, Jooheon spoke up, “come here.”

You moved closer to him hesitantly, not knowing what he was talking about.

“Closer,” he said. Then repeated himself again and again until he took matters into his own hands. He swung his arm around you to the small of your back, pulling you so close that your noses were practically touching. Lifting his head slightly, he crashed his lips on to yours. You kissed him back, smiling slightly against his lips. When you pulled away, Jooheon confessed, “I’ve missed you.”

You pecked him once of the lips, “I’ve missed you too.”

[annashipper]

Sojourner Anon Submission

I’m in a similar situation to the Confused Anon - I’ve known about Benedict Cumberbatch since 2007 (Atonement), and had seen him in a bunch of stuff over the years prior to Sherlock, but wasn’t impressed enough with his acting to take an interest in him until Doctor Strange and TLD (it helped that he was smoking hot in both of these - scruff really does wonders for his face). Naturally my first course of action was to go on a bender through Tumblr for a couple of months, which is how I wound up on skeptic blogs. I’d seen pictures of Benedict with his wife in the past (mostly from the 2015 awards season) and I was aware that there existed a faction of fans that didn’t like her - mostly because of something that had happened to a friend of mine about two years ago.

I don’t wanna go into too many details, since I don’t want to expose her to more hate, so I’ll keep it simple: she’s a huge Benedict fan, not a UK resident but got to stay there for a while back in 2015, during which time she saw Sophie and the baby at some kind of event she (my friend, that is) attended - something that got her torn apart by the skeptics. Now, I’ve known this woman for ages. I’ll grant you that she’s a nanny, but most of her friends are, at best, very casual fans. She’s not a BNF, nor an attention-seeker or a consummate liar, so I find it truly hard to believe she’d make up something like that. There was literally nothing for her to be gained by saying she’d seen Benedict’s wife and baby (I doubt she’s on his PR’s payroll, considering she’s not someone followed by a ton of fans or anything remotely close).

I’ve seen the uncensored pap pics where you can see the face of the child being carried. His resemblance to Benedict is almost uncanny, which is saying something because Benedict doesn’t exactly have a very common face. If they really did hire someone, they did one hell of a job finding a kid who looked like the biological son of both parents.

Furthermore, I agree with what Confused Anon had to say. It’s one thing to get your friends and family to cover for you, but this is a man who’s constantly surrounded by virtual strangers that don’t owe him shit. There’s nothing stopping them from going to the press, and yet not even CDAN will publish a blind contending Benedict’s children are a lie (when it had no problems publishing such things about other celebs).

And what happens down the line, if he did create a fake family? They’re too young right now, but in a few years Benedict’s gonna be expected to discuss funny anecdotes about his children on talk shows - like that cute gifset you recently shared, with all the Marvel actors saying how their kids were embarrassed by them. You can bet your ass someone’s gonna ask Benedict what his sons think about him being Doctor Strange, and people will wonder why he’s not bringing them on set like other Marvel actors… and later, he’ll have to start regularly showing up in public with them, or gossip rags are gonna wonder aloud how come he never brings his children to any public events, like others do with theirs.

I don’t pretend to know what spurred this relationship, although I do have a theory that he panicked as he was nearing 40 with no kids and just jumped at the first opportunity to be a father, maybe hoping he’d learn to love Sophie along the way. Sadly, I’ve met couples like that IRL… but I digress. Whatever the real reason, it can’t have involved a fake pregnancy, or he would’ve said “not mine” a long time ago and jumped ship. At this point, that kind of admission would destroy his public image and career for a very long time, possibly even for good, so unless Benedict is EXTREMELY stupid - and he doesn’t come off that way to me - there’d have to be at least one child.

And yes, I’ve seen the photo collages of her pregnancy. I too have been pregnant and given birth, but unlike the rest of your mom anons, I don’t think that makes me an authority on either pregnancies or babies. No self-respecting medical professional would opine on a stranger’s pregnancy by just looking at photos, and neither should laymen who only have anecdotal evidence at their disposal. In other words, sorry, but drawing outlines on pictures isn’t how gynecologists determine pregnancy.

I’ve seen how you react to people who disagree with you, so I just wanted to say upfront that I’m not really expecting a serious answer beyond a sarcastic gif or sending me to those archives that don’t actually answer anything. My infatuation with Benedict has already begun to subside (I mean, it’s been almost six months, there’s only so long I can fangirl). I had five minutes to burn on my daily commute and that Confused Anon was something of a catalyst, so I dropped you a line. Have a great day, Anna, I hope both you and Benedict find happiness in your lives. (Please accept my apologies if this comes out too long, incoherent or misspelled; English isn’t my first or even second language).

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Hi Sojourner Anon!

First off, since you’ve seen how I react to people who disagree with me, you probably already know enough to expect a serious answer from me when you’re being as cordial as you have been.  I reserve sarcasm and snark for the obviously baity Anons who’re just looking for trouble.

Anyway, as your submission has indeed come out a bit long, I’m going to try to keep this as short as possible and simply address the points you’re making in the order that you made them:

Regarding your friend and her being torn apart by Skeptics, I don’t expect you to be aware of this since you’ve only just recently discovered the Skeptical community for yourself, but we have a long standing rule about sightings.  They have to make sense (to at least be taken seriously) and they have to come with photographic evidence attached (to be believed and included in confirmed sightings).  As I don’t know what your friend saw and where, it is impossible for me to argue whether what she saw was legitimate or not.  The one sighting of Weirdo and Pilo at an event I can remember, is the one where Weirdo supposedly took (a very young) Pilo (at the time) to an Ian Mc Kellen reading, and that’s simply because there was a lot of back and forth about it being legit.  Skeptics who are much more social media savvy than I am and have far higher powers of Google Fu than I do were able to find multiple pictures from the inside of the venue and ... guess what:  No matter how many brunette women the Nans pointed to as being Weirdo, it turned out she wasn’t in the audience.  If this is not the sighting you’re alluding to, I would be more than happy to discuss this with you privately in case you’re inclined to provide me with more details.  

On the matter of your friend being torn apart by Skeptics, let me also add that I personally have never ventured outside of Tumblr for any reason whatsoever and have made it a point to try to deter my fellow Skeptics from doing so as well.  For the record, all real Skeptics know how to stay in our lane.  The ones who don’t are not considered real Skeptics (and yes, there are a number of trolls who have infiltrated the community since the beginning of this showmance and are posing as Skeptics just to make us look bad).

I’ve seen the unblurred pics of Rent-A-Pilo’s face too.  At first I had the same reaction as you did.  I thought Rent-A-Pilo looked remarkably similar to Ben and went on record saying so (on a post which I haven’t deleted, because I don’t delete posts).  Here is the LINK.  Notice how even immediately after seeing Rent-A-Pilo’s face for the first time and posting under shock I still didn’t believe Weirdo had gestated a real human baby?  I still don’t.  

Seeing how the pillows are only ever mentioned / trotted out when Daddy needs to sell a new project or Mommy throws a tantrum to get a new pap walk, I don’t believe they’re surrogate children either.  I just think they’re imaginary.  It goes hand in hand with the fact that Ben knows next to nothing about babies.  2 hour skyping sessions with a 5 month old, filthy props from a movie set being used as teethers by a 10 month old and babies eating sliced apples are only some of the things Ben doesn’t seem to understand are not the norm for children of Pilo’s age.  I won’t even mention the lack of bathtime.

I don’t think Ben is extremely stupid.  I think Ben is extremely desperate not to come off as a man who faked a relationship / engagement / wedding / pregnancy / fatherhood for an Oscar he didn’t even come close to winning because he simply chose an unstable famewhore to play the part of his red carpet girlfriend.

I have to say I’m disappointed you don’t see fit to counter any of the arguments we pose via the bump comparisons you mentioned seeing as you’ve obviously studied them.  I have been posting / reblogging / arguing using these bump comparisons as evidence that Weirdo faked the first pregnancy for the better part of the past two years and not a single Anon has ever offered a convincing counter-argument regarding how ridiculous Weirdo looked with a bump that kept inflating / deflating / changing shapes / inflating again / folding over / disappearing altogether / inflating again / staying the same size during the last trimester of that weird pregnancy.  I would really like to hear your thoughts on that if you feel inclined to have a mature back and forth about it.  Be forewarned:  arguments such as “I can’t accept anyone would be crazy enough to fake a pregnancy like that while being papped left and right” and anecdotal evidence such as “my sister’s friend’s mother’s cousin’s (twice removed) never developed breasts / never got swollen ankles / belly kept deflating / bellybutton kept popping out and in and out again, etc” won’t be taken seriously.  For obvious reasons.

I hope the above answers some of your questions about my take on this showmance and I apologise for getting a bit snarky regarding the pregnancy that never was on my last paragraph, but faking that pregnancy is a very sensitive subject for me personally.

I have a couple of very close friends who have been trying to conceive and I know how taxing it’s been on them.  Let’s just say a famewhore faking a pregnancy just to establish herself in the public eye rubs me the wrong way.  

It’s why I keep coming back to the first pregnancy (which we got to document through numerous pap walks unlike the second one), it’s why I’ll keep calling Weirdo ... weirdo and it’s why I intend on remaining an active Skeptic for the foreseeable future.

Apologies to everyone reading this blog as I think my answer to Sojourner Anon may actually be longer than her submission was.  What can I say?  I’m a rambler...

[letsprayitwritesitself]

how jack and davey accidentally (and then not) ended up spending all their valentines days together

February 14th 2014

davey

will u hate me if i ask if ur free rn

why would i hate you

i dont want to assume

happy v day

wow jack

i’m actually on two dates right now

mrs doubtfire style

what’s up

she dumped me

on the phone

half an hour ago

come over

‘Do you want to talk about it?’ Davey led Jack through to the living room, glancing cautiously over his shoulder to try and gauge his friend’s mood.

‘No. Yeah. Not really.’ Jack slumped on the couch, clutching his paper grocery bag to his chest. Davey perched on the armrest. ‘I just. Like, I knew it wasn’t serious, whatever. But you can have a fun valentines with someone you’re not serious about! I did it all the time in middle school!’

‘Maybe she thought it was a bigger deal than it was?’

‘That’s what I tried to tell her! But you can’t try and convince a girl to go out with you when she doesn’t want to. Learnt that in middle school, too.’

‘So it’s over?’

‘I think so. She said that she got the impression we were moving too fast - which we weren’t - and she wanted to cool off.’

‘That’s not the end of the world, right?’

‘Nah. I don’t know. How many good relationships start like that?’

‘I think valentines must have just freaked her out, Jack. Happens to a lot of people.’

‘We’ll see. I’m thinking I’m maybe just a little infatuated with her, right? Talk to me in a few days and I’ll be back to normal.’

‘So tonight isn’t an I-hate-girls-bros-before-hos thing?’

‘Almost. Still want you to indulge me.’ Jack tipped up the bag on to the couch. A pint of ice cream, a six pack of beer, and a thing of chips ahoy bounced out.

‘I actually found my copy of Mrs. Doubtfire. Thought it might help.’

‘God damn it. It’s perfect.’ He grabbed the DVD from Davey and started setting it up while Davey headed into the kitchen. He called through. ‘And Dave?’

‘Yeah?’

‘Anyone asks, we both had smoking hot dates for tonight, alright? And not with each other.’

‘Got it.’

//

‘Stop hogging it, oh my god.’

‘Shut up, you’re making me miss it!’

‘You know what happens, Dave! Gimme.’ Jack grabbed the tub and triumphantly started digging out some cookie dough. Davey let him have it. They had sunk down into the couch under Davey’s comforter with a million pillows for company. Orange street light filtered through the blinds. It was only nine o clock.

‘Forgot to ask the most important question, Davey Jacobs.’ Jack poked him with the end of his spoon. ‘Why don’t you have plans tonight?’

‘Ah. Like, I kind of... I don’t know. Don’t wanna force plans just cause of the day, you know? If I had a person, that’d be great. But I don’t, so. Just another Friday!’

‘No-one caught your eye?’

‘Not really? I mean. The guy who gets my coffee at Starbucks every morning, like, we’re on semi-first name terms. But then, he wears a name badge, so. Yeah, no-one. But I don’t mind!’

‘You don’t wanna be set up or anything, right?’

‘God, no. What happens, happens. What doesn’t doesn’t.’ 

‘So fricken mature, Jacobs. Shame we can’t all be Race and Spot.’

‘What, fall in love after making eye contact but pretend to be casual?’

‘You know Spot made them a reservation for tonight? He made it in October.’

‘Oh, my heart. See, that’s the thing. If I found someone the way those two did, then I’d do the Valentines thing. ‘Til then I’m saving all the stress of... trying to romance someone.’

‘And you get to hang out with me.’

‘Oh yeah. How much am I getting paid for babysitting again?’

‘Funny guy, Davey. Now, listen, cuz this is important.’

‘Shoot.’

‘Do you have Aladdin?’

‘Of course I have Aladdin.’

February 14th 2015

‘And he said that going out on Valentines day felt too much like forcing something to happen. I swear to god. Can’t make eye contact with anyone whole month of February or they’ll think you’re trying to marry ‘em.’

‘So you’re not going out at all?’

‘We’re going out tomorrow. I mean. One day different! Same bar, same drink, same Jack Kelly trying to get into his pants. Just twenty four hours difference.’

‘It’s nice that you didn’t let this quirk stop you from trying to get laid.’

‘He’s still pretty much the hottest guy I know.’

‘Do you know what he’s doing tonight?’

‘I bet you anything he’s doing that kind of... the thing where you burn your ex’s underwear. Polaroids.’

‘Way less cliche than our Valentines day spent scarfing ice cream and pretending we weren’t crying over Robin Williams.’

‘God. Palentine’s day 2014. That should be a thing.’

‘That should be a thing!’

‘I mean. It’s slightly becoming a thing.’ Jack tipped out his backpack to reveal an exact duplicate of their snacks from the year before. ‘Can’t lie, Dave, I’m starting to wonder if this is better than doing real Valentines.’

‘Yeah?’

‘Not that, you know, I’m triumphant that you’ve been abandoned or anything.’

‘Oh, of course not. Your cheer on the other end of the phone said that much.’

‘When’s he back?’

‘Tomorrow.’

Davey’s Starbucks barista had turned into Davey’s something else, asking him out the day he quit the coffee shop to put his marketing degree to use. Davey, shocked that his idle daydreams about this guy who made his coffee could actually be manifested in real life, said yes.

Well, it was before his coffee, so he had actually said something like uhhwhatyeahsureyes. 

And that had been eight months previous. Evan had slotted effortlessly into Davey’s life, doing the date thing, meeting his parents, weekends away, only kind of slightly stealing Davey from Jack (like that was the kind of thing Jack would notice anyway.) 

Because Jack had, since the last Valentine’s day, well - he had almost become involved with a number of people. Unsure what he wanted, he went on dates, slept with people, not always in that order, flirted with girls and guys on a daily basis and even started tipping his baristas more after seeing Davey’s success - but he hadn’t found his person. That was okay, he didn’t mind. He was still a kid, in his head. He had forever to be tied down. Did miss hanging out with Davey, though.

So when Davey had phoned to say that Evan had been called away last minute for an overnight conference, it took Jack roughly two seconds to get excited about reprising their bittersweet Robin Williams carb fest from the year before. He, of course, waited before posing it, listening to Davey whine just a little about how he was going to miss Evan, before picking the right moment to tell Davey about the guy he’d asked out - the one who told him any day but Valentine’s. And so they found themselves again on Davey’s couch, illuminated by the TV, slumped in onesies, digging into some Ben and Jerry’s.

‘Got him anything good?’

‘I got him this gin he likes. Some socks. I’m... I’m thinking about giving him a key.’

‘A key?’

‘I mean, like, to my apartment. Not just a random key.’

‘You’re so fuckin... grown up.’

‘I know!’ Davey looked over at Jack, grinning. Jack was enraptured by the TV. The lion was chasing the kids through the house.

‘I really hate this part. Terrified me when I was a kid.’

‘Me too.’ Davey turned back to the screen. Between them somewhere on the comforter, his phone lit up, drawing both their attentions.

Evan Abrams facetime.

Davey looked up at Jack, who was staring at the phone. ‘Sorry, Jack. I’ll be quick, okay?’

‘Ah, you crazy kids.’ Jack picked up the cookies and paused the movie as Davey picked up the call, hurrying into the kitchen. 

Things that weren’t weird: getting annoyed when your best friend’s boyfriend interrupted your Valentine’s bro date.

Even as he thought this, he had trouble believing it.

February 14th 2016

Wait -

January 20th 2016

Jack’s place. Wednesday night. Home from work. Long day. Roommate out. Slippers and Mad Men. Around nine, a knock on the door.

Davey stood, leaning against the wall, eyes red rimmed, staring into space. Jack watched him bite his lip, blink, open his mouth.

‘He’s been sleeping with his boss. For about a year, now.’ He looked up and into Jack’s eyes. ‘It’s over.’

It was freezing cold and it had been dark for hours. Jack opened his arms and Davey swayed forward into them, hiding his face in Jack’s neck, leaning on him as Jack squeezed him tight. Jack realised, as he stared out into the street and thought about the hollow, manic look in Davey’s eyes, he’d never seen his best friend cry. Davey felt almost horrible in his arms, stiff and shuddering.

‘Come on, you’re freezing.’

Davey followed him in silently, collapsing heavily on the couch when Jack gestured for him to sit. 

‘Do you wanna talk about it? You don’t have to.’

He knew Evan was a shit. Well. He didn’t really. But he had definitely thought that Evan’s whole thing reeked of too-good-to-be-true - a marketing exec who wore fitted suits and didn’t believe in lazy Sundays. And he combed his hair every single day, like, what was that? That is to say that he could see why Davey had fallen for him, but from the outside looking in? Davey could do better. Evan wasn’t... real. That was it. Evan’s demeanour was always so practised and so perfect that it made total sense he would be hiding something huge. Not that Jack would tell Davey this.

‘We went out tonight. To the bar on Elizabeth Street. And, um.’ Davey rubbed his forehead, squeezing his eyes shut. ‘We had like five or six rounds. I think maybe he wanted to be drunk. I am. Shit. So drunk.’ He squinted out into the room. Jack was sitting next to him on the couch, watching him sink into the cushions. ‘And then he just came out with it. We must have been in this bar talking like everything was okay for two hours before he said it. The conferences. Like, they were real. But his boss was there too. I feel like such a...’ Davey covered his face with his hands. ‘I can’t believe I thought I was enough for him.’

February 14th 2016

‘So I’ve got Hook, Dead Poet’s Society, and Night at the Museum,’ Davey announced as he walked in. ‘We thinking chronological, alphabetical?’

‘Reverse alphabetical. I need to warm up with Night at the Museum before I can even think about those fricken dead poets.’

Over the last twelve months Jack had enjoyed a number of romantic encounters. He’d gone steady with one girl for two months and even enjoyed a couple of fourth dates with different people before the inevitable fizzling started. Still not desperate he’d tried to focus on his art and maybe finding a better job than his restaurant gig, sure that when a person that was right for him came along, he’d know about it.

Over the last twelve months Davey had been going from strength to strength with Evan. They had moved in together, merged DVD collections, all that good stuff. This had given Jack a lot of time to think about why he just... didn’t love Evan, and he had come up with a fair few reasons. The most troubling of these came as a slow realisation that Davey was too good for him. Way too good. 

He started measuring up potential dates next to Davey. Started to get these little twinges in his stomach when Davey entered the room. And it felt good to indulge so he started to let himself stare a little at Davey’s mouth when he talked, his hands when he wrote or held a beer or just kind of anything, his face just all the time but especially when he got excited about stuff. 

That’s to say that Jack had been harbouring a very minor, very unimportant... crush for about eight or nine months now. But it was fine. Because Davey was with someone. And their friendship was important to him. It made way more sense for them to stay friends while they dated and had sex with and broke up with other people - Relationships were messy.

He wasn’t happy per se when Davey and Evan ended things, but he knew that Davey was better off out of it. And he hated that as he sat consoling Davey the night it happened, he was trying to make sense of his feelings for him. 

He kept Valentine’s free on purpose, excited that it was theirs, with or without romantic complications.

Valentine’s day fell about three weeks after Davey broke up with Evan. Evan’s stuff was gone from his apartment, selfies deleted from his phone, new hangout spots found that wouldn’t remind him of their time together. It was hard trying to get used to being single so quickly - he noticed the lack of welcoming kisses to come home to, and the casual lingering touches. He missed them, even if he knew that most of their relationship had been built on lies. But Jack was an excellent ally in single life, and having their newfound Valentine’s day tradition definitely helped take the sting out.

‘You’re so smart.' He put the movie in and took his seat next to Jack. Jack handed him a beer. Easy, reliable, comfortable silence.

Or it was comfortable silence, until an hour into the movie when Jack realised Davey had barely made a noise - not even a quiet huff of laughter. He looked across to see Davey focused on his drink, silently tapping a fingertip against the neck of the bottle, worrying his bottom lip between his teeth.

‘Dave?’

‘Mmm?’

‘What’s up?’

‘What? Nothing. Sorry.’

‘Come on.’

‘I just. I miss him. And I know I shouldn’t. I know he was an asshole. Still.’

‘That’s natural. It takes time, right?’

‘Right. Right. It’s just - crazy how you can be with someone. And then just. Not.’

Jack had tried so hard to tell Davey how the problem wasn’t with him - it was with Evan not knowing what a good thing he had. And yet dumb Davey kept thinking that if he had done something differently, been someone else, Evan wouldn’t have cheated on him. Jack just... wanted Davey to understand how perfect he was.

‘I’m sorry. I know I’m being really boring.’

Because the thing was that Davey would always carry this little flame of self-doubt, if Jack didn’t try his hardest to extinguish it. He’d always think that he needed to be more than he was, instead of being able to trust that the other person liked him anyway. How to let Davey know without pushing it?

‘Hey now. Shut up. You’re allowed to be emo, Dave.’ Jack paused the movie and stood up. ‘Come on. Get up.’

‘What?’

‘Up! We’re going out.’

‘Out where?’

‘Just outside for five minutes, Davey. Trust me, come on.’

Davey stared up at him from the couch, intrigued, sceptical, and aware that Jack was a stubborn asshole and thus inclined to co-operate.

They walked around the block, Jack leading Davey through comically exaggerated breathing exercises that sounded like they’d come from a second-rate birthing instructor.

‘Breathe out that negative energy and low self-esteem and bullshit... Breathe in the potential of the city, and the - the romance in the air, and I don’t fuckin know, the moonlight.’

Davey snorted. ‘The moonlight?’

‘I’m tryin’ my best!’

The smile was foreign and amazing on Davey’s face. They were standing outside his front door. Jack in front of him, lit up from behind by a streetlight, took Davey’s shoulders in his hands.

‘Davey, listen up. You’re the best guy I know. It really hurts to see you so cut up about this. But I know it won’t be long ‘til you meet someone better, who sees how important and special you are, alright? ‘Til then you’re stuck with me, of course, but beggars can’t be choosers.’ He watched Davey for his reaction. Had he gone too far?

Davey pulled him into a hug. He wrapped his arms around Jack and squeezed tight, sagging into him when Jack hugged back. He kept kept kept holding Jack for a couple of minutes, like he was trying to figure something out about the way their chests were pressed together. The longer they stood there together the more Jack started to wonder if he was really on to something, and if Davey was beginning to understand. He would never try to push his best friend into anything he wasn’t ready for and hell, maybe didn’t even want - but this closeness, it said something. Their breathing synced up. Jack could feel warmth radiating from Davey’s skin.

Davey took half a step back, like he was thinking about maybe preparing to end the hug. Their faces next to each other, heads in woolly hats connected temple to temple, Jack’s scratchy stubble on his cheek. He spoke into Jack’s ear.

‘Thanks, Jack.’

Jack smiled bittersweet, thinking that he’d stay in this embrace as long as Davey would let him. Davey inched back, just a little, and all Jack could comprehend was how their mouths were mere inches apart, centimetres even. Was Davey - could they -?

Davey didn’t know what he was doing. He was fizzing inside from Jack’s words and had hugged him to say thank you, but there was something in how Jack’s arms effortlessly held him so tight and for so long, that made him want to stay forever. Jack’s skin against his, Jack’s breath on his ear, his familiar smell. He had always been there.

He rested their foreheads together and Jack didn’t stop him. ‘Jack.’

Jack’s eyes were trained on Davey’s mouth. This was new. They were edging out of friend territory. He barely had the presence of mind to wonder if Davey should even be thinking about kissing him - he was too busy hoping that he was.

When they finally kissed it was sweet and searching and only lasted a couple of seconds. Jack didn’t want to push and Davey was still unsure. It was sublime. A moment of tentatively pressing their lips together followed by another of Davey chasing the sensation, bringing one hand round to cup Jack’s cheek, check he was real. When Jack pulled back, his breath hitched at Davey’s shining eyes. He dared to touch Davey’s face, run his fingertips down his cheek and over his lips.

‘Now you know.’ It came out a whisper. Davey nodded, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath in.

‘We should get inside.’ They finally stepped away from each other, but before leading Jack back in Davey reached out, picking up his hand and holding it tight.

February 14th 2017

Jack combed his fingers through Davey’s hair, grinning at the sated, sleepy expression on his face. Davey blushed under the gaze of his gross, sweaty boyfriend, pulling him down for a long kiss. 

They had woken up the morning of February 15th 2016 the way they always did, tangled up in a comforter on Davey’s couch, sun struggling through the curtains to land on their faces. Usually, however, they weren’t tangled up in each other at the same time. The night before had seen them muddle through their emotions in a halting conversation which saw Davey admitting that being close to Jack felt right, and natural, and normal. This admittance led to Jack readily opening his arms again and letting a confused Davey lay his head on his chest. In the twilight nothing seemed solid. They could deal with it all later. 

Davey, off to work at eight thirty, left Jack sound asleep, texting him instead of waking him.

can we hang out later? ok if you’re busy. let me know when you finish work.

Three hundred and sixty five days of taking it slow later and Jack was still trying to show Davey how their leap of faith was worth it, a fact Davey well knew, but he wasn’t about to stifle Jack’s enthusiasm. Having Jack Kelly as a boyfriend was like having a cheerleader and a lover all rolled into one best-friend-shaped package and yes, Davey had been reticent at the start, so soon after breaking up with Evan, but Jack had been patient, and sincere, and suddenly it was already their first anniversary.

It was only 10pm when they got home from their meal, Jack having beaten even Spot in booking them a table months in advance, and around midnight when they collapsed on to Davey’s bed, exhausted, thrilled, and very naked.

‘I love you so god damn much.’ How good it felt to finally say those words out loud instead of screaming them in his head!

‘I love you too, you giant nerd.’ Davey gripped Jack’s hand to his chest. ‘I’m really glad we started that Valentine’s thing three years ago, too. I keep thinking how happy I am that girl dumped you.’

‘You sweet talker, Dave. I actually keep thinking about how we never finished that movie last year.’

‘Night at the Museum?’

‘That’s the one.’ Jack raised his eyebrows. ‘Seems a shame to discard our old traditions just ‘cause we’ve found some new activities.’

‘You’re serious? Naked Palentine’s day?’

‘Yes! Get your ass up!’ Jack jumped up, whisking away the comforter from where it had been kicked to the foot of the bed. He reached out to pull Davey up. ‘Come on, those nights were almost perfect, right?’

‘Almost perfect?’

‘Too many clothes.’ He wrapped the comforter around their shoulders and they padded as one into the living room.

[sugar-petals]

Cuddling With SuperM

↳ ❤︎ CARO’S NOTE: their concept is all about badassery i know but we’re dealing with seven angels so let’s talk about that shall we

warnings ⚠️ some light teasing, innuendo

length: 1.5k

taeyong

am i really telling you something ground-breaking with this:

so this guy’s truly adorable

turns into a baby what else is new

draws his knees to his chest and just enjoys the ride with his eyes closed

you can do whatever the hell you want

back rubs, head pats, foot massages, caressing the neck or underneath the chin which is particularly sweet

and a whole lot of tickling he’s kinda obsessed with this

excellent chef he is, taeyong enjoys preparing snacks for a set cuddling time or movie night

so what if this turns into feeding each other basically are you ready for that

this guy’s impossible face up close is hard to bear for the faint-hearted just mentioning that in passing here

because… he has that one yearning expression and his eye contact is very steady

bit of a duality here huh

but worry not because taeyong’s tiger inside is more of a cat actually, tyongkitty behavior guaranteed right there

he does do friendly head buts and yeah the eye contact is also a cat thing now that i think about it… it all makes sense now

ten, baekhyun, lucas and taemin are pretty cocky types of cuddlers, taeyong leads the more subdued fraction in super m

it’s the kind of cuddling that needs rainy weather and a cup of tea

ten

quality time right here

banter is always included ofc

or at least a lot of talk because with ten, conversation and cuddles go together

likes pets joining, three’s a party, a cat can always make a snuggly contribution

add a ball of wool to play around

like. a-you, a-me, and a cat right in between ya see

music is always playing in the background, always

ten’s body is very sensual… you can tell he’s a dancer by the way he’s adapting, how he’s feeling it, how he moves in general

the reflexes are just so different he has great feeling for what you wanna do next it’s his bodily intuition and he just goes along with it

what you gotta tell him though is to keep it lowkey with keeping his jazzy outfits on

a hoodie cuddles better than high fashion and spiked jackets

plus he looks adorably small in it so two birds with one stone

never forget ten is really tiny that sure makes a difference

reluctant little spoon, he keeps it face-to-face or sleeps on his back

ten is glad to be approached with hugs he’s not always doing the initiative

shy thailand angel ikr

but don’t complain if he farts because he absolutely will

goddammit chittaphon

kai

if it’s without a plushie something’s going wrong it always needs one

his favorite teddy’s gotta participate y’know he’s a social creature

in this home we don’t discriminate against plush bears

and yeah, his bear ear hoodie likewise he is sure to put it on

jongin tends to be rather taciturn because he wants to enjoy the body-to-body sensations

meaning, don’t interpret his frequent silence as awkwardness he’s just observing

is not above teasing… if his outfit is showing some skin he’ll invite you to touch the area

also enjoys you putting your hands under his sweater

he’s laughing like crazy and kicking his legs all giggly if you put your head underneath it and let it roam oh la la

yeah nini likes some wit to it for sure, and some steaminess in the mix it’s just a natural byproduct if we’re honest

dim the lights down low for this one…

but also light the candles alright

cuddling is more of a soft and steady thing there’s not much position changes going on

this is the couch not the dancefloor your honor

while we’re talking about that: jongin is a buff biatch my god

prep a water bottle to chug when you’re cuddling this guy is effortlessly hot

also know that kai will almost definitely snap a picture of you huddled together for the memory of it

baekhyun

unlike his memes, baekhyun’s cuddling behaviour is entirely predictable

will snuggle against your shoulder by default pretty much that’s his favorite area

stays glued there for two hours if you’re not busy

im not kidding

needless to say he needs a partner who can handle this level of clinginess

baekhyun can’t keep his hands to himself in general

neither can you

it’s groping x cuddling these two are a dead sure combination

keen to snuggle casually while he’s gaming, cross-legged on the ground with you massaging his back

likes to lay his head into your lap, too.

baekhug i mean back hug enthusiast. something inside his face has an inbuilt magnet that sucks him into the space between your collar bones

especially when you’re at the stove cooking

caution: love bites. lots of them. does this count as cuddles? probably. it’s not like he’s eating you or is he. oop—

what am i saying all he does is nibble alright

and oh yeah bring on the sweater weather. he can’t stay still in bed it’s gonna be a pillowfort building session though

you gotta exhaust him until he naps off lmao!

energizer bunny bf

mark

enjoys being fed watermelon during the process how else could it be

wait until this guy hears what harry styles’ watermelon sugar is all about his world will never be the same again

anyway

he’ll look so cute in his striped shirt and his round glasses awh

cuddling is his favorite way to show his trust and affection before all else

his favorite time to cuddle is before going to sleep

he usually hugs pillows so you can tell how clingy he winds up as

mark really sleeps and dreams better if you do that it has an astounding effect. cuddles are his perfect recharging if you will it’s just that he’s actually calming down through it whereas he can be nervous throughout the day so he needs that downtime

spooning is a given

what he enjoys the most about it is the warmth

markie easily gets cold sometimes he just needs that tune-up with you he’s like blink blink there goes my dose of daily heat beep beep

what the fuck

anyway again

talk about tune

just like ten he’s very talkative all the way verbal stimulation and mark lee just go together

if you compare him to taeyong there’s not much of a transformation going on mark lee on two legs is the same mark lee during cuddles it’s all copy paste

all in all a delectable experience, extremely cute and heart-melting, super m truly has a super mark

taemin

much like xuxi he has that permanent smile on his lips that tries to make you laugh

in fact taemin is hard to stop with his puns and his humor

ffs he is a true brat

taems can’t help but try to escalate this into a playfight every time

not that he doesn’t enjoy the calmer types of cuddling but he needs some action in the sack

enjoys praise along the way who are we kidding

the clothes you both cuddle in are very important alright, the fabric in particular

taemin keeps it expensive here it’s just the way he rolls

satin my dear

it’s just so satisfying to the touch

but also beware of his most lethal clothing choice which brings out his innate maknae charm the most

THE FLUFFY TURTLENECK

gyeahh

which he will use during special occasions to turn you into a cuddle monster ready to pounce him

give it up for shinee my loves they taught him well and sent him out to fluff up the world

what else is there okay we also gotta mention that cuddling consists of many little kisses here and there

taemin wants to get absolutely peppered

he is and stays a prince

lucas

ideal body type for cuddling except that it needs the right place, not the environment but the spot i mean, you can imagine

lucas can explode any smol-size couch or bed

don’t even think about trying to cuddle on regular chairs my god why would you live so dangerously

king size por favor

there is a lot to cuddle against it’s really a whole wonderland

those big ole thighs are practical cushions for anything really.

and his face is just so amicable it has to be kithed

his hands… his hands! you will feel maximum protection with those giant baby fingers around your hips i’m telling you

admittedly yukhei is hard to properly hug around the shoulders obviously that’s a drawback but hey his waist is lithe and tiny so hello there, very inviting

oh, that infectious smile.

serious cuddling: 0 — funny cuddles: over 9,000

and tasty cuddles because foodcas brings some fried rice every time oh yum

hates to go to work he really prioritizes you and cuddles go on for long long hours especially when you watch your favorite series

xuxi goes the extra mile, he will touch your hair a lot, just gently combing through it

and he doesn’t mind it when you do the same, he’s got the most angelic blonde locks after all

lu calls you beautiful all the time the cheesy mf is really pulling the standard compliment alright

cue jonas brothers sucker for you

ugh, boyfriend

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