#apologizing for not uploading for so long and that he’ll get right back to if when he gets a new camera if his fans send him money

[shatterspin]

bonus

[raisin-shell]

Hello, idk if you still do requests or not but I was wondering how you think each of the turtles would react to donnie having a human girlfriend? I always liked the idea of the nerdy turtle being the first one to pull and him just being so smug about it 😫

Love your work btw! Bayverse turtles for life 🤟

Ooohhhhh snap! Donnie boy being the first to land a lady?!? Holy bat balls let’s get into it!

Leonardo

Naturally being the leader and also playing the “big brother” role… Leonardo would be very wary and standoffish. He would worry nonstop about this human girlfriend.

“What are her intentions?”

“Are you sure she can keep us secret?”

“Are you sure you’re not just a novelty to her?”

All types of questions he’d have for Donnie among others. Not that he doesn’t trust his brother’s judgment but he knows that female persuasion could lead to some not so thought out actions. It would take Leo a long time to warm up to this new girlfriend but once he does, he’d welcome her with open arms. He loves his little brother and as such wants him to be happy.

Raphael

Good lord if you looked up jealousy in the dictionary Raph’s photo would be right damn there! He absolutely can not believe his nerd brother pulled a girl before him. Only him though. Not his other brothers.

“What’s he got that I don’t got?”

“She must be desperate.”

“He’ll fuck this up I’m sure. No way she’s that into that pip squeak when she could have all this.”

He flexes his muscles as everyone rolls their eyes. He gets pissed off anytime she shows him affection. Locks himself away in his weight area to keep from having to see all the lovey dovey shit. He absolutely can’t stand that Donnie has a girlfriend and he doesn’t.

Michelangelo

Mikey… oh mikey…. He can’t keep a straight face long enough to not embarrass the ever loving shit out of his brother. Says or asks embarrassing questions in front of Donnie’s s/o.

“So… are you two like you know…. Doing the nasty yet? Hmmmm?”

“Is Donnie a good kisser? He used to practice on his pillow when he thought no one was looking.”

“I just uploaded a bunch of Donnie’s baby photos… there’s this one where he colored his entire crotch area with purple marker! Probably why dad chose that as his color… wanna take a look?”

Alas… mikey always manages to embarrass the crap out of Donnie when his girl is around. He means well but… dammit Mikey!!

Donatello

Donnie with a girlfriend would actually be pretty shy about it at first… AT FIRST. But once it’s worn of the newness he becomes a lot more cocky about it. When Raph starts his shit he’s quick to snap back at him. When Leo gets on his case, he’s stern yet reassuring. When Mikey gets on his nerves he simply states some other thing that will equally embarrass the hell out of his little brother in front of a girl which turns out is fairly easy. He’s very proud of his girlfriend and proud of himself.

“Gosh Leonardo, you’re never going to get a girlfriend with that attitude!”

“What do I got that you don’t Raph? A massive penis. Gigantic…. And a fucking brain.”

“Yes Mikey since it’s story time how about we tell her about how you used to eat your own snot when you thought no one was looking? That actually still happened up until recently.”

Also thank you! And I apologize it took so long @senjuroprotectionsquad

[spandexinspace]

But you shouldn't listen to her.

Sequel time. Sort of. Follow up to "Mother Says", will be edited a final time and uploaded to AO3 at a later date.

___________________________________________

At first Querl figures Lyle will come around soon enough and concede that the logic to his argument is sound despite its unfortunate trigger. That he’ll agree that Querl was right all along. It won’t be the clean, near-painless end Querl had imagined, not with his mind already burning with every treacherous thought it can conjure up, endlessly repeating every word from their last conversation, but it’ll be an end.

But what starts as a day stretches into two, then three. Querl doesn’t leave the lab, buries himself in work that’s not nearly advanced enough to keep him from thinking about other matters, the spectre of things to come always present in his mind. Though he doesn’t normally dream he refrains from sleeping, unsure and, as much as he hates to admit it, a little afraid of what could come of it.

On the fourth day he finally gives in to the itching curiosity and ventures out to the monitor board to check the team roster. It’s late enough in the evening that most of his teammates are preoccupied with other matters, leaving only Dirk to keep watch over the wide array of monitors in the room. He’s sitting with his back turned towards the door as Querl enters, as oblivious as ever. The main monitor shows that there are two away teams, a total of ten people including Lyle, with one seemingly being engaged in something planetside and the other being labelled as off-world. Usually that means they are operating outside of a named territory. Potentially very far away.

"How long has the off-world team been away?" Querl asks Dirk, who seems much more interested in figuring out at what angle his chair will tip over than actually monitoring anything.

"Two days, maybe? Shouldn't you know?" he says, craning his neck to look back at Querl.

"It’s not my job to keep track of other Legionnaires.”

“Like you’re not just keeping track of your sprock-buddy.” It would take so little effort to kick that chair out from under him and watch that smug face get wiped off his face. Or at least to use a force field to do it. But it would take even less effort for Dirk to retaliate — Querl wouldn’t put it past him to do that — and he would rather avoid the inconvenience that could introduce at a time like this.

“Did I ask for your opinion, Sun Boy?” Querl asks instead, settling for glaring at him, though Dirk seems infuriatingly unaffected by his odium.

“Oh sorry, mom, I thought we lived in a free country.”

“This isn’t a country. And don’t call me that!” Querl turns on his heel to leave, and if Dirk shouts something that sounds suspiciously like ‘sincerest apologies, mother’ after him he pretends he didn’t hear it. What a sprocking prick. As if any of this is any of his business in the first place.

Another three days crawl by in an excruciatingly slow fashion, every minute seeming to stretch out into hours of painful wait, filled to the brim with uneasy anticipation.

Gates drops by the lab at some point, ranting about one injustice or another. It’s not an effective distraction, few things really are when Querl’s mind is set on something, but it’s easy enough to let him ramble on, to only interject a question here and there. Gates doesn’t ask difficult, invasive questions and doesn’t concern himself with their biped drama. It’s a nice reprieve.

Other than Gates’ visit there are unusually few distractions. Some of his other teammates come by to ask their usual inane questions, but none linger. Luornu is thankfully also with the away team, removing her sometimes far too prying eyes and ideas of supposed siblinghood from his life. Her concern comes in waves, he suspects her different selves don’t quite agree on how much of a nass they should give about him, but when she’s determined to bother him she rarely just lets things go. Querl is thankful for the relief. He’ll have to confront the rest of them one day, but it seems easier to do that at another time.

Almost 170 hours pass before Lyle returns to the lab. Querl, finally buried deep enough in his work to almost block out every other thought and idea and how tired he should be, doesn’t notice him until he’s standing next to him, a dark spectre at the edge of his vision.

“Lyle,” he says, snapping up from the monitor in front of him, fumbling to pause the near-endless scroll of input of data on it.

“Yeah, hi, we need to talk. Preferably somewhere slightly more comfortable than right here.” Lyle smiles tightly. There’s a smear of something grey across his cheek and dark rings under his eyes, his entire presens radiating an unsettling energy. Querl squirms in his seat. An urge to reach out, to take his hands in his own and tell him that everything will be OK, almost overtakes the rational part of Querl’s mind, clashing against it like rough waves against a surge gate. It’s selfish, it won’t help him in the long run, he tells himself.

“Where would that be?” he asks instead, standing up.

“Living area of your quarters?” Querl nods deftly and lets Lyle lead the way from the lab to his adjacent quarters.

Well inside Lyle gingerly sits down on the small, dark-grey couch in the centre of the room, though not before having to move a stack of folded blueprints out of the way. The couch is not comfortable and as far as Querl knows hasn’t served as much more than extra storage space since that was confirmed, but he suspects that’s not the main reason why Lyle looks so uneasy, sitting there with his legs and arms crossed and a resolute expression on his face. Clearing and taking the seat on the other side of the couch Querl feels the unease envelop him too as he lingers on the far edge of the seat, as if ready to spring up at any moment. He looks towards Lyle, fidgeting with his flight ring as he waits for him to say something.

“I suppose hoping for you to start was too much to ask for.” Lyle sighs. “Are we still doing this?”

“This?” Querl asks, his mind running through at least a dozen ideas of what ‘this’ could entail. The conversation, the previous conversation, their acquaintanceship as a whole…

“You know exactly what I mean,” Lyle says, uncrossing his arms to gesture towards him. “Breaking up, taking your sprocking mother’s advice. This entire idiotic thing.”

“Why is me caring about you all of a sudden idiotic?”

“Because you’re framing it like you care about me, but you’re refusing to listen to what I’m actually saying! I’m not ready to give up on this, us, but you seem so damn intent on it all of a sudden.” Lyle doesn’t get it, he’s focusing on the wrong things again, acting like this whole thing is on Querl. As if it can not be true just because his mother brought it up.

“It’s not about what I want, it’s about what has the most beneficial outcome in the long run. And we have no evidence that this is it.” Surely Lyle, of all people, should be able to understand that.

“What kind of evidence could there be? Do you want to peer review our relationship? Perhaps create a control group and apply for a grant?”

“Be serious. Evidence that this kind of relationship can even have a favourable outcome in the first place. We’re not a common coupling, perhaps there’s a reason for that.”

“Oh? Could that reason be that there are like twelve Coluans living off-world and most of them are centuries older than you?” Lyle asks. Despite the edge of mockery in his voice he’s not wrong. Most Coluans aren’t cleared to go off-world until they’re a lot older than him, and most of them are taught to keep to themselves. He is, as he so often is, an anomaly in that regard. But it doesn’t matter, it doesn’t disprove the untested nature of their relationship.

“That’s not what I meant.”

Lyle falls quiet and Querl risks meeting his stare, dark and rimmed and looking almost as tired as he feels, swirling with something desperate. When Lyle speaks again it’s in a lower voice, devoid of the earlier edge.

“Querl, I love you. I’ve loved you for years and I knew what I was getting into when I started dating you,” he says. “This is absurd. I don’t need you to act like you’re saving me something.”

“What do you need?”

"I need you to trust me enough to talk to me about these things, and to trust my opinion over your mother’s. There's no point in us being together if you can't do that." Querl fumbles for words, his mind drowning in engulfing dark brown eyes and venomous thoughts he shouldn’t listen to, telling him he should just go along with it. He looks away.

“Discussing certain subjects could be hurt- or even harmful,” he says, biting back anything but the bare logic. His feelings don’t matter, won’t change the pain he’s capable of causing, he has to ignore them.

“And you think this isn’t hurtful?” Lyle’s voice rises again. “You think I’ve been having a great week of not feeling like shit because my relationship started falling apart out of nowhere?”

"It was not my intention to hurt you."

"Which is a great thought, but your intentions don’t mean nass if this is what you’re doing with them. You can't decide for yourself what will hurt me or what's good for me.” Lyle stops, breaths an uneven, shaky breath. “At least not, you know, with these things. That has to be a conversation."

“Being forced to make a decision could be more hurtful.” Querl grits his teeth, tries to keep himself focused, to ignore the ever increasing buzz of regret at the back of his mind threatening to spill forth the second he missteps. He needs to be better.

“Not being given a choice is always going to be more hurtful in the long run. You should know that.”

“I’ve never be-”

“In life, at large, not just relationships. Look at me!” Against his better judgement his eyes snap back to Lyle’s own. He’s drowning again. “There, great. Everything you’ve told me about your past makes it sound like you’ve been jerked around at every opportunity, did you like that? Was that fun for you?”

“It’s not the same,” he replies lamely, feeling his focus and resolve falter even as he’s saying it.

“Isn’t it? No one has ever tried to do something you hated because they thought it was helpful? Grief, Querl, this can’t be the first sprocking time you’ve ever had to think about this.”

“Maybe not,” he offers. A large part of his time on Colu feels like a blur these days, an indistinguishable mass of time that was never quite his. He’d hated it, he’d felt nothing, he’d lost himself in his work until he’d stopped feeling like he had to be an actual person too, shutting everything out except when he couldn’t. “But I… This is entirely different from what my life was before the Legion, even before the anomaly and my mother’s return,” he continues, his mouth dry. Before he’d felt so many things and known there was a future outside of the endless pursuit of trying to make up for the crimes of his ancestors. ”And this isn’t about me.”

“It is, though. You can’t tell me you’d be fine with me trying to dictate your life. That’s not what this is supposed to be about,” Lyle says, leaning forward, face hard-set.

“How am I supposed to know what this is about. It’s just... It’s just complicated.” Querl’s eyes sting and his pulse pounds in his ears.

“So complicated you don’t want to do it?” He should say yes, lie and finally cut them both loose.

“... No.”

“Great, then we’re still on the same page about that, at least. Incredible work, wanna talk about the actual issue now or should we keep arguing around it all night?”

“No, I suppose not.” Querl breaths in, trying to gather himself, his mind filled with the jagged pieces of his shattered resolve. “Do you find it acceptable to date someone who will not age at the same rate as you do, primarily physically but potentially also mentally?” he asks, mechanically, for a nauseating split second reminding himself of his mother and her script.

"Yeah, again, I'm not sure we'll be dating forever. Which isn't an indictment, relationships aren't meaningless or bad or a waste of time just because they don't last forever, but it does mean that it might not even be an issue in the first place,” Lyle says, nonchalant if not for the guarded set of his face. A mask good enough that most wouldn't see through it.

"And if it is?" Querl prompts.

"I don't know, it’s hard to say without knowing exactly how it’ll play out. I guess I might want kids someday and that could be hard for, well, several reasons. But I stopped planning that far ahead after what happened to Jac. I’d rather just let this take its course and see where it ends, but I need to know I can trust you to do that. What about you, are you fine with doing this?

"I-...” He hesitates. “I never thought I’d actually have a choice in the matter."

"But if you did?"

Querl shakes his head slowly, eyes faltering. Nights of sleeplessness and the receding heat of the argument start to overtake him, numbing both his body and mind. His head swims, filled with thoughts of years of not knowing and often not even caring what happened to him as a person. He has no idea what he wants. He wants Lyle, to reach out to him and feel his warm skin against his own and forget every stupid idea he’s ever had and the last week of trying to convince himself that he needs to do better. To give in to his own selfish, hungry desires.

Lyle pulls off his gloves and reaches for his hands, stopping just short of touching them.

"Can I?" he asks. Their eyes meet. Querl nods, then grasps Lyle’s hands himself. The touch of his hands, marked and scared by years of work beyond his age, is warm and familiar. Lyle rubs his thumbs over his knuckles.

"So, you don’t know and I don’t know. Kinda seems to me like we just have to find out for ourselves," he says with a softness Querl doesn’t deserve.

"I suppose so." He takes a breath, feels it burn in his throat. "I am sorry that I didn't talk to you first. And for making you feel bad. It was not my intention, but it wasn’t right."

"Thank you. I'm sorry for kinda blowing up at you."

"It may, perhaps, have been justified." Querl blinks, forcing back the stinging sensation in his eyes.

"Maybe so, but still. Friends?"

"Perhaps slightly more?" Querl asks, daring a half-hearted grin.

Lyle snorts.

"Fair, good, saves me from having to break into your room later," he says, amusement evident in his voice. The tension in Querl’s chest starts to dissolve, seeping out of him with every word.

"And why would you need to do that?"

"Well, it turns out most of my clean shirts are here now."

"And theft is easier than getting your laundry done?"

"Obviously."

Querl closes the gap between them, moving across the uncomfortable couch until he can lean into the curve of Lyle’s body and let the familiar warmth fully overtake him.

“I’ve missed you.”

“Me too.” Lyle lets go of one of his hands to wrap an arm around his waist, tugging him closer yet. “It hasn’t been great.”

“I’m sorry.” It seems so easy to say it now, so trivial to forget the heat of the previous moment now that it’s over.

“It’ll be alright. We’ll learn from it.”

“Yeah.” Querl leans his head on Lyle's shoulder, letting his hair cascade over his shoulder. He presses a quick, chaste kiss to his neck and wraps his own free arm around his waist, burying himself in his presence. “Am I selfish, for wanting this?” he asks, voice low.

“Am I selfish for wanting this?” Lyle asks in return, squeezing his hand.

“No.”

“Then there you go. It’s fine to want things.” Lyle lets go off his waist, lazily dragging his warm hand across Querl’s back until it comes to rest at the nape of his neck, his fingers softly intertwining themselves in the slightly too long hair there. A shudder travels down his spine. He hooks the hand at Lyle’s waist into his belt, the metal cold against his hand. Feeling Lyle against him, smelling the faint mix of his cologne, sweat and space travel, his strong arm resting against Querl’s back and the slight softness of his stomach against his knuckles, feels like home. Like he belongs there, despite what his mother or rationality might say.

He can’t even begin to imagine how much he would have missed this.

Lyle turns his head, nuzzling into Querl’s hair. "Still doesn’t make any sense how you can have such nice hair.”

"Inferior human hair follicles, hm?" he hums, not entirely sure if Lyle will hear him at all. His body suddenly feels heavy, like the last days' worry has finally started to settle over him. He blinks, each time slower than the last, having to fight just a little harder each time to open his eyes again.

"Nah, I think some cosmic force decided you have to be just as attractive as you're difficult to deal with."

"I'm not difficult," Querl says, stifling a yawn.

"Uhu, and you're also not falling asleep on me right now?"

"Sprock you," he says, pressing another kiss to Lyle’s neck.

"Love you too, though I need to shower off all the space dust if you've decided it's bed time."

Querl sighs and gives Lyle's neck one last kiss before he starts to unfold himself, not at all inclined to let go of any part of his partner or welcome the cold that settles over his skin when they’re not touching. He doesn’t want to let go of him again. Not now, perhaps not ever.

"You can join, if you want," Lyle offers, sounding just as tired as he feels. “I’ll even let you use some real shampoo.”

"I've already showered today and, as you may recall, last time I took you up on that offer we had anything but a quick shower." Querl clears his throat. He supposes that’s technically a lie. The actual shower was quick enough.

"Hm, yeah. Oh well, give me a few." Lyle stands up and stretches out his arms above his head, freezing halfway through the motion to glance back down at Querl. "You are OK with me sleeping here again, right?"

"Unequivocally.”

[wh6res]

WHEN YOU FIND OUT HE HAS AN ONLYFANS BC HE ACCIDENTALLY CASTED HIS LAPTOP SCREEN TO THE SMART TV

feat. the ‘00 line : tw suggestive

✰ — RENJUN is mortified. wtf his screen turned black right as he was cropping off his face from the video of himself masturbating in the car, where he does most of his onlyfans content bc duh he can’t do it in the apartment. you were always straight home after classes. a homebody. he cant just splay himself on the bed and moan and whine loudly to his heart’s content or else you’ll hear him and god no he’d rather die than you finding out he has an onlyfans. but just as he was furiously pressing the space button of his laptop to get it work somehow, your head pokes inside the door. “uhm, renjun i think you accidentally casted your screen on the tv” “ha ha what? no i did not” and right on cue, he hears the very distinct “ugh baby bet you want this cock in your mouth don’t you? i do too” coming from the living room and his cheeks were tinged red when he fell to his knees. “yn please let me explain!”

✰ — JENO is proud. you and him are quite close, he wouldn’t call it being bestfriends but still, he’s comfortable in your presence and so are you with him. its not that he’s keeping his onlyfans a secret, it’s just you never really asked anyway so he didn’t tell you anything. you and him were chilling in the living room like always. just you getting some readings done on the coffee table while he edits his pictures on the sofa. he had his earphones on and everything and was just doing quick last touchups for this latest nude pic he’s going to post tonight. just when his laptop screen turned black, the smart tv opened on its own, you and jeno’s eyes widened questioningly until there it was. his nude pic; standing before the gym’s locker room mirror, holding his hard dick on one hand, phone on the other, with his tongue teasingly peaking out. “okay but can i see the real thing right now?” jeno doesn’t let the shock paint his features. simply, he smirks.“fine but no drooling”

✰ — HAECHAN is shameless. he’d be kinda confused as to why his laptop’s screen suddenly turned black on him while he’s editing the audio for a new video he’ll be uploading in the weekend. he’d be plugging up his laptop charger bc he thought the device was drained, until he heard slick sounds and his moans coming from the living room. where you were. holy shit. when he bolts out his room, he finds you choking on your chips, sat upright on the couch as you can’t even take your eyes off the screen. he was going to apologize but when he saw the pink tinge on your cheeks and the way your legs clenched as you watched the video of him jerking himself off, he didn’t feel sorry. “are you that fascinated that you can’t take your eyes off my cock, baby? there’s more where that came from” and when you shyly waddled inside his room well... “hey wanna make a sex video with me? we can split the money”

✰ — JAEMIN is clueless. so like jeno, jaem over here isn’t going crazy trying to keep his onlyfans a secret. he wanted to tell you initially about it but the topic was never breached in everyday conversation until eventually he forgot to tell you about it completely. he had been streaming live that night until his toe might’ve accidentally pressed the button that said screencast just as he was about to cum all over his hands. meanwhile you in the living room, raised an eyebrow when the movie cuts and you see him on screen, right when he says “i wish you were here with me. your pussy would feel amazing choking my cock” when his stream was over, he hears a knock on his bedroom door and he immediately put his pjs back on before opening it. “hey jaem thanks for free content, thats some good stuff you have there. maybe i can join in sometime, okay thats all i have to say! bye~” “uh wait hold tf up what do you mean”

✰ — YANGYANG is relieved. okay so yeah he’s keeping it a secret but only because from what he remembers, you were always more on the conservative side. bb is scared you might kick him out if you find out he’s a content creator at onlyfans. okay definitely, his secret keeping needs a little bit of work because he literally left the tab open, right on his profile. you and him were working on a project together and you had insisted he casts his laptop screen on the tv for the presentation file and boiiiii he accidentally casted the wrong tab omfg im dying. his fingers trembled trying to find the uncast button as the most recent video he posted autoplayed “hey babe, you back? daddy’s been waiting for such a long time i missed your sweet pussy” but he pauses when he hears you laughing. “omg yangyang! i cant believe you have a daddy kink wtf!” well at the end of the day, he’s just relieved he doesn’t have to hide it from you anymore and he can still live here.

✰ — SHOTARO is cheeky. okay if yalls think he’s going to be all innocent and embarrassed and soft uwu about the whole thing lmao hell no. i dont think he is. i bet he’s hiding all that sexayyy charisma under that cute face and it’s also probably why he’d have a hoard of people on his onlyfans. addicted to the contrast of that cute, soft voice of his going deep and domineering when the led lights in his room turn red. okay so you were running around the room almost late to your appointment when he “accidentally” hits screencast on his laptop. and suddenly the smart tv opened and he tried gulping down his laughter when you literally stopped in your tracks and watched the video of him unfold. “i bet baby’s laying down right now with her fingers shoved inside her cunny, getting off at the sight of my cock, hm slut?” your eyes widened like saucers and shit your pussy just clenched. “taro wtf is that-that you?” “i don’t know, why don’t you come here and find out, baby?”

headcanon reqs are open bitches !! had so much fun making this lmao idk alot abt onlyfans so im sorry if some of the details are wrong :'>

[shotorozu]

OKOK I WAS READING THESE HQ THREADS THEN I SAW IT ON TIKTOK (IF THAT MAKES SENSE) Basically you ask ur bf for these feminine products that don’t exist (ex: coochie cleaner 3000) IM SORRY LMFAOO I WAS WONDERING IF U CAN DO BAKUGOU,SHINSO AND A CHARACTER OF UR CHOICE,HERES THE TT DONT MIND MY PROFILE THAT WILL MOST LIKELY SHOW UP IF U COPY N PASTE THE LINK https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMe6U22uM/

getting non-existent feminine products

(tiktok prank)

character(s) : amajiki tamaki, bakugou katsuki, shinsou hitoshi (bnha)

legend : [Y/N = your name] afab! reader, but they/them pronouns used, quirk not mentioned

headcanon type : crack, fluff (x reader)

note(s) : i choose tamaki because i’ve been lacking with him lately but NWNDNWKX please this trend is so funny 💀

»»————-　♡　————-««

amajiki tamaki

the fact that he even has to get you feminine products was enough to make him blush

yeah, even though he had to get you feminine products in the past— he’s still quite shy about getting them in the grocery store (it’s the stares, not the concept)

WHAT MORE WHEN YOU DECIDED TO PRANK HIM?? poor tamaki

“tamaki, could you buy me more feminine products?” and he stops in his tracks, and a blush spreads on his cheeks “s-sure. what do you want me to get?”

“cooch pouch version 2.”

he blinks, and it looks like he has to pass out, “c-come again?”

“cooch pouch version 2. it’s in purple and pink packaging, tama!” the fact that you’re not even the slightest bit of embarrassed, makes him shake.

“okay, bunny. just stay here.” he sighs, and gets out of the car— and that’s when tamaki set off to get you ‘cooch pouch version 2’

he was looking around the feminine product isle, and he was literally about to ditch everything, run back to the car and cry himself to sleep, when he couldn’t find ‘cooch pouch version 2’

“may i help you, sir?” an employee finally decides to offer their services, when they noticed that tamaki was stuck in the isle for quite sometime.

okay tamaki. you’re a part of UA’s big three. there’s no need to be nervous because of this. he reassured himself first, before asking “d-do you have c-cooch pouch version 2?”

the employee blinks, “uh. cooch pouch version 2?” they ask again, and tamaki— very reluctantly, nods.

the walk back to the car felt shameful. “so? did you find it?” you discreetly film his reaction, and he shakes his head, absolutely mortified

“they,, didn’t have it.” tamaki whispers, a very aggressive blush on his face was evident. “i’m so sorry, bunny. they were nice, and i really tried—”

you just laugh. “no, it’s okay tamaki. you don’t have to look anymore.” you reassure him, patting him on the shoulder

you had to reassure him on your way back home 💀 he was just so mortified. you just agree to yourself that you’re never going to do that again

but on the brighter side, the tiktok did well, gathering 800k likes and 2.5M views. the comments were laughing at him, but they also felt REALLY bad

bakugou katsuki

katsuki’s already your errand boy, when it came to feminine products. he’s practically desensitized to it. even though he acts like he’s so annoyed by it

he’s so confused when he hears ‘super jumbo tampon deluxe; ribboned edition.’ and he’d like to say that he isn’t judging you

but he is, and it’s hard. “the hell’s that?? what are you even putting down there??” and you chuckle at his reaction

“don’t tell me you’re wussing out— on feminine products,” you tease, and he knows that. but he still rolls his eyes

“shut up. i’ll go get them, you’ll see.” he claims, opening the car door and marching off the to store

when he enters the feminine products section, he practically scans every single row for the packaging that has super jumbo tampon deluxe; ribboned edition on it’s front

but then there’s none. so then, that’s when his ruby red irises scan again, and again.

and of course, katsuki radiates intimidating energy— so no one dared on asking him what he was looking for especially in the feminine products section

katsuki— wanting to find the product, hesitates on asking for help, but he does anyway.

the employees blink, but they don’t want to question his motives— the expression on his face was enough to make them search the entire isle

afterwards, katsuki angrily marches back to the car— a slight blush showcased on his cheeks, most likely coming from shame

“so?” you have your phone in one hand, but it’s not very obvious that you’re filming him. “did you get it?”

“you.” he opens the car door, and slides right in, “you. humiliated. me.”

you laugh at his expression, “so i’m guessing that’s a no?”

“DUMBASS, SUPER JUMBO TAMPON DELUXE; RIBBONED EDITION DOESN’T EVEN EXIST. I LOOKED LIKE A FOOL.” he exclaims, irritated and humiliated by the entire encounter

and when you revealed that it was a prank, he,, wasn’t very pleased.

katsuki takes away your kissing privileges, and he’s in a rather silent mood for the rest of the day— but he says he’ll forget about it, if you’ll cook him dinner

you posted the tiktok after you got home, and everyone just assumed you passed away in the hands of your boyfriend 💀 at least you’re tiktok famous now

shinsou hitoshi

again, also very desensitized to the idea of getting you feminine products— since, it’s not something that you can CONTROL freely

and he’s not in the right place to judge you anyway

he won’t make a big deal out of it, hitoshi will just get your products, and then camouflage it with things from the snack isle

so, hitoshi’s questioning you— when you asked him to buy ‘urethra padding cleanser’ since he’s also familiar with the feminine products isle

he wasn’t aware on what THAT even was, it’s pretty obvious— due to the fact that his eyes were wide like saucers.

“kitten, do you need to go to the doctor?” he asks— he’s half joking, but he’s also half serious because wtf is a urethra padding cleanser??

“no,” you shake your head, “you said you wouldn’t judge.” you fein being bashful, and this seems enough to trick him

“right, sorry kitten. it’s just very concerning that you’d need something like that”

you blink, and he raises his hands up in defeat “i’ll,, try to find it.” even though he isn’t very convinced that he’d find it

he enters the isle, and he scans every single row— and to no one’s surprise, he can’t find it

hitoshi decides to look around again, and when he turns around— there’s a clerk there, smiling at him, and also at his assistance

“hello! do you need help in finding something?”

thank you, store employee. he’s glad he doesn’t have to ask “i,, guess you could say that. uh, does this store have a ‘urethra padding cleanser’?”

the store clerk looks at him like he’s gone mad. “uh,” they look through the isle once again, “i’ll be right back, we’ll need some assistance.”

it doesn’t take long for him to realize that ‘urethra padding cleanser’ doesn’t. even. exist.

he decides that it’s probably best for him to buy some snacks— because leaving the store empty handed feels weird to him.

the tall man apologizes to the staff as he leaves, and the walk back to the car is basically one long walk of shame

“it doesn’t exist,” hitoshi’s quick to say, placing the snacks in your lap— “urethra padding cleanser doesn’t exist. i should’ve trusted my gut.”

you snicker, and you’re glad that you’re filming his reaction— because the look on his face is just priceless. “did you ask for help?”

“i did, actually. they looked at me like i was on some weird shit,” he turns his head, and he’s now facing you “i’m never doing that again.” even though he actually goes back your next cycle, and gets you everything

when you finished recording the tiktok— and also when you revealed that it was all a prank, hitoshi looks SO done

“who would’ve guessed,” he sighs, laying his head on your shoulder “you got there, Y/N. i’ll give you that.” and you’re lowkey lucky that he loves you a lot to not even care 💀

you upload the tiktok in the following hours, and it does great. the comments were mostly laughing at his reaction at the end and they were also sympathetic for him

it somehow managed to get to kaminari’s fyp— considering that he sent you a video of him laughing hysterically the tiktok 🗿

needless to say, hitoshi will ask you if it IS a real product, the next time you make him buy products with,, weird and questionable names

»»————-　♡　————-««

likes and reblogs are appreciated, thanks for reading!

i do not own bnha/mha and it’s characters. boku no hero academia/my hero academia belongs to horikoshi kohei, i only own the writing and i do not profit off of my hobby

do not plagiarize, reupload, translate, or use my works for audio readings without permission

[ignitedbynatsu]

Are You Really That Dense?

A/N: sooo what we've learned is that when I say I will upload the next day, you should probably expect an update a day or two later 😅. Anyway this one is requested by @enchantingpeachherocreator I hope you like it as much as I loved writing it ❤️

Warnings: swearing

Genre: angst tot fluff

👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅👅

"So when are you going to confess your unconditional love for him?" The green-haired mage took a seat beside you as he caught you staring at his friend once again.

"I will once you admit your own feelings" you shot back, not taking any relationship advice from someone that wasn't even ready to accept their own feeling.

"I'm afraid that I do not know what you are talking about" he tried to play the dumb card which only earned him an eye roll from you.

"I doubt he even sees me that way" you mumbled, breaking your one-sided staring context, leaning your head on your crossed arms in front of you.

"Why don't you hint that you see him as more than just a friend?" Freed suggested at which you scoffed "if the obvious flirting isn't gonna do it, then I don't know what, I bet even Natsu has noticed how I feel, and he hasn't even noticed how Lucy looks at him like he has hung the stars in the sky"

"Yeah... Even I'm surprised that Bickslow hasn't caught on yet. It's almost getting painful" he agreed

"Maybe he's deliberately ignoring it like Gray's doing with Juvia" you mumbled. You'd rather have him straight out reject you than just stringing you along just 'cause he thinks it's fun. You weren't a toy he could play with and just throw away when he lost interest.

"How about one last big gesture? If he doesn't pick up on that then maybe it's indeed better to move on" your friend proposed. You finally lifted your head up from your arms to look at him. "Like what?"

"I don't know... Something personal" he pondered his own suggestions for a second before he suddenly snapped his fingers like an amazing idea just crossed his mind "isn't there a saying like the way through a man's heart is through his stomach?"

"Freed! You're a genius!" At that moment, your eyes got reignited with a sparkle of hope that you had lost over the past weeks.

You knew that you were probably settings yourself up for failure, but you didn't care because you had hope. Hope that Freed, his and your best friend, had given, and he wouldn't give you false hope if he knew you had no chance, right?

Due to the anticipation for Bickslow, you could hardly sleep that. Possible outcomes swirled through your mind that went from a picture-perfect scenario to the most heartbreaking rejection. You hoped with every cell in your body it would be the first.

"Hi Bickslow!" your usual cheerful self was amplified, and he didn't have the slightest clue as to why.

"Hey (Y/N), what you got there?" His eyes fell upon the box that you were carrying in your hands.

"Oh you know, I was a bit bored last night and thought I'd do something sweet to show how much I appreciate you" you explained as you opened the box to reveal his favourite cake.

"Just for me? If I didn't know better I would think you'd try to confess something" he gladly took a slice and let his teeth sink into the sweet dessert you had poured all your love in last night.

A nervous chuckle escaped your lips "about that..."

"(Y/N), this tastes horrible" he laughed as he placed the half-eaten piece back into the box "you trying to poison me or something?"

"I didn't think it tasted that bad" the hope left your eyes as soon as it came as you watched the man in front of you ridicule your baking skills.

"Then you should let your taste buds get checked out. No wonder you only wanted me to taste that garbage" he took the box and threw it into the nearest bin, along with your heart.

You were devastated, heartbroken and humiliated as the whole guild looked at what Bickslow was making such a fuss over. Perhaps he was just stringing you along. "Sorry"

Freed and Laxus sighed as they saw the heartbroken girl ran out of the guild and their clueless friend staring at her retrieving form "what's her problem?"

"Even you can't be that dense" Laxus scoffed in disbelief at his friend's question.

"What do you mean?" Freed was getting more and more fed up with his friends acts, especially since it was hurting his other best friend, so when that final question left his mouth he decided to draw the line.

"Stop it, Bickslow. Just stop it. I cannot believe you just did that to her. You really wanna keep playing the dumb card and act like you don't know how she feels about you? How she has been feeling about you for the last couple of months? You could have just turned her down softly, but no, you wanted to make a big deal out of it and humiliate her in the process. I hope you had a good laugh out of it, asshole" the green-haired mage didn't even wait for a reaction as he stormed out of the guild as well, determined to find his best friend.

"... She likes me?" He was doing his best to process Freed words. Words he had longed for so long to hear. He could have never imagined hearing them in this situation.

He didn't mean to hurt you. That was never his intention. He thought you had done something in the cake to mess with him. How could he have possibly known that it was part of your confession? Something he could've never hoped you'd do one day. After all, he always thought you were way out of his leak. He was certain that any chance of you reciprocating his feelings, was now completely out of the window. The worst part, he had nobody but himself to blame for that.

"You fucked up" Laxus also got up to leave him but Bickslow stopped "Laxus! You have to help me. I didn't mean to hurt her. I really didn't know. Please, I don't know what to do."

His pleas were to no avail as the blonde shook his head "I'm sorry, but, you're on your own for this one"

Some may say that it was unfair the way Laxus treated him, but he knew that if Bickslow wanted to make things right, he'll have to do it on his own. He had to show her he really meant it. Plus it was also a bit of payback for making his friend cry, but that was just a bonus.

He tried talking to you, he really did, but you were always busy. If you had no excuse, Freed was certain to step in and guide you away. It frustrated Bickslow, but he knew he had no right to feel that way. Not at your nor at Freed. He fucked it up.

You on the other hand were torn. You wanted to listen to him, have to hear what he had to say, but you couldn't. You wouldn't survive opening your heart back open to him only for it to be shattered moments later again. Yet, you still cared. Noticing every little thing that changed from his quietness to his slouched posture, nothing passed by you.

That's how you noticed the bandages around his fingers and the one covering his cheek, making him not able to put on his helmet.

"Where are you going?" You ignored Freed's questions as you made your way to where Bickslow was sitting alone.

You towered over him as you stopped right next to the table he was sitting at "what happened?"As soon as he heard your voice it felt like the wind got knocked out of him. He had practised the words he wanted to say to you countless times in his head, yet when you were standing here, next to him, all he could say was your name. "(Y/N)..."

You tilted your head a bit to the side as you waited for him to continue, but no words left his mouth. You nodded your head once as you understood that he didn't want to talk to you. Had you been reading the signs wrong again? You weren't surprised if you had.

But as you turned on your heels to leave again, Bickslow grabbed your wrist. He wasn't going to let you leave again. Not this time "wait!"

You stopped in your tracks and turned back around to face him. His pleading eyes looked at you, begging you to stay. Those dark red orbs you loved so much but didn't get to see very often. All of it was enough to make you stay put and just listen to what he had to say.

"I- uh- I'm sorry" he apologized as he awkwardly scratched the back of his neck. Once again you waited for him to continue, but nothing came "that's it?"

He was alerted by your reaction. You didn't sound mean or dismissive as he thought you would, no, you sounded tired and heartbroken, making his heartache all the more. He did this. He was the cause of your pain 

"No, that's not what I meant, I mean it is what I mean, I am really sorry for what I did, it's just..." Your eyes softened as he struggled to find the right words. You knew you should keep your walls up, but how could you when he still held your heart?

"Let's start with what happened" you suggested as you motioned to his hands.

A faint colour of red coloured his cheeks as he looked down on his hands as well "Well, funny story actually, well not that funny, but uh-" he cleared his throat and took a deep breath. He never had a problem talking to you before, so why did it seem so impossible now? "I was trying to make you a cake, and it didn't really go as planned"

Your heart swelled at thought of his gesture, but then you remembered the way he belittled your baking skills, making you narrow your eyes again slightly "what happened to your cheek?"

"The cake kind of blew up and burned my cheek" your eyes shot up at his explanation. How do you blow up a cake? Let alone burn your cheek with it in the process?

"Anyway that's not what's important" he dismissed the story as he once again sucked in a large breath. It was now or never "I am really sorry for the way I treated you that day. I never meant to hurt you. I know it's hard to believe, but I really didn't know that you liked me back. I guess I just placed myself in the friend zone from the moment I met you because I didn't think I had any chance with you, to begin with. Because of that the thought of you actually liking me never crossed my mind."

"Why'd you think you weren't good enough for me?" You asked confused. To you, he was perfect. Sure he had done some questionable things in the past, but he showed he was a man worthy of redemption. He was a man worthy of your heart.

"I can't even put in words how perfect you are. You're everything I wished my dream woman to be and more. I always thought you'd deserve someone better like me. Someone who could treat you the way you deserved to be treated. Someone like Laxus or Freed" he tried to explain.

A soft smile played along your lips as you heard the names of your friends, who were clearly in love with each other, fall from his mouth. He really was just incredibly dense. "So please, (Y/N). Give me a chance to prove myself. I'd love you unconditionally, I will treat you the way you deserve to be treated, I... I'd even worship the ground you walk upon-"

"How about we take things slow?" You stopped him before he'd spew even more nonsense.

"Wait! So you forgive me?" He couldn't contain his excitement at the thought of you agreeing to give him a second chance, and when you gave him a sheepish nod he couldn't help but pick you up and spin you around "How about we go on a date? I take you to the best restaurant in town!"

"I'd love to you" you agreed and placed your lips softly against his cheek, making him a stuttering mess once again.

[daenqyu]

— love language (3) sero hanta

pairing: sero x fem!reader

warnings: swearing 

a/n: i’m so sorry this took me so long to upload:( but i hope you like it! this is my first time writing for sero and God, i love him so much pls 🥺

love language masterlist

sero’s love language is: quality time

we all know our man sero is very chill and laid back, 

so i know for a fact there’s nothing he loves more than spending some quality time with his s/o

you guys could be doing absolutely nothing, but as long as he has you by his side, he’s happy

that means lots of dates

not just formal or fancy dates,

but also just hanging out in his room while watching a movie

or even just studying together 

one of his favorite things to do is to take naps with you

he likes the way you cuddle him, specially when you wrap your arms around his neck to pull him closer 

it makes him feel all warm inside 

plus he loves how needy you get when you’re sleepy hehe

not really the clingy type, but lives for the way you frown whenever you’re in the same room and he’s not giving you any attention

and you better bet he’s gonna tease you 

“something wrong?” he asks when he notices you glaring at him, even tho he already knows the answer to that

“i’ve been here for almost an hour and you’ve barely even looked at me”

has to bite down on his lip to prevent himself from smirking

“hm, is someone in need of my attention?”

“you know what? i’m going back to my room”

you’re only kidding, but nevertheless sero takes ahold your arm and pulls you down, once again, unto his bed

he’s on top on you, wearing a cocky ass smirk that makes you scoff and look away from him

he chuckles at your childish antics before pressing kisses all over your face 

and you only last 3 more seconds faking being annoyed before bursting out in giggles

doesn’t really take long before you guys are heavily making out 

what can i say? he gives in way too easily to that pretty face of yours

and your lips too lmao

he also really likes surprising you whenever he has the chance

like this one time he randomly knocked on your bedroom door at 5AM just so you could watch the sunrise together 

and how could you ever get mad at him for waking you up so early when he looks so damn ethereal with the sun rays hitting his skin?

answer: you can’t 

he’s a simple man,

all you gotta do let him know you appreciate his presence (one way or another) and he’ll love you forever 

a frustrated groan leaves your lips after you fail yet another attempt at trying to solve the fucking math exercise. you’d been stuck on this for half an hour now and you felt like you were going insane; no matter how much you reviewed your notes or how many times you redid the formula, you just couldn’t seem to get it right. and it was pissing you off. you take a deep breath before covering your face with your hands, trying to calm down and not let the tears fall. it was silly, but you were pressuring yourself and not being able to do something as simple as this exercise made you feel dumb. 

sero watched you from his bed, where he was also finishing up his homework, and couldn’t help but feel bad for you. he had asked you multiple times if you needed his help, but every single time you said you were fine and that you could do it alone. clearly that wasn’t the case, but for some reason you kept thinking:  if i’m unable to do this, how am i supposed to become a hero? how were you supposed to save people and bring a smile to their faces when you could barely pass your exams? you weren’t like bakugou or todoroki, who were incredibly powerful and smart. were you even worthy of being in class 1A? the more you thought about it and questioned all of your abilities, the more uncomfortable the lump in your throat became. 

suddenly, you felt sero turn the chair you were sitting on around and gently prying your hands off from your face. his eyes looked for yours, but you were too busy staring at you lap; you didn’t want him to think you were stupid or fragile, that something like this was enough to make you cry. but he didn’t care about that. he just wanted to make sure you were okay, and so, he takes your chin in between his fingers and forces you to look at him. his heart feels heavy when he sees the tears falling down your cheeks and the way your lower lip wouldn’t stop trembling.

but what hurts even more is when you try to speak up and apologize. 

“m’sorry, i know i-i’m being stupid but-”

“baby,” he cuts you off, eyes gentle as he looks at you. “you’re doing great, okay? but you need to take a break,” before actually helping you stand up, he wipes the tears away with his thumb and kisses your forehead. the action makes you want to cry even more, but for a different reason. he’s everything (and probably more) you could’ve ever asked for. “come on.”

sero takes your hand and leads you to his hammock before laying down on it, you frown your eyebrows in confusion. does he think we can- but before you can even finish the thought, he pulls you down on top of him, making the hammock shake violently. 

“hanta we’re gonna fall!” you look at him with eyes wide open, as if asking him what the hell was going through his mind, but he just chuckles and holds your hips. that makes you scoff before hitting his arm.

“ouch! no need to get aggressive.”

after he reassures you that you’ll both be fine, and that if you do end up falling he’ll catch you, you snuggle yourself against his chest and try to get comfortable. you rest your face on the space between his shoulder and neck while he wraps his arms around your torso, his hands tangled in your hair as he runs his fingers through it. both of you stay quiet for a while, and the feeling of sero’s fingers makes you extremely sleepy, but before you can fall asleep, he speaks up. 

“i know i don’t say this often, but i’m proud of you. you work so hard and i admire you so much for that, but you need to take care of yourself too. school can be stressing and difficult, so it’s important to take breaks when you feel like it’s too much. and just because you can’t do something doesn’t mean you’re stupid, baby.” it was as if he had read your mind, reassuring you on everything you were overthinking earlier. once again, tears fill your eyes at sero’s heartfelt words and you glance up, only to find him smiling down at you.

without thinking it twice, you connect your lips with his in a tender kiss. he’s a little taken aback at first, yet doesn’t waste any time before kissing you back eagerly. one of his hands gently caresses your cheek, which is a big contrast to the way he’s kissing you, but the action makes goosebumps appear all over your skin. sero is very passionate when it comes to the things he likes/enjoys and you’re no exception to that. that’s why his kisses always leave you feeling breathless.

“thank you, hanta.”

from that day on, sero constantly checked up on you just so he could make sure you weren’t overworking yourself and you guys even started having study dates every wednesday. he knew you could do anything you put your mind to, because he believed in you, and he didn’t mind having to remind you or helping you with whatever you needed. after all, that just meant he’d get to spend more time with his love. 

[waiting4inspiration]

Obey X: Mission to Destroy

Summary: Bucky apologizes for what he had done on the last mission but you say that you're not mad at him. You mention that even though you have files on yourself, you don't know if you have the heart to see what's in it.

Warnings: angst, small fluff, strong language, mentions of triggering, nothing much because it's a really short part but if I missed something, please let me know

Word Count: 1,707

Obey Masterlist II Marvel Masterlist

Going through everything in your mind to find something specific is like meditating. You need quiet so you can block out everything around to focus one thing as you sit with your legs crossed under you and your hands resting on your knees. It’s always been the most comfortable position for you when you look for something with the database in your mind.

Sometimes, it’s a file on someone, a target you’re looking for, and someone you need information for. This time, you’re looking for something that has to do with the Server Hansen spoke about. You’ve never heard of it, but that might be because no one in HYDRA has ever talked about it around you. Probably because they didn’t want you to find out about it should you plan to do what you want to do now; disconnect the chip in your brain.

You didn’t even know there was a chip. You just thought that everything you know, that the files HYDRA uploaded into your mind was just something similar to a memory and that the port in the back of your head was a way to add or alter them.

The chip is probably how they’re able to control you. It’s probably the thing that makes you obey HYDRA whenever your programming is triggered. Hell, it’s probably the thing that has all your programming on it and when Tony tried to delete it, the chip still linked to the HYDRA Server wouldn’t allow that to happen.

Realizing that you’re losing track of your thoughts and no longer concentrating on looking for information on the Server, you breathe out a long sigh and drop your head between your shoulders. You open your eyes, run your hands through your hair, and lift your head back up.

Bucky’s sitting in front of you, his body perking up when you look at him and he shifts on his seat to lean forward. “We need to talk.” He whispers because it feels like he’ll break this peaceful atmosphere you’ve created with the lights off and the dead quiet room.

“There’s nothing to talk about, Bucky,” you reply, pushing yourself off the ground and making him shoot up to his feet to stop you from leaving.

You don’t seem to be angry about what happened, which confuses Bucky because he thought that you would be. But you do seem to be upset. He can tell from the way you refuse to look at him again after you turned your head away from him. “(Y/n),” he softly calls to you, stepping forward and dipping his head so that he can catch your gaze again. “Please look at me.”

You shake your head, a silent sob leaving your lips as tears start to build up in your eyes. “You promised,” you whisper, slowly lifting your head up to look at him. “You promised you wouldn’t trigger my programming,” you say.

“I know,” he sighs, stepping forward only for you to take a step back. “But I also promised that I would protect you and the only way I could do that-”

“Was by triggering me. I know,” you sigh, your shoulders relaxing as you breathe out a sigh. “I’m not angry that you did. I just…” You trail off, shake your head, and wrap your arms around yourself. “I just wish there could have been a way for you to warn me before you did. I never realized how much I hate being triggered until now,” you mention, turning away from Bucky to walk a little bit away from him.

Bucky walks towards you, his footsteps making your head turn over your shoulder to look at him and seeing the soft look on his face makes you turn to face him again. “I’m sorry,” he whispers, cupping your face in his hands as he leans forward to press his forehead to yours. “I know I broke a promise. Believe me, I didn’t want to do that,” he says, and you nod your head gently against his hands. “I know you’re not angry. But you have every right to be. And I swear, I will do anything to make this up to you.”

You step forward, rest your hands on his chest and lean into his touch as he gently caresses the top of your cheek. “I just want all this to end. I don’t want HYDRA getting in the way of everything and ruining everything,” you softly say, nuzzling your face against his as he drops his hands away from your face. “And I know I can’t do this alone,” you add, wrapping your arms around his neck and his hands come to rest on your hips.

“I’ll be there. Right by your side, every step of the way” he says, making a smile grow on your face. “And I promise, with all my heart, I won’t trigger your programming again.”

That makes you shake your head. “Don’t make that promise. We both know you might have to break it again,” you say, and he chuckles. “I need to carry on looking for information on this Serve,” you whisper, pulling away from Bucky and stepping backward.

He grabs your hand before you get out of his reach and stops you from walking back to the spot where you were sitting. “You need to rest,” he says, pulling you with him as he starts to head out of the room. You give him an unapproving whine and gently try to pull your hand out of his hold. “No matter what HYDRA says, you’re not a machine, (Y/n),” he jokes, looking over his shoulder back at you while he continues to pull you towards the door.

“I think like one,” you mutter, finally pulling your hand out of him as you come to his side and start walking with him down the corridor. Out the corner of your eye, you see him smirking and you can’t stop yourself from asking the question that suddenly comes to mind. “Have you ever thought about what might have happened if HYDRA never got their hands on you?”

Just as you had expected, his smile drops and you see a somber look fill his eyes. He doesn’t look down at you, keeps his gaze in front of him as he swallows roughly and curls his hand into a fist, making the mechanical parts whirr. “Sometimes,” he mutters, his eyes dropping down to his feet. “I probably would have gone down in that plane with Steve, spent 60 years on ice with him. And I’d follow him through all the trouble he got into. And I would still have ended up here, just in better condition,” he explains, turning his head down to his mechanical arm that he raises slightly in front of him. “That probably means you wouldn’t be here.”

You shrug your shoulders as you turn your head away from looking at him and bite your lower lip. “I don’t know,” you say, more to yourself as you come to a halt in the middle of the corridor.

Bucky turns around after having taken a few steps forward, not expecting you to stop walking. He sees you staring blankly at the ground, as if you’re trying to think of something. “What do you mean you don’t know?” he asks carefully and you give him a knowing look. “What about your life before HYDRA?”

“I…” You trail off, shake your head to yourself as you look out the window beside you. “I don’t remember anything before HYDRA. For all I know-” you look back at Bucky- “I grew up in HYDRA. What if I’m just someone they pulled off the streets and my life before they did was shitty? What if I already was a HYDRA agent? Or the kid of a HYDRA agent? I don’t know if I want to know what my life was like before HYDRA,” you ramble, looking at Bucky with a small frown on your face.

He steps forward, a gentle look on his face as if to tell you that it’s all going to be okay. “Don’t you have files on yourself?” he questions, hoping that it will ease you a bit if you look through them to find out what your life was like before all this happened to you.

“I do. I’m just scared to look at them.”

“Why?” he asks, now standing in front of you yet again. Only, this time he’s afraid to reach out to touch you as a means to comfort you because he’s scared you might cry. He’s seen you close to crying a few times, but never has he seen a tear roll down your cheek because you were sad. In pain, yes. But he’s never seen you crying out of sadness.

You take a breath, close your eyes and drop your head between your shoulders. “Because I’m scared that if I look and see what my life was like, and I see that it was terrible, I’d feel that HYDRA did me a favor,” you explain. Your file pops into your mind’s eye but like always, you don’t look into it. You don’t want to see the memories that have been taken away from you. “Even if it was good-” You laugh, shaking your head as you look up at Bucky again- “it would just be something else that they’ve taken from me.”

Bucky understands. Because even if HYDRA never got their hands on him and he ended up not following Steve into decades of hibernation, he likes to think that maybe he would have settled down, found a girl and got married to her, had a family, that kind of domestic life. But again, it was something that HYDRA took from him.

“Still, you could have some good memories,” he softly mentions, catching your interest and making your head tilt to the side. “Sometimes, they’re good for helping you get through tough times.”

A smirk tugs at the corner of your mouth and you shift on your feet. “Does it help you?”

He chuckles, smiling down at you as he joins you by your side again. “Most of the time,” he simply mentions before urging you to start walking again.

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[aalissy]

AU

Day 1 of Adrienette April is here!! Yayay, I’m sooo excited for this month. I love my babies! Especially now that we’re going to get more episodes. I hope you guys like this lil chapter <3

AO3

“I’m just saying Marinette, he’s a really good guy once you actually give him a chance,” Alya rolled her eyes at her best friend after she had just finished her latest rant against Adrien.

“And I think you’re insane for actually giving him the time of day,” Marinette rolled her eyes right back. She crossed her arms in front of her chest as she and Alya strolled closer towards their school, “Adrien Agreste is a jerk and that’s all he’ll ever be.”

Her friend snickered at her, “I can’t believe you’re still hung up about the gum situation.”

“He never even apologized for that Alya!” Marinette shook her head furiously as she clenched her eyes shut tight, “Plus he’s friends with Chloé! He’s worthy of never being my friend just for that!”

Alya let out another quiet laugh, pausing on the first step of the school when she caught sight of blonde hair bounding out of his limo with a cheerful wave. She bit her lip to contain her smile and leaned over to hiss in Marinette’s ear, “Don’t look now but I think sunshine is coming towards us.”

“No!” she gasped in horror, her eyes popping open before looking at her best friend with absolute misery as she whimpered a quiet, “Hide me.”

“No can do,” Alya chuckled, waving back at Adrien as he approached them.

Marinette grimaced before shuffling backward slightly, intending to hide herself as best she could behind her best friend as the model approached them. She groaned to herself as she looked at those gleaming, emerald green eyes.

“Hey Alya!” he gave her a bright, beaming smile before turning to the girl hiding slightly behind her with a more neutral expression. Adrien gave a quick nod before murmuring, “Marinette.”

She gave a small, sarcastic smile back, “Adrien. Whatever did we do to deserve your presence?”

His lips twitched slightly, a faint look of amusement dancing in his eyes, “Nothing but being your usual, smart, charming selves.”

Marinette’s brow furrowed a bit at that. Unease ate away at her slightly as she was unused to receiving compliments from Adrien. Turning away from him, she looked out over the bustling, Parisian streets in an attempt to hide the small blush she was sure was blooming across her cheeks. 

There was a small lull in the conversation as the three of them stood in slightly awkward silence. Luckily, Alya cleared her throat and Adrien quickly snapped his gaze over to her and away from the girl standing next to her. With a knowing smirk, she asked, “So why did you come over here, then, Adrien? If not just to come over and say hi to our usual, charming, smart selves?”

“Oh,” he said with a sheepish smile, rubbing the back of his neck, “I actually wanted to ask if you had the notes to yesterday morning’s lecture. I couldn’t make it because I was in a photo shoot.” 

A small scoff came from Marinette’s lips as both Adrien and Alya turned to look at her. Her gaze was still focused on the street below them and Alya pursed her lips as a mischievous look entered her gaze, “You know who else missed the lecture yesterday?” She nudged her best friend with a sly grin before looking back at Adrien, “You two weren’t together, were you?”

“What?!” Adrien and Marinette shouted at the same time, both of their gazes snapping to Alya. 

“I’m only saying,” she shrugged her shoulders casually, “You two seem to miss the exact same lessons at the exact same time.”

Marinette’s mouth dropped open in both shock and offense. Was Alya still trying to get her to like Adrien? Because that ship had sailed a long time ago. Besides, the only reason that she missed that class was because there was an akuma attack. A tiny, dreamy smile tugged at her lips as her mind drifted towards the boy she actually wanted to spend time with. Her partner, Chat Noir. 

There was no time to think about that now, though. Shaking her head furiously, she glanced at Adrien who was surprisingly staring at her with what seemed like a pink flush across his cheeks. Feeling her own face get hot, Marinette dragged her gaze away from the pair of dazzling, green eyes to her friend. She cleared her throat as she began to ramble, “No, no, no! You know why I was gone! I’m always late to class, b-because I wake up too late.”

“Uh-huh,” Alya dragged the word out, her hazel eyes glimmering mischievously, “I’m sure.”

“S-so, um, do you mind sharing the notes with me?” Adrien jumped back into the conversation, scratching the back of his neck as he avoided both of the girl’s curious gazes.

Alya nodded her head, before gesturing inside the school so that they made it to class before the final bell rang. She dug around her backpack for a moment before pulling out her notebook. As they began crossing the main hall of the school, she turned to Adrien with one raised eyebrow, “Why didn’t you just ask Nino for the notes? You two are still sitting together, right?”

Panic filled his eyes as his gaze quickly darted back towards Marinette who was walking slightly behind them with a small pout. This didn’t go unnoticed by Alya whose eyebrow rose slightly higher at the glance. Adrien’s gaze quickly returned to her, however, a sheepish smile on his lips as he spoke quietly, “Yeah, we are. I just saw you and Marinette first so I figured I’d ask you guys before Nino. Plus, I can never read his handwriting.”

Alya chuckled back at him before flipping through her notes to find the right page, “Yeah, neither can I,” she said amusedly before handing him the book cheerfully.

“Thanks!” Adrien chirped, shooting one last quick look back at Marinette before rushing off to their first class.

Alya watched him go fondly before slowing down slightly to match her pace with her best friend. Quickly, the pout left Marinette’s face as she beamed over at her, “I thought he’d never leave.”

“Girl you’re seriously crazy. That boy is obviously just trying to get you to like him,” she shook her head with a roll of her eyes.

Marinette scrunched her nose up, “And I think you’re seriously crazy. Adrien and I are never going to be friends. I don’t know why you keep trying to set us up.”

Alya sighed frustratedly. Sometimes her best friend could be a little too blind. Anyone with eyes would know that the only reason Adrien even came to them in the first place was so that he could have a chance to talk with Marinette. The boy had one of the highest grades in their class, there was no way he needed her notes.

“Anyway,” Marinette continued, ignoring Alya’s helpless sigh as she bounced slightly on her toes, “Can we talk about the recent photos you added onto the Ladyblog?”

Alya gave a fond chuckle as Marinette began ranting about how good Chat Noir looked in the latest pictures she uploaded. They had just slid into their seats as her best friend began to gush about how perfect his hair looked. Marinette’s tirade got cut short as Adrien spun around in his seat, his jaw dropping open in surprise, “You like Chat Noir?!”

“Were you eavesdropping?!” She shot him an offended look, her eyes narrowed with fiery hatred.

Adrien flushed quickly, his eyes widening. He ducked his head down and then murmured quietly, “Sorry, I-I couldn’t help but overhear.” Slowly though he lifted his head back up to stare at her with a look of determination, “But you do like Chat Noir then?”

Marinette bristled, “Of course I do! Who wouldn’t?”

A smile of wonder seemed to dance across Adrien’s lips as he gazed up at her, “Well, I just thought that he wouldn’t be your type.”

Her mouth flapped open and close quickly, her face slowly turning the shade of a tomato, “I-I d-don’t like him like that,” she murmured quietly, tapping her fingers together nervously.

“Yes you do,” Alya chortled, “You bring him up every chance you get.”

“Shut up! No I don’t! He’s just my favorite superhero, ok?” Marinette hissed, shoving the girl sitting next to her as her face turned an even darker shade of red. 

Curiously, Adrien’s face also turned a light shade of pink as his smile grew even wider. He then chirped rather cheerfully up at them, “Well, I’m glad he’s your favorite Marinette. Ladybug’s my favorite, like the most of Paris.”

At that, Marinette’s head quickly whipped back towards him from where she had previously been glaring at her best friend, her mouth falling open, “You like Ladybug?!”

His smile turned into a small smirk as he repeated her words back to her, “Of course I do. Who wouldn’t?”

A small giggle fell from Marinette’s lips before she quickly cut it off, looking almost as though she was shocked at herself. She recovered fast, however, turning back to him with mischief dancing in her eyes, “Well, I just thought she wouldn’t be your type.”

At that, both of them laughed together, their eyes sparkling with mischief and almost a look of knowing. As Alya watched them, she shook her head at herself. Those two were made for each other, even if they didn’t know it yet.

[blu-joons]

Dating Kim Yugyeom ~ GOT7 Headcanon

Getting Together:

It was your dancing that first made Yugyeom look over at you

After he watched you enjoying dancing, he decided to use a few of his own moves to make sure you spotted him too

As you danced around, the two of you awkwardly bumped into each other, both of you breaking into laughter

Yugyeom was quick to apologise for not noticing where he was going

You were quick to let him know it didn’t matter, and asked him to dance

A conversation was soon started between the two of you as you began to introduce yourselves

For the rest of the night, you danced and talked, like no one else was around

Yugyeom ended up asking you on a date, and a few days later met you at a local silent disco event

He couldn’t wait to stand back and watch you dance again, loving watching how you always let loose

From then, the two of you were always texting or calling, especially when there was an event you wanted to go to together

At least once a week, usually more, the two of you would meet up and hang out together

He was very protective of you from the start, he’d always keep you close to him

He also couldn’t wait to introduce you to Dalkyum as well, as he knew you’d love him

As he began to really catch feelings, he’d talk to BamBam a lot and get plenty of advice from him

He didn’t want to rush things and scare you away, but he knew he saw you as more than just a friend

As the boys became more interested in your relationship, he knew he needed to think about making things official

He didn’t want to make too big of an ordeal about it, so he simply invited you over one night

Straight away when you arrived that night you could tell that there was something not right

Yugyeom was terrified that you’d reject him, even if he were pretty confident that you felt the same way that he did

After the two of you finished the movie you’d been watching, he decided to make his move

Before you could grab the remote to pick another film, he took a hold of your hand

“I brought you here tonight not just to watch movies, but I wanted to know how you’d feel about being my girlfriend? That’s if you want to be.”

He’d never felt as nervous as he did when he was waiting for you to respond

“Of course, I’d love to be Yugyeom, you didn’t need to be so scared.”

He pulled you nice and close as he eventually let you pick the next movie

In fact, he was reluctant even to let you go at the end of the night when you told him you needed to get home for work

From that moment, he barely ever let you go, he always liked to have some sort of a hold on you

He couldn’t wait to tell the boys as well that he’d actually done it

As soon as he shut the door that night, he was straight on the phone to BamBam

Being In A Relationship:

He could always make you laugh with his humour, he was evil, in the best possible way

Being so tall, he loves to cuddle you and make you feel safe

Dalkyum on the other hand is quite as keen to share his father, always interrupting you both

Whenever he could, he’d make time for you, even if it were just an hour or two

You’d always be sitting around the house and watching him dance around the house to try and perfect his choreography

Whenever he’s producing as well, he likes to have you around just so he can get your opinion on what he’s doing

He loves to pose for photos for you to take of him to upload onto his Instagram

But equally he loves to take photos of you, but no one gets to see them except for you

Your dates are usually spent somewhere chilled, with a bit of music and maybe the two of you having a dance

You absolutely love when he wears his vests that are low cut so you can peer in and see his abs

Whenever you go clothes shopping together, you’ll always encourage him to buy a few more

From time to time, you appear on lives with him at the request of the fans who are desperate to see you

Again, as he’s so tall, he loves to be the big spoon and take care of you first

If he really wants to treat you, he’ll try and cook, but it doesn’t usually end too well

The two of you were loved by everyone around you, they could see how close you were

His confidence shot up when you were around, you were a huge support for him

If he’d had a bit of a long day, he loved to go out on late night drives and explore the city

You’d always stop off somewhere and grab some food, and sit and talk about anything until one of you got tired

The biggest sign you usually got sleepy was when you lay against his arms

He loved whenever you called him ‘Yugie,’ it would always make him blush

The two of you are very playful, always playing jokes on each other and winding each other up

When he cuddles you, he loves to play with your hair and try and plait it or twirl it

Your favourite sound in the world was his little giggle he did whenever he got nervous

He’d always do it especially during interviews or when he was asked about you

The fans loved to see how shy he became whenever you were mentioned, and often teased him about it

And then he’d come home for you to tease him just a little more too

You loved to steal his hats and couple them with your outfits when he wasn’t looking

He tried to bring you with him to as many overseas events as possible so you could see the world too

If you weren’t able to go, he’d take an item of your clothing with him so he could have a part of you close to him

When he slept with you, he’d always like to hold you and make you feel protected

You’d often feel his legs or hands moving as he went over his routines in his head as he slept

If you couldn’t sleep, you’d often trace around his tattoos or draw some designs to go next to them

He pretended not to care, but secretly he loved feeling your fingers move along his skin

He’d even memorise some of the little patterns that you came up with for future tattoo ideas he had

Every morning, he’d always wake you up with the tightest hug to make sure that you were nice and warm

Ever since he had Dalkyum he became quite a morning person, so he’d always be the first one up with a cup of coffee or something

He was a bit of a thrill seeker, so he loved to drag you around to theme parks and adventures

And if you were nervous, of course, he’d be there to hold your hand

Quite a few of his more recent mixtapes definitely had subtle hints that you were the inspiration behind them

It was a lot easier for him to come up with lyrics with you with him, sometimes all he’d have to do was look at you 

Skinship/Affection:

He is definitely a big cuddly baby when he wants to be

Yugyeom’s always coming up behind you and giving you cuddles and plenty of affection

He couldn’t go long before he’d want to be stood behind you with his arms wrapped around your waist

His long fingers often tickle against your hips to make sure that you’re smiling

He often switches between either being very cuddly, or very needy for some sort of intimacy

You tend to let him do most of the work when the two of you are close and let him take control

His hands love to explore your body, and put you where he wants you

After sex, it is guaranteed that he goes back to his usual cuddly self and cares for you

Lots of kisses anytime the two of you are close, very sweet, very quick

He loves to take his time and really make sure that you feel special and loved

Don’t be expecting a quick fix from Yugyeom because he won’t be giving it to you

He hates being quick and rushing things, he much prefers to hold onto the moment, and you

The biggest turn on for him was when he’d feel your hands running through his hair

His little moans always put the biggest smile on your face as you grabbed him a little tighter

If he really were feeling romantic, he’d again, try and cook (usually failing!) and make the bedroom nice and romantic for you

One thing he always knew, was at the end of a long day, a cuddle from you was exactly what he needed to feel better again

 Arguments: 

If you’ve ever watched Got7ing, you’ll know Yugyeom hates arguments, especially when he’s the cause of it

He hated hearing you shout or making you upset, nothing in the world was worse

Yugyeom would usually turn very quiet and do whatever he could to try and fix the situation

He tended to just sit back and listen to what you had to say before he reacted

It took a lot for you to ever wind Yugyeom up he was usually always so calm

Once you’d got what you wanted off your chest, he’d usually just pull you into a massive hug and sort things out

You two never let arguments explode, you were far too calm to ever let anything get too big

Neither of you were perfect, however much you probably wanted to be

The moment you looked at Yugyeom’s face after getting angry you’d realise how stupid it was

Everyone could always tell when even the smallest argument had happened however, as he’d always be so quiet at the studio

He hated crying and showing you that fights had gotten to him, but he couldn’t help it

When he came back home after an argument, he’d always have something with him by way of an apology

Even if he felt he’d done nothing wrong, knowing that something had gotten to you would break his heart

He may be tall, but Yugyeom really is our softest boy

 Your Relationship With The Boys: 

The boys loved to tease their maknae for finding you

But that didn’t stop them finding the two of you utterly adorable and loving your relationship

Of course, BamBam was the member you were closest too as you spent so much time with him and Yugyeom

JB enjoyed having someone else around who would put the boys in their places and keep them in check

When you were tired, you could sit and talk to Jinyoung all day long, he was great for a good conversation

Youngjae was quite opposite to Yugyeom, which is why you got along with him so well as he showed you more of the music side of the group

You definitely found an annoying elder brother in Mark, he loved to tease you more than anyone else in the group

Jackson loved that you took such good care of him, you could tell straight away when his schedule was getting to you

At times, they struggled to remember exactly what life was like without you around to care for them all

But they knew that having you come into their lives was something they were all appreciative for

 The Future: 

Settling down and looking too far into the future wasn’t something Yugyeom wanted to do as he was still so young

You knew GOT7 would be his focus for a few years yet, but that didn’t stop him from assuring you that one day it would happen

He’d waited for a few of the elder boys to start settling down before he did too, as the group naturally moved to the next stage of life

The two of you decided to marry just before Yugyeom enlisted, as a piece of security whilst he was away

Of course, that put you in charge of Dalkyum and let you get plenty of practice before you had children

Which Yugyeom couldn’t wait to do when he discharged, and complete your family…

Masterlist

[euphoriara]

By Your Side

you turned up with casual clothing the next day. and the first time he saw you with normal clothing, he could only stare with his mouth agape, like a fish out of water. you look smaller with the oversized sweatshirt, hair styled naturally instead of the usual professional look you go for. you're also slightly shorter since you forego the boots you usually wear for a pair of comfortable sneakers. the only thought that ran through his head at the time was "find you a woman who can do both." 

alternatively

you just want to get your job done, but it seems like jungkook is determined to get in your way (and steal a spot in your heart in the process).

pairing: jungkook x bodyguard!reader

genre: action, fluff, tiny pieces of angst sprinkled throughout, bodyguard!au

word count: 22k

warnings: swearing, violence, weapons, abduction, implied/reference to sleeping pills, politics. (it sounds like a lot but it's not too much, promise. they're mostly at the first half of the story)

a/n: ahahahaha hey, i deleted the first part and decided to re-upload it as one part bc posting the second part was giving me a headache so here it is as a one piece instead. apologies to the people who read it before, there was like 7, im sorry lol. hope you can find it again since the first part left at a cliffhanger im so sorry. i still suck at summary but like at this point who's surprised anymore. but here it is, the longest thing ive ever written probably. to the people reading, thank you for giving it a chance, i appreciate it a whole lot, have a good day!

the cold air causes jungkook to nuzzle deeper into his sweatshirt, pulling up the hood to maintain his body temperature. outside of the convenience store, the busy street has started to wind down, only a few stragglers walking home from a long day at work. he pulls up his mask to cover more of his face, gripping the bag of snacks tighter to his body before opening the door. 

when he steps outside, he's too busy ruffling through his snacks to realize there's someone sitting at the plastic chair in front of the store, who quickly stood up when they saw him making his way out. it isn't until he feels the slightest press of cold metal against his back that he realizes something is definitely wrong. 

"just pretend like nothing's going on, walk normally and i won't hurt you." the girl is just as tall as him, whispering the muffled threat right into his ear so nobody else can hear it. from outside perspective, it might look like just two friends catching up with each other, with the girl having an arm slung over his shoulder from behind while her other hand concealed a dagger behind his back.  

he quickly schools his expression into a mask of calm, though his mind is racing with how to escape this situation. he follows her instructions when she subtly shoves a knee to his thigh, signaling him to walk with her. "if you want money, i can give it to you right now. don't hurt me, i promise i won't tell anyone." 

the girl scoffs next to his ear, "be quiet, I'm not letting you go. just listen to me and you won't get hurt. i said that already." 

jungkook tries to hide the tremble in his hand by holding the bags tighter, nodding in response because he's too scared to talk. he's worried if he does try to talk, a sob might escape. 

the girl shifts so she's walking by his side, arm with the weapon now wrapped around his waist, playing into the illusion of a couple taking a walk together. 

unfortunately for jungkook, they didn't encounter anyone on their walk. nobody that he can signify to ask for help.

she leads him into an alleyway, and that's when jungkook's legs start to shake as well, causing him to lag behind. fear starts to course through his veins faster, heart beating a mile a minute.

he sees the girl raises one of her perfect eyebrow, eyes impassively staring at him. the rest of her face is concealed with a mask, just like him and she wears a baseball hat to hide the rest of her hair. "for fuck sake, i told you already I'm not gonna hurt you. you don't have to worry about your pretty little face, alright?" her tone is annoyed, patience clearly running out and jungkook just nods, afraid he might set her off if he doesn't. 

he will himself to walk normally again when he sees another person emerges from one of the dark corners of the alley. a male and he's holding a gun, he realizes right away. he can't help himself when he audibly gulps at the sight of the weapon, fear rooting him in his place, unable to move. 

"don't worry, he's just a precaution so you won't try to run away. we're not stupid." the girl tries to reassure him but all he could think about is the gun that the male has shoved into his jacket pocket. 

they walk by his side now, and with the assurance of a gun, the girl pulls back her knife and shoves it into her pants pocket. jungkook tries to will his mind into coming up with a plan, but he's too scared to try anything with a threat of a gun next to him. 

he scans his surrounding area, but couldn't find any loophole for him to make his escape. they eventually make it into the other side of the road where a black SUV is waiting. she opens the door of the car and gestures with her head, "get in." 

he hesitates in his steps, if he climbs inside, there might not be a chance to escape anymore. 

"i said get in, I'm not asking again." he feels the press of a gun on his lower back and decides to listen. he climbs into the car where somebody is already waiting at the driver seat. another person is sitting next to him, possibly to prevent him from jumping out of the car. 

the male from before hops in next to him, while the girl climbs into the passenger seat in front. 

he takes the down time to memorize details, not that there's many, since everyone in the car, including him are wearing a mask to cover their face and a hat, and have their hood up. each person only reveals a sliver of their eyes, hair hidden away by the hood of their jackets, and hands covered with leather gloves. their whole person is covered by clothing, making sure no skin is exposed.

when the car starts pulling out of the side of the road, the person next to him dangles a black cloth in front of his face. "now jeon jungkook, we need to cover your eyes and tied up your hands to make sure you don't become a loose ends." he faces the girl next to him, her voice is deceptively sweet and jungkook can't tell if she's faking it or not. despite not being able to see her face, he knows she's smiling from the way her eyes crinkle and the revelation brought a shiver up his spine. 

the driver chuckles, causing jungkook to whip his head to stare at them on the reflection of the mirror.

they made a brief eye contact when the person looks back, holding his gaze in curiosity before his vision becomes dark. 

he feels the male next to him shift, taking the bag from his trembling hands and tying his wrists with a cloth. he gives it a few tugs and when he's satisfied, he moves back to rest against the seat. "don't worry 'bout your snacks, pretty boy. I'll keep them safe." his voice is deep, raspy, amusement clear as day. 

he drawled out his words, a clear sign that he's relaxed. jungkook thinks it's unrelatable. 

the whole ride was silent, except for the music playing from the radio. jungkook tries his best to listen to his surroundings in hopes of being able to find clues of where they're taking him. but alas, the sound of the music is loud enough to drown out any other noises. he tries to focus on the direction of the car, tracing it inside his mind from the starting point when he got into the car. 

however, it seems like his captors knew this because jungkook can tell they've been driving aimlessly for the past 20 minutes or so. it's not until 10 minutes later jungkook hears the difference in the road they're driving. briefly, the car drove through gravels before smoothly going back to pavement. and then going back to driving through dirt road.

at this point, jungkook has lost any sense of direction and has no idea where he is and where they're taking him, so he slumps against the seat, trying to come up with something else. he doesn't know what they want with him.

well, he does have an inkling about what they want. 

another 10 minutes later, and the car finally stop. he hears the door being opened and closed, feels the people next to him climb out of the vehicle. except, he stays rooted to his spot, not knowing what to do since nobody instructed him to get out. 

then, a hand reaches out to him, causing him to flinch when he feels someone grabbing his arm. "chill, it's me, come on. get out." it's the guy from before, tugging him by his sweatshirt. 

he feels the gravel beneath his shoes which turn into soft grass after a few steps. when he steps inside the building, the first thing he notices is the smell. smell of old, rotting wood and dust. 

somebody yanks the black cloth off his head, revealing an old empty warehouse with a chair in the middle. that's where he'll be spending his time, he guesses. 

he hears the crinkling of his bag from the side, looking to see the guy from before dumping his snacks into the table next to the window. "minhee, tie him to the chair. I'm just gonna take a look at his taste in snacks." 

the girl who threatened him steps forward, shoving him in the direction of the chair. "sit here, pretty boy." 

the driver from before brushes past his side before he got the chance to move, murmuring, "please don't worry. we're not gonna hurt you. i promise." oddly enough, jungkook believes her. 

after the reassurance from someone he doesn't even know, he complies with the girl, that he now know as minhee. for the first time in the last hour, jungkook finally opens his mouth. "are you not worried about revealing your name like that?" 

minhee raises her eyebrow and scoffs, husky voice laced with amusement, "if it's not safe then do you think he'd have said it?" she yanks the rope around his wrist harshly, "i told you, we're not stupid." she doesn't elaborate, not like jungkook was expecting her to. 

"haeun, did you queue the message?" she turns to look at the girl who sat next to him, the one with the terrifyingly sweet voice. a cheery voice replies from somewhere in the warehouse, "yup! all set. he'll receive the message first thing in the morning!" 

"and did you take care of any possible recording or evidence?" he sees the guy opening one of his chips, turning away from him to pull down his mask to pop a few into his mouth. his voice sounds clearer without the barrier of the mask. 

the sweet one, haeun, scoffs, "what do you think of me, yoongi? an amateur?" he sees yoongi shrugs, "I'm just making sure. no need to be salty 'bout it." 

jungkook is thoroughly confused, why are they using their name so freely like that? are they not worried he'll tell authority about them? though judging from what minhee said, they have reasons to not be worried. he wonders what that means. 

a new voice pipes up from one of the doorways, the girl who drove the SUV. she's the one that hasn't had a name associated with her yet. "yoongi, don't forget to feed him and give him some water." 

yoongi turns around, mask now back in place, and frowns. he sighs loudly before grabbing a container and a water bottle from a bag he didn't notice before. "I don't understand why I'm stuck with the babysitting duty." 

"oh shut up, all you gotta do is feed the kid. it's not that hard of a job." minhee snarks from where she's sitting near the window, eyes glued at the phone in her hand. 

"the kid's hands are tied, how's he gonna eat and drink?" yoongi ignores her, making his way in front of jungkook. "i told you, you feed him." driver says, clearly amused at the way yoongi grumbles and complains. 

begrudgingly, yoongi opens the bottle and tilts it towards jungkook, telling him wordlessly to drink. obviously, jungkook hesitates. what if the drink is poisoned?

the driver answers his question without him having to voice it out loud, "it's not poisoned. we're just trying to keep you away from dehydration and starvation." 

he looks up at yoongi, who has one dark eyebrow raised in question, before deciding to trust her again. seeing how they have kept their promise of not hurting him, he doesn't see why he can't accept the food and water.

yoongi makes him finish the whole bottle of water before feeding him pieces of kimbap. offhandedly, he thinks the kimbap is delicious. so much so that he's tempted to ask his captors where they got them from before resisting the urge to open his mouth and make a fool out of himself.

when he's done eating, yoongi goes back to the table with his snacks, once again facing away from jungkook to probably finish the rest of the chips he opened. the driver speaks up again from where she's standing, now perched next to the snacks table with her hip resting against the side. "don't worry too much, you'll be home in no time and we really do have no intention to hurt you. you're just…" she trails off and stares outside the window. 

"a helping hand to get us what we need." 

and then it clicked in jungkook's mind. he was right, these people wanted money and holding him hostage is a quick and surefire way of getting it. clearing his throat, he decides to brave himself and ask for confirmation himself. "what do you want from me?" he holds the stare of the girl, curious and amused eyes staring back at him. 

it's minhee who answers his question, "it's not what we want from you. it's what we want from your father." she stands up from her seat and sends a cold glare his way. 

"money." 

---

"Good morning Governor Jeon! What a lovely day today, isn't it? What a shame your son isn't able to see the sun himself today! But, don't fret, we can surely change that.

Now, Governor Jeon, all we ask from you is your cooperation and we won't hurt your precious son. Cross our hearts! We know how much you love him, so please don't worry too much. You just have to listen and comply. 

Our only demand is, you guess it! Money! We want $5,000,000 in cash, delivered at an address we'll send to you after confirmation that you had prepared the money. After you give us what we want, we'll send you a location where you can find your lovely boy. He's quite a charmer, isn't he? And his taste in snacks is pretty good, if I say so myself. Sour cream and onion potato chip is delicious.

I must remind you however, do not try to get any authority involved or we can not promise your son will return unharmed. Do not try to trick or fool us, Governor Jeon, we have eyes on you and a gun in the same room as your son. 

We know you're fully capable of giving us what we want so no negotiations, I'm afraid. Once the money reaches the location, open the bag and show us that you're not fooling us and then leave the premises and do not return back. Do not send anyone either or you won't get your son's location.

Now, as I've made clear before, if you or anyone else for that matter, violates one of the rules I've set in this message, I'm afraid your son will have to pay for that Governor Jeon. We would hate for that to happen, wouldn't we?

Anyway, you have 24 hours, starting from the moment you close this message.

Say Governor Jeon, isn't it lucky that the people that got your son are kind people who won't hurt him? Well this time at least. You should up your security around him, don't you think? It was quite easy for our people to get to him. What if somebody else got him again, but they're not as nice as us? You and him would be in big trouble, huh? Consider this as a friendly reminder from friends to friends, yeah?

Lovely time talking to you Governor Jeon! Hopefully we'll see you soon! Here's to no one getting hurt! Wait for our information!

---

jungkook quickly fell asleep last night after finishing his kimbap. it's no brainer since by the time he got to the warehouse, it must have been along the time of 1 in the morning. 

he woke up uncomfortable, back and neck complaining at the awkward angle he had to sleep in. there's a shuffling sound close to him and when he turns his head around, he sees yoongi, with new clothes but still covered from head to toe, walking towards him with another container of food. 

wordlessly, he opens the box, revealing a stack of pancakes with a side of fruits and a bottle of orange juice. he muses that at least they give him good food and one that's appropriate with the time of day. silently, he starts eating the food offered to him, eyes occasionally scanning over the room. though there's really not much to see.

the warehouse is empty save from a few scattered chairs, and a table. he notices the window from last night had been covered this morning, no natural light coming through the gaps. the only source of lightning is the few lightbulbs scarcely hang around the room.

there's a few doors to his right, but he couldn't see what's beyond it. although he can faintly hear the sounds of keyboards clicking from one of the doors, so he guess that's their temporary workspace for now. 

"what time is it right now?" he asks after finishing the last of his orange juice. "almost 10 in the morning. here's to hoping your father fulfill his end of the deal, huh?" there's an underlying threat laced around his playful remarks and jungkook can only sigh at the statement. 

"hopefully, i have assignments to finish and essays to write." at this, yoongi laugh, low and deep. "you sound much more composed than last night." 

that's true, jungkook is a lot calmer now, talking about this whole situation like it's a minor convenience. but it's because he trusts that these people genuinely won't hurt him or they would have done so by now. also because he knows one way or another, his father will somehow get him out of here. 

yoongi seems like he's expecting an answer from him, so he truthfully tells him his reasons. despite not being able to see his lower face, jungkook can tell he's smirking after he finished relaying his thoughts. "yeah well, maybe you should worry. we can't promise we'll let you go unharmed if he doesn't comply." 

that brought his thoughts to a screeching halt, doubts and fears starting to plague his mind again. "we did promise not to hurt you, but only if you and your father listen to our demands. so your second statement is still up in the air. there's no 'one way or another" jeon, there's only one way if you want to get out safely." 

one statement and his facade of bravado crumbles. what if his father doesn't comply? what if he makes a mistakes? what will happen to him? what will they do? 

before he can scares himself further, minhee calls out for yoongi from the other room. 

"that's my cue, be patient, pretty boy. you'll be out of here soon." even in the haze of his anxiety, he can't help but frown at the nickname. "stop calling me that." 

"whatever you say, pretty boy." he hears yoongi's footsteps fade, and sighs to himself again. he cuss himself for forgetting his phone at his coffee table last night, and tries to move his wrists to see if he can loosen the tie. 

unfortunately for him, the knot is too strong. so strong that he thinks it might be the impossible knot. he scans the room for any sign of weapons, only to come up empty. which means two things. one, his captors have all the weapons. and two, he won't be able to defend himself even if he got loose. 

he hears a slight commotion from one of the rooms on his right. a second later, yoongi emerges, walking slowly towards him with his hands inside his pockets. "guess your father cares after all." before jungkook gets the chance to ask him what he means, he feels his eyes getting heavy, mind hazy, unable to fight it when his senses become dull.

"sorry 'bout that." and then everything becomes dark once again.

---

jungkook wakes up to a hand gently tapping his cheeks and a mean cramp in his neck. he slowly blinks his eyes open to see a stranger in a uniform crouching in front of him. when the stranger sees that he's awake, he's quick to gesture other people to start working on his bind, loosening the tight ropes around his wrists and legs. 

"Mr.Jeon? Can you hear me?" he blearily nods at the question, mind too hazy to start speaking just yet. he slowly looks around the room to see crowds of people searching the perimeter. he doesn't see any signs of his captors however, which probably meant that they got away after rendering him unconscious. 

he's lead to a Lexus RX that's parked outside of the warehouse, but not before being bombarded with questions from what he assumed are the paramedics. he tells them that he's fine and that they hadn't hurt him. they run a quick check on him and seem to be satisfied by his answer, letting him climb into the familiar leather of the car.

he tells the driver to drive him to his apartment, head heavily resting against the cushion of the car, "but Mr.Jeon, your father wanted to see you." 

"tell him I'll meet him when i can, right now i just want to go home and rest properly." he doesn't want to deal with his father just yet, not knowing how he's gonna react. would it be anger? concern? indifference? he tries not to think about it too much. 

thankfully his driver listened, sensing the exhaustion rolling off his being, and drove him straight to his apartment without any more questions. 

he slams the door and make sure to check that it's locked before going around his apartment to make sure it's safe. he double checks every window and room, a slight anxiety still lingering at the back of his mind. he makes his way towards the bathroom, planning on taking a shower to rid him of the heavy weight pulling his limbs down. 

on his way to the bathroom, he sees his phone lights up from where it's perched on the coffee table. curious, he snatches the phone to check the message. it's from an unknown number.

"Hey! What did we tell you, we won't hurt you right? We kept our promise! Just messaging you to tell you that Yoongi's sorry about the orange juice. We needed you to be unaware of what we were doing while we were preparing for your retrieval. Oh, and also tell your father to not investigate further too. Or something unpleasant might work it's way to your building. We wouldn't want that, do we? 

And don't even try to track this message, you won't find anything. I guarantee. I'm good at my job. Anyway, don't forget to close your windows and lock your doors, wouldn't want a repeat of last night huh? Alright have a good day now Jungkook!

-Haeun"

he doesn't realize he's trembling until the phone almost slips out of his grasp, the taunts only adding to the growing anxiety at the back of his mind. the fact that she's brave enough to send a message to his phone, with yoongi's and her name in it means she's confident that they can't and won't be tracked. imagining the sweet voiced girl brought another shiver up his spine. he doesn't know why but haeun terrifies him. 

he decides to delete the message and try to forget about the event from the last 24 hours, making a beeline towards the bathroom where he hopefully can wash off the reminder of the exhausting night. 

once he's refreshed from his shower, he flops onto his bed and stares at the ceiling on top of him. he tries to rearrange the chaotic thoughts inside his mind. 

concerningly, he thinks, he's not necessarily afraid of his captors from last night. maybe it's from the way they repeatedly assure him that they're not gonna hurt him. or from the way they fed him actual food, delicious one at that, and water. 

no, it's the thought that he's a pawn in this game that terrifies him. the fact that he's stuck in this game of politics, money and power all because his father is the governor. the thought of being taken by another group that won't be as merciful is scary. years have gone by with his father involved in the politic scene but his family had never been threatened before. should he start worrying now? 

before he can overthink like he usually does, the phone in his hand ping with another message. it's his father, asking for him to meet tomorrow to talk. closing his eyes, he sighs, shooting a quick agreement before trying to fall asleep to the sound of rain that starts pouring outside. 

---

the next day finds him sitting in front of his father, fidgeting hands placed on his lap. his father doesn't mention anything, doesn't ask about what had transpired that night. jungkook can't help but think that his father had changed. 

"i will be assigning you a bodyguard from now on, to ensure your safety." so there won't be a repeat of last time. "she will be with you at all times, except for when you're at home. and even then she will be staying at the apartment in front of yours so you can easily ask for her assistance. you are not permitted to leave and go anywhere without her. understand?" i will not let you cost me my reputation and money again.

his voice is cold, authoritative, daring jungkook to disagree with him. 

jungkook bows his head low, muttering, "i understand," without making eye contact with the man in front of him. one he's not sure he recognized anymore.

"call her in." 

jungkook hears the door open, two people coming in to stand next to his father. he sees you facing him and looks away before you can catch him staring at you. 

"her name is (y/n)." you bow your head in his direction, face carefully blank when you look up again. your hair is styled neatly, suits tailored to fit. "it's nice to meet you Mr.Jeon." he blinks at your voice, not expecting you to speak to him. "oh! uh, nice to meet you too." 

his father claps once to bring the attention back to him, "alright, you're dismissed, you can leave now." 

he quickly stands up, bowing at his father before making a quick exit. the room feels suffocating and cold. he hears you trailing behind him but doesn't turn around until he's in the elevator, going down. 

he debates on how to start a conversation with you, but you beat him to the punch. "no need to worry about making pleasantries with me Mr.Jeon. you can pretend that I'm just a shadow following you." he turns to see you with a slight smile on your face, before trailing his gaze to the holster strapped underneath your suit jacket. 

"right…" he rubs the back of his neck awkwardly, "you can call me jungkook. no need to address me so formally like that." 

he sees you nod in confirmation before falling back into awkward silence. for him, at least, it's awkward. but you seem content with it. 

he walks toward the awaiting car in front of the building, his father had sent someone to drive him around in the meanwhile, not yet allowing him to leave on his own. "i heard you're moving to the apartment in front of mine?" he hesitantly asks when you settle into the seat next to him in the car. 

"yes i am. my belongings are being moved right now, actually. i will settle in tomorrow." he nods at your answer. "so, you'll be with me for," he frowns, "24 hours?" 

"not necessarily, i won't be intruding on your personal space that is your apartment, but i will be accompanying you whenever you go outside."

"including university?" he doesn't think he likes the sound of that.

you purse your lips sympathetically, "I'm afraid so." 

he stays quiet after that, looking out the window at the passing scenery to distract himself. he doesn't know what to think of this whole situation. in one hand, he's slightly relieved at the extra protection but on the other hand he's slightly uncomfortable at the thought of being followed everywhere he goes. at least, he thinks, he still has his home as his personal space.

a few minutes pass by in silence before jungkook feels you shifting next to him, body leaning forward to talk to the driver. "someone is tailing the car." 

he guesses you have intended to whisper as to not worry him, but he hears you anyway. body immediately going rigid, he moves to look at you anxiously. "what?"

you lean back after the driver nodded, sending a curt nod his way, "a car has been following us ever since we left your father's building. we will try to shake them off before reaching your apartment." jungkook feels the car turning into a busy highway, now surrounded by more cars than before.

he anxiously glances between you and the rearview mirror, trying to find the car you're talking about, but with various cars in the highway, he can't tell which one is following him. you seem to understand what he's trying to do, "black honda accord." 

he briefly sees the car you're talking about before it slips past him and speeds up, leaving him confused in his seat. when he turns to look at you, he realizes he's not the only one confused by the turn of events. you frown at the fading car, before blinking your expression back into a state of neutral. 

"why did they just, leave? what do they want?" he asks, breaking the tense silence between you. "I'm afraid i don't know either jungkook. don't worry, i have their plates memorized, I'll make sure to tell your father about it." 

the statement doesn't comfort him all that much, but he chooses to stay quiet. soon enough, he reaches his apartment building. he had always thought his apartment is safe, located in a building with strict security, but that doesn't make being followed home any less scary.

when you step out, you make sure to asses the surrounding area first, making sure nobody is following the two of you. once he reaches his apartment door, he asks you one last question. "do i have to call you when i want to go to the convenience store too?" 

he sees a slight amused smile pulling at the corner of your lips, "with all due respect jungkook, it was going into the convenience store by yourself that got you into trouble, so yes, i will be accompanying you to the convenience store too." 

embarrassed, he quickly nods and opens his door, bidding you a good night before disappearing into his apartment. he makes sure to check his whole space again, locking the doors and windows like haeun had reminded him yesterday. 

he falls into his couch, turning on the tv to some news about an anonymous donation to fall asleep to. he lets his eyes close and sleep to overtake him, trying to shake off any remaining anxiety weighing his limbs.

---

having you as his bodyguard is not that bad, jungkook thinks. on the first week, you had been quiet and serious, accompanying him whenever he went to school and hanging back whenever he went out with his friends. though he received some strange looks at school because of your presence, it also brought a sense of security and calm for him. 

after the first week of adjusting with having a bodyguard, he started breaking the ice between the two of you, occasionally striking conversation with you and asking about trivial matters. you were quiet, but you keep up with his conversation well, firing back questions after an answer to keep the conversation going. 

by week three, jungkook considers the two of you as friends. he even managed to convince you to wear normal clothes instead of the suit you always wear, when you're not going somewhere formal. a feat that he's proud of.

"it'll look weird if you wear suits when accompanying me to the convenience store." he had said one afternoon while at the library. he's procrastinating his essay, choosing to strike a conversation with you instead. "this is basically a uniform, jungkook. I can't not wear a uniform while on the job." you leaned back in your seat in front of him, arms crossed in front of your chest. he tries to not let his gaze lingered too much. 

coughing, he averted his attention to the highlighter next to his laptop, "but come on! wouldn't it look suspicious if you keep wearing that everywhere we go? why is it necessary for you to wear a uniform anyway? I'm sure they're not as practical. and they're probably not mandatory for your job." you had sighed but stayed quiet to let him speak.

"don't you need to be more subtle? and i bet it's a lot of work having to put on a suit every time i need to go out to get a cup ramen." he saw you mulling over the proposition before relenting. "fine, I'll start wearing more practical clothing but i still need to wear a suit when it's formal." jungkook nodded, "i understand, don't worry." 

you turned up with casual clothing the next day. and the first time he saw you with normal clothing, he could only stare with his mouth agape, like a fish out of water. you look smaller with the oversized sweatshirt, hair styled freely instead of the usual professional look you go for. you're also slightly shorter since you forego the boots you usually wear for a pair of comfortable sneakers. the only thought that ran through his head at the time was "find you a woman who can do both." 

by the second month of you being his bodyguard, he has started inviting you into his apartment to hang out with him. he often challenges you to play video games with him, competitive nature resurfacing everytime you win. though, he never asked to go to your place and you never offered. 

your presence lets him forget about the events that took place many months ago, providing a calm reassurance everytime he walks. now, he doesn't check his apartment obsessively anymore, merely making sure to lock the doors and the windows. it also lets him feel normal for once. 

despite being someone who works for him, you don't let that become a gap between the two of you, befriending him who sometimes finds it hard to make friends due to his status as the governor's son. 

all in all, jungkook thinks having you as a bodyguard isn't that bad.

---

walking at night doesn't feel as scary as before now, with your warm presence next to him, steps aligned with his. he chatters away about his upcoming project, asking for your opinion once in a while about a certain topic. it isn't until he feels your hand on his bicep that he realizes you had stopped in the middle of the sidewalk, eyes cautiously trained in front of you. 

he frowns, turning to look at you, "what's wrong?" he follows your gaze to see two people standing at the other side of the road, appearance reminding him of those people that had captured him all those months ago. a hat, mask and a hood to conceal their identity. hands shoved into their pockets to conceal any weapon they have. 

he tenses when he feels you shift next to him, fight or flight instinct sounding in his head when he sees them slowly making their way over. he's too caught up in his mind to realize that you had drawn out your gun, shoving it into his trembling hands. "jungkook, take this. if any of them tries anything, aim and shoot." 

"wh- what? what about you?" he'd be embarrassed of the tremor in his voice if he weren't so scared. these people don't look nice. 

you throw a smirk his way, "don't worry about me." 

any reply dies on his tongue when he sees one of the people swings their fist towards you, one you quickly dodge by stepping to the side. he sees the other person charging towards him, moving away from the direction he pointed the gun at to tackle him down. 

they both fell to the ground, his back hitting the cold pavement with a loud thud. the male pins jungkook to the ground with his knees, gun having fallen away in the moment of scuffle. he draws back his fist to punch him but jungkook manage to throw him off balance by slamming his knee against his back. he pushes the male away from him, wrapping his arm tightly around their neck while searching for the gun with his other hand. 

he's momentarily distracted when he hears you yelp in pain, looking over to see you hunched over a few feet away from him. he sees the person you're fighting aiming a knife at your shoulder, sending him into panic. when he grabs ahold of the gun, he shots the person in the thigh. 

the knife clatter to the ground, a hiss sounding from the person standing in front of you. he sees you stand up to neutralize them, throwing a punch and stepping on the thigh jungkook had shot before. he then turns to the person in his arms, debating on what to do. the male senses his hesitation, using their strength to throw jungkook over their shoulder, causing jungkook to loses his grip on the gun once again. 

in the moment of weakness, the guy had managed to grab the gun from him, the barrel of a gun now pointing at his forehead. jungkook closes his eyes and brace himself, fear gripping every inch of his body, replacing the adrenaline. 

but the shot never rang. instead he hears a heavy thud, and when he opens his eyes again, you stand in front of him, gun pointed at the guy kneeling in front of you. 

"who sent you?" you ask, voice cold and emotionless, it reminded him of the first sentence you've spoken to him. the person doesn't answer, eyes trained on you while occasionally flickering to his friend still laying on the ground, obviously in pain. 

"you're not gonna answer?" your question sounds more like a statement, and a few seconds after you finished your sentence, jungkook hears the telltale sound of the police cars. you must have alerted the authority the moment you saw them. 

he sees the male nervously glancing around, fidgeting like he's trying to find a way to escape.

"go on, try to run, I'll make sure you end up like your friend over there." bleeding, unable to walk, let alone run. 

slowly, the male moves his hands out, holding it up in the air in surrender. your hold on the gun tightens momentarily before relaxing again when the police arrive to apprehend the two. 

he sees them being handcuffed and lead to the awaiting police car ready to take them to the station. you drop your hand to your side, still clutching the gun in precaution. 

an officer walks towards the two of you, placating hands in front of his body. "are you two okay? do you need medical assistance?" it's not until he mentions it that jungkook notices there's an ambulance parked next to the sidewalk, a few medics tending to the guy he had shot. 

you turn to look at him, scanning him head to toes for any injuries, "do you need medics? are you hurt?" he shakes his head, hands still shaking, "no i- I don't, i don't think so." you frown at his answer, taking a hold of his wrist gently, "still, you need to get yourself check out. let's go." 

jungkook is tempted to hold your hand but managed to refrain from it. he needs some comfort, but he's not sure if he can ask it from you. 

you lead him to the ambulance, the male from before had been taken away to the hospital, so there won't be any awkward encounter between the three of you. "he might have a bruise on his back, he was thrown to the ground twice." you tell the medics. 

he didn't realize he might've been injured too, but your words makes him realize there's a dull pulsing on his shoulder blade and his back. the medic nods, gesturing to his shirt, "may i check?" offhandedly, he nods, letting him lift his shirt to check his back, but moves to grab your hand when you turn to walk away.

"where are you going? you need to get checked out too, you probably sustain more injuries." 

"I'll get checked out later, I'm going to give you some privacy." you smile at him, hand gently prying his from your wrist. 

he furrows his eyebrows, "i don't mind, really. you should really get yourself checked." he eyes the cuts and bruises on your knuckles. "did you know your knuckles are bruised?" 

you look down at your hands, chuckling to yourself. "did you forget this is my job, jungkook? this is not a big deal." 

thankfully, the other medic is quick to agree with jungkook. "come here, let me tend to your wounds." she doesn't let you disagree, sitting you down and making quick work to clean the scrapes on your hands. 

he hisses when he feels someone poking the bruise on his shoulder blade, "just some minor bruising on your shoulder and your left lower back. when you get home, you should ice it and rest to let it heal by itself." he quietly nods and watches as his medics move to help tend to you. 

"and you, miss? any other injuries besides the knuckles?" he asks as he crouches behind you. 

you turn your head to the side, pondering the question. "probably just some bruising too since he managed to get a couple of punches." 

the medic nods, "is it okay if i check your torso?" you purse your lips, eyes flickering to jungkook at the back of the ambulance. "sure."

jungkook averts his eyes when the medics start to lift your shirt, only looking back when the male starts talking again. "there's a shallow laceration on your side, quite a few bruises too. do they hurt?" 

"not that much." 

he sees them nod, "alright we'll take care of the bleeding wounds and then you can go. don't forget to let the bruises heal." 

a few minutes later, you're walking home, side by side. he eyes the gauze around your knuckles, heart heavy with guilt.

"I'm sorry." he mutters. 

you stop to look at him, eyebrows raised in question. "for what?" "you got hurt protecting me." 

"it's my job, jungkook. you don't have to feel sorry." he sighs, kicking at nothing. "i know, but still." 

you place a comforting hand on his biceps, "and it's not your fault. don't beat yourself up." he can only nod at your statement, still uneasy at the thought of you getting hurt. the rest of the walk is blanketed with silence, millions of thoughts running through his head. he thinks about who those people were, about what they wanted. he shivers at a particular thought. what if you hadn't been there with him? what if he were alone, like that night at the convenience store? 

he doesn't want to think about it. 

when he arrives at his doorstep, you place a hand on his shoulder to stop him from entering his house. "don't forget to ice your back." jungkook blinks, he just remembered that. how is he gonna ice his own back?

he sees amusement dancing in your eyes, it's like you can read his mind. "do you need help?" 

embarrassed, he quietly nods, opening the door and inviting you in. 

"lay down on the couch, I'll get the ice." 

he complies wordlessly, laying on his stomach on the plush couch and closing his eyes. he hears you move around in the kitchen, and struggles to keep his eyes open. he hears you ask him if it's okay for you to lift his shirt, answering the question with a short grunt. 

you lift the shirt off his back, hissing when you see the bruise on his shoulder. "damn," is the only thing you say before placing the ice pack at the right spot. he tenses for a moment at the cold sensation, before melting back into the couch. "didn't they say there's another bruise, jungkook? where is it?" 

at the mention of his other bruise, his eyes pop open, realizing where it's located. "uh…" 

he waves his hand around, "don't worry about that one, i can take care of it." he can't see you but he's sure you're frowning in confusion. "i thought they said it's on your lower back?" 

"ye- yeah. yeah it is. it's um…" he's too embarrassed to tell you it's on his butt. "don't worry it's fine." 

it's silent for a few minutes, jungkook thinks you might let it go but then he hears you trying to stifle your laughter. he pouts, "don't laugh! i fell on my butt when he threw me off his shoulder!" 

you let out a single laughter before composing yourself, patting jungkook on the head. "it's okay. that's good actually, you didn't fall on your tailbone and risk injuring it." he hums at the compliment, good point, kudos to him for moving his body slightly to the side when he was up in the air.

"you sure you don't need my help compressing it?" you tease, moving off the couch back to the kitchen. "m'sure." 

"do you want warm milk, jungkook?" you call from the kitchen. "yes please!" milk sounds nice right now. 

when you come back, you place the warm cup of milk on the coffee table, "i put some honey in it, like in that movie you showed me last week." jungkook's heart clenches, you're so cute. he mutters a thanks to his folded arms, trying his best to keep his eyes open. "I'm gonna go home now, rest and take care not to aggravate your bruise too much, okay?" 

he moves his head to the side, "do you need help? with your own bruises?" you shake your head on your way to the door, "nah, it's fine. i can do it myself, i didn't get thrown to the pavement." he throws another pout your way. 

"good night, jungkook." the door closes before he can say it back.

---

a few weeks pass by without any more incidents, his body returning back to its normal condition in just a few days. for a couple of days, you diligently helped him iced his shoulder, not forgetting to tease him about the one on his butt each time. 

everytime he offered to help you with your own injuries, you always shot down the idea, telling him you can take care of yourself. so jungkook decided he'll help by going out less to let you rest a bit more, so your cuts and bruises can take their time to heal. 

he invited you over more often, offering to watch movies together with him or to play video games. sometimes you had to decline, telling him that you still have some things to do, but more often than not you'll sigh and roll your eyes fondly before agreeing. 

this week however, he hadn't seen you that much except for when you accompanied him to school. mostly because he had been cooped up in his own apartment, only leaving for his exams in the morning, studying and focusing on his big project for the rest of the day. 

he'd given you a heads up before the week started, as to not worry you when he doesn't knock on your door to ask to go the mall. 

"I'm gonna be pretty busy next week," he had said over a plate of fried rice, sitting on his dining table with you across from him. you raised one eyebrow in question. "finals week means i have to study everyday and i have to finish a project I've put off long enough."

he chewed the fried egg, gulping it down before continuing, "so i probably won't go anywhere except for school. think of it as like a vacation for you." you had nodded and smiled at him, but didn't say anything, scooping up more rice onto your spoon. jungkook didn't notice your smile didn't reach your eyes.

today is the last day kf exams for him, every finals done and project sent to his professor 15 minutes before the deadline. he flops down into the floor in a heap, exhaustion rolling off every inch of his body. he had only gotten a total of 25 hours of sleep this week, and had not been taking care of himself properly. 

he groans and stands up when he hears his stomach grumbles, making his way to the kitchen to look for some food. there's a slight headache at the back of his head, vision blurring for a moment before returning to normal. he shakes it off as exhaustion, opening the fridge only to see it empty. he tries the cupboard but comes up with the same thing. 

throwing his head back, he decides he'll have to go out to get some food, it's not too late at night yet, clock showing 8:15. walking to the door to get you, his vision blurs again when he reaches his door, hand gripping the doorknob to prevent him from falling. he definitely needs to get you now. 

when he opens the door, he finds you conversing with someone in the hallway, opening the door to let them in. he can't exactly hear what you're saying but the other voice causes a flicker of familiarity to light in the back of his mind. your eyes quickly snap to him when you realize he's standing behind the person, widening in surprise and… nervousness? fear?

he was about to ask you who it is when the person turns to look at what made you freeze, jungkook's body going rigid at the realization. the voice, the eyes, he remembers them, memories from the events all those months ago surges to the front of his mind. his vision blurs again, this time slowly going dark around the edges. only one name crosses his mind.

"minhee."

---

you watch as jungkook's body goes rigid when he sees minhee turning around, he had obviously recognized her. you hear him mutter her name before going limp and move to catch him before he collapses, supporting his weight so he won't fall to the ground and hurt himself. grunting, you adjust his body in your arms, "minhee, a little help?" 

she sighs loudly, moving to stand next to him and slinging his arms around her shoulder to help you carry him to your apartment. "the fuck are we supposed to do now?" she asks, kicking open the door and helping you move him to your couch. "i have no fucking idea." 

your mind races with all the possibilities, trying to come up with a solution to the new problem in your hand. you unceremoniously drop him to your couch, feeling his forehead to check his temperature. he doesn't have a fever, though he look pale and exhausted. you figure he hasn't been taking care of himself. 

haeun emerges from the kitchen, holding a bowl of seasoned popcorn. she munches and raises her eyebrow at the sight, "what's going on?" she looks at the boy on your couch, "why's he here?" 

you pinch the bridge of your nose, pacing in front of the door while minhee sits on the chair next to the tv. she answers haeun question for you, "pretty boy here, recognized me and then fainted." 

haeun chuckles, "he fainted because he saw you?" 

"no, i think he fainted from exhaustion and possibly dehydration, seeing minhee just add to the shock. how long do we got until he wakes?" minhee clicks her tongue, "few minutes? maybe? I don't know but you need to figure something out, quick."  

you talk out loud so minhee can hear you, maybe her opinion can help. "well, one thing for sure is we can't let him go and pretend nothing happened, can we?" she shakes her head no. 

"but, maybe we can? i can just say that he hallucinated because he was tired? do you think that would work?" she shrugs her shoulders. 

"do you think he'll believe me if i told him that?" she nods her head yes. 

you stop your pacing, "what? you think he'll believe me if i told him he hallucinated?" she plasters an innocent look on her face, blinking at you from where she sits. "i think so. pretty sure he'd believe you if you tell him the cashier at downtown McD is an alien." 

you tilt your head to the side, not understanding what she meant. "what?" before she can respond, haeun places a glass of water on the coffee table and you shoot her a grateful look. "okay you know what, you two go hide in my room. I'll try to see if i can get him to believe nothing happened." 

"no, he's not that stupid. you know that's not gonna work," a voice is heard from your doorway, and when you turn to look, it's yoongi with his arms crossed in front of his chest.

you groan in frustration, "then what am i supposed to do, yoongi?" 

sighing, he walks into your apartment, closing the door behind him. "I don't know yet but i think we should take him with us." he stares at the sleeping boy on your couch, using his shoes to nudge his knee. "it's too big of a risk if he knows and we let him go, you know that. we can't let him walk around with that knowledge, not yet. he now knows of your identity and hers. we'll figure out what to do after our main goal is done." 

minhee and haeun stay quiet, letting the two of you figure out what to do with the governor's son. "if we disappeared, they would no doubt be suspicious of me, and then my cover will be blown." yoongi sits at the table, legs crossed, "I'm sure you can figure out a reason, right?" 

you drop your head to your hands, racking your brain for any solutions. "whatever you come up with, you know I'll be able to help you with." haeun offers, watching your eyebrow furrows in deep thought. 

you look at jungkook, it's been a few minutes and he hasn't woken up yet, which probably means he won't wake up for a little while. 

hesitantly, you let them know of your plan, "i can tell his father he's going on a trip with some of his friends to celebrate and that I'll be accompanying him. I'll tell him he won't be able to reach us because we're going somewhere secluded but I'll keep him updated and that it's an impulse trip." 

you turn towards haeun, "can you deal with the logistics of all of that? tie up any loose ends and cover any tracks so he won't get suspicious. I'm going to message him right now and see what his response is and then we can go on from there." 

haeun nods, and you trust her. you trust that she'll be able to handle it, she's good at her job after all, and a genius on top of that. you quickly send the message, receiving a reply in less than 5 minutes. 

"Alright, keep him safe. I'll transfer the expense to you once you return. Tell him not to do anything stupid." 

you scoff at the response, you can't believe that would actually work. he doesn't question why jungkook didn't tell him himself? doesn't question jungkook going on an impulse trip with his friends? you wonder about his relationship with jungkook. 

but you guess right now, it's a good thing that he doesn't question you and he trusts you that much. 

"minhee, can you pack me my bags? in case anyone checks, we need to keep up the illusion of going on a trip. I'll go to his apartment to pack his." she nods and makes her way to your room, while you order yoongi to keep an eye out for him. 

you quickly walk to his apartment to pack his bag, grabbing only the necessity and some pieces of clothing, turning off all the lights and electronic appliances and taking his phone and laptop with you. once you're done, you walk back to your door, briefly musing about the security cameras. you'd need haeun's help to take care of that later. 

when you get back to your apartment, you see minhee holding two bags, standing next to yoongi while jungkook stays fast asleep on your couch. you shove the bags you're holding to haeun so you can lift jungkook with yoongi, making sure everyone have their mask on before leaving the apartment. you tell them not to wear their hood as to not rouse any more suspicions and make your way to the parking lot downstairs where you deposit him in the passenger seat of your car. 

fortunately, you didn't meet anyone on your way down or you'd have a hard time explaining the unconscious boy in your arms. climbing in to the driver seat, you pull out of the parking lot, driving to a place you know to be safe. 

"haeun, can you take care of the security footage?" she hums from the backseat, "don't worry I'm already working on it." you nod at her words, glancing at the boy next to you. 

"I'm sorry, Kook."

---

when you reach your house, you take jungkook to your bedroom to let him rest and ask minhee to get some water for when he wakes up. you need to assess the situation after he wakes up too, to determine if he remembers what happened or not, maybe you can still convince him that nothing had happened and take him back. 

10 minutes later, you see jungkook stir as yoongi and minhee steps outside your bedroom, so you gesture for them to hurry up. when jungkook fully wakes up, they're both hidden from sight, door closing quietly behind them. 

he groans from his position on your bed, hand coming up to rub his forehead. you sit next to him on the floor, tentatively touching his shoulder. "jungkook?" 

he jolts when he hears your voice, scrambling to put a gap between the two of you. "hey, hey it's okay. you're alright, you're safe." he keeps quiet, eyes wary, and you can't tell if he remembers seeing minhee or not. you keep talking in a soft voice to placate him, "you're okay. you fainted from exhaustion in front of my door. i heard a knock and when i opened the door, you collapsed before i could ask you what happened." 

you place your arms on the bed, showing him you're not gonna hurt him. "you look really pale when i opened the door, do you want some water?" you gesture to the glass on your nightstand. 

he furrows his eyebrows, glancing at his surrounding, confused eyes scanning the room. you think he might have forgotten until he opens his mouth, "are you gonna poison me?" 

you freeze, blinking at him. "what are you talking about? of course not, why would i?" 

he blinks back at you, face blank and void of emotion. "so you can use me as a "helping hand" to get what you need." he repeats the word you said to him that night, proving that he remembers. you try to play it off, "jungkook, i really don't understand what you're saying."

hesitation flicker in his eyes for a moment before disappearing again, eyebrows furrowed in annoyance. "minhee," is the only thing he says. 

you frown, "who?" "the tall girl in front of your door earlier." you purse your lips, he remembers. 

you sigh, dropping your shoulder and gesturing to the water, "at least drink some water first, i promise you it's not poisoned." you reassure him the same way you did that night. 

he doesn't move so you take the glass, taking a gulp of water to prove its harmless before offering it to him. he eyes the glass with distrust, gazing at you for a few moments before taking it from your hand. you notice he tries to not make any contact with the hand you have wrapped around the glass.

"jeon jungkook, if you don't forget and pretend nothing happened, i can't let you go." you sit at the couch on the left of the bed, putting more space between you so he'll be more comfortable. you put on your persona and offer him a chance to walk away.

he scoffs at your statement, "where am i? and what the fuck are you talking about? you want me to forget that you were with the person who captured me all those months ago? and goes on with you as my bodyguard? don't you think i need an explanation?" he slams the glass on the table, hand raking through his hair in frustration.

the way he phrases it captures your attention, does he not know that you were also there?

"you're in my room, and if i tell you, jeon jungkook, i can't let you leave this house. i don't want you to get more involved than you already are." 

"stop calling me that!" he nearly shouts. you widen your eyes in surprise at his volume. 

he lowers his voice, hands gripping the sheets underneath him, "don't call me jeon jungkook, don't put distance between us." 

softening your eyes, you cross your legs, softly calling his name, "i can't tell you, jungkook." he snaps his gaze towards you, recognition dawning on him.

he throws his arms up in the air, "even if you don't tell me, there's no way you can let me go anyway, right? i know about you and minhee, i know you were the one driving the car." 

there it is. confirmation. 

"but if i tell you, you'll get tangled in this mess." 

he scoffs, "like I'm not already?" 

"you might hate me if i tell you," you worry, biting your lips in an effort to not let it all spill out. the moonlight shines through the blind on your window, providing a dim light that illuminates the room. there it is, the reason you're so hesitant on telling him.

he purses his lips, "what makes you think i don't already?" 

your heart drops to your stomach at his words, tears unconsciously welling up at the corner of your eyes. 

it's a fear of yours that manifested the moment he invited you over to play games. a worry at the back of your mind when he convinced you to wear casual clothes. you know you shouldn't have let your guard down so easily, but he had been scared, lost, sad, lonely. so you give in, opening your heart for him to nestle himself in.

you close your eyes and will them back, fisting the blanket on your couch. eventually you nod, deciding you owe him an explanation at the very least. "okay."

"that night, we staged the capture. we were never planning to hurt you in any way, money also wasn't the reason." you see him starting to relax, hands fiddling with the string on his sweatpants. "we needed your father to hire someone to protect you, so i can infiltrate my way in to gather intels. we have someone on the inside, someone who will make sure I'll be the one he chooses. i also needed to keep an eye out on you to determine if you were involved." 

"the two people who attacked a few weeks ago wasn't us. they were people who wanted to get you because they realized your father will pay them if they managed to get their hands on you." 

he knows that, but keeps quiet, letting you continue with your explanation. 

you stay silent for a minute, before, "your father is involved in multiple cases of money embezzlement. he had been taking funds from a few public projects, and had also been receiving bribe money from certain companies." jungkook freezes at the reveal, mind going numb at the information.

"we are here to gather information, to reveal it to the public in due time. we are also working to expose the authority so that when we come out with the evidence, it won't be swept under the rug." you shift in your seat, wringing your hands in front of you. "i figured you weren't involved and had no idea about it." 

it's a question masks as a statement. dazed, he shakes his head. "he started doing it one year ago, and our mission had been on going for around half of that time. our information wasn't enough just yet, so we needed a way in. i had been collecting evidence, sending them to my team for them to process."

jungkook is still bewildered, mind starting to connect the dots. before he can spiral, however, you intervene his thoughts, "don't worry jungkook, the illegal money is all in an offshore account and had never been used until that night with the 5 million dollars and to pay people to keep quiet about his secret." 

he snaps his gaze towards you at the mention of the ransom money, "what did you do with those money?" 

you smile sympathetically at him, "we gave it back to the institution." his mind flashes back to the news of an anonymous donation the next day after the incident and a small weight lifted off his shoulder.

you sigh, leaning back on your seat. "I'm sorry to say but right now, you're in my room, in my house. not the apartment." 

he blankly stares at you, waiting for more explanation. "unfortunately we can't let you walk around with this knowledge, not now. but once we reach our main goal, I'll make sure you'll be able to leave safely. please believe me when i say we won't hurt you." your words are sincere, eyes gazing at his to convey your honesty.

he hears the door to your room open before he could open his mouth, two people walking in. the smooth voice of minhee cuts through the air, laced with amusement, "so I'm guessing your plan of lying to him didn't work?" 

you glare at her from your spot, "don't act like you didn't hear our conversation min." you lay down on the couch, eyes closing in exasperation. "so, what are we supposed to do now?" he recognizes the voice as haeun, a slight shiver running down his spine.

"I'm not gonna say anything." he hopes he sounds convincing enough. 

minhee scoffs, rounding the room to sit next to you, lifting your legs and placing them in her lap. "even so, we can't risk it. our identity is on the line, you have to stay here under surveillance until we can figure out what to do with you." 

"i don't see any reason why you need to keep me captive if i promise not to tell anyone. nobody will know and your identity will be safe if I'm the only one who know," he argues back, he knows it's probably pointless but it's worth a shot.

"he has a point," you mutter, haeun coming over to lay herself on top of you, crushing you with her weight. minhee swats at her but doesn't complain.

"absolutely not, we can't let him go." a new voice speaks out from the doorway. when jungkook turns his head to look, he found three males standing there, one he recognized as his driver. 

he suppresses his gasp at the fact. they walk into the room, closing the door behind them. 

"and why not?" you question from under haeun, who is squishing your cheeks with her palms, like you're too cute for her to handle. jungkook doesn't understand why she's doing that. 

"he knows too much, simple as that." it clicked in his mind when he hears the drawl of the voice. it's yoongi. 

you sound more muffled now, "but he's not gonna tell anyone, i believe him." his heart skips a beat at your declaration. yoongi raises his eyebrow at him, "yeah? but i don't." 

minhee is the one who speaks up next "so how long are we planning to keep him here?" 

yoongi shrugs and drops to the floor in a starfish position, "as long as it needs." 

his mind reels, for the topic of conversation right now, all of you seems to be very relaxed, not worried about jungkook running away and ratting you out to someone. you're basically in a cuddle pile for fuck sake. he confusedly look around, catching the eye of his driver who lift his hand to wave at him. 

"oh yeah, that's taehyung. he's also one of us. he's the one who's in charge of getting the information at first, but when we realized it won't be enough, we had to find another way." you had successfully pushed haeun away from you, rolling over so you're now lying face down on the carpet. you sigh loudly "yoongi, what are we supposed to do next?" 

the man in question snorts from his place, "i don't fucking know, isn't it your job to figure it out?" 

jungkook can stand up right now, he realizes. he can stand up and bolt out the door and away from whatever this is since all of you are distracted. oddly, he doesn't feel the need to. 

you roll over on your back, "oh! and that last guy is jimin." the guy in question lift his hand and wave, offering jungkook a friendly smile. 

"so you basically kidnapped me, again?" jungkook asks as he leans back on your bed, staring at the navy blue sheets. 

"uh… i guess? in a way?" you sound so confused, so unsure, it reminded him of the other version of you he thought he knew. he realizes the two of you would need to talk it out later. 

"you're not worried about my father?" 

"oh, well, you see, i told him that you impulsively decided to go on a trip with your friends to somewhere where we can't be reached, but i told him I'll keep him updated and he agreed." 

he nods, storing that information for pondering later when he can't sleep at night. 

the room is quiet after that, each person caught up in their own world. he sees haeun poking minhee in the face, while the girl type something in her phone. taehyung, his former driver is conversing quietly with jimin while you and yoongi appear to be asleep. 

he sighs loudly to announce that he is, in fact, still here, garnering your attention from the floor. "this is too much information for one night, can you all leave, i would like to be alone." 

they all wordlessly stand up from their spot, yoongi had to be pulled up by both minhee and taehyung, and steps outside your bedroom.

except for you. 

you scooch so you're sitting next to the bed, staring up at him, "please don't try to run away or you might get hurt in the process. we have plenty of surveillance and guards that will prevent you from leaving and i can't promise they won't hurt you while doing so." 

he holds your gaze, reading the emotion behind it before closing his eyes. "fine but we need to talk." 

nodding, you gently take his hand in yours. "i know, we'll talk tomorrow okay? you should get some rest, you did faint after all."

you stand up, letting go of his hand and walking out the door, "finish the water, I'm going to get you some food and then you can go to sleep." 

the door shuts behind you, leaving jungkook alone with his thoughts. he wanted badly to stay awake and process all the information but after finishing his meal, his eyes can't help but droop and he decides this time to let sleep overtake the chaos in his mind.

---

when he wakes up the next morning, the curtains are drawn, letting him sleep undisturbed by the blazing sun outside. he rolls over and groans, trying not to think about his situation too much or else his head will explode. 

for now, he's just gonna go out on a limb and give you a little bit of his trust, you said you trusted him last night with the identity of you and your whole team, despite how dangerous it is if people found out so he thinks he'll give you back that trust, even just a little bit. 

he was about to fall asleep again, the plush bedding and warm blanket lulling him back before the door cracks open and someone walk in. he pretends to be asleep, not knowing who it is. 

he feels the bed dip at his side, a hand caressing his head gently. he will his body to relax so the person won't realize he's awake.

"Kook, I'm sorry." it's you, whispering because you think he's still asleep. "i didn't want you to get involved in this mess but I guess… i guess I'd gotten you involved the moment i became your guard, huh?" you're rambling to yourself, hand still gently stroking his hair. "Or maybe the moment i decided to staged that incident." 

he hears you sigh, low enough that he thinks you still don't know he's awake but loud enough that he can feel your frustration through it. "i really am sorry, Kook." you whisper one last time, before standing up and tucking the blanket around his shoulder. he hears the door close, and opens his eyes, staring at the wall in front of him. 

it's the first time you call him by his nickname.

///

you watched as his friends drove away, waving from inside the car and shouting at the top of their lungs despite only being a few steps away. "bye, kook! We'll see you later! Don't forget to send us your part of the project or I'll hunt you down!" he laughed at the threat, shouting back his confirmation before turning back to you. "come on, let's get inside before we freeze out here." he ushered you inside, bright smile still plastered on his face. 

when the both of you were standing in the elevator, you turned to face him to see a thoughtful look on his face. "hey, (y/n)." you hummed in answer. "we're friends, right?" 

you blinked at his question, honestly not knowing the answer yourself but he had continued, not waiting for you to answer. "you know, i was thinking, since we're friends, why don't you just call me by my nickname? it's probably a hassle to call me by jungkook all the time, right?" 

you hesitated in answering him, because you don't know if you can. it's a warning that minhee gives you everytime she comes over, "don't get too comfortable." it floats around in your mind, plastering itself at the front of your head everytime you give in to his request in trying to befriend you. 

he silently stared at you, waiting for your answer. you pursed your lips, trying to lightly brushed it to the side without hurting his feelings too much. "hm, i don't know jungkook. i think I'll stick to calling you by that name, i need to maintain an air of professionalism, right?" 

his shoulder dropped at your answer, turning his body to stare at the elevator door in front of him. he sounded dejected when he replied, "yeah… i guess you're right." 

not wanting for him to be upset, you quickly reassured him, "but i am your friend, jungkook. just because I'm not calling you by your nickname doesn't mean I'm not." he's still tensed at your response, nodding to signified he doesn't want to talk about it anymore. 

you wordlessly complied with his request and he eventually let it go, never bringing it up again in conversation.

///

he ignores the loud chatter inside his mind, all the confusion and doubts cruising through his head. he'll make sure to talk to you later to quiet them. for now, he's going to get some breakfast. looking at the clock which read 8:43, he stands up from your bed, making his way to the door. 

only to realize he's completely unfamiliar with the house and won't know where the kitchen is. he debates on waiting for someone to get him, but his grumbling stomach protests his decision, causing him to try to brave through the house by himself. 

opening the door to your room, he's greeted by an empty house. he takes his time admiring the place, it doesn't look too big, but it does look luxurious. with marble flooring and ivory walls, the house looks like it's sparkling. he turns right to make his way down the stairs, observing the left of your room has another set of stairs that go up. 

he finds himself in what he assumed to be the living room, a place that looks more cozy down here than when he's looking at it from above. he sees a door at the side of the room, walking towards it when he hears people talking. 

he walks into the space to see haeun placing two slices of bread at the side of taehyung's face while jimin sits at the counter, giggling. "what are you?" haeun screams. taehyung answers with a deadpan and blank face, "I'm an idiot sandwich." causing jimin to laugh harder, folding in on himself, jungkook fears he might tumble off his chair. 

"okay, I'm not eating that bread, it touched tae's face. haeun! stop wasting our bread!" he doesn't realize that minhee is standing by the fridge with a bowl of cereal in her hands. "it's fine, this is tae's bread." the male sighs, taking the bread from haeun and walking over to the toaster. he pops the bread into the toaster before turning around, catching sight of a confused jungkook standing at the doorway.

"oh hey, you're awake. help yourself to some breakfast. we've got plenty." he gestures to the array of food on the table, ranging from fried rice to waffles. "why is there so much food?" is the first question that comes out of his mouth. 

"soomin stress cook." minhee answer simply, grabbing a piece of bacon and french toast and plopping them into her empty bowl. jungkook shrugs when nobody else bothered to elaborate, grabbing a plate and scooping a plate of fried rice and some noodles on the side. "dining room that way." taehyung points to the hallway that leads to the side, "(y/n) is there, i think." 

he nods at taehyung in thanks, making his way to the dining room after grabbing a glass of milk for himself. he sees you sitting at the table in the middle of the room, laptop and documents splayed out in front of you while you mindlessly munch through your plate of waffles and fruits. two other people sit at the table with you, yoongi on one side and another girl he doesn't recognize on the other. 

yoongi notices his presence first, gesturing for him to sit down at the table in front of him. jungkook frowns, is he allowed to be here right now? it seems like you're working. "yes you're allowed, we're not working on anything confidential right now." yoongi answers, apparently he had voiced his question out loud. 

nodding, he sits on the table, occasionally glancing at you from the corner of his eyes. you smile at him when he catches your eyes, mouthing "we'll talk later, i promise" before going back to your laptop. 

"hello, my name is soomin. i don't believe we've met yet." he snaps his gaze to the girl who just spoke, offering an awkward smile her way. "oh, uh. I'm. I'm jungkook." 

she smiles warmly at him, "i know, I've heard about the situation, don't worry. i believe (y/n) told you everything already, right?" he shyly nods. 

"then please don't worry, we won't hurt you as long as you don't try anything." his body goes rigid at the thinly veiled threat, hand freezing with the spoon tightly grasped between his fingers. "soo, don't scare him like that, i already talked to him." you step forward when you see him react, trying to quell the tension that suddenly fills the room. 

soomin smiles at him before looking back at you, "i know. I'm just making sure. this is our whole team we're talking about here so i just want to make it clear." 

you close your eyes and sigh, "i… i know. i just." he turns his gaze to see you biting your lips, eyes staring at the dark wood in front of you. 

"I'm so sorry." your apology sounds so small that he's sure he wouldn't have heard it if it weren't for the stillness of the room. soomin's gaze softens, hand moving to squeeze yours that lay on top of the documents, "no, hey. it's okay. it's not your fault."

there's an odd feeling sitting on his chest. a stuffiness that he can't explain everytime he hears you apologize. he decides he doesn't like it. doesn't like it when you blame yourself, doesn't like it when you sound so small like that, doesn't like it when you keep things from him. 

yoongi purses his lips at the exchange, "soo, let's go to the kitchen to get some more coffee?" he stands up with his plate and mug, (y/n)? you can take a break and enjoy your breakfast." soomin nods, leaving the two of you alone in the big dining room. 

you close the laptop in front of you, gathering the papers into one neat pile before storing them in a briefcase he didn't notice were there. the two of you stay quiet for a while, each enjoying your own breakfast at your own pace. 

eventually it's you who break the silence, "any questions you wanted answer to, jungkook?" 

he ponders it for a while, starting with "was the you i knew then was real?" 

you frown into your plate, lips forming an adorable pout that had jungkook almost cooing at the sight. "well, yeah. why wouldn't she be real?" 

he purses his lips, "did you befriend me because you have to?" this time you shake your head, "no. in fact, i wasn't supposed to. i was actually told time and time again to keep my distance." 

he gulps at your confession. 

"but i chose to be your friend anyway, because…" "because?" 

you look up to meet his gaze, honesty coloring your eyes, "because i wanted to. and because i saw that you needed, no, wanted a friend too." his gaze softens at that. 

you continue, "everything between us was real, it wasn't because it was my job to be your friend, gain your trust and betray you in the end. i-" stuttering, you bring up your hand to wipe a stray tear. "i didn't want to hurt you, even though i guess in the end, i would have regardless." 

because in the end, your goal is to take down his father, essentially betraying him in a sense. befriending jungkook wasn't part of the plan, it was something you didn't see happening while you were mulling over the plan to take down the governor. 

jungkook stays quiet, processing the information you just laid out for him. you stand up with your plate, sensing the conversation is over for now. when you pass by him, you place a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it once to provide reassurance. just before you walk out of the dining room, you ask "and jungkook, you know that I have to reveal it to the public, right?" i have to take down your father, is left unsaid.

he nods because he knows. no matter what, the people need to know about the corruption, the authorities need to do something about it, and his father needs to own up to his actions. 

you nod at him, sending a quick smile before leaving him by himself so he can think.

---

a few hours later, he finds you crouching in the garden next to the house, watering and tending to a variety of vegetables. he hesitates on how to strike up a conversation. 

"so, uh, the bedroom I'm staying in is yours?" you flinch when you hear his voice, not expecting someone else to be in the garden with you. you look up at him from your position, hands midway to picking a tomato off its vines, "oh! uh yeah." he nods awkwardly, eyes scanning the content of the garden. "where are you staying then?" 

you pick the remaining ripe tomatoes off, placing it in the basket next to you, soomin is going to be overjoyed that they've grown so well after that disastrous harvest. "in the guest bedroom next to the dining room. it's usually unoccupied so i can stay there as long as i need." 

he crouches down next to you, grabbing a tiny shears to help. you watch curiously from the side, wondering if he knows which one to pluck off and which one to leave behind. you pull out the pesky weeds next to your precious cucumbers, keeping an eye on jungkook to make sure he's not going to accidentally ruin your crops. soomin will murder both of you. 

curiouslyly, he knows exactly what to do with his tiny shears, removing the excess branches and cutting off any dead leaves and buds. "can you show me around later? around the house? it's… uh… a pretty large house." 

you eye the patch of leafy greens at the side, debating if you should pick them today or leave it another week. "yeah okay, sure." 

the air is tensed between the two of you, but you can't exactly pinpoint the reason. is it you? did the talk affect you more than you thought? or maybe jungkook just doesn't trust you anymore, given the circumstances. maybe he decided that you're-

you feel him grabbing your wrist before you can finish your thoughts, staring at his wide eyes in front of you. "you were spacing out while holding a scissors." frowning, you look down to see that you are indeed holding a scissor that look too close to your other hand for comfort. you mumble, "sorry." 

jungkook huffs at that, gentle but stern when he talks, "why do you say sorry so much? i don't think you have anything you need to apologize for." widening your eyes, you stare back at him, not understanding what he's saying. he sighs at your expression, shaking his head at you before continuing with his task. 

you decide to let it go for now when you see his annoyed expression, watching as he cuts dead leaves off your cucumbers plants. curious, you ask, "how do you know about pruning?" 

he huffs a laugh this time, "i think even without gardening knowledge, anybody will know that you need to cut off these stems and leaves." 

"yeah, but you pruned the branches of the tomatoes, the new ones." he hums at your question, "i used to help my mom when she worked in her garden." you blink at the unexpected answer, you don't think you've ever heard him talk about her in all the months you've worked alongside him. 

a small "oh" leaves your lips, not wanting to pry any further. it garners an amused smile from him. "currently, she's in another country, had been for the last two years. but we keep in contact quite often." 

you purse your lips from trying to ask a question but it seems like he reads it on your face anyway, "they both have a pretty good relationship, he's pretty supportive of her pursuing her interest." and he leaves it at that. 

the two of you work in silence for the next few minutes, making sure there's no pests or weeds left that risk ruining your, well soomin's, perfect garden. 

you stand up once you're done, almost falling over when you realize your legs fell asleep while you were working. thankfully, you caught yourself, wrapping your palms around jungkook's biceps to prevent yourself from face planting into a patch of cabbage. 

again, soomin will murder you if you damage her precious veggies. you don't know why she's so protective over her cabbage in particular. 

jungkook snickers at your blunder, placing the shears on a toolbox next to his feet. you immediately let go of him when you feel the muscles shift underneath your hands, resisting the urge to slap yourself out of it. he moves to grab the basket full of vegetables, placing a hand between your shoulder blade to help you walk. 

you turn your face away, hoping he didn't see your flaming cheeks. absentmindedly, you think, the two of you are okay.

---

you stand in front of the door with jungkook next to you, hands on your hips, "this is the front door." he blinks at you, "yeah i know?" 

you point at the room behind it, "that's the living room." "I'm perfectly aware." 

you throw your hands up, "you said you wanted me to show you around!" he laughs loudly at that, "i already know about the first floor. beside! we're standing outside the house right now! I'm 100% we look ridiculous. you're pretty bad at being a guide huh" 

you pout, "fine," and walk inside the house, flopping down onto the couch in the middle of the living room. "I'll explain it verbally instead. first floor is the living room, the kitchen, dining room, a bathroom and my bedroom." 

he maps it in his mind, your bedroom must be at the back of the dining room. "second floor is the rest of the bedroom and a family room, next to the bedroom you're staying in right now. that's just where we hangout usually." 

he looks up at the second floor at that, counting the doors, "how many people are there?" 

"10 including you." 

"there are only 7 rooms on the second floor." 

you nod, grabbing the remote at the coffee table in front of you. "jimin and tae share a room, mirae and narae also share a room." 

you turn on the television, stopping at a documentary channel, "there's also two more bedrooms on the third floor, along with a gym room, an office, and a game room." 

"big house, huh." he mutters. 

"it does have 9 people living in it so yes, it needs to be large to be comfortable, don't you think?" a voice speaks from upstairs. when he looks up, it's soomin. "i- yeah. i guess so." 

he watches as she walks down the stairs, and freezes in alarm when she stops in front of him. "I'm sorry about this morning, by the way, i was just protective of my team." 

her gaze flicks to you when she says, "surely you understand, right?" 

he purses his lips together, brows furrowing. "yeah." his gaze moves to you for a second before going back to her, "i understand." 

she nods in satisfaction, hiking her backpack higher before addressing you, "well i gotta go now. I'll be back in a few days, don't cause any trouble while I'm away, okay? please keep haeun away from my garden." 

you nod distractedly, eyes still glued on the tv in front of you, "bye! stay safe!" 

she fondly rolls her eyes before sending a quick smile his way in curtesy. she closes the front door behind her and a few seconds later jungkook hears the sound of a car driving away. 

"by the way, do i get any access to internet? phone? computer?" he knows the answer but no harm in asking. he sits at one of the comfortable armchairs next to the couch.

you hum from your seat, "I'll see what i can do but I'm afraid I can't give you your own phone or computer. haeun will probably do something about the phone situation and if you want, you can go to our game room to use the computers. everything's been secured there." 

you side eye him, "we can't really risk you making contact with anyone outside. just, you know. a lot of, uh" you stutter, obviously trying your best to not insult or hurt his feelings. he had to bite his lips to keep from laughing at your endearing reaction. 

"it's okay, i get it, really." you sigh in relief at his reassurance, nodding at him before going back to focus on the tv. 

he hears a door open somewhere, haeun emerging from the kitchen with a bag of chips in one hand. jungkook averts his stare, she still scares him a little bit, not a lot, just a little. on her way to the stairs, she tosses a box in his lap and when jungkook looks down, it's a brand new phone. 

"it's been secured, no way you can contact anyone without me finding out so don't even try." and then she disappears into one of the rooms upstairs just like that. he notices her room is the one to the left of yours.

you smile at him, "sorry, you're gonna be off the grid for a while." he shrugs at that, he thinks he doesn't mind it too much now.

---

he's only been here three days, but he already finds himself getting comfortable around your friends. once the wariness had wore off and they're sure he could be trusted, they had started warming up to him. 

jimin had been one of the first one to approach him, asking him if he wanted to work out with him in the gym room. jungkook had accepted the invitation and now jimin had dubbed him as his workout buddy since yoongi and taehyung won't budge when he asked them. 

they usually spend a few hours in the gym, exercising together and making light conversations. he finds jimin to be very friendly, sometimes a little too friendly for someone he literally just met a few days ago. 

taehyung had been the second person he befriended. apparently, walking into the game room had been enough to get taehyung to open up to you. now, taehyung pesters him to game with him anytime he has time to play, complaining that no one else in the house is interested in playing with him except for haeun who's busy most of the time and jungkook is happy to entertain him.

on the other hand, he doesn't see the trio all that much around the house, and the time he does, the interaction is usually short lived and curt. but he does feel that they're trying to be nicer to him. it's just that, with the history of their past interaction, it gets kinda awkward sometimes. 

he also doesn't see you as much as he would like now, only seeing you in the morning for breakfast and at night for dinner in the dining room, each time always checking up on how he's doing. he doesn't know where you go for the rest of the day. 

truth be told, he misses hanging out with you. 

he rolls over in bed, standing up to close the curtains when he hears a knock on his door. tilting his head to the side, he wonders who it is and opens the door to you standing in front of him, hair wet like you just took a shower, flustered. 

"uh hey." 

"hey."

"so- sorry. I'm just here to grab some stuffs?" he remembers that this is, in fact, your room. "Oh! Of course," and steps to the side, allowing you to come in. 

you make a bee line to your wardrobe, throwing the door open to grab your clothes. he hesitantly sits on his, well, your bed, hand awkwardly placed in his lap while he watches you sort your clothes into a bag you have with you. 

he coughs to get your attention, "um, you know. you can just stay in this room?" 

you freeze in your place when you hear him, "wha- what. what do you mean?" 

he notices how he phrases his question, quickly backtracking to avoid embarrassing himself, "i mean! maybe you can just stay here and i can stay at the guest bedroom you're staying in right now? this is your room after all and all of your things are probably here while i have my things in a bag and can easily relocate to the other bedroom, i also don't want to intrude on your private space." 

you turn around to sit next to him on the bed, "are you sure?" "yeah, it's fine." 

you mull over his question for a while, "no, it's okay. this room is closer to the other's rooms." 

he deflates at that, he thought you trusted him? "so it doesn't feel as stifling as that one since it's so far away." you shift your body towards him, "this room feels a lot more comfortable, so i would like for you to stay here instead so your stay here would be more comfortable too." he perks back up at that, heart skipping a beat at your thoughtfulness. "this room is also bigger." 

"you're really cute." oh shit, he said that out loud. your expression doesn't change, most likely because you're so surprised but he does see pink tinging your cheeks. 

"tha- right. oh! i mean, thanks. i- i guess?" you're really cute, he thinks. you quickly stand up, going back to your wardrobe with impressive speed, "right i need to, uh i need to pack some more clothes." 

you start shoving clothes into your bag, and jungkook worries he made you uncomfortable. 

"sorry, i didn't mean to make you uncomfortable." he apologizes, sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck. 

you stop packing, a black garment in your hands when you turn back around to look at him. "no! it's not- I'm not- don't apologise- it's-" 

he raises his eyebrows at you, 

"I'm, I'm just embarrassed, sorry." 

"you don't have to apologize." 

"right! right, sorry." 

he chuckles at that, redirecting the conversation to another topic to avoid prolonging the awkwardness, "so, um." he doesn't really know how to bring it up but he decides to just go for it. "where have you been lately? i haven't seen you around that much." 

you continue packing some clothes and move to the desk to grab some more things. "oh, I've been kinda busy lately, with some-" you cough, "with some work. it's just some documents and things and yeah." 

he senses that you're trying to not to reveal too much which probably means it has something to do with why he's here. he decides to let it slide, not wanting to pry too much into it. "i see."

you zip up your bag once you're done, turning around to sit back beside him on the bed, "why? is something the matter?" 

"oh, no. it's just." he hesitates for a brief moment. "i just miss you, it's all." he grumbles underneath his breath, kind of embarrassed.

you take his hands in your and squeeze, "I'm sorry. i know it must be hard to adapt to a new environment without someone you're familiar with, right? I'll try to make more time, okay?" he wants to tell you he's perfectly adapted to his new environment and that he just misses spending time with you but he keeps his mouth shut, running his thumb across your knuckles. 

he nods but stays quiet, staring at your hands between his. "how about we go watch some movies? I'm free right now," you offer after hearing his prolonged silence.

his shoulders perk up at that, "really?"

smiling, you nod enthusiastically. "yeah! you can go pick a movie and I'll get some snacks downstairs." you stand up, pulling him with you out the door and guiding him to the room next door. 

he's never been to this room before. "I'll go get the snacks!" you shout as you quickly run downstairs, to the direction of the kitchen. 

the room is large, being one of the master bedroom, and cozy. half of the floor is covered with comfortable rug, soft enough to lay on with a large tv pressed against one of the walls. a shelf sat underneath it with a coffee table in front of it, surrounded by large sofas and multiple bean bags covered with blankets. 

he makes his way towards the shelf under the tv after turning on the light, browsing through the movie selection of the house. you come back a few minutes later with three large bags of potato chips and two bottles of water, dumping them on the coffee table before joining him in browsing for the perfect movie. 

he settles on the floor after picking the movie, leaning against the couch behind him so he can be closer to the chips. you lay down on the couch behind him, hand dangling over his shoulder to steal some of his chips instead. "you haven't seen this one yet, right?" he asks around a mouthful of chips. 

"no." you mumble into the couch, one hand unconsciously massaging the knots on his shoulder. he shivers at the sensation, willing himself to stay put. "do you know what kinda movie this is?"

"no." 

"it's a horror movie." 

"oh." 

he twists his body to look at you, "are you okay with that?" you blink sleepily at him, lips curving down into a confused pout, "yeah I'm fine with that." he nods at that and focuses back on the screen. 

he's pretty embarrassed to admit that he flinches more than you despite being the one who picked the movie but the feeling is overshadowed by his feelings of contentment to be able to spend some more time with you.

one movie turns into a marathon and before he realizes it, the both of you had fallen asleep, comfortable in each other's presence.

---

contrary to what you said, for the next couple of days, he actually sees less of you than before, only seeing you in the morning for breakfast. in fact, he had seen less of the others in the house too. it's like he's back in his apartment again, alone, just in a bigger space. 

today is the first time jimin had asked him to go to the gym again, citing that he was busy the last few days and unable to work out. he walks into the gym expecting to find jimin already on weights but is surprised when he sees you and yoongi at the corner of the room, sparring. 

"hope you don't mind." jimin says from next to him, wiping the sweat on his forehead with the towel around his neck. he jumps in surprise when he hears him, quickly shaking his head to bring his thoughts back, "no i don't mind it's okay." 

he steals a quick glance at you, eyes scanning over your practice clothes. flustered, he coughs when he sees you throw a punch to yoongi's rib, and averts his eyes somewhere else, feeling his cheeks heat up. 

not looking back at where you are, he makes his way to the treadmill at the other side of the room, putting his headphones on so he won't be tempted to look back. 

it's not like it's the first time he's seen you in a more casual, more revealing clothing. it's just that the sight amplifies the odd butterflies he feels on his stomach. 

he feels his heart beat a little quicker but he doesn't think it's the treadmill. for now, he'll shove it all into a box labeled "later" for him to address another time.

these past few days, he can feel the tension in the house rising without a single word being exchanged, and seeing you practice with yoongi confirms his thoughts. all of you were planning on something, he just doesn't know what. 

when he's done with his run, he takes off his headphones and moves to the weights. focusing  himself on his exercise instead of you, snapping his gaze up when he hears the door to the gym open. "(y/n), yoongi, come with me. we need to talk." soomin says, turning around to leave before receiving a confirmation. 

he sees you and yoongi stand up, gulping down water before walking out the door without so much of a nod of acknowledgement. before you close the door, you send an apologetic smile his way. 

he hopes everything's alright.

---

that night, he couldn't quell his curiosity and finds himself walking to your door after dinner. you didn't come down from the office for dinner, only appearing for a short while to grab a cup of coffee before disappearing back into your room. he knocks on the wood and waits, shifting his weight around when he doesn't hear any movement. 

he was about to turn around to leave when the door swung open, revealing you on the other side. if jungkook pays close enough attention, he can see the faint dark circles underneath your eyes. "hey jungkook. what's up?" 

"can i… can i talk to you?" he toys with the zipper on his jacket, gaze bouncing around to avoid looking at you. 

you step to the side to let him in, "sure. what do you want to ask?" 

"it's just, I'm just wondering." he sits on the chair next to the door while you take a seat on your desk where he can see piles of papers scattered on top of it. you tilt your head to the side in question, urging him to continue his question.

"why is everyone so busy lately? it seems like everyone's a little tense?"

you freeze at his question, eyes going wide for a split second before you sigh, slumping into the leather chair. "i guess i should tell you." 

he frowns, crossing his legs and placing his hands on his lap. "tell me what?" 

"we're publicizing the information tomorrow. regarding your father." 

he tries to process the words, he really did. tries to find a place in his mind where he can store the sentence, but he just couldn't. he doesn't know what to think. should he be upset? angry? terrified? sad? relieved? he doesn't know. 

he just feels numb.

you continue when you don't hear him speak, "he will be arrested and the money will be seized by the government. I'll try to damage control as much as i can so your family doesn't get the brunt of it." 

he didn't realize that you had moved to crouch down in front of him, placing a reassuring hand on top of his to bring him back from his mind. "we'll be returning from said vacation in about two days in pretense that we heard the news, and then I'll either get fired or resigned so my cover won't be blown. and i," you trail off, gripping his hand just a little tighter. 

"i really hope that you don't betray my trust. i know that, that it's risky. it's so, so risky to let you go with the amount of information you have on us. especially now that you know significantly more than anyone else ever involved with us. but i just, i can't let you get tangled in this mess much more. so i really hope that once all of this is over, i can let you go and you can move on with your life, try to forget about us. put all of this behind you and live happily.

"i hope that me trusting you with all of this won't be my downfall. because i know how easy it is for you to just walk to the authority and reveal everything you know about us. but i really really hope that my choice to believe in you won't hurt my team because i really don't want you to get hurt anymore either." 

his mind runs through every concerns you just revealed to him. pulling you onto his lap, he wraps his arms around your waist, face dangerously close to yours. "i don't want to forget about you." his voice is so faint that you doubt you'll be able to hear it if not for the proximity of your face. 

he closes his eyes and sighs, resting his forehead against yours. you place your hand on his shoulder, eyes softening at the emotions coloring his face. "it's my turn to talk now, okay?" he opens his eyes to stare at you, gaze more intense than that time he lost to mario kart. you nod mutely at his request. 

"i know you're scared of me holding this knowledge with me because you're scared that i might be angry at you and your team for what you're doing but it's not true." his gaze softens when he looks at you, soft lights framing your worried face. "I'm not angry at you, what you're doing is necessary, I'm more angry at him, angry at myself for not knowing but mostly angry at him for letting greed overcome him. so don't worry about me going to the authority, i won't."

he rubs comforting circles at the small of your back, watching as your posture relax slightly in his hold. "i also don't want to move on and forget about you. i don't want to lose you, don't want to put you and everything else behind me." it's obvious you want to interject, but you kept your promise of letting him talk. 

"despite it all, your team had become my friends too so i don't want to forget about them either. i hope that once this is all over, you'll let me stay by your side and be around you. i feel safer with you, I'm happier with you." he'll keep the rest of his confession to himself for now, deeming it not the right time just yet. 

you rest your head on his shoulder, hands unconsciously playing with their hair on his nape. "but i can't let you stay, it's dangerous and complicated." 

you sound so confused, so lost, unsure and uncertain, that all jungkook wanted to do is hold you tight to him and assure you it'll be alright. 

he rests his head against yours, "we'll figure it out. I'll be by your side, i promise." 

---

"Governer Jeon revealed to be involved in embezzlement."

"An anonymous tip was received last night, revealing that the well respected governor had been embezzling money from multiple public projects and storing them in an offshore account. Other than taking money from the goverment, it's known that he had also been receiving bribe money from multiple companies for various reasons for the past year. Many questions how he had been able to avoid detection for quite some time.

Since the information had been revealed, Governor Jeon had been arrested this morning and taken into custody to await for trials. All of the money will be seized by the goverment and will be redistributed back to the projects with lacking funds. 

It's revealed that all the money has never been used before other than paying other involved parties, except for a withdrawal of 5 million dollars a few months ago, apparently after the kidnapping of his son. Some posit a theory that the 5 million donations the next day have been from the people who took his son, determined to get the money the former governor had stolen back to it's rightful owner. 

Staffs and family members will be questioned by the police, but it is believed that none of his family members had been aware of his secret, being that he had never withdrawn the money for anything else, suggesting he was hoarding the money for himself for when his reign as the governor end next year.

Read more to find out about the full evidence submitted last night and other parties involved in the scandal."

---

jungkook busies himself by staying at the game room today, not in the mood to talk to anyone or accidentally listening to the news. it's not that he's angry at you and your team, he just doesn't want to know what kind of look they will give him. remorse? pity? disdain? 

he knows that they know he's not involved and that he's against it as much as them but he can't help but fear how the reveal might change their perspective on him. thankfully, they didn't bother him, letting him have his time alone to process everything. that, or maybe they're busy. he'd like to believe it's the former.

he also needs to brace himself for the hectic days that's to come when he gets back, no doubts he will be questioned by the police and quite possibly run into some news reporters, eager to write the story. 

he's glad that it's his break or he might lose his mind if he has to go to school on top of everything. he's restarting another game when the door opens, internally groaning to himself, he really doesn't want to be bothered today. 

he feels someone placing something on the desk next to him, it's a plate of noodles and a glass of milk. he turns his head to find you standing next to him, sending a quick smile before turning around to leave. 

he reaches for your wrist before you can take a step, patting the chair next to him when you pivot to look at him in question. you wordlessly comply, sitting down and scooting the chair closer to him. 

he's the first one to break the silence, "what am i supposed to do with the police and reporters?" 

"answer the police truthfully, they already know you're not involved, it's all just for show and protocol. same with the reporters, they just want confirmation for what they already know. I'll still be your bodyguard for the next few days, so I'll help you deal with them." 

" and if it makes you feel any better, your mom has arranged you another bodyguard for the time being."

he straightens at that, turning his chair to face you. "really? how did you know?" 

"she contacted me, said she'll assign another person to help because one probably won't be enough for now. at least until everything has settled." 

nodding, he grabs the glass and chugs the drink inside. you'd think he's taking a shot if it doesn't look like a glass of milk. 

you place a hand on his back, and he muses he likes it when you touch him. "it's gonna be okay jungkook. I'll be by your side, okay?" 

"i know." 

you spend the rest of the day in the game room with him, watching him play games by himself and occasionally making snarky comments from the side. nobody else came to bother him that day, a fact that he's grateful for. 

---

the morning came too soon for his liking, the day he has to go back and deal with everything causing his heart to beat loudly in nervousness. he hikes up the bag on his shoulder, waiting in the living room for you to come out of your room. 

haeun tosses his phone back to him and when he checks, he has hundreds of unread messages. some from his mom, a few from unknown numbers, and a lot from his friends. true to your words, it seems like everybody believes that his family and himself is in no way involved with the incident. most texts are asking if he's heard the news, if he's okay and to contact them back when he can. 

everyone seems to be aware that he's on a supposed vacation where he can't be reached and he's sure it's haeun's doing. 

he's still scrolling through his message when you come to stand next to him, with your own bags to make it look believable. "ready?" you ask.

shrugging in response, he shoves his phone into his pockets, deciding he'll deal with them later. "i guess." 

"alright, there's a car that'll come pick you up in a minute and it'll drive you back straight to your apartment." haeun tells him, walking up the stairs with a loaf of bread in her hands to get back to her room. 

a second later he sees a car pulling up to the front of the house, a sleek black SUV waiting for him. you settle yourself on the back seat, but he hesitates briefly before climbing into the car, this time without a threat of a gun pressed against his back. 

the drive is silent for the rest of the way and he's ought to thank you for that. he doesn't really want to think, let alone speak. instead, he spends his time going through his messages, replying to every message and deleting the unnecessary one, namely from press. he should probably change his number after this. 

soon enough, he arrives at his apartment building where a few reporters are waiting outside. it's not as crowded as he thought it'll be and he's glad for that. you slide out of the car before him, putting on your bodyguard persona once again before opening his door for him when you deem it safe.

they immediately rush to him, throwing questions after questions without listening for an answer first. thankfully, with your presence next to him, they don't crowd around him, standing far enough that he can still move around. he listens to what you told him last night, answering the necessary questions truthfully and that seems enough to placate them into letting him walk inside his building and away from them.

before he gets the chance to get inside the elevator however, he's stopped by your hand gently clasping around his wrist. "your mom's bodyguard is here." 

he looks to see a tall man walking his way, with a suit similar to yours and sleek back dark hair. "hello. I'm kim seokjin, your temporary bodyguard." 

he curtly nods in greeting, he just wants to get back to his apartment, not feeling like exchanging pleasantries with anyone. without saying another word, he speed walks to the elevator, pushing the buttons in agitation. 

in record speed, he reaches his door and before entering, addresses the both of you, "i want to be alone for the rest of the day, please. I'll come get you if i need to go outside." 

you nod in understanding, sending a glance to seokjin who also nods before walking to the end of the hallway. "are you gonna be okay?" you ask once seokjin is far enough. he purses his lips, "eventually," and close the door behind him. 

---

for the next few days, jungkook is preoccupied with the police and press, and when he's not going out to attend the meetings with the authorities, he stays inside and shuts himself out. you're starting to worry about him, but you know he really does need the time to himself. 

in the meanwhile, you familiarize seokjin with everything he needs to know, telling him that your contract is about to end and there's a possibility you're not going to be jungkook's bodyguard anymore. he had nod in understanding and promise to you that he'll do his best to protect him. 

you knock on the door to his apartment, nervously shifting in your place. when he opens his door, he looks exhausted, prominent dark circles decorating his face. worried, you frown, stepping inside his apartment and placing your hands on his face to examine him. 

"are you okay? you look like you haven't been sleeping." 

he closes his eyes at your touch, "yeah, yeah everything's fine, i don't know I'm just." he wraps his arms around your waist to pull you closer, resting his head in the crook of your neck. "there was just some things i needed to take care of. everything's fine now." 

you nod, bringing a hand up to rub his back. "i came here because i needed to tell you something." 

he hums, arms slightly tightening their hold on you. "i know, your contract ends tomorrow, right?" 

you hum in answer, pulling away from him to guide him to the couch. he sits close to you, resting his head on your shoulder and holding your hand between his. "so after tomorrow, you're not someone who works for me anymore." 

"uh huh." 

"so should i tell you i love you after your contract ends or can i tell you now?" 

you freeze in his hold, not expecting him to bring this topic up right now. both of you had been skirting around the conversation long enough. your heart skips a beat at his statement, and you try to supress the smile playing on your lips.  

"well, do you want me to tell you i love you too after or before my contract ends?" you don't know when you realize you were in love with him, but you have a feeling it's before he even fainted into your arms and had to be taken to your house. 

the realization wasn't a loud declaration, but more of a soft whisper at the back of your mind. when you told minhee about it, she had barked out a laughter and said "took you long enough to realize." 

he squeezes your hand, turning his head to place a tiny kiss on your jaw. "tomorrow then." 

laying on his bed that night, jungkook thinks tomorrow can't come soon enough.

---

the next day, you walk out of the office with lighter steps, your mission is done, your undercover role is thoroughly finished and you can finally go back to your house again. 

while packing your bags in your former apartment, you can't help but think about how jungkook will fit into the puzzle. he had stated that he wanted to stay, and had been pretty determined in his stance. you entertain the thought of him joining your team for a whole second before throwing it out the window. 

you don't want him to get hurt, you don't want him to be involved in something so complicated and confusing. you want him to be able to live normally and happily.

a knock on your door startles you out of your thoughts, you zip up your bag before placing it on the ground, opening the front door to find jungkook standing there with a big smile on his face. 

"can i come in?" 

you smile back at him, stepping to the side to let him in before closing the door behind you. 

you turn around to see him standing behind you, hands reaching out to pull you close to him. "I love you. I'm so in love with you." 

you wrap your arms around his shoulder, burying your face in the crook of his neck. you mutter loud enough for him to hear, "I'm in love with you too." 

the confession fills you with warmth and makes you feel lighter at the same time.

he moves the two of you back until he can sit down on the couch with you on his lap. "can't you just move into my apartment or something." he grumbles to your hair, hands splayed on your shoulder blade. 

you chuckle at his tone, peppering light kisses to the side of his neck that cause him to squirm. "no, i can't. I'm sorry." 

he sighs, "i guess it's fine." hesitantly, he asks, "i can still meet you and go to your place, right?" 

you pull back to look at him, pursing your lips in thought, mulling over the situation, "not yet." 

he frowns at that, "what do you mean?" 

"seokjin is your bodyguard now, you can't go anywhere without him and we can't have someone knowing about where we live or who we are, even though he has no idea about it." 

biting his lips, he closes his eyes in frustration. "so? am i supposed to wait until he's gone to see you?" 

you take his face between your hands, smoothing his eyebrows with your thumbs, "hey, i can still come over and meet you. you just can't go to our house. it'll be fine." 

his frown turns into a pout, one you want to kiss until it turns into a smile. so you gently place your lips on top of his, feeling as the corner of his lips turns upwards. he reciprocates the gestures, capturing your lips between his and pulling you impossibly closer to him. you pull back when you need air, jungkook chasing your lips before opening his eyes. you muse on how beautiful he look. 

"how about you come over to my apartment right now?" he playfully smirks at you, hands moving slowly down your back. you bit back a smile at his offer, "yeah? what for? i should be heading home right now, you know." 

he moves closer to your face, "just, you know. to play games." you try to contain your laughter, "no can do. gotta get going, have some errands to run." 

he pouts at your answer, moving to steal another kiss before relenting, "fine." 

standing up from your seat, you grin at him, slinging on the backpack and grabbing the bag you have with you, "maybe next time, kook." 

his face breaks out into a large smile at the mention of his nickname, eyes scrunching cutely. he stands to accompany you, reaching for your hand to intertwine with his. you meet seokjin on your way down, nodding at him in goodbye and gratitude. jungkook orders him to not follow him, garnering a protest from seokjin that results in a back and forth bicker between the two. you watch with amusement as seokjin lectures him, jungkook shooting back rebuttal in a playful manner.

eventually jungkook wins, letting the two of you have more time alone before having to depart. once you reach your car, you squeeze his hand one more time, reaching to plant a kiss on his cheek. he seems unsatisfied with it, moving to capture your lips between his once again.

you giggle into the kiss, feeling him smile underneath your lips. reluctantly, he parts way from you when minhee taps on the window impatiently. 

"I'll call you, okay?" 

"okay. I love you." 

you softly smile at him, eyes crinkling in endearment, "I love you too," and climb into the car. as the car drives away, you think, the two of you will be alright.

---

the sun shines brightly through the windows, causing you to groan and roll over to avoid accidentally blinding yourself when you open your eyes. the person next to you stirs, grip around your waist tightening momentarily before relaxing again. hoarsely, you cough out a question, "babe, did you forget to close the curtains last night?" 

jungkook mumbles in his sleep, something that sounds like "what are you talking about? what's a curtain?" you're not quite sure but it sure doesn't sound like "i didn't close it, I'm sorry." so you roll over again until you fall to the carpet, sitting up and dragging yourself to the window to pull the curtains close so you can go back to sleep. 

when you flop back onto the bed, you mumble sleepily into his ear, "kook, it's already 20 minutes past 8, you should probably hurry to your meeting with mirae and narae." at your words, he bolts up from his position, looking more awake like he had chugged 3 cups of coffee in one sitting. that's the effect the twins have on people, they truly hate it when people are late. 

he scrambles to change his clothes, not even bothering to go to the bathroom to freshen up, muttering a chant of "fuck shit they're going to be so fucking pissed. fucking damnit." 

he doesn't forget to kiss you before bolting out the door, slamming the door shut behind him as you hear his footsteps echoes through the house. if the twins don't get to him first, yoongi will, since you're sure he just woke him up. 

2 months ago you completed your mission and moved away from your apartment. 2 weeks later, you find jungkook at your doorstep with a proposition in his mind and no seokjin behind him. a week later, you watch as jungkook chugged a glass of beer mixed with hot sauce, something taehyung and haeun dubbed as "initiation" but jimin preferred to call it a "celebratory" drink as jungkook officially joined your team. 

it's been a little over a month since he settled into everything, and it seems like he adapted well enough into his new life. you smile to yourself at that. sure, you'd been apprehensive at first at the prospect but when you see how determined he is, you decided to relent and follow along. 

unsurprisingly, he's good at whatever task soomin threw his way, easily completing it in record speed and usually leaving her speechless when he goes to report to her. he also learned martial arts pretty quickly, something you know yoongi is pleased at because of how he call him his "best student" and "(y/n) it took you 5 months to learn this move and this guy got it in 2 days." which cause your eye to twitch in annoyance that you have to supress the urge to throttle yoongi. 

he hadn't been assigned any significant mission just yet, only helping others with theirs for now, but by the look of it, yoongi and soomin might let him lead his own mission soon, impressed by his capabilities. 

you look over to the clock at your bedside table, groaning to yourself when you see the 8:58 blinking back at you. deciding you won't be able to fall back asleep, you drag yourself downstairs to get some breakfast, remembering that yoongi is cooking today since soomin is out of town. the thought of yoongi cooking relieves you since the last time both of them were out of the house, haeun had managed to burnt 3 pots and broke two cups while taehyung stands to the side with a bucket of water in case something caught on fire. 

when you reach the kitchen, you find it to be empty, plates of waffles neatly stacked on the counter with some foil over it to keep it warm. you fix a plate for yourself and jungkook, sitting at the counter with a glass of orange juice next to you. 

before you finish your plate, you feel someone wrapping their arms around your waist from behind, jungkook's head resting against your shoulder. "i narrowly escaped their wrath." 

"yeah? how angry were they though?" 

"angry enough to keep me on garden duty while soomin is out of town." 

"huh, not too bad. once, taehyung was late for literally 47 seconds and they had his games restricted for a week." he hisses in sympathy, "yikes." 

"uhuh, they're going easy on you. i fixed you a plate of waffles already, and there's a new carton of milk for you in the fridge." you detach yourself from him, putting your dishes on the sink before turning to look at him. "i have some documents i had to send, so I'll be at the office, alright?" 

he kisses you deeply before you leave, one hand resting on the small of your back while the other holds the side of your face. 

"bro! this is a kitchen! take that shit somewhere else, some of us are single!" haeun screams from the doorway.

you part way from his lips, laughing loudly on your way out. "I love you babe." 

he shouts back from the kitchen, "I love you too!" 

yoongi shouts from his room. "shut the fuck up!" 

the house breaks into a laughter at that, and you reckon, the house feels warmer now.

[a-small-batch-of-dragons]

Soft Epilogue

Prompt: Hear ye, hear ye, I humbly request from the fanfic goddess, a merlin fanfic of epic fluff proportions!! Lol I love your writing, can I request an Ace!Merlin and Ace!Arthur platonic love life bond?

Thanks for the request, babe! it seems fitting that on my birthday I get to upload a fic about ace qprs

Read on Ao3

Pairings: merthur qpr, implied morgwen 

Warnings: none my dudes

Word Count: 1807

In the end, there’s no big celebrations.

Oh, Camelot has a feast to end all feasts, but that’s not the point.

 There’s no big rushing into each other at the end of a hard-won fight, Arthur looking all stupidly heroic with his hair all sweaty or Merlin rippling with otherworldly power that makes men want to fall to their knees.

 There’s no kiss after years and years of pining finally being deforested—get it?

 “Shut up, Merlin.”

 “What, that was a good one!”

 “Merlin!”

 —alright fine, there’s no big kiss, there’s no music that swells romantically in the background—

 “Though not for lack of trying on your part, I’m sure.”

 “Will you shut up, you prat, and let me talk?”

 “It’s a wonder you ever stop talking.”

 —okay, look.

 It’s simple.

 It’s the end of a fight. Everyone’s exhausted. There are heavy pants and the scrape of steel on steel from the trodden corners of the battlefield, as soldier after soldier, knight after knight, falls to the ground in a heap. Some get back up. Some don’t.

 Arthur’s fingers fumble on the pommel of his sword. Huh. He needs to redo the grip on the left side. It’s fraying. His fingers are too clumsy. They won’t hold the damn thing properly. The chain mail keeps snagging where it’s come loose. He really needs to fix the grip.

 The sword sings quietly as it slides home, back into the sheath, away, away. His breath leaves him in a rush and he looks up, looking around, counting.

 Leon stands, already directing the survivors to start taking care of those they lost. He catches his king’s eye and nods. Once. Arthur nods back.

 Gwaine pushes his hair out of his eyes and makes a joke. It’s what he does best. As the desperate chuckles start up again, Arthur’s mouth quirks up in a smile. Gwaine catches it.

 Elyan strips the last of the shrapnel from someone’s wound and hauls them to their feet, a man of the people until his last. Arthur watches, paralyzed by the weight of the crown on his shoulders, as Elyan helps in ways he can’t.

 Percival stands. Shadows Arthur as they start to move through the field. The weight is a little easier to bear now, as his breath starts to sink back into his chest.

 Lancelot turns, smiles. Says ‘it’s good to see you,’ as if they’re just mates, running into each other after a long hard day. As if he’s about to buy Arthur a drink at the tavern and talk about the harvest, the new work from the blacksmith siblings, how much he misses looking up at the moon. Arthur just claps him on the shoulder.

 Everyone’s here. Except—

 “Arthur?”

 So there’s no dramatic turn, no big flourish. Time doesn’t slow to a standstill as they rush into each other’s arms. The bards would be so bored, there’s no dramatic confessions, no infamous realizations, no murmured apologies through the hurried meeting of lips. What would they have to sing about?

 Well, perhaps they could sing about this.

 Arthur turns, sees Merlin standing there. He smiles. Merlin smiles back. There’s a little cut on Merlin’s shoulder. Barely enough to graze through the tunic, but enough to draw blood. Arthur frowns, stalks forward, gently tips Merlin’s head to the side so he can have a look.

 “I’m fine, you prat.”

 “You’ve managed to injure yourself.”

 “Wasn’t me!”

 “Given how clumsy you are, I’d be surprised.”

 Arthur presses gently over the cut. It’s nothing more than a scratch, should close by the end of the day. And yet Merlin just rolls his eyes and lays his hand over it. A moment of golden light later and it’s like nothing ever happened.

 “There. Happy now?”

 “Mm.”

 Merlin sighs and moves his head back. Arthur doesn’t. For a moment, their foreheads rest together.

  Thank the heavens you didn’t die, I would’ve dragged you back here myself.

  Just so you could kill me?

  Obviously.

 That’s all. Don’t look so disappointed, there needn’t be more.

 Oh, alright.

 The ride back to Camelot is slow. There’s work to be done along the way, after all. There are people to tend to, knights to bury and mourn, families to tell. There are knights that return to Camelot only for their hands to shake too much, their eyes to go too glassy. These knights leave with the highest honors Arthur can give them, thanked sincerely for their service and the knowledge that the people will forever be in their debt.

 There are preparations to be made, hugs to give. Gwen throws herself into Elyan’s arms, Lancelot’s arms, Merlin’s arms, Arthur’s arms. Gaius isn’t far behind. Each of them breathes in the scent of the other. Home.

 “So you missed me?”

 “Of course I missed you!”

 “I’ve got your favorite waiting, Merlin.”

 “Thanks, Gaius.”

 “Oi! Why don’t I get a hug?”

 “Oh, fine, come here.”

 Arthur looks up to the top of the steps to see Morgana. No longer is she the intimidating figure cut from Camelot’s noble cloth, dressed up like Uther’s legacy, no. Just a simple dress, one of Gwen’s, her hair down around her shoulders in limp curls. If Arthur were someone else, he’d say she’d never looked better.

 “Don’t tell her that.”

 “I don’t need to, she knows.”

 “Merlin!”

 “What? She’s your sister.”

 She smiles, a little dimmer, a little warier, as she descends the steps and holds out her arms. Arthur doesn’t hesitate.

 His sister is here, finally recovered from her long fight with the magic Morgause wove through that horrid bracelet. Morgana hugs him back, tighter than they can imagine.

 “I’m glad to see you,” Arthur mumbles into her shoulder.

 “I’m happy you’re back.”

 Merlin joins them a moment later and Morgana pulls him in too, laughing at Arthur’s affronted face when Merlin squawks and his elbow digs unceremoniously into his ribs.

 “It hurt, you idiot.”

 “She pulled me!”

 “If you weighed more than a beanpole maybe that would help.”

 “My weight is just fine, thank you very much.”

 The feast is glorious. Food and wine flow freely out of the castle into the city below. The people dance, sing, yell, live. The city comes alive with the sound of its people. And that’s the end of the story.

 They won.

 They’re safe.

 They’re with the people they love.

 “You can’t just leave it there, Merlin.”

 “What happened to wanting to keep your privacy?”

 “Just—get on with it.”

 “Fine, you prat.”

 It’s not entirely over. There are still nights where Merlin wakes up and his fingers tingle so much it feels like they’re about to fall off. Nights where he swears he hears a low rumbling voice in the back of his mind, feels giant hands on strings grafted to his arms. Nights where he still feels like Destiny’s puppet, strung along without a second thought.

 There are still nights where Arthur can’t stop hearing the singing of steel and the weight of a sword in his hands. Nights when he can’t stop seeing Uther’s face, hearing his voice, seeing Morgana dead and twisted, broken on the ground. Nights when the flames rise high as knights—his knights—slaughter innocent people as part of a meaningless war.

 There are still nights when they think they can hear each other screaming.

 But Arthur is always there to roll over and wrap his arms tighter around Merlin. He’s here, he’s right here, and he’s warm, and nothing, nothing can take something away from Arthur once he’s decided it’s his. Merlin jolts awake to a cold nose pressed in the crook of his neck, sleepy declarations of ‘mine, my Merlin, go away, leave my Merlin alone, he’s mine, you can’t have him.’ Or it will be to tender words, gentle hands shaking him away, whispered promises of ‘you’re here, it’s alright, I’ll keep you safe, you did it.’

 And Merlin is always there when Arthur clenches the pillow so hard he looks like he’s going to break his fingers, there to gentle them away and pull him close, tuck his head under his chin and say ‘it’s over now, it’s safe now, they’re all safe, they’re all safe.’ Arthur wakes up to rough tunics, slim fingers woven through his own, the warmth of someone else who won’t ever leave. Or just the weight of an arm or leg thrown across his middle. It’s just enough to wake him up and realize that there is someone who, even in sleep, wants to hold him close.

 In the morning, Merlin will wake before Arthur does. The morning will ruffle along the edge of the curtains and he’ll shiver, hiding a little further under the covers. Arthur will hold him closer, unwilling to give up his heat source just yet. Some days, Merlin will let him, falling back asleep with his fingers carding through Arthur’s hair.

 But on most days, he carefully separates himself and tucks Arthur back up, pulling on his clothes and moving to get their breakfast set up. His fingers will brush a vase and a bouquet of flowers will bloom, one of the side effects of training with Morgana. He’ll smile and pick one out to give to Gwen.

 Arthur will wake slowly, first reaching out to feel where Merlin’s gone, then sitting up to spot him at the window, or the table, or right next to him, comb in hand. He’ll grumble, saying Merlin gets up too quickly, only for Merlin to laugh and pull him up to eat.

 The sun will rise through the curtains as they eat, get dressed, and leave to go about their days. The door will close softly behind them, waiting to open again once the day is over.

 There’s no furious declarations of love, no gritting of teeth as they fight to make the world change. Just slow, steady, constant. A touch of a hand here, a brush here. A knowing look or a quick jab. Nothing rough, just soft.

 They deserve a soft epilogue.

 “Hmm. Should’ve known you’d get all sappy.”

 “You like me sappy.”

 “I think I should go see Gaius, my teeth are starting to hurt.”

 “You love it.”

 “…maybe.”

 “Did Arthur Pendragon just admit I was right?”

 “Shut up.”

 “He did! He definitely did!”

 “Shut up, Merlin.”

 Morgana just rolls her eyes and wraps her arms around Gwen to watch the two of them bicker.

 “He’s right, though,” Gwen murmurs after a moment, leaning back to look up at her, “they do deserve a soft epilogue.”

 Morgana smiles. “I think we all do.”

 She’s right and she should say it.

[petra-realsnk]

Rivetra fanfic (divergence au)

Hello guys! I’ve finally finished the first chapter of my first fanfic ever. I must warn you this is just an introduction that sets the premise for what’s coming next, so the pacing will be quite fast in this one. I preferred to do it this way so you won’t have to wait too long for their interactions to happen. I also apologize in advance for any grammar mistakes since English isn’t my first language. This was quite hard to do! I changed some details of the list I posted a couple days ago because I felt it would work better this way. 

This story will rely a lot on the blanks left by Isayama when dealing with Petra and Levi’s relationship, giving these characters a chance to reflect about the nature of their connection, responsability, and the pain of those things which just cannot be (the drama will be served lol). I will also be uploading it on AO3 later on. 

Warnings: depictions of violence, angst, sadness or anguish.  

All the characters belong to Hajime Isayama.

 Tagging: @mikamoony thanks for the support! 

Digging up a grave (Chapter 1)

After the resounding failure of the 57th expedition, the troops of the survey corps retreat hastily towards the shelter of the walls. Humanity has only recently learned about the existence of intelligent titans, of unexpected human nature, although even more surprises remain hidden on the abandoned battlefield... ( 2617 words)

She never reached: 

After so many years fighting, he had grown used to the feeling of having every part of his body active, the tingling blood through his limbs and the acceleration of his perception. In such a tense moment, the sound of the chariot wheels became unconsciously annoying, increasing his anxiety. It was a monotonous and stable noise, almost as much as the danger to which they were constantly subjected. Unfortunately, however, not frantic enough to keep them away from the rumbling of gigantic footsteps dangerously approaching them. It didn't take much reasoning to figure out that getting rid of their fallen comrades was the most effective way to increase their speed and save themselves. However, it took him a moment to vocalize the decision. There was something about it that felt wrong, as if  he was repeating his mistake by leaving them behind. Somehow, it comforted him to know that with that decision he was valuing their sacrifice, for he couldn't let their deaths lead to more casualties. After exchanging several shouts, the tail boards opened, dropping those bodies whose rescue had already posed a considerable risk. 

If the sound of the carts already sapped their weary minds, now it was added the dreadful crash of their friends against the ground, some of them to be eaten by the titans, others to be crushed and forgotten in the same place they went to find their freedom but instead found their deaths. 

Levi tried uselessly to take his gaze away from that sight, he knew it was his job to supervise his soldiers, but his eyes couldn't help searching for her silhouette in each covered figure. He remembered in detail where he had placed her, how he had tied her shroud and tried to keep her badge for himself... So when her body fell, accidentally revealing flocks of strawberry blonde hair,  he was there this time, looking at her once more. Levi felt his stomach drop as if a ball of air had suddenly fallen from his constipated chest. Soon the chariots were able to increase their speeds, distancing them forever, and leaving him with the certainty that now he’ll never know. 

--- 

Hidden in the forest were some still unknown figures. Among them Zeke, whose power had allowed him to approach the battlefield safely. The traitors of humanity had been undercover in the army for several years, but he still felt the need to test the waters for himself, in order to decide how they were going to carry out their next plan. He knew that Annie was in danger, and that Reiner and Bertolt’s identities were soon to be discovered. To his surprise, he found himself in the ideal situation to test out Marley's new weapon. He had brought the silver box with the hope that something similar would happen, but not so incredibly suitable. According to the army leaders, this new product would be able to resurrect and turn corpses into pure titans. This could be a great advantage, since they would be able to profit their soldiers for a little longer. Besides, Paradis was the right place to carry out the experiment on a larger scale without major expense; they wouldn't need ammunition to kill the transformed nor almost any type of security measure (if carried out by someone like Zeke). He just had to wait for the troops to move away and hopefully find some almost complete remains of Eldian soldiers.

He used the scream of his beast titan to stop the nearest pure ones, this way he made sure no more corpses were being eaten nearby, plus making it safe for him to approach them in his human form.

Soon after, Zeke found himself in the middle of a large clearing in the forest, covered in blood and stained white fabrics, revealing what until not long ago would have been humans, although the passage of the titans had left another impression.

Walking among the horrid sight and by seeing the placement of the bodies, he quickly deduced what could have happened. The titans who until recently feasted were now immobile due to his control. Near one of their huge feet, Zeke finds a body whose bones were totally shattered, especially his back, although it remained in one piece. One bare arm revealed a small, pale-skinned hand with the marks of a bite. He quickly noticed it was a young woman, though his face remained unaffected by the sorrowful sight. After a few moments, he raised his gaze from the ground and continued his way in search of complete victims. The sun began to set as Zeke paced, unaffected by the intimidating presence of the titans, luckily finding six more bodies that could be useful. After having deliberated on the state of all of them, he decided which ones were the most likely to become functional beasts. He placed them at a relative distance from each other, facing down, and opened the cold gray box with four syringes. He prepared them all at once, and took a defeated sigh. 

With a relative dose of nervousness, he injected all four bodies as fast as he could, hoping to take the necessary time before they transformed. Unfortunately, when injecting the third body, it hatched immediately, having to flee quickly after only being able to transform three.

In the next few moments he watched as the first titan manifested in a very unstable form. Despite his transformation, he had not managed to regenerate his left arm and one of his legs, which left him lying on the ground. The next one was better, at about 3 or 4 meters high, he could walk despite having slight asymmetries. Finally, the first body injected gave rise to a titan with reddish hair and whose stability was quite doubtful as well. It was clear that her broken back had not managed to regenerate fully, remaining twisted. Despite this, what at one point was Petra Ral herself managed to get up off the ground and move. Seeing such failures Zeke could not help but sigh again, doubting the effectiveness of this discovery. 

The experiment had only half worked. It wasn’t really useful to create a functional army, although it could restore the life of some would-be titan shifter. In any case, these creatures, whose peace had just been disrupted, were now  problem of the survey corps, or at least that’s what he thought… 

---

It would be difficult to say if any aspect of her consciousness ever awakened. Her skin burned, and even though her eyes were open her mind remained black. The creature struggled toward the forest, occasionally stumbling through the trees, causing it no pain or frustration. Some aspect of her, however, was still present. As when one is about to fall asleep and has the sensation of suddenly plunging, Petra would not stop falling. Perhaps it was a loop of her lasts seconds: the lack of gravity and the air leaving her body.  What happened in a single instant had turned into a thick mass that occupied her mind all the time. She remained in that limbo until a depression in the ground made her fall into a ditch, being covered by some bushes, product of the humidity of the area.

The sunlight barely penetrated the foliage, leaving her misshapen body useless. Surprisingly, something about her state came to affect her ... The coldness of the shadow and the shelter of the earth briefly embraced her as she relived her nightmares.

There she laid, indifferent to the passage of time, until suddenly something appeared before her. Among the undergrowth, the titan saw the figure of a woman dragging a smoking limbless body and gently laying it on the ground, near the ditch's entrance. Unaware of the titan's presence, Pieck tried to catch her breath before rejoining the Marleyan fleet. They had managed to exterminate much of the Eldian army, but Reiner, Zeke and Porco were on the brink of death, and they had lost the colossal titan too. She had spent a long time transformed, and her injuries had also forced her to take a break in her human form. Right now, they were especially vulnerable, and Pieck could only pray that she could regain her strength and transform again. She then took several steps away to see how the regeneration of her other two companions was going, and in a matter of seconds, the previously invisible titan catapulted from her hiding place, devouring Porco completely.

Pieck had not yet regained all of her strength, and she could only stare in horror at the result of her mistake. When the shock left her body, she grabbed her companions by their collars and tried to drag them as far as she could, even though they were twice her size. Luckily for them, the titan's physical problems and her unevenness prevented her from rising. Pieck's observant nature made her immediately aware of it, and she thought that perhaps she could wait there for it to regain its human form to devour the lost titan again. However, there would still be more titans around them, and it was a priority now to protect her remaining friends. Perhaps thanks to the adrenaline of the moment she managed to transform, took her companions between her jaws and escaped from that place. Pieck knew that retreating was the safest option for the moment, and it eased her mind to think that the survey corps weren’t likely to find the titan before them. And if they did, it would fall back into their hands soon enough. 

---

She took a sudden gasp that woke her up. Her breathing was uneven, and her senses betrayed her. As the heat of the late afternoon sun touched her smoky skin, Petra had the sensation of having awakened from a long nightmare that she could not quite remember. When she finally half-opened her eyes she felt relieved, but within seconds she fell asleep again. She remained there for hours, torn between lethargy and consciousness. Little by little, the consciousness of "self" returned to her, but she couldn’t help feeling that now there was someone else…

Her dreams sharpened, and the moments of her awakening became clearer. At some point Petra thought that maybe she was resting injured on some makeshift base. The night fell on her and she began to feel the cold on her naked body, making her revisit her dreams once again. The dew of dawn was not long in coming, waking her from her visions. For a moment, in the orange light, she wondered to whom that cup belonged, to whom she was speaking, what was that emotion that felt warm in her chest but cold in her arms... 

Suddenly, the hum of metal pulleys brought her back to life.

Flying over the trees there was a small crew of the survey corps, following an 8-meter titan that was coming towards her. In the blink of an eye,  the creature collapsed on the ground without giving Petra time to identify the situation she was in.

The recovery of Maria Wall had resulted in the almost total extinction of the brigade, but such a victory for humanity and the secrets discovered had pushed some members of the military police to join them, making it possible to carry out modest expeditions near the walls, exterminating the titans that didn't get close enough to be eliminated from the other side. Leading this team was commander Hange Zoë, who had taken over after Erwim's death. She along with Levi were in charge of leading a small group made up of some members of the 104th and a few newbies.

Among the survivors of the last battle was Jean Kristein, who was the first to notice her presence. When he saw the young naked woman lying on the ground, he stopped in his tracks, watching her for a few seconds without being able to believe his eyes. He then threw a black flare, which immediately caught the attention of his companions, who came to help him. Unable to hide the stupor in his expression Jean yelled at Hange "Commander, there’s a human lying on the ground with shifter marks!" 

Hearing this, Levi who had not yet changed the course of his trajectory made a violent turn fearing the worst. Seconds later the new recruits followed, visibly terrified of the finding, yet ready for battle.

When Hange landed on the tree Jean was anchored, she was completely paralyzed. "This can't be true ..." After a few moments, she quickly threw herself to ground level, while Jean followed her fearing a surprise attack. The reaction continued in a chain after seeing the reckless action of the commander. They were still trying to digest Erwin's death, and Levi was quick to yell Hange to get away from the suspicious figure. 

Hange by then was completely bent over Petra's body, "Hey, Petra, is it really you? Can you hear me? What happened?" Jean was slightly further back, a little calmer after deducing that it was an acquaintance, although he didn’t understand how. The way they were arranged covered her up, so when Levi reached the ground he couldn’t see her face at first, but felt slightly disappointed that the legs he saw couldn't be Zeke’s... Hange kept muttering an impossible amount of questions to the woman. Levi proceeded to approach her more calmly after realizing that she couldn’t move. 

"Hey Hange, could you tell me what-". He froze in a way he probably never did before. 

For a few instances his mind seemed to disassociate from what he was seeing. He recognized her face, but was unable to connect the information that reached him. A horrible sense of relief and guilt engulfed him, leaving him expressionless before Petra's immobile anatomy. 

The girl was lying on her side, visibly weakened from having spent God knows how long in the open. Her face looked tired and sad, and her eyes were framed by the marks of her transformation. It was obvious that Petra had been turned into a titan, although this should have happened after her death, something they discovered was possible in that exact moment. Not that Levi wasn't happy to see her, but the guilt of seeing her fall victim to this conflict once again was greater. Her body had been left outside the walls and now she had been forced to return to this hell, through a power that would force her to die once again soon. Once Levi came back to reality, he unbuttoned his cloak and put it over her uncovered torso. Hange had never paid much attention to decorum, much less when something fascinated her, and the other cadets did not dare to approach. Petra’s honey eyes fell on him, and he could feel that it was her, even though she was not quite there ... It was almost impossible to believe that he was seeing her, covered with the cloak that he hadn’t been able to get rid of even after changing their uniforms, decorated with the same wings that he had plucked from her badge that day.

"Petra” He said in disbelief  “Can you hear us? ..."

"Hmn ..." She managed to pronounce.

Hange screamed with excitement once she saw Petra was finally responding. They immediately brought the horses so they could finally return her inside the walls. The sound of her voice had brought Levi back to his senses, who was already taking care of ordering their retreat. Perhaps he could give her father different news from that time… But what would he tell him exactly? He knew perfectly well that his daughter was now in a limbo, carrying a curse.

[a-dumb-simp]

How the obey me brothers + Arcana would react to a dancer gn mc

> The Arcana + Obey me

Regular and competition hc

This is purely self indulgent because I dance lmao <3

> I matched up different styles to different people based on what they would be most interested in!

｡･:*:･ﾟ★,｡･:*:･ﾟ☆　　 ｡･:*:･ﾟ★,｡･:*:･ﾟ☆

^ this is so long and I’m sorry but I’m on mobile so I can’t put a read more :( I love u <3

Ballet

Lucifer

He found out you did Ballet when he looked through your profile for the exchange program

He was interested but waited until you wanted to tell him to ask anything

He loves to watch you stretch and if you convince him well enough he might join you some nights and morning

It's part of your guys routine

His brothers must never know

You convinced him to finally do a partner dance with you

Him in a Ballet leotard and black legginging

His brothers are going insane but his glares still give them chills

Makes a room for you guys to practice with mirrors and ballet bars set up

Will spin you and then dip you

Kisses in the middle of dances all the time

Becomes a lot more flexible and doesn't know what to do with it

You teach him all the French Ballet terms and sometimes use it as inside jokes cause no one else can understand ”dance talk”

Cuddles in between fun practices :))

He's soft for you

Asra

He knew you did ballet before the incident

Afterwards he helps teach you again

Has to teach himself the moves and terminology first so now he gets to dance with you

Loves teaching you small bits of French when you learn to talk again so it's easier to understand ballet

Once you remember the both of you go to masquerades and do partner dances in the ballroom

Nadia loves watching the both of :)

You try to teach Muriel and it goes awful but Asra finds it adorable

He teaches you slowly and you learn to be a dancer again thanks to him <3

Contemporary

Belphie

He was napping the first time he heard you jumping around

He looked up curiously to find you practising a sequence

Almost asked you what you were doing but instead went back to sleep

Woke up again and saw you in a butterfly jump

You heard him rustling around and got excited!!

You can finally show him what you had choreographed!!

He watched you do a routine with a sleepy smile

Afterwards he'll applaud and let you curtsy towards him

Acts like he's throwing roses to you (plz pretend you caught one in your mouth)

He loves watching you dance

It's soothing to him honestly and if he's ever in a bad mood he’ll ask you to dance for him

Muriel

He found out through Asra that you liked to dance

He found you one day in the garden outside the hut practising grande jetes

You looked like a little fairy jumping around the in the forest

He honestly fell in love again

He sat down with Inanna and watched you for a good hour

Loves seeing your face light up when you finally nail doing your firebird

Will walk up to you and and tell you how beautiful you looked dancing

Scared you a bit!

He's v sorry :(

You just looked so focused he doesn't want to interrupt you!

Hip-hop

Mammon

Found you practising moves after school

You were playing music in your headphones and couldn't hear a damn thing

He just watched you for a bit until he felt the need to cause mischief >:)

He grabbed your waist as you were about to do a move and your hips went back towards his

-0-

He's a blush mess now and so are you, you compose yourself better than him tho

He didn't realise what you were dancing to at first so he begs you to play the music without headphones

As soon as it starts playing he can't take his eyes off you

He has little hearts shining in his eyes and is a blush mess but at the same time proud of you

Please teach him some moves

This man can sway and shake his hips-

Show him how to dance in different styles

wacking would be just favourite, the mix of pop with a subtle sway is perfect

Both of you doing duets

Please recreate dirty dancing scenes with him, he’ll die happy

Lucio

He's in the ballroom when he sees you

You and Portia we're just messing around and she found out you had danced before you came to Vesuvia and she immediately asked you to teach her

His heels made so much damn noise there was no way you couldn't hear him

Portia took her leave after blushing and left him staring at you

Deciding to be a bit bold you continued the combo

Leaning down to the floor and dragging your hands up your body slowly while continuing eye contact

He's a blushing mess

He may seem like a dominate tall leader but. You make him especially weak

He's begging to learn how to strut

You pull out his pairs of highest heels and go walking through the castle

He's surprisingly good at it, maybe a bit too good

His balance isn't the best but his confidence makes up for it

If he falls he's taking you down with him though so watch out

Tap

Leviathan

He found a video of anime characters dancing to song and saw someone recreate it with tap shoes

He found it so cool and shoved his phone toward you to show you

You quietly goggles and said you would be right back

He was a bit disappointed you didn't have a reaction to the video but he let it go for now

When you came back he looked up and saw the same style of shoes in your hands

He jumped up and yelled that you had to learn the dance!!

Oh you will, but he's using your spare pair of shoes to do it too

He's of course on board, dancing and anime with you!! of course he loves it

The other brothers not so much, the constant noise forced you guys to learn it outside

Levi was clumsy and not forceful enough to truly make sounds but he had the right spirit

You're both giggling and out of breath when he gets the idea to upload the video

Mammon and Belphie are both already making fun of you guys in the morning

Portia

She was so excited to come home and see you with a tap board laid down and playing a metronome

You were so distracted you didn't see her looking at you with stars in your eyes

She closed the door and you still didn't look over

She finally had to walk over and grab your hand

You were so concentrated as you were mastering doing a switching pullback without moving

You completely fell

You forgot to tape the bottoms of your shoes and slipped when she tapped you

She quickly pulled you up and made you sit on the couch

She's apologizing but you assure her she's fine, she's just mumbling about how powerful and focused you looked

She loves seeing you so passionate about something <3

Pointe

Satan

Satan had read about traditional French and Russian ballets at some point probably has seen a recreation of a Christmas classic dance at some point

So when he was in your room reading and saw your first pair of shoes tied up he asked about them

You showed him how they bent and about how the shank was dead but they were your first pair and it was sentimental so you kept them

He went with you to get fitted for a new pair and even paid for them just to see you dance

As soon as you got home he asked you to show him some basics

He had seen enough dances to know how to twirl you and you let him

He held you and you taught him how to do partner work

It becomes a regular thing

The brothers find you guys in the living room one day, him in a leotard and tights and you in a leo and a pancake skirt

They all watched as he completed a lift with you

Please convince him to try pointe

He learns fast so pre-pointe isn't really and issue and he has good balance

You eventually both learn multiple traditional combinations and show off

He's so glad he asked about your old pair of shoes

Nadia

She found out you did some sort of balance-related sport as soon as she saw how you carried yourself

She knows from having to learn how to walk elegantly and from dance lessons how the two are related

She just flat out asked you

You told her you did pointe and for once you didn't have to explain it to someone using the term ”toe-shoes”

She took ballroom lessons as a child and then went on the learn some other styles as well

She never did try pointe but she knew what it was

She took you to get handcrafted and fitted Russian pointes

You showed her different moves in French and she taught you the same terminology in Russian (she knew both)

It was fun honestly, she could relate more than anyone to learning

She taught you styles of dance she learned and in return you put on shows in pointe shoes just for her

She loves watching the control you had over your body and the concentrated faces you made

Jazz/Mucial Theatre

Asmodeus

This man lives for drama

As soon as you told him you did musical theatre dances he was in love all over again

He loves helping you come up with ideas for dances

He will ABSOLUTELY do a duet with you

You have to perform in front of the brothers

Diavolo has you both be entertainment for his parties

He's so enthusiastic about this

Please let him do dramas with you

He can't act for shit but it's still so funny

There's really no dancing happening more just over exaggerated falling into each others arms

Julian

We already know he's been in plays and acted in theatres

So that night he had acted as himself when he accidently fell onto stage you told him you danced

He's already dragging you to dance on the tables at the bar

Everyone drunk and clapping for you and you get free drinks for the entertainment

He's also making you come to be in theatre with him

Please indulge him in this

Your both getting ”made fun of” by Asra but he truly finds you both adorable

You put on shows for Nadia and the staff and Portia is crying by the end of it

Julian completely falling into your arms and taking you down with him

This man forgets his height

Demands to be the damsel in distress

Please be his knight in shining armour

Acro/Lifts

Beel

This man-

Get him to lift you please

He’s absolutely strong enough to lift you over his head

Dirty dancing lifts that Mammon can’t do lmao

He loves watching you stretch before and he starts stretching with you too

You guys work out together to build strength

He uses you as a weight honestly

You both scare the other demons in the gym

(Mostly him but like seeing a tiny human being able to keep up with a demon is also a bit terrifying)

Protein shakes together!

The other boys will come down to the kitchen to see you both in workout gear and happily talking and wonder how the hell you're both this excited in the morning

He loves watching you concentrate and enjoying it with you when you finally land a move

The first time you successfully did your arial he was so proud

The first time you fell doing a trick he was so worried

He learns to spot you from then on

Please lift him, he loves it

FAUST <3

She’s so excited!!!

Her human can do tricks

Likes wrapping around you while u stretch

STRECTHES WITH YOU

She sits in blanket forts and watches you

Sits on your head while your balancing

Emotional support <3

She loves you so much

💘💖💗💘💞💖💓💝💕💖💓💘

[lightlia]

And it breaks my heart

Pairing: Dream x reader (irl!Dream x reader) [They/Them] [mentioning Wilbur a bit]

Synopsis: What has gone wrong? Is it the fact that they are pretending to be happy or they’re never meant to be?

Inspired by:  LÉON -  And It Breaks My Heart [stream LÉON music!!]

Words count: 2.6k

[ANGST]

A/N: My first fic on this site, yay! Hope you like it! It could be cringing but bare with me, uwu! Feedbacks are accepted so if you have sth to say, pls do so. I literally didn’t save the damn thing and I had to type it all out again. Fuck me. I didn’t proofread it cuz i’m lazy and tired so enjoy reading this.

♪ Think of days when I was yours

Seems so long ago ♪

Y/N moved in their last stuff into their new home after successfully putting everything in their new place. They looked around the living room before sitting down on the floor. Holding in their am was a box with stuff that they were going to decorate. As they opened the box, it wasn’t the stuff that they would decorate with but a photo album, a sweater and a necklace in it. They held back their tears as they took out the sweater and the necklace and wore them. The sweater wasn’t theirs but it was Clay’s.

“Babe, have you seen my sweater? I can’t find it anywhere.” Clay shouted from their wardrobe, opening each drawer to find his sweater.

Y/N skipped towards their room, “Which sweater? You have like so many sweater.”

“The one with dinosaurs on it. The green--” Clay then turned around to see Y/N was wearing what he described. “--sweater.”

Y/N looked at Clay then down at their clothing. “This one?”

Clay then walked towards them with a grin on his face. “Well, never mind. I’ll find another one to wear. And by the way, you look cute in it. So keep it.”

Y/N was flustered and hid their face in the sweater. Clay wrapped his arms around them and his chin was on their head. “But it would look even better when it’s on the floor along with my clothes.” He smirked, causing Y/N’s cheeks to go red. 

Y/N hit Clay hard with their sweater paws but to him, those hits were like patting. Clay then remembered something and jogged to their bedside drawer and took out a box. He took the necklace out and went back to Y/N. Clay went behind them and put it on for them.

“I saw it when I was out strolling with Nick. He said to pick the one with ‘Daddy’ on it but I’ll buy next time if you want.”

Y/N tiptoed to give Clay a kiss since the man is 6′3. “Thank you, Clay. I love it.” 

♪ Now we're standing in the cold

Nervous when we talk ♪

“Goddamn it! I forgot to bring my umbrella.” Y/N cursed under their breath. They decided to walk through the park but the rain ruined it. They looked up to the sky who decided to rain on the day that they wanted to be away from the loud noises and they wanted peace and quiet before they went back to their workplace tomorrow.

“Should’ve had a roommate so they could pick me up when I call them.” Y/N took shelter under a big tree. Their clothes weren’t helping them shield their head and they were soaking wet from the immediate rain. They hung their head down and kicked the dirt beneath them, cursing the rain.

Then something shielded them from the rain, making them look up to see Clay with his umbrella out over your head. He got wet a bit now that the umbrella was above them. 

“Hey.” Clay opened his mouth.

“Hi.”

Then silence surrounded them both. Y/N shifted around awkwardly to ease the silence around them. 

"How are you?”

“I’m doing great. How about you? Find someone better yet?” Y/N asked back.

♪ Such a sadness in your eyes

And now you're looking down

You try your hardest not to show it

Yeah, I can't hold you, give you hope

'Cause I'm not coming home ♪

Clay then casted his eyes down but Y/N caught the look on his face, sadness. Y/N immediately apologized, “I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have asked you that.”

“No, no. It’s fine.” He gave a fake smile to Y/N. “I couldn’t find one and I don’t need one.” He wanted to hug Y/N and asked them to rekindle their relationship but he couldn’t.

“So you’ve been single now for 2 years?”

“Yea. Do you like someone at the moment?”

“Yea, I found someone I like.” Y/N gave him a smile. “But I don’t want to tell him though.” 

“Oh.” 

Clay thought immediately of Wilbur. His initial thought was about Wilbur, probably Y/N liked Wilbur. Of course, they would like him. He was there for them, not physically. But Wilbur would call them to see if they were okay. Wilbur would also talk about Y/N a lot while he was streaming with Clay and others and   told them that Y/N doing fine now, getting the job that they wanted and was in search for a new place to live other than her friends’. Y/N didn’t want to bother them so that’s why Y/N searched for a new place.

But what Clay didn’t know was that it was a lie. They couldn’t tell him that they still need him a bit. However, they moved on because they knew they weren’t  meant to be.

“Let me take you home.” Clay offered and walked out the park with Y/N under his umbrella.

♪ And I wish that I could give you more

When you're leaving me an open door ♪

Clay had been neglecting Y/N a lot lately. They knew about his streaming career and they were very supportive of him. But lately, he had been neglecting Y/N and his food because of his streaming and uploading a YouTube video. Y/N would bring the food up to his office just for him to yell at them for entering his office. He would start missing out on their date nights and the most important ones, the anniversary. He would forget about them and go and hang out with someone Y/N didn’t know. While Clay was having fun with his new friend, Y/N was lying on their bed and crying to sleep. When he was given free times, Clay would be on his phone, typing something. Y/N would peek to see what he was texting but Clay would get up and go to his office, feeling annoyed at their behavior. Clay was never like this so what made him to be like this? 

Then one day, Y/N walked past his office to overhear his conversation with George.

“No, George. You don’t understand. Y/N was never like this. Now they’re annoying. They would ask me whenever I got home like where I went and who I was with. They even brought up Olivia and I told them every time that she’s just a friend but they wouldn’t believe me.”

Feeling annoyed, Clay pushed his hair back and getting frustrated every time he mentioned Y/N.

“Yes, we are happy, George. No. George, you don’t understand. Yes, I know. I’ll talk to them whatever.”

This pushed Y/N to the limit. They tiptoed to the bathroom and just silently cried.

♪ And I wish that I could let you know

How it hurts me, too, that we're moving on ♪

Clay and Y/N walked down a couple blocks then turned the corner, arriving at Y/N’s place. Just as they had arrived, the rain stopped.

“So this is my stop. Thank you for walking me home, Clay.” Y/N smiled and he nodded. “Oh and the rain stopped as well. How convenient.” They looked up to the sky and laughed, making Clay laughed as well.

“No problem. Don’t want you to get sick after all.” 

“Nah, I think I’m gonna get sick cuz I’m soaking wet.” Y/N pointed to Clay. “You’ll get sick too.”

“I’ll be fine.”

Y/N unlocked the door and got in. They were about to invite Clay inside but he held his hand up. 

“It’s fine. I need to get back or Nick’s gonna starve.” Then Clay’s phone went off with someone calling him. He pulled out his phone from his inside of his jacket and he laughed. Clay answered and turned on the loudspeaker.

“Yea?”

“Clay, where are you? I’m starving like I’m gonna die.” Nick shouted into the phone and they giggled at his antics.

“I’ll be there in about 15 minutes.”

“Clay, you’ve been out for about 2 hours and I’m literally gonna--”  Just that, Clay cut off Nick’s nagging and hung up the phone.

“He’ll be furious.” Y/N giggled.

“He’ll be fine. He’s just being too dramatic. I’ve lost a challenge against him and I had to buy his favorite.”

He held up the food package for Y/N to see. 

“You’d better get home quick before he call you again.” Then Clay’s phone rang and they both knew it was definitely from Nick. They laughed once more.

“Alright, I’ll get going then.” Clay said and turned around but stopped to say the last thing. “It was great seeing you again.”

“You too, Clay.” Y/N waved their hand and Clay did the same thing, walking off to the distance.

Y/N watched Clay walking off until he was no longer in their sight. They closed the door and sat down at the door, not worrying about the dirty floor. Clay seemed like he had moved on and got a hold of himself. He was not taking well about the break up at first. So they were happy for Clay that he moved on but they were hurting themselves that they had moved on as well because Clay was everything to them.

♪ Oh, where do love go?

It's right in your hands, then suddenly gone

Oh, no, nobody knows where it disappears

And it breaks my heart ♪

Clay and Y/N sat at their dining table, eating peacefully before Y/N decided to break the silence.

“Clay, we’re not meant to be.” 

“What?” Clay furrowed his brows and moved his hand to place on top of their hand. Y/N shook his hand off and continued talking.

“We’re gotta stop pretending we’re happy when actually we’re not.”

“Baby, what are you talking about?”

“Clay, don’t pretend that you don’t know what I’m talking about. We both know our relationship is dying.”

“Y/N, I don’t understand.” Clay grabbed Y/N’s hand, caressing it.

“You neglected me, you forgot about our date nights and our anniversary just to hang out with Olivia.”

“Baby, I told you many times that we’re just friends.”

As calmly as they could portray, Y/N shook their head and pulled out their phone and slid it to Clay, showing him all the messages Olivia had been texting them.

“No, we’re just friends.” Clay shook his head this time.

“Well, have fun with her. I’ll move out tomorrow. You don’t have to send me off since I’m gonna annoy you.” Y/N got up and walked towards the door.

“Baby.”

“You said I’m annoying so I hope me not being here would no longer make you feel annoyed.” And then they walked out the door to find their friend parked their car outside, waiting for them.

Clay on the other hand, was shocked from the event. He didn’t finish his meal as he hurried to his office and dialed George’s number.

♪ Empty station, 2 AM

See your name on the phone

Sayin', "So good to see you, but it made me really miss you

It's hard to be alone" ♪

Y/N got off the train at 2 am after a night out with their friends at the newly opened bar. The station was empty and quiet, enough for Y/N to concentrate. They were sober as they found an empty seat and sat there, remembering that they had seen Clay at the bar.

Their phone lit up with a notification. Clay’s name was shown on their screen, showing that he has texted them. Y/N opened the text, reading ‘So good to see you, but it made me really miss you. It's hard to be alone.’

Y/N teared up and started to type back. They were about to send long sentences to him but decided against it and just sent ‘It was great seeing you again.’

♪ And if I only could, I'd go back in time

Take back every word, say I've changed my mind

But no, nobody knows where it disappears

(And it breaks my heart) ♪

Clay was there as well with his friends because they didn’t want their friend to be sad anymore. They had seen him sad for the last 4 months after the broke up so they dragged Clay out for a night out. Clay downed all shots into his system and got a bit drunk but he was conscious about his surrounding so when he turned around to look at other people, his eyes saw their figure a couple table from him. He couldn’t avert his focus elsewhere.

Y/N after downed the shots into their system, looked around the table to see Clay looking at them. They too couldn’t tear their eyes away from Clay before hanging their head down. 

Clay wanted to go to their table and just talked to them once again but he knew he would mess up again so he just sat at the table and downed some more shots.

Y/N wanted to talk as well and maybe take back their words and want Clay back into their arms but they didn’t want it to happen again because they had gotten back together before, they had sworn that they would never hurt each other feelings anymore and if they break up again, they would let it go for real.

♪ And you want answers, but I don't have them

Say we were happy, so what happened?

Now you're acting like it's nothing, but it was something

You can't erase me, all the memories, you can't change them ♪

Y/N went back to Clay’s house to get their stuff out. They still got the key of his house and unlocked it. They opened the door and stepped inside. They walked to the stairway and turned to the living room to find Clay sprawling on the couch with booze on the table and their pictures scattered around the living room. He was asleep so Y/N took the opportunity and ran up to their room and organized their stuff.

As they finished packing the last box, a cough blurted out. Y/N didn’t have to turn around to see Clay standing by the door.

“Y/N, I don’t understand. We were so happy together. What went wrong?” Clay uttered.

“I don’t have the answer for that. You can find it yourself.” 

“No, tell me. Why is this happening? I want to know why.”

Y/N sighed before getting up and walking out the door. But Clay grabbed their arm, preventing them from leaving the room.

“Let go, Clay.”

“Y/N, tell me.”

“I can’t tell because I don’t have the answer. Now if you excuse me.” Y/N tried to wiggle their arm out of his grip.

“Y/N!”

“Clay, we’re done.”

“WE ARE NOT!”

“Clay, we fell out of love. You just didn’t realize that yourself. Thanks for the memories, Clay. I don’t think I can’t erase them out of my head and I hope you won’t erase our memories or change anything.” With that, Y/N freed their arm from his grip and walked out their shared bedroom.

Clay dropped to the floor and let his tears flow down. Y/N could hear him sobbing from downstairs and left the house with their stuff.

♪ Oh, where do love go?

It's right in your hands, then suddenly gone

Oh, no, nobody knows where it disappears

And if I only could, I'd go back in time

Take back every word, say I've changed my mind

But no, nobody knows where it disappears

And it breaks my heart ♪

Even though they wanted to get back together.

♪ (But I don't have them)

(And it breaks my heart)

(Say we were happy)

(So what happened?)

(And you want answers)

(But I don't have them)

(Say we were happy)

(So what happened?) ♪

They both knew they weren’t meant to be together.

[ayellowcurtain]

Sobbe fight. Robbe regrets it and texts Sander who agrees to forget about it. He then tells Robbe he’s going on a two-week long school trip and distance may do both of them some good. During the trip, Robbe follows him on ista and texts him, Sander replies laconically without the usual doting tone. Robbe feels insecure bc things are still evidently tense between the two. When Sander returns, he still doesn’t reach out. Robbe decides to talk face to face. Sander confesses he’s been having doubts about showing affection so openly, that Robbe thinks his grand gestures are a bit too much. Robbe tells him to stop being silly, he loves him the way he is and appreciates what he does for him. They have a hand on heart talk, they communicate honestly and make up completely.

Robbe could recognize his own symptoms: back to overthinking everything, feeling the urgent need to always do the right thing for everyone. He wishes it was easy to change his mindset and start acting normally again, but everything was pilling up and he exploded with the one person he knows he shouldn’t. It wasn’t even a big fight, Robbe thinks he knows a thing or two about how those ones really are, based on the years he had hearing his parents fight and then fighting with his dad for leaving.

But he could tell Sander didn’t like the way Robbe lashed out on him after another day of Robbe working very hard editing a video for Jens until late at night, watching his friends having fun without even inviting him, just sending him the videos for him to edit for their stupid channel. 

Sander made a joke about how Robbe was still Jen’s horny lapdog and he lost it, saying he was just trying to help his stupid friend get his dumb video uploaded and for Sander to stop acting like Robbe was the one horny for someone else back in the day.

And the look Sander gave him after, and the hours-long silence were more than enough signs for Robbe to understand he had overreacted, and even that’s an understatement. Sander barely talked to him, they slept apart from each other on Robbe’s bed and when he woke up, Sander was gone. No note, no text, he left without saying goodbye.

He was a little upset to be left behind like that, but he didn’t argue, looking at his phone for a minute before sending a few texts to his boyfriend.

to Sander: hey

I’m sorry about last night. I was so stupid and didn’t mean what I said.

I was just angry and lashed out on you

I’m so so sorry,

Let me know when you’re free and if I can go to your place tonight…

I love you, Sander

Robbe waited, bitting his nails, but Sander didn’t respond right away. He checked his phone again when he got up, a few times during breakfast and one time before shower and another one before leaving the house to go to school.

Sander hadn’t responded, he hadn’t even read the messages, any of them. He’s not one to make Robbe wait for a reply, but Robbe tries not to think about it while in school, trying to focus on his classes. He walks to his bike with Jens, but he doesn’t feel like talking. He’s done with the video and today he just wants to fix things with Sander, not bothering to worry about Jens and his worried looks.

He reads the messages he sent again when he gets home, walking around in circles inside his bedroom not to worry his mom. It was dumb to invite himself to go to Sander’s place and Robbe feels self conscious, thinking about deleting that message since Sander hasn’t read any of them yet.

Robbe sits on his bed when he starts getting dizzy after walking for so long in such a small space. He doesn’t want to talk to his mom, to answer her million questions if he tells her what happened.

He does all his homework for the week, check his notes from every class, and checks his phone every five minutes. At least he’s ahead with everything for the next few days, able to spend time with Sander whenever he feels like it and also has the time. It’s almost the end of the semester and he knows Sander needs some free time these days, not thinking about drawing for once.

Robbe eats his food slowly, trying very hard to act normally around his mom, asking how her day went, how was therapy. Robbe tells her his homework is basically done for the week and that his head is hurting a little so he’ll go to bed early.

She grabs their empty plates and kisses Robbe’s head on her way to the sink, saying he can go rest.

“You deserve it, honey.” She says, playing with his hair and leaving an extra kiss before moving on to clean the rest of the table. Robbe would usually help her anyway, but he accepts not helping her for once and drags himself back to his bedroom just in time.

He smiles to his phone, accepting the video call while he locks his bedroom door.

“Hey, you…” he tries not to sound worried about hearing from Sander almost 12 hours since this morning.

“Hi…” Sander doesn’t look or sound too excited to talk to him. Robbe explains to himself in his head it’s because he’s probably tired, overwhelmed with the end of the semester.

“How was your day?” Robbe sits on his chair, paying attention to his boyfriend. His hair is getting a little long again, like an aura around his head.

“Long, exhausting.” Sander sighs, dropping his bag on his bedroom floor, taking his jacket off, changing his phone from one hand to the other. Robbe bites his lip not to invite himself to go to Sander’s place again.

“Did you get my texts...? I think my phone is dying, might have to buy a new one soon.” Robbe smiles, even though his phone is working just fine.

“Hm, yeah, yeah, I did.” Sander throws himself on his bed, sitting, finally giving Robbe his full attention back, putting his head against his hand, messing his hair a little bit to push it away from his eyes.

“What’s wrong...?”

“Nothing. It’s just that I have to go away for a few days. My teacher needed an assistant for this trip for his exhibition.” Sander sounds annoyed, tired, but also like he decided to go, and it’s letting Robbe know about it before leaving.

“When...are you guys going?”

“Tomorrow, first thing in the morning,” Sander says, avoiding to meet Robbe’s eyes, busying taking his boots off.

“So you’re leaving...without even saying goodbye.” Robbe swallows his opinions about it, hating how low and upset he sounds and he knows Sander noticed because he looks up, holding his phone right again.

“Robbe. It’s just for two weeks. We’ve been apart for longer.”

“You couldn’t stop complaining about it during the quarantine.” Sander doesn’t answer, he sighs, annoyed, looking elsewhere and Robbe wants to ask him to look at him and tell the truth, but also apologize if Sander didn’t get that he’s sorry already.

“I think it’ll be good for us...two weeks apart.”

Robbe frowns, caught by surprise with Sander’s desire. He never thought Sander needed some time apart, two full weeks apart by his own choice, “You really think that?”

“Like I said, it’s just for a few days.” Sander shrugs, talking a little more softly like he normally would, making Robbe thinks this is just it, nothing deeper like Sander trying to find an excuse to slowly create a distance between them. 

“You need time, okay. Sorry.” Robbe shakes his head, closing his eyes for a second, “You need time and I’ll wait.”

“You’re being dramatic.” Sander breathes out a laughter that doesn’t meet his worried eyes.

“I’m not. What else can I say? Don’t go because I don’t want to? It seems like a good opportunity and if you say you need time, you need time. That’s it.”

Robbe looks at his empty glass on his nightstand, gently touching it, following the circle at the top, trying to keep himself together. He was an asshole, but he didn’t think it was enough for this reaction. 

“I’ll be back in two weeks, okay?” Robbe can’t talk anymore or he’ll cry like a needy baby so he just nods his head and Sander smiles sadly at him, ending the call.

He lets his phone slip to the ground, the thud not even worrying him. He lies back, pressing his palms against his eyes. And just like that, he won’t see Sander for two whole weeks.