#at least this one actually credited me ho hum

[darkdansdarkestdays]

So, I was skillfully hoodwinked into believing that you were another tumblr. Someone played on my post that referenced you once claiming to have gained a fair amount of weight. I had seen fairly recent photos, and, while no longer the fat-free stringy specimen of your 20s, your body was actually impressive. I'll cut thd 6 paragraphs I could easily devote to an internal debate between the relative merits of you-circa, 2004 vs you-now, but.....I'll just leave you wanting more when you reach the end instead. Lol

Okay, so.....this person's photo made its way to my "liked" roll.....I don't think that requires further explanation, if so, I will happily provide it. But, when filtered the way she had been, this woman was clearly quite rotund (although it was impossible to determine just how many extra pounds she was carrying from that photo....it could have been 20, or 100. I'd need a different one to know. Her eyes, however, again, with skillful use of a filter, absolutely appeared to be your's, a dog snout covered her nose and parts of her chin, as these would have given them away. The caption (JUST having been added) said something like "see, I am round." I want you to read this next portion the next time you think I don't really like you.....those responsible for setting this up can vouch for me: I was, initially. regretful because I thought you may have avoided me just for this reason. I sent her blog a message reaffirming how badly I wanted to see her, asking if I came off as someone for whom that would matter (after she responded and alluded to weight again in some fashion) I then stepped away and found myself ecstatic....perhaps you gaining 85 lbs or whatever was my chance. Sure, I may not be AS stoked about, say, sex now, but it was always you I was in love with....not your body. Plus, I think someone said something about you having been injured. I thought, perhaps, immobility caused substantial weight gain....we'd work it off ;)....as I am often prone to do, I was a tad bit ahead of myself. She sent me her website. On it was a link to her Twitter, where a clean photo revealed that she outweighed you by AT LEAST 100 lbs, and looked not especially similar after putting that aside. Deflated, I looked on the sunny side, and acknowledged that, at least my worries that you were tripping about your weight could be quelled.....that may seem like a ho-hum story for most, but, let me promise you with absolute certainty.....maybe 2 women on earth could have such a pull on me that this would not matter....and I knew the other one very well for a very long time. If there is nothing special about us, there at least is about you, lovely (sorry for the lame nicknames, they are hard to come up with in the person's absence) I am gonna get you DoorDash bucks REPEATEDLY, after I start getting paid the covid credit commissions I am due.lol....pack on those pounds, girl! Your buddy still loves you!lol

[dimpled-gukkie]

Santa Baby (tell me you hear them too)

moodboard made by the lovely @today-we-will-survive​

Summary: You attend a last minute Christmas party and meet your soulmate. The catch? You don’t remember anything about them besides the fact that they were wearing a Santa suit. Turns out there were seven Santas at the party... The question remains: Can you find your soulmate before Christmas Day? 

Genre: Soulmate AU/ College AU 

Pairing: ???? x reader

Warnings: hand burned on hot chocolate, Jin says he’s too pretty to be a hostage, mentions and depictions of drinking, joon is described as a porn aficionado

Word Count: 12.4k 

a/n:  It’s a very special day for my dearest friend @purpleful​! In your honor I thought I’d write you a story of your own, as you help me with a countless amount of mine. Remember all the times you asked me this month if I had written anything or had a Christmas fic? I had been working on this the whole time nshjfhn. You sent me into a panic sometimes though because I swear you guessed the plot several times without actually knowing I was even writing. Anyways I love you and thank you for being my friend ❤️

a/a/n: also Happy Holidays to anyone else celebrating. I hope you’re able to find lightness even in these dark times. And to the atheists out there, cheers to the upcoming new year

1 day, 12 hours, 32 minutes and 12 seconds until Christmas

“Don’t you think those elf costumes are hot? Like damn I wish my legs looked like that in tights.” Mina whispers conspiratorially, though her voice has a tendency to carry no matter what volume she attempts to speak in, meaning the elf you’re passing by surely hears her based off his reddened ears.

“Do you have any shame?” You laugh, tucking your arm around her own to tug her into the nearby candle store. Your professor offered to give extra credit in exchange for a present and while she’s undoubtably exploiting her students for free gifts you could really use some help in your upper division history elective.

“What’s the fun in that?” Mina giggles, reaching over to the nearest stand and picking up a candle. She gives it a good whiff before coughing, holding the offending item away from her like that will somehow save her from smelling it further despite the top still being off.

“I imagine this is what elf vomit smells like.” She groans, shoving it into your arms in an effort to make you suffer as well. True friendship.

“Winter Candies?” You question, reading the label and the ingredients it’s supposed to smell like. “Adding pecan and peppermint is probably what went wrong.” You hum before smelling it yourself and coughing from the fumes. “Oh you were right this is disgusting.”

“Have I ever lied to you?” Mina hums. “Get that one for your professor.”

“I’d like my grade to be higher not lower. Let’s just get this pine one. It’s a safe bet right?”

“If you like your house to smell like a forest I guess so.” She shrugs, following behind you to the register. “Do you think we could get something to eat? I’m starving.”

“Didn’t you eat like half of Songi’s Christmas cookies this morning? Speaking of which you’re going to get in trouble, she was whining the whole time about how long they were taking due to her lack of patience.”

“When is she not whining about how long things take? Girl has the attention span of a nat, better yet a goldfish.” She snickers, though her eyes shine with a particular fondness for one of her oldest friends. Songi is actually how you met Mina in the first place, the both of you stuck in statistics together and becoming quick friends. When sophomore year rolled around it just made sense to move in with Songi and Mina as they were already looking for a third roommate.

“Very true. Though I’m sure her soulmate will find it charming. Hopefully.”

“Do you ever wonder when we’ll meet our soulmates?” Mina sighs, looking dreamily off into what appears to be the oncoming food court. It’s a toss up whether she’s thinking about her soulmate or fried food.

“All the time but I try not to dwell on it. I just want to live you know? They’ll find me eventually.” The line for hotteok is long, but the sweet smell of pancakes keeps you placated even if your stomach is grumbling.

“When my soulmate does come I hope they’re as fine as Park Jimin. That man must be an angel or something because no one has the right to be that attractive.” You’re about to comment on where that sudden thought came from when Park Jimin himself exits hastily from a store, a clothing bag thrown over his shoulder as he hastily types on his phone. From the draw of his brows and slight scowl he almost looks a little angry, an expression you’ve never seen on him before. “Jimin!” Mina calls, and the orange haired boy immediately picks his head up and puts on a light smile before jogging over.

As he approaches the bells around you jangle, the clock at Santa’s workshop echoing throughout the mall and ringing in your ears. Rubbing your ear to try and ease the slight pain you give Jimin a small wave when he finally appears before you. “The bells are pretty loud huh?” He smiles, nodding towards the large bell that apparently looms behind you.

You agree at the same time Mina says, “I don’t think they’re that loud. Annoying at most.” Before looking between the both of you and wriggling her brows. You brush it off as her being weird before gesturing to Jimin’s bag.

“Don’t tell me you bought a Santa costume.” You say, causing him to laugh. The way his eyes slip between his plump cheeks is rather flattering.

“I lost a bet and this is the price to pay for tonight’s party. Speaking of which you guys should come. Jin’s on alcohol duty so he’ll definitely get all the fancy shit.” Jimin says.

“Well since the Park Jimin invited us, I guess we’ll have to stop by. Text y/n the address and we’ll get there eventually. No promises to be on time though.” Mina jokes.

“That is why they created the term ‘fashionably late’ is it not? Just make sure not to wear a sexy Santa costume, Jin says he wants to be the lone slutty Santa.” Jimin laughs, as if drawing a picture in his own mind before shaking his head.

“It’s a little odd to have a party on the twenty-third though. Why not Christmas Eve?”

“Most of us are going home tomorrow so today was really the only time. Everyone was strung up with finals and stuff.”

“Understandable. I’m getting last minute extra credit before grades are finalized tomorrow. Our school really kills the festive spirit with everything being so close to the holidays.”

“Exactly. All the more reason to party out our frustrations.” His phone buzzes and Jimin types a quick reply before turning back to you. “I gotta go and help Tae at the shelter but I’ll see you both tonight right?”

“And Songi! Our ride or die, our forever plus one, our favorite-“

“Alright, alright. Yeah we’ll be there.” You smile, your hand still over Mina’s mouth as Jimin turns and jogs away. When you release her she smacks the back of your head and you whine.

“What was that for??”

“For being stupid dumbass. You’re telling me both you and Jimin thought the bells were super loud and didn’t think that’s sus. He’s clearly your soulmate!” Mina practically screeches, bouncing on her heels in excitement. The spectacle draws the attention of those around you and you can’t help but shy away.

“Shut up! Besides it’s the holiday season, bells are ringing everywhere. There’s no way to tell if it’s actually your soulmate’s bell jingle. Besides Jimin didn’t seem to think anything of it either. Shouldn’t you just know?”

“I don’t know, you tell me. You’re the one with the found soulmate after all.” Mina shrugs before giving her order to the vendor. She nudges you to give your own but your mind is still reeling. Park Jimin isn’t actually your soulmate, right?

1 day, 1 hour, 37 minutes, 53 seconds until Christmas

Despite your nonchalance earlier, you feel jittery standing outside the address Jimin sent you. Shivers rack down your spine at the prospect of seeing him again, of being certain that Jimin is your forever. You can hear the music through the door, a rhythmic thumping that you try and match your breathing to. Even if Park Jimin isn’t your soulmate it’s not going to be the end of the world. At least that’s what you try to tell yourself, ignoring the way just the idea forms a pit in your stomach. “I know we’re waiting for you to mentally prepare yourself but could you hurry up? I for one would love to witness slutty Jin.” Mina says, nudging you forward  lightly with her shoulder.

“Chill out Mina, give the poor girl some time. She’s about to find her soulmate after all.” Songi says, throwing an arm over your shoulder and dragging you into her side. “If it makes you feel better I’ll stay by your side the whole night. We can make fun of Mina shamelessly trying to outdo Seokjin.”

“Hey! Jimin may have said I couldn’t be a slutty Santa but that will never stop me from being the baddest bitch there.” She makes a show of grabbing her sweater and tugging it to emphasize ‘ho’ stitched across the front. Songi has a matching one with Santa losing said hos.

“If I don’t see a dance battle I’m going to be disappointed. After all you promised to do something stupid for me to film. It’s the only reason I decided to come, I mean after supporting you of course.” Songi laughs, giving you an affectionate squeeze.

“Hey I could be an idol with these moves! Ryujin has nothing on me.” Mina huffs, breaking out into the iconic Itzy choreography in the middle of the hallway. You can’t help but crack up at the serious face she makes while ungracefully flailing her limbs. “And you should be grateful to us you hermit! I hope for your sake your soulmate is outgoing because you’ll live your whole life holed up in your apartment otherwise.”

“It’s safer that way. No bugs.” Songi says, causing Mina to push her and nearly send you both crashing to the floor.

“You’re insufferable. I don’t know how I’ve put up with you all these years.”

“You love me, I mean really it’d be hard not too.” Songi shrugs, a smug smile pulled onto her face as she pats Mina’s cheek.

“More like tolerate you and to be honest I’ve reached my limit. Let’s go inside so I can ditch you losers.” Mina throws the door open and heads inside, easily weaving through the bodies crammed inside the small apartment.

“I can just feel the love.” Songi sighs, clutching onto the space over her heart. “Now come on, we can’t find him if we’re in the hallway all night.” Moving to grab your hand she drags you inside, only for you to run into a boy passing through.

“My bad, didn’t think anyone else would be coming by. I have to go get more eggnog before Jin starts screaming at us again.” He smiles, the corner of his lips forming into soft right angles.

“It’s alright.” You murmur, looking around for Mina or Songi. Surely they’re somewhere nearby. Songi is most likely tucked away in some corner, longingly looking for an animal to keep her entertained while Mina is probably at the makeshift bar. If you weren’t so busy looking for your friends maybe you’d pay mind to the soft tinkling of bells and his cardinal red Santa suit wrapped nicely around his frame. Yet even when he breezes past you, your eyes are focused on your two friends. You spot Mina first, surprisingly she’s near the edge of the makeshift dance floor, a drink in her hand and likely about halfway drunk enough to begin belting along to whatever song comes on, even if it’s a terrible EDM mashup of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.

You push through the bodies to get to her, almost getting trampled twice before breaking out and grabbing her by the arm before she can walk away. “Oh hey! I got you a drink, I know you don’t like eggnog so I swiped the chocolate milk from the fridge and spiked it myself.” She smiles, shoving a green plastic cup decorated with little lights towards you. You take a sip and wince at the bitter taste, the gingerbread liquor making an interesting concoction. But it’s the thought that counts and you smile despite wanting to cough at the strong flavor.

“Thanks. Where’s Songi?” You ask and Mina curses.

“She was just over in that corner but she’s gone now. Maybe we should try to find her?”

“You know, for someone who claims to hate social interaction she goes off on her own quite easily.” You hum, pushing your way through only to bump into Park Jimin himself. “Sorry.” You say, bumping into Mina from how quickly you try to put space between the two of you. You had momentarily forgotten the whole reason you came was because of Jimin and the possibility that he’s your soulmate. Your hands are suddenly clammy and you rub them against the side of your pants nervously.

“No big deal. Good to see you though! How long have you been here? You should’ve come and said hi to me first.” He whines, his pretty lips drawing into a thick pout, brows upturned as he gives you his best puppy dog look. You can feel yourself melting and all he’s doing is staring at you. The bells around you seem to get louder, Mariah Carey’s iconic Christmas song setting the stage.

“Ahh yeah. Next time! Maybe we could-uhh even come together. If you want to that is.” You smile shyly, pulling your sleeves down over your hands anxiously. You hope he can understand the implication behind your words, and as he steps towards you the bells seem to grow even louder. Someone shoves you from behind and you stumble, body alight with nerves when Jimin catches you. You’re practically shaking, in nerves or excitement you can’t discern. The only thing you can focus on is how pretty Jimin looks cast under red and white lights, his eyes filled with little twinkles. Your breath hitches at how close he is and you look down quickly when he gazes back at you so he can’t read the pure adoration on your face.

Naturally to try and seem less awkward you rush out the first thought that comes to mind. “Your suit is orange?” He takes a step back and you wish to reverse time as the warmth of whiskey and cinnamon on his breath parts from you.

“Ahh yeah, I lost a bet so I had to wear a Santa Suit and Hobi didn’t have enough for us all. I was in such a hurry I didn’t even bother looking at it before renting it. It’s my own fault for being swindled. I should’ve known better than to rent from a halloween shop that was suspiciously still open in December. Can you believe all the other stores were sold out?” Jimin scoffs and despite being interested in his story you can only focus on the way his lips move and pout with each word. They’re a rosy pink, slightly shiny in the dim lighting like he had just put on chapstick or licked his lips. The only thing that draws you out of your stupor is a petite girl throwing her arm around Jimin’s waist.

“Baby!” She exclaims and your eyes widen as Jimin grins down at her, wrapping his hands happily around her own waist and dragging him tightly into her. His smile is the largest you’ve ever seen on him, cheeks particularly squished in utmost happiness and his expression being what you could only describe as love. You can feel your heart breaking already. “Hi I’m Jisoo!” You think you’re going to be sick to your stomach, not just because Jimin is in love with someone else but because the girl you’re supposed to hate is so nice. She smiles at you warmly like you weren’t just staring at her boyfriend’s lips and wondering what they’d taste like.

“Hi, it’s nice to meet you.”

“Isn’t my soulmate so cute?” Jimin asks you, his eyes sparkling like diamonds as he squishes her cheek between two fingers. Your breath starts to quicken and you smile widely to hide the way your eyes begin to fill with tears.

“You both are adorable together.” You manage to get out, impressed with how natural it sounds despite how tense you feel. The bells in your head are just mocking you now as you make up an excuse to leave, the two of them so wrapped up in each other they don’t pay mind to your absence. Clearing your throat you head to the bathroom to try and get some privacy for your inevitable break down only to run into Mina and some guy in a Santa suit stumbling out.

“Y/n!” Mina cheers, too intoxicated to notice the way small tears begin to fall down your face. The hallway is rather dark and yet you can still make out the guy next to her with a curved nose and reddened ears. He looks a little embarrassed to be caught after an obvious rendezvous in a bathroom at a party and yet his hands still wind around Mina’s waist comfortably when she pulls away from you. “My soulmate’s an elf!” She cackles and you welcome the distraction her words bring.

“What?” You ask confused. The guy beside her is wearing a Santa costume, you’re sure of it.

“Hoseok is a mall elf! You know the guy with the hot legs? It’s him, my soulmate!” She squeals excitedly, grabbing him by the arm and smiling up at him blissfully.

“How are you sure?” You don’t mean to sound so bitter, but Mina never mentioned hearing bells at the mall nor did she mention hearing bells when you caught her earlier. If anything this could just be her wishful thinking like her suggestion of Jimin being your soulmate.

“You just kinda know! Like at the mall when we passed I wrote it off as shop bells. Then when I got here and we bumped into each other I just knew it was actually him. And when we touched it was like I was struck by lightning.” Your face must show incredulity because she just smiles at you.

“I know, I know. It sounds super cliche but it’s true. Though now that we’ve touched a lot more it’s wearing down.” She giggles, winking at him and reveling in the way the blush burns brighter. He sticks his hand out to you after squeezing her waist and you stare at it for a moment before reaching out to shake it.

“Hi, I’m Hoseok. You can call me Hobi though.” His smile takes the form of a heart as he grins at you and Mina practically squeals.

“It’s nice to meet you. I’d love to talk later but I have to use the bathroom.” You nod behind them and Hoseok seems to realize he’s standing in the doorway and moves aside bashfully.

“So sorry! Didn’t realize I was still standing there.” You just give him a tight-lipped smile and nod, moving past them quickly. Your silence seems to be what draws Mina’s concern, a tentative hand coming to grab your forearm lightly.

“Y/n-“ She starts but you gently brush her off.

“I’m fine. Really don’t worry about me.” You say softly before locking the door and sliding down it. It’s in the comfort of the quiet bathroom that you allow the tears to freely fall and mourn the soulmate you didn’t have.

22 hours, 45 minutes, 35 seconds until Christmas

You finally find Songi, a random cat cuddled up in her arms as she’s squished into a small chair nestled by the kitchen. She’s a little hazy in your mind, it feels a bit like you’re looking at her underwater, and you smile at her lazily before plopping down into her lap. “Be careful!” She scolds, holding the cat up higher so it’s curled into her chest instead. You just blink slowly at her in response and she sighs. “How much did you drink tonight?”

“After I cried for like thirty minutes I stole a bottle of peppermint schnapps and drank the whole thing.” You sigh, resting your head against her own.

“Why’d you cry? I wish you would’ve told me you were upset, I would’ve suggested we leave right away.”

“Park Jimin already has a soulmate…it’s not me. I know chances were already slim because he’s Park Jimin and well, I’m me but I just thought maybe this would be it. I finally would have someone to share everything with and I wouldn’t.. be so lonely.” You murmur out the last part, your drunken state revealing the thoughts that consumed you upon meeting Jisoo. No matter how much you mentally prepared yourself for the possibility of Jimin being a fluke, you weren’t ready for just how brutal the disappointment was.

“Hey, there’s nothing wrong with being you. Besides I’d never let Park Jimin sit on my lap and yet here you are, perched upon a throne.” You can’t help the small giggle you let out. Songi always knows what to say to cheer you up.

“You’re so weird you know that? You’re the only person I know who refers to thighs as a throne.”

“Don’t judge me and my preferences. You drool over hands and I drool over thighs, it’s perfectly normal. Anyways, I know you mean romantically but I’ll always be here if you want someone to cry with or to yell at fictional characters about their stupidity with you. You’re my best friend.” Despite her hatred of hugs and physical contact Songi retracts her arms from the cat to put them around you instead, gently giving you a squeeze. It’s a little awkward because she’s terrible at hugs but you appreciate it nonetheless.

“How about we get out of here okay?” She suggests and you nod, wincing as your head starts to pound. The alcohol must be catching up to you. The pounding is then followed by ringing, and you hold your head in your hands as church bells ring in your ears. The world is truly out to make a mockery of your life.

“You okay? Here sit down a minute.” Songi ushers you into the chair as she hovers above you, rushing off to get some water for you.

“Taehyung really shouldn’t have been in charge of the playlist.” Someone from beside you sighs but you can’t look up at them for the sake of your pounding headache. “I think I’m going to have bells ringing in my head for days.” They sigh before they seem to notice you. “Hey you okay?” They ask, a hand placed on your shoulder in concern but the electricity that runs down your spine makes you gasp. Your skin prickles in goosebumps but Songi is just near enough that she takes your gasp as extreme pain instead of astonishment.

“I’m sorry I took so long!” She says, throwing your arm around her shoulders haphazardly before hauling you up and against her.

“Hey wait-“ The voice from beside you starts, but Songi brushes them off.

“Don’t worry I’m not gonna steal your cat this time. But don’t let him roam around with a bunch of drunk people. I almost saw him get stepped on five times by idiots.” For a brief second you manage enough strength to turn your head without wanting to throw up and blearily lock eyes with a pair of chocolate brown ones. They’re swimming with something you can’t quite make out: pain, regret, longing. But then Songi calls your name and you turn away to make sure you don’t smack into the front door. It’s odd but you can feel a pit in your stomach the further you walk away and his eyes are imprinted on the back of your lids with every blink.

14 hours, 18 minutes, 22 seconds until Christmas

“Wake up bitches!” Mina screams, banging on your and Songi’s doors and you groan. Rolling over, you throw the pillow over your head and try to fall back asleep to avoid the way your head pounds. Mina throws your door open and you wince when it smacks against the wall next to it. “You can’t evade me.” She says, reaching for your comforter and trying to throw it off. However, you predicted this to happen when you flipped over and cling tightly to the fluffy bedding, expertly disrupting her evil plan. Mina huffs in annoyance and you hide your grin in your sheets before releasing a puff of air when she jumps on top of you. “Wake! Up!” She yells, jumping on top of you like you’re some human trampoline.

“You’re the worst kind of person.” You grumble, rolling over to come face to face with her smile.

“Thanks! Now I want to eat cookies for breakfast and I refuse to eat them alone like it’s a shameful activity.” True in her shameless fashion she’s only wearing a baggy t-shirt, her neck exposed and colored various shades of purple and red. Though your night was unexplainably horrible you’re glad at least someone had a good time.

“I want Songi’s cookies. Hers always look pretty.”

“You mean you don’t want to try my cinnamon bourbon toffee snickerdoodles? I saw it on tiktok and they took me two hours! I nearly set the oven on fire!” You wrinkle your nose at the memory of two days ago, and coming home from finishing up one of your last papers to her covered in flour and the counters doused in eggs. It’s like she somehow got in a food fight with herself.

“And that’s precisely why they shouldn’t exist in the first place. You didn’t even know how to turn on the oven.” Songi murmurs, leant against your doorway.

“You’re all ungrateful, uncultured swines.” She huffs, though she still proceeds to make you all hot chocolates when you emerge from your room. The three of your are sat at the kitchen counter, plates full of cookies and Songi’s mom’s homemade fudge. If anything can cure a hangover it’s gorging yourself on unhealthy food.

“Did I ever tell you one kid in high school called me an uncultured swine because I didn’t know the rat from the ninja turtles?” Songi says, munching on her own frosted sugar cookie. It was her first attempt at a 3D wreath but turned out to be more like a bush of frosting. For most it’d be deemed to sweet and disgusting to ingest but Songi happily licks away at the icing.

“What is the rat’s name?” Mina asks, and Songi just shrugs.

“I still don’t know honestly.”

“Why were you up so early anyways? Don’t you normally sleep until noon?” You ask Mina, noticing the way she turns away from you almost shyly.

“Hobi slept over and he had to go back to work early to return the Santa suits he stole before his boss found out.” The Santa suits spring a memory to mind and you suddenly recall seeing more than just one. Though Jimin did mention there being others, you only saw Hobi and Jin wearing them.

“Why were so many people wearing Santa suits anyways? I thought Jin wanted to be the only one.”

“The only slutty one, so naturally he was wearing the top of the suit like a robe and cut the pants into thot shorts. Hobi was understandably pissed about that one since they were only borrowing the suits after all. But it was some bet, he told me about it last night but I was too drunk to remember.” Looking into your drink the swirling chocolate then reminds you of eyes and the tingling feeling down your back when a warm palm rested on your shoulder.

“Holy shit!” You exclaim, suddenly standing up and running to your room. Mina and Songi are hot on your heels, watching curiously as you bounce around on one foot while struggling to pull your jeans over your thighs and hips.

“Where are you going?” Songi asks and you widen your eyes at the realization that she’s the only one who would’ve seen their face.

“Songi who did you see before you took me home? Who had their hand on my shoulder?” You ask, running up to grab her by the upper arms and shake her almost desperately. “Songi I need to know who it was.”

“What’s this all about? Did they steal from you or something?” Mina asks and you throw your head back in a frustrated groan.

“No they’re my soulmate!”

“Babe-“ Mina starts and your glare at the pity in her expression.

“I’m being serious. I felt the sparks or whatever and I can see his eyes when we walked away. I just can’t remember anything else. Songi you have to remember who they were.” You plead to the both of them and they look back at you rather sadly.

“I’m sorry but I’ve never seen them before. I think they were wearing a Santa costume but I don’t remember much else about them.” She says and you can’t help but deflate. You actually found your soulmate and got so drunk you can’t remember anything about them. Great.

“Are you sure they’re your soulmate anyways. I passed by you later that night and you seemed pretty wasted but maybe after Jimin you just thought-“

“No I didn’t make up a soulmate just because I was depressed that Jimin wasn’t mine. You know how you just knew with Hoseok? Well I just know with him. How many people were wearing Santa costumes?”

“Six.” Mina says but Songi disagrees and says there’s seven.

“A guy came in later with another suit. That’s how I found the cat, it was just following him around and I heard the little bell on the collar.”

“You-you heard a cat bell at a party filled with drunk people screaming?” Mina asks, her face twisted up in confusion. You have to admit that does seem like it’s rather unlikely that someone would be able to discern such a quiet sound with so much commotion.

“I have exceptional hearing, of course I heard it. Besides this isn’t some fanfic where we all find our soulmates in the same place. The guy did have a pretty face though, I wouldn’t mind looking at it upon closer inspection.” Songi shrugs, staring off dreamily like the cat guy is standing right in front of her.

“Do you think Hobi can give me the name of the guys he leant the suits to?” You ask and Mina sighs.

“Just don’t get your hopes up too much okay? Songi only thinks he was wearing a Santa costume. I just don’t want to see you heartbroken again.” She pats your head softly, almost motherly, and you give her your best smile.

13 hours, 45 minutes, 36 seconds until Christmas

The name Min Yoongi swirls around your brain as you stand outside of Bored and Brewed. It’s tucked between a music supply store and a flower shop, leafy plants hanging above the entrance and the large front windows blocked in by thin rectangular frames. You can see warm lights strewn across the cafe from outside, casting it in a golden hue as soft pink chairs and petal green couches decorate the inside. The bell above you jingles and you tersely smile, flashbacks of your embarrassment from misinterpreting a common sound during the holiday season returning. Hoseok gave no description of what Min Yoongi would look like, only stating that he’s a frequenter of this specific cafe given it’s proximity to your university’s music school buildings. Though Jimin mentioned all his friends were leaving today, you’re still hopeful that your soulmate will stick around long enough for you to find them. This is a matter of fate after all, the universe wouldn’t allow you to meet them before Christmas only to end up spending the day alone right? No matter how cruel the world normally seems you refuse to believe it would do this to you.

Upon entry the guy behind the counter smiles at you, then goes back to busying himself on the phone while you look at the menu. You’re not one for liking strong coffee, so your eyes naturally linger towards the sweeter drinks that are on the special menu. The bell to the shop rings again but you don’t pay it any mind, too fixated on trying to figure out what you want.

“I wouldn’t get the peppermint drink if I were you. They load it with sugar and whipped cream so it doesn’t taste like anything.” A voice from behind you says and you nod along. “I’d get the sugar cookie one, it’s not super sweet but also has a nice flavor. It’s the only thing I get that’s not actual coffee.” He hums and you decide to go ahead and order that before you make the guy behind you wait any longer.

“Make that two. I’m feeling particularly generous today.” He hands over some cash before you can say anything and you whip around to face him. Wavy black hair covers his brows, most of it tucked inside a gray beanie. A baggy hoodie and black skinny jeans adorn the rest of his figure and he gives you a tight lipped smile with the edges quirked upwards.

“Thank you. You really didn’t have to.” You say, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear. You follow him to the pick up area for your drinks, tucking your hands into your pockets to try and hide your nervous fiddling.

“I try to do a good deed every day so today that’s you it seems.” His voice is low and soft, a quiet rumbling in the wind.

“Well I appreciate it.” You say and silence falls between the two of you. Your mind is searching for something to say to fill the silence but the barista comes by with your two drinks. You’re about to just leave the conversation at the polite end but the barista’s words catches your attention.

“Feel free to buy me a drink sometime Yoongi.” He laughs.

“Yoongi?” You ask and the boy with the beanie turns back to you.

“Yeah?”

“As in Min Yoongi. Hobi’s friend?” You press further and the boy’s confusion turns to skepticism.

“Why do you ask?”

“Well you see I met my soulmate last night at the party but I don’t remember who they were, just that they were wearing a Santa costume.” You murmur, following behind when Yoongi makes a move to leave the shop.

“I’m sorry but I don’t believe in soulmates. I think you should have a say in who’s right for you.” Despite the coldness of his words, his tone is still soft- sympathetic almost.

“Yoongi wait!” You exclaim, grabbing onto his wrist with your own hand. The bell above the store chimes above you and for a second you allow yourself to believe you’re the one to change how Yoongi feels about soulmates. And yet you feel no goosebumps when your skin touches his, only the slightly dry texture of his palm when he gently takes your hand off him. “The-the bells. I can’t lose my soulmate again, please.” The end comes off as a whisper and Yoongi must take pity on you because he gives you a gentle smile.

“The bells were from above the door. But I can give you the name of another Santa, his name is Jin. He’s the one who hosted the party. He works at the restaurant I play piano for, he should be there picking up his check because the manager is old fashioned. If you hurry you can probably catch him. Two blocks down, it’s the fancy place with the stupid golden archway like a high end McDonalds.” He pats your upper arm twice before walking away. Though you miss the way he turns to watch you run around the small corner mumbling a small good luck at your parting figure.

13 hours, 30 minutes, 23 seconds until Christmas

Yoongi wasn’t lying when he said the place did have a strange high-end McDonalds feel. The golden arches are spotless, reflecting the red and green lights scattered in some windows of the buildings across the street. The doors are large french ones with gold painted around the trim and a guy in a butler’s outfit opens them for you. You thank him before heading inside, observing the grandiose chandeliers and poinsettias decorating the host stand. A girl with long blonde hair smiles at you before asking if you need a table.

“Actually I was looking for Jin? He has blonde hair and really wide shoulders.” It’s the only information Yoongi offered but the girl in front of you nods in understanding and you can’t help the sigh of relief you let out.

“He just came in to get something so I’ll find him and let him know you’re waiting for him. Can I get your name?”

“Umm just tell him Hobi’s friend is waiting.” You say nervously, pulling at the strings of your sweater to busy yourself. She just nods before walking away and you stuff three of the free mints in your mouth to try and ease yourself. That is before you realize they’re peppermint flavored and instantly start gagging as the taste of last night’s peppermint liquor surfaces. With your hand over your mouth to stop yourself from gagging, Jin walks into the lobby and spots you. His eyes widen in recognition, sparkling as he gets nearer. And as he draws closer a distant tinkling sounds rings out and your eyes water with tears. Is your soulmate perhaps the sluttiest Santa of them all?

“I’d remember you from anywhere. You stole my entire bottle of Peppermint Schnapps out of my secret liquor cabinet. I’m surprised you could reach it to be honest, I have to climb on the counter to grab it myself so you must’ve done some serious spider man shit.” He smiles and you wish the ground would swallow you whole. You have no recollection of doing that. What had Mina put in your first drink?

“Ahh yes. I was hoping I could speak to you privately.” Your eyes dart to the blonde hostess, perched on the host stand and conveniently leaning toward the two of you to hear closer.

“I was going to steal some food from the back before I left. You want anything?” He asks, walking towards the kitchen with you following him like some lovesick puppy. At this point you refuse to let your soulmate be taken from you any longer.

“What do you have?”

“Anything you could ever want. I’m heading home after this so I need some snacks for the drive.” He picks up a baguette and fruit, before opening the freezer and pulling out ready made desserts and quiches. “You think the caviar is here yet?” He asks to himself before rifling through some more shelves and letting out a loud ‘aha!’

“You hold this.” He says, giving you the expensive caviar and gesturing for you to hide it under your shirt.

“You want me to smuggle it out?” You exclaim and Jin quickly shushes you.

“It’s not smuggling, it’s borrowing. If there’s any left I’ll return it.” He says, pushing you away from the kitchen and walking normally like he doesn’t have a baguette and many other foods in his arms.

“Isn’t that a health violation?” You ask and Jin rolls his eyes.

“What are you? The health inspector? Besides you weren’t worried about health violations last night.” He says, leading you towards the front. The tinkling sound is particularly loud here and you finally gather the courage to question him about your real intentions.

“Speaking of last night, I don’t actually remember much. But I do know I found my soulmate.” You start, looking towards him and Jin hums in acknowledgement. “And he was wearing a Santa suit…so as you know, you were also wearing one. So I was thinking-“

“I’m your soulmate?” Jin says and you nearly drop the bowl of caviar that’s tucked underneath your shirt.

“You are? Honestly that’s such a relief because I’ve been stressing myself out about trying to find them before it was actually Christmas so I don’t have to spend another alone. You said you were having to go to your family’s right? Would I be able to come with? I know we’ve only just met but I can’t imagine having to be alone again and-“ Seokjin has tucked the baguette under his arm, a finger pressed delicately to your lips.

“This is very flattering, truly the sweetest soulmate confession I’ve received thus far. But I have to stop you because I’m not your soulmate. You think you’re hearing bells right? The bus boys are polishing all the glasses and they always knock them into each other.” When he sees your eyes water again he gently wipes the falling tears. “I know you’re looking to find them and I want to help you. You said it was a Santa right? Lucky for you all my friend’s wore the costume because of Taehyung’s punishment. They were betting the length of time it would take Taehyung to smuggle a cat out of the shelter he works at. If you ask me I think it was rigged since Taehyung was the determinator of the bet length but my friends are stupid at best so they overlooked that. I was going to be slutty Santa anyways so I didn’t really care what they did. The only surprise was Taehyung being a freak and wearing a suit as well. Can you believe it was just because he wanted to be festive and not to get someone to sit in his lap?”

You can only sniffle and nod, internally questioning if trying to find your soulmate today was really a good idea. Mina did warn you about the potential heartbreak but you had been stubborn and unwilling to listen. The universe has had it out for you thus far, so why would it suddenly take pity on you and make things easy? “Hey, hey don’t give up. I’ll send you the shelter address and you can stop by when you’re ready. He should be there all day, his family is coming up here tomorrow so he has nothing better to do.” Jin says.

“You don’t think this is stupid? That I’m searching for something that clearly wasn’t meant to happen?”

“I don’t think any matter of the heart is something to criticize. If you really wanna find your soulmate you will, I believe in you. And Hobi must’ve believed in you too if he gave you our government names and locations. He wouldn’t give them out to strangers he didn’t trust. Or at least I hope he doesn’t, I’m much too beautiful to be held hostage.”

“Thanks Jin. That was oddly encouraging.”

“There’s nothing that a pretty face can’t fix. Now if you’ll excuse me, I must coast to the gas station and stand there until someone offers to pay for me. The sugar daddies are normally out right about now so that’s my queue. And when you find your soulmate, tell him he and his garbage truck stomach owe me groceries.”

“You know who it is?” You ask and Jin only shrugs.

“Maybe, maybe not. I’ll see you at the next party y/n.” He winks.

12 hours, 28 minutes, 12 seconds until Christmas

“Did you find them?” Songi asks excitedly when you enter the apartment and you shake your head in reply. You’re not exactly completely discouraged but you feel nowhere near as excited and prepared as you were earlier. “I’m sorry. Is there anything I can do to make you feel better?” She asks, tentatively sitting on the couch beside you.

“Can we just watch a fun movie or something? i don’t really want to think at the moment.”

“How about a drama instead? Someone I know really loves Goblin.” She sings, already reaching for the remote.

“Goblin would be nice. It’s been a while since I’ve watched it.” You hum, snuggling under a fluffy blanket thrown across the back of the couch and curling up next to Songi.

“You want some popcorn? I can make hot chocolate or something if you want.” She offers but you shake your head and lean your head on her shoulder.

“I just want to mindlessly watch some dramas and pretend I’m the main characters.” You say and she merely nods before turning Goblin on.

“We can do that.” You both settle in comfortably, your body easing as the stress and emotional toll begin to weigh on you. Maybe what you needed was to just relax before putting yourself back out there. Besides Taehyung was supposed to be at the shelter all day, you had plenty of time. And even if you missed Taehyung, even if you didn’t find your soulmate by Christmas, you wouldn’t truly be alone. You had Songi right here with you, someone who had already offered to bring you with her when she saw her family tomorrow. It was with this warming realization that you finally allowed yourself to stop thinking, and close your eyes to get a peaceful sleep.

8 hours, 32 minutes, 56 seconds until Christmas

“You two took a nap and I wasn’t invited? You know napping is my favorite part of the day.” Mina whines, setting bags down onto the kitchen counter before squeezing between you and Songi on the couch. “Oo I love this scene! Though I have to say Nam Joo Hyuk’s swim scenes in weightlifting fairy were the best part of any drama I’ve seen thus far. When I tell you I almost drooled.” She sighs, batting away the pillow that Songi attempts to hit her with.

“How dare you talk about my man like that.” Songi huffs dramatically before pouting. “Besides he’s best as Nam Do San. If I could marry any character it’d be him.”

“He’s cute but I wouldn’t want him.” You say.

“Yes, yes. We all know you like your men older.” Mina cackles, wiggling her eyebrows at you suggestively.

“Hey they don’t have to be! I just- I don’t know, I want someone who could take care of me.”

“In all ways.” Mina giggles, her voice choked when you smack her dead in the face with the pillow beside you.

“None of that in my christian household!” You giggle to which she gasps, accosted.

“Then tell Songi to stop her weird thigh club thing!”

“I am part of the weightlifting club it’s not my fault we focus on squats!” Songi says, her voice rising significantly higher as she attempts to defend herself.

“Look me in the eyes and tell me you didn’t join because you heard Wonho was the president.” Mina challenges, giggling when Songi’s cheeks bloom pretty roses.

“Sh-shut up. If you can have your hoe hours so can I. Besides Wonho’s my friend now, so I don’t admire them as much anymore.”

“You’re right, you admire them respectfully.” You add, laughing harder when Songi flips you off in retaliation.

“I hate you all. I need someone who will truly love me and be on my side.” She whines, standing up and moving to put on her shoes by the front door.

“Where are you going now?” Mina asks.

“To get a cat!” Songi exclaims, grabbing her bag off the rack by the door and storming out. You know she’s not really mad, but you also know there’s a one-hundred percent chance she’s coming back with a cat despite your lease directly stating it doesn’t allow animals.

You settle back onto the couch before your eyes widen and you jump up to put on your own shoes. “And where are you going?”

“I need to go to the shelter to see Taehyung and Songi’s the only one with a car!” You shout, running out the door and after her. You sprint down the stairs, it’s the most exercise you think you’ve gotten this year, and make it into the parking garage just as Songi unlocks her car. “Songi wait! Let me come with.” You yell, crossing over to her and throwing the passenger door open before she can say no.

“If you’re also getting a cat I get first dibs. It was my idea after all.” She says, waiting patiently for you to buckle up before pulling out. “Hey can you find directions for the nearest shelter? I know there’s one on third but I have no idea where third is.”

“Yeah I have the address for one.” You say, pulling up the place Jin sent you.

8 hours, 16 minutes, 24 seconds

The shelter itself is pretty small, but there’s a large fenced-in play area in the back. It’s filled with new toys and the sight makes you smile, especially at the few puppies that topple over each other when they trip while chasing one another. Your eyes linger on them a little longer and your heart pangs a little as you miss your dog from back home. You were supposed to see your family this winter season but all the flights in your home city were too expensive so you’ll have to see them after New Years instead. While you’ll get to see your family in a little over a week, you still miss them greatly especially when everyone is talking about going home to their own families.

“Do you want a dog instead?” Songi asks and you shake your head.

“No I don’t think I’m getting any pets. I have a umm friend who works here though.” You say, tucking your arm around hers and dragging her inside.

“Do you think they’ll give me a discount?” She asks, squeezing your arm when you tense at the little bell ringing above the door. At this point you hate bells and anything that has to deal with them.

“Maybe.”

“I’ll give you them free if you get two.” A smooth voice says, a boy with a black mullet and sharp eyebrows stepping in from the back. He smiles widely at you, rosy lips drawing into an almost blinding smile.

“Two might be a bit much for us.” You laugh stiffly. “I think we’re fine with just one.”

“Cat or dog?” He asks.

“Cat. Do you have any old cats? I’d like to give an elder guy a happy home.” Songi smiles and the beautiful man’s brows pinch.

“Taehyung is more familiar with the cats, I’ll go get him so he can show you around.”

“Sweet, thanks.” She says with a nod, tapping her feet to an imaginary beat. “Do you think I’ll find one that likes me? What if they all hate me?” Songi asks you, worry painted in her features.

“I’m sure they’ll all adore you. You’re difficult to not love.” You tell her, her shoulders sagging in relief.

“I just want to give them all the love in the world.” She says. “Oh do you think they sell collars? Something’s jingling.” She comments and before you can say anything the boy you first ran into last night appears. His boxy smile graces his features, dark eyes and long lashes fluttering as his gaze fixates on Songi.

“You’re the one looking for a cat?” He asks, his baritone voice causing a blush to rise to her skin. In fact, his voice when paired with his features seems to have glitched her brain out because she’s not moving at all. Her mouth is agape, her eyes wide as she takes in Taehyung. Several seconds have passed and she has yet to even so much as breathe. You nudge her shoulder and she seems to reboot, giving him a sheepish smile.

“Yeah.” She says breathily.

“Jaebum told me you wanted one of the older ones. I’ll show you the ones who’ve been here the longest too.” He says, urging you to follow him through the door on the left. “The first section is where we keep the older ones, hoping they’ll catch someone’s eye before they see the kittens.” He explains, gesturing to a large enclosure filled with cat beds and towers.

“Can we go inside?” Songi asks and Taehyung nods, opening the gate and allowing you both to enter before a cat can escape. Songi instantly takes a liking to a white fluffy one that’s sprawled on a blue bed in the corner. It’s ears twitch with each step she makes and she pauses when she’s an arms reach away.

“Hello.” She begins introducing herself to the cat and your eyes flicker to Taehyung who gazes at her almost fondly. Your stomach sinks because it’s clear you’re much more aware that Taehyung doesn’t have a belled collar in his pocket than Songi. Seeing her so clueless to her inevitable soulmate standing so close by allows you to give yourself forgiveness for being so clueless yesterday.  

“That one’s named Gucci. Named him myself because he’s a rare breed.”

“Does that mean he’s going to be expensive too?” She jokes.

“Probably, he’s an old guy after all. Sometimes they develop health complications. This boy right here is thirteen and has been here for about two years I think?” Taehyung supplies and Songi immediately frowns.

“My poor baby.” She coos, gently reaching forward to scratch behind his ear and then further under his chin. “You wanna come live at my house? I’ll sneak you all the chicken you want.”

The cat just blinks at her, rather slowly, before sniffing her palm. Songi immediately takes this as a yes and tells Taehyung that she’ll take him. “A good choice if I must say so myself. You two look cute together.” Taehyung smiles before his eyes widen until they’re nearly entirely round like he didn’t realize what he was saying until it was already out of his mouth. He doesn’t retract them or try and make them less flirtatious however. He merely just walks away with a slight blush decorating the apples of his cheeks while mumbling about leaving to get paper work and a soft crate.

“You like him right?’ Songi asks and you just shrug despite the large smile pulling at your face.

“Taehyung? He seems really sweet.” You giggle to which she shushes you vehemently.

“He might hear you! Besides he’s way out of my league, there’s no way he’d like me back. Plus I already have a man in my life and he’s right here.” She tugs Gucci into her lap, pressing a small kiss to his nose.

“I will not let you turn into a cat lady. You’re already a hermit at twenty.”

“But people make me nervous.” She whines. Taehyung enters again before you can comment any further, the soft crate draped over his shoulder with a fluffy blanket tucked inside.

“I’ll come in with you and when you’re done signing, I’ll put him in the crate. Sometimes they put up a fight when you try and get them in there and I don’t want him scratching you.” Taehyung tells Songi and she just nods along. You can tell she’s stalling because the two pages takes her about five minutes, as she pretends to care about having neat handwriting. You’re pretty sure she’s working up the nerve to say something to Taehyung so you decide to do it for her.

“Taehyung do you have a collar on you? I think Gucci would look really cute with one with like a bowtie bell.” You ask and his mouth parts slightly open, brows pulled together in confusion. It gives off a similar vibe to when your puppy cocks his head to the side when it can’t figure out what you’re saying.

“We don’t have any collars here. We don’t want the animals to get caught on anything and owners usually like to pick out their own.”

“You mean you don’t have one in your pocket?” Songi asks, equally as confused. You love her but for being so academically smart she can be so slow.

“No.” Taehyung says before turning to her with startled eyes. “You can hear bells?”

“Yeah. Should I not be able to?”

“I can hear them too!” He yells, startling half the cats but he pays them no mind as he pulls her into a tight embrace. “I’m so happy, you don’t know how long I’ve been waiting for you…my soulmate.” He says it dreamily even though Songi is right in front of him and although your chances of finding your own is dwindling significantly you can’t help but be happy for your friend. She’s lit up under Taehyung’s attention, smiling so wide you think your own cheeks are starting to hurt. “And you my little man,” Taehyung says, squishing Gucci’s head between his large hands. “I’m going to be your dad!”

7 hours, 45 minutes, 31 seconds until Christmas

After finally convincing Taehyung to let Songi go, only under the terms that you’ll meet him at a nearby diner to get food, you wind up back in your apartment. Mina is gone, probably either on her way home or out with Hoseok so it’s quiet when Songi enters with Gucci. It’s probably a good thing as Taehyung warned you both that moving was quite stressful for a cat and he’d want a quiet room to hang out by himself until he felt comfortable. Gingerly taking him to her room, Songi sets up his things before opening Gucci’s crate and quietly closing the door. “I hope he doesn’t pee on my stuff.” She comments suddenly.

“I doubt it. He probably won’t even leave the crate for a few hours.”

“You think he’ll like it here?” Songi asks, following you out of the apartment and back down to her car. Taehyung wanted to go to somewhere near his work since he biked there this morning and Songi was happy to oblige even if she normally hates driving at night.

“I think so, I know you’ll shower him with as much love as you can. He’d have no reason not to like it.”

“Taehyung?” She asks, laughing to herself for parroting you from earlier. “I know, you meant the cat. But on a serious note, the cat will like me better than him right? It’d be so depressing for my cat to like my boyfriend more than me.”

“Mmm that one is hard. Your boyfriend is scarily beautiful.”

“Hey! You’re supposed to be on my side.” Songi whines.

“I am, I’m just speaking facts. It doesn’t mean you’re not beautiful too.” Your phone buzzes and it’s a text from Mina asking what your plans are for tonight. You guess Mina didn’t go home after all.

“Is it okay if Mina comes along? Hobi’s probably with her too.” You ask, already typing out a reply because you know Songi will agree.

“That’s fine. But hey, can you give me directions again? I really don’t know where I’m supposed to be going.”

4 hours, 47 minutes, 27 seconds until Christmas

Songi is sidled up beside Taehyung, his arm resting on her leg while Hobi has his arm wrapped around Mina’s shoulders. You’re all crammed inside a small circular booth, mountains of food spread around the table as you joke around about nothing in particular. You had forgotten Taehyung and Hobi were close friends, having met so many of said friends that it feels like everyone is just a friend of a friend. And yet despite being the only one without a significant other, you don’t feel left out or lonely. In fact, you’re the happiest you’ve been these past two days as you listen to Taehyung ramble on about the time he had to streak across campus.

“Should I be horrified that the campus security guards know what my boyfriend’s dick looks like before I do?” Songi laughs.

“Hey they only got a preview, you get the full movie.” She giggles to which you all collectively groan.

“Gross!” Songi says, making Taehyung beside her pout.

“I don’t know why I thought finding Hobi would make you any less shameless.” You chuckle.

“Hey you all love me like this. Take it or leave it as they say.” Mina says, dipping a fry in ranch before popping it into her mouth. “You sure you can handle all this Hobi?” She asks to which he only winks. Lord help you, there’s two of them.

“I think our best moment was when we convinced Namjoon to sneak into the science labs and set all the testing rats free. Imagine this like six foot tall man screaming as a bunch of little white rats chase after him.” Taehyung giggles.

“What he didn’t know was that Jungkook had stuffed cheese into the pockets of his cargo pants so the rats were trying to get a midnight snack.” Hobi snickers.

“Where’d they all go?” Songi asks.

“They just kinda scattered around campus. I’m sure half of them live near the dining halls now.” Hobi says.

“Do you think they formed packs? Or are they like Remy from Ratatouille and are going to take over as chefs. The dining halls could really use an upgrade. Remember when we used to trek across campus just to get a decent dinner?” Taehyung asks.

“I’m not sure. Why don’t you two go and ask them?” Mina snickers.

“Jungkook.” They both say suddenly like that’s a reasonable and valid answer.

“Jungkook.” You repeat, the words somewhat familiar on your tongue. Why did you know that name? Pulling out your phone you look back to the list of names Hoseok had given you of those who wore Santa costumes and gasp. “Jungkook!”

“Yes that is his name.” Taehyung adds dryly.

“Jungkook was wearing a Santa suit! At the party. He’s one of the two left. Do you know where I can find him?” You ask and Hobi shrugs.

“He’s probably gone home by this hour. He was whining so much about missing his mom that I’m sure he left earlier this morning to go see her sooner.” You visibly deflate and Taehyung decides to offer up additional advice.

“Jungkook and Namjoon live together. That’s two of your list right? I’ll send you the address and you can see if anyone is home.”

“Don’t you think that’s a violation of privacy?” Hobi whispers.

“Nah it’s fine. A bunch of porn sights probably track their location with all the viruses Namjoon downloads anyways.” Taehyung says this so casually that you wonder if a big part of Namjoon’s personality is liking erotic videos. You really hope not, soulmate or not. You have a threshold for that type of conversation and Mina is relatively mild but even she regularly meets said threshold.

“Anyways, they’re not that far from here if you want me to walk you there. I live nearby anyways.” Taehyung offers.

“If you’re sure.”

“No problem.”

4 hours, 15 minutes, 53 seconds until Christmas

The apartment building is small, the colors muted brown and had Taehyung not pointed it out to you, you would’ve missed it entirely. The only source of light is small patio lights strewn between the buildings, the likes of which are only a few stories tall. Taehyung tells you the apartment number before riding off, leaving you to your own devices. Except, you realize too late that despite the buildings being rather old they’ve upgraded to modern systems. Which means you need a fob to get in. You could walk home and call it a night, but at this point you’re just annoyed and stubborn. So instead you meander through the convenience store for a half hour, pretending that you care about the difference between regular and kettle chips when you spot someone walking towards the gate. Abandoning the aisle, you hurry out of the store and cross the street.

“Hey! I lost my fob could you let me in?” You ask, a pleasant smile on your face to try and sway the guy. You can’t see his face well, it’s obscured by a black baseball cap but you can see the distrust in his eyes. “Please?” You try again.

“I guess.” He mumbles, holding the door for you to slip inside. You have half a mind to warn him against doing such things in the case of strangers only to realize that you are the stranger in this situation.

“Thanks!” You say, hurrying away before he can kick you out. The guy working the convenience store was definitely taking note of your blatant loitering and he didn’t seem like the type to ignore it. It turns out the building coordination here is quite complex because while you’d think 101-106 would be on the right and 093-100 on the left, 093-100 is actually the next building over. It’s like they put the apartment numbers in a random generator and just let that decide the order. You’re making your fifth round of building B like a creep when you decide to just sit in the stairwell in shame. It’s clear this apartment complex is your own personal form of hell for trying to best the soulmate system which so clearly doesn’t want you to find your soulmate before the holidays. You already have your phone out to call Mina and express your woes when you hear the door below you attached to the stairwell open. Before you can scramble out of the way a pair of multicolored chunky sneakers stand on the step beneath your own.

“You okay?” The stranger asks and you just nod. “Are you sure? You look a little lost.”

“Metaphorically and physically, yes I am very lost. I have somehow found my soulmate and forgot them within the same day, I’ve been running around the city chasing after fucking Santa like an insane person and I have no idea where the fuck apartment 387 is.” You sigh, glad to release at least some of your pent up frustration. The stranger takes a minute before holding out a hand for you to grab.

“Lucky for you I happen to know where apartment 387 is.” His smile is indented by deep dimples, nicely framing thick lips.

“Really?” You ask, slipping your hand into his own and allowing him to drag you up.

“Sure thing. If you’re this determined to meet your soulmate I’m sure they’re equally distraught at not finding you yet.” He offers thoughtfully and you just hum.

“I don’t know, don’t you think I’d have run into them by now? I’ve been all around the city today.”

“Two moving pieces are just as hard to connect as two not moving at all.” The stranger offers before stopping in front of door 387. Just as you’re about to thank him he unlocks it and looks back at you with a wide smile. “How about you come in and have a drink? He should be home soon anyways. Probably equally as frustrated as yourself.”

“If it’s not a bother…”

“Hey you’re my best friend’s soulmate, you’ll never be a bother. Besides I try and do one good deed a day, so reuniting lost lovers can be that.”

“Funny, Yoongi said the same thing.” You muse to yourself.

“Who do you think taught him? I’m Namjoon by the way.” You freeze, mind struggling to pair the apparent porn addict with the insightful, sophisticated man in front of you. He notices this pause and frowns. “What did one of my idiots for friends say?”

“Uhh…maybe just something about porn.” You mumble and Namjoon just takes a moment to deeply sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose between two fingers.

“You should know they’re the ones who asked me to download it.” He huffs. “Chamomile or hot chocolate?”

“Hot chocolate is just fine.” You say, taking a a moment to observe the apartment. It’s decorated rather warmly, rich browns and black melding with soft orange. It feels a bit like you’re sitting at the edge of a bonfire, admiring the pretty glow it casts on everything. “Your decoration is really nice.” You say, taking note of the little wooden figures strewn across the living room. A small glass bunny makes you smile.

“Thanks I decorated it myself. I double major in interior design and business.”

“You think you could decorate my apartment? It’s terribly bland because my roommates and I all have different taste in decorating.”

“Sure thing, send me the dimensions and I’ll pick some stuff out. A lot of this is thrifted or from local vintage shops, so it’s not nearly as expensive as it seems.”

“Smart shopping, very sustainable.”

“What can I say? I’m a glutton for shopping but a stickler for lessening environmental footprints.” Namjoon says and you laugh, hiding your smile behind the mug he hands you. He even went so far as to add whipped cream at the top with chocolate shavings.

“Thank you. This is the best hot chocolate I’ve had so far.”

“Cool! I got some imported Belgian chocolate and-“

“Joonie I can’t do this anymore.” A third voice sounds before their body even enters the apartment, the front door thrown open carelessly as they flop themselves onto the couch. A jingle plays itself in your head, the bells have a rather bright sound. Namjoon urges you forward and you carry your mug with you just to keep your hands from shaking. “I’ve gone all over the city for nothing and of course when I come home to wallow in pity the bells are mocking me. They’re getting louder with each passing second Namjoon!” They whine, voice slightly muffled by the pillow.

“Would you like a hot chocolate?” You ask and they sit up so quickly that you jump back, sloshing some of the hot liquid onto your wrist. “Fuck! That’s so hot.” You whine, your supposed soulmate jumping over the back of the couch and holding your wrist gently in their hand.

“Shit, I’m so sorry.” They say, but you can’t even feel the burn because your nerves are too focused on his touch. Goosebumps scatter across your skin, as he hurries you into the kitchen to run cold water over your wrist. His mouth is moving a mile a minute, murmuring apologies and yet you can only fixate on the mole on his lower lip and the way his dark hair hangs in his eyes, long lashes blinking away stray strands. His nose is strong, a pretty curve making it much too enticing for you to not kiss it at least once. He seems to notice you’re not paying attention because he finally turns to face you head on and it’s only then does he seem to recognize you.

Similarly to last time his eyes are wide, several emotions running through them that you attempt to read: confusion, surprise, relief. He almost sags against you, pulling you into him before you can even think of anything to say. With your nose tucked into his neck, you can feel his small tremors and attempt to suppress them by pulling him in tighter. “I-I didn’t think-“

“I know.” You shush him softly, taking in how warm and solid he is, how real he feels beneath your palms. He smells like fresh linen, and when he finally pulls far away enough that you can look into his eyes you kiss the tip of his nose. His cheeks flush but the hands on your waist tighten. “I’ve looked everywhere for you, you know?”

He scoffs. “I could say the same. Why’d you disappear yesterday? I thought maybe you realized you didn’t..want me.”

“That could and would never be it.” You reassure him, running a hand through his hair to push it out of his face. “I hate for this to be our first meeting but I was super drunk when we met. I couldn’t really think and my friend thought I was really sick so she took me home before I had the chance to say anything.”

“Jin did say you drank an entire bottle of schnapps. Thanks for that by the way, now I owe him a new bottle.”

“He knew?! Why didn’t he save us the heartbreak and force us together?” You ask and he turns his head towards the small kitchen window.

Scratching the back of his neck, he mumbles, “that might’ve been my fault. I was supposed to be hosting with Joon but decided I didn’t want the mess. By then word already got out so someone had to host. You could say this was my punishment that you unfortunately had to suffer through as well.”

“Next time I’m going to pour his schnapps down the drain instead. Better yet, we’ll buy a bottle, drink it and replace it with thick water!” You huff and he smiles.

“I like the way you think. But what is thick water?”

“I heard it’s the consistency of snot. I guess drinkable jello would be the closest texture.” He scrunches his nose in distaste and you smile. He’s so cute.

“I uhh-I’m Jungkook by the way. I don’t think I mentioned that.”

“Y/n.” He stares at you for a moment before placing both hands on your cheeks and placing a tender kiss to your lips. It’s soft and warm, very much like the man who stands in front of you.

“You’re the best gift I could’ve ever asked for.” He says and despite the cheesy line the sincerity with which he speaks warms you. His hand falls to your own, only when he brushes against your wrist do you hiss and the moment is broken. “Shit, I forgot. Don’t worry baby, I took sports medicine in high school, I’ll fix it up real quick.”

0 hours, 0 minutes, 10 seconds

Jungkook’s arms wrap tightly around your frame, the both of you cuddled into the thickest blanket he could find as you gaze at the city around you. Your wrapped wrist sits carefully against your chest, a heart drawn over the fabric by Jungkook himself. The city lights are so pretty at night, the sky clear enough that if you strain your eyes you can even make out a few stars. The only stars you’re concerned about though are the ones in Jungkook’s eyes, glittering prettily as the sign from the convenience store across the street illuminates them. He takes a sip of Namjoon’s hot chocolate from a thermos before handing it to you, brushing your hair out of your face that’s been displaced by the slight breeze. Despite the fact that you’re both shivering you don’t think you’ve been this warm in a while. It’s part of the reason you insisted to stay out here just a little bit longer even though Jungkook’s warm bed is waiting for you downstairs. You just wanted to be in your own world a little longer, wanting to have an excuse to mold yourself as closely against Jungkook as humanly possible. Clicking his phone the time illuminates, 11:59, staring back at you before flicking to 12:00.

“Merry Christmas Jungkook.” You murmur pressing a chaste kiss to his lips as he smiles.

“Merry Christmas baby.” He says. Your eyes fall back onto his own and he’s looking at you as if you’re his whole world. You know your own mirror the same sentiment and you press closer to connect your lips to his own, writing your future along his tongue.

[decepti-thots]

This is just me copy and pasting a bit from this interview so I can shove it on my reference tag for future consultation, ho hum, ignore me.

(If anyone's curious, it's just a bit from that interview where JRo discusses Rung and Froid and the attempted PA on Megatron re: Messatine. Actually, I should tag @sauntervaguelydown, haha.)

TM (Jeremy): Did you want to talk about the Rung and Froid bits?

TM (Charles): Yeah, so we have two parallel stories going on, and we don’t really see why they’re interweaving until the end. We get a little hint, but we still don’t know what’s going on there, but I thought it was interesting that you have two Cybertronian psychiatrists named Rung and Froid, and I’m assuming it’s Carl Jung and Sigmund Freud-

JR: Yes.

TM (Charles): -are the callbacks there. And you have a line here where they say we never agree on anything, and the real psychiatrists, I think they had competing theories of psychiatry?

JR: They did, yeah they were responsible for the two sort of principle- a bit like quantum theory and classical physics, you know, Theory of Relativity. They hope to be combined but they don’t quite- So yes, that’s right, that’s riffing on their real life counterparts. I will credit Nick Roche for the Froid name. He threw it out there, I can’t remember what context- he said it as a joke but it’s- Froid’s been mentioned before in The Sound of Breaking Glass I think, one of the text stories.

TM (Charles): Yeah, and we get another view of Trepan and his- I guess he was about to do Shadowplay on Megatron, or some other kind of-

JR: Yeah, either Shadowplay or a very subtle variation on that. He was about to rewrite things, and the words as they disappear are meant to symbolize elements of Megatron’s thought processes or memory, just starting to be tampered with. It was good to bring Trepan back in actually. I was satisfied with both halves of the issue, actually, because- and certainly the Messatine one. It’s like an oblique sequel to Shadowplay in a way, cause you’ve got this sort of Shadowplay, I think we have a proper name for it. Is it Personality Adjustment- PA?

TM (Charles & Jeremy): Yes.

JR: So there’s something akin to Shadowplay which Rung, perhaps surprisingly, is aware of and recognizes. In Rung’s world it’s a very, very medical procedure.

TM (Jeremy): It’s an accepted procedure.

JR: Yeah, so to be able to bring Rung into it, and to have Senator Shockwave’s amendment- I mean, that amendment would have been debated after Shockwave had been got to, and Shadowplayed. That was intended as sort of Shockwave’s legacy, if you like, that in his absence the- because there was always- I mean the Senate isn’t entirely corrupt, you know, we established in Shadowplay there’s a core of people around Sentinel that are the bad guys, if you like, and maybe those numbers are growing. And so, as I see it, one of Senator Shockwave’s last pre-Shadowplay acts was to have lodged this amendment for debate, and it was carried by a majority. And the impact is that, for a time at least, it takes- you need two people to sign off on personality adjustments.

TM (Jeremy): You also kind of see Rung’s ethical choice, trying to rush there so he could co-sign before it happens, without even really knowing anything about the- just to help protect Froid but it’s still kind of unethical-

JR: Yeah-

TM (Jeremy): Just go ahead and blindly sign-

JR: Yeah, that’s right, yeah. Rung is scrupulously moral in this story really. And maybe he’s- as I wrote it, my suspicion is, if you like- I think Rung thinks that Froid would- (laughs) would go ahead and [authorize the personality adjustment of Megatron], even if Froid knew about the change of law, so Rung’s physical presence here is where, “I kind of bear witness now, so I’m here now, I’ll work alongside you, I’ll carry out an assessment, and I’ll either countersign it, or I will, effectively, veto it, by refusing to.”

[r2vi2]

Runaway

Mando x f!Reader

Chapter 1/?: Hauntings of a Runaway

Summary: Working here was never your long-term plan, and as time passes you realize you can’t afford to stay here any longer. As your past is fighting to make itself know a certain Mandalorian appears in town, becoming your only hope in making it off this planet before they find you.

Rating: SFW

Word Count: 5.2K

Warnings: No real warning I can think of for this chapter!! Added Character! Reader works as a bartender but get scheduled as a dancer for the night. Slightly alludes to some sexual or intimate situations and besides that canon type behaviour:) let me know if you see anything that I should add

A/N: This chapter is my first dabble into writing fan fiction, so it sets the stage for our favourite tin-can right before he meets the child, so it’s a lill over the place. A lot of the questions posed here will be answered in the following chapters such as their past, parents etc so a lill slow burn start. Hopefully, it’s okay, and I’ll be working on the next one very soon!!

It had been years since you’d looked in the mirror and had found a reflection that did not paint an expression of exhaustion. One would think that after so much time it would become easier, but leaning closer you can still see the same tired eyes that have haunted you for years. Quickly turning your gaze away from your reflection, before you linger on it to long.

At this point you're an expert at avoiding your reflection, only allowing yourself a quick glance when getting ready, never quite prepared to face the woman in the mirror staring back. No longer recognizing the young girl underneath, instead, opting to push down the memories of better times. You know it’s a weak attempt, but it has allowed you to move on from thinking about everything that could have been. Choosing instead to focus on the dance floor and bar that despite everything always seem to be covered by a layer of dust. Focusing on the countless bodies that come through the club for the same reason that you’d stay because it was all there was, for now.

Although it would be a lie to say that you didn't dream about the possibility of someone entering the bar and taking you away, someone to give you a reason to stop running away on your own. A second chance to explore the galaxy, perhaps even adventure or romance that didn’t end in bloodshed. That maybe this dread wouldn’t haunt you forever, weigh you down as you’re forced to watch the shadows. Never escaping the fear no matter how many times you’d try to bury it. 

You’re brought back to reality with the faint sound of water running through the pipes, reminded of the fact that as the years have continued to pass, nothing has changed. The idea of running away this time becoming laughable, as you don’t have a place to go to nor the credits needed to survive, either destroyed or depleted over the years. Instead, settling for the set routine that starts with the sunrise peeking through the window rails and ends with your ears humming from the music played throughout the night. Today not being any different, or at least, so you thought.

Turning back to the mirror you give your body one more glance, you note how the slip is slowly starting to fray at the hem, before bending down and slipping on your heels. Choosing to ignore the material for now as you let out a final sigh before making your way out of the fresher. You close the door behind you and glance down the dimly lit hallway, gathering your breath before navigating your way down the hall. Making your way towards your designated booth for the night, annoyed at the fact that you won’t be working the bar instead.

Tonight sent to the private booths instead, filling in due to a shortage of dancers available. A change from your usual routine where you’d entertain customers quiet conversations at the bar, before continuing to fuel their bad habits by the glass. Frowning as you’ll miss out on watching the familiar faces intertwine with new ones, sometimes seeing a glimpse of yourself in them. A glimpse of those same tired eyes you desperately try to avoid yourself staring right back at you in the face of a stranger.

Unlikely to the bar, the booths at the club feel far more intimate due to size. The small space decorated with black walls and a circle couch draped in a velvet like material. A raised stage with a stool in the centre of the room, leaving the dancers to be the centre of attention. While the red-toned lights that hang from above help to set the tone it’s all hidden from wandering eyes due to the heavy curtains blocking the entrance, forcing clients to pay before getting to view what was hidden behind them.

You can hear your heels click against the floor as you make your way to the stage to sit down, the music playing the only other noise accompanying you. Before lowering yourself on the cold metal of the classic black stool that has seen far too many days like these as it wobbles slightly due to a broken leg.

Caressing your hands down your body, you end up playing with the frayed hem of your borrowed slip. Studying the tattered material closer you catch sight of a few holes scattered along the bottom, accompanying a small rip that undoubtedly must’ve been from a previous customer. You pull a face at the thought, knowing how various clients tend to get dragged out due to their erratic behaviour towards the girls—before being banned from returning.

As you continue to caress your hands down your body you gloss across the room, noting soft chatter over the music before the curtains pull apart, revealing the first customer for the night. You try to even your breath as you ready yourself, sitting up straight on the stool before you flash him a smile.

-------

You leave your booth a few hours later, switching with one of the girls for the rest of the night. Deciding quickly that you’d scan the club to see if Kal was working at the bar, before you’d head to bed. All you had to do before going off to find him was hand over your boss' share of credits, after which you find Kal serving a customer a drink at the bar. As you walk up you note the people scattered across the club, all too engrossed in their conversations or company to bother you for favours.

Working here might not have been your ultimate dream job but some of the people who work here made for good company. From the girls and their endless banter backstage before opening to the guys at the bar that would drag out any customers if needed. It made the everyday routine slightly more exciting, it felt in a way like family. 

You turn to avoid bumping into a customer, before moving across the floor towards the bar a bit faster than before. Your eyes landing on an open spot in the far corner—closest to Kal— before you note a glimmer from your peripheral view. Too concerned with claiming the spot to take a closer look. The glimmer disappearing just as fast as it had appeared.

You plop yourself down on the spot with a melodramatic sigh and catch Kal shooting you a small smile before turning to you.

“Tough day?” he asks with a teasing tone, smiling at the pout you’re wearing across your face. Knowing just by your expression that you were in a dire need of food and company. Not even waiting for your answer as he turns to prepare a bowl of soup. Carefully filling the bowls with the hot contents for both of you, before making his way over with everything.

You straighten up at the sight of the hot bowl of soup as he sets it in front of you. “How’d you guess,” you chuckle, before swallowing down your first sip, humming at the warm feeling passing through you. Looking up when you hear Kal laughing at you, before digging in himself. 

You both sit in silence as you work on your bowls, looking around the club in-between sips as you study everyone, wondering if you should ask him if anyone interesting came by today. As you get the courage to ask him you catch the same glimpse from before in the corner of your eye, turning your head towards the source. You furrow your brows as you try to get a better view at the man in the armour. Struggling at first as he’s hidden partially by the shadows before you slowly start to recognize the armour, confusion set across your face as you wonder what a Mandalorian would be here for.

Intrigued by the presence of the Mandalorian you almost miss the way Kal tries to catch your attention, until the man in the armour whips his head around and meets your gaze. With a startle, you rip your gaze from his figure and turn to Kal with embarrassment, your cheeks flushed red by having been caught staring. Sucking in a breath you try to calm your racing heart as you feel the gaze of the warrior burning in your back, too afraid to return it. Instead, turning to gaze up at Kal when you hear his voice call out to you again.

“You okay?” he asks, his voice tinged with concern as he studies your face, before he sneaks a glance across your shoulder in search for whatever you were engrossed by just moments before, immediately recognizing the figure from the previous night. Furrowing his brows and straightening his back he returns his gaze to your flushed face. Watching your face as you collect yourself together with slow nod.

“Oh yeah… I-I just thought I saw something” You mumble quickly, letting out a breath you didn’t realize you were holding. Interested in trying to hide your growing curiosity for the armoured figure. 

You'd never actually seen a Mandalorian before, having only heard of the legends concerning their line of work. Which only furthered your wonder on what a mercenary such as him was doing on a backwater planet like this? He clearly wasn’t indulging himself in any of the services of the club, let alone drowning his sorrows with drinks?

You quiet for a moment, wondering if perhaps Kal had spoken to him or disclosed any information over his plans here. 

“W-Who’s that?” you ask, turning to Kal with a hopeful look. Annoyed with the unusual stumble in your speech, hoping he won’t question you for it, before he returns your hopeful look with scrutiny.

“A Mandalorian,” he states matter-of-factly, “This is the second night he’s visited… “ He trails off, examining the man in the corner, wondering if he should continue his train of thought. The man in armour, still hidden by the shadows of the club before returning to face your curious eyes. “When he came by last night he was accompanied by someone else. I didn’t catch their entire conversation, but I overheard something about a bounty”, he continues as his eyes flicker between you and the warrior. Nervous that the warrior might hear the quiet conversation despite the distance.

Your breath hitching at Kal’s words “A bounty?” you whisper in disbelief as you subtly peer over your shoulder “Here?” The club seeming like an unlikely place for a criminal to hide, even in this corner of the galaxy. You feel a flood of panic at the acknowledgment of possible danger, before a thought crosses your mind as you slowly turn back towards Kal. 

Maybe, just maybe this could be your ticket out...

“Yea, I think it might have been a difficult one too” Kal confesses lowly before looking at your startled expression. The word -difficult- ringing through your mind, as you wonder who could possibly cause a warrior as such that much difficulty. 

Perhaps it’s why he had come here, to retrace the steps of his bounty.

Hope slowly growing stronger in your chest because what if you had seen the bounty come through the club! Or even spoken to them. That would be worth something, right? Could it be possible that if you’d offer your help to the Mandalorian, he would help you in return? Make a deal of some sorts.

Your thoughts quickly interrupted by Kal when he catches your expression. Knowing what the expression on your face truly means, worried that it might cause more bad than good.

“Don’t even think about it,” he exclaims before meeting your gaze with a serious expression. 

“I could help,” you counter without hesitation, trying to elaborate on your idea “I might’ve seen the bounty pass through the club-“

“I don’t think you understand the various ways that could go wrong,” he retaliates as he shakes his head. You can see concern rather than frustration written across his face as he folds his arms across his chest. You let out a small huff at his statement before he continues with an indifferent tone “besides, I’m pretty sure people like them work alone” before turning to put his focus on clearing the bowls from the bar. Stepping away to make his way to the back with the dirty dishes, swiftly disappearing around the corner.

When you see Kal fully gone you turn to steal a glance behind you in search for the Mandalorian, only to be disappointed when the corner is empty. His empty seat only furthering your frustration as it seems that the man in armour appears just as fast as he disappears, leaving you to wonder if he’d return here again tomorrow. Moving back to face the bar when you hear the faint sound of Kal’s footsteps returning from the back. Looking up to give him a small smile, clearing your throat awkwardly before standing up from your spot.

“I think I’m going to call it a night,” you say with a stiff nod towards where the girls quarters are. “I’ll see you tomorrow” you mumble as you feel your eyes starting to feel heavier. Glancing at Kal before turning around to walk away when you hear a low sigh escape his lips, making you hold your position. Looking back at his figure, you can see exhaustion set in his face as he rubs his hand across his face in worry.

“You’re going to do it aren’t you” he murmured, already knowing the answer. Putting his hands down on the bar before meeting your gaze. Feeling guilt slowly flood your system at his expression, clasping your hands together before you try to answer.

“Yes,” you reply weakly, aware of the way it causes Kal to stiffen his stance before turning his head to escape your gaze. “You know more than anyone else, that I have to at least try…right?” you practically plead, slowly stepping closer to the bar. Flickering your eyes across the club before settling them on him again “I’ve been here for far too long… I can’t— I need to keep moving.”

“You can stop—“

“No, I can’t… I don’t think I ever could” You say, slowly feeling the guilt over power you as your view becomes blurry. You bite your tongue to hold a sob threatening to escape before looking down at your feet. “I made a promise to-maybe we can find a way to both get out of here” catching your breath as you finish pleading your case, grabbing Kal’s hand before continuing “We could…w-we could find a new place to call home.”

A sympathetic chuckle escaping his lips before he turns his gaze back to your teary eyes, shaking his head in disbelief “I’m already home.” His eyes softening as he looks at you “This idea of yours— it’s your dream, not mine” he exclaims lowly, letting your hand go before cupping your cheek to wipe a stray tear away.

------

It isn’t until later when you finally make your way down the hallway that connects the club to the girls quarters. Slipping your shoes off as you go to open up the door to find the lights off and find some of the girls already sound asleep in their cots.

Walking in you can see the stars visible through the window rails beside your bed. They shine a soft light across the room as you go to pull back the covers to lay down, not bothering with changing. Too exhausted to focus on finding a clean shirt. Instead, pulling the covers over your bare legs, basking in the temporary comfort and silence. Trying to ignore the sob trying to make its way to the surface, as you allow yourself to take one last glance at the stars above you, before turning your back towards them.

Shutting your eyes tight you can’t stop the tear that manages to escape the corner of your eye at the idea of leaving. Letting the image of the man hidden in the shadows burn into your mind, so the next time you lay your eyes on him, you might never forget him. Promising to yourself that you will find a way too runaway, no matter the price.

------

You wake with a jolt, sitting up to see the sun shining brightly through the window rails. A low groan escaping your throat when you plop back down on your cot. Dust slowly drifting above you as you pass your hand through the air in boredom, knowing that if you don’t get up soon you’ll just fall back asleep again.

Dropping your hand back down you note the silence in the room, slowly realizing that you’re the only one left. A thought quickly discard when you hear loud shouting from outside the quarters, groaning when you recognize your boss’ voice.

Sitting up you can still hear chatter, not recognizing the voice accompanying your boss’. Passing one last glance across the room before reaching underneath the cot for your clothing. Settling for a pair of old pants and a cream button up that were left behind by a previous person, before silently making your way to the door. 

You put your ear to the door but can no longer hear the voices from before, frowning as you reach for the handle before turning it slowly. Peeking your head around the corner, disappointed when you see nothing, the hallway vacant from traffic as you take a step out. Turning back towards the room for your bag before heading towards the fresher.

Inside the fresher you do your best to avoid your reflection in the mirror while you work on making yourself presentable, blindly gathering your hair in a bun. A strand falling to frame your face making you glance towards yourself, gasping at the sight. Your eyes are red and puffy from the night before with exhaustion written across your face. Feeling your heart sting at the memory before you continue to navigate your way in the tight confines of the fresher to get dressed, bending down to slip on your shoes, you catch sight of a small hole forming around the heel and groan in frustration.

Great there goes another pair

Standing back up to grab your bag from the counter before laying it on your lap as you go to sit down. Letting out a breath when you finally spot the small pouch that contains your credits. You reach for it and dump its contents in your hand. Mumbling to yourself quietly as you count the number of credits available. Looking up from your hand with a sigh, before tipping your head back against the wall. Previous concerns returning as you realize you don’t even have enough credits to attempt to bribe the Mandalorian if needed. Closing your eyes you—

*BOOM BOOM BOOM*

The loud noise surprising you, causing you to loosen your grip on the credits, as they slip in-between your fingers before scattering across the floor. You let out a curse with a quick breath before you bend down to try and pack everything back into your bag as quickly as your shaky hands allow you too.

Trying to organize your thoughts before shouting “I’m sorry I-I’m going to— I just need a minute,”

Scanning your eyes across the floor to see if you missed anything, before you stand up from the floor. Dragging your sweaty palms across your pants before you take one more look across the fresher before you move to open the door. Coming face to face with an irritated scowl, recognizing your boss’ face before moving aside quickly as you can, shooting him an apologetic look for the hold-up.

‘I’m sorry, I didn’t know you were waiting” you say, as you fidget with your bag strap, before fully exiting the fresher. Allowing him to slip inside before you let out a breath, trying to calm your heart rate down before heading towards the exit, hoping that the market won’t be too packed for the day.

-----

You arrive around noon, the sun beating down on you as you try to make your way through the market. Occasionally, stopping at stands that pique your interest, before you continue your search for a stand that might sell you a new pair of shoes.

While walking a glimmer in the corner of your eye catches your attention, as you feel a shiver run across your body. You glance around for any signs of the Mandalorian, disappointed when you see nothing out of the ordinary, slowly returning your gaze to the stands in-front of you. Deciding that your heightened paranoia is playing a joke on you, making you believe in things that aren’t there--in people that aren’t there. A soft groan escaping your lips before you start moving along again, crossing your arms across your chest as you try to make your way through the marketplace.

After pacing the market for a while you strike a deal for a new pair of shoes, deciding you’ll try to avoid spending any more credits for the day, until you can’t help being distracted by a stand that is selling a handful of warm thermal sweaters. A simple black one catching your eye, as you make your way over.

Letting the material slip between your fingers you revel in the soft material. Wondering how the material would feel on the colder nights at the club, when covers aren’t enough. You let out a small sigh in defeat before you turn to flag down the seller. Startled when you catch sight of the Mandalorian a few feet away, purchasing the same item that you are holding, before tucking it away in his bag. You aren’t close enough to catch what his voice might sound like, but as you try to move closer you forget about the shirt in hand. Forced to quit your eavesdropping when you feel a heavyweight land against your arm.

“Ow kkriff wha—“ you groan clutching your arm in pain, before turning to face the vendor with a scowl across your face.

“Thief!! You need to pay for the goods!” the vendor shouts as he continues to hit your arm causing you to loosen your grip on the material until it drops out of your hand with a shriek.

Your cheeks tinted red as you snap back to the vendor before he can get another hit in “I wasn’t stealing anything!” Stepping away from the stall, appalled by the vendors' accusation, before you bend down to snatch the shirt from the ground and throw the material back in his face.

“You-“ he tries to snap back before you cut him off.

“I’m not a thief!” You say with a sharp tone, holding your breath as you wait for the vendor to challenge you. Instead, startled when the next voice you hear isn’t his, making you whip your head around as fast as possible, landing your gaze on the Mandalorian.

His stance calm as he tilts his helmet slightly. “Is there a problem” he asks in a challenging tone, as you observe his hand hovering over the blaster on his hip, his baritone voice sounding surprisingly husky due to the modulator in his helmet. Leaving you to stare straight into the blacked-out t-shaped visor of his helmet. Feeling his gaze burn as you finally let out a breath, before tearing your eyes from the man in-front of you to look back at the vendor.

Seeing him refold the material with a scowl on his face, unnerved by the warriors' proximity before answering “No, everything is fine.”

You can slowly feel your heartbeat start to return to normal, but struggle to regain your calm with the Mandalorian continuing to gaze at you. You close your eyes for a quick second before gathering the courage to face the warrior.

As you turn to stare at the Mandalorian you take a mental note of how broad his shoulders seem up close, the shadows from the club undoubtedly having hidden how significant he’d be in broad daylight. A shiver runs down your back as you continue to subtly scan your eyes across his armour, the scuffed up metal revealing some worn down areas affected by his line of work.

An exasperated sigh breaks you out of your trance, back to the marketplace and warrior in front of you. His stance highlighting his slight annoyance before he starts to move past you. Panic setting in as you realize that this might be your only opportunity to confront him, causing you to unceremoniously blurt out the first thing possible “I heard you were looking for a bounty.”  Holding your breath as you wait for an answer. Seeing the warrior freeze in his step before turning to look back at you. The tilt of his helmet revealing his travelling gaze across your figure, before straightening his back. The motion making a sliver of skin visible with his proximity, surprised as your eyes land on the tan skin.

Your question continues to linger in the air as his deafening silence engulfs you. Panic slowly starts to seep into your expression as you fear that perhaps he might have found the bounty already. Gathering a breath as you try to explain yourself “Right?—I-I heard you were,” stumbling over your words as you start to fidget with the strap of your bag, feeling yourself burn up under his gaze.

“Why do you care to know?” he questions after a moment, continuing to hold his stance your desperation slowly kicks in, as you try to answer in a convincing manner.

“I want to help… I could help. I actually saw you at the club and thought that—“

“You thought that you could help me?” he asks in a sceptic tone, wondering what the true intentions behind your offer is

“Well, I work at the club and— look, many strangers pass by, and I might have seen something. I can— or let you know if the bounty came through,” you continue as you glance down towards your feet, kicking up some dust from the ground before continuing softly. “I’ve heard of your kind, you tend to hold your promises when making a deal. So, that’s what I’m asking for… A deal, nothing more.” Slowly lifting your gaze to observe his reaction, disappointed when your confession is met with silence, once again.

So much for an escape.

A frustrated sigh escaping you as you question if you should continue. Your heart starting to thrum wildly when you see the warrior tilt his helmet in thought. Slowly raising his hands to his hips before letting out a modulated sigh “What kind of deal?” he asks with a low voice, taking one step closer to you, slowly closing the distance between you.

“The kind where I give you information, and you get me off this planet” you proclaim confidently, not sure where you found it but thankful nonetheless.

“I’m not a taxi service” he grumbles roughly, annoyed with your proposed offer. “Find someone else” he huffs as he tilts his helmet away from you before dropping his hands from his hips and turning to continue out of the marketplace. Leaving you behind with a confused expression, before an angered expression replaces it as you stalk after the masked warrior, refusing to let him go without a fight.

Taking a few quick strides you try to catch up with the Mandalorian, trailing behind him as he turns out of the marketplace into an empty alleyway. Refusing to acknowledge you as he continues to walk away, not bothering to slow down his pace for you.

Your frustration only growing when he decides to turn another corner, making you dash forward before trying to clasp a firm grasp around his arm. Your hopes that he’ll slow his pace for you answered when you feel the ground beneath your feet disappear.

Just not in the way…you’d hoped for.

You feel your breath knocked out of your lungs when he grasps you by your shirts collar and slams your back into the wall of the alleyway. Moving an arm across your chest as he presses you further into the wall, a pained whimper leaving you as he tightens his grasp on you. Your feet barely touching the floor with how high he’s lifted you against the wall. A jagged breath of his heard through the modulator, as you struggle against his arm, before you feel his hands tightening further around the material of your blouse as your wide eyes stare into his blacked out visor, trying to locate his own. Shock and fear written across your face as his physical response serves as a harsh reminder of whom you’re trying to strike a deal with, hearing Rex’s warning from the night before ringing through your mind.

“I. Don't. Want. To. Hurt. You” he seethes through his teeth, emphasizing every word as before releasing his grip on you, still hovering over your body as you try to focus on responding to his words. Feeling his chest heave up and own in anger as you feel your eyes drifting from his visor to the small sliver of skin visible, the scent of the Mandalorian slowly engulfing your senses as you feel your hands tremble. Wondering if you’re even allowed to see the tiny amount of skin shown, before tearing your eyes away, slowly feeling your eyes water before meeting his gaze, nodding slowly in understanding.

“O-Okay” you croak feeling your throat tighten up at his harsh voice. “I’m s-sorry—I just thought—“

“You weren’t thinking.” He scoffed, his anger clearly visible despite his layer of armour. Moving away from you in a fluid motion before shaking his head lightly, returning his gaze to your figure, noticing the slight tremble in your legs.

“I Just—” gathering a breath before continuing more clearly “Please let me help, it’s all I ask” you ask with a slight shake in your voice closing your eyes as you drop your head forward before continuing, “Please I’ll give you anything that I can, if you can get me out of here, anywhere. I don't care, you can drop me off wherever you’re going next” your eyes burning as you can feel them start to water, biting the inside of your cheek to keep it in. “Anything” you promise in a steady voice, swallowing the brick in your throat, before lifting your head back up to meet his gaze “Anything”.

Letting out a breath when you hear his answers coming out in a low voice through the modulator, “Tonight. I’ll meet you for information. If it’s worth something, I will help you.” Not bothering to elaborate any further as he turns to walk away, stopping for a split second in his tracks before continuing with a harsh growl “Do me a favour and try to not get yourself killed before then” before turning around the corner down the alleyway, as he disappears once again. 

Leaving you alone as you clutch your hands together against your chest, standing against the wall for a few second before your knees finally give out, letting yourself slide down to the ground.  

Maybe, just maybe you’ll find your way out

[rachelbethhines]

TTS Songs Ranked Worst to Best

Someone asked me to rank my fav and least fav TTS songs a while back, but I’ve since then relistened to the soundtrack and there’s a whole bunch of songs that just forgot about, so here’s a more accurate ranking now that the songs are more fresh in my mind

32 .  Life After Happily Ever After (Reprise)

This song is infuriating, because the finale is infuriating. Listening to this song just makes me angry all over again because it reminds me just how unsatisfying the ending to TTS was. I wanted to turn it off at several points. I barely can get through it despite it being so short. It doesn’t help that the soundtrack leaves all the dialogue in there and fails to actually end the song. It just cuts off before the final note.

31. Hook Foot’s Ballad

Does this even count as a song? Why is it here on the soundtrack but not the Hurt Incantation? Did Menken really waste his talent writing a joke and did the showrunners really waste money and limited resources on this?

30. Friendship Song

Bland, boring, and pointless. It was clearly written as a marketing stunt for the radio disney charts and not as anything to do with the plot of the series. They just throw it up on screen to fill out the running time and don't even let the whole song play through. It’s pitiful.

29. Waiting in the Wings (Reprise)

I didn’t think much of the original song one way or the other, but the reprise is soooo dumb. The plot twist it introduces winds up ruining the whole show and sabotaging both Cassandra’s and Rapunzel’s characters. It’s not even a nice sounding song on it’s own. The kid’s voice is irritating (who I’m sure is doing her best, but really little kids shouldn’t be made to sing professionally as a general rule) and the melody just as bland as the first time it was played. The only reason to like this song is if you’r a mega fan of Cassandra’s or her VA, which I am not. (Note: this is not a criticism of Eden Espinosa, I just don’t happen to follow any of the VAs in this show)      

28. Through It All

I like the instrumentals in this song, and that’s about it. Everything about this song is wrong. It doesn’t fit the story, it’s a misuse of the cast and songwriters, it’s a waste of valuable screen time, the melody is dull, and the dang soundtrack had to throw in that lame dialogue about ‘greatest threat ever’ at the beginning. If you want a pump up song in your story then you got to earn it. You can’t just tell us things are bad, you got to show it. A joyful horseback ride and everyone sitting in a bar safe and sound isn’t threatening or depressing enough to warrant a cheering up session. Plus the song itself doesn’t add anything to the overall story.

27.  The Girl Who Has Everything

Sometimes I think the writers were willing trying to sabotage themselves. It’s as if they were determined to make the only two main female characters in the show unlikeable bitches in season three.   Don���t believe me? The creator Chris has said this song only exists to highlight how much easier Rapunzel has things than Cass and went onto say that Rapunzel was in the wrong during their conflict because ‘she held Cassandra back’. (Oh yeah she totally ‘held back’ the grown woman who left on her own accord, returned on her own accord, and then assaulted and tried to murder a bunch of people for no reason of her own accord.) But this song does succeed in furthering season’s three narrative that Rapunzel is a spoiled selfish brat. Shame the story fails to address this setup and never has Rapunzel learn to be a better person. Rather the narrative bends over backward to tell us how special Rapunzel is without any sense of self awareness and this song falls into that same trap; making it both irritating and pointless.

26. Listen Up

Yeah, I talked about this on my salt marathon, but I just don't like this song very much. The melody is fine but the lyrics are a real miss in my mind. It doesn’t help matters that the song is indeed pointless in the grand scheme of things.

25.  Livin’ the Dream

This is much on the same level as Listen Up as it features the same problems. It doesn’t add to the narrative and the lyrics kind of let it down. I placed it higher just because I like the melody a little more.

24.  More of Me

This song is a lot like the Friendship Song in that it was created to be an end credit song for the pop charts and you’d be forgiven in forgetting it even exists. However, it at least got to actually play all the way through. I think this song was a real missed opportunity. I honestly believe that it should have been the opening theme song of the show instead of Wind in My Hair. It’s more built to serve such a purpose and it’s a waste of resources not to actually use it. Alternatively, I would have accepted it being reworked into the actual series as a character song. Especially since we’re missing a song in season three due to budget cuts.  

23. Wind In My Hair

Speaking of theme songs, I think I would like Wind In My Hair a lot better if i didn’t have to listen to it every episode. On its own it actually has a lot of things going for it; a nice melody, interesting instrumentals, good singing, ect. Unfortunately it’s just over exposed, and none of those elements lend themselves naturally to an intro song for a tv show. In fact the theme song feels really out of place and is edited oddly to fit the shorter intro. 

22. Wind In My Hair (Reprise)  

Honestly the theme song is mostly comprised of this reprise, but it has the opening instrumentals from the OG song frankensteined onto it. This means that the version that plays before every episode is on fullblast all the time to keep the energy up, but that’s not how the song is suppose to go.  The actual reprise that plays in the pilot builds to a crescendo, starting soft and melancolony and getting louder and more hopeful and determined. It sounds a lot better in full because of that.  It’s still too overexposed though. Both these songs would probably be higher on the list of not for the theme song version. 

21. With You by My Side

This song is fine. It’s nothing special, but it’s not bad either. What knocks it down the list is the fact that Lance isn’t in it, despite Lance being right there.  Like don't bother hiring a famous Broadway singer if you’re not going to have him sing!  But that speaks more to the poor writing of season two than anything else. This song also doesn’t really add anything to the narrative as, contrary to what the writers intended, it doesn’t actually enhance the emotional impact of Cassandra’s betrayal later in the episode. The song itself is just tacked on and doesn’t take the opportunity to lay down any foreshadowing for that plot point.  

20. Next Stop Anywhere

Another perfectly serviable song. It’s not bad but nothing outstanding. It gets the job done. It’s also really ho-hum and the soundtrack keeps all the unneeded dialogue, which is a pet peeve of mine. 

19. Waiting In the Wings

Despite it’s hype, I never thought much of Waiting in the Wings. It’s got nice instrumentals and Eden Espinosa gives it her all in the singing department. The problem is it’s too generic. It’s a bare bones basic ass ‘I want song’. Cassandra's movations are weak and unsupported by the narrative, the melody is boring, and it honestly doesn’t add anything to her story. I mean it should, it’s her character solo, but because she’s written so poorly the song just winds up undermining the character in the end.   All I’m saying is that, this is not the song from season two that I would have nominated for the Emmys. But it’s still Alan Menken, it’s still nicely performed, and given the rest of the competition for that year, it did deserve to win. 

18. If I Could Take That Moment Back 

This song is also pretty generic, but it’s less boring than I See the Light, (yeah, I said it, I See the Light is boring) so that’s a win in my book. Ergo this holds the title of the only New Dream duet that I enjoy. But there’s better stuff on this list. 

17. Next Stop Anywhere (Reprise)

Well no, I take that back. The reprise of Next Stop Anywhere is also technically a New Dream duet. It’s still not anything amazing, but it works for what it is. Plus, Adria’s opening dialogue in the soundtrack version doesn’t bother me quite as much as some of the other dialogues choices that were kept in.  

16. Stronger Than Ever Before 

I really enjoyed this song in the moment. It’s catchy and fun, and it finally has Lance doing something rather than ignoring his existence. However it is borderline unnecessary in terms of story placement, and I’m slightly mad at it now that I know that we could have gotten a Rapunzel and Varian duet but it was scrapped for this instead.   

15. Crossing the Line

Keeping with the theme of ‘songs I have conflicting emotions about’, we have Crossing the Line.  This song is confused. It starts and stops, the melody isn’t clear, the orchestration is playing tug of war with the singers for dominance, and it’s basically Alan Menken and the show’s creators ripping off Frozen. (I guess he’s kicking himself for leaving that particular project?)   But it’s interesting. I never heard anything quite like it. It’s memorable even if it doesn’t fully work. It’s got these interesting bits and pieces to it that just never quite comes together as a whole. Some of the lyrics are some of the best Glenn Slater has ever wrote and is far better than the story actually surrounding the song. Yet there’s other lines that are total cringe. Sometimes the song is bold and catchy and gets you all hyped up, and then other times its limp and staggering and feels so awkward to listen to.  Yet it’s not boring or generic and so I have to place it higher than the rest of the songs that’s come before. (Also, there’s some amazing orchestral covers out there that really pulls together the various parts really well, just fyi) 

14.  Nothing Left to Lose

I really don't like this song.  I’ve been one of its biggest critics ever since it was leaked by the marketing team earlier this year.  And yet... I can’t in good conscience place any lower on this list.  All of the problems I have with it are the exact same problems I have with Crossing the Line. It’s confused, the various pieces don't line up, the instrumentals are competing with the vocals, the song’s progression is weird with it’s constant key changes, some of the lyrics are good while others are absolute shit, ect and so forth.  It also actively works against the story it's trying to tell. The song wants you to sympathize with Cassandra, but her lines are as shallow as a puddle and makes her look like a sociopath. Especially when she’s physically attacking Varian through out for no reason. Also neither character learns anything from the exchange and it fails to impact the story.  By all accounts this is a bad song.  But I’m Varian trash.  There I said it. You happy?  Varian’s parts in the songs are fine, good even, and the song is anything but bland. I would rather listen to a mess then be bored to tears by a competent yet standard four chord pop song. 

13. I’d Give Anything

This song is nice to listen to. Story wise it absolutely sucks and shouldn’t have been in the finale at all. But it sounds pleasant.  This is one of those songs that could pop up randomly on the radio and I would just think it it a nice sad break up song. I can’t say that about some of the other misplaced songs in the show. This one however, you can very much, absolutely divorce this song from the narrative and it would be fine.  Now that’s not good writing, and it’s very much a waste of limited resources, but I’m rating the music here first and story second. 

12. Buddy Song

The Buddy Song also absolutely did not need to exist but it also sounds nice. Plus, it makes use of Lance so I’m a little more lenient towards it.   I can’t however place it higher since it really is just Alan Menken ripping off Alan Menken. Like, I would not be at all surprised to find out that this was originally a deleted song for Aladdin or something.  

11. Bigger Than That

What can I say, Lance just gets good songs. When the show bothers to give them to him.  Unfortunately, it’s not the best placed. It kind of interrupts the more important drama of Be Very Afraid, and probably should have been saved for a later episode. Especially since it hinges on a plot point that is contradictory to Lance’s character.    We should have gotten a Varian and Rapunzel duet here and given Lance his own episode in the second half of season three. This song could have easily been refitted into being a bonding moment for him and the girls. That would also have filled out the season’s original songs to the usual eight instead of only  seven.

10. Life After Happily Ever After

Now we’re getting to the good stuff. The top ten. The best of the best.  This song makes the cut for three reasons.  1. It lyrically and musically interesting 2. It does the job of furthering the story and the characters  and 3. Eugene’s part is so damn good.  Like this song could have easily fell down into the ranks of ‘fine but generic’ if it wasn’t for the bridge with Eugene. That puts it over the top and to my mind makes it better than anything from the OG film. (well almost anything, Mother Knows Best is still great)    This is the barometer by which I measure all of the music in the series. Is it better or worse than Life After Happily Ever After? Because this is the level that I equate good musicals with.  What keeps on the tenth spot and not higher is the dialogue that still left on the soundtrack and the lack of a Cassandra introduction. That and also the rest of the songs are just flat better. 

9. Hurt Incantation 

Hurt, Decay, Reverse, whatever you want to call it, this was such a cool fucking concept. One that was utterly wasted by the show.  I place this so high because it just sounds awesome! It looks good too, and it offered up so many possibilities from a story perspective.  What lets it down is the lack of follow up for it and it’s too short. There’s needed to be another verse. It also should have been on the actual soundtrack instead of  Hook Foot’s Ballad.  (The Heal Incantation also was sung in What the Hair, but I’m not counting it since it was written for the film) 

8.  The Girl Who Has Everything (Reprise)

I hate the initial song and the set up that it took to get here, but I love this reprise. It’s perfect. This is what the story needed more of. Rapunzel taking her life into her hands, and her proposing to Eugene would have been the perfect capstone for her arc.  In fact I’m angry we didn’t actually get that. There’s absolutely no reason why Rapunzel couldn’t have done so and we could have had her and Eugene engaged during the second half of season three. How much better would have it been if Cassandra threatened their wedding plans and that’s why they couldn’t go through with it until after the series ended? So much more tension that way. 

7. I Got This

This is a really good song that actually futhers the characters and the narrative. Moreover it’s refreshing to see the heroine not be perfect and to fail sometimes due to her own inadequacies. It’s just a shame that the series didn’t follow through with this set up, but I appreciate the attempt all the same.   

6.  Set Yourself Free

This is the only song in the series that’s an actual satisfying pay off for anything. Music wise it’s nothing too special, but in terms of context it just works. We were sorely deprived of such resolutions and songs with actual meaning in the show. 

5. View From Up Here

This song is too good for the episode it actually appears in. We needed something like this back in season one to introduce Cassandra with. It also sadly doesn’t fit with the wider narrative after season three. However I shall still appreciate it as a ‘what might have been’ type song. 

4.  Let Me Make You Proud 

The only reason why this song isn’t higher is just overexposure and I’ve no one to blame but myself for that. I’ve listened to this song way too many times. As such it tends to alternate between this, View from Up Here, and the next song on the list. But make no mistake it is glorious. Fantastic instrumentals, set up, and of course amazing vocals. 

3.  Everything I Ever Thought I Knew

Yes, I know this plot point didn’t lead anywhere, but it works for this song at least. Also Eugene’s VA is a really underrated singer. He sounds nice and he emotes really well.  Though I’ll be honest, this jumped up to third place because it was fresh in my mind after listening to the soundtrack before making this list. I’ve always liked the song and I do rate it highly, but it can change places with Let Me Make You Proud and View from Up Here at anytime depending on my mood. 

2.  Let Me Make You Proud (Reprise)

This song is heartbreaking!  Story wise it probably shouldn’t exist because it gives away the twist too soon, but who cares, it’s awesome!  Varian’s arc is the most compelling in the show and the only thing that saves TTS from falling into mediocre obscurity; and it’s songs like this that help make the arc stand out even more than it already does. 

1. Ready As I’ll Ever Be

I said it before and I’ll say it again; Ready As I’ll Ever Be is the greatest thing Alan Menken has ever written in his entire career!  If you know anything about the multiple award winning songwriter then you know that is no faint praise and I do not dole it out lightly.  This song is the reason why this show even has a fanbase. People are still getting into the series because of this song. And no matter how many times you listen to it just rocks!   It’s complex, layered, moody, and with a fantastic beat and energy. The performances are wonderful and the instrumentation glorious. It belongs in the hollows of Disney’s greatest hits and not regulated to a spin-off tv show that failed to make its money back.  I weep for the lost potential that this song and this show had. It hurts to know that so many people will never see this flash of brilliance that has come out of the House of Mouse, will never know the wonderfulness that is Varian.  Ah, ‘c'est la vie’, I suppose. Tangled the Series got what it deserved, but it's crew did not. While I can not in all honesty recommend the series in full; I do sincerely urge any Disney fan to check out the songs at the very least. Especially this one.  And that’s it. There’s my official ranking of all the songs, and I hope those of you read my Tangled reviews appreciate the hours it took into making this. 

[bindi-the-skunk]

Can no one keep their nose in their own business chapter 1

Just putting the first chapter here to see if anyone wants the rest on here (it’s all done so I can just fast upload all of it since it is not in progress like “Son of Frankenstein” 

Warning: This contains Mpreg and omegaverse 

chapter: The cake is not a lie but the problem started with cookies

Lavender hummed as she walked down the hallway, a plate of Rachels cookies in her hands, she was hoping that Doctor Lanyon and Doctor Jekyll had not left as everyone else had, she told them she was going to be in her lab all day well everyone else enjoyed the day out in the town, but she decided bringing them a treat would be a nice thing to do.

Both men had been so...strange acting as of late, she hoped nothing was wrong...

Walking in on all that blood...

The extremofaunic zoologist shook her head to clear it and slapped a smile back on her face, that was months ago, perhaps something was amiss with Mr. Hyde? Jekyll had not transformed into him in ages and whenever asked, said he was still there but they were putting off the shift for a while.

She had not heard of anything breaking or any other reason to keep Hyde locked up...the alternate never missed an opportunity to cause trouble...

But anyway she would give them a small present, maybe that would help whatever was going on.

Walking up to the door Lavender heard noises come from inside the office...sounded like...giggling?

Doctor Jekyll's giggling, a strange sound to say the least to her ears...

"Robert that tickles..." came a whisper from inside that Lavender had to strain to hear even when she pressed her ear to the wood.

"Relax and listen to the doctor" Robert's voice came next and the tone intrigued Lavender enough to where she looked for a crack in the door so she could see.

"I don't want someone running in here thinking something is wrong," Henry said sounding a bit out of breath.

Oh, they couldn't be ...

Lavender went red but could not stop from her search, curiosity peaked too much at this point.

"No one is here, they are out today"

"Except Miss Lavender and Victoria Frankenstein"

"Miss Lavender will be in her lab all day and Frankenstein almost never leaves hers"

The sound of a long-suffering sigh came from inside before a mild chuckle was heard "Alright, but be careful, I do not want them inheriting your louder tendencies"

Them?

"That's mean...is Edward coming out?"

"He's staying out of this"

Finding a proper crack Lavender looked into the room to find both men still properly clothed, though Jekyll had his shirt lifted slightly with Lanyon kneeling next to him with Henry running his fingers through the curly chocolate locks as the other was laid down on the sofa with Roberts head on his stomach...

Which was swollen slightly

When had...no one had noticed THAT? Then again he had been wearing looser clothes as of late...not transforming into Hyde...going around the building without shoes when he could...complaints about soreness...

Stupid stupid stupid!

Had she not been holding a plate she would have slapped herself in the head, but-oh! She needed to tell the others!

Setting the plate down the zoologist ran down the hall to grab her phone so she could tell everyone to gather some baby things and party supplies, this was so exciting! A baby in the building! She would be an auntie!!!

--

"Boy or girl?" Robert asked softly not bothering to lift his head from its very comfortable resting spot.

"Impatient alpha, it's too soon to tell just yet" Henry quipped, but it had no bite behind it, Edward was thankfully being good that day and keeping himself busy inside their head, though he could feel him once and a while coming back up curious about the attention the bump was getting, feeding a bit off of his counterparts happiness and contentment.

"They're going to be daddy's little prince or princess," Lanyon said matter-of-factly smiling wider making his rounded cheeks stand out even more, and chuckled when his mate chose to poke him in the nose with the tip of his index finger.

"Hey give me some of the credit they are on MY lap!"

"Don't worry you-"

CRASH

"Suppose this morning was too nice to last..." Henry deadpanned and both men got to their feet to fix random bits of clothing and straighten out hair, hoping that the mess was not too large and require heavy lifting considering the split man's condition...

Both opened the door and stepped out into the hall, neither seeing the plate of cookies just outside it in their rush to fix whatever problem occurred and headed towards where they heard the boom.

A lot of whispers were heard down the hall, something even flying past the end of it, and upon entering, both their eyes widened at the sight of a pink and blue nightmare.

Streamers had been flung around and stuck to random furniture and some landed where they guessed they were supposed to be in the first place, chairs, none of which seemed to match, had been placed about the room, lab tables had been dragged from their spots to be used as food tables, some even still have chemical stains or burn marks on them even despite the poor attempts to cover them with plates and random decor.

Balloons, not filled with near as much helium as they needed, floated around, one even hovering past Henry, who was hit by an urge to deck it like the rubber sphere was a punching bag and hope it popped from the force.

Robert looked very much like someone who had gotten their shoe spit in

Lodgers ran about, carrying random items, placing decorations, shouting random orders or swearing as their task was interrupted or did not go the way they wanted, but after the couple had stood in the opening for what seemed like an age and a half, the lodgers finally seemed to notice their extra guests and Cheshire cat grins spread across the crowd.

Oh no...

"CONGRATULATIONS!" came the united shout as the crowd of rogue scientists suddenly became a herd of wildebeests as the mates got rushed, both being hit by the urge to turn tail and run but being surrounded before their escape plan could go into effect.

"Come sit down dears!" Miss Flowers said as she pretty much yanked the two towards a couple of chairs, which had the closest proximity to each other and plopped them into the seats, both too shocked to resist and found themselves with hands full of cake slice, courtesy of Mr. Doddle who even kindly put pillows behind both men's backs.

"Are you going to spend your pregnancy at home so we can still keep working with our chemicals?" Griffin asked only to be bonked in the head by Mrs. Cantilupe, who quickly got to ranting at him for his rude question.

"We can work on our other projects!" Virginia Ito said smiling gently "We don't want to bar you from coming around, you both run this society after all and we would love you coming around with your little one once it comes!"

"Oh! Oh! perhaps we can make them a little lab outfit!" came a random lodgers shout

"That would be so cute! It could have a little duck stitched onto it!"

"Don't forget the goggles! Make sure to have them adjustable! So they can keep using it!"

"We need to get to shopping then!"

"N-now just wait a minute-!" Robert started to say not liking how they were butting in on HIS mate's pregnancy, but he was quickly spoken over and just slunk down further in his chair pouting.

"Who's going to deliver it?" Came another voice

"Well, we actually plan on a hos-" Henry began only to be drowned out himself and closed his mouth knowing he was not about to be heard any time soon and just rubbed the bridge of his nose in irritation.

"Mr. Lanyon of course! He's his mate" Miss flowers said "That's the best for the both of them and great bonding too"

"But he will need him focused on other things, he can't be a mate and a doctor at the same time!"

"One of us could do it! He could even deliver here!"

"I would rather-"

"What is going on in here?" Frankenstein said as she walked into the room and saw the shower décor making her eyes go wide as she tried to process it all before her eyes went to Jekyll, then his stomach making him cover it up using the pillow that was cushioning his back.

What fresh hell was this....

[spacemilkies]

gateau→  ; part i of iii

pairing: cal kestis x reader

word count: 2.5k+

summary: “So you had a Jedi as a roommate … that wont be a problem in the future or anything.”

a/n:  a bunch of new things to get me writing. all written at some ungoldly hour. this will probably be a three part series. something short and simple, based off the prologue with some background. hey, no song fic for once. i spent all day in this fandom. i feel ready. put me in coach.

                                                                    _______

“C’mon just this once, please.”

“Oh ho, no no. This is definitely not the first time.”

There was never a good reason for your roommate to visit you on the job. Not only were you stationed on opposite side of the station, you differing positions also lessened the opportunity for you to meet up without explicit reason. 

He was a rigger and you were a builder, simple as that. 

You refrained from lifting your mask, maintaining a sense of distance from the conversation as you continued to weld the two pieces of metal together. Maybe if you did your job hard enough he would eventually give up out of respect of your workload….

Who were you kidding.

A fiery shock of red hair crouched down next to you, apparently uncaring for the wayward sparks emitting from your torch. It was only when he dared to lean closer that you reluctantly cut the power out of concern for basic occupational safety. 

Flipping the hood of your mask, you gave him your sharpest glare to which he combatted easily with a killer smile. If only it was as effective on his conquests as he seemed to think the same applies to you. 

“You’re all just going to melt it down any.”

Any metals and ores that made it up here were better than the average scraps found in the lower sectors and certainly worth a pretty sum of credits. It was your roommate's favorite way to exploit your job and threaten your only means of survival in the same breath. 

 Darting your gaze around, you found that for once your colleges were rather forgiving of personal space. Though it didn’t mean that your supervisors wouldn’t have watchful eyes on your every move. Hence why these daring favors tended to have more impact than meaningless valve. 

You weren’t agreeing. Definitely were not going to get drawn into to those pleading baby blues. You were just curious. 

“And what exactly do two upstanding individuals as yourselves need with my fine metals?”

Cal’s smirk was shallow but no where lacking in its killer properties,” I’d bend your fine metals anyway.”

With a huff, you nudged him away with your shoulder. Practice allowing you to ignore the faint flush it brought to your cheeks. 

“You’re wasting time, Cal.”

“Just something nice. I’ll pay you back.”

You were not going to fall for it Totally, explicitly would not lose resolve on your promise to not give in like last time. You were strong and resilient and Cal was a big boy with his own means of survival and-

“I swear to all above, Cal if you-”

The force of his lips against your cheek nearly knocked you over and you were left momentarily stunned as nimble fingers searched knowingly against your body. Before you knew it, he was drawing away, your access card in hand. 

You should be happy with how quickly he scrambled to his feet, prepared for a hasty departure. It wouldn’t be long before your superiors began making their rounds and the last thing they wanted to see was a scrapper hunting around their stores. 

Gesturing with two fingers against his temple, Cal waved off before he disappeared around the corner. 

“Why are you not working? Your pay is based on your progress, not your time.”

Swallowing down a retort, you merely smiled shallowly in response to the haughty order as you tugged back down your face mask, Cal’s phantom touch still lingering against your form.

“Of course, sir.”

                                                                    _______

It should be said that Cal wasn’t a terrible roommate. In fact, when he first responded to your advertisement you had a feeling that he would actually be a helpful one.

That was a lie.

You knew that he would be a cute one. Someone that you would have to try /really hard to keep your hands off of. Fortunately for you, at the beginning he felt more like a brother than a bachelor. His boyish habits cutting into some of his charm.

It didn’t take much longer than that before the two of you fell into a rhythm of sorts. 

Having another human around was kind of nice too. 

Not to say you preached xenophobia. Some of your closer friends on this desolate planet were part of varying species. But in a way it aided in building a familiar quality of home even as you reside on the opposite side of the galaxy. 

Cal was moderately fair roommate. He wasn’t spotty with rent and you split the amenities, as scarce as they were, fairly. He was a little messy but not in the obnoxious unhygienic way. 

Everything was balanced. 

And you couldn’t really complain. 

He was a great guy. His humor and antics proving to raise your mood after a long day. Just the way he spoke about his own day bringing tears to your eyes and curling your stomach with laughter. 

You were a capable engineer, even though your talents were wasted on rebuilding the same schematics over and over again. At home, you are able to hone your own skills. Working on various knick knacks and gadgets. It was nice to have a second opinion as well. 

The two of you had spent many nights huddled around the living room surrounded by scattered parts and various prototypes. Only to have to separate the more advanced ones in fear of being caught. 

It was nice. 

                                                                    _______

“Damn, I didn’t think the boss would ever let you off.”

With less finesse and not a care in the world, you dropped haggeded into the seat offered by your friends. After another long week it was nice to finally load off with a few drinks and company chatter. 

For some reason the quota skyrocketed in the past few weeks. The recycling of old metal into new vessels becoming an unrelenting force on your crew. 

It turned out to be one of the worst moments to find yourself promoted. 

To think just three weeks ago you were throwing around drinks in celebration and now you were ready to drown out the accomplishment with whatever was on tap. 

“Apparently they’re bringing in a huge freighter soon,” you called out solemnly. Your supervisor had shown you the schematics of the parts that would be salvaged and what they wanted to accomplish with its predecessor. 

After another long shift all you could really make out was work and more work. 

But at least the same would be said for the riggers. 

To your right Reif, a Rodian, spoke crudely over a mouthful of food,” Yeah, been hearing about that one for sometime now. Suppose to be a Separist ship. Going to be quite the project.”

Slouching idly in your seat, you played lazily with the handle of the mug offered to you. Just another long project to keep you stranded on this planet. Not to say you had any plans otherwise. 

If anything you should really thank them for giving you something to focus on. 

Garnering everyone’s attention with a slam of her glass against the table, Enisa a pretty pale blue Rylothian, slurs loudly,” Enough of all this work talk. Let’s focus on something else.”

Then she’s sliding sharply into you, leaving you to fumble with your own glass,” Like your roommate. Why didn’t you tell me he was available.”

Because you weren’t in the market providing companions?

Your furrowed burrow must have voiced your thoughts because she was rolling her eyes without your verbal response. 

“Oh don’t play dumb. You’re harboring one of the few attractive souls on this god forsaken planet. And you’re not even bumping uglies with him, what a shame.”

You were stuck between defending your own choices and wondering when she learned such a human phrase. It was hardly worth the effort of explaining how the two of you just weren't like that. Your inventory of excuses were running dry.

“Stop making it awkward for her, she has to live with the guy.”

Catching Reif’s gaze over the rim of your glass, you give him a thankful nod. The rest of your group takes the initiative to fill the silence and progresses the conversation further into the night. Unlike most outings, neither of you are able to keep up with one another past a few extra hours. The weight of the day taking more out of you as it came to a close. 

You’re not the only one grateful when Reif brings the outing to a close. 

There is just enough alcohol in your system to make you stumble through the threshold of your home, groaning quietly as you try to stabilize yourself. More likely than not Cal was already asleep and you didn’t want to disrupt that. 

Now with the evening settling into your bones, there wasn't a part of your body that didn't ache and the incoming headache didn't make any part of it better. 

Right now the couch was looking a lot more inviting than it should be. You’d deal with the consequences it would leave on your body in the morning. 

Rounding the edge, you collapsed back into the cushions.

“What the hell?”

“Shit, Cal! What the fuck?”

A sharp hiss escapes him when your elbow jabs unkindly into the softness of his side. Before you could try to remedy it, his hand is gripping your upper arm and settling you more safely in the available space rather than on top of him. 

For a moment it's just your mixed breaths as you come down from the unexpected surprise. With more care, you twist more comfortably mindful of your limbs this time. 

It's hardly necessary but you whisper anyway. 

“Why are you here?”

You feel his arm wiggling behind your head and you raise your neck obediently to allow it to rest beneath you. As a reward, the same hand curls inward to comb through your hair lazily. He works his fingers across your nape and back up to your scalp finding just the right spot and drew small circles. 

“Dunno, just came home and ended up here. Kind of like you but less dramatically.”

You snort, “Sorry, wasn’t expecting a party of two.”

He hums to himself, the pad of his thumb pressing inward in a way the manages to reset your whole mindframe and you nearly white out from the release. 

There is more that could be said but the words escape you both as you settle for the night. If you weren't already going to regret this before, you were definitely were going to more now for an entirely different reason. But there was no chance of you altering the flow of what it was now. 

You would just have to lay there and try not to think too hard about the natural slot of your body to Lance’s despite the finite space. It was much easier to count the staccato of his dull thumping heartbeat as it lulled you off to sleep. 

                                                                     _______

“Goddammit, Meeka. You’re going to wake up your mom.”

Too late. 

Though in the defense of your mischievous loth-cat, the warm smell of breakfast permeating from the kitchen was just one waft away from rousing you. Stretching out your arms, you used the length of them to hook around the back of the couch to drag you up. 

Questionably burnt but you recognize the scent of some of your favorites.You has not caught a glimpse of what he was wearing last night but Cal appears to be wearing some fresh clothes. The way the collar of his shirt is damp in the back hints towards a shower. 

Part of you wonders if breakfast is a preemptive apology towards a cold shower you would be expecting later. 

“Where do you have to go so early?”

If you startle him, he doesn't show. He slides a bit of food onto a plate, giving Meeka more than gracious portion before bringing the plate to you. You take it gratefully, balancing it on the spine of the couch.

Alert to your presence and no doubt ready to beg for more scraps, you watch unimpressed as the feline-like creature slinks against you. She gets what's expected anyway as you part with a strip of meat.

Leaning against the counter within view, Cal scolds you playfully. “And you said I spoil her.”

“You start it,” you retort without any bite.

You blame the queasiness on residue alcohol when he laughs warmly. 

“Oh. “ You look up and Cal has a fork pointed at you. ‘’Your access card is on the table there.”

You’d already forgotten about that.

“Get anything good?” Safely, is weighted on your tongue but it seems like a waste to add it. Cal has always been mindful of his self, actions and footsteps in a way that makes you wonder how long he’s been watching his own back. 

In the few years you’ve known him, things like the past rarely came up. No one really came to Bracca chasing a future. It was just a means to an end until you could find something better if you could manage to get out. 

You hard already stopped trying when Cal stumbled into your life. But now it hardly seemed like a bad thing. 

The clank of dishes brings you out of your thoughts. His back is to you now as he cleans his mess.

“It will be a nice personal pay raise, that’s for sure. Prauf sends his thanks too.”

Cal surprises you again when he comes to collect your empty plate. Rather than comment it on it, you lounge comfortably in the domesticity of it all. 

“What’s your plan for the day?”

That was a good question. 

Your body had an obvious vote towards rest but responsibilities made a greater bid on your time. A bit of shopping would unfortunately be necessary but your savings would have to survive. Between the recent raise and this upcoming project, you should survive to hit. 

Replenish resources it would be then. At least if you start early enough it would allow you to relax for the remainder of the day. 

Cal’s gaze follows as you stretch and eventually slink off the couch. Meeka happy to have the entire furniture to herself doesn’t waste a moment to snuggle into your lingering warmth. 

“Down to the Bazaar first, then after that we’ll see.”

But first to see how much hot water you were going to be working with. Yawning loudly, you get to work with untangling the mess of your hair. Just before you can round the corner, Cal calls out to you.

“Want to make it a date?”

It’s an innocent play of words. One’s he’s used in the past without acting on it. 

‘And you’re not even bumping uglies with him, what a shame.’

And just when you finally stopped overthinking it.

Peeking over your shoulder, you found Cal waiting expectantly yet so unaware of the winds of the storm picking up in your mind. Was it even worth it to wonder if similar thoughts ever troubled him?

-nah, it was just easier to smile.

“Yeah, it’s a date.”

[is0gild]

Ice Cream and Fire Oven Pizza - Bonus Chapter 3

Pairing: Elsa x Lea/Axel || Side Pairing: Riku x OC

Summary: Modern AU. She's an introvert ball of nerves who works at Ice Palace, a mall food court ice cream shop. He's the outgoing, sassy goofball who works at the Pizza Planet across the way. Hilarity, snark, and fluffy romcom hijinks ensue.

Word Count: 7,838

FIRST CHAPTER || PREVIOUS CHAPTER || NEXT CHAPTER

Credit for super friggin’ cute and super friggin’ amazing cover art goes to the super friggin’ talented ky-jane here on tumblr!

"Are you sure we're allowed to do this?"

Lea tossed me a grin over his shoulder, giving my hand a small, reassuring squeeze as he pushed through the door and led me inside. "Course! Trust me, I've done it dozens of times. It's called auditing a class," he whispered.

"Oh," I breathed softly, taking a second to glance around the theater we'd just stepped into, which was slightly bigger and nicer than the Sunset Hill Auditorium. Class was already in session it seemed, with the teacher (who luckily hadn't appeared to notice us sneaking in) up on the stage and currently mid-lecture to the smattering of students dotted across the audience seating. I felt Lea tugging my hand again and I followed him as we ducked into the back row, gingerly slipping by in front of a couple people occupying the end chairs.

I'd of course heard of auditing a class, but had never actually done it before, so I didn't really know what it entailed. Still, I at least had a guess at an idea of how it was supposed to work. "...so you contacted the professor and got his okay for us to be here then?"

"Nah," he chose a pair of empty seats towards the middle, plopping down into one. "Don't need to, ya just show up."

My lips pursed to one side as I lowered myself into the one next to him. "...now that doesn't sound right," I muttered as my fingers absently fidgeted with the zipper on the sleeve of his leather jacket that I was wearing.

With a snerk, he settled his elbow on the armrest between us and propped his chin on his knuckles as he eyed me. "Look, did you or did you not say how much ya'd like it if you could get a sneak peak at Twilight U's Intro to Acting course before deciding if you were gonna enroll?"

"Well yes I did, but-"

"Then don't look a gift audit in the mouth, dollface," his fingers tweaked my nose. Still, I frowned uncertainly. With a chuckle, he slung an arm around my shoulders, hugging me into his side and smoothing a hand up and down my arm as he pressed a kiss to my temple. "Relax, we're fine. Just remember, this guy? Right here?" he jabbed a thumb into his collarbone. "Done it hundreds o' times, so I know my shit."

I squinted up at him, whispering, "...you said dozens of times a second ago."

"Nu-uh, maybe it's 'bout time ya had your ears checked. Ah, for the hearing to already be going in one so young such as yourself. Such a tragedy," he sighed, still keeping his voice low as he clasped a hand to his chest, fingers splayed. "My heart, it weeps for you, lil one."

"Whatever," I gave a quiet scoff, rolling my eyes.

Right then and there, I should've stopped talking and paid attention to the lecture.

And I tried. Believe me, I really did try. I needed to be listening to whatever it was the professor was saying. That was the whole point of being here after all, wasn't it?

And yet-

" ...pretty sure you needed to ask the professor first," I mumbled out of the corner of my mouth.

"Shh," Lea held a finger up to his smirking lips, his eyes glued to the lecturer as he slouched down into his seat now. "Some of us are trying to learn here."

I narrowed my gaze over at him. "...what are you doing?"

He turned his head towards me, giving me a flat look. "Didja not hear what I just said? Wow, maybe we really do gotta look into getting you a hearing aid, grannie."

My hand lightly shoved his shoulder. "No, I mean it looks like you're slouching."

"Seems your vision's still twenty-twenty. Sweet, least ya got that going for ya."

My eyelids drooped, "It would almost seem as if you don't want to be seen. One might even go so far as to say you look like you're trying to hide."

"An astute observation," was all he said with a noncommittal little shrug.

Leaning away from him slightly, I crossed my arms. "If it's okay for us to be here, why oh why then, pray tell, would you be worried about being spotted?"

Slumping down even deeper into his chair, he gave a lazy, dismissive wave of his hand, "We don't want to draw attention to ourselves and interrupt the class. It's a matter of course auditing etiquette, El. I'd know," he grinned and winked at me, "done it thousands of times."

"And the number keeps growing," I shook my head with a derisive snort. "What, are you auditing all these classes even as we speak?"

"Why yes, yes I am. Wait for it…" he held up a finger and paused for a couple beats. Then, "Bam. Just audited another one."

I facepalmed, "You're ridiculous."

"Bam, bam. Two more down. Lookit me go, I'm a course auditing wiz!"

"I'm rethinking taking this class," I grumbled under my breath.

Lea jolted, sitting up straighter, "Wha-? Aw c'mon, we were gonna take it together though!"

I shot him a rueful grin. "That's why I'm rethinking it. You're too distracting."

Smiling, he ducked down next to my ear and whispered, "You mispronounced the word delightful. Don't worry, babe, it happens to the best of us."

I was this close to smacking his arm when a throat cleared loudly in front of us. We both stiffened and froze before slowly turning our gazes towards the source.

A tall, lanky man eccentrically dressed in purples and yellows who hadn't been there a second ago was now in the row before us, knees perched on his seat cushion with him backwards in the chair so he could face us. Elbows propped on the backrest, his shoulder-length black hair framed his smirking face as he rested his goateed chin in his palms and simply watched the two of us.

And it was just suddenly coming to my attention that all eyes in the theater were on us now and the whole place had fallen eerily quiet.

Maybe because the professor was no longer talking on stage.

Maybe because he was the man now directly in front of us with a bright grin and predatory gleam in his eye.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," he batted his eyelashes at us, his toothy smile stretching even bigger. "How rude of me to interrupt you while you're talking. Please, do go on!"

"We're done!" Lea chirped back, mirroring the man's expression. "Don't mind us back here, we're just auditing the course."

"Ah! Auditing the course, I see, I see! Well that explains it!" he perked up with a chuckle. "Just if you could then, my dear boy, answer me one simple lil question… who am I?"

I sensed a trap.

One that I might be able to sneak my way out of, given the lecturer's full attention seemed to be on Lea at the moment.

I discreetly moved over one chair.

"Pop quizzing me already, eh Teach? Pft," Lea waved a dismissive hand. "That one's a no brainer. You're the professor!"

"No, no," he hummed a small laugh and waggled his index finger. "Who am I?"

"Oh, I see." Lea squinted at him with a frown, "...well, that's a rather deep and complex question. Did we wander into a Psych class by mistake?"

We? What is this "we" business? Oh-ho no, you're on your own, bucko.

I quietly slipped over into the next seat.

A tiny, amused huff escaped the man's nose. "No, silly boy. My name. What is it?"

One corner of his lips quirking, Lea gave a small shrug, "Well if even you don't know, I'm not sure how you expect me to help ya with that one."

He shook his head and tsked several times. But then his face immediately lit back up once more as he placed a hand over his breast and slowly enunciated, "Clopin Trouillefou."

Lea's eyes widened. "Shit, you having a stroke there, buddy?"

"...it's my name."

To Lea's credit, while "Clopin" deceptively reads like it only has two syllables, the professor had said it in a way that somehow stretched it out to four and-

...and why am I wasting valuable seat moving time by explaining this right now?

I made up for it by pulling the rather slick maneuver (if I do say so myself) of shifting over two chairs.

"Something you'd know if you'd audited correctly and contacted me first," Professor Trouillefou tacked on in a lightly chiding singsong.

Ha! I knew it!

My chair scooching became a tad smug as I crept over to the next.

"Ya know what, I actually did? Was just testing ya." Lea shot him a double thumbs up, "Well done, my dude. A-plus!"

He laughed, "Nice try, my dear boy, but I'm pretty sure I'd remember you if we'd spoken previously."

Lea heaved a dramatic sigh, "Woulda thought so too and to be perfectly honest, Clarabelle, I-"

"Clopin," he corrected dryly.

"Right. To be perfectly honest, Clip-Clop, I'm a lil hurt that ya didn't. But ya know what?" he flashed a huge blinding smile. "I'mma let ya slide on this one, bygones and whatnot. Just don't let it happen again!"

One more seat over and I was as far as I could go. I was now sitting next to the pair of students at the end of the row that we'd passed on the way in. Aka my new pals. That redheaded nutjob over there? The one who seemed to be taking perverse pleasure in pushing the professor's buttons and was probably nano seconds away from getting kicked out? Yeah, no, zero clue who that was. Never seen him before in my life, and I certainly hadn't shown up with him. No, I'd come here with my two friends here, Chet and um… Karen.

...yeah, they looked like they could be a Chet and a Karen, so that's what I'm going with.

"You're too kind," the professor deadpanned before his lips took on a wicked upward curve. "Well then, since I'm clearly mistaken here and you obviously did in fact contact me, I've no doubt in my mind that you've also paid to audit my course?"

Both eyebrows shot up Lea's forehead. "Crap, we hafta pay?! What the hell then is even the point of auditing?!"

His sinister grin twitched wider and he said in a sickeningly sweet tone, "Get. Out. Now." He then pointed a finger directly at me, "You too."

I stiffened.

Fudge.

"What? No, I-" my voice broke in a squeak. Clearing my throat and plastering on my sincerest teacher's pet smile, I tried again, "No, I don't know him. He just sat next to me and started bothering me."

"Traitor," Lea hissed at me.

I ignored him, still addressing the professor. "I'm actually here with my friends," I leaned slightly towards said friends. "Isn't that right, Chet?"

Ah, Chet... my ol' chum, my ol' buddy, mi amigo, my-

"Er… my name's not Chet."

...you're dead to me, Chet.

"Alright, let's go, you two," Professor Trouillefou put one hand on the backrest of his chair and vaulted himself over it into our row. He then yanked Lea up out of his seat and started dragging him by the scruff of his shirt towards the aisle. As they passed where I was sitting, he pulled me up to my feet as well and kept going, towing me by the wrist.

Lea staggered along, trying to dig in his heels, "Aw, c'mon, man! Throw me out if ya gotta, but can't you give her a pass at least? She's totally innocent!"

"Which is the worst crime of all!" the lecturer shot back gleefully, not breaking stride.

We were almost to the doors leading back outside. Heart thudding and desperate not to be forcibly removed from the class, I blurted out, "We're planning to take the course next semester!"

At that, the professor slowed, glancing back at me with one eyebrow cocked. "Pardon?"

...wow, that actually worked?!

Swallowing hard, I gave a small, hesitant nod. "We only… we stopped by today just for a quick peek. We, um… wanted to know what we would be getting ourselves into, if… if that's okay? That is, uh… p-please?"

He didn't answer at first, his gaze just darting back and forth between Lea and me several times, eyes calculating. Then he beamed so big and so abruptly, it startled a small jump out of me. "Well, why didn't you just say so?!" Before I even knew what was happening, he'd shifted his hold on the both of us to instead grab Lea's hand in one of his and my hand in the other before he happily skipped - yes, friggin' skipped - off towards the front of the theater with us stumbling behind him. "Come one, come all, class!" he gave a boisterous trill. "Up on the stage for warm-ups, everyone!"

Oh dear, what had I just gotten myself into?

Maybe just getting kicked out would have been the better call.

As he led us onto the stage, my feet tripping over the steps the whole way, I stammered out, "Th-thank you, I really ah… appreciate this opportunity, b-but I was thinking we could maybe more just, hrm… observe?"

The teacher gave a booming scoff as he pulled us to a stop, the rest of the students in the theater filing up the stairs as well to join us. "Don't be silly, you don't observe an acting class!" He paused before declaring with dramatic emphasis, "You act an acting class!"

Oh.

Well then… my mistake.

"Gather 'round, boys and girls, we've got ourselves some fresh meat to play with today!" Professor Trouillefou cackled as he finally released Lea and me with a small shove towards the center of the ring of students grouped up with us now. Producing (from where, I know not) what looked to be some sort of theater prop in the form of a long scepter with round jingle bells dangling from the top end, he tapped it to his shoulder pensively as he asked, "Now, what lil drama exercise should we use to break in our sweet, young, starry-eyed would-be thespians here with, hm?"

One undergrad's hand shot up as she called out, "Topsy Turvy?"

"Court of Miracles?" came another suggestion from somewhere else in the small crowd.

"Hush, let's not throw them in the deep end right out the gate! There's no need to upstage each other for the toughest game, we wouldn't want it to be curtains for the newbies so soon! Heh… lil theater humor for you there," the professor chuckled with a wink. "No, I was thinking we could warm up with something a lil easier, something like… ah, yes! How 'bout a rousing game of Stroking the Animal?"

Lea snerked beside me, crossing his arms, "Dirty. Didn't realize we were in that kind of class."

That earned him a bonk to the skull from the jingly scepter.

Flashing his pearly whites, the teacher went on as if he hadn't been interrupted, "Stroking the Animal is an excellent lil game for drama beginners! Each of you are going to pair up and choose some sort of beastie - secretly, mind you, don't tell your partner! Then you'll each take turns acting out holding your critter, petting it, caring for it - not saying a word, just purely miming - until your partner correctly guesses what it's supposed to be."

"So… it's kind of like charades?" I asked slowly.

With a triumphant point of the jingly scepter in my direction, he proclaimed, "Precisely, my dear, precisely! Now everyone, take a minute to decide on an animal while you find your partners! Hop to it, chop chop!"

"Dibs on my acting buddy!" Lea snagged my hand and raised it high, showing he'd staked claim.

As the rest of the students began pairing off around us, I scrunched up my nose and muttered, "I'm terrible at charades."

"What?!" his brow furrowed. "But charades is just kinda, sorta acting, isn't it? And you love acting!"

"Yes, acting. Musicals, plays, scripts," I emphasized, my hands twisting at my braid momentarily before restlessly shifting back to fiddling with the sleeve zipper once more. "You know, lines and directions I can memorize and follow. Charades is more like improv's distant cousin twice removed. I hate improv… whenever I'm put on the spot like that, I just sort of freeze up and draw a complete blank. So yeah, I'm not exactly the biggest fan of charades. It's a game that just makes me feel silly and-"

"Time's up!" A ringing filled the air, coming from the dreaded jingly scepter. I was really beginning to hate that noisy little stick. Once Professor Trouillefou had everyone's attention back on him, he called out, "Begin!"

Crud, I hadn't even picked an animal yet!

Alright, brain, go time! Think, think, think! Conjure me up a creature! Go on, spit out the first thing you can think of! Just give me something! Anything!

Naked mole-rat!

...okay, maybe not that one.

We're looking for something nice, simple and obvious here, something that'll only take seconds to guess, something like a… a cat! Yes! Perfect!

Hey, don't judge me! It's not like I was trying to earn points for creativity here, I just wanted to get this ridiculous game over and done with quickly!

The other students had already begun. Not wanting to fall behind, I hastily struck up a finger to Lea to indicate I was ready. Then I looked away with a frown, my hands hovering in uncertainty for a few seconds. Okay, a cat… how do I show that I have a cat? Grimacing, I awkwardly scooped one arm in front of me like I was cradling something close to my belly and used my other hand to start petting the air where its imaginary head would be.

Eh, good enough, right?

Lea's face brightened, "Oh, a puppy!"

Alright, close! Come on, you got this. Not a dog, but a…

He squinted. "...bunny?"

...sorry, not the answer we were looking for here. Would the contestant care to venture another guess? Third times a charm, after all! Surely he'll get it this-

"Porcupine!"

Wait, what?

"Snake!"

For the love of… in what possible universe could the make-believe thing in my arms ever be a friggin' snake?!

"Turtle? Penguin! Oo-oo, this has to be it… hyena! No? Armadillo? Puffin! Skunk! Capybara!"

Okay, now the jerk was just doing this on purpose to mess with me.

"Naked mole-rat!"

Are you kidding me?! Shoot, I should have gone with my first instinct!

Narrowing my eyes at him, I made a growling little huff in my throat and started petting at the pretend feline's head more aggressively.

As if that would actually help.

Did I mention how completely bad at charades I was?

"El, ya gotta give me something to work with here," Lea groaned, rubbing at the nape of his neck. "I mean c'mon, you're just petting air there, that doesn't tell me any-" he cut himself off, blinking a couple times. Then he snapped his fingers with a victorious smile, "Ah-ha! Got it!"

My whole body froze.

Wait, did he really?

"Air elemental! No, no, air spirit!"

Gah, that's not even a real animal, you dork!

I scowled at him, my hands moving to strangle the air in his direction as I pictured his throat between my fingers.

He looked horrified. "Don't do that to the poor creature! That's animal abuse!"

I give up! I puffed out a loud sigh, tossing my hands in defeat.

"Well now ya just dropped the critter." He gave a soft tsk. "Worst. Pet owner. Ever. Well… I mean, unless of course it's a cat, then that's fine cuz it'd just land on its-"

"Ah!" My heart leapt in delight. "Yes! That's it!" I laughed, barreling into his chest and hugging him around the waist.

He grunted softly from the impact, then quirked an eyebrow down at me. "Are you serious? Ya couldn't get me to guess cat? Well shit, babe, you really do suck at this game! If we ever play charades in the future, Anna will be the one who gets stuck with your undeniably cute but useless butt on her team."

Face pinching, I poked him where he was ticklish just below the rib cage.

"Hey, no fair!" he squirmed, jumping away from me. Then clearing his throat, he straightened up with a dignified sniff and grinned, "Alright, my turn now!"

...oh yeah. He gets a turn too.

I completely forgot that part.

Well fudge, I should have simply let him go first and saved myself the mini panic attack.

Lea closed his eyes and bowed his head, his hands rising and falling with a deep inhale and slow exhale. He was clearly and quite visibly honing, as if preparing to act out some great Shakespearean monologue. Finally, he snapped into action. He flourished his arms to one side, as if proudly presenting something standing next to him. Then his hand moved to start stroking empty space somewhere at about his eye-level.

Okay... so the mystery animal was tall.

I tipped my head to one side. "...a horse? A camel?"

He raised his hand up higher so it was above his head, still petting away.

Even bigger, huh?

"Ostrich?" I wrinkled my nose. "Moose? Giraffe?"

Lea went up onto his tippy-toes, his arm stretched as far as he could reach and fingers now… possibly giving under-chin scritches? Maybe?

Jeez, just how huge was this thing?

I shook my head with a tiny, unsure, "...whale?"

He lowered back down onto his heels, resuming the stroking at a height not quite as far up there, but still above his head.

Alright, so… what was smaller than a whale, but bigger than a giraffe?

"...a really, really big giraffe?"

Elsa, Queen of Thinking Outside The Box.

His eyelids drooped. But seemingly undeterred, he set about moving over to where I'd roughly guess would be the side of this ginormous creature. He mimed climbing up it and slinging his leg over its back.

Big and rideable, huh?

"Ah! A… A… An elephant!" I stammered to get out past my sudden excitement.

Lea was still going, bending forward to give his mount a couple pats on the shoulder (I guess?) before pointing up. Then he stretched his arms out wide to either side of him like he was… soaring?

"A flying elephant!"

Wait, no, that'd just be silly.

We were looking for a real animal here. A large animal that could apparently fly. It had to be some kind of bird, right? But… pretty sure there weren't any elephant-sized birds out there in the world… were there?

Note to self: google "elephant-sized bird" later.

Tuning back into reality, I realized Lea had moved onto showing me something else now. It seemed he'd dismounted and returned to petting the thing's… head, maybe? But then he elicited a tiny, pained tch and retracted his finger like he'd been burned. But no, that couldn't be right… no animals in actual existence burned people, so what could it… oh! It must have just bitten him… yes, that'd make more sense!

Now he was looking at the ground and rubbing his hands together before turning his palms forward, holding them there for a few seconds. Then he balled both hands, stacking one on top of the other and lifting the top one up in a long, straight line. With one hand still fisted, he then cupped the other upward and arced it over until it was upside down a few feet over his fist. Finally, he stretched his fist out in front of him while using his other hand to occasionally poke and pinch at the air above said fist.

I stared blankly at him. "...yeah, no, you've lost me."

The jingly scepter rang out loudly as the professor shook it high above his head, announcing, "Game over, boys and girls!"

Lea snorted and sighed, "Clearly I was roasting marshmallows there."

"...clearly." Not. "But why?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Well what else am I gonna do with the fire that my good, big dragon boi here breathed for me?" he asked, once again gesturing to the vacant spot next to him.

"A dragon?" I huffed, marching over to him to glare down (or rather up I suppose) my nose at him. "You were supposed to pick a real animal."

He grinned and folded his arms beneath his chest. "Teach never said it hadta be real."

I blinked, then glanced towards Professor Trouillefou, who shrugged and echoed, "Never said it had to be real."

"Told ya!" Lea razzed his tongue at me.

In retaliation, my hand shot out to tickle him again, but he caught it. "Ha! Too slow!" he crowed, smirking as he shifted his hold to lace our fingers together.

So instead I just tickled him with my other hand.

He spasmed, hissing swear words under in breath before scrambling to get out of my reach. I crossed my arms and - in peak maturity, mind you - razzed my tongue back at him before looking away with a small harrumph.

The professor clapped his hands together, "Alright, well done, class! Gold star for everyone!" From his pocket, he pulled out a small, glittery star sticker that he slapped to the forehead of the nearest student. Pointing a finger to it, he tacked on, "That's the only one I have, so you'll all have to share! In any case, now that we've had a chance to flex and loosen our acting muscles a bit, onto a slightly more challenging game…"

Wonderful! Now I could put this horrible improv portion of the class behind me. I wondered what would be next… monologues or scene work or script readings or-

"Alphabet Improv!"

...or more improv.

Swell.

You know what? Maybe acting class just simply wasn't for me. Since, you know, it seemed to be nothing but improv, a thing that I was terrible at.

...to be fair, one might argue that acting class would be the way to help me get better at it.

On the other hand, one might also argue to hell with acting class!

Not going to lie, I felt that the latter argument made a very compelling and well thought out rebuttal.

"We'll be doing this in groups of four," Professor Trouillefou went on, a wicked grin slowly stretching across his face. "And just for funsies, I'll be the one picking the groups. Now, who will start us off…"

Not me, not me, oh dear god, not me!

He pointed that cursed jingly stick directly at - you guessed it - me. I paled, my heart plummeting into my stomach as he decreed, "Congratulations, my dear, you are our first lucky winner!"

...fudge.

Gulping, I stuttered out in a tiny voice, "No, b-but I… I can't-"

"Oh, but you can and you will! Next up, your partners will be… hmm…" he pursed his lips to one side as he scrutinized everyone else.

Lea's hand shot up high over his head as he bounced on the balls of his feet.

"Kuzco!" the lecturer jabbed his scepter towards the opposite end of the line of students from us.

A guy with long black hair jumped forward with a cocky laugh, "Boom, baby!"

Right. Guess that'd make him Kuzco.

The teacher slowly swung the jingly scepter past the students one by one, preparing to select his next victi- erm, participant. Lea kept jumping in front of it like an eager puppy, saying, "Oo! Oo! Me!"

Jerking the prop to Lea's immediate left, it landed on a short girl in a white sundress trimmed in black lace, her red hair tied back into a pair of pigtails that fell past her waist. "Strelitzia!" he cried, seemingly taking great joy in rolling the R as he did so.

She merely smiled sweetly at her name being called and stepped forward.

"And last but not least…" Professor Trouillefou squinted as he gave his students another once over. Lea bounced up in front of him yet again, both index fingers pointing up at his own face as he favored the teacher with a big, ear-to-ear smile. Rolling his eyes with a small huff, the teacher grumbled, "Fine. You, I guess."

Oh, thank goodness!

Don't get me wrong, this game was still going to absolutely murder me.

But with Lea's help, maybe it'd be just a tad less murdery.

As my boyfriend moved to stand beside me, taking my hand with a squeeze and a grin, the professor made a sweeping gesture with his prop, "Everyone else step aside and give our stars center stage! Now, Alphabet Improv is quite simple really. I'll give you four a scene prompt and a letter. Then one of you will begin with a line that starts with that letter. The next person will continue the scene by saying something that starts with the next letter of the alphabet. You will each take turns working your way through the alphabet until you're back around to the first letter, then work your way backwards through the alphabet."

I think he had more to say, but his words began to fade to the point where I couldn't hear them anymore. No, all I could hear now was the hammering in my ribcage and hiss of my rapid, shallow breathing through my nostrils. My mouth was dry and my hands were clammy. Yup. No doubt about it. This was anxiety. And not the good kind like I usually felt before a show. This was just plain bad. All bad. Nothing but bad, bad, bad. So bad that-

"Nervous?"

I gave a start as that soft voice broke through my thoughts, my head whipping towards it to discover the girl from earlier - Strelitzia, I believe - now standing next to me. She tilted her head to one side, grinning warmly at me.

A scoff from Kuzco had me jolting in surprise yet again. "Psh, like she has reason to be! Not with me in the group! Just simply bask in the awesomeness and perfection that is me and be at ease!" he smirked, puffing out his chest and stretching his arms out wide, curling and uncurling his fingers a couple times. "Go on, bask. You know you want to."

Lea snerked. "Check out the ego on this guy."

Heh… look who's talking.

"Just ignore him, that's what the rest of us do," Strelitzia giggled softly before turning her kind eyes on me once more. "And don't worry, I was nervous too when I first started taking this class. I still am, actually… but I've gotten better. Some day, I hope to be as good as my brother!"

Lea blinked. "Brother? Wait a minute…" he squinted down at her, rubbing a curled finger over his chin. Then he snapped his fingers. "You're Bubble Yum's baby sis!"

Her eyes widened at that, then she laughed, "Oh dear, don't let Marluxia hear you calling him that."

"Too late," Lea shrugged.

"But yes, he's my big brother. He's majoring in Theater Arts here, while I'm just taking this class because I want to be a little more like him. He's so confident and brave…" she trailed off shyly into a thoughtful pause. Then her face brightened, "I just wish I had a little more courage so I can make him proud of me! I think this class has helped me a lot with that, and it could help you too."

I think this girl was about to give me diabetes from sweetness overload here. It was almost enough to lure me into a false sense of security. Almost. But then-

Jingle-jangle!

Ugh, those damn little bells were going to be the death of me! Immediately, my pulse spiked and I inhaled sharply.

"Now that you've all had a lil time to get acquainted, let's move this along, shall we?" Professor Trouillefou beamed from where he'd taken a seat at the edge of the stage to watch us. The rest of the class had done the same, giving the four of us plenty of room to work with. Oh gosh, so many eyes on me, about to witness my epic failure at improv. Was it getting harder to breathe in here? "The letter you'll be beginning with: Q!"

I started desperately tugging at Lea's hand and he glanced down at me. "I can't do this," I told him in a whisper, the loudest I could muster through my constricting throat. "I can't… I just can't!"

"The scene," the lecturer went on, "...Kuzco here has just been transformed into a talking llama!"

Lea stepped in front of me, taking both my hands in his and drawing light circles along their backs with his thumbs. The sensation sent a soothing warmth up my arms and into my chest where it clashed with the icy panic pumping out of my heart. Ducking down to my eye-level, he said, "It'll be okay, El. I'll be right here with ya the whole time. You got this, trust me! Don't think, just say the first thing that pops outta your head. Simple as that!"

"But-"

"Annnnnnd action!" Professor Trouillefou roared.

Kuzco wasted no time, turning to the three of us. "Quick question guys…" he held his hands up and waved them back and forth in front of him with a chipper, "Why do I suddenly have hooves?" That earned him a few tiny chuckles from the students watching.

Fighting a smile herself, Strelitzia gasped, "Randy! You're a llama!"

"Sweet! New pet!" Lea went over to start patting Kuzco on the head. "Think I'm gonna name him Cheez Whiz." A few more snorts from onlookers.

Then there was dead silence.

...that was my cue, wasn't it? Crud, what comes after S again?! How do you alphabet?! I couldn't remember! So instead I just stood there, stock-still and rooted to the spot, hyperventilating and my eyes round as I stared out into our small audience.

...do...something…

What was it Lea had just told me? Don't think, er...

Don't think, just… uh…

…

Well I'll say this much for me - I had the 'don't think' part down pat. I was totally not thinking like a pro! Nothing was going on in my brain right now. Nope, not a goddamn single thing. Not even so much as a tumbleweed rolling through the barren wasteland that was my thoughts at this very second.

"This has ruined my face! My beautiful, beautiful face!" Kuzco suddenly burst out, covering for me.

Ah! T! That's what comes after S!

Dang it, I knew that!

Strelitzia hesitated for only a split second before coming up with, "Um... your face was never really all that beautiful to begin with…" There were a couple snickers from our audience at that.

"Veronica!" Lea suddenly grabbed me by the shoulders, forcing me to look at him instead of the people watching us. "Tell us, what should we do?!" His thumbs were stroking up and down my arms as he gave me a single, encouraging nod.

I tucked in my bottom lip, listening to a couple pounding beats of my heart before giving him a tiny, almost imperceptible shake of my head.

Still nothing going on up in the ol' noggin except for crickets and paralyzing, soul-crushing fear. Sorry, bud.

Then I realized his lips were silently moving… was he mouthing something to me? Looked suspiciously like… W...?

Oh! Right! The next letter!

Now I just needed to think of a word that started with W! Simple, right?

"W…" I began shakily sounding it out, hoping the rest of some word would just magically follow. "W…" Mm-hm, yup. "W…" Got nothing here. "W…" Absolute zilch.

Apparently that was deemed acceptable. "Xavier, can't you see she's petrified cuz I'm an ugly, stinky llama?!" Kuzco wailed as he fell to his knees.

"You have a point there!" Strelitzia chimed in, struggling to keep a straight face now at his overdramatic antics.

Lea smacked himself in the forehead, "Zounds, can't believe I forgot about her crippling llama-phobia!" …llama-phobia? At that, a tiny snerk managed to break through the all but suffocating anxiety and escape through my nose. Then he was grabbing my face with both hands, "But it's okay, you'll get through this! ...you'll get through this." The last part was repeated more softly as he gave me a small reassuring smile.

Something in his touch, his voice, his steady gaze… actually had me calming down a bit. With a tiny gulp, I closed my eyes, breathed in deeply and exhaled slowly, letting some of the tension go with it. Alright, after Z came… ha! Yes! So easy, even my useless, panic-scattered brain could do it!

"A…" I began weakly, but then hesitated.

Don't think, just say the first thing that pops outta your head.

"Alpacas!" suddenly exploded from my lips as my eyes snapped open again. Lea's head rocked back slightly at my little outburst, a bemused grin tugging at his lips. Gaze shifting, I scrambled to expand on it. "Don't, um… don't forget I'm... d-deathly afraid of those too..."

Kuzco was quick on the draw, snarling, "Both of you shut up and help me fix this already!"

"Can it!" Strelitzia snapped, planting her fists on her hips and narrowing her eyes on him. "We're not taking orders from you!"

Lea stamped a foot down and raised his fist at him, "Damn right, you demon llama!"

That statement had me hiding a smile behind my fingers. And with that, a little bit more of the anxiety was banished. I could do this… especially now that I'd regained the power of the alphabet! Especially with Lea's hand finding mine once again, sending more warm tingles straight to my heart.

Don't think, just say the first thing that...

"Everyone, let's…" Okay, good strong start. Now, where are we taking this? "...exorcise?" Sure, let's go with that. "...the, uh... the demon llama?"

Success!

"Fiends!" Kuzco yelled, pointing an accusing finger at us. "Traitors! Evil criminal masterminds! This was your plot all along, wasn't it?!"

Turning to look up at Lea, Strelitzia told him, "Go on, say the words that'll expel the evil spirit!"

Not missing a beat, Lea joined Strelitzia's hand with mine before taking my other back in his once again. Then he led us into a skipping daisy-chain that circled Kuzco a couple times, all the while happily chanting, "Hocus pocus! Shazam! Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo! Nutella! Benedict Cumberbatch!"

This was all just so... utterly… ridiculous.

I spluttered, then erupted into full blown laughter.

Oh gosh, how did Lea always do it? How did he always know how to get a laugh out of me, no matter what? How did he always manage to calm me down and help me feel safe?

As he slowed our skipping to a stop, his eyes crinkled down at me as he prompted, "That oughta do it! Whatcha think?"

Ah. Right. I was supposed to be doing something… or saying something… something to do with the letter I. But I couldn't quite remember what. I was too distracted by his gaze on me, causing all sorts of warm fuzzies to flutter throughout my chest and an extremely silly smile to pull at my mouth. Alright, letter I… letter I… my lips parted...

Don't think, just…

"I love you."

The words had barely left my mouth when my whole body locked up and I swear my heart skipped two full beats as Lea's wide-eyed stare landed on me.

Crud.

That… had not been part of the game.

I knew it.

He knew it.

Everyone in the whole goddamn theater seemed to know it too.

That is, if the awkward, deafening hush now permeating the air as no one said or did anything was an indicator. Several eyes just slowly shifted back and forth between Lea and me, probably curious to see what either of us would do next.

Lea was the first to recover, snagging my hand in his. "Excuse us for a quick sec," he struck up a finger to the others, flashing a polite smile. Then he walked off backstage, gently tugging me along behind him. My knees had gone numb, causing me to stumble a couple times as I followed. I frowned at his back, feeling my insides shrivel with dread.

...oh gosh, he was about to break up with me, wasn't he?

Neither of us had ever said… said… gah, the L-word to each other before! And I'd been okay with that! I'd been just fine! I didn't even know whether I was in L-word with him or not!

Or rather… I hadn't known...

...but I guess I did now?

Apparently?

Not that that mattered any more! Not now that my stupid mouth had gone and screwed everything up! Lea wasn't the L-word type! He was the one-night stand type. This thing he'd been doing with me this whole time had been a one-off. A fluke. A wonderful fluke. An amazing fluke. A fluke that I had just totally and completely ruined.

It seemed he'd found a spot he deemed quiet and private enough, for we abruptly came to a stop. As he turned to face me now, I swallowed hard. This was it. He was about to tell me it was all over. My vision blurred slightly and I squeezed my eyes shut against it.

Maybe if I couldn't see him, he couldn't break up with me. Ha! Take that!

...okay, that sounded a bit desperate, even for-

My thoughts were silenced as I suddenly felt his arms wrapping around my waist, hugging me tightly up against him. Then there was the familiar scent of cinnamon before I felt his warm lips on mine, causing my eyes to fly open and my hands to unconsciously grip at the front of his shirt.

Wha-

...oh. Wait, no I get it. He was trying to let me down easy. This was a goodbye kiss. One final kiss for the road. The kiss of relationship death.

Yup. This sealed it. He was definitely breaking up with me.

All too soon, his lips were pulling away from mine, although he didn't release his hold on me. I couldn't look him in the eye. I was too scared. So I just stared hard at his collarbone instead and waited for him to say it. It's over between us. Just go on and get it over with already. Put me out of my misery. It won't be hard. Just four little words. Just-

"I love you too."

I blinked.

Okay… not the four words I'd been expecting...

I slowly dragged my gaze up to meet his, giving him a blank look. "...this has to be the most confusing breakup ever."

I felt his body tense against mine as both his eyebrows shot up his forehead. "Break up?" he repeated incredulously. Then a laugh burst out of him and he shook his head, "How did you even-? No, El, this isn't a break up! I mean, I certainly hope not anyway."

"Oh." Well that was a relief! But then my brow furrowed. "Wait…"

...back up… had he really just said he-

My heart flip-flopped and face glowed red hot.

"...you…" Dear lord, it was so hard to even say it. The struggle was real. "...love me?"

"Mm-hm!" he hummed, squeezing me closer and nuzzling his nose into my neck. "Known for a while too."

His breath tickled against my skin and I squirmed, my arms inadvertently wrapping around his neck now. "You did? Why didn't you say anything?" The question came out almost somewhat indignant.

Raising his head so he could once more look me in the eye, Lea gave a sheepish chuckle. "Didn't wanna spook ya or make you feel pressured into saying it back if you weren't ready."

"Well that's…" I paused, my mouth clicking shut as I looked down to mull it over for a second. Then my gaze shyly lifted once more and I mumbled, "...a fair point. And actually kind of thoughtful… thank you…"

His expression softened and he pressed his forehead to mine. "...say it again."

This time, my heart skipped three full beats. He wanted me to say… that again?! What, once hadn't been enough? I didn't even know if I could say it again. I didn't even know how I'd said it in the first place! "I…" Oh gosh, how did couples tell each other this all the time? There had to be some trick to it. What was the magic secret? "I… I'm not like you, Lea. I'm not sappy and mushy and… and I know how to do corny stuff like giving romantic speeches about lantern festivals or walking into lampposts or-"

"I don't want a speech. I just want to hear you say it again...please..." he coaxed in a low murmur against my ear, turning my legs to jelly.

Well when he put it that way…

As our eyes locked once more, my pulse raced and I opened my mouth. Then immediately shut it. Nope. Alright, take two. Again, my lips parted. And again, they snapped shut. Gah, this was impossible! Was almost surprised I couldn't smell smoke at this point, considering how badly my cheeks were burning. Finally, I turned my head to one side, gripping at the collar of his leather jacket and pulling it up to hide my face in it as I at last muffled out a quick, "I love you."

He bit back a grin, tugging the collar back down so he could hook a finger under my chin and tilt my gaze up towards his again. "One more time? Couldn't quite hear you."

I wrinkled my nose at him. I couldn't do it. Not with the way those beautiful green eyes of his were watching me with such intensity.

So I did the only thing I could think of.

I clamped my hand over them, blinding him and blurting out before I could stop myself, "I love you!"

He stiffened. Then snerked, letting my hand stay put over his eyes as a huge, dopey grin spread across his face, "Love you too. And eagerly awaiting the day when I can look at you while you say that."

Despite feeling flustered, one corner of my lips lifted. "...yeah, well... you might be waiting a while there."

Now he removed my hand from his face, weaving our fingers together and pressing a kiss to my palm before clasping it to his chest just over his heart as he smiled down at me.

"Take all the time ya need. I know it'll be worth the wait."

...maybe acting class wasn't so bad after all.

I mean, if only one session had helped me get this far...

...just imagine what I might be able to accomplish after completing the entire course!

Author's Note: Relationship milestone, woooo! Achievement unlocked! xD Not sure if ya'll even realized that these 2 dorks had yet to say those three lil words each other :P Like Lea said, he's known for a while - the goob might've even fancied himself in love back while they were fake dating - maybe it was still just really strong infatuation back then, but eh... does it really matter? xD As for Elsa, she's been in love for a while now too, she just didn't KNOW that's what it was until her mouth did what it does best, took the reins and blurted out her feelings for her XD On another note, yay for Elsa exploring theater further and pursuing acting classes! Hehe, these bonus chapters are quickly turning into an excuse to squeeze as many cameos in as I can. The professor was originally supposed to be a smaller, faceless part but then I came to the conclusion that I should have more fun with it and tried to figure out who would be good fit for a drama teacher - I think I made the right call with Clopin xD In case anyone didn't recognize him even with all the lil hints I dropped, he's the jester guy from "Hunchback of Notre Dame" which I wouldn't blame you if you read the name and went "uh…who?" - the guy only says his name once in the whole movie and it does legit sound like it has 4 syllables when he says it! My whole life (right up until I looked it up for this chapter) I've thought his name was something like "Cleopelle" haha oops xD And I'm glad I found a place to squeeze in Strelitzia at long last! Not to mention Kuzco - fun fact, he was originally gonna be Selphie, but this was before I came up with the scene prompt for the Alphabet Improv bit. I was looking up acting class prompt suggestions on the internet before I was like "screw it, I should just pick the plot of a Disney movie or something", started scrolling through the long list of Disney movies until I landed on "Emperor's New Groove", stared at it blankly for few seconds, then DING! Off went the lightbulb, Selphie was yeeted out of the scene, and Kuzco bounced in to take her place x'D Also, yes, both Stroking the Animal and Alphabet Improv are real drama class exercises - I know this from WAY more time than I care to admit spent on the internet trying to figure out what I wanted to happen this chapter xD Stroking the Animal is also sometimes called Ironing the Animal, but (1) I don't even understand that title and (2) Lea couldn't have made his dumb innuendo if I'd called it that xD

Thanks for reading, I super duper appreciate it! And an extra BIG thank you to those of you who’ve liked, reblogged, and followed so far, seeing those lil notifications always brings the biggest, goofiest smile to my face!

Be back for next week's bonus chapter, which is a for funsies one-shot! Your hint this time for what's to come will be *drum roll*... blindfold ;D Ooooo, the intrigue is real! Stay tuned!

FIRST CHAPTER || PREVIOUS CHAPTER || NEXT CHAPTER

[iliketowritebnhastuff]

Yandere prompt no. 20 with Dabi or Keigo takami?

Ho boy you give me 2 options I love, imma do them both lol both are probably gonna be long too so hope you enjoy lol

Prompt #20: “Give everything to me, and I’ll make you the happiest person alive.”

Yandere prompts

Warnings!:

Obsessive behavior

Death (minor characters)

Stalking

🔪Dabi💙

      “I’ve told you more than once, doll, running away is pointless.”

        That voice, (F/n) knows it all too well. It’s haunted her nightmares for months, enveloped her in fear day after day before she made the daring escape when she saw the chance. The gruff, deep voice laced with danger she knows better than anyone, a danger she’s seen first hand when she’s tried to escape before.

        His footsteps echo in the hall of hospital she came to to get help, which he was quick to scorch all that came in his way after entering without a care. His boots snap glass from shattered windows beneath his heels and his steps are slow and purposeful, all she can hear over the pounding in her ears. It was like he knew where she’d go, or he followed her, giving her that sense of false freedom she thought she’d finally gotten when in reality he watched her every movement showing she's still apart of his twisted game. (F/n) knows she should’ve been more wary or careful. She was in such a rush to escape with the sliver of a chance she had in the palm of her hands that she didn’t consider the man that always seemed to be ahead of everyone else would know exactly what his doll was up to. He’s toyed with her before, and this was no different, only now... Now there are at least a dozen or so burnt corpses in the hall and other hospital rooms, the place is charred in certain areas while others remain lit up in blue. The hospital is eerily silent aside for the raven haired villain stalking the halls.

        (F/n) hides in a room he has yet to reach and inspect. She’s tucked herself into a ball behind the bed and tries to keep her head low while watching under it, her sights on the door across the room. She can see the flicker of azure light and she trembles as he comes closer and closer to her hiding place. She can hear him check every room he passes, the screams of those he’s killed having died forever ago, anyone still alive is hopefully hiding well.

        She freezes when he makes it to her room and the door creaks open; his boots are what (F/n) sees first as well as the shins of his pant legs and the ends of his overcoat. He casually walks in, probably with his hands stuffed in his pockets and looking aloof as always. Her heart thunders, she knows he’ll find her in these last few seconds, and as tears roll down her cheeks she stops following his boots as he checks the room before making his way to the bed. She knows he can see her when he stops and she can almost hear the smirk as he says,”There you are, I expected to be looking all over but you made it pretty easy. How boring.~”

        Slowly her (eye color) orbs lift and she goes pale; his grinning but that along with his eyes look... unhinged. His glowing blue orbs are more intense than usual, and underneath how ‘happy’ he appears to be that he found her she can see the underlying rage and possessiveness she’s come to recognize in the months she’s been able to study her kidnapper. He’s pissed, his scars smoking and the villain walking closer. Immediately she jolts up into a sit and backs away scooting against the corner of the wall and shaking her head, sobbing,”I-I’m sorry, please-!”

        She’s interrupted when her jaw is grabbed and she’s forced to look up at the now kneeling man. His hypnotizing azure eyes capture hers in a terrifying stare and he brings his face close as he breathes,”Then stop running away if you’re so sorry. How many times do I gotta tell you... Give everything to me, and I’ll make you the happiest person alive.”

        She whimpers and he chuckles coldly, kissing her softly but possessively before pulling back so their lips are only a few inches apart. “Now, are you gonna be a good girl and stay put from now on, or do you want to be the reason more people die?”

        She furiously nods, this being hard with the harsh grip he has on her jawline. The villain grins, but demands,”Say it.”

     “I-I’ll... Be good, Dabi...”

        That’s all he needs before he places a rough kiss on her then stands with her in tow. (F/n) is thrown over his shoulder after he wraps her hand and ankles in binds he finds as well as muffles her with a cloth. The two leave the scene just as authorities are rushing inside, leaving only carnage behind but no way to follow Dabi’s tracks as he heads home with his (F/n).

🔪Hawks💕

           Nothing could prepare (F/n) for finding out what her boss has been trying to hide from everyone. A man whose image is important to him, finding out he’s been stalking her was something she would have never believed had she not found the evidence with her own eyes.

           (F/n) has been with Hawks’ agency for a little over a year now as a secretary, and it’s been one of the best jobs she’s ever had. Not only is she paid well the benefits are a bonus and her boss is, well, the #2 hero himself! Someone laid back and nice, he seems fairly understanding when it comes to his employees.

           Over her time working there she also made, at least in her mind, friends with the big name hero himself. Work friends is how she’d put it, but more than once he’s text her outside of work, posted pictures of selfies with her, and even taken her home when she has had no ride. To her it’s all a bit different from what she’d expect of a hero being her boss, but it is Hawks after all, who wouldn’t take this chance with open arms?

           The last couple of months, though, things have been.... Weird. He seems to be flirty with her, somehow making it both sly but also very obvious what he’s insinuating. He seems to brush his hand against hers or gets rather close when she’s showing him something, and he’s asked if she wants to go to dinner more than once (every time she’s kindly declined.) While that’s all a bit odd enough she has felt like she’s been being watched, like she can’t keep her curtains open without the cold feeling of intense eyes staring at her as she tries to sleep. Amongst this she’s noticed her window open a crack when she gets home when she knows it was shut before she left, some things seem out of place or missing, and little gifts left on her bed or dresser that are definitely expensive and were definitely not there before. Each time she’s about to catch the person they seem to get away...

           But she has caught the glimpse of wings before, one time when she’d been walking home late from shopping and seen them fly away from her window. Her heart pounded, and she almost wondered... No, there was no way...

           That morning (F/n) came in and asking Hawks if he was busy and if they could talk the hero hummed,”Oh, anything wrong?” Her mind was whirling, how could it be Hawks? He’s a good guy, why would he stalk her and break into her home? 

        “I, um... Just wanted to take you up on an offer for dinner, if you’re free,” she replies after a few moments of contemplating this plan out. A voice is telling her this is a bad idea, but the other side of her thoughts is telling her that it’ll all be unfounded suspicions and that Hawks isn’t involved. She’s brought out of her thoughts when he replied,”Ohhh, finally ready to go out with me, huh?~” He winked, which made her look surprised; ‘Go out’? Granted, it’s been obvious he’s meant for the dinner plans to be dates.

           “Uh, yeah, I just was hoping to talk about something with you, not really a date,” she tried to clear it up, waving her hands in front of her. That should still be fine right? For a moment she saw something flash in his eyes as his grin dropped, but it was gone as soon as it came as the bird hero returned the lazy smile and simply replied,”Of course, meet me after work and we’ll go.”

           (F/n) never expected this to be the worst decision she could have made; While she met the #2 after work as requested and they flew to a location, something seemed off about his demeanor. He seemed to hide something under the grins he’s displaying, and his eyes intently watched her. Dinner went smoothly, but she struggled to find the right ways to ask her questions so she simply brought up the ‘stalking situation’ she’d been having to gauge his reaction. He feigned shock and anger, but she wasn’t blind; the way his eyes flashed again with something dark and rather scary sent chills down the young woman’s spine. 

        “That’s unfortunate, maybe I’ll look into it for you, see if there’s anything I can find out,” he tried to act sincere in concern, but (F/n) can only feel off. He seemed more concerned in learning more about her diverting away from the stalking, too. Getting an idea she’d go to mention something about herself and he seemed to answer for her, saying something she knew he’d have no way of knowing normally since it was personal or only one or two people knew. Excusing herself to the bathroom the secretary stared in the mirror trying to calm her nerves. ‘It has to be him... I think I should go.’ 

           Coming back out (F/n) told him it was late and she needed to head home Hawks seemed sad for a moment, and sitting while they wait on the waiter to come back with Hawks’ credit card Hawks seemed to watch her, staring. It was uncomfortable, and (F/n) tried to avoid his golden orbs as much as possible as she finished her drink. It tasted strange, and she blinked confused, looking into the last little drops inside while Hawks started to say,”You know, I thought you seemed pretty smart the moment I met you in your interview... But I never thought you’d actually catch on.” She freezed and looked at him with wide eyes, catching how his eyes narrow and he smiles, placing his chin on his palm. “I thought you might’ve seen me that one night too, guess I slipped up, huh?” He sounded laid back like always, but something about his words sent a chill through her. She tried to get up and run out, but her head felt dizzy and she collapsed back into the seat. 

        “Now, now, chick, don’t want to hurt yourself, do ya? Here, let’s get you home,” his voice ringed in her ears but everything started to suddenly go hazy and she’s lifted into his arms. The waiter came back, and Hawks smiled at him saying charmingly,”Thanks, she’s alright, just feeling a little under the weather.” He took the card, slipping it into his pocket before the two left, (F/n) going unconscious during flight. 

           When (F/n) wakes up she's somewhere unfamiliar on a soft, plush bed covered by silk sheets. The room is dark but she sees light under a doorway when her vision returns to normal. Her heart pounds in fear and she as quickly as possible gets up and leaves the room, her head still hazy. It’s dark outside, and despite the lights being on she appears to be alone in the house before hearing someone showering. Remembering what happened sometime earlier she panics knowing exactly who it is. Trying to move around the penthouse without making noise is difficult when her legs feel like jello, but she finds the entrance... Only to discover it’s locked. She’s ready to unlock it, but gasps when something red flashes past her. One of Hawks’ feathers, and it shoots at her again, cutting her along the arm as she whimpers and rushes away from the door in fear. There has to be someway out, right? Or someway to lose the feather! 

        Finding another door she throws it open only to freeze; it’s an office, which seems normal for a place like this, but the pictures around the room are definitely anything but normal. They’re all of her, in different places, situations, some of her unclothed and some while she’s out with friends or at work. She’s frozen, ice cold as her breath picks up. On the desk are different objects she’s found have gone missing like special pictures of she and her family or a perfume she has put on before. She doesn’t even hear Hawks sneak up on her before two strong arms wrap around her as well as his large, crimson wings enveloping them both. (F/n) starts to cry, not sure what to say as he whispers to her,”You kept rejecting me for so long, I couldn’t stand it... What other choice did I have?”

           She pulls out of his grip, or tries to, but his wings keep her entrapped and close as she asks shakily,”You... Why....” 

        “Because I love you,” he starts, smiling like this is all normal, like his confession isn’t seen as insane,”because what else was I supposed to do? Here, you’ll be safe, you can have anything you want, you won’t have to lift a finger! All you have to do is...” He cups her face in his hands and brings his own close, staring into her (eye color) eyes and saying,”Give everything to me, and I’ll make you the happiest person alive.” He looks unhinged, and she’s shaking. Hawks finishes,”Now, how about we get you back to bed, pigeon?~”

           Her suspicions were right, but now that’s meaningless as she becomes the bird trapped in his cage.

(WHELP those were both a lot longer than expected, but I was having fun so I hope you enjoy!)

[sword-and-shield-writings]

Hey! Good luck with your super cute blog!!!! ABout the request: How about a SFW fluffy OneShot for Raihan who has a crush a t the cute female reader who works at the local Pokemarkt, but she is very very shy; How would he go about that?

Aaa thank you boo!! And this is the most adorable thing ever SJDKFSDHJG I love this so much <3 <3 <3 Hope you enjoy~

Art of The Hunt

Fandom: Pokemon Sword + Shield Rating: SFW Style: Oneshot Details: Raihan having a crush on a uber shy Fem!Reader who works at the local Pokemart.

His large hands held onto the small basket filled with pokemon care materials, it was so small compared to him it was almost laughable. Without thinking twice his hands reached instinctively for the top shelf for a box of the new Duraludon Polish for his ace, half-lidded teal eyes looking around the Pokemart lazily - he had been there so many times he didn’t even need to look for what he was grabbing, for he had something else on his mind. Or rather, someone. The tall bachelor of Galar, the Dragon Tamer of this vast region found himself gravitating toward a quiet soul that was hiding behind the protection of the Pokemart till, her eyes shifting from the keypad and the checkout display. Arceus she looks adorable today... Raihan mused to himself as he stood there on the other side of the Pokemart. The only time he ever thanked Arceus for his tall height was when he realized he could subtly look over the shelves of the Pokemart on his toes to see the young lady crunching numbers and flustering over greeting and waving goodbye to the customers as per her contract with her boss. 

She was like a little Deerling, so beautiful, adorable and will shy away from even the slightest and insignificant thing like eye contact or a stray compliment. A small smile played on the Gym Leader’s lips as he moved closer to the counter, lining up behind the small number of people lining up there. It was late in the evening, hardly anyone was in the Wyndon Pokemart and yet even when he desperately needed something from there he would wait until the wee hours of the night to catch a glimpse of the shy young lady. He could catch his heartbeat quicken when he opened his cabinet and realized he had run out of berry ingredients for his curry and would wait for hours until the hour hand on the clock hit 8 so he could get on his Flygon and get what he needed and then some. Right before it was his turn, he glanced down at a pack of bubblegum - he didn’t normally chew gum but every time he managed to snag an encounter with the elusive beauty she always smelled as if she was chewing this brand of bubblegum all the time. 

“H-Hello sir! Ho -” the young lady chimed softly before she froze and a blush crossed over from cheek to cheek, head tilting up to see the dragon type gym leader. Raihan smiled lazily as he gave her a playful yet lax salute. Her eyes widened as she continued, Raihan chuckling to himself as she did, “... H-how are you today...? Had a p-p-pleasant shopping... experience...?” She meekly asked, feeling her cheeks redden as she reached out for the first of many things Raihan “needed” to buy.

“Hey there.” Raihan hummed in his deep baritone voice, a small laugh hiding behind his words as he looked at her red cheeks - they might as well be little Cherubi, “And yes, a very nice experience. I love shopping here at night, there's hardly anyone around.” His eyes glanced over at the lady’s fingers, he wanted to hold onto them and see if they were really as soft as they looked. She nodded her head shakily and Raihan could practically hear her shaky breathing. 

“T-That’s good to hear s-sir.” She stammered - she only reason why she took this position was that she didn’t want to perform manual labour to stock the shelves and she didn’t want to wander about the mart and offer her services. Serving at the till would mean the least amount of contact and talking and social interaction besides the occasional small talk she had to make to upkeep a good impression for the Pokemart. 

“You can call me Raihan if you want.” He smiled softly, leaning down, “Everyone does, it’s no biggie. I shop here all the time, you can call me by a first name basis.” He smiled at her as she nervously looked up and he caught a glimpse of how beautiful her eyes were. They would be even more beautiful under the moonlight, on a walk with him after a nice dinner date.

“O-Oh, okay then... Raihan...” She murmured, her cheeks still red as she started to quickly check out his products. He shoved his hands in his pockets lazily as he watched her check them out, one by one, how she nervously pursed her lips as she checked the price stage with the check-out display, how she nervously tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. Everything about her drew him in and yet he was so far away from actually getting to know her. However, he was determined to try and make a start on it that evening. “T-That’ll be $126.50!” She chirped as she put them all in a large plastic bag.

Rahan nodded his head, taking out his credit card and shuffling through his pants pockets for a pen - he always had one on him just in case a fan wanted a signature on their shirt or Pokeball. As the flustered lady swiped the card on the machine and shakily gave it back to him, she turned her body around to wait for the receipt, trying to stay calm. Swiftly, Raihan shuffled his hand through the bag for the packed of bubblegum and started scribbling on it.

“He-Here you go si- I mean, Raihan!” The lady managed out as she tore the receipt form the little printer and turned around to find him... gone. A small exhale left her lips as she leaned against the wall behind her, fanning herself. “O-oh jeez...” She muttered, patting her cheeks to cool them off. Her eyes scanned her work station, moving to clean it like she did after every other customer to maintain the cleaning policy they had when she caught sight of something - a stick of bubblegum from her favourite brand. She looked around, seeing if Raihan was anywhere around but to no avail. Shoot, did I forget to put this in?? Oh, my boss is gonna kill me! She fretted as she picked it up... and saw something on it. It was small and in dark blue writing. She brought it close to her face to read it and her eyes widened in surprise and her blush darkened further (if that was even possible).

“Here’s my number if you’re interested, no pressure :) Enjoy the gum <3 - Raihan″

As the young lady started to freak out behind the till, the tall man chuckled watching her from afar, sitting on top of his Flygon. His pokemon looked up at him expectantly before he placed his large hand over its head, “Alright, alright, let’s go home.” He murmured before his pokemon took off into the night silently, sporting him away from Wyndon to Hammerlocke. He was a patient man, he had to be to handle dragon types, and it was certainly needed in the art of the hunt. If he didn’t get her that time, he’ll try again. Eventually, he’ll be able to coax that little Deerling out from the shrubs. Eventually.

[iwillhaveamoonbase]

Replay ch. 1

Did I start yet ANOTHER AU?  Yes, I did.   Callum, Ezran, Soren, and Claudia run a popular YouTube channel while Rayla is a lawyer that Callum asks to model for him. Plans for the fic to be rated E down the line.

--------------------------------------------

Callum smiled as he sat in front of the camera, Ezran, Soren and Claudia to his side.  “Hello, everyone and welcome to the first video of our new channel.  My name is Callum Evans.”

“I’m Ezran Williams.”

“Soren Ricci,” Soren winked at the camera.

“And I’m Claudia Ricci.”

Callum nodded.  “And we are going to be trying spicy snacks.” Soren and Claudia immediately paled. “We saw the video the Try Guys did and me and Ezran said ‘there’s no way half of that is that hot.’”

“Nope,” Ezran shook his head.

“And I know what you’re thinking, ‘what do you four know about spice?’  Well, first, Ezran and I are actually half-siblings.  Our mom and aunt are half-Thai and half-Korean, and if you know anything about Thai or Korean food, it’s really spicy.  My dad was mostly German and Irish, but he spent a lot of summers in India and the Sichuan area of China due to his parents’ work as translators.  So, there’s that spicy food again.”

“And my dad is half-Jamaican and half-African-American.  If you’ve never had Jamaican food, it uses a lot of herbs and spices to make everything on the flavor profile.  My grandmother, in connecting to her roots, started getting really into traditional African cuisine which tends to involve a lot of chili and warming spices.  Also, our aunt is married to a lovely woman from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, so we’ve had lot of Congolese cooking as well. The ultimate comfort food in our house is probably a West African spicy peanut soup.”

“If you’ve never had it, go make some right now,” Callum nodded.

Soren gulped.  “Claudia and I are terrible with spicy food.  I am also mildly lactose intolerant so I really hope there is no cheese here.”

“Hate it,” Claudia said. “I like a good cake or ice cream.”

“Clauds is super into dessert.”

Ezran smiled.  “As am I.  My favorite flavor profile is sweet.  I got our mom’s sweet tooth.  While Callum’s got a thing for spice.”

Callum nodded.  “My step-dad, Ezran’s dad, not only grew-up on Jamaican and traditional African dishes, he also grew-up with Brazilian neighbors who would bring traditional Brazilian barbeque, called churrasco, to all the neighborhood cook-outs.  Well, let’s stop talking about it.  Let’s get down to this.  We have all ten items the Try Guys used-”

Claudia gasped.  “Please tell me you didn’t get those rock candies!?”

“Of course, I did!” Callum set all the items on the table in the box he had put them before pulling out the candies.

Soren groaned.  “NOOO. We’re gonna die.”

Ezran sniffed.  “No, it’s a psychological thing where your brain is saying it’s on fire.”

“That doesn’t make it better.”

Callum smiled.  “Let’s do this!  First,” Callum took out the Cheetos, “Flaming Hot Cheetos.  The Try Guys didn’t use the chili lime ones, which I find a shame, because there’s more flavor in those even though they aren’t quite as spicy.”

“I agree,” Ezran said as he opened the bag.  “Chili lime is a classic flavor combination.  Put it on mango and I am pretty happy.”  The bag was passed and they all tried one.  “Not spicy at all.”

Callum ate another.  “Nope.  They’re good, but there’s no real heat there.”

Soren groaned.  “This is perfect for me.  It’s got a bit of heat, but it’s not overwhelming.”

Claudia nodded.  “I agree.  I don’t want to go hotter.”

Callum shook his head. “For those of you who are wondering, Soren and Claudia are siblings and childhood friends of me and Ezran.  Their dad and our dad are best friends.  But, when they come over for dinner, our family has to seriously downgrade the spice level or else these two freak out.”

“And,” Ezran interrupted, “when we go to their place, we have to bring our own hot sauce.  Well, that’s mostly Callum.  He carries hot sauce in his bag.”

“That’s because mango chutney doesn’t travel well.”

“See, mango chutney is almost going into too hot territory for me.  At least, the brand Callum buys is.”

“That’s because I buy authentic and get it shipped directly from a company that makes traditional chutneys here in the States.  Next snack; Takis Fuego.”  Callum held up the bag.  “This time, we got the chili lime!”

“Chili lime!” Ezran pumped both his arms up.

Callum opened the bag and took one, passing it to Ezran before moving it on to Soren and Claudia. “What I taste most is that lime flavor, which is fine with me.  I want it hotter, but I love lime, so I’m not complaining.”

“It’s not bad,” Claudia affirmed.  “I actually do like this.  Like you said, that lime is what’s really hitting, but the spicy is there.”

Ezran hummed.  “Can I have the rest of the bag when we’re done?”

“Sure.”

Soren blinked a bit.  “I think it’s spicier than you guys are giving it credit, but it’s pretty good.  I would take that lime flavor over the chili.”

“It adds to it Soren.”

“Chili is pain!”

“Life is pain!” Callum retorted.

Claudia rolled her eyes. “Not another ‘Princess Bride’ reference. You watched it once and you wouldn’t stop quoting it.”

“Inconceivable.”

Ezran raised a brow.  “‘You keep using that word.  I do not think it means what you think it means.’”  Callum laughed, high-fiving Ezran as Soren and Claudia watched on.  

“Nerds,” Claudia and Soren sang out.

“Proud of it,” came Ezran and Callum’s reply.

“OK,” Ezran said.  “What’s next?”

Callum looked at his notes. “Pulparindo!  Tamarind candy.”  Callum handed each of them their own packet.  “It’s kind of like a fruit leather.”

They went through all the snacks, Soren and Claudia progressively begging for milk as they went. “MILK!” Soren gasped on the Carolina Reaper jerky.

“You’re lactose intolerant, Soren,” Claudia coughed.

“MILDLY.”

“You guys got soy milk?”

Callum nodded.  “I keep some in the fridge in case Aunt Amaya comes over.”  Soren ran for the fridge in Callum’s house.  They weren’t planning on saying anything if the channel continued, but they were currently in Callum’s father’s childhood home.  His grandparents rented it out to him for school because they had moved into a retirement community.  He had completely renovated it and now had this room designed just for these videos.  “You OK, Soren?  We’ve got one last item, the Sonoran Spice Company’s Carolina Reaper Pebbles.”

“NOOOOO!” came Soren’s scream from the kitchen.

Ezran started laughing, taking a handful of the leftover Takis.  “Come on, Soren!  You’ve come this far.”

Claudia looked close to sobbing as she looked at the snacks on the table.  “It’s so hot.  I can’t taste my own tongue.”

“You can’t taste your tongue, Clauds.”

“SHUT UP.”  

Ezran laughed at the two as Callum snuck a few Takis for himself.  “For those of you at home, there is no denying that that jerky is hot. Callum and I just crave the heat while Soren and Claudia do not.”

Soren finally came back, sighing as he looked at the camera.  “I’m gonna die.”

Callum opened the candy, pouring a few into his hands and passing it over to the others.  Ezran took more while Soren and Claudia each only took two. “That’s all you want?” Callum asked.

“YES,” came the combined response from Soren and Claudia.  The four put it in their mouths together.  Immediately, Soren and Claudia freaked out, reaching for the white bread Callum had brought them earlier.  Callum and Ezran coughed a bit, but, for the most part, they had built up a tolerance that didn’t make it as painful as if they had gone right to the candy.

Ezran nodded.  “It’s hot.  No denying it.  But, I think the jerky was hotter.”

Callum nodded as well. “No doubt, jerky was a bit hotter. But I picked the candy last because of how the Try Guys reacted to it.  I was wondering if maybe it was the hottest thing.”

“It’s too hot,” Claudia said around a mouthful of bread.  “It’s like torture.”  Soren whimpered in response, gulping more of his soy milk.

“Well, I guess that’s all the time we got.  Please subscribe to our channel as we continue to, most likely, eat food or, maybe just do whatever we want.  ‘Til next time.”

Soren turned to Callum. “Why do you get to do the sign-off?”

“Because this was my idea.”

“You almost killed me!”

--------------------------------

Rayla snorted as she walked into the cheese shop with her coworkers.  Maybe it was Runaan’s influence, but she was a bit of a cheese snob. Scottish food was mostly friend, but Runaan had grown up in England and spent a few years in France, leading to strong feelings about what made a good cheese, but she had not been impressed with any of the cheeses her coworkers considered ‘good.’  “I’m telling you, you have to go to an actual cheesemonger. The grocery is not good enough. At least go to a delicatessen.”

“Rayla, we’re lawyers. We don’t have time to go to a cheesemonger and have them select a variety of cheeses for us.”

“We do blue sky, fraud. We have time.”  Rayla walked in, making sure her suit was still well-pressed. She didn’t like a wrinkled suit when she paid good money to get it dry-cleaned.  When they looked around, they saw a group of four at a table, several cameras around them and a few people also there.  Her cheesemonger, Marcos, was talking to them.  She saw a jar of one of her favorites, Meredith Dairy Marinated Goat, on the table.  “The kind they have on the table?  It’s really good.  Spreads amazingly on bread.”

One of the guys at the table, a young man with green eyes looked over and did a double-take.  She made eye contact, slightly startled by just how green his eyes were.  The rest of the table looked over at the group, a few jaws hanging open.  Marcos smiled over at her, walking over.  “Rayla!  Sorry, we’re filming a video right now.  Did you want to get your usual?”

“That’ll work.  I was hoping to convert my coworkers to actual decent cheese because if I went to one more office party where someone brought an unaged cheddar and no other options, I was going to lose my mind.”

“Got it.  Let me go get that cheese for you.”

Rayla’s coworker raised a brow.  “Now what?”

“We go back to the office and try it.  Because once it gets home, it’s not leaving my apartment unless it’s part of my lunch.” Rayla walked around the shop, ignoring the video going on until she heard some hissing.  She turned her head, making eye contact with the boy from before again.  He gulped, walking forward.  Out of the corner of her eye, she saw one of her coworkers, Kasef, glare at him.  “Back off, Kasef,” she muttered to herself.

“Hey,” the guy stuttered a bit as he made it to her.

“Hello,” she answered. His eyes went wider, probably at her distinctly Scottish accent.  “Yes, my accent is real.  I grew up in Aberdeen, Scotland.  Can I help you?”

The boy flushed.  “Yes, actually.  My name is Callum Evans.  I’m an artist and I would love to paint you.”

Rayla tilted her head. It was a unique come-on.  “What’s that video your doing?  Art?”

“YouTube.  It’s a thing I do with my brother and my childhood friends. Being an artist isn’t the most lucrative thing if you don’t do graphic design.  I do commissions and try to sell my art, but there’s always low points. YouTube helps off-set that.”

“Fair.  YouTubers don’t really have a good reputation.”

“I know.  We’re not involved in any of that drama or crazy stuff going on.  Claudia does make-up, but, she mostly sticks within our circle of food YouTubers.”

“Mostly food?”

“Mostly food.”

Rayla nodded.  “How do I know you’re an artist?”

Callum reached for his phone.  “Here’s my Instagram and a couple of my sketches that I haven’t posted yet.”  He handed her the phone for her to look through.

“You sure you trust me with your phone?”

“Not really, but I’m a stranger asking to draw you.  Some level of give and take has to happen here.”

“I agree.”  Rayla went through his art, humming as she saw the variety of subjects, though he tended to focus on people.  There were a lot of pictures of the same three women.  “You like drawing women?”

“That’s my mom, my aunt, and my aunt’s wife.  You’ll also see pictures of my grandmothers and Claudia.”  Rayla looked closely at a few of the pictures.  She could see the family resemblance between him and some of the women, particularly in the jawline and cheekbones.  

She paused on a picture of one of the women he looked like and another one of the three he drew often. They were smiling at each other, flushes on their cheeks.  “This picture is beautiful.”

“Thanks.  That was at their engagement party.”

“I’m sold.”

“Really?” Callum asked, looking like he couldn’t believe she would say yes.  She couldn’t believe it either.

“I have four parents. My biological parents are bodyguards for a member of the royal family and were travelling a lot so I was raised by their best friends, Runaan and Ethari.  I got a lot of teasing as a kid for having two dads.  If you can draw these two as unabashedly in love as you do, I’m sold on you as a person.  I’m Rayla Burrows.”  She stuck out her head, giving a slight smile as a he took it.  “You have a decent grip.”

“My step-dad taught me how to do a good handshake.  Can I have your number so we can plan this?”

“Do you have a studio?”

“Yes…in my house.”

Rayla paused.  “Would it bother you if I asked someone I know to come?”

“Not at all.  Whatever makes you comfortable.”  They exchanged numbers and Callum walked off, looking back at her every few moments.  Marcos finally came back with her cheese, smiling.  As she walked out of the shop with her coworkers, she cast one last look at the group.  Callum Evans…interesting.            

[ryqoshay]

How to Handle a Nico - The No. 1 Masseuse in the Universe

Primary Pairing: NicoMaki Words: ~1.8k Rating: T’ish? Time Frame: Summer break of Maki’s 2nd year of high school and Nico’s 1st year of college. Story Arc: “Beach Reunion” Sunscreen The No. 1 Masseuse in the Universe

Author’s Note: This was originally intended to be about a 100 - 200 word addition to the end of Sunscreen, but I thought I might be able to build a full scene around it. So I did.

I’m also hoping my readers have seen the LL movie by now, as it’s referenced a little bit here.

And here she comes… Nico thought to herself as she spied a certain meddlesome purple haired girl heading in her direction. Ughn… that smug face of hers… Unfortunately, Nico was busy tending the grill as her part of preparing dinner for the group and thus had no means of escaping the teasing she knew was incoming.

“Ne~, Nicocchi~,” Nozomi drawled as she approached “I heard someone was having a bit of fun earlier.” She emphasized the word heard, accompanied by a wholly unnecessarily waggle of her eyebrows.

“Shut up, Nozomi.” Nico grumbled, trying to make it obvious she was focusing on the meat skewers in front of her.

But of course, someone like Nozomi would never just let something like this go. “You and Maki-chan seem to be getting along nicely as of late.” She continued. “I haven’t even heard much of your usual study session bickering. Are you two perhaps making some progress I should know about?”

“No.” Nico dismissed flatly. “And you know the reasons why.”

“I see, well, that’s too bad.” At least that part sounded sincere. “I still think you two would make a cute couple, and you know I’m here to support you however things go.”

“I know.” Nico nodded. “Say, what’s that behind your back?”

“Oh, Elicchi and I just prepared some fruit kebobs” Nozomi revealed the food “with the extra sticks and thought the No. 1 Grill Master in the Universe would be willing to cook them up.”

“Wow, those look amazing.” Nico marveled. “I mean,” she puffed out her chest with pride “of course Nico would be more than happy to reveal more of her mastery of the flame.” She clapped her tongs together a couple times for emphasis.

Nozomi giggled and started to place the kebobs onto the grate.

“Wait, not quite…” Nico snapped up one of the meat skewers and turned it for inspection “well, maybe it’s fine. Uhm, hand me that plate so I can put these on it.”

“Here you go.” The purple-haired girl did as instructed.

“And don’t be stealing any of these before putting them out on the table.” The raven-haired girl warned.

“I wouldn’t dream of it.”

“Uh-huh…”

Once the plate was full, Nozomi turned and began to walk away.

“So that was it?” Nico couldn’t help asking.

“Hmm?” The other girl paused and turned to look back over her shoulder.

“I mean…”

The Cheshire cat grin returned. “Don’t worry, Nicocchi, the cards told me something good will happen very soon.”

“Hrm… Hey! What did I say about taking…” Nico was about to chase after Nozomi when she remembered the freshly loaded fruit kebobs that now needed tending.

“Oh, Mama just messaged me” Maki announced, retrieving her phone as the credits began to roll for the movie the girls had just finished “she says she’s sorry for not remembering earlier, but the staff moved all of the futons to one of our other places for some retreat a friend of hers hosted last week and they haven’t been able to bring them back.”

“So, we can’t all sleep here like the other times?” Honoka asked.

“Well, we could.” The redhead acknowledged. “I’m sure there are enough blankets, but there are four bedrooms we could use if we don’t mind sharing.”

“So kinda like our New York trip?”

“Something like that, though each room only has one bed...”

“That’s fine! Umi-chan and Kotori-chan and I can share one.”

“The biggest guestroom is at the end of the hall.”

“Alright, let’s go to bed!” Honoka cheered, grabbing the arms of her two fellow third-years.

“H-Honoka…” Umi protested verbally, though didn’t appear to offer any appreciable resistance. “You had better not start snacking on chips the moment the lights go out.”

“That was just one time!” The orange-haired girl pouted.

“More like pretty much every time…”

“Don’t worry, Umi-chan,” Kotori chimed in “I’ll be sure to check her bag for any contraband.”

“Kotori-chan!” Honoka whined. “You two are mean.” Though despite her words, she continued to drag her friends up the stairs toward the room she had claimed for them.

“Rin and Kayo-chin are fine with the smallest bedroom.” Rin proclaimed next. “We’re used to sharing a bed these days, nya!” She pulled the other second-year into a one-armed hug.

“Rin-chan…” Hanayo murmured but didn’t disagree.

“Actually, the remaining two guest rooms are the same size.” Maki explained.

“You’re taking the master bedroom, Maki-chan?” Nozomi asked of the host.

“Of course, I thought that much was obvious.”

“Then Elicchi and I will take whichever room Rin-chan and Hanayo-chan don’t use.” She tossed a quick wink to Nico.

“See you all in the morning.” Eli said before yawning and following her girlfriend.

“So, that leaves…” Nico turned to the other remaining occupant of the living room.

“You can stay with me in the master bedroom.” Maki offered quietly. “If that’s alright with you, of course.”

If it’s alright? Nico thought to herself. Of course, it’s alright! This is how I wanted the room arrangements to be in New York!

But instead of giving voice to these thoughts, what came out of Nico’s mouth was “I suppose it can’t be helped. Nico will grace Maki’s bed with her presence tonight.”

“Or you can sleep on the couch.” The younger girl motioned to the mentioned sofa.

Nico giggled before striking a dramatic pose and held out her hand. “Lead the way to the master suite, Maki-ojou-sama.” She teased with the title she had heard used by the Nishikino household staff.

Maki rolled her eyes but took the older girl’s hand anyway as the two headed up the stairs.

“Ne, Nico-chan…”

“Mmm?” Nico looked up from the idol site she was browsing on her phone and took in a pleasing view.

Maki had just exited the bathroom, clad in her favorite purple pajamas with white stars and still drying her hair. She had insisted that since Nico was the guest that the older girl take the first turn in the tub and was now done with her own.

“About that offer of a massage…”

“Oh ho!” Nico couldn’t help feeling a bit giddy. As if sharing a room wasn’t enough to make her believe Nozomi’s prediction, this certainly solidified things. “Maki-chan is anxious to take advantage of the No. 1 Masseuse in the Universe’s skills already?”

“Just realized in the bath that I’m a little sore after everything we did today.” Maki admitted.

“Someone having a bit too much fun?” Nico happily added a sing-song tone to her voice.

“…” Maki puffed out a frustrated breath as she made her way toward the bed.

“Well, Nico is ready to provide the service, even if Maki-chan hasn’t paid for it yet.”

“You know I’m good for it.” Maki lay down on her stomach. “Besides, I’d probably end up helping you anyway, even without this; heck I’ve probably already paid for it several times over.”

“You sure you want to strike an attitude with someone about to give you a massage?”

Maki sighed. “No, you’re right. It’s just that cram school has been really stressful lately…”

“Yeah,” Nico said, getting up off the bed “I figured that when you upped your order from quad to quint.”

“Nico-chan?”

“Just getting you some water. I’ve read studies recently that say drinking before a massage may actually be better than after, as the water is already starting to work through your system when the toxins are released from the massage.”

“Hrm…”

“Trust me. Here.” Nico held out a bottle.

“Alright.” Maki accepted the water and drank a good portion of it before handing the remainder back. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” Nico put the bottle on the nightstand.

“Anyway, this little vacation has honestly been the best break I could ask for…” Maki continued. “And… I’m happy you’re here with me for it.”

“Wouldn’t have it any other way.” Nico couldn’t help smiling at the unexpected, but by no means unappreciated honesty. “Nico always enjoys her time with her favoritest Maki-chan.”

Maki hummed an affirmative response.

“So, how thick are the walls here?”

“Hm?”

“Because…” Nico placed her hands on the other girl’s back. Immediately, she found one of the knots she had noticed earlier that day and pressed into it with her thumb.

“Ughn…” Maki pressed her face into the duvet.

“That’s why.”

“I’ll… be fine…”

“So you say…” Nico chuckled as the redhead was forced to muffle herself again.

As Nico found yet another knot, she wondered how hard she should work it. She had taught herself many advanced techniques over the years to help her mother deal with the stress of working multiple jobs, and nowadays to help a certain roommate deal with tensions stemming from things that made Nico jealous. As such, if she really put her weight into things, she could probably completely alleviate most of the smaller knots, if not a few of the larger ones as well.

However, it was almost time to turn in for the night and the group still had another day of fun planned as well as a long train ride back to Tokyo. She didn’t want to leave Maki too sore because as much as the tsundere’ish girl would deny it if confronted, she would want to participate in tomorrow’s activities. With this in mind, Nico decided to keep things on the lighter, more relaxing side. If Maki enjoyed the massage and its benefits, Nico could offer another one later that would leave the redhead unwilling to leave the couch the next day.

Of course, with that thought, Nico began imagining other things she could do to Maki that would leave her sprawled out on the bed, exhausted. For example, she could…

No. Nico shook her head. Focus. Now is very much not the time for that… We’re not even going out yet! … yet… She sighed with that last thought.

Having been lost in her own mind for so long, Nico suddenly realized that whatever conversation she had been holding with Maki had ceased, likely a while ago.

“Maki-chan?” Nico ventured quietly.

Silence.

Did she fall asleep? Nico smirked to herself before leaning over to confirm her suspicions. Sure enough, Maki’s eyes were closed and her breathing had slowed to a soft and steady rhythm. Good thing I had you drink beforehand. Nico glanced at the mostly empty bottle on the nightstand. Or else you’d really be sore in the morning.

Now Nico faced a dilemma, Should she wake Maki so she could get under the covers or find something else to use and let her sleep? Hrm… Nico eyed the closet door for a moment before getting off the bed to investigate. Thankfully, her suspicious proved correct as she located a small collection of folded blankets. As it was summer, she chose the lightest one and brought it back to the bed.

As Nico spread the blanket over Maki, she noted that it was not the right size for the humongous mattress and as such, it didn’t leave much room for her. She could, of course, just retrieve a second blanket, but… After a moment, Nico shrugged and slid in close to the other girl.

“Good night, Maki-chan.” Nico murmured as she pulled her share of the blanket over herself and closed her eyes.

Author’s Notes Continued in Followup Post

[time-to-cause-chaos]

when the bad nights hit (i will always be there for you)

Okay so tbh, i don’t really love this but whatever also art is at the bottom but idk why i made it, i can’t art or anything someone stop me, also this is literally just an excuse for me to write Peter and Harley as bros

AO3 link   Words:1,750

Harley Keener and Peter Parker were not depressed.  Not in a way that was suicidal or too self-deprecating, at least.  

But they still had those bad days where the sun could be shining, and there would be happy music playing in the background of the day, and everything could be perfectly alright, but they would still feel like they wanted to sag to the floor, tune out everyone and cry.  

Or it could just have been an awful day and their moods decided to drop, making everything awful.

Some days it was worse than others, and it was somewhat okay now. They would always help the other through their bad days.  

The fun time though, was when they both were having bad days at the same time, and they’d just sit and be completely out of it with each other, not even trying to fix it.  

Today was one of those days.

Harley was staying at the Tower for a week during his(and coincidentally Peter’s) winter break.  Which, of course, meant Peter was staying at the Tower too (and dragging May along with him).  

They had a whole week of activities planned to make Tony’s hair go gray faster than it already was, planned.  Somewhere along the way, MJ and Ned were definitely involved too, probably against their will but it was fine.

They definitely had fun the first few days but then one day it was frigid, everything was a shade of grey, and it seemed like the air they breathed was trying to suffocate them.  Both were too stubborn to admit it, though, so now you have 2 gloomy teenagers who were trying to hide it.  Anyone can see what problems that would cause.  

Admittedly, it was absolutely hilarious to see Mr.Stark and May jump when they planted the glitter bombs in the kitchen for breakfast, but it wasn’t as funny as it would usually be.  You could say it even made the day worse.

Peter and Harley are stubborn - it’s mostly Harley though, and Mr.Stark jokes that he corrupted Peter - and because of that, neither admitted they wanted to just take a nap.  

They had eaten dinner, it was spaghetti from one of Mr.Stark’s favorite places.  They joked and talked across the table, telling May what they had done, while constantly switched between scolding them and laughing.  Neither of them were really into it though.

Truth be told, everyone was exhausted, teachers believed winter break meant they could give extra homework (which literally makes no sense), Tony had been stuck in meetings most of the day, and May’s shift was long and tiring.  It was just a really tiring day.

The two boys had mostly just watched movies on the couch the whole day and worked on the calculus the whole day and it was pretty boring.  

So now they were going to bed at 11, which wasn’t that late but Mr.Stark threatened to call Pepper so they didn’t really have a choice- you can’t go against Pepper, everyone knows that.

At 12:23 when Peter came stumbling into Harley’s room, he wasn’t surprised, he’d actually been waiting.   

“Where’ve you been Parker?” getting up and rolling his eyes ”, o to your room and grab some blankets and pillows”

Peter looked very idiotic to Harley at that moment, he was only weaning sweatpants and a t-shirt, looking too much like a deer caught in the headlights. 

“W-wait, what?”

“We’re going out, duh, how’d you get into a STEM school?”  Harley was already throwing stuff into a bag.

“Ok, geez go easy,  ‘m half asleep” He looked down at himself, ”I’m wearing my pyjamas”

“Then go and put clothes on,”  he sighed dramatically before shooing Peter out of the room”, now go, and meet me in the living room”

10 minutes later

Harley threw one of his hoodies to Peter as he walked in

“Come on”

Peter let his arm be tugged along by his pseudo brother, and was surprised when they stopped in front of one of Tony’s trucks.

“We’re driving?”

“You want to walk? Come on get in”

“Why does Tony even have a truck?”  Peter said while getting in

“Probably from his playboy days because I haven’t seen him touch this beauty once,”, Harley spoke, running a light finger across the dash.

“Didn’t you just get your license?”

“Yup, and I’m going to abuse it all I want, now stop asking questions”

“Where are we going?”

Harley stayed quiet and pulled out of the parking garage.

“So you’re not telling me?”  nothing “Okay fine, whatever”

Peter wanted to know where they were going but he knew Harley wouldn’t budge, Harley was annoying like that,  he’d just be wasting breath.

Less than 15 minutes later they pulled into a McDonald’s drive-thru, 

Ok so just a midnight snack, Peter thought,  that shouldn’t get us into to much trouble, except Peter knew there was more, this was Harley Keener for god’s sake

“I’m getting milkshakes, now, strawberry, chocolate, or vanilla?”

“Chocolate”

“Thank god these things are open 24/7,”  Harley said

Peter hummed in agreement

“Hi there, can we get 2 large chocolate milkshakes and 3 large fries...yes that’s all, thank you”

“Why 3 fries?”

“Because if I don’t you’re going to eat all of mine” he deadpanned

“I wouldn’t if you’d just share” Peter mumbles

Harley looked incredulous, “last time I shared you literally ate them all”

Peter gave him a shit-eating grin, “ You love me”

“Sometimes I wonder why”

“Meanie”

“Ha-ha”

They pulled up to the window and the second Harley handed one to Peter, he started slurping it up

“Slow down” he took the drink from Peter, “You’re going to finish it all”

Peter very maturely stuck his tongue out at him and tried to take the milkshake back.

“Nuh-uh nope, not until we get there” Harley reprimanded, pulling the drink farther with one hand and steering with the other.  

“Get where, Harley”

Harley didn’t answer

“I hate you,” Peter said

“No, you don’t,” Harley said barely even glancing at Peter 

They sat quietly, munching fries, at one point Harley turned on the radio, and some cheery  ho-lucky music came on. 

“Nope,” Harley grimaced and shut it off “Really it’s like 1 am”

“They have no taste” Peter mumbled

20 minutes later, Harley spoke, spooking Peter who was looking out the window in a stupor.

“We’re here”

Harley was pulled onto a grass field bordering a forest.  They were parked under a massive tree that partially hid the maroon truck in the shadows.

“What blanket did you bring?”

Peter reached down and pulled up a spiderman blanket, Harley rolled his eyes.

“You only brought one?” Harley said with distaste

“You didn’t even tell me where we’re going!” Peter accused

“It’s winter in New York”

“So?” Peter questioned

“You’re lucky I came prepared.”

Harley was definitely prepared, he brought 2 thick blankets, multiple pillows,  and extra hoodies.

Harley gestures for him to get out, “Come on help me set up”

Peter at his point knew what they were doing and he loved Harley for it.  He grinned, “Alright” he stepped out, “Shit, it’s cold”

“I gave you one of my hoodies,”  Harley said 

“Oh yeah”  while Peter was pulling it on Harley went to the cargo bed of the truck (which was empty) and laid a sheet down before throwing on the blankets and pillows.

He had also brought portable fairy lights and set them up so that they were on the back window hanging above them. 

They both sat back and Harley pulled out a laptop. 

“Here now you can have your drink,” he said, handing it to him “also what do you want to watch?”

They both decided on Onward, it had come out recently and they had both wanted to watch it.

Peter interrupted halfway through it by shivering and pulling Harley’s blanket more to him, “It’s freezing” he whined.

Harley snorted at that since Peter was taking up all the blankets already.

“It’s because you’re part spider, doofus”

The credits rolled 50 minutes later with them both leaning against each other, heavily.

“That ‘as a n’ce movie” Peter mumbles, half-asleep

“Yeah, it got sappy though” 

“Rem’nds me of ‘s”

“Yeah, makes sense, I’m that cool older brother”

Peter snorts, “Barley wasn't that cool”

“Are you kidding me, he sent his van flying.  That counts as cool to me”

They sat in silence for a couple of minutes with Peter trying not to nod off.

“I don’t want to drive back,” Harley says, “I’m tired”

“So what? We’re sleeping here?”

Harley’s already laying down, “Yep”

After a few minutes, Peter blinked awake for a couple of seconds, “This was fun, thanks”

“No problem, today was terrible”

“Love you Harls” Peter’s face is half-buried in the pillows

“Don’t get sappy, Parker” then “...love you too”

“...Did you tell May where we were?  If we get in trouble, i’m pinning it on you”

“Shushh”

At 4 am Harley woke to the sound of repulsors, without missing a beat he said, “You worried about us?”

“Not at all, Keener,”  Tony said stepping out of the suit 

“That’s a lie, old man”

“Old man!” he said faking offense

“Mm-hmm could hear your joints cracking from here” he sat up, untangled his legs from Peter’s,  and looked at Tony.  Tony’s looking at the truck, “I remember this one, Rhodey actually helped me pick this one,” he sighed “haven’t used it since college though… anyway is Peter up?”

“Probably,” Harley said flicking the younger boy’s head

“OW, fine i’m up,” Peter said, sitting up

“Geez, you too look like raccoons, how much sleep did you two get?” Tony said stepping onto the truck with them

“We got like 2 hours” Peter supplied

“So, I suppose you don’t want to go back to the Tower right now?”  he asked

“Oh hell Nah, I’m going back to sleep, it’s still dark,” Harley said laying back down and snuggling into the blankets

“Me too” Peter added, following Harley 

“Well I’m not going back to the Tower, just to come back for you guys,” Tony said

“Then join us,” Harley said with an arm wrapped around Peter

“Fine,” he said right after snapping a pic of the two boys

Harley opened his eyes, “You better delete that” 

“No way, it’s getting framed and sent to May and Pepper” Tony smiled, and eventually it did end up getting framed.  It was one of Tony’s favorite pictures to look at.

oh my god i hate this art sm but idc at this point-

[redshirtgal]

At the beginning of “Catspaw” Lt. Jackson opens communications with Uhura and says “One to beam up, Enterprise!” Shortly after Captain Kirk and Dr. McCoy reach the transporter room, Jackson begins to materialize and then falls flat to the floor without moving a muscle. It almost hurts to watch, but it is just one of the perfectly executed stunts performed by Jay Jones. Jones recalls that at the time, he had never watched the show. So when he received his copy of the script, he was puzzled by the phrase “beam up.” It took until the next day for him to find out after he had flagged down a young boy on a bicycle and asked. By the way, look at Shatner’s quick reaction as Jones tumbles past his feet. Some fancy footwork there, Captain!

But this was not the only place you saw him during this episode. During the scene just after Korob dies trying to help Kirk and Spock escape, the two are attacked by Sulu, Scotty, and Bones himself - all under the control of Sylvia, of course. In the photo above, that is not Dr. McCoy you see attempting to swing a morning-star. That is his stunt double, Jay Jones. Jay claimed that Gene Roddenberry took a liking to him and sent the word down that he should be given all the work he wanted.

Jay played a number of other crewmen in the series, and several times his stuntman experience came in handy. In the redshirt bloodbath episode known as “The Apple,” he appeared as Ensign Mallory. The hapless young man was not there when Spock first found out the rocks were explosive. While scouting, he manages to find another one the hard way and is killed. This was one of the two episodes where Jones suffered serious injuries. In this case, he had even lobbied director Joe Pevney to do the stunt, saying he did not want to do it “the Mickey Mouse way.” Pevney refused the request at first because of the danger and then relented. According to Jay, there was a jumper trampoline buried under the ground that he was supposed to hit and then the explosive would go off. However, the special effects person timed it just a split second too late. In his own words, “The force hit me in the stomach, burned my side, blew the skin off my rib cage and impacted all this dirt into my sinuses. I couldn’t open my eyes or breathe.” Still, he told an interviewer that it could have been a lot worse even though he did wind up in an emergency room. (The explosion also caused short term hearing loss in both Shatner and Nimoy as well as permanent tinnitus). Most of his roles did not involve much dialogue, but he had his largest number of lines in this episode. 

Actually, his worst injuries on the set occurred on another episode, ”Who Mourns for Adonais?” This time he was doubling for James Doohan as Scotty. The first injury occurred when Apollo slaps Scotty and Jay had to do a backflip over the stone table shown in the above photo.  The first time, he hit the corner, so the table was chained down for the next attempt.  This time, he caught the table’s edge in the kidneys. Already sore from that injury, he had to do another stunt where he was strapped into a wire vest, raised up six feet in the air and then propelled backward.  In the stunt industry, it’s known as a neckbreaker.  However, the wire pulley yanked him four or five yards farther than planned and he went through the wall, striking his head on the concrete floor.  He was taken to the hospital with a concussion. And actually Jay did have a stroke of good fortune - he narrowly missed another prop which could have caused an even more serious injury (according to The Star Trek Compendium). Again, he brushed off the injury as not all that bad.

 Despite these injuries Jay Jones continued as Scotty’s stunt double for two years. Above you see him encountering a railing on the bridge in “The Changeling.” (Scotty certainly got smacked around a lot, didn’t he?) And he would often double for other guest stars. More on that later. In the book Science Fiction Television Series, Jay claimed that he was the unofficial stunt coordinator for The Original Series. He would come up with new stunts and work with the directors and cameramen on how best to implement them in certain episodes. Jay complimented Star Trek on calling back the same stunt people to work again because they all were familiar with the production staff and had built a rapport with them and each other. He said in some TV series, the director sometimes asked the impossible and could have possibly gotten someone killed. On the Star Trek set, he knew the directors cared about the stunt workers.

And he continued as an extra in episodes during that time, including one as the gangster Mirt in “A Piece of the Action” and several as an engineer. You would think he’d want to stay as far away from a redshirt as he could after his injuries.

Jay got to appear as a Klingon three times during his time on Star Trek. His first appearance was as Tige Andrew’s stunt double in the role of Kras in “Friday’s Child.” (left) And he doubled for Ned Romero as Krell in “A Private Little War.” (top right). He donned the Klingon costume one last time as one of Kang’s crewmen in “Day of the Dove.”

And what does Pavel Chekov have to do with this story? Jay Jones says that there was a push to add some more recurring characters at the time he made his first appearance on “Catspaw.” In fact, they asked him if he would try out some accents in a few test shots. However, he had recently tried a French accent in a stage production and botched it terribly, so he refused. Only later did he realize he would have been trying out for the role that eventually became that of Chekov. Oh, well.... at least he didn’t have to wear that terrible wig until his own hair grew in.

Jimmy (”Jay”) D. Jones came to Hollywood after being in the rodeo circuit. His first work as a stuntman on television was in The Man From U.N.C.L.E. where he was often Robert Vaughn’s stunt double. He also had an acting part in one episode - that of  Professor Walter Powers in the episode “Yo-ho-ho and a Bottle of Rum.” This was the job he left when he joined Star Trek. (credit to Brad Fillipone for finding the above photos for me)

Jay came from good stuntman stock. His dad was Carl Pitti, a very well known stuntman/actor in the industry who had worked on such shows as The High Chaparral. He was Henry Darrow’s double in his role of Manolito for an episode.

Interesting side note: Carl Pitti was a fan of The Original Series and watched it religiously. But he was aghast when he watched his son get thrown in the air by the mistimed explosion in “The Apple.” Jay said it literally made his dad sick to his stomach.

Jay often appeared in the same series as his father, starting with The Man from U.N.C.L.E. After Star Trek ended, he was also stuntman for The High Chaparral and appeared in the episode “Alliance” as Lt. Cooper. (Photo above)

Jay appeared on other Westerns as well. In fact, he doubled for Slim Pickens in a brutal bullwhipping scene in the 1967 movie Rough Night in Jericho. He used the same bullwhipping skills against Dan Blocker (Hoss) in a 1971 episode of Bonanza titled “Kingdom of Fear.”

One of his last acting jobs was in Kung Fu, playing a demon Caine encounters in the spiritual world during the episode “One Step to Darkness.” If you want to watch that segment of the show, here is a link. https://youtu.be/EDmvigzLJHw

In 1977, Jones left stunt work and acting for the racquetball courts. He began playing the amateur circuit in the 1972-73 area. Despite getting off to a rough start, in 1975 he won the national amateur division at Las Vegas. From there, he began competing in the pros and over the years had a decent showing. Keep in mind he was in his thirties when he started and most of the pros were a lot younger. He did win the 1981 U.S. National Singles Championship for his age group of 35+. Jay was interviewed in 1977 by the Tucson Daily Citizen after he had advanced to the semifinals of of the Tucson Pro-Am Racquetball Tournament. He admitted to using a mini-receiver which emitted a steady hum that helped him concentrate. But it also allowed him to hear advice from a friend who was women’s pro player as well. The interviewer went on to mention that Jay Jones was also a hypnotist and psychologist. Now how amazing is that?

Above photo - Hall of Famer Ed Remen and Jay Jones at the men’s semi-finals. Unknown what year, but from the website where it appeared, most likely around 1981. Jay is on the right.

Over the years, Jay Jones seems to be quite active, appearing at conventions for The High Chaparral (above he appears on an interview panel for the 50th anniversary) And I am not positive about this, but he may be the reporter whose byline is Jay Jones in at least two articles for the Los Angeles Times. In a 2013 article, he reports on a charity racquetball event. And in a story dated this past May, the same person reports on a rodeo event. What other person do we know who has experience in both activities?

Jay Jones!

[jae-bummer]

An Earthworm’s Purpose

Request: Hi Kay!! I’ve been binge reading your fics and I’m in love with your writing 😫 Can I request a scenario/imagine of Monsta X’s Wonho? Super fluffy, Wonho is on tour and reader is missing him (they’re dating), Wonho is on his way home to reader & reader has no idea. Reader goes to bed and is woken up by Wonho crawling into bed. Also sorry if I dictated that wayyyy too much but I thought about it and thought you could bring it to life ☺️     

Pairing: Monsta X Wonho x Reader

Genre: Fluff

**Disclaimer: GIF is not mine! if you know who it belongs to, please let a girl know so i can give credit!!)

.

“It says poor connection,” you grumbled, flopping over in your bed. Your boyfriend’s image had become obscured by the blurry iPhone screen.

“Really? Everything is coming through on my side!” Wonho’s chipper voice called from the abyss. You could tell he was smiling, even without seeing his face.

“Oh good, so you can still see all of my unattractive features from this angle,” you laughed, making sure to emphasize your multiplied chins.

Wonho let out an amused giggle, one he normally did before nuzzling his face into you. “Even when you try to look like an earthworm, you are still a butterfly.”

“And what makes the butterfly superior to the earthworm?” you gasped in mock offense. “Earthworms have purpose, and what is the purpose of the butterfly?”

“To make me smile,” he chuckled. “But that’s my personal answer, I’m sure someone much smarter than me has a better answer.”

“According to Google, butterflies exist to be eaten by other things,” you muttered, squinting at your screen.

“No wonder you’re so tasty,” Wonho laughed.

“You’re so greasy,” you groaned, flipping back to your FaceTime call. Wonho’s face was still hidden by a poor connection.

“I was wondering why your screen paused,” he sighed. “I should have known you would be searching something.”

“You know me,” you grinned. “I always want the right answer.”

“Oh? So is there a right answer to every question then?” he teased.

“Absolutely,” you nodded. “Speaking of, I have a question.”

“Of course you do,” he laughed, his face finally popping on your phone screen.

“Ah, there you are!” you smiled easily.

“While I would love to distract you now that you can actually see me,” Wonho cooed. “The anticipation is killing me. What’s the question?”

“Fine,” you hummed. “When are you coming home?”

Wonho’s beaming face slowly sank into a solemn expression. He heaved a deep sigh before beginning to bite his lip. “Y/N.”

“Remember, there is a wrong answer,” you prodded, trying to keep the atmosphere light-hearted. Judging by his expression, you knew whatever he was about to say was already tearing him up inside.

“Then maybe I shouldn’t answer at all,” he said quietly, his eyes looking past the camera and into his hotel room.

“Not giving an answer is just as bad as giving the wrong one,” you chided. “Now don’t look so serious!”

“How can I not be!” he groaned. “When I know what I have to say will only bring you heartache.”

“It’s all about presentation,” you grinned. If he were beside you, you would have been poking his pecks. That would have made him laugh.

“Not soon enough,” he sighed, finally allowing some sort of answer to be heard.

“Which is?” you continued.

“Weeks?” he winced. “Over a month?”

“Over a month,” you croaked. “Not the right answer.”

“But it was the truth,” he nodded. “You can’t fault me for choosing not to lie to you. Kihyun’s partner has been convinced he would be coming home for at least two weeks now.”

“I appreciate the truth,” you sighed. “It still doesn’t mean that I want to hear it though.”

“Have I told you how gorgeous you are?” he said with another small wince.

“Flattery is not a bandage, sir,” you grumbled.

“I thought you would want me to say something you like to hear,” he murmured.

“What I would like to hear is that you’re coming home,” you muttered.

Wonho sighed again as he stared with pitiful eyes into the camera. He reminded you of a battered puppy on one of those animal shelter commercials.

“Don’t look at me like that,” you grumbled.

“I’m just looking at you,” he said quietly, his pout somehow growing deeper.

“The hell you are!” you gasped. “Now I just feel guilty.”

“It’s getting late,” Wonho managed. He looked away from the screen before scrubbing a hand roughly through his hair.

Now you felt bad. You knew what it looked like when Wonho began to shut down, and you loathed yourself whenever you were the one responsible for it.

“Jagi,” you said with a slight whine.

“I’ll talk to you tomorrow, okay?” he continued, chewing on his lip. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” you said quietly, remorse coating your every thought.

Without another word, Wonho disconnected the call.

You knew you were being selfish and immature, but when Wonho traveled, the distance really seemed to become endless. Letting out a breathy groan, you flopped onto your stomach and stuffed your face into the thick blanket on your bed.

Why did things have to be so hard?

.

Wonho grimaced as he hung up the phone.

“Tell me,” Minhyuk said softly, filing his nails. “How does it feel to be a big, fat, LIAR.”

“Well, I think you took it a bit far with the “fat” part,” Wonho pouted. “But just so you know, it felt terrible.”

“Good because it should,” Minhyuk nodded. “Y/N deserved the actual truth.”

“But if I said the actual truth, then it would ruin the surprise!” Wonho gasped.

“Oh, you only call it a surprise because Kihyun threatened to skewer and barbecue you if you told Y/N the truth and it got down the grapevine to whoever he’s dating,” Minhyuk sighed. “Personally I thought you would be a waste to skewer and barbecue, too much muscle.”

“But you just called me fat,” Wonho muttered.

“Not when it comes to cannibalism,” Minhyuk laughed. “Only lying.”

“Why do you make things so weird?” Wonho winced, shaking his head as he plopped beside his friend.

“I’m so unappreciated,” Minhyuk whined.

Wonho rolled his eyes before putting an arm around the younger man. “You’ll be just fine...

...and so will Y/N when I end up coming home early.”

.

.

You scrunched your lips, attempting to blow at the rogue strand of hair that had fallen over your forehead. Furrowing your brows, you leaned against your front door as you attempted the action while simultaneously sliding off your shoes. It was late, and you weren’t surprised to see the clock close to the AM hours as you struggled over your threshold. With Wonho out of town and barely responding to your texts, you had thrown yourself into your work. It felt nice to think about things that didn’t concern him when he was all that you craved.

You knew you had been wrong in your last call. You knew you weren’t being fair to him and were well aware of his career before the two of you ever began dating. It wasn’t like his schedule was a surprise to you, but it was just draining sometimes. It was easy to recognize that his work was difficult, but it was hard to realize that the toll wasn’t just on him, it was on everyone who cared about him as well.

Tugging your phone from your pocket, you rolled your eyes as you saw a lack of notifications lighting up the lock screen. If he wanted to be aloof and punish you, you probably deserved it.

But it didn’t make it hurt any less.

Grumbling to yourself, you walked down the hallway, stripping your clothes as you went. You were too tired to eat anything and you didn’t have much of an appetite anyway. Crawling into your bed, you barely managed to turn off the light before your head hit the pillow and you fell into a deep sleep.

.

Small snores echoed through your bedroom as Wonho’s feet gently padded across the hardwood. It was impossible for him to keep the smile from his face as he took in the curves of your sleeping body, desperately holding back the urge to let his fingers to roam the skin he had missed.

Walking as quietly as his large frame would allow, he winced with every small floor board groan or miscellaneous apartment noise. He wanted to get in bed before you realized that he had been lying to you for the past week. Partially because he was deathly afraid of Kihyun, but mostly because he couldn’t wait to see your surprised expression.

Leaning into the mattress, he held his breath as your snoring faltered. He tried not to chuckle. You only snored when you were dead tired, so it would most likely take a lot to wake you. Crawling with snail like speed, Wonho finally eased his way toward the mattress. His biceps pulsed with the effort it took to lay his body easily onto the sheets, only releasing a breath when he was flat on the pillow top.

.

.

You felt like someone was watching you. Unsure if it was part of a weird dream or reality, you didn’t want to move. You couldn’t confirm if it was true or not. There was no Wonho here to protect you from any potential peeping toms or burglars. Surely if you remained asleep, they wouldn’t attack you. Who attacks a sleeping person?

Slowly peeling one eye open, you swept your vision across the room, cataloging every shadow. You knew you should have never bought that dumb ficus. It made such a good spot for potential creeps to hide behind.

Letting your eye adjust to the darkness, you finally opened the other, surveying your surroundings in full.

It was then that you noticed there was a sizeable weight added to your mattress and something was placed in bed beside you.

No, not something.

Someone.

You let out a small shriek as you took your pillow in your arm, poised to defend yourself as you yanked back the comforter with your opposite hand.

“Good to see you too,” a sleepy Wonho smirked.

“Won-Won-” you stuttered, looking at your boyfriend in disbelief. Shock and relief flooded your system, but any emotion was quickly replaced by anger.

“SHIN,” you screeched, slamming him in the torso with your pillow. “HO.” Another slam. “SEOK.”

“Hey, hey!” he gasped through laughter. “Don’t kill me!”

“If I wanted to kill you, I would smother you!” you whisper shouted. “I just want to make you hurt like you’ve made me hurt the past few days, you big...big meanie!”

Wonho laughed again as you pulled the pillow from your view and truly got a good look at his face, albeit in the darkness. There he was, your smiling, incredible, handsome boyfriend.

“I SHOULD kill you,” you began quietly, your anger now turning into happiness. You felt the tears begin welling up on your lashes. “But...but I would miss you too much.”

You let out a wail as you flopped toward him, allowing him to wrap you in his muscular arms. Nuzzling your face into his chest, you took a deep breath. You couldn’t believe he was here.

“Is this a dream?” you wept. You focused on Wonho’s soft chuckle as he peppered your forehead with dozens of small kisses.

“Not a dream,” he confirmed. “But a pretty good surprise if I do say so myself.”

“You’re so mean!” you gasped, allowing him to kiss your face despite your hurt feelings. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Isn’t this much more fun than you knowing I was going to show up?” he laughed.

“Fun isn’t the word,” you muttered. “I hope you got the response you wanted.”

“Well, I didn’t intend on making you cry,” he hummed. “But I am glad that the tears are happy ones...they are happy, right?”

“Yes, you turd,” you laughed. “They’re the happiest tears I’ve ever cried.”

“Good,” he sighed, pulling you closer to him. “Those should be the only type of tears you cry.”

Tilting your head up, you grumbled in agreement before deciding to press a kiss along the underside of his jaw. “You’re home,” you confirmed more to yourself than to him.

He laughed before scrunching his head backward and pressing a kiss to your nose. “I am.”

“You know,” you giggled. “You kind of look like an earthworm from this angle.”

Wonho let out a loud shout of a laugh. “You know, someone once told me earthworms were superior because they have purpose.”

“Yeah,” you chuckled. “Like creating manure.”

“A purpose,” he hummed, completely ignoring your snide comment as he pressed his face against your hair, deep in thought. “And I think my purpose is to love you.”

[kilyra]

Nodded at a Blind Man

Matt Murdock (Daredevil) One-Shot from prompt list

A/N: I received a request from @natsukitakama  from List B: Angst/fluff Prompt List : 26 - “Here, let me help you” 37 - “Thank you, for everything” 89 - “I could never forget you” along with the scene of the reader being a med student and working at a pub when Matt, Foggy, and Karen come for a drink or two.

I literally could have written for ages with banter with these guys, but I kept it scaled down haha

Warning: None, not even the eff bomb. Spoiler-free.

There was a quick wave of irritation as soon as you heard the door open and you had to remind yourself you were at work. In fact, the pub had already been open for an hour and the regulars, who practically served themselves, were already there.

Turning, you saw three people make their way in and they were all so full of smiles you were caught a little off guard.

“Just sit wherever you'd like, I'll be right over,” you called out with a friendly nod.

It didn't take them long to settle in after the kind looking man with the side-swept blond hair took the lead. He seemed particularly jovial, constantly cracking jokes along the way. Something told you this was going to be fun.

After they settled, you grabbed a handful of menus and tucked them under your arm. “Hey guys, my name's Y/n. Ho-”

“And I'm Foggy. This is Matt, and that firecracker is Karen. And we're here to celebrate. So we're going to need a pitcher of your finest cheapest beer,” Foggy said with a large flourish.

Karen pressed her fingers to her mouth, failing to hold back a laugh while Matt just shook his head.

“Aaand it's just past noon.” You froze immediately after the words tumbled out of your mouth.

How you managed to keep this job so far, you'd never know.

“Whoa, ouch, right where it hurts! Listen, Y/n, we didn't come in here for your abuse.” Foggy's eyes twinkled as he bantered right back.

Which meant he was free game for more.

“Abuse? Oh come on now, I was just stating a fact. It's literally shortly past noon.” Speaking in a mockingly innocent tone, you pointed at the clock behind them.

“Oh pfft, give me a break. We all knew how you meant that.” Foggy waved dismissively.

“Well now Foggy, it is a fact,” Matt cut in. That's when you realized he was still wearing the tinted glasses he had when he first came in. And his head merely tilted towards whoever was speaking rather than turning to look. In a rush of realization, you felt like an idiot for not noticing you had a blind customer. Should you have let them to a table? Was it rude to point to the clock like that?

“But, your tone was pretty judgy,” he finished, pulling you from your thoughts. He turned his face towards you as he ran his tongue over his lips and grinned. His wide smile felt like a shock to your system as your heart fluttered. It was almost like he was looking right at you.

Jutting his finger towards his friend, Foggy hummed. “Mmhmm, you see? Even the blind man can see it. And he's a lawyer, so he's gotta know something.”

“You're a lawyer too.” Karen finally chimed in, lowering her hand long enough openly laugh at Foggy.

“Well yes. And our new practice is official today. Which is why we're celebrating!”

“Celebrating, right,” you interrupted. “Which is why I will leave the menus here and go get that pitcher.”

You felt heat rush to your face as you left the table. They seemed like the sort you'd be friends with, but that Matt guy...he stood out. Maybe it was his smooth voice, or you just weren't used to getting attractive customers in on your shift. You couldn't quite put your finger on it, but it was enough to leave you flustered.

As much fun as that table had, between them and your low-maintenance regulars, you were still finding time to read through the chapter in your textbook bit by bit. Of all the staff, you were the only one who preferred the early day shift. Sure, the tips were garbage because the place was always practically empty, but it gave you the chance to study and it fit with your evening classes.

After taking over the appetizers the trio ordered, the celebration table grew quieter as they ate. Taking the opportunity to keep reading, you hovered near the bar stools and focused. They'd call if they needed you.

But instead of a call, you got a solid bump on your shoulder and your book loudly dropped to the floor.

Gasping you turned around and found yourself face to face with Matt. In his dark glasses, you could see the reflection of your embarrassment.

“I'm so sorry.” You both blurted at the same time.

“What? No, I'm sorry, it was my fault.” Setting his thin white cane to the side, he moved with shocking grace as he bent down to grab your book.

Turning it in his hands, he held it towards you and it was somehow facing the right way. “This doesn't feel like light reading at all.”

Taking the book, you set it on the bar and tucked your hair behind your ear. “Yeah, definitely not.”

His gaze seemed to follow the motion of you setting it down. “Mind if I ask what you're taking?”

You glanced towards the book and back to him. Obviously, he didn't see the cover, but... "What makes you think I'm in school?"

Shifting his weight, he smiled and ran his hand down his tie. “Uh, well the only time I've come across books that heavy were my law books in school.”

“Ah, that makes sense. Yeah, I'm in med school right now.”

“A doctor?” Matt's eyebrows raised as he nodded.

“A surgeon, actually. Eventually. I mean, why get on with it when I can just be in school half my life?” You tried to laugh, but it came out weak. When you put it that way, it was slightly depressing.

Politely chuckling, he traced his thumb across his forehead. “Yeah, it does feel that way. I can't believe you find the time to work here while taking classes. I mean...I'm grateful for that, but it seems like that would be overwhelming.”

Grateful? You felt your pulse pick up again as the heat immediately rushed back to your cheeks.

“I-well-yeah. It's hard. This is my aunt's place though and she sets up my shifts around my schedule. I won't be able to do it too much longer, but it's been nice to offset the debt y'know?"

A wide, easy grin settled on his face. It lit up all his features each time he smiled. "Oh yeah, crushing debt. I know it well."

“Matt! Hurry up.” Foggy called from the table, quickly followed by Karen's shushes as she tried to wave him into silence.

Sighing through his nose, Matt reached over and grabbed his cane. “Right. I was actually on my way to the washroom.”

“Oh, here, let me help you. I can show you where it is.” Your words came out in a rush and you weren't sure if you were being rude somehow. If he needed a guide, wouldn't one of his friends do it? But you were committed now, and he didn't stop you.

Stepping past the stool, you held your arm out, bumping his hand with your elbow. With a loose grip, he wrapped his fingers around the inside of your arm and smiled. “Thank you, Y/n. I appreciate that.”

His touch was gentle but firm and hand was warm without being sweaty. If anything, your own hands were the sweaty ones. Quickly, you wiped your palm on your waist apron before you took his free hand and guided it to the washroom door and excused yourself.

Even though they were celebrating the opening of their new firm, they didn't end up staying longer than a couple of hours. It was technically good since the place would be filling up soon but you were disappointed when you realized they were wrapping it up.

As they cleared up their tab, you stood by the table while Foggy rang his credit card through the machine. “I can see it on your face now, you're already sorry to see us go. Life without us is sad and boring, I know but...”

“She won't be bored Fog. She's a med student so I think she'll keep herself occupied,” Matt cut him off as he shot you a lopsided smile.

“Really? A doctor?”

Grabbing the machine back, you waited for the print-out. “Yeah. I mean, how else do I get to stab people legally?”

Foggy's eyebrow arched as he sat back in his chair. “Why do I feel like we'll up seeing you in court one of these days?”

Lightly laughing, you ripped off his receipt and handed it over as you moved to give them all space to pack up. "Well, hopefully, I'll see you guys here again soon first. And congratulations on getting your firm up and running."

“Well...it's up,” Karen said, staring at Foggy who held his hand over his chest and shot her a hurt look.

“We probably will be back. Thank you, for everything,” Matt turned to you apparently missing the moment between his coworkers.

As Karen and Foggy moved towards the door, Matt hung back to hand you the billfold. On top of it was his card.

Biting your lip, you smirked. “Do you expect I'm going to need a lawyer? The stabbing thing was a joke...”

Chuckling, his gaze roamed the room, moving toward the ceiling before turning back on you. "No, I don't I just...wanted you to have my number."

You felt your palms get warm again as your pulse picked up. “Well...should I at least put my name in your phone so you don't forget who I am?”

Exhaling, Matt's tongue darted out to wet his lips as he reached into his pocket. “I could never forget you. But I would be happy if you put your number in my phone too.”

Part of you felt silly for being this excited, especially since time wasn't a luxury for you. And you had been hit on dozens of times over your shifts but this felt different. This was someone you were actually interested in getting to know.

As you handed your phone back, his smile widened as he slid it back into his pocket. When he spoke, his voice was soft. “I look forward to talking to you again, Y/n.”

Chewing on the inside of your cheek, you nodded.

Grinning, he nodded back and started heading towards his friends.

As the door closed, you realized you just nodded at a blind man.

And...he...nodded back?