#brains go brrrrrrrrrrr for new aus

[eryanlainfa]

Mmmmmhhh maybe I should stop making new AUs so I could work on the ones I already have mmmhhhhhh

.....

Nah.

LET'S CREATE 5 MORE TONIGHT!!

[freakshowtwopointoh]

the 'just watch me drive' bit gets me every time and I can't stop giggling but then it made my mind remember that movie I saw 'babydriver' and now I'm just thinking of au jordan in those scenes as a getaway driver for their wild group of friends who are all linked in some way to criminal activity with each using their powers and skillsets to get the group as a whole rich beyond belief and now I have a mighty need for this au and the chaotic adventures.

FUCKING SAME DUDE I CANT KEEP FROM GIGGLING EVERY TIME

omg that's iconic

esp bc i defo think jordan loves to drive. also i love babydriver its amazing. brain go brrrrrrrrrrr sorry not sorry

fjsdklfajk just add tthis to my list of aus

Jordan didn't outwardly complain when Brink brought new people into the fold, but they were never pleased about it either. The more people in the know, the more possible problems down the line.

At this point in the game, the others picked up on their wariness about newcomers and would not stop teasing them about it. Andre had actually created a bingo sheet of 'Jordan fucks with the newbie'. When Emma was brought on, they got a bingo in under three hours.

So when Brink told the team that he found a new recruit, Jordan ensured they kept their eyes forward, ignoring the reactions of their friends behind them.

"Alright, alright. Look - her power is weird but it's especially critical to this upcoming mission so please, don't scare her away."

Jordan forced themself not to roll their eyes - they never scared anyone away. People just couldn't handle them. There's a difference. But then Brink gave Sam a very pointed look, and they had to stifle a smile. They had forgotten about that... incident.

The metal door creaked open and in walked probably one of the most gorgeous people Jordan had ever seen. Big brown eyes, full lips, gorgeous deep skin, and long locs pulled back into a ponytail.

"Everyone, this is Marie."

Fuck. Jordan was fucked.

---

Marie was skeptical when Victoria told her about this new job. Multiple missions, little-to-no information about the group or the jobs. Just - do what these people tell you for the next few weeks, months, or even years, and then her and her sister would be set for life. To be fair, that is the deal that Victoria gave her initially when she caught her stealing on the job, but still. At least she had known Victoria for a few months beforehand. She's never met any of these people, and now she has to play nice? She just had to stay focused on Annabeth. If she could find them a good, stable place to stay...

So she went, pocketknife in tow, trench coat on, prepared for pretty much anyone when she walked into the cold conference room. Sitting around a large table were six people about her age, and the only other person in the room was a much older man with white hair and a beard. Marie presumed he was the head of whatever kind of ragtag criminal organization this was. This was confirmed when he introduced her.

"Everyone, this is Marie." She gave a small wave and the others introduced themselves. Andre, a black man with short hair and a relaxed posture, Luke, a tan blond man who looked like he had walked out of a Gap catalog, Cate, a thin and pale preppy blonde girl with piercing blue eyes, Emma, a bubbly white girl with short blonde hair, Sam, a pale muscular man with curly brown hair and puppy dog eyes, and Jordan, a small Asian girl with headphones in who seemed to have a permanent frown on her admittedly very pretty face. The leader went by "Brink", and she was sure there were a plethora of shitty puns she could come up with if he wasn't her boss. She took a seat in between Jordan and Sam, knowing Brink would likely want to begin quickly.

Taking in the group, it was clear whatever they were doing paid well. She wasn't well-versed in designer brands but the few she did recognize were scattered throughout the group.

---

The mission seemed simple enough, once Brink explained the details, but it was clear he was holding things back. Mainly because he hadn't mentioned the newbie's powers or why they needed her. I mean she was unassuming, but weren't they all? Jordan was halfway tempted to corner Brink and demand answers, but they knew they wouldn't get any information out of him he didn't want to give.

[tennessoui]

I totally get not using Hazy lmao. BUT- if you want Obi-Wan to sound super uptight and Anakin super laid back- have Obi-Wan use the full names for the museums, and Anakin the institute-wide slang

National Air and Space Museum- Nasim, African American History and Culture- Namac, ect

ooo i love further insider context and you know im a big fan of slight differences between anakin and obi-wan's speech patterns ("maybe" for anakin, "perhaps" for obi-wan; "but" for anakin, "however" for obi-wan)

though further than that, i'm honestly not sure how much i'm aiming for uptight obi-wan and super laid back anakin in this au. i feel like they really share that here and also have the strongest possible narrative bias when it comes to describing the other's actions:

for instance, in this ficlet for the smithsonian au, anakin gives himself a tummy ache because obi-wan brings a new coworker to lunch :( which feels not laidback OR particularly chill; and in this smithsonian au ficlet (their first meeting!!), obi-wan sort of starts a game of footsie under the table with padmé's hot texan friend which is not uptight......but in this ficlet, anakin sees obi-wan's actions as cool and aloof and uptight and rude (when really obi-wan is just a touch heartbroken) and in the fic i'm currently writing for this fic to go on ao3, obi-wan is thinking about how he could never ever like anakin skywalker at all because he's TOO laidback and describes him like this:

Skywalker likes American barbecue and Johnny Cash and he probably grew up driving a truck until he crashed it; he’s cocky and smug and an olive lover, for god’s sake, a twenty-nine year old child prodigy who acts more like the adjective than the noun. He’d trip over his own feet half the time with how often he’s got his head pointed towards the sky of all things if it weren’t for the flocks of people who fawn all around him specifically to prevent that sort of thing.

even though a few scenes later, he'll find him stressing the fuck out over budget problems and unable to leave for their scheduled lunch date

a lot of the smithsonian au is based on perceptions, wrong or right, and the power they hold over us when we're making connections with others + the extent to which we can lie to ourselves about something we're not ready to embrace even though everyone else can see it + silly rocketman in big meanie love with silly water man makes brain go brrrrrrrrrrr

[cadaverschaoss]

Me: what if I added a new muse?

Also me: I have two full pages of muses and a very vague idea of a third that mostly has to do with my own made up au no stop it no more muses

Also also me: haha new muse makes brain go brrrrrrrrrrr

[glassartpeasants]

The Bathroom Stall

Yandere?Bully!Hari Kurono x Bullied!F!Reader

warnings: College AU( With quirks), noncon, harsh bullying, unhealthy relationships, toxic af, yandere tendencies, mention of death, semi-public sex, quirk use, breeding kink

A/N: horny brain go brrrrrrrrrrr

~~~

If there was anything you hated most in life, it was college. That ‘fun’ experience everyone always hyped you up about turned out to be a fucking lie. It was a living nightmare. You were always so stressed and always had so much homework to do. It didn’t help that you were harassed daily by a man who you didn’t even do anything too!

Kurono Hari was his name. He’d bullied you ever since he moved into your grade with that germophobic friend of his. You didn’t even know why he hated you. One day he just decided to bully you. It wasn’t bad at first. Only name calling and such. But as you got older the worse his bullying got. And since he was connected to the yakuza, no one dared to get him in trouble.

Ever since the start of high school he’d actually got physical. It was only shoving you into things at first but as soon as senior year started he’d push you down and kick you. Dump things on your head. Such as water, food, anything he could find really. He’d throw things at you, it didn’t matter what it was. If he could throw it, you better cover your face.

It was only Hari that did this to you too. His friend didn’t do anything, maybe pass a look a pity if you looked hard enough.

It didn’t help that half the people in the school was head over heels in love with him. Hell, if he wasn’t such a dick to you, you would probably be one of those people. Hari was gorgeous, smart, and athletic. The man could have any person he wanted but even though no matter how many people confessed to him, he’d always said he had someone else in mind. Which surprisingly, people respected it. Since he was always so ‘kind’ people were just in love with him from afar. You could go on for hours on how this guy was the worst but no one would believe you, trust me, you tried.

Your love life wasn’t safe either. You’d manage to snag someone finally a while ago. You’d been so happy to finally have someone to talk to rather than be alone with your thoughts. It didn’t last long unfortunately. Hari convinced the school board to expel the only person who would sit and listen to you. At least that’s what you heard. Now, you were back to eating alone on the rooftop. Dreading the next day’s events.

~~~

Who the fuck did you think you were? Thinking you were better than him? He hated you. He hated how you made him feel. He hated how you would wear such skirt that gave him a perfect view of your legs and if you bent down a certain way he would get a quick view of your clothed ass. Everyday he was slowly losing his mind. The way you would pout always made his cock rock hard in his pants. Its like you wanted him to bend you over on your desk and fuck you until you couldn’t talk. 

Oh he can only imagine how tight you would clench around his cock as you beg him to fuck you harder. Or how your hot mouth would envelop his cock. He wanted slam his lips into yours and feel how soft your lips are and stick his tongue in your mouth just to get a taste.  So you can imagine how furious he was when he was told by Kai that you had gotten a S/O. 

What did you even see in that degenerate? They’re grades weren’t as high as his, they weren’t as athletic as him, and they certainly weren’t as gorgeous as him. So what did you see in them? They certainly wouldn’t fuck you as hard as he would. So obviously out of a jealous rage he did the most reasonable thing. He had a bounty placed on their head. He never wanted to see them go near you again. You were his. He claimed you the moment you two met at the end of your middle school years.

*Flashback*

“Hello everyone and good morning! Today we’ll be introducing 2 new students, so please treat them with kindness and help them out with finding classes if they need help.” The teacher introduced Hari and Kai into the class and sent them to they’re assigned seats.

“Hari, go sit by (Y/N). There’s a spot open on the left of her.” Hari grunted before moving to said seat. Once he got a good look at who he was sitting next to, his heart beat faster than it ever had. Once he sat in his seat he couldn’t stop looking at you. 

This continued everyday. He wouldn't pay attention to the actual class, instead he would stare at you. Admiring you. And when the sun hit the room just right, it would make you look like an angel. 

He knew right then and there that you were his. And that no one else could have you.

*Flashback Ends*

Hari’s thoughts were interrupted by your giggling near him. What the hell are you laughing at? He turns his head and his fists tighten. You were laughing at some joke this dude made. It couldn’t have even been that funny so why were you giggling?

As you talked to the man, laughing at his jokes, Hari was on the other side of the classroom looking at you and the boy in jealousy. What the man said next made him snap the pencil he was holding.

“Hey, do you want to go out on Sunday?”

“Not on Sunday, but are you free Friday?” What were you doing?! You can’t go out with that loser! He was so much better! That loser was probably failing every class!

Once the man stopped talking to you Hari got up from his seat and dragged you into the hallway.

“H-Huh?! Hari w-what?-”

“Shut the fuck up.” His grip on your wrist tightened making you whimper while he dragged you through the halls. You’ve seen him mad before, hell he usually takes his anger out on you but this was a whole new level. His hair was standing slightly and that couldn’t mean anything good.

He soon dragged you into the hallway that no one uses and throws you into the girls bathroom.

“H-Hari what the hell! Why did you drag me here-”

“Shut up! I’m thinking!” You look at the arrowed haired man before slowly standing up. You’ve never seen him so ad before and you didn’t even know what you did to get him so mad!

“Why’d you say yes to a disgusting freak like him?” Hari’s voice turned low and menacing. You shivered in your spot and looked at like a deer in headlights. You were about to say something before he pinned you against the bathroom wall.

“Answer me!” His face was so close to yours that you could feel his breath on your cheeks.

“What does it matter? I didn’t do anything to you-”

“What does he have that I don’t?!” Your eyes went wide as something clicked in your head at what he was talking about.

“Are...are you saying you like me?”

Wasn’t it obvious? Oh how you infuriated him. Thinking you can go around saying yes to any date a guy asked you. Don’t you know what they want? They just wanna get between your legs. Unlike him, he wants you all to himself.

“They just can’t seem to stay away can they?!” You felt so little compared to the man that was pinning you against the wall. You both stare into one another’s eyes. You tried to move your foot so you could get out from under him but as soon as you moved your foot, Hari grabbed you by the hair and dragged you into an empty stall.

“P-Please let me go...” You whimpered as his grip on your hair tightened before he slammed you onto the bathroom stalls door. 

“You seem to forget who you belong to. Im gonna show all of those fucks who you belong to.”  You were about to say something before his grip on your hair tugged your head away, giving him room to bit and suck on your neck. 

“Ow! Hari stop! It hurts!” You hit on his chest as the feeling of his teeth sinking into your neck made you wince in pain. You shake in your spot when you hear him let out a threatening growl. 

“You just cant seem to shut up can you?” You go to say something back when you feel a swift cut on your cheek then your body stiffening. You try to wiggle your way away from Hari only to be meant with the horrifying realization that your body can’t even move or escape from the man you’s covering your neck in hickeys and bruising bite marks.

“They just can’t see that your mine, so I’ll show them who’s the only one who can have your heart, soul and body.” You felt his hand slither its way up your thigh before stopping underneath your skirt.

“What are you doing?!” You look at him with wide eyes as you feel his hand cup your cunt outside your panties. Tears begin to well up in your eyes as the feeling of being groped by your bully gave you a sick feeling in your stomach. 

“S-stop it! Let me go Hari!” 

“No. I won’t stop until they know you belong to me.” You let out a gasp when you feel two of his fingers begin to rub circles on your clit. The hand that once held onto your hair moved it’s way to undo your buttons of your uniform, showing your bra to your attacker.

“So cute, so hot.” His hips buck against your own, allowing you to feel his erection through his pants.

“Can’t wait to be buried in that tight pussy. Might as well cum in you too, see my cum dripping down your legs while you try to hide it.” Fuck he was working himself up. His pants felt like a prison as his cock was begging to be released. He could feel his precum staining his boxers.

He continued to rub circles on your clit until a wet patch formed on your panties. You felt humiliated and disgusted with yourself for getting off to this. You wanted your first time to be with someone you loved. Not with your bully in your college's bathroom. 

While distracted by your own thoughts, Hari had unzipped his pants and pulled down his boxers, causing his dick to spring out of it’s confidements. He let out a gasp of relief from freedom before he hooked his fingers around your panties and quickly slid them to the side before lining up with your entrance.

“H-Hari wait-AH!” He slammed into you at full force while letting out a loud groan. His fingers gripping your hips harshly, sure to leave bruises. You cry out in pain as the feeling of being full and stretched was not comfortable at all.

“Shit your so tight. It feels like your trying suffocate my cock.” One had leaves your hips before going up to squish your breasts through your bra. Moving his head to your neck he bites down on your shoulder before starting to thrust into you quickly and harshly. 

Him biting your shoulder was to assert dominance over you and to keep you steady from him to fuck you. 

You could hear his groans coming from the bite as his grip on your waist got worse. You cry out as you feel him thrusting into you harder and faster than he was before. The feeling of his balls hitting your ass is something you would always remember. You felt like you could feel every ridge of his cock as he hit that certain spot that made you let out a moan involuntarily. 

Your moans only spur him on as the one hand that was playing with breasts snake down to rub circles on your clit. You bit your lip as tears spilled down your face. You were choking on your own sobs before you felt his tongue lick up the salty tears that were running down your face. The vomit that rises in your throat when you felt that saliva he left behind on your cheeks.

“Ahhh...I’, g-gonna cum inside this pretty pussy of yours. Who knows? Maybe I’ll knock you up, that way only I can have you. What do you say (y/n)?” He laughs in your ear as his thrusts begin to get harsher and his cock begin to hit your cervix.

“N-No! I don’t wanna get pregnant! Stop! I-” Your words were lost as the feeling of his lips crashing into yours. You open your mouth a bit for some air only for Hari to shove his tongue inside. You wanted to puke at the feeling of his tongue exploring every inch of your mouth.

Your sobs were shushed as the feeling of your climax closely approaching fogged your mind. The feeling of him rubbing your clit is what threw you overboard as you moan and shake.

“Come on my little flower, cum around my cock.” Despite not wanting to, you did with a sob.

“Hnnn-FUCK!” The feeling of your cunt clenching around him was enough to throw Hari over board and shoot his seed into your womb. He felt like he was on cloud nine as he continued to ride out his orgasm before stopping. He reluctantly pulled out of your hot cunt and bit of his cum following. He grabbed it only to push in back into your cunt before sliding your panties back to what they use to be.

He put his dick back into his pants and pulled his zipper up before looking up at you. Your face all red from crying, hickeys covering every inch of your neck along with the bite marks he added for a special touch. The one bite that he bit on your shoulder had started to bleed at bit from the attack. HE moved his head to lick up the blood that had started to show while he buttoned up your uniform.

You felt sore all around. Your neck throbbing from all the bite marks he put there, the area where his hand was on your hips now surely bruised, and the bite mark where he was currently ‘cleaning’. Your lips were swollen from his rough kissing  as the ache in between your legs was the worse. You could feel some of his cum dripping down your leg which only resulted in sobs.

“No need to cry my flower, now you’ll always be mine. And no one will dare to take you away from me. You’ll be mine forever.”

(sorry that it’s short.)

@uwuhuffelpuff

[barschter000]

@andy-deer‘s survivor AU makes my head go brrrrrrrrrrr

Also Byakuya is the blackened in this one instead of Toko because...no❤️

Kiyotaka believed that his last words would have meaning and bear some sort of weight that would stop people in their tracks to take a second to think about them, maybe even to remember him, that'd be nice. So naturally, he assumed, his last thoughts should have some impact as well, right?

Kiyotaka's last thought was fear in its purest essence. In such a high concentration that it bit and burned around his wound. His head pounded in the rhythm of his heart, a clump of heat and thuds that he had to balance on his shoulders while his bones were, one by one, in the span of seconds, replaced with toothpicks.

Beat, bite, burn, Taka ran. Blood was trickling down his neck and forehead, warm and slow, heavier than a fluid should be. It ran into his eye and he had no strength to wipe it away, his blurred vision was reduced to only left. One hand on the walls, tracing the tiles, wallpapers, doorframes, rounding the corners, taking the stairs.

Through the pounding, the dull bass against his temples, he tried to focus, tried to see. His sight was proof that he was conscious. Wallpaper, he narrated. A quick, sharp word thrown into the blunt bumps like a hook in a weaving ocean, hoping to catch something, reach someone in the chaos.

Front of me, he continued and the thuds accelerated. Boots, step, step, drip, pink, on the floor, footmarks, swirling, blurring, here, up, raise, shake, go, stairs, downstairs, down, dorms, safety, down to the dorms, someone, help, stairs left, only the stairs left, help, in the dorms, Mondo.

What had been a quiet stream in the depths of the ocean now became the splashing, gurgling and screaming of a drowning man, flailing his arms, pushing himself up on unruly waves, calling out to the silhouette of a ship. Mondo, Mondo, Mondo.

In fear in its purest essence, Kiyotaka thought of Mondo and he thought of him as safety. Which was contradictory.

Just a few days ago, Mondo had stood in a trial, naming himself a murderer. It wasn't far from the truth. He was the cause for death that would have never taken place otherwise. First, his brother, then Chihiro. If he had been a bit more mindful, a bit less reckless, a bit more fearless, maybe Daiya wouldn't have had to kick his bike and take the truck for him. If he had been a tad stronger to let control take over him or a tad stronger to swallow it harder, maybe he would have not picked up that dumbbell. Maybe Chihiro would have not been lying at his feet, bleeding from the head. Maybe if blood and its meaning hadn't scared him so much, he would have noticed that his swing with the dumbbell landed in the air and Chihiro's wound was the result of losing consciousness, as he carried their body to the other locker room.

Kiyotaka had forgotten who Mondo really was or rather, he had never known. Kiyotaka had seen him as a black, then as a white, two clear shades, clearly different. Mondo, the Ultimate Biker Gang Leader as his foe, had been explicitly guilty and as his friend, was overwhelmingly innocent. The Mondo that presented himself in the trial, however, was gray of a shade that already was too dark for ink and too bright for chalk. Kiyotaka couldn't see through him. A hazy puddle of gray; Kiyotaka understood that it was deep but couldn't see a bottom.

Mondo wasn't a murderer. He wasn't the one being executed, that was Byakuya and his plan to confuse the students, hang up Chihiro and bring a killer into the game; the trap of his that shut on himself. Mondo wasn't a murderer per se but he was half a murderer, an accomplice of some sorts. And oddly, greyly, enough, he was Kiyotaka's friend.

Kiyotaka wanted him to promise that he kept it that way, that Mondo and Death split up their paths, that he stayed gray and deep. In this world, where white and black were indivisible, he needed someone by his side to learn.

Mondo promised. Not the usual promise on his honor or on his masculinity, it was a simple promise on silently everything. Even before wrapping his arms around him, Kiyotaka felt safe in his words.

Kiyotaka couldn't hear the doorbell ringing, couldn't detect his finger on it, couldn't recall the order to press it but he hoped that he made an impact on this fragment of the world. Begging for Mondo, for safety, he repeatedly punched the doorbell. His gaze had grown foggy and his field of vision was a swimming dark mass, tinted red from the ominous lighting in the hallway, and from the blood. There was no response, no reassurance from his legs that he was still standing, and his hand started gliding down the doorframe.

A ringing interrupted Mondo's dreamless sleep. The parts where he was trapped in a dark room, being watched by faceless shadows and where he woke up, trapped in a dark room, then realized he was stuck in another, he didn't count as dreams; they were the usual occurences.

Taka, was his first thought. He had gone to his room that night, just to stand there, stare at his nameplate and think of all other things to pay no attention to the reason for his presence there: just company, just for the night. In the end, he called himself stupid, turned around and left. He didn't knock or press the doorbell. Right?

Another ring. And another. Mondo groaned and rubbed his hand over his face. Ringing once again. Yeah, that wasn't Taka. "Who the fuck–?" And once more. He lifted himself out of bed. "I swear, if no one has lost a limb, I'm gonna–" he mumbled to himself, muffling his last words because his brain hadn't completed the sentence yet. His naked feet scuffled on the carpeted floor as he walked over to his door. "Alright." He threw his door open, "What the fu–"

It had never happened before to his awareness: Mondo choked on his words, a second of suffocation.

This was Taka. And he was bleeding. Blood was running down his face. Starting from his hair and dribbling down on his uniform jacket, leaving stains. "Kyoudai?" Taka spoke like his voice was a liquid, spilling out of his mouth. He rung the doorbell one more time. "Kyoudai, I need–" His words drowned away. "Please, I need help."

This was Daiya all over again, Chihiro all over again, dying all over again. Mondo was on the street, in the locker room, at a grave. Honking, lights and screams, metal clanging, the ground vibrating, the weight of a body in his arms.

Mondo came back to life when something hit his legs. Kiyotaka had fallen unconscious and was bleeding on his feet. A hissed curse cut his lips. He bent down, kneeling right into the red pool, the wet and warmth creeping through the fabric of his pants, put an arm around Taka's waist and Taka's arm around his own neck. Taka was heavier than Chihiro, lighter than Daiya, his boots dangled and scraped over the floor, through the pool, and his head was hanging from his frame as if only skin connected them. Red dripped from his hair.

"Fuck." His voice was trembling, light as air but coarse on his vocal cords. Mondo felt his chest rising and falling, his heavy breathing grinding down his ribcage and his lungs. Snot clogged his nose, a sign of tears, and his mouth dried out from breath and salt. He listened to his echo travel down the hallways and a second longer, longing for an answer but there was none. "Fuck!" It rung shrill and shaking.

Mondo stumbled over to the other side of the hallway, dragging weight, dragging a body. His fist battered down next to the first door, missed the doorbell, missed it twice but then its noise stung in his ears. He staggered on, tears were washing over his cheeks, he was leaving drops and bloody footprints.The next door, the third and the fourth. He didn't check the nameplates, didn't ring twice, there was no time and no answers. Kiyotaka was slipping out of his grasp, Mondo gripped his waist and arm anew. He couldn't see a wound, couldn't check how deep it was, only new waves of blood welling from inbetween his hair.

"What happened?" Mondo didn't hear it but felt a gasp grazing his throat. He whirled around and Taka slid again, sinking lower.

Kyoko's arms that were crossed at her chest untangled, revealing her gloves. Her face, her voice kept stern and unmoved. "I'll get Sakura. You stay here." Her steps were soundless, cushioned by her socks and her demeanor. She faced forward as she passed Mondo.

"Did something happen?" Makoto stuck his head out of his door. He choked on his yawn. Makoto ran over, inspected the body, hovering his hands over it. He cocked his head, twisted his mouth. He looked up to Mondo and their eyes didn't meet.

Makoto jumped at the scream next to him. Aoi slapped her hands to her mouth, her gaze stuck to the sight.

The only thing that Mondo perceived was the fabric at his palm, the flesh beneath it and the wrist he was clutching. Kiyotaka still had weight, about his warmth, Mondo was unsure. His purpose right now was to hold him. The rest was numb and unimportant; background static and bleary colors.

Kiyotaka suddenly became lighter, the arm around his shoulder gliding off his back. His nails dug into Taka's uniform without command.

"Mondo, you need to let go." Sakura was standing before him, Hina at her side, Kiyotaka in her arms. Mondo's hand still grabbed on, she had lifted his arm along with Taka. Her words were gentle but not a request.

"I'm not fucking leaving him!" Mondo growled, stepped closer, gripped tighter. He sent glares through tears up to the girl. He had stopped crying and a crust had formed on his face. "That is not what I'm asking of you," she said. "Please let go of his uniform. I need to carry him to the infirmary." Mondo averted his eyes, and removed his hand.

"How long is this gonna fucking take?" Mondo slammed his fist down on the mattress and, angry at the lack of sound and resistance, slammed it down again. He had always hated the sterileness of nurse's offices and hospital rooms; the cold lights, the thin beds, being watched and examined, and timeless waiting. He ground his teeth. His bouncing leg had long escaped his control.

Sakura, who was sitting next to the bed in front of him, looked up. She had taken the care to position herself so that Mondo was able to see Kiyotaka, how he was just lying there on his side, his eyes closed, his mouth slightly open, motionless. Sakura was pressing one of her hands against his forehead, the other against the back of his head where layers of gauze stacked and colored red as the minutes passed.

"I cannot hurry this process," she replied. "The bleeding has to stop before we can take any next steps." She turned her head around to Aoi. "Hina, my girl, could you be so kind and hand me another cloth?"

Aoi stood unmoved next to her, a roll of gauze and scissors in her hands, staring down at her friend's work, and the blood. "Hina?" Sakura repeated, knitting her brows. Aoi blinked and awoke. "Yeah, here, sorry." She cut a new piece, her hands were shaking.

Sakura lifted her hand from Kiyotaka's head for just a moment, revealing her red palm, took the gauze, crumpled it up and and added it to the others. Mondo had been counting the layers in the first three minutes but that had quickly faded into the back of his mind.

He raked his fingers through his hair and sighed. His lip had started bleeding from his biting and he was tasting iron as he sucked it in.

"I can understand your restlessness." Sakura's expression was calm, a subtle softness had undermined her serious features. It was poking needles into Mondo's surfaced nerves. "However, there is nothing that you can do now other than be patient. I advise you get some rest."

Mondo clenched a fist, bared his teeth. "I said I'm not fucking leaving!" "You may stay here," her tone hardened just a little. "There are enough beds to choose from." Mondo grunted, "Fine."

He stood up and could stop his knees from giving way and betraying him. He ripped at the curtain separating Taka from him and fell back onto the edge of the bed. He regretted closing the curtain. Mondo buried his face in his palms.

He couldn't lose Taka. He couldn't name a reason for it but after the thought of him dying, his brain went blank. He could see himself stand at his bed, stare down at his body. Kiyotaka looked peaceful as if he had gone in his sleep, laying there dressed up for a soldier's coffin. He was laying on his back and in any other condition, it surely must hurt. His head was bandaged and the wound was hidden.

It was a subject to Mondo's wonder that he was the one on Taka's mind in his last minutes. Why didn't he associate help with Sakura or justice with Makoto? Why did he choose him? Kiyotaka was the only person on earth that believed Mondo was a good man. It was silly and dangerous, Mondo had told him, but Kiyotaka insisted. Mondo knew that dying brains formed crazily truthful thoughts but to be on Kiyotaka's mind in his possibly last moments felt like an obscenity. The thought of Mondo had filled up his head and pushed thoughts about family, future and unfinished tasks aside. Mondo was where Kiyotaka had anchored his life.

His stomach turned as he noticed how he clung to that. How he swam towards the boat on the stormy sea, hope and the lack of it twisting into an ugly clump in his windpipe that hindered the air. Mondo felt like spitting at himself, kicking his double to the ground and in the ribs repeatedly, each kick with more anger behind it. His double was desperate, in his eyes weak, holding onto Taka, his heart and the affection stored in it. It was pathetic for being so dependent, so selfish and needy.

Mondo couldn't help it. Kiyotaka cherished his existence, silently accepted his mistakes, knowing there was light that cast the shadows, carefully treated his injuries, stitch by stitch with devotion to his being. That was something Mondo had not been able to achieve in his whole lifetime. He thought of Kiyotaka's death and his mind went blank.

"Um, hey?" Aoi sounded quiet behind the curtain. Mondo lifted his head. How long had he been sitting like this? His spine ached. "The bleeding stopped." Mondo allowed himself to breathe. "He's asleep now." Hina paused. "We'd stay if you want to go back to your dorm, that's okay." "If you decide to stay, you'll find us in my room if anything occurs." Sakura sounded so calm again, it was soothing now.

Mondo swallowed spit to conquer the dryness of his throat. "I'll stay." "Alright," Sakura replied. He slid off the bed, his legs stood firm. Flakes of dried blood rubbed off the soles of his bare feet as he tore the curtain aside and stepped forward. The girls halted in the doorframe and turned to him. "Thanks," he said, the eyecontact didn't last long.

Sakura nodded a goodbye, turned off the lights and closed the door. The room was dim with the light hanging right over Taka's bed.

Mondo knelt down next to him. The light gave Kiyotaka's pale skin a sickish yellow tone. The blanket covering his body rose and fell, Mondo saw the fabric of his uniform stretching and releasing, he heard the quiet in- and exhales. Kiyotaka was breathing.

Mondo's finger wound around his wrist. He was unsure whether the warmth was an illusion. He searched for a pulse, tapping about with his index and middle finger, then found one. Feeble beats obscured by skin and flesh.

Kiyotaka's fingers jerked. "Kyou..." He whispered like he'd lost his voice.

They locked eyes. How weak he looked. How soft, how frail, how strong he was for making it.

"Kyoudai." Mondo longed to answer but all words, all language were not to his avail. Kiyotaka blinked and squinted. "Bright," he whined. Talking was an effort, Mondo could tell by his wheezing. He followed his bidding wordlessly.

"I'm... so glad," Taka spoke. Mondo had not let go of his wrist. "I have so much... to live for." Mondo grabbed him tighter, the wish to hold him slowly becoming too much to bear. "I have this world to better." Taka's arm moved in his grasp, Mondo opened the plier of his fingers and Kiyotaka's hand slid into his. Kiyotaka intertwined their fingers clumsily. The weight on Mondo's palm was strange but he completed the gesture. "And you," Taka said. "I have you."

He let out another whimper and shut his eyes again. "My head," he muttered. The muffled sound of belching escaped his closed mouth. "Lemme get Sakura," Mondo decided. His voice sounded foreign to him, too steady. "You, go back to sleep." He stood up but a faint squeeze at his fingers had him stop. "Don't worry." In the dark, Mondo's smile was invisible. "I'll be here when you wake up."