#but I might try and doodle some more silly Valentine’s Day doodles

[rt-closetcryptic]

Didn’t really have much planned to doodle for Valentine’s Day and I’m unsure if I’ll upload anything else this evening, but here we go!

[hazashiovo]

Oblivious, supportive fem Reader x Ayano Aisha, the reader really doesn't get that poor Ayano likes her. It would be nice if they are childhood friends and if Reader isn't a pushover or weak, just clueless as fuck when it comes to love.

After all, girls make shrines about each other all the time, right? And really, getting chocolate from your gal pal on valentines day is the best, good thing you got her home made chocolate too!

My first Yan sim request:D

Ayano Aishi x Female reader

Side note: this character is a yandere,wich means yandere themes might appear disturbing to some readers.

T/W: mentions of kidnaping,mentions of drugging, obsessive behavior,murder,blood, stalking, pshycothic behavior,mentions of self harm and suicide.

Ayano has known you ever since she started first grade. You being her only friend in school,and with time this friendship evolved.

Which made you and the dark haired girl grow closer.

Her behavior never made you uncomfortable around her, neither did her silence. Because in truth,you liked it better, the difference between you two matched perfectly.

Your out going and talkative personality tangling with Ayano's introverted and silent language.

Kids your age called her many names due to her lack of emotions,but every time you were there to send them on their way with a bruise or two, nobody talks to your best friend like that!

At first when she was little,the girl saw your behavior towards her unnecessary. Why were you trying to get close to her? She had nothing to offer back to you.

But as she grew, whenever you weren't around her there was this empty spot in her heart,and that dull feeling griping her soul.

Not long before starting highschool did she realize what this meant.

Her mother talked to Ayano about this,since she was a child.Of course you were her special person,the one who will fill her heart with joy and warmth.

You belong to her.

And nobody can convince her otherwise.

You noticed when she became more clingy to you during breaks,but what you didn't see was the way she was glaring down at any student who dared to look at you for more than one second.

You didn't ask questions when your things were 'Borrowed' and never given back,it's what friends do,right? They share things with each other.

There would be times when you felt followed,like a shadow was glooming over you, following your every move when she wasn't with you. Even if you turned around to ease your paranoia,not seeing anyone there made it worse for you.

People noticed how tight you were with Ayano,so they chose not to meet pats with you. After all the shorter girl was creepy,who would want to tangle in something so complicated, definitely not most of the students,that's for sure.

But some couldn't help but be curious, maybe the feeling of being with someone they shouldn't be excited them.

But it didn't matter to Ayano. How do I know? The student coincidentally died because of food poisoning.

Rat poison isn't a condiment,silly.

Nothing changed after the incident,you and Ayano were closer,yes, that's because she offered you more protection than before, promising something like this will never happen to you. Unless it has to

Oh and she was over the moon when you accepted her invitation for a sleepover over, barely waiting to see your beautiful sleeping face,maybe she could even steal a kiss.

It didn't strike you as weird when you accidentally found her little shrine.

Dedicated to you, you even found it cute.

It had some of the hair ties and pins Ayano 'borrowed' from you a long while ago, pictures with the two of you as little children,pre teens and one from the first day of school.

She even kept the doodles you drew for her couple of months ago. Awh,she really is a sentimentalist even if she doesn't show it.

When ayano saw you looking trough her prized possessions she swore she saw her life flash before her eyes.

Heart rate quickening and this panick taking place in her chest. What will you say now? You will definitely hate her and then you won't want to be her friend anymore. How will she see you if you won't be her friend? How will she confess her love to you?

Of course all those thoughts broke when she heard your chuckle. Mind suddenly clear from the anxious rambling in her head.

"Man, why didn't you tell me? If I knew you prized those moments so much I would have taken more photos!" Relief completely washes over her when she sees that grin on your sweet lips. Why was she over thinking in the first place? You never doubted her, you're her loyal friend.

Of course,if you ever were to be creeped out by her she would have to take you, she'd never allow you to leave. After all you two can have a wonderful life together, whether you like it or not.

But that's not the case now, fortunately she doesn't have to drug you and tie you to her bed. How fortunate !

She smiles, nodding and promising to ask you for more photos for her 'prized moments'.

More people started either going missing or end up dead. People who tried taking you away from her,can't they see? You belong with her, you belong to her.

Since people are so stupid,she has to make it obvious and spell it in their face.

Slowly, letters practically spawned in your shoe locker.

Love poems calling you the sweetest of names. You were intrigued who this anonymous fan was,you must say you even tried peeking to see who was leaving them,but failed each time.

Ayano on the other hand was overwhelmed by pride when she heard you rambling about your secret admirer, cutely giggling over one particular sentence or so.

But she also felt... jealous? It doesn't matter that she's the one who wrote them,but seeing you so enamored with this 'anonymous ' person annoyed her.

On occasions she started gifting you chocolate she knew you liked. Mostly doing it because she loved your happy little squeals and that hug that followed after. She loved the feeling of your chest pressed against hers so tightly. Often wondering how it would feel without the layers of clothes on top of it.

This was only a step further to her plan, this way it wouldn't be a shock when she confessed her undying love to you. You will realize she's the only one you deserve,and you'll accept her love,even return it!

By the end of the first school year you're ready for the final part of her plan.

Yeah the people in your class wonder how you two are not dating yet. Of course they can see how deep Ayano is in for you,but you simply can't.

Making you hers. After she worked so hard this whole year to please you and gain your affection (even if she already had it) she's finally ready to spill her feelings to you.

So here she is,hidden behind the Sakura flower tree, waiting for you to join her.

Your secret admirer called you here to tell you something important,right in the last day of school,in case something goes wrong.

She will leave with you in any case scenario, preferably hand in hand ,rather than taking you home in a box,oh well.

If all goes well,by this time next year you will be her beloved girlfriend,but if not, then you'll be in her basement accompanied by her. Easy.

"Ayano?" Your sweet voice calls out once you get a whiff of the dark ponytail behind the thick tree. It's now or never.

And there she goes, spilling her feelings to you hoping you will return them. Telling you how she wrote those letters meaning every single word that was written on the paper. How she spent her afternoons making the chocolate gifted to you.

This of course came off as a surprise to you, never really thinking Ayano would be able to fall for somebody , especially you. Her best friend since first grade. We're you just so obvious you never noticed the signs?

One look at her flushed face and hopeful eyes and you knew that you also liked her all along,you just chose to push those feelings aside due to your fear of them never being returned by the brunette.

Of course you accepted her confession,and returned it of course.

But if you truly knew the things she had to do to have you,never In a million years would you choose to be hers.

Bonus, slightly suggestive

Ayano didn't usually dream,but when she did ,you were the star of the dream.

Most of her dreams would end up with you on display for her. The next morning she would check you out and pout, thinking that it's a long way before she actually gets to see you and touch your naked body.

But a girl can dream,right?

[jamiscrazy4krerdly]

Awesome swag new pfp = not being terrified of social media for a day yay. Everyday I suffer from the looming fear of not doing the Demigirl Catti with Ghoul Neos community justice when I am the only member of the Demigirl Catti with Ghoul Neos community </3. Can guarantee ghoul will play a humongous ginormous gargantuan part in both of my AUs that I’m working soooooo hard on!!! “I thought this was a Krerdly blog??” Sorry not sorry, get Catti namedrop jumpscared. BOO!! (Dw, the gamers still get to be the main characters or whatevsss.)

(Tysm @solasaich for the amazingest Kris ever!! I experience a little more gender envy towards them every passing day.)

Pogress (pog progress) report: shitting my pants. Favorite written down thought: “is this foreshadowing or foreshitting?” (I had a crisis about something inconsequential the day I’m writing this except I’m writing this at midnight so it was technically yesterday!!!) I will be very lucky if even one of my stuffs gets done before the end of the year. But Gamers… I am totally writing Demiromantic Kris so good it is insane; the Krerdly nation is LOSING for one of my AUs lets fucking gooo. (I’ll make dedicated posts about them EVENTUALLY!! Pinky promise. Cutting off my pinky.)

Alsooo, I learned how I like to write Ralsei so I can’t wait to put him in the spotlight for one of my fics!! Aaand then pretend he doesn’t exist for the other, sorry. My ability to sideline characters is unparalleled!! (RIP Asriel LMAO)

ALSO also I’m making a Deltarune Personality quiz on UQuiz maybe. 7 Results, 10 (?) Really Dumb Questions (so far). I color coded the assigned points for individual answers to individual questions and it made me happy. (Susie is ourple)

Ok ok ok I need to write this somewhere so now is a good time as ever: I am so MAD at myself for not putting my silly little tags in my latest ao3 fic >:( idc if it was improper or whatever the hell I should’ve been able to put #successfully-injected-20-ounces-of-silliness-into-Kris WITHOUT FEELING BAD!! I even decided NOT to mention how I think Kris (and all non-binary people for that matter) should totally one-bajillion-percent be allowed to have boobs without being ridiculed for it. The many shapes of our little flesh vessels are obviously not inherently indicative of our gender identity at all and I had the perfect opportunity to state that fact in the notes section but I DIDNT because Kris wearing a binder is part of their character and story that I’ve crafted for them and I wanted to address it properly in another future fic but it’s such a MINOR THING and won’t be this super dramatic factor that’s the center point of an entire fic like I made it out to be like WHY was I so lame and didn’t take a stance on that when I had the chanceee?? UGH!!!

Speaking of fics!! So far I’ve posted one for Christmas and Valentines, right? Well besides my draft for New Years it recently dawned on me that I still need to make one for Halloween and I’ve never written horror before (besides some stupid spontaneous one-off paragraph comment for a yaoi on wattpad IDK what 12 year old me was thinking) so YEAH idk I guess I’ll try my best, I have a couple good ideas?? If push comes to shove I can always revert to “ice cream cake full of fluff with an acidic slice of plot on the cutting knife” or some bullcrap.

Ok enough thinking, I’ve already had to do soooo much that while trying to think of a new nickname for Kris every single fic. I’ve brainstormed some real bologna, but I AM proud of the one I came up for my Deltadungeon AU! Title pending…

THIS bullet point is is dumb but… does anyone play Roblox? Yes? Ok, follow-up question: do you know what Doodle World is? It’s like the bestest pocket monster game on the site. Basically I’m forming a Deltarune theme team consisting of Kris Berdly Susie Noelle Catti and Jockington and if I record some good battles with my trashy theme team I might post them somewhere somehow idk lol but it’d be funny. I cannot WAIT for nothing to come of this.

I saw someone say they HATE Kriselle (on pintrest of all places) and since I’m a multi-shipper AND a certified hater I’m dedicating this paragraph to be a meanie to that person specifically. They are THE childhood friends to lovers!! Noelle watches in abject horror as Kris puts every shape in the square hole. Kris shows off their blades and Noelle tells them blades are for skatin’ and calls them a dingus. Noelle chases after the knight and Kris screams “GIRLFRIEND, STOP, GET BACK IN THE CARRGRHG” while she goes “youuuu come back here” and tackles the knight to the ground, knocking the helmet off and revealing Berdly underneath. Just thought I’d let you all know!!

Ok but honestly I’ve been sooo obsessed with Catti and Ralsei interactions. I have a vivid image in my head of Kris setting ghoul up on a date with an alleged “Prince of the Dark” and then Catti sees this sweet fidgety guy in bright colors and flowy clothing and ghoul’s like “figures” and it PROBABLY doesn’t work out if we’re being realistic but I’m holding out hope!! Rise up, Catsei (Ralti?) shippers!!

Ok gamers as a treat for putting up with me this far I present to you with a scenario: Kris and Berdly on a cloud-watching picnic date with a basket and flowers laying on a blanket except NEITHER of them are actually cloud-watching get epicly pranked!! Berdly’s on his 3DS playing Mii Plaza while Kris is letting bugs crawl on them and thriving. That’s so cool I almost can’t believe that it’s real. Everybody look forward to my upcoming fic based entirely around this idea titled “Kicking Back (A Green Shell)!” /j

Anyway for Halloween Krerdly is Waluaisy while Suselle is Bowigi you’re all WELCOME!!

[vs-redemption]

*Valentine’s Day morning starts with being woken up to Hajime spooning you from behind and pressing warm kisses to you shoulder* “Good morning, babe. Happy Valentine’s Day” *He says, voice still a little rough from sleep but you can feel him smile against your skin as his lips continue to flutter over your shoulder. He convinces you to stay in bed with him a little longer before he slips away from you, kissing your pout away and saying he’ll get tea and breakfast ready for you. He doesn’t take too long and soon he’s bringing in a big bedside tray full of yummy treats. He kisses you again and has you settle almost on top of him while you both enjoy a grande Valentine’s breakfast of waffles, eggs, bacon, and tea. As you two eat, you noticed that all of your plushies and figurines that adorn your room are holding a single rose. You raise an eyebrow to Hajime which he responds to with a boyish grin, but you can see that sparkle of playfulness in his eyes* “Looks like I’m not the only one who’s wishing you a happy valentine!”

*Hajime helps you get ready for work: he’s got your lunch packed and ready, car keys and work bag prepped, and he assures you he’ll get the chores done before he leaves for work himself* “You have a good day, okay babe?” *He gives you a bare hug, trying to transfer some good vibes onto you. He peppers your face with kisses to make you giggle then rests his forehead against yours* “However it goes, I’ll be proud of you. And I’ll be here to chase away all the bad at the end of the day. I love you” *Hajime slots his lips over yours in a loving kiss, pouring all of his love into you. Even when you guys part, he chases your lips for a few more small kisses and a reassuring squeeze to your have before he lets you go* “I miss you already!” *He calls after you and waits until your out of sight before heading in to get ready himself*

*As the day goes by, Hajime cheers you on and encourages you through texts and little voice notes. Little jokes, advices, suggestive ideas, and just sweet ‘I love you’ is what he exchanges with you. He also surprises you with little notes in your lunch bag and a doodle of you, him, and Suga kitty. He hopes that even just one of his messages has your smiling*

*A lovely candle light dinner and some preserved forever roses are what await you when you finally come home, along with Hajime dressed up in a very nice suit while he tries to get Suga kitty to at least wear a bowtie* “Just wanted to have your favorite boys all dapper for this Valentine’s dinner but I think I’m no match for paw fights” *Hajime laughs before letting the mischievous kitty go. But it gives you th opportunity to jump in his free arms and he laughs in delight while hugging you tight and spinning you. For a split moment, you notice that the dino plushies from your first date are also joining you for dinner. Hajime grins* “Just thought they should celebrate with us too. They’ve been with us since day 1” *His fingers fiddle with your goldstone bracelet while his matching one to yours glistens in the candlelight*

“I love you so much, Cindy. Happy Valentine’s Day”

Hajime Iwaizumi

*Waking up to him pressed against me was like waking up into a good dream, especially with the sweet kisses he was peppering over my shoulder. I hum happily when he reminds me it’s Valentine’s Day. I couldn’t wait to see what was in store for us that day. Even though we both had work, I knew I could get through it knowing I’d get to come home to him at the end of the day.* Happy Valentine’s Day. This is such a nice way to wake up.

*It doesn’t take much to convince me to stay in bed with him. In fact, I have a real urge to just call off work so that I might cuddle him all day. I sit up though when he brings in the breakfast tray and I eagerly dig in. Usually I just had a small protein shake in the morning so this was a nice treat.* I noticed all the roses, babe. You’re so silly. The only admirer I want is you.

*It was never easy leaving him in the morning, but today was even more difficult because of how sweet and loving his kisses are at the front door. My heart already felt full and the way he had everything prepared for me to go made me feel like it could burst with how much love it held for him.* we’ll be together again before you know it.

*I give him a kiss and tell him I love him before heading to work. The day went more easily with his constant encouragement. As my work day ends, I find I cannot get to my car to go home fast enough. Seeing him and Suga dressed up and waiting for me made the long work day worth it and I kiss both of them on the head, avoiding Suga cat’s paw when he tries to bap me*

You both look very handsome. *I laugh when Suga jumps from his arms and goes to try and bite the bow tie off. I’m happy for the chance to finally hug Hajime though, and I sigh happily as he spins me. I notice the Dino plushies and feel my heart swell again.” You really outdid yourself, babe. I love you so much. This was a perfect day. Happy Valentine’s Day.

[the-hilda-librarians-wife]

Much Ado About Nothing

Summary: On Valentine’s Day, Johanna’s visit to the library takes longer than expected due to ... unforseeable circumstances.

Snowed in Valentine’s Day sketchbook AU

Notes: Okay this fic was written and revised at the quickest speed I could manage so it’s probably not the best, but in my defence I wasn’t even going to write it before I saw @kaminos-hangout-corner ‘s post about v day being cold like, three days ago, so it’s the best I could do :3. Happy Valentines, hope you enjoy it! (also please keep in mind I live in a place where snow is not a thing, so sorry if this is too inaccurate)

Read it on ao3  I  Read last year’s Valentine’s sketchbook fic

The library’s closing time had long since passed by, yet the lights inside it were still lit, something that was becoming recurrently common these days. With it being a Sunday, the library’s doors were supposed to have been locked at five in the afternoon, but the librarian had found herself… otherwise engaged.

Johanna had walked in earlier that day, bringing a basket of cookies to give her and of course, bringing her lovely self. Even if she wanted to do so, Kaisa wouldn’t have had the heart to tell her to go away when the time had come for her to close the library, and she very much hadn’t wanted to.

Sometimes the kind woman came to doodle; on the occasion when Kaisa had mustered up enough bravery to ask her about it, back when the two of them barely spoke at all, Johanna had said she liked the peace and quiet of the library, as well as finding it an inspiring place. The librarian had had to agree, there was something about the place that inspired not only knowledge, but also imagination, but she didn’t dare say that it was probably the vestiges of magic in the air.

Other days, which Kaisa had to admit were her favourite, Johanna came simply to check out a book and she always made time to exchange a few words with the librarian; the baked goods were new, but Kaisa was definitely not about to complain.

Of course, she supposed she shouldn’t really be talking during her working hours, nor giving all her attention to one single library patron, but it wasn’t like anyone else but Johanna seemed to even want the librarian’s attention, and besides that they always kept their voices down so as not to disturb anyone. Seeing as the situation seemed completely unproblematic, Kaisa didn’t stress about it, and even felt flattered that Johanna had chosen to spend some more time with her on that date, since she certainly had better things to do. The problem came when, hours after the library had been closed, when they had already spent hours chatting alone in her break room and eating the cookies, Johanna looked at the clock and  suddenly excused herself, saying that she needed leave.

“Do you want any help?” Kaisa asked after a couple of seconds of watching the woman struggle to push the library doors. It seemed like a very unusual occurrence, in Kaisa’s eyes. Big as they were, those doors had never given her much trouble, and she knew for a fact that Johanna was a strong woman. She still remembered the time she’d let a pile of books fall from her cart and Johanna had picked all of them up for her at once, which considering how lengthy and heavy the books had been, was no small feat.

“I think I do, actually.” Johanna adjusted her grip on the handle in a way that allowed Kaisa to grasp it too. For a moment, the librarian’s fingers brushed against Johanna’s hand, allowing her to feel how soft they were. Were she not in Kaisa’s presence, she would have huffed at herself for noticing such a small thing in the situation she was in; she really had it bad.

They attempted to open the door again, together that time, being unsuccessful once more. Kaisa’s brow creased. Granted, she hadn’t expected her limited strength to be of much help, but this shouldn’t be this hard either.

“Together on a three count?” Johanna suggested and Kaisa nodded. They both took a wider stance, and when Johanna reached the ‘three’, they dumped all their body weight into the door, but to no avail. They would have had more luck moving a boulder.

The two of them were heaving with the effort when they stopped, Kaisa going as far as leaning forward and placing her hands on her knees to rest.

“What on earth…” Kaisa breathed, before connecting the dots and immediately coming back to an upright position as if she had been startled. “Oh no.”

Johanna gasped when the librarian began running away to the closest window. She’d known it had been snowing, but she really hadn’t given this matter much thought. Spending her days inside the library, it wasn’t often that the weather became a hindrance to her, so it hadn’t even registered in her mind that it might become on that specific day.

“Tell me something.” Close as she was to the window, the tip of her nose nearly touching it, Kaisa’s words and breathing caused condensation to spread on the glass. “Was it already snowing when you got here?”

Approaching the window as well, Johanna grimaced at the amount of white flakes falling quickly to the ground outside. “It was, yes.”

“Damn it.” She whispered softly, trying to keep her cool while inside she was already cringing at having to deliver these news. “I’m sorry, Johanna, but it looks like you’re snowed in with me.”

_#_#_#_

If Kaisa had stopped to think properly, she would have noticed that she was stressing about the situation a lot more than Johanna herself was. This gave the artist conflicting feelings at best. She didn’t know what to think about how desperate Kaisa seemed to be to get rid of her.

For her part, the librarian couldn’t get out of her mind that she had ruined Johanna’s Valentine’s Day. Surely, for her to have asked to leave so suddenly earlier, it was because she had a date (or at least something that was worth her time more than keeping the lonely librarian company), and Kaisa told herself that if she hadn’t been so selfish and had stuck to the rules, asking her to leave the library at the time everyone else was supposed to, this wouldn’t have happened. Now Johanna was stuck with her as company.

Johanna had asked if there wasn’t any other way out that she could use, even though seeing Kaisa’s distress was already enough of an answer. Kaisa had had to bite her tongue and say that no, there weren’t any other ways in or out, even though she could list other five just from the top of her head; the Witches Tower wasn’t exactly open for visitors, and Kaisa would prefer it if Johanna did not end up in the void of no return.

Together, they had tried forcing the door open a few more times, even though they both knew it would be no use. For the first time since she’d known her, Kaisa wished Johanna would stay away from her, if only for one second. If she got distracted for long enough, maybe she could figure out a spell to melt the snow outside. Or to blow the door away and blame it on a new variation of mutant book worms, whichever seemed more believable. No such luck, however, since Kaisa had worked herself into a fine state of panic, and worried for her, Johanna made sure to stay close.

Kaisa’s next grand idea was to call the Safety Patrol. They were the ones responsible for operating Trolberg’s snowplows, so hopefully they would be able to help them out quickly. There was a phone behind the circulation desk, and a sticky note with useful numbers glued on it. The librarian took a moment to thank her past self for jotting down the patrol’s contact number, even though she couldn’t imagine herself in any other situation in which she’d ask for their help. Still, it was good to know that at least at some point in her life she’d been competent.

Her fingertips tapped against the wood anxiously as the phone ringed three, four, five times before someone picked up.

“Safety Patrol, what is your emergency?” The voice on the other side was heavily accented, and Kaisa sent a silent prayer to whatever deity was listening in gratefulness that it wasn’t the leader of the patrol that had picked up. She wouldn’t trust that man to open a jar.

“Good evening, I need to have the snow removed from the library doors immediately.”

“The library? Sorry ma’am, it says here that the library is closed. There’s no one there anymore, so there are places that will be needing the snowplow with more urgency.”

Kaisa rolled her eyes, which caused her to look up at Johanna. The woman was looking somewhat uncomfortable, and Kaisa took it that it was because, as she had mentioned before the librarian picked up the phone to make that call, she didn’t want to bother the Safety Patrol. Though she had insisted that there was no need for such haste, Kaisa knew she was only trying to be kind, or maybe to make Kaisa herself feel like she wasn’t such bad company. But she wasn’t who Johanna wanted to be with at that moment, so she would do whatever it took for the woman to get what she really wished for.

“I am at the library.” She answered, irritation making her tone harsh like the cold outside.

“You are?” The woman on the other side didn’t sound suspicious, only surprised. “Why? Who are you?”

“I’m the librarian.”

There was a beat of silence as the officer understood the situation. “Oh. I see. Well, I’m afraid that doesn’t change many things, ma’am. This amount of snow caught us all by surprise, many places weren’t ready for it. So, you see, there are people snowed in without supplies, and people snowed in on risk areas. Of course, there are also the main roads which need to be cleaned up. You have a private office with water and some food, don’t you? We will solve your problem when we can, but it might take a while.”

“Listen to me.” Kaisa summoned up her most threatening tone, wishing she’d never allowed Erik’s administration to make that silly inspection in the library, or at least that she could threaten to turn whoever she was talking to into a toad. She highly doubted Johanna would appreciate it, though. “I need you to let me out right now. I don’t care if all you bring is a machete so you can break one of the windows, just-”

So absorbed she’d been in trying to sound convincingly intimidating, something Kaisa was most certainly not used to, she was startled when Johanna grabbed the phone right out of her hand.

“Good evening officer, sorry for the bother.” She was leaning on the circulation desk, propped up on her elbows and sounding remarkably calm. “We will wait, don’t worry about us. Good luck with all the snow tonight. Goodbye.”

The officer said something else, but after that Johanna put the phone back in its hook. When she met the librarian’s gaze, Kaisa felt as if a blow had been delivered to her chest. Johanna looked sad with her, and she couldn’t fathom why. If she was only trying to help…. than the problem must be that Kaisa had allowed this to happen in the first place. Kaisa looked down, not wanting to look at Johanna’s face and see the disappointment in her any longer. She didn’t mean to be the wrong person for her to spend Valentine’s day with, she thought as a blush covered her cheeks, making matters worse, but she could hardly apologize for that, could she?

“Kaisa.” Johanna sighed. “There’s no need for all of this, really. Just… just let me make a call, will you?”

“Of course.” The librarian got up from the chair and walked around the desk, switching places with Johanna. Meaning to give her privacy, she walked a little further away, but couldn’t help but hear the first words she said.

“Hi, sweetie.” Johanna said softly.”I’m afraid I won’t be able to make it for dinner tonight-”

A sudden wave of cold washed over her, and Kaisa wrapped her cape tighter around herself. This conversation really wasn’t something she wanted to hear.

Figuring a hot drink would serve her well, she went back to her office and put some water to boil in the kettle. Some black tea would serve her well, but Johanna looked like the sort of person who drank red berries tea. She didn’t even dare to pick the flavour for her, however, since she had no intention of adding one more screw up to the night.

Johanna joined her right as the water finished boiling. “I already told her I won’t make it tonight.” She said as Kaisa gestured for her to choose a tea bag, allowing the librarian to pour the water on her teacup. “So no worries. I hope.”

“Ah.” Kaisa ran her thumb on the porcelain of her cup. She wanted to take a sip so she would have an excuse not to say anything, but that would certainly cause her to burn her tongue. The atmosphere between them was one she didn’t like, even if she reluctantly had to admit that she’d been the one to create it; it was heavy with discomfort and with words left unsaid, but at least for that last part there was something she could do.

“Johanna, I am sorry.” She said finally, making the other woman look at her with an eyebrow lifted in confusion. “It’s my fault that you’re stuck here right now.”

Looking exasperated, Johanna shook her head. “Kaisa, truly, you don’t have to worry about it. It doesn’t really matter that much, she’ll be fine-”

“It does matter!” Kaisa didn’t know why she was arguing against herself, but she felt like she needed Johanna to be angry at her, because otherwise she’d be the one who would continue being angry with herself. “I should have paid more attention to the time and to the weather. But it was so nice to talk to you privately for a longer while that I… forgot. And now your date is ruined because of that!”

She was gripping the mug so tightly that if it were slightly more frail she’d worry that it might break. Biting the inside of her cheek in an attempt to hold back the tears that were threatening to choke her, Kaisa looked out at the small window in her break room. The snow continued to fall stubbornly, caring not for any of them. Apologizing always sucked; whenever she had too much she wanted to say, it tended to come out all at once in ridiculous manifestations of emotion, leaving her feeling like a fool. At least it was done, and now all she did was wait for Johanna to say something.

“My date?’ Johanna half mumbled, half laughed after a second. “I don’t have a date.”

Kaisa whipped her gaze back to her. “Of course you do.” She said without even thinking about her words, an unusual thing for her to do. “You just called her, did you not? It’s Valentine’s day, who wouldn’t want to be with you?”

To her utter surprise, Johanna laughed, a bubbling sound that began in her chest until it spilled out of her, filling the room with its warmth. Kaisa didn’t even care that the laughter was at her expense; Johanna wasn’t sad anymore and that was what mattered most.

“Kaisa, that wasn’t my date. I was calling my daughter.”

The librarian blinked in surprise, hoping her hair hid the pink spreading on her face. “But… when you noticed the time, you said you needed to leave immediately.”

Johanna’s mug could barely hide her satisfied grin behind itself as she took her first taste of the reddish beverage. Now that she knew exactly what Kaisa’s panic had been about, and that it had nothing to do with wanting Johanna to go away, she was admittedly enjoying the situation way more that she thought she should.

“Yes, because my daughter has an inclination to chaos and would take my being late as an excuse to meddle around the kitchen and possibly set the house on fire.” Watching realization dawn in Kaisa’s face was like watching the sun rise, so deep the transformation was. “I just told her to order in to avoid accidents.”

Holding her steaming cup with her left hand, the librarian used her right one to cover her face. She really hoped there were no witches going through any of the secret passages at the moment that had heard that exchange. They would never let her live this down.

“Oh my goodness.” Her words were muffled by the heel of her hand, and in a show of compassion, Johanna held her giggles back. “I’m so sorry for the way I acted, that was honestly pitiful. I just wanted to make sure you could spend your Valentine’s day - well, Valentine’s evening, I suppose, with the person you wanted.”

Internally repremending herself, Kaisa didn’t dare look at Johanna; she hated how vulnerable and emotional she sounded, and it ought to have made the other woman uncomfortable. She brought her cup to her lips and immediately regretted it when Johanna spoke.

“Who’s to say I didn’t? I did come here to talk to you, didn’t I?”

The witch nearly spilled her tea all over the tiles. When she stared at Johanna, finding her looking right back at her, the woman only smiled calmly, as if the implications of what she’d said weren’t more than enough to shake Kaisa to her core. Still tranquil, she glanced at the book which was sitting on the counter of Kaisa’s kitchenette.

“Is this the book you told me you were reading?” She asked as she lifted up Much Ado About Nothing for the librarian to see. “When we were talking earlier?”

Realizing she still had her cheeks pouched with tea, Kaisa forced herself to gulp it down and nod. “It is. I have already read most of his plays but not this one, so I figured it was worth a shot.”

“We still have some time here, don’t we?” Once more, Kaisa nodded, fearing she looked like a stupid string marionette. “Would you read it to me? I find drawing while listening to stories very cosy.”

“That’s-” Kaisa’s lips slowly bloomed into a smile. “A wonderful idea.”

While the librarian sat down on one of the two chairs of the break room’s table, Johanna produced a sketchbook and a pencil from her pocket. Too distracted finding the place she’d stopped, Kaisa failed to notice most of the doodles in the drawing pad were of her. To that day it had never failed to surprise Johanna that she really believed she went all the way to the library just to doodle in peace.

“Would you like me to begin again so you can keep up with it better?”

“Don’t worry about it.” Johanna was already planning what she would draw. She’d sketched Kaisa so many times, admiring her from afar as she sat in one of the library’s tables, but the evening’s event had made her more confident that her feelings weren’t one sided. Surely a drawing was a more straightforward gift than a batch of cookies, she thought. “Just pick up where you left, it’s perfect.”

After taking a deeper breath, the librarian began.

“I do not love nothing in the world so well as you - is that not strange?”

[imaginesmai]

Dating Peter Parker would include...

I’m sorry I’m not so active lately. I got the requests about Tony (I think there are four of them? two from accounts and two from anon)

-          Peter Parker is a dork.

-          Let’s start saying that.

-          He had always had a crush on you. The beautiful girl in his class, with who he had talked with a few times because a project. Besides, you lived close to him, in the apartment block on the other side of the street. So you sometimes saw each other on the street, and made small conversation.

-          The thing is, he didn’t ask you out. He hadn’t thought he had any chances with you, so he just dropped it and cried to Ned and May about it.

-          But then, a highschool dance for valentine’s day came around.

-          He wasn’t going to go, let’s be real; he didn’t have a date, Ned was going with Betty and Flash had been mocking him for the entire week.

-          Sad boy was sitting at the end of the class, doodling on his notebook, when you approached him.

-          It made his day that you talked to him; so when you asked if he wanted to go with you to the dance, he just broke.

-          You took that as a bad sign, so you retracted and told him it was okay if he had someone.

-          Peter didn’t get to say yes because he just froze and nodded to everything you said, so you left.

-          That day Peter was as pale as ever. He spent the lunch time sitting on the same chair, looking ahead and thinking about nothing. He went home, told May about it and she actually smacked him with the newspaper.

-          She made him walk to your apartment and correct himself.

-          That was how he found himself talking to you through the window, explaining himself while both of you cried; you for sadness, and he for frustration.

-          Finally, you went the dance together and the rest is history.

-          Now.

-          NOW.

-          Dating Peter Parker is a rollercoaster.

-          One moment you’re okay, taking a nap together while playing Wii, and the next you’re screaming because you throw a blue shell at him.

-          He’s all about giving you unexpected roses, gifts or planning some weird dates that include random trips, horrible food and a lot of spiderman. And about starting arguments and fights over insecurities, stupid decisions and videogames.

-          He loves kisses. And I’m not talking about ‘good-morning’ kiss, ‘night’ kiss or ‘see you later’. Not even about random kisses in the cheek or quick pecks on the nose when he passes by.

-          No.

-          Peter has the necessity of trying every available cute kiss on the market. From the first moment, you learn that he loves that type of kisses. The spidey kiss is not enough.

-          For example, he will fight you in trying the lady and the tramp kiss while eating pasta in an Italian restaurant. Everyone looks at you weird, but he’ll be blushing and giggling for the whole dinner and it’s worthy.

-          It’s hard to admit, but he knows every Disney lyric and choreography and sings along with the film once he is comfortable enough with you.

-          Honestly, he’s a kid.

-          He shows it when, in autumn, he takes you to walk around the park only to find the most hidden place, make a pile of leaves on the ground and throw yourself over it. He loves spending the time with you, laying there and watching the people walk while imagine their lives.

-          Also, movie marathons with fortes every Saturday, that end up in a pillow fight and with no clothes in the end.

-          Fun fact: holidays make him riled up.

-          Like, the idea of creating a custom between the two of you, original and unique, keeps him awake at night. He starts planning Halloween one month before the vent.

-          And he’s a freak. On the good side, of course.

-          Peter can spend the whole night awake, you lying by his side sleeping, with the phone illuminating his face as he reads conspiracy theories and unsolved police files on BuzzFeed, only to wake you up when one is too scary or interesting.

-          He has a lot of inside jokes with you, almost all of them too strange for anyone to understand; but you love him that way.

-          His favourite thing to do on a Friday night is to watch soap operas from another county, without subtitles, and make up his own dialogue with you, with a bad accent.

-          Healthy competition, too.

-          Like, bet who can eat more ice-cream without brain-freeze. Or be quiet in a meeting with Tony where he’s asking questions. Talking about Tony, he’s so fed up with Peter and you that he schedule thirty minutes every week to cry about the decision of getting involved.

-          Who can sleep longer, run faster or annoy Mr Harrington the most. Who can keep smiling through a sad movie. Or cry through a happy one.

-          Days with Peter are always something new, you can’t never get bored.

-          There is also a sweet part in him.

-          He can’t sleep without you by his side when you finally make the relationship serious.

-          He has a corner in his room filled with silly selfies or objects that mean something to you.

-          There is a drawer with pads, make-up, panties, bras, pain-killers for the period, a brush, some hair bands, your favourite perfume and shampoo, and an extra charger for your phone in his wardrobe. That he updates every once in a while with things you might need or want.

-          Every day, he makes his goal to tell you ‘love you’ in a different way. By giving you something, helping you to study, learning something new for you, or just sticking a paper to your locker.

-          The thing is, Peter Parker is a boy with a mind of a kid who loves stepping on puddles but forced to become a superhero that swings you across NY.

-          And you get to be the lucky person to spend the rest of your life with him.

Tom Holland taglist:

@delicately-important-trash​​

@lexxxistrips​​

@smilexcaptainx​​

@aikaterrina​​

Want to know more about me? Here is my Masterlist! Feedback is always appreciated!!

[go-events]

GO Rom Com Spotlight: @soft-october-night

Here is the second interview of our special two-fer GO Rom Com spotlights for Valentine’s Day. The amazing @soft-october-night (soft_october on AO3) has claimed Desk Set to adapt for Good Omens in the Good Omens Rom Com Event.

For reference, here’s a little background about the source material!

About Desk Set: Bunny Watson (Katharine Hepburn) is a library reference clerk stuck in a dead-end relationship with a boring television executive (Gig Young). Her life is thrown into turmoil when computer expert Richard Summers (Spencer Tracy) enters it. He has been assigned with automating her department, and she is fearful that Summers' new computers will automate her out of a job. She despises him at first, but eventually each of the two start to fall for the other's charms and strong personalities.

We spent some time chatting about how the adaptation is coming so far, as well as future plans for it! Now, get to know @soft-october-night a little better!

* * *

goromcom: So, you chose to adapt Desk Set as your rom com. Has this movie been a favorite of yours, or is there some other reason you chose it? Full disclosure: I really love this movie, and I think it's underrated as a Tracy/Hepburn movie.

soft-october-night: I LOVE everything Tracy and Hepburn, they're one of my favorite on screen couples. They have a fantastic natural chemistry while being totally separate characters, and the love that they have for each other bleeds through every frame. Desk Set is particularly charming to me because they're not totally at odds with each other like in Adam's Rib. Their falling for each other is natural and sweet. I think that easy camaraderie and love they have for each other would translate perfectly to a Good Omens story.

goromcom: What's your favorite moment of Desk Set, and are you looking forward to presenting it in your adaptation? Any loose plans for that scene that you can share?

soft-october-night: I'm a huge fan of the rooftop scene where Tracy is suitably awed by Hepburn's amazing mind, as well as the scene in her apartment where misunderstandings that might not be misunderstandings at all keep happening as more and more people start showing up. I'm absolutely putting both of those scenes into the fic, and they're the ones I’m looking forward to the most. (Especially the apartment scene. Gabriel is Aziraphale's manager, and is HORRIFIED Aziraphale is CONSTORTING with a CONSULTANT that might DESTROY the WHOLE DEPARTMENT!)

goromcom: (I also love the rooftop scene!? “Oh no, it’s too silly...were Harry and Grace Goldfish?” “No. They weren’t. They were rare tropical fish. Like you.” SWOON.)

Do you plan to stick very closely to the beats of the original story, or make bigger changes?

soft-october-night: I’m sticking to the general story beats and going full AU. (To anyone who knows my writing, I know this is a real shocker, haha.) Since this will take place in 2020 instead of the 50s, obviously I'm changing some things around in terms of what, exactly Crowley's character is doing in this office. (He's developing software instead of a computer, but everyone is still terrified that the software is going to replace them.)

goromcom: What's an interesting decision you've made in your planning so far--a notable casting decision, a changing of venue, or some other plan you have to paint Good Omens all over your rom com?

soft-october-night: The biggest decision I'm making is taking away the whole "Hepburn's character is in love with her boss" thing. Gabriel is going to be the manager, and instead of waiting around for a ring, the conflict between him and Aziraphale will arise from Gabriel being more of a Gary Cole in Office Space type manager, and Aziraphale trying to do the right thing and dedicating his life to a company that doesn't care much about him. (Crowley shows up and reveals it doesn't have to be that way, and things CHANGE.)

goromcom: Sounds like a solid plan! 

Now, to wrap up, I am blatantly stealing this last question from The Good Place: The Podcast, but here goes: Tell me something "good". It can be something big or small. It can be a charity you think is doing good work, or you can talk about how great your pet is.

soft-october-night: This was a rough week, so here's three good things: Dunkaroos are coming back, I'm visiting a very good friend and fellow writer next week, my partners and I have four gerbil children named Macaroni, Cheese, Doodle, and Smores and they're perfect baby angels who love to chew and scamper and eat pumpkin seeds

goromcom: Ah, the gerbils sound adorable. <3

Make sure you have your pack of Dunkaroos ready when the GO adaptation of Desk Set debuts, coming soon.

[breeeliss]

[Femslash February]: Baking

and my dark pink square will be devoted to......LILANETTE

this pairing gets so little love so prepare to kick it with me for a whole week because this pairing deserves it damn it

Day 15: Baking (Lilanette)

Words: 2,004

Link to Archive of Our Own: [AO3]

[Previous: Valentine’s Day] [Next: Tea Party]

Lila decided that opera cakes were a pretty safe option to go with. 

She only ever visited Paris once in her life before moving here -- a short vacation away from Sicily when her mom was still around and her father hadn’t started moving around for work yet -- and one of the few things she remembered was the small box of opera cakes they’d gotten at a bakery. They were cut into neat three square centimeter pieces, and for six year old Lila, they were the closest thing to tiramisu that France had. 

It was a silly thing from her childhood, but it was an honest and sincere piece of her that seemed like the perfect thing to try and give back to others. Not that anyone would necessarily know that, but it was the thought that counted. So she’d gone into a quaint bakery right across the street from school and ordered two boxes of opera cakes with hyacinths and white chocolate designs drawn on the tops. Maybe the whole flower symbolism thing was a little heavy handed, but Lila could use all the help she could get at this point. 

On the day when she was meant to pick them up, Lila’s nerves had made her get on the bus sooner than she meant to and catch the bakery only five minutes after it opened. She squinted through the glass and past the Tom & Sabine’s logos painted on the door, seeing no one inside. After jiggling the knob and knocking a couple of times yielded no answer, she contemplated walking off her overeagerness in the park nearby and trying not to hype up something as innocuous as pastries in her head. But, right as she was about to leave, a small figure quickly sped around the counter inside, fiddled with the keys in their hands, and pushed the door open. 

“Sorry about that! We’re still prepping and we don’t usually get customers quite this -- Lila?”

Lila blinked at the young girl standing in front of her and immediately recognized her from her class. She floundered for a bit and tried to remember her name. “U-Um....it’s Marinette, right?”

“Yeah,” Marinette breathed out. “Uh...hi? What are you doing here so early?”

“What are you doing here?” Lila countered. “Do you work here or something?”

“Sort of,” Marinette shrugged. “This is my parents’ bakery. I help prep all the orders and fill the display cases on Tuesday and Thursday mornings before I head off to school. Didn’t even get to unlock the door yet.”

Lila nodded slowly. “Right....” To be honest, she never really spoke to Marinette and didn’t know much about her. She was their class representative, she was always doodling in class, and she was often late in the mornings, zipping into her seat just before the period started. Aside from that, nothing. It also didn’t help that this was the first time they’d really spoken to each other. Then again, with the exception of her first day here, she didn’t really talk to anyone in her class anymore. The glares and whispers were enough to sufficiently abscond her to the fringes of their class dynamic. The worst part was that she couldn’t even blame them all for it. 

She sighed, deciding to save herself the awkwardness. “I’ll just come back later then. When your parents are around.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Marinette assured. “I was about to open up anyway. You can come in.”

“Are...are you sure?”

“Yes, of course. One customer is hardly anything.”

Lila hesitated at the threshold until she decided that she really didn’t have a good excuse for meandering around outside until anyone other than one of her classmates came to help her. Besides, the longer her order sat there, the quicker her resolve started to leave her, and she couldn’t afford to chicken out over something so important. 

The smell of fresh bread cooking in the ovens behind the counter immediately hit her as Lila walked in, Marinette fiddling with her keys and locking the door again behind her. “Yeah, sorry it’s so hot in here,” Marinette apologized. “All the ovens are going. Let me know if you want me to open more windows.”

Lila’s lips quirked up in a small smile. “It’s fine, don’t worry.”

Marinette bounced back behind the register and leaned her elbows on the counter. “What can I get you?”

Lila shuffled around in her bag for a receipt. “I’m here to pick up a pastry order? I have the order number right here.”

She passed off the slip of paper and Marinette nodded as she scanned the receipt. “Huh, so you were the opera cake order. Two boxes of nine, right?”

“That’s the one.”

Marinette peeked behind the counter. “I don’t think they’re decorated yet. I was going to do that right before you showed up. Do you mind waiting about fifteen minutes?”

Lila shrugged. “School doesn’t start for a while. I can wait.”

She leaned against the counter and waited for Marinette to disappear into the ktichens and carefully bring out two pink pastry boxes each filled with nine neat squares of opera cakes, the layers of chocolate, ganache, and sponge cake looking positively immaculate. Lila stared at the chocolate layers on top of each and blinked when she saw a delicate “I’m Sorry” meticulously signed with white chocolate in the upper left corner of each square. 

Lila raised a brow and stared at Marinette who was filling a piping bag with purple frosting. “Is it too late to change my mind? I think the apology on top of each might be a bit too much.” 

“I mean,” Marinette hesitated. “If they’re for who I think they’re for, any little nudge helps.”

“Yeah,” Lila muttered. “I guess you’re right...”

They stayed silent while Marinette prepared the piping bag and worked the frosting towards the tip. “Hibiscus flowers you said, right?”

Lila nodded silently and watched Marinette pipe out small, delicate dollops of frosting on the corners opposite the written apology, creating a small wreath of flowers to wrap up along the sides for good measure. She supposed it made sense that Marinette would be so quick and precise with her decorating, what with being an artist and all. Lila was sure that she was the one who had so beautifully written the words into the chocolate layer on top, not properly comprehending how much concentration and delicacy that must have taken. She wondered if all the decorated cakes in the windows were done by Marinette too. 

“So,” Marinette said conversationally. “This for our class?”

Lila rubbed one of her temples. “That’s the idea....”

“But?” Marinette prompted. 

“But this might not work,” she said quietly. “Our class isn’t exactly thrilled with me, you know. One word about that Ladyblog interview being fake and the whole tower just came crumbling down.”

Marinette twisted her mouth in response, stopping to wipe the nozzle of the bag. “So I heard...”

“It’s not much but. I figured you can’t go wrong with sweets.”

Marinette peeked up at Lila through her lashes. “If you don’t mind my asking...you’ve been here for close to two weeks. Why are you apologizing now?”

Lila shrugged. “You’ve gotta crack at some point. Or have you not noticed that most people are doing nothing but gossip about me behind my back?”

“Better late than never?”

“Exactly.”

Marinette finished off her designs for one box and paused to close it and wrap it up with string before she moved on to decorating the rest. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but I didn’t think you’d apologize.”

Lila snorted. “I’m not a monster you know.”

“Didn’t say you were,” Marinette defended quickly. “Just that. Well, after you got caught, everyone started avoiding you and you seemed to want to keep it that way. Like you didn’t try to defend yourself or anything.”

“I mean there was nothing to defend myself with,” Lila replied, figuring that if Marinette was the only person that had bothered to engage her in a conversation this long in two weeks, it wouldn’t hurt to vent to her just a little bit for the sake of relief. “Everyone knew, and they hated me for all that stuff I made up. I wasn’t trying to make people mad at me, but that’s how they took it.”

“What did you mean by it?”

Attention. Admiration. Friendship. Community. Security. A life raft in this strange city she was forced to move to and in this school filled with people she didn’t know. “Who knows?” Lila replied instead. “People do stupid things all the time. But I feel bad about it.”

“Bad because you know it was wrong, or bad because you got caught?”

Lila smirked humorlessly. “Is it bad if I say both?”

Marinette chuckled. “Not bad. Just honest. Which I guess is refreshing considering your track record.”

It sounded like a very subtle joke, if that, but Lila smiled in response.

It didn’t take long for Marinette to finish the decorations, package the last box, and ring up the order. She was swiping Lila’s card and waiting for the machine to spit out the receipt when she asked, “What comes after this?”

Lila signed the receipt and handed it back to Marinette as she carefully picked up both boxes. “I guess I’m playing this by ear. If this doesn’t work, I guess I’ll have to try something else.”

“You think it’s worth it to try again?”

“You really underestimate how much it sucks to be ignored by everyone around you.”

“I mean maybe I do,” Marinette conceded, “but I understand that it’s objectively awful. I don’t blame you for doing what you have to do to smooth out the waters. I’d be doing the same and then some.”

Lila’s fingers were tangling in the box strings. “So would everyone else. I’m not special.” No, she finally decided. She wasn’t special. Not at all. No amount of clever lies and ridiculous promises could ever make that untrue. 

“Everyone else wouldn’t be sincere about it,” Marinette countered. “I mean, I know you’re doing it to save your reputation. But I think you also mean it.”

“And how do you know that?”

Marinette grinned. “Just a gut feeling. My gut is never wrong.”

Lila chuckled. “I’m starting to understand why you’re our class rep.”

“Guilty as charged.”

She could feel the conversation beginning to taper off, so she clutched the boxes tighter to her chest and started to back up towards the front door. “Well. Thanks. For the treats. I guess I’ll see you in class later.”

“Mmhm,” Marinette said. “See you soon.”

Lila balanced on her toes awkwardly for a few seconds before heading back out into the cool autumn air. She was about to ease the door closed with her foot when Marinette called out again from the counter. “Oh, and Lila?”

“What now?”

“I accept your apology.”

Lila blinked at the sight of Marinette smiling sweetly behind the counter, and she suddenly got the sense that Marinette was one of those selfless, optimistic types that would always hope for greener grass and better days when she woke up to a new morning. That kind of positivity always puzzled Lila, and always made her hyperaware of the caution and cynicism she herself held towards other people, as if she already knew what they were going to say about her before they even opened their mouths. But Marinette’s feelings were written all over her face, and Lila supposed that it was rather encouraging to see that at least someone in her class was sincere enough to let her know that she was forgiven. 

“That’s...” Lila breathed out. “Reassuring. Thanks.”

“No problem,” Marinette said. “Careful crossing the street with those.”

Lila nodded absently and walked to the corner, waiting at the edge of the sidewalk for the walk signal to blink on. She turned her head, looked back to see Marinette dancing around the shop and filling the display cases with more pastries, and chortled into her scarf. 

Strange girl. Sweet though. Lila could live with strange and sweet. 

[emma-trevelyan]

Daichi Rare Pair Week Day 4: Soulmate AU

Pairing: Sawamura Daichi/Azumane Asahi Prompt: Pets/Valentine’s Day/Soulmate AU Rating: G Ao3

Asahi remembered the day the words appeared on his skin. They were too neat, with curved edges and crisp characters. They simply said, “Hello.” Terrified, Asahi ran to his mother, brandishing his forearm like it was on fire. He was crying, because he didn’t recognize the handwriting, and it had just appeared when he was watching the morning anime hour. He was four at the time.

His mother simply laughed, running her fingertips gently across his skin; “That’s your soulmate, baby boy. Although, it looks like they got their mommy to write a greeting for you.”

“What’s a soulmate?” Asahi asked, still skeptical, and not totally calm. “Why can they write on my arm?”

“A soulmate is a person you’re meant to be with, Asahi,” she explained. “You can communicate this way, because you’re connected. What shows up here shows up on your soulmate. Do you want me to write them back for you?”

Asahi yanked his arm away from his mother… who was this someone he was supposed to be with? Did they know him? Did they go to his kindergarten? Were they that mean girl, Masaki, who broke his crayons and pulled his hair? He didn’t want Masaki to be his soulmate… maybe that nice girl, Yuki… she could be his soulmate. She shared her clay and stuck gum in Masaki’s hair when she was mean to him… he liked Yuki.

But then, it could be anyone in the world. Or rather, anyone in Japan. He was nervous… because they could be really mean, like Masaki… or they could be really nice, like Yuki… but either way, he wasn’t ready to respond.

Not yet.

~~~

Over the years, his soulmate wrote to him constantly. It was slow, at first… simple phrases, in that same neat, crisp handwriting. Then it switched to a wobbly, heavy-handed, messy scrawl in various colors of marker. He also saw smudges of colorful crayon on his fingers, even when he wasn’t coloring that day. Asahi wasn’t very good at his characters yet, so he held off… he was embarrassed. Still, the tangential connection to his soulmate gave him comfort in hard times. When Yuki moved away, when his mom sold the family home and moved them from Kyoto to Miyagi, and when his grandmother passed during a family reunion in Hokkaido… his soulmate had been there.

Although Asahi had never responded. Every time he even considered pressing pen to skin to write back, or just draw a simple doodle to show that he was there, he thought better of it. Some dumb part of him thought his soulmate didn’t want to hear from him, and when his hands and arms were covered in his soulmate’s scrawl, he felt bad for having nothing to say.

Next time… next time, he told himself over and over again.

Next time ended up being in Junior High, when interest in soulmates really started to peak. The few girls in his class who would talk to him fawned over the lines and lines and messy writing all over his arms and hands. They were interspersed with little drawings, and Asahi felt a twinge of affection. The more his soulmate wrote to him, the more he learned. And the more he learned about this person who loved volleyball and rock music and art and video games, the more he started to love them.

So it was disconcerting to say the least when his soulmate went silent. Utterly and terrifyingly silent. After years of constant communication--of learning about them, watching their doodles and drawings come to life on the backs of his hands, and seeing the lists they made for themselves on their arms--for the first time, there was nothing. No writing, no lists. He was afraid for a moment, because he’d heard of this phenomenon--of soulmates dying and severing all connection instantly. But that fear abated as the day went on--his soulmate still smeared ink on their fingers and got pencil residue on the outside of their hand. But other than that, nothing.

He wondered what had changed.

After four days of silence, Asahi started to worry that maybe he’d offended his soulmate somehow, or that they realized who he was somehow and didn’t want to be with him. It was his worst fear come true, and he spent the better part of his morning practice and classes agonizing over it, but sometime after lunch, writing appeared again.

It wasn’t a list, or a greeting like normal. It was a strange squiggle on the inside of his left wrist. Asahi cocked his head at it, squinting, trying to figure out what exactly it was. His soulmate was usually so forthcoming… what were they trying to do?

The squiggle suddenly bolded, like someone had traced over it with frustrated strokes. Asahi paled--it wasn’t a squiggle… it was a heart. Well, half of a heart. His soulmate’s impatience was almost palpable, and it was like a signal. Now was the time. He was finally ready to respond… and his soulmate had been so kind as to give him a starting point.

Asahi picked up his blue pen, and with shaking hands, completed the heart.

~~~

Daichi had learned about soulmates early from a girl in his kindergarten. Apparently, her soulmate got crayon all over his hands every day, and he could even write some words. According to her, they were going to get married someday. Daichi had joined in with the other boys in gently rejecting the idea--girls were gross, kissing was grosser--but something about it intrigued him. Someone he was meant to be with? He’d slept on it, but decided the next morning, he was going to do what he did best--he was going to act.

His mother had written the neat, simple note on his arm as he fought the urge to bounce in place. When she capped her marker, he waited.

And waited.

And waited.

As he grew visibly dejected, his mother took him in a comforting embrace; “It’s ok, little man. Maybe they can’t write yet… or they might not be born yet. You’re young; you never know.”

Daichi smiled, trying to reassure his mother, asking her if they could write a new message the next day. Looking back, it had been a silly request, but his mother had given him a fond laugh and a shake of her head before agreeing. So she wrote another greeting on his arm the next day.

And the next.

And the next.

And every day after that until Daichi learned to write himself. He’d worked extra hard, because maybe his soulmate didn’t want to talk to his mom… maybe they only wanted to talk to him. That made him excited. So when he could finally write a greeting in a bright green marker, he waited. But as always, his soulmate was frustratingly silent.

He didn’t give up. First, he tried different colors, because maybe his soulmate didn’t like the colors he was choosing. Then, as he learned new words, instead of greetings, he wrote questions, because what if they wanted to talk about themselves? Then, he figured his soulmate didn’t want to talk to someone they didn’t know, so he started talking about himself. Then, he figured what if they couldn’t read Japanese? What if they were American or European (how cool would that be!?) and they saw nonsense on their arms every day. So he switched to pictures--he liked drawing pictures anyway. He continued to write, too… just in case.

He wrote everything on his arms. It became a habit, from phone numbers to important dates to reminders to a random thought that occurred to him during his grade 5 literature class. When he got interested in volleyball, he talked about that too. Maybe his soulmate liked volleyball. Maybe they wanted to talk about that? Surely, someday they wanted to talk about something, right?

The winter he turned fourteen, two possibilities came to mind, both equally unpleasant. The first was that maybe his soulmate hated him. Maybe they took a look at this actual crazy person filling their arms with nonsense about his hopes and dreams, wanting desperately to know the person on the other end, and was sickened by the very thought. He tried to dismiss that notion--it was his soulmate… they belonged together--but the doubt clung to him and left him feeling sick inside. He’d heard of couples--soulmates--who couldn’t stand each other.

The other possibility--the one his mother seemed to be leaning on, even if she wouldn’t say anything--was that he didn’t have a soulmate at all. The thought made him feel worse than sick...it made him want to curl in on himself and cry. He shed more tears than any fourteen-year-old boy would likely admit over something as silly as not having a soulmate. He ran his hand adoringly over his heartbreakingly-blank forearm. He just needed a sign… anything. Just to know his soulmate was there. Just to know that somewhere, there was a person just for him. Someone that would love him for exactly who he was, and wouldn’t call him boring or unremarkable. Choking on his own tears, he picked up his marker.

I wish I knew you were there. I’ve never talked to you, but I need you sometimes. And you don’t answer me. Do you hate me? Did I do something wrong? Please tell me… I can fix it. Please. I love you.

Before he could get to sleep, he’d been completely overcome with anxiety, and washed his message away.

~~~

For four days, Daichi was silent. He avoided writing on his arms or marking himself in any way. He tried to not show it, but he was miserable. For some reason, he had put a lot of stock into his soulmate… so many of his dreams and future plans had revolved around finding them. He knew it was stupid. Even if he did have a soulmate, he wasn’t anything special. Who would want him, anyway?

It was harder than he expected, staying quiet. Even if he was talking to no one, even if they didn’t want to hear him, writing to this person--who may or may not exist--had become a part of his daily routine. He wanted to tell this person everything… because they were a part of him. A perfect match…

It was a lazy afternoon towards the end of junior high. It was unseasonably warm out, and him, Michimiya and Ikejiri were taking their lunch on the roof, their sleeves pushed up. Ikejiri arms were covered in neat, loopy handwriting in a language none of them could really read. Ikejiri told them it was French, and his soulmate lived in Paris. Michimiya was showing off the myriad doodles and drawings all over her arms, sometimes interspersed with small, bold, dark writing. Daichi stared at his bare skin, unmarred. He hadn’t even written to his soulmate in a few days. All he wanted was a sign… anything to show his soulmate was there.

He pulled his ballpoint pen out of his pocket...just one more try. Just one more time. His train of thought is both hopeless and desperate, but he didn’t care. He had to try… he had a feeling. He wasn’t sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing, but he had a feeling that this time would be different. Today, he would know for sure if he had a soulmate or not.

He didn't write anything. He didn’t have the courage to just come out and ask ‘hey, do you exist and if so, why have you been ignoring me?’ Instead, he just drew half a heart on the inside of his wrist. His hand shook the whole time, and he thought how fitting it was that he was staring at an incomplete part while praying for his other half to finish it. There was probably a poetic metaphor there, but he chose not to unpack it, and instead waited.

And waited.

He bolded the outline of the half-heart, careful not to dig into his skin. Enough time passed that whatever hope he’d had started to dwindle. No one was there. He tried to remain positive, perhaps take it with his normal maturity, but he couldn’t. All this time, he’d been writing to no one…

Suddenly, before his very eyes, the heart on his wrist completed itself with blue ink. Daichi stared dumbfounded as he saw writing he hadn’t made appear on his wrist. He had to respond! He had to… do something! He had to--

Without warning, tears began streaming down his face, landing on his forearm. One landed on the small heart, smearing the ink of the half he’d written, but not his soulmate’s. His soulmate’s! He couldn’t even respond when Michimiya turned to him with concerned eyes; all he could do was hold out his arm and point to the untouched blue ink on his wrist.

“Sawamura!” Michimiya exclaimed. “They’re--”

“They’re real!” Daichi gasped, trying to take a proper breath. He was starting to feel dizzy.

“No, Sawamura, they’re writing back!”

Daichi stared down at his arm and, sure enough, angular writing started to appear. It was slow, almost like his soulmate was tentative, or shy.

Hey, you ok?

Daichi couldn’t even be mad. He wanted to be angry, ask why he spent his whole life wanting and waiting and wondering because of this person, but he couldn’t find the conviction. He was too busy being happy that they were real and writing to him! He fumbled for his pen, his hand shaking as he wrote his response.

You’re real!

His soulmate paused for a moment, and for a second, Daichi was nervous he’d scared them off, or made them feel bad. He wanted to reassure them--everything was going to be alright, he wasn’t mad, he just wanted to talk to them. To get to know them.

I’m so sorry I did that to you. That was selfish of me. If I could do it again, I’d have written back when I was 4.

Daichi chuckled--so he and his soulmate were the same age then--and quickly wrote back.

It’s fine! I was just worried that you didn’t exist but you’re real! I’m so happy I can’t even be upset! I just want to know everything about you.

Ha! No pressure or anything! Well, there’s not much to know about me.

You could start with your name?

Azumane. Azumane Asahi.

~~~

They’d just finished their first practice as high schoolers. Sugawara was a scream, and his arms were covered in crude anime doodles and long lines of loopy, thin handwriting. But the one Daichi was interested in was Asahi--tall, shy, and baby-faced, he’d messed up his greeting so badly Sugawara was convinced he was a foreigner. But Daichi wasn’t so sure. How many boys his age could realistically be named Azumane Asahi?

But he had to be sure.

He took a pen out of his pocket--since the first day his Asahi started writing to him, he’d never been far from one--and chose a blank spot on his forearm, one he knew Asahi could see.

Hey, on your left.

When Asahi’s gorgeous eyes widened and his head whipped to the left, landing on Daichi, he didn’t think it was possible to be happier.