#but like hes complex in a way where he’s still a prick. and gets So Scared. this is importsnt to me

[kideternity]

Whenever they take the paranoid cunt out of Max's personality in something I literally get so mad. That’s like his main character attribute

[sweetnans]

"You are pretty annoying"

"Did you just call me pretty?"

You are delusional if you think that your boyfriend Bakugo would ever hold his thoughts about you, even if they're bad.

You've been in this weird relationship for years where you yap his ear off, and he teases in return. Your friends find it amusing, actually.

Your relationship with him didn't begin in the best terms. In fact, he found you annoying and overly friendly for his liking.

You always found a way to enter in people's lives without being nosy, it wasn't the typical psychology complex when people try so hard to be involve in everyone's lives just because they need to find a solution to help themselves feel good. You genuinely cared about others, and these others found you easy to talk to.

Among other people, you were one of the most popular girls in UA. With your big smile and obnoxious laugh, Bakugo thought you were fake. Always laughing at shitty hair bad jokes, and cluelessly chatting with that monoma prick like he wasn't messing with you to rile you up (which apparently never worked)

One day, he saw you from afar and pretended to walk the other way to not run to your face.

"Hey, Bakugo!" You exclaimed running after him.

He cursed lowly, and his shoulders tensed a little bit.

"Hey"

He didn't want to talk to anyone. It wasn't personal this time.

"What's with that face? You look like Deku said something"

Your statement felt like you left your words hanging, like you were missing some important complement.

Something like...what?

"Huh? What do you mean?" He squinted his eyes at you, finally stopping in his tracks.

"I dunno," you shrugged, losing your characteristics smile. "You always put that face when Deku opens his mouth. It doesn't matter what he says. You always end up like that"

Deku, in fact, said something, but that wasn't the point. The main point was you reading him so well to the end that he'd never said anything to you, but you still knew what happened to him.

That day, he started paying attention to you, too, and he changed his mind about you being fake.

After months of getting to know each other, you two formed something very unique and cliché at the same time. The famous grumpy x sunshine thrope characterized by the angry pomeranian and the chatty girl that everyone liked. The unique part was Bakugo actually getting involved with someone else.

In the present, he still resents, but admires, the way you always develop in big groups, how every room seems to light up the moment you walk in, and of course, how you read him to perfection.

You two have been laying on his bed for the entire noon, and you've been trying for half an hour to make him talk about his friendship with Deku, now that he openly accepted that he is his friend, You've been pushing the man to tell you how he really feels about apologizing and getting him back after chasing him when Deku thought that it was for the best move away.

"For fucks sake, can you stop?" He tells you grabbing your hips and tickling the skin under your shirt.

"I'm just trying to coaxe you to tell me what you really feel. You know it's not healthy for your mind and body to keep your emotions bottled. You are a person, not a ticking bomb waiting to explode. " You try carresing his neck with your fingerpads.

He looks at you from his side of his bed, and his brows get knitted while his nose scrunch a little.

"What?" You ask at his demeanor.

"You are pretty annoying," he says with a gruff voice, moving one of his hands from your hip to the back of your head, entangling his fingers with your hair.

Your smile widens.

"Did you just call me pretty?"

Now you are showing your full smile, teeth, dimples, and all, the whole package. He can't help it. The butterflies erupt in the pit of his stomach, and the tip of his ears turns in a pink hue.

"Dumbass," he said, rolling his eyes and flicking your forehead.

God, getting to know you was the best that ever happened to him.

[verinarin]

Romcon Fluff | Ratio accidentally drinks your Love Serum ?!? | Tried to make this into a oneshot but I think it needs 2 more chapters, wdyt shall I continue?

Ruan Mei You accidentally made Veritas fell in love with you and he dislikes this festering feeling you have brought to him

support me on ko-fi ╰(*´︶`*)╯♡

Ruan Mei is one of your closest friends, yet you rarely meet her since most of the time she’s off somewhere pursuing her lifelong pursuit of divinity, yet she never missed gifting you presents for your birthday.

You smile as you carefully untie the silk ribbon on your present, you can’t help but guess whatever is inside is a bottle of perfume because you could already inhale the sweet scent before even opening the intricate wooden box

Once you lift the lid it reveals a beautifully carved glass vial filled with a lavender-coloured liquid, you carefully examine the shimmering liquid in awe, it smells so sweet like a cherry blossom cake, you notice a light blue envelope inside the box

You carefully place the vial back to read open the envelope, there’s a beautifully written letter addressed to you, her sincerest friend

“Dearest friend of mine, Happy belated birthday. Now I have prepared this gift of mine long before your birthday but since I’m currently in the middle of nowhere I have deduced that It’ll reach your doorstep approximately 2 days late and for that, I apologise,” you smile as you read her letter, ah she’s still the same

Upon reading the 3-page long heartfelt letter Ruan Mei reveals that she has been making this rejuvenating serum for you since earlier this year, she said she used your DNA and modified it so for your birthday she gave you an enchantment serum of some sort

She said to pour it into a hot beverage and not too much since it’s a highly concentrated serum, so you decided to brew a cup of tea while you text her thank you. Okay so a little bit goes a long way, you slowly pour the serum into the tea when all of a sudden the bell into your apartment rings, it shakes you and accidentally makes you pour a lot more than you intended to

You quickly flip the vial and close its lid, you silently curse as you put the vial back and rush towards the door, you open the door with a pout on your face, now when you see the person behind it makes you more annoyed than before, Veritas Ratio in the flesh

“Why haven’t you been answering my texts and even my calls ?, your lack of response is going to cost us both substantial damage,” ah yes your assigned partner for the annual Intelligentsia Guild research showcase, where you and the narcissistic prick in front of you are assigned together by the committee

“Damage ?, I was just enjoying my birthday. Our research is not going to somehow dissipate into thin air if I enjoy some time for myself,” you groan, you want to slam your door into that handsome prick’s face, but you can’t because he’ll sue you

He scoffs while looking down on you, without any hesitation he slides into your apartment, at this point you want to just pounce over him, but thankfully you’re in a good mood because your tea is waiting for you-

That entitled motherfucker—

When you turn your body you see him blissfully sipping on your tea, like he’s entitled to it, “Hmm this tea is exquisite, the colour is stunning too where did you get this from ?” he asks as he swirls the cup, your cup

“Veritas Ratio that was my birthday present ?!!” you yell as you storm towards him, you try to pry his hands away from your tea but sadly he’s way taller than you, “Well then I need you to tell the person that gifted you this tea to tell me where they acquire such complex tea blend,”

You’re fuming, you swear that there’s smoke coming off your head like some sort of chimney, he notices this and weirdly he thinks you’re cute, he can’t believe that his heart just skipped a beat when you pout at him, what an unusual feeling

“Stop pouting, you’re making my heart palpitate faster than usual,” Veritas groans which surprised you, what the hell was he saying ?

“What the hell are you implying ?!”  you scan his face, somehow this man who is well known to be rude and disrespectful is blushing profusely, what the hell happened here ?!

“You !, can you stop looking that beautiful basking underneath the sunlight it bothers me, I hate it,” he can’t believe he just said that out loud, what the hell is happening with him

“H-huh ?!?, what the fuck is wrong with you Veritas, I rather have you yell at me for fucking up some calculations than whatever this is,” you shriek feeling slightly disgusted and oddly flattered ?!?

“Well do you think I have the slightest idea what made my mind suddenly throw out my rationale out of the window and replace it with you instead ?!,” okay this is starting to freak you out because this feels too real, way too real is this a dream, please be a dream

You start to lightly slap your face to snap yourself out of this horrific nightmare, “This is no dream, I suggest you start to be responsible over this,” he leans forward and reaches out to your hand, he presses it towards his beating heart, he’s serious about how fast it was palpitating-

“W-what do you mean responsible ?!?, for what h-huh ?,” you try to pull your hand away but to no avail, it’s like he glued it down on his firm chest

“For these festering feelings that I don’t enjoy having nor experiencing, it must’ve been the tea I drank because before this I was quite normal when it comes to staring at that captivating face of yours. No, I mean that horrid face of yours that someone enchanted when illuminated by the sun,” Oh nous, it can’t be that tea can it ?

Oh !, Ruan Mei what the hell did you gift ?. Veritas could see your face reduce to a state of emotionless, “Don’t ignore me fool !,” he mutters as he now guides your hand to rest his head against your palm

“S-stop acting weird,” you stutter on your words, your confidence has been drained and now you’re left with red-tinted cheeks, how frustrating

“Can’t help it, I just want you to notice my presence,” he mumbles against your palm, slightly kissing it while talking, Oh my nous, Ruan Mei needs to fix whatever this is or at this rate, he can’t perform his task as your research partner

“Okay okay I need to somehow make an antidote for you,” you take a deep breath trying to think of something, but how can you when he’s there watching you with those puppy eyes

“Please do because, to be frank, I’m extremely uncomfortable with the way I just want to kiss that pink lips of—“ before he can continue you slap his mouth shut with your palm

“Shut up !!, don’t utter any more nonsense, just get out of here and don’t come back until I find a way to fix whatever this is,” you quickly push him towards the door, he’s adamant about staying by making things harder for you

“Can’t I just wait here and assist you? I might miss you if you kick me out, I mean no of course I wouldn’t miss your brilliant mind what am I saying of course I’ll miss you,” this man needs to be stopped, you can’t handle the contradictions that he’s spewing

“What do I need to do for you to get out !,” you huff as you wipe away your sweat, this man weighs like those sculptures he makes

“A kiss on the lips should suffice,” he smirks, why did he smirk?!?, never mind that you can’t deal with this nonsense anymore, you quickly drag him by the collar and press your lips together within a second you pull away from the kiss leaving him happily dumbfounded, you took this chance to hurriedly push him out the door and lock it

What the hell just happened ?!?

[kayentokk]

Easy Peasy Sukuna Squeezey(Part 1);A Lot More Ice Cream

Pairing;Sukuna x Fem! Reader

Summary;Sukuna always knows what to do when you’re upset, but this time he thinks he’s gonna need a lot more ice cream to fix the problem. 

Contains;feelings, some sadness, cheating mentions, angst kinda (not in a death way), comfort(Sukuna comfort), 🥹

wc; 1,261

A/N;uhmmm y’all I think imma make this a series. Cuz I wanna drag it out and I have more ideas for this storyline, so bear with me. And I hope you enjoy the first chapter!

Series M.list Next

The smell coming from inside was musk, and humid. You could feel it radiating through the door. You knew this was coming, hell this is what you came over here for. But it still hurts like a bitch to know your boyfriend, ex, is in the middle of sex with one of your mutual, ex, friends. 

You were tipped off today by one of your ex’s friends, the only reason he told you was because quote unquote he “can give you a better time than that prick.” At the time you thought, he’s probably not wrong, maybe you’ll even take him up on the offer after this. That’s not likely though. You’re just, rightfully so, in your feelings and feeling angry about the whole situation. 

You still wanted to see for yourself though, so you went to his apartment. You quietly unlocked the door and turned the knob, you just needed to know for yourself. You didn’t want to be privy or see the adulterous, disgusting act. 

As if the clothes, that obviously belonged to him and his little- thing, that were in a trail leading to the bedroom weren’t enough, a loud, keening, high-pitched whine was let out. You didn’t need to see or hear anymore, that was enough. 

You had tried to tried mentally prepare yourself before you got there, deciding to walk there for the commute instead of driving because you could clear your head better, but nothing prepares you for betrayal. And this was betrayal at its finest. 

You placed the keys on the counter, opened the door, and slammed it shut loudly on your way out. You were hoping to startle them, but you’d be long gone before they got a clue. 

You didn’t want to go home, so you didn’t. It’s not like you had anything waiting on you there, besides the memories that were once happy of you and him. And that’s just depressing. 

After walking for a while, you noticed where you were headed. Sukuna’s house. It was only natural to want to go there. Sukuna is your best friend, of sorts. You guys grew up together, you went to the same schools your whole life, and your mothers were best friends. So you guys were destined to be close in some way. 

You stopped yourself right across the street from his complex. All the intrusive thoughts immediately rolled in, what if he has girls over? Or he’s having a party? Or maybe he’s not home?   M-maybe he doesn’t want to-

“Hey,” a gruff voice greets you.

It’s Sukuna. 

He’s in his car, the windows are rolled down and the music is low so that you can hear him, he has a couple of bags in the front seat, he must have just been returning from somewhere. 

“Hellooo? Earth to y/n?”

You snapped out of it, “hey,” you greet him lowly.

“Were you coming to see me?,” he asks reaching for his phone from his back pocket, “I didn’t think I got a message from you.”

“You didn’t. I didn’t know I was coming here either to be honest.”

“Oh…well, are you gonna get in or what? It’s freezing outside and you’re letting all my heat out of the window you psycho.”

It’s cold? Yeah, it is the middle of winter. You hadn’t noticed until he mentioned it. He moved the bags to the backseat without even having to get out of the car, the perks of having long arms, and you got in. It was warm, and your fingers started to defrost.

He parked the car in his designated spot, and you went to get out of the car but not before he stopped you by grabbing the hood of your coat. You turned your head and looked at him. His bright garnet eyes were piercing right through you, and you wanted to break. You wanted to crumble and cry and scream, you hate that look. Like he knows something is wrong. 

“You gonna tell me what’s wrong? or we jus’ not gonna talk today?” 

Your lip quivers and at that small twitch Sukuna’s face drops. The normal irritated grimace that dawns his face is replaced with something else, something you’ve never seen before. It’s almost a saddening expression, it doesn’t suit Sukuna at all, you think. 

In all the years you guys have been with each other, Sukuna thinks, he’s never seen you look so delicate or fragile. He’s seen you cry over getting a “boo-boo” or “ouchie” when you were small, he’s seen you cry over being reprimanded, hell he’s even seen you cry during your period, but all those things he could fix. A bandaid, a cookies and cream waffle cone, and a movie. Easy peasy, Sukuna squeezey. But a part of him felt like this ouchie would be harder to fix if he could fix it at all. 

“He cheated ‘kuna,” you spoke plainly. It was harder to admit than you thought. You immediately felt repulsed from it.

He didn’t know what to say, he was in utter shock and he wanted to kill the dirty bastard. How could he? You devoted yourself to him and you cared and treated him with all the kindness in your heart. Sukuna was so enraged and he also felt….sad? This wasn’t the usual agitated feeling he got when you were upset, this was different. He knew this was different. You weren’t even crying yet, just sitting silently in pure consciousness. 

You didn’t really want to talk about it if you’re being honest. Your boyfriend-ex, cheated on you. What else was there to say about it? But the silence was killing you.

“You could say something y’know,” you sniffled bringing a hand up to rub your nose. “It’s more embarrassing if you don’t,” you chuckled dryly.

Sukuna, however, didn’t find it funny. Nothing about this was funny. And it was becoming apparent to him, that he’d need a lot more ice cream. 

What do you want him to say though? If he told you he’d kill him that wouldn’t solve the issue or lessen your hurt, If he acts out of character and said sorry you’d just think he’s taking pity on you and he knows you hate that. 

So Sukuna does what he knows best, he “ignores” it. When you were both in your adolescent stage and you were mad at him about something harsh that he probably said that’s what he did. 

He’d still talk to you even if you were ignoring him, which pissed him the hell off by the way, he’d do anything you wanted. And eventually you’d forget why you were mad at him in the first place, it was his way of apologizing. That was the only way he knew how to treat you without you feeling like he’s pitying you.

So he turns off the car, gets out, grabs the bags he put in the back seat, and when he sees you’re still in the car he gives you a nod and says, “come on, we don’t want you to freeze do we?” And you smile, it’s only a fragment of what it normally is, but you smile. And Sukuna feels relief, of course if you wanted to talk about it he’d listen. But right now, it’s freezing outside and he doesn’t think a car is the right place to have that conversation. All the people passing by while you’re hyperventilating and crying over your jerk of an ex is not exactly what you want to happen either.

So you follow him into the apartment. 

@/cafekitsune for the divider

[im00flynn]

Hero of the day

Summary: You attempted to stop Miles from causing more anomalies in other dimensions by preventing his Canon event. while you do so, you get sent to another dimension and learn some things you didn't know before.

Warnings: Sort of Yandere, Angst, maybe some fluff. Red text = Earth 42 Miles

You knew as soon as Miles stepped into the machine to send him home, it was a bad sign.

All the spidermen came after him, preventing him from causing more anomalies.

"Miles Stop!" You yell out to him as you manage to end up inside with him.

before you could say anything else to back him out of his plan, you get sent to another dimension.

you hit the roof of an apartment building alongside Miles. As you get up from your spot, you realize something is wrong.

this place is different from your original dimension.

"[Name], Why did you follow me?" Miles questions you.

"I wanted to stop you from making a mistake you'd regret." You tell him while still wondering whether or not this place is your dimension.

"It's fine, let's just go to my place and protect my dad." He says as he takes your hand and swings away.

-------------------------------------------------------

After a while, you make it to his apartment. As you make your way into his room, you notice his room looks off.

'something is definitely wrong.' You think to yourself.

as you look around his room, Miles tells you that nobody else is home and that it's alright to look around the rest of the apartment.

Just as you're about to enter the kitchen, the front door opens, and in comes someone who you thought was dead.

Uncle Aaron.

"[Name], long time no see." He says to you while pulling you into a hug.

"Hey, it's um.. good to see you too.." You respond with an awkward smile.

you both separate from the hug, and he asks you, "Where's Miles?"

as soon as he said that Miles came in and freezes right in his tracks.

"Uncle Aaron," he says to himself in disbelief.

"Miles, when did you take out your braids?" he questions while holding out his hand for him to shake.

Miles shakes his hand but then pulls him into a hug.

it was a nice moment to see, but you were still on edge about all of this.

"C'mon, he gotta go. we got business to take care of," Uncle Aaron tells him while walking towards the front door.

"What about -" Miles asks before getting suddenly cut off by his uncle, "her too."

you both follow him to the roof of the apartment complex, while up there, you look around, and something catches your eye.

it's a mural of you. You're dead in this dimension.

"Miles.." You call out while still looking at the mural.

he comes over to you and looks to where you're looking and gasps, "Does this mean we're -" Before he can respond, he glitches.

Uncle Aaron looks over at the two of you, then to the mural with a stone cold, dead expression.

Before you could question anything else you feel a prick in your neck and suddenly you feel weak and tired, before you lose consciousness you see a somewhat familiar mask staring at you while holding your body in a loving matter. then you're unconscious.

-------------------------------------------------------

You later wake up, and you notice you're no longer on the roof but on a couch in what looks like a living room.

you look around to see Miles tied to a punching bag in the center of the room, with Uncle Aaron working on something in the corner of the room

you try to go over to Miles to untie him, but you don't get that far as you look down to see that you're chained to the couch.

The chain moving must have caught his uncle's attention because, when you look back up, he's staring right at you.

"What the hell is this? why am I chained to the couch?" You question him, but while you do so, you feel eyes staring at you from behind you.

you look behind you, look up the ceiling beams, and see the mask you saw before you lost consciousness.

the figure jumps down and slowly makes its ways to you, your eyes stare in shock, and you start to feel anxious.

The figure stops right in front of you and slowly rests its hand on your cheek.

"You're really here." The masked figure says to you while he begins stroking your cheek with his thumb.

"Who...who are you?" You question while your heart starts to race.

Before he answers, his mask retracts to reveal his face to you, leaving your eyes to go wide and stare at him with disbelief.

"I'm Miles Morales, I'm glad to see you again, amor." He tells you before he goes to plant a kiss on your forehead

"Miles, please just let me go. I don't belong here and I need to go home." You tell him with pleading eyes.

he shakes his head and tisks, "Mami, don't you understand? you're not safe without me being there for you, I already lost my [Name], and I'm not going to lose another." He explains to you.

You look into his eyes with tears threatening to spill out, Miles takes note of this and pulls you into a hug.

"Don't worry princesa, If you stay here I'll protect you from any harm, okay mami?" he tells you.

you don't know what overcomes you, but you nod and accept his offer, and you hug him tighter

he's pleased when you accept his offer, and he places a kiss on the top of your head and then rests his forehead against yours.

"I'll protect you from any harm, mi amor."

A/N: I apologize if this was cringe or poorly written. if you have something you'd like me to write, feel free to request me to write it!

[sickandtwisted01]

SIMON “ GHOST “ RILEY x GN CIVI READER

only pronouns used are you!! nicknames ‘lovie’, “pretty little thing”, ‘darling’

Neighbor Simon PT. 1

PURE FLUFFFFF

________________________________

You sit across the man in silence, eyes staring intently at the cards fanned out in your hands. Your gaze scans the cards, then lazily lingers towards Simon. He’s holding a dwindling number of cards in his large hands, staring expectantly at you. There’s a grin pulling at his lips, a rather mocking look swirling around in his eyes as he raises a brow. “Something the matter, lovie?” He almost coos out.

You breathe lightly, grunting gently as you shift in your spot. Your brow crinkles, a soured look crawling onto your features as you rolled your eyes, “Smug prick…” You mutter back under your breath, motioning towards his card deck. “You’ve got to be cheating somehow, Si.” You added with a huff.

“Yeah, or maybe you’re just shit at the game, lovie?” He quips but quickly motions to the deck placed in the middle of you that’s still pretty hefty. “Plus, you’ve got time to bounce back.” He assured, a smile quirking at the edges of his lips as he peers back towards his cards.

You’re sat in the floor, legs curled comfortably underneath your body. You look natural sitting at the coffee table in the middle of Simon’s living room– he, however, does not. His hulking figure hunched over, his lower back flush against the couch, one arm propped over the cushions. He’s always looked large in any context, but he looks like an absolute giant sitting here now. It almost made you laugh when he sat with you, but you were able to hold it in.

There’s a bowl of chips to the left on the coffee table where the cards are, it’s the brand he knows you enjoy– something you weren’t sure you’d fully mentioned. He must’ve figured it out from when you’d first met, in the empty halls of your shared apartment complex at 2:30 in the morning. It was a rather normal night, lazily trudging in from your shift at the bar you worked at. You’d stopped at the corner store that’s about a five minute walk from the complex to get your weekends dinner (four bags of chips, some sodas, ice cream and a whopping three frozen pizzas, one for each day off) in preparation for the first shiftless few days in gods knew how long. You were tired, barely even able to keep your eyes open as you stomped your way down the hallway– even now you’re surprised by the fact that you’d somehow managed to miss and consequently bump into someone as ridiculously massive and loomingly intimidating as Simon.

You’d quite literally crashed into him, a dazed ‘oof’ escaping your lips as the bags in your arms fell. The sounds of crinkling plastic, rustling paper, breaking chips, thudding ice cream against the floor and then his hands reaching out, wrapping around your forearms to stabilize you. You can’t be sure but you’re almost positive you’d blushed as embarrassment blossomed across your features, a stuttering mess as you choked out an apology, a laughed off excuse of, “Oh, shit– I am– I’m so sorry. I just–.. I’m exhausted. I swear I didn’t– honestly, I didn’t even see you, I just– I wasn’t watching where I was going.” You’d laughed out, not even realizing your hands still being on his arms, and his on yours.

He nodded to you, “S’alright. Really.” He’d assured. His touch finally fell from you, eyes shifting your face, “Trust me, faced much worse than a pretty little thing like you runnin’ into me… you’re alright, though?” He’d asked, there was a look of concern on his features, but not a trace of anger.

He’d helped you pick up your items, carry them back home even, told you to watch out and not run into anyone else in the complex and then he mentioned that he lived a floor above you, and that he might see you around. That was… six months ago, roughly. This was the first you’d been in his home– you couldn’t help the way your eyes wondered when you’d first entered the space. How could they not? Simon’s been this sort of… mysterious entity that entered your life and weaved his way in and out of it. You’d see him maybe once a week, twice if you were lucky– always quick, short conversation before he had to make an exit. It’s very… neat, tidy. Not that you’d expected anything less. Your eyes lingered, taking in my surroundings in silence. He has a nice couch, black sectional. His TV sits on a small table that has shelves underneath it, inside are some DVDs, and you think those are…. Maybe photo albums or something like that? He has a bookshelf as well, there’s rows and rows of books. Some of the shelves have a few knicknacks on them, but nothing really stands out. It’s plain, but still cohesive and somehow inviting– it must be the smallest details he added in. The ones that feel like afterthoughts but still aid to the overall comfort of the space, the lamp in the corner of the room that drowns the both of you in this yellowy-orange glow, the throw over the back of the couch and the small pillows on it. The rug underneath us, the essential oil diffuser that lets out the smell of sandalwood and vanilla.

The reality was; despite the six months of knowing him, you really didn’t know much about him but that didn’t change the fact that you felt oddly comfortable with him. The only thing you could guess was that he was military– many people in the building were, the building conveniently close enough to base to become something like home, a cheap place to lay their heads down that wasn’t on base. Simon didn’t offer that information, though and you’d never pressed to ask him. At the start of your friendship with the man, conversations were usually short, not very deep or meaningful but there were quick bits of information you’d told each other that could be considered more than a quick chat. Then, you asked if he wanted to watch a movie with you and time together became more frequent. He started suggesting cards— despite the limited knowledge you had, you said yes.

Your lack of understanding of usual card games was quickly caught on to, and you two had decided that the only logical conclusion was to play Go Fish, instead. Each time one of you ‘got a fish’, so to speak, you were granted a question. Simon had made it a game as a way to satisfy your curiosity about him and you’d just decided to play along, answering his questions, too.

Your eyes scanned your cards, humming gently– your impending failure was sticking in the back of your mind as you thought. “Got any… 4’s?” You questioned, brows raising as your eyes shifted towards Simon’s face.

Simon grunted, shifting in his spot before tossing the card down between you. He was always that way, annoyed that you’d gotten one over on him despite being so far ahead. He watched you, waiting expectantly for your question.

You eyed him for a moment. There was a slightly annoyed look on his features but it dissipated as your gaze swept over him, “Do… you miss home when you’re gone?” You asked hesitantly. The topic of his absences were usually met with, ‘ask something else’, or something along those lines. You knew it was a risky question, but still, you pushed a bit.

Simon thought for a moment, head tilting to one side and then the other as he took a moment of silence. There was something a little bit tenser about this silence than most we shared, “No, I guess not.” He replied simply.

“Really?” You questioned, brows furrowing as you sat up a bit straighter. “You don’t miss home when you’re gone, not even a little bit? You’re gone… all of the time. You never miss home?”

He huffed, shrugging a shoulder loosely as he looked back at his cards, “Guess this doesn’t really feel like home.” His voice holds no emotion, there’s not a twitch in his expression or a look flashing across his face as his eyes shift back to his cards. “Any 7’s?”

I watched intently, studying him as he answered. He gave no indication of anything with the answer— usually, he didn’t. It was hard to read Simon, easy to misinterpret his words or even feel like he wasn’t interested in them. You purse your lips, looking through the cards in your hands. Slender fingers push their way through the cards, manicured nails pinching the edges of the card before pulling it out to place it on the table and slide it across, towards the man sitting opposite of you.

Simon nodded happily at your surrender of the card with a smile as he pulled it closer, stacking it aside. He then looked to you again, thinking for a moment. It was his turn to question now. “Do you miss home?” He questioned, a playful edge to the words– a ‘so there’ subtleness to it..

You grinned, humming gently as you looked down to your hands, brows raising. The fact that you weren’t from the UK was clear– your accent was heavily American but it wasn’t something you’d talked to Simon about. “Ah, got me there, huh?” Your gaze shifted back towards his eyes with a huffed laugh. My lips pursed, brows furrowing lightly, “I… guess so, yeah. Sometimes.” I sighed gently, shoulders lifting a bit. “Didn’t know it’d be so lonely. I mean–... I moved far but… that’s not something you prepare for, I don’t think. How easy it is to slip away from human interaction when you have to make a conscious effort into maintaining it but at the same time.” Your head lifts again, eyes meeting Simon’s as a smile spreads across your lips, “But I also think it’s important to be alone with yourself sometimes… other people can become noise very easily, take you away from what’s important.”

Simon hums gently at your answer, eyes drinking you in. There’s an intenseness to the way he listens– like he’s hanging on every word. He’s silent as you go on your rant, curiosity flashing at your last sentiment “.. And what’s that?”

“To be happy.” You reply simply, as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world.

Simon smiles, looking back to his cards to keep himself from staring at you the way he wants to– what a simple philosophy, was the only thing he could think to himself, there was something that screamed innocence about it. The way he actually wanted that for you, the way he wanted something so easy and simple for someone who was already so kind and sweet. “That’s a good way to look at it.” He tells you quietly, unable to keep himself from thinking about the words uttered from those pretty lips of yours. “Do you have any 2’s?” He asks softly.

Your face twists, nose scrunching up as you utter out a defeated, “Go fish” under your breath. You fling your arm out dramatically, yanking a card up to huddled into the bunch in your hand. There’s a look of annoyance at the loss you haven’t even faced yet. Simon studies you for a moment, looking away as he thought of his question to ask.

You watch him, brows raising as he fell silent. His eyes lingered on the table, features even but mind clearly working. He looked like maybe he was contemplating, like he wanted to ask something but wasn’t sure. Slowly, his shoulders relaxed, he shifted a bit as his gaze met yours, “Would you like to go to dinner with me?” He questioned, words even and nonchalant.

You paused, brows furrowing. “What, like–” Your head tilted, blinking heavily as your brows shot up, “You mean like– like a date?”

He nods, chuckling at the confusion blossoming onto your features. The sound booms in his chest, head shaking as he replies, “Mhm, like a date. There’s a nice restaurant we could go to... opened up a few weeks ago, Iv’eard good things about it.” There’s a sort of fizzling at the end of his words, like he’s nervous you might say no.

You smiled, nodding slowly as you took in and settled on the idea of it, “I mean– yeah…. Okay, Simon. That sounds… yes. I’ll go with you to dinner.” You agreed happily, the bubbling of excitement brewing in your stomach as you shifted in your spot a bit.

He smiled back, nodding. “Great… tomorrow, then. I’ll stop by your flat at… 6:45?”

“Sounds good to me.” You told him softly, “I’ll have to wear something extra cute, huh?”

“Wear whatever ‘ya want, darling. You’ll look good in anything… now, let’s get back to the game. I believe I was kicking your ass?”

You glared, scoffing as you rolled your eyes. “Right… whatever… any 9’s?”

[m3nt4llyr4v3d]

Miraculous and Redemption

You know, I think I understand what my issue is with this show’s stance on redemption. It’s not specifically who gets the redemption, even the hypocrisy of who does or doesn’t get redemption/forgiven is only one part of the issue.

It’s specifically how they treat the characters who don’t get redemption.

I have seen, in media, where terrible characters who’ve done terrible things get a redemption, and the mean characters, who are just mean, don’t change at all. That’s fine! People are complex, some change and some don’t, some have done horrible things and some are just school yard bullies. It’s fine to showcase this, I mean hell, in the Owl House, Boscha was still an asshole in season 2, and this was past the point that characters like Lilith were forgiven (Lilith isn’t really terrible in Season 1, she just has done a lot worse than Boscha)

Miraculous’s massive issue with this, however, is that the narrative/the authors treats those mean characters as worse than those characters who’ve done horrible things.

I mean, what other media has one of the creators say that some high school bully is comparable to Trump when her literal rich, corrupt, politician father is right fucking there?

Usually the media where a terrible person is redeemed and the mean character isn’t doesn’t treat it as a moral issue. It’s not “oh well this person can’t change” or “oh this person is even worse!” It’s usually “they’re mean, and that’s annoying, but oh well”. That media never treats the character like Satan incarnate, or treats their meanness compared to actual villainy as a moral issue. When characters are around them, they aren’t treating that mean character as literal scum compared to the former villain, the narrative doesn’t treat them as more than an annoyance or, for lack of better words, “small fry”. I mean, while Owl House acknowledged that Boscha was still a prick in season 2, they didn’t act like she was worse than Belos.

Miraculous treats Chloe and Lila, some petty, mean teenagers, as the literal devil compared to other characters. Lila is a master manipulator who somehow convinced 3 people she’s their daughter and has a trillion disguises! It doesn’t matter that that twist came out of nowhere, and it makes it a little weird that this teenager has multiple disguises that she uses around the city apparently, one where she looks like a 20 year old, making people theorize she’s an adult because how on earth is she smart enough or resourceful enough to do this. Chloe is a villain comparable to Gabe, even when she was a hero! Her backstory doesn’t justify any of her actions, but for literally everyone else, we are going to justify their actions! If they don’t do that, they’ll just sweep their actions under the rug completely! It doesn’t matter that she’s consistently being manipulated by the fully grown adults around her, she’s terrible don’t think about it! She neglected her father somehow (???????????????????) so it’s fully justified to send her off with her abusive mother! We aren’t even going to acknowledge that Andre literally had a part in raising her and her turning out this way, because somehow he did no wrong! And what sucks is that it’s succeeding at making those characters appear that way, because some fans are completely genuine when they say that Gabriel is more sympathetic than them. I mean, if you frequent the Reddit (which you absolutely shouldn’t, one way or another it will melt your brain), you’ll consistently see character rankings with Gabriel, Lila, Tomoe, and Chloe in the same category. Somehow the show put the bullies in the same categories as the literal abusive terrorist and his helper in these people’s eyes. You will constantly see these literal teenagers be put on the same category as adults who have done infinitely worse. Even Andre, who is a corrupt politician and terrible role model and literally RAISED CHLOE… is “woobified” by some fans, even going as far to say that Chloe abused him! Nevermind how that would even be possible when she was like, 5-7 when her mom left! I can’t point my fingers at the fans for this though, because the show goes out of its way to place all of its sympathy on the adults, even when they don’t deserve it, EVEN WHEN THE PAST WRITING LITERALLY PAINTS THEIR ACTIONS AS BAD

(It also doesn’t help that the fully grown adult’s actions are all forgiven but god forbid you’re terrible as a teenager, then you’ll get sent off to live with your verbally abusive mother while your basically deadbeat father adopts your half sister literally right after wiping his hands of you)

I will talk about the hypocrisy in redemption at some point, and how bias and forgiveness is handled, but godDAMN, this sucks

[imabillyami]

OR: 5 times Jey acts like a jealous prick and 1 time Sami finally gets it

-> @who-do-you-want-to-be requested: Samijey with jealous!Jey, feelings realization, happy ending

-> M/M, Teen & Up Audiences, 8.7k words, additional tags: enemies to lovers, mutual pining, first kiss, angst with a happy ending

-> additional characters: Damian Priest, Jimmy Uso, Solo Sikoa, Rhea Ripley, Dominik Mysterio, Finn Bálor, Paul Heyman, Roman Reigns (mentioned)

-> also available on AO3

-> my requests are open, additional info here

-> Hope you enjoy! 💖

(1) The first time it happens Sami is caught off guard. 

He’s chatting with Damian backstage. Damian is one of the few people who’s still respectful towards The Bloodline - genuine or out of self-preservation he doesn’t know - but it’s nice to have someone to talk to from time to time. Someone who’s not his newly acquired brothers or his Tribal Chief, or a part of their family bubble at all. 

They’re standing next to the door leading into catering, Damian with one shoulder casually leaned against the wall, Sami’s hands fiddling with a bottle of water that he’d just grabbed from inside. 

He knows there’s always water in their locker room, but Roman kicked them out earlier, tired of his and Jey’s constant fighting. And honestly, he can’t blame him. He would’ve done the same probably, if he was the one suffering through third-wheeling their constant bickering.

While he was still mulling over how to finally get on Jey’s good side, Damian had caught him and roped him into a conversation. 

They don’t really have all that much in common, so their conversations usually consist of Damian chewing his ear off about one topic or another, usually something about where he and the rest of Judgement Day are going to party later, or what they’re going to do on their days off. And they always end the same - with him inviting Sami along and Sami politely declining. 

Damian never seems too upset about it, usually just ends up giving him a little grin when they reach that part of their familiar routine, almost like it’s a fun little game to him.

It’s nice to have someone’s undivided attention like that, especially someone who values family just as much as he does and understands all the complex problems that come attached to it. They have that in common, at least. 

Damian’s good at distracting him from the latest Jey-drama and that’s something he can appreciate. Above all else though, their chats pass the time until he can leave.

It’s harmless. It’s frequent. It’s familiar. 

That’s why he’s so surprised when this time around, Jey suddenly materializes next to him, eyes several shades darker than usual and face drawn into a threatening scowl “We got a problem here?” Even his voice is a lot sharper when he spits the words venomously. 

Sami feels his eyes widen in response to Jey’s over-the-top hostility. He’s used to being treated like an enemy, an outsider, an intruder the Uso can’t wait to get rid of. Only this time around Jey’s hatred isn’t directed at him at all. No. And if Sami didn’t know any better, he’d say it feels like Jey’s being protective over him with the way he keeps shooting icy glares in Damian’s direction. 

But that’s impossible. Jey hates his guts. Jey has no good reason to act like he does. So more than anything else, Sami is weirded out and a good bit mortified by this weird one-sided pissing contest.

Damian though? He doesn’t look very impressed. 

“No, I’d say we’re fine here, uce.” he says with the most casual grin, eyes sparkling with glee as though he’s thoroughly entertained by the Uso’s tough guy act.

Sami’s not sure how much of an act it is though. 

Jey looks tense, like he’s just about ready to pounce and lay a few solid punches on the taller man. 

And that’s the exact kind of chaos they absolutely don’t need. 

Putting a hand on Jey’s chest, he utters “It’s fine, uce. We’re good.”

Sami’s words seem to finally snap him out of whatever the hell is going on and he shrugs off the palm on his chest quickly and quietly, directing his scowl, albeit a slightly softer one (or so Sami imagines), back at his usual target. 

“Whatever. Chief’s lookin’ for you.”

Sami gulps. That doesn’t bode well. “Okay. Alright. Let’s go.” 

He offers what he hopes to be an apologetic look in Damian’s general direction and moves to get them out of there. 

Anything to get away from this weird tension.

But it was never gonna be that easy, was it? 

They’re halfway down the hallway when Damian’s voice booms loudly from behind them. Dammit. “Hey Sami! You wanna hang out with us after you’re done?” 

His arm instinctively shoots out and locks around Jey’s waist, holding on tightly. Shooting a quick look at the man in his grasp, he sends up a prayer and a quiet thank you for his phenomenal instincts. 

Cause judging by the look on the Uso’s face? His hold might very well be the only thing standing between Damian Priest and certain death right now. 

“Uhm, no thanks.” he utters politely and then continues to haul a very pissed off Jey the hell out of there. 

He’s seriously out of his depth here. 

Cause what the hell was that? 

What ends up catching him even more off guard than this entire exchange though? 

Finding out that Roman wasn’t looking for him at all. 

(2) The second time it happens Sami is confused.

The Bloodline is on Raw again a couple of weeks later when Damian catches him on his way out of Gorilla after a promo segment. The guy definitely has a death wish, approaching him the second Roman and Paul are out of sight, but not waiting for the Usos or Solo to follow. 

At first he honestly thinks nothing of it, the last catastrophic encounter involving a certain Uso almost forgotten. 

At least that’s what he keeps telling himself. 

(In truth, he hasn’t forgotten about it one bit, he just likes to pretend he has. Cause there’s no reasonable explanation as to why the moment has been playing on the forefront of his mind for weeks, costing him more than one night’s worth of sleep.) 

So yes, he absolutely has forgotten about it and carefully tries not to think about how any further interactions with Damian could make things even worse. 

Jey is not his keeper, after all. If anything, he’s the one responsible for keeping Jey’s outbursts in check these days. So technically that makes him Jey’s keeper. Right?

His face scrunches up in distaste at the mere thought. The whole thing must feel so humiliating to Jey. And while Sami would do anything to keep the peace and his place in The Bloodline, he has to admit that he doesn’t think this was Roman’s brightest idea. Not that he’d ever dare to say that out loud. 

Jey’s been acting even more hostile and snappy lately though, and whatever little common ground they previously shared is completely gone now. 

He’s been on the receiving end of sharp words and blazing eyes and hurtful dismissals for weeks and he has yet to figure out a way to navigate this new assignment. Not that he thinks of Jey as such. No, Jey is a person. A flawed one, but a person, still. And he deserves some respect. Even if the others don’t seem to think so. 

When Damian steps up to them, Sami notices Solo eyeing the taller man, his face somewhere between unreadable and unbothered as always. 

But looks can be deceiving, especially when it comes to their youngest. Sami sees the tension in his muscles, the flex of his hands. He knows that Solo is ready to attack at any given moment, if provoked. He shudders at the thought. 

His eyes wander over to Jimmy, who isn’t looking back at him either. But instead of glaring at the intruder like his younger brother, his eyes are firmly fixed on his twin. 

Sami spots the clear apprehension in his eyes and he can’t blame him. Cause Jey? Well, surprising absolutely no one, Jey’s face hides absolutely nothing. His signature scowl is etched deeply into his face, his eyes are dark and furious where they shoot sharp daggers Damian’s way. If looks could kill, he’d be six feet under with zero chance of return.

Sami stays perfectly still and silent, too scared to upset the careful balance of the moment. 

Damian however, doesn’t seem to share his concern. 

“Hey Sami! How’s it going?”, he inquires, completely ignoring the rest of their group. Sami gulps and feels his voice get stuck inside his throat. 

“The fuck do you want, huh?” Jey asks darkly, dangerously. Solo takes a threatening half-step forward, making himself taller than he is. 

Their guest holds up his hand defensively. “Hey, whoa, easy there. I’m just trying to catch up with my friend.” Four sets of eyes snap over in unison to land on him and Sami blanches. 

This is great. Just great. 

Jimmy, ever the life-saver, decides to take pity on him and dissolve the impossible tension. “Well, ain’t nothing wrong with that, aight? C'mon boys, let’s go get some food!” He waggles his eyebrows and clasps his baby brother’s shoulder, slightly pushing at him until he turns away from them and starts walking in the general direction of their locker room, Jimmy following closely behind. “Hey Jey, you comin?” He throws over his shoulder, expecting his twin to follow their lead. 

Jey doesn’t budge. 

He just stands there, arms crossed over his chest and huffs “Nah, I’m good, uce.” 

“C’mon, uce, just leave them be!” Instead of answering, Jey just stands a little taller, puffing out his chest, not moving an inch otherwise, never once taking his eyes off his target. 

Jimmy gives an exasperated sigh and an eye-roll “Fine, suit yourself.”, before he turns and disappears around the corner. They both know there’s no arguing with Jey when he gets like this.

Sami eyes him warily. He honestly doesn’t know what to think or feel here. He’s mostly just confused by Jey’s insistence to stay behind and be part of their conversation, when usually, he can’t get away from Sami fast enough. But fine.  If Jey is so dead-set on staying, he knows there’s nothing much he can do. Not without another nasty fight.

He sighs. Well, at least he’ll have a witness in case anyone ends up asking questions. Though he’s not entirely sure that’ll do him any favors.

“So uh. Hey! What’s up?” He decides to simply focus on Damian for now and ignore Jey’s general existence the best he can. Which means not at all. Because despite his best efforts, he’s acutely aware of every minor shift of muscles, every eye roll, every little noise coming from the Uso. 

But hey, he thinks to himself, fake it till you make it, right? 

Damian however, isn’t the slightest bit deterred by Jey’s presence or his constant scoffing.

“Nothing much. Just wanted to check in on you. It’s been a while.” 

“Oh uhm, that’s really nice of you. I appreciate it.” The words tumble out way less relaxed than they usually would, his tone doing nothing to hide how on edge he feels. He stiffens when a snort rings out from next to him. His eyes drift over to Jey, momentarily distracted, before he focuses back on their conversation.

God, what is Jey’s problem?

It continues that way for a couple of minutes, Damian and him exchanging their usual friendly small talk, sharing updates and anecdotes, while Jey huffs and puffs and does everything in his power to make this encounter as painfully awkward as possible. 

Sami catches his mind drifting away from their chat a couple of times and focusing on the Uso instead, so much so that Damian keeps having to repeat himself.

He takes it in stride, way more patient with him than Sami deserves.

But at some point, even the most patient guy has to admit (temporary) defeat.  

“Look, Sami, I see you’re… otherwise occupied. I don’t mean to keep you. But hey! We’re all going bowling tomorrow night! Wanna come?” For the first time his eyes leave Sami’s face and land on Jey instead, the corners of his mouth twitching as if he finds the whole thing absolutely hilarious.

Out of the corner of his eye, Sami sees Jey’s stare turn murderous. 

And listen, he’s not gonna be the one responsible for any deaths here, okay?

“I already have plans, sorry.” They both know it’s a lie the second the words leave his mouth. 

Damian’s dark eyes dart back and forth between him and Jey, contemplating. A beat passes. Then, a familiar easy smile on his lips, he replies “Of course. See you around, Sami.”

They both pretend to ignore the “You fuckin’ wish.” Jey mumbles out not so subtly under his breath.

The taller man waves as he walks away, disappearing in the opposite direction of their locker room.

Figures. Paul usually tends to pick an area as far away from the ‘peasants’ as humanly possible’, even more so if their Tribal Chief is around.   

Sami closes his eyes and takes a few deep breaths, trying to shake the dreadful moment.

He’s also mentally preparing himself for yet another confrontation with the younger twin that he isn’t particularly looking forward to. 

But when he finally opens his eyes and turns towards him, a million questions on his mind, Jey is nowhere to be found. 

It’s as if from one second to the next he’s decided to vanish into thin air.

Sami just wishes he could understand why.

(3) The third time it happens Sami is angry.

The next time around, Sami doesn’t even get a chance to speak to Damian at all. 

He’d planned on apologizing for their last dreadful encounter, but the second Jey (who’s dutifully stayed by his side all night as though they’re suddenly somehow permanently attached by the hip), spots Damian make his way over to them, determined and not the slightest bit intimidated by Jey’s presence, he roughly grabs Sami’s upper arm, fingers digging in to the point they feel almost painful, and drags him along, not stopping until they are all the way back in their locker room, Sami’s loud protests going unheard. 

Thankfully for them, no one is around.

Roman isn’t here tonight, taking some well deserved time off to be with his children. The rest of the family are off to somewhere else in the arena. But even if they were here, he doesn’t think he could hold back his anger any longer. 

He doesn’t know what's been going on with Jey lately, but either way, Sami’s had enough. And he’s glad they’re alone, because he doesn’t need any witnesses for his impending outburst. 

The second the door falls shut behind them, he whips around to face Jey, pure venom in his veins, fire in his gut.

“What the hell is your problem, Jey? I know you’re unfamiliar with the concept, but Damian is a friend! Judgment Day are my friends!” He’s yelling at full volume, for whoever happens to walk by their locker room to hear and he knows it. He’s way past the point of caring though.

Jey doesn’t even flinch. Instead he meets Sami head-on, his eyes dark and unforgiving.

“Oh yeah, Sami? You wanna go see what the Tribal Chief thinks about that?” It’s a ridiculous threat, seeing as Roman isn’t even here tonight, yet it hits its intended target and makes Sami feel strangely insecure all the sudden. 

Jey’s been getting really good at that lately. Hitting him where it hurts. Though he isn’t sure why it bothers him so much more than it used to back when he first started hanging around them. 

Jey has always been mean to him, but for some reason his words cut a lot deeper these days.

His next words come out a lot shakier than intended. “I don’t think Roman has a problem with me scouting potential allies.” At least he thinks he doesn’t. He never asked. But Roman would be okay with it, right? Or would he think that Sami was looking to leave them behind? Or worse - betray them?  Huh. He’s never truly considered the possibility before. Maybe it is a problem. 

Jey’s looks unnerved for a split second, something akin to regret flickering in his gaze, but ultimately, his face settles back into the usual angry scowl. “If you love ‘em so much, why don’t you go join their family instead, huh? Will you do it? Means I finally be rid of your ass!” 

Sami feels his heart clench painfully inside his chest.

How dare he? How dare he say that? As if Sami hasn’t taken bullet after bullet for them. As if he hasn’t protected Jey specifically from Roman’s wrath more times than he can count? How. fucking. dare. he?

He’s on Jey in a flash, grabbing him by the collar, yanking him across the room and shoving him up the wall, rage taking over and controlling his actions. He’s never felt this angry before. Ever.

Jey stares at him in wide-eyed shock, taken off-guard by his reaction. Sami keeps him trapped with his hold and his stare in equal parts. He couldn’t run if he tried. His next words come out in a low, dangerous tone.

“Oh you’d like that Jey, wouldn’t you? I bet you would. But, guess what? This might be news to you, but I’m part of your family. Whether you like it or not. Nobody has a problem with that. Nobody but you. So I’m not going anywhere. And you better get used to it.”

He isn’t sure if his mind is playing tricks on him, but for a short moment there’s this weird tension between them, that’s completely different from their usual hatred. They stare into each other’s eyes unblinkingly. 

Then, unprompted, his eyes flick down to Jey’s lips, a weird and unfamiliar feeling raging inside of him. He thinks he can see Jey’s eyes do the same once or twice, but that’s impossible, right? 

They stay perfectly still for a long moment, neither of them daring to move or breathe. 

And then Jey violently shakes his head, pushing roughly against Sami’s chest, and the moment is gone. 

Jey’s insistent pushing makes him loosen his grip, allowing the Uso to escape and put some much welcome distance between them.

“We’ll see ‘bout that, Sami. We’ll see ‘bout that.” Jey replies in a solemn voice that he’s never heard before. A shiver runs down his spine at the obvious threat.

But before he has any chance to come up with a rebuttal, Jey bolts out of the room, slamming the door behind himself.

Sami is left behind. Stunned. Appalled. And maybe something else too? 

He tries his hardest not to follow that particular train of thought. Instead he decides to focus on the important questions.

How on earth does Jey hate him this much? 

And why does it suddenly bother him so much?

He has a strong feeling that the answers to both questions, as well as to the ones he’s still unwilling to ask, will eventually come back to bite him in the ass.

(4) The fourth time it happens Sami is foolishly hopeful.  

It takes him another couple of weeks to finally get there, but eventually Sami figures out what the hell is going on with him, even though he’s mostly in denial about it, still.

And who wouldn’t be, given his situation? Cause the guy he’s deeply sexually attracted to (He isn’t quite ready to admit to more than that. At least not yet. He needs some time, okay?), just so happens to be the guy who’s been treating him like a mortal enemy for months.

The realization, when it finally arrives, doesn’t hit him out of nowhere either.

Instead it slowly creeps up on him and takes its sweet time sinking in, until one day he just knows. And isn’t that quite the surprise? As if things between them aren’t complicated enough already.

Sometimes he can’t help but feel that his life is mocking him. Especially when the antiquated radio in his car decides to deliver the perfect soundtrack to match his current struggle. 

He ends up with that stupid Alanis Morissette song stuck in his head for weeks and hums it under his breath every time Jey does something that inevitably makes his stomach swoop and his heart pound a little faster in his chest. 

🎶 And isn′t it ironic? Don't you think? 🎶

To some degree Sami’s always been aware of his general attraction towards men. Carefully sculpted beards framing plush lips, soft tummies spilling over tight waistbands, straining lean muscles bulging from effort in loose tank tops, happy trails leading down to soft bulges and meaty thighs. 

Yes, he’s always been somewhat aware that men hold some sort of appeal for him.

Jey though - Jey is in a different category altogether. A category of his own, if you will.

Not only does he tick all of Sami’s boxes physically, he also brings out a passion and a fire in him like no one else has ever done before.

Sure, most of that passion and fire stemmed from complete and utter irritation at first (and still do to this day), but it still makes him feel alive in a way that he usually only feels while he’s fighting an opponent in the ring. 

Whatever he feels around Jey - it’s the same thing that made him choose wrestling all those years ago. It’s the same thing that made him stick with it too.

And isn’t that a scary thought? That he could… like… someone the same way he likes wrestling? 

That he could need someone in his life that way?

Being around Jey is a constant adrenaline rush, in both the best and the worst ways. And while he isn’t sure that it’s the healthiest thing for him long term, he can’t deny that he wants it. Desperately. Anger and irritation and all.

The day his stupid feelings finally come to bite him just so happens to be the day of their WarGames match at Survivor Series.

He stumbles into Gorilla, a shirtless, sweaty mess, still riding the addictive high of finally earning Jey’s trust and acceptance and the hug they shared. He knows he made the family proud tonight in more ways than one and it makes him feel like he’s on top of the world.

While the rest of The Bloodline quickly make their exit, ready to shower and relax and wind down together after a successful night, Sami isn’t quite ready to let the heady feeling go yet. 

So instead of following them right away, he lingers a little while longer, accepts hugs left and right, despite his messy state, and rejoices when even people who usually despise him congratulate him on his impressive performance tonight. 

They’ll go back to hating him tomorrow, but tonight is his and so he doesn’t even care.

He’s still right there when Paul comes rushing back to tell him “Your Tribal Chief has bestowed upon you the honor of representing The Bloodline at the official Survivor Series Press Conference.” and ushers him out of Gorilla with an impatient “chop-chop!” 

And getting to do the press conference? Roman putting that much trust into him? That’s just the cherry on top of his already perfect day. And during the press conference Paul just so happens to add a second one when he unabashedly sings Sami’s praises in front of an entire room of reporters. 

Practically floating on air afterwards, he makes his way through the backstage hallways, finally ready to shower and wind down and get the hell out of here before anything or anyone attempts to ruin his perfect night. He stated during the press conference that nothing could ruin his night, but he isn’t willing to take that theory to the test.

He spots Damian and the rest of The Judgment Day in a side hallway, hanging out, chilling like the cool kids they undoubtedly are, licking and nursing their wounds. He knows their night hasn’t gone according to plan at all, with both Finn and Rhea losing their respective matches earlier in the night. He feels for them, he truly does, so when Rhea spots him and beckons him over, he goes willingly. 

They all offer him excited pats on the back and boisterous congratulations and he takes it all in, welcoming it happily and willingly. Damn does it feel good to be the MVP for once. To have all the spotlights on him. To be the one everyone is looking at with envy. He doesn’t usually allow himself to be this vain, but tonight is different. Tonight the rules don’t apply. Tonight is all for him.

Damian is last to approach him and when he does, he offers him a tight hug, not caring about his now obvious stench or the people around them. He holds on a little longer than is considered appropriate for ‘just friends’, but seeing as he’s breaking all his own rules tonight, Sami doesn’t mind - until he hears something clatter behind him, followed by a hushed “oh shit” from Dominik.

And of course when he turns around Jey is there, tag titles in a heap by his feet at the end of the short hallway, his face closed off and unreadable. 

Seriously, Sami’s life is such a cosmic joke sometimes. He shouldn’t have jinxed it at the press conference.

But instead of coming closer to confront them like Sami expects him to, Jey takes off running, leaving the tag titles behind. 

Sami is momentarily stunned by the odd turn of events. 

He should be doing something though, right?

“I should-” he starts, turning to address his friends and pointing to where Jey had been standing only moments ago. He doesn’t hang around long enough to gauge their reactions or wait for a reply. Instead, he rushes to pick up Jey’s titles, the straps heavy in his hands, and hurries after him. 

The Bloodline locker room would be the obvious choice, but he doesn’t think Jey’s headed there, not when he expects Sami to follow him and not if he doesn’t want to explain the missing tag titles either. So instead of heading back there, Sami scouts the surrounding areas, trying door handles, apologizing whenever he encounters someone who isn’t Jey.

He finally finds him hidden away in an empty office, pacing a hole into the carpet and tugging at the short strands of hair on top of his head, leaving them to stand up in every which direction. 

When he enters quietly, the other man doesn’t notice him at first, too caught up in whatever it is that occupies his mind. The minute he spots Sami however, he stumbles to a halt in the middle of the room and stiffens, his eyes wide and unguarded for once. 

They show his hurt, his frustration, his anger. They also show fear. Fear of what exactly, he doesn’t know. But he’s determined to find out. 

When he speaks, his voice is surprisingly soft even to his own ears. “Why did you run?”

And that’s apparently the wrong thing to ask, judging by the way Jey’s eyes harden, his guard flying up and shutting Sami out again. “Looked like you was busy,” he snarks, “didn’t wanna interrupt you ‘n the boyfriend.”

Instead of the familiar anger, Sami only feels hurt bubble up inside of him. “He’s not my boyfriend and you know it.”

“Funny. That makes one of us.” Jey’s rebuttal feels like a punch to the gut.

“Why do you even care? It’s none of your damn business anyway!” So much for not being angry.   

“Fuck Sami, you deserve better than that guy, okay?” Jey presses out. 

Yeah. Fuck this. He was having a good night and now that was ruined entirely. 

Stupid feelings. Stupid Jey.

“And who do I deserve, huh? Do tell! Cause from where I’m standing, Damian’s a really good guy. He treats me well, he makes me laugh, he supports me! He actually cares!” And I feel absolutely nothing but friendship for him, but you’re being an ass, so you don’t get to know that, goes unsaid. “It’s not like there’s a long line of people just waiting to date me, Jey. And it’s not like I’m seeing anyone right now. And either way, nobody gets to tell me who I can and can’t talk to, okay? Especially not you! You’re not my fucking keeper!”

Hurt flashes over the Uso’s face, his carefully constructed mask slipping. He starts tugging at his already messy and unruly hair again in a way that looks borderline painful. And Sami can’t watch.

Before he knows what he’s doing, he’s in Jey’s space, grabbing both of his wrist and locking his fingers around them tightly where he pulls at them. The mindless action makes them both freeze up, a startled gasp leaving Jey’s lips, his doe eyes staring up into Sami’s, before flicking down to his lips.

It brings him back to the moment they shared a couple of weeks ago, the one back then fueled by pure rage, whereas this one was created by care and genuine concern. 

It’s funny how some things can change so drastically in only a matter of weeks. How romantic feelings can pop up out of seemingly nowhere and change your entire perception of another person and their flaws. 

Where Sami was previously irritated, he’s now endeared, where he was frustrated, he’s now concerned and where he was indifferent, he is now intrigued. 

And to his knowledge only love can do that - and there! - he can admit it, alright? 

He’s in love with Jey Uso.

Holy shit.

He is in love with Jey.

Jey whose dark eyes are still locked in on Sami’s lips and who still hasn’t made a move to walk away or say something. Jey who’s just standing there, with wrists locked up inside Sami’s firm hold and his plush lips the tiniest bit agape - lips that look so damn inviting.

Sami doesn’t quite know what possesses him to do what he does next - or maybe he does. It doesn’t matter, really.

He simply leans in and presses his dry lips to Jey’s in a whisper-soft kiss that turns his entire world on its head.

He barely has a chance to enjoy the feeling or the moment, before the other man is stirred back into action, breaking the redhead’s hold on his wrists and shoving him back roughly, just like he did the last time.

Sami stumbles back, still dazed, and trips, falling straight on his ass, the bump to his tailbone sending a painful jolt through his spine. 

Jey stands over him wide-eyed. Panicked. Arms stretched out as though he was trying to catch him.

They stare at each other, not saying anything. He doesn’t know how much time passes.

A loud banging noise just outside the door startles them out of their stupor. 

Without a word, Jey moves to grab the discarded title belts off the floor. And then he runs.

Again.

(5)The fifth time it happens Sami loses all hope.

For days, after what Sami only refers to as ‘the incident’ inside his own head, he feels terrible.

Terrible about the way he basically forced that kiss on Jey, when the Uso had never even acted the slightest bit interested in him nor given him any indication that he was into men whatsoever. 

Someone staring at your lips doesn’t equal an automatic invitation to kiss them. He learned that the hard way. Though the pain in his aching tailbone isn’t nearly as bad as the one in his heart.

The kiss shouldn’t have happened, simple as that. And it won’t happen again. No matter how much he wishes for a repeat performance, Jey has made it abundantly clear that Sami overstepped and that he’s not interested.

They haven’t talked about it. Hell, they haven’t been alone together in the same room long enough to have any kind of meaningful conversation. 

Jey isn’t exactly avoiding him, but Sami gets the strong feeling that it’s more than just mere coincidence that there’s always someone else in the room with them. 

He hates to admit it, but he’s getting frustrated. 

All he wants is to apologize to Jey and tell him he doesn't expect anything from him, so they can move on with their lives and possibly, maybe even become real friends one day.

The thought of just being friends makes his heart ache painfully inside his chest, but he’d rather have Jey as a friend or brother than not have him at all. 

He has to accept that Jey simply isn’t into him that way. Shoving him off, running away and avoiding the topic altogether after sharing a one-sided kiss is a pretty good indicator of that.

Still, that doesn’t keep Jey from hovering the next time they bump into Judgment Day. And apparently it also doesn’t keep him from shooting daggers at Damian. 

When he confronts him about it later - with both Jimmy and Solo in earshot - all he does is shrug. “Just looking out for you, Sami. You’re my brother.”

And wow, if that isn’t a one way express ticket straight into friendzone country, he doesn’t know what is.

He decides he has to move on. Desperately.

That’s why, later that same day when Damian asks if he wants to come along and join them on their day off, he says “Actually, I’d love to.”, catching both himself and the other man by surprise. 

Instead of a little grin, he receives a bright and pleased smile this time around. 

(He pretends not to notice the way Jey’s head snaps up in surprise at his answer, nor the way he keeps moping and glowering at everyone for the rest of the day. And he absolutely ignores the way he mockingly wishes Sami “lots of fun with his boyfriend” once they part ways.)

Two days later, he finds himself on a yacht trip with Damian and the rest of TJD. Knowing Damian and his wild stories, he’d expected (and feared) some kind of crazy party with a bunch of strangers, but surprisingly it’s only them and their skipper for the day, though the guy vanishes as soon as they reach their destination for the day and the anchor is dropped.

Now it’s just the five of them. 

Rhea is mixing drinks - non-alcoholic for Sami she’s quick to assure him - behind the small bar, Dom and Finn are lounging and sunbathing a few feet away from him, and Damian keeps eyeing him carefully from where he’s sat next to him. 

It’s nice. 

It is. 

But despite everything that happened between them, he somehow knows that all of this would be way more fun for him if Jey were around. If things weren’t so complicated between them right now. If he could just tell his stupid heart to stop longing for Jey and be okay with being his friend instead. 

Everything would be a million times easier.

They’ve been friendly and at ease with each other in front of the cameras and around the family, ever since Jey embraced him at Survivor Series. Deep down he wishes, no, he longs for that same level of comfort and ease when it’s just the two of them with nobody else around.

“Hey, what’s with the long face? C’mon we’re here to have fun!” Damian’s voice rips him away from his spiraling thoughts. 

The taller man is holding out a large hand in offering and the second Sami takes it, he finds himself being thrown over a broad shoulder, his body dangling like he weighs nothing. 

He’s sputtering, protesting, but to no avail. The rest of the group eggs them on when Damian steps up to the ledge of the boat, giving Sami a good idea of what’s happening next.

And before he knows it, they hit the cool water with a splash, all noise disappearing when they go underwater. 

It’s oddly serene down here, and for a moment he’s able to forget about everything else and simply enjoy being in the moment. 

His lungs quickly remind him of his need for oxygen though and so he propels himself back to the surface, greedily sucking air into his lungs once he gets there.

He finds Damian waiting for him with a cheeky grin and next thing he knows he’s being splashed.

And oh! This means war! 

Soon enough the rest of the group joins them in the water and then it’s well and truly ON.

They end up having a fun afternoon full of teasing and joy and laughter, the members of Judgement Day way cooler and way more chill than people usually give them credit for. 

Sami likes that they’re  a real family just like his own, and whether they’re bound by blood or mutual hardship, they prove that it doesn’t make a difference at all. The connections and the love are exactly the same.

He lets himself enjoy the rare quality time with his friends to the fullest, and yet, despite everything, Jey is constantly on his mind. 

And that’s why, when Damian leans in for a kiss on the docks at the end of the day, Sami turns his head sideways, so that it lands on his cheek instead. 

When he pulls back, Damian doesn’t look disappointed though, nor does he look surprised. He just chuckles and his mouth pulls into that knowing little grin he always seems to wear around him and Jey lately.

The rest of their group wears matching expressions and somehow Sami feels like he’s missing out on the joke here. His shoulders grow tense on their own accord and his stomach drops to his knees. 

What the hell is going on?

It’s Damian who breaks the silence, an easy arm coming to rest around his shoulder. “Relax Sami, we all know.” 

“Know what?” 

“That you’re A over T in love with the Uso boy, mate.” Rhea rolls her eyes at him… almost fondly? 

“Still no clue wha’ yer see in t’at asshole.” Finn mutters under his breath, just loud enough for the rest of them to hear. 

“He does have a great ass.” Dom muses. That earns him a sharp slap from Rhea. “Ow! What? Have you seen that dude's backside?” They all seem to contemplate that for a moment, and ultimately no one objects. 

They do, however, say their goodbyes and make their way to the parking lot in a subtle attempt to give Damian and Sami some privacy.

He watches them leave, confusion clouding his brain when he turns back to look at the other man. “So if you knew all along, why still invite me? Why try to kiss me?” 

Damien smiles and shrugs in response. “You’re sweet, Sami. And anyone who can’t see that is a fucking fool. And since Uso can’t seem to get his head out of his ass, I thought why not? Look, we had a cool day. You had fun, right? We’re still friends. No harm done. And I got my answer now.” 

Sami feels weirdly touched by that. He thinks that in an alternate timeline where Jey doesn’t exist, they’ll probably end up together. A timeline without Jey Uso really isn’t one he wants to imagine though.

“Thanks Damian, really.” He means it.

“Don’t worry about it. But hey! Promise me you’ll think about it if Uso doesn’t shoot his shot soon, yeah?”

That makes him snort. “Hah, nice try. But Jey doesn’t like me that way, trust me. Hell, he barely even likes me at all!” 

The other man’s face changes, a mysterious expression taking over his face “I wouldn’t be so sure about that Sami. I think you have a pretty good shot. Do you trust me?”

In all honesty, Sami doesn’t believe him one bit.

Still, he nods his head, slightly intrigued. 

Cause at this point? 

He'll take all the help he can get.

(+1) The next (but most definitely not the last) time it happens, Sami (fucking finally) understands.

Jey has been silently suffering for weeks and months and he’s just about done.

Sure, a lot of it was entirely his own fault, but that doesn’t mean it hurt any less.

Watching Sami flirt with that prick Priest all this time had been one thing. Watching Sami agree to hang out and possibly go on a date with that very same prick? That’s another thing entirely.  

The flirting had looked harmless enough, at least from Sami’s side, so running a few quick and painful interferences under the guise of simply aiming to be a giant pain in the Honorary Uce’s ass, had been enough to temporarily calm Jey’s jealousy. 

The intense stare downs and fights that followed every new encounter had been enough to get him his much needed fill of Sami’s undivided attention. 

Things had been good. At least for a while. 

He doesn’t know what changed that made Sami agree to the invitation he usually declined (he absolutely does know, thus far he’s just been a coward about it, looking away every time the redhead unleashes his sad and dejected puppy dog eyes on him), but he knows that he needs to do something about it, before it’s too late.

If he wants to shoot his shot, if he ever wants to let Sami know how he truly feels, he has to do it now.

He’s scared though. Real scared.

He isn’t even entirely sure how it all started. Cause for real - Jey couldn't stand Sami at first, alright? 

The second Sami joined their family he had betrayal and rat written all over him. 

Jey hated his fucking guts.

But surprisingly enough, his family liked him. Jimmy liked him. Roman liked him. Wiseman liked him. Hell, even Solo liked him - and Solo never liked anyone - half the time Jey isn’t even sure if Solo likes any of them. And they’re his blood. He likes Sami though.

Point is: His family liked Sami. His family accepted Sami. And Roman’s word was what counted, so he accepted it with a scowl and kept quiet. 

Okay, maybe not that. 

He probably wasn’t as quiet about it as they would’ve liked him to be. But somebody had to do something, alright? It was their family after all. And someone had to protect it. 

And so he was mean and confrontational and brash and loud-mouthed, kicking and screaming and trying everything in his power to get Sami the fuck out and keep his family safe.

But Sami kept trying. And trying. And trying. 

And funnily enough he fit. Not in the obvious ‘mean guy’ kind of way. No - he fit with them in all his bumbling idiocy. 

Sami was loud and brash, in many ways just like Jey, but he was a lot more diplomatic and also a lot more endearing about it. His idiocy and his comedic timing proved to be his secret superpowers. And despite never knowing when to shut the hell up, that particular quality of his was exactly what ended up saving Jey’s sorry ass from Roman time and time again.

In many ways, Sami felt like magic. 

As if he knew exactly what to say and when to say it to keep Roman’s temper from boiling over. 

Lately, more often than not, Jey suspects that that might actually be the case. 

For all that Sami liked to pretend he was an absolute idiot with no filter, Jey remembered that Sami liked to call himself ‘master strategist’, for all he liked to pretend to be a helpless deer in the ring during his matches, Jey knew Sami could outwrestle pretty much everyone on the roster - him and his family included. 

Just because no one else could see it, doesn’t mean Jey couldn’t.

Sami was a perfect fit for them. No matter how much it originally pained him to admit it.

And before he fucking knew what was happening to him, the boiling anger in his stomach turned into a soft flutter whenever he was around their Honorary Uce, his scowls turned into smiles and laughs without his permission, and he had to work even harder to hide them. 

And his dreams of ousting Sami from his family? They turned into dreams of drawn-out lazy kisses, his hands holding onto a pale waist and pulling at strands of messy red hair. 

More often than not his dreams were filled with scenes of intense lovemaking that made him jolt awake in the middle of the night, sticky with sweat and the mess inside his boxers. 

And later on a different sort of dream joined. He dreamed of shared moments filled with sweet intimacy and trust, so much trust that it made him wish that they were reality. That they were a possibility. 

So yes, before he fucking knew what was happening, Jey was falling in love. And there was nothing he could do about it. 

Well, except for acting like a jealous prick and fending off other suitors while also keeping Sami at arm's-length apparently. He proved to be a professional at that. 

At first he didn’t even mean to butt in. But once he did, his temper and jealousy kept getting the better of him time and time again. Not that that worked out for him very well, unless he counted the kiss that he so cowardly ran away from, not because he didn’t wanna kiss Sami, but because he’s scared of his family’s reaction.  

Which brings him back to his current predicament.

He’s silently watching Sami and that prick Priest (Damian, he corrects inside his head, Sami calls him Damian.) from across the room, the former standing with his back to him. 

For safety reasons Jey has parked himself next to a bunch of large crates, ready to leap and hide behind them like the coward he is, the second Sami makes any move to turn around. 

From over here, he’s taking in the way Sami’s large pale hands keep moving and the way his back muscles keep contracting under his shirt, where he animatedly talks to the other man. 

He’s pretty sure Priest spotted him a while ago, but he hasn’t alerted Sami to Jey’s presence just yet.

Instead the guy keeps shooting him curious yet calculated glances over Sami’s shoulder from time to time, before his eyes settle back on him, an almost bemused smile making the corners of his mouth twitch every time it happens.

If he’s being perfectly honest, despite knowing that he has to make a move eventually, Jey isn’t really sure what to do next. All he knows is that they can’t keep going like this. Something’s gotta give. Though he’s not entirely sure what that something is.

He’s still scared of his family. Of what they would think, of what they would say and do, of what their reaction would be if he pursued Sami romantically. The thought of things not going well, of losing his family, even temporarily, frightens him. 

But at the same time, the thought of losing Sami to someone else frightens him just as much. 

Lately he keeps thinking that even if things go badly, his family would eventually come around and accept him, just like they always did. But even if that’s the case, the thought of putting a (temporary) dent in their relationship, still scares the living shit out of him.

He can’t for the life of him make up his mind about what he wants more. He wants to make his family proud. Always. But he also wants Sami. Always.

And so he stands there like an idiot, his shoulders tense, his hands cramping where he’s balled them up into tight fists, his nails digging into his palms, and watches on while the man he loves gets chummy with another guy. A guy, Jey reminds himself, he’s pretty sure Sami went on a date with earlier that same week, and apparently a good one too, after all they’re still talking to each other.

The minutes tick by, the flow of conversation between the two men never once stopping and now that Jey isn’t busy with making an ass of himself, he can see bright as day what Sami meant when he called Damian ‘a good guy’. 

His adoration for Sami is written all over his face. It’s in the way his eyes crinkle around the corners. It’s in the way his lips curl into a soft smile whenever it’s Sami’s turn to talk. It’s in the way he laughs whenever Sami says something particularly funny and the way he rests an easy hand on Sami’s shoulder when he moves to turn them sideways, the profile of Sami’s gorgeous face now perfectly visible to Jey. 

Jey is ready to leap into hiding, but despite the new angle, Sami doesn’t seem to notice him at all and he’s perfectly fine with keeping it that way. For now.

That is, until Damian reaches out, huge toothy grin in place, and starts toying with a strand of Sami’s unruly hair. He twirls it between his fingers, before carefully pushing it behind the other man’s ear, trailing his hand over the Honorary Uce’s cheek and neck, before it settles back on his shoulder. 

The casual intimacy of it makes Jey sees red.

How fucking dare he- 

Jumping into action, he darts across the room in a few quick steps, barely catching Sami’s faint and hopeless “I don’t think that’s gonna work.” followed by Damian’s smug “I think it just did.”, before he’s grabbing their Honorary Uce by the collar and hauling his ass out of there.

All Sami can do is stagger alongside him as he swiftly walks them down the long corridor in search of some semblance of privacy.

As soon as they’re out of sight, he shoves and pushes at him until he’s pressed up against the closest wall, Jey’s body effectively trapping him, just like Sami has done to him before, and catches his lips in a fiery passionate kiss.

This one isn’t like their first one at all. No. Instead of staying perfectly still like a statue, Jey lays it all on the line, puts all his unspoken feelings into it and straight up devours Sami’s pliant mouth.

The other man takes a minute to catch on, but when he does they’re off to the races, pushing and pulling at each other, hands wandering and helplessly clawing, hot breaths mingling as their tongues slide together and their teeth clack. 

This kiss leaves no doubt. It feels like a love confession and a heated fight all at the same time and Jey honestly can’t say if that bodes well for whatever is to come once they pull apart. 

He tries to draw out the moment for as long as he possibly can, latching onto Sami’s neck when they both need to come up for air, drawing some wonderfully sinful noises from the other man’s throat and sucking a mark into his pale skin.

When he finally draws back, satisfied with his work when he sees the dark purpling spot he’s left behind, Sami blinks at him owlishly, almost dazed and Jey can’t help but feel his worry dissolve, a hint of smugness taking its place. 

“You done flirting with other people now?”

He brings up a hand to Sami’s neck, fingers probing and pushing at the lovebite teasingly.

Something in Sami’s gaze shifts once the puzzle pieces finally click together. A big smile spreads across his face, before his eyes turn dark. 

He flips them around effortlessly, now pressing Jey’s back into the wall, so that he’s the one trapped by Sami’s warm body against his. 

This time around, he one hundred percent doesn’t mind, already turning into putty in the other man’s hands.

“Huh, guess I am.” Then. A sigh. “Took you long enough.”

With that he reclaims the Uso’s mouth, Jey’s thoughts already drifting to all the ways he wants to be devoured by this man later, once they have some real actual privacy.

Yeah, he admits to himself, it did. But he has it on good authority that in the end, it was well worth the wait.

FIN

[emelinstriker]

Wukong ♢ 'Vacation'

Heads up, I haven't seen the sleep bug episode, or any other season than 4 in general, in a while and just remember the general plot moment of the episode. Also the moment of MK trying to get in contact with Monkey King while flexing his new abilities.

All's based in an AU anyway so we shall strife away from the canon timeline- whoo :D

I just know Monkey King doesn't fully return till like the end of season 2, so this shall have major timeskips-

♢ ~ Angst ~ ♢

"Sun Wukong! Where are you?!", your slightly irritated voice rang from behind some trees as you moved past some foliage, looking for your monkey boyfriend. He was supposed to train MK today and you wanted to pay a visit to Flower Fruit Mountain, but then you caught MK training on his own as his mentor was nowhere in sight.

MK told you that Monkey King decided to take a sudden vacation and that he apparently sent you a message just minutes prior. You didn't notice the message however as you were busy trying to get the sleep bug game notification off your phone. It didn't work, so you ended up just turning off your phone so you could deal with it later at home.

But the fact that he outright left not only you but also the kid like that was quite upsetting.

Knowing the stone monkey, he didn't actually immediately leave. He was probably still somewhere on Flower Fruit Mountain to collect everything he would need just in case while being away. And it seems you were right on the money. You found the Monkey King packing up some leftover things that weren't behind the waterfall or near his and MK's designated training area. The items seemed to not be for a relaxing vacation to be honest.

"Wukong! Why are you going on vacation out of the blue?!" You asked as you approached him with quick steps.

He froze, his tail stiffening for just a second to let you know you startled him. The monkey quickly turned to look at you rather nervously. "A-Ah h-hey heeey, peaches! Wh- Well, what a surprise to see you all the way out here!"

"Mhm. Same to you", you started, glaring at him, "But don't avoid the question. You should be all the way on the other side of the forest and training your successor right now, y'know?"

He waved his hand dismissively, "He's got the basics down and knows how to train himself. I did train for the most part on my own as well. He'll be fine. Besides, it's not like I'll be gone forever. I'll be checking in from time to time." Then he continued to pack two more items.

You were still quite mad at him despite the explanation. "But why are you going on vacation right now and without me?"

That seemed to catch his attention, but not in the way you expected. The simian's ears seemed to twitch a little at your words, but he refused to look at you as he packed another item.

"Listen (Y/N), I simply need to get away and be alone for a while. I'll be visiting some people I know from the past. I'd love to have you on another vacation, just... not this one." His tail lowered itself until it was tucked between his legs. That didn't stop you from feeling left out of yet another mini-adventure. It was far from the first time he insisted on you staying behind due to you being a regular human with nothing more than verbal strength.

This time was no different as you noticed that whatever he had planned, the seriousness in his voice told you enough that wherever he was heading to was not a simple vacation. But that was even more of a reason to at least tell you where he was going!

You clenched your fists in frustration. "Can't you just tell me what's wrong? It's not like you to be this secretive! I know you're off to doing something alone again because of whatever bits of a hero complex you have left, but-" "I can't tell you, okay?!" He snapped back, finally turning to you with the snarl of a feral monkey, catching you off-guard.

"Ugh, that's why I need a vacation right about now too! Gods, you're so pushy in moments like these, I just need a break!"

Tears pricked in the corners of your eyes at his words, but you turned around quickly enough so he wouldn't see. You took a deep breath to calm your nerves and keep your voice from cracking.

"Fine. I hope you have fun on your vacation, Monkey King", you responded as you started to walk away, your back facing him the entire time while tears began rolling down your cheeks.

The simian was still annoyed as he began hopping onto his cloud and taking off. Only halfway to his destination did his brain finally register that you referred to him by his title. That's when the reality of the argument you two just had a few minutes ago hit. And so did the memory of how he described you, followed by you tearing up.

He did notice.

"...Shit", he muttered to himself dreadfully as he facepalmed. As much as he wanted to go back this instant and embrace you before you left Flower Fruit Mountain, his mission had to take priority as the fate of the world was in danger. He would have to apologize to you later...

"Later" turned into several weeks however as he fought to obtain information on how to beat the Lady Bone Demon. Occasionally he would check in on MK, of course. He did ask about you at least once everytime he got in contact with the boy though, even while being in the middle of battle. The guilt that was eating at him was a lot more bothersome than getting his hands on the Samadhi Fire's map.

MK noticed how often his mentor would ask about your well-being and at first thought that it was sweet of him to ask about you... But then he realized he could just get in contact with you directly too. You had a charm in form of a necklace that let you transport to Flower Fruit mountain, as well as open the waterfall and get in contact with your lover.

That's when he started to catch onto the suspicion that something must have happened between the two of you.

"Monkey King, why don't you just talk to (Y/N) directly? They still have the charm you gave them, right?"

The golden image of the Monkey King crossed his arms before scratching his cheek with a frown. He seemed suddenly very much uncomfortable.

"I... Uh... I don't have the time for a lengthy talk with them right now. I still need to visit another friend in a bit! Right! Yeah! Okay, see you later, bud!" "Monkey King, wait-"

And then the connection cut off. Feeling upset and abandoned by the one who was supposed to mentor him through his journey as hero, he decided to give you a call.

The phone rang until he heard your voice. Your recorded voice.

"Hi! This is (Y/N)! Please leave a message if you need anything and I'll listen to it as soon as possible!"

He hung up and tried to call again, but it also only went back to voicemail.

Raising an eyebrow at your sudden unavailability, he decided to just send you a text instead, believing you were busy at work and put your phone on silent.

'monkey king keeps asking about you btw, but doesn't seem to wanna talk to you directly :('

'tell me if you wanna talk to him and i can try get you two in contact'

'if he hasn't talked to you recently that is'

'he acts kinda weird rn tbh'

You should be able to read those messages once you got time. Probably after work.

And yet he never received any text back.

What he didn't know was that you weren't at work. In fact, you were being held captive by the Lady Bone Demon's servant, the Mayor. Him and his Lady knew about your relationship with Sun Wukong and how fragile you were compared to the rest of your friends.

"I don't have anything to offer you!" You yelled out as the Mayor held your arms effortlessly behind your back, forcing you to simply talk to his Lady's glowing image in front of you.

She giggled ominously, "On the contrary, (Y/N). Your destiny has been sealed the moment you agreed to a relationship with that damned simian and befriended his successor."

"What the hell am I of use for to you?! I don't have any special abilities you could even benefit from!" Your voice cracked towards the end from the amount of anxiety you had.

"Well, unfortunately for your frail body, your destiny involves succumbing to your wounds."

Before you could question her any further, the Mayor moved your wrists swiftly, breaking your arms in the process. You cried out in pain, breathing heavily as tears began to fall.

"For you see, the charm Sun Wukong gave you will aid us in creating the New World. Contact him through it." She smirked down at your quivering form. "And even if you decide to be uncooperative, destiny will catch up sooner or later..."

And as suspected, you were being very much uncooperative. So much so that you ended up with more injuries than you could keep count of. Probably half of which included several broken bones from the Mayor's raw demonic strength.

While the Lady Bone Demon wasn't so fond of your refusal to call your boyfriend, she merely saw it as a minor delay. She knew Sun Wukong and the rest of the crew would get suspicious and try find you eventually.

Even if it took days upon Wukong telling the crew to find the three four rings...

And find you they did.

But not in the shape they had hoped.

You were completely bloody and bruised, your limbs were mangled in a rather disturbing way.

The crew was horrified- Not only at the sight, but also at the realization that you were lifeless, dead...

The Monkey King felt the most broken. The memories of your forever last conversation being one big mess of an argument... He thought he was keeping you and the others safe...

He mourned over your dead body, letting his tears fall as he carefully cradled you in his arms, his fur and armor now having bloody spots. MK was struggling with telling his mentor to focus because he himself couldn't fully focus anymore at the sight of a close friend's body. However, the thought of other people, including his other friends, ending up in the same position as you were in was terrifying.

And that was all the motivation they both needed to keep moving. The Great Sage wiped away his tears, looking at your resting form one last time before glaring into the distance.

He would avenge your death, no matter what.

And if possible, would try find a way to bring you back... Even if it involves fighting the Heavens once more.

> Link to Masterlist <

[okaystoptellingmetomakeanaccount]

Pwease elaborate on the following points, I beg this of you:

UltraHeroes Paperinika is best Paperinika?!?

Martina's Duckburg is closer to Barks' than Rosa's is?

DT17 leaked documents about Cimino? :O (Is there a way to read them?)

Sincerely thanks from a lurking lurker who lurks.

Omg no thank you i love elaborating about ducks lol

• Paperinika in Martina’s first few stories was great satire, but the character has since been stuck like that. (We’ll ignore Martina’s subsequent attempt to move away from this by making her fight the evil queen from Snow White and beheading robot clones of herself) Most writers kept her ridiculously ‘feminist’ attitude and personality, or changed her hating men into hating PK specifically. And they generally kept a lot of her negative character traits. So the character became a bit hateful. (Now that i think of it i haven’t read enough Brazilian stories so this is like from what i’ve gathered from Italian and Danish stuff) I’m personally not that much a fan of a hero who’s most defining quality is that she’s a narcissistic prick.

Paperinik moved away from a lot of his own negative character traits (he was a bit of a villain at first after all). But Paperinika did not. Probably a lot of writers still deemed all of those things as ‘funny’ because haha woman mad. On the other hand, Paperinika also fell out of use in Italy, so maybe they didn’t think it was that funny. But they never thought to like, y know change her character.

UNTIL ULTRAHEROES HELL YEAH. So like yeah Ultraheroes wasn’t good or something (though i gotta say i’m personally quite fond of it) but they did reinvent Paperinika’s character. Decided that she’s actually likable now! Moved away from all the sexism and gave her a fun personality that fit modern day Daisy and created one of the most fun love triangles between Daisy, Donald, PK and PKA. Too bad that it didn’t really stick outside of Ultraheroes. So it remains one of, if not the best version of the character for me. The end of the chapter where they go against Spectrus and Zafira is just a fav of mine.

• Rosa’s Duckburg is really un-Barksian. It might all add up in continuity and references, but tonally it’s a whole different universe.

The entire thing is too serious. I might even say it all makes too much sense. Barks never cared much about making sense. Scrooge had a different bin every other story.

Guido Martina was always the king of not making sense. He probably contradicted his own stories more than anyone else. Both hik and Barks never cared about continuity. It’s about the story. Duckburg could change into whatever they wanted, as long as it served the story they wished to tell.

Martina’s Duckburg is pretty different from Barks’. It’s a more cynical, one could say almost parodic version of it, where everything and everyone is terrible. But with that it goes way further in those satirical elements of Barks. Something Rosa rarely did, who told more straightforward consumer friendly epic Hollywood stories.

Like uhh we could take a look at Scrooge. Rosa Scrooge is ultimately a good man. He doesn’t even actually care about money, but about the way he got it! It’s about earning the money and the adventures! And secretly he’s a good person who does give money away.

Martina Scrooge is a bad man. Oh oh oh so bad. Scrooge is used to critique and make fun of the rich that Martina saw around him. He has a comically long list of debts that other people owe him. He got rich by lots of illegal manners, and can get others to do whatever he wants, simply because he has money.

Barks Scrooge is in the middle, but I’d say it leans more to Martina. Scrooge is just a person. Does bad things and good things. He’s full of human contradictions and complexities. But more often than not, even when he’s more neutral, Scrooge is used to make fun off. The stories he tells about how he got rich are ridiculous. They are meant to be laughed at. It’s this difference in tone which is prevalent in most of their writing.

Rosa simply doesn’t use the characters that way. That’s it kinda. Hope this explains my imo a bit lol

• okay shhhh but dont tell anyone

(Sorey, removed the link. Just to stay safe. If anyone still wants it don’t be scared to dm :))

(Kind of scared of getting banned so excuse me if i remove the link in a few days. I recommend you download it to read later. I wrote the longest wall of text to hide it under but the drive i downloaded it from is gone because of disney so like yeah tad bit scared)

And just want to say wow. Thank you for the ask. Like the idea that there are people lurking around reading my posts, like i used to do (and still do) by so many others is insane honestly. Hope you’ve had fun reading my ramblings here, anon :)

[stcrfeesh]

the complexities of simplicity

(and the friendships built with sandwiches)

No warnings apply; Safe for work.

The retelling of the roundabout way Al Haitham tries to become friends with you.

Or, how not to be spies with covers as employees in the corporate world.

Al Haitham was such a conundrum. Unlike everyone else, he was different.

Despite the field he was working in, one where he was required to lie, he was still never one to engage in false pleasantries and hollow compliments. He’d openly refuse to take time out of his day to chat about the weather to get the information he needs—the twists and turns were unnecessary to him.

If he could walk into an establishment to steal information, then he’d do just that. It was simpler to walk in and then walk out without being detected anyway. It wasn’t like anyone would suspect some feeble man for information theft. Why would they? After all, he was just another paying customer using the washroom after trying out a new coffee blend.

Al Haitham gets what he wants and what he needs, in a roundabout, but oddly efficient way. Why aim for the straight path to his goals when he could simply jump to his goal? It would save him so much more time and effort—save him his breath and thoughts.

The path between point A and point B was, indeed, already simple. Even a pigeon would understand such simplicity. But in his mind, anything that was already efficient would always have something to make it even simpler.

The simpler it was, the less work he’d have to do, and the less work on his plate, the better. It was like dealing with fractions in math—always answer with the simplest form.

He was a conundrum in the way he contradicts himself. The lengths he’d go to for certain things; an extensive plan on how to steal intel without having to talk much with anyone, or perhaps, commissioning someone to fashion a device for him so he wouldn’t have to water the plants outside every single morning himself.

Al Haitham in all of his contradictions, turns simplicity into complexity, and sometimes, it made your head spin in confusion.

You would always see him enter the building at eight in the morning—on the dot every day. It was the same routine for the most part; a cup of coffee in his hand, and his coworker? Friend? You weren’t sure, but the guy would always be complaining behind him as he rubbed the sleep off his eyes. Then, Al Haitham leaves at four in the afternoon. At that time, though, without his partner—who you’d usually see cursing his very being—in tow.

In all the days he’s passed by you, you’d give him a smile—not the same one you give everyone else, though. This smile was reserved for him alone, you thought that perhaps, he needed a little more kindness in his life—so, you’d smile at him every morning and every afternoon to greet him. Much to your dismay, however, he never greets you back. No “good morning” or “thank you”, and especially not a single glance towards you. And so, you have come to a conclusion.

Al Haitham was not nice. Though, of course, not in the way where you’d call him an absolute prick. He wasn’t a dick, per se, he was just… unsociable. Well, maybe he was a little bit of a dick for never greeting you back, but it wasn’t like a greeting less affected your entire life. He was just some sleeper agent working on the top floor of the same company you’ve been stationed in, who, also happens to not like making small talk.

Yes, that was definitely it. Perhaps he liked being in his own little world where nothing bothers him, and you could get around that. That much was understandable. After all, with years of undercover work at the front desk of a company where the rudest people in all of Teyvat would barge in with their incomprehensible demands, you too would like to be in your own little world.

Alas, such is life in the world of espionage.

Al Haitham wasn’t an important part of your life—okay, maybe he was, but that was if, and only if your covers were to be blown. You weren’t high up in the ranks to have had the immediate clearance to know his codename, it even took you half a year of running errands for headquarters to figure it out yourself. Turns out, Al Haitham, the quiet man who’d never greet you back, was the Agent Vulture everyone either feared or idolised. Or both.

Should your covers be blown, you’d trust him enough to get the both of you out of trouble. That was assuming he’d even lend you a hand.

You wonder then if he knows you were just like him—a sleeper agent, which you now begin to doubt he does 1. He probably doesn’t even know your name despite the gold name tag pinned onto your uniform. Does he even see you greet him? You’ll never know, to be honest, nor do you ever plan on knowing.

That thought changes, however, on one unsuspecting morning.

You watch him enter the front doors. On the dot at eight in the morning. His companion mutters curses under his breath as he follows behind him. Today, you manage to make out what the blond man was complaining about.

“Oh, I don’t know, Al Haitham,” You heard the blond whisper sarcastically. “Maybe a ‘Thank you so much for helping me out, Kaveh’ would do!”

You watch Al Haitham inch closer towards the front desk, probably to clock in. He hisses at his companion, “Why should I thank you, oh great Kaveh? I pay for your share of the rent. Isn’t that a ‘thank you’ enough?”

Kaveh, you let the name resound in your mind. So that’s what the blond guy’s name was. The name sounded familiar to you, but you couldn’t pinpoint why or how. Not that it mattered.

When they were near enough, you put on a smile to greet them, “Good morning,”

The blond guy, whose name you now know was Kaveh, stops ranting furiously at his companion and flashes you a toothed smile. “Yes, hello, darling, good morning.”

Al Haitham presses his hand against the clocking device, and it makes a little ding sound, signifying that he’s successfully clocked in. You already assumed he wouldn’t pay you any mind like always did, that he’d walk away, but he doesn’t. He stops in his tracks, to look you directly in the eye.

He doesn’t glance at your name tag, but somehow, he says your name as if he’s known the entire time. You hadn’t expected him to know your name, quite the contrary, actually. You believed he didn’t even know your face. So, when he says your name, your jaw drops the slightest in shock, and then you snap it back shut when you realise you must’ve looked like a fool.

“Yes?” You answer simply, testing the waters. “Is there something you need?”

He shakes his head letting you know that he didn’t, and then hands you something wrapped in wax paper, “You left your lunch, so I bought an extra sandwich for you instead.”

Now you’re just confused. What in Teyvat was he even saying? What does he mean you left your lunch at home? You narrow your eyes at him, wondering if he was a double agent out to get you, but his expression remains as stoic as ever. Had it not been for his fingers tapping rhythmically against the desk, you would have believed what you wanted to believe.

Message, you managed to gather from his tapping. You nod, getting his message as you take the item from him. “Oh… I was in a rush earlier, and I forgot to make lunch for myself. Thank you, you didn’t have to trouble yourself.”

Al Haitham nods one last time before he and Kaveh disappear into the hallway.

When they were finally out of earshot, your front desk partner playfully bumps your shoulder. She grins at you, and you immediately knew she was up to no good, “I see you have someone bringing you lunch now… I wonder who he might be. Boyfriend, perhaps?”

When she says that, you couldn’t help the snort that comes out of you. You? A boyfriend? And the best operative in Sumeru, no less? When Shroomboars begin to fly.

“He’s just a friend,” You lie—or, maybe, it was a small little white lie. Al Haitham wasn’t your friend, you didn’t even know his favourite colour, but you knew him just enough to get your lie to work. Plus, you certainly weren’t lying when you denied being in a romantic relationship with him.

You are a spy, an asset specifically placed in this specific company in case someone from your faction needed immediate help. Dating was far, far off the list of things you needed to do.

“Just a friend?” She asks you, her voice full of doubt. “Dear, you can’t expect me to believe that. Friends don’t just bring each other lunch because they’re friends.”

You frown at her mindset, that was untrue. Friends do bring each other lunch from time to time. You flick her forehead. “Not everything is about romance, you know?” You stare at the wrapped food in your hands. You knew better than to play with food, but you were curious, so you squish it lightly—it was probably a sandwich.

You cough, clearing your throat. The next thing you say, now this—this was a lie, “I need to put this away. I’ll be real quick.”

“Be quick,” Your desk partner reminds. “The front doors will be opening soon.”

And that’s what you did. Quick on your feet, you find yourself in the break room in no time. When you notice that the room was deserted, you carefully unwrap the wax paper. You find a small card tucked between the wax paper and the sandwich (you were right).

Report to headquarters at 6 PM.

You flip the card around to find nothing else. You stare at the card for another moment longer. Not only did he actually know your name, but he also knew who you were—that you were an operative like him. Which now begs the question, was he just being a dick the entire time?

You shove the card in your pocket before placing the sandwich in the fridge.

Seriously. You thought to yourself, was it so hard to just tell me this in person?

Al Haitham giving you homemade sandwiches did not stop that one time.

The next morning, he gives you another one. Using the same excuse as the day before, but this time without the message from headquarters. He does it again every single day for the next week, and then the next two months. Throughout it all, he uses the exact same excuse over and over again, “You forgot your lunch again,”

On one of those mornings, you raise a brow at Kaveh. A silent question of why. What was his companion planning? Why must it be you, in particular? But, when Kaveh furrows his brows, you realise then that even his own companion had no idea—the poor guy was even confused.

“Here,” Al Haitham says, handing you the sandwich. He stops to look at you for a short moment, and begins to tap his fingers against the desk as he speaks, “It’s cheese and turkey.”

Tap, tap, tap, tap—A message.

“Oh,” Is all that you’re able to let out, despite all the thoughts racing in your mind. “Thank you again, Al Haitham.”

As he was about to leave, you stop him, “Hold on!” You pull out the box hidden in a cubby behind the desk before walking towards him, “I was making cookies last night, and I made a batch too many. So, uhm, these are for you.”

That was a lie. You made the cookies for him, and you were quite certain he knew you were lying. But, if your lie works, then it works. He didn’t need to know the truth.

He raises a brow at you, and for a glimmer of a moment, you swore you saw a smile grace his lips. It was small and subtle, but you swore you saw it. Maybe you were imagining things, maybe you were not—you were leaning toward the latter, though—but regardless of whether it was real or a mere trick of the light, you thought that smiles suited him. It made him look nicer.

“Al Haitham!” Kaveh called, letting out an annoyed groan. “Come on! What are you still doing over there?”

“Thanks,” Was all he tells you as he takes the box from you. You hold your breath for a moment, afraid his hand would brush against yours, but it doesn’t. Not even the slightest bit, and you almost let out a snort in front of him. Thankfully, you were able to stop yourself.

“Thank you,” You reply, like the fool that you are. You cough, pretending something was just stuck in your throat. “I mean, yeah, sure. No problem.”

Al Haitham nods, following his companion further down into the hall. When you were certain he was gone, you let out the breath you were holding. What the hell?

Of course, it wouldn’t, you think to yourself. Why should it? You weren’t some protagonist in a cliché romance novel scene.

You return to the front desk, peeking inside the wrapper of the sandwich he had made for you. You discreetly slip the note out, stealing a glance before shoving it into your pockets. Eyes darting towards your desk partner, you let out a sigh of relief. Good, she didn’t see.

Meet me for lunch, if you’d like, was what was written on the note. And you do, you meet him for lunch a few hours later. You find him waiting for you by the front doors, in his hand a brown paper bag—which you assumed was his packed lunch.

“Hello,” You greet politely. “I hope you haven’t been waiting long.”

“I didn’t. Let’s go?” The man begins to walk, and at first, you assumed he was going to leave you by yourself, but he doesn’t. He looks back at you, waiting for you—again. That was embarrassing.

Despite the heat that was evidently creeping onto your cheeks, dusting them with a shade of pink, with your whole chest and whatever arrogance was left in you, you decide then and there that Al Haitham wasn’t the dick you thought he was. Of course, he still wasn’t nice in your books, but he was a decent guy.

You jog up to him—at least, with your heels, you attempt to. “Thanks for the sandwich again, Al Haitham.”

“You don’t have to keep thanking me every time you see me, you know?” He chuckles. You immediately look up at him in surprise. He chuckles. You’ve never heard him chuckle before. Holy archons.

“You don’t have to keep bringing me a sandwich either,” You tell him. “Actually, why do you give me a sandwich every single day? Are you trying to condition me or something?”

If you thought a chuckle was surprising enough, then you weren’t prepared for the laugh he lets out. Al Haitham laughs at your words—at the notion of you thinking you were being conditioned by him.

“I’m not, don’t worry,” He says, still laughing. “I just find making an extra sandwich for a friend therapeutic.”

At that very moment, realisation finally dawns on you. The sandwiches were because he wanted to be your friend. Al Haitham wanted to be your friend. The twists and turns he went through all because he wanted to be your… friend. You couldn’t help but smile to yourself at that.

In the little moments you had been allowed to catch glimpses of him beyond the stoic exterior, you learn that he was one contradicting and ironic man. He was a man that made the most simple of things complicated, and a man who was too honest, despite the life he leads as a spy.

Al Haitham was not nice, you were definitely certain of that. He was not someone who engaged in false pleasantries to get into the good graces of people. So uncharacteristic of an operative—or, at least, that was what you think.

He was blunt—a little too honest, but you realise then that in a life where everything around you was a lie, you didn’t mind having an insanely honest man for a friend; even with all the contradictions and irony.

“Friend,” You repeat, smiling at him. “Well then, friend, would you like to have lunch with me every day from now on?”

“I see no reason as to why not,” He replies. “Friend.”

Who knew sandwiches were such a good, albeit roundabout way to make friends?

This is me experimenting with insert-reader fics. Please take my silly interpretation of Al Haitham. He's a funny guy. I am also sorry if this doesn't make sense. I'll probably rewrite this some day. I just needed to get the brainrot out of my head to continue writing off the precipice. I hope you enjoy, though!

A sleeper agent, also called sleeper cell, is a spy who is placed in a target country or organization not to undertake an immediate mission, but instead to act as a potential asset if activated.

GENSHIN MASTERLIST  |  KO-FI SUPPORT

© stcrfeesh 2020-2023 — reposts, translations, and any other form of reproduction of my work is prohibited.

[mcflymemes]

KNIVES OUT PROMPTS *  assorted dialogue from the 2019 film

we must look a little closer.

who hired you?

it's a weird case from the start.

i suspect foul play.

i observe the facts without biases of the head or heart.

i'm not trying to beat you.

it makes no damn sense.

we can protect you from that happening.

were you boinking my father?

you won it by playing your way.

the family is truly desperate.

thank you. that means a lot.

the guy practically lives in a clue board.

you make a pretty lousy murderer.

wow, this will be quick.

i think you should follow your heart.

i'm just going to say this to you.

you'd better be sure that's what you want.

who is this prick?

can we ask why? has something changed?

that was the dumbest car chase of all time.

i have to ask you what we're doing here.

we're sorry for your loss.

how about some more cookies?

matter of fact? eat shit. how's that?

don't make me get the belt.

you're missing the point.

you're famous!

close the book with a flourish.

this family. i should care for them, right?

you have a regurgitative reaction to mistruths.

i read a tweet about a new yorker article about you.

now you think you can steal it from us.

you don't like him 'cause you love him.

you're a good person.

i have eliminated no suspects.

are you back again?

you've always been good to me.

i don't know what any of that means.

that's certainly not what i was expecting.

i think this could be the best thing to happen to all of you.

you have a good heart.

i have my own opinions.

the complexity and the gray lie not in the truth but what you do with the truth once you have it.

i don't know how you beat me at this every time.

i got to do this more often.

what i'm about to say isn't going to be easy and you're going to be upset.

what does he mean by that?

this is a twisted web, and we are not finished untangling it. not yet.

kids today with the internet... it's amazing.

oh shut up! shut up!

this is still our house.

oh, so that's where you were all night.

i haven't read it though.

thank you all for coming by.

up your ass.

best judge of character is a dog.

this might be the best thing that has ever happened to you.

[arminsumi]

Currently suffering from a cold and would like to request prompt #4 with Eren x sick!fem!reader where Y/N caught a cold after returning from her vacation and Eren takes care of her/keeps her company so she’s not alone and help her get rid of the cold? Thank you so much! - 🌻

Hey Sunny of course! Hope you recover soon, and take lots of rest!

Honey Tea

Prompt 4 / E. Jaeger

"They take care of sick!Y/n"

You got sick but lectures still had to be endured. After one particularly long day, Eren took you back to his dorm to take care of you. Like a dummy, he got too close and ended up sick the next day.

Cws; fluff, sickness (flu), mentions medicine, a smidge of kissing, pre-est relationships (dating)

Notes; sick!fem!Y/n, college au

Rec ♫ : Like Real People Do

You had been complaining about your ailments while walking across the campus square to his dorm. He nodded and listened to you patiently, his eyes lifting from the pathway ahead of him occasionally to give you a tender look.

"And my throat is sore — it's all prickly — and I have a headache." You complained.

"Mhm." Eren hummed, listening as you went on.

"I just feel the worst..." You sniffled, "I hate being sick and having classes! Can your brother ever give us less work?"

"I know, I tell him all the time, his homework is overwhelming, but I think he's just a sadistic prick." Eren laughed in his deep, smooth voice.

He held your hand while entering the dorm complex, and ascended the stairs slowly with you since you had complained about feeling dizzy earlier. Eren was always attentive when it came to you, but especially when you weren't feeling well.

You reached the fourth floor and heaved a breath, and then found yourself a second later in front of the door leading into Eren's dorm.

"Why are humans so frail!" You cried dramatically, and Eren nearly giggled while thumbing the key into the lock.

He looked down at you tenderly, "You're so dramatic when you're sick, it's really cute." He said.

You pinched your eyes shut and coughed. Well, one cough ignited a whole fit, and so Eren hushed you into his bedroom with his hands soothingly over your shoulders.

He sat you down on his bed, pressed a kiss to your forehead, and then snaked over to the dorm's kitchenette to put on the kettle.

"What are you doing?" You whined impatiently, taking up a woefully sick position on his bed. You held your hand to your left eye in a tense manner.

"Making you some tea, baby."

You hummed, but it sounded characteristically sick. Every noise that escaped your lips or word that fell therefrom had that crackle about it, and Eren thought it was the sweetest sound he'd ever heard.

You could smell the honey and lemon scents mingling in the air where he stood, while he carefully poured hot water into a mug. It was that one dorky mug that you had gifted him some years ago.

Some sputtering coughs escaped your lips, and just before another fit came over you, Eren arrived at your side with a fresh tea in hand.

"Careful, it's hot." He warned, and handed it to you. He pressed his weight into the mattress, but only barely sat on the edge.

You pouted over the rim of the mug, feeling the steam drift across your face. Such a small thing was oddly relieving.

"Okay, you drink that, and stay right here; I'm gonna go get you some things at the convenience store." He said, and rose from his half-sitting position.

You let out a protesting noise, "But that's so far away." You said.

"I'll be really quick, I promise." Eren assured.

"Okay..." You frowned.

You set the mug down, since it was way too hot to even sip on.

Eren tugged the throw blanket from the bottom of the bed, and cast it over you. It was pleasantly weighted, and it smelled like him.

"Stay right here," Eren ordered gently, tucking the blanket around you while you giggled, "And wait for me, alright?" He said, and plucked a kiss from you.

"Don't kiss me you'll get sick!" You cried out.

"It's fine, I've got way better immunity than you." He smirked smugly.

"Yeah right!" You glared playfully, "Mister, you get sick aaall the time in winter."

He pressed another kiss to you.

"Mmrf." You mumbled against his lips, "You know I'm right."

"Mhm." He hummed, and pulled away. "You rest while I'm gone."

And with that he slid out the door and sped down four flights of stairs with his very spider-like legs. Anyone who paid him attention wondered what he was rushing for, but he just wanted to get back to his baby as soon as possible.

In the time he was gone, you buried yourself into his bed, and fell asleep. How could you not with such satiny cotton sheets?

Of course, the tea got cold.

Eren returned, and as soon as he saw you snoozing he smiled to himself. Seeing you comfortably curled up, slightly snoring, had his chest panging with tender affections.

He set down the convenience store bag at the edge of the bed, and kneeled at your side.

"Y/n," He gently cooed at your face to try and lure you out of dreamland, "Y/n, wakey-wakey, I've got your medicine."

"Hmmm?" You whined, feeling pulled back into the wakeful world by his warm voice.

"I got you cough drops, and tampons just in case, and tissues." He said, and when he said 'tissues' it was coincidentally comedic because your eyes had started watering.

"I had a dream of jelly fish, and they couldn't stop spinning," You spoke, talking about your dream while Eren grabbed the tissue box and tore it open (as Eren tears open literally everything).

Eren hummed responses and listened to you go on about your fishy dreams, and while he did he gently patted tissue paper at the corners of your eyes to soak up the tears.

Of course, your nose started running next. Eren started giggling for some reason, you know, in that way he does with his lips pressed together in a smile.

For the whole rest of the day, Eren tended to you caringly, never showing impatience or annoyance once in his tender eyes. When you coughed, you got a cough drop, and when you complained, he cuddled up next to you and listened.

"You're really gonna get sick if you stay so close." You sighed.

"No I won't." He said confidently, snuggling closer.

Well, that dummy got sick the very next day. He sniffled around his dorm with you, and the two of you broke down into giggles when you had sneezing or coughing fits at the same time.

[mswyrr]

Things like prolonged abuse can give people very uneven social and emotional development. They can be very responsible and "mature for your age" in some areas and also very stunted and immature in others.

This can also happen for, say, LGBT people who were closeted during pivotal periods of development too, where dating and discovering themselves happens later and there can be a development gap for a time. And grief around never getting to be a kid when they were a kid can be a thing for people once they try to connect with the things they had to cut off because they weren't safe to feel them. I went through some of that myself, from various sources, so I have a lot of empathy for that and how absurd/frustrating it can be.

(And a lot of hope - it doesn't, as far as I've seen and experienced, take someone very long to "catch up" after a while of fumbling around like an idiot)

Anyway - sometimes I see people reading Carmy's "accidental fuckboi" behavior in terms of how a grown man who's been dating since he was a teen would be thinking/feeling, if he behaved like that. But, for me, I interpret that differently because of the “first” situation and the developmental stuff. IMO, he's basically being a feckless/inexperienced teenager dating for the first time here, because in this area of his life he is still developmentally a dumb feckless teenager (and one who is trying and failing "not to be shitty" without much of a clue what that looks like).

Doesn't make the harm less real, but the intent I think is shaped deeply by the fact that, for the first time in his life, he feels safe enough (because of how much responsibility Sydney and Nat are taking on and that is absolutely not fair to them!!) to try to enjoy things. And he thinks maybe he can even make that work with being responsible somehow, but... utterly clueless about how.

There's the caveat that he didn't go out and choose to start dating at this pivotal moment for the business - dating found him and there's complexities around how much he wanted it to find him right here and now and how much he feels obligated to be what his family/friends/Claire wants him to be. I think he'd have been able to turn down anyone who wasn't as deeply tied to his family as Claire, and I'm not ignoring his agency in the situation, but they chose to bring someone in who he'd find it incredibly difficult to balance pleasing/doing what he's expected to do by while balancing everything else for a reason.

The "executive function" stuff where he's staring at the calls coming in and unable to answer either of them is key for me, in terms of this being someone who just isn't functioning well rn at all and is coming to a real crisis point and trying to ignore that/salve that any way he can think of. Masking really hard and deep in denial and trying to keep a lot of plates spinning without being very intentional about any of it.

It leads to sucky behavior and he's responsible for that--and the other characters can and should hold him responsible for that, but especially for actually addressing the core gravity warping untreated mental illness that's motivating a lot of this frantic rushing around and being a prick-- but I don't personally see much of it as a crime of intent. Intent requires a level of insight and experience that he doesn't have in the area of dating specifically lol

That balance of someone being responsible for their actions but also, for various reasons, in a place that mitigates and shapes what they're able to do--based on the tools they have--is an interesting part of the story that gets touched on again and again through various characters. It's interesting and it can coexist with the people around someone having the right to protect their own peace and boundaries.

[mysticmellowlove]

I really need to know Bowen's past with Reader. When and where he met us, and what he thought when he saw us. Bowen is clearly a complex character, and if he became obsessed with us, it was for something remarkable; that b!tch seems too pretentious. 

note; he's a prick frfr... but how did he end up the way he is?

warnings; bowen, asshole bowen, gn reader, yandere shit, violence lol,

A clipped groan left his mouth as he looked over the table at his friends. They were being loud again, drinks sloshing around as they crowded over a phone playing a clip from one of the parties he had been to. He had wanted to go somewhere more upscale but his friends had insisted on going here.

At least it was good for one thing, the people of the upper class wouldn't see him hanging around these degenerates. Sometimes he hated his friends but they were fun and just as crazy as he was. Teen years were the time to be experimenting with one's true self after all.

Just as he was about to get up and order another soft drink the doorbell to the diner rang and more people filed in. This time it was a large family, dressed in modest clothes and toting around too many kids for his liking. He would've moved on immediately but someone... someone caught his eye.

With their head tucked into their phone, a disappointed look on their face was the most gorgeous person he had ever seen in his entire life. If he were to liken anyone to a piece of art it would be this person. Symmetrical face, pouting lips, tamed hair... even the acne marks on their face didn't bother him like it usually would.

It was... infuriatingly beautiful. As if they shouldn't even be a person but a statue in some museum or something.

His expression soured. Why was he so offended by their existence? Why did he want to go over there and introduce himself? Why did he want to smash their face in and turn them into a bloody mass on the side of the road? His chest seemed to heave with the weight of his breathing, heart beating faster and faster until he eventually got up and beelined for the bathroom.

As he stood in front of the mirror he looked at himself, his own face... not nearly as perfect as theirs.

"What the fuck?" He muttered to himself as he turned on the tap and ran his hands under the cold water. After splashing it on his face he scowled.

"Hey man, you good?" His friend, some prick called Andy or something, peeked his head past the door and looked at him before he bubbled into laughs.

"You look like some sort of tomato dude? You sick?" Andy laughed as he looked back at his reflection. From his ears to halfway down his neck his skin was splotchy and red.

"Nah..." He murmured as he pulled back from the sink and wiped his hands on his jeans.

"Hey, I'm going to hang around for a little while longer, you guys go on ahead." He said, still looking at his face. Andy's eyebrow perked up but he didn't say anything in response, probably too excited to get over to the cheerleaders' house for their welcome back-to-school party.

With that he was left alone with his thoughts... and his face. His imperfect face. He had to do something about them, if they had gotten this much of a rise out of him something had to be done. This was the first time in ages he had ever been shaken up over something not going his way. Over something not being as perfect as his life was expected to be.

He had to figure out who they were and when he did... he had to kill them. Then everything would go back to normal, everything would be just fine.

[dingbatnix]

Tank

I had an idea like last minute before bed and stayed up way, wayyyy to late to get it all down. Anyway, enjoy!

Dream had been kicked out of his colony

He knew he could be a bit of a prick sometimes, and sometimes he got too lost in the moment and went overboard, but he couldn't help it!

His higher thought would go on the back burner, and he'd just be in the moment.

He knew he deserved to be kicked out, though. It was his fault the kid was dead, after all.

He'd just been teasing the teenager a little bit, and maybe he went to far, kept at it for too many weeks

But one day the kid had just ran off

Next he knew, they were getting news that the teen had been snatched up by one of the humans living in the apartment complex, and that the colony had to move.

Not Dream, though. He was forced to stay, because it was his fault the kid had run off, and his death was on Dream's hands.

The colony didn't want a murderer in their midst, even if it was an unintentional one

Dream could survive just fine on his own, of course, but the loneliness was drowning him in a cesspit of regret and loathing and the longing for any sort of company.

He just wished that he had somebody to talk to.

°°°°°°

So when Tommy hears his human, Wilbur, shout out, 'gotcha,' and a small, terrified scream, you know he's running in the bean's direction

He's not afraid of Wilbur hurting the other borrower

But he doesn't want the new guy to have a heart attack

When he gets to the kitchen, he tells Wilbur to let him say hello

But when he sees who the human's holding, his body shuts down

It's Dream, the man who tormented him for months

The bastard had made Tommy want to die, and eventually the teen had run off and been caught by Wilbur, who was pretty good, for a human

Tommy freaks, and Dream is both terrified of the bean and amazed that Tommy's still alive

But Tommy tells Wilbur that, 'that's the guy that–that messed with my head, I don't, keep him away! Lock him up or something"

So Wilbur puts Dream in a terrarium

Where Tommy convinces Wilbur that Dream's an absolute bastard and would kill them both if he had the chance

So Wilbur grows contemptful of Dream and hates him for what Tommy told him he did

So he kinda sorta neglects the other borrower

So Dream is a little more than starved, and definitely stuck in the tank

And he grows much weaker than he was

It doesn't take long for a borrower to grow weak from starvation

Less than the human standard of three weeks, but more than the mouse standard of two days

About a week, probably

Wilbur still puts food in the tank for him, of course

But sometimes he's away for trips

One such trip he can't bring Tommy with him (he usually does, cause he doesn’t want to leave the teen alone with Dream)

So he leaves him at his apartment

He forgets to leave enough food in the tank for Dream though, in the rush to leave

And his trip will take about two weeks

Sometimes Tommy will come by to gloat and just talk to Dream during this span of time

And he does notice that Dream seems to be getting thinner and weaker

But he doesn't think much of it until the day that he finds Dream slumped on the ground of the tank, against the glass wall, breathing weakly

He asks what's wrong, because despite his hate for the man, he isn't cruel, doesn't want to actually hurt him

So Dream avoids the question by telling the teen that he's sorry for what he did to him

That he didn't mean to go so far, but sometimes he just lost himself in the actions and forgot basic decency, that it was entirely Dream's fault and he doesn't want the teen to think any of it was his own fault

And Tommy asks him why now, why apologize now, you could've done that weeks ago

And Dream tells Tommy that he's going to die, that he only has two, maybe one day left.

And Tommy freaks out, really looking at the man closely

The other borrower is stick thin, and his clothes are so baggy on him they look like they might fall off at any moment

Tommy demands to know what's going on, so Dream wearily tells the teen that he was starving to death. That the human (Wilbur) hadn't left him anything to eat like he usually would before he left on his long trip

With a horrifying realization, Tommy understood

That was five days ago. Dream hadn't eaten in five days. That was practically a death sentence for a borrower, because once you went past that half week mark, you would probably be too weak to scavenge for food.

That's why they lived in colonies, as double insurance to stay alive and could provide help if someone needed it.

He tries to get the older borrower to say anything else, but he had evidently passed out

Panicking, Tommy scaled down the table, across the living room into the kitchen, and up the counter to a spread of non-perishables like crackers that Wilbur left out for him

Grabs one, and makes his way all the way back to the tank. It doesn't take him long to climb into the tank, the lid is open and his hook line makes it easy

He drops down inside, pulling in his hook with him and runs his way over to Dream

He can't let the other borrower die

He just can't, especially when the man’s supposed last words wore an apology to Tommy

Tommy tries to get Dream to eat the cracker chunks he brought, but the man is practically unresponsive

It takes a thin cracker-water mash (he'd had the water in a tiny flask he carried in his bag, some tinfoil mad a bowl) to bring motion to Dream, who's eyes flicker open to land on Tommy, then the cracker-water

He turns his head away, telling Tommy not to bother

But the teen convinces Dream to eat more of it until Dream turns away again, this time telling Tommy that he'll get really sick if he eats anything more

Tommy doesn't like it, cause Dream hardly ate anything, but acquiesces nonetheless

For the rest of the week, until Wilbur comes back, Tommy brings Dream food several times a day

Dream gets better, during this time, but he's still way too thin under his clothes and still can't walk very far

When Wilbur gets back Tommy tells him to let Dream go

He has realized that what he had been doing to Dream (by proxy of Wilbur) was wrong, and that he can't do that to the man anymore

Wilbur, meanwhile, feels awful about forgetting to leave Dream any food before he left and nearly killing him

He does as Tommy says, and lets Dream down next to a wall exit

Dream stumbles through it, and while both borrower and bean are worried about the state of the other borrower when he left, the obvious desire to get away from both of them was plain in Dream’s voice and posture

It's not even four days later that Tommy finds Dream collapsed in one of the many walkways inside of the walls, looking worse than he did when he was let go

He tries to wake the older borrower up, but nothing he does works

Dream looks thin again, too which scares Tommy

Taglist that I forgor:

He drags to taller man out to Wilbur, who immediately tries to wake Dream up as well, no dice

They make a thin broth for the comatose borrower, and Tommy carefully pours a little bit into Dream's mouth (presently aware of what Dream had told him was 'refeeding syndrome,' during the week that Tommy had been bringing him food (a human term) hoping to rejuvenate the man a little

It doesn't, but Wilbur tells him to give Dream a little more in about fifteen minutes, and, "how fast are your metabolism, Tommy?"

Tommy doesn't know, but after about an hour Dream rouses a little bit

He freaks, at first, seeing Tommy and, more importantly, Wilbur again

But they both explain what happened.

Tommy tells Dream that he can't leave until he's back to one hundred percent again, so he won't die, and Wilbur agrees

"You're not—" Dream winces uncertainly, baring his teeth in a fearful grimace. "You're not going to stick me back in the tank, a—are you?"

They don't, and they let Dream recover all of his strength after several months

They bond over that time, and Tommy forgives Dream

Dream loses the majority of his fear of Wilbur, too, along the way, and they grow to be good acquaintances

If Dream ever starts to go to far with anything he says or does, a heavy word or a parting hand from a human—Wilbur—will easily snap Dream back into reality

While the older borrower is a bit reclusive, he hangs out quite a lot with Tommy and, to a lesser extent, Wilbur (even though the human still scares him sometimes).

He was very social, after all, before he got kicked out of his colony

@i-am-beckyu @brick-a-doodle-do @kayla-crazy-stuffs