#but then i cant decide who else should be part of the birds (besides the protag who is the other canon time traveler)

[nemesis-is-my-middle-name]

one other thing ive been playing around with. and this is me just tossing it out into the ether. and i may have done so before now and forgot but. taz au where ingo is taako and emmet is lup. and elesa is barry maybe.

[neonlights92]

Night Changes: PART TWO

Jeon Jungkook has spent the last twenty years alone.  Single.  Solo.

And that’s just the way he likes it.  That is, until he meets the supposed love of his life.  Suddenly he’s falling over himself at the chance of a real relationship with someone.

The only thing getting in his way? You.

genre: fuckboy!jungkookie, college!jungkookie, romcom, e2l (kinda)

AN: I am so fuckin soft for college Kook you wouldn’t even belieeeeeve

Within days of their ‘truce’, Jungkook realises what a huge dickhead he truly is for not remembering Y/N’s name.

She shares his timetable almost entirely.

“I’m the worst.” He bemoans after a particularly stressful lecture on American poetry, “You weren’t kidding when you said you were in all my classes.”

“Almost all your classes.” She laughs a little at the look on his face and shrugs, “I did tell you.”

“It makes perfect sense now why you hate me.”

Y/N nudges him playfully and shakes her head, “I don’t hate you.” “Yes you do.”  He sniffles dramatically, “And you should.  I’m an asshole.”

She pulls a face, “Now what am I meant to do here?  Tell you that you’re not an asshole?  That would be lying.” Jungkook reaches for his heart theatrically and frowns.

“I deserve that.”

She scoffs playfully, “Shut up, Jungkook.”

It’s been exactly four days since Jungkook and Y/N began to hatch their plan to try and get their respective soulmates to fall in love with them.

And though Y/N’s original idea was to host some kind of movie night at her apartment Jungkook has been slowly persuading her into throwing a full blown party.  Park Jimin is an absolute animal, Jungkook promises her (that’s a huge stretch, but what college student doesn’t like alcohol and loud music?) and throwing a party is a surefire way to get him to agree to coming. 

But Y/N isn’t so easily swayed.

“I’m going to make it up to you,” Jungkook tells her confidently, “I’m going to make sure that you and Jimin get together, and then when you have beautiful babies together you’ll be thanking me.  And we’ll forget all about the incredibly unfortunate way we met each other.” Y/N’s smile is soft, but Jungkook sees it.

“I know you will,” She says, “I have faith in your matchmaking abilities, Jeon Jungkook.”

“Which reminds me….Did you think about what I said, Y/N?”  

Jungkook has to admit - he really likes having her around.  Try as he might at first to have seen the worst in her, he has to admit Y/N’s not half bad. 

“About the party?” 

He winks, “Bingo!” 

“It’s a bad idea.”

“Oh my god-” 

“No, because I’m such a wallflower,” She insists, shaking her head firmly, “Jimin will just think I’m boring.”

“I’ll help you come out of your shell.  I’ve told you that already.  It will be like a life lesson for you - a chance to shine in the spotlight.” 

“I don’t shine,” Y/N is whining now, “It’s stupid to even try.”

“No it’s not,” Jungkook insists, “Everybody shines.  In their  own way.  Everybody.” He feels kind of awful for her. 

How can she even think that way about herself?

“You don’t - it’s not.  C��mon Jungkook I can’t-”

“What about the night we met?”  Jungkook interrupts, as the two round the corner of Jungkook’s street, “You were partying then, weren’t you?  You were shining then?” She flushes, “That’s different.”

“How?” She shuts her eyes for a moment.  Jungkook worries he might have pushed her too far.  He slips his bottom lip between his teeth and just as he opens his mouth to apologise she sighs heavily.

“It’s stupid.”

He brushes a hand over her shoulder, “It’s not.”

Her eyes open and he’s taken aback by the softness there. 

He wants to reach out and maybe pat her cheek but he decides against it.  Fuckboy or not, Jungkook is not the kind of guy to do that.  Is he?  No.  He isn’t.

Besides.  Soomi.

“Okay.  Okay.  I’ll throw the damn party.  But you’re helping me with everything, okay?”

Jungkook feels something like electricity shoot up his ass.  (He won’t ever tell anyone else he thought that.) 

“Yes!  This is going to be perfect Y/N I swear.  Jimin will love it.  So will you,” He grins like he’s hit the jackpot, “It’s the last day of semester in three weeks time.  We’ll use that as a reason okay?  And we’ll plan everything together.  It will be amazing.” Y/N’s eyes dart across Jungkook’s face nervously. 

She seems to be looking for something - what he’s not sure - but after a moment she nods.

“Fine.  Okay.  End of semester,”  Her lips fall into a small smile, “Do you think this will work?”

They stop at the entrance of Jungkook’s building.

“It’s perfect Y/N.  I swear.  Just perfect.”

When her smile widens Jungkook thinks he’s never seen her look better.

“I’m trusting you Jungkook.”  She narrows her eyes playfully, “Don’t fuck it up.”

He crosses his index finger across his chest and nods determinedly.

“Trust me, Y/N.  We’ll have Park Jimin eating out of your hand before you know it.”

And he really believes it, too.

//

The next day Jungkook runs into Y/N at lunchtime.  He hasn’t seen her in any of his classes today and when he texts her to tell her this, she reminds him that Friday is the only day they don’t share a timetable.

He has to admit he’s kind of bummed.  

So when he finds himself wandering into the campus garden with Hoseok trailing less than enthusiastically behind him, his eyes zero in on her immediately.

She’s eating some kind of burrito - probably extra spicy as she’s told him that’s the only way to eat Mexican food - and reading a book.  Of course she’s reading a book.

Nerd.

“Hey Hobi let’s go sit over there.”  He points her out to his friend and Hoseok raises a brow.

“Who’s that?” “Y/N.”

“Y/N?”  His brow raises even higher if possible, “Y/N as in the girl you slept with who’s name you can’t remember and who’s roommate you are in love with?  And who you’ve promised to help set up with Park Jimin?  That Y/N.” Jungkook frowns, “Well when you say it like that…” He rolls his eyes, “Shut up.  Let’s just go.” Hoseok shrugs and follows his friend - what good will it do him to argue anyway? - and when Jungkook reaches his destination he clears his throat noisily.  Y/N looks up and Jungkook notices she’s wearing a pair of thick-framed glasses.  He has to admit… She looks kind of adorable in them.

The moment recognition dawns on her face, Y/N’s lips lift.

“Hi.” Jungkook’s smile widens when she grins up at him.

“Hi.”  She shifts slightly, “What are you uh - doing here?” “Stalking you obviously,” Jungkook takes a seat beside her on the blanket she’s set up to eat on, and gestures for Hoseok to do the same, “This is my friend Hoseok.  The one I said dances with your boyfriend.” She wrinkles her nose and flushes, “Jungkook!  He’s not my boyfriend.”  She turns to Hoseok and smiles softly, “Hi.” 

Hoseok - to his credit - doesn’t seem to mind the Jimin comment.  He smiles back at her.

“Hi Y/N.”

Jungkook unwraps the dismal lunch he’s made himself - a sweetcorn and tuna salad - and gestures to the book sitting in Y/N’s lap.

“What’s that?”

She looks down and then up, “Oh.  It’s uh - god.  It’s stupid.” Jungkook quirks a brow, “C’mon tell me.  What is it.” She hesitates for a second and then rolls her eyes, seemingly accepting her fate.

Jungkook almost wants to remind her that they’re friends - she shouldn’t be embarrassed in front of him - but he stays quiet. 

She lifts the book to show him the cover.

“It’s a book on gaining confidence.”  Her shoulders shrug, “I thought it might help.  Y’know…  With the whole…” Her eyes flit over to Hoseok briefly, “Jimin thing.”

Hoseok chuckles and it catches Jungkook off guard.

He’d almost forgotten his friend was there.

“That’s adorable,” Hoseok comments, “Man if a girl did that for me I’d be beyond flattered.” Y/N’s cheeks flush and she shakes her head, “No - I mean.  I don’t know.  It’s not just for him…”

“Still.” She bites her bottom lip and shrugs, “I mean I guess.  Yeah.  He should be flattered.” Hoseok laughs again and Jungkook has a sneaking suspicion his friend might be flirting.

He doesn’t like that.

Y/N is not for Hoseok.  Not at all.

“Well she’s not reading the book for you,” Jungkook tells him, trying to control his anger, “She’s reading it for Jimin.” Hoseok raises a brow.  He takes a moment and then smiles again.

“I gathered.”

Jungkook spends the rest of the lunch break trying to stop whatever weird energy Hoseok and Y/N have going on.

There is absolutely no way in hell that Jung Hoseok thinks he can just swoop in and ruin all his plans, right?  Y/N needs to fall in love with Jimin. Park Jimin needs to be the one laughing with her and smiling at her and flirting with her.

He’s absolutely livid by the time Y/N scurries off to class.

“What the fuck was that?” Hoseok pulls a face, “What?”

“That.  That… Flirting.  What was that?”  Jungkook has barely even touched his lunch (and it’s got nothing to do with the absolute miserable state of it, he swears.) 

Hoseok seems confused for only a moment later.  Then his face opens up.

“Oh, right.”  He shakes his head, “I wasn’t flirting, Jungkook.” Jungkook hates the look on his friend’s face.  Like he knows something Jungkook doesn’t.

“What’s that look for Hoseok?” Hobi chuckles and shakes his head, “Nothing Jungkook.  Absolutely nothing.” Jungkook spends the rest of the day thinking about that godforsaken look.

//

Jungkook wakes up the next morning (which thank god happens to be a Saturday,) to a text message from Y/N.  He’s been trying to convince her to use more emojis - but she refuses.

Secretly, he finds her texting kind of cute.

But he’ll never tell her that.

Y/N: Are you free today?

Jungkook: as a bird.  what did you have in mind?? :) 

Y/N: It’s my birthday.  Soomi is taking me out bowling.  Wanna come?

Jungkook feels his heart swim all the way up to his throat.

Soomi?  And wait what - it’s Y/N’s birthday? He’s sort of offended she only brought it up now.

Jungkook: uhhh… what?? happy fuckin birthday y/n!!! ur naughty!!! birthday ??? why didnt you tell me yesterday??? 

Y/N: You’re an English Lit student.  Use proper vocabulary and grammar please.  And I don’t know I didn’t think it was a big deal.

Jungkook: u cant change me boo… u just text like a granny.  its your birthday stupid ofc its a big deal.  mind if i invite some of my friends??

It’s a few minutes before Y/N finally replies. 

Y/N: Yeah.  Sure.  Meet us at Blue Pins in an hour?

Jungkook: c u there… birthday girl!!!!!

Y/N: Ugh.

Jungkook smiles at the way she still acts like she hates him even though he knows she doesn’t really.

It really is the start of a beautiful friendship.

//

An hour later Jungkook finds himself sat in a booth with Hoseok, Taehyung and Namjoon, nervously tapping his fingers against the surface of the table.

Hoseok clicks his tongue loudly and grabs his friend's hand from across the booth.  His eyes are narrowed a little.

“Will you calm down?” “Are you kidding?” Jungkook’s eyes are as wide as a pair of saucers, “I’m about to meet the woman I’m going to marry.”

Hoseok scoffs at that and Taehyung scrolls through his phone, bored as always.  

After a moment, Taehyung clears his throat, “He said yes.” 

Jungkook feels like his heart has just fallen out of his asshole.

“What?”

“Jimin said yes,” Taehyung rolls his eyes, almost as if he’s annoyed at this spectacular outcome, “He’ll come to Y/N’s party at the end of the semester..”

“Oh fuck YES!” Jungkook fist pumps the air in joy as Hoseok chuckles in delight.

“You’re overreacting,” Namjoon tells his friend seriously, “Jimin coming does not equal Jimin falling in love with Y/N.”

“It gets me one step closer though,” Jungkook feels lighter already, “And one step closer to that means one step closer to Soomi falling in love with me.”

Namjoon snorts out a laugh, “Stop it.”

“What?” Jungkook takes a swig from the cappuccino he insisted on ordering as soon as they arrived, “It’s true.”

“You’re not seriously thinking you’re in love with this girl Jungkook?”  Hoseok’s eyes dance with mirth, “I know you man.”

“What do you mean?”

Hoseok raises a dubious brow, “You’re the ultimate fuckboy.”

“I am not.”

“Yes.  You are.”  Taehyung tacks on helpfully, “Notoriously so, actually.”

“Shut up.” 

Jungkook doesn’t want to admit it but he knows his friends are kind of right.  Sue him - he’s young and handsome and he’s in college.  Everybody fucks around in college.

“And anyway I don’t actively pursue girls unless I have the intention of taking it somewhere.”  Jungkook crosses his arms, “A fuckboy I may be, but a dickhead I am not.”

“Says the guy who forgot Y/N’s name after a vigorous night of lovemaking.”  Namjoon grins like the cat who got the cream and Jungkook wants to smack him.

“You can thank your dear friend Kim Taehyung for that.”  Jungkook replies sharply, narrowing his eyes at his so-called childhood best friend.

Taehyung gasps like he can’t believe what Jungkook’s just said.

“Seven tequilas on an empty stomach is never a good idea Tae,” Jungkook rolls his eyes, “You kept insisting.”

Taehyung answers with a flippant wave of his hand, eyes finally moving away from his phone, “Whatever.  You’re an adult, right?  You could’ve said no.”

“Not when free alcohol is involved.” “Anyway Kookie, the point is you can’t be in love.”  Hoseok leans back like he’s just discovered the meaning to life.  Always so smug.

Jungkook can’t help but find it a little annoying.

“And how, oh wise one, are you coming to this conclusion?” Jungkook’s tone is dripping with sarcasm.  He raises a brow at his friend and gives him the most pointed look he can manage.

It’s still Hoseok and Jungkook has to admit he respects his opinion the most.

“Because you’re you.  And you barely know this girl.”  Hoseok rolls his eyes, “That’s how.”

“I find that offensive,” Jungkook retorts, “People are allowed to change and grow.  Now I’ve met Soomi I’m different.”

Namjoon shakes his head, “There’s no point, Hobi.  We all tried, believe me.  But he’s decided that he’s in love with her.  Just get on board with it.”

Jungkook sends Hoseok a toothy grin once he swallows the last of the cappuccino and nods emphatically.

He knows what his friends think of him.

That he’s slutty and careless.  That commitment scares the shit out of him.  That he’s incapable of monogamy.  A combination of all of the above.

But Jungkook knows the truth.  He didn’t want a girlfriend before this because he hadn’t met someone that made sense to him.

And what’s the point of being with someone unless you’re all in?

“Anyway when you’re guests at our wedding it’ll all make sense,” Jungkook pushes his empty coffee cup to the side, “We’re meant to be.”

Taehyung laughs at this - despite himself - and Hoseok and Namjoon chuckle too.

“Jungkook?” The sound of someone calling his name causes him to turn quickly, eyes widening when he sees who it is.  Y/N.  She’s smiling at him of course - but that’s not what causes Jungkook to almost go into cardiac arrest.

No.  Of course not.

It’s the beautiful angel standing beside Y/N that causes him to almost forget how to breathe.

“Hi,” He squeezes out despite himself, eyes riveted to Soomi’s beautiful face, “Hi.”

Soomi smiles and Jungkook is immediately breathless.

“Jungkook right?  Y/N’s… Friend.”  The suggestive tone annoys Jungkook - he can’t have Soomi thinking he belongs to anyone else but her - and he nods.

“Yeah.” “But just a friend now,” Y/N pipes up helpfully, “We… Uh… Worked through our differences.  And now we’re friends.  Just friends.  Totally platonic.” Jungkook thinks she’s kind of overkilling the whole thing but he doesn’t say anything.  Instead he smiles at Soomi and watches as her face puts two and two together.

Yes.  Yes.

Jungkook wants her - no he needs her to know that he’s single.

Really single.

Totally single and available and hers.

Namjoon clears his throat somewhere from Jungkook’s left.  He turns to his friends and nods quickly.

“Right.  Yes of course.  My friends - these are my friends.  Taehyung and Namjoon, and Y/N you’ve already met Hoseok.” The two share a small wave.  Jungkook ignores the stab of annoyance that sends to his gut.

“Hi,” Soomi smiles in a way Jungkook is sure is almost too heavenly to be real, “I’m Soomi.” God.  He really is a goner.

//

Jungkook doesn’t want to brag, but he is pretty good at bowling.

Okay.  Who’s he kidding?

He totally wants to brag.

The moment Y/N splits them up into two teams - Soomi, Jungkook and her versus Namjoon, Hoseok and Taehyung - he’s determined to win.

He has to win. 

He has to show Soomi one of his many, many, many talents. 

“You’re pretty good at this,” Soomi remarks as he throws his first strike, “Or is that just beginner’s luck?”

Jungkook shakes his head and shrugs, “I’d say I’m pretty good.”

Her giggle is music to his ears.

“That’s impressive.  What kind of girl doesn’t want a man who can throw a strike?”

Jungkook smirks, “That’s what I always say.” Her eyes crinkle at the side when she smiles and though it's not quite as adorable as Y/N’s - he’ll never admit this out loud - she still looks so sweet his heart constricts almost painfully in his chest.  He forgets for a moment where he is, laying on the charm thick.

“Is that how you seduce poor unsuspecting women then?  With your bowling skills?”

He winks in that way that usually works and his smirk widens, “You know it!” 

Soomi giggles again and Jungkook is surprised at how smoothly this all seems to be going - when the sound of somebody throwing a gutter grabs his attention.

His eyes lift - thinking it has to be the other team - and he furrows his brow when he sees Y/N standing at the very top of the bowling lane, staring at the full set of pins in front of her.

Holy shit.

Jungkook momentarily forgets about Soomi - his competitive nature kicked into overdrive - as he shoots up from his seat and rushes towards Y/N.

“Oh my god,” He’s right beside her in an instant, “Was that you?”

Y/N looks up at him - cheeks flushed - and nods, “Yeah.  I’m terrible at bowling.”

“So why would you choose to come here?  On your birthday?” 

Jungkook is somewhere between disbelief and pure horror.  But he has to admit, the look on her face is sort of funny.  She’s mortified.

“Soomi suggested it.  She said it might be fun,” She looks away for a moment, “For her maybe.”

The sound of someone scoring a strike blares to Jungkook’s left and when he sees Taehyung performing some kind of ridiculous victory dance, he decides enough is enough.

“No.  No.”  Jungkook sets his jaw, “I’m going to help you.”

Y/N’s brow lifts, “What?” “I’m going to help you.  You’re going to score a strike.” 

She snorts out a laugh.

“I don’t think you realise how truly terrible I am at this.”

“And I don’t think you realise how truly competitive I am,” He gestures to the balls, “Grab the lime green.  That’s the lightest.”

Y/N watches him for a moment longer.  She looks behind him and moves her hand in the general direction of Soomi.

“What about Soomi?” He flares his nostrils, “She’ll still be there after I finish helping you.”

Y/N stares at him, and when Jungkook cocks his head towards the row of balls lining the back of the bowling alley, she shrugs and follows his command.  

Jungkook takes this as a moment to teach Y/N how to shine.  

After all, what better way to fell good about yourself than being good at something you always thought you sucked at?

When Y/N comes back with the lime green ball, he grabs her free arm and positions her to stand with her back to his chest, wordlessly.

“Woah.”  Y/N breathes, “What are you doing?”

Jungkook’s mouth is right beside her ear, “Just follow me okay?  I’m helping you, I swear.”

He slides his hand down to the ball and grips her fingers carefully.

“Don’t hold too much tension in your wrist,” He tells her sternly, “You’re too tense.  You’re always too tense.  Relax.” Something strange passes between them.  Y/N takes a long, deep breath, and Jungkook tries to concentrate on the task at hand.

“Now slowly, slowly, bring the ball back,” Y/N follows Jungkook’s movements, “And… Release.”

He helps her flick it onto the lane, and they watch in suspense as the ball spins towards the pins.  There is almost a moment where everything is suspended in time - before the ball crashes with the pins and nine of them fall down.

Y/N squeals in happiness and turns around sharply, throwing her arm around Jungkook’s neck and pressing herself against him in a hug.

“Thank you Jungkook!” She is smiling so widely, his heart turns, “You’re the best.”

“You’re welcome.”  Jungkook finds he’s grinning too, “You deserve it.  Happy birthday Y/N.” He pushes some hair out of her face - practical purposes of course, it was getting in her eyes - and she seems to catch her breath at the gesture. They stare at each other for a moment, before someone clears their throat from behind them and they break apart.  Soomi is standing between them, holding a bubble gum pink bowling ball.

Jungkook wonders almost flippantly if she only picked it up for it’s colour.

“It’s my turn, right?” She turns her smile on Jungkook and he melts.

God.

She’s beautiful.

“Right.”  Jungkook smiles back, “Your turn.”

When he turns to move back to their booth he notices Y/N watching their interaction carefully.  Her eyes flit away the moment she’s caught, but Jungkook knows what he saw.

Strange.

Very strange indeed.

//

Later on that evening, after they’ve all shared a pizza, and Jungkook has spent the rest of the night watching Soomi with hearts in his eyes, Hoseok clears his throat with purpose.

They’re sat in their living room - Hoseok has decided to crash over because, why not? - and playing a midnight mario kart match, when Jungkook’s friend seems to have something to say.

Jungkook pauses the game.  He turns to Hoseok.

“Yes?” There is a brief moment of silence.  Taehyung is forever scrolling through his phone, and Namjoon has long ago gone to bed.  Hoseok clicks his tongue.

“Are you sure you like Soomi?”

The question completely throws Jungkook off.

He raises a questioning brow, “What?”

“I’m just - asking.  I’m just…” Hoseok turns to Taehyung for support.  When his friend doesn’t notice, he smacks him across the shoulder, “Tae.”

“What?”

Jungkook narrows his eyes, “Have you guys talked about this?” Taehyung seems to realise where the conversation has just come from.  He actually locks his phone and sets it to one side.

“Yeah.”  Taehyung answers honestly, “We have.” “I’ve told you guys a million times.  I know I barely know her but -” “That’s not it.”  Hoseok licks his bottom lip, “I mean it’s crazy you think you fell in love at first sight but… Stranger things have happened.” Jungkook scoffs, “So?  Why have you asked then?” Another beat.

Taehyung sighed heavily, “Because we think you like Y/N.”

“What the fuck?” Jungkook snorts out a laugh because really - what else can he do?, “Why the fuck would you think that?” His friends share another look and Jungkook hates that.

He hates that they think they know him better than he knows himself.

Hoseok shakes his head, “Just a feeling.” “A feeling that’s wrong.”  Jungkook states firmly, “Dead wrong.” Taehyung nods and picks up his phone, “Fine.  Alright.  We’re wrong then.” Hoseok seems like he wants to say more but he doesn’t opting instead for something that sounds sort of like a grunt.

Jungkook watches his friends for a moment longer.

“Yeah.  So wrong.”

//

That night, when Jungkook’s just about to go to bed he receives a text message.  He opens his phone, expecting Y/N and finding, instead, an unrecognised number staring back at him.

Soomi: hiiiii jungkook :) it's soomi… y/n gave me ur number. hope u dont mind.

Jungkook pushes his friends’s ridiculous theory to the back of his head, and focuses instead on the fact that Soomi has just texted him.  His thumbs move to answer her but he pauses, moving instead to open Y/N’s chat history.

Jungkook: hey. happy bday again champ. u da bomb!! also thanks for giving soomi my number. u a real one for that, chief!!! :) :) :)

Y/N’s reply comes only a few minutes later.

Y/N: Thank you Jungkook.  I appreciate it.  And no worries… She seemed to really be into you after tonight.  So well done, yeah? :) 

Jungkook smiles at the emoji that he imagines Y/N forced herself to add, and almost misses the part when she says Soomi was into him.

Right.  Yeah.  Perfect.

He opens up Soomi’s chat and starts to write out a reply.

This is exactly what he wanted.

//

TAGLIST:  @cuddleboo @veronawrites @minluvly @severetimetravelnerd @moonchild1 @bunnyjeonjk @multicolourunicorn  @somewhereinthestarss  @jwlmnbt  @jojo-suga @zera10 @ggukkieland @thesugatoyourtae @dxlbts​ @wxndi

[hitsuackerman]

Unpredictable (Overhaul x Reader) pt.18

a/n: all i can say is... BRING BACK CHRONOHAUL :) hope ya’ll like the chapter!

warnings: this cannot be read solo

Links: part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6, part 7, part 8, part 9, part 10, part 11, part 12, part 13, part 14, part 15, part 16, part 17, part 19

Masterlist to my other fics: here :)

Overhaul’s waiting list: @jjk-biased @infinite-universe-love @dirtypride @blackymomo03 @azzie @purple-rabanito​ @meximorrita @awesomeee19​​ @celestial-kanzakii​ @laure-lo​ @team-wang-puppy​ @aydience-world​ @choros-main-hoe​ @but-kairis-not-that-smart  @colorseeingchick (i cant seem to tag again :( hope this lands in your timelines!)

“Kurono.” Overhaul snapped. “We’re done for the day. Take Eri-chan to her room and give the new toy to keep her busy.”

Finishing the last part of the job, Kurono pinned Eri’s bandages and carried her. Watching as Overhaul left the room, he felt the little girl trembling in his hold. The past few days, his boss had been a little harsher on the girl and it showed when he opened her up without being warned. Patting her head, the flinch did not help in the tense aura surrounding the base.

Once he locked her doors, he walked down the dimly lit hall and passed by Overhaul’s office. The faint sound of him typing away in his laptop made him stop in his tracks. It was rare for him to even look at his laptop. Something must be bothering him more than ever, for sure.

Knocking on the door, he was told to come in and entered silently.

“You’re on the laptop.” He commented and lazily flopped on the sofa. Taking his mask off, he rubbed his face and leaned on the back rest.

“I can see that.” Overhaul’s eyes remained glued to the screen. “Is there something you need?”

“D’you talk to her yet?” He yawned and stretched his limbs. Legs ready to bounce should his boss show any sign of rage.

“That doesn’t concern you.”

“Just askin’.” He shrugged his shoulders and fiddled with his fingers. “Eri-chan’s in her room now and the toy still didn’t lighten her mood. Not that it ever works.”

He merely hummed and continued typing.

“Mind if I ask what exactly happened?” Kurono sat up with perfect posture. His legs angled to the door, ready to make a run for it. The tension was too much. Even for the precepts. He could care less about the budding lovelife his boss had but the limit was drawing near.  Hearing the laptop slam close, Kurono stood up and inched his way to the door.

“You have absolutely no business learning what happened behind those closed doors. But, if it pleases your curiosity, the woman mentioned her time with Ackerman.” Overhaul impatiently tapped his index finger on the desk. The other hand massaging his temple. “Satisfied?”

“What else did she say?”

“She said that her emotions aren’t there for the bastard and that she has her eyes set on someone else.”

For someone who played shogi skillfully, Kurono had to admit that his friend was as clueless as  the word could imply. Using all of his strength not to twitch his eye at the ignorance being displayed, he let out a sigh and went back to the sofa.

“So why be pissed about it? Clearly she’s interested in you.”

“I am not pissed. I am merely agitated at the turn of events.” He stopped tapping his finger and stood up. Exiting himself out, he decided a long bath might cool his head.

“You do realize she only did that to rile you up. You’re losing to her game, Kai. I bet a shit ton of cash that she wanted to see if a reaction would suffice and looking at you now, she got exactly what she wished.” Kurono talked the fastest he’s ever attempted in his life. “I’ll also bet my money that you ignoring her only adds to her growing problems.”

“And what makes you say that, Kurono?” He was now facing the arrow-haired man. Fists clenched tightly.

“One of the men saw her entering Nighteye’s agency.”

“THAT Nighteye?” He cocked a brow and took a step closer to the sofa.

“Yes. Her car remained parked for quite some time. By the time she left, I was told she was speeding towards the precinct.”

Gathering his thoughts, Chisaki found himself seated across Kurono. His bird mask resting on the table between them. The surgical mask now on full display showing the shadows his face offered. Without realizing it, his brows were furrowed and teeth gritting.

“If it’s bothering you, why not just call her or send a message.” Kurono shrugged.

“If she has been spotted entering the agency, chances are she’s been part of the heroes schemes all this time.” He was nodding to himself. “And she had the audacity to act like she was part of nothing. Smart move for her but not careful enough.”

Squinting at the train of thought he had just heard, Kurono rested his elbows on his thighs.

“So, you think she’s teaming up with the heroes?”

“She is.” He leaned on the back rest.

“She told you?”

“Not outright.”

“What gave her away then?”

“The night I left, she mentioned how the heroes don’t have a clear map of the base and only an outline. That was either a slip or intentional. From the turn of events, it may have been accidental.” The memory of that night, having his body so close to yours made him fiddle with the hem of his gloves. The scene of having your flushed face so near to his made him smirk under the black mask. Glancing at the calendar, though there was no need, it had been three days since the both of you contacted each other.

“Do you think we’ve been bugged?” Kurono asked. His eyes darting from one corner of the room to the other.

“No.” Crossing his arm against his chest, he let out a long sigh. “Not yet, at least. But knowing them, it’s bound to happen and they will use (y/n) for that.”

“What do you intend on doing?”

“Buy me a new sim tomorrow, Kurono. It’s best if communication is cut. The Quirk erasing bullets are nearing its completion. Any upcoming hindrances would disrupt the plan.” Taking his phone out, he checked for any messages. Seeing as there were none, he turned it off and threw the sim card across the table. The small plastic landing inches away from the edge.

“You’re not going to overhaul it?” This was something he was not expecting.

“No. Burn it.”

“You’re…” He took the sim into his hand. “You’re really serious about this.”

"Those rats are on the move. The chances of her bugging our base is high. Knowing she's not the type to refuse, it is best to cancel out any communication." Picking up his mask, he let out a silent sigh and wore the said item. "No need to fret, Kurono. I've already prepared the necessary actions."

"Knowing you, there's no need to fret." He too took his mask and wore it as well. Fixing his hood, he stared at his friend. "What about the Fukuo Kai case?"

"That is in two months. The hype would have died down." Standing up, he fixed his coat and motioned Kurono to follow him out. "Besides. If (y/n) really has an interest in me, she would know the perils of harboring emotions. Let's go. I'm famished."

"Pardon?" Kurono stopped walking and stared at the back of his boss.

"Even the strongest villains need nourishment."

"Oh, uh, sure." Not sure what to do next, he rubbed the hems of hood. "Shall I ready the car?"

Seeing the nod, he blinked himself back to reality and went separate ways. Walking towards the garage, the blue-haired man replayed the events. He wasn't too sure but he could feel how your mannerisms were slowly rubbing off of Kai. Not that he minded, it was just… weird.

Taking the sim from his pocket, Kurono weighed out the options of burning or keeping the small object. Kai or even Overhaul wasn't too fond of keeping mementos, but his sense of gratitude was always strong. His ways of repaying debts were always admirable, no matter how absurd his methods may be.

Once he was now seated in the car, he knew exactly what to do with it.

The following day, Tsukauchi took his seat beside you. A brown paper bag now resting on your desk. After the heart to heart talk inside your car, you are more than glad that nothing has changed. He still treated you as his partner, as well as his close friend.

"Here are some updates for the Fukuo Kai." Reaching out for a folder, Tsukauchi pulled it with his fingertips till he finally grasped it. "We have detected some movements in their western branch. Me and the 4th division will be checking them out 3 days from now. Care to join?"

Checking your schedule, it was vacant and you agreed.

"So what're your plans now?" He asks while grabbing a small chip from your meal. "Nighteye?"

"Yeah. They’ll be discussing who’s who within the eight precepts.” Despite trying your best, you couldn’t help the slight slumping of your shoulders. Slowly nodding at the words that left your mouth, you chuckled and shook your head.

“Are you debating whether or not to tell him you're a part of the scheme?”

“I can’t but I feel like he’s caught up. I tried to call him last night. Yes, I know it’s cheap of me. But, his number was unavailable so…”

“He probably was off doing villainous deeds.” Tsukauchi patted your head and dragged his seat back to his cubicle. “He’d be a real jerk if he won’t contact you within the next few days. Trust me. Not even bad guys can resist the temptation of women.”

“You’re making me sound like a prostitute, Nao~” You commented while checking your emails. For now, nothing caught your eye. The occasional spam emails were present and one from Hawks but you could save that for later. Any more birdmen was not in your priority.

A few minutes passed and you were now engrossed in typing reports. When the lights of your company telephone lit up, your eyes darted to Namase’s door. It had been a long time since the both of you conversed, or let alone saw each other. The fact that he was calling you only meant bad news. Recalling every case you left unsolved, you were quite confident that this was nothing worth worrying about.

Picking up the phone, you braced yourself.

“Namase?”

“Bet you’re wondering why I called you, right?” Right. You forgot. This man held no filter whatsoever. “Well no need to worry. I just had to inform you that we received an anon caller. Do you wanna put him on the line?”

“An Anon caller? For what case?” You grabbed a pen and paper.

“For the Arson case.”

“Can you put him on the line?”

“Sure~”

Namase put the Anon caller thru and you waited till you were sure he wasn’t eavesdropping.

“Hello?” Even if you weren’t sure whether or not you should receive this call.

“Is this (l/n)-san?” His voice was low but clear enough for you to hear. “I think I have some good information about the fires.”

“I’d love to hear it but I had to hand over the case to the HPSC not too long ago. I can give you their hotline number if you want.”

“They scare me. I would prefer it if it was you who passed the message to them. Are you free later at 4pm?”

“Let me just check my schedule.” You knew you were free but you felt the need to look up the person. “Can I have your name, if that’s alright?”

“Tetsu.”

“Okay, Tetsu-san. Where do you want to meet up? Is a cafe alright? Or do you want a private room in the precinct?”

“A cafe please.”

“Alright, We can meet by the Nooks and Books. ’ll be the one wearing black. I’ll see you later.”

With no greetings, the line ended and you put the phone down. Gathering your stuff, you began to skim through each article you recently read about fires. Granted it had been a while since you last heard any news about fires, the tip was or could be useful. Of course having to talk to the HPSC was something you were not looking forward to.

“Nao, I’ll be taking my leave now. Anything you want me to bring when I come back?” You peaked into his rather messy cubicle. “Geez. Calm down with your cases, buddy.”

“This is only for the meantime.” He scratched his neck and stared at the scattered papers and folders. “I’d like a creampuff, though. A creampuff sounds nice in these trying times.”

“Aight. I’ll bring you a box later.” You said as you exited the floor.

It only took a few minutes but you were now seated in another desk. One where you wished you were not a part of. Greeting the heroes who had just entered the meeting room, you smiled at the sight of Deku and Mirio.

“(l/n)-san! Long time no see!” Deku greeted you and took the vacant seat beside you. “How’s work?”

“Work is work. How’s school? Are you holding up? Must be difficult to juggle this raid and academics.”

“It is but we have supplementary classes so I can manage.”

“Your classmates with Uraraka, Asui, and Kirishima, right?”

“Yeah!”

Exchanging a few more small talk with the heroes, you locked eyes with the hero sitting beside you. The scruffy hair, eyes that looked like they haven’t slept a single second, and the trademark scarf resting on his shoulders. Giving a shy smile, Aizawa merely responded with a lazy nod before Nighteye finally entered the room.

“As you all know, today’s agenda will be task distribution. Let’s get on with the details now, shall we?”

The tasks were distributed rather well. Fatgum Agency would be accompanying the front of the team. Right alongside Nighteye and Aizawa. The other heroes were tasked to stay outside and guard the entrance for any possible nuances that might occur. The police staff were divided into two groups. Being given ample time to assign which officers would be in the outer and inner group, you merely nodded and took the list of names.

‘Great. More work.’ Flipping the pages, most officers were people you had worked with before. At least things wouldn’t be so difficult.

“(l/n)-san?” Nighteye snapped your thoughts away. Adjusting his glasses, he rested his elbows on the desk and leaned in. “How’s the task of bugging Overhaul?”

“I haven’t been in touch with any of them for a few days now. I will be trying this week if the situation allows.”

“Alright. If that succeeds then things will go much smoother and will surely pick up speed. Best of luck. Any questions?”

“Are there any updates about the League of Villains being tied with them?” Deku asked.

“As of the moment, there’s no movement from them. So, it’s safe to assume that they only have minor participation in said event.” Nighteye replied without batting an eyelash. He really was confident in this raid.

Feeling guilt rushing through your veins, you shifted in your seat and silently exhaled. Once Nighteye gave the adjournment, you scurried out of the room and made your way to the cafe. It was a bit traffic but you would still be able to arrive on time. With the cafe being near the station, parking would be no trouble.

When things were now settled, you were now walking towards the cafe and found yourself now standing in front of the cashier and saying your order. Taking your number, you looked for a private booth and sat there. It rested in the corner so Tetsu wouldn’t be too uncomfy.

When the clock struck 4, you were now staring at the lobby waiting for that Tetsu to arrive.

Sure enough, a man with a hood entered the cafe and made eye contact with you. Seeing as he walked towards your booth, it was safe to assume that this was Tetsu.

“Are you Tetsu?” You asked the man wearing the hood. With the sunglasses and mask, you could only make out such little skin his face had.

“I cannot stay long. But I came to hand this over.” He slid a small brown envelope. His head hanging low making sure you wouldn’t catch a glimpse at his covered face. “I hope this can assist your case.”

“To be fair, please stay while I go through the contents of this envelope.” Taking the envelope, you slid the content out only to have a sim card laying flat on your palm. “What kind of information does this hold, Tetsu-san?”

“That information is sensitive so you can check its contents before handing it over.”

“But, I’m not part of the Arson case anymore. Would you still want me to hand this in or redact a few messages.”

Overhaul did not mention you were no longer part of the case. Cursing at how blank his mind was, Kurono glanced at the environment before he exhaled deeply.

“I will only say this once, so listen carefully.” He uttered.

“This isn’t about the Arson case now, is it?” Sliding the sim card back, you carefully placed it inside your bag and focused on Tetsu. The words that came out of his mouth made your heart beat faster. Clenching your fists, you braced for whatever he would say next.

“Kai has been on edge and it’s been such a pain in the ass. I don’t know what the hell made you decide to mention Ackerwacker but you got what you wished for.” Kurono’s voice was low. Barely audible due to the cafe’s music. “But, it would be a lie if I said he hasn’t been more human ever since he met you.”

“Can you take your mask and shades off?”

“You’ll probably just arrest me right here.” Kurono took his shades off revealing familiar gray eyes.

“You were that guy from the restaurant?” Your eyes widened at the realization that Overhaul had interfered that early on. “Not that I’m complaining or anything, but ya’ll did me a great favor.”

A slight smirk appeared on his lips as he took the mask off. It felt different having his face exposed after a long time.

“I can see why he took interest in you.”

“Why meet me, though? Wouldn’t this only risk in you being overhauled and shit?”

“I have my ways. Kai instructed me to get rid of his sim card but I don’t know. Perhaps you can make use of it in your private life.”

“Well, to be honest, the heroes don’t fully trust me.” You shrugged. That was nothing new. “It sucks having to juggle work and personal feelings in this particular case. Guess both of us are in a pinch.”

“Perks of being with Kai.”

“You should probably get going… Chronostasis, right?” Putting his disguise back on, a switch flipped in your mind. “Hey you mind if I get your number? If you have one, ofcourse.”

“Why?”

“I like to make my connections.” You winked. When he took out his phone, you in turn took something out of your pocket. Placing it on the table, you pushed the small box towards the villain. “I’ll text you the instructions later, aight?”

“What’s this?”

“You’ll know when you open it.”

With that, Kurono pocketed the small box and left the cafe. When he was out of sight, you rubbed your face and groaned.

“Damn it.”

- - - - -

a/n: hohoho Kurono now enters the picture! hope ya’ll enjoyed this chapter! :) Mimick is still writing down Overhaul’s waiting list! if you guys have any questions or just wanna be tagged :) feel free to spam me! take care!

[bellphiie-main]

Carefree [1]

Zeref x F!Reader

I’m posting this from my Wattpad drafts. I only have 3 prewritten parts, so let me know if you want me to continue! Also: This was written over a year ago. I never posted it. So I apologize for any mistakes.

I’m so scared to post this

Genre: Fluff Warnings:  Spoilers? I think. It doesn’t directly follow the story but its pretty close Summary: Y/N goes looking for Fairy Tails first masters’ grave. Someone spots her and ends up in a predicament.. Words: ~1180

╔═══*.·:·.☽✧    ✦    ✧☾.·:·.*═══╗

"Tenrou island?" A sailor asked a small girl.

"Yes! Please, sir, if you can, take me there!" She clasps her hands together, begging the only person with a boat around for miles.

"Are you sure you want to go there? Isn't that Fairy Tail's special island?" The sailor questions.

"Yeah, but I'm close friends with their master. He gave me permission, and even gave me this guild mark! It's not Fairy Tails, but it's to symbolize our friendship!" Y/N lifts her foot to show a F/C mark on her ankle. 

"See?" She smiles happily. "Please take me there! I need to find the first masters grave."

"Alright..." The sailor says with an unsure voice.

"Yes! Thank you so much." Y/N hops into the boat, her outfit blowing in the wind as she holds on to the sail, waiting for the sailor to climb in.

"We're taking off. You should take a seat, it'll get bumpy." The sailor warns as he pushes off from the dock.

"I'll be fine! The ocean looks beautiful." Y/N comments, eyes sparkling at the open water surrounding her. She closes her eyes as white light radiates off of her. Dolphins jump out of the water, doing tricks along the boat. The sailor stares in awe at the magic the girl holds.

"That's some neat magic. What kind is it?" He asks.

"I don't exactly have a name for it. It's just bright, and brings life to things. I can't always control it though, so sometimes it starts working and I don't even realize it. Like what happened a moment ago." She smiles.

-----

"Here we are." The sailor says, bringing the boat to shore.

"Thank you so much! How much do you want?" Y/N digs into her bag, finding some money.

"Oh, that won't be necessary. You're a lovely young lady, and your company was much appreciated. I haven't laughed that much in months. Thank you, and I hope you find what you're looking for." The man tips his hat as the boat gets farther away from the shore, Y/N waving until he is completely out of sight.

"Wow." She breathes, looking around the beautiful island. Her gaze falls on an area in the forest, seemingly devoid of any life. She skips over, placing her hand onto the fallen tree as a white light glows. Soon, the tree is standing tall again, and the others around it do the same. The area is full of life.

A dark figure watches from afar, eyes wide at the sight. He takes in the area that was just dead, and now is thriving with life. Flowers bloomed, birds already perched on trees, even deer were making their way to the girl. He's never seen anything like it.

The girl remains oblivious, continuing to skip around, trying to find the thing she came here for in the first place. Zeref tilts his head, thinking to himself how can someone be so carefree? It's like she's never experienced sadness in her life, ever. She seems almost too happy for her to even be real.

"Is my mind playing tricks on me? Am I that desperate for human interaction?" He whispers to himself. Once the girl skips away, he walks to the area she brought back to life, touching the tree. It is, in fact, actually there. His mind isn't playing tricks on him.

There's another human on this island, one who doesn't know of his existence. That thought alone scares him. What if he doesn't see her, and his magic starts working again? What if he kills her without even realizing it? He shakes his head and turns to walk the other direction.

He swears he will do whatever he can to stay away from that girl.

----

His vow didn't last very long. Maybe two hours at most. He finds himself watching over her, which is strange. He's never felt the need to watch over someone. He can't understand it, but he thinks it's just the fact that she's a human walking on this island. The island that a murderer resides on.

The girl skips around with a wide smile on her face, interacting with any animal she sees. He notices that at some points, light radiates around her, and she doesn't seem to notice it. He doesn't think much of it, maybe it's like his magic.

"Hello!" A sudden cheery voice breaks the silence. Zeref's eyes widen as he looks at the girl, only to fight back a sigh of relief once he realizes she's talking to an animal.

'Strange, can she communicate with animals too?'

"Wow! Your fur is so pretty. Can I pet it?" She asks the rabbit. The rabbit makes a noise, Zeref unable to understand. The girl smiles and reaches out, stroking the rabbits fur. "So soft! What's your name?" She asks.

"Chiera" The rabbit says to Y/N.

"Chiera. I like it. Can I give you a nickname?" Y/N asks, sitting in the grass next to the rabbit.

"Okay!" The rabbit says, seemingly excited.

"I'll call you... Chichi!" Y/N closed her eyes, leaning back on a tree with her hands behind her head.

"May Chichi ask strangers name?" The rabbit asked.

"Oh, I'm Y/N! It's lovely to meet you." Y/N opens one eye, and catches some sort of movement a few yards away. "Huh? Is someone else there?" She calls.

Zeref stands with his back pressed against a tree, holding his breath. He hears Y/N sigh and start talking to the rabbit once more. Zeref can feel his magic building up, he grabs his head and runs away as fast as he can without being seen. He feels the dark magic slowly seeping out of him, the darkness slowly takes over the small area. Once the fog clears, all signs of life are gone.

"Maybe she can fix it..." Zeref mumbles sadly. He glances around and spots a squirrel. The squirrel runs beside the decaying tree and looks up. The tree tilts, leaning towards the squirrel. Zeref's eyes widen as he rushes to get the squirrel out of the way. The squirrel hears the rapid footsteps and rushes for cover. Zeref doesn't stop in time, however.

The tree comes crashing down, Zeref tries to jump out of the way, but it falls on top of his ankle. His chest hits the ground and he groans in pain, looking down at his foot. He concludes that it's not broken, as he can move his toes. But he cant get the tree off. He's stuck.

Back with the girl, she heard the crash. It was so loud that it scared her new friend away. "Chichi! Wait!" Y/N calls, but it's too late. She looks in the direction of the sound and decides to check it out. 

Zeref can hear footsteps slowly approaching, and he starts to panic. He frantically pulls at his foot, trying to get it out from under the tree. A nearby bush rustles as Y/N pops out, her eyes widening at the scene.

╚═══*.·:·.☽✧    ✦    ✧☾.·:·.*═══╝

[1] , (more coming soon) Anime Masterlist Fairy Tail Masterlist

[strawberrypancakesalltheway]

A Reverie Part II

its the continuation of my story called A Reverie. You guys can read it here!!

Slightly angst with happy ending~

A/N: this one is requested by @mai-the-queen (idk why I cant tag you) for the happy ending version. 

Warnings: none

Word count: 1596

Pairing: Nobunaga x MC (Mai)

“I love him. So much. To the point where you won’t understand. You don’t get it. It’s there. It exists. It flows. It moves like rapids through my vein. Comes with bursts and occasionally fades with the day, but it’s always there. And when you find love like that, you don’t want to give it up. But sometimes you have to and sometimes you have to give it to someone else. That’s the hard part”

Dominic Riccitello

 You thought that he will chase you, begging you to not end things.  But he didn’t. Now here you are, at your room, too tired to cry. Well, you get what you want, he leaves you alone, what else more did you want? You should be happy or relief. But you didn’t, you feel awful, cold and empty. You just sat there wondering where things went wrong? Whose fault is this? Is it yours? Sure, your past lover has said things or reasons why they broke up with you. Some said that you are too demanding, too ambitious, you work too much yada yada. But Nobunaga is different, he sees you way past that, he’s never nitpicking on why you love to sew or taking commission for kimonos, he’s never complain when you voice out whatever inside your mind. He loves you for who you are. Before you know it, the sun starts to rise, and you need to prepare for the work today at the castle.

There is not much differences of your activity in the castle. Helping the maid, sewing your commission, delivering letters to some of the warlord. He didn’t call you to the Tensu like usual morning, and no words from him after last night fight. Maybe, just maybe he also needs some space and time to think about both of you, your relationship.

Without you knowing, the evening came. The peaceful atmosphere surrounding the castle replaced by darkness that slowly creeping it. It rattles you, and somehow your guts telling you that something wrong or bad will be happened. You know that the castle is well guarded, and probably the safest place in the entire region, but still it didn’t sit well with you. So, you try to reach your room as soon as possible to calm yourself down.

You tried to calm yourself down by drawing a new design for the next kimono commission for a certain daimyo daughter, and it help you a little bit to settling down the bad feeling. Suddenly, there is a loud screaming and wood knocking echoing throughout the castle. There must be intruder inside, so you blow off the candle and listen to some guards running down the hall. You get out from your room and start to run along with several maid and guards towards the hall.

“Where are the warlords? Where is Lord Nobunaga?”

“Princess, they are currently fighting the intruder on east and west side of the castle. Lord Nobunaga currently fighting near the courtyard. Some of the intruder managed to get inside the castle. Princess, please you need to get out from here!”

You ignore the guard and run past them. This is it. This is probably what caused the bad feeling and dread you’ve felt today. Your stomach drops, the possibility of losing Nobunaga and the fact of those awful words you’ve said to him yesterday. You need to get to him, to make sure that he’s safe.

You ran past the hallway, cursing why it’s so vast. You noticed a group of maid and castle helper hurdled in a corner, some of them are crying.

“what are you guys doing here? Go to the safe room!! Quick!!”

You order some guards to court them to the safe room in the castle. You noticed an abandoned sword near you and you take it. By all means you didn’t have any martial or swords skill, but you’ve watched quite a lot of period dramas during your free time, so there is that.

“Okay, stab first, ask questions later. Here goes nothing!”

You continue to your way to the court area and it seems that the fighting has lessen. You thank whatever God that listening, the fact that you didn’t meet any of the intruder and you didn’t have to stab someone using your sword.

And there he is, standing in the middle of the court, surrounded by several dead bodies you assumed as the intruders. His sword drawn, blood trickling to the soil down below. He looked okay, you heard him giving orders to the castle guards to clear the castle from the intruders.

“Nobunaga!!”

You ran to him; the fight last night didn’t matter to you. What’s matter is that he is safe and alive. He looked surprised; a glint of relief also plastered on his face.

“Fireball, what are you doing here? It’s not safe here!”

“I’m okay. I... I just need to know that you are okay. I have this…. this bad feeling and I just want to make sure that nothing bad happened to you”.

You hug him, relieved that he’s okay. That your Nobunaga still breathing and alive. You realized that you still love him, and the thought of losing him nearly ripped you apart. He returned your hug, and for a second, nothing else matter to you.

You both let go of each other and you look at him. His eyes full of adoration and love for you. Those same eyes that held your entire world, a home to you. You both maybe not perfect and occasionally fighting with each other, but you love him and you can’t imagine a world without him.

“Nobunaga, I…” Suddenly a sharp pain spread at your chest. You didn’t understand what’s happening until you look down to your chest and saw the arrow protruding. And for a while, the world seems to stop.

“Mai!” Nobunaga starts to barks some order to catch the enemy archer. He cradles you to his arms, your blood starts to creeps to the surface of your kimono. Some of the warlords arrived at the courtyard, Masamune and Mitsuhide start to chase the archer who dares to shot you, while Ieyasu told Hideyoshi to prepare a room so that he could treat your wounds.

The pain in your chest start to spread to your whole body, and you’ve never felt something hurts to that extent. You look at Nobunaga’s face, your hands caressing his cheek in attempt to comfort him.

“I still love you, you know……...I’m..I’m sorry for last night” You try to smile, but you no longer able to hold your tears. You love this man so much that you are grateful the archer didn’t shoot at him. You tried to take a deep breath but the pain keeps increasing and your vision starts to blurred. And the last thing that crossed your mind before everything went black is that you’re grateful to meet such an amazing man and lover, and you hope that perhaps some God would take pity on you and let you spend the rest of your life with him.

*******************************************************************************************

The smell of cherry blossom flower rings up the air at the castle, along with some flower petal that dance along with the gentle wind. The sound of the castle bustling to its routine, birds chirping greeting the castle residents. Spring time is always beautiful, the nature reawakens from its sort sleep during the winter, along with people who have been patiently waits for the warm sunlight to shine all over them once more. You’ve always loved the spring, not too hot, not too cold.

You’re sitting bellow a cherry blossom tree near the courtyard, its one of your favorite places to just sit down and enjoying the day. It’s been a month since you’ve been shot by an arrow, without the existence of modern medical technology, the recovery rate is slower. However, with Ieyasu ability and knowledge, you are sure that you would recover and returns to the state you were before in no time. Since you are still recovering, you aren’t allowed to resume your activity as the chatelaine. All of the warlords doting upon you, makes sure that you process of recovery will be the main priority for them. Since you aren’t allowed to do things that you were supposed to do, you decided to take a rest and sit under this cherry blossom tree.

“Here you are, fireball. I’ve been looking for you” Nobunaga approach her and sit beside her.

“I’m kinda bored stuck at my room so I decided to spend my afternoon here. It’s so pretty”

You smiled at him and continue to look at the fallen petal. You start to reminisce the time you’ve spent here in sengoku era.

“It’s been a while, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, it is. Do you ever have any regret not returning back to the future?”

“Not at all, Nobunaga. This is my home now, with you”

“Good, because I don’t intend to let you go, fireball”

He kissed you, softly. His hand cradling your face, and his lips is so soft. Everything feels right to you. His kisses full of adoration and reassurance, trying to convinced you that he loves you more than anything. He makes you happy, sometimes frustrated. You both maybe fight sometimes but it didn’t mean that the love is gone. It’s definitely there, in the way he looked at you, the way he kissed you, in every single thing he does. And you fell in love with him again, for a thousand time, over and over again.

[hopefulpride]

Twisted fates //All For One

@pillar-of-peace​

These days were almost glory for the Symbol of Evil, a shame though; for one to be forced to admit his defeats even if it was done mentally. If he could erase a few things from existence only then would his world become perfection. To do so, the male needed a good plan only he could execute and could trust none making his task a bit more difficult. All for one would have to understand and know when to walk away and fight another day. In the end, Shigaraki always had time on his side as well as his quirks should he actually find serious trouble. When failing to accomplish goals it was only natural for one to fall into repetition learning to never make those same mistakes again. The more he pondered, the more he grew a bit more frustrated but this was his cause and he was relentless with it and his influence.

How was it that a man can become god and yet the things that should have been so simple ended up being the most difficult? Man-kind was already submitting to those who held the power with or without quirks and yet his Nemesis rose in all of its various forms to tell him his views were flawed. What right is given where a man can stand in front of another and tell him his cause means nothing and that he should abandon it. It was infuriating in the least but also part of the fun and Shigaraki held no regrets on that matter. Every time he heard a Hero speech he would roar in laughter on the inside with the humor of irony. Such hypocrisy in every word yet one always seems to refuse to look at self first, and he is to accept their cause? It was pure nonsense!

He held everything necessary in the palm of his hand but he couldn't ascend to the throne yet. Why?  One would easily point a finger and blame the multiple circumstances but in the end anything worth holding never came easily. Even as Hero's and Heroine's chose their paths the path of a villain was also chosen. Why was there a title to separate the paths of the chosen, shouldn't one be free to choose his own fate? The conclusion that came caused his thin lips to curl into a smile and a soft deep chuckle to escape him.

Those who choose to stand by idolized concepts should fall in the most glorious of ways to make an example for the rest. All for one believed that one was born with a destiny and that justified his reasoning. After all, to be gifted such an opportunity would in itself explain why he was worthy. His cause would be heard and those in his path would yield or die regardless. Shigaraki had made many errors and took heed to the many things he learned from them. Some situations had to be handled delicately and being a gentlemen with words often assisted him in matters like these. With years came wisdom and habits after all. Shigaraki wasn't too worried with what might happen because it was futile to ponder on such things. If he tried a plan it really didn’t matter the outcome because in the end time was his friend. Besides, How else was a guy to spend the years? A body at rest dies and a body in motion stays in motion. It was simple physics, why should he give up his will on their terms without a decent fight? To do so would be simply disrespectful.

Folding his arms over his chest, All for one set with his eyes closed the silence of the room comforting him. Shigaraki needed to sort these matters without distraction. In his mind he could reason but the reality was he had a problem that could not be fixed by force alone. Things were not going his way and if he acted in rash manner he could loose everything. Fear was to be controlled and that was what held back his hand; why Shigaraki took the time to think through his matters before reacting. All for one thought himself to be a patient man cultured by time. The male felt that organized chaos was able to be controlled if one was smart enough to understand it. These thoughts circled his mind as he set for hours in the silence. The weight of the task at hand was heavy but still Shigaraki did not move until he had the perfect plan. Instead he crossed one leg delicately over the other his arms still folded over his broad chest. A simple digit tapped his bicep, tapping with repetition to each thought that passed through his twisted mind. Shigaraki wore a peaceful expression upon his features keeping the rage within under a tight leash.

In the end Shigaraki came to one realization. The problems sorted in his mind meant he could not do more than represent his cause and back up the heart-beat behind his agenda. That was fine so long as there was somebody who could take his place. Such contradictory, but it was indeed critical for his plan to work. He could build up many but they all either ended up destroying themselves or changing to uselessness in the end so taking that path was pointless. A exasperated sigh left the other as Shigaraki  slouched forward bringing his hands together clasping the digits together over his lap. He now had a plan and it was time to execute it; just as time was his friend it was also his greatest enemy. It would lay way for a trail of twisted hope and that could bring a halt to his plans.

He first had to access the files hidden away but the hands of the naive handled those. His eyes grew darker as Shigaraki sorted the many faces he would have to visit. He had pawns everywhere and figured it shouldn't take too long to find the one who was perfection in his eyes. One for all was quite troublesome but that would be handled in the same means. Two birds one stone, if you will. If All for one was to end her then he would have to do so before she passed the quirk.

Shigaraki could bring up a new face she would not see coming and use that to weaken her stance. Why was that damned flame was so difficult to put out? Again the male began to wonder what kind of person it would take to tie into her heart enough to move her. Rising from his seat he was content, jerking his sleeves down before casually brushing himself off his mind finally made up. All for One needed only find one who is able to handle the weight he would place upon their shoulders and simply push them to move forward with his vision. 

The strings of course, would never be cut but he could make such puppet strings out of kind words and a soft touch, as well as a little encouragement. Everything would play out perfectly and in the end he could destroy One for all before it could be passed. The smile stretched across his firm features as he moved through the halls. The shadows cast from the lights shifted about as he passed through the halls in silence. This would play out so beautifully, like a song you play on repeat. He was almost beside himself in the thought of vision. Even if those thoughts were only plan A, he had already concocted a few ways to handle should the plans fail one by one. There was always more than one way to skin a cat and All for one was quite persistent. Any who rose to stop him he could simply turn into an example.

After spending months to search and prepare his eyes settled on a bright young blond boy that held promise captured in the picture. Setting aside the other files he began to decipher the exact location of this child. Shigaraki would find himself spending a lot of time to mold a creature vile enough to push through his plans without objection or conscience. The others he could tell simply by looking at them that they could not stomach the fight much less the war.

"Yagi?"

The boy was quirkless to speak and perfect. Residing within region was also a plus considering All for one would not have to cross the lines of diplomacy in his search. Shigaraki though emotionless in body language was very pleased with his conclusions. It was as if fate had handed him a picture of perfection and molded it with the intention of All for One picking it up to groom before tossing into the world. Holding up the picture he studied it with a tilt of his head a soft laugh echoing out from the male. He was beside himself and slouched down patting the young male before him on the back.

"You have done so well and I am beside myself with gratitude!"

As his hand moved across the others back the smiling male leaned over his shoulder so he could see the others face as the last words left his lips. Why would any who is called a villain miss the moment when fear arises in ones soul.

"I think that I should....."

Before he could finish the words the minion jumped from his seat with quick frantic bows shoving away the offer he knew was coming. The sadistic smile on Shigaraki’s lips sent chills down the others back. All for one began again a bit irritated to have been interrupted in the first place.

"Oh no, you seem to misunderstand. I truly am grateful."

Placing a hand over his own chest he met the male with emotionless features holding the intent for a second he debated his actions. Shifting in his step Shigaraki turned to approach once more in calm steps. The clank of his shoe echoing out as he waited for that perfect spine tingling moment that usually comes aright after life flashes before ones eye.

"Do understand, this is only because I cant really have anyone for the so called "Heros" to track and as anxious as you are now I doubt you took much caution. It is quite fine all the same because you DID accomplish your goals."

As All for one continued sweat formed on the males brow his breathing growing ragged as he backed away. All for one could see it! The mind searching for a way out of the situation in panic. Shigaraki couldn't help the chuckle at the sight counting the seconds deciding to give his last tiny push.

"You see, this is my favorite part when..."

Lifting a finger in calm manner to point out the others disregard of all decency he paused allowing the moment to manifest. His lips sealed as the begging came and he took a another deep breath narrowing his eyes his free hand still holding the file that was given to him earlier. 

Once the door again slid open again, Shigaraki made his exit as if nothing had happened. His eyes were glued to the information on the page, thankful he had made it this far so flawlessly. Glancing down to his Suit coat he lifted the pin stripped fabric closer to his eyes to inspect. Narrowing blue hues he noted the blood that had splattered onto it. A soft breath left him as he again comments out-loud this time.

"Well almost.........flawlessly"

He catered to his own humor in his exit laughter roaring down the hallway. If he planned this right he would be able to rid himself of one for all and find a puppet to dance across the lands in his place. He held no issue handing over the power however it was up to the recipient to be able to handle it.

"Yagi Toshinori, I will be seeing you soon my child I certainly hope you are worth my time I despise those who are useless to this new world of quirks!"

[craby-bouquet]

Don’t leave me

“It is good to love many things, for therein lies the true strength, and whosoever loves much performs much, and can accomplish much, and what is done in love is well done.” - Vincent Van Gogh 

Kim Taehyung x Reader

Artist!AU, Thriller!AU, Fluff, Angst, Gore

11.8k words

A/N I labelled this as gore as well, but I tried to keep things as clean as I possible so it kind of doesn’t seem right?? This is the longest thing I’ve written so far, it took me quite some time but I had so much fun with it! On to the next thing I’m writing.

Thank you @/onlandswimming  for your helping with this (cant tag u bc of the link thing bb)

Music. The music was loud, deafening. A piano piece, known by many, heard by everyone, but he didn’t know the title of it. It sounded like the piano tiles got smashed, like someone had decided the tiles would make for a great trampoline, and just started jumping on them, yet it was pretty. It calmed him, emptied his head. And that was all he wanted.

Red. The red was everywhere. Spattered on things, more things than he wanted it to spatter on, but he couldn't help it. It was more than he had ever imagined, more than he had intended it to be.

He leaned against the wall, head thrown back, hands tangled in his hair. The tears fell on the newspapers on the ground, thinned the red, made it flow all over. It had all gone wrong.

Only a glance at the newspaper of that morning was enough to make you sigh. It seemed that ever since you started living in this town, crime had gotten worse and worse. It was ridiculous. Another missing person, and the person that went missing last week was found back. Murdered.

You took a bite of your apple as you read the article on your walk to work. The dead person was found in a park. They hadn’t included pictures, thankfully, because the sight had been horrible. The kids that found the body were getting all the help they needed to get over what they saw. Weird enough the body had been all cleaned up. no stained blood on their clothes nor on the body parts that were still in tact for the most part. As if the person that did this was human enough to at least make them look good for their funeral. Well, besides the wounds the victim had. This was the fifth person that had gone missing, and was found back all ripped up weeks later, in six months. And now someone else had gone missing. A woman in her thirties. She had last been seen three days ago by her husband. Police said to keep calm and that there was no reason to suspect this disappearance had anything to do with the other five. But for some reason you, and a lot of other people, thought differently about that. If this wasn’t connected with the others, it would be too coincidental. And we all know coincidence doesn’t exist.

A lot of people in town were terrified, staying inside as much as they could, making sure their children would as well. People talked about it on the streets, but only very silently, whispering almost, afraid the killer would happen to walk by and hear them. In stores people were discussing it, in subways, in restaurants even in the farmacy and in waiting rooms. It was everywhere, even people that lived under a rock should know by now.

And it was terrifying. There were no witnesses, no fingerprints, nothing to point to whom the killer might be. It seemed like a perfect crime every single time. The police claimed they would find whoever did this, that they would avenge the victims in name of their families and that they would make sure everyone could feel safe again. But after six months and five, now six, perfect crimes, no one was sure what to believe anymore. No one trusted anyone anymore, everyone could be guilty. So could they really trust the police?

You had promised yourself that this whole thing wouldn't get to you. All that these kind of murderers wanted was for people to be scared. All they wanted was for everyone to live in constant fear, it was like that would make them feel powerful, like they ruled a part of the world. You had promised yourself not to be afraid. You weren’t going to let some stupid criminal rule your life. Sure, you had taken some precautions. You weren’t going out alone at night anymore, not that you did before all of this, the dark streets had always frightened you a little bit. You weren’t going with strangers anymore, would talk as little as you could with them, pretending to always be in a hurry. Little things. But it wasn’t that you were getting yourself new locks and closed every window and didn’t talk to anyone and take days off to stay inside just because you were afraid you were next. No. That’s what you heard other people say and you sure as hell weren’t going to go crazy like that.

You threw the core of the apple, together with the newspaper, in the trashcan in the lobby as you walked into the building.

“Good morning.” Someone who walked by greeted you. You greeted them back before stepping into the elevator and making your way up. You mentally prepared yourself for everyone that would be talking about what they read in the newspapers that morning, a thing you didn’t really want to talk about. This was going to be a long day.

Leaving work you always walked through the park. You avoided it on your way to work because it was a detour and you wanted to be in time, but on your way home it calmed you down. The light breeze in the air, the birds, the sound of the wind blowing through the leaves of the trees. In that moment everything seemed almost perfect. Not to mention how happy you were that, after a long time of winter, flowers were blooming again, children were playing outside. It was strangely quiet these days though, mothers didn’t want their children to play outside anymore, not without guidance that is. Imagine them finding the next body, or getting kidnapped themselves.

On a bench only a few meters away from you sat a guy. He was… stunning. His face looked as if it had been sculpted by the hands of God himself. His eyes sparkled as he looked up at the sky, the evening sun that shined through the leaves reflecting in them. His hair had been dyed what once had been red, but the red had faded with time, the dark brown of his own hair had started to grow back at the roots. The expression he wore was tired yet so soft and gentle, he seemed fascinated by whatever he saw. Beside him sat an adorable golden retriever dog with a sparkling collar, its gaze was directed at you.

The guy bend over to pat the dog, a sweet smile forming on his lips. The dog licked his owner's face, who laughed. The sight made you smile. The guy and his dog sat there the next day as well, the guy rubbing the dog his head as it lay on his lap. You smiled once again when the guy gave the dog a soft kiss on its head. A warm feeling boiled up in the pit of your stomach. When, even the day after, the guy and the dog were still there, you decided to walk up to them.

“Hi,” you greeted carefully.

The guy lowered his gaze from the leaves above to you, and his eyes widened. He suddenly seemed to get a little nervous, stroking his hand through his hair and clearing his throat: “Hello.”

You smiled “I saw you sit here yesterday as well and I just wanted to tell you you have a cute dog.”

The guy didn't look away from your eyes “Yes.. He-he's very pretty.”

“Can I pet him?”

“Oh, yes. Sure, go ahead. He's very sweet.”

So you sat down on the bench at the opposite side of the dog and started patting him. He looked up at you and started wagging his tail. You chuckled.

“It's actually not my dog, it's my friend's dog: Holly. I'm taking care of him while he's away.” the guy said while he sat up straight, eyes still locked on you.

“That's very nice of you.”

The sparkle in his eyes got brighter as you looked into his eyes, the warm feeling in the pit of your stomach returned. You looked away, back at the dog, but you felt the guy's eyes still on your face.

After a short while of silence he cleared his throat “Would you like to get coffee with me?”

You looked up at him again and smirked at how flustered he looked “Like a date?”

He smirked back at you “Only if you want it to be.”

“I'd like that.”

You had learned his name was Taehyung, he was a well known artist whom had people come from all over to come to his expositions. He had shown you some pictures of his paintings when you asked about them and even you could see he was talented. He made beautiful abstract like compositions on big canvases, he had developed his own style and clearly was proud of what he made, though a little flustered to show you at the same time. And he had all the right to be proud. You weren’t an art critic, not even close to it, but you already loved what he created.

Even though he asked you to get coffee with him, he didn’t like coffee at all. So he got himself tea instead. His laugh was the cutest thing you had ever seen, and you decided you wanted to see it as much as you possibly could. The way he treated Holly was adorable. He was so sweet and loving to him, like Holly was the most precious thing to walk this earth. Even the way he held his cup, his pinky under the cup, had you melting away. How his mouth seemed to turn into a rectangle as he smiled, how he liked his lips evey once in a while and how his eyes lit up whenever he talked about something he loved. Everything about him had you gone, it was clear you already really liked this guy.

He walked you home, talking about everything and nothing and bend forward when you leaned in to press a peck against his cheek. He smiled and waved goodbye as he walked away.

He sat on the bench the day after that as well, so you walked through the park together. And the day after that he sat there all dressed up, looking very nice. He asked you to dinner. The day after that you had agreed to go out as well. It was weekend and he told you he had made plans, turns out he took you to a theme park and had prepared a picnic afterwards. You invited him to stay over that night, but he politely declined. Not only did he want to wait a little longer, he also had a dog to take care of at home.

He was the perfect gentleman, a great person and absolutely amazing to date. You had never fallen this fast for anyone before, but you had really fallen hard for Taehyung. And fast forward a couple of weeks and the two of you were officially in a relationship. It was wonderful, some may even say perfect. You never imagined being in a relationship to be as much fun as it was.

Your mother loved him, after she met him she couldn’t stop talking about him. Even your father was fond of him.  

After two months of dating Taehyung finally took you with him to his apartment. He never took anyone there because it was a big mess, and because it was his part of the world. A place where he could do whatever he wanted and feel completely free. You felt honored that he took you there with him.

He opened the door and threw the key on a shelf that he clearly put up himself “Welcome.” he said while bowing dramatically.

Holly came running towards the door, wiggling his tail excitedly. The two of you had walked him together many times before, and he had been at your place loads of times, but he was happy to see you each and every time. As if every time was the first time you met him.

Taehyung rubbed the back of his neck as he escorted you through the apartment, picking things up that were in the middle of the path and placing them to the side. It smelled like someone sprayed very nice perfume all over, but something told you he just had a very nice air freshener. Though his apartment was quite spacious, there was barely any room left to even walk. It was a big mess. Canvases laying all around, some painted on, some just plain white. Sketch books and loose papers that were drawn on laying everywhere, paint everywhere. Not just in their tubes, but splattered on the walls and ground as well. You had seen it on the paintings he had shown you before, red really was his favorite color. The apartment was exactly what you would expect a messy artist’s apartment to look like.

“Sorry for the mess, I wanted to clean up a little before picking you up but something came up and-”

You interrupted him by pressing your lips on his “It’s fine.”

He had ordered chinese food, and you ate at the counter of his kitchen. The only place in the house he had managed to clean before you came by. You talked about work, and asked him about his. He smiled proudly and told you he had just made sure he could give an exposition in three months.

“What? That’s great!” You exclaimed, a weird sense of pride flushing over you.

He chuckled “Yeah, I’m really looking forward to it. It’s gonna be so stressful though, everytime I have to take care of something like this I find out all over again how much work it is. I always manage to underestimate it.” He inspected a piece of chicken he held between his chopsticks, before putting it in his mouth “And I’m always afraid no one will show up.”

“I’ll be there for sure,” you said, swallowing a piece of the duck you were eating “and I’ll be bragging to everyone and their mom that my boyfriend is giving an exposition of his amazing art. So I’m sure that will get some attention.”

Taehyung laughed loudly “I usually just put up posters and stuff, but I guess just having a girlfriend is enough publicity.”

You shrugged “I have all the right to brag, that’s a fact. I don’t make the rules here.”

He poured himself some more cola to drink “I was just hoping you’d invite your parents. But if you want it invite the whole city it’s alright with me. I’m not complaining, you know?”

You chuckled and pointed with your chopsticks “You bet your ass I’ll invite everyone, watch me.”  

He took a sip of the cola he just got himself “I believe you.”

You ate a little more, enjoying the silence, before you asked him a question you had wanted to ask him for a while.

“Will your parents come too?”

Though he had met your parents multiple times before, you had never met his. He never spoke about them and never even mentioned them once. You had been afraid to ask if something happened to them or something, but this seemed like a decent time to start about it.

He looked up at you briefly, before looking down again, clearly uncomfortable. He swallowed and sighed, looking everywhere but at you.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked.” You said as soon as you realized this clearly was a touchy subject.

He smiled, or at least tried to, before he locked his eyes on one of the few paintings that was actually hanging on the wall “It’s alright, don’t worry about it. I guess it’s natural for you to be curious about it.” He put down his chopsticks and sighed again “My parents… well. I’m really sorry for not telling you before but my mother died when I was younger and my dad died a few years ago.” He finally turned his eyes to you again “I guess I should have told you before but… It’s just kind of a painful subject.”

You suddenly felt so stupid for bringing it up the way you had done. So tactless of you “Oh my god, I’m so sorry…”

He smiled, but you could see the hurt behind his eyes “It’s alright, don’t worry about it. My mom died a very long time ago, I don’t even remember it, and my dad…” he looked at the painting hanging on the wall again “Well, my dad never really left me.” he slapped his hand on his chest at the height of his heart and grinned “Still with me.”

The newspaper. Yet another person had gone missing. They had found the last person who had gone missing back about two weeks ago, and now someone else had gone missing. And the thing was that you had met this person. From the picture in the papers you could see it was the waiter that served Taehyung and you the first time you went out for coffee.

You showed Taehyung the article when you saw him again in the park that evening “Another has gone missing.”

Taehyung looked at you and pushed the paper away “I know. I saw it this morning.”

You pushed the paper back in his face and pointed at the picture of the waiter “Don’t you recognize him?”

Taehyung looked away and sighed, but his eyes grew wide “Yes. I do. It’s the waiter that served us. He… was great. Deserves to live forever if you ask me.” his eyes turned hazy, as if he was thinking to himself, and he bit his lip. Holly howled softly.

He was great, yes, you agreed. But the living forever was a little extreme in your opinion. That would, however, be one hell of a tip.

You let yourself fall on the bench beside Taehyung “I just can’t believe it… You hear about these people going missing, but I didn’t know any of them so it didn’t seem… I don’t know, real? And now, this… It comes so close, you know?”

Taehyung swallowed, looked around, licked his lips and then smiled at you “How was work?”

You got from that that he didn’t want to talk about such a depressing topic. And you understood that. All these murders were… Crazy. How could anyone in their right mind do something like this to people?

“Work was alright. I got a new assignment.”

“Ooh, do tell me.”

You turned your head to him “Well… I haven’t read it yet. I literally just got it before we all left.” you laughed “But I’m pretty sure it has something to do with a children's book.”

You took and deep, exhausted breath. This entire week had been crazy. You had done so much for work, met up with Taehyung a lot and you had worked on your house. Cleaned up everything because your head couldn't process the mess it had been before that. It was safe to say you were tired and really happy it was weekend.

“Taehyung,” you started, while you turned your head at the leaves on the trees, “can I stay with you tonight? I’m so done with my own house.”

He stayed quiet for such a long time you thought he had left, but then he cleared his throat “I don’t think that’s a very good idea. I just started a new painting and so it’s smelly and one big mess… To be honest I was actually kind of hoping Holly could stay with you over the weekend.”

You turned your head to him again. He looked at Holly, petting his head “Why?”

“Well… Like I said, my house is a big mess and smells pretty funny and Holly is acting weird because of it.”

The look on his face was so serious, it almost scared you. You had never seen him like this, he usually was very bubbly and spontaneous. Seeing him so… weird and serious was strange. But he clearly cared about his friend’s dog a lot. Now that you thought about it… his friend had been on vacation for a quite a while now.

“Eh, sure. Of course he can stay with me.” you looked at your feet “Your friend has been gone for quite a long time now… is he alright?”

Taehyung once again stayed quiet for quite some time, really thinking his answer over. Maybe something really had gone wrong with his friend. Had he gotten sick?

“He has a home there. I don’t know when he’s coming back… I honestly don’t think he’ll ever come back.”

You frowned, anger boiled up inside you “And he just leaves his dog behind? That’s so mean.”

The weird look in Taehyung’s eyes disappear when he looked at you and he smiled “It’s alright, I’ve grown very attached to Holly… I don’t think I could ever give him back.”

You turned your gaze to Holly “Well I think it’s horrible. You don’t just leave your animals somewhere. You should love them like they’re your very own children. You wouldn’t just leave your children either, would you?”

Taehyung’s eyes switched to his feet really fast “My mom did.”

The anger left as fast as it had come. Why hadn’t you been more considerate? You honestly wanted to hit yourself so bad.

“Taehyung… I’m sorry.”

He shook his head and smiled at you again “Thank you that you want to keep Holly for the weekend.” he got up and handed you the dog leash “I’m afraid I have to go now, and I’m very sorry but I can’t meet up over the weekend either… Like I said, I just started a new painting and I need to finish it quickly.” He sighed and let out a sad sounding chuckle “It’s actually kind of stupid I started a new one right before the exposition. But I had a sudden burst of inspiration…”

You had to admit you were very sad he couldn’t meet up over the weekend, you had been looking forward to it so much, after your very busy week just laying in bed all day together, only getting up to eat… But you did understand. He was a busy man.

“That’s alright. Just make sure you finish it in time.” you stood up as well.

He bend over to kiss you, his soft lips pressed to yours. You wanted it to last forever. So sweet, so tender, with all the love in the world in it. But alas, it ended way too soon.

“If there’s anything I can do to help, please do tell me. Okay?”

He nodded, brushed your cheek with his hand, and walked away “I’ll see you on monday, my love. You have me all to yourself then, I promise”

You smiled and watched him as he walked away. You looked down at Holly after Taehyung had disappeared from view. He was sitting beside you right foot, his head turned to look up at you. Looking back at him creeped you out for some reason.

“Well Holly,” you started, his ears shot up by the sound of his name, “let's get you some food.”

You had no idea what Taehyung had meant by Holly acting weird. He seemed like a normal dog to you, nothing weird about him. He seemed even more normal than usual, more relaxed, more happy. But maybe he just was happy to be away from the mess in Taehyung’s house.

You had texted Taehyung a bunch of times but he hadn't texted you back at all. He hadn't even read your texts… But that was alright, he was busy and you knew that.

You felt really bad leaving Holly all alone on Monday as you left for work. You hadn't really discussed how you would get him back to Taehyung but you figured you'd just bring him back to his place after work. You couldn't wait to see Taehyung again, it was the only thing you could think about the entire day.

But as you walked home from work, there was Taehyung, on the bench in the park, looking up at the leaves of the trees. His hair dyed bright blue, the expression on his face strange, thoughtful but hurt. His blue hair made him look magical, like a fairy. And with the green of the trees and bushes behind him, his hair looked luminescent.

He smiled as you sat down beside him, but he didn’t look at you, he kept his face turned to the leaves above him.

“It’s a beautiful day.” He sighed.

You smiled at him, inspecting every little detail of his side profile “It really is, yeah.”

He sighed a second time before turning his head to you, planting a soft kiss on your forehead “It’s good to see you.”

You closed your eyes and used one of your hands to cup his face “I missed you.”

You felt his lips smile against your head. But he said nothing, just smiled.

The next couple of weeks passed quickly. You helped Taehyung to get stuff ready for the exposition that was in a few days. The hall where it was gonna happen looked very nice, it really felt like you walked in a museum.

You had been following the news closely, you felt really sad for the waiter. He had been polite and gentle. You couldn't imagine what his family had to be going through now that he had disappeared.

They found him back the Tuesday after he had gone missing. Dead.

No one had gone missing since then. Everyone was relieved that that was the case. This had been the longest time no one went missing since this whole missing person thing started. And you could feel it. The atmosphere of the city had changed, had gotten better, relieved, hopeful even. People were happy that this finally seemed to be over, but at the same time they were terrified. The fact that no one had gone missing yet meant that everyone could still be targeted. Which meant that no one was safe. But people were hopeful. Finally there was light at the end of the long tunnel.

Taehyung's newest painting looked wonderful. Like in every other painting you had seen from him, he had used red as his main color. You had asked him if red was his favorite, he had explained how red was amazing. It really made a statement, made you feel warm, yet scared you off. And yes, red really was his favorite color. And it was his thing, and all the red paintings together on the hall like they were now, looked really nice and clean.

Taehyung beamed with excitement beside you “It looks so nice. I really can't wait.”

You smiled and looked around a little “It really does look amazing.”

You felt him turn his head to face you, and with his hand on your chin he forced you to look up at him so he could press his lips against yours.

“Thank you for helping me set this all up. I couldn't have done this without you.” He whispered.

You pressed a kiss in his neck, smiling against his skin “You're welcome.”

When you had told Taehyung you would tell everyone about the exposition, you weren't kidding. You had told your family, a bunch of your friends and you had send an email to all of your colleagues. You really wanted people to come check it out, Taehyung deserved all the recognition he could get. And by that time you had no idea how well known he actually was.

You dressed up nicely, did your hair and makeup, and even changed the case of your phone to something that looked a little more classy before you left for the actual event. Nerves boiled up in your stomach. You were first picking up your parents from the train station and then you'd drive to where the exposition would be. Your parents seemed really happy, proud even, that Taehyung could present his art like this. They loved that you found someone so right for you, someone who truly seemed to love you. It then dawned on you that, even though you had been dating for months now, neither one of you had actually said those three words to the other. It had you thinking it over the entire drive there.

The place was crowded. Really packed with people. You had expected people to come but you had never imagined this many. Outside was a ridiculously long line, people talking, looking excited. You were really glad with the V.I.P. tickets you and your parents had. You cut the line and could get in without any trouble.

Your parents told you they were going to look around by themselves so you could go off and find Taehyung. You found him standing in front of the painting he always referred to as the one that changed his life. It was this painting where he started developing the style he made his own. Using loads of reds, big and bold striped and painting really abstract. You saw an old man on a scooter, while Taehyung swore he saw a nice landscape with a big tree in the middle of it. And the great thing was that it didn't matter what it was, it really was whatever you would see and that's what Taehyung had told you was the whole purpose of him creating it in the first place.

Seeing him there, looking up at the big canvas, he looked like he was in his own little world. Like he was trying to get inspired by his own painting, it made you think about what your parents had said in the car. About the love thing. Did you love him? You sure were in love, but were you really at a point where you could call it love?

He seemed to snap out of a dream and turned his head to you, a tired but big smile appeared as soon as his eyes found yours. You smiled back and walked a little bit closer.

“Hi.” he greeted you, wrapping an arm around your waist.

“Sir, I'm just trying to enjoy the exposition. No point in getting all handy here.” you said in a high pitched tone, playfully trying to get out of his grip.

He smiled and a low growl escaped from deep down his throat “Miss, you are aware this exposition is to showcase art, right?” he whispered, the deep sound of his voice making butterflies rise everywhere in your stomach.

You nodded stifly.

“Then why aren't you on the walls yet? The greatest masterpiece of all. I'm just trying to keep you from getting away.”

You couldn't help but blush, chuckling at his words “Maybe they should put you up there then.”

He let go and looked at you with a played disappointed face “Don't steal my pick up line miss, that's rude.”

Both of you laughed.

“Let's go view the exposition.” He said.

You nodded “Make sure to avoid my parents though, they're more proud than ever. I'm afraid that, if they get the chance to talk to you, you'll never get away.”

You were right. As soon as your parents spotted you and Taehyung they run up to you like wild hyenas, and they talked with Taehyung for about half an hour before I could finally pry him away from them.

“So,” you started, almost hanging on to Taehyung's arm, “where's your latest painting? Let's go see how people like that one.”

You heard Taehyung chuckle “Good idea.”

The hall was filled with people, and all of them were smiling or nodding impressed at the artworks on the walls. So far you hadn't heard anyone say anything negative, only positive things. Well, except that one woman who told her friend that she thought it was all a little too red. But that was Taehyung's style.

There were standing a bunch of people around the painting, some inspecting it in every detail, others just glancing over it as they walked by. Since a picture of Taehyung hung above the entrance, people looked at him as soon as he came close to them. Some complimented him, other just smiled and nodded.

But there was one guy who's eyes hadn't left Taehyung ever since he came into view. He was wearing a suit of which the colors seemed to clash with themselves, and he had a very strange mustache that was long and curled up with hair gel. As soon as some people had walked away, he walked towards you two. He was grinning as he offered Taehyung a hand shake.

“Mister Kim, right?” He asked, his voice had a very nagging sound, but he smiled charmingly.

Taehyung smiled politely “That's me.”

The guy bowed his head in greeting “It’s nice to meet you, I’m Jean Pierre.”

Taehyung chuckled “I know.”

Mister Pierre’s eyes widened a little “Of course you do. Anyway, I was looking at this wonderful piece you created here and I must say: Bravo. You really did a great job on it.”

You looked up at Taehyung, he was beaming proudly “Thank you sir, that means a lot.”

“Oh, please, call me Jean.” mister Pierre walked closer to Taehyung, whom had let go of your hand, and linked arms with him. They slowly walked away together. You let out a chuckle in disbelieve, and watched them as they walked away.

You saw Taehyung again after the exposition. He was waiting outside for you to come out. You were in awe of how good he looked in that suit, like a prince.

It was cold outside, the wind hurt your bare skin. Winter was coming.

Taehyung smiled and took off his jacket so he could give it to you “I’m sorry for leaving you.”

You slipped on the jacket and smiled up at him “No worries, it was alright. Art critics are important.”

He kissed you softly “Thank you for understanding. Are you bringing your parents back to the train station?”

You nodded “Yep. Sadly they don’t have more time to spend.”

Taehyung leaned forward, his lips touching your earlobe “How about, you bring your parents to the station and then come over to my house. I have great news, and I need to make up for leaving you all by yourself.”

His deep voice gave you goosebumps, butterflies fluttered through your stomach and you nodded.

You did just that, brought your parents to the train station and drove directly to Taehyung from there. As you opened the door, with the key he had given you a couple of weeks ago, Holly came running towards you excitedly. You patted his head and greeted him.

In the other room you heard Taehyung gasp, it sounded like you just ran into something you weren't supposed to see "You're already here?"

You raised an eyebrow and started walking towards the door to the living room "Yeah…"

He sighed disappointedly "I wasn't finished yet…"

The living room was all cleaned up, which seemed like a miracle. Normally there were paintings and other art things covering everything, but now it even seemed like he vacuumed. The only thing littering the ground were rose petals, tons of them, and you wouldn't necessarily call that littering. And a bunch of candles were lit. Taehyung was standing in the kitchen, leaned against the little wall that separated the two rooms from each other, observing you with wonder in his eyes. The same look he wore when he looked up to the leaves in the trees.

"You look… positively gorgeous." he whispered breathlessly "Had I told you that yet?" his eyes scanned your body, seemed to take in every little detail there was.

You let the jacket, he had given you before, slide off your shoulders "You look very handsome yourself."

He laughed and walked closer, resting his hands on your hips "Did you wear red just to make me go crazy?"

The dress you were wearing was, indeed, red. It was a very simple yet elegant and pretty dress, reaching to right above your knees, being held up by two spaghetti straps. And it looked gorgeous on you.

You shrugged "So what if I did?"

He laughed, throwing his head back "You do things to me I can't even explain."

You planted a soft and tender kiss in his neck, he gasped and his grip on your hips got stronger. You grinned devilishly.

He smiled a boxy smile as one hand let loose of your hip and cupped the back of your head instead. He pulled your hair very gently so your head leaned back and he could kiss your lips. You reached for his hair, tangling your fingers in it. For a while you stood there, making out. You got to a point where you were pressed against the wall, his dress shirt unbuttoned, before he carried you to the bed. The rose petals he laid down lead your way, the bed filled with them, candles romantically lit.

His hands were everywhere, your hands were everywhere. Your dress, forgotten, somewhere on the ground. His trousers thrown beside it. And he had his way with you, like he always had. Whenever you laid in his arms you were his and his alone, no one else seemed to exist. Only the two of you, entangled with each other, and the world seemed to be all yours.

And in your moment of pure bliss, you knew you loved him.

You were drawing circles and other little figure over his bare chest with your index finger. His arm as wrapped around you, his thumb stroking your arms. He had his eyes closed and you could swear he was an angel. He must have been. No human could look as enchanting as he did.

You chuckled at that thought, making his eyes shoot open.

"What?" he smiled as soon as he saw you pressing your face to his side.

"Nothing." you murmured.

He made a sound that indicated he didn't really believe you, making you chuckle even more.

He pinched your side playfully.

"Don't do that!" you laughed, pinching him back "You know I'm ticklish there."

He laughed and bend his mouth to your ear "That's payback."

You childishly stuck out your tongue.

"Anyway," you began, looking up at him, "you made up for leaving me all by myself, like you said you would do. But at the exposition you also told me you had great news…"

His face lit up and he grinned "Right, I forgot."

He pulled you on top of him, your face very close to his. He looked as excited as a little kid talking about what presents he got for his birthday. Gosh he did things to your heart.

"So, do you remember that Jean Pierre dude?"

You nodded, of course you remembered the guy with the weird mustache, who practically stole Taehyung from you at the exposition. Taehyung's smile widened "Okay, well. He's this important art critic from France or whatever, and, anyway, he wants to do a story on me in his magazine. And he says he's gonna talk with some people so that maybe some of my art can hang in a museum somewhere in France."

You leaned on your elbows and pushed yourself up so you could look him in the eyes, you mouth hanging open "Really? Oh my! That's amazing Taehyung!"

Imagine that, your boyfriend's art hanging in a museum? That would be so great. It would open so many opportunities for him.

He laughed "I know right! I'm so proud."

"You have all the right to be! That really is wonderful!" you have him a small kiss "I'm super proud of you as well."

Both of you turned to your sides, looking each other in the eyes.

"I have a meeting with him on Tuesday. We'll discuss the museum thing and he will interview me and stuff. It's going to be great." He grinned "Gosh, he was so nice."

You smiled at your boyfriend in pure adoration "You'll have to tell me how that went after I come home from work."

"I will for sure..." he sighed, his eyes started to close slowly. He pulled you closer to him, wrapping both his arms around you "But that is then. Let's sleep now."

You nodded, head buried in his chest once again. You were tired, today had been very busy and tiring, but it had been good. Great even.

You slowly felt yourself falling asleep, the last thing you remembered Taehyung say was: "Thank you for today." Very softly, merely a whisper. But you were sure that's what he said right before you fell asleep happily.

The next day, sunday, there was another day of exposition. Nothing too interesting happened there this time. You had to go home early since you had work the day after again, so you kissed Taehyung goodbye and left.

Monday you walked Holly after coming back from work, and went home by yourself. Taehyung was busy bringing back all his artwork, you didn’t see him. Tuesday morning, you send him a message wishing him good luck for the interview. But he didn’t text back. When you walked home from work, he wasn’t on the park bench.

It was wednesday when you saw him again. You walked out of the building you worked in and there he was, standing right in front of it. He smiled a charming, yet nervous smile. You smiled back. Seeing him again after so many days felt like coming home. You wrapped your arms around him, he kissed your cheek.

"Let's go eat something, I'm starving."

You went to the little cafe on the corner of the street, say down, and both ordered what you wanted.

"Did you get all your paintings back safely?" you asked.

He nodded "We did, yeah. And remember that Jean Pierre guy? Well, he came around and started helping us get everything away." he beamed and stared off to space for a little before talking again, "He's so great."

You smiled, it seemed kind of strange that he would suddenly show up and help. But you were sure he had his reason. And Taehyung seemed to think it wasn't out of ordinary, so it must have been alright.

"That is great." You agreed, as you took a sip of the coffee you had ordered "About that Jean Pierre, how did your interview go yesterday?"

Taehyung's eyes lit up "It was amazing. He asked me all kinds of questions, like where I get my inspiration from and stuff. And he bought me lunch and even dinner. He had a laptop on which he wrote whenever I answered, and he carried this funny looking notebook in which he took notes. It was great."

You laughed “I’m glad you had fun.”

Taehyung took a bite of what he had ordered and nodded “I did. And he said he would finish the article this week and immediately send it in as soon as it’s finished.”

“That’s great!” you took another sip of your coffee “What about the ‘hanging your paintings in a museum’ thing?”

“Oh, he’s skyping with some people in France tonight and he’ll discuss it then or something. And if they’re interested they’ll contact me directly. So we’ll see.”

You nodded to show you understood. His reaction was kind of strange to you. One would think he would be more excited about the museum then about the interview. Maybe the interview just gave him more recognition and was that all he wanted.

You finished your food and drinks and walked to his place, talking about random little things, holding hands. When he opened the door to his apartment, Holly didn’t come running to the door like usually. He was still on his cushion, which was very unusual for him.

“Is something wrong with Holly?” you asked Taehyung, as you patted Holly’s head.

Taehyung walked to the kitchen to get you two some drinks “Oh, yeah. I noticed something off about him as well, so I took him to the vet today.” he put to glasses on the kitchen counter and stood still for a few seconds, clearly upset “He… He’s very sick. I wanted to tell you sooner but we hadn’t seen each other in a while and I didn’t want to ruin the moment.”

You walked over to Taehyung and wrapped your arms around his waist “It’s okay, don’t worry. How are you handling it?”

He placed his hand over yours gently “I’m… doing alright, I guess. It’s just very difficult to see someone you love die.”

You nodded, realizing this must bring back memories of his mother dying. She had been sick as well, tied to her bed for a while. He had slowly seen the life drip out of her. This thing with Holly would surely bring back those awful memories of his youth.

“How long does he have left?”

Taehyung shrugged “The doctor’s said it could be today, but it could also be a few weeks. They didn’t really give an end date.”

You bit your lip “That must be frustrating.”

He nodded his head before taking a deep breath and turning around so he could hug you back. He buried his head in your neck and sighed.

“Thank you. For being here for me.”

Weird enough, you smiled. Seeing the circumstances that seemed very out of place, but you couldn’t help it. Was this where you were supposed to tell him you loved him?

But before you could decide that he pulled back, looking you in your eyes as he stroked a stray hair behind your ear and kissed you on your head. He then turned around and continued getting you both drinks. You figured you should change the subject.

“Do you have any inspiration for a new painting?”

He let out a chuckle, it didn’t sound very convincing “I thought of something, but I got a brand new idea just today.”

You leaned on the little wall dividing the living room and the kitchen “Ooh… Wanna tell me about it?”

He handed you your drink with a grin on his face “Nope.” he made the ‘P’ pop “You’ll see it when it’s finished.”

You sighed and looked at him with your best puppy eyes “Do you never share your ideas? Not even with me?”

He laughed at you and quickly kissed your lips before walking over to the couch “I never tell anyone. I think that brings bad luck.”

You frowned and sat down beside him “Alright, well, I’m looking forward to the end product.”

The next weekend Taehyung texted you he was going to be busy. You figured he was going to get started on the painting, so you let him be and didn't contact him at all knowing he probably wouldn't respond anyway.

On Monday he was waiting for you on the park bench, looking up at the remaining leaves. The look on his face told you something was wrong, and you knew exactly what that was. Without saying anything you sat down beside him, following his gaze so you were both looking up at the sky. Autumn had made the leaves fall to the ground, it was cold outside. But today the sky was blue.

You didn't talk for awhile, until he started talking. Still looking up, not turning his head.

"He's gone." the words sounded soft, broken. The little crack in his voice broke your heart.

You turned so you could embrace him, not too sure what to say. But that was fine, you knew it was. He didn't cry, neither of you did. Just looked up at the last leaves falling off the trees.

The next couple of weeks were weird. Taehyung seemed to be fine most of the time, but sometimes stared off into space, face turning sad for a moment before returning to his usual self.

You didn't go to his house the first week, Taehyung said the paint was still drying and it smelled bad. But the first time you got to his apartment again was strange, it felt empty without Holly there. Even after three weeks you hadn’t gotten used to him not greeting you at the door anymore, or laying down beside you on Taehyung’s bed.

Mister Pierre had told Taehyung that the interview he had done for the magazine in France, was going to get published real soon and that he made sure a bunch of copies would be send to Taehyung. Taehyung was really excited about it, couldn’t stop talking about it. That was very nice though, it kept both your minds from thinking about Holly. The museum thing he didn’t know yet. Jean Pierre had said they, the people from the museum, were busy discussing the matter but just weren't ready to decide yet.

You thought that was ridiculous: one look at any of Taehyung’s paintings was enough for anyone to decide whether they wanted to showcase it or not. And, in your opinion, everyone would want it. And if they wouldn’t for some reason, they’d be crazy.

Taehyung didn’t seem to care much about it though. Sure, he thought it would be an honor if they would showcase it there, but he just didn’t care too much about that. He loved the publicity in the magazine more. Because loads of people could read about him now and get interested and look him up. And if you looked at it in that way, you agreed with him, but you still really hoped they’d buy some of his art to showcase it.

But that hope vanished when you read the newspaper on your way to work on a wednesday morning.

“Famous art critic from France, disappears?”

That had to be him, it couldn’t be anyone else. Had Jean Pierre really fallen victim to the relentless killer?

“Mister Jean Pierre had come all the way from France, to look at art from local artists. But what was supposed to be a fun trip turned into a nightmare last Monday. The art critic had been spotted in a cafe with one of the artists he was working with at that moment, witnesses saw him walk to his hotel alone after that. The personnel of the hotel he was staying at however, said that he never arrived there.”

You turned your head away from the paper in front of you. The poor man, he had come all this way for a nice trip, and this happens to him of all people. How horrible.

Your mind shot to Taehyung, he was staying at a little house on a beach somewhere that belonged to a friend of him. He had left yesterday morning, only to return on Sunday. You wondered if this news had reached him yet. You doubted whether he could handle this news right after Holly’s death.

Jean Pierre had been so nice to Taehyung, Taehyung had really liked him. Man, this sucked. Not that it would have sucked any less, had it been someone you didn’t know. It just sucked that this whole thing happened. Who on earth would do something like this at all? Everyone was terrified. What if they were next? What if one of their loved ones was next?

And that made you wonder. Your parents didn’t live here, and all the disappearances happened in your town, so you weren’t too worried about them. But what about Taehyung? What if he was the next victim? What would you do then?

You frowned to yourself and decided that it was about time you told Taehyung how you felt about him. That you loved him. So as soon as he would come back you would try to find the best moment to tell him. Because, if there was one thing you knew for sure, it was that if Taehyung happened to be the next victim, you would definitely regret it if you had never once told him that you loved him.

That next week was weird for everyone. Whenever a person was taken, everyone seemed to be a little more quiet, a little more careful. No one knew how the purpotrayer decided who would be the next victim, so no one wanted to stand out just in case they’d be picked. You couldn’t judge them for it, you knew you did the same.

It was a thing that made you wonder: how did the killer decide who would be a victim? None of the victims seemed to have a real, clear connection, according to the police. So why did he pick them? Just randomly? Or maybe because they had said something to him? No one knew, and that’s probably what made it even scarier.

But you knew that, after a week, everyone would forget to be invisible, or maybe they just stopped caring. It always went like that.

Jean Pierre his body was found on saturday morning. He sat against a tree, his face turned to look at the pond filled with ducks. He was dressed nicely, wearing a nice suit, the newspaper even said his mustache was curled up the way it always was. Once again the relentless killer had made sure the body was funeral ready, which everyone always thought was weird.

Sunday evening Taehyung texted you he was home. He said he was tired and he would pick you up from work tomorrow. Something about his texts felt strange, but you didn’t pay much attention to it. Lately everything had been weird, and after Holly’s death, and now mister Pierre’s, you imagined Taehyung wasn’t feeling to well. Even though he told you he was doing alright when you asked him about it.

And there he was on Monday, waiting for you on the same bench as always, looking up at the branches of the trees. The blue of his hair had fainted into a light green a while back, and he had liked it so much he bought mint green dye soon after. Apparently he had dyed his hair somewhere in the last week.

As soon as he noticed you walk towards him he stood up and walked towards you, taking you in his arms as soon as they could reach you.

“I’m sorry.” He whispered with a broken voice.

You wrapped your arms around his waist “What? What are you sorry for?”

“Everything.”

You had no clue what he meant, but just decided to ignore it. He had had a rough month, you were sure he was just tired of everything. So you smiled, and tangled your fingers in his hair.

“It’s alright, Taehyung.”

He sighed a shaky sigh, and it seemed like he was never going to let go of you. You wouldn’t mind that, you wanted to drown in him, never let go, love him forever. And wanted to tell him that, but he let go of you before you got the chance.

“Let’s get something to eat.” he said before kissing your nose and taking your hand to guide you out of the park that got more and more depressing as time passed and bodies were found.

Taehyung turned back into himself as you ate something, his cheerful personality returned and he laughed his way through everything. He acted kind of weirdly when you asked him about his week at the beach house, not really talking about it at all and seeming to avoid the subject as a whole. Which was kind of strange considering you had thought it would be something he would want to talk about all the time. The only thing you got out of him about it was the fact that he did some painting. Which was quite obvious to you: the whole reason he went was to paint. But you just decided to let it rest, you figured he’d talk to you about it when he would feel like it and you were not going to push him to tell you anything.

“So… did you hear about that Jean Pierre yet?” you decided to ask. You realized it might be a painful topic for him to talk about but figured that, if he didn’t know about his death yet, Taehyung should at least be notified about it in some way. And in that case maybe you were the best person he could hear it from.

He nodded and looked down “Yeah, I did.”

You weren’t too sure what to say next. So you just took a sip of your drink.

“But I know that the article about me was posted yesterday, so I expect some copies of the magazine to come my way soon.” he smiled.

You forced a smile back and nodded “That’s good. What about the museum thing?”

Taehyung took a bite from his food and shrugged “I don’t know. But, to be quite honest, I don’t really care about it. Most of my pieces mean too much to me, I could never sell them.”

“You could have made a lot of money with it though.”

“That’s true, yes. But there are things money can’t buy.”

You nodded to show you agreed. And you did, he was right. Things like love and friendship weren’t for sale and couldn’t be bought from you. But it’s not like you can have those kinds of connections with objects, right?

He smiled the boxy smile you loved so dearly “I probably wouldn’t have sold any of them in the first place.”

That made you giggle “Well at least you didn’t miss a great opportunity then. Not that that makes Jean Pierre’s death less devastating, of course. Who would have thought, him of all people.”

Taehyung merely shrugged.

“Don’t you think it’s sad?”

He nodded “Of course it kind of is. But I like to think he stays with us forever.”

You had to think about that sentence a little before you realized what it was that he meant exactly “Yeah, I guess you might be right. He was pretty famous, wasn’t he? So I guess people will remember him for a very long time.”

Taehyung insisted on going to your apartment that night, which you disagreed on. You really wanted to see the painting he made in the week he was gone. He promised you would get to see it soon enough. But coming back to his apartment after being gone for a while really made him realize what a mess it was and how badly he had to clean up, At least that’s what he told you. But he seemed kind of weird about it, like he was keeping something from you. But, once again, you decided to just ignore that.

You had missed him, missed his touch, and you really didn’t care where you would go, as long as you would be with him.

The next day he promised he would clean up. And as you got to his apartment after a long day at work, it really did seem more clean. But it smelled kind of strange.

He poured you two a glass of wine.

“So,” you started, “Where is your new masterpiece?”

He laughed and stood up “I wouldn’t really call it a masterpiece but I’ll get it for you.”

He kissed your forehead, put down his glass on the little table and walked into a different room. Only to return holding a pretty large canvas. You could now only see the back of it, and straightened your back right before he turned it around dramatically. You gasped at the sight of it.

It was as gorgeous as ever. Really well put together and just as abstract as any of his others. It was really pretty. Yet you couldn’t really see any of the influences the beach should have had on Taehyung. But whatever, it was a great artwork.

“It’s gorgeous, Tae.” You told him breathlessly.

He put it down on the ground and sat beside you so you could both look at it “Thank you.”

You tried to look at some of the details that made this piece so outstanding, see what you saw in this abstract piece of art. Your eyes found two curls, right across from each other. Where the two lines met up seemed to be something that looked like a mouth.

“Wait, did you paint… mister Pierre?”

Taehyung laughed kind of awkwardly and looked away, trying to act normal “What? No. What would give you that idea?”

You inspected the painting a little more. Yes, above the two curly lines was something that looked like a nose, eyes painted close to them.

“Well, for starters, his mustache.”

“I really liked Jean Pierre’s mustache, it was so funny.”

“So it is mister Pierre?”

He took a sip from his wine “Honey, it’s abstract art. It is whatever you want it to be, whatever you see. Maybe you see Jean Pierre because he’s what’s on your mind right now.”

You frowned. That kind of made sense.

“Anyway, let’s talk about something else right now. How’s your wine?” he smiled.

You couldn’t help but smile back “It’s delicious, exactly right for my taste.”

“Great, that is exactly what I wanted to hear. Because I bought a bunch of these this weekend and I really hoped we could drink it all together.” he pulled you in his arms and smiled against the back of your head.

You laughed “Tonight?”

“Well, not necessarily, no. But if you want to, we could get super waisted and have some hard core drunk action. If you know what I mean.” he chuckled.

You turned your head slightly “Ooh, I didn’t know you were into that kind of stuff.”

He took your chin in his hand and helped you turn your body to his with his other. The look in his eyes was kind of erotic, yet really calmed you down and made you feel safe. The little smirk playing on his lips made your insides burn.

“There’s so much that you don’t know about me.”

He kissed you, and you completely forgot about the wine.

You made out for quite some time, his hand had found its way to your bra and yours was scratching lightly over his back, before your lips got off of each other again. You were the one who pulled back. The relaxed atmosphere surrounding the two of you right now seemed like the perfect ambiance to say those three little words you had been dying to tell him.

He, on the other hand, saw you pulling back as an invitation to start exploring your neck.

You chuckled and suppressed a moan as you started talking "Taehyung I… I need to tell you something."

"So tell me." He whispered in your neck, giving you goosebumps all over. He flipped you over so he was on top of you, pressing you softly against the couch, pressing soft and wet kisses down your belly, his hand everywhere.

Your breathing got unsteady "Taehyung I…"

He started kissing up again, unbuttoning your blouse the further he went up, his hands finding their way below you bra before his mouth did. You moaned in the middle of your sentence.

You pulled his hair, making him groan deep and low.

"I love you."

Everything stopped. He stopped moving, he stopped kissing, he stopped feeling. He stopped everything he did, and got up high enough to look you in your eyes. Where you expected to see love and happiness, you saw fear, sadness and confusion. You frowned when tears started streaming down his face.

His arms reached up, to the little table your wine glass was on. You heard glass break, liquid flow. You felt pain, and then nothing. The world went black. And Taehyung, him whom you loved so much, disappeared.

Music. The music was loud, deafening. A piano piece, not like the pieces he usually listened to while painting. Normally he listened to messy and harsh piano pieces. But this one was the opposite, perhaps his favorite one of all.

Red. The red was everywhere. Spattered on things, more things than he wanted it to spatter on, but he couldn't help it. It was more than he had ever imagined, more than he had  intended it to be. Since, this time it was you he was working with, he just couldn't keep his hands steady.

Tears were streaming down his face as he looked at your body just laying there on the floor. Why did it have to come to this? Why did you have to tell him?

It all started when his mom got sick, he was young. So young. He was sure that, had it been an ordinary day at school or with a friend, he would have long forgotten it. But this day was burned into his memory. So vivid, that he could revisit it at any given moment in time and relive it exactly the way it had gone.

As he saw the life slip out of his mother's body he knew that she was gone. Really gone. People kept telling him she was still here, in his heart, probably looking down at him from heaven. But he had never seen her since.

That's when he realized that, when people die, they're gone. Really gone.

It was then, that he started painting. Always his mother. Her face, her outfits, the smell of her perfume. It got more abstract with each painting, but he always drew her. Hoping that, someday, she wouldn't be as gone as she was at that time.

And then his dad fell ill, very ill. He panicked. Even though it was a couple of years after the death of his mom, seeing his father tied to his bed brought back all those memories. He couldn't lose his father too.

Something within him snapped, and before he knew it he had a pillow pressed against his father's face. His father was wired to so many things, doctors had stabbed and punctured him in so many ways that it wasn't difficult to find some place where he could drain some blood.

And then he just started painting.

His father never left him. His father was right there, in the room. His father would live forever. Unlike his mother, his father never left him. Taehyung went on, living his life, knowing he saved his father's life. His father was declared dead, yes, but Taehyung knew better. Taehyung knew his dad couldn't die, his dad lived on as a piece of art, as a part of his son's paintings. The paintings he had loved so dearly.

Taehyung started looking at people differently from then on. Everyone he met, suddenly had an expiration date. Even all the nice and amazing people he met would eventually all die, even people who deserved to live forever.

The world needed a hero, and Taehyung knew that was him.

So he decided that the people he thought should live forever, truly would live forever. And since then, he had been painting with their blood. They would live on as art, who wouldn't want that? What a perfect way to live.

The first one was the doctor, that helped his father and had been so nice to the both of them. Then, a bartender whom had been willing to listen to his stories. An old man that had given him advice on life, a man at the ice cream shop who gave him his ice cream for free. A guy with a dog named Holly, who had rescued him from the shelter. A lawyer he bumped into, who didn't get angry at him for it and had a super nice talk with him.

And then he met you.

You completely threw him off guard, with your nice smile and sparkling eyes. He had wanted to paint you after the first time he met you, but he was too curious, too excited. You did something to him he just couldn't describe, made him feel a thing he couldn't place.

He painted the waiter of your first date, whom had been so nice to you. Not necessarily to Taehyung himself, but to you. It was different, he had never painted anyone whom had been nice to someone else.

And then he just… stopped. He completely stopped painting anyone. He just forgot about it, because of you. He was too busy with you and what he felt for you to do anything anymore. The thought hadn't even crossed his mind.

Until Jean Pierre. He was so nice to Taehyung, showed him interest, really was a diamond in society. Someone who deserved to live forever.

Taehyung had wanted to paint the him much sooner, but then Holly got sick. He couldn't just let Holly die, he had been such a great and amazing dog. A dog whom he wanted to keep with him forever. It was the first animal he painted.

But since he already made up an excuse to not contact anyone when he was painting Holly, he needed a different one to paint Jean Pierre. The first thing the came to mind was leaving town, and you bought it. He never actually left town, just locked himself in his apartment.

And now you. You telling him that you loved him, brought up the panic of death. Even you would eventually die, and if there was anyone who deserved to live forever it was you.

He didn’t mean too, for the first time in his live he had found someone he wanted to share the rest of his life with, he had decided to paint you as you got older. Not now. But those three little words brought so much pain and panic forth from within him, and the same thing that snapped back when his father was sick, snapped as you said those words. He knew you weren’t sick, but you could have died at any given moment. He could have lost you the next day, or somewhere next week. Death was always around everyone, waiting to strike. And after those three little words, that feeling they described, he could never imagined losing you.

But you were the hardest one he ever painted. For the first time, he actually felt like he had killed someone, not given them life. He had killed you.

So he decided this would be his greatest artwork ever, less abstract, more you. Everyone had to see he drew inspiration from you and you alone. Everyone had to see what he felt for you. A much more realistic portrait, painted while his tears streamed down his face and blocked his vision. You were the hardest one he had ever painted.

He fell onto his knees, screaming, crying, as he finished. He looked at you, bend over you, stroking your hair out of you face, planting a soft kiss on your forehead.

"I love you, too."

check notes for my masterlist

[makeshift-prepper]

The Blight of Man

Part one

Chapter one: The Librarian

Its almost done. He thought to himself as he tore up another strip of carpet. This one had been particularly bad, windows smashed and animals nesting in the books, that dense carpet that you can only find in librarys and theatres shredded and stained with feces piled in the corner, not all of it from animals either, there had been some books that had molded with the moisture and neglect. He wondered if it would be worth it to check the theatre for more carpet... No, hardwood floor is fine, besides anyone left probably wont care either way. He checked his watch wondering again at the fact it was still working. "Jeez, old stuff man," His voice sounding lonely in the empty building. " 'Bout time for sunset," He said, forcing himself to use his voice. It was more difficult than it should be, but it had been so long. Hauling the last of the rotted carpet outside he saw that the sun was, in fact setting. With a deep sigh he set the carpet down and forced himself to speak aloud again. "No time to haul this all the way to the trash pile tonight. Just get the rest outside and take care of it in the morning..." Biting his lip and looking at the setting sun he decided that was really all he could do and, after bringing the last of the carpet out he went inside, closing and locking the doors behing him.

That night came and went as it always does, the darkness creeping around a sleeping figure far too tired from the work of the day to even consider what good or bad the next might bring.

Rising with the sun had never been his strong suit so it was a little more like being hauled forcibly upward than anything else, blinking away the haze of sleep he fished in his bag for something to tide him over until he could go forage and check the traps, his hand came back empty, as he expected it to but that didnt make it any less disapointing. Pulling himself up he couldnt help but admire his handywork. The library he had found nearly in ruins was now almost ready for visitors again. It was almost as good as new, except for the lights, those were better, in his own humble opinion anyway. He'd managed to scavenge some windshield wiper motors hook'em to some blades and the batteries from abandoned vehicles then to the lights. They couldnt all be on at once of course but it was something, better than nothing anyway. He would leave in the next few days he decided build up some supplies maybe try and find a map of the area ahead, then hit the road. Outside the library he saw the pile of carpet from last night and let out a long sigh. "Cant do anything before I get some food." On his way to the traps he hummed to himself. It had been a while since he had heard the song so he wasnt really sure he remembered it right. But he hummed anyway, trying his best to keep the quiet at bay, trying and failing. He reminded himself that listening to his surroundings was more important anyway. The last time he saw a person was... He didnt even remember when, no it he did it was months ago now it had been a merchant, of sorts. What had he been selling again? Something to do with-

Snap!

He whipped his pistol out at the sound trying to find its source and then looked down at the twig underneath his booted foot. "Well." He said to nobody. "Im glad only Odyseus saw that." Then went onward. The first had been empty but the second was tripped but had nothing in it. "Thats... weird..." He told the trap and bent down to inspect it. "Huh... No blood or anything... I must have set the trigger to sensitively." He knocked the whole thing over, it wouldnt catch anything anyway. The third had a good sized rabbit in it which he quickly field dressed for cooking later. On his way back he found some stinging nettle that he took care while picking and made sure to get the roots. Most of the day went this way and by the time he got back to the library it was nearly noon and his bag was almost full of wild edibles. As he approached the pile of carpet sat there accusingly. "I'll get to it." He muttered at the carpet and went inside with his findings. "The rabbit will have to be cooked before anything else or it would spoil and I wonder if theres a way to tan the hide?" He stopped, realizing he now had been talking out loud without thinking about it. "Ok Ill boil some for dinner and put the rest in the smoker for jerky the hide should be ok for a while though so once I start everything cooking I'll take the carpet to the trash pile then when I get back I'll look for something about tanning." Setting to work he moved quickly, as hungry people often do. He decide to turn boiled rabbit into a stew of sorts, he had some wild onion and other things to add into it to give it a little substance. There wouldnt be much but it would be enough. "Ok, thats taken care of." He was already salivating over the stew. "Now for the carpet he reminded himself." He went outside and loaded the carpet onto the cart he'd 'liberated' from a local hardware store, just about the only thing left anyway. Pulling it down the street was easy enough and it wasnt that far actually it was only down the road and across the street. But it seemed like farther to him before he had started it was probably the promise of good food that gave him newfound strength. Dumping the carpet he wondered if anyone ever found the librarys he fixed upor if they just sat there and rotted or if they found them but took over the building for themselves maybe throwing all the books on the street... He shook his head to clear those thoughts from his mind. "No sense worrying." He told himself. Of course that didnt stop him. Back at the library he looked through the shelves and trying to ignore the cooking food. Finally finding a book with the information he needed and a half a dozen others that maybe werent involved directly to the subject but seemed like good reads. He already had a stack that he needed to choose from. "Buuut," He rationalized to himself. "Now I have more to choose from. So I know I'll be happy with what I choose,"

The more he read on the subject he realized that it was not something he could do without more preperation. "Well thats depressing. You however," He said to his dinner. "Are not in the least," ladling some into a bowl he inhaled the smell as deeply as he could and he couldnt help smiling as he ate better than he had in quite a while.

The night slid by quick and silent.

In the morning he gave the library one last once-over looking for anything he might have missed. "Hmph." He gave it a twice over. "Well, I guess thats that." He then took on the almost too-large task of choosing which three books he would take with him. That was his rule, three books ever since he lost an entire shopping cart full of books to a group of raiders, who were probably not very happy with their plunder. After deciding on his books, as tortuous a process as it was he then went through the library collecting his tools, chisels, hammer, axe, crowbar... It was all here. "I'll leave in the morning." He said into the last of the stew.

This night passed with a hesitance, almost as if it were sad to go...

The day came with clear skies and chirping birds. As he left the library he closed the door and set the bar lock to make sure no animals could get in.

Then began walking.

[dia-luneris]

Comrades

He held the knife in a gloved hand. Both the blade and his hands, were red. A cough wracked him, causing him to drop the knife. It hit the ground with a clink, soon followed by drops of blood. He looked down into his hands, stained more so now. Coughing again, blood ran from the corner of his mouth...

Aiden sat bolt upright, holding a hand to his mouth in reaction to the dream he just had. It was just that. But why now... He hadn't regretted killing that man... They had attacked her. They deserved it.

He allowed his hand to drop back down to the bed, perplexed at why this had been a thing. He hadn't had such dreams in a while. The memory came back to him, holding her, after he had put down her assailant.The smell of the blood, and the sight of it, had brought back the feelings of that day... A memory within a memory. They hadn't haunted him in quite some time... His comrades... Would they always be there? Always in the back of his mind, despite long been buried?

He hadn't visited their graves in a long time either. Perhaps that was it. He had to pay them a visit. As soon as he was able to, he would return there, and apologize for it having been so long.

-

Carefully letting go of the reins of his bird, he motioned to him to stay put. Aiden had asked Lord Emal, if he could come here, just to pay respects to those who had fallen. Of course the man hadn't refused. He was not the sort to do so. 

The snow crunched under the weight of his boots, as he made his way to the site, that held the remains of his friends. Kneeling, he spoke to them "I'm sorry it's been so long...

I gave a birthday card to Amelie, but I should have come to visit. No doubt she told you about the card, though. She really has grown, but she still adores Paissa... I saw Annette as well, on my way through the marketplace. She looks well, despite everything" he remembered her, Annette, stood not far from here, speaking to him

'You will have a family one day Aiden... A wife, and maybe even a few children. Obert would be happy for you, if you did' she was so brave in the face of it all. At the time, he couldn't help but feel guilty.

The guilt weighed heavily on him, speaking with their wives, and their children. He hadn't any family apart from his mother, and his father... But now, perhaps there was a chance that could change. He did not want to be overly wishful on the idea, being that things had only just begun between them. But there was no way he would ever part with her. A smile came to him, thinking of her.

"Apologies, I became distracted... You see, the woman I mentioned to you before... Miss Elenion, well, she and I are a thing now" He didn't know how else to describe it "It's really just between us for now, but hopefully the people will get their heads out of their arses, and stop being so vocal about it... so we can actually go about our business. But hoping for some reasonable behaviour from the higher classes, is unreasonable it seems..." 

the wind blew by, moving his hair as he stayed knelt in the snow. He sighed, reminded once again that they would not answer. That he was in fact speaking to a row of cold stones, covered for the most part in ice. But he wanted to believe that they could somehow hear him. He was not a strong believer in anything the church had told him, but he held a personal belief that words could reach them. 

He canted his head, allowing his sight to shift to the stone, beside the one he was kneeling by "Ahh, yes. That is what else I had come here to say. I saw Luc the other day as well. He looks more like you each time I see him now. I just hope he decides not to join the military, and actually do something different with his life" It was not as needed, now that the war was over... There was no real reason, for Ishgard's young people to throw themselves into such a life.

Aiden stood himself upright again, looking upon the horizon. There were many of these markers, but he only really knew a handful of the men buried here. He had kept to himself for the most part, only really getting to know the men he went on patrol with. He lowered his gaze again, trying to recall everything he had wanted to say... Would this ever be enough? He had tried to keep them informed, on what had been happening outside of this cemetery... Tried to visit as often as he remembered to... but the memory of the day they died, still haunted him. Would it ever not be so?

"What can I do..." he found himself asking, quietly "What can I do to forget?? I have tried to move on with my life... I have found a reason to live... What more can I do??"

There was that silence again. Perhaps there was no answer...

-

[hahanoiwont]

hey could i get 98 with those good good boys ango and taako. or taakitz 75 i cant decide

went for the first one, but I may yet go for the second one too…I just had an idea for the first one that i really liked

98: “I won’t let anything bad happen to you.”

please enjoy Ango’s Adventures in Not That Wonderland (not that one either)

The boy has been walking for a long time.

Forever, maybe.

The forest is bright around him, with giggles in the undergrowth. There was a wide, clear path at some point, but the boy has left it. He was curious about this forest and its vivid greens and reds, like a forest written about in a book by someone who has never been to a real forest. The dreamer’s forest, he thinks.

There is a crash in the undergrowth, and some irritable cursing.

The boy cannot stop, but he doesn’t speed up. The crash will follow him or it won’t.

It does, and soon there is a dove flying beside him.

“Hey, pumpkin,” the dove says.

“Hello,” the boy replies. The dove keeps pace with him as he continues, hovering at his side.

“Wow, what a walk in the woods. I see now why I never, ever go hiking in my spare time,” the dove says. The boy shrugs.

“I think it’s nice.”

The undergrowth is thick, but it parts for him. The dove has to fly close in order to avoid being hit.

“Yeah, love the fuckin’…weedy deathtrap,” the dove says. “Hey, I should make a fantasy vape trick called that. Mag–Maggie would think that’s real cool.”

“I didn’t know birds could vape,” the boy says politely. The dove lights down on his shoulder as he ducks under a low branch before taking off again.

“Not usually a bird, kiddo. That one’s on you,” it says.

“You can ride on my shoulder,” the boy offers. “I don’t mind.”

The bird ruffles its feathers mid-flight. “How about fucking no,” it says. “You shouldn’t offer that.”

It flaps in the boy’s face. “Actually, what the fuck’s with the dove thing anyway? You couldn’t see me as a, as a fuckin’ T-Rex? A mongoose? Something cool? All a bird can do is fly, I can already do that, I’m magic.”

“Sorry,” the boy says.

“Shouldn’t say that here, either. Be careful what you offer, sweetheart,” the dove says. It preens the boy’s hair. “Debts here are a bad idea.”

“I’ll get my student loans somewhere else,” says the boy. The dove snorts, and it occurs to him, distantly, that that isn’t something doves are usually known to do.

“You’ve got the smartest, richest people in the world lining up to give you a free education, kiddo, that’s not gonna be an issue.” It flies ahead for a moment and gets hit by a branch.

“Seriously, fuck this place,” it complains. “You should go home. Less stupid trees, and the ones we do have are attached to our stupid friends.”

The boy looks around him. The trees don’t look stupid to him. They look very friendly.

“You can go if you want,” he says. “I’m walking here.”

“Bada bing, bada boom,” the dove mutters, but it makes no move to leave.

Boy and dove keep walking in silence, before the boy remembers his manners. He’d never thought he would forget those.

“It’s nice to meet you,” he says. “What’s you name? Mine is–”

“Nope!” the bird interrupts. “No names until we’re home. It’s no good here, this isn’t a naming space.”

The boy is grateful, because now that it’s come up, he can’t seem to think of a name. It’s a slippery thought and it keeps getting away from him.

The dove seems to take pity on him.

“You can call me T…erry…miah,” it says. “Uh, yeah. Terry…miah. Terrymiah. That’s a name, and it’s for me.”

The boy frowns. “That doesn’t sound like a real name,” he says.

The dove gives the impression of a shrug. “That’s ‘cause it ain’t. You want a real name, you’ll have to find it yourself.”

“You can’t give it to me?” the boy asks.

“No,” says the dove. There is a beat of silence.

“I think Justin would be a better fake name,” the boy says.

“That’s my fake train name,” says the dove. “This is my fake dove name. Get it together An–gst machine. Angst machine.”

“What’s your real human name?” asks the boy.

“I think that one’s also Justin. I’m not a real human.”

“Fantasy human?” the boy guesses. He kind of likes this game.

“Not that, either. It’s not a good idea to give out too much identifying information right now.” The dove bats his shoulder with a wing. “We gotta get where we’re going.”

“Where are we going?” the boy asks.

“Depends on you. I vote home with a cozy fire to burn these fuckers right up and a nice meal. Can you eat fairies?” It stares into the undergrowth and the giggling fades. The forest seems darker with it gone.

“You don’t have to be rude,” says the boy. “My grandpa–”

He stops. Talking, not walking. He keeps on walking.

“Sorry, what?” he asks.

The dove follows. “You were telling me about your grandpa,” it says, softer than before.

The boy shakes his head. “I don’t think I have a family,” he says. “I don’t remember anyone who misses me. No one has called me home. I’ve been walking for an awfully long time. If someone loved me, wouldn’t they come visit me?”

The dove shakes its head.

“Look, kiddo, I can’t force you to believe you have or don’t have a family,” it says. “Like, I could tell you there are people who would fight extraplanar malevolent entities that scare the shit out of them specifically because they don’t want your home to die or you in it, but it goes in one ear and out the other if you don’t wanna believe it. And I know you can’t remember shit right now, and that–that sucks. It kinda trumps everything. One minute you’re telling your brother-in-law not to give up and the next your entire identity is ‘from TV!’ and that sucks.”

It clears its throat. “Not, uh. Not that that specific example has anything to do with anything. I just, uh, literally anyone would be better at this, fuck. But, uh, I have a family that’s looking for a little boy, if you’re in the market,” it says, almost shyly.

“You have a family who would want me?” the boy asks. He has a feeling, a vague, fleeting impression, that he shouldn’t be wanted. That he has never been wanted, and this forest is the only place that will love him.

“Yeah, I got one in mind,” the dove says. “It’s big. And loud. And everyone would get you the same edition of the same dumb book and you’d have like thirty copies of Caleb Cleveland: Kid Cop Volume fuckity whatever, but only mine would be signed, so that one’s better.”

“I don’t know how to be family with a dove. Like, with biology. Don’t you only live like, five years?” the boy asks. He is intrigued by Caleb Cleveland, though. “Are the books good?”

The dove snorts. “Trust me, bubeleh, I’ve already long outlived what I’m supposed to, I got another few centuries in ol’, uh…Terrymiah…yet. And the books’re great, if you’re into nerd shit like that. My husband does shitty voices for all the characters.”

“I think you could do some voices too,” says the boy.

“Yeah, but mine are the fucking bomb. I own those characters,” the dove says.

The boy has a sneaking suspicion that he does not, in fact, own those characters. He has an inkling that Terrymiah the dove is a big liar.

“What about the story? Is it like a mystery?” The boy likes the idea of a mystery. A cool little puzzle to solve with his dads and moms and assorted aunts and uncles. He hopes it’s a really big family.

“Well there’s, uh, in this last one there’s a diamond heist,” the dove says. “I did a way cooler one a while ago, but this one’s okay too. Caleb has to find out who did it, only there’s these two gangs having a war and its messing up all the evidence. But it turns out, they’re having a war over diamonds! And Caleb’s gotta find out, see, are these the same diamonds? Were they sold off after the heist or are the gangs involved? And his mom wants him to help decorate for Candlenights but he’s gotta find all these diamonds, you know, catching crooks and solving clues, and–”

“And he has to hide the diamonds in the decorations!” Angus cheers.

“Wh–yeah!” the dove says. “He does! ‘cause he keeps finding ‘em and his police dude is MIA and shit!”

“That’s such a good book,” Angus says. “Can we read it again?”

“Absolutely,” the dove agrees. “Can’t believe I came all this way and it was Caleb fuckin’ Cleveland to–but yeah. Just as soon as we get home, okay, pumpkin? And after, like, a nap. Spell slots.”

“Spell slots?” Angus asks. The dove isn’t carrying a wand.

“Don’t worry about it. I got some more in me yet. Is that a clearing?” the dove hovers a little ahead, right in front of Angus’s face. He pushes it to the side, and it’s definitely suspect how it’s hovering just there and not falling or straining at all.

As he thinks it, the dove falls to the earth.

“Sir!” he says, kneeling next to it. “Are you–did I hurt you? I didn’t mean to, I just wanted to see the clearing, I’m so–”

The dove rolls awkwardly until it finds its feet and shakes off its feathers, all wounded pride and apparently not at all wounded physically for the fall.

“Now you realize how fucking doves work,” it mutters.

“Sorry, sir,” Angus says, chastened. The dove hits him with a wing.

“Don’t even, it’s this place. You’re a little boy and all. We should keep going, though. Not a good idea to stay in one place.” It flaps its wings once, twice, but doesn’t gain any air.

“Do you need a lift, sir?” Angus asks. Come to think of it, he’s not sure why this dove is a sir.

“Fuck you, I can fucking fly,” it says. Angus decides to ignore it and put it on his shoulder again.

“I’m gonna imaginary shit on your imaginary shirt,” it threatens. Angus shrugs.

“Okay, sir,” he says. He feels like there are a lot of things his new friend says that he can safely ignore. “Why are there so many things that aren’t a good idea here?”

The dove begins smoothing its ruffled feathers. “You aren’t from here,” it explains. “I’m descended from this kind of place, distantly, but you aren’t. It’s why it messes with your head, and anything that stumbles across us here will have a home field advantage.”

That doesn’t sound good.

“How do we get home?” Angus asks. He stumbles a bit as he enters a brightly-lit clearing.

“How indeed,” says a new voice, a light that dances in the clearing. “Do you want to go home, little one? Truly?”

Angus feels dizzy, almost, staring directly into dazzling light. It’s beautiful. Like nothing he’s ever seen.

Taako attacks it.

“You get the fuck away from my magic boy, you half-corporeal light show!” he says, beating it with wings and talons, and then he isn’t a dove anymore, he’s a bear standing between the fae and Angus.

With a powerful swipe of his claws, he dispels it. Dead or gone, Angus isn’t sure.

“Really, kiddo?” Taako turns around. “Is this an I’Morko thing? Mama bear thing? I refuse to be part of it, if so.”

He turns into a dragon. Smaller than an adult dragon really should be, maybe horse-sized, but he seems to be the correct size for Taako, Angus thinks.

Taako shakes his head and stretches his wings out, giving them a hard flap.

“Now this is more like it!” he says. “Seriously, though, now that one of ‘em’s found you, we really gotta go. Clearing’s a good sign but we’re not out of the woods yet.”

He lowers his long neck to look closely at Angus.

“Actually. You carried me a bit, right? There’s a debt there. How about I carry you some, too?” he proposes.

“You told me not to do debts,” Angus says.

Taako snorts flame that doesn’t hurt. “Either way. I can’t carry you out of the woods, I can only help you on your way.”

Angus thinks hard. That seems important.

“Why are you here, anyway? And not home with your husband or your big family?” he asks.

Taako shrugs his massive shoulders, and Angus hops on his back. It seems more efficient that way, he thinks. And he gets this feeling he can trust Taako.

He’s also riding a dragon, and that is really, really cool.

Taako shoots through the woods, breathing fire at any obstructions, and then ice once Angus realizes that he’s a silver dragon and really shouldn’t be able to use fire.

“Hubby’s not really able to visit here,” he says. “This is a plane without death. Same goes for most everyone else, really. Either they’d forget like you did or they’re not allowed. Politics, mostly.”

“Why can I make you into other things?” Angus presses.

“‘cause fuck the Feywild, that’s why,” Taako says. He does not seem inclined to comment further.

Angus chews his lip. There’s one other thing he really needs to know.

He hunches over Taako. He’s very warm, and then he realizes that dragons are cold-blooded and Taako is an ice dragon and he is comfortable cool. There is something familiar and safe about the chill, he thinks.

He gathers his courage from that.

“If I go home, can I stay with you?” he asks. His final question, he promises himself. He won’t be a bother if the answer is no. He’ll be fine.

“We’ve already got the bedroom set up, be a hell of a waste if you weren’t there to use it,” Taako says, slowing to a trot.

“That’s okay, I–really?” Angus asks. “Just for me?”

Taako shrugs. “You know it, kiddo. You got other places to stay, but mine is rad and I don’t know why you’d live anywhere else.”

There’s light filtering in through the trees and they’re beginning to thin out again.

Angus clutches Taako’s back.

“Is that gonna be another one?” he asks, hiding as best he can in the mane Taako develops. Taako nudges him with his tail.

“I’ll be damned,” he says. “I didn’t think we could get here while I was carrying you. We’re almost home.”

Angus clutches tighter.

“What if your husband doesn’t like me? Will you put me back because you like him better?” he asks.

“Fuck no, I’ll kick his ass,” Taako says. “He loves you, you do nerd shit together and he thinks you’re the hot shit.”

Angus isn’t convinced.

“What about your big family? That’s a lot of people. What if they don’t like me?” he insists.

“Kick their asses too. I like you,” Taako tells him plainly. “An–Ango, I won’t let anything bad happen to you. Nothing’s gonna hurt you while I’m around.”

And just like that, he trots out of the woods, and they’re in their yard, in their home back in Neverwinter. Mister Kravitz is pacing the length of the house, and Miss Lup is barbecuing hot dogs.

“–even worry about ‘em, Angus is clever as hell. He’ll be saving Taako’s disaster ass, I’m calling it now,” she says. Mister Kravitz says something too low to hear, turns in his pacing, and spots them.

“Taako! Angus!” he calls. Angus reaches past Taako’s shoulders, and falls right out of his piggyback. He hadn’t even noticed Taako returning to elf form.

(”Oh, the labor,” Taako groans, and Lup conjures a mage hand to hit him over the head).

“Mister Kravitz!” he calls, and Mister Kravitz picks his up and holds him close and spins him, even colder than usual but brimming with affection.

“You scared us, Angus, don’t ever do that again,” he reprimands. “You could have been gone! Kaput! I never would have found you! Don’t wander off like that!”

Taako drapes himself over both of them. “Aw, don’t worry about it, Bone Daddy. All’s well that ends well.” His eyes are dark with worry, though. “How ‘bout it, kiddo? Lingering memory loss, disorientation, sense of unreality? You know who you are?”

“Yes, sir,” Angus confirms. “I’m Angus McDonald, Boy Detective! Did you tell Miss Lucretia I was trapped in the Feywild? I was supposed to meet her for lunch, but I think I’m late.”

Kravitz combs his fingers through his hair. “Three days late, in fact. She’s inside with everyone else. And you, love, need to get back to your body,” he says to Taako, who now that Angus looks at him is looking remarkably incorporeal.

“You didn’t take me out of my body, did you?” Angus asks worriedly. He feels his hands. They seem solid.

“Naw, kiddo, you’re all here,” Taako says, swiping a hand through him to show it. “Can’t even touch you now that we’re not in the Feywild. Merle’ll do his shitty cleric thing to be sure, but you’re fine.”

“And nothing bad is going to happen to me while you’re around,” Angus says. Taako groans and mutters about embarrassment and his brand and swears an oath of vengeance.

Angus remembers what he said, though, as Kravitz carries him inside and the exhaustion hits. Apparently walking for three days straight takes it out of you.

He repeats it to himself as he falls asleep.

I like you. I won’t let anything bad happen to you. Nothing’s gonna hurt you while I’m around.

He believes it.

[seasidetae]

10 more minutes.

Pairing: taehyung x reader 

Genre: fluff, one shot, tiny smut (does it even count? lol) 

Word Count: 1.8k

a/n:  just felt like writing a little cute one shot because i’ve been gone for a while and taehyung looks so cute yet hot in the morning.. i don’t even know how he does it, he’s not human or something bc look at him. thanks for sticking around and thank you so much for reading :) 

“Lay with me a bit longer.” You hear Taehyung mumble behind you in his groggy morning voice. He stretches out his arm and grabs your t-shirt then tugs it gently. You were sitting at the edge of the bed staring at the time on the clock realizing you had overslept yet again. You could hear the noise of traffic down below and the chirping songs of the early birds outside your window. This morning you weren’t alone. 

It was funny and adorable how quickly Tae realized you weren’t by his side or in his arms anymore. You turn around and smile at him. His eyes were closed and his mouth was bent into a frown his long body sprawled out under the covers now in the spot where you were once laying. Taehyung wasn’t a morning person and he was usually a heavy sleeper but this past week he had been waking up every morning begging you to not go like a child. He was still tugging on your shirt half awake half asleep. 

“I gotta go, you may be on a break but not me Tae, I still have work like a regular person.” You tease and grab his hand that was holding your shirt. He now opens his eyes and his frown only got bigger. 

He clears his throat before speaking. “A regular person would lay in bed with their lover who they barely see and call out sick from work.” With those words he closes his eyes lets go of your hand and grabs a pillow to latch himself onto. He was using the guilt trick on you and with him it always worked. 

A laugh escapes your lips and you throw yourself beside him, a grin appears on his face and he throws the pillow to the side only to replace you in his arms. He was so warm and soft, he held you tightly against him as if you were some stuffed animal, your face was pressed against his bare chest and you could barely breathe. Not a word from him, he was back asleep in a minute and if you tried to release his hold on you there was no doubt he’d wake up again. 

You pull back ever so slightly just to get a look at him, you adored the way his lips automatically made a pout when he was sleeping and the way his brown hair sprawled out on his pillow some strands there and others in his face. 

“Tae.” You whisper softly. 

“Hmm?” He answers back. 

“You need to let me go.”

He shakes his head. “Never.” You feel his grip on you tighten and you smile to yourself feeling your heart flutter at his words. Even half asleep he knew what to say.  

“If you want me to call out of work you have to let go.” You explain. 

Taehyung groans loudly but doesn't release his hold. Instead he lowers his head and places his soft lips on yours kissing you gently. Damn. There was no winning with this kid, you would rather stop breathing than stop kissing him. But he was the one who stopped, he still had his eyes shut when he pulled back. “Can I ask you something?” He questions, now sounding more awake than ever. 

You nod waiting for him to speak then realize he couldn’t see the nod. “Ask away.” 

“Theoretically speaking......If you were to become my wife.....Would that mean you’d stay with me in bed a bit longer every morning?” He says so casually. 

A gasp was all you managed to do, you stare at him with wide eyes waiting for him to open his or say something but he didn’t. There was a smile on his face but nothing else. Was he just teasing you, maybe he was so sleepy that he just randomly started to blurt out nonsense. This wouldn’t be the first time he’s done that, last time he talked about wanting to go to the zoo with you for about ten minutes. You sigh deeply and decide to play along. “This is all theoretical right?”

He nods a lazy nod. 

“Well...” You begin pretending to be in deep thought. “Becoming your wife doesn't change the fact that I’d still have to go to work. I mean how much longer are we talking about? Theoretically.” You tease thinking it was funny he used that word. 

“At least 10 minutes extra.” He answers without a second thought, his voice was not as groggy as before but still deep. 

“Gosh... I don’t think I could do that.. I mean I’d be extra late to work and then there’s traffic which would just make me even more late... I do need my breakfast also and my coffee...Waking up early wouldn’t help because I’d be extra tired throughout the day..” Your voice trails off and you press your lips together trying to contain a giggle from escaping. Taehyung no longer had a smile and somewhere throughout your speech he had opened his eyes. He was now staring at you with an unpleasant look on his face. 

“Why do you look so grumpy?” You giggle and give him a peck on the lips that he did not return. “This was all theoretical right?” 

Taehyung only glared at you not taking your amusement at this well. He sighs a deep tired sigh. “All I want is for you to stay in my arms a bit longer just 10 minutes, but I guess you can’t do that.” He lets you go and turns his entire body to face the other side, giving you his back. Was he really angry..? You were only playing along. 

“Tae...” You call out to him sadly and poke his back. “I thought we were joking around, look today I’ll call out-” 

You stop mid sentence because he was turning back to you. When he did he didn’t cuddle you, instead he stared at you with a serious determined look. “Close your eyes.” He orders.

Since you didn’t want him angry anymore you do as he says without a word. “Now tell me, does this change anything?” You open your eyes. He had his hand held out in front of you and held by tip of his fingers was a sliver ring with a beautiful white opal in the center.

No words could express what you were feeling. Was this really happening? You blink a couple times not realizing fresh tears had slid down your cheeks. Taehyung was proposing to you right here and now at 6am in your bed? Shouldn’t a part of you be angry.. he cant even get dow on one knee for you.. But no you couldn’t be mad, just staring at him with his ruffled hair and tired eyes a big adorable smirk on his handsome face. Taehyung didn’t need to get down on one knee, there was no need for that because no matter what way he asked you to be his you had already decided your answer long ago. You were about to speak but he intervenes. 

He closes his hand the beautiful ring no longer visible. “Jimin said this would be a good idea, I mean I’m the one who came up with the idea but he agreed. I only did this here because this one of my happiest moments with you. I know I’m always at practice or at concerts or at interviews but here, right here just this moment where I can be in bed with you. Where I wake up with you by my side or in my arms is the happiest moment of my entire life. Then I realized i want this moment forever.. I know it’s hard but we always work it out. So.... y/n, will you make me the happiest guy alive and marry me?” 

The answer was right there at the tip of your tongue ready to come out but instead all you managed to do was nod because that one word would come out as a sob. “Come here baby.” He says in a careful tone as if he was speaking to a child. Without hesitation you scoot closer to him until his arms engulfed you. 

Taehyung presses his lips on the top of your head. “I love you so much.” He whispers.

“I love you so much more.” You whisper back. Taehyung lifts your chin so you could face him. “What?” You croak blinking back fresh tears. He wipes them away and grins that boxy grin you loved so much. Was this guy really going to be your husband? This handsome dork who for some reason slept with all his jewelry on because he was too lazy to take it off before bed. It all felt so surreal, as if you were still in bed with him dreaming this whole thing. You were Kim Taehyungs fiancé. You heart swells up with happiness at the thought. 

“I think we should celebrate..”. He mumbles as he begins kissing your lips and makes his way to your neck. You giggle at the sensation and let his plump lips make their way down to your collar bone. His hands grab your waist and he groans at that fact that your shirt was in the way. He pulls it up over your head in seconds. You let out a slight moan when his hands grope your breast and his lips kiss them softly. At the sound of that Taehyung quickly adjusts himself on top of you, your hands search his warm chest greedily feeling his heartbeat grow more and more. 

There was nothing you wanted more than to get his boxers off but a tiny thought in the back of your head wasn't letting you concentrate. His heavy body was already pressed hard against yours and his hands were already sliding down your underwear. His lips found their way back to yours and he kissed you with more passion. “Taehyung.” You manage to sigh in between a kiss. He didn’t seem to hear you instead he took yours hands in his and placed them on his waist waiting for you to get those damn boxers off. 

“Wait wait wait.” You say loudly. Taehyung groans and lifts himself up a bit. He stares at you questioningly and also a bit disturbed that you had interrupted this moment. 

“I still have to call out of work.” You whisper shyly biting your lip. Taehyung lets out a deep chuckle and lets his body fall back on yours. He lowers himself to rest his head on your chest. 

“Hurry up and call because this isn’t going away anytime soon. I need to celebrate and sleep with my fiancé.” He murmurs placing a gentle kiss on your skin. 

You smile and run your hands through his dark hair thinking how funny it was that a person who wasn’t made for mornings could be so productive just to make you his... and make you lay with him 10 more minutes. 

[hitsuackerman]

Unpredictable (Overhaul x Reader) pt.19

a/n: so... uhh... nothing much happens here but the last part is worth it :’) i guess? hope ya’ll like this nonetheless! 

warnings: this cannot be read solo

Links: part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6, part 7, part 8, part 9, part 10, part 11, part 12, part 13, part 14, part 15, part 16, part 17, part 18, part 20

Masterlist to my other fics: here :)

Overhaul’s waiting list: @jjk-biased @infinite-universe-love @dirtypride @blackymomo03 @azzie @purple-rabanito​ @meximorrita @awesomeee19​​ @celestial-kanzakii​ @laure-lo​ @team-wang-puppy​ @aydience-world​ @choros-main-hoe​ @colorseeingchick​  @but-kairis-not-that-smart (i cant seem to tag again :( hope this lands in your timelines!)

Two days since that fated encounter with Chronostasis, you were now left with a vacant rest day. And where better place to spend it than with Dr. Hanayaka. Setting an appointment with him, as he liked to call it, you were tasked to help with the blood pressure for each patient he had. Luckily, his schedule wasn’t that straining.

“So you mean to say, his henchman met with you in secret?” Gei asked and raised an eyebrow. With his stethoscope resting on his shoulder and white coat on, it was sometimes hard to believe that this flamboyant man was a well respected doctor. “And handed you trash man’s sim card?”

“Yeah. I’ve already checked the contents of the sim and there’s not a lot to go on.” Aside from your messages, the contents of his inbox were that of an average man’s. Expecting some tea about his trade or even important numbers of other villains, you had to think whether or not Chrono deleted some or not.

“And what about that plan of yours, hmm?” Gei fixed his eyelashes before staring back at you. “What if it backfires and Chrono takes the blame?”

“He won’t. My instructions were clear and I set a time frame as well. Just something to please the heroes for setting me up.”

“You movin over to the dark side, baby girl?”

“Just balancing things out.” You shrugged. “Levi made it clear that they shouldn’t interfere with my relationship with Overhaul. Even though I’m on justice’s side, I still want to tip the scales a bit due to personal reasons.”

“Wouldn’t your badge and title be removed if they found out? And why in Todrick’s name are you so chill with this topic?! Are you certain you don’t have a bug on you?” Your friend eyed you down so quickly. Worried that policemen might end up barging inside his office.

“Don’t worry. I’m wearing new clothes so there’s no way they can. Besides, I’m being as cautious as ever. Seriousness aside, I do have some information you might want to feast on.” You smirked at the mental image of a maskless Chrono.

“Spill…” Gei shifted in his seat and leaned in closer. The look on your face only meant one thing.

“Okay, so Overhaul’s right hand man was the one who met me right? Well~ He took off his mask and I will have to admit the man looked hella fine~”

“Describe! Describe!”

“For starters, he has bluish-gray eyes. Though he looks like he wants to kill a person right there and then, he probably could since his jaw was rather prominent. His voice without the mask is different too.” You watched as Gei listened with such focus. “But, if I were to be honest, describing him doesn’t do him good. He looks really handsome.”

“Why is it always the villains who look good?” Gei commented with a pout. “Hawks aside, because that man is something else, but they just hit different you know?”

“That’s true. Shame they have to wear those masks, though.”

“On the contrary, I think it’s good that they do. Otherwise they’d have to endure the wrath of fan girls.”

“Right. Also feels good when they trust you enough to show what’s behind the mask.” Nodding at your own statement, the memory of having lunch with Overhaul came back. With no given warning, he took off his mask and casually drank water. Realizing that he had done it on purpose, a tiny smile formed on your mouth.

“If you miss him that bad, just call him.”

“He changed numbers and I’m not that desperate to ask Chrono for it. Nao said in due time he’ll contact me but the chances of that are negative.”

“Honey, it’s the modern era. Women aren’t as shy as they were before. If you want something, go and get it. If it is a guy’s new number, then go ahead. It’s not just men who make the first move. And besides, I think Overhoe would be surprised if you just suddenly ring his doorbell.”

“You do realize, I do not have the same confidence as you.”

“Fake it till you make it, boo.” He snapped his fingers in a z-formation.

“You’ve been watching Soopernatural again, haven’t you?”

“Okay, first off, Jenred Padackles is a god and I would worship his feet. Second, that show has references to everything and you can’t deny that.”

“Yeah, you’re right.” Standing up from the sofa, you stretched your limbs. “Anyway, I gotta scram.”

“Where you headin’ off to missy?”

“I have to meet up with Nao regarding the Fukuo Kai case.”

“But it’s your day off. Get a life and do something else other than work, (n/n).” Gei threw a pen to your direction but you dodged it effortlessly. “Don’t make me tell your father.”

“It’s only for a few minutes. It’s in preparation for tomorrow.” Not bothering to wait, you exited the room and sofly closed the doors to his office. Time spent with Gei was always an eye opener. However, it still wasn’t enough for you to stoop so low and ring his doorbell.

Making your way out of the hospital, you took a quick stop to the vending machines and chose a cold cafe au lait. Perfect for the hot and humid weather Japan had to offer. Feeling the cold liquid running down your throat was amazing and within seconds, you downed the whole drink. Tossing the empty bottle to the recycle bin, a gust of wind caused you to lose balance.

“Oh no.”

“Oh yes.”

“I have a meeting to attend to Hawks.” Hawks took his visors off and ruffled his wings. Offering to buy him a drink, he chose a tetra pack of  apple juice. Walking to the vacant bench, you followed him and decided that perhaps his visit would be worth it. “So what did the bird hear today?”

“Twice and Toga Himiko.”

“League of-” Then it hit you. “I see. Since when?”

“Yesterday. One of my informants saw them entering the base and left late at night. They didn’t look too happy about it, though.” Lowering his headphones, he ruffled his hair and stared at the clear blue skies. “Do what you will with this information. Just thought I’d let you know.”

“How and why do you even bother?”

“I work for the HPSC dove. If I don’t want them getting in my head, I gotta kick their crotches first.”

“That’s not the best analogy.”

“Still works though.” He winked and put on his headphones and visors back. Standing up, he offered a hand and you accepted it. Tailing you, Hawks was now opening the door for your car. “And one more thing, another of my birdies caught the scent of the quirk erasing bullets nearing its completion stages. Probably 80% now.”

“That’s fast.” You had to admit.

“Heard he’s been pissed. Be careful baby bird.” Hawks closed your door and saluted before flying off.

80%? That was enough information to speed up the Shie Hassaikai raid. Reaching out for your bag, you took the burner phone you recently purchased and reread each message the both of you exchanged. With two League of Villains now part of the yakuza, the possibility of casualties was much higher now.

Within minutes, you were now on the road. Fingers tightly wrapping the steering wheel. Your thumb bouncing with growing guilt at choosing to hide what Hawks had just said. Of course this wasn’t to ensure his victory, it was to even the field, right? It was the pettiness taking over you and Nighteye going against his words. It had to be.

Turning towards the precinct, you saw your designated parking area. The basement parking was a bit crowded today.

Heading towards the meeting room Tsukauchi had prepared for the small info sharing, you greeted fellow coworkers and kept conversation till you disappeared around the corner. Not too long after, you were now fiddling with your fingers. Basking in the silence till the doors opened revealing your partner and Shinezu. Both men took their seats and commenced the meeting.

“So, Shinezu will be tagging along.” He nodded at your coworker who seemed to be trembling at the thought. “It’ll do you good, Shinez. Trust me.”

“I-I know, Tsukau-kun.” He adjusted his tie, loosening it a bit. “I just think I’m not cut out for this mission you know? I do better behind the scenes.”

“While I believe that’s true, the 4th division works best when you’re around.”

“That’s true.” You agreed. Shinezu may not be the most social cookie out there but his brain was close to Namase. He also had the knack of coming up with solutions when things went wrong. All he needed was to amp his social skills. “We all know the 4th division leader is weak for you.”

“Not t-true.”

“All too true. You’ll be fine, Shinez. Have I ever lied to you?”

When the raven-haired man finally nodded his head, Tsukauchi cleared his throat and relayed the plans for tomorrow. It was the standard undercover data gathering in your books.

“So, to recap, the 4th division will be handling the snooping and we’ll remain on guard should all else fail?” You repeated the information given. Tsukauchi scratched his chin and nodded. Confirming that you had fully understood his message. “All this should happen within 5 hours. Got it. That’s quite cramped but manageable.”

“5 hours was the only allotted time I could fit in.” He scratched his nape and looked away. “You were right when I had to take it slow with my cases.”

“I’m not one to comment~” Waving the conversation aside, you stood up and the others followed.

With the short meeting now over, Tsukauchi and you were now seated in the break room. Cups of coffee present as you exchanged more information about your days and current mission. For a brief moment, despite him not being a part of the Shie Hassaikai Raid, you wanted to pour every single information you had just gained from Hawks. The lingering guilt was much more present now.

“You’re spacing out.” He snapped his fingers in front of you. “You alright?”

“Aside from the growing problem of trashman, I’m fine. Just a lot on my mind.” Taking a sip from your coffee, the usual taste of bitterness was strong today. “Nothing to worry about~”

“You should go home, (n/n). I already took up a portion of your time. Any more and I might drown from embarrassment.”

“That’s gross. Even coming from you.” Kicking him from under the table, the two of you laughed before chugging the remaining drops of coffee. “I will take that offer though. Need me some beauty sleep before shit happens again. See ya!”

Hours had passed and you were now stuffing your face with chips. He was right when he said you had purchased too much but you weren’t complaining. The movie playing now was one of your favorites, Prisoner. Gake Jyllenhall was divine in this movie. It was always the twist of the movie that kept you watching it over and over again.

“I wonder if we had watched this… would the wall pinning  happen?” You thought out loud. Shaking your thoughts away from him, you stopped the movie and stored the chips.

Now that you were settled in bed, Overhaul’s jacket rested on top of you. By now, his scent had disappeared and was now replaced by yours. Grabbing your phone, you opened the messaging app and clicked on a certain conversation. Rereading his messages was not the best idea but at least you would be able to relive whatever memories you had created.

Glancing at your desk calendar, in just two months time, you would meet him again. Would things still be the same? Or would things go back to the way they were? Tucking your phone under the unused pillow, you willed yourself to sleep and surprisingly succeeded.

Waking up not so refreshed happened again. But, nothing out of the ordinary. Not being a morning person, you dragged your body away from the bed and began the necessary clothes. Deciding to just buy breakfast, it took you less than an hour to lock your doors and head over to the parking lot.

Making your way up the steps, you met up with Shinezu.

“You look like shit, Shinez.” You teased him. “Take a chill pill.”

“I already did. But it’s still not working. This would be the first case in a while where I’ll interact with others.” Leading the way, the both of you were now walking through the empty hallways. The sounds of your footsteps muffled by the cheap carpeted floors. “How do you guys even manage to survive situations like these?”

“By taking it one step at a time~” Not the best advice for someone who’s socially challenged but it is what it is.

Opening the doors for you, the both of you entered the room and took your designated seats. A bunch of people from the 4th division were now present. Tsukauchi had not yet arrived but it was still early so it was excusable. Exchanging a few small talk, you caught up with what the 4th division was up to till the doors finally opened.

“Good morning everyone.” Tsukauchi greeted. Feet glued to his spot. His eyesight focused on you. “Before we head out, we have a special guest joining us.”

“Holy shit.” Shinezu uttered under his breath.

- - - - -

a/n: shits bout to go down again! I would like to take this time to thank each one of you who take the time to read this! Unpredictable was supposedly a 10 chapter story but we bout to reach 20 now! i cant really respond to your comments as much but i read all of ‘em and they always make my day :’) my schedule has just been very hectic these days huhu and yeas that ends my rant~ see ya’ll next week! :* and yes, the waiting list is still open :)

[wishhbones]

Wednesday, November 1st, 2017 -- 1:11 am

I type this as she is asleep beside me. 

I believe I met her at a swim meet during junior year of high school. I was a 15 year old boy. Hungry for attention and eager to please for it. This is our love story.

It doesn’t matter who I was around or which other girl I was attempting to flirt. I knew I wanted Valerie the most. Fuck, I think everyone knew that. The night of the swim meet we skyped for 7-8 hours into the night about Metallica and my bucket list. She has strict parents so this fact means a lot to me. I texted her everyday and like a fuckboy would say my “goodnight sweetdreams” and “good morning <3″. I wanted to get in her pants and thought I was being sly ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

But the more I talked to her I realize I had finally met my match. She’s funnier than me, smart; and not to mention, stunning. I’m sure of I’ve been caught a numerous amount of times staring. Just. Staring. The best part was, she would just.. stare back. I could feel the energy oscillate between us telling me that she wanted what I wanted. 

But what do I want now.......

.

I want her to be mine. 

I can’t let any other person take away this opportunity.

But

She wasn’t ready. 

.

.

And I lost it. I wanted beg... and I probably did ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

She wanted to stay as friends. That’s not what I wanted to hear. I assumed I’d be kept on a leash and be forced to watch her kiss another man.

So I left.. And she resented me, but at the time I don’t think she understood why. Through rumours I know she called me a bitch and such. okay :/

Time passed and when I would hear her name my heart would skip a beat. An equivalent to when its about to be your turn to present your project to the class. I swear I had arrhythmia too (I actually went to see a doctor about this, anyway I want to believe but I cant prove that she is the cause. o well)

She ended up dating a teammate from my swim team. Fucking hell. Of course it’s the fastest guy on the team. Of course she doesn’t want a mediocre fuck like me. This is what she wanted the whole time I thought. I hate her.

I think there was a time here where we felt interest for each other again, but she was still with him. It wasn’t right for me to take a woman away from her man. She knew it was immoral to keep flirting with me. 

It’s time for me to move on. I hated myself for hating myself. I stopped talking to Valerie. I found a girl who went on to became my lover and prom queen. And on Prom day, guess who came crying. Not my girl lol. I did feel bad. No one deserves to cry after this much preparation and in front of this many people, but I don’t think she would have let me approach her (I asked her recently, she said I should have lol).

There’s something I want to confess. Even though my prom queen was lovely. I had Valerie on my mind. All the time. I left her for the purpose of wanting a new opportunity, and guess who I went to right away. You guessed it. Val. She had newly become single and I wanted her like always.

Valerie wasn’t ready. Again...... And again she went off with someone else.......... I should have learned the first time :c

The summer after that year, I was able to witness her on the day she left that man. I’d pay good money to see that shit, but I saw it for free instead. I made her laugh that day with my awful singing. That’s a (+1) for my ego.

I want her. I crave her. I am desperately curious to know what she tastes like.

One time she actually let me come over to catch up on life. It was around the time where she had recently let go of her best friend (and mine at the time). I truly remember this distinct moment where we walked through her kitchen and I wanted to kiss her by her fridge. I didn’t. Also when she invited me to her room and I sat on her bed. God, I wanted to grab her and kiss her passionately like in the Notebook. I didn’t.... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

After leaving, I texted her about how I felt a connection again and that I wanted more. I think she went along the lines of, “we’ll see how life turns out ¯\_(ツ)_/¯”. Yeah, I asked her out like 3 times in a 6 month span after that. All “No”s.

But, why did she still talk to me... Does she only like the attention give to her. Thats probably it. When she’s lonely she comes to me for attention, gets high from it until she finds someone else. (This is actually what I assumed at the time).

Well, during May 2016, we clicked again. It felt real. She even said over the phone that she missed being friends with me. (idk how to insert a crying emoji here. i dont use a macintosh). We were due for a Blink 182 concert in a few months, except I had to buy my ticket separately from her and her friends. I was pumped, were finally taking off.

Well, hold your fucking horses because I was supposed to see her one weekend back from Ottawa and she stopped me. In fact, she didn’t want to continue what we had going on because she wanted to work on herself. She said she couldn’t produce her own happiness and I while I do agree that this is a very valid reason, I was fucking disappointed again.

A month goes by and I send her a regretful essay over text pouring my heart out and saying something along the lines of, “dont even msg me on my birthday, youre gonna ruin it :’(”

Another month goes by and I learn that she invited my best friend, Jeremy to go to the Blink 182 concert. She had an extra ticket. Another month goes by and I learn that she has a new boyfriend..................... 

just fucking kill me now.

It is September 2016, I fall into a deep depression. Stay high in my room. Skip class and eventually drop out of school like a fucking miscarriage. December rolls in and I find myself at home. A disappointed family surrounds me at the Christmas lit dinner table. Everyone is quiet and afraid to ask me how things are going. No one asked me actually.

My aunt gave me a self help book as my Christmas gift and I learned a very simple and great lesson. “Awareness is the first step towards Change”

I wanted to get better. I wanted to change from what I had become.

I applied to work at the pool.... which happened to be the same pool Valerie would supervise at... I carefully picked hours when she was not there. I dreaded that I would see her... but I was also sad that I didn’t see her. Strange. Anyway, I needed to reset my work ethic and picked all early bird shifts Monday to Friday. I invested over a thousand dollars into recording equipment to jump start my life as a musician. I rehearsed songs to play at open mic events. I flirted with girls again. I got back in shape doing cross fit. Soon after that, I got my first step into a job related to my field of study. I began working for Hibar Systems, an engineering firm dedicated to building high quality pneumatic pumps and assembly lines, as a Jr. Project Manager.

My life began to pick up again. Things were going great and I felt like I was finally moving on from Valerie....

One day, I decided to text her over Instagram probably about how dumb she looked in her profile pic. Apparently, it was great timing. I soon learned that she had gone through a life changing event just recently and wanted to break up with her boyfriend. I tried hard to act as a neutral body and give support.

On July 16th, Jeremy had tickets to go see Metallica. This was my first ever show and was ready to shit my pants. He had extra tickets though. So who did I hit up? ... Valerie.

And she said “yes” !

That night she told me that she only listened to Metallica because of me.. and that she thought at some point in the night that she was in love with me. Ain’t no drug can me higher than that. We had some great closure that evening. I learned that she was afraid to date me in case of the consequence that our breakup would mean the end of seeing me. That at least when were not together, I come around periodically (when im not ghosting on her) and thats better than never seeing me again.

A few days later on the 18th, I drove her back to her apartment from a get together with her friends. 

That night she broke up with her boyfriend. 

That night I kissed her. 

That night she told me, “Thanks for never giving up on me.”

It has been 6 years since I first met her. Now, I type this on her laptop as she is asleep beside me. I love her.

-Kevin ‘Konkon’ Chung

[fatesinthenight]

Autumn (part 19)

Autumn is getting her hair brushed by Sharon. Back in Autumn's room she is relaxing with the girls. Missy and Penny helped dress Autumn while Sharon volunteered to brush her hair. Katherine is siting on the couch watching Autumn who is deep in thought.

"Ok something is wrong. Tell me." Katherine breaks the silence.

"It's just I still don't feel right about this." Autumn turns around to look at Katherine. "You all didn't tell me about what was really happening. I was being lied to most of the time and that still hurts."

Katherine sighs. "I know and I'm sorry for that. I really am. Autumn we just thought that it was better that way. We did want to tell you we really did but... we wanted to protect you."

"I understand that but still... And now with what happened I don't really know what I want to do. I feel coming here was a mistake." Autumn looks down.

"May I speak to Autumn alone please." Sharon asks politely.

Penny and Missy leave quietly and Katherine wants to say something but stays quite. She leaves last closing the door behind her. Sharon pulls up a chair to sit across from Autumn looking at her softly.

"Autumn I understand that you feel uncertain but please do not be so upset with Bron. He always thinks his actions are for the best when sometimes they are not. As a general he always has to make the best choices in battle to gain victory and to keep as much as his men alive. He thinks like a general most of the time, mapping out this best options of attack an how many scenarios can happen if it goes wrong. He tries to hard to make the best calls but even if he strives on the battle field when it comes to more things of the heart it is not like one of fights. Bron has always been one to do anything to keep the ones he cares about safe. He is there for his mother constantly at the slightest cough. He defends Tomis from anyone who thinks he is weak or otherwise. He protects River even if it is River who is the one who is guarding him. Bron is a caring man even if he doesn't show it as much." Sharon smiles. "I know you are aware that Bron and I used to be engaged."

"O ummm I mean I did hear about it once from Katherine." Autumn is shy about it.

"I know you must have heard. When we first met you looked so nervous around me in the beginning. I noticed." Sharon laughs softly.

"You did..." Autumn blushes.

"Its alright. It was to be expected." Sharon laughs and then looks at Autumn carefully. "Bron and I have known each other since we were children. I would only see him when my father was summoned to the castle for business and he would take me with him. The first time he took me I was only ten at the time. While father did his work I was told to stroll along the castle under the watch of a guard. As I walked around I heard voices coming from outside. I found an area in that had a tree growing in an open space with grass and some stone benches. There i found one boy standing under a tree shouting at another boy climbing it. I come over and see the boy in the tree was holding something in his hand. He had a baby bird that had fallen from it's nest and he was returning it. He made it and returned it safely but as he went back down a branch broke an he fell on his back. He just brushed it off and got up like it was nothing only worried about if he could have accidently shaken the tree. That was my first time i met Bron laying on there ground worried about a tiny bird and a young River telling him he was something else." 

"You see Bron cares for small fragile things. Always has. It is why he made Tomis his attendant, he found him one day on the streets as Tomis was getting beaten trying to protect a flower from getting crushed. He took in Missy even if she had sneaked into his house to take food. He gave Penny a to have a better life than the one she had before. When i was told that we were engaged I won't lie I was happy. I did love my darling Bron very much. Up til that point we have been around each other for years. We were close and my father seeing that made his claim to the king and queen when they were being pushed into already finding someone for Bron. I did ask Bron thought how he felt about it and he said he didn't mind that he did care about me. I knew though that it was not the way that i did for him. But then when he broke it off he told me he cant do it because he didn't want me to get hurt and he said it would not be fair to me. Bron knew i did actually love him and he said it would not be fair to be with someone when they care for him deeply but he doesn't share the same intensity for that other person as they do for him. I did feel heartbreak i will be honest but i was also glad he was honest about it. He said our relationship to him was more of a older sister and younger brother. To that i can say it is in a figurative way and in some literal. I mean i am two years older than him." Sharon giggles.

"Your older than Bron?" Autumn looks surprised.

"Yes i am actually. He did mention he doesn't like older women to me jokingly. I punched him very hard for that. You should have seen the bruise. It didn't heal for a month and his arm almost got dislocated." Sharon saids this casually while Autumn reminds herself never to make Sharon mad.

"What i mean to say is that Bron is still learning to be with someone. He has never really done it before and its a new feeling for him. I know he did not make to best decision in leaving you out of the situation. I scolded him for it greatly. My darling Bron can lead an army but get him to talk to someone heart to heart is a challenge. He likes to hide his feelings. Please give him a chance to show you he means well before you decide if coming here was right or wrong." Sharon holds Autumn's hand. "As serious as he can be and doesn't show his feeling he does care about you. I can see it. It is something i have never seen him react to before."

Autumn blushes. Sharon said that Bron really cares for her. She remembers thinking of the times he has been so kind to her. She never stopped thinking why her of all people could have been chosen. Maybe one day she will have the courage enough to ask him. She did like Bron but it was not love, even if they are to be married maybe as time goes she will love him. For now she was happy learning new things about how he is, it made her like him more. "Thank you for telling me this Sharon." Autumn gets up. "I think i need to talk to Bron right now."

Sharon smiles. "Of course. He is always ready to speak with you."

Autumn nods happily and leaves the room. She makes her way down stairs to Bron's office. She is at his door when she hears loud voices.

"Your highness i insist you have her leave." Lord Connor tries to reason. "This is the third attempt on her life don't you think this is a sign that she is not welcome here!"

"And i said i can protect her." Bron sounds very agitated. Autumn looks down to see some shadows steeping out fro the door.

"I say this whole heartedly. I know you can protect her but these three attempt have happened here and you could not prevent them in your own home. Who ever this may be behind the attacks is here under your nose and you haven't found them at all. I mean no ill will but the fact that you still haven't found them means this person knows everything that goes on here and is capable of hiding it for this long. It is not to be taken lightly." Lord Connor makes his point.

"You don't think i am aware of that! I have been trying to find anything to lead me to them. I spend some days without sleep wondering who it could be and why her. She has done nothing wrong and she is being targeted for it." Bron is growling at this point.

"Your highness her wrong doing is being with you." Lord Conner said. "Because you chose her. You took a human girl with you and this is the result. If you would have stayed with Lady Sharon this wouldn't have been like this."

"I don't love Sharon like that. Even then she would also be in danger because of me from my own family and you know that. Regardless on who i am with they will be in harms way. That is why i did not want anyone in the first place. It is not fair they have to suffer simply being with me." Bron lets out a deep breath.

"Then you really love this human girl then. To be willing to keep her here even if it makes you restless and have less sleep worrying if she is still breathing and constantly watching her like a baby?" Lord Conner asks.

"I care about her yes." Bron saids.

"But do you love her?" Lord Connor presses.

There is silence. Autumn feels her heart pounding. She wants to leave but cant find her legs moving. It feel like hours until Bron sighs.

"I cant say for sure now." Bron saids carefully. "But i do care."

Autumn feels something. Like something is telling her he doesn't love you and only cares because he needs a wife. He can have others besides you so why should he really love you. You are just a small fragile human that knows nothing. You would have never been able to make it here even if you tried. You are nothing and you are a thorn at his side that needs to be plucked off. Do him a favor and rip it out yourself...

She cries to herself. She weakly opens the door and stands in the door way. Lord Connor and Bron stop and look at her as she shakes. "DO you mind we are in the middle of-" Lord Conner starts.

"She can come in anytime she wants." Bron stands up and stands infront of her. "Whats wrong? Does something hurt? Do you need me to do anything for you." He puts a hand on her cheek wiping a tear. "Tell me."

Autumn cries and takes his hand off of her cheek. "Take me home... I cant be here anymore."

[buckybarnesappreciationsociety]

“Coffee and Brooklyn” Part 2

Summary: Bucky and Y/N’s friendship is slowly graduating from hot dogs and Cokes, to dimly lit restaurant dinners and cuddle sessions at her brownstone. One thing caused concern for Y/N, she hasn’t met the team. It was time to have a lengthy conversation with her beau about this. She didn’t want to feel he was ashamed to introduce her to everyone because of the color of her skin.

 Words: 1,626

 Warnings: Swearing & Racial Conversations

 Pairing: Bucky x Black Reader

 A/N: I’m overwhelmed and grateful for the kind and encouraging feedback. Thank you for reading the story. I had so much fun writing both parts. I don’t wanna push the envelope and do another part, but I’d love to delve deeper into their relationship. Sprinkle it with a little angst.  Anywho, love y’all and thanks again for reading.

A special “thank you” to @omalleysgirl22 and @vvintersouldier, my remarkable betas.

________________________________________________________________

 At the worst possible moment, Mother Nature decided to throw a temper tantrum. Blinding rain, vivid lightning, and roaring thunder. Y/N and Bucky wanted to check out “Dinner and a Movie.,” a new theater offering delicious delicacies; hot wings, sub sandwiches and ice cold beer, all while enjoying a movie in reclining chairs. But much to their dismay, the weather didn’t cooperate.

 Instead, Y/N opted for homemade Jamaican cuisine for Bucky. He absolutely loved her cooking. She introduced his palette to Southern, Indian and Jamaican fare. And the cherry on top, her cakes and pies rivaled those created by world class bakers. Bucky almost ate a whole chocolate cake! Of course, he’d have to train harder to work off the calories!

 After dinner, Bucky cleaned the kitchen. It was the least he could do after such a delectable meal. But, he felt something was off with his best girl.

 Y/N knew Bucky lived at Stark Tower but he’d never invited her to meet everyone else. Truth be told, he wanted to but his nerves got the better of him. This proved to be a major roadblock and needed to be addressed. They agreed to discuss everything, whether it’s negative or positive. That was a stipulation for their relationship. Keep nothing bottled up!

 “Bucky, we need to talk. Something’s eating me from the inside out.”

 His face dropped instantly, uncertain of what was coming.

“Yeah, Doll, what is it?”

 “Why haven’t I met the team? We’ve been together for 3 months and I have yet to set foot in Stark Tower. Is it a problem about my race? Are you ashamed of me?

 “Geez baby face, ain’t no way I’d ever be ashamed to show ya off. Look at’cha. I’m a lucky man. I’m scared someone’s gonna say something stupid to hurt ya feelings.”

 “Babe, if we’re going to continue what we have between us, at some point, meeting the team is inevitable. Don’t worry about what they say. You and I have a special bond; smart ass comments won’t break us. Sweetie, we’ve been out together, heard nasty comments, and laughed at their ignorance. We’ll do the same if any of your colleagues have a negative reaction. But I’m not gonna promise I’ll keep my mouth shut.”

 **********

Bucky agreed to take Y/N to Tony’s Friday night soiree. There wasn’t a dress code, no fancy duds. Just the team hanging out, eating and drinking.

 “What if they don’t like me Bucky?”

 “How could they not? You’re one hellua woman and I’m so glad to have ya in my life.

“And I’m a very fortunate woman to have you in mine.”

 ***********

The elevator ride went on forever. Y/N’s palms were sweating. Bucky pulled her close to his chest and laid a searing kiss on her lips.

 “Calm down sugar. Everything’s gonna be just fine. You’ll see.”

 Y/N wasn’t a self conscious person, but meeting the Avengers  had her stomach in knots.

 **********

Bucky and Y/N stepped from the elevator hand in hand. Nat, Steve and Wanda were sitting at the rooftop bar, engaged in heavy conversation with Tony. Everyone stopped talking and focused their attention on them .

 Sam stopped drinking. He couldn’t believe his eyes. A fine black woman with James Buchanan Barnes. How in the hell did that happen?

 “Hey everyone, this is Y/N. Y/N, this is Wanda, Nat, Tony and that louse over there is Steve. At the bar is Tony and Vision. And that’s Sam.”

 “Hello everyone. It’s really good to finally meet you. I’ve heard so much about the Avengers. Good to put a face with the name.”

Everyone was welcoming, except Steve. Wanda and Nat liked Y/N immediately. They pulled her aside for some food, drinks and girl talk.

 “Hey Frosty, look at you. Growing up to be a big boy.” Tony quipped, looking over his shades. “Are you sure she wants to be with you?”

Bucky retorted, “Yes Tin Man, she does.”

 Steve didn’t comment right away. He remained quiet and Bucky didn’t understand why.

********** 

The night’s unexpected remarks came from Sam. “Barnes, how in the hell did you get a fly ass “sister” like that? Damn, I can’t believe she’s with you! Beauty and the Beast!”

 By now, Y/N had returned to Bucky’s side with a drink in her hand. She caught the end of Sam’s remarks and sprang into action.

 “Excuse me Sam, you’re way out of line. First of all, you need to move past our skin color. I’d rather be with a white man with manners and decency, than a black man with a big mouth and thinks he’s got it going on.”

 “Furthermore, YOU of all people should know what it’s like to be an African American in today’s society. There’s no need to rundown the statistics because you’ve lived it first hand. James and I care very deeply for each other and have witnessed racism for ourselves because we’re together.”

 By now, Y/N was shedding tears and Bucky was furious, but he didn’t interfere.

“Maybe you’re joking and maybe you’re not. But let’s get on damn thing straight from the get go. I’m with him, he’s with me, we ain’t going to stop just because someone’s too ignorant to move past color and go straight for the heart. You’ll be seeing a lot of me so, let’s try to along or I will go straight Brooklyn on dat ass. Feel me?”

 All Sam could do was swallow hard and nod. He could tell this was a sore subject for Y/N and should’ve kept his snarky comment to himself. An apology was definitely coming to her AND Bucky!

 Y/N wiped her face and embraced Bucky tight. He kissed the top of her head.

“Dollface, remind me not to piss you off. The way you handled Bird Man was a thing of beauty.”

 “No problem. I’ve gone through bullshit my teenage and adult life because I prefer to date outside of my race. Bitter ass, insecure black men need to shut the fuck up and allow us to date who we choose.

 Y/N stood on her tiptoes and placed a kiss on Bucky’s lips. He returned the gesture.

 Bucky turned to get some food and a drink. “Hey babe, can I  get you something?

 “Not right now. I need to speak to Steve. I’ll fill you in later.”

 “Okay. Don’t be too long ‘cuz Imma miss ya.”

 “James Buchanan Barnes, go! I’ll be right back in a few minutes!”

 ***********

Steve was standing near the banister overlooking the bright lights of New York City. Y/N stood beside him and laid her hand on his shoulder.

 “Hey Cap. You’re awfully quiet. Everything okay?”

 “Yeah, s’okay. Just thinking about you and Buck.”

 “What about us?”

 “You may or may not know  that  he’s been through hell and back. The world can be a really cruel place about mixed relationships. Hell, in my day, you’d both be killed.”

 Y/N looked directly into his deep blue eyes and spoke.

 “Steve, I’m living African American history. I was adopted and my parents were white. My gosh, I’ve been spit on and bullied relentlessly. Also, I know all there is to know about Bucky. Every horrific act HYDRA forced him to commit; including Tony’s parents, Wakanda, removal of the trigger words, the nightmares. It doesn’t matter to me, Cap. I’m with Bucky because he’s a good man worthy of love and happiness.”

 Steve had compassion in his eyes. “M’sorry he’s the only family I have left. Don’t want’im to get hurt s’all.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “But, I can see  you’re good for him and I’m happy for ya.”

 Looking lovingly at Bucky, Y/N replied “He’s good for me too Cap.”

Bucky came over and kissed his best gal and Steve shook his hand.

 “M’happy for ya Buck. Treat her right.”

 “Thanks man. I will treat this Brooklyn girl right. Can’t turn back now. I’m in too deep.”

 “WHAT?! BROOKLYN?!” Steve’s eyes almost bulged out of their sockets.

 “Yep, born and raised. Jamaica Ave.,” Y/N beamed.

 Steve emitted a hearty laugh, “Yeah Buck, you’ve got a real firecracker. We’re gonna have to sit down and really get acquainted darlin’.”

 “I’d love that, Steve.”

 “C’mon doll, let’s join the others. M’sure they wanna talk to ya some more.”

 **********

Bucky and Y/N sat on the deck chatting with Nat, Wanda and Tony. As promised, Sam apologized and all was forgiven.

 You could see the pride and adoration on Bucky’s face as Y/N interacted with his teammates.

 Tony turned up the wisecracks and music, Thor made an appearance and brought Asgard mead.

 The mood was jovial and light. In that moment, skin color wasn’t an issue. And to think it began with coffee, a chocolate chip muffin, and Brooklyn.

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