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poisonedapples · 3 years

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Patton’s Home for Traumatized Kids - Chapter Three

New School and Friendships

Chapter Summary: Roman has his first day in a new district while some bonds are strengthened.

First Chapter Previous Chapter Story Masterlist

Warnings: Past abuse mentions, mentions of hidden cameras, anxiety, some bullying, crying, and food mentions

Chapter Word Count: 5,860

Taglist: @shade-romeo, @grayson-22, @pixelated-pineapple, @acrobaticcatfeline, @astrozei, @edupunkn00b, @princey-7258

“Hey, dad?”

“Yeah?” Roman’s dad turned to face him. Roman felt his whole body start to shake.

“You know how you said that…I could ask for anything from you? Since, uh- since you didn’t know what present to get me last time?”

His dad smiled in a way so normal it was disturbing. “Got an idea?”

“Yeah, uh…I want a canopy bed.”

His dad’s face dropped, and Roman could feel the anxiety and regret bloom through his chest. “You know why I can’t do that, Roman.”

“Please? I know it’s probably a bit much to replace my whole bed frame, but I could make my own canopy for cheaper! I’ve already looked at a bunch of ways online how, I just need you to buy the materials-”

“It’s a no.” Roman’s dad looked angry, and Roman would’ve done anything to run the other direction at that moment. To burst out the door and never come back. “Nice try, Roman, but I’m not stupid. Come back when you have a better idea.”

Roman blinked to fight back the tears. “…I’m sorry.”

“Go back to your room.”

Roman ran up the stairs as fast as he could, wishing more than anything that there was a lock on his door. Instead, Roman took his desk chair and propped it against the knob for some kind of security, curling into the corner of his room as he shook and tugged at his hair.

He tried to block out the knowledge of the security camera on his shelf, hidden well but not well enough, pointed right at his bed.

***

Several fast knocks came onto Roman’s bedroom door, waking him up with a jerk. He groggily pushed open the curtain in front of his head to grab his phone and look at the time. Six o’clock on the dot, it read. Ugh.

The knocking on the door didn’t stop, and Roman whined. “What?” He called out.

“Get dressed, we need to leave the house by 6:30.” He heard Logan call back.

“Fine, fine.” Roman pushed the curtains out of the way and practically rolled out of bed, grabbing the clothes he’d organized for himself the night before. He put on a pair of jeans with a white and red t-shirt, nothing fancy but fancy enough for a first day surrounded by strangers. He grabbed his backpack and put his phone and some earbuds in his pocket before heading downstairs to the kitchen.

“Morning, kiddo!” Patton chirped as he made breakfast, “Didja sleep well?”

“Yes, I did.” That was a lie. He had some strange dream where his dad was also there, and he only managed to calm down and fall back asleep an hour ago. He still couldn’t stop thinking about it, even if the dream was hazy now.

“Good to hear! Be ready by 6:30 so I can drive all of you to the school. Then once you get there, you can ask about your schedule at the office.” Patton laid down a plate of bagels with cream cheese and strawberries in front of Roman, so Roman began to eat.

Once he finished his breakfast, Roman rushed back upstairs to style his hair and brush his teeth before they had to leave. As he brushed his teeth, he stared at the shower to the left of him and sighed. He touched his hair, feeling the grease slick onto his fingers.

He really needed to shower. He hadn’t showered since he got here, and with how thick his hair was it was really starting to gross him out. He hated feeling greasy and grimy, but Roman hadn’t checked the bathroom for cameras yet and he refused to shower until he did. Though, he knew that was also just an excuse. Roman also felt too tired to take care of himself.

Just brush your teeth, he thought, they told you that if you can’t shower, at least brush your teeth. Greasy hair can be fixed, cavities are expensive.

He spit out the toothpaste into the sink and rinsed out his mouth. He grabbed some face wash and decided to use it as quickly as he could to hold back the gross feeling he felt. It would help him feel a little cleaner, at least. A little more presentable for the first day.

A loud bang came onto the door. “Roman, hurry up!” Virgil called out, “Some of us need to piss!”

“Just a second!” Roman vigorously splashed water on his face and quickly dried it with a towel, rushing out of the bathroom so that Virgil could run in. He sighed again, walking downstairs to wait on the couch until it was time to go.

“Alrighty, everyone got everything?” Patton eventually asked, making Roman crack open the eyes he didn’t even realize he closed. Patton smiled and clapped his hands together when his response was tired hums of agreement. “Perfect! To the car!”

All three kids bunched themselves together in the back of Patton’s car, Roman and Virgil at the window seats while poor Logan was squished in the middle. Roman squeezed his legs together so he could fit his backpack between Logan and himself, acting as a barrier so Logan couldn’t touch him. It was uncomfortable, but it was what Roman had to do.

“So, Roman, are you excited?” Patton asked, making Roman open his eyes again to look at Patton through the rearview mirror. Roman leaned his head against the window.

“More nervous. I’ve never been to a new school before.”

“Well, hopefully you can make lots of friends here! The school is pretty big, so there are certainly lots of options!” Patton laughed at himself and Roman closed his eyes again.

We’ll see about that.

Eventually, after a failed attempt of getting in some extra minutes of sleep before school, Roman felt the car come to a stop. He opened his eyes and looked out the window to see the front of the large school building, kids with smiling faces talking to each other as they walked inside while others looked tired yet excited. Roman wasn’t feeling it.

“Alright, kiddos, have fun!” Patton exclaimed, “Remember to check in with the office for your schedule, Roman!”

All the kids started to pile out of the car, grabbing their bags off the floor to rush inside. Once they were all out, Patton’s car drove away to head for work.

Roman looked at the building as Logan and Virgil walked inside. It seemed huge compared to his old school, where the county was much more rural than here. They still had twenty minutes until school started and kids were already swarming in from multiple entrances, both from the main entrance and other doors connected around the building. Roman walked inside and held his arms close to himself, desperate not to be shoved around by the other students.

The office was fairly easy to find, considering there was a giant sign over the door in bold, white letters reading Office. Roman opened the door and stepped inside to get in line, feeling a little bit better that he wasn’t the only student having first day issues. The line shrank very quickly until it was Roman’s turn to ask questions, being faced with an old lady who could either be very sweet or the rudest person in the building. Roman could never tell.

“Uh, I’m a new kid at this school, and my guardian told me to come here to get my schedule?” Roman asked.

“Name.” Okay, well, rude it was, then.

“Roman Goldsberry.”

The desk worker didn’t respond, only typed something on her computer and didn’t make eye contact. “Next door to your left of that entrance is the counselor’s office. Your counselor is Mrs. Walters and she’ll call for you shortly.”

“Okay, thank you.” Roman had never scurried out of an office so quickly in his life. So much for a great first impression.

In the other office, Roman sat on a waiting chair and awkwardly glanced at all the college items they had hung up on the walls, waiting until his name would be called. The school day hasn’t even started yet, what’s taking them so long?

Roman drummed his fingers on the armrest of his chair and waited. There was a lot of college stuff in this room. Granted, high school’s whole thing was trying to take you to college, his old school was the exact same. And he should really start thinking about that stuff since he’s a sophomore now. He only had two more years left after this, but it’s not like he could go anyway. He wasn’t even supposed to graduate high school, let alone college.

Besides, his dream was stupid anyway, so it didn’t matter.

“Roman Goldsberry?” A voice called out, taking Roman out of his thoughts. Roman stood up to follow the counselor into her office.

“I’m Mrs. Walters, and it’s nice to meet you Roman!” She said cheerily as she sat at her desk with Roman sitting right in front of her. “Your schedule was a bit last minute to pull together, but I tried my hardest based on your last school’s transcript and your test scores from last standardized testing. All I need is to schedule some extra electives for you. You have advanced English 12, advanced geometry, advanced biology, and world history. You can also choose Spanish 3 here if you wish to continue that. You also still need your gym credit, so you can take regular PE or strength training. I also have a list of other electives here if you want to look at that.”

“Yeah, I can look.” The counselor handed Roman a paper of all the electives organized by their subject. Well, Roman definitely wanted to continue Spanish, so that choice was easy. Strength training sounded like a fun way to do gym class with less dodgeballs to the face, but it was only a semester long, so he’d need to pick another semester class for the second half of the year. And he could join another painting or drawing class as his last elective, but he’d already taken those at his old school…

Roman gazed at the arts section of the packet, trying to find something he might like. His eyes lit up as he noticed the names of two classes: set design, which was a semester long and sounded magical, and something called sculpture. “What does the sculpture class teach?” Roman asked.

“It’s an art class that teaches you how to sculpt with different things. Like clay, wood, things like that. It’s a very hands-on class if you’re interested.”

Roman smiled. “I want that one then.”

The counselor typed something into her computer. “Have you chosen your other classes?”

“Yes, Spanish 3, set design, and strength training.”

“I’ll put you in strength training for this semester, but next semester you can join the set design class. I’ll email your elective teachers to inform them you’ll be joining their classes, but for now…” The counselor printed off a piece of paper and handed it to Roman. “This is your new schedule. Your first class is English with Ms. Fritz, and her class should be up on the third floor at room 316. Do you think you can make it there?”

“I can, thank you.”

The counselor smiled. “Have a nice first day.”

Roman walked off to head toward his first class, going up two flights of stairs and wandering across half the floor before he finally found his classroom. Thankfully, the halls were full of students desperately trying to locate their classrooms, so Roman didn’t feel as weird. He eventually stumbled upon the correct room number after checking multiple hallways and trying to follow their scattered number system. He looked at the door with a paper rabbit and a book with a phrase reading hop into a good book, and could guess immediately what type of teacher this would be.

Roman pushed open the half-cracked door and stepped inside.

The dozen kids who were already sitting stared at him when he walked in, but quickly resumed their conversations shortly after. Roman glanced at an empty seat off in the middle row near the other end of the class and moved to sit down in it. He looked around at the other kids off in their own worlds, with no one to get excited to see him and strike up a conversation. He was sitting alone in a class where it seemed like no one else was.

Roman got bored quickly with no one to talk to, drumming his fingers on the table and starting to daydream instead.

The long lost princess with the power to see into the future is forced to hide in protected wilderness, Roman thought, picking up from an old story idea he’s had for a while. Can’t have a teen novel without an orphan, so she lives with a guardian healer instead. Then, she needs a trusty companion to not only start her adventures, but to assist her alongside them. Perhaps he could be a peasant boy born with more magic power than the normal peasant has? It sure would be interesting. Or maybe, he’s not a trustworthy companion at all! What if he’s using the princess to promote his own selfish ideals? But as the story goes on, they actually become close friends and he has an intense internal conflict as he turns into the antagonist! Then maybe-

“Alright class, I think it’s been late enough for us to start!” Roman tried not to be aggravated at the teacher for interrupting him. The teacher stood at the front of the class with a wide smile. “I’m Ms. Fritz, but of course I’m sure a lot of you already know that since you had me last year. I teach all grade levels for advanced English, so if you keep down this path you might stick with me until graduation! Now normally, teachers will start their first day with class expectations, maybe a rubric or a supplies list, but I have a better idea! How about we travel across the class and try to get to know each other better? I can pass around a ball, and if you catch the ball, you have to share three fun facts about you!”

A sense of dread filled into Roman after hearing that. He usually didn’t mind games like this since it was a mindless way to pass the time, but he didn’t have any friends to pass him the ball anymore. Was he just going to sit there until the end? Sounded awkward, no thank you.

“I think,” Ms. Fritz said with her hand gripping her chin in thought, “I’m going to start with the new kid.”

Roman perked his head up as all the other kids turned to him. Well, that was unexpected.

Ms. Fritz tossed Roman the ball, and thankfully he caught it without making a fool of himself. The teacher smiled at him encouragingly as he stood up, looking around at all the kids waiting for him to talk. What should I even say?

“Can you say your name first?” Ms. Fritz asked.

“Well…I’m Roman. Uh, I like to paint, I’m half french, and…” Roman tried to think. What else was interesting about him? Something that shared a lot about him as a person?

Quickly, it dawned on him. One idea that I could possibly share, he thought. Well, it’s a bit invasive, but they’re all looking at me. So whatever.

He took a deep breath in. “…I’m a foster kid.”

When Roman admitted that, all the kids seemed to be more interested in him, leaning closer as their eyes widened. It was the first time Roman ever said it aloud, and it was so strange to hear coming from his mouth. He was a foster kid. That was an important part of his identity now.

He didn’t know how he felt about it.

“You’re half french?” Ms. Fritz pulled Roman out of his thoughts with that question. “Do you know any french?”

“I’m fluent.”

“That’s so cool! Can you say something in French for us?”

Roman seemed to think about it. “Quelque chose.”

Ms. Fritz blinked. “Well, I hope it was appropriate to say in a classroom. When did you move here, Roman?”

“Like…four days ago. Very recently.”

“You only got added to my roster last night, so I believe you! How about you pass the ball to another kid now?”

Roman looked around the room awkwardly before making eye contact with a random girl and tossing her the ball. He sat back down and only paid half his attention to what the other kids were saying. Well, at least he didn’t have to wait awkwardly anymore.

The rest of the class went like that. It seemed like a lot of these kids were students that Ms. Fritz had in the past, as well as being students that were also close friends with each other. They talked a lot and made lots of jokes with the teacher, and they seemed really close, which Roman understood since he was the same with his old group of advanced kids. The extra conversation dragged the game out longer than it probably should have been, but Roman didn’t mind. He didn’t want to actually work or anything anyway.

Eventually, the game ended, and the last kid tossed the ball to Ms. Fritz. “Alright,” she said, “That game dragged out longer than I thought it would, but that’s fine! The bells are shorter the first few days anyway. We only have a couple minutes left, so talk amongst yourself if you want, I don’t care. The assembly should be after your fourth bell for the sophomores, so don’t let your teachers forget!”

All the students turned around to talk to the kids around them. Roman simply watched their conversations with no one to talk to himself, realizing how all the new kids at his old school must have felt. It was like looking in from the outside, where no one else could see you. Roman was just…there.

“Hey,” the kid in front of him turned around to face Roman. Roman almost jumped at the sudden attention. “What’s your name again?”

“Oh, Roman. Roman Goldsberry.” Roman turned to sit properly in his seat and leaned in closer. This was a good start! He seems nice, maybe I can make a friend!

“Roman Goldsberry!” He mocked, turning to his other friends to laugh. “That’s such a pretentious name. And very American sounding, by the way. I thought you were French?”

Roman’s shoulders sagged. Nevermind. Eight in the morning on my first day, and apparently I’ve made an enemy before a friend. “I’m half french, not fully french.”

The kid turned to his friends and made a face at them before they all laughed. Roman felt his blood boil.

“So your dad is the American?” The kid asked.

“Yes.” Roman hoped his sharp tone would help them realize not to mess with him.

“Are you close with your dad?”

Roman froze, and the group of kids turned to each other to make faces at each other again. He really didn’t see what was so funny. Who asks a complete stranger a question like that out of the blue?

Before Roman could snap and tell the kid to mind his own damn business, another kid from the other side of the room scoffed. “Mitchell.”

“What? I’m just asking!”

The other kid opened their mouth to retaliate, but a loud and obnoxious bell went off before they could. Kids started to get up to rush to their next class, and Roman joined them. The sooner he got away from Mitchell (who had no right to bully Roman for his name when he was called Mitchell), the better.

Roman rushed out into the hall and hyper focused on the schedule in his hands. World history, room 203. The next floor down.

Roman was so occupied in trying to find a flight of stairs, he didn’t notice the kid trying to catch up to him.

***

The rest of Roman’s day wasn’t half as eventful as his first bell. History class had a chill teacher, which was nice, then next was his strength training class. His teacher was a little confused when he showed up but was happy to have Roman on board. He seemed very strict with his class rules though, and Roman hated that considering one of his rules was they had to change into gym clothes. Which meant Roman had to wear gym shorts.

…Well, guess he’d have to get used to wearing multiple pairs of boxers again.

Besides that, he also got lost on his way to sculpture, so he showed up ten minutes late telling this random teacher he was her student now. At least she didn’t seem bothered. After that, they all went to the sophomore assembly where they were told the school rules and updates, which Roman’s pretty sure he was the only kid who actually listened. Then, after the assembly, Roman went to the cafeteria to eat a lunch that Patton packed him. He hadn’t actually brought a packed lunch to school in years, so the sentiment was…strange.

Not that Roman would complain about an edible lunch, though.

Roman looked around the cafeteria for a place to sit. The place was starting to become crowded as more students got out of line for buying lunch, so Roman needed to find a spot fast. It’d be easier if he made a friend to sit with, but after the morning Mitchell incident, Roman hadn’t cared to try again in his other classes.

That’s when Roman spotted him. A kid with thick glasses eating a fruit cup as he worked on some papers next to him, completely ignoring the world to finish some homework. Roman wasn’t exactly close with his foster brothers, but hey, maybe Logan could prove himself a little useful. He had to be lonely too, right?

Roman took his chance and sat across from Logan. Logan didn’t look up from his papers. “Hey there, nerd!”

Logan glanced an eye toward Roman. He focused back on his work. “Hello.”

“How’s your first day of high school going?”

It took Logan a solid minute before he responded. “It’s going alright. I got unlucky with a teacher of mine, who already gave us a homework packet for the week, so I’m trying to get a head start on it.”

“Really? What teacher?”

“Mr. Owens, he’s the more strict teacher of the two that teach medical technology.”

Roman’s eyes widened. “Medical technology? That’s a class here?”

“Yes. I had to do a lot of things last year to get into it, however. It’s part of the intensive medical learning path. However, the extra work is necessary.”

“…Right. What other classes are you in?”

“Advanced biology, advanced geometry, advanced English, medical tech as I just mentioned, German 2, health, and painting.”

Roman tilted his head to the side. “Wait, I thought most of those were sophomore classes?”

“And I took freshman classes my eighth grade year. Your point?”

Roman blinked. “…Fair enough.”

Roman brought out his own sandwich and ate it in awkward silence. Logan seemed so focused on his paper that he wasn’t saying a word, and trying to spark conversation with him when he was like this was next to impossible. He felt like he was intruding by sitting next to Logan, the air feeling thick for a reason Roman couldn’t quite place. Once he finished his sandwich, Roman had enough.

“I think…” Roman said, “I’m going to sit…somewhere else.”

Logan didn’t react. “Alright.”

Roman stood up and awkwardly shuffled to an empty spot at a table on the other side of the cafeteria, placing down his lunch box and trying again. Well, he thought as he opened up a cheese stick wrapper, better get used to being alone, then.

“Hey, excuse me?”

Roman looked up at the voice while he was mid-bite. It was the same kid who scolded Mitchell back in his English class, tired circles under their eyes and a gray sweater on despite it being August. Though, Roman had been freezing in most of his classes today, so maybe this person had the right idea.

“Oh- I’m sorry, were you sitting here?” Roman asked.

“No, you’re fine, I just…” The kid looked side to side anxiously. “…Mind if I sit with you?”

“…Oh! No, I don’t mind at all.”

The kid smiled and set their lunchtray across from Roman. “Thanks. I’m Elliott by the way, they/them pronouns.”

Roman’s brain took a minute to process what they meant. “Uh, hello! I’m Roman…he/him?”

Elliott seemed to get happier when he said that. “Nice to meet you. How’s your first day been so far? Besides for you-know-who this morning.”

Roman laughed. “Well, aside from that uncalled for mess, it’s been quite normal. I got lost a few times, but that’s not new for me. My teachers seem quite alright so far.”

“That’s good to hear. We have a lot of good teachers, I think, unless they teach calculus, then they have some serious issues. But so long as you don’t act like an idiot it’s easy to get past those teachers.”

“I’ll keep that in mind! Hopefully I stay on this hot streak, though.” Roman took out a water bottle from his lunch and started to drink it. “But it’s the students I’m more worried about. They all seem so off on their own. Or just outright rude like that guy this morning.”

Elliott groaned, leaning his head on his hand and slouching. “I’m really sorry about him. He can be a huge jerk for no reason. I think he’s just itching for a fight.”

“You seem to know him quite well. Old friend or something?” Roman asked.

Elliott groaned again. “…He’s my ex.”

“…No offense to your type or anything, but…ew.”

“Oh no, yeah, dating him was definitely an ew,” Elliot sighed. “We broke up like, four times in the span of a year and a half. It was a mess. Eventually, over the summer I broke up with him for good. I think he’s still upset about that and taking it out on the first easy target he finds. That, and he’s a jerk.”

“Well, he’ll soon learn I’m not one to be described as an easy target.” Roman gave a cocky smile and posed.

The bell sounded off again, and all the students stood up from their tables and started to swarm the trash cans and cafeteria exits. Roman and Elliott gave each other a look as they also stood up.

“So…what class do you have next?” Elliott asked nervously.

“Let’s see…” Roman pulled out the schedule from his pocket and looked at it. “Advanced biology with Mr. Weber.”

Elliott’s eyes lit up. “Me too! Uh…wanna walk together then? I can show you where it is.”

Roman smiled. “Of course!”

The two kids headed down the stairs, talking more and laughing long after they sat down in the class and the bell rang. Roman continued to whisper to Elliott during class until the teacher gave them both a warning glance, shutting their mouths but smiling at each other.

Even as Roman tried to pay attention, he felt a weight lift from his chest.

He’d obtained a friend after all!

***

The entire bus drive home, Roman spent it texting Elliott’s number that they’d given him right after biology ended. He talked about his last two classes and listened to Elliott ramble about his bad luck with classmates this year, grinning to himself with his eyes glued to his screen until his stop came. Virgil banged his fist on Roman’s seat to get his attention, making him jump and stand up to get off with Virgil and Logan.

During the walk home, no one said anything. Roman was off in his own world and Virgil just looked tired, with Logan staring intently at his own shoes as he walked. Virgil unlocked the door for them all to come inside, and they all branched off into their different directions. Virgil got a snack from the kitchen while Roman and Logan ran up to their rooms.

Roman spent a lot of his time in his room now that he’d gotten the curtains around his bed. Lying there was a lot softer than hiding on the bathroom floor with his legs propped up, and Roman was still confused as to how he managed to get away with installing this. He’d have to make sure Patton never entered his room again in case he planned to rip the curtains off their hooks.

He’d have to make a plan to effectively keep him out.

But for now, Roman actually needed to talk to Patton as soon as possible. He needed to ask for gym clothes, since that was the only thing Roman still needed to get for class, and he wanted to get it over with so Roman wouldn’t need to keep worrying about it. He was almost certain Patton had come home half an hour ago, but Roman just ignored him and stayed in his room. But he had to take advantage of the fact that he was remembering to ask for the clothes, so there was no time like the present to go find him.

Roman hopped out of bed and exited his room, making his way downstairs to the living room. He figured Patton would be either watching TV or doing something in the kitchen, but when Roman looked around, he didn’t see him anywhere. Virgil was sprawled across the couch on his phone, but no one else was around. Roman put his hands on his hips.

“Where’s Patton?” He asked Virgil.

Virgil didn’t look up. “Upstairs. In his room I think.”

Roman groaned and stomped back upstairs. He hated going into an adult’s room, so he instead opened the door and poked his head in so he wouldn’t have to step inside. But before he could get a word out to Patton, Roman stopped himself.

Patton was sitting on his bed with the lights dimmed, his back resting in the headboard, but what shocked Roman was that Logan was there also. He had his face hidden in Patton’s neck as Patton rubbed his back and played with his hair, holding him tight to his chest while Logan sniffled. Roman had never seen Logan emote before, so watching him cry was…disturbing. Roman wanted to run over and rip Logan from Patton to protect him.

Patton looked at Roman in the doorway and smiled. “You gotta remember to knock before entering, kiddo. What do you need?”

Roman forgot the main reason he came here. “Is Logan okay?”

Patton looked down at Logan and whispered something in his ear. Whatever Patton said, Logan agreed with a quiet nod of his head. Patton rubbed at Logan’s neck in a way that made Roman’s skin crawl as Patton began to speak. “He’ll be okay, kiddo. He’s just a little overwhelmed from school today. Do you need anything?”

Roman took a step inside Patton’s bedroom. It made his whole body shift into fight or flight, but he couldn’t leave Logan alone with him in good conscience. “I just wanted to say I need to buy gym clothes by next Wednesday. I’m in a strength training class this semester.”

Patton smiled. “That’s fine, we can go shopping this weekend.”

Roman looked down at the floor. “Well…I was more thinking, like…I go into the store while you wait in the car.”

Patton raised an eyebrow at him. “I need to buy the clothes, kiddo.”

“You can just give me the money. I’ll stay within the budget and give you any left over, so…please?”

Patton’s face dropped a little, but he didn’t get angry, so Roman considered that a win. “Sure, kiddo. We’ll do that Sunday.”

Even after the conversation seemed to end, Roman still stood near the door, shifting on his feet awkwardly. Patton shifted his eyes between Logan and Roman as if he was analyzing both of their mental states, but Roman’s throat felt stuck as he tried to bring out the words he wanted to say. He was so scared, but he couldn’t force himself to ask the question he knew he needed to ask now. Yet his feet refused to make a run for it out the door despite his fear.

“Do you need something else, kiddo?” Patton lightly prompted. Roman attempted to swallow the rock he felt in his throat.

“Can I…Can I stay with you and Logan?” He hated it, but he had to do it. He didn’t know what Patton would try when Logan was vulnerable.

Patton looked down at Logan, and Logan nodded. Patton turned to smile again. “You can if you want, Logan doesn’t mind.”

Roman carefully walked to the other side of the bed, sitting as far as possible from Patton but keeping his eyes glued to Logan. He knew he wasn’t helping much, not saying a word and not even being close, but it was something Roman had to do. Just because him and Logan weren’t close didn’t mean he’d leave him in danger. Even if Roman felt stuck in his head and couldn’t find the power to move his arms.

Roman sat there for a while, watching Logan’s chest rise as Patton rubbed his back. It felt like ages before Logan’s chest slowed and he fell asleep on top of Patton, somehow not caring at all about being asleep in Patton’s presence. Roman’s heart ached for him. He was too trusting and innocent for his own good.

“I gotta do some chores,” Patton whispered, “So I’m gonna tuck him in and let him nap. Do you still wanna stay with him?”

Roman nodded, not being able to get the words out himself. He felt stuck as Patton lifted Logan up gently, petting his hair to soothe him when he stirred. Roman helped by tugging the covers back from his end of the bed so that Patton could tuck him in and let go of him sooner, his hand on the back of Logan’s leg making Roman anxious. Patton tucked Logan under the covers and watched his reaction. After a few seconds, Patton grabbed a squishy stuffed frog from his bedside table, handing it to Logan who curled around it in his sleep. It’d be cute if Roman wasn’t so worried.

“Tell me if anything happens, okay kiddo?” Patton said right as he was halfway out the bedroom door. Roman nodded, only finally relaxing after Patton left and slowly closed the door.

Roman immediately ran over to lock it. He didn’t have his security bar, but this would be good enough. Hopefully Patton wouldn’t test anything when he knew Roman would be by Logan’s side.

Despite all of Roman’s worries, Logan slept peacefully on the bed. He didn’t shift or seem distressed at all, just snuggling closer to Patton’s stuffed frog and resting. Logan was calm.

Roman sat on the floor to block the door and watched to make sure no one took that away from him.

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angryinternetduck · 3 years

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a mutual feeling

harry styles x reader. enemies (kind of) to lovers. 9.5k words. summary/warnings: boxing! boxer!harry x boxer!reader, harry's dad is your trainer, you kind of hate each other, not really, it's not even enemies to lovers they're both just brats, it's boxing so there's kind of a lot of violence and blood, there's nothing too explicit, alcohol consumption, you're a better fighter than he is and you fight and end up doing it, oops, friends w benefits type of deal, he doesn't do relationships but he likes you, oops again, and you like him, triple oops, it's quite the journey but you'll make it.

***

“You look like shit,” Harry greets you when you open the door.

“And you, my love,” you respond with a slight slur, “look handsome as always.” You lean in for a kiss, and Harry gently pushes you away, rolling his eyes as he walks into your apartment. You grimace at the contact, feeling the pain even through the fuzz of the whiskey you’re holding.

“My dad would kill you if he were here,” Harry says.

You giggle, shutting the door behind him. “Well, then, thank goodness he’s not!”

Harry glares at you from your refrigerator and makes a noncommittal grunt.

You frown, suddenly, your alcohol muddled mind working through something. “Wait a minute,” you say slowly, “he’s not here… but you are!” Harry glares even more and walks back over to you. You pout as he guides you to your couch.

Groaning through the pain, you allow him to nudge you onto your back on the couch. “What,” you manage to ask through gritted teeth, “are we gonna fuck now?” Harry sighs, softening the bag of frozen peas he’s holding with his fingers. “You wish.”

He kneels down beside the couch and lays the bag over your bruised nose and black eye. He’s biting on his lip, concentrating and wincing a little bit whenever he hits a sensitive spot and you grimace. He fiddles with the peas, trying to get the bag in exactly the right spot, and you watch his eyes. His green, green, worried eyes.

“He knows,” you murmur.

Harry’s jaw clenches, and that’s the only response you need.

You roll your head away from him, breaking eye contact and letting the bag of peas slide onto your black eye. “Fuck.” Suddenly you’re sober. Harry sighs again, going still for a moment, and then another, and then he stands up and walks away.

“What if I didn’t show up tomorrow?” you ask softly.

You hear him fumbling around in your cabinet.

After a moment, he says, “You will.”

You don’t say anything, because he’s right.

Silence falls over the room, and you’re just about to ask him what he’s doing over there when there’s a loud bang. You gasp, jolting upright, and watch Harry shake out his fist. Your cabinet door is ajar, papers and knick knacks misplaced.

“You promised him, goddammit!”

You exhale slowly, sharply, leaning back as the pain from your sudden movement sets in.

“You promised me!” Harry closes the distance between the cabinet and the couch, throwing your first aid kit onto the coffee table in front of you quite violently. “Christ, you said you’re done! No more fighting.”

You close your eyes. “I’m sorry.”

He breathes a second, and you can hear he’s panting. So angry. “I don’t know what else I’m supposed to do,” you go on softly when he doesn’t talk for a moment. “I get antsy, and it’s late, and, well…” You turn over a little bit, grimacing, and hold up the wad of cash.

“Train!” he bursts, ignoring the money. “You said training! Fight with my dad! It’s so easy. Fight with gloves! Spar! For fuck’s sake, you said no more of this - this underground - rubbish. You can’t be out there fighting random people just to get your rocks off.”

You frown. “It’s not -”

“You’re so fucking reckless it’s insane!” he interrupts, apparently on a rant. “I cannot believe how stupid you are. After all this, you won’t go pro, won’t stop, won’t - won’t do anything but keep fucking yourself up and leaving me to clean up after!”

That strikes a nerve, and you sit up, anger brewing in your stomach. It always seems to come to this with him. “What?” you scoff incredulously. “Leave you to clean up after?” Harry scowls at you. “What else would you call this?”

“I’d call this you getting into my business!” you exclaim. “I’d call this you coming to my house in the dead of night because you’re - you’re worried about me. That has nothing to do with me, Styles, and you fucking know it. I never asked for this. I’d be just fucking fine on my own, thank you very much.”

“Yeah?” Harry spits, grabbing the half empty bottle of whiskey and shaking it at you. “Just fine, huh? Bleeding out on your couch passed out from too much to drink, that’s fine? We have very different definitions of fine then, don’t we?”

You scowl at him, vision going red with anger, and you shout, “I’ll prove it! Leave!” You jump to your feet, getting riled up, but can only start, “There’s the -” before pain shoots through your body and you fall back down, struggling for breath.

“Shit,” Harry mutters. The bottle’s dropped and he’s at your side in a second, taking bandages and disinfectant out of your first aid kit. He pulls up your shirt, cleaning a bruise on your rib cage that broke skin before pressing a soft cloth against it. “There could be a broken rib in here,” he says under his breath. “You need to go to -”

“I’m fine,” you cut in.

He looks at you, concern in his gaze, and you have to shut your eyes.

“I can’t afford it,” you whisper. “Give it a few days. I’ll be able to tell. If it’s really bad… I’ll go.” He doesn’t reply, doesn’t say anything, but you can hear the worry in the silence. “Promise?” he says.

“Yeah.”

He grabs your hand, and you frown, and he says, “Look at me.”

You meet his eyes, lifting your hand just off the couch with your pinky extended.

He links his pinky with yours.

“Pinky swear,” you say.

***

You can tell Des is pissed from the moment you walk into the gym. You can’t even see him yet and you already know. There’s something in the air. Everybody turns to stare, eyes wide, faces shameless. They have a right, though - it’s not every day somebody comes in with fresh bruises and black eyes.

“He’s in back,” the receptionist tells you as soon as you walk up to the counter.

“Great,” you mutter. “Thanks.” You shift your bag further onto your back, heading for the back room where you train. And there he is, sitting on a bench, feet up on a yoga ball and eyes trained stubbornly on his phone.

“Hey, Mr. Styles,” you say cheerily, only a hint of sarcasm slipping into your tone.

“Don’t hey, Mr. Styles me.”

You clear your throat and shut up.

“What you did last night,” he begins, standing up and crossing his arms across his chest, “was reckless, uncalled for, and dangerous. Not to mention stupid.” You grit your teeth, letting your bag slide to the floor and leaning against the doorframe. You’re in for a long one.

“These fights aren’t only dangerous but illegal,” he goes on. “You could’ve gotten yourself jailed or worse. And you know that.” He steps forward. “The worst part is you know that. We’ve been over this so, so many times. And you still go and risk your life.”

You bite your lip and look at the floor.

“I train you because you’re good,” Des tells you. “You’re a damn good fighter, you know that? And it helps you, I can see that much. A right stupid bloody temper, that’s what you have, and if I can save some poor bloke on the street from getting his arse kicked, I will. But if you won’t go pro, won’t do it safely, and won’t stop with these bloody undergrounds I can’t do it anymore!”

“I’m sorry,” you whisper.

“Damn right you’re sorry! You promised me! You swore! Said you’d never go out again! And I had to find out from my ex wife that you’re at a fight? What the hell?” You frown at this, confused suddenly, and ask, “Anne told you?”

Des scowls and turns away. “Her coworker’s daughter’s involved. I don’t bloody know. Don’t know how, why, when - but it doesn’t matter, does it?” He rounds on you, again, and you sigh quietly, exhausted from the lecture and the guilt and the pain.

He must clock it, because he softens, taking a breath and rubbing his fingers over his eyes. “Go home,” he says. “I can’t… I can’t look at you, and you can barely lift a muscle. A right mess, you are, about to fall apart just from standing so long.”

You start to complain, “But -!”

“No. Go home. Now, or else I’ll have Harry drive you.”

Frowning at the threat, and the fact that it worked, you pick up your bag and turn to go. Before you leave, though, you look at him once more. “I’m sorry,” you say. “I really am.” Des sighs. “I know,” he says.

You walk out. Stares, round two, and then you’re outside, and you take a breath of the cool air. It’s October, cold, but it feels good. Walking down the steps, you see Harry, leaned against a tree with a book.

You roll your eyes and ignore him, hoping he won’t notice you.

But he does. He calls your name, jumps up, walks over to you.

“Save it, Harry,” you say immediately. “I don’t need another lecture.”

You see him frown from the corner of your eye. “I don’t… I wasn’t gonna.”

“Save it anyway,” you mutter.

He says your name again and stops walking. You feel his hand brush against yours, like he wants to grab your hand. Against your better judgement, you stop walking too. “What?” you ask, a bit shortly.

“I just… I’m sorry,” he says.

Your brows furrow in confusion. “For what?”

Harry clears his throat. Looks at his hands. “Last night. I shouldn’t’ve said those things.”

“Oh,” you say.

“Yeah,” he says, half smiling as he looks up again. “Oh. I just - well, you’re right, that’s all. I’m just getting in your business.” You sigh, shaking your head and starting to apologize yourself, but he cuts you off. “No, no, you don’t have to - I just wanted to say that I’m…” He breathes a laugh. “I’m available. If you want to fight. When you get antsy. Even if it’s… late.”

You can’t help but smile a little bit. “Are you offering to get my rocks off for me?”

Harry barks a laugh and then says, “Yeah. Yeah, I guess I am.”

“Fuck yes.”

He doesn’t say anything, and your eyes lock, just for a second, and then you clear your throat, looking away. “Right, well, I’ll… I’ll see you around.” He nods. “Yeah,” he says, heading back to his tree. “See ya.”

***

Antsy.

The ceiling fan spins around above you, taunting you, pushing hot air around and around. It’s October and you’re somehow hot, cramped in your apartment. It’s a few weeks later, now, around midnight. You had a session with Des this morning, and you’re still antsy. Restless. You could probably go down the street, get your brains knocked out, earn a little cash.

Or you could call Harry.

Grotesque, just the idea of it. What a surrender. You roll out of bed, shove on pants and a sweatshirt for the cold air outside, and grab your car keys. You’re sweating by the time you get to the door, then freezing cold when you step outside.

The drive isn’t too long, a few minutes. The parking lot’s empty. It’s eerie. Des keeps a key above the door under the light. You’re surprised to see a dim light on in the back, and you’re even more surprised to see Harry hunched over a book.

“You’re in a gym, Styles, and you’re reading,” you say, breaking the silence. He jumps and looks up. His eyes are tired. “You’re in a gym,” he says back, “and it’s midnight.” His voice is raspy.

“Could say the same to you.”

“I live here.”

You raise a brow. “So?”

“You don’t.”

“Right.”

He holds your gaze. He likes to do that, likes to keep eye contact and make you think he’s staring into your soul. You’re the first one to look away. You always are. It’s unnerving. His eyes are so pretty, too. If you stare too long you start to admire him.

“You’re a bit early for a session,” he says as you put down your bag.

You pull on your gloves. The velcro is deafening. “I got antsy,” you reply.

“Did I miss a call?”

“No.”

“I’m a little offended.”

You crack your neck, bounce on your toes. “We’re not friends, Styles.”

“Right, I’m very offended.”

You step away from him, towards the punching bag. “Besides,” you say, “you’re too weak” - you throw a punch, the bag swings, creaks - “to spar with me.” Harry huffs, standing up and walking closer. “Christ, you’re just bullying me now.”

“I’m good at that.”

“Not really.”

Another punch, right hook, a combo, one, two, three, he’s standing against the wall, looking very cool with his arms across his chest. “Yeah?” you ask. “Should I try harder?” One, two, you’re starting to sweat. It feels good.

“Should stop trying at all.”

Three, four - one, one, four - “Go read your novel, Styles.”

He watches you for a second, and then sits down. He opens his book.

When you leave, an hour and a half later, he’s fallen asleep.

***

Another week and you’re wired again. The fan’s off, you’re sweating, but not in a good way. Soon you’re in the car, in the parking lot, in the gym. And… the light’s on again. For a second, you wonder if he ever sleeps.

“No wonder you’re so weak,” you start this time. “You never sleep.”

He doesn’t jump this time. “And neither, apparently, do you.”

“Least it doesn’t affect my fighting.”

“Affects your head, though. Explains the stupidity.”

You sigh. “You’re a prick.”

“Takes one to know one.”

“What are you, five?”

You look up and he’s smiling, the bastard, like it’s funny. Which it is, actually, but he’s being annoying about it. When you meet his gaze, he smiles more, just for a second, and then looks down at his book. “Won’t bother you this time,” he murmurs.

“Gee,” you say wryly, “I appreciate it.”

He doesn’t reply, just shrugs, and reads.

You frown, because you’re surprised. Not because you’re upset. Not because you wanted to talk to him. Or maybe you did. The anger is good fuel. You take it out on the punching bag.

You don’t stay as long this time. He’s still awake when you leave.

“See ya,” he says as you walk out.

These late night sessions don’t hold you over like a good fight does. Every week you’re going over there, and every week he’s there, too. The light doesn’t surprise you anymore, and to your embarrassment, you’ve begun to come up with your witty greetings on the way.

The conversations don’t last as long. It’s a back and forth, and then silence. It’s comfortable, the silence, and you don’t bring music. You should. You should block him out, forget he’s there, but you can’t.

It’s true, about the anger. It’s good fuel.

You feel him staring one night. He’s so intense. You think about his eyes, how much you hate them, how expressive they are, how you can tell exactly what he’s feeling, what he’s thinking…

The chain swings, creaks, you breathe in, out, one, two, three -

Harry catches the punching bag.

You pull your punch to keep from breaking his nose. “Shit, Styles, what the hell?”

He’s grinning at you, dimpling, you want to punch him, he says, “Let’s fight.”

“I told you,” you sigh, turning away, “you’re too weak for me.”

“The last time we sparred, I was sixteen.”

“And I’m sure you haven’t improved since.”

Harry raises his brows. “You think you’re better than me?”

“Yes,” you say, “yes I do.”

“Wanna prove it?”

You look at him, let your eyes drift over his body. He’s worked out, that’s for sure, and he’s so damn tall, too. He crosses his arms over his chest and watches you smugly, like you’re checking him out and not assessing his skill level. You kind of are checking him out. The sharp angle of his jaw line probably doesn’t affect the power of his punch.

You break the moment of silence. And then you say, “Fuck yes.”

It takes a second, a second of getting on gloves and drinking water and shedding layers, and then another second of bouncing on your toes, circling each other, watching his smile, his eyes, in the dim glow of the moon in the windows.

And then he makes the first move.

He throws a punch.

“Too easy,” you say as you duck.

“Just getting warmed up.”

“Lucky for you,” you start, moving closer, telegraphing left, “I’m already warm.” You go right. Right hook, for the jaw - he blocks it, of course, and you go under, for his stomach. He doesn’t dodge that one.

“Thought you’d give me a little more than that,” he says, but he’s a little breathless so the effect doesn’t carry. You just smile, watching his shoulders. Broad shoulders. His hips move left, you duck right, it’s too easy. His punch goes too far. The momentum carries him, you hold those broad shoulders and knee into his ribcage.

He coughs, stumbling a little, and you feel a twinge of guilt. Oops.

And then it’s all movement.

He lunges forward and -

One, two - hook left, dodge it, he’s sweating, eyes focused - one, two, another left jab, an uppercut that lands. He’s spinning, bouncing, now you’re the one that’s coughing. No more guilt. He doesn’t draw blood, though, going weak on you. Of course he is.

Amused, you laugh, “Shit, Styles,” and square your shoulders, crack your neck, draw closer, hands up. His brows jump, and he looks just as amused as you are. Bounce, bounce, eye contact, a teasing glint in his eyes.

Here we go, you think, and now it’s your turn.

One-two-three-four, bang bang bang, every punch lands, not hard, go gentle, a knee to his stomach, also gentle, pull him down, elbow to his back, so gentle, don’t hurt him, look at those back muscles, he swears under his breath, arm behind his back, don’t pull, don’t hurt him, he’s on the floor, on his stomach, arm bent, your knee on the small of his back -

He breathes a laugh, craning to look at you over his shoulder. “Alright, then. Point proved.” You grin, releasing him and falling back onto your hands. “I’m not one to say I told you so…”

“Yeah, yeah,” he says, turning onto his back. He puts his cheek against the mat, looking at you. He’s still smiling. You look at his dimples, his cheek, and you lean forward, off your hands. He holds your gaze, no surprise there, and you hold his.

His smile fades, and you watch his eyes flick down and back up. You’re panting, chest rising, falling - it’s so quiet. You creep forward. He swallows, you see his throat work. He’s still sweating. So are you, probably.

You lean over him, watch his eyes widen, trail your finger over his cheek. “I hope I didn’t bruise you,” you murmur. He’s breathing just as heavily as you are, and even though he looks like he’s about to faint, his voice is cocky as he asks, “Oh, is that why you’re touching me?”

Closer, closer, your necklace hangs in the space between the two of you. Even closer, and it rests on his chest. “I don’t know,” you whisper. “Are we about to fuck?” He rolls over, suddenly, doesn’t reply, pulls you with him, and he’s on top of you and he’s kissing you and it feels so good, tastes so good, you close your eyes and grin and pull him closer, closer.

Turns out the answer’s yes.

***

A rude awakening. So rude. Borderline disrespectful.

Everything hurts. You groan, rolling over.

The bell on the door chimes again, and your eyes snap open.

You bolt upright. “Fuck,” you hiss.

“Such a dirty mouth,” Harry mumbles, still half asleep.

Scrambling for clothes, you mutter, “Your dad’s here, idiot.”

“Oh,” Harry says, blinking awake. “Fuck.”

You hurry to grab clothes and get decent and run out the door without another word to Harry. It’s cold outside, and you’re only half dressed. You get your car running, pull out of the parking lot, and hope Des doesn’t see you.

When you’re home, you take a cold shower. Icy cold. Your head’s still pounding, but you manage to muddle through what happened last night. Regret seeps through you with the water, and you’re thankful for the heat in your apartment when you step out.

You have a session with Des in a few hours.

Should be fun. Awkward.

And it is, when you eventually get there. A little of both. Mostly awkward. Des doesn’t suspect anything. He must not have seen your car in the morning. You trade smirks and scowls and glares and grins with Harry throughout the morning, but not a word.

Not a single word.

***

Antsy.

Antsy, antsy, restless, wired.

And guilty.

Because you’re not antsy for a fight. You’re antsy for a chat. Or a fuck. Whatever. You’re expecting a few words to turn into a few kisses, and then a few more, and then another rude awakening. You can’t tell if you’re excited about that or already guilty.

So much guilt. Can never get away from the guilt.

You’re thinking about it the whole ride over, through empty streets and hour long red lights and mocking stop signs. It’s so quiet. You can’t get over how quiet the world is when your head is so ridiculously loud.

Through all that, you can’t come up with a single thing to start with.

You used to pull into the parking lot and come up with a nice snarky comment to start the evening out with. Just like that. You’d walk in and mull it over and decide it was perfect then tweak it just so right before saying it.

And you’d get a rush of satisfaction from his reply and his smirk and his dimples.

Not tonight. Tonight you think the whole way over and can’t think of a single thing to say. Nothing to start with, nothing to end with, nothing to tell him or yell at him or sob at him. Nothing. Zero, zilch, nada.

He’s working out when you get there. Shimmering in the moonlight with his shirt off, throwing punches at the punching bag and bouncing around and panting breaths. It comes to you, then, what to say, and you say it.

“Oh, how the turntables…”

He stops and stills the punching bag with his hand and turns to look at you. He doesn’t look particularly uncomfortable. Maybe a little unsure. Mostly smug. His eyes are the only things giving away his uncertainty.

“Didn’t think you’d show up,” he says.

“No faith in me, huh?”

He smiles. “None at all.” He takes off his gloves and stretches, flexing for you, and you let your eyes rake over him shamelessly. “Didn’t bring a book with me,” you muse, setting your bag down. “Then we’d really be, uh… swapped…”

“Shame.”

Your eyes lock. There’s a beat of silence, and you let it linger for a while. His eyes are so expressive. Green, so green. Even greener up close. “So are we gonna talk about it?” you ask after a second.

“Talk about what?”

You debate punching him. Hard. You could break his nose. Get a little blood gushing. Maybe he’d talk to you then. “It’s rude to answer a question with a question, Styles.” He leans against the wall. “Is it?”

“It’s a sign of weakness, actually.”

He raises a brow. “You think I’m the one at a disadvantage here?”

“Aren’t we both?”

“Do you regret it?”

You’re playing along now. “Do you?”

“Would you do it again?”

You hold his gaze, walk closer. “Isn’t that the same question?”

He opens his mouth, then closes it. He grins.

And then he kisses you.

Dammit, you think through the euphoria, he somehow managed to win.

***

It’s not that you expected that it would happen again. It’s not like you were hoping for it to happen again, or even like you were dreading it would happen again. It was one of those hope for the best, prepare for the worst situations.

Three in the morning, and your watch buzzes against your wrist.

Groaning, you sit up and gather your clothes. You get dressed, slip out, and drive home. One icy cold shower later, you’re wishing you felt regret. You wish you were guilty, or upset, or embarrassed.

Instead, you picture those dimples and grin.

You ignore him when you go to the gym for your session with Des. You work out, get your heartrate up, push away all thoughts about Harry Styles, and leave. The ball is in his court, you decide, and you’re not one to steal. Or maybe you are. You’re just too stubborn at the moment.

It feels good to be rid of him, even if it’s just temporary. It takes a few days, a few days of you ignoring his more and more frequent glances, a few days of you leaving as soon as your session’s over, a few days of you parking around back so he can’t corner you out front where he reads.

Then he follows you. He does corner you, only at your car rather than at his tree. He’s leaned up against it when you walk out, and you sigh when you catch sight of him. A sigh of irritation. Because you’re annoyed. It’s not a sigh of relief, obviously, or a sigh of happiness.

“Waiting for me at my car?” you say, walking up to him. “I’m a little creeped out.”

Harry looks up at you, brows raised. “She speaks!”

You fiddle with your keys. “Yeah, she’s been known to, here and there.”

He bites his lip, looking at you thoughtfully. “You know, I don’t know where you live.”

“Wow, you managed to get even creepier.”

“I said I don’t know where you live,” he says, smiling a bit.

You open the door, lean against it. “I heard you.”

“I was gonna visit you. Bring flowers or summat.”

“Flowers!” you gasp. “A creep and a liar. How romantic.”

He smiles even more. “You didn’t show up for a while.”

“I’m glad you noticed.”

“I was getting worried.”

You cock a brow. “Is worried a synonym for horny now, or…?”

His smile curls into a smirk. “That too.”

You nod, mocking sympathy. “Right, right, you poor soul.” You clear your throat, sliding into the driver’s seat, and close the door as you turn the key in the ignition. “Well!” you exclaim, rolling down the window so he can hear you. “I’m gonna drive away now. Nice talking to you.”

He puts his palm on the door, leans against it, muscles flexing. “My mate’s coming into town,” he says. He’s looking at you. So intense. “Yeah?” you ask. “Are you into that?” His brows jump, teasingly, but then he’s shaking his head.

“Nah, I just… He’s a good lad, you know? And he needs a place to stay.”

“Your dad lives with you, Styles, and I don’t think he’d like to hear -”

“He’s not staying with us.”

You scoff slightly. “You think he’d wanna stay in my little -”

“No,” Harry interrupts, “he’s staying in a hotel.”

Your eyes narrow, wondering if you know where he’s going with this. You stay quiet.

“And, uh…” He breaks eye contact, which makes you suspicious, and looks out towards the gym behind your car. “I wanna make sure the place he’s staying is nice.” He looks back at you, just a hint of a smirk in his eyes.

“Styles,” you begin slowly, and then he clears his throat, cutting you off again, and leans back, off your car, standing up straight. He’s looking at the gym again. “I think you need to come with me to test out this hotel he’s staying at.”

You laugh. You laugh, throwing your head back, being dramatic about it, and say, “You did not just go through all that just to get me in a hotel room with you.” Harry meets your gaze, finally, and grins. “My back’s getting sore for all the wrong reasons.”

“Christ almighty, you absolute bastard.” You put on your seat belt, shaking your head with a huge smile on your face. “Fuck you, Styles,” you say, putting your foot on the pedal, “and call me when you figure out a date.”

***

Apparently, the date is a week later.

And a week later, it feels so nice to wake up on a bed. All the satisfaction of the night before and a perfectly comfortable bed to wake up in. You’re more content than you should be, and you have to hide your smile the next morning after round - four? Five? Whatever. The first of the morning. And last, apparently.

He’s pulling on his pants, fixing himself in the mirror, and you’re staring at him and thinking. Thinking about what to say, when to say it, how to say it, whether you’re a wimp for wanting to say it. “So we’re really not gonna talk about it, huh?” you finally say.

He hums a “Hm?” and meets your gaze in the mirror.

You glare. “Gonna make me spell it out?”

“Spell what out?”

“Again with the questions,” you mutter.

“Right, well, I wasn’t trying to be smart,” Harry starts, and you can’t help cutting in, “Are you ever?” He purses his lips at you and turns around. “Tell me.” You’re almost impressed, and then he adds, “Is that better?”

You breathe a sigh, clearing your throat and turning on the dramatics again. Sitting up, you sit on your calves and clutch the blanket to your chest. With your best puppy dog eyes, you gush, “What are we, Styles?”

Harry rolls his eyes. “Mortal enemies,” he says under his breath, turning around again to put on his shirt. “Yeah?” you say. “All blood and guts?” He smirks at you in the mirror. “I think I felt your guts last night when -”

You laugh and cut him off. “Oh, alright.”

A second of silence, and he goes a little more serious. “I hope you know I don’t do relationships,” he says quietly. Your brows jump. “And I thought I was the dramatic one.” He sighs, turning around to face you. “I’m not being dramatic.”

“The hell you aren’t,” you say with a grin.

He frowns. “We’re not a thing.”

“Good,” you tell him. “I’d kill you.”

“You have to tell me if you ever get into a relationship,” he says.

You blink. “Huh?”

“We’re done if you start dating.”

You scoff a laugh. “Um? No shit?”

“And we can’t tell my dad.”

Shaking your head, you hold up a hand. “Hold on, back track. I’ll tell you if I ever start dating, and you tell me if you ever do.” He shrugs and replies, “That’s easy. I won’t date.” You frown. “You don’t know that.”

“Yes, I do.”

“You’re a prick,” you say, impulsively.

“Which is why I won’t date.”

“Some people are into that.”

“Are you?”

You bounce your eyebrows. “Clearly.”

“And yet you don’t wanna date me.”

“Fuck no.”

“Point proved.”

“Fuck you.”

He grins. “Fuck me yourself.”

You laugh, incredulously, and flop back onto the bed, staring at the ceiling. “Alright. It’s off if either of us get into a relationship -” You hold up a finger when he starts to talk and push on, “And your dad can’t know.”

“I’m not paying for this hotel every time you get horny.”

You sit up and scoff, “Every time I get -”

“Every time we want to spend quality time together,” he amends, a sweet smile on his face. You grin and lay back again. “My apartment’s small,” you say. “But there’s a bed.” Harry hums, sitting on the bed, and you turn your head to watch him pull on his shoes.

“Anywhere that’s not the gym floor is fine with me.”

“Ooh, you’ll get to see where I live,” you say. “Should I be scared?”

“For your bed, maybe.”

You snicker and mutter, “You’re gross.”

“So are you.”

“A match made in heaven.”

Harry makes a noise of disagreement. “Hell.”

You smile, reaching over to fiddle with his shirt. “Purgatory.”

“You’re awful.”

“And you’re gross,” you reply with a shrug.

You can see him biting back a smile as he stands up. “Right. And - nobody can know.”

“Yeah, yeah, we won’t tell your dad.”

“No, I mean - other people, too.”

You raise a brow. “Who cares?”

He frowns, turning away to grab his coat. “They might get the wrong idea.”

You breathe a laugh and sit up, stretching a bit. “Yeah? And what’s the right idea?”

“Anything but whatever the hell’s happening here.”

“Wow, I’m offended.”

“Should be. Fuck you.”

Childishly, you stick your tongue out at him. “Fuck me yours-”

“And now we’re just going in circles,” Harry interrupts. He grabs his coat, and you realize he’s fully dressed, and you’re a bit startled. “Don’t be late for the gym,” he tells you. “My dad’ll get suspicious.”

You roll your eyes. “Oh, well, heaven forbid your dad -”

“Just don’t be late.”

“Interrupt me one more time, Styles, I -”

He smirks, opens the door, and leaves.

You groan and fall back onto the bed again, then sigh happily.

This situation with Harry, you think, is absolutely terrible.

***

He is so cute.

Just the most adorable.

All smiles and big green eyes and soft curls you want to run your hands through.

“I think I love you,” you murmur drunkenly, and he laughs.

He’s got a nice laugh. Sounds like music. “Think I feel the same.”

You lean into him, pressing kisses against the column of his throat. “I really think I love you, Harry,” you whisper, and he clears his throat, going a bit stiff. “Jack,” he says. “It’s Jack.”

“Oh,” you giggle. You look up at him. “Your eyes are green,” you tell him.

He smiles again, and he doesn’t have dimples. “That they are,” he says.

You’re at some bar. Two weeks after the hotel meet up. Harry’s been to your apartment about a million times, but luckily, the bed’s still in one piece. Here, there’s music going, and you have a few drinks on the table in front of you.

A few guys bought you drinks. Jack did. He was nice about it, though. He’s such a gentleman. He offered to buy you food, brought you to a table and talked with you while you ate. He pulled the chair out for you.

He nudges at your cheek, pressing his lips to your skin. It’s all wrong. But he’s a gentleman, and boy, are his eyes green. You sway a little to the music playing. He kisses you more. It feels nice.

You turn so your back is to his chest, and he stops with the kissing. He holds your waist, not too low, so respectful. What a gentleman. With those green, green eyes. “I wanna make you feel good,” he whispers in your ear.

“Yeah?” you say, giggling a little.

He kisses your throat, so lightly, so nicely. “I wanna take you home.”

You pout at that and turn around, wiggling your hand at him. “Oh, Jack,” you say, “I’m married!” He frowns, pulling away a little bit. “What?” You show him the ring on your finger, only half processing that it’s on your middle finger and you’re essentially flipping him off.

Your gaze focuses. “Oh,” you say, outloud, lowering your hand and inspecting the ring. It’s Harry’s, you realize. He left it in your room last week, and you wore it so you wouldn’t forget to give it to him the next time you saw him. But you forgot.

“I forgot,” you murmur.

“You forgot you’re married?” Jack scoffs incredulously.

“No!” you exclaim, looking up. “No, no, I’m not - I’m not married. Not at all.”

He relaxes, but he still looks skeptical.

“I just - it’s complicated.”

“I didn’t know,” he says, backing away. “I don’t want to get in the middle of anything.”

“You wouldn’t be,” you say softly.

He laughs awkwardly. “Um… Yeah, well, it seems like I would be.”

You’re not sure what to say, and eventually settle on a weak, “I’m sorry.”

“Right.” He clears his throat. “Me too. Well, it was nice… it was nice meeting you.”

You look up, shaking your head. “Wait, you don’t have to…”

“I think I should,” he says. “Yeah, so - bye, I guess.”

“Bye,” you say softly. “Bye, bye…”

***

What a headache. So much pain.

You groan, rolling over onto your stomach, and look at the clock.

“Shit.”

You’re late. You’re so, so late. Des will be pissed. You haven’t been late for a session in almost two years. You scramble out of bed, downing a painkiller and stumbling around your apartment until you’re changed and about ready to go.

The medicine kicks in on the way, and you’re almost sentient by the time you get to the gym. Harry gives you a weird look on the way, and a bit of a memory flashes through your head. Vaguely, you worry about having confessed your love to him.

You have a session though, and you already have enough on your plate dealing with an angry Des, so you force it out of your head. Des is upset. He gets over it. You throw punches and get your feelings out and set a ring on your finger to the side. You’re not sure how it got there, but it looks like Harry’s. Shit, you think, maybe there really was a declaration of love.

He’s reading against his tree, and you ambush him on the way out. “What did I say last night?” you ask, a bit breathlessly. He looks surprised and replies, “What do you mean?” You sit down next to him, getting your breath back.

“Be honest,” you say.

A smile tugs the corner of his lips. “Aren’t I always?”

“Never. But I didn’t - you’re not -” You huff. “Are we okay?”

The smile drops, and so does your heart. He looks down. Oh, no, you think miserably. You really did. You said you loved him, drunkenly, and ruined your entire relationship. Friendship. Situationship. You’re getting another headache just thinking about it.

“Well, actually… I was thinking… maybe we should take a break,” Harry says quietly.

Your heart drops even further, and you blurt, “I didn’t mean it.”

His brows furrow. He looks up again. “What?”

“I don’t love you.”

Harry blinks, dramatically, and actually laughs. “What?” he repeats.

“What I said last night. I didn’t mean it. I was drunk.”

His brows go down again. “I didn’t… I didn’t see you last night.”

You hold up the ring. “Are you sure?”

He grabs it from you, smiling a bit. “Yeah. Positive. I’ve been looking for this for about three days.” You bite your lip. “Oh,” you say. He looks at you, confused yet again. “If not me,” he says slowly, “who were you with?”

“I don’t know,” you say honestly. “I don’t remember.”

“You slept with somebody?”

“No. I woke up alone. Just a - an awful headache.”

He clears his throat, looking away. “Right, right. Well, you can. Obviously. I don’t - I don’t care. At all. But I was thinking…” He looks down at the ring, at his lap, frowning. “I think we should lay off it a bit.”

“Asking for some space?” you ask, and you’re half joking, but your voice is a little weak.

He looks up. Softly, he says, “Yeah.”

“Wow,” you laugh. “You’re breaking up with me and we’re not even together.”

“I’m not breaking up with you,” he says quickly. Too quickly. His face tinges red, just a bit, and his gaze falls to the ring. “I think… I think we should have another rule. We can only see each other once a week.”

You whistle lowly. “Wow,” you say again.

“Stop with the wows,” Harry mutters. “I get it. You’re impressed.”

“It’s hard not to be.”

“Right, yeah. I’m very impressive.” He’s still looking down. There’s a beat of silence.

“Alright!” you say after a minute. “Alright, well, I’ll see you around, then. I’ll get a calendar.” You stand up, dusting nonexistent grass from your legs. “I’ll doodle your name around each week. What do you say, Fridays? Wednesdays? When’re we doing this, huh?”

“I don’t know. Whenever.”

“Geez, try not to sound so excited.”

He doesn’t say anything.

“Alright!” you repeat. “Goodbye.”

You stand there for half a second, expecting something, anything, and then walk off.

***

He’s not at the gym.

Midnight, a little after, and he’s not at the gym. The lights are off. Ridiculously, you’re not really sure what to do. You give a few half hearted punches, and then leave, feeling like an absolute idiot.

He ignores you the next day during your session at the gym. He works out, parading his toned muscles around the gym and grinning at the instructor to flaunt his dimples. Then he walks out, so he’s gone by the time you’re done with Des.

A week, and he hasn’t said a word. The worst part is that you don’t even know what you did wrong. He’s just scared, you tell yourself. He’d been spending almost every night at your apartment. He’ll come crawling back. He’ll kiss you and tell you he loves you and then you’ll date and everything will be happily ever after.

It’s all lies, of course, because you don’t even know if you’d want a relationship, if you’re ready for that, if you could stand that with him, if you love him - but it’s kind of nice to fantasize about.

You go to a fight one night. You watch. You watch the money, the fighting, watch the happy, painful, bliss on the winners’ faces and hide in the crowd. People recognize you, ask when you’re going, and you say… You say you’re not.

You can’t.

Maybe tomorrow, you say.

But you don’t come the next day. You stare at your ceiling, hot, and watch the fan. Around and around it goes, and you don’t move. You think. You think, and sweat, and eventually get up and take a cold shower.

The next morning, Des isn’t in the back room. You ask the receptionist where he is, and she shrugs. Tells you she has no idea - call him. So you do. You call, and he sounds upset, and he says to come upstairs.

You’ve never been upstairs.

You know where the steps are, though, and you walk up and into the hallway and see Des leaned against a door. “What’s going on?” you ask immediately. “Are you okay?” Des nods, sighing heavily. “I’m fine, but Harry’s - he’s got into a fight.”

You almost laugh. “A fight?”

“Yeah, he…” He sighs again. “A client came in here earlier, hours ago. He was going on about some fight he’d gone to last night, talking about what happened, about… well, about you.” Your eyes widen. “What?”

“Said you wouldn’t fight,” Des goes on quietly. “Started going on about how you can’t… He said you can’t -” He shakes his head. “This is him, mind you, he said not only can you not fight, but you’re a wimp about it, too.”

You can only gape.

“I was gonna kick him out, I was, but Harry… Er - well, they started shoving each other, bloody idiots, and then there were punches and we pulled them apart but they still… Well, he’s got a bit of a shiner.”

“But he’s okay?”

“He’s fine. Mostly.” He eyes you up, looking curious. “Haven’t broken his heart yet, have you?” This time you do laugh. “Sorry?” you ask, and Des smiles a bit. “Boy’s been looney about you for ages, you know. Since the second you stepped in here.”

“I…” You’re not sure what to say. “Um… Why… why are you telling me this now?” you ask, and Des grins. “Wanted to see how guilty you’d be.” You frown, confused, and echo, “Guilty?” Des nods, looking almost smug. “Most people are guilty when their lie’s found out. They’re even guiltier when they realize the old man they’ve been lying to has known since the start.”

“We’re not… lying to you…” It sounds even lamer out loud than in your head.

Des hums. “Course you’re not.” He pats you on the back and clears his throat, turning away. “I’m going out, now. It’ll be for a while. Don’t hurt him anymore, thanks.” He disappears down the steps, and you squeeze your eyes shut. Guilty, yes, and embarrassed.

Whoops.

You open the door and see Harry on the bed, an ice pack on his face.

“You look like shit,” you say.

“So do you,” he replies without looking at you. “At least I have an excuse.”

“Ooh, wasn’t expecting that one,” you tell him, walking closer. “None of the ‘you should see the other guy,’ huh?” He turns to glare at you, and you grimace at the black and blue around his eye. “Ouch,” you murmur.

“Yeah.”

“I’m supposed to be the one getting beat up,” you say softly, and you’re pushing a curl out of his face before you can stop yourself. “You’re too pretty to get your face smashed in.” Harry rolls his eyes and turns away again.

You lean down, impulsively - you’re not thinking today, apparently - and start to kiss his hand, resting on his stomach. He winces, pulling away, and you see his knuckles are bruised. “That hurts,” he says.

“Sorry, sorry,” you say, and go for his cheek -

He hisses your name and bites out, “That hurts too.”

“Well, Christ, Styles,” you scoff, “where doesn’t it hurt?”

He glances at you, a flicker in those green eyes, and points to his temple. “There’s not too bad,” he mumbles. You have to bite back a grin. “Alright,” you say, and you press your lips to his skin. His eyes flutter shut.

“And… and here’s not awful.” He points to his jaw almost grudgingly, and a bit of a laugh slips out of your lips as you pepper a kiss across his jaw, over his chin, and then pull away. He opens his eyes at the loss of contact, pouting a bit.

“How ‘bout here,” he whispers, and he points to his lips.

“You’re a bastard,” you whisper back, and then you kiss him.

Suddenly he’s better, because he’s smiling and reaching up behind your neck to gently pull you closer. Then he’s sitting up, onto his elbow, his hand nudging you as if he wants you to get on top of him.

“Thought everything hurt,” you murmur, complying anyway.

Harry shrugs, smiling more, and says,“The medicine just set in.”

“I hate you,” you tell him.

He sighs, sounding happy, and kisses you deeper. “The feeling,” he says, “is mutual.”

***

His name is Charlie. The bartender. It says it right on his little gold name tag, which blinds you every few seconds when the light hits it just right. He’s pretty nice. You’re getting drinks for yourself and for Harry, who’s supposed to meet you in a few minutes. He’ll probably be late.

“Come here often?” Charlie asks, breaking you out of your thoughts.

You raise a brow. “Yeah. Yet somehow I’m still surprised at how unoriginal you are.”

Charlie laughs, sliding your drink across the counter and getting started on Harry’s. “Oh, no, no, I just meant… I feel like I’ve seen you around.” You give a neutral hum in reply, swirling the ice in your drink around.

And then you hear your name called from behind you, and you feel yourself smile as you turn around and see Harry walking in, waving at you. He’s not late. How nice. “Hey, you’re with Harry?” Charlie asks, sounding surprised, and your smile drops to a frown as you remember he’s still there.

“Yup.”

“Wow,” Charlie says under his breath, his back to you as he mixes Harry’s drink, “he sure goes through dates fast…” Your brows jump. “Excuse me?” Charlie turns around. He looks stunned. Slowly, he hands the drink to you. “Um… Nothing. Sorry.”

“Did you see him here with someone else?” you ask, regretting it immediately.

“Yeah, just last week,” Charlie replies. He makes a face. “They were all over each other.” And from the next expression that floods his features, he, too, regrets his words immediately after they leave his lips. “But, uh - that’s not my business!” he says hurriedly. “That has nothing to do with me. Okay! Well, enjoy your drinks.”

He walks away just as Harry comes up behind you.

“Well, hello,” he says softly, lips feathering against your ear.

“Hey,” you say, handing him his drink.

Your tone is a bit sharp, and Harry pulls away a bit. “Thanks,” he says. “Er… you alright?”

“I’m fine. So is, uh, Charlie here.” You point at Charlie’s receding figure.

“Yeah?” Harry says, an amused smile curving his mouth as he takes a sip of his drink.

You clear your throat, fiddling with your glass. “We were just talking about you.”

His smirk is so handsome. And irritating. Right on the line between the choices of kiss him and smack him. “Oh?” he says. “All good things, I hope?” You shrug, letting your gaze drift around the room. “Not necessarily. He, uh… he said you came here last week with someone else.”

The smirk disappears. He looks down, coughs slightly. “Said that, did he?”

“Yeah,” you breathe, patting him on the chest. “Yeah, yeah he did say that. And now, I’m saying that, uh… that you’re drinking alone. I’ll see you around, Styles.” You walk away, just the slightest bit of anger seeping through your skin.

***

Antsy. Antsy, antsy, antsy.

The fan is spinning.

That damn fan.

You can’t look at it anymore. You roll out of bed, put on some clothes. No sweatshirt, no pants, just shorts and an athletic top. It is freezing fucking cold outside, you realize with a grimace, which isn’t new information but somehow still surprises you.

Soon you’re running, slowly, jogging, and already you feel better.

Really, you shouldn’t be upset. That’s what keeps spinning around your head. You shouldn’t be upset. You should’ve expected this. You did expect this. Obviously he was sleeping with other people. He’d been honest about it from the start.

Regret, anger, misery. Turn it into money. A little cash, a little pain, a little gain. You’re filled with regret as soon as you step inside. People notice you and look startled, and then expectant. They seem to close in on you.

You’ll fight tonight, right? Give it a good show? There’s a new kid in town, better show ‘em who’s boss - don’t lose your throne, rookie - c’mon, prove Des doesn’t train losers - does he? Does he? Are you? A loser? Gone soft, have you? Are you ready? Ready to go?

And brrrring, you’re off.

It feels so good. You’re so numb it doesn’t even hurt. It’ll probably hurt later, though, and you’ll probably regret it, but not now. Now you’re just happy, grinning through the blood, probably looking psychotic.

It’s unmatched, this adrenaline rush. Can’t get it anywhere else.

Well, maybe -

Bang. Right to the nose. Damn, that hurts, but losing hurts more - one, two, three, around the back, pull, pull, make it hurt, like they hurt you, like he hurt you, fuck it hurts so bad, and…

And we have a winner!

Outside, it is so, so cold.

***

Cleaning yourself up is therapeutic.

It doesn’t happen until the next morning, but it’s pleasant.

You miss your session with Des.

***

You spend a lot of time at the park. At the library. Anywhere but your apartment, where he can find you. You ignore his calls. You change his ringtone so you can bop along to the song while you let it ring out.

When you go to the gym at one in the morning, about a week later, you actually look a little worse than you first did. Less bloody, less fresh, less swelling but more black and blue around your eye and cheek.

Harry bolts up when he sees you. He starts to step forward, then hesitates. He hovers by the alcove where he reads, glowing like an angel from the light behind him. He looks so nervous.

“You look awful,” he says softly.

You clear your throat. “Thanks.”

“I was worried. We were both worried.”

“Yeah. Sorry about that.”

There’s a beat of silence, and then Harry sets his book down. The nervousness fades away, and he leans against the wall next to him, leveling your gaze as he crosses his arms across his chest.

“You fought again,” he says.

“I did.”

“Because of me?”

You look at him, sensing a shift in the air. “What am I supposed to say?”

“The truth.”

“You’ve got quite the head if you expect me to say yes.”

“And you’ve got quite the nerve if you expect me to believe no.”

“You just think the sun revolves around you, don’t you, Styles?” you ask with a scowl.

“Who’s to say it doesn’t?”

“Christ,” you mutter. You huff a sigh, breaking eye contact and turning away.

He lets the quiet loom for a moment, probably basking in it, and then says, “You’re upset about the bar, aren’t you.” He doesn’t even phrase it like a question. “I’m not upset,” you reply under your breath. “I’m not even surprised.”

“Good.”

“Yeah?” you say tersely, meeting his eyes again. “You’re pleased by that?”

He shrugs. “Yeah. You know why?” Finally, a bit of venom creeps into his words. Part of you is relieved to hear some sort of feeling in what he’s saying. “Because I’m allowed to do that, to go on a date. This isn’t a relationship. I can fuck other people, you can fuck whoever the hell you want.”

“Have you?”

Harry frowns some more. “I just told you I did.”

“Before that.”

He opens his mouth - and then closes it. “Have you?”

You can’t help but smirk a little bit. “No.”

“Well, you could’ve. You can. It’s not a rule.”

“Maybe it should be.”

Your words hang in the air for a second, and you can see Harry turning them over in his head. His eyes bounce between yours, mouth set in a hard line. “We’re not dating,” he says lowly. “I hope you get that. We’re not together.”

“And why’s that?”

“Because I don’t date.”

“Except for the one last week.”

His jaw clenches, and he turns away from you. “That doesn’t count.”

“How come?”

“Because -” He huffs a sigh, running a hand through his hair. “Christ. I don’t know.”

“Wrong answer, Styles.”

“I don’t know,” he repeats irritatedly.

“Er,” you say, imitating a buzzer. “Still wrong.”

“Fine,” he practically growls, turning on you. “Because I was only getting over you.”

You smile coolly, ignoring your racing heartbeat. “Ding, ding, ding.”

Harry shakes his head, turning away again. “I can’t do this.”

“You don’t have to.”

“Yes,” he sighs, “I do.”

You raise a brow. “And, uh, Harry,” you say, “why’s that?”

He glances at you. A million different emotions flash across his face, echoing in his eyes, in your heart. And then, suddenly, his features soften. “You know why,” he murmurs, and your brows jump.

You blink at him, startled. “What?”

“Yeah,” Harry says, biting his lip as he takes a small step towards you. “You know why.”

You shake your head, backing up slightly. “I - I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“C’mon,” he murmurs, closing the distance. “Gonna make me say it? Gonna make me spell it out?” You watch him, hold his gaze, look into his eyes, and your breath catches in your throat as you start to understand.

“Yeah,” you tell him a bit breathlessly. “Yeah, I’m gonna make you spell it out.”

“I,” he starts, and now you’re taking a half step towards him, “l… i… k… e… y… o… u…”

You can’t help the smile that breaks across your face. “You’re a good speller.”

“A lot,” he adds.

“And now, uh… Now put it all together for me,” you say, milking it.

“I like you,” he whispers, so close now. “I like you a lot.”

“I like you, too,” you admit.

He traces his finger against your cheek, so, so gently. Your eyes close at the contact.

“You’ll break my heart,” he says, leaning in.

“Not if -” You’re having trouble speaking. “Not if you don’t let me.”

He’s speaking almost against your lips now. “As if I’ll have any say in the matter.”

You open your eyes, smiling just barely. “I’ll be nice.”

“You could never.”

His eyes are so, so green. “You’d be surprised.”

His finger slides under your chin and he gently presses up. “Wouldn’t be the first time.”

Your eyelids flutter shut. “I’m anything but predictable,” you whisper.

He doesn’t reply, just kisses you, and you smile against his lips.

Maybe things will work out after all.

***

la fin 💜

i wrote this FAST haha like in a day or two but lemme tell you i've never felt this way about anything else i've written... like obvi i don't post things i hate slkdfj but like i LOVE this fic. not to sound narcissistic lmao but i'm so in love w this fic it's insane. that being said some feedback would literally make my entire day!!! week!!! life!!!!

anyway thank you for reading ily <3

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#harry styles x reader #harry styles fanfic #harry styles oneshot #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles x you #harry styles x y/n #harry styles story #harry styles fic #harry styles writing #harry styles one shot #harry styles

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motivatedtocry · 3 years

Note

May I ask for a follow up post where MC admits Mammon is actually their favourite but maybe in private vs in front of all the bro’s. I’d love to see their reactions but I feel like Mammon’s private reaction would be so sweet & genuine

of course!

i'm still working on the other brothers and their reactions in private with mc, but this can be an alternative story to the mini series

i hope this is what you were hoping for!♡

Sharing is Caring | Mammon is MC's favorite (Alternative story)

warning! none, all fluff :)

✃- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

You came back from the kitchen with some of your favorite pudding. With the spoon in your mouth, tasting the flavor, you curiously looked into your room, looking for Mammon. You found yourself feeling down after not finding him anywhere. You practically ran away from him earlier, he even seemed to keep wanting to talk to you.

You thought it was funny at first, but worry washed your body entirely. What if he went back to not being honest with you about his feelings? It was already a miracle that you two got to the point where Mammon wasn't trying to avoid his feelings. Well, more like lying about them. He was a bad liar, and that helped you decipher what he actually means to say, but how nice it felt to have him opening his heart to you.

What if he felt bad?

You sigh, shaking your head. Checking on him is better than getting it all mixed up in your head. For that reason, you left the rest of your pudding in your room before turning around to start your way to Mammon's room. The house was currently quiet, so you assumed that the brothers were either in their room or out and about.

The walk wasn't long, the closer you got, the more nervous you got. You placed your hand over your chest in attempt to tranquil your rapid heartbeat. You didn't want to admit it, but you did have one demon to pick. You also did deeply care about all of the brothers, but Mammon was special. He cared about you even if he tried to deny it. He even told you how much he didn't want any of his brothers to have you.

He already made his way to your heart, and with that it felt like he went right through it. In a good way, of course.

You knocked on his door a couple of times, loudly enough for Mammon to hear. After a few seconds, from the other side of it, an almost inaudible 'It's open!' had your hand twisting the doorknob to open it. Mammon was lazily sitting on his couch. He looked more like he was lying on it rather than sitting. His legs were spread wide open, and his upper body was relying more on the seat than the back of it. It seemed like he was just casually scrolling on his phone since he was holding it, but looked away from it once he noticed you walk into the room.

"Of course it was you. My brothers barely care to knock when they barge into my room." He says, taking little time to sit properly and put his phone down next to him. "What? Have you finally come to admit that you're mad in love with The Great Mammon?" A joking tone ringed with his words. A smug painted across his face, but you knew that's not how he really felt.

He actually was trying to hide how disappointed he was at your earlier response.

Before you could answer, he spoke once again. "You're unbelievable, ya know that? You're missing a great opportunity here!"

You walked towards him and gently sat next to him; just like he did earlier while you both were in his room. "Oh, yeah?"

"Yes!" He responds.

"I think you are the one admitting you're madly in love with me." You tease.

The pink color you loved to see in his face took over his cheeks. "T-That's not the point!" He shakes his head. "Why did ya come here anyway?"

"To talk my favorite demon. One that I'd pick out of everyone." You give him a cheeky smile. You can't lie, his confused expression was priceless, but the excitement that began to sparkle in his eyes had you feeling all types of ways.

"Huh?!" His eyes widened, and the pink color in his cheeks extended to his ears. You felt your own getting warmer, so he wasn't the only one blushing. You chuckled, trying to keep composure.

"You heard me."

"Time out!" He fixed himself in his seat one more time, changing to a position where he could look at you more directly. "Ya said that you'd pick all of us! Ya better not be playin' with me."

"I'm not."

"MC, ya change your mind quicker than I spend all of my money. I can't keep up! Ya have to be lyin' to me."

"Mammon," you start saying as you hold his hands. He looked like a puppy asking for a treat and if it wasn't because you had something important to say, you'd already be melting. "I couldn't bring myself to say your name out there. Not when all of your brothers were looking at me like they were going to eat me alive! I also... felt bad for only picking one."

"That's exactly why ya should've said my name! Who cares if they feel bad? They should feel bad." He says, and shortly after, sighs. "Ya humans really are somethin'. Especially you!"

You giggle.

"Ya know?" He continues. "I've really been tryin' to tell ya how I feel these days. I can't stand how sad your face looks when I'm not honest about how I feel about you." He voice becomes softer the more he speaks, and his embarrassment also seemed to be going away. "But ya already know how I feel! Why do I got to keep tellin' ya?"

There was a short pause after he talked, and all you could do is look at him dearly. He slowly, but suddenly, approches you and grabs you by your waist, making you sit on his lap. You surely were surprised but you let it happen. He wraps his arms around you tenderly into a hug, closing his eyes as his face touches your torso.

"There were days were I wanted to hold ya just like this. Knowin' that I can do it now makes me really happy." He murmurs. Your heart jumps excitedly in your chest after you hear him, but even more after you notice the smile he had as he held you.

"I'm all yours now." You say.

He looks at you almost indignant. "Ya were already mine! It was just a matter of time ya came running to my arms." He said, making you laugh. "There's no one better to treat ya right other than The Great Mammon."

"You better treat me right!"

"Oh, just ya wait, MC." He held you once more, sofly pushing you until he had you lying down under him. He kissed your cheek, his breathing tickling you and making let out an almost quiet chuckle. "I'll treat ya just right."

#obey me x mc #gn!mc #gn!reader #obey me #obey me imagines #obey me shall we date #mammon obey me #mammon x y/n #mammon x mc #mammon x oc #obey me x oc

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withcolebrock · 3 years

Text

Caught Simping

Corpse Husband x fem!Reader

Requested: yes :)

Summary: Corpse gets upset when he thinks Colby is flirting with Y/N

Warnings: swearing and cringe stuff

Word Count: 2,351

Author’s Note: I was going to wait to post this tomorrow but why not now lol haha. honestly this could’ve been better but ummm yeahhh, anyways the person had asked for Mr. Brock to be here so yay my two favorite men in one fic love it lol. also I literally could not figure out anything to title this so this is what ya get lol haha anyways I hope you guys enjoy it!!

~~~

It had been an hour since they all started playing, a few people were getting tired. While others were willing to play for several more hours. “Be right back, gamer bladder,” Corpse and herself said around the same time, she stood up from her chair, placing her headphones on the desk. She left her gaming room, and shut the door behind her. She walked into the living room to see Corpse walking towards the bathroom. He stopped short as he looked towards her. His eyes looked her body up and down.

“Are you playing much longer?” he asked while he began to walk towards her. She shrugged slightly as she dropped the hoodie covering her head.

“I’ve got a few more games in me, are you almost done?” she asked while he slowly wrapped his arm around her waist. She wrapped her arms around his neck.

“I’ll be done when you’re done,” he smirked as he leaned down and pressed his lips against hers. She smiled against his lips as she slowly began to kiss him back. They pulled away, smiling towards each other as they walked towards their gaming rooms. She entered her room again, she couldn’t hide the smile she had to her lips, as she sat down in front of her face cam.

She put her headphones on as she heard Sykkuno say, “Anyone got a fill?” A few people had said that they didn’t have anyone, Y/N began to text a friend of hers from the Vine days. Before she started doing gaming, she was pretty popular on Vine, she had over two million followers and she hung out with Sam and Colby all of the time during that time.

“Dave? Boyinaband? I know he has proximity chat already,” Corpse asked, Y/N smiled to herself as she heard his voice.

“Oh yeah, of course!” Poki cheered.

“Awesome,” he said into the mic, “We still need one more, right?” Corpse continued, muting his mic shortly after.

“I think I got someone, one second,” she said into her mic as she continued to text Colby. She muted herself briefly as she focused on what she wanted to say to him. Explaining that the group was playing the proximity version, asking if he had that version or if he could download it quickly.

“Who is it?” Toast asked.

She unmuted her mic and explained, “His name is Colby, We’ve been friends for years, if that’s cool with you guys,” she chuckled. They waited for a few of the people to join, they began to discuss some things going on in their lives, while talking to their chats. She muted herself in discord while she talked to her chat. “A few of you guys might know him, he has a channel with Sam Golbach, like creepy paranormal stuff. It’s pretty cool. We did vines together all the time, I’m sure they are on YouTube somewhere.” her eyes widened at the memory, the vines were overwhelmingly cringey as most of her vines were.

She unmuted herself in discord and told the group,“He’s coming and he already has the proximity chat,” she explained as she added his information into their discord call. She sent him the invite over discord.

“Sweet,” Sykkuno said, Y/N smiled to herself as she listened to Sykkuno. Shortly after, Dave joined the call. Everyone started asking Dave how he was doing, since they all haven’t played with him in a while.

“Uh, hello,” Colby spoke, everyone in the call immediately started greeting Colby. Poki had asked how Y/N and him had met, Colby laughed slightly, “We met at Vidcon like four years ago, when Viners were invited that year.”

Shortly after everyone introduced themselves to the new people, the game was started. She was a crewmate. “Oh my god, oh my god,” Y/N giggled as her character moved towards the lab. Colby’s pink character was following him, “No, Colby no get away from me, I don’t trust you,” she joked. He chuckled.

“Hey, come on, I promise I’m not an imposter, please stay with me and keep me safe,” Colby begged. Corpse’s character ran past them, he ran towards one of the nodes. “You have med scan? Let’s scan together,” he offered while making his character dance. Y/N rolled her eyes as she followed Colby’s character to the med scan.

“I do have med scan,” she giggled. She clicked off her med scan, seeing that she had to wait for Colby, she officially cleared him. “Okay, you’re cleared,” she explained as she started heading towards decontamination.

“See, I would never lie to you,” he said teasingly. They entered the small room and Y/N went to do wires.

“I gotchu,” she giggled. Shortly after a body was found near admin. Everyone began to ask each other where everyone was at, “I was with Colby the entire time,” she said as she hovered over the skip vote button.

“I wouldn’t let her out of my sight, she’s med scanned,” Colby explained, everyone laughed as they quickly began to ask everyone else where they were at.

“I was by O2 tree,” Corpse said, with no further explaination. He was never straight forward with his responses. Instead of further investigating, the group decides to skip vote. Except there was a rogue anonymous vote to Colby. Everyone gasped slightly at the sight.

“What? I hard cleared him,” Y/N laughed, as the screen faded into the game.

“Y/N please stay with me, I need your help,” Colby whined as they walked towards the admin table together. She quickly clicked onto the table checking to see where everyone was at. There were a few in the lab and a few near electrical. They both walked into decontamination. “Everyone else is so scary, you make me feel safe,” he drew out his words as they walked through the long hallway together. They entered the bigger room together to see Corpse doing simon says.

“Corpse!” Y/N whined as she motioned her character towards him, she danced near his character. Colby walked away briefly to do another task. He finished his task and as his screen lit up, he saw her character. He chuckled as he began to dance with her. “What are you doing down here alone, it’s not safe,” she muttered as she continued to dance her character with Corpse.

He giggled as he said, “I’ll join you guys,” himself, Y/N, and Colby’s character headed up towards the decontamination that led towards the admin table. They all stumbled upon Poki’s body.

~~~

The next round she was imposter with Poki, she was doing amazing. The proximity chat made it even harder to be imposter. She always screamed after she killed someone, but she had to stop for this type of game play. One of Poki’s kills was called, “Where’s the body?” Corpse asked.

“By the button,” Colby responded, “Where were you, Y/N?” he asked. Corpse let out a huff of air, while leaning back into his chair.

“I was on the left side of the map the entire time, Sykkuno can vouch for me, I was with him for most of that round,” Y/N explained, her heart racing. She raced her eyebrows and forced a smile.

“Yeah, there’s no way she could’ve done this kill,” Sykkuno responded.

“I don’t believe it, Y/N’s acting weird,” Colby said.

“How am I acting weird?” she asked through laughter. Corpse smiled to himself as he heard her laugh.

“I dunno, you’re just being all different, it’s weird,”

“I’m not being different,”

“Maybe a little bit you are,” Colby teased, everyone laughed as they all skipped at the same time.

“Definetly not,” she rolled her eyes playfully. The next round began and Y/N ran off with Corpse. “Bub, what tasks do you have?” she asked as she chased after his character, contemplating on killing him or not.

“Wires,” he said shortly. Her head shot back slightly at his response, he was never short with her. Suddenly coming from the other direction was Colby.

“Y/N, thank god! I missed you!” Colby shouted jokingly, he danced his character around Y/N’s as they walked towards decontamination together.

“Missed you too! What tasks do you have?” she asked to try and switch the conversation. Corpse didn’t say anything, he just stood and began to do his wires. They continued to walk down the long hallway. Once they were in the big room Corpse and Colby began to do tasks. Y/N stood awkwardly in the middle of the room as she saw Poki come running down one of the hallways. They moved their characters towards each other as they ran up and killed both Corpse and Colby.

“Oh my god!” Colby yelled.

“Uh, fuck I knew it,” Corpse commented. With the double kill, they won the game. “Good game,” he commented as he leaned back into his chair.

“I’m totally going to get you back for that,” Colby teased. It wasn’t much, but the more he spoke Corpse was getting annoyed. He wasn’t even sure if he was flirting with Y/N, but it sure felt like it. He knew Colby would never intentionally flirt with her, but he needed to do something.

“I’ll be right back,” he spoke into his mic. Corpse muted his mic in both discord and his YouTube stream. He stood up from his desk and left his gaming room. He walked towards hers across their apartment. He knocked on the door several times.

“One second,” she whispered into her mic, muting herself on both platforms. She stood up and pulled open the door seeing Corpse standing at the door fuming. “What’s going on?” she asked, noticing the small frown to his lips. Without saying anything he takes a small step towards her. He rested his hand on her lower back, he lifted her shirt slightly as he rested his hand on her skin. The sudden cold feeling sent chills all over her body.

“Why is Colby flirting with you?” he asked as he looked her features up and down, he looked back into her soft concerned eyes. Her mouth fell open as she shook her head slightly. She stood silently as she looked into his squinted eyes. His fingertips grazed over her skin as they spoke.

“He isn’t, that’s just how he is,” she explained, he raised his eyebrows slightly as he took a long breath. “I promise he’s just messing around,” she reassured as she rested her hand onto his cheek. He pulled her body towards his, he pouted his lips. “It’s nothing more than just jokes, I promise,”

“He’s not very funny,” he let out. She chuckled as she shook her head slightly. She moved her hand slightly as she ran her finger across his bottom pouted lip. His lips curled upward slightly, at the touch. “I don’t like it when another guy jokes around with you like that,” he whispered as she slowly pulled her finger away from his lips. She slowly moved her hand from his cheek to the nape of his neck. “I’m the only guy that can do that.” She rolled her eyes playfully as she moved closer to him.

“I’m sorry,” she let out, he looked her body up and down slowly before he slowly dropped his hand away from her skin.

“It’s okay, I’m just-whatever,” he shook his head as he bit his bottom lip, she raised her eyebrows as her eyes widened.

“Were you just going to admit to-”

“No,”

“I think you were,” she teased as she watched him walk away from her gaming room.

“No,” he sing-songed as he walked into his room. She giggled as she shut the door and headed back to the game. She put on her headphones and unmuted herself in the discord call.

~~~

She ran her fingers through her wet hair as she walked towards her bedroom. She pushed open the door to see Corpse laying on the bed scrolling through Twitter. She walked towards her side of the bed and picked up her phone from the side table. She read a text from Colby, thanking her for allowing him to play with her. She quickly responded as she sat down on top of the comforter. She rested her phone down onto the side table again, while plugging it into the character.

She inched closer to Corpse, he lifted his gaze towards her, a wide smile forming to his lips. “Hey,” he muttered barely above a whisper. She slowly laid down beside him, while adjusting the pillow beneath her head.

“Did you make something trend on Twitter or something again?” She questioned, he rarely sat on his phone scrolling through his social media unless he was messing with his fans or reposting his fans art or people who share his music. He chuckled while shaking his head.

“Not intentionally,” he motioned the phone towards her, she took a hold of it and saw that #SimpCorpse was trending. She furrowed her eyebrows as she clicked on the first video that showed up. It was a slowmo of Corpse taking a hold of her waist earlier in her stream. She gasped, covering her mouth. He nodded slightly. She lifted her head to meet his gaze, she thought he would be mad but he wasn’t. “I think that’s funny,” he chuckled as he rested his phone on his side table.

“I didn’t think to turn off my face cam, oh fuck,” she laughed nervously.

“It’s fine, Baby, I promise,” he tilted his head to look towards her. “I mean, I am always a simp for you,” he teased, her features scrunched together as the words left his lips.

“That was really cring-” she tried to say but he shook his head as he leaned down slowly to press his lips against hers. She kissed his back softly as she giggled slightly, “You were definitely a jealous simp today, then,” she played along. He pressed his lips together while shaking his head. He slowly fell back onto his back.

“I wasn’t jealous,”

#corpse #corpse husband #corpse husband imagines #corpse x reader #corpse husband fanfic #corpse husband x reader #e girls are ruining my life #cat girls are ruining my life #corpse hands

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bbugyu · 4 years

Text

for you + yoon jeonghan

everyone in his life described you as his weakness, and he couldn’t even argue.

part one | part two

wc.10234 (LMAO) | fluff, smut, humor, etl/uni!au, ~new relationship stuff~, gender neutral pronouns for reader (but they have a pussy sorry), vague softdom/brattysub dynamics (guess who’s who!), there are - count em - 4 different sex scenes, more bff!gyu, filth, language, you know the drill, reader gets a lil tender, so does han, *sniffles* they just suit each other so well, please use condoms

this is where i admit that i wrote 20k of enemies to lovers garbage all based off a single line in falling for u, where they say they meant to drink a coffee with you but they accidentally chugged it bc theyre nervous. yup! all this mess for that one line! this is incredibly self indulgent and i apologize but also i don't because i needed this

visual culture was your new favorite class.

while there was absolutely no trouble making time to spend with jeonghan, your previous meditation time served as an allocated two hours every week where you could just sit and mess around with the boy you had growing affections for. the two of you would chat in hushed tones as the professor lectured, jeonghan’s fingertips tracing invisible patterns on your thigh as you diligently untangled his headphone cord for him, his thumb nails having been chewed too short to do it himself. he would bring you coffee on thursdays, when it was his only class of the day but your third and last. the caffeine was a well accepted afternoon pickmeup, and he never let you go after class without taking you out for lunch somewhere, claiming to be celebrating the end of your school day. then you might as well just come over to his apartment, he’d tell you. his place was closer than yours, he’d explain, swinging your hand in his. you didn’t wanna say goodbye yet, did you? afterall, the night’s still young, he’d tease, luring you with the promise of kisses between droopy eyed smiles.

jeonghan had become the complete opposite of your initial impression. he was sweet to you, genuinely, and if you liked him any less, you would say he was obsessed. you do say that, occasionally, when you’re hanging out with your friends and he texts you some purposefully cheesy line knowing it would make you roll your eyes, forcing you to mention him to your questioning friends, but you never truly meant it. you’d be a liar if you said every eye roll wasn’t just to cover up the faint feeling of butterflies in your gut. he always knew exactly how to make you want to see him, and you never hesitated to tell him when you did.

on one such day, when you had told him that if you went home you would need him to drive you into the woods and help you dig your roommate a clandestine grave, he stopped by your friend’s apartment after a shift, waiting dutifully by the door with his shoes still on and his hands shoved into his jean pockets as you searched the kitchen counter for your keys.

“serious, mingyu, what did you do with them? i know i left them next to the toaster.”

“i used your bottle opener, but i swear i put them on the coffee table,” he said, pushing back his hair as he looked around the small living room.

jeonghan watched you and mingyu tear apart the couch, trying to ignore the roommate that was leaning against the wall, eyeing him.

“where do you live?”

jeonghan blinked and looked at him. “uh, my apartment’s a couple streets over and a few-”

“roommates?” minghao watched as the older straightened his spine involuntarily, arms folded across his chest as he appraised his friend’s new chew toy.

“yeah, three,” he responded. minghao kept eyeing him. he fidgeted under the gaze, then coughed to clear his throat. for some reason unknown to even him, he said “they’re good people,” as though he was seeking some kind of approval.

minghao nodded slowly. “they act tough but they’re not. if you break their heart, i’ll break you.”

“what?”

“y/n,” he said, causing you to perk your head up from across the room while simultaneously clarifying. he lifted his hand and jangled your keys, holding them by the novelty hulk fist bottle opener. “found ‘em.”

“jesus christ, myungho, you had them the whole time?” you exhaled sharply, shoving a couch cushion back where it was meant to be. “don’t be a prick.”

you snagged the keys from him and shoved your feet into your shoes, taking the bag that jeonghan was holding for you.

“wo ai ni.”

you batted at minghao’s arm. “yeah, whatever. love you, too. see you guys later?”

mingyu threw up a peace sign from the couch, where he had promptly laid himself out after the search for keys had ceased, and minghao smiled as he waved you off and closed the door behind you.

you asked how work was, and jeonghan sighed, describing it shortly as work, but said he was glad it was over so that he could spend some time with you.

you giggled, knocking shoulders and slyly lacing your fingers between his. “cheesy.”

he gave you your favorite sideways smile, though he didn’t know it was your favorite, and you, again, ignored the flitting in your stomach that he always seemed to cause. “so, uh… myungho…”

you exhaled. “what did he say to you?”

“nothing, really,” he said quickly, knowing you would get mad at your friend if he told you the full truth. “i was just kind of curious if you two had ever, y'know…”

you looked at jeonghan. “you’re not jealous, are you?”

he looked back. “i don’t have reason to be, do i?”

“of course not,” you said, pulling your bag up on your shoulder. “i’ve kissed hao once, on a drunk dare, and we both agreed to never try it again. he’s like a brother.”

jeonghan nodded, thinking about the protective stance the tall lean man had taken when he tried (and maybe succeeded, though jeonghan would never admit it) to intimidate him. no matter the vibe he got, he trusted you, and he understood the intent - however, you made him want to do everything in his power to keep you happy, so he didn’t think this myungho character had much to worry about.

“oh my god, hannie,” you gripped his hand tighter, your other hand clutching his elbow. “look at that dog.”

he laughed and followed your gaze across the street to the pom that was nose up, walking beside its owner. “cute.”

“isn’t it?” you sighed. “god, i want a dog. i hate living in a dorm. i hate my roommate.”

“move out, then.”

“and go where? back to my parents’ place?”

he rolled his eyes. “into the apartment you practically live at anyways.”

“dumb, dumber, and dumbest?” you scoffed. “i would kill all three of them in under a week.”

jeonghan wondered which was which, then pushed the temptation to mention his idea of you living with him out of his brain. “sounds like you’re shit outta luck.”

you sighed, craning your neck to steal a look at the dog again. “i guess you’ll just have to get a dog for me.”

he smiled back, eyes lingering on your face even after your gaze went back to the scenery. “i have a question.”

you blinked at him. “yes?”

he watched a cloud for a second. “what do you call me?”

“hannie.”

he laughed. “i mean to your friends.”

you eyed him sideways. “are you trying to trick me into calling you my boyfriend?”

he eyed you back, a smile teasing his lips. “are you admitting that you call me your boyfriend?”

“what do you call me to your friends, then?”

“y/n.”

you rolled your eyes. “you’re the most annoying person i’ve ever met.”

“woooow,” he went, sighing and pulling his hand from yours to shove it in his pocket. “here i was thinking we were in a healthy, mutually respectful relationship.”

you giggled, tugging on his arm. “oh, shut up. we are. you call me by my name, and i call you by yours. that’s as mutually respectful as we can get.”

jeonghan rolled his eyes, but allowed you to pull his hand out of his pocket and put your fingers between his again. he had never been the type to hold hands in public, but with you it felt right. “whatever. it’s only been a month. i’ll break you eventually.”

you exhaled. “if you want me to tell people you’re my boyfriend, you just have to ask.”

“why would i want that?”

you pouted. “i dunno, i thought maybe you liked me or something.”

he squeezed your hand. “don’t flatter yourself.”

you laughed, forcing a smile onto jeonghan’s face, and he didn’t stop you when you changed the subject to the fact that mingyu had informed you that a dissected sheep brain looks a little too close to ssamgyeopsal for comfort.

one day, he told you that he thought you’d be different, back before you started dating. you were gentler than he imagined, despite your continued quick wit and sharp tongue. sweeter.

“i dunno,” he said, leaning back against the couch with your head in his lap. “in my head you would just be mean all the time.”

you didn’t take it as an insult. “the version of me you created in your head is no responsibility of mine.”

jeonghan thought you were beyond incredible. while his original judgement of you being rude, pretentious, and, well, mean hadn’t necessarily been wrong, he had found you to also be incredibly caring, thoughtful, and maybe the funniest person he had ever met. you would sigh about how broke you were that week, how you were sick of eating cup noodles, but you wouldn’t hesitate to spend the last of your budget on soju and kimbap for your friends on your walk to their apartment. you always picked up on his subtle mood changes - when he would press his hands to his temples as he tried to process his literature homework, your hand would sneak onto his thigh and squeeze his knee to remind him to let out the breath he didn’t know he was holding, despite your eyes never leaving your own textbook. he swore he never saw jihoon laugh as hard as he did when you and mingyu went off on one of your stupid arguments that only best friends could have, especially after you called mingyu a “grey’s anatomy-worthy harassment claim waiting to happen.”

“seriously, why am i friends with you?” mingyu grabbed his drink from your hand and glared at you when he noticed how much lighter it was (you had said you didn’t want one but definitely stole more than one sip). “can anyone else stand this bitch?”

“i like them,” jeonghan said matter of factly, his chin in his hand and elbow on the table as he stared at you fondly.

mingyu rolled his eyes. “you don’t count, evil twin.”

jihoon had his back on the floor, hands on his face, still trying to recover from your grey’s anatomy joke, and mingyu’s twin comment only set him off again. you giggled as you watch him roll onto his side, and briefly looked around this new grouping you found yourself in, sat around the low table covered in takeout in jeonghan’s living room. “how come you call me every day, then, dr. hate-my-guts?”

“free therapy,” he said, not missing a beat as he shoved a massive spoonful of rice and meat into his mouth. jihoon coughed, and mingyu narrowly avoided laughing as he chewed.

“i don’t buy it,” jeonghan said, running a hand through his hair and leaning back on the other. he watched you steal from his plate. “i think you like y/n the same reason i do. they’re the first person that didn’t tell you what you wanted to hear just because you’re good looking.”

mingyu kept chewing as he stared at jeonghan, his almost tired gaze going to you before he spoke. “you guys are really made for each other, huh?”

you didn’t think it before, but everyone kept telling you two that, and it definitely served as a pretty good ego boost for the existing confidence in your newfound relationship. you, of course, enjoyed jeonghan’s company even more without the validating eye rolls and gagging noises from friends whenever one of you made some praising comment about the other. you thought he was funny when he was making scathing jokes at his friends’ expense, but you thought he was absolutely hilarious when he was muttering every stupid thought that popped into his head with the specific intention of making you laugh too loud as you laid with him in your bed, his hand rubbing your back, overly aware of the fact that your roommate was trying to study at their desk as you planted your hand over your mouth to stifle your laughter.

as more time passed, jeonghan found it increasingly annoying that you both shared bedrooms with other people, considering how easily you could tease him into a bothered red-eared state with just your words. times that the two of you had gotten yelled at by whoever had to witness to get a damn room, or whispers between drinks that turned into standing too closely at parties, catching each others lips teasingly. disappearing into a bedroom only to be interrupted before anything can happen by some combination of party-goers and friends that somehow always managed to ruin the mood for one or both of you in an extremely targeted way. you had managed to help each other get off, of course, and he loved the look of you sinking to your knees in a bathroom stall, gaze catching his while you unbuckled his belt, or the way you squirmed against him, stuck between a closet door and his hard place, your breath hitching as he dug his fingers deeper into you. both activities were satisfying in their own right, but it would never be enough for him.

then there was that frustrating time jihoon had walked in, catching you with your hand down jeonghan’s pants, and he would never forgive you for the way you hesitated to loosen your grip on him despite the interruption. those few seconds of sheer terror he had felt, making direct eye contact with his roommate with his dick hard and in a hand that wasn’t his, the only thing stopping you from continuing being his annoyed “can you let go, now?"

he had decided to get back at you, and he got the opportunity a week later, when he had woken up behind you in your bed with your laptop asking if you were still watching and your roommate sleeping only a meter or so away. his lips ghosting across your neck, rousing you from your shallow sleep just to find his hand gently squeezing your hip, running over your mound until you were begging him to slip it under your pajama shorts. he had to put his free hand over your mouth to keep you quiet as you melted under his touch, your toes curling against his shins as the string in you snapped, and you punched his chest when you finally rolled over and caught your breath for getting you so needy when you weren’t alone. he just giggled and looked at you, half lidded, then kissed you like he hadn’t just been muttering voyeuristic filth in your ear.

jihoon was going home for the weekend, and the second jeonghan had found out, he told you you weren’t allowed to make any plans and swapped his saturday shift with a coworker. you had laughed in his face when he told you he intended to keep you in bed the entire weekend, but part of you had been waiting just as much as he had.

on friday night, when the two of you were sitting on the couch watching some documentary that you could barely pay attention to, seungcheol asked again if you guys wanted to go to the bar with him and soonyoung.

"cheol, i swear to god,” jeonghan said, the arm over your shoulder stiffening as he pointed at his roommate. “if you ask one more time, we’re gonna fuck in your bed, and it will be messy.”

seungcheol groaned in disgust as you laughed. “fuck you, jeonghan. i was giving them an out.”

“sorry,” you said, your head leaning back against the arm. “i’ll try to get him to wash the sheets, but no promises.”

“you guys are so fucking gross,” seungcheol said, snatching his wallet off the counter and shoving it in his pocket as soonyoung came out from the bathroom. “we’re leaving before they jump each other. do you have everything? if you forgot something, we’re not coming back,” he said, pointing. “i’m not risking it.”

soonyoung patted all his pockets, nodded, then smiled and waved at you. “see you guys! use protection!”

“don’t take the sixth shot,” you warned, smiling and waving back. soonyoung laughed as he got shoved out the door by his roommate, and when it shut behind him, you felt a chill run up your spine for no good reason.

“we should probably wait a minute,” you said, turning back to jeonghan, who was already leaning into you and letting his gaze flicker unapologetically between your eyes and lips.

“or, and this is just a suggestion, we can decide that we’ve waited long enough and that if they come back after all of that they deserve to see whatever they see,” he pitched, his fingers already brushing against your jaw.

you blinked at him from only a breath away, his honeyed eyes putting a sweet taste in your mouth. you swallowed, your stomach feeling light suddenly. “or that.”

his lips were on yours as soon as the words left them, and your hand rose to grip the front of his shirt - one of the many plain shirts that seemed to rotate around the household. you fidgeted for a second, before deciding you were impatient and pulling away from him only to swing a leg over his and straddle his lap. he grinned at you, hands landing on your thighs, lips excitedly welcoming back yours.

you really enjoyed kissing jeonghan. he always started soft, gentle, with light caresses and reassurances of how beautiful he thought you were. though you never catch him applying any, you know he has a peach flavored lip balm hiding somewhere in his daily routine, and you tasted it on him as you dove a little deeper into him, his hands squeezing at your waist as your tongue dipped past his lips.

jeonghan also really enjoyed kissing you, which was both good and bad for him. good, of course, because you could happily trap him in liplock for hours, and he never got bored of your soft sighs and adoring touches and wanton noises. bad, though, because his enjoyment becomes incredibly obvious embarrassingly fast, and he wished he could wipe the smirk off your face as soon as you noticed, but he always found himself completely powerless against you when you decided there was something you wanted.

and so, jeonghan’s eyes flicked over your chest as you pulled off your shirt, tossing it to the side as you stood and spun around, planting your hands on his knees and spreading his thighs as you sat back directly on his already straining bulge.

“holy fuck,” he managed, fingers running over the soft fabric of your gray sweatpants before kneading at your ass. you wiggled against his grip before grinding down against him, satisfied by the reaction, loving how clearly you could feel him and the way he sucked in a breath. you made no effort to stifle the noise caused by feeling him against your already dampening core, even through far too many layers. he whipped of his shirt quickly, his hands running up your back, twisting over your waist and pulling your back against his chest. you felt his lips start at your shoulder, then a hand on your chest, then the other snaking down your stomach.

you chuckled lightly. “can’t take a lapdance?”

“from you?” his lips landed behind your ear. “absolutely not. you’ll make me cum, and i have other things i’d like to try first.”

you sighed, rolling your hips as deliberate fingers moved from your stomach to inner thigh. “ever the poet.”

he smirked against your neck. “try it again later. right now, you’re making me insane.”

“mm,” you agreed. “i’ll keep that bookmarked, then.”

“god, how are you this hot?” jeonghan almost laughed. “you’re so annoying, why are you so good at teasing me like this?”

you smirked as his hand ghosted over your core. “yoon jeonghan, you make it incredibly fun to tease you.”

“i refuse to believe that it’s my fault you’re this sexy,” he said, drinking in the way your head dropped to his shoulder and a moan fell from your lips as he ran a finger up your slit. even through fabric, he felt the arousal gathering at your core, making his cock jump against your ass. you smiled, a hand snaking against his scalp, tugging gently at the hair at the base of his skull as he bumped over your clit, his reactionary groan matching yours.

“baby,” you whispered, your breath hot against jeonghan’s lips. “please.”

he licked his lips, tongue almost brushing yours in the process, using his hand on your waist to grind himself against you. “please what, darling?”

“fingers, jeonghan,” you whimpered, arching your back against his chest slightly in hopes to get friction against him, but he stopped his grinding as you did. you huffed. “please, i need you.”

he nudged at your jaw, making you roll your head as he planted his lips on your neck. his fingers undid the drawstring of your sweats to comfortably push under the fabric, and he let out a sigh as he didn’t find another layer.

“you’re evil.”

you giggled, gasping as his fingers quickly ran through your wetness. “and it turns you on.”

you let out a prolonged moan as he pushed his middle finger into you easily, sucking the base of your neck between his teeth. you gripped him, nails surely leaving crescents against his neck as he groaned about how absurdly wet you were, and you said something about how he was in no position to tease when you could feel every time his dick throbbed against you. he asked if you were dirty enough to admit how long you hadn’t been wearing underwear, and he watched you lick your lips before you told him all day. he smirked when you brought your lips to his, moaning against him as he pushed a second finger into you.

his fingers curled deliciously against pressure points, making you gasp as you tightened around them. jeonghan watched your heavy eyelids as you tried to focus on him, he watched your chest rise and fall as it flushed. he brought his free hand up to pinch your already puckered nipple, your temple landing on his cheek in an attempt to hold yourself together.

“i can tell you’re close,” he teased, and you only whined in response, eyes squeezing shut as his palm rubbed at your clit with the gentle movement of his fingers curling in you. “are you gonna cum on my hand, darling?”

you nodded hurriedly, your fingers curling in his hair, then opened your eyes to find his. he smiled at you, which only made you feel as though your world was crumbling. your back arched against his chest again as you came, and he held you by your core as you squeezed at his fingers, lips leaving repeated kisses across your cheek and neck.

despite the orgasm, you couldn’t help but continue to grind down against jeonghan’s hand, and he indulged your neediness by pumping them into you again before slipping his fingers out of you and pushing you forwards. “wallet.”

you groaned, pushing your ass back against him, smiling at the way his hand tensed on your side. “no please?”

he stared at where you were rubbing against his length. “i’m either cumming in a condom or your ass. your choice.”

he gave you a smug look when you turned your head to giggle at him, but his face almost completely dropped when he realized you were considering it.

“okay,” you said. “condom. this time.”

jeonghan’s cock flinched against you again, to which you responded with a wiggle before pushing off him and walking to the kitchen to retrieve a foil packet from his wallet, leaving him staring after you dumbly. when you turned around to walk back towards him, he had shoved his pants over his knees, leaning back heavily as he stroked himself using the hand you had so graciously wet for him. you gulped involuntarily, suddenly aware of how much saliva was gathering around your tongue as you tore open the condom.

he watched you kneel between his knees, his hand stilling at the base of his cock as you lapped a wet line up the underside of it, tongue swirling over his head. he tasted like you, and you had to swallow again before you rolled the condom onto him. you stood, turning your back to him as you hooked your thumbs under the waistband of your sweats and leaned over slightly as you pushed the fabric over your ass. jeonghan’s hand tightened around himself involuntarily, his other going to feel you. squeeze your hip, pinch at the soft flesh. guide you down onto him as you braced yourself on his knee. you pulled at the underside of your thigh, spreading yourself wider as you sat back onto him, sighing as he stretched you out.

“fuck,” he choked out, both hands gripping at your waist to stop you from sinking more. “shit, you feel really good.”

you whined, rolling your hips back in need. “i’ll feel even better if you let me sit.”

he chuckled. “why do you think i stopped you?”

you looked over your shoulder. “two pump chump?”

jeonghan pulled you down onto him harshly, forcing a squeal out of you as you curled over yourself. it had been a long time since anything had been this deep, and you could already feel your release building with one touch of his head to your spot. “shut up.”

“shutting up,” you muttered, voice almost cracking when he held you still and rutted up into you.

“god, i can’t believe it took us this long,” he said, steadying you with his grip so you could roll your hips on his lap. “to get me in you.”

“m-maybe if your roommate ever went to cl-lass,” you stuttered, beyond pleased that you could finally relieve this frustration as you slowly bounced on his lap. “f-fuck, you feel better than i imagined.”

you could hear the grin on his face when he spoke again, running his fingers up your side. “have i been fucking you in your dreams, baby?”

“well, you sure - mf! - haven’t been fuh-hucking me in real li-” your sentence getting cut off by a whiney moan when his hips bumped up to meet yours. “god, fuck, jeonghan!”

he pulled himself off the couch, pressing his chest against your back. he pushed up into you, almost desperately, his teeth running across your shoulder as much as his lips did. you gasped, leaning back into him, spreading your legs until your knees hooked on the outside of his, his unrelenting fingers finding your clit, just to make you beg as he pumped in and out of you.

“please what, baby?” he asked sweetly, despite the hair sticking to his sweaty forehead and the way his eyebrows knit together.

“p-please, can i cum again?”

jeonghan groaned, almost taken aback by your complete switch in attitude. while he knew you liked it when he tried to take control, he had never seen you go down without a fight. “who knew all you needed to stop being such a brat was my cock?”

“p-please, h-hannie…” you whimpered, and he could feel your walls constricting around him. “please, i wanna cum.”

desperation became obvious in his own hips, just by taking in your face. he had gone into this with every intention of milking you of everything you had, but he was man enough to admit that your begging made him too close to cumming to stop. “get my dick wet, darling.”

your mouth gaped in a silent cry as you crumpled into his chest, your legs twitching inwards as he moved his hands to your hips and continued thrusting up into you, your walls squeezing him tight until he let out a low groan, slowing his movement until he eventually stilled completely.

the two of you stayed there, a sweaty, entangled mess on the couch, both just trying to catch your breath.

“fuck,” you said finally, and jeonghan thought he couldn’t have said it better himself.

after two packets of slightly overcooked ramen, a conversation about how leaving a used condom on cheol’s bed would not be a funny prank, and a generous spray of febreze fabric refresher, jeonghan watched proudly as you walked with a slight unintentional wobble towards his bedroom, assuring you he’d be right there as he rinsed out your bowls in the sink.

when he did finally join you, you were laying on his bed with your phone to your ear, and he crawled up over you as you giggled into the phone, knees spreading to accommodate. “hannie’s. i told you, i’m staying here for the weekend.”

jeonghan could hear mingyu’s voice on the other end, saying something about how he thought it was next weekend for some reason and that getting laid would be good for you, but he just smiled as he kissed at your neck, your free arm settling around him comfortably.

“why are you calling this late?” you asked, looking over at jeonghan’s bedside to confirm the time. “are you guys going out?”

“yeah, of course. rockbox in an hour. you guys in?”

you tipped your head to the side as jeonghan continued his gentle kisses up your neck, hands running up under your shirt, making you sigh softly. “nah, we have plans. cheol and soonyoung are there, though.”

“okay, no worries,” mingyu said, then paused. jeonghan took the opportunity to bite just below your jaw, gently rolling his hips between your thighs to make you aware of what he was thinking. “are you busy right now, or can you talk?”

a pang of guilt ran through you as you held your breath, trying to not audibly react to the movement against you. you hadn’t been able to sit and chat with your best friend in way too long. “i’m, uh, a little busy? maybe we could get lunch tomorrow?”

jeonghan pulled back and glared at you, a stark reminder that he had asked you to not make plans, but you just put a finger to his pouting lips.

“as long as it’s after noon, i’m down.”

“okay,” you said, brushing your fingers across jeonghan’s cheek and pushing his hair behind an ear. “one? two? stew?”

“one’s good,” mingyu said, his voice sing songy. “okay, i’m gonna get ready. have fun! use protection.”

you rolled your eyes. “everyone keeps saying that.”

“yeah, because you guys are crazy and no one wants to risk it.”

after your byes, you hung up and looked at jeonghan, who was still staring at you with disdain. you sighed. “it’s just lunch.”

“i said no plans,” he reminded you, pouting. “now we have to go get lunch with mingyu when i could be fucking you stupid in my roommateless bedroom.”

“no we don’t,” you said, running your hands through his hair. “i have to get lunch with mingyu. you can do whatever you want.”

“oh, so i’m not even invited?” his eyebrows raised at you. “you do realize i switched a shift so i could spend all day with you, right?”

you giggled. “hannie, i would love to spend all day with you, but i haven’t sat and gotten lunch with mingyu in a month. i miss my best friend.”

he groaned, burying his face in your neck. “stop making sense, i’m trying to be mad at you.”

“you can still be mad,” you said, your fingers softly massaging against the back of his neck. “i like it when you think you’re punishing me.”

he groaned again, hating how you could so easily say the perfect thing to make him forget about anything else. “you’re evil.”

you giggled. “and it turns you on.”

he adjusted against you, trying to ignore his increasing arousal despite his original intentions. “sometimes, you seem like my own personal demon.”

“oh, fun,” you vocalised, brushing your fingers knowingly through the hair behind his ear, triggering a huff as you hit your favorite soft spot of his. “two demons trying to torture each other.”

he laughed as he raised his head, propping it up with a hand. “would you consider this torture?”

“maybe for normal people,” you said, sneaking a kiss onto his lips. “but we’re demons, remember? this is fun for us.”

his lips pouted, less to make a point and more because it was their comfortable, natural state after your lips leave. “i think i like you a lot.”

your face burned. it wasn’t the first time he had said something to that effect, but it made your chest feel funny nonetheless. “that’s reassuring.”

“i’m serious,” he said. “i really like you. and i don’t like people.”

you smiled softly. “i like you, too, yoon jeonghan.”

he adjusted his elbows on either side of you. “i want to be your boyfriend.”

you stared at him. “nah.”

“aye,” he cocked his head, making you laugh. “you said all i had to do was ask!”

“i’m kidding,” you said, putting your hands on either side of his face, pushing his cheeks in. “do you want to meet my parents, too?”

he looked at the wall behind his bed. “maybe that can wait.”

giggling, you pulled him into a kiss. “okay, boyfriend.”

the smile on his lips lingered as you kissed him, and he decided it was time to make sure everyone knew you were officially taken.

“you could have worn a scarf.”

you rolled your eyes, pulling the hood of the sweatshirt you stole from jeonghan’s in an attempt to hide the purple marks on your neck over your head. “it’s not my fault he tried to kill me,” you said, tugging on the drawstrings. “how was rockbox?”

“good,” mingyu said, leaning back. “weird. vernon ended up on stage.”

you almost choked on your water. “and i missed it?”

he laughed, then pulled out his phone to show you a video. “seungkwan made him do the features on a beyoncé song. he killed it, though.”

you watched the shaky vertical video of vernon on stage with a boy you knew but never really spoke to, watching in disbelief and laughing at mingyu’s hollering in the background. “wow. bey seungkwan and jay-v. that’s pretty legendary. i can’t believe i wasn’t there.”

mingyu laughed, shoving his phone back into his pocket. “how was your night? productive, obviously,” he said, gesturing to your neck.

“good,” you said reflexively, then exhaled as you looked at your best friend. “like, really good.”

“okay, spare the details, but like,” mingyu tipped his head and looked at you through his lashes. “good good?”

“mingyu, you know i would never say this lightly,” you put your hands on the table. “the best. seriously. man has a surprising amount of stamina for how much he naps.”

“damn,” he sighed and looked away from you. “y'know, that makes sense. i’ve always heard he was good in bed, and you two have some insane chemistry.”

you spotted the waiter coming, and before they were in earshot, you hurriedly said “plus his dick is huge.”

“oh, my god,” mingyu reeled back, then realized what you had done as the waiter put side dishes on your table. as soon as they left, he glared at you. “why are you like this.”

you grinned. “you were curious, though, right?”

he squinted at you. “doesn’t mean you should just offer up the info.”

“when’s the last time i slept with someone?” you asked. “like, really. it’s been, like, almost a year since i hooked up with rubin.”

his brows ruffled as he thought. “damn, is that true? has it really been that long?”

“let me brag,” you pleaded. “please? he’s so hot, i’m gonna lose my mind if you don’t let me talk about it.”

“i don’t know if i can be friends with you anymore.”

“dude, he spit in my mouth this morning.”

“oh-kay, so you’re buying lunch,” mingyu said, sitting up suddenly. “damn, this morning? have you guys just been going at it like rabbits?”

“i don’t wanna hear it,” you said, pointing at him. “you had to tell me about every guy you hooked up with during your 'hoe-liday’ last winter, you can listen to me talk about a guy i’ve been seeing for almost two months.”

“fair enough,” he laughed. “i don’t think i’ve ever seen you like this.”

you groaned, sinking your head to the table. “it sucks.”

he stared at you. “oh my god, his dick made you fall in love.”

“shut up,” you said, lifting your head to land your chin on the table, curling a paper napkin over your spoon. you pouted as you tried to come up with an argument, but failed. “he’s sweet.”

“he’s mean,” mingyu corrected. “but he’s sweet to you.

"and dogs,” you defended. “and kids.”

“oh, so he’s husband material all of a sudden?”

you shrugged. “i’ve dated people much less likeable than yoon jeonghan.”

mingyu sighed, eating some kimchi. “that’s true. we both have.”

“yeah, so stop making fun of me, asshole,” your eyebrows creased as you leaned back and crossed your arms. “try being happy for me for a change. didn’t you want this all along? trying to get me to ask him out?”

“i am happy for you,” mingyu said, showing some genuinity as he laughed, also leaning back as your food arrived. “you just make it really hard sometimes.”

mingyu had the courtesy of dropping you off back at jeonghan’s so he didn’t have to borrow seungcheol’s car to come get you, and as he pulled up to the familiar apartment building, he gave you his usual “say hi to your boyfriend for me,” as he put it in park, quickly checking his phone.

instead of your normal “not my boyfriend,” you looked over at your best friend and bit your cheek. “sure.”

mingyu’s neck nearly snapped to look at you. “wait, what?”

you giggled. “sure, i’ll say hi for you.”

“did you-” he started, then stuttered, trying to figure out what he was asking. “are you guys, like-”

“he asked,” you said shrugging. “i said yes.”

a grin spread across his face. “really?”

“well, actually, i said no. then i said okay.”

mingyu laughed. “yeah that sounds right. wow, y/n got a boyfriend.”

you rolled your eyes, pulling the hood further over your head to hide your involuntarily hot ears as you adjusted to open the car door. “bye, goo.”

“this is my best friend,” he said loudly, making you stare at him with wide eyes as some innocent bystander walked past the car, all while you tried to pull yourself out of the door. “beautiful, right? sorry though, they’re taken, i’m dropping them off to see their brand new boyfriend.”

“you’re embarrassing,” you said, pointing an annoyed finger, grateful the person only looked back once before continuing. “go home.”

“you have done ten times worse to me,” mingyu said, grinning from ear to ear. “have fun with the pretentious asshole that can’t make an americano right, yoon jeonghan!”

that made you laugh despite yourself, and you shot him several expletives before slamming his door shut and running up the stairs.

after punching in the door code that no one had told you but you had seen enough times to know, you announced that you had returned. seeing jihoon’s chair empty on a saturday was strange, but at least seungcheol and soonyoung were up to their usual antics of playing some game extremely poorly.

you stood and watched the screen for a moment. “you know you can catch the arrows, right?”

soonyoung looked at you. “you can catch the arrows?”

seungcheol groaned. “why would you tell him that? i’m actually winning for once!”

you giggled. “if you dodge when the arrows are coming, you catch them.”

“you can dodge?”

from the other room, you heard a muted “hurry up,” and you saluted to the boys as they argued, following your cue to exit the situation.

jeonghan was on his bed when you shut the door behind you. “what are they yelling about?”

you sighed as you walked over to him. “apparently soonyoung didn’t know you could dodge in towerfall.”

he watched you pull off the sweatshirt - the same one he had worn on your first kinda date - to admire the marks he had left on you, then blinked when he realized what you had said. “we play that game all the time, how did he not know?”

you shrugged, then crawled into his waiting arms. “he’s not very observant.”

you sighed as you settled against jeonghan, and he kissed the top of your head. “how was lunch?”

“good,” you said, smiling. “gyu is good. it was nice to catch up.”

jeonghan clicked his tongue. “you guys talk every day.”

“okay, yeah, but,” you adjusted to look at him. “talking on the phone and hanging out with other people is different. we can’t talk about the same stuff.”

“well, what’d you talk about?”

you smiled. “wouldn’t you like to know?”

he squinted at you. “aren’t we supposed to be a team now? no secrets?”

“okay,” you said, fixing his bangs. “what were you and seungcheol talking about in his room yesterday before i got here?”

jeonghan couldn’t help the tiny smile that worked its way into his face. “did soonyoung tell you?”

“i would never reveal my source,” you said triumphantly, knowing it couldn’t have been anyone else, considering jihoon had already left. “also, he was pissed that you kicked him out while he was still sleeping.”

“if i could have just dragged cheol into my room, i would have,” he sighed. “trust me. i can pull soonyoung out of bed, but seungcheol is dense.”

you inspected his lips a moment. “were you talking about me?”

“uh,” jeonghan adjusted under you, putting a hand behind his head. “no, not really. soonyoung got a job, and me and cheol are both working more now. i wanted to talk about getting a bigger place, since our lease ends in the summer.”

you vocalised excitedly. “does this mean you’d get your own room?”

“that’s the idea, yeah,” he said, grinning. “you could stay over more.” and while he hadn’t lied - they had discussed larger apartment options, and decided to start looking by the end of the month - he failed to mention that the main purpose of him isolating seungcheol was to confirm he was crazy for wanting you to join them if they did move.

“i mean,” cheol had said, barely propping himself up in bed. “it might be a bit too early to tell, but you guys seem like the real deal.”

jeonghan spun in soonyoung’s desk chair, arms crossed. “but i’m insane, right? like, we haven’t even slept together.”

“they’re coming over for the weekend, yeah?”

“yeah.”

“so let’s talk about it again on monday?”

jeonghan kneaded at his jaw, exhaling. “yeah, okay.”

now, you had slept together. not only that, but you slept together, all night, in the same bed, and jeonghan woke up with jumbled poetry in his head when he found you curled up by his side. despite living in this apartment for nearly a year, it felt most like home with you in it.

and he had told seungcheol, when he got home from dropping you off for lunch, that he was pretty damn sure he wanted to wake up like that every morning.

he wondered how you would react, if you would want to take the leap and move in with him. part of him felt as though he was taking advantage of your situation for his own selfish want to have you around all the time - you would do literally anything to avoid being in a dorm next year, but your housing budget wouldn’t accommodate for anything more than a goshiwon. while that wasn’t the worst option, you always talked about how much you missed living in a normal space, with a stove. a full sized fridge. a real bathroom, instead of a cramped wetroom. if he were to ask you to live with him, you would likely say yes, but would that put too much strain on your relationship too early? or would you think he was moving too fast and say no? his mind whirred silently as you buried your face in his neck.

“what’s on your mind?”

jeonghan blinked. “nothing.”

“liar.”

he sighed. “you.”

you lifted your head. “am i what’s making your heart beat so fast?”

he hadn’t even realized his pulse had quickened. he swallowed, briefly wondering if he would ever be able to truly hide anything from you. “maybe. what did you and mingyu talk about?”

you laughed. “i was hoping you would forget.”

“i never forget.”

“we talked about a lot,” you said, fiddling with the collar of jeonghan’s tee. “classes, summer plans, boys…”

he raised his brow at the last subject. “boys, huh?”

you smirked at him playfully. “yeah, our waiter was cute.”

he scoffed in your face and you giggled, then flattened his shirt against his chest.

“we talked about you. i told him we were official.”

“how’d that go?”

“he made fun of me, but it’s fine because i told him you have a big dick.”

jeonghan’s hand went from behind his head to cover his eyes, letting out a half-groan and half-“really?”, but the smile on his lips told you he wasn’t mad. “why? why would you tell him that?”

“he’s my best friend!” you laughed.

“okay, why did you tell me that?”

“i’d thought you’d like to know,” you said, pouting slightly. “he might respect you now.”

he uncovered his face just so you could see him rolling his eyes before he tried to sit up. “okay, no more cuddling.”

you whined, trying to keep him in place, but failing. “but i just got here!”

“maybe you shouldn’t have left in the first place,” he teased, getting out of bed to turn off the air purifier he usually only ran at night, but had been too preoccupied to turn off that morning. “i told you i intended to keep you in bed all weekend, but you didn’t care.”

“i’m here now,” you pouted. “in your bed.”

“take a nap, then,” jeonghan said. “i’m gonna eat.”

you groaned. “you didn’t eat while i was gone?”

“too busy pouting in bed. your turn.”

you floundered and whined childishly for a moment as he laughed at you, leaving the room without another word. sometimes you hated how similar you two were, but only because it made you completely aware of just how annoying you were.

when jeonghan returned, you had completely passed out, holding his pillow under your head as you laid on your stomach. he smirked in the direction of the sleeping body and fiddled with a few things - closing the closet door, throwing a rogue shirt into his hamper, etc. - before making his way to the bed to join you.

his touch was gentle. enough to rouse but not frighten. you squirmed slightly, recognizing the way his hand dipped into even the most subtle curves of your body as you laid out comfortably. you gave a noise of approval when it ran over your ass, squeezing slightly. jeonghan smirked again, and you turned under his arm to face him, a soft smile on your lips.

“g'morning.”

“it’s four in the afternoon,” he corrected.

you sighed. “and it’s a good morning.”

“sure is, babe,” he drawled, smiling as you planted a smooch. his hand ran unhurriedly up your back, under your shirt.

you hummed. “are you really horny again?”

“listen,” he mumbled, almost laughing. “i just want to get of much of you as i can, while i can.”

you supposed that was as good a reason as any as you kissed him again, only for him to pull away and straddle the backs of your thighs. he pushed the balls of his palms into your lower back on either side of your spine, and you let out a low moan. jeonghan did this on occasion, treat you to a back rub. he claimed it was because you had the worst posture he had ever seen, but you knew it was an excuse to get his hands all over you, and you couldn’t hide how much you enjoyed it. you adjusted to lay straighter, burying your face in the pillow when he hit a particularly evil knot and had to dig it out with a thumb. you groaned as his hands travelled up your back, sliding the shirt up as he massaged into your shoulders. you sighed as you got up on your elbows and ripped off the shirt, tossing it somewhere on the floor, exposing your full back to him, your shoulders and neck littered in his marks. he admired them, even planted small kisses atop a few, then worked his way down your back, curving his hands over your ass.

you muttered a quiet thank you, and he smiled, giving you a succinct “of course” in response. he moved down to your legs, thumbs sneaking in your inner thighs and subtly spreading you out despite your pants. you hummed, pushing your hips to meet his touch, encouraging him to knead at your cheeks.

“have i ever told you you have a great ass?”

you giggled. “it’s average at best.”

“uh, no,” he said, voice pitched upwards in a teasing manner. “i think i’m a really great judge in asses and yours is fantastic.”

“yeah?” you peeked over your shoulder. “what’s so fantastic about it?”

jeonghan’s fingers dug into it, eyes shooting up to meet yours. “well, for starters, it’s connected to you.”

he ran a thumb over your crease, making you let out a small noise in response, and you buried your face in the pillow again. “shut up.”

he smirked against your shoulder, hands running up your back again and one landing on the mattress beside you as he pushed his hips against your ass. “yes, boss.”

you sighed, arching your back to get as much friction as you could while he ground his hard member against you. he sucked at your neck, and your hands dug helplessly into his hair as you whined.

“are we teenagers?” you asked, huffing. “do we have to dry hump or can we fuck like adults?”

jeonghan laughed as he lifted his mouth to ghost over yours. “impatient. if you were better, you would have asked for my cock nicely.”

“better,” you repeated, hating the way a hard wave of arousal washed over you, suddenly wakening your senses like it was from the pacific. “for you?”

the tip of his tongue barely swiped at your lips, your jaw twitching slightly in reaction. “you gonna be good?”

you tried to focus on him, your blown out eyes flickering hopelessly to his lips. “i-i can try.”

and with that, jeonghan yanked your pants over your hips and down your thighs, scooting them down as you hiked your ass up slightly, hoping to tempt him as efficiently as possible. his hands found your ass again, spreading you out as you groaned. “look at you, soaking.”

you bit your lip, making a pathetic noise into the pillow to avoid talking back. “please, jeonghan.”

two fingers ran over you, and you tried to muffle your moan as best you could as your hips moved involuntarily, pushing into his fingers. he smirked down at you, wondering how far he could take you as he messily spread your arousal. “bet you could take two right now.”

“yes,” you said, gasping slightly. “please, hannie, please, i can take it.”

he pushed two fingers into you, barely even scissoring them before pushing in a third, making you bury your face in his pillow as you groaned. “i’ve been fucking you good, huh?”

you nodded frantically, pushing against his hand as steadily as you could. he noted your neediness, and indulged you by thrusting his fingers into you until you were whining rhythmically to his pace. he pulled a finger out, then another, and you instinctively threw a hand back to catch him before he pulled away completely. he laughed lightly, his hand easily overpowering yours and pressing a kiss against your shoulder blade.

“sorry, were you close?”

you exhaled sharply. “that was so mean.”

“i’ll make it up to you,” he said, pulling your hips further off the bed and pushing you further apart. he licked a wide stripe up your core, and you moaned deeply into the pillow, gripping it with all your power as his tongue expertly ran over your clit. “you taste incredible.”

you panted as you turned your head. “i thought you just ate.”

“i have a separate dessert stomach.”

your thighs buzzed and gut fluttered, and you wondered how he always managed to make you weak in the knees, even when his tongue was buried in you. it wasn’t long before you were gripping at his wrist, knuckles white, quaking as his lips guided you through your orgasm, and he lapped at your release, licking wet stripes up your inner thighs as well.

when he backed away, you exhaled again. “jeonghan-”

“what?” he asked, pushing his own pants down his thighs. he stood to drop them to the floor before straddling you again, pulling your hips back against him. “is this what you want?”

your hand found his thigh, urging him towards you. he rubbed the head of his cock, already shiny and scarlet, against your core, and you practically begged on the spot. suddenly, he pushed you into the mattress, pushing his hips against yours but fucking into your thighs. you whimpered, his cock rubbing against you absolutely deliciously, but not at all what you were expecting. he groaned into your neck, snaking a hand up under you.

“god, you’re so wet, i almost don’t even need to fuck your pussy.”

you yelped when his fingers found a nipple and pinched. “h-hannie, please-”

“please, what?”

you squirmed. “please fuck me.”

he looked at you. “you get one more try.”

for a moment, you looked back at him and your mind went blank. “please, hannie, i need your cock.”

he smiled. “was that so hard?” his tone and kisses were sweet, but completely mismatched the frustration bubbling in you as he pulled back, making you moan again as the head bumped over your clit. “do you trust me?”

“yes, baby, please just fuck me before i scream.”

with one hand on his cock, he guided himself into you, a moan tumbling from his lips as he felt you completely unsheathed for the first time. you gripped the pillow in a tighter fist as he filled you out, and it took all your concentration to not squeal in a way that absolutely would have been heard by the entire apartment. his hands gripped your waist, pulling you back onto him as he fucked into you. as you adjusted to him, you began to curse the fact that this was only temporary - you would have to go back to unreliably private quickies in a few short days - and you suddenly got the urge to really savor the way jeonghan’s cock felt in you.

he leaned over you, changing the angle ever so slightly and just enough to make you cry out, and he put a palm at the base of your neck, wrapping his fingers around it slightly as he pushed you into his pillow. “i could fuck you raw forever.”

you tried to catch your breath to respond. “i would let you.”

you internally celebrated the low groan that escaped him, and the way his hips pushed impossibly further into you. externally, you rewarded the movement with a matching moan, though you slapped a hand over your mouth when you heard the game pause in the other room.

“don’t want them to hear you, baby?”

you whimpered into your hand as jeonghan kissed a line up the side of your neck, steadily rolling into you.

“can’t even talk?”

you shakily pulled your hand away from your mouth, trying to stifle your noises with just your will. “cheol already hates me.”

“he doesn’t hate you,” he said, his voice getting slightly more labored as he continued his pace. “i bet he’d love to hear your pretty moans.”

you clamped your hand over your mouth again, resisting jeonghan’s luring the best you could. he smiled against the hollow of your ear, nipping at it slightly.

“i know you want to, baby. just let it out.”

as he spoke, he shifted his hips, making you let out a high toned moan that was barely muted by your palm, and you buried your face in the pillow to avoid jeonghan’s shiteating grin.

“i love the way you sound when i’m fucking you,” he said, his voice never raising above his lowest register. his ability to keep his cool as you were utterly falling apart was perhaps simultaneously the most aggravating and sexiest part of the whole affair. “and you always back up against me like a bitch in heat.”

you reached back for a hand, but he swiftly grabbed your wrist to push it against your lower back. your chest heaved, and you hurriedly added your other wrist to his grip. with one hand restricting your arms and the other pulling your hip back against his, he licked his lips at the sight.

“i’m going to wreck you,” he panted. “i’m going to make you forget anyone you ever fucked before me.”

you let out harsh breaths as your chest pushed into the mattress. “already have,” you managed, peeking best you could over yout shoulder to the glorious view behind you. you enjoyed the way his tongue shot out between his lips, the way he watched his cock fill you tightly. you even liked the way his hair flopped over his eyes, even if you thought he was in need of a haircut. but you especially liked that he looked like he got lost in you. like he would never want anything but you.

you came fast and hard, squeezing him temptingly as you whined into the pillow. with that, he pulled out and rolled you over, fingers hooking at your pants to pull them off completely. you bicycle kicked to help him, then practically pulled him into you as his lips crashed into yours, hands pulling you as close as he could while you both repositioned your bodies. your hand went down to position him at your entrance again, and you gasped into his mouth when he slid into you again. his teeth tugged at your bottom lip, one hand gently massaging the back of your neck as you whimpered against him.

“you’re being so good for me,” he muttered, purposefully brushing his lips against yours with every syllable. “have i finally tamed you?”

your legs wrapped around his waist. “no chance in hell.”

he grinned, letting you pull him into more sloppy kisses as he steadily pulled another orgasm from you, and you couldn’t help but want him to cum with you. his eyebrows knit as your hands dug into the hair at the base of his head, eyes barely focusing on your lips as you begged for him to cum in you.

“you’re evil.”

you could barely smile. “and you love it.”

you choked slightly, body edging into overstimulation as you came again, and jeonghan pushed up off of you to better chase his own high. he pumped into you, hard and rough, for a few more seconds before you felt suddenly empty and he was shooting hot ribbons of cum up stomach and chest.

you bit back a moan, arching your back slightly as he stared down at your chest, leaning down to lick his cum off your nipple. you gripped his hair again, squirming as he sucked lightly, lapping more cum towards the peak. you tugged at his roots slightly, pulling him up to kiss you before he got you hot and bothered again when you weren’t sure you could handle more.

“i can’t believe you pulled out.”

jeonghan laughed in your face. “i asked if you trusted me.”

you pouted. “i thought that meant you were going to choke me out.”

he kissed you again after a short chuckle, then sat up to grab tissues. “maybe next time.”

he didn’t say it like it was a promise, but he kept it like it was one.

and when your weekend of nonstop bedroom antics was over, you admittedly had fulfilled yourselves enough that the following privacy draught was almost bearable. sure, jeonghan asked you a couple times to come sit on his lap while he worked on lab reflections, and yes, it was much less innocent than one would think, but the two of you managed to keep unfortunate walkins to a minimum, which was only made possible by finally getting it out of your system.

also because you decided your thursday 7:30 was barely worth it most weeks, and jeonghan was always happy to run over to your dorm to fool around for a few hours while your roommate was in class.

#lol #seventeen smut #seventeen imagines #seventeen fluff #seventeen scenarios #yoon jeonghan scenarios #yoon jeonghan fluff #yoon jeonghan imagines #jeonghan scenarios #jeonghan imagines #jeonghan smut #hannie #i wrote dis

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danversxluthor · 3 years

Text

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back (Pt 2 of Seizing Life)

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As Loraine embraces her new freedom, her headaches get worse and new symptoms come to light. Lo wants her life to be normal but she can’t hide the obvious from her moms.

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Loraine enjoyed her new found freedom over the next few weeks. She was able to take the bus to school again and walk around the city on her own. She even got to spend her afternoons alone at home before her moms got home from work. It was a small thing, but it was the little pieces of freedom in her day to day life that she missed the most.

Today Loraine was homework free, a rare occasion given she went to a school hell bent on keeping students busy in preparation for high profile careers in demanding fields. Even though Loraine was exhausted, she decided to take the opportunity to make a stop at L-Corp to see what her mom was up to in the lab. She loved visiting L-Corp and seeing and playing around with the prototypes.

“Hi Mom!” Loraine greeted as she walked into the lab. Lena was focused and looking through a microscope. “Whatcha working on?” Loraine sat on one of the lab stools opposite Lena. The teen’s body had been feeling a bit achy lately, possibly a side effect of going out and being more active thanks to her new found freedom.

“A new biologic…” Lena was still focused on the microscope. “Its part of the cancer research I was telling you about.” Lena finally looked up.

“As much as it is always a wonderful surprise to see you Lo, shouldn’t you be at home finishing your homework?” Lena raised a warning eyebrow. She couldn’t really be made at Loraine for visiting, but she felt it was her parental duty to instill some boundaries. Lena also didn’t want Loraine staying up too late, she had noticed Loraine seemed tired a lot more lately.

“Finished it during lunch.” Loraine beamed with triumph. “Plus I haven't visited in awhile and figured it was time to see what you're doing to my future empire.” Loraine often joked with Lena about taking over the company.

“Your empire, huh? Nice try, but you’ll have to earn it first Loraine.”

“I know, I know…. Just making a prediction”

“Come here I want to show you something R&D just sent.” Loraine followed Lena over to another lab table where a small cellphone sized device was displayed along with a slew of other engineering tools. “It's a therma projection radar. It can scan a person and project health risks for vital signs.” Loraine picked up a calibration tool and was fiddling around with it as Lena explained the science. Aparatenly the prototype was under performing and Lena was going to make some updates to it herself before considering any further manufacturing options.

Clang clang. The tool that had been in Loraine’s hand crashed to the floor. Lena immediately stopped and looked at Loraine.

“Lo, you have to be more careful.” Loraine quickly picked up the tool and set it back down on the table gently.

“Sorry” Loraine apologized to Lena, hoping the tool wasn't anything custom made.

“It's ok,” Lena looked at Loraine trying to see if there were any signs of a potential seizure. Loraine noticed Lena’s concerned gaze.

“Mom, I’m fine. Just a little clumsy.” Loraine reassured and sat back down on the lab stool trying to conceal a yawn.

“And tired.” Lena added.

“Ok, clumsy and tired.” Loraine conceded and looked down. She hated when her mom got overly concerned about her. Even though she knew it was her mom’s job to be worried about her, Loraine couldn’t help feeling like a burden.

“Are you sleeping ok at night?” Lena asked as she started packing away her research.

“Yeah, I get plenty of sleep. It’s just been a long week that’s all.” Loraine tried to brush it off.

“Just let us know if you aren’t feeling well sweetie.”

“I’m fine.” Loraine rolled her eyes and gave a heavy sigh.

“Ok.” Lena raised her hands in surrender not wanting to push the teen too much.

The pair headed off home in Lena’s private car shortly after. Even though Lena had more work, she wanted to give Loraine the chance to relax and maybe take a nap before dinner. Lena even got an email from Loraine’s science teacher expressing concern over the fact that Loraine fell asleep during his class.

The ride was relatively quiet. Lena went through emails on her phone and Loraine just stared out the window trying to stay awake. The teen had had a dully headache for the past several days and it was starting to turn into a pounding headache. When they were finally home and in the garage, Loraine moved rather slowly to exit the car, her headache making her feel off balance. Every movement felt like a lot of work given how tired and achy Loraine was. Lena was out of the car and already waiting for Loraine near the door, wondering what was taking so long. Loraine stood up from the car, but the ground felt strange and unsteady. Loraine braced herself on the car and squeezed her eyes shut, the unsteady feeling made her feel slightly nauseated. Loraine tried to take a step but stumbled forward and fell to her knees. The driver rushed over to help Loraine up as Lena did the same.

“Lo, are you ok?” Lena asked holding Loraine’s shoulders.

Loraine nodded and gave a small embarrassed smile. “Thanks Felix. I’m fine, really.” Despite her words Loraine’s voice seemed a bit shaky. Felix made sure Lena and Loraine were safely inside before taking off.

Loraine had minor scrapes on her knees with minimal blood and mere scratches on her hands, nothing to be concerned about. Loraine’s movement still felt awkward and slow which she blamed on being tired.

“Let's take care of those scrapes.” Lena walked toward the bathroom and looked back to see if Loraine was coming too. She noticed that Loraine was moving slowly and with greater care, as if she were afraid of falling once more. The truth was, Loraine still felt unsteady with each step and she just wanted to make it from point A to point B without another fall.

Lena had Loraine sit on the small chair in front of her vanity as she kneeled and cleaned and bandaged Loraine’s knees and hands. Loraine was too tired to react to the sting of the antiseptic cream. When Lena finished up, she remained on her knees looking into her tired daughter’s eyes and asked once more.

“Sweetheart , are you sure you’re ok?” Lena waited for Loraine to respond, but the teen just looked away. “Its ok if you’re not. I just want to know so I can help.” Lena took Loraine’s hand in her own and noticed the teen’s hand was shaking. All Lena wanted was to comfort and reassure her daughter. When Loraine finally looked back it was with tears trickling down her face.

“I’m just really tired.” Loraine admitted quietly. She didn't have the energy to explain how the ground felts funny and besides she didn't want her mom to have even more reason to worry. Lena whipped away Loraine’s tears. She was relieved Loraine was talking to her but also worried there might be more to it than exhaustion.

“That’s alright sweetie. Why don’t we get you in bed, hm? You can rest and I’ll come wake you for dinner. How’s that?” Loraine nodded in agreement and let her mom help her up and to her room. Loraine didn't even protest at the assistance. She was too tired and unsteady to pull herself together enough to get there anyway. Lena was surprised at just how unsteady Loraine was.

Loraine slept for a couple hours, but was still exhausted when Lena retrieved her for dinner.

“Mm not hungry.” Loraine mumbled into her pillow.

“Sweetheart you have to have a little something to eat with your meds.” Lena gently pulled back the covers and ran her hand up and down Loraine’s back, which always seemed to coax Loraine out of a deep slumber. Instead of leaving, Lena helped Loraine up and stayed beside her just in case Loraine needed the support. Lena was happy to see that sleep seemed to do Loraine some good as the teen made it down the stairs without a problem.

“Grandma Eliza still wants to know if you want cinnamon rolls or blueberry muffins for Christmas breakfast Lo.” Kara looked to Loraine, waiting for the teen’s response. Loraine had been awfully quiet throughout dinner and barely touched her food. “Loraine?” Kara tried again.

“Just weighing my options,” Loraine joked, “it's a big decision, but I’m leaning toward the muffins.”

“Good choice, those muffins are legendary.” Kara had tried many times to bake Eliza’s recipe but it never turned out quite right.

Clank Loraine dropped her fork causing a loud reverberating noise.

“Sorry!” Loraine quickly picked up her utensil from the floor and went to get another from the kitchen.

“That's alright sweetie. While you’re in the kitchen could you get me a glass of water?” Kara asked.

“Sure.” Loraine retrieved the water and clean fork and dinner went by as usual. Kara noticed Loraine’s hand shaking as she set the water down in front of her. She gave Lena a concerned look, but Lena was already watching her daughter’s every move. The parents silently agreed to discuss later.

As dinner continued Loraine seemed more and more withdrawn. She altogether stopped moving and was staring blankly at her plate. Internally Loraine was entirely consumed by the throbbing of her head, so much so that she was oblivious to the conversation around her. Lena got up from her seat and went to kneel by Loraine so she was eye level with her daughter.

“Lo, sweetie, what's going on?” Lena asked in a quiet voice. Lena knew from her extensive research on seizures that not all types of seizures involve convulsions, some can simply look like someone staring blankly and being unresponsive.

“Hmm…” Loraine seemed to come to, “Wh… what?” Loraine was trying her hardest to focus on her surroundings now, which was still difficult with her headache.

“Are you feeling ok, Loraine?” Lena asked, still kneeling in front of Loraine. Kara was up and prepared to help in any way possible if Loraine was about to have a seizure.

“Sorry,” Loraine looked down to her plate then back up, “I’m just a little out of it... I think I just want to lie down.” Lena looked at Loraine unconvinced. Kara made sure Loraine got into bed ok before joining Lena back downstairs. To her surprise Loraine didn't even protest at the help, the teen was too out of it to realize what was happening.

“How is she?” Lena asked.

“She’s exhausted, maybe even coming down with the flu or something.” Kara was lost in thought and concern. “I’ve just never seen her like this. I mean sure it was bad last year, but this is different, isn't it?” Kara looks to her wife, who is on her phone typing.

“Alex agreed to see her tomorrow to run some tests.” Lena looked up from her phone. “You’re right, this is different or…” Lena trailed off in thought but shook her head.

“What is it?” Kara asked.

“Its… what if Loraine doesn't have a seizure disorder. What if the seizures were just one symptom of something else.” Lena had done extensive research on pediatric seizure conditions as well as other conditions that caused seizures. There were a few conditions Lena was concerned may match Loraine’s current state.

#supercorp #supercorp child #supercorpchild #lena luthor #kara danvers #little!luthor #baby!danvers

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thr-333 · 4 years

Text

Mismatch- Part 6

Bio Dad Bruce Wayne Month 2020

Sibling bonding at its finest, fighting and breaking rules

First< Previous> Next

----

“Maman, Papa, we’re fine,” Marinette holds the phone between them.

“Are you sure you don’t want to come home?” Tom asks through speaker phone.

“No Papa, Nette worked hard for this trip,” Marion insists, they are sitting in the back of Bruce's car with him and Selina in the front.

“We both work-”

“Both want to stay, that's right,” Marion cuts her off, grinning at her glare, “Besides we have things to do here remember ?”

“Ok, but if you change your minds,” Sabine frets, they do have a concert coming up.

“We’ll be on the first flight back,” Marinette agrees, Aunt Selina leans back and she holds up the phone for her.

“Don’t worry Tom, I’ll keep them out of trouble,” She tells her brother.

“You’re the last person I trust to do that,” Tom laughs from the other end of the line.

“Rude,” She glares down at the phone.

“I’m sure you’ll do just fine,” Sabine speaks over her husbands laughter.

“Thank you Sabine, you're my favourite person in Paris,” She winks at the twins, whispering "Right now,"

"Hey!" Tom shouts from the phone.

“Of course,” Sabine chuckles over her husband,“We have to go back to the bakery now,”

“We’ll talk later,” Tom promises, "Have fun,"

“See ya,” Selina sits back upright.

“Bye Papa, Maman,” Marinette moves to hang up

“Also we met Aunt Selina's fiance! Bye!" Marion blurts, everyone in the car freezes.

“WHA-” Marion hangs up.

“Marion! That was…..” Their Aunt shouts before giggling, turning into full blown laughter,“... That was so…”

The twins start laughing as well, making her give up on whatever lecture she was going to launch into.

“Selina, your phones ringing,” Bruce says, as she calms down.

“Yeah, it’s probably going to do that for awhile,” Selina turns it to silent and ignores the call, then turns to Marion,“Don’t ever do that again,”

“Are you planning on getting remarried?” Marion asks cheekily.

“Quite the thing to admit in front of your fiance,” Marinette adds, glancing at Bruce to see he is also smiling slightly. Years with Kagami had trained her to notice those hints of emotion.

“Brats,” She huffs turning back around.

“We love you,” They chorus.

“Brats,” Selina shakes her head fondly just as they approach the gates.

Marinette stares in awe at the large estate. The architecture and gardens immediately had her pulling out her sketch book to jot down ideas. She gets pushed out of the car by Marion and keeps drawing as they walk towards the Manor doors.

"You're home is beautiful," Marinette compliments Bruce.

"Thank you, I think so too," Bruce says as the doors open.

“Welcome home, Master Bruce, Miss Selina,” Alfred stands in the doorway, “And you, Miss Dupain-Cheng and Mr Cheng-Dupain, welcome to Wayne Manor.”

“It’s good to see you again, please, just Marinette's fine,” Marinette puts away her sketchbook.

“Yeah, I'd rather you just call me Marion,” Marion beams at him, before whispering, “Did we even tell you our last names?… witchcraft,”

“Very well, please come this way,” Alfred guides them into the Manor, stopping outside a door, "Master Damian is waiting, I must be off to prepare dinner,"

"Thank you Alfred," Bruce tells the butler as he leaves.

They enter the living room type area. A boy who couldn't even be thirteen yet stands. 'He's so small' Marinette thinks to herself.

"Father," He glares at her and Marion.

“This is my son Damian,” Bruce introduces, “Damian met Marinette and Marion,”

“It’s nice to meet you,” Marinette smiles, holding her hand out.

“Tt” Damian looks away, getting a glare from Bruce before taking her hand, “... Likewise,”

Selinas phone buzzes again. Drawing attention away from the insincere tone.

“I should probably answer them, or they’ll never leave us alone,” Their Aunt sighs taking out her phone, “Bruce come with me, I’m sure they’ll want to meet you,”

“Is this going to be a pleasant conversation?” He asks.

“No its going to be very painful,” Marinette smiles, knowing they were about to have a very long conversation with her over excited Papa. He would probably have planned their wedding by the time they manage to hang up.

“Right,” Bruce says hesitantly, he turns to Damian with a pointed look, “Behave,”

"Tt," is Damian's response as he is left alone with them.

Marion sits down. Marinette follows sitting next to him on one of couches, surprised at how soft it is. Damian sits down on an armchair, picking up a book.

“So, Damian how old are you?" Marinette asks, after a full minute of silence

“12,” He doesn't look up from his book

“... We’re 18, twins if you couldn't tell,” Marion steps in gesturing between them.

“I could,” Damian answers shortly.

“Right... so what are your hobbies?” Marinette tries again.

“... painting,” Damian concedes under her expectant gaze.

“Oh, can we see?” She asks excitedly.

“No,” Damian snaps. She doesn't let that discourage her, she doesn't like showing strangers her designs. Apart from the millions of strangers who see her designs anyway.

“Alright, I get that," Marion shares the sentiment, "What about-Oh my god,”

“What?” Damian finally looks up from his book, scanning the room for the cause of his outburst.

“Kitty!” Marion practically leaps from the couch to get a better look at the cat sauntering across the room.

“Oh no,” Marinette sighs watching her brother melt over the cat.

“That’s Alfred,” Damian tells them eyeing the cat and Marion with mild amusement.

“After Alfred, Alfred your butler?” Marinette tries not to snicker at the name.

“Yes, pennyworth is his namesake,” Damian nods, glare daring Marinette to laugh.

“Can I pet him?!” Marion pleads, with baby-doll eyes that could put Manon to shame.

“You can try, Alfred is very selective about who pets him,” Damian grants, and Marion sits on the ground, inching closer.

“I wouldn’t worry, Mari has a way with cats,” Marinette smirks, thinking back to the time she had to fight an Akuma alone because he was being smothered by cats.

“Come here Alfred,” Marion rubs his hand on the ground, Alfred watching closely.

“Do you have any other pets?” Marinette asks, Damian puts down his book.

“I have Titus, a great dane,” Damian watches as Alfred gives in and pounces on Marion’s hand, “Batcow, self explanatory,”

“Bat-cow mutant?” Marion guesses letting Alfred sniff his hand.

“No,” Damian's irritation shows, “She has patch shaped like the Bat symbol,”

“Oh, that was my second guess,” Alfred lets Marion scratch behind his ear.

“Can we see them?” Marinette excited over meeting Batcow.

“They’ll be around here somewhere, roaming the manor grounds,” Damian responds, non committaly.

“Alfred the Cat, feels weird to call them both Alfred,” Marion muses, Damian looks surprised as the cat climbs into this lap.

“Have you any pets?” Damian asks his first question about them.

“No, we live in a bakery so it would be a health code violation,” Marinette answers sadly. She doubts a box of animal type Kwamis are regulation either but no one has to know about that.

“Al-at? no,” Marion talks to himself, or more likely the cat.

“That’s a shame,” Damian acknowledges monotonously, watching as Alfred the cat starts to purr as Marion scratches his chin.

“We did try to sneak strays in when we were little,” Marinette is unwilling to let the conversation drop.

“Ca-Fred, Cat-Fred!” Marion exclaims, apologising seconds later to the newly dubbed Cat-fred for startling him.

“Try?” Damian sneers.

“The first few times were a disaster, we didn’t get past the front door,” Marinette explains, “Maman and Papa would send them to the shelter straight away,”

“At least they didn’t put them back out on the street,” Damian muses.

“They would never,” Marion responds, in baby talk directed at Cat-fred.

"You don't have to use that ridiculous voice," Damian scolds.

"I know," Marion answers, in the same voice, Damian glowers.

“As we got older we started being able to actually get them inside before being found out,” Marinette distracts him from Marion's taunting.

“One of us would be the distraction and the other snuck in, with a sleeping cat or dog, that one we learnt the hard way,” Marion uses a normal voice, still showering Cat-fred with attention.

“I think that is how I got my reputation for being clumsy,” Marinette sighs, it was always left up to her to distract their parents by knocking something over while Marion snuck in.

“What can I say? Cats love me,” Marion proves his point as Alfred turns over, letting him see his belly.

“I can see that,” Damian seems amused as much as he is surprised.

“At first, they’d find them in a few hours, so we learnt by trial and error,” Marinette continues, relaxing into the couch. "We must have taken in at least a hundred strays,"

“I think the last one we had managed a few months before we go found out,” Marion guesses, they hadn't tried again since the received their miraculous.

For one because they couldn't afford their parents searching their room regularly and coming across the Kwamis. However being the heroes of Paris had also proven effective in getting people to adopt. Usually the first person they asked would immediately agree, if they were suited up.

“So how many more pets have you managed to smuggle in?” Marion stage whispers to Damian, the gap between them being too big to actually whisper, “In a place this big should be easy,”

“I’ve tried… Pennyworth has caught me each time,” Damian admits, looking down at the almost asleep Cat-fred.

“That man is a witch,” Marion declares with certainty.

“What?” Damian seems taken aback.

“He appears out of nowhere and knows too much,” Marion provides what Marinette is sure he considers evidence.

“Hn, that is true,” Damain starts to share his multiple accounts of such behaviour.

The three fall into easy conversation after that listening to and sharing stories.

“I must be going insane,” All their eyes snap to a man standing in the doorway “Demon spawns actually getting along with someone,”

“Todd,” Damian acknowledges coldly.

“Hi,” Marion waves with far more friendliness, “I’m Marion, this is Marinette, your names Todd was it?”

“Jason actually, I lived here and drop by every now and then, mainly when Alfred asks," He explains, sitting on another couch near Marion, "Heard about you had a run in with a villain today,”

“Did you?” Damian asks, the two having avoided it in their conversation so far.

“Yeah, got an earful from Aunt Selina,” Marion laughs nervously.

“Did you get hurt?” Jason looks over Marion, concern written all over his face.

“What? No I’m fine thanks,” Marion smiles, Marinette rolled her eyes she stretches her leg to press to his bruised side, "Ow! Nette!"

"No lying," She shrugs as Marion turns to her. Cat-fred runs at the sudden movement, making Marion pout.

"Rich coming from you," He mutters, turing back to see the look on Jason's face, "My side just a little bruised, doesn't hurt unless someone, oh i don't know, kicks me!"

"I didn't kick you, you drama queen," Marinette sticks her tongue out at him and he copies.

“Did Selina train you?” Damian reverts the conversation.

“A little when we were younger, we still to spar together,” Marinette pretends to go for a kick to his side again, expecting the easy block.

"One of the few instances we're allows to punch each other," Marion jokes, "Although I think I'll hold off for now, you're not above using my injury to your advantage,"

"I'm resourceful," Marinette corrects, "Also, now you're hurt when you're afraid to get you're ass beat?"

"Such crass language, young lady," Jason teases, Marinette pokes her tongue out again.

"I can spar you if Marion is unwilling," Damian offers, Marion grumbles something along the lines of 'I never said that'.

"Right now?" Marinette sizes him up, she could tell he had some training.

"If you want," Damian also starts to size her up.

"Hold up now, you can't do this," Jason steps in, Marinette starts to deflate, "In here, Alfred would stop you, lets go outside,"

She perks up, following Jason, Marion and Damian outside to a clear area of grass. She toes off her shoes and socks, knowing they were steel capped and would cause some serious damage. She also pulls off her scarf, not willing to give him any advantage. Damian keeps his shoes on, clicking his tongue. They start to circle each other, waiting for someone to make a move. Marinette feels the grass beneath her feet, she feels more like Ladybug in a way.

Damian breaks the standoff, lunging at her. Marinette side steps at the last second, reminding herself to tone it down. She tries to make use of the opening by getting behind him, but Damian instantly pivots to keep her in front of him. Marinette takes note he's a lot faster than anticipated and decides to test it. She makes the next move forward throwing a few punches to see how he reacts. Damian easily dodges each one, Marinette realises that she is unprepared to fight someone smaller than her. They did occasionally have to fight Akumatised children but that was with superpowers. She had never actually gone hand to hand with someone smaller.

Taking this into consideration she adjusts to a style she uses more when sparring Marion. They're both about the same size and he's fast so she can rarely use his weight against him like she usually would. Marinette stops trying to get behind Damian, instead planning to send him to the ground, knowing she had the size advantage. Damian seemingly notices this change and adjusts his defences.

'how well is he trained?' Marinette asks herself. Damian tries to goad her into attacking, throwing out punches. Marinette doesn't rise to the bait, dodging and blocking. Marinette dances around their sparring area, testing Damian's stamina while waiting for an opening. She sees her chance and is about to move into counter attack.

"Damian!" They both pause looking toward the manor to see Bruce and Selina.

"Marinette! what do you think you're doing?" Aunt Selina storms towards them.

"Uh... bonding?" She laughs nervously.

241 notes · View notes

heyiwrotesomethings · 3 years

Text

Craving

ShinoMitsu Week 2021 Day Four: (Time Skip, Craving, Fashion) Really could be time skip too, just a small one.

A/N: Here we are, safe to read for anyone, manga reader or not! Please enjoy the rest of the week! It’s all fluff : ) Word Count: 2,056

Shinobu checked the time on her phone, noting with surprise, that it was nearly midnight. She marked her page and pushed her heavy textbook aside before stretching her arms high above her head.

Getting up from her desk with the intent of going to bed, she only just pulled back her covers when her phone buzzed in her hand. There was only one person who would be texting her this late and she could bet she knew exactly what they were texting about.

She looked down at her phone and sure enough, Mitsuri’s name shone back at her with a simple one word question surrounded by an array of puppy dog eye and heart emojis. It read, “food?”.

Shinobu was no stranger to Mitsuri’s late night cravings by now. A smile tugged at Shinobu’s lips as she typed out her reply, “Sure. Usual?”

Almost immediately Mitsuri responded with an enthusiastic, “yes!” and even more emojis. Shinobu chuckled to herself and then headed to her closet to change out of her lounge clothes.

Every once in awhile since they had started dating officially a couple months ago, Mitsuri would text or call Shinobu in the late hours of the night to join her for a midnight meal. Something about food always tasting better when sharing it with someone you love. Shinobu was happy to go wherever Mitsuri asked, whenever she asked, but the late night excursions always left her drained and grumpy in the morning. It was worth it to her though. She was just amazed at how much stamina the older girl had. Shinobu was convinced Mitsuri was superhuman, pulling all nighters seemingly without consequence.

Shinobu finished putting on her shoes and quietly exited her home in the dead of night. Kanae already knew about the habit, having teased Shinobu relentlessly after catching her coming home in the wee hours of the morning. She just asked that her sister keep her phone and pepper spray on her for protection.

Shinobu walked for a couple blocks towards the nearby shops. Many were darkened at this late hour, but a few still glowed with promises of warm food. A little further down, she spotted Mitsuri waiting on the sidewalk, a young, disheveled man appeared to be talking to her. Her guard immediately went up and she picked up her pace.

“I’m jus’ sayin’ is not safe for pretty girls t’ be out alone at nigh’. Lemme keep all the baddies away, huh? I’ll walk ya t’ my place an—“

“Back off. She’s fine.” Shinobu put a protective hand over Mitsuri’s back, the other was covering the pepper spray in her pocket. Glaring up at the greatly intoxicated man.

The man laughed in her face, making Shinobu wrinkle her nose at his foul breath. The man had no idea who he was dealing with and tried to pull Mitsuri into what he thought would be a hilarious joke.

“Aw, are you lost little girl? We can drop you off at the elementary schaAAAHH!”

Shinobu didn’t bother with the pepper spray, instead she kicked him so hard that he fell into the gutter, holding himself tightly as he squeaked a string of expletives between wheezes.

“Come on, let’s get out of here.” Shinobu said, already moving Mitsuri away from the drunken imbecile.

“Did you have to be so harsh?” Mitsuri asked, interlacing her fingers with Shinobu’s and swinging the entangled limbs between them.

“Maybe, maybe not. Maybe he’ll learn that not every girl out on the street is there for his pleasure and remember to mind his own business from now on.” Shinobu grumbled.

“He was rather insistent. Thanks for helping me, my knight.” Mitsuri leaned over to place a kiss in Shinobu’s hair, making her cheeks become a little rosy. If pressed about it, she would have blamed it on the chilly night air.

“Next time wait inside the restaurant, okay?” Shinobu asked.

“But I was so excited to see you!”

“You would see me either way.” Shinobu rolled her eyes, smiling despite herself.

They walked into the western breakfast chain restaurant. The smell of syrup and bacon warmed the girls up immediately. They were quickly seated as there were hardly any other patrons who wanted a western breakfast so late at night. However, if a bar decided to close earlier, it would almost certain to get more lively in there. For now though, it was peaceful.

They were seated at a booth in front of the window and were given their menus. Mitsuri wiggled happily in her seat as she browsed through, trying to decide what she’d like to order.

“When I first texted you I was thinking pancakes but you can never go wrong with waffles!” Mitsuri grinned. “Now if I could just figure out the right combo order...”

“If you come up with any complications let me know, I’ll be happy to coordinate with your desires.” Shinobu smiled in return, as she glanced over the menu herself.

“I love you so much.” Mitsuri declared. “I desire you above all else, you sweet and amazing girl!”

“Love you too.” Shinobu bashfully replied. She still couldn’t get over how Mitsuri could say such things so freely. She didn’t seem to realize the gravity her words carried sometimes.

They figured out what they wanted and ordered. After a bit of talk about school, then family, and what they might like to that weekend, the conversation fell to a lull and Shinobu tried to hide a yawn in her sleeve.

“You’re tired, aren’t you?” Mitsuri nudged Shinobu’s foot playfully under the table, “you could have told me you wanted to stay in.”

“I’m not that tired. I’d rather spend time with you anyway,” Shinobu nudged her back.

Mitsuri covered her blushing face in her hands and Shinobu laughed. Their food arrived shortly after and soon the only sound beside the clatter of dishes in the background and quiet chatter, was Mitsuri’s enthusiastic humming as she sampled every item on her plate, as well as Shinobu’s.

“You’re reminding me of Rengoku-sensei right now,” Shinobu laughed, clearing her throat before taking a bite of her own food. “Tasty!” She declared, though more quietly and with less enthusiasm than the teacher would have. Mitsuri quickly caught on and giggled along.

“I love Rengoku-sensei, you know he’s the volleyball coach too, right? I guess spiking wasn’t the only thing I picked up from him.”

“He should think about switching to coaching track, Tomioka is such a bore. It’s a wonder he got the job in the first place.”

“You would miss Tomioka if he left, don’t deny it.”

“Only because he’s so fun to mess with.” Shinobu clarified.

“Of course.” Mitsuri nodded, a knowing smile forming around her fork as she savored another bite of Shinobu’s meal.

By the time they finished eating their meal and a shared dessert, it was nearly one in the morning and Shinobu was definitely feeling it. It was a good thing she didn’t have early practice tomorrow because she needed every minute of sleep she could possibly get before heading to school in a couple of hours.

Mitsuri noticed Shinobu’s fatigue and insisted she hop in a taxi with her to get home. An idea that Shinobu had no issue agreeing to, the sooner she got into her bed, the better.

It was a relatively short walk to Shinobu’s, so the drive was even shorter. However, almost as soon as they had buckled in and gave the taxi driver the address, Shinobu had fallen asleep and her head lolled onto Mitsuri’s shoulder as the taxi turned onto the street.

Mitsuri simpered, containing the squee she felt bubbling in her throat so as not to disturb her very cute girlfriend’s slumber until they made it to her front door.

When the driver pulled up, she quietly thanked and paid him before gently shaking Shinobu awake.

“Shinobu-chan, we’re here. Time to get up.” Mitsuri whispered, giggling when the other girl released a grumpy grunt and burrowed deeper into her side, trying to sap up all the warmth Mitsuri had to offer. Mitsuri directed her attention back to the driver waiting patiently in the front seat.

“Sorry, this might be a little tricky.” She apologized, undoing her seatbelt and Shinobu’s before opening the door.

“Yeah, sure.” The driver nodded. There were be worse things he could be dealing with on a Thursday night.

Mitsuri propped Shinobu back up against the seat and got out of the car, crouching over so she could pull Shinobu closer to the door. Once she was close enough, she hooked her arms under the sleeping girl’s back and knees, carefully lifting her out of the car with care and ease. What she appreciated most being as strong as she was, was how easy it was to pick Shinobu up. Even if Shinobu didn’t always like it.

“Thanks again.” She nodded to the driver, getting a grunt in response. She knocked the door close with the side of her foot and made her way up Shinobu’s stoop before realizing this was actually going to be a bit harder than she anticipated.

“Hey, Shinobu, do you think you could get your key out and open the door for me?” Mitsuri asked, adjusting her hold.

Slowly, Shinobu’s eyes peeled open though just a smidge. She looked reminiscent of a grouchy, sour child and it was the cutest thing Mitsuri had ever seen.

“Put me down.” Shinobu fussed, lightly slapping Mitsuri’s arm. “Just because you can pick me up, doesn’t mean you should.”

“But you are so cute and sleepy! I couldn’t just leave you in the back of the taxi anyway.” Mitsuri said in return, though she did as Shinobu asked and set her down.

Shinobu dug around in her bag, it’s strap hung over Mitsuri’s shoulder, silently cursing every time she picked up something that wasn’t the key to her front door. Finally, with a small noise of triumph she picked up the right item and unlocked the front door.

The sleepy track runner pulled Mitsuri inside with her before locking the door snuggly behind her. Then she sat down to take off her shoes, motioning for Mitsuri to do the same.

“Come on it's late, your parents would rather you be here than out by yourself.” Shinobu said.

“Thanks, Shinobu!” Mitsuri clapped softly. She was always excited to stay the night.

“Mhm, now hurry up.” Shinobu said impatiently, already stumbling to the bathroom to brush her teeth.

Mitsuri kicked off her shoes and followed after her. She had already stayed over frequently enough that she had her own little pack of bathroom supplies in the cupboard. They brushed their teeth together before heading to Shinobu’s room to change into more comfortable clothes.

Mitsuri claimed one of Shinobu’s large and all encompassing hoodies and after shooting her parents a text about her whereabouts, she leapt into Shinobu’s futon with a satisfied giggle.

As grumpy and tired as Shinobu was, she couldn’t help but smile warmly at the endearing girl. She slipped into bed behind Mitsuri and wrapped her arm over her. The older girl hugged the arm to her chest sighing happily. Her back pressed snuggly into Shinobu’s front.

“Did you set up an alarm for school?” Mitsuri whispered.

“Regrettably, yes.” Shinobu sighed into the back of Mitsuri’s neck.

“Thanks for coming out with me tonight.” Mitsuri spoke up again after a few minutes.

“You’re welcome,” Shinobu mumbled, pressing a small kiss into Mitsuri’s skin.

“What do you want to do after school tomorrow?”

“Mitsuri I love you, but please, go to sleep.”

“But I’ve got another craving...” Mitsuri said, a mischievous little smile tugging at her lips as she left Shinobu shuffle in the covers to lean above her.

“What the hell, Mitsu? Why didn’t you say something before we left the restaurant?” Shinobu repined.

“Don’t worry, it’s something really easy that you can give me without even leaving this bed.” Mitsuri cryptically responded, craning her head back to bat her eyelashes at Shinobu.

Shinobu released an amused huff of air from her nose, immediately understanding what the other girl wanted. She leaned down and kissed Mitsuri’s honey sweet lips, nearly making her swoon.

“Good night.” Shinobu breathed once they broke apart, laying back down fully against the futon.

“Good night indeed.” Mitsuri murmured dreamily in return.

#shinomitsuweek2021 #shinomitsu #shinobu kochou #shinobu kocho #mitsuri kanroji #demon slayer #kny #au

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boredandelusive · 3 years

Text

01.

♞

"C'mon, kid, it won't be that bad, I promise you," Derek had been trying to talk Spencer into going with him to the skating rink. He was a generally awkward person, so it made sense why he wouldn't know how to do things normal people would know how to do.

"Statistically, most skating accidents happen on a Sunday, and also between 2 and 7 PM. 91 percent of accidents happen from falling, but only 4.1 percent of accidents are made up by collisions," Spencer rambled off, seeing as he didn't want to run the risk of falling on the floor.

"Reid, you can't always be afraid to skate. I'll tell you what: skate with me, meet a few of my friends, then you can take the skates off and play in the arcade. Does that sound good?" The best way to get the socially awkward man to know more people was through compromise.

"Sure," now that caught his attention. It meant Spencer could finally not stay home all the time, nor did it mean he would be stuck reading quantum physics.

"Great, now come on," opening the door for his friend, Morgan stepped into the skating rink after Spence. Once they got inside, Reid moved away from the front and let Derek speak for them both. "We're here for Davis," it was a booked party that made sure they didn't have to pay.

Once the door buzzed open, the two made their way to the shoe exchange. "Who are some of your friends here?" Reid didn't want to go through the awkward introductions, so it's better to know who he would be meeting.

"There's Kiara, who I think you might like, Elani, Savannah, Garcia, and Prentiss. I tried talking the others on the team to go with us, but it seems they weren't the skating type. Hotch is with Jack, and Rossi's probably busy writing another best-seller," he knew Rossi probably wasn't the skating type.

Once they took off their shoes, Derek placed his up first, which Spencer stood behind him. Seeing as he got his skates first, and Reid got his skates afterward, they sat down and put the skates on. "You do know how to skate, don't you?"

"I would be lying if I said I knew how to," that's when Morgan chuckled at his friend. "What? It's not my fault I didn't want to look like an idiot trying to skate," Reid defended himself, which his friend tried stopping himself for a moment.

Once he stood up, he looked at the rink. Once he found Kiara, who was skating with her knees to her chest, he whistled at her. Seeing as it got her attention, she stood up straight and easily skated off the rink. When she met up with Derek, she saw Spencer. "Kiara Davis, this is Spencer Reid. Spencer Reid, this is Kiara Davis."

She held out her hand for him to shake, but he just waved. "The number of pathogens passed from handshakes are staggering. It's actually safer to kiss," he said with normalcy, which Kiara tilted her head and narrowed her eyes.

"You must be the awkward friend Derek's always talking about," she figured, which he nodded. She looked to Morgan to say something. "The others are in the party room in the back. I've met Emily, but I thought you said there was someone else coming?"

"Garcia, she's probably not here yet," he figured. There was a bit of awkward silence before Kiara decided to speak up.

"Alright, I'm gonna go back on the rink. If Garcia ever comes around, let me know," seeing as she went over to the side of the rink, she got back onto the floor.

"She seems nice," Reid spoke up awkwardly, looking at her as she began skating back to the rhythm of the music.

"Yeah, she's great. I should've told you to go skating with her," Derek thought about how he could've set them up together.

"But Derek, I told you I don't know how to skate," he responded, though Morgan didn't mind that.

"She could teach you. Why don't you go to the sidelines, she'll meet up with you," it sounded simple enough, though Spencer could barely move without falling over. "Do you need help getting to the sidelines?" Seeing as he made an effort to stand up, though he wobbled.

"You know, a little assistance would be nice," he said in a high-pitched voice, flailing his arms to keep himself steady. He sat down again, waiting for whoever would've helped him. Derek whistled again, which Kiara looked over to the source. Once she got off the rink, she T-stopped in front of them both.

"What's up?" Kiara asked, and seeing as Derek held back a laugh, she looked over to Spencer. "Am I missing something?"

"Pretty boy here doesn't know how to skate. You think you can teach him?" It sounded harmless, though it meant something Spencer probably wouldn't like.

"You know that would mean you would have to hold my hand to let me teach you how to skate, right?" She asked in a teasing manner, which Reid contemplated for a moment.

"Okay," with that, she extended both of her hands toward him. He took them and stood up, though he was still unsteady.

"Ooh, you have a lot to learn, Spencer Reid," she chuckled before looking at Derek. "I got him, you can go hang out with your friends. Has that Garcia chick come in yet?" Since she hadn't met her, she hoped there was a chance she could meet some of Morgan's friends.

Despite them knowing one another for decades, it didn't help that his job felt like it wedged their friendship apart. "Hopefully she'll be here shortly. Go have fun with him, and if he busts his ass, record it."

"So that's the type of friendship you have? Nice to know," she smirked before guiding Reid over toward the edge of the rink. She stepped onto the rink and kept one of her feet to the side, stopping her from accidentally drifting off. "You can step down to the rink, don't worry."

Seeing as he hesitantly stepped onto the rink as well, he did his best to stay still. "How do you make this look effortless?" He asked, seeing as he tried stabilizing his feet.

"Because I've been doing this for years. This is your first time, obviously, it's going to be different. I'll lead, you follow. So, I helped you get off the carpet, which you used to walk, not roll here. Have you already gotten used to balancing for each foot?" That would help him learn how to skate, and this was a step-by-step process.

"I have the basic idea," he answered, though that wasn't good enough for her.

"Step up onto the carpet. We need to get through that step first, and I can't have you busting your ass every time you try to propel yourself forward," seeing as he followed her words, he stepped onto the carpet first, which she followed him afterward. "Lift each leg at a time, just get used to the shifting balance."

He did as such, and though he looked stupid, he started getting the hang of it. Once his body stopped wobbling from the shifting balance, he looked at Kiara. "This is how you do it, right?"

"Yep. Now start wobbling side to side. You'll definitely roll, but it'll help with learning to shift your balance once you start skating," he sounded unsure of her words like she was setting him up to look like an idiot.

"I feel like you're trying to make me look like an idiot," he muttered under his breath, though Kiara heard it.

"Do you want to learn how to skate or not, Spencer?" She had a stern tone, but she wanted to help him learn how to skate so he wouldn't look like a child without the training guard. Seeing as he stayed quiet, he began leaning side to side, rolling forward some, but not enough for him to worry.

Once she saw he had it down, she remembered what she had to learn next. "Now you'll need to practice pushing off one skate to the next. Bend your knees so you won't pass out," that was common logic, but it was just how she learned to skate.

She backed away from him a bit, just enough for him to slowly drift toward him. Once she saw he got the hang of it, specifically the pushing off part, she walked to the rink sideline. "Why are you going to the rink?"

"Because all you need to do now is walk on the floor until you get comfortable. Once you're at that stage, you're ready to start skating. I'll even teach you how to stop, but doing it on the carpet where the grip is too rough won't help," she answered and extended both hands toward him.

Seeing as he took her hands, he cautiously stepped onto the rink. "You said I have to walk on the rink before I can start skating?" He asked, to which she nodded responsively. "What if I fall?"

"Well, you'll be holding onto my hands before that happens," she smiled assuringly. He took her hands and got onto the rink, which she made sure he wouldn't fall. "It's okay, you've got this, don't worry." He looked hesitant, but he started stepping anyway.

Seeing as she slowly wheeled backward, which she knew how to do, she made sure he got the hang of it. Seeing as though he wasn't wobbly anymore, she slowly moved out of the way for him to go farther. In doing so, she let go of his left hand but held onto his right.

Now that the two were side by side, it gave him enough leisure to start skating. "Nope, I can't do it, I'm gonna fall," despite how much she's heard Derek talk about him, trying new things must not have been his favorite thing to do.

"It's okay, just give me your other hand, and I'll guide you," she answered before getting in front of him again. Seeing as he gave her the other hand, she began skating backward while he moved forward. "See, the key is to slowly propel with one foot at a time. Once you have that down, then that's when you kick one foot away and bring it back."

"What about backward skating?" He asked, seeing as she was doing it effortlessly. It didn't seem like it was difficult, not to him, at least.

"Oh, nope. You can barely skate, let alone backward skating. Come on, keep it moving," though they went slow, she heard another whistle. Looking at the source, which was Derek, he signaled her to come over. "Come on, Derek needs us for something."

Once they looped back around, she stepped off the rink and he followed through. Once they were both on the carpet, she let go of his hands and wheeled to the others. Seeing as there was a shorter white woman standing beside Derek, she assumed this was Garcia.

"Kiara, this is-," he was cut off by her words instead.

"Hi! I'm Penelope Garcia," she immediately gripped her hand with a firm grip. "Derek's told me so much about you! And you're pretty. Derek, you never told me she was pretty." It's like she was hyper, which made her shake from how firm the handshake was.

"Nice to meet you, too, Garcia. You have a really firm grip," she whispered, seeing as her hand started hurting.

"Have you met the others? I want you to meet the others," she looked happy, ecstatic there was someone new. Immediately leading her to the party room, she saw Prentiss, who saw her holding Garcia's hand, rather, Garcia holding her hand.

"It's nice to meet you..." Emily trailed off, needing to know her first name.

"Oh, Kiara. My name is Kiara Davis. You must be Emily Prentiss, right?" She knew the name, but she didn't know whose face it went to. "And you're Elani Smith, right?" Kiara pointed to the other girl in the room, considering she knew who Savannah was.

"It's nice to meet you, Kiara. Have you met Spencer?" She hoped Derek's friend got fully situated with the others, and there was one person she didn't know if she knew.

"Yeah, I'm still teaching him how to skate," she answered with a smile. "He almost fell on his ass, but he's learning." Kiara hoped she could get out there to help him skate some more. "Well, I'll be back here in a little bit, but I'm gonna go back and continue teaching him how to skate."

"Alright, we'll see you later, then," Garcia smiled before Kia rolled away, leaving the two girls to themselves. "She's perfect, Em. You think her and Spencer will hit it off?" Penelope whispered, seeing as she was ecstatic about the new girl.

"I hope so."

#spencer reid #sub spencer reid #sub!spencer reid #emily prentiss #penelope garcia #derek morgan #criminal Minds #criminal minds fanfiction

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satendou · 4 years

Text

⟼ camtime

⍣ 365 days of sun series | previous | next

・‥…━━━━━━━☆☆━━━━━━━…‥・

⇢ pairing: iwaizumi/reader/oikawa

⇢ au: 365!au, poly!au, college!au, pro!oikawa

⇢ summary: iwaizumi is feeling a bit needy, but oikawa really wants to facetime. the solution?

⇥ masterlist

⇥ requests are open! | rules

⇢ warnings: smut, established relationship, polyamory, camera sex, mild daddy kink, oral, unprotected sex, for the love of god properly clean up after sex

⇢ word count: 3.8k

・‥…━━━━━━━☆☆━━━━━━━…‥・

⇢ a/n: i had a thought while i was half asleep. and once again thank you to the loml @keijiskitten for torturing herself to beta this for me

Iwaizumi frowned as you sighed for the hundredth time that hour, staring down into the pan of vegetables that you were currently frying. It was pretty clear what was wrong; Oikawa had been gone for three days and the most either of you had gotten was texts saying “I love you” and “Goodnight.”

You jumped as his arms slid around your waist, his chin resting on your shoulder.

“I miss him too,” he murmured, breath tickling your ear.

Your shoulders shook under his chin as you laughed. Oikawa would never see it and Iwaizumi would deny it if you ever mentioned it, but Iwaizumi got extremely *mopey when Oikawa was gone. And he’d never hear the sweet things Iwa had to say about him, like how much he missed him when he was at away games.

Not that you didn’t tell Oikawa about it; the small smile he’d get when he heard was enough. The not-so-subtle teasing he aimed at Iwaizumi was not worth the amount of flack you got from Iwa afterwards, and you couldn’t stop yourself from spilling it all out to Oikawa. And the affection between the two for days afterwards was enough to make you smile.

“I know. He always does this when he leaves, doesn’t he?” you asked, setting your spatula down and turning in his arms. You wound your arms around his neck and pecked his nose followed by his lips. “But I’m glad you’re here, Haji. I couldn’t deal with the both of you being gone.”

His large hands rubbed up and down your back, holding you close to his chest as he kissed you again. The loud popping of oil at your back brought you back, and you turned around to tend to it again, shivering as Iwaizumi’s lips trailed up your neck and back down again. “I know. You’re so needy.”

Whacking his hand lightly with the spoon in your hand, you laughed. “It’s your own fault. You spoil me too much, and I love it.”

Iwaizumi’s lips moved against your neck as he muttered, “Yeah I bet you do.” He followed that up with a much quieter, “And I love you.”

You almost rolled your eyes, but he said it so sincerely that you couldn’t help the warmth that spread up your neck. It was amusing that he was smooth without even meaning to be, and adorable that he was so reserved in delivering. “Ugh, you’re so cute, Haji.”

He huffed and you could just imagine the eyeroll that nearly took his eyes to the back of his skull. A quick peek gave you an eyeful of his cheeks turned slightly pink. “Shut up.”

His arms disappeared from around you so that he could finish preparing the rice for dinner. You continued to chat about your day until you announced the vegetables were done, and then arms wound around his middle. He could feel you rubbing your face against his shirt between his shoulder blades and he rolled his eyes.

“What are you doing?”

“Annoying you,” you answered, pausing. “Is it working?”

“I’ve been friends with Oikawa since preschool, and more for years now. You’re gonna have to work a lot harder to annoy me,” he responded, patting your hand as he sighed. As much as he loved Oikawa, that man was infuriating. Loud, boisterous, flirtatious, teasing, and gorgeous. He shifted uncomfortably as the image of Oikawa shirtless flashed through his mind and rolled his eyes. Typical, he couldn’t escape even when he wasn’t around.

“Don’t tempt me,” you said, shoving into him before moving away to plate dinner.

He froze, the image switching from slightly dirty to both you and Oikawa at the same level. Deadpan, he said, “If you ever become like Oikawa I’m breaking up with both of you.”

Later that night, just a little while before the two of you would usually go to bed, Oikawa texted you.

‘Facetime, 30 min? <3’

“Doesn’t he know what emojis are?” you asked, peering at Iwaizumi’s screen over his shoulder.

“He thinks that it’s ‘quirky’ to use these instead. We’ll have to use your phone,” he said as he typed his reply back, “so make sure it’s charged. Please,” he tacked on as an afterthought.

Laughing at the way he narrowed his eyes when he realized what he had done, you read Oikawa’s response.

‘KK :)’

“He really is a dork, isn’t he?” you sighed, checking your phone and wincing. 32%.

Iwa watched the sway of your hips as you headed down the hall to plug your phone in, the shape of your ass in the yoga pants you wore keeping every ounce of his attention. And when you walked back, the bounce of your tits in the tight shirt you were wearing drew his eyes again, and he wondered how long Oikawa would want to talk. It had been a few days since you had fooled around, and it was annoying that he wanted to call *tonight, possibly ruining the plans Iwaizumi had already made.

Iwaizumi couldn’t count how many times the both of you checked the time on his phone in the next 30 minutes, barely paying attention to the show you’d been so invested in just a few minutes ago. It would be the first, and probably only, time you would have a chance to talk to Oikawa before he came home in a few days. It was his way of settling his nerves before a game-- he’d call and talk to you until he or the two of you fell asleep. More than once, both of your phones had died when you both accidentally fell asleep, and so you learned to leave it plugged in while you talked.

Iwaizumi’s phone lit up before the thirty minutes were up, like you knew it would. Oikawa was so predictable.

‘Can we do it now? I can’t wait :’(‘

And impatient.

You both laughed and stood up, lacing your fingers together as you headed towards the bedroom. Falling onto the mattress, Iwaizumi snuggled up behind you, fitting himself to your back and curling his arm over your side. Your phone screen lit up when you picked it up and he watched you input your password, navigating to the FaceTime app. Tapping on Oikawa’s name-- ‘Pretty Boy <3’-- it started ringing and he almost instantly picked up.

“Well, there’s my two favorite people in the world,” he said, smiling into the camera. His hair was damp and spread out against his pillow, his shoulders bare. “Sorry I’ve been so quiet. Practice and traveling and--”

“Yeah, yeah, Tooru, we know, you’re busy,” Iwaizumi said, and Oikawa pretended to pout, his eyes carrying a glint of mischief.

The camera jerked as he rolled over onto his side, his bangs falling into his face. “Aw, don’t sound so bitter, Haji. I know you miss me.”

Iwaizumi’s breath puffed against your ear, a sound of exasperation and irritation. “Don’t get ahead of yourself, Brattykawa.”

You stifled your laughter with your hand. Iwaizumi had come up with that nickname shortly before the three of you started dating. He was constantly stumbling over his insults, feeling that his old names were too harsh as his feelings developed. It was almost painful, and it was just fortunate that Oikawa was too dense to notice. To both of your surprises, Oikawa didn’t really comment on the sudden stuttering over nicknames and always looked more concerned when it happened. And then one day, he heard you call Oikawa a brat and it just seemed to slip out.

Brattykawa.

It was a name Oikawa wore with pride, and even seemed to relish. The giggle that came through the mic scrunched his nose and proved your point as you smiled with him, feeling Iwaizumi’s lips curl up against your skin. His fingers were tracing light patterns on your stomach, tickling and making your stomach muscles twitch.

You couldn’t be sure, but it seemed like they were moving lower with every pass, until they brushed the waistband of your yoga pants. Craning your neck, you looked back at Iwaizumi, but he was wearing a placid expression, his eyes locked on Oikawa.

“What are you doing to our little princess, Hajime?” Oikawa asked when you giggled at Iwaizumi purposely tickling you. This time his fingers dipped under the waistband.

He kissed just under your ear before saying, “Nothing you wouldn’t do, Tooru. Not after that stunt in the locker room, anyway.”

You flushed from the tips of your ears down to your toes at that memory, but it ignited something else in you too. Suddenly the fingers playing at your hip weren’t playful or low enough and you bit your lip as you met Oikawa’s keen gaze.

“Oh, what would make you bring that up, Iwa-chan?” he asked, narrowing his eyes and smirking. They traveled further down, to the swell of your breasts, the lowest point he could see, and then flicked up to meet Iwaizumi’s eyes. “Are you doing something dirty?”

At his question, the fingers slipped beneath and found your clit, and the heat expanded. At the same time, he reached above your head and tilted the camera down to show Oikawa exactly what he was doing to you. Your pants were suddenly too uncomfortable, but with the phone in one hand and the other wrapped around Iwaizumi’s wrist, it wasn’t an option to pull them off.

If Iwaizumi and Oikawa would even let you.

“Is that what we’re doing tonight? Giving me a show?” Oikawa asked, watching the movement of Iwaizumi’s fingers under the black fabric. “You aren’t doing a very good job. I can’t see a thing.”

He feigned despair, pressing the back of his hand to his forehead. There was a faint flush to his cheeks and chest and his fingers twitched in the yellow light cast from above his bed. Knowing Oikawa, he was already rock hard, ready to give the two of you orders even from a thousand miles away.

Speaking of rock hard, you could feel the outline of Iwaizumi's hard cock grinding against your ass, pushing back into your own rocking hips. “I don’t think I have to listen to you tonight, Tooru.”

For a moment, you thought Oikawa was going to start pouting, but he surprised you. Rolling back onto his back, he panned the phone down, showing his boxers pushed down his thighs and his cock ready and hard, his hand coming into view and skimming his fingertips up the underside. “Give me a show, then.”

The fingers disappeared from your clit and you sighed, reaching down to pull your pants off, but they just as quickly wrapped around your wrist and a deep voice right in your ear commanded, “Don’t move.”

The phone was yanked from your hand and carefully set up on the nightstand, angled diagonally across the bed. Then Iwaizumi walked down to the foot of the bed and his fingers wrapped around your ankles, pulling you to the edge. With a laugh, you looked back to the phone and found yourself lying parallel to the phone and in full view of Oikawa.

While you stared into his wide eyes, Iwaizumi peeled your pants slowly down your legs, his fingers skimming over your thighs, your knees, your calves in their wake, leaving goosebumps behind. He adjusted you just slightly to the right and started kissing his way back up your legs, sinking his teeth into the tender inner flesh on your thighs and you gasped, slinging your legs over his shoulders.

Your moan mingled with Oikawa’s groan when Iwaizumi licked a stripe up your soaked slit, splitting your lips until his mouth covered your clit. You had just buried your fingers in his hair when his hands gripped your thighs and shoved them up to your shoulders, the movement dislodging your fingers and you instead threaded them through your own as he went to town, suckling and lapping at your clit like a man starved. Vibrations spread through your pussy when he groaned, his fingers tightening around your thighs as he ate you out.

You jerked in his hold when you heard Oikawa’s voice call out, distorted with pleasure, “You look so good, princess. Wish I was there helping him out, occupying that pretty mouth.”

When you looked up and caught sight of him, you lost the ability to breathe.

His cheeks were flushed and his hair a mess where he’d ran his fingers through it and tugged, trying to avoid touching his cock to torture himself. He’d failed and you could see his arm working up and down, too slow to be anything but teasing. When his eyes caught yours, he smirked and licked his lips before the angle changed and you realized that he was moving the camera down, showing off his slicked up cock, his fist wrapped tight around and pumping up and down at a steady pace. Precum rolled down from the head and you licked your lips as you thought about wrapping your lips around him, lapping and suckling until he came in your mouth.

The hot pleasure coiled in your stomach, ready to snap and your lips parted, your back arching while Oikawa stared you down. Your toes curled when Iwa dipped his tongue into you, wiggling and lapping at your walls and the dam broke, waves of pleasure washing through you, your hips bucking against Iwaizumi’s hold and he let your thighs go in favor for pulling you closer by the hips. You clenched your legs around his head as you rode out the last of your orgasm before pushing at his head.

“Haji, shit,” you pleaded and breathed a sigh of relief when he pulled away.

“How was that, Brattykawa? Enough of a show?” Iwaizumi asked, smirking at the man on the phone.

He was panting, his hips rising and falling as his arm worked in short jerks. The phone had fallen to the bed at just such an angle-- and Iwaizumi wouldn’t be surprised if he had done it on purpose-- that showed off his twitching cock, currently splattering cum all over his clenched abs.

The blissed out look on his face and your trembling legs locked around Iwaizumi’s hips made his own cock jump, watching the last bits of cum dribble out from between Oikawa’s fingers.

“I didn’t think you’d give up so easily, Tooru. I still haven’t cum yet,” Iwaizumi teased, settling his cock between the lips of your soaked pussy and rocking his hips. He enjoyed the way you trembled with every pass over your clit, staring up at him with glazed, pleading eyes. “What do you want, princess? Speak up, or Tooru won’t be able to hear you.”

As he said that, he pushed your shirt up to around your neck, exposing your breasts to his hungry gaze. Wrapping his lips around one nipple, he groaned when you threaded your fingers through his hair, tugging him closer and moaning out his name.

“*Hajime, I thought this was Tooru’s thing. I didn’t-- know you were a tease too,” you gasped, jerking your hips in time with the slide of his cock. You had made a mess all over it, your slick dripping down his shaft and balls and spreading all over your thighs, creating a wet slap that rang through the room.

He chuckled against your breast while an adamant “Hey,” came from the phone and switched, distracting you while he wrapped his hands around your thighs again. “No, you wouldn’t because Tooru is always teasing you. But he’s not here tonight and I don’t have to have mercy on you. Now tell me what you want.”

His movements stilled and he stood up straight, leaving your red and abused nipples free and pebbled.

“Haji, I--”

“Louder, princess,” he said, and took the base of his cock in his hand, slapping it against your pussy. He could hear Oikawa groan from the phone and when he looked up, his hand was wrapped around his cock, stroking loosely as it hardened again. “I’m sure Tooru wants to hear you beg me to fuck this pretty pussy. Right, Tooru?”

A thrill rippled through you at the dominating tone in his voice as he stared Oikawa down. In return, Oikawa gulped, licking his lips as he nodded.

“That’s right, princess. I wanna hear you scream as you cum around his cock. He’s gonna make you feel so good, isn’t he?” he asked you, but his eyes were only for Iwaizumi, who had resumed rolling his hips.

Hearing them say those things made your pussy clench in anticipation, the tension between the two men enough to block out anything else.

“Please,” you whispered, reaching out to Iwaizumi, who dropped your thigh to take your hand. “Haji, fuck me with your cock, please, I want you inside me.”

“No, no, princess,” he said, even as he slid the tip of his cock into your dripping hole. “Who do you want to fuck you tonight?”

Inching his way slowly inside was torture, but the way your lips parted and your back arched was worth going slowly for. Your cunt clenched and fluttered around him, your legs locked around his hips trying to pull him in faster as he groaned with the effort of holding back. He wanted to hear you say it, wanted Oikawa to hear you beg, knowing he got off to watching you get stuffed and stretched open by his fat cock.

“Daddy, daddy, please fuck me,” you babbled when he slowed to a stop, terrified that he was going to pull out if you didn’t ask him properly. That was something you really, really didn’t want. “Please don’t stop I need you, want you to stretch me out, fill me with your cock and cum. Daddy-- fuck.”

Iwaizumi had slammed the rest of the way inside you, hilting himself in your slick heat and pulled back out. With your head thrown back, you could see Oikawa had set his own pace to match Iwaizumi’s thrusts and you watched with an open mouth as his cock drooled all down his hand. His eyes flicked from your bouncing tits to Iwaizumi’s face, twisted with concentration as he fucked you, down to where his cock slid into your slick and spasming cunt.

“Tooru,” you moaned, licking your lips as you stared at his fist squeezing his cock for all it was worth.”

“I’m here, babygirl,” he moaned, forcing his eyes to your face. It was full of lust and love and bliss and he couldn’t help but smile at the pleading look in your eyes. “Tell me what you need. Fuck, tell daddy what you need.”

Your eyes flicked to Iwaizumi’s face for a moment and found him watching you with narrowed eyes as he raced towards the edge. His thumb flicked over your clit and you struggled to keep your eyes on him as the coil built again.

“Wanna suck your cock, Tooru. Wanna taste you,” you moaned, unable to tear your eyes away from the sight. Cum from his last orgasm still glistened on his stomach, joined by more and more that dripped from his cock. He was so close, you knew it by the way his abs clenched and his hips bucks, his eyes fluttering as he forced them to stay open, to watch you come undone all over Iwaizumi’s cock.

“It’s yours, princess,” Oikawa moaned, his breathing heavy and voice thick with his impending orgasm. “As soon as I get home, I’ll fuck your throat as long as you want, cum as many times as I can between those pretty lips. You want that, princess?”

Your hips jerked in Iwaizumi’s grasp as your vision whited out so hard that you missed him slam into you for the last time, unable to stand the way you squeezed his cock and forced him over the edge, filling you with his cum. His breath came out in puffs against your chest, where he had collapsed, sweaty and spent.

Your own chest rose and fell in uneven breaths, your heart thumping erratically against your ribs. Threading your fingers through his hair and pushing it off his forehead, you chuckled. “That was amazing, babe. Holy hell.”

He laughed, still very much out of breath and turned his head to look at the phone. You followed his gaze and found Oikawa’s face filling the screen.

Boneless and in need of cleaning up, Iwaizumi pulled out of you and stood, crawling over you to his side of the bed and pulling you into him. You snuggled down into his chest, pressing kisses to every inch of sweaty skin in your range, while he grabbed the phone and held it above his stomach.

“I owe you for that, Hajime. That was the best show I’ve ever seen. Might have to make this a constant thing whenever I go away,” Oikawa gasped, pushing his sweaty hair off his forehead. The angle of the camera was a little weird, and you realized he’d put it down to free his clean hand.

“We could probably work something out. If you’re okay with it, princess,” he said, looking down at you. You looked ready to fall asleep, but at your nickname you looked up at him and smiled, blinking tiredly.

“Hell yes,” you said, and both men burst into laughter at the fucked out tone of your voice.

Looking back to Oikawa, who wore a smirk, Iwaizumi said, “Guess we don’t have to ask her twice. You should get some sleep, Tooru. You have a big game tomorrow. Good luck.”

“Love you, Tooru. Good luck tomorrow,” you murmured, opening your eyes to look at him. He was so pretty with his cheeks flushed and his hair a mess, smiling that soft smile he only got after sex and he was so tired he couldn’t think straight.

He rolled onto his side and tucked his arm under his head, chocolate brown eyes tender and warm. “Love you too, princess. Sleep well, I’ll be home in a few days.”

You hummed and your eyes shut again, throwing your arm across Iwaizumi’s chest, curling your fingers over his heart. Iwaizumi rubbed his fingers up and down your arm, staring at Tooru and smiling.

“I love you, too, Tooru” he said, and flushed when Oikawa’s grin widened into a smile. For a moment, he thought he would make some joke about expressing his feelings, but he didn’t.

Instead he said, “I love you too, Haji. Sleep well. Kiss her for me.”

“Of course. Night.”

The screen went black as they both hit the disconnect button, and when he looked down at you, you were fast asleep, hair splayed over his shoulder and breathing even. Curling his fingers around the hand covering his heart, he pressed his lips to your hair one last time before flicking off the lamp. “Love you too, _____.”

⇥ masterlist

taglist: @lyovochkaa

#iwaizumi hajime x reader #oikawa tooru x reader #oikawa x reader #iwaizumi x reader #oikawa tooru x reader x iwaizumi hajime #haikyuu x reader #.camtime

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votederpycausemufins · 3 years

Text

The rescue commences. But it’s going to be harder than Tommy thought because the bots aren’t so keen on being rescued.

the tagged people i like! @petrichormeraki @helleborusangel

Xannes spoke Jrum’s name as a question and immediately all eyes were on him. Xannes tried to keep from cursing in front of the kid, but it was a little hard when he saw even more red. Did he just change his face to match the room, or did he just do that whenever. “Xannes? What are you doing here?”

“You know this guy?” The demon asked in a wary tone.

“Yes he does. As for the question, NPG found out about the situation with your disappearance and I offered to come looking for you.”

Jrum’s face instantly lit up and in a moment he was running over to hug the helsmit. Xannes almost accepted it too, since the kid probably had been terrified in an unfamiliar place. But just at the last second, he saw the red plants that coated Jrum’s body and he took a step again. “Sorry. Still not a hugger.”

Jrum pouted and crossed his arms, but didn’t actually seem too upset. “Well, you came at the best possible time! Is NPG going to show up too?”

“Unfortunately not. I don’t think he can get in and I haven’t figured out what’s causing it yet.”

“Aww… It would have been nice…”

“So, what’s going on here?”

“This is the Red Banquet.” The demon spoke, looking much less threatening now that he knew Xannes was a friend. “We’ve been planning this little party for a while and I’m sure other guests will be arriving shortly. You’re just a bit early.”

“Is that why the entrance was covered up?” Xannes asked, glancing behind himself for a moment, both to look at the entrance as well as from the feeling of being watched.

“Yes, I hope you didn’t hurt them too much.”

“Hurt… who?” Xannes asked nervously and suddenly he realized just exactly how off this all felt.

“The Egg of course! It’s the source of all the plants around us!”

Xannes glanced at Jrum. “Alright, why’s he got the things growing in him? I’d think that wouldn’t be good for his body.”

“I’m just fine! Better even! I can do things all on my own and don’t need any of Grum’s stupid help.”

That made Xannes realise that the other of the two bots was indeed missing. “Wait, where is he?”

“I don’t really know. I haven’t seen him in a while. He could be dead for all I care.”

The helsmit looked back at the people gathered around the table. This really did seem all too familiar. And that wasn’t a good thing. He remembered having NPG finally getting the turquoise infection out of his system so he could deal with the rest of the similarly infected helsmets of turquoise and magenta spores. “I’m guessing HEP is less of a problem here?”

Most of the people at the table looked confused, but of course Jrum wasn’t, and surprisingly, neither was the demon. “No! We crushed them into the ground, and if any of them wants to live, they’ll come here!”

Xannes choked in surprise. Okay, it looked like those plants were really getting to him. “Well, looks like there’s still a few kicking around.”

“Really? Who? Is it Grum?!”

“Nope. Sorry kid.” Xannes added enchantments to his sword as he pulled it out. “Guess I’m just following in my brother’s footsteps, huh.”

And then chaos broke out.

Tommy had no idea how different the SMP would be when he got back. He expected more of the same, people around making destructive chaos and probably new posters and creeper holes. But the red shit all over the place was different. Plus it didn’t look like anyone was really around.

Before moving anywhere, he pulled out the comm Grian had given him and sent him a message.

<NPC_GRIAN> Alright, made it in.

<NPC_GRIAN> Wait was this NPG’s

He waited, but a message didn’t come in right away, so Tommy put the comm away to start looking. He didn’t know what exactly the plants were, but enough crazy things had happened in this world, so he mainly just ignored them, not caring if he did touch them. One thing that did get his attention was a poster that the plants were bordering. It was inviting people, Tommy assumed anyone, to the Red Banquet. Whatever that was. At the very least that likely explained the lack of people.

Tommy continued walking, poking his head into just about every building to hopefully find someone, but there was still nothing. He was hoping for at least someone to be around to tell him what was going on, but it didn’t look like that was the case. “How the fuck does everyone go to the same fucking thing? And where the fuck is it?”

No answer came for Tommy, so he ended up going into his old home, though it looked like someone had been living there. Connor, if the signs were telling the truth. “Well, let’s see if any of my shit is still here.”

Tommy honestly couldn’t remember what stuff would have been there, but there were still some items that he thought would be good to have on him, just in case. As he was rummaging around, the door behind him opened, and Tommy turned around to see who it was. Tommy’s fight or flight response immediately activated when he was staring at the admin, who was surprisingly just staring back at him.

“D-Dream…”

“How the fuck did you get here before me?!”

“Bitch I’ve been gone for months, you had plenty of time to visit this place. That’s only going to be your fault.” Tommy retorted, forcing himself to have some confidence.

“It is possible a teleport was used if he was aware of your destination.” Another voice spoke and Tommy lit up for a second.

“Holy fuck, Grum! That was easier than I expected. Where’s Jrum?” Then he stopped when he finally saw Grum and the state he was in. In his anger, he pulled out his borrowed sword and pointed it at Dream. “What the fuck did you do?”

Before Dream or Grum could say anything, Grum suddenly turned around and drew a weapon, deflecting an attack from behind. “You done running yet?”

“How are you-”

“You! You goddamn bitch!”

“You’re supposed to be in prison!”

“What is going on?!”

Grum slashed at Theseus’ legs before answering. “The one currently attacking us is an alternate form of bzzt from a separate universe. The one we discovered is the one you are likely more familiar with.”

“Yeah green bitch! What are you going to do with two of us?”

Dream looked like he was about to attack, but then he was grabbed by Grum. “Commencing emergency escape.” And then the two of them disappeared.

“Fuck, now they’re gone.”

Theseus stepped into Tommy’s old house, holding his axe at the ready. “How did you get out?”

“Hey, you really want to kill me? Wouldn’t that end badly for you?” Tommy took a step back.

“Answer the fucking question!”

“Your Phil let me out when he realized you weren’t in the hels dimension anymore.”

Theseus spoke another curse under his breath. “Well, you better not get in the fucking way.”

Tommy crossed his arms. “Hey, I’m just after Grum and Jrum, and seeing as how he’s…” Tommy trailed off for a moment, remembering Grum and how he reminded Tommy of himself when he was in exile. “He’s got Grum, so as long as that’s the case, I’m after him too.”

“It’s a lost cause. That thing is better used for scrap metal. Though hopefully after I’ve gotten Dream back to hels.”

“Wait, why do you want that?” Tommy asked. Why would anyone actually want Dream around and not just kill him. “Didn’t you kill your version of him? Why get a replacement?”

“Because I wasn’t finished dealing with the first one.” Theseus answered, then put his axe away. “Let me do what I’m here to do, and maybe I’ll help with your little problem. Got it?” And before Tommy could answer, his hels version was gone.

Tommy wanted to follow, but first pulled out his comm to send an update and hope Grian had responded. He smiled when he saw that he had, but then confused when he saw there were other messages. He read them off, then sent some messages back.

<Grian> That’s good to hear. And yeah it’s his. He never used it so I ended up keeping it on me and never got it back to him.

[Eyes] X-1, Y-1, Z-1

[Eyes] X-2, Y-2, Z-2

[Eyes] X-3, Y-3, Z-3

<NPC_GRIAN> I got good, bad and unsure news

<NPC_GRIAN> Good, I found one of them

<NPC_GRIAN> Bad, something’s seriously wrong with him cause Dream did something

<NPC_GRIAN> weird, just got message from something/someone called Eyes giving me three sets of coordinates

<NPC_GRIAN> any way to use this thing to look at my coords?

Tommy stood there, waiting for a response. When one wasn’t coming in, he started fiddling with the comm to try and figure it out himself. Just as Grian got back to him, Tommy figured it out.

<Grian> Seriously wrong how?

<NPC_GRIAN> Looks damaged and isn’t showing much emotion. Also working with Dream? But the bitch tried convincing me he was my friend so could be the same sort of thing

<NPC_GRIAN> also figured out coords

Tommy switched back to the coordinate reader and started shifting around, trying to figure out which direction was which. It seemed like the first and second set of coordinates were about the same distance from where he currently was. Because of that, he started to head towards the first one listed. While he was walking, another message came in from Grian.

<Grian> That was fast. Anyway, what do the other messages look like?

<NPC_GRIAN> I started working on it when you didn’t get back to me immediately.

<NPC_GRIAN> looks like: [Eyes] coordinates

<NPC_GRIAN> doesn’t look like a player’s text, but also not sure what could message me, so that’s why I’m not sure.

Tommy groaned when a message didn’t come back within the next few seconds. What was Grian doing that was causing such a delay. Maybe it was just the way these comms worked? Once Grian got back to him, he could bring it up.

<Grian> Yeah, that looks like something else. And what do you mean not immediately?

<NPC_GRIAN> I’m guessing it’s something with these comms. It’s taking you ages to send a message back.

He had nearly reached the coordinates when Grian got back to him.

<Grian> Meanwhile I’m getting your messages all at once like they were pre-typed. That’s not a good sign.

<NPC_GRIAN> Well shit

Tommy stuffed the comm in his pocket and started running. He was close enough to tell that the coords were for the house that Tommy had never seen before, but recognized just the same due to it looking more like something out of Hermitcraft. He slammed the door open and started calling. “Jrum! Hey Jrum are you in here?!” There was no answer and Tommy checked the communicator again. He was just about at the right coordinates, but the Y value was a little off. That probably meant that the location needed to be exact, and Tommy looked down at the comm to make sure he lined up exactly. Because of that, he didn’t realize he was about to walk into something until he crashed into the charger and fell to the ground.

“Oh that’s a big charger. Why’s it so huge?” He looked between the coordinates again. “Oh. I’m guessing something’s in there.” Tommy broke into the charger’s casing and poked his head inside. For the most part, it was just a jumble of redstone, but in one corner was a torch lighting up a barrel. The teen pulled himself inside just enough to open the barrel and pull the contents out, that being a single unsigned book.

Tommy looked around before going over to a table and sitting down to read the book. He sent another quick update to Grian before opening it up and reading. It seemed to be a lot of notes written down, filling the pages. None of them were complete sentences, and the ink stains made Tommy imagine a number of them were written in a rush.

Zoning out = DSMP console program. QHHBP program active? What's KGADOOHM and HJTHJ? Connected to K⊣OOᒲR? There’s a vault. It’s for favorite things. Items and animals. I couldn’t write right. I think I zoned out there and fell. Posters of 2 music discs. Coords: X-3, Y-3, Z-3.

Tommy looked at his comm and noticed the third set of coordinates matched the ones written down in the book. Obviously he would need to go there. But Tommy continued reading, messaging Grian what was written down.

Woke up in pain. Programs were running too much. Don’t know why. Managed to unplug and drain battery. 873.5% of what. It was connected to ⎓⚍リ↸||?

Jrum officially moved out. He likes the red plants. I don’t. They’re not natural. Admin keeps visiting. Asking questions. Not sure how to feel. ⎓⚍リ↸|| visits too. Those are nicer.

Tommy flipped through more pages. More questions and confusion. Some did end up as full writing while others were just more quickly written words to convey an idea. With the mention of Jrum, this was obviously something Grum wrote, but there was almost too much here. Then Tommy stopped and read another entry.

Jrum officially got adopted. I don’t understand how I feel. It hurts but I’m also happy. He’ll stay away, but it just reminds me how hurt he is. How scared I feel. I miss my dads. Why didn’t they find us?

Jrum got adopted? Grum wondering why Grian and Mumbo hadn’t come for them and missing them? That wasn’t good. And based on the messaging problem, Tommy had an idea why.

<NPC_GRIAN> Another page implies they’ve been here a really long time. Explains why the server’s so different and how Dream was able to get Grum to that point.

<NPC_GRIAN> also you’re probably going to have to fight for custody or something because someone adopted Jrum.

Since Tommy knew he wasn’t going to get an answer back soon, he went back to reading. The messages seemed to be shorter and shorter, the handwriting becoming more messy. Tommy assumed that was because of them being over time and Dream breaking the bot down more and more. Then he got to a list which he immediately typed up and sent to Grian.

<NPC_GRIAN> Found a list of names or something. Obviously seems important.

<NPC_GRIAN> List: Grum, Dream, Gorgeous, Poultry Man, Eyes, Console

<NPC_GRIAN> I don’t know if it’s a code or just names or what. But since I got messages from ‘Eyes’...

Tommy closed the book and put it in his inventory. There was still more to read, but he already got information from it and was losing time. For now he needed to go to the second coordinates.

Xannes just stood, not even reacting when the first person attacked him. Their axe blade was aimed right for his chest, no armor there to stop it, but the weapon bounced off, causing no damage. Someone else attacking had the same reaction. “Sorry, but doesn’t look like your weapons are really working right now. Too bad since I’m sure mine will work fine.” And he swung his sword, hitting the next person who attempted to fight him. They were set on fire due to the fire aspect as well and being knocked away, slamming into the wall from a high level knockback.

From there, Xannes continued to attack, even getting a little cocky about the fact he couldn’t get hit in his current player-mode. Because of that, he was easily caught off guard when the demon grabbed him, forgetting he was only invulnerable to damage. While it didn’t hurt when he would have otherwise been crushed to death, now he couldn’t move at all.

His best shot was to try and get the demon with his sword. Demons were normally connected to the nether and his aetherite sword being an opposite of netherite tended to have a worse effect on them. But before he could get far with that plan, the weapon was taken away, and since he wasn’t in hels, his hacking capabilities couldn’t get him a new one. Potentially he could summon it back to himself, but that would be a little more complicated to use and could cost extra seconds he wouldn’t have.

“Why did you come if you’re just here to hurt me?” Jrum asked, clinging to the cat hybrid.

“I was trying to find you and your brother to take you home.” Xannes grunted, struggling as much as he could to get out. “I didn’t realize you’d be mind controlled or whatever this is.”

“I-I’m not being- and why would you want to take me home?”

“Uh, because your family is worried about you and helping out is the ‘good thing’ to do and all that bullshit.”

Jrum crossed his arms. “I don’t want to go. They just left me here, and… and now I have a new family!”

Xannes was about to speak up, but then he was squeezed a bit harder for a moment, pushing the air out of his lungs for a moment. “And we’re not letting anything happen to him, so if you’re planning on hurting him, you can think again!”

Xannes was wheezing slightly, trying to breathe. Suffocation like this was weird. Technically it couldn’t kill him or cause actual damage, but it still managed to cause a type of ghost pain. It was getting to the point where he was worried about managing to pass out, when there were voices. They sounded distant and unfamiliar, but getting closer. For a moment, Xannes thought he was imagining it, but the fact that the people around him were reacting to it too made him realize it was real.

People started appearing from the entrance, all of them wearing what Xannes was pretty sure looked like hazmat suits of some kind, but he couldn’t be absolutely sure from this distance and his current situation. What he could be sure of was the yell that came, and the chorus of the same response from Jrum’s new ‘family’.

“Jrum!”

“Tommy?!”

Tommy was almost to the second set of coordinates when he saw something different. It was a person. Well, not just a person, but a number of people. “Hey! Heeeey!” He yelled out to get their attention and most everyone looked over, showing a mix of emotions from surprise, to fear, to acceptance.

“Is that Tommy?”

“No, Tommy’s dead. Dream said so.”

“Well he lied bitch!” Tommy said, finally reaching the group. “What the fuck is going on around here?”

“I think you need to give answers first.”

Tommy groaned a little. “Okay fine, I ran off, started living somewhere else. Tubbo thought I was dead and pulled me back. I didn’t want to come back and brought Tubbo with me, and then Phil and Techno followed. I’m back ‘cause some kids ended up here on accident and I’m after them.”

“Are you talking about Grum and Jrum?” Tommy was pretty sure that was Puffy.

“Yeah! Any clue where Jrum is, cause I’ve seen Grum.” Tommy watched as a few people glanced at each other. “Oh fuck, what’s wrong?”

“First, you need to put a hazmat suit on.” Someone stepped forward, and Tommy was surprised to see it was Sam, looking a little odd without his creeper mask on, unable to wear it with the rest of the suit.

“Can I ask why?”

“See all the red plants? Bad found something underground and started worshipping it. It’s started corrupting people, and one of them is your friend.”

“Shit.” Tommy said, grabbing the offered suit and putting it on. “You said Bad and Jrum, who else is down there.”

“Ant, Punz, Purpled, Ponk, Fundy, also someone named Hannah, you wouldn’t know her. She joined while you were presumed dead. We’re still unsure about Sapnap since he’s been trying to stay out of it, but Bad was really trying to pull him in.”

Tommy nodded, then realized that if Bad was the person in charge and tried pulling Sapnap in, then he also likely tried with- “And what about Skeppy?”

“He… he was involved.”

“I’m noticing the use of that in the past word shit. That mean he got out or…?”

“Last week Bad ended up getting him killed.”

Tommy’s eyes widened. If this thing could get Bad to kill Skeppy, it was really dangerous. “Alright, then let’s get in there.”

“Wait, you need a few things.” Sam started handing him items as other people in the group started moving. “These splash bottles are filled with holy water from church prime. They seem to help against these plants. Flint and steel to burn anything you're able to break. It needs to be fully burned or it can heal itself. Also don’t actively try to break anything except the source which looks like a giant egg. Trying to break anything is like it has a thorns enchantment. You get hurt back if you try to break it. Same thing happens with the main source, but it hurts you more, so you’ll need the extra health.”

Tommy took all the offered items, then followed the group down. He kept his sword at the ready, even testing it with one of the vines on the walls. Ow, yeah, that did hurt. So it didn’t look like the different material would help anything. Tommy was mostly willing to help, but he also knew that trying to get Jrum out of there would probably be a better priority since that’s what he was there for anyway and getting rid of any member of this evil group or whatever it was would help.

The moment he got down into the main cavern, he called out Jrum’s name. “Jrum!” He then watched as the people who had already been down there turned to look at him, surprised to see him alive.

“Hey! Theseus copy! Say yes!” Someone spoke up, and Tommy vaguely remembered the voice, but couldn’t place it. He had no idea what it would do, so he ended up saying yes anyway. Immediately, he regretted it as the sword in his hand disappeared. But that was followed by a yell from Bad, and Tommy saw him let go a person who was now holding the pink sword. “Thanks.”

Tommy caught the sword as it was thrown back to him, the other person he now recognized as Xannes slamming himself into Ponk and taking another aetherite sword from him. “Now what are you doing here?”

“Got Grian to send me in as back up. I see you found Jrum.”

“Yeah, the little shit has the weird vines growing on him and apparently has decided that these idiots are his family now. Bit of a downgrade if you ask me.”

Tommy slashed at someone who tried to attack Xannes from behind. “Yeah, found a book that I’m pretty sure is Grum’s. Apparently they’ve been here a long while and Jrum ended up getting adopted.”

“Hasn’t it been just a few days?”

“Yeah, so obviously there’s a big issue. Any chance you can teleport us out of here if I grab Jrum?”

“It would be easy if I had some coordinates.” Xannes knocked someone to the ground and then stole their axe before throwing it at someone else to hit them with it.

“Yeah, I’ve got some. X-3, Y-3, Z-3. That work for you?”

“Sure they’re safe?”

Tommy shook his head. “Not at all, but they were sent to me by someone, and the previous two ended up helping.”

“Alright, but if you get us trapped, I’m getting myself out and leaving you behind.”

“Yeah whatever, I already broke out of one prison. I’m sure there’s nothing as tough as that one.”

“Oh please tell me you didn’t.”

“Alright, I won’t.”

“Goddammit. Just grab Jrum and bring him here..” the helsmit groaned, attacking another corrupted SMP member and giving Tommy an opening.

Tommy ran towards the bot. He didn’t have as good of a sword as Xannes, so getting through everyone was a bit tougher, but he finally made it, grabbing the bot’s arm. Jrum immediately turned to look at him. For a moment, Tommy thought it would be easy, until the kid pulled out an axe and something Tommy recognized flashed on screen. “Oh shit shit shit! Jrum Jrum Jrum Jrum no!” He barely dodged the swing of an axe by jumping back. Sure, Jrum was a kid, but he was a robot kid. That sometimes took combat lessons from False. And he could remember them perfectly. And that meant the kid could potentially be as dangerous as, dare he say it, Techno.

He tried to keep dodging, moving back so Jrum would have to follow, but hits were landing, and the hazmat suit wasn’t the best armor to wear. He hazarded a glance behind him to check how close they were to Xannes, but he got an axe to his gut and fell to the floor, the hazmat suit now torn. “Xannes! A little help!”

The admin rushed over, hitting Jrum back with a fist to avoid using knockback but also keep him from killing Tommy. Then he hit a button on his helmet and the three of them were teleported away. The sudden change of scenery made Jrum stop attacking at the very least, now focused on figuring out where they were.

“Where did you take us?! Where are we?! Take me back!”

“No fucking clue.” Tommy answered, looking around before his eyes widened. “Wait, are those…?” He jumped up, seeing the posters of his discs and the two of them each on their own pedestal on a platform of gold blocks on either side of a nether portal. “My discs!”

He started running towards them, but was shot from the side. The power from the punch bow pushed Tommy with enough force, he fell back down. He winced and held the wound before looking to see who had shot him. “Dream…”

“How did you find this place?”

“That would be my doing.” Xannes raised his hand for a moment to get the admin’s attention before noticing the second robot. “And I see you have Grum with you.”

“Grum?!” Jrum looked over, asking the question angrily. “What, you couldn’t be dead?!”

Grum took a slight step to the side to be seen better. “And I see you are with these two. I believed you to have finally given up, but yet you still cling to meaningless hope.”

“No! I have a new family! I don’t care about these two.”

“And yet here you are, with both of them and coming after me. I thought I made it quite clear that I have no want to be around something as useless as you.”

“I’M NOT USELESS!” Jrum shouted before running at Grum, fast enough that Dream reacted by simply moving out of the way, pulling out a shield in an attempt to block. Jrum attempted to attack with his axe, but the blade just clashed against another axe in Grum’s hand. Jrum attempted to attack again, but it was also blocked by a mirrored move. The two robots just started to fight each other, neither managing to hit the other as they perfectly matched each other’s moves.

Dream attempted to stop the fight with an attack of his own, but he ran into an invisible wall. Feeling around, he was surrounded by the same problem. “Barrier blocks. Sorry, but not something you can escape from. You’ve got bedrock right below you and I know you decided using a console was the best option for whatever reason, so you don’t have any escape.”

“Alright, now let’s break the bots up.” Tommy said, walking towards them, switching his broken hazmat suit for armor.

“Where’d you get all that gear?”

“Sto- uhhh borrowed it from NPG. It was the only thing I had access to and didn’t want to have absolutely nothing. Didn’t get a chance to replace it cause I got here too quickly.” Tommy explained before getting between the bots. “Alright you two, break it- ow! Stop hitting me! You’re gonna kill me!”

Xannes sighed and pulled Tommy out from the battle. “That was probably the worst idea.”

“It was at least something. So unless you want to suggest something, it’s the best we got.”

“Here’s an idea. You give Dream to me.”

Tommy and Xannes turned to see Theseus coming out of the nether portal. “After that, well, don’t get in my way anymore and maybe I’ll let you live.”

#hermit!tommy au #hermit!tommy #tommyinnit #grian #watcher!grian #grian xelqua #avian!Grian #dreamwastaken #grumbot #hels!tommy #evil xisuma #jrumbot #the blood vines #still not a fan of how dream's persona eminates someone... problematic

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allthings-chaos · 3 years

Text

A Former Agent

Knight Rider x Reader

Desc: Reader is a former agent that worked alongside Mike, Sarah, Billy, and Zoe. Reader was also very close with KITT. They are visited by Mike and KITT after KITT breaks down close by.

——

It was a sunny afternoon, and you were relaxing on your front porch when you received a call from a familiar number, which you answered immediately. “Hello?”

“Hi- Uh- I have a problem.” It was Mike.

“You always have a problem. What is it this time?”

“KITT’s broke down on the side of the road, he says he can’t go over five miles an hour?” Mike sounded confused.

“If you’re not too far, just come here and I’ll take a look.” You responded, while getting up out of your rocking chair and heading out to your workshop.

“We’ll be there in.. an hour then?”

“Don’t be late.” You told them, shortly before hanging up. Once you arrived into the workshop, you opened the garage door, so you could move a few cars out of the way to make room for KITT.

That only took about fifteen minutes, so you then went back to your front porch that you had been sitting on, to continue to watch the clouds, as well as the few cars going by on the highway a ways away. You were glad that your small farm was located on a dead end, you never had to worry about traffic.

Eventually you heard the sound of a car coming closer, but decided not to get up until they’d parked in your driveway. You soon headed over to the two, directing them into the workshop space.

“So this is what you’re up to these days? Running a farm?” Mike asked after getting out of the car.

“You could say that, I suppose.” You shrugged, but then faced KITT. “KITT, run a self diagnostic, and send the results to my computer, please.”

“Running a self diagnostic now.” KITT simply stated.

“Got any booze?” Mike then asked you, as he sat in a random chair that was by a few of the computers.

“In the mini fridge,” You rolled your eyes, gesturing to the fridge as you looked at your computer after KITT informed you that his self diagnostic was complete. “There’s nothing wrong-.”

“What do you mean there’s nothing wrong?” Mike was clueless, as he popped open a beer. “He can’t go over five miles an hour!”

“Someone was playing hookie so they could visit.” You laughed, “Or was this a combined effort?”

“Michael was not part of this, I simply missed my favorite mechanic.” KITT stated, to which you smiled.

“Aww, how sweet of you.”

“KITT, you got a crush or something?” Mike questioned, sitting on the same chair again with his beer.

“I am not capable of such feelings.” KITT told Mike, acting so very innocent.

“That’s some bullshit right there,” Laughing again, you went over to grab some supplies to do something else. “Since you decided to grace me with your presence, I’ll give you a full detail.”

“That is much appreciated. Michael contaminated my steering wheel with ketchup.”

“I’m sorry you have to deal with the idiot,” You sighed dramatically, going back over to the car and beginning the detail- starting with the interior. “You know, next time you don’t have to play hookie just to visit.”

“Yeah, and have Torres on our asses about not returning ASAP.” Mike rolled his eyes.

“Well, to be fair, you do go to bars right after a mission sometimes.” You shrugged, cringing at the ketchup on the steering wheel. “So gross.”

“You know, you really should come back to work with us. KITT’s depressed without you.” Mike responded, before he continued. “He’s so silent.”

“Or you can visit more often.” You sighed, “I quit for a reason. I’m happy with my life now.”

“Any guys in your life yet then?”

Rolling your eyes, you shook your head. “I only have time for cars and my farm.”

“It would be nice if you decided to return.” KITT suddenly spoke up as well.

“Are you trying to guilt trip me?” You asked, almost laughing. Moments with KITT were unforgettable for you. “Maybe I’ll visit more often.”

“KITT needs a human type form, then he can take you on a date.” Mike commented again.

“An Android form is not necessary.” KITT informed Mike.

“There is such a thing as drive in movies, you know.” You added, though that was a mistake as Mike smirked.

“So you two are crushing on eachother! Ha! I knew it.” Mike began to laugh.

“We didn’t say that, Mike. I merely suggested that an Android form is unnecessary for KITT.” You sighed, shaking your head. “The two of you are welcome to stay here tonight if you’d like, but Mike, you’re sleeping in the barn.”

“Good, I don’t want to hear you two tonight anyways.”

Saying nothing in response, you just went back to detailing the interior, soon moving to the exterior- making sure to spray Mike with the water, causing him to scream like a little girl and run. “What a child.”

Once you were done with the detail entirely, you went back to your house, deciding to get something to eat. Mike was already inside by then, snacking on some chips he’d found. You simply made a sandwich, before going back out to the front porch to continue on watching clouds.

Well, you watched the clouds float by until KITT drove through the lawn and right in front of the porch. “I spoke with Mr. Torres.”

Ignoring the fact that he has just driven on your precious lawn, you raised a brow. “Oh yeah? What about?”

“I requested a job for you.” KITT informed you, before he continued. “A weekly detail.”

You couldn’t help but laugh at that, “You’re serious?”

“I am.”

“I’ll think about it,” You responded with a shrug, “If it’s just a one time a week thing, maybe I’ll do it.”

“I would appreciate the visits.” You could have sworn that KITT almost sounded sad..

“I know you would,” You sighed, shaking your head. “Why don’t we watch a movie together tonight like we used to?”

“Michael will make fun of you, I do not suppose you want that.”

“I don’t, but I can handle it.” Finishing your sandwich, you set the plate down on a table, before Mike walked out to join you on the porch.

“Why is he on your lawn?” Mike raised a brow, sitting by you with his chips and beer.

“Because he wanted to be near us.” You responded, soon deciding to go sit in the grass by KITT.

“Make him a human-ish form!” Mike told you again, grinning. “He’d love it.”

“If I had the means to do it I would,” You sighed, “But unfortunately I don’t have that, and I don’t have permission to alter any coding either.”

“We really could use your help-“ Mike repeated, though it was beginning to sound like he’d been put up to asking repeatedly.

“And why is that?” You asked, looking up to him from your spot, as you leaned against KITT’s wheel. You didn’t really plan on going back, but you did miss KITT- and seeing him more often would be rather enjoyable.

“Well, we need another field operative- and a mechanic, some quit.” Mike responded, before continuing. “You were KITT’s mechanic before, and that would be pretty useful in the field, you know.”

“Fine.” You sighed, picking a flower from the grass. “But Torres better pay me double.”

“You got paid?”

“You don’t?” That was hilarious to you, though he most likely was paid- he just didn’t know how to access his bank account. Your conversation continued for awhile until Mike claimed he was too tired, so he went to sleep, while you hopped into KITT’s passenger seat.

“What movie would you like to watch?” KITT questioned after the door was closed.

“I’ll let you pick.” You shrugged, covering yourself up with a blanket after KITT had leaned the seat back. An old western movie soon came up on the hologram screen, and you smiled, watching it for quite awhile, before you eventually fell asleep without even realizing it.

#knight rider 2008 #knight rider #kitt2008 #kitt #michael knight

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wanderingchocolateeclair · 3 years

Text

When it rains - an Edgejeanist backstory

Ao3 link

As I have mentioned before I wanted to do a drawing for this eventually but it would take a lot of effort and I don’t have that in me right now so I’m gonna share it with you in the form of a rather long jumble of words instead :D it might be too long to read on tumblr because it kept on crashing the app when I worked on it so please feel free to read it over on ao3!

I wasn’t really happy with the drawing I did for the injury prompt so I’m posting this to make up for it lmao

If you have not read my Edgeshot backstory (well the summary that I did), I do recommend it because it may give some context as to what they’re talking about!

This was originally meant to be happy but it turned out kinda angsty (unsurprisingly)...but then I managed to make it not as angsty?? Anyway ->

Warning: a few times they talk about death, mentions of injury, self-doubt and generally quite sad stuff.

Also, it turned out incredibly long so imma stuff it all under the cut for those of you who don’t wanna read it :)

Hakamata Tsunagu wasn’t one to usually complain when sent on a mission, however on this particular stormy evening he really didn’t fancy the idea of being caught up in a case that wasn’t in his own area, simply because he was “passing by” trying to go home. But, he understood that this guy was quite the hassle and it would probably be best to sort it out as soon as possible. When he arrived to the area he could see that there were already many other heroes on the scene, including one of the higher ranking heroes - Edgeshot. They had met before and had worked together on various cases due to the two of them being known for rather rapidly climbing up the ranks, not to mention that their ranks were neighbouring and often would over take one another. So they knew each other, to some extent. He walked over to where the ninja hero was standing to ask him about the details of the villain they were going against.

“Fire-type quirk, troublesome. Had many sidekicks aiding him in an armed robbery. We’ve managed to apprehend most of the smaller accomplices, however this guy’s a pain, so I was told to wait for you to arrive in order to end this quickly.” The fiber hero hadn’t even said a word and had already gotten his answer.

“I see. I guess we should probably get to it then, as he seems to have his eye on escape.” Jeanist swiftly responded as he went on to restrict the villain’s clothes to prevent him from moving any further. Luckily, the area had been cleared out and the other villains had been carted away by the other heroes that were in the scene, so the only ones left in the area were the two of them, and this maniac.

The air around the two pros started to heat up and before they could act, flames burst from the open air around them causing them both to flinch and Jeanist to lose his focus. The villain started to sprint away from the scene but Edgeshot was one step ahead of him. The hero had rushed over and the two had started to engage in a fight, and the villain had no problem with using his quirk to aid in this. Jeanist tried to drag the villain back to the open space using the denim threads of his own clothing and had managed to grab hold of him, however, the two were unaware of what the man was carrying. He was taken back when a cold, sharp object came flying towards him, cutting through the high collar of his hero costume and through the skin of his ear and cheek - causing him to curse quite audibly.

“Watch it!” The silver haired hero hissed as he took another swing at the walking flamethrower, now also knife-thrower apparently, in front of him.

“My apologies,” mumbled the lanky blond as he regained his posture once more and continued to restrain the armed robber.

The other hero hesitated for a moment. “Ah- wait no, sorry, I meant uh- I meant the other guy, not you sorry.. you just got a knife thrown at you why would I yell at you?” They hadn’t properly spoken before so Shinya really didn’t want to give him the wrong impression of himself, especially since it was someone he kind of admired and...uh well...yeah. The two shared a rather awkward apologetic glance as they tried to come up with something to say but were rather rudely interrupted when-

“Oh for THE LOVE OF-” the villain angrily snapped around, “YOU TWO ARE REALLY DOIN’ MY HEAD IN! WOULD’YA GIVE IT A REST? OR AT LEAST JUST. SHUT. UP.” The heroes barely had time to react when the villain set his whole body and the air around it on fire. The flames engulfed the two who were previously fighting each other and briskly travelled along the threads that were restricting the man from escaping, and towards a startled Jeanist. The fire had reached the fiber heroes arm at this point and was obviously going to spread further if it weren’t for him removing that part of his sleeve, only shortly after the ninja hero had speedily shot forwards and cut through the fiber that connected Jeanist and the villain, his own arm very much ablaze. However, he didn’t look too concerned for his own injury as he eyed the taller man’s scorched arm.

The two heroes were now starting to get rather tired. Not because they were weak, or this guy strong, but just because they wanted to go home. They’d really had enough at this point and really wanted to just end this before the weather got any worse, but this stupid lunatic just wouldn’t give in! Maybe it was the fact that they had never really fought alongside each other before, so were holding back the more powerful, more dangerous side of their quirks - in case a mistake would be made that could injure the other. That was probably why it took so long.

After many more painfully long minutes, they had managed to wear down the robber enough to get close enough to knock him out. Tying him up, the two heroes handed the unconscious villain over to the police that had just arrived to help clear up the scene of any passer-by’s. At this point, it was the late evening and already rather dark and gloomy, the sky let out a large growl as if to warn that it would only get worse...and well, it’s point was proven as it started to rain.

The blond hero sighed and glanced up at the sky in dismay, realising that all that paperwork wasn’t going to get done by itself, and grumbling at the fact that he still had to get back home - which was going to be a real pain in this weather. He wasn’t a huge fan of the rain, especially with that denim hero costume of his, but he decided to ignore all of that and started making his way towards the train station, hoping to get home before the weather becomes too bad. Edgeshot noticed the other hero’s intent to go home and looked back up at the sky. No chance. That weather was way worse than Jeanist thought it was and he knew that by the time the other man reached the train station, there would be an unbelievable length of time before he would be able to get to where he wanted to go - not to mention how busy it would be. Taking a moment to think things through, he decided to chase after the lanky hero and called out to him, suggesting a better idea.

“I wouldn’t take the train right now if I were you,” Shinya advised the tall figure in front of him.

Tsunagu was confused, he wanted to get home and that was currently his only means of transport. “Why? What’s wrong? Please tell me there’s not another villain to deal with...” he murmured. Oh he really hoped that wasn’t the case, because there’s no way he could fight in this storm - especially with all these new burns, they may have been small but wow they hurt like hell! He looked down at the shorter man in front of him, weary of the answer he may receive but felt an odd sense of relief when he saw him let out a light chuckle. Or was it cough? Maybe a sigh? How would he know - that man was as mysterious as they get!

“Ah no, that’s not it.” Shinya couldn’t help but feel amused by Tsunagu’s response. The rain was soaking into his costume and was making it a little harder to breathe through his mask, so he tried his best not to laugh. “It’s just that this storm isn’t going to be easing anytime soon, and I feel that it’s only going to get worse - there’s no chance that transport will be easy, especially not for a hero in such a state as yourself.”

“Oh...I hadn’t thought of that,” Tsunagu replied, “do you...have any suggestions as to what I should do instead?” He understood what the other was saying, he had quite a few burns and a large gash across the side of his face - there’s no way that people wouldn’t notice that - but he really did want to get out of this miserable rain. So where could he possibly go, if not straight home?

“Yes, actually, that’s what I was wanting to talk to you about.” Shinya shifted his weight from one foot to the other, unsure as to how he should phrase his next question. “Um...well...my...my house- I mean, do you want to stay at my place? Until the storm blows over-” he stopped himself mid-sentence. That did not come out the way he heard it in his head, and why did he panic?

“Pardon?”

“Sorry, I-” Oh. Right. He probably didn’t understand that rushed mumble of his. Thank god, Shinya could have another go at mending his failed attempt at a suggestion. “Ah...my house isn’t far from here, it doesn’t take that long to walk there. And, well, I just wanted to suggest that you come with me. Those injuries could do with tending to, and with this storm getting worse, I just thought that it might be of help to you to stay at mine until the storm passes. Only if you’d be willing of course- It’s simply a suggestion I thought might be easier than you staying in this rain.”

“Oh. I see. That’s...thoughtful...I- are you sure?” Tsunagu was taken aback, but was definitely not opposed to the idea of getting out of the rain.

“Yes, of course. If you are okay with accompanying me?”

“Really?”

“Yes!”

“...thank you”

Shinya glanced up at the taller figure in front of him and smiled. Not that you could really tell.

They both decided it would be best to stay somewhere warm, get patched up, and wait for the weather to relax. So, off they went, away from the scene that had just been up in flames - now basically back to normal - and toward wherever this mysterious little ninja’s home was.

————————————————————

After a while of walking through heavy rain, dodging leaves as they zoomed past on the wind of the winding path, and silently accompanying each other with minimal words between them, they finally reached Shinya’s house. Not in the middle of nowhere, but also not near any busy city noise. It was peaceful, well, as peaceful as it could be in a raging storm.

Shinya fumbled at the door handle with numb fingers, as he attempted to unlock it as quickly as possible. The door opened with a small click and was gently pushed open. He gestured for the taller man to enter and closed the door after them, relieving them from the cold wind. As soon as they were both inside, they shared a long sigh of relief - ahhh....warmth...

“Sorry, it isn’t much,” Shinya said as he set down his bags and rain soaked hero gear, “I’m the only one that lives here, so I never really thought about how small it was. But now that someone else is here with me...”

“Haha it’s fine! Lovely, even, I think it’s quite sweet.” Tsunagu chuckled, placing his heavy and rather soggy denim coat gently to the side. He’d always liked the more traditional style houses, they had this comforting feeling to them that he couldn’t quite describe. “How long have you had this place?”

Shinya smiled and led Tsunagu towards the living room, they could do with a sit down after all that walking. “It was my Gran’s, well, she wasn’t really my Gran but that’s what we called her. She took us in and looked after us - my sister and I - and after she died we kept this place. Eventually, my sister moved out to be nearer the main city, but I thought it best to stay. I’m comfortable here, you know what I mean?”

“Of course,” Tsunagu nodded, “I think it’s wonderful.”

“Thanks...”

Shinya looked up, watching as droplets of water dripped from the other’s droopy fringe, his own hair now clinging to the side of his face. They both still had their faces masked and breathing through damp fabric probably wouldn’t be very good for their health. As Shinya noticed this, he let out a startled noise that took Tsunagu by surprise.

“AH!”

“What? What happened? Is something wrong?”

“No, I just realised, we’re still stuck in our costumes. They’re soaked! It’s probably best if we get cleaned up before anything else...” Shinya exclaimed.

“Oh, right.” Tsunagu replied quietly. He’d actually forgotten about the rain, which was weird because normally he’d be grumbling about it louder than the storm itself!

“There’s a spare bathroom downstairs, just to the left of the kitchen. It’s quite small but works just as well.” Shinya handed Tsunagu a towel and some spare clothes, looking a little hesitant as he did so. “I had some spare clothes lying around, though I’m sorry they probably won’t fit you very well...you’re very tall compared to me...” Shinya muttered sheepishly.

Tsunagu chuckled at the shorter man’s rather obvious remark and folded the fabric that was now in his own hands. “That’s very kind of you, thank you. It’s okay, I’m sure I’ll be able to adjust it to fit well enough.”

“Oh, of course, that’s- you can do that can’t you...I kinda forgot about that.” Shinya felt even more embarrassed from that, but managed to brush it off as he looked back up at the rather amused figure in front of him. “Well anyway, I’ll be cleaning myself up upstairs and preparing the things we need to tidy up those troublesome injuries of yours-”

“And yours I hope.” Tsunagu briefly interrupted.

“O-of course,” Shinya stuttered a reply. He’d actually somehow forgotten about his own injuries, too caught up in the company of another for once. “Well, if you should need anything, please just call me, I’ll be down as soon as I’m finished- oh and don’t feel the need to rush, take as long as you need.”

“Thank you.”

Tsunagu watched as the other left the room before making his way towards the bathroom. It was quite a small room. He made sure the door was securely locked before peeling away his sodden hero costume, piece by piece.

Looking at his reflection in the mirror, he noticed how deep of a cut it was that ran across his left cheek and over his ear. The rain had washed away most of the blood but it was still quite the nasty injury. He grimaced. ‘That’s gonna leave a bit of a scar...’ he thought to himself. Oh well, just another one to add to his growing collection of them. Although, he suddenly realised something. He’d have to show his face. And what about Shinya? Didn’t he always cover his face as well? Would they really be able to trust each other enough to show their faces to one another - even though they barely knew each other?

He felt himself freeze as he thought about it. They were both known for masking their faces, but the idea of showing his face had always made him feel uneasy. Little did he know that about five minutes prior, Shinya had the same nerve-wracking revelation and was feeling just as conflicted as he was. ‘Stop it, dammit,’ Tsunagu frowned, ‘he’s been so kind and nice to you, I doubt there’s anything to worry about...’

He shook his head and brushed these worries aside before stepping into the running shower. Oh wow, that felt nice. The water flowed over his shuddering body and embraced him in a warm blanket of comfort. Though, it did sting a bit when it seeped into the crevices of the gash on his face, and over the burns on his arms. However, he didn’t mind. He was used to these kinds of small pains and, though he’d be ashamed to admit it, he found it oddly comforting.

At the same time, Shinya was preparing a first aid kit, disinfectant and some warm damp cloths (he, luckily, knew what he was doing. Even if I don’t lol). He’d already managed to clean himself up and had changed into some older, plain clothes - so fast, but as expected from someone as stealthy as himself! Humming quietly to himself, he listened as the sky let out another loud grumble. “Why are you so angry today!?” He chuckled at the noise the raging storm made as he tidied up, “you’re doing this on purpose aren’t you! You always seem to pick ever so specific times to conjur up a storm...is it because I seemed lonely? You want me to make a friend or something?”

The sky growled again and Shinya took that as his response. He’d always found himself talking to the nature around him when he was alone, it had just become a habit of his - he found comfort and company from doing so...and it always seemed to have a way of replying. He was a bit anxious at the thought of showing his face to another, but had managed to push away his concerns as best he can. ‘What else is there to be worried about, Shinya?’ He thought to himself. ‘He’s already in your house. So in terms of his knowledge about you now, you’d basically already be screwed! He knows where you live, so I don’t think that showing your face would be that bad. Plus he’s a hero, isn’t he? Not to mention he’s trusting you with his own identity too...it’ll be fine...’

He sighed and clutched his stinging, scorched arm. Glancing at the rain that danced its way down the cold glass of his bedroom window, he headed back downstairs to give company to his guest who was just as battered and tired as he was.

Shinya set the items he had prepared, down on the small coffee table and walked to the kitchen to grab some hot water. As he stood there, he heard the bathroom door click and turned to see it open ever so slightly. “You’re done? I’ve prepared some stuff to bandage up our injuries and disinfect that nasty cut of yours,” he called out.

“Ah, yes. Thank you,” Tsunagu replied from behind the door.

“...uhm...would you like me to go and wait-”

“Oh! No, there’s no need, sorry...” Tsunagu blurted out as fast as he could. “It’s just...well...I...” he trailed off. ‘It’s never been easy, will he understand that?’

“Don’t worry, I understand. But I guess that with it being just the two of us here... can we say that we may fully trust one another?”

Tsunagu let out a small sigh of relief, before nudging the door open further and emerging from behind it. Making eye contact with the smaller figure in front of him, he smiled gently as he allowed the other to view his face. Shinya doing the same in return. “I guess so.”

Shinya locked eyes with the man that stood in front of him. Wow. He...did not look anything like how he expected...not that he really knew what he expected. Damp, blond hair was messily ruffled across the top of the taller man’s head. He’d managed to make the spare clothes fit well enough to make it look as if they could possibly be his own, though they were still awfully short. They suited him well, actually, and Shinya felt himself stare a little at this gangly noodle in front of him. Why did he look good in those clothes? Hell, they’re old and rather tatty and are way too small for him, and yet he still manages to look like a freaking model in them! And to top it off, they were just some clothes that Shinya owned, that happened to be the longest things he could find! He was unsure of why, but the sight in front of him definitely made him feel rather “odd” (in his own words) - though he didn’t really know what that was.

There were so many things about him in that moment that seemed so out of character for “best jeanist” but what really caught his eye were his scars. Ignoring the large cut on his cheek, Shinya traced his eyes over the bottom half of Tsunagu’s face in a shared silence. Large scars ran from just above his chin, and down to his neck. Some ran over his lips, which had formerly been pressed together to form a small smile, but were now separated slightly in a shocked manner. Noticing where he was staring, Shinya felt his face heat up as he quickly averted his eyes and looked down at the kettle that he was clutching (he went to go boil some water, but had gotten distracted before he could actually put the kettle on). ‘What on earth are you doing, Shinya!? I mean he’s really pretty, sure, but you can’t just stare omg-’ he lectured himself as his face progressively got more unnaturally warm, ‘those scars though....whatever caused those couldn’t of been a small accident...’

Concurrently, Tsunagu was completely stunned. ‘Pretty...’ was the only thought that circulated around his mind for many long seconds. Not only was this man incredibly considerate and mysterious, he was also very pretty and wow did that make Tsunagu’s face redden like an overheated saucepan. He took in his sharp features with observant eyes. Shinya’s hair was no longer fashioned into spiky points, but was now pulled up into a high ponytail. He still had that long fringe covering his right eye, but instead of seeming blocky, it was now loose and soft - and oh wow was Tsunagu really resisting the urge to pat it - though it still looked to be quite sharp, as if you could cut your fingers on the edge of each strand. Tearing his focus away from the shorter man’s hair, he found himself softly staring at Shinya’s face. Though his first thought may have been about how pretty he was, he couldn’t help but notice the other’s scars. Yes, he had quite a few. They were mostly quite small and would go unnoticed by some, but there was one that stood out. A long scar, in the shape of a large gash just like the majority of his own, ran down from just under the corner of the uncovered side of Shinya’s mouth, and down to the middle of his neck. ‘What an idiot.’ Tsunagu thought to himself. ‘You were so busy worrying about showing your own face to even think that he’d be worried about the same thing...it’s...oddly comforting to see another that hides them...even though its not something I should probably be comforted about, since it means that there’s most possibly a painful story behind them...just like my own.’

After a couple of minutes of a shared, awkward silence, Shinya started the conversation back up again with a few stuttering words exchanged between them and nervous laughter. “Ah...um...I guess we should probably...you know...”

“Aha yeah, sorry...” Tsunagu rubbed the back of his neck, “the...uh...you...you forgot the hot water...”

“Oh! Yeah...sorry about that! Um, please, go and sit down. I’ll be there in a moment.”

Tsunagu made his way to the living room and sat down, his mind still curious about all these new discoveries. The pain in his cheek had started to sting even more than before and he was really wishing that he didn’t have to deal with that right now. Letting out a shaky sigh, he reached up to grab it in a hope to ease the pain slightly, but his burnt arm got caught on the edge of the sofa, causing him to let out a distressed grunt.

“Are you okay?” Shinya asked from just beside where the taller man was seated. Tsunagu was quite startled by the other, who seemed to have appeared out of nowhere.

“Ah, it’s just this stupid cut. It’ll probably be better once it’s been treated,” Tsunagu brushed it off, still rather confused by the speed of which the other man seemed to appear without being noticed.

“I see. Well, everything has been prepared so we should probably take care of that first.” Shinya smiled and took a seat next to the other man, gently picking up a cotton swab and dipping it in disinfectant. “The cut just has to be disinfected before anything else though, who knows what else that bastard had been doing-”

“Haha! You’re approaching this just like a proper doctor! So serious and everything,” Tsunagu laughed.

This made Shinya chuckle in response. “Well, I do like to think that I know a bit about what I’m doing!”

They laughed together for a couple of minutes and the tension between the two of them started to dissipate. Tsunagu eyed the cotton swab in Shinya’s hand and realised, how on earth was he gonna do that himself? Well, I think we all know that the answer is he wasn’t. Even he came to that conclusion, as he exchanged funny words with the man in front of him. Shinya knew this, and decided that it was time to tend to the lanky blond’s wounds.

“Do you trust me?” Shinya slyly asked.

“Huh?”

“Do you trust me?”

Tsunagu was hesitant to answer, not because he didn’t trust him, but because he had a feeling as to what was going to happen. “...yes...”

Without missing a beat, Shinya leaned forward and pressed the cold, disinfectant-soaked cotton pad against Jeanists cheek. This caused Tsunagu to scrunch up his face and let out a tiny screech from the shock - it stung like hell - and he was not prepared. “Wrong answer!” Shinya chuckled. He was a little unsure whether he was actually going to do that or not, but knew that it would only hurt more if the other man had to slowly and hesitantly do it himself...plus he actually knew what he was doing.

“Argh! You- you’re evil you know that?” Tsunagu yelped and sat upright, trying to get used to the sting of the disinfectant that was seeping into his cut.

“I try my best,” Shinya hummed as he held the taller mans face, tilting it slightly upwards to better see the injury in the light. Whilst doing so, he noticed how many scars were littered across his face, and felt a little sad at the sight of them. ‘There’s so many...I didn’t really notice before, but now, seeing them up close...these all feel like painful memories. And no matter how much I understand his reasons for hiding them, I cannot help but wonder what on earth happened to him...’

Tsunagu held his breath, wincing every once in a while as the smaller man dabbed the gash on his cheek. He was so close! Not only that, but he was holding his face and wow, did he look like an angel as the light illuminated him from above. He felt the tops of his ears redden as he let out a small breath. As Shinya held his face close to his own, Tsunagu noticed things that he hadn’t spotted before, and made him even more curious than before. Like the front tooth that was slightly chipped, that he could see when the other’s mouth twitched open everytime he dabbed at his cheek. Or, the two rather odd but beautiful tattoos that were wrapped around his two wrists. ‘So much to take in, I didn’t really notice it before, but all these things are so unique and different. His face looks so soft....and pretty....But I truly do wonder what could’ve happened to cause that.’

“Your scar-” Tsunagu mumbled before quickly cutting himself off. ‘Tsunagu, you idiot! You weren’t supposed to just blurt that out...I guess there’s no other option than to just ask now you stupid- stupid, ugh!’

“Hm?” Shinya locked eyes with the other in a distracted confusion, before getting embarrassed and quickly looking back down.

Tsunagu stuttered as he tried to find the right words to say. “O-oh, well...I, uh...Sorry, I was just curious about your scar. It’s just- I, well...wondered-”

“How I got it?” Shinya interrupted quietly, almost in a rather hushed tone.

“Ah. Yes. Sorry, I don’t mean to be nosy, it was simply a curious thought.”

“No, it’s alright, it’s okay. It seems both our curiosities lay in the same area of thought.” Shinya smiled softly, lowering the cotton swab and throwing it in the bin. As he went to pick up the thread (you know, the one they use to stitch up these wounds) Tsunagu placed his hand on his arm and stopped him from doing anything else. Shinya handed the thread to Jeanist and watched as the blond man slowly and carefully stitched up his now clean wound in one gentle swoop of his hand - though it did look quite painful by the look on his face. “Woah!” Shinya exclaimed in awe. He often forgot about the beautifully handy and elegant things that the other man could do with his quirk. This caused Tsunagu’s ears to redden even further.

Shinya let out a deep sigh and sat back slightly to take a rest for a moment. “Ah, where do I start? You said you were curious about my scar, but I’m sorry to tell you that this isn’t any light-hearted story...” he started, scratching the back of his neck and wincing as the burnt skin on his arm brushed against the fabric of the sofa.

“Sorry, you don’t have to...”

“No, it’s alright! To be honest, I think it would actually do some good to tell someone for a change...because, for once I feel that I can trust someone, and that’s a weird thing...” he muttered the last part under his breath so that the kind man next to him wouldn’t hear it. Tsunagu simply smiled in response, looking down as he acknowledged the smaller man’s courage to reveal a very clearly painful memory.

“Uhm, well, are you...are you aware of the small band of mountainside villages down south?” Shinya asked, “if I’m correct in thinking that you are a couple of years older than me...”

“Pffft- did you just call me old?” Tsunagu snorted.

“No! Of course not!” Shinya quickly defended himself. “It’s just that, you are around my age, so I was just wondering whether you’d know of it or not.” He smiled sheepishly as he watched the other’s amused face turn into one that was more focused.

The older man hummed quietly. “Yes, I think I know which villages you are talking about. My mother used to take us there every year when my father was off of work, to go and watch the yearly festivals. Oh, and to visit the market! They had some amazing tomatoes!” Shinya laughed at this little comment. They truly were some good tomatoes, though he preferred the strawberries that they’d grow there. “But...we...we stopped visiting when...” Tsunagu trailed off with a frown and looked back up at Shinya, noticing the distant smile that was faintly spread across his face.

“Then, you know what happened...you know what happened all those years ago?” Shinya questioned quietly as he reached for the bandages that were tangled in the basket. But, doing so only made his arm quiver in pain even more.

“Ah, please, let me do that,” Tsunagu insisted, reaching out for the bandages and using his quirk to gently and swiftly untangle them. He gave Shinya a reassuring look and gently took his arm, starting to wrap it very carefully. “Yes. I was around...13? Yeah, I think I was about 13 when it happened. It was all over the news, I don’t think I could ever forget it. It...was so awful, just hearing what happened...” he had a rough idea as to what Shinya was going to tell him, and it made his heart sink at the thought of it.

The sky let out another huge growl, and a streak of lightning flashed past the window, causing Tsunagu to flinch. Shinya didn’t move a muscle, but simply carried on with what he was doing.

“Hm.” Shinya felt his face warm up slightly as the taller man held his arm softly. ‘So gentle’ he made himself blush even more, but shook these thoughts away before continuing with what he was saying. “I guess it’s kind of obvious then, what I’m about to say I mean.”

“I...I don’t want to immediately assume what happened, but if what I think is true...”

“Yeah.” Shinya sighed. “It was my home. I’d lived there all my life until that day...they...they took everything from me...”

Tsunagu stopped wrapping the other’s arm and looked up, their faces merely inches away, taking in the broken sadness in his eyes and allowing it to drown his heart even further into the pit that it had sunk into.

“Everyone I knew, my friends, my family, everyone, they all died in front of me. There was nothing I could do to stop it... I was the only one that survived...just me...a small, defenceless, 10 year old child. I grew up as part of a family that was renowned for protecting their people, yet I couldn’t even protect my own innocence...my...my own mother...” Shinya’s voice started to get weaker and smaller as all of the memories started flooding back.

Tsunagu could do nothing but listen in shock. This was a lot to take in, and Shinya was trusting him enough to tell him something this personal. It pained him, watching the small ninja’s face contort into a broken frown. “...I’m sorry...”

His voice made Shinya snap back to reality and look him in the eye, confused. “What for? There isn’t anything for you to be sorry for...”

“No, I mean, making you have to think back on a memory that painful...it must’ve been horrible.” Tsunagu finished wrapping the other’s arm and let go of it slowly, hands still slightly lingering over the injured area.

Shinya sighed. He couldn’t disagree with that, it truly was the most painful memory he could imagine. Tucking his silver hair behind his ear, he reached up and touched the scar on his chin. “This was from that day. The people who ambushed us tried to attack me. They had stolen my own grandfather’s sword and managed to just catch my face as my mother whisked me away. It hurt, but I didn’t really notice it until later on...which...well...it’s not like they survived either...”

“Oh dear.” Tsunagu muttered, his face and arm still stinging. The wind picked up and rattled against the window, startling him again.

“I guess you’re wondering what these are as well,” Shinya gestured towards the intricate patterns that were inked into his wrists. “My family was part of that village for many generations. Over these generations, the Kamihara name became rather well known as a family of protectors and guardians. When my family died, I felt like I had lost all my connections to being a ‘Kamihara’ and so I decided to get these tattoos.”

He lifted his left arm, “this represents my father’s side of the family, the Kamihara name.” Then proceeding to point at the other arm, he explained the rest. “This represents my mother’s side of the family, always one with nature. I find that it’s a comforting way to keep them with me at all times, even if they’re not really there. It means that I can keep them safe, and in return they keep me safe too.”

“Wow...I think they’re beautiful!” Tsunagu breathed. They really were. The patterns were so small and intricate yet they held so much meaning and story...just like Shinya himself. “That’s- quite the tragic past...”

“Hm. Well, that’s what happened really...not all of it, but I think it’s best if that is shared some other day.” Shinya plucked the bandages out of the lanky blond’s hands and gestured towards his arms, waiting patiently as the other hesitatantly held out his own scorched arm. He looked back up at Tsunagu’s face and, out of some sort of instinct, reached up and gently touched the long scars on his face, deep in thought. After a very brief moment of...whatever that awkwardness was, Shinya snapped his head down to look back at his hands and Tsunagu averted his eyes in a nervous manner, both turning much redder than they had been before. “A-ah, I’m sorry!” Shinya immediately blurted out.

“No, it’s- it’s okay...” Tsunagu managed to stutter out. Blimey, that was awkward, why did his face feel so hot?

Once they had both managed to laugh it off, Shinya decided to return the same curious question that had been on both of their minds. “So...your scars...how did you get yours?”

Tsunagu froze. He knew it would come up in the conversation at some point, but he still had that reaction whenever someone asked. Shinya noticed this, and panicked a little, “Sorry! You don’t have to-”

“No no, it’s only fitting for you to ask the same question...and I think it’s best you know, since you shared your own story with me.” The anxious Jeanist interrupted. “But, I must ask you not to think ill of me after hearing this, nor should you feel the need to keep me here...I’m...it’s just...I-”

“It’s alright,” Shinya reassured him, “I’m not gonna kick you out of my house, just because of your past...you...didn’t judge mine.”

“Heh,” Tsunagu smiled and watched as the small ninja bandaged up his arm delicately. “Well, it’s not a happy story either, I’m afraid!”

“Guess that makes the both of us!” Shinya let out a light chuckle.

“Yeah...” He paused. These memories still scared him. “When...when my quirk activated, I didn’t know how to control it, like most children. The only thing is, both my sister and I had our quirks activate at the same time, being twins and all this was expected. This, however, just made things worse. I was...I was wearing a scarf at the time, and, well basically...to put it simply, I strangled myself.” He looked up, realising how stupid that sounded.

“Oh! That’s awful, though I’m sure it was probably much more traumatic at the time,” Shinya smiled sympathetically. “I can’t really say the same for my own rather embarrassing quirk discovery....”

“Well that sounds like a story I’d love to hear!”

“Oh, I’m sure!” Shinya laughed and cut the bandage carefully, tying the ends around the other’s slender arm and making sure that everything was secured nicely. “So, was it that which caused those scars on your face? That sounds horrible.”

“Ah,” Tsunagu shifted his eyes in thought, “not exactly...you see, there was an accident later on in my childhood...and...well, it did a lot of damage...” he trailed off, “not only to myself...”

A loud clap of thunder startled them both, and Shinya darted his eyes up to see Tsunagu looking down at him with a solemn face. ‘Whatever happened, that doesn’t sound good...in any context...’ he thought, choosing not to interrupt the taller man.

“It was a villain attack that burst out in the middle of the street. My family just happened to be passing by, but there was this loud scream and I turned around just in time to see that this villain had taken a young girl, about my age at the time, and was planning on taking the rest of her friends too.” Tsunagu paused again, he wasn’t sure how to word this, he never knew how to say it. But this time, it seemed a lot easier. “Before I knew it, and well this is quite typical isn’t it, I found myself in the middle of it all, unable to breathe or move. There was...blood everywhere...pieces of fabric were piercing my body, strangling me, completely littering the area. I- I remember, just, hearing my sister screaming...the pain I felt...she had to go through it all...but I couldn’t do anything, the heroes couldn’t get near me.”

Shinya sat there, stunned from this information, unable to form words. It sounded like such an awful situation to be in, even from his own point of view. He watched as the blond man shifted in his seat and turned to lean back more comfortably with a sigh, unsure of what he should say. However, he thought that it would be best to allow Tsunagu to continue.

Tsunagu felt his chest tighten at the memory of what happened, but still carrying on. It felt nice to talk to someone about it for once. “I had managed to very seriously injure my neck and face, unable to breathe, especially from the panic that I felt. I thought that was the worst part...it really wasn’t.” Tsunagu looked up cautiously at Shinya, wanting to say something but too scared to go further. Shinya saw this and placed a small hand on his shoulder, trying to think of words to say.

“I’m sorry, I can’t say much in terms of comfort. But, whatever it is, please know that I’ll listen no matter what.” He gave a small smile. Despite the fact that they hadn’t really talked before this, he already felt that he could trust him, and wanted the other to feel the same way. He’d made many mistakes in the past, and had done things that had weighed down on him all the way through his life, so knowing that Tsunagu probably had the same thoughts towards whatever it was that happened to him.

Tsunagu felt relieved. No one had ever said those words to him before, and for once he felt that he wasn’t alone. And he’d be lying if he said that he didn’t feel like crying. He nodded slowly and took a deep breath before carrying on, “...well...I- I looked up to see the villain in front of me...he wasn’t breathing, he’d been caught up in the strands that I’d sent flying and...I...he...he didn’t survive...I killed him. Just a small, scared 12 year old child, yet I’d managed to kill a man in a moment of pure terror. I- I think it was how angry I felt that someone was being that bad, I don’t know...but whatever it was, I couldn’t stop it, and the fear from that day has haunted me ever since.”

Shinya was shocked, he had a feeling that something like that must’ve happened, but it was still not something he’d been expecting or hoping to hear. Though, he’d experienced the same kind of shock himself, so he knew that it wasn’t something to be taken lightly. “I...poor child...that’s not something that someone should go through...I know from experience as well...”

“Wh- really?”

“Yeah. Those villains that ambushed my village. In a moment of blind rage I had managed to rid of them entirely, completely unaware of what I did. So, I guess, we aren’t too different, huh?”

“Wow...yeah...look at us, just a couple of very traumatised, depressed and barely capable adults, trying to make a living out of helping others...heh.” Tsunagu remarked, making Shinya chuckle in agreement, his mind easing more and more. “Y’know, I got bullied a lot, trying to become a hero. My quirk was ‘not suitable’ for it and I was ‘weak’. The more they said it the more I believed them, and well, knowing what I had done and knowing that I’d not been able to save that man who was simply going down the wrong path...I really did feel weak. Ever since, I’ve just buried myself in my work, trying to give myself a reason to feel ‘strong’, taking on as many cases as I can even if I know that I can’t do them alone...and well these moments have caused me to make some...stupid...decisions in the past, and, well they’ve all left their mark on me quite prominently.”

Shinya’s eyes softened as he heard the other man spill all of these worries that he’d been hiding for so long. “Oh...poor Hakamata-senpai...” he said with a slightly saddened look.

“Ah, it’s alright. To be honest, I don’t think I’d be where I am now without their bitter words and mean, pain-inflicting prompts. Also, please, ‘Tsunagu’ is just fine!” He normally didn’t mind the formalities, but for some reason when the small ninja sitting beside him used them, it made him feel odd.

“Oh, okay.” Shinya’s face heated up slightly at the thought of using the other’s first name to address him, he wasn’t used to that. “So, I guess we both have kinda...depressing backstories...to our scars and ourselves in general.” (You may not be able to see it but eclair is currently smiling very gleefully)

“Yeah,” Tsunagu glanced at the rain dancing down the window, “I guess so.”

————————————————————

After a long time of exchanging funny stories (well, they aren’t funny at all really, they’re either sad memories or quite self-deprecating...but I guess that’s their way of bonding...to simply share their most traumatic experiences and become friends....huh) the tension between the two of them had almost completely lifted. They sat there chatting away, all bandaged up and tired as hell, simply making the most of each other’s company.

“Oh come on, how is that not funny-” Tsunagu exclaimed, gesturing towards Shinya as he laughed. The pain in his cheek had faded, almost completely, as he slowly became more comfortable.

“Because! You try tripping over, knocking yourself out for 2 hours on the edge of a stone fountain and chipping your tooth. It isn’t a fun experience!” Shinya said enthusiastically, very defensive about the little chip in his front tooth - in response to the taller man’s question.

“Of course, sorry! Poor little Kamihara-san~” Tsunagu replied with a smile.

“Please, just call me Shinya!”

“Shinya, huh?” Tsunagu felt a little bit shy at the thought of using his first name, but it would probably be easier. “You know, now that I think about it, being in the middle of this storm isn’t so bad.”

Shinya smiled. He’d always loved this type of weather, and seeing the lanky man in front of him start to agree, he felt like he’d somehow accomplished something.

They were startled from their little conversation by a loud beeping noise coming from Shinya’s phone. When he checked it, he let out a shocked gasp and this caused Tsunagu to be slightly worried. Was it something important?

“What? What is it?”

“I can’t believe it...it’s already 1:45...we’ve talked for so long!”

Tsunagu widened his eyes in disbelief as he checked his own phone. Yep. That was the time. They’d gotten so carried away by their conversation that they’d become completely unaware of the time. They shared a very shocked look before snickering at their own carelessness. “Hah! To think that there was a time I’d never imagined this would happen.”

Shinya quickly got up from his seat, and started to make his way to the kitchen. “Sorry, I realise that it’s probably way too late for this, but I realise I never offered you food!” He called out.

“It’s okay! I forgot about it myself! But to be honest, what food could we possibly have at 1:46am?” Tsunagu inquired, slowly becoming more aware of the hunger that crept through his stomach.

“Hm...” Shinya thought before looking back up at the confused man with excited eyes, “pizza?”

“Pizza?!”

“Uh-huh!”

“Who on earth sells pizza at this time?!”

Shinya chortled at the other’s comedic remark. “Oh, you seem to be forgetting all that I told you about my very first internship...” he said slyly.

“Of course...that’s actually a brilliant idea!” Tsunagu laughed. Well...who doesn’t love getting 50% off of pizzas, even at 1:47 in the morning!

So, they ordered pizza. Just...two pro heroes, chilling out at 2:00am, eating pizza instead of sleeping off their injuries. How fun!

After even more time, the two of them decided it was best to actually get some sleep, and Tsunagu watched as the silver haired man quietly said goodnight and crept up the stairs, before setting his head down on the arm of the sofa - his legs dangling over the edge.

He listened as the wind and rain battered against the window. Normally, he’d be fed up by these noises, however that night, he found himself listening to it peacefully, and he had a thought:

‘maybe the rain isn’t so bad after all...’

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haileygarciasunshine · 4 years

Text

Bikers Daughter

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Reader

Word Count: 2,475

Warning: Swearing, Violence, Gets Steamy lol, Fighting, a little bit of Angst, kidnapping.

Summary: When the reader is a Lab Tech at the Avengers tower, she becomes close with the Avengers team. One day she gets kidnapped. Will the Avengers save her in time or will they be too late?

Bucky Barnes Masterlist

“Agent.”

“Agent.” An urgent voice tried again.

Pulling yourself from your daze you responsed, “Yes?”

“You’re presence is requested in the Lab.”

You nodded your head in acknowledgment. Pulling yourself together, you shrugged on your lab coat before making your way to the elevator.

“Goodmorning, Y/N.” A husky voice came from beside you.

“Goodmorning, Bucky.” You smiled in return.

The elevator ride was pleasant, it was filled with laughter, and warmth.

“I can’t believe you’ve never seen the Harry Potter Series!” You shrieked in surprise.

A low chuckle sounded from the man next to you, “I guess I’ haven’t gotten around to it.”

“Stick with me kid and you’ll be a Potter head too.” You chuckled.

He groaned, “What are you doing to me?”

You giggled, “I’m turning you into a nerd like me!” You swatted his arm playfully.

The elevator dinged, signalling the arrival onto your designated floor. Exiting the elevator you both continued the conversation.

“You and I are going to watch the Harry Potter movies later. Bring my favorite sweatshirt.”

He laughed, “Sounds like a plan.”

Stopping your actions you both turned and faced each other, neither one of you bothered by the close proximity between you.

“Y/N! I’m glad you’re here! We have a problem with the A.I. System and nobody knows how to fix it!” One of the intern Technicians blustered coming up to you and Bucky.

Before you could respond, more of the intern techs, quickly ran up surrounding both you and Bucky, talking about all the things that were going wrong that needed you to fix them.

Sighing you began to feel overwhelmed.

“Mind if I join you?” Buckys husky voice pulled you out of your mind.

Looking up at him you widened your eyes.

“What?” Barely fell from your lips in a whisper.

He shrugged nonchalantly, “I...Uh...I don’t have anything to do today.”

“Are you sure? It might be boring..” You started.

“You’re my favorite nerd. Nothing you do is boring.” His voice softened.

Heat danced across your cheeks knowing a cherry color of washed across your face.

“Okay.” You nodded.

“Okay.” He said.

Entering the Lab, everyone stopped and turned to look at you and Bucky quickly before turning their attention back to the projects in front of them.

“Y/N. We need you over here.”

Both of you walked over to the intern. It was a metal project the intern was having trouble tightening some of the materials. Giving it a try you tried to tighten it to no avail.

“Here.” Bucky said behind you, his hands landing on your waist, “Let me do it.”

He leaned forward, causing his chest to come in contact with your back leaving one hand to rest on your waist, while the other reached forward taking the tool from your hand. Bucky successfully, tightened the project.

“Thank you so much Mr. Barnes!” The intern exclaimed excitedly.

Clearing your throat you unwrapped yourself from Bucky, smoothing down your blouse.

Throughout the day, he was helping whenever he could. Much to your surprise, the interns embraced him with welcoming arms into the group.

“Mr. Barnes?” An intern suddenly approached where you both stood, “Are you going to coming back?”

“Yeah!” Suddenly the other interns sounded throughout the facility.

Turning to look at Bucky, you saw his expression of shock.

“Guys. Now’s not the time.” You warned.

The group groaned.

______________________________________________________

The end of the day came a lot quicker than you expected. Bucky had to leave shortly after lunch. You were exhausted, there was a lot of projects that needed to be fixed, or updated.

Entering your room, you grabbed your pajamas and headed for the shower. Once you existed the bathroom, there was a knock on the door. Opening the door you were met with Bucky.

“Are you wearing my clothes?” Bucky questioned.

“Huh?” You looked down. Realizing you were indeed wearing his clothes, you felt the sudden heat dancing across your cheeks again. “Oh... Sorry. I can take them off...”

“No.” Bucky blurted. “Uh...No..They look better on you anyways.” A cherry color arise on his cheeks.

Stepping aside, you put the first Harry Potter movie in. Sitting beside Bucky, his warmth radiated off causing tiredness to wash over you. Without thinking you leaned into him, placing your head on his shoulder closing your eyes.

Bucky was engrossed in the movie, he hadn’t even noticed you fell asleep on him. After the movie was over, he turned everything off, picking you up bridal style, placing you under the blankets.

Placing a kiss on your forehead, he moved to leave when a small hand reached out and tightened around his wrist.

“Stay.” You whispered. Moving over you lifted the blankets inviting him in.

Making his way under the blankets he lay on his side facing you. Bringing a hand up to his face, you played with his beard causing him to groan and close his eyes.

Taking the chance, you leaned forward closing the gap between you. Lightly, you brushed your lips against his, before enveloping them in yours.

Pulling back suddenly, you looked at him with widened eyes.

“I’m...I’m so sorry....I don’t know why I did that.” You blurted out, not noticing the hand he wound in your hair. Gently tugging you forward he met you half way, placing his lips on yours. Taking your bottom lip between his teeth be bit down, causing you to let out an involuntary moan.

He chuckled. Pulling you back deepening the kiss opening your mouth. His tongue venturing into your mouth, tracing every inch of your mouth, running along your teeth before licking along your tongue. The hand that was in your hair, moved down resting on your hip.

Pushing you back gently he hovered over you without breaking the kiss. His forearms resting beside your head supporting his weight. Placing a kiss to the corner of your lips, he left a trail of kisses to your ear. Blowing lightly his hot breath, caused goosebumps to dance along your arms. You arched into him in pleasure, wrapping your legs around him pulling him closer to you. Your hands made their way under his shirt, lightly trailing your nails up and down his back. Lightly, you began biting his shoulder, causing him to let out a low moan.

Continuing his actions, his tongue sneaked out tracing the outer shell of your ear, before taking your earlobe between his teeth gently biting and sucking. Moving down to your neck he left a trail of purple bruises, causing you to moan. He continued biting and sucking down to your collarbones.

Flipping him over, you caught him off guard, causing him to look up at you with widened eyes. Straddling him, you lifted his shirt, then your shirt. You grabbed his hands placing them on your chest. He looked at you as if he was asking for permission in which you nodded.

Leaning down, you captured his lips with yours.The only sound that could be heard was the panting that fell from the both of you. Opening his mouth, he allowed you access. Licking your way into his mouth, he moaned in pleasure. Making your way to his neck, you left visible bruises in your wake, before making your way to the front of his throat. Lightly biting and sucking on his adams apple, his hands roamed to your thighs, digging his fingers into you. He threw his head back as his hips bucked up into you as you continued your actions.

Flipping you over he gathered both of your hands in his metal hand, pinning them to the bed above you. Moans and Groans filled the hallway that night, notifying everyone what was happening behind your bedroom door.

______________________________________________________

After that night, Bucky seemed to want nothing to do with you. He went out of his way to make sure he didn’t encounter you. He had become your best friend since joining the Avengers. He seemed to be the outcast and yet somehow you felt yourself gravitating towards him once you joined.

You were the type of person to see the good in everyone. Your father was the first to notice this characteristic you held. He often told you it would be both a blessing and a cruse. Growing up, your father was a part of a biker gang. They were full of men that looked ruthless like they could snap you in half in an instant. All the other kids, were scared of them and ran away.

You were the one child that went up to them without any fear, knowing it is better to get to know them rather than judge them by their tough exterior.

Sitting on the floor outside of Buckys room, you were pulled out of your daze.

“Y/N?” Bucky looked at you confused. “What’re you doing here?”

“You’ve been avoiding me.” You replied coming out more harsh than you intended. Standing up you continued, “Come on, Bucky. Talk to me.”

Turning his attention back to his door he remained silent.

“Please.” You voice broke as you started losing your composure.

“What do you want me to say?” His voice full of bitterness. Still not turning around. “That it meant something to me?”

“I...I don’t know...I just want my best friend back...” You pleaded. Your eyebrows furrowed together, as tears started to blur your eyesight.

“It was just a quick Fuck.” He whirled around voice laced with venom. “That’s all it was.”

You winched as the words darted from his mouth.

The tears began to flowing down your cheeks, “Bucky....”

“What, Y/N?” He took a step forward, “How could you think I would ever have feelings for a nerd like you?”

A hurt gasp fell from your lips before you could think.

“Our friendship was a pity friendship. I felt bad for you.” The bitterness fell from his lips.

“I...I’m sorry.” You whispered aching in pain from his words. “I didn’t know I was such a bother to you.”

“I never wanted this life,” He growled. “I never wanted you.”

A sob escaped from you before you could stop it. Not daring to look at him, you raced down the hall without looking back.

Bucky was scared. He hadn’t been close to someone since before his Winter Soldier days. You were someone he had feelings for the moment you stepped into the tower and showed interest in getting to know him. Over time, he knew you like the back of his hand. He knew the only way to push you away was to hurt you. Bucky didn’t want to hurt you, he just wanted to keep you safe. He felt that pushing you away was the best way to do it.

______________________________________________________

“Wake up.” Pain was felt on your cheek. Groaning your head lulled to the side, opening your eyes.

You were in a cell block, with fluorescent lights. Trying to move, your hands were cuffed behind you to a metal pipe holding you to where you sat.

“Oh good. You’re awake. Let’s make a video deary.”

______________________________________________________

“Hey, guys!” One of the Lab interns that worked with you walked into the kitchen. “We received a video and it say make sure the Avengers see it.”

After everyone entered the lab, one of the technicians, pressed play so the video would play on the projector.

“Give me what I want or I’ll kill the girl.” A deep voice sounded from behind the camera, walking through a brick hallway.

Suddenly, he opened the door revealing you, bloody and bruised.

“You have twenty four hours before I kill her.” The voice said before it cut out.

______________________________________________________

Guilt overwhelmed Bucky. He wanted to keep you safe, not put you into harms way even more. Getting up abruptly, he left the room.

“It’s not your fault.” Steve said from behind him.

“How can you say that?” Bucky growled. “You didn’t hear what I said to her. She’s been gone for three days Steve! I should’ve been the one to notice her missing!”

“Let’s go get her back, Buck.”

______________________________________________________

Gathering your strength, you were able to take out the guard outside of your cell. Grabbing his weapon you made your way down the hall.

There was more guards standing down the hall. Looking at both of them, they exchanged a knowing look before they approached you.

One of them swung their fist at you, ducking his fist connected with the other guards face. Shortly after they were fighting each other, giving you a chance to escape.

Running up the stairs, you were on the main level looking over the ledge, you were shocked to see, guards knocked out laying over the ground. There was a mix of people in uniforms and people in leather jackets.

Looking at the people down below, you had a confused gaze on your face.

“Y/N!” One of the men in leather jackets yelled. “You’re okay!”

Going down the stairs you were met with a group of men and women in their leather jackets surrounding you.

“You guys shouldn’t be here!” You said worriedly.

Scoffing Blue the leader of the game said, “You’re family. When we heard you were in trouble we rushed over here. Why wouldn’t we be here.”

“They beat us here.” A deep voice said. Turning and looking you were face to face with Steve, Tony and Bucky. “You’re really important to them Y/N.” Steve continued.

“Let’s get you home.”

______________________________________________________

There was a soft knock on your door. Putting your book down, you got up.

“Y/N.” Bucky breathed out throwing his body into yours, pulling you in for a bone crushing hug. “I’m so sorry.”

Before you could question it, he continued.

“I didn’t mean anything I said.” His hands were holding your face. “I’m scared. I like you. I didn’t want to let you in, because I wanted to keep you safe.”

He leaned forward capturing your lips between his, putting all his emotions into the kiss.

“I’m sorry.” He said breathlessly. “If you don’t want to forgive me, I understand. I just needed to do that one last time.” He unraveled himself from you, heading for the door.

“Did you watch any of the Harry Potter movies while I was gone?” You questioned tilting your head to the side.

“No. I wanted to watch them with my favorite nerd.”

Smiling slightly, you replied, “I don’t feel like being alone tonight. Let’s watch the next movie?”

He nodded while smiling, before joining you on your bed, falling asleep.

______________________________________________________

Waking up the next day, you were alone in bed. Frowning you missed the warmth of Bucky laying next to you.

There was a soft knock on the door. Getting up, you opened the door. Looking down at the ground, there was a boquet of roses, with a note attached to it.

‘Be ready at 8pm. -Bucky’

259 notes · View notes

wolf08 · 4 years

Text

Igniting the Fuse

A fic for @zutaraweek

Summary: Zuko can’t stand Katara’s obvious contempt towards him. Determined to fix their relationship, he asks Aang and Sokka for help, who, in turn, devise a series of team building exercises with the intention of sparking friendship between the water bender and the banished Prince. They hadn’t anticipated sparking something more. Pre- (and post-) Southern Raiders. Zutara.

Available on A03 and FanFiction.net.

Prompt: Loosely inspired by the prompt “Fuse” (Zutara Week 2020) Genre: Romance/Humour Words: 4293 Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender or any of its characters.

A/N: Hi! Please accept my humble offering to the ATLA fandom for Zutara week. :) I’ve only ever written fics for the Naruto verse, but I just finished ATLA last month and have been fangirling about Zutara and the Gaang dynamics ever since. When I learned that Zutara week was just around the corner, I just knew I had to write something. Enjoy. :)

***

Igniting the Fuse

Now that he was part of the group of vagabond do-gooders (who he used to think were his sworn enemies), Zuko felt a sense of contentment and purpose like he’d never felt before.

It had been an excruciating uphill battle filled with awkward encounters and blows exchanged to finally convince them that he was on their side. But he’d persevered because Zuko just knew he was destined to be here, with them, to support their quest of defeating his father.

Thankfully, in the end, they accepted him.

Well, all except for the water bender, that is.

Katara, the last water bender from the Southern Water Tribe, who had the biggest heart and kindest smile that Zuko had ever seen, utterly despised him.

She made no effort to hide this fact, with how she always sat as far away from him as possible, sneered at his (attempted) jokes, and ignored him point-blank whenever he spoke.

As the Fire Nation’s banished Prince with a prominent scar on his face marking him as such, Zuko wasn’t unfamiliar with this type of treatment. But what made it different with Katara was that (a) she was avoiding him out of pure dislike – not fear (hell, he’d faced her in combat before and knew she could hold her own against him), and (b) it was Katara.

Why did it have to be her who hated him, of all people? She was level-headed, compassionate, and strong, in other words, she was an embodiment of everything that Zuko wished he himself could be.

And, not to mention, she was rather easy on the eyes and nice to be in the presence of (though, of course, Zuko would never dare admit this out loud).

Perhaps the worst part of all of this was that Zuko knew her hatred was justified. After she’d let her guard down in the catacombs of Ba Sing Se by confiding in him and offering to use her few drops of sacred water to heal Zuko’s scar (a gesture that Zuko would never ever forget), Zuko had responded by siding with her enemy and trying to kill her.

So, yeah, Katara had every right not to trust him ever again.

But that didn’t mean Zuko wasn’t going to give it his best shot anyways. After all, he was a changed man now. He was determined to reconcile for his sins. Earning Katara’s trust wasn’t just something he wanted – it was something he needed to fulfill his personal quest for redemption.

Not that Zuko had a clue where to begin.

After numerous fruitless attempts to force an interaction with her around camp like some school boy trying to get a girl’s attention, Zuko realized he needed help fixing his relationship with Katara.

He cast a wistful glance at Katara’s tent before turning towards the sea, where Aang and Sokka were currently fishing.

Zuko sighed and ran a hand through his shaggy, black hair. Despite being a little weird, Aang and Sokka were the most helpful sources of information around, with one of them being Katara’s brother and the other being, well, the Avatar. So he slipped off his shoes, hiked up his pants, and waded out to meet them.

Their fishing tactics were a rather theatrical sight, with Anng literally blowing fish out of the water with some air bending technique and Sokka spearing them as they flung into the air.

Zuko cleared his throat.

Aang, who was wearing nothing but his orange underpants, beamed at the sight of him. “Zuko! Have you come to help us fish?” he asked. “It’s not really my thing, but Sokka needed a hand.”

Zuko shook his head, folded his arms, and proceeded to explain his dilemma. The other boys listened attentively.

“Have you tried being, well, nice to her?” Sokka asked with raised eyebrows. “Katara likes everyone. It shouldn’t be that hard to get on her good side.”

Zuko rolled his eyes. “Of course I’ve tried being nice! But I guess I just suck at it.”

After a moment of deep thought, Aang’s eyes lit up. “I’ve got it!” he said, clapping his hands together. “We’ll do team building exercises to foster trust. When Katara sees that you can trust each other, I’m sure she’ll like you more.”

But Zuko wasn’t entirely convinced. “This isn’t Air Temple preschool, you know,” he grumbled.

“No, no, I think Aang’s onto something here,” Sokka said with a smirk. “No offense dude, but your social skills suck. Structured ice-breakers are exactly what you need.”

“What? My social skills don’t suck!” Zuko shot back, but Sokka just shook his head, still smirking.

Then, in a deep, mocking tone, Sokka said, “Hello! Zuko here. I sent an assassin after you. Can we be friends?”

Aang covered his mouth to stifle a laugh.

Zuko’s eyebrow twitched, his face burning. “Okay, fine. Let’s try your stupid team building then.”

“Great!” said Aang. “Let’s start after lunch. We’ll handle everything Zuko, so don’t you worry about a thing.”

***

In an effort to gain Katara’s support for their day of team building, Aang and Sokka selected an activity that she was sure to enjoy for the first exercise: surfing lessons – an activity that was, quite literally, right in Katara’s element.

It wasn’t a bad idea, Zuko admitted and side-eyeing Katara’s enthusiastic response to Aang’s proposal of the activity. Her blue eyes were brighter than he’d ever seen them.

Shortly after, the four of them, with the additions of Toph and Suki, were gathered around the shore, with the girls in their swimming attire (cropped shirts and shorts for all but Katara, who wore a white skirt overtop) and the boys in their shorts. Then, Sokka explained that there would be no surf boards.

“No surf boards? How’s that supposed to work for surfing?” Toph asked, voicing Zuko’s concerns.

Katara stood, a smile on her face. “I’ll bend the water to make you float – you’ve just got to balance,” she said. Toph raised her eyebrows and crinkled her nose and Zuko made every effort to refrain from making the same face.

The water bender proceeded to demonstrate. With her feet pressed to the rolling waves as if she were on a solid surface, she jumped and glided in a shower of water droplets, her arms outstretched, like she was sliding through snow or sand. In a way, it looked like she was dancing, Zuko observed, and he wondered if he could really do that too, so effortlessly.

The demonstration came to the end and Katara approached the group. “All right – who’s first?” she asked cheerily, while wringing water from her thick, brown hair.

Zuko avoided eye contact.

“I’ll go!” Suki beamed and hopping to her feet.

And said Kyoshi warrior, despite not being a water bender, made it look rather easy too, in Zuko’s opinion, his confidence boosting ever so slightly. Suki jumped and twirled on the water, laughing the entire time, clearly having a blast. Sokka wolf whistled as Suki neared the shore at the end of her turn. She met his eyes and blushed before leaping into his arms with a big smile.

Zuko watched the interaction from the corner of his eye and wondered if he could ever get Katara to feel that comfortable around him.

Yeah right.

Aang went next and he glided over the water with ease (though it was hard to tell if he was truly surfing or floating over the waves with air bending). Even Toph took a short turn, despite her obvious discomfort over being parted with solid ground.

“Zuko’s turn!” Aang exclaimed after everyone had gone, like he was afraid Katara would forget about him.

Zuko caught her gaze and was met with an icy stare. More like she doesn’t want me to have a turn.

He got to his feet and sloshed through the shallow water before turning to the group in anticipation.

With mixed emotions, he noticed that Katara was smiling at him now, her eyes bright once more. What’s with the sudden mood change? he wondered while returning the smile with much hesitation.

Then Katara raised her arms and he was off.

“Whoa!” he gasped, arms outstretched for balance, while the water carried him upwards and backwards, towards the sea. He pivoted and widened his stance for stability, while he adjusted to the strange sensation of a rapidly rolling current against his bare feet, and his total loss of control over where he was going.

Despite this, before long, Zuko began to relax, leaning into the waves’ winding motions, feeling a thrill with each dip and jump, as he climbed higher and higher and farther out to sea.

And then – SPLOOSH!

Like a rug being tugged from beneath his feet, the water supporting Zuko vanished, falling back to the sea – along with said fire bender.

He fell into the water in a rather undignified manner, limbs flailing. When he came up for air, spluttering, to his displeasure, just about everyone was doubled-over laughing.

Zuko gritted his teeth as he swam towards shore, glaring at the mischievous water bender.

“Oops,” she said with a shrug, though she didn’t look the least bit sorry.

Well that was a flop… literally, Zuko thought with a grimace as he trudged along the beach and shook water from his soaked hair.

Aang had the decency to try to look apologetic though tears were streaming down his face.

***

“The next activity better not end like that,” Zuko hissed when the boys regrouped. “How about we try something where she has to trust me this time? Because clearly the other way around doesn’t work.”

“Hm. Maybe you can teach everyone something. What are you good at Zuko?” Sokka asked.

“Fire bending.”

“Well, you can’t exactly teach everyone fire bending.”

“Oh, I know!” Aang piped up. “Zuko isn’t a bad dancer. He nailed the Dancing Dragon formation.”

Zuko dismissed the suggestion immediately. “That wasn’t a dance! And you’re out of your mind if you think I’d ever teach dancing lessons.”

A moment of silence passed while all three boys contemplated their next move.

“It’s probably best if I don’t hire another assassin and like… save her from it. Right?”

“Yes, Zuko. Best we table that idea.”

***

Zuko felt a little more confident about the second activity that Aang and Sokka planned for the group.

“We’re going rock climbing!” Aang exclaimed and gesturing to the ropes and makeshift pulleys he and Sokka had fastened to the cliff side earlier. For the most part, in Zuko’s opinion, this activity far exceeded the last because he and Katara would be on relatively even footing as far as their bending was concerned.

“Everybody partner up!” Sokka instructed. “I call working with Suki!”

“And I call Toph!” Aang shouted, which garnered suspicious looks from both Toph and Katara. “I thought we could work on our teamwork?” he added to the earth bender sheepishly.

Toph smirked. “Whatever you say, Twinkletoes. Gosh, I’m popular, huh?”

Through narrowed eyes, Katara directed her attention to the person she was evidently stuck with.

Zuko tried his hardest to seem friendly, though he was suddenly uncharacteristically nervous. “You can go first, if you want,” he offered.

Katara lifted an eyebrow. After a moment, she said, “All right then,” and turned towards the cliff, her braided hair flipping over her shoulder as she did.

The rock climbing ensued, with Toph practically flying up the wall while she bended parts of the cliff side to jut out like stairs. Momo was doing quite well himself from a little further down, not even holding onto the rope, though Appa dutifully spotted him anyways.

Despite not having any distinct advantages, Suki flourished in this activity too, scaling the wall like a ninja. “Atta girl, Suki!” Sokka cheered on from below. She responded with a glowing smile at her rock climbing partner.

Zuko turned his attention to his own rock climbing partner, who was faring well, though not quite as well as the other climbers. Her movements were a little clumsy and she clung to the rope and handholds like her life depended on it. After all, with each step she climbed, the water bender ventured farther away from the comfort of the sea behind them.

There was no way Zuko would let her fall though, considering the death grip he had on her rope. He needed to prove he was the most trustworthy rock climbing partner she could ever have.

Taking a page out of Sokka’s book, Zuko decided to egg his partner on. “You’re doing great!” he called.

Unfortunately, his comment prompted an icy glare. “Are you mocking me?” Katara snapped, as she freed her blue sleeve from a protruding twig that had snagged it.

“No...,” Zuko snarled through gritted teeth.

This is impossible! I can’t even compliment Katara without her getting mad!

She proceeded to climb in silence without sparing him a glance, and Zuko couldn’t think of what to say, so he just sighed and frowned in her general direction.

How on earth was this activity supposed to bring them closer together now?

She’s probably clinging to the rope for dear life because she doesn’t trust me to stop her from falling, Zuko thought with a scowl.

But then he was struck with a brilliant (and morally questionable) idea.

What if Katara’s rope were severed… for some reason… and Zuko caught her?

Now, Zuko was no expert, but saving someone from falling seemed like the ultimate gesture of trust if you asked him.

Surely Aang and Sokka would disprove if Zuko deliberately severed Katara’s rope, but she was maybe only twenty feet up – so surely, even if she did fall, she’d survive.

Before Zuko had properly thought through his plan, he’d sent a barely discernible fireball – no more than a small collection of sparks – up the cliff side. It went undetected by the others, who were focused on their rock climbing tasks.

With the softest of hisses, the fire made contact with the rope about ten feet above Katara’s head. The rope began to fray immediately but no one seemed to notice. Until –

“Whoa!” Katara exclaimed as the rope started to give. She clawed for the nearest handhold and gripped it firmly while looking around with wide eyes.

Now, Zuko thought, dropping the rope and racing towards the cliff.

By now the others were catching on to Katara’s predicament.

“Oh no, careful Katara!” called Aang.

“Hold on!” cried Suki.

“Just drop!” Zuko shouted from below, his arms outstretched. “Don’t worry – I’ll catch you!”

Katara peered down at him, like she was mentally calculating the risk of doing what he asked. When she met his eye, Zuko felt a swell of anticipation for a reason he couldn’t quite place.

Then, something determined entered Katara’s eyes and she directed her gaze beyond him, towards the sea.

The rope snapped and Katara began to fall.

Zuko braced himself for the impact, his arms at the ready.

I won’t let you down!

And then – WHOOSH!

Zuko faced an impact but it wasn’t the one he was expecting.

An aggressive current of water slammed straight into Zuko’s legs, knocking him off his feet.

“What?” he gasped as he lost his footing, toppled sideways, and fell to his back. Spluttering, he watched in disbelief as Katara bended a neat stream of water through the air, stepped into it, and directed it towards the ground to safety. She landed beside Zuko with a splash – soaking him from head to toe.

Katara straightened up and regained her composure, brushing off the front of her blue dress, as the water drifted back out to sea.

She turned to Zuko like she was just noticing him for the first time. “Oh!” she said while extending her hand. “You okay down there?” she asked, eyebrows raised and the slightest mischievous glint in her eye.

Zuko accepted her offer to help him up, but didn’t have it in him to celebrate the kind gesture – he was far too embarrassed and couldn’t meet her eye.

As soon as he was on his feet, he retreated and stomped away. “I’m fine,” he growled while shaking water out of his hair for the second time that day.

***

“The next team building exercise will be different. We’ll use our words this time,” Aang decided during a brief rendezvous with Sokka and Zuko.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Zuko asked, eyebrow raised.

“You’ll see – I’ve got a plan. Just make sure you’re sitting beside Katara when we gather round the campfire after dinner. Trust me.” He patted Zuko’s shoulder and flashed him what he probably thought was a reassuring smile, but given their track record with team building exercises thus far, Zuko didn’t feel so confident.

“Fine,” he said anyways because he didn’t have anything to lose.

***

True to his word, after the sun had set, bellies were full, and Aang had summoned everyone to the campfire, Zuko claimed the spot beside Katara, even though he had to wrestle Toph in the process of squeezing in between them.

Katara gave Zuko a weird look and motioned to get up.

He grabbed her sleeve. “Wait – stay here,” he said before he could think better of it (and immediately regretting the motion).

She startled and opened her mouth to respond, but thankfully, Aang chose that moment to command everyone’s attention and start the activity. Zuko released a breath.

It turned out the activity was rather simple. Each person was required to share a compliment about the person on their right – and once everyone had a turn, they were to repeat the exercise in the other direction.

Zuko was skeptical about the cheesy activity having any effect on his relationship with Katara but he figured he might as well try.

He frowned and glanced at Katara, who was on his right, noticing the firelight dancing in her blue eyes. He would have to share a compliment with her first.

I’ve got one shot so I need to think of something good, Zuko mused while absently bending the flames from the campfire into little loops.

His first thought was to comment on her water bending, which was quite good as far as he’d seen. But would that just remind her of the times she’d used her water bending against him?

Then what could he say about her to get her to like him?

It was Sokka’s turn to pay a compliment to Suki.

He turned to the brunette Kyoshi warrior with a wide smile and an arched eyebrow, and said, smoothly, “Suki, you are as radiant as the sunset.”

Suki’s face lit up and her lips curved into a shy smile. “Oh, Sokka,” she sighed and shoving his arm lightly, in a friendly, teasing manner.

That’s it! That’s the reaction I want from Katara, Zuko thought, his chest tightening at the very prospect of it, but would complimenting her physical appearance have that effect on her? He wasn’t sure.

By the time Zuko tuned back in to the activity, Aang was telling Toph that she was the most terrifying girl he’d ever met.

Zuko watched the exchange in anticipation for surely the earth bender would take offense to the remark. But instead, she punched Aang’s arm and beamed. “Thanks, Twinkletoes!”

Would Katara want to be called terrifying? Honestly, Zuko thought she was the farthest thing from terrifying (unless she was really angry). No, Azula was terrifying. And Katara was… well, not like Azula.

Toph turned to Zuko next, gazing up at him with a cheeky smile. “Oh, this is easy. Thanks for the entertainment in the water today. I haven’t laughed that hard in weeks!”

Zuko bristled with anger for a moment, but when he realized everyone was chuckling, and he remembered that he would much rather them find him funny than evil, he swallowed his pride and smiled. “You’re welcome,” he mumbled.

“Okay, Zuko’s turn!” Aang prompted, and then, suddenly, everyone was starting at him expectantly.

Zuko swallowed. “Okay,” he said before turning towards Katara, whose arms were folded and was watching him from the corner of her eye.

Here goes, Zuko thought. He said the first thing that popped into his head, inspired by Sokka’s earlier success.

“You’re… as beautiful as the… ocean?”

Now, Zuko wasn’t sure what reaction he was expecting, but, strangely, no one seemed to react at all. In fact, the entire group was eerily silent, their eyes trained on him, including Katara’s.

Suddenly, Zuko felt nervous. I did something wrong, didn’t I?

He turned towards Sokka for support, but only then, to Zuko’s horror, did he notice that Sokka and Suki’s hands were clasped together.

Is Suki his… girlfriend?

That hadn’t occurred to Zuko, honestly. He’d dismissed the idea because surely Suki was too good for the guy.

But maybe he was wrong. Maybe they were so close because they were dating. And maybe, by mimicking Sokka’s behaviour, Zuko had inadvertently suggested that he wanted to date Katara.

He felt his face heat up.

I could use some of Uncle’s calming tea right about now.

Then, Katara was on her feet. She avoided eye-contact when she growled, “Really? Don’t have anything to say about my abilities, do you? I’m just some damsel in distress to you, huh?”

And then she stormed off, effectively ending the team building exercise. Zuko pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration.

I should have just called her terrifying.

He followed her.

***

Katara was perched on a rock near the ledge of the cliff, overlooking the sea and star-sprinkled night sky. She was hugging her knees and her shoulders were slumped.

Zuko approached with caution. “Hi,” he said when he was within earshot.

Katara glanced at him and turned away quickly.

He sighed.

Why do I suck at everything?

“Um, let me try the compliment thing again,” Zuko mumbled, not sure how much Katara was paying attention to him but going for it anyways. “My uncle taught me how to control lightning using the principles of water bending. I never really thought about water bending much, but since then, and since I saw what you can do, now I appreciate it more. It’s a… beautiful ability. And it’s strong. Like you.

“And that’s… what I’m trying to say.”

Katara glanced at him again, and to his relief, there was something kinder in her eyes.

This encouraged him to continue. “And I’m sorry for everything I did before. Please tell me how to make it up to you because I’m trying but I don’t know what I’m doing.”

After a moment, Katara’s lips curled into the smallest of smiles. She turned towards the sea. “You could reconquer Ba Sing Se in the name of the Earth King. Or bring my mother back,” she said sadly with a humourless chuckle, like what she was proposing was ridiculous. She buried her face into her knees.

Later that evening, after a brief consultation with Sokka about the story of his mother’s death, Zuko made plans for what would end up being the most effective team building exercise yet.

***

Many days later, Zuko found himself standing on a dock overlooking the ocean and a sunset painting the sky a glowing medley of pinks and oranges.

He had just returned to camp after a long trek with Katara to track down her mother’s killer, with the intention of executing revenge, but Katara ended up sparing him in the end – while still finding the closure she needed.

Zuko had learned more about Katara’s motivations and abilities on the trip, including her impressive repertoire of water bending feats.

To put it frankly, Zuko had no shortage of compliments to give her if they ever played that campfire circle game again.

And now that he understood Katara better he was filled with hope that maybe, just maybe, she didn’t hate him anymore. Though he wasn’t completely sure.

Katara was sitting at the end of the dock with her toes dipped in the water. Aang was beside her and speaking about the importance of forgiveness.

She got to her feet and faced the two of them. “Thanks Aang, but I didn’t forgive him. I’ll never forgive him.”

And then she turned towards Zuko, a smile blossoming on her face. Zuko’s breath caught in his throat.

“But you,” she said and drawing closer, “I am willing to forgive.”

Before he knew quite what was happening, Katara pulled him into a tight hug. Zuko was startled at first – hardly able to believe what was happening.

I did it! he thought in awe, thinking back to how envious he had been of Suki jumping into Sokka’s arms on the beach.

He smiled in spite of himself and returned the hug with equal enthusiasm, his heart racing.

But then, abruptly, Katara retreated. She stared at Zuko from a short distance away, looking positively radiant in the light of the sunset. A strange expression crossed her features. Embarrassment? Anxiousness? Zuko wasn’t sure. But then –

“I’m not flirting or anything, you know,” she said.

Not… what?

Katara seemed to remember that her hands were still on Zuko’s shoulders and pulled them back quickly. “I forgive you and that’s – that’s it!”

Zuko was still processing her words when she scurried past him, down the dock.

He gaped at her retreating form. “What was that about?” he asked.

Aang, who had been hanging back from the exchange, approached. One of his eyebrows was distinctly twitching. “Well, after the team building exercise around the campfire, everyone thinks that you… well, you know.”

Oh.

Zuko put his head in his hands, face burning. Something told him he was going to need a lot of help, and maybe even a new round of team building exercises, to figure out this new development in his and Katara’s relationship.

#zutara week 2020 #zutara week #zutara #zutara fanfiction #atla fanfic #zuko #atla #wolf08fic #my first atla fic #loved every second writing this

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