#else did (only ate a tiny bit) and then during the fast breaking dinner i started freaking out bc eating wasn’t making my head hurt less so

[pepprs]

ok i survived yom kippur. but it took every single scrap of strength in my body and i’m not completely better yet

[anotheranimestan]

Sweet Intoxication

Tamaki fans!! Come get yo juice!

Tamaki fluff with a lil spice (just a lil)

wc: 3.2k

I can’t be the only one who thinks the Suneater is 🤤 I could write about him for days

Being UA High’s #4 ranked third year, it’s no surprise you’d created a great friendship with the Big Three. You were particularly close with the group’s resident “kitten” as Nejire liked to call him. You met during your first year when you were sat next to each other during class. He was so shy and wouldn’t talk to anyone except Mirio, even despite your many attempts at making conversation.

Until one day, you hurt yourself during practical training and he offered to walk you to the nurses office (much to everyone’s surprise). The entire time he was dead silent with a look of pure embarrassment across his face since you had to cling to him to walk. Once he dropped you off you expected him to leave while Recovery Girl fixed you up. But when you exited the office, there he was. Sitting on the floor waiting for you, his face riddle with concern.

When he spotted you his eyes lit up. “So um-are you okay y/n?”

It was the first time you got to hear his soft voice so clearly. It made your heart swell. You knew right then you wanted to keep him.

Ever after that moment you two stayed close and kept an eye on each other. He was still timid at first but over the years it blossomed into an air-tight friendship. You were practically apart of the Amajiki family after the amount of dinners you had with them. Not a day went by that you two didn’t walk home from school together.

That is until today. You see, during lunch Nejire let it slip that Tamaki had a crush on you when she thought you couldn’t hear. Little did she know you were standing right behind her as you approached the lunch table.

You were so caught off guard and your eyes grew wide as you locked eyes with your best friend. His face was pure horrid humiliation. Mirio desperately tried to make light of the situation and pretend it was all a joke but the damage had already been done.

Tamaki immediately fled the cafeteria, knocking over a few first years on his way out.

You were still frozen in place trying to process what was happening. You definitely didn’t expect him to have a crush on anyone, let alone you. He never talked about romantic interests like that. And considering he tells you almost everything on his mind you’d think you’d have some sort of inkling about this.

Your train of thought was quickly interrupted by the horrible thought of how much of a hit to Tamaki’s self-confidence this probably was. He’d become so much stronger and more social. You couldn’t let all his hard work get reversed.

You chased after him but he was gone. Disappeared off the face of the planet for the rest of the day.

You were worried sick and couldn’t think about anything else but finding him.

As soon as the final bell rang you bolted for the Amajiki house. Of course his mother let you in with no hesitations and immediately informed you of his exact location (His room. Where else? That’s where he was always hiding). Although the suspicious look on her face told you that Tamaki’s condition must be bad. He probably came home early and locked himself away without a word. Not completely out of character, let’s be honest, but still it didn’t put you at ease.

You slowly approached his door trying to form some kind of plan to fix this. What was the best tactic though? Should you tell him? Tell him that you’ve secretly been crushing on him this whole time? Since that day at the nurse’s office when he held your hand for the first time? When his voice alone captured your heart. You were sick over the thought. You’d desperately tried to keep it a secret and hadn’t told anyone, even Nejire (for obvious reasons). You were scared that you’d scare him away with your feelings. You’d rather have him as a friend than nothing but that didn’t stop you from constantly dreaming of kissing him or holding hands again or cuddling every night while watching his favorite movies.

You didn’t have an exact plan but you desperately wanted him back so you had to try something. Anything.

The door was locked. You knocked as gently as possible. He was easy to scare.

“Tamaki? It’s me. Let me in.”

You heard a miserable groan from behind the door. “Please leave me alone to die.” He plead from inside. Always one for the dramatics. Something you secretly loved.

“Come on! You’re really going to lock me out like this? A bit dramatic don’t you think?” You insisted, slightly amused.

And just like that the lock clicked open. You let yourself in. It was dark except a little glowing ball lamp in the corner of the room that illuminated everything up with an indigo glow.

He was sitting on his bed against the wall, hugging his knees and burying his face.

You shut the door behind you and stood for a moment. You really just wanted to run over there and cuddle him. Tell him every reason you’re putty for him. But you didn’t want to push him. There was an art to dealing with a mopey Tamaki and you knew it well.

“So how long have you been sitting up here? I hope you at least finally ate some lunch.”

He peeked his head up at you. You were rustling a bag filled with his favorite snacks. You saved these in your locker for moments exactly like these.

Your heart fluttered when you saw those eyes you loved so much. Although his eyebrow were furrowed in embarrassment, still, he looked adorable as ever.

You took this moment as an opening and slowly approached, careful not to spook.

You took the spot directly in front of him. He’d still not managed to look you directly in the eyes.

“Sooo...” This is where you had no game plan left.

You finally had the chance to feel nervous now that you knew he was okay. Your heart started racing in your chest as the anxiety coursed through your body.

“This is the worst day of my life.” He concluded covering his face again with his hands.

You rolled your eyes. “I think there are worse things.”

“Like what?” He said like he was proving a point.

“Like...” You exhaled and gave your honest answer without thinking. “losing your best friend.”

He groaned again. “That’s exactly what I’m saying, y/n!”

Your head tilted. “What?”

“I can never talk to you again now.” The pure teenage agony in his voice was ridiculous.

You giggled. “You’re talking to me right now, dummy.”

“And now you’re laughing at me.” He leaned his head back against the wall in distress.

You reached up and grabbed one of his hands, pulling it away from his face.

“I’ll be very offended if you stop talking to me.” You inform him with humor in your tone.

He looked down at you finally. You were breaking through.

“But...aren’t you weirded out?” He was grimacing at the horrible cafeteria memory that had been replaying nonstop in his mind.

You laughed.

“No more weirded out than usual.” You poke him in the stomach. He was aggressively ticklish so he jumped and grabbed your hand instinctively. Now you could see his whole face again and you were so relieved. You missed it.

His eyes were trained on your hands and he nervously played with your fingers. He did this a lot and it always sent butterflies flying in your stomach.

“You ran out the cafeteria so fast you didn’t even stay for my reaction. Also, those first years are gonna be looking for revenge tomorrow.”

He cracked a tiny smile.

“So...what is your reaction?”

The nerves were really electric now. You almost panicked. Were you really about to admit to your long time crush just how head over heels you were for him?

You were silent for a while which didn’t put Tamaki at ease. He was sure you were going to reject him. You were way out of his league. You were heavenly and pure beauty in his eyes. You could make him warm just by smiling at him that’s how much he loved your aura. How could you be into a loser like him. He could barely stand up straight next to you and the other members of the Big Three. You didn’t know it but right under the bed you sat on he had a hidden a sketch book filled with his drawings of you. Or at least attempts as he called them. He could never capture the curl of your eyelashes or the soft slope of your neck quite right. And the lips. They were always off. Yours had this perfect kissable quality to them that he wished he could experience rather than just draw onto paper.

His pining was interrupted by your sharp inhale as you began to answer. He looked at you under his thick lashes, dying to hear your response. It made your cheeks burn and the words get caught in your throat. Your mind must have overheated because it completely shut down and your body acted on its own.

You didn’t say a word. You just pulled his legs down from against his body and climbed onto him. You wrapped your arms and legs completely around his body like a teddy bear and squeezed him tight.

At first he was stunned but quickly recovered and hugged you back. Your hair was completely covering his face but it was comforting being indulged in your familiar scent of shampoo.

You two confided in each other for a long moment. No words could express what you were trying to say.

After a while you pulled back to look at him. Big mistake. The soft glow of the rich indigo light made him look dream-like. Suddenly you were picturing all the things you had been imagining doing with him...to him.

He wasn’t blind to the way you were staring at him. Blank eyes lost in thought and lips parted like they wanted something. You looked angelic. Sitting on his lap and holding him tight. You were exactly what he needed.

He knew this could be the moment he’d been waiting for all these years. But of course his usual anxiety was holding him back from experiencing you like he wanted. You were so so perfect. He couldn’t possibly...

Your brain switched on just for a moment to spill out a few incoherent words. “I want...this....you. I’ve been.”

Overwhelmed by your words he finally gave into his desires as his head dipped down into the nook of your neck. His lips hovered over your skin and you felt his hot breath ticking your sensitive spot. You wished he wasn’t so hesitant but you could also easily savor this moment forever. Tamaki was finally satisfying your craving for him.

Your hand rolled up gently into his silky hair and your eyes fluttered shut when he finally made contact.

His lips were so soft and molded perfectly into the curve of your neck. He slowly trailed around your collar bones and up to your ear.

Your face nuzzled into him as he tasted you.

His gentle touch made your heart swell and bespelled your body to curl into him more and more.

His tongue began grazing the tender skin he’d laid the ground work on. Dragging circles around your sweet spots and sealing them with kisses. His warm breath sending chills through your through your muscles.

The sweet rhythm of his breathing, his snug hold on your waist and the vibrating hums of enjoyment resounding in his chest...

He was mesmerizing. This little Suneater easily held you in a trance like it was nothing and without even knowing it. Your body was soft like dough, molding into him as you succumbed to his warmth. Your head had fallen limp to the side so he could access as much as he desired.

His voice was thick like honey as he shyly spoke into your ear. “You...taste really good.”

Your eyes were still locked shut, under hypnosis but a smile spread across your face.

“Does that mean one of your limbs is going to turn into me?” You said with a drunk little giggle.

He noticeably shrunk under your words. “Please don’t tease me. You’re making me so nervous already.” He cried desperately.

Your eyes finally cracked open to look at him properly. His face was wrapped in conflict and self-doubt as usual.

So many responses flashed through your mind but only one managed it’s way past your lips. There was truly only one thing you wanted to say anyways. “Can you kiss me please?”

You needed more of him, his previous performance already had you hooked and aching.

Red flush spread across his cheekbones and the tips of his pointy ears. His gaze fell under as he considered something. “I’ve been wanting to do that for a long time. I’m honestly surprised I’m even getting the chance.”

As if you weren’t already deep under his spell, his words managed to further melt you like butter.

His voice was dark velvet. A sharp contrast to his normal shaky tone. “I just want to ask...do you really like me?”

“Tamaki...forget like...I’m pretty sure I’m in love with you.”

Your words slipped out of your mouth but it was like hearing them underwater. You were so detached from reality in this moment. Just pure bliss was conducting your movements while your mind was on hiatus.

His red washed face turned bashful as he tried to comprehend your words. He couldn’t stop a cute little grin from spreading across his face.

Before he could recover enough to verbally respond, your thumb placed itself on his bottom lip that was still lightly swollen from exploring your neck. The weight of your hand pulled it down to expose his pearly white bottom teeth.

This pouty look made him even more appealing, your mouth was practically watering at the handsome sight before you.

He acknowledged your hungry look as his invitation and his pouty lip puckered around the pad of your thumb. He placed kisses on each of your fingers and finally your knuckles before he pulled you close to him.

The movement wafted some of his cologne into your nose and just like that you were drunk on him again. He could have you.

His lips pressed into yours and it was like your whole world came to fruition. You realized then just how badly you’d wanted this. He trapped your bottom lip and gently sucked letting his tongue start it’s magic again.

Your arms contracted around his neck to pull him as close as possible and he respectively deepened his kiss.

He nibbled on your lip just enough for butterflies to start flapping around on your chest. Just when you think you’ve hit sensory overload he whips out something new. You already identified kissing him as your new addiction before your first kiss was even over.

His confidence was slowly building as he became more familiar with the curves of your mouth. Assessing exactly what you were liking by the barely audible gasps of euphoria you were making.

He strung you along for a while like this, each next move being more endearing than the last until finally he pulled away to give your lungs a chance to pull in some air. Obviously you didn’t want oxygen right now but at least you got to be intoxicated by some more of his scent.

“You’re so pretty.” He mused as his eyes glazed over your features. “And—and your lips are really soft.”

Suddenly a little self-consciousness washed over you. You weren’t used to his compliments like that. You accommodated this by nuzzling your face into his. Your lips were drawn to his cheek and you littered kissed all over, using your other hand to trace his jawline. He closed his eyes so he could focus on your touch. It was sending him over an edge having you on him like this. You felt his breathing deepen as you started gently sucking on the nook of his neck. Your hand fell and started exploring his chest. He didn’t look it but he was concealing muscle under his baggy shirts and you were dying to feel them.

Just when your teeth grazed the red blood pooled spot you’d been working on, a soft moan escaped his lips. He was lost under your control.

Without warning he shifted you down on your back with ease. Taking care to support your head as you fell onto the pillow.

He crawled on top of you between your legs and supported his weight on his forearms.

This sudden bold streak was really turning you on.

He spared no time as he tugged your shirt collar down just a bit to expose that sensitive part of your neck again that he just loved so much.

His tongue teased it with a few gentle circles before his mouth came down instense and started sucking.

Normally this sort of thing would hurt but you were so entranced that it only felt like a rush of intense pleasure. You ran your fingers through his hair encouraging him to do exactly what you suspected he was doing. You squirmed gently under his heavy body as he targeted your neck. Your hands slipped under his shirt and you got to feel the smooth skin over his broad back muscles which contracted as he moved.

Suddenly you let out a little squeal as the pleasure turned to a little shooting pain. He snapped out of it and brought his face back to yours. Nose to nose.

You glanced down at his work to see a little red bruise the size of a coin. For some reason you loved the idea of Tamaki giving you a little mark.

“Sorry y/n, I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

You bit your lip, his concerned face was so cute. It reminded you of that day so long ago when you first realized you wanted him.

“Put another one.” You said only half joking.

He laughed nervously. You took his face in both your hands. Today couldn’t have gone more perfectly.

“I didn’t reply before but...I want you too.” He mews with soft eyes.

Just when you think your body is completely melted, he finds one more spot he missed.

He placed a few more gentle honeyed kisses on your lips before anyone could say anything else.

But much to your dissatisfaction, you heard Mrs. Amajiki call for dinner. You were prepared to aggressively reject this interruption but Tamaki’s smile broke your resolve.

He tucked some hair behind your ear as he spoke again after what felt like hour had passed since the last time. “Can we do this again like...soon?”

He was aggressively adorable you could barely stand it. You merely nodded in response you couldn’t possibly form any coherent words right now.

You laid there, trying to unmelt yourself with little success. You could only gaze at your little Suneater with twinkling admiration in your eyes as he lifted you to stand up in his arms.

His new love bite was still exposed on your neck. He pulled your sweater up to cover it and kissed it through fabric as he muttered a few more quiet apologies. You immediately started thinking of ways you could try to permanently keep it on your skin.

You eventually walk down to dinner together holding hands, fingers interlocked. Yea...he was definitely your new addiction.

~~

Thanks for reading 🥰

[anonsally]

Days 79-82 of COVID-19 shelter-in-place

These have been four very intense days both globally and personally. This admittedly long post will focus more (but not exclusively) on the personal side of that.

Day 79 was Wednesday. I hadn’t had enough sleep, but I got up at a reasonable hour because I needed a ballet class. Before class started, I got a call from the medical center for scheduling a procedure I need to have done. That will be in 2 weeks, contingent on me testing negative for COVID-19 four days beforehand. I’m anxious about the procedure but will be glad to get it over with after several months of worry. Anyway, ballet class was good for calming me down. 

It was hot out. I did my parents’ grocery shopping (and bought a few things for us) and then had a nice conversation with my dad when I dropped off his groceries. We talked about the state of the world. He told me about a city that had literally fired its entire police department and started over... which is what we probably need on a national level, with very few exceptions. 

I refueled the car on the way home and got a predictably late start on my work day. Wife got two more job interviews scheduled at very different companies. I took a walk, spotting another Steller’s jay at the bird feeders. The jays are so much larger than the little birds who frequent the feeders!

I then went to try to buy milk, but the tiny independent market had closed early to enable the employees to get home before curfew. So I had to go to Trader Joe’s instead. By the time I got home I was somewhat demotivated about food prep, but luckily Wife pulled herself together and scrambled me an egg. I didn’t manage to get to bed till 1am, which was at least an hour later than I’d intended, but Wife was still up at 4am!

Day 80. I forced myself to get up at 8:30 since I knew I would need to go to bed early that night. I arranged to (video-)meet with my boss at 12:30. I started work around 11am or so and got a few thing done. The meeting with my boss was good--partly social, discussing how we were coping with the situation and working from home, what we missed about the office, and such, but we also talked about what I’ve been working on. She reminded me that the study section reviewing my grant application will be meeting this month, so I will have to remember to check my scores.

Afterwards we had a meeting with a few other coworkers, which was fairly productive. I had a short “coffee break” video call with a colleague, too. The county-wide curfew was lifted a day early.

After work, I took a walk in a direction I hadn’t gone in a while. Was heartened to see Black Lives Matter signs even in cul-de-sacs in a wealthy, mainly white neighborhood. I picked up takeout for dinner, and did a bunch of Adulting in the early evening, including preparing for the next morning. I was in bed by 10:45pm.

Day 81. My alarm got me up at 5am, and we left at 6am. We got to the medical center on time at 7am and I went in (Wife was not allowed to accompany me, but had to be there to drive me home; there was a separate room across the street for visitors to wait in, which was good because it was suddenly very cold outside). Initially, there was a lot of waiting, during which I did a little bit of yoga and dancing as I knew I would not be able to move much for the rest of the day. I was there for a diagnostic procedure involving a needle (for data privacy reasons I won’t get more specific here; it’s unrelated to the procedure I’m having in 2 weeks), which required me to remain horizontal for 4 hours afterwards, at least according to the information they’d given me beforehand. I had to be fasting from midnight the night before: no food or drink, including water.

Eventually I was wheeled down to the ultrasound department, where the doctor who planned to do the procedure met me and the radiologists. However, when they looked at the images, there were a lot of vessels around. The doctor did not feel confident that she could do the procedure based on a mark on my skin without accidentally hitting a blood vessel. So she asked the radiologists to do it as an ultrasound-guided procedure, which would be safer since they would be able to see what they were doing on the ultrasound. This procedure was done with only local anaesthetic. Mostly I couldn’t feel what was going on, and it was supposed to be very quick, but unfortunately, the resident had a lot of trouble--the senior radiologist was trying to guide him through doing, but he couldn’t get the needle positioned quite right, and in the end the senior radiologist had to do it herself. It was pretty uncomfortable and there were some moments where it was quite painful. I tried to breathe deeply and stay relaxed, but it was hard. When they finally got it to work, it was over pretty quickly. I was relieved. It was about 11am by then.

However, I had to spend an hour in a large recovery room with many other patients, while my blood pressure and pulse were monitored. I had expected to have the procedure done upstairs in the room where I’d started, where I had left all my stuff. They very kindly sent someone up to retrieve my phone for me so I could at least text Wife and my parents so they would know the worst of it was over. 

After an hour I was wheeled upstairs and transferred from the gurney to a bed (this took 3 people as I was not allowed to stand up yet) for more monitoring. They drew my blood to test my blood counts; I was going to be allowed to leave after only 2 hours of bed rest if the counts were stable. After the 2 hours, I was allowed to get up and use the bathroom (and grab the crossword puzzles from my backpack to work on), and then I continued resting while waiting first for the blood counts, which finally came back fine, and then for the discharge papers, which took an unreasonably long time. Around 2pm the nurse finally allowed me to have some ice--hoorah! (I was parched. I normally drink at least 2 liters of water per day.) At 2:40pm I was cleared to leave; I texted Wife, who went to get the car and picked me up at the entrance to the hospital at about 3pm. 

Literally every single person on the hospital staff was kind and friendly. They all introduced themselves to me by name, including the people whose job it was to simply wheel me from one place to another, and they all seemed to be invested in my well-being. When I was being wheeled through the hallway, whenever we passed anyone else who worked there they smiled and said hello both to me and to the person in charge of transporting me. It seemed like everyone working really considered themselves a team, with respect for everyone regardless of place in the hospital hierarchy. Since, like all patients during this pandemic, I was there alone and a bit anxious, it made the experience much less unpleasant than it could have been.  

I spent 8 hours in the hospital, so I really hope I didn’t catch COVID-19, but the procedures seemed pretty good. I was wearing a mask almost all the time (except in the room where I was waiting at the beginning and end, which was essentially private), as were all the employees, and everyone was sanitising their hands every time they entered or exited a room or touched any equipment. I also didn’t spend the whole time with any one person. So, hopefully it was safe. 

I spent the rest of the afternoon vedging out at home, rehydrating, and finally eating, and I went to bed earlier than usual though later than I expected, around 12:15am.

Day 82. I wanted to try to get a lot of sleep so my body could heal from yesterday’s ordeal, so today I slept till about 10am. The wound from the procedure is tender to the touch and there’s a small bruise near it, but otherwise I’m not in pain from it. Except my ankle is in more pain than it’s been in for ages, and I have no idea why. Maybe I slept on it funny? Or maybe it’s an aftereffect of the weird position I had to hold during the procedure.

I think my joy at getting to eat cereal this morning was perhaps a bit over-the-top!

Wife had a bad headache today, likely caused by neck tension from all the driving yesterday. I am still pretty tired today, despite all the sleep, but I suppose that’s to be expected.

We went to the farmers’ market and stumbled upon a socially-distanced, family-friendly protest. A friend of mine was there with her kids, but I didn’t see her. We bought our produce--though I had to make an extra trip back to the car to drop off my purchases, as I am not supposed to lift anything heavy today. The stand with the curried fish had run out, but they still had some uncooked prepped fish, so we bought that and they explained how to steam it at home. We came home and cooked the fish and ate it for lunch; it was just as good as it would’ve been if they’d cooked it. Phew! Other than that we’ve been relaxing at home, though Wife did gather her energy and go for a run, which has helped to relieve her headache a little (as has the bath she took afterwards, and the painkillers she took). 

I’m hoping to feel up to taking a dance class (online) tomorrow. 

[thewritewolf]

Eating Habits Chapter 13: Bliss

The semester is passing by quickly as Adrien and Marinette live happily together, supporting each other in everything they do. 

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 (Final)

Enjoy!

Read on Ao3

Her feet aching from the long week of classes fresh out of winter break, Marinette shambled up the stairs and blearily stood in front of the door to her shared home. Her faint hope that it would open on its own extinguished. A few long moments passed before she worked up the energy to open the door, slowly lifting her tired arms as if every centimeter of movement was an absolute chore.

As she stepped into the apartment, she was vaguely aware of the meat and vegetables sitting out on the kitchen counter, but much more important was the mop of blonde hair and the strong back poking out from behind the couch. At the sound of the door closing, Adrien looked behind him with an expression that started off curious before lighting up with a bright smile.

“Bugaboo! Amazing timing as usual, I was just about to get up and-” He was cut off as she plopped onto the couch, resting her head on his lap as she curled up into a more comfortable position, “-and make dinner, but I guess we can sit here for a little while.” Picking up the remote, he turned down the volume of the show on the television. “Wanna talk about it?”

She groaned and reached out her hand, groping around until she found his. Dragging her prize, she dropped his hand onto the back of her head.

Adrien laughed, a sound that was already soothing her aching muscles. His hands began playing with her hair and she sighed in satisfaction. “Poor tired bug. I can’t imagine just sewing and studying all day make you this tuckered out. Did you go to the gym after classes too? I keep telling you that you have to start smaller.”

Marinette was too tired to contribute much to the conversation, but just having him there, listening to him, feeling his touch on her, was doing wonders for her. It was just as heavy a burden she was carrying as last semester. But with him here? It felt so much lighter. She didn’t feel as though she were falling apart at the seams any more.

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

Adrien turned off the television and ran his fingers through his hair. His shift at the bakery had ended hours ago, leaving him waiting for Marinette to get back from school. The grumbling of his stomach got louder as he glanced back at the untouched selection of ingredients he’d assembled on the kitchen counter. He didn’t really want to start cooking until she got back.

After all, the time she got home each day was pretty arbitrary. Weeks into the semester and he still struggled to keep track of all her commitments, between student organizations, classes, study groups, and extra design work time. Yet another skill his coddled early years had deprived him of.

He sighed and opened the door to their balcony. The chill of winter was receding fast and the late March night was surprisingly warm. Leaning against the railing, he took a deep breath of the fresh air and stared out into the glimmering lights of the Parisian night.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?”

Adrien jolted, but quickly relaxed when Ladybug landed beside him. His sly smirk was undercut by the soft blush he could already feel spreading across his cheeks. “Yes, you are.” He took her hand and kissed it. “I didn’t know the great hero Ladybug made house calls?”

“She’s been known to make an exception for her favorite civilians.” She smiled teasingly as she closed the distance between them, their faces centimeters apart. “Or at least, the particularly handsome ones.”

“Don’t let Chat Noir hear that,” he whispered into her ear. “I hear he’s the jealous type.” His arms wrapped around her, pulling her flush against him.

“Somehow, I don’t think he’ll mind what I’ve got planned for you tonight,” she said, pressing a chaste kiss against his lips.

“And what do you have planned, hm?”

“You’re about to find out.” Suddenly, she had one arm wrapped around him and with the other pulled out her yo-yo. Before he knew it, he was sailing over Paris and latching onto her. Despite the speed and the heights, he wasn’t afraid. Not just because he’d done this plenty of times as Chat before, but because he had absolute faith in her. She would never let him down - literally, in this case.

Before long, they had landed on the rooftop of a building that stood a story taller than the ones around it. Still holding onto his tiny, superpowered girlfriend, he looked around. His eyes widened when he saw the candlelit dinner with boxed chinese food, a single rose in a vase completing the scene.

His heart melted, but a thought caused him to fall into a giggle fit.

“What’s so funny, oh handsome civilian who is on the fast track to the couch tonight?”

He bit down on his lower lip and looked at her with eyes that glimmered with mirth. “I was just thinking… if I told fourteen year old Adrien that this was happening - that Ladybug made a romantic dinner just for us - I know that either his heart would explode from happiness or he just wouldn’t believe me.”

The annoyance in her eyes melted away, replaced with gentle love. She rocked forward on her toes to press a kiss against his cheek.

“Better believe it, sunshine. You aren’t the only one that knows their way around romance. And I’m definitely not going anywhere.”

He took her hand and held it between his. There were so many things that he wanted to say to her, but he just couldn’t find the words. Instead, he simply whispered, “I know.”

She seemed to understand as she slowly walked away and towards the dinner she had set. She pulled out his seat for him. Laughing, he sat down.

“Such a gentleman!”

She rolled her eyes with a smile and took the seat opposite him. They chatted while they ate, filling each other in on what they’d been doing that day. The food was wonderful and even if he hadn’t seen the logo on the boxes, he would have known it just from the taste. The Chinese restaurant was a favorite of theirs when they went on casual dates. Marinette’s mom was friends with the owners, and they’d all gone as a family plenty of times during the years he’d dated Marinette.

Adrien trailed off in the middle of explaining one customer’s particularly strange order when he heard music filtering up from the building below them. He glanced back at Ladybug, who was smugly watching him.

“...Are we above a symphony’s practice studio?”

“Mhm,” she hummed in confirmation.

Deciding she was being far too smug for her own good, he stood up, offering her his hand as he rose from a bow. “Would you do me the honor of a dance, my lady?”

Her pupils shrunk to pinpricks and she flailed her arms around her face. “Adrien, you know I can’t-”

He grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet. His other hand found its familiar spot on her lower back as he held her close to himself. He smiled down at her as she looked up at him, stunned for a moment. He decided in that moment, as he had many times before, that love was a good look on her.

As they settled into their dance, Adrien nuzzled against the top of her head as they twirled in gentle circles across the rooftop. He breathed deep, letting her scent - strawberries and cookies and a hundred other sweet things - fill him and bring peace to his weary spirit.

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

Adrien finished his story and took a sip of his coffee, made exactly how he liked it. The cafe they’d chosen was quickly becoming a favorite and not only because it was right between their current living spaces.

Nino chuckled and shook his head. “Geez, dude. You two are made for each other, no doubt about it.”

“Jealous of our romance, bro?”

“Not a chance. Me and Alya are doing just fine with our chill love. But you two? With your over the top declarations of love? You two got each other to save everyone else from the sickeningly sick vibes and plots.”

“Hm…” Adrien put his chin in his hand, propped up on the table. Tapping his cheek he gave it some thought before nodding. “Definitely jealous then.” Nino scoffed. “Hey, you should have said something sooner! I’m sure Marinette wouldn’t mind if I brought you up to a rooftop for a candlelit dinner. Just so you could see what it’s like.”

Nino covered his face in his hands, but couldn’t hide the laughter bubbling out of him. “Yeah sure, dude. I’m just saying - you two tend to go crazy with romance, so it works out nice that you ended up with each other.”

“It’s way better than nice, man.” Adrien smiled with what he knew was a dopey grin - knew, but didn’t care. “Being with her - living with her - is a dream come true.”

“I figured it would be. I’m psyched for you guys - both of you are loads better when you’re not by yourselves, so it makes a ton of sense for you to move in.”

“What about you and Alya?”

Nino laughed. “After years of being stuck in crowded apartments with tons of siblings, we’re actually enjoying the space apart. But,” he said, grinning at his coffee, “after seeing what you and M have, I’m starting to like the idea more and more.” He made a dismissive gesture and leaned back in his chair, one arm over the back. “But that’s a while down the road. We’re supes happy with our set up right now.”

“I’m happy for you, man,” Adrien said softly. He took another long sip of drink, letting his mind wander. “Things are looking up, aren’t they?”

“They sure are, my bro.” Nino raised his coffee toward Adrien and they clinked their cups in a toast. “They sure are.” Nino took a quick gulp and leaned forward. “What else has been going down? I bet you’ve got a lotta sappy stories now that you two are together every day, so spill.”

They talked for another hour, exchanging stories about their girlfriends, about working with Jagged Stone, about the crazy customers the bakery had seen. He was glad they had managed to sneak in this time to hang out together, despite how busy both of them were. Adrien would always treasure Nino’s friendship, the first real friend he had made at school - his first, and his best.

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

Marinette stretched, reaching her hands far above her head as she worked out the aches from sitting still for so long. The dress in front of her was almost finished, but she needed to take a break before she could continue. If Adrien weren’t working at the bakery for the weekend, he’d have approved.

Her stretch brought her to her feet and then her toes, which then turned into wiggling her hips vaguely in time with the music that was filling the apartment. It felt liberating, dancing in her spotted pajamas in an old black t-shirt she’d stolen from Adrien years ago, hair hanging free. She was making great progress with that commission and she knew it. The dress could wait a few minutes while she had a little fun.

Sure, it was already the middle of April and the spring show was getting closer, but even that didn’t bother her. Speaking of, she was supposed to get a letter soon concerning how many front row tickets she’d be reserving for friends and family. After giving it a moment’s consideration, she opted to just head down to the mail room as she was. Who cares if someone saw her in her pajamas?

The song stayed in her head and she hummed along to it as she quickly went down the stairs. She grabbed the mail and started leafing through it as she returned the way she came. Her eyes widened just as she reached the door, hand hesitating at the door knob when she recognized the writing on one of the letters.

The surprise evaporated under a withering tide of anger. She knew what she’d read if she opened the letter - excuses, protests, and blame directed at Adrien. Of all the limited talents that Gabriel possesed, self-reflection was not among them.

She shoved it roughly in the basket with the rest of his letters, only barely resisting tossing it in the trash. As she changed her playlist to something a little more energetic to help her blow off steam, she decided that Adrien didn’t need to know he had gotten any mail at all today.

And everyone would be happier for it.

[vantaestummy]

Would you be able to write one where Jungkook doesn't eat all day because he's busy and he doesn't even realize because he's not that hungry so by the end of the day his stomach finally rumbles and he realizes he hasn't eaten so he decides to eat a meal before bed but then he wakes up puking everything up onto his blankets and he has to go get one of the members because he's scared and sleepy and he feels gross. Thank you so much.

A/N: okee! enjoy! another collab with my amazing friend @p3merge please show them all the love in the world!

TW/// emeto

WORD COUNT: 4635

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Jungkook didn’t realize he hadn’t eaten anything until it was far too late.

The boys’ schedules had been packed to the brim, no time to do anything else besides eat (something Jungkook forgot to do), sleep, and maybe use the restroom. Jungkook isn’t too bothered by it. He’s thankful. They’ve worked so hard to get to where they are today, being asked to perform on the top television shows and late night specials. He feels very blessed for all of these opportunities, and with their booming success in America, Jungkook couldn’t have been happier.

But he’s hungry, and he’s a growing boy. He needs to eat.

Jungkook groans as his stomach growls loudly, breaking the silence of the room. His eyes flick over to his roommate to see if Taehyung was still asleep. Thankfully he was. Jungkook sat up and stretched before standing up from the creaky bed. His vision is swimmy, his stomach gurgling in protest as it begs for food. Jungkook grips the side of the bed to keep his balance. “I gotta eat something.” He mumbles to himself just before regaining his balance. He tiptoes out of his and Taehyung’s shared room, heading towards the kitchen.

Jungkook sleuths around the kitchen, cornering the counter and slinking over to the refrigerator and the cabinets, filtering through all of the snacks he can find. He makes himself a quick bowl of ramen, reheating the beef from dinner the other night. He knows how late it is, and he knows that his body doesn’t do well with late night snacks, but he can’t go a whole day without eating a single thing. He stomach turns just thinking about it, the hunger pains so strong that Jungkook becomes lightheaded as he stirs up his food, the tantalizing smell making his stomach growl even louder.

Jungkook’s mouth watered as he finally sat down at the table. He brings his chopsticks clamped full of ramen to his lips and blew gently. He slurps up the entire bowl in less than five minutes, eating at such a rapid pace. His body begs for nourishment and his stomach aches with hunger. Once he is finished, Jungkook leans against the back of his chair to catch his breath. The food sits heavy in his stomach, his belly tingling with warmth as he slumps in his seat. His hunger is sated, that’s for sure, but there’s an odd sensation that comes with the satisfaction of finally having eaten for the first time in 24 hours.

Jungkook stands from his chair with a sigh, his metal chopsticks clinking in the empty bowl as he makes to dump it in the sink. He groans, quickly washing the dish as his brain slowly succumbs to the aching exhaustion in his bones once more.

Jungkook stifles a hiccup as he rubs his tight, rounded tummy. He manages to sneak back into bed. He lies down, grimacing as his tummy begins to gurgle and groan with digestion. Another belch crawls up his throat and he quickly smothers his face into his pillow to let it out as quietly as he can. A tiny lick of nausea tickles the back of his throat, catching him by surprise. He probably just ate too fast and now his digestive system is taking the brunt of it.

Jungkook moans, thinking that since he ate for the first time that day, his body wouldn’t be too bothered by the fact that it was at such a late hour. It didn’t make any sense. How could his stomach want food, but repel it all at the same time?

The swollen organ that he has cradled in his hands is a bit achey and throbbing with a slight pain that makes Jungkook toss and turn beneath the sheets, however it isn’t strong enough to keep him awake.

The maknae closes his eyes, allowing slumber to hold him tight in its clutches as he falls to sleep.

Two hours later Jungkook’s eyes snap open as he bolts upright. His stomach was at war with his dinner. It aches and churns, gurgling angrily at the fact that the maknae stuffed himself for nearly having starved for 24 hours. The pressure is just too much and Jungkook barely had any time to register what was going on before he was puking all over his sheets and blankets. He hiccups, fighting against a gag but losing out in the end. He pukes again, swaying a bit on the bed. “Hyung….” He gags and belches up another mouthful of sick.

It was never Jungkook’s intention to wake up his roommate, however he is delirious with sleep, vomit jetting from his lips and coating the sheets that drown him with its warm acidity. His stomach is pulsing with agony and his throat is stinging through the onslaught of bile.

Taehyung is a mere few feet away, stirring in his sheets as he groans, blinking sleep and crud out of his eyes.

“G-Ggukie?”

Jungkook can’t even answer as more vomit sprays from his lips. “Ggukie!” Taehyung exclaims as he springs to his bed to access the situation. His breath caught in his throat as he saw his best friend violently ill, along with the mess on the bed. “It’s ok love. J-just get it all up.” He gently rubs at Jungkook’s back, blindly reaching for a trash can.

Taehyung manages to grab ahold of it in just enough time to place beneath Jungkook’s chin, before another thick stream of bile pours from his lips, filling the bin with its horrid and chunky contents. Jungkook braces a hand on Taehyung’s arm, panting heavily as he guzzles in as much air as he can.

“Hyung… my stomach…” Jungkook groans. Taehyung places a hand against the maknae’s back, rubbing calm patterns in his back as he places light kisses against the nape of his sweat-soaked neck.

“What did you eat Kookie?” Taehyung asked as he gently rubbed soothing circles in Jungkook’s back. “Ramen….” He burped loudly. “Scuse me.” He mumbles, his cheeks painted red with embarrassment.

Taehyung sighs, seeing Jungkook in such a broken and pained state making his own stomach swirl in demise. “Bunny… you know that eating late upsets your stomach.”

Jungkook groans, a hand palming his tummy softly as he spits in the bin, trying to rid his mouth of the rancid taste. “I… I was hungry…”

Taehyung’s head tilts in curiosity, the look of shame upon the maknae’s face more than suspicious. “Why were you hungry? Didn’t you eat dinner?”

Jungkook sighs with a shake of his head. “No….I hadn’t eaten all day. I’ve never felt so hungry.” Tears ran down his face in shame. His stomach gurgled as he groaned. Taehyung helps Jungkook up before placing him on his own bed so he can clean up the mess.

Taehyung rids the bed of its soiled sheets, dumping them into the wash basin and making his way to his closet. He pulls out a hoodie, as well as a clean pair of sweats that are baggy and lose, so that Jungkook feels no unnecessary pressure against his swollen gut. Jungkook sits off to the side, sensing the air of disappointment that Taehyung seems to radiate. He feels so guilty for making his hyung clean up after him but, he feels like if he moves even for a second, more food will find its way to the floor.

“Hyungie…” Jungkook nearly cries, a hand cradling his stomach. “I’m sorry.”

“How can you go all day without eating Jungkook?” Taehyung asked as he shook his head and handed his Kookie a change of clothes.

Jungkook swallows thickly, still wincing at the taste in his mouth, as well as the remnants of the curdling in his gut. “I know… I’m sorry Tae-hyung.”

Taehyung sighs with a roll of his eyes, truly angry at the fact that Jungkook continues to stress the fact that he is an adult, but refuses to act like one.

“Jungkook that is not healthy. Do you know what we did all day? We had rehearsal, worked in the studio, did the skype interview, and you didn’t find any time at all to eat? That’s irresponsible!”

Jungkook sniffles, the pain he’s feeling now overshadowed by the guilt caused by Taehyung’s scolding. Taehyung is only about three years older than him, but that doesn’t change the fact that he’s right.

A tear slips from Jungkook’s eye, the maknae wiping it away furiously with the back of his hand. “Tae-hyung I said I’m sorry.”

“Bunny. That’s not healthy. You could have passed out during dance practice and really hurt yourself. Remember when you got a concussion? That’s why I’m mad. Because you didn’t take care of yourself like you’re supposed to.” He sat next to Jungkook before gently rubbing his bloated, sick tummy. “I’m sorry I was harsh but, I love you that’s why I'm so upset, because I want you to be safe.” He continued to rub Jungkook’s tummy as it voiced its unhappiness. “Jeez, your stomach is really loud huh.” He jokes, his heart breaking when Kookie looks up at him with a pout and puppy eyes.

“It still hurts a little…” Jungkook mumbles. Taehyung is a bit taken aback by how adorable Jungkook looks, despite not feeling well. Taehyung’s cards a warm hand through the boys long, lusciously dark locks.

“Let’s get you into some clean clothes. We’ll change the sheets and then we can sleep, okay bunny?”

Jungkook nods, sighing deeply as his nausea seems to subside, despite the fact that his stomach is still a bit bothered. “Okay.”

Once Jungkook changes into the fresh clothes that Taehyung had set out for him, the maknae helps Taehyung to change the sheets of the bed, finally feeling useful and not so helpless. Taehyung appreciates the effort, making to kiss his head every time they pass one another to pull the comforter down.

The two get into bed, Taehyung accepting the silent and yet, sad pleading look from Jungkook. It was clear that the maknae didn’t want to sleep alone.

So Taehyung didn’t let him.

The two slip beneath the covers, Taehyung holding Jungkook tight in his arms. The next day or rather, for the next few weeks, Taehyung makes sure Jungkook eats everything off of his entire plate, for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

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A/N: i’m collabing with some awesome people y’all. more to come soon! ❤︎ thank you again to @p3merge

[alloveroliver]

Oliver x MC |Alice| “Time.”

Angst: Oliver Knight

Warning: Character Death, Blood WC: 4,376

Ikemen Revloutlin Fanfic

• ·  .  ·  ´  `  · . ·•· . · ´ ` · . ·•· . · ´ ` · . ·•· . ·  ´  `  ·  .  · • Their dates tended to be all over the place. Oliver’s workload would fluctuate drastically from day to day making their meetings utterly unpredictable. A brunch date here, or a 2 a.m. tea party there were regular occurrences for the couple, albeit strange to anyone else that held a relationship. Today, though, he finished all his morning work and invited Alice out for a walk in the midafternoon hours. The sun was shining bright and the breeze, gentle as they made their way to the ocean. A seagulls caw echoed against the blue sky while the flock studied the waves that spilled onto the shore. The seaside by the black army barracks was rocky in some places and smooth in others. This distinct structure made their beach more desirable and exciting to explore for the locals. It was a hotspot for camping or day trips from people all over the black territory during the summer months. During the day, Oliver Knight was much smaller than he appeared in the evening hours. Resembling a young boy was the epitome of an oxymoron since his age far surpassed what his tiny hands and short stature indicated. However, that didn’t stop him from spending what time he could with his girlfriend. Time was fleeting, passing without regard for anyone or anything. Before you knew it time would pass by in the blink of an eye, and there would be no returning. Oliver knew time very well. He was thoroughly acquainted with its lack of compassion and knew well of its own self-service. Time’s utter disregard for any type of consideration boiled Oliver’s blood hotter than any other concept of which wherein one could not control. Time moved from one moment to the next, leaving everything that mattered in one second only to push forward to the next second. It did this forever. It had been doing this since its conception. “Careful of the rocks,” Oliver called out to Alice who was ahead of him. The loud rush of the waves racing onto the land resounded around them while the gust of wind blew her slightly off balance. “Thanks, I didn’t actually see them sticking out of the sand like that.” Her hair gently swayed in the continuing breeze. “Hold my hand in case you trip. We know how clumsy you are.” He held out his palm to her, averting his gaze down the coastline when she looks at him curiously. No matter how long they were together, his heart still skipped a beat when they touched. He wove his fingers in with hers and walked with her side by side. He blocked her body from the sharp sediments to the left, making sure to take some of her weight while she hopped from one rock to another. “What are those monstrous boulders?” Alice pointed a ways down the seashore. “Sometimes they have caves. A lot of people sneak over there to camp out.” “That’s cool! Can we go explore them?” Alice beamed a smile in his direction. Her silhouette was glowing as her face blocked the harsh sun from his view. He’s was captivated by her for a spell but shook his head to bring sense to the forefront of his mind. Oliver furrowed his brows. “It can be dangerous. The rocks are sharp, there’s probably broken glass and trash, plus it’s a long walk back.” “Please, Oliver.” She advocated, bringing their clasped hands up and cupping his knuckles with her other palm in a pleading prayer. “I promise to be careful! You said people go camping there all the time. It doesn’t seem that dangerous.” He tsked. That was something he said, but it still didn't change the fact that it could be dangerous. Yet, he found Alice's pleading hands convincing and charming. “… Fine.” He bit out. “It’s about a 45-minute walk.” 

“We have time!” She beamed.

Oliver knew better, but she had him wrapped around her little finger whether he’d admit it or not. They soon set off for the cove, discussing future plans and catching up on his newest project. 

He was the Cradles go-to for any festival event to create something spectacular for the evening. From light shows, synchronized fireworks, and infusing ballrooms in a shower of shimmering glitter that washed over the dancers, Oliver knew how to make the town folks jaw drop every time. They left their shoes at the entrance to the beach, allowing their feet to dig into the rich, warm grains of sand that spill off their toes with every step they took. Grains in an hourglass were coarser and darker than these smooth pale granules were. After a long walk, dipping their toes in the water and finding a few seashells, they made it to the first cave. It was unconcerning, mostly filled with sand and smoothed rocks due to the high tide waves. She found a few more shells and a couple that were still, surprisingly, attached to a small creature. Oliver plucked a hermit crab from the edge of the small tidepool and wordlessly showed his girlfriend the unique find. The twisted shell spiraled around and protruded like a spike to one side. She tried several times to find her own hermit crab, but it proved fruitless. The next cave brought back more of Oliver's previous concerns. More jagged rocks were filling the space, but the majority was still covered in sand. The couple took a break, sitting down on one of the larger boulders side by side. Oliver let go of her hand to dust off his legs from the sand, and she took out a few shells and admired them in her palm while they relaxed. The salty scent of the ocean filled his lungs as they stared out at the water on the horizon. Time shared with Alice was precious to him, and he was happy to be able to feel so relaxed in her presence. For once, Oliver could be true to himself without concern for whether the other person understood his sarcasm or not. He was used to people misreading him and thinking his intentions were ill when he only wanted what was best for the people he cared about. Alice understood him, better than he understood himself if he was honest. She took his sarcasm in stride at first, but now she was able to quip back without much thought. She was a smart girl, able to keep up with a mad thing like himself, but he wouldn’t give her the satisfaction of his acknowledgment of that fact out loud. “We should have brought food. I’m hungry.” Alice mentioned, showing Oliver a pretty green shell she found at the previous cave. He took it into his fingers and smoothed over the ridges, removing the embedded sand with his thumbnail. “You already ate a large lunch before we came here.” He smiled up at her. “Your appetite is a force to be reckoned with.” “Yeah, but after all the exertion you must be hungry too.” “Kind of, now that you mention it.” He slid the green shell into his pocket and hopped off the rock. “Why don't we head back now? I can make some tea, and we can eat some snacks before dinner time.” “There’s one more cave! Let’s check that one out first and then we can head back.” She leaped off the rock too and began to saunter over to the next entrance. “You aren’t tired of these musty holes in the earth yet?” He narrowed his eyes while he followed after her, trying to keep up with her wide stride. Alice went ahead and began exploring the bleak cave. Oliver held back at the narrow entrance, eyeing the massive structure. The floor was mostly jagged rocks, void of the usual sand that spilled between that filled the other caves. Alice began walking over the smoothed rocks between the spiky ones. She skipped from one to another as she explored further into the damp crevasse.  A stream of light poured into the cave and shimmered off something next to where Alice was headed. “Alice be careful. I think that’s broken glass next to you. Hold on to the wall.” He alerted. He went to take a step towards her, but Oliver slipped on a loose stone. The crashing sound of the rocks falling spooked Alice.  She lost her balance when she looked back to see if he was alright. Her yelp echoed on the walls of the cave as she also slipped and fell. It all happened so fast. As soon as Oliver gained his balance again his girlfriend's leg was trapped between the serrated rocks. His throat went dry at the sight of her.   “Alice!” Oliver cried out, pushing up on his scuffed up hands. “Shit, I think it cut me.” She mewled, closing her eyes to keep tears from falling. He held his breath while reaching his arm out absently to her. “You’re going to be okay.” Oliver cooed walking closer to see the gore. The glass sliced through her calf while a jagged rock cut into the bottom of her foot. “Everything is going to be fine. Stay calm, okay babe?” “Wow… It must be really bad if you're not scolding me right now.” Trying to keep her voice even proved futile. The strain that came from the outcry she held back punched a hole in his chest. Oliver’s heart rate increased watching her life spilled out and mixed with the small pools of salt water and sand. Alice let the tears stream out of her eyes as she looked down at the ghastly sight. “Stay still. I’m going to get you out of there.” His even, calm voice felt foreign to him. All sarcasm left his tone while his mind went into protective mode. “I can’t really feel anything right now. I don’t think it’s that bad.” Her tongue sounded heavy as she spoke. “Shh, shh...” He lulled, finally making his way around behind her. Oliver knew the fact that she couldn’t feel her leg was a bad sign. She must have severed a nerve, making it almost impossible for her to walk. “That is… a lot of blood though.” She commented, moving her hand to pull up her skirt. “I’m going to carry you out of here okay?” The moment the words left his lips he cursed inwardly. His face scrunched up at his own limitations as he stood silently.   Alice didn’t reply, knowing he wouldn’t be able to hoist her weight at his current size. “I can try to walk.” She swayed, words slurring as she spoke. “Let’s get you off this rock first, okay? Then we can see what we're dealing with.” His small hands moved down to her waist and pulled forcefully. Oliver anchored his feet on the cave floor, and Alice used her arms to help dislodge her leg. Pebbles tumbled around them while they pulled. Finally, her leg broke free, and Alice let out a sob. “Oh no…” She sniffled. “It hurts now… really bad.” Alice filled her lungs double-time as the pain coursed through her being. Oliver hugged her to his chest for a long moment before moving her to lay on her back. Putting her down gently over the jagged rocks proved difficult. Her leg gushed blood, and the cuts were more numerous than he previously thought. Panic filled his chest. How could he get her out of here? Should he run and go get help? It wouldn’t be another few hours before night would fall and he could carry her. However, their walk out to the caves took almost an hour, by the time he would make it back with help he would already be tall enough to carry her.   “What do we do?” Alice asked him, putting her arm over her eyes so he couldn’t watch her cry. “I could run and go get help, but…” He murmured, pushing her hair off her clammy forehead. “My vision is getting fuzzy,” Alice confessed, her voice strained and garbled. He ripped the bottom of her dress into a thick piece of cloth and wiped sand off her wounds. The blood soaked through the garment quickly enough to soil it entirely in a matter of seconds. “I’m going to try to wrap this around your leg. It may hurt…. more.” He bit his lip, hoping to keep the anxiety at bay. “I- do what you….” Her arm went slack. “Alice?” Oliver shook her shoulders. “Alice!” He watched for a long moment while her chest rose slowly. He felt his shoulders relax, glad she had just passed out and not something worse. With trembling hands, he took another large piece off the bottom of her skirt. “I could wrap it or…No. I need to stop the blood flow.” He took the cloth and tied it under her knee, above all the cuts and the large gash. Twisting it tight, he uses the fabric as a tourniquet to halt blood flow to the limb. Oliver removed his belt and tied the cloth around the leather strap, using it to twist the fabric even tighter. Some remaining blood gushed as he secured the tie around her leg with a quick pull. He cried out as the panic rushed to his chest. “HELP! SOMEONE HELP!” His fingers trembled, and his mind raced. His cries for help only echoed off the cave walls, never reaching anyone outside. Defeat stung the corners of his eyes and anger bubbled up within him at his own helplessness. Insecurities suddenly bloomed in his mind. How could he have been so naive? Someone like him, blunt and crass, didn’t deserve to have a loving partner like Alice. She was nothing but kind to everyone she met, giving everyone the benefit of the doubt without judgment. Their relationship was too good to be true, a proverbial needle in a haystack. And now, he was useless to her. He sat frozen in place, reflecting on all the times he felt like he took her kindness for granted. She only said yes to their first date because she was nice, and Alice only continued dating him because he took advantage of her kind heart, right? He sighed heavily and raked his hand through his hair, tugging the ends in frustration. His harsh words echoed in his mind, ones he spoke directly to her face. Idiot, dummy, child, empty-headed. Who would want to be with a man that becomes half of himself as the day breaks? 

He slammed his fist onto the rock. Self-loathing bubbled to the surface, settled in on his torso, and weighed heavy on his chest. A gust of air whipped past him and filled the small chamber, whistling as it sliced past the cracks in the wall. Shoving his hand into his pocket angrily, he felt the green shell she gifted him pass between his fingers. 

No. Oliver opened his glossy eyes and sat up straighter. No, none of that was true. She loved him despite all this. He tried to remind himself of all the proof she cared for him, more than she’s ever cared for anyone. She’d never tell anyone else of her fears and what she wanted for the future. They planned their lives around each other, hoping that they would always be together no matter what. Oliver let out a sigh of relief, seeing the bleeding from her leg had mostly stopped. There were still a few more hours left before night, so he weighed his options. “Alice.” Oliver moved her arm off her face and wiped her drying tears with the back of his hand. “Alice wake up.” He swallowed thickly, brushing her hair away from her face. She didn’t stir, but she was still breathing steadily. Oliver sat back against the uncomfortable rocks and got well-situated. He wasn’t a doctor, so there wasn’t anything he could do but try to get her to one. He looked down at his feeble hands and useless legs and rolled his eyes. Hours passed while he gazed away from the dark abyss of the cave towards the small opening. Alone with his toxic thoughts, he watched the sunset slug across the expanse, taking its sweet time. Or was it time that was making the sunset slower than usual? Orange and pinks painted the sky like a beautiful canvas. He didn't try to wake Alice again. She had been out like a light for hours, and he was sure she wouldn’t wake up anytime soon. Instead, he used his energy to get up from the lumpy boulder. Pebbles and sand fell off his clothes as he stood and faced towards the sky. Time was not on his side today, just as it never was. The last streaks of color faded and stars begin to twinkle in place of the sun's rays. Oliver waited, allowing every miserable second to pass as slowly as it dared. Soon, the last bits of sunlight melt away, and the sky dimmed to an inky black. Oliver turned to his girlfriend just as his transformation took into effect. His arms grew before his eyes as he reached out for her. He picked her up into his arms, carrying her as if she were as light as a feather. Twice his height from moments ago, he ducked out of the small entrance to the cave while adjusting her to fit comfortably in his arms. The trudge down the cost line was strenuous. The sand broke away every step he took making his stride irritatingly uneven. Alice groaned in pain while stretching in his arms. He was happy at least to have her move on her own, but the pain kept her consciousness under still. “You’re going to be okay, Alice. Like I said, everything is fine.” He spoke in a brittle voice, sure she couldn't hear him but hoped some of what he said would break through. He was desperate for her to know he would always take care of her no matter what. “If you wanted all this attention you should have just asked me. I would have cleared my whole day for you.” He smiled gently to himself, walking just out of the waves reach on the shore. The moon was bright enough to illuminate his path while the faraway black army barracks came into view. After an hour and a half of walking his calves burned, feet ached, and arms trembled keeping her close to his chest. “Once I get you to the headquarters you will be in good hands. I will fetch Kyle, that bastard better not be drinking yet, and have him take care of you.” Oliver continued to speak to his unconscious girlfriend. He refused to look at the extensive damage to her leg, the sheet-white limb, her blood-soaked dress, or acknowledge the fact that she stopped moving an hour ago. The barracks grew closer, and Oliver sped up despite his feet sinking into the sand with every step. He rubbed his hand quickly over her cool upper arm to help warm her skin as he took long strides. “I see the headquarters now. After we get you clean and patched up, you can stay with me for a bit, and I can help take care of you. Can’t entrust the gun maniac or anyone else there to take care of you properly.” He scowled at the thought of someone forgetting to change her bandages or being there for her when she needed them the most. No, Oliver made up his mind. He would be the one to nurse her back to health properly. She remained still even as he burst through the front doors of the barracks. Like a whirlwind, the officers spouted orders to bring in a doctor. Luka pulled the unconscious Alice from his arms while others looked away from the gruesome sight. “I’m going to fetch Kyle, I want him to take a look at her,” Oliver shouted over the chatter towards Ray. “Of course, I will allow it.” Ray nodded to him with his brows bunched in uncertainty. With that, Oliver pat her hand and smiled. “I’ll be right back. Don’t go anywhere.” He’d spent all day with her even though their date was supposed to be a simple afternoon break. He smiled at how he would tease her later. She’d wanted to spend the day with him, but he was so busy lately there wasn’t much time for dates. If only they could have gone somewhere less distressing and with some food. Alice would have liked to go on a food tour with him if she had her way. She could really put away more food than he could, and that was a considerable feat. Maybe, once she was feeling better, he could take her on a date like that. Oliver hailed a carriage and set off towards Kyle’s home in the red army headquarters.   ... A few weeks later, Oliver, Blanc, and Kyle sat at a circular table in their favorite tavern. Blanc delicately held his wine glass between two fingers while Kyle and Oliver knocked back the rest of their pints unceremoniously. With a loud clunk, they both dropped their cups back down on the solid wood table. “I- won.” Kyle slurred. “Pretty sure mine hit the table moments before yours did.” Oliver wiped his mouth drunkenly with the back of his unbuttoned sleeve. “Wha-whatever!” Kyle turned to Blanc and blinked slowly. “Who was it. Who won?” His finger moved between pointing to himself and Oliver at his side. With a broad smile, Blanc chuckled “Oh my, don’t put this on me. I was hardly paying attention.” He swirled the liquid in the glass, pushing his glasses back up the bridge of his nose. “Come on, old man. What are you good for?” Oliver chuckled, trying and failing to gain the busy waitresses attention with a sloppy wave of his hand. “I’m just glad we could all be here together. It’s been a rough couple of weeks…” Blanc stared down at his cup as if there were answers just below the surface of the liquid. Deciding there weren’t any answers at all, he slowly brought the glass to his lips and allowed the deep red liquid to pass over his tongue. “Hm,” Kyle’s averted his eyes from the table and glared down at the wooden tavern floors. The trio grew quiet until Oliver broke the tension.   “My week was fine. However, I am exhausted. Alice woke me up so early this morning the sun wasn’t even out yet.” Oliver rubbed his weary eyes with his thumb and pointing finger. “I think she was having a bad dream.” He divulged.   Kyle and Blanc exchanged glances with a worried look and then collectively peered at Oliver. He yawned in his seat, took off his hat, and sat it next to him on the table. The waitress passed him again, but with a tray littered with drinks was unable to take his order. “Oliver, how are you feeling?” Kyle asked quietly. “As I said, I’m just tired.” Oliver adjusted the bow on his hat and continued his thought. “After Alice fell back asleep, I found I was too awake to do the same. I ended up starting the day by working in my garage.” Blanc sat down his wine glass and took a deep breath. “Did you get to take a nap at all? You need to get some rest, Oliver. The bags under your eyes are getting darker.” “Don’t go worrying about me,” Oliver scoffed. “Of course I didn’t have time to nap. I was busy.” “We can call it a night here. Pay for our drinks, and you can go home to get some rest.” Kyle’s brows pinched as he watched his friend wearily. “Not necessary. I would like another drink.” Oliver stood from the table. “Do you want anything?” He asked both of his friends. “Um, I guess another beer then.” Kyle picked up his empty glass and waved it around. Blanc shook his head ‘no’ wearing a gentle smile. Oliver took off towards the bartop to order directly from the bartender to acquire his drinks faster than the waitress could on this busy night. Once Oliver was out of earshot, Kyle let out a long exhale. “What are we going to do?” Blanc stared somberly at his drink for a long moment. “At this point, I haven't a clue what we could do to help him.” “She’s been dead for two weeks now, and he pretends she's still here.” Kyle shakes his head profusely. “I think this is his own way of grieving his loss. He’s in denial, and soon he will move to acceptance.” Blanc reassured, taking a long gulp of his red wine. “He’s gone mad.” “That’s one way to put it.” Blanc licked his lips of a stray droplet. “The more time that passes, the more delusional he becomes...” “Should we say something?”  Kyle looked down at his hands that rested in his lap. “He needs help. This fantasy isn't healthy if it continues. Plus, Oliver doesn’t look like he’s gotten proper sleep in days.” “No, he hasn’t. He works in his workshop all day and night. I think it distracts him from the truth.” “What? That his girlfriend is dead and that he's slowly going insane because of it.” Kyle moves back to rest against the tall chair. “They didn’t have any more pale ale, so I got you a new one to try.” Both men flinched at his sudden presence. Oliver sat the fresh pint in front of the young doctor. “Thanks…” Settling back into his chair, Oliver took a long swig of his whiskey. “Why are you two so quiet all of a sudden?” 

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`If you knew Time as well as I do,’ said the Hatter, `you wouldn’t talk about wasting it.’ - Mad Hatter, Alice In Wonderland by Lewis Carroll.

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Thank you so much for reading! I worked on this piece for a very long time and I hope you enjoyed reading it! Sorry it was sad! But, I wanted to write an emotional piece and try to push the boundaries of what I thought I could do. <3

𝔸𝕤𝕙 - 𝔸𝕝𝕝𝕆𝕧𝕖𝕣𝕆𝕝𝕚𝕧𝕖𝕣

[vex-bittys]

Heya! Could I request a dabble on an yandere skelly (any one of your choice) becoming possessive of their owner in their point of view? Thank you!

Just the Two of Us

Note: YanYan is a Yanderetale Papyrus bitty

Warning: contains abusive behavior, animal death, poisoning

Things started out so well. You saw him at the local Bittybones Adoption Center and fell in love instantly. You lavished him with praise all the way to your house. You gave him a regal name befitting a magnificent YanYan, showered him in sparkly jewelry gifts, and spent all of your time photographing him for your Instagram page. Even when you had homework for your online college courses, you still made sure to compliment him as often as possible.

Things changed gradually. You met someone during a study group, and suddenly, you were dating them. You spent all of your time with someone else. You saw movies with them, ate dinner with them, stayed up late talking on the phone with them. They took up all of your time, time that should have been spent with your beloved YanYan.

That cretin even had the audacity to break up with you (after he used your computer to set up a fake e-mail account and tell them that you were cheating on them of course). He comforted you through the break-up, and you constantly reminded him that he was the one and only joy in your life. You threw yourself wholeheartedly into spoiling him, just like every YanYan owner should. Finally, things were returning to normal…

… until you started your new job.

You left the house early in the morning to catch a bus to your workplace, leaving with only a rushed “Be good!” in his direction. You came home late each evening, smelling of a long commute, only to shower and collapse into bed. The camera gathered dust from disuse, and your YanYan went days in between dedicated admiration sessions. How could anyone be too busy to buy their YanYan cute new clothes? The situation was unacceptable!

The YanYan had to do something, especially since on your last day off, you told him about a cute coworker that you might have a crush on. He remembered your last relationship and dreaded losing what little bit of your time he had with you because of your long work hours. No, he had to put a stop to that immediately. But how?

Mice. The YanYan hunted down every mouse he could find in his abundant spare time. He caught the despicable rodents live while wandering the apartment complex and brought them back to your apartment, right into your bedroom. Standing on your bed, YanYan snapped each mouse’s neck, causing the fleas that crawled through their hideous fur to abandon ship onto your sheets and bedroom carpet. Now all he had to do was wait.

It didn’t take long for the tiny red dots of flea bites to cover your skin and bags to appear underneath your eyes from lack of sleep. As you self esteem plummeted, so did you chances of flirting with your coworker. The Yanyan patted himself on the back (figuratively of course) for a job well done.

Unfortunately, you soon thwarted his grand scheme. You purchased a new mattress and bedding and liberally doused the entire apartment with flea powder. You put out mouse poison to kill the invisible intruders. You even put a flea collar around his neck which he promptly ripped off and threw onto the floor. The odorous white plastic was a far cry from the gleaming grandeur he remembered from his good old days with you.

You talked about moving, worried about finding a new place that allowed bittybones, especially the yanderetale types.. You worked extra hours, volunteering to come in on your precious days off to earn extra money so that you could find somewhere else to live. He needed a new plan, fast! He plotted and schemed, and at last he dreamt up a way to keep you home with him. You would be with him always and never try to leave again!

Your sweet helpful YanYan brought you a glass of water before bed that night, and you drank it gratefully, worn out from the War of the Fleas and its aftermath. You apologized to him for ignoring him so much lately, but you just didn’t see any other option if you wanted to better both of your lives. He nodded in understanding, and you relaxed into your bed. Your darling YanYan was such a good bitty. You didn’t know what you’d do without him.

You couldn’t survive without him, not anymore. The small doses of mouse poison that he slipped into your food and water kept you bed-bound and in a perpetual state of drowsy confusion. He’d thrown away your phone when your work refused to stop calling and used up your savings to keep the rent and bills paid. Nobody had to know that you were a captive of his possessive madness.

YanYan took care of you now, though the fresh food in the house had long since rotted. He fed you a diet of freshly-caught mice, a diet you were too weak to oppose. He brought you glasses of water, all of it laced with the same rodent poison, just enough to keep you docile, but not enough to hurt you. Every now and then, he’d bring you the camera, prodding your exhausted body until you photographed him just like you used to do. He posted them on Instagram himself now, but it was a small price to pay for your company.

Eventually, your compliments and praise became so softly spoken and heavily garbled that he could only distinguish them by tone. Your skin had a pallor that may have been unhealthy for humans, but he couldn’t really tell. As long as you only paid attention to him now, you were doing fine!

Things were going well again at last.

More Drabbles | INDEX | Read on AO3

[magicallygrimmwiccan]

If We Can Make It Through Another Day

Summary: Logan has a secret that he’s never told his family. He has fangs. This is how they all find out. Written for Inktober Day 4: Teeth

Notes: Heyo, people! I’m back~ So, this fic has some swearing (thanks Virgil and Roman) and a panic attack, but otherwise, I think it’s still pretty gen…? Anyway, enjoy guys! 

I. Patton

Contrary to popular belief, Patton was far from stupid. In fact, it could be argued that he was one of the more intelligent sides. Of course, Logan was the smartest; Logan would always be the smartest, no one was debating that. However, because many underestimated Patton’s intelligence, they didn’t realize that he knew certain things that they didn’t. Like, for example, the fact that Logan had shark teeth.

Well, Patton wasn’t sure if they were actually shark teeth. He’d never actually touched them or looked at them up close. He wasn’t going to violate Logan like that.

Still, Patton was surprised that he was the only one who had figured out Logan’s secret anatomy. After all, he was terrible at hiding it.

For example, Patton clearly remembers that time when Thomas was thirteen, right around the time when Virgil started showing up more and more. They were talking about Thomas’s newest crush, this extremely attractive boy in their grade, and Logan was clearly beginning to get uncomfortable. Finally, Roman started talking about all of his romantic and… other… daydreams with this boy, Logan snapped, jumping up and screeching “SHUT UP!” His fangs were bared, but Roman didn’t seem to notice, too lost in his daydreams. Virgil– Anxiety, at that time– was up in his room, and Patton had known since Logan first manifested. Logan seemed to realize exactly what he had just done and he slapped his hands over his mouth, terror leaking out of his eyes, before he dashed off to his room, leaving Roman to his fantasies and Patton to his cooking.

Another time, they were eating steak for dinner, and Logan was getting extremely frustrated with the fact that his steak wasn’t cutting properly. So, when he thought no one was looking, (Patton was, but Logan didn’t realize it) he picked up his steak and tore into it with his fangs. Patton quietly stared at him, concerned. Logan was always so careful about covering his mouth when he spoke, he was always so careful when he ate, he was always so careful about how he moved his mouth, and now he was throwing that caution to the wind just because he was frustrated.

Patton would never tell anyone, though. It was clear that Logan didn’t want him to, and he would definitely respect Logan’s wishes, no matter what. But seriously, though, Patton was concerned about Logan. He was so bad at keeping the fangs a secret, and Patton didn’t want to know what would happen if someone else found out.

II. Roman

Roman wasn’t sure how it took him so long to find out about Logan’s fangs. Seriously, now that he knew, the nerd couldn’t hide his sharpened chompers worth shit. Honestly, he could have just told Roman about the fangs, but no, instead he kept them a secret for so many years and possibly was getting hurt because of that secret. Seriously, Logan was so stupid.

Roman found out during a Doctor Who marathon. He and Logan were cuddled under a large rainbow fleece blanket, two empty bowls of popcorn sitting on the coffee table in front of them. Logan had a steaming mug of jasmine tea nestled in his hands as he leaned into Roman’s side, his eyes blinking sleepily as the episode played. Roman internally cooed at the adorable sight and gently ruffled Logan’s hair. Logan yet out a yawn, showing off… a set of extremely sharp fangs. What the hell?!

“What…?” Roman breathed. Logan snuggled deeper into his side, his mouth hanging open slightly and showing his fangs to the entire world. Yep, he had fangs.

“Why didn’t you tell us, cariño?” Roman murmured, shifting Logan so that he was in the much more comfortable position of laying across his lap. The answer came to Roman as he stroked his hand through Logan’s curly black hair. Of course he hadn’t told them; they hadn’t given him enough reason to trust them with something like this. Hell, Roman had tried to attack Virgil just because he appeared to be a villain at first. Roman kicked himself in his mind; he’d just driven everyone to mistrust him with crucial parts of them, hadn’t he?

“Oh, honey, I’m so sorry. I’ll make it up to you somehow, I promise,” Roman whispered, kissing the top of Logan’s head. Logan sleepily murmured and rolled over in response.

III. Virgil

Logan really should have warned him about this shit.

But no, since Logan had decided to keep yet another secret from Virgil, he had to find out the hard way. The hard way was when he was doing Logan’s makeup for the first time, and the shock of the revelation almost caused Virgil to have a panic attack.

Logan approached Virgil one day after a video and requested that Virgil help him put on makeup that would make him look, and Virgil quotes, “like an idealized version of myself.” Virgil agreed, because Logan had asked nicely. He lead Logan back up to his room and pulled out his good makeup kit while Logan awkwardly untied his tie and slipped his glasses off of his face. Virgil noticed that Logan’s face still looked pretty tense, and he snorted. Logan’s eyes widened, and Virgil sat down in front of him, still laughing.

“Relax, Logan. It’s makeup. It’s meant to be fun, not stressful.”

“Ah. Of course. My apologies,” Logan mumbled, shifting around. Virgil grabbed a sponge and started applying primer, and the two left-brained sides fell into comfortable silence. The silence lasted as Virgil applied the foundation, highlighter, eyeliner, mascara, and eyeshadow, but it was broken as soon as Virgil reached the last stage: lipstick.

“Hey, Lo. I’m gonna need to you open your mouth a bit so I can apply lipstick,” Virgil announced. Logan bit his lip before nodding and complying with Virgil’s request, giving Virgil a perfect view of his… fangs. What the fuck?!

“Virgil? Is everything alright?” Logan asked, his voice shaking a bit. Virgil slapped himself internally; he could freak out later once Logan was gone.

“Yeah, everything’s great. Just thinking.” With that, Virgil finished applying Logan’s makeup, resolving to talk to the logical side later about his fangs. Especially about why he had never told any of them. Virgil had a sneaking suspicion about why, but he wanted to make sure. If he’d ever done anything to make Logan uncomfortable, he wanted to remedy it. Plus, the fangs were kind of cute.

(Not that Virgil would ever admit that out loud; he’d rather die than do that.)

IV. Thomas

Yeah… Thomas isn’t proud of how he found out. Probably because it happened while Logan was having a panic attack from overworking and deadlines. Thomas knew he had pushing Logan pretty hard to get the latest Sanders Sides video out, but he knew the Fanders were getting a little jittery and he wanted to make sure that he got this video out soon. He knew he was pushing Logan too hard, but Logan kept insisting that he was fine, and every time Thomas suggested that they take a break, Logan kept working. Eventually, though, Logan reached his breaking point.

“Hey, Logan? I think your math is wrong here…” Thomas called, his voice pitching upwards. Logan leaned over his shoulder to look at the math, and as his eyes flickered over the numbers, his eyes widened exponentially. His breathing picked up, and all of the blood drained from his cheeks.

“Logan?” Thomas squeaked, standing up. The logical side was now gripping his hair and was sinking to the floor, his breathing now so fast and sporadic that it counted as hyperventilation. “Logan!” Thomas yelped, grabbing his shoulders. Tears started to stream down Logan’s freckled cheeks, and Thomas began to panic himself. What should he do? He didn’t know how to deal with Logan’s panic attacks!

“I… I made a mistake. I-it’s a simple mistake, how did I make it, if I make these mistakes that means I’m worthless, I’m useless, why am I here-” Logan gasped, hiccuping and slurring his words. Thomas felt his heart shatter, and he wrapped the side in a hug.

“Hey, hey, you’re not useless. I need you, Lo, and everyone makes mistakes. It’s okay, I’m here, just get it all out,” Thomas soothed, rubbing his hand up and down Logan’s back. Logan pushed himself away from Thomas, and when Thomas managed to stop blinking in shock, he saw… Logan literally biting through his lip with a large set of fangs.

“Hey! No! Logan, stop, you’re hurting yourself!” Thomas screamed, lunging towards Logan. He gently wrapped his hands around Logan’s jaw and gently pried his lower lip away from his fangs. Logan started crying even harder, and Thomas pulled him into a tight hug.

“It’s okay, it’s okay, just seriously let it all out,” Thomas murmured, rocking Logan back and forth. Finally, Logan managed to calm down, his breathing falling back into a normal pattern and his tears stopping.

“Better?” Thomas whispered, slowly releasing Logan. Logan shook his head and replied with “Y-you saw them.”

“Them what?” Thomas asked. “Your fangs?”

“Y-yeah,” Logan sniffed. “Th-they look horrible, and they’re terrifying, and everyone will hate me if they know.”

“No, Logan, your fangs aren’t horrible or scary. Actually, I think they look pretty flippin sweet.”

“R-really?” Logan sniffed, looking up at Thomas with watery eyes. Thomas gave him a bright, reassuring smile and nodded. Logan’s own mouth melted into a tiny grin, which caused Thomas to smile even wider.

“Now, do you wanna take a break? We could watch Big Hero 6 or something,” Thomas offered. Logan let out a small nod, and Thomas smiled before pulling him to his feet and heading down into the living room. He was going to have a long talk with Logan later about his insecurities around his teeth, but not now. Now, they had a movie to watch and junk food to eat.

Notes: Thanks for reading, guys! I’ll see you tomorrow! 

[bgmxbbj]

7 Ways to Spend First Year with Your Baby

A week or so after I had my first baby, my friend Susan stopped by -- just in the nick of time: Will had been crying for what felt like hours and nothing I did helped. Susan, who'd just had her second daughter, calmly scooped up my inconsolable newborn and did a sort of combo side-to-side swaying and up-and-down jostling that magically lulled him out of Waa-Waa Land.

I've had three kids since then, and Susan's "mommy jig" has been a lifesaver with every one of them. But I never would have known it if I hadn't let her help me out -- and that's exactly why she, and I, and other moms who've been there want you to remember these seven rules:

1. Asking for help does not make you incompetent.

Precisely the opposite, in fact. Sometimes, there's no other way to get from point A to point B. Even if there is, getting there alone can take twice as long and make you crazy.

Kim Ganier of Huntington Beach, California, was always a self-sufficient person -- until her first baby, Laci (now 3), was a week old and Ganier found herself doing laundry while "someone else was sitting in my glider and cuddling my baby. The lightbulb went on," she says. After that, visitors were put to work so Ganier could enjoy Laci. Her advice now: Speak up, be specific about what you need, and say yes when offered help of any kind. "You'll feel guilty at first, but you'll get over it," she says.

It'll be easier if you remember that someday you will reciprocate -- if not to the particular mom who helped you out, then to another. Several months ago, I was having dinner out with my kids when the mom at the next table asked if I had an extra diaper. I happily handed one over. Sure enough, not long after that, I discovered I'd forgotten to bring a clean swim diaper to the pool and had to go begging from lounge chair to lounge chair for a spare. A better-prepared mom than I saved the day.

So never let guilt or embarrassment or even your ego get in the way of accepting help. Improvising a diaper is a lot harder than returning a favor.

2. Babies don't need as much new stuff as you think.

They seem to outgrow everything from stretchies to bassinets overnight, so why stock up? "I wish someone had told me not to buy cutesy, expensive clothes for my newborn," says Kristine Shuler, mom of 3-year-old Kaylee in Baroda, Michigan. "Little did I know she would spend most of the time in T-shirts from Target. She didn't wear half the clothes I bought!"

There are two lessons here: First, take your time when deciding what you'll really need. Do a little research, make a list, and stick with it.  book is a great resource for teasing out what to buy and what to skip, by the way.) Second, as tempting as it is to buy everything fresh and new and adorable for your first baby -- resist. Some items, like swings and bouncy seats, are used for such short periods of time that they never see much wear and tear. Can you borrow from a friend? If not, check out

Marilyn Sklar swears by a children's resale store in her town. "When my daughter, Raquel, was born, I started buying gently used clothes from there. Later, I brought in some of Raquel's clothing and took an in-store credit to purchase more," says the mom of two in Phoenix. "Now I recycle that way whenever possible. We're saving money and being green!"

3. Getting a baby to sleep is worth the trouble.

This is a matter of basic maternal math: baby zzz's = mommy zzz's. Veteran moms will tell you that figuring out, early on, how to get your baby to go to sleep, stay asleep, and take regular naps is key to getting through that entire first year. "Being sleep-deprived is a fact of life, but the sooner you get sleep figured out, the better," says Michelle Wilkins, a mom of three in Blacksburg, Virginia.

For Theresa Cole, mom of Ethan, 5, and Jordan, 1, in Kansas City, Missouri, the trick is to get your newborn used to falling asleep on his own: "Think twice about feeding your baby to put him to sleep. He's a clean slate, waiting to learn how to do things. If you teach him he can only drift off with a boob or bottle in his mouth, that's the only way he will -- even at two in the morning. And, seriously, who wants to deal with that every night for the next couple of years?"Follow more to check african congo mask 

I'm a firm believer in consistency. When my third baby was 9 months old and not taking decent naps during the day, I came up with some new routines. I stopped letting him catnap in the car while I ran errands, and planned outings around his naptime, to make sure he could go down in his crib. I also turned his room into a sleep haven (blackout shades, white-noise machine). Pretty soon he was napping twice a day, and snoozing better at night, too. To keep daytime noise to a minimum, Jamie Pearson, mom of Avery, 7, and Max, 5, in Palo Alto, California, adds this tip: "Make a diplomatic front-door sign that says, 'Baby napping. Please visit us another time.' "

4. Competitive parenting: not cool.

Of course you already know that babies develop at their own pace. And of course you know there's more to your baby than when he hits milestones. But when it seems like every kid in the playgroup except yours is sitting up or saying "Mama," it can take all your willpower to act like you just don't care.

It's totally understandable to compare. But for the sake of your sanity, it's worth trying to stop. "I made the conscious decision to believe the experts who said that the spectrum of normalcy was wide," says Susie Sonneborn Blim, a mom of three in Montclair, New Jersey. "I also stopped hanging out with moms who were constantly boasting about or obsessing over their babies' milestones, because that played a huge part in how caught up I got with comparing my baby to other babies."

Pearson had a similar tactic: "When Avery wasn't the first -- or second, or third -- baby in my mothers' group to crawl, I told myself that the impatient, intense, irritable babies were always the early crawlers and walkers," she says. "I kept these theories to myself, of course!" If you're truly worried that your baby is falling behind, bring it up with your pediatrician. She should be your go-to expert when it comes to your child's health and development -- not the bragging, pitying other moms.

5. You and your baby don't have to be joined at the hip.

Experts say: Being touched, held, carried, and cuddled is vital to a baby's development. Moms answer back: There's nothing more delicious than touching, holding, carrying, and cuddling a baby -- to a point. When it's clear that you and/or your baby need a break from each other, take it. This is especially true when your infant's wailing or your pre-toddler's whining is about to push you over the edge. Hand her to Daddy or send out an SOS to a friend or relative.

If there's no one you can call on for help, take a tip from Christine Klepacz, a mom of two in Bethesda, Maryland. "When your baby is crying and you could burst into tears yourself, or when you're just overwhelmed, it's okay to put her in her crib for a while and sit by yourself. She's safe, and sometimes she needs time away from you, too. It's okay. We all do it!"

It's equally important to carve out time for yourself regularly -- not just when you're about to go off the deep end. If there's one thing Jennifer Geddes, a Parenting staffer and mom of two girls, learned during the first year, it's that "you have to take a few minutes for yourself here and there. It's essential to being a happy and healthy mom. I was so concerned with attending to my daughter's needs that I neglected my own. I barely ate, slept, or left the house," she says.

If you're thinking, "Yeah, right -- I can barely get a shower," wait: It's doable. You just have to plan ahead, be creative, and adjust your definition of what constitutes a relaxing break. Where, prebaby, you were used to spur-of-the-moment shopping sprees or on- a-whim workouts, you might find, like Marilyn Sklar, that your idea of a good time now is "a glass of wine and a good book after the children are in bed." Or a brisk walk in the morning before they get up. Me, I swear by weekend matinees. I can get a lot of regenerative mileage out of two hours by myself in a cozy, dark theater with a bag of popcorn, lost in a great story onscreen.

6. The best baby stage is the one you're in.

"They grow up so fast." The reason you'll hear this from everyone and her grandmother: It's true. Kim Lavergne of Nashville, mom of 2-year-old Justin, remembers feeling like time was crawling after he was born. "In reality, the days go by so fast that the next thing you know, your child is no longer a baby," she says. "I've learned to cherish and enjoy the time I spend with Justin."

Charlene Kochensparger of Centerville, Ohio, who has a daughter and a son, seconds that. "First-time parents tend to wish the time away -- 'I can't wait for her to crawl, walk, talk' -- and not enjoy the moment," she says.

The time slipped away from Loretta Sehlmeyer of Dix Hills, New York, because she was so focused on being a perfect parent to her son, Christian, now 4. "I fretted so much over caring for him that I missed the entire experience. I honestly didn't notice that my baby was growing and changing a little bit each day. I spent a lot of time looking at him, but I was way too distracted to actually see him," she says.

"So take some time each day, real time, to hold your baby and do nothing else but use your senses to connect with him. Smell his sweetness, and look at those tiny fingers and toes and amazing little nose."

7. There's no one else like you.

Only a handful of babycare rules are written in stone (specifically, those having to do with health and safety -- like, you really should always put a baby to sleep on his back). Most everything else is up for interpretation. "It's great to read up, solicit opinions, and listen respectfully to advice you haven't asked for," says Michelle Wilkins. "But you know your baby and yourself best. You'll know when an idea resonates."

Adds Chantel Fry, mom of Dylan, 3, and Madalyn, 7 months, in Pittsburgh: "You're going to be different than the next mom. Not better, not worse -- because you do the best you can, and if at the end of the day your child has laughed, and is clean and fed, you can go to sleep knowing that you did what is expected of you." No matter how you did those things, exactly, you can be proud that you're inventing your own special way of being a mom.

[vandergelic-blog]

rfa + minor trio- middle of the night, can't find mc, find her doing whatever. (stargazing on the roof, baking, just random little things that could be cute?) ps thank u for giving vanderwood the love they deserve, i love my baby sm too

Vanderwood deserves all the love.

Zen:

While Zen was at rehearsals, you stayed home. He always didn’t come back until late, leaving you to eat dinner alone.

You sat on the couch eating your food, watching the news. Just to see that he was involved in yet another scandal with one of his coworkers on the new musical he was starring it. They shared romantic roles with each other.

A sigh involuntarily left you. He told you not to pay any attention to it, because literally none of that stuff was true. But…you couldn’t help it sometimes. Jealousy and doubt are natural things to feel when you see your significant other be associated with someone else.

When Zen got home, it was pretty late. You cuddled with him as he ate and listened to him speak about his day, you staying mostly quiet with the thoughts of doubt still in your head. He assumed you were tired then you both went off to bed.

It was a little past midnight when you crept out of your guy’s shared bed, careful not to disturb him, and went up to the roof. The place he took you when you first visited his home and where he confessed his love to you.

You sat cross legged and looked up at the starry night sky.

Zen was beautiful and so talented. He had thousands of people who admired him and could get anyone he wanted. He was one of those bright stars in the sky, and you? Well..you were just one of those people who were only worthy of watching him from down below. How could he have ever chosen someone like you?

Tears began to form in your eyes, until you felt a presence standing behind you, causing you to whip your body around as you were greeted with Zen’s face with a tired expression plastered over it. A balled up fist went to rub at one of his tired eyes.

“Jagiya? Is everything okay? It’s so late…what are you doing up here? Come back to bed.”

You turned yourself back around and stayed quiet, just as you did earlier. Moments later, he settled down next to you and he yawned, leaning his head against your shoulder.

“What’s wrong? Tell me. You’ve been silent all night, I miss your voice.”

You told him softly and subtly how neglected you felt, how worried you were that he would leave you for someone else or that the media would ruin your guy’s relationship. 

He immediately sat up and stared over at you. He used his fingers to gently turn your face towards him.

“Baby, you’re all I want. All I need. You don’t give yourself enough credit. You’re way more amazing than you think. You may not see it, but trust me I do and so many more people do. Why would I want anyone else when I already have the most breath taking person right in front of me? You’re my entire world, Jagiya. Now, shall we go back to bed?”

Yoosung: 

Of all the times you played LOL with Yoosung, you didn’t horribly lose only once. But. You still lost.

His other friend’s online would constantly laugh at how bad you were, and honestly Yoosung thought it was pretty humorous too. You’d all laugh, but Yoosung would always have your back and tell them to stop, even though it wasn’t that deep. He’s just very protective over you okay.

You told him that you were going to bed while he was up studying one night and he simply nodded his head, as you went into your bedroom, sneaking your laptop in with you.

Once you got snuggled up in bed, you immediately turned it on and signed into LOL. You were determined to get better so you could play harder missions with your boyfriend!

A few hours passed…along with many epic fails and deaths. You were sure you the only thing you’ve improved on is running away from the boss. At least you could dodge, slightly better. I mean. you noticed you were getting blown up significantly less.

Suddenly, Yoosung walked into the room, stretching his arms out and letting out a big yawn. When he saw you were still awake, expecting you to be asleep, he tilted his head at you in confusion. 

“What are you doing up?”

“Uh…..nothing….”

“But, you’re clearly doing something.”

“I’m not doing anything.”

“Then why is my laptop in front of you?”

“…i was sleeping and it just showed up, i don’t know how it got here.” 

“…..really?….”

“yes, really.”

Yoosung crawled in bed and you tried to hide the laptop in your chest.

“GIVE ME THE LAPTOP!”

“NO!”

“IT’S MINe GIVE ME IT I BOUGHT IT”

“sEVEN GAVE IT TO Y OU”

This boy was A LOT stronger than he put himself off to be. He ended up snatching it away from you, ignoring your loud whining and protests in the background.

He looked at the screen just to see your death count.

You died a whopping 47 times in the last two hours you’ve been playing. 

“Oh my god..” *cue loud snorting laughter*

“YOOSUNGGGG I WAS JUST TRYING TO GET BETTER FOR YOU!”

You huffed, did the cutest pout he had ever seen in his life, before plopping down in bed and pulling the covers over you.

He eventually quieted down and pushed the laptop to the side, pulling your body over to him.

“You’re so cute, MC. You don’t have to get any better, you’re already the best you can be!”

“Really?..You don’t care if I die a lot?”

“As long as you don’t die in real life, I’m good. Besides, I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone suck die so many times in LOL before. That’s an accomplishment! Along with being the most adorable person to ever exist. Wanna pull an all nighter?” 

Jaehee:

It was yet another long, and painful night of work for Jaehee. 

When she came home, she didn’t really say anything. She just gave you a kiss on your forehead, then pulled you to bed with her, where you two snuggled up with each other for the night. 

You felt so terrible for her, that she was working so hard like this for the both of you. So you decided you would make her lunch to take with her tomorrow! It would be much better than her getting takeout.

You lied there and pretended to be asleep for awhile, until you were sure that she was fast asleep herself. Jaehee was actually a pretty light sleeper, but she was so tired, you were sure that you didn’t wake her up when you crawled out of bed.

You immediately got to work in the kitchen, quietly and stealthily as you put together a bento box for her. You decided to bake her some cookies as well!

It occurred to you that you weren’t as quiet as you thought, as you heard a voice speak your name from behind you as you mixing some cookie batter together. 

“Why are you cooking?..So late? Should I have brought some food home when I left work?”

“Oh…no! Jaehee, I was just making you food to take with you tomorrow. I want to make sure you’re eating healthy and taking care of yourself since you always take care of me..”

Her tired, baggy eyes went wide and blinked a few times before she gave you the sweetest smile. 

“Thank you…No one has ever thought of me like that before. I appreciate it. But, I would much rather be in bed with you right now.” 

She walked up to you and pressed a kiss to your lips, causing you to smile. 

“How about you finish this up tomorrow? You can bring it to the office and we can both eat together during our break. How does that sound?”

Jumin:

It was a Sunday night. Jumin had a meeting the next morning so you both went to bed early.

The night went along peacefully, he held you close to his chest with an arm draped around your waist as you two slept. You awoke to the sound of meowing in the other room. It was no other than Elizabeth, but you never heard her meow this late before, nor was it this frantic.

You rose up and slipped out of bed, careful not to disturb Jumin and tip toed into the living room.

Elizabeth was curled up on the couch, asleep, but she was whimpering and meowing aloud. It appeared she was having a nightmare and your heart sunk.

You settled down on the couch and gently shook her awake. Her blue irises opened up and stared at you, you could see the fear and sadness in them.

Elizabeth had such a good life, you wondered what she could’ve been dreaming about. 

You scooped the cat up into your arms and held her gently to her chest, much like how Jumin did when consoling you, and your head rested lightly on top of hers.

You rocked steadily side to side as you sang her a soft lullaby and stroked the fur on her back, she emitted soft purrs as you continued.

“MC?”

You didn’t notice Jumin’s deep voice in the background, as you were falling asleep as well with Elizabeth in your arms. 

He found the sight all too adorable and endearing, a smile spreading across his lips as he inched towards you.

He carried you bridal style in his arms, while you still held Elizabeth. The both of you had already fall back fast asleep.

“Let’s go back to bed, my princesses.”

Seven:

This boy barely ever slept.

But when he does, he really wants you to be snuggled up besides him.

He almost had what seemed like a death grip on you, as he snored softly and was dead asleep.

You really had to pee.

You shook, you shimmied, you wiggled and eventually you were free from his grip, quickly shoving a pillow into your arms to replace yourself, because you knew he would wake up. And you wanted him getting all the sleep he could get. 

You scurried over to the bathroom and relieved yourself. 

You were about to crawl back into bed, until you saw Robo Cat!

Seven mentioned that he had made a new addition to his abilities and you picked up the tiny robot and examined it.

There was a new button on his stomach, and you could see the dots on his ears, implying that they were actually speakers. How cute!

You pressed the button, and kpop began to play. 

You laughed and put down the Robo Cat, and it even began to dance around a little bit.

You found it so adorable and this song was bangin’! You couldn’t help yourself, so you danced around too and sang along. 

As you were enjoying yourself, you didn’t notice Seven standing in the doorway recording you.

“Those are some nice moves you got there, MC!”

“SEVEN NO PLEASE DELETE IT”

“Why would I delete the cutest video to ever exist? I have to share this with others and bless this cruel world!”

Then with a press of a button it was on his instagram, his snapchat story, his twitter, in the RFA chatroom.

youweregoingtokillhim

Before you could even begin to yell at him, he pressed a hard kiss to your lips and demanded Robo Cat to start playing music again. 

“Let’s boogie until the sun comes up my space queen!”

You guys literally danced until the sun came up, trashed the bunker, then passed out in the bathtub.

vandeRWOOD WAS PI S SED

Jihyun (V): 

V had the tendency to take pictures of you when you least expected it. 

It annoyed you and made you pout because you weren’t ready and thought you looked ugly, while V was literally having heart explosions over them. 

But he couldn’t deny, he got some really good memes of your face and used them in the RFA chat.

“When your cacti won’t grow.” *picture of you snarling at sushi at a terrible restaurant u guys had gone to*

“When you have no idea what’s going on.” *picture of you looking hella confused during a RFA meeting*

“The floor is your endless love and compassion for me.” *picture of you tripping onto the sidewalk*

don’tworryhehelpedyouuprightafter

“omg jihyun stop pleasge” 

“When you literally just can’t stop.” *picture of you crying over how cute a ladybug was*

Seven saves a l l of them and joins in.

He literally had a WHOLE album dedicated to memes of your face on his phone.

Little did he know, you were going to get him back.

Jihyun had gone to bed a bit early that night before you, you guys had a movie marathon but you decided to stay up a bit longer. 

When you were sure he was fast asleep, you got his camera from his desk and crept into your guy’s room.

Finally, you were going to get a picture of your own.

You crawled onto the bed and were ready to take a picture until you realized…

s h i t

V literally looks like an angel when he’s asleep. HOW COULD YOU MAKE A MEME OUT OF THIS?

You decided to take a picture anyway and…

s h i t x2

The flash went off.

You were about to quickly scramble off the bed and hide when a hand gently grabbed your wrist.

“What are you doing?” V’s sleepy, deep, baritone voice asked you.

nut

“I…was trying to get a funny picture of your face. Like you do to me. But failed, because you literally look so gorgeous when you sleep.”

His cheeks flushed a dark red and laughed.

“Well…allow me to help you.” He said, then literally made the silliest face that he could (still looking adorable as fUC  K).

Now, you had a V meme to use for yourself.

You both laughed for ten straight minutes at the picture before he kissed you goodnight and you both fell asleep.

The next day when you woke up in the morning, the first thing you sent in the chatroom was

“When people don’t ship you with someone who blinded you then started a religious cult. Also, when your route comes out soon.” *picture of V’s happy face*

nicebreakingthe4thwallmcthat’sseven’sjob

Minor duo below the cut!

Saeran: 

this doesn’t really follow the prompt b/c my brain is so tired and i literally can’t think of anything for him rip.

It was bedtime and you both lied down facing each other.

Saeran was drifting asleep, while you were still pretty awake.

You stroked his hair, and you both occasionally exchanged a peck on the lips.

You began to squish his cheeks and play with his face a little, cooing below your breath.

He was so adorable, you couldn’t help it!

This earned a grunt from the male and he flipped over, facing away from you causing you whine.

He ignored you.

So you poked his side and nuzzled your face into his back. 

“Saerannnnn, come back.”

“Go to sleep.”

“No, turn back here.”

“Go to sleep.”

“But I miss you. I just want to look at your cute face.”

“Go to sleep.”

You huffed and also faced away from him. 

Saeran couldn’t help but feel a tad bit guilty. He groaned before rolling onto his back and yanking you on top of him. 

“My prince! You’ve come back for me!”

He rolled his eyes, a lightly tinted blush spreading across his cheeks and the bridge of his nose.

“Whatever. Just go to sleep..”

You giggled and he draped his arms around your waist, while your face rested on his chest.

Eventually, sleep took over both of you and you rested peacefully like that as the rest of the night droned on.

Vanderwood:

He was always complaining how he had to do all the cleaning and work around the house.

It annoyed you because no one ever said he had to do it and he never asks for help.

And when you try to help, he says you don’t do it right then sends you off.

THEN COMPLAINS

VANDERWOOD YOU’RE SUCH A CONFUSING BABY WHAT THE HE C K.

While getting ready for bed, you listen to him grumble about how messy the house is and you really can’t help but roll your eyes.

You make sure he doesn’t see you do it tho, or…( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

And you can’t have anything holding you back or tiring you out ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°), so you can go forward with your plan!!

So, as soon as you feel that he is asleep, you get out of bed and go into action.

You begin to clean the toilet, the shower, put together the pillows on the couch and fold the laundry. You dust the shelves off and the tv, as well as wiping the coffee table down.

In all honesty, your guy’s place wasn’t even that messy. But of course, Vanderwood was a perfectionist and you wanted him to wake up to dazzling clean home tomorrow.

You were beginning to sweep up in the kitchen until you hear some light footsteps. 

“Why the hell are you cleaning at 2am? Isn’t that my thing?”

“Well…you were so upset about doing all the housework. I felt terrible. So I wanted to surprise you and have a clean home for you to wake up to tomorrow, so you could relax for the rest of the day..”

He wasn’t quite sure of what to say, but he sure felt bad for complaining and making you feel terrible..

He walked up to you, pushing the broom out of your hands and cupping your face.

“Let’s just go to sleep for now. Uh…let’s finish cleaning tomorrow? I see that you already got a lot done…thank you. Let me treat you to breakfast tomorrow, there’s a cute cafe that reminds me of you. I’ve been meaning to take you there. How does that sound, dear?”

I hope this was what you wanted, anon! If there’s any typos let me know cuz I didn’t proofread. I actually never proofread, so I guess it doesn’t matter lmao

Requests are open! I’m closing them soon so get them in!

[jungkookienoona]

The Meme and His Tutor

Part 28: The First Time The Tutor Called Jungkook A Pervert

Co-written with @tragicshadows

Recommended Song: Very Nice by Seventeen

|All Chapters|Masterlist|

Summary:

An awkward dinner date and Jungkook fusses over spilt milk.

Genre: Fluff, comedy

Pairing: Jungkook X Reader (Y/N)

Warnings: Swearing

Word Count:  2986

Length: 28/?

You were sat in front of your mirror doing some final touches to your eye makeup. You weren't much of a fan of it but Jungkook wanted to have a dinner date. So there you were trying to make yourself look a little nicer for 12pm. It was the least you could do since he had followed through on his side of the deal, waking up early to sing you to sleep. The deal had been in place for about 2 weeks at that point.

Looking at yourself in the mirror, you frowned. Maybe your top was a little too low cut. And it appeared to be on the see through side of things. But it would do. It was a Skype dinner date after all.

Your lunch was ready and being kept warm in the kitchen so all you had to do was wait for Jungkook's call.

The Skype notification rang through just as you were running your fingers through your hair so it fell it curls around your face.

You made your way to your kitchen where your laptop was set up. Answering the call you wondered if the screen had frozen as Jungkook seemed to sit unmoving with a hand raised to wave and eyes blown wide.

"Kookie?"

He blinked. Okay...so it wasn't frozen.

"Kookie?!" You said a little louder.

He flinched, dropping his hand as pink began to stain his cheeks.

"Hi, No-ona," He greeted, making you chuckle when his voice cracked.

"Are you okay? I thought you froze on me for a second there."

He cleared his throat, "N-n-noona looks very pretty today... I was awestruck."

You couldn't help the "Really?!" that rushed out of you at his words.

He nodded, "Really! I like the, uh, makeup and your shirt..."

He scratched the back of his neck, eyes downcast as the red in his cheeks deepened.

"Thank you. You look as handsome as always."

He shook his head, "I feel like I've been lazy compared to you. I could've styled my hair the way you like."

"It doesn't matter-"

"It does. I asked you to dinner so I should have made an effort." He glanced off to the side, where you knew his closet was, then back to you. "Can I have five minutes?"

"Kookie-"

"Five minutes!" He pleaded, "I just want to change my shirt and do my hair. I hope you don't mind the sweatpants."

You chuckled, "I'm only going to be seeing your upper half BunBun. Just be comfortable."

He nodded before lowering the screen and disappearing.

Barely a few minutes later he returned in a navy blue shirt and his hair messily parted just the way you liked.

"Sorry! Now we can eat."

You nodded and got out of your seat to grab your pre made lunch. Though it looked more like a dinner meal but he did say it was a dinner date. So you didn't mind having spaghetti for lunch. You would just have a light meal later in the evening. Turning around you found that Jungkook was once again frozen in place.

"Are you okay BunBun? You seem a little off today."

He blinked a few times.

"I-I...uh, I'm fine."

"You sure? If you'd rather we can do this tomorrow."

"N-no, no. Today is perfect." He gave you a smile that was meant to be reassuring but you could see straight through it.

"If you're tired from comeback preparations than we can do this later."

His eyebrows drew together, a killer look thanks to his hair being parted.

"Noona. I'm fine. You're just... You're... wow."

You could feel your lips lift into an involuntary smile as your whole face burned.

"Stop~"

"Pretty Jagi," he mumbled then picked up something off camera. Chopsticks.

You grabbed your fork and gave your lunch a stir.

Brushing your hair behind your ear, you leant forward slightly to help eat the spaghetti with minimal mess. The sound of Jungkook coughing caused you to look up.

"G-G-Geom-eun... (B-b-black)"

You swallowed what you were eating and frowned in concern.

"Are you alright? Did you choke?"

He nodded and pat his chest a couple times.

"It got stuck in my throat." His voice was pitched higher and you paused to make sure he wasn't going to choke again.

He took a sip from a water bottle then picked up his chopsticks and resumed eating.

"What are you eating?"

He paused mid chew, his cheeks puffing out like a hamster's, making you giggle. He quickly finished his mouthful, wiping the edges of his lips with the pad of his thumb.

"Pork cutlet and rice."

"Is it good?" You asked then took another bite of your spaghetti, licking your lips free of sauce.

Despite Jungkook looking like he was listening, the question seemed to fall on deaf ears as he silently watched you.

"Jungkook?"

He jolted, "Huh?"

"Your food. Is it good?"

He nodded slightly but his mind seemed to be elsewhere. You sneaked a glance at the little screen segment that showed you what Jungkook could see. Heat pooled in your cheeks when you saw that he had a perfect view down your top when you leant forward. Which meant he could see your bra.

Your black bra.

You looked back to Jungkook and wondered why you hadn't noticed the way his eyes flickered from your face to your chest every few seconds. Maybe you were becoming even more oblivious to things.

"Make sure to eat up. You need lots of energy."

He gave you a thumbs up with his free hand while filling his cheeks with rice.

You waited until he had a mouthful to lean forward and continue eating. And just like you expected, his gaze dropped.

You snapped upright, "Pervert!"

His eyes blew as wide as his dinner plate having been caught. He stopped chewing and met your gaze, cheeks and ears an even brighter red than before. He hurriedly swallowed.

"I'm not a pervert!"

"I can see you peeking down my top."

He seemingly froze once again.

You purposely crossed your arms knowing it enhanced your cleavage. It was barely a second but you definitely saw his eyes drop.

"You did it again!"

He pouted, "It's not my fault! Your bra is my favourite colour and it looks really good on you!"

You went to argue back but were thrown off by the compliment.

"My white one was in the wash," You mumbled, not knowing how else to respond.

"Oh..."

There was a beat of awkward silence. He ran a hand through his hair and you had another mouthful of spaghetti. He had been taking a sip of... milk?... but ended up spraying it everywhere when you felt your top get snagged on the table, pulling it down slightly. He wiped the remnants of his drink from his face before quickly cleaning the table. Once done, his free hand went under the table.

You glanced back to the tiny as window on your screen so you could sort your top out then quickly took another bite. If you kept talking it was going to get cold.

"Ah, shit."

Once again, you looked up to make sure he was okay.

"Everything alright there Kookie?"

You noticed that his arm was moving, his hand was doing something under the table.

"I spilt m-m-milk on my nice shirt. I-I-I'm trying to g-g-get it off."

"Milk should be pretty easy to wash out if it's cotton. Silk or satin would be more difficult."

He grunted in agreement and gave up on saving his shirt in favour of using his other hand to grab his chopsticks. He fumbled with them for a second before finally pinching a piece of pork.

You suddenly glanced over your shoulder and remembered the juice you'd left in the fridge. You were feeling a bit thirsty.

Getting out of your seat, you opened your fridge and grabbed a carton of juice. Remembering that your glasses were in the bottom cupboard next to the fridge, you bent down and grabbed one.

A low groan of "Fuck~" came from Jungkook.

"Kookie, you can wash it out. Don't worry about a bit of milk." You said, stealing a quick glance at the screen and seeing him still working to clean it.

He hummed in answer and you sighed. During your visits to Korea you'd learned how he liked to keep himself and his clothes clean. Maybe he really liked that shirt.

With your drink poured, you sat back at the table.

"Were you this bad when Taehyung got ketchup on your white shirt?"

He nodded a yes, eyebrows furrowing as he groaned in frustration.

"You should eat up, BunBun or you'll be eating late and you have to sleep."

He whimpered with a pout and you chuckled before slurping up a healthy spoonful of spaghetti. You needed to hurry and eat yourself or you'd have to reheat it and every one knows reheated pasta isn't as yummy.

You watched as he set aside his chopsticks to re-angle his laptop so that you couldn't see his free hand try to continue to rub out the stain. He picked up a fork instead, seemingly trying to shovel as much food into his mouth as possible. A moan slipped out when he bit into a pork cutlet slice.

You twirled one of your last mouthfuls of spaghetti onto your fork and looked up to watch him.

He was chewing a mouthful and almost panting as he ate. When you said for him to hurry you didn't mean to make him rush and get out of breath.

"Don't eat too fast. You'll give yourself indigestion."

You watched with a curious gaze as he put his fork down and sat back for a break as he chewed. His lips quirked upwards and then he was pointing behind you.

"Noona, what's that?"

You turned with a frown. Your fridge? Was that what he was pointing at? Or maybe your rice maker. Turning back to him, you went to ask him what he was pointing at. But your words caught in your throat when you saw him with his head thrown back, panting and a trickle of sweat beading down his forehead. Even his jawline was on show. Fuck. You sure as hell were lucky because he was beautiful.

He slowly straightened up to look at you, eyes hooded and dark.

"BunBun?"

You heard the sound of ripping and then he was dabbing at his forehead with a wad of tissue.

"Sorry, Jagi. I think someone accidentally turned the heat on."

Your eyes followed a drop run down his neck.

"N-no need to apologize."

He tossed the tissue into the rubbish bin, you remembered being beside his desk, then shifted in his seat, stretching his arms over his head and letting out a deep sigh.

"I think I'm full. Was your spaghetti nice Jagi? It looked yummy."

"It was good! but it'll will never be as good as proper Italian food."

He hummed and dropped his hands to his lap, "Have you ever been to Italy?"

You fiddled with the hem of your top out of awkwardness, "...No... I really want to go someday. See Venice before it sinks."

He smiled, lips spreading wide enough to reveal his dimple, "I'd like to visit Venice too. It looks beautiful."

"Maybe... when I'm done with uni and have a job... we could go together someday..." You mumbled, looking down, somewhat afraid of his reaction.

A heavy silence hung between you two and you started to panic. Had you been too forward?

"That sounds like a plan."

Your head snapped up to find him gazing softly back at you, a small smile lingering on his lips. His hand came up to fiddle with his hair, still smiling, before looking down at his lap and grimacing, making you laugh.

"Trust you to be a meme during a sweet moment."

He chuckled but you didn't fail to notice the light pink dusting his cheeks.

"I thought I was always a meme?"

"You are, but that face you just pulled was particularly memey."

He smirked, "Yeah? Well you're a meme too."

You shrugged.

"I've known for a long time that I'm a derp. In fact I am the self-proclaimed King of Derp."

He broke out into a full belly laugh, throwing his head back against his seat.

"Does that make me your Queen?"

You clapped your hands excitedly, "My Queen of Memes!"

He chuckled, running a hand through his hair, "Traditionally it's the other way round."

With a pout you crossed your arms.

"Fuck tradition."

His eyes crinkled at the corners and suddenly he was slamming a hand down on his desk making his chopsticks rattle against the plate.

"Then fuck tradition! If Noona wants to be a King she can be a King."

"Damn right!" You shouted back before bursting into giggles.

You took a quick sip of your juice.

"And I shall be your beautiful Queen, burdened with the duty of producing an heir, or heirs, to the throne."

And promptly sprayed it everywhere.

Children?! The sound of Jungkook's boyish laugh filled your ears yet you couldn't find it in you to join in.

Swiping a hand across your chin you grimaced at the liquid that dribbled down your laptop screen. Gross.

"Ah, I-I wish I had t-t-that on film-m." He said between giggles, oblivious to your obvious distress.

Finding some tissues, you cleaned up the mess you made. How does someone even respond to that? Exactly what was he implying? There's no way he could've have children on his mind that early into your relationship.

"You can't just say things like that, Kookie!"

He cocked his head in confusion, "Say what? Children?"

"Ye. You may give people the wrong idea, especially now that you're in a relationship."

He remained looking confused.

"If you mention children around cameras or online then the media might pick up on it."

A look of realisation came over his face, "Oh..."

"Maybe just wait a little while before you make jokes about that."

He bit his lip, "How long do I have to wait before I can say I'm the future mother of the Prince of Derp?"

"Uh... maybe later in the relationship-"

"At six months then."

Your brows shot into your hairline.

"I'm too young to be a father!"

He started to laugh, though it sounded more like a cackle.

"A king is never too young."

"I think you've gone delirious. You should go to bed."

He squinted at his screen then pouted, "It's not even that late. A Queen can stay up however long she likes."

You crossed your arms over your chest, smirking when he narrowed his eyes, determined not to glance at your chest.

"Your King is telling you to sleep. Don't you have a schedule tomorrow?"

"...Maybe..."

You sighed, "BunBun~"

"I don't have to leave until 10 in the morning and I want to talk to my girlfriend who I miss so much some more."

As much as you wanted to continue talking to him, you desperately wanted to avoid the subject of children. It was way too soon. You bit your lip in thought, you needed to distract him from talking about it again... The album!

"How's preparing for your new album coming along? Have you come up with a release date yet? It feels like you've been working on it for ever."

He beamed at you, "We're going to start figuring out concepts soon!”

"That's cool! Have you finished recording now?"

"Pretty much. I'm really excited for you to listen, Jagi. I wish I could share some of it with you but it's not allowed."

You nodded, "Fair enough. But I want to listen to your album at the same time as other ARMY."

He nodded, "Once a fangirl always a fangirl."

"Indeed."

You smiled and reached up to grab a little Jungkook acrylic standee from your shelf.  He chuckled when you pretended to kiss it's head. It ended in a sigh, his head tilted and eyes lingering on you with an unreadable look.

"I can't wait to kiss you again."

Your heart fluttered in your chest. The longer the two of you were apart the harder it was to ignore the pang of longing that echoed through you. Even listening to him sing made you miss every part of him from his voice groggily wishing you a good morning to the feeling of his hand in yours. Fuck. Long distance was hard.

"You should visit me here then."

Another sigh.

"I wish I could."

Your stomach dropped. He fiddled with a chopstick.

"You know if I didn't have all these commitments then I would be on the next flight to England."

You nodded, "I know."

A part of you hoped he was joking and that the top secret surprise he refused to tell you about was that he was coming to visit. Despite what he said you wouldn't stop believing in the theory until it was proved wrong.

Conversation continued until Jungkook yawned.

"Why don't you get into bed and I'll sing you to sleep?"

He responded with a tired nod then looked down at his lap, grimacing.

"Let me get changed first."

You washed your dirty dishes while you waited for him, and when he still wasn't back after a few minutes you took your laptop and the remainder of your juice with you into the living room where you could sit comfortably.

He called your name, dragging your attention away from your phone.

"Sorry, I had to put some laundry on...you know, my shirt...and the milk."

"Don't worry, it should come out."

He gave a non-committal hum and carried his laptop over to his bed. The lights were already off apart from his desk one and he slipped between the sheets with a sigh.

"I love you, Noona."

"I love you too, BunBun."

[ifuckinglovetatum]

Happy Birthday, @pngpotpies ! I hope it’s a good one!✨

So, I’ve been working on this klance one-shot. It’s not finished, but I wanted to post for you! It does have a good stopping point, so as soon as I finish this, I’ll post the rest.

I don’t use ao3 much, so it’s posted right here. But I will post it on ao3 if preferred! Either way, I hope you like it! (I know I’m not the best writer, and I can get a bit ooc)

summary: After a horrible break up, Lance plans to mope around his apartment for as long as possible. But plans change when Keith takes him out for his birthday.

word count: 3,400

rating: general audiences

warnings: some cursing

fandom: Voltron: Legendary Defender

relationship(s): Keith/Lance, (past — mentioned) Lance/Nyma

It had been two weeks since Lance had gotten his heart broken by Nyma. She had dumped him two weeks before his birthday, and nothing could make him better.

Since then, he’d been moping in his apartment. Nothing was getting done and he only ever left his home to go to work. He hadn’t showered in two weeks, but managed to mask it with cologne. He had done nothing but sleep and eat.

Honestly, the only reason he was still a decent human was because his friends had been coming to help out. Since his break up, Pidge and Hunk had come over every day. Hunk would cook meals for Lance and do his laundry. Pidge, most times unwillingly, would clean the apartment. They were at least going to do the bare minimum to help Lance. They wanted him to get better, but he wasn’t going to If his friends were doing everything.

Pidge had called him a zombie, and Hunk, although he agreed, had scolded her for saying such things at a time like this.

“Lance, you have to get out of bed! I know it’s your day off, but Hunk made special birthday pancakes!” Pidge had her hand on Lance’s shoulder, shaking him so he would wake up. She had given up on shaking gently, so by now, she was just pushing him.

“I’ll be down in a minute…” Lance mumbled. As much as he loved Hunk’s birthday pancakes, he wanted to sleep in.

“You said that ten minutes ago!” Pidge groaned. She checked the time on her phone. “Come on, man. Hunk and I have to leave in about an hour. Please get up?”

Lance sighed. Another reason as to why he didn’t want to get up. His friends had work on his birthday, so sadly, they couldn’t spend the day with him. He groaned, throwing the covers off of him. He lay on his back, glancing at Pidge before sitting up.

“Do you guys really have to go?” He asked, pouting.

“You told us you didn’t want to ruin the day by keeping us here only to watch you mope,” Pidge reminded. She pushed up her glasses. “So we didn’t call in to ask for the day off.”

“Fiiiine. I’ll be down in a moment, for real this time.”

“I’m trusting you, but I swear to god if I have to come in here again, Lance, I’m–“

“Leave! I promise I’ll be out!” Lance grabbed his pillow and threw it at Pidge. In return, the girl used all her force to throw it back at Lance, then rushing out the door before he could throw it back.

He huffed, staring at the door for a couple seconds before actually getting out of bed. Ever since his break up with Nyma, he had been dreading today. Mostly because he had things planned for the two of them to do.

Hunk ate yet another pancake, sighing. “I worry for him sometimes.”

“I think we all do. I wonder how he managed to get his own place and be financially stable enough to keep it,” Pidge agreed. She stuffed her mouth with pancake. “I thought he’d spend his cash on lots of useless shit.”

“You shouldn’t talk with your mouth full,” Hunk reminded her. He watched as she tried to eat the pancake she had stuffed in her mouth. Inevitably, she failed and ended up coughing it out.

“That’s disgusting.”

The two friends looked up to see who had joined them. Of course, Lance was the only other person in he apartment, so it was no surprise when they saw him. Okay, maybe it was a surprise, they expected him to take longer.

“Finally, I thought I was gonna have to leave for work without seeing you once this morning.” Hunk stood from his seat, walking over to his best friend and hugging him. “Happy birthday dude.”

Lance smiled, hugging his friend. “Thanks, for the pancakes too.”

“Happy day of birth to you,” Pidge yelled. She grinned when Lance rolled his eyes and stuck his tongue out at her. She returned the gesture. “Are ya gonna eat those or can I?”

“I’m definitely going to eat them. There’s no way in hell I’m letting you have my birthday breakfast,” Lance replied. He and Hunk went to join Pidge at the table.

As they ate, Lance went on about how upsetting it was that both his friends had work. They simply told him to stop complaining and to visit them at work. Of course, Lance agreed to visit them at some point during the day. At least that would get Lance out of the house.

It was twenty minutes before his friends had to go, that Lance’s phone made noise. He took it from his back pocket, a smile quickly forming when he noticed what it was.

Keith: Hey, just wanted to say happy birthday. Any plans today, or can we make some? :)

“Ooo, did your boyfriend text you?” Pidge teased. She smirked when Lance gained some pink to his cheeks.

“He’s not my boyfriend,” Lance tried to defend himself. As much as he didn’t want to admit it, he did find Keith to be rather attractive. Although the mullet was horrendous, Lance had begun to think that Keith was making it work. Besides, how was Lance not supposed to have a teeny tiny crush on a guy who will wake up around one in the morning to listen to Lance rant.

“Keep telling yourself that. What does he need?” Pidge asked. As much as she wanted to tease her friend, she decided to be simple. He was talking to someone other than her and Hunk for the first time in two weeks.

“Did he remember that it’s your birthday?” Hunk added. He was pretty sure that Keith knew when Lance’s birthday was, but it’d been a while since he saw the guy.

“Yeah, he did. He asked me if I have any plans for the day, or if we could make some,” Lance sheepishly admitted. He liked Nyma a lot, and he enjoyed dating her, but he could never get rid of the magical feeling he got when talking to Keith.

“Tell him you’re free!” Pidge stood up fast enough for the chair to be pushed back roughly. It would have fallen down if Hunk hadn’t grabbed it in time.

“Yeah, man! We’re about to go, so you should totally make plans with him,” Hunk agreed. He stood as well, piling his plate along with Pidge’s and Lance’s. He moved them into the sink, hoping that Lance could be somewhat productive and clean them later.

“Alright, alright! I will, but it’s not a date.” Lance glared at Pidge who smirked.

“What if he wants it to be a date?” Pidge couldn’t help but tease. When Lance had first met Keith, he couldn’t stop talking about him. It had gone on for weeks until Lance had begun dating Nyma.

“You never know, maybe he likes you back,” Hunk suggests. He gives Lance a pat on the back, and a side hug before going over to Pidge.

“Will you two leave already? I don’t need to be teased any more.” Lance bites back a smile, not wanting to give away the hope he had that his friends were right.

“Whatever you say. Hope you have a good one, Lance,” Pidge called out. She had already walked to the door, letting herself out. Behind her followed Hunk, who wished Lance a happy birthday once again.

As soon as the door was closed, Lance leaned against it and pulled out his phone. He opened the text from Keith, and quickly replied.

(9:39) Hey! I’m free all day, so I’m all yours. What did you have in mind?

(9:40) Also, do I sense a bit of a flirtatious vibe in ur question bc u can’t just say something like that without being flirty ;)

Even though Lance knew Keith was gay, he found it to be risky to flirt with the guy. He feared that Keith would just shrug it off or that he had someone else in mind. This was something Lance found himself thinking about a lot. He always wondered if his friend was in a relationship. As far as he knew, Keith was single. But it had been at least two months since he last saw Keith in person, and things can change quickly.

Lance was saved from his thoughts when he received a text.

(9:44) Kind of hoped that you would have had something in mind. But how about the mall? We can stay there for a while and then I can take you to dinner if that’s not too much

(9:44) Interpret the question however you want, I don’t mind either way

Lance’s face flushed a bright pink as he read the messages. Keith had to be kidding, right? He couldn’t just flirt, then say he’ll take Lance to the mall and dinner, all while allowing Lance to believe that he was flirting.

It took him a couple seconds to get himself together again. It’s been a while since someone wanted to spend the entire day with him.

(9:45) Too much? If anything, that’s not enough for someone like me

(9:45) I deserve to be pampered to the fullest

Feeling a bit more confident in texting Keith, Lance started walking to his room. If he was going to go out, he obviously had to look nice. He just didn’t know how nice he had to look. He’d just have to search through his things, he’ll probably find something worth wearing. By now, he was extremely glad that Hunk has done his laundry.

(9:46) Yeah, yeah, you’ll get your pampering

Lance felt his face heat up for the third (or forth) time this morning. He pressed the back arrow at the top of the conversation, going to his other ones. He was going to open the one he had with Hunk when he read the snippet from Nyma’s (who was the third conversation).

Nyma <3: Lance, we need to talk, I kn…

He remembered that conversation all too well. He was ready to start the day, go out with his girlfriend and have fun. But then the received the text, and instead of texting back, he had called her. Their argument ended with a not-so-happy Lance, and a more-than-satisfied Nyma.

Lance closed his eyes, taking a couple seconds before he opened them again. He swiped the conversation to the right, and pressed delete. He also left himself a mental note to delete her number later on.

(9:57) It’s a surprise that you still haven’t said anything back

(9:57) I actually thought you were going to start flirting or something, like always

That last one struck him a bit. He didn’t always resolve to flirting, right? He wasn’t some sort of fuck boy, right? To himself, he wasn’t one. He saw himself as a good guy. That’s what he was, right?

(9:58) Nah I’m just getting ready so I look good for our date ;)

Wait, shit, that was flirty. How do you delete a text from both phones by only using one? Lance took a deep breath, mentally slapping himself.

He decided to ignore it. Instead of reading the new text he received, he decided to go into the bathroom to shower. It had been two weeks, he hated to admit. Lance was big on hygiene, but he was a mess after Nyma.

Unintentionally, he took a bit longer than twenty minutes to shower. He didn’t mean to, no, but he was glad he did. It was very well needed after two weeks.

Then it took him another thirty minutes to actually get ready. Apparently when he has plans with Keith, he wants to look his best, and nothing less. So he dressed in red skinny jeans (he won’t admit he bought these just because Keith’s favorite color is red), and a gray T-shirt with the words “birthday king” in blue. It was a birthday gift from Pidge last year because she didn’t know what else to get him.

Feeling ready to go, Lance finally grabbed his phone. He had a text from almost an hour ago.

(10:00) Better not take long, though. I’m heading to your place so we can go from there

“Shit,” Lance cursed, hoping that Keith had not made it yet. He couldn’t be here yet, right? I mean, the dude lived downtown which meant that he has to take the train when visiting Lance (and vice versa). He quickly typed a reply, and grabbed his wallet before rushing to his small living room.

As soon as he entered the room, he screamed. He held a hand to his chest. “What the fuck, man?”

On his slightly worn out couch, sat Keith. He looked up from his phone to stare back at Lance. “What?”

“What are you doing here? How did you even get in?” Lance asked. He took a deep breath and slightly laughed. He watched Keith pull out his keys, holding a single one up for Lance to see.

“With the key you gave me last year,” he answered. He stood up and put away his keys, also putting his phone in his back pocket. “Why did you even take so long? It’s just me.”

That’s the point, it’s just you. The guy, even if I’m dating someone, that can make my knees weak and my heart pound, Lance thought to himself. But to Keith, he rolled his eyes. “It’s my birthday, I need to look luxurious.”

Keith chuckled, shaking his head the slightest bit. “It’s not like you need an hour to do that.”

Lance gulped, feeling his face heat up once again. He wasn’t used to being flirted with, mostly because he was always the one that was flirting. But when it came down to Keith, someone who Lance hasn’t seen in months, he always responded. Keith always said something back, it was as if he was trying to lead Lance into believing that he had a chance. But not once in a million years, did Lance believe that he had a chance with Keith.

“Doesn’t matter, we should get going. You know it’s pretty selfish to be keeping someone as gorgeous as myself all to yourself, Keith,” Lance teased. He stuck his tongue out in a playful manner. He was expecting Keith to ignore his comment and roll his eyes.

But Keith only smiled, taking a step closer to Lance. “Well, I’ll have you know that I’m a pretty selfish person.”

It had taken almost another thirty minutes for Lance and Keith to begin driving to the mall. It was only because Lance couldn’t decide on a radio station to play. Keith had only sat back at watch as Lance went through every single one. Eventually, Lance just turned down all the volume and began the drive.

It was quiet at first, but then Keith brought up a “good” point. He shifted in his seat, turning to face Lance a bit more. “Hey, can I ask you something?”

“You just did,” Lance joked. He snuck a glance at Keith, in time to see the all too well-known eye roll. “What is it?”

“Not that I mind, but why did you call this a date? I mean, aren’t you dating Nyma? So this would be considered cheating, wouldn’t it be?” Keith stared at Lance, feeling the sudden tension between them.

“You said a question, not three,” Lance reminded Keith. But nonetheless, he took a deep breath before answering. “Nyma And I broke up, so it wouldn’t be considering cheating. Besides, the date thing, was a…joke.”

There was a moment of silence between the two.

“What about you? You obviously gotta be single to go along with the date joke.” Lance’s frown was replaced by a smirk. He glanced over to see Keith roll his eyes once again.

“So what if I’m single? It’s not like there’s anyone I really like, anyway.”

Without another word, Lance pulled up in the parking lot. It was full near the doors, so Lance ended up parking a little bit farther. When he was parked, he leaned back in his seat.

“Hey birthday boy, let’s go,” Keith insisted. He reached out a put a hand on Lance’s shoulder. Lance smiled, and he ended up getting out of the car before Keith.

“I invite you to the mall and you leave me behind, how cruel,” Keith called out after him. He picked up his pace until he was by Lance’s side.

“It’s my birthday, I’m allowed to be excited enough to go ahead,” Lance reminds the other man. “Hey, it’s my turn to ask you something. So, why are talking to me all of a sudden after two months?”

Keith rolled his eyes as if that was the stupidest question he’s ever heard. “It’s not like I wanted to stop talking to you for that long. I went out of the country to visit someone and didn’t come back until recently.”

“Oh,” was all Lance could manage. He had spent the first half of the two months going on about how Keith was abandoning him. He felt like an idiot.

The two had walked into the mall in silence, but Lance immediately grabbed Keith’s hand. He led him past the crowd to the front of a clothes store. While Lance looked to the side, Keith stared into the store.

“You want to go clothes shopping first?” Keith asked him, looking over at Lance.

“What? No. It’s Subway,” Lance pointed out. He had Keith look to the side of the store, where there in fact was a Subway.

“Let’s eat later. If we eat now, you’ll be complaining later and I don’t really need that,” Keith insisted. Lance pouted, tugging on Keith’s wrist like a lost child trying to get attention.

“Please? We can share a foot long, yes?” Lance grabbed Keith’s other hand as well, intertwining their fingers. He could feel himself blushing and was pretty sure that Keith was too. “Then we can go a store that you want to go to. Well take as long as you want. Promise.”

Keith stared down at the ground, attempting to avoid Lance’s gaze. But unfortunately for Keith, he was weak when it came to Lance’s pout. Since he learned about it, he’s been wanting to be like Pidge and Hunk, who were able to handle the pout and say no.

So he sighed, taking defeat because he knew he stood no chance. With a happy squeal from Lance, Keith was dragged into the small Subway. The one thing that kept Keith from trying to stop Lance was he fact that he was holding hands with Lance.

“Okay, so do you want to share a foot long, or we each get a six inch? I don’t mind either way,” Lance asked. He turn around to face Keith, who had trailed behind a bit. “Keith?”

“The…the one foot is fine.” Keith’s face was completely red, and he tried to pass it off by saying that it was hot.

Lance didn’t believe him for a second, but he didn’t press things because he was hungry. Hunk’s pancakes were amazing, but he still had room in hi stomach for more. So after asking Keith what he wanted on the sandwich, he ordered. It only took a couple minutes before they had their sandwich and two medium cups. Keith, of course, paid for it all.

They were seated at a table for two in the middle of the place. They had their respective cups and sandwich half. The two of them were also blushing because the young lady at the counter wished them a good date. But this wasn’t a date.

Right?

They spent around thirty minutes in Subway before they left to actually go shopping. As Lance had promised, they went to a store that was of Keith’s interests. Oddly enough, Lance also found it interesting. Maybe it was because the clothes were cute. Or maybe it was because he thought Keith would look good in the cute clothes. Or maybe it was how fascinating Keith looked when he was looking at things he liked.

One way or another, Lance liked the shop because of Keith.

[jessejackreyes]

Before It's Too Late Ch5: A Night's Rest

I posted this on ao3 a while ago, but I did not do it here. So here it is. __________________ The mission took nine days. Everything went smoothly, even if it took a little longer than he had hoped. Despite the ease of the mission, they were the longest days of his entire life. His thoughts were never on their goal, never on their target. It's honestly a wonder they were even successful when all he could think about was getting back to Jack. It took every ounce of willpower he had not to rush to the man’s office the moment the ship touched down. Instead he walked to the kitchens. It was early evening, he had made it in time for dinner. He was exhausted and filthy, but he would be damned if he couldn't do this for Jack. Jesse wandered in a few minutes after he had started preparing, shocked to see him. “Welcome back boss,” He drawled as soon as he overcame the shock. “Shouldn't you be cleanin yourself up?” “Later,” Nothing was going to keep him from Jack this evening and bringing him food was the only way he ever got to see him. He was shipping out again very soon, even as early as tomorrow depending on when their Intel paid off. This evening might be the only chance he got to see the man before he was gone again for who knows how long. “I can do this for ya boss. Been doing it since ya left,” Jesse insisted, trying to shoo the commander out of the kitchen. “Has he been eating what you bring him?” Gabriel asked instead, brushing the younger man off. “Yessir. He was surprised the first time, but I apologized for causing trouble and he didn't try to kill me or nothin’,” “He's mad at me not you kid. He's never been one to blame people for other people's actions,” Jesse watched him as he worked quickly on the meal he was preparing for the strike commander. “I'm going to go out on a limb and say this is about more than just being his friend,” The stare that Jesse received from his commander could freeze the blood of a lesser man’s veins. But, this situation was getting out of control and he was not going to let Gabriel do something stupid again if the strike commander meant so much to him. “I'll take that as a yes,” The glare fell away and Reyes merely sighed, turning his attention back to the food. “Get out of here Jesse,” His voice was tired and lacked the commanding presence it normally managed and the young agent made no move to obey. “He seems more depressed than angry jefe. I would suggest talkin’ to him about whatever this is between you,” The young cowboy walked off before Gabriel could argue with him, leaving him to finish cooking in peace. Jack’s door unlocked the moment he knocked on it and he let himself in with his meal for the evening. Jack looked like he hadn't slept in days. It was probably true too. Ever since they went through the SEP Jack has had the incredible ability to work for several days at a time with no sleep. It made him testy, but he had been able to keep watch for days at a time during the crisis while the others would need to sleep. It had been extremely helpful back then. Now he used it to keep up with all of the work he had to do. Jack looked up at him as he laid the food out on his desk, staring through tired eyes. His face hurt to look at, those bright blue eyes lost the wonderful shine that he had fallen in love with, not that he had ever admitted it. Instead they seemed dull, almost lifeless as they watched him rather than falling immediately on the food as he had gotten used to. “You're back,” It was not really a question. “Yeah. Just pulled In a bit ago,” He responded weakly, unable to tear his eyes away from the man affording him attention without seeming angry for once. “You look like shit,” Jack’s voice was tired, not angry or insulting. “I'm fine,” “Sit down,” He commanded. Gabriel hesitated before taking the seat across from the strike commander. They sat in silence for a moment. “You came straight here?” Gabriel didn't actually respond, there was no need. “You look hungry. Eat,” He probably should have declined, but he was tired and hungry and the thought of sharing a meal with Jack was too good to pass up, even if he hadn't made enough food for the both of them. The silence stretched on as they ate together slowly. Gabriel had a million things he wanted to say, wanted to tell Jack, but no matter how hard he tried he could not will his body to speak. All he could do was whatever Jack said and wait for something else to break first. He cursed his cowardice, his weakness. He had made food for Jack and now he was eating part of it because he was too pathetic to decline to eat with the man because at least this way he could pretend that Jack didn't hate him. He could pretend that things were like they were before this promotion, before he screwed everything up. “That was delicious Gabriel,” Jack mumbled as they finished eating. His heart was beating quickly and he needed to get out of there because he couldn't suppress the smile that the small compliment had elicited from him. It was another tiny sign that maybe he could fix this. He had to will himself to stay. He couldn't let his pride get in the way again, couldn't let it ruin his chances. “You should get some sleep Jack,” He offered softly, trying not to sound like he was lecturing the man. The blonde tensed momentarily and Gabriel was worried that he had misstepped again, but instead Jack just sighed. “Can't sleep.” “You have to try,” An apology came as quickly as the words had left his mouth. “I'm sorry,” Gabriel averted his gaze. He did not want to see Jack glaring at him again. “I'm not trying to nag,” He added quickly. “I just remember what it was like when you did this during the crisis and I'm worried,” “It's not like people even let me sleep,” Jack replied instead of biting his head off. “They will right now,” Jack looked skeptical of such a claim. “Trust me,” Gabriel hadn't hesitated to ask for Jack’s trust. Years ago those words would have been enough to get him to do just about anything, but that was in the past now. Gabriel, instead, got to watch the strike commander hesitate and consider what to do. He knew Jack didn't trust him anymore, but seeing it directly still hurt. “Okay,” It was practically a whisper and took a long time to be said, but the agreement to trust Gabriel had his spirit soaring. Even after everything Jack was willing to give him a chance. “Great,” Gabriel exclaimed, not even bothering to try to hide the good mood he was now in. “You get to bed and I'll handle the rest,” It took way longer than reasonable to get Jack actually in his quarters to get some well deserved rest, but Gabriel was immediately on his new mission. “Athena I need you to hold all of the strike commander’s calls until further notice,” He called out to the AI. “Commander Reyes, I do not believe I need to inform you that you do not have the authority to do that,” The AI informed him calmly. “No, but I am willing to go to extreme lengths to help Jack get some sleep. It would simply be easier and less destructive if you helped me instead of me making sure it was actually impossible for anyone to call him,” Gabriel informed her casually. “I will be forced to inform the strike commander of what you requested,” “That's fine. As long as it's after he wakes up and no one disturbs his sleep I don't care,” “Very well. I am choosing to trust your intentions. However, I must inform you that I can intercept only digital interruptions. You must handle anyone attempting to bother him physically,” “Don't worry I've got that covered,” Gabriel stalked off to find himself some help. He found McCree head in back inside, probably from a smoke break. “McCree!” The kid jumped to attention comically fast, not that Gabriel had time to appreciate it. “I got a job for you,” “What d’ya need boss,” He drawled, definitely curious. “People keep bothering the strike commander while he sleeps and it's starting to piss me off,” Jesse gulped at his commander’s tone. That was not a mood anyone wanted commander Reyes to be in. “I want you to grab some of the gang and run interference around his quarters. No one gets in to see him, I don't care if the director himself shows up,” “Okay but boss, what if,” He tried to ask before being interrupted. “If anyone has a problem you send them to me and they can tell me in person why they think they can keep him from sleeping for the first time in a week,” The kid nods rapidly. “I will make sure to have a nice long visit with anyone who wakes him up and I will not be happy,” Jesse clearly gets the point. “Yessir!” He shouts before running off. “Oh and Jesse,” The commander calls after the kid. “If Ana shows up just tell her what you're doing. She should approve. You don't want to piss her off,” Gabriel doesn't have time to consider what his men are going to think of this change of heart. All they needed to do is help Jack sleep for the next twelve hours or so. He needed to figure out a solution to people keeping Jack awake while he was gone too, but at least he should get one nights rest.