#extra points if you can name the movie i was thinking of when i wrote that last scene

[justawritterwithideas]

law in pink | s.r

♡ next part ♡

summary: when the BAU needs an extra helping hand, Washington decides to send the best of the best, but what they didn't expect was to see... pink.

warnings: a bit of stereotypes, beyond that a bit of comedy and fluff. there may be mistakes in writing because I wrote it too fast :(

this story is spencer reid (season 7) x ssa elle woods!reader

words: 1,649 words.

a/n: elle woods from legally blonde comes to my mind constantly because is one of my favorite movies, so I wanted to make a mix called "ssa elle woods"; I hope you like it and you can understand the idea of reader as elle woods, I also hope I didn't portray it wrong and that it will be misunderstood T T

The BAU needed a hand with the rising crime wave, so, straight from Washington they sent the best of the best from their office.

And of course Penelope had to investigate.

According to her research, you had graduated from Harvard with honors and had given the honorary alumni speech at your class graduation. In addition, you were a part-time Harvard professor of Political Theory during the fall and part of a prolific group of researchers in your Washington office, which had the highest rate of successfully resolved cases in the last 5 years.

In addition, you had achieved on your LSAT a score of 179 out of 180 points.

Something inside Penelope reminded her a little of her friend, Spencer Reid, in you.

But what she didn't expect to see when she looked you up on the interwebs was the fashionista and family friendly life you had. The way your apartment was decorated with a pretty pink aesthetic, your outfits videos that reached millions of views and your day to day routines were the mantra of many girls, being all perfectly edited.

With that and more, anyone would think that your job was not to be a federal agent, but an influencer.

Penelope was already smelling perfume from her computer, and that made her more than eager to meet you.

It was seeing one just like her in front of her screen.

You were the perfect candidate to be her new best friend.

The clacking of your heels and the smell of your Chanel perfume filled the entire BAU office, causing the complicit glances of all the workers who were there.

"Have you seen Barbie yet?" "Is the model missing?" "What about her? Maybe she's a lost intern. First-timer problems."

Everyone was making comments you'd heard more than once in some police office, maybe it was the way you dressed didn't go along with the aesthetic they had or how feminine your attire might be, but that's who you were and for a couple of comments about your appearance and the stereotype they had they weren't going to sour your day.

"Excuse me, are you looking for someone?"

You turned to see a tall, dark man, who was watching your outfit from last season's Prada fit you to perfection.

"Oh! Finally someone nice." You commented with a smile. "Yes, I'm looking for Agent Aaron Hotchner."

"He's my boss, would you like help finding his office? I can help you."

"That would be great, thank you very much..."

"Agent Morgan, Derek Morgan."

"It's a pleasure, Agent Derek. I'm Y/N, nice to meet you."

You didn't like to introduce yourself officially as an agent, it made you look rather intimidating if you did, and that was what you didn't want.

It wasn't a long walk to the wooden door which was adorned by a plaque with the name of the person you were looking for.

"This is it, you come for a case? Any family members involved?"

"No, I'm coming to help. Thank you very much, by the way."

You gave him one last smile before knocking on the door, hearing a "pass" from inside.

"Who was the girl you were escorting, Derek?" Emily watched the man reach them, peering curiously inside Hotch's office.

"Her name is Y/N, she said she was coming to help, but... I don't know, she doesn't look like someone coming to help, maybe she's a witness."

Spencer's eyes scanned the situation, trying to conclude who the mystery woman inside his boss's office was about, but coming up with nothing on the spot. Like his friends, they were all searching for an answer to the abiding doubt in his head.

Who exactly was that girl and why had she said that? She didn't seem like a person whose job was an office job, but not one that was very risky either.

But before they could say anything, Aaron came out of the office with his ever-serious face.

"Meeting in 5" was the only thing he announced, so the group took heed and went to the place.

Once inside the office, Penelope found herself with her dear friends, who were trying to figure out the causes of the recent meeting.

"You don't know Pen either, do you?" J.J. was the first to speak.

"No idea, Hotch just asked me to be here."

"Just like everyone else." Rossi replied, settling around the round table with his coffee cup.

The conversation didn't last long when Hotch entered the boardroom.

"Good. I know there's no case yet or apparent reason to get them together first thing." Hotch began. "But as you may know, the last couple of months have seen an increase in crime for the BAU, which is exactly why we've been given extra funding to bring an extra agent onto the team."

Sounds of excitement came from everyone's mouths.

"So I've been contacting old colleagues, who recommended the best of the best. So they've transferred an agent from Washington to help us."

"Boy, they must be desperate." Derek's comment drew a few chuckles.

"I'd like to introduce you to the SSA, Y/N Woods."

Everyone's countenance changed to one of surprise when they saw you walk in, smiling in the friendliest way possible.

The same girl who looked like a model fresh off a runway was the newest member of the BAU.

"It's nice to meet you all, I hope we can work well together." You set your Prada bag to the side, being able to scan each of the members quickly.

"Woods, this is SSA Emily Prentiss, Derek Morgan, Jennifer Jareau, David Rossi, dr. Spencer Reid and our technical analyst, Penelope Garcia."

"Hey, I know you." You commented in the direction of Garcia, who was smiling politely. "You were the girl who commented on my recipe for the vegetarian tacos."

"Yes! They looked exquisite."

"Thank you very much, I hope they were helpful. We need to be a little more conscientious with our four-legged friends."

Spencer didn't know if he was dazzled by the whiteness of your teeth or the warm way you had entered into trust with Penelope with a simple recipe.

"Woods, Garcia. You'll have time to talk."

"I'm sorry, sir." They both replied at the same time.

"Fine, I'll go prepare the case, Garcia come with me."

They both walked out of the meeting room, leaving you alone with the rest of your new group of colleagues.

"I didn't know you were an agent." Derek was the first to break the silence surrounding them, causing you to turn in his direction.

"I didn't mean to mention it, I'm not a person who usually blurts it out just like that on the first interaction. You never know what kind of person a stranger is." You commented before you could look at him again. "No offense."

"No problem."

"From Washington, right?" Your gaze went to the blonde, who was watching from her position with a warm smile.

"That's right, even though I'm from California but I moved to Massachusetts after getting into Harvard, and then to Washington when I got an opening in the federal office there. So I'm from here, there and over there, but I'll always be a California gurl." A chuckle came out of your mouth after making a reference to the Katy Perry song, bringing your hands to your sides.

"Harvard? What did you study?" Spencer looked more and more interested.

"Law." You commented offhandedly. "I actually studied Fashion Merchandising at UCLA with a 4.0 GPA. But I wanted to prove myself and decided to get into Harvard Law."

"Switching from Fashion Merchandising at UCLA to Harvard Law is a big jump, how much did you get on your entrance exam?" Rossi asked.

"179."

Everyone's surprised face made an impression on you.

"What, like it's hard?" your eyelashes fluttered softly, before you remembered what you were holding as a "peace offering". "By the way, I made cookies yesterday for being the first day and making a good impression." Your hands went to your bag, pulling out a heart-shaped tupperware. "They're lavender and butter, it's a recipe I read on a fairly well known blog forum, they say Paris Hilton gets her recipes from there."

You held out the tupper to each of them to take out a cookie, leaving it on the table in case they liked to take out more.

"If they like more, just pull out. There's enough for everyone." A little smile tugged at your mouth. But before you heard any response from either person, the catchy ringtone of Gwen Stefani's "Rich Girl" interrupted any culinary criticism. "Excuse me..." Your hand went for your phone, which didn't surprise others by being pink, and you left the room letting out a "Woods" as you answered.

"This is new." Derek said.

"And delicious." Emily took another bite of her cookie.

"She's different than what we usually know." Rossi looked at the rest, taking a second cookie out of the tupper. "But I don't mind at all, in fact, I think new always comes in good."

"True, it's always good to have someone new and with a different vibe."

The group turned to look at Reid, who was holding the cookie with his right hand. The young man wasn't usually one to blurt out a comment, just like that, least of all referring to a girl.

"Oh kid, you find her attractive." Derek was the first to smile in amusement.

"What, no." The voice in a higher pitched tone than normal was what gave Spencer away.

"Spencer likes Y/N." J.J annoyed, walking out of the office laughing along with Emily.

"That's not true!"

"See ya, lover boy." Derek commented along with Rossi, who was gently patting his shoulder with a knowing smile.

And so it was that Spencer was left in the meeting room with his cheeks as pink as his new co-worker's heels.

♡ next part ♡

If you like it, don't forget to like and repost it.

a lot of love, alme. ❀

[yongislong]

physical insecurities + dreamies.

genre: nct dreams fav insecurities on other people, fluff, angst if u squint and shake, suggestive? nonidol!dreamies but not specified tbh

note: i dont think there are any cws... i thought this would be a cute idea. none of these are things that i think people should be insecure about but rather things ive personally been insecure about and things that other people have mentioned make them insecure if that makes sense haha, lmk what you think, if i wrote something that sounds weird or could be taken the wrong way please let me know, not proofread

mark... stretch marks. thinks stretch marks are so cool, like actually thinks they're so hot. likes to trace them when you both watch a movie together, its so second nature to him. when you told him you didn't like them he was kinda lost. he's like 'what, dude you look like a painting." likes them especially when they're deep/dark but doesn't care where they are, likes them when you have them in places only you and him can see as well since it makes it more personal. heart eyes for you always and isn't corny about it, he makes you feel so hot about yourself deserved. encourages wearing whatever you want regardless of if it shows the marks because he'll always be there to hype you up. also likes that his name is in the name LOL

renjun... noses/side profiles. ADORES big noses and unique side profiles. tells you its a challenge for him to draw because he HAS to perfect you on paper. can't stop looking at you. traces his fingers on your nose all the time and loves when it's cold out and the tip of it gets all pink and reddish hehe. compares you to paintings all the time, its in his nature. once he meets you, he goes on a mission to try and perfect drawing your side profile even before you guys began dating. even going as far as to sit next to you in lectures just to be able to sneak glances at you LOL. nose pecks and boops all the time

jeno... plus sized people. TO ME i feel like plus size people are the joy of his life. hates when you're an adult and people either infantilize or sexualize you for being plus sized because like damn... it gets on his nerves lol. never thought it was that big of a deal other than the fact that he thinks you're a god among humans. just finds you so gorgeous and you're such a beautifully stark contrast from what he looks like, that its such a good balance in a sense of like everyone wants what they cant have, yknow? just loves feeling how smooth/curvy and soft you are??? he's obsessed with everything about you to be honest. never makes you feel fetishized or weird. #1 defender. takes couple pics by standing behind you and placing his palm on your lower stomach YALL KNOW WHAT IM TALKIN ABBTTT

haechan... crooked teeth. OH MY GOD thinks its literally the cutest thing ever. he didn't know you didn't like your smile until he caught on to how much you would cover your face whenever he would make you laugh. he would make it a point one day to tell extra jokes and catch you smiling so he could grip your wrists and pull your hands away from his face. takes this as an opportunity to GUSH about how much he loves the way you look when you smile and how cute your teeth are and how much you remind him of a bunny, or a certain animal hehe. WHEN YOU SMILE INTO KISSES?? he loses his mind. likes to pull up the corners of your lips whenever he's a bit sad because he claims seeing your pearly whites will recharge him haha

jaemin... round faces. GOSH, oh gosh he is obsessed. always pokes your cheeks and runs his thumbs on your cheekbones whenever he holds your face in his hands. likes it when you put on a lot of blush because it excentuates your face shape. LOOVES when you smile and your cheekbones lift up sm and you look so glowy yknow?? cheek pincher and squisher. oh my god i've said this before but he thinks you look so adorable when you wake up all puffy because it makes your cheeks and face 10x more round and soft. likes pulling your cheeks and taking off guard pics with your eyes shut tight, hand reaching for his to make him stop. does that thing where he sucks your cheeks with his mouth LMAOOO. you are his soft angel baby

chenle... acne. it doesn't matter where the acne is, he never minds it or makes you feel bad about it. likes helping you with your skincare and putting cute pimple patches on any marks or blemishes. he has acne too im sure so it's nice to be human, yknow. never understands why its an insecurity to you because he thinks its the least important thing about you. always tells you how having acne never makes you any less pretty. always encourages you to wear tank tops or clothes that may show body acne because he thinks it doesn't matter. and not in a bad way like he would never ever dismiss anything that would upset you, i think he would just try and make it a point that some acne is never gonna change how attractive you are to him. shoulder kisses always

jisung... thick thighs. ON MY SUNG THICK THIGH ADGENDAAA he loves them sm. likes playing with them like silly putty. doesn't matter if you have big thighs but hip dips, wide hips, flat butt, big butt, like he does not care he just loves your lower body in general lol. can get suggestive with it once you get closer in your relationship but also just likes poking and playing with the fat and skin on your upper thighs for funzies. runs his hands on your butt but so genuinely innocently lol. you are his best pillow. likes laying in between them while you do things. head on your stomach with your legs on either side of his head, runs shapes on the outer part of them with his fingers. knows how when he squeezes your legs with rings on, you jump from the cold metal, he thinks its funny lol

[ifearzombies]

The Little ‘I Love Yous’ Part 2

Simeon:

- He gives you little blessings without thinking. Your tea is the perfect temperature. You find the perfect chair to sit in when your feet are tired. Little things to make you smile and you wonder why you’re so blessed; only to remember you are loved by an angel. - He wrote a little short story about your adventures in the Devildom. It’s a children’s book series about a little sheep living with seven black rams and how the sheep helped the seven angry rams be better brothers. There’s little side adventures of the sheep meeting with some doves. You have the signed first edition from ‘Christopher Peugeot’. Levi is still trying to figure out how you got it. - He noticed when you visit PH you have a favorite seat. He’s made a little pillow with your name on it and put it there showing it’s reserved for you.

Solomon:

- He hears about magic spells you’ve seen in games or movies and finds a way to make that a spell you can actually learn. Or tries to. He’s only succeeded on one spell, but the little token he gave you that lets you cast ‘featherfall’ lets you give into a few of your more risky intrusive thoughts. Or it lets you escape the brothers’ arguing if you’re not on the first floor and a window is nearby. - He explained that humans require sunlight to Diavolo so that every other weekend you two can go to the human world and enjoy the sunshine and visit your family up there. - You’re the first to see a new spell or potion or rune he makes. Normally it’d be several of the demons he’s pacted with- but since you’re learning magic too he makes a point to show you the spectacle once it’s perfected.

Barbatos:

- He’s requested a day off of work with Diavolo to spend the day with you. It’s a rare occurrence, and you can’t help but be touched he’d leave Diavolo’s side to be with yours for even a minute let alone a day. - Your favorite meals are on the menu when you and the brothers visit for dinner. And there’s an extra little heart shaped chocolate on your plate that Barbatos will tell everyone he doesn’t know how it got there as he winks at you. - Sometimes you find random notes in your things at RAD. They’re all in the most exquisite calligraphy you’ve ever seen and it’s detailing something nice about you today. Your outfit, the way you did your hair, a kind act he saw. You know who puts these in your things and you treasure each one.

Diavolo-

- He tries every hobby you try with you so that you’re not alone. Plus it teaches him about the human world and how to have the Devildom be more welcoming for when his dream hopefully comes true. - He asks you a lot about the human world and what you like and dislike about it. it. He assures you it’s for his passion project, but when you mention things you like about the human world they somehow end up part of the Devildom (though you are not about to object now that the Devildom has started selling Kinder Eggs) - Kabedons you when only Barbatos is there. And when you blush he playfully asks if he did it right this time. You tell him no just so he’ll do it again later and he knows you’re lying.

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

MC:

- You help Simeon use his computer any time he needs to use it and is too scared he’ll break it. Lots of things are harder to find without use of the internet and he needs to be able to do research for writing and you’re always willing to help. He does credit you with a pen name, but you tell him he doesn’t have to.

- You try Solomon’s cooking. The RARE occasions Luke and Simeon can’t stop him from using the kitchen he always tries to make something for you and you always try it. Even when you’re honest and tell him it’s bad after, he still tries to make things for you and you try it because he smiles wide just because you were willing to try it.

- You occasionally spend a day helping Barbatos with his duties. The first time you decided to do it you went in not knowing how much the butler does but now you wonder how he ever manages to make it one day without falling asleep before noon. The days you offer to help him are his favorite days and you can tell by the smile on his face when you show up in a butler/maid uniform to help.

- Being the heir to the throne is not easy. And for as busy as Lucifer and Barbatos are, you realize Diavolo works the hardest. You ask for a day or two here or there to spend the night with him- not even just for sex. No. You hold him and run a hand through his hair and tell him that it’s OK to rest. You give him a massage and let him rest. There’s been times he’s cried that you never speak of. Times he tells you he worries that his dream will fall apart if Michael and the other angels don’t support this. That you and Solomon and Simeon and Luke will be taken from him if he fails. You tell him it’ll be OK. That you’ll find a way back to him and the others if that happens. You won’t let anyone take him and the others away from you because you love him and the others.

[sanaxo-o]

Be the one (Eric Sohn)

To @deobienthusiast K, from Sana: Hihi K :) I know that we don’t talk much (which is a shame because I think your company would be a great addition to my lonely life) but I really had so much fun writing this for you. Despite not being able to write for Sangyeon and Juyeon (I was thinking about making three different fics but *sigh* time is a bitch). I hope we get closer in the future and that you enjoy this small silly fic I wrote for one and only, Eric Sohn hehe.

Warnings: kissing, drinking, cheating, in a scene Juyeon jokingly implies that readers a bad person, um mentions of balls (don’t ask, just read), reader and Eric act stupid (way to much), mentions of peeing and all (plz don’t judge me yall 😭), PG 13 jokes (yes), reader jokingly says that she is in a relationship with a old man, mentions of doing excessive amount of drinking and drugs, few scenes inspired by TV show Gilmore Girls and a classic movie 10 Things I hate about you, some of it is inspired by Sabrina Carpenters song Santa doesn’t know you like I do.

Genre/trope: angst, fluff, friends to lovers, slow burn, hurt/comfort

Taglist: @cloverdaisies @kimsohn @mosviqu @from-izzy @mars101 @stealanity @deoboyznet

Sana: this actually took everything in me to write 😭. Like I have never in my life ever written slow burn so this was definitely a challenge! A big thanks to @mosviqu @from-izzy (especially izzy for giving me all those correct punctuations and all 😭) and @o-onikix for beta reading this huge ass thing of mine 😭 (also to my irl friend for reading bits and pieces and giving me the confidence)

Word count: 13,785

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“Are you coming to the Christmas party?” You hear Soyeon ask you. Stopping in your tracks in the middle of the hallway, you turn around to face her again as you give out a small sigh at her repetitive question. The answer was going to be the same either way so you don’t understand why she is so persistent on getting you to come to the Christmas party.

“No, I don’t think I am coming to the Christmas party thanks for asking tho.” You say as you give out a small annoyed smile before you continued walking to your next class with Soyeon tailing behind you.

“But why? It’s the last party you will get!” She says once she catches up with you.

“There’s…there’s prom?” You say with your lips pressed in a straight line. Dropping by your locker you pick up a few extra books you needed for the next class.

“Which you will never attend! Come on, it’s gonna be so fun at the party.” She says with a pout resting upon her lips as she shakes your arms back and forth trying to convince you.

“Parties are not my thing. You know it and it’s like any other typical party I have attended in the past. There would be loud music, then of course, alcohol which was sneaked in by others and in every other corner would be people making out. On top of that, no one has asked me out yet.” You tell her before you push her away gently and close your locker with a thud.

“No one is asking you because they’re scared you will reject them like every time.” You hear Soyeon mumble with the small pout still resting upon her lips as she played with her sleeves trying to gain your sympathy which she was miserably failing at.

“Even if I do come I won’t enjoy it.” You point out as a matter of fact.

“What about Eric? He can ask you out!” She suggests totally ignoring the fact that you just said that you won’t enjoy the party either way. But you let out a snort when you register the fact that she just said that Eric could ask you out. At this point it was a normal thing for her, in every other conversation she would always manage to bring up Eric.

She thinks Eric is the perfect boyfriend anyone could ever ask for and from her point of view she says that Eric is totally smitten for you which is most definitely not true because after all you both are just really close friends.

Despite the sweet names he calls you by, holding your hand when it’s cold to warm you up, buying food for you as his treat, the occasional sleepovers at his place on every Friday as you both cuddled together on the same bed and of course the way he’s always looking after you no matter what.

You still remember the day when you had fallen sick and Eric by all means tried his best to manage everything on his own. From taking care of you to helping you complete your notes despite being from different majors.

“Eric? He’s just a friend, nothing more, nothing less.” Saying that you start walking away.

“I beg to differ, every other person thinks that you and Eric are dating!” Soyeon says with a whisper.

“I don’t care what every other person thinks and that’s not even true, I mean yeah I used to have a thing for Eric in the past but I am over it. He already likes someone else I guess…” you say, your voice coming out small.

Giving you a look Soyeon looks at you with a knowing look “Are you sure about that?” She says before stifling a laugh when she sees the glare you throw her way.

“Yes I am sure about that and as I said before Eric already likes some else..” you say with a slight groan at the end.

“What are you talking about? Eric and Yuna broke up months ago and not to say you’re still single. It’s a perfect opportunity!!” Soyeon says with an excited smile now playing upon her lips.

“Nah, Eric and me are better off as friends I’d say.” Saying that you walk away from Soyeon and enter your class.

Taking a seat at the very end of the class, you place your bag and books on the table before you get your headphones out.

Looking out the window you looked at the calm stretched morning, it was like any other day you would have. The professor was blabbing away about something you did not care enough to pay attention to.

You would catch up on it later on anyways but the morning was ruined when the door slammed open and one of your peers, Sunwoo walked in with rage.

Standing right in front of you he leaned down to speak with you, “How could you leave me yesterday night? After the amazing night we had you just storm out in the morning just like that with no other thought in mind?? How could you Y/N!?” Sunwoo screamed loudly as he continued, “I thought we were heading som-” Another uninvited yell cut him off. getting cut off Sunwoo was interrupted with another yell.

“What the hell man? How could you just barge in like that? I told you, Y/N is with me now.” You see Eric say as he approaches you and Sunwoo.

“You stay out of this Eric!” Sunwoo yells at him.

“Why? Just because you cannot have her why blame it on me?”

“You asked for it you little shit!” Sunwoo yells at Eric as he pounces on top of him.

Looking around the room you see everyone whisper things while watching the fight unfold in front of them, and if that was not enough in came Juyeon with a security guard outfit on as he blew the whistle to stop the two of them from fighting.

“All right that’s enough you two!” Juyeon yells as he goes over to both of them and picks them up by their collar before he turns around and looks at you while still having a hold of them. “Y/N you should be ashamed of yourself for toying with boys like this! They used to have pride, they used to have dignity and most of all they used to have balls!” Juyeon yells as he starts dragging both of them to the door before stopping midway “Damn it Y/N, give them back their balls!” Saying the last line all three of them exited the class before laughter began to erupt everywhere.

Looking around you slide down against the chair trying to hide yourself. You knew being friends with them meant having some crazy experiences but never did you ever think that they would do something like this.

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Sitting in the cafeteria with Soyeon, you listened to her babble about something that happened in her class before she stopped talking when Eric approached your table with Sunwoo and Juyeon by his side.

You just observed him take a seat beside you before he grabbed a French fry from your plate. Sighing you just pushed the bowl towards him, suddenly having no appetite.

“I hated the stunt you pulled in the class today. Like no I do not have your balls. Just because you’re the son of a rich man does not mean you do this.” You say with a solemn voice as you drink your cup of coffee.

“Seriously Y/N? Having coffee at lunchtime?” Eric asked with a deadpan expression as he looked at you with confusion totally ignoring about the fact that you were mad at him.

“No, don’t change the subject. I am still talking. I mean who in the right mind would do something like this? It's so humi-” Before you could finish your whole sentence your mouth was stuffed with a bunch of fries in your mouth. Chewing onto them you glared at Eric before you looked away from him.

“Okay, I am sorry I did that. How about I make up for pulling this stunt which was in your language very much absurd and humiliating?” You hear Eric ask you. Stopping yourself from taking any more sips of your now almost empty cup of coffee you gave him a look of suspicion, not believing him yet.

“And how will you do that?” You say with suspicion evident in your voice, you did not even try to hide it.

“I know about a carnival which is happening in my area. How about I take you there? Good enough?” Eric asks with his hand out for a handshake.

“You pay for everything and buy me a soft toy?” You ask with hesitation before you grab his hand and shake it to seal the deal.

“Whatever you say, sweetheart. So I’ll meet you at your place at 4?” He asks before standing up from the bench. Nodding your head you give him a small smile as you wave him goodbye.

“Looks like a date,” you hear Soyeon say once Eric leaves the cafeteria with Sunwoo and Juyeon. Throwing a glare at her you stand and gather your things getting ready to leave for your next class.

“It’s not a date, he’s just making up to me for the stunt he pulled on me today in my class which was by the-”

“Very humiliating and embarrassing. Gee, you said that already Y/N. Say whatever you want but I totally see you two dating in the near future.” She says with an irritatingly knowing voice as she blows a kiss towards your way before she watches your figure walking away.

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Standing outside your house you look at your watch in impatience, it was 4:02 and there was still no sight of Eric. Rather than being mad at him for being late you were rather more concerned about him, what if something happened to him on the way here? Is he alright or what if he had hurt himself really bad leading to him being late?

Your train of thoughts came to a stop when you saw Eric’s car pull up at your driveway. Heaving out a sigh of relief you walk towards his car and take a seat in the passenger seat.

“Why are you so late?” You ask him once you put on your seatbelt and sit comfortably on the seat.

“Only two minutes sweetheart, why so worked up?” Eric says with a chuckle as he gives your head a soft pat with a teasing smile playing on his lips.

“I was worried about you. What if something would have happened to you while coming here? How would I know? You did not even give me a call. Why were you even late?” You ask him again with a frown evident on your lips and your eyebrows raised up in a tense manner.

“Aww, you were worried about me, sweetheart?” He says in a sing-song voice as he starts the car.

“No, I was not. I was worried about the fact that you got in an accident before you took me to the carnival.” You lied to him trying to cover up for yourself, you did not want him to get cocky about this again.

It did not take long for both of you before you reached the carnival. Stopping the car in the parking lot Eric parked the car safely without bumping into anything (which you were surprised at because a normal person would have gotten distracted by your constant yapping unlike Eric who paid attention to every single word you said yet managed to park the car safely).

Getting out of the car and locking it, Eric came and stood by your side as he subtly took a hold of your hand and intertwined his fingers with yours as he started walking towards the entrance without looking at your now red blushing face.

“Where do you want to go first, sweetheart?” You heard Eric ask which snapped you out of your train of thoughts. Looking around the carnival you saw the area for the prize stuffed animals.

Without any thoughts, you started dragging Eric towards the area ignoring his shoutings which were telling you to slow down.

Stopping at the game you looked at Eric before looking back at the stuffed animals, raising your hand you pointed at the animal you wanted “Can you win the penguin stuffed animal for me?” You ask him.

“Um…yeah sure, why not if that’s what you want sweetheart,” Eric says as he takes the arrows given by the worker and looks at the balloons intently.

He had five arrows and five chances to win the toy. To get it he would have to pop three balloons. Observing the balloons, Eric moved his hair out of his eyes as he threw the first dart.

—x—

“Eric, this is your third time. You really don’t have to go to this extent to get me the toy you know? Why don’t we just go to the Ferris wheel hmm?” You ask him tiredly as you shake his arms.

“Shhh I am trying to concentrate here. You know, as they say, third time’s a charm. If I don’t succeed this time, I will leave it okay?” He says as he starts to throw darts again.

And he did it. He did win you the penguin.

“Here, I told you I would get you this so I did. Do you like it sweetheart?” Eric says as he pats your head gently and softly grips your hand again before he starts walking towards a different area.

Nodding your head you stare at the stuffed toy in your hand lovingly and bring it close to your chest giddily as you hug it close to your body tightly “I love it so much! Thank you for winning this for me. I will always keep it close to me.” You exclaim happily.

“I am glad you like it,” Eric says with a sheepish smile spread across his face, glad that you were happy with the prize he won.

“You wanna try that?” You hear Eric’s voice beam with excitement. Looking up you follow his gaze and see the paintballs area. Giving Eric a knowing smile, both of you run towards the place with your hands still intertwined together tightly.

—x—

Looking around the place cautiously you look down at your bag of colour balloons again. Counting the remaining balloons you take a deep breath in when you realise you still have 10 left. That should do for now then.

Your train of thoughts were interrupted when you felt a cold balloon hit your neck. Snapping your head back you notice Eric standing behind you, a white jumper on which now had a bunch of different colours splashed onto it.

His hair was now messy as he held the dirty, balloon-filled bag in his one hand while his other hand had a balloon.

Looking around frantically you hide behind a huge pipe as you grab a balloon and wait for Eric to show up. Taking a peak you immediately throw the balloon in his direction which in return hits him on his stomach.

You saw Eric running towards your direction, picking your pace up,you started running away only to be caught by him in no time.

“Thought you could get away from me sweetheart?” Eric says as he splashes the balloon on top of your head which makes the paint fly everywhere.

“Okay okay, I am done. I don’t have any more left.” You declare with a defeated sigh. Once Eric lets you go, you take a peek at him only to see him look around the place. Taking that as a chance you grab the last balloon you had and hit it on his head which makes his hair dye the colour of the balloon.

Taking his shock manner as a chance you run away from the scene with laughter blaring through your throat and a content smile spread across your face.

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Sitting on the table placed by the food truck, you stabbed your fork into the pasta that Eric had bought for you. Having a big bite you looked around the place, admiring the lively atmosphere, the little happy giggles coming from the kids who were happily spending time with their families.

You later saw Eric walking towards your direction with a box of donuts in one hand while his other held a large iced cup of cold drink.

Reaching your table he placed both of the stuff on the table as he himself took a seat in front of you in exhaustion.

“Here, have some donuts and cold drinks. The line was so long like who the fuck drinks so much liquid at a carnival?” Eric says in annoyance

You look down at the big cup in your hand and then back at Eric as you slowly keep it back on the table “Well…us.” You tell him awkwardly before you grab the cup again and take a sip from it.

Eric stares at you for a moment before he looks at the cup filled with iced coke, “I mean, other than us, why would anyone want to drink liquid? What if they have to pee after drinking so much coke?” He pointed out as he raised his hand to point at a guy behind you who was peeing by the trees.

Looking away immediately, you glare at Eric in disgust and trauma.

“I did not need to see that thank you very much.” You say sarcastically as you take a bite from the donut which was in front of you. “But why would they pee after drinking coke?”

“Why won’t they? It’s liquid sweetheart. Everyone needs to pee after drinking liquids, be it water, alcohol or cold drinks.” He says as he grabs your donut and takes a bite out of it.

“Hey that’s mine! Grab another one.” You say with a scowl on your face as you throw a nasty glare towards Eric.

“But I bought it!” Eric argues back only to sigh in defeat once he realised that he cannot win against you. “Fine fine, you have it.” He says with a roll of his eyes jokingly before he speaks up again. “So do you have any plans for the Christmas break?” He asks before taking a sip of the cold drink.

“Oh, I am gonna be spending some time with my boyfriend!” You beam with happiness, a cheeky smile resting upon your cheeks.

“What…boyfriend?” He asks with confusion all over his face. I mean from what he can remember you had never mentioned anything to him about you finding a partner, so this was a sudden news for him.

“He’s a bit older, has grey hair and a beard, but rest assured he’s like super hot.” You tell him, a smile still playing upon your lips

“Are you serious right now or…?” Eric asks in concern as he places his hands on top of yours, stopping you from eating “Sweetheart please don’t tell me your boyfriends an old creep. Where is he even from?”

“He’s from a city which is colder than it’s here. He came here for his break to spend some time with me. Cute right?” You give Eric a small smile as you grab a donut and take a bite out of it ignoring the concerned glance Eric was throwing your way.

“Are you actually serious about this or you’re just joking with me and pulling my leg again? If you're, I am telling you, this is not a funny sweetheart.” Eric rambled on as his hold on your hands tightened in worry.

“Of course, I am not serious, but do you know who else is old and hot?” You ask him with peak interest as you lean closer to him trying to build up some suspense for him which you were clearly failing at when you saw Eric looking at you with confusion before he muttered out a small ‘what?’

“Santa.” you say with a straight face. You noticed Eric’s lips twitching upwards as he tried to stop himself from letting out a small smile at your silly response.

“Well thank god you were just joking about that old guy thing.” Eric says with relief washed all over his face as he leaned back on the chair with ease.

“But you have to agree, Santa is really hot and sexy. Like have you seen that beard and that thick figure he has? Like damn daddy, have some mercy on me please.” You say to Eric with a straight face, enjoying the reaction he was giving you.

Eric licked his dry lips as he stayed quiet. Not knowing what to say with your ridiculous statement and the unwanted information he just received about what you think about Santa.

“Whatever makes you sleep at night, sweetheart.” Eric says as a small smile lingers on his lips. Man, was he smitten for you?

Yes, yes he was.

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Laying down on your bed you spent the night watching shows. Soyeon lays beside you as she used her phone paying no mind to the ridiculous comments you kept passing to her whenever a character did something insanely stupid or idiotic.

“Oh wait, you never told me how your date went with Eric?” Pausing the show you stared at Soyeon when she beamed at you with such a ridiculous question, a silly smile falling upon her face as she stared at you expectantly waiting for your response.

“What date?” You ask with boredom present in your voice as you stare at the wall, not having the courage to look at Soyeon in the eyes.

“You know! The date with Eric! The carnival!” She says now shaking your arm aggressively as she let out a small whine at your uncooperative ass.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about..” you say in a sing-song voice before you push her away as she dramatically falls off the bed onto the floor.

You heard a gasp leaving her lips, “My butt!” She exclaims.

From the corner of your eyes, you see Soyeon stand up before she grabs your laptop and closes it shut before you can even reply. Grabbing it, she placed it aside on the side table before she slammed her body down on you with force.

“Tell me about your date or else I am not getting up.” She says, her voice coming out muffled since her face was placed onto your shoulder.

“I did not go on a date with Eric first of all! He is just a friend and get off of me! You’re fucking heavy!” You cry out in pain, your voice coming out a bit heavy because of the force Soyeon was putting onto your body, tho half of it was acting she does not have to know about that now, does she?

“Okay okay, whatever you say! Just tell me how your night went with Eric!” Soyeon screams in frustration as she stands up from the floor and looks up at you.

“What do you mean by my night? That sounds so wrong…you make it sound like Eric and I banged together…” you say with a pout as you play with your sleeves acting as if you were shy.

“Well…did you?” She says with suspicion evident on her face and her tone as she squinted her eyes at you while leaning down with her hands on her hips.

“No!” You scream at her as you throw the nearest pillow you caught at her. Throwing a glare in her direction you stay quiet. “Now I don’t feel like telling you about my friendly date with Eric.” You tell her as you show her your tongue and look away from her, sulking.

Hearing you say that, Soyeon groans in frustration as she sits down beside you on the bed again. “Don’t be like this. Tell me please,” she pleads while batting her eyelashes to you, a way to gain your sympathy back.

Groaning at her behaviour you close your eyes with the palms of your hands as a way to protect yourself from the sight in front of you. “Fine! Just stop whatever the fuck that is. It’s making me nauseous geez.” You say with a whine.

Hearing you say that Soyeon immediately stops batting her eyelashes as she sits straight while clearing her throat, “Go on.”

“Well nothing much happened, he won a soft toy for me, played a few games-”

“What kind of games?” Soyeon interrupts you in excitement.

“Paint balls…”

“Aww you guys had a date which was in 10 things I hate about you! So cute!” Soyeon squeals. Looking at her in disbelief and disgust you sigh as you continue what you were saying.

“We then ate, chatted a bit and he dropped me of. That’s it.” You tell her what happened.

“That’s it? No kissing? No nothing?” She says with disappointment in her tone of voice.

“Why would that happen? Come on grow up. Mine and Eric’s love life is way different, and his and my type are also very much different. He likes girls who are much…how do I say it…calm?” You say with a question mark evident on your features.

Soyeon shakes her head in disappointment as she lays down on her back on the bed “When will you both understand about the feelings you guys hold for each other?” Soyeon says mostly to herself but you catch on to it but decide to say nothing on it.

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Sitting at the back of the class you sketch in your notebook as you don’t pay attention to what your classmates are talking about.

Sighing, you look up for a bit and notice Sangyeon entering the classroom, dropping down your pencil on the notebook you wait for Sangyeon to approach you.

Picking up your bag, you keep it aside and wait for Sangyeon to take a seat beside you.

“Hey, what are you doing?” You hear Sangyeon ask you once he reaches your place. Giving him a small smile you look down at your sketchbook and then back up at him

“Nothing, was just sketching. What are you doing here though?” You ask with expectant eyes.

It was not that common for Sangyeon to be in your classes. He was in a different major so it was very uncommon for both of you to cross each other’s paths unless you both met at a party or just in the cafeteria where your other friends would be.

“Are you free this Saturday? Some of us are going out after our afternoon classes. Maybe you could join us?” Sangyeon suggests as he looks into your eyes with expectation

“I don’t know…do we have to bring someone along with us?”

“It’s not necessary, if you want to you can. Eric is bringing this…Yuna girl with him to tag along. You can bring someone if you want. Maybe Soyeon?” Sangyeon gives you a suggestion.

You just stare at him blankly when you hear him say about Eric bringing Yuna with him. You thought they had broken up…but maybe not? It was all just a rumour then, huh?

But what about the time you both spent together that day at the carnival? Was it not a date? Wait of course not, you guys are just friends. That’s it, right? Right?

“He got back together with Yuna?” You question Sangyeon, your voice wavering a bit at the end.

You don’t know why you’re even upset when you hear Sangyeon say this. You should be happy right? Happy for Eric getting back in a relationship with his ex-girlfriend? Happy for his love life at least going somewhere? But you were not happy. Not even a bit.

It’s as if someone had punched you hard in the gut which caused you to stop breathing and you felt like you were gonna faint any moment.

“I…I don’t know. He just said something about him inviting Yuna. I was not paying that much attention. I am sorry but is there something wrong? You don’t look so well right now.” Sangyeon said with concern laced in his voice.

“I am fine, yeah I just…I just need some alone time. I should get going. See you around!” You tell him as you tuck your hair behind your ear and start packing up your stuff.

“Wait! Are you going to come with us on Saturday? You can decline if you don’t want to. It’s alright-” Before Sangyeon could finish his sentence you stopped in your tracks as you turned back around and took a deep breath in before speaking again.

“I will come on Saturday. Don’t worry!” Saying that you rushed out of the classroom to your dorm.

You needed to vent this feeling to someone and there was no other person who could help you other than Soyeon.

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Entering the dorm you looked around the living room for any signs of Soyeon. Calling out her name you heard her voice in the kitchen.

Running towards the kitchen you just stood in front of Soyeon with tear-filled eyes, “I think you were right, So” You say softly as you looked up at the ceiling trying your best not to let your tears flow.

“What are you talking about Y/N? What was I right about? I mean I am always right..” she said in a joking manner but stopped immediately when she saw your tear-stained cheeks.

“I think I do have feelings for my best friend after all…” you say your voice barely above a whisper but Soyeon heard it crystal clear.

“I would have said told you so but looking at your condition, I think I can postpone it.” She says as she walks towards you and holds you in her arms. “Now would you tell me why you’re crying over the fact that you actually do have feelings for Eric? Shouldn’t you be thinking about how to confess to him or something?” She says to you while rubbing your arms to create some kind of warmth and comfort.

“He is…he i…back with Yuna I guess…” you tell her softly as you bury your face in her neck trying to control your uncontrollable sobbing.

“What?? But didn’t he break up with her?” Soyeon asks in shock as she stops rubbing your arms and pulls away from you to take a look at your now red eyes and tear-stained face.

“Well I thought so too but Sangyeon said that he invited Yuna over to the place they’re going on Saturday and I don’t know what to do. What if I lose him? I don’t want that!” You say with panic filling your voice.

“Don’t worry. I won’t let that happen. You and Eric are destined to be together and I know that Yuna is not permanent...I guess. I mean I hope so.” She said as she chuckled nervously while scratching her nape.

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Entering the barbecue place, you immediately noticed your group of friends sitting by a table in a circle. Soyeon decided to tag along with you as she had nothing better to do, I mean better for you.

Reaching the table you noticed that Eric was sitting beside Yuna as they both chatted without even sharing anyone else a glance.

“Oh Y/N! Great, you're here!” You heard Sangyeon beam making you divert your attention to him as you gave him a small smile and took a seat beside him as Soyeon sat beside Sunwoo.

“Yeah me and Soyeon had nothing else to do so thought why not just join you guys.” You say with a small chuckle.

“I am glad. Would you like a drink?” Sangyeon asks as he leans forward to grab a bottle of beer only to be stopped by you.

“No no, it’s okay. I don’t really drink much.” You tell him as you grab his hand so that he doesn’t get the bottle of beer.

“Well if you say so,” Sangyeon says as he pulls back and gets more comfortable beside you.

—x—

The night was still young. Most of the guys were drunk as they sang some songs the whole time while eating.

The whole time you tried your best to not steal glances at Eric but whenever you did, you always saw him chatting with Yuna, and every time you saw that you felt your heart ache in pain. You desired to be there instead of her but that’s not gonna happen, you both are just friends after all.

Looking around the restaurant you started to have trouble breathing. As if you were getting suffocated in there. The place was getting too stuffed for you.

Standing up you excuse yourself from the group as you walk away once you grab your bag and phone.

In the rush of getting yourself out of the place, you failed to notice the pair of eyes which followed your every moment, till he himself stood up and decided to follow you out.

—x—

Sitting down on the footpath with your heels in your hands you stared down at the ground with no thoughts in your mind.

Placing your heels down on the ground, you bring your arms up to cover and warm yourself up by the cold. You were already heartbroken, you wouldn’t want to catch a cold on top of that too knowing he wouldn’t be there to look after you since he is now a taken man.

“Hey,” you hear a voice say behind you. Already knowing that it is none other than Eric you don’t bother enough to look back up at him as you just continue staring ahead of you with no particular thought in mind.

You noticed him take a seat beside you on the footpath by your peripheral vision, you did not even bother enough to say anything back.

“Why are you out here alone? You might catch a cold sweetheart..” Eric says softly before he removes his jacket and places it on top of your shoulders.

Shrugging the jacket off you give it back to him without looking him in the eye. “You don’t have to do this anymore. People might get a wrong idea or something since you’re now back together with Yuna.” You mutter under your breath as you place the jacket on his lap.

“Why are you acting so cold towards me out of nowhere sweetheart?” Eric whispers softly as he tries to hold onto your cold hand only to get pushed away by you.

“Do you not get it? Eric…you’re now back together with Yuna! You cannot act like this with me now. People will think you’re cheating on her or something and I don’t want to be the other woman in a relationship.” You tell him what you had in mind as you take in a deep breath trying not to lash out at him and say something you don’t want to.

“Sweetheart, what me and Yuna have is totally temporary. I like our relationship, I like the fact that you’re my best friend.” You close your eyes in pain when you hear him say that you’re just his best friend. Exactly, nothing more nothing less. Those were also the words you said to Soyeon so why do you loathe these words now? It’s not like the meaning has changed or anything but your feelings surely did.

“That’s the thing Eric, I…” you inhale a deep breath in as you stop yourself from saying what you have been meaning to say. Yes, you liked Eric but ruining your friendship with him just for that is not worth it. Because even if you do get into a relationship with him, which is nearly impossible, what if you both break up? Your friendship and your relationship would be ruined forever.

“Sweetheart, please tell me. Don’t keep your feelings bottled up.” Eric says as he leans forward towards you and brings your body closer to his warmer one as he held your shoulders in a tight grip while giving your forehead light kisses to calm you down.

Just being in his arms at that moment made you break down in front of him. Your eyes immediately turned red, your nose turning a shade of pink as your cheeks started to get stained with your tears.

You saw Eric raising his other hand as he gently wiped your tears away, “Just tell me when you’re ready. I am always here for you.” Eric says softly

Taking a deep breath in you collect yourself together as you lean away from his warm embrace, you immediately feel the cold envelop you making your hands shake from the cold.

“Eric I…I like you. I never thought that I would ever have feelings for you in this way but the more time we spend together, the more my feelings grew. I always denied this feeling whenever Soyeon said anything but when I heard Sangyeon tell me that you’re back together with Yuna…I just felt my stomach drop. I felt hurt all over, I could not breathe properly because that was the time I realised that…that maybe I like you more than a friend. Now I know that we would never get together because of our differences but I just feel like you needed to know about this since well you’re my best friend and I tell you everything. I totally understand if you need some time away from me since this might have been a shock for you but please, don’t break up our friendship.” You say everything you ever wanted to let Eric know. You knew that this was probably a bad decision but you just had to let him know. “I should go now…see you around?”

You were about to get up when you felt a hand grip your wrist stopping you from getting up. Looking down at your wrist you noticed Eric holding onto it.

“Do you really like me?” He says as he leans closer towards you, his hand still gripping your wrist. Nodding a bit, you notice him lean even more closer as he leaves your hand and grabs a hold of your cheeks.

Both of his hands cradles your cheeks as he holds them delicately, staring deep into your eyes his gaze moves down towards your lips before he looks back up at you.

Placing your hand on his chest, you stop him before he manages to kiss you, “You cannot do this. You’re in a relationship with Yuna, it’s…it’s wrong.”

Groaning at your answer Eric goes back to his original place not having the energy to argue at what you said because no matter what, he was not a man who would cheat on a woman to be with another.

He was gonna kiss you because he was not in the right state of mind, right? Not because he might also be having feelings for you? No, he wouldn’t, if he did he would not have been in a relationship with Yuna.

“Oh Y/N! Great, you're here…with Eric?” You hear a voice say behind you. Looking back you notice Sangyeon coming out with a drunk Soyeon leaning on his shoulders.

Giving him a small wave you stand up from the footpath and walk towards him before getting a hold of Soyeon. “Yeah. I was just about to leave, I can take Soyeon back home. You can go back in and enjoy.” You tell him as you give him a soft smile.

“No, let me drop you off. Soyeon is already drunk so I will just drive you back to your dorm. I have my car with me.” Sangyeon says before he starts walking away with Soyeon still in his hold only to stop midway and turn back around to look at Eric. “You might want to go in and check up on your girlfriend Eric. She’s drunk and trying to kiss Sunwoo…” Sangyeon tells Eric with slight disappointment laced in his tone.

Giving Sangyeon a small nod, Eric looks at you with a longing gaze as he watches you walk away with Sangyeon and Soyeon.

Heading back towards the restaurant he opens the door and sighs tiredly when he sees Yuna babbling some incoherent words because of how drunk she is.

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Sitting by the kitchen counter you stare at Soyeon as she drinks the coffee you made for her.

“I am having such a bad headache…” she mumbles as she takes the last sip of the coffee and places the cup down on the table before she diverts her attention to you.

“So…are you gonna tell me about what happened yesterday or?” You breathe out a sigh as you place your head on your palms in agony.

“I confessed to Eric…” you tell her the truth. You could hear her let out a small gasp in surprise as she stood up from her seat and sat down beside you.

“What did he say?” She asks with her hands on your shoulder before she forcefully makes you face her.

“Nothing…but I think he was gonna kiss me if I had not stopped him..” you say with a frown resting upon your lips before you shrug off her hands and gaze at the floor.

“He what??!” Soyeon screams in shock, “You know what Y/N? I cannot look at you being heartbroken like this anymore. Why don’t you go on a date? Maybe that would make you feel better.” Soyeon says as a suggestions

“But I don’t think it would be fair for the other person knowing I still have feelings for someone else…” you tell her.

“It’s just one date. If you don’t like him you don’t have to go again and it’s not a big deal. He’s a friend of my friend so it won’t affect anyone. What do you say?” She asks as she stands up from her place and grabs her phone to make a few quick phone calls.

“If you say so…”

“Well, it’s done then! I will inform my friend to let her friend know about this.” Soyeon tells you with a smile resting on her lips. Returning the smile you look away from her and stare out the window with thoughts flooding your mind.

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Sitting alone in the bar you looked around in discomfort. Maybe coming to a bar alone with a man you just met today really was a bad idea? I mean...you did not know him personally except for the fact that Soyeon was a friend of his friend.

Agreeing to come to this date really made you fall back into this slump you were in. Because your love life was so bad that you had to go to this extent, meet up with a guy you barely knew, only for him to turn out to be this crazy person.

I mean, no one would want to be cramped in a car with 5 men they never met only to smell all the weed and cigarettes they were smoking on your face as they leaned onto you with no care in the world. This would barely even be considered as a date. Because who in their right mind does this on their first date? Does this person even know that this was a date?

Being lost in your thoughts, you failed to notice the now-approaching man, the man Soyeon thought would be good enough for now. I mean you cannot blame her completely because she did not know how he was.

Her friend told her that he was a good guy so Soyeon thought it was a perfect opportunity to match you up with him. Oh boy, Soyeon was gonna have it from you once you reach back home.

“We’re planning on going to the pool which is nearby. Come on, let’s go.” You felt startled when you heard him say that. Because no way in hell would you want to go to some random pool with a bunch of strangers who were high and drunk. You were sooo dreading this night you were in.

“I think I will pass on that. I will just leave now but thanks for the offer, Jonah.” You say with a slight smile as you start gathering your stuff, which is not much considering you only had your sling bag and phone with you.

“Oh let me drop you off…” he did not get to finish his sentence as he trailed off once his attention went back to his group of friends who did not seem to have a sense of reality whatsoever.

“It’s okay. It looks like your friends need you more than me. I will be fine.” You reassure him as you watch him walk out of the bar with his friends without looking back.

Sighing you open your wallet to pay for the beverage you bought for yourself.

“Fuck…,” Standing up from your seat you approach the nearest waitress you say, “Hi, could you tell me where the nearest ATM is?” You ask nervously.

“Oh, it’s a few blocks down, but I wouldn’t recommend walking there alone at night in this area. Many crazy stories about this place you know?” She says that as she walks away with a tray of drinks in her hand.

Sighing deeply, you slump down on your seat again as you stare at the contacts on your phone.

You most definitely did not want to call him knowing he was with his dear, bitchy girlfriend. But you had no option. It’s not like you want to risk your life going out in search of an ATM to take out some money. You had enough adventure today as it was.

You hated yourself for only thinking about him the whole time, the fact that he was the first person to come to your mind when you got yourself in this situation.

Biting on your nails, you nervously clicked on his contact name before putting your phone close to your ear, waiting for him to pick up as you looked around the bar once more.

“Hi, Eric. It's me…are you free right now?” You ask nervously. You tried paying attention to his background noises. So far, you could not hear a sound. The good thing was that you did not hear his annoying girlfriend's voice which made you feel somewhat better.

“Yes, yes I am. Are you in trouble or something?” He replied as you heard some shuffling noises coming from the background as if he was in a hurry.

“Yes, I am stuck in this bar and I have no cash with me and these people don’t accept credit cards and you were the first person who came in my mind to contact. I am so sorry if I am disturbing you.” You kept on rambling on as you felt as if you were a burden to him. I mean…you should be able to take care of yourself, but instead, you were asking your best friend to come pick you up from this unknown place you were stuck in.

And knowing what you two almost did yesterday made this situation all the more awkward for you.

“Don’t worry, sweetheart. Just send me your location, I am already in the car.” You heard Eric say. Ending the call you send him your location as you look around the bar while hugging your body.

—x—

“Eric!” You call out his name once you see him enter the bar.

“Hey, oh god thank god you’re okay. So what happened? What are you doing here?” He asks as he sits down in front of you.

“I feel so stupid, so Soyeon had this friend who knew this guy I was on a somewhat date with. From what Soyeon said the guy was in diapers or something.”

“The boy was in diapers?” Eric asks questionably as he looks at you with furrowed eyebrows.

“No, Soyeon said her friend knew him when he was in diapers but that’s not the point. I thought this date might go well, I might get myself a potential boyfriend, but no! The boy turned out to be a maniac. He was drinking, and smoking and god I hope he did not do drugs and that’s when I realised, that these are the last people I want to spend my last moments on Earth with. Like no what if I die in a car crash with them? I don’t want that and did I tell you how stupid I felt? Because I thought it was going to be a nice date but it turns out he had brought his friends with him and then oh god…” you sigh in frustration as you lay your head on your arms, tired from the events. “And I did not even eat anything since breakfast and I am starving but I have no money. How pathetic can I be?” You say to yourself while you stomp your foot on the ground in agony.

“Uh, I have money. I can pay for the meal, what do you want?” Eric asks softly as he asks for the menu to the waitress passing by.

“Do you want this to go on the tab?” She asks while handing out the menu to Eric. Looking at her in confusion, Eric stares back at you thinking you would know what she was talking about. “Oh, the card is still open. You can still order.” She says with a smile.

Giving Eric a look you look down at the menu. “Put your wallet away. Would you like to start with starters??” You ask Eric as you already start pointing out the dishes you want to have.

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“Whoa, I am full after having all of that.” You announce once both of you are seated in the car. Putting on your seatbelt you stare out the window.

“So um should I drop you off at your dorm?” Eric asks once he starts the car.

Looking back at him, you give him a nod. You knew he wanted to talk about that day again but you also knew about the fact that if he does bring it up, there is a huge possibility that you would have a breakdown.

The whole car ride there was silence. Both of you did not speak a single word to each other. To make the situation less awkward Eric did play the songs on the radio on low volume.

Reaching your dorm, you undo your seatbelt as you stare ahead of you not knowing what to say anymore.

“So um see you around I guess?” You hear Eric says as he breaks the awkward silence. Looking at him, you nod your head as you put your hand on the car door to unlock it only to get stopped in the middle.

“Wait, Y/N! I need to let you know something…” Eric speaks up before you could even leave the car.

You could feel him grab onto your hand as he made you sit back down on the seat.

“I hope you know that I do like you. I know that I said I only look at you as my best friend but…but maybe I feel something more than that? I am still trying to understand my feelings for you completely but please don’t shut me out like this. I don’t think I can ever go on with my life without you.” Eric says as he leans forward towards you and gently places his hand on your cheeks before he looks into your eyes.

“Please don’t leave me like this, sweetheart.” Eric whispers softly. Your gaze unknowingly travels to his lips as you bring your lips closer to his.

Softly placing your lips onto his you start moving them in sync with each other, his chapped lips on your soft ones felt like a perfect pair to you.

Bringing your hands up to his chest you deepen the kiss more, moving your lips in sync you could feel his hands roaming all over your body.

Entangling your hands with his hair you pull on them a bit making Eric open his mouth which gave you an access to enter your tongue in.

You could feel both of your tongue’s fighting each other when you suddenly snapped out of it and pushed Eric away from you.

From the corner of your eyes, you could feel Eric look at you with a hurt gaze but before he could even speak up you had already opened the car door and stepped out of it, “See you around!” You say that in a hurry as you close the door with a small thud and walk away from there to your dorm.

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Closing the main door you slide down with your back against it. Bringing your hand up to your chest you hold it as you take in a few deep breaths.

“Y/N! Are you home?” You heard Soyeon shout from the living room. Not giving her an answer back you just stay on the floor not knowing what to do anymore.

You did not know why you did whatever you did back there. I mean kissing a taken man? That’s not good. Then making out with him? That’s worse.

“Oh god! Y/N! What happened??” You hear Soyeon shout in distress as runs towards you before sitting herself down on the floor with you.

“Did something happen at the date? Oh god, I am so sorry. I should have asked my friend more about that guy before setting you up. Did he turn out to be a total creep and a jerk?” Soyeon rambles off before she helps you take off your coat while you were still on the floor.

“I kissed him..” you tell her with your eyes staring at the wall which was in front of you, “I kissed him Soyeon and he’s…he’s taken. I am horrible…” you say with your voice wavering at the end.

You could feel the tears sliding down your cheeks which you did not bother enough to wipe.

“You kissed Jonah? Why?” Soyeon says in confusion as she takes a seat beside you before bringing her legs close to her chest as she rests her head on her knees and stares at you.

Slowly bringing her hand up she pulls your head towards her as she gently places it on her shoulder.

“I kissed Eric…” you say softly.

“What…but isn’t he?” Soyeon did not bother enough to complete her sentence.

“Exactly! I am so horrible. I cannot believe I let my feelings get the best of me. He practically cheated on Yuna with me…” you say with a crack in your voice. Sniffling, you look at Soyeon with sadness feeling your eyes. “Please don’t leave me just for this. I promise I am not a horrible person.” You cry out before your sobs grew harsher with each second.

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Sitting in the cafeteria alone you kept on playing with your food. It had been days since your last encounter with Eric.

He had not been coming to school ever since you guys kissed in his car, some part of you was glad that he did not attend the school because then that meant you wouldn’t have to face him but the other part of you was rather more worried about him.

All those what if’s returning to your mind, is he hurt, is he sick, did he wrap himself up in some kind of trouble? But your questions were left unanswered.

Sighing, you grab your bag as you start walking away from the cafeteria to the place where Eric’s best friend would most certainly be at.

You had to know if Eric was alright, all you needed to hear from them was that ‘Yes Y/N, Eric is alright. You don’t have to worry too much.’ That would at least make you worry less and not stress over anything.

Reaching the back of the school you see Juyeon and Sunwoo talking with each other as they played some video games on their phone.

Walking towards them, you stand in front of them grabbing their attention “Oh hey Y/N, what makes you come here?” Juyeon asks with his eyes still glued to the screen.

“Nothing, I just wanted to know something. That’s all. Could you stop playing for a moment and pay attention?” You ask both of them, now getting annoyed at their behaviour and lack of attention.

Pausing the game Juyeon and Sunwoo look up at you with a confused face, “What’s up?” Sunwoo says awkwardly. Not knowing how to react to your sudden appearance

“Do you know where Eric is?” You ask them the question straight away. Not having the energy to beat around the bush anymore.

“Ah, did you not call him?” Juyeon says as if it was a normal thing for you. I mean normally it was, but not after you kissed your best friend and then walked away when you got back to your senses knowing that he is taken.

“If I would have called him I wouldn’t have been here now, would I Juyeon?” You say sarcastically as you flick his forehead in irritation and also because of how stupid his question was.

“Ow sorry and to answer your question Eric caught a…a cold a few days back so he was taking a break?” Juyeon says to you. From the way he was talking, it felt as if he himself did not know what he just said.

Looking back at Sunwoo you throw a glare in his direction when you notice him laughing at Juyeon. Seeing you look at him like that he immediately stopped laughing as he looked down at the ground too scared to look you in the eyes.

“Fine then, if that’s what you say so.” Saying that to them you walk away from the place with numerous thoughts floating in your mind.

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The next day when you entered the school hallway with Soyeon by your side, your eyes moved all over the place in search of Eric.

Walking towards your locker with Soyeon you noticed Eric standing by the class door with Juyeon, talking with him.

Handing all your books to Soyeon, you took big steps towards Eric, “Eric! Wait!” You shouted out his name only to get no response in return.

What you did not expect was for him to walk right past you without sparing you a glance. Stopping dead in your tracks you move your body around and stare at Eric’s figure walking away.

You noticed Juyeon turning his head back and looking at you with sympathy as he mouthed out a ‘sorry’ on behalf of Eric you suppose.

Giving him a small nod and a wave, you go towards Soyeon again as you take your books back from her hands, “Let’s go?” You say quietly as you start walking away from the place without letting her speak anything any further.

“I am sorry…” Soyeon says to you softly as he interlocks her hands with yours as she starts walking with you.

Giving her a smile you look down at the ground not knowing what to do anymore.

You knew you messed up when you initiated the kiss first. But did Eric really have to ignore you like that?

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It had been a few days since you last saw Eric again, he has been really irregular at school so confronting him face-to-face was not an option.

You tried everything, you called him, texted him, hell you even went over to his house but there was no answer.

The more time passes, the more worried you’re getting. Is he avoiding you on purpose? Is all of this happening just because of you? All you wanted to do at this point was make everything right but you could not do that. Not with the way Eric was treating you.

Is he now avoiding you on purpose? There were so many thoughts in your mind, so many questions but they remained unanswered.

Groaning in frustration you grab your coat and storm out of the house to go over at Juyeon’s. You were gonna get answers from him today, if he does not give you a proper answer you won’t let him off the hook and that’s for sure.

—x—

Stopping your car in front of his house, you stare at his front door with hesitation filling your body. Should you really be doing this? What if you’re crossing the boundary by doing this? Is this too much? Probably not right? I mean Eric did not break off your friendship with him just yet.

Stepping out of the car you lock it as you take slow, hesitant steps towards Juyeon’s house.

Ringing the doorbell, you wait for him to open the door. Okay, there’s still some time. You can just turn around and leave the place right now. That way you won’t have to confront him about Eric again.

Getting ready to turn around you were stopped by a voice calling out your name, “Y/N! Surprised to see you here…what brings you here tho?” You hear Juyeon ask with surprise laced in his tone of voice.

Looking at him with an awkward smile plastered on your face, you lick your lips thinking of the right words to say to him.

“May I come in first?” You say nervously as you shift your weight from one foot to another.

“Yeah sure, you’re always welcome. Come in…” Juyeon says as he steps aside for you to enter his house.

Removing your coat, Juyeon takes it from your hand and hangs it on the coat hanger as he leads you towards the living room.

“Want some hot chocolate? I was making some for myself…” Juyeon says as he walks towards the kitchen with you tailing behind him.

Taking a seat by the counter you shake your head as a no as you clear your throat, “I am here to speak with you about something that has been bugging me…” you tell him before you stare at his back.

You notice how he stopped pouring the hot chocolate into his cup before he turned around to give you his full attention, “Is this about Eric?” Juyeon asks slowly before he takes a seat in front of you.

Nodding your head you suck in a deep breath, “You see, I have been trying to reach him for days but he isn’t responding to any of my texts or calls. I even went over to his house but there was no answer. I know he is your closest friend and the fact that he shares everything with you so I probably know that you must be having an idea on why he is doing this. Please just tell me…” you say on the verge of tears.

“Y/N I don’t know if I have the right to tell you about what’s happening with Eric right now. Look, I know what you’re going through is really tough but…” juyeon stops talking when he sees the tears coming out of your eyes. “Y/N no…” Juyeon sighs softly as he stands up from his seat and pulls out a chair to sit down beside you.

“We’ve always shared everything, you know? And him just shutting me out like this suddenly pains me. I know I was at fault for kissing him but I regret it immensely right now because I certainly know that I might have ruined his relationship with Yuna. Look, all I want to do right now is just make things right with him. Just tell me where he is and I promise I won’t trouble you again.” You beg to him, sniffing you look at Juyeon with your red eyes and nose.

“If you say so. Eric’s at the hospital, his dad's been severely ill for the past few weeks which has led to him missing out on school and everything. Now I know that I told you this but don’t tell Eric. He did not want you to worry too much about him.” Juyeon says as he stands up and brings you a glass of water.

Getting a hold of the glass you take a few sips as you place the glass down on the counter again. “Thank you so much.” You say as you stand up from your chair, “Are you guys gonna plan something for his birthday tomorrow?” You ask him right before leaving.

Thinking for a bit Juyeon shakes his head as a no “He did not want us to do anything this time. He said he would be too busy tomorrow to even think about that.”

Nodding to his words you grab onto the door handle only to get stopped when Juyeon spoke again “Hey Y/N…”

Turning around you look at Juyeon with a slight frown on your face, “Yeah?”

“Please take care of yourself…” he says softly before giving your back a gentle pat.

Nodding to his words with a small smile on your face you open the door and walk towards your car, now somewhat feeling relieved.

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Standing in front of the hospital you look down at the cake which you had bought just for Eric. You knew that he would be busy looking after his father so the least you could do for now is buy him a cake so he can at least celebrate his birthday today.

Entering the hospital you go to the receptionist. “Hi, I am looking for Eric Sohn, his father was admitted recently.” You tell the woman sitting at the front.

You see her slide down her glasses as she stares at you for a minute or so before she starts flipping through the pages in front of her with no questions asked.

“Mr.Sohn is on the first floor, room number 111 and here’s your visiting ID. Do not lose it.” She says sternly before she goes back to doing her work.

Nodding at her words, you immediately scurry away from there.

Entering the elevator you press on the first floor button as you wait in silence. You did not know what to say to Eric once you met him.

You guys were never this awkward. Even when the first time you both met, the conversation with you both just flowed right.

Never did you ever think you would be in such an awkward position when it came to Eric and this just made you feel worse than you already were.

—x—

Reaching the floor you start walking towards the room Eric’s dad was in.

Standing in front of the door you stare at the scene in front of you through the glass window.

There stood Eric holding his dad's hand in his own hands as he spoke to himself. You could see that he was shaking, probably because of the cold or the fact that he was in fact crying.

Knocking on the door you wait for Eric to look up at you, once he did divert his attention in your direction you could feel yourself forgetting how to breathe when you saw his face.

He looked pale, probably a bit thinner than he used to. He most certainly lost a bit of weight which made you feel like you just hit rock bottom because why were you not with him when he needed someone by his side the most?

Taking a step back, you wait for Eric to collect himself together because obviously, this was a shock for him seeing you here in the flesh after not responding or talking with you for days.

“Sweetheart, what are you doing here?” Eric asks you once he comes out of the room after trying to make himself look presentable enough.

“It’s your birthday, so I brought you a cake.” You say with a smile playing upon your face as raise your hand up to show him the bag which had his favourite cake in it.

“Who told you about me being here?” Eric asks, his voice sounding serious yet it still held that gentleness in him that he always has when talking with you.

“That does not matter. What matters is that I am here for you right now. Please just…just celebrate your birthday with me?” You ask him softly as you walk backwards and sit on the seats which were placed outside. “Look I know you’re in a rough spot right now, but all I ask from you today is for you to spare a few minutes max to max and just celebrate your birthday. I promise I won’t ever trouble you again.” You say the last line with difficulty.

Sighing Eric walks towards you as he sits down beside you. Closing his eyes he makes a wish as he blows out the candles which you had lit for him.

Opening them up, Eric cuts the cake as he feeds you a piece of it.

—x—

Taking a stroll on the rooftop of the hospital, both of you talked with each other about what you have been missing out on.

You kept Eric updated on all the things that have been happening in school since he has been missing out a lot. You told him how Soyeon almost choked Sunwoo because of how annoying he was. In her defence, Sunwoo had no reason to keep on troubling her and in the end, Sunwoo did get what he deserved.

You also promised to keep him updated on all the classes he has been missing out on despite being from different majors, which Eric was immensely grateful for.

Stopping by the railings, you and Eric stared at the night sky, the moon which was now shining brightly as you looked for stars that were covered by the clouds.

“Y/N, I have been meaning to tell you this…” you hear Eric say with a serious voice. Turning your gaze to him you notice him looking at you with no expressions on his face.

“Look, I…I like you sweetheart. I really do. The time we spent apart these past few days, I understood my feelings towards you. But at the moment, I really don’t have the time to commit to a proper relationship yet. I don’t think I have it in me to be in a committed relationship and with everything going on, I don’t know if I can truly give you the proper attention you deserve. I know you like me, I like you too but…now’s not the right time. I don’t even know when my dad will be all better. Hell, I don’t even know if I can still come to school regularly. I am so sorry.” Eric says as a tear rolls down his pale cheek.

Wiping the lone teardrop, you give him a small broken smile as you immediately take a step back, too afraid you would do something you would regret later on.

“Well, at least you told me about this.” You say as you sniffle. Looking up at the dark sky you try to keep your tears in which Eric immediately took a notice of.

“No, no please don’t cry because of me, sweetheart..” Eric says softly as he immediately engulfs your smaller figure in his own warm one as he tries his best to comfort you by keeping your body close to his and hugging you tightly.

Pushing him away gently you take another step back before you give him a shake of your head. “I think it’s best if I leave now…” you say, your voice wavering a bit at the end “Happy Birthday though…” you say with a small smile.

Saying that you immediately walk away from there, not having enough courage or the energy to look Eric in the eye after what he just said.

You knew you should not have kissed him. This is all because of you, and now because of this small mistake, you lost a friendship that you used to value and love so deeply.

Meanwhile all Eric did was watch you walk away from him with tears rolling down his cheeks.

Kneeling down on the ground he brought his knees closer to his chest as he started sobbing, his body shaking violently with each sob leaving his mouth.

All he wanted at that moment was for your arms to be around his body, hug him closely but that was not possible since you were not there with him anymore. He had lost you, forever.

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Entering the dorm, you don’t care enough to inform Soyeon about your arrival. Entering your room you slump down on your bed with a tired sigh leaving your mouth.

You could feel your body giving up, you don't even know what you’re going to do anymore at this point. You did everything you could to make things right but nothing worked.

What if you would have not went over to Juyeon’s house, would things right now be different, maybe even better? Or maybe if you would not have gone over to Eric today, to celebrate his birthday this would not have even happened.

Biting onto your pillow you stop yourself from letting out the sobs you were dying to let out. You knew Soyeon was sleeping right now, you did not want to be a burden to her anymore.

“Y/N? Are you okay babe?” You heard Soyeon’s soft voice speaking through the doorway as she slowly opened the door to your room and let herself in.

“No Y/N…” Soyeon says mostly to herself as she immediately joins you on your bed. Lying down beside you, she hugged your body closer to hers from the back as she patted your head whispering sweet things in your ear, hoping that would calm you down.

“I am so pathetic, So…I just…I wish I could just die right now. I cannot believe I just ruined my friendship with Eric. I…” you could not even get yourself to finish the sentence as you let out harsh sobs, not being able to control them anymore “I ruined everything…” you say as a hiccup leaves your mouth.

“Shh, Y/N if anything Eric is also with you in this. It’s not like the kiss was one-sided. He kissed you back…” Soyeon says as she continues to pat your head.

The entire night, all you could remember was crying your eyes out as you spoke incoherent words to Soyeon. You knew you were gonna have a puffy face and a bad headache tomorrow morning.

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It was the 31st today, the day everyone would be rejoicing since in less than 24 hours it would be the start of a new year, a new chapter of everyone’s life, a new beginning to something beautiful for some people, sour reality for some of them since they were dreading this time of the year since their whole lives.

For you it was no different, you were not in the mood to celebrate with your friends, and you did not have the energy to even leave the comforts of your bed after everything that has been happening in your life.

It was just you, your bed, your laptop with your favourite TV show on loop and the cup of hot coffee that was with you since day one.

“Are you sure you’re just going to be okay to stay here all alone on the new year?” Soyeon asks you as soon as she enters your room. Giving her a nod you wave her goodbye.

—x—

Checking your phone, you frowned in confusion when you saw 20 missed calls by Eric. 20 missed calls? At this time of the day? By Eric? Why would he even call you?

Immediately dialling his number, you wait for him to pick up the call only to get sent off to voicemail.

Getting worried you get out of your bed in a hurry as you grab your car and house keys and head towards the door.

Opening the door you jump back in surprise when you see Eric standing in front of you with his hands placed on his knees as he took deep breaths in while trying to catch his breath.

“Why…why the hell were you…not picking up your calls!?” Eric shouts at you while still trying to catch his breath.

Standing up properly, he wiped his forehead with the back of his hand before he looked you in your eyes, “Are you free?” Eric asks once he his breathing had gone back to normal.

Looking down at the attire you were wearing, you stare back up at Eric with an awkward smile. “Well looking at the fact that I am in my pyjamas I think I am free yeah.” You notice Eric roll his eyes playfully as he enters your house and grabs your coat which was hanging on the coat hanger.

“Wear this. It’s cold outside…” Eric whispers in your ears as he helps you wear the coat.

“Where are we going though?” You ask Eric, noticing the impatience.

“Just start walking will ya?” Eric says as he grabs your hand and intertwines his fingers with yours unknowingly.

—x—

You both had been walking on the twinkling footpath since the last few minutes. The silence had engulfed you both but this time it felt more comfortable rather than awkward.

You looked around the busy streets of the road as everyone was out there celebrating the last day of the year with their loved ones.

Reaching a calmer and quieter street you looked around the place when you noticed that there was no one around and it was just the two of you there.

“Okay sweetheart, what I am about to tell you, just please listen to me before you say anything okay?” You hear Eric say. Turning around to face him you notice Eric taking a seat on the grass as he stares ahead at the scenery which is in front of him. “Come sit.” He says as he pats the place beside him.

Sitting down beside him you screech in surprise when Eric pulls you closer to his body while grabbing onto your waist. “That’s better,” Eric whispered softly before he took a deep breath in.

“I missed you…” he says softly as he straightens out the strands of your hair which were flying around everywhere.

Looking him in the eye you softly respond to him “I missed you too. All I did was think about you since our last encounter and I…I am sorry.” You whisper that, afraid your voice would break if you speak any louder.

“I wanted to tell you something, I just couldn’t get myself to say it out loud because I was afraid something would happen.” You give him a look of encouragement, a sign for him to continue speaking which he caught on immediately.

“I love you Y/N, I knew that when we were away from each other and I was sure of my feelings for you when we had that talk on the rooftop of the hospital. I was just so caught up in the fact that my dad was on the verge of dying I unknowingly pushed you away. I knew I left you in the dark after just disappearing after we had kissed that day in my car and that was no way in hell right but…I was just so much in denial about the fact that I love you more than a friend. I was freaking out over the fact that I might lose you if our relationship does not go well, I was afraid that I would mess it all up when we got together but when we had a talk on my birthday, I realised that you’re the only person I will ever love this much, I just love the way you smile when I make a stupid joke even though it was not funny. I was afraid that if I confessed my feelings we would not be able to spend Christmas together, which we did not because of my stupidity. I missed the time when we would bake the cookies on Christmas Eve, I missed the time when we would wrap the gifts we bought for our friends for the Christmas even though they were utterly ridiculous but most of all, I missed spending time with you sweetheart. I missed hearing your sweet voice, I missed the fact that you were not the first person who wished me a Merry Christmas. I love you Y/N. I truly do and this time, I am ready to commit. Commit for us and for this relationship we would have in the future. Would you take the honours and be my girlfriend?” Eric says as breaks down in tears at the end of the sentence.

Grabbing his cheeks, you make him look up as you lean closer and place your lips on top of his, you could taste the saltiness of his tears but the sweet taste of the lip balm he was wearing.

Smiling in the kiss, you move closer to him as you move your hands towards his neck as you pull him closer towards you. You could feel the slight smile that appeared on his lips.

Being lost in the kiss, you both failed to notice the snow that had started to fall, that was until you saw the small snow that rested on Eric’s nose which made you let out a small giggle.

“What’s so funny sweetheart?” Eric says between the kiss as he kisses you deeper, not even letting you answer the question he had just asked.

Pulling away, you look at Eric with a wide smile resting on your cheeks, your smile reaching your eyes, his favourite kind of smile of yours truly.

“Is that a yes then?” Eric asks as a giggle escapes his lips. Giving him a small nod you peck his red nose as you let out a small laugh.

“See, I can be the one for you sweetheart.” Eric says with a silly smile on his face before he starts peppering your face with kisses making you fall down on the grass as laughter blares through the quiet place.

“I never said you couldn’t…” you say with laughter. “I love you, Eric Sohn…” you whisper softly as you look up at him while lying down on the ground, as Eric stared down at you while being above you.

“I love you too, sweetheart.” Eric whispers the last words as he kisses you deeply.

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[blackfilmmakers]

Just had youtube recommend a video that literally titled "Wish's Animation is Bad and it's Spider-Verse's Fault". Man that is the FARTHEST scapegoating I have ever seen! This person seriously didn't realize that the REAL perp wrote their name in the movie's title! DISNEY'S Wish. DISNEY 👈 Right here. That's what made Wish's animation bad. Don't sit there and lie on ANOTHER movie to excuse Disney like that 😠 Come on 🤦

Bruh I saw that on my dash and was so annoyed

"Into the Spiderverse made the 2D+3D popular, and Disney had no choice but to follow the trend" hmm maybe stop that?

That was all on Disney. They had the means to actually pull off the effect they wanted to. But no, they had to rush this team to finish an unfinished movie. Did you know this was originally going to be a 2D animated movie? And they've been on this for 8 years? That tells me they've planned and workshopped a lot of material originally intended for 2D, only to have that all scrapped at some point

What's funny is that Disney did actually create something with a 2D+3D blend style: Paperman

AND THIS WAS MADE IN 2012!

All the other movies that went with the 2D+3D blend also had their own gimmick. Spiderverse had the various comicbook style. TNMT was going for hand-drawn sketchy look. And Disney wanted the storybook look, which cool in thought

Unfortunately they messed that up tremendously. All the human/animal subjects look unfinished, and the backgrounds have no depth. Half the time I was figuring out if a background was real or if it was a mural . There was also lack of color, lack of proper lighting, and staging issues

Animating all that in cinema scope btw? Dumbass choice on whoever decided that. It doesn't make everything look cinematic, it just forces the artists to put in extra work to essentially make empty spaces no one cares for. Look at this, some of these characters are forced to be cutoff for no reason

(Disclaimer: these are screenshots from a recording of the movie)

Sure you can use cinema scope for things like westerns or deserts. It's to show how vast those sort of places are, and maybe even emphasize how lonely and isolated a character must feel when placed there. This is a kingdom, we do not want that. It is such an empty movie. I questioned whether the castle even had servants or knights who I don't think were shown until near the end. But even then there would be like 2 at a time

None of this helps the animators, writing and directors whose credentials are either: Frozen staff (that are also doing 3 and 4 as we speak) or newcomers. Newcomers are already struggling. And Frozen staff are notoriously known for changing up entire storylines last minute, so now characters change personalities out of nowhere

So yeah, the movie is either AI generated in a lot of places, or the skills of the staff are lacking.

Either way, all that to say Disney is to blame for their failure as an animation company and also

[julietasgf]

re: ask game

⭐ i would love your director's commentary on the strabo fic of all time (carcará.) :D

thanks for the ask backpacks!!! <33 specially regarding what's probably my all time favorite fic I wrote:

I've commented before, but carcará is deeply personal to me because it was a way for me to try to understand and put into words some things and feels about my own father. I tried to summarize in an only story the feeling of trying to understand the pain and the struggle your own parent went through, and that they wanted to do better, but at the same time it was not enough. and one of the core messages and feelings of it is that it doesn't matter if you want to break the cycle, because a lot of times, you simply can't. and there isn't much you can do about it. some incidents of strabo's bad parenting were based on real life events

it was heavily inspired by the movie aftersun!! a lot of the themes of loss and pain and fatherhood. besides the song carcará, a horse with no name was also a song I considered for the title because I simply felt like the vibes fit. in this fanfiction, D2's imagery and vibes in my head were very much inspired by brasil's northeast and its culture (where I'm from).

I really wanted to do some scenes longer for vesta and strabo, as I loved their dynamic in it, but unfortunately the fic was getting too long. I never planned for it to get to 18k words, it was supposed to be at best an 6k work, but then I got too excited I think. I got to the point of thinking of writing an extra work just for scenes of them dating but I thought it would maybe be pointless and no one would want to read that, so I never wrote it anyway.

the fanfic was not supposed to end in that talk on the office, it was supposed to end with strabo dying poisoned by coriolanus, but unfortunately I was getting too burnout writing and deciding to end like that because it wouldn't take much writing :')

I loveddddd writing strabo's dynamic with the twins. I was heartbroken when unfortunately the scenes with the twins finished, they were so fun to write!! also, paranoid and young strabo was the funniest to write, too. the style I chose to go for his narrative was close to coriolanus' narrative, but instead it was much angrier and frustrated and bitter, I think.

sorry if these aren't much!! it's been a long time since I wrote it, and I don''t have much fresh thoughts, but I can't thank you enough for the ask <33

[anthrofreshtodeath]

I think the OP just turned on the first two seasons of R&I and jotted down this list of prompts 😂

How about a little " hangouts that start to feel more and more like dates" please and thank you.

I do hope this won't be your last prompt challenge!

Sorry this is so late 🫠 but hey, I wrote something!

___

The first time they’d hung out, Jane had brought a giant bag of peanut m&ms and extra butter popcorn. Maura had called it a movie night, after all. It was early on in their friendship, and Jane had been excited when she trotted up to the front door with her snacks in one hand, and a six pack in the other. She’d hiked up her long leg to press the doorbell with her boot, and was in the middle of putting it down when Maura swung the door open.

“H-hi,” Jane said, cheeks ruddy from sheepishness as much as the crisp fall air. 

Maura had smiled, and then looked down. “Can I help you with something?”

Jane held the grocery bag with the food in it. “Thanks,” she said, “sometimes carrying stuff is still, uh, kinda hard.” She didn’t brandish her scars, but their pointed eye contact told her Maura had understood.

Maura then nodded to the beer. “I have a place in the refrigerator where you can put that,” she told Jane. “Come in.”

Jane had whistled. “Nice place you got here,” she commented as she looked up at the high vaulted ceilings and the gleaming marble countertops.

“I rent,” Maura confessed. “I just moved back to Boston… well, when we met, actually. And I am being judicious about where I would like to own. So most of the decor came with the house.”

“I woulda never guessed,” Jane said. She pointed to the fridge, stainless steel, wide, and clean. Maura affirmed. “No offense, but rich suits you.”

“None taken. I am rich,” said Maura, with palms against the fabric of the jeans on her hip. 

Jane would have spit beer out of her mouth if there’d been any. “And humble, too,” she chuckled. Both at Maura’s comment and at the fact that Maura could no longer resist the bag she brought in. Maura rummaged through it with equal parts fascination and disgust. “You good?”

Maura peered up. “Do you really eat all this during one film?”

Jane curled a brow. “No…” she elongated it. “I got it for us to share.”

“Oh!” said Maura, then her face fell. “Oh, that… that’s very sweet. I…”

“You don’t eat any of this junk, do you?” asked Jane kindly. Her eyes crinkled and her lips pursed like she was trying not to laugh.

“Not at all,” said Maura on a whoosh of relieved air. “The hydrogenated oils are-”

“Don’t.” Jane held up her hand, “ruin it for me. But, that’s good to know. What do you like to eat during… films?” she asked with no small amount of humor. But when Maura opened her mouth to answer, Jane stopped her. “No no. You know what? Don’t tell me. I’m your friend; lemme figure you out.”

Maura had blushed and said nothing. But she’d smiled and showed Jane to the living room where they’d be watching what she’d picked out.

___

Subsequent hangouts got easier. Like this one - a long week called for a late Friday night at home. Maura had purchased the townhouse on Pickney about half a year prior, and since Angela moved in not long after, it was the place Jane thought of when she conjured the word home in her mind. And, yes, it was movie night, but a newer venue also called for newer fare - namely, gourmet charcuterie from the deli a few blocks from Jane’s apartment, and a good wine from the Whole Foods in Beacon Hill. Not, y’know, a six hundred dollar bottle a-la Tommy’s FBI debacle the previous week, but something good. 

Something Jane knew Maura liked. 

Something she and Maura had drunk before. And so, balancing everything in one hand, Jane used her key to open the door, and when she heard the muffled voices of a conference call on the second floor - the governor did tend to call Maura late, much to Jane’s chagrin - she set the items on the counter and went to the cupboards to pull out the decanter. She’d peeled off all the horrid labels her mother placed under each shelf when Ian was here, and it’d felt like something she’d had to do.

Strip Maura of the stinging past, restore the present to as it was before him, so that they could move forward into the future. 

Put off by the taste of that experience, Jane pulled out the candles Maura reserved for those truly trying times: decadent spices and citrus that reminded Jane of herself. And she thought it sounded egotistical but she had enough comfort in Maura’s space to own that - she liked the house to smell like that because she belonged there, not because she wanted to mark her territory. Ian’s mountain of medical supplies had felt like the opposite. Felt like a threat. 

Tommy’s bottle of wine had felt more like fumbling in the dark. Like something he wanted and knew he couldn’t have, but had to take a shot at anyway. 

Jane’s bottle of wine, the one she poured into the decanter, and Jane’s candles, which were really Maura’s, the ones she lit to waft up to Maura, to ease her into relaxation on the way down from her call, felt like what a Friday night should be. 

Felt like a well-worn routine. 

To further the routine, she pulled a board out from a cabinet next to the oven, and arranged meats, cheeses, and dried fruits in the pattern Maura liked, the one that seemed most calming. Before Maura, Jane didn’t even know that meat could be arranged in a calming way. After Maura, Jane learned that most perceivable things could bring calm, or bring stress. She’d adapted well, considering. Went for easily identifiable, separate food groups. 

“You’re early,” Maura’s voice roused Jane from her contemplation. She was barefoot, and had changed into yoga pants and an oversized sweater, with her hair pinned up. “Oooh - figs.” She reached over as Jane worked, and their fingers brushed on her way to the fruit. “Thank god autumn is here.”

“Those are all you,” Jane teased, “I’m all about the prashut’ right here.” She lifted the paper thin meat to her mouth and dropped it in. “Things, uh, things go well on your call?” 

Maura shrugged. “The governor is an obstinate man,” she began, “but I know how to bring him down. And explain artfully that Popov is not really my problem, but his.”

“That guy is everybody’s problem,” Jane commented when she pulled a beer from the new, glass-door fridge. “If you need me to forcefully suggest retirement to him, just let me know.”

Maura laughed, bubbly and bright. When Jane returned, Maura placed a hand on her shoulder. “I trust he’d take the hint,” she said.

“I’m good at givin’ hints,” Jane joked. She caught the blush with which Maura stared down again at the spread, and it confused her. She caught the wistful glance toward the wine, aerating in the fanciful glass Jane’d poured it into, and maybe Maura was just hungry. Just tired after a long day and needing a drink to take the edge off. 

“Hmm,” was all that Maura offered in response, like an agreement but about something else.

The something else itched at Jane. “I’ll take this over to the couch,” she said, moving slow, balancing the board in her left hand and nodding toward the living area.

“I’ll bring the wine and start a fire,” said Maura. When she looked up, she smiled softly at Jane, as she often did.

This time, Jane shuddered just before she headed toward the coffee table. 

___

“I heard,” Maura breathed out when she answered the door. 

Jane stood there, still dressed for the work day, just like Maura. This was what hangouts between them sometimes devolved into now - Jane felt worn out, and felt like she looked it, too. Maura looked just as perfect as when she’d started the day, when Jane had waltzed into the foyer a much happier woman in search of her morning coffee. 

Maura had handed it to her, like Maura handed her a beer now. The clock on the microwave read 11:12 PM and she had work the next morning, but Jane wanted to get drunk. She scrunched her face in displeasure, crossed her eyes to be silly and to note her frustration. “Honestly surprised it took this long for Tommy to knock someone up,” she said. When she walked in, Maura hovered close behind. Jane felt Maura-ness all along her back. 

Maura caught Jane’s hand just as Jane went to pop the top of her beer off on the granite. “Don’t ruin my counters,” Maura warned. She took the beer back, twisted the cap, and waited. 

Jane knew what she waited for, too, so she turned around with haste, between Maura’s front and the lip of the countertop. “It’ll give ‘em character,” Jane teased.

Maura rolled her eyes. “And you don’t know that Tommy… knocked someone up,” she continued, the colloquialism familiar to her brain but foreign on her tongue. “It’s just a possibility.”

“I think it’s more likely than my pop doin’ it, at his age,” Jane grumbled. She lifted the bottle to her lips and let the Blue Moon rush down. Cold, bubbly, tangy. Perfect. 

“Well, I know nothing about your father’s sexual health, but given that we can assume he slept with Lydia multiple-”

Jane’s hand flew to Maura’s soft, soft lips. Had they always been this soft? It made Jane’s fingers jittery with the need to move, to touch. She pulled her hand down when Maura stopped talking. “Please, please don’t. Don’t go there.”

Maura put up her hands in surrender. “I ordered a pizza,” she offered a branch of reconciliation. 

Jane sighed. Pizza? Beer? The night, all because of Maura, seemed to be turning around. “Sounds perfect. You know, why can’t Tommy find something like-”

Uh oh. 

This time she stopped herself, not Maura. Something like this? Something easy, something heady, something in a nice home with a beautiful woman who… Jane needed to run. She’d already said too much. But, Jane was trapped.

“Like this,” Maura chanced. She moved closer. Jane’s anxiety wafted toward Maura on a noxious wave of fear and need, but, Jane watched Maura persist. She watched conviction literally light up Maura’s eyes. Increased moisture catching the light over the kitchen island, Maura would have said, but still. Maura unclasped her own hands and opened her arms, not wide out at her sides like a barrier, but palms out, close to her sides like an invitation. “Like you. And me.”

Jane nodded, and then her face crumpled. What in the hell, besides this very reason, was she doing at her friend’s house at 11 at night, drinking beer and sulking because her brother just made all of their lives so much more complicated? Didn’t women call their girlfriends to vent all about life problems as they had a nice night in at their own places, watching shitty reality tv and drinking? Didn’t they send a text saying something along the lines of “OMG my brother’s an asshole and I’m struggling and really need to talk to you about it over coffee tomorrow?” 

They certainly didn’t show up at their friend’s place close to midnight to stand in front of them, soul bare, and blurt out… feelings.

But Maura didn’t really seem interested in what women usually do with their friends either. She knew what they did. So, Jane slumped forward, into the invitation, and Maura caught her.

“I don’t think many people get to find something like this,” Maura began, wrapping her arms around Jane’s tired shoulders and pulling her even closer when Jane sighed. “Do you?”

Jane still held her beer in one hand between them, with the other clutching at the fabric of Maura’s dress between her shoulder blades. “Nah,” she answered. “I guess not.”

[kats-kradle]

hi hello hiiii 🥰 so... you wrote ze besstttt works on bouc/poirot stuff on ao3 and i remember we KINDA discussed with you in the comments upcoming movie SO hence the question:

your thoughts on A Haunting in Venice 👀👀

also thanks once again for your amazing works!!! truly the blessing 🙏

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEkabsmabamsbsn thank you for your kind words😭😭😭💖💖💖

I think the movie has been out long enough that I don’t need to worry about spoilers but just in case SPOILERS FOR A HAUNTING IN VENICE FOLLOWING

Short answer: eh. It was okay.

Long answer: (and I am sorry for the almost 1,000 words of an essay this is. I am sorry).

It’s been a few months since I’ve seen it which I think will be a good indicator as to what stuck with me and what didn’t. I immensely enjoy the way that Kenneth Branagh plays Poirot, so I loved that ofc. I knew nothing about Agatha Christie until Murder on the Orient Express came out so he was my first Poirot and I’ll always have a special place for him in my heart. I do think he plays some aspects of the character better than David Suchet, but David Suchet is a far superior Poirot. Anyways.

I was pleased with the tone of it because it was advertised more as purely horror but Kenny boy toed the line between extra creepy mystery and horror very well. I was also very relieved that there weren’t quite as many flashing lights as in the trailer😂 And of course since it’s Kenneth Branagh, the cinematography was AMAZING. Lots of Dutch angles tho which was strange. I thought it was interesting how Kenny touched more on Poirot’s PTSD, and as an angst/whump lover, it was delicious. The music was amazing. The story… not so much. 

I think I’d have to watch it again to fully gather my thoughts on the story, but I went away with the impression that it moved too fast and was lacking a lot in certain areas. I didn’t see the twist coming at the end, but again, it was disappointing. Even my sister (who hasn’t read much Poirot) said that it didn’t seem very complex. And I love Kenneth Branagh but first and foremost Agatha is my girl. I have been known to reference her as my best friend at times. One of the things I enjoy most about Agatha Christie is that she puts like a minimum of 4 twists with the reveal, because she understood that once you reveal the killer, the story is over and most people will lose interest. And it tends to be underwhelming when the entire story has been building to a point that is over in three seconds. There were a few twists scattered through the movie, but ultimately if Kenny wanted to use a Christie book as source material, I think he should have stuck with her formula of hitting people with a bunch of twists at the end. 

I did like how he kept the supernatural aspect ambiguous. I would have been foaming at the mouth in rage if he tried to make ghosts a canon part of the HPCU (Hercule Poirot Cinematic Universe). I didn’t like Oliver at all in this, which is a shame because I love her in all the Poirot books she’s in. I can tell what parts Christie is venting about writing through her which is really entertaining to me. But the actress who played her in A Haunting in Venice was… irritating. She had a lot of exposition to deliver, and while the script was tipping on the edge of having the exposition be clunky, I think a better actress would have been able to salvage it. She was so wooden. It was irritating. 

For example, in Death on the Nile there’s this awkward introduction where Bouc is rattling off the names and motives of the wedding guests (which I have a problem with in itself. That movie is SO LONG and they introduce everyone in under 1 minute and then spend an hour getting to the murder part. Literally this clip is 53 seconds. Tom Bateman barely had time to breathe. Surely they could have introduced the characters in a better way with the HOUR of screen time they had before the murder). The scene is inherently clunky, and the writing is… not great. It sort of makes sense for Bouc to be telling Poirot who is who, but to give motives as well… not great. 

But even with the awkward dialogue, Tome Bateman delivers the lines so smoothly that you can almost look past the weird writing.

Speaking of my boy Bouc, I was very disappointed that he wasn’t mentioned at all in A Haunting in Venice. He was a vital part of the other two movies, and up until this point in the HPCU, he has been in every Poirot movie. It’s my opinion that if you 

1. Have a character appear in more than one movie 

2. Have established that character as a very good close friend of the main character, in fact, the only person the main character can trust 

3. You kill that character and show that his death had an impact on the main character 

You should mention it in the next movie. And especially since it’s implied that Poirot gave up detective work completely after Bouc’s death (probably even because of Bouc’s death) and this is the first murder case he’s been involved with since… I just think it was a missed opportunity to not even reference him in passing. And especially since the movie was playing into Poirot’s PTSD; surely this is a scenario that would at least make him briefly think of his close friend who he lost the last time he was in this situation.

I am approaching the movie from the point of view of a diehard Agatha Christie fan and someone who enjoys critiquing any movie I watch, so I’m sure it wasn’t as bad as I make it out to be.

All in all, I would rank the movies as: 

1. Murder in the Orient Express 

2. A Haunting in Venice 

3. Death on the Nile 

I have so many issues with Death on the Nile that pretty much anything is going to be better than that. I wrote a whole essay about it for my English class. 

Anyway if you made it this far congratulations😅😂😂 What were your thoughts about it?

[kn95-blog]

Childhood Crushes

Rating: T Ships: Reigen Arataka/Serizawa Katsuya, can be read as platonic or romantic Words: 655 AO3: NormalCaptive

Summary: Reigen and Serizawa talk childhood crushes.

Notes: A Serizawa-focused character study. I kind of wish this one were longer, but oh well. It's more than Terry Pratchett wrote in a single day.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"So," Reigen said, catching Serizawa's attention. "Who was it for you?" 

They were both at a relatively empty and quiet ramen restaurant after a long day's work. Mob wasn't there for work that day, so it was just the two of them. Reigen had something that looked quite fancy and delicious, with extra pieces of pork added to the soup, whereas Serizawa tried to go for something closer to the instant noodles he was so used to eating, something simple. 

"What do you mean?" Serizawa said, mouth quite full of noodles. 

"Well, everyone has childhood crushes, right?" Reigen said, taking another bite. Serizawa shrugged. "I s'pose so." "Well, when you're some flavor of gay, you often don't know that, and something has to slap you in the face with it for you to get it. At least, that's how it happened for me." Serizawa hummed. "Usually, it's celebrities, too. For me? That American guy, Harrison Ford." Serizawa blinked. "From Indianna Jones?" Reigen nodded. "All those posters of him and the movie covers with his broad chest out in the open, ugh." Reigen snickered. "I don't know how my parents didn't know, like immediately. I had him all over my room." 

Serizawa raised a brow. "Poster over the bed?" Reigen nodded solemnly. "Poster over the bed." 

Serizawa gave a small chuckle. 

"See, I had crushes on mostly female characters, like Lara Croft--" "Tomb Raider." "--Yeah, Tomb Raider. Lara Croft in all her polygonal glory." Serizawa chuckled and took another bite of his food. "But what really changed things for me was Metal Gear Solid 2." "The only thing I know about Metal Gear Solid is that guy is called Solid Snake, for some reason." Reigen laughed. "It's Kojima, he kind of just does that." Serizawa said. "The character's real name is David, but something-something snakes are stealthy." He chuckled.

"But anyway, in Metal Gear Solid 2, there's a character called Vamp who is bisexual. That's what introduced the concept to me. I did more digging wherever I could on the early 2000s internet, learned what the term meant, and, well, that's when things started making sense. And then, for years, I had a crush on him." Serizawa took another bite, reminiscing a bit. "Though, he was a more minor character. I don't think there were any posters with just him on them. Or, if there were, I didn't have them." 

"This is why you should've had a gay crush on a popular character, so you could kiss the poster goodnight." Reigen said, very matter-of-fact. 

Serizawa almost choked. "Did you-?" Reigen snickered. "You know, I can't say." "Oh my god." 

Serizawa pointed his chopsticks loosely toward Reigen. "You're a hot mess, you know that?" Reigen laughed. "Haven't heard that one before!" He said sarcastically. 

"At least my guy wasn't a vampire named Vamp, and drinking people like Gogurts!" 

"Okay--No, he's not called Vamp because he drinks blood, according to the dialogue, he's a vampire because he's bisexual." Reigen almost spit out his food in confused laughter. "What? How does that make sense!" Serizawa threw his hands up. "I'm just as confused as you are! I don't think anyone actually knows what the hell that line meant." 

Right then, Serizawa had realized that for the first time, he had a friend right in front of him. Not online, right there. Someone who was actually interested in what he had to say, who was engaging with him. He cared about his online friends, but he had forgotten what it was like to be around another person. That friends online couldn't alone be a replacement for in-person connection, at least not for him. This was someone who he could reach out and touch, someone real. 

Someone whose genuine smile didn't show often, but when it did, it lit up his world. Someone who showed him to be confident, someone who believed in him. 

He could get used to this. 

[knickynoo]

hello, and happy back to the future day! :D

if you'd like to talk about it, i'd be curious to know what bttf means to you/why you love it (if you haven't had a similar ask before, of course)!

Happy BTTF day! (I somehow managed to forget that was today until I saw the posts going around).

I don't think I've ever gotten an ask like this before. It's a good one!

Back to the Future is my all time favorite movie. (Duh.) I was introduced to it by my mother when I was around 10, and it had. A GRIP on me. So much so, that I sometimes have wondered if my mom ever regretted exposing me to it. But I'd just never seen a movie like that before. It was one of my first "grown-up" movies, and I remember thinking I was so cool for knowing about it. I'm sure a lot of the themes and details of it flew over my head, but there was also a lot that I really loved about it. The adventure, the suspense, the music, etc. I had a massive crush on Michael J. Fox, which might have also been a big reason why those movies were on repeat so often when I was a kid. I still have my childhood diaries where I wrote about him in the way only a 10 year old girl with a big crush could. My mom lovingly tolerated this phase, going so far as to get me a special autographed photo of him that hung on the wall of our family room for many years. (It's now in my room with my other collectibles)

I think I've mentioned this before, but one of my best friends at the time was ALSO going through his BTTF phase, so we ultimately only served to fuel each other's interest in it. We used to sit together on my front steps and listen to the soundtrack and talk about the movies. It was great. Just two kids, being geeks.

Eventually, I kind of moved on from the movies, and there was actually a long stretch of time where I didn't watch them for years. I got back into them during those initial few months after Covid hit and there were the strict lockdowns. Being home so much, I was watching a lot of TV, caught the first movie, and went oh. OH. Now I remember why I loved these movies. It wasn't long before I decided to make a tumblr to get all of my thoughts out of my head.

A lot of my reasons for liking the films now are the same as when I was little, but I can really appreciate the heart of them now. And I think that's what I like most about the trilogy. The heart, the love, the message that you can do good and help others and love the people in your life to the point of being willing to sacrifice yourself for them.

And the movies have an extra special connection for me because my best friend and I literally have the Doc/Marty dynamic. She's several decades older than me, has mentored me for years, considers me part of her family, is delightfully eccentric, and has a pet named after a scientist. This is--surprisingly--something I hadn't consciously thought about/realized until a few months back when pondering why I felt so strongly about Doc and Marty's friendship. But it's part of why I talk about them a lot I think, and why I consider intergenerational friendships to be a beneficial thing. I know what it's like to have a Doc in my life. I've got that wise, older friend I can go to for advice and just walk through the front door of her house because I've got the key. As far as I know, she isn't currently working on any time travel experiments, but if she called me up and told me to meet her at the mall parking lot, I'd be like, "Sure, I'm down." So like. I get it.

Anyway, this has been a long enough reply. But I think it explains how I ended up here, running a BTTF blog. Thanks for the ask!

[josiebelladonna]

black moon | kinkmas | day fifteen

chapter title: “as seasons grey”

pairing: alex skolnick x fem!oc

tags: teacher/student (BOOM!)

ao3 link | kinktober/sister piece “eclipse”

minors dni, and forget about homework: it’s christmas, yo! ❄️💋❄️💋

“Christine?”

She turned her attention to the front of the classroom, where right in the middle of the blackboard, he stood there with a clipboard in his hand as he took roll call. The substitute teacher for the day, with his shoulder-length black hair and that long plume of gray upon his head, long and thin like that of a feather, as well as the fine lines of age upon his face.

“Present,” she declared, and he showed her a little smile and a twinkle in those deep-set eyes in response. The only older man in a room full of college students.

He moved down to the next round of names before he set the clipboard down on the desk.

“Are you the sub?” the girl at the other side of the room asked him.

“Yes, I am the substitute for the day,” he informed them as he rubbed his hands together. “I don’t know much about music theory, but I do know what today’s lesson holds for all of us.”

“So, we’re not going to watch a movie?” Christine chimed in.

“Oh, no,” he assured her with a shake of his head. “It’s going to be some time before we can watch a little movie.”

Every so often during that day’s lecture, he would look over at her with a playful little smirk on his face and that twinkle in his eye, as if he was up to mischief. It was hard to imagine a professor who carried his weight so well: the way that he walked around the front of the room with his hands clasped together before his chest and the way that the little soft-looking roll of fat around his waist poked out underneath his arms, the very beginnings of a middle-aged potbelly, made Christine think of elegance. Even with the little bit of extra weight on his body, he carried himself so well, with such grace and class, as if he belonged on a runway rather than the front of the classroom.

Whenever he tossed his hair back, he showed off his neck, in all its tender slim beauty. Even with the slight lines around his prominent Adam’s apple, he showed no signs of sagging there. He was graying, growing older, and yet he showed no signs of aging. If anything, he seemed to go along with that big pocket of grays at the front of his hair.

When he scribbled something on the blackboard, he flashed a fleeting, but knowing glance over at her, as if he was trying to read her mind, or come inside of her mind, rather. Whenever he wrote something at a quick pace, he stuck his tongue out at her, as if he was trying to tell her something.

At one point, he picked up a nylon-string guitar from the little black metallic rack on the floor, and he took his seat at the teacher’s desk with it plunked across his lap. A piece of his hair fell over his eyes and the bridge of his prominent nose, all to where Christine could only see his right eye and the right side of his face. Those long, lanky fingers spread across the neck of the guitar like the legs of a scorpion, and he pursed his lips and puckered them out as if he beckoned a kiss from her.

A chill ran up her spine at the sight of him as he played a piece of Latin music for them at a quick pace. Some of that lush, decadent spice, as if he was playing it all for her instead. She glanced over at the rest of the class and most of them did in fact look rather bored at the sight of him there: he was playing it all for her instead.

He jammed it for about ten minutes before he brought it down to a slower, more sensuous outro, and then he finished it out with a final strum of the pluck. A round of applause and he set it back down on the rack on the floor.

“Are there any questions?” he called out by the time there were five minutes left in the period.

“What are your influences?” one kid asked him.

“I’ll tell you later,” he frankly replied, and a couple of people giggled at that. One girl raised her hand.

“What’s the story behind your gray streak?” she asked him. “Like why is that one part of your head gray but the rest isn’t?”

“I don’t really know,” he confessed with a shake of his head. “I’ve heard some people say it’s a birthmark, or it’s a scar—one time, I went up to Indian Rock, north of Berkeley, where I'm from originally, when I was a kid and everyone in my class hit their head trying to go up this thing. I was about fourteen, I was brushing my hair one day and I found a gray hair down in the sink basin. I showed it to my mom, and she goes, ‘oh, it must be one of your father’s’ but my dad was like—completely bald at that point. As for the exact origin, though? I can’t really say.”

Christine then shot up her hand. He lowered his eyelids at her and nodded in her direction.

“What kind of underwear do you wear?” she quipped to him, and the students next to her giggled at that. Alex raised his eyebrows at that, and then he glanced back at the teacher aide, who snickered as well.

“We’ve got a little sassy one over here,” he declared, and he strode on over to her.

“It’s a simple question, actually,” she insisted. “I want to know if you’re comfortable at all when you play around with some nylons like that.”

Alex stood before her with his hands tucked into his pockets, and his shoulder-length hair sprawled over his narrow shoulders. Christine's eyes scanned him from his lanky feet all the way up his slender, spindly legs, to his slightly full hips, to his round waist and his deep chest, to the rolled sleeves on his elbows, to the sly little smirk on his round, handsome face.

“You know what—just for that, I ought to see you after class,” he remarked, and she swore that he had flashed her a little wink. The kids next to her whispered things to each other right then, and that was when the bell rang.

“Don’t tell Miss Mormino you watched a movie,” he called after the class as they all packed in for their round of a break followed by the next period. Christine lingered back until everyone had left the music theory class for the day, and then after a few minutes, she stood up to her feet and walked on over to him. He took his spot there behind the teacher desk with one leg cross over the other and his hand rested upon his knee in repose.

“You wanted to see me?” she asked him.

“I did, yes,” he replied, and once the last student had left the room, he squinted his eyes at her. “So, you wanna sniff my undies?”

“Unless you want to sniff mine,” she retorted back, and she tried her best to hold back a bout of laughter at that. And he let out a low whistle and shook his head at that.

“You know what? Just for that, I ought to take you over my knee and spank you,” he quipped.

Christine pressed her hands to her hips, and she showed off her figure to him.

“What’s on your mind right now?” she asked him.

He ran his hand along his knee and the inside of his thigh: her eyes followed the path of his hand there, all the way to the crotch of his blue jeans.

“I can’t say,” he told her with a slight flutter of his eyelids at her. Those eyelashes, like his flat, comma-shaped eyebrows, were dark and prominent, especially in junction with his milky white skin and the fine lines on his face.

“Really, what’s on your mind right now?” she asked him in a low voice.

“Right now? Oh, just—y’know, stuff.”

“What kind of stuff?” she continued, and she folded her arms over her chest. He never said anything. Christine moved in closer to him.

“Alex? What kind of stuff are we talking about here?”

“The kind of stuff that would—probably get us into a heap of trouble,” he said in a husky, near whisper of a voice.

“What kind of trouble are we talking?” she asked, and she rested her hand down on the top of the desk before her. Alex nibbled on his bottom lip at the sight of her hand. “Are we talking about like—detention? A week of detention? Suspended for a week?”

“Depends,” he declared, still with his voice husky and low: the way he lowered his voice like that made her think of melted dark chocolate, as rich and full as the act of sin itself. He lifted his gaze towards her, complete with his eyes hooded and his hand still rested upon the inside of his knee. “It depends, my dear Christine.” The tip of his tongue slithered out from his cherry lips like the tongue of a snake, ready to strike and take her down with his venom.

“Depends on the severity?” she asked him.

“Maybe.” He lowered his gaze to his legs and the edge of the desk before him again. “It could also depend on how it’s doable, too.”

“Is it doable?” she asked him.

He showed her his tongue again, and then he brought his gaze back up to her.

“Get up on top of the desk,” he told her in a near whisper. “Take off your pants, then get on top of the desk, and I’ll lock the door.”

“Deal.” She flashed him a wink, and she peeled off her jeans and her underwear, and then she climbed to the top of the desk. Alex himself, meanwhile, made his way over to the door of the classroom, and he clicked the lock on the handle with his thumb and his index finger. He then returned to her with that devilish smirk across his face: Christine suspended herself onto her hands and knees.

“From behind, I see,” he said, still with his voice down low.

“From behind, like the dirty dogs you and I both are,” she quipped. He chuckled at that as he slid a chair over to the side of the desk. She could hear him unzip his jeans, and then he climbed to the top of the chair and then the desk. His long, lanky fingers crept her bare hips and he gave her ass a little squeeze.

“Nice and soft, I see,” he noted.

“Not as soft as I am for you,” she teased him.

“I like you, Chris,” he told her. “You’re soft but you’re sassy, too—” He thrust hard into her. “Sassy is—always good—”

“Sassy is in charge!” she yelped out.

“Ah, but I am the teacher,” he assured her in between thrusts. “I’m leading the class. But you did—” He gently squeezed the left side of her ass. “—get my attention. Maybe you are the one who’s boss.”

“Fuck me, Alex,” she commanded him in a low growl of a voice. “Fuck me like the filthy dog you are.”

“I’m the teacher, remember?”

She licked her lips and gave her hair a toss back with a flick of her head.

“Fuck me, Mr. Skolnick,” she repeated, that time in a near whisper.

“There we go,” he declared, triumphant, and he gently patted her ass once again before he thrusted some more. The desk held the two of them rather well even though it wasn’t made for such an act: the hard surface hit up against Christine’s knees, but they kept her afloat all the way until he reached down in between her legs for a little fingering.

“There has to be another climax in there,” he chuckled to himself. “There just—has to be—”

His index and middle fingers slithered under her hood, and she gasped right then and there.

“Not if I make you cum first,” she retorted back to him.

“Ha! You'd have to reach back and grab me to do that. At least I have an easy reach here.”

As soon as the words left his lips, Christine lifted herself up onto her knees and she lunged for that full erection. She held onto him with both hands; the whole act caught him off guard, and so she was able to fondle him with ease. Alex closed his eyes, and he tilted his head back as she gave him a nice little hand job there. She could feel something oozing on the back of her hand. She looked down in time to find him ejaculating all down the top of her left hand as well as part of her wrist.

“Good boy,” she whispered into his face. She had dominated the one on top, right as the bell rang.

“Class dismissed,” he croaked out in a broken voice.

[chey-murray]

The Writer of Jaws Regretted Writing It

Living about 12 hours from the nearest coast, it is safe to say that I am no expert on oceans. Despite that, I still do my best to learn about interesting facts and issues about it.

For example, did you know that 50-80% of the worlds oxygen comes from the ocean? Much of the oxygen is thanks to phytoplankton, and sharks actually play a huge role in keeping their populations healthy. They feed on the creatures that feed on phytoplankton, so they prevent overgrazing.

Putting it simply, no sharks means more overgrazing, which means less oxygen for us.

“When apex shark populations decline, it can cause rapid increases in their prey populations, creating a ripple effect throughout the food chain known as a trophic cascade” Shark Angels

Yet there is still minimal protection on sharks, in part because of fears that the movie “Jaws” fueled. It was the worlds first summer “blockbuster” movie —named for the way people lined up down the block to see it — and was even how the word was born.

The film created a boom in shark sport fishing, and something called “The Jaws Effect” where people(even today) think shark encounters are much more dangerous than they really are.

The impact of it on sharks was so detrimental that the movie’s director, Steven Spielberg, felt guilty for his creation.

“I truly and to this day regret the decimation of the shark population,” Spielberg told BBC, “because of the book and the film.”  The Washington Post

Since the movie was released, the shark population has seen a decline of over 50%.

Perhaps the person with the most regrets was Peter Benchley — the author of the book — who then spent his time trying to save sharks and undo the damage caused to them.

“What I now know, which wasn’t known when I wrote Jaws, is that there is no such thing as a rogue shark which develops a taste for human flesh,’’ Benchley told the Animal Attack Files in 2000. “No one appreciates how vulnerable they are to destruction.’’ Boston.com

Sharks don’t have hands to reach out and feel the world with, so most shark attacks are bite-and-release. They grab hold, realize its not their usual meal, and let go. You are actually more likely to be killed by a vending machine than a shark, and many people have a positive interaction with a shark without even knowing it.

There are only about 9 shark-caused human deaths a year, while in comparison, an estimated 100 million sharks are killed per year throughout the world.

Another danger facing sharks at the hands of humans is all because of fishing. One of the most common reasons is for Shark Fin Soup. The shark adds no flavour to this high-status soup, only texture, but is wildly popular.

"It is not surprising that the popularity of a dish embodying such aristocracy and elitism declined once the Chinese Communist Party came to power in 1949. However, by the late 1980’s China had undergone far-reaching market-economy reforms which led to a rapidly expanding upper and middle class, who were eager to showcase their new-found wealth; shark fin soup once again became a way of doing so. Considering that the price per bowl can range from just HK$5 (45p) to an incredible HK$2000 (£180) depending on the type, style and preparation of the shark fin served, the dish is a viable option for a large number of people." "Shark fin soup: a dangerous delicacy for humans and sharks alike," The Guardian (Recommended read)

The popularity of the soup has led to a heavy increase in fin hunting, to the point where 100 million sharks are killed for their fins every year. To make it extra cruel, the meat of the shark itself is not worth much, so the sharks ⁠— still alive ⁠— are often thrown back in after their fins are removed. Without the fins, they can not swim, so they endure a slow death.

One thing to note is that the bigger the sea creature, the higher the levels of mercury, and shark is no exception.

"The methylmercury is absorbed by the bigger animal, and — since the bigger the fish, the longer it lives and the more it eats — larger fish species accumulate a lot more methylmercury in their body. In other words, fish higher up the food chain “bioaccumulate” more methylmercury than do those lower on the food chain." "So Where Does All That Mercury in Fish Come From?" Food Print

The other reason is for medicine and vitamins. For example, recent demand for Omega 3 supplements is seeing a new rise in shark overfishing, despite more sustainable choices, such as seaweeds, are comparable, if not better for you.

[notesofarichlycolorednight]

s2ep1 the collector

there was so much wrong with this one. so much like jenny nicholson, i'm making a list to keep on track

hawkmoth being hawkmoth

master fu making a mistake and losing everything

hawkmoth akumatizing himself

ladybug's comment about gabriel agreste having a son

i guess they're kinda all interwoven, but those are the main points i want to hit. i'll start with the last one bc it's the easiest.

why did ladybug say that he had a son, as if she hadn't been to the agreste household before and called adrien by his name. the writers really were like, "continuity? who's she? don't know her."

i think the whole idea of hawkmoth is a lot like how the writer/director approached the book of henry (the movie). as analyzed by dan olsen (folding ideas on youtube), he mentions that the writer wrote the script with the knowledge that henry was going to die and his mom was going to (almost) go through with his plans if he did. which is a bad starting point, bc up until henry is hospitalized, we're supposed to believe this 12 year old is going to go into a gun shop and buy a sniper rifle.

and it's the same idea with hawkmoth. it feels very much like the creator of ml needed a villain, and designed hawkmoth without actually understanding what the butterfly miraculous does when it's not in the wrong hands. like he designed the villain before deciding that the butterfly was also going to be a miraculous. or like he was still deciding what miraculous to include.

and the reason i say this is 1) it sure seems like hawkmoth just being a thing was something master fu was prepared for, even tho he didn't have any basis in it. like maybe you could argue he should assume it would end up in the wrong hands, but how would he know what that would look like? and that's also just a baseless assumption. 2) the whole explanation of how master fu lost the peakcock and butterfly miraculous.

he says he made a mistake when he was younger (and i believe he's supposed to be like 100 or smth right?? or am i mixing that up? it's probably been a good 40 or so years since his screw up at least), and i'm hard-pressed to believe he and gabriel are the same age. but he says that that mistake is what led him to lose the tome and the two miraculous. but then makes a wild leap of logic into thinking that whoever possessed the tome must also possess the missing miraculous and be hawkmoth? like please walk me through that logic, it doesn't make sense!

the writers didn't even add an in extra--it was probably sold or changed hands a lot, but whoever possess it now may well be hawkmoth. tho i suppose that leaves a plot hole by itself bc how can you guarantee that all three items stay together if it's changed hands a few times. but i feel like that's easier to swallow than that giant leap from "i lost these things" to "so anyone who has them is hawkmoth."

not to mention, again, if all three items did change hands a lot before gabriel found them, how did he find them together. i mean maybe the seller sold them as set, but if he hadn't, how would master fu have known that anyone would know that they're holding a miraculous. unless the kwamis come out of them unwillingly?

i'm tying myself into knots and getting all jumbled up here on what if's, so i'm going to move on. i still do think master fu expecting the butterfly ending up in the wrong hands and knowing what that looks like is weird from a writing standpoint. it just, again, makes it feel like hawkmoth was a villain first and a miraculous second. or at the very least, was always a villain and never a good guy.

i think the writers use master fu being young and still in training as an excuse for way too many things (i did watch s2 but i only remember very few things, unlike s1, bc in s1 i actually enjoyed the show. by the time s2 came out, the fans were getting antsy and salty). and they do it in this episode bc when marinette says gabriel got akumatized and so that exonerates him/crosses him off the suspect list and master fu just accepts that is crazy to me.

bc you'd think master fu knowing as much as he does about the miraculous, he'd also know that the butterfly miraculous holder can posses themself with their own butterflies. surely, the powers of the miraculous are the first think you'd learn as a guardian!

and while i think it's a fine convention to use, i'm only criticizing it here bc the writers are bad and lazy, as evidenced by the first season.

i do like the implication is that emilie is a bad lady who stole the miraculous and broke the peacock one tho. i support women's wrongs.

i also really love that gabriel's english va slightly lowers his voice when he's hawkmoth.

and it's hilarious to me that the artists literally changed gabriel's entire face shape when he's hawkmoth lol.

also racism and chinese mysticism. unfortunately, i believe we're going to get a lot of that this season. and i'm going to never stop sounding like a broken record.

[leos-regression-cove]

All The Lessons I Never Learned

24. Halloween

Synopsis: The brothers meet with Mobius and Sylvie for a night of trick-or-treating, but when rain ruins it, they end up spending the night in with scary stories, movies, and candy.

Word count: 3309

Stand Alone?: 2/2

Warnings: bad creepypasta gore, wetting/diapers

Notes: When I wrote this initially (like 2 months ago) I was convinced Crimson Peak was a vampire movie. I have learned the hard way that it isn't but I chose to keep the vampire costume anyway.

Also, I finally took a proper course to teach me how to plot things and I'll be gradually integrating some of that into this fic. But it also means I have had to rewrite my existing chapters. Uploads are going to be less frequent than once a week.

Read it on AO3!

When Loki arrived to pick his brother up, Thor’s makeup was smudged, and his hair had gotten horribly in the way, no longer neatly pulled back in a ponytail like it had been that morning. He grabbed Thor’s backpack, and asked him to say goodbye to Sylvie, before they left. 

“Why so quick?” Thor asked as he was pulled out of his daycare. 

“We need to catch the early train so we have time to fix our costumes.” 

“Kay!” Thor nodded, running to catch up with Loki’s unnaturally fast speed walking. 

It was unusually dark for only a little after five, and although Loki didn’t think much of it, Thor did notice and tugged on his brother’s shoulder, asking him to look up before they walked downstairs to the train station. 

“Clouds are normal this time of year, brother,” Loki told him.

After putting on his costume and fixing his makeup-- which included an amount of gore that came off as very much overcompensating for the fact that he had littles with him-- Loki strode out to the living room to check on Thor, who was watching a musical program and awkwardly dancing around. 

“Hey, let’s get ready to go.” 

Thor’s eyes widened a little bit as he paused and looked at his brother, leading Loki to question if the fake blood and viscera splattering his mouth, chin, neck, and down his chest was perhaps too much, until Thor gave him the biggest, brightest grin he was capable of. “You look SO cool, bubba!” he squealed. 

Loki smiled, flattered, and then remembered what he needed to do to get his brother ready. “Thank you, brother. Now, let’s pause the tv so we can get you changed.”

Thor raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms. “Imma big kid!” 

“Have you been trick-or-treating before?” 

The little shook his head. 

“There won’t be a potty all night after we leave.”

“I can hold it.”

“Lets see your proof,” Loki sighed, removing the foam outer layer of the little’s costume before nonchalantly pulling the pajama-like zipper of the skeleton costume down. “If you couldn’t hold it on the train, you’re not going to hold up through this.” 

“Is not very wet!” 

“That’s true. But any dribble now means you’ll want some extra protection when we go.”

“Loki!” Thor whined with frustration, dragging out his name. 

“I’m sorry, but you’ll thank me later!” 

Loki grabbed his brother’s hand and had him lie down in the nursery. 

Thor grunted and grumbled about being put back in diapers, maturely taking the change and trying not to think about it. 

“It’s just for the night. You won’t even notice it. We wouldn’t want you to get spooked and have an accident!” Loki sprung forward right as he said it to tickle his brother.

The little squealed and giggled, and also unfortunately proved Loki’s point right on the open nappy beneath him.

“... We’ll have to try that again, now won’t we?” Loki asked rhetorically as Thor covered his face. 

After a more successful second attempt at a diaper change, plus face paint touch ups and a quick brush through of Thor’s hair before putting it back up into the cleanest, tightest ponytail he could, Loki’s phone buzzed with the “we’re outside” text.

Realizing there was a drizzle outside, he had Thor put on his dragon-printed rain boots, grabbed two umbrellas, one much more juvenile than the other, and considered pinning up the train on the back of his jacket, eventually just deciding to carry it with the little’s car seat as he made sure Thor had his trick-or-treating bucket in his hand. 

“Okay, let’s go, let’s go,” Loki repeated as he ushered the little skeleton taco out the door and down to Mobius’ car. 

Sylvie and Mobius both stared at Loki when he got into the passenger. 

“You copied!” the little girl yelled incredulously. 

Mobius sucked his lips in and tried to keep himself from laughing. 

Sylvie, unfortunately, did not find it as charming as everyone else did, almost throwing a fit. 

“Vampires are pretty common, sugar plum. I told you there would be other vampires when you asked to be one.” 

She crossed her arms about it. She had even known Loki would be a vampire, it was just that she hadn’t really seen him in costume until now. 

“What do you guys want for dinner?” Mobius asked once they had started driving. 

“Pizza?” Thor suggested. 

“Pizza’s too slow, we'll miss the parade!” Sylvie protested. 

“We’ve got time. Do you guys wanna do Sforno or Patsy’s?” 

“I want McDonalds,” Sylvie pouted. 

“Loki, you’re gonna have to help me out and be my deciding vote here,” Mobius said. 

“Why can’t you vote?”

Mobius shrugged. 

“Um…” Loki considered the trouble of ordering a pizza that would make everyone happy. “I think we should do McDonalds…” he said quietly. 

“Alright. Burgers it is.”

“We’ll have pizza another night,” Loki reassured his little brother. “But we’re not going to make a fuss over this right now, okay?” 

Thor nodded and set down the angry words he was going to throw at Loki. He did not set down the seat kicks though and made sure Loki knew he was at least a little peeved that his caregiver hadn’t taken his side. 

The drizzle turned into a torrential downpour, and the clouds were as dark as midnight. 

Mobius pretended this wouldn’t affect their plans as he led them into the fluorescent and dry haven that was the fast food restaurant. 

After they had ordered, Sylvie stood up on her knees in the booth. “This one doesn’t have a playground,” she whined. 

“Most restaurants don’t,” Mobius told her while beckoning her to just sit back down and eat. 

The littles talked about the big parade and American candies as well as big scary decorations and how excited they were to see a really good haunted house, while eating. 

Loki tried to make talk with Mobius but the other adult was unnaturally quiet, which created an uncomfortable and slightly suspicious environment. Mobius wasn’t a silent man. He was hardly a quiet one, but now he seemed almost stoic in his presentation. 

During the drive, Sylvie kept talking about the halloween puppets and costumes in the parade, but as the rain continued and no signs of any particularly festive traffic appeared, it became apparent to Loki that there was not going to be a parade tonight. 

Mobius remained silent, but began to frown and took slightly deeper breaths when Sylvie started to question where the parade was. 

He rolled down the window to talk to a man on the side of the road who had been directing people. 

“We had to cancel, the rain’s too heavy,” the man confirmed. He almost needed to yell over sounds of city-typical traffic and rain splashes.

“That’s too bad,” he told the man before rolling the window back up and looking back at the littles. “You guys hear that? No parade tonight.” 

“No!” Sylvie whined, kicking Mobius’ seat in a way that made Thor practically look like a mature adult, even though the other little was quietly brooding about it, himself. 

“Hey! Stop it with the tantrum, already, we’re still gonna do something.” 

“Trick or treat?” Thor asked, with only the tiniest dash of hope in his voice. 

“Well… no,” Mobius admitted. 

He began to drive back to his own home with both little ones making a fuss in the back of the car and judging by the frown, obviously didn’t feel too great about it-- this hadn’t exactly been his first choice either. 

He pulled into the small parking spot underneath his building, and tried to get the little girl out of the car, despite her yelling and protests. Thor was, luckily, a little bit easier to work with than that. 

Loki, slightly surprised by the realization, found himself to be rather disappointed too to be back at the apartment instead of enjoying the childish festivities of Halloween. 

Mobius turned on the TV once they got in the door and opened up a large bag of mixed candies, not unlike the ones that Loki and Thor had bought. He dumped the treats into a bowl just as a crack of thunder rattled the building. 

Sylvie hopped up and down before running to the living room window to watch but Thor had a rather different approach, diving under a blanket on the couch instead.   

Loki stopped searching through TV channels for an appropriate Halloween movie to stare at Thor.

"Brother, are you alright?" He asked.

Thor shook his head, remaining underneath the covers of a chunky crocheted blanket which had been draped over the arms. 

Mobius had also been alerted to Thor's upset. "Don't worry bud, I'm gonna make us some popcorn. That'll make you feel better."

Another crack of thunder pierced through the sky. 

Once again, the little girl tapped her feet excitedly, but Thor instead jumped into Loki’s arms.

"You? A scaredy cat?!" Sylvie asked incredulously, letting a smile show through. 

Loki held him the best he could, folding the foam taco part of the costume down so he could look over the tot's shoulder. He couldn't help being a little bit surprised when Thor turned around and tried to bury his face in Loki's shirt and nuzzle him.

"it's just thunder!" Sylvie almost yelled. 

"Different people are scared of different things, pumpkin," Mobius explained to the little girl, yelling over the noise of the popcorn maker. 

"Papa, what are you scared of?" She asked. 

"A lot of things,” he called back.

Loki sighed and set down the remote after realizing neither of the littles were particularly interested in a movie.

"Loki, what're you scared of?" Sylvie asked curiously. 

Loki paused to think about it, then had an idea. "Do you really want to know?" He countered. 

That only enticed her further. "Yeah!"

"It's probably too scary for you. Maybe I should just tell your papa instead."

"He's a scaredy pants like Thor! I'm not scared of anything!" 

"Mobius?" He called the other caregiver over, beckoning him with a wave of his hand as the adult entered the living area with a large bowl of popcorn. 

Mobius leaned down to let Loki whisper gibberish into his ear. 

"Absolutely not. That'll give her nightmares for weeks," he said gravely before setting the candy and popcorn on the coffee table in between everyone. 

Thor looked up with starry glassy eyes at his brother but didn't utter a word at first.

"Yes?" Loki asked. 

"I wanna hear, too," he said softly, twisting his hands into Loki’s shirt. 

“You can hear it when you go sit with Sylvie on the couch like a big kid.”

Despite this encouragement, Thor still whimpered and attempted to cuddle whoever was closest to him. Which ended up having to be Mobius, as he actually knew how to take care of a frightened little, as much as Sylvie didn’t want to admit he did.. 

“Once upon a time--” Loki began.

“No! You can’t start it like that!” Sylvie whined.

“Fine. Fine. Let me restart-- it was a dark and s--”

“No! Just start it!”

“Are you the one telling the story?” Mobius whispered to her. 

Sylvie shook her head. 

“A few years back a friend of mine bought her first house--” Loki finally began. 

“Who was your friend?” Sylvie asked.

“An old college roommate.”

“Was she a murderer?” 

“Sylvie, let him tell the story,” Mobius chided with a smile. 

“She had saved up for so long, and I pitched in some money to help her buy a small cottage like home in New Jersey--”

“Ooh, did you like like her?”

Loki frowned at her briefly. “Anyway, I helped her move in and for the first week or two life was great. But a few months in, she had a business trip, and I came in to feed her cats each day. One day, I got off work early, so I took an earlier train, but it seemed like someone was already there. All her clothes and kitchen utensils, cat toys, --all of it was ripped out and spread across the floor. I figured that perhaps she had been robbed, so I called her and asked if I should call the police. But… they didn’t do anything when they came by because nothing seemed to be missing. Everything she asked them to check was still there. Jewelry, televisions, an old computer, silverware. So, they told me to leave, and I did.”

“That’s dumb!” Sylvie said. 

Mobius hugged her close and told her once again that she could tell her own story after. 

“... and when I came back the next day, she was there and the mess had been cleaned… Or, at least, I thought she was there, but when I called her, she let me know that she was still in Europe.”

That gave Sylvie cause to give him a wide eyed stare, even though she didn’t seem to realize how interested she looked. 

“That understandably made me feel a little bit weird, so I tried to steady my nerves with a cup of tea and a rest, hoping maybe I could calm her pets down and kept talking to her on the phone, asking if maybe I should take the cats with me or--”

“Skip to the good stuff!” 

“Okay, okay. Well, the next evening, we were chatting about the conference while I drove her home, as she had taken an early flight home from, slightly on edge about the whole ordeal, but when we came back later in the day as it began to get dark and flicked on the lights, there was a moment of roughly five pairs of eyes on us. Human eyes.-- or something like it. There were people living in her home, taking her things, hiding in her attic and in the walls of the old house.”

“So what’d you do?” 

“That’s the thing… We just stood there for a minute before I started dialing the police and she ran in and saved the cats, fighting these people closing in on her in the process, and they never did anything about that. She had to come back and live with me until she found a new house. So…” Loki pondered, “I guess my biggest fear is having to live with other people!” he laughed, thinking the misdirect to be incredibly funny before straightening up as he realized neither of the littles had laughed, but instead looked slightly horrified. 

“That wasn’t scary!” Sylvie complained, her expression hardening. 

“I don’t think you could tell a better one,” Loki responded. 

“Yeah I can! Um, there was a furby an’ it was black an’ my friend’s mum boughtted it for her but it was really really evil-- With big white eyes-- but she was mad that it wasn’t the blue one so she was mad and it said bad words first an then it didded the thing where it had no eyes.”

“--Sorry to interrupt, what does that mean? ‘Did the thing where it had no eyes’?” Loki asked. 

“Like its eyes were gone… an it was just black so she put her hand in an it had meat on the other side with a empty eye socket! The meat stuff grew around her hands when she holded it? An’ it sucked her in and eatted her through its empty eye!”

“Ew!” Thor grinned while wrapping himself in the blanket further.

“An’ then, so they didn’t find her bones, it burned the house down and killed her family! Her brother lived though and he wore gloves and threw the Furby in the ocean where it got all crusty and gross, but didn’t kill anybody anymore… But then it ate the whole world and EVERYONE died! The end!”

There was a pause in the room. 

“...That was a very creative story,” Loki hesitated. 

“Sylvie, where did you hear that?” Mobius asked. 

She paused suddenly and fidgetted. “Um… I don’t know… I just kind of heard about it…” 

“Well maybe we should tighten some of the controls on that tablet of yours.”

“Pardon me for intruding, but um, isn’t it possible she picked something like that up at school? --Or made it up?”

“No it’s a real story,” she insisted. 

“You’re not helping me here,” Loki bit back.  

“Um, I looked it up because Yelena said her birthday one was haunted, too.” 

Mobius frowned. “And how big were you?” 

“Nine!” 

He considered for a moment, and wasn’t totally sure how to treat the situation. When he looked to Loki, all that was offered was a shrug. 

“Gosh you and your curiosity. Some things like that really aren’t good for you, y’know?”

Sylvie did not know but acted like she did all the same. 

“Why don’t we switch gears to something a little more age appropriate for a while? Maybe a movie? I think they made a new Hocus Pocus movie. That could be fun.”

Sylvie didn’t say much of anything on that subject. 

But Thor made it known that a movie sounded good.  

A couple hours passed lazily, with both caregivers and their littles feeling an equal amount lethargic and dissatisfied with their Halloween evenings as they realized it was much too late to do anything about it now. 

When he noticed that Thor had been sufficiently wrapped in one of the apartment’s couch blankets and held close enough to Loki that he felt he no longer minded the Thunder cracks or lightning flashes, watching the old fashioned TV screen with a glazed stare, Loki made the decision that perhaps it was time to go and get the little one off to bed. 

“Yeah, I think Sylvie’s headed that way, too,” Mobius commented, looking down at the little who was sitting on the floor, staring at the television sleepily with her head in her hands. “Do you need a ride home?”

“That would be nice,” Loki smiled before trying to convince Thor to get up off his lap. 

Upon getting home, Loki took off Thor’s makeup, as well as his own, and got the little one dressed in pajamas. He was quiet the whole time, hardly letting his voice come above a whisper as he used every tactic in the book for successfully putting a child down for bed. 

“And they all lived happily ever after. The end,” Loki said as he closed a picture book. 

“Um, Loki?” 

“Hm?” 

“Were the stories true?” 

“This one?” Loki turned the cover over in his hand. He scrutinized it. “I don’t believe so… I can’t imagine they’d actually let a chimpanzee into a costume party--” 

“No, the ones you and Sylvie said.” 

“They were made up. I promise. I’ve been living here a long time, and I can assure you that the only other people in this building are our neighbors. They’re all very strong. Miss H, a floor below? The little old lady? She’s a black belt. She’ll fight off any meanies.” 

The little smiled at the thought while Loki tucked him in. 

“And I haven’t heard of any world-ending apocalypse on the news lately. Not one caused by a Furby anyway…” 

“Um… I don’t have one… right?” 

“You’re safe, I promise. Neither of us own a Furby,” Loki tried not to laugh at this very serious concern. “Now go to sleep. I know you’re brave. No one’s coming to get you.”

Although he wiggled down quite a bit, and brought the blankets up to his nose. 

"That's the spirit," Loki yawned.

A few hours later, a booming crack of thunder nearly shook the apartment, waking Loki up from his peaceful sleep. He rolled over away from the window and wrapped his arms around a rather warm and cushy pillow. “Thor?” he asked. 

The pillow made a quiet hum back. 

“Child, are you alright?” 

“Mhm. Jus’ making sure you’re safe.” 

[itmighthavebeenintentional]

Shackled - Ch 12

Summary: After nearly ten years, Sam Winchester calls Miriam Bard to collect on a life debt. Unfortunately for Miriam, Sam leaves out a few important details.

WARNINGS CHANGE EACH CHAPTER, PLEASE CHECK EACH TIME. 

Warning: implied loss of family, grieving, depression, cursing, mention of emotional manipulation/mind fuckery/psychological manipulation, emotional exhaustion, depression

Word Count: 2945

Author’s Note: You made it this far; thanks for sticking with me! I can’t tell you how lovely everyone has been throughout posting this story. I’m going to hopefully start posting my next story “Walk Me Home” sometime within the next week, so if you’d like a tag, let me know. I’ll be posting the preview again tonight. Thank you all for lovely words and flailing, and here’s hoping I’ll see you again at the next story. 

Thanks to @fangirlxwritesx67​ for all the flailing. It means so much to me, I don’t have enough or proper words. @cracksinthewalls​​ , you kept me going, you kept this story going. Like. Babe. Seriously. @thoughtslikeaminefield​ , I would have no Dean stories without you, probably would not have even entered the fandom without you. This story was first and foremost for you, and it’s only right the last thanks on it be for you. 

I love you all.

Please read/heed the warnings. 18+ ONLY. 

In case you missed it:

Ch 1 | Ch 2 | Ch 3 | Ch 4 | Ch 5 | Ch 6 | Ch 7 | Ch 8 | Ch 9 | Ch 10 | Ch 11

Masterlist

Chapter 12

Miriam swam back to consciousness as gentle fingers probed her face. The pain flared once, a bright flame that consumed every cell of her body before extinguishing all at once. She gasped, her lungs unrestricted and easy, and grabbed at the closest thing she could reach. Her wrists were whole again, functional, and she sat bolt upright, her eyes wide and wild as fear shot through her gut. Strong arms, for some reason clad in a tan trench coat, supported her as her head swam crazily. 

“Miriam, I presume. I’ve got you, everything’s alright now. Dean is cured. You’re safe.” She looked into his eyes and saw the sincerity and strength there. She nodded slowly, willing her heart rate to calm. She took slow, measured breaths until the spinning stopped. 

“Miriam!” Then Sam was in the doorway, rushing over to help her up, Dean following closely behind. What with Sam and the other man already pulling Miriam to her feet, Dean stood a safe distance away, unsure of his reception. 

Miriam thought this wise of him. 

She wobbled unsteadily long enough that Sam insisted on taking her back to her room to rest. She was too wiped out to argue and gladly accepted his support. She glanced back at Dean as Sam led her from the room, and she was startled at the depth of sorrow and pain she saw there. 

Then she turned the corner with Sam and realized the pull she felt from Dean, that insatiable hunger for the darkness, was almost completely gone. 

Almost.

…

Miriam lay on the bed, staring up at the ceiling, resolutely ignoring Sam’s instructions to sleep. Though she doubted she’d have any new visits from the demon, she could feel her other nightmares waiting at the edge of her consciousness, with a few new additions from her recent misadventures with the Winchesters to add a little spice to the mix.

A soft knock on her door pulled her out of her miserable reverie, and she sat up slowly. She wasn’t in pain, the angel (Castiel, Sam had explained) had healed her completely, but she was unsteady with exhaustion and shock.

“Come in, Dean,”

He entered hesitantly, still unsure of his welcome. He’d showered, shaved, and changed into a t-shirt, sweats, and a gray bathrobe. She had to admit he looked a lot better for it. Considering how appealing she thought he’d looked before, that was saying something. 

They studied each other for a long moment, seeing each other as they really were for the first time in nearly a decade. Dean still stood tall and firm, wearing his “comfy clothes” better than most models wore a suit, but she could see the weight of the world dragging at his shoulders, staining his expression with grief and regret. 

But there was less ferocity to him now. He’d lost the feral hunger, the malevolence of his earlier presence that had drawn her in so strongly. She’d never call Dean Winchester soft, not in a thousand years, but this Dean, the real human Dean, was appealing to her in a way she hadn’t expected. Despite everything that had happened, he still exuded a sense of strength and confidence that had little to do with his appearance and more to do with a natural gravity that spoke of protection and safety rather than danger and oblivion.

Then again, she thought, maybe I can just see the light on the other side of the darkness now. Maybe that said something good for the both of them.

But it hurt, looking into that light. Looking away from the darkness without shielding herself meant admitting that life without Aaron wasn’t just possible, that it was necessary. 

She’d taken care of him for so long, leaned on him without realizing she was doing so. Now her universe was off-balance in the worst way, vertigo without promise of reprieve. Every day felt like freefall, and she hated that swooping sensation that tore through her gut whenever she opened her eyes and realized he wasn’t just one bed over.

But he was gone. And she wasn’t. 

And now she had to decide what she was going to do with those facts, because she couldn’t continue her dim, half-existence anymore, no matter how much easier it was than facing an Aaron-less life.

And right now, in this moment, that meant addressing her own personal ex-demon.

Miriam offered him a half-smile and indicated the chair by her bedside. He wavered, his jaw working as his frown deepened, but she let him have his internal debate without interruption. After a moment, he made up his mind and sat heavily in the chair, elbows resting on the arms, hands dangling over his lap. He glared down at his socked feet as if angry they weren’t supplying him with the right conversation starter.

“How are you feeling?”

He started at her question and turned incredulous eyes on her, mouth gaping.

“How am I feeling? I nearly killed you, and you’re worried about...Miriam, god, I...I…”

“I know,” she said. He dropped his face into his palms, fingers digging hard into his forehead. His hands strained, veins standing out starkly under his skin, and her heart broke for him.

Dean was a good hunter, a good brother, a good man. He’d been seized by a literal demon, and if anyone besides possession victims could understand that, maybe even forgive it, it was Miriam. And, miracle of miracles, for once she knew the right thing to do.

She arranged her pillow behind her and reclined. Then she lifted the covers, opened her arms, and cleared her throat.

“Come here.”

He looked up at her with red, confused eyes. He straightened up and opened his mouth, and she knew he was about to refuse, say something manly or defensive, or both. She beat him to the punch.

“We are both done, Dean. I’ve got nothing left. I hurt you, you hurt me, we both did horrible things. Now is not the time to make comparison lists of sins. We’ve got tomorrow to tear ourselves new ones. Answer me one question right now, and you’d damned well better tell me the truth.”

He nodded slowly, watching her with wary eyes. 

“Aren’t you tired, Dean?”

He stared hard at her, waiting for something else, maybe a rebuke or an insult, but when he realized she was finished, he sat for a moment, thinking. Then his shoulders slumped, and he scrubbed his fingers through his hair.

“Exhausted,” he finally answered. 

She nodded.

“Then take your damned robe off and get over here. And keep your hands where I can see them, sir.”

Turns out, Dean Winchester wasn’t too bad at following directions, once properly motivated. 

Dean fit into her shoulder with the perfection of a worn-out child cradled in trusted arms. As his face relaxed, Miriam thought she saw the briefest glimpse of that sweet, carefree little boy in his smiling mother’s arms. 

Something tugged loose in her chest, and she knew then she’d done the right thing by coming here, no matter the damage she’d sustained. She glanced across the room to see Aaron staring back from the mirror. A tiny smile lifted the corner of his mouth. 

“I love you,” she said. She meant so much more, and she knew Aaron understood that. 

Dean shifted in her arms, murmuring something on the edge of dozing, and his frown returned. She moved automatically to smooth her thumb over his furrowed brow, massage the anxious crease that had formed between his eyes. Still drowsing, he nuzzled closer, his freshly shaven cheek sliding over her collarbone. Unable to resist, she pressed her nose to the crown of his head, inhaling softly.

Miriam had done a few hunting jobs in the Northwest, near the coast, and she’d fallen in love with the forests there. Unbelievably tall trees, disappearing upwards until you almost fell over backwards trying to see the tops. Damp and lush, there was a green, mossy smell that hung in the air and mingled with traces of fresh earth and mist.

Dean smelled as if he’d just stepped out from under those trees. Clean, a hint of cedar, and something warm and spicy. She hesitated, a new kind of want blooming in her chest as she held him close, reveling in his solid heat. She pressed a kiss to his temple and smiled when he curled tighter into her embrace.

“Hands where I can see ‘em, missy,” he murmured, eyes still closed. His arm slid under hers until it curled protectively around her back. “Sleep, Miri. I’ve got you.”

She took a deep breath, and settled into the exhale, resting her cheek against his damp hair.

Yeah, she thought, a welcome lethargy spreading through her thoughts. You do.

…

“Sure you don’t want to rest another day or two?” Sam asked. She didn’t have to look up from her packing to know his face was lined with concern. Dean leaned in the doorway, arms crossed, pretending he didn’t want to say the exact same thing.

“Sorry, Sam, another day of rabbit food, and I might starve. Gotta get some meat before I waste away. Dean, you’re welcome to come with if you aren’t worried about ruining your girlish figure.”

Dean barked a laugh from the doorway, and Miriam straightened up in time to see him wipe the smile off his face under the heat of Sam’s stern glare. She grinned, and Dean winked.

“Gonna go pull your car around. Meet you out front?” Without waiting for an answer, Dean straightened and nodded, disappearing from view.

“You really could stay a little longer,” Sam repeated, his voice low and earnest. For the first time since she’d met him, he seemed small, diminished by worry and uncertainty. Dark circles stood out starkly under his eyes, and his entreating smile was probably the weakest she’d ever seen it.

“Sam, I-” she paused, hesitating, then closed the space between them, reached up, and pulled him into a full hug. After a moment, Sam’s good arm wrapped around her shoulders, pulling her tight against his chest as his head bent down, his nose resting on top of her head. She held him close, waiting for Sam to pull away when he was ready.

“I can’t,” she murmured into his hair. “Not right now. It’s too fresh. I need to...deal with it. Actually deal with it,” she added as he leaned back far enough to give her a sharp look. She noticed he didn’t pull completely away from their embrace, though.

“I’m going to figure some things out, I promise. Again, you strong, heroic men didn’t magically fix my issues. But maybe you gave me the push I needed to do that for myself.”

“You’re welcome back here anytime,” Sam said. He pressed a chaste kiss to her forehead and stepped back, releasing her. He gazed down at her face for a moment, and she could see he was choosing his next words carefully. 

“I’m glad you’re going to...deal with it. I get what you’re working through. Not that I’m a paragon of mental health, but I’ve been there. A couple of times. If you ever want or need to talk about everything that happened, about anything at all, you can call me.”

Miriam felt a mischievous smile stretching across her face. “Everything? Well, Sam, when you were gone, there was this one thing that Dean did in one of my nightmares that-”

“Not everything!” Sam yelped, and she laughed, feeling the ever-present knot in her chest loosen just a little more. He chuckled, shaking his head, and squeezed her hand. 

“Don’t lose my number, Miriam. I’ve...We’ve got your back.”

…

“Sure you don’t want to stay for another round of Sam’s ‘queen-wah’ salad?” Dean smirked. His green eyes sparkled in the sunlight, and she was surprised at the pleasurable twinge she felt upon receiving that smile. 

“Get your ass off my car, Winchester,” she ordered, feigning exasperation. He pushed up from the hood and opened the back door, lifting the duffel from her hands and tossing it in the back seat.

“Where ya headed?” Dean asked, sticking his hands in his pockets and rocking back on his heels. He stared at the ground between them, and she couldn’t help but smile. After all they’d been through, even after chastely sharing a bed for the last three nights, she felt awkward around him, too, though both were too stubborn to admit it aloud.

“Maybe Washington state or Oregon, check out some of the rainforests. The couple of times we had jobs over that way, walking around under all those giant trees made my issues seem pretty small. Could help me put some things in perspective. Anyway, I’ve got some time off saved up. I think I’ve earned a real vacation.”

He finally met her eyes, and the corner of his mouth turned up. He took a step closer.

“Yeah? Sounds pretty...majestic.” He dodged her blow easily, grinning. “I’m kidding. Some time off sounds pretty damn good, come to think of it. Don’t really remember what that’s like. It’s one disaster after another around here.”

“I kinda got that feeling,” Miriam said, pushing the back door shut. She stepped up to him, holding her arms open in invitation. Though he still hesitated, in the end, he relented and allowed her to pull him into a close hug that sent little flutters through her stomach. Just as she started to pull back, Dean’s arms tightened, holding her against his chest.

“We both need to take some time,” she said quietly. He nodded, turning his face inwards, pressing his lips to her temple. “We’ve got a lot of baggage to sort through and shit to deal with and other metaphors about mentally healing. Darkness to yank out by the roots and all that.”

He pulled back, his face drawn with concern. “Miriam, I need you to know. Those dreams you had, I didn’t...I could see them all whenever you came inside the trap.” His complexion darkened, and if she didn’t know better, Miriam would have thought Dean was actually blushing.

“But I didn’t send them to you. When you were outside the dungeon, outside the devil’s trap, I couldn’t do that.”

She nodded slowly, feeling some of the sunlight's warmth leeching away. She’d come to that conclusion herself, after listening to some conversations over the last couple of days between the boys and their guardian angel. 

“I know. And that’s something I’m going to have to work through. There’s darkness in me, and it really, really liked the darkness I found in you.”

They both glanced significantly down at his right arm, their eyes drawn to the dark, ugly mark, before looking up again.

“I just...wanted it to be easy, like you, the demon you, said. I was, I am so tired, and I just wanted to be done.” She could say the words now, as she couldn’t say them only days ago. 

Such a simple thing to say, she thought, and I had to nearly die to admit it.

“Awfully strong drug for any hunter,” Dean agreed, and though she hated that he knew the feeling well enough to understand, part of her was not-so-secretly glad that for the first time in months, she no longer felt alone in her pain.

“But I can work through it. And I think you can, too. I have no clue how, for either of us, but I’m willing to work on it if you are.”

He nodded slowly, and his eyes flicked to her lips for just a moment before his eyebrows raised questioningly. He looked ready to be rejected, braced for her dismissal, but for the life of her, she couldn’t think of a single decent reason to do so.

This time, the only pull she felt was Dean’s arms drawing her closer.

The kiss was soft, simple, and sweet. His hands, scarred and so gentle, slid over her jaw, threading into her hair. He tilted her face to the side, finding a better angle for both of them, and her hands found their way to his waist, tugging him further into her space. After a moment, they broke apart. Dean’s eyes were still closed as she stretched up to kiss his forehead.

“We can work on that, too,” Miriam said. Dean licked his lips, swallowed, and nodded as he straightened. They released their hold on each other reluctantly, and Miriam slid into the driver’s seat before she did something irrational like change her mind.

She cranked the car, stared out the windshield, and sighed. She had to go, needed some time and space to work through her thankfully no-longer-literal demons, but…

She really wanted to come back.

“Hey, Dean,” she said suddenly. He dropped a hand to the hood of her car, leaning down so he could see her through the open window. “You like cowboy movies?”

“Yeah, why?”

“You ever seen The Quick and the Dead?”

His face transformed from sad to wondering to glee in less than a second. “Wild West shootout, Sharon Stone at her hottest, Gene Hackman at his bad ass-est?”

Miriam giggled. “That’s not a word, but yeah. Got a copy?”

“No, but I can get one.”

She smiled, feeling warm and light down to her toes. “Give me a month or two, try to take some time off yourself. Call me when you’ve got a copy of the movie, and maybe we can have a movie night. I’ll bring the popcorn.”

The warmth of the kiss he brushed across her cheek lingered for hours.

[licensedqueerio]

could u pretty please write some headcannons on dating gareth ? or just hanging out with him? i know it’s vague but i am willing to take anything you’ll give lmao

So I wrote this in one sitting after I saw this, so I can't promise any order to these or that they're super good, but I do enjoy these and had fun writing them, so I hope you enjoy reading them! (I might come back and add more tomorrow if I can think of anything else)

Also! I have more Gareth headcanons here and here if you're interested in those!

So hanging out with Gareth would be...an experience to say the least

Ofc everyone knows that he's like super chaotic and stuff and sometimes your hangouts are chaotic

He'll invite you to band practice and let you play his kit, whooping about how good you are and how much better you are than the rest of the bandmates

But you also have quiet hangouts

At some point in your relationship, you realize that if you sit with him and quietly play with his hair, he immediately calms down. Sometimes he'll fall asleep

It's handy when you're watching movies, you sit behind him with him between your legs, just slowly combing your fingers through his hair to calm him down

So sometimes when you hang out, you read

You two relax on the bed, with his back against your chest, your fingers combing through his curls

He reads the book aloud to you, whatever he picks off the shelf, or what you have in your bag

Gareth may not seem it, but he does actually enjoy literature

Can't stand the classics though, except a select few

He enjoyed the Hobbit, you made him read it

(He had told Eddie no for the longest time)

The Lord of The Rings would have bored him though, because of how fast his mind works and how fast he switches from task to task

But if you read it to him, he'll listen

Oh also

He prefers to read out loud because it helps him focus, especially when he reads to you

If you're the one reading, he needs to be doing something else to stop from getting bored

(this is why he annotates and writes in his books when he reads alone, it helps him focus)

But when Gareth reads, he does different voices for all the characters

Sometimes it's just silly and he's doing it to be obnoxious/funny

And sometimes he's really into it and he does the voices, iterating what he thinks they sound like

You two could sit and read all afternoon if his attention span allows it

If his mind is particularly loud, his body jittery with more energy than he knows to do with, you go out

Mainly for hikes through the woods

And I mean actually hikes, not a simple stroll through the woods, he needs to exert himself and get that energy out

You're just happy to come along with him

(Plus he has a habit of forgetting water and food, so you have to bring them along)

He's fond of picnics

So when you go out to hike, sometimes you stop in a particularly pretty spot and sit down and eat

You talk about nothingness while time wanes on, enjoying each other's company

Once you two found a spot with a bunch of flowers and you made him a flower crown

You cherish that memory

If you hang out with the others, he's much more rowdy

He teases you a lot more and is more outgoing when it comes to PDA

He definitely shows you off, and tried to make the others jealous by claiming you're the best partner

You play into it and are extra loving towards him

When you're with the others outside of band practice or school or D&D, Gareth usually suggests getting food

So you all cram in different cars and meet up at a diner

You and Gareth usually manage to snag a booth by yourselves

But when you don't, you sit across from each other

(You totally play footsie until one of you ends up getting kicked. Either by each other or by an exasperated hellfire member)

One time it was Mike who did the kicking groaning about how gross couples were

You and Gareth were overly obnoxious that time just to bother him

With a prestigious name like Gareth Benjamin Emerson II, he's ofc got money

His parents are bigshot lawyers up in the city

(he technically lives alone bc they're always so busy but that just means you can stay over more)

His house ends up the designated hang out spot during the summer, because he's got good air conditioning and a pool

You one hundred percent push each other in the pool

You do the thing

Where Gareth pushes you in, and when he offers a hand to help you out, you pull him in

Games of chicken are great

You two are always triumphant, mostly because you cheat

Even when you cheat against Eddie and Steve, who are the kings of playing dirty

Sometimes you can push them into the water before they get you guys

It's always fun, and you're always laughing when you're with him

It doesn't really what you're doing when you hang out, being close to each other is enough