#got handed the chapter in a lit class and went !!! I know who THIS applies to!!

[laniusbignaturals]

Legate Lanius + Monster Culture, Jeffrey Jerome Cohen

Monster Culture, Jeffrey Jerome Cohen / Fallout: New Vegas / Fallout: Lanius, Wade K. Savage / Mars and Rhea Sylvia, Follower of Peter Paul Rubens

[venusguks]

Unlike You

pairing : jeon jungkook x fem!reader

summary : As daydreamy and romantic as you are, you decided true love was going to have to wait for you tonight. That was because tonight, you were getting laid !! ...Your best friend doesn’t make it easy for you when he finds out why, though.

warnings : smut, dom!jk, sub!reader, unprotected seggs, fluff, bsf!jk, degredation, dumbification, possessive jk, jealous jk, fun sexy times, jk is whipped for mc, oral (fem receiving), body worshipping, jimin/reader but only for a sec

“A club?” Jungkook raised his brow.

He was incredulous and slightly displeased as he watched you pace around your room. It was rare after all, new to see you like this―in a black, satin dress with a slit high enough to make him upset. He didn’t need you catching anyone else’s attention, especially in a neon lit bar full of ravenous people.  “For the seventh time, yes, Kook,” You huff, jarring your mouth slightly to dab a dreamy red over your plush lips. 

You couldn’t recall the last time you felt so confident as you applied mascara and tickled a delicate pink over your cheeks. More than anyone, Jungkook couldn’t recall ever seeing you this way, this excited to be amidst a crowd of sweaty bodies. You honestly didn’t see why he was being so apprehensive, it wasn’t like you necessarily hated parties―you just always preferred the coziness of your home better. Huge social interactions were never your thing, and that was okay. Being an introvert wasn’t something to be ashamed of anyway, but staying in came with the everyday comforts of baggy sweatpants and sweaters.

So could anyone really blame you for your excitement? You just loved the way getting ready made you feel, missed it. You already knew you were beautiful with or without makeup, but damn did it make you feel confident.

“It’s just...” Jungkook furrowed his brows and ruffled his hair. “This isn’t like you, love. Did something happen? Are you okay? We can talk about it, if you want. Whatever it is, I’m here to listen you know.” 

You sighed exasperatedly at your best friend’s reflection through your vanity. His eyes were uncertain and full of concern as he watched your figure with crossed arms. “Koo, we’ve been over this so many times already. I’m nervous enough as it is, and you’re not helping at all. I want to do this, okay? It’s been awhile. Plus, I haven’t seen the others boys in so long.”

A part of you didn’t want to be annoyed at Jungkook for his incessant worrying, but it truly was hard not to sometimes. “You’re being such a fucking dick, you know that?! Can’t I just live my life without you being so fucking hysterical about it every time?! ” It was that winter a few months ago when you unleashed all your pent up frustration. Jungkook had always been overprotective, and you appreciated him for caring, but he just made it so hard for you to even breathe sometimes. It was the biggest argument you guys ever had when you started dating a boy a few years older. You ignored Jungkook’s calls and messages for weeks, but when you discovered that he cheated on you, Jungkook was the first to be by your side. You still remember the assurance and safety you felt in his arms; with his soft lips against your forehead, murmuring sweet consolations as you sobbed on his shoulder. After that day, Jungkook agreed to be less protective. 

“I just don’t get why it has to be a club. We could meet the hyungs anywhere else, baby.”

“Oh sure, maybe a strip club would do,” you said, chuckling when you see his shock. “I’m kidding, Koo.” Though that wouldn’t be such a bad idea...

Maybe you couldn’t blame him for being so appalled. You usually opted out whenever your friends went out to celebrate, which by the way, was rather often. Night after night, the few of them would call you, practically beg until they realized their efforts would end in vain. By the morning, notifications would spam your phone of their wild night; pictures and details that showcased hookups you didn’t need to know about. Now that you think about it, it was sort of ironic that you’d always grimace to the crude texts.

That was because tonight, you decided you were getting laid.

That’s right, to hell with sweet, wholesome love! If true love had to make you wait, true love would have to wait for you too! Your subscribing 48K readers have been expecting a new chapter of Spring’s Breath, an erotica series, which you’ve delayed for 2 whole months now. You didn’t exactly know when your writers block came, but by the fourth hour you stared at your blank screen, unable to come up with any other synonym for dick or thrust or moan; or how the overused dirty talk you wrote made you cringe―you realized the firecracker you had in writing erotica died out.

It was your dear friend, Hoseok, who suggested the whole ordeal. He was the only one who knew your secret, anyway. You had so much trust in him, so when he professed that maybe if you slept with someone, your spark would come back, you had truly considered it. Maybe it wasn’t such a bad idea. After all, no cons would come out of it. It was just odd to think about.

You have always been such a huge romantic, your literature proved it. Jungkook nor you nor anyone would anticipate you hooking up with someone just to hook up with someone. The tenderness, the connection, the intimacy... you’ve always prioritized genuine adoration over whimsical one night stands. You were an honest daydreamer, and maybe that’s why your works would always take off.

But maybe... maybe it was okay to let go once in awhile.

When you mentioned Jungkook being less overprotective, you forgot to put an emphasis on less―because there he was, his hand possessively squeezing your inner thigh every time you even dared to look at a cute boy. You let out a frustrated sigh when he nuzzles his nose into your neck.

You tried not to mind it. It was just in his nature anyway―ever since kindergarten when he found you crying over your dropped ice cream. Jungkook left only to come back with another cone, rubbing your fat tears away with the palm of his sleeve. In elementary school, he peppered you with tiny kisses when you sobbed over the death of your kitten. You’ve only had him for a month, dedicated all your time to him and skipped play dates to care for your little serendipity―but just like that―he was lifeless. It was Jungkook who found him on the road. In middle school, he’d go through the enveloped confessions in your locker and rip them apart, saying you deserved better than any of them. You’ve always looked up to him througha lens of admiration. Everything he did for you, he did it out of thought and care. It was sweet.

It was times like these where you really started to mind though. 

You’ve been giggling with your friends for the past hour, catching up on every minuscule detail. You were sitting in a booth wedged in the middle of Jungkook and Hoseok, brimming with happiness to see Namjoon and Yoongi again. Its been so long, and your heart would swell to the stories you’ve missed out on.

The night was carrying on delightfully! ...except for the fact that Jungkook sent death glares to whoever even glanced at you. The countless of times you shyly returned someone’s gaze, only for them to rush away when they caught sight of your best friend left you agitated. When the boys were engaged in a conversation about a class they all shared together, you decided it was a good time to bring it up. 

Gulping a shot down, you let out a huff. “Kookie...”

“Yes, baby?” He whispered into your ear, his large hand grazing the access of your slitted dress.

“Stop it.”

“Stop what, love?” You sharply inhaled as Jungkook rubbed sensitive circles on your skin.

Immediately standing up, you squeezed yourself out of the booth. “I’m gonna go dance!” You yell through the loud music, avoiding Jungkook’s eyes, because seriously, the nerve of that man! The rest of your friends cheered, “We love to see you like this, y/n! Enjoy yourself, cutie!” Hoseok laughed when you blew a kiss to him. He made you feel so much more at ease, so much more confident. Okay, you got this! No use in sitting around. You couldn’t get anywhere tonight with Jungkook by your side, anyway.

Fluffing out your hair after you downed another shot, you strut your way into the dance floor. Your hips swayed in a rather alluring manner as you made your way into the crowd, your fingertips tracing seductive lines from your hips up to your waist, your neck and finally, into the air. The alcohol slowly took its effect as your confidence settled in, rolling your head back and moving your body fluidly to the loud music. 

Truth be told, you didn’t know what you were doing, just knew you must’ve looked good as hell doing it as you felt hands grip your waist. You gasped as a body pressed against your back, sticky with sweat.

“You’re so captivating, princess,” His dulcet voice was enough to make you weak...or was it the alcohol? Whatever the case, get your grip together y/n! It was just four words for star’s sake! 

“I, um, th-thank you...um! You too..” Your confidence from only moments ago dissolved with your voice. “So shy now, princess? How come? You were dancing so sexily just moments ago.” He chuckled lowly against your ear, nibbling it. You whimpered to his brazen touch, his hands guiding your hips with his. “Are you shy for me? Is that it? What a cute little princess you are... so beautiful, fuck.”

Annnnnnnnd you truly were fucked. You professed only hours ago that true love could wait, that you’d be a different woman tonight, yet you couldn’t help but feel bashful to the man’s praise. His voice and his nectar sweet words enough to make you feel wobbly.

“I’m Jimin. Can I know my princess’s name?” He pressed his hardened member against your ass, the silk thin fabric barely doing its job of coverage. “Ah Jimin,” you moaned breathlessly as he kissed your neck. “I...I’m-”

“―Mine,” a low, husky voice finished. Jungkook stood behind you, jaw clenched and arms crossed. The veins on his biceps protruded under the incandescent lights; His white shirt and tight, black jeans doing wonders to complement his physique. 

“Are you deaf? I said she’s mine so why the fuck are your hands still on her?” Jungkook had always been intimidating, even when he didn’t try―so in the rare times he did, even he scared you sometimes.

Much to your disappointment, Jimin immediately lets go, hands in the air, “sorry man, I didn’t know.”

“W-what? Wait, he isn’t my...!” Before you could try to reach for the pink haired man, Jungkook firmly takes your hand. “Y/n, we’re leaving.” You didn’t even have a second to feel shocked before he swiftly guides you through the ocean of bodies. Loud music reverberated with your disappointment, and by the time the night’s cold air stings your cheeks, you've processed what just happened―what you just missed. It’s when Jungkook latches your seatbelt on and drives that you feel anger simmer in your chest.

“Why did you...Why the fuck did you do that, Jungkook?” You were exasperated with your emotions. You just didn’t get it. You were finally having the time of your life, finally stepping out of your comfort zone, finally dancing with a guy who made you feel amazing―just to end up on a drive back home before anything could happen. “Seriously, what the hell is your problem? That was my..! He was..!” You groaned, too frustrated to conjure up words.

Jungkook scoffed, “what, y/n? He was what? Your soulmate or something?”

“I didn’t say that! And even if I think so, why does it matter?! I was having fun! I was having so much fun and you just..! (hiccup) I was having so much fun....” You cried into your hands. “I haven’t felt that way in so long, j-just for you to mess everything up. God, I can’t even muster up words right now. I hate you so much.”

“Love...” Jungkook finally sighed, shutting the engine off. You had cried the whole ride home. The anger he once felt diminished with your tears. “Baby, please look at me.” 

“F-fuck (hiccup) off, Jungkook.” You quickly unbuckled your seatbelt and opened the car door. Knowing him as long as you did, you knew he would take your chin to force you to look up at him―but you had enough of him for the night, and honestly, the whole week.

You were just so fucking frustrated at everything. At Jungkook for unnecessarily budging in, at your writers block, at your own sexual frustration left with Jimin. What did you have to offer your readers now? A heartbreak of a possible relationship that never happened with a shitty friend on the side?

You tuned out Jungkook shouting from behind you, striding to you complex and up the stairs.

It wasn’t long after you slammed the door shut that you heard it click open again. You had forgotten Jungkook had an extra spare of your keys. “Just leave me alone, Kook.” You groaned, storming off into your room.

You kicked your heels off and stomped to your bed, taking out your frustration on your pillow where your sobs were muffled. The bed dips down when Jungkook sits beside you, silent as he caressed your hair in the way he always did to soothe your nerves.

Deciding it wasn’t enough this time, he carefully lifts you up to sit on his lap, sliding his arms around your waist to pull you into his chest. Jungkook knew you long enough to know hugs were the best remedy for you, even at your angriest moments. He knew you wouldn’t push him away.

“You jerk...” You buried your face into the crook of his neck, sniffling. “I don’t get you, Kookie. Why do you always do this?”

“I...I just wanted to protect you, baby. People have bad intentions, I didn’t want to see you end up doing something you’d regret,” His voice was gentle, brushing hair strands away from your face.

“Stars, Kook, I knew what I was doing. Whether I’d end up regretting it or not, that’s for me to sort out. I didn’t need you to ‘protect’ me. I was really enjoying myself, something I haven’t done in a long time. A-and you just..! You ruined it for me.”

Jungkook scoffed, “so you liked it then, how he was touching you? You were just going to let him fuck you?”

“Yes, Kook!” You yelled. “He could’ve fucked me in the public bathroom or in his car―in front everyone for all I care! He was hot and we were in the moment and you just interrupted! I know you care for me and I’ll always appreciate you worrying but there’s a fine line where your protectiveness should be. I’m not a kid anymore, Kook.”

Jungkook was gritting his teeth, and the two of you only glared at each other before he let out a sigh. Despite him wanting to be mad, he didn’t like making you upset. If you were going to cry because of him, he wanted it to be for an entirely different reason. 

He gently cupped your cheeks, holding your gaze with tender, sad eyes. “You know I’d do anything for you, yes? That I’ve always done anything and everything I could to help you?”

You furrowed your brows, unsure of how that related to anything, but nonetheless, you nod. “Yes, I know Kook.”

“Then why didn’t you just ask me to sleep with you, hm? If you needed help so bad, why didn’t you just ask me, baby?” You stared, dumbfounded and mouth ajar as his thumbs brushed the remnants of your tears away.

“W-What are you...?”

“Was so concerned for my baby. Hoseok got drunk and told me everything I needed to know. Did you know how hurt I was? How Hoseok knew something about you that I didn’t? Especially that you were a writer, love. I thought I was your number one, how could you keep that from me?”

“O-Of course you are, Koo! You’ll always be my number one. I just...didn’t want to tell you because it was embarrassing,” you mumbled, glancing away. Damn it Jung Hoseok! After all these years, this is when he accidentally slips it out? “Nuh uh, baby, I’m not having any of that. Look at me.”

Jungkook pressed his forehead against yours, an act you were certainly no stranger to, but nevertheless making your cheeks warm. “Not only that, you wanted to go clubbing tonight just to find a stranger to help you, is that right, baby? Wore this tiny dress just so someone could fuck you? Wanted Jimin to fuck you? Wanted to write about him fucking you in the bathroom stall?” Jungkook was speaking softly, though his words were anything but as his hands left your cheeks to trace sensuous lines up your thigh.

Your hands weakly held onto his shoulders, gasping when you felt his bulge press against your sensitive core.

“What was that you said....In his car? Wanted him to fuck you in front of everybody? Wanted to be a dirty slut just for your readers?” You didn’t know how exactly this moment came to be, but his honeyed voice brought you to a daze as you grind your hips against him. You were desperate to feel more—of anything, of him—only to let out a whine when he forcefully holds you down, burying your clothed center into his bulge. 

“I don’t think so, baby. I don’t think you deserve it,” Jungkook’s hot breath tickled your ear. You whimpered as he bit it, hands squeezing your hips. “You used to be so good for me baby, used to come to me for anything. Used to be a good little girl and depend on me. I would’ve helped you, baby. Instead, you became a dirty little slut, let another man touch you. Is that what you are now? A fucking slut?”

“N-no Kookie,” a new bundle of tears welled in your eyes at his harsh words. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, sh-should’ve, ah, went to you,” you felt your body succumb to his touch. His nose brushed your jaw, placing warm kisses all over your neck before he glided his tongue down to your collarbone. “Please forgive me, I-I’ll be a good girl for you now, p-promise.”

“Yeah? Wanna be a good girl for daddy?” Jungkook licks the base of your collarbone before sucking it. “Yes..ah, yes daddy. Gonna be so good for you.” 

“And yet you weren’t,” you cried as you felt teeth sink into your skin. “J-Jung― ah, Kookie stop! Please i-it hurts!”

“You deserve this, fucking slut. You know how much you hurt me tonight? You’re secretly just a desperate whore, aren’t you? Missed your tiny cunt getting fucked so much that you’d let a stranger do it for you, hm? Answer me, slut.”

You felt tears drip down your eyes, embarrassment washing over your face. “What? You’re not going to speak now?” You shook your head in desperation. You couldn’t. How could you? It was too shameful.

You yelped when Jungkook picked you up by your waist and turned you over so your face was smushed into a pillow. “Ass up, now. Don’t make me repeat myself.” He snarled, and you immediately obliged. Jungkook was on his knees, eyes lidded to your position as he rubbed slow circles on your bare ass. “My slut is voiceless now, hm? Begged to be daddy’s good girl but can’t even answer when I talk to you. Why are you being so disobedient tonight, baby?” It happened so fast you could barely gasp as your body lurched forward to the slap. It repulsed through your skin as your right cheek stung with a faint red.

“J-J-Jungkook, ah!” You cried as another slap came, face burying further into your pillow. “I’ll be obedient from now on! s-so please! I’m sorry, I-I’m sorry, daddy!”

Jungkook’s lips pulled to a smirk, grabbing a bundle of your hair before pulling you towards him. You whimpered and he bent down so he could see your face, tisking. “Oh, my poor baby. Did that hurt? Want to be a good little girl for daddy now?” You nodded ferociously, “p-please yes daddy! I-I’ll be so good for you. Please let me be good for you!” 

Jungkook’s dick felt constrained in his tight pants. He licked his lips to your messy, desperate state. Your eyes were red and puffy, lips just the same as heavy tears streamed down your eyes. Fuck, what Jungkook would give to fuck you senseless right then and there. But no, he needed to wait, needed to be patient. You deserved this.

“Make up your fucking mind, slut. If you want to be a good girl, then take your punishment like a good girl,” Jungkook pushed your face back into the pillow before slapping your ass once more. 

You didn’t know how long it went on, only knew the room was filled with your sobbing and the alarming sound of the contact that met your bruised skin. It hurt, it hurt so much. Your thighs were trembling and both your cheeks were a lovely shade of red and purple. But no matter how much you screamed your endless arrays of i’m sorry’s, Jungkook didn’t fail to notice how your juices soaked your underwear and spilled down your thighs

“Already making such a mess baby,” He groaned to the sight, palming himself to his creation. 

“P-please....hurts so bad...please let me l-lay down daddy, can’t hold myself much longer, please,” Jungkook adored the way you sounded for him, the way he corrupted you. You were perfect there, so perfectly powerless under him. 

“Mm, keep begging baby and maybe I’ll let you,” he unbuckled his pants and discarded them, his cock throbbing to your feeble pleads. “Please, please, p-please, please daddy... please. Hurts so bad, I-I can’t... please i-i’m a good girl. I’m a good girl for daddy. I’ll do anything please.”

“Did you learn your lesson, then?”

“Yes, I-I did, daddy!”

“You’ll be a good girl and obey daddy from now on?”

“Mhm!” You nodded vigorously, and Jungkook chuckled to your desperation. He peeled your soaked thong down, lifting your limp legs momentarily to pull it off until he set you back. You were so tired you felt your thighs give up on you right then, but before you could submit to your exhaustion, Jungkook lifted your ass up higher, arching your back deeper with one hand.

“Mm I don’t think so baby. Obey daddy and keep your ass up like a good little girl.” A gasp left your quivering lips when you felt Jungkook’s breath on your throbbing core.

“You smell so sweet baby, so fucking wet for me,” Jungkook hikes your dress up and glides his tongue up your inner thigh, wiping your dripping juices clean. “Kookie, mm, please,” he trails delicate kisses over your skin, nibbling it. “Yes, baby?” 

“P-please...please Kookie..!”

“Use your words, baby. I can’t help you if you don’t tell me what you want.” Jungkook smiles against your thigh as he hears your soft sniffles muffled by the pillow. His poor baby, always so shy. It was true he loved to tease you, tempt you, and loved making you cry for him—but more than anything, he wanted to take care of you. “Please touch me, Koo, please.”

“Of course, sweetheart.” A sharp shiver crawls across your skin when your pleads are obliged, moaning as Jungkook stuffs his face into your cunt. He kisses your clit softly. One, two, three times before sucking it with his plush lips. His hands were the only thing keeping you up now because you practically melted to the touch. The way his tongue rolled over your sensitive bud already having you see stars. “Ah...feels so good, Kookie.”

“Yeah? Would it feel even better if I do this?” He easily slides his middle finger into your slippery hole, slowly pumping in and out. “O-oh...oh my god, more please.”

“Anything for you baby, but first,” a whimper escapes your lips when you feel him leave you, that is until Jungkook swiftly but gently flips you over so you’re finally laying on your back.

Jungkook’s breath hitches to the sight of you below him, frozen for a moment to the aching pull of his heart.

“You’re so pretty baby, so pretty,” Jungkook’s voice was sweet and smooth as he helped you undress. Fuck, did you know how much you pained him? How much he held back for you, all these years, in this moment? It was so hard not to take you right then, to kiss you until you couldn’t breathe, to touch every single part of you with his lips.

Jungkook has fantasized about you ever since he could remember, but you truly went beyond his imagination. You were so fucking beautiful. 

“...so pretty here,” he kisses your cheeks and your jaw, down to your neck. “And here,” he kisses the valley between your breasts, his hands trailing down your curves. “And here,” your stomach...and finally, taking your clit back into his mouth.

“The prettiest cunt baby, dripping so much for daddy,” he murmurs. His tongue rolls around your clit, pumping two fingers in and out of your slick pussy. It was all too much, the sensations overwhelming your senses as ungodly moans escape your mouth. You felt fuzzy and almost light headed, reaching down to hold Jungkook’s curls.

Your back arches and tears stream down your eyes from the intense pleasure exhausting you, his fingers curling into your sweet spot mercilessly. “Do you like this baby?”

“Love it so much, Jungkook,” You moaned breathlessly, looking down at him through your tears and ... wow. 

Jungkook’s brows were creased as he focused on his tongue devouring your wet cunt, plunging his two fingers steadily in and out of you. His bangs were sticking to his forehead, glossed with sweat while your hands curled around the rest. 

You were taken aback with your emotions. Was it strange, how timid you felt then? Doing this with him was supposed to be sinful, yet for some reason, it felt anything but at that moment.

It was the fact that Jungkook looked so intent, so concentrated in making you feel good. How Jungkook showed his care for you, how he always did, how he was doing right now, cherishing you with his best effort. He wanted to give you the best experience he could, wanted nothing more than to make you feel good.

It was unbearable how much your heart swelled for him.

A knot tied in your stomach, and as if noticing your stare, his eyes flutter open to look at you.“Hm, does baby wanna cum now? You can do it love, cum for daddy.”

With that, you came undone in Jungkook’s mouth. Your cries filled the room, and Jungkook opened your hole wider with his fingers, devouring your cream. The sound of slurping made your cheeks heat with an impure red. “That’s my girl, so good for daddy. So sweet for me baby, so beautiful.”

When you went limp in his arms, he gives your lips one last sweet kiss before standing on his knees. Jungkook smiles at the sight of you, already so fucked out even when he was no where near finished with you. 

He crawled forward, his forehead resting over yours once again. “Did that feel good, sweetie?” You nod shyly, your chests heaving up and down together. With rosy cheeks, you weakly bring your hands up to trace his jaw. “Jungkook?”

“Yes baby?” You melted to his dulcet voice, keeping his loving gaze. It held so much affection, so much adoration for you, you wondered why you never realized it.

“Kiss me, please.”

Jungkook smiles warmly. Without hesitation, he takes your lush, sweet lips in his. It was gentle, a kind of kiss that was so tender it made you warm with reassurance. You were kissing Jungkook—your silly, annoying, bratty, and all the while, lovable best friend of 20 years. It was strange and odd but more than anything, it felt so, unmistakably right.

You took Jungkook by surprise when you deepened the kiss, your hand squeezing his hair. He chuckled softly, pulling himself back momentarily to look into your eyes. “I love you,” he whispers.

Your cheeks heat up, but you fight your timidness as you smile back, “I love you too, Kookie.” 

With that, Jungkook delves back into your lips. A kiss that wasn’t so delicate this time. Rather, untamed and furious, as if Jungkook wanted to show you how much, how long he’s wanted this all this time.

You moaned into him as his hands groped your breasts, fingers twirling your perky nipples. “Jungkookie,” you hold your breath, feeling his clothed cock press against your core. “Fuck me please. Please, I need you so bad.”

“Yeah?” He lowers himself to take a nipple into his mouth. “Tell me how much you want it baby.” He flicked, swirled, and sucked it with his tongue, alternating with the other.

“W-Want it so bad daddy. Please, n-need you to fuck my wet pussy mm, daddy please.”

“Since you asked so nicely,” he grins and sits up, pulling his shirt over his head, discarding his boxers and...

Oh.

Your breath hitched, blinking at Jungkook’s huge, painfully hardened cock. His tip was pink with sticky, white precum dribbling down his long member. It slightly pretruded up and its veins throbbed as if it’s been aching. And truly, he was. He’s been aching to feel your walls wrap around him for so long. You have no idea how hard he’s been trying to hold himself back for you. How painful it was to—and now, seeing you there, perfect and pretty, so shy and red just for him, Jungkook wasn’t sure he could anymore.

Jungkook needed you. He needed you getting stuffed full of his cock right now.

“I-Its so big...” You gulp as he centers himself in between your legs. “I know baby, so big and ready for your tiny cunt. Can you be a big girl and take it for me baby, hm? Let daddy fuck you until he’s satisfied? Let him use you like the little cock slut you are?”

“Y-yes daddy,” you whimper as he rubs his slick tip against your soaked, smooth cunt, sliding it back and forth. “I’m yours so please, p-please just use me daddy!”

“So good for me baby, such an obedient little slut for daddy, fuck,” Jungkook groans, slipping his tip into your lush walls. You cry as he stretches you all the way out, leaving no room for you to breathe with his tip poking your tummy. Your mind felt dizzy, mouth ajar with drool slipping out even when he hadn’t even moved yet. 

“Shiiit you should see yourself baby. Such a fucking whore for daddy’s cock. Can I move, baby? Or can this tiny little pussy not take my big cock?”

“I-I..mm, please, I can take it! Please fuck me daddy!”

“That’s my girl.” Jungkook starts off painfully slow but just as painfully hard, pushing your knees to your chest. He completely draws himself back so he can see his glistening, twitching tip before driving himself back into your core. “Shit baby, your pussy’s so, fuck, tight.” Jungkook moaned to how your breast bounced up and down every time he shoved himself in.

You were sobbing by the time he quickened his pace, the intense sensation having you light headed. Jungkook loved the way you looked under him, eyes rolled back with buried balls deep inside of you. “You like this baby? Love my cock filling you? Answer me.”

“L-love mm love so m—ah, Kookie..! f-feels so....g-good daddy.”

“Look at you, baby. Can’t even talk with daddy’s cock stuffing you. Such a dumb slut for daddy, so fucking hot baby.” Jungkook moans, juices spurting everywhere and dampening the sheets with every thrust.

“I-I’m not d-dumb..!” You whimpered, fat tears streaming down your eyes. Jungkook smirks, licking his lips.

“Aww, of course you are baby. Just a dumb little cock slut for daddy. Can only think of daddy’s cock, can you?”

You can’t bring yourself to answer, your mind too scrambled with each and every thrust. Jungkook was going so fast, so hard, you felt so full.

“That’s what I thought baby. My sweet girl, fucked dumb for daddy. You only need daddy’s cock, nothing else.” Jungkook positioned your legs over his shoulders, clenching on to them to drill deeper into your tummy.

“Oh, o-oh my god, ah d-daddy...! ‘m your slut...love your dick so m-much...love being stuffed with cock.” Jungkook groaned to your sinful moans, feeling his stomach tighten.

“Just want daddy to cum inside you, don’t you? Want daddy to fill you up until you’re dripping with my cum, baby?”

“Y-yes, please daddy! Want daddy’s cum so bad! Please give me cum..!” Jungkook shoves his thumb inside of you plush lips, and god, he’s so proud of his work, so proud of you. You were taking his thumb like a good girl, sucking it as if it were his cock.

Jungkook felt his dick throb inside of you, aching for release. He pulls his thumb out with a pop of your wet lips, coated with saliva, and rubs figures over your clit. You scream, gripping onto the sheets. it was so much, too much for you to handle. Your back arches as he abuses your clit and sloppily fucks your hole.

“J-Jung–Jungkook, ah, please! Kookie! I-I’m..!”

“Its okay, baby, its okay. Gonna cum with daddy, hm? You can do it baby, sweet girl, cum for me,” Jungkook cooes, attempting to soothe your nerves, but his words are breathless and ragged. He thrusts in and out one, two, three, four more times until he burries himself deep inside you, spurts of thick cum filling your womb.

Jungkook groans as your pussy clenches around him, and you’re a sobbing, moaning, wet mess as you milk him. “Fuck, my sweet girl. Taking my cum like a big girl baby. So good for daddy, so fucking good for me.” With his praise, you feel yourself release soon after. Jungkook continues to thrust in and out of you, helping you ride out your high.

When he feels you falter in his arms, he pulls out and lays on top of you. Both of you stay like that for awhile, exhausted and in a daze.

With your moist bodies tangled with one another’s, you shut your eyes. You can hear Jungkook’s heartbeat hammer against yours, you short-winded breaths, and the soft whirring sound of the air conditioner.

Moonlight filtered in through your windows, casting a luminescent glow on Jungkook’s skin when he pushes his upper body up, his shoulders resting on either side of you.

Jungkook had spent the whole night cherishing you, telling you how pretty you were, and yet there he was—so ethereal under midnight’s grace. How could he be real?

You bring your hand to caress his cheeks. You don’t say anything. He doesn’t either.

In that moment, so intimate and sacred, His doe, gentle eyes that you could get lost in—that hold all the lost stars of the night sky, tell you all you need to know.

You yawn, stretching your arms high up. “Here’s your order maam,” two porcelain cups of matcha are placed in front of you, steam following it’s every movement. You mumble a thank you, smiling before your eyes drift to the man at the other side of the cross walk.

He’s wearing all black as per usual, revealing the beautiful tattoos that adorned his tan skin. His hair was tousled and he looked sleepy—after all, he’d just gotten out of class—but as soon as the crosswalk lights up with green, you chuckle when he sprints across and into the shop.

The bell that hung by the door didn’t even finish ringing before he runs to you, sweeping you off your chair and into his arms. “Kookie, let me down!” You giggle, but nonetheless wrapping your arms around his neck.

“I’m so proud of you baby,” he nuzzles his nose into yours. “You finally published it right? The twenty second chapter?”

a / n : ahhhhh its exactly 3:01am and i have class in the morning which is why the middle ending is super rushed sorry ! i truly wonder why i do this to myself.

this is my first smut fanfiction so i’m not sure how i did , but if anyone ever reads this , i hope you enjoyed ! i dont think im cut out to write smut, i truly did have headaches thinking of synonyms for thrust and dirty talk . i really admire smut writers ,, writing smut is not as easy as it seems !!

anyways , sending love abundance and happiness your ways. you deserve love, you’re worthy of love, and you are love.

stay safe and healthy starlights <3

[moldisgoodforyou]

lost time (chapter one)

pairing: rafe cameron x oc

a/n: while this features rafe, he is almost completely non-canon in this series! also welcome to my new series - I hope you enjoy 😌

warnings: drinking, cursing, mentions of sex

wordcount: 1.5k

MASTERLIST

______________

“You’re not seriously taking that.” 

Sophie Flint stopped dead in her tracks at the low, slightly amused voice that echoed down the hall. She had the Delta Tau Delta fraternity composite tucked precariously under her arm, which was definitely not fair game, but she had a mission to complete. 

She wasn’t exactly sure why it was a thing for sorority girls to steal things from frat houses. T-shirts, baseball caps, a fraternity composite if you were feeling particularly bold. But in a fun competition her friends on her dorm floor had concocted at the beginning of freshman year, she and her friends had made it their personal mission to collect at least one item from every fraternity, all 27 at Ohio State University. It was the start of her junior year and she hadn’t taken anything but a couple shack shirts so far (and was immediately told that was cheating), but a little pressure from her friends, a Delt party and a handful of White Claws made it the optimal time to act. Go big or go home, right?  

She turned, slowly and put on her flirtiest smile - and dropped the look the second she saw who it was. “Cameron.” Sophie acknowledged him with a mere nod, then started walking straight past him. 

Rafe snagged the edge of the composite immediately, tugging her backward. “Flint. Did you not hear me?” 

She rolled her eyes, keeping a firm grip on the composite. “Heard you loud and clear. Just not listening. I need this.” 

“What could you possibly need a fraternity composite for?” He questioned with raised eyebrows. 

“That’s for me to know and you to not find out.” She told him with a smug expression, curling her fingers tighter around the heavy frame. 

Rafe debated his options. He could let the girl go with a definitely stolen composite that would be kind of a hassle to replace, and let one of the pledges manning the door deal with it. Or he could argue more and watch the way her eyes grew bright and hear her little huff when she disagreed and - nah, it wasn’t worth it. 

He dropped his hand from the frame and lifted it in surrender, his other hand gripped loosely around a red solo cup. “I’m too drunk for this.” (He wasn’t.) “As long as you promise you won’t steal anything else.” 

She smirked. “I don’t make promises.” With that, she was on her way with the prearranged route - down the fire escape by the back hallway on the third floor, where her roommates waited not-so-patiently in the parking lot. 

___________

Rafe and Sophie had known each other since high school back in the Outer Banks, and they had never - ever - gotten along. He had gone to St. Andrew’s all-boys private school while she went to the sister school at Greenville Academy. Both grades were relatively small and students went to each other’s sporting events, combined for the yearly school play, and most importantly - threw parties together, often. The parties were always extravagant, alcohol flowing at some rich kid’s house with an excess of unsupervised teenagers milling around. 

If you asked either one of them where the mutual contempt started, they wouldn’t be able to pinpoint a specific moment. Sophie liked arguing (and instigating) just for fun while Rafe liked proving his arrogance. It was almost a guarantee at every high school party that at a certain point in the night, you could find them at each other’s throats, arguing over the dumbest thing possible. There was a point that it had evolved from coincidental arguments to seeking each other out to start a debate - no one else could go head to head with them quite like each other could - but they’d never willingly admit that.

___________

It had only taken them two weeks for their first argument in college. She strolled up to the makeshift bar in the sticky, dimly lit basement of Delta Tau Delta, way too confident for a freshman, and tapped on the pledge’s shoulder by the jungle juice to request a drink. Rafe Cameron turned around, wearing his backward baseball cap and signature smirk, and his face quickly morphed into shock. 

“Sophie? What the fuck are you doing here?” 

She crossed her arms, somehow already pissed off. They stuck to last names only, he knew that. That was their one unspoken rule they kept when talking - or rather, fighting - back home. “Please tell me you’re visiting a friend here, Cameron.” 

He grinned and spread his arms wide. “Welcome to my home.” 

“Dear god.” She elbowed him aside, serving herself a drink from the Gatorade cooler. “Of course you had to follow me here.” 

He gaped, mouth hanging open in shock. “Follow - follow you?! You’re high if you think I would willingly follow you anywhere, Flint.” 

“I applied to Ohio State, early decision, forever ago. You had to have known. It was my top school and top scholarship.” She shot back, trying her best to hide a grimace as she took a long sip from the sugary-sweet drink, laced with an ungodly amount of alcohol. 

He didn’t miss the subtle brag. “I don’t keep tabs on you. Why didn’t you go to Clemson or something nearby? You know, like everyone else?” 

She rolled her eyes. “Because, dumbass, I look horrific in orange and purple.” She proclaimed like it was an obvious statement. “And I wanted to get the fuck out of the Carolinas.” 

He grinned, completely unfazed by her insult,and lifted his cup to tap hers. “Cheers to that.” 

“Whatever. I don’t want to see you on campus again.” She turned sharply on her heel, leaving with the last word - or so she thought. 

“See you around, Soph!” He called out after her, way too smug for her liking. Typically, he would follow her and antagonize her some more, but as a pledge he was assigned to man the jungle juice for the night. He stayed put, only out of obligation - making a silent promise to himself to check up on her another time. 

___________

She ran into Rafe again one week after the composite incident. Literally. 

In her defense, it was pouring rain. She was just trying to be a good friend and drop her roommate Allie off for class, now that Sophie finally had her own car in junior year, but she was running late as always and in a rush. Sophie swerved around the corner of the business school parking lot just as a big black Range Rover was backing up, and gasped when she heard the tell-tale crunch of metal on metal. Allie winced, clutching her backpack in her lap. “Um…” 

“Just go.” Sophie sighed, knowing she had only two minutes to make it to class on time. Allie muttered a quick apology and dashed out of the car as Sophie dropped her head to the steering wheel with a loud “fuck!” She reached over and grabbed her insurance card from the glove box, then got out of the car, ready to grovel. 

Rafe slammed his door as he got out to inspect the damage. It wasn’t much, more like a quick bump and a paint scratch than anything, but he was already in a mood and this didn’t help. 

“Oh, fuck no.” Sophie cursed lowly to herself as she saw Rafe hunched over by their bumpers. “Great driving, Cameron.” She called out, arms crossed. 

He straightened up, walking over to her with an incredulous look. “Uh uh. This is your fucking fault, Flint. Just give me your insurance card and we’ll call it good.” 

She rolled her eyes and pushed a now-wet strand of hair out of her face. “Except you crashed into me. Ever look in the parking lot before backing up?” 

He scoffed, gesturing her over to look at the cars and waited til she reluctantly followed. “There’s an indent of your front plate in my rear bumper. And there’s about twenty students that probably saw it, want to call in a character witness?” 

“I’m not a bad driver.” She huffed. “That’s clearly your fault.” She was lying, of course - anyone with two working eyes could see she had rammed into him. And with anyone else, she’d be extremely apologetic, even patient. But Rafe Cameron irked her to no end. 

“Yeah, the time you merged your brother’s car into someone else on the highway our sophomore year of high school shows you’re an excellent driver.” He retorted, then started toward her car, opening the door. “Where’s your card?” 

“Hey!” Sophie grabbed his arm, pulling him back. She fished the insurance card out of her pocket and begrudgingly handed it over. “Chill out, it’s right here.” He took out his phone and snapped a picture of the front and the back, then handed it back. He then paused, eyeing her over. She shifted under his intense gaze. “What, Rafe, it’s raining. Hurry up so we can both leave.” 

“I thought you weren’t in the business school. Why are you even here?” 

“I’m not. I’m dropping off a friend.” 

He reached out and swiped a thumb under her eye, and she silently cursed herself for the way she fucking shuddered, like she was desperate or something. He smirked. “Your mascara’s running. Probably ought to fix it.” 

With that, he turned back to his car - enjoying her rare moment of silence. 

[jaefluenza]

hi can i request a angst where jaehyun and his s/o is an architect will live korea to pursue their dreams while also jaehyun focuses on his idol career

5. “i will support you even though i’m far away”

2. “i cant let us fade away” + “you’re the best part of my life”

Hi! Thank you for requesting! This idea is brilliant that I immediately write them down 💚 Ooh and this will be 85% fluff and 15% angst I’m sorry 🥺

(Angst)

5. “I will support you even though I’m far away.”

2. “I can’t let us fade away.”

(Fluff)

1. “You’re the best part of my life.”

word count: 1,2k words

You looked down at the envelope in your hand. The things written on the paper will change your life forever. You weren’t ready to open it, but not gonna lie, you really waited long enough to know the result of your hard work.

You open the lid nervously, taking out the white official paper inside before unfolding the paper to see what’s written on it.

‘Dear Ms. Y/l/n,

I am delighted to inform you that the Committee on Admission has admitted you to the class of 2021.’

You squeals in happiness when you finished reading the first sentence of the letter. “Mom! I’m admitted!!!” You run out of your room to your mom who’s cooking in the kitchen.

After a mini celebration with your family, you went back to your room, looking back at the letter, feeling proud. Sketching buildings and houses have been something you’re good at, and one of the reasons why is because of your desire to build a dream house for your family to live in. You want your family to live comfortably and happy, with your own design.

While you daydream about what’s going to happen in your upcoming life chapters, a notification pops up from your phone. You peeked into it to see who texted you and you smiled. It’s him.

Jaehyun <3: Hey, are you free for a date night?

You: “Hey baby! Yes, I’m free and I have something to tell you ~

Jaehyun <3: I’m excited! I’ll pick you up at 11, love. See you later ~

“I miss you so much!” Jaehyun hugged you so tight that you have to hold your breath with a smile drawn on your face. “Stop, I can’t breath!”

“Oops, sorry. I can’t help it.” He puts his hands back on the steering wheel and you leaned forward to give him a kiss. After all, you both can only date in his car to avoid getting caught by paparazzi and being careful not to hurt his fans.

Now that his car is parked in the middle of the park, he leaned closer to you while playing with your hand, squeezing it a little bit and your cheeks

“So, what is the thing you want to tell me, hm?” He asked.

You sighed. You were actually afraid that this might not end well because pursuing your dream job means leaving him and that you will be miles away from him without being able to come back home often.

“Well, the thing is... this.” You take out the letter you brought along to show him nervously, a small smile drawn on your face while expecting his reaction.

“Hm?” Jaehyun opened the letter you passed to him and a minute after he read the first paragraph, his eyes lit up in happiness. “Baby, you got admitted!” Before you got to reply he engulfed you in a hug again, slightly moving your body along with him in excitement. “Y-you’re happy?” You asked, voice muffled by being pressed to the crook of his neck.

“Of course! I know this means a lot to you. Going to this university is a dream and now you’re going for it! I’m so happy for you.”

For a moment, you feel like all the worries you have been thinking of were useless. Of course, he would be supporting and happy for you and stuff, but the fact that you both are going to be far away from each other still bothers your mind.

“Thank you for kindly supporting me, hon, but this means I’m going to be far far away from you.” You uttered sadly and he quickly sighed.

“I know. Remember when you first told me that you’re applying and I whined and told you I’m gonna be so sad if you got admitted? I am now. I feel like, you’re already going even though you’re still here with me and your departure will be in like two months?”

You can’t help but feel sad at what he said. A drop of tears slip out of your eye and you quickly wiped it off your cheeks and he immediately panicked. “Oh no, I made you cry! I’m sorry! This waas supposed to be a happy moment for you but I ruined it! Shit, I’m a terrible boyfriend,” he ranted.

“No, Jae. You’re the best part of my life. You’re not a terrible boyfriend. I love you, a lot.”

His look soften when you confessed just like that. He pats your back lovingly while you try to wipe the wetness on your cheeks. “It’s okay, we shall make sure that we will cherish every moment left to make up all the time we’ll be away from each other.”

He runs his fingers through your hair, brushing them against your hair to feel your beauty longer than he usually does. You smiled while keeping the eye contact before speaking out to him, “I will support you even though I’m far away. I will always be your number one fan, Jae.”

“I know it, I know for sure. We’ll keep in touch, right?”

You nod, and when you both hug it makes you sadder than it was already been that you cried on his hoodie that night, feeling sad and happy all mixed together, with him by your side.

The last two months ended with you two spending time more often than usual. His manager made it possible and he was being considerate enough to make his schedule worked for both of you to hang out. He meets you after his drama filming and often offers you to help you preparing your things before you move. Everything was going well and for a short moment, it made you forget that you’ll actually be leaving your family and loved one in a few hours.

Jaehyun stayed by your side before you have to check-in. He waited next to your family while you talked to your other family and friends, him being covered in a mask and a hat. He promised himself not to cry on the day when he would send you to the airport, but he thinks he’s going to fail. And he’s right.

“Aw, look at him, he’s already crying!” One of your family points up at him and he immediately wiped out the tears, embarrassed that your family gets to see him cry.

You smile bitterly as you approach him to give him a tight hug. He hugs you tighter, inhaling your scent before he’s going to miss your presence in the time beings. “I’m going to miss you, for real.” He mumbled against your hair, feeling a little bit relieved when your family left you both to give more privacy.

“Believe me, I’m going to miss you too, more than what you can imagine. Promise me to always work hard and achieve what you dream of, Jaehyun. We’re going to support each other, right?”

He nodded, as he rubs his hands against your back lovingly, before the announcement played on the background, reminding you of how little time you got before actually leaving the country to pursue your big dream.

“I can’t believe you already have to leave,” he sniffles. You laugh in tears, “Yes, I have to, by now. Stay healthy, baby. I’ll call you when I arrive.”

“Goodbye, love.” You waved to him as you drag your carrier with heavy steps, entering the other side while making sure you still see his figure through the transparent automatic slide door until he vanished completely out of your sight.

Jaefluenza navigation

Submit a request!

[svtwritess]

Chapter 4

➫ word count: 7.6k

➫ pairings: wonwoo x female reader, mingyu x female reader

➫ genre: fluff, angst, smut

➫ college!au, vampire!au

➫ warnings: alcohol, mentions of food, swearing, sexual content

A week had passed since Wonwoo’s outburst, and things had returned back to normal. Minus the fact that you had to consciously stop yourself from telling your best friend about Mingyu. It was hard since he was your only form of social life outside of Wonwoo, but you sucked it up for the purpose of the deal you made with him. You had spent so much time with Mingyu and you were extremely happy about it. He took you out to lunch after the class you had together and mentioned that he wanted to make it a weekly thing, to which you happily agreed. He had also picked you up from each of your classes, waiting outside the door with your favorite coffee in his hand, prepared to walk you to your apartment. He would usually stay over until right before Wonwoo was supposed to come home and much to your delight, things usually got relatively heated for at least a little while. You didn’t know what you did to be treated so well, but you were in far too deep to question it.

You were currently on the phone with Mingyu who was trying his hardest to convince you to go to another party, one that was happening that night, and you were refusing profusely. 

“I’m sorry but no! Why can’t we just watch a movie or something?” you whined, picking at the fur on one of your stuffed animals as you sat on your bed.

“Because my friends are gonna be there and I really want you to meet them! You don’t even have to dress up, just wear jeans or something.” he whined back, his pleading tugging at your heartstrings very effectively.

“Well if I’m meeting all of your friends, I’m gonna wear more than just jeans.” you smiled to yourself, feeling happily defeated.

“Soooo is that a yes?” you could hear the cheeky grin on his face from through the phone.

“Yes, now tell me when and where it is before I change my mind.” you giggled, standing up and walking over to your closet. You opened it excitedly, knowing exactly what you were going to wear. 

“I’ll pick you up at 9 okay? Meet me at the entrance to your place, and try to stay awake until then.” he teased and you nodded, forgetting that he couldn’t see you.

“Will do, see you later.” 

“Byeee.” he said, ending the phone call in just as much of an endearing way as he started it. 

You checked the time on your phone before locking it and tossing it on your bed. It was 8:10, giving you a little less than an hour to get ready. If there was something you’d learned about Mingyu in the past week, it was that he was very punctual, and very proud of the fact. 

You took the dress you were going to wear out of your closet, admiring it for a moment. It was a dark pink color, flowers scattered here and there, with a high v-neck and short sleeves. It hugged your body in the most flattering way and fell to your mid-thigh, but those were the only ways in which it was revealing. 

You took your shoes out of your closet as well before going to get your makeup bag. You only planned to wear a small amount, just enough to make an… impressive first impression. 

You played some music as you got ready, taking your time getting dressed and applying your makeup. You even put on some of your favorite perfume before slipping on your socks and shoes. You grabbed a small purse from one of your drawers and threw your phone in it, preparing to put your keys in it as well. You stepped out of your bedroom and went to grab your keys that you knew were on the counter by the door. 

“Where are you going?” Wonwoo asked from the couch, his glasses resting on the bridge of his nose with a bowl sitting in his lap. 

“Just… out.” you shrugged, throwing your keys into your bag and heading out the door. You knew if you went to explain further you would end up saying more than he needed to know, so you decided to skip it. Wonwoo would figure out who you were with soon enough. 

As you walked toward the entrance to your apartment complex, you saw Mingyu’s tall figure approaching. He was dressed in a thin black sweater that was made of slightly see through material, light blue jeans that made his thighs look amazing, and black sneakers. You were finally close enough to hear each other and his eyes widened. 

“Wow…” Mingyu breathed out, “This is casual for you?” he laughed in awe as he pulled you in by your waist, his brown orbs full of admiration.

“Maybe, is that an issue?” you asked, running your hands up his arms, admiring the way the black of his shirt complimented his honey-colored skin. 

“Not at all.” he smirked, placing a quick kiss on your lips. “You ready?” 

You nodded happily and reached down to take his hand in yours. “Let’s go!” 

You walked in silence toward wherever the party was, it seemed like it was in a similar spot to the previous party location. Though when you arrived at the house, it was much smaller than the one last weekend and it seemed like there were way less people there. Upon entering, it felt more like a get together than a party, but you almost preferred that. 

There were still people dancing with cups full of alcohol in their hands under low, colored lighting, but the environment was much more relaxed. Mingyu led you down to the basement where there were people sitting on couches and conversing, a thin layer of smoke covering the room. He walked you over to a small leather couch in the back corner where 4 men around your age were seated, two on the loveseat and two on the floor. 

“Y/n, these are the guys.” he motioned outward with his hand and they all looked up at you, eyes wide. They stood up frantically and straightened their clothes out before smiling at you. The first 3 were giving you sweet, cheeky smiles, while the other was smirking at you with his arms crossed over his chest. “This is Chan, Vernon, Jihoon, and Jeonghan.” 

You couldn’t deny that they were all attractive, but not as attractive as Mingyu, at least in your opinion. Chan and Jihoon had an endearing, youthful vibe to them, while Vernon seemed very chill, and Jeonghan seemed… unique. 

They all said their hello’s and you said hi back, your nerves suddenly settling in.

“So this is the girlfriend huh?” Jeonghan said, a cocky tone to his voice. Your cheeks heated up as you held back a smile, and just as you were about to protest, Mingyu spoke up.

“I guess that would be the best way to describe it, yeah.” he laughed nervously. Your jaw dropped slightly and looked up at Mingyu in disbelief. Your entire face was now red, not expecting to gain that title this evening, even if he seemed a little apprehensive about it. You were itching to have that conversation, but you knew you needed to save it for after the party. 

“Well good for you guys. Are you hanging out with us tonight?” Jihoon said as they all returned to their places on the couch or carpet. 

“We were planning on it, if that’s okay.” Mingyu replied. They all nodded, Chan still with a small smile on his face. Mingyu led you to the wall opposite of where you were standing and sat down against it, patting the spot next to him. You sat as appropriately as you could, with your legs bent so that your knees pointed toward Mingyu. It wasn’t comfortable, but it was the only way you could sit without flashing the entire party. Mingyu put his hand on your thigh and smiled at you. 

“Here,” Jeonghan said as he held a jacket out to you, “for your legs.” his voice was quiet and he almost seemed shy, which was a huge contrast to his smug presence you had just witnessed. 

“Thank you,” you said appreciatively before draping the coat over your lower body. Your “boyfriend” seemed happy about the interactions that had happened thus far as his thumb rubbed your leg comfortingly. 

“So, Vernon over there is dating a guy named Seungkwan, he’ll be here later. You know him?” Mingyu asked and your face lit up at the mention of a familiar name.

“Oh yeah! I only met him once, but I think he knows my roommate. He seems really nice.” you said, a small smile on your face. You were happy someone you actually knew would be joining you. Even if you only met in passing, seeing a face you’d seen before would further comfort you.

“Oh he’s nice, and have you seen his ass?” Jeonghan said playfully before Vernon reached up and hit his arm, though Jeonghan simply laughed as he rubbed the spot. You laughed at the exchange, seeing Mingyu smiling at you from the corner of your eye.

“Well I’m gonna go get a drink, you want anything?” Mingyu asked.

“One of whatever pleeease.” 

He kissed the top of your head before standing up and exiting the basement. 

“So you know about the, you know, thing, right?” Chan asked once Mingyu was gone, sitting criss-cross applesauce on the seat of the couch.

“Th-the thing?” you questioned. You assumed he meant Mingyu being a vampire, but you weren’t sure if they knew he was as well.

“Yeah! Being dead, not being able to go out in the sunlight, can only be killed by wooden stakes, that stuff?” he said way more casually than you would’ve expected him to. 

“Yeah, yeah he told me about that,” you nodded, trying to match his level of calmness, “but is all of that really true?” you asked, genuinely curious. 

Every single one of them laughed out loud. 

“Well we’re dead, sure, but that’s about the only thing that’s accurate.” Jeonghan replied. Did he say… we?

“Wait… are you all-”

“Yeah, we are,” Vernon stopped you, “Jeonghan here is the oldest, then Mingyu, then me, then Chan.” 

You nodded in understanding, not really sure how to react. You now had an apparent vampire “boyfriend” who had 4 hot vampire friends. You wouldn’t have picked Twilight to be the book your life turned into, but admittedly you weren’t complaining. 

“So… does Seungkwan know too? Just so I know if I should bring it up or not.” 

“Yeah, he knows. He was really cool about it too.” a small smile made its way onto the 2nd youngest vampire’s face as Mingyu re-entered your corner with 2 red cups in his hand. He handed you one and you thanked him before he returned to his spot next to you. 

“Have there been people who weren’t cool about it?” you asked out of curiosity, not realizing the true weight of the question. Mingyu had a confused look on his face as the other 3 looked at each other, puzzled. 

“Well, yeah, but that never ends well, so we’re glad the two of you were accepting of it.” Jihoon told you, a dismissive look on his face. You so badly wanted to know exactly what he meant by that, but as it was only your first time meeting him, you didn’t push the topic.

You took a sip of your drink, your tastebuds instantly captivated by a yummy vodka and punch mixture. Mingyu returned his hand to your thigh, though this time on top of the jacket. 

“Is it okay if I ask how old you guys are? I thought Mingyu would be older than he actually was.” you told the group and they all chuckled. 

“I’m 212, give or take a few years. Keeping track gets hard after a while.” Jeonghan answered. You chuckled lightly before Vernon spoke up.

“I just turned 100. Not gonna lie it feels really cool to say that.” he smiled confidently at his own words. 

“I’m 22. I haven’t even been turned for a year yet, so I’m still learning,” he said shyly with a small shrug. He was so cute.

“You remember that crash you heard on the phone the other day?” Mingyu asked and you nodded. “That was him.” he pointed at Chan, causing Jeonghan to poke at him teasingly. 

“So Chan’s your roommate?” you turned to Mingyu and he nodded. You were really glad you got to meet his friends and you were really glad that they were nice. 

When your eyes left Mingyu, you saw Seungkwan walking toward your group. He had on a white sweater and black pants, his hair looking fluffy and as if it would be soft to the touch. 

Vernon stood up and greeted him with a hug before pecking his lips and plopping back down on the couch. Seungkwan took a seat on his boyfriend’s lap and Vernon wrapped his hands around Seungkwan’s waist. Their position caused your mind to flash back to when you saw Wonwoo and coffee girl, who you still refused to call by name, at the last party. You tried to suppress the memory as best as you could. 

“Seungkwan, this is Y/N.” Mingyu said as he motioned to you. Seungkwan’s jaw dropped slightly and pointed at you with his eyebrows furrowed, as if he was thinking, then he smiled.

“Oh you were with Wonwoo! At the party last weekend! How are you?” he asked cheerfully, getting up from Vernon’s lap and walking over to you. He bent down to give you a hug, and had you known that’s what he was doing you would have gotten up to greet him as well. You hugged him back as your heart fluttered at his kind gesture. You already hoped you could be friends with him. 

“I’m good, thanks. It’s really good to see you.” you said as he pulled away and his grin only widened. 

“You too!” you expected him to go back to where he was sitting, but he stayed standing in front of you. “Are you guys just gonna… sit here?” he asked, motioning to the small area you were sitting in with his hands. 

“I mean we could do something, but what?” Chan questioned.

“Oh! Let’s go play beer pong!” Mingyu came alive as he put his idea out in the open. You had never played it before, but as long as you were in good company, and you were, you didn’t care what you did. 

“I’m down. As long as you guys are prepared to lose.” Jeonghan said, his cocky side returning. 

“Me too. As long as you’re prepared for the ass beating I’m gonna give you when you cheat.” Mingyu spit back at Jeonghan, causing everyone except Jeonghan to laugh.

“Let’s go!” Vernon said before everyone stood up. Mingyu offered his hand to you and you took it, allowing him to pull you up with essentially no effort at all. You tied Jeonghan’s jacket around your waist and followed the others to the back patio.

The back of the house reeked of weed, but you hoped that your nose would simply get used to it. There was a ping pong table on the concrete, and right when you began to question where the beer pong stuff was, Vernon and Seungkwan appeared with cups, beer bottles, and ping pong balls in their hands. You asked if you could help set things up, but Mingyu insisted that you didn’t need to, so you stood back and admired Mingyu’s active form from a distance. 

With so many of them putting the game together, it was ready to play in no time. You were on a team with Mingyu and Seungkwan and were playing against Jeonghan, Jihoon and Chan. Vernon told the lot of you that he was fine being the referee. 

“Everybody play fair now,” Vernon said, not-so-subtly looking at Jeonghan longer than he looked at everyone else. The older male rolled his eyes at the glance and grabbed a ball, determination in his eyes as the game began.

The first round was atrocious for your team. You could tell Mingyu was doing his best to keep his cool as he knew you had never played before and knew that Seungkwan didn’t play often, but it was clear he was unhappy with the terrible result of the initial match. That led him to challenge the other team to a second game, in which you totally kicked ass. The opposing team tried to call it beginners luck, but as you’d already played one game, you knew it was just the fact that you’d finally gotten the hang of it, much to Mingyu’s delight. Seungkwan never really got better, which was okay. You learned that he’s an amazing cheerleader. 

The third game, however, was just one big mess. Jeonghan continuously smacked ping pong balls that were about to score a point away from the cups. He also kept moving cups around and when you accused him of cheating, him and the rest of his team would act like they had absolutely no idea what you were talking about. That being said, you lost the last game, though very unfairly, and decided to end the playing there before you, Mingyu and Seungkwan became too aggravated. 

You went back inside, all of you stopping in the kitchen to grab a drink before returning to the couch in the corner of the basement. You were only feeling slightly tipsy from the beer you had drank, and truthfully you didn’t want to get any further than that. 

This time around, Mingyu sat on the couch and pulled you down on his lap, one hand wrapped around your waist and the other around a beer bottle. Seungkwan sat next to you on Vernon’s lap, and Jihoon managed to squeeze onto the armrest by the wall.

You got caught up in conversation with the group, mostly talking to Seungkwan about how crazy finding out that vampires were real was for the both of you. Seungkwan said he freaked out a bit at first and was surprised to hear that you didn’t, but he understood. He said that though he was scared of everything he thought he knew about vampires as a species at the time, he wasn’t scared of Vernon in the slightest. You thought their relationship was really cute in an opposites attract type of way.

You also found out that Jihoon was really into writing music, Chan was really into dancing, and Jeonghan was really into simply having a good time. You were glad you got involved with a guy that seemed to have such great friends, even if they weren’t exactly alive. 

Though you were having a great time conversing with everyone, you noticed that Mingyu had barely said 3 words since you came back inside.

“Hey, you okay?” you said as you looked at him. He nodded passively as he looked past you and further into the room. The look on his face was serious, almost as if he was on the lookout for something. You turned around and tried to follow his eyeline. It seemed as if he was staring at another male attending the party, one that looked oddly familiar. 

“Do you know that guy? The guy you’re staring at?” you asked him quietly, not wanting the others to hear. 

“Uhh yeah, just someone I used to know. He doesn’t usually come to these types of things.” he replied. You turned back to the man and looked a little closer, trying to remember how you knew him.

“Oh!” you faced Mingyu again, “He’s the cashier from the supermarket I go to.” you said calmly, though Mingyu’s eyes darted to you as they widened. 

“You know him?” he asked urgently. 

“No, he just rang up my groceries one time. Why?” you were getting suspicious.

“I just… I don’t trust him, okay? Stay away from him if you can help it.” he gripped your waist tighter and you nodded reassuringly. Even though you, again, had many questions, you kept them to yourself. You mostly wondered if he meant “knew” as in he knew him from this school or if he meant “knew” as in he met him a century ago.

You turned to look at Mingyu’s nemesis one more time, but this time, his eyes were looking back at you. The small mole by his lip was only more defined as he smirked at you before running his hand through his light brown hair and turning away. Mingyu must have seen the exchange, because he very suddenly stood up, causing you to fall forward slightly. 

“I think Y/n and I are gonna head out.” he announced abruptly. Admittedly you were annoyed, you were having a good time, but you would address that when you left. It was getting late anyway and you knew you would see the group again sometime soon. 

“Oh! Okay, well it was really nice seeing you Y/n.” Seungkwan said, just as surprised as you were. 

“You too, Seungkwan. It was really great meeting all of you.” you said, and they all replied with scattered smiles and “you too’s”. 

Mingyu put his hand on the small of your back and quickly rushed you through the house and out the door. Once you reached the front porch, Mingyu stopped. 

“Listen, I’m sorry, I just really don’t like that guy and when he looked at you like that I snapped,” he said, clearly frazzled and a bit frustrated. Though just a few seconds ago you were ready to put him in his place, you were now feeling rather sympathetic.

“Mingyu it’s okay, but if you want me to understand what’s going on you need to tell me. Not knowing just makes it easier to get angry and I don’t wanna get angry at you.” you rubbed his arm comfortingly. He groaned as he hid his face in his hands then ran his hands through his hair. 

“I can’t tell you, at least right now. Believe me I want to, but please trust me okay? Avoid him at all costs, it’s just to keep you safe.” he pulled you into a hug and you wrapped your arms around him as well. You were beyond confused and you wanted to ask if he was really that dangerous, but with the way he was acting, you knew that was a stupid question. He wouldn’t be so adamant about it if it wasn’t that serious. You simply nodded against his chest before you let each other go. “Now let’s get you home.” he smiled sweetly and you returned the expression. 

You walked hand in hand to your apartment, a comfortable silence filling the air. You were admittedly a bit tired, so you didn’t feel like talking. The walk felt short, but as your eyelids felt heavier with each step, you were okay with it. You reached your residence and pulled out your key before unlocking the door and stepping inside. Though as soon as you did, you heard unmistakable noises. 

A female moan followed by a groan from your best friend. 

You immediately shut the door and stepped back outside, bumping into Mingyu in the process. 

“Ew ew ew ew ew!” you exclaimed, moving your hands around frantically, not exactly sure what to do with them. 

“What? What is it?” Mingyu asked frantically. 

“Wonwoo! Making noises! Having sex God ew!” you cringed.

“Huh? Are you sure? Why would he do that if he knew you were coming home?” 

“I don’t know but I hate it! Make it stop make it stop!” you covered your ears as if you could still hear it. The sounds kept playing over and over in your mind. Why? Why on earth could you still hear them? It wasn’t so much the fact that you heard him having sex, but the fact that you knew who it was with sent chills down your spine.

“Okay okay listen, just come home with me, it’ll be fine, I promise” he rubbed your upper back as he tried to comfort you. You simply nodded, face still contorted in disgust, and let him lead you to his apartment.

“God why would he do that?! He could’ve at least told me not to come home! Or to come home late, anything!” you yelled as you walked, still unable to believe his indecency. “I know we agreed to not talk about our love lives with each other, but if the roles were reversed? He’d be pissed! He would’ve walked in there and kicked you out or something!” 

“So what I’m hearing is that your hypothetical scenarios, I’m the one you’re fucking?” Mingyu said smugly and all you could do is glare at him.

“Mingyu I’m serious. Is that not super wrong of him?” 

“It is but come on! It’s not like you didn’t know he was getting some.” he shrugged. 

“I know, but I didn’t need to hear it, that’s all.” 

“What? Are you mad you’re not getting laid? Cause you could be.” Mingyu said matter-of-factly, a smirk on his face. 

“Oh really? By who, Jeonghan?” you teased, causing Mingyu to stop in his tracks, his jaw nearly on the ground. You couldn’t help but laugh. 

“Come on! You know I’m joking. Now please tell me we’re almost there?” you grabbed his hand and pulled, his feet eventually stumbling forward. 

“Actually, we’re here.” he smiled. You furrowed your eyebrows and looked ahead, your eyes only being met with a cute, white brick house.

“You live… in a house? In college?” you tilted your head in curiosity. 

“Let’s just say I have business with the owner,” he kissed your cheek and walked you toward the door. Though the outside of the house had a vintage charm to it, there was a keypad to get inside instead of the normal deadbolt. Mingyu entered the code and turned the handle, a beautiful, modern house coming into view. 

The brick walls were a beautiful cream color, metal shelves and cute hanging plants filled the entrance. Your face must have shown how impressed you were.

“You like it?” Mingyu asked as he kicked his shoes off. 

“It’s beautiful, did you decorate it yourself?” 

“Oh no, we hired someone for that.” he chuckled. 

“You care enough about your house to pay for an interior designer? Nice.” you smiled as you took your shoes off as well, sliding them so they were next to his. 

“I’m a vampire, not an animal. Let me give you the tour.”

You exited the entrance of the house and he took you over to the kitchen. It was very open and was connected to the living room. The kitchen had sleek black cabinets and white granite countertops with a large stainless steel refrigerator and stove to finish it off. The living room contained a grey sectional couch, a black coffee table, and a TV that was at least 60 inches mounted to the wall. There were small knick knacks all over the house that made it even more charming than it already was. 

He then led you down a hallway that had 2 doors on each side. The first one was Chan’s room. It was definitely the room of a young guy, but still pretty neat and tidy. The next room was the bathroom, it doubled as Chan’s and the one that guests used. It was also nicely kept. 

The next one was another bedroom that had been converted into a movie/ gaming room. There were LED lights attached to the ceiling, a leather couch in the center of the room, and a TV even larger than the one in the living room sitting on a large, sturdy- looking table.

“This is my old room, but we renovated it when I upgraded.” 

“Upgraded?” you asked, excited to finally see Mingyu’s room.

“There’s a third bedroom that we added onto to make it bigger, so I took that one.” he told you as he closed the door and led you to the last room in the hallway. 

“Prepare yourself.” he smiled as he opened the door and a room seemingly bigger than the rest of the house combined came into view. 

The floors were a dark grey tile and the walls a lighter grey. There was a bed to the left and it was easily the biggest bed you’d ever seen. The headboard was a regal looking, plush white one with a perfectly made grey bedspread, decorative pillows covering almost half of it. A TV was mounted to the wall in front of it and there were nightstands with beautiful metal lamps on them. There was a chandelier in the middle of the ceiling, and to the right there were 2 chaise lounges that matched the bed frame and another TV in an entertainment center with a gaming console below it.

“Two TV’s? Really?” you judged only slightly. 

“And that’s not even the best part.” he booped your nose and sauntered over to the bathroom; the entrance was covered by a large barn door. He slid it opened and what was quite possibly the nicest bathroom you’d ever seen came into view. 

The walls were a matte tan color, there was a large white bathtub in one corner, a shower with glass doors and the walls decorated with beautiful glass tiles. A double vanity and a wood-framed mirror sat in between the two. The shower head was about a foot long on each side and hung from the ceiling and there seemed to be jets of some sort on one of the shower walls

“So when were you going to tell me that you basically have money coming out of your ass?” you inquired as you took in the elegance of the bathroom. Mingyu didn’t dress rich and wasn’t as much of a dick as lots of rich people were, so you were taken aback to say the least.

“Technically it’s not my money. My parents were rich back in the day, owned a lot of property, and when they died they left all of it to me. So now all the money that people pay when they rent or buy their properties, it comes to me.” he shrugged as if it was no big deal, but your eyes were wide in shock. 

“Okay then Mr. ‘not-my-money’, this place is still amazing.” you told him, but he just chuckled in denial. 

“Thanks,” he rubbed the back of his neck, “Do you wanna shower or something?” 

“Um, in that fancy monster of a shower? Yes, yes I do.” you smiled and Mingyu was already walking over to the closet like he knew what you were going to say. He opened the door and grabbed a towel before tossing it at you. 

“Don’t take too long,” he pointed at you as he exited the bathroom and left you alone. You felt like you’d only seen showers this nice in movies and in pictures of mansions, never in real life, so needless to say you were excited. You turned the water on and stripped down quickly before excitedly stepping into what your mind had decided to coin the Tranquility Haven. 

The warm water that fell from directly above you felt euphoric, covering your entire body at once. You honestly felt like you could fall asleep in there, but sadly you did not feel like turning into a prune. You washed yourself leisurely, enjoying the luxury and anticipating the fact that you would probably smell like Mingyu when you were done.

Your mind thought back to when Mingyu said his parents owned property “back in the day”. Did he mean… the 1800’s? His parents were rich in the 19th century? If they were loaded then, you couldn’t imagine how loaded they’d be now. You wanted to know how much Mingyu was making from his parents’ properties, but you would feel inappropriate asking. You knew it had to be a lot, though. 

After a while, you begrudgingly turned off the water and stepped out of the shower before grabbing your towel. You dried your hair off a bit before wrapping the towel around your body and stepping into Mingyu’s room.

“I’m just saying, she could be doing way be- Jesus Y/n!” Chan yelled as he stood up and turned around. He had been sitting on Mingyu’s bed talking until he saw you and jumped up in fear. 

“We’ll be out in a minute,” Mingyu laughed as he ushered the younger male out of his bedroom. He turned to you and leaned against the door, his arms crossed.

“See you didn’t give me clean clothes when I slept at your place, so I’m wondering if I should even consider giving you some.” he raised his eyebrow at you, his tongue poking at his inner cheek. 

“What? You want me to walk around in just a towel?” 

“Oh I’d prefer much less than a towel,” he retaliated, causing you to frown at him. After a few seconds of staring at each other, he finally broke. “Fine, but only since Chan is here.” your expression turned into a smile as he walked over to his closet that seemed surprisingly small compared to the rest of the house. He pulled out a t-shirt and handed it to you as he walked back to his bed and laid down. You thanked him and went back into the bathroom.

You hung the towel up on the hook that was on the back of the door before slipping the shirt over your head. You put your underwear back on and picked up your clothes and bag from off of the floor, then walked over to the mirror. As you ran your fingers through your wet hair in an attempt to make it look decent, you realized something. 

“Mingyu!” you stormed out of the bathroom, “This shirt is pretty see through and I’m guessing you knew that when you gave it to me?” you put your things down on the ground and crossed your arms. All Mingyu did was shrug and try to hold back the smirk he so badly wanted to display. “Whatever…” you muttered as you took your phone out of your bag.

“Chan’s waaaaiting.” he sang, getting up and waiting for you by the door. You kept your arms crossed, phone in one hand, as you followed him to the living room. 

“Y/n, I’m sorry, I promise I didn’t see anything, Mingyu didn’t tell me you were here.” Chan said frantically as soon as you came into view, his eyes full of concern. 

“No no no, it’s fine. Really, don’t worry about it.” you reassured him, and he nodded gratefully. 

Mingyu sat down on the couch and you sat next to him. He laid down and rested his head on your lap, causing you to frantically pull at your shirt, trying to loosen the top part so that Chan wouldn’t see anything. Once you had accomplished that, you placed your hand in Mingyu’s hair and began playing with it, only slightly annoyed at his outfit choice for you. 

You made interesting conversation with Chan, talking about what he liked and didn’t like about being a vampire for the most part. He asked about how you liked school and if you had fun at the party, and before either of you realized it, Mingyu was fast asleep on your lap. A light snore fell from his lips and you admired his calmed features. 

“Y/n…” Chan said, capturing your attention, “Can I ask how serious you guys are?” your cheeks heated up at the question. No one had ever really asked you about your relationship before, besides the whole ‘is this the girlfriend’ thing that Jeonghan pulled, and he was talking to Mingyu then anyway. 

“Um, I don’t really know. It hasn’t been very long, but I… I really like him.” you tried not to gush too much, “Why do you ask?” 

Chan was smiling at your admiration for his friend. “Mingyu would kill me if he knew that I told you, but he talks about you a lot. Like, almost all the time. I don’t think he even realizes he’s doing it, but yeah. I’ve only known him for 6 years or so, but I’ve never seen him like this.” he explained, and your cheeks turned even rosier as your stomach did somersaults. Chan didn’t seem like the type of guy to lie, and why would anyone say something like that so randomly if they weren’t really eager to tell you?

“I- thank you for telling me, Chan. It means a lot.” you nodded and he smiled at you, flashing his pearly whites.

“Of course. I’m gonna go to bed now, but I’m glad we got to talk more. You seem really good for him. Good for all of us actually.” he stood up and stretched. “Goodnight.”

“Goodnight.” 

Chan disappeared into his room and you just sat there, reveling in Chan’s kind words and not wanting to wake Mingyu. You picked up your phone, feeling surprised when you saw you had a text from Wonwoo. It was only one, but that was enough to make you nervous and excite you all at once. You opened the message and were faced with a few simple words. 

from: wonu

12:34am: did you stop by earlier? 

You simply rolled your eyes and began typing. 

to: wonu

12:34am: yeah and i know we agreed not to talk about our love lives or whatever, but you could at least tell me to sleep somewhere else for the night if you were planning on fucking someone. loudly.

He read your text immediately and the three bubbles popped up at the bottom of your screen, indicating that he was typing. However, the longer you waited for his response, the more you realized that it likely wasn’t coming. You were much more unpleasant with him than you wanted to be, but the noises you heard when you entered your apartment weren’t by any means pleasant either. Truthfully, you wanted to say more, but you figured you’d rather have that conversation in person.

At a few minutes past 1, you decided it was time to stop anticipating a reply from Wonwoo and try to sleep. You locked your phone and set it beside you before leaning your head back on the couch and drifting off to sleep, the feeling of Mingyu’s head in your lap making the position significantly more comfortable. 

You woke up with your head on the softest of pillows and your body under the comfiest of blankets; Mingyu must have moved the both of you at some point during the night. A decent amount of light shone through the windows and the soft sound of the television rang throughout your ears. You looked to your side and saw Mingyu sitting with his legs crossed, eating a bowl of cereal. He noticed your stirring and turned his attention to you. 

“Good morning,” he said to you, mouth halfway full and in the shape of a smile. You returned the expression and sat up on your hands. 

“Good morning.” you replied happily. He leaned over and pecked your lips lightly. As you went to get out of his bed, you remembered something. 

“Did you say I was your girlfriend last night?” you asked in disbelief. He looked at you with wide eyes, his cheeks still slightly full of food.

“I- well, yeah. That seemed to be the best way to explain it, we’ve never really talked about it.” he shrugged shyly. 

“Well, do you wanna talk about it?” you questioned as you got back in his bed fully, sliding closer to him. 

He shoved the rest of his cereal in his mouth and drank the milk quickly before setting his bowl and spoon on the table beside him. He sighed as he faced you again.

“It has nothing to do with you, I just, don’t really like labels? Every time I’ve had a relationship with one it just kinda… fell apart.” he played with the blanket on his legs and avoided eye contact, his voice only getting quieter as he spoke. “I want us to last, so I don’t wanna call us anything. At least not yet.” He nodded as he finished, looking up at you with puppy dog eyes and awaiting your response. 

You smiled at his explanation and put one of your hands on top of his. “So other people can think our relationship has a label, but we know that it doesn’t?” you asked and Mingyu nodded. “Is that enough? Just us knowing the truth?” 

“I really don’t care what other people call us, so yeah. It’s enough.” he smiled sweetly and got out of bed. You followed suit and went to change your clothes as Mingyu picked up his bowl and walked it to the kitchen. 

You quickly threw on your clothes from the previous night and slipped on your shoes. You picked up your bag and noticed that Mingyu had placed your phone on the nightstand. You grabbed it and checked the notifications; still no response from Wonwoo, though you weren’t surprised. 

“Leaving so soon?” Mingyu asked with a pout when he reentered the room and saw you fully dressed. You frowned, not particularly wanting to leave yourself.

“Sadly. I’ve gotta pick up some stuff for the apartment and do some serious job hunting. I’ve been putting it off for way too long.” you sighed. Your words left Mingyu with a confused look on his face.

“Job? Why get a job when you have me?” he wrapped his arms around your waist. 

“Oh you mean you and all the money that you don’t claim as yours? Thanks, but I’ll pass.” you pecked his lips and as soon as you pulled away, he pulled you right back in. He kissed you deeply and meaningfully, causing you to smile. He smacked your ass lightly before pulling away with a smirk.

“I’ll walk you out.” 

You rolled your eyes, though trying to hide a smile, as you headed for Mingyu’s front door. Chan was nowhere to be seen, so you assumed he was still asleep. When you reached the entrance of the house, Mingyu kissed you one last time before opening the door for you and, begrudgingly, letting you go on your way. 

You practically pranced to the grocery store, still on a Mingyu high that you didn’t want to come down from. You couldn’t believe someone, just one person alone, made you so happy, especially since that someone was technically not even human and kept way more secrets from you than you would like them to. You didn’t know why the secrecy didn’t bother you, but you didn’t think about it for too long. 

Your brain that seemed to be wired so that you would expect the worst from every situation because you were also subconsciously awaiting the moment when things would turn to shit. It may not go to complete shit anytime soon, but you were definitely expecting an argument of some sort to happen soon, much to your dismay.

You tried to shake your negative thoughts away as you approached the door of the supermarket, picking up one of the baskets that sat by the entrance. You only needed a few cleaning supplies, some fruit, and some more ramen. You decided you would take your time, though, as you were slightly nervous to see Wonwoo. 

You strolled through the produce, deciding on buying a few apples and a bag of grapes. You then moved to the aisle that the ramen was on, buying 2 value packs of your favorite brand. You finally made your way to the cleaning aisle and grabbed a container of disinfecting wipes, but you couldn’t seem to find the dish soap that you usually bought. You looked at the shelf curiously and took a step closer, when suddenly, you heard a voice speaking to you.

“Need any help?” you heard. It was a sweet sounding voice, one that definitely belonged to a male. You turned your head toward the voice and nearly jumped when you saw who it belonged to; it was the guy from the party. The one that had rung up your groceries a few weeks ago, the one Mingyu told you to stay away from. 

“O-oh, no thanks, I’m okay.” you replied. You hoped he didn’t recognize you, but then you remembered you were wearing the exact same thing that you were wearing last night when he saw you. When he smirked at you. 

“I apologize if this is weird, but you’re much prettier up close.” he smiled and you felt your cheeks heat up slightly, but hopefully not enough to be noticeable. You decided to play it off like you didn’t know him, figuring that’s what Mingyu would want you to do.

“Sorry? I-I don’t think we’ve ever met.” you said, hoping he would give up and leave you alone.

“Ah you don’t remember? I was at the party last night, I’m pretty sure we saw each other.” he crossed his arms with a determined look on his face, but you just shrugged, wanting your conversation to end more than anything. 

“Well, anyway, my name is Jun. Let me know if you need anything, anything at all.”

hi everyone! i’m so, so sorry i was late uploading this, everything totally glitched out. but i hope you all enjoyed this chapter :) and if any of you beloved readers haven’t already, please fill out this survey regarding content you’d like to see from me! thank you all & stay safe <3 https://forms.gle/rEWqGcTckFvDBULa9

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

Smalltown Bringdown 3

Warnings: blood, violence, groping, more to be added.

This is dark!biker!Bucky and explicit. Your media consumption is your own responsibility. Warnings have been given. DO NOT PROCEED if these matters upset you.

Summary: Your new job does not offer the stability you crave.

Note: So, I’m thinking 4 to 5 chapters. I had another migraine last night which meant an early sleepy time for me. I work today so I’ll be running around as you guys get to read this! To those who take the time to read, thank you. Love you guys!

Please, leave some feedback, like and reblog <3

Your mother wasn’t happy about your new job. Neither were you. Yet, you couldn’t tell her why you accepted the job at The Asp or what Bucky said; what he had implied. You fed her some tripe about the pay and benefits and you didn’t lie when you said it was all you could get. He made sure of that.

You were dressed all in black; jeans, long-sleeved tee, a pair of narrow toed boots. You were nervous. You liked The Saucer because it was quaint, you dreaded The Asp because it was anything but. A biker bar, the seediest place in town where boozers and gamblers alike spent their cheques. Your mother always told you to avoid the place. For good reason; your father had never returned from that very bar.

You ran your hands along your stomach and down your thighs. You took a breath and pulled on your jacket as you turned away from the mirror. Your mother was in the kitchen, just home from work. You walked through and Ash danced at your feet. The speckled Dachsund always thought a coat meant he was going on an adventure.

“Before you leave,” Your mother said as she wiped her hands.

“Not really hungry, mom,” You grumbled.

“I know, I know,” She rounded the counter and grabbed her purse. “It’s not food… for once.”

She pulled out a small cylinder and held it out.

“Is that mace?” You chuckled.

“Oh yeah,” She shoved it into your hand. “Any of those boys start giving you a hard time, you give ‘em an extra spray for me.”

“Mom.” You shook your head. She wasn’t making you any less nervous.

“Ash has a good sixth sense. He didn’t like that man one bit,” She crossed her arms. “And I’m inclined to share the sentiment.”

“Mom, look, this is what I got,” You grabbed your own bag and dropped the mace inside. “And you know if I got him as my shadow, no one else is gonna give me anything.”

“You be careful, honey,” She grabbed your shoulders and drew you close. “Maybe… apply to college again.”

“Mom, it’s a little late for that and you know I can’t afford it.” You hugged her and pulled away. “I can handle myself. I have so far.”

“God,” She touched her forehead. “You sound like your father.”

You stuck your tongue out at her and went to the door. 

“Mom,” You turned back, “I love you. It’ll be okay.”

“Love you, too,” She said glumly, “I’ll leave your dinner in the stove.”

“Alright,” You took a step out into the hall, “Thanks.”

💀

It was almost dark out as you walked up to The Asp. You stood across the street and looked up at the moniker. Cleopatra was chipped and faded but her eyes shone beneath the spotlights. It was more Liz Taylor than the actual queen. You crossed the road and held your head up as best you could as approached the bouncer.

“Here for a job,” You said plainly. He didn’t bother to card you.

“I heard,” He grumbled as he pulled a smoke out. “The man’s in there somewhere. Waiting for you.”

“Thanks, Lonny,” You pushed through to the dim barroom. 

Lucy was pouring a pint at the bar for a man in a tattered flannel. He slid his money across and she returned his change. He tossed a few coins over the wood and took a swig. You neared and leaned a few feet away from the man. Lucy wiped her hands on the towel tucked into her apron tied around her rounding stomach. A pregnant barmaid was a peculiar sight.

“Hey, didn’t believe him when he said you were starting,” She smiled as she waved you around. “Grab an apron,” She pointed to the pegs along the wall. You grabbed a plain black smock and tied it around your waist; pockets big enough for a notebook and change, though it reached no further than the middle of your thigh. “I’ll show you the ropes; figure if I can get it, you can.”

“Figure you’re right,” You followed her behind the bar. You glanced at her faded roots that topped her yellowed bleach blond hair. Little different than the girl who’d gabbed loudly in the back of your Lit class. 

“Beer,” She pointed to the shelf of pint glasses, “Wine,” She continued to the stemmed ones, “Whiskey, scotch, liquors. Me and Bobby do most of the pouring so you worry about beer and serving.”

“Alright,” You followed along and she turned around. 

“Just as they’re labeled,” She pointed to the taps. “This is water, soda,” She touched the hoses along the counter. “Grab a cloth and a tray. Looks like we’re startin’ to get our usual crowd.”

“Thanks,” You said and she gave you a mocking smile.

“Oh, and there’s a little closet just inside the kitchen. Put your stuff in there.” She advised.

You did as she said and took your small notebook and pen from your bag. You grabbed a round tray and a cloth from the stack of folded linen. You tucked it in your pocket along with your notebook and went back to the barroom. Lucy glanced over at you as she rubbed her stomach and nodded to the group of men around a table by the far wall.

You smiled at her and strutted around the bar. You recognized the man with his back to you. Steve Rogers sat with four other men, their voices a buzz that permeated the bar. You held back your venom as you approached and stopped just by his shoulder as you greeted them with your simulated cheer.

“Can I get ya anything?” You asked.

“Beer, the us--” Steve began but as he looked to you his voice died. He smirked. “Hey, doll.”

“Hello,” You said to the table. “So, what’s the usual?”

“Just a bud,” He turned in his chair and slung his arm over the back. “Well, pardon me, I just… seeing you here is… funny.”

“Funny.” You repeated. “That it is.” You looked to the rest of his party. “And the rest of you?”

“Coors,” Danny raised two fingers in a half salute and the rest of the men chimed in as you tallied their order in your head.

“Right, I’ll be back.”

You spun and felt a light pat on your ass. “Thanks, doll,” Steve said and you ignored him, not even missing a step.

You went to the bar and leaned your tray on it. “A Bud, two Coors, and two whiskey neat.” You said. “Extra foam on the bud if you can.”

She scoffed and went about her work. “That Steve’s silly but he means no harm.” She said.

“Mhmm,” You pursed your lips. “No harm at all, eh?”

She handed you the drinks one at a time and you set them on the tray.

“Really, not so bad here, once you get to know them,” She sang. “And it’s good to be on their side.”

“I’m sure,” You balanced the tray and turned away.

You returned to the table and smiled as best you could. You began to unload your drinks; whiskeys, Coors, then the single Bud. As you leaned in to set Steve’s pint before him, you felt another brush along your ass, followed by a pinch. You paused and sneered at him.

“Sorry, doll, hand slipped,” He smirked.

“Yeah?” You looked at his beer and dumped it in his lap. “Oops, hand slipped.”

He stood and the beer dripped down his jeans as he looked down in shock. The bar was silent but for his cursing and you backed up as he pulled the wet hem of tee away from his stomach. “You little bitch.”

“Sorry, it’s my first day,” You grinned. “I’m still getting the hang of things.”

“Don’t be fucking smart,” He lunged at you and grabbed your arm. Your tray clattered to the floor as he yanked you close. “You work for us now, means you belong to club. You belong to all of us.”

He turned you and gripped the back of your neck as he forced you against the table. He squeezed until you bent over and gasped in pain. 

“Get off of me!” You tried to kick out at him blindly.

“Do you know what that means? Hmm? Belonging to the club,” He slapped your ass with his other hand. “Boys, you wanna have some fun tonight?”

“She doesn’t belong to the club,” A deep voice cut through the dull music rising from the jukebox. The air stilled and you breathed heavily against the wood. “Let her go, Steve. I’m sure it was an accident.”

“She poured beer on me.” Steve growled.

“And you pinched her ass. Must have scared her and caused her to spill on you,” Bucky’s boots sounded across the floorboards as he neared. “It was an accident, wasn’t it, honey?”

He came up on your other side. 

“Y-yeah,” You sputtered. “Yeah. Like you said.”

“See?” Bucky said. “So, let her go.”

Steve released you roughly and huffed. You stood and Bucky bent to pick up your tray. He held it out to you and you took it with a mumbled thanks. 

“Steve, go get dried off and she’ll get you fresh pint,” He clapped his friend on the shoulder. “Oh, and let this be a warning.” He squeezed and looked around at his men. “She’s not the club’s. She’s mine. Any man finds his hands wandering and they might just find them gone.” He said through his teeth. “Got it?”

The men agreed at once, a flurry of ascent. You backed away and quickly retreated to the bar before he could turn his attention on you. Lucy’s eyes were wide as she watched you.

“I didn’t know were his,” She gaped. “You’re a lucky girl.”

“I’m not,” You snarled as leaned on the bar. “Go on, need that Bud.”

💀

At the end of the night, you cleaned up the empties and wiped the tables. You counted your tips and yawned as you zipped up the coins in your purse. You hung your apron and helped Lucy with the bar. You grabbed your jacket and signed the time sheet. She said her goodbye and waited for Bobby to finished in the kitchen. 

You headed for the door but were stopped by your name. You turned slowly as Bucky stood at the other end of the bar. “Gotta talk to you.” He said.

“About?” You asked.

“My office.” He replied. “Just work stuff.”

You tried not to roll your eyes and shrugged. He turned and you followed him across the barroom. He led you into a room opposite the restrooms. He waited for you to enter and was sure to close the door behind you. You paused and glanced over your shoulder. His hand rested on the knob as he watched you.

“Go on, sit,” He gestured to the leather chair that faced a desk. “You been on your feet all night.”

“To be fair,” You stayed where you were. “I’d rather just home and go to bed.”

“I know this isn’t home but the bed part I can accommodate.” He snickered. His arm rubbed against yours as he passed you and sat on the other side of the desk. “We gotta go over a few things about this job.”

You sighed and dragged your feet to the chair. You sat and crossed your legs as you hugged your purse. You stared at him without emotion.

“You understand those men didn’t try anything further because of my say so,” He pointed to the door. “Now, I could’ve let them and what do you think would happen? Who would stop it?”

You gulped and stay silent.

“You know the cops, they don’t come here for nothing more than a drink,” He shook his head. “Maybe a bit of pool but they don’t come here to work, you understand?”

“Yes,” You uttered quietly. “I understand.”

“I didn’t have to do that. Didn’t have to claim you but you went and poured that beer all over Steve. Like you want him to do something.” He laughed. “Trust me, you don’t want that.”

You looked away and shifted in the chair.

“But I did it because I don’t want anyone else touching you. As the leader of this club, I share many things, I make sure my men have what they need, but you are mine,” He said the last three words deliberately. “I know you don’t get it, not yet, but you will.”

“You’re fucked,” You hissed. “This place, is fucked. Who are you? King Shit of… Birch? Birch?! This pile of trash.”

“I’m the king of your world,” His jaw ticked. “Now, I can be… a kind king and patient even as you… adjust but you don’t talk to me like this in front of anyone. I mean it because the moment that tongue lashes out I’m gonna have to lash back.”

You shuddered and looked down at your purse. “I just…” You slowly looked up. “You tellin’ me you can’t get a woman who wants to be here? The standards around this town aren’t that high.”

“I can get anyone I want,” He smirked. “And I think you’re just realizing that, honey.”

The breath went out of you. The tone of his voice, the heat in his eyes. You struggled not to look away. You bit down. His eyes drifted down and his lips parted hungrily.

“We’re just about finished here but one more thing,” His voice was dusky. “There’s a dress code. Jeans and short sleeves. A nice hint of what’s beneath… skirts at the thigh.” He ran his tongue across his lip. “Now, you can go… should go before I change my mind.”

You stood. Your nerves bounced around your chest wildly. You gripped your purse and nodded. 

“Got it.” You muttered.

“Right. See you tomorrow night,” He sat back and pushed his legs apart. He winked at you as you neared the door. “You have a good one.”

“You too,” You eked out before you slipped out. 

You closed the door behind you and stumbled numbly through the barroom. You couldn’t get home quick enough.

💀

When you got home, your mother was asleep. You were thankful for it. She would ask you how your night was. You didn’t wanna talk about it. Ever. Didn’t want to think about the dread of those to come. The fear that bubbled in your stomach. So unfamiliar to you. Growing up in a small town, there wasn’t much to be afraid of because every day was the same.

You turned the stove on and waited for the ravioli in the glass pan to heat up. You took it out and sat alone at the table. The light overhead shone a spotlight on you as Ash snored in the hallway. You ate without tasting. You opened the book you’d left on the table and opened it to your mark. 

‘I'm as pure as the driven slush.’

You laughed to yourself and swallowed. Lu was right, Tallulah was funny. Cynical. And ballsy. You admired her. You wondered for a moment how she would deal with this life. With this town. Well, she never belonged in a small town, she would’ve found her way out.

You cleared your plate and rinsed it. You set it in the rack and checked the doors. They were locked. An old habit; some would call it a compulsion. They said in small towns people don’t lock their doors. In this one, they always did.

When you were a girl, your father gone, the reason obscured from you, you imagined it was the monsters that hid in the night who took him from you. In a way, that was true.

You were tired but restless. You couldn’t help but hear Bucky’s words in your head. See his eyes staring back at you; menacing and dilated. A predator tracking its prey. That’s what you were; you both knew it. There was no way out.

Your mother said you took after your father. Had he died protecting her too? Or for his own selfishness? It didn’t matter, he’d left you both behind.

[alias-b]

sins of my youth. 015

Billy Hargrove x OC! Evie Fenny~ Also posted to my AO3

Summary: It was common knowledge that Billy Hargrove hated Hawkins. Hated Cherry Lane. Even loathed the strange girl next door. Evie Fenny wasn’t too fond of the chaotic Cali transfer either. An awful high school tradition sparks a chain of events that changes everything, ultimately bringing two frayed souls together.

A/N: I was excited to post this one! Billy continues to learn secrets about Evie as they grow closer. The first day back to school arrives with new challenges. TW: talk of teacher/student relationship, vomiting, pica, bullying, and some Well Earned Smut. ​ *Thanks all and chat with me about the fic if you have time!

Chapter 15: Fires Within Fires

   Billy decided he liked unwrapping these layers to Evie, despite the fucking interruptions.

   Their little game of back and forth where even grazing her skin with his fingertips felt like a prize.

   Where a glimpse of her smile's ghost sent luna moths fluttering inside the glass jar that he'd long-sealed his beating heart away into.

   He certainly couldn't tell her she'd consumed him. Syllables became harder around Evie. No amount of cooing at his mirror would save him from those painted eyes. Brushstrokes that destroyed him utterly.

   And all he could think was brush me again.

   The greatest mystery presented itself that Saturday night. 

   Mona stayed out with friends and went home with something a little more chiseled. Which meant she’d be out and go straight to the salon to play with the books. Blue was fed. The stars were bright and silent. Placed just so.

   Evie applied a red lip, bent over the vanity before it reached eleven on the dot. With her mother out, she used the front door after grasping her coat. Green bomber covered in patches. Crept over the frozen grass and pavement toward a hippy sort of van. Tan with a maroon stripe. 

   Billy crawled out his window at the sight of her along the way. Dressed. Head down as he hid near his car.

   He had to know. 

   The van was already driving off so Billy waited a bit to follow behind it. Hoped the few cars on the road would mask him if he stayed far enough away.

   He trailed after the damn thing all the way to the city. Saw it still in an alleyway and swerved to find parking elsewhere. Waited a few minutes with his eyes on the rearview mirror to see lights flicker.

   Beyond the cold buildings, a cozy nightclub illuminated. Covered in trellises with twisted metalwork roses and thorny vines. Slicked in frost. A red, ornate canopy and steel black gate lining the outside area with empty tables.

   Music vibrated within. Billy lit up a cigarette and watched the door. Eyed a bouncer chatting it up with a group outside in the cold. Smoking and shooting the shit. He readied to make his move.

   The sign read Sugar Kane’s in swirling lights. 

   Boots carefully stepped around the alley. Eyes trained on the bouncer at the end of the street corner. A thrum of piano keys echoed. Billy slipped into the door, down an immediate tunnel of high steps into another world made of pure red velvet.

   Wall to wall velour curtains and uniform lines of crystalline lights. Felt like Billy stepped into a dim, smoky dream. Busy round tables with idle chatter and even a bit of friendly gambling. A dance floor with plenty of couples. Sleek black bar and mirrors behind it.

   Taste and class and care went into this dream. 

   Billy fell into a table in the back, darkest corner. Watched the slow dancing. Heels clicked. More people drank and smoked at tables. Playing cards and speaking in hushed tones under the music.

   The music.

   As couples swayed and parted, Billy’s eyes lifted to the band. Bass, drums, and keyboard. And the singer looking like a chandelier painted red like the walls. Red like the blood boiling and pounding under his flesh.

   Slow and steady, a pure blue light bathed. Made her the center of the universe. Let her slip into a warm bubble bath birthed of the cosmos itself. Billy had to scan her again. Had to blink to make sure he was seeing this correctly.

   Sleek dress of beads like what a flapper would wear. Glossy red lips sultry into the mic. Huge lashes. Bigger curls.

   Evie.

   Her hips moved against the swell of sound. Breathing in and out with it. Stage lights framed her body. Kissed it. Made her glimmer as an ethereal creature. Not of this world.

   Billy’s jaw was on the table. 

   “This is a man's world,” she cooed, head shaking while brown eyes fluttered closed, “this is a man's world…”

   Billy’s fingers twisted into the tablecloth. Eyes trained as her voice picked up against the reverberations. Filled the air. Filled the empty spaces around Billy. He’d heard her sing, but this starlet wasn’t the delicate songbird she came off as. She owned the air. The space. The stars. The world at her feet.

   She owned everything. She wasn't sorry.

   “But it wouldn't be nothing, nothing without a woman or a girl.” Evie plucked up the mic to come forward. Smiling when hands dropped dollars into a bowl she shared with the band. Her voice grew. Boomed. Curled around throats and hearts.

   Enthralled.

   That stage was where she belonged and she wasn’t sorry about that either.

   Bathed in the echoing ruby glow from seas of crimson velvet and black silk around the room. Spotlight pulsing technicolor. Painting in blues and pinks and reds. Utterly decadent. Small chandeliers hung down to sparkle against cherry hardwood that met the vibration of a musical crescendo. 

   Evie’s dress flicked about as she moved. Tiny knit shadowy fishnets and strappy heels. Miniature white flowers woven into her free spun curls that truly made her look like an angel. A glowy star. The light caught a collared necklace she’d made with a cameo brooch and loose jewels.

   Again and again, Billy let himself be consumed. Bowed to her voice ever-growing. These untouchable notes that wrung around his soul. 

   “But it wouldn't be nothing!” Evie’s head tipped back. “Nothing!” Mic high with the greatest note that stilled the entire room as the music hushed so she could shine. Obscene and shameless and so bright. Eyes lifted from tables to see her there beckoning like the sirens of old. Evie came down to look out, settled the mic on its stand. Romanced it. “...without a woman or a girl…”

   Billy sat there and watched the set. Eyes all over Evie without her knowing. Blissfully unaware of the boy in shadows. He smoked a slow cigarette and no one from the bar bothered him. Not yet.

   Evie was five songs in before they switched it up. Let the band take on some peppier instrumental so Evie left to cross to the bar. Billy thought to flee before a huge hand touched his shoulder.

   “You look a little young to be in here. Not drinking. Where’s your ID, kid?”

   “Hey, I’m eighteen.” Billy sounded childish, snuffing a cigarette out on a clean ashtray. The bouncer glared down at him. Bodybuilder type and pretty. Tanned with styled slick hair and little strands tumbling into his brow. Blue eyes. One ear framed in silver piercings. “Just listening to the girl, she...she knows me.” 

   “Yeah, yeah, let’s go, stalker. She's working.” The bouncer cooly plucked Billy up like he was a doll. Catching the attention of the bar as they stumbled toward it.

   Evie reeled out of her conversation before Billy Hargrove was presented to her. One shoulder high into the air as a muscled hand held his arm.

   “Does this belong to you, Eve?” He began, giving Billy a jostle for good measure.

   “Oh, god.”

   Billy flashed his brightest smile. Begged to be claimed like a little, lost puppy. Poor Evie could only groan. Elbows on the sleek wood to hide her face. The woman she’d been speaking with behind the bar was already cackling. “Yes...he’s mine.”

   “Is this the boy you won’t shut up about?” Came a quip. Gravelly, feminine voice. 

   “Told you, I know her. Lemme go, Lurch.” Billy ripped himself clean from the bouncer. Fixed his jacket.

   “Marlon, baby, we got him from here.” The barkeep continued, bringing one acrylic nail to her plump lips. Dolled to the gods in a Marilyn Monroe type wig of platinum, buttercream waves that swooped to frame her face and touched her glowing shoulders. Sapphire cocktail dress cinched in and flowed to knee length. Matching heels that made her a head taller than Billy. 

   “Whatever you say, honeybunch.” Marlon gruffed and went back to go up the steps. Evie shoved at Billy and grabbed his jacket.

   “What are you doing here?” Her classic hiss.

   “I wanted to know where you snuck off to two nights a week. Just a concerned neighbor.”

   “Sometimes three when we have the stage open.” A hand adorned in a huge diamond ring extended. “Looks like James Dean and Jim Morrison had a blond baby boy. Little Eros crawled out of a Def Leppard video.”

   “Billy.” He shrugged out of Evie’s grip. Left her making that signature scrunchy face of anger she was known for. Arms crossed at him. Pride rose so he boasted. Took the bejeweled hand in both of his to kiss the knuckles smelling of jasmine. “Evie’s favorite subject.”

   “Are not.” The retort clipped.

   “Don’t tell lies, Evie dearest, they cause wrinkles.” A wink of huge false lashes followed. “Iris Lee Arden. I manage the place for the owners. Evie’s never brought us a pretty stray before.” She gave Billy’s chin an affectionate brush. Nails painted to silver claws. 

   Iris moved like a feline. A trans woman with brown skin and a full figure. Thirties. Commanding presence. Love of Marilyn Monroe with roots in the art of drag. Billy spotted a sign behind her about the specials. Chalked in different colors. A variety of musical stylings. Another sign about the shows nightly. Thursday being drag night.

   One of those open places he figured. Accepting of all colors and sexualities. Safe haven to outcasts. California had them too. Seemed more of a rarity in this area. Double the bouncers of the places back home.

   “Evie’s telling people about me, huh?” Billy leaned into the bar to play the flirt. Evie’s hand covered his mouth.

   “Ignore him. He should not be here. I’m sorry.”

   “Says you who lied about your age for the job, sugar.” Iris teased, eyes flicking to Billy. “We found out like the day after. Obviously.”

   “I was in it for the free booze.” Evie beamed a smile, hand snatching from Billy when he licked her finger. “Gross.” The pink tongue caught between his teeth before he grinned.

   “Uh. Nice try. I don’t even drink the alcohol for free, girl. And the only thing we ever give you free is a Shirley Temple.” Iris laughed again. “I’ll get two going while you lovebirds work things out.”

   “We’re not, ugh…” Evie rolled her eyes and decided to sit. Huffed for effect. “So, you got me.”

   “I always do." His dangling earring caught the light. "Not a bad place. You ever sing on Thursday?”

   “No, but I did host a couple of shows for Iris. The girls love me and I love them. They taught me plenty. Helped me. And I...learned a lot about myself too.” Evie kicked a stool out so he’d join her. Paused to see his expression. Her lips quivered. "Would it bother you if I think about girls and boys the same?"

   "Did it bother you when I flirted with that Jesse guy right in front of you? More in common, Angel. It's adding up." Billy held her eyes steady when he said that. They shared this softer beat. Simple and clean. Plenty of room to breathe. He shifted, lashes batting. "So, this place. Start from the top."

   “I was sixteen and I saw flyers so...I sorta lied about my age. No one knows. Not Heather, not even Fredrick. They found out I lied quickly. But, they liked me so we worked out some rules and I just sing a few nights with the band. Couple songs. Great guys, too. The Starlighters. They’re here almost 24/7. Marvin on bass, he drives so they pick me up on the way most days. I have to hide in back, I don’t want to get them in trouble. Cops will treat them differently cause they're not white. Always been that way.”

   Billy noticed most of the people in here, including the workers and band, were people of color easily. Many mixed like Evie.

   Opposite of Hawkins. She and Tommy H were practically the only mixed kids in their classes since his birth mother was Hispanic. Strange thing neither of them addressed in the open.

   “The club runs all sorts of music. Jazz, rock, classics, and some pop. I like the more rock and pop nights cause I can bring my guitar. Sometimes I help back up visiting bands. This place just appreciates it all. I love it here and I can sing anything they need, it's like a second home. Accepting. Good for people who get the fuzzy end of the lollipop.” She shrugged and two bubbly glasses were set down. “Thank you, Iris.”

   “Owners have more musicians coming in toward spring so hours for you will be slim. Summer should be better, they might have some more day and evening gigs.” Iris perked a smile.

   “I get it. Easier to work during the day when I turn eighteen.” Evie sipped. "The best birthday present of all is more of that stage."

   “It's happy to have you, sugar. So, tell me, Billy, have you locked this girl down?” Iris plucked up a clipboard to make some inventory notes, elbow on the bar. 

   “Hey!”

   “I’m working hard on it,” Billy winked and that was enough to silence Evie.

   “She also told me you’re the one who took care of the shithead who gave her that,” Iris tilted Evie’s face. "Boy is lucky I couldn't sink my talons into his eye sockets. Sick my guys and dolls on him." Billy barely caught the bruises under layers of color corrector and makeup. “Good boy.”

   “I do what I can.” He shrugged and played with the straw of his drink. Evie could have blamed her blush on stage lights. Instead, she stole a sip when Iris offered a fresh glass of water.

   “I’m gonna go sing.” She pushed Billy’s arm. “He’s a compulsive liar. Don't listen to him.”

   “Don’t worry, Eve, I’ll babysit the pretty boy. Make him feel right at home. It's what I do.” Another wink and Evie groaned all the way to the stage. Rejoined the band with a red smile. Sparkling. Garnered a few claps and nodded to pick up the next song. Beaming.

   She found Billy's eyes for one fleeting moment.

   "The French are glad to die for love..."

   “She’s gonna go far, that one." Iris caught his attention. "Just needs a chance is all. Someone bigger than me to give it.”

   Billy’s eyes were glued to the ruby supernova whirling and bursting before his gaze. Felt the vibrations inside his ribs. Again and again.

   “You take the stage too?”

   “Oh, yes. Never too late. Prefer to manage these days. Guide others starting out. Lots of queens and questioning tweens in the city in need of a place. I like to give them one. Outcasts who need to learn they're not alone in this big world. I've had plenty of success and now I have dreams of managing one great star.”

   “My dad would hate all this.” Billy piped up aimlessly, head shaking.

   “More of us than of him, if you believe it. Just have to speak up. Scream it out.” Iris cleaned a couple of empty glasses. “You’re pretty. You could do drag, you know?”

   “Thanks.” Billy broke to chuckle, eyes turned back at last.

   “Don’t hurt my girl either.” One long nail pointed. A talon that tapped Billy’s chin. “We’ll take you out back and smack you around a bit.”

   “Maybe I’m into that, lady.” Billy flirted back. His insufferable self. The pretense lowered. “Already hurt Evie. Trying not to do it again.”

   “You’re young. So is she. You both will fuck up, that's life. Sometimes people hurt more when they're comfortable. Just make it right.” Iris had offered, arms back in the bar to sigh. 

   “Sometimes I don’t know how to do that,” Billy blinked his gorgeous eyes, “make it right, I mean.”

   “Watch. Listen. Learn.” She cooed softer. “It’ll do you good. Be a gentleman too, offer my girl a ride home when her set is over. Short night. I assume you’re staying?”

   “Yeah…” Breathless, he marveled. “Yeah, I’m staying if she is.”

   Evie had a few more songs before the mic was turned over. Something sinking every single time she had to see it go. They split tips and she parted ways for the night. Offered the shortest hours of all the workers being so young. Schooling first, Iris always said.

   Bundled in a jacket, Evie pushed through some beads and curtains to see Billy waiting. Head cocking toward the exit.

   “You stayed.”

   “Why wouldn’t I? Drove all the way here.” He lit up a smoke outside, having not had many during the set. Music lingered behind them. Echoed along the cool winds and wet pavement. “Free show and all the Shirley Temples I could suck up. I did tip, by the way. All the pretty people I could flirt with and brag about my girl to. What a night.”

   He slung a lazy arm around Evie’s shoulders. Not looking at her. His girl. Smoke flitting out his lips and Evie lost all her thoughts. Lost the nerve to tell him he was so beautiful. That she could be his. He shifted closer to her and peered at his watch, trapping Evie into his chest.

   “Damn, it's just after two.” 

   “Couple times I stayed till four.” She lamented. “Guess I should be happy they have room at all even if it’s once a week these days. Iris is good to me, I’m loyal… What did you guys talk about?”

   “How pretty the stars are at night.” He mused, snuffing his cigarette out onto a brick wall before he paced to the car waiting. Evie slid in wordlessly, sighed when Billy got the heat on before she buckled.

   She also noticed he did it too for the first time since riding with him. 

   “Usually I’m wired after shows but I’m dead tired tonight,” she rubbed her head to moan, leaning back.

   “You had a long week.” Was all Billy said, swerving down the street to the freeway.

   This heavy silence hung in the air. Billy intent on the road. Idle glances that never matched up. Finally, he peered over and saw Evie’s head lulled aside. Fast asleep.

   A smirk crept.

   He turned some easy music on. Let her rest all the way to Hawkins and parked at his house. Turned slowly and brought his knuckles up against the apple of Evie’s cheek. He felt her shift into his touch and reeled back. Evie seized up, groaned to see him.

   “We’re back.” He whispered. Not sure why.

   “Hm, sorry. Dozed off there.” Evie felt for the handle. Also felt Billy’s eyes on her skull. She froze and blinked to see him. “You want to come inside?”

   “Easier than sneaking into my place. Dad’s a heavy sleeper, but he has Billy Fuck-Up Radar.” He laughed and she didn’t, pushing out. Evie staggered in her heels, holding herself so Billy crossed around in silence. They went up into her house. 

   “Gonna...bathroom. Wash my face off ‘n change.” She had this sleepy adorable way about that, petting Blue idly. Already tugging little clips from her curls.

   Billy came to give the cat some attention. Heard the sink running and crossed back to Evie’s room. Tucked his boots and coat aside. Sprang at attention when she came in wearing a long tee and cradling a bundle of clothing. Curls free and messy. The slightest smear of black makeup still under her eyes but the rest of the paint came off leaving her fresh-faced and glowy. 

   “Need to use it?” She gestured behind her and stepped aside, depositing her laundry properly. Blue eyes lingered before he went off. Wordless.

   Evie let out the breath she’d been holding to sit on the bed. Back taut when Billy returned so she stood awkwardly. A quick movement that made him stop. Created a standoff. Eyes held steady. Expectant. She bit her lip and clicked the light out.

   Somehow that made him feel safer to cross. Careful steps like he was approaching a skittish nymph. Stood inches away. Evie let herself cave in.

   “Can I undress you?”

   The words blurted.

   Billy didn't hesitate.

   “All yours.” He watched her too pointedly so Evie looked aside. Reached to lift his shirt until he adjusted to get out of it. She got a look finally at the nasty red and purple welts on his shoulder. Healing yellow tinge. Clouds shifting.

   Visible from the moon and streetlamps outside flitting through the blinds. A hand hovered but didn’t touch and he just went rigid there. Let her look at him. Let her see every inch. The color splashed over his shoulder like spilled paint. 

   “Can I kiss you there?”

   “Only once.” He said so she swept over. Placed her lips on the flesh that was burning hot. Pecked too light and came out to see Billy’s eyes close. They opened and she reached for his belt. Clicked to get it off before unbuttoning his pants. Billy hitched to shudder when she brushed him, easing his pants down over white briefs. 

   Slowly, Evie brought a finger to her lips. Tapped once and Billy obeyed. Claimed them without ceremony. Pushed into her body until they tangled back in bed. Adjusting so he could hover.

   Aroused into a creamy thigh, Billy rocked easily between parting legs. Nestled there and heard her moan. Drowsy kisses as her hands slipped around his back. One arm braced by her head, fingers smoothed the curls aside. 

   “Can I look?” He uttered, hand inching under her shirt. Gazes locked. A pulsing beat.

   “Yeah.” Evie let her hands fall into the mattress. Billy pushed fabric up over her chubby stomach and naked breasts. Traced her flesh without shame and she felt it all melting away. Piles of insecurities shedding to drop like little weights hanging from her heart. Brown eyes lifted elsewhere. A quiet shiver followed.

   Her chest rose and fell. Evie tried to stay alert and locked into him, but the sensation returned that sunk her down.

   “Billy," she squeaked to still him, "I-I do want you.”

   That broad hand palmed her side. 

   “If you’re unsure, Angel, it’s a no.” He shrugged. “It’s okay. You’re tired. Doesn’t hurt my pride.” Eyes lingered on her face. Evie still felt so exposed there. Billy’s thumb rubbed a hot circle into her skin. He chuckled before pecking those waiting lips with ease.

   “We could...I still want to… Do things.” Evie shuddered, swallowing to find the words. “Warm-up. Start slow. Small.”

   “Little things you dream of me doing to you.” He leaned in again to taunt. Hips pushed into hers. “Wet your panties already.”

   “Please, you leaked all...over me…” Evie lost the exact jab while he kissed up her neck. Tongue and teeth. His hand inched. Ever so slightly. She touched his knuckles, guided him higher to cup her breast. Billy moaned at that alone. Twitched like he might burst and wasted no time getting his tongue on her nipples.

   “Taste better than I dreamt, that’s for damn sure.” He ran his nose over her sternum. Tormented her other breast. Let his teeth tug once. Twice.

   Suckles until she bucked into him. Head tossed back to moan. Fingers curled into spun gold. Coaxed him onward. Billy kissed her all over. Tummy and back up again. Shifting, he moved over to straddle one leg, nudged her thighs to stay parted.

   “Wanna spread you open,” lips ghosted, “touch you.” Brush you again and again.

   Evie had his arm in her grip. Felt like two irons clinging. Slowly, she nodded, eyes huge and darting over his there in the dim light. 

   “I want to feel good again, Billy.” She gulped dry air. “Want you to make me feel good.”

   He took in her expression. Pleading and vulnerable. Unafraid to want him in the open. Fingers rolled over her hard nipple and then slipped down under flimsy fabric he wished he could tear. Contained himself just barely at the feel of her. Soaked for him. Responsive to every little beat and sigh. Pride set fire to his marrow. Two fingers pushed up into the bud, coated in arousal to stroke it.

   "Like that?" He teased slow. Her mouth opened for his tongue in response.

   Evie grasped desperately at the pillow under her head. Legs opened so he got off to curl next to her. Braced his head up with one propped elbow and offered lazy rubs. Drew it out until her thighs hitched to part wide.

   “Hear that fucking sound you make?” Billy’s lips touched her ear. “Fuck.” He whimpered like she was the hottest thing on two legs. Made her feel coveted and sexy. Desirable. Slick sounds mingled with their breathing hurried. “I could listen to it all day and get off on that alone, you know. Musical girl. I could play you all night.”

   He kept kissing her, rendering Evie unable to articulate. Wanting him in little breathy sounds.

   Fucking wanting him.

   Evie twisted, hitching a gasp as her toes curled. Thighs parting wider because Billy was some sort of fucking wizard at this. This boy couldn't be real. Eliciting perfect notes out of her. One hand gripped the pillow under her head while the other clung to his bicep now. She felt the muscles bulge white-hot and loved it. Heard Billy breathing soft in her ear, lips trailing down her jawline and collar. 

   “You’re so wet.” Billy brought his fingers up to lick them. Pushed his tongue into her mouth after. “Taste so fucking good.” Evie yelped as he slapped her thigh playfully. The words slurred into her lips. He slipped his hand back into her panties, played rougher, and felt her tense. Evie’s lips opened into his to moan. Her legs bent up and spread for him. Bucking to meet his touch that was ending her. “Shameless, Evie, I like it.”

   “You talk too much.” She had gasped, eyes rolling to shut. Breast jutting so he kissed them next.

   “I don’t think people talk enough during the act.” Billy curled back into her. Supporting himself on one arm by her head. “Nothing like seeing a pretty girl’s face when I tell her she’s gonna come so hard for me.” She felt his shaft against her side, rubbing idly to make some friction. Leaking and wet. "So very hard."

   Billy liked to play dirty, it kept his emotions at a safe distance.

   Evie caved in. 

   “More… Faster, Billy.” She clung for him. Neck exposed. Pulsing. Lips parting obscenely. "More."

   A finger pushed inside with another following. 

   “Oh, fuck.” Evie worked into his touch. Brown eyes finding his intent ones. Billy thumbed her clit in tune. Pumped a few times. Watched her chest rise and fall in shaky breaths. The shirt still bunched over her tits. Lips fell to suckle one rosy nipple then the other.

   “Too much, Angel?” Billy slipped out to resume circling the bud. He hummed, slowing to inhale deep before he granted her another taste of his lips.

   “Don’t stop, I like it.” Evie whimpered into his mouth. Caught his bottom lip in her teeth playfully. 

   “Couldn’t tell.” Billy sped up again. “Wanna see you come for me.”

   “Billy.” Evie twisted at that. Thrusting herself into him. Breasts bouncing.

   Slick, filthy sounds filled the room. The damn streetlamps glimmered around the curtains. Gave her almost no place to hide from him. Something churned in her stomach. Alert. 

   “I’m close.” She strained at last. "I'm so..."

   “I know,” he grazed their lips to murmur, “just chase it. Don’t run, Angel. That’s it. Chase it for me.” He watched her expression flutter and cloud. Loved it. Worked her relentlessly.

   Nails dug into his skin. Out of breath and bucking until her body gave a little quake. A moan followed. Drawing out with her climax. Billy rubbed her until she fell to pieces. Crying out and shuddering. All for him. Back curved to echo sweet delights. He didn’t stop until she fell limp and quivering by the force. With Evie spent, he pushed up to reach into his briefs. Slicked his shaft in her arousal. Began to pump. 

   “Lemme see you.” She slurred, turning over to tug his underwear down. God, he was beautiful. Lines cut down his hips. Trimmed gold curls. She bit her lip again and wasn’t coy for once.

   “You mind?” A suggestive eyebrow rose.

   "If I can help." She pushed up more with heavily hooded eyes. Drunken. Messy kisses trailed his abs before she licked his tip.

   “You just go for it, huh?” Billy added. Allowed her to swallow him down. “Fuck, that mouth you have, Evie.” He bucked into her throat. Tried to apologize when she made a sound that was utterly pornographic. Heavy cologne wafted up her nose. A trail of spit ran from flesh to lips as she came out. Lapping again. Sinking down so he could pump. She gripped his hips and worshipped him. "You don't...You don't have to..."

   "I like it when you feel good. You're so beautiful." Evie dipped out. Let Billy tilt her head up by the hair. Thumb slicking her swollen mouth. Billy curved to dip his tongue in. Groaned when she kept stroking. "Feels good to give pleasure. We have that in common, Billy."

   His spine arched. Muscles taut because her lips were on him again.

   "You look like a star, you know that?" Billy had to peer away. Sighing soft. Shuddering. She didn't lie about being skilled at this. Evie placed little kisses up and down. Slowed. He didn't have time to continue the praise.

   “Where do you want to cum?” She resumed stroking him. Kissed shapes around his hips sweetly. Billy tried to articulate and gasped as her teeth nipped along his skin.

   “You’re asking me? Shit...You won’t like it.” He tried to not blow it all on her face. Felt like that might be rude. Billy shuddered again. “On your tits.”

   “Hm.” Evie reclined back, let him scoot in and helped him stroke himself. Being dirty also assisted in keeping her emotions and insecurity at bay. She worked him with her slick hand. Felt him starting to lock.

   “Listen, I’m not gonna last much...longer.” He was thrusting into their palms. Leaned over her to grasp the pillows so she could finish him herself.

   “It’s okay. Just let go, Billy. It'll feel so good when you do.” Tease.

   “Fuck, Evie, fuck.” Billy looked exquisite. Vulnerable. Eyes glittering with pleasure. Whining. Lips opened to groan. She worked him until release gushed. Milky spurts right across her chest. Billy swallowed for some air, looked down at her. Messy and fucked out. Shirt bunched up with his filth all over her skin. Puffed. 

   “Don’t get mad, but I thought about that the first time I saw you.” He twisted one nipple, heard her hitch to sigh. Evie fell back with a huff.

   “Yeah, you made that obvious.” She felt Billy sweep up some release with two fingers and offer it to her lips. Sucked him clean, peering through thick lashes. Evie laced their fingers and let a slow smile pull. “I enjoy you, Billy.”

   “Yeah?” He fell next to her. Nestled in so their curls mixed. “Only took you a couple of months and an orgasm to admit it.”

   “Shut it… I want you. Not trying to countdown to it like it’s some rocketship.” She pushed over him and felt under the bed for a dirty shirt to wipe off with. “That’s all I’m saying. Foreplay is one thing. Sex always changes people. Maybe I'm...freaked about that.”

   “I enjoy you, too.” He admitted to the dark. Eyes lifting to the ceiling before she tucked herself back in between him and the wall. “We could get a motel room sometime. Make sure no one walks in for once. We'll be wide awake and go a few rounds. And I won't change on you.”

   “Hmm.” She turned to muffle into his chest. Drowsy as can be. “Sure.”

   “Really?” Didn’t expect a quick reply. “Not gonna take it back when the glow wears off?”

   “Maybe.” Evie teased, grinning into Billy’s skin. “You make me mad sometimes. Still want to go slow like this.” He chuckled with little air, chest steady until he adjusted so she could cuddle into him. Evie traced a heart into his flesh. Caught herself. “Can I have a ride Monday? I think Steve will understand… I’m just freaked out about going in.”

   A hand pushed her hair aside so they could look at each other. Billy played with lush curls. Got serious.

   “He's not gonna be there.”

   “I know.” Evie hummed with her eyes closing. Fingers in her hair lulled her further. “Sometimes I think I see him standing in dark corners. Even when I’m on stage. There’s this glimmer of him everywhere. Especially as I close my eyes.”

   Billy didn’t know what to say so he kissed her until she was breathless and distracted. They shifted around so Evie faced the wall, pulling his arm over. Thrilled him to pieces. Billy framed her body with his, lips melting into dark curls. Sweet blessings placed upon her crown. A protective barrier he hoped soothed her.

   He really hoped.

   The blankets pulled up so they twisted together. No more syllables followed until the morning birds began to sing.

** ** **

   Monday crept to swallow Evangeline whole.

   She donned a vintage plaid dress that was cinched with a belt and short. Threw her bomber over it and fashionable black tights. Knew she was dressing for Fredrick even still. Her little outfits pieced together so he could imagine taking them apart in class. Earrings caught the light as she swung her bag on and crept outside into the morning windchill. Didn’t want to keep Billy and Max waiting. 

   Just in time, they stalked out of the Hargrove house. This knowing smile crossed Max’s face when she saw Evie.

   “So, you’re hanging out with Billy again.” Came the monotone observation.

   “Back seat.” He snapped at her. Evie’s lip twitched before a little nod followed and the redhead disappeared into the back. Snapping the seat in place for Evie to take. Without ceremony, the Camaro lurched forward to go. Billy fiddling with his radio and cursing all the hick stations until he found one at Evie's quiet recommendation. 

   “Is Evie your girlfriend now?” Max was leaning between them.

   “I’ll pull over, I swear to god, Max.” He lifted his eyes with an aggravated breath, turning hard after the stoplight changed. Max snickered and Evie wanted to laugh, but didn’t. Eyes darting at the many trees they passed until they began to blur. A sea of earthy tones and pure white frost pooling. Almost looked like chaotic, muddy ocean waves. Crashing.

   Sensing the nerves, Billy’s hand found her knee. Stayed there until they got to school. Thumb smoothing.

   “See you two later.” Chipper for once in the morning, Mad Max jumped out after them and raced down the hill to meet Dustin waving across the way. Evie huffed as he looked between Billy and her then asked Max an obvious question out of earshot.

   Students moved all around them. Many pausing to glance at Evie Fenny appearing from the magical blue of Billy Hargrove's legendary Camaro. She didn't belong there. One hot orgasm wouldn't change that. Fingers curled into her bag’s strap. Nervously twisting it.

   “He’s not gonna be in there and you won’t feel better until you face it.” Billy finished his cigarette against the hood. Eyes pointed.

   “We could just skip.” Evie looked around at passing students and Billy came to her side.

   “You do know how to tempt me. C’mon.” An arm swept around her shoulders. Nearby students took more frantic notes as they got down the hill so Evie wiggled from him. Kept walking and felt sick by the time they got to her locker.

   “People are staring at us.” She faced inside and sorted books. Billy leaned next to her. Eyes flickering with this unreadable expression. 

   “I didn’t notice.”

   Evie gave him this glance like she didn’t believe him. 

   "I don't care." Came the actual sentiment.

   “I have to get to calc.” Evie dismissively shut the metal door and gasped when he kissed her. Right there in front of everyone. Billy cupping her cheeks. Making a point in his way. Cartoon confetti tumbling down. Students watched Evie stumble into the lockers. Billy Hargrove’s arm steady around her back. Pulling her into his body as if he wanted her and only her and nothing else existed.

   “Clear enough, Angel?” He pulled out. Left her breathless. Unworried and wishing it was enough to unbind her nerves. A thumb fixed her lipstick idly. “See you in English. Don’t run.” Billy swept off. Students parting to let their king by. Evie shuddered to herself and hunched to hurry in the opposite direction. Cheeks burning. 

   Brush me again.

   She didn’t learn much in her first period. Heather met her at the door and kept glancing the entire class. Carol and Tommy both skipped. That should have brought Evie some ease. Instead, she figured she might blow chunks.

   The first bell had her springing up. Not even waiting for Heather as she disappeared into crowds. Shoving a bathroom door open so she could throw up her breakfast. Two eggs arranged with wheat toast. Mona had spent the entire time prattling about some man she was seeing as if Evie were her best friend and therapist and not a soul she gave birth to.

   Evie so often wondered if her mother had wanted her. Really wanted her. This life that stilled all her starlight, electric dreams. And not treated birth as a duty because these things can happen.

   Luck was not on her side. Evie had passed Carol in there with a couple of other girls in her gaggle's orbit. Smoking and late to class. Too cool for it either way.

   Bile and food exploded into the toilet bowl. A twisted clothing pin that was stuck somewhere it shouldn't have been came up too. Evie swallowed that a good while ago. Spots of blood pricked.

   “Gross, Fenny, didn’t know you were that type.” Vicki sneered outside at the sound. Snickering followed. “Two fingers are better than one, precious. I hope you give Billy’s dick better treatment.” Footsteps followed and Evie didn’t have time to be mortified. She figured they all left and gasped. Spotted a loose bolt in the wall. 

   Evie propped her head up and fumbled to unscrew it.

   Heard voices that told her to stop. Just stop. She can stop. She can stop this at any time.

   There rust.

   It went down and Evie felt that sickly wave of calm wash. Rocked back to a distant shore and wiped her mouth on a wad of thin toilet paper. Felt disgusting. Gave her cheek a soft pat like a baby. Breathe. Breathe. Feet staggered out with her backpack to see Carol sitting on the farthest sink like it was a throne. Smoking still and far too elated.

   Shame sunk its talons into Evie like Carol watched the entire thing play out. 

   Unable to even rasp, she went to the sink and washed out her mouth. 

   “Not preggers are you?” Smoke pooled up.

   “Just sick.” Evie bit back, hands braced over the sink.

   “About the party,” Carol continued, not listening as she snuffed out her cig against the mirror's corner, “I was so drunk. Don’t take it personally.”

   “Fine.”

   “I just think it’s a fresh start today. New leaves. Right?” Carol dug around as Evie shuddered and tried to reapply her lipstick. The redhead approached. “Here.”

   A stick of bubblegum flicked out. Evie eyed it suspiciously and Carol actually smiled. Glossy lips curling before she chewed her own piece. Blew a plush pink bubble for good measure.

   It popped.

   “Nothing funny. You need to work on those trust issues. Especially if you’re gonna hang with Billy. He gets around." Her head cocked. "Don't mind Vicki, by the way, Billy sorta dropped her unexpectedly. Hm. She was hoping to take him all the way to prom and only got one taste at Lover's Lake. Poor thing.” 

   Carefully, Evie took it. Let the sweet flavor fill her rustic mouth. Didn’t mask enough.

   “Thanks…��

   “Anytime.” Carol went to the door and stopped. Lips smacked. Couldn't hold it in any longer and let the glee flow. Red hair flicked. “So how does it work, you and Bowers, is it a grade thing? Are you just easy? I’m so curious because he seems like a guy who could get anyone. Billy, too. So, why you, Evie?"

   The question that kept Evangeline up at night haunted the air. Carol grew relentless.

   "Are you a witch of some kind? Could be comparing the young and old. Gross. Maybe you work well on your knees. I’d love some tips.”

   Evie stared at the sink. Heard the bell blare signaling she was late. A deafening silence followed.

   “I don’t…” She peered at Carol crossing her arms to smile. The gum went sour. “I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about.” 

   “I don’t know if I’m grossed out or impressed, Evie,” Carol faked a look of shock, “you really suck off our teacher. I mean, how pathetic do you have to be?” A nasty, faux scoff followed. 

   "As if you weren't leaning over his desk to press your tits against his back and hiking your skirts up all the same." Evie shot up. Caught Carol off guard by matching her malice. Easily.

   Evie found herself shaking. Face hot. Eyes betraying her too well.

   “But, I don’t know what you’re talking about. Leave me alone.” She spat the gum in the trash and pushed out to go. Carol followed her down the empty hallway, skipping and loving this side of Evie that poured like tar.

   “Does he at least buy you nice dinners? I bet he’s flush with cash. Buys you things in leather and lace. Does he have a preference? I think lace. You're a dainty spring flower he plucks the petals from all for himself. Right?" Carol struck Evie with an arrow at that sentiment. "Is Billy jealous? Bowers is probably into the weird shit. You must be a real pro at-” Carol hitched to squeal when Evie flared.

   Two hands plucking her up to shove her into the lockers. Breaths in sync, Evie found herself hissing. A fire built to pour and ravage. Warming them both. She leaned too close to Carol's face.

   “Just, shut up.” She trembled, teeth-baring. A silver tear fell down her cheek. Fingers warped into Carol's pink turtleneck sweater. The trapped girl actually reached up to catch it on her finger. Looked dreamily into the droplet like she was viewing a distant memory.

   “Ah, you’re actually crying. Like a little baby. You should start wearing a big red A, Fen. Bowers must love having a little baby girl around. Dress her up and down, down, down.” Carol sneered, glossy lips popping.

   She dropped the pretense as Evie held her there. Let it all flutter. Started to shatter silently. Evangeline wondered. She really wondered if what Carol Perkins saw in her that she hated so much was just herself reflected. Poor thing.

   Poor things.

   "You don't know shit about me." Evie managed. It sounded so unconvincing coming out.

   "I know all these people around here are weak. They're so fucking weak." Came the spark. "But, not us."

   Carol came in close. Added fuel to the fires. Did something peculiar and gave Evie this sickly sweet peck on the lips. Gloss and red mingled. She stole something she saw deep inside of Evie that she felt too. Got shoved back again when Evie recovered. Tongued her mouth after tasting the salt of more tears. Carol was welling now. Voice low. Starting to quiver. Evie's fingers left blushing marks on freckled skin.

   It hurt and Carol loved that it hurt.

   “It feels good, doesn’t it? Real good. Pile that pain onto someone else. This. Feels better.” Carol sniffled with budding fury. Waited for admission. She tremored and asked a question that killed them both. "What happens when we run out of silky petals, Evie, huh? What the fuck do we do then?"

   Tears shed, they didn't cleanse.

   "I d-don't know, Carol," Evie released the thoughts and mourned it deeply, "but, I think about it every single day."

   Disgust welled. Evie thought of Fredrick grabbing at her. Seething to keep their secrets locked at any cost.

   Wheels within wheels. Turning endlessly.

   Fires within fires.

   She dropped Carol and stalked off. Proud like Hester in The Scarlet Letter. Fleeting temptress with dominance and power for days like Abigail in The Crucible. Heroines and villains and virgins and whores and martyrs. None of them win.

   Women were always packaged just so. The world seemed to prefer that. All these stories Fredrick made her read and reread until she took them into her soul. Lolita who always gets the blame she never deserved because she was young and a victim and no one cares about that. Why don't they care about us? They care about how she was prepackaged by a society that never tried to save her.

   No one cares or grieves why and how women are carved from pristine marble, only that it's their fault if they tarnish and crack. Their fault if they stumble and fall. No going back.

   No going back.

   White roses painted red. They never asked first.

   Evie was a couple of steps away from the classroom when a mass of claws tore into her curls. Yanked her back so hard that her backpack fell off. 

   “Still pretending you’re better than me, bitch! Admit it!” 

   Evie cried out. Alerted nearby classes. Thought of Fredrick tearing her down the same way and whirled with her hand out on pure instinct. Smacked Carol in the mouth. Froze with huge eyes. And Carol actually smiled. Bloodied teeth and sticky lip gloss. She looked like such a girl there.

   "Alright, Fenny babe, I'll play the villain for you. Just like you wanted." Carol dove on Evie while classes began to pool out. They hit the floor and lockers rolling around. Not really landing punches or slaps. Just locked around each other shouting and tearing into clothing and loose hair. Both crying.

   “Shit!” Billy, Steve, and Tommy shoved through the jeering teens to pull them apart. Chaos rained.

   “Girl fight! Girl fight!” This school really reveled in such things every single time. 

   “We need help here! Ladies, enough!” The poor substitute in Bowers' room was not having a great first day.

   “Get off me!” Carol finally detached from Evie so Billy scooped her up under the arms. The redhead noticed Mr. Bowers wasn’t around and stopped struggling. This cruel look twisted her face. 

   “Can’t leave you alone for a second, huh?” Billy’s voice brought Evie back into the shouting as she scrambled up with his help.

   “You two! Principal!” Another teacher came between them. The useless security guard was just now jogging around the corner. Evie tore her bag up and passed Steve and Tommy. Carol was already stomping off. Something awful lighting her bones aflame. Red locks bounced and became fire.

   Ushered away through crowds, they were put into a cramped room. Seated next to each other.

   “Perkins and Fenny?” Their principal plopped into a chair with his secretary sitting in back to make notes. “I haven’t had problems with either of you.”

   Carol burst right there. Sobbed through the words.

   “It’s all Evie's fault! She slept with him and she’s just getting away with it! She gets everything! I'm sick of it! I'm sick of all this and...and I want it to stop! I just want it all to stop!” 

   “Ms. Perkins, you’re not being app-!”

   “What if I told you it was a grown man, huh! Maybe someone who works here.”

   “Liar!” Evie wretched over her chair to swat at Carol until they had to be forced apart again into separate rooms. A clock ticked. Blared in her ear and made her crazy while she waited. Tears streamed.

   Carol was about to ruin her life. Drag all this shit back to the surface.

   God, what would Mona say if she knew her daughter was an evil temptress?

   Evie got into her bag for something. Anything to make it better. Nothing small enough to swallow at the bottom so Evie just rocked. Patting her cheek again to console herself. Bubblegum lip gloss still stained her red lips. No wiping it away.

   Chief Hopper poked his head into the room ten minutes later, causing her to drop the bag and send her items everywhere.

   Hester. Abigail. Lolita. Twisting goddesses. They all pay for it somehow. The narrative always makes them pay and they never had a chance to be anything else. Can't blame them.

   Poor things. Lost to the fires within fires.

   Books and papers flew out elegantly around her feet. Scattering away as Evie burst into harsh tears.

~~~~~~~~~

Oof, sorry to end it there lads! More to come and thank you so so much for following as always. All the comments mean so much to me and I’d love to chat about the chapter!! Thanks!

TAGGED: @80sbxtch @nottherightseason @orxhidshavana   @alagalaska @alongcamedolly @kellyk-chan​ @10blurredsmoke10 @stanley--barber  @charmed-asylum @unmistakablyunknown

[simsadventures]

Only Mine: Chapter 3: Dinner Date

Summary: The night you dreaded the most is here. The date night with Bucky.

Warnings: swearing, mentions of violence, mobster AU, mafia

Word Count: 3485

A/N: I’m soooo excited that you guys like it so far! Let me know what you thought of this chapter, and what you’d like to see happen next. Love y’all!! xx

Series Masterlist __ Mastelist

< Previous Chapter 

To say you were nervous would be an understatement of the fucking century. You wanted to leave the city and never come back, but you knew that it wasn’t an option. First, you didn’t have enough money to build a new life somewhere far away from here, and secondly, you definitely didn’t have the courage to do so. Your whole life was here, in New York, and you didn’t want to give it up just because an asshole decided to bully you into having dinner with him.

Nat was furious, to say the least. She was planning a murder into great detail, and it was only then that you let yourself relax a little. She was telling you about a certain man being run through a meat grinder, and you had to laugh. Your best friend was a psychopath, and it was not up to debate. And you thought if you could be best friends with someone like her, you could definitely make it through one dinner.

Friday went on too quickly for your own good. Usually, your hours at work would tick slowly, and you’d be going little nuts before you could go home. But not on this Friday. Whenever you looked at the clock, it was always an hour or more later, and you prayed to whoever was listening to just stop the time so that you didn’t have to face Bucky.

By the time your workweek ended, a message had appeared on your screen. You hoped Nat was texting you to bring her some vodka for the weekend, but when you read the message, all blood rushed out of your face.

B: Wear something nice

Just like that, nothing more and nothing less. You so wanted to go make-up-less, in your old PJs just to see his pissed-off expression, but after last time, and the way he let one of his men hold you down as if you were a fucking criminal, you didn’t know if you had the nerve to face him like that again. What also pissed you about the message was the fact he simply texted you a command, no please, no sorry, nothing, and he didn’t even sign the message. For all, you knew it could be a wrong number.

You decided to play a little, even if you knew there was no chance of your victory.

Y/N: Who dis?

You knew he’d make a scene, and you looked cautiously around the people on the street, in case he was standing/sitting there somewhere, watching you like a hawk.

B: I told you not to play your fucking games with me, doll!

Y/N: Oh! I almost forgot a mobster was threatening me to go out on a dinner with him. Still haven’t changed your mind, bad boy?

You knew you were on thin ice, but you just couldn’t help yourself. He was by far the most infuriating person you’ve ever had the chance to meet. And you hope tonight would be the last time you saw or heard from him. You saw the three dots in the left bottom twirling, but you decided that you had enough, at least until you came home. You put your phone off airplane mode, put on some good music, and walked home.

When you reached your apartment, it was already half-past five, and you knew you didn’t have that much time to get ready. So you threw your phone away and marched to the bathroom. Even though you knew it wasn’t technically a date, and that you definitely didn’t want it to be a date, you still wanted to look representable. Not for Bucky, God forbid, but for yourself. You washed your hair, shaved from head to toe (and only because you wanted to wear that short dress, nothing more, you told yourself), scrubbed your face clean of all the dirt it caught during the day and applied a new full-face on.

By the time you were done, it was quarter to 7, and your heart gave an involuntary jump. You wanted to stay at home, with a glass of wine and a good book, maybe even order a pizza if you were feeling like it, but no. You had to go out on a date with a freaking mobster. Just your luck. You went to check your phone for new messages and then horrified realised you still had on the plane-mode. You quickly turned it off and waited until your signal came on.

When it did, your phone wouldn’t stop vibrating in your hand from the vast number of messages you received. Sure, some were from your friends, few from your mother telling you all about her day and how you dad was acting like a jerk again, but most of them were from the unknown number you knew was Bucky’s.

17:01 B: That big mouth of yours will get you into trouble one day.

17:05 B: Don’t taunt me, Y/N.

17:20 B: You giving me the silent treatment now? You think that’s a good choice?

17:34 B: You’re not as smart as I thought you were. Ignoring me won’t get you anywhere.

17:57 B: I swear to God if you aren’t at your place by the time I get there, all hell will break loose, I can promise you that.

18:09 B: Y/N????

18:15 B: ARE YOU OK?

18:21 B: WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU?

18:27 B: ANSWER YOUR DAMN PHONE, Y/N!!!!

18:30 B: I’m coming for you!!!

You stared, horrified at your phone. You knew he’d be there any minute now, but you texted him nevertheless, trying to put out the fire before he had the chance to stand face to face with you.

18:48 Y/N: I accidentally left my phone of airplane-mode. I’m fine, and I’m ready. Calm down, Romeo.

You were most definitely getting hurt for your snarky remarks, but this man brought something in you, and that something definitely wasn’t of the good sort. You could see the three dots again, but then they disappeared. Suddenly, you could hear the sound of the door buzzer, telling you someone was standing outside of the apartment building. You quickly grabbed your purse and ran out of the door.

You took your time ascending the stairs, first and foremost because you didn’t want to break your leg in those heels, and then also because you knew Bucky would be pissing himself in the car. When you finally stepped outside, the giant guy from the other day (Dax, Drogs, Dork? whatever) was waiting for you, with his arms crossed over his chest. You wanted to be polite, so you smiled at him a little and nodded your head, but the only reaction you got was a low growl and him grabbing your upper arm to lead you towards the black SUV. What a cliché!

“Get in,” the guy hollered and pretty much pushed you into the open door in the back. “Ouch! Are all gentlemen fucking dead, or what?” You hissed as you bumped your head at the entrance.

“Because you’re such a ladylike!” Somebody growled from inside the car, and you had to squint to see that it was Bucky, seated at the other side. “Whatever,” you muttered and slammed the door, turning away from him. How you wished to be anywhere else at that moment.

The ride to the restaurant (at least you hoped it would be a restaurant and that he wasn’t driving you to an abandoned slaughterhouse to have some fun with you (yeah, you had to idea what mobsters did for fun).  

When the car halted to a stop, everyone got out of the car, leaving you behind. Both the driver and the big guy stood next to Bucky, and you could see other men flying around the area, swooping it from anyone they didn’t like. But nobody gave a shit about you. You sat there with a smirk on your face. Maybe he’ll forget you were there in the first place and you could actually have the night you wanted. At the same time, you were thinking about how he could’ve had so many women when he didn’t even know how to treat one. Not that you wished he treated you like those girls, but still. He took you out for dinner, and he didn’t even make sure you actually got out of the car.

He seemed to have realised that it actually took to people to have this weird “date”, and he turned around, confused look on his face, shrugging his shoulders and spreading his arms as if to tell you what the hell is wrong with you.

You just cocked your head and got out of the car. “Waiting on an official invitation, princess?” Smirk plastered all over his face, and you wanted to do nothing more than to wipe it off. You smiled sweetly at him and patted his shoulder. “Oh, no, I was just waiting when or if you even noticed that the girl you took on dinner wasn’t even there. You know, waiting for you to pull your head out of your ass and stop treating me like a pet, but,” you scoffed, “I guess I would want too much, huh?” You said, stepped around his security and went inside the restaurant.

Bucky stood there, wordlessly as if someone took his favourite toy. All the girls always jumped at the first opportunity to be with him, he could be a first-class asshole, and they would giggle and blush. He was so used to getting what he wanted, that when suddenly someone wasn’t acting according to the used pattern, he didn’t really know what to do.

The girl at the desk welcoming and seating the guest looks at you, waiting for you to tell her your name so she could see if you had a reservation.

“Barnes.” You say with a sweet smile, and her eyes go a little wide. But because she doesn’t see him anywhere, she frowns a little. “I know Mr Barnes, and I’m sorry Miss, but you don’t seem like him.”

Someone obviously entered in that moment and from the look of terror on her face, you don’t have to guess who it is. “You have a good eye, Linda, she really isn’t Mr Barnes. How about we skip the pleasantries, and you show us to my table?” She quickly nodded, and almost ran towards the most distant part of the restaurant, which was hidden behind a thing looking like a curtain. When she pushed the fabric away, you could see one table behind it, lit with candle lights. It would be romantic, hadn’t you know that he brought there probably every girl who slept with him. And if it wasn’t Bucky, of course.

You didn’t wait for him to tell you to go sit down. You couldn’t help yourself, but Bucky looked confused as hell ever since you got into his car. When you were both seated, another girl came in with two menus in her hand. But before she could distribute them, Bucky waved his hand to stop her. “No need. We know what we want. A bottle of your best Merlot, the beefsteak, medium, tell Mark that it’s for me, he’ll know what to do with it. And your spring salad for the lady.”

You clenched your jaw. You hated when people spoke for you. You weren’t a 5-year-old, and you definitely wouldn’t let someone as arrogant as Bucky to speak for you.

“Actually,” you said and look pointedly at Bucky, “I don’t drink red, so please, a glass of Chardonnay and sparkling water. And I sure as hell am not gonna eat a salad here. I heard your chef makes mean salmon?” You asked, and the girl just nodded, obviously flustered from the whole encounter. “Good, then a salmon with grilled vegetable for me, thank you.” The girl hurried away, and when she was behind the curtain, Bucky’s voice boomed at you.

“What the fuck was that?”

“What? Are you so insecure that you won’t even allow me to pick the food for myself? I’m a capable human being, well… at least very capable of making an order for myself. I’m not one of your easy girls, who’d agree with anything you said, or whatever they do. I’m my own person, Bucky, and if you don’t want me to get up right now, you better start treating me like that.”

Silence followed your little outburst. You could see Bucky fighting himself not to yell at you, his fists clenching and unclenching, just like his jaw. You weren’t feeling comfortable with him. He was so easily angered that you didn’t know what you could say, and what would be too much. Sure, you had the tendency to talk too much and be a sarcastic shit, overall, but that didn’t mean he could treat you as if you didn’t have a brain or any options. Whatever he thought, you still could walk out of there. Threats or not, you weren’t about to let him walk all over you.

“So, can we be civil now, or are you still gonna order me around and threaten me?” You asked with a small smirk playing on your lips.

“I haven’t threatened you yet, doll. And you sure as hell don’t want me to, trust me.”

“Oh, I trust you alright in that. Tell me about your day, mafia doing good?”

He squinted his eyes and cocked his head to the right. “Did you just ask me if mafia was doing good?” He asked, disbelief laced in his voice. The corners of your mouth were twitching, and you wanted to start laughing so bad. You were so nervous because of him that you said pretty much the first thing that came to your mind.

You could see him bite his lower lip, his jaw tensing a little, and a slight smile appeared on his face. When you let your mouth do what it needed, you burst out laughing, and Bucky soon joined you. It was the first relaxed thing the two of you did together (if we don’t count that particular night) and relief washed over you. So the guy can laugh, from time to time, you thought.

“Yeah, mafia doing great. How about the publishing house you’re working at, prospering and all?”

“I’d ask how you knew about where I worked, but I don’t even wanna know. Yeah, work’s good. I always imagined it a little differently, you know, the whole publishing process and I’m still not at the position I’ve always dreamt about, but I’m getting there.” You smiled at him.

“And what is it you want to do?”

You weren’t sure if he were really interested in what you were saying, but you decided to let it go. He asked, and that’s what counted. “I wanna be the person who says if and how something gets published. I wanna just read scripts and all that and decide whether it’s something our reader would enjoy or not. Pretty much my bosses position, you know? But I guess I’m doing the second-best thing. I now make sure that whatever gets out to the bookstores is the most polished version. It’s a pretty good job, and I really shouldn’t complain. Sorry, I’m rambling,” you realised and shut up.

People always told you that you talked too much sometimes, and you were aware of it, but when you were nervous, or you talked about something really close to your heart, you just couldn’t help it. And at that moment, you were both.

“Don’t apologise. I can see that it’s something you’re very passionate about. And I like the passionate side of you.” He winked at you, and you couldn’t help it and stuck your tongue at him. He laughed and shook your head at your childishness.

When the waitress came with the food, Bucky’s posture changed utterly. While it was just the two of you, and he was listening to you talk, he slouched a little, and his whole face relaxed. But when the girl walked through the curtain, he became the feared mafia boss again. And you hated to admit it to yourself, but you actually liked the previous, smirking, funny version of him, and this mobster guy was pissing you off a little. He was so self-assured and was letting everyone around him know, who the boss was.

The rest of the night undulated between these two positions or two faces of his, and you were now more intrigued than anything else. But after he paid for your dinner, only one face stayed plastered on him, and you felt a little disappointed.

He once again didn’t even wait on you as he was leaving the restaurant with his bodyguards, didn’t open the door for you, he was once again acting as if you were an object, forgetting about your presence. You were just one of the many girls, and he was showing you precisely what he thought of you.

“Peter, drive us to my apartment,” Bucky told the young guy who was driving, and you looked at him, confused.

“Don’t you wanna drop me off first?”

“Ha! You’re going with me, doll. The night’s still young, and we can have plenty of fun together.” He said slyly and touched your exposed knee. You swatted his hand away and looked at him, disgusted.

“I’m not going home with you, Bucky. Not a fucking chance. Peter? Could you drop me off at my apartment and then do whatever you want with your boss?” You leaned in closer to the front of the car and said to the driver.

“Who do you think you are? You do as I say!” Bucky now all but screamed.

“Watch yourself! I’m not your fucking pet, Barnes! If I don’t wanna go anywhere with you, then I’m not going. End of the story. I’m not gonna let an arrogant idiot tell me what I can and cannot do.” You took a deep breath and looked Bucky in the eye.

“Look, let’s just call it a night, and life? I mean, we both found out that this would never work, not that I didn’t know it before tonight, but still. I’m not a girl you can order around, and you’re not a guy I’m looking for, so let’s just part ways and never see each other again. Let’s not make this a pissing competition for you, you don’t have to prove yourself anything. I’m just too much myself, and you need someone unsure of themselves so that you could mould them into the person you want them to be.”

Bucky cleared his throat but kept looking at you, as if you fell out of the sky. Like you were an alien, speaking different language. Peter was watching him through the mirror, and Bucky just nodded at him, letting him know that he could drop you off first.

He was studying your face and your body even when you turned away from him and stared out of the window. You knew, or at least really really hoped that there was a decent human being under that pile of shit Bucky was presenting as himself. Peter stopped in front of your apartment building, and you thanked him silently. You turned to say goodbye to Bucky, but he didn’t even acknowledge your presence. You patted his thigh nevertheless and leaned in to kiss his cheek.

“Learn to not be so tough all the time, Bucky. When you let go of this bad boy image, you’ll be an alright guy.”

You didn’t wait for his reaction and got out of the car, and rushed towards your door. Your heart was in your throat that you actually told him that, but calmed down when no-one followed you. This was interesting, to say the least, you thought to yourself, and hurried upstairs to tell Natasha all about the night.

What you didn’t know was that Bucky didn’t speak all the way to his villa, where he spent most of his time, especially when he didn’t plan on bringing a girl “home”. He owned the apartment solely for the reason to have something in the centre so that he didn’t have to drive too long before he could fuck them. But of the things going down with his business, and the place he called home was his villa.

He didn’t understand what was happening. He actually enjoyed talking to you, you had a brain, an ambition, and it was interesting to hear about your dreams and such. But then something would switch, and you wouldn’t give him a look, even. He wasn’t used to getting the silent treatment from anyone, and he both wanted to curse the night he met you, but at the same time wanted to get to know you better. He just didn’t know which side of him was winning.

/ Next Chapter > 

Only Mine: @albinotigerpython​ @brownlee-22​ @yennewolf @heywess @bitchwhytho​ @thegirlwhowritesfics​ @eteramfools​ @blonddnamedhandz​ @everything-is-awesomesauce​ @justlovelifeblog​ @scuzmunkie​ @rohaintahquil​ @d-jall​ @cap-just-said-language​ @readermia​ @chubby-dumplin​ @slcvely

Bucky Taglist

@this-kitten-is-smitten​ @sebbbystaaan​ @paradisiacalsparks​ @crazybutconfidentaf​ @owlyannah​ @lassini​

Marvel Taglist

@waiting4inspiration​ @voltage-my2dlove​ @kneel-begyourpardon​

Forever Tag:

@eileenalone​ @sasbb23​ @p8tn0lish​ @coffeebooksandfandom​

If you’d like to be tagged comment/message/send an ask. If you like the story, please reblog :) any comments are appreciated, even the critical ones. Always a space to get better, so let me know what you guys think.

If your name is crossed out, Tumblr won’t let me tag you, I’m sorry! x

[retroateez]

Prophecy - Chapter Fifteen

remember when i said chapter 14 would be the last of the year? i lied ;) think of this as an end of year gift from me to you, as a thank you for all the support and love you’ve all been giving my silly little story. - hades x

words; 3827

prophecy masterlist

tag list; @hewwo-from-the-other-side

"You want me to teach you magic?" Yunho splutters over the counter, his jaw dropped as he stares at you in disbelief.

You nod.

"Well, little lady, I'm afraid I cannot help you."

Your confident demeanor falls, your posture slouching and curved mouth pointing into a frown.

"What?" you demand. "Why not?"

Yunho sighs and after a moment of hesitation, leaves the counter and steps through a doorway that leads to the back of the shop, motioning you with a scar-littered hand to follow him.

You heave up the wooden slab that allows you access behind the counter and follow Yunho's quick pace. The blonde apothecary leads you down a set of worn, stone stairs, and you find yourself in a dingy, cold basement.

The basement is scarcely lit, with a couple of iron brackets mounted on the wall, each baring a lit torch that radiates a flickering, orange light throughout the room. Yunho's giant shadow dances on the wall, and suddenly he becomes the opposite of the bubbly apothecary you knew before.

A workbench is pressed up against the left wall, bundles of chamomile flowers and small piles of marshmallow root thrown chaotically across the surface. The wooden chair is shoved carelessly to the side, and you can see on the chair legs how worn and damaged they are from scraping across the cobblestone floor. On the opposite wall, are tall, oak shelves similar to the ones upstairs in the shop. Packages of twine and string and burlap sacks and rolls of parchments are scattered messily upon each shelf, almost as if Yunho had unpacked his things in a rush.

You stop walking abruptly, as Yunho bends down and fumbles underneath the workbench. You watch as he slides his slender fingers on the underside of the wooden table, squinting his eyes and poking his tongue out as he searches what he's looking for.

"There we go." He mumbles lowly, just as you hear a click and he stands up straight.

You almost jump out of your skin, at the sound of loud rattling, clanking, and finally the ear-splitting screech of wood raking against stone. It's only when the cacophany of noises stop that you realise that the shelf, is not a shelf at all.

The entire back panel of the shelf is gone, as are the contents that lay upon it.

Instead, there are more steps, which lead down into an impossibly darker room.

"Go on." Yunho points to the new entrance, indicating for you to go down the steps.

"Are you perhaps short of a marble?" You scoff. "Go down there and let you kill me? I don't think so."

"If I wanted to kill you, I would've done it a long time ago." A darkness clouds over his eyes and you swallow thickly. "Now go."

This time you decide to listen to him, and you take a hesitant step downwards.

The walls are damp, with trails of moss coating the steps and buried inside the cracks of the stone. You take it slow, not wanting to slip and let your guard down in case Yunho changes his mind and does decide to kill you.

"What are you waiting for?" His impatient voice comes from behind you. "Do you really think I would hurt you?" There's a twinge of pain as he speaks, and you feel slightly guilty for even thinking sweet, innocent, doctor Yunho would be capable of something like that.

Once you're down the stairs, you squint to try and make out the shapes in the unlit room. You spot something circular on the floor, but you can't make out what it is. It's too dark to see, but the smell of dust and ancient damp invades your nostrils. Yunho hasn't been down here in a very long time.

There's a snapping sound from behind you, and the torches in the room suddenly light themselves.

Despite the light, the room is still eerily dark. You can barely make out the furniture in the room. There's what appears to be a desk, covered in cobwebs but still much tidier and more organised than the one in the basement. There's a (real) shelf too, full to the brim with thick, leather-bound books which, if you squint hard enough, you notice have holes chewed out of the spine. Lastly, upon the ground and painted sloppily in white, is a five pointed star within a circle.

"Yunho?" You whisper. "What is all this?"

He ignores you and paces over to the table. With his sleeve, he sweeps away the dust, and picks up a worn, tattered notebook. Yunho hands you the book, and you read the cover, confused.

"Laredia Academy of Magic?" you read. "You're a mage?"

"I was a mage." he corrects you.

"How do you just stop being a mage? Just unlearn all the magic?" you joke.

"No." Yunho's face is deadly serious, and your smile falters and your blood runs cold. "I was cast out, and my mage rites were revoked."

You stand awkwardly in silence, biting your lip and finding sudden interest at the dirt scuffs on the tips of Yunho's black boots.

"Yeosang and I went to the same magic academy," He explains. "In Laredia, just north of the Seventeen kingdom. He was in the class above me, because he's older, but every single student knew about Yeosang."

Yunho grabs a chair from the darkest corner of the room and sits down on it, pointing behind you at another chair you hadn't noticed. Once you sit down, he continues.

"I always wanted to be a mage. It was my absolute dream, and I knew that basically anybody can do the most basic spell, so I trained hard every single day before I was even old enough to apply to an academy. Hundreds upon thousands of wishful mages and sorceresses are turned away from academies because they lack true magical talent. Luckily, I passed the entrance exam and the initiation tests, and I got in.

"The professors said I was a natural, that I had magical skills they hadn't witnessed in centuries. I was only four months into my first year at Laredia before they moved me up a class. And that was where I met Yeosang.

"We butted heads at first," Yunho chuckles fondly, remembering all the fights he and his elder got into all those years ago. Reminising the scars and spell marks scattered across his body. "We were both exceptionally good at magic, I would argue Yeosang was better than I. I would never have admitted that in my youth, but he was much more controlled, sensible with his talent than I was.

"Everything was a competition between 'Sang and I. Theory exams, practical classes, potions and herbology. Anything you could study there, we always strived to be the best. Eventually we became both good friends and rivals... It was fun and games for a few years, you know? I think at one point we were almost as close as brothers..."

Yunho begins to trail off, a sad look filling his walnut eyes as they glitter in the flickering light.

"Did something happen?" you whisper softly. He nods slowly.

"I...I pushed it too far in our last year. That was the year the academy would prepare you for mage work, I was to be sent out to the kingdom of Streyden in the east, and become King Chan's magical advisor. Yeosang was on track to be a professor at Laredia himself, and he was, for quite a while.

"Yeosang possessed so much more than I did when it was time to graduate. He was better at spell-casting, he was absolutely phenomenal at herb identifying - ironic now given I run an apothecary actually- but there was nothing Yeosang could be bested at, and it drove me utterly insane. It evolved into more than a friendly rivalry, more than just healthy competition. It became an obsession, nd so I went out searching for what my heart yearned for the most; more power.

"I found it quickly, too. I was directed to an elven clan that resided deep in the southern forest, under the impression they were gifted in regular magic, and they could teach me any spell I desired. So of course, I went. I was young, stupid and incredibly naive to believe it would've worked. And foolish to think that I could've gotten away with it."

Yunho sighs deeply, leaning his elbows on his knees and hanging his head between his legs. He rubs his hands over his face roughly, and your gut tells you Yunho's story isn't about to get any better. You watch him, and you try to take in everything he just told you. You knew that Yeosang and Yunho had been friends for a long time, but you had no idea they went back this far.

"The elves were agents of the arcane arts alright," Yunho spits bitterly out of the blue, causing you to jump in your seat a little. "Their dark magic consumed me entirely, contaminated my soul and tainted every fibre of my being. I knew I was ruined the moment I agreed to train under them. I was... so aware that everything they were teaching me was so wrong. Yet it was everything I had dreamed of, and more than anything I knew it would allow me to beat Yeosang.

"This elf clan had roots in the fire elementals, so they all were wickedly powerful pyromancers. They taught me almost everything they knew, and I couldn't believe how tame the magic at the academy was. I trained in dark magic with the elves for months, until our final practical exam came around.

"We had to duel with another member of our class, I can't remember the name of the boy who had the misfortune of being paired with me, seung- or seong- or something like that. I was absolutely positive I would win, but he was fast. Too fast. I wouldn't be surprised if the idiot had sought out the same thing I had."

Yunho pauses somberly, his broad, built shoulders drooping where he sat, and his face moulding into a sad, distant frown.

"Everytime I close my eyes, all I see are flashes of fire." Yunho whispers, staring at the floor. "I remember the feeling, but not much else. I- I can recall quite literally exploding into flames... It's like a bubbling cauldron, and it just keeps boiling and boiling until it gets so hot it bursts. And It felt like burning lava was pouring out of every single pore and hair follicle in my body."

The apothecary nibbles his bottom lip, shaking his head bitterly at the ground beneath his feet.

"It was so painful. I've broken countless bones, been on the recieving end of spells cast by the most powerful of mages, and yet I have never experienced pain like it.

"I can't believe I even have the gall to say it hurt." Yunho scoffs. "I can't even begin to imagine how much pain my duel partner was in.

"The academy realised straight away that it was dark magic. I hadn't fooled anyone in the slightest. The explosion had set the entire courtyard alight, all the trees, the furniture outside, even a couple of the students themselves, everything within a short radius of me. It was a tornado of flames, swirling round and round and I could easily have killed everybody that was there. The professors were on high alert though, they had to be during student duels. They rounded up the other students, and teleported themselves to safety in seconds.

"Everyone except for me, of course. They must have decided that my punishment for dabbling in the dark arts was death, and so they left me there to burn alive. Students weren't taught how to teleport at that point either, so I could do nothing except sit and watch the flames eating away at my skin."

"You're still alive... obviously." You chime in. "How'd you get out?"

"Yeosang." He replies simply.

He tells you how Yeosang fought and argued with the professors of the academy to forgive Yunho and let him live, almost getting himself expelled and his teaching job revoked. He explains how the professors refused to help Yunho, and how Yeosang risked his own life to save him.

"He spent weeks healing my burns, keeping me hidden away in his dorm room." Yunho breathes. "He nearly got kicked out too, but the academy knew he was too good of an asset to let go. I told him he was a fool to help me while risking so much in the process, but he's a good man. Despite all the competitions and tension between us, he's always been a good friend."

You nod solemnly in agreement. Even from the first moment you had met the platinum haired mage, you knew he possessed a generous soul. From saving you after the storm, housing, clothing and feeding you, teaching you to help heal people and allowing you to earn real, official qualifications, getting caught up in the prophecy mess you had caused and not complaining about it once. Yeosang had done so much for you, and yet here you are, repaying him by sneaking around and doing the one thing he refused to help you with.

Guilt squirms around in your stomach and latches on to your flesh with it's poisonous claws,  puncturing your organs and pumping your insides full of toxins. It meanders its way through your body until it infects your bloodstream, flowing through every limb and vein until it hits your brain and starts to fog your senses and stain your conscience.

You have to keep telling yourself it's for a good reason; learning magic will help you in the long run, you just know it. It's just a shame that Yeosang doesn't understand that.

"You said Yeosang was a teacher at the academy, right?" You blurt.

Yunho nods. "Yes, for a few years."

"Then why does he refuse to teach me if he's literally qualified to do so?"

"He hasn't told you about what happened while he was a teacher, has he?"

You shake your head.

"It's not my place to tell you, Iris. Yeosang would kill me if I did." Yunho stands up with a grunt, brushing his knees off with the palms of his hands. "He'd also kill me if I taught you any magic behind his back, and I owe my life to him. So, I will not be teaching you any magic either."

"What?! Hold on!" You jump up in protest, glaring angrily at the giant man before you. "That's not fair! What was all that about then? If you were just going to say no?!"

Yunho grabs you by the shoulders, abruptly stopping your rage fueled ranting.

"Because I wanted you to know how thirst for power, particularly magic, can be incredibly dangerous."

"Well, I'm not as foolish as you." You snap aggressively, not noticing the twinge of hurt written on Yunho's face.

"You may well be right. But I still won't be helping you."

"Fine." You shrug, giving up. "Fine. Thanks for your time anyway, Yunho."

He bows politely to you, lifting up an arm and motioning to the steps for you to leave. Wrapping your arms tightly around you, you hurry up the stairs of both the secret room and the basement, until you're at the front door of the shop.

Yunho resumes his signature position of elbows on the counter, leaning forward, cheeky grin and puppy dog eyes shining brightly.

"Just... be wary, Iris. You can't trust everyone in this world."

You smile shortly, offering only a curt nod before you grab the handle of the door.

"Thanks, Yunho. See you around."

"Farewell, little lady."

The bell tinkles above you when you gently pull the door open, and chimes again as it closes after you slip your way out. You walk back to the castle at a brisk pace, keeping to yourself and keeping your gaze fixed on the ground.

Only when you feel safe enough, do you untangle your arms from around your torso, glancing down at the thick, leather-bound book you smuggled underneath your sleeves. Wiping the remaining dust off the cover, you read the bold, imprinted words;

LAREDIA ACADEMY OF MAGIC.

"Once a thief, always a thief" You grin proudly.

-----

You figured the best place to hide your stolen goods was in plain sight, which is why you are skimming the library shelves for the smartest hiding spot. You find a pile of books hidden away in the corner which didn't look too dusty, thinking that if there were to be completely dust-free books in the neglected library, it would look too suspicious. You slide Yunho's book at the bottom of the pile, making a mental note to come back later and properly skim through it.

"Where have you been?" Yeosang demands when you casually stroll into his workspace.

Hongjoong had given Yeosang and Wooyoung a study to work in, after his own had become a mess and entirely overwhelmed with parchments and hand-drawn diagrams. You throw yourself comfortably onto the bench opposite his desk.

"Just in the gardens," you reply coolly. "Hanging out."

"Is that so? How come I couldn't find you there then?" Wooyoung's voice comes sharply from the doorway, where he stands with his arms folded, leaning against the door frame as he looks at you with a deep frown.

"Maybe you just didn't look hard enough." You shrug.

The elf says nothing, but you can feel his gaze burning into the back of your head.

Yeosang ignores you both, too absorbed in studying the papers before him to listen to you and Wooyoung squabble.

"Still no monster?" you ask.

Yeosang shakes his head. "I was certain we would find one," he sighs. "But there's been no sighting of any sea monsters or creatures in decades."

"The ball is in two days," Yeosang continues. "Hongjoong expects something significant from us before then but we have nothing to offer him. He had patrols out investigating anybody remotely suspicious, I heard the guards interrupted a group of drunk dwarves playing cards... they were not impressed. But there hasn't been anyone new in the city or any of the villages in the kingdom. Nothing."

"If it's destiny, then maybe us looking for them is the problem. What if we just wait for them to come to us?" You suggest.

"Then what if destiny says we have to chase them down?" Yeosang counters with a stressed hand through his hair. "Either way, we're stuck."

Wooyoung crosses the room to peer over the diagrams for what must be the thousandth time in the last two weeks. He and Yeosang mutter lowly to each other as they read, pointing and drawings and shuffling through papers. You can only sit with your head hung low, staring miserably at the floor as the feeling of uselessness settles in your bones.

You're so tired of offering nothing. Of being no help to anyone. All people do is look after you while you wander around getting in people's way.

Suddenly, you're on your feet, and you're striding through the hallways to the library you've become so familiar with. You heave the doors open and hurry over to Yunho's book that you hid only mere hours ago, stuffing it under your shirt and creeping out of the library, and down the steps.

You refuse to rely on others. You refuse to have other people look after you. You refuse to be a liability. It's time to start fending for yourself, starting from now.

You locate the somewhat hidden door you took out of the castle earlier, and instead of turning out the door, you carry on down the hallway.

Eventually, the hallway leads to a large, empty room made entirely of cobblestone. Perfect for practicing magic. You found the torch you had used before, and lit it with a match you had forgotten about in your pocket. Once lit, you set the torch in a wall bracket and kneel down on the floor underneath it.

Rustling underneath your shirt, Yunho's book falls onto the ground with a dull thump, which bounces loudly off the walls. You hold your breath, panicked, but luckily nobody comes. Opening the first few pages, you read over Yunho's messy scrawl, taking in the drawings of hand positions and words in a language you don't understand.

You flick through more and more faded pages until you come across one that catches your eye. You look at Yunho's drawing, trying to match your own hand to the one on the page. You stick your right hand out flat, fingers together, and palm facing upwards. Then, you pull your four fingers back so the fingertips are pressed against your palm. Keeping your fingers in place, you rotate your hand so the back of your hand is now facing upwards, and rapidly flick your fingers out in front of you, presumably where the receiving end of the spell would be.

You repeat the motion over and over again, gradually building speed so after a while, your actions are fluid and less clunky. Next, is the hard part; learning the spell.

"Feainn ichaer?" You whisper, reading from the page. "What on earth does that mean? What language is that?"

Maybe exploring the library for some language books would be a good idea, you think.

But for now, you say the phrase aloud over and over again, not even knowing if you're doing it right but acting as if you're fluent in whichever language this is.

Once you feel like you've got it more or less right, you decide it's time to pair the speech and hand movements together.

Nervousness takes you by surprise then, and you have to readjust your kneeling position on the ground three times before you're ready. Taking a deep breath, you stretch your hand out like before, and you can feel the words on your tongue.

You feel it then; a rushing sensation in your stomach, burrowing past your organs and hurling itself up towards your lungs. It burns slightly as it travels, almost in the same way that hot milk burns as you swallow it, except instead of going down, this is coming up, flying past your lungs and sliding up your throat and crawling through the gaps between your teeth.

"Feainn," you pull your fingers back, and turn your hand over, the burning feeling spreading down to the tips of your toes and the tips of your ears, and you're convinced you can smell smoke. You close your eyes to focus on the spell, ignoring the sting of the fire licking at your veins and the boiling of your blood inside your veins, ignoring the loud thumping ricocheting around your eardrums, and ignoring the way your entire body begins to vibrate and ignoring the way it feels like you're about to explode at any moment. "Icha-"

"What are you doing?"

Your eyes snap open.

i just wanted to note that the language used here is elder speech from the witcher 3: wild hunt. i did not make it up myself, and it does not belong to me! just a note to cover my own back lmao.. thanks for reading!

[aliciameade]

It’s Nice to Have a Friend (3/7)

Author: aliciameade Rating: T Pairing: Beca/Chloe Summary: Beca still remembers the first time she met Chloe Beale. It was in the office of Eisenhower High School on her first day, not just as a freshman but in the city’s school system. She was the quintessential New Kid In Town and Chloe, the Senior Class President was the new kid's first-day chaperone. Taylor Swift Album Inspiration: Speak Now (2010)

p.s. They are short bites of chapters. It's a mini-anthology. xo

Also on AO3

~ - ~ - ~ - ~ - ~ - ~ - ~ - ~ - ~ - ~ - ~

Beca had never been on a date before. She didn’t even know that’s what was happening when Chloe had asked her between classes if she’d like to go see Enchanted on Friday until she’d accepted and Chloe had said, “Great! It’s a date!” and kissed her cheek.

She’d spent the entirety of the evening, the following Thursday, and that Friday panicking about what she was supposed to wear, say, or do while also questioning whether Chloe meant it was a date-date or just that they had scheduled something to occur on a specific date.

When Chloe picked her up and actually came to the front door to ring the doorbell instead of texting Beca from her car looking especially pretty, she was pretty sure it was a date-date.

When Chloe bought the tickets and popcorn and then held her hand at the movie, she was even more sure.

And when Chloe kissed her on the lips in front of her house after walking her to the door at the end of the evening, she was no longer uncertain.

It was Beca’s first kiss and she had no idea what she was doing. She just pursed her lips and hoped it was okay. It must have been because Chloe had smiled when she pulled back and told Beca she’d had a really nice evening with her.

Beca experienced a lot of firsts after that night.

Her first heated make-out session on the couch in Chloe’s basement. She’d never felt that way before. Every part of her felt like it was lit up and on fire and then Chloe had asked Beca to be her girlfriend. Beca had never been anyone’s girlfriend. She’d nodded and said she hoped she wouldn’t suck at it and went back to kissing her new girlfriend.

Her first hickey that she tried and failed to hide and ended up having a long and horribly embarrassing conversation with her mother about sex and pregnancy until she blurted out that it was from a girl.

Her first forbidden relationship—not because Chloe was a girl but because Chloe was 17 and her mom said Beca was too young for her. She remembers sneaking out once her mom fell asleep on the couch on an unseasonably warm and humid spring night, creeping through the back yard and its gate to meet up with a giggly Chloe waiting for her. She’d snagged Beca’s hand and they’d run to the park down the street to climb to the top of the slide and sit together.

They’d kissed and talked and Chloe told her she got accepted by a university in Georgia. She’d be moving, in a cruel irony, to Beca’s hometown of Atlanta at the end of summer. 

Beca had tried to be happy for her but she knew what it meant. It meant Chloe was leaving. Chloe had clicked into her life like a missing piece so seamlessly she could already feel herself falling apart at the very thought that Chloe would be gone after the summer.

It was fitting that it started to rain as they walked back to Beca’s house. It was well past 2:00 AM when Chloe kissed her on the sidewalk in front of her house in the pouring rain. It had felt a lot like a goodbye.

The real goodbye came in August. They broke up. Beca’s not really sure who did it; it felt mutual, necessary, and inevitable. It was her first relationship, but she knew enough to understand a soon-to-be 16-year-old and a college freshman with hundreds of miles between them wasn’t sustainable.

Chloe had also turned 18. It seemed arbitrary, that one day their relationship was fine and the next, it was illegal.

Not that they were having sex. That was a first that they hadn’t gotten to. Beca wasn’t ready and Chloe had respected that. She’d thought about it, though. She’d even Googled and read about the age of consent and something about a Romeo and Juliet law but its implications weren’t reassuring. She’d Googled a lot about how to have sex with a woman, too. A lot.

“You won’t forget about me?” Beca had asked through her tears.

“How could I?” Chloe had replied through tears of her own and Beca remembers never being held so tightly in her life up to that point.

She couldn’t believe they’d had their last kiss. They hadn’t shared nearly enough of them to never share one again.

Beca didn’t date anyone else in high school. And not for lack of suitors; dating Chloe—the Senior Class President, the varsity football cheerleader, the captain of the fast-pitch softball team—had catapulted her to the top tier popular kids at Eisenhower High. But everyone else in school was boring. Bland. She didn’t see sparks fly when she looked at them the way they flew when she first saw Chloe.

Even when they started to lose touch she didn’t want to date someone new. She missed Chloe and the way she could make Beca feel so happy without even trying. Just a wink or a smile and Beca’s stomach would fill with butterflies. No one else made her feel that way. She hated that they were drifting apart, but Beca had no means to travel to visit Chloe, and Chloe was busy with school and some singing group she’d joined, and when she came home that first summer, things weren’t the same.

They felt off.

Chloe was seeing someone she’d met in Atlanta.

Beca started finding excuses to not spend time with Chloe when she was home visiting her family. It hurt too much to be around her and know she now looked at someone else the way she used to look at Beca. 

By the time Beca graduated from Eisenhower, they hadn’t even exchanged texts—other than Chloe wishing Beca a Happy Birthday—since Christmas. It was easier that way. She assumed it was easier for Chloe, too. Better to focus on her third year of college. On the nerdy singing group she was in. On her boyfriend or girlfriend or whoever she was seeing at any given time.

It made it easier to pretend Beca had forgotten about Chloe.

It made it easier to pretend Beca didn’t decide to apply to Barden University in the middle of the night the day before its application deadline despite being offered early admission to Berklee in Boston. It might be the top school in the country for what she wanted to do with her life, but Boston is just so far away from her mom in Florida. Wouldn’t it be better if she stayed closer to home? And her dad having tenure with Barden meant she got a free ride when she was going to come out of Berklee six figures in debt. And all her old friends were there. And Barden has a decent music program, right?

It made it easier to pretend Beca didn’t enroll at Barden University to be closer to Chloe.

~ - ~ - ~ - ~ - ~ - ~ - ~ - ~ - ~ - ~ - ~

To be continued

[artificialqueens]

Hold Me Tighter (Even Closer) Chapter 7 (Branjie, Jankie) - Joley

Chapter Summary: Tensions suddenly come to a head between Jan and Jackie, leading the two of them to handle the fallout in very different ways.

ao3 link

When Brooke Lynn walked into her classroom and saw Jackie already there, pacing back and forth, worry was her obvious, immediate reaction. “Penny for your thoughts?” she asked after clearing her throat to get her attention.

Jackie managed to stand still and lean against Brooke’s desk to catch her breath. “Have you seen Jan’s instagram story?”

“No,” she answered as she sat down at her desk, “because on principle I tend to avoid my students’ social media. Why?”

“Oh, so that’s where you draw the line?” she scoffed as she got her phone out and opened the app. “Here, look.”

Brooke took Jackie’s phone from her and opened Jan’s story. From what she could see, Jan had gone out the previous Saturday with some of her Heathers castmates – the girls playing the title characters, if she had to guess, considering each post was captioned with ‘#theheathers’. They were drinking and dancing, the whole thing appeared to be relatively innocuous. It was typical college girl behavior. “Okay… seems like a girls’ night out, what’s the issue?”

“Go to the next one.”

With a roll of her eyes, Brooke obliged. In the next story, the girls were dancing and grinding on each other to a techno beat. But then the camera zoomed in on Jan and Nicky sharing an innocent enough close-lipped peck, though Nicky’s hands were on Jan’s ass in a pointedly non-innocent manner. They shared another couple kisses, both of them giggling the whole time. “Is that it?” she asked as she handed the phone back to Jackie.

Jackie looked at her incredulously, mouth agape. “What do you mean ‘is that it’? Were we not watching the same clip?”

Brooke shrugged. “She went out with some friends, got drunk, and got handsy with one of them. I don’t see what the big deal is - she’s nineteen, this is how kids have fun.”

“So you would’ve been fine if it were Vanjie grinding and kissing on some pretty girl?”

“First of all,” she put a hand up to stop her, “Vanjie was already my girlfriend at this point, comparatively. Whereas Jan is a girl you’re fucking because you’re allergic to talking about how you feel about her. Second of all, we did have a run-in with jealousy, but that’s another story entirely,” Brooke answered. “But we wouldn’t have gotten past it if we didn’t know how to fucking communicate.”

Jackie looked down, feeling like a child being scolded, and sat at one of the student desks. “Will you tell me the jealousy story?” she asked, voice meek. She had always seen Brooke and Vanessa’s relationship as perfect, above reproach. Knowing that even they could have a bump in the road made her feel a bit better.

Brooke’s expression softened. “Sure. So, Vanj was doing this big dance competition, as was this other dancer from Julliard. And I mean this girl is all over her from day one, pissed me the hell off,” she recalled. She shook her head because looking back, the story felt a bit ridiculous to tell, but maybe that would help even more.

“Jump ahead to this Halloween party she throws and invites us to, and once again she’s all over my girl. But what got me was how Vanessa bought into it. I got pissed and left and she admitted she was only flirting with her because she liked the jealous, angry sex we had so much.”

“I don’t know what I expected,” Jackie admitted with the slightest hint of a laugh, “but it wasn’t that. How’d you guys get past it?”

“Vanessa made a very sweet, if not a bit corny gesture and it led to this romantic little reunion in the studio,” she concluded. “So, from there on out we made sure to talk about our feelings instead of leaving things up to chance by hoping we’ll guess what’s wrong with each other. See? Different situations entirely, but we didn’t solve it by avoiding tough conversations.”

Jackie groaned and hid her head on the desk. “I objectively know you’re right,” she conceded. “I’m gonna talk to her, I promise.”

Brooke gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze. “You got this,” she said with confidence as she stood up. “Now look alive, class starts in five.”

“I got this,” Jackie repeated to herself before focusing her energy towards shifting into ‘teacher mode’. It was always something that provided a good, if not necessary, distraction. When she was being a teacher, her personal life faded into the background. Even Jan turned into another student in the class, and God knows that was a weight lifted from her.

And class did go off without a hitch, especially since she spent most of it doing paperwork while Brooke led the class. Teacher mode gave her focus, tunnel vision. In fact, she hardly said a word until after Brooke dismissed the students. Then she did speak. “Hey, Jan, can you hang back for a bit?”

Jan seemed surprised but nodded quickly. “Go ahead, I’ll catch up,” she said to Gigi before turning back to Jackie. “What’s up?” she asked, not noticing that Brooke had quietly slipped out of the room along with her classmates.

It was then that Jackie realized she hadn’t planned out what she was going to say. Why hadn’t she spent some of those ninety minutes doing something more useful than grading texts? She was mad at herself and anxiety began bubbling up inside of her. Improvising it was. “I… um… saw that you uploaded some videos from Saturday onto your story last night…”

“Oh yeah, I went out with the Heathers. It was a cute place, great cocktails,” Jan chirped as casually as she would discuss the weather. To the untrained eye, it seemed like she was truly oblivious to what could’ve bothered Jackie about what she posted.

But Jackie knew better. She knew Jan was a talented actress, that she’d had since last night (or even since Saturday) to prepare an answer and that, for lack of a better phrase, she was trying to bullshit her. “Don’t get cute, Jan. You know what I’m talking about. What’s going on with you and Nicky?”

Jan tilted her head. “I never tagged her or told you her name, how did you know it?”

Fuck. Jackie could’ve kicked herself for that. Evidently, improv wasn’t her strong suit, and on top of that, she was a terrible liar, leaving her with no choice. “I happened to be by the auditorium during one of your rehearsals. You guys seem… close.”

“Maybe we are close,” Jan conceded. “I don’t see the problem, pretty sure I can get ‘close’ to whoever I want, right?”

She stiffened, clenching her jaw. “So you are fucking her?”

Jan clicked her tongue and scoffed. “No, I’m not. But who are you to get pissy at me about it? It’s not like I need to ask your permission to hook up with other people.”

“I’m not being pissy,” Jackie insisted, unable to avoid sounding defensive. “But if you want her, let me know. I’m not gonna waste my time.”

“Oh, so now what we’ve had is a ‘waste of time’ because I might be attracted to someone else too?” Jan snapped.

She groaned and pinched the bridge of her nose. “No, no that’s not what I mean. I don’t-”

“Please,” Jan put her hand up and waved her off. “You can’t have your cake and eat it too, Jackie,” she hissed, then turned on her heel, leaving before Jackie could respond.

The hall was silent except for her heels against the linoleum. As she rounded the corner and headed out of the building, she fished her phone out of her pocket and made a call. “Hey, are you busy? Good, I’m coming over, I’ll be there in ten.”

Jan couldn’t even remember the walk from the main building to the dorms. A rush of anger-fueled adrenaline propelled her forward – it was like she blinked and suddenly she was banging on Nicky’s door.

Nicky opened the door. “Hey, what’s going on? You sounded-” she was cut off by Jan kissing her hard, fisting her hand into her hair and pulling her close. She blinked in surprise when her mouth was freed. “Um… What is happening? Am I fucking you? Is that where this is going?”

“You’re so smart and perceptive, it’s so sexy,” she breathed out before reconnecting their lips, kicking the door shut behind her.

“You don’t have to sweet talk me, babygirl. I’ve been waiting for this.”

Jan let out a small sigh of relief as she backed onto Nicky’s bed, pulling the blonde down with her. She immediately resumed kissing her eagerly, sloppily. There was a tangle of limbs as their clothes were yanked off and tossed every which way, she couldn’t seem to get naked fast enough. “Don’t be gentle with me,” she breathed out, “I need it hard, need you to fuck me til I forget how to think or feel.”

Nicky paused, her lips curling into a smirk. “Hard, huh? I think I know just what to do.” She got up and rifled through her drawer until she pulled out a harness and the dildo that strapped onto it. “I’m gonna take good care of you,” she assured.

Jan’s eyes lit up and she laid back readily, propping her legs apart and arching her hips up when Nicky got herself in position. Her body trembled in anticipation as she watched Nicky slick up the silicone cock with lube. The waiting felt like torture as her desire built up faster than she could deal with and it culminated with a sharp moan when Nicky finally eased it in.

“Good girl,” she gently praised, giving her a moment to adjust – it was one of her bigger ones and she knew Jan would feel it. Once she was certain the girl under her was ready, she switched to a rough, fast thrusting pace. One hand was roughly pulling on Jan’s ponytail, the other carefully wrapping around her neck, applying just enough pressure to make her whimper and squirm. If Jan wanted it hard and rough, she was more than happy to oblige.

And Jan was even more certain this was exactly what she needed. As she moaned and writhed about, all she could focus on was how good it felt. The tinges of physical pain were arousing, and enough to distract from the emotional pain that was trying to linger. She needed Nicky to choke her, slap her, pull her hair, anything to keep her grounded solely in the moment. “Yes, fuck, please don’t stop,” she begged.

Not that Nicky was planning on it. Her hips snapped forward with each thrust, the sound of skin smacking together filling the room, only to be drowned out by Jan’s moans when she hit her orgasm. “That’s it, come for me,” she encouraged, fucking her through it until she was certain Jan was completely spent. She looked down at the brunette as she pulled out, pleased with how utterly wrecked she looked.

“Fuck…” Jan panted breathlessly, laying flat on the bed and letting her eyes shut for a moment. Even with her eyes closed, she was seeing stars. “Thanks, Nicky. You have no idea how badly I needed that.”

“You don’t wanna talk about it, do you?” Nicky teased after she cleaned up and got under the covers with her.

Jan shook her head, then hid her face in the crook of Nicky’s neck. The last thing she wanted was to think about what sparked her urge to come here in the first place. “I don’t even want to think about it. Can we just… take a nap?”

“Perfect idea,” she yawned as her eyes closed.

The two of them slept in silence for about an hour, with Jan being the first to wake up. For a moment, everything was warm and peaceful, she didn’t feel anything but comfort and bliss.

Slowly but surely, however, the negative feelings of hurt, anger, and spite slipped back in and led her to grab her phone off of Nicky’s nightstand. She had to do something to make herself feel better. “The lighting is so good right now, we should take a selfie.”

Nicky yawned and rubbed her eyes. “Fine, but only post it if we look cute,” she warned before posing so Jan could take pictures. She then watched over Jan’s shoulder as she uploaded one to her instagram story. “Wow, who are you trying to give jealousy with that one?”

“Is it that obvious?” asked Jan, blushing.

“A little bit,” Nicky giggled. “But I don’t mind, if you’re going to use anyone for that, I’m a great choice.” She laid back down and got her own phone out to share it to her story. “Do you think it’ll work?”

She shrugged. “Maybe.”

——

Brooke sighed as she looked at her phone for what had easily been the tenth time since she left the apartment. “Still no answer, but I just know she’s at home. She has to be.”

Vanessa nodded as they walked. “In the whole time we known her, she never ignores your texts, definitely not your calls. That picture got her all sorts of fucked up.”

Normally, Brooke adhered to her own set of rules to a T, but she had to break them when she sensed something was wrong with Jackie. And sure enough, when she checked Jan’s story (from Vanessa’s account), everything made sense. That was what had them rushing to her apartment, despite it rapidly approaching the middle of the night.

“She ain’t gonna get mad about you using the ‘emergency only’ key, is she?” Vanessa asked as she watched her wife rifle through her purse.

“I would consider this an emergency,” she defended as she unlocked the door and let them in. “Wait here, I’m gonna poke my head into her room and assess the situation.”

Vanessa waited patiently, arching her brow when Brooke returned. “What’s the tea?”

Brooke had a concerned, unnerved expression on her face like she was still processing what she had just walked in on. “We have a code gray.”

She furrowed her brows. “Jackie’s a violent hospital patient?”

“What? No. Also, how do you know that? Nevermind,” Brooke shook her head as she tried to stay on task. “She’s code gray as in Conan Gray, come look,” she explained before quietly leading Vanessa to the partially opened door.

Jackie was sitting on the floor against the side of her bed. She was wearing a purple letterman jacket that Brooke and Vanessa could ascertain was accidentally left there by Jan. ‘Heather’ by Conan Gray was playing, most likely having been on loop for God knows how long.

Vanessa realized how bad this was, and looked up at Brooke, waiting for instruction as to where to go from there.

Brooke decided to take the lead, carefully walking into the room with her wife following. “You okay, Jackie?” she asked gently.

“I ruined everything,” Jackie replied in a broken whisper. “I couldn’t deal with how I feel about her and I pushed her into a French actresses’ bed.” She laid down on the floor and sighed. “I can’t believe I fucked in this badly.”

Brooke and Vanessa propped Jackie back up, both wrapping an arm around her. “Hey, don’t talk like that. This is just a bump in the road, it’s not over yet,” Brooke assured.

“How can you be so sure of that?” Jackie sniffled.

“I just know.”

“That’s not as reassuring as you think it is.”

Vanessa decided to chime in. “Ain’t it obvious what you gotta do?” She received blank stares from both Jackie and Brooke. “Jan just wants to know you’re all in with her. She’s clearly just using blondie over there to make you jealous… We’ve all been there.”

“Speak for yourself,” Brooke retorted playfully.

She rolled her eyes at her wife. “What I’m sayin’ is she wanted to get under your skin and it worked. Maybe too well, but she got what she wanted. Now you just gotta tell her how you really feel, how bad you want her.”

Jackie hesitated, fiddling with the sleeves of the jacket. “Easy for you to say. I can’t just do big romantic declarations… I overthink way too much for that.”

“Well, that’s where we’re here to help,” Vanessa chirped brightly. “Under-thinking is my specialty.”

“Do you think you’re ready to try?” Brooke asked gently.

Jackie chewed on her lip and looked down. “I just… I’m scared,” she confessed.

The girls nodded in understanding – neither of them could blame Jackie for her fear and apprehension. Both of them knew what it was like to have someone you’d risk everything for while having a terrible fear of the potential fallout. They knew how fortunate they were to have so clearly had mutual feelings from the beginning, but they hadn’t been free from a rocky start. And they had faith in Jan and Jackie, while neither could explain it, they had to see it through.

“It’s okay to be scared,” Brooke assured. “So, we’re gonna get you through this.”

“Will you guys spend the night?” Jackie asked after a few beats of silence, long enough for her to be sure she wouldn’t start crying. “It’s getting kind of depressing, and drinking alone would be the thing to push it over the edge.”

“You had us at drinking,” Vanessa joked, pleased to see it got a smile out of Jackie. “Don’t worry, we ain’t going nowhere.”

[trashmouth-tozier89]

Welcome to the Loser’s Club Asshole! - Ch. 1 | T H R E E

Warnings: swearing, sexual innuendos (i mean, this is richie we’re talking about), a little angst?

Word Count: 3,418

Pairing: Richie Tozier x Reader, Platonic!Stanley Uris x Reader

A/N - third chapter of the series... a lot of this one is my interpretation of the story, and scenes I’ve created myself but it’s very easy to understand where it stands in the story! and we have finally met beverly... i’m not too certain on what her relationship with y/n is going to be just yet but i’m figuring it out as i go along

If you wish to be added to the taglist, send in an ask or pop it in the comments! :)

Welcome to the Loser’s Club, Asshole! Masterlist

“I think it’s great that we’re helping the new kid, but we also need to think of our own safety. I mean he’s bleeding all over and you guys know there’s an AIDs epidemic happening right now as we speak, right?” Eddie mumbled, as the kids rode through the woods and back to town in hopes of helping the injured boy. Nobody was really listening to the rants of the germaphobe, apart from Y/N, who seemed curious in what the boy had to say about AIDs. Whether she was just entertaining the idea for Eddie’s sake or actually interested, the other boys couldn’t tell, but it didn’t matter because they knew the boy would rattle on anyway.

“I thought you could only get AIDs from having sex?” Y/N questioned to Eddie.

“Nope; my mom’s friend in New York City got it by touching a dirty pole on the subway. A drop of AIDs blood got into his system through a hangnail. Through a hangnail!” The boy exclaimed, beginning to freak out. As the group cycled around the corner of an alleyway, finally finding somewhere to stop and let the boy rest, Eddie was still going at it; “A-and you can amputate legs and arms, but how do you amputate a wai-? How do you amputate a waist? You guys do know that alleys are known for having dirty needles that have AIDs, right? You guys do know that?”

“Eddie, he is going to be fine. We are not going to have to amputate his waist, we are not going to catch AIDs, and he is certainly not going to die” Y/N comforted the agitated boy, placing both her hands on his shoulder to steady his breathing. He dropped his bike to the ground, took a large breath in before nodding slowly; he found it a little weird how easily she relaxed him. And evidently, so did the other boys as they stared at her in disbelief.

“Richie, wait here. Come on” Bill instructed, walking off to go towards the pharmacy which was thankfully just around the corner. Eddie and Stan followed suit, walking in the same direction, but Y/N stayed where she was. She didn’t really want to leave the boys side, just in case something bad did happen. She knew Richie wouldn’t be the best to cope with a situation like that by himself. Bill noticed how she hadn’t moved; “Y/N, are you coming?”

“I-I think I’ll stay here with Richie if that’s okay?” she explained, watching the boy nod his head before pacing off again. Once she, Richie and the boy were alone, there was an awkward tension in the air: Richie was afraid to say anything to Y/N, Y/N felt awkward talking to either of them, and the injured boy found it a little painful to talk. Y/N couldn’t really explain why it was weird to talk to Richie, but every time she tried to even look at the boy, she felt a small fluttery feeling in the pit of her stomach; it wasn’t necessarily unpleasant, but she didn’t like it, because she didn’t know what it was.

“Glad I got to meet you before you died” Richie said, looking in the direction of the wounded teen, which simply looked at him in confusion. The boy shifted around on the wooden crate he had been sat down on, and let out a loud wince of pain when he accidently scraped the wound on his stomach; both Y/N and Richie jumped at the sound, and Y/N looked at him in concern.

“Are you okay?” Y/N asked, watching him nod, but it was in no way believable. The girl approached him slowly, considering he was still in a small state of shock; “C-can I take a look at it? Just to make sure i-it’s not infected or anything, you know.”

She watched as his eyes drifted around; the boy felt very self-conscious about his body, and though he didn’t show it most of the time, he didn’t always feel comfortable. She could tell something was troubling him, it was like a sixth sense of hers, so she whispered so only the two of them could hear; “I won’t judge you, I promise.”

He grinned widely, nodding. She lifted the shirt up to his chest, letting her get a whole view of the gash across his stomach in the shape of an H; she would’ve asked if it was Henry who had done this to him, but she didn’t want to make him think about such things at this time, she was supposed to be relaxing him. As she went to press around the cut, she decided it was best to distract him from any pain it may be causing him; “I’m Y/N, and this is Richie. You’re Ben, right? We have home ec class together, but you probably didn’t notice me because I’m pretty new, I sit right at the back of the class.”

“So you’re the other new kid? I was wondering when I’d get to meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you” he answered back through a mumble, half because of the pain but half because the slight embarrassment.

“All bad, I guess. I’ve heard all the rumours that have been spread around school about me. It’s stupid really, I mean, the rumours spread as quickly as I bet Greta Keene can spread her STD’s” Y/N chuckles, but when she notices the other two aren’t laughing along, she realises her joke was rather crude. “I’m kidding; Greta doesn’t have any STD’s. Well, I wouldn’t know, but it-it was just a joke”

The boy’s face falls in relief, and Y/N is glad she hadn’t scared Ben off quite yet, and the two carried on their conversation while she checked him out. However, Richie still stood behind her body in shock at what he had just heard. No one in the group would ever dare make a joke like that, apart from Richie himself. He didn’t understand how he and she could be so alike, and he hated the fact that she was being so friendly with Ben. Not that it was a bad thing, Y/N was very obviously a caring and affectionate person to everyone she met, but there was something about the way Ben smiled at her like she was the love of his life that he didn’t like. He couldn’t understand why though, and it was really beginning to get on his nerves. Since when was I such a sap, he thought, get it together Rich. Thankfully, before Richie had to watch them practically snog each other, Eddie and the boys had returned with what looked like half the store.

***

“Just suck the wound!”

“I need to focus right now” Eddie complained, the boy with glasses getting on his nerves; regardless of his AIDs-passing-through-blood rant earlier, Eddie has found himself upfront treating the boy, who they were now able to call Ben, considering he was the only one with any form of useful medical knowledge. Richie, however, was making it more of a difficult job than need be, irritating the smaller boy every second that went by.

“You need to focus?” Richie questioned

“Yeah, can you go get me something?” Eddie answered back, realising the thing he needed was in the second fanny pack

“Jesus! What do you need?” He sounded rather serious, but that was only because Ben’s injury was rather severe. Oh, and Y/N was clearly worrying about it; making jokes would only make her more annoyed at Richie, and that was the last thing he wanted to do.

“Go get my bi-focals. I hid ‘em in my second fanny pack”

“Why do you have two fanny packs?” Stanley chipped into the conversation, him and Richie sharing a look. The answer was obvious to Eddie; he had one, but then that got full so he needed a second. The answer would’ve been obvious to any germaphobe, but nobody else was a germaphobe.

“I need to focus right now and it’s a long story. I don’t want to get into it-“ Eddie explained, trying to keep his full focus on the bleeding boy he was aiding too. The boys were too distracted by Ben that they hadn’t noticed Bill walking back out of the alley, endorsing in conversation with a red-headed girl. Y/N had noticed their interactions, and watched on in curiosity; she knew she recognised the girl from one of her classes, or maybe she had just seen her in passing in the hallway. She noticed how Bill stared at her, and she knew in an instant it was a look of admiration; she took a quick note of this before realising the couple were heading back down into the alleyway and towards them.

“You have to suck the wound before you apply the Band-Aids. This is 101!” Richie insisted, still bugging Eddie with ridiculous suggestions. Eddie wasn’t sure how much more he could take before punching Richie in the nuts, but he restrained himself because who knew how many germs were down there.

“You don���t know what you’re talking about”

“Are you okay? That looks like it hurts” The redhead spoke up, heading towards Ben and catching the attention of the rest of the group. Y/N noticed how Ben’s face lit up as soon as she had approached the group; everyone looked at this girl in admiration, why did no one look at me that way, she thought.

“Oh, no, I’m good. I just fell” Ben assured her, seeing her face light up in relief. Of course, Richie had to ruin the moment with another one of his jokes; “Yeah, right into Henry Bowers”

“Shut it R-r-richie” Bill stuttered out in a mutter, sending the boy a glare. This was yet another moment Y/N had found herself in a state of confusion, and she was beginning to wish she wasn’t new to this town; everyone knew things but her.

“Why? It’s the truth!” Richie defended himself.

“You sure they got the right stuff to fix you up?” The new girl asked Ben with a small smirk, knowing that only the two of them would understand the small inside joke, referring to the boy’s favourite band. Ben grinned back, feeling a blush grow on his cheeks.

“Y-you know, uhh, we’ll take care of him” Bill butt in, not particularly liking how friendly she and Ben were being. He knew he had a massive crush on the redhead, but he’d never admit it to anyone; he didn’t like talking about his feelings and he wasn’t going to start now. “Uh, thanks again, Beverly.”

“Sure. Maybe I’ll see you around”

“Yeah, we were thinking about going to the q-q-q-quarry tomorrow, if you want to… come” Bill stuttered out, feeling the glances of almost everyone around him burning into his back like rays of sun. This hadn’t been brought up in conversation at all; in fact, the group had already got plans that weren’t the quarry. Richie was planning on spending the day in the arcade, Y/N and Stan had planned on sitting out and birdwatching in her garden, and Eddie had a prescription he needed to refill.

“Good to know, thanks!” Beverly smiled, beginning to walk off and sending a small wave in the direction of the group. As soon as she was far enough away, Eddie raised back onto his feet, brushing his hands together, and turned to face Richie.

“Nice going bringing up Bowers in front of her!” Stanley scolded Richie, Eddie quickly chipping in too; “Yeah, dude, you heard what she did”

“What’d she do?” both Ben and Y/N asked at the same time, considering they both found themselves lost in the conversation.

“More like ‘Who’d she do?’ From what I heard, the list is longer than my wang” Richie joked, grabbing his crotch in a joking manner. He found nobody laughing again, not even Y/N, and he found himself getting a little nervous at that fact; she usually laughed at his sex jokes.

“That’s not saying much” Stanley muttered, loud enough for the rest of the group to hear, and Y/N let out a small chuckle at his joke. This angered Richie a little; why was she laughing at Stan’s jokes and not his?

“They’re jj-ju-just rumours.” Bill reassured the two, who were now looking at the group in disbelief. Y/N didn’t exactly like the way they talked about her; there was no way she had had sex with that many guys, and even if she had, why was it such a big deal? Who said girls can’t have fun from time to time? Obviously, Y/N understood that women were expected to behave with a certain amount of grace, but fuck those expectations.

“Anyway, Bill had her back in third grade. They kissed in the school play; reviewers say you can’t fake that sort of passion!” Richie explained even further, not noticing how Ben’s face dropped at the mention of Beverly and Bill kissing. Ben was sure he was in love with the girl, even if they had only met the day before. That didn’t matter to him, she treated him like no other person had. So obviously, the idea of her even liking someone else was off putting.

“Now, pip-pip and tally-ho, my good fellows, I do believe this chap requires out utmost attention. Get in there, Dr. K. Come on, fix him up!” Richie piped up, putting on an awful British accent which was almost as far from British as possible. Although, it did make Y/N giggle a little, which made him grin with glee.

“Why don’t you shut the fuck up, Einstein, because I know what I’m doing and I don’t want you doing the British guy with me right now” It was fair to say Eddie was getting pissed off at Richie now, the British accent pushing him over the edge.

“Suck the wound. Get in there!” Richie carried on, pointing to the boy’s stomach. As Y/N watched the two boys interact foolishly, she couldn’t stop herself from letting a humourful smile grow on her face, stretching from eye to eye. She really had got herself some great friends.

She couldn’t take her eyes off of Richie though. The way his face lit up every time he noticed the grimace on Eddie’s face, his jokes and accents making the smaller boy become more and more agitated by the second. And she had noticed how he’d bite the edge of a smile whenever he got a funny idea in his head, a vain attempt to keep his creeping grin at bay. The intention behind his perking lips was obvious to everyone in the group, but that didn’t stop Y/N from admiring it like a piece of art. She also found that the thick-rimmed glasses that sat perched upon the bridge of his nose gave him that big-eyed cute animal look; the glasses added something to his face, a certain poise she supposed. Though they did more than just frame his eyes or aid his vision, they added an extra window to his soul, and she had grown to love that. Y/N had also grown to love the wacky and wild array of colourful Hawaiian shirts the boy seemed to sport; she usually wasn’t one for shirts of the kind, but she understood that they displayed his personality perfectly, and that was one of her favourite things about him. God, she had so many favourite things about him. And she was certain she wouldn’t be able to name nearly as many things she loved about the other boys; not in a rude way, Richie was just… different. Special.

She swore it was just a crush.

***

“Thank you for walking me home Stanley, but you really didn’t have to” Y/N spoke up, the looming silence between the two making it a little awkward. The two trailed down the middle of the road, Stanley wheeling his bike at the side of him. After announcing that it was getting close to 5 and she should’ve been heading back home; nearly all the boys offered to walk her home. All of them except Richie and she swore she felt her heart break a little in that moment, but she told herself it didn’t matter. Richie didn’t have to like her back.

“It’s okay Y/N; I wanted to make sure you got home safely. I know it’s early, but with this whole ‘kid’s going missing’ business…” he trailed off, and she was sure she saw his eyes gloss over a little. She had noticed how he seemed a little off since that morning, but nothing too extreme had happened so she couldn’t put her finger on it.

“Well I’m glad you offered” she grinned back, trying to cheer the boy up, and it sure did. Still being bitter about Richie not even offering to walk her home, she muttered under her breath “unlike Richie”. She didn’t think Stan had heard her, but she was wrong.

“What do you mean?”

“Oh, uh, it-it doesn’t matter” she tried to assure him, and he would’ve questioned more but he didn’t want to scare away the one friend he had made who actually shared some common interests. It remained silence for a good 5 minutes following that, and it would’ve remained silence if it wasn’t for Y/N’s curiosity getting the better of her; “St-Stan, can I ask you a question?”

“Shoot”

“Completely hypothetical situation; say there’s this boy, who I’ve only known for a day really, who I can’t stop thinking about. A-and I don’t even understand why because I don’t really even know him, but I think that I may have a tiny crush on said boy. What do I do?” Y/N rambled out, as if Stan didn’t know she was obviously talking about one of the five boys present at their hangout today. He wondered for a small second whether said boy was perhaps him, he definitely wouldn’t have minded, but he figured she wouldn’t be so open talking about it if it was him. In all honesty, Stan had no idea what she should do; if he told her to go for it and she did, she may end up heartbroken and he didn’t want that. But he also didn’t want to tell her to reign in all her emotions and keep them to herself, because then she would miss out on any chance with the boy.

“I-erm, well I don’t know. I’d say wait it out and see if you get closer with the boy, they may surprise you.” He answered, hoping it was good enough. Which it was, since Y/N nodded her head understandably, that made sense. “So, which of the boys is it?”

“Huh?”

“Oh come on, it’s obviously Eddie, Bill or Ben” Stan said as if it was obvious, but Y/N furrowed her eyebrows when she noticed the boy wasn’t finishing the sentence with the last name it could’ve been.

“Y-you forgot Richie, Stan” she stuttered out, finding herself adopting Bill’s behaviours as soon as the thought of Richie entered her mind. Stan chuckled under his breath at the idea; “Don’t be stupid, it’s obviously not Richie. I mean, he’s a great kid, but you’re complete opposites”

He hadn’t meant it in a no-one-will-ever-like-Richie kind of way, but he certainly didn’t see Richie as the in-love-with-someone type of person. To him, Richie was a free spirit who wasn’t held down by any of his emotions. Richie used humour to cover up any real feelings he may have had, whether it be anger, sadness, fear or love; to Richie, feelings made him weak and he wasn’t weak. When Stan had noticed Y/N was yet to answer, in fact she was so silent you couldn’t even hear her breathing; he knew he had said something wrong. Turning to look at her, the guilty look on her face said it all. It was Richie. “I-I’m sorry, Y/N. I didn’t think it would actually be Rich-“

“No, it’s fine. You’re right; he wouldn’t like me like that anyway. This is my stop, I’ll see you at the quarry tomorrow, Stanley” She bid farewell to the boy, who was now stood in the middle of the road with his heart on the floor; he had never meant to hurt the girl. He watched as she waved him goodbye, before entering her house.

He had fucked up, and all because she had a crush on his friend. And she was certain it was just a crush.

[inumakkis]

Chapter one ; lost and found

warnings ; light angst ( okay maybe a substantial amount )

It's gonna be posted to be my ao3 when I actually edit it more because we know ao3 is superior . ( .lichtenberg is my username ! ) Stay safe guys ! I haven't properly proof read it because I'm tired but I'll probably see a mistake in a week and then fix it then after panicking .

-----

Things were always tough for Hitoshi Shinsou. That's how life was for him , he'd wake up and go to school only to be faced with the relentless bullying from his peers which his teachers dismissed. In a world full of quirks, he would much rather be quirkless.

Everyday felt like a battlefield , trudging through the trenches , avoiding any hits from the enemy and soon enough, he was at the front line. His guard was up and yet everyone saw the little cracks on how to get him down.

It wasn't so bad at first , the occasional taunt , nothing that he couldn't manage . though when he got to middle school, things got worse, kids got meaner. Well, so did he . A strong hatred grew towards the world from his bones that supported his figure.

Yet , the blond boy in class 1a would disagree . He never thought that Hitoshi was mean . No , he found his reserved and quiet . He enjoyed it . He enjoyed how he would follow Shinsou around like a lost puppy ( though Hitoshi would change that to a cat ) and the purple haired teen wouldn't spare him a glance.

Yeah , in Denki's mind ? Things were great .

23rd of June

Denki asked Hitoshi out after sitting besides him at lunch for over a month now . He turned him down.

27th of June

Shinsou had a bunch of lavender dropped at his doorstep , all plucked from the ground . He didn't even need to read the note to see who they were from . He simply tossed them on top of his desk before going back to reading.

29th of June

It was Kaminari's birthday and much to his distaste , there was no happy birthday from the boy he wanted to hear it from the most .

Shinsou knew the date , how could he not? When it was all the blond talked about within the recent week, eyes bubbling with happiness, only getting a glance from Hitoshi and maybe a nod of the head.

He would rather people think that he doesn't care then face the pain that comes with having a friend.

30th of June

Denki still hung around him , acted as if he didn't ignore the day he was most excited for out of the entire year . Shinsou didn't say a word.

1st of July

When hitoshi woke up , he had a gift at the foot of his bed and he wondered how Denki managed to break in to the dorms to drop it off. With tired eyes, he grabbed the note taped to the package .

— to toshi shinsou

“ I understand that you may not like me but I like you dude ! You think you're so tough but you're totally not . I hear boys like handwritten notes and I should know that since I am one but I have yet to receive one so it's a new experience for me too !!!!! Hppay happy birthday , I'm not mad at you . I know you don't want to be my friend and that's a-okay ! Just please let me down slowly ? I won't hang around with you anymore if that's what you want . I mean, you probably didn't like me in the first place and you wouldn't be the first so don't worry ! Pikaboy is fine with it ! Happy birthday .

Ps . A thank you would be greatly appreciated.

Pss . Also come on a date with me this Tuesday? I'll be at the restaurant down the road at 7pm . ”

Sincerly sincerely , Kaminari. :)

Shinsou paused . They were back to a last name basis now, Denki had officially removed his nickname from his vocabulary.

He pondered on why Kaminari would constantly go through trouble to make him happy and yet didn't even get a smile in return. Heck, by the last sentence , Denki seemed happy enough to be stood up publicly. Could he really do that to him though? Judging by the ink smudges on the paper , he couldn't . Sunshine boy had either spilt water very precisely or cried while writing it . He hoped it wasn't the latter. It made his chest ache and twist as he reread it four times . He noticed the spelling mistakes and how there would be another teardrop straight after as if he hated himself more for ruining the letter .

Hitoshi eventually tore his tired eyes away from the paper and opened the box which was at the bottom of his bed. He couldn't help the sweet laugh that escaped him. There would be no point hiding it now , after all no one was here to judge him or swear they say him show more than a stoic look.

It was a hoodie , purple and a few shades darker than his hair with the word ' mind fuck ' written across each sleeve while the front was decorated by cats .

Custom made , suddenly a tear dropped and Shinsou stared at it as if it had personally insulted him. He watched as the hoodie took it in , leaving the wet mark for show.

He would turn up to that date . He refused to wear anything fancy but he couldn't let Kaminari know .

5th of July

" dunce face , he isn't going to come ! He hates you ." Bakugou exclaimed as he watched Denki apply his eyeliner for the fifth time. Each time he applied it, he would cry it off .

" you think I don't know that ? I have to try though ! We're meant to help people and if my purpose is just getting myself involved in things that he doesn't like just to show that I care then I can proudly class myself as a hero !"

Mina rested a pink hand on his shoulder , wiping his eyes once more. " Come on, Danks ! He's gonna come , Bakubabe is just jealous because he can't get a date with Kiri ."

" WHAT THE FUCK DID I TELL YOU ABOUT CALLING ME THAT, RACCOON EYES— "

Hanta laughed from the background , playing some weird game on his phone . " Bakugou and Kiri sitting in a tree , K-I-S-S-I-N- OH MY GOD." The boy exclaimed as he ducked from an explosion that was sent his way .

Denki only laughed as Mina tilted his head back to stop the tears and began giving him some sharp winged liner . " Right , you look hot now go get that outfit on and get your sweet ass back here so i can do your hair."

" but I already did my ha-"

Mina out a finger to his lips. " Ah— Mama Mina knows best now hurry up . "

It turns out that Mama Mina did know best because low and behold, Shinsou was waiting right at the restaurant , 7:01 sharp. Hitoshi was far from a people pleaser , perhaps the opposite to Denki. He could give less of shit about what everyone else wanted but when someone had shown him unconditional care ? He knew he had to do something because what kind of hero would he be if he let them suffer due to his ignorance ?

" Let's make this quick." He commented , eyes sharp as he looked to the bubbly boy who had just turned up. It was clear that he wasn't expecting the other man there. His face lit up.

" O-oh yeah ! Sure dude !" Denki managed to get out as he walked inside the restaurant. It was far from fancy, that was clear . " Hey hun !" A woman gave a wide smile to Denki who wrapped his arms around her.

Hitoshi's mind wandered . Was this some kind of joke ? Why was he hugging a girl on a date with him ? Did he say date ? No he meant an outing because he felt sorry for him. That's it . Yeah -

" and you must be the boy that Denki has told me so much about - "

" AOI !" Denki's face flushed scarlet .

" sup, I'm his sister . "

Oh. . .

Oh .

That makes sense.

He looked between the two of them , why didn't he see it before ? The golden yellow hair , sitting in spikes across their heads , though hers was much shorter. They had the same smile and same eyes , the only difference was that her hair had a sideshave with the lightning bolt there.

Needless to say, Hitoshi felt dumb which wasn't meant to happen.

" that's very nice , I guess ?" It came out as a question , he had no idea on how to interact with people. That kind of went with his whole " no friends " thing .

" yeah , so get us a table , pronto !" Denki exclaimed and shoved Aoi along . " I'm going ! I'm going! There's a table over there , it ain't nothing fancy but you'll live. Your date " she wiggled her eyebrows at Denki who groaned. " doesn't seem like a people person , who knows why he's hanging with you - wait , sorry! I've been calling you a he ! You are okay with that , aren't you ?" Her attention turned to Shinsou who only managed to get out a little nod.

She let out a sigh of relief as she handed them both the menu's as they sat down. It wasn't long until she was off to go flirt with someone. Classic Kaminari's.

" She works at an lgbtq+ shelter for teenagers so she's really hyper aware of everyone's sexuality and stuff. " Denki commented , tapping his fingers on the table .

" that's good, I guess ? " Shinsou pondered their background for a moment before the blond boy pulled him from his thoughts.

" hey , my back hurts -"

" what? Why ? "

" from carrying this entire conversation." Kaminari let out a laugh and Hitoshi gave a fond roll of his eyes in return along with a chuckle.

He didn't realise his mistake until it was too late .

" you laughed at my joke ! You laughed ! Fuck yeah ! "

" wait no I didn't !"

And so came joke galore from Denki for the rest of their date . Kaminari wasn't funny , but the way he delivered each joke made Hitoshi's chest pound more and more.

He had been ignoring this .

As they walked out after a very full stomach and a very large discount, he tried to ignore the guilt eating up at him.

Denki had cried because of him, he had cried because he was ignored and he was now acting like Shinsou hadn't done anything to offend him ? What had this kid gone through ?

" so I said - hey are you listening ?" Denki pulled away from his ramble that he was on about Sero and Mina.

" uh yeah , Sero accidentally kicked Ashido in the face and she fought him."

Denki's face lit up and he continued to talk. He tried his best not to zone out this time .

Yeah , things weren't perfect but he could make an effort . Right ?

[itmighthavebeenintentional]

Shackled News and a bit more

Howdy, folks. 

EDIT: I just posted the last chapter of Shackled!!!!!!!!!. I wanted to thank everyone for their lovely comments and reblogs. Everyone has been so very encouraging and excited, and it’s been fantastic, I gotta say.

Now that Shackled is finished, I will begin posting another multi- chapter Supernatural story. Please, if you’d like, take a minute to look over the preview below. If you’d like to be added to my Long Haul (everything) tag list or you’d like to be placed on the Walk Me Home list, let me know, and I will adjust accordingly. Again, thank you so much for sticking with the story, jumping in on the story, just hanging out with me and the story. Y’all are the best. 

Walk Me Home

Summary: Twenty-four years ago, Kimberly Harper met a boy who changed the course of her entire life before up and leaving one night. She spent years moving past the memories, building a stable, satisfying career as professor of folklore and mythology at the local university. Then the accidents start, and she’s forced to seek help among her hunter contacts. All it takes is a knock on her office door to send Kimber’s carefully built emotional walls crumbling to the ground.

Featuring: Teen Winchesters, high school romance, reunions, misunderstandings, high intensity emotional turmoil, Dean’s love of pie, Dean being adorable, Sam being adorable and maybe a bit nosy eventually, much group adorkable-ness, show-style investigation, mention of our favorite werewolf, gratuitous and obvious love of fall, DID I MENTION ROMANCE, fluff, smut, tension. I had fun writing it, so I hope you’ll have fun reading it. Trying to keep preview shorter, so I promise huge shoutouts to EVERYONE who helped me SO MUCH with this story.

Inspired by P!nk’s song “Walk Me Home”

Story Warnings (None of these apply to preview): Show level violence, show level parental neglect (let’s not John bash, I’m just saying), show-style witchcraft, show-level mental manipulation, stalking, bit of angst, sexual content (higher than show level),swearing, general yearning

Chapter 1 Preview

A firm tap on the door of her office makes Kimberly’s head snap up. She blinks, her eyes unable to focus quickly after looking up from her computer screen. She remembers she’s wearing her reading glasses, and slips them off her nose, letting them dangle from the chain around her neck.

“Dr. Harper? Could I take a few minutes of your time?”

“Yes, I…” Her eyes finally focus on her visitor, and the room is suddenly devoid of oxygen. “Dean? Is it...really?”

“Kimber?” 

The astonished man framed in the doorway is a far cry from the brash, charming boy she met in a different life, but she’d know him anywhere. Time has been more than kind to Dean Winchester, and Kimberly has to admit some things really do get better with age.

Which is saying a lot, considering.

“God, no one’s called me that since high school.” She stands and takes a couple of measured steps around her desk. Seeing him unexpectedly like this after so much time leaves her physically and emotionally off-balance, but the smile she offers him is genuine. “You’re a helluva sight for sore eyes. It’s been a while.”

Dean recovers from his shock quickly, crossing the small room in a few quick strides, and sweeps her into a hug. She’s engulfed in his presence, not just his physical stature (she does not remember him being this tall or broad or...solid) but also the scent and feel that is absolutely Dean. She feels a shock of vertigo as memories and emotions she’d long laid to rest all vie for immediate attention.

It hits them simultaneously that they’ve embraced for a few moments longer than necessary, and they disentangle with sheepish smiles.

“What are...no, I’m sorry, I’m being rude. Have a seat!” A lop-sided smile pulls at Dean’s lips, and suddenly she’s seventeen again, trying desperately to keep her cool as she finally gets to talk to the handsome, mysterious new kid. Warmth floods every cell of her body, and she comes dangerously close to giggling. 

“Coffee?” she offers, forgetting most of her hard-earned vocabulary in the face of her teenage dream.

“Always.”

...

The last time she’d seen Dean Winchester, his father was burning holes in his elder son’s back from the driver’s seat of his precious Impala. He glowered at Dean and Kimber, impatiently drumming his fingers on the steering wheel as the teenagers stumbled through their good-byes. Dean’s younger brother sat, slump-shouldered and defeated in the back seat, resigned to yet another relocation.

“Don’t forget my number,” Kimberly murmured, her palms sliding over his jaw, fingers threading into his close-cropped hair, and they both knew she meant, “Don’t forget me.”

“I couldn’t if I tried, sweetheart,” he whispered, his voice breaking on the last word. He cleared his throat, trying to turn away before she could see any weakness.

“Don’t,” she said, holding his face firmly. “If this is all I get of you, don’t even take that much from me.”

Five blissful weeks they’d had before Dean’s father concluded his mysterious business in the area. Five weeks since she’d begun tutoring Dean in AP American History; an absolute sham, she had realized exactly five minutes into their first session. Dean may not have been caught up on the exact dates and details of what they were covering in class, but once he set eyes on the material, even she had a hard time keeping pace with his reasoning.

“Just wanted to talk to you alone,” he’d admitted that afternoon, his olive eyes sparkling. He flashed her what had to be an award-winning half-grin, showing a glimpse of perfect, dazzling white teeth and the merest touch of uncertain vulnerability. 

“Does that usually work on girls?” she asked, genuinely curious. He had to practice that expression in the mirror; it was too perfect to be natural. His face lit up as his smile spread, his cheeks gaining the faintest hint of pink. In that one moment, Kimber realized she’d lived her entire life under an overcast sky, and now the clouds had parted. His smile was the sun on her face for the first time, dazzling and vital, and she soaked it in with dizzy abandon.

“Why, is it working on you?”

“Yeah, it, um, it really is.”

They spent the next month or so getting to know each other as only kids can, when everything is new, the absolute pinnacle of priority and passion. They studied each other as fervently as they should have studied for midterms. Explaining how the Age of Enlightenment influenced the American Revolution was a complete waste of time next to finding out that the beautiful, smooth-talking, tough-as-nails Dean Winchester was actually ticklish.

Dean told her the most amazing stories, which she only learned were true after he and his family disappeared. She caught him up in history enough for the teacher to get off his back, and in return he showed her how to get rid of unwanted physical attention with minimal risk on her part.

Dean wasn’t her first kiss, but he wiped the memory of every other fumbling embrace from her mind with a searing permanence. Some nights they snuck out to the tree house in her backyard, and some nights she snuck him into her room. He would never take her out to any of the famous local make-out spots, though; he said they were too dangerous and just begging for trouble. 

She knew better than to argue with him when he got “that look” on his face, spoke to her in “that tone.” It took many years and some hard experiences of her own, but she did eventually learn that he’d been protecting her from so much more than she ever could have understood at that point in her life.

She found herself in awe of the sheer amount of wisdom contained in such a carefree, often goofy package. That they were chronologically the same age, almost to the month, was irrelevant; Dean Winchester had lived far beyond his years, and it showed.

And then one night, he’d arrived on her doorstep in the middle of dinner, asked if she could come outside for a minute. When he told her he was leaving, she knew he wasn’t joking. He’d warned her it would happen this way, that he had no idea how long they’d be in town, but she’d always imagined that future as some vague, misty destination, like “graduation” or “college.” Definitely going to happen, but not anytime soon, so might as well relax and enjoy things while you could.

“I…” But she couldn’t say it, not yet. She wanted to, had read so many novels and seen all the movies. It was the thing to say, and half her friends had already proclaimed their hearts belonging to various celebrities and hot guys around school. But staring into Dean’s eyes, so much older than they should be, she knew better than to throw that word out so lightly, carelessly.

“Yeah,” he sighed. His eyelids dropped, shoulders heaved once, and when he met her gaze again, that smooth front of cool confidence had slid back in place. “I know, sweetheart. Me, too.”

He kissed her then, despite his father’s glowering, despite her parents’ astonished looks from between the living room curtains. His hands were tight on her waist, and she raised up on her toes, pulling his face just a little closer. 

They pulled apart after a long moment, eyes locked, and she kissed him one last time, chastely, savoring the plush of his velvet-soft lips against hers. 

Then she let him go, and he went. There was nothing else they could do.

She hugged herself against the chill autumn night, ignoring the first dashes of icy rain that stung her bare arms as she watched the black Impala turn a corner and disappear.

She didn’t see him again for nearly two and a half decades. When he knocked on her office door, asking for Dr. Harper, the years melted away. She felt the sting of the rain, the chill of the night he’d left, and for a long moment, all she could do was stare.

[theartofimaginaryfriends]

Chapter 5 - Catalyst

Fic series: The Final Straw (HP/PJO Crossover Fic)

Premise: A fight breaks out during first period.

Masterlist

Taglist: @ilvermornymascot, @lukecastellandeservedbetter

Word Count: 1,540

A/N: Back to our regularly scheduled programming! I was up all night last night working on the chapter because honestly sleep isn’t a thing anymore. I think this is my personal favourite chapter by far and yes it is absolutely because I made a “my father will hear about this” reference. Might bring that one up again, but we’ll see XD Hope you enjoy!

"What do you think it means?" Harry asked at breakfast the next day. "The prophecy. I mean, the bridge? What tether? The one I had to deal with wasn't this hard to decipher." 

"Our prophecies never mean what you think," Nova said. "Whatever the bridge is, it couldn't mean a literal bridge. Maybe it's a person. Someone that acts as a bridge to connect both sides." 

"So, you?" Percy raised an eyebrow. 

"Or, it could mean a God," she gave him a look. "Like Janus."

"I never want to deal with him again." The son of Poseidon complained.  

"You never wanted to deal with a prophecy again. Anything's possible." Annabeth said. Percy glared at her and scowled. Things hadn't been patched up between them since the previous night. "I wonder which of us will be the heroes. I hate to say it, but Percy and Harry are guaranteed to be involved." 

"It could be anyone," Hermione snapped. "Harry couldn't possibly be involved in another prophecy. Not so soon." Annabeth opened her mouth to respond until Nova held up a hand. 

"I'm going to stop both of you now before this gets out of hand." The rule Ilvermorny had about students sitting with others of different years and houses expanded to the wizards and demigods. So far Nova was overwhelmed by all the fighting happening around her and wanted to keep that at bay at her table at the very least. Especially while she was still waking up. "We should just drop talk about the prophecy for the time being. It's not helping anyone, and parts won't be figured out or revealed until the right time."

The table agreed and fell silent. Around them, were groups of students having the same conversation Nova just cut-off, or arguing with each other. It seemed that the various rooming situations either worked out really well or went very wrong. Rachel and Luna, in particular, had gotten along right away. "What's a wrackspurt?" 

Hermione scoffed, and Ron groaned at Rachel's question. Harry and Ginny, on the other hand, tried to suppress giggles. Luna's eyes lit up as she explained what they were to the redhead and barely looked up when Professor Lieberman, the Pukwudgie Head of House, handed over their schedules.  

When the Professor got around to Nova, she handed her a small envelope as well. "The Headmaster asked me to give this to you." 

"Thanks, Professor." 

After scanning the schedule, she headed to combat and duelling in the training grounds. The class had a mixture of students from all four houses, a few of which were the transfer students. She tried to mask her annoyance when she noticed Clarisse and Draco were in the class together. Something was bound to go wrong.  

The students made their way to the two professors teaching the class and listened to the introduction. "Hello, class. For those that don't know, I am Professor Sullivan, the flying and duelling instructor. I will be sharing a class with Professor Beaumont as it is vital we teach you, students, every form of fighting." 

"But demigods can't use magic," An Ilvermorny student called out.  

"And wizards don't have any weapons!" A demigod added.  

"Please leave questions and comments at the end of the lecture," Professor Beaumont commanded. The class quieted down, and the ones that were speaking out looked sheepish. "You both make good points. Although some Demigods can use magic, it is just different from the wizards."  

"Our goal in this class is to teach you how to fight against an opponent you would have never expected." Sullivan continued. "However, for today, we will have the wizards with me, and the demigods with Professor Beaumont. Is that clear?" 

"Yes, Professor," the class chorused.  

"Any questions?" 

Nova raised her hand, trying not to feel stupid. "For those of us that fit into both categories – because I know I'm not the only one – where do we go?" 

"Fan of flying?" Sullivan asked.  

"You know I'm not." Nova sighed.  

"Go with the demigods." The Professor smirked. "If you're not afraid of flying, you'll be with me today. If you are, join Nova." 

The groups split off, and Percy made his way next to Nova. "Flying?" 

"Yes, we can fly on broomsticks," Nova braced herself for the teasing. "No, they aren't the basic straw brooms in media." 

"I'm pretty sure I'm the first person to ask you about that," Percy mused. "And yet, you already sound annoyed." 

"I know you well enough to know that I'm aware I'll never hear the end of it," she rolled her eyes. 

"You two!" Professor Beaumont interrupted their banter. "Have something to share with the rest of the class?" 

"No," they said, sheepishly.   

"Great, then I'm going to assume you were listening to instructions," Cassia said. "I don't care who you partner with, just try not to kill each other." 

"Frank, what were the instructions?" Percy leaned over to his friend.  

"Get into groups of two, and practice combat," he told them. "We have an uneven number, though." 

"We could be a group of three?" Nova suggested. "Take turns fighting each other. Third person watches and dictates who wins each round." 

"Sure, why not," Percy shrugged, grabbing his pen from his back pocket. "You and me first, Nova? I miss training with you." 

"You’re on, Jackson," she removed a bronze hair clip and flipped it to reveal Harpe. Percy got into position facing her, and uncapped Riptide. Nova was a bit nervous facing off against Percy. He was the only one able to match Luke in a fight when they were twelve, and she remembered it well. He was skilled, and Nova planned to give him a real challenge.  

The demigod made the first move, almost losing his balance when Nova dodged him. She moved forward, forcing Percy to back up from where he stood. She managed to stay in control of the fight until Percy deflected her blade, and forced it out of her hands. Grabbing the hilt, Percy shrugged and tossed it back to her. Nova easily caught it, and they continued on.    

They parried for quite a bit, neither of them willing to give up. Weaving through the other teams, they swiftly moved across the grounds and stayed evenly matched with one another. Without realizing it Nova and Percy had moved closer to the castle walls. The roles of offence and defence were switching between them constantly. It was as though they were silently communicating as they continued to train.  

Percy was offence when he realized they were closer to the castle and saw it as an opportunity to overtake Nova. He maneuvered their fight so that her back was against the wall, and rested his blade against her throat. His left arm braced against the wall right above her head. "You know if you don't apply pressure, I could easily get out of this hold."  

"If I drew blood, I'd get in trouble," he replied. "And seeing as you have an advantage, why not use it?" 

"Catching my breath, I suppose." Nova lied, blushing.  

"We could stop the fight here." 

"What would be the fun in that?" 

"Touche-" 

"BE CAREFUL WHERE YOU THROW THAT THING!" Nova's attention moved from Percy to the students up on brooms. Draco was descending from his position and angrily marched up to Clarisse who had gone to collect her spear.  

"Better go deal with this," Nova groaned.  

"Clarisse may not listen to you, I should help." Percy insisted, moving away from the wall to let her go.  

"She won’t listen to anyone but Will," Nova shrugged. "Go train with Frank, I'll be fine." 

The Head Girl made her way to the two, as they began a shouting match. "I should be allowed to throw my spear wherever the hell I want, Pretty Boy." 

"And I should be able to have a friendly competition with my classmates without worrying about being killed!" He argued back.  

"Dude, a bludger has the potential to kill you," Nova intervened. "I get your point, but think realistically. Wizard sports are about as safe as weapons." 

"No one asked you!" Clarisse and Draco chorused.  

"Yeah, I don’t care," she crossed her arms. "Here's what's going to happen. Clarisse, you're going to throw your spear in any direction away from the wizards. Malfoy, your father will not hear about it, so shut up and stop being dramatic."  

Both parties stared at her completely speechless, Clarisse reeling in anger. Draco just looked shocked, not having said that phrase since his fifth year at Hogwarts. Harry tried to suppress his laughter as the crowd watched, but failed. "Seriously, Potter?" 

All the Chosen One could do was nod, too busy laughing to say anything. Everyone stood around awkwardly, not sure what was so funny. "Thank you, Nova, but we'll take it from here." 

Nova stepped back, and let the professors talk to the two of them and sort something out. "Since it's the first day, I won’t give either if you detention. However, I will deduct ten points each from Horned Serpent and Wampus."  

"Professor!" Draco whined.  

"Five more points!" Sullivan snapped. "Now get back to your activities and no more arguing for the rest of the period."

[parkaiur]

Snowy Days - Jihoon

❀ genre: college life + romance + a dash of angst 

❀ word count: 5491

❀ a/n: just read the tags below but if ur too lazy to basically: don’t expect lots of updates and i just wrote this as a form of therapy for me. i guess i missed writing and needed to rant /shrugs/ 

also this title sucks but idk what to do with it either LMAO 

❀ ❀ ❀

It was a quiet, winter evening; the snow was gently falling outside and the laughter of college students filled the dorm hallways. 

I, on the other hand, was curled up in a ball on my bed, reading a book. The soft sounds of my hand turning the pages lulled me in a dreamland of swoon-worthy boys. 

Suddenly, I heard a loud bang. 

I flinched and jumped up on my bed to see what had dropped. 

“Sorry! Just dropped my pan, how’s it going?” I sighed thankfully, realizing it was just my roommate, Naeun. Naeun was a freshman like me; we hadn’t talked much before rooming together. We got along most of the time, but being around people just irked me sometimes.

I pointed at the book, trying to hide the girlish daze in my eyes. 

“Just reading, like usual.” I kept my words short, hoping she would get the hint that I wasn’t in the mood to talk. It wasn’t like I was mad at her or anything, but I need my breaks with all the socialness of college. I don’t think people understand how tiring it is for introverts to have to be “on” all the time; “on” meaning social. 

She nodded. “What book?” 

“It’s called ‘Win Some, Lose Some’ by Shay Savage. It’s a really amazing novel about a boy who was Autism and a girl who ...” I trailed off when I realized she had her back towards me. The sound of her pots and pans flying into her drawer was distracting. “A girl who befriends him basically. How was your day?” I asked politely. 

I braced myself for her long winded answer. Most people just say “good” or “it was pretty alright” but not Naeun, she pops off and talks about things no one really needs to know, and no one really cares. 

“It was okay. I saw one of my friends on campus and I waved to her because it’s so weird, right? Seeing people you know on such a large campus. And then I walked to English and my professor was just such in a good mood today, she’s so nice, I love her.” 

I smiled carefully, hoping she doesn’t realize how much I do not care about who she waves at or how her professor looks. 

“Then, I went to the library and did some of my math homework and I got started on the next chapter. And then I started to do my English homework which I got kind of stumped on. Anyway, all I could think about is this big burrito when I was studying.” She took out two large burritos and plopped them on a blue plate. 

I nodded and told her I was going to go back to my book. She nodded and right as I was about to plug in my earbuds to drown out her voice while I read, she stopped me with her voice.

“Hey, I’m bored, do you think Ahyoung and Somi are busy?” I took out my earbuds once more and shrugged. 

“Probably not.” 

“Hm. Is it cool if I invite them over? I mean, you don’t have to say yes if you just want to be alone, I know how you get like that.” 

I forced an awkward smile. “Um, I actually want to just chill and be alone, but you can always go to their rooms... they live in the same building.” I tried not to let my annoyance show in my voice, but it was rising. 

She furrowed her brows and sighed. “Yeah, but they’re so far...” She whined. 

Don’t roll your eyes. Don’t roll your eyes. Don’t roll your eyes. 

“I mean, they always come to our dorm, maybe go to them today?” I really didn’t care what she did, I just wanted to be alone. 

I turned on my music and opened my book so I didn’t have to hear her complain. She went back on her phone and I was content reading in peace. 

Five minutes later, I heard loud knocking on the door. 

What? She did not just...

“Oh, hey, Ahyoung! How’s it going?” 

No way, she did not just invite people over after I told her not to. 

I felt my blood boil, but I tried to keep my calm. I was not going to make a scene, especially since Ahyoung was my friend. 

I locked eyes with Naeun, who I visibly glared at. 

“It’s chill, y/n, you don’t have to talk we are just gonna hang a bit and then go watch some TV.” 

I bit my tongue to not snap at her. Her insensitivity was rubbing me the wrong way, but I didn’t want to blow up. We were all adults here, I didn’t want to seem like a child who got irritated when they were forced to socialize with their mom’s friends. 

Soon, I heard another knock. 

“Hey, Sooyoung! Come in, we are picking a show to watch.” 

I tried to calm down and read my book, but when I say I want to be alone, I really mean I want to be alone. 

I felt myself boil over in anger as I could still hear them over my earbuds. Their laughter and constant chatter couldn’t be tuned out. 

“Ok, we are gonna go to the lounge and watch TV. High five!” Naeun held her hand right in front of my face and I hit it just to make her leave. I swear, I’d rather hit her face instead. 

As soon as I heard the door slam shut, I pulled out my earbuds and went to rinse my face. 

How insensitive of her! I explicitly told her not to invite anyone over to the dorm, and there she goes. She can’t walk up one flight of stairs to see our friends?? So fucking rude. 

Living in the dorms as an introverted person was terribly hard. I don’t even know if introverted is the right word for it anymore if I want to go days without talking to people. And it sucks when no one truly understands me and doesn’t take my words seriously. 

I groaned and stared at myself in the mirror.

“Just two more quarters and you’re free for the summer.” 

I sighed and wiped my face on my towel. 

College was hard. 

I had found my group in college, but unfortunately, I had made the same mistakes as I did in high school. First, I stayed connected with some friends from high school who I had planned on cutting off. And most importantly, I put too much time and effort into people who disrespect me and don’t care for me. 

And now I live with someone like that. 

It angered me to feel so out of place, so alone in the dorms even when I had friends. Whenever I wanted to escape, there was no where to go. All my friends were here. 

I clenched my fist. 

All of a sudden, I couldn’t just sit down and read. I glanced over in the corner of the room and saw the camera from my photography class sitting there. 

I looked outside my window and saw the soft snow falling down. 

I quickly pulled on a warm, puffy jacket, jeans, and headed out to take some photos with my trustworthy camera. 

-----

The air was colder than I remembered. I felt my nose crinkle as the wind blew snow into my nose. 

The city was beautiful; it was painted in white sparkles. I snapped a few photos and took a deep breath. 

I loved being outside and having no one notice me; this was one of my favorite things about living in the city and college in general. I snapped pictures of groups of people walking across the street. The blur of the street lights combined with the softness of the snow captivated me. 

“Some nice pics you got there.” 

I jumped at the voice and almost dropped my camera; thankfully, it’s always wrapped around my neck.

“Oh gosh, I’m so sorry! I didn’t think you’d get so scared.” 

I looked up and saw a boy around my age staring at me. And dang, was he cute. 

I thanked God for the weather because my cheeks were already red. 

“Uh, um, it’s fine.” I fibbed quickly. I felt awkward because I didn’t know how to act around guys my age, especially ones as cute as him. 

Be friendly, be friendly. He just wants to be friends.

“Um, I’m y/n by the way.” I took out my hand to shake his. He chuckled and reciprocated the action.

“Jihoon, Park Jihoon. You live in this building too?” He pointed at the building next door to me. I shook my head and watched as the snow fell onto my shoulders.

“Oh no, I live in this one.” He nodded. “Are you a freshman?” I asked. 

He laughed heartily. I liked how he didn’t hide his emotions. “Oh no, I’m a sophomore this year but I’m an RA in this building.” 

I made an “O” shape with my mouth. “Ah, a resident adviser. I’m applying to be one next year, kinda nervous but hopefully I’ll get the job.” 

His eyes widened. “Oh really? I rarely meet people who want to baby a bunch of freshmen.” I laughed at his comment. “But hey, it’d be cool if we were in the same dorm next year. You could teach me to take such pretty pictures.” I laughed and flipped through the photos on my camera out of habit.

“Don’t get your hopes up, I haven’t even been accepted for the job yet. Also, I’m taking photography 101 with Professor Lee Miyoung, I’m sure she’s a better teacher than I am.” I teased. 

He shrugged. “Well, I doubt she’s as pretty as you.” 

My heart froze. 

W-what? Did he just flirt with me? Oh god, what do I say now? How do I flirt back? I-

“Sorry, was that weird? I wanted to call you pretty but I didn’t mean to lowkey talk about a professor’s beauty either.” He looked mildly embarrassed when he shook out his hair full of snow. 

I gave him a small smile. “Um, no, not weird, it was actually kind of smooth. I don’t really know how to respond to flirting.” 

Oh my god. I just said that. 

His eyes lit up mischievously as I tried not to blush even harder.

“Oh flirting? Is that what we are doing?” He teased.

“Technically, that’s what you are doing.” He laughed loudly and his voice echoed throughout the streets. I only hoped to have that loud of a voice as an RA. 

“You got me there.” He then looked down at his watch and frowned. 

“What’s wrong?”

He looked up at me with his soft brown puppy eyes. I swear this guy is too cute to be real. “Um, my shift is starting soon.” He then took out his phone. “I know we just met, but you seem pretty cool-”

Before he could finish, I took his phone and typed in my number.

“There, now you can teach me how to be an RA and I can teach you how to take photos.” I said as confidently as I could. 

He seemed a bit surprised at my voice, but nodded.

“Sounds great, see you later.” He waved to be as he walked away, but slipped on a patch of snow. 

“Ah, be careful!” I shouted. He gave me a small smile and walked back into his dorm.

Well, at least this day ended on a high note. 

-----

“Hey, where’d you go last night? We were wondering where you were at.” 

I’m an adult, I don’t have to tell you everywhere I go.

I bit back the words and forced a small smile. “Oh, I just went to take some photos for my photography class. The snow looked really pretty last night.” I left out the minor detail that a cute boy started to talk to me. I wanted to keep the giddiness to myself. 

“Oh cool. I just came back from the gym. I saw a really cute boy in there. He was really fit, dark skinned, dark hair. And he smiled at me and I smiled back. We didn’t get to talk because I was so out of breath, but I hope he’s at the gym again.” She went off without me asking her too. 

I understand that I’m being a bit tough on her, but she irritated me first by inviting people over when I told her not to. People always talk about communication in college, but sometimes people just don’t listen to you. 

“Cool, hope you see him again.” I said nicely. I have to put on a nice face with my roommates, as I don’t want to be in an awkward living situation. 

“Yeah... how was your day today?” 

-----

“And then she just invited you guys over, disregarding what I had just said before! Isn’t that rude?” I voiced to Ahyoung, my best friend. I’d known her before going to college, well, I’ve known her since we were 8. 

She looked a bit hesitant on what to say. 

I went on about the situation. “I’m not saying I hate seeing you guys, but you know how I get when I want to be alone. I...I just want to be alone and it makes me crazy when I see people. Plus, I told Naeun I wanted to chill out and be alone and then she just invites you guys over, without telling me?? I’m not crazy.” I ranted. 

Ahyoung sighed and took a sip of her coffee filled with milk and sugar. 

“I mean, she did say she was inviting us over in the groupchat.” 

I glared at the younger girl. “Excuse me, I was sitting right next to her, she knows I didn’t check my phone. It’s rude to not tell your roommate you’re inviting people over, and it’s even ruder when we just talked about how I didn’t want her to invite people over. It’s not like she forgot within the five minutes.” 

“True. That wasn’t nice of her.” I noticed she hesitated on saying anything bad about her. We were all friends, but I was the one who had problems with friends in the group, as usual. I didn’t like very many people, but I was civil and nice to everyone; that’s what being an adult is all about. 

“Yeah...” I trailed off. I don’t know when it got so weird between us, but it felt like I couldn’t talk to my best friend about things in my life. I didn’t even tell her about the cute guy who flirted with me. Deep inside of me, I knew she didn’t deserve to know these things about me when she didn’t want to hear the bad parts of my life. 

It felt like everyone wants to be around me when I’m laughing and joking, never when I’m serious and want to talk about my feelings. No one wants to listen when I want to rant about real things in life, yet they love when someone rants about some “dumb” thing a girl did in the hallway. 

I didn’t get why they judged people before they knew them. I always tried to talk with people before I made judgements, yet people think it’s weird when I judge people I talk to. That’s the way you’re supposed to judge people... when you get to know them personally. Duh.

As I was talking, I saw her eyes focused on something far away from me. 

I turned around and saw her crush standing there. She stopped listening to me as he waved at her. I saw her eyes bright up when she saw him and I grew annoyed. I was telling her about something that was bothering me, and then she chooses a boy over me. Not cool. 

“Hello? Earth to Ahyoung??” I teased. She shrugged me off. 

“He’s so cute. I know he doesn’t like me, but I can’t help myself.” 

I snorted. “Yeah, he doesn’t like you and actually, he only dates white girls and you my friend, are not white.” I knew I was being harsh, but I hear about him every single second and it angers me when I want to vent about something in my life and she doesn’t think I’m as important as her crush.

She flinched at my harsh words. 

“You just wouldn’t understand, you’ve never had a crush before. You’ve never been in love before.” She said matter of factly. 

Ouch. 

This was all true, but it hurt when she said it like that. I’ve never felt romantic love, wow, thanks for reminding me. Maybe I’m too busy taking care of my dumb friends who don’t care about me. 

Maybe.

-----

“Bye, see you later.” I waved her off as we both went to class.

As soon as I turned around, I saw a familiar face. 

Jihoon. 

I fixed my hair and prayed none of my mascara had smeared on my face. 

Be confident, make friends. 

“Hey, Jihoon.” He turned around with a confused look on his face. I felt a leap in my heart when he smiled at me.

“Oh hey y/n, it’s weird to see you without a camera.” He joked. 

I felt my heart skip a beat when he said my name; I was so used to people forgetting about me. 

“Hah, well it’s weird to see you in the daylight.” I joked. When I saw him left an eyebrow, I knew I said something wrong. 

I felt my face burn up at my own words. 

“Not like that.” I blubbered out. He let out a light laugh. 

“Well, I mean, you’re right.” He took note of my embarrassed state and changed the subject. “So, what class are you headed to?”

“History of the Ancient Greek and Roman worlds, how bout you?” 

“Woah, what an interesting class. I’m heading to choir practice actually.” That made me stop in my tracks.

“Wait, you sing?” 

He chuckled. “Yup, that is what you do in choir.” I felt a bit embarrassed at my statement. “I’m joking, I’m joking, but yes, I do sing. Have been doing so for my whole life.”

“I did choir up until high school, I didn’t feel good enough for college. I still don’t know how to read music and it’s been years.” 

“It’s hard, but you get used to it. You should give it a shot if you really want to though. Or come watch one of our performances.” I smiled at him.

“One day.” I stopped walking and pointed at the building in front of us. “This is me. I’ll see you later?” 

He nodded and smiled. 

“I’ll see you later.”

-----

Two weeks had passed and I hadn’t seen much of Jihoon. We waved to each other in passing, but it was midterms soon, and exams were the only thing on my mind. We sent each other memes daily though and we just got each other’s humor- that was rare. 

I was filling out my history study guide until I heard my roommate, Naeun, walk in.

“Hey, y/n~ Ahyoung, Sooyoung and I saw you talking to a boy yesterday~ Oooooooo what’s his name?” 

She sat right in front of me, not giving me any personal space. 

I tried not to blush but honestly, my face was turning red because I was so annoyed at her.

“His name is Jihoon. He’s an RA in the dorm next to us, we met at an RA informational meeting.” I lied. I didn’t want to tell her I ran out of the dorm because I couldn’t handle her and people.

“He’s cute, nice body too.” I felt a an overwhelming sense of jealously and protectiveness wash over me. I hated it. I didn’t want to be this person. I probably only felt this way because I didn’t like Naeun right now. 

“Yeah, you can have him if you want. I’m not into him.” I lied. 

She raised a brow. “Really? Don’t be upset if he falls for me then.” I knew she was joking when she flipped her hair dramatically, but I wasn’t into it. 

I felt my buried insecurities rise when I stared intensely at her face. Her eyebrows were neatly plucked, which I was always too scared to do. Her skin was tanned and even, not blotchy and red like mine. Her fashion was trendy and most boys liked her because of her socialness, on the contrary, I was awkward and mean to boys, unintentionally. 

I just went back to doing my homework, shaking off the comparison. 

-----

Later that night, I saw a message pop up in my texts which was weird because I usually mute everyone.

‘hey midterms are killing me and i dont understand anything... want ice cream?’ 

I tried not to laugh even though both my roommates were at the library. 

‘uhhh shouldnt u be studying if u dont understand anything?? mayb??’ 

‘LOL thats not how it works young padawan’ I rolled my eyes. He thinks he’s so much older than me. 

‘also I don’t eat ice cream, i don’t eat dairy’

‘... aight imma head out’ 

I snorted and tilted my head back in laughter. 

‘ok, no ice cream... what DO you like?’

You. I like you. 

... Definitely not sending that.

‘UMMM i like hot chocolate?’ 

‘okay, i’ll be at your dorm in 5. what is your room number again?’

‘303′ 

‘aight’ 

I looked down at short shorts and tank top and then at the harsh winds outside. I threw on a pair of cute leggings and a heavy sweater. I put on a black jacket over it and placed a beanie on my head. 

I did my brows and put on a few swipes of mascara. I carefully applied my lightly colored lip balm and sprayed face mist to look dewy and cute. 

Is this a date? Or is this just two friends being adventurous? 

Whatever, I want to look cute at least.

Seconds after I finish, I hear a knock at my door. I took a deep breath.

This isn’t a date. This isn’t a date. Calm down.

I opened the door. 

He was wearing a puffy jacket and dark black jeans that outlined his thigh muscles. Yum.

I also noticed he was wearing a gray beanie... which was identical to mine.

“Cute hat.” I noted. He grinned and tugged on my beanie. 

“Same goes for you. Ready for some hot chocolate?” 

“Yes, where are we going to get said chocolate caliente?” 

Jihoon gave me a weird look. “Chocolate what?” 

I stared at him, stunned. “Chocolate caliente. Caliente means hot in Spanish. Therefore, hot chocolate. You didn’t take Spanish in high school?” 

He shook his head. “Nope, I took Japanese because I’m a weeb.” I snorted. 

“Wow, I should be surprised but I’m not.” He pushed me playfully and I tried not to freak out over the warmth of his skin. 

“You’re telling me you don’t watch any anime?” 

I rolled my eyes. “Of course I watch some anime. But am I full blown weeb... no.” 

He narrowed his eyes at me. “I can change that, don’t worry.”

“You still didn’t tell me where we are going.” My fingers felt crisp from the cold air. It wasn’t snowing tonight, but the ground was still white. 

“Aha, we are going to my favorite cafe called ‘Pink Heart Cafe’. It is decked in pink hearts.” 

“As expected from a Pink Heart Cafe.” I joked. In the near distance, I noticed a sign that had a baby pink heart that wrote ‘Pink Heart Cafe’ in cute lettering. 

I crinkled my nose from the cold air. “What, you don’t like pink?” 

“No, no, I love the color pink actually. It’s just kinda cold out here.” He nodded. 

“Maybe it would be warmed if we held hands... maybe.” 

For the first time, I felt comfortable with someone’s flirtatious comment.

I smirked and hooked my hand with his. I felt my heart beater faster. Much faster. And I loved it. 

I saw him smile widely and hide it with his hair. 

“I’m a lucky guy.” He whispered. 

We walked into the cafe. 

“Hi! Welcome to Pink Heart Cafe, for here or to go?” 

“For here, please.” The woman nodded. 

“Please take a seat. We will come take your order soon.”

We took our seats in the corner, next to the pink fairy lights. I was in love with the aesthetic. 

“Cute place. And fancy it seems, they come take our order at the table.” I sang a bit of Twice’s Fancy. 

“Oh gosh, you love Twice?? Me too!” I shrugged nonchalantly. 

“I mean, I like them, their songs are cute and catchy but I’m not a diehard fan.” 

He frowned. I can change that too. 

I sighed and rolled my eyes dramatically. “Wow, it seems like there are a lot of things you want to change about me. What do you even like about me?” I teased. 

He smiled harder and I noticed a blush on his face. 

“Uhhh, that’s a good question. I like... I like how you’re honest with your emotions. I like how you’re good at photography. I like that you want to become an RA because of the money and--” I gasped and pushed him on the arm.

“That’s not the only reason! Yes... the pay is good, but I like helping people.” 

Our laughter died down as he gazed at me intensely. 

“You like helping people? Tell me more about that.” 

I paused. No one had asked me that before. 

“Um, no one’s asked me that before. I guess I just like to see people happy. I like appealing to people’s emotions and most times, I’m pretty good at making people like me.” I said honestly. I saw his face light up at my words. “And I also want to be a teacher after I graduate, so being an RA would help improve my social skills and teach me how to interact with those younger than me and work through their problems. I don’t know, people say it’s hard and that it can be tough if kids come to you with suicidal thoughts and feelings of anxiety and depression, but I mean, I just want to do it and give back to the community somehow... I don’t know. ” I mumbled off, feeling like I said too much.

His gaze was so serious, I was scared I bored him to death.

He leaned closer to me and I freaked out. I held my breath, waiting for what was next until he spoke. 

“You’re so awesome.” He finally said. 

That... that was surprising.

“Um, thanks?”

“I’m serious! That’s so amazing why you want to be an RA. Honestly, I took up this job because it pays well and I’m good at talking to people, but sometimes I couldn’t care less about my residents. I like how you’re so kind to people.”

I laughed, “I’m not that nice.” 

“Yeah right, you were nice to me the first time we met. And I could’ve been a creepy dude and I almost made you break your camera.” 

“Well, I was nice to you because you are a cute boy.” He choked on his drink at my blunt words. I grew shy all of a sudden and laughed with him. 

“Jesus, give a boy a warning before you say such words.” He was pink in the face and I felt my heart warm. 

“It’s true, you are attractive. But it is also true that I’m not nice. My roommate is irritating the heck out of me and I have to tell myself every time I talk to her to say nice things and not hurt her feelings ‘cause she’s so damn sensitive.” 

He paused for a moment. I was nervous he would think I was a bad person. Which... technically is what I’m trying to convince him of. 

“Wow, you just got ten times nicer.” Now it was my turn to choke on my drink. 

“What? I just told you I have to force myself to be nice to my roommate even though I just want to snap at her all the time.” 

Jihoon leaned back in his chair with a smug look on his face. “Exactly! Most people would’ve just called her a bitch and moved on! Moved out or from what I’ve seen, some girls do mean shit like throwing another girl’s clothes out of her closet or flirting with her boyfriend. You... you just be nice when someone is mean to you.”

“She’s not mean, just rubbing me the wrong way.” Jihoon rolled his eyes.

“See? You are still defending her even though I’m sure she’s putting you through more than other people would take.” 

I shrugged. “I don’t know, most people don’t take me seriously when I talk about it.” 

“Try me.” 

I hesitated at first, but when I saw his open and honest look, I spilled.

“Well, I’m quite an introverted person so I need my alone time. And when I told her, this was actually the night that I met you, um, I told her that I wanted to be alone. And then she invited people over to the room and yes, they left soon, but when I’m in my isolation mood, I just... I just don’t even want to look at people.” 

He stared at me with a curious look so I rambled on. “I know, it’s dumb-”

He placed a gentle hand on top of mine.

“No, that’s not dumb at all. She should’ve respected your words. I would be so mad. Give me more!” He pounded his fist on the table for dramatic effect. 

I felt my heart lighten when he wanted to hear more of my words. I was so used to people ignoring me and brushing over my concerns.

“Uh, well, just... well not just Naeun, my roommate, but some of my friends in the same dorm as me. They are just really judgmental and the negativity just pains me. I don’t like judging others before getting to know them, so hearing them talk bad about random people they don’t know just pains me. And I’m no saint, yes I judge people, but I make sure I talk to them first and get to know them before I make judgments.”

Jihoon smiled. “You keep getting better the more I get to know you. I do the same thing, my friends think I’m crazy when I say ‘hey that dude looks kinda mean and no one likes him, i’ll be friends with him’!” 

My eyes widened. “Oh my god, that’s how I met most of my friends!” 

We laughed as we bad mouthed our friends and the people who have hurt us. 

“Why do you stick with such crappy friends? No offense, you deserve so much better.” 

I shrugged. “I mean, everyone says that to me and truly, I don’t even know. I just feel so connected to them now and they have their good moments-”

“Good moments aren’t enough if they consistently hurt you.”

“I know, I know! I just... maybe I’m not that good of a person then if I stay with them. Like people say, you are who your friends are.” 

“That’s bull, you’re a good person, I know that. And your friends don’t even care to listen to you rant, I can tell I’m the first person you told all this stuff too because you have flames in your eyes. You deserve friends you can trust and are able to rant to. I promise.” 

I bit my lip, thinking of what to say. 

“Thank you, I guess I just think I am helping them by staying with them. I don’t want to hurt their feelings.” 

“Just know that you have me now, and if you ever need to rant or vent or whatever, I’m here for you. You have me now.” 

I felt a wave of emotion wash over me. No one’s ever said that to me before and meant it. I know he meant it, it was written all over his face. 

I nodded slowly, accepting the moment we were having. 

We sat in a moment of silence until the waiter came for the check.

I dug through my pockets to get out the ten dollar bill I stuffed in there. 

“Hah funny,” Jihoon chided when he whipped out his card before I could do anything. I gasped. 

“Ah, Jihoon, I brought money!” 

He tsked and stood when the waiter gave him his card back. “Yeah right, I’d never let a girl pay on the first date, that’s like... illegal.” I rolled my eyes, until I realized what he had just admit.

“Date?” I questioned carefully. 

He looked away from my gaze, like he didn’t mean to say the word. 

“Yes... date. Do you have a problem with that?” 

I grinned.

“Nope.”