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#guy who just put his favourites and like two widely known ones that are obviously going to win
dykeofcornwall · 9 months
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hoidn · 1 year
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anon frēond asked for Sergio/Raquel and it took too long because i always overthink things sorry.
1. What made you ship it?
the tipping point at which i went from “ah, yes, the narrative is leading me to believe these people will be romantically involved” to “Help, I Am Emotionally Compromised By These People Being In The Same Scene And/Or Talking To Each Other” was when raquel tells sergio about her husband’s abuse in 1x04. raquel is just so vulnerable and real and brave and earnest, and then so utterly surprised by this complete stranger not only believing her but also offering to help her. and obviously the dramatic irony is that we know it’s part of the con, except double dramatic irony because it’s also very much not part of the con. while the professor might have come up with the idea of approaching the inspector as salva to get close to her, sergio is the one who’s beginning to realise just how much he’s underestimated this woman. she’s not just a chess piece to him anymore, not just inspector murillo, but a whole person who’s suffered and continues to suffer under the same system he’s trying to fight.
his face when she puts her hand over his just does something to me. he reminds me of a domesticated animal that’s not feral but also isn’t used to human contact. when someone touches an animal like that, its reaction is exactly like sergio’s: freezing, surprise, confusion. usually the animal will very slowly start to relax when it realises there’s no ill intent in the touch. sergio doesn’t get to that stage because ángel interrupts them, alas. but the way sergio then yanks his hand back as if he’s done something wrong is a very interesting reaction in and of itself. and we know raquel is also feeling some things because when he pulls away, she looks confused and hurt until she notices ángel. (does it seem like i’ve watched the scene many times? because i’ve watched the scene many times.)
2. What are your favorite things about the ship?
as i wrote recently: if you'd told me back in november that i'd become deeply emotionally invested in a relationship that starts off with subterfuge and deceit, then progresses into them chaining each other to pipes and holding one another at gunpoint, finally culminating in the promise of happily ever after, i would've rolled my eyes hard enough to sprain them. on paper the premise is so far away from what i value in relationships (equality, trust, a complete lack of stalking), that if i'd known about it i probably would've never watched the show. 
and i’m so glad i did watch it because it’s one of those rare examples of how good writing makes the unexpected compelling. the very relationship dynamics i ordinarily don’t like are exactly what i love about this ship entirely because of the complexity and nuance of their treatment. trust is my #1 favourite thing and the story of sergio and raquel’s relationship is nothing less than a tour de force exploration of trust in all its permutations. they’re two damaged people who are caught unawares by a bond that grabs them and won’t let go. they have this instinctive level of trust in each other right from the start, and even in their worst moments together, even when they don’t believe they can trust each other, they want to, and even when the trust seems broken, on some deep unconscious level it remains intact. i have a lot of feelings about this!
(like, okay, it’s entirely deliberate that their first conversation in 1x02 and their final conversation in 2x08 both include the question “can i trust you?” and are essentially the complete opposite of each other in every single aspect. just those two exchanges in and of themselves represent an entire essay about the characters and the journey of their relationship mediated through the concept of trust, and i’m such a nerd that i could actually write that essay because i live for this stuff.)
my #2 favourite thing is a woman arriving in a guy’s life and tearing it wide open then mending it just by existing. that pretty much describes every f/m ship i’ve ever had and these two are a particularly concentrated and superb example of the genre. also lbr they are Very Pretty together.
3. Is there an unpopular opinion you have on your ship?
honestly, i don’t feel that i know enough about the popular opinions in LCDP fandom to know what’s unpopular. one thing that i’ve noticed, though, at least in a lot of fic i’ve encountered, is the idea that sergio should have punished alberto in some way in order to avenge raquel. for me that’s a hard no. whether or not sergio has thought the situation through, or just instinctively understands it, the fact that he doesn’t take it upon himself to take any action against alberto post-heist is absolutely the best thing he could do for raquel. an abusive relationship strips you of your self-worth, your autonomy, your confidence in your ability to make good decisions. so as difficult and painful as it is for raquel to have to handle all the alberto-related shit herself, someone else just sweeping in and “fixing” it for her (without her knowledge or consent) would simply be another instance in which she’s deprived of control of her own life. now, if at some point sergio asked her if she wanted him to do something about alberto and she said yes, that would be absolutely fine because she’s in charge of making the decision herself. but taking that opportunity away from her is exactly what alberto did and, no matter how well-intentioned sergio’s actions would be, ultimately it’s the same thing.
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the7thcrow · 3 years
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600 degrees
~
pairing: bang chan x (fem) reader
summary: you can’t cook. like, really can’t cook. good thing your cute neighbour is here to help clean up the mess.
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word count: 5.1k
genre: neighbours au. strangers to lovers. the fluffiest of fluff, slightly suggestive.
warnings: a make-out session, bad humour, minho being a twat of a roommate, and tooth-rotting fluff.
rating: 14+
a/n: hi guys! hope you enjoy this one, it’s so much more wholesome and fluffy than what i usually write, but I'm pretty happy about it. don’t by shy to send me an ask or leave a comment. anything you have to say, I would love to hear. :)
...
..
.
“Fine. Since you won’t come, at least enlighten me on how you plan to keep yourself busy?” Minho asks, casually leaning against your kitchen island. He stares at you, with that familiar condescending smirk you’ve seen far too many times.
“I don’t know,” you state, rolling your eyes. Rising to your feet, you head over to your shared refrigerator, pulling a bottle of Sangria out of the fridge. “But I’m sure I’ll find something.”
“You know, if you want to drink, you could at least do it at the party.” Minho approaches you from behind, placing both his hands on your shoulders. “It’s a lot less sad that way.”
You slap his hand away, letting out a frustrated groan at the laughter he lets out from his own joke. “I get out plenty, quit acting like I’m some lonely cat lady,” you say, grabbing your favourite wine glass from the cupboard. “I like parties, I just don’t like Jisung’s parties. They always get way out of hand.”
“But Y/N,” Minho wines, picking up your freshly poured glass and taking a sip, earning himself a glare. “I never said you were a cat lady, just the lonely part.”
At that you snatch the glass away from his hands. Not wanting to deal with this torment any longer, you walk back to your comfortable, worn-in spot on the couch.
“You know I’m right,” he says, continuing despite the fact you begin to turn up the volume of the television. “And the only way you’re going to change that is by accompanying me to Jisung’s loud, out of hand parties.”
You turn to face him, raising your eyebrows. “Somehow, I doubt my soulmate associates himself with Han Jisung.”
“Well that can’t be right, because I associate myself with Han Jisung?”
“Shut up, Minho.”
Your roommate snickers to himself as he opens the fridge, taking a quick glance at everything - or for a better term, lack of anything - inside. “What are you even going to eat? There’s nothing leftover from last night.”
“I’ll make something,” you say. Frankly, you had expected the outburst of laughter, but that didn’t do anything to simmer down your growing annoyance.
“Make something?” Minho laughs, giving you an incredulous stare. “Y/N, I’ve lived with you for two years and I don’t think I’ve seen you cook anything once.”
“Hey, I can cook,” you return, wrinkling your nose. “But why would I, when I have you to do it for me?”
At this, it’s Minho’s turn to roll his eyes. “Yeah, okay, I take that back. I don’t want you to come, have fun curling up on the couch alone with your three cats.”
“They’re literally yours.”
“Whatever,” he says, opening your front door. “Just don’t burn the apartment down, alright?”
As he closes the door, you flip him off. At first, you aren’t sure if he saw, but you’re given your answer as his laughter echoes down the hallway, fading as he walks further away.
You scowl. Of course you can cook. Well, at the very least, well enough to make a meal for one on a saturday night. Minho didn’t know what he was talking about.
Minho. Your best friend and roommate for the last two years. Man, does the guy have a way of pushing your buttons. You love him, of course. In the weird, bickering, just short of volatile friendship sort of way the two of you had developed.
Still, you can’t deny that even with his painfully irritable nature, he is still a good friend. No matter how many times you say no, he always offers to take you anywhere he goes. He pushes you out of your comfort zone. He’s there to console you when a date goes bad, or you failed a test you studied hard for. He makes all his meals for two, just because he doesn’t want you to live solely off shitty take-out.
He’s your rock. Your platonic other half. Your closest companion.
Which means you are going to prove him wrong, and then rub it in his face as much as you possibly can. Of course, because that’s what friends are for.
~~~~
Then again, maybe you wouldn’t. Or, at the very least, it was going to be exceedingly more difficult now that your apartment was full of smoke.
Covering your nose with one hand, you take the tray of chocolate chip cookies out of the oven. If you can even call them that, as they now held a far closer resemblance to that of hockey pucks. Both in looks, and what you could assume in taste, as well.
Okay, you know chocolate chip cookies don’t really count as a decent meal, but they are the only thing you remember how to cook from when you lived at home. Or maybe you didn’t remember, based on the tray of failure sitting in front of you.
Then, to make matters even worse, your fire alarm starts going off.
“Shit,” you mutter under your breath. Now you are going to have to go to the front desk, let them know everything is okay.
Maybe Minho was right, you should’ve just went to Jisung’s stupid party and eaten something there. Putting all the other painful aspects of Han’s parties aside, Felix was his roommate, so the horderves were always excellent.
They were better than your hockey puck cookies, anyway.
Letting out a disappointed sigh, you open your apartment door, prepared to get a rough scolding from the lady working the front desk. However, you are surprised to find a man standing in front of you, his hand in the air, as if he were about to knock.
“Hi,” he says, awkwardly putting his hand back down at his side. He has messy platinum blonde hair, and soft eyes. He’s cute, and the realization quickly makes you recognize him.
“You’re my neighbor,” you say, pointing a finger at him. It’s not until he doesn’t respond immediately that you realize it was a strange thing to say. Obviously, he knows he’s your neighbor, and he might be a little offended you didn’t recognize him immediately.
Then again, the two of you had never really talked before. Everytime you would pass each other in the hall, he’d always give a polite nod and continue walking. Sometimes you’d try to say hello, or start a small conversation, but he always disappeared quickly. It had gotten to the point where you assumed he had some strange, unwarranted grudge against you.
So, it was safe to say that you were more than just a little surprised to find him at your door.
“Uh, yeah, I am. Are you okay? I thought I smelt something burning, and then I heard the fire alarm go off.” He asks, peeking behind you into your apartment, seeing if he can catch sight of any flames.
Instead, his eyes land on your tray of butchered cookies, and he… smirks?
“Oh,” he says, attempting to hide the smile growing on his face. “Having some cooking trouble?”
You stare at him for a moment, watching as his lips pursed together, stifling a chuckle. “Are you...” you begin, your jaw dropping slightly. “Are you laughing at me?”
“No,” he looks down at you, finally letting his grin free. “I would never.”
“Yeah, okay,” you frown, already not enjoying that sarcastic look on his face. You thought you’d be able to avoid that humiliating look considering Minho wasn’t here, but apparently not.
 “As you can see, it’s nothing. So if you’ll excuse me,” you continue, attempting to move past him. “I need to go get my neck rung by the lady at the front desk,” However, he doesn’t budge from his place in your door frame. You cast him a glare, which only makes his smile grow wider.
“Nah, don’t worry, I’ll go let her know,” he says, already turning to walk down the hall. You open your mouth to object, but he casts a glance over his shoulder, snickering. “You focus on cleaning up whatever those black lumps were supposed to be.”
You stand in your doorway, dumbfounded as your neighbor disappears down the complex staircase. Who did this guy think he was, openly laughing at your current predicament? Sure, if the roles were reversed, there’s no doubt that you would do the same. But that isn’t the point.
No. The point is that you are not impressed by the audacity of this stranger, and you are going to make sure that this distaste is known.
Grumbling to yourself, you dump the still smoking cookies in the trash can. It’s a shame, really. You’d thought you were doing so well, too. You thought this would be your chance to prove Minho wrong. Minho. Oh, he would be having an absolute hay day if he were here right now, and the thought only makes your scowl deepen.
“Well,” your neighbor calls from behind you, causing you to jump slightly. He reappears in the open door frame, sticking his neck inside, but not fully crossing the threshold into your apartment. “She’s not thrilled, but the alarm didn’t trigger the main system’s sprinklers, so you’re good.”
You let out a sigh of relief. “Thank God.”
The man smiles. “If you don’t mind me asking, what exactly were you trying to make anyway?”
An embarrassed blush casts itself over your cheeks. “Chocolate chip cookies,” you mumble, not meeting his eyes.
He lets out a burst of laughter, smiling widely. You can’t help but notice that he had a cute smile, dimples on both of his cheeks, eyes crinkled. Not that you were looking. Not that you cared, obviously.
“How’d you manage to mess up chocolate chip cookies that badly?”
“I don’t know,” you say, shrugging your shoulders helplessly. “You tell me.” You gesture towards the oven. Your neighbor smirks, walking inside your apartment. He bends down in front of your oven, before taking a look inside.
“Well, nothing seems to be wrong in there…” he starts, before glancing up at the set temperature. “Oh,” he states, before looking back at you, his eyes full of pity. “Oh boy.”
“What?” You ask defensively.
“The temperature. You forgot to convert it from celsius to fahrenheit. See?” He says, leaning away from the oven to give you a closer look. “So you thought you were cooking them at 350 degrees fahrenheit, when in reality they were at over 600 degrees.”
“Oh my god,” you say, smacking your palm against your forehead. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“I don’t know,” the guy shrugs. “You could have burnt your apartment down, so I’d consider it a win. You’re lucky I got here on time.”
You cast him a scowl, although you can’t seem to relinquish the faintest hint of a smile creeping onto your lips. You know damn well you wouldn’t have started a fire, and that the man showing up really didn’t stop anything but an uncomfortable conversation with the front lady. You are also sure that he is fully aware of this too, which makes your smirk grow wider. Alright, you’ll play along.
“Right, what ever would I do without you?” you say sarcastically, causing your neighbor to playfully roll his eyes. He leans against your kitchen counter, relaxing slightly.
“Does my saviour have a name?” You ask, opening the fridge to take a look at what’s inside. You feel your stomach rumble, taking a glance at the clock to see that it was already past 9:00.
“It’s Chris,” he smiles, leaning over your shoulder. “So what are you going to eat, now that you’ve successfully butchered the easiest recipe known to man?”
“Hey!” You snipe. “That is certainly not the easiest recipe known to man.”
“Fine, fine,” Chris says, putting his hands up in defense. “Maybe not the easiest, but it’s definitely up there. But putting that aside, what are you going to eat? Because I genuinely don’t think I’ve ever seen a fridge so empty.”
You want to quip back at him, but he’s right. Minho usually does the grocery shopping, but because of Jisung’s party tonight he wasn’t planning on cooking anything.
“Good question,” you sigh, closing the refrigerator door before leaning your back against it. “Maybe I’ll just order some take out. I don’t think my pride can handle another failure.”
Chris smiles. “Or, I have an idea,” he says, his eyes glinting. He heads over to your apartment door, and for a moment you worry that he’s leaving.
No, you’re not worried. You’re curious. That’s all. You were curious whether or not he was leaving, nothing more.
When Chris returns, he has his arms full of ingredients. Spinach, penne, tomato sauce, cream, a variety of spices. The list goes on, and he stumbles slightly, almost dropping the surplus of food onto your kitchen floor. Imagining the mess, you rush over to help him, placing the load of groceries onto the counter.
“I don’t know if you couldn’t tell before,” you say, motioning to your overflowing counter. “But I really can’t cook. I have no clue what to do with any of this.”
“That’s no problem,” Chris smiles, already separating the food into different groups. “I’ll help you.”
“No, no, no. I can’t ask you to do that,” you say, waving your hands in protest. You step in front of him, squeezing yourself between his chest and the kitchen counter, preventing him from reaching any of the ingredients. “You’ve already dealt with the desk lady for me, and brought over all these groceries. You’ve done more than enough.”
He smiles, gently placing his hands on your shoulders and effortlessly moving you to the side. “Why would I bring you these groceries if I knew you couldn’t do anything with them?” When you don’t respond, he continues. “Seriously, it’s no big deal. Don’t worry about it. Just let me help you.”
You sigh in defeat, ignoring the way your heart begins to beat faster in your chest. “Alright,” you say, grabbing Minho’s cutting board from the cupboard. “Let’s do this, then.”
~~~~
An hour later, you find yourself sitting on top of your kitchen counter, Chris stationed by the stove working on the pasta sauce. You had genuinely tried to help in the beginning, you really did. But after Chris criticized your (awful) cutting technique, and said he didn’t exactly trust you to do anything else, you gave up.
Besides, you don’t have a problem watching him work. Over the last hour, you’ve come to learn that Chris is an absolute whiz in the kitchen. Moving from place to place, adding spices by intuition and nothing more. This wasn’t something you could have managed to make yourself in a million years, and it’s obvious that if you tried to assist him right now, you’d only get in the way.
Of course, you’ve learned a lot more about Chris in the last hour than just that. Where he grew up, his hobbies, what he was currently studying at the university. Music theory, as you’d learned. As cool as it sounded, Han had managed to tarnish your image of music majors, but you suppose you could give Chris a chance.
“It’s almost done,” Chris says, glancing over his shoulder to look at you.
“Thank God, I’m starving,” you reply, leaping off the counter to stand beside him.
“What, no ‘thank you, Chris?’ No, ‘what ever would I have done without you, Chris?’” He mocks offence, placing a hand on his heart.
“It’s not even done yet. I’ll thank you after I try it, I promise.” You laugh, rolling your eyes.
“Ah, so you’re only thankful if you like it. I see how it is,” Chris says, crossing his arms in front of himself, pouting his lower lip slightly.
“Guess so,” you say, crossing your own arms mockingly. Chris smiles, those cute little dimples of his dancing across his cheeks.
Then you feel it, that little jump of your heart. The faintest skip of a beat that you’d familiarized yourself with over the last hour. That little hint of anticipation that makes you decide that you are, even if only slightly, a bit interested in Chris.
After all, he’s funny and sweet. Can carry a conversation well, and to understate it, undeniably easy on the eyes. That’s more than enough to give him a chance.
Most of all, however, you like that little flare between the two of you. The sarcasm, the banter. It doesn’t feel the same as when Minho does it, slightly condescending and done purely to harbour your annoyance. No, this is different. It is a challenge. He wants you to quip back, to push further. To make him smirk, or laugh, or roll his eyes.
“Alright, fine then,” he says, taking the large wooden spoon and scooping up some of the pasta sauce. “Tell me if this is up to par, your majesty.”
You aren’t sure if he wants you to take the spoon, or let him hold it for you as you take a bite. You decide to take the gamble, gently moving your lips around the spoon, tasting the sauce. You glance up at Chris, a small look of surprise on his face. However, you don’t miss the flash of something behind his eyes. The faintest hint of affection, interest.
The sauce itself is delicious. A perfect blend of tomato, basil and cream. You hum contently, giving him a thumbs up.
“Chris, this is amazing,” you praise, admiring the small blush that sprinkles his cheeks.
“It’s really nothing,” he says, diverting his gaze and rubbing the back of his neck, shyly.
“No, seriously,” you say, taking the spoon from his hand and scooping some of the sauce up yourself. “Try it.” You hold the spoon out in front of him, and he raises his eyebrows slightly. Your gaze remains firm. A challenge.
Hesitantly, he takes the bite, not breaking eye contact as he does so. You stare at him, watching the way his lips move around the spoon, the intensity of his gaze. The action itself should be innocent, yet you feel a warmth rise to your cheeks.
Chris swallows, taking his lips off the spoon. For a moment, neither of you say anything. You can feel the change in the atmosphere of the room. The spark between you two being brought alight.
You swallow hard. “So?” You ask quietly.
“Yeah, it’s good. Very good,” he says back, his voice low and raspy. He goes to take the spoon from you, and his hand lingers a moment, his thumb trailing the skin of your knuckles.
You feel yourself lean in slightly, fully prepared to take the leap, when suddenly he breaks away from you, eagerly taking a few steps back. He looks away, placing a hand on his face, as if he were ashamed.
“Shit. I’m sorry, I’m so sorry. I know you’re seeing someone, we shouldn’t be doing this. I’m sorry,” he babbles, completely turning away from you.
You open your mouth to say something, but no words come out. Seeing someone? Where the hell could he have possibly gotten that idea?
“Seeing someone?” You ask, incredulously voicing your thoughts. You grab him by the shoulder, turning him around. “Why do you think I’m seeing someone?”
Chris still refuses to meet your eyes, instead focusing intently on the wall behind you. “The guy that lives here- Minho - aren’t you two?”
“Minho?” You gape, contorting your face in a look of pure disgust. “Ew, gross! No! Believe me, I am not dating Minho, I’d genuinely rather stick this spoon in my eye,” you exclaim, lifting up the utensil.
At that Chris finally looks at you, wearing his own look of pure confusion. “Wait, really? But whenever I hear you guys out in the hall, the two of you are always so… flirty.”
“Flirty?” You laugh at the ridiculousness of the statement. “If by flirty you mean he teases me literally every god damn second of every day, then yeah sure, I guess. But believe me, there is absolutely nothing romantic about that. Not in the least.”
Chris shakes his head, a smile forming at the corners of his lips. “Wow. I am such an idiot,” he sighs, a rediscovered lightness to his tone.
“No, no. Don’t worry about it,” you reassure him. “Anyone could make that mistake, I guess. It’s really no big-”
“No, it’s not just that,” he cuts you off. “That’s why I’ve never talked to you before now.”
“You never talked to me because you thought that me and Minho were dating?” You ask, slightly confused. Even if you were dating, you didn’t see why that would stop him from starting a conversation with you. “Why?”
“Well,” he sighs, his cheeks reddening further. “I thought you were pretty, and based on the way you always quipped back at him, clever and funny as well. I don’t know, it just felt wrong to try and build a friendship with you, knowing how I already felt a little....”  
You smirk, drawing yourself slightly closer to him. “A little what?”
His smile transforms itself from embarrassed to a sly grin of his own. “A little into you, I guess.”
“It really is a shame,” you shrug, trying to hide the excitement building in your chest. “Because here I was, thinking my cute neighbor had some irrational grudge against me.”
Chris leans in, so the two of you are only inches apart. You can feel the heat radiating from his skin, smell the strong fragrance of his cologne. Sharp with lemon zest and mint.
“We could always make up for lost time, you know,” he says, his eyes flashing with mischief.
That is all the invitation you need to break the space between the two of you. You press Chris’ lips against your own, placing one hand on his shoulder and the other along the line of his jaw. His lips are soft, you notice. Tender in the slow rhythm the two of you develop.
He runs his hands up along your figure. One of them finding itself locked in your hair, the other placed firmly on the curve of your lower back. Gently, he leads the two of you away from the stove, placing you so that your back is pressed up against the kitchen counter.
You run your hand down along his chest, reveling in the groan he let’s out as your fingers trail down his lower abdomen. The sound is electricity pulsing through you, charging the room and igniting the atmosphere around the two of you.
His lips leave yours, trailing your jaw before making their way down your neck. Each individual kiss is slow and sultry, sending a shiver down your spine. You take a deep breath to stable yourself, and it does not go unnoticed.
Chris smirks, shifting his gaze to meet yours. His eyes are dark, his pupils blown out with desire. “You know, if we keep this up, the pasta sauce is going to burn,” he says, letting his fingers trail along your collarbone.
“Let it,” you shrug. “I wasn’t hungry anyways.”
Chris laughs at this, leaning forward so his face brushes the crook of your neck. “Yeah, right,” he says, allowing his lips to dust your skin. Suddenly, he bites down, not enough to break through the skin, but certainly enough to leave a small mark.  
You laugh, running your hands in his hair, half-heartedly pulling him off of your neck. “Hey! That hurt,” you exclaim, only half serious.
“Sorry,” he grins, before crashing his lips into yours once again. The pace between the two of you is much faster now, each kiss more passionate. More promising. Your desire rings through you, clouding your mind in a hazy fog of lust. It is dizzying, just how much you want him at this moment.
You're certain he feels the same way, given in how tightly he grips your thigh, his breath ragged every time you break apart. It is messy. Greedy. The two of you so deeply wanting more. More of each other.
You’re about to ask if he wants to move this to the bedroom, when suddenly the apartment door swings open. It’s almost comical, how quickly you and Chris break apart, springing to opposite ends of the kitchen.
“I hate to say it, but you were right,” Minho calls as he walks inside, not yet glancing up from his phone screen. “Shit got out of hand. Someone managed to break the pool table, don’t even ask how, I don’t know either. Almost gave Felix an aneurysm. I swear the kid was about to cry, poor guy. Han had to shut everything down. So you really didn’t miss out on-” Minho stops as he sees Chris, a confused yet bemused expression crossing his face.
“Oh, hey Chan,” he says, causing you to give Chris a look.
“A nickname,” Chris mouths to you, as discreetly as he possibly can.
“What are you doing over here?” Minho asks him, crossing his arms and leaning against the door. He has that smug smirk on his face that makes you want to punch him.
“Oh, well…” Chris starts, casting you a glance. “Y/N made some food, and there was too much of it, so she invited me over.”
“Really?” Minho asks, caught off guard. He walks past you and Chris, staring at the pasta and sauce currently sitting on the oven burners. “You’re saying Y/N made this?”
“Well, yeah?” Chris says, feigning confusion. “Of course, I wouldn’t lie about something like that. Why?”
You have to stop yourself from laughing, looking at the expression of utter bewilderment on Minho’s face. Minho glances at you, narrowing his eyes, before sighing.
“Well then, I guess you proved me wrong on two things tonight, Y/N,” he says, grabbing a bowl from the cupboard.
“What are you doing?” You ask as he begins to scoop some of the penne into his dish.
“Oh, you said there was a lot,” Minho responds, raising one eyebrow. “Can I not have some?”
“Sorry, go ahead,” you say, still slightly flustered by the abruptness of his entrance. Minho finishes filling his bowl and takes a seat at the kitchen island. As he begins to eat, the room is filled with a rather tense silence. You and Chris share an awkward look, unsure of what to do next.
Minho looks up from his dish, glancing between the two of you.
“Yeah, okay,” he says, grabbing his bowl and standing up from his chair. “I’m going to go eat this in my room. Have fun you two.”
Before you can say anything, Minho disappears around the corner, down the hallway leading to his room. You turn back towards Chris. The two of you stare at each other for a moment, before bursting out into a fit of laughter.
“He’s a bit of a mood-killer, huh?” You say, grabbing two bowls from the cupboard, offering him one.
Chris nods in thanks as he takes the bowl from your hands. “Just a little bit,” he laughs, beginning to scoop some of the pasta into both of your dishes.
The two of you take a seat at your counter, spending the meal talking and laughing. Nothing else, the moment has passed, but that doesn’t bother you. You enjoy Chris’ presence. His quick humour and thoughtful conversation.
It really is something that you could get used to, you decide.
After you’re done eating, you walk Chris over to the door, handing him his surplus of spice bottles and leftover spinach.
“Thank you for doing all this, seriously. The food was delicious, you’re seriously gifted. And also, thank you for covering for me, I really didn’t feel like listening to Minho die laughing over the burnt cookies,” you admit.
“It’s no problem, really,” Chris smiles. He shifts all the spices over to his right arm, letting his free hand fall down to his side. Softly, he takes your hand in his, letting your fingers intertwine.
“Listen,” he continues, shyly looking up from your hands to meet your eyes. “If you’re not doing anything tomorrow, you’re welcome to come over for a proper dinner. You know, so I can show you what I can actually make when it’s not a last minute attempt at salvaging a meal.”
You smile a goofy, genuine grin. “That sounds good to me,” you say. Hesitantly, you lean forwards, planting a soft, innocent kiss on his lips.
As you break apart, he hums contently. “I’ll see you tomorrow then, thanks for today. You made my night, Y/N.”
“I’ll see you tomorrow, Chris.” You watch as he walks over to his apartment door, which is of course, only a few meters away from your own. When he disappears into his own apartment, you sigh, closing your own door behind you. You lean against the frame, letting out a shaky breath, your heart beating rapidly in your chest. It’s been so long since you’ve held any genuine interest in someone, you feel almost giddy.
That is until you see Minho, leaning against the corner of the kitchen wall, watching you with his cheshire smirk.
“Dinner tomorrow, huh?” He asks, walking into the kitchen and scooping himself the last of the pasta.
“What about it?” You retort, not giving in to that pestering look in his eyes.
“Oh, nothing. I’m sure it’ll be good, considering Chan clearly made this,” Minho says, shoveling some of the pasta into his mouth.
“I don’t know what you mean,” you say, grabbing two wine glasses from the cupboard.
“Save it, the lady at the front desk told me you almost set the apartment on fire,” Minho laughs as you pour the wine.
You let out a groan, handing him his glass. “God dammit.”
“Don’t blame her though,” he smiles, leaning back and taking a sip. “I wouldn’t have believed you could have cooked that anyway.”
You roll your eyes. “Yeah, maybe you’re right.”
“Had me fooled for a second there though,” he says, patting you on the head. “But more importantly, you like Chan huh?”
“Don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Right. Nice hickey, by the way,” he smirks, raising his eyebrows.
You pull up the collar of your shirt, casting him a glare. “Okay, maybe I do,” you shrug. “What’s it to you?”
“Nothing,” he replies, before taking a second to think. “Just please don’t fuck him or anything tomorrow. Walls are thin.”
You laugh, taking your glass of wine and flopping yourself back down on the living room couch.
“Shut up, Minho.”
~
thanks for reading loves <3
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Text
What If? (H.JS)
Warnings : mention of divorce 
Word Count : 1897
Synopsis : she had never seen jisung as anything more than just a friend. that is until her and jisung volunteered to do a couples photoshoot for their mutual friend. seeing the way he looked at her, the way they just seemed to match perfectly had her wondering, what if they were more than friends?
“He said my portfolio isn’t good enough. There isn’t enough variety.” Hyunjin whined as he plopped beside me on the couch. I could see the disappointment and exhaustion in his eyes when he looked at me. He had been working on his photography portfolio for months now, hoping to impress his professor.
           “Did he give you any ideas to help expand your portfolio?” I asked, running my fingers through his hair. It’s always helped calm him down, or that’s what he told me.
           “He wants me to try to do a couples photoshoot, since I do a lot of portrait shoots. But I don’t even know any couples!” I slowly began to massage his head as he moved to rest his head in my lap, his eyes closing as he did so.
           “Y/N and I will do it.” Jisung offered from the kitchen. Hyunjin’s eyes shot open, meeting mine immediately.
           “Is there something you two aren’t telling me?” He questioned, causing Jisung and I to burst into laughter.
           “No, but we can act like it front of the camera.” Jisung chuckled as he sat in the chair beside the couch.
           “Besides, most of the school thinks we’re dating anyway.” I joked. Ever since high school, people have thought Jisung and I were couple since we’ve always been so close. Jisung is quite introverted and nervous around a lot of people, and he’s told me before that I comfort him just by being beside him. Growing up, he always clung to me in one way or another, not that I ever minded.
           “Yeah, when I met you two in high school, I could have sworn you two were a couple.” Hyunjin added, sitting up on the couch. “But you two would really do a couples photoshoot for me?” We exchanged looks before nodded.
           “You’re our friend and this is important to you. Of course we’ll help.” I smiled.
           The three of us set out to find some nice shooting locations the next day. It was the perfect day for a photoshoot; the sun shining high in the sky. Every once in a while, Hyunjin would stop us and we’d take some pictures. Jisung and I looked up some references so we knew how to pose and make it look more realistic.
           There was a lot of longing stares and laughter at how ridiculous this felt. Hyunjin was completely focused as Jisung and I posed for him. This was his final project and was worth 50% of his grade, and I could tell it was stressing him out. We tried our best to look as in love as possible, trying to hold in our laughter until the picture was taken, but sometimes it was difficult.
           “Stop looking at me like that.” Jisung chuckled, hiding his face behind his hands. I reached out, taking one of his hands in mine and continued looking longingly into his eyes. “Yah!” I watched as his cheeks became a rosy colour.
           “Let me love you!” I yelled as he suddenly took off running. As I caught up to him, I jumped on his back, thinking it would tackle him to the ground, but I was surprised when he caught my legs in his hands and continued running with me on his back. “Yah Han Jisung!” I shrieked, begging him to drop me.
           “Didn’t think this one through, did you princess?” I cringed at the cliché nickname, lightly hitting the top of his head in protest. “Yah! Don’t hit me!”
           The three of us ended up at a cafe looking through the pictures Hyunjin took throughout the day, after he downloaded them to his laptop. Jisung would point at one he thought was really nice, asking to send them to him later. But I just stared, my heart suddenly picking up pace.
           I stared at the pictures, seeing the wide smiles on both our faces. How perfectly our hands seemed to fit together. Hyunjin even took pictures of us when we were just being ourselves, running around the park with me on his back. You couldn’t tell the difference between the pictures where we were acting like a couple and when we were just hanging out.
           In all the years I’ve known Jisung, I’ve never seen him as anything more than my best friend. But looking at these pictures is like looking into another reality where he’s my boyfriend, and I don’t mind it.
           Han Jisung has always been the person I turn to when I have news to share, good or bad. Through all the hard times and fights, he stuck by me, promising me he’d never leave. He’s the person that knows me better than I know myself. He knows exactly what I need without me asking for it. It’s like he can read my mind.
           There’s no denying that he’s handsome either. He has a smile that can light up a room. Whenever I’m having a bad day, his smile alone can brighten it, bringing a smile to my face as well. And he’s got the cutest cheeks that puff out when he shoves food in his face, much like a squirrel. It’s one of my favourite parts about him. Honestly, I love everything about him.
           There’s no doubt in my mind that I accidentally fell for my best friend. I fell for him a long time ago, but I refused to admit it. But looking at these pictures, my heart can’t deny it anymore. I’m in love with Han Jisung.
           “Hey, Y/N, you okay?” Jisung’s voice pulled me out of my thoughts. “Do you not like the pictures? Are we not a cute couple?” He joked, his famous smile dancing across his lips. I couldn’t help but smile back.
           “We’re obviously the cutest! All the pictures are amazing, Jinnie.” Hyunjin smiled at us, the stress seeming to wash off him completely.
           “Honestly, you two would make a really cute couple. Look at this picture.” He showed us a picture he took just a bit ago when we got to the café. Jisung and I were standing in line, waiting to order. As per usual, Jisung had his arm draped across my shoulders, and I was holding his hand that was hanging off my shoulder, our fingers laced together. We were staring at each other, wide smiles on our faces. We weren’t even posing, that’s just how we’ve always been. “You are the happiest with each other.” Hyunjin added, but Jisung and I were both silent, realization hitting us both.
           “Wow.” Jisung breathed out, his eyes suddenly meeting mine. “I’m so handsome!” He exclaimed, a wide smile taking over his face. I let out a laugh, but I could feel my heart drop. It was obvious that I was the only one who fell.
           I eventually excused myself with the excuse of a project due in a couple days that I needed to finish. I put my earbuds in and took the long way home, overthinking every little thing between Jisung and I over the years. When did my feelings change?
           Was it the night my parents divorced and I couldn’t stop crying, wondering what went wrong? Jisung came over after I had called him and he heard I was crying. I told him not to, but he still showed up, drenched from the pouring rain, holding a bag of all my favourite snacks. He held me until my sobs faded and wiped away the drying tears.
           Maybe it was when we were partnered for a project in high school and we were in my room, laughing about something completely unrelated to the project. We stayed up late into the night, until my dad came upstairs, offering Jisung the spare room to sleep in, saying he already called his parents. Jisung was awake before me, waking me up with breakfast in bed and a shy smile.
           It could have been when I was stood up, and instead of just picking me up and allowing me to do the lonely walk of shame out of the fancy restaurant, he barged in, apologizing profusely for being late. I smiled when I saw him dressed in his best suit, his hair a mess from the obvious run he did to get there. He even paid despite the high price and his dwindling bank account.
           Or it could have been a mix of everything. Maybe my feelings were never platonic. I always seemed to laugh louder and smile more when he’s around.
           A short vibration from my phone pulled me from my thoughts. I opened the message from Hyunjin, seeing a couple pictures from today on my screen along with a short message. I don’t think you two are just friends.
           The pictures were ones he didn’t show us at the café, or at least not when I was there. The first one seemed to be from when we were just wandering around looking for a location to shoot. I was looking somewhere off camera, probably looking around for a place to shoot. But Jisung’s eyes were on me. His hands were in his pockets while a soft smile danced across his lips. The way he looked at me was the way guys in movies look at their lover. Eyes full of love and longing.
           The second picture was during one of the moments we were trying to act like a couple, but we couldn’t contain our laughter. His hands cupped my face, our eyes locked together in a sweet gaze. You could practically hear our laughter just by looking at the picture. And in both of our eyes was the same longing look Jisung gave me in the previous picture.
           The final picture was another from us acting like a couple. I had closed my eyes just like the couple in the reference picture, thinking Jisung did too. Our foreheads were touching, his hands cupping my face once again, and my hands resting on his chest. But his eyes weren’t closed. They were open, looking at me with such love that I could feel the butterflies erupt in my stomach.
           I stopped walking, just staring at the third picture, hope building up in my stomach. The lyrics of the song playing in my earbuds was background music to the sound of my heart pounding.
           Just then, Jisung’s contact picture popped up on screen as he called me. He always knew when I needed him. He knew me better than I knew myself. I should have known I couldn’t keep these feelings a secret from him. He could read me as easily as you can read your favourite book.
           “Turn around.” Was all he said before hanging up. Slowly, I listened to his directions, turning around, and seeing him standing just a few feet away. “You felt it too, didn’t you.” He said, neither one of us taking a step. Strangers just walked on by, not paying us any attention, as if they were extras in a drama we were starring in.
           “Yeah.” Was all I could say, and a smile formed on his face. “I think I always have.” I added, surprised he could hear me with how soft my voice was. He finally walked towards me, closing the short distance between us before cupping my face.
           “Me too.” He whispered before pressing his lips to mine in the first of many kisses we’d share.
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spacedikut · 3 years
Note
Derek would ask Spencer to explain how he feels about u to try and get him to understand that he’s in love with you but Spencer would just be like... is that not friendship?
god this idea is so fucking good but. i didn’t do it justice cause i went down a way more serious route :p 1.4k words, gn!reader
the team have been trying tirelessly to get spencer to just... see. what the rest of them see. the longing, lingering looks and requests to work together, the subtle touches that are so sweet in themselves but, with the added knowledge that spencer is Spencer, its...well, the team knows what they see. spencer is just lagging behind a little.
they try a whole plethora of methods. everyone talks to him and spencer either doesn’t connect the dots or simply says “we’re just friends!” and emily gets so frustrated she flicks spencer on the forehead and leaves a mark (i ask you picture pure, innocent spencer sat at his desk, watching emily’s retreating form with nothing but a puppy-dog confused expression and a red dent in the middle of his forehead).
penelope is at her wits end, so derek decides to step up and retry a very basic method: talking spencer through how he feels for you. surely he’s self-aware enough that he’ll hear himself and hear how un-friendlike it all sounds and... tada! love.
but it’s never quite as easy as you’ll think it’ll be, is it?
spencer should’ve known something was amiss when derek asked him if he wanted to hang out and let him choose where they would go - spencer? being allowed to choose where to hang out after work? have you ever heard of something called a red flag?
so spencer chooses a cafe which - immediately, the second they step through the doorway - spencer has a joy to him, telling derek about the last time you and him came here and what you ordered and what you thought of it and all these details that even the most attentive best friend wouldn’t think were anything more than trivial matters. he remembers the shape you tore your napkin into, for goodness sake. in what realm is that friendly behaviour?
then, to make matters worse, spencer, mid-walk to a table in the corner by a large window, abruptly changes directions, making derek almost spill his coffee. spencer apologies, then says they can’t sit in that booth cause that’s where you and spencer sit and - well. that’s your and spencer’s place, you can’t disrupt that! friends! friendly things and friends doing friendly stuff. friendship.
derek gives this scoff that spencer is so used to he barely reacts. when they sit, spencer is acutely aware that derek is staring - furrowed brows and this intense, firm gaze that only appears when he’s thinking. spencer’s only slightly intimidated. 
he’s never been able to lie to derek. he’s never been a good liar, period. he’s good at omissions and burying himself and his emotions but, god, if someone asks just the right question, he’ll fold like the cheap deckchair he truly is.
and derek... derek knows spencer better than he knows himself sometimes.
(is there anyone else that has similar qualities? no. of course not. only his best pal derek and not a colleague/very pretty person known as You)
a question. a question is all it takes.
“so, you and y/n come here a lot?”
derek’s starting light and spencer is so enthralled at the mention of you every worry he had about why he’s here with derek and why derek is looking at him like that flies out the window. 
“we do! actually, it’s the perfect meeting spot; the most convenient distance between our apartments and we both have favourite drinks here. we’ve become regulars, actually, so we make a habit of coming at least once a week at a minimum-“
and he keeps going, sweetly reminiscing about the first time you visited to the silly games you’ve created - because you’ll spend that long here, sitting opposite each other and just each other - and derek wonders how spencer doesn’t see it. doesn’t see the way he lights up at the mention of you, rambles like you’re a statistic spencer’s known for years and can’t help but bestow on everyone at every opportunity, not to mention the physical reaction he has to you. you’re not even present and spencer is wide-eyed, rosy cheeked, permanent curl to either side of his lips that looks involuntary.
he’s in love with you. his entire self, from head to toe, from mind to soul. everyone can see it, except you and him, apparently.
“they make you happy, huh?”
“well, obviously,” spencer hehs, “they’re my best friend.”
there’s an opportunity here, shyly gleaming from the corner of the conversation and derek digs it out. “you got a definition for best friend, reid?”
spencer’s taking a sip of his drink, but is happy to share his knowledge. he’s not quite as bright when he’s saying it. “a best friend has many definitions. friendship itself is usually defined as a relationship of mutual affection between people - it is a stronger form of interpersonal bond than an association, and has been studied in multiple academic fields-“
derek hums, encouraging him to keep going. he’ll get there.
and he does, after delving a little too far into the nature versus nurture debate.
“id consider you a best friend. jj, too. and garcia, of course. except... except with y/n it’s- it’s different.”
derek pretends to be shocked. “how’s that?”
“well... they have all the qualities id want in a friend - honesty, generosity, empathy...humour-“ spencer smiles to himself, small and intimate, remembering an inside joke between the two of you. “but they’re more than that, too. they’re there for me - not-not that you guys aren’t there for me too-“ derek just raises an eyebrow. “but...it’s different, with them. it always is.”
the shift of topic from friendship to you has spencer unfocused on his surroundings, eyes glazed over as he stares to the side of derek, who feels like he’s intruding - he rarely understands what goes on in that big head of spencer’s, vast in it’s knowledge and memories and self-perception, but right now he’s confident he does. 
it’s you. he’s thinking of you, the moments you have together - perhaps in this very cafe - that are reserved for spencer and spencer alone, a side of you derek will never know because it’s not his to know; it’s spencer’s, just as spencer is yours.
his voice is level but distant, the warning signs of that magnificent mind finding the pieces and putting them together. “i think-i think about them often. how they are, what they’re doing, if they’re thinking of me too. i know they’re only a text message away or-or, on cases, a few feet away... i guess i don’t want to seem clingy. or desperate.”
“they’d never think that. you know that, right?”
“i know. i-i know that. but-i don’t... i can’t.. i don’t want to risk losing them, i guess. one wrong move and they’ll realise what a-what a complete mess i am. ill unravel and they’ll see all the dark inside and they... they don’t deserve that.”
derek goes to interrupt, because god is spencer wrong, but he doesn’t have the chance.
“they deserve love and laughter and everything i can’t give them if they... if they get too close.” now, spencer brings himself to look derek in the eye. there’s a seriousness there, a solemn stand that spencer doesn’t often take. “i can’t lose them, morgan. i can’t.” his hands tighten around his coffee cup. “i want them here, with me, for as long as i can convince them to stay. i don’t want to be selfish, i don’t- i don’t mean to be, but. i want this. i want them. every day for the rest of my life, i want them. i choose them. im just terrified they’ll see me and... they won’t choose me.”
there’s an expected silence that befalls the two of them, the busting background noise of the cafe the only moving piece. does he get it now? does he understand what has motivated every thought and feeling? every worry and action?
“reid,” derek says, softly, in a tone that has spencer straightening his back. “that’s not... that’s not just friendship. you know that, right? you can see that?”
spencer blinks. 
no. you’re friends - close friends, yes, but friends nonetheless.
but he thinks back to what he’s just said - 
he’d say the same for jj, right? for penelope, and for derek. even gideon, perhaps.
except... no. he wouldn’t. it’s for you, he’s for you, all of it and all of him.
and then the picture is as clear as day. no fog, no obscurity, no hesitance - and spencer’s relieved. relieved that finally, finally, he can put all of his feelings into one simple sentence.
“im in love with them.”
“yeah,” derek says, leaning back against the booth. “yeah, reid, you are.”
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ghost-ghost-baby · 3 years
Text
We're Just Friends! (Omega!bakugo x alpha!reader x omega!Izuku) pt. 2/?
Pt. 1 / pt. 3
Lore: Once an Alpha reaches 21 they get their first rut, they’d either already have their mates or the rut will act as a push for them to get together and bond.
Summary: Reader and Katsuki have been friends for years, and everyone expects them to get together, until reader rescues an omega that lives in their building, and things get a touch more... complicated
Warnings: omegaverse, obviously, yandere themes, Izuku b showin that stalker side more and more, reader is still dense asf, Bakugo b MAD, hella swearing-
“Katsuki, can you let me go? I have class-“ Your words were met with a grunt, Katsuki only tightening his grip on you.
“C’mon, it’s just one class and I can come back right after and we can nap?” You sighed when he still didn’t respond, you didn’t want to hurt him, but you were already late. (You’d hit snooze on your alarm a few too many times, but you couldn’t bring yourself to push Katsuki off until you absolutely had to.)
“I’m sorry-“ you kissed his forehead, smiling at the faint purr he let out. Then you pinched his scent gland, and the omega was springing out of bed and snarling like a cat when you stepped on its tail.
“I know! I know! I’m so sorry, I promise I’ll run back!” You rushed to throw on a pair of jeans, stumbling around as you pulled them up. Katsuki only growled at you from the bed, watching you struggle with dark amusement, sleep still heavy on his mind.
“Text me if you need me to pick anything up on the way home!” You pressed a kiss to his forehead before you left, feeling slightly less guilty as his scent returned to its usual content aroma.
“Hey! L/n, wait up!” You were getting into the elevator when a familiar voice made you turn around, and you waved as Izuku ran down the hall, clutching his backpack like a lifeline.
“Midoriya! Hey! Where ya headed this early?” You pressed the ground button once he was finally in the elevator, biting the inside of your cheek when the elevator closed and you remembered just how potent his scent really was. It was fine, you could handle this, just a minute or two-
“Oh! I just got accepted into UA university! I’m doing forensic science!” Midoriya chirped, and you felt your jaw drop.
“No way! That’s my degree, what’re the odds!” You grinned, missing the way he relaxed when you didn’t suspect anything. “I can show you around if you want?” The elevator dinged and Midoriya beamed as the two of you stepped out.
“Oh really? Are you sure it’s not a bother?” His scent took on a slightly worried turn, and you were reassuring him without a second thought.
“Yeah it’s no bother at all! It’ll be nice to have someone in my classes, my friends and my roommate are doing music degrees so we don’t really have classes together!” The two of you fell into step perfectly, and you couldn’t help but flush when Midoriya walked so close your sides brushed together.
The walk to university had never seemed this short before, and the two of you were getting to class in what felt like record time. The two of you took a seat up the back, barely having time to get your books out before Mr. Aizawa entered, a thermos of coffee bigger than your head slammed down in the desk and the class shut up, the lecture beginning immediately.
“How did you find Mr. Aizawa?” You asked as soon as the two of you were outside, Midoriya had been totally engrossed in the lesson, filling five pages compared to your two. Hey, school had never been your strong point, and you wouldn’t have even made it through high school without Katsuki helping you study, even if he did yell at you for being stupid like, a lot.
“Oh the lesson was great! He seems kinda grumpy for a teacher, but he covers a lot of details and-“
“Hey, Y/n! Who’s the fresh meat! And why’s Bakugo in such a foul mood, what’d you do dude?” A familiar voice interrupted Midoriya, and you waved as Mina and Denki came into view, Denki’s arm slung around Mina’s shoulder.
“I didn’t know Katsuki had class today, why isn’t he with you guys?” You couldn’t help but frown, it wasn’t like Katsuki to not mention having a class, especially when it was in the morning like yours.
“Oh, Kiri and him had something to take care of!” Mina chirped, and a flash of something went through your heart… maybe Katsuki just didn’t want you as an alpha, and Kiri was all sorts of charming-
“L/n, don’t be rude, introduce us!” Mina was staring right at Midoriya, who had moved to stand slightly behind you.
“Oh right! Sorry! This is Izuku Midoriya, we ran into each other yesterday and then realised he lived right opposite Katsuki and I!” You ruffled the back of your hair nervously, and Midoriya couldn’t help but glance at your scent gland, your unmarked scent gland. So you and Kacchan hadn’t sealed the deal, huh? Perfect-
“Oh, he’s so cute! I’m Mina Ashido and this is my mate Denki Kaminari! What are you studying?” Midoriya seemed to relax next to you and you couldn’t help but smile, Mina was always so good at making people feel included.
“You know… you can call me by my first name, if you wanted.”
“Huh-?” Those words had you stumbling over your feet and almost face planting onto the pavement. That was a courting invitation- plain and simple, and your brain short circuited as you turned to face the omega. He couldn’t mean that, right, you’d only known him a day and you’d been far from charming and- was Midoriya holding a blanket?
“I know it’s kinda soon but being with you just feels right- and you’re such a good alpha I’m sure you have dozens of omegas you could choose from and I don’t even know when your birthday is but I couldn’t not say anything so maybe if you wanted to scent this blanket I could put it in my nest and we could start the courting process...“ Midoriya trailed off when you were still silent, eyes darting between him and the blanket and your mouth wide open in disbelief, and your happy scent pumping out in waves was the only thing stopping him from crying.
“M-Me? You want… me… to be your alpha-?” Your face went bright red as you finally processed what was happening, a warmth quickly spreading out from your chest. Katsuki briefly crossed your mind, but then you remembered he didn’t want you- and you’d be a liar if you said you didn’t want Midoriya.
“Mid- Izuku, sorry, I’d be honoured!”
“Bakubro- what do you think of f/ns new friend, have you met him yet?” Denki called when he and Mina finally found Katsuki and Kirishima outside one of the cafes next to the university, and the blonde almos dropped the bag of food he was holding.
“Ha- What the fuck do you mean new friend! They didn’t mention anything to me-!” Katsuki was already yelling, and Kirishima sighed as the omegas scent took on a burned tinge, waving in apology to the passer bys that frowned.
“Yeah, apparently he just moved into your building, too!” Mina continued, the two of them far from surprised by this reaction.
“What’s his fucking dynamic- if he’s the same asshole from last night I swear to god-“
“Oh… so you haven’t met him yet, he’s an omega and I’m sure you’ll like him!” Mina waved her hands as she tried to diffuse the situation. It almost did, until Katsuki remembered that scent from last night.
“What does… what does he look like?”
“Oh he’s short! Green hair that was kinda a mess but he had the cutest freckles-“ Mina started, giving Denki a light shove when he interrupted.
“And his eyes man! Biggest puppy dog eyes and they were the brightest green colour!” Katsukis blood went cold with each word, dread and rage quickly settling on his chest, and he could barely ask the next question.
“What’s his name?”
“Um I’m not sure- what do you reckon babe?” Denki turned to Mina and she frowned as she tried to remember.
“I think it was Izuku Midoriya!”
That was the nail in the coffin, an involuntary growl bubbling up in Katsuki’s chest as his vision went red. Why the fuck was Deku back?
You slowly opened the door to your apartment, frowning slightly when Katsukis scent was fainter than usual. He mustn’t have gotten home yet. You’d invited Izuku over to study, (you could really use the help, and he’d taken so many notes-)
“There’s the couch with the TV, or we could go to my room but it’s kinda small and-“
“Wow, Y/n, I thought you just invited me over to study-!” Your face went red at what Izuku was implying, and you were falling over yourself to insist you did just want to study and there weren’t any ulterior motives. Izuku was… slightly disappointed, but there’d be time for that later, so he merely took a seat on the couch and got his books out while you got the two of you a drink and some snacks. The lounge was smaller than his, but it was cozy, and the couch was far more comfortable than his. Plus, the whole place reeked like you and Kacchan, and it took everything Izuku had to stop himself purring, nothing had ever felt so right.
“I didnt know what you wanted so I just grabbed a variety, and I hope jasmine tea is okay? It’s my favourite and I’m kinda out of anything else- Katsukis meant to be doing a grocery run soon anyway-“ you set the tray down next to Izuku’s notebooks, plopping down on the couch with a sigh and taking a second before you grabbed your own books.
“Let’s get down to it then, huh?”
Taglist (v sorry if any of em r wrong)
@pasteldaze@hopeless-ro-simptic@ntngann@somerandominternetgirl@ianem005@lalaluvzen@antisocial-minnie@rogueofbullshit@hakunamatatayqueen@so-uncute@therealwalmartjesus@unlightedfool@
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jmnjmnjmn · 3 years
Text
Celebrity Crush| part 1 | BTS x Reader mini series
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Pairing: BTS x Celebrity!Reader
Key words: celebrity crush, singer, idol.
Word count: around 8,000
Masterlist
Okay, this one is just regular fluff, but it definitely has potential to become more juicy, maybe even angsty... I had many ideas when I was writing it, but decided upon cutting it where I did. Maybe there will be part two to this story, maybe not. If there will be it will also probably be able to functionas a totaly separate one shot. Also I couldn’t decide on a ship here! Initially it was supposed to be RM, but I kept coming back to JK (my bias xd). That’s where possibility of an angst story lays... Anyway tell me what you think of this piece!
“AH!” Namjoon exclaimed, dropping his spoon down into his soup.
“Hey, watch it! You’re spilling everything!” Seokjin yelled back at him as some of his friend's soup splashed out from his bowl.
“What happened?” Hoseok asked, sipping his soup slowly and looking at Namjoon with curiosity.
“It’s-It’s (Y/N).” He stuttered out, his eyes still glued to the screen of his phone. He was scrolling through Twitter when he noticed a tweet from his favourite female artist, (Y/N), announcing her world wide tour.
“What? Did she message you?” Seokjin asked him with a chuckle, knowing well that wouldn’t happen.
“I wish.” Namjoon scoffed and clicked on a link to an article some music site posted immediately after reading (Y/N)’s tweet. “(Y/N) has announced details of her long-awaited world tour.” He read out loud to  his friends already feeling his heartbeat pick up. “The singer has continuously updated her fans on the details, promising them that she was working on the announcement. Now, via a short video on Instagram simply captioned ‘Hello world’, she has finally revealed when and where the No Limitations tour will be starting off. You can see the full dates, which she simultaneously posted on her Twitter account, below.” He quickly scrolled down to take a look at the dates and locations. His jaw dropped as he scanned down the list and noticed the Asia leg of the tour. “Soul is on the list.” He muttered. “In January. Seoul is on the list.” He repeated looking at his friends with wide eyes.
“Finally!” Hoseok exclaimed reaching across the table to pat him on the shoulder. “You can go see her then.”
“It hasn’t been announced when tickets will go on sale.” Namjoon said in panic as he frantically searched the internet for information about the tour.
“I’m sure our staff can get you in there without a ticket.” Seokjin said casually, but Namjoon took the matter very seriously. (Y/N) wasn’t just someone who’s music he liked. He also had a huge crush on her as a girl in general and he wasn’t about to pass on an opportunity to see her perform live.
“I have to talk to our PD about that.” He said in an excited tone and clicked his Messages app to draft up a passionate yet professional text saying how much he wants, no, needs to go to (Y/N)’s Seoul concert.
“Now?” Seokjin asked, taken aback a little by his fast pace.
“No time to waste. It’s (Y/N) we’re talking about.” Namjoon chuckled. “If all goes well maybe we could work on some music together.”
“Yeah and maybe something more.” Hoseok teased him, earning a loud laugh from Seokjin. Namjoon only smiled up at them from his phone, because among those who followed the news about BTS it was a well known fact that he had a thing for (Y/N).
Whenever they would get asked about their celebrity crushes in interviews he would say (Y/N)’s name. Ideal girl - someone like (Y/N). A song they could listen to on loop - (Y/N)’s latest single. Fashion inspiration at the moment - (Y/N). Favourite movie - that one (Y/N) had a cameo in for like three minutes. It would happen so much that ARMY’s started making compilations of him talking about her on YouTube called “Namjoon drooling over (Y/N) for 7 minutes straight” and so on. At first he was embarrassed about it, but after some time that awkward feeling turned into hope that maybe she’ll see it and fall for him as well. He knew it was wishful thinking, but he still liked to imagine the moment you would message him saying you would love to collab on a song.
-
“I’m going to go talk to our PD.” Namjoon said, as he took off the bright pink sunglasses with Happy New Year written on top of them in a silly font. He wore them for the small photoshoot they just had for BTS’s New Year’s Eve post on Twitter.
“Now?” Jimin asked him, raising his brows.  He was still wearing his party hat he put on for the session. “It’s New Year’s Eve.”
“I know. I just-” He was interrupted by Taehyung’s loud cheer. “I’ll be right back.” Jimin just shook his head at his eagerness to find out whether (Y/N)’s staff has already answered BigHit’s request for letting Namjoon go to your show with a backstage pass as a celebrity guest of sorts.
Since they were already at the BigHit headquarters for the photoshoot and a little celebration for the beginning of the new year Namjoon had to walk just a couple of doors down to get to PD’s office. He took a deep breath before knocking on the door. After hearing a faint invitation he pressed on the handle and opened it.
“Oh, it’s you. Why aren’t you with the others celebrating?” The PD asked, obviously surprised to see Namjoon.
“Ah, yes. I’ll be joining them in a minute.” He said, remembering Jimin’s words. “I just came here to ask about the No Limitations show. It’s in January and since it’s already first of the month I wondered-”
“Ah, of course.” PD cut him off with a smile. “You're going.”
“Really?” Namjoon asked in shock.
“Yes, all of you are.” Namjoon must have looked very confused for a moment there, because PD rushed with an explanation. “We got an answer saying they were going to issue a formal invitation to the concert and an after party to the whole band anyway. Go and pass on the news to the rest of the boys. We’ll have a proper meeting about this next week.” Namjoon thanked him accesively and assured he’ll let the rest of the members know about the situation. As he walked down the hall he heard their voices from the dance studio they had the photo shoot in. He was speechless.
“It’s happening.” He thought, leaning on the wall to catch a breath before coming inside. After a moment he pushed the door open and joined his group members with a bright smile.
“Guys, guys. Listen” He called. “We’re going to (Y/N)’s concert!” He exclaimed and they cheered, gathering around him, smothering him with hugs and tugging on his cheeks teasingly.
-
“Look at him.” Jimin chuckled pointing at Namjoon who was pacing around the room. “So excited for the concert.”
“Of course he is. He’s going to meet his crush.” Seokjin added, also laughing.
The whole group was teasing him about (Y/N) all throughout January. It was seventeenth today, the day of her Seoul show and he couldn’t wait. They already got their hair and makeup done. They were dressed to the nines. All that was left was to get to the show.
“The car is here.” Someone from the staff announced and all the boys got up from their spots. As they walked down the hall together they all took turns patting Namjoon on the shoulder for encouragement.
“Do you think we’ll have a chance to talk to her?” Jungkook asked with excitement when they were all in the car together.
“Of course!” Hoseok exclaimed.
“No, but like, for real talk. Not just: nice to meet you, let’s take a picture, goodbye.” The youngest explained quickly.
“Hopefully.” Seokjin said, patting Namjoon on the thigh as that was something he was worried about. He would definitely be happy if he got even only a second with (Y/N), but he wished for more.
After a short drive the car stopped in an underground parking lot under the venue of the concert. As they got outside they could hear the cheers of the crowds gathered outside. Their staff took them on an elevator explaining once again how the night will go. First a before party with other guests, then the concert itself and after that the after party at a hotel. Namjoon repeated the sequence of these events in his head a million times already. Technically he was prepared, but practically he was a mess. His hands were sweating and his heart was racing like crazy. He looked around the small elevator at his closest friends and the familiar faces of BigHit staff who were accompanying them. Realising he has so many people around him for support eased his nerves a little.
“I can’t believe we’re in the same building.” Namjoon muttered under his breath.
“Yeah, she was also in the same building as us at the VMA’s and AMA’s and so on.” Yoongi teased him and everyone chuckled.
“That’s true, Namjoon.” Taehyung agreed with a grin. “You shouldn’t be so worried.”
“Easy for you to say.” Namjoon added right as the elevator door opened.
“Yeah, she already saw us perform at one of the award shows. She knows who we are. It’s going to be fine.” Jimin said in a nervous tone. Namjoon just nodded to himself trying to make the anxious thoughts go away as they approached the area where the before party was held.
They were all excited to see (Y/N)’s show and attend her after party, but with the tremendous enthusiasm also came the stress of meeting an A list celebrity from overseas. 
-
“I can’t believe she’s still not here.” Namjoon whined to Taehyung and Jimin as the rest of the group scattered to chat with other invited idols and celebrities. “All the dancers and her band are here already.”
“It’s still early.” Taehyung tried to cheer him up. “She’ll show up any moment. I’m sure.”
“Definitely.” Jimin agreed with him energetically.
Before Namjoon could voice another concerned thought lingering in his brain everyone in the room started cheering and clapping. He looked around wondering what caused this reaction as he noticed the obvious reason.
“Thank you all so much for coming.” (Y/N) said stopping somewhere in the middle of the gathered crowd of celebrities and staff. “It means a lot. Really.” She put her hand to her chest as she spoke. “If all goes well the show will be starting in a couple of minutes. Wish me luck and have fun.” 
“That’s it?” Taehyung asked as (Y/N) was rushed away by her staff to the stage entry. “I thought she was going to chat with everyone or something.”
“Do you chat with guests before the show?” Jimin asked. “That’s what the after party is for.” He explained and Namjoon hummed in agreement. Just the quick glimpse he caught of her was enough to leave him speechless.
“Let’s go watch the show.” Hoseok said approaching the three from behind with the rest of the group following close behind.
There was a big screen in the backstage lounge and a couple of smaller TV’s located at the stage entries for those that wanted to glance at the stage during the show to see the real deal. They watched the first half of the show in the lounge and later relocated to the left entry area. Namjoon’s eyes were glued to the screen as everyone around him chatted away. He tried to pay attention to the conversation and partake from time to time, but his focus quickly went back to (Y/N). She looked stunning singing and dancing on stage.
Suddenly a group of staff dressed in all black rushed into the area they were hanging out in with some other guests.
“Wardrobe change, left.” One of the staff said as she clicked on her earpiece.
Namjoon almost jumped out of his seat when he saw (Y/N) jogging down from the stage and into the swarm of her people from her team.
“Woah, that gave me chills.” Yoongi commented as (Y/N) passed by them surrounded by her wardrobe, hair and makeup team.
“Say something.” Hoseok whispered, elbowing Namjoon’s side.
“Like what?” He asked following (Y/N) with his gaze as she disappeared behind her dressing room's door.
“Great show, looking good. Anything really.” He encouraged him with a cheeky smile.
“No.” Namjoon shook his head, already feeling the blood rushing to his head.
“Do it. Do it.” The rest of the members repeated after Hoseok, but he only shook his head once again.
“She’ll come out any second.” Seokjin added in a warning tone.
He was right. The dance number performed by her backup dancers was getting to an end and (Y/N) should be running out onto the stage soon to sing the next song.
“Great show!” Jungkook yelled out in English.
All the boys’s heads snapped in his direction and then onto (Y/N). She was walking out of her dressing room in long strides. As Jungkook yelled out his praise she turned to look his way without stopping,
“Thank you!” She answered quickly before being escorted by her staff into the understage corridors.
All the boys started shoving and pushing the youngest member teasingly.
“Namjoon was supposed to say that. You took over his part. Jungkook, you’re so eager.” They yelled with laughter.
-
“What time is it?” Taehyung asked the group as most of the guests gathered in the backstage lounge to watch the encore of the show.
“It’s close to eleven.” Seokjin answered, looking at his phone.
“Before we finish off the show with this last song I just wanted to take a minute to say: Thank you so much.” (Y/N)’s voice echoed from the stage and through the speakers in the lounge. She was standing in the bright lights holding the mic to her lips. “Thank you for choosing to come see the show and spending the night here with us. I really can’t even begin to express how grateful I am for all of you, here in the audience and back at home watching and streaming my music and the shows. Thank you so much.” 
“Ah, she’s so nice. Never forgetting about her fans.” People around muttered.
“I really, truly appreciate you guys. I cannot imagine how this year would’ve gone if I hadn't spent it with all of you, all of the people on the stage and behind it. We’ve been away from our homes for so long.” (Y/N) voice got higher with nerves and sadness that came over her as she spoke about her home. “We’re coming close to ten months on the road now. That’s a long time.” She said, bringing her hand to her chest to show her gratitude. “Thank you so much for putting up with me.” She chuckled and the staff cheered. “I feel so lucky and so fortunate to be working with all of you and to be able to perform in front of all of you.” She sighed deeply, undoubtedly masking a cry. “So thank you. I love you so much. Thank you.”
-
The audience was shouting and applauding loudly as (Y/N) walked off the stage waving to them. As soon as she was out of the view she handed her microphone to one of the sound people and took a big gulp of water from the bottle one of the staff handed her.
“Thank you.” She breathed out. “I need to get out of this hair as soon as possible.” She chuckled tiredly as she walked into her dressing room.
“We’ve got about twenty minutes to get you ready for the after party.” Her assistant, who was waiting inside, spoke calmly as the beauty and wardrobe team gathered around (Y/N) quickly taking out the bobby pins from her hair and undoing the back of her dress. “There’s quite a lot of guests your manager would like you to talk to, at least for a minute.” She said and quickly moved on to listing all the most important people attending the party.
“Have any of those people been informed that I might want to reach out to work with them later?” (Y/N) asked, getting into her oversized sweatshirt dress with the help of some staff so that she doesn’t ruin her makeup.
“No, that’ll be done after tonight. Sometime this week though.” She explained scrolling through something on her tablet.
“What time is the flight to Osaka tomorrow?” (Y/N)’s voice sounded tired as she thought of getting on another plane.
“Actually, there’s been a change of plans.” Her assistant said casually. “You got surprise booked for a daytime show tomorrow, so we’re staying in Seoul for that for the whole day and flying to Japan the next morning. The crew will be already there setting everything up for Saturday.”
“Two days in Seoul?” (Y/N) was surprised.
“Mhm.”
“What’s the show?”
“King of Masked Singer. You’re going to be the surprise opening act. I’ll fill you in on everything tomorrow morning.”
“Perfect.” She said smiling at herself in the mirror as the hairstylist was fixing up her hair.
“Heels or sneakers?” One of the wardrobe girls asked.
“Heels.” (Y/N) answered without hesitation. She wanted to look her best when surrounded with so many new faces at the after party and pairing sneakers with an oversized sweatshirt didn’t seem like the greatest combination for that.
“Ready.” The head stylist stated as one of the staff helped (Y/N) get into her thigh high booties.
From there, accompanied by security, (Y/N) and her assistant walked to the elevator that took them to the parking lot located under the venue.
-
As (Y/N)’s car pulled up in front of the hotel a swarm of fans and paparazzi started yelling out her name and waving to get her attention. She stopped to get her pictures taken, walked up to a couple of fans to sign their albums or pictures and walked inside to get to the after party. With her assistant following her every step and the three body guards right behind them she took yet another elevator to the hotel bar rented for the occasion. 
“Let’s do this.” (Y/N) whispered to herself as she pushed the bar door open.
When she walked deeper into the crowded room random hands touched her shoulders and unknown voices spoke words of praise directed her way. She smiled and thanked the faceless mass making her way towards the DJ’s stand.
“That’s her.” Hoseok whispered as (Y/N) passed by the group of boys.
“Woah. She’s dressed cool.” Taehyung gasped, eying down her figure.
When she stepped onto the slightly elevated stage the DJ stopped the music and handed her a microphone. A wave of cheers erupted from the gathered guests as everyone noticed the star of the night had arrived.
“Hi.” (Y/N) spoke sweetly into the microphone and let the crowd yell or whistle back at her for a moment. “It’s so nice to see all of you here.” She chuckled. “Eat, drink, have fun. It’s all on me tonight. Just tonight.” She joked and the crowd clapped and yelled in excitement. “I know you all came here after the concert, but it’s not all about my music tonight.” Her tone turned mysterious all of a sudden. “It’s actually a very special day for someone else as well. A very funny guy, an inspiration in the studio, a dance mastermind and a dear friend and coworker of mine.” With every endearment term she listed the cheers got wilder. “Johnny Campbell. Where you at?” She asked looking around the room.
“Here!” Someone called out in the front of the room.
“Johnny, this is for you.” (Y/N) said in a low voice and started singing a very sexy adaptation of the birthday song.
As she finished someone in the crowd whistled and Johnny joined her on stage.
“Happy birthday Johnny.” (Y/N) finished off her wishes and hugged him tightly. “Let’s party, everyone!” She exclaimed into the microphone earning a loud cheer from everyone gathered at the bar.
-
(Y/N) made her way to the bar, stopping to chat and take a picture with someone every couple of steps. More than twenty minutes had passed from the moment she got off stage to when she finally got to the counter and grabbed herself a glass of expensive champagne. She sipped on the bubbly liquid and chatted to members of her dance crew. Looking around the room she locked eyes with a guy she recognised from somewhere. It took her a minute to realise it was BTS’s Jimin she was looking at. She smiled to herself, remembering that his group was on her manager’s to-talk-to list. Being halfway done with her drink she decided to down it and get another one before walking up to the group of boys.
“Oh my god.” Jimin exclaimed. “(Y/N) just looked here.” 
“Where is she?” Namjoon asked, feeling his panic and excitement blur into one.
“At the bar.” He answered through gritted teeth.
“She’s coming here. She’s coming here.” Jungkook said quickly as (Y/N) made her way towards them.
“Hi, guys. I’m so glad you could make it.” She said in a sweet tone. “I’m (Y/N).”
“We know.” Jungkook blurted out which would normally earn him a shove to the shoulder from the older members, but the sound of (Y/N)’s chuckle at his comment made them relax and join her with nervous laughter. “I’m Jungkook.” He added extending his hand.
“I know.” (Y/N) answered with a smile and went for a hug and kiss on the cheek instead of a simple handshake.
“You know?” He asked in shock.
“Yes, I saw you guys perform at award shows, your music is everywhere. I know BTS.” The members smiled widely as she explained and started greeting the rest of them in the same way one by one. The hugs were quick, but still sincere. “I’m so happy you found time in your busy schedule to come see my show.” 
“We wouldn’t miss it.” Namjoon said, trying to sound cool and collected. He wasn’t going to mention that he practically begged their PD to get them backstage.
“Oh, thank you.” She smiled and Namjoon’s knees almost went weak at the sight.
“Yes, great show.” Jungkook added and the group laughed.
“Oh, it was you.” (Y/N) also laughed realising it was Jungkook who yelled the words of praise her way halfway through the concert.
“Yes, I… Liked your dance with… By Your Side.” Jungkook said slowly making sure he picked the right words. “Great choreography.”
“Thank you.” She answered, bringing her hand to her chest as she accepted his compliment. “It’s nothing compared to your routines though. Those look hard.”
“Ah, yes. Thank you. We work hard. A lot of practice.” They muttered with modesty.
“Honestly!” (Y/N) exclaimed. “I was trying to learn the routine for your song with Halsey with my girls… So hard.”
“Boy With Luv?” Jimin raised his eyebrows.
“Yeah, but the foot choreo was killing me.” She complained jokingly.
“Hyung, ask her which member’s part she learned.” Jungkook asked Namjoon in Korean.
“He wants to know which member’s choreography you learned.” Namjoon explained.
“Yours,” (Y/N) pointed to Jungkook.
“Me?” He asked and she nodded energetically. “Hyung, say I can teach her the choreography.” He added in Korean with a wide smile, still shocked he’s talking to such a huge star. Namjoon and the rest of the boys laughed at the youngest member’s bluntness.
“He’s saying he’ll teach you.” Namjoon hurried with an explanation as (Y/N) looked confused by what they were laughing about. 
“Watch out, ‘cause I’ll take you up on that offer.” She raised her brow at Jungkook cheekily who looked at Namjoon for a translation.
“She says she might take you up on that.” He translated to his friend and he laughed, feeling a blush creep up onto his face.
“I sang your song during soundcheck today.” (Y/N) stated and all the members raised their brows at her.
“Which one?” Jungkook asked.
“Sweet Night. V’s solo.” She said pointing to Taehyung. “It’s such a sweet song and you sound amazing in it.” She said, touching his shoulder.
“Thank you so much.” Taehyung smiled, bowing to her slightly.
Not in many moments Namjoon was glad that his members couldn’t speak English as well as he did, but right now he couldn’t be happier about it. They were all so excited to be talking to (Y/N) they forgot their tongues. The alcoholic beverages that they already consumed didn’t help either. They asked him for translations every other sentence, meaning (Y/N) needed him to translate for her as well, meaning he was talking to her more than any other member, meaning she looked at him more than at any other member. Despite the language barrier the conversation flowed so easily between them. He felt ecstatic.
“(Y/N).” Her assistant called her name and brought her to the side for a moment.” It’s showtime.”
By saying “showtime” she meant that it’s time for (Y/N) to perform a song or two to entertain the guests and keep the party going.
“I’ll be right there.” She answered her and walked back to the group of boys.
“V, could I borrow you for a moment?” She asked with a sweet voice.
Unsure of what she might want from him, but still excited Taehyung followed (Y/N) into the bar.
“You said you love Underneath and know the lyrics by heart.” She said, glancing at him as they walked side by side through the crowded room filled with chatter and music. Taehyung hummed in agreement, feeling his heartbeat grow faster and faster. “You know them well enough to sing it live with me now?”
“What?” He asked, almost tripping over his own feet.
“I’m supposed to perform a couple of songs now. Would you like to perform one with me?” She asked stopping and looked him in the eyes with hope.
“Of course.” Taehyung answered, giving her his signature box smile.
“Great!” She exclaimed and grabbed his hand to lead him backstage. “This way.”
-
“Where do you think she took him?” Seokjin asked as (Y/N) disappeared with Taehyung in the crowd.
“I have no idea.” Namjoon answered, also curious about the whole ordeal.
“She’s very nice.” Jungkook commented.
“Yeah, nicer than I imagined.” Yoongi added.
“We have to get a picture together.” Hoseok said and the rest of the boys agreed.
“Look, there’s (Y/N).” Jimin pointed towards the stage where the DJ’s booth was located.
“Welcome to the stage, the one and only, (Y/N) and Korea’s very own, V of BTS!” Announced the DJ and all the boys’s jaws dropped to the floor.
“What?!” They screamed in unison.
“Hi.” (Y/N) said in a low voice. “V and I have a very special cover for you tonight. Please enjoy, Underneath.”
The rest of the members sang along to the fast paced pop song as V and (Y/N) performed. The lyrics talked about hidden feelings and the tension that can build up if you don’t give them a way out. Even though (Y/N) and Taehyung never sang together before their voices blended perfectly in the duet. When they finished their performance the crowd applauded loudly. (Y/N) put her arm behind Taehyung and he did the same. Joined in this side hug they bowed to the audience.
After a minute or two Taehyung got back to his friends with the widest smile on his face.
“Can you believe this?” He was still in shock.
“Congratulations. You were so good. Woah.” All the boys chattered at the same time.
“I recorded you.” Seokjin added as he pulled out his phone from his pocket. They gathered around the small screen watching Taehyung and (Y/N)’s performance once again.
“Where is she?” Namjoon asked Taehyung as the video came to an end.
“Last I saw her she was talking to MAMAMOO.”
“Ah, so cool. She’s probably busy. We didn’t even take a picture together.” The group chimed. After a moment of sulking they went back to obsessing over the fact that they met (Y/N) and that one of their own members sang with her.
Surrounded by music, food and alcohol the time seemed to fly by very fast. Accompanied by their staff they left the party around two in the morning without having a chance to talk to (Y/N) one more time.
-
Mornings after concerts are usually pretty bad for both the audience members and the performing artists, but mornings after concerts combined with after parties, meeting new people and mingling with every music producer possible are even harder.
(Y/N) woke up with a headache and a bitter taste in her mouth. From her bed she walked straight to the bathroom to take a shower. When brushing her teeth she scrolled through her Twitter feed reviewing every other caption or photo on the endless string of posts from last night she was tagged in. She liked a couple of tweets posted by her friends and was about to lock her phone when she noticed a simple caption.
“Great show #정국” (Y/N) pressed on the picture to see it whole. She immediately recognised Jungkook, one of the members of BTS, a band she met last night. He was standing in front of the big monitor backstage with her tour logo on it, making hearts with his fingers and smiling at the camera. She smiled to herself remembering how easily yesterday’s conversation flowed with the group of boys.
“Ah, I wish I had his number.” (Y/N) muttered. “I could take him up on that dance lesson offer.”
-
(Y/N) rushed to open her hotel room’s door to the room service. The hoteboy brought in the big breakfast she just ordered minutes ago and set it on the table. As she got ready to dig into the scrambled eggs her phone started vibrating. She looked at the called ID and quickly picked up as she saw it was her assistant calling. She gave her a quick rundown of the day’s events and informed her she’s free to rest and relax until three in the afternoon.
“That’s when they’ll pick us up for King of Masked Singer.” She finished explaining.
“I have one more question.” An interesting idea popped into (Y/N)’s head. “Is there a way you could get me the number of BTS’s Jungkook?” 
-
(Y/N)’s phone chimed as she was finishing up her breakfast. She picked it up reading the message she just recieved.
“I got it.” As she read the message from her assistant another one appeared on the screen. This time it was a string of numbers.
“Ah, what should I say?” (Y/N) pasted the number into her contacts and waited a minute before pressing the dial button. The phone beeped a couple of times before going silent. Jungkook didn’t pick up. “Hm. Let’s try again.”
Meanwhile, on the other side of the city, Jungkook was hanging out with his friends in their shared apartment. He was typing something up on his phone when the screen lip up with an unfamiliar number. 
“Hyung, do you know this number?” He showed the ringing screen to Taehyung sitting beside him on the couch.
“No. Pick up.” Jungkook just shook his head at his answer.
“I don’t pick up unknown callers.” He rejected the call and went back to what he was doing. “This person is calling again.”
“Pick up.” More preoccupied with switching through TV channels, Taehyung encouraged him tiredly. Jungkook swiped right to take the call and put it on speaker.
“Hello?” He asked in Korean.
“Ah- Hello.” Jungkook and Taehyung locked eyes in surprise and curiosity as the person on the other side spoke in English. “It’s (Y/N). From yesterday.” Taehyung almost screamed in shock. Jungkook felt all his blood rush to his head.
“Ah, sorry. Hello. Sorry.” He stumbled over his words, trying to explain why he didn’t answer her call at first ring. “I don’t pick up if I don’t know the number.” (Y/N) chuckled on the other end of the line.
“It’s fine.” Her voice was sweet and calm. “Actually, I’m calling, ‘cause I’m still in Seoul-” Taehyung stood up from the couch covering his mouth with his hands, still in deep shock. “-and I was wondering- I was thinking about what you said last night, so…” Jungkook scrunched his eyebrows, trying his hardest to remember what he said that made (Y/N) call him the next morning. “If you have time we could meet and dance together.” Taehyung gasped. “You could teach me the Boy With Luv choreo and-” Jungkook couldn’t control himself and answered her before she could even finish asking the question.
“Yes.” He blurted out. Taehyung jumped back on the couch and pushed his shoulder with a huge smile.
“Really?”
“Yes, yes.” He assured her.
“Should I come to your-” Eager to see her he cut her off again.
“You can come to our studio. I will text you the address.”
“Great. I’m free until three in the afternoon so text me the time as well.” She added.
“Okay.”
“Okay. I’ll see you there.” (Y/N) added after a moment of silence.
“Okay. Bye.”
“Bye.”
“AH!” Jungkook threw his phone, which felt red hot in his hands right now, on the other side of the couch.
“What was that?!” Taehyung yelled, shaking on his shoulders. “How did she get your number?!” 
“I have no idea!” Jungkook felt his body relax as he was no longer on the phone. “Oh my god. I have to text her now!” He reached to dig his phone out from under a stack of pillows and blankets on the couch. “And I have to go see her!”
-
“You’re doing great.” Jungkook praised (Y/N) with laughter as she jokingly overdid the moves and gestures in the choreography. “Like that.”
“Okay, but in all seriousness how did I do?” She asked, cutting the jokes short. Jungkook raised his thumbs up with a smile and she chuckled again.
“Let’s do it again and record it so we can review. You vs me.” He set his phone up on the floor by the mirrors in the studio space at BigHit.
“Teacher vs student.” Jungkook just hummed in agreement before playing the music.
-
Tired after practicing Boy With Luv for an hour and freestyling for almost two more (Y/N) and Jungkook sat down on the floor of the dance studio panting. She stood up to get herself some water and immediately regretted it.
“Ah, my legs.” Jungkook smiled at her words. Although (Y/N) danced in her music videos and during live performances her routines were far more relaxed that BTS’s regular dances. Their moves were sharp and strong and her’s more sexy and slow. Chucked her emptied water bottle back into her bag and turned to face Jungkook again. “Are you hungry?” He raised his brows, knowing what will come next if he says he is in fact hungry.
“Yeah.”
“Let’s go eat something.” Her proposition was so blunt and free. He could not refuse her, but the excitement that filled his chest at that moment didn’t overshadow the fact that the rest of his group would be so bummed they didn’t get to eat with (Y/N) as well.
“Ah, can I do this to them?” He whined in Korean. (Y/N) gave him a confused look since she didn’t understand a word he just said. “My members will be jealous.” He explained with a slight smile.
“Oh, I didn’t think about that. Should we invite them?” That Jungkook wasn’t expecting.
“You want that?” He asked to make sure he didn’t just hear something wrong. (Y/N) smiled sincerely at his unsure expression.
“Yeah, why not?” Jungkook quickly got up from the ground and dug his phone up from his pocket.
“I’ll call them. Wait a second.”
“Okay.” (Y/N) answered as he walked out of the studio to call his friends.
Jungkook dialed Namjoon’s number, knowing he was at the apartment right now enjoying his day of rest. The line beeped a couple of times before he finally picked up.
“Hello?” His voice was low and sleepy in contrast with Jungkook’s, which was excited and fast paced.
“Hyung, listen. Get the rest of the guys and put me on speaker. I have something to tell all of you.” 
“What is it?”
“Are they all there?”
“Wait a second.” Some shuffling and name calling was heard on the other side of the line before Namjoon spoke up again. “Okay, go.”
“So I’m with (Y/N) right now. We just got done dancing and all that and… She’s invited us all to lunch.” 
“What? Oh, wow. Really? How cool.” The group erupted in chatter as they heard Jungkook’s news.
“Yeah. Can you come?”
“Of course. Yes. I can’t.” Another bundle of statements was heard.
“Who can’t?” Jungkook asked, saddened.
“Yoongi.” Seokjin said.
“I already have plans with our producers, but you all should go.” Yoongi explained, still encouraging the rest of the boys to go out.
“You sure?” Namjoon asked.
“Yes, go.”
“We’ll take a picture for you.” Hoseok joked.
“What are we going to eat?” Taehyung asked out of the blue.
“I don’t know.” Jungkook answered, not really having thought about that yet.
“Since we know Seoul maybe we should pick the place?” Seokjin proposed thoughtfully.
“Good idea. I’ll tell her that. When will you come here?”
“Thirty minutes? We need to get dressed.” Namjoon said and murmur of agreement was heard.
“Okay, okay. Don’t overdress though, we’re both in sweatpants.” Jungkook added with a chuckle. After exchanging goodbyes he hung up and sighed deeply, letting his shoulders relax a little before going back into the studio.
When he opened the door he saw (Y/N) stretching her legs in a sitting down position. He joined her on the floor before speaking.
-
As Taehyung pulled into BigHit’s parking lot Jungkook and (Y/N) were already waiting outside. Both dressed in large black puffer jackets going over their knees, they stood beside one another. Jungkook was looking over (Y/N)’s shoulder pointing to something on her phone.
“Now you can add a picture.” He said, swiping his finger on her screen. (Y/N) nodded and pressed on the camera option.
“Take a selfie with me.” She asked, raising her phone up to take a picture of the two of them.
Jungkook smiled shyly and pulled his mask down half way. (Y/N) did the same before snapping a cute picture to set as her contact photo. Jungkook quickly pulled his mask back up to cover his cheeks that started to turn bright red. He glanced over her shoulder as she manipulated the photo to fit both of their faces into the small square.
“And synchronise your contacts, so I will be there.” He added as she finally accepted the placement of the picture.
“Oh, great.”
“Yeah.” (Y/N) pressed on the ‘synch contacts’ button before looking up at Jungkook.
“Thank you.” She said sweetly and pulled her mask back over her nose.
“You’re welcome.”
Taehyung noticed the two of them standing in front of the building exit and slowly pulled up. As he got closer he rolled down his window.
“Hello!” The sudden greeting made them jump up slightly.
“Hi!” (Y/N) called back sweetly.
“Come in!” Shoulder to shoulder they walked towards the car after Taehyung's invitation.
Namjoon was already sitting in the passenger's seat making it so that Jungkook and (Y/N) had to sit together in the backseat.
“How was dance practice?” Namjoon asked them.
“What was it?” (Y/N) tapped Jungkook’s arm. He whispered something to her and she clapped her hands in realisation. “Daebak.” Namjoon and Taehyung laughed at her harsh pronunciation.
“It was good. Great.” Jungkook added after the chuckles died down. “Where are the other guys?” He asked Namjoon in Korean.
“The rest of the guys will meet us at the restaurant.” He explained in English, so (Y/N) could understand. She was still doing something on her phone when he glanced at her from the front seat.
“Jungkook.” Her shy tone echoed in the car. “I synced the contacts, but you’re not here.” She showed him her phone with a concerned expression. “Look.” 
“Maybe I will just add my number like normal and then it will be saved in the contacts.” (Y/N) hummed in agreement, giving him her phone.
“What are you doing?” Taehyung asked in Korean, eying the two in the rearview mirror. Jungkook glanced at him, thanking god that (Y/N) doesn’t speak their language.
“I made (Y/N) a Kakao account.”
“And you’re putting your number in?” Taehyung continued in a teasing tone. Jungkook smiled at (Y/N)’s screen and typed in his ID.
“It’s not like that.” 
-
The boys picked out a traditional korean diner with private rooms and floor level tables. They ordered mountains of meat to fry and tons of side dishes, soups and rice. At first (Y/N) widened her eyes at the amount of food concerned there will be leftovers, but within thirty or forty minutes she realised that those six boys’s stomachs can intake much more food that she can.
The conversation within the group flowed swiftly and comfortably as it did the night before. There even was some talk about possible musical collaborations. No one was looking at the clock, but at two o’clock sharp (Y/N)’s phone buzzed.
“Ah, it’s my assistant.” She announced with deep sorrow in her voice. “Unfortunately I will have to get going soon, guys. I have a TV appearance this evening.”
“TV today?” Seokjin asked in English. He seemed really shocked. When he spoke again he directed his words to Namjoon and spoke in Korean. “She shouldn't have eaten so much noodles and rice. She’ll be bloated and puffy. That’s very bad.”
“He says noodles and rice is bad for TV, ‘cause you might get puffy.” Namjoon explained to (Y/N) who just waved him off and chuckled.
“Ah, I’ll be wearing a big dress and a mask anyway.”
“What show are you on?” Namjoon asked, curiously.
“Something called King of Masked Singer.” The boys started talking over each other in Korean and patting Jungkook on the shoulders. After a moment of that Namjoon translated the jist of it to (Y/N).
“Yeah, so JK also was on that show.” (Y/N), who was sitting opposite to the youngest member of the group, looked up at him with a smile.
“Really?” She asked after swallowing another sip of hot soup. “What did they put you in? What costume?”
“I was…” He wanted to tell her everything in English, but was missing the most crucial word. “Hyung, how do you say fencer?” He asked Namjoon who looked confused for a second before answering him with a shrug. Jungkook reached to his pocket and pulled out his phone. “I’ll show you.” He typed the right words into YouTube and passed (Y/N) his phone. As soon as she looked at the moving screen she nodded in realisation.
“Ah, fencer.”
“Fencer, yes.” Namjoon agreed. (Y/N) skimmed through the video listening to Jungkook’s clear and beautiful vocals in the cover of BIGBANG’s If You.
“Woah, this is good.” She said, looking up at him.
“Thank you.” He accepted the compliment as she passed the phone back to him.
“You know what you will have?” Hoseok asked.
“What I’ll be dressed in? Yeah, I’m singing Beauty and the Beast, so I’ll be a princess.”
“Ah, cute.” Seokjin called out with a chuckle as (Y/N)’s phone buzzed once more.
“Ah, I really have to go.” She sighed deeply as the boys whined at her early leave. “I have to get myself intact before going to the studio.” She said gesturing to her laid back outfit. Since she was meeting Jungkook earlier for dance practice she was wearing a pair of branded sneakers, high waisted sweatpants and a hoodie - an outfit most of the boys in the room thought of as very pretty, but to her it was just workout gear.
“Do you need a ride?” Jungkook asked, all of a sudden realising she drove here with them and might not have a ride back to her hotel, but (Y/N) shook her head.
“No, my security is already parked outside.” The boys nodded at the professional sound of that statement. She was an A list celebrity after all and couldn’t just run around town by herself.
Everyone stood up from the table as (Y/N) slipped on her shoes and jacket.
“It was so nice to see you again.” Namjoon started as (Y/N) turned towards them before going out the door of the private dining room. She smiled sincerely and swung her backpack onto her shoulder.
“I’m so glad we got to hang out.” She looked at them with a shine in her eyes before going in for a hug with each of them. “And that we got to dance.” She added stopping in front of Jungkook. He smiled and chuckled as she hugged him goodbye.
“Yes. Me too.”
The group exchanged a couple more words of goodbye before (Y/N) walked towards the sliding door. As she was about to close it behind herself she slipped her face mask down and smiled at the group once more.
“Hopefully that’s not the last I see of you.” She added and the boys erupted with negating statements and chuckles.
405 notes · View notes
jungshookz · 4 years
Note
omg mean mr. park trying so hard not to give ballet!y/n special treatment that he goes too hard in the other direction and makes her cry!!!! and he’s like well i can’t fix it here in front of all these people what do i do what do i do
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➺ pairing; park jimin x reader
➺ genre; balletteacher!jiminiverse!!! except uhhhhhh jimin’s a little scary in this one not going to lie <3 
➺ wordcount: 3.6k
➺ what to expect; “and take those goddamn leg warmers off.”
➺ optional readings: one; two; three; four
➺ note; this has been one of the hoTTest requests for a long time which doesn’t make any sense to me because whenever i get asked to write about this specific scenario i’m like?? you?? you WANT me to make y/n cry???? also i hope u don’t mind but i changed ur original request just a teensy bit because i didn’t want y/n to have to cry in front of everyone again otherwise she’s just going to be known as the class cry-baby and we should at least give her a tiny crumb of dignity 
                                      »»————- ♡ ————-««
jimin… is getting soft.
which isn’t super great because he feels like his reputation as scary strict ballet instructor is going to go down the drain and disappear forever if he keeps going on like this
it’s not like he can help himself when his girlfriend is one of his students
(which… is still a secret, by the way. the two of you are surprisingly very good at keeping things somewhat professional. teamwork makes the dream work, right?)
the other day in class he literally had to pinch his arm to remind himself to stOP looking at you so fondly
he caught himself in the mirror with this dumb little smile on his face and his eyes all bright and twinkly as he watched you dance
and it certainly didn’t help that you smiled back at him before wiggling your brows knowingly
he can’t do things like that!
he has to be more careful!!
he has to toughen up!
he has to take a stand!
he’s going to have to pull out the big guns to prove to everyone that no, i don’t have any favourites, and no, i’m certainly not romantically attracted and in a very real relationship with one of you, not at all!
it just feels like no one really takes him seriously anymore??
especially after he gave all of you guys individual roses on valentine’s day
sometimes he thinks that maybe that was a little extra of him but he did genuinely feel bad about keeping you guys here when you could’ve been out spending the night with your significant others
anyways
his point is
he thinks that everyone is starting to fear him less and less with every passing day and he just can’t have that
and it doesn’t help that yoU very openly don’t take him that seriously in class because then everyone sees that as their opportunity to not take him seriously as well
it’s like suddenly you’ve labeled yourself as the ringleader of this circus and now he’s just one of your clowns
that’s not the way things should be!!!
hE’S the ringleader of this stupid ballet circus!!!!
the other week when he announced that your guys’ break would be over in approximately thirty seconds, you just turned around to look at him with big, pleading eyes and: “can’t we have five extra minutes of break time, mr. park? please?” and obviously he couldn’t say no to that because of your dumb stupid pretty googly eyes
and he thought that that would be the worst of it but nO
he was very wrong
because it got worse
people are starting to show up in sweatpants and hoodies instead of leotards and chiffon skirts and if there’s anything he hates the moSt on this planet, it’s people who don’t dress for the part
he hated watching all of you prancing around the room wearing grubby HOODIES
disgusting!!!
you can wear whatever you want outside of class, but he likes to think that he’s made it relatively clear that once you are in the confines of his classroom, the standards are higher than the heavens above
so, yes
he’s decided that today is going to be the day he grabs the reins and takes control once more
today’s break will be ten minutes and ten minutes only - with no extensions!
if he has to yell at someone today for messing up a move, you bet your ass he’s going to do just that - show no mercy!
he’s mr. park!
he’s in charge!
“i’m in charge.” jimin mutters to himself as he stands outside the classroom door
he nods firmly to himself before pushing the door open
“alright, ladies! let’s get ready to do some warm up exercises…” jimin announces loudly as soon as he steps into the classroom, a couple of the girls rushing to get up from the ground (it’s nice to see that some of you are still scared of him)
he pushes his sunglasses up to the top of his head when he notices that you’re continuing to gab away in the corner with lisa and the others
“uh, hello?” he clears his throat and you turn to look over your shoulder
“oh! hold up, mr. park, i’m almost done telling my story. so as i was saying-“ you turn back to the girls and jimin frowns
see?
this is exactly what he was talking about
when he used to walk into the classroom everyone would immediately get into neat rows of four
and now?
there are five girls who are lined up
five girls out of TWENTY
jimin pokes his tongue against the inside of his cheek as he approaches you slowly, “miss y/l/n, i mean it.“ he warns, his grip tightening around his iced coffee, “finish your conversation now, please.”
he raises a brow when you flat out ignore him and he notices lisa reaching over to smack your kneecap before subtly gesturing upwards to him
he doesn’t know if you’re doing it on purpose but you’re really starting to push it
your shoulders drop as you let out a sigh and you turn around to look at him
“well?”
you frown and your lips twist  
“yeah, whatever- just gimme one more second, okay?“ you dismiss him with a flick of your wrist anD a roll of your eyes and his jaw drops in surprise
wha-
did you just-
did you-
did you just… flick your wrist at him?
and roll your eyes?
who exactly do you think you are?
jimin turns on his heel to go over to the cabinets that he usually puts his bag and his jacket in
he shakes his head and chuckles darkly to himself as the image of you flicking your wrist and rolling your eyes at him plays over and over again in his mind
are you serious?
did you actually do that to him?
in front of everyone?
wow
you really grew a pair since your ‘i’m 100% attracted to park jimin and i would love to sit on his face’ days, no?
what, you think that just because he’s your boyfriend that you get to get away with stunts like that?
how dare you!
outside of the classroom, yes, he’s your boyfriend, and yes, you can flick your wrist and roll your eyes at him all you want
but inside of the classroom?
jimin’s grip tightens around the edge of the cabinet door
absolutely fucking not.
the cabinet doors slam shut with a loud bang! and a couple of girls let out yelps of surprise at the sudden noise, “everyone get in line right now!”
your neck nearly snaps off from how quickly you turn to look and your eyes widen when you suddenly see everyone scrambling to get off the ground and to get in line
seriously??
you were almost done with your story :-//
you frown to yourself before getting up off the ground (and taking your time in doing so, because your knees are a little creaky this morning)
((you chose to snack on some crackers and dip instead of stretching before class because as far as you’re concerned, snacking is way more fun than stretching))
“y/n, let’s go-!“ lisa hisses and grabs your arm before dragging you up towards the front where you guys usually stand
“oh, would you relax?” you snort as you make your way to the front before moving into first position
you turn your head to let out a quiet yawn before turning back to face the front to see jimin looking directly at you
“am i boring you this afternoon, miss y/l/n?” he crosses his arms and you shrug sloppily in response  
jimin tilts his head, “can you use your words like a normal human being, please?”
you let out a sigh and resist the urge to roll your eyes at him again
he’s so uptight today!!
he was fine this morning before you left to go to class
what’s his problem??
“no, sir.” you raise a brow, “you’re not boring me. are you going to spend the rest of the class asking me questions or are we actually going to learn something today?”
in your peripheral vision you see lisa’s eyelids flutter shut and her head lower a little bit
what?
that was a genuine question!
it was supposed to be a joke???
tough crowd today lol
everyone can practically feel the tension in the air when jimin doesn’t immediately respond and instead glares at you with nothing but pure rage behind his brown eyes
“would you like to say that again, miss y/l/n?”
“oh, would you look at that? another question for me.” you chuckle lightly and look around at your peers to see if anyone else is cracking a smile
but everyone’s looking at you with wide eyes filled with what you can only make out to be complete and utter… is that fear?
even seulgi shakes her head no when the two of you lock gazes
???
what is going on today???
you turn back around and jump in surprise when you realize that jimin is now standing directly in front of you
and for the first time in a long time, you’re starting to feel a little nervous
you shift uncomfortably in your position and make an effort to stand up a little straighter
maybe you should-
“get out of my classroom.” jimin speaks lowly and your eyes widen in surprise
what?
“i-i’m sorry, sir?” you stammer before shaking your head, “i don’t unders-“
“get the hell out of my classroom, miss y/l/n!” he snaps before taking a step back and tilting his head at you, “and take those goddamn leg warmers off. do you think anyone at the academy is going to take you seriously if you show up to an audition with bright blue, fuzzy leg warmers with sheep all over them?”
oh god
okay
he’s not kidding
this isn’t funny anymore
“n-no sir, of course not-!” you shake your head quickly before bending down to yank your leg warmers off, “i-i’m not- i would never show up to an audition wearing these-”
you stumble over a little as you struggle to pull them off and lisa quickly reaches out to help you stay balanced
“can’t even keep yourself up on one foot without falling over, huh?” jimin scoffs before crossing his arms, “what, did you just sit on your ass for the entirety of quarantine?”
“of course not, mr. park.” you swallow thickly and shake your head again as you get back up onto your feet, tossing the leg warmers to the side, “i’m so sorry, sir.”
and just when you think you’re in the clear-
“don’t be sorry, just be ready.” jimin snaps and you feel your entire face flush bright red, “now get out. miss kang, can you move up to the front please?”
you’re not even bothered by the fact that you’ve just been replaced by seulgi
you’re more bothered by the fact that he just used his phrase on you
don’t be sorry
just be ready
don’t be sorry, just be ready  
that’s his phrase and he’s never once used it on you in the entire time that he’s taught you
he only uses that phrase when someone messes up really bad
and one thing you can say for sure is you very rarely mess up in class
he only uses that phrase when he’s angry!!!
“by the way, let this be an example to the rest of you, hm?” jimin paces up and down the front of the classroom slowly, everyone standing up as straight as pins as they look ahead, “every single one of you has been slacking immensely as of late and i won’t have it. the next person who shows up to my class wearing sweatpants and a dirty hoodie - well, i’m sure you’ll be comfortable out in the hallway. or maybe you’ll be comfortable not coming back to my class ever again.”
you lean over a little to peek over at jimin but quickly get back in line when he turns around
“miss y/l/n, i think i asked you to leave, did i not? i’m not going to ask you again.”
you jump when you feel seulgi tap on your shoulder from behind and she smirks at you in the mirror
“y-yes, mr. park.” your voice gives out halfway through and you turn on your heel to manoeuvre your way through the other girls to get to the door
“now that that’s been taken care of, this is what we’re going to do today…”
you shut the door behind you quietly
to say the least, that was…
humiliating!
sure, jimin’s always been a little (very) strict, but that was just plain mean
he yelled at you AND he kicked you out!
and you don’t think he’s ever been so harsh with any of the other girls before
you’ve seen him yell at the other girls but this felt more like a personal attack instead of criticism on dancing like it usually is  
and you always thought he liked your leg-warmers
:-(
uh-oh
it doesn’t take very long for your nose to prickle and your eyes to start welling up with tears
you sit down on the bench and your chin starts to tremble as you think about what just happened  
oh no
and now you’re going to cry?!
oh god
okay
no
no!
you can’t cry right now!
what if he comes out??
and sees you crying??
you cannOT cry in front of mr. park right now
the last time you cried in front of him was when you twisted your ankle but at least you had an excuse to cry because you were in physical pAIN
emotional pain is not the same as physical pain and therefore cannot be used as a legitimate excuse to start blubbering
you are not a cry-baby!!
your nose scrunches as you try your best not to let out a whimper and you blink quickly in an effort to make the tears go away but one single tear ends up rolling down your cheek
you reach up to swipe the back of your hand against your chin before putting your arms back down  
what are you supposed to do now?
you sniffle before leaning your head against the wall and crossing your arms
whatever
if you have to stay out here for the rest of class, you’re just going to take a nap and try noT to think about mean mr. park
                                                              ♡
“y/n… you feel someone shaking you gently and you shoot up from where you’re leaning against the wall
“wh- what-“ your voice is a little raspy from your sad-nap, “i wasn’t asleep-!”  
you relax a little when you see that it’s just lisa
you take a quick glance around to see that everyone’s packing their bags, so it’s safe to assume that class is done for the day
“mr. park wants to talk to you.” lisa whispers and glances back towards the classroom door, “by the way- you were a real idiot in there, you know that?”
“oh, god.” you reach up to pinch the bridge of your nose, “i know, i know! i don’t- i mean, i didn’t think he was going to kick me out-“
“hey, y/n! smooth move today-“ you’re cut off when suddenly seulgi pops up behind lisa and you can’t help but frown at how pleased she looks with these conditions, “thanks for handing your status as favourite student over to me on a silver platter!”
“can it, seulgi.” lisa scowls before shoving her gently
“the view was super great from the front.” she whistles, “mr. park is a lot hotter up close.”
you’ve never considered yourself to be a violent person, but…
you would give an arm and a leg just to strangle seulgi for a good five minutes <3  
lisa rolls her eyes and turns back to look at you, “good luck in there though, for real. you… you were real ballsy today.”
yikes
it takes you approximately one minute to muster up the courage to knock on the classroom door
you press your lips together tightly as your fist hovers over the surface of the door
just knock!
it’s not hard
just move your hand
you squeeze your eyes shut before tapping your knuckles against the door in three short beats
“come in.”
you swallow your nerves before pushing the handle down and opening the door slowly with a creak
okay
it’s fine!
you’re fine
class is over, which means mean mr. park is gone and nice boyfriend jimin is here, right?
…right??
you cautiously poke your head into the room
jimin’s busy packing up as well but his back is facing you which makes you feel a little better because if you’d opened the door and he was standing there staring directly at you, you probably would’ve immediately burst into tears
your poor sheep leg warmers are crumpled pathetically in the same spot where you tossed them
maybe you should just grab your leg warmers and run for the hills
“you… wanted to… see me?” you clear your throat and freeze when jimin turns his head to look over his shoulder
“yes, i did. shut the door and come here.”
okay, well
there goes your chance to run for the hills
you’re basically traPPEd in here now
you hesitantly shut the door behind you and you feel your heart starting to beat a little harder in your chest as you make your way over to the middle of the room
you keep your gaze downwards as jimin stands in front of you and you clasp your hands in front of you, twiddling your thumbs nervously
a moment of silence ticks by and you want nothing more than for the ground to cave and just swallow you up entirely
“you know why i had to do that, right?”
“because we’re… da…ting?” you offer weekly before lifting your head up to look at him
jimin scoffs before shaking his head, “no. you blatantly disrespected me in front of your peers, that’s why i kicked you out. your attitude today was completely unacceptable. completely.”
oop
okay
it appears that your theory about mean mr. park disappearing as soon as class ended was incorrect
to be fair… he is right
you have to admit that maybe you let the fact that you guys are dating cloud your judgement a little
obviously he’s not going to show you special treatment in class just because of that
you feel your insides twist when the realization sinks in that you were… kind of an asshole today
and you pride yourself on being a good student!
you immediately drop your head once more as your cheeks flush in shame, “yes, mr. park. i’m… i’m sorry for my poor behaviour today, sir. i disrespected you in your classroom and it won’t happen again.”
“it better not.” jimin nods, “apology accepted, miss y/l/n.”
you chew on the inside of your cheek anxiously
you’re not… too sure what you’re supposed to say now
you hear jimin let out a sigh before he speaks up again, “i’m… your boyfriend, which i know makes things a little confusing, but… you can’t act like that when we’re in class, y/n.” he hooks a finger under your chin before tilting your head up, “just because we’re dating doesn’t give you an excuse to act like a prick, baby.”
“i know. i’m sorry.” you respond meekly and nod in understanding
jimin’s eyes soften when he notices you starting to get teary-eyed
!!!!
now he’s starting to feel bad!!!
he’ll admit that maybe he was a little harsher than usual and it was probably a little more than embarrassing being called out like that in front of your peers, but he had to what he had to do!
you flicked your wrist at him!
and rolled your eyes!
double whammy!
“y/n…”
“i thought you liked my leg warmers.” you whimper quietly and jimin snorts in response
that’s what you’re getting upset about??
your leg warmers??
“why are you- why are you laughing??” you whine when he begins to giggle softly and you reach up to wipe at your falling tears (though now you can’t tell if they’re tears of sadness anymore because the sound of jimin’s giggling never fails to put you in a better mood), “you were the ones who chose these dumb sheep ones for me to wear today so h-how am i supposed to feel when you-“
“oh my god, you moron-” jimin immediately tugs you in for a hug and props his chin up on the top of your head, “i do like your leg warmers! they’re really cute!”
“that’s not how it seemed-” you sniffle as you bury your face into the crook of his neck and wrap your arms around him
“it was the only way i knew to show you that i was being serious!”
“you know how i feel about my leg warmers-!” you pull away with a pout and jimin quickly leans down to plant his lips against yours (mainly to shut you up about your leg warmers, but also to make u feel a little better)
he gives you a couple of sweet pecks before reaching up to cup your cheeks in his hands, “will pizza for dinner tonight make you forgive me for insulting your precious leg warmers, silly girl?” jimin hums as he wipes your tears away with his thumbs before leaning down to nudge his nose against yours affectionately
“…throw in some dessert and i’ll think about it.”
help me help you make your wishes come tru (aka send me a request)
requested drabbles masterlist
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daddyjackfrost · 3 years
Note
okay heyy 🥰 do you write for lev? How about Lev + 34 👀
heyyy🥰🥰🥰🥰 i do now!
prompt 34: “If I gave you a chance, would you take it?”
hurt/comfort (aged up!) (bye this isn’t even hurt??)
lev x f!reader
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You tapped your foot, irritated. Lev is late again, and you had just about had enough.
You had met Lev a couple of months ago. You had just found a new coffee house and it quickly grew on you. Coincidentally, it was Lev’s favourite coffee house.
You didn’t spot Lev, though you often wonder how you could’ve missed him. Lev spotted you. Tucked away in a secluded corner, your face covered by you favourite book. The Secret History. It wasn’t until you felt a tap on your book that you realized Lev was trying to talk about you.
You still remember what he said.
“That’s my favourite book! I feel like I identify with Richard too much.”
Instantly, you were intrigued with the insanely tall grey haired man. You remember how his green eyes pierced your own, and the way your cheeks flushed when you took in how good looking he was.
Sighing, you pushed your chair back and stood up, grabbing your iced coffee. Lev had asked you out to coffee today but he didn’t even show up. It had happened three times now, and you had enough.
You knew how demanding his job was. Modelling was not easy, and you prided Lev for working so hard, but it didn’t feel nice to be stood up.
You grabbed your purse and walked out the coffee house, tired and slightly embarrassed.
As you walked, you tried not to think about Lev. After he had said he identified with Richard Papen, you invited him to sit, and from there on, you and Lev became fast friends. Obviously, it was very hard not too fall for the model. Not only were his good looks just overwhelming, his personality was capturing. His catlike slanted green eyes were intimidating, but when he opened his mouth, all that intimidation was thrown out the window.
Lev was a slightly childish and cheerful guy, and he had wedged his way into your heart.
“Y/N! Y/N! Wait!”
You didn’t stop. You didn’t need Lev to look at you with those piercing eyes, because you knew you would forgive him, but you were quite sick of being stood up.
A firm hand grabbed your shoulder, halting you. You shrugged the hand off and turned around, meeting Lev’s covered eyes.
He wore sunglasses and a hat, trying very weakly to cover his identity.
“Y/n, hold on. I’m sorry.”
You tilted your head up to look at him. Lev looked down at you with guilty eyes, but you didn’t waver. You liked him, but did you like his lifestyle?
“Sorry, Haiba. I have somewhere to be.”
You didn’t even manage to take a step before Lev had grabbed your arm, gently.
Pleading, he looked down at you. Lev knew he was late. God, he knew. But he couldn’t escape his manager.
“I’m so sorry. Let’s go for coffee right now?”
You both looked down at the coffee in your hand and he cringed, rubbing the back of his neck.
You tried to smile at him. It didn’t matter how much you liked him. Your lives differed, and you didn’t belong in his lifestyle. You knew that, and it was time he did too.
Taking a couple steps back, you gripped your bag tighter.
“Lev.”
Lev looked at you at your voice.
Flexing your fingers anxiously, you took a deep breath. “I think you’re really cool, but I don’t think we should continue... whatever this is. You’re busy all the time, and I don’t like the feeling of being forgotten. Let’s just part ways, yeah?”
You wanted to end what hadn’t even started yet. There was no point in getting attached or create expectations when you knew you would just be disappointed in the end.
Lev looked down at you with wide eyes. The model wasn’t used to having people not want to be in his company.
“You...you’re sure? I promise I won’t be late again. Scouts honour.”
Your lips lifted into a small smile at the attempt at humour, but you both knew he was lying. Lev was late to a lot of things, and it turns out he was too late here too.
You nodded softly. It’s not that it didn’t hurt, it did, but you didn’t have high expectations. You were just you, and Lev, well Lev was so much more. A previous volleyball player and now model. There was no place for you in his world, not with your ordinary self.
“Yeah.”
You didn’t let any more conversation happen. Smiling at him, you turned around and walked away.
Though, absent minded to you, you were the first person to walk away from Lev Haiba, and he hated it.
*** 4 Months Later ***
Stupid, is what you are. You honestly thought that you would last see Lev that day, but you had forgotten that you lived in the heart of the city, in an apartment.
You woke up to a shirtless billboard of Lev Haiba every day since that day.
It was ironic really.
Every time you looked at the billboard, which was at least once a day, you couldn’t help but think about what could have been. What would your life look like right now if you hadn’t cut Lev off?
Shrugging, you lulled yourself to your kitchen. You had an early shift at the library and you wanted to eat before you got there.
You had only opened your fridge door when the bell rang.
Sighing, and then slamming the door closed, you trudged to the door, pulling it open.
Your breath hitched when your eyes fell on the man that had plagued your thoughts for the last four months.
Lev stared at you with wide eyes, out of breath. He couldn’t stop thinking about you since that day, and every day since, he hated himself from losing you.
Lev was in the middle of a photoshoot when he saw his copy of The Secret History. Admittedly, Lev only read the book because he saw you reading it at the coffee house before he introduced himself. He had noticed the way your eyes never wavered from the page, completely mesmerized by the ink of the page.
So, later that night, Lev bought a copy and started reading it. He finished it two days later, and when he went to get coffee the next day, he only hoped you were still reading it.
The coffee house wasn’t the first place Lev had seen you. It was like fate was trying it’s very best to push you two together. First, Lev had seen you run across the street while he was in his car. Then, he saw you in the park outside his agency.
That day at the coffee house, Lev had planned to officially ask you on a date. He was sick of pushing fate out of the way. Damn his job, he just wanted a nice evening with you.
Not being able to see you or even text you over the last four months had killed Lev. He had grown attached, and though his friends always teased him about it, he had never felt this way about anyone before.
You gripped the door harder, blinking a few times, trying to wake up in case you were sleeping.
“Y/n...” Lev whispered.
You noticed the crinkles in his suit, and the way his usually parted hair was now a mess.
“Lev? What are you doing here?”
Lev blanked. He had planned to pour his heart out to you, but now that he stood here, he felt stupid. You were the one who had cut it off, whatever it was you two had. You were the one who walked away, and it looked like you didn’t regret it.
Oh how wrong Lev was. Because you did regret it.
Swallowing the lump in his throat, Lev straighten himself out.
“Y/n, I... I can’t. I tried really hard to forget about you. I tired so hard to just move on, but I couldn’t. I like you, y/n. Too much. Way too much. It’s killing me inside and I don’t know why I feel like this.”
You stared at Lev with wide eyes. Was he... serious? Lev liked you? No. That can’t be.
You pursed your lips, but when you eyes his clenched fists, your eyes softened.
Letting go of the door, you stood straight, hugging yourself.
“If I gave you a chance, would you take it? And not just to try it out, I mean really take it? I don’t do short infatuations, Lev. I’ve had bad luck at relationships, and I need to know that you’re all in.”
Lev nodded, his eyes desperate. “We haven’t even known each other for long, but it kills me to not have you in my life. I know my lifestyle is hard, but I promise I’ll try to make it work. I promise I’ll put you before everything else.” Lev took a few steps closer to you. “I’m all in.”
You smiled at the man, and opened your door wider.
The library could wait.
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BYE I DONT LIKE THIS.
what are the chances of me taking this down tomorrow and rewriting it?
i’d say 98%
this is such soft hurt/comfort. hmmm. real hardcore angst coming soon! this is too soft for me
LOOK AT THIS PIC OF LEV THO. IM SORRY IDK THE ARTIST, ALL CREDIT TO THEM THO.
@elektrosonix @h-grangerstudies @snoozless
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oh my pls just step on me
daddyjackfrost © 2021 | all content belongs to me, do not modify
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saidrolav · 3 years
Text
Calcu-lust.
Highschool!Sam Wilson x gn!reader
Summary: You think you're done with relationships since your last ex but you fall harder than ever for a guy in your math class.
Warnings: none! pure fluff! 🧡
a/n: Hiii! Just felt like writing some Highschool AU for no reason, this has been inspired by the song stupid with love from the musical Mean Girls, hope you'll like it!
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not my gif!
You were near your locker when Wanda talked to you for the first time of your day. Wanda was the first one that had introduced herself to you, she was the first friend you had made at your school and you were happy she did, she was the most wonderful bestfriend anyone could ask for. She was here for you at any time, the two of you were spending nights listening to music, dancing like crazy and watching movies together, she was the nicest. Not too long ago, she had decided that her mission was to find you a lover. Since you knew her, you have never been in a relationship because of your last ex that hurted you. Wanda loved talking about boys and girls at your school even if you, not so much, you weren't really attracted to anybody. This morning at 8am, at the start of the day, when you were already tired, she obviously had to talk to you about her mission of finding you a partner.
"Wanda!" You had cutted her in the middle of the list of people she found attractive and she looked at you with wide eyes. You checked quickly around you and found some of the students looks on you, you almost just shouted on the corridor and you lowered your voice quickly. "As i said, i'm over it. I used to crush easily in the past, but i'm done with that." She nodded furiously as you talked, drinking every word you were saying. "No more falling for people at the drop of a hat, i'm focusing on school and my future." She rolled her eyes while sighing. You putted your backpack on your shoulder and closed your locker while smiling at her disappointed face.
As you were about yo go for your first class, you heard a couple of whispers in the corridor. Wanda looked around, she seemed to have heard those too because she was investigating the crowd with her eyes to see what was happening, she loved gossiping. Even if you two were searching what was arriving, you both knew what was coming, or rather, who were coming.
It took no time before Sam Wilson, Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes were walking through the corridor, meeting you and Wanda's gazes, sending chills down your spine. The three guys were pretty popular at your school, each one for a different reason. Steve was popular for being pretty good in sports and good looking, tall, blonde, blue eyes, girls and boys were falling for him all around the school. He was a huge victim of gossips, there was always at least once a week a new gossip about him dating someone but the truth is, Steve was super sweet, caring and gentle with everyone but not a lot into dating.
Sam was just as known by everyone, he was also good in sports and extremely funny, the man always had to crack a joke when he could, making people laugh would bright up his day. He was less victim of gossip because he was talking to the whole school and was making sure everyone was feeling at ease around him.
Bucky was the less popular of the three of them, mostly because he was the most introverted of the three. He was really shy but harsh when he talked and he truly wasn't afraid of telling what he tought. The brunette was a truly different person when you were seeing him at lunch with Sam and Steve, letting out laughs from the heart. You only shared one class with James and he was always at the back of the class, drawing sketches furiously in his copybooks in silence.
The three of them passed by you and Wanda. Sam gave you a huge smile and a wave without stopping his tracks. You could only hear his voice echoing in your ears: "Sup, Wanda, Y/N,". Your blood was rushing to your cheeks, these blushing furiously. This man had so much confidence, it was intimidating. Your hands held tighter the strap of your backpack as you watched him walk away, biting your lower lip. You didn't even saw Steve giving you a polite smile and Buck giving a quick glance on your direction, they didn't stopped and followed Sam quickly as your mind was still racing of this insignificant gesture.
"So turned out, you were lying. You still fall for people with a drop of a hat." Your head snapped in Wanda's direction. She was already looking at you with a knowing look, a smirk and wiggling eyebrows. You chuckled before rolling your eyes and going to your first class of the day without waiting for her. "You won't get away with that so easily Y/N ! It's my mission!" You laughed once again and went in your science class.
Your day passed slowly and it made you even more tired as the hours were advancing. You slowly made your way to your last class, exhausted as ever. As you were about to enter the classroom you stood in the doorway, all of your tiredness going away as you saw Sam Wilson sitting at your desk. You stood there for a couple of milliseconds that felt like hours while staring at him, then you realized you might look like a creep so you went to sit just behind him without saying anything. He didn't realized you were staring at him, to your biggest satisfaction.
You knew Sam was in your class, it wasn't the surprise. The surprise was that he sat somewhere else than his usual seat, and at your own usual place. Actually, you never saw him much in your math class, mostly because he was always in the back. You only knew he had good grades because teachers would always congratulate him, but he always seemed like he wasn't listening in class. He was a nice and funny guy who could talk with anyone easily but in class he wasn't that much of a trouble maker. What were you thinking about ? He probably didn't even noticed he sitted at your desk.
You were wrong. Sam knew exactly where you sitted because he already saw you a couple of times in this class or at lunch and he thought you were mesmerizing, because, he was, in fact, mesmerized by you. Your laugh, your smile, the way your were talking. At first, he thought you didn't wanted of a guy like him. Loud, noisy, attracting everyone's attention, but when Steve told him this morning the way you were looking at him, boy, his heart beat faster, a huge smile took over his features and he felt like the happiest man on Earth. You were looking at him, the way he did. As soon as he heard what the blonde said to him, he thought about you all day and for him, the day passed really quickly. He was going to ask you out on a date at the end of this class, and he would do everything he could, starting as you walked by the door.
You putted on your desk your pencil case and everything you needed for your math class, he did the same. You were watching his every moves closely, a bit lost in your toughts. The class started and you tried to focus, you really did, but with such a beautiful man in front of you, you soon met your toughts again. That's why you were so surprised when he made eye contact with you.
"Do you have an eraser ?" He smiled angelically and you knew you were screwed.
"I would love to.." You answered mindlessly as you were putting, in his hand, your own eraser. He chuckled at your answer, that's when you realized how dumb sounded your response. As your hands touched you felt an electric shock running through your veins and your cheeks became crimson at the contact. He used your eraser briefly before putting it back on your table with a quick "thanks".
You didn't even liked your math class that much, but who were you to complain when such an astonishing man was sitting in front of you, math class was becoming slowly your favourite. Thanks maths for giving you the right to put your eyes on Sam Wilson.
You were studying the back of his head curiously, watching his dark hair, his skin, what he was wearing closely, you wouldn't miss a sight of him, you were so close his cologne was tickling your nose and, it smelt amazing.
You were listening as his soothing voice was talking with confidence answering the questions of the teacher, filling the room that was usually in the silence. The man was really smart, and it only made your heart swell even more. He looked like he was straight out of a romance TV show and you just couldn't keep your eyes off of him. Your eyes went lower and you saw his hands playing easily with his pen, his arms showing that work out had been done and before you could continue to observe him, the bell rang and he was leaving in seconds making you sigh as you packed up your things. You've been studying him instead of your maths the whole hour and now you were completely lost in the lesson. You putted your backpack on your shoulders and exited the classroom and your whole body stopped in the middle of the corridor because he didn't left.
He was here. Waiting for someone. When his eyes found yours a giant smile took over his lips and you bit yours. He was walking over someone else behind you right ? Not you right now, he was coming no time to think!
He took a big breath before talking, "Please don't interrupt me because i've been searching what i'm about to say the whole class," you both chuckled before he continued, "So, Hi? Okay so," he cleared his throat, "I think you're very cool and i wanted to know if we could go on a date sometime, maybe grab something to eat or watch a movie togerher, no pressure don't feel obligated to say yes, just... tell me what you think you know." He let out a shaky laugh as he fidgeted akwardly with his fingers before looking back at you. Damn, Sam Wilson was asking you on a date, that was a big deal because he was nervous and never he was, but how could you say no ? You've been admiring him from afar for way too long and he just admitted he was also doing so.
"Yeah, i'd love to go on a date with you sometime Sam." You smiled sweetly at him and you searched fastly in your backpack before taking out your marker. He was super excited and had a giant smile on his face, his heart was beating so fast he thought he might get out of his cage. "I don't have a paper it's okay if i write on the back of your hand ?" You cocked an eyebrow at him and he nodded eagerly. You wrote your number on the back of his hand as you said and as soon as your skin touched again, that electric wave going trough your body came back faster than ever, your smile growing even bigger. You definitly thought it was love at first sight, and that it was what soulmates were experiencing.
You looked at him when you finished writing, he looked more happy than ever and it made your cheeks blush. You putted your marker back in your bag and a couple of seconds passed just where Sam and you were staring at each other with a huge smile. Then he finally talked.
"I should probably go.. I'll tell you when we'll plan our date ?" He looked at you as you nodded in silence, you approached him and gave him a kiss on the cheek before doing a quick wave of the hand "See ya, Wilson." and disappearing in the corridor. Otherwise Sam stood there a couple of minutes caressing with his cheek where you kissed him with the tip of his fingers. He came back to him, realizing what happened and he jumped in the air like a kid, even doing a little dance of joy, running towards Steve and Bucky, ready to tell them everything.
You however you joined Wanda that gave you a knowing look. "I know, i said i'm over it but-" She cutted you with an excited squeak and took you in her arms. "I'm so happy for you! You don't even need me to find a boyfriend!" You laughed and she did so too.
You couldn't wait for your date, and you couldn't wait for your next math class.
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joshuas · 3 years
Text
that’s not even ramen
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♫ pairing: yang jeongin x gender neutral reader
♫ genre: college/university student!au, slice-of-life, crack, fluff
♫ word count: 3.5k
♫ warnings: nil of note!
♫ summary: a bunch of chaotic misunderstandings, trot singing new years concerts that lead to lots of fluff at the end ^^
♫ tagging: @fluffyskzclub​
♫ a/n: happy april fools! my joke is... that i can’t do anything on time and post things that were supposed to be posted in january in april, so without further ado, i present the eighth addition to my seasonal drabbles! 
♫ skz seasonal drabbles: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8
“I swear, this is the tenth time I’ve heard him sing tonight! If he’s going to continue to do this, he should at least sing a different song.” You sighed, exasperated as you tried to put your three-year-old sister to sleep. Her sleep, of course, being interrupted by your new next-door neighbour, Yang Jeongin. He had taken up trot singing over the last couple of weeks and decided only to practice his singing at 11 pm at night. Which, coincidentally, woke your baby sister up every time. And as if it wasn’t hard enough having sole custody over a sibling let alone having a teaching degree to attend to during the day. Your professors had been understanding of your... predicament after your parents moved out of the picture, but there was only so much patience they could hold. Of course, you couldn’t confront Jeongin about it — you were only acquaintances... barely even friends as you had only known each other through university... and now the thin wall that separated your living quarters. Well, it’d also be too awkward if you did (ugh, social confrontation), which is why you put up with it... Relief flooded through you when you heard the singing cease, sighing as your sister stopped fussing and fell back asleep. It’s not as though Jeongin was a bad singer. In fact, he was quite brilliant. But his singing was not appreciated at ungodly hours. The walls started to pulse as folk music blasted at a deafening volume, snapping you out of your reverie and forcing you to focus back on your crying sibling. You held back a scream, mentally cursing at Jeongin, I swear to God, the next time I see this boy—
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“Mina put on your coat, it’s ridiculously cold out! It’s January, remember? And what season is it in Jan—“ You paused, observing the idiot that exited his apartment alongside you, “Oh! Hello, Jeongin—“ He walked away without a word, rushing down the stairs. Rude! First the singing and now he’s ignoring me? Does he have any human decency?
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“Hello! Welcome — make sure you sign in your children before you leave!” Your eyes settled on Jeongin, who was beaming at the little kids that entered the daycare, holding out the sign-in sheet, Great and now he works at the only affordable day care. How... pleasant. Wiggling her hand out of your grasp, your sister waddle-ran over to Jeongin, giving him the biggest hug, for him to pick her up and spin her around. Ignoring the skip of your heart, you cooly approached the two of them, silently taking the sign in sheet and signing your name. “You must be Mina’s parent— I’m Jeongin, one of the part-timers here.” He held out his hand, Mina, still in his arms, blocking his view. You shook it, “Not her—“ You broke off as another kid ran to Jeongin, crying as he dragged him inside the daycare. Without turning around, Jeongin waved at you in dismissal. You scoffed, He won’t even acknowledge me at home but now that we’re in public and he’s literally being paid to be a decent human being, he’ll put on a face and pretend to be friendly? No thank you.
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You rubbed at your temples, mentally snapping at yourself to focus. Tutorial time was probably the only time you had to yourself to study and get things done. But you know what? That wasn’t happening today. Why? Because of Yang Jeongin infiltrating your thoughts every five seconds. You grumbled to yourself, almost ready to pack up and leave, He should pay rent for how long he’s been living in my head. “Oh wait! Y/N, you’re leaving already?” A voice called out from behind a tower of books in their hands, not long before plonking them down on the table in front of you. You looked up, your gaze meeting Jeongin’s hopeful one. Why is he being so friendly? Especially since he flat out ignored me this morning... “Um... I was planning to. Not that it’s any of your business.” You said coldly, scrunching your eyebrows in confusion at his sudden friendliness. Really, Y/N? You’re being like this just because he snubbed you this morning? Okay, wait that’s pretty valid. Ignoring the little “no it’s not” in your head, you maintained your cold demeanour.  “Oh. Um. Sorry. I was just asking because I was hoping to study with you.” Jeongin rubbed his neck awkwardly. You looked at him doubtfully, ignoring the hopeful fluttering in your stomach, “Why would you want to hang out with me of all people?” “Well, you’re the top of the class—“ You scoffed disdainfully and he broke off, looking at you wide-eyed. Of course he only wanted to use me for personal gain. Whatever, Y/N. Just avoid him. Do not interact! “I’m definitely heading off now. Bye.” You grabbed your books, leaving the library and a slightly confused and shocked Jeongin behind. He’s not worth it, Y/N.
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You buckled Mina in her little seat in the trolley, lightly humming as you pushed her along. After realising that you were out of ramen (a staple study food, fight me if you disagree), you had scrambled to pick up Mina from daycare before rushing over to the local grocery store, keen to get at least some ramen to fuel your study session after putting Mina to bed. That is if she’s able to sleep. Hopefully Jeongin won’t— You reached for the last pack of your favourite ramen, a hand brushing over yours to grab it with you. You whipped your head around, gaze meeting— yet again— Mr Yang Jeongin. How many times do I have to see him today??? This feels like a cruel joke. It’s not funny! You coughed, pointedly looking between Jeongin and his grip on the ramen you had so obviously grabbed before him. He sighed, pushing his specs up the bridge of his nose, pushing his hair back with the other hand, hand still fixated on the ramen packet, “Please, Y/N. I need this to study.” You inhaled sharply, trying not to be bothered by the impeccable College Boyfriend vibe he was exhibiting, dressed simply in a sweatshirt and track pants, “So. Do. I. In fact, I need it a lot more than you since your singing keeps up the whole neighbourhood. And no! I’m not calling you a bad singer, because on the contrary, you’re quite brilliant and I honestly don’t know why you didn’t decide to become a singer instead of a teacher. I mean, do you really want to waste your life away working at a daycare?” You rambled. Jeongin looked at you, stunned, loosening his grip on the ramen, and handing it to you, his cheeks lightly dusted with pink, “...You know what? You can have it. I’ll just buy... this one! Yep. This one.” He scurried away, leaving you stunned, “But that’s not even ramen!”You called out after him. “Doesn’t matter!”
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“Mina, please. Isn’t your crying at least making you tired?” You rocked your sister, exhausted as you looked at the clock— thirty minutes she’s been crying. Jeongin had decided not to sing tonight for some reason. But your sister still had difficulty sleeping. Perhaps he is actually a decent human being... although, I can’t say that I don’t miss his singing... what? Yes, you can, Y/N. The guy literally kept you up til three because of his singing. Mina just felt so inspired by his vocals that she had to try herself... by crying. Ugh.  The walls started to vibrate as you sighed, Complimented him too soon. His melodic tone carrying through to the nursery, your sister’s not so melodic cries mixing in even louder than his singing. You steeled yourself, done with this nonsense. Putting on a coat, you stomped out of your apartment, knocking insistently on Jeongin’s door. The door opened to reveal a bewildered Jeongin as you thrusted your screaming sister into his arms, “You started this. You fix it.”
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Jeongin held the door to his apartment with one hand, the other arm supporting your screaming sister. Allowing you into the apartment, you observed how spotless it was, giving it an appraising look. “Seungmin’s my roommate. Hence, why it’s so clean. It’s all he does when he gets home from the hospital.” Jeongin explained whilst trying to rock Mina to sleep. “I’m surprised he puts up with your singing.” You noted. “He works nights.” Jeongin deadpanned. You opened your mouth, closing it when you saw his attention turn towards Mina. Cooing at her, he slowly sunk himself into the cushions of the couch, lowly humming a melody familiar to the ones you had heard through the wall. However, it was more of a ballad version. A soft smile crept onto your face as you observed the two, your heart aching at the adorable sight. Mina slowly fluttered her eyes, slowly closing them as Jeongin hummed further, his chest vibrating comfortingly from his singing, the movement lulling her... to sleep! You looked amazingly at Jeongin, his triumphant gaze finding yours. You tried to take Mina off him as she fussed in her sleep, cuddling further into his chest, you sighed, putting your hands up in defeat — afraid to wake her. “So... care to explain why I had to do this?” Jeongin whispered, looking pointedly at you. “Well...you’ve been keeping her up with your trot singing that she’s been eventually falling asleep at almost 11 pm. The thing that I’m weirded out the most by is that she cried at the lack of your singing and when you sang a softer version of that folk song, she fell asleep straight away.” You explained. “Babies are weird like that. But why did you have to give her to me to calm down?” Jeongin asked, confused. “Well one, you’re studying teaching and working at a daycare. And two, you started this!” You numbered. “We’re in the same class and she’s your sister!” Jeongin pointed out, eyes wide. “Look. The main reason really is your singing. Why do you have to sing so late, anyways? It’s not like you’re preparing for any assignment... we don’t have to create a song for our assignment... right?” You asked, tone slightly laced with concern. “No, no.” He dismissed your concerns, sighing, “The real reason why I’m singing so late at night is actually because I’m preparing for something. I don’t really have time otherwise to prepare for it since I have uni and work.” “What are you preparing for?” You scrunched your eyebrows quizzically. “You have to promise not to laugh.” He looked at you pointedly. “I can’t promise that.” You scoffed. “Well then I can’t tell you.” He lifted his head, looking elsewhere. “Fine. Fine!” You whispered harshly. “Okay, well I’m doing this competition that’s basically a talent show for unusual talents. And mine is... trot singing. The whole point of this talent show, though, is to actually achieve your New Year goals and resolutions.” “And yours is... to win with your trot singing?” You looked at him bewilderingly. “No.” He lightly slapped his forehead, disappointed at your lack of piecing together what little information he provided you with. “My resolution is to perform on stage. However, my only formal singing training is in trot singing.” “Ah, I see.” “Yeah... you should come! Only if you can. Obviously. No pressure.” He asked quickly. “Oh! I’m surprised you want me there after everything that happened.” You said sheepishly. “What happened?” He widened his eyes in confusion. “Well— you were kind of a jerk to me all of today.” You noted. “I was? Oh—“ “You ignored me this morning, put on a face when I dropped Mina off at daycare, purely because you were at work and tried to talk to me in tutorial after that. Then you nearly stole my ramen!” You interrupted. “Oh wow, I really did all of that today? Anyway, let me explain. In the morning, yes I saw you and I could’ve yelled a hello, I admit it. But I was very stressed since Seungmin is normally the one to wake me up when he comes back from the hospital but I think he must’ve gone home with his partner or something because he didn’t come home last night, and I had no way to contact him because Jisung threw his phone in the bin.” He explained. “He what?” You recoiled in bewilderment at the last part. “Long story. Anyway, I actually just go straight to autopilot whenever I have to converse with the parents. And since it’s my first week, I wasn’t expecting to see someone I know, let alone you, so I just went straight to my Customer Service Polite Conversation Autopilot Mode... customer service is so hard. As for the tutorial thing, I wanted to study with you! Believe it or not, I actually do appreciate your company.” He said pointedly. You blushed, clearing your throat, “That doesn’t explain the ramen thing, though.” He sighed, “Ramen is my study food too, you know. But I figured you needed it a lot more than me... also your compliment caught me off guard.” He muttered the last part, you smirked slightly as you heard it. “Anyway, I would really appreciate it if you could come because... well, you- you’re one of my good friends.” He rubbed his neck tentatively. Your chest ached slightly, feelings of disappointment infiltrating your head, only to be met with confusion... and sudden realisation. Oh. No.
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[00:37] (Jeongin) hey! you left all of a sudden, but I’ve emailed you the details to the comp. hope you can come :) [10:55] (Jeongin)...Y/N? Are you still alive? Actually, I know you are. But why are you avoiding me? It had been a couple of days since you realised your feelings for Jeongin. Trying to avoid him at any costs, you changed up your schedule — only taking morning tutorials, making sure you didn’t run into him wherever you went. It didn’t help that your lives were so intertwined. Mina had gotten particularly attached to him — you watched her from outside the daycare, her little legs wrapped around his, clinging onto him like a koala and reluctant to let him go when she saw you at the gate. That certainly did not help. But what could you do? In order to avoid hardship, you have to cut the relationship in the bud. Especially since he only sees you as a friend. You snapped your attention to the door, as a knock resounded through your apartment, redirecting your attention from your phone to... a very unkempt Seungmin, waiting behind the door. “Hey, Y/N! I was wondering if you could do me a favour?” He asked, words rushed. “That depends on what it is.” You crossed your arms over your chest, raising an eyebrow expectantly. “I need you to go to Jeongin’s talent show for me.” He said. You shut the door immediately on him, “Y/N’s not here.” “I— what? Y/N, please. I need to go to the hospital today and he really wants you to go!” Seungmin pleaded from behind the door. “Why can’t you get any of his hyungs to attend? He has like six other ones.” You proposed. “He really wants you to come. He really likes you, Y/N.” Seungmin sighed. You opened the door slightly, peaking out from around the door, “Yeah. As a friend.” “What gave you that impression?” Seungmin looked at you confusedly. “He said it to my face?” You said, equally as confused. “Oh my god. He like likes you, okay? He didn’t tell anyone except us two about the contest. He told me because we live together but he told you because he has feelings for you!” Seungmin inhaled sharply, trying ridiculously hard not to roll his eyes in annoyance. “You’re not just telling me this so I would go?” You raised an eyebrow sceptically. “No. I have nothing to gain out of that because if you found out I was lying, I know you’ll hold a grudge against me forever, and as neighbours that really would not work out.” He said a matter of factly. “...alright. Fine. I’ll go. And you do realise we’re also friends? Friends generally shouldn’t lie to each other.” You looked at him pointedly. “Right. That.” He said shortly. “Anyway, you should hurry since you only have... twenty minutes til it starts.” He checked his watch. You gasped, “And you only thought to tell me now?” “Some of us have more important things to do than helping your love story progress. For example, saving lives. So, goodbye!” He waved, ushering you to close the door before sprinting down the hall. Time to sort this out... I guess.
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You rushed to the venue after purchasing flowers and chocolate and organising for Jisung and his partner to come babysit... although you weren’t exactly trusting of them after hearing of their lawsuit rendezvous at the shopping centre. That was irrelevant right now, though. After sitting through more than fifteen of the most unusual acts at the talent show, you questioned how Jeongin even found out about it. It wasn’t until he entered on stage, lights dimming around him as he sang a slow, but emotive trot song— eyes searching over the crowd, only to lock onto yours as he belted his last note, the audience standing in applause as he stood back, catching his breath, eyes never leaving yours. “And there you have it folks! First of all, a big congratulations to all of you— you’ve successfully achieved at least one of your New Years resolutions!” The MC walked on stage, passing Jeongin on his way out, “But now, it’s the moment you’ve all been waiting for— the winner of this new year’s resolution talent contest is... Yang Jeongin!” A hearty applause echoed throughout the room, loud cheers erupting as Jeongin entered the stage again, you stood up, giving him an encouraging smile whilst cheering, “Okay, well first of all, thank you for the opportunity to do this. I don’t think I would’ve ever performed if it weren’t for making it a New Years resolution.” Low laughter hummed from the audience, “I guess— another person to thank is... well... someone that I really like and have for a while- Y/N. Even though our whole relationship basically consisted of a bunch of misunderstandings, you still came to this competition for me. At least, I hope it was for me. It’d be awkward if it wasn’t, since this is a sort of confession thing. Actually— do you think you could join me on stage?” The audience turned to you as you stared at him in shock. Shaking out of your reverie, you slowly stood up, making your way to the stage as he held out a hand, helping you up the stairs. You gave him a nervous but small smile, “Congratulations on your win!” You handed him the flowers, as he pulled you in for a quick hug. “Y/N, you’re probably the coolest person I’ve ever befriended. You’re incredibly driven, caring, and probably the person I respect most in my life. The way you’re achieving all your goals whilst managing the stress and struggles of raising your younger sibling astounds me, and honestly, that’s probably the feature that I find most admirable about you.” Jeongin spoke into his mic, gaze deepening into yours, the audience “aww”ing in response to him. “So, I guess where I’m trying to get at is— will you go out with me?” He asked as the audience cheered you on. You took the mic off him, pressing a quick kiss to his lips, “I’d love to.” He pulled you into a tight embrace as the audience cheered loudly, whistling as well. As you exited the auditorium, entering the foyer, you intertwined your hands with Jeongin’s, “Where should we go for our first date?” You asked, quickly putting on your coat and a beanie, wearily eying the snowfall outside, “I don’t know, I was thinking karaoke?” Jeongin suggested. You scoffed, “No.” “Why not?” He asked, genuinely confused. “Because you’d absolutely crush me. That’s why. Also, I know you’re only saying that because they gave you yearly access to the karaoke club as your prize.” You rolled your eyes. “You wound me with your words, Y/N. Do you think I’d cheapskate on our date?” He placed his hand to his chest, faking a gasp. “Never.” You mimicked his gesture as you exited the foyer. “Yah! Y/N!” “I’m joking, I’m joking! Ahh— don’t tickle me-“ You gasped as his fingers found your sides, giggles unwillingly being emitted. “Only if you give me another kiss.” He tapped his lips, you sighed, leaning over to give him another kiss, as he lightly drew your neck closer to him, deepening the kiss. You pulled back, eyes sparkling with joy, “Well...Even though I know you’ll trash me at it...Race you to the karaoke club?” You proposed, stretching your muscles. “Really? We just had the most epic kiss and now all you’re concerned about is karaoke?!” He raised an eyebrow expectantly. “Last one to the karaoke place gets no kisses for the rest of the day!” “Oh, you’re on.”
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Look At Me
This is a Sirius x Reader piece I wrote. The summary is you’re in love with him (obvs) and you’re out drinking together. You’ll have to read it if you want to know more because I don’t know how to do summaries! Word count: 1846
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Sometimes when I look at Sirius, I try to read his mind. Tonight, in the local muggle pub I sip my rum and coke staring as inconspicuously as I can at him. I think I’ll finally do it. The rest of the gang are distracted in their own little worlds. Perfect for me, I think I’ve finally cracked it. He stands on the outside of a conversation, eyes glistening. I sip my drink, look up and see him unexpectedly looking back. I am afraid if I blink, I might miss it. The look of yearning on his face. It brings out this urge in me to hold him. To wrap him up in my arms and never let him go. But I do not blink, and I look a little closer, my mind begins to wander is it me he is yearning for. I know that I want him in every meaning of the word. Does he feel the same for me? I look away from him and I notice a girl our age behind me with raven hair and crimson lipstick that elicits a poisonous envy within me. This goddess come to life has poise and mystery, she is elegant and distant. All in the unknown, I tell myself. That is why I hate horror films. All the suspense and all that you do not see is what makes itself horror. Right now, that is how I see her, as a beautiful horror. Something I cannot take my eyes off. She is everything I wish I were and part of me knows I too would jump, eyes closed, at the opportunity to be with her just once. Is that what he longs for? Mystery and darkness. All the things you could imagine and things you would not dare wish for. 
I look back at him. All of him. His icy eyes that I always saw more as the sky on a sunny day but now I see them how she would. He too is mysterious. Leather clad and brooding. Tattoos disappearing under sleeves you cannot help but want to trace. His inky hair that falls guiltily over his face like he is already broken your heart. I know he will. I know I will let him. Is it me your looking for? I want to ask. Am I all mystery and elegance? No, I do not think I am. I am the familiar option. I am warm sand after an icy cold swim. I have my own good qualities. I know this but I do not know if this will be enough. This time I look at James, Remus and Peter. They are not looking at me. James holding his heavy head up sloppily with his toned arm gazes all wide eyed and wishful at Lily. Who laughs with a stranger at the bar. Brushing her auburn locks over her shoulder. James’ sighs so cartoon like I must stop myself from laughing. Then I move to Remus who picks at the sleeve of his knitted jumper while talking animatedly to a small chubby girl about some muggle literature. She seems to be having fun as she softly hits his arm. Peter is chatting quietly to two tall men who have such dark circles under their eyes I feel the need to tell them to rest. I take a longer look at Peter who is chewing at his lip. He is a little drunker than the rest and I see his face go red. He tells a joke, and the tall men laugh, it softens their faces, and they do not seem as tired. My eyes make their way back to Sirius who seems to be talking to me. His pale cheeks reddening as he notices I have not been paying attention. “What?” I mouth to him taking the last mouthful of my drink. “I said are you hungry?” He chuckles pushing himself round the table, so he is standing beside me. I forget how familiar he is to me. He is so inviting I feel something tug inside me. As if something is saying you love him for Christ sake just tell him! But the timing is not right! I snipe back to myself. It never will be. That is my plan. To never tell him because how could I ruin something so precious to me? I hold him so closely in my heart I could not live with myself if I ruined this. “Hello oh.” He says with that grin growing. He shakes my shoulders as if to wake me up. “Um, isn’t a little early for that?” I say. “I know you Love, you’re always hungry at pre drinks and I cannot listen to you talk about pizza while dancing to the muggle music one more time! So, I figure I feed you now and then if you’re still hungry later we can share a kebab or something?” He says absentmindedly twirling a stray piece of my hair. The heat rises from my neck threatening to give me away. I clear my throat. “Are you sure? I know how important it is to solidify the lady friend for the evening early on so you get the prettiest one and you can tell in here because it’s well lit.” I say a little sourer than intended. “Who says that’s not what I’m doing?” He retorts shifting his weight. “Are you trying to bed me by offering me takeaway?” I ask amused. “I wouldn’t have worded it like that because now you sound like a prostitute who gets paid in food.” “You never know, it sounds like a solid business plan to me.” I laugh. Then Sirius laughs with me. We leave the pub arms intertwined wandering toward the pizza place down the road. It’s gotten colder since we arrived in the crowded pub and now, I am wondering why I didn’t bring a coat. I look up at Sirius with a wide grin because this is my favourite part of the night and now, I have been promised it twice. Not the food, but this little walk to the takeaway. Where we giggle and bump into each other. It feels so intimate despite the crowds of drunks. “What are we getting Love?” He asks stuffing his hands into his pocket and bringing out a twenty-pound note. “I was thinking something spicy but put your money away I’ve got this one.” I insist attempting to push myself into the small takeaway. But he stops me and before I know it, he is in there and he is ordering then he pays and tips the guys generously. He pops outside. Leaning against the window he smugly grins at me as though he has bested me. Which is ridiculous but I cannot stop myself from going into the takeaway and ordering something myself and matching his tip. He clearly protests shaking his head with feigned annoyance. He turns his head away, but I see him laughing. “Let’s go.” He laughs taking our orders from the ledge and wandering back to the pub. “Did you see who Remi was talking to?” I say chewing on the crust of the pizza. “Yeah, I think they work together at the book shop. He fancies her. Obviously.” “She definitely likes him.” “How can you tell?” He asks with genuine curiosity as he takes a large bite of my cheesy chips. “It’s all in the eyes Sirius. Her entire face softened when she looked at him. Like he was a puppy she had seen after the worst day of her life.” I ask batting his hand away so I too can fill my mouth with cheesy chips. “So, what do you see in my eyes when I look at you?” He asks and I’m not sure if he’s teasing me. I know that I do not want to play this game. It will end up with me in tears and him leaving with someone else. Sensing the shift in my attitude he stops and turns to me. He takes the food boxes and leans them on a nearby bench before turning his body to me and looking at me. Really looking at me. “I’m not messing around Love. What do you see when I look at you?” He says softly as though he is afraid, afraid that I will break. For a moment we stand there in the golden light from the lamppost. Just the two of us there like a painting. A moment in time where the silence is deafening. I look at him like I did in the pub and I am confused. He has got that same look on his face. Soft and forgiving. His big grey eyes warm and loving. I suddenly feel so stupid. So blind and ridiculous. “I see love. I see warmth and forgiveness. Something else that I can’t quite place.” I whisper. It feels more like a prayer. Wishing on a shooting star or a coin thrown into a fountain. Something I have thrown away without thought. Without thinking what it really means if he feels the same. What happens after the happy ending? Where we end up. How it really feels to be loved. If I could throw myself away with a coin. I look up and I see he is still looking at me. Suddenly I feel very shy. I feel naked and wounded. I did not just tell him what I saw I told him what I wanted to see in him. Revealing much more of myself than intended. So, I ask him “What do you see?” in a small breathless voice. He drags a hand through his hair and rests his chin on his fist. He focuses and in such a comical manner I cannot help but smile because suddenly this all feels so silly. So childish. I keep looking at him and see a small scar above his brow. Something he probably got from childhood and I think about everything I do about him. If it’s enough. I think about how he used to help the younger students who were being bullied. How he’d bring Remus chocolate when he was down. Or how he always gives money to the homeless or the charity people on the street. He was hopeless at cooking but would always make sure the boys had a home cooked meal to come back to when they lived in that tiny flat together. Under all the flirting and joking Sirius is the kindest most giving person I have ever known. Suddenly I feel like I could cry because has anyone ever shown him the same kindest. Has anyone ever looked after him? “Why do you look so sad?” He asks with a strange look on his face. “Because I just realised that I want to look after you Sirius. If you’ll let me.” I say taking his large hand in mine. I see his face change. As though that was the last thing, he thought I’d say. “Alright Love,” He says, “I think I’d like that.”
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percywinchester27 · 4 years
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A lot like ‘Us’ (Part-12)
Word count: 5.4K
Pairing: Sam X Reader AU
Warnings: Feels, pining, fluff ;)
Series Summary: Y/N Y/L/N is eager and honestly, still in awe that she managed to get herself an acceptance from Stanford Law School. On the face of it, her life seems as put together, mysterious and independent as one might hope for. On the insides, she carries the burden of past that haunts her till date. Seemingly, she’d left it all behind; that is until she sets foot in the class of the Law School’s youngest, most promising professor.
A/N: I am so excited to see what you think of this chapter! I haven’t made a secret of the fact that this is one of my absolute favorite chapters. I had a lot of fun writing it <3
The story employs two different timelines. The present timeline for the story takes place in 2014. Please let me know what you guys think :)
Beta: @deanssweetheart23​​. You are a goddess. I love you <3
A lot like ‘Us’ masterlist
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Sam regretted it the moment he stepped into the bar. The lights were dim, the music was hip and it was too full of people. What was more, a lot of those faces seemed familiar. Maybe he had seen them around the campus?
Sam found a corner booth, away from the bar counter and the pool table. It was isolated and about as quiet as any table was going to get. He drew out his phone and texted Jody.
“I’m here. Where are you?”
Sighing, he locked the screen on his phone. Sam was beyond exhausted. He had stayed up the night, driven for close to twelve hours in total to and fro from LA, and went cut to cut with one of the fiercest attorneys he had ever met. At least, James was out for good. The look on his face at the sight of Sam had been worth everything. Sam had been so scared that he wouldn’t be able to get the kid out. Now that he had, all he wanted to do was fall in bed and not wake up till Sunday. 
Even as that thought took shape, he knew he was lying to himself. More than anything, he wanted to find Y/N and thank her for her help last night, let her know how the hearing went. If someone at Acton Gris had helped him, he would have taken them along for the hearing because the effort deserved it. A part of him had wanted to ask Y/N. She would be allowed, since she was a law student accompanying the attorney, but Sam didn’t think he could handle being in her presence for so long. Besides, she’d had classes in the morning. Either way, she deserved to know the verdict. He had contemplated emailing her, then thought better of it. Maybe he would drop by at the library to see if it was her shift. It was only 12. The library would be open for at least two more hours.
He banished the thought as quickly as it appeared, though, physically shaking his head. He needed to factor in the consideration that she probably didn’t want to keep running into him all the time.
His phone pinged. It was Jody letting him know that Alex was yet to get home from some party of her own and that she would be late, if she came at all. 
Fantastic. Simply fantastic.
He should have just gone to bed. Being in bars at midnight? He was too old for this. It had been Jody’s idea to begin with! She was the one who had made plans for the weekend and was standing him up now.
“Professor Winchester?”
Sam groaned internally before seeing who had called him. It was a glimmeringly clad freshman from his class. 
Could the evening get any worse? He had to run into his students.
“Ohmygosh! I can’t believe you’re here,” gushed the girl. Sam vaguely remembered that her name was Staten.
The other girl whose name Sam didn’t know at all nodded vigorously. “You’re so cool!”
Both of them were bright eyed and obviously tipsy. That was a combination for trouble if Sam had ever seen one. 
He got up. “Nice to see you ladies,” he said sliding out of the booth. “I’m going to step out for just a second. Y’all have fun.”
“Mr. Winchester,” one of them called, but Sam was out the back door. Few years of teaching had taught him enough in that department. During his early days, years ago, when he first started as a visiting faculty, he would insist that the class call him by his first name. He had been ignorant about how it came across and only after a couple of students had made a pass at him had he grown wary and stuck to being addressed by his last name. It never got less weird, having people address him as ‘Mr. Winchester,’ but he was used to it now.
Stepping outside, Sam breathed in the cold air, wondering again what the hell he was doing here.
He pulled out his phone and dialed Jody.
She picked up on the second ring. “I’m so sorry, Sam!” She apologised profusely. “Alex’s tyre gave out and she’s stranded a couple miles out.”
“Shit. Do you want me to pick her up?”
“No, it’s alright,” she reassured. “She’ll feel awful about you driving out to get her. I’m heading out now. Please just wait a little longer. I feel horrible about keeping you waiting, especially since it was my idea.”
He looked at the watch. It was quarter past twelve. “Jody…” he sighed.
“Okay, wait for just fifteen more minutes,” she bargained. “If I’m not there by then, you can go home and I’ll owe you drinks for the rest of the year.”
“Rest of your life, and we have a deal,” Sam smiled despite himself. “Okay. Fifteen minutes.”
“You drive a hard bargain,” She said, clearly amused. “That’s how you become a good lawyer. Okay, Fine.”
Sam laughed.
“You know I love you, Winchester.”
“I know you do!”
Sam put the phone back in his pocket. He wouldn’t have known what to do with his life if Jody hadn’t stepped in and taught him how to look after another person who was solely dependent on him. She was the best friend and mentor he could have asked for.
He slid back inside the bar, determined to avoid any and each student he saw. Especially the drunk ones. Luck was on his side. The whole freshman gang had moved to the pool table, removed from the main area. This late he would have expected the crowd to thin out, but hoards of people were on the dance floor moving their bodies to the rhythm of the song. Taking advantage of the crowd, Sam went over to the bar counter.
“Jack. Neat!” He asked the woman behind the counter. She had long dark hair and a mischievous smile.
“Coming right up, handsome!” She winked.
Sam smiled awkwardly as she slid the glass.
“Hey, Mister! Repeat this one!”
Sam’s head snapped in the direction of the voice. It was loud and bossy and Y/N’s.
“Y/N?” The bartender in front of him squinted at the girl two benches from him, clearly surprised.
Sam would have moved sooner, but he was awestruck at the sight of her. Y/N was wearing a silky, satiny top that was cut low and clung to her body like a second skin over tight jeans and heeled boots. Her hair cascaded over her bare shoulders like a nymph’s. Sam’s throat went dry.
The bartender rushed over to her. “Christ, Y/N!” she said. “What’re you doing here?”
Y/N looked at her with wide, surprised eyes. “Pam! OH MY GOD, PAM! It’s you! 
“Yes, I work here,” the bartender, whose name was apparently Pam, said. “Rob, how much has she had to drink?”
The guy shrugged. “One vodka, three tequillas. I don’t know about before.”
“Y/N?” Pam patted Y/N’s face. “Are you by yourself?”
“Kinda!” Y/N giggled, tossing her hair back in a smooth flip. Sam’s heartbeat spiked at the sight. He absolutely couldn’t wrench his eyes away.
Y/N bent over the counter, then jerked her thumb at the freshman gang and whispered conspiratorially. “I’m with those guys over there, but I don’t think they care if I wander off. Can I tell you a secret? Most of them are douchebags anyway.”
“Rob!” Pam barked. “Do we have a standby? Rinny? Or just anyone else?”
“It’s just us tonight.”
“Well, fuck!” Pam swore.
“Y/N, honey,” she tried to get Y/N to listen to her, but Y/N was already trying to sit up on the bar, blowing kisses at Pam. “You’re the best, Pam. Just the absolute best and I love how much you love my cookies.”
“Everyone loves your cookies, honey, but you need to get down.”
“Okay… Okay,” Y/N winked. She slipped as she tried to get down from the counter. Reflexively Sam moved, catching her before she crashed to the ground.
“I got you, don’t worry,” he said in a low voice only to her and she looked up at him with wide confused eyes. 
“Hey, get your hands off of her, Mister.” Pam hissed, looking scarily angry. “I said, let go of her. Right now.”
Sam did so immediately, but Y/N didn’t let go of his shirt. “I know her,” he tried to explain to Pam, who looked like she was on the verge of calling the bouncers.
“Yeah, that’s right, you know her,” Pam grimaced. “Very believable.”
“I swear, I know her,” Sam said, wildly trying to explain. “Her name’s Y/N Y/L/N. She’s a law student at the university. First year, hails from Kansas and feels insanely cold.” Sam started spewing random facts he could think of. “Her favourite book is To kill a mockingbird. She bakes amazing muffins-”
She likes her coffee with very little milk, is scared of ducks and has a birthmark in the middle of her lower back. She likes listening to classical music and waking up early…
Meanwhile, Y/N was still looking at him in wonderment, shushing herself.
“How do you know all that about her?” Pam looked at him with suspicion and mingled curiosity.
“I’m her-” it hurt to say- “ her friend.”
She still didn’t look completely convinced.
“Y/N?” Pam asked the girl in Sam’s arms. “You know this man?”
Don’t be that far gone, Sam prayed internally. Please don’t be that far gone.
“Pfftt,” Y/N scoffed, with such force that she lost her footing again. “It’s Sam! I’d sooner forget myself than not know him! What sort of dumb question is this?”
Sam.
She had said his name. It had caressed her lips. Was it even possible to be jealous of your own name?
Pam  raised her eyebrows.
“Look,” she said, “I can’t leave my shift to drop her home and no one I can call will be up this late. Y/N clearly knows you. Do you think you can drop her home?”
“I-I don’t know where she stays!”
Pam quickly wrote down an address. “It’s just a couple blocks away. I’m going to call her cell in a while, so you better not try anything funny.”
Sam wanted to roll his eyes, but he was too terrified at the prospect of being left alone with Y/N. He glanced around to see a couple of looks coming their way.
“Yeah, I’ll take her,” he said finally. “The hangover will hit her hard in a while, it’s better that she’s home then. Trust me, I know.”
Pam took one look from his face to Y/N wrapped around his torso. “Thanks, man.”
He nodded and then slowly guided Y/N out. “C’mon. Let’s get you home.”
“You know where I live?” She asked, tilting her head to one side.
“I do now.” Fortunately or unfortunately it was right next to Sam’s street. 
He adjusted her so that she was tucked under his side. Her fingers were still boldly clutching at his undershirt, sending shocks of sensation throughout his body. 
“This way, c’mon,” He guided her forward.
“Stop pushing me. I. Can’t. Walk. Any. Faster!” She whined. “These shoes suck.”
“Okay, let’s just sit for a while.” He slowly steered her to a bench on the street. It wasn’t right outside the bar, hence, out of clear view. Sam lowered her onto the bench and she promptly pulled her feet up, trying to slide the zipper on her shoes. They honestly looked like a death trap of sorts. The zipper stuck out adamantly as she yanked at it with all her might.
Hands trembling, he caught hold of hers. “Wait. Let me.”
Slowly, with a steadier hand, Sam dragged down the zippers on both her shoes- carefully, to not touch her skin- freeing her feet. She drew into herself, massaging the reddened skin on the arch and the back of her heel. 
“Stupid Meg,” she muttered. “Shouldn’t have let her put me in these.” 
She massaged her toes. “It hurts.”
“Will you let me take a look at it?” He asked hesitantly. Y/N twisted her body and put both her feet straight into his lap. 
“Here! Look all you want.”
Her hair was fluttering lightly in the wind and despite the chill, she wasn’t reaching for the leather jacket. Looking at her was like looking at the sun. He wanted to, but couldn’t, because it hurt at the same time. The satin of her blouse was kissing her soft skin in all the right places.
“I know what you’re thinking,” Y/N teased collusively. She scooted closer, almost sitting completely in his lap now. “Can I tell you a secret? I think about it, too.”
Sam pushed her away lightly and God it hurt to do it, but she wasn’t in her senses right now. Sober, she wouldn’t have wanted any of this.
“We should get you home!” He said in a tight voice.
“No!” She was adamant. “Why are you in such a hurry to get away from me?”
Oh the irony. “You were the one who left me, Y/N.” 
Y/N not having heard a word of it was scooting closer to him again. She laid her head on his shoulder, and snaked her arms around his waist. Sam stilled, not even daring to breathe.
“Let’s just stay here forever. You and me.” She laughed all of a sudden. “This is literally the best dream I’ve ever had. I can actually feel you.” She hugged him tighter to prove her point. “See?”
“Is this what your dreams are made up of?” 
“The good ones, yeah,” she sighed tiredly. “But mostly they’re just bad and I’m cold and there’s so much water, Sam. There was so much water.”
Suddenly she started shivering and Sam pulled the jacket over her shoulders.
She looked up with tears in her eyes. “Sam, the water! And there’s so much glass. It hurts.”
A deep pain and grief that he hadn’t felt in years threatened to swallow Sam whole. “Oh, baby,” he said, at last throwing his arms around her. “It’s not real. It happened a long time ago.”
“I can’t breathe. There’s too much water.” Her words were slow and slurred. Despite that, the picture she painted was horrifying.
The memories all flashed before his eyes like it had happened yesterday. But he refused to go under. Not now.
Sam allowed himself to comfort her and be comforted by her. In this one thing, they were together. He held her as close as he had dreamed for years, yet not truly believing that this was actually happening. She smelled just the same, and the way her body curved into his hadn’t changed at all.
Sam held her like that for an immeasurable time. It felt both like an eternity and mere seconds all at once. A crazed traveller wouldn’t be more desperate for an Oasis than Sam felt for her touch. And knowing that this would end soon, that these were stolen moments made it heaven and hell at the same time.
“Y/N,” he tried again. “We need to get you home.” I need to get you home.
She didn’t reply.
“Are you asleep?”
“Yes!” She muttered and in spite everything Sam had to stifle a laugh. 
She had no footwear on, after getting herself out of those insane shoes. Sam removed his flip flops and slid them under her feet. They were way too big, but it was better than nothing. 
“Up you come.” He hoisted her slowly to her feet.
“Whoa!” She said, “everything is spinning so fast.”
“Just hold on to me. The spinning will go away.” He guided her slowly. “This way now.”
Her grasp on his shoulder slipped, pulling his shirt down with him.
“Oooohhh fancy,” she snickered, trying to touch the thin chain around his neck.
Sam fixed his shirt with the other hand so it wasn’t visible. She didn’t need to know.
It must look absurd, the two of them walking down the street. Sam, barefoot, carrying a pair of her heels in one hand and holding her by the waist with the other. Meanwhile, Y/N was humming lightly to herself, giggling at silly things, slipping and sliding in his flip flops.
At long last, they reached the address that Pam had given. Sam knew the building, he walked past it everyday to get home. The building had a solid, high compound wall, covered in vines. Keeping a tight hold on Y/N, he pushed the wrought iron gate. It creaked as it opened, leaving Sam staring at a beautiful front yard. There was curving shrubbery around the small circular garden and a mermaid shaped fountain flowing water in a circular basin with seating around it.
“Hahahaaa Judgy Judy isn’t too pleased with us,” Y/N told him sagely. “She hates people who drink even more than people who turn up late.”
“Why did you drink anyway?” He asked. “You don’t even like doing it.”
Y/N broke off, stumbling into the path. She glared at him. “Oh, so it’s okay for you to go out on dates with other people but it’s not okay for me to drink?”
That’s what she thought? That he had been in the bar for a date? Was that why she had drank?
Sam’s mind was reeling. If what she was saying was true, it meant that it mattered to her what Sam did or didn’t do with his life. Unless she still cared.
“You really think I would do that?” Abruptly, he was angry. If she cared enough to be mad with him, why had she left him to begin with?
Y/N had already moved on from the conversation. She was staring up at the mermaid’s face.
“Sam? You remember that time we went to the fair and rode the ferris wheel?”
He did remember. “You fainted immediately after.”
“Yeah, this feels exactly like that…” Y/N staggered on the spot and Sam rushed to catch her. The minute his hands found her arm, she threw up spectacularly on the front of his shirt, retching till there wasn’t anything left. Then, she promptly passed out in his arms.
He stood there for a second, looking about him, but no help was going to arrive at 2 in the night.
This was bad, very very bad. He had hoped to drop her home and then go back to his own place to wallow about how unfair the world was. What was he supposed to do now?
He had no clue if she stayed by herself. He couldn’t just leave her by herself when she was sick.
Slowly, he led her to the seating around the fountain. She laid down on it, groaning lightly.  
Sam removed his shirt, bundled it up and using some of the water from the fountain, wiped the puke from his jeans and Y/N’s feet along with his flip flops. Then he bent down and swooped her in his arms, carrying her inside the building. Getting into the lift and to her apartment was easy enough. Wrestling the key out of the purse and then unlocking the door all the while supporting her wasn’t so much.
It was pretty clear to Sam that there was no one else in the apartment when he entered. All that noise would have brought someone out by now. He barely looked at the living room, before laying Y/N down on the sofa there. There was a kitchenette to the right side. Sam poured a glass of water, added a spoon of sugar and a pinch of salt after looking through the jars. He walked back to where Y/N was curled up on the sofa and coaxed her to drink it.
She made a face, refusing to take a sip.
“Trust me, you’ll thank me tomorrow.”
“No.”
She was so stubborn sometimes. “Please? For me?”
“For you?” Her expression was guileless, it was almost his undoing, but Sam pushed on. “Yes, for me.”
She took the glass from him and downed it in one go, distaste clear on her expression.
The phone started ringing right when she put the glass down. Sam had to fish it from her purse. The caller ID read ‘Pamela Barnes.’
“Here,” Sam handed the phone to Y/N. “It’s for you.”
“Hello!” She sang. “Yeah, yeah… I’m home…”
Sam didn’t hang around for the rest of the conversation. He returned the glass to the kitchen and made more of the Sugar-salt solution in a bottle.
Y/N was idly playing with a lock of her hair.
“Can we go to bed now? Please?” She mumbled drowsily.
“You,” Sam stressed “are going to bed. Which one is your room?”
Sleepily, she pointed towards the door next to the kitchenette. He lifted her once more in his arm, thinking how bizarre all of this was as he walked towards the room. It felt nothing short of euphoric to hold her like this, like he was on some sort of wild once in a lifetime adventure, even if touching her like this used to be normal for him once upon a time. He gently laid her down on the bed. She stretched out on the sheets immediately, a smile on her lips.
He could have stared and stared. Sam decided to take one long look at her, memorising the exact color of her hair, the fullness of her lips and the rhythm of her breaths. Just as he turned to leave, Y/N’s hand shot out to grab the hem of his T-shirt.
“Why? Why did it happen to us?” She said, her face drawn in lines of anguish. “We were good people. You still are. Then, why?”
Sam took a deep breath. “Because life isn’t fair. You of all people should know that by this point. And I’ve hardly been a good person since.” 
“Shhhhh….” She put a finger to her lip. “You’re the best, Sam. You always have been.”
“Then why did you leave me? Why couldn’t you trust me enough to stay? Have enough faith in me to know that I could make it okay for us? I loved you more than anything, Y/N. And you left me anyway.” He knew full well that she wouldn’t remember a thing in the morning, she was barely even listening now. So how did it matter what he said?
“Don’t go,” she moaned. 
“Y/N… you know I can’t stay.”
“Please… Nothing’s right when you’re not here.”
In an odd twisted way, it was the truth. Nothing was right when she wasn’t with him.
“Please, Sam,” she sighed. “Don’t leave me. Promise me.”
He gave in. How could he not? “I promise,” he said finally. “I’ll stay tonight.” 
She smiled contentedly and her breathing evened out soon after.
Slowly, Sam disentangled his t-shirt from his grip.
In the bathroom, he washed his bundled up shirt, cleaning it completely, then used it to wash off whatever was left on his jeans and t-shirt. Thankfully, Y/N’s clothes hadn’t been spoilt and didn’t need any cleaning. The apartment had a beautiful balcony that overlooked the garden below. He hung his shirt on the railing to dry it in the breeze. 
Sam checked on Y/N once more under the guise of placing the water bottle next to her bed. She was splayed wildly now. The straps of her blouse had slid further down her arm, revealing the tops of her breasts. He looked away. As lightly as he could, Sam freed the covers from beneath her and drew them over her, tucking her comfortably underneath them. Then he made his way to the living room sofa, closing Y/N’s bedroom door after her. 
The sofa was much too small to accommodate him, but Sam managed to lie on his back, legs folded and body wedged between the two armrests. After a while of twisting and turning, he rested his head on one armrest and threw his legs over the other, staring at the apartment walls and decorations. Most of it was too delicate, like the filigree on the curtains and the carved screens dividing part of the kitchenette from the rest of the living room. That certainly wasn’t Y/N’s taste. Either it came with the apartment or her room mate had put it there. There were some things, however, that were distinctly Y/N- the flowers and plants in the balcony, the solid wood coffee stand and the classy oven. The little China decorating the kitchen bar must’ve been her grandmothers. Nothing… absolutely nothing in the house proved that he had ever played a part in her life. Sam decidedly curbed the disappointment and bitterness he felt.
So, she had moved on from him. Hadn’t the past month taught him as much? 
A month ago he wouldn’t have believed that he’d end up a room away from a very drunk Y/N. So close, yet so far. He closed his eyes, recalling how it felt to have her arms around his waist, feel the press of her body against his as he lifted her in his arms. He could live out the rest of his life holding onto those memories, even if it never happened again, even if she never remembered it…
“Who the fuck are you?”
Sam’s eyes snapped open. A girl was standing over him with a ferocious expression.
He sat up groggily, disoriented about his surroundings. Who was this girl?
“I asked who the fuck are you and what are you doing in my apartment?”
Sam groaned, blinking his eyes in the still dark room. “I’m Sam. I helped Y/N home last night.”
“Where’s she? Is she okay?” 
The shift in her tone was sudden, from angry to concerned.
“Yeah, she’s fine,” Sam yawned. “She just had too much to drink.”
“And how do you know her?”
“I’m her- “ It physically ached to not say it. “I’m her… friend.”
The girl, who Sam assumed was her roommate, Meg, raised an eyebrow. “Friend, huh? How come she’s never talked about you before?”
Because she doesn’t care anymore.
Suddenly Sam was very tired. “Look, I’ve known her since a long time. We lost touch a while ago. I met her at college.”
Meg didn’t seem very convinced. She harrumphed and crossed her arms.
“I’m going to head out, now that you’re back,” he said, standing up and straightening his back. It was completely screwed. He walked over to the balcony and retrieved his now dried shirt. Meg eyed it dubiously.
“You didn’t try anything with her, did you?”
Again, the irony of someone else being concerned that he of all people would try to harm Y/N twisted his mouth into a bitter smirk.
“Look, mister…” Meg started and Sam put his hands up. He was too exhausted to hold this argument. 
“I just put her to bed. That’s all,” he said. “Heads up, she has terrible hangovers. You might want to keep the bathroom accessible and the Advil ready.”
With that he stalked out of the room. 
It wasn’t a long walk to his home from there, barely even five minutes, but Sam’s head was buzzing with thoughts. Last night everything had been so hurried and he was the only one who could have helped her out. But what now?
He and Y/N had barely started talking. He still didn’t know what was going on in her head. Last night had changed all of that, at least for him. If it had been hard to not think about her before, it was damn well impossible now. She was consuming his every thought, shadowing every emotion. What if she remembered everything she had said last night? What if she’d actually meant those things?
“Don’t go” 
“Please… Nothing’s right when you’re not here.”
“Please, Sam, Don’t leave me. Promise me.”
Each time his name had fallen off her lips, it was like she was resurrecting his long dead heartbeat. He wanted to dare, he wanted to hope and believe that there was some chance.
But what if she didn’t remember anything at all? Sam knew that he would die inside if that happened. It was one thing to not feel hope, and another altogether to kill it with one's own hands. 
His mind was a cacophony of noises and emotions all warring against each other as he reached his house. On the door steps, sat a solitary figure, waiting for him.
“Jody?”
The sky was just starting to lighten. What was she doing here?
He frowned at her, wondering what on earth could have brought her here this early in the morning. She stared back evenly; there was none of the usual warmth in her eyes, instead they were full of distrust and disappointment.
“Jody, is everything okay?” 
“You tell me, Winchester,” she said, coming to stand right next to him, her stature severe.
“I-I don’t know what you mean.”
“Really?” She spat. “Don’t you think you’ve been acting differently? At first I thought, being by yourself was getting to you.”
“Jody, I seriously don’t understand.”
“Fine I’ll cut to the chase. Where were you last night?”
It was the last thing Sam had expected. He couldn't tell her the truth. Where would he even start with the truth? “I was-”
She raised her hand and Sam flinched at the hostile expression on her face. “Save it, Sam. I know exactly what you were doing last night. I saw you sitting on the bench outside the bar with that girl.”
Sam jerked upright.
“I’ve known you for years, Sam. Years. I taught you everything I knew. I’ve never been prouder of any student I’ve had and this is what you do with all that trust? This is how you abuse your power?”
Her words rang louder than they should have in Sam’s ears. “Jody-”
“Don’t even try to make excuses. At first, when I saw her in your office, I didn’t think anything of it. Sure, she looked close to tears, but a lot of freshmen are always anxious. But then I saw you in the library with her. The way you looked at Y/N? That’s not how a teacher looks at their student!” Jody looked disgusted. “And tonight? Y/N was clearly drunk, for Christ’s sake! How can you possibly justify the way you were holding her?”
“Because she’s my WIFE!” He shouted, breathing hard, feeling the heat coming off of his face. “I married her and I love her!” 
It was beyond cathartic to finally say those words out loud. Up until this point Sam hadn’t realised that since he had seen Y/N in his class, those very words had been strangling him, poisoning him. Now that he had finally said them, the strength in his legs gave away. He sat down on the steps with a thud.
Jody’s face had gone very white. “Sam…”
“Tonight was nothing more than me helping a girl who needed it. Nothing more than that,” he said through gritted teeth, blinking rapidly at the wetness on his lashes. “You know I respect you, Jody, but even you don’t get to tell me if I can hold my own wife.”
She sat down next to him, now at a complete loss of words. “Is this the same girl…?”
Sam nodded, unable to form words.
“Sam, I’m so sorry,” she said, drawing him close. “I didn’t know. You should have said something.”
“Said what?” He said through a thick throat, angry with himself for showing weakness now when he had held it together for so long. “That my wife who walked out on me years ago because she didn't trust me to save our marriage is suddenly back? As my student after six years? Is that what I should have declared when I didn’t even know if she wanted to see my face? Is that what I should’ve said?”
“Oh, you sweet boy. I’m so sorry,” Jody ran her hands over his shoulders. “Sorry that you’ve been suffering and sorry that I doubted you at all. You don’t need to say anything now. C’mere.”
Firmly she drew him towards her and threw her arms around his neck. Sam hugged back, closing his eyes tightly so that the tears rolled over into the cotton of her shirt.
“Shhhh…” she said. “It’s going to be alright.”
Sam didn’t know if there was any truth in her words, but he allowed himself to be comforted, allowed himself to draw some warmth from his oldest friend here. Allowed himself to start healing.
**************************  
A/N 2: *Wiggles eyebrows* Who all saw it coming? ;)
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romeo-the-cactus · 3 years
Text
Last Christmas
Clint Barton x Reader
Warnings: implied cheating, rom com level problematic cheesiness
Requested by @geekofmanythings16
So admittedly, trying to find and then bring home a christmas tree, in New York, on christmas eve may not have been your greatest idea ever, but it's not like it was entirely your fault.
You'd been all set on ignoring the festivities completely, staying in by yourself and emerging in the new year once all the bright lights and warm cuddles and rich food was gone. After last christmas you really weren't in the mood to celebrate.
Today though, the nagging from everybody you knew had finally hit a breaking point, and now here you were, not remotely dressed for the freezing weather, someone else's santa hat you'd found under the sofa on your head, attempting to negotiate with the grumpy guy working there over a price for the last remaining half dead yet enormous christmas tree, when suddenly you were on the sidewalk covered in something large and golden with a wet face.
"Lucky! Aw Lucky no! Get off her, bad dog, you can't just go round attacking-"
"Clint?"
"...Fuck."
And yeah, you weren't exactly expecting to run into the guy who'd ruined christmas for you when you'd just got yourself into Christmas Mode, and any other time you would've either run away or tried to fight him (and given how he'd taken the break up, blank faced and accepting, he probably would've just stood there and let you hit him), but it turns out it's really, really difficult to be angry with a soft warm golden retriever trying to make out with you - even as you could feel your ass getting cold and wet from the gross grey slush on the ground beneath you.
"Alright Lucky, I think that's probably enough now!" You say, pushing him back enough to sit up, smiling despite yourself.
Lucky seems to look between you and the extremely sheepish-looking Clint Barton towering over you, God, you'd forgotten just how tall he is, the hot bastard.
You stand and dust yourself off, already feeling the cold sinking into your bones.
"So how've you-"
"Sorry I just lost track of him and-"
You both laugh a little awkwardly, before the tree seller behind you clears his throat and you remember you'd been in the middle of your fairly heated tree negotiations.
"... I'm not giving you more than 15 dollars for it"
"It's huge!"
"It's dead!"
"It's Christmas eve, where are you gonna find another tree?"
"It's Christmas eve, where are you gonna find another schmuck to buy it?"
"$18"
"Done."
It's not until you've paid the guy and he's started packing up that you realise Clint's still stood there, scratching the back of his neck as he does in any vaguely-grown up situation.
"...Yes?" You ask him.
"Do you need any help getting that home?"
Shit.
You'd been so focused on getting a tree, any tree, that you hadn't really thought as far as how you were gonna get the 7 foot twig back across the city alone, on one of the busiest nights of the year.
Well, there's a reason you and Clint had made a relatively good couple. Disasters of a feather and all that.
You looked around, chewing your lip, as if a solution was going to suddenly appear beside you.
"...What did you have in mind?"
Which is how you found yourself carrying a massive dead tree onto the subway with your ex-boyfriend as you tried to make something resembling mature small talk and prevent Lucky eating the trail of pine needles you were leaving through the station.
"So...still saving the world then?"
"Sort of part-time"
"Oh. What do you do the rest of the time?"
Mope around and watch Dog Cops.
"Uh. This and that"
"Hm. What happened to your face?"
As usual, Clint was sporting a black eye and an array of band-aids.
"...Something heroic."
"How the hell did you ever go undercover?" You ask, laughing at his terrible attempt at a lie.
"Eh, that was always more Natasha's area."
As the name washed over you both he froze, your smile dropped a little and you blinked.
Fuck's sake Clint.
It's not that you'd forgiven him, but he just looked so helpless stood there on the platform, eyes wide in something like horror as he realised what he'd said, and he was helping you out, so god help you, you offered him an out.
"How come you're not wearing your santa hat?"
In the years you'd known Clint Barton, without fail he'd donned a ratty old santa hat the night of thanksgiving, and without fail it stayed on until mid-February. You'd always loved how excited he got this time of year. The avengers were less pleased to be running around with the marksman looking so festive.
His face screwed up in confusion.
"What?"
Looking from side to side as if he feared being told off, he then nodded towards you and your eyes widened, crossing slightly as you looked upwards and realised just who'd left your current accessory under the sofa.
Luckily the train chose that moment to arrive, interrupting your stumbling excuse/apology and leaving you both stumbling to get the stupidly big, getting deader-by-the-second tree on, Clint just managing to grab Lucky by the collar and get him in too before the doors shut.
The train's not completely packed but it is busy, so surrounded by children screaming their own versions of christmas songs, grumpy adults surrounded by still to-be-wrapped gifts, and a meowing cardboard box, the three of you (you, Clint, and the tree) stood and swayed by the handlebar.
You looked at the ground, feeling the oh god what am I doing feeling of hanging out with Clint Barton sink into your gut. As if sensing it, Lucky licked at your fingers, making you smile.
Despite the noise around you, you all remain silent as you trundle your way back to yours.
That is, until a rather forceful stop sends Clint, Lucky, and the damn tree careening onto you as you grab the bar tight and brace for impact, only to open your eyes and find lucky with the tree in his mouth just about holding himself up, and one Clint Barton wrapped tightly around your middle as the train starts moving again.
Seeing him like that tugs at something inside you and for a moment you stretch your fingers out, about to sink them into that sandy hair of his before he tilts his head up and as you look at his face you're reminded how blank it had been after you'd walked into that room at Tony Stark's christmas party last year and seen him-
"Sorry," he says, straightening back up to his ridiculous height and releasing the most painfully awkward chuckle you've ever heard - and you've known him for years, you've heard plenty of those in your time. This is a terrible idea.
"Clint, maybe-"
"This is your stop, right?"
Shit.
"Right." A tight smile pulls its way across your face as you pick up the fucking tree, wincing at the amount of needles it leaves on the floor.
It's quiet again as you exit the station and turn towards your apartment.
"That's new."
Because of course he notices that a new pizza place has opened up next door.
"Uh, yep," god, how the hell did you get here, you used to not need words with this man, now you couldn't get them out if your life depended on it, "look, Clint, thanks for the help and all, but I think I've got it from here." The words come out pained and stilted, which seems to throw him in entirely the wrong direction.
"Hey, it's no trouble, and besides, you live on the fifth floor, and this thing's huge, and I'm here now anyway, and-"
"Okay!"
...With Clint, it's usually just easier to let him run with things and deal with the consequences after. What's the worst that could happen?
The worst is bumping into the old lady in 3C who always loved Clint, and seeing him melt at the puppies in 5A as he shows them to Lucky who gives them each a sniff and a lick, and eventually getting the tree up to your apartment. The worst is also Clint volunteering to help decorate your painfully unfestive apartment, and his eyes lighting up at seeing the tangled mess of your lights, and declaring he can sort them in no tine at all. The worst is no time at all being 58 minutes, and a Dog Cops rerun being the first thing that comes on the TV. It's Clint reaching up to put the star on top of your stupidly tall tree, his shirt riding up to reveal a wad of bandage, and you being there fussing over him before you've even realised what you've done. The worst is the soft look in his eye, and the realisation that you two haven't stopped talking since you got back. It's ordering pizza because decorating makes you hungry and there's nothing in the fridge and he wants to try that new place because it has really weird toppings available.
And obviously you have to watch something while you eat, and the Dog Cops Christmas special is on, and obviously that means sitting on the sofa, and Lucky's barely left any room for you two now he's rediscovered his favourite spot, and Clint's like a fucking furnace and you're tired from the last minute Christmas cheer.
The worst is waking up two hours later to find you've fallen asleep on the remote, and now it's switched to the music channel, and the cheesy video of blonde George Michael is on, and Clint has drool on his chin and a contented look you hadn't seen in so long, long before last Christmas, and seeing him snoring in his Santa hat is right, and Lucky stretches across your lap and the soft light from the tree glows in the corner and really, you never stood a chance once Lucky had found you again. The worst is falling asleep with that damn xylophone solo in your ears and feeling that this had always been your someone special anyway.
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capcarolsdanver · 4 years
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Faking It (Part 4)
Summary: This was a request for a Carol Danvers fake dating fic that will be a multi-chapter series, likely 4 parts! Who doesn’t love a fake dating fic?
Stories come out about Carol and her.. sexual escapades. This could potentially be PR trouble for the Avengers so Tony and Steve convince Carol that maybe the best way out of this mess is to convince the public she is in a committed relationship.. with the reader, her best friend who has feelings for Carol, but believes her feelings aren’t reciprocated. What could possibly go wrong??
Pairing: Carol Danvers x Reader A/N: Okay, we all know this took way too long. I’m still not even entirely sure I’m happy with this chapter even after rewrites and edits but I’m not gonna have you guys wait any longer so this is what I’ve got for you! A head’s up, this part is long. Like, looong. As this is the final part to the series I really would appreciate any feedback people have for this part and the series as a whole! Also may consider writing an epilogue maybe sometime but that depends on feedback from this part! Really hope you enjoy this and I’d like to thank everyone who has read this series and liked/reblogged it! Please do not repost my writing anywhere without my permission. PART 1 | PART 2 | PART 3
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“So. How’s it going with Carol?”
You and Nat are both lazing beside each other on the large couch in the open entertainment area of the compound, a blanket thrown over you both while some movie Nat had put on plays on the large screen on the wall.
A handful of the team had left earlier that afternoon for a mission, so you and Nat had decided to wait in the open room for them to return, knowing they’ll pass you on their way back into the compound. Carol was included in this mission and you were maybe a little too eager to see her return.
“Everything’s going according to plan,” you reply with a shrug. “We’re going to Tony’s party together on Saturday night.”
“Aw, cute,” she teases and you can’t help but chuckle at her.
“Stop it.”
“Stop what?” All you can do is shake your head at her. Nat glances at you before watching the screen again. “Seriously, Y/N. Don’t you think that by now you should be able to admit your feelings for her? With what you’re going through, I think you should be allowed to vent and talk to someone about it.”
You remain silent for a long moment.
Out of everyone here, Natasha has always been the one who can read you so well, often times even better than yourself. So, you obviously know that she would have picked up on your feelings for Carol shortly after they developed, very likely before you had even known about them.
And Nat has always been one of your closest friends here besides Carol, so you know that anything you speak to her about will be kept between the two of you.
That’s what gives you the confidence to whisper a quiet “You’re right”, Natasha’s eyes flying from the screen to look at you again. She stays quiet but she doesn’t move her eyes from you.
“At least before all of this I could try to ignore it. But now- it’s impossible.” Your shoulders slump as you voice your thoughts. “I mean, we kissed, Nat. And it was so much better than I could have imagined.”
You let out a tired sigh and run your hand across your face. “I should have never agreed to this. How could I have expected this to end well?”
“Hey, listen. Things might not be how they were before this whole thing started, but why does that mean it has to be a bad thing?”
You look at Nat skeptically and she offers you a confident nod.
“Let’s go over the facts, okay? You and Carol have been flirting with each other for forever, though you’ve been trying to convince yourselves that it’s just playful banter. She practically melts every time you smile at her, which is a lot. I wish I’d never noticed the amount of times she’s undressed you with her eyes when you don’t look. And she literally took it upon herself to become the softest girlfriend imaginable without even realising that there was a camera on her.”
You blink at Nat as she lists things off, your mind racing at her words.
“So let’s face it. You both have feelings for each other. And correct me if I’m wrong but I think you might finally be starting to realise her feelings too, just like the rest of us always have.” Your blush is answer enough for Nat. “So who says that you both can’t come out of this with an even better relationship than you had before?”
You open your mouth to respond, but approaching voices make you stop. The returning Avengers walk into the room, voices booming and laughing loudly. You can’t make out a single word as they loudly chatter over the top of each other.
Amongst the group, Tony spots you and Natasha on the couch.
“There’s our best girls!” He says, grinning at the sight of you both. This causes Carol to glance in your direction too, finding your eyes already on her.
You smile and wave at her, though you feel a little dejected when she does nothing more than glance at you and Nat, giving you what barely qualifies as a smile and nods.
“You all made it back in one piece, then?” Nat asks.
“Depends on what you define as ‘one piece’,” Bucky replies cheekily, holding up his metal arm.
Nat snorts in response. “You’re an idiot.”
“Well I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m pretty beat. I’m turning in for the night,” Steve announces. The rest of the team nod in agreement, aside from Carol, who thinks she’s being subtle about looking at you, and Tony.
“I think I might head to the lab for a while. I’ve got some things to work on,” he says.
“Alright, suit yourself. See you all tomorrow,” Steve waves and heads in the direction of the team’s private rooms, the rest of the group in tow.
Carol seems unsure of what to do, moving to take a step after the group as she watches them walk away, but ultimately staying put where she is.
You hear Natasha let out a light laugh next to you and your eyes leave Carol’s form as Nat pushes the blanket off her lap and stands up, shooting you a quick wink.
“Need any help in the lab?” She asks, catching up to Tony.
“Sure. Although, I don’t know how much help I’m gonna get from you in there,” he jokes, earning himself a shove from Nat as they both laugh.
Carol watches them leave, keeping her eyes on the empty doorway for another moment before turning back to you. She finds your form somewhere in the pile of blankets you’ve been left with on the couch.
You sit up and adjust your position on the couch, acutely aware of her eyes on you the entire time.
“Well, are you gonna come sit with me, then?”
“Do you want me to?” Your brow furrows on its own accord at her cautious tone.
“Of course I do.”
She walks over to the couch and stops short, oddly quiet as she glances at you. You pat the spot next to you where Nat had just been and she smiles at you before sitting down.
“The mission went well, then?”
She nods. “Yeah, it went as smoothly as we could have hoped. It was pretty tiring, though. I’m definitely just glad to be back here now,” she says, her voice softening, and she maintains eye contact with you despite to hint of pink appearing on her cheeks.
“Yeah, me too,” you say.
You both just smile at one another until Carol eventually breaks the eye contact to look at the screen.
“So what are you watching?”
“Oh,” you say as you glance at the screen now, too. “I don’t actually know. Something Nat picked out that I really wasn’t paying a lot of attention to, to be honest.”
“Right.” There’s a beat of silence and you can how lost in thought Carol seems to be. “So what were you paying attention to, then?”
“Hmm?”
“Well, something obviously had you distracted,” she alludes and you catch onto what she’s implying pretty quickly.
“You’re still jealous of Nat?” You say it in a teasing tone, though you’re too busy studying Carol’s every move and expression to bother with the accompanying teasing smirk.
She shrugs, struggling to keep her eyes on you.
“You two just seem very close lately.”
“And you and I don’t?” You shoot back gently, curious to see how far you could push the particular topic.
At her stuttering, blush filled response, you touch her arm and she stops and looks at you.
“Nat and I aren’t together, if that’s what you’re wondering. Never have been and never will be.”
At this point, you aren’t sure if you imagine the relief that crosses Carol’s face or not, but it gives you the confidence that you need to get your next sentence out.
“Besides, as much as I love Nat, she’s well aware that she’s not my favourite.”
Carol is once again lost for words. She blinks at you a couple times before a rare shy smile graces her face.
“Okay, now that we’ve got that out of the way.” You reach across Carol for the remote and turn off whatever movie Nat had put on, going back to Netflix’s main page. “What do you want to watch?”
You hand Carol the remote and she begins searching through the selection of movies. While she does, you throw the blanket over her too, unable to hide your own smile.
“Ooh, I love this movie!” She says, landing on Ferris Bueller’s Day Off and hitting play and you both fall into a comfortable silence as the movie plays. This goes on for another 20 or so minutes before you glance at Carol, who you only just now realise looks absolutely exhausted.
Her eyes are still happily glued to the screen, though, so you don’t bother to try to coax her to go to bed. You instead move to rest your head on her shoulder and she throws an arm over you to pull you closer. You happily shift your body to melt further into Carol’s.
You’re not really sure how much more of the movie plays before your eyes close and you drift off to sleep.
————————
“Well isn’t this just the cutest thing?”
You’re pulled out of your slumber from the voice coming from somewhere above you. You barely react, though, scrunching your face and shifting your body a little, eyes remaining tightly shut.
“Quick, Nat. Get a photo.” This has you opening your eyes.
Clint and Nat are both standing over you, wide grins on their faces as they look down at where you and Carol are still huddled together on the couch. There’s blankets still covering you both, and you’re practically lying on top of Carol.
“What the fuck are you two doing?!” You growl as quietly as you can manage, glancing down at Carol to ensure you don’t wake her up as you careful manoeuvre yourself into a seated position.
“Oh, nothing. Just documenting this moment so on your wedding day you two can look back at how this all started and laugh,” Nat says, pointing her phone at you and taking several photos.
“I’m actually going to kill you,” you hiss, feeling Carol stir next to you.
“What the hell is going on?” She rubs her eyes and attempts to focus on the scene she’s suddenly found herself in.
“Why don’t you tell us, Miss “We’re not a real couple” Danvers,” Clint quips.
“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t realise you wanted to die today,” Carol snarls back, her face immediately shifting into a harsh glare towards Clint.
“Alright, we’ve both already had our lives threatened, so I think it’s time we leave you two alone,” Nat laughs. She winks before she turns away and you grab a cushion from the couch and throw it after her as her and Clint walk away.
“Sometimes I forget that we’re surrounded by assholes almost all of the time here,” Carol deadpans and you chuckle, moving aside to allow her to sit up.
“Sorry I fell asleep on you last night. I’m starting to make a real habit of that, huh?”
“I don’t mind,” she says, that same smile from last night returning to her face. You smile back and for a long moment you both just sit there smiling at each other until your grumbling stomach breaks the silence.
Carol laughs at you. “Time for breakfast, then?” She teases, standing up and grabbing your arms to help you to your feet too. “Come on.” You both head towards the kitchen and when you enter the room, you stop at the sight of a familiar figure already behind the counter.
“Thor!” You exclaim, racing the rest of the way into the kitchen. Thor turns around and is greeted by you practically tackling him into a hug, though he doesn’t even slightly budge from the force of you colliding with him. Instead, he happily throws his arms around you too, beaming.
“Y/N! I missed you!”
Carol leans against the bench and looks on fondly.
Thor is practically like a big brother to you so you absolutely love it whenever he returns back to Earth from whatever space adventures he’s been on. When you two separate, Thor notices Carol too.
“Ah, Carol! Good to see you!” She smiles and nods. As you watch their somewhat awkward interaction, you can’t help but chuckle at the memory of when Thor once tried to hug Carol in greeting and got photon blasted halfway across the room.
They get along just fine. Pretty well, in fact. Carol always speaks highly of Thor and vice versa. But Carol just isn’t particularly affectionate with anyone besides you. And maybe Peter on the odd occasion.
She tends to not really expect it and usually reacts poorly, always offering a sheepish apology to whoever happens to be on the receiving end. But that had never really been an issue with you, which you’re glad about because you are definitely a hugger.
And if Carol really had to, she’d admit that she actually enjoys that about you, despite her general distaste of physical forms of affection.
“Woah, that’s a lot of pancakes, Thor,” you say, noticing multiple stacks on plates across the counter. Thor had always been a sucker for his favourite breakfast food since his first visit to Earth and whenever he comes back he can’t seem to get enough of them. He’d spent days upon days trying to perfect his recipe and make the perfect pancakes.
“Oh, please help yourself!” He happily offers and you and Carol thank him before grabbing a small stack of pancakes each.
“Were you gonna eat all of these on your own if we hadn’t shown up?” Carol asks Thor, who already has half a pancake stuffed in his mouth. He blinks at her, chewing on his food and swallowing it.
“…No,” he eventually replies, not even slightly convincing. You and Carol both laugh and he just shrugs before shoving the other half of his pancake in his mouth. “What can I say? I have a large appetite,” he mumbles out around his mouthful of food.
“When did you get back?” You ask.
“Early this morning.” You nod before noticing a shift in Thor’s expression. “You know, I noticed you on the couch this morning as I walked in. I almost said hello then until I realised you were both asleep.”
It’s not exactly a question he asks, not even an implication. It’s really just a statement. But the smile on his face tells you he thinks he knows what’s going on.
It’s honestly something you’ve always loved about Thor. The fact that he never outright voices his speculations about people’s personal lives, unlike the rest of the Avengers. Of course you always tell him everything eventually anyway, but until that happens he always gives you the space he feels you need to avoid making you uncomfortable.
Given the situation, though, you know you better give him the heads up before his welcome back party.
“Yeah. There’s definitely some things we need to catch up on,” you chuckle nervously.
“While you two do that, I’m gonna go get ready for the day. We’re still heading out today, right?” Carol asks, standing from her seat at the breakfast bar.
“Yeah,” you confirm.
When you last spoke to Steve and Tony, they were happy with how well you and Carol were doing and asked you to just make one more appearance out somewhere leading up to the party.
“Okay, I’ll meet you by the front in, like, 3 hours?”
“Sure,” you say and you and Thor watch as she leaves.
When you look back at Thor he has a cheery smile on his face, and you spend well over an hour explaining the situation, even confessing your feelings for Carol to him. You ask him about his most recent adventures, too, but being the type of guy he is, he’s more interested in listening to what you have to say and offering you advice.
You seriously couldn’t have picked anyone better to refer to as your big brother.
You eventually go your separate ways so you can get ready and catch up with Carol again. You check your watch on your way. You’re a little early but knowing Carol, she’s likely already there waiting for you.
You stop short before you walk through the walkway to the lobby of the compound when you hear Carol’s voice in conversation with someone else in the room.
“Do you think you’ll miss being able to flirt with as many women as you can at the party, then?” You recognise the other voice as Rhodey’s.
“I don’t know. Maybe,” Carol replies. “I mean, I usually find these parties a lot of fun. This one won’t be like that, though. I’m being made to stay on my best behaviour,” she jokes.
“So then what about Y/N? She’s holding you back from having fun?”
“It’s not that,” Carol says. “It’s just.. Tony’s parties are usually where I get to let loose, you know? I get to forget about all my responsibilities, forget about all the missions gone wrong and just enjoy myself. But this whole situation with Y/N.. it just kinda feels like I’m being kept on a leash.”
You’d be lying if you said Carol’s words didn’t sting. Ever since this whole mess of a situation began, you felt like things with Carol had been shifting. That things were different, even better now than before, like Natasha had said. But it sounds like maybe Carol doesn’t quite agree with you.
Had you really been wrong this whole time? Had Nat and the others swayed you into thinking that Carol shared the same feelings as you? Did Carol really think that you were holding her back from being happy and having fun?
Had you really been so blinded by your own feelings for so long that you had just been imagining Carol’s longing looks, more frequent touches, more caring nature towards you? Even when the cameras were nowhere to be scene.
Maybe she was just playing along to spare your feelings until she was told she could be done with this.
All these thoughts hit you at once, and despite how overwhelmed and hurt you suddenly feel, you take a deep breath and approach the doorway, taking heavier than usual steps to make your presence known before you enter.
“Hey, there you are,” Carol smiles. You offer her a short smile in return, though it doesn’t quite make it to your eyes, and you walk up to the front door and wait for Carol to join you. She approaches you, eyes watching you carefully. “Are you-“
“Let’s just keep this simple today and get it over with, yeah?” You say, eyes still remaining ahead as you reach for her hand.
She looks you over, concerned, but nods in response. “Yeah, okay.”
You lead her along in silence, which is how most of your simple walk goes. You smile at all the right times, but you manage to keep the talking down to a minimum and the second you return to the compound you bid a short farewell to Carol and leave her standing alone, confused like never before.
————————
You manage to keep to yourself for the most part over the next day or so, though as the party approaches you know you can’t really continue avoiding everyone. Especially since you and Carol had already agreed to get ready together in your room.
As promised by Tony, Happy delivered your outfits to your rooms in time for the party. Carol is currently in your bathroom getting ready while you look yourself over in your mirror, smoothing your hands over the front of your dress. You’re wearing a navy a-line dress, with spaghetti straps and a side slit exposing the skin of your leg. Simple yet beautiful.
Your bathroom door opens while you admire your dress in the mirror and your eyes drift to the reflection of the doorway as Carol hesitantly steps through. Your breath is taken away from you as you look her over.
She’s wearing a navy suit jacket and a pair of tight trousers that match your dress, a white blouse underneath, the top button left undone. You feel your brain short circuit as you look at her. Again, the outfit itself is simple but it works so well. Especially on Carol.
Tony was right; Happy is good. You’ll have to compliment him on his unexpectedly good eye for fashion the next time you see him.
She joins you in front of the full length mirror, staring at her own form and nervously adjusting the jacket.
“I’m pretty sure this is the fanciest I have ever looked heading to one of Tony’s parties,” she admits. You chuckle and double check your makeup in the mirror, happy with what you’ve done. Carol seems to be doing the same but is evidently not pleased with some of her makeup, grabbing her eyeliner to attempt to fix it.
“Here,” you hold your hand out and she passes her eyeliner pen over to you. Carol has never really been as into makeup as you, which obviously makes a lot of sense with her being up in space so often. But you’re always more than happy to assist whenever she needs help with it.
She’s gotten much better with it on her own over the years, though, what with her increase in social events with the Avengers. As a result, you only have to fix her eyeliner a little on each eye before you pull back and check your work.
“Perfect,” you say, putting down the eyeliner and turning to the mirror once more. Looking at yourself and Carol next to each other, it’s striking just how good you both look together. You may be biased, but everything just seems to fit so well.
You feel eyes on you and catch Carol’s gaze in the mirror.
“You look beautiful,” she breathes out as if she’s only just looked at you in your dress for the first time.
You can’t help it, but the words you overheard her say replay in your head. You feel your walls build up around you, telling you to be cautious to spare your own feelings.
“Thanks, so do you.” You reply somewhat stiffly. You can’t seem to do anything about the tone you speak in, so instead you drop your eyes from her and scan the room for anything else you might need, acutely aware of the step Carol takes towards you.
“Are you okay?” She asks and her hand comes to rest delicately on the side of your neck, her thumb stroking your cheek.
“Yeah, of course,” you say a little too quickly for Carol’s liking and you step back out of her reach, her hand falling back to her side. You spot your phone on the edge of your bed and pick it up, checking the time. “We better go. You ready?”
You barely give Carol room to answer before you open your door and step out into the hallway. She swallows thickly as she watches you, trying to figure out what’s changed in the last day or so to have you in such a cold mood.
When she steps out of your room to join you, she’s also greeted by Tony. He has a huge grin on his face and he whistles when he sees her.
“Wow, look at you two. Stunning.” He smiles at you like a proud dad. “So, listen. It’s a welcome back party, right? I know it’s still kinda fancy but it’s about as casual as my parties will ever get. There shouldn’t be too much pressure on the two of you.”
“Got it,” you nod.
“Obviously there will still be a lot of eyes on you. But that’s kind of the entire point. Just act like any regular, happy couple and we’ll be all set.” Tony says. “See you in there.” He smiles encouragingly at you and walks away, presumably to join the party.
Carol offers you her hand, which you take, and she walks you towards the large hall that Tony has designated for the party. You’re glad he chose one that was further away from the bedrooms. It gave you plenty of time to attempt to calm your nerves.
You walk through the large open doors and immediately it feels like all eyes are on you. It’s a feeling you aren’t at all comfortable with, but you just try to ignore it the best you can.
“Y/N!” You hear being called from the bar and look to see Thor enthusiastically waving you and Carol over. Carol nods at you and you walk hand in hand towards the bar.
The second you get near Thor he engulfs you both in a hug which Carol couldn’t have avoided even if she tried. He lets go of you with a massive smile on his face.
“Carol, may I interest you in a proper drink?” He holds up a flask of Asgardian alcohol for her to see and her face lights up until she glances at you.
“Uh, I better not tonight, actually,” she mutters. And again, her damn words from the previous day are right back in your head.
Thor doesn’t hide his surprise at her answer. “Later, then?” He asks hopefully.
“Maybe. We’ll see.”
Thor nods and sees Steve approaching the bar, eagerly pouring a drink for him and handing it over to him. Carol looks more than tempted to reconsider Thor’s offer but instead pulls you away by your linked hands to join another conversation.
This goes on for the next couple of hours, moving between groups to chat and give a pretty convincing appearance as couple of the year. You eventually find yourself standing against the wall with Carol, observing the partygoers.
“It’s going well so far, right?” Carols asks.
“I think so,” you say with a shrug, though you’re honestly unsure quite how to gauge how well it’s going just yet.
“Have you actually noticed any reporters?”
“I’m not sure. There’s been a lot of eyes on us the entire night so far, though, so I figure that’s a good thing.”
“Yeah. Do you think we should be acting more couple-y?” Carol asks, facing you more directly. She moves her hand to your waist, looking at you in question.
Of course, you lose yourself in her eyes, allowing yourself to enjoy this feeling for just a moment. You’re only human, after all.  But it doesn’t take long for her words to repeat in your head once more, and not even the way Carol glances down at your lips can get you out of your own head.
Before she can kiss you, you lean forward to press a quick kiss to her cheek.
“I think we’re doing okay,” you offer a small smile and pull away. “I’m gonna grab another drink and go talk to Wanda if that’s alright with you?”
“Oh. Sure, that’s fine.”
“I’ll come find you soon,” you say, squeezing Carol’s hand for good measure before you leave her to watch after you in total confusion as you walk away.
————————
“Hey, Thor. That drink still on offer?”
“Yes!” Thor says excitedly. Carol leans against the bar next to him and as soon as he’s done pouring her a drink she takes a sip.
“Oh, Jesus. I forgot how strong this shit is,” she winces and Steve laughs from the other side of Thor.
“I know, right?” He says, holding his drink up before drinking what’s left in his glass.
Carol knows to pace herself with this stuff. It affects her like absolutely nothing else. Usually, when Thor is there to offer it to her, she goes hard and ends up waking up in the bed of a total stranger with no recollection of what happened, though with a pretty good idea.
That can’t happen tonight for obvious reasons.
As Thor launches into one of his insanely eventful stories, she rests her arm on the bar and sips her drink, surveying the room until she spots you. You’re standing with Wanda, laughing at something the other woman has just said.
Something stirs inside Carol as she loosely follows along with Thor’s recounting of his journeys, all the while periodically looking for you amongst the many people crowding the room. She watches you excuse yourself from Wanda, heading over to talk to Sam and Bucky.
Somewhere in the middle of Thor recounting the events of a very graphic battle that he was apart of, Tony joins the conversation. Carol nods at him, taking another sip of her drink and doing another scan of the room. She eventually finds you in the crowd.
Having excused yourself from Sam and Bucky, you’re en-route to another group when a beautiful woman shows up seemingly out of nowhere, touching your arm to get your attention. Carol immediately freezes, her eyes locking in on the action. You stop to chat with the girl, a soft smile on your face that Carol regrettably realises she hasn’t seen all night until now.
Hey eyes stay glued to you, Thor’s stories long forgotten. Tony moves over to stand next to Carol.
“You two have done well tonight, you know?” He says, his eyes on the party in front of him.
“You’re not playing it too strong, too. The perfect amount of PDA in my opinion.” At the lack of a response, Tony turns his head to look at Carol. She clearly hasn’t paid attention to a word he’s said and he curiously turns to see whatever has Carol’s attention.
He sees you, laughing at something the unknown woman has just said. She takes a step closer to you as you take a sip of your drink. He looks back, studying the expression on Carol’s face for a moment.
“Wait a second, what exactly is happening here, Danvers? Don’t tell me you’re jealous?”
Carol’s eyes finally move from you, snapping to Tony’s.
“What? No. I’m just worried about our cover.”
Tony arches a disbelieving eyebrow. “Uh huh, I’m sure that’s exactly what you’re worried about.”
Carol glares at him, a common occurrence these days, but then her eyes are back on you, unable to help herself. She furrows her brow when the woman places her hand on your arm and keeps it there and she finally can’t watch anymore.
“Alright,” she says, grabbing her glass and downing the rest of her drink with a wince. “Nice chat, Stark, but I’ve gotta go.” She slams her glass back on the bar counter before storming off towards you without another word. Tony watches her leave.
“Yep. She’s got it so bad.”
You are so focused on the woman standing right in front of you that you jump when an arm appears at your waist.
“Hey babe,” Carol greets. She presses a kiss to your cheek and turns to the other woman, offering her nothing short of the fakest smile you’ve ever seen.
“Sorry, do you mind if I steal my girlfriend for a minute?”
To the woman’s credit, she does look a little sheepish as she steps back. “No, go right ahead.”
“Thanks,” Carol says with a bite to her tone, grabbing your hand and dragging you through the party and to one of the smaller balconies attached to the hall.
When you’re sure you’re out of sight and out of earshot from at least the majority of the party-goers you rip your hand out of Carol’s grasp and sharply turn to her, stopping her in her tracks with your glare.
“What the hell, Danvers?”
“What? I can’t just have you potentially blowing our cover like that.”
“Oh, please,” you scoff. “Our cover is just fine. Nothing was even happening. I was just talking to her.”
“Just talking? It looked like more than that to me. She was on her way to being all over you.”
“All over me like you usually are with as many random girls as you want? So now I can’t even have a regular conversation with just one girl?”
“I haven’t even looked at any other girls tonight, let alone flirted with them. And since when do you chat to women at Tony’s parties, anyway?”
You weren’t expecting the accusatory tone in Carol’s voice, and it makes you see red. You’ve done so well to keep your feelings at bay since you’d overheard Carol talking to Rhodey, but she’s finally tipped you over the edge now.
“Okay, I think I get it now. You can’t have fun and let loose like usual so now you want to make me feel like shit for talking to someone new. Is that right?”
Carol is completely caught off guard by your anger. It would have been hard for her not to notice your cold demeanour the last couple days, but now she knows for sure that all has been directed at her.
“Y/N, that’s not it-“
“Are you sure? Because I know you think I’m the one keeping on a leash but right now it’s feeling a lot like it’s the other way around.”
“What?” Carol blinks at you, trying to make sense of your words.
“Well that’s what you told Rhodey, right? You’re being held back. You can’t have any fun. You’re being kept on a leash.”
“Y/N,” Carol starts.
“Don’t try to deny it, Carol. I heard you say it.”
Everything actually makes sense to Carol now. She isn’t sure how she hadn’t pieced it together before that you’d possibly overheard her. At least now, though, she knew she could clear things up for you. Thank god, because she’s now gotten a taste of being in your bad books and she isn’t particularly enjoying it.
“I won’t deny it. I do feel like I’m being kept on a leash,” she simply says. You scoff again and shake your head, already getting ready to walk away before Carol grabs your arm to keep you in place.
“But I never said you were the one holding me back. Hell, you’re the one thing keeping me sane through this whole thing.”
You maintain your harsh glare, though you stop trying to pull your arm from her.
“I just,” she lets out a short breath and looks at you. “I’m not used to having my every move monitored so closely. I’ve never had to behaviour particularly well at these things. It’s weird and uncomfortable and it’s hard for me to deal with but you’ve helped me a hell of a lot with everything.”
Your glare softens at the vulnerability that Carol has on show for you. She’s always struggled to express her feelings. She can’t find the right words and says things the wrong way half the time and you feel stupid that you hadn’t just asked Carol directly about what you’d overheard, given her track record with miscommunication.
You’d been too in your thoughts about your feelings for Carol and her possible feelings for you that you’d read things so wrong. You made an assumption and made things so much worse. You cringe at this situation you’ve somehow managed to cause. You’re just glad it hadn’t been a lot worse and that Carol was so forgiving of your occasionally petty behaviour.
“You know better than anyone that I don’t really respond well with being told what to do.”
You chuckle lightly at her and her face brightens at the sound.
“So you’re saying that you do have fun with me, then?” Carol laughs, thankful to not have your glare aimed her way anymore.
“You already know I do. In fact, I really liked the parts of the party that we spent together tonight. You know, despite you looking like you’d rather be anywhere else but with me the entire time.”
You roll your eyes at her, not at all surprised that her smart ass comments were already making an appearance again.
“That’s not true,” you laugh and then grow serious again. “There’s nowhere else I’d rather be than with you.”
Carol blinks at you and you watch her reaction with bated breath. “Do you mean that?” She asks softly and you smile at her and nod timidly.
“It could ruin everything we have but I don’t think I can keep hiding the fact that I want to be near you all the time anymore.”
“Well I can’t really blame you for that,” Carol says, a hint of a smirk on her face and you let out a laugh and smile widely at her when she almost casually places her arms around your waist.
“Shut up, Danvers,” you mutter.
“Make me,” she promptly replies and you only wait a quick beat before you’re pressing forward and capturing her lips with yours.
If you thought your last kiss was amazing, then this kiss was something completely new all together. The fact that you’re kissing Carol because you both want to, and not because of some fake narrative, has you smiling into the kiss, knocking your teeth with Carol’s.
You pull back, both laughing, before her arms tighten around your waist and she leans in to meet your lips again. She’s tentative with her movements at first; you both are really, but like last time, you both grow more confident and she ends the kiss with a nip to your bottom lip.
“You know, I hated seeing you with that other girl,” Carol admits.
“Yeah? Well, imagine how I felt having to watch you leave with all those women at literally every party Tony throws.”
Carol bites her lip, regret on her face. “I’m so sorry.”
“It’s okay,” you place your arms around Carol’s neck. “We’re here now. Let’s just leave the past in the past, okay?” You peck her lips reassuringly.
“Okay,” Carol whispers against your lips, stealing one more quick kiss. “Should we go back in?”
You sigh and drop your head to Carol’s shoulder for a second. “I suppose we probably should.”
“Come on. They want to see a happy couple. Let’s show them a happy couple,” Carol says and you lift your head and smile shyly at her, your mind still racing to catch up with these unexpected turn of events.
“Sounds good to me.”
You run your hands down Carol’s shoulders, down her arms until you reach her hands and you take them in your own. Carol lifts one of your hands to her lips and presses a kiss to it, earning a blush from you and she’s unable to fight the cheesy grin that makes its way onto her face.
She walks you to the door and holds it open for you. “After you, my lady,” she says and you laugh.
“Are you going to be this cheesy and chivalrous forever now?” You ask.
“Depends. Do you want me to be?”
“I just want you to be you,” you reply as Carol follows you through the door and takes your hand again.
“And what about you? Are you going to be cheesy forever now, too?” She teases and you chuckle in response before Nat calls you over from the group she’s standing in and you’re removed from the moment you and Carol are sharing together.
Not a problem, you think. You’ve got plenty of opportunities to share even more of these moments with Carol now.
——————————
This time, when you wake up in Carol’s arms, you don’t flinch away. Instead, you wear a sleepy grin on your face and press a soft kiss to her jawline, watching her stir for a moment before she settles again, a soft smile adorning her face.
You happily snuggle closer to her, pressing your face into the crook of her neck and drifting back to sleep without a single worry on your mind for the first time in weeks.
***** Series Taglist: @lovelylittlelionx @desaulniersbriannes @outofcontextavengers @traveler-at-heart @saucy-sapphic @mysticpansy (tag didn’t work)
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getthesamovarready · 3 years
Text
And they said "Speak now"
Owen × Michelle
TK x Carlos
I had a bit of this written a few weeks ago, and was re-inspired to finish it.
Michelle returns from Oregon (I don't know why I chose Oregon, don't ask me) to be Carlos's best-woman, and Owen can't keep his eyes off her.
He doesn’t see her all day until she’s walking up the aisle in front of Carlos. Since she landed in Texas a few days ago, all he’s been able to think about, was how beautiful she would look in her dress. It’s part of the reason he suggested the colour to Carlos when he and TK were trying to co-ordinate the wedding party. He saw the shade of green and all he could think was how well it would look on Michelle’s skin. He was right. He hadn’t, however, accounted for what the dress itself might look like. Hadn’t anticipated the deep velvet, hugging to a figure he had previously only really seen in uniform. Hadn’t thought about how much he might enjoy watching that velvet twirl around her ankles as she walks. Or how much he might focus on her shoulders, which he’s sure he’s never seen uncovered. She’s let her hair grow since she left Texas, even curled it falls well below her shoulders, with what isn’t pinned up swept over one shoulder so he can admire it all at once. And above all that elegance, is her wide grin, bursting with pride for her best friend. It is nothing short of mesmerising. 
They had rehearsed this moment yesterday, but nothing could possibly have prepared him for this. Her warm greeting, as comforting, and overwhelming as it was, is completely overshadowed by the tidal wave of...something, that hits him when she smiles at him now. The twinkling smile, and the wink of mutual pride when she takes her place across the aisle, turning to watch Carlos follow her. 
He has to rip his eyes from Michelle to watch Judd swagger up before TK. He’s glad he does, because the tear in Judd’s eye when he nods at Owen sends himself over the edge into tears as Gwyn takes his hand, and they watch their son nervously approach his husband-to-be. A husband-to-be who grips Owen’s hand with teary gratitude when he steps forward to offer it a shake. 
He doesn’t even pretend not to cry during the ceremony, can’t help thinking about how close they came to never being able to have this moment. And watching Carlos promising to support and love his son forever, fills Owen with a sense of relief that he just can’t ignore. He catches Judd straightening his back, and he knows that the whole team must be thinking the same thing. He puts an arm around a sniffling Gwyneth. 
He catches Michelle mouthing along with sections of Carlos's vows, and he has to stifle a laugh picturing a terrified Carlos phoning Michelle for advice on wedding vows. She lifts a hand to swipe a finger under her eye and he stops laughing. 
TK's turn comes, and it's Owen's turn to mouth along to words struggled to late at night. He thinks about TK calling him at night, claiming that two weddings made Owen an expert in wedding vows. Ignoring that two divorces made his experience a rather bad example to follow. But still, he had helped TK put his commitment to words. Somehow, it sounds better now, in TK's nervous, choked voice. 
He cries again when it's made official. His heart straining in his chest when the couple turn to walk back down the aisle, hand in hand. He wraps an arm around Gwyn's shoulders, hugging her tightly once, before they follow Judd and Michelle down the aisle. 
His high doesn't diminish through the rush of picture-taking in the hotel gardens. Though he does wish he could pull Michelle aside, just for a second, to thank her again for saving TK's life. And to tell her she looks stunning. But any moment that he's not busy with pictures, she is. They are released for the couple-only photos, and then he can't see her anywhere, she is lost in the sea of guests. 
She isn't with the team when he finds them congregated at a table at the bar. He accepts their congratulations with a hug each, before trying to dart off to find Michelle. Unfortunately,  everyone else wants to offer their sincere, and detailed, congratulations. 
He catches her out of the corner of his eye every now and then, always engaged in conversation with who he assumes to be relatives or friends of Carlos. But he doesn't manage to pull her aside, and all too soon they are ushered into the ballroom to sit down for dinner. 
Judd, though a great dinner companion, is obviously nervous. His leg shakes constantly though the entire first course, and only gets worse when the microphone is brought out for speeches. 
Carlos's father is first up, and even though his speech is short, by the end of it Owen's own leg is bouncing. 
Gwyn squeezes his leg, and Judd gives him a pat on the shoulder when the microphone is handed to Owen. 
"I uh…" He starts, hands shaking. "TK didn't want to move to Austin. I didn't really want to move either, but I felt like we had to." He admits. "Standing here today, I am so glad that we did. Not only has Austin changed our lives, it has made TK's. This place has been a blessing in so many ways, but right now, I have to thank Carlos, for being the most important one. Carlos has stood by my son, even when it wasn't easy to do that. For that I owe him a great debt. All I've ever wanted was for TK to be happy, to be loved. And you gave him that Carlos, so thank you. I can't think of a better person for my son to spend his life with. And I couldn't be happier to call you family, Officer." He lifts his glass from the table. "Thank you Carlos." He tips his glass towards him. "And congratulations, to Carlos and TK Strand-Reyes." He raises a toast, and passes the microphone to a terrified Judd. 
"I almost said no, when TK asked me to be his best man." Judd admits. "I ain't a talker, so speeches aren't really my thing. Especially not about feelings and stuff. But TK is my brother, and I couldn't let a brother down. So here I am...giving a speech." Owen glances over to the 126, all of whom have phones out recording, all of whom are laughing along with the moment. "Owen said he didn't want to move here, and I'll admit, I did want them here when they arrived. I thought TK was a punk, I thought he was entitled, that he didn't work hard, that he didn't care. I could not have been more wrong. TK Strand, is one of the hardest working people I know, and he's fought hard, in a lot of ways, to get to this day. And I'm proud of him, as proud as any big brother could possibly be." He nods at TK. "Carlos, on the other hand, I've known for a long time. Best friend of my overbearing sister." He winks at Michelle, who blushes into her champagne. "Who is always getting in trouble that Carlos has to get her out of. Even though Carlos is usually helping her get into that trouble. Because Carlos actually is a little punk. A punk, but a really good guy, and the most loyal person you'll ever find. I know you both know how lucky you are, because I see it every day in the two of you. It'll shock some people to find out that I am actually a very romantic man, don't let nothing fool you. I know true love when I see it, and I see it in these two fantastic men. Congratulations TK and Carlos." The 126 erupts into applause, and Owen has to chuckle at Paul and Marjan banging their fists on the table. He glances back at Judd in time to see him throw a wink at Michelle before raising his glass to the newlyweds. He sits with a heavy sigh, handing the microphone to the waiter standing by the table. 
And then it's Michelle's turn, and Owen's stomach turns to butterflies as he waits to hear her voice. "Thank you, Judson, for clarifying, that it is Carlos that gets me in trouble." She chuckles shyly, brushing loose hair from her forehead. "I'm not going to get into all that, in case I embarrass myself any more than necessary. Judd is right, Carlos is the most loyal person anyone could be lucky enough to have in their life, as he has proven to me, over and over again. He's helped me through some really difficult times, he's done his best to keep me sane when I couldn't do it myself, always reminding me how important friendship is. How important it is to have fun, to laugh, to tell eachother about boys that we like." She chuckles wetly, wiping at teary eyes. "Carlos is the kind of person who supports you through the very worst of your life, and makes sure to keep you smiling. I remember when he first told me about TK, he was berating me for being a bad friend. He was confused, scared, he didn't know if it would go anywhere. When he told me it was TK, everything made sense. Even though I'd only known TK a few months I knew he would be good to my Carlos, I knew he wouldn't hurt him, that even if it took some time, it would always lead us here. Carlos is loyal, loving, one of my favourite people. And he's now married to one of my other favourite people. I'm not part of the family anymore, but as anyone will tell you, a firehouse is like family. And that is true for nowhere as much as the 126. A family rebuilt by the Strands, and so beautiful, supportive, and resilient because of it. So in my view, TK is my family, just as much as Carlos is, and I couldn't love them more if we were actually related." She laughs again, eyes flicking downwards. "I'm so proud of you both." She chokes. "Congratulations."
She raises a glass, nodding at both of them, before she lets herself glance at Owen, accidentally letting their eyes meet briefly. She smiles weakly, eyes still wet from unshed tears, before she swallows thickly and sits, passing the microphone to Carlos. 
"I'm gonna keep this brief, cos I'm pretty sure the kitchen hates us for having so many speeches. I just want to thank everyone for coming, and thank everyone who helped plan this thing, weddings take way more planning than I ever thought, especially when your best-woman lives halfway across the country." He glares at Michelle with a slight chuckle. "I want to thank my parents, just for  being wonderful, for raising me, for loving me. But mostly for loving TK, for welcoming him immediately into your hearts. I want to thank TK's parents, Owen and Gwyneth. Firstly, for bringing someone as beautiful as TK into the world, for making him into the person I know. And for bringing him to me." He chokes slightly. "TK I love you. I've been in love with you since I met you, thank you for loving me back." He raises a glass. "To TK." 
"I hate speeches just as much as Judd does, me and speeches? We don't get along." TK starts, after standing from his seat to kiss Carlos before taking the microphone from him. "Like Carlos said, thank you all, for coming, for supporting us, we both really appreciate it. I really didn't wanna move here, my dad forced me too, and I was angry at him about it, for longer than I even realised. But it was the best thing that either of us ever did, even if dad did insist on driving the whole way from New York. And playing country music the whole time. I didn't know it then, but we were driving towards a whole new future. A future that brought me a whole new family. I got closer with my dad, I gained the 126. I got Carlos, and his beautiful family who make me feel like I'm one of their own. I second my dad's opinion that moving to Austin has been a blessing in our lives, so thanks Dad, for forcing me into it. And thanks Mom, for not going too crazy on him when he did." Beside him, Owen feels Gwyn shift in her seat, shaking her head with a laugh. "And thank you, to my beautiful husband, for making me the happiest man in the world, as cheesy as that sounds." TK reaches down to take Carlos's hand, squeezing it before leading the room in yet another toast. 
Speeches are followed by dinner, and then everyone is kicked out to the bar while they prepare the ballroom. Again, he can't find Michelle, and he's roped into a new series of congratulations, and compliments on his speech. He barely has time to grab himself a drink before the ballroom is ready, and they're called in for the first dance. 
He gets caught up in the dancing, somehow never managing to catch Michelle in a mural free moment, until he miraculously finds himself right next to her, and she takes his arm, turning them both away from their respective groups. "Quite a day Captain." She grins at him, and it reminds him of after-work drinks at the Honky Tonk, and bad, drunken line-dancing. But they aren't after work. And this isn't line dancing. 
It's definitely not line dancing when the music slows, and he has to slip a hand around her waist or stop dancing. She makes his mind up for him, her hand coming to rest on his shoulder, so his rests on her hip. "I've been trying to catch you all day." He tells her. "You're a difficult woman to pin down." She flushes, dipping her head. "I've been trying to find you all day, because I wanted to thank you. Without you, none of this would be happening." She lifts her head again to question him. "If you hadn't saved his life, TK wouldn't be here today. So this, all of this, is thanks to you." 
"Owen, that's not…" She shakes her head. "There would have always been a paramedic there that day. It's got nothing for do with me." She tries to brush it off, but Owen won't let her.
"But it was you." He argues. "And I wanted you to know that I was grateful." She let's him have it, nodding with a slight frown. "I was going to put it in my speech, but it didn't feel right."
"Carlos thinks it was his fault." She blurts out, cursing herself. "So it's good that you didn't. He was supposed to clear the place of weapons, and he didn't. " She explains at his questioning look. "It took him a long time to get past it." She's silent for a moment. "Don't forget that you saved his life too." She tells him, brow furrowing. "A few times, or so I hear. It's no less heroic to save your own family." Her hand squeezes his, and he nods in assurance, and thanks. 
"You look beautiful, by the way." He can't help but blurt out in response to her soft smile. "I've also been wanting to tell you that all day." His skin burns, and he hopes that the lighting will hide his blushes. 
"Green is my colour." She tells him with a bright grin, and a flush to her cheeks. The lighting doesn't hide it. He can't help but feel a twinge of pride at suggesting the colour. "You don't look so bad yourself." She straightens his tie. 
"How's your sister?" He asks, trying to ignore his tightening chest. 
"Better." She nods. "A lot better. It's done her a lot of good to get away, she's a lot more willing to accept help." She nods, but she doesn't smile. "It's quieter out there, that helps her." It doesn't seem like Michelle is overly enthusiastic about her quiet little corner of the Oregon coast. "Maybe she'll get stable enough to come home." She says hopefully. "But I'm not really sure that it would be good for her." He's heard the whole story, and he has to agree. Her mom was still pretty in denial about Iris's health before Michelle dropped everything to get her help while she spiralled. Taking her back to denial might just undo her progress. 
"What about work? How is the great Michelle Blake handling small-town life?" He changes the subject, earning a bashful chuckle from Michelle. 
"It's not nearly as much fun as Austin." She laughs. "Though nothing ever is." He laughs in agreement,  even New York wasn't as much fun as Austin. "But it's nice, my crew are nice." She's brightened considerably, but he finds that it doesn't quite reach her eyes. 
"Well we all miss you." He assures her. "It's been really great to see you the past few days." The team had been buzzing with talk of her return for days, planning her welcome home with enthusiasm. Their initial plans had been consumed with urgent wedding preparations, though he knows they have a back-up plan for a few days time, for her send-off. 
"I'm sure some of them just miss the jelly-beans in my office, they have to pay for their own now." She glances over to Matteo with a grin. 
 
"Oh we miss you for more than your jelly-beans." He laughs. He misses her for everything. He misses their rhythm at work, he misses her teasing, he misses her leaning on his doorway with a cup of tea after a trying call, soothing the pull of hard work. He misses her at the bar, playing him with tequila. He misses her smile, only full when she let's herself release the chains of responsibility. When she makes the decision to let herself life for herself, even just for the night. She's doing that now, has done her best, just for a while, to shed the responsibility of her sister. Giving him her full smiles. "We can't forget about the M&Ms." He takes the opportunity to spin them slightly, causing a giggle to rise from her throat. 
"I'm sorry to have deprived you all of your candy dealer." She laughs, flicking some stray hair, which had come undone when he spun them, from her face. 
He almost tells her how she has deprived them, or more specifically him, of so much more. He almost tells her how much he has actually missed her. He almost tells her everything. But just as he tries to speak his throat closes, and he can't. So when the music changes, and their position is rendered awkward, he is glad of an excited Nancy pulling Michelle off to dance to something they clearly both have a memory of, and he plops himself at an empty table to rest. 
The table doesn't stay empty for long, as Gwyn settles herself next to him with the offer of a scotch. "She's quite something, your Michelle." She starts, and Owen hates the knowing in her voice. She's always been able to read him easily. 
"She's not my anything, she's Carlos's Michelle." He tries to pass it off as not at all dissapointed at that fact, but fails miserably. 
"Oh don't even try that with me Owen." She tuts at him. "It's so clear how you feel about her,  I knew it before I even met her." She pats his hand when he scoffs. "You're like a little puppy when someone mentions her name. I swear I can see your ears perk up." She's laughing, and Owen would love to think she's just being mean, but he knows her better than that. And he also knows himself better than that. Gwyn is being horribly truthful. "Everyone else knows it too, why do you think they've been trying so hard to get you two together?" They've what?
"They've what?" He can't think of a single moment that would suggest some kind of scheme like that.
"The DJ changed the music in the middle of a song Owen." Her chuckle shifts into a smirk."Or didn't you notice?" 
Honestly he didn't. He'd rolled with the change in music without questioning it, welcoming the excuse to slow down and talk. "Well I uh…." 
"TK bolted to the DJ when you two started talking." She explains. "He seemed very determined." 
"That's probably just TK trying some kind of prank, I mean I did the same thi-" he tries to brush the whole thing off.
"You haven't been able to keep your eyes off her the past few days. I watched you watch her at the rehearsal you know." His stomach drops. "When she was walking up that aisle in front of Carlos, you looked at her the same way you looked at me when we got married." 
"Gwen come on…" Surely he hadn't been so obvious. Besides, having your ex-wife scold you on this type of thing at your son's wedding isn't the best feeling. 
"And then there was today." She chuckles. "I don't think theres anyone here who didn't notice how you looked at her today. If the rehearsal was obvious, I mean, today you might as well have put up a sign. You couldn't keep your eyes off of her. And any time you haven't been staring at her, you've been looking for her." 
His face is burning, and he has to suppressa groan. She's right, obviously. So he might as well be honest, and ask the advice of a friend. "It doesn't matter anyway, she lives in Oregon. She's taking care of her sister, that's her whole life. What kind of person would I be if I tried to insert myself into that?"
"The kind of person that loves her?" Gwen offers. "Who thinks she deserves to know that. Because that woman is in love with you Owen. And you can't not tell her you love her too because you think it might be selfish. Because letting her leave without knowing because that would just be cruel." She stands with a very pointed nod towards the bar, where Michelle is leaning against the counter. 
She steps away with a smile and a glass of Chablis, and scans the room for a friend. He watches as she catches sight of Grace, calling out to her for a catch up. He watches as Grace lifts a hand to admire the velvet of Michelle's sleeve. Watches as Michelle gushes about the dress, her eyes sparkling while Grace compliments her. 
He downs his drink and immediately makes his way to get another. Which conveniently places him right in earshot of Michelle and Grace. "It's beautiful there Grace. And my crew are nice. Nothing like good old Texas though." 
"We've missed you." Grace assures her. "Maybe some more than others, if you know what I mean." Owen knows exactly what she means, and quickens his pace towards the bar, ordering his drink with just a hint of desperation. If Grace is talking like that, then Michelle must have some kind of feeling. And he's just being a coward. 
With everyone's efforts, it's nearly impossible that Owen is getting through this night without having the conversation. The conversation he has literally dreamt about having with her. For years he's thought about what he might say to her. How she might react. He's imagined soft shock in her eyes, his chest constricting as she frantically asks him to explain, praying she didn't hear him wrong. He's also imagined her laughing him off, disappearing again, leaving him in his humiliation. 
He'd like to keep imagining. Would like not to be forced to know what happens after he stops talking. He'd like to keep thinking about hope in her eyes. About the shy little smile she might have. Or even something similar to her usual teasing and a, “took you long enough Captain.”
He tries not to imagine her laughing at him. His ridiculous notion that she might feel anything for him at all. Tries not to imagine that this has all been some little joke that everyone is in on but him. He tries so hard not to picture her backing away in horror. But somehow that is always the last thing he thinks of before he almost tells her. 
But there are some things he wants to stop imagining. He wants to know what she tastes like. He wants to know what it would feel like to kiss her. He wants to know if he should have told her before she left. Before she left him in Austin, stuck in the almost of her. He wants to put all his wondering to rest. 
He downs his drink, slamming it on the counter before ordering another. "What did that glass ever do to you?" A voice asks from beside him and he jumps, nearly knocking the poor glass clean off the counter. He fumbles with it pathetically while his heart races, as though she had overheard his previous thoughts. "What? You don't want to tell me?" She teases, smiling at his panic.
His stomach drops to the floor. He watches as she orders herself a glass of wine, leaning gracefully against the counter. Her heels make her tower over him, and he suddenly feels very small. He does want to tell her, desperately, but she looks so relaxed, he couldn't possibly ruin it for her.
But his mouth has other ideas. "I do actually." He admits, swearing internally. It gets her attention, and she turns to face him properly, straightening her back in curiosity. She looks concerned, and his heart clenches to think that maybe she worries about him sometimes. "It's got nothing to do with the drink." He admits, stupidly, as if she genuinely thought that he had some personal vendetta against a glass of Scotch. 
"No, I didn't think it did." She smiles, eyes shimmering down at him. "You were in a good mood earlier, what happened? TK's mom driving you crazy?" She teases him, bringing back memories of him spilling out his past after too many drinks after work. It became a habit of theirs, another night another anecdote. 
"No she's not driving me crazy." Even though she is, a little bit. "You are." She tenses, her shoulders squaring as she drops her head.
"Sorry," she starts, eyes on the floor. "I'll just…" She gestures vaguely, and he realizes that he's seriously messed up already.
"You've been driving me crazy." He whispers, grasping her arm when she starts to leave. "For years. You've been driving me crazy since you put me in my place my first day at work. And I can't get you out of my head." She doesn't pull away, but she doesn't look at him either. "And I've tried, a lot, to let it go, before you left, after you left...but I can't, and I'm sorry. I just can't stop thinking about you. My son got married today, my only child, and all I could think about was you." He can't stop now that he's started. "The past few days I've barely been able to think about the wedding at all, all that I've been able to focus on was how much I missed you when you were away. And how much I'm gonna miss you when you go again."
"Owen...I…" She tries, helplessly. After thinking about this for so long, she suddenly can't figure out how to respond. 
"I know it's selfish. I know you're going back to Oregon and I shouldn't make you take this with you. But I don't think I could let you go again, without telling you. That you drive me crazy. Without telling you that I can't get you out of my mind. I couldn't let you go without telling you that I'm in love with you." He lets her arm go, sighing.
Out of the corner of her eye, she can see Judd and Matteo watching them, and a quick scan of her surroundings tells her that the rest of the team are looking on too. So she grabs Owen's arm, and drags him out of the ballroom. He keeps pace as best he can, obviously shocked by how fast she can move in heels and a floor length dress. They're outside before she says anything. Actually, before she shoves him into the wall by the door, kissing him with everything she has. 
Even the balmy evening is cooler than inside, but he absolutely burns. Everything from his toes to his scalp is on fire, only soothed by her cool hands on his cheeks, the fingertips tracing his cheekbones. The velvet on her hips is warm under his touch, and he knows that if he were to raise his hand to rest on her exposed upper back, it would be just as burning hot as he is right now. He doesn't dare to bury his hands in her hair as he so wants to, she wouldn't forgive him for ruining the time and money spent on getting it to look so effortlessly glorious. So he keeps his hands safely on her hips. 
"Thank you for telling me." She whispers, after breaking from him with a gasp. He lets his thumb trace the curve of her hip as she breathes him in, as she brushes a thumb across his lip, wiping away lipstick that has smudged along it. He almost lifts his hand to do the same, before she smiles softly and presses her lips to his again, lighter this time. It only lasts a moment, but somehow it sends him reeling again. "I'm sorry I dragged you out here." She laughs, stopping only slightly out of his space. "I didn't want everyone watching." Both of them know that the team is probably just in the foyer, waiting for them to turn the corner and reveal exactly what's just happened. Neither of them would be surprised if one of them was standing just on the other side of the doorway, trying to listen in. 
"I think dragging me out if the ballroom also made a scene." He points out while she settles herself against the wall beside him. Silently, she brushes the back of her hand against his, twirling her fingers around his.
"I still have to go back." She tells him, after a while of silence. "I wish I didn't." She doesn't look at him, just runs her eyes over the pavestones at her feet. Iris still needs her help, still needs to be out of the city. And she still has a job she needs to go back to, as much as she would like to leave it behind and come home. "You said it was selfish of you to tell me, when I have to go back anyway. I feel like the selfish one. Dragging you out here, letting this happen." She gestures between them. "For spending my whole trip here wanting to say the same damn thing to you, even when I have to leave again." 
"Just….don't be a stranger Michelle." He tells her, squeezing her hand. And somehow that settles everything. And she kisses him to seal her promise. 
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