#he gives off rich professor vibes. but i always think of his personality as a mentor

[xcrystalzero]

finals never end

summary: as finals approach, i would like to imagine that there is something more to college than studying alone in a box for 14 hours a day. so, here's a modern au of the genshin boys as college students.

Characters included: Diluc, Kaeya, Childe, Xiao, Zhongli

Diluc:

- Who are we kidding, this bitch is a legacy at some pricy Ivy League. Hates when people bring it up though since he just wants to be his own person and not rely on his family name to get through things.

- Majors in business because of course he does. Rushed a business frat because it seemed like a good idea. Didn't get a bid and has since boycotted greek life.

- Eventually people find out who his father is and he starts to get bombarded by people who just basically want to use him for networking. Gets approached by girls (and sometime guys) after class like literally every day, asking if he wants to study with them sometime or just "hang out" both because he's hot and because he's rich. He never gives them the time of day but that never stops them.

- Goes to the same school as Kaeya but ignores him every time he tries to talk to him or just come back into his life. Kaeya usually takes it in stride but every else is super confused about how the two of them actually know each other.

- Walks you home from class when it starts to get darker earlier, apparently only because he doesn't have anything better to do. A gentleman through and through.

"Don't you have a meeting right now?"

"You staying safe is more important right now. They'll understand."

Kaeya:

- You know that one guy who is always out partying and who you never see studying but somehow makes the Dean's List every single semester without fail? Yeah, that's Kaeya.

- He's probably like an engineering or hard science major too and all his friends are absolutely pissed when he fucks up the curve every single time.

"You got a 98 on the orgo final???" "What, like it's hard?"

- Not as much of a hoe as everyone thinks he is. He definitely has his fun but he's not that guy who has slept his way through his entire major.

- Surprisingly enough, he's not actually in a frat, he just always knows where all the parties are. He's that guy with a snap score in the millions because everyone and their cousin hits him up every Friday night to ask where the parties are at.

-Generally seen as a really easy person to talk too. Also really good at seeming open with people without actually ever opening up and sharing anything about himself.

- With his very few close friends however, he has some strange hobbies that he's always happy to have someone to share with.

-Will take you on a picnic date about a mile off campus where you guys each way too much cheese and crackers, drink about a bottle of wine each, and watch the stars come out as the sun sets. Give the boy some love. That's all he really wants.

Venti:

-Your local friendly performing arts major who you never find without a huge iced coffee and cuffed jeans.

- He's super involved in a bunch of student organizations from improv to a few music clubs and the like. He's that person that everyone in his major knows and comes to for recommendations about new things that they should try out.

- He's in a band! They play indie songs at rotating bars every Tuesday and Thursday night and go to conferences once a semester for aspiring artists. Also sometimes will randomly perform on the Quad and serenade the random people passing by just trying to get to class.

-Offers to play at an event a club you're in is hosting as long as there's free snacks.

- Kind of an alcoholic? Not a partier in the traditional sense, but at least twice a week, he'll host a hangout where he and anyone who decides to show up get wine drunk and watch a shit ton of Gilmore Girls. BYOB of course because there's no way he could afford it on his own. Has shown up to class still drunk before but he's cute so everyone forgives him.

- Impromptu photo shoots all the time with him. Whether its a cute random flower patch, the soft neon signs outside of a boba shop, or graffiti painted onto a building wall, everything is an insta opportunity.

Xiao:

- That mysterious kid sitting in the back of your lecture wearing all black who is both undeniably hot and also exceedingly intimidating.

- Either an animal sciences major because animals are just better than humans, or he's like like history/english and spends a lot of time reading.

- He's that guy who stops communicating after the first day of your group project and you're really worried that they're just not going to finish their work but they end up sending it to you perfectly complete like a week early. Also, will talk/text you one-on-one but dislikes group meetings and group chats.

- He's in a band too! They actually play with Venti and his friends a lot and even though he admires him a lot, he's never gotten around to actually talking to Venti.

- Doesn't let people come over because then his frighteningly large collection of Funko-Pops and anime merch will be revealed.

- Also a dancer! He's not on a team or anything since he had some bad experiences with teams when he was younger, but he heads down to the studio at least 2 times a week just to move and let out some stress. If he offers to teach you sometime, that means he really really likes you.

- Asked if you wanted to go see the Demon Slayer movie with him and then showed up in a black mask and sunglasses because he didn't want anyone to recognize him.

Childe:

- Idk why but he kind of gives off athlete vibes??? Maybe like a basketball player or something?

- A bit of a campus celebrity just in that basically everyone, even if they aren't in the same major or aren't into sports, or just basically have no connection to him, still somehow know about him.

- He's a PR major and that charm is no joke. Some people kind of despise him because of the way he is literally able to effortlessly win over all of the recruiters and just random people he meets. He's extremely well-loved and he knows it.

- He's in a frat but outside of like mandatory events, doesn't spend all that much time with them. When he does party though, he goes hard.

- Doesn't actively flirt with anyone but he's just so charming and amiable that sometimes it comes across that way. Girls are always like "he's so respectful and nice I'm in love with him." He never feels the same way.

- Extremely competitive. Like the most competitive person you have literally ever met. He has to win everything and if he doesn't, he'll just keep trying and trying until he does. Literally the worst person to play beer pong with because he's not letting you go until he wins.

- Asks you to come to his games even though you barely even know the rules. If he does see you in the crowd, he gets way too hyped but plays the best he has all season. Make sure you take the credit for it.

Zhongli:

- That guy in your required philosophy class who argues with the professor. Not in an annoying "I'm smart and want an excuse to mansplain" kind of way though. He's actually just absurdly well-read and wants to discuss things instead of just listening to someone talk.

- People get annoyed with him because he's kind of disrupting class but if you actually listen to what he's saying, his ideas make a lot of sense and are kind of a mind-fuck at times.

- Has an extensive collection of plants at home and somehow manages to keep all of them alive and thriving. Also collects antique tea sets and goes to great lengths to make sure that they are taken care of.

- Probably actually a philosophy or anthropology major. Always has a new book recommendation and he's a darling who actually reads from every genre.

- Spends his free time going to museums in the area or visiting historical landmarks that are close enough to the university. Loves walking everywhere so that he can just take time to enjoy scenery and the like.

- You mention that there's a new exhibit at the local art gallery and he says that he's actually going there that evening if you would like to join him. And I mean, why would you refuse?

A.N. I'm gonna go back to studying now! Hope you enjoyed!

[radarchives]

Now I'm really interested to know what your leash favorite cards are

i love being a hateful bitch so here you go. once again these are cards i actually own in-game.

1) splish spash water panic mammon

this card. absolutely cannot stand this ugly ass bitch. i don't know if it's the shading of the neck or the way his head is placed but it has always looked incredibly off to me. giving me very much head switch barbie doll realness.

2) levi in front of fish bowl

okay i've already explained this one so. don't like the bland expression, really don't like the side profile. egg head. also his hair looks like a shiny little helmet.

3) 🥺🥺🥺butler mammon

a rare case of it looked better in unbloomed. the angle of his head looks weird to me. otherwise it's not that bad but also. why is he pulling out the puppy eyes in some shady alleyway. sus spischious.

4) alpha dom daddy lucifer

this one just gives off bad vibes (also i'm just not really a fan of this particular artist i think? but that's just personal preference)

5) peepaw fit solomon

serving newly divorced history professor that barely keeps himself alive at home and hasn't really gotten the hang of living by himself just yet

6) long toe mammon halloween card

censored for y’all because i’m not a monster. somebody tell me why they had to draw his foot in ultra 4k hd who asked for this. i see it every time when i go through my cards because i don’t have that fucker bloomed yet. to live is to suffer.

7) hatless victorian paperboy at a party entertaining rich people luke

they scalped him... they took his hat. jail time. he has perpetual hat hair and no one helped him fix it. the top of his head is so flat but the bottom has a good amount of volume... my poor boy... they did him dirty

[nellie-elizabeth]

The Legend of Vox Machina: Scanbo (1x07)

Ahhh god, this show just keeps getting better and better.

Cons:

Most of my "cons" in this one are going to be small, mostly nitpicks. I really loved Percy's flashback sequence where he talks about having the dream of making a gun, but I wish there had been a bit more clarity earlier in the season that nobody else in this world has guns, that this is a Percy-specific weapon that he invented. I can imagine a newcomer to the story being confused by that element, where everyone is suddenly like "what is a gun, though?" when nobody has seemed confused by it before.

On a personal preference note, there were a couple Scanlan jokes that I didn't appreciate this week... that weird incest joke at the beginning about Percy and Cass? Like, why? I did like that Vex and Vax told him off in unison, showing that they're united even after their little spat over Keyleth which I'll discuss in a minute. Also, I know there was a lot of poop humor in the campaign, but I didn't literally need to see Duke Vedmire's shit... I'm not saying these are real problems with the episode, just jokes I was unimpressed by.

And this is a nitpick, it really is, but during the truly excellent Scanbo sequence, Scanlan escapes to the roof and then is "trapped" up there. Later, he uses Scanlan's Hand to beat up Vedmire and escape, which looks cool, it just kind of annoyed me that he didn't think of using it earlier when he was stuck on the roof. It was the first thing I thought of, and I felt like it was contrived that he didn't do the obvious thing to get away.

Pros:

Literally this whole episode was amazing, though, and the two that followed it are equally strong... god, this show is something else.

Starting the episode with a Percy and Cassandra flashback was such a smart thing to do. Establishing Professor Anders, and the bond between the siblings, makes everything about the following sequences with Anders hit all the harder. It works better than the Stonefell episode, honestly, because we get a little more setup and time to ruminate in who this man was and why Percy would have him on his List. Plus young Percy and Cassandra are so stinking cute.

I'm going to make a brief confession here, which is that I've always been something of a Perc'ildan shipper. Don't get me wrong, I love the canon ships, but Vax and Percy have an incredibly rich and complex friendship over the course of the stream, and when I was thinking of all the things I probably wouldn't get to see play out in the animated show for lack of time and significance, I was sure that Vax and Percy moments wouldn't make the cut. But these three episodes are rife with amazing moments for these two, which gives me so much hope that their unique relationship will get time to shine in later seasons, when Certain Things occur. (If you know you know.) In this episode, we start off the story proper after the flashback with Vax being super mad at Percy, threatening to kill him if he ever points his gun at any of them ever again. I love how furious he is, worked up and rightfully alarmed, but at no point does he run off and leave Percy to his fate, and as we'll see over the next couple episodes, he's willing to die fighting by the side of my friend. This is the good shit, y'all.

And despite my small point above, I really did love Percy's backstory of creating the gun. Great imagery, such an anime backstory vibe, really upping the stakes and helping to explain the true extent of how dark Percy is willing to go for the sake of his revenge. I love how he says that he's been inspired before, so why does it matter that it came to him in a weird creepy dream? He's so clearly repressing things, so clearly in denial, and the group can see it right in front of their eyes but it's hard to actually do anything about it. I didn't catch it the first time around, but when he's talking about the name on each chamber of his gun: Stonefell, Anders, Delilah, Sylas, and Anna, Scanlan asks about the sixth barrel, and the shadow on the wall behind Percy is pointing the gun at his own head. Those who know the original campaign might be a bit baffled since this isn't exactly the answer that Matt and Taliesin had in mind for that last barrel, but it was a fucking amazing and spooky image that solidifies the intensity and darkness of this story all the more.

Keyleth and the Sun Tree! What an amazing subplot we're seeing, which we know will have a great payoff by the end. The visual of the tree weakened by necrotic decay, the beautiful music of the Sun Tree trying to communicate with Kiki... all of it was great. Then of course she accidentally starts a fire, setting Vex off, and Vax rushes to defend her... I absolutely love all the points of strain we're seeing between the various members of the group. It's like Whitestone and the stress of their situation is bringing everything to the surface. Vex and Vax's codependency, Keyleth and Vax's romance, so many little aspects that can be revealed in between the drive of the main story. I loved that shot of the twins glaring at each other, before Archie cuts in and brings the focus back to the task at hand.

This is a Scanlan Shorthalt-centric episode, and by god, I love this horny little gnome with all my heart. I've talked a lot already about how the Whitestone arc was when the streaming show went from "good" to "holy shit this is amazing", and a lot of that was the darkness of the story-line, a lot of that was Taliesin Jaffe pulling out the fucking indescribably good RP. But then there's Scanbo, a moment I will never forget watching for the first time with my jaw dropped in disbelief. "I'm going to kill everyone in this mu'fucking house," Sam Riegel said, and he fucking did it. So good. And this episode managed to capture so much of what I loved in the original, and add some character development stakes to it that weren't there before.

We start with Scanlan trying to convince the group of his value, while the others are skeptical. Grog laughs, Vax says he'll go instead, Vex is dismissive... but Scanlan insists. He's not the stabby guy who charges in and kills the villains. He's loud, he's annoying, he's built to be a distraction, and right now they need a distraction to draw guards away from Anders and save Cass. This sets up the stakes for his own individual arc, and also helps to solidify his position in the group as somewhat the damsel in distress: he's super skilled in his special areas, but he's not meant to be the one in the thick of things, which is why he's always in such terrible mortal peril whenever an enemy actually gets a hit on him. It makes you nervous for what's going to happen when Scanlan goes on his solo mission, but also excited to see the chaos. And oh boy, the chaos....

Scanlan sing-narrating his break-in to Duke Vedmire's place, anxious but determined... Scanlan sneaking in to find Vedmire on the toilet... just, y'all, the whole Scanbo sequence... they managed to capture the chaos and hilarity of that part in the show in a way I never would have imagined. The guards playing D&D, the misty step potion, shrinking potion, and then FIRE BREATH potion, then the scroll that was set up back in episode five, then TRICERATOPS SCANLAN LET'S GOOOO. Fire everywhere, Scanlan on a rampage, then up on the roof, bloodied and pinned down, flipping Vedmire off, dueling Vedmire with Scanlan's hand... lightning from his dick...

I'm sorry, it's just iconic. Legendary. Scanlan Shorthalt, everyone. What a guy. Whatever else you can say about the dude, he's not lacking for self-confidence, and it pays off in a big way.

Meanwhile the absolute chaos of Scanlan's scenes are cut through with the rest of the gang waiting with the resistance back in the hideout. I can't believe this, but Vex and Scanlan's relationship has really become a highlight of the season for me. She's so worried about him, and she and Percy have this wonderful moment where Percy is talking about what an annoying nuisance Cassandra always was when they were kids, and Vex says she sounds like Scanlan. What a perfect tender little moment. Also, Vex calling Percy "darling" gets me every goddamn time. Just the greatest. I know this essentially goes without saying at this point, but the voice acting in this show is so good. I get distracted, pulled completely in by their performances, but every once in a while I'm like... oh yeah, that's Laura Bailey and Taliesin Jaffe and they're so fucking good at their jobs. Yeesh.

So towards the end of the episode, Scanlan has set the house on fire, guards are rushing to Vedmire's aid, and it's go time for the rest of the crew. They break into Anders's house, come across some guards, Grog goes into a rage, and Percy chases after Anders. He finds him in his study, knife to Cassandra's throat... points a gun at him... and then Anders does it, he cuts Cass's throat and drops her to the floor, bleeding to death.

End of episode.

This is an adaptational change from the stream that I 100% approve of. In the original, Vax is the one to come across Cassandra with Anders's knife to her throat, and he rushes in and starts combat right away, knowing that saving Cass has to be a priority. He nearly dies for his trouble. It's some of my favorite stuff from the stream, to be honest, the whole Anders fight is just EPIC in every way in the original, but giving that moment to Percy is just narratively the right thing to do, and cuts some unnecessary Vax-related drama from the proceedings. I love that Percy has his gun pointed at Anders, a man on his List, and yet he says he'll consider letting him go if he releases Cassandra. He's probably full of shit, the vengeance inside of him probably wouldn't allow such a thing, but it speaks to how much Cass has become his priority even in the midst of his larger quest. What a cliffhanger, too! God, the hits just keep coming!

The pacing of this episode is break-neck in the best way, I was completely gripped in the momentum the whole way through, between Scanlan's chaos and the assault on Anders's home, which is going to break right into an amazing action sequence in the next installment. God, I really could not be more impressed with how they've adapted some of the most iconic stuff from the Briarwood arc in the stream. Just stunning, y'all.

9/10

[simpsiren]

lee taeyong x reader

“my baby dont like it when you come around”

description. a new guy in college asks you for help to get rid of his girlfriend and slowly falls for you instead through your heated times with him.

genre. ANGST, college au, cheating au, bold/ arrogant reader x shy taeyong

warnings. none? except for the fact that this basically about cheating and having strong emotional tensions with each other, slighty suggestive

a/n. hihii i always thought of doing a ff about their baby dont like it song because its been in my head for so long HAHA also the lyrics are just uHem but yeah so anyways buckle up because theres going to be a lot of angst and tensionn also i didnt notice that i wrote so much like damn aNywAys enjoyy!

you walk into class lazily, expecting the same thing to happen again. as you step into the lecture hall, your eyes immediately went to your seat. you sigh and push you glasses up before walking over.

“i swear when will people stop doing this?” you mutter to yourself, shoving all the gifts off your table, making it all drop to the ground and producing a loud noise. everyone’s eyes are being drawn to your direction. you roll your eyes as mark takes his usual seat beside you.

“that’s the most you got this week.” mark laughs in disbelief, looking down onto the floor. you flash a fake smile at him, making him laugh even more. “its so annoying. none of them even look good.” your eyes scan through the gifts on the floor, seeing one that actually looks decent. you pick it up and examine it closely. mark gets near you and does the same.

“ill keep this one. looks expensive.” you shrug, shoving the expensive looking silver necklace into your bag. mark scoffs, letting his body sink into his seat. “i love the fact that you only care about the value of the gift.” 

you click your tongue and stand up, proceeding to pick up all the useless gifts you received from the random guys on campus and walking over to the trash can, throwing it all away. you hear gasps and mutters around the lecture hall. you clearly couldnt care less, walking back, taking your seat and bringing out your materials.

“it cant be helped that youre the most beautiful one around here.”

“you think i dont know that? people do know that they shouldnt mess with me right? yet i need to keep up with unknown admirers and random texts of confession.” you let out a long sigh, as you rest your chin on the palm of your head, leaning onto the table. 

“you admit youre beautiful. your confidence is truly amazing.” mark comments. you kept your eyes to the front as you watch your professor walk in, along with a new guy you’ve never seen before. your eyes remained on the guy, watching him climb up  the stairs and walking to the seat next to you. 

your attention changes to the professor as she starts talking. but your ears immediately diverted its attention to somewhere else, particularly to the guy next to you. 

“why did you seat next to her? do you know how dangerous that is?” you hear the girl sitting behind him whisper. its no doubt that she purposely whispered loud enough for you to hear, wanting to make your blood boil. you ket your cool and focused on the lecture, taking notes accordingly.

“how so?”

“she’s hard to talk to. she only had mark as her friend and she gets pissed easily. her temper is the worst around here and she’s the most feared. a lot of guys like her for some reason and-” 

“are you done, sweetie?” you lick your bottom lip as you turned around the face the girl. you hear mark hiding his laugh with a cough. “if you are, i really suggest you shut your mouth before i sew it shut for you.” your eyes glared at hers, staring at her intensively. you knew that it scared her when she immediately looks away. you chuckle in amusement before turning back to the front.

you look to the side, to see the guy’s eyes opened wide, with an eyebrow raised. you smile softly.

“lee taeyong.” you whisper, reading off the keychain attached to his pencil case, nodding your head before paying attention to the lecture again. the guy coughs softly and faced forward as well.

the lecture was now over and you start to pack up. you take your time since you know that it would be hectic to get through the large crowd of students who are also exiting as well as being able to avoid bumping into any guys and have them confess their useless affection towards you.

you were however intrigued to find out what’s going on outside when you hear someone whispering about the fact that there’s an extremely pretty girl waiting outside the campus.

by then, only you and mark were in the lecture hall. you figured it would be a good time to step out and find out the reason behind all the talking outside.

as you and mark walk down the hallway to the entrance, you tilt your head as you see a crowd forming at the gate. you sigh, taking off your glasses and rubbing your temples. “how the fuck are we suppose to get out?” you turn to mark with your eyebrows furrowed.

“im sure they’ll move aside once you come in.” mark places his hand on your shoulder and taps it lightly before walking forward towards the huge crowd with full confidence. you swear you can burst any minute as the the mumbles of the people fill your ears even more as you walk closer.

the moment one person makes eye contact with you. their eyes widened and signal their friends to quiet down. eventually, the noise starts to lower down as you made you way through the crowd. eyes were glued on you as you follow behind mark. you swiftly clean your glasses with the cloth in your pocket and put them back on.

as your vision starts to become clear, you notice that the one standing beside the girl is the lee taeyong guy from ealier. you walk over to them immediately.

you turn your head slightly to the back, signalling everyone to get back to what they were doing, and as always, they obey and the crowd dispersed itself. you look back to the front to where the cause of the nuisance started.

you eyed the girl intensively, looking up and down, observing every inch of her. you had to admit, she is quite the beauty. perfect wavy brown hair, almond shaped eyes, nicely drawn eyebrowa and plump pink lips. her body in the black tight fitting dress is amazing. it curved her body in all the right places.

you look up to see taeyong and the girl looking back at you with a raised brow. you faked a wide smile. “i dont think its wise to meet your boyfriend right at the gates of school.. especially when you’re this pretty. id fuck you.” you lick your lips teasingly and chuckle soon after.

“bitch the fuck?” mark whispers. you let out a loud, cunning laugh. “or perhaps...”

your eyes immediately connected with taeyong’s. you saw the fear yet a tint of interest in his eyes. you liked it. as you walk past the couple, you run your hand down taeyong’s chest. taeyong freezes as the girl’s mouth gape open, pulling taeyong away instantly with her arm around his waist. “id fuck your boyfriend.”

your head jerks toward taeyong as you whisper into his ear, but loudly enough for the girl to hear. with that, you wink at the both of them and walk off. mark smiles kindly before following behind you.

“that was... wow.” mark says to you, taking out his phone from his back pocket. you sigh, pushing your glasses up the bridge of your nose.

“honestly who is dumb enough to meet their significant other just outside campus? they should be taught a lesson. and to think that taeyong guy is new.”

“his name is taeyong?”

you nod. mark nods back in reply as the two of you walk ahead to the small secluded cafe shop nearby where the two of you would usually hang out.

“i really hope i dont see him on friday. does he look like he’s the kind to skip lecture?” you ask, taking a sip of your tea while mark drinks his coffee.

mark shrugs, laying his back against the chair. “i dont think so? he has that ‘bad boy but obedient’ vibes.” you eyebrows furrow, but you slowly nod your head as you start to understand his view of taeyong.

“well i hope he wont let his girlfriend and him cause such commotion again. it took us so long to get out.” you whine, looking at the time on your phone. “we fucking got out like 30 minutes after! you know how much i hate getting off campus late.”

mark chuckles, running his hand through his hair. “we know, sweetie. we know.”

“dont call me that i swear-”

“suckass.”

“bitch.”

the two of you laugh happily and take a sip of your drinks at the same time before discussing about today’s lecture.

friday comes and you see the gifts placed neatly on your table yet again. you roll your eyes and slouch into your seat. you are now too tired to even throw away the gifts and you give up doing so.

more people soon start to fill the seats of the lecture hall. when the professor walks in, you notice that the seat beside you is empty. you purse your lips into a thin line and shrug your shoulders, thinking that taeyong isnt going to come today.

“taeyong. its only your second day yet you’re already late.” your head lifts up from your table to see taeyong standing by the door. you rest your chin on the palm on your hand as you were intrigued by him again like the first time you saw him on wednesday. why? you dont even know yourself.

taeyong rushes in and sits down next to you. what surprised you is the fact that the same girl is standing outside. the murmurs and whispers come again. you swear you can get a headache from it.

you see her blowing a kiss to taeyong, making everyone shout and fangirl over her before she leaves and the hall is back to being silent. you turn your head to taeyong, who immediately look back at you.

“is she that crazy over you?” you ask, taking out your pen and beginning writing notes. “yeah. but i fucking hate it.” taeyong replies. you chuckle lowly as your eyes remain on the projector yet you could see taeyong blinking his eyes, as if you had an effect on him.

“she seems rich. you’re after her money, arent you?”

“it’s because i cant get away from her parents.”

“hm its also for the money. i can tell.” you look down at his outfit, a lot of it are designer and authentic clothing items. you laugh softly with amusement.

“why are people scared of you?” your eyes immediately darkens and you slowly turn your head to face taeyong, staring down at him. taeyong sucks air into his cheeks and glances somewhere else. laughing quietly at his reaction, you smile softly.

“let’s just say i have a bad reputation. yet im popular for some reason. its seriously annoying.”

taeyong looks down at the gifts that you have thrown off your table. “i can tell. you seem bold and intimidating.”

you take out your phone to scroll through your social medias in boredom. “bold and intimidating huh? you’re an interesting one. i like it.” you glance at the clock when you hear people starting to pack up. you too start to pack up as well.

taeyong is still seated on his seat, writing down the notes he missed from talking to you. you figured that he couldn’t multitask like you. before you stand up to get out of the hall you turn to taeyong. again it looked like his senses were all heightened and he’s being wary of you.

you got closer to him, faces inches apart. he didn’t move at all. his eyes still on you. you smirk softly, licking your bottom lip as you eyed him narrowly like looking at a delicious candy.

“looks like you arent intimidated by me. i like you.” you whispers softly, laughing loudly as you see mark waiting for you at the door. you quickly got up and went to mark. as the two of you exited the hall, you look back to taeyong. he’s still glued to his seat, not moving, his mouth gaping open slightly.

“oi let’s go.” you hear mark shout as you notice him already walking away. you smirk widely and follow behind mark.

“im sorry what?”

“let me cheat on her with you.”

“no.”

you glare at taeyong as you take a bite from your meal. you and taeyong are having lunch on campus together and it never fails to have eyes glued onto you whenever you’re with taeyong. you’re only option is to hang out with tayeong since mark didnt come today. you have yet to ask him why.

“come on please! if she sees me with someone like you she’ll be too scared to get near me then i can finally break up with her.” taeyong whines, grabbing your cup of iced tea and taking a sip.

“protect your reputation, taeyong. look around. you being with me is already giving people a bad impression of you.” taeyong does what you say, looking around and realising that a lot of people were staring at you two. he turns back to find you picking on your food.

“you’re the only one i know around here. itll only be until me and her break.”

you eyes trailed up from your food to meet taeyong’s. you put your fork down and sat up straight, tilting your head slightly. “what’s in it for me?” people around you know very well that wouldnt do something without getting something back in return. it didnt take taeyong long to know that due to the constant whispers about you around campus.

“ill let you have the money she gives me?” taeyong says nervously. you click your tongue. you were definitely intrigued when taeyong says the word ‘money’. taeyong smiles sheepishly as he waits for your answer.

“ill do it.” taeyong’s face lits up in an instant. you however were smiling devilishly, looking down at your prey. “get ready though. im not an easy one.”

taeyong blinks his eyes rapidly. his eyes definitely says he’s intimidated. but his body says otherwise, looking calm and composed.

“i know. itll be fun.” your eyes widen slightly as you see taeyong smirking under his soft smile. you raise your eyebrows and chuckle in amusement.

“oh im sure it will, ty.”

“you sure that’ll work?” you roll your eyes and rub your temples. you lost count of how many times you have tried to explain the plan to taeyong.

“you said she comes here to have coffee before she picks you up right? she doesnt know we ended early today so we’ll probably run into her. then i’ll just flirt with you or something. just follow my lead.” taeyong nods slowly. 

you shrug your shoulders and let your body sink into the comfortable seat. you and taeyong are at a pretty high class cafe and it felt good to drink some quality tea instead of the cheap ones you have to put up with living as a broke college student.

you drink your tea as you eyed taeyong. he looks anxious, constantly looking out the window and sucking his draw despite his cup already being empty. you groan to catch taeyong’s attention. “you need to chill. have you never flirt with anyone before?” taeyong shakes his head, biting his straw. you gape your mouth and clap your hands.

“no way! you’re good looking. you cant tell me that snobby girl is the only one you ever dated.” 

“she is.”

you choked on your drink, proceeding you laugh hysterically. taeyong furrows his eyebrow. “you better find a better girlfriend once you break up with her ty.” taeyong frowns, running his hand through his silk soft-looking hair. “im not interested in dating.” taeyong mumbles. you only hum in response. 

looking up from taeyong, you see the girl walking down the street, about to enter the cafe. you tapped taeyong’s hand quickly, making him flinch. 

“okay she’s coming, act natural. like how we are now.”

“wait what i-”

you immediately peck his lips to shut him up. taeyong widens his eyes in shock, his body completely frozen at your touch. you smirked widely as you see the girl standing outside, with her eyes filled with anger and her hand clenching into fists tightly. you chuckle in an evil manner. “her she comes.” you whisper in a sing-song tone.

taeyong looks straight at the door as she finally steps into the cafe and stomps over to your table. you smile widely, putting in your innocent act.

“who’s she, tae?” taeyong doesn’t reply, looking at you. you raise both your eyebrows and roll your eyes. slowly, your fingers crawl up to taeyong’s hand on the table, touching his fingers as you jerked your head to her.

“a friend.” taeyong replies simply.

she scoffs. you ran your hand through your hair. “and why are you guys here?”

you click your tongue and chuckle lowly. you look at her, noticing that she’s eyeing you like a prey. clearly she’s jealous right now. with her arms crossed and eyes. you knew.

“we finished quite early actually. you dont mind me hanging out with him, do you? im sure you know he’s new and im his only friend.” you say softly, turning to taeyong and biting your lip seductively. a smirk slowly creeped up taeyong’s mouth. you’re surprised that he suddenly looks confident rather than the first time you two met when he was looking all intimidated and nervous around you.

“yeah, its true.” taeyong winks playfully at you. you only hum in response before looking up to the girl. she furrows her eyebrows in anger.

“hm you wanna hang out with him, right? alright ill leave.” you stand up and shove your phone into your back pocket. as you walk past behind taeyong, you bend down beside him and got close to his ear, acting as if you were whispering something as you stared at the girl. oh the look on her face. you laugh inside your head. you stand up straight and ran your fingers seductively behind taeyong’s shoulders before exiting the cafe. you could have sworn that you heard her growling under her breathe.

“you should have seen the look on her face!” you laugh crazily, slamming your hand against your thigh and taking another sip of mark’s drink. you were too lazy to buy your own.

“man why didn’t you tell me all this before?! i would have followed you guys and watch the shit go down.” mark whines. you grin widely and shake your head.

“im so sorryy.” you take in deep breathes to calm yourself down.

“taeyong must have been surprised when he sees you go into that mode. i remember the first time you helped me get my parents to not force me to be in relationships after they knew im “dating” someone like you.” mark chuckles.

“well he was shocked at first. but he surprisingly acted well.”

mark nods his head. you sigh as you look around the campus and you see taeyong walking with his headphones on. you smile softly.

“if you’ll excuse me, ill put on my ‘cheating’ role now and go to taeyong. text me alright!” you stand up from your seat and did you signature handshake with mark before speeding over to where taeyong was.

your hand loops around his arm as you pull him close. taeyonh flinches but relaxes when he notice it’s you. “so how did she react?” you ask, walking happily.

taeyong shrugs and takes off his earpiece, unplugging it from his phone and shoving it into his tote bag. “she was definitely jealous. she gave me a lecture on how i shouldnt be with you cuz you looked like a bitch.” you gasp sarcastically, placing your hand on your chest as you gaped your mouth widely. taeyong chuckles at your reaction.

“a bitch? what about her? tsk..” you roll your eyes.

“i can safely assure you that you’re way better than her.” you laugh in response.

“of course i am.” you wink at taeyong. “also what’s her name? you never told me.”

“soyoung. oh by the way.” taeyong stops in his tracks. you stop as well and let your arm off taeyong’s. taeyong digs into his tote bag. after awhile, he pulls out money. you smile almost immediately.

“she gave it to me. in a way to bribe me not to hang out with you.” you lean forward and snatch the money away and counted it. and boy was it a lot of money.

“she’d pay this much for you to stay away from me? she really is a bitch.” you slid the money into your wallet.

“too bad though. she’ll be seeing me with you more often.” you start to walk forward, but you stop and turn your head back. taeyong was standing still and staring at you. you see him snap out of hid thoughts and shake his head before walking towards you.

“sorry about that. let’s go.” you only shrug your shoulders as the two of you walk out of campus.

“you’re meeting her this sunday?” taeyong nods. you look around taeyong’s apartment. it wasnt big, big enough for two people but he’s the only one lving here. the decor is simple and he place doesn’t look messy. you figured it suited him well.

“we’ll be together before you’re suppose to meet her and have her see us together.”

taeyong widens his eyes and tilts his head. “that’ll be intense.” you raise an eyebrow and chuckle.

“isnt that what cheating is all about, ty?” you shake your head, acting disappointed. you hear him let out a ‘tsk’. you laugh.

“all right. looks like you’re taking me out sunday night. ill dress up.”

“dont you always dress up? your outfits upstages everyone when i see you on campus.”

you peck taeyong’s cheek playfully. taeyong jumps back at your sudden move. you smiled widely.

“you know i always look good.”

you suddenly feel taeyong pulling you and placing you on his lap. you tilt your head in confusion. “what’s this?”

taeyong’s breathing slows down as his eyes glaze your face intensively, as if admiring every inch of it.

“sounds weird but i find you very fucking hot.. its irresistible.” taeyong whispers, raising his hand to twirl a section of your hair around his fingers.

“oh and please book me a grab home. im heading out now so text me aites.” you stand up from the couch and wave to taeyong before leaving his apartment and closing the door.

as you were waiting for taeyong to pick you up on his motorbike, you look down at your outfit. you’re wearing a really short grey pleated skirt with a white lace bralette and a oversized checkered blazer as an outerwear. you don’t usually wear skirts often, but you did need to play the part of being revealing so as to “attract” taeyong’s attention. you put the quotations on attract but you dont even know if taeyong would be attracted or not. you slightly hoped that he would for some reason.

you see a motorbike coming to a halt. you walk towards it as taeyong gets off. he takes off his helmet, ruffling his hair as he went to the trunk. you blink your eyes rapidly as you’ve never seen taeyong look this good. you snap out of your thoughts when taeyong passed you your helmet. the both of you wear the helmets at the same time as you give way for taeyong to get on the bike. after adjusting a little, taeyong jerks his head to gesture you to get on.

“sit properly if you dont want guys staring at your exposed thighs.” taeyong says, his voice being muffled by the shield of helmet. you pull your down your skirt slightly and rest your hand on your thighs, waiting for him to take off, but he doesn’t.

“put your hands somewhere else. it’s dangerous.”

“ouh right right..” you look at your sides to find any handles to hold onto but there weren’t any. you stare down at his back. shurgging, you wrap your arms around his waist and interlock your fingers togther. taeyong turns his head to you and looks forward before starting the mottorbike and driving. you dont even know where you’re headed but oh well.

after a drive of about 20 minutes, you finally feel the motorbike stop. you look beside you and notice there was a restaurant. a very high class one. you gap your mouth open in disbelief as you get off the bike and take off your helmet.

“you have dates to these places often?” you turn around to face taeyong who sighs and gets close to you to take your helmet, nodding slowly.

you scoff, your eyes scanning the entrance of the place up and down. you feel taeyong’s hand snake around your waist. “let’s not go inside yet.” you raise an eyebrow.

“then where are we going?”

taeyong leads you to the entrance of the restaurant, where there are benches aligned. you nod your head once taeyong take a seat on the bench and sit doen beside him.

“the place is secluded so id normally see people making out around here.” taeyong comments, glancing at his phone to check the time.

“well there’s a bar a few blocks down so i guess that’s why.” you only nod in response, looking in front as you watch the cars drive by. it made you think of one thing. “wait what does her car look like-“

taeyong swiftly wraps his arm around your waist and pull you on his lap. you blink at him as he jerks his head to the back of you. you assume that she arrived. you arch your back and let your hair flow down on one shoulder before wrapping your hands around his neck and pulling him into a deep kiss. taeyong’s grip on your waist tightens as you ran you hand through his hair and tilt your head to deepen the kiss even more. you felt taeyong’s hand roaming from your waist to your thigh, going up and down slowly.

for some reason, you were enjoying it. his lips on yours. you felt his hunger, neediness for you as he held you close as if to claim you’re his. you felt the same nonetheless. you liked it a lot. the two of you knew very well that this isnt acting anymore. it was real. the heat and needy tension. you didnt feel such a thing in a long time.

you suddenly flinch when you felt a hand on your shoulder, pushing you off taeyong’s lap. you turn around. “oh look who’s here! its soyoung.”

“the fuck did i just saw you doing with taeyong?” soyoung pushes you back further.

“i was about to have dinner with taeyong here.. but id figure it would be better to get free appetisers instead of having to pay for one.” you say confidently, brushing your thumb over you bottom lip as your eyes stared into hers.

soyoung scoffs and folds her arms. she looks down at your outfit. “you’ve been trying to seduce taeyong from the very start.” soyoung mutters under her breathe. you tilt your head as you grin widely.

“of course that’s what i’ve been doing idiot. taeyong really enjoys being with me though.” you turn your head to taeyong who was smirking widely and eyeing your outfit hungrily.

soyoung rubs her temples. with no words coming out her mouth, she turn away and walks to her car, getting into the driver’s seat and driving off. you slowly turn your head to taeyong who’s mouth is wide open. you laugh hysterically.

“oh my fucking god that was awesome!” you shout, clapping as you sit back down beside taeyong. taeyong smiles widely. “you really do have it in you.” taeyong compliments. you nudge his arm. “if you say you underestimated me i will beat you up.”

“please do. ruin me. every single moment i spend with you makes me fall and want you more. i love the dangerous side of you,”

[yandere-flower]

Okay so that last ask got me thinking about what the ocs would be in an old timey victorian-esc drama and I got IDEAS

Desmond: Still a detective, kinda gives off Sherlock Holmes vibes but more dark and brooding (and still a dick) maybe darling hires him to find a missing person or darling is said missing person (cuz ya know drama) either way he becomes obsessed with their case just to get closer to darling. Deals with a lot of dirty cops in the force andis more of a stand alone guy then an actually police officer.

Margo: An underground coroner/medical examiner. Sort of like the Watson to Desmonds Sherlock. Works alongside Desmond sorta like a partner but he only calls her when theres a body that needs to be investigated. Since shes a woman in a older time period she wasnt able to get all of the degrees she wanted to get and she cant even join the police force but Des saw her potential while investigating a couple of underground hospitals one time and from then on kept her under his wing. No romance plot here but they have a mutual respect for eachother. She by far has the coolest office with insect specimens, medical diagrams, tons of books, the works.

Mizu: A young scholar, mostly interested in chemistry and mechanics. Makes all sort of neat inventions but never seems to leave his work space. Looks like a total Tim Burton character, pale skin, daek undereyes, and all. Whenever he needs to go to a university event he tends to stick to the sidelines or closer to his professors. Has somewhat of a special bond with professor Cliff but nothing that he thinks is too serious.

Cliff: Still a professor BUT I can see him having a secret hold in power somewhere. He goes to so many events hes totally rubbing elbows with some powerful figures. Total behind the scenes guy. Sometimes Cliff is able to get Antonios work in public art gallas and events with or without his sons knowledge. He also sees potential in Mizu and has tabs on the young mans accomplishments for future endeavors.

Antonio: Still a starving artist but somehow even more poetic? The guys aesthetic screams Shakespeare and renaissance and you already know this bitch dabbles in poetry. (Kind of gives off Thomas Thorn vibes from the show Ghosts). WILL throw pebbles at your window and seranade you into running away with him.

Ezra: A sweet baker as usual, super polite and cheery BUT to give it a tad bit of a dark twist lets say theres a Sweeney Todd situation going on here. Lets just say this guy is the total embodiment of Ms Lovette. "Oh that man who said those vulgar words to you earlier? Oh you dont worry about him, and dont get the meat pies darling, I dont think itll suit your taste."

Zara: I cant decide if I want her to be from Spain, India or France, BUT main thing is she moved to London and is gonna run this town. She runs an old fashion boutique for men and women and has some of the best quality goods in town. She fought and clawed her way up to the top and is one of the biggest enterpanurs in London. Maybe she has a secret deal with Ezra to help deal with those who stand in her way somewhere where they'll be put to good use.

Sawyer: Oh total old fashion crime rapscallion. For reference watch the show Peaky Blinders cuz I can see him being apart of a gang like that but if know one knows what im talking about, always bruised and beat up but he still has to make sure he looks presentable. Him and Des go head to head a lot, but Des hasnt been able to nail Sawyer for any crimes yet so he has to frustratingly let the punk go with a warning and you know Sawyer always makes cheeky comments before leaving.

Olive: Shes super rich but her family does have money, perhaps a merchant family with some royal ties? Either way shes the prized daughter and is constantly swatting away suitors, waiting for her one and only. Goes to every ball and regal event looking for someone to sweep her off her feet and once she does find her one and only, they arent going anywhere. Total Elizabeth from BLack Butler vibes, bows, frills and all.

(Am I forgetting anybody? I think I got everyone! Sooo what are your thoughts? Id love to hear ideas if you have any!)

This is amazing, thank you for this detailed prompt I absolutely love the descriptions. I also know every single reference that you put in here, amazing.

I can't decide who I like more, Zara whose a total bitch and probably works with Sawyers mob on the side because being a woman in power takes coin and ruthlessness. Or Mizu, who is a slightly unhinged young man always clutching his paperwork and running away from lectures to avoid gross people. And of course, big daddy Cliff whose heavy voice just drips class and power, ugh swoon.

[wondersbeyondcompare]

More Majid Stuff

I post once in a blue moon b/c I work in random bursts and get tired easily, but here are some rambles about Majid that I’ve saved in my Notes app and probably haven’t mentioned before!

There are some rumors circulating around Majid regarding his wealth

More specifically: how he got his wealth

All these rumors range from him being a secret son of a noble family to taking shady underground jobs that paid ridiculously well

His name had been searched up more than once, but the only thing that pops up is a bakery business w/ a small branch located in the Land of Hot Sands... not too far from where Majid grew up...

Majid’s a quick learner; he just lacks the motivation lol 

Tends to overthink too often, tho, coming up with detailed plans to get out of doing the most mundane stuff

Funny to watch but a pain in the ass to comprehend 😔

Although Majid tries to get out of doing most stuff, there are some things he can’t let slide

He can get picky over how some tasks are done; honestly??? this might be a good tactic on getting him to work (“Hey, Majid. Can you help set up the decorations for tonight’s party?” “No.” “Aaaa, okay, guess we’ll just have Mark do it-“ “Mark? You want to leave decorating to him? Do you want the lounge looking like a highlighter projectile vomited over the walls and ceiling? Give me those streamers. I’ll do it myself-“)

Definitely a quality over quantity kind of person; his room may be a mess of different things, but, rest assured, it’s only the best of the best of stuff that stay for long like lava lamps

I want to say that Majid is picky about a lot of things in general, but he does have his exceptions; for example: food, napping locations, job opportunities, ummm (･_･;) That’s most of what I can think of right now, dang

This pickiness is kiiind of 👉👈 referencing a trait that the Cave of Wonders has; like the whole “only a diamond in the rough shall enter here“ business that was going on idk I’m trying my best

As you can see, I went ham when it came to the “Who disturbs my slumber” line the tiger head had lol 😅(sorry that had become your defining trait, m’boi)

And the mass of riches he’s accumulated over the years was another obvious reference to the inside of the cave as well; can also act as a loose metaphor of what’s stopping him from getting the help he needs; as the treasures in the cave were put there w/ the intent of distracting a person from the ultimate goal of the magic lamp, so does his own treasures serve as a temporary distraction from moving forward in his life

But if that’s too much of a stretch, then plz slap the inner English teacher in me and then myself

Majid’s good at looking through people’s facades and judging a person’s true character, but it’s not like he does much w/ this info

Unless they try confronting him or something, he just avoids/shuts down people he gets bad vibes from

Doesn’t make tactless comments; figured out that dealing with pissed off people was more work than it’s worth

Boi tends to ask a lot of questions when speaking to other people; partly b/c of trust issues; partly b/c he might be lowkey judging you (can’t use his unique magic all the time after all :/)

He’s the type of person who acts like he knows everything, but he really doesn’t; just hates getting looked down upon in general; will bluff his way through situations by being as vague as possible

He leans towards how his mother used to speak; that is: beating around the bush

He won’t lie to you, but it might take some time until he’ll give you the whole truth; and when I say it’ll take some time, IT REALLY WILL TAKE SOME TIME B/C THIS BOY IS UNBELIEVABLY STUBBORN 

Is casual to whoever he speaks to, no matter the age; if he gets extremely annoyed with someone, especially if they’re older than him, he’ll use this over exaggerated polite tone that makes it real obvious he’s fed up with them

Gets ticked off whenever anyone advises him to do anything, but he’ll still take that advice to heart

Majid’s probably tired all the time b/c of all the jewelry he’s carrying around smh

Majid sounds/looks like he’s angry all the time, but that’s just his resting face 😔; I mean, he’s always a little irritated, but it’s mostly b/c he’s stuck in that state of being forced awake from a deep afternoon nap (b/c... that’s usually what happens to him)

Plus, have you met his upperclassmen? Have you seen what was going on in Scarabia during Chapter 4?????? Have you met the headmaster of this school????????  (; ω ; )

He doesn’t like people touching stuff that’s his; same thing goes for people touching stuff in general that aren’t theirs; doesn’t like thieves (he’s stolen stuff when he was younger, but he justifies that he only did so to survive; and he’s not entirely wrong)

Ironic b/c his mom was a thief 🤭 

He’s also a pretty obedient student save for the whole “trying to sleep in class w/o getting caught” thing that he’s still trying to accomplish; doesn’t like it when the professors get strict with him but will grit his teeth and bear with it

Prefers magic carpets to magic broomsticks; there’s just a lot more surface area when it comes to carpets plus he’s more familiar with the former

Spends a lot of his time in the Scarabia storage room b/c it reminds him of his bedroom back home; probably became buddies w/ Kalim’s magic carpet while he was there too

But if we’re talking about the type of people Majid could tolerate befriending uummm... maybe those with good hearts?? Idk, like those who are genuinely trying to be a good person no matter what kind of obstacles they run into (referencing how the cave of wonders only let a diamond in the rough enter)

They don’t have to be all nice or sweet, but as long as Majid can tell they have kind intentions, he won’t immediately leave them

Has a “haaah... these guys are hopeless... might as well keep an eye on them so they don’t screw up any more than they already have” attitude towards these people

Other type of person Majid would unintentionally befriend are those who are also annoyed of being told what to do by upperclassmen/authority figures; ☺️🙏  vent out your frustrations together wooo

Has some squabbles with Leona when it comes to napping locations

It’s actually pretty funny to watch b/c they both don’t want to give up their spot but also they don’t want to bother getting up 

Leona wins most of the time, tho

Majid may have had a lot of energy when he was younger but now he’s a g e d

I rarely mention Majid’s lava illusion magic thing, but yeah that’s a thing; he probably won’t be able to use it to its full extent until his last year of high school and maybe a little bit later; it takes up a ton of energy; I keep on imagining him using it and joking that “aaaa the floor is lava lol”, but then I remember the psychological effects this ability has on the victim and 😬 yikes scratch that

Majid has a loud clear voice when he speaks; often startles whoever’s walking by when he naps in the shadows

 As a result of spending most of his time w/o a stable support system and no one static to guide his beliefs, Majid doesn’t follow any particular religion; he does have coworkers back at the curio/appraisal/pawn shop who do, tho, and while he doesn’t entirely understand it, he respects them as much as he can

I’ve said before that Majid selfishly keeps all his wealth to himself for fear of losing his self worth, but there are some exceptions (such as to anyone he passes who’s begging in the streets, a coworker who’s struggling to make ends meet, etc.)

He’s fine with giving away some money, but not in huge amounts 

 And if he’s giving money to anyone, it’s done in a round about way; usually w/ a dismissive excuse 

If this boi had a route, depending on how the MC acts around him, the majority of it will be spent breaking down those walls and befriending him; generally going like this: shovel all trust issues into incinerator one by one —>Get him to tolerate you —> Get him to trust you —> Befriend (?) Him —> Deal w/ his other deep seated issues —-> Romance (if we’re going for that otome game kinda thing i guess???))

I can just imagine Majid temporarily visiting the Land of Hot Sands w/ MC after befriending him and finding out the truth about his parents through his boss at the curio shop; MC encourages him to travel north to pay a visit at some facility b/c it’s rumored that at least his father is still alive 

(No idea what happened to Lara; probably suffered worse consequences due to making several prison breaks; had decently powerful magical abilities, so that would probably explain the whole forced amnesia thing that happened after their disappearance) 

Majid is torn b/w wanting to go alone b/c this is a personal matter (And he wants MC to be safe) and being scared of losing MC if something horrible happens to him on his journey north; he knows what it’s like to be suddenly abandoned, and he doesn’t want that for anybody, especially for someone he cares about 

He doesn’t want to repeat his father’s mistakes, regardless if it was accidental or not 

Majid decides to go on his own; probably had some touching parting w/ MC; maybe we’ll go full otome and have a hugging CG where he swears that he will be back for MC

And MC is just like “Aight;;; cool;;; good luck;;”; something sentimental like that 

Couple of days passed; we’re worried about him 

He returns with a worried look on his face before breaking into a relieved smile when he sees MC; power walks to hug them even tighter than before

Majid thanks them for all they’ve done; he then spends the rest of the day and well into the night describing all he’s experienced and his visit with his dad

 They go back to NRC and Majid is less bratty than before, much to the surprise of Jamil and to the delight of Kalim; actually starts to make an effort to not push people away at every opportunity (b/c he originally felt like they all had their own hidden agenda and were just using him for their own gain, y’know)

Boi becomes even more clingy towards MC; by that, I don’t mean he’s overly attached to them (he’s afraid of making the same mistake he did in the past), but rather he shows it through light casual touches here and there (a brush of the fingers when exchanging papers, patting MC’s head when they do something well, gently tugging at their sleeve when he needs their attention) and constantly checking up on them to see how they’re doing

Awkward levels in Majid increase as he constantly wonders if he’s crossing a line when it comes to him showing any kind of affection; he doesn’t want to come off as creepy and make MC hate him

Might also resist being given love and affection at first; but once he gets used to it, he absolutely m e l t s

Cuddles are 👌; might give teary eyes if MC tries to leave early during a cuddling session, but he won’t pressure them to stay; a touch starved boi

Doesn’t think much of PDA, giving or receiving; full on making out and anything further is kind of a no-go, tho;  hugging is nice and so are short and sweet kisses; will glare at anybody who says anything about it

If his s/o was clingier than he is, he might get a little embarrassed; same thing goes if his s/o was really cute

Definitely the type of boyfriend to buy random gifts for his s/o b/c these things reminded him of them

Younger Majid was in full on puppy mode all the time, or at least when he was around people he liked; also a huge people pleaser too, since he was afraid of them leaving him 

He was probably reckless too in order to entertain his friends

Was really polite, especially when it came to adults; always calling them Mister and Miss(us)

He was also just loud 

Future Majid (if he came to terms with most of his problems) would be more mellow than his teenage self; still anti-social but he’s less angry at the world now; would go on to own the curio shop after the previous owner passed on; reverted it into both a jewelry/appraisal shop in order to honor his father plus respect the previous owner’s memory as well

Sells and repairs jewelry and appraises supposedly rare items that come through his store; still does odd jobs for the people in the neighborhood but his prices aren’t as outrageously high as he made them when he was younger

He names the new store after his mother, at the request of his father (plus I only recently heard the song “House of Gold” by Twenty One Pilots and hnnnmmg it fits well with this golden boy)

Majid is interested in most things related to jewelry, probably subconsciously influenced by his father; this includes repairing bits of jewelry; he moves delicately when it comes to these kinds of tasks

He’s a night owl; it’s much quieter at night

Has bad posture from sleeping in different weird places

His body is prone to heating up easily; the fact that he lives in the Land of Hot Sands and was also sorted into Scarabia is just unfortunate luck

Sneaks off to cooler areas on campus in his free time to chill; one of his favorite spots is the Octavinelle lounge since it’s air conditioned and dark, and he can get away with taking a nap before going over his time limit and getting kicked out

The library is nice too (´∀｀)

Would like to go to Ignihyde too, but he’s put off by the feeling of being underground (gotta have that bit of irony like Jamil being afraid of bugs 👌)

He tolerates Kalim better than Jamil; probably b/c the latter scolds him for slacking off

Actually went to Kalim for tutoring advice once before realizing part of the way that his senior had no idea what he was doing; Jamil has earned his respect when it comes to academics

Kinda jealous of the duo’s stamina; Majid’s usually heaving for air after long marches or if he’s ever chosen as a backup dancer for one of Scarabia’s many parties; he’s the ( ・∇・) least athletic of my OCs...

No, he can’t dance, but he can feign the movements well enough to not get caught

[roselovesa]

have you seen CHOI HYEJIN ? i heard SHE is a FLORIST at THE GREEN MEADOW. they’re 21 years old and they’ve been living in san verto for one year. they tend to be BENEVOLENT & MAGNANIMOUS, but rumor has it they can also be CAPRICIOUS & FINICKY. 

｡*    ❪       📂   𝐂://STATISTICS.

name: choi hyejin 

age: twenty - one

sign: pisces sun / libra moon ( click )

sexuality: bisexual

gender: cis woman ( she/her/hers )

occupation: florist , pianist, & composer 

alignment: chaotic neutral

｡*    ❪       📂   𝐂://BIOGRAPHY

* note: minho’s little sister !! <33 

📍   𝙿𝙰𝚁𝚃 𝙾𝙽𝙴 - 𝚜𝚎𝚘𝚞𝚕, 𝚜𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚑 𝚔𝚘𝚛𝚎𝚊.

born   as   the   youngest   child   of   a   nurse  &   a   teacher,   hyejin’s   childhood   was   nothing   out   of   the   ordinary.   her   love   for   music   had   always   been   apparent   —  her   mother   noticing   early   on   that,   whenever   her   daughter   was   throwing   a   hissy   fit,   all   she   had   to   do   was   play   some   classical   music   in   order   to   get   her   to   calm   down

hence,   it   shouldn’t   have   been   a   surprise   that   her   father   decided   to   teach   her   how   to   play   the   piano   at   the   age   of   6.   &  by   the   age   of   9   she   was   labeled   a   child   prodigy.   hyejin   would   often   participate   in   competitions,   attend   music   camps,   &   play   in   front   of   anyone   who   was   willing   to   listen.   her   talent   was   undeniable,   truly

in   the   years   to   follow   she   would   pick   up   other   instruments   here   &   there   (   violin,   guitar,   french   horn   ),   but   nothing   seemed   to   stick   as   much   as   piano   did.   hyejin   would   also   dabble   in   writing   her   own   music,   often   with   the   help   of   her   father

&   if   there’s   one   thing   hyejin   learned   it’s   that   practice   makes   perfect.   by   the   age   of   11   she   managed   to   become   an   extremely   valuable   asset   for   her   school’s   yearly   musicals   as   she   composed   about   60%   of   the   songs   performed   <33

she   went   viral   on   social   media   a   few   times   as   well,   her   youtube   channel   accumulating   about   1.6M   views   by   her   4th   upload.   she   would   frequently   get   interviewed   around   that   time   as   well,   with   professionals   often   commenting   on   hyejin’s   bright   future

📍   𝙿𝙰𝚁𝚃 𝚃𝚆𝙾 - 𝚗𝚎𝚠 𝚢𝚘𝚛𝚔 𝚌𝚒𝚝𝚢, 𝚄𝚂𝙰.

her   brother   getting   injured   on   tv   was   a   catalyst   of   change.   hyejin   convinced   her   parents   to   let   her   move   to   new   york   in   order   to   take   care   of   him,   being   well   aware   her   life   had   considerably   dulled   the   moment   he   decided   to   leave   a   few   years   prior

the   move   went   smoothly,   &   with   opportunities   lining   up   in   front   of   her,   she   decided   to   get   a   bachelor’s   degree   in   music   composition,   her   accomplishments   allowing   her   to   attend   one   of   the   most   prestige   universities   in   the   city

it’s   there   where   she   fell   in   love   with   a   guy   who   she   deemed   to   be   a   mentor   of   sorts  ;  always   pushing   her   to   do   better   &   achieve   unattainable   perfection.   it   had   been   so   easy   for   hyejin   to   trust   him   with   her   work,   with   him   appearing   to   be   the   more   experienced   &   wiser   of   the   two.   he   was   a   child   of   a   famous   musician   after   all,   mastering   the   arts   of   sweet   talking   unassuming   girls   with   a   whole   lot   of   empty   promises

so   when   their   uni   announced   a   proposal   of   a   student   being   able   to   apply   for   an   internship   that   would   skyrocket   their   careers   right   into   stardom,   hyejin   was   well   aware   this   was   an   opportunity   that   couldn’t   be   missed.   her   boyfriend   mentioned   how   he   wouldn’t   apply,   seeing   his   father   could   offer   him   a   job  easily,   but   mentioned   how   she   should   send   her   work   to   him   so   he   could   look   it   over   &  help   her   out

😬

“  hey   babe,   i’m   sorry   to   tell   you   this   but   the   piece   you   sent   me   just   isn’t   that   good…   i   can’t   quite   put   my   finger   on   it,   but   the   composition   is   just   wrong.   it’s   okay,   though,   you’re   only   a   freshman   &   still   have   a   lot   to   learn,   we’ll   work   on   it   together.   but   maybe   forget   about   the   internship   for   now   ?   i’m   sure   with   some   improvement   my   father   will   manage   to   get   you   an   even   better   job…   anyways,   love   you,   talk   to   you   soon   ”

crestfallen   &   humiliated,   hyejin   accepted   the   fact   that   it   would   be   simply   too   embarrassing   to   submit   the   sheets   of   music   she’d   written.   it   was   two   weeks   later   that   her   boyfriend   abruptly   ghosted   her,   only   for   her   to   find   out   he’d   gotten   the   internship   by   applying   with   the   composed   music   she   sent   him.   he   denied   any   claims   of   stealing,   &   when   hyejin   told   her   professor   about   the   situation   he   basically   wrote   it   off   as   well

📍   𝙿𝙰𝚁𝚃 𝚃𝙷𝚁𝙴𝙴: 𝚜𝚊𝚗 𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚝𝚘, 𝚄𝚂𝙰.

in   the   next   few   months   it   felt   like   her   life   had   crumbled   down   around   her,   hyejin’s   future   career   appearing   grim.   minho   &   her   decided   to   move   to   san   verto   in   order   to   find   peace,   a   fresh   start   waiting   for   them   there

she   took   up   multiple   side   jobs   to   get   her   music   out   there   again,   while   also   trying   to   push   past   the   writer’s   block   she   experienced   due   to   stress.   on   week   days   she   would   give   rich   kids   piano   lessons   after   uni   &   bloom   under   the   praises   their   parents   would   give   her   skills.   on   the   weekends   she   would   play   at   a   5   star   restaurant,   hoping   the   right   people   would   discover   her   there

having   lost   the   comfort   music   once   gave   her,   hyejin   decided   to   take   up   a   job   as   a   florist   &   keeps   herself   busy   tending   to   flowers.   it   isn’t   her   ideal   career   plan,   but   at   least   she’s   moving   forward   with   her   life

throughout   the   years   she   kept   uploading   videos   of   her   playing   piano   on   youtube,   each   video   getting   about   900k   views   on   average.   it   allows   her   to   be   fairly   recognizable   on   her   own   accord,   although   most   of   her   fame   comes   from   being   associated   with   her   brother.   she’s   starting   to   climb   in   popularity,   though,   spending   some   of   her   time   to   focus   on   crafting   a   stronger   social   media   presence

｡*    ❪       📂   𝐂://PERSONALITY.

🦋   𝙰𝚂𝚃𝚁𝙾𝙻𝙾𝙶𝚈 - 𝚜𝚞𝚗 𝚒𝚗 𝚙𝚒𝚜𝚌𝚎𝚜, 𝚖𝚘𝚘𝚗 𝚒𝚗 𝚕𝚒𝚋𝚛𝚊

click me !

empathic,   romantic,   impressionable,   &   imaginative   -   hyejin   tends   to   see   the   world   through   a   rose   colored   glass  ;   the   harsh   realities   of   life   often   making   her   want   to   indulge   in   escapism.   overall   a   generous   and   kind   person

can’t   handle   pressure   well,   ultimately   she’s   a   perfectionist.   hyejin   has   a   specific   vision   of   how   she   wants   her   life   to   play   out,   &   if   anything   interferes   with   that   she   might   feel   devastated   &   defeated.   however,   she’s   quick   to   get   back   on   her   feet   &  continue   pursuing   what   she   was   working   on

obsessed   with   fairytale   romances,   used   to   read   countless   of   young   adult   novels   hoping   she’d   experience   love   like   that.   hyejin   easily   tends   to   romanticize   &   idealize   the   people   she’s   fond   of,   thinking   they   can   do   no   wrong   in   her   eyes   &   putting   them   on   a   pedestal   *coughs* minho :( 

despite   all   of   that   she   has   a   great   intuition,   hypersensitive   to   her   environment.   she’s   often   aware   of   other   people’s   emotions,   meaning   when   someone   or   something’s   off   she   usually   able   to   identify   such   things   immediately

would   prefer   to   avoid   conflict   at   all   cost   as   well,   she   doesn’t   enjoy   being   faced   with   consequences   of   her   own   actions

at   first   glance   she   can   appear   rather   stand-offish   as   well,   not   really   the   type   to   walk   up   to   someone   &   handle   small   talk   in   an   eloquent   way.   she’s   shy   &   an   introvert,   the   type   to   hide   behind   her   mother   whenever   someone   addressed   her   when   she   was   younger.   hyejin   is   only   able   to   come   out   of   her   shell   around   people   she   knows   she   can   trust

channels   all   of   her   feelings   into   her   art  !!

｡*    ❪       📂   𝐂://WANTED CONNECTIONS.

💌   𝚁𝙾𝙼𝙰𝙽𝚃𝙸𝙲 - 𝚜𝚞𝚐𝚐𝚎𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜   (   open to m/f/nb muses !   )

current   flings  

will   they   /   won’t   they  

friends   with   benefits   (   one-sided,   purely   platonic,   etc…   )  

unrequited   love   type   of   thing   (   either   hyejin   or   your   muse  )  

fake   dating   au  

exes   on   bad   terms  

exes   on   good   terms  

enemies   to   friends   (   ?   )   to   lovers   /   flings   (   ?   )   to   exes   (   ?   )   (   we   can   do   this   however   you   see   fit   !   )

one   of   them   caught   feelings  (  thinking   they   had   something   special  )   &   suddenly   the   other   ghosted,   perhaps   leaving   behind   a   bruised   ego   )  

💌   𝙿𝙻𝙰𝚃𝙾𝙽𝙸𝙲 - 𝚜𝚞𝚐𝚐𝚎𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜   (   open to m/f/nb muses !   )

best   friend  

good   influence  

bad   influence  

childhood   friends  

protective   type   of   friendship   (   can   go   either   way   !   )  

confidants  

someone   (   preferably   an   artist   )  hyejin   looks   up   to  

friends   who   hang   out   purely   because   it’s   good   for   their   public   image  

secret   type   of   friendship   where   being   seen   together   in   public   would   damage   their   image,   aka   them   meeting   up   in   private   !  

were   set   up   on   a   blind   date   together,   hit   it   off   in   a   platonic   way   &   became   really   good   friends   <33  

only   hang   out   because   of   mutual   friends

💌   𝙼𝙸𝚂𝙲𝙴𝙻𝙻𝙰𝙽𝙴𝙾𝚄𝚂 - 𝚜𝚞𝚐𝚐𝚎𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜   (   open to m/f/nb muses !   )

hyejin’s   muse   aka   whenever   she   sees   them   she   gets   inspired   to   write   a   song   or   two   <3  

blackmailing   type   of   plots  

general   dislike   for   each   other,   they   simply   do   not   vibe  

someone   hyejin   teaches   how   to   play   piano  

rivalry,   they   see   each   other   as   competition  

have   shared   secret   where   both   of   them   are/were   involved   in   a   situation,   &  promised   secrecy   to   each   other

@foolsstarters​ 

[extraordinarilyextreme]

finally watched Guardian (2018) and i need to talk

Warning: contains MASSIVE SPOILERS, probably too much music/song analysis, my poor translations from Chinese to English, and some references to the original novel (disclaimer: my novel-reading was mostly jumping around because i have a problem where I’m not fluent enough to read the original Chinese novel and I don’t usually like English translations)

1. the freakin opening theme: We Won’t Be Falling by Chen Xueran... (also I see you Tina Guo on the cello thank you queen)

the amount of chills i get every time an episode starts,,, fantastic! marvelous! the lyrics are very VERY apt to the story of Guardian, esp this drama adaptation

(“We are the one/We will be holding on/For the promise we held for life/For the people we love are leaving” ... “And the story will keep on going”)

1.1. the promise? may i direct you to novel chapter 75? 

Shen Wei: “Sometimes I think if one day you can remember everything, then I will be able to say to you: look, I did it, I did all that I had promised you; not one bit did I miss, not one word did I go back on.”

they promise to keep the peace, to protect both Haixing and Dixing; and in the show, it’s a promise they keep with their lives

2. Zhu Yilong plays THREE characters and is able to differentiate them perfectly with particular microexpressions

-Ye Zun (literally, “Respect the Night”; “Lord/Master of the Night” would be a better title) sets off my fight-or-flight instincts even though i think his name tries a little too hard to be edgy; the way he sneers, the smiles that don’t reach his eyes, also that infamous tongue flick when Zhao Yunlan sees through the act... i think it’s both great and sad that Yunlan could differentiate the twins because, why, Shen Wei would never be so openly flirtatious (and wear a deep-cut shirt like that lol)... the delivery of “Xiao Yunlan” disturbed me so much—wonderful, stellar acting

-Black Cloaked Envoy: does his best to bend the rules where he can for the Dixingren because he’s just so fundamentally GOOD; he’s empathetic despite how stern and strict he seems to be, and how much he claims to enforce the clearly-cut laws... he’s an absolute babie ten thousand years ago (Yunlan, doesn’t it hurt your conscience to flirt with such a babie?)

-Shen Wei: in the novel, his name (both surname and first name) are given to him by Kun Lun’s incarnations—there’s a lot of power in naming something, in naming someone; he’s good-natured and gentle, always polite... he pushes up the glasses [that he doesn’t need] a lot, perhaps because he’s used to pushing up his mask as the Envoy

2.1. i find it very striking that Shen Wei dies without his glasses; he doesn’t die as the Envoy, he doesn’t die as the Professor; he dies as a person, as the person who loves Yunlan the most and has loved Yunlan for ten thousand years

2.2. the other notable moments we see Shen Wei without his glasses are where he apologizes to Yunlan [and Yunlan apologizes at the same time because they’re pining idiots] for not noticing the camera in his office, where he sets aside all his pride as Envoy and Professor and kneels in the rain for the man he loves (lwj kneeling after visiting the Burial Mounds, yea?), and of course after he slices up an orange [cuz food = love] only to find Yunlan asleep and drapes his jacket over the silly silly man... anyway, Yunlan is indeed the only person Shen Wei is comfortable enough to reveal everything to, all defenses and masks (literal and figurative) lowered

2.3. that last instance (ep 26) is when Shen Wei pulls out his necklace and reminisces as he gazes fondly at Yunlan; the song that plays during this is 《乱心曲》or “Chaotic Heart Song”... may I direct you to novel chapter 65 where Yunlan finds all the paintings and pictures his Xiao Wei has kept from the centuries?

“邓林之阴初见昆仑君，惊鸿一瞥，乱我心曲。” which translates to “In the shade of the woods I first saw Kunlun-jun; a glimpse of his grace wrought chaos in my heart’s song”

2.4. but also let’s not forget the [in]famous cut wrist scene of ep 23, where our dear Shen Wei, without glasses, as a person who loves Yunlan—not the aloof Envoy or the well-spoken Professor—is reduced to two words: “Worth it.” Yunlan is worth everything to him; this goes without question, without a second thought. Kun Lun (Yunlan) told him not to regret whatever decisions he’ll make, and Ye Zun scolds and laughs at his brother for giving up his life for a human/Haixingren, but of course Shen Wei doesn’t regret dying to protect Yunlan, dying to protect Haixing. (also, peep the behind-the-scenes where Shen Wei grabs Yunlan’s hand for a moment as he blocks the attack from Ye Zun)

2.5. on this same train of thought, Da Qing brings up a line from ten thousand years ago where Shen Wei claimed he would never kill unless it was for the world... and, well, he kills for Yunlan doesn’t he?

3. Bai Yu plays our charismatic Chief Zhao Yunlan/Kun Lun and hoo boy does he do an excellent job; the found family vibes of the SIU are spectacular and the way he flirts with tries to recruit Professor Shen is endearing and touching

3.1. there’s another piece from the OST called 《一点真心》, translated to “A Little Sincerity” though I would use “A Bit of a Sincere Heart” because it too references the novel

Kun Lun’s confession to Xiao Wei: “我富有天下名山大川，想起来也没什么稀奇的，不过就是一堆烂石头野河水，浑身上下，大概也就只有这几分真心能上秤卖上两斤，你要？拿去。” [I’m rich with famed mountains and endless rivers under heaven, but none of it feels rare when I think about it. It’s all just a pile of broken stones and uncultivated streams. From head to toe, there is probably only this bit of my sincere heart that is worth anything weighed on a scale. You want it? Take it.]

Zhao Yunlan’s confession to Shen Wei: “我别的东西也有，只是你可能大多都看不上，只有这一点真心……你要是不接着，那就算了吧。” [I have other things, only you probably would not think much of them. There’s only this bit of my sincere heart... If you don’t want to catch it, then forget it.)

And Shen Wei’s reply to Yunlan’s confession is of course “我接住了。” [I’ve caught it.]

3.2. the novel is a happy ending because Xiao Guo’s important role actually plays a part (i literally don’t understand why the show couldn’t do that after they built up so many expectations about his good character/merit/inability to be corrupted but ANYWAY)... Shen Wei, Xiao Wei, the little Ghost King has a soul and wow isn’t that just beautiful after everything he did to become worthy/deserving of Kun Lun’s attention and love

4. the Zhang Ruonnan and Wang Yike (death-touch Dixingren) case in ep 3 is an obvious parallel to the “brotherly” relationship of WeiLan... Shen Wei’s line of “Many tragedies were destined from the start” references the show of course but also the paradoxical precognition that marks the drama version of WeiLan; in both of their “first meetings”, one of them was always already in love with the other—Yunlan, as Kun Lun, knew he would have to return to his own time at some point and thus doom this impressionable young Envoy to ten thousand years of waiting and Shen Wei (honestly in a Code Geass Lelouch kinda style) knew he would have to die to defeat his brother

4.1. the importance of “touch” in this case alludes to novel WeiLan, where of course Shen Wei watched over all of Kun Lun’s incarnations but wasn’t allowed to get close to him because hungry ghosts would inevitably devour the essence of the people around them; similarly Yike was terrified of touching Ruonnan all this time... but Ruonnan accepted her (just like how novel Kun Lun lets this intriguing little Ghost King trail after him)

4.2. speaking of Shen Wei’s grand plans and the idea of “knowing”, Yunlan reminds him that “You are not a weapon/blade, you are a person.” and wow once again, only Yunlan can pull the humanity from Shen Wei, who has carefully crafted his disguise and personality to fit what people expect of the Envoy and the Professor... but alas, Shen Wei fulfills his promise by in fact making himself a weapon; he poisons himself to become a bomb that will take down his brother

4.3. as many qualms and complaints as I have with Chinese censorship, much in the case of WangXian, i think i prefer the drama version of WeiLan to the novel version; the plot of the Guardian novel is a lot better in my opinion (with references to mythology and legends, as opposed to, what, aliens?? mutants from X-Men? quirks in My Hero Academia??) and yea the relationship of Kun Lun with Xiao Wei is built up a lot better and makes more sense than the time-travel of Yunlan masquerading as Kun Lun with Shen Wei... but there’s an unadulterated, unconditional kind of love that runs through the drama, whereas the novel had some darker (though probably more realistic) vibes of near-possessiveness and ulterior motives... Kun Lun/Yunlan in the novel can be, well, cruel, which is not necessarily out of character; it’s just seems a little wrong to me that you could threaten your partner in a relationship (if you keep things from me again, i really will turn against you + had i known xyz would happen, i really should have killed you)... plus i’m always a sucker for love without an “i love you”, a love that’s conveyed entirely through actions and gazes

5. Yunlan asks Zhou Weiwei (the mirror case) where her jacket was bought because he “wants to get one for [his] girlfriend” and lo and behold, what similarly-styled and colored coat does our Shen Wei show up in a few episodes later? (also the fact that Shen Wei dies wearing this jade-ish-blue-ish coat)

6. boyfriend jacket during the Moutain-River Awl case... boyfriend jacket!!!! Shen Wei claims he doesn’t need it and well he still wears it anyway because Yunlan’s love is unstoppable

6.1. the way Shen Wei grabs Yunlan’s elbow before running down the hill

6.2. Shen Wei being so freaking fine-tuned to Yunlan’s discomfort/pain as always that he drinks wine for him (and passes out immediately—heroics/bde of yllz! wwx and the alcohol tolerance of our dear lwj)

6.2.1. when Minister Gao brings up Yunlan’s dad and the Chief’s hands tighten... and of course nothing can go by Shen Wei, so he changes the topic of the conversation; also the way he leans forward as if to shield Yunlan

6.2.2. Yunlan is similarly Aware of his boyfriend’s boundaries; cue him politely excusing themselves from the dinner with Vice-Minister Guo when Shen Wei (of all people!) fumbles with his chopsticks

6.2.3. Yunlan also blocks Shen Wei from Minister Gao’s sight (subconsciously?) after that wedding showdown... even though he’s unhappy that Shen Wei has kept the identity of the Envoy from him, he trusts the other man enough to recognize there must be a reason; thus he doesn’t want other people to pry into the possibility that Shen Wei is a Dixingren

6.3. also, also that Shen Wei lets Yunlan have his way and use him as a pillow in the car once again (he also adjusts the actual pillow beneath Yunlan’s head to make it more comfortable)

6.3.1 the other Shen-Wei-is-Yunlan’s-pillow scene is when the professor picks up the poor hurting Chief off the road and in the taxi ride home... apparently this was an improvised scene from Bai Yu who just wanted to mess with Long-ge and our great Zhu Yilong just stayed in character and ran with it

6.3.2. the other notable improvised scene is the cute “Black Cloaked gege~ please be careful~ there’s someone is waiting for you at home~” [sorry that i don’t remember the exact line] but once again our great leading actors just stay perfectly in character

6.4. after Shen Wei wakes up from a night of being drunk (lol) Yunlan has left a note for him “I’ve gone back first, stay in touch. -Zhao” and what’s that on the corner of the note? why it’s a winky face

7. when Yunlan grabs the fake Zhang Danni’s wrist to confirm his suspicions, Shen Wei narrows his eyes... (lol is our Black Cloaked gege jealous)

8. when Yunlan claims he can swallow the painkillers dry, Shen Wei clenches his jaw in his anger at this idiot of a man for not taking better care of himself... you’ll find that a lot of Shen Wei’s anger is directed toward his husband being a self-sacrificial fool

8.1. after Yunlan uses the Hallows again and his nose begins to bleed, Zhu Yilong in all his acting glory has Shen Wei furious to the point that his lips tremble (cue Shen Wei angrily shoving a handkerchief into his husband’s face) [i really want to know if they ever broke character during this scene due to their proximity lol]

8.1.1. Shen Wei all but invades Yunlan’s personal space (he really does stand there between Yunlan’s legs guys) and he’s so careful even though he’s angry as he tries to stop the nosebleed; he’s aware the force might tip Yunlan backwards, so he immediately rests his hands on Yunlan’s thighs/knees to steady him

9. Yunlan has claimed that he doesn’t do things for the sake of gaining anything in return and yet every time he’s wanted things from dear Shen Wei... “take off your mask and smile for me”, “join the SID”... the sexual tension is Unreal during these scenes lol, you can see Shen Wei swallow visibly in anticipation + babie Shen Wei of ten thousand years prior all but chokes on his words when he promises to do ANYTHING Kun Lun wants him to do (honey where is your mind GOING???)

9.1. Bai Yu does have a bruise on his knee after the scene where Yunlan asks Shen Wei for something... dunno if it’s the actor’s bruise or the character’s bruise, but if it’s the character’s bruise—how did he get it? what exactly did WeiLan do that evening lol

9.2. also peep the fact that Yunlan almost always has a lollipop in his mouth when talking to Shen Wei... oral fixation much? (also the whole sequence where he tries to explain how to eat a lollipop to babie Shen Wei, wow the amount of homoerotic tension)

9.3. babie Shen Wei’s ears and cheeks are SO RED when Yunlan snatches the mask off his face

10. Yunlan’s hairstyle changes after Shen Wei joins the SIU (joins his family), much like how a bride would change her hairstyle after marriage in China ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ (random note but CQL WangXian does this too when lwj puts his hair down/styled over the front of his shoulders when wwx wakes up 16 years later)

11. the first time we see Shen Wei spit up blood, there’s an echo of “Xiao Wei” faintly and Shen Wei mutters to himself “Xiao Lan” before looking up and saying louder “Zhao Yunlan” (nicknames/pet names/names only your family or lover can call you... this trope is good)

11.1. i also think a lot about how in the novel Kun Lun muses before he dies that it’s a shame he won’t see this Little Beauty [Xiao Wei] grow up to be a Great Beauty 

12. Shen Wei’s funny little eyebrow raise when Yunlan accidentally reveals he broke into the professor’s apartment once ( “riiiiiiiiight i definitely believe you”)

12.1. though the ep 23 scene is angsty, the fact Yunlan says “It’s the middle of the night, were you hungry?” seems to imply their relationship is a lot closer than just neighbors... they’re probably used to sharing an apartment/room at this point :)

13. when Yunlan is hurt, Zhu Hong looks to him but he only has eyes for Shen Wei

13.1. after Yunlan is blinded, Zhu Hong is the one cradling him but he calls for Shen Wei first and reaches for his hand; Shen Wei of course responds immediately “it’s me”

13.1.1. both times after Yunlan gets his eyesight back, the first thing he sees is the person who loves him the most

14. Shen Wei warms up the congee in the morning with his magic after he watches over Yunlan when his stomach pain acts up (domestic use of magic? yes please)

15. the bomb defusing scene in the hospital (video game -> reality case) really is framed like a wedding proposal... also the way that Shen Wei smirks lol he’s so proud of his husband

16. after his Envoy identity is revealed, Shen Wei all but abuses his Black Cloaked Envoy voice to stop his stupid husband from doing stupid things that will hurt himself and every time Yunlan is properly sh00k by it

16.1. we really go from Chief Zhao remarking in the Mountain-River Awl case that he’s used to ordering people around, not receiving orders to married bickering with Shen Wei to then agreeing to everything Shen Wei tells him to do

17. the fact that “Shen Wei, ah, Shen Wei... You are such a good person, how could I bear to let you go?” is an actual line from the censored DRAMA astounds me, nevermind that Shen Wei just made breakfast for his man and Yunlan is basically pouting up at him from the bed

17.1. the way Yunlan’s dad warns him to stay away from Shen Wei and Yunlan responds with something like “he’s sincerely good to me, I want to be with him”... “be with him”???? [inhales deeply] yea this is definitely a “brotherly relationship”

18. Yunlan’s “WOW” after the Envoy kills the monsters in the cave of the Mountain-River Awl case is hilarious and i dont understand how such a noise is physically possible,,, it sounds like a growl?????

18.1. Zhu Yilong was asked to mimic it during an interview (which he did not do and only half-heartedly gave a “wow”) and then Bai Yu did it again

19. also i inevitably got attached to the side ship of Lao Chu and Xiao Guo... they have so much skinship for a censored “brotherly relationship” lmao

the amount of face-touching and hand-holding that they do is unreal... they’re more canon than WeiLan in the drama adaptation methinks 

20. 《时间飞行》or “Flying Across Time” sounds like Yunlan’s reply to Shen Wei’s《只是太在意》or “Just Cared Too Much”

20.1. the lyrics of both these songs really cements this idea that both of WeiLan believe the other to be too good... Kun Lun was a god in the novel, and Xiao Wei was just a soulless little Ghost King... and then we have the incorrigible Chief Zhao pining after the beautiful and kind Professor Shen... i just have a lot of feelings about them becoming better people for each other, that their love really does make each other stronger

21. my favorite two pieces from the OST are Shen Wei’s theme (arranged by Kun Luo) and Kun Lun’s theme (arranged by Chen Xueran)

head’s up: it’s been like four years since i last even glanced at music theory so a lot of this might just make no sense to an actual professional

-Shen Wei: written in 4/4 time, Ab Major, melody is primarily carried by piano + strings; the piano almost sticks exclusively to triplets whereas the strings are in steady whole, quarter, and eighth notes—which creates in interesting impressionistic effect, kind of like hazy smoke or the ripples across the surface of a lake; every single measure uses decrescendo, so the first triplet is always the loudest and the three that follow get progressively softer (mimicking an echo)... the piece ends on the seventh note of the scale, which is usually a pretty awkward place to end and yet it doesn’t feel wrong it all; the piece uses a ritardando in the last three measures, and we simply drift off with that last G... i think it’s a beautifully written piece that perfectly portrays such a complex character as Shen Wei, someone who loved with everything he had, and was just so overwhelmingly good... and then he simply disappears as if the dream has ended. it makes me think of how he guarded over Kun Lun/Zhao Yunlan for thousands of years in the novel, never ever ever daring to meet him... and yet the other man always felt like he was waiting for someone

-Kun Lun: written in 3/4 time, a minor, there’s no real complex shift in the melody although there’s brief modulation into E major (dominant/fifth note); it’s a fairly somber piece, especially when the strings join in... it’s a steady waltz, and it finishes with the scale (second to last major is g, last major is a), like a circle coming back around [like their love story perhaps?]... there’s a finality to it, a completeness, a wholeness, which makes sense in the drama-verse because the moment Yunlan takes up the name of Kun Lun is when his love story with Shen Wei all fits together. the piece feels a little lonely in its minor key and all, a little sad, indeed as if you were standing at the top of a mountain surrounded by clouds and mist... the constant meter also reminds me of like the steady drip of water, the perpetual and inevitable passage of the days and time

-i don’t really understand how because the keys of the two pieces don’t fit together easily, but somehow it doesn’t feel wrong to play the pieces back to back; the melodies of both seem to call upon each other despite the differences in key and time signature, so it actually feels right. a circle without a beginning or an ending, wouldn’t you want your love to be so infinite?

-when yunlan finds shen wei in their bubble outside of time, when shen wei is about to leave him, shen wei is wearing the outfit of their first meeting. and the lyrics go “Across time, I am in the same place”... surely, they will find each other again.

[whoreforfanfiction]

They Confess Their Feelings (Mystic Messenger Preferences)

Yoosung

- you two would have to be friends for a while before he felt ready to confess his feelings

- of course, he’s talked to Zen countless times about you already, but never took his advice on telling you how he felt

- at least once a week you were at his house 

- and at least once a month you went out for dinner (which he always insisted on paying for, even though you knew it drilled a hole in his pocket)

- basically, you two spent a majority of your time together

- your favorite was when you’d spend the entire day at his house playing a video game marathon

- you got to spend the most time with him during those

- today though, you two were just sitting on the couch, talking about the new professor that hates him 

- “He’ll come around and see how fun you are,” you commented trying to cheer his sad face up. 

- An immediate blush rose to his pale cheeks

- “You think I’m fun?” he said sheepishly while scratching the back of his neck

- “Of course, silly. Why else would I hang out with you all the time? You’re my favorite person to be around,” you admitted. 

- he knew this was his moment and he tried to remember what Zen had told him to say

- they rehearsed it a million times, but his memory was failing him horribly

- he stumbled around trying to find words to return you with but he eventually just blurted out “I like you!” 

- you were shocked into silence for a second, and he took it the wrong way

- “S-shit forget I said that,” he tried to recover but you had already heard those 3 majestic words

- “No no I like you too! You shocked me there for a second,” you giggled and you pulled him into a shy kiss on the cheek

Zen

- really not shy about his feelings at all

- super self-confident, which is one of the things you liked most about him

- you were friends for a few months and after sharing conversations with you, he knew you were the one

- confided in Yoosung about his feelings since those two are like brothers

- Yoosung knew you liked Zen back

- he said it was a “vibe” he had picked up during your encounters 

- and because you always asked for more selfies in the messenger

- and today, Zen decided he was going to change your friendship and make it something deeper and more meaningful

- you were scheduled to come over to marathon a TV show you both enjoyed

- Zen made sure the scene was set

- he had popcorn, your favorite drink, cozy blankets, tissues for when you cried about characters dying

- really tried to play out every single situation in his head and plan around it 

- when you came over, he made sure you were more than comfortable

- after you two finished your marathon session, you were both somewhat drowsy

- and drowsy conversations lead to deep talk times

- “I like being here with you,” you commented, “I feel safe here.” You cozied up more inside the blanket.

- this boy has never felt more complimented in his life

- “Yeah? Well, I like you!” he said with a slight chuckle that confused you

- “Like? Or like like?” you tried to clarify but ended up sounding like you were gossiping on the elementary playground

- he looked at you, dead in the eyes, “Like like, of course.” 

- “Hehe, I like like you too,” you said as he pulled you closer to his warm body

Jaehee

- very analytical and logical

- she had a theory that you liked her, based on your conversations, but was too scared to actually test it out

- she also knew she felt very strongly towards you 

- more than a friend

- she found herself checking her phone constantly to see if you texted her back

- often got in the way of her work and Jumin started to take her phone for some periods of time

- was in the chatroom CONSTANTLY just hoping you’d show up

- took her breaks when you did enter the chatroom

- you two called at least twice a week after she got off work so she could rant about how bad her day was

- today, you decided to surprise her with chocolates to ease her stress

- you hid behind her desk and jumped out when she came to sit down which did give her a mini heart attack 

- “SURPRISE!” you said as you whipped the chocolates out from behind your back

- her face was firetruck flaming red

- stuttered over her words a lot

- “I like you a lot Jaehee, homo intended, and I wanted to make sure you had a good day today,” you confessed hoping she reciprocated you feelings

- she pressed down her skirt and composed herself

- “I like you too, and I promise next time I will return your kindness,” she stated lovingly while grabbing the chocolates out of your hand

Jumin

- didn’t know what his feelings were for the longest time

- finally, he decided to talk to Zen about them since he is the king of feelings

- “You stupid heir!! You like her! Tsk it’s so sad you can’t even tell that” Zen scolded

- like? that was a new emotion and this one he enjoyed very much

- whenever he was around you, he got these feelings in his stomach and felt a burst of energy

- he was never sad or upset when he was in close proximity with you

- very inexperienced with relationships and didn’t know the best way to show you how much he cared about you 

- Zen also warned him not to throw his money at you because you might get scared off

- he was going to think of an old-fashioned nice way to show you he liked you, without using his money

-  watched lots of love movies to study up because he wanted this to be meaningful

- the common theme he deduced from all the movies was flowers and he happened to know a phenomenal florist

- was going to call, but remembered that he shouldn’t use his money

- walked around nature for a good 4 hours picking out all the flowers he thought you’d like

- tied them together with string to make a bouquet

- but how to deliver them? shipping them to your house would be easiest since you lived on the other side of the city, but he knew that wouldn’t be personal

- he also didn’t wanna arrive at your door in his limo or one of his expensive cars 

- he didn’t want it to come off as him flexing his wealth in an attempt to woo you

- so what did he do? he walked

- this rich boy walked 7 miles to your house

- which was fine until it started to rain

- you heard a gentle knocking at your door and rushed to let him in

- “You’re soaking,” you commented in concern as you ran to the bathroom to get him a towel 

- “I like you,” he got to the point and handed you the dripping bouquet

- you innerly squealed with happiness

- “I like you too!!” you said as you jumped and hugged him around the neck

- you tried to pull away after a second, but he held you there for a moment longer

- “I’m glad you like it,” he said exhausted then sat down on the couch

- drifted off to sleep not much longer aww poor baby

Saeyoung

- you two talked ALL THE MOTHER FUCKING TIME - hung out rarely because his house was a mess and didn’t want to expose you to Mary Vanderwood 

- but there wasn’t a moment where you weren’t texting or facetiming

- which pissed Vanderwood off 

- you face timed which he worked

- you two didn’t talk much during those times, but you appreciated having the company

- at night before bed though was when you two really talked

- he asked about your day and let you talk first

- you could tell he actively listened and truly cared about even the most mundane things that happened that day

- “When you went, did you get the barista you liked?” he asked knowing he hacked into their system to change that person’s hours to when he knew you’d be visiting

- “Yea! I’ve been having him more often now! I’m very happy and my tastebuds are happy too!” You were completely oblivious to his meddling and he thought it was adorable

- one night on facetime, you picked up an hour later then usual and he was upset

- “What’s wrong?” you asked after noticing he had been short with you

- “God dammit M/C I like you and this is the best part of my night! I hate when it’s delayed for one second, let alone an hour,” he complained not knowing he had just admitted his feelings towards you

- “Y-you like me?” you questioned back. you knew you heard him correctly, you just wanted to hear it again.

- “Damn it,” he swore just now noticing his slip up

- you were giggling over the phone

- “What?” he crankily asked, hating the situation thinking you didn’t return the feelings

- “I like you too my defender of justice,” you said while flashing him the biggest smile

- his heart got all warm and happy and all he did was sit and smile in silence for a while

IF YOU WANT ME TO ADD V AND SAERAN MESSAGE ME AND I’LL DO IT TOMORROW BUT IM TIRED RN

[jean----ralphio]

BoB liveblog ep 3

Feelings. I’m having them.

Episode 3: Carentan, but I’m renaming it my heart hurts because this ep is so heavy but also I’m happy cos the best thing possible happens AKA the return of Rich

00:01 THE MUSIC. UGH. WHISKEY STAT.

03:02 These men, I can’t, stop doing this to me Tom Hanks, I feel personally attacked by the pain

03:18 My husband has just informed me I shouldn’t drink while doing these liveblogs because it’s “unhealthy” and “dangerous” and “please stop drinking my whiskey and crying about Gabriel from Supernatural.” First of all, he’s fucking lucky I’m not filing for divorce. Secondly, I need to cope SOMEHOW! “Yes, but I really don’t think alcohol is the best choice as a coping mechanism.” WRONG ALCOHOL IS THE ONLY CHOICE.

03:46 Blithe! Whatcha doing baby?

03:55 Shifty! My angel son is here!

04:21 Real talk, the first thing I ever saw Marc Warren in was this hot as fuck movie with Lee Williams, I’ll google it hang on. OK it’s called ‘No night is too long’, its based off a book. Marc Warren plays this hot professor and Lee Williams is a uni student and the sex scene montage is seared in my memory forever, and there’s a kiss in elevator and it is something else. That’s all I remember when I see Marc. His character in it was super intense and kinda scary, so it’s funny to see him playing Blithe, who is baby.

05:17 Aw Shift, my little angel baby son

05:32 Perco! <3

05:41 Lieb I’ve missed you <3 Luz <3

06:11 Oh Blithe, sweetie.

06:38 Like. He’s functioning. But he’s also not functioning. Same tbh

06:58 Harrrrryyyy <3

07:18 “No talking, no smoking, and no playing grab-fanny with the guy in front of you, Luz!” Iconic.

08:01 “And another thing to remember, boys, flies spread disease! So keep yours closed!” Oh Luz, never change

08:15 Love these few seconds, the fire and the water and the silhouettes

09:11 What do you mean again! How many times have you lost them, Harry?!

09:44 Yay the husbands are here. I’ve missed them. BUT YOU KNOW WHO I MISS THE MOST? RICH. WHERE IS HE?

10:40 You’re the yokel, sweetie

10:50 It’s OK, baby Blithe!

11:02 Look, Dad and his husband are here, you’re safe

11:27 Ugh that scene

12:00 I don’t like this, Dick

12:35 “WHERE DID EVERYBODY GO!”

               “I HAVE NO IDEA!”

               Iconic.

12:45 Move, boys! Listen to Dad!

13:11 BABY NO DON’T TAKE YOUR HELMET OFF!

13:31 Angel son, be careful

13:45 God how do they even know where to shoot?

14:08 Shifty! I said be careful!

14:09 God he’s good

14:23 No baby!

14:40 That was boss, random dude. Tipper?

14:50 Angel son

15:01 Boys. God.

15:40 Was that necessary?

15:41 Well, it led to that boss scene for one, I guess. Iconic.

15:57 Naw, Luz had a feeling <3 And he was right!

16:08 Leave them, baby

16:46 Buck lmao

16:57 Sweetie it’s OK! Oh no, baby ☹

17:10 Roe <3

17:18 Me too, babe

17:38 Ah, Lip! Speirs, come save him!

17:53 Lol poor Lip! Oh no, not the goods!

18:01 I’m happy for you, and Speirs, lmao

18:39 Yeah, you show that outhouse, Tip. It was looking shady as fuck to be fair

18:48 Oh fuck.

18:56 This bit though, the distorted sound… fuck

19:25 Oh Lieb <3

19:35 Lieb, you always try to pretend you don’t care and that you’re badass but you’re not fooling me <3

19:44 Baby, no, wtf are you doing?

19:53 IT’S RICH! OH THANK FUCK! I’VE BEEN SO FUCKING WORRIED. I’M SO PHYSICALLY RELEIEVED LMAO

20:02 My heart

20:27 God

20:34 Where tf did you find that horse?!

20:50 You named him fat boy??

21:02 Oh, honey. I can’t make jokes. It’s a stressful time for us all, me especially, due to the lack of Rich.

21:06 Nix. No.

21:10 Husbands <3

21:14 Baby! Nix go back and help.

21:23 He’s like ugh tf I don’t have time for this! Mood

21:34 This is the first time we hear Roe speak <3

21:43 Listen to him, Dick!

21:45 Hey Buck

22:22 Lord, thank you for Shane’s face.

22:31 Roe’s like wtf you gonna do?

22:55 Baby don’t cry!

23:32 You didn’t let anyone down! It’s OK!

23:43 Oh Dick called him son, I can’t

23:57 Dad healing vibes.

24:11 Dick is legit a Dad now. Is this how the adoption process works?

24:41 Roe is like tf just happened

24:53 RICH! RICH!!!! <3

24:59 Ew

25:05 Don’t touch it, Rich, yucky.

25:21 Oh God. Terrifying.

25:22 Riiiiich, I’ve missed you so much

25:30 Speirs just wants to get back to killing ASAP

25:37 Terrifying. Pretty. But terrifying.

25:41 Mood, Penk

25:56 Riiiich <3 He looks so golden in the sunlight <3

25:58 Paused here a while. His face is beneficial to my health and well-being, OK? Also, third whiskey

26:04 RIIICCH <3 He’s such a wind up. He’s so pretty and golden! Look at his eyes and his little lock of hair and his stubble, I can’t even.

26:17 I can’t. His eyes. Even in the shade you can see they’re so pretty <3

26:36 So much Rich content. I’m so happy.

26:59 Lord. I love Rich. But Matthew is a freaking fox.

27:10 *happy sigh*

27:20 Rich’s hair is so blonde here

27:28 Rich stop throwing things at people!

27:37 Blithe is still a wee bit batshit, but he’s still the only voice of reason in this little party, which is concerning.

28:19 LMAO LUZ “Oh Jesus Christ, Frank, I don’t know, until they tell us to stop.” He’s always such a mood.

28:38 Hoob looks like he needs a bath.

29:02 Move, babies, move

29:38 That day-night transition tho

29:52 Hey Johnny

30:02 Mood

30:07 Harry. Stop. Cute.

30:30 Johnny, I’m not sure I appreciate your little “You can count on ME sir” as if Harry can’t count on Blithe! Don’t be rude.

30:33 Harry! Fucking fall on him why don’t you!

31:06 Tell that to Ross

31:34 Dad’s here

32:37 Oh Harry

32:38 “War is hell” You little shit! Iconic

33:08 Oh God

33:21 Roe <3 He got there quick! I feel like he doesn’t sleep, that he just hangs around in the back waiting to run in and save people <3

33:27 Oh, baby ☹

33:32 Blithe, it’s OK. He looks so scared!

33:55 Johnny, I have several things to say to you. Number 1, how dare you look so hot in this lighting. Number 2, don’t be so freaking lazy! Number 3, leave poor Blithe alone! He is having a Difficult Time. God Johnny is so unimpressed with him tho.

34:35 I would be more scared to run into Speirs, rather than the enemy. He is more terrifying tbh.

34:46 So. Intimidating.

34:54 Nervous? Yes, case in point.

35:01 Oh Christ here we go. Welcome to the Speirs is batshit and murder-hungry show.

35:27 Lol at Johnny suddenly waking up cos he heard gossip

35:40 Goodnight Johnny ‘Unimpressed’ Martin ILY

36:06 Don’t kill him, please

36:33 GDI Speirs

36:53 Literally no one else wants to be like that, Speirs, just you.

37:58 God

38:33 I need to see Rich. I feel like he was back in that field with Malark but I couldn’t make him out properly and I am now Upset.

38:52 Dick is so boss.

39:18 Oh, baby, oh dear

39:42 Ugh, oh no

40:02 Noooo don’t abandon Easy

40:22 Dad’s here, it’s OK

40:57 Dick get down from up there, you’ll get hit

42:08 Lol at Harry

43:18 RICH

43:48 Nix just chillin with his binoculars on his hill the whole time

44:20 Naw Rich just got back with the ammo and now the party is over

45:05 Oh

45:29 I got chills, the way he just disappears

48:11 So touching

48:46 Harry’s not happy

48:57 lol they’re all like nope, don’t make eye contact

48:58 Aw Blithe levelled up, plus 1 courage

49:00 No, not my angel son, you leave him back where it’s safe Harry

49:28 Aw, Harry’s smile <3

49:59 Nix don’t be so crass

51:00 ROE <3

51:28 Aw Harry, it’s not your fault

51:52 I love this. Harry and Dick in the shade, the boys all chillin in the sun. It feels peaceful and like they’re getting some rest, but like it’s not comfortable. Both legit because they’re lying about on rocks and rubble, and like the general mood and tension. It’s not safe yet, and the environment reflects that and this show, I can’t with this fucking masterpiece of a show sometimes I swear

52:25 “That’s why I came to France. To please General Taylor.” Another zinger from Harry! Give me one line of his that is not iconic and I will give you my firstborn

53:34 Oh Blithe <3

53:56 Aw Malark <3

54:15 Dorks

54:53 RICH

55:14 Lol at Malark stealing Rich’s cigarette

55:19 Oh Lord, the way Dick’s face falls. God, that look. Also do you two husbands need to be that close? No, but please continue.

55:27 Babe <3

55:37 Aw the Dad club assembling is never good. Fun’s over.

55:44 Laughing Rich is all I need in this world

56:00 Bill stop groping him, that’s Roe’s job

56:04 Rich <3

56:13 Aw Babe has a new friend

56:16 Rich in the background <3

56:28 Oh Lip

56:31 That’s sweet of you Smokey

56:49 Lip <3

57:02 RICH’S FACE OMG

57:25 Poor Lip, having to do this.

57:29 RICH

57:36 OMG it’s an actual woman

57:48 Good on you Malark

58:07 Cute

58:17 So sweet

58:32 Oh God, this scene. It’s actually a little surprising she’s not figuring it out on her own

58:37 Oh, his face

58:57 Scott does such a beautiful job in this scene, portraying the emotion without much dialogue, not quite meeting her eyes when he should because he’s trying to hide his shock and sadness

59:40 Oh Blithe.

In conclusion I am happy and sad. It’s a very confusing time. 

[akinnie75]

Black & White

Pair: Yoongi x Reader

Genre: Romance, Fluff, Slight Angst, Slow Burn

Word Count: 24.7k

Summary: You finally confessed to Yoongi after he asked if you like him. His response is to give you a contract to sign. However, you soon realize that Yoongi manufactured your emotions and manipulated you to like him all for the sake of his senior project.

“(Y/N), can I have a word with you?” Yoongi calls out to you after class.

You can feel your heartbeat skyrocket the moment Yoongi said your name. You shot up from your seat, ears turning red just at the thought that Yoongi wants to talk to you. The other classmates don’t seem to care as much as you do, but right now, Yoongi is all that matters. And he needs you.

You haven’t been talking to Yoongi much. In fact, it’s only been recent that you met him. He decided to take the same art history course as you, despite being a sociology major, so you can only assume that he’s taking this to get rid of his general class requirements. Though the reason is vague, Yoongi has been talking to you since the first day of the semester, and as time went on, you couldn’t help but develop feelings for him.

You can’t quite put your finger on it, but there’s something about Yoongi that you really like. Perhaps it may be because of how fair his skin is, being as pale as the moon, or it could also be his smooth, slender hands that complements his lean body figure. But personality wise, it could be his intelligence that you find attractive. Every time he talks to you, he always sounds so smart, every statement he makes has facts to back it up. Everything about him is the opposite of you—he has everything that you’ve always wanted.

You follow Yoongi from behind, feeling too timid to raise your head up. All you can do is stare at your own feet as you follow Yoongi to wherever he’s taking you. The two of you are surrounded with sounds of a lively college campus—students scurrying to their next class on their bikes or scooters, professors with their briefcases, and even a few young parents taking their toddlers on a walk on campus. This is a perfect scenario to be in under the rising summer weather.

What could it be that Yoongi has called you for? Though you have gotten quite friendly in art history, you two have never spoken outside the classroom. Having to talk to you outside of class is making you nervous, curious to know what it is that Yoongi needs to discuss. Your optimism keeps telling you that today might be the day that Yoongi asks you out on a date. You can’t contain your squeal, excited for what’s to come. But at the same time, your pessimism is telling you to lower your hopes. If that does not turn out to be the truth, then you’ll just end up being hurt, so it’s better to avoid it. The fact that Yoongi didn’t give you a reason why he needs you is making you feel restless, both emotionally and mentally.

“Should we sit at the Blub?” Yoongi asks.

You were so lost in your own thoughts that Yoongi said a few words without you realizing. “S-sorry…what?”

“Shall we converse at the Blub? Though it’ll be slightly noisy due to a large number of students just finishing their lectures, it’ll take roughly fifteen minutes for the commotion to die down. That way, we can discuss what is necessary.”

You try to hold in your laughter. It’s cute hearing Yoongi say the name of your university’s canteen, Blub. Since your school’s mascot is a whale, the canteen is named after whale blubber, hence ‘Blub’. It’s a ridiculous name, but if it means hearing the oh-so-serious Yoongi say it with his static tone, then you don’t mind.

“Yea, we should.”

“Would you like to stop by Aroma to grab a cup of coffee while we’re in the process?”

You can’t help but like everything that comes out of his mouth. “Yea!”

------

The two of you are sitting just outside of the Blub, facing each other as the two of you are taking sips. You bought chamomile tea while Yoongi bought pure, black coffee. As much as you like chamomile, it’s still too bitter for you, so you drowned it in milk and sugar nearly to the point where you can’t even taste the tea itself.

You and Yoongi don’t exchange a single word. Perhaps it might be because Yoongi is waiting for more students to leave. He keeps checking his watch, and he’s serious about waiting for fifteen minutes to pass to begin the discussion. You like how he’s so meticulous about everything, especially time. But you, on the other hand, is beginning to feel impatient. It’s killing you to know what Yoongi wants to talk about.

You trace your sight from the table, drawing it upward slowly to spy on Yoongi’s chest. Despite it being just the beginning of summer, Yoongi is wearing a thin, gray cardigan that drapes down all the way to his knees with a black collar shirt, buttoned all the way up to the top. Whenever he checks his watch, you take this opportunity to look at his face. His head is well-structured, being in the shape more of a circle than an oval, but still perfect nonetheless. His hair is combed to be swayed to his left, and his glasses with only the top being black-framed, works well with his dark clothes. You think that anyone will look like a geek in this outfit, but for Yoongi, he makes it look unfathomably fashionable.

“Alright. Let’s begin.” Yoongi says out of the blue.

You dart down, cheeks turning red and praying that Yoongi didn’t catch you staring.

“I have a few questions that I would like to ask you, (Y/N).”

“Go ahead!”

“Has your emotional state changed since you met me?”

“Huh? …What?”

“Let me rephrase it for you: what did you initially think of me when I first introduced myself to you?”

You wonder if this is his ‘professional’ way of phrasing that he wants to know what you think of him. “Uhm…I thought you looked like a really cool, rich-looking kind of guy. Very serious.”

You immediately regret your words as you start realizing that describing him as ‘rich’ would make it sound as if you’re friends with him merely because you’re interested in men who have money. Though, you didn’t tell him you like him directly. In addition to that, calling him ‘serious’ might offend him because seriousness might be mistaken as bland.

“Wait! I mean, I don’t know if you’re rich, but you just kind of give off that vibe?” You shake your head. “I-I mean…you just look really…really…sophisticated? P-plus, I don’t mean serious in a bad way either. I like how you take every manner seriously!”

“Hmmm…is that so?”

You wish you can run away from this. How did you manage to spend an entire semester with him? The thought that Yoongi might ask you on a date is what is distracting you. If it were any other ordinary day, you’d talk to him as if you never knew that you had feelings for him.

Besides, you mentioning how you like his serious side is almost like a confession, and you wish you can rephrase that. Each time you speak, you’re humiliating yourself even more.

“Has that initial judgement of me changed?” Yoongi asks, sliding passed your embarrassing words.

“Huh? Oh…uhm…kind of? I mean, I still think you’re serious and stuff, but it isn’t like my thoughts of you changed…it’s more like…I’ve come to accept that that’s who you are as a person.”

“Then…that acceptance that you have of me, may I consider it as romantic?”

You feel your blood pressure shooting up. You desperately don’t want to misunderstand, but in modern terms, is Yoongi asking if you like him?? And if he is asking, is it alright for you to assume that he likes you in return? Since he brought up the topic, you might as well come clean. You’ve been hiding it for the entire semester, so you believe that you’re ready to admit everything.

“Well…yea. I do like you in that way. I did for a while now too.” Though you’ve rehearsed that dozens of time in your head, saying it aloud is absolutely embarrassing.

But then you immediately regret your words, the devil inside telling you that he may not feel the same for you. Maybe you made yourself obvious that it’s making him feel uncomfortable to be around you.

“Oh, but I’m not expecting you to like me in return! If anything, you can just ignore my confession. But if it’s too selfish to ask, can we still be friends?”

“No need to retract your words, (Y/N). Actually, this is quite splendid. This may end earlier than expected.”

Whenever Yoongi speaks, it’s always as if he’s royalty—not exactly aware of how commoners speak. But also, what does he mean? You can’t tell whether he’s accepting your confession or not. Whatever he’s thinking, you feel as though your chest is about to burst. This is the first time you admitted to the person you like that you have feelings for him. Although you told him to forget about it, you’re terrified that he’s going to reject you coldly.

Yoongi takes out a stack of paper from his schoolbag, sliding it across the table to you. “May you sign this?”

“What is it?”

“I believe I have it written on the first page. No need for me to explain. It would be kind of you if you sign it.”

You read the first paragraph. ‘Please read the following Terms and Conditions carefully before signing the following contract. By reading this, you are aware that you are responsible for any liabilities, and by breaking the rules, you can be fined or held accountable. This agreement is to ensure that you have given full permission to sign a contract with Min Yoongi in providing him aid in his research, and by…’

The reason you chose to be in an art major is so that you don’t have to read ever again. When you flip through the pages, you realize this is a hundred and thirty pages long. However, after reading a third of the first paragraph, you already have enough information to know that Yoongi probably needs your help in something, and you’re gladly help him. It does mention something about Yoongi’s research, and it makes sense since he’s a sociology major. He might be doing a social experiment and thought you’d be a perfect candidate.

You sign the papers, returning it to him.

“Thank you.” Yoongi says, without even giving you a smile.

“Uhm…I know you said that the information I need is on the first page but…what kind of research are you doing?”

“Hm? You signed it and you don’t even know what it’s about?” This is the first time Yoongi showed a change of expression, looking somewhat surprised. “No matter. I’ve come this far, so there’s no point in backing out now.”

What does he mean by that?

“When the time comes, I shall explain everything to you at once. As for now, I have an errand to run, so I will be seeing you next Tuesday for art history, (Y/N). Farewell.” And just like that Yoongi stands up and leaves.

You watch him walk off, tossing his empty coffee cup into the trash bin. You don’t know what just happened or what you just signed. Did he even acknowledge your confession in the first place? He just nodded his head to it as if it were any ordinary thing you say. You don’t have a good feeling about this, but if it means that it’s going to help with Yoongi’s research, it might not be so bad. After all, you do like Yoongi, and Yoongi’s not a suspicious person.

------

It’s disheartening to know that finals have just ended for your art history course, meaning that this is the last day you’ll ever see Yoongi. Summer break will come, and after three months, you and Yoongi will forget about each other and go separate ways, focusing on your own studies. You were expecting Yoongi to avoid you like the plague or ask you on a date after your confession, but Yoongi remained constant, talking to you only in class, then never talking to you outside.

It’s already been a week since you signed that strange contract, and it’s been bothering you that you might’ve signed up for something malicious. You keep trying to force yourself into thinking that Yoongi would never do you dirty, but there’s just that lingering thought in the back of your head that you’ll regret this in the future.

The semester has finally come to an end, and you’re now returning home from school. You sigh to yourself, glad that finals are over, though a majority of them had required you to paint or draw certain themes. It’s nice you’re doing what you’ve always wanted to do, but you dislike having to be graded on something you enjoy doing.

Your mind drifts off, wondering what Yoongi is doing right now. He must be at the campus library and conducting his research. You picture Yoongi sitting in front of his laptop, typing away with his slim fingers hitting each key without ever missing, occasionally take a break and sipping his black coffee. No matter what he does, he does it with so much care that you find it attractive.

By the time you finished thinking about your fantasies, you’ve reached your home and to your surprise, you see a moving truck parked at the front of it. Initially, you thought that it was the neighbors who just so happened to be blocking your driveway, but when you saw your mother conversing with one of the movers, you knew that something is going on. You pick up the pace, heading toward your mother first.

“(Y/N), what is the meaning of this?” It’s the first thing your mother asks you after returning home.

“You mean you don’t know what’s all this about either?” You ask with a look of shock in your eyes.

Your mother shakes her head. With neither of you saying another word after that, the mover she was just speaking to previous to your interruption stares at you. You nod your head, acknowledging him, then taking your mother by the arm and dragging her inside.

You were expecting the living room to be emptied out, but surprisingly, it’s still the same as it’s always been. At least you’d expected to have a few things packed, but it looks as if nothing has been touched.

“Mom, what’s going on?? Why are there movers?”

“I have no idea. They arrived just now, and they said that they’re looking for you. (Y/N), why didn’t you tell your father and me that you’re moving?? When did you decide such a thing?”

“Wait, I’m as clueless as you are too!”

Seeing as your mother does not have the answers to your questions, you look over her shoulder to see the mover that she spoke to, still standing by the door frame. You leave your mother for now, heading towards that man to get some sort of explanation.

“Hi there…I think there’s been a misunderstanding. No one here is moving.”

“But we received a call to help Miss…” the mover looks down at the clipboard to get the name. “…(Y/N). Is that you?”

“Yes, that’s me, but I didn’t call.”

“Oh, no, the caller was a male. I believe he left his information to pay us over the phone. His name is…”

------

“MIN YOONGI!” You shout from the entrance door.

The mover led you and your mother to the top of a mountain surrounded by greenery. The forest is so dense that it was nearly impossible to find the mini-mansion without his aid. Had you gone with just you and your mother, you may have never found it.

Inside the entrance hall stands Yoongi, talking to one of the movers when you suddenly burst into through the double doors, the sound of the doors slamming against the walls. While you march right for Yoongi, who doesn’t flinch at all at your demanding presence, your mother is in awe with how vast only the entrance hall is. It’s already larger than your entire first floor in your home. Everything is crystal clean.

The other mover who came with you tries to stop you, but you don’t bother. You’re not in the mood to confine yourself. Yoongi finally turns his head, not a single change in expression.

“Ah, (Y/N). You’ve just arrived on time. I was wondering when you’ll be making your appearance.”

When you get close enough to the point where your nose is inches away from him, you puff up your chest and point your finger at his chin. “Explain to me what’s going on!! Why did are you making people move my stuff here??”

“You should’ve read your contract.” Yoongi looks at his nails, blowing on them as if a speck of dust has fallen on them.

“Contract? Wha…?” Your mind trails off, thinking about that hundred and thirty-page stack he made you sign.

“Oh hello, you must be Min Yoongi!” Your mother finally returns from her fascinations and butts in between you and Yoongi. “I was wondering where I heard your name before, and I remember. My daughter talks about you all the time.”

You blush. “Mom!”

“She's always talking about you whenever she comes back from class. I can see what she means now.”

Yoongi flashes a professional smile. “I’m flattered.”

“How long have you two been dating?”

Your cheeks turn into a darker shade of red. “Mom! We’re not dating! We’re just classmates!”

Your mother glares at you, upset that you’re raising your voice next to Yoongi. She was just siding with you a second ago, and now she’s taken a complete 180.

“Oh? Then why are you moving in with him?”

“I’m not—” you sigh. “Yoongi, can I talk to you privately?”

“Oh, you have to let me join too.” Your mother chimes. “You did bring me, after all.”

She initially came with you because she wanted to talk to the person who was involuntarily forcing you out of her house. But after seeing Yoongi and his extraordinary wealth, you already know that she only wants to come to talk to Yoongi and have him see how much of a ‘caring’ mother she is.

“No, Mom. Can you wait in the U-Haul? It’ll only take a few minutes.”

“Actually, why don’t you join us, Mrs. (L/N)? I’ll have tea ready for us to drink, and we’ll have our conversation altogether,” Yoongi turns to you, giving you a sly smile. “We shouldn’t be hiding anything from you whatsoever.”

Your mother giggles, blushing from his words. “What a fine man you are!”

You glare at him, but he merely brushes your annoyance off, only upsetting you more.

------

You reread the contract over and over again, regretting the fact that you didn’t read the contract in its entirety. In summary, you signed up to be Yoongi’s lab rat for research that he’s currently working on for his college thesis. As a graduating fourth year, it’s necessary that if he wants to continue on with his master’s degree and eventually his PhD, he needs to conduct research and prove a theory.

“…‘live under the same house as Mr. Min from June 1st to August 30th in order to get the most accurate results.’” You read aloud, your voice trailing off. “Yoongi…this is not ethical at all…”

“It is ethical. If it wasn’t, then the dean of our university wouldn’t have approved it.”

“But what I’m saying is…that it’s not right to force someone to fall in love with another person for science!” You exclaim.

That’s right. His theory is that two people of complete opposites will fall in love, regardless of social structure. When you flip through the pages, you understand why it’s so thick: he’s shared some of the results that he got from his other experiments. Yoongi went through the trouble of pairing people from 0% personality differences to 90% differences, the success rate increases as the personality gap between pairs become larger. He’s even done it for people of different sexualities: men and men, women and women, everything.

You see the profiles of each person he’s had, and he’s even written down their personality traits. It angers you just seeing how Yoongi has dwindled these humans down to just numbers that he can use to push forward with his career. However, what popped off the lid of your head is in the last paragraph, stating that Yoongi was looking for someone with a 100% difference…and you just so happened to fit that.

“Look at how fine the granite is…” Your mother mumbles to herself, completely not reading the atmosphere of the room.

“Mom, really?” You turn to her, ready to just explode on Yoongi.

“It was made with the finest of granite, Mrs. (L/N). My parents had one of the best architects build this villa from the bottom.”

Just hearing his voice is already enough for you to want to punch him.

“Unfortunately (Y/N), the final date to cancel the contract expired yesterday. You did not notify me of the cancellation, so I had no choice but to assume that you wanted to proceed with the experiment. However, I was concerned that you were going to have trouble making your way to the villa, so I hired the movers.”

“Wow, what a kind man. From what I understand from the contract…it’s guaranteed that my daughter will marry you, correct?” Your mother asks.

You wish your mother wasn’t in the kitchen. You’re just so ashamed that she doesn’t know when to keep her mouth closed.

“I apologize, Ma’am, as I cannot secure that promise. However, based on the results I’ve received from my previous experiments, I can guarantee that we’ll be in a long-term relationship. Or at least…for half a decade.”

That’s right. Yoongi’s contract said something about how people fall out of love after a few years because your dope-something becomes stale. It’s too science-y for you to understand.

“Then does that mean that since my daughter is living here starting today, I can come by as much as I want?”

“Yes. I will be providing the expenses for food, transportation, and sundries that (Y/N) will need for the summer.”

“Wait!” You finally cut them off of their conversation. “Both of you, don’t go around deciding everything for me! Yoongi, I don’t want to do this!”

“I already said it but let me say it again:  the date to opt out of the contract ended yesterday. After that, there will be an inconvenience fee if you choose to leave after that date.”

“How much is it?? I’ll pay for it all!!!”

“(Y/N), we’re not made out of money! Just commit to the contract!”

“I’ll pay for it on my own.”

Yoongi takes a paper towel and a pen from his pocket, calculating the fee that you’ll be paying. Once he’s done, he slides the napkin across the kitchen counter, and your jaw drops at the expense.

Your mother leans over to see the fee, and her eyes widen. “That’s more than our house.”

“I’m providing (Y/N) with everything with the highest of qualities—three months’ worth. That includes the price of the movers, the food, the villa, medical expenses, everything,” Yoongi leans over to you, glaring deep into your conflicted eyes. “I do accept loans.”

Loans. You let that ring in your ears for a while. You hate that word coming out of his mouth. The way he makes it sound, it sounds like you owe him, even though he’s the one who trapped you in this situation. Yes, it is your fault for not reading the whole contract, but it’s his fault for being slick about it and never telling you a single thing after that day.

“Just accept the offer, (Y/N)!” Your mother slaps you on the back, causing you to lose all the air from your lungs. “It’s a once in a lifetime chance to be spoiled like this.”

You rub where your mother slapped, feeling it sting into the shape of her hand. “Mom, don’t you understand where I’m getting at?”

“Your father would love to see this! Why don’t you think about us as well? We worked hard to raise you, so we should be rewarded.”

“Sorry Mom, but I’m not going to accept this offer!”

You’re clearly upset about this whole ordeal, being on the verge of tears. However, it isn’t because you didn’t read the contract, nor is it because Yoongi did all this without your permission.

Yoongi can sense the solemn mood you’re giving off. “Mrs. (L/N), may I please have a moment to talk to (Y/N)? I’ll have one of the movers show you to her bedroom and help set it up.”

“Oh, of course! I’d love to see how the rooms look like too! Well then, if you’ll excuse me.”

Before your mother gets up from her seat, she mumbles the words, ‘don’t turn it down’. She scurries off, closing the door behind her, leaving you two alone in the kitchen.

“…You planned this from the start, didn’t you?” You mutter in a low voice.

There was a section in the contract where it explained that in order to complete his research, he needed to find two people with a complete 100% difference in terms of ideology and personality. He went through the student roster and chose you. Yoongi even applied for the same art history class, purposely attracting you so you can help him reach his final result. Yoongi is so obsessed with his research that even he’s participating in it.

And that’s the part that you find disgusting; he made you fall in love with him for the sake of his research. It makes sense he was always so stoic whenever he was with you. He never liked you. He merely manipulated you to fall for him without letting you have a say in this. He controlled your feelings, knowing what you liked and didn’t like.

“If you want to relieve your stress, then go ahead. I know how much of an expressive person you are, so I’ll allow you to trash the kitchen just once.”

You hate how he said that with such familiarity. Of course, typically you would throw everything everywhere and punch something, but you don’t want to prove him right that you’re the type to do that. You don’t want to contribute to his cockiness by proving to him that you’re the opposite of him.

Your eyes are turning red and welling up with tears. You try to hide it, but Yoongi is no fool. He knew you were going to cry because just like he said—you’re the type of person who expresses their emotion through body language than through words.

However, to your surprise, Yoongi pats you on the head. You’re absolutely speechless, as you assumed that Yoongi was most likely a germaphobe because of how serious his OCD is, but he patted you on the head so naturally. His fingers comb through locks of your hair gently, and it’s soothing. Your heart throbs, with the two of you finally looking at each in the eyes properly.

“There was a research paper I read while doing work on my background notes. It said that typically people prefer to be comforted through physical contact. There’s a soothing effect to it, as humans are social beings and require the attention of others. But there are different levels of it. Since we’re on the bridge between acquaintance and friends, a pat on the head is the most conservative,” Yoongi states blatantly. “However, since you harbor romantic feelings for me, this must be enough for you, is that right?”

…You were crazy to believe that Yoongi was feeling sympathetic. You’re trying to remember what it was about him that made you like him so much. The person in front of you is a heartless, stone-cold person. You might even call him a sociopath.

You swipe his hand away, using your forearm to wipe away your tears. Since you were so rough with wiping your eyes that it’s red. You look at him with confidence, no longer appearing as a fragile woman.

“Well, you’re wrong about that! That petty pat on the head was nothing to me because I don’t like you!”

Neither of you exchange a single word for a few seconds.

“…Pardon?”

There’s that look of confusion, something you’ve been dying to see. This time, you’re not the one who’s confused, but him. You have the upper hand now.

“That’s right. I lied. I never liked you. It was because you asked me so suddenly that day that I didn’t want to make you feel bad!!”

Your reasoning is even more confusing. There is no logic behind it whatsoever.

“…You’re saying that when you said that you like me, it was just a lie?”

“Yes! I thought you were my friend, so I lied about liking you to save your pride! In fact, I would never like someone like you!”

“So, are you telling me that…”

Yoongi takes out his notebook from one of the kitchen drawers, almost as if he was already expecting you to say something like that. He flips through the pages until he finds the one that he needs.

“…The words you said to me two weeks ago, those words: ‘I do like you in that way’ bracket, ‘romantically’. ‘I did for a while now too’ is a lie? Shall I take your mother’s words as false too?”

He even recorded you saying that. You’re fuming with anger because he was prepared for you to defy him. However, you still stand by your words.

“Yea! That’s right! All lies!” You say with a booming voice, though now it’s becoming more difficult for you to keep up with your bluff.

“And you did not mind to tell me that you told me a false statement this entire time?”

You gulp. “Yea, and what of it? You wrote down notes about me, right? You knew I was going to be upset, so you didn’t bring up the contract until I had to say something.”

Yoongi smirks. “I’m impressed. Very well. Are you still going to abide by the contract?”

“Are you kidding me? Of course I am,” you hated to admit that, but it’s true. “I don’t have the money to pay you back all that. Plus, I think my mom’s going to give me a beating if I refused. But don’t expect me to act lovey-dovey with you. As far as I know, you’re just another person who’s living with me.”

“Smart move. However, whether or not you’re telling me the truth, it seems as though it is partially my fault for misleading you, so it looks to be that I’ll have to retract my research a tad. My intentions of keeping the move a secret has damaged our relationship, but not enough to make you flee from the deal.”

It’s because you’re threatening me with debt, you thought to yourself.

“Then again, you’re probably thinking that it’s because of the financial conflict that I’ve brought up, correct?”

You jolt. You’re afraid that Yoongi might just be more than a sociology major and is actually a psychic.

“As far as I’ve gone with my research, it takes an average of three to six months for one to fall in love. I do have three months before our contract expires, so it will not be an issue to return to the pace I was before with my research.”

You dislike that confidence that he has. Does he really think he can make you fall for him again after disclosing that he’s only using you as a lab rat?  Though, you can’t deny that you lost all of your feelings for him in an instant. There’s still a part of you that’s attracted to him, but as far as you know, you’re more upset at him. Besides, someone as emotionless as him won’t be a romanticist in less than a day. These next three months will be a breeze.

------

“You actually made all this?” You ask.

It’s the morning, and the first thing you did was walk to the kitchen. You open the fridge, looking for a carton of milk. Once you find it, you chug it down, caring less if the milk trails down your chin and down your neck. However, you didn’t see Yoongi in the dining hall, setting up breakfast.

“Of course. Breakfast plays the most important factor of the day.”

It’s been like this for the past few days. You two barely see each other, though Yoongi does try to start a conversation, you would run away or lock yourself up in your room. That friendly relationship you two once had is nowhere to be seen. You no longer talk to him about your interests in art, worried that everything you say will be noted then be used for his science project.

You see that Yoongi is already dressed up, wearing a light purple, long-sleeved collar shirt and black slacks. He’s wearing his thick-framed glasses again, and his hair is kept well. Despite having to technically be a ‘couple’ in this large house, you have separates rooms, so you didn’t hear him get prepared. You two even have separate bathrooms for yourselves.

Unlike him, you just woke up, wearing a T-shirt with a picture of a cute cat that says ‘stay pawsitive’, a poor attempt at a pun. Since it’s a size extra-large, it extends low enough that your shorts are invisible.

“I see you’ve adjusted well here already,” Yoongi comments while inspecting your sloppy attire from head to toe.

You blush slightly. “Well, since I’m going to be living here for the entire summer, might as well get used to it as soon as possible. Besides, aren’t you hot in that?”

“There’s an air conditioning ventilation installed in every room. If you’re feeling hot, then turn it on whenever you like,” Yoongi sits down in front of a plate of eggs and sausage. “Besides, I have no choice but to dress formally. I have a meeting to attend at 10.”

“A meeting?”

“I’m currently relaying my findings to my faculty. Since I’m initiating my final step in my research, I have to update them about it.”

You forgot that you’re nothing more than a test for him. All he talks about is his research, and you’re starting to get tired of that word. He never talked about it this much before, but then again, it was because he was still uncertain about you. You wonder if there are other words that can replace that word, ‘research’.

Still, you cannot deny that he looks very handsome in that attire. Every time you see him, he’s always dressed up professionally. He probably even goes to sleep with a suit on too. You snicker at the thought of that.

“What’s so comical?” He asks.

“Sorry, I was just thinking to myself.” Though, the fact that Yoongi said ‘comical’ instead of ‘funny’ is also hilarious in that of itself.

Despite being angry at him yesterday, it subdued after your mother left and you locked yourself in your new bedroom. You thought your anger will rise again if you saw him, but you’re surprised that you’re not. Though it might make sense because it isn’t easy to throw away months’ worth of feelings suddenly. But at this point, Yoongi will figure out that you lied about not liking him.

“Come, sit and eat.” Yoongi invites you.

“Eh…no, I’m okay.”

“Why not? Are you, by any chance, still upset at me?”

There’s no use in pretending that you’re not. “Who wouldn’t? Besides, that’s not entirely the reason. I normally don’t eat breakfast. I hate having to brush my teeth, eat, and then brush my teeth again.”

“Very well. I’ll have your food wrapped in plastic, and I’ll put it in the refrigerator for you. Though it’s better to eat it when it’s fresh, that is my only preference.”

Oh, that’s really nice of him, you thought. Even though he’s trying to force you to like him again, when you forget about that factor, Yoongi is considerate of others. However, you shake that thought out of your head, as that might be one of his methods to get you to like him.

“Thanks.”

Yoongi takes out a notepad and scribbles something down with a pen. You should’ve known that he’s writing down every move you make.

“What are you doing?”

“Keeping notes of your behavior.”

You crush the carton, but not enough for milk to spill.

“Though I don’t condone skipping breakfast, I won’t stop you. Well then, you’re free to do whatever you wish.”

You return the carton to the fridge, then return upstairs to your bedroom. While walking up the grand stairs, you look back at the dining room to see Yoongi eating by himself. There’s something sad about watching eating alone at that long, mahogany table, but you’re afraid that if you eat with him, then he’s going to say something to make you like him again. You shouldn’t like him because in the end, Yoongi will never return the feelings and you’ll end up being the one who’s hurt.

------

At the university, it’s nearly naked without its students occupying the walkways. There’s only a few of them only because of their summer courses. The weather is so scorching hot that from a distance, one could see the heatwaves. However, that does not deter Yoongi, as he’s too busy moving from one building to the next, his vanilla folders under his arm.

A man approaches him, wrapping his arm around him. “Hey, Yoongi! That was a flawless presentation! You really got the professors intrigued by your work.”

“Thank you for the compliment.” Yoongi clearly looks uncomfortable with how touchy the man is. “Hoseok, may you please move your arm from me? This is not the weather to be holding onto each other.”

Hoseok lets go of him. “Sorry. Anyway, I’m still shocked that you’re still going through with this theory on romance. Remember when everyone used to make fun of you for it, saying that it was something everyone already knew? I know I was one of them.”

“Yes, but just because everyone claims that it’s true doesn’t mean that there are actual facts supporting it. ‘Opposites attract’ is merely a phrase passed down that was never properly researched.”

“Hmm, yep, that’s what you always say. Judging by what you said in the conference, I’m assuming that the chick agreed to go along with it?”

“More or less.”

“Wow, either she’s really naïve, or you threatened her.”

“The latter.”

Hoseok laughs. “Oh shit! I knew no sane person would be willing to go through with this! I know you said that she was your perfect opposite, but honestly, I think everyone is the opposite of you.”

“Shall I take that as a compliment?”

“No. It’s not even an insult either. I’m just stating the truth. So, Mr. Romance, what are you going to do with your lady tonight?”

Yoongi looks through his vanilla folder and pulls out a sheet containing the schedule for today and the weeks that follow. “At 5:30 P.M., I reserved a spot at the high-end restaurant, then following that, we will be walking around the city and have trivial conversations. I plan that to be only an hour long, then we will head back to my villa.”

“Wow, so dull.”

“Is that not the typical date?”

“Well, that’s the problem. It’s just ‘typical’. You said that this chick is an art major, right? Maybe she likes a surprise.”

Yoongi sighs, getting rather annoyed by how Hoseok continues to call you ‘chick’. “I do not like surprises. And her name is (Y/N).”

“Oh, my bad. Anyway, you shouldn’t always be laying a schedule out. Knowing what’s ahead of you will only make your life boring.”

From the distance, a professor recognizes Hoseok and calls out to him.

“I’ll talk to you later. Make sure you take my advice.” He winks before walking off.

For as long as Yoongi has known Hoseok, Hoseok was always a chest filled with romance advice. Though, Yoongi rarely ever followed them because for one, Yoongi believes those are unconventional advice that doesn’t have enough evidence to support it, and two, no one has ever approached him and said that they were interested in dating him—but that isn’t a problem to Yoongi because he’s never been interested in someone either. There is no point in taking advice with no proof for someone who he is certain he’ll never commit to.

…He says that, but Yoongi remembers that day at the Blub. You confessed that you like him, and you have for a while. That really did take Yoongi by surprise, since you’re the first person to ever say that they like him romantically. However, just as he said before, he doesn’t like surprises. He doesn’t feel in control. Yoongi wants to predict every step he takes, including his approach to you, so it’s no wonder that Yoongi was caught off-guard again when you suddenly announce that you lied about liking him. You said that you actually hate him. He just can’t understand you, so that’s why tonight, he’s going to make sure to take note of everything you do.

------

“Call (Y/N),” Yoongi says aloud.

While driving up the mountain to his villa, he makes a voice command in his car. With his phone hooked up to the car through Bluetooth, it automatically dials your phone number. It rings for a few seconds before it goes to voicemail.

Sorry, the number you have dialed is currently not available right now. To leave voicemail, please wait after the beep.

Yoongi sighs as he cancels the voicemail. This is the fourth time he tried calling you. He assumes that you’re still upset, but it’s summer break, so you have no valid reason to ignore his calls. Yoongi tries again, only to be met with another voicemail.

“Mom, if you were me, you’d go insane too.” You say in a low voice.

“No I wouldn’t. I would lavish myself in everything that he gives me. You said that Mr. Min will give you anything you want, and you won’t be charged?”

You’re wandering alone in the mountains, kneeling down on the grass and picking the most colorful ones. While you do so, you’re talking to your mother by call, having your earphones plugged in and your phone in your jean pockets. You were doubtful whether it was possible to make phone calls in the mountains, but apparently, it is. Yoongi must be that rich to afford to build a cellular tower nearby.

“I mean, that’s what he said. And could you not call him ‘Mr. Min’? It sounds weird.”

“Oh? Are you guys already on first-name-terms? Then, can you ask Yoongi if he could buy me some new shoes? I’ve been eyeing these red heels, and I was wondering-”

“No, Mom, I’m not going to make him buy you shoes. Wouldn’t dad get upset if he found out that a man other than him bought you shoes?”

You can hear your mother sigh on the other side of the phone. “You finally got a man who’s actually interested in you, and a rich one at that, and you aren’t taking advantage of it while you still can.”

It hurts a little, hearing your mother mentioning the irony of Yoongi being ‘interested’ in you. “I’m just his test subject…remember? And I don’t like him!”

“Oh geez! You used to go on and on about how Yoongi was so handsome in every outfit he wore! You said that he is the reason why the English language is so charming! And the moment you got to be with him, you immediately back out and say that you don’t like him. Honey, this is why you’ve never dated before! They don’t like people who are indecisive.”

You can’t believe you said those words, and it’s making you turn as red as a tomato. When it comes to honesty, no one is as ruthless as your mother. But, you are partially lying to your mother. You don’t exactly hate Yoongi. It isn’t easy getting rid of months-long feelings after one declaration. It’s just that being holed up in that mansion of his, it just reminds you how you’re there to simply help Yoongi get a degree.

“(Y/N), if you really dislike him, using his money would be no problem, right? Use it all up until his bank account is dried up!”

“No! What kind of person do you think I am? Even if he’s the person I hate the most, I’m not going to take advantage of him.”

Suddenly, you feel your phone vibrate and your ringtone going off in your earphones. You check the caller, and it’s Yoongi again. This is the fifth time he’s calling you since you’ve ignored his previous four calls.

“What’s wrong, honey?”

“Nothing…Yoongi’s just calling me again.”

“Oh. Well, don’t stop me from interrupting your call. I have to make dinner soon anyway, so I’ll talk to you later. Bye, love you.”

“No, wai-”

And your mom hangs up, leaving you with your phone screen with Yoongi’s name on it, ringing until you pick up. You don’t want to pick up because you’re afraid that he’s upset at you for ignoring his calls, but you’ve ignored him enough, so you might as well take in all his anger.

You inhale sharply before picking up his call. “Hello?”

“Where are you?” Unsurprisingly, Yoongi doesn’t sound all that concerned for you.

You look around. “Uhm…I actually don’t know. I’m by the villa though.”

You can hear Yoongi sigh out of frustration. “Alright, I can call for assistance if you’re lost.”

“I’m not lost. I just wanted to get some fresh air. I know my way back.”

You wonder if Yoongi thinks of you as someone who gets lost easily. While you’re not good when it comes to GPS or maps, just remembering certain settings helps you trail back.

“Did you not see the e-mail I sent? We have a reservation to attend. At this rate, we’re going to be five minutes late. Hurry back before it gets late.”

Of course you saw the e-mail, and of course you didn’t want to follow it. It’s just disappointing having to see Yoongi schedule out your dates with him like you’re some CEO with a tight schedule. You knew about the reservation at that fancy French place, but you didn’t feel like going.

“Okay, I’m coming.”

------

You return to the villa to find Yoongi in the entrance hall, tapping his foot while checking the time on his watch. While holding the flowers that you picked in your hands, you give him a timid wave, but he does not wave back. His arms are crossed, giving you the impression that he’s impatient.

“Hi…”

“If you were in the forest just now, take off your shoes and leave them out. I’ll have one of the maids pick them up and clean them.”

You purse your bottom lip up, a little upset that he didn’t even greet you back.

“What are you doing with that wildlife in your hands? Is that what you’ve been doing all this time? Picking flowers like a child?”

You’re offended when he compared you to a child.

Yoongi sighs, pinching his sinuses. “Whatever your reason is, put them away and get changed. We’re already running late for tonight’s dinner.”

Tell him, you tell yourself in your head. Tell him that you don’t want to go. “Actually…there’s something I want to do, so I…uhm…kind of…don’t want to…go.”

Yoongi raises an eyebrow. “What could be that ‘something’ you must do that you’re willing to miss our reservation for?”

“It’s hard to explain.”

“I’m all ears.”

“I can’t explain it.”

“Why not?”

You look troubled. “I just can’t.”

“Why is that? Cat got your tongue?”

“…No, it’s just…hard...to explain.”

Yoongi sighs again. “This is getting nowhere. It’s because you want to avoid me, is that correct? You’ve been avoiding me for the past few days because you’re clearly upset with me proceeding with my research without your conscious consent.”

You jolt. He’s somewhat right, but at the same time, he’s wrong. You don’t like how he talks as if he knows everything about you. It isn’t fair—it isn’t fair that he gets to think that he knows everything about you when you really know nothing about him.

Seemingly out of tone, Yoongi takes out his notepad and a ballpoint pen, scribbling something on a new page. You don’t need to ask him to know that he’s keeping record of your behavior—like spectating an animal.

“What are you writing this time?”

“‘(Y/N) lacks sufficiency in reaching her scheduled destination on time. Therefore, this qualifies her as one who does not prioritize punctuality.’ Though, you were always procrastinating when turning in your assignments for art history.”

That was a direct stab to the chest, almost as if Yoongi wrote it like that purposely to tick you off. This must be his way of getting back at you for being late. But the way he delivered his lines as if you’re nothing more than just a nuisance to him really hurts, and that made it the last straw. It’s laughable that you actually thought that there was quality in him, but you were blinded by his good looks. What a fool you are.

You take off your sneaker and throw it at Yoongi. Yoongi manages to deflect the shoe with his forearms, but smudges of dirt get on his white-collar shirt. “What the…?!”

“…Don’t ever talk to me again.”

You clench onto the stems of the flowers, marching right past him with your head down. You walk up the stairs as Yoongi calls after you, telling you to wait. However, instead of doing as he says, you continue to go off.

“(Y/N), if we can discuss it—”

“‘Discuss’? You mean interview me? And by the way! I was late because I didn’t want to see your face! I hate you!!” You pick up the pace and run to your bedroom.

Yoongi, once again, sighs for what seems like the millionth time. Yoongi is aware that he’s made a mistake, and he’s trying everything in his power to make it up, but you refuse to even give him a chance. However, when you made your second declaration that you hate him, that felt more serious.

------

You drop onto your bed after locking the door behind you, dropping the flowers on the floor. You scream in your pillow, wanting nothing more than to leave this wretched place. You want to cry to your mother, but you know that she’s going to try and convince you to deal with it. It’s only been a few days, and you already can’t stand him.

Followed by your screams is a knock on your door. “(Y/N), let’s talk.”

When you recognize Yoongi’s voice, you immediately told yourself not to open the door. You sit up, but you don’t move, waiting for Yoongi to leave.

You can hear Yoongi make an exasperated sigh. “Very well. We’ll talk like this. I’m aware that it’s my fault for dragging you into this without your knowledge, and I would like to apologize.”

Your eyes widen, surprised to hear him admitting his faults.

“I saw a graph that claims that men typically present their loved ones with flowers, so to mend our relationship, I’ll maintain the habit of gifting flowers. Though I despise flowers because of the pests that reside on plants, I’m willing to do that. That’s all I have to say.” Yoongi walks off.

For a minute, you were hopeful, but once again, he’s doing something because of some ‘data’ he saw on the internet. He probably thinks that dealing with your stubbornness is a bother to his research, so he’s doing whatever he can to move it forward.

You hold onto a pillow, pressing it gently on your chest. As much as you dislike him now, you do miss the old times when you talk to Yoongi, ignorant of his intentions. Those times feel so far away now. If you could, you would go back in time, then you would stop yourself from falling in love with Yoongi.

------

Just as he declared, Yoongi began leaving flowers. Every morning when you head to the kitchen for something to drink, the flowers are in a vase on the dinner table. Whenever the flowers began to fade, Yoongi will replace it with new ones. It took a while for you to realize that they’re the wildflowers that you picked by the side of the river. But you keep telling yourself that Yoongi would never go out of his way to get dirty for you; he’s just not that type of guy.

Despite getting you new flowers every week, you two still don’t talk. You already know that this is a ploy to get you to proceed with his work, so you won’t fall for it. You will remain as stubborn as Yoongi.

While you’re in Yoongi’s villa, Yoongi is at the university, just finishing a conference meeting with the professors to update them about his research. When he explained to his professors about the setback and needing more time to complete his findings, he was scolded for wasting their time. Outside in the halls, Yoongi is by the coffee machine, rubbing his sinuses, when Hoseok approaches him.

“That was the first time I’ve seen you get the professors upset! I guess your relationship with her isn’t working out?”

“She’s just playing stubborn. She will eventually have to talk to me, so I’m waiting for her to break.”

“That…sounds harsh.”

The coffee machine fills up Yoongi’s cup, and he takes it. Hoseok looks down to see a Band-Aid around Yoongi’s thumb.

“What happened to your hand?”

“I cut my hand on a tree bark.”

“And what were you doing with a tree bark??”

“It wasn’t about the bark. I was picking flowers near my villa for (Y/N). I notice that whenever she goes exploring, she always returns wildflowers.”

Hoseok smirks. “You’re actually doing something! That’s great! So…what did she say about them?”

“About what?”

“About the flowers, when you gave it to her.”

“I never handed them to her in person. I leave them on the dinner table.”

“What?!” Hoseok sighs. “I feel bad for (Y/N)…Why don’t you give it to her instead?”

Yoongi takes a sip of his coffee. “She doesn’t want to see me, so initiating a conversation will only add more fuel to the fire.”

“Then what? Wait for her to start talking? You can’t expect her to be the one who has to make the first moves. In a relationship, both parties have to make the move.”

Yoongi is uncertain about Hoseok’s claim, raising an eyebrow.

“You can trust my words. I’ve had a few relationships of my own.”

“Very well.”

“Alright,” Hoseok pats Yoongi on the shoulder. “I wish you the very best in your relationship.”

Hoseok walks in the opposite direction. Yoongi looks at his reflection in the coffee, thinking back when he normally spoke to you in art history. He tries to remember what it was like talking to you. You were always talking about your interests in art, always talking about it before and during class. You had that light in your eyes whenever you talked about art.

Initially, he listened to you because he needed data to see if you suffice as a candidate, but he steadily found himself absorbed into your talking. In fact, he rarely ever spoke to you, and all he wanted to do was listen to you. He became fascinated by your perspective in life, seeing things in more empathetic and complex ways. But, ever since the contract, you stopped talking about it; you won’t even bat an eye at him, and this makes Yoongi’s chest ache.

------

Despite it being the beginning of summer, it’s misty outside when you look out the window. The clouds must have risen to the mountain’s level. You never expected being at the top of the mountain would have a completely different weather than at the base.

You check the time on your phone, and it’s nearly evening. However, Yoongi hasn’t returned yet, which is unusual because he always comes back before sundown. He used to tell you where he was going, but ever since that argument, Yoongi kept his word and stopped talking to you—and that includes any information on where he goes. This is the distance you wanted, but there’s something nudging inside you, telling you that something’s not right.

You shake your head. Yoongi is a grown man, so he doesn’t need someone to look after him. Besides, you’re supposed to be angry at him, not worried. If anything, Yoongi might’ve gone out with his colleagues to have a drink, so you have nothing to worry about.

But as the night grows darker, Yoongi still hasn’t returned. You sit in the front living room, biting your nails habitually while staring out the window. All the maids have left for the night, so you’re alone. You keep checking your phone in case Yoongi contacts you, only to be met with the agonizingly slow minute hand moving. This is unlike Yoongi to be out for this long, and you’re terrified that something really did happen.

As concerned as you are, your stubbornness is stopping you from calling him. You don’t want him to feel the glory of you giving in to temptation and being the first to call him. His expression doesn’t change much, but you know when Yoongi feels superior. After all, this could be a ploy to get you to talk to him.

But what if he got lost due to the mist? The fog is thick, so it wouldn’t be that hard to travel off track. Yoongi does admit that the path to this villa is difficult so that only increases the possibility that Yoongi got lost. Perhaps he got lost, then somewhere along the line, he got injured. That thought alone is enough to make you throw away all your grudges and call him.

Just as you were about to dial Yoongi’s number, you hear the sound of the front door unlocking, and you’re relieved to see Yoongi. When you two make eye contact, Yoongi freezes.

“(Y/N)? You’re usually in bed by now.”

You look down at his hands, holding the flowers that he always leaves on the table for you. Not only that, but his hands are covered in mud, and his black, formal shoes and ends of his slacks are too.

You blink profusely, wondering if he had actually spent all this time picking wildflowers for you. “Where were you?”

“I was picking flowers.”

“All this time?”

“Well, no. I stayed at the university to collect my thoughts. By the time I realized, the sun was already setting, and I still haven’t gotten you flowers.”

He wasn’t kidding when he said that he’ll keep his promise, and it makes you embarrassed that you took this lightly. You kept telling yourself that this is a trick to get you to talking to him again, but when he’s that committed, even going as far as going into the forest late into the night during a fog, it contradicts your first impression.

Yoongi approaches you, showing you the flowers he picked, all in various colors. “I may have misinterpreted the graph a bit—the one about the gifts. I realized that it isn’t the flowers itself that the receivers cherish, but the act of giving.”

He extends his dirty hands to you.

“Please excuse my mud-infested hands.”

You take the flowers, but you only stare at his hands. You notice that his thumb has a lump on it. You instinctively take his thumb and bring it close to your face for inspection. You rub it in between your thumb and index finger, getting a feel of what it is.

“Is this a Band-Aid?”

“It is.”

“How did you get injured?”

“I got my thumb caught on a branch while I was traveling to the spot where the flowers grow.”

Going as far as getting himself injured for you? The person who is standing in front of you isn’t Yoongi. The Yoongi you know is stoic and selfish, always looking as if he isn’t interested in talking to you—almost like he’s looking down on you. You appreciate his efforts, but something is tugging in you, telling you that this is partially for his research.

“Why are you doing all this?”

“What do you mean?”

“Are you really that desperate to get something out of me? Are your research papers that important to you?”

Yoongi remains silent for a few seconds. “…I would be lying if I said that it has nothing to do with that, but it does. But another reason is that I realized that my biggest mistake was looking at this from an outsider’s perspective.”

You finally feel like your relationship with Yoongi is going somewhere. You scan his clothing to see if Yoongi has a notepad or pen on him, but you don’t see them anywhere.

“I distanced myself by making you the only test subject, while I was the scientist. No amount of words can measure how apologetic I feel, so I made the assumption that flowers would suffice. However, that was yet another mistake on my part.”

“…I don’t get it. What are you hoping you’ll get out of this by leaving flowers for me?”

For the first time, you see Yoongi blush for the first time, his cheeks turning red. “…I want to talk like how we used to.”

Your eyes widen.

“Your worldview on life is so fascinating that I always found myself listening closely whenever you spoke. I find it difficult for me to cooperate with others, but with you, our conversations would flow naturally. So I thought to myself that if I were to choose a partner, I wanted it to be you,” Yoongi’s eyes glow with sincerity.

However, Yoongi steps away from you.

“But it was naïve of me to think that our relationship was a positive one. After all, you did say that you merely spoke to me and admitted that you liked me out of pity, so everything ended up being one-sided. Perhaps, we are too different.” Yoongi tries to curl his fingers but stops when he realizes that the mud has hardened.

This confession of his sounds too genuine for it to be another strategy to get you to go along with his plans. You realize that it’s also your fault for not reading the contract and misguiding your attentions toward Yoongi. You can’t forget that you’re the one who began this mess by selling your soul temporarily to something you didn’t even read. While Yoongi is trying to rewrite the mistakes he’s done, you’re too busy feeling entitled and whining about how ‘tragic’ your life is.

“I don’t think it’s possible for two people to be completely different. There has to be a middle ground,” You speak up. “For example, we both have some interests in art, right?”

Yoongi blinks profusely, almost not understanding what you’re saying. “It’s not that I find art itself to be fascinating. What makes it interesting is hearing you interpret everything.”

“But that technically still means that you like art because you listen to me ramble.”

“Hmm…your poetic words are art to me, so to some extent, we might possibly have the same interests.”

You stare blankly at his face, letting it sink in for a while that Yoongi had just complimented you. He considers your endless rants as works of art as well. Of all the time you’ve spent with him, he’s never once complimented you. Though you think his compliment is absolutely cringe-worthy and only said in every cheesy romance drama, you liked hearing it.

Suddenly, felt your heart skip a beat, cheeks burning furiously red. It’s that same feeling you felt when you first fell in love with Yoongi, and it’s coming back. You told yourself weeks ago that you wouldn’t fall for his words again, but it didn’t take long for you to break your rules. You realize that you’re just an idiot—you never stopped liking even after claiming that you hate him.

Meanwhile, Yoongi leans closer, curiously trying to get you to look at him. However, you keep avoiding eye contact, not wanting him to get a look at how hideous your bashful expression looks like.

“Have I angered you again?”

You shake your head. “No, something just got in my eye.”

“Let me see.”

Yoongi cups both of his hands over your cheeks, having forgotten about the cracked mud at the tip of his fingers. He raises your head instinctively, checking for whatever got stuck in your eyes as you claimed. He doesn’t find anything in your eyes, but rather, he sees how embarrassed you are.

Your red cheeks, your eyebrows creasing, and the way your eyes gleam from the reflection of the lights illuminating from the dimly-lit lamps. Yoongi remembers this expression of yours; you have worked up like this two months ago when you first learned about your feelings for him. But the first time he got to see it, it was from the corner of his peripheral.

Now that he has a better look of your face, there are details about you that he’s never noticed before—like how long your eyelashes are or that very small beauty mark on your right cheek. However, it’s your pink, soft lips that look oddly appealing to him, and he can’t stop staring.

“Yoongi, your muddy fingers are scratching me…” you break Yoongi from his trance.

Yoongi pulls his hands away from you, questioning what he was doing just now. He’s very cautious when it comes to touching others, but just then, he did it without thinking.

Having remembered how dirty he is, Yoongi turns around and walks off the opposite direction. “I will wash up. You head to bed, you must be exhausted.”

You gently stroke your cheeks where Yoongi laid his hands on. Your face won’t calm down, and it’s almost as if your heart is about to explode. Yoongi’s expression changed for the first time, and he looked surprised, which you thought that that was an expression that was impossible to be on Yoongi’s face. You couldn’t tell why, but this conversation feels like something changed between you and Yoongi, in a good way.

------

The next morning, you walk to the kitchen earlier than usual. You know Yoongi leaves early to go to the university, so you thought you’d see him off. After what happened last night, you thought you were being childish for avoiding Yoongi when you two should be talking things out like adults. You can’t forget that Yoongi is providing you with amenities, and having a horrible attitude is certainly not the way of expressing thanks.

Luckily, you were able to catch Yoongi before he started eating, making this the perfect time to sit down and have breakfast together. You enter the dining room, still in your pajamas, and Yoongi notices you from the corner of his eyes. He raises his head up, a bit stunned to see you.

“Am I too late?” You ask.

Yoongi didn’t know that you were talking about breakfast at first, so he shakes his head once he understands the question. “No, you’re just in time.”

You notice that Yoongi only has a plate for himself, but it makes sense because you never eat with him anyway. “Where do you put your plates again?”

“Allow me to get you one.”

“No,” you shake your head. “I can get it.”

Yoongi turns his direction to the kitchen, pointing at the cupboard above the sink. You thank him before grabbing a plate. You sit adjacent from him, staring at the Korean-style breakfast. You know Yoongi cooks, but you still can’t imagine him standing in front of a stove, especially wearing an apron.

“What made you decide to change your meal pattern? This is quite an unusual scene.”

You blush slightly. “Oh…I just had a change of heart.”

You just didn’t want to admit that you felt bad that he always ate alone. Though, it isn’t like you need to hide it when it doesn’t take long for Yoongi to decipher what you mean. He’s already aware of your habits enough to know what you want to say, which you don’t think is fair because you want to know what Yoongi is thinking too.

You did a lot of thinking last night, and your mother’s partially right; this isn’t an opportunity you should miss. Though you most definitely don’t agree with the part of using his money to your fullest advantage, this is still the same Yoongi you like. The only difference is that you know about this research now, so this is the closest you’ll ever get to be in a romantic relationship with him. It hurts knowing that your relationship will continue to be one-sided, but this is better than having him hate you.

For now, you’ll enjoy what you have and deal with the heartbreak later.

Despite you sabotaging the weekly schedules since day one, he still emails them to you. You saw that for Thursday, there’s a free slot in the evening after he returns from the university. Judging by how Yoongi always carries a planner with him, he must really dislike unplanned events, but it doesn’t hurt to try asking if he’s free.

“Hey, Yoongi…?”

“Yes?”

“Uhm...do you have time Thursday evening?”

Yoongi stares at you questioningly.

“I know I haven’t been going on our planned dates, and I thought that since relationships are supposed to be a team effort, you’d let me plan the first date.”

Yoongi raises an eyebrow.

“I promise I’ll follow the schedule after the first date. You did say that you wanted to talk to me again, right? I think this is a great opportunity to bond at least,” you scratch the back of your neck, avoiding eye contact. “Plus...I want to apologize to you about my behavior. I’ve reflected on what I’ve done in the past, and I want to take this opportunity to make it up.”

After contemplating for a while, Yoongi shrugs one shoulder, eating a small chunk of white rice before touching anything else. “Very well.”

You’re relieved that he agreed to it, or at least is going along with it in the meantime. Whenever you look at his face, you can’t tell what he’s thinking. You don’t even know if he’s thinking about what you just asked him or something else. Whatever he may be thinking, you hope that after this date you’ll learn more about him.

------

It’s been a while since you’ve been out of the mountains, so you’re not used to the summer heat. The mountains felt nice, having been protected by the trees’ shades and its high altitude. It gets so cold up there that you forgot that it’s summer. You came down with a light sweater and shorts cut mid-length, but you should’ve dressed less for this if you knew that it was going to be this hot.

You’re by the conference room, waiting for Yoongi’s meeting to end. You dislike having to go back to school because it’s summer break, and no student should ever be near a school until the fall term, so you don’t understand how Yoongi can keep going to school without looking exhausted. You’ve been here for ten minutes and you already can’t stand being here.

As if God just heard your prayers, Yoongi’s colleagues are walking out of the room. You stand straight, waiting for Yoongi to come out, but as the number of people dwindle down, you don’t see Yoongi coming out. Once a handful of people have left, you decide to peek your head inside the room to check if Yoongi is still there.

He’s talking to a man with gray hair and wrinkles, presumably his professor. Standing behind Yoongi is a man unfamiliar to you. They seem to be talking about something important, but you can’t really hear them that well.

Their conversation doesn’t last long since Yoongi’s professor shakes his hand before leaving the room. The professor walks past you, nodding your head to greet him and he does the same. After getting his bag, Yoongi and the other man head to the door when Yoongi sees you and stops.

“(Y/N)? What are you doing here?”

The eyes of the person next to Yoongi lights up when he hears your name. He turns to Yoongi for an explanation, but Yoongi ignores him.

“Since we’re going to be hanging out in the city, I thought it’d be a waste to make you drive up to pick me up then come back down.”

The man stands in between you and Yoongi, showing you the brightest smile you’ve ever seen. “Hi!! You must be (Y/N). I’m Hoseok, Yoongi’s very close colleague. He talks a lot about you.”

Hoseok forcibly takes you by the hands and shakes them. You’re a bit uncomfortable by how touchy he is, hoping that Yoongi does something about this.

“Then again, it isn’t like he talks about you because he wants to. You’re an important component to his research project after all.”

That was a direct stab to the chest. You can’t believe that he said it so frankly when this is your first meeting with him.

“Still, I hope he’s treating you well. Calling the police is an option if he does anything.”

“What?!”

Even after this short conversation, Hoseok is still holding your hand. He raises your hand up, looking at it as if inspecting. “Wow, you have really soft hands. I bet Yoongi holds it all the time.”

You blush intensely. It’s not everyday you get a compliment from another person—and from a guy nevertheless. Unfortunately, Hoseok is wrong about the part that Yoongi holds your hand. If anything, Yoongi hasn’t initiated physical contact since he patted your head, so it makes you feel a little disappointed.

“You know, I heard Yoongi saying once that something as simple as holding hands is enough to tug a person’s heart. Do you feel anything with me?” He winks.

Yoongi finally intervenes by pulling on the back of Hoseok’s shirt. Hoseok loses balance but was able to regain it.

“I have not enacted upon any illegal temptations since the start of our contract, so there is no need to bring up the police,” Yoongi’s tone sounded somewhat annoyed. “And touching her without her consent can be counted towards harassment, thus, holding you more accountable for criminal behavior.”

Hoseok smirks slyly while you stare at him with wide eyes. You didn’t think there would be someone out there who can tick Yoongi as easily as he can. Based on how open their conversation is, they may just be more than colleagues. You can’t imagine two completely different people getting along so well.

Yoongi looks down at you, catching you staring him Hoseok longer than you should. He can’t explain why, but it irks him when you look at him like that. Yoongi had no intention of ever showing your face in front of Hoseok because he knew how much of a social butterfly he is. That was an aspect that many girls grew quite fond of, and this may disrupt his research if you suddenly altered your attention to him.

When that thought popped up into his head, Yoongi felt this strange, aching sensation in his chest. He wonders if he ate something contrast to his usual diet, but he made sure that breakfast is always in his range of preferred food. Whatever it may be, he doesn’t like it.

“Standing here will only stall time. Shall we get going?”

“Right! Let’s go!”

“Bye! I hope to see you again soon, (Y/N)!”

Yoongi walks off first, and you follow him. You turn around and wave goodbye to Hoseok before catching up to Yoongi.

------

“If it was just going to be the theaters, then it wasn’t necessary to keep it a secret.”

You and Yoongi are standing in line to get tickets. The movie that you two will be seeing seems pretty well known locally, so the line is quite long.

“What movie will we be watching?”

“It’s a black and white film about a woman who falls in love with a man and tries gathering the courage to confess to him.

“I see.”

You were worried that Yoongi wasn’t going to be interested because black and white films have gone out of fashion, but it seems like he’s nonchalant about it. When you look around, the theater is surrounded with couples. They’re smiling and laughing, enjoying their time together. They’re resting their heads on their significant other’s shoulders, cuddling close to each other despite the humid summer air. They all look happy to be together.

But when you look at yourself and Yoongi, you two look nothing like them. You look down at Yoongi’s hand, wishing you can hold his hand like a real couple. Hoseok thought that Yoongi holds your hand, but he’s wrong. Nothing romantic has ever happened, and it hurts. No matter how much you wish for it, there’s still a gap between your hands.

Exactly what is your relationship? What does Yoongi think of you? You want to ask him, but you’re afraid of his answer. While you find it bothersome being lost in a sea of questions, hearing a response may be worst than that.

Though you did mention that it was romantic, black and white film, you forgot to mention that it’s also a horror movie. You said that the girl is obsessed with a man, but she’s a spirit haunting him and killing those who try to befriend him.

While you aren’t bothered by the gore being poured out of the ghost’s victims, Yoongi thinks otherwise. You thought he’d be okay with horror because he seems fine with anything. What you were not expecting was Yoongi holding onto your sleeve. Whenever the ghost pops up on the screen, Yoongi wouldn’t scream like the audience, but flinch faintly and instinctively hold onto the sleeve of your sweater, making sure not to hold onto your arm.

You think it’s pretty innocent that he clings onto your sleeve whenever he gets scared. It makes you feel like he can rely on you to protect him when he’s scared. Pointing it out to him would definitely make him not want to do it anymore, so you pretend as if you don’t feel his hand. As cute as this is, you wish that he would just hold your hand though.

------

The chauffeur parks in front of the villa, and you and Yoongi exit the car. He hasn’t said a word to you since the movie, so it makes you worry that you got him upset.

“Yoongi, are you mad at me?”

He takes off his glasses and sighs, pinching his sinuses. “I am not fond of surprises, and I’d prefer it if you told me the genre beforehand next time.”

You feel bad that you made Yoongi go through that, but there was a side to him that you never thought was there before. Before this, Yoongi behaved no differently than from a robot, so it’s nice to know that he can exhibit human emotions.

“Why did you choose such a monstrosity as our first date?” He asks as the two of you enter through the double doors.

“Because I was attracted by how it’s a black and white film.”

“Ah, you did mention what artstyle you’re studying once. It’s ‘black and white visual art’.”

You nod.

“I’m assuming that that horror film was in your field of study?”

“Well no, I’m just attracted by the color. It’s not common that you see something like a black and white film being massively distributed. It’s all about what the consumers want these days, and consumers say they want color. I wanted to see if this movie had artist value or just another Hollywood film.”

Yoongi takes off his coat while you take off your shoes.

“So? What conclusion did you come to?”

“I thought that the black and white filter was a cheap move to make the red color of the blood pop out more, but it turns out to be another reason too. Black is often used to resemble ‘evil’, so during the nighttime scenes when everything except for the actors are black, the shadows literally mean that there’s a monster lurking at every corner.”

Yoongi flinches after hearing that, thinking about the last words you just said. You put your shoes by the door so the maids can clean it tomorrow morning. When you try turning the lights on, the chandeliers don’t turn on.

“What? The electricity’s out?”

You turn on the flashlight on your phone and try turning on the other lights in the kitchen and living rooms, but nothing is working. You thought that since this is a extravagant mansion, something like a blackout wouldn’t happen.

“That’s strange. It was working just fine before I left,” you check the time on your phone then sigh. “It’s too late to call for an electrician, and I don’t want to bother anyone. Is that alright with you?”

Yoongi nods his head stiffly.

“Then I’m gonna head to sleep. Good night, Yoongi.”

“Wait.”

Before you could walk off to your bedroom, you stop after Yoongi called out to you. “Yea?”

“You...said that you’re going to sleep, yes?”

You nod.

“Then...accompany me to the bathroom.”

“...What?”

That question caught you off-guard. Where is this question coming from all of a sudden? You two rarely spoke to each other at night, so this is definitely new.

“I need to prepare myself for bed. If you like to kill two birds with one stone, bring your sundries and brush your teeth with me. We shall share the common bathroom.”

You feel your blood pressure shooting up. The thought of you two using the same restroom together to brush your teeth almost feels like what a real couple would do when they move in together. Your cheeks turn red, picturing you two standing together and brushing your teethes.

Obviously, you can’t turn this offer down. “Alright.”

------

You and Yoongi changed into your pajamas, and this is your first time seeing Yoongi not in his daytime clothes. Usually, you pick whatever comfortable clothes, but Yoongi prefers that his pants and shirt are the same color. He’s wearing a navy blue PJ set, and he’s not wearing his glasses.

He enters the bathroom while you light up the candles. The two of you don’t say a word while brushing your teeth, but you do make glances at Yoongi. Something odd that you notice is that Yoongi always makes sure that there’s space between you and him, but tonight the gap closed. You two are touching shoulders, and it makes your heart beat fast. But you wonder why it doesn’t bother him.

You were hoping for something romantic to happen, but to your disappointment, nothing did. Because Yoongi was practically glued onto you, you thought Yoongi would say or do something, but he didn’t. It’s disheartening that this potential romantic moment is cut short.

“Well then...good night.” You said before walking off.

“(Y/N).”

You got a little excited when he said your name. Maybe he was thinking the same and didn’t want to end the night prematurely. But speaking realistically, Yoongi would most likely want to get some information out of you to keep for record, so you shouldn’t have your expectations too high.

“Yea?”

“May you…” he trails off before sighing frustratingly. “Never mind. I was about to ask a childish question.”

This is the first time you heard him verbally doubt himself. It only makes you even more curious about what that question was for him to back out.

“What is it?”

“It was just a foolish question. Pay no attention.”

“It’s okay to tell me. There’s no such thing as a dumb question.”

Yoongi scratches the back of his neck, feeling self-conscious. “Would you...like to sleep in the same room with me tonight?”

Your eyes widen. You wish you could see his face under this dark environment to see if he’s blushing or not. But based on his shaky tone, it seems like it took all the courage in him to ask you that. For a second, you thought you heard the question wrong. It’s very out of character for Yoongi to ask that question; it’s no wonder he didn’t want to tell you. He’s been acting weird ever since the movie.

“Please forget it.”

“Are you, by chance, scared because of the movie?”

------

“Is it really that humorous that you have to keep snickering?”

You unfold the futon, curling your lips inward to stop your laughter from coming out. “I’m not laughing because of that.”

You turn your head to look at Yoongi, who’s getting comfortable on his futon. When he looks back at you, he doesn’t look amused by your answer.

“Okay, I lied. It’s just weird that you’re not scared of walking in the forest at night, but a scary movie makes you really paranoid.”

Once your futon has been set, you wiggle yourself in between the foamy mattress and your blanket. Surrounding you and Yoongi is scented candles as sources of light.

“It’s because the intention of a horror movie is to bring out a person’s worst fear, and I’m vulnerable to that. Do you not feel the same?”

“Not really. I just tell myself that it’s fake then I feel better.”

“Also, what is the reason for fixing ourselves mattresses in the living room? I find this to be unnecessary effort when we have our bedrooms.”

“I know, but it’s exciting sleeping in a new place, even if it’s just the room next door. Doesn’t it feel like we’re kids at a sleepover again?”

Yoongi pauses. “Hm. I wouldn’t know. I’ve never done this before.”

No wonder Yoongi doesn’t find this amusing. He isn’t familiar with the concept of a sleepover. After he asked you to sleep with him tonight, he was surprised when you agreed to it with the exception that he and you had to sleep in the living room. You don’t feel comfortable sleeping in his bedroom, and you don’t want Yoongi to be in your bedroom as he might want to scope out your belongings to add to his research.

“Well, then I’m glad that I’m here to experience your first time with you.” You chuckle.

“...This is the most you’ve laughed since I forced you into my contract. But it seemed as though something was bothering you the entire day.”

You didn’t think Yoongi caught on to your melancholy mood. Did you make it that obvious? Whether or not you made it obvious, it’s still embarrassing. You don’t want to talk about this because your reason for being upset is due to the fact that you wanted him to hold your hand. You find it ironic that despite being his temporary ‘romantic partner’, Hoseok has held your hand longer than he has.

Not wanting to linger with this topic, you desperately try to think of something else to talk about. “S-so...Hoseok seems like a nice person. I would’ve never expected you two to be friends.”

Yoongi doesn’t respond immediately, almost making you think that he fell asleep. “We are not friends, but colleagues who study the same field. He finds entertainment in pestering me.”

“Really? You two seem close though. I just think you’re really bad at talking to people and Hoseok has a lot of patience to deal with you.” You jester.

“...Why are you bringing him up so suddenly?” There’s a slight undertone of annoyance.

You feel like you brought up something you shouldn’t have. Did you say something to make him upset? All you did was ask an innocent question.

“...Have you developed an interest in him?”

“What?”

“You were bashful when he held your hand this afternoon. Could it be that you were downhearted all day was because you wanted to be with Hoseok?”

You feel your cheeks burning up. You have no idea where he’s getting all these assumptions from, but he’s absolutely wrong. Hoseok never came into your mind during the date, and while Hoseok looks more approachable than Yoongi, you would never go after him. You’re not a shallow person, jumping onto a different person.

Out of the blue, Yoongi removes the blanket and slides his futon next to yours.

“Wh-what are you doing?!”

Yoongi sits with his legs crossed, reaching his hand out to you. “Give me your hand.”

“What?! Why?!”

“I don’t understand how Hoseok was able to make you react so differently when I cannot get a reaction out of you. Was it the style in which he held your hand?” Yoongi looks genuinely curious, rubbing his chin with his index finger.

Even under this dimly-lit surrounding, you can see Yoongi raising an eyebrow, staring at your hand. You want him to be joking around so it would be easier for you to turn him down, but you know he would never joke about this.

You give him your hand, and he delicately curls his fingers around your hand. You finally got what you wished for, but you didn’t want it to happen under this circumstance. Yoongi is too keen in finding an answer in something that doesn’t need one. He’s going overboard with this, but with the way he’s gently stroking his thumb over your knuckles is killing you. You would’ve never thought that by holding hands, it would make you this flustered.

“Did I read the articles incorrectly?” He mumbles to himself. “They said that once you pass the first stage, then your hormones would start behaving erratically even with the slightest physical contact. Why did it not work when I patted you on the head?”

No, you idiot. It did work, you thought to yourself. You feel like your entire body is about to explode because this is too much for you, and it’s unfair that Yoongi gets to be calm about this.

It disheartens Yoongi even more that while he does whatever he can to act as a proper mate, it took Hoseok zero effort to make you blush. He’s concerned that his theory on ‘opposite attraction’ is going to be disproven. His research brought him this far, and he doesn’t want it to fail when it’s with you. He made sure that you are perfect for him and vice versa, but he worries that he may have miscalculated.

“...Do you find this distasteful?” Yoongi asks in a defeated tone.

He feels as though he’s done nothing but make you dislike him more. Did he overestimate himself? He thought that he’d finally experience what it’s like to hold someone dear to him, yet it’s given him nothing but a sour taste, and it must be the same for you.

“No…” you whimper out. “...It’s nothing like that.”

Yoongi looks at you, and with what little light opacity to see, he sees your face entirely red. You’re so embarrassed at you’re covering your mouth with the palm of your hand and averting your eyes from him. It’s the same expression you had that night when he returned late with flowers, and he’s getting that same burning sensation in his chest again. Now he feels the temperature of his cheeks rising. At that time, he couldn’t comprehend what he was feeling, but now he may know what it is.

Yoongi releases your hand and clutches onto his chest. He sits up staring blankly at the wall shaded with a murky black. You blink profusely, confused with what’s going on.

“I think...I may be experiencing a heart burn.”

You spring up, pulling the blanket off of you. “Oh my god, are you okay?!”

You frantically look for your phone.

“Sh-should I call a doctor??”

He shakes his head. “A glass of water shall suffice.”

Yoongi tries getting up, but you stand up before him. “No, let me get it. Just rest.”

You jog to the kitchen to get him water, and Yoongi couldn’t get his eyes off of you. He is unsure whether it’s possible for someone his age to be showing signs of heartburn, but that is the only explanation he can make with what he’s feeling currently. But what he finds strange is that this only occurs with you around.

------

Yoongi yawns while sitting across from the paperwork he has to finish by tomorrow. His professors want him to write a research summary in case people come across his work and need more background information. He’s been trying to get it done since this morning, but he’s been lagging with his work. And that’s because you’re to blame.

Ever since that night in the living room, all he ever thinks about is you. Everything he sees reminds him of you, and while he doesn’t experience those mysterious heartburns anymore, his chest feels like it’s being squeezed. Whenever he thinks about you, there’s this lump in his throat and that sudden urge to just smile when you pop up in his head.

Yoongi’s aware that this is unnatural of him to be this way. He’s always stern when it comes to time, but he can’t focus on his work anymore. Last night was an unexplainable phenomenon—something Yoongi has never experienced before. But that was the least of his concerns.

He leans back, his eyes glaring at the cotton-filled ceiling as he heaves a weary sigh. He shouldn’t have been demanding and asked for your hand so suddenly, making it especially hypocritical of him when he criticized Hoseok holding your hand. Yoongi was unreasonably upset at Hoseok for something so menial. Pushing aside is rash emotions, what Yoongi said to him was harsh, and he should apologize to him soon.

From downstairs, Yoongi can hear you shouting. He stares at the halls, hearing a second and third voice. He thought it was strange to hear you speaking so vocally, since you speak in a polite tone when it comes to the maids. He decides to go downstairs and check the commotion.

“Oh my god…”

“See? I told you (Y/N)’s boyfriend is rich!”

“Mom! Can you stop calling him my boyfriend?!”

From the second floor, Yoongi sees you and your parents by the entrance. It looks as though you’re trying to kick them out, pushing them out the door. Unlike the first time he met your mother, she’s caked her face with makeup and is wearing a dark red fur coat matching with her bright red dress. Her father, balding at the head, is wearing casual clothes, a simple white collar shirt and slacks.

Your parents notice Yoongi, and your mother waves at him enthusiastically. Yoongi nods his head, acknowledging her sudden appearance. However, your father is the opposite, staring at him as if scanning him. You turn around, making eye contact with him, but you quickly put your head down out of embarrassment.

Yoongi walks down the stairs and your mother hurriedly runs to him, the clacking of her high heels echoing across the empty entrance halls. “Yoongi! Has my daughter been treating you nicely? She can be a demon sometimes.”

“No, she’s been a joy to have around.”

From the corner of his eye, he can see you blushing. He tries not to let his smile show seeing how innocent you reacted to his compliment.

“That’s good! Also, pardon for us intruding into your home.”

“It’s fine. I did give permission to come whenever you wish. Would you like some refreshments?”

“Actually,” your father finally opens his mouth. “We were planning to eat dinner with (Y/N). We just came to pick her up.”

“Is that so?”

Yoongi looks to you for answers, but you give him none. He can’t quite explain it, but when your father said that they’ll be taking you out he felt a bit disappointing. Though you don’t talk to him every minute, he feels comforted with the presence of having you around.

“Honey! Don’t be so rude!” Your mother slaps your father on the back.

Your father whimpers out an ‘ow’, and your mother nudges her head to Yoongi. There’s a strong indication that your mother wants to invite Yoongi, but she’s waiting for your father to say it. Though looking reluctant, your father lets out a heavy exhale.

“Would you like to come?”

Of course, Yoongi has no time to come. He has papers he needs to finish, and the deadline is tonight. But if it means getting to spend personal time with (Y/N) and her parents, he doesn’t mind. Yoongi knows that if he were to return to work, it would be meaningless because he’ll be only thinking about you.

“I’d love to come.”

------

“Of all places, why did you have to choose a barbecue place?!” Your mother blurts out.

Inside the Korean barbecue restaurant is filled with customers, and the loud chatters from people all at once is making it difficult for you hear each other. The four of you are seated at the table in the center, and there’s a grill in the middle. While Yoongi is familiar with the customs of cooking and eating grilled meat, this is the first time he’s actually seen it in person.

Your mother slumps her shoulders. “Great...I thought we were going to at a fancy place, that’s why I bought this dress in the first place! I’m gonna end up smelling like barbecue and my makeup is gonna be messy because of the sweat!”

“Quit your yapping and look at the menu.”

After a few minutes, a waitress comes over with their drinks, and they order their food. Most of the time, it’s your mother who’s talking, asking Yoongi questions while you and your father remain silent. Your mother doesn’t make it a secret that she’s very interested in him, but Yoongi’s surprised that your father doesn’t seem to care, allowing his wife to flirt with him.

“Again, Honey?? I told you to eat more! You never listen to me.” Your mother complains.

Your mother takes out the steak from the grill and cuts it with the scissors, putting the pieces in your father’s ricebowl. He keeps telling her to stop, but she insists that he eat until his stomach is about to explode. Your mother’s attention is no longer on Yoongi, but on your father.

“You see, this is why you’ve been getting light-headed. You don’t eat enough.”

“You should eat too. You’re getting too thin.” Your father puts some meat into her bowl as well.

“No, no, no. I’m trying to lose weight.”

Your parents continue their bickering, competing who can put the most meat in each other’s bowls. It’s getting to the point where they’re saving almost none for you and Yoongi. Not knowing how to intervene, you chuckle while telling your parents to stop.

Yoongi thinks that this is peculiar. He’s never seen two grown adults behave so childishly, but lovingly at the same time. His parents always had space between them, their food portions being equivalent so they don’t have to share. From the times he does remember eating with his parents, it was considered rude to speak in the loud tone that your parents are using right now. The kind of relationship that they’re showing is different from what he’s read in articles by professionals.

But when he looks at himself and you, you two are nothing like your parents. There’s that gap in between—no sharing, no casual speech. Yoongi talks to you like he’s talking to his professors. He always went on and on about his research, even showing off his evidence on the contract. But despite all that boasting, there’s no sign that you two are truly in love.

------

You, Yoongi, and your parents are standing by the front of the restaurant. Though your mother is always money-hungry, she makes sure that you’re doing well by asking if you’ve been eating and keeping track of your health. Yoongi watches from the distance, seeing how caring your mother is.

Your father stands next to Yoongi, putting his hand on his shoulder. “Looks like they finally left us alone.”

Yoongi turns his head, nodding.

“To be frank, I don’t like you,” your father states suddenly. “I didn’t even want to meet you, but my wife insisted that you’re a gentleman. And tonight confirmed that you’re nothing like what she said you are.”

Yoongi is thrown off guard, raising his eyebrows. “Mind I ask how?”

“You bind my daughter into a contract, manipulating her soft side for your own success. I don’t give a shit if you’re providing her now. When my wife showed me a copy of the contract, it guaranteed that your relationship might not last in five-to-six years. I don’t know what that means in scientific terms, but to me, it sounds like you’re not capable of taking care of my daughter.”

Yoongi is at a loss of words, never thinking of the long-term consequences of the contract.

“While you get the recognition of being some prize-worthy sociologist, my daughter will get nothing in return. A few years down the lane when you can’t satisfy my daughter anymore, you’ll drop her like a broken toy and devastate her. And because you selfishly take other people’s feelings so lightly, you won’t be affected by this. So if I were you, I’d stop this whole thing before you go and break my child’s heart. Otherwise, I’ll stop you myself.”

Yoongi felt the passion in his words; he knows that your father isn’t kidding with his words. While he did think about the near future, he wasn’t thinking about it on a personal level. He thought that when the time comes for the separation, moving on would be no issue. Pushing aside his work, if he were to ask himself how would he act if you were to leave him once everything’s over, he wouldn’t know.

“You don’t have to worry about anything, Mr. (L/N).”

Your father raises an eyebrow.

Yoongi looks at your father in the eyes, giving him a pained smile. “Your daughter is only helping me out of sympathy. She’ll be able to move on just fine.”

He doesn’t understand what Yoongi means by that, but before he can ask, you and your mother returns. “Honey!! Let’s go home, I reek of barbecue!!”

“Alright.”

Your parents stand side-by-side, holding hands and saying their farewells to you and Yoongi. Your mother tells you two to take care, but you insist that Yoongi’s driver take them back home. Your father says that they can always call a cab, and he wishes you a good night. After your parents head off, it just leaves you and Yoongi.

You let out a sigh. “Sorry my parents visited so suddenly. You were working, weren’t you?”

“I don’t mind.”

You lean a little closer to Yoongi’s face. “You okay? You don’t seem well.”

“I’m fine. Just thinking about the paperwork I have to finish tonight.”

“...If you say so.” You say skeptically.

Yoongi can see your parents walking in the distance, holding hands and laughing. There’s that affection that once again lacks in his relationship with you.

------

It’s been hours since you and Yoongi returned to his villa, but there’s still has been no progress in his papers. All he can think about his your father’s words. Whenever he tries to focus, he’s reminded of how he forced you into something you never consented to. Your temper during the early days are now making sense—you saw him as equal while he saw you as a specimen.

It’s three in the morning, and Yoongi is exhausted, but he has to finish this later in the morning. His eyes are becoming heavy, making it nearly impossible for him to stay up. He’s used to having a set curfew, so staying up is not possible for him.

“Yoongi?”

He raises his head up to see you standing by his door with a concerned expression.

“(Y/N), what are you doing still up?”

“I could ask you the same thing. I saw your light still on, so I came to check.”

“I still haven’t completed my work. You can go off to bed.”

“I can make you some coffee if it helps.”

“No, that’s not necessary.”

“Alright…”

“Actually…” He leans back, calling back to you. “Do you mind spending some time with me? I think...having another person here will prevent me from going insane.”

Yoongi is lying straight through his lips. The truth is that he just wants you to be with him, thinking that by having you in close range, he can finally focus. However, you give a surprised expression, and he immediately wants to retract his words. His request is very selfish, asking for you to stay up with him.

“Sure. Let me grab something to keep me busy.”

You speed off to your bedroom, then returning with a sketchbook, a pen, and a chair. You set yourself up facing Yoongi, measuring his face with your thumb and squinting with one eye open. You put your feet on the seat, curling your toes as you begin sketching Yoongi.

“I haven’t see you drawn in a while.”

“It’s because I don’t do it in front of you.”

You flip through the pages, and Yoongi was able to spot some familiar images, but he can’t make out what the drawings are. “...You mention that your area of study is black and white art, correct? Mind telling me what it is about the concept that intrigues you?”

You begin sketching, your eyes only on your paper. “...A lot of people say that color is what brings out an artist’s emotion on their work, but I think black and white can express the same amount. I started off thinking like that too, but then one day when I went to an art gallery and saw these two artworks that made me change my perspective.”

You look up from your paper to Yoongi, then back down.

“They’re both drawings of a black and white horse, stroking each other with their heads, one sketch of the white horse initiating the stroke, and the second with the black horse stroking the white one in response. There’s no bright colors that catches your attention, it’s not even trying to. But after staring at it for a while, I realized that the artist did it on purpose. The lack of individual colors complement the gentleness that the horses were evoking for one another”

Abruptly, you scribble all over your first draft, flipping to a new page and restarting. Yoongi can see a messy, smeared version of himself on your failed attempt.

“The dullness made it feel peaceful, like they were what only mattered to each other. So little diversity in color, yet it was so tender. Sometimes we forget that no matter how boring black and white is, black is the one that holds all color, and white reflects all. That’s why one day, I want to create a piece that can convey that kind of emotion.”

And you haven’t felt that way for anything else until you met Yoongi. His is skin so pale, but it made his black clothes stand out. He is the epitome of the two. Yoongi evoked this sort of feeling you had when you first saw the two pieces. He was peaceful, tranquil, just like the two horses.

You tried to solve what it is about both Yoongi and that art piece that made you so attractive to them, and after a long time, you figured that it they were something you wanted. Life is always busy trying to shove everything in your face, just like how the array of colors artists use to push it into your face when all you want to do is find one that shows itself for what it is. Once you started talking to Yoongi, you were attracted to how composed he is while embracing life’s spontaneous surprises. No matter the challenge, Yoongi can take it down with one swipe, and you admire that.

“Anyway, I wanna know more about you. What made you start this whole research project?”

“Nothing particularly special. I’ve always felt the need to dive deeper whenever a question is brought to my attention. I was in a relationship with a woman once, but I only agreed to it out of sheer curiosity. It didn’t take long for our relationship crumble.”

You can’t believe your ears. Yoongi? Dating? You feel bad for the girl, but you’re a little envious that you’re not the first woman in his life.

“She declared that she wanted our relationship to end, then I said, ‘go ahead’. I must’ve triggered something because she slapped me and told me that the reason why we couldn’t work out is because our goals were too different. I was career-driven and she wanted to settle down. But I’ve always heard the lore that opposite personalities attract, so I’m searching for an answer to see if I can prove that myth.”

Basically, this all started because it didn’t end well with his girlfriend, so this makes you curious about his ex-girlfriend. What was it about her that he said yes to? Did he treat her better than he does with you? Does he...still like her? You shouldn’t have asked because now you’re jealous that another person was able to fit somewhere in his heart.

While staring at your sketchbook defeatedly, Yoongi takes this chance to move closer to you, resting his hands on your knuckles, stopping you from continuing your work. He sees that you’re not done sketching yet, barely getting to his hair.

“It’s strange...when I was still in a relationship with what’s-her-face...I felt nothing. Each time we exchanged kisses or hugs, it was just hollow,” Yoongi looks down, interlocking his fingers with your fingers. “But something as pure as wrapping my hand around yours and seeing how your expression changes is enough to exhilarate me.”

Suddenly, Yoongi presses his head onto your chest, listening to your rapid heartbeat. You stutter with your words, but you’re too nervous to think clearly.

“Your heart rate has increased, and your face is red.”

“Y-you don’t have to point that out.”

“However, I was told that it’s healthy to feel this way. I guess it’s comforting to know that we’re both healthy then.”

He lets go of your hand and wraps his arms around your waist. This is the touchiest Yoongi has ever been, and it might be because his exhaustion is making him think irrationally. His mentality is losing it due to high levels of stress and lack of sleep.

“...Remember I said that a good way of soothing a person during a dire situation is through physical contact?”

“Yea.”

“I think...I finally understand what that means now,” Yoongi blinks, fixing his head position to be more comfortable. “...And I almost don’t want to let go. Please, let me stay like this for a while, until I feel better.”

You don’t know what to do, so you let him continue to hold onto you. Yoongi looked troubled all day and he kept brushing it off as something he can fix. But Yoongi is still human, and there’s so much he can do with his limited body. Yoongi’s left himself vulnerable, but it’s nice to know that this human side of him does exist.

“(Y/N)...”

“Yea?”

“The day when you came to see me at the campus, I was invited to my professor’s retirement party, and I want you to accompany me. I believe I’ve come to a conclusion to my theory, and I need you to be there.”

You’re shocked to hear that Yoongi has already come to an answer even though it’s not August yet. With the way he’s been behaving, you so desperately want to think that maybe, just maybe, Yoongi might feel the same for you as you do for him. But you can’t be naive like you did the first time. You’re nervous about his answer, but you can’t say no to him now when he wants you to come.

“I’ll come.”

------

The retirement party held at the theater hall in the city, and there are a number of middle-aged attendees here in formal attire. There’s only a few who look roughly your age, but the amount of elderly people is overpowering that it almost feels as though it’s only you and Yoongi who are the same age. You walk behind Yoongi, feeling intimidated by all these scholars who seem to have rich backgrounds.

“Wow, there’s a lot of people here.”

You were lucky that Yoongi had pre-ordered a dress for you, though it was strange how Yoongi knew your exact size. He also hired a makeup artist and hairdresser to tidy up your look. You were against putting on the amount of makeup that the makeup artist wanted to do, but you’re glad that she did because you would’ve stood out like a sore thumb with your mediocre looks. You’ve gotten used to Yoongi dressing formal, but it’s entirely different when you’re going to a party with him in his attire. He looks absolutely stunning the more you look at him.

“Of course. This is a retirement party for a locally-known sociologist. It wouldn’t make sense not to throw one as extravagant as this.”

As antisocial as he claims to be, he seems to have a lot of connections, though it might be because networking is key when pursuing any career. It makes you question yourself whether or not you should start looking for connections, especially knowing how hard it is finding a job with your major.

You sigh, thinking about how Yoongi’s career path is already set for him. You can just see it now: Yoongi doing research and going to parties like these all the time. If it means going to fancy parties like this frequently, then he might meet a lot of beautiful women. You feel jealous, seeing as there are so many pretty women here that could appeal to Yoongi’s taste. Even if you butter yourself up, you’re nothing compared to the competition here.

From the corner of his eye, he can sense the dejected mood coming from you. “Are you not enjoying yourself?”

“It’s not that! It’s just...everyone is dressed so nicely, especially the women.” You gaze at them with envy.

Yoongi stares at you momentarily before saying anything. “You yourself are gorgeous, so no need to put yourself down.”

You turn to him, a bit surprised by his sudden compliment. His back is facing you, but you can see that his ears are red with embarrassment. You smile, feeling a bit more confident in yourself.

“And you’re pretty good-looking too!”

Because you aren’t used to a formal party, your voice was too loud that it caught the attention of others. When all eyes are on you, you look down in shame, guilty that you’ve just embarrassed Yoongi. However, when you saw your head up, you see Yoongi covering his mouth and averting eye contact with you. From the corner of his mouth, you can see the tip of his lip curling up into a smile, but he’s trying to hide it from you.

“Let’s move further into the halls, shall we?”

You nod your head, and Yoongi leads the way.

There’s a staggering amount of people the deeper you and Yoongi go. Unlike before, people start to recognize Yoongi and approach him. They ask him how he’s doing, and Yoongi would reply with ‘doing well’. You’re standing behind him, but no one seems to care about you. You thought that you were here as Yoongi’s partner, but they’re more interested in what Yoongi has to say. You’re not even sure if they know that you’re with him.

“Yoongi, Professor Kim was just looking for you. He has a few people he wants to introduce to you privately.” A man says.

“Ah, very well. But, I brought someone with me that I would like to—”

“It’s okay, Yoongi. This is your professor’s party, and I don’t want to interrupt anything.”

“Are you sure?”

“Definitely. I’ll be hanging out at the food stand.”

You nudge him gently on the arm, encouraging him to leave. He nods his head, following the man while you head to the table of food. You feel really out of place here, but also disappointed that everyone here wants to talk to Yoongi and not you. This isn’t your field of work, but you thought at least people would be curious about your opinion about Yoongi’s research project.

To make yourself feel better, you go to the comforts of food and check out the assortment laid out in front of you. For it being only finger food, they look expensive. Crab stuffed in mushrooms, salami and crackers, cheese cubes with grapes. Some of these are odd combinations, but this might be what fancy people eat all the time. You try not to think about it too much and dig into the food.

While the pile on your plate gets taller, someone stops you from continuing by putting their hand on your shoulder. You turn around to see Hoseok in a classic black-and-white tuxedo. Your eyes light up, finally seeing someone who you’re somewhat familiar with.

“Nice meeting you again, (Y/N)!” Hoseok inspects you from head to toe. “Wow, you look beautiful tonight. I bet Yoongi picked out that dress because he knew you would look nice in it.”

“Thanks.” You give him a courteous smile.

Hoseok stands next to you, grabbing a plate and picking various foods that catches his eye. “Where’s Yoongi?”

“He’s talking to his professor.”

“Really? I was expecting him to stay close with you though.”

“What? No way. What makes you think that?”

You and Hoseok finish picking out your dinner and are now looking for drinks. You pick up a cup of fruit juice while Hoseok chooses red wine.

“You mean...you can’t tell?”

“Tell what?”

“...All this time? You didn’t notice anything about Yoongi?”

You try thinking back to all the times when Yoongi was acting unusual. “He did mention he was having a heart burn once.”

Hoseok scoffs but stops to hold in his laughter. You raise an eyebrow, confused about what Hoseok is laughing about. He continues to laugh regardless of how you feel.

“It’s alright. He makes it obvious enough that you’ll figure it out soon.”

You don’t have any idea what Hoseok’s talking about, but if he says that you’ll know soon enough, then you will. You two search for a place to sit together, which is surprising because you thought that since Hoseok is a chatty person, he would fit well with the people here, not stay with you.

“Are you alright with hanging out with me? I don’t hate it, but I’m just wondering.”

“I came here an hour before you guys, so I already met the people I had to meet. Besides, I’m really curious about Yoongi’s partner.” Hoseok smiles. “Tell me about yourself.”

You’re glad that there’s at least one person here who acknowledges that you exist in this grand hall. You look into the thick crowd and find Yoongi still talking to a few people. Since it looks like it’s going to be a while, you decide to kill some time by talking to Hoseok.

Thirty minutes has gone by since you started talking to Hoseok, and time flew by before you knew it. You talked about your time with Yoongi—about how you two were close classmates, but that went downhill when he forced you into his work. Even though Hoseok asked you to talk about yourself, you ended up mostly talking about Yoongi.

“Wow, I’m speechless by how different Yoongi is with you.”

“What do you mean? He treats me no different than how he treats everyone else.”

“Are you kidding me? He’ll only talk to people unless it benefits him, but other than that, he wants no business with people. I lost count how many times he told me to go away.”

You were hopeful momentarily, thinking that Yoongi may think of you as special, but then you quickly lose that confidence when you remember something. “But...Yoongi started talking to me because he knew I was his opposite right? He used me for his own benefit.”

“Yoongi would never go as far as going beyond his comfort zone for someone else. Trust me, I don’t  think he would chose you just because you are his opposite. Personally, I don’t think there exists a ‘perfect opposite’. No matter how different two things may be, there’s always that in between that brings them together. There must’ve been something about you that sparked Yoongi.”

You try to think about it, but nothing comes to mind. Even though Yoongi knows so much about you, you still can’t pinpoint every detail about Yoongi. What was it that made Yoongi chose you? If you like him because he was everything you wanted, then it must be the same for him.

“That’s the girl?” A woman mutters.

“Almost disappointing, I would say.” Another whispers.

Nearby stands two women, murmuring in each other’s ears while staring at you. They make it obvious that they’re talking about you, but you try to ignore them. You don’t like being talked about behind your back, but you don’t want to start a commotion. However, their voices catches Hoseok’s attention.

“I heard she’s an art student. Where is she going to go with a degree like that?”

“Yoongi did mention he was also checking for wealth status too.”

“Someone as handsome as Yoongi with a bright future lumped himself with her.”

“Do you think one of the qualifications include looks? Because she’s definitely the polar opposite compared to Yoongi.”

The two women snicker amongst themselves, continuing their snide comments. When you thought that you couldn’t be even more discouraged, you had to hear that. You weren’t particularly keen in your physical appearance, but it still hurts knowing that other people think you’re ugly. You didn’t think that judgemental wealthy people exist, but here they are.

But rather than letting it go, Hoseok stands up and approaches the two women. “Hey, you know it’s rude to talk about people behind their backs.”

You call out to Hoseok, not wanting this to blow over, but it’s too late since Hoseok is already talking to them.

“What? We weren’t saying anything about her. Mind your own business, please.”

You run after him, grabbing his arm to pull him away. “Hoseok...it’s okay.”

From a distance, Yoongi sees the argument ensuing between the women and Hoseok. Their argument isn’t loud enough to be eye-catching, but it is enough to garner Yoongi’s attention—and that’s because he sees you holding onto Hoseok’s arm. Yoongi doesn’t know why you’re holding his arm, but he wants to pull you away as soon as possible. He wants to move, but his professor is still talking.

“You wouldn’t like it if someone spoke about you this way, would you?”

“Can you please leave us alone? We didn’t do anything.”

“Hoseok, just forget about this!” You continue to tug at him, but he won’t budge.

“So what if we said that? It’s our opinion.”

Hoseok raises an eyebrow, but crosses his arms when he has an idea. “Alright then, if you’re gonna have your opinions, then I have mine. I think that (Y/N)’s definitely prettier than you two.”

You blush from that sudden compliment. The two women look offended as well, staring at each other with dropped jaws. Out of the blue, Hoseok wraps his arm around you, his hand cupping your arm, making you jolt.

“I think girls who cake their face with makeup all the time are trying to hide how ugly that they really are.” Hoseok points his finger guns at them.

The ladies put their hands to their chests, taking complete offense at Hoseok’s words. You’re a little bothered by how Hoseok is very touchy, though he was like that the first time you met him too. You try to wiggle your way out of Hoseok’s grip, but he’s not letting you.

But to your surprise, someone tugs you out of Hoseok’s grasp, and it’s Yoongi. He’s holding you tightly by the hand, glaring at both the women and Hoseok. Hoseok looks away, knowing that he’s in trouble for touching you again. The two other women become intimidated once Yoongi made his appearance, so they scurry off before he can scold them.

“Are these three fools bothering you, (Y/N)?”

“Wait, why are you lumping me with them?? I’m the one who was trying to defend (Y/N)!”

“It’s alright, Yoongi! Hoseok’s right, he was defending me, so you don’t need to worry.”

Yoongi looks at you for a few seconds, not saying a single world. You don’t know what he’s thinking, but you can read it on his face that he certainly isn’t happy.

“I’ve done what I needed here. Let’s return home.”

Yoongi, still holding your hand, drags you with him to the exit. You apologize and thank Hoseok for keeping you company, but Yoongi hearing you thank him only tightens the grip around your hand. Hoseok calls out for you to ‘be safe’. While you two step out, everyone stares at you.

------

You and Yoongi are waiting for his driver by the side of an isolated street. You keep sulking, embarrassed about how dramatic you two walked out of the halls. This isn’t some high school drama where it’s okay for the guy to be possessive over their things. You’re not a ‘thing’ for Yoongi to take away whenever he feels like it, and that upsets you.

“How long are you going to stay angry?” He asks with his arms crossed.

You don’t even want to look at him. You thought that by going with him to this party, then everything would be alright, but it turned out to be the opposite.

“You didn’t have to be rude to Hoseok. He was trying to stand up for me.”

“For what?”

“For…” you sigh, not wanting to talk about this, but knowing Yoongi, he would pester for more answers. “These two women were making fun of me, and he stepped in.”

You admit, you didn’t want Hoseok to start trouble, but it was irritating to see Yoongi get furious at Hoseok, not the women.

“And you let their words get to you?” The way he worded that question with his monotone voice is irritating you even more. It sounds like he doesn’t care. “And Hoseok was complimenting you too.”

“You heard?”

“I could tell by the way you get bashful around him.”

“It was just a compliment! He wasn’t doing anything bad!!”

You don’t know why you’re getting so angry over this, but in reality, you’re actually denying that you do know. You’re upset by how he dragged you out of the party as if he cares about you when you know he doesn’t. Each time he does something nice, you keep thinking about his research.

“At least for Hoseok, I know that his comments are genuine.”

Finally, Yoongi’s facial expression changes, but it’s not a look of amazement. Instead, he clearly looks hurt by your words, making you regret you said that.

“Is that...so…” He looks away, inserting his hands in his pockets.

“Wait no...that’s not what I mean—”

“Tell me...when I brought up my previous girlfriend being the main driving force for this research, were you jealous?”

You flinch, not expecting him to ask this question. You definitely got jealous when the subject of his ex-girlfriend sprung up, and it hurt that there was another girl in his life. But...you don’t know why he would ask this, making it hard for you to find the right answer.

“N-no! Why would I?” You lie hesitantly.

Yoongi’s eyes widen, but he looks down at his feet with a look of defeat. “That’s disappointing.”

You look at him, and his ears are completely red.

“Because I get jealous when you talk to Hoseok.”

“Wh-what?!”

“Hoseok is a charismatic, inviting gentleman, right? He knows what to say, and he doesn’t think twice when helping someone in need. That’s very unlike me.”

You don’t know where all of this is coming from. This is new hearing it from Yoongi, and you want to clear up the misunderstanding.

“I get jealous when I see you two together. Seeing you two interact pains me, but truth be told, you two look perfect for each other. And when I see us, I’m not capable of expression.”

“Wait, Yoongi, that’s not—”

“I brought you with me because I wanted to tell you something important: I’m terminating our contract.”

“What?!”

“I came to that answer after seeing your parents. The way they care for each other unconditionally, even when your mother flirted with me, is undeniable. Looking at them, anyone can tell that their love for each other will never fade. But...I can’t say that for us. All I’m capable of is getting you upset and hate me more than you already do.”

On the first day, you said that you never liked him. And since then, you’ve only said that you hate him. But you never felt that way; you were just upset at the time and said anything to relieve your anger.

“I didn’t mean what I said back then! I was just angry, and I really do…”

“I already know your answer. You don’t have to say it.”

“No, just listen to me! I really do like you!!”

Yoongi stares blankly before smiling. “That’s what I was afraid to hear. After all, you did say that you like me only out of pity.”

Right before you can finish your sentence, Yoongi’s car arrives, parking right in front of you two. You shut your mouth, not wanting his chauffeur to hear your conversation when he comes out from the driver’s side to open the door for you two. You enter the car first, but to your surprise, the door shuts behind you before Yoongi could enter.

“Do you remember her home address?” Yoongi asks the chauffeur.

“Yes, sir.”

The chauffeur returns to the driver’s seat, locking the doors before you can unlock it. You unlock the door, but the safety lock is on. You try opening the window, but that’s been put on safety lock too. Yoongi leans over the window while you slam your fists against it.

“What are you doing?!”

“I did say that our contract is over. I’ll have movers return your stuff tomorrow. You don’t have to be stressed because of me anymore.”

“No! Yoongi you idiot! Just listen to me!!”

But in that moment, the chauffeur drives off. You tell him to turn back, but he’s taking you back home because it’s Yoongi’s order. Yoongi watches as the car disappears in the distance. He knows that you’re going to hate him even more because of this, but this is what he wants. He wants you to hate him even more so you can forget about him and move on. Even if all he can do is make you upset, then the least he can do is stop making you miserable.

------

The movers are gathering all of your things and taking them out of the room. It’s been a few hours since the movers came, and now nearly all of your things are gone. The last time Yoongi was in your bedroom was when he was preparing it for you. Now, he’s in here for a final time, ordering the movers of where to put your belongings.

When the next morning arised, Yoongi woke up to an empty villa. He didn’t hear your voice, nor did he hear you coming down the stairs. He was fine with this silence before, but now with you gone, it feels strange for it to be quiet.

You didn’t try contacting him since last night, assuming that his sudden demand to return you home has angered you to the extent of ignoring you. Even though he’s the one who forced you out, he keeps checking his phone in case you’d call, but nothing has come of you. Each time he checks, he would curse himself for being an imbecile and assuming you would contact him.

“Sir, what would you like us to do with this book?” The one in charge of moving asks Yoongi.

He shows Yoongi your sketchbook.

“I can take it out of your hands for you.”

Yoongi takes the sketchbook, having seen it once when you brought it to his room. He flips through the pages and finds all the rough sketches you made during your time here. Most of them are of the flowers that he brought from the mountain, drawn in different shades of black ink. He now knows why you picked the flowers in the first place—you wanted to convert something colorful into black and white.

However, when Yoongi goes through the rest, he notices the drawings of him. They’re not finalized work of him, at most just his head. When did you start sketching him? He never caught you drawing him before. Perhaps he was always busy focusing on his work that he never really stopped to look at you. While you were always treating him like another person, he didn’t do the same for you.

Maybe had he looked up from his work, then he would’ve known what to say and do with you. Yoongi may know a lot of facts about you, he doesn’t really know you. If he wasn’t so focused on finishing this meaningless project, then he would’ve realized a long time ago that he likes you.

On the last page of your sketchbook is an unfinished drawing of him, and next to him is a vase of the flowers he used to give you. Yoongi looks outside through your bedroom window, looking over the U-hauls, over the trees, and at the field of flowers.

------

Yoongi makes it to the flower field, seeing that more has grown since his last entry. He sits down in the center of the field, gazing at the flowers that grow underneath the sun’s gentle light. He never took the time to realize how pretty these flowers are, but it’s unfortunate that he never learned the name of them.

Thinking back at the party, his professors were shocked to hear when he announced that he was stopping his research. They saw potential in it, seeing as sociology is often undermined by other field works. Yoongi’s work would’ve put his university in the spotlight, but that wouldn’t have been fair to you. He thought long and hard about it, and that’s why he concluded that it’s better that he end it early to save what’s left of your summer break for you to enjoy.

But even so, Yoongi can’t help but miss you a little. He’s the one who pushed you away, but he can’t help but want to see you one more time. He didn’t want to admit it, but you mean a lot to him. It didn't register to him that ever since the first time he met you in that art history class, he really did want to develop some sort of relationship.

When the semester was ending, it saddened him that that may be the last time he’ll ever see you, which is why he thought you were a perfect candidate to be his partner—just so he can see you a little longer. Truth be told, Yoongi didn’t actually do any calculations to prove that you’re his opposite, he did it just on intuition, and that intuition was just him simply having a crush on you, but it’s too late for him to say all that now.

From a distance, Yoongi can hear the sound of something rustling through the bushes. Thinking that it’s an animal, he stays alert, keeping his ears keen on whatever’s hiding in the bushes. But he wasn’t anticipating you to jump out of the bushes. He loses his guard when he sees you out of breathe. You’ve changed out of the dress and into your casual clothes.

“(Y/N)?”

“Yoongi!”

With your goal being a few feet away from you, you gather what remains of your strength and try to move your right leg. However, your adrenaline has dissipated when you stopped to take a breath, and now you’re submerged in a wave of exhaustion. You don’t watch where you’re going, so you trip over a branch, landing face first.

Yoongi gets up and runs to your aid. He puts his hand on your shoulder, shaking you gently to make sure that you’re conscious. “(Y/N), are you okay?!”

You lift your head up to reveal your face drenched in sweat and strands of hair matted to your cheeks. “Why the hell are you here alone?! You really aren’t scared of the forest, are you?!”

“What are you talking about?! How did you get here?”

“I was gonna here sooner, but my dad wouldn’t let me see you. I had to sneak out and ride my bike here!”

“How in the…?” Yoongi sighs. “Never mind. Let’s hurry inside and have you treated.”

Right when Yoongi was about to get up, you grab him by the wrist to stop him. “No! We need to talk about this right now!”

“What?”

“I know that once we go inside, you’re going to kick me out again!”

You pull him down hard enough to where Yoongi loses his footing and lands on his bottom.

“Listen to me: I like you. I don’t pity you, and I’m not saying that because I feel bad, but because I really do like you.”

Yoongi is shocked to hear your sudden confession.

“I only said that I hated you because I was angry at you for taking my first confession lightly. I thought it wasn’t fair that I was the only one who was serious, especially since I liked you for a while. I didn’t think it would affect you this much...and I tried denying that it did because I thought that it was going to hurt me in return, just like the first time when I confessed to you.”

All the emotions that you held in finally fills over, letting your tears flow out of your eyes.

“But every day when I saw you, I just couldn’t bring myself to hate you. Learning the small things about you—your fear of horror movies, your passion for your work, your ability to commit to anything—I just ended up liking you even more.”

But in the midst of all the tears, you still muster a wide grin from ear to ear. You take him by the hand, intertwining your fingers with his and feeling his cold hands. You wrap your other hand around his hand, holding it close to your chest.

“Is it okay for me to assume that this time, you really do feel the same for me?”

Yoongi’s eyes widen after hearing your question. Your voice is muddled with doubt, that all your words may fall flat like the day he chained you to his contract. But your eyes glisten with hope, certain that this time, your second attempt at confessing is going to go somewhere after all this development.

Yoongi lets go of your hands so he can cup your cheeks. He leans over and kisses you softly on the lips, staying still for a few seconds before pulling back. You were caught off guard by his sudden kiss, staring at him with a shocked expression and unsure of how to react.

“I like you.”

Your face overheats, even the amount of makeup isn’t enough to hide how red you’ve become by his unforeseen confession. It takes a while for it to hit you that Yoongi has just kissed you—something that would only happen in your dreams. You’re at a loss for words, your bottom lip shaking as you search for anything to say.

“I’m an idiot...I was the one who ended our contract, but I was hoping that you’d still come back,” Yoongi smiles, no longer able to hide how delighted he is to see you again. “And I’m glad you did.”

He leans over and kisses you one more time, but this time, on the forehead. There was a vague taste of sweat on his lips when he got in contact with it, but it didn’t matter to him.

“...I was a fool to treat you this way. I wish I had never done this research in the first place...but if this research had never happened, then I would’ve never met you. In a way, I’m also glad that I did it,” Yoongi leans over and hugs you. “If it’s possible...I would like to form a normal, romantic relationship with you. I won’t record your habits, and you won’t have to be wary of me any longer.”

You can’t help but smile, wrapping your arms around him, finally having Yoong in your grasp. “Sure!”

------

Epilogue

Yoongi registered for art history because he thought that there would be no direct interaction with creating art, but he was wrong. For this class assignment, the students have to make their own work inspired by Picasso’s cubism. The professor provided canvases and paint for everyone, but Yoongi might need another one because he’s not satisfied with his. He thought that since everything should be shaped, it wouldn’t be too difficult. However, he was proven wrong. He doesn’t even know what he’s supposed to be painting either, since the professor said to let their imagination go wild. He doesn’t know why he’s even trying. The only reason why he’s here is to search for someone who can be his partner for his sociology project. It’s already been a few weeks, and he so far he’s had no luck.

“If you don’t use different colors, then your painting won’t come out right.”

“But I really wanted to try to do all in black…”

Yoongi turns his head to the professor talking to the student sitting next to him.

“You even painted your canvas all white when you didn’t have to. I told you to focus on the assignment.”

“Sorry.”

The professor walks off to help the other students. Yoongi leans over to get a look at the student’s work, and it doesn’t look half bad from his standpoint. Her painting is only black, but Yoongi can’t make out what she painted. And the professor is right—only her black and white paint jars have been used up but not the other colors. The student looks dejected, as if she’s already become attached to her work and is upset that the professor didn’t meet eye-to-eye with her.

“Excuse me…” She asks Yoongi.

Yoongi didn’t think she was talking to him until she kept staring at him for a while. He turns to her and raises an eyebrow.

“Can I borrow some of your black? I kinda used up all of mine…”

“Go ahead.”

“Thank you!”

She leans over to grab his black paint, and doing so makes her peek at his artwork. She stops what she’s doing and stares at it.

“Oh? What were you trying to make?”

“I...don’t know. Since I had nothing in mind, I went along with whatever I made.”

“Wow, that’s cool.”

To his surprise, she didn’t criticize him for his lack of experience. Clearly, based on his work, it looks nothing spectacular, and he’s just glad the professor hasn’t seen it yet.

“I’m the opposite. I have to have something in mind to make it. And what’s worst, I’m not good at painting.”

“Are you an art history major?”

She nods. “And you?”

“Sociology major.”

“Really?! What’s a sociology major doing here in an art history class? To get rid of general credits?”

“You can say that.”

She scoffs once, finding amusement in his answer. “What a weird way to answer that question, but I like it.”

She leans over and stretches her hand out for a handshake.

“My name is (Y/N). It’s nice to meet you.”

Yoongi takes you by the hand and shakes it. Your hand feels soft despite having paint smeared on it, and he finds it oddly soothing.

“Min Yoongi. And thank you for the compliment. I find your work interesting as well.”

You flinch, and he notices your cheeks turning slightly red.

“No way...Professor Sun said that it doesn’t convey our assignment that well...”

“But you’re an artist, and an artist shouldn’t be restricted to rules, right? Express yourself.”

He doesn’t know why you’re feeling bashful for a half-hearted compliment.

You lift your head up and chuckle slightly. “Thanks, and you should express yourself too. I wanna see more of your work some day.”

And ever since then, you’ve been talking to him. You would ask him about his day, then you would go on complaining about how you agree and disagree with your professors sometimes. You didn’t go overboard and pestered him every moment of the day, just mainly in class. But that time together in class felt short for Yoongi, and he wanted to get to know you more. Although he despises having menial conversations, he can’t help but become invested with your words. Whenever he’s with you...he would think about how he wouldn’t mind if you became his partner.

“(Y/N), did you ever figure out the name of these flowers?”

You and Yoongi are by the flower field, and you’re sketching Yoongi. He’s centered in the middle of the field, surrounded by an array of orange petals. While you did hear his question, you don’t look at him because of how focused you are in making the perfect sketch of him.

“No, why?”

“No matter how hard I try searching for their name, I can never find it. I’ve seen them so many times since my childhood, and yet I never found the name,” Yoongi reaches down and picks out one. “But I gave up.”

“That’s weird hearing that from you.”

“It’s because if I keep trying to find the answer, I won’t be able to stop and take the time to look at the beauty of it. Maybe that’s why I was so drawn to you.”

You blush, hiding your face behind the sketchpad to prevent him from seeing how embarrassed you are.

“I’ve always been told that finding an answer to the question is satisfying, but you opposed that, enjoying the experience rather than searching for the end. Even if I’ll never figure out what’ll happen to us in the end, I’m glad I get to enjoy this time with you right now.”

You crunch up, cringing at Yoongi’s words, but it always finds a way to make you flattered. “You really do like speaking in pretty words, b-but...I feel the same way too. A-anyways...I finished the drawing.”

He moves close to you, sitting next to you with no gap in the middle. Once he sees the drawing, he smiles, complimenting it. You’re not good with words, but your body expresses it all, and your face tells him that you’re also satisfied with the final result. Yoongi knows that, for once, you and him have something in common, and it’s the strong bond you two have grown since the first day.

Yoongi rests his head on your shoulder, mouthing the words, ‘I love you’.

[End]

A/N: I hope this fic is interesting to the readers ;-; Anyway, thank you for reading this! If you have anything to say, please don’t be afraid to message me or comment! :)

Masterlist

[awaylaughing]

Pippa and Hamin for the ship meme!

let’s GOOOOO. Under a read more because I can talk about Ideas For Fucking Ever. The meme in question and if you read this and think “golly gee, I’d love to give you an opprotunity to chat more about othere people” I have a shiny new character page you could reference here.

who’s the werewolf and who’s the hunter

This one I had to think about. Hamin probably makes a better werewolf, but Pippa makes a UNIQUELY terrible hunter so, pivoting ever so slightly maybe she’s more like a behind the scenes information broker type (Pippa, Collector and Keeper of Secrets is incredibly canon after all). She’d obviously have to start off allied with the hunters, to keep the tension with Hamin real and true. Hamin’s pack doesn’t have the WORST reputation possible, but they’re definitely not above suspicion. They retain their passion for ocean voyages, which strikes other people as odd because prejudice.

That said, you know who ALSO makes a great werewolf? Pippa’s mother and “aunt”, Roshan and Jessamine, so Pippa as part of a bamf all lady’s wolf pack who get tangled up with hunter shenanigans is also an excellent plot. Not least because Pippa would be a very pretty wolf, I dare say (maybe they’d actually be were-jackels, a la the Golden Jackel? A Consideration, given where I HC a modern AU Pippa would be from).

In this case I’d say the lady’s pack almost never maul people, except maybe domestic abusers and rapists, but who can blame them? So another pack moves in (it’s prob Jarrude’s lbr) and causes problems and Very Serious Hunter Hamin (ha) has to wade through the complicated world of lycanthrope politics to find The Truth. And of course falls in love with the nicest werewolf this side of whatever major geographical feature of your choice.

who’s the mermaid and who’s the fisherman

Mermaid Pippa and “fisherman” Hamin, natch. Pippa’s not very ruthless canonically, but I can apply liberal use of Alternate Cultural POVs On Ethics and say Pippa only leaves her goaded people on rocks, she never drowns them! That’s very nice of her! And sometimes she pulls an Ariel and helps a bro out, which is probably related to how her and Hamin meet. Some options:

1. Pippa had previously saved Hamin’s life, so in turn, something happens and she gets caught, and he saves her life as repayment. Similar to Bog Standard Plot Below, she’s obviously too injured to return to sea so they’re forced to cohabitate. High jinks and romance ensue.

2. Bog standard mermaid washed ashore plot. Bathtub high jinks ensue. There’s a scene where someone catches Hamin carrying a bucket of raw fish into his house and he has to explain it away. Leala catches on in the first 20 mins. At some point, they’re forced to bring Pippa to dinner with Hamin’s dad and there is much nerves, only for Pippa to reveal she’s stranded many a gentlemen adventurer in her time and she picked up some epic etiquette knowledge along the way.

3. Hamin gets stranded somewhere and Pippa’s the only person around who can come visit. It starts with her bringing him fish. Requisite Second Act Breakup is when Pippa, conscience having formed in the last hour of run time, reveals a way off his small deserted island. Obviously, he sails off in a huff and they meet up again in the next 35 minutes, have the big damn kiss and idk how you turn this one into a true happy ending and not a sort of esoteric one but Hollywood and or an Indie Darling Director will manage.

who’s the witch and who’s the familiar

Witch Pippa, hands down the answer. She gets it from her grandmother (er, step-grandmother?). Does Hamin have an animal form? If so, does it align to Pippa Aesthetic and is he a snakey boi or, does he get to pick? What would Hamin pick? Seagull - the goose of the sea?

Other option is he’s always human and either case I’m betting Hamin’s not a traditional familiar. Rather, he needed to get out Faerie/Familiarland STAT and filched Pippa’s contract off a Traditional And Proper Familiar and got himself a ticket to human land away from whoever he pissed off.

High jinks ensue.

who’s the barista and who’s the coffee addict

I had to think about this one because I mean let’s be very real here - neither Pippa, Quintessential Nice But Still Privileged Rich Girl or Hamin “cause problems for the staff on purpose” are shoe ins for having worked for customer service. That said, Hamin’s more likely to piss off his dad and be forced to get a job and like, have a real person job in general. So, Hamin’s barista job is his in-world Summit equivelent and he planned to quit the moment he paid off whatever damages he’s definitely paying off.

Except, Pippa comes in and orders only moderately complicated coffee orders and this isn’t a place that does the name thing so Hamin knows Nothing except she’s friendly and pretty and omg this one is perfect to throw in the OT3 because clearly the only reason he doesn’t just immediately ask Pippa for her name and number and also the next 20 years of her life pls and thanks is her hot boyfriend.

(But it’s okay, Pippa has two hands and so does Zarad u_u)

Otherwise she’d have to be someone who just comes to drive through bc idk why he’d hold off on asking since this is HAMIN we’re talking about.

who’s the professor and who’s the TA

...either of these two in academia is an interesting prospect. Maybe he’s a kid who got into archeology because of Indiana Jones and, while there’s far fewer chase scenes and death traps, Hamin ended up with a PhD and a job and look, he’s as confused as you are about how this all happened. It’s alright though because the job does come with cute anthropology TAs who work in an allied and often cross referential field. Pippa’s less immediately enamoured with Hamin but warms up because he’s the only person who actually listens to her and doesn’t treat her like she’s a child just because she’s a short woman.

This one could be set in exciting locales for a bit of Indie Flavour but with more consent and less horrifying age gaps, and no breaking of international laws and if anyone gets squished by rocks it’s a horrifying rock slide scenario.

Alternatively, polisci professor Pippa is working alongside the marine biology department to work on smth enviro-politics and ocean protection. TA Hamin is Very Enthusiastic about helping her out. This one features a scene where people naturally assume Hamin’s the professor and he trolls the ever living shit out of them.

This one is set in conferences which is 10000% less sexy but also way more familiar.

Depends on the vibes u want. Either way, Lyon is there somewhere and he and Pippa are unlikely friends purely because 4′10″ Pippa and like, 6′5″ or whatever Lyon being friends is never not hilarious. He definitely disapproves of Hamin just in general but especially in a library setting.

who’s the knight and who’s the prince(ss)

This is legit a Knight’s Tale AU, except instead of Jousting, we’ll say Hamin ends up taking Princess Pippa across the country as a sort of personal security situations and, as usual high jinks ensue. IDK who makes the best Chaucer stand in as a pal to help Hamin in his quest but he definitely needs the help. Pippa catches on like, super fast anyway because her interpersonal insight is boss af but she just goes with it because it’s amusing and he’s doing a fine job.

Another candidate for the OT3 bc Chaucer!Zarad is perfect, but so is the plot being that Hamin and Zarad had a thing aaages ago, now Pippa’s being carted off to marry prince Zarad and oh hey this is also nearly a Sinbad AU but with the proper Poly Ending in place

There is no AU where Pippa’s a the knight to Hamin’s prince, I’m sad to say. Her martial skills are about nil.

who’s the teacher and who’s the single parent

HMMM. I think Early Childhood Specialist Hamin and Parent Pippa shake out best, mostly because at the end of the day I don’t think Pippa like...likes kids that much. She doesn’t dislike them but she’d never want a life devoted to spending all her time with them. Her own kids though, different story.

Evil instinct says dad is Clarmont, because I feel like Clarmont is really easy to kill off in incredibly tragic but heroic circumstances and Modern AU Pippa would totally be down for a Clarmont romance. Anyway, Pippa has an adorable little girl who thinks Mr. Hamin is the BEST teacher, he helped her dig up worms for her show and tell at recess mama!

Pippa and Hamin in this set up don’t actually meet for like, a solid three months so they both form skew-whiff images of the other and so they get a CLASSIC “oh no (s)he’s hot / THIS IS MR. HAMIN / THIS IS MS. X” moment. Adorable Little Girl is captain of this ship despite being like, 4 and Pippa and Hamin are just along for the ride.

High jinks ensue.

(alt bc I’m never not on my bullshit dad is Zarad, and not dead and they just never married bc Family Drama and OT3 babey)

who’s the writer and who’s the editor

Absolutely writer Hamin and editor Pippa. She inherited from someone who quit and she really shakes things up by like, having Expectations and shit and Hamin, who’s been not in a good place following a personal trauma, finds himself annoyed for all of two seconds before she shows up on his doorstep on the day after a due date because if he wants to play Pippa will Play. And oh no, she’s cute. Hamin is enraptured, Pippa just wants him to work at first. Romance blossoms lopsidedly but he charms her after some sort of deal is struck that includes her dragging him out of the house to buy food or just go for a walk or whatever.

Shenanigan ensue.

This one is pure fluff about the power of human connection, there is no second act drama they get to skip ahead AND collect their 20 dollars it’s great.

[mysteryofren]

More Than Enough

Part 9 of So Happy Together

part 8

Note: theres a song that kind of inspired the name and closing lines. it always reminds me of friendship and how important it is. its called all that we get by first aid kit. give it a listen if you wanna get the vibe this chapters giving off!

   The next morning was much the same. You woke up. Got ready, and headed for your first class. On your way to the first period of the day, you ran into Hux and Phasma. Phasma gave you a big smile and waved you over. You jogged across the lawn holding your skirt down so nobody got an unnecessary show. Once you reached them they both said hello and asked you to walk with them. 

“Y/N i was wondering if we could sit together first period. Last night reminded me of how much I love being around you!”

“Ummm, of course, I forgot how much we clicked too, i feel like I haven't been a very good friend.”

“I can assure you i've been just as bad. I never reached out to you much either.” she said gently, placing her hand on your shoulder as you all started walking.

“I can testify that Phas, is indeed, a bad friend.” Hux teased. It was weird seeing him so relaxed, you figured it was a perk of being his friend. Ever since that morning at the diner you always saw a less serious version of him. Once you had reached the building where your first classes were held, Hux announced that he would have to be on his way to reach his class. You all said goodbye as you continued walking with Phasma. Once you stepped through the building doors you saw Ben leaning against a wall. Someone was with him, but not just anyone. It was Rey, you should've known she would have dug her claws in quick. He turned over to you when his smile dropped. You gave him a small wave when he said something to Rey then walked away. She looked over at you and began charging towards you.  

  Phasma had noticed the change of your facial expression. You could tell she was about to ask you something when you felt something ram into you. You fell back and dropped your bag, all its contents spilling out. You looked up and saw Rey looking down at you.

“I see you're still a clumsy little shit, guess some things never change, huh?” you watched as smiled, turned and walked away.

Phasma bent down to help you gather your things, “she's still a bitch to you after all these years? Some things never change I guess.” 

You could tell she was making fun of what she had said, but you were too hurt by Ben to focus on your cousin. Once everything was in your bag phasma stood, and held out her hand to help you up. You took it and stood up. While you fixed your skirt the bell had gone off. Great now you were late on top of everything. You both ran to your class and the professor had been waiting outside. 

“Ladies, might I ask why you're late.” Miss Sloane was intense, she almost scared you. Before you had a chance to answer phasma spoke up. 

“I'm sorry professor Sloane. The hall was crowded and we bumped into someone and our things fell. It won't happen again. I promise.” who would've thought that she was charismatic. You saw Sloane turn towards you. 

“This is your first tardy in the 3 years youve been in my class. I won't count it this time.” she stepped out of the doorway allowing you both to enter. You rushed to the back table where there were two empty spots and sat. you went the whole class not speaking, trying to avoid further trouble. Near the end of class everyone had finished up early, and Sloane had decided to give everyone free time. That's when phasma asked the dreaded question. 

“So. What happened out there? That guy looked at you and your whole mood changed.”

You leaned closer to her so nobody could hear your conversation. “That was Ben solo.”

“I don't see how that's relevant to you looking like your soul had been crushed.”

  You took the time to give her a brief summary of the situation. She gave you a sad look when you told her about the kiss, and how he was your first kiss. 

“Oh honey. That sounds so beautiful, why do you think he's acting like this all of a sudden?” 

“I don't know, but it hurts. He seemed like he really liked me. What sucks is I have to see his brother a lot, and he knows about it. What do i do if he asks about me and him again?”

Her face twisted and she looked thoughtful for a second. “Is his brother Matt?” 

“Yes.” you replied. 

“Now that i think about it. I see it. Anyways, if he asks, tell him the truth, maybe he can tell you what is going on.”

  The bell rang dismissing you to your next class. You slowly got up, not wanting to go back out. In fact you wanted nothing more than to go back to your dorm. Hell, part of you wanted to run to your grandfathers. Your perfect attendance kept you from it though. As you walked out she invited you to sit with her and Hux at lunch. You told her about the project with Matt and she informed you that he sat with them anyways. You never noticed who hung out with who until now. You reluctantly agreed, and you two went your separate ways. You went to your next class, which was one you hated. You had somehow gotten into calculus. You have no clue how you sucked at math, but the worst part was you had it with Rey. 

  You walked in and noticed you had gotten there before her. You took a spot in the back, hoping to be ignored by her. Soon everyone had arrived, but her. You had a moment of relief, before the door opened. She walked in and after her came Ben. Perfect. Professor Windu asked about the man behind her and she had informed him that he had been moved into the class. The professor welcomed him and asked him to introduce himself. When he stood at the front of the room he looked around. You tried putting your head down, but you knew he had seen you. 

“Uhh, im Ben. Ben Solo. This is actually my last year in school, so it's kinda pointless for my parents to move me here, but here I am,” you looked up and you had looked him right in the eyes. “Guess it could be worse though.” you remembered those words. He said those exact words to you. It could be worse. It felt almost dirty hearing him say it again in front of a crowd. 

  He kept his eyes locked on yours as he took his seat next to Rey. you hated this. You hated it with everything in you. This was going to be excruciating. Not only did you have to be in a room with someone who made you absolutely miserable, but you had to watch as she threw herself all over the guy you liked. You tried your best to stay focused, but it was hard. 

Once more you heard the bell and you waited until Ben and Rey had walked out before moving towards the door. A couple more periods went by and eventually it was your lunch period. You made your way towards the cafeteria waiting for someone from your group to arrive so they could show you where they sit. After a while you decide to text Matt and ask about where they sit. Once you were told you made your way over. On your way there you came face to face with Rey, and what a surprise, Ben. she made a face at you before bumping into you again. You looked at Ben with sadness in your eyes. All he did was shake his head and follow after Rey. You watched as they sat with her friends. Poe, Finn, and Rose. you had known them well. You all were friends at one point, but in this school it was all about money. The more money you had the cooler you were. To put it in polite your parents were filthy rich. They could sell their business’ and there would be enough money to last until your kids were in their teens. There were a few things about it though. You didn't like that social system, and you didn't like flaunting your wealth. Rey on the other hand. Her mother, your father's sister, had married super rich. A Palpatine. They were old money, not new money like your family. Rey loved letting people know she was richer than them. It was like a personality trait to her. 

  You walked over to where Matt, Phasma, and Hux were sitting. You tried your best to forget about the whole day and focus on your project, and friends. You couldn't help but look over at Ben every now and then. He looked sad. Meanwhile everyone around him was talking, almost ignoring him. You decided to try and reach out. Just to gauge if there was still something there. You sent a text to him asking if he was alright. You hit sent and watched carefully. You watched as he took his phone out and read the message. He looked up at you with his phone still in his hands. Looking you dead in the eyes he put his phone back in his pocket, and jumped into the conversation that everyone at his table was having. Okay. that hurt. That hurt more than anything, more than seeing him with rey in the hall. More than him being rude that first day. This was a new hurt. This. This was a heartbreak. You felt the tears welling up before you were pulled out of your thoughts when Hux had put his hand on your shoulder. 

“You alright?” you looked up to see your friends watching you as tears fell down your face. Phasma looked at where you had been looking. She looked right at Ben with a look of anger on her face. 

You quickly gathered your things. “I'm sorry, I'm not feeling well, i've gotta go.”

  Your run out, having to pass by Ben's table made you cry harder, but you didn't care who saw. You ran straight for your dorm tears streaming down your face as you went. As soon as you got there you ran in throwing yourself on your bed. your body wracked with an onslaught of sobs. You cried hard, and you cried loud. If you could guess it wasn't just because of Ben, it was the pain of being ignored by someone else. You're always ignored by the people you want most, and you were growing weary of it. You had only ever wanted your parents attention. Ben was the only other person where you desperately wanted his attention. He had given it to you so easily, and just as quickly he had taken it back. You eventually cried yourself to sleep.

 You woke up to the sound of knocking at your door. You weren't sure how much time had passed, but you got up and opened the door. Matt stood there looking down at you. You never noticed how tall he was until now. He walked past you into your room, and sat on the bed. You looked at the clock in the hall. Your last period was supposed to be starting now, why was he here? 

“You left lunch pretty quick. You were so upset I was positive you weren't coming to class so I thought I'd come check up on you.” he said with a soft voice. 

“Why? You're gonna get in trouble for skipping.”

“I know we don't know each other too well, but I like you, you’re so cool, and I just wanted to make sure you were okay.” 

   You stayed silent. Trying to find an excuse so you wouldn't have to tell him about his brother. 

“Phas told me about Ben. he's an ass trust me Y/N nobody knows that better than me.” you walked over to sit next to him. As soon as you sat down you started sobbing again. He put his arm around you and let you cry. It was a while before he had said anything.

“Look, i can see how it would be weird to talk about it with me. I'm willing to listen though, if you want to sit in silence and cry, I'll let you do that too, but just know me, Phas, and Hux are all here for you.“ you hugged him and he awkwardly hugged you back. 

“Do you think it was something I did?” you asked him.

“No. for sure no. If anything something probably happened, and he got scared. For as tough as he acts he runs at the first sight of emotions.” you laughed. 

You sat up wiping the tears off your face. “I don't know why, I just feel so heartbroken over this. I've never felt this way about anyone.”

“Trust me I get the feeling. You never knew this, but I've had a crush on Elaine since like 3rd grade. I told her about it and she rejected me. She wanted to focus on school. I understood, but it hurt like hell still. She agreed to not bring it up to anyone because of how embarrassed i was.”

“How'd you deal with it?”

“I didn't have a lot of friends, but the few I did I kinda just hung out with them. It distracted me. I had them so everything was okay.” 

You nodded and took in his advice. You had him. You had Phasma, and Hux. most importantly you had Elaine. You haven't been friends with them long, but a part of you knew that Hux, Phasma, and Matt loved you. You knew without a doubt that Elaine loved and adored you. You knew they would be there. You knew they'd help. Most importantly you knew it would be alright and that one day the pain that Ben Solo had caused you would all be a distant memory. All because you had them. What if this was all that you get? Now that you think about it. That was enough. That was more than enough.

[noramoya]

MICHAEL JACKSON, BLACK SUPERHERO: African-American Artists And Intelectuals, From Jay-Z To Henry Louis Gates, Weight In On Jackson’s Legacy.

“When Michael Jackson was a boy, you didn’t have to say “black is beautiful,” you just had to look at him and you knew. In 1969, as black people were getting comfortable with the idea that African features are gorgeous, he arrived as the perfect punctuation of that idea. He was cherubic with his rich brown skin, a broad nose and a big halo of curls atop his head at a time when the Afro was a powerful symbol of black pride. “People responded viscerally to Michael Jackson’s beauty,” says Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. 1969 was a year after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a time when the black-power and civil rights movements seemed to be disintegrating, but Michael showed up, a soul-music prodigy irrepressibly optimistic and bursting with youthful enthusiasm. “Here was a child who clearly understood the R&B idiom,” says music-industry veteran Gary Harris. “He was some sort of test-tube creation from a mad soul doctor’s lab. If Diana Ross and Stevie Wonder had a child, it would have been Michael Jackson.”

He quickly became the number-one black child star of his era, and of all time. The first four Jackson 5 singles each topped Billboard‘s Hot 100, an unbelievable start. Black people fell in love so hard, he became more than an artist and more like a member of the family. You didn’t want anything to happen to him so much that you felt protective the way you did about a younger brother. “He was ours,” says Q-Tip. “He meant everything to black culture.”

It wasn’t just about Michael. A few years after the Johnson administration declared the black family broken with the Moynihan Report, the Jackson family was large, intact, vibrant, successful and seemingly happy, giving America an idealized image of domestic bliss. Jay-Z told me he grew up pretending to be Michael, singing alongside his two older sisters and brother. “Here you had Michael and four brothers,” says the Rev. Al Sharpton, “all talented and all cute and the strong father and the mother who was matriarchal and Janet, and it was like, ‘Wow, all this talent in this family, showing we could do something.’ We were proud of that.”

Michael had a second family: Motown was a deeply trusted brand in millions of black households. If Berry Gordy said it was good enough to release, you could bet it was great. The Jackson 5 were the last great act to come out of the Detroit label, further proof of Malcolm Gladwell’s theory in ‘Outliers: The Story of Success’, that life timing is critical to success, that the historical forces swirling around the moment when you emerge can make all the difference. “The Jacksons were the first family in line to truly benefit from the post-civil-rights era with America’s new open-arms policy toward black entertainment,” says ?uestlove. “1969 was the year the social floodgates opened and an 11-year-old led the charge in post-Malcolm/Martin/Motown America. Historians always forget the third-most-important M to help black America get access to the promised land is Motown

Thriller came out at the end of 1982, as the affirmative-action generation was beginning to make its move. Jesse Jackson would make a bid for the presidency, Eddie Murphy would launch his assault on the top layers of Hollywood, Oprah Winfrey would start her legendary talk show, and Bill Cosby would create the best-rated sitcom of the decade. Even before all that started, the vibe of black ascensionism was in the air, and Michael saw no reason why race should hold him back from the most elite level of his profession. He decided to ride his excellence to the zenith. Current Motown president Sylvia Rhone says, “Throughout his career, his success dramatically affected my view of what was possible and open for African-Americans.”

Many blacks now compare Michael with Barack Obama – perhaps the highest possible compliment in black America. Not only are they both integrationists and racial harmonists, but they both were determined to reach the top while refusing to let race hold them back. “There’s so many components of why Barack Obama is president,” says Diddy, “and Michael Jackson is one of them. He started a change in the perception of the African-American male on a worldwide level: his strength, always putting himself in a power position, being seen as a hero.” Sharpton echoes the point. “Way before Tiger Woods or Barack Obama, Michael made black people go pop-culture global,” he says. “You had people in France, South America and Iowa comfortable with their kids imitating a black kid from Gary, Indiana. And when some of those people in Iowa grew, they were comfortable with voting for Barack Obama because they got comfortable imitating a black kid named Michael Jackson when they were young. Obama is a phenomenon, but he’s the result of a process that Michael helped America graduate to.”

Michael was also a boardroom killer. In the decades before him, black recording artists were, as James Brown observed, in the show but not in show business. Many ended up losing the copyrights to their own songs and pocketing a fraction of the money their music brought in. Jackson knew all about that history. “He knew Berry Gordy made his money off copyrights,” cultural critic Nelson George says. “He knew the value of songs. That’s something he understood.” In 1984, when the ATV music-publishing catalog, which contained 251 Beatles songs, including “Yesterday,” “Let It Be” and “Hey Jude,” as well as work from Bob Dylan, went up for sale, Jackson went after it. After 10 months of negotiation, Jackson purchased the catalog for $47.5 million. His stake is now worth more than 10 times that, and the move was easily his shrewdest business conquest – and the asset that kept him afloat during his financially troubled last years. It proved his savvy, separating him from all those previous black artists who lacked the power to control the music business. But more than that, the symbolic power of Jackson owning the Beatles’ music cannot be overstated. Not only did he become as big as the Beatles, he bought them too. A century after American whites owned blacks, a black performer owned the product of the most elite white group in the world. It was an amazing turnabout, and one blacks took special pride in. A few nights after Jackson died, I was in L.A., searching the radio for an MJ song, when I came across “Strawberry Fields Forever” on an oldies station. I said, “Fuck it, Mike owns this. Same difference.” And I listened.

By the Nineties, Jackson no longer looked like a black person – after a series of surgeries, his facial features and skin color had become more and more Caucasoid. George says, “I don’t think there was any question: There was disquiet in the black community about the color thing. It was an issue. People didn’t wanna go out and say, ‘He’s fuckin’ becoming white,’ but people were like, ‘What’s that about?'” As Jackson was literally assimilating, we struggled with his choices but never symbolically tossed him out of the race, even though he seemed to be trying to surgically remove himself from it. “The reason black folk never turned their backs on him,” says Georgetown professor Michael Eric Dyson, “is because we realized he was merely acting out on his face what we collectively have been tempted to do in our souls: whitewash the memory and trace of our offending blackness.” Still, we struggled to understand why. Some have said he no longer wanted to see his father in the mirror, but there seem to be deeper forces at play. “I think he wanted to be a symbol of universalism,” Gates says, “and he erroneously thought his skin color, hair texture, the length of his nose and shape of his chin inhibited that. You could say he was appealing to the universal, but there’s no way of escaping, even giving him the benefit of the doubt, that it’s a function of Negro self-hatred and self-loathing, which is a function of slavery, Jim Crow, segregation and racism, which made blacks hate the very things that make them beautiful.”

Those who knew Jackson well say he wasn’t trying to surgically remove himself from the race. Producer Teddy Riley, who worked on Jackson’s Dangerous album, says, “Of course he loved being black. We’d be in sessions where we’d just vibe out and he’d say, ‘We are black, and we are the most talented people on the face of the Earth.’ I know this man loved his culture, he loved his race, he loved his people.” Questlove adds, “As a fellow child of a taskmaster, no one knows self-distorted insecurity like I do. A person ashamed of his roots would never have made a gazillion odes to Africa as he’s done.” And even as his face got whiter, his music stayed black and rooted in the R&B tradition he mastered as a kid.”

[writcraft]

Rec List #1 Theme: 2018 Favourites (Non-Drarry)

One of my fandom resolutions is to rec more in 2019. I’m going to post rec lists for some of my favourite HP fics divided up by theme/content/ship or whatever I fancy throughout the year, aiming for one rec list a month with two in January. I thought I would kick off 2019 with two lists of 2018 favourites. This first one excludes Drarry because I’ve read mostly Drarry this year and limiting myself to ten recs per list would be impossible if I included all the Drarry I’ve enjoyed within a list of just ten. The second list will be my favourite Drarry fics of 2018, then I’ll move on to other themes for the remaining months.

Usual caveats for recs apply. This is by no means an exhaustive list, I could have recced many more. I’ve read and enjoyed a whole raft of terrific stories and this rec list is simply based on my personal tastes which may not be everybody else’s cuppa. Please heed the content warnings the author has flagged on AO3 in each case, some of these fics contain darker content and I haven’t listed out any warnings in my recs and summaries.

#1. A Radical Change in (Self) Perception by AnyaElizabeth

Severus Snape/Harry Potter | 57,114

Harry should know better than to touch museum exhibits, especially in a magical museum. Now he's in trouble...

My Rec: I haven’t read a huge amount of body swap fics and I can’t remember the last body swap Snarry I read, and I was so intrigued by how the author would handle this premise. I devoured the whole 50,000+ words in one sitting I was so engaged by this charming story. The body swap forced Harry and Severus to spend more time together but it did so much more than that - it enabled them to better understand one another and also themselves, when they saw each other through a different lens. The writing is terrific and if you’re a Snarry shipper this one is guaranteed to give you all the warm and fuzzies. A great addition to the wonderful Snarry fanfic that has posted throughout 2018.

#2. Hallo Spaceboy by @shiftylinguini

James Potter/Teddy Lupin | 10,075

“If this mirror could talk,” James remembers declaring, already one drink down and trying to tidy up his ridiculous costume eyeliner, “it would say we look bloody amazing.”

Teddy’s arm was warm when he wrapped it around James’s shoulder, pulling him closer.

“We always do, love.” Teddy tugged on a long curl of James’s hair before tucking it behind his ear, then smoothing the whole lot of it back. “We’re the fittest blokes at the party, us.”

James’d had to give up on the eyeliner after that; he was grinning too hard, flushed and happy and basking in Teddy’s attention (fit blokes, we’re fit blokes, that’s us), and he couldn't bloody stop.

Or: James kissed Teddy last night. This may or may not be the end of the world.

My Rec: A thoroughly charming fic featuring trans James waking up in the morning and coming to terms with a kiss with his best mate Teddy Lupin the night before. I loved the quietness of this story, the way James being trans was part of it but not the primary focus. James feeding bread to the ducks on a grotty park bench is honestly such a beautiful, persistent and soothing image, and I loved the whole story from start to finish. It’s got lovely, warm coming of age vibes to it and I felt James’ conflict and fears come through so well in the telling of this story. Wonderfully written.

#3. Of Reckoning and Ruin by @half-light-01

Severus Snape, Albus Dumbledore | 10,585

"And it is the eternal rule that drops of blood spilled on the ground demand yet more blood." 

One year after Lily Potter's death, Severus Snape's Dark Mark comes to life. Caught between a creature that wants him dead, and a Headmaster who needs him alive, the young Hogwarts professor is forced to reckon with his past and negotiate his future.

My Rec: I discovered this terrific fic at the end of this year and boy oh boy am I glad I did. The relationship between Severus and Albus is, in my view, one of the most complex and fascinating of the Harry Potter series. This story explores the darker sides we see of Dumbledore in canon through his interactions with Snape, but most of all it is a complex and fascinating character study of Severus, his grief, his guilt, his inner turmoil. The author really gets into the grit of both characters without flinching away from it and the creature in the story gives it a very unsettling quality which forces us to question who can be trusted, if anyone. A really engaging, well told story with a deft handling of complex characters. 

#4. my heart beat a tattoo on my ribs by @candybarrnerd / icarusinflight

Ginny Weasley/Luna Lovegood | 7,403

Ginny can't understand why anyone would want to mark themselves by choice but she still agrees to go with Harry when he says he wants a tattoo.

My Rec: I loved this beautiful story of tattoo artist Luna and a Ginny still processing the trauma and grief of war. The friendship between Ginny and Harry is wonderfully crafted and the dull ache of grief that grips Ginny is beautifully handled - it’s softly done and never overwrought and the story is ultimately one of healing and hope. A really terrific, sexy read and one I’ll definitely return to again.

#5. Distortion by DorthyAnn (JenniferMarie)

Harry Potter Centric (see AO3 for more detail) | 8,924

Harry wakes in darkness. A darkness that goes on and on without end. He can’t see or feel, he doesn’t know what’s happened. All he can do is hold on, replaying his memories to keep him sane. Until it’s over. Until he can go home again.

My Rec: This is horror as I love it the most. A strange, unsettling, superbly written story which grapples with identity, perception of self, loss of identity and evokes a creepy, oppressive sense of things going horribly awry. The Potterverse is so rich with details of magic and potions which can be used to alter ones own perception of themselves and the rest of the world, and the author uses the magic of canon in a deft and eerie way to create a gripping, unnerving tale of psychological horror. 

#6. Soft Touch by perverse_idyll

Severus Snape/Harry Potter | 15,167

Harry's love life has been dismal, and he finds himself checking into a therapeutic massage clinic just to get off - the same clinic to which Snape had been delivered three years earlier for physical therapy.

My Rec: Perverse Idyll is one of those authors whose fics I read and they stay with me for a long time after. One of the first Snarry authors I properly discovered on the journals, Perverse Idyll and I see Snape somewhat differently at times (although the meta conversations that results in are always an absolute privilege and pleasure) but I think that’s one of the things I find so compelling whenever I read PI’s fic. Perverse Idyll takes Snape to places I struggle to as a writer, and I find him absolutely captivating. He never loses his sharpness, his bitterness or his moral ambiguity and there is nothing more compelling than reading an unapologetically brittle Snape from the deft hand of a terrific writer who knows the character inside out and has formed deep, intricate views about his complexities and motivations and lets all his flaws sing instead of silencing or softening them in an attempt to make him more palatable. This is such an electric, sensual, sexy story with tension ramped up to the max. Brilliant.

#7. Rooftop Ruminations by @thealmostrhetoricalquestion​

Pansy Parkinson/Ginny Weasley | 12,209

Ginny barely registered the evening. The musician, whose bow wrung sounds from the strings with a casual, carefree elegance that Ginny would have usually envied, was just a blur in front of her face. The steps she took to the Rialto Bridge once everyone was ready felt too light and airy, and Luna’s hand in hers was just a wisp of citrus-scented silk. The night grew cooler and Ginny didn’t feel it. Simpering crush, Daphne had said. Pansy had a simpering crush. The words bobbed to the surface of her thoughts and pinched at her wrists and looped around her ears. She kept glancing at Pansy in her velvet skirt and towering heels, and she kept not knowing what to feel.

She wasn’t sure who she wanted Pansy’s crush to be on, and she hated that she didn’t know.

My Rec: This is such a gorgeous piece of writing. The scene setting is so immersive and wistful somehow, there’s a quietness to the pace of the story and the telling of it that made it such a wonderful read. I found myself completely engaged by the unfolding of the story, the richness of the details and descriptions sprinkled throughout, the handling of Ginny’s grief, the sparks and flickers of her feelings as she explores her growing attraction to Pansy and past feelings for Luna. I highly recommend this beautifully told story. 

#8. The Frame by mindabbles

Sirius Black/James Sirius Potter | 11,703

What are the ethical implications of falling for a person you're named after? How about the logistical complications of falling for someone who shouldn’t be alive? James would rather, he finds, not look too closely at either, not when Sirius makes him forget anyone else exists. 

My Rec: I left a prompt for Next Gen Fest involving time travel and James Sirius meeting his namesake and I was so excited when I saw it had been claimed. This fic was absolutely terrific. The idea of the portrait / painting being suspended on the wall mirrors this moment of James Sirius and Sirius suspended in time and I love that the author chose to end the story when they did, leaving things open and ambiguous but in a way that still felt very satisfying. Sirius and James are brilliantly characterised and there are wonderful doses of humour throughout what is a fairly tragic premise. The sex is hot enough to burn and the story has a gentle hopefulness which left me feeling really warm and content, despite the openness of the ending. We see James Sirius and Sirius in this one, suspended moment, as one might view a painting or photograph. Brilliantly written, with nods to Jeddy and Wolfstar too. I loved it.

#9. Games People Play by kelly_chambliss

Minerva McGonagall/Severus Snape | 5,610

Life is not easy when you are Severus Snape or Remus Lupin. But sometimes, there are compensations. 

My Rec:  I fell in love with this fic when it posted anon and for this year’s HP Crossgenfest and I wasn’t surprised when the author was revealed to be the immensely talented Kelly, one of my favourite writers of the older women in the Potterverse with a brilliant grasp of Minerva and Severus as characters. The story weaves Remus into the narrative and as ever Kelly’s prose is delightful, the use of second person working particularly well for this story with its shifting POVs. Severus displays moments of his surly, jealous, childish self but also appears a much reformed man although Kelly expertly retains a level of ambiguity around his true motivations in a fully-fleshed out, rich story of human complexity and the ways in which our past informs our perception of the present. If you only ever read one author writing Minerva McGonagall again, read Kelly. Although we are in the heads of Remus and Severus, it is smart, perceptive Minerva who is the star of the show. Wonderful. 

#10. Summer’s End by Barry_Manilows_Wardrobe

Albus Dumbledore/Gellert Grindelwald | 9,505

Gellert was the embodiment of summer: sunlit hair, warm skin beneath Albus's hands, and a smile that made Albus feel hot down to his very bones. But all summers must come to an end. 

My Rec: This story is utterly breathtaking. The writing is so confident and rich and the characters and their doomed love beautifully rendered. I read the fic with a lump in my throat, a gorgeously angsty, evocative tale of loving too much, too young, of powerful, intelligent wizards losing themselves in one another and the heat of an irrevocable passion which pulls them towards one another before everything breaks apart. At times the writing is so lyrical and poetic, I had to go back and read several phrases over and over, to really take them in. An absolutely stunning tale of lost love and the path that his past sets Albus on as he sets about preparing Harry for his future trials. Captivating, from start to finish. 

[devilsskettle]

7 & 15?

7. if you could remake a horror movie of your choice, which one would it be? how would your remake look like?

i would want to re-adapt either the haunting of hill house or we have always lived in the castle because neither has ever gotten a proper film adaptation imo. my version of the haunting of hill house would be a bit like wes anderson does gothic horror, in the sense that it would have a focus on the design and cinematography — i think it’s really important to correctly translate the vibe of hill house to the screen, and the movie from the 60s did a pretty good job, but the ending isn’t very book accurate and it’s in black and white, so i think you could really make a lot out of the different color rooms that each character gets out in (like eleanor’s room is entirely blue) and the costumes and set design in general (you could do more with them dressing like “stray sunbeams” to ward off the gloom of the house, theo’s flashy style could be more overt making it even more obvious when she has to wear eleanor’s clothes that they’re becoming doubles for each other, maybe eleanor would wear red at the beginning and then slowly start to shift to blues as hill house starts to take over). in fact you could code each character with the color of their rooms that by the end they start wearing more and more of (which would be green for theo, yellow for montague, and pink for luke). there’s a lot of things described in the book that i imagine quite vividly, like the amazing food, the land surrounding the house, the drive up, the library (! and the creepy scrapbooks about religion and hell !), the story of the crains.

also i feel like the original movie doesn’t do much with the ghost hunting, partially because they cut out mrs. montague’s whole thing, and i think you could really lean into the comedy there to contrast the psychological horror. i also feel like no adaptation has done a great job of adapting luke or montague — luke needs to be likable, classy, and charming at first! his personality shouldn’t be grating until we realize how egotistical he is (which should be after they find eleanor’s name on the wall — same with theo) and how he’s a thief and a liar etc. dr. montague is a pseudoscientist but we need to buy his bluff until around that point as well, when he stops being able to give answers. he cannot be a skeptic! he can also not be a love interest! he needs to have a kindly old professor vibe. nell and theo are basically correct in the 60s film (and theo is the single thing they got right in the 1999 film too lol).

also my version would be very character focused and framed as a psychological thriller, NOT as a supernatural horror film, and would be written much like a play, with focus on conversation between the characters (so we can see just how much they misunderstand each other) and it would be entirely via eleanor’s perspective. we’d need to find a way to make film (a typically 3rd person “objective” medium) communicate the 1st person subjective. also i can clearly see how i would open the film and introduce each character — montague sends them the letter of invitation and it shows them each at home and how they decide to get to hill house. i think it would be theo first, dismissing the letter and forgetting about it, cut to luke at a high society social event charming all his rich aunt’s friends and picking their pockets being given the letter, cut to eleanor at her sister’s place doing housework being given the letter, cut back to theo fighting with her gf and then remembering the letter deciding to go and packing a bag — montage of them all packing for the trip — over a voiceover of the contents of the letter read by montague — at the end of the v.o. it goes to the first scene of dialogue, where eleanor tries to convince her sister to let her borrow the car. then it would go on from there. i think i’d lift a lot of the dialogue straight out of the book tbh. i think i would have it be set present day but have a lot of the fashion and tech be older and slightly anachronistic (like stoker or a series of unfortunate events lol) instead of placing it in the 50s/60s. so some of the dialogue would have to change to reflect that, as well as to communicate what i think the dynamic between the characters should be, because i think other screenwriters have interpreted the relationships quite differently than i do lol. and then they could use a lot of modern ghost hunting gadgets which could be fun! also it would be explicitly gay.

15. you're offered the chance to privately talk to a horror villain of your choice, currently kept secure in a government facility. your safety during the encounter is guaranteed. do you take the offer? and if you do, who do you pick? why?

honestly i would rather meet a horror villain outside a government facility so we could hang out and in that case i’d say amanda young saw, inside a government facility i would want to meet chucky. i want to put him in a jar and shake it and study him like a bug. i also think he’d be fun to talk to but i don’t want him loose