#he is 1 second away from proposing a drinking game

[hearttdesires]

every right - part 2

part 1

this is a loooong one.. or at least for me lol, I've never written so much please please please send any feedback , i’m soo glad you guys enjoyed part one 🤍 I think after this part, I'll start making little one shots so you can fully experience why the reader was so hurt thank you for readinggg 🫶🏽🫶🏽

p.s. this is no shade towards olivia; i wish I was living her life right about NOW 🫠

time skip - 1 year later

your drive home after a long weekend in the hamptons was nothing less but a drag. you didn’t care how long the drive was, you were still high on life after a weekend with your girls.

the weekend was full of drinks, the sun, and parties with rich hot men. as always the girls were always trying to pimp you out whether it be for more alcohol or just for you to have fun.

after last year’s fiasco with Joe, you sure as hell needed it. they say the best way to get over someone, is to get under someone else. you’ve maybe followed that rule a handful of times. you’ve come across maybe 2 good competitors against joe’s game in bed.

maybe you couldn’t find much competition because you had actual feelings for him.

after joe had left that morning, he had texted you. you couldn’t even see past the tears , but still somehow managed to block him. when he couldn’t reach you from his personal cell, he tried from his work phone, and you ended up having to block that number too.

you couldn’t ever fully let him go. if a news article or an interview of his came up, you watched or read a bit.

your entire weekend in the hamptons, the girls had set one rule: don’t check up on him at all.

you listened & somehow managed to miss the biggest article of them all.

star quarterback: back on the market, model: heartbroken in the hamptons

you arrived home and settled in on your couch. immediately you’re getting a call the second you sit down. you look at your phone and see it’s Gabby calling.

“miss me already?” you pick up the phone. “duh. just pack new clothes and come back. my pool boy is cleaning up for us now” she laughs as she talks about her husband. as a wedding gift, his parents bought them a house up in Montauk. he didn’t mind Gabby hosting a girls weekend.

“anyways the real reason i called. i know we banned you from checking anything related to mr. qb, but a big one came out during the weekend.” Gabby rambled.

“ugh. what, he proposed? or is she pregnant? cause that would be-“ Gabby was quick to cut you off. “he ended it, IN THE HAMPTONS” you sat up so quick.

“wait- they were there?” you were fully sat up now, going online to search for said article. “yeah there’s pictures of her literally leaving the hotel in tears”

how ironic that you, joe, and Barbie would be in the same area all at the same time.

“i wonder why. he’s had a good year, career wise.” you finally found the article, but it didn’t give you any good information. “maybe she’s just not want he wanted”

“apparently. anyways, i’ll call you later. i’m gonna head to the gym and sweat out all this alcohol” “okay, love ya.” “love you more” you hung up the phone and took a breath.

you couldn’t believe they were done. you couldn’t even remember if they ever made it ‘official’.

after changing, you gathered all your things you’d need for the gym and packed it into your duffel bag. you grabbed your keys and opened your door.

only find those bright blue eyes that brought you right back to a year ago..

his hand was in his mouth biting at his nails, which you hated. you used to always smack his hand away when you saw it.

you guys stood there for what felt like years before joe mustered up a simple “hey”.

joe’s POV:

there she was, in all her beauty and her glory.

i sat in a private, darker section of the restaurant with a couple of the guys.

we had Michael Ruben’s White Party yesterday and the guys weren’t ready to go back to reality yet. they wanted away from their girlfriends and their situationships as much as i did, so why not have a guys dinner.

the restaurant starts cleaning the plates off everyone’s tables and this is when it started turning into a club vibe. the music got louder, and all i can focus on is her.

we didn’t go down to the bar much, Ja’Marr and Tee went down because they wanted to talk and meet people. i stood near the edge of the upstairs section and sipped on my corona.

i watch as her friends keep bringing trays of shots to your table and you keep hammering it back. soon enough, other guys are coming up to you and sweet talking you.

it took every bit of restraint to not go over and drag you away from them. i had no right, you made that clear when you blocked me on everything a year ago.

you missed my burner account. i’d check up on your socials when olivia’s not around or if i was in a mood late at night..

other than that, i had no way of seeing anything you posted.

in the middle of my trance, i see Tee and Ja’Marr talking to girls at the table next to you. no doubt, you know they’re my friends, so i send a text to both of them to stay away from you. i didn’t want to alarm you or have you running away to god knows where.

i so badly wanted to go up to you and apologize for everything. doesn’t help you looked so good in a mini skirt and a tank top that had your entire back exposed.

the night carries on and i watched as you’re giggling at something a guy whispered in your ear. this one has been with you for over an hour, and keeps feeding you drinks on drinks. watching you with someone else, feels like someone just kept stabbing me in the stomach over and over.

Tee and Ja’Marr made their way back up with a girl on both of their sides. “Yo man, you ready?” I took one more look at you for good measure and nod. i place my now warm beer on the table. The security for upstairs led us out the back door and to our car services.

Olivia at this point was blowing up my phone because i told her i was going to be home way sooner.

how do i tell her that you distracted me all night? that i didn’t want to let you out of my sight.

i lock my phone and just stare out the window, dreading getting to the hotel room we’re sharing.

i walk through the door and see Olivia pouting while taking off her makeup. “finally. where have you been?” i had zero patience for anything she had to say right now.

“out” i walk in the bathroom and start undressing. “what’s your problem today?” i hear her voice getting closer to the bathroom.

“nothing, just leave it alone” at this point she’s standing at the door with her arms across her chest. “obvi it’s something, just say it” her voice was literally piercing my ears at this point.

“jesus christ, just leave me alone” i leave the bathroom with a huff and finish changing in the bedroom.

it’s not her fault I’m upset, everything is my own fault. losing you, getting into whatever olivia and i were, all of it.

she walks back into the bedroom and sits at the edge of the bed. i say in almost a whisper “i can’t do this anymore.”

“i can’t hear you joe, you’re mumbling” she rolls her eyes. “i’m done. i can’t do this anymore” i say pointing at the both of us.

“you can’t leave me” she says with tears welling up in her eyes. “it’s better for the both of us, if you need to stay here for the night, that’s fine. i’ll just -“ she starts packing all her things in a rush.

“olivia.. just stay. i’ll be gone by the morning” i say trying to reason with her. she’s shaking her head no, but isn’t saying anything.

she didn’t have much as this was only a weekend trip. most things got sent back with a stylist anyways. “if it’s worth anything, i’m sorry.” i say as she’s putting a sweater on.

“whoever she is, i hope she’s worth it” she said before walking out the door. i sat on the edge of the bed and let out a sigh of relief.

you're worth everything..

-

i slept hard for the first time in a long time. slept past 8 am even. i looked over at my phone and saw the articles pouring in already about olivia leaving last night.

ja’marr and tee had texted seeing if i wanted to go for a morning workout and maybe brunch after. we were set to leave tomorrow night back to cincinnati.

i sent a thumbs up and got up to go to the gym with them.

we all met in the hotel’s private gym for just the higher class celebrities. i found it to be quite pretentious, but it was good for what you guys were about to talk about.

i was the last to arrive. when the door shut behind me, they were already running up asking what happened.

“is this about that girl last night?” Tee said. “she was fine, you’re lucky you texted because she was next up and i wasn’t going to let her go easy” Ja’Marr said laughing.

i smiled and shoved his shoulder. “yeah we met about two years ago. she’s the most genuine, beautiful human being i know.. and seeing her last night.. i don’t know man.” i start stretching out my arms and legs.

“when you know, you know I guess” Tee chimed in. “so what’re you gonna do about it?” Ja’Marr asked abruptly.

“i don’t know..” i said staring into space, my mind running wild.

your pov:

“hi..” you said confused. your head was spinning really. you had just found out they broke up, and now he’s here on your doorstep.

"hey" you couldn't help but giggle a bit. "you said that already"

"right.. um can we talk? inside preferably.." he said rubbing at his neck. "I guess my gym session can wait" you step back and open the door wider for him to come in. “thanks” he mumbled walking through your threshold.

you put your stuff down by the door and follow him to your living room. you see him standing in the middle looking around. “something’s new..”

“i got new couches, and repainted.. but you didn’t come here to talk about my renovations joe..” you sat down on the couch and he walked over to sit next to you.

“i just wanted to start with i’m sorry. for last year and everything leading up to it. you definitely did not deserve what i did to you.” you could tell in his eyes that he was really sincere.

“i appreciate the apology joe, but it’s been a year.. don’t think that i’ve been waiting all this time for that..” you never held a grudge that he didn’t apologize. if anything you just wished that he was honest

“why are you really here joe?” you sat up straighter now. you decided to test him, say what really happened. his chance to be fully honest.

“i fucked up. i think i did- no, I still do have feelings for you. i’ve missed you every day since last year.. seeing you in the hamptons just screwed my head back into place.” his blue eyes were burning into your soul.

“i ended it with olivia the second i got back to my hotel, and i truly don’t regret it at all.” you shake your head in disbelief.

“but see that’s my problem. everyone is disposable to you. how do i know next year, you won’t switch up and go running to another model? even worse, back to olivia?” joe's quick to take your hand in his.

“trust me, I truly do not think I can live without you” you were ready to throw up from how dizzy this man is making you.

“so what do we do from here?” you say as he scoots closer to you. "we take it day by day." his arm goes behind you and he wraps you up in them.

"and what about paparazzi and all that?" you ask. Joe lays his head on your chest and sighs. "I'll never be able to escape them, but can we be.. you know.. private?"

you giggle at his statement. "baby I'm not no celebrity, I know when and where to speak. but there's a difference between secret and private; and I'm not going to be no secret" you run your hands through his hair as you guys lay there.

"I know you're too gorgeous not to share with the world; I promise you're not a secret. my boys already know about you." he laughs to himself, thinking how he had left the boys in the gym to get to your house as fast as possible.

Joe cuddled deeper into you and you all of a sudden felt a wave of sleep creep over.

"I think my lack of sleep from the Hamptons is catching up to me" you let out a big yawn. Joe followed suit. "Let's go nap" he stands up and holds his hand out for you to take.

Thinking he was just helping you up, he took your hand and basically tossed you over his shoulder to go to your room. "maybe we can get freaky after our nap" he says while walking up the stairs with an overjoyed woman on his shoulder.

"you're ridiculous, you know that?"

"oh, I know sweetheart" as he pats your butt walking into your room.

[soapier]

play stupid games, win stupid prizes, pt. 1

jschlatt x y/n

drunk girls night leads to more when you’re forced to carry out a dare.

you were at a girls night, nothing fancy, just some drinks and games to unwind after a long week.

music played softly from a speaker somewhere, and the room was filled with warmth from laughter and one-too-many drinks. what had started as an innocent game of blackjack had turned into some messed up version of truth or dare wherein every time someone surpasses 21 (or “busts”, as niki insists you call it), they have to answer a question or do something embarrassing.

you had thrown caution to the wind hours ago, after, say, the fifth glass of wine. or maybe it was the sixth? you couldn’t remember. these girls were your friends, and you in your drunken confidence had no qualms about answering any of their questions.

hell, last round you’d even admitted to having a thing for schlatt.

it’s not that you’re ashamed of it, no, but he had just been such a good friend for so long that it felt weird to admit. you felt a little weird about keeping it a secret for so long, having to hide blushes and act like certain things he did didn’t drive you absolutely crazy.

“y/n!” one of your friends called, “it’s your turn!”

you peeked again at your cards, a seven and an eight, fifteen. pausing for a moment, you weighed the options and called, “hit” for another card.

what you weren’t expecting, though, was to get a nine.

“ugh, bust!” you called, the second out for this round. your friends giggled and asked you to choose truth or dare.

“truth!” you replied, like you had each time you’d gotten out earlier.

“come on, y/n! live a little, choose dare!” niki goaded you.

with a sigh, you switched your choice and your friends huddled up to figure out what to make you do. in the meantime, you reached for the bottle and filled your glass once more, taking a long swig for good measure.

“so,” she started, a shit-eating grin on her face, “i dare you to text schlatt…” your heart dropped, are they being for real right now?

“what?!” you replied, suddenly very alert.

niki smiled and continued, “i dare you to text schlatt i want you so bad right now.” she put air quotes around the proposed text.

you shook your head violently, heart pounding in your chest, “no fucking way.”

“you’re so boring! worst case, tell him it was part of the game, i’ll back you up.” your friends looked at you with small grins and expectant eyes.

your heart was racing, thoughts zipping by even faster. you should’ve never told them about him, this was such a mistake, what if he never talks to you again?

but, you took a moment to calm yourself. she’s right, it is technically just part of a game, right? god, you are such a stick in the mud sometimes, maybe they’re right. it’ll be fun! silly, even. he’ll probably laugh about it tomorrow. schlatt might even be asleep by now, it’s 2:30 in the morning, after all.

with one last deep breath, you agreed. “fine. does anyone know where i left my phone?”

with squeals of excitement, your phone was passed over to you and you typed out the message, leaving your phone on the floor and demanding that someone, anyone else pressed send for you as you looked away, tense.

you:

i want u so bad rn

you exhaled in relief when you didn’t immediately see bubbles indicating that he was typing. just as you let your guard down, however, you heard the phone buzz, and your friends shrieking in excitement.

schlatt:

send me your location.

cradling your phone in your hands, you deliberated what to do… do you tell him? why does he want to know? what if he’s mad? but… what if he’s not mad?

with a sigh, you texted back, telling him that you were at niki’s, and asking why he wanted to know.

schlatt:

the uber’s on it’s way.

———

part 2?

[buddierecs]

sharing clothes buddie fics

all explicit rating - 18+ only!!!! make sure to kudos/comment on these amazing works :)

i found love where it wasn't supposed to be (right in front of me) by: finduilas "it’s such a long time coming and still it takes buck by surprise. it takes him by surprise even though he is the one that leans in and finally kisses eddie. his second surprise is that eddie doesn’t push him away, doesn’t even look at him with confusion. or worse, rage. no, eddie kisses him back like buck is a tall drink of water and eddie is severely dehydrated. buck knows the feeling." word count: 13k important tags: getting together, first kiss, first time, buckley-diaz family, versatile!buddie, team as family, love confessions, secret relationship epiphanies, soft words, and hushed moans at the brink of dawn by brewrosemilk “hey - while we’re… describing people. people we know, people we don’t - why don’t you describe eddie for me?” “what?” buck frowns, looking up from his beer. “let’s call it a game,” chimney shrugs. word count: 19k important tags: didn't know they were dating, love confessions, marriage proposal, first time, porn with feelings, frottage, barebacking, riding, come eating i'll keep your brittle heart warm by: reeseofmind "5 times buck and eddie wear the other's clothes + 1 time they don't wear much of anything" word count: 12.7k important tags: 5+1 things, mild hurt/comfort, eventual relationship, love confessions, first time, blow jobs, hand jobs 'til storm breaks loose by: markofalover "how an elbow to the face changes everything." word count: 6k important tags: jealous!eddie diaz, accidental injury, mutual pining, love confessions, first time, possessive behaviour, blow jobs, come eating, praise kink loose threads by: daisies_and_briars "new to dating and keeping it quiet, buck and eddie get a little carried away on a slower shift at the firehouse. but when the alarm eventually sounds, a spur of the moment mistake leaves them a little mixed up." word count: 3.7k important tags: secret relationship, pranks, blowjob surrounded by the warmth of the one i love by: jobairdxx "five times eddie wears buck's hoodies, and the one time buck tells eddie how that makes him feel." word count: 4.5k important tags: 5+1 things, misunderstandings, hurt/comfort, fluff, frottage, sexual content thunderstorms, candlelight, and filthy words in the dark by: brewrosemilk "the wind is screaming louder now, the rain pours and pours with no sign of slowing down. the thunder is getting a little bit louder with each time it rolls. it doesn’t matter. it’s all outside. Inside, it’s warm. Inside, it’s safe." word count: 12k important tags: established relationship, porn without plot, dry humping, rimming, barebacking, praise kink, cock warming, marriage proposal, fluff why does it feel so good to be bad by: sourwolfseblaine "while athena and bobby are finally able to take the cruise they planned for their honeymoon, it's buck who gets chosen interim captain this time. and eddie, newly dating buck, wasn't prepared for how horny it would make him to see buck in charge. of course, things take a turn when eddie disobeys an order at a call." word count: 7.1k important tags: established relationship, arguing, disobeying orders, top!evan buckley, bottom!eddie diaz, rough sex, blow jobs, rimming, anal sex, soft!buddie you know you are my favourite fantasy by: smilingbuckley "buck wakes up to eddie in his kitchen - wearing nothing but buck’s shirt" word count: 2.4k important tags: established relationship, kitchen sex, manhandling, making out, anal sex, come eating and my t-shirt from the night before by: fondplanets “mmm…” eddie sighs happily. “maybe I should clean your apartment more.” he smiles up at him sleepily, eyes half-lidded and clouded with pleasure. “maybe you should wear my clothes more often,” buck replies, kissing the giggle off eddie’s tongue." word count: 4.6k important tags: established relationship, pillow princess!eddie diaz, bottom!eddie diaz, clothes thief!eddie diaz

[danieyells]

Can I see Romeo's voicelines please? He's such a failguy, I need to knowwww

How dare you call him a failguy!

he is THE failguy. don't make him sound offbrand.

i love Romeo he is honestly so ridiculous like. . .you meet Romeo in the first chapter and you do NOT realize he's going to be like. . .that. . .in the Sinostra chapter. . . .

Hello: (the first time the game is opened after that character is set as home screen NPC. Only happens once per day, unless the character is switched out and back.)

"Hey! I'm talking to you, BB! If you've got time to wander around, you've got time to wipe the tables!"

i thoguht the pc was supposed to be doing uh background work for you at the casino. why is she cleaning tables!? go ask her to run drugs for you or something.

You've Got Mail: (whenever there's something in the inbox, usually Arena rewards)

"Excuse me? What sane person lets their messages pile up like this!? Deal with them or I'll deal with you!"

'clean up your inbox or they will have to clean you and put you in a box'

Default: (requires no affinity, has no time constraints)

"Fuji... Come out, come out, wherever you are... Tch, where did he go? Why is running away the only thing he's good at!?"

"Listen up—call me Fico. That's the only name I'll respond to, understand!?"

disregard the 'Lulu' from Taiga, 'Romi-sama'/'Ro-Ro' from Leo, 'RomiRomi' from Rui. . .'Fico' is for underlings, and you are an underling!

"Come to my private office later—I've got a little proposal I think you'll want to hear.  But make sure you come alone."

"Just go! I cannot deal with this WTWUT! Wall-To-Wall Useless Trash, obviously!"

that was a long acronym!

"Time to count this month's protection fees... Not bad. I'll up this group by 2% next month. This one could go a little higher too..."

Affinity 1: (between 5am and 11am)

"Why does that DOF want to meet so early in the morning? If I get bags under my eyes because of this, I'm going to slit his throat."

we never learned what "DOF" stood for did we. we do know it's Hyde now, though!

Affinity 2: (between 11am and 4pm)

"Hello? Yes, I was just eating lunch. Again?  ...Fine. Tonight? All right. Bye now."

booty call from hyde? in the middle of the day? shameless

Affinity 3: (between 4pm and 8pm)

"Have you seen Shinjo anywhere? I just asked him to organize some documents and he ran off to make copies!"

Ritsu has a line referencing this one!

Affinity 4: (between 8pm and 5am)

"Mickey's bar? Yes, I am going again tonight, but it's only because there's nowhere else to go for a drink."

isn't there a bar in the casino. . .i guess he doesn't wanna spend time on the casino floor. also "Mickey" is Rui Mizuki, if you weren't able to figure that out haha

Affinity 5: (between 8pm and 5am)

"This is when the regulars usually come, so I have to sweeten the pot. I saw that HNTW out there earlier too."

i hate you and your acronyms LMAOOOO I THINK THIS IS REFERRING TO KAITO??? MAYBE??? he's the only character besides Taiga who frequents the casino that we're aware of!

Affinity 6: (between 4pm and 8pm)

"How dare those Frostheim slugs start whispering the moment they see my face... One day they'll be groveling at my feet..."

oof. . .the frostheimers are gossiping about the collapse of his family. . .yeah i'd be mad too there bud. i'd like to think he wanted to transfer to Frostheim once he became a second year and he ended up not doing it because Frostheim was just so toxic.

Affinity 7: (between 11am and 4pm)

"...Looks like I'm due for a tune up soon. Keeping my posture beautiful isn't easy, no matter how much I train my core."

i assume he sees like a chiropractor or a physical therapist or something. gets his atlas adjusted. maybe don't lean over your EITS laptops lol

Affinity 8: (between 4pm and 8pm)

"You're smelling the bedtime fragrance I bought from Kurossa earlier. He has a good eye, so I often ask him to pick things out for me."

'Kurossa' is Leo Kurosagi and his lines also reference this! I'm glad they get along so well haha I think they mesh pretty great. also the fact that Romeo gives little nicknames to people is cute. . . .

Affinity 9: (between 8pm and 5am)

"You want to see my Insta? I suppose that's fine, but do you even know anything about brands?"

brand ambassador romeo. . .god he probably does all sorts of dumb beauty shit on his instagram. do you think he participates in those health pyramid schemes? probably not, right, he's fairly legitimate in his business practices. . .sort of, sometimes, kind of, as long as you don't owe him money. . . .

Affinity 10: (between 10pm and midnight)

"Fuji's pendant? Of course I haven't given up on it. He has no idea of the value of what's hanging around his neck."

neither do we! please inform us!! but on the upside that means that Romeo knows what it is, to some degree. I assume it's some rare, powerful artifact. Kaito at least knows it's important.

Affinity 11: (between 5am and 11am)

"I have to drink a cup of room-temperature water, do an electric facial and a mask, apply body cream, do my neck routine... I have no free time in the morning."

Affinity 12: (between 11am and 4pm)

"Hey! There's a hair on the ground over here! And there's dust over here! Can't you even clean something properly without me holding your hand!?"

this is directed at his underlings, not the pc(or not the pc by themself.) I also appreciate that the Japanese specifies this is one single hair he's pointing out. Somebody get this man a roomba.

Affinity 13: (between 4pm and 8pm)

"I maintain my bullets myself. You really think I'd let another man handle my crown jewels?"

handle your WHAT-- i mean anyone could've guessed you and taiga don't have a very active sex life

Affinity 14: (between 5am and 11am)

"What is going on with your skin!? Do you even have a proper routine in place? Unacceptable. Your overnight skin cell turnover is suboptimal and it shows."

Affinity 15: (between 5am and 11am)

"That BTH...! I was almost impressed to see him out so early until I realized he's been playing all night!!"

taiga pulling an all-nighter at his own goddamn casino lmao. . . .

Affinity 16: (between 11am and 4pm)

"What do you mean you don't need any more noni juice? I went out of my way to prepare it for you. Come on now, drink it."

he personally made it for you! now drink the bitter nasty health juice. don't make him feed it to you. (The fact that he made you a health dink--went out of his way to make it for you--shows that he's really starting to like you and now he's treating you like a pet.)

Affinity 17: (between 10pm and midnight)

"Finally, some goods worth talking about. I have to ring that DOF and arrange the next event..."

so Hyde is an active participant in these auctions huh. . .are the secret missions he gives Romeo based on selling and distributing artifacts and anomalies in secret. . .?

Affinity 18: (between 8pm and 5am)

"Money, hard work, and patience... That's the cost of true beauty. Don't think it's something you can easily imitate."

Affinity 19: (between 10pm and midnight)

"How about a smoke before bed? I'm joking. If I wasn't selling it, I wouldn't be touching this unhealthy garbage."

quick someone shoop the "quieres" meme with romeo HE DOESN'T ACTUALLY TELL YOU WHAT HE'S HANDLING. . .considering his line of work it could be anything but regular cigarettes or cigars. Is it weed? is it crack?? is it meth???? i find that romeo is essentially the campus dealer hilarious.

Affinity 20: (between 5am and 11am)

"What? I'm on my way to the gym for a workout. ...You can join me if you're interested."

you know damn well he probably hates getting sweaty. but he's gotta keep up with his health and all so a little workout's not off the table. also you know he's wearing some fuckin. gucci leggings or some shit.

Affinity 21: (between 11am and 4pm)

"Why are you carrying that!? What if you drop it and it breaks? I'll get one of our young guys to do it, so put it down already!"

aw he's worried about--oh no he's just worrying about you dropping his stuff.

Affinity 22: (between 4pm and 8pm)

"I won't let anyone destroy what I've built— not even my OAOF."

GOD I HOPE THEY EXPLAIN THESE ACRONYMS SOMEWHERE ALONG THE LINE. I assume the first word is "Own". . .the last word could be "Family" or "Followers"/"Faction" or "Feelings". . . .

Affinity 23: (between 8pm and 5am)

"Most of humanity's problems can be solved with money. If you put that another way, without money, you don't stand a chance. That's the way the world works."

again, Taiga compared Ritsu's family to Romeo's before The Incident. Romeo lost everything he had at one point. He's afraid of ending up with nothing again. That's all. Even with the Casino, he doesn't want to lose it because it'd be losing everything he has again. Having no money means going back to 0.

Affinity 24: (between 10pm and midnight)

"Coming here alone this time of night, haven't you made progress? Come over here, I'll evaluate your efforts."

pc's getting brave enough to go to Sinostra in the middle of the night! probably did some shady job for him too. Also the face he makes while praising you for coming to Sinostra alone late at night is a little. . . .

Affinity 25(max): (no time constraints)

"What could you possibly be afraid of? You're one of my people! Walk with your head held high or I'll step on it!"

BBY YOU CAN STEP ON HER HEAD ANYWAY. PLEASE DO IT. 👀 also you have been opted out of being one of Taiga's people I guess. You have chosen your faction. /joke

Spring: (March-May) (between 5am and 11am)

"This year's AW collection is out... Tch. Not even a hint of taste in any of it. They'll bear this mark of shame for years."

I KNOW THIS ACRONYM! He's complaining about Autumn-Winter fashion!!! lbr romeo men's fashion is kinda boring anyway. I wonder if his family owned a fashion brand. . . .

(between 11am and 4pm)

"I don't mind the springtime in Japan. The mild weather is a bonus, but it's the transient beauty of the cherry blossoms I truly appreciate."

(between 4pm and 8pm)

"The new prototype is a tear bomb? A lot of anomalies don't even have eyes, is this really going to be useful?"

i mean it might be useful for the ones that have eyes. . .or for hunting down Kaito.

(between 8pm and 5am)

"Shut up! It's nearly time to settle the books so I'm completely run off my feet! I don't have time to deal with you, understand!?"

Summer: (June-August) (between 5am and 11am)

"Summer is all about aquamarine... If you believe that, you're a follower. A trendsetter would know to go against the grain with a heavier jade piece."

(between 11am and 4pm)

"Excuse me!? You really think I would stoop to petty theft!? This scarf and hat are UV protection!"

LMAO HE LOOKED SO SHADY THE PC GOT WORRIED

(between 4pm and 8pm)

"This? It's an original hot water blend with salt and lemon I came up with. You shouldn't be cooling your insides just because it's hot outside!"

i mean. i guess it'll technically help you sweat and cool down faster????

(between 8pm and 5am)

"The heat's finally starting to ease off. I want to take a shower, but it's nearly our peak hour..."

Autumn: (September-November) (between 5am and 11am)

"They gave us nothing but useless bottom feeders this year... I'd like to see who raised this bunch of idiots. They don't even have a grasp of basic etiquette."

(between 11am and 4pm)

"I'm going to the training grounds to demonstrate sharpshooting for the first- years. It's a waste of my time, but I'm the most skilled at it."

he just wants everyone to see how good he is lolol

(between 4pm and 8pm)

"The SS collections are out. What? Are you telling me you don't pay attention to Paris Fashion Week?"

(between 8pm and 5am)

"The boss won't stop whining about being hungry. Obviously I'm not going to cook. What are you all standing around for, you damn TGAs!?"

lol Romeo has his underlings feed Taiga as much as Taiga demands food of his own underlings. "please feed your father the boss before he eats one of the chancellor's cats again."

Winter: (December-February) (between 5am and 11am)

"You look like a fat slug in those clothes. Keeping warm is important, but couldn't you at least tough it out when you're meeting me!?"

HARSH. how about you get her outfits then!!! lolol he's looking at you all bundled up and doesn't even wanna be seen with you

(between 11am and 4pm)

"Everywhere is so dry, it's unbearable. I want to go back to my room and moisturize..."

(between 4pm and 8pm)

"I get aches when it's cold... I'm taking off early tonight to go drink, then I'll warm up with a low bath."

'i'm gonna put alcohol in me which will make me feel warm but actually make me colder, then get in the bath for a while' lol

(between 8pm and 5am)

"Tch... This is the most profitable time of year for us, where the hell is that BTH!?

well you see Taiga hates the cold too so he's probably in a blanket burrito. . . .

His birthday: (November 14th)

"Today is Fico's birthday, so you're dining in style. I'm not going to eat any though, so you can finish it off."

'it's my birthday, so i'm going to treat you! what? me? eat?? no, i'm on a diet!!' i am once again asking the ghouls to EAT PROPER MEALS PLEASE IT IS YOUR BIRTHDAY ROMEO HAVE ONE CHEAT DAY. DOESN'T EVEN HAVE TO BE CAKE.

Your birthday:

"It's your birthday? I suppose I can celebrate it for you, but you'd better be aware of how much of my precious time you're using."

he treats you better on his birthday than yours. . . .

New Years: (January 1st)

"Felice anno nuovo! This will be the year I claim Fuji's debt and his pendant!"

oh my god he does speak italian. you hear more tidbits of italian fromTaiga than him. also Kaito's pendant must be super important if that's his new years resolution. this is gonna matter in the long run isn't it.

Valentine's Day: (February 14th)

"Hmph. I'm not familiar with this packaging. If you're giving me chocolate, you better have selected it with the utmost care!"

'this is not brand name. how dare you.'

White Day: (March 14th)

"Here. They're mimosa cookies, a special order from an upmarket confectionary in Ginza. I can't say whether your peasant tastebuds can appreciate them though."

peasant? who are you, jin? fun fact, Taiga's White Day line references this one!

"What's that expectant look on your face? Lulu was harping on about mimosas or something before. That what you want?"

so Romeo gets the cookies whether or not he plans to give you some i guess lol

April Fool's Day: (April 1st)

"Just you try and fool me—I'll tear those rags off you and throw you in a cage. So? What do you want?"

converting your friends into human trafficking victims is the latest new prank sweeping the internet!

Halloween: (October 31st)

"Do you have face paint in your pores!? Go wash it off before you end up with hyperpigmentation!!"

Christmas: (December 25th)

"Buon Natale! Go get ready—that reindeer's around again. This year I'm going to catch it for sure!!"

he's going to auction off one of santa's reindeer. . . .

Idle: (about 20 seconds without interacting with the game) (below 13 affinity)

"Tch... If you don't have any business for me, I'm leaving! You're wasting my precious time!"

(13 affinity and above)

"My drink is empty. Hey! I'm talking to you! Go bring me a refill!"

Absent: (logging in for the first time in 2 or more days?)

"Well, look what the cat dragged in. Do I have to teach you how to maintain an adult relationship? This is your last chance, got it!?"

SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG THE ADHD KICKED IN AND I GOT SUPER DISTRACTED i love Romeo so much he's so. . .silly lmao. he's a very fun character. even though i hate his acronyms. But he's also so worried about his image and his money. . .and as much as he complains I think he worries about Taiga too. And as he comes to like you more he worries about you too. It's just that strictness and maintaining control is how he feels most comfortable and how he expresses his attachments. He trusts you. So he wants you to be able to hold you to a high standard.

[doctorgirlsblog]

Forbidden Fruit (MV x OC!)

Note: helloo, new story now officialy in progress and my new official favourite since Dutch Lion vs. Merz Prinzessin! Let me know what you think, would appreciate it! 💙💙

Chapter 1: Hello, Sister

The clicks of champagne glasses could be heard everywhere, bright camera flashes mingling with the lavish golden decorations, murmuring the talk of the guests. Eleanor's radiant smile could be spotted from miles away, her arm intertwined with Max's. He looked at her and smiled. He couldn't believe the sweet woman before him was officialy his fiance now. Eleanor understood him, his life, supported his ambitions, and the most important thing of all, she loved him, just as much as he loved her.

The engagement party was in a full swing when a tap on a microphone could be heard and all noise stopped, everyone looking at the tall, elegant woman standing in the centre of the room, her blue, silk dress falling down around her, almost like water. She half-smiled, half-smirked at the newfound attention and raised her glass.

''I would like to propose a toast. To my ever-beautiful sister and her fiance. May you two lovebirds enjoy tonight. Cheers!''

Cheers could be heard all around the room, glasses clinking as she made her way over to the happy couple, people parting before her like the sea for a Moses.

Max looked at her as she approached. Valerie. Eleanor's younger sister and his soon to be sister-in-law. Her eyes glinted with hidden mischief as she moved towards them. Max always found her puzzling, less openly friendly than Eleanor, so he stayed away as much as he could without coming off as rude.

Valerie stopped just inches from them, her scent, something sharp and fruity, like distant rain and strawberries, filling Max's senses. ''Sister, you look stunning,'' she said, her voice low, unlike the Eleanor's chirpy one. She leaned in, pressing a brief, cool cheek against hers, her eyes, however, were already on Max. ''And Max,'' she added, straightening, her eyes locking with his, ''always the champion, even off the track.''

Max managed a tight smile. ''Valerie,'' he nodded stiffly.

''Oh my, my. Still all business, even on your engagement party?'' Valerie's smirk deepened, her eyes glinting dangerously. Her gaze dropped to his hand still resting on Eleanor's back, then flicked back up to meet his. Eleanor finally decided to break the awkward tension.

''Val, darling, thank you for coming.''

Valerie looked at her, smiling innocently. ''Of course, dearest sister. Wouldn't miss it for the world.'' She extended her hand to Max. ''Congratulations, Max. Welcome to the family.''

His hand closed around hers. Her grip was firm, her thumb brushing lightly over his, before she pulled her hand back.

''Now, if you'll excuse me,'' she purred, turning smoothly from them, ''I sense a very lonely gentleman sitting at the bar and I'm thirsty.'' She winked at them and pulled away, her hips swaying as she went, and for a split second, Max dared to look. He told himself it was nothing. Just Valerie being Valerie, playing her usual games. But a part of him, that small, hidden part, felt a strange pull, one he knew he should kill before it grows.

Fuck, he needed a drink too. Maybe couple of them.

Rest of the night passed in blur, conversation, gratulations and the soft music.

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

The morning after, the house felt peacefully quiet after the storm of the party. Max was already up and in the kitchen, sipping a strong coffee when Eleanor came in, her face bright as ever.

''Darling, guess what?'' she chirped, her eyes shining. ''Mom and I were talking, and with the wedding plans ramping up, it just makes perfect sense! Val is going to stay with us until the wedding!''

Max nearly choked on his coffee. ''What?'' He managed, the word coming out sharper than he intended.

Eleanor, oblivious to his sudden rigidity, hummed happily. ''Yes! I mean, she is my sister and my maid of honour and she is staying at the hotel.. She will be of big help to me here.''

Max stared at her, the mug cold in his hands. Valerie. Here. Until the wedding. He could already picture her, moving around the house. He pictured that damn blue dress.

The bell on the door broke him out of his trance and he gulped. Eleanor was already at the door, opening it, and the said she-devil smiled as they both looked at her. Dressed in simple sundress with a pair of big sunglasses perched on her nose, her red lips widened into big smile. ''Good morning, lovebirds! Looks like we're going to be seeing a lot more of each other now.''

Max felt a muscle tick in his jaw. The wedding was weeks and weeks away. Weeks of Valerie, under his roof. The devil wasn't whispering in the secret garden anymore; it was delivered straight to his door.

''Oh, Val, I'm so glad you're here! Come in, Max will take your bags.''

Max cleared his throat. ''Of course. Welcome, Valerie.'' He moved towards the two big suitcases, noticing how short her dress was. Valerie watched him, that smirk playing on her lips again. As he bent to grab the smaller case, she leaned towards Eleanor to hug her and her dress perched up. He looked away; she smiled.

''Such a gentleman, sister. You've certainly chosen well.''

Max stiffened, his grip tightening on the suitcase handle. He straightened up, meeting her gaze. ''It's no problem.''

Her hand landed on his arm, and she squeezed it gently. ''Thank you, Max. For letting me into your home. I promise, you won't even notice I'm here.''

Her fingers were cool against his skin. The innocent promise hung in the air, a lie so blatant it almost made him scoff. ''Oh, I'll notice'' he thought, his jaw tightening. ''Every damn second until you leave.'' Instead of saying anything he nodded, taking her bags upstairs and leaving the two sisters to chat.

He chose the room farthest from their own, just for a sake of it.

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

Days blended with growing stack of floral samples and catering menus on the table in the living room. Eleanor still had to work until her vacation, dealing with last minute meetings and wedding planners, leaving Max in a house that suddenly felt both too large and suffocatingly small.

He'd try to fall back into his off-season routine: early morning workouts in the home gym, hours in the simulator, race analises. But even in the controlled environment of his home, he found his focus..fractured.

On Tuesday morning, Eleanor kissed him, promising to call later, and then the front door clicked shut. Max saw her car pull away. He was alone, or so he thought. He started making his usual post-gym protein shake when a voice, smooth as silk and laced with amusement, cut through the big kitchen.

''Still punishing yourself with those awful drinks, Max?''

He spun around. Of course she was home. Valerie leaned against the kitchen doorway, dressed in a loose silk robe that clung to her in all the right places. Her hair was still damp from a shower.

''Just maintaining,'' Max grunted, wiping a bead of sweat from his forehead.He avoided looking directly at the way the silk drapped around her. The fact that she was somehow always dressed in blue, his color, made things even worse. Hell, she never wore things like that when Eleanor was home. Never.

She pushed off the doorframe, moving with grace he know got to learn. She stopped at the counter opposite him, picking up a stray cherry from fruit bowl. ''Of course. No rest for the wicked, hmm?'' She popped the cherry into her mouth, her eyes fixed on his as she slowly chewed.

Max felt his face warm up. ''It's my job.''

''And you do it well. Though, I wouldn't tell if you cheated you know. With you diet plan, that is.''

Max tightened the grip on his shaker bottle. The air in the kitchen suddenly felt thick.

''Well, some of us prefer discipline.'' he said, forcing the words out.

Valerie chuckled. ''Oh, Max. You haven't known me long enough to make such sweeping statements. Maybe, I love being disciplined.''

Max took his shake and made a beeline for his room. ''Suit yourself, I have sim session soon.''

''Of course you do. Don't let me distract you, love.''

He felt goosebumbs rise at the nickname, but he didn't turn back. He couldn't.

[jamil-s-wifey]

Hello! Can I request drunken reader and drunken Jack howl making out and about to go further but there's a knock on the door that brings them back to reality? They weren't thinking straight in the moment and now they don't know how to act with each other after the heated makeout and groping session

Thank you!

Ah, I love these types of requests so much omg! I made it kind of open-ended, do tell if you wish for a part two of this! This is so cute! We love them drunken shenanigans. One slightly lime-y scenario with extra vodka, coming right up~~ ALSO A TON OF CURSING!

P.S. This is happening during MC and Jack's 3rd year, so that they are of legal age for both the nsfw part and the drinking, (at least in my country) AND to still be together most of the time, and be in that crush phase~

P.P.S. Alcohol is fun until it's not! Drink responsibly~~

How your friends managed to procure alcohol on campus was beyond you. How they hid it from Crowley was even more beyond you. Did it matter? Not necessarily. Not when you were having so much fun!

Towards the end of your third year, you decided to celebrate together with your friends. After all, the future was uncertain. Ace, Deuce, Sebek, Jack, Epel and of course Grim and you, everybody was there! You all stayed at Ramshackle, away from prying eyes. So here you were, drinking to your heart's content, celebrating the end of the school year, reminiscing, laughing, playing games like truth or dare, you know how it is.

As time passed, everybody reluctantly returned to their respective dorms until only you and Jack remained. Even Grim had gone who knows where to probably sleep off the ungodly amount of food he'd consumed.

.................

"So, I don't really want tonight to end yet. If you've got nothing better to do, how about we drink one more?" You proposed, taking a sip of your drink. You were currently facing each other, cross-legged on your bed.

"Yeah, I'd like that." He smiled back, tail swishing behind him. The more he drank, the more he let loose. He was leaning back, eyes glazed over from the alcohol. A sight to behold. And my my, were you beholding it.

Your gaze travelled down his body, before moving to the alcohol, taking a big gulp. You couldn't exactly help yourself, not when Jack was just sitting there, on YOUR bed, all attractive and shit.

"Let's play a staring game!" Suddenly you chimed in. Then you could stare at him and compete at the same time.

"Staring game? Okay, bring it on."

"But with a twist." (Hehe, twist)

"Oh no"

"Oh yes. We can try anything to get the other person to blink."

"Anything?"

You realised the implications of your words and your cheeks heated up almost immediately.

"Yes. Anything."

"....okay."

He moved closer to you, using you as leverage, so that you could be perfectly face to face, with little space between you two, less than an arms length. His own heart skipped a beat at the closeness and your implication, which was FOR ONCE not lost on him. Perhaps it was the alcohol? It is a great way of dropping your inhibitions.

"3... 2... 1... Start!"

And so the game began. The first few seconds were easy, until you reached out to try and poke him, only for him to firmly grab your hand. His eyes read determination...and a little something more.

"Killjoy."

"I'm just playing the game, MC."

But then, you reached out and with your other hand and gently cupped his cheek. His eyes widened, but he still remained unblinking. However, his gaze slowly moved downwards, from your eyes to your lips. His own hand moved to rest on your knee. It was getting increasingly harder not to blink. You slowly slid your hand out of his grasp and moved it to his knee, mirroring his actions, only you didn't stop there. Slowly gliding your hand further up his thigh, you knew you were getting a rise out of him. Perhaps it was the alcohol talking, or just your own subconscious looking for-.

"Fuck. I really want to kiss you right now."

Before you could stop yourself, you had closed the distance between you two and smashed your lips on his. And my god, was it glorious. Thin lips moving against your own warm ones, big strong hands moving up your thighs, resting on your waist. It wasn't the most romantic kiss, but god it was passionate and hungry, and needy.

With resolve almost fully broken, he pulled you towards him, manhandling you onto his lap as if you weighed nothing - which for him, you did. You wrapped your arms around his neck, pulling him impossibly closer. It was cathartic, the release of finally tasting him, feeling him, all over you, crashing into you like waves of desire. His hands slid down, to the small of your back, engulfing you.

Pulling back, he looked at you, eyes glazed over, breathless, wanting, barely cohesive from that intoxicating kiss. He nodded, silently asking you if you were okay. Even drunk, needy and turned on out of his mind, he was a gentleman. You settled a little more comfortably on his lap pushing him back to lay on your bed, before demonstratively moving one of his hands to your ass - your very physical answer.

The growl that left him was unlike anything you'd ever heard before, and god, did you feel it wash over you like a heatwave. He pulled you in for another kiss, this time deeper, slower, much more sensual, hands freely roaming over your body. From your ass, toy your hips, to your chest, he couldn't stop himself - not with your intoxicating scent, engulfing his very being, with the small whimpers coming from you through the kiss. His hips moved involuntarily, grinding against your core. Fuck he was so hard it was almost painful, and you were so fucking wet for him. And he smelled it, god he smelled it, and he knew.

Suddenly, he flipped you two over, pushing you onto the bed and caging you between his arms. You were so gorgeous beneath him, hair tangled, slightly sweaty, eyes glazed over, heaving, with reddened lips. He wasted no time moving to leave heated kisses and darkened hickeys down your neck, scenting the absolute hell out of you. One hand moved under your shirt, exploring the soft skin on your stomach and pushing right underneath your bra. So warm, so soft, so fucking perfect, he wanted to feel all of you. And when the palm of his hand brushed over your hardened nipple, when you moaned so sweetly, when you tangled your fingers in his hair, pulling on it so deliciously, fuck it was over for him.

"Let me undress you. I want to undress you. I want you naked underneath me." He mumbled, lost on the taste of your skin and the sound of your breathy moans.

"Then undress me, big boy~"

He left another searing kiss right on your lips, committing their softness to memory. Then he moved back just enough to grab the hem of your shirt to pull it up.

Knock knock knock

Fuck.

"Oi! MC! I think I ditched my phone there! Y'sleeping?"

Ace, of all times-

You two looked at each other, before hastily jumping off the bed, making yourself look as decent as possible.

Flushed beyond salvation, you looked around, indeed spotting Ace's phone on the floor. On the floor, which was about to be littered with your clothes-

Oh my god. Were you about to have sex with Jack?!

Grabbing the phone, you opened the door just a little bit and handed it to Ace. "Here."

"Damn, you seem pretty out of it, y'still drinking with Jack?"

Fuck, don't mention him right now.

"Yeah, we were just about to clean...up around here and...call it a night."

"Cool, I can wait for him so we can walk back together."

"Uh...we still have some cleaning up to do. You go back. Okay?" Please, just fucking go.

"Suuuuure. Yeah. Okay. Gotcha. G'night then."

And with that he was gone. Somehow, you knew that he knew. But perhaps, he was just too tired to mention it. Or maybe, he was saving all his teasing for tomorrow?

What about Jack?

You turned back, only to find him actually picking up the glasses and tidying up.

"You... don't actually have to do that, you know?"

"It's the uh ... Least I can do."

"Uh-huh."

Fuck. Why was this so awkward, this shouldn't be this awkward, you've known each other for years. Did you just seriously wash 3 years of friendship down the goddamn drain?!

"I...think we should talk." "I think I should go."

Really? Did you guys really say it at the exact same time? This isn't some shoujo anime-

"Can we-"

"Tomorrow?"

"Huh?"

"T-tomorrow. Talk tomorrow."

"I don't think I-"

"Let us be at least...sober."

Fuck. He had a point.

"Okay."

"Uh....Goodnight, then."

"Yeah... Goodnight.

Before he could leave, though, he turned around to look at you.

"I-"

Welp. Here goes nothing I guess. If tomorrow's gonna be awkward regardless, then you... Might as well... Right?

You stepped on your tippy toes and left the smallest of kisses on his cheek.

"Bye, Jack."

His eyes widened, tail gently swishing behind him.

"Bye, MC."

What a night.

[theinheritancegamesgoofball]

Innocence ~ Grayson Hawthorne x Reader

i caught you dirty minded readers hahaaa get ur mind out of the gutters

a/n: i have spent too much time reading this stuff and thought that i should try writing! this is the prologue btw, but could be a standalone, if yall want, i’ll start the whole series. hope you guys like it! oh yeah, reader is alisa's sister

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

Growing up with the Hawthornes was a blessing and a curse. I got to participate in the Saturday Games hosted by the Tobias Hawthorne himself to expand my mental horizons, and hang out with my best friends. My best friends were the curse.

Grayson, Jameson, Xander, and Nash are like the stereotypical high school friend group. You have the ADHD always high on red bull (mostly actually high) class clown, the smart jokester who somehow finds a way to turn just 1 + 1 into a random calculus equation that AI can't even solve, the chill cowboy who's just there because he's bored and needs fun in his life, and the depressed dude who tries to hide that he can have fun. They're always together, and usually have no issues. However, when they do, it's so entertaining to watch.

My sister Alisa and I came everyday and had loads of fun every single time. Whether it was Drink or Dare (clean or not), Strip Bowling (proud to say that the most I have lost is 3 pieces!), or anything in between, Hawthorne House had everything I wanted and more.

What is complicated, even in Hawthorne terms, is how I felt about a certain brother. When we were little and Zara got married to her second husband, Nash, Alisa, Grayson, and I got nosy. Jameson and Xander hung out with Emily (so glad she’s gone she ruined my mental health) and Rebecca.

~~~~~~~~

“What is it like being married- again?” I asked Zara while holding a lollipop in my hand on the staircase next to Alisa.

The woman thought for a few moments because she knew she was speaking to children who didn’t know the complexities of adulthood. “It’s like having a sleepover with your best friend everyday”.

“But what about your ex-husband? Won’t he be jealous that you’re hanging out with another person? Ooh! What about having a sleepover with both of them?”

Nash and Alisa spat out their juice and began cackling. Grayson put his hand on my shoulder and said exasperatedly “Y/N, I think you had too much sugar”

“Grayson? We’re best friends, right?” I felt a smirk come up on Nash’s face.

“I would think so.”

“Then we should get married when we’re older! We could watch a bunch of movies, eat food, swim, and whatever we want because we’re gonna be ADULTS!”

Nash, Alisa, and Zara began giggling and enjoying the show that is Grayson and I’s friendship. The eldest put back on a straight face and walked away because she was so done with us.

“So Grayson what do you think? Seems like a pretty reasonable offer, right?” Nash asked his brother.

“Yeah Grayson, what do you say? Are you seriously going to reject my sister’s proposal? That’s cold, even for you” Alisa added.

Grayson thought for a moment and furrowed his brows. “Sure Y/N”

I grinned and squealed “Yay!” I hugged him and laid my head on his shoulder. “I could get used to this”

I heard a soft mumble coming from under his breath “So could I”.

~~~~~~~~~~

tysm for reading!

guys pls leave comments abt what i could do better

[nagujake]

୨⎯Faking It: Part 2⎯୧

pairing: classmate!Theo x fem!reader

synopsis: you're the good student, never getting into any trouble, living a pretty bland life and always prioritizing school. Until a student from one of your classes approaches you with an insane proposal that you can't help but accept.

genre: strangers to lovers, college au, fake relationship

word count: 4.1k

warnings: None! Just a bit of kissing, and drinking and lots of plot!

a/n: This is Part 2! Please read part 1 to fully understand the story but anyways, I hope you like it! Technically, the reader has a name in this story. It was a bit easier to write it this way. NOT PROOF READ

I slowly emerged from my room for the morning, ready to take Lune outside, when Theo greeted me excitedly from the kitchen. "Good morning Yujin!" I smiled at him "hi! What's going on?". He quickly grabbed something off of the counter and brought it out to me "I made breakfast, just as a little thank you for all you've done so far". I took the plate from him "thank you so much, I appreciate it. I'm gonna let Lune out quick and then I'll come eat" As I began to sit the plate down, he stopped me "I took her out already, about 45 minutes ago". "Oh gosh, thank you so much!". I walked over to the dining table and sat down "did you make some for yourself?" He motioned to the kitchen "yea, I'll go get it". I watched him walk away and then come back and sit down across from me. "What time are they coming over tonight?" "I told them about 7, is that okay?" "Yea that should be fine... did you sleep okay?" He nodded and smiled at me. I stared at him for a few seconds longer than I should have.

That smile, his fucking smile... I loved it when he smiled at me.

"You okay?" His question knocked me from my daze. I shook my head and came back down to reality. "Yeah- I'm sorry" "it's okay, I was just checking on you". As we sat there, we started talking about school and just life in general, this was the first conversation we'd had that wasn't part of the scripted plan we had created. It was nice to just talk to him and learn more about him and not just information I needed to the lie he had gotten me involved in.

"Are you finished eating?" I asked as I stood up with my plate in my hands. He nodded at me "I got it Yujin". He quickly stood and grabbed my plate from me. "I'll clean up, don't worry" "no Theo, you made us breakfast, I can clean it all up, it's the least I can do".He put his hand on my arm "I got it okay? Again this is a thank you for doing this for me" "okay.. thank you". I watched him retreat into the kitchen and I began to walk to my room. "Hey I'm gonna shower and get dressed" "okay, I'm probably gonna change quick and run to the store, I'm sure the guys will wanna drink a little, is that ok?" He hollered from the kitchen "Yeah, that's fine!".

~~~~

Theo and I sat on the couch, waiting for the guys to come. They were gonna be here in about 15 minutes, so we were just prepping any information we may need for the night.

A soft knock came to the door and Theo jumped up "ready?" I nodded and smiled at him as he went and opened the door for them. They came rushing in, 2 more guys than the ones we saw at the restaurant the other night. They greeted Theo, then me and the other 2 I hadn't seen before introduced themselves to me. "Um, what did you guys wanna do tonight? We can play the game or drink or whatever else" Theo's voice faded off as he stood there nervously. "Let's get drinking, I was hoping you'd have something" Keeho said with a smile.

I jumped up from the couch "I'll get it! You guys can do your thing" I began walking to the kitchen to get drinks for everyone. Theo came around the corner with a smile "I'll help you. I don't want you to try and carry everything on your own" I smiled up at him "thank you". We brought all the drinks out for everyone and we sat down. I could feel Theo tense up on the couch next to me, so I slid closer to him and grabbed his arm before laying my head on his shoulder. He slowly relaxed and leaned into me as he spoke with his friends.

"So Yujin, are you nervous to meet his family next weekend?" I smiled over at Jiung "not at all, I'm ready to meet them. I'm kind of excited actually". When in reality, I was shaking whenever I thought about it. Playing up this whole lie for his friends is one thing, but for his family, is completely different. "That's good! His family can be a little-ya know" I glanced between him and Theo briefly "what do you mean?" As Jiung was about to speak, Theo spoke up "nothing babe, it'll be just fine". I bit my lip and just looked up at him. As if I wasn't nervous enough, now I had no idea what Jiung meant and now my thoughts were racing. Maybe I bit off more than I can chew.

~~~~

I waved goodbye to the guys as Theo ushered them out the door. He turned to me with a smile "you did great, thank you so much for that. I appreciate you" his words slurred slightly as he spoke, making me giggle. "Of course, it's no problem. Now I think we should head to bed, it's late" He stumbled back over to the couch and plopped down next to me. "I'm not ready for bed yet, I wanted to talk to you about something". I locked eyes with him and adjusted how I was sitting so I could face him. "yeah?" "I'm sure you're probably wondering what Jiung meant when he said that my parents can be a little.. they can be a little in your face and I don't know, assertive. They're going to question you a lot" "oh.. okay. I'm sure I can handle it". He gave me a wide smile and reached over, putting a hand on my thigh. "I don't doubt that but it's gonna be a lot so I'm telling you now so you know what to expect and you don't get overwhelmed" I nodded at him "ok".We both sat there and watched the random show that had been playing for a few minutes, then I looked over at him "You wanna help me clean up a bit?" "Mhm" he stood up and started to collect bottles and cans in his hand, as I did the same and we made our way to the kitchen.

We both quickly leaned down, over the trash at the same time, causing our heads to smack together. I dropped the bottles in the trash and backed up to the wall, holding my head "oww" I giggled, looking over at him. He put the trash into the bin quickly "are you okay? I'm sorry". He approached me and stood closely, pinning me up against the wall. "Yeah I'm okay" I swallowed hard as he brought his hands up to my head "let me see Yujin" I slowly dropped my arms as he looked at the red bump that was already forming on my forehead. "You have a little bump there-" His hands dropped and his face was just inches from mine "I'm sorry I didn't mean to head bump you" I looked him in the eyes and took a deep breath "it's okay, I'll be fine. Are you okay?" He smiled before responding "yeah I hardly even felt it". It felt like we had been staring at each other for minutes when realistically it was just a few seconds. His deep colored eyes were like a black hole, pulling me in and I couldn't stop staring at them.

He moved closer, his nose and forehead touching mine. "I don't know if it's just the drinks in my system or what but, you look really good Yujin" he whispered, barely audible. I felt my cheeks get hot as I knew what was about to happen any second now. I leaned up slightly and attached my lips to his. My hands moved to cup the sides of his face and his trailing down to my waist.

The kiss was short, but intense. Lasting only a few seconds. He pulled away from me and I bit my lip. "I'm sorry, I think that's my cue to go to bed. I drank too much". I let out a small laugh "that's a good idea, I'm gonna take Lune out one last time then I'm gonna head to bed" He smiled slightly at me and began to walk away, disappearing into the other bedroom.

I touched my fingers to my lips and sighed. I guess if we were playing a couple and acting in front of others, we were gonna have to kiss eventually.

~~~~

I laid a soft knock on Theo's bedroom door, figuring he'd still be asleep but his response startled me. "Come in".

I slowly entered his room with a smile "good morning, how are you feeling?" He groaned "I feel like shit. I drank way too much" I let out a small laugh and moved closer to the bed, sitting on the edge of it. There was an awkward silence that began to grow in the air with each passing second. I looked over at him, biting my lip anxiously. His eyes darted away from me as soon as I looked at him. He looked up at the ceiling for a second before grunting and sitting up quickly. He ran a hand through his messy hair and pulled his knees to his chest "I'm sorry for last night by the way". I shifted in my spot, adjusting my position to turn towards him. "What are you talking about? What are you sorry for?" His eyes shifted to meet mine "you don't remember?" I looked away from him, digging around in my brain briefly before remembering. "The kiss?" He sighed "yeah, the kiss". I smiled at him "why are you apologizing?" "Because it shouldn't have happened and I'm sorry... I also can't stop thinking about it to be honest". I bit back a smile that wanted to paint itself on my lips "it's okay, it's bound to happen eventually right? Like to make this believable in front of your family, we'd probably have to kiss anyways" He nodded in response and pulled the blanket off himself. "I think I'm gonna go home. I'll see you on Friday and we can prepare for Saturday, yeah?" He asked as he stood up.

He began to shuffle around the room, collecting a few of his things. I stared at him as he moved "Theo" He didn't respond to me calling him "Theo!" He stopped and turned to face me. "Yeah?" I motioned at him to come sit down and he paused for a few short seconds before sitting next to me. "Why are you in such a rush to leave?" "I just think I should go" His voice raised slightly, as if he was frustrated "why?! You wanted to be here so bad and now you're trying to go without a second thought!".

He stood up quickly and stood in front of me. "I know you're not stupid, I know you know exactly why I think it's better if I leave. Do you just wanna hear me say it?!" I furrowed my eyebrows "I really don't know what you're talking about.." my voice faltered, growing quieter as I continued to speak.

He grabbed his bag that was partially packed with a few of his clothes and walked to the door. "I'll see you on Friday Yujin" He rushed out the room, slamming the door behind him.

I sat there confused, thoughts running through my mind. He was so angry when he left, what did I do to make him so angry?

~~~~

Theo hadn't texted or called me in 2 days. I decided to leave him be and not send any messages to him either. I wasn't sure how he felt about me or the small argument we had on Sunday.

I walked onto campus, headphones in and choosing to ignore the world today. For some reason, things didn't feel right without Theo in them. We had only been talking for a week but I've learned so much about him and who he is within the short time that I was used to him being around and taking up all my time. I genuinely loved it.

As I walked slowly, getting closer to my building for class, I felt a pull on my backpack, turning around quickly to see who was there. "Hey Lina" I said with a plain expression, secretly hoping it was Theo. "Geez, don't be too happy to see me" "sorry, I'm not really in a good mood" "yeah you haven't been. You haven't talked to me in days Yujin" I stopped walking and turned to her "I'm sorry Lina. I've just been so busy". "yeah with your little boyfriend" she said quietly as she fiddled with her book bag string. "Lina, I've been neglecting our friendship, I know. I'm sorry. Do you wanna hang out tonight?". She immediately perked up and began jumping up and down "yes please, I have so much to tell you!" "Okay, well text me when you're not busy and we can do something" she nodded and ruffled my hair slightly before skipping away.

I put my headphones back on and continued my walk to class.

As I stepped into the doorway, my eyes immediately darted to Theo's seat, where he sat with his head down on the small desk. I looked over to my professor who smiled at me before greeting me "good morning Ms. Choi" I bowed at her and greeted her back before shuffling to my seat. I looked up to Theo again, this time he was looking at me. His eyes lingered on mine for a few seconds before he looked away, expressionless.

I was torn between wanting to go sit next to him or just minding my business, ultimately deciding to leave him be. He probably didn't wanna see me anyways.

~~~~

I sat at my desk, working on the small amount of homework I had before Lina wanted to hang out. Focusing was hard, all I could think about was Theo, why was he all that was on my mind anymore. I barely knew him, he was practically just a random person.

Trying to convince myself that Theo was nothing wasn't easy. He was way more than nothing.. At this point he was everything.

I slammed my pen down onto my notebook, groaning loudly.

"Someone's angry" I screamed in response to Lina's voice. "What are you doing?!" "Surprise! I wanted to hang out sooner but you had stuff to do so I just thought I'd hang out with you here". I held my hand to my chest, coming down from the mini heart attack she had given me "Lina please ask before just showing up" She shook her head and sat behind me on my bed. "You um... redecorated?" I widened my eyes, fuck I forgot that all of Theo's stuff was here. "Uhhh.. yea" "it looks like guys stuff Yujin.. Is Theo living here? Already?!" I sighed and turned to face her "listen, there's a lot going on with Theo and I. I'll tell you all about it eventually. Give me a week" She furrowed her eyebrows "No Yujin! Tell me now! We're like strangers at this point" "Lina, we're not strangers. But I'm not telling you now because it's just too much to explain. I'm sorry. Give me a week and we will talk all about it, I promise" She softly stomped her foot on the floor. "fine".

I stood up and closed my textbook and laptop. "Let's go do something, I can't focus right now" I swiftly gathered my phone and bag and led us out of my apartment.

~~~~

I laid on the couch just staring at the ceiling. I haven't gone to school for the past 2 days. I've just been feeling sorry for myself at home. All I could think about was Theo, all I wanted was Theo. I was just waiting for tomorrow, when I was supposed to be seeing him. Tears started to pool in my eyes. Why was I feeling this way over a man, Theo of all men? I stood up to walk to my bedroom and lay down in bed but as I reached my bedroom door, a light knock came to the door. I stopped mid step and turned to face the door. Did I want to open it? It's probably Lina and lord knows she'll let herself in. I took a deep breath before walking to the door, unlocking it and pulling it open. My eyes widened and I froze. "Hi" I mumbled quietly. "Hey.. I was concerned, you haven't been in class. You always come to class" I looked up at him with my teary eyes. "I just wasn't feeling it I guess".

I wanted to hug him and I was so excited on the inside but I couldn't show him that, because he did hurt me.

He took a step into my apartment and closed the door behind him. "Why are you crying Yujin?" I wiped my eyes quickly "I'm not". He stepped closer to me and put both of his hands on my cheeks. "I'm sorry for the other day and I'm sorry for the way I've been treating you" I shrugged "it's fine". He squeezed my face a little harder "it's not fine, it's shitty" He stayed quiet and just looked into my eyes before pulling me into a tight hug. "I missed your company. I'd gotten so used to being around you" I didn't say anything back, just staying quiet in his embrace, soaking up every second. "I'm getting too attached to you" he whispered before pulling us apart.

That's what's happening to me, I'm getting too attached.

"Are you gonna say anything? Are you okay?" I took a deep breath "yeah I'm okay. I just... I missed you a lot" A small smile started to show on his lips.

We both stood there and stared at each other for what felt like forever before I spoke up. "Um since you're here, do you want to help me pick out a nice outfit for Saturday?" He bit his lip "things have changed a little bit, so it's not just a dinner at my parents place, it's a whole party at my dad's bosses house" "oh, so like I need something really nice to wear?" He nodded and smiled "like really nice, I guess there's gonna be a bunch of high profile people coming from his company".

I took a step back and gritted my teeth "Great. As if I wasn't nervous enough already". "I'm sorry, they didn't tell me until yesterday. Do you have anything to wear?" I shook my head "no, I'll have to go shopping for something, or I can just ask Lina. She'd definitely have something"

He took another step towards me "do you wanna go to Lina's and find something?" "I can later, after you leave" "let's go together" I looked up at him and smiled "Theo, she's gonna ask questions. I still haven't told her anything yet" "I want you to be prepared for Saturday though so you make the choice, we go buy you a nice new dress, or we go to Lina's" I bit my lip at him and took a deep breath "I don't really have any extra money for a dress, so Lina's it is". I swiftly turned around to go to my room to change out of my pajamas but he grabbed my wrist and pulled me back around "um my parents gave me money for us to get nice outfits for the event, so we can go get something new if you'd like" I smiled and cocked my head at him "your parents wanted to get me a new dress?" He smiled and nodded "yeah, they wanted you to get the best, me too" My heart began racing "they care a lot about your girlfriend without having even met her?" He scoffed "yeah, they think that if she's good enough for me, then she is for them too".

I started to instantly feel shitty. I knew the exact feeling too, it was guilt. I felt it in the pit of my stomach and in my chest. "But Theo.. I'm not your real girlfriend". "I know" he averted his gaze downwards "it doesn't feel great, but I wasn't expecting this whole lie to feel good anyways. I hate lying to people, especially my parents" I stood there for a second before excusing myself "I'm gonna go change, I'll be right back" He nodded in response and I disappeared into my room.

It felt horrible to use the money they gave him. It was for his girlfriend, and I am definitely not his.

I pulled some clothes out of my closet and dresser and changed before walking back out to him. "Let's go to Lina's, I can't use your parents' money. I'm not your real girlfriend and I just can't do that" His kind smile appeared "I love that you care about that, but my concern is that they might be able to tell a fancy new dress, from a nice used one" I hadn't thought of that, but he was right. I groaned in agreement and sighed "ugh, fine. Let's go get new outfits!" He smiled and threw an arm around my shoulders. "Ready to go now?" I nodded with a smile and we made our way to the door.

We stood in the middle of a small shopping center, looking at the shops "I need to get a suit so we can go there first, then we need to get you a dress so then we can go into that store" he stated pointing to the buildings. We began heading into one of the stores so that Theo could find a suit.

He came out of the dressing room with his 3rd suit option. A sleek white suit that fit his frame perfectly and made his skin tone pop. My eyes lit up once he came into view and I smiled "that's the one for sure, it looks fantastic on you" He shot me a sly smile before turning to the full body mirror and straightening the suit out. "Let's go with this one then, I'm tired of trying things on" I giggled at his words and stood up and approached him.

I threw my arms around his shoulders and smiled "you look really great Theo" his body stiffened at my touch and he looked me in the eyes, staring intensely. We stared at each other for a few more seconds before I shook my head "go change out of that, and let's get to the other store, hm?" He smiled and nodded, slowly backing away, my arms dropping slowly.

As we walked through the aisles of fancy dresses, I began to feel overwhelmed, I had never owned a dress like this and taking a look down at the price tags made me remember why I never had one.

I brought my hand up to the fabric and let it touch each dress, contemplating which one I wanted to go with. I already had 4 options, in which Theo was holding for me. "Are there any you really liked?" He paused before looking around "you want my opinion?" I smiled and nodded, waiting for him to answer. "There was this really nice Navy blue dress just over here. I saw it and thought it would look good on you". I shuffled closer to him and grabbed the other dresses out of his hand "let's go grab that one, I wanna try it on". I followed shortly behind him as he grabbed it off of the rack, and we began to make our way to the dressing room.

"Okay Theo, I'm gonna show you your choice now" I slowly pushed the curtain out of my way and walked over to him. His eyes widened and his mouth fell open slightly. "Wow.. you look great Yujin" I smiled at his words and began to feel my cheeks heating up. He stood up, and approached me "I needed a closer look" he said, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

He just stood there staring at me, his eyes roaming all over my body. "I think you should get this one, you'll definitely turn some heads and I think my parents would love it.. but that's up to you though! You can pick whichever dress" I smiled at him "well I liked this one the most anyways, I'll get this one" His eyes lit up. "awesome".

I laughed softly "okay I'm gonna go change and then we can buy this and get out of here! I'm done shopping for the day" he just nodded in response as I turned to walk away, my cheeks heating up. No one has ever looked at me the way he did, it almost looked like he was in awe and that made my heart beat uncontrollably.

[xechu]

[Honor & Vengeance] S. Geto - 夏油 傑

Pairing: general!suguru x fem!reader Word Count: 9k Series Warnings: please read my blog rules before interacting. 18+ mdni, explicit sexual content, depiction of gore and violence, mature themes Chapter Warnings: mature themes, emotional angst, brief description of violence, allusion to repressed trauma, performative affection/dubcon Tags: historical au, non-curse au, marriage of convenience, slow burn, enemies to lovers, smut, angst, hurt/comfort Summary: your arrival at the Eastern Campsite brings the current political tensions of two nations to light. Behind closed doors, the civil war between you and your husband continues... until sickness, duty, and quiet realizations slowly bring the two of you together. But will this fragile understanding come to last? a/n: Wow, it's been a while since the last chapter - thank you all so much for being so patient, kind, and supportive with this series. 'The Eastern Campsite Incident' arc is going to be a bit lore-heavy and therefore, longer than my usual chapters. The next chapter will be out on Jun 20th! I hope you enjoy and thank you so much for reading! x

Master List: << chapter 3 | chapter 5 >>

[Chapter 4]: The Eastern Campsite Incident (Pt. 1)

Midway through the journey to the Eastern Campsite, the skies grew darker. The group was headed straight into the eye of the storm. Light, misty drizzle gradually turned into a relentless downpour. A crack of thunder roared through the air as though an ominous welcome, a forewarning considering how rare it was for storms like this to hit during the summer.

“We’re not too far away from the site. We press on,” Suguru commanded. The soldiers all replied with a firm yes, not missing a single beat.

Without hesitation, Suguru stripped off the outer layer of his uniform and gently draped it over your head. He muttered something about not wanting you to catch a cold as he adjusted it to make sure you were well-covered. You mumbled a quiet thank you in return, clutching the black silk close. His natural scent clung to the fabric, subtle but undoubtedly his, which almost made the whole exchange feel a little too intimate. 

Like you were truly his wife.

It was moments like this that made it hard to tell if it was purely for appearances, or something else entirely. But you’d conditioned yourself to always assume it was just for appearances when it came to Suguru. You couldn’t afford to get let down by hope and expectations.

It had never been your intention to villainize your husband, no matter how unideal the circumstances were. Still, it would’ve been a lie to say you hadn’t come to resent him. Behind closed doors, he’d done nothing but make you feel less than a person. These past few days of forced proximity, however, offered an opportunity for quiet observations, a chance to know him from a distance.

Suguru was good at hiding his feelings; that much was obvious. He was painfully aware of appearances, so much so it felt more like a burden than a blessing. But no matter how good someone was at playing the game of pretense, they couldn’t wear the mask forever. Sooner or later, their true nature would show in small things, such as the subconscious habits they couldn’t quite hide.

You had quickly learned that your husband greatly valued competence, in the way his eyes would ever so subtly light up when someone proposed an intriguing thought or clever solution. He was surprisingly patient with his comrades. On the second night of the journey, a soldier offered to play a game of Go with him, and while he took a little longer than most to make a move, Suguru quietly waited—a stark contrast to his curt attitude towards you. 

Another observation—a slightly more amusing one—was that he didn’t seem to enjoy drinking. His jaw would tense ever so slightly after each sip, like a child forced to take medicine. He also had a rather low tolerance. In hindsight, that explained why he hadn’t drunk much during the wedding.

Last night, he’d had a bit too much, and everyone had teased him about it, everyone except you and Yumi, who sat quietly and watched the spectacle unfold. When you finally sat him down in the shared tent, he mumbled something along the lines of why did you lose on purpose, which confused you, but you wrote it off as the ramblings of a drunk man.

For a noble, he was also very adept in hunting and survival skills. It appears what they said about him was true: Suguru had always been a soldier first. 

Above all, you recognized that his title of the King's General was rightfully earned and not bestowed due to nepotism. He had the remarkable skills and merit to back it up.

In all honesty, it was easier to label your husband as a tyrant. But deep down, you had a feeling he wasn’t fundamentally malicious, just deeply burdened. Whatever those burdens were, you weren’t certain. The only thing you were certain about was that he’d most likely rather die on the battlefield than let you in.

—

It wasn’t long before you arrived at the Eastern Campsite. Despite the storm, the place was buzzing with activity. Soldiers scurried across the muddy ground, each step squelching against the saturated soil, while others busied themselves with operational duties or training drills.

There was truly no rest for the wicked.

However... this was not exactly what you expected to arrive at.

The campsite was massive. In fact, massive might be an understatement. Rows of tents stretched across the terrain in perfect formation, with divisions scattered across nearly every corner of the area. There were soldiers everywhere.

More than enough men to start a war.

The contradiction was glaring. But before you could fully take it in, a wave of excited soldiers came swarming in. They surged forward, eager to greet the return of their great General, but more so curious to finally meet Lady Geto, the one who had captured their General’s heart.

“It is an honor to meet you, Lady Geto!” one of the soldiers exclaimed.

“Thank you for the warm welcome,” you replied with a polite nod.

“Just knowing we have House Geto’s support has lifted everyone’s spirits.” another added.

“My presence here is nothing compared to the sacrifices you’ve all made,” you said earnestly. “But if there’s anything I can do to ease your burdens—even in a small way—please don’t hesitate to ask.”

A brief silence followed. The soldiers exchanged glances, their expressions unreadable.

Had you said something wrong? 

Just as the feelings of doubt were about to creep in—

“Lady Geto, you’re far too kind! We didn’t expect the General’s wife to be so thoughtful!” Their faces lit up. 

“Come now,” Suguru cut in with a scowl, though there was no bite behind it. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing at all, General.” One of the soldiers teased.

Suguru rolled his eyes, and a small smile tugged at his lips. His smile was disarming. You never knew the cold and calculative man that was your husband was capable of such a thing. You had never seen him smile—genuinely smile—until now. 

To be honest, it suited him.

“I appreciate the warm welcome,” he said, clearing his throat, “but I’d rather not have my wife catching a cold on the first night.”

“Of course! Allow me to show you both to your quarters, General!” one of the soldiers offered quickly.

Once again, it seemed the two of you would be forced to share space. But at least this time, it appears the tent would be more spacious. There would be more room to breathe, more room to avoid each other.

Walking quietly beside Suguru, your gaze fell on his drenched attire—the way the fabric clung to the contours of his body, and how wet strands of hair stuck to his face. The garment he had draped over you was long soaked through, offering little protection from the rain.

“It's a pity, to be called into duty right after your wedding vows,” the soldier mused as he showed the two of you to your shared tent.

“Our country always comes first,” Suguru replied. “I'm fortunate to have a wife who understands duty as deeply as I do.”

“Why, of course! Most would not be so pleased to have their husband called away so soon—let alone choose to join them at the frontlines. You are a lucky man, General!”

Their banter droned on in the background as you walked, eyes scanning the surroundings. From what you knew, the Eastern Campsite was meant to be a simple outpost, yet the supplies arriving were not just the usual crates of rations and spare armor. Instead, they came in heavy wagons full of weaponry.

Too many for a basic outpost. Too many for peace.

But the most perplexing question remained: why was there even a need to watch the Eastern Region so closely when Princess Ayaka was set to marry their prince?

For many years, the Eastern Region had lived under the looming threat of domination. Their lands were vast, rich in natural resources, but they lacked military might. Their previous kings had lived lives of opulence and bliss, lured into the trap of complacency by the beauty of their homeland. The lush valleys, fertile fields, and tranquil coasts produced a false sense of peace and security. Now, it was too late to build an army—not when conquest was already knocking at their gates.

To make matters worse, the Eastern Region was caught in a deadly pincer—trapped between two nations with insatiable appetites for power. 

King Sato’s only saving grace was that he had a beautiful daughter to offer in marriage—a perfect bargaining chip for his never-ending greed. The Eastern Region most likely foresaw that surrender was inevitable, so they would rather yield peacefully under the guise of marriage than be ravaged by their other neighbor, who would offer nothing but bloodshed. And so, the Eastern Region agreed to the union.

It was a more honorable end.

But now—with the set-up of this war camp—how could the Eastern Region not see it as a betrayal? Wouldn’t it jeopardize the marriage alliance entirely?

You glanced at Suguru, then at Haibara. Both of them seemed unfazed, carrying on as if nothing was unusual. But behind their relaxed facades, you had a sinking suspicion they already knew the truth long ago.

They had to have known.

Especially Suguru.

Frustration brewed in your chest. 

How could he have not told you about this when the stakes were so high?

An outpost alone would have already been enough to spark tension, let alone an entire war camp. It sent a clear, undeniable message that this wasn’t just about keeping the Eastern Region in check. It was a political takeover. A demonstration of power.

While the Eastern Region might eventually bow to King Sato, every country still had its pride and honor.

Was it really necessary to go this far, when he would’ve gotten what he wanted anyway?

Did your husband not see that there was something deeply wrong about this?

Yet, as cynical as it was... this was the dark reality of politics, conquest, and human greed. It was a burden Suguru carried along with his title as the great general—the man who had brought power and prestige to this country. For all his glory and recognition, the harsh truth was that the Conqueror of Stars was nothing more than Sato's lapdog. It didn't matter whether Suguru thought it was right or wrong. The King’s decree was absolute.

It was pitiful.

Suguru glanced over at you, catching you off guard, as if he somehow knew you were dissecting him in your mind. But his eyes quickly shifted forward again.

His gaze still managed to turn everything cold in an instant. But you'd long accepted it was something you'd likely never get used to.

—

When the two of you stepped into the tent, to your mutual horror and dismay, it held only one large bed, a desk with an oil lamp atop it, and a storage chest. You could practically feel his distress by the way he froze immediately and sharply inhaled.

You supposed it would be inappropriate for war camps to house luxury items such as a sofa. Still, the tiny satisfaction that bloomed in your chest was undeniable. It felt like a (petty) victory, seeing the cold general slightly thrown off balance. Though you could only hope he hadn’t picked up on your own discomfort.

“I will wait for you outside,” he said, clearing his throat.

You shot him a confused look.

It was the first time he had really spoken to you since a few nights ago when you confronted him about his resentment towards you. Of course, he gave you his usual answer: silence. And since then, neither of you had really talked, except for when it came down to keeping up appearances, but it was more like he was talking at you than to you. So, you returned the same in kind.

“You need to change into dry clothes,” he reiterated, eyes narrowing in clear annoyance.

Right. 

You nodded, trying to ignore the heat rising up your neck. “It won't take long—”

But he was already stepping out before you could even quite finish your sentence.

Letting out a tiny sigh, you allowed yourself a split-second to decompress, before gingerly sifting through the storage box for a cloth to dry off and a fresh set of camp attire—eager to shed the damp fabric that clung like second skin.

Wet clothes pooled at your feet as you peeled the layers away, and the cool air grazed bare skin, raising goosebumps. You wrapped the cloth around your body and dabbed yourself dry, trying to shake off the lingering chill.

As you noticed the silhouette that lingered just outside the flap of the tent, a shiver traced down your spine. Suguru stood right by the entrance, vigilant like a soldier, as if quietly guarding your dignity.

It was another one of those small things: instinct, habit, a reflex that revealed more of his nature than he ever said aloud. Suguru’s chivalrous tendencies couldn’t be entirely dismissed as performance. 

These new sides of him that you were gradually discovering only made things all the more perplexing. Clearly, he was capable of grace and kindness—but why couldn’t he afford it to you?

Fastening the wrapping around your waist, you took in a small inhale and straightened your shoulders. Peeking out from the tent, your gaze landed on his broad back. He stood unmoving, as though lost in thought, rain bouncing off him in steady streams. His clothes looked soaked to the point they couldn’t hold a drop more.

“I’m done,” you said quietly, feeling a flicker of guilt at the sight.

Suguru glanced over, gave a curt nod, and stepped into the tent. You moved toward the entrance—about to return the courtesy—when he paused.

“You’re only going to get wet again if you wait outside,” he said.

Feet frozen mid-step, your mind went momentarily blank. He crossed the space, pulled a fresh cloth and dry uniform from the storage chest, and set them neatly on the desk.

His fingers moved deftly to untie the outer layer, before pausing. Then he shot you a sharp glare, as if to say: are you just going to stand there and gawk?

Startled, you snapped back to reality and spun around, facing the tent wall. Ears burning, you held your breath as the rustle of fabric filled the silence—his clothes falling onto the floor. Standing there for what felt like an eternity, you focus hard at the blank canvas in front of you, in an attempt to ignore the embarrassing images flooding your mind. The memory of him sparring with Haibara, the way his muscles moved; the scars that mapped his skin; and the sweat that glazed his body, just like the rain—

“Take this,” he said.

His voice snapped you out of it. When you turned, he was already fully dressed—fresh clothes modestly covering his frame, damp hair hanging down, and cold eyes locked with yours.

In his hand was a dagger, slightly worn, with the crest of House Geto engraved, but still well-kept. Unmistakably his personal blade. But as he settled it into your hands, you noticed something else on the blade—Shinjiro Geto.

Why…would he pass along such an invaluable item?

Why would he give his father’s dagger to you?

Haibara’s caution about his past and his family echoed in your mind, and so you swallowed down your curiosity. Instead, you looked at Suguru—really looked at him for the first time. 

A silent plea to just talk to you. 

You had planned to confront him about concealing the truth, but this unexpected gesture gave you a pause, allowing him an opportunity to explain the situation. If he would tell you the truth now, you would overlook it just this once.

He returned your gaze, and for a moment, everything seemed to still. You held your breath, gripping the dagger tighter, hoping he’d say something—anything.

It was utterly naive, how a small, unexpected gesture could spark a flicker of hope. Hope that maybe, just maybe, things were shifting. That he would finally let you in, even if only a little. But he broke the gaze, turning to leave. 

The cryptic offering of the dagger was as far as he was willing to go.

Under normal circumstances, this would have been progress. A step closer to mutual understanding. However, this small gesture was not good enough given the current situation. The stakes were too high, and lives were on the line—you couldn’t afford to be caught off guard.

Closing the distance, you marched towards him and gripped his arm, stopping him in his tracks.

He instantly stiffened under your touch. 

“I ask you again, Geto-sama. Is there trouble?” Your voice was steady, but your eyes burned with defiance, conveying a message that you expected answers. There would be no compromises this time. 

Maintaining decorum felt nearly impossible. 

Since the start of this journey, every moment of silence, every time he had dismissed you had worn down your patience, and slowly chipped down your confidence.

“I’m sure you’ve already figured it out,” he said brusquely, shrugging off your touch.

“I have my presumptions, yes,” you replied evenly, maintaining your gaze at him. “But I must hear it from you.”

“There’s no use in that,” he countered dismissively. “You’re a keen woman—whatever you presume is most likely correct.”

“I only ask that you be forthcoming with me, especially when lives could be at risk.”

“If there’s one thing you must hear from me, then hear this: it is all under control. Continue playing the quiet, obedient Lady Geto.”

“I don’t mind playing the role,” you said, infuriation slowly creeping up. “But I do mind putting the people I care about in danger.

“There’s no doubt you and Haibara knew well in advance the true nature of this summon—that this outpost was actually a war camp. But had I known, I wouldn’t have brought Yumi here.”

“Your lady-in-waiting will not be in danger. I can assure you.” He let out an irritated sigh.

You bit the inside of your lip, frustration flaring in your chest. He was either the most conceited man alive or a stubborn fool, and at this moment, you were inclined to believe both.

“You could have assured me sooner by simply telling me the truth.”

“I’m not required to do such a thing. You are just to follow my lead, and I will handle the rest.”

“You owe it to me,” you snapped, voice sharp. “Whatever political game or fire you’re playing with, I do not care for it. But I will not stand by your willful neglect a second time.”

“And what would you do about it exactly?” 

“You should know better than to underestimate someone you barely even know.” 

“Is that a threat?” His voice dropped, dark and dangerous.

“A threat?” You smiled wryly. “Do I threaten you, Geto-sama?”

“I’d advise you to watch your words, Lady Geto,” he warned, stepping closer—his breath hot against your skin.

“Lady Geto,” you echoed, almost mockingly. Taking a bold step forward, your face now inches from his, you whispered, “Then you ought to remember to treat me as such. Otherwise, you dishonor your own name.”

His glare was cold, sharp enough to cut. Almost as if he were promising retribution.

But you couldn't care less.

“You’d best pray nothing goes wrong while we’re here, General Geto. I’m counting on you to keep it under control this time.” With that, you pulled away from him and stormed toward the entrance.

Despite the heavy rain, you couldn’t bear another moment inside that tent.

Suguru sat on the edge of the bed as he watched you leave. Heart pounding violently against his chest. You were an irritating and vexatious woman. Too keen, too competent—a wildcard. If he didn’t hold fast onto his reins, his meticulous plans and ambitions might go down in ruins. 

He cannot allow it.

He cannot allow all his sacrifices to mean nothing.

—

"My lady, is something amiss?" Yumi’s voice carried a slight concern as she ushered you into her tent, shielding you from the cold rain. Your hair and clothes were already damp, the storm clinging to you like the weight of that heated exchange from moments ago.

“Nothing,” you said with a small, practiced smile, though irritation still coiled tightly in your chest. “I just wanted to make sure you’d settled in alright.”

“Oh, yes—this is more spacious than I imagined. Better than the—” She caught herself, grumbling, “Never mind,” before waving it off and gesturing to a small stool by the table.

You laughed softly, already knowing what she meant. She still had a bone to pick with Suguru regarding your gilded prison back at the estate, though being near your husband right now felt more like the real prison than the guest house.

But your amusement faded as a more pressing question gnawed at you. “Have you noticed…?” you murmured, narrowing your eyes.

She nodded, her expression tight. “It’s not an outpost.”

“I’m sorry.” You bit the inside of your cheek, frustration bubbling in your chest. “Had I known the truth, I would have—”

“Nonsense.” Yumi’s voice cut through your apology, firm and reassuring. “You don’t need to worry about me. I’m more than capable of handling my own.”

You nodded slowly, though guilt still tugged at you. 

It wasn’t that you doubted Yumi’s ability should the need arise, but you would have rather spared her the risk entirely. You should’ve pressed harder when Suguru first told you of the King’s summon. You should have pushed back.

But navigating this foreign territory—duty, marriage, coexistence with a man who seemed determined to dismiss your very existence—was no easy feat. You were still learning, barely keeping your head above water. And perhaps the unfamiliarity had clouded your usually sharp judgment.

“Here, take this.” You pressed Suguru’s dagger into Yumi’s hands. A part of you felt guilty for passing it off, knowing it wasn’t just Suguru’s blade—it was an heirloom. But you knew that Yumi would take good care of it.

Her eyes widened. “This is… House Geto’s blade. I can’t accept it.”

“Please, Yumi,” you insisted softly. “It’s only an extra precaution. Geto-sama has assured me that everything is under control.”

She hesitated before reluctantly accepting it. 

“It’s just to ease my mind.” You smiled gently, hoping to dispel any doubt she still carried.

—

Suguru tried to ignore the throbbing ache behind his eyes as he sat with the war council, the room far too stuffy and far too loud. From the moment this journey began, a thorn had lodged in his side—and that thorn was you.

He hadn’t anticipated that matrimony could be so complicated. But duty cared little for personal matters. There was still work to be done, and he had hoped to avoid a war with the Eastern Region at all costs. 

Under different circumstances, he might have respected you, perhaps even found an ally in you. But it was the damn role you played that forced him to keep you at arm’s length.

Because you were too close for comfort.

Contrary to what most would think, personal affairs were just as dangerous as political ones. And his current situation was, quite frankly, a mess he hadn’t accounted for.

It was never his plan to demean you, but he had to admit: he had gravely underestimated you. And it unnerved him more than it should. 

On the battlefield, underestimation and arrogance were deadly mistakes. But ever since you had set foot at the Geto Estate, you’ve disrupted his carefully ordered world in ways he couldn’t quite explain.

It was agitating.

There was no denying it: you were impressive. A natural-born leader. Possibly more capable than most of the advisors in this very room. Unfortunately, in a world ruled by men, women like you were never given power.

Women, especially noblewomen, were expected to be ornaments. Silent, poised, always shadowed by men, no matter how brilliant they may be.

Yet his wise father had always told him: every great man has an even greater woman beside him.

If Shinjiro could see his own son now, he would be ashamed. Not because of you, but because of how Suguru had treated you.

Suguru had clung to his father’s words like scripture. But how could he ever acknowledge you in that light—when his heart belonged to someone else, and his mind was consumed by ambition?

There was no space for you. 

It just wasn’t possible for two indomitable forces to coexist in harmony.

Worse still, you had been right from the beginning. He needed you. These past few days of forced proximity had made that fact impossible to ignore. No one else—not a single name on that list of candidates—could have played the role of Lady Geto the way you did.

That’s what made you all the more dangerous. Suguru never denied talent when he recognized it.

He couldn’t tell you the purpose of this summon or the true nature of this outpost, because this was King Sato’s test.

A test of loyalty.

Suguru knew the King’s paranoia, the insecurities that bred his extreme tendencies. He’d seen it coming, and it was only a matter of time before Sato became wary of him. 

Just as he’d once been wary of his father.

Now, it was Suguru’s turn to prove his allegiance.

On paper, Princess Ayaka’s marriage to the Eastern Region’s prince was enough to secure the takeover. There was no reasonable justification to convert this outpost into a war camp. It wasted resources, kept soldiers from their families, and invited unnecessary bloodshed.

But the truth was simple, which made it all the more cruel... Sato needed to know his lapdog was still loyal. He had to see that his blade was still sharp.

As inconceivable and preposterous as the entire setup was, Suguru would take the bait. The Eastern Region was weak; even if they retaliated, the losses would be minimal. Above all, he gambled that the Eastern Region would recognize the cost, and avoid war.

This was low risk, and Suguru would acquiesce.

Everything would be fine. He had planned every angle. He owed it to his soldiers, to House Geto, and—most of all—to himself. 

He needed to know that he still had control—

“Geto-sama,” Haibara’s voice rang out. 

Suguru looked up at him. 

The entire council fell silent, seven pairs of eyes staring back at him. All waiting for his input. 

If only…

There was a person who could even understand a fraction of his burdens. Even though sometimes he doesn’t even fully comprehend it himself. 

“I understand the concerns regarding our current position,” Suguru said with a sigh, rubbing at his temple. “A war benefits neither side. But whether the Eastern Region chooses to take offense is beyond our control.” The dull ache from earlier had gradually transformed into a stabbing pain.

“Perhaps we can retract some of our forces to show them we mean no harm,” one of the advisors suggested.

“That will be an insult to our nation. If we give into the Eastern Region’s opinions, this will only show them that they have the upper hand!” Another countered.

“If we wanted to take their country by force, we would have already done so a long time ago,” one of the infantry commanders said. “The Eastern Region thinks too highly of themselves.” 

Quiet murmurs began to amplify, and civility spiraled into bickering—debating whose convictions were stronger, who’s right, and who’s wrong.

But there was no such thing as right or wrong on the battlefield. 

Only winning or losing. 

Both sides always had something to lose, it was just a matter of who would bleed dry first. 

In the end, blood was the currency of war.

The tent felt more suffocating by the minute—its walls encroached closer with every breath. Their voices grated, and the lights blinded. Until it was all too much to bear. 

“Enough.” Suguru’s voice commanded. 

The room immediately silenced. 

“I agree that we must remain resolute in our stance,” he continued. “But it doesn’t mean that we should abandon diplomacy.” 

“Do you have an idea, General?” 

Suguru nodded. “I have received word from the Royal envoy that Princess Ayaka will be here in a week’s time.”

Confused whispers filled the room. It was obvious to everyone how risky this was.

Why would the King put his precious daughter in such a precarious situation?

But Suguru had a plan—to minimize the risk, ensure her visit went smoothly, and resolve the tension through diplomacy.

“In addition to Princess Ayaka’s arrival, I propose we also invite the Eastern Region’s envoy to our campsite. What better way to prove our goodwill than to show them?”

This new proposal sparked some newfound hope and relief among the council. It would be a gamble, but he would do anything he could to avoid going to war. Because this was all the result of King Sato’s delusions, and Suguru knew better than anyone that the cost of those delusions was always paid in blood.

—

You held your breath as you entered the shared tent, but to your relief, it was empty. Glancing around the space, something new caught your eye. Maps and parchment were now spread across the desk—papers that hadn’t been there before.

Curious, you moved closer and settled into the small chair before the desk. Your hands hovered before gently sifting through what looked like council notes. Nothing too secretive. But intriguing enough. If he truly didn’t want you seeing them, he wouldn’t have left them out in plain sight.

Fingers carefully traced the delicate parchment as your eyes followed the outlines and labeled borders with quiet awe. Maps had always felt like works of art to you. The way cartographers captured every mountain, river, and road with such precision—it was mesmerizing.

Suguru’s handwriting and notes were neat and precise, outlining only the core importance. No more, no less. Very much like him.

Camp is tense, morale low Sato’s decision not widely supported. Most prefer peace.  Hold current position. Engage in political diplomacy. Invite the Eastern Region’s envoy with the Princess present. Weekly supply shipments steady. Rations currently sufficient. Prepare a peace contract as contingency.

Then, your eyes fell on a folded letter. You hesitated for a moment, but against your better judgment, you unfolded the letter.

General Geto, Tension rises by the day between the camp and the Eastern Region. The envoy from the Eastern Region has been imploring us to reconsider what this act means for our two nations. But it is more of a warning than a suggestion. Our wise King has decided to send Princess Ayaka and a contingent of royal guards to the campsite, in hopes of symbolizing peace and assuring them that our nation means no harm. Please expect their arrival within a week’s time. Hopefully, this gesture will quell any doubts they may have. However, should conflict arise, the King has vested his full authority in you—to secure and lead our great nation. He has also entrusted his beloved daughter’s safety to your care.

Your eyes widened. Maybe you shouldn’t have looked, but this letter revealed more than Suguru ever would. Unease seeped deep into your bones, the letter alluded that a war may be imminent—now the question was: when? 

The Princess’ arrival was something you hadn’t anticipated. Even if this was a symbol of peace, it was risky.

Why would King Sato do such a thing?

Every piece of the puzzle you’ve managed to put together only made you realize how much bigger the real picture was.

You carefully folded the letter back into its original crease and slid it beneath the paperweight.

Do not interfere. It didn’t concern you. You reminded yourself. And in this situation, you recognized it wasn’t in your place to intervene. 

But that didn’t mean you weren’t watching.

Suguru said it was under control.

So let it be a test.

You would watch from the sidelines, just as he wanted. And you would see how reliable he truly was.

While you were engrossed with the map and notes, the entrance of the tent flips open.

It was Suguru. 

He looked disoriented. You barely recognized him for a moment. His usually disciplined posture now slumped, skin glazed with a sickly sheen.

“You look pale,” you said, concern evident in your voice.

Suguru glanced at the map in your hand but didn’t react. His gaze barely focused. Speechless, caught between confusion and worry, you watched him trudge over to the bed and collapse onto it.

“If anyone looks for me, tell them I’m not here,” he muttered, voice hoarse.

You stood and moved to his side. “Where do you feel unwell?”

“I just need a bit of rest,” he replied, strained, eyes already shut.

As always, he was stubborn as an ox. Even in this state, he kept his walls high, even when they served no one—not even himself. Whatever grievances you’d been holding out on him had (temporarily) disappeared. Suguru may have been inconceivably infuriating, but you weren’t heartless.

Your eyes trailed down at him—he was already out cold, his chest rising and falling in a steady rhythm. He hadn’t even spared the effort to cover himself properly with the blanket. 

You let out a small, frustrated huff.

Sometimes you wondered: had the two of you not been married, how different would it be? Would it have been possible for the two of you to become friends?

Then again, you doubted you would’ve ever had the opportunity to cross paths with someone like him had it not been for this twist of fate.

How… annoying.

You wanted to stay angry with him, even if just a little longer. But perhaps, anger was not what you had been feeling this entire time. It was far more complicated than the simplicity of being angry. More so it was resentment, confusion, frustration, and disappointment. 

Yet, seeing him in this vulnerable state made the knot in your stomach twist.

You gently tugged the blanket up from beneath him, struggling slightly against his full weight, but even with your shuffling and fussing, he didn’t stir. You smoothed the blanket over his sturdy frame, then hesitated, hand hovering over his forehead before pressing gently.

A small sigh of relief escaped your lips. No fever.

Maybe he was just fatigued.

.

.

.

The clash of steel rang sharp across the training grounds, a sound that was pulled from a distant memory. Suguru crossed blades with the most formidable opponent he had ever faced: his father. 

Years had passed, but he never forgot the force behind each strike—powerful, precise, absolute.

Convictions forged in steel. 

That was Shinjiro Geto’s greatest weapon.

“You are ready, my son,” his father said, clashing swords with a smile. “The scion of House Geto—it is time to claim your birthright. Let vengeance be your sword, and honor your shield!”

At first, Suguru was taken aback by his father’s declaration, but he continued to parry his every move, yet, he couldn’t shake off this feeling of foreboding. Something didn’t feel quite right—quite like his own father. With every strike the violence grew hungrier, more feral, driven by an animalistic impulse.

The dark, perverse power that came from the man before him was not Shinjiro Geto.

He donned his father’s face, but it was not him.

It was Suguru’s greatest enemy: himself.

What was once an innocent spar, now turned into a fight to the death. 

Who will be the victor? 

Suguru couldn’t tell. But with every blow, he felt himself slipping closer to the darkness.

And just as he brought up his blade, drawing the final strike to his shadow self—everything changed in an instant. Just like that fateful night when he was eighteen.

He had only blinked momentarily, but time seemed to have warped in an instant, because in front of him was no longer his father…

It was you.

Your expression carried that same haunting coldness that both irritated and chilled him. Still, he found himself unable to look away.

Without hesitation, you swung your blade at him like he was foe. Your movements were fluid, precise, certain. He knew they were lethal, but he could not feel the weight of your strokes, nor hear the clash of your steel. 

You exchange blows in silence, each one deadlier than the last.

He continued to parry your movements, but it was a difficult exchange when it felt like he had been stripped from some of his senses—he couldn’t feel the weight of your strength.

“Do I vex you, General?” you asked, voice calm, unnerving in its clarity.

Your calmness only provoked him.

Anger surged through him. He gripped his sword, knuckles white, and struck like you were a true enemy on the battlefield. But you parry him, over and over again, without fail. You anticipated his every move like you’d read the choreography before it even happened, as if you were inside his mind.

His strikes turned wild. Erratic. Desperate. It wasn’t just a duel anymore. It was about control. Submission. The need to win you, beat you, break you.

But it was all in vain, because it felt like striking into water.

Until finally, a sharp clash of steel rang in the air. The force of the final blow was none like he had ever felt before, shockwaves reverberated through every fiber of his being and deep into his bones. But it was not your sword that was lost—it was his, as it clatters to the ground.

Before he could recover his blade, you pin him to the ground. Bringing up your sword, ready to draw the finishing blow. He looked up, fully expecting to be met with your usual detached gaze, but instead, he was met with anguish.

“Why do you resent me, Suguru?” A sorrowful smile graced your lips, and a stray tear ran down your face. 

His entire body went rigid.

But death never came. 

He blinked, and time had warped once again.

You were gone.

The skies turned dark, a thick smog polluted the atmosphere burning his lungs, but something fouler and more familiar permeated the air: blood. 

He found himself ten years back, standing among the ashes and ruin of the Geto Estate. Yet, there was not a single soul in sight. 

“Father! Mother! Sayuri!” He shouted, as he ran through the corridors—wherever his instincts took him.

His legs brought him to the garden, the pride of the Geto Estate. But he was met with another sight that he was not prepared to see.

You—your limp, bloodied body by the cherry blossom tree.

Ba bump.

Every heartbeat was a dagger to the chest.

What was this feeling?

Despair?

Regret?

Why?

.

.

.

“Thank you, doctor.”

Suguru wakes to the sound of your voice. He lay there, still grappling between reality and dream, grounded only by the frenzied palpitations in his chest. The headache was gone, but his body currently felt like lead. 

As his vision adjusted, he saw you under the soft glow of ember light. The physician gave a small bow before quietly leaving.

Curses. 

Had he really fallen ill?

It had been years since he’d fallen ill. As healthy as a stallion, Haibara would always joke. 

Why now? At this critical moment?

It was maddening. Nothing was going according to plan.

And not to mention, that god-awful dream.

Its remnants still clung to him like a shadow. Even now, awake, he couldn’t shake the echo of your voice, and your dreadful gaze.

Suguru had dreamed countless times of his father. Of the night his family was massacred. That was nothing new. In fact, it had become a recurring part of his life; so much so their absence would now feel unnatural. However, it was the first time you appeared in his dream—and it was a terrifying one. 

“You’re awake.” You stood beside him, a tiny sachet of medication in your hands. 

“How long have I been asleep for?” He tried to hide that strange anxiousness in his chest.

“A good part of the day. It's evening now,” you replied. “You started getting chills and fever an hour ago.”

He let out a weak, frustrated groan as he tried to prop himself up.

“Stay.” You lightly put a hand on his chest. “The physician said you should continue to rest… you probably caught a cold from the rain.”

“I’ve weathered harsher storms,” he grumbled, clearly annoyed with the turn of events. 

Truth be told, you had heard him mumble in his sleep. He called out for his family… for Sayuri… but you decided not to bring it up. Haibara had also finally informed you—albeit with a bit of pressure—what was actually going on in the campsite, and the tension between the two nations.

You were sure it had been the stress that got to him. One could only bear so much alone. 

Not that your prideful husband would ever admit it. 

“You can’t be strong all the time,” you muttered. “Just sleep. You’ll get better soon.”

He let out a sigh and stared at the roof of the tent, as if being sick was like a death sentence. You’d never seen him so defeated before, but that’s just a reminder that once again, Suguru Geto was only human. He was not immune to things like sickness, injuries, or even death. 

A part of you wanted to reassure him so that he could rest easy, but you had a feeling that if you told him you’d stepped in to help, it would only exacerbate his illness. 

So you held your tongue. 

“What are you doing?” He grabbed your wrist. 

You sighed. “I’m changing the cloth.” 

“I’m ill, but I’m not completely unable,” he peeled the fabric off his forehead, and handed it to you. 

“How do you think it got there in the first place, Geto-sama?” You shot him an unimpressed stare, and plucked the cloth from his hand, wringing it out in the basin of fresh water that you’d gone to fetch yourself. 

He watched you closely as your hands worked deftly—soaking the linen, then wringing it out a few times. The way your sleeves were neatly rolled up, and how your hands squeezed with the right amount of strength showed that, once again, you were used to working with your hands.

There was a lot he didn’t know about you.

A lot of facets of you that couldn’t just be learned through quiet observation.

You folded it neatly, and as his hand instinctively reached for the cloth, you swatted his hand away. Garnering a soft tch from him. 

“Is it not a wife’s duty to care for her husband when he’s sick?” you said flatly, placing the cloth on his forehead. “Or shall I summon Haibara and let everyone wonder why their General’s wife doesn’t tend to him?”

Indeed, there was no one else who could have played the role of Lady Geto better than you.

—

It had been four days since Suguru fell ill… but thanks to you, he recovered rather quickly.

On the first night, he drifted in and out of consciousness, but even then, he could feel you quietly changing the cloth throughout the night. You were diligent, even when no one was watching.

By the next morning, when he awoke and his fever finally broke, you were already gone. Judging from the coldness of your side of the bed, you had been gone for a while. He was surprised when Yumi stepped in not long after, with a small tray of food. She offered only surface-level pleasantries and wished him a swift recovery.

According to Yumi, you’d given her thorough instructions: to serve Suguru a warm breakfast with his medicine, ensure there was fresh water in his pitcher, keep the air circulating in the tent, and make sure he returned to bed immediately after eating.

When he asked where you were, Yumi simply said you had matters to take care of and didn’t divulge any further.

Suguru wasn’t sure what to think of Yumi. There was something guarded in her presence—an unspoken tension, maybe even a trace of animosity. But it was evident that she looked up to you, following your every instruction like decree. While he ate, she pinned up the entrance and side flaps of the tent. And when he was finished, she quietly watched him return to bed before taking the tray and excusing herself.

Occasionally, you would stop by the tent throughout the day, but never for long—just enough to check if his fever had gone down and to change out the linen on his forehead. You never fully returned until the evening, when you brought in a tray of food for dinner, always with some documents secured under your arm. He’d been curious about those papers, but decided not to ask.

It wasn’t until the third day, when Suguru was mostly recovered, that he finally found out from Haibara what you’d been up to this whole time.

“Lady Geto has been exceptionally helpful while you were bedridden,” Haibara remarked, a hint of amusement in his voice.

He had stopped by to check in on his friend. After all, it wasn’t every day one saw the great General Geto in such a feeble state—and frankly, it was rather adorable. What’s even more surprising was that even allowed you to look after him.

“And what exactly has she been up to?” Suguru asked nonchalantly, trying to mask his underlying curiosity. 

“She hasn’t told you?” 

More like Suguru never even tried to ask you.

Truthfully speaking, he was certain if he’d asked—you would have told him. He could already picture it: the way you would look at him with a reserved stare, and give him a straightforward, candid answer. 

Always speaking like you had nothing to hide.

It was him who never gave you honest answers. Determined to put a distance between the two of you.

Haibara chuckled. “For one, she oversaw all the preparations for Ayaka-sama’s arrival.”

Right. The princess was set to arrive in a few more days.

“She also helped with camp supplies and rations,” Haibara continued. “I wasn’t aware that she was so proficient with inventory. Even the war council was impressed.” 

“The soldiers also seem to be happy with her around. She joined them every night at the dining hall…”

As Haibara continued, listing off your contributions for the past three days, something—ever so slightly—shifted. 

It was that foreign ache in his chest again. 

An ache that had pestered him since the dream. An ache he refused to name. Doing so would only make things harder to untangle.

This was all supposed to be temporary. Once his goal had been achieved, he would send you back to your father.

He won’t acknowledge it.

He can’t acknowledge it.

—

It was the night before Princess Ayaka’s arrival.

Laughter and the clinking of ceramics filled the air. The sweet aroma of rice wine and mouthwatering scent of grilled meat permeated the dining hall. It was a lively communion tonight, a belated welcome celebration for House Geto—one you were quietly dreading. It was overwhelming, to say the least. If your wedding had been suffocating, then this was even more unbearable—sitting among hundreds of rowdy men who worshipped your husband, and revered him like the reincarnation of Hachiman.

Their beloved General Geto: the perfect, loving, doting husband.

If only that were true.

Ever since Suguru recovered, he’d been awfully quiet. Not that you minded. In fact, the peace was welcomed.

The only thing now was that he awkwardly avoided you behind closed doors, but you chalked it up to embarrassment. Maybe he was still ashamed of being so vulnerable. After all, General Geto was a prideful man.

Other than that, there had been no further discourse between the two of you. Everything had returned to the status quo. You only prayed it would stay this peaceful—at least until negotiations concluded. But as the days passed, there was also a growing apprehension in the camp.

Everyone had been bracing for the worst-case scenario: war.

This belated celebration was indeed divine timing, because seeing the temporary carefree faces on the soldiers made you realize that this was a much needed distraction.

“General Geto! We’re so relieved that you are fully recovered,” one of the soldiers said. 

“Thank you for everyone’s concern and well-wishes,” Suguru slightly smiled, taking a sip of wine from his cup. “...It is only because of my wife that I was able to recover so soon.” His jaw tightening ever so slightly as the words came out.

“Indeed, Lady Geto is most impressive,” one of the vice captains said. “She stepped in the moment you fell ill.”

“Yes, I’ve heard all about it,” Suguru chuckled. “My wife is indeed very capable and competent—it is one of her many admirable traits.” 

His praise stung, because you knew that this was all performative. It was difficult to ignore it, but you tried to remind yourself that none of this was true.

He didn’t mean any of it.

“You all flatter me,” you replied—trying to remain composed and suppressing the heaviness you felt. “I am merely doing my job as General Geto’s wife.” 

“That may be true, my lady,” Haibara rebutted, a glint of playfulness in his eyes. “But not everyone could be competent just by sheer will alone. You must give yourself credit where it’s due.”

“I heard you are a judge’s daughter!” Another vice general interjected. 

“Yes, that’s right,” you smiled.

“It’s no wonder! Intellect must run in the family.” 

“My father has taught me all that he can,” you said thoughtfully. “It is a great honor to be his daughter.”

An honor to be his daughter. The words struck Suguru, because he would always remember how his father once said: Suguru is my pride, but Sayuri is my honor.

He’d understood what that meant, even from a young age. He may have been the heir—the future of House Geto.

But Sayuri was their gift. A joy not for what she did, but simply for who she was.

And there was no doubt your father saw you in that same light…

That realization stung more than he thought it would.

“Gather round, everyone!” someone interjected, raising his cup. “Belated, but albeit, from the bottom of our hearts—let’s give a toast to General Geto and Lady Geto. Cheers to their marriage! May it be blessed and everlasting!” 

As ceramics clinked, another voice shouted from the end of the hall.

“Give your lovely wife a kiss, General!”

Whistlings and cheering filled the air, and soon, the entire hall erupted into a chant.

Normally, Suguru would have diverted this with ease. But he found himself hesitating—not wanting to. Giving himself reasons to go through with it, rather than stirring it away.

Yes, this was all to sell the image.

There was no deeper meaning to this, unless he let himself look for one.

The whole room held its breath in anticipation, as they all watched the two of you. Suguru’s hands stretched out towards you, his fingers grazed over your skin, sending a shiver throughout your body. He tucked a loose strand of hair behind your ear, while the other cupped your cheek—his thumb swiping gently over your cheekbone.

His gentleness, the warmth in his eyes, and the deliberate movements spoke of a man who had done this countless times behind closed doors. One who loved and honored his wife when no one was watching. One who worshipped her even more reverently in private than in public.

Heat rose to your cheeks as the room began to spin. It felt as if all else had faded and it was only the two of you. The way he looked at you, as if you meant something to him, deepened the ache in your chest.

Was this even the same man you married?

How could he look at you like he had always loved you?

It wasn’t fair…how he could pretend so well.

“Please, don’t—” you whispered, but his lips connected with yours before you could finish your words.

It was your first kiss, but not at all how you imagined it to be.

Behind the warmth and softness of his lips, there was something you couldn’t quite explain—almost like an innocent curiosity.

You didn’t desire him.

And he didn’t desire you.

Yet, why did your heart feel like it was about to burst?

…

Sweet.

Perhaps it was the alcohol. Or perhaps he’d finally gone insane.

But why did you taste like ambrosia?

He leaned deeper into the kiss—trying to make sense of this foreign feeling, but also, because his instinct craved more.

The display of affection earned a few loud whistles and cheers from the crowd, but he barely registered them. He was too caught up in the warmth of your mouth, the softness of you. He would’ve gotten completely lost in the sensations of you, if not for the timid hand pressed gently against his chest.

“That’s enough,” you murmured, breaking the kiss. It was just loud enough for him to hear.

When his eyes met yours, your expression was unreadable. But it wasn't your silence that made his gut sink... it was the restraint behind your glistening eyes, and the subtle tremble in your hands, which was now tucked under the table where no one could see.

The earthshattering realization all came a moment too late.

He had offended your dignity.

What the hell was he doing? 

He had never kissed you. Not even during the wedding.

The thought of even touching you had always been enough to elicit a visceral recoil. But here he was, lost in a crazed frenzy like an uncouth animal. He supposed even he wasn’t immune to the base desires of men. 

And yet, if this was purely carnal—why did that small, inexplicable ache settle in his chest again?

Why did it feel like he’d taken more than he meant to?

Why did a small part of him crave to know you?

Why was it that only now did he see it—how you reminded him of the moon.

Hidden. Mystical. 

A beauty that only revealed itself under the veil of night. 

Writing © xechu - please do not redistribute, translate, or repost any of my works.

Taglist: @katsukiseyebrows @uzuimirika @saoirses-things @what-just-happened-to-me

[btssaysstudy]

Salvage - 1 || jjk/kth.

Summary: After your confession, it's safe to say that there was nothing left to salvage between you and Jungkook. However, things start to change when a new hurdler joins the team. Genre: college!au, track!jungkook, track!taehyung, track!reader, angst & fluff Pairing: jungkook x reader, taehyung x reader Warning(s) : unrequited love, alcohol (drinking) mentioned, swearing Chapter Word Count: 3.7k a/n: My first mini series! Let me know what you guys think and the ending depends on your feedback :) taglist: do let me know if you want to be added to the series taglist

series masterlist

“Wake me up when you’re done.”

“Alright, alright. I’m done.” Your body got up from your seat, but your gaze still glued on your laptop screen and hands on your keyboard. Your roommate groaned, marching her way to pull your hands away from the laptop.

“Yn, it’s a Friday night. Let’s go! Namjoon’s waiting for us downstairs.”

“Yea but,” You sighed, your eyes on your work, “I still have quite a lot of things to do. Maybe I’ll skip this party—“

“Like how you missed Hoseok’s birthday party? I’m sure he’s going to hunt you down later. You still have the weekends to complete your work and you’re already dressed up.”

You knew your roommate was right. You had agreed to go for this party since it was one of Namjoon’s close friends’ birthday. Though you weren’t close to the birthday boy, you were close to Namjoon and his girlfriend, who also happened to be your roommate - Miya.

“Okay, okay.” You quickly saved your work and turned your laptop off. “Let’s go.”

Miya squealed in excitement, linking her arm around yours as she pulled you towards the door. The two of you went down to meet Namjoon who had been patiently waiting for you to get down.

“Sorry for wait.” You gave an apologetic smile. “No worries! We’re still early. Good to miss the first few awkward minutes of the party.” He chuckled as he opened the car door to let you both in.

Miya truly hit jackpot with Namjoon. He was the whole package - athletic, smart and a gentleman. Miya was a great catch herself and you were thankful that she was your roommate.

Miya had been your roommate since freshmen year and ever since, you both always wanted to dorm together. Miya was very caring and gentle yet blunt at the same time. You both were awkward beings when you first met, and you were worried how dorm life would be with a stranger.

Thankfully, Miya, being the straightforward person, immediately went out with setting the ground rules together and suggested for a roommate date to get to know each other.

The rest was practically history.

Miya had been there for many of your significant memories in college - the good and the bad.

She was also there when you met Jungkook.

“Do you have any clubs in mind?”

“Actually, I do. I’m planning to sign up for track.”

Miya gasped and giggled in excitement, “No way, I want to join track too!”

“That’s cool! Shall we head over then?”

The two of you made your way to the track and field booth, sharing about what events you partake in. Miya was a hurdler while you weren’t. Nonetheless, it was pretty amazing to you two that you were both signing up for the track team.

“Hey freshies! Here to sign up?”

The two of you converse with the seniors to learn more about the try-outs and practice sessions.

“Psst,” Miya nudged you as you filled up the sign-up form, “On your left. Isn’t he cute?”

Your gaze turned to see a tall, buff boy, who seemed to be signing up for track as well. “He’s pretty cute.”

“I’m going to say hi. Wait for me.” Miya winked at you before approaching the boy - little did she know at that time that he was going to be her boyfriend.

“See you try-outs!” You smiled at the senior as you handed the form.

Your eyes wandered around the nearby booths as you waited for Miya to come back.

“I’ll just look around.” You mouthed at her when she turned to make eye contact with you.

“Hey! Interested to join Photography club?”

“Freshies! Come join the Badminton club!”

The atmosphere was completely chaotic with seniors shouting at the top of their lungs to promote their club. Slightly disoriented from the ruckus, you had bumped into a stranger.

“I’m so sorry—“

“So sorry about that—“

The two of you took a step back to meet each other’s eyes. “Sorry about that.” The black-haired boy gave a sheepish grin as he rubbed the nape of his neck. “I was kinda too excited to sign up for a club.”

“No worries, it’s my fault as well. I wasn’t looking.”

“All’s good. B-But… Any chance that you happen to know where the track and field club booth is at?”

Your eyes widened slightly in amusement, “Yea I do. I was just about to head back to meet my friend.”

“Oh! Could I follow you there?”

“Sure.”

Your eyes took a quick once-over, it wasn’t hard to notice that his built was athletic, donned in sweats and an oversize black shirt, this guy looked like the poster boy of college dudes.

“My name’s Jungkook. What’s yours?”

“Yn. Did you run track before college?”

“Yep, I do 4x100s.”

“Oh, same here!” You flashed a smile. “Wow, what a coincidence that I’d bump into you huh.” Jungkook chuckled and you did the same. “Must be a sign that we’ll both be teammates.”

“Not a bad sign at all.”

“Yn!” Miya waved her hand wildly amidst the crowd. “I was about to leave the booth to go find you! What booths did you— Oh hi, I’m Miya, you are?”

“Jungkook. Nice to meet you. You must be the friend yn was going back for.”

Miya gave you a subtle look which you chose to ignore that day.

“Jungkook,” Miya grinned, “It’s nice to meet you too!”

“Speaking of the party, yn, you know Jungkook will be there as well, right?”

“Yes, this is the tenth time you’ve told me that.”

“Sorry, just another reminder before we pull up to the party.”

Besides having a ton of workload to do, you also had another reason for having second thoughts.

That reason was Jungkook.

“Thanks for your concern. But it’s been a year, I’m long over it.”

“That’s great to hear, I’m proud of you yn.” Namjoon piped in as he parked the car. “And we,” He placed his hand on Miya’s, “Should trust our friend’s word.”

Miya glanced at you before sighing, “Alright. I do. Now, let’s go greet the birthday boy.”

The three of you left the car and made your way to the party venue. The birthday boy was clearly loaded as the venue was huge. You jaw dropped in awe, “Why is this party so extravagant?”

“Good thing our birthday gifts are more drinks.” Miya nudged you and you laughed, nodding your head.

You were all greeted with blaring music from the stereo and neon lights to add into the ambience. People had already begun drinking and some were busy eating dinner.

“Yn!! I missed you!” A very familiar voice erupted as you spotted a figure rushing towards you.

“Hoseok!” You grinned, extending your arms out for a hug.

“You didn’t come to my party!” He pouted as he pulled away. “But I visited the next day as a surprise!” You defended yourself.

“That’s true… Still feels like forever since I saw you.” Hoseok pulled you back in for a hug.

The four of you made your way to one of open rooms which had been turned into a buffet area. You had helped yourself to the wide array of food and found a table to eat with your friends.

“We have a new hurdler joining us. He’s our batch but he only joined the club this try-out round.” Namjoon filled you in since you were the only non-hurdler in your group.

“Oh, who is it?”

“Kim Taehyung.”

“Wait, Kim Taehyung? Isn’t he from table tennis?”

Namjoon shrugged his shoulders, “Guess he wanted to try something new. I was there during try-outs and he’s a really fast runner.”

—

Since it was a huge party and you weren’t close to the birthday boy, you didn’t need to spend the night entertaining the main character of the night.

To make full use of the amenities at the booked venue, the four of you started playing different rounds of games.

You were paired with Hoseok against Miya and Namjoon. The first round was charades and you lost to them. Hoseok found the game Just Dance and proposed it as the next round.

Jungkook had not been on your mind the entire night as you busied yourself playing games with your friends.

“What else can you do?!” Miya exclaimed, stepping in front to take over Hoseok’s spot.

“More like what else can you not do?! That was amazing!” You pulled Hoseok in for hug, “We’re gonna win this. Get ready to treat us for a meal!”

Namjoon chuckled, “We have to do another game after this. Hoseok basically created the game Just Dance. He followed the moves to easily.”

“Don’t whine, just dance!” Hoseok teased, pulling you back on the couch as you both watched Miya and Namjoon do their round.

“Didn’t want to ruin the mood but… He’s watching.” Hoseok leaned in to whisper in your ear. Your eyes slowly wandered around the venue to spot a familiar figure hanging around a crowd of people.

You both made eye contact and you decided to cast a smile at his direction. In return, you received a quick and small smile before he looked away, completely avoiding your direction.

“That went well.”

“Give him time.”

“Hobi,” you deadpanned, “I’m pretty sure one year is a lot of time.”

Hoseok just shrugged, “I know but… Okay, I have nothing to say to defend him.”

You chuckled, turning your attention back to Miya and Namjoon, “You don’t have to defend him.”

“He’s my close friend too.”

“I know, and I feel bad that you have to split yourself in half every time—“

“No, no,” Hoseok nudged you to get that thought off your mind, “I don’t feel that way. Besides, I met the two of you on separate occasions as well. Please don’t feel guilty about anything.”

You gave him a thankful smile, “Thanks Hobi.”

The Just Dance bet ended with your landslide victory thanks to Hoseok’s hidden dance skills.

Namjoon insisted for another game to even the playing field and Hoseok went out to the backyard to set up the beer pong table. Miya and Namjoon had gone to the kitchen to grab the cups and drinks and you had volunteered to grab more titbits to snack on.

Thanks to your luck, Jungkook had busied himself with filling his plate with snacks as well.

“Hey.”

Jungkook jumped upon heading your voice, quickly steadying the plate on his hand. “H-Hey.”

“How’s the party going?”

You attempted to start a conversation with him as you grabbed a plate yourself. Jungkook awkwardly cleared his throat, “It’s a huge party… H-How about— Are you enjoying it?”

“Yea, there’s tons of things to do. How about you?”

“Yea.” Jungkook fiddled with one of the serving scoops. You pressed your lips in a tight smile, recognising the awkward atmosphere engulfing the both of you.

It hurt you to know Jungkook was still feeling awkward around you. It always reminded you that you had made the wrong choice. That you had ruined everything between the two of you.

“Right, I guess I’ll head off first. See you at practice?”

“Yea… See you around.” Jungkook nodded his head, his gaze locked on the table filled with snacks as you left the area, feeling dejected from your encounter.

“What’s with the long face?” Hoseok asked as you approached your group. You looked up to meet his eyes and he immediately knew, sighing as he pulled you into a comforting hug.

“It’s not your fault.”

“Still feels like it is.”

-

“Is it just me or am I still hungover from the party?”

You laughed, “You had a whole Sunday to rest.”

Miya sighed as she started doing hip circles. “I know, I must be getting old.”

“You probably are. Anyway, where is Namjoon?”

Just as you had asked, you heard his voice calling you and Miya. The both of you turned to see Namjoon heading over your direction with someone unfamiliar next to him. Namjoon was goofily waving his hands to grab your attention while pointing to the male next to him.

As they got closer, you managed to recognise the person next him. It was Kim Taehyung. He was popular in college because he was very talented at table tennis. It shocked you when Namjoon said he had joined the track team as a hurdler.

“You two must be Miya and Yn. I’m Taehyung.” He stuck out his hand for a handshake.

With a light smile, you reached out to return the handshake. Taehyung had a welcoming aura around him. He had a friendly and approachable vibe. He was tall, athletic, and good looking.

“So, what made you join track?”

He shrugged his shoulders, “It’s our last year in college, wanted to try something different.”

“Hope you like it here.”

Taehyung glanced back at you, casting a boxy grin your way, “I think I will.”

The coach blew their whistle to grab everyone’s attention. Everyone made their way to the centre of the field to start physical training. Training started with light warm-ups before rounds around the track.

While running, Taehyung was happily chatting away with you to get to know you better. “That sucks, so you’re not a hurdler?”

“Nope, I do 4x100s.”

“So, I’ll only get to see you once a week.” Taehyung pouted and you chuckled, “You can see me on other days.”

Track had 3 sessions a week - one combined with everyone and two within your own events. The combined session was physical training for all, hence why you were running rounds with a hurdler by your side.

“I’ll take that up!” He winked at you before speeding up slightly, “Catch me if you can!”

From behind, Jungkook watched you and Taehyung converse with a scowl on his face.

Why were you even talking while jogging? Was Taehyung flirting with you?

He used to be the one disturbing you during these rounds.

Jungkook tried to shrug off the scene of you and Taehyung together, ignoring the bitter feeling growing in his chest.

-

“Don’t feel bad. You’re sick, I’ll bring up some food for you.” You grabbed your student ID and phone as you insisted that Miya stayed in bed. Casting you a weak smile, she thanked you as you left your dorm to head off to the dining hall.

You lucked out when you saw Jungkook standing at the end of the queue, scrolling through his phone. With a deep breathe in as you made your way to join the queue. “Hey.” You gave a cautious greeting towards his way. Jungkook’s heart jumped, his grip tightening on his phone as he looked up to see you smiling at him.

“Hey.”

Jungkook hated how awkward he felt with you. It never used to be that way. Then again, that was a year ago.

You also never understood why Jungkook was the one avoiding you when you were the one who got rejected.

“Today was fun.” Jungkook gave you a toothy grin, “Yea it was.”

“Definitely my new favourite restaurant. I’m so full!” He playfully patted his stomach and you chuckled, “Looks like I know where to go when you start being grumpy or stressed.”

“That’s easy, you don’t have to take me to that restaurant. I just have to spend time with you and I’m good to go.” He shrugged his shoulders. Your heart fluttered at how nonchalant his words were yet so genuine. You had been thinking about it the entire afternoon, contemplating if it was the right decision. But you knew you had to let it out before it was too late.

“You good?” Jungkook pulled you out from your thoughts. “Mm? Oh yea, I’m good.” Your feet lazily kicked a stone in front of you.

“Hey,” Jungkook stopped walking, gently placing his hand on your arm to turn you around to face him. “You can always tell me something.”

“I know, I’m… I’m just tired that’s all.”

Jungkook pursed his lips together, “How about we head over to my place to watch a movie?”

“Sure.”

You let Jungkook choose the movie for the night as your head was far away. Jungkook nudged you, shimmying his shoulders. That was always his signal when he offered his shoulder for you to rest on. You gave him a small smile as you leaned your head on his shoulder.

Despite loving Marvel, you found yourself not paying a single ounce of attention to the movie. Jungkook seemed to have noticed that as you weren’t bantering with his small comments to the movie.

You were brought back to reality when you noticed the movie was paused.

“What’s wrong?” You asked, sitting up to face Jungkook.

“I was about to ask that.”

“I’m… I’m tired. I think I’ll just head home for the night.”

Jungkook frowned and you had to look away to save yourself from crumbling into pieces.

“Are you sure you don’t want to talk about what’s on your mind?”

You sighed, this was it. You just had to let it out.

“Promise me you won’t hate me?”

“Hate you? Jungkook repeated, “I would never hate you.”

He placed his hand on your knee, encouraging you to continue. “I’ve liked you for a while.” You paused, allowing the words to sink in. You could feel his hand stiffen and you were sure he could hear the loud beating of your heart.

The silence was deafening.

Your confession repeating in both your heads.

As every second dragged on, you started to regret it even more. You had made a terrible mistake and there was no way you could take it back. Life had no re-dos.

“I’m guessing you don’t feel the same way, given the response.” You clicked your tongue together, gathering the courage to look up at him.

Jungkook was lost for words. He would have never expected to hear a confession from you that night. From his closest friend. From his best friend.

Your words left a funny feeling in him that night, but he could not tell whether it was a good or bad feeling.

“Well, don’t worry.” You forced a laugh, “I didn’t expect much anyway. I just wanted to let it out. But I’m guessing I just ruined our friendship.”

“N-No, uh… I just… I just need time to… to absorb all of this.”

You nodded your head, “I understand.” You took it as a cue to get up from the couch, Jungkook’s eyes following your figure. “I’ll see myself out. Sorry for ruining the night.”

“T-Text me when you made it home safely.” Jungkook called out as you headed for the door.

Terrible. Even after ruining your friendship, Jungkook was still looking out for you. You hated how that made you feel. You turned around to face him one more time, a smile plastered on your face.

“Will do. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight.”

It pained Jungkook to see you holding back your tears. If he could have another chance to replay that night. He would’ve stopped you from leaving, he would’ve told you that your friendship wasn’t ruined.

He would’ve done anything he could that night to stop you from leaving his life.

But in reality, he did none of those.

When you texted him that night that you were home, your message was left unread.

You took it as a message to give him time to process everything. A night turned into a day. A day turned into a week. A week turned into a month. A month turned into a year.

It was because of your confession, you both had become strangers once again.

“Yn!”

“Oh, hi Tae!”

Despite using his phone, Jungkook’s attention was on your conversation with Taehyung. You were already calling him ‘Tae’? Since when were you that close with him?

“Namjoon told me Miya’s sick. She alright?”

“Yep, just grabbing food for her so she can take her meds and rest.”

“Need my help?”

“Oh no, all’s good.”

Taehyung nudged you, “It’s alright, you have to get your own food too. I’ve already eaten, I can help carry her food up to your dorm, check up on her as well.”

“Sure, if you’re free, that is.”

“Free for you.” He teased and you laughed, looking away momentarily to see Jungkook who seemed to be invested in his phone.

“Oh, Jungkook! Didn’t recognise you at first. How’ve you been?”

Jungkook looked up to greet Taehyung, “H-Hey, I’ve been well.”

Ever since meeting Taehyung, he got along with your group easily. In fact, he got along with everyone effortlessly. He knew almost everyone in the track team only after 2 weeks. That meant only 2 combined sessions. Somehow along the way, it seemed that he had introduced himself to Jungkook as well.

Taehyung was amazing with people and that was admirable. The more you got to know Taehyung, the more you looked forward to hanging out with him.

“See you next practice!” Taehyung happily patted Jungkook’s shoulders goodbye as you two went off a different direction towards your dorm.

You barely register their conversation as your head was somewhere else, recalling the night you had confessed.

“Hey, are you okay?” Taehyung’s concerned voice made you look up to meet his eyes.

“I’m okay.”

Taehyung frowned, glancing behind to see Jungkook looking at the two of you walking away. Jungkook shook his head, quickly glancing away as Taehyung caught him looking.

“Something to do with Jungkook, perhaps?”

Taehyung was very observant and you knew you couldn’t fool him as well.

“Sort of… We just used to be close but... He’s been avoiding me and I’ve been trying to salvage whatever’s left. But it doesn’t seem to be working.”

Taehyung pursed his lips together, “It’s not fair if only one party is putting in the effort, you know.”

“I know, it’s just that… We used to be close.” You sighed as you stepped into the elevator with him, your gaze on your tray of food.

“Still, it’s not worth salvaging if you’re the only one putting in the effort. I’m sure you’ve done your best. Sometimes, you just can’t force things to happen.”

As the elevator opened to your level, you allowed his words to sink in.

“Miya! We come with food!” Taehyung grinned, bringing the tray to your sick roommate as she thanked the two of you for your help.

Your eyes trailed to Taehyung who was helping Miya grab her medicine and a glass of water.

Maybe Taehyung was right. Maybe it’s time to stop trying.

[abduct-me-helen]

r/legaladvice

Posted by u/ebouchard 2 months ago

My husband has embarrassed me at the annual institute holiday party for the last time. I want another divorce.

My husband, soon to be ex-husband if all goes as planned, was leering at an archival assistant the other day. He also had a bit too much to drink, and started talking about various…personal activities that I would’ve preferred be undisclosed. Now, I’ve divorced him before, but this time he seems fit to antagonize me and not sign the papers. Not just that, but he’s also disappeared, which isn’t uncommon but is still frustrating when I’m trying to divorce him. He always gets in a hissy fit when I divorce him, but this time he’s just being petty.

Is there a way to divorce him without needing to track him down in order to have him sign the papers? He’s the captain of a ship and when he gets…petulant, he often sails for a few months before returning to his moorhouse. During these times, it’s notoriously hard to contact him, much less find him.

tl;dr: my husband ran away in an attempt to be petty and now I can’t divorce him. What do I do?

Edit: Please stop making remarks on the healthiness of our relationship. It’s none of your business, and we are perfectly fine.

Edit: We got divorced again since I made the first post.

Edit: We are now remarried again.

 crawbed008 3.1k points · 2 weeks ago

    | He always gets in a hissy fit when I divorce him, but this time he’s just being petty.

wait, what do you mean by “always”??

     ebouchard 1.5k points · 2 weeks ago

             whenever I try to divorce him, he acts petulant.

                  sisenore_k 675 points · 2 weeks ago

                          do you divorce him often lmao???

                                    ebouchard 1.2k points · 2 weeks ago

                                        yes.

                          [expand]

getsome_69 352 points · 1 week ago

            op how many times have you two gotten divorced so far

                 ebouchard 2.1k points · 2 weeks ago

                       six, though there were a few we didn’t go through on legally.

                              kokobura2 126 points · 2 weeks ago

                                        SIX??? good god op why do you even keep remarrying

                                              ebouchard 1.5k points · 2 weeks ago

                                                      money.

                                           stonks 782 points · 2 weeks ago

i know op in rl and the real reason is that they’re the    

only people willing to put up with each other

                                                                                   [expand]

r/relationship_advice

Posted by u/bigboyman 1 month ago

I (48M) feel like my husband is very clingy and I’m a person who needs solitude to survive. What should I do?

My husband is always talking to me. I just want to be left alone, but he just keeps on scheming. He’s always ranting about hiding tapes and the watcher’s crown and it is getting tedious having to listen to his, well, words in general.

How should I ask for more space?

 poorandtiredbutyolo 2.2k points · 2 weeks ago

I have a clingy partner too, and what I do is set clear boundaries. I also make sure to set time towards my partner outside of those times when I’m alone, like having dinner every night and having movie/games night once a week.

      bigboyman 1.5k points · 2 weeks ago

           I interact with him far less already then I would if I did that.

                   asunachan3 203 points · 2 weeks ago

                        how much do you talk to him?                                   

                                     bigboyman 1.5k points · 2 weeks ago

                                               at least once every three months

asunachan3 203 points · 2 weeks ago

                                                                   and you’re MARRIED?!???

                                                                            bigboyman 1.2k points · 2 weeks ago

I know, it’s a lot. You see why I can’t stand him being so clingy?

[expand]

 tania9 421 points · 2 weeks ago

    from reading the replies, I can only assume you hate your husband.

                bigboyman 1k points · 2 weeks ago

                                despise, actually.

 [expand]

Pastasauceandspagett 608 points · 1 month ago

      I don’t know how OP could possibly salvage this relationship if they hate each other and only talk every three months.

bigboyman 4.2k points · 1 week ago

                                The wedding is in four days.

 Allicecarter2002 4.2k points · 1 week ago

                               I thought you were already married??

                                                                      bigboyman 4.2k points · 1 week ago

oh, we got divorced about a week after I made the post and then he proposed again a week after that.

                                                                                                 [expand]

 r/pettyrevenge

Posted by u/notjonnydville 3 weeks ago

I had my archival assistants spit in his tea.

My boss is a huge bastard. He is just, awful. He always looks like you’re amusing him but in that kind of way where he’s looking like you like a meal. He is just a horrible human being. Hell, I wouldn’t be surprised if he killed someone. That’s the kind of person he is.

Anyway, I usually try to keep a professional relationship with my assistants but a few nights ago they invited me to go out for drinks with them and my friend blackmailed me into it. We got hammered. It was a truly…special experience. Ever since then, I’ve been on better terms with them. We even have a groupchat.

The situation goes like this: he’s been ranting to me for the last hour about things I ALREADY KNOW in that pompous, annoying voice of his. Anyway, I texted one of my assistants, I’ll call him M, and M comes in mid rant. I very sternly ask “why haven’t you made [our boss’s name, I’ll refer to him as E] tea yet?”

I kind of put him on the spot and he just stayed there with his jaw dropped. I told him to go make E a cup of tea, so he scurries out.

I wait about 30 seconds and then discretely text the groupchat: “spit in his tea M.”

Anyway, they go absolutely *ballistic* and T, another one of my assistants, sprints halfway across the building (I hear he even knocked into our secretary), just to spit in E’s tea too. My last assistant is a bit wearier but she does it too.

M comes back with the tea and hands it to E before quickly leaving. A few minutes pass and E still hasn’t touched his tea.

So I remind him that M makes very good tea and he’d be disappointed if E didn’t drink it.

There is a quiet battle of wills.

Now, I don’t know how to put this without sounding insane, but our boss…he just *knows* things. He’s psychic, or something like that. There is absolutely NO way he didn’t know the tea was messed with. He knows, he knows I know, and we silently stare at each other without moving.

Finally, *finally*, still making direct eye contact with me, he takes a sip of his tea and purses his lips. I ask him if he isn’t thirsty.

He says he isn’t, and leaves the room. I never did find out what happened to that tea.

tl;dr: I got my archival assistants to spit in my asshole bosses’ tea. It was glorious.

leavemealone 2k points · 2 weeks ago

    holy *shit*, OP, did you ever get in trouble????

           notjonnydville 2.1k points · 2 weeks ago

                   he didn’t have any evidence, so no.

maya_herse331 782 points · 1 week

    did he ever try to get revenge?

           notjonnydville 7.1k points · 2 weeks ago

                   he framed me for murder, but I’m still not sure if that was directly related.

                  [expand]

[freddie-weaselbee]

Someone Blue//F.W.

Pairing: Fred Weasley x Fem!Reader 

Warnings: Slight language, angst, a lot of confusion, fluffy ending

Summary: Fred spots a familiar face at his brother’s wedding, and has a sinking suspicion about why she’s acting so upset during this time of celebration. 

Prompts: Enemies to Lovers (kind of) and Weddings with the dialogue prompts “you look like you need a hug” and “did you need something?”

Word Count: 3.2k

A/N: Day 1 of @theweasleyslut‘s 2k writing challenge 

Angelina looked absolutely ethereal, skin glowing in the shimmering lights as she glided across the grass as if it was a ballroom floor. Her white dress was slightly stained, mostly from when her now husband tackled her to the ground after their first kiss as a married couple, and yet it only made her seem all the more angelic. 

George’s feet seemed to never touch the ground. He was moving at record speeds, prancing and hopping and skipping around the dance floor, dragging his wife along with him. It was the most joyful Fred had ever seen him. 

Not when they left Hogwarts, not when they opened their shop, not even when Angelina said yes to the proposal could have compared to the happiness on George’s face. Nor Angelina’s. They were in a pure state of bliss. 

The rest of the wedding-goers seemed to match their energy. Fred couldn’t go anywhere without being bombarded with drunken laughs and horrid dancing, and the occasional congratulations or two from some tipsy guests who didn’t know that the man they were talking to wasn’t the groom. 

All in all, it was an amazing night. The field behind the burrow had become a traditional wedding venue for the growing Weasley children, so far hosting Bill, Percy, Ron, and now George’s days to remember. The tents and lights were all set up as they were with Bill and Fleur’s wedding, except this time there was no risk of Death Eaters ruining the event. Hopefully. 

However, while making his way around to talk to (and flirt with) the guests, Fred happened to notice one person who did not fit the overzealous tone. Well, he didn’t really happen to notice. Rather he’d been staring at her throughout the entire night, watching her somber mood break through her happy façade. Not that he’d ever admit that to anyone. 

You were standing by yourself, but you weren’t secluded from the action. Rather, you were right in the middle of things, on the very edge of the dance floor, staring out at the masses of bodies swinging their partners around. Your arms were crossed over your chest, a defensive position that Fred had seen so many times in you before. 

He turned away and tried to ignore it. It wasn’t any of his business if you were upset. The two of you were barely even friends anymore. You had cut him out of your life so many years ago and never looked back. To this day, Fred still didn’t know why, and it killed him. 

He wanted to walk away. To go the other direction toward a beautiful guest wearing a flowing red dress, hair done up perfectly. The stranger would be the smart choice. A fun way to spend the evening, dancing around and snogging under moonlit trees. But, against his better judgement, Fred’s heart wouldn't let him leave. 

Sighing, Fred lifted his feet and made his way in the other direction, to the girl who couldn’t care less about him. 

You stood unmoving, except for a subtle sway to the music. People brushed by you, but you paid them no mind. You were too focused on something else. As Fred drew nearer, he was able to follow your line of sight to the people in question. The newlyweds. 

Fred bristled before softening slightly. Of course. This must be about George. Back at Hogwarts, Fred was positive you had the biggest crush on his brother. You were always tagging along with their jokes, even when they got you into huge trouble. You definitely spent more time alone with George than Fred, sharing whispers and stares at the expense of the older twin. He could never get George to break and tell him what you two talked about. George even took you to the Yule Ball in your 6th year. You had never looked as radiant as you did that night, except for maybe this moment. Fred wished he had asked you to dance at the ball, but he never worked up the courage to. He didn’t want you to internally grimace at the thought of dancing with the “lesser” Weasley twin when George was right there. 

In his recollection of memories, Fred hadn’t noticed how close he had gotten to you, and how you were no longer gazing at the couple dancing. You were now staring at him. 

“Did you need something?”

Fred was shaken out of his imagination, met with an annoyed glare but soft smile coming from you. His surprise was immediately replaced with his signature cocky grin, leaning his hand onto one of the wedding tables while keeping his gaze on you. Unfortunately, his hand accidentally dipped into a wine glass, but he quickly pulled it out and hoped you didn’t notice. You did. 

“Well, that’s not a very nice way to greet one of your oldest friends, now is it?” Fred wiped his wine-covered hand on his suit pants and slipped it into his pocket, pretending to be unbothered by his previous mistake. 

You turned your eyes away from him, once again gluing them to the dance floor. “I think it’s fitting, seeing as how you were creepily staring at me for about 5 minutes before I said something.”

Fred’s ears grew pink at the accusation. “I, umm, I didn’t realize it was that long. Or that you noticed. Sorry.” He bashfully rubbed the back of his neck, pretending to glance around at other guests who might interest him more. 

“You still haven’t answered me.”

Fred cocked his head to the side in question. 

“Why’d you come over here? Was there something you needed?”

“Ah, yes well,” Fred began smoothly, “I saw this darling beauty from across the tent and I just could not take my eyes off of her--”

“Fred,” you interrupted. You were looking at him again, your gaze piercing through him, forcing him to tell you the truth, to tell you everything about him. His fears, his hopes and dreams, what he had for breakfast this morning. He wanted to tell you it all. 

“The truth, please.”

Clearing his throat, and his mind of whatever thoughts just plagued him, Fred decided to be honest. You deserved that much. 

“You look like you need a hug,” he said, shrugging nonchalantly. 

Evidently, those were not the words you were expecting to hear. You were prepared with about a dozen quips to say in response to whatever cocky joke Fred was about to make. But he didn’t, and nothing could have prepared you for what he did say. 

“I--I need a what?”

“Sorry, have you lost your hearing or was I not loud enough? It’s definitely not the second; you’ve told me on numerous occasions that I have the biggest mouth of anyone you know.”

There it was. But it still made you giggle, relaxing and gravitating closer to your companion. 

“I heard you,” you said, “just wasn’t expecting that from you, I guess.”

Fred took a half step closer, visibly glad when you didn’t move away. “Wasn’t expecting me to have noticed your behavior, or wasn’t expecting me to care if I did?”

It took you a few seconds to respond. “Both.”

He let out a sound of understanding before you both averted your eyes, looking straight ahead. Occasionally, Fred would try to look at you using his peripheral vision, and you would do the same. It became a kind of game--just an awkward back and forth between two people who used to be so close, and were now so far apart.

You game ended when one of the wedding guests decided to clink their glass, beginning a chorus of high pitched chimes to echo throughout the room. You watched as George turned to find Angelina, running to her to give her a kiss so full of love and passion that it took everything Fred had not to shout out a joke and ruin the moment. He could do that next time. 

He noticed you stiffen at the kiss, presumably because it was just another reminder of what you couldn’t have. George. 

“You know, I always wanted to be a Weasley.”

Fred was surprised that you had spoken to him, and even more surprised about the turn the conversation had taken. 

“I grew up with you guys,” you continued, not waiting for Fred to respond. “Molly was like my second mother, even though she always liked Hermione and Harry a bit more than me.”

“Join the club,” said Fred, causing you to laugh loudly, a sound he hadn’t heard from you in ages. Godric, how he had missed it.

“It’s just…” you trailed off, not knowing if you wanted to be open with Fred, someone you hadn’t spoken to in years. Chances were, you wouldn’t keep in touch much after the wedding, so you might as well. What was there to lose? “It’s just...seeing Angelina, one of my best friends, dance around, wearing that ring, getting to be an actual Weasley. It’s...it’s making me a wee bit jealous.”

Fred watched you fidget with a bracelet on your wrist and decided to push his luck just a bit more. “And you’re wishing that it could be you wearing the ring, married to a certain Weasley gentleman?”

The shock was evident in your expression. “No, no, it’s not--I mean I never…” Sighing, you decided to come clean. “Yeah, I’ve maybe been harboring feelings for a certain twin for, oh I don’t know, my entire life. No biggie though, it’s totally fine that he never asked me out.”

The ginger beside you threw an arm around your shoulder, handing you a glass of wine in the process. “Drink. It makes everything better.”

You glared at him, but took the glass anyways, chugging it down in a few large gulps. “Another, please,” you demanded, and Fred obliged. 

You started to ease into Fred’s side, as soft and comforting as you remembered it to be, before realizing exactly what it was you were doing. “Fred, can I ask you something?”

“‘Course. You can ask me anything.” The absolute last thing Fred wanted to be doing at the moment was talking about your undying love for his twin brother, at his wedding no less, but he didn’t want to leave you alone. Not seeing you for so long had had a harsher effect on him than he thought, and he didn’t want to leave your side. 

Taking a deep breath and gathering your courage, you asked him the question that had been plaguing your mind for years. The one that ate you from the inside out and kept you tossing and turning at night. The reason you had to separate yourself from your love in the first place. “Why am I not good enough?”

Your voice broke a tiny bit, but a lot less than you had been expecting. A tear did happen to slip out, and Fred quickly wiped it away, his fingertip resting on your cheek for a moment too long. 

“Y/N, love, come here.” Fred pulled you into that hug he had talked about earlier, holding you closely to his chest. If he thought you were going to appreciate the gesture, he was wrong. You pushed him away softly, refusing to let any more tears fall. 

“I’m serious, Fred. W-Why am I not good enough? I’ve made it clear for years and yet...nothing. And not even a simple rejection. I could’ve handled that, y’know. If I got a simple no, I could’ve handled it and moved on. But I never did, and it’s killing me. Why am I not good enough?”

It killed Fred to see you this upset, and it hurt him even more to see that the anger was directed at him and not at George. It was his brother that broke your heart after all, not him. “You are good enough!” Fred said, with enough truth and force that a little part of you believed it. “You’re, you’re too good! You’ve been by our side from the beginning and haven’t left it since. Well, we haven’t seen you in years, but that’s probably because of--”

You nodded, confirming what he thought. Your heartbreak had driven you away. 

“But other than that,” he continued, “you’ve been like my third arm. Any guy would be crazy to give you up, you know that?”

 A tiny smile grew on your face, but was gone as soon as it had arrived. “The timing...the timing was just all wrong, wasn’t it?” you asked. 

Fred nodded, watching his brother and his wife greet guests and take pictures that were sure to be on the mantle in the burrow as soon as the wedding was over. “Yeah, I guess so. The prick should’ve asked you out sooner.”

“Oh I agree wholeheartedly, he is a prick,” you said, poking his arm, a gesture that slightly confused him. “So, I’m guessing there’s no chance of anything happening now? No sliver of hope that maybe this could work out?”

He hated that he would be the one to crush your dreams, but he couldn’t let you keep living in false hope. “Well,” he said, “the wedding bands are on and they both said ‘I do.’ Kind of hard to come back from that. I’m sorry.”

You froze, now more befuddled than you had been all night. “I...what?”

Before Fred could say anything you reached to grab his left hand, checking his ring finger for something you knew wasn’t there, but you had to be sure. 

“Wedding bands? What in the world do you--” Realization hit you like a brick, and you wanted to slap yourself. Or Fred. Either one. But preferably the latter. 

“Frederick, my dear love, who do you think we have been talking about this whole time?” you asked, voice genuine but also teasing. 

Fred didn’t know what you all of a sudden found so amusing, but he was already doubting himself and he didn’t want you to make fun of him for whatever he had done wrong. 

“Umm, well you said a Weasley, and then you said a Weasley twin. So I thought the answer was obvious.”

“Say it,” you demanded. “Who have we been talking about? Who am I in love with after years of unrequited feelings?”

He felt like he was walking into a trap, but he couldn’t figure out what it was. He hesitated for a few seconds before your searing gaze forced him to answer. “George. We’re talking about my brother George.”

No sooner had his words left his mouth than your hand came up to slap his head. “You idiot! Are you serious right now?”

Fred stood flabbergasted, racking his brain for who else you could have been talking about. George was a Weasley twin. You said you were in love with a Weasley twin. Who else was there?

“It’s you, you big oaf!”

Oh. OH! There were two Weasley twins, and he was one of them. Which meant…

“You’re in love with me?!”

By this point, heads were turned to watch the scene and people were not-so-subtly whispering to their partners. 

You dragged a still surprised Fred through the crowd and out of the tents, finding a secluded enough area where you could talk. 

Fred’s brain had still not been caught up. “It’s me? You’re in love with me? But, but what about George?”

You furrowed your brow, wondering how Fred could have so easily mistaken your feelings for him as those for another. “What about George?”

“You’re in love with him!”

“I most definitely am not!”

“The Yule Ball!” he spat out. “You went to the Yule Ball with him when we were 16!”

“Yes,” you said calmly, “and you went with Angelina, but I don’t see you two getting married. We went as friends and I talked to him about you the entire night. In fact, most of the time when we hung out I was talking about you. Made him swear not to tell though. I was never good about expressing my feelings.”

Fred put a hand to his head, a growing throb threatening to overtake his senses. “But why were you so sad tonight? You wanted to marry George!”

“No,” you said patiently. “I was sad because Angelina and George’s relationship worked out the way I was wishing one between you and I had. They fell in love during school, dated a few years later, and now she’s a part of your family. I wasn’t wishing it was just me out there with your brother. I was wishing that it was our wedding.”

You blushed heavily and buried your face in your hands, embarrassed by your bluntness about your feelings. “Oh, Godric, I shouldn’t have said that, now it’s more awkward. I, umm, I should probably get going.”

Fred grabbed your wrist before you could leave, pulling you into his chest. His eyes were wide, mouth hanging slightly ajar as he gazed down at your muddled expression. 

“It’s me. I’m the one you love.”

He said it as more of a declaration rather than a question, but you could tell that he needed confirmation. 

“Of course, Freddie,” you said. “It’s always been you.”

His hand wasted no time in going to the back of your head, pulling your face into his and melding your lips together in your first kiss with Fred Weasley. After the shock wore off, you were hastily kissing him back, hoping against all hope that he wouldn’t pull back and proclaim what a stupid mistake this all was. But he never did. You kissed and kissed and kissed until you were the one who had to pull back in order to catch your breath. 

It took you both a few seconds to realize what had just happened, and for the first time you both were at a loss for words. “That was, umm…” you mumbled, trying to think of what to say. 

“I love you too.”

Fred’s words were rushed out of his mouth, voice deep ragged. “I mean, when you said it was me, not George, that you loved. I, well, I love you too. Always have. Guess I just thought that you had a thing for George and I had no chance. Pretty silly of me, huh?”

“Downright stupid of you,” you replied, giggling as he pushed you away with a bashful smile gracing his lips. 

“So,” he said quietly, inching closer to you once again, “is there a chance of anything happening now?” Fred repeated the words you had said earlier, making you smile wider than you had all night. 

“Depends,” you said. “Are you gonna get the courage to ask me out?”

Fred waited for a moment before answering. “How about,” he said, offering his arm out for you to link with yours, “we have that dance we never got at the Yule Ball. And then that date we never got after, and then that relationship we never got as well. Oh! And then that wedding, and then a dog, maybe a few kids, a big house in the country--”

“Woahhh, slow down buddy, you haven’t ever properly asked me!”

You took his arm and made your way back to where the music continued to blare and festivities raged on. 

“Y/N, love, may I have this dance?”

You pushed a strand of hair from his face, ruffling it up a little to give it that signature Fred Weasley style. 

“Of course, Freddie. And every dance after that.”

Tag List:

@famdomhideout @amourtentiaa

[sofoulandfairaday]

The ultimate How I Met Your Mother Finale rant

I know this has been done before, and I know I'm several years late to the party, but I don't care, so IN THIS ESSAY I WILL tell you about why this finale takes the spot as the second-worst finale in TV show history (because Game of Thrones is still, to this day, unbeatable, and it will probably stay like that forever). 

But first, a little context: I've just finished binge-watching HIMYM. This binge has been going on for three days straight (my final exam of the semester is in a week and I should be studying, so the fact that the last few days were a partial waste of time makes me so mad). Second thing: I already knew how it would end, and yes, kids, it does ruin the show for you. It ruins the show so much it makes your blood boil when you rewatch certain scenes, but I will get to that. 

You might want to make yourself a drink because this is a complete list of all the reasons why HIMYM's finale sucks - I'm warning you, it's gonna be looong.

It completely invalidates the entirety of season 9

This is one of the complaints people most often have with this series, and I have to agree. It would have been so much better if the last two episodes never existed, and they just showed Barney and Robin dancing at the reception after walking out of the chapel, Ted noticing Tracy and then the platform scene. "And that, kids, is the story of how I met your mother". Cut scene. Honestly, I don't get the hate people give to season 9, barring the last 2/3 episodes, especially since season 8 was so much worse (except for a few honourable mentions, like The Robin). S8 was slower, less funny, and less deep, and while the authors took a risk by making s9 happen in the span of a weekend it paid off: they took their time introducing the character of the Mother to the gang and fleshing her out. They make sure to highlight all the little ways in which Ted and Tracy are perfect for each other, and even tie up loose ends, like with the Slapsgiving episode, that was a filler but it wasn't boring to watch (although it may be problematic for different reasons, I'm not Chinese, so I can't say for sure if it's cultural appropriation or just the authors making fun of a particular movie genre). 

Some episodes were arguably great: "Daisy" was amazing, and that whole fight between Marshall and Lily was so realistic and well thought out, "Sunrise" was extremely important for Ted's character development, same goes for Tracy and "How Your Mother Met Me", "Bedtime stories" was impressive, "Rally" was incredibly funny and proved once again what a beautiful character Barney Stinson is, so much so that even Robin never has doubts that he (the guy with the biggest commitment issues on the planet) will bail on her before the wedding, and says to Ted that "he always comes back". Daphne's character is super funny and the right amount of annoying, the shenanigans of the gang are well thought out and all of the characters (not just Barney) complete their arc in this season. The last two/three episodes butcher that.

Marshall and Lily

Marshall and Lily, arguably the world's most solid couple, are the only thing this God-awful finale gets right, especially Marshall, who is my second-favourite character, that finally gets everything he deserves. But what about Lily? They never mention her career after Italy, and I refuse to believe she goes back to being a kindergarten teacher as if her year in Rome meant nothing. I also refuse to think she becomes nothing but a political wife, the equivalent of Zoey, but without saving the world. We know she has three kids, but her postpartum depression is never really talked about much and they definitely had the screentime to delve into it. 

Barney

 Where do I even begin? Barney Stinson is, without a doubt, the best character in this series, the glue of the whole gang. I think the message they were trying to give is that, since his trauma stemmed from the absence of a father figure in his life, he could only truly heal by becoming a father as well. People also say that n°31 had to stay just a number, because who could match up with Barney Stinson? First of all, I call BULSHIT on that last point, because Robin wasn't the only girl Barney could have ended up marrying. I used to think that too, but it's just not true: that is the equivalent of saying that Barney was incapable to truly love a woman and commit to her, even after all the development he got, and that he only got one shot at love in life, and that's it. This goes against the point the showrunners try to make by having Ted and Robin end up together AND by having Tracy get with Ted in the first place: "it's never too late, you always have another chance at love, etc." And, let's face it, Barney and Robin are legendary, but Barney and Nora (hell, even Barney and Quinn!) were pretty good together too. 

Second of all, if they wanted to give Barney a kid, they could have easily done that, before Barney married Robin. Barney's "redemption" starts when he gets with Robin the first time, hell maybe even when we meet James for the first time: Nora, Quinn, finding out who his father is, the episode dedicated to the lies his mum told him/finding James' father, him getting to know his own dad, etc... those are all steps along the way. The s9 episode where Barney accepts the relationship between Loretta and the reverend proves how far he's come. So why not give him a daughter BEFORE he proposes to Robin? Have him cheat on Nora/Quinn with n°31, giving him a relapse, and having him get closer to Robin while struggling to be a dad to Ellie. That would have been great. 

Or, you know, don't give him children. What's the point of burning the Playbook if you're going to have him write the second edition? What's the point of having him do a complete 180 in the last few scenes and acting like having a kid is the only thing that makes him change? What's the point of doing that when the show spends entire episodes berating Marshall and Lily for "changing too much" when they have a kid?

Also, Barney is the "challenge accepted" guy. He loves his wife so much, he spent years wanting her, and then he gives up because there is no WiFi in his hotel. How does that make any sense at all? This is Barney Stinson, the "I will fly out to San Francisco and buy Lily a plane ticket", the "I will steal every girl from my best friend just to save him for Lily", the guy that wrote the Playbook (it takes effort to pull those plays off), the guy that planned for weeks his proposal, the guy that waited years to get back at the man who stole his first girlfriend, the guy that makes every night legendary... are you telling me that that guy becomes the equivalent of a bored housewife instead of living his best life while travelling the world? Come on. They don't even try to make it believable.

Ted

While watching seasons 7 and 8, I felt that Ted was becoming the worst character on the show: he was boring, depressed, basically had no good storylines, the whole thing with Victoria was pointless and inconclusive (and the whole "stop being in love with Robin" was completely out of character for her), but whatever, we could have accepted that because it passed the message that two people could be good together, without being soulmates - which, by the way, renders the TedxRobin ship pointless, because they were right for each other, but Ted and Tracy were soulmates. Him being hung up on Robin in the latter seasons is almost pathetic, and the thing he does with the locket is insane, not romantic - BUT I will say this: it can be seen in two ways, depending on who's watching. I personally like the two as friends, so I see the whole thing as a "Dahmer" situation, but I get the people who see it as a "Dobler" one and see what he did as a grand romantic gesture. 

The problem, though, is that the whole TedxRobin ship gets pretty old, pretty fast: it's an annoying on-and-off thing, that should have ended with the locket. Because, yes, Ted was in a dark moment, yes, he was probably depressed, yes, he thought Robin was his only shot at happiness, but he changes during season nine! He spends entire episodes letting go of Robin, including the one where she transforms into a balloon and flies away. Ted is the good guy, ultimately. He is the guy that is genuinely happy for his best friends. In one of the deleted scenes from the finale, he meets Robin years later and says that he's so happy with Tracy he never thought about Robin in that way anymore. All of that gets thrown in the trash. Why do that? To use a Harry Potter metaphor, Ted is Severus Snape, while Barney is James Potter: the former loved the girl of his dreams with all his heart, even to the point of creepiness, but they weren't meant to be together. 

Robin

This, along with the next point, is the worst of all: Robin is the worst character of the entire finale. Her relationship with Ted in season 2 is wonderful, and I say that as a full-on Barney/Robin shipper. There was never a problem in their relationship, apparently, but they then break up because they have an "expiration date" and ultimately want different things in life. Except that Ted is not her soulmate. The only times when Robin wants Ted are the times where (1) she can't have him because he's either trying to move on or (2) the times where it's convenient, for example when they become roommates again and they solve their disputes again. Around that time, we see perfectly that Ted had moved on and that the person getting hurt was Barney. It's one thing to see Ted and Robin in the finale as two people picking up where they had left off after they dated. But this is not the case. 

In season 7, we have the exchange that should have put an end to any and all TedxRobin drama, and that completely invalidates whatever the writers wrote after that about the two of them: Ted declares his love - "I think you know how you feel about me now. I don't think time's gonna change that. Just tell me: do you love me?" To which she answers "No". And Ted also says later to Marshall, that he's "happy because he can finally move on". 

What a load of crap. 

Getting over someone is hard, believe me, I would know. And, oftentimes, it doesn't happen until we find someone else to love (and from the moment he meets Tracy, there is no one else for Ted). But by giving Ted feelings for Robin after this moment, it takes away from the beauty of it- because it's one of the most heartbreaking feelings in the world when you declare your love to someone and they don't love you back. Ted and Robin were both honest at that moment, and it was the last genuinely good exchange between them. After that, during season 8 they try to show us Ted trying to get over her (and failing) and in season 9 Ted getting over her completely. This is also weirdly paced because at the beginning of s8 both are in happy relationships with other people and there's no jealousy (which is good, because at least they weren't toxic) and they seem just friends (when Robin leaves Nick to go see him in the middle of the night, she implies that she would do it for any of her friends), but after Ted breaks up with Veronica because of Robin everything is weirdly coated in this sort of tension between the two: first Ted loves her, but she doesn't, so when he helps her by taking her to Barney's proposal ("which means my best bro in the world has given me his blessing"). 

And, by the way, every time they try to paint Ted as the guy that comes through for Robin after this moment, they dumb down Barney's character. And still fail to make Ted a better guy than him (see: the carousel in Central Park). 

Yes, Robin and Ted have some chemistry, but it is nothing compared to what Robin and Barney have. Every time Robin is jealous of Barney, it doesn't seem like a stupid whim, just because some other child is playing with her toys (except, perhaps, during The Robin). Robin and Barney's relationship would need a whole other post, and the next time I rewatch the series I will write down all the things that make them perfect for each other, but, to me, the biggest difference between the two relationships is this: in season 6, when she's not dating either one of them, Ted accuses Robin of never making him feel needed while they were together, whereas Barney praises her for it. Those are elective affinities: that's what Barney and Robin have, and what Tracy and Ted have. 

Barney and Robin have more or less the same arc: they both get over their fear of commitment and they do that with each other. Time and time again, we are told that if they're ever going to settle down, it would only be with the other. The first time they break up is honestly so stupid, and even when they are broken up, they are the best of friends, which also makes Robin's behaviour in the finale look so stupid. The way the two of them fit together is unparalleled, both in a romantic and a platonic way. 

Think about it: Robin makes Barney a better man, while she makes Ted a worse one. 

Also, the whole point that there are different seasons in life for everything gets thrown out the window: apparently, Ted and Robin (that were a couple that ultimately worked in their young twenties) are the same people in their forties.

But that's not even the worst part. The worst part is that the two final episodes butcher Robin's arc as well: episode 23 starts with Lily saying "I want this girl to be in our lives" and we know Robin never made other friends outside of the gang, because she didn't need to, and now she walks away from everything because of fucking Ted?? This is saying "hey, Robin was only in the group for Ted, who brought her in, and now she leaves because he's not her puppy anymore". Robin was the one that was eternally indecisive between Ted and Barney and you're telling me that three years and many many life experiences later, she's still not sure? 

The point of her story is learning how to get over her fear of commitment, learning how to be there for her friends (there's an entire episode dedicated to that, and it's the one where Lily's pregnant and we meet Robin's ex-best friend in Canada), and how to balance her job and her life. Also, the way her character is treated is un-feminist and un-progressive: she becomes Ted's consolation prize. She is passive throughout s9. She cannot, ultimately, win the modern-day struggle most women have and balance out career and love life, so her true life, her "happy chapter" begins after she has already accomplished everything she wanted to and she's free for Ted. She doesn't even go back to him, she just the prize the main character wanted for all his life and only got in the end because his wife died (ONE SCENE, people, ONE SCENE!). Also, this makes Tracy the "broodmare" that gives him the kids he wanted, and his "happy family" experience before he goes to be with his one true love. 

The mother

This. This makes me so mad. One whole season spent on building up Tracy's character, just for it to go to waste. It would have been so easy to screw her up, but she is hands down the best thing about s9. She's the perfect woman for Ted and the episode shot through her perspective is the sweetest. By the end, I liked her more than Robin and Lily. She was the perfect addition to their group, she fit together with them in a perfect way, and they show us the biggest moment of her and Ted's life... for what? To have her die in a few sentences? And I don't care if they shot a funeral scene, I don't care if the finale was supposed to be 40 minutes long, because, in the end, it wasn't. The scene where Ted meets her is the second most beautiful one (after Barney's proposal to Robin) and the climax of the whole show, but they ruin her... and for what? The chemistry Ted has with her, he has with no one. The joy she brings him, the way she understands him, is unlike any other. I am sure that one of the reasons they killed her off was the shock value and I hate it. 

I cannot stress this enough: Tracy makes Ted a better person. When he's with Robin, Ted is "the nice guy" in the most selfish and narcissistic version of the trope. When he's with Tracy, love comes easy to Ted. Also, the scenes between the two of them are arguably the best Ted scenes of the show.

The kids' reactions (ugh)

It's not really what they say- it's the way they say it. The end of HIMYM was not supposed to be funny, even though the show is a sitcom. It was supposed to be bittersweet and beautiful, because it's the end of an era, and the writers must have known that. So, Ted finishes telling his story, reveals to the audience that their now-beloved Tracy is dead, and the reaction is: "No, ahah, you totally have the hots for Aunt Robin" (their words, not mine). Like, what the actual fuck? I cringed when Penny said that. It's tasteless and not fun at all. Even if it has been six years... It's still your fucking mum, show a little bit of sadness at the thought of her. 

The reason the show ended this way

What makes me especially mad is that I know for a fact that the reason they went with this ending is that it was the original one, always intended for the show, from season 2 onwards. And, if you watch it right after s2, it makes sense. But if you consider the eight years that passed and the massive character development, then no, it's not the best possible one. So many things hadn't been decided yet back in s2, especially about Barney, Ted, and Robin, and I hate that they didn't dare to scrap their work. This ending probably had sentimental meaning to the writers, but authors have to do what's best for their characters, not themselves. It's like with GoT, in a way: I think that the authors were all too aware of the impact of HIMYM and didn't believe that their finale would live up to the expectations... which compelled them to make the worst decision possible?? Every single character is OOC during the episode. Oh, and Marshall and Lily moving in the last episode is a ripoff from Friends (or maybe a tribute? Idk). Anyway, I believe that the authors were too attached to their sentimental version of "what should have been" and didn't give the characters the endings they truly deserved.

"Life works this way" // "Life only moves forward"

Some people say that the show is realistic because that's how life works. But I call super-BS on that. That might be true, and yes, people do get sick and die (Max, Marshall's dad...) and life does go on. But then, you don't frame it the way they did. It's just bad storytelling if you do it like that. And the problem is not the structure of season 9, because the characters develop in that season. The problem isn't even the mother's death. The problem is Ted ending up with Robin because that's not life moving forward for him, that's him, doing the same thing he did in 2005, 25 (twenty-fucking-five) years before! 

In conclusion, this finale is incoherent and inconclusive, and not satisfying at all. The only character that gets a good ending is Marshall: why is that? What makes his ending great? It's the fact that his character arc is respected and he finally gets what he's been working towards for more than ten years.

[gb-patch]

Ask Answers: July 10th

I really let asks get away from me lately. I was super focused on working on that Patreon Moment. With that done I can finally think about doing other things, so here’s a new collection of answers!

Thank you for sending in questions everyone ^^.

For the new Patreon moment, will you be able to reference it in step 4? Or just like a tiny nod to it if you pick certain choices?

There won’t be. I’m sorry if you were hoping for that! The Patreon moment is meant to be entirely optional, it’s not something that gets you extra content in the main game.

Is the new CG artist the main one now? :0 I’ve noticed theres been a difference in the art style recently. Is the old CG artist still going to make art for the game? :0

The original artist still makes CGs for the game sometimes, but he mainly focuses on character sprites.

Are you going to put the NSFW our life moment on a website other than patreon? I would love to get it but I can't use patreon atm.

I don’t know. I'm afraid we can't release the Patreon Moment on a normal game storefront because we can't mix 18+ content with our family friendly game. If there's some other place similar to Patreon where it's not the normal type of full-scale public content releases we'd consider using that, but I’m not sure if there is another site that’s better than Patreon in that regard. I'm sorry.

Out of curiosity, in all of your games so far, which characters in each were the most fun to write? They obviously don't have to be your favorite characters!

Buffalo Seer in AFA, really everyone in XOD/XOBD is pretty equally entertaining to write, The Guide in LoV, and Cove in OL!

idk if you accept "personal" questions, but is there anything you've been watching/ listening to lately

Mostly, I’ve been watching/listening to Authortube videos as of late! It’s people who talk generally about the process of how books become traditionally published and/or share their own experience as they attempt to be published. I don’t have an interest in writing normal text based books, but it’s really interesting to hear about that world. I’m listening to a video about royalties right now as I answer these asks.

Will one of the desserts we get to pick be fudge? That'd be such a cute reference! 

Haha, yeah, it should. Unless I completely blank on it and forget when trying to include the various referential food options.

I don't know if this has been asked previously but what would be the approximate heights for the presets MC can choose from Step 2 ~ 4? Are there any measurement you had in mind? Sorry if I didn't make myself clear kk I've been struggling with my English lately 💀 

I don’t know, ahah. I didn’t have any numbers in mind for that. So it’s whatever you imagine it is!

I noticed a bug with the Patreon moment when it comes to what your character wears. When Jamie and Cove are kissing while my character only had dresses selected, I had both the option to remove the dress or to remove the shirt... Picking one of the options to interact with Cove, after he removed his shirt, it had Jamie remove their shirt followed by ther pants despite only having dresses picked. 

Thank you for reporting ^^

I keep refreshing steam to see when the new doc for xobd will be released. I noticed you haven't posted anything about it in quite some time. Would it be possible to ask about a timeline/potential date? (If it's even this year—) I know you and your team are probably working super hard, I'm just super curious! ~Thank you!~ 

There are more stories done, I just haven’t gotten around to publicly releasing them. Hopefully I will have a chance to spend the time on that sooner rather than later!

hello!! i’m not sure if it’s an update but i’ve just replayed our life and at the end i can’t propose to cove anymore? :(( i’ve actually tried playing twice but the options are not there anymore, did you guys remove the options? i’m sorry if you’ve answered this before!! thank you and have a good one :) 

I’m afraid things haven’t been changed or removed, so I think you might’ve accidentally picked the wrong things somewhere along the way and locked yourself out of being able to propose by mistake. Sometimes you meant to say you want to get married but instead you mis-click and have it so the MC isn’t thinking about marriage or something. All I can suggest is starting from the beginning of Step 3 and making sure to follow the steps listed in the FAQ. I’m sorry for that.

Did yall remove some of the options for when youre making out with Cove in the charity moment? I could've sworn you could grab his bonkadonk and its not there anymore 

This is the same situation as the above. We didn’t remove things and you’re not wrong that there are sometimes those options. But there are various choices you have to make to get those options and it sounds like you accidentally missed something. If your relationship isn’t long-term, you can’t do it for example.

HI IM SO EXCITED I CAN FINALLY GET THE STEP 3 DLC 

Thank you for getting it!

Is Shiloh super totally straight bc I’m very gay and a huge Shiloh fan, would my man make an exception?😩

Sadly, he is one of our super straight characters. I’m sorry.

Hi, I have a very dumb question. In Step 2 does Cove not wanna share his drink with us at the mall (or rather why he stops drinking it) because it's an indirect kiss? Or is it like ...weird to him to share? Because if I remember right he eats off our spoon in the birthday scene right? 

Yeah, he’s awkward about it because he likes the MC and it feels very personal to share a straw with his crush.

Hi! If you don't mind me asking, who is the artist for OL2? Their style is so pretty! 

Thank you for saying so! This is her Twitter- https://twitter.com/redridingheart

Do Beginnings & Always and Now & Forever exist in the same universe? 

Yep! XOXO Droplets also exists in the same universe. It’s one big GB Patch world, haha.

Do Pran's parents regret the way they raised him? Do they feel ashamed of it?

No. They’re the type of people best cut out because they’re not gonna change. Which is why Pran does go very limited contact when he’s an adult.

Hi! I just wrapped up my second playthrough of Our Life, and I absolutely adore it, but I had a question. I went to the gallery and found I was missing 2 CGS (specifically Step 1-3 and 2-3) and I had no clue where they would've shown up. Which moments are those found in? 

You get it by telling Cove about his dad offering you money to be his friend in Step 1 and Step 2. You can’t get both in one playthrough, since you can only tell Cove the truth once. I’m really glad you liked it!

Hi hi! Please, how tall is Baxter and Derek? Love the game so much and I can't wait to see more! 

I don’t know, aha. I think Baxter was around 5′10 and Derek was like 5′8/5′9, maybe. I really am not one who has specific heights for things in mind.

is adult cove a bottom, top, or switch? 

A switch, though would choose the top if he had to pick.

I was wondering if there is a way to transfer save data? Even if through the game files. I wanted to be able to transfer my save data from my desktop over to my laptop so that I could continue playing right where I left off from but I'm not entirely sure how to go about that. 

If you save the save folder/persistent data of the game from your desktop and put it into the game folder on your other device, that could work.

Hi! Is it possible for us to know the date when our life: now and forever comes out on steam? Sorry if you've mentioned it before but I haven't seen it and I'm looking foward to that happening and just wanted to know :) 

It’s gonna be a long time, I’m afraid. There’s no estimate right now.

I started playing Our Life with my sister a while ago, and I think you guys should know that we discovered your secret. >:)

L from death note and Cove are clearly the same person, and this whole game is just an origin story!!

I’ve never seen that show so I’m sorry to say I don’t understand the connection/reference you’re trying to make. I’m pretty out of the loop when it comes to media. I don’t watch movies or TV.

Will OL2 have options for disabled MCs?

I understand if it's too complicated, just curious

Unfortunately, it’s not really something we have a plan for. We couldn’t finish the game if we tried to include every disability and have it be meaningful. It’d just be too much content to create. But if we decide to only include a few, how would we choose which disabilities get to be represented and which are left out? I don’t know. It’ll probably have to be something we don’t include as an option again, sadly. I’m sorry.

playing our life > anything else 

Haha, I’m glad you’re enjoying it.

Honestly, I would like to thank Our Life for helping me come to terms with my sexuality. Before, I never would've actually thought that it was possible to like boys romantically and still be asexual. Almost all of the BL visual novels I've read had unskippable sexual content in them and it honestly just didn't click with what I feel. I'm glad I found Our Life. I love the game, the developers, and this fandom so much. Now, I can safely come out as homoromantic AND asexual (at least anonymously here anyway; my parents are still huge homophobes 😂). 

Aw, it’s great to hear you felt comfortable being yourself in the game! That’s wonderful. I’m really sorry about your parents, though.

Will the demo for OL2 be on android? Really not sure if I could wait any longer than I have to aha 

Yeah, it’ll be available for Android once we eventually release a demo!

Do all these reveals perhaps mean development is progressing ahead of schedule? Please let that be the case I'm already obsessed with Qiu 

No, sorry, aha. Art comes along much faster than script/programming-work for us. It’s gonna be a long time before the game is a finished thing you can actually play. But at least we can look at the beautiful images.

Hey! First of all I wanna say I reallllllyyyyy loooovvveeee Our Life and XOXO Droplets! I have over 300 hours of playtime on Our Life… Anyways, I was just wondering, are the Derek and Baxter DLCs going to come out at the same time? If not, which one do you plan to release first? :3 

They will come out separately and Derek will be first! Glad you like the game.

I keep replaying Our Life to get every possible iteration and I am loving it <3 I was wondering if Cove gets locked out of his confession because MC was talking to Lee, would it be possible to confess to him in step 4? 

Yeah, you can avoid the confession in Step 3 and then get it in Step 4.

Hi, my Cove wears bracelets through step 2 and 3 but I still don't get an option to give him a bracelet? I didn't even know that was possible until I seen someone else ask about it lol 

Hm, did you use the Cove creator? Maybe there’s a bug where using the creator to add bracelets doesn’t fulfill the requirement to give Cove a bracelet in Step 3.

Wait, I'm dense, when does Baxter appear in step 2? Is it from big park firework? I feel so bad since i really love Baxter and waiting to buy his dlc. 

It’s in the Soiree Moment. You have to be just friends with Cove, indifferent, or crushing but not ask Cove to the dance at all. Then while there you can find someone new to dance with. But if you bring Cove to the dance while crushing, the MC won’t wanna dance with anyone else so you can’t get the scene.

In step 2 when we go to the soiree I made my mc go alone and baxter chooses the mc to dance, i'm curious, why did he pick the mc? sorry if this has been asked before! 

Because the MC looked to be around his age, seemed to also be searching for a partner, and had nice legs. A perfect option for him.

I read some of the FAQs, and I saw that we could tell Baxter about the condo that he rented there was previously the mean old grandparents. how do we get the mc to tell him that? 

It happens in the DLC Moment “Late Shift”. If you don’t have a job you instead get a longer scene with Baxter.

I don’t know if you’ve addressed this or not, but are you planning on paying voice actors for our life: now and forever? 

Yeah, we pay our VAs in all our projects.

hey can i ask how you did the moments thing in ol? im trying to get into making visual novels and while im VERY sure its out of my comfort zone and all that atm i kinda wanna know just for the future, bc im p sure it would work well for something i wanna do :O but its also fine if you cant say for other reasons :> 

I’m afraid I’m not sure what you mean. Are you asking how we programmed the screen or something script related? Adding Moments like that is pretty straightforward, though. You just have buttons that open to different labels and then the scripts are essentially individual short stories/vignettes. Good luck with your VN!

Since Autumn becomes gender fluid later in the game, will there be a character who remains as he/him to romance in game? 

OL1 has the he/him LIs, OL2 is all about other genders.

I don't want to impose on your creative plans, but a parrot could possibly make a good pet in an OL-type game? They're pretty long-lived and likely to still be thriving by the end even if the MC got them back in step 1. 

I do appreciate the suggestion, but I’m afraid it’s not likely going to happen. I understand there are technically some animals that could theoretically live long enough to last the whole game that or we could have the MC only get a pet after some years have already passed. But the many things that would have to be considered/accommodated for makes it just something we probably can’t manage adding. I’m sorry.

As time passes will we be able to see Qiu and Tamarack's other stage arts as well?

They are both so cute i can't wait to be friends with them!

Yeah, we’ll show content from other Steps in the future. It’ll be a little while from now, though.

Can you date Cove and still have your family comfort you in the car?

You can’t get Cove’s Step 3 confession scene if you have the family comfort you in the car. But that’s not the only way to date him. You can get together with him earlier in the game or later on in Step 4.

Is Mc always going to be the one walking down the aisle or could Cove do it? Also could you choose to have one of your moms walk you? 

No. Cove wouldn’t want to walk down the aisle like that and the MC automatically respects that. And the MC also gets to have their preferences respected, so it’s up to you whether they want to do an aisle walk or not. You also can pick who, if anyone, walks with you.

Once step 4 is out, will you be able to go the whole game on crush/love without either of you confessing? 

Yes, as long as you tell the game you don’t want to progress the relationship. Even in Step 4 it won’t force you to officially get together.

Howdy, so in Step 4, there will be any Romance with Derek that is not part of any dlc? 

He’s only a friend unless you get his romance story.

Will the step 4 in OL2 be one big step or are you considering moments? 

Step 4 is just an epilogue in both games.

hi kind of a weird question but!! we know tht cliff doesn't start dating again but. wht abt flings? like does he ever do 1 night stands or anything? thank u!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Nope. Cliff has a very small interest in sex. If he’s not in a real relationship with a partner he’s crazy about it simply isn’t something he feels a need for, so one night stands wouldn’t even cross his mind.

sorry if you've already answered this, but i was wondering if there were plans for there to be bonus love interests in OL2 like how we have derek and baxter in OL1.

Maybe! There are side characters who could be given romance stories, but whether or not it will happen depends on funding and how long everything else takes to finish.

I don't know if i'm allowed to ask about ol2 here yet, if not u can ignore this or answer it later. My question is can you date one of them and be good friends with the other? I don't want to be strangers with the other bcs i love them both a lot :<

Yes you can!

what patreon level do i have to be to unlock the nsfw moment? im on the $5 one right now, will that give me access to the moment, or just access to the moment progress? 

That’ll give you access! Tier 2 and anything higher allows the player to download it.

[harleybeaumont]

Love Me The Way I Am- Book 1

Chapter 4

Pairings: Maxwell x Harley (MC), more in future chapters

Book: TRR Book 2

Synopsis-  After King Liam proposes to Madeleine, Harley and Maxwell grow closer while they attempt to uncover who’s behind her blackmail. Maxwell is hiding a medical condition he’s kept secret for most of his life. Due to his father constantly berating Maxwell during his youth, he believes no one will ever love him.. until Harley comes along and he dares to hope.

A/N- This somewhat follows along with the events in TRR Book 2. I have removed/added certain events to go along with my story! Harley Hughes is my character who is based loosely off of Riley. The other characters belong to PB.

Warnings- language, drinking, sensuality, some NSFW

18+ only

Word count- 1,655

Catch up here

Harley and Maxwell finished eating their dinner and sat on her bed together. They were both pretty buzzed from their night out. She couldn't remember how much she drank at the club, or how they somehow got hold of some whisky, but they were sipping straight out of the bottle. 

“Drake would approve!” Harley laughed as she took a big swig.

“To Drake!” Maxwell yelled as he leaned over the bed and poured some whisky out on the otherwise pristine carpet.

“Oh my god Max! You're making a mess! Bertrand’s gonna be pissed!”

They both cracked up. Ya, they were drunk.

“Wait, weren't we supposed to be playing a game?” Maxwell said.

“Oh ya! But whoevers turn it is has to answer whatever you ask! No lying or skipping questions!” 

Max stretched out on her bed with his arms up. Harley caught a glimpse of his abs and her heart fluttered.

 “So Harley Quinn.. Truth.. or truth?”

Harley smacked his arm and pretended to think. “I'm gonna have to say.. Truth.”

Maxwell thought for a minute and sat up, “Uh, what's your favorite color?”

“Wow.. that question sucks! You gotta get down to the real stuff when you play truth or truth!”

He laughed and laid back on the bed, “Ok fine. Hmmmm.. This would be a lot easier if I wasn't smashed. Ok, I got it! Why did you come to Cordonia when I asked you? You barely seemed to give it a second thought. I figured you'd need a lot of convincing!”

Harley sighed and twirled her hair around her finger. “Honestly I guess I just wanted to do something with my life.. I moved to New York thinking I would get a new start.. Too many bad memories from back home.. but life always seems to follow you. Damn, that was a depressing answer. Sorry.”

“Not depressing, it was honest. It was very Harley. Although it did leave me wanting more.. Which is also very Harley.”  Did I just say that out loud? “Um.. I mean you're such an interesting person and I want to learn more about you.”

Harley looked away and smiled. Her stomach was full of butterflies. 

“Ok Lord Beaumont, it's your turn to answer. Truth.. Or truth?” She sat on her knees and looked at him with mock intensity.

“Gee, I guess I'm going to have to go with truth?”

Harley thought about what the girls in the restroom were talking about. She was just going to go for it. “Tell me about your past relationships.”

Maxwell raised his eyebrows, “You really wanna know that?”

“Yep.”

He took a sip of whiskey out of the bottle. “Honestly.. There's not much to tell. I'm not really boyfriend material, I guess. I've gone on dates before but I've only had a couple real relationships.”

Harley thought, oh my god those girls were right. He is a fuckboy! “What do you mean? How are you not boyfriend material?”

He played with a string on the bed absentmindedly. “I just know that there are some guys who people want to date, and I’m not one of them.”

Harley was dumbfounded. “What the fuck? Why would you say that!? Max, you're super hot and funny and sweet and smart!”

“Sorry.. now I'm giving depressing answers! I wasn't trying to fish for compliments, I promise.”

“And I wasn't just saying that. Everything I said is one hundred percent true. You're amazing!”

Maxwell smiled and looked at her. “So are you Harley.” He looked away quickly and ran a hand through his hair.

Harley didn't quite get the whole answer she was looking for so she decided to keep going. “So do you just like.. Hook up with people? Like.. have a lot of one night stands?”

Maxwell choked on his drink, “Jeez Harley! No!”

“Really? I'm not going to judge you if you do! I promise! We're being totally honest here right?” Harley started to sit cross legged but then realized she was in a short dress and put a pillow in her lap.

“Look.. I've heard what people say about me. I don't know why they say it.. But no. I.. don't get around like people think.”

Harley suddenly felt bad for even thinking that about him. She should have defended him when those girls were talking shit about him. 

Max chuckled, “Hey, you wanna hear a pickup line that I tried once?”

“Duh!”

He covered his face, “It's bad.. Drake gave me so much shit for this.” He looked her in the eyes. “Ok, Harley feel my shirt.”

She quirked an eyebrow and touched the fabric.

“Does that feel like boyfriend material to you?”

Harley burst out laughing, “That is unbelievably terrible!”

“I told you!”

“You know what though.. If someone said that to me, I'd probably be interested.”

“Really?” He looked at her in surprise.

She looked down shyly, “ya. A sense of humor is actually really attractive to me.”

“Me too.” He smiled at her.

Suddenly Maxwell's phone beeped a few times and he sat up, “Harley… do you have anything to eat in here?” 

She remembered a bag of m&ms in her bedside table and tossed it to him. He poured the bag into his mouth. 

“Sorry, sometimes ya just need a sugar fix right? ” he quickly smiled and messed with his phone.

“What was that beeping?”

“Oh just my alarm.. To remind me to get home.. from the club.”

“Max.. are you ok?”

He looked up from his phone. “Of course blossom! Now let's see what's on the tele!”

Guess the game is over, she thought.

Harley woke up with the sun shining brightly through the window in her eyes, and a major hangover. Damn how much did I drink? The last thing she remembered was her and Maxwell laying in bed watching some old horror movie that was on TV, and him downing a bag of m&ms and some crackers she found. She rubbed her hands over her face and started to roll over when she felt something next to her. Maxwell. She was under the sheets, but he wasn't. He was laying on his stomach snoring softly with an arm slung over her belly. He slept in here with me! He cuddled with me! Her heart felt like it was going to burst. He was so cute when he was sleeping. She didn't want to move, ever, but she didn't want Bertrand to come in and see this. She couldn't find her phone but the clock showed that it was already 11 am. He would surely be up to gripe at her soon. Fucking Bertrand. She gently moved Maxwell's arm and climbed out of bed. She felt a breeze from the AC and looked down. Oh my god, when did I take my clothes off?! She realized she was just in her underwear. Her head snapped up as there was a knock at the door. Fuck!

Maxwell awoke with a headache to the sound of knocking. “Ugh, go away Bertrand!”

Harley ran over to him, wide eyed and whispered frantically, “Shush! He'll know you slept in here!”

He sat up quickly and winced, “Bloody hell.. Did I sleep in here?”

“Obviously!”

Maxwell looked around for some place to hide. “Ok, um let me just get in your bathroom. Also, you uh, may want to put some pants on.”

She only had time to throw a t-shirt on once Bertrand started knocking. Harley blushed, “Oh god!” She grabbed some pants and ran to open the door. Maxwell started to stand and said, “also just turn around while I get up.”

“What? Why? Ohhh..”  She looked down at him and smirked. 

“Look, it's morning! I can't help it!”

Harley bit her lip and smiled before opening the door. “What's up Bertrand?”

“What's up? It's quite late in the morning and we have more lessons today! The engagement party is in two days! We need to make sure you don't mix up any titles again. Not to mention, I have no idea where my brother is. Probably off purchasing more peacocks or other useless nonsense.”

Bertrand stopped rambling and took in Harley's appearance. “My god, what have you been doing? You reek of alcohol and look like an absolute mess! Lady Harley, what happened last night? Your bed is all disheveled and- ”

There was a loud bang from her bathroom. Oh Maxwell. Harley covered her eyes. Bertrands mouth hung open. 

He put his hands on his hips, “Lady Harley, I don't know what kind of behavior you engage in back in New York, but here at Ramsford this is not acceptable. What if the press saw you bring someone in here?! The future queen having random bedmates?! Please tell your.. friend to leave immediately and make yourself presentable.”

“Got it, dad.” Harley smirked and quickly closed the door. Normally she would have a lot to say to Bertrand about the way he just spoke to her, but this wasn't the time. She ran into the bathroom and found Maxwell rubbing his back. “What the hell are you doing in here!? Bertrand heard you and I just got chewed out like I was in fucking high school!”

Maxwell looked at her sheepishly. “Sorry.. I wanted to see if I could jump up on the counter like they do on those parkour videos.. You know where they jump super high and don't use their hands.. Obviously, the answer is no.”

Harley stared at him for a second, then burst out laughing. Maxwell started laughing too but then they both felt their hangovers and winced. Harley checked her face in the bathroom mirror, “oh my gosh, no wonder Bertrand was so suspicious. I look like hell!” Her hair was messy and her makeup was smeared.

Maxwell kissed her cheek and said, “nah, you look beautiful as always.”

Then he quickly snuck out of her room, leaving her smiling like a fool.

[cinnaminsvga]

Undercover (M)

→ summary: the company banquets that your family loves to host are often drearier than you would like them to be. lucky for you, your bodyguards have the perfect solution: why don’t you play a little game with them? 

the only rule? you must keep quiet at all costs.

→ pairing: vamp!jungkook x reader x siren!seokjin → genre: bodyguard!au, supernatural, smut → warnings: dom!jin, switch!kook, sub!reader, remote vibrator, rough public sex, fingering, orgasm denial, multiple orgasms, blood-drinking, hypnotization, jin is kinda sadistic, basically pwp ;_; → words: 5.4K → a/n: this is for the holiday fic exchange that was held on @btsghostiewritersnet!! my fic is dedicated to ms @jincherie​ (aka the loml and also the recipient of 1/3 of the fics i’ve written this year??) who requested this prompt. i’m not really good with poly or smut fics, but i tried my best??? it ended up being a lil more jk centric than i anticipated but HHHH IDK I JUST HOPE YOU LIKE THIS EVEN A TEENY BIT ;o; anyway... happy holidays everyone!!

You can feel their eyes on you.

Except that isn’t much of a revelation—they are always watchful of you, after all. Your father pays a hefty enough salary that they would risk their lives to keep you safe, so it isn’t much of a surprise to know that they are lurking at the sides, keeping distant and close all at once.

This time, however, is different. You know for a fact that it is different. There is a subtle shift in the air, something tangible enough that you can almost touch it, taste it. You know that if you glance back at them, you will find two pairs of eyes, watching and waiting for… something.

That fact alone is enough to keep the goosebumps on your arms from subsiding. You feel like a canister just waiting to burst, a small disturbance enough to get you to erupt into flames and burn every last inch of propriety left in your being. Tonight, they are here to ruin you.

“Why are you acting so damn fidgety? Stand still,” your brother huffs after a while, pinching you lightly in the side. It breaks you from your reverie, causing you to jolt away with wide eyes.

“W-what?” you ask breathlessly. You wipe your clammy hands across your expensive dress, leaving wrinkles in their wake. “Sorry. I just… had a lot of coffee before coming here, is all. I needed the wake-me-up.”

He watches you for a moment, raising an eyebrow at your odd behavior. You can tell that he’s suspicious, but he inevitably shrugs it off, too unbothered to care. Like you, it takes a whole deal to get Yoongi excited about anything, and having a jumpy sister is far from reaching his quota. “Whatever. Just don’t cause a scene, alright? These events might be boring as hell, but dad has a bunch of important people here tonight, so you better get your shit together.”

You snort. “Right. Like when does he not invite important people to these parties?”

Yoongi rolls his eyes. “You know what I mean. Just behave, alright? I’m not covering for you if you piss someone off.”

“Wouldn’t have dreamed of asking,” you mutter. Little does he know, you are already planning on behaving tonight, anyway. That is the name of the game, after all.

On a makeshift stage at the head of the ballroom, your father has just finished giving his opening remarks, thanking all his esteemed guests for making it to tonight’s banquet. Polite applause follows soon after, the clamor loud enough to mask the way you inhale sharply in surprise. Your back straightens imperceptibly, your body going rigid as if you had been struck by lightning. To your left, your brother is none the wiser to your panic, his attention glued to his phone.

When the clapping breaks, you nearly speak your prayers aloud when the ambush on your senses suddenly stops as well. You take one, two calming breaths, your core throbbing needily as you await the second wave to hit. Disappointed when nothing comes, you smooth your dress down, fighting the urge to look around to see if anyone was watching.

Legs slightly weaker and breath a little shakier, you walk among the throngs of people as they make their way to their seats, getting ready for dinner to be served. Instead of heading to where your family’s table would be located, you change direction halfway and walk towards the back. Yoongi does not comment, just nodding back at you and going the other way as well. This is normal etiquette for both of you, anyway—your father has always expected the two of you to wander during these parties, greeting guests and socializing with them as proper hosts should.

Except that isn’t on your agenda for tonight. Right now, you have a game to play, and you don’t intend on losing your focus to anything else.

It does not take you long to find who you are looking for. Just like he promised, Jungkook is standing close to the east entrance, standing stock still against the wall in his designer black suit. When he notices you approach, his stern demeanor softens, a small smile gracing his Adonis-like features. It is nothing more than a quirk of his lips, but it is enough for a flash of something sharp to catch your eye. It disappears before you can even blink, but you know that what you had seen is far from a figment of your imagination.

To an outsider, Jungkook looks as intimidating as any regular bodyguard should be: tall and muscular, coupled with a dangerous gaze that could pierce diamond. He certainly works like one too, as your father would have never hired him if he wasn’t 100% sure that Jungkook was up to his lofty standards.

It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that there is something else that sets Jungkook apart if you just looked close enough. Even from a few feet apart, you can see the redness lining his irises, the deathly pallor of his skin, the sallowness of his cheeks. As you get closer, you notice other things too, like how his hands tremble against his sides and how his breathing has gotten shallow.

Everything about him screams vampire—a starving one, at that.

“How long has it been now?” you murmur, gently nudging your shoulder against his. You keep close to him, feeling yourself relax at the mere scent of him. Jungkook always somehow manages to smell good; you suppose that’s a given since you don’t think he’s even capable of sweating.

“Since the party started?” he asks.

“No, silly. How long has it been since you last fed?”

“Three days, seventeen hours, and twenty-one minutes, ma’am. But who’s counting?” he wheezes, offering you a strained smile. “Is it that obvious?”

“Not really, but I know you,” you reply. A little too well, in fact. “Seokjin hasn’t even allowed you a snack? Even once?”

Jungkook coughs out a laugh, amused. “You and I both know that hyung wouldn’t be that merciful. He did say that if I behave today, then maybe…” he trails off. You don’t miss the way he stares longingly at you, thinly veiled desire rolling off him in waves.

You feel the blood rushing up to your face, turning away from him in embarrassment. You have to remind yourself not to rub your neck, lest the make-up covering your fading scar give away your dirty little secret. “I’m sorry, by the way. I kind of did this to both of us, huh?”

Jungkook chuckles, snaking an arm around your waist. You shoot him a warning glare, but you both know he only dares to get comfortable with you when he’s sure no one is watching. Besides, it’s always been hard for you to get mad at the boy, not when he has always been so sweet with you.

“No, it’s fine. We all agreed to this when you proposed it. Besides, neither hyung nor I are going to risk our health when your safety is on the line. It’s not that bad, I promise.”

“If you’re sure,” you say, glancing at him doubtfully. You have never seen Jungkook quite so… unhinged before, as if he’s just a step away from teetering off the edge. It scares you just as much as it arouses you, but you make sure to keep that to yourself. “I honestly didn’t think Seokjin would be this ruthless.”

Jungkook snorts. “I’ve known him for a long time, Y/N. Trust me when I say that he is definitely going easy on us, especially you.”

“If this is easy, I’m afraid to know how he’s like when he goes all out then,” you say, but the thought of Seokjin becoming even more merciless than usual sends an excited shiver down your spine.

“How about you?” Jungkook asks. “Are you doing okay with the, um, you know?” He flushes, still shy to even say it aloud even after all the things the two of you have done together.

You giggle, unable to resist the urge to tease him. “You tell me, Koo. You can smell me, can’t you?” You lean closer, looking at him through your lashes. “You could probably smell from across the ballroom, especially with how hungry you are… My poor baby,” you coo. You have your chest pressed against his, your low neckline leaving nothing to the imagination. And yet, his gaze is fixed elsewhere, red eyes following the way your tongue darts out to lick your lips.

It’s a rhetorical question; you know he can smell you. The remote vibrator in your underwear has been on the lowest setting ever since the night started. The vibrations are persistent enough to keep you constantly aroused, but it’s never enough to give you what you really want.

And just when you think you’ve gotten used to the sensation, Seokjin will spike it up occasionally, causing your composure to crack ever so slightly. You’re pretty sure he hasn’t turned it on to the highest setting yet, but judging from how the dampness of your underwear has seeped past your thighs, you aren’t sure if you’d be able to keep your cool if he did.

“Do I smell good, Koo? I know you said my blood tastes sweetest when I’m like this, right?” you whisper, trailing a finger down his chest. He does not reply, his nostrils flaring as he struggles to control his breathing. He has a dangerous edge in his expression, a simmering darkness just begging to be released. It’s the kind of lust that sweet and lovely Jungkook hardly ever has the capability of showcasing, except during moments like these, when he is at his hungriest and most desperate.

“I’m not going to lose the game this early on,” he says, voice quiet. There is danger in still waters, you recall your mother telling you when you were younger, and you find that there is truth behind her words after all. Jungkook may sound calm, but the edge in his tone is laced with meaning.

“No fun,” you laugh.

As if on cue, your own dose of karma hits you when Seokjin decides to turn the vibrator up to its maximum setting. “Shit,” you gasp, barely holding back your moans. You nearly double over, mostly from shock, not expecting the intensity of the vibrations. You feel your legs turn to jelly, your body heating up and breaking out into a sweat. You have to lean against Jungkook for support, your grip on his biceps so tight that you’re afraid that you might have torn through the fabric. If he had been human, you might have worried that you were hurting him.

Jungkook stumbles slightly against your weight, surprising the both of you as he’s normally as sturdy as a brick wall. Your worry for Jungkook supersedes the lust addling your brain long enough to wonder if his blood fast is starting to affect him.

“S-sorry, Koo. Are you okay? Are you getting dizzy from hunger?” you ask, your words stilted and breathy as you try to ignore the pleasure coursing through your veins. “We can go somewhere and—fuckfuckfuck—”

You are unable to finish your sentence, having to muffle your moans by biting into his shoulder. You’re shaking and panting, the relentless assault on your clit causing a fresh wave of arousal to drip down your cunt and ruin your panties even further. The coil inside of you is close to snapping, your long-awaited climax just inches away. You have half a mind to reach under your dress and chase after your high, but the sensible part of you reminds you that you are still at a public event—your father’s public event, to be exact. So instead, you wrap your arms around Jungkook to restrain yourself, looking to all the world as if you were just two lovers in an embrace.

Just as you’re about to finish, the vibrator shuts off completely, snatching away any hopes of you coming. You want to scream in frustration, a few tears threatening to fall as you squeeze your eyes tightly. Eventually, you release your death grip on Jungkook, keeping your head bowed to hide the way you’re still short for breath. When you feel less hazy, you take a shaky step away from him while muttering apologies to Jungkook.

“S-sorry about that. So much for Seokjin going easy on me, huh? I really didn’t expect him to pull a fast one on me like that—”

When Jungkook doesn’t respond, you turn back to face him. “O-oh,” you whisper lamely, your blood heating up when your gaze meets his. “Jungkook?” you call out, though you don’t think he’ll be up for much conversation right now.

You have never quite seen him like this before. His eyes have started glowing red, so much so that there’s barely a sliver of white remaining. His fangs have extended far past what should have been humanly possible, its sharp tips puncturing his bottom lip. He doesn’t even appear to be moving, not even showing any signs that he might have been breathing at all.

“Jungkook,” you repeat. You tug on his sleeve hesitantly, but he stands as still as a statue. “Jungkook, get a hold of yourself!” It takes you a few moments of coaxing and shaking before some semblance of lucidity returns to him.

He blinks a few times, but his incisors have yet to retract. “Sorry,” he grunts, bringing a hand up to his face. He rubs at his eyes, and when he reopens them, they’ve stopped glowing. His irises are still a deep shade of red. “Sorry, I didn’t think I’d lose myself there. That’s never happened before.”

“You were kinda scary there for a second,” you laugh nervously. “Almost like you were going to eat me alive.”

“I honestly might have,” Jungkook admits. “If Seokjin hadn’t stopped you from coming right then, I might have just fed from you right in the open.”

You shiver. You kind of hate yourself for liking the sound of that, even if it was hypothetical. Your bodyguards wouldn’t risk your reputation like that. For a moment, it almost could have been real though, your mind unhelpfully supplies.

“You would’ve lost the game then,” you say instead.

Jungkook chuckles weakly, shaking his head. “You, Seokjin, and I already knew from the start that if anyone was going to lose, it was always going to be me.”

“Conceding defeat, then?” you ask. You press your thighs together in anticipation, catching the way he watches your movements like a predator awaiting its prey. “Is anyone watching us?”

With your back facing the party, you would never have known if anyone was close enough to hear your strangled moans back then. Ever the attentive bodyguard despite hunger and lust clouding his mind, Jungkook had still made sure that the two of you were far away enough from prying eyes. Well, with the exception of one.

“He was watching us,” Jungkook mumbles. You don’t turn to look when he points somewhere behind you. “He’s by the northwest entrance. He was watching us the whole time, but now he’s talking to your brother’s bodyguard.”

“How much do you wanna bet he won’t notice us sneaking out?” you ask, giggling when Jungkook gives you an incredulous look. “What? Didn’t you once say you could sneak me out of anywhere without my father knowing?”

“Your father and Kim Seokjin are two different people in two different leagues,” he points out. He glances at Seokjin once more, rubbing his neck nervously. “Oh, he’s definitely going to figure out what we’re doing the moment we get out of here.”

You shrug, already tugging him by the hand towards the restroom outside the ballroom. You wink at him, your giggles full of mischief. “Then it’s settled. We lose this game, and then we start another one.”

“Another one?” Jungkook echoes, following you like a dutiful pet. When you exit the ballroom, you find the reception area empty save for a few other security guards loitering by the elevators, surreptitiously on their phones. You easily make it past them and head to where the restrooms are, setting your sights on the polished wooden doors.

You push Jungkook inside the women’s restroom, locking the door once you both are settled inside. Turning to face him with an eager grin, you almost let out a laugh at the overenthusiastic gleam in his eyes. “New game plan. I call this one the ‘let’s see if we can get off before Seokjin catches us’ game.”

“Sounds thrilling,” Jungkook chuckles, but he’s already opening his arms when you walk over to him. You accept his embrace, pressing him against the marble sinks and slotting your lips together.

The kiss is fiery, all teeth and no finesse. He has one hand grabbing fistfuls of your ass and the other cupping your jaw as he holds you in place. Your own hands almost seem like they don’t know what to do, scrambling up and down his sides before finally locking around his neck as your mind goes blank.

Jungkook’s incisors cut your lips accidentally, causing droplets of blood to trickle down. They don’t even make it past your chin before Jungkook’s voracious tongue is already lapping it up, his groans echoing in the vastly large room.

You barely register the pain before Jungkook is offering another distraction in the form of his lips trailing down to your jaw until he reaches your neck, his breath leaving goosebumps across your skin. “Y/N,” he rasps, his fangs dizzyingly close.

Before he can choose to do anything, you trail a finger to his chin, forcing him to look at you. His eyes appear glazed over, almost as if he isn’t even fully cognizant of his surroundings. But when he catches sight of the way a fresh droplet of blood is already beginning to take form on your lips, his gaze hardens immediately.

You smirk, giggling when he groans at you licking up your bloodied lip. “No marks on my neck, baby. You’re gonna have to drink from down there.”

In any other scenario, you might have been concerned at how quickly he drops to his knees. He doesn’t look too bothered, however, as he bunches up your dress to your chest and tears your pathetic excuse for underwear into shreds. The small purple vibrator falls to the ground along with it, neither of you worried about where it is rolling away.

“You’re so fucking wet,” he groans, burying his nose into your cunt. You yelp loudly, sensitive after hours of edging. You unconsciously try to trap him with your thighs, but he holds them apart with an iron grip. From your vantage point, you can only see his eyelashes grazing your stomach as he licks two long stripes across your slit, nearly causing you to fall over had he not been holding you.

“Shit.” He leans back to look at you properly, his mouth shiny with your slick. “Can I? Can I please?”

You don’t even know what exactly it is that he’s asking, but you’re already nodding anyway, eager for him to do something, anything. “Yes, yes, yes. C’mon, Koo. Give it to me,” you whine. Your voice sounds hoarse to your ears, desperate and delirious.

Not one to disobey, Jungkook does exactly that. One moment he is on the floor and the next he is lifting you with ease, placing you on the marble counter and standing between your legs to keep them spread. He returns to kneeling and hooks your legs onto his shoulders. He caresses your thighs with a gentleness that seems out of place, craning his neck sideways so he can plant a chaste kiss on your inner thigh.

You whimper impatiently, nudging him with your knee. “Jungkook, this is sweet and all, but my pussy has been aching to be stuffed for hours now so I’d really appreciate it if we can just get on with the pro-o-g-gram—” you stammer, your verbal skills forgotten the moment his thumb brushes your clit. Your body jerks on instinct, his delicate touch like lightning on your skin. “Ah, fuck! Jungkook, please!”

You have your head thrown back, unable to keep still when he proceeds to push a finger into you without warning. He pumps into you slowly, the drag of his fingertips torturously slow as you incoherently beg for more.

“More? You fucking asked for it,” he grunts, adding a second finger and being rewarded with another chorus of moans from you. He fucks his fingers into you like a drill, the obscene squelch of your sopping cunt coupled with the sound of palm hitting against your clit is like music to his ears. He can sense the way your blood is rushing through you right now, pleasure thrumming through your limbs and making you intoxicatingly sweet.

“I can’t wait to taste you, darling,” he says, licking his lips in anticipation. “You must love this, don’t you? Love it when I finger you like this, even though you know hyung is going to catch us and punish us for this?”

You nod fervently, incoherent babbles dribbling from your open mouth. “W-want both of you! Want S-Seokjin to catch us and make us cry.” You gasp, your stomach clenching when he curls his fingers in just the right way to make your toes curl in pleasure. “Koo, I’m a-almost there!”

Your pussy, despite hours of being constantly aroused, still feels like a vice grip, selfishly sucking him back. He relishes your moans, drawing more sounds out of you that you had not known you were capable of producing. There is no time or space for shame as your whines grow higher in pitch, calling out his name when you sense your orgasm approach.

Jungkook feels feverish when he finally takes a bite from your skin, your blood made sweeter when you climaxed from his fingers alone. The meat of your thigh gushes crimson like a fountain upon his desert-like tongue. He is drunk on you; not even nectar can be sweeter than you.

He drinks for what feels like hours, lapping at your wound until he cannot stomach another drop. A blatant lie, of course, but he also does not wish to drink you dry. So with a heavy heart, he pulls away, leaving one last lick up your thigh to stop the bleeding. He slumps back on his knees, his head lolling drowsily as he looks at you with a satisfied smile.

You are in no better condition, your chest heaving as you struggle to regain your sanity after both the mind-blowing orgasm and blood loss. Still, you smirk sleepily back at him, your eyebrow raised as if in question.

“What?” Jungkook drawls.

Instead of a verbal response, you point at his crotch with your feet. When he looks down, his dick is completely hard, his erection straining against his slacks. He was so deeply engrossed in the flavor of you that he had not even stopped to consider his own arousal, but now that it has been so kindly pointed out by you, the need to be inside of you consumes him like a fire burning him on a stake.

A guttural sound escapes his throat, a renewed fervor pushing him to climb to his feet in an instant. Impatient, he struggles for a moment to loosen his belt, has half a mind to just tear his pants in two when—

“Jeon Jungkook, can you hear me?”

Jungkook stiffens. Unable to hear the voice coming from his earpiece, you give Jungkook a quizzical look, wondering why he’d suddenly stopped in his tracks. “Koo? What’s the matter?” you ask, placing a hand on his shoulder.

“Jeon Jungkook, answer me,” Seokjin’s voice is slightly garbled by static, but the authority in his tone is unmistakable.

Jungkook swallows thickly. He lifts the small microphone attached to his lapel, bringing it closer to his lips. “H-hyung?” he stutters. Your eyes widen, realization and panic seizing you.

You both share a frantic look. Fuck!

Seokjin chuckles darkly. “Took you long enough. Did you and our little mistress have fun?”

“W-well, we—” Jungkook stammers, looking to you for help. You shrug your shoulders, equally as tongue-tied. He returns to his mic, “We were just, umm…”

“Open the door,” is all Seokjin utters before Jungkook’s earpiece goes dead. Jungkook rips the small piece of plastic from his ear, both of you turning to the door when a loud knock reverberates across the restroom.

“It’s…” Jungkook cuts off, but he doesn’t need to say anything for you to know exactly who is waiting outside the door.

“Open the door,” Seokjin repeats, but there’s a certain quality to his voice that makes both you and Jungkook immediately want to follow his command. Without another word, Jungkook stands up stiffly, his feet dragging as he unlocks the door to allow him inside.

“No fair,” you complain. You pout, crossing your arms. “You used your siren voice on us!”

“I wouldn’t have needed to use it if you two weren’t acting like a pair of brats,” Seokjin says, sickly sweet. He’s smiling, but there is darkness lingering in his expression. It doesn’t help that your lower body is still exposed, free for his gaze to roam. “Do you have any idea how much trouble the two of you are in?”

“I’m sure my father is hardly concerned,” you scoff, filled with false bravado. You smirk when his eyebrows furrow, keen to tempt his anger. After all, Seokjin is the most fun to play with when he lets go. “Besides, I pay you to look out for me, don’t I? I’d expect you to come up with an excuse on our behalf.”

“I suppose so,” Seokjin hums. He glances at Jungkook, whose prior arousal has yet to subside. In a flash, Seokjin has Jungkook backed up to a toilet cabinet, roughly grabbing his bulge. Jungkook wheezes, his eyes flashing open in surprise.

“And you?” Seokjin asks, using his free hand to force Jungkook to face him. “You understand that you left your post, don’t you?”

“Yes,” Jungkook gasps out. Seokjin’s grip tightens, and Jungkook releases a soft moan.

“Yes, what?”

“Yes hyung,” Jungkook emphasizes, his hips unconsciously rutting upwards. Seokjin situates his thigh in between Jungkook’s legs, letting the younger boy rock against it for a few moments before pulling back just as quickly. Jungkook whines pathetically, jaw agape.

“You both lost the game. What makes you think you deserve anything?” Seokjin asks. He directs his question to you, glancing over his shoulder. “Well? Did I interrupt something I wasn’t supposed to see?”

When you don’t reply, Seokjin frowns. “Answer me, Y/N.”

His voice is musical, and it pulls the answer out of you, unable to resist. “Yes,” you say, through gritted teeth.

“What were you going to do?”

“He was going to fuck me,” you say. You smirk when his shoulders tense. “We were going to fuck without you.”

At your admission, Seokjin considers you with an unreadable expression. The tension in the air is tangible. Jungkook has his eyes averted, but judging from the way his cock twitches in his trousers, you know he’s also aware of what’s going to happen. All you need to do is wait a little, and then Seokjin will—

He steps away from Jungkook and walks towards the chaise lounge situated near the wall of the entrance. He sits on it primly, his back straightened as though he were about to call you in for tea. “Go on then,” he says, flapping his hands flippantly. When neither of you moves, he quirks an eyebrow in amusement. “What? Don’t let me ruin your fun. Continue where you left off.”

“Um…” you say, thoroughly at a loss. This is usually the point where Seokjin decides to punish either of you, or perhaps drag the two of you back home for more adequate disciplinary action. Instead, he seems content to allow the two of you to do as you please. He has a mask of indifference on, and it’s always been a little hard for you to figure out what he was really thinking.

“But…” Jungkook gulps. “W-we wanted you to, um…”

“What? To join you? Oh please,” Seokjin laughs, a little cruelly. “No, I’d rather not stop your fun. Carry on.”

“But—”

“Carry. On.” Seokjin commands, his power trickling onto his words. At once, Jungkook straightens up, his feet carrying him towards you and spreading your legs apart. You gasp, the sudden movement surprising you.

“Seokjin, what are you..?”

“Fuck her, Jungkook,” Seokjin interrupts, ignoring your baffled stutters. “Fuck her until she can’t even stand.”

Jungkook shoves down his pants and underwear in one swift motion, kicking them off his ankles somewhere behind him. He situates his cock against you, rubbing the tip against your slit for a second before thrusting forward and splitting you open.

You both scream and moan at the sensation, your warm walls clamped around him deliciously. He begins his brutal pace immediately, both due to his desperation to meet his orgasm and also the magic imbued in the simple command given by Seokjin.

The intoxicating roll of his hips has your eyes seeing stars as he pulls out nearly all the way before pushing back in. He angles himself until he hits your sweet spot with every thrust, ripping ragged whimpers from your throat. Your second orgasm is quickly building before you know it, your body tightening up as he continues to rut into you.

With a trembling moan, you gush around him, coating his cock with your arousal. Your legs are still shaking even after you finish, your entire body going limp from the exertion. Jungkook slows down, still painfully hard inside of you.

“Did I tell you to stop? Keep going,” Seokjin utters quietly. He is the picture of calmness, his hands folded delicately onto his lap.

“What?” you exclaim. “I can’t, no, it’s too much—”

But when it comes to Seokjin, his word is the law. Between the two of you, Jungkook has always been more susceptible to his voice, completely powerless under Seokjin’s influence. And so, Jungkook resumes fucking into you, mindlessly obedient.

“I’m too—Jungkook, stop, I’m sensitive,” you cry out, but your pleas go unheard as he reaches between the two of you, his thumb grazing your clit and causing your entire body to jolt forward. Your walls squeeze around his cock in response and Jungkook trembles in pleasure. His ministrations on your clit, in tandem with the swiveling of his hips, are almost vicious, the sting both pleasurable and painful.

You can feel the beginnings of tears forming, the assault on your senses almost too unbearable to handle. “S-Seokjin, please! Make him stop!”

Jungkook is nearing his climax, his rhythm growing erratic and showing no signs of slowing down. He is unable to hear you past his desire, completely entranced and hypnotized.

“You want him to stop? Fine,” Seokjin says, amused. “Jungkook, stop.”

“No, please!” Jungkook lets out a tortured wail. His body freezes in place, his cock still twitching inside of you. The poor boy lets out a few stray tears, his eyes squeezed shut as his body refuses to do his bidding. He sobs, his voice cracking as he pleads, “Hyung, I was so close!”

“Not my problem,” Seokjin giggles. He gets up from his perch on the sofa, leisurely walking towards the both of you as he surveys the frozen boy with a satisfied grin. “That ought to teach you a lesson,” he says, patting Jungkook on the back.

“And you,” he says, facing you, “aren’t getting away so easily.”

You gulp, a shudder running down your spine. “B-but, the party..?”

Snorting incredulously, Seokjin taps his microphone on. “Namjoon-ssi? Yes, I’m sorry for leaving so suddenly. I found Miss Y/N. It seems that she is having stomach problems, so I’ll be escorting her home. Please inform Master Min about her early departure,” he says in one breath, shutting his earpiece off before the other man can reply.

“It seems like everything is already taken care of,” Seokjin says angelically, even though he is anything but. He bends down to pick up Jungkook’s discarded pants, handing them to the younger. He also finds your forgotten vibrator under one of the sinks, picking it up and placing it neatly into his pocket.

He smiles. “Get dressed, both of you. The night is still young, after all.”