#he was very VERY rude to me yesterday and broke my poor little heart (made the entire class do as many push-ups and sits ups

[crescentmp3]

hiii im home! ^-^

[your-highnessmarvel]

From Bleak to Bright - Part Twelve

All other parts on on my masterlist, link provided below.

AN:  To the nonnie who suggested a line, it’ll be in part 13 :) I THINK YOU GUYS WILL LIKE THIS CHAPTER! i’ve stopped being rude to our poor loki ;) More to come this week yall. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL THE LOVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Warnings: angst, language, SMUT (18+ ONLY)

MASTERLIST - SERIES MASTERLIST

PART TWELVE

“I’ve had it,” you said, pushing away your dinner. 

“Yeah, me too,” Bruce sighed, eating the last fry and leaning back in his chair with a sigh. “I don’t get it. Why give this big ass meal if no one has ever finished it?”

“It’s not called the Impossible Plate for nothing, Bruce,” you mumbled, toying with the hem of your shirt.

“Still,” he mumbled, yawning. “I’ll have to sleep for days to digest this.”

You laughed, watching your brother, who’d grown a white hair or two in the last years, bend over an eating contest you’d both known you’d never be able to finish. 

But at least you were spending time with Bruce, not wallowing around in your apartment, waiting for the sun to set, for a certain someone to climb out of the shadows. 

“So,” Bruce said, wiping the corner of his mouth. “Did you and Nat find any cute boys the other night?”

You rolled your eyes, panic rising in your throat because no, both of you had returned home beau-less, but you’d recently found someone else. And you were not about to let Bruce know. Not now. Not ever. 

But truth is, you hadn’t seen Loki since the night he came back, and your tummy was a turmoil of panic and butterflies. Had he left once again? What was he doing? Where? With who?

You gulped down the terror rising in your throat as you smiled tightly at Bruce. “No, well, you know how it is,” you said awkwardly. “They all wanna talk to Nat so I kind of awkwardly step to the side.”

Bruce nodded. “Well, Nat is a very beautiful woman,” he sighed.

“Ew, Bruce stop.”

“But some men like women like you too.”

“What, ugly?”

“Oh my God, Y/N, stop it,” your brother grumbled. “Half the men in here swiveled their necks when you walked in.”

You wanted to hide in your hands. 

But then Bruce’s face changed and you knew what was coming. He always did this. Always. As if he just had to make sure you were miserable, just for the sake of the planet’s safety.

“I need to tell you something,” Bruce said with a frown. God, you hoped he was fine. But something in the lines of his face made worry climb in your belly. “There’s news from... from Asgard.”

It was as if that word was poison to you. “Loki,” you mumbled, throat raw.

“Thor delivered some news yesterday,” your brother continued, toying with his fingers, a nervous habit of his. “Loki... Loki died.”

You frowned, your head snapping up to meet Bruce’s warm brown gaze. “Dead?” you asked.

That was impossible. Just two days ago, he’d been standing in your apartment. He’d been... You gulped.

Bruce put his elbows on the table, initiating his Big Brother Stance. 

“I’m sorry, Y/N,” he whispered. “I know it must be terrible news for you.”

You dipped your chin, searching your last moments with Loki, trying to decipher if he’d given you a hint. This made no sense. How could Loki, the God of Mischief, be dead?

“How?” you asked. 

Bruce sighed. “Thor broke him out of prison to help him cure Jane of the Aether, and well, Loki was killed in a battle.”

You were frowning so hard it hurt. 

“I am so sorry, little sis,” Bruce murmured, reaching across the table to touch your hand. You immediately jerked it away, regretting the harsh movement as you saw hurt crossing your brother’s features, but not caring at the same time. How could he be dead?

You stood, the chair scraping on the wooden floor. You grabbed your bag, heart pounding, breath roaring in your ears.

“Y/N,” Bruce said, eyeing you with worry creasing his face. 

“I’m gonna go,” you mumbled, not bothering with the bill or politeness or the fact that you were running out of a restaurant. 

The street sounds were a blur to you as you all but ran out, bumping into people, muttering excuses. You walked by habit, heart a sore muscle, thoughts jumbling. How could Loki be dead in two days? Had Thor delivered the news a few days ago? Or today?

You were vaguely aware of your phone buzzing in your pocket, but all you could concentrate on was Loki’s presence. He’d been in and out of your apartment for weeks, repairing this or that, and it was only two days ago that he’d been in your apartment, kissing you. 

He just couldn’t be dead. 

It was late evening as you rushed up the stairs of your apartment complex, blood roaring in your ears, breath panting as you burst through the door. You didn’t bother locking it. Rushing to the curtains, you ripped them closed, ushering in more darkness. He only seemed to come to you in the dark. 

Standing there like an idiot, panting, silence filling your ears, you called out to him. At first, it was weak. A raw attempt to conjure him as if he was a ghost. But then the anger got to you, sweeping in hot against the inside of your rib cage, and you balled your fingers into fists. 

“Loki, fuck!” you exclaimed, feeling your cheeks warm.

The shadow behind you spoke. “Love hearing my name like that.”

You whirled, watching him melt from the shadows as if he’d been there all along. Black long sleeve cotton sweater, black trousers, boots to match. His hair had been cut since the last time you’d seen him. The long strands now short just below his ears, pushed back unevenly. 

He glowed, looking healthier, more like himself than when he’d been begging you never to let him go. 

“I thought you didn’t want me,” he said, pouting his lower lip. As he moved across the living room floor to stand before you, he put a hand to his heart. “Wounds me.”

“Are you really here?” you asked, resisting the urge to slap him for his arrogance.

“Why don’t you come and find out, beloved?” He opened his arms wide, a smirk tugging at the treacherous corners of that delicious mouth. 

You walked right up to him and clocked him in the jaw. His head snapped back, smirk wiping off his face, arms falling to his sides. When he looked back at you, standing close and seething, his left brow rose slowly. “I do not believe I’ve ever deserved such treatment.”

“Thor’s been saying you’re dead,” you accused, looking up at him from under your brows. 

The smirk slowly came back. “I may have helped spread that rumor,” he admitted, reaching out the touch the lapel of your coat. You inched back, but he snapped his hand closed and pulled you closer. “You must understand, Y/N, that this little lie I’ve shaped up allows us to be together.” He dipped his chin, eyes boring into yours. 

He was so close that you could feel the heat of him through your clothes. He’d been so cold the other night.

He licked his lips, inching slightly towards your mouth. “When you’re a powerful God and sorcerer like me, faking your death is like breathing. Easy.”

Your eyes widened, but the hurt you’d felt in your heart seemed to evaporate. If he’d faked his death, that meant he was really here. Unburdened. No one even knew he lived and breathed. 

His hands went into your coat, swiftly sliding it off your shoulders. You watched him, memorized the lines of his face. 

“It’s just you and me now,” he murmured, your coat hitting the floor with a deafening thud. “We can go wherever we please.”

His hands found home on your hips, burying his face in your neck and inhaling, the scent of him invading your senses. He gently wrapped his arms around your waist, pulling you against him, flush, like two puzzle pieces. He was warm, oh so warm. He smelled like wood fire and something unique to him that made your body feel... safe. 

“Say something, baby,” he mumbled against the flesh of your neck, sending shivers gliding down your back. His warm, big hands slid against your waist until he held your ribcage. Surely, he could feel just how hard your heart was beating. 

“I thought you were dead,” you murmured. 

You felt him chuckle against you as he straightened, his hands cupping your cheeks. “I can show you how very much alive I am,” he whispered, his voice thick. 

You gulped. Something in you fizzled, dripping thick, honeyed want into your belly. 

But Loki cocked his head. “I could take you here,” he said, eyes faraway, as if he was talking to himself. “I could... Gods, stop looking at me like that.”

He brought his mouth to yours, kissing you so fiercely that you forgot his whole “pretending to be dead” thing. The way his mouth molded to yours stole the breath from your lungs, driving you mad with the need of him. He was so soft, yet so rough, a restraint in him only felt as you grabbed onto his taunt shoulders. He was keeping himself controlled. 

You wondered what it would be like if he didn’t. 

He said your name through kisses, pushing onto you until the backs of your knees found the edge of the couch. “I’ve been starved for two years,” he mumbled, biting onto your lower lip. “Bled out.” Another breathtaking kiss. “All I wanted was you.”

You briefly remembered the way he’d looked that first time you saw him: disgusted, and how ironic was that now. He was bound to you so fiercely you felt it in your bones, and he was on his knees, wanting you more than anything. More than his own life. 

“Loki,” you murmured, breathing him in, kissing him back with as much heat as you could muster. You took ahold of his shirt with courage that seemed to pour in the more he ravaged you with his mouth. Pulling him back, you brought him down onto the couch, straddling him with ease. It really was like fitting two puzzle pieces. 

He huffed, his eyes searching your face with a look you could only chalk up to awe. His hands delicately treaded along your waist, skimming your hips as you lowered yourself flush against him. You could feel him through his pants, warm and hard, and the thought that just the sight of you got Loki so aroused made you bite your lip. 

He looked up at you, caressing your ribcage. “I could have you like this,” he whispered, his other hand skimming your belly and up, until he toyed with your nipple through your shirt. “I would have you how ever you want, Y/N,” he said, reaching for your mouth.

You dipped your fingers into his hair, grasping, bringing you against him until instinct took over and you rolled your hips, feeling his teeth nip you through the kiss. A low rumble came from him, his hand grasping your hip. “Careful, love,” he warned, nipping at your neck, your hands gripping the strands of dark hair. “Or I’ll be in a hurry.”

You smiled. Genuinely smiled. It was the first time in what felt like ages that the stretch of your lips felt real. You’d been living a lie for two years and now, straddling this dark prince of Gods, you knew this is where you belonged.

He brought his mouth back to yours. “Runaway with me,” he said, splaying both hands down the length of your back. “Please.”

You closed your eyes, kissing his jaw, down his neck, rolling your hips until you knew just how much of him you’d be dealing with. That low rumble came back, his hand snapping out and gripping your neck. With a hiss, he brought you back until you could meet his eyes. 

You gulped, but you couldn’t help the knot of arousal coiling in your belly. “Don’t play with me,” he warned, eyes dark in the dimly lit room. 

The left corner of your mouth tugged up and you barely saw him move. You knew he had superhuman strength and speed, but you’d never seen him use it before. And now, one moment you were straddling him, the next you were on the floor, Loki poised menacingly between your legs. 

When you looked up, panting, the pressure of Loki’s hand around your throat, his eyes were hooded. 

“Touch me,” he said. 

You felt the heat pouring into your face, but the hand around your neck eased until it grasped onto yours, guiding it to Loki’s arousal. He was so warm, so hard as you pressed your hand against him, eliciting a low groan from him. 

You watched him as his head bent slightly, eyes shutting, grasping him through his pants. He seemed to tremble, both hands in fists either side of your head. And then he let out a low groan, his mouth brushing yours. 

“The things you fucking do to me, love,” he whispered against your mouth before kissing you so hard you saw stars. 

He grabbed onto both sides of your jeans and tugged, making you lose touch with him and sliding softly on the floor. He smiled, kissing your neck down to the swell of your breast until he was face to face with the apex between your legs. He tugged again when you slowly rose your hips from the ground, watching him, seeing the way his eyes drank you in like a drug. 

Your jeans hit the ground and you instinctively closed your legs, but Loki’s long fingers on your knees pushed them apart as he settled there, his mouth finding home on the flesh of your neck. 

“I don’t think I’ll be able to,” he mumbled, fingers playing along the inside of your thigh, “but you can stop me if you want.”

Something akin to awe swelled in your chest and you grabbed onto his face, bringing his mouth back onto yours. He grunted, moving until your left leg was wide open for him. 

His fingers delicately pushed your panties aside, his mouth nipping at yours. You trembled, not because it was cold, and he sensed the way your bones seemed to flutter. “I got you, baby,” he whispered, two long, warm fingers finding your clit and rubbing slow, tentative circles that made you arch your back. 

Loki dipped his chin, grasping a nipple in his mouth through your shirt. You’d stopped wearing bras since the last time you’d seen him.

A whimper left you as Loki continued his ministrations, the pressure just right, the circles so languid. You lost yourself to the rhythm, rolling your hips into his hand, his mouth kissing up your neck and leaving a trail purely his. 

“Yeah?” he whispered in your ear, the pressure on his fingers increasing and you mewled, grasping his hair. “That’s a good girl, huh.” You flushed, lost in the storm of his words and the way his hand felt so fucking good. 

The pressure on your nub left momentarily, replaced by a long finger easing into you. Loki let out a low groan. “Gods, you’re so soft and wet.” His voice was like pure sin as his thumb found your nub and he gently rubbed, finding the perfect rhythm for you.

You arched your back as his finger found that soft spot in you, a cry passing through clenched teeth. 

“That feel good, love?” he muttered against your neck, kissing and biting. “Tell me.”

“Yes,” you moaned, the combined pleasure of his thumb and finger in and on you making you a complete puddle. 

He chuckled, something dark seeping from him, as he slowly started to lower himself until he was face to face with you. A blush crept up your face and he watched what he was doing to you. 

“So pretty,” he mumbled, and you saw him lower his mouth until his tongue made a bold swipe, replacing his thumb, and you all but cried out, chest arching off the floor. “That’s more like it,” his breathed against you.

And then he all but made you toss yourself off the edge. His tongue was a gift sent from the Gods, and the more he sucked and swirled your clit, his finger easing in and out of you, the closer you got to a real precipice. 

There was a knot in your belly, and whenever Loki’s tongue pressed ever so slightly against your core, you swore you almost broke. 

“Loki, I’m... oh God.” You reached down to grasp his hair. 

His pace seemed to quicken ever the slightest, his tongue working wonders against your clit until your insides felt like lead and that knot threatened to erupt. When he added another finger, so easily, you gasped, a broken moan clenched in your mouth, as the edge came and you toppled, Loki’s name on your tongue.

You were vaguely aware of Loki as he kissed the inside of your thigh, wiping his mouth onto your flesh. You were a puddle, breathing erratic as he loomed over you. 

“Runaway with me, Y/N,” he whispered, kissing your neck, your jaw, claiming your mouth and forcing you to taste yourself. “Come on,” he murmured, hands skimming your ribcage. “I could have you cumming for me like this every day.”

The thought made you smile. 

He grabbed your hand and kissed your palm, tugging until you could sit up and meet his gaze. 

“I’m begging you,” he continued, his voice so low, so thick as he kissed your hairline. 

You breathed in. “Okay.”

AAAAHHHHHH = me writing smut always. PART THIRTEEN ALREADY IN THE WORKS!!!

tags: @subtlemalice @yallgotkik @buckyandlokirunmylife @kaz11283 @legolas-bromance @shylittlemountain @tofeartheunknown @feelmyfckngsoul @kind-of-crazy-butthatsokay @caffiend-queen @tomhollandsslilslut @lady-loki-ren @nathan-no @rosaline-black @abundanceofcarolines @my-own-oracle @it-was-all-a-beautiful-dream @marvelouslovely @drbaureid @bored-as-hell-666 @youhavemyfantasticbeasts @theinfinitenerd @toe-vind-ek-jou @ink-and-starlight @blank-bakabane @sunshineonloki @holaamishamigos @palegoopbearlight @heyarely16 @pleaseexecuteme @athalahild @help-i-need-a-social-life @tapismyforte @coloursforyourportrait @celestialstarshadow @fukyouthink @lust-for-pan @thic-thor @winchescumberholland @morganmofresh @dazedkrosupreme @postsbyjenipeo  @blblabalabla (couldn’t work bb) @copper-boom 

[eulafan420]

oughhfdjfbds i live for your lee xiao stuff so maybe 12 or 28 (whichever you prefer ndjjdsn) with xiaoven and lee xiao?? only if you want to of course aaaa

a/n: HEY GIRLIE..... writing this literally made me go nuts dont look at me im so in love with xiao it’s embarrassing

prompts:

12. “Why are you holding back? Laugh!”

28. “Sorry, I forgot how ticklish you are.”

word count: 1.3k (under the cut)

“Xiao, c’monnn! I was only teasing,” Venti yelled, a slight pout on his face as he watched Xiao continue to walk away from him. He was aware that his energy could be a bit much sometimes, especially for someone like Xiao who had almost no relationship experience when the two confessed their feelings, but still... Upon realising that his apologies were getting him nowhere, Venti thrust himself a few feet ahead of his partner on a wind current, folding his arms to block Xiao’s path.

“Xiaoooo... I know I shouldn’t have done it, I’m sorryyy! It’s just- you act really cute whenever I hug or even touch you, but I’ll stop if it makes you uncomfortable, I mean it. I know you’re not a huge fan of PDA.” The Anemo Archon trailed off, twiddling his thumbs like a cartoon character caught in the middle of a crime.

Xiao flinched, coughing sharply behind his hand to distract from the the light pink hue overtaking his cheeks. “Barbatos, what have I said about you calling me cu-... that?” He huffs quietly, glaring at the man stood before him. He quickly averted his gaze at the sight of Venti’s puppy eyes, choosing to focus on a patch of flowers nearby instead.

“Nooo! Don’t start calling me Barbatos again, I already said I was sorry!” Venti whined, latching onto one of Xiao’s sleeves and making a show of wiping his faux tears on it. He giggled playfully when Xiao pulled his arm back in disgust, trying to wipe away the wet patch on his usually pristine vest.

“Besides, you do get all cute whenever I try show you any affection! Just yesterday, you yelped and jumped about 3 foot in the air because I poked you to get your attention. I know that I sometimes forget how ticklish you are, and I admit that maaay be my fault, but you can’t say that wasn’t at least the slightest bit endearing.”

Xiao tensed up at the memory, a shiver making it’s way up his spine as he furrowed his brows. “It wasn’t,” he said, though he still refused to look his partner in the eye’s.

Looking back on it, Venti was aware he should’ve quit while he was ahead. Xiao had a short temper, and Venti’s wallet was far too dry for him to buy the Adepti more bowls of Almond Tofu as a peace offering. But still, Venti wouldn’t be a very good bard if he kept all of his quick-wittedness and sharp tongued retorts to himself, would he?

“Oh my god, you’re blushing. That’s precious.” He giggled, reaching up to brush his thumbs across the warmth of Xiao’s face.

“I am not!” Xiao hissed, taking a step backwards and embarrassing himself further when he had to steady himself, having tripped over a small rock that he hadn’t noticed just moments before.

“You totally are- ahhh! Xiao- oof!” Venti gasped, finding himself lying flat on his back with Xiao straddling his waist, the Adepti’s hands grasping at the grass surrounding the sides of the bard’s head. “That could’ve hurt, you know!” Venti frowned, bottom lip jutted out comically.

“You fell on grass, there’s no way that wo- stop changing the subject!” Xiao growls, leaning down so he was nose-to-nose with his partner.

“Your eyes are really beautiful from down here.”

Xiao glared down at the bard, fists clenching. “I’m not cute, not beautiful, so stop saying it- oh...” He looked down, his face turning almost as red as a strawberry as he realised the position they were in. He had meant to get his point across, not stra- Well, not whatever this was.

“Aww, cat got your tongue, love?” Venti cooed. It was mean, he knew it was- but not taking advantage of how flustered Xiao was would surely be a lot meaner, he concluded.

‘L-love?!’ The pet name echoed in Xiao’s head, and he let out a quiet noise akin to a whine, making Venti swoon. He squirmed in embarrassment as he felt a pair of hands creep up to his sides, their thumbs trailing back and forth in a way that only Venti knew could get to him.

“You have to use your words, Xiao. What was it you were trying to say, hmm?” Venti smirked, his tone sickeningly sweet as he watched the other struggle to stay still.

“Barba- Venti! Mmh-hhah...! Quit it! Let me speak,” Xiao managed to get out through his huffs, biting his lip in an attempt to hold back the laughter bubbling up in his throat. “Mmh-hmm-hm! Nooo- this isn’t fahair...!”

Venti hummed contentedly, rolling his eyes. “You could just get off of me, you know? I’m not gonna chase y-“

“No!”

“Ouch, cutting me off was rude,” the bard pouted. “Suit yourself, though.” And with that, Venti raised his legs to better support Xiao’s back, noticing that he was struggling to balance. Thumbs were suddenly replaced with 5 nails on each side, gently scribbling up and down.

Xiao positively squealed, slapping a hand over his mouth to try and muffle the sounds, the other flying down to grab handfuls of grass to anchor himself.

Venti wasn’t too surprised, really. Xiao had always been a stubborn one, and it usually took a lot of persistence to crack him. But sitting in Venti’s lap, laughing? No, giggling, and hardly making a move to escape? That was new. He wasn’t complaining though, and as his nails wormed their way into his partner’s exposed underarms, scribbling playfully at the skin, he couldn’t find it in himself to care.

A shrill squeak filled the air, and the poor Adepti squeezed his eyes shut even tighter, refusing to give Venti the satisfaction of seeing the pleading look behind his eyelids. “Ple-eehe- mmh-hmmm! Not there, ahh!”

As precious as this was, the bard did want to hear some proper laughter. It’d only be fair, after all. “Why are you holding back, my love? You’re allowed to laugh, you know.”

And laugh he did.

The teasing lilt to the bard’s voice finally broke through Xiao’s resolve, and a wave of panicked giggles spilled from his lips as he squirmed from left to right, shaking his head. “Nooohoho- ahh! Ventieehee, it’s not fair, ahaha!” Xiao half-squealed, half-growled, his legs shaking with the effort of keeping himself upright. “I caha- no! No no noooo! Not thehere, pleaaase!”

“Not where, hmm? Venti cooed softly. “Right heeeere?” He made a point of flexing his fingers in Xiao’s underarms, being rewarded with an adorable cackle and a frantic nod. “Just lift your arms, I can’t do much if I’m trapped-“

Xiao frantically raised his arms, finding it almost impossible to feel embarrassed about how easy it was for his partner to get him to do just about anything in this state. He just needed Venti’s nails out of there. His relief was cut short as he felt the tickling return tenfold, helpless cackles bursting out of his chest like fireworks, leaning down to bury his red face in Venti’s shoulder.

“I wasn’t lying though, Xiao. You do look really beautiful from down here.” Venti mumbled, mostly to himself, unable to take his eyes off the squirming man in his lap. His hair was strewn all over the place, mouth wide open as giggles flowed out of him like honey, the grin on his face making the bard’s heart do cartwheels. It had been a while since he’d heard Xiao laugh like this, and he hoped to savour it for just a little while longer.

All good things must come to an end, of course, and Venti stopped his attack mere moments later, having noticed tiny tears pricking at the corners of Xiao’s eyes. He watched thoughtfully as his partner came down from his giggle-high, a smile tugging at his lips when Xiao finally calmed down enough to rub away the lingering sensations on his sides.

“Sorry, that was uncalled for. I didn’t mean to go so far,” Venti said, an apologetic expression on his face. He carefully propped himself up on his arms, using surrounding rocks for support as he sat up. The bard pressed a quick kiss to Xiao’s pink cheeks, and as he finally made a move to stand up, his partner spoke. So quietly that Venti couldn’t hear him, in fact. “What was that, dearest?”

Xiao placed a hand on Venti’s chest, swallowing thickly as he gently shoved the bard back down into the grass.

“You- you didn’t have to stop...

[just-a-poor-boy-queen]

Part 16 of Jimercury Kid series

Baba had always told Khaleel that listening in on other people’s conversations was “very rude,” and he should never do it. But this time, as far as the five-year-old was concerned, it really wasn’t his fault.

It all started when one of his toy trains broke while he was playing with it, so he wandered off to find his daddy to see if he could fix it. He heard Daddy’s voice coming from the kitchen, accompanied by Uncle Phoebe’s, but before he could reach over and turn the door handle, he heard Daddy say, ‘I’m telling you Phoebe, he can be such a little brat sometimes.’

Khaleel froze, his big blue-green eyes going wide as he heard the anger in his Daddy’s voice, and he immediately dropped his hand back to his side. He wasn’t entirely sure what a “brat” was, but from the way his daddy spoke, it wasn’t something good. And his daddy used the word “little” so he must have been talking about Khaleel. No one else in the house was little. Except maybe the cats.

‘I know, I know.’ Replied Uncle Phoebe. ‘Trust me, I’m aware of what a little shit he can be.’

Khaleel felt his cheeks burn. Again, he wasn’t exactly sure what a “shit” was, but he knew it was a naughty word that he was never allowed to say. And Uncle Phoebe had used the word “little” as well, so they were definitely talking about him.

‘He was pestering me all morning and now he’s in a mood.’ Daddy went on. ‘Honestly, I don’t know why I put up with it.’

The hands holding the toy train began to shake. Khaleel hadn’t meant to annoy his daddy that morning. He just wanted him to stop gardening so he would play with him. He was upset when Daddy said no and told him to go and play inside, but he hadn’t thought he was that cross with him.

‘I swear,’ Daddy went on, ‘the next time he acts up like that, I’m going to put him across my knee and give him a good spanking.’

Khaleel shook so hard, he almost dropped the train altogether. He knew exactly what a spanking was. He still remembered a few years back, when he had scared Daddy by grabbing his shears and Daddy had smacked him on his bottom as punishment. It hadn’t really hurt, but it was still scary, and Daddy had promised never to do it again.

But Daddy had lied.

Uncle Phoebe laughed loudly in response, ‘I’d pay to see that!’

Khaleel’s heart sank. He thought Uncle Phoebe loved him, that he might stick up for him. But even he wanted him to get a spanking. Tears welled up in the little boy’s eyes and he ran away from the kitchen door as fast as he could, upstairs to his bedroom where he hid under his duvet, trying to muffle his sobs.

He didn’t want a spanking. He had to be on his best behaviour from now on.

--

Freddie hadn’t heard a peep out of Khaleel all evening.

He arrived home from the studio just before dinnertime but wasn’t greeted by the excited five-year-old jumping into his arms like he usually was. He found Khaleel in his bedroom, playing quietly with his trains and when he asked the little boy if he was okay, the child simply nodded and continued playing without saying another word.

Freddie was worried but tried not to let it eat away at him. He had always been the more overprotective parent and Jim often had to reassure him that sometimes kids just did weird things, it wasn’t always something to be alarmed about. So, he allowed Khaleel to remain in his room until Phoebe called them all to dinner.

When Khaleel arrived at the table, he was as white as a ghost. He pulled out his chair carefully, as if terrified he’d knock it over and used his cutlery in slow motion, bringing it up to his mouth with great care that it didn’t fall off his fork.

‘Darling, are you alright?’ Freddie asked, finally cracking as he leaned across to feel his son’s forehead, ‘you don’t look well.’

Khaleel just nodded and went back to eating, glancing at Jim nervously every now and then.

Eventually, his parents fell into conversation, and he breathed a small sigh of relief as he finished his meal without making any mess. He had even eaten all his vegetables, even his carrots, which he hated. Daddy would definitely be happy about that. (1/2)

He reached over to pick up the glass of milk beside his plate, when Freddie suddenly said, ‘Khaleel?’ making him jump out of his skin. The glass slipped from his hands and toppled over onto the table, milk spilling everywhere.

‘Whoops!’ Jim cried, jumping up to grab the paper towels from the kitchen nearby.

Khaleel immediately burst into tears and jumped out of his chair, running to Jim, and wrapping his little arms around his father’s leg before he could leave the room. ‘I’m sorry, I’m sorry Daddy! I didn’t mean to!’

Jim blinked in surprise at the child’s hysteria and, forgetting the paper towels, kneeled down to gently pull his son close. ‘Hey, hey, don’t worry. It was an accident, sweetheart. No point crying over spilt milk.’

He was trying to make him laugh but Khaleel just cried harder, throwing his arms around Jim’s neck. ‘Please don’t smack me, Daddy! I’m sorry I was naughty, I’m sorry!’

‘Kenny, what on earth are you talking about?’ Freddie got up from his chair, looking from his son to his husband, ‘what’s going on?’

‘I-I heard Daddy talking to Uncle Phoebe.’ Khaleel stammered between sobs, still clinging to Jim. ‘He s-said I was a little brat a-and he was g-going to spank me next time I’m naughty.’

Freddie looked aghast. He glared at Jim with fire in his eyes. ‘You said what?’

The colour drained from Jim’s face. He managed to prise the little boy from his bear hug and softly told him to go and wait in the lounge while he and Baba had a little chat. Khaleel continued to sob and beg, but once he was reassured that he wasn’t going to be punished he calmed down and allowed Phoebe to take him into the lounge to play with his toys. No sooner had the dining room door closed, Freddie erupted.

‘I can’t believe you, Jim Hutton!’ He thundered, not caring if the whole neighbourhood heard him. ‘How dare you – how dare you say such things about our son!’

‘Freddie.’ Jim said, unusually calm considering the situation. ‘It’s not what you think.’

‘Not what I think?! Our child overheard you talking about smacking him! Something you promised never to do again! How could you?!’

‘Freddie-’

‘No wonder he’s been so quiet today, he was terrified of being punished! I can’t believe you’ve been having such vile conversations behind my back, and to Phoebe of all people-!’

‘Freddie, I was talking about you!’

Freddie’s voice immediately cut off and he allowed his mouth to hang open a second, his hand still raised in a jabbing motion. The pair of them stared at each other, the only sound to be heard being that of Romeo and Lily faintly squabbling in the background.

Then Freddie started to laugh. Uncontrollable giggles that made him clutch his stomach and almost keel over, cackling until the tears pricked at his eyes. He could hear Jim laughing too and soon the pair of them were near hysterics, clutching each other as their bodies shook along with each chuckle, until Freddie took a deep breath and managed to pull himself together long enough to speak.

‘You were talking about me?’ He panted, wiping at his eyes.

Jim nodded, looking a little embarrassed. ‘I was still annoyed about that argument we had this morning – you know, when you were nagging me about forgetting to rake the leaves yesterday.’

Freddie pouted. ‘I was not nagging.’

‘I told Phoebe that I thought you were acting like a brat and if you behaved that way again, I’d put you over my knee.’ Jim’s face was flushed red, though he couldn’t help chuckling again. ‘Poor Kenny must have overheard us and thought I was talking about him.’

‘Oh dear.’ Freddie sighed, rubbing his tired eyes, exhausted from the sudden influx of emotions he had just experienced. ‘I’m sorry, darling. I shouldn’t have exploded at you like that before I got my facts straight.’

‘You were just being your usual, protective self.’ Jim replied, understanding as always. ‘Now the question is, how are we going to explain this to Khaleel?’

‘We’ll think of something.’ Freddie turned to start walking towards the dining room door. Before he left, he glanced back at Jim over his shoulder, sticking his backside out rather suggestively. ‘So, you plan to spank me, do you? Is that a threat, Mr Hutton?’

‘No, Mr Mercury.’ Jim replied, smirking. ‘That’s a promise.’ (2/2)

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

Ahhhhh another (sort of) spanking fic! I loved the banter at the end ahaha—I can imagine what they did after putting Kenny to sleep lmao.

Speaking of Kenny, oof, bless his little heart. You've displayed the simple reasoning of a child so well—his daddy used the word little, thus he must be the topic of conversation. Poor baby, being so afraid to break any rule.

Also lmao, Jim and Phoebe gossiping about Freddie is my new favourite thing.

I absolutely adored this part, anon! This was so sweet, and sensitive and funny and flirty—an entire package💙

(More drabbles by writer anon)

[thecagedsong]

Forgotten Light: Chapter 4: History

A/N: Hey guys! Afternoon update since I was busy with pancake breakfasts this morning. Another Kendra chapter. Ronodin gets a little pushy, but it’s still G rated and won’t ever get worse than this, you’ll see what I mean. Remember, you are supposed to hate him. Still playing around with the chapter title for this one, and some of you who caught my analysis post a few months ago might recognize some themes.

1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 11

Chapter 4: History

Kendra picked another book off the shelf, noticed it was in a language she couldn’t read, and put it back. Over half the books in this library she couldn’t read, which seems like poor planning on her part.

She wasn’t even sure she wanted to read. It had sounded like a good way to get her mind off her apparently outrageous life story, but there was really no hope of thinking about anything else.

Kendra was the seventeen-year-old daughter of a noble family, very old fashioned, that obtained their status through years of keeping the undead enslaved and trapping dragons and other magical creatures considered dangerous to mortals. Kendra, as the eldest, was expected to follow in her family’s footsteps as jailors, but had grown doubtful that their way of life was right.

Kendra had met Ronodin at the engagement party for her arranged marriage with his cousin, Bracken. Ronodin teased her that his cousin was such an ugly bore, she had fled from Bracken right into Ronodin’s arms. (Kendra had rolled her eyes when he said that). He had been invited, as family, but Ronodin was far from welcome.

He wouldn’t tell her why just yet, but promised to soon, when they trusted each other a little more. Having nearly killed him, she agreed that that explanation could wait.

Ronodin and Kendra started meeting in secret, and talking. They fell in love strolling through the dragon prison her family kept. To throw suspicion off their meetings secret, they told her family that she was fine going through with her engagement with Bracken.

Her wedding was approaching in a couple of months, and they cared for each other more than ever. Kendra knew that not even her family’s love was worth marrying anyone but Ronodin. He had sounded so amazed when he quoted her, awed that someone so amazing could ever feel that way about him.

Kendra had blushed at her own boldness, and simultaneously felt heartbroken over that fact that she had given that feeling up. She was attracted to Ronodin, certainly, but when she tried to summon the life changing love he talked about, she had nothing. Just attraction and the feeling that he was speaking to someone else.

She had apologized, and he said she would just have to let him court her again. He’d do it as many times as it took to stick, he had laughed. He would understand if she wanted to break off their engagement, but he hoped she would still give him a chance.

Kendra promised to think about it.

They devised a plan, to take place just after she and her brother participated in a coming of age trial specific for their family against the dragons of sanctuary. It was a disgusting spectacle, offering the dragons their freedom once a generation, if they can claim the wizenstone first. It would be the last thing her parents ever forced her to do, she had vowed, and arranged for it to look like her servant had kidnapped her in the immediate aftermath.

For, despite everything, Kendra loved her family. They tried to follow the traditions of their ancestors without cruelty, and they had faced hundreds of trials together. By staging her own kidnapping, she would be breaking their hearts, but in a way they would understand. She would preserve their reputation, and be utterly free.

And that was apparently who she was. Kendra hadn’t counted on losing her memory, but maybe she had felt okay doing it for her brother when she knew about her fake kidnapping going to occur. She must have trusted herself to fall in love with Ronodin again, and Ronodin to take care of her. It was a lot of trust to place in someone.

Kendra did wish she had a family picture. If she went to such great lengths to protect them, then she must have wonderful memories of them, locked under the enchantment. She picked up another book, this one in English, The Forgotten Crown.

The library kept with the crimson and black theme, and she picked a black leather armchair by a fireplace. Normal fire, this time, not blue. It was strange, when things were lit by blue fire, it washed out the red and made the black look like a void. Ronodin must have handled the design choices, she couldn’t imagine picking this out herself under any circumstances.

She wanted to warm her feet, but didn’t think she could move the heavy chair, so sat on it sideways. Her black dress rode up her thighs, but the exposed skin felt the warmth from the fire, so she didn’t bother with modesty while alone. Mendigo was standing guard, he’d knock if someone was going to come in.

Kendra curled up with her book, and started reading about what the author called the six great crowns. They were the pillars of immortality that moved the natural world through its extremes: The crowns of the Giants, the Dragons, the Underking, and the Demons, the Fairies, and the Fair Folk. Humans were the interlopers, and the author took a three whole pages to describe why humans were the absolute worst.

Their sins included but were not limited to:

-Having the audacity to not always want immortality

-Ignoring boundaries like disrespectful heathens

-Killing immortals

-Assuming they have purpose

-Not tasting good

And their greatest sin of all: daring to change. Their ability to change affected even perfectly happy immortals, how dare they! After the rant on humans, Kendra got absorbed in the discussion on the powers and functionality of each crown, and there was a diagram of how they related to each other.

It started with an upside-down triangle. Fairies on the top left corner, Demons on the top right, and the Fair Folk at the bottom point. These three crowns were defined by their morality. The Fairy Crown on light, innocence, and creation. The Demon crown on darkness, pain, destruction, and cruelty. The Fair Folk were the forgotten crown, the main topic of the book, after the background was set. They were entirely neutral, and refused to take part in wars, and only ever offered to broker peace. Their power came from their neutrality, and the author recorded rumors of the horrible fall that came from the one time they broke their neutrality.

Kendra was tempted to skip ahead, but the background came first for a reason. The second triangle overlaid the first to create a six-pointed star. They were creatures based on space. Giants were the lower left corner, and took the sky, the Underking on the lower right took the places below ground, and Dragons stood at the top able to dwell high in the air and a ways underground. Their morality mapped the first triangle. Dragons had the capacity to create and destroy, love goodness or love evil, and came in every space on that morality line. Sky Giants tended between creation and neutrality, while the undead and the underking worked between destruction and neutrality.

The first triangle also worked within the second. The fairies tended between the air and the land, Demons below and on the land, while the fair folk, in the opposite of dragons, could only dwell on the land.

The opposites were also important. Dragons were many things, but it was extremely difficult for them to be neutral. Demons and Sky Giants avoided each other’s domains, so it was most difficult to understand their relationship. The Fairy Realm and the Under Realm however, were the most combative pair of opposites. Neither could tolerate the other. Darkness would swallow light, or light banish darkness, it came down to strength, and there was very little middle ground.

What middle ground there was came from the rare case where beings abandoned their magical alignment for the opposite, spiritual alignment. There were rumors of a demon sworn to pacifism, that occasionally helped naiads, and —

There was a single booming knock, the door flinging open with a bang. Kendra spazzed, fumbling her book and sinking into the armchair. The book fell, and Kendra glared at her “fiancé”, who was chuckling at her again.

“You look lovely,” Ronodin said, pausing to take in her disheveled state.

“Your whole ‘let’s make Kendra jump’ deal makes me think yesterday wasn’t the first time I’ve attempted to kill you,” she said. Well, one sleep ago. Time was hard without clocks or the sun.

That made him laugh once more, and Kendra couldn’t help but smile in return.

“No, not the first time, and probably not the last,” he said with a grin, “But you’ve never regretted holding back.” His eyes flicked to her pale legs.

Pale, bare legs. Kendra squeaked, and tried to pull her dress down, but only managed to flip herself onto the floor. She stood up with burning cheeks and a huff.

“I’m sorry, you’re just so easy to rile up. I love that look in your eye,” Ronodin said.

“Mendigo! Come here,” Kendra called, and the puppet came into the room. “Mendigo, next time, please do some gentle knocking yourself instead of letting the guest attempt to destroy the door before entering.”

Mendigo nodded.

Kendra turned and was about to say something when Ronodin squinted at her.

“Oh, right, sorry,” she said, and with a couple of deep breaths managed to dim her own light. It was an odd sensation, like walking around with her fist clenched. She would get into the habit again eventually.

Ronodin led her into another room down the little hallway of their living space, where Chinese takeout was set up for the meal.

“I’m going to take a guess and say my suave fiancé can’t cook?” she said, noticing the cartons.

“If you’re going to be rude, you don’t have to eat,” Ronodin said, pulling out her chair for her.

“Do I know how to cook?” she asked.

Ronodin shrugged, “I don’t think so, you usually had servants for that, and you lost any memory of experiences that would help you cook. We’ll just stick to take out for now.”

“You have any trouble out there?”

“If you mean your family, no,” he said. “You seemed to have pulled it off, and no one knows where you went. It won’t be long, I think, before we can find somewhere else, if that’s what you still want.”

“Yes please,” Kendra said, serving herself some friend rice. It smelled good, even if she couldn’t remember if she liked it or not, “Look, maybe its part of the fairy thing, but I can’t live in hiding forever. This place is really nice, even if it could use some color, but if you’re going to make me fall in love with you again, its not going to be here. Sorry.”

“I’m working on it, I promise,” he said, pulling her free hand into his and giving it a kiss. He pressed it to his heart, like he had done when Seth had made her touch him with the glove, and it made her blush again.

“I need that hand for eating,” she complained, lightly twitching her hand to reclaim it. It wasn’t like she was repulsed by Ronodin, but his overly physical affection got tiresome.

“You can have it back if you promise to hold your chopsticks right,” he said.

Kendra huffed, “Not all of us grew up using these. And even if I had, I lost my memory. You should be giving me a lot more breaks than you are for that.”

He simply waited, smiling, still holding her hand tightly. Kendra sighed, “Fine, show me how?”

Ronodin grinned and helped position her fingers. Kendra ordered the variety that Ronodin had brought in order from most favorite to least, and Ronodin commented on what his favorites were.

“Careful, you’re going to want the left overs,” Ronodin said, when Kendra eyed the remainder of her favorite. “I met with our host on my way back in.”

“Oh? I thought you said I arranged this myself before I came down here.”

Ronodin sighed dramatically, “Yes, and part of your ‘oh so brilliant’ arrangement was to loan your wonderful and talented fiancé out to our host for errands. I have to go out tonight. I don’t know when I’ll be back, but tomorrow night is probably the soonest we can hope for.”

“Oh,” Kendra said. Sure, he was often annoying, but he cared for her and was the only company she had besides Mendigo. “I guess I’ll explore the library some more.” She stood up to throw her dishes in the sink.

“You could do that,” he said, coming up behind her. “Or you can ask nicely for your other present.”

“I have the feeling asking nicely doesn’t actually go very far with you,” she put her hands on her hips and faced him, “And presents are meant to be given, not asked for.”

Ronodin’s arm snaked forward, pulling her into a kiss. She had a moment to flail, then he released her, and it was over. “You’re right, my favors have costs. Lucky for you, you just paid in full,” he teased.

“Ronodin!” she said, flushing and shoving him away. “Don’t do that.”

He just grinned cheekily and held a shopping bag towards her.

Kendra snatched it from his hands. “I mean it. I’ve known you two very stressful days, no kissing yet.”

Ronodin bowed his head in mock humility, “My lady, I didn’t mean to irritate you. I had to try the old fairy tale cure somehow. Alas, it appears true love’s kiss wasn’t the cure to this curse.”

She wanted to protest that of course it didn’t work, she didn’t love him. But she’d pulled that line once before to get him to back off and he always looked haunted when she did that. Haunted and sad, she didn’t have the heart to keep throwing that in his face, no matter how rude he was. This was at least as difficult for him as it was for her. And a small kiss didn’t hurt her, not really.

Instead she changed the subject by looking in the bag. “Wood blocks, books, fabric, and paint?”

“Your hobbies were another reason your family was suffocating,” Ronodin explained, “You liked carving, painting, and sewing more than dragon slaying and ‘monster’ hunting. Each of these materials comes from a magic source. The wood comes from different enchanted trees, the fabric is made from the hair of a goat the size of a house or lotus fibers, and the paints are mixed with tears and blood of various magical creatures.”

“Why is that important?”

“Because you are one of the select few beings that can craft magic items,” Ronodin said, “Part of you is that everfull wellspring of magic. You’ve done amazing at dimming it by the way, your control after just a day is astounding. But you can also recharge magical items that have run out of power, and when using the right materials, you can create new ones.”

Kendra’s eyebrows raise, “I thought…” she chased the elusive fact down, “I thought only wizards can create magical items.”

“They create it by crafting a vessel, using the same materials, and then binding their own magic into the object through an enchantment. You can skip that part, with the unlimited magic source you have at your disposal. You are more limited in what you can create, especially when starting out, you generally have to stick to reinforcing and enhancing the properties of the materials you’re using. When you do it right, the item will retain its magic long after you’ve put it down.”

“Wow,” she said, “And I could paint, sew, and carve?”

He nodded, “Enchanting items wasn’t at all in your family’s plans for you, so you tended to craft in secret. It will probably take you a while to pick up the skills again, but at least you’ll have something to occupy yourself if the library fails. The books in there provide some basic theories that will help.”

“Thank you,” she said, smiling and holding the bag close. “This was really thoughtful. I know that since I gave up my memory and my family in one swoop, I don’t have a chance at getting them back. But little connections like this help me feel…a little less lost.”

“I love you, Kendra,” he said, simply, “I’ll do anything to make you happy.”

Kendra smiled back uncertainly, unable to reply in kind. He seemed disappointed when she didn’t respond, but moved on to helping her set up a crafting room.

What kind of person led the life that she did? What would it take for old Kendra to not be a stranger anymore? Ronodin was a lot of things, but he deserved so much more than to have her break his heart at every turn.

[possiamo-andare]

Midsummer pt.5: JJ Maybank (Finale)

JJ x Reader

MASTERLIST

word count: 9k

a/n: this final chapter of Midsummer is dedicated to @shawnssongs for being the kindest soul when I was writing this series.They always had something nice to say and uplifted my spirits when I thought I had nothing good to write. You were my inspiration so thanks buddy!! I’m so sad to see this series come to an end but it has been so much fun. the first part of Midsummer has over 1,000 notes and I am so happy with all the feedback I received. Thanks to everyone who commented, liked and reblogged. You are angels!

~

JJ rarely slept in his bed. He had these fleeting, but clear, memories of his mother with her caramel hair and blue eyes, reading the Giving Tree to him. She sat on the edge of the bed, petting his head and she read to him, changing her voice when the tree spoke. As a child, it amused JJ but now, he couldn't think of that book or his bedroom without getting emotional. It didn't help that his father erased any memories of his mother around their house. The books she read to him were burned. The family pictures of a once lovely but poor family were discarded in the trash. JJ's father forbade the mention of his mother's name to the point where JJ started to forget what she looked like or what her name was. 

The only time he ever slept in his own bed was when John B. couldn't have him over and that rarely happened. John B. knew his situation and always made his home available. When his father went missing at sea, he needed JJ even more than before and welcomed him into his home twofold. Loneliness was contagious in that household and as much as JJ appreciated John B.'s hospitality, he was suffocating. 

Then she came along. You walked through those double doors with your arm through Rafe's in that beautiful dress and JJ knew he was done for. You had made him feel something in Peterkin's office but he suppressed those feelings and soon enough, he thought they disappeared. He had chalked it up to just a crush and when it disappeared he thought he was right. Then, that night, he knew it was more than that. Then, you kissed him. He had kissed you first because he had that 'screw it' mentality but he never thought you would reciprocate those feelings. He had no idea why you kissed him but you did and you wanted to be around him. Most girls never saw JJ as anything more than a Pogue and he thought he was okay with that. Now, he knew he would never be the same. 

You stirred beside him as he reminisced over the last weeks. He had never slept so soundly in his own bed before. Slowly, as to not wake you, he tightened his grip and your body and pulled you close. He usually hated sleeping on his back but he never thought of how uncomfortable he was when you were so peaceful beside him.

"Hm?" You grumble, completely unaware of what JJ was thinking beside you. You rubbed your eyes and looked up from the crook in JJ's neck. "Morning."

JJ smirked, feeling terrible he had woken you up. "Sorry."

You smiled, shrugging. "I had to wake up eventually." You glanced at the clock on JJ's cabinet and squinted. It was 9am. "We were supposed to get up one hour ago!" You move away from JJ, pushing the covers off your partially naked body.

You hurriedly bend over, looking for your shorts and tshirt. Some time in the middle of the night you had put your undergarments back on but for your tshirt and shorts, they were still on the floor. As you pull your shirt over your head, you feel JJ move from behind you. You know what he's about to do before he even gets a chance to do it but decide not to pull away. Instead, you wait as he wraps his arms around your waist. You feel his lips against the nape of your neck and you smile, the gesture tickling you a little.

"Harry Styles?" He laughs as he points to the flip flops on the floor beside his bed.

You gasp, quickly flipping over the sole of your shoes so he can't see the embarrassing drawings on your old white flip flops. "I was ten!" It was a stupid drawing of a heart with an inscription of your favourite One Direction member's name. You had meant to get new shoes but you had never grew out of your old shoes and thought no one would see it, much less your boyfriend.

"Is that who I need to be for you to stay in bed?" He teased, poking your side. You jumped from your seat in his bed and squealed, his teasing embarrassing you. You pull your shorts up and zip them closed as JJ watches your flushed cheeks turn a brighter red.

"You could never be Harry. Sorry." You joked right back, finally slipping into your shoes. 

JJ finally sits up, his shorts him yesterday now on the bottom half of his body. "Rude!" His eyes go to his feet for a moment and you can hear him whisper "How does it go..."

"JJ!" You giggle, knowing exactly what he was going to do before he even had to do it. 

"Straight off the plane to a new hotel!" JJ screams, playing an air guitar. You cover your face, embarrassed for him. "Just touched down, you could never tell. Big house party with a crowded kitchen -"

"Okay!" You finally jump over the bed and reach for JJ's mouth so he can stop teasing you. 

He pulls away but stops singing. Instead, he reaches for your neck and pulls you close. You can see it in his eyes and you indulge him, letting him kiss you. Surprisingly, his breath does not smell and you feel a little self conscious since you know yours does. 

You are the first to pull away. "I have to brush my teeth."

JJ nods, smirking. "That bad?"

You gasp, slapping his shoulder. "Rude."

He chuckles but nods, guiding you out of his room and to the bathroom that is closest to the front door. JJ opens the door to a very small bathroom with not even a shower. He goes in first, looking under the sink for a clean toothbrush. Once he finds one, he hands it to you and exits the bathroom. It's so small that there can only be one person inside at one time. JJ gives you a chaste kiss one more time before you step inside the bathroom and close the door behind you. You turn on the facet and slowly your mind wanders as you brush your teeth. As much as you know you shouldn't be smiling just because you're brushing your teeth, you can't help it. You can't seem to believe you're in JJ's house, brushing your teeth and actually acting like a couple. Nothing about your relationship so far has been normal. From buried treasure to murder, your relationship was never as peaceful as it was now. You sang a little song as you rinse your mouth, the smile still on your lips. However, once you shut the faucet off, your little happy bubble popped. Just a few feet away, you heard yelling. In seconds, you peered out the door and looked for where it was coming from. You saw that the front door was open and, as quietly as you could, you tiptoed closer to the front of the house. The door was wide open and the closer you got, the more you heard.

"What are you doing?" JJ raised his voice, finally walking in front of the door. At first, you thought he was speaking to you but he wasn't facing you. Finally, you saw as his father walked past him, a wad of cash in his hands.

JJ had been getting dressed in his room when his father arrived home after a night of gambling and liquor. He had not entered his house, only sitting on the singular chair on the porch. JJ’s father rarely was inside his own home. It reminded him of his wife and he had suppressed all his feelings over her. The less time he spent inside, the less he would think about her. JJ had initially approached his father with a coy smile on his face, handing the man the money he stole from the drug dealer. His father seemed happy and, for the first time in years, actually praised his son. Now, his smile faded as he watched his father stuff the money into a canister.

"I'm gonna take this south and triple it..." He trailed off, his mind in all different sorts of places. It was clear he was still drunk.

"Dad, that's my bail money I owe you." JJ pleaded, his eyes filled with worry. Your heart broke as JJ's father walked straight to JJ, gripping onto his collar.

"What'd you say boy?" He yelled, pushing JJ away from him. "You are nothing! Always getting in trouble. Wish you were never born."

JJ had heard these phrases before. His father was a predictable man and used the same insults. Before, they rarely affected JJ, mostly because his father was drunk. Now, however, it was different. The words were the same but the feeling they gave JJ was different. It had been so long since any parental figure had shown him even a small amount of love and he was getting tired of hearing the same thing over and over again. This time, when his father called him nothing, it stirred a type of rage JJ had never felt before.

By the time JJ realized he was fed up, you had enough as well. You had only heard this come out of his father’s mouth once and yet it already affected you. You couldn’t imagine how JJ could handle all these years. He had more self control than you thought. You were about to step in and take the pressure away from JJ but before you could do so, JJ lunges at his father, pushing him through the screen barrier around the door. The sound of both of their bodies ripping through the material makes a loud noise and you gasp. Although that sound scared you, the sound of JJ's body hitting the grass makes you scream. You push the screen door open and run to JJ who is on top of his dad, punching him viciously. 

"JJ!" You scream, trying to pull your boyfriend off his father.

All JJ sees is red and he doesn't even hear your screaming. Tears stream down his face and he continues to punch his father. "I'm not a failure! You did this to me!"

He continues his assault on his father, only once allowing him to get the upper hand and giving him a few good punches to the mouth and sides. JJ had learned how to take the pain. For years, his father beat him and after a while he built up a resistance to the abuse. Now, he barely felt the punches his dad lay into him, only concentrating on punching his dad as hard as he could. 

Only when you grab onto his fist, blocking him from punching his father again, does his mind clear and he realizes what he's done. He falls back, watching as his father crawl away from him. You wrap your arms around his body, asking him if he's hurt but he doesn't answer. He looks down at his hands and looks in horror as he sees his father's blood all over his knuckles. 

"JJ, are you hurt?" You ask again, cupping his face. He only shakes his head, his eyes still on his father. His father has gotten up from his place on the ground and now moves in front of you and JJ.

"Get rid of her before anything happens." JJ's father taunts, a beer bottle in his hands. You gasp in horror and wonder if JJ’s dad tried to hit him with a beer bottle. He walks past the both of you, not bothering to make eye contact with you. "Us Maybank men only hurt our women."

You don't know what to do. You heard the horror stories. You knew, to some extent, how terrible of a father JJ's dad was but never this. You try to ignore the man and look back to JJ, who seems to be zoned out. He's grasping his hands together and whispering to himself. You're scared. JJ's never like this and now that he seems to have broken entirely.

"JJ..." You call, trying to wake up from this nightmare.

JJ shakes his head, pushing you off him. This action hurts you and knowing the words his father has said really has cut him deeply. JJ shakes his head, getting up from the floor without your help. He winces as he does so, his father getting in some good punches before JJ got the upper hand. You follow behind him and call out to him but he ignores you. He can't seem to shake the words his dad said to him about all the Maybank men hurting the women they love. That was more true the more JJ thought about it. His grandfather drove his grandmother to drink which ended up killing her. They were never perfect and constantly arguing. When JJ's parents gave him to his grandparents for the weekend so they could party, JJ thought it would be a break from all the fighting his parents did but he was wrong. And his mother... She was gone because of his father. All the women in the Maybank family had bad endings and JJ couldn't do that to Y/N. She deserved better. She was better. 

"Where are you going?" You asked as you watched slip on his sneakers. 

"Don't follow me." JJ grumbled, tears threatening to spill. Although he didn't want to leave Y/N, he knew it was for the best. He couldn't ruin her life. He never wanted his dad’s words to affect him so much but his father’s words had planted a seed in JJ’s mind and it was growing in seconds.

"Is this because of what your dad said?" You follow after JJ, watching as he clutches his stomach. Before he can walk farther away, you run in front of him and place your hand on his chest, stopping him from walking too far away. "JJ?" 

JJ can't bring himself to look at you. "You shouldn't have seen that."

You shrug. "It's okay. I did and I love you."

JJ's head snaps up, glaring at you. "Stop." He hates that you’re being so supportive right now. All he wants for you to do is to leave. 

Your face contorts in confusion. "JJ -"

JJ pushes you away and walks past you. "No, leave me alone."

You stand in awe, watching as he walks farther and farther away from you. Finally, you feel the tears bead down your face and you realize that JJ has just broken up with you. A hand goes to your temple, the confusion giving you a headache. JJ just broke up with you and you don't even know why.

~

Kie was the only person you could talk to. Sarah was with John B. and you knew the second you vented to Sarah with John B. around, it would get back to JJ. The last thing you wanted JJ to know was that you were getting advice about him to someone else. Kie was friends with him but you trusted her more with keeping secrets. You found her at the Wreck with Pope. The second they saw you enter, they knew something was wrong. You didn’t have to say much. The second you sat down beside Kie, Pope excused himself so the two of you could be alone. You had kept most of your tears from falling. Your entire walk from JJ’s house to the Wreck consisted of you trying your best not to look like a crying mess. The second Kie asked you what was wrong, however, you began to cry. You barely got two words out before you began to weep. Kie let you cry and only held you as you did so. When you calmed down, you finally spoke and told her what was going on. You told her about the fight and JJ’s reaction afterwards and she said nothing, not interrupting you once. When you finally finished, she took a few moments to think of the right response before speaking.

“I hate JJ’s dad.” Kie scoffed, making you smile.

“Yeah, he sucks.” You agreed. 

“JJ loves you,” Kie begins, holding onto your hand. “I know. He’s never been like this with any girl. If he’s got any sense, he’ll realize how stupid he’s been.”

You nod. “What about his dad?”

Kie shakes her head. “He’ll never change, but he should not be ruining his son’s life. He’s already ruined it enough.”

You place your head in your hands. “I don’t know what to do.”

“Be there for him. Even if he doesn’t think he needs you, he does. Wait it out for today. By tonight, you should talk to him.” Kie explains, patting your shoulder in an attempt to comfort you.

You stand up, looking to the kitchen where Pope is acting as if he heard nothing. You almost want to smile because of how adorable Pope is acting. You finally look back to Kie, nodding to her. “So, can I help you guys with anything before we meet with Sarh and John B. tonight?”

Kie stands up beside you, smiling. “Of course you can.”

All things considered, the tasks Kie and Pope had to do were not complicated. Kie would go to the nearest Home Reno store and buy all of the equipment she could afford, while Pipe would go to his father’s dock and get the more expensive equipment for free. You decided to tag along with Kie instead of Pope, the sole reason being that Pope would have to sweet talk his dad into giving him the equipment and you being there would raise a lot of suspicion. You and Kie drove to the Reno store in her parent’s car, listening to music and talking intermittently. After she had consoled you, things between the two of you seemed way more mellow. It seemed like you were closer and without Sarah around as often, you couldn’t be more happy you had another girl to talk to.

When you pulled into the parking lot, you and Kie were happy to see that the lot was virtually empty. It was still mid morning so you both expected it to slow, but you were still pleased it was so deserted. It would look very suspicious to see two teenage girls buying rope, pulleys, and hammers so the less people saw, the better. Too many people gossiped in Figure 8.

“Let’s get to it,” Kie smirked at you, walking into the first aisle. You followed after her, unsure of where to go since you had never stepped foot into this store before. You had been to the Home Depot only a few blocks away but that place was way smaller and the signs were easier to read. Now, you blindly followed Kie as she guided through each aisle, looking for the items you needed.

“How long do you think it needs to be?” You asked, extending your hands as Kie made you hold one side of the rope as she measured it.

Kie shrugged, grabbing a pair of pliers and cutting it abruptly. “Hopefully this is enough.”

Slowly but surely you both made your way around the store, now pushing a cart that held the long rope and hammers. It had been easy to find the large hammers; they had their own section. Unfortunately, the pulleys were not as easy. Soon, five minutes turned into ten and you realized that neither Kie or you knew where they were kept.

“Do we need them?” You asked, pushing the cart beside Kie as she glanced through the next aisle. 

She shrugged. “Last time, we pulled John B. down but our hands were burning. It would be easier if we had a pulley.”

You nodded, imagining a tired Kie pulling John B., who was definitely yelling at her to hurry up. The scene you conjured in your mind was hilarious to you and when you giggled, Kie looked at you with a puzzled look on her face. You could tell she was about to question what you were laughing at but before she could, someone spoke from behind the both of you.

“Y/N?”

Your blood turned cold, the hair on the nape of your neck standing up. With a defiant look on your face (scared to show that you were surprised), you turned around and came face to face with Topper and Rafe. Both were dressed like asshole frat boys, black helmets in their hands. You knew they both rode motorcycles, only adding to their ego. Last time you had seen Rafe, he had broken into your home and now, although you were scared, you were more angry. Although, in that moment when you were hiding with JJ, you never thought of punching him but now you did. The blood rushed to your face, thinking of grabbing the nearest hammer in your cart and using it.

“Hi.” You glumly said, watching as Kie stood beside you, defiant just like you.

“Where’s my sister?” Rafe asked, stepping closer to you and Kie.

You shrugged. “Off with her boyfriend.”

You could hear Topper scoff from beside Rafe. “That thing is still going on?”

You felt a surge of confidence, wanting to defend Sarah. “Hi Topper. Still jealous?” Topper glared at you, saying nothing. You both knew he was but he wasn’t about to admit that to you. You looked back to Rafe, your eyes narrowed. “What do you want from her?”

Rafe chuckled, glancing at Kie and rolling his eyes. “We know you idiots stole money from Barry.”

You frowned, pretending to be oblivious. You were not about to rat out JJ, even if you were on a break. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Topper scoffed again, this time speaking. “What are you guys doing with these Pogues anyways?”

You glared at Topper. “Maybe because they don’t dress as if they’re frat boys from the early 2000s.”

Kie chuckled from beside you, mumbling a thank you. Topper only rolled his eyes, crossing his arms over his chest. Topper was not quick witted enough to have a good comeback so he stayed quiet, looking to Rafe. 

“What’s this I hear about you and Maybank?” Rafe asks, stepping closer to you. Topper stayed put, knowing the both of you were about to have an uncomfortable conversation.

You shrugged, trying not to show how the mention of JJ hurt you. “Why do you care?”

Rafe scoffed, shaking his head in disbelief. “Because a few weeks ago you were my girlfriend and now you’re with some nobody.”

This time you scoffed. “For a nobody, you sure are interested.” You pause for a moment and, without allowing Raf to rebuttal, you spoke again. “I’d like my key back.”

Rafe’s brows contorted in confusion but then shot up in surprise. You could see he was trying to control how he reacted but your comment had surprised him so much that he seemed flabbergasted. “How -”

“How did I know you were sneaking into my house like a stalker?” You cut him off, watching as his face turned bright red. Topper seemed just as shocked as him, clearly not knowing that Rafe was sneaking into your house. “I just do. Leave the key on my porch.”

You heard Kie giggle from beside you. You looked at her and smiled. She was the first to turn around and you followed after her, not bothering to look back at Rafe and Topper, both of whom remained quiet since you spoke. When you both were far enough away, Kie was the first to speak.

“What the hell Y/N?” Kie chuckled, pushing the cart into the next aisle. 

You pointed forward, finally spotting the pulleys laying on the shelf in all their glory. “I didn’t know I had that in me.”

You were right; you had no idea. But you were slowly realizing, with the help of your new friends, that you were capable of more than you thought.

~

Once all of your items were paid for, you took the liberty of driving back to the Wreck. Pope had said by the time you and Kiara drove back, he would probably already be there. He didn’t think it would take long to convince his dad to use his equipment, even if it was for one night. Pope had promised the two of you that it would be, in his words, ‘easy as pie.’ All Pope had to do was tell a small lie; a seemingly easy thing for a teenager to do. Yet, as you parked beside the Wreck, Kie pointed out what you already suspected.

“He’s not here.” 

You nodded, not bothering to unbuckle your seatbelt. There was no point to exit Kie’s car if Pope wasn’t here yet. Kie followed you, not moving to unbuckle her seatbelt either. “Should we go see if he’s still with his dad?”

Kie shrugged, watching the Wreck through her window. “Probably.”

You smiled, putting her car in reverse. “So much for ‘easy as pie.’” You chided, glancing at Kie and watching her smirk.

As you drive to Mr. Heyward’s dock, a place Kie said he usually was at, Kie and you stayed silent. It wasn’t an awkward silence like the ones you shared with her before. Now that she was friends with Sarah again, you both felt at ease with each other. As you drove, your mind wandered to JJ. You really tried not to think about him but every time you tried to divert your mind somewhere else, it went straight back to him. It was almost as if your brain was trying to tell you to confront your feelings head on. That was the last thing you wanted to do.

As much as you hated it, your mind went to a certain memory. The midsummer festival where you finally got to know JJ. You remembered how you felt that night. That night, you weren’t sure what it was let alone describe it but now you knew. Enchantment. You were completely enchanted to meet him. He was never your first choice for a boyfriend but the more you got to know him, the more you realized he was the only choice that mattered. He was more than anyone gave him credit for. So many people in Figure 8 saw him as a womanizing blonde with an ego the size of Russia, but he was more than that. He was caring. He cared so deeply about his friends, taking the fall so that Pope’s future wouldn’t be threatened. He was patient. He understood my caution and didn’t rush me. He seemed to care too much about what people thought of him, even if he would never admit it. He cared if Kie or Pope were upset with him. He cared that people saw you both as a weird couple since he was a Pogue and you were a Kook. JJ Maybank had more heart than anyone on OBX and you were so glad you gave him a chance. But now, it might be all gone because of JJ’s father. He had put that doubt in JJ’s mind and you could only hope JJ would soon realize he didn’t need to protect you from himself. 

“You okay?” Kie asked, breaking you away from your thoughts.

You pulled the car over, making sure the car was properly parked before you answered. “Yeah. Just distracted.”

Kie nodded. “I know you have a lot in your mind.” She started, waiting until you were both out of the car before she continued. When you met back up in front of her car, she spoke. “We’ll see JJ in a few hours.”

You don’t say anything, only looking across the boardwalk. You knew what Mr. Heyward’s boat looked like, seeing JJ and Pope drive it on the ocean a few times. Although you had trouble spotting Pope and his dad, Kie spotted them right away. In moments, she pointed to the left side of the dock. You followed her finger, your eyes finally landing on Pope and his dad who seemed to be in an awkward conversation. 

“Should we wait?” You cautiously asked, watching as she didn’t even answer your question and instead walked past you and towards Pope and his dad. You shrugged, following Kie even though you were sure intervening in Pope’s conversation with his father would only bring agony.

The closer you got to Pope and his father, the more you were able to listen to their conversation. At first, it was all mumbles but when you were six feet away from them, you could hear the confusion in Mr. Heyward’s voice. 

“No way Pope.” He grumbled, loading bags onto his boat.

“Hi Mr. Heyward.” Kie spoke politely as she approached the two men. 

Mr. Heyward glanced towards Kie and smiled. At first, he did not see you but the second you did you wish he hadn’t. His face instantly fell and he scrambled to wipe his hands on his pants. He seemed a little flustered and you were embarrassed because you knew why. Your father regularly picked up groceries from the trips Mr. Heyward went on all over OBX. Your dad spent a lot of money on Mr. Heyward’s groceries so you knew Mr. Heyward was confused as to why you were with Kie. You were even more embarrassed when he extended his hand, a polite smile on his face. To be kind, you shook it briefly.

“Hello Mr. Heyward.” You finally said, watching as a confused look crossed over both Pope and Kie’s face.

“Hello Y/N. What can I do for you?” He smiles, looking at Pope. 

Pope shrugged, glancing at you. “She’s hanging out with us dad.”

Mr. Heyward frowned, scratching his head. “I see. I didn’t know you were friends.”

Pope frowned. “She’s dating JJ.”

Mr. Heyward looked even more confused, almost startled. You got this a lot. In the weeks since you started dating JJ, you had told a total of two people including your mom and dad. They had the exact same reaction as Mr. Heyward. Although they were confused as to why you would date a Pogue, they dare not say anything to you. As long you were happy, they didn’t dare to voice their opinion. It didn’t help that their faces scrunched up like they just bit into a lemon every time you mentioned JJ though. 

“I see.” Mr. Heyward said cautiously, trying not to show his surprise but failing. “Now, Pope has told me that you plan to help him with his project for his scholarship and you need some materials. Is that true?”

You nod sweetly, glancing at Pope who was biting his nails. You wanted to roll your eyes. If he was acting that anxious as he lied to his dad, no wonder Mr. Heyward was so suspicious. “Yes sir.”

Mr. Heyward nodded at you and then looked at Kie who had the same fake smile on her face. “That true Kiara?”

Kie nodded nonchalantly, clearly better at lying than Pope. You figured anyone else was better at lying than Pope. “Yep.”

Mr. Heyward’s eyes narrowed, not entirely believing you all but deciding to do so anyway. “Fine, get it and go.”

Pope laughed, clapping his hands together. “Ah, thanks dad.”

You bid Mr. Heyward a polite farewell; you and Kie sweetly smiled until you both turned around. Pope followed slowly behind you, dragging the harnesses and helmets in a brown sack. As you all walked, he tried to call after you and Kie but you both ignored him. When you guys finally approached Kie's car, you were the first to turn around and watch as Pope continued to drag the sack behind you. After minutes of watching him struggle, he approached the both of you, his breath heaving. 

“Thanks for the help.” He grumbled, throwing the sack onto the floor in front of Kie who was now slowly turning around. You could tell she desperately wanted to laugh at Pope and she was trying so hard to control herself. 

“If you knew how to lie, we wouldn’t be here.” You teased, a smirk adorned across your lips.

Finally, Kie let out a breathy laugh and soon you joined in. Both you and Kie could no longer control yourself and soon you were both laughing hysterically at Pope. At first, he was not smiling but the longer you both laughed, the bigger his smile became. Soon enough, all three of you began to laugh together as if you hadn’t been lying two minutes ago. 

In that moment, you never felt closer to Kie and Pope. 

~

After the eventful afternoon you, Kie and Pope had, you all decided to head back to the Wreck for some food. You had promised each other that it would only be for an hour at the most. You had wanted to go back to John B.’s house where you knew JJ would be and you wanted to try and talk to him one last time. Unfortunately, you lost track of time and before you knew it, Kie was on her fifth story and this time it was about how she was almost bitten by a shark. The sun was setting and you had been there for hours, laughing and talking as your new friends entertained you.

“I swear!” Kie yelled, placing her hand over her heart.

You shook your head, indignant. “No way.”

Pope nodded along with you. “You might think you can fool Y/N, but I know that never happened.”

Kie chuckled, taking a sip from her glass that was half full of her third glass of lemonade. “I swear to you guys. That shark almost bit me. Got away within an inch of my life.”

You and Pope looked at each other and dramatically rolled your eyes. You spoke first, teasing Kie. “Are there even sharks in Figure 8?”

Pope nodded, pointing at you. “Y/N’s right. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a shark in Figure 8.”

Kie shrugged, taking a bite out of a french fry before speaking. “Well, it might’ve not been a shark -”

“I knew it!” Pope interrupted. Kie gasped at his interruption and threw the half eaten french fry at him. 

“Well it definitely looked like a shark!” Kie defended herself, reaching for another french fry.

You shook your head, laughing under your breath. As Pope and Kie lightly argued about Kie’s fabrication, you looked over your shoulder and watched as the sun set. The sky was a huey purple tonight with a hint of orange. You loved the sunsets in Figure 8.They seemed so peaceful and serene, something the other side of OBX rarely displayed. Although technically the other side of OBX was supposed to show people the lap of luxury, the atmosphere showed a different side. Yes, everyone was rich but they were also very unhappy. You envied Kie and Pope, although you would never tell them. You knew that they would laugh and ask you what there was to be jealous of when you lived in such a beautiful house. Although that may be true, your home never felt as cozy and warm as the places here. Here, there seemed to be a true sense of family. Neighbours seemed to look out for one another while in your neighbourhood, you weren’t sure if you ever met your neighbours.

“Hey,” Kie called out to you softly, touching your shoulder. 

You shook your head slightly, trying to break away from your thoughts to listen to what she had to say. “Yeah?”

“Let’s go see JJ.” Kie gave you a polite smile, almost trying to comfort you. You knew it was because JJ was still a sensitive subject.

Surprisingly, you didn’t protest. As much as you wanted to stay here for a little longer, you knew that you would have to talk to JJ eventually. Besides, when you all met up to get the gold tomorrow, you knew you had to talk to him then. He was unavoidable so you decided might as well get it over with. Kie decided it was best for her to drive to John B.’s house. Pope was a terrible driver and she could tell you were way too nervous to stay focused right now. You wished that it wasn’t true but you knew Kie was right. Even as Kie drove, your mind was in a million different places and you realized Kie was right in not allowing you to drive. Another thing you had to thank her for.

The sun had fully set and now was dark, making the drive to John B.’s house a little more risky. Thankfully Kie had made it there in one piece. You thought your heart would beat out of your chest as Kie parked in John B.’s driveway. With a deep breath, you opened the passenger side door and climbed out. Pope, Kie and you all congregated near the trunk of Kie’s car and started to whisper to each other. You weren’t exactly sure why you all were whispering but you didn’t bother to question it.

“Where are we putting everything?” Kie asked, peering over the trunk and looking at all of the equipment they had successfully retrieved.

“Sh.” Pope shushed Kie, only upsetting her.

“Excuse me?” She whipped her head around to Pope, glaring at him.

At first, you were going to give Pope an earful but then you heard it too and you found yourself shushing Kie as well. “Shh.”

Kie looked puzzled as you shushed her but when everything went quiet, she heard it as well. It was bubbles. The noise a machine would make when it was producing bubbles. You peered over the side of John B.’s house and found a trail of lights leading to the backyard. You didn’t know who was there but whoever was there, but it sounded as if they were in a hot tub.You didn’t know if John B. had money but you were sure he couldn’t afford a hot tub.

“What’s that?” Pope whispered, looking in the direction you were looking in only moments before.

Before anyone could give him an answer, Kie ran forward and towards the sound. Apprehensive, you ran alongside her while Pope was the last one to run. As he trailed behind, both you and Kie got closer to John B.’s backyard and, soon enough, entered his backyard. What you saw stunned you.

“What did you do JJ?” Pope asked first, standing in front of his friend. 

JJ was, in all his glory, sitting inside a hot tub. With small lights dangling above his head, he relaxed in a newly bought hot tub. It was the largest hot tub you had ever seen, bigger than the ones at pools. JJ had placed floaties shaped as swans and flamingos inside the hot tub along with floating glasses filled to the brim with champagne. He had a shit eating grin on his face but hid his eyes behind glasses. When you all stood in front of him, he finally slid his glasses down the bridge of his nose and smirked as he observed each and every one of you. When his eyes gotto you, you could instantly see how drunk he was. 

He chuckled, looking at Pope. “I got a jet going straight to my butt right now.”  Pope sighed, JJ’s response not really answering his original question. Just as he was about to speak again, JJ did instead. “Y’all should get in immediately. Ya hear?” JJ slurred his words, pouring himself another glass of champagne. He thought out a pathetic ‘salut’ before gulping down the glass of champagne.

You stood there dumbfounded.You had been to parties where JJ was shit faced but he never was like this. He was aggressive all the other times you had seen him drunk but now he just seemed pitiful.

Pope looked like he was about to have an aneurysm. “How much did this cost?”

JJ grabbed the entire bottle and chugged it before responding. “Uh, well, with the generator, the petrol and, oh hey, express delivery,” he started, pretending to calculate the amount in his mind. You watched as Kie’s shoulders dropped and her head tilted back in despair. He had used so much of that money. Your hands went to your mouth, hanging off every word and hoping that he hadn’t spent all of it. “Pretty much all of it. Yeah.”

Pope’s mouth hung open as did Kie’s. You refused to react, still in total shock. “All of it?” Pope angrily said back to JJ, confirming his worst fears. 

JJ smirked, avoiding eye contact with you. “Yeah, all of it.” He almost seemed proud.

“You spent all the money in one day?” Pope said in disbelief, clasping his hands together. 

JJ nodded, his head bouncing back and forth. He was hammered and everyone knew it. “Yeah. Burned a hole right through my pocket. But I mean, like, c’mon guys, like, look at this? Finest in jet based massage therapy. That’s what they told me.”

You looked to Kie but she was staring at JJ, her mouth still hung wide open. JJ seemed to notice her facial expression the same time you did because he turned his attention to her. “Kie what? Can’t a man have a little luxury in life? C’mon,” JJ asked, his tone shifting to anger. He took off his glasses before he continued. “All this scrimping and scraping, I mean guys, you only live once. Right?”

“JJ -” You said, the emotion evident in your tone. His cheek was black and blue along with his right eye. The beating he received in the morning was now turning to nasty bruises. 

“Stop!” JJ looked at you and yelled. “You always get what you want. Am I not allowed to get the one thing I want? Enough of this emotional shit, get in the cat’s ass.”

Kie finally spoke, her voice just above a whisper. “The what?”

JJ smiled at his joke, which made no sense to any of you. “The cat’s ass. That’s what I named her.” He stopped for a minute but then his eyes lit up again and he reached over the hot tub and grabbed something. “Oh, hey yo, I almost forgot.” He pushed a button and suddenly, a disco ball that hung from a strung above him turned on and water started sputtering out from all sides of the hot tub. “Huh? Yeah, that’s right, disco mode.”

“Are you kidding me?” Pope began to lecture, the most angry you had ever seen him. “You could’ve paid for restitution.”

“Or literally given it to any charity!” Kie butted in, just as angry as Pope was.

“Or better yet, you could’ve helped us buy some of the supplies to get the rest of the gold out of the well!” Pope added, pointing to the truck that had all of your supplies.

JJ rubbed the bridge of his nose, clearly distraught over Kie and Pope’s anger. “Ok! Well you know what?” JJ yelled over the sound of the jets, finally standing up. You gasped as you saw his abdomen but he continued to speak. “I didn’t do that! I got a hot tub!”

“Oh my god, JJ.” You whimpered, stepping forward to get a better look. If you had thought his face was badly bruised, his abdomen was a thousand times worse. There were nasty black and blue splotches all of his stomach where his father had punched him. You knew his father had gotten some good punches in but you never thought they would be this bad.

“For my friends. A hot tub for my friends. You know what? Screw friends. I got it for my family.” JJ softly said the last part, almost as if he felt weak. He looked to you finally and you saw the emotion in his eyes. “I got it for my girl.”

“JJ, I -” Kie started to say, all of the anger suddenly gone from her face and was replaced with worry.

“Look what I did.” JJ said, turning around in one spot and looking at the entirety of the hot tub. “Look what I did for you. Alright? Look at this.”

You looked to Kie as JJ’s back was turned to you and you saw her eyes brim with tears. As if she could read your mind, she looked at you and you both started to cry together. As the tears rolled down your face, JJ turned back around.

“JJ…” Kie started again, a tear sliding down her face. 

“No, stop.” JJ held his hand out, pleading with her to stop crying. “Stop being emotional, it’s fine.” But it wasn’t. The second he reassured Kie it was fine, he looked down to the water and you watched as JJ himself started to cry.

You couldn’t watch this anymore. Without allowing JJ to have time to push you away, you climbed into the hot tub and lunged at him, hugging him as tightly as you could. He instantly hugged you back, forgetting about the last day and weeping into your shoulder. Kie was right behind you and hugged him on the other side. Pope was after Kie and before long, you were all hugging each other. 

“I can’t take him anymore!” JJ cried into your shoulder, leaning against you. 

You stroked his hair and tried to comfort him the best you could. Kie and Pope helped you, patting him on the back and hugging him tight. No one spoke as JJ cried, not exactly knowing what to say. You stayed there for what seemed like hours. It was enough time for the jets to turn off automatically and then the only noise was JJ’s weeping. He weeped for a long time but no one stopped hugging him. You wouldn’t let yourself let go. You couldn’t let go. He was in so much pain and he had always tried to cover it up the best he could but now all his walls are crumbling. Finally, he seemed to calm down and stop crying. When you were sure he was calm enough, you all let go of him. Pope was the first one to exit the hot tub and Kie was the second. Finally, you and JJ exited together. Kie ran to her car to grab a towel to dry JJ off as you and Pope guided him to the hammock near the water. When Kie returned with the towel, you silently thanked her and wrapped it around JJ. It seemed like ages before anyone spoke. You, along with Pope and Kie, had I idea what to say to JJ. There seemed to be nothing good enough to say so, for a very long time, you all said nothing.

Finally, JJ spoke. “I’m sorry.”

“You have nothing to apologize for.” Kie said, looking at you. 

You, Kie and Pope looked at him, almost surprised JJ was apologizing. Kie sat on the ground in front of JJ as you sat beside him and Pope stood beside Kie. 

“I do.” JJ mumbled, his voice hoarse. “I spent that money when I should’ve never stolen it in the first place.”

You rubbed JJ's arm, consoling him gently. “It’s okay. Besides, I like the hot tub better.”

Everyone seemed to smile as you joked. Even JJ gave you a small smile. As the giggled died down, it became quiet between all of you again. This type of quiet, you had never experienced. It was almost as if there was so much to discuss, everyone just decided it was better not to say anything. 

Finally, JJ spoke. “I’m kinda tired. Can we all just go to sleep and start all over again tomorrow?”

You looked to Kie and Pope who were already nodding. When you looked back to JJ, he was only looking at you. You nodded along with Kie and Pope. Although you still wanted to talk toJJ about what happened, you knew he deserved to rest.

As you all got situated for the night; Kie bringing blankets from John B.’s house to his backyard and Pope draining the hot tub, you couldn’t shake the feeling that this was not over.

~

You had not lay your head down for more than five minutes before you were woken by the sound of someone rustling around. Your eyes flew open, not at all tired. Although your day was tiring, you couldn’t sleep. There was too much on your mind. You sat up from your place laying on the blanket and looked around to see where JJ was. He was no longer beside you. Your heart dropped.Your mind instantly went to the worst case scenario as you imagined where JJ could be. 

You got up from your place on the floor and made your way inside John B.’s house, where you hoped JJ would be. The second you entered his home, you saw a light in his kitchen on and smiled. Your heart relaxed a little. You knew you couldn’t completely relax until you knew where JJ was. As you made your way down the hall, you kept your eyes out for any noise signalling where JJ could be. Finally, you heard a sigh coming from the last room on the right hand side of the hallway. Slowly, you opened the door to see a quiet JJ sitting on the edge of John B.’s bed with a book in his hands.

“JJ?” You whispered, trying not to startle him.

JJ looks to you and weakly smiles, closing the book in front of him and placing it on John B.’s nightstand. “Hey.”

You move across the room slowly and sit beside him, reaching out to hold his hand. “How are you?”

JJ shrugged. “I’m tired but I can’t seem to sleep. Does that even make sense?”

You smile, nodding at him. “Yes.” You both stay quiet for a moment but soon your curiosity has peaked and you need to know the answer to a question you have. “What’s that?” You ask, pointing to the book JJ had put on the nightstand. 

JJ smiles when he sees what you’re pointing at. It’s almost as if there is a memory tied to that book and you start to think there is. “JB’s journal.” JJ answers, watching as you smirk, surprised at the answer.

“Didn’t know John B. journaled.” You admitted, glancing at the book again before looking back at JJ.

JJ nodded, grabbing your legs and letting them drape across his. “Not anymore. Kid gave up after two weeks.There’s only a couple entries before he dad went missing and they talk about our stupid antics.”

You raise your brows, nodding happily. “I’m very familiar with those.”

JJ smirked, reaching up to cup your face. “Speaking of stupid,” he started, sighing a little before continuing. “I’m sorry for what happened this morning. I let my dad -”

“JJ,” You cut him off, not allowing him to apologize. “You don’t need to.”

“No,” JJ argued, now both of his hands cupping your face. “I do. I let my dad get into my head and ruin things for me.”

“But JJ, what you put up with is far too much.” You argue right back, making JJ smile at your stubbornness. “I want you to know you can come to me.”

JJ nodded, letting go of your face and standing up, your legs falling back beside the bed. JJ extended his hand out to help you up and you gladly reached out even though you didn’t need his help getting up. When you were standing, JJ did not let go of your hand and instead guided you out of John B.’s room and down the hall.

“JJ,” You whispered, letting him lead the way because you truly had no idea where you were going. “Where are we going?”

Suddenly JJ stopped and opened another door to another room. With only a smile on his face, he nudged you inside and followed behind you. When you realized what room you were in,you couldn’t help the smile on your face. You were in a closet. The deja vu hit you like a ton of bricks.

“Y/N…” JJ whispered, getting your attention. 

When you looked at him, he leaned forward and captured your lips in his. At first, you were taken aback and didn’t react but you quickly recovered and kissed him back. You thought back to the word you used to describe how JJ made you feel; enchanted. It was like the first time all over again. It was always like the first time with JJ. You wondered, years from now, if the kisses would feel the same. You knew they would because it was different with JJ.

Finally, when you pulled apart, JJ spoke. “I love you so much it hurts.”

You smile wide, your arms wrapping around his neck. “I can’t explain how much I love you.”

JJ smiled just as wide and you and pulled you close.He smelled wonderful. He smelled like home. “Promise me, no matter what, we’re gonna be together.”

You nodded confidently. “No matter what.”

You both were not aware of the future and what it would bring. You didn’t know of the things John B. would find out in the morning on his boat ride with Ward. You didn’t know about what you all would have to do for John B. tomorrow, including evading the police. But even if you did know, your promise would have never changed. Because in the end, it was always going to be you and JJ.

The End.

~

taglist; @teamnick @dolanfivsosxox @obxrush @bellakellyrose03 @belledutchess @sexualparkour @lueurglow​ @itsriasblog @maries110911​ @ebonyyyy-e​ @tangledinsparkles​ @sarahsmaybank @91912512​ @ssjiara​ @amarachoren​ @haute-shawn​ @blog-hannahnicole​ @xlittlemissydjx​

[backtothestart02]

The Girl in the Black Cadillac - 18/? | westallen fanfiction

A/N: THE GOODBYE CHAPTER. I hope you enjoy it! Just two more chaps to go!

...

Chapter 18 -

The next morning Barry woke to the sound of Sammy whining outside his bedroom door. When he opened his eyes, he was greeted to the sight of Iris cuddled up close against him, and the last thing he wanted to do was leave the warmth of her naked body to go take his dog out.

But he didn’t want a puddle on the floor either. Sammy was potty-trained, but she could only hold it for so long.

Restraining a sigh, he untangled himself from Iris, slipped into some tossed aside sweats and opened the door to his relieved retriever running for the backyard. Scratching the back of his head carelessly, Barry followed his dog and let her out, the whole adventure taking a grand total of five minutes.

He was about to head back into his bedroom when he spotted Iris in the hallway in one of his t-shirts. It went down to her elbows and mid-thighs and made him nearly growl with possessiveness. She looked so good.

“What’s going on?” she asked, rubbing her forearms.

Her furrowed his brows, concerned.

“Just taking Sammy out for her morning bathroom break. Are you cold? You look good in my shirt.”

Iris felt heat rush into her cheeks with the way he was looking at her.

“It was the first thing I spotted. I didn’t want to get into my festival outfit just yet. I have to get it back to Linda anyways. It’s hers. So, I have to go back to your parents’ place first to get into a different outfit, so I don’t walk out of Linda’s shop naked, and-” She took a breath as amusement colored his face. “I just kinda wanted a lazy morning with you.”

His heart swelled inside his chest. That was all he wanted too.

But work…

He looked past Iris to the clock on the wall and felt some relief.

“It’s 6:30,” he told her. “We have some time before I have to go into work.”

Her heart dropped.

That’s right. Before he had to go into work. To fix her car. So she could leave.

So she could leave.

Because she had to leave.

She had to.

“I know,” he said, coming to her and holding her hands. “I can’t stop thinking about it either.” He paused a beat, then asked what he’d been wanting to since she came home with him. “You’re sure you can’t stay?”

She shook her head.

“You know I can’t, Barry. You saw my dad. He’d be furious. Even if I put my foot down, I swear…I swear he’d swing me over his shoulder and carry me back home himself.”

“But what if he didn’t,” Barry pushed. “What if your dad wasn’t an obstacle?”

“You planning on hiring a hit man, Barry?” She raised an eyebrow. “Because I’m not paying for it.”

“You know I’m not, Iris. Just…pretend for a minute with me here.” He squeezed her fingers gently. “If your dad wasn’t opposed, would you stay? Do you want to? For you.”

She sighed and dropped her hands.

“I don’t fit in, Barry. I could never be a small-town folk. Best case scenario is my dad does let me go, but he cuts me off. Then what? I don’t know how to do anything. If I don’t have my cards, I have no money. I’m broke, and my dad knows it. Who knows if I’d even be able to keep a job? I’m a tourist, not a hard worker. You think everyone here despises me now? They’d come to hate me after they see what I’m really like. I couldn’t stand that. I was born for city life. I don’t know anything else. I can’t survive without my dad’s safety net.”

Barry mulled that over.

“It would be hard,” he allowed, “but not impossible. We could get you your own place or you could stay with me. Linda likes you, and my parents undoubtedly do. You were a hit with the vendors at the festival, and honestly all Cisco needs is an apology.”

She winced. “I suppose I do owe him that. It’s not his fault the AC was broken and the route he took had a ridiculous amount of speed bumps on it. First impressions aren’t everything, as you and I know very well.”

He smiled slowly. “Look at you, coming to see the error of your ways.”

She allowed herself a soft chuckle.

“But it’s a dream, Barry. I still don’t think I’m cut out to make a living in a small town. I’ve never had to support myself, and my dad wouldn’t allow it. You know that. He’d come storming back, and who knows what he’d do to you and your family? I’m certain he wouldn’t take me peacefully.”

“Then what do we do?” he asked, looking more sorrowful by the minute.

She reached up and pulled his face down to hers so she could give him a passionate morning kiss.

“We enjoy right now, this hour, before you leave and I say my other goodbyes. That’s what we have, Barry. That’s all we have.”

Reluctantly, he nodded. “Okay.”

She pulled away slightly after a moment.

“So, are you a good cook?”

His laugh was strained but real.

“I can make you some pancakes if that’s what you’re asking.”

“I think that would be-”

“Or french toast.”

She opened her mouth to respond, but he kept going.

“Sausage, eggs, bacon, some of the best dark roast you’ll find in the county. I bet it even rivals Central City’s best.”

Her eyes lit up.

“Now you’re talking.”

He grinned.

“I’ll have all of the above,” she declared.

He laughed again.

“That’ll take a while. Don’t you want some alone time with my…undivided attention?”

She smirked. “That’s what shared showers are for, aren’t they?” Her eyes sparkled.

He felt the heat simmering in his eyes. He knew he looked hungry, and not for the food he’d just described either.

“That is definitely what shared showers are for.”

He brushed his fingers over her arms, then cradled her face in his hands as he bent down to give her a sweet kiss on the lips. Iris melted into his embrace, spreading her fingers over his chest and hoping her pussy’s renewed moisture wasn’t going to drip down her leg onto the floor.

“We could take a shower now,” he breathed into her mouth.

“We should definitely take a shower now,” she agreed.

Without warning, Barry picked Iris up in his arms and carried her bridal style down the hallway and into the bathroom, shutting the door quickly just as Sammy was about to waltz in.

…

After sex in the shower and the tastiest breakfast meal Iris had ever devoured, the two dressed quietly for the day and headed outside after saying goodbye to Sammy.

“That is one cute dog,” Iris commented, not for the first time.

“You can come see her whenever you like,” he said before he could stop himself. He felt the tension that rose between the two of them and wished he could undo it. “Come see me whenever you like too,” he added before he could stop himself. “If you have a car. I’m sure Cisco wouldn’t mind picking you up and bringing you back. Just gotta ask him, after you apologize for being rude, of course.” He paused. “I don’t think he’d mind at least…” He frowned.

“Barry, Barry…” She hurried to cover his mouth with her hand. “I’ll miss you too.” Tears filled her eyes, but she blinked them away before they could fall. “Now, come on.” She pulled her hand away and intertwined her fingers with his. “You have to get to work, and I have more than one stop to make before you’re done fixing my dad’s car.”

“Right. Let’s go then.”

Barry squeezed her hand gently and strolled with her over to the auto shop. He pulled her to him for a kiss, but this time they didn’t get handsy and no one whistled. The shop was quiet and keeping busy. Barry figured Felicity had filled in the boys on the situation, so he wouldn’t have to endure any unnecessary frustration today of all days.

“I’ll see you in a few hours,” Iris said.

“See you in a few.”

They released each other’s hands at the last possible moment and turned away before they got lost spending the whole day staring at each other from afar.

Iris was the first to turn away. Cisco’s shop was right across the street, and she had some apologizing to do.

She strode the short distance away and lightly knocked on the glass door that was shut to the public. It was shortly after 8a.m., so it was possible Cisco hadn’t opened yet, but before Iris could abandon this venture to say she’d tried but well it hadn’t worked out, the door opened, and there stood a cheery-looking Cisco.

Until he saw who it was, and his face fell.

“Hello, Iris,” he bristled, trying to keep up appearances and failing miserably.

“Hello, Cisco,” she said weakly.

“What can I do for you?”

She took a deep breath, then steeled herself.

“I was hoping you could forgive me.”

He blinked. “I beg your pardon?”

“I owe you an apology.”

His jaw dropped.

“From the moment I met you, I was skeptical. I had…impossible expectations, and I blamed you for not being able to meet them. Then I continued to have a poor opinion of you due to our first interaction. You were just being friendly and doing the best you could under the circumstances. I shouldn’t have judged. I’m sorry.”

Cisco shook himself, then pinched himself to make sure he’d heard right. The pain throbbing in his forearm told him he had not imagined what he’d just heard. Iris West had apologized.

“Well, I…shouldn’t have objectified you,” he said, recalling how the first words out of his mouth when he first saw her was how hot she was. “It’s very unlike me. I’m sure that didn’t help the opinion you formed.”

She forced a smile.

“Forgive and forget?”

He extended his hand for her to shake.

���It’s forgotten.”

Her smile morphed into a more genuine one, and she shook his hand.

“I’m sorry I waited so long to make amends, Cisco. Who knows? We could’ve been friends in another life.”

“Wait. Are you leaving?”

She nodded. “Today. As soon as Barry finishes fixing my car. He got the parts in yesterday but neglected to use them because he wanted us to have our date.”

“You two went on a date?”

She giggled. “Uh-huh.”

Cisco shook his head.

“That boy doesn’t tell me nuthin’.” He lifted his head to look at her again. “I thought you two hated each other!”

Iris shyly tucked some curls behind her ear.

“We…uh…we did, but um…things changed.”

“Now you’re in love?”

Her heart hammered away fiercely. She hadn’t stopped to think about just what it was that she felt for Barry. After all, they’d spent so little time together actually liking each other. Surely it took longer than that to fall for someone. Besides, she was leaving. There was no point dwelling on a future that was never to be and the feelings that led to it.

“You don’t have to answer that,” Cisco was saying now. “It’s none of my business.”

She pursed her lips.

“It’s all right, Cisco.”

“So, what are you doing now? While Barry’s fixing your car, I mean.”

“It’s actually my dad’s car,” she felt like clarifying.

“No kidding. Well that explains a lot.”

She raised her brows but pushed past it.

“To answer your question, I’m saying my goodbyes.”

Cisco’s face fell again.

“Well, isn’t that just the saddest thing… Do you need a ride anywhere?”

She laughed. “Certainly you’re not giving away another free ride to me just because I apologized.”

“Nope.” He locked up his shop. “I’m giving you a free ride because it’s your last day here, and that’s just the kind of guy I am.”

She laughed again and followed him to his cab.

“Where are we off to?” he asked, chipper as ever in the front seat of the car.

“Same as before,” she told him. “The Allens’ Bed and Breakfast.”

“The Allens’, it is.”

He tooted his horn and then drove down the block and to the other end of town. Iris knew she wouldn’t be getting through this day without a few more tears, and especially from the older couple who’d taken her in so selflessly.

She’d paid them, of course. But it felt like more than that. She felt like family to them somehow. And she would miss that a great deal.

…

Nora came running out of the house the second she spotted Iris step out of Cisco’s cab at the end of the driveway. She didn’t stop until her arms were wrapped around Iris, and Iris was struggling to find her footing on the gravel. She attempted to wave to Cisco her goodbye and thanks, but her arms were pinned on either side of her, so she accepted Cisco’s chuckled as he left.

Finally, Nora took a step back.

“Sorry. I’m so sorry, dear. It’s just…we were so worried about you. Weren’t we, Hen-” Nora turned around and Henry was slowly making his way out the front door. Nora faced Iris again, unwilling to wait for her husband’s arrival. “Well, we were. After your dad came here, and he was so… Well, I’m sorry to say it, Iris, but he was very rude. Especially about our Barry. And about you! The things he said… Well. I just…I could hardly believe you came from that man.”

“Oh, Nora…I’m so sorry you had to meet him. I’m afraid I’ve been very dishonest with both of you, and if I’d been more open, maybe this whole thing could’ve been avoided.”

“Nonsense. You were a stranger to us, dear. There was no cause for you to unload all your secrets.”

Iris pursed her lips.

“Maybe not, but-”

“Though I was worried sick about you last night. I didn’t know if your father had found you or where you had wound up!”

“Oh, I’m sorry. My dad did find me, and it was…well, it was quite the confrontation. I almost left. But Barry…”

Nora’s eyes gleamed hopefully.

“He saved me. I spent the night with him. I hope you don’t mind.”

“Oh, not at all. Henry suspected as much. I just needed confirmation.” She glanced back at her husband who was finally at her side. “Didn’t you, dear?”

“I did, indeed,” he confirmed.

“Right. Well, Barry is fixing my dad’s car right now. As soon as he’s done, I’m heading back to the city. So, I’ve come to gather my things, change clothes, and…say goodbye.”

Nora looked gutted, and Iris wished she could take it back.

“So soon?”

“Now, honey, we knew she’d have to leave eventually,” Henry soothed.

“Well, yes, but…you paid through tomorrow morning. Are you sure you can’t stay another day?”

“If my father wasn’t counting the seconds down until I arrived safe and home sound – with his car in mint condition, then maybe I would. It’s just not worth fueling his anger again though. I’m sorry.”

“It’s all right, Iris. After meeting the man, we understand.”

“Yes, of course we do,” Nora said, then reached out for her. “Come on inside, dear. I’ve just made some fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies and lemonade. You can have some, then get your things together and we’ll talk a little before you have to go.”

“You should tell us about that date.” Henry grinned, turning the conversation around.

“Oh, yes! The date!” Nora gushed. “You have to tell us all about it! What was the best part?”

“Well…” Iris cleared her throat. “I don’t know if it was the best part, but I got stuck on top of the ferris wheel by myself, and Barry literally climbed up the side of it so I wouldn’t be alone in my seat.”

“Good Heavens.” Nora’s hand flew over her heart.

“He’s quite the hero, isn’t he?” Henry said proudly.

“Yes.” Iris’ smile started to fade. “I haven’t met anyone like him.”

…

About an hour passed before Iris successfully left the Allens’ Bed and Breakfast. It hadn’t taken long at all for her to change clothes and pack up her things, but it was hard to let go of Henry and Nora, so she’d allowed herself to stay longer and longer, until she was reminded she had one last person to say goodbye to, and she wanted a decent amount of time with her too.

“I’ll take you into town,” Henry said, after they finished the last of the cookies and lemonade. “Then you don’t have to call Cisco back out here. I’m sure the man is busy. It’s a lot of back and forth.”

“On his dime too,” Iris said, amused.

Henry gave her an inquiring look.

“I think he likes me,” she said with an innocent shrug, and Henry laughed.

“Let’s get going then. Maybe you can drop by and say hi again.”

She laughed. “Maybe.”

Iris said her goodbyes to an emotional Nora and hugged her before jumping into the passenger side of Henry’s truck. The back was filled with bags of clothes from Linda’s and stuffed animals from the festival.

“You’re going home with quite the load, aren’t you?” Henry teased.

She shrugged. “Gotta have something to remember this place by.”

“We’ll miss you, Iris,” he said, after they’d turned the bend in the road. “And I’m certain our boy will miss you the most.”

Iris turned away towards the window.

“I’ll miss him too.”

“Iris, can I ask you something?”

“As long as it’s not if I love your son, then go ahea-” She turned to face him with a smile. It immediately dropped. “That’s what you were going to ask me, wasn’t it?”

Helplessly, he shrugged.

“Can I help it?”

“It doesn’t matter what I feel or don’t feel, Henry. I’m leaving.”

“There’s nothing any of us could do to get you to stay?” he asked quietly.

“No,” she said, before she could marvel at how desperately this loveable couple seemed to want to keep her around. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s all right. Just thought I’d give it a shot.”

The ride into town continued in silence. Iris felt bad, but it was the state of how things were. She couldn’t change that. No one could.

Henry pulled over to the side of the road once they reached Linda’s shop.

“I’ll park at the auto shop, so your stuff can easily be transferred over to your dad’s car. I’m sure Barry can take it from there.”

Iris hopped out and heaved her purse onto her shoulder. She reached for the bag that contained her festival outfit from the night before with her other hand.

“Thanks, Henry…for everything.”

He only smiled.

“Goodbye, Iris.”

She shut the door and waved. “Bye.”

After sucking in her tears for the hundredth time that day, Iris spun around and invited herself into the shop. There Linda stood, pretending to not have seen her, but as soon as the door shut behind Iris, her eyes lifted up, and Iris could see she’d been trying not to cry as much as she had.

“You just waltz into town for one week, and then you leave. Now who am I supposed to talk to?”

Both ladies burst into tears and hugged each other.

“It’s one week for crying out loud,” Linda repeated the sentiment. “I’m not supposed to get this attached.”

Iris nodded. “I know. Me either. I’ve never really had a friend before. I’ll miss you so much.”

“I’ll miss you! Ugh. And here things were going so well for you and Barry too. He must be miserable. I could’ve been your maid of honor at your wedding! I would’ve been so happy for you two. I would have babysat your children.”

Iris laughed, tears streaming down her cheeks that she let Linda wipe away and vice versa.

“It’s only been a week, Linda. Hardly long enough to form that kind of attachment.”

“Oh, but he’s got it bad for you, Iris. That look he had in his eyes when he took you on your date? I never saw that when he and I were together. Not once.”

“Let’s not pretend like his heart is the only one that’s breaking by my leaving,” Iris said.

“If you love him, stay.”

“It’s not that simple.”

“Then explain it to me.”

Iris sighed. “I’d rather not. Can it just be you and me and reminiscing until Barry texts me that the car is fixed? I’ve played every scenario out in my head, and it just wouldn’t work, so can we focus instead on the two of us?”

Linda sighed. “If we must. Okay. Shall we go to the park?”

“Oh! First… Drumroll. Here you go!” She handed the tall bag over to her. “Nora washed it and everything.”

“You had sex in it, didn’t you?”

Iris laughed. “No, I didn’t. I promised you I wouldn’t.”

“The bra came close though, didn’t it?”

She laughed again. “It came close.”

“Well, thank you, Iris. I’ll just tuck this away…” She stuck in a cubby behind the counter. “Now we’re off. Where should we go?”

“The park, of course. I’ll tell you all about my crazy night.”

“Leave out the sex though, please. I’m not sure if my heart can take it.”

Iris laughed. “No sex, scout’s honor.”

“You were a scout?”

“Of course not. It’s just something I heard somewhere.”

Linda rolled her eyes and looped her arm through Iris’.

“Let’s go, scout. Tell me about your date.”

…

It was another two hours before Barry resented her to tell her the car had officially been fixed. Linda walked down with Iris to the auto shop and hugged tightly before saying their goodbyes once more. Finally, Iris walked over to Barry and the black Cadillac that stood in all its glory, its engine once more alive and the frame shining like Iris had never seen it.

“I washed it myself,” Barry said. “Figured it could be my last ‘in your face’ to your father who apparently thinks mechanics are beneath him and you.”

Iris forced a smile, then examined the contents of the car.

“I see you got everything in.” Her eyes gleamed.

“Every last stuffed animal and sparkly shirt.”

She tried to laugh, but it was strained, covered in tears that she was quickly losing control of.

“I’ve missed you today,” she said, draping her arms around his neck.

“I missed you too.” He swallowed hard. “All day, you were all I could think about.”

She sighed. “I wish I had a picture of you, of us, to remember you by. I never want to forget this week. I won’t ever, but…”

“Well, why don’t we take one now?”

“Because we’re both about to dissolve into tears, that’s why! I want us happy, I want us…in love.”

“I am in love,” he said, passion seeping into every word he uttered. “I am so-”

“No, no, no, don’t. It hurts too much.” She covered his mouth with her hand, much the way she’d done that morning. “Don’t tell me you love me.”

He choked and tucked some of her curls back.

“But I do, Iris. You’re the first woman I’ve ever loved, and I don’t know how I’m going to live without you in my arms at night, without your taste on my tongue, without your laughter in my ears, without-”

She cut him off, going up onto her tiptoes to kiss him passionately. Barry held her tightly, tears slipping past closed eyelids and dampening his cheeks and lashes.

“You’re crying,” she said, when she finally had to pull away for air. “You’re not supposed to cry.”

“How can I not? You’re leaving me. The woman I love is leaving me.”

“You’ll find someone else.”

“I won’t.”

“You will.”

“Stay.”

“Barry…”

“Please stay.”

“I can’t.”

“You can. You just don’t want to. You don’t want to risk rejection, but are you willing to live under your dad’s roof for the rest of your life? Living in fear? In judgment? Forever protected but never really living?”

“Barry, please don’t.”

“Stay, Iris. We’ll figure everything out together. I’ll support you if I have to. Just please stay.”

Before Iris could answer, rain started to fall from the sky. It was a slow drizzle at first, then it came down harder and harder, until they were both standing there soaking in the rain.

“I have to go,” she said, practically shouting it over the pounding of each drop of water.

He stared at her, hoping to convey something his heart was feeling with his eyes, but in a short amount of time he realized it wasn’t working. He pulled her to him and kissed her hard, his fingers in her hair and holding her body flush against his. They kissed until their clothes were beyond soaked, until thunder could be heard and lightning flashed across the sky.

Then they broke apart.

“Stay until the rain stops,” he begged. “It could be dangerous on the roads. You could-”

“I have to go, Barry,” she said, and he let her go at last.

She opened the door for herself, blasted the heat and looked at him one last time before shutting the door.

Then slowly, cautiously, but assuredly, she put the gear in drive and started forward on the old country road, away from the town and the man she’d fallen in love with.

...

*will be posted on AO3 and FFnet when beta’d.

[badboys-imagines]

My neighbor (Henry Cavill)

PART III

A/N : I’d love to know what you think about this story so don’t hesitate to leave a comment ! Thanks for reading ♥.

Pairing : Henry Cavill x Reader

Summary : You move into the house of your dreams. It all seems like a fairytale, until you meet your neighbor, Mr. Cavill...

PART I   |  PART II  |  PART III 

Martha Lawson had always been curious, maybe too curious.

As you took the last luggage out of your car, you heard a high-pitched voice calling beside you. Ah, you would learn to hate that sound, but it’s another story.

“Hello dear,” Martha sang, ''I saw you moved in yesterday but you know how busy people can be, we didn’t get the chance to meet. I'm Martha by the way, I live across the street, the blue house.''

You looked up from closing the cars door and smiled, wiping the sweat from your forehead. Carrying all these stuffs would be the death of you, and you couldn’t count on Henry or your new desperate-housewife neighbor to help.

“Nice to meet you, Martha.'' you caught your breath, ‘'I'm Y/N.”

The woman smiled back at you, spreading tiny wrinkles around her eyes and cheeks. She was probably in her late fifties, but her surgeon had done a good job, it was undeniable. 

“I saw you and Mr. Cavill didn’t really get along, how unfortunate.” Martha said, lowering her voice, ''Oh, I don't mean to overstep. It’s just... don't mind him. He's a bit grumpy these days, it will pass.”

It wasn't a myth then. Desperate housewives living were really the worse gossipers.

“Yeah, I noticed.” you chuckled, “Do you know why ?”

“Ah, probably work, or a woman. How would I know ?”

Martha wasn’t really listening or trying to answer the question. She bent forward, her eyes taking sight of the bandage around your wrist,

“Poor sweet thing, did he hurt you in any way ?’’ Her eyes widened in fear and she looked back at you, concerned.

Your mouth opened and you huffed,

“Oh-this, no ! I...” My hand went through his window, you thought, “It was an accident. I cut myself with broken glass and it was all my fault. Really.”

Martha nodded suspiciously,

“Well then, don't let this attractive devil bother you. If you need anything, you know where to find me.” She winked and pointed at her big house again.

You nodded, thanked her and she walked away. She climbed up the stairs and waved her hand at you before closing the door. At least, she was kind.

Martha had a point : Henry Cavill was attractive. But he was also a pain in the ass.

You had quickly recovered from your little rush of adrenalin and you were now tidying your room, getting rid of the empty boxes that were still on the floor while Henry was making calls to get his window fixed.

Thinking about him and how weird he was, you couldn't help but find your devilish neighbor even more mysterious. He’d really taken care of you earlier. There was even a moment when you thought he was actually cute.

A knock on the door woke you up from your slumber and you stood up. Enough thinking about Mr. Chaos. A little conversation with someone else would distract you from these thoughts.

You opened the door, a light, polite smile curving your lips, but it was Mr Cavill. Again. A fluttery feeling twisted your guts and your smile died faster than a candles flame. This time, he looked upset.

Henry stared at you for a moment longer, enough for you both to feel awkward.

"Hello, again." he chuckled without an ounce of joy, "Glad to see you're... doing better."

A frown came up your forehead and you blushed,

"Oh, yes, I am. Thanks. I mean... Sorry. »

Wait, no, you weren’t sorry for everything…

You were about to correct yourself, but Henry spoke first,

"Apologies accepted. Well, this is embarrassing..." he muttered, "Listen, you broke my window and…"

You cut him off straight, "I know, and I'll pay for it, alright ? I'm sorry, for that." you insisted on the last words, but saw him shake his head as he bit down onto his lower lip,

"The thing is, I can afford a bunch of new windows if it pleases me.” he hummed lowly as if he disapproved your attitude, ‘'The impact made a crack on the main bay window, and now the whole set of windows needs to be replaced."

"What ?" you choked feeling dizzy, "Oh god…"

You didn’t have enough money for this kind of repair. Your hands legs started shaking.

"Please, don’t swoon again.” Henry closed his eyes in frustration, “I’m won’t ask you to pay for the whole thing. But I do need a favor. It will be snowing tomorrow and the guys who were supposed to fix this mess can't come until next Monday."

Your jaw dropped. Next Monday ? He was going to freeze to death.

"Oh shit." you swore, “Ho-how could I help you ? Do you need anything to keep you warm ?" you heard yourself talking and spluttered, "I mean... Not in a way that... Well, you know."

Heart stuttering, you cleared your throat, hating yourself for being so clumsy at that very moment. You rubbed the back of your neck in embarrassment and silence fell between you. Henry’s eyes darkened to the point they almost looked grey in the daylight.

Was it lust in his gaze ?

After a moment, he shrugged, burying his hands into his pockets, "Just a room, would be nice."

“I didn't want it to sound... I didn’t mean anything... physical.” you sighed, avoiding his blue irises.

At first, you remained silent. There were plenty of hotels out there, good and cheap ones. He'd easily find a place to stay. But then your gaze settled on his and the sentence made its way to your brains.

"You want to stay here. At my house." you’d said it out loud, as if waiting for confirmation.

Even though he kept his voice calm and indifferent, Henry uncomfortably shifted on his feet, his usually cold, pale skin tinting with light shades of red,

"Precisely.” he took a step toward you, “I despise hotels, and since I don’t think you can pay for my broken windows, I thought it would be a fair deal." he plunged his gaze into yours and for a moment, you lost yourself into them, “If you meant to keep me warm without anything physical," he repeated your own words, "it shouldn’t be a problem to live like this for a week or two.”

A week or two ? That was a lot. You gulped audibly,

"Don't you have friends for this kind of emergencies ?" you asked, but the question hung in the air and seemed to bother him more than your rejection itself.

Of course, he didn't have any friends. He was Henry Cavill, the devil himself, for god's sake.

It took you a moment to realize what it would involve. Henry living with you, even for just a week, would be a terrible mess.

Oh, no, you couldn't do that.

Or could you ?

On the other side of the street, you noticed Martha Lawson was out. She’d stopped collecting her tomatoes to watch the scene intently. She was probably trying to hear your conversation from the distance.

Slowly, you took a few steps back.

"Listen, let’s try to find a solution. Just... Come inside, before Mrs. Lawson makes up a whole story about us."

Henry swiftly glanced behind him, as if perplexed and he walked in. You closed the door as he did, and you grew even more nervous. His scent invaded your lungs, intoxicating. It was surprising, how you hated and liked it at the same time. Your heart started pounding when you didn't want it to. Your body seemed to follow its own instincts and they weren’t good. As you turned around, you tried to shrug off these unwanted emotions. Absolutely certain you could control them, you finally locked eyes with Henry Cavill. As soon as his blue gaze pounced on yours, you lost it. You lost everything.

Crossing your arms, you tried to sound and appear indifferent, denying the physical attraction, the animal desire that slowly but surely invaded your mind,

"Alright. How... How would we proceed ? We don't get along, you don't like me, and in case you didn't notice, we are more likely to kill each other than to live together."

Eyes absentmindedly wandering around, Henry took a few steps across the living room. Observing, he seemed like he was about to throw another unpleasing comment at you, maybe about the house or its furnitures, but he didn't. Instead, he just turned around to face you,

"I never said I didn't like you." he corrected you, impossibly calmly.

You raised your eyebrows,

"You've been rude to me from the start. And you didn't even feel the need to apologize."

Once more, Henry shrugged. It was his turn to cross his arms against his torso, his attitude displaying the sassiest aspects of his personality in one posture.

"I don't have to. You disturbed me, I told you to stop, you violently punched my window and broke it…"

Oh, god damn you Cavill.

Blood rushing to your head, you were about to jump like a lion and dig your claws deep into the soft skin of his throat to rip his head off.

“Shut up,” you raised your voice, “I got it, we're... different. We have our own opinions on how to behave with other people." you uttered, trying to manage your anger as he played with your nerves, "But apologizing doesn't always mean you're wrong and the other person is right. It just means you value your relationship more than your ego."

Tilting his head, Henry narrowed his eyes and contemplated you,

"My bad," he rasped, "I didn't know we were in a relationship. I apologize, then.”

At his words, you couldn't help but blush instantly.

"That's not what I meant..." you stuttered, but he came closer, his face only a few inches away from yours.

"While you decide the words you wish to speak wisely, Miss Y/L/N, will you or will you not let me live here temporarily, until this damn window you broke gets fixed ?" he asked, the tone of his voice deep and commanding.

Gaze plunged into his, you tried to utter something like a no. Your lips moved as to form the word, but not a sound came out of your mouth. Your heart was racing as if a predator was threatening to bite you, and yet you were completely turned on by the feeling. It didn’t make any sense to you. And it didn't make any sense either that you just nodded at him, accepting his proposition.

"Fine, you can stay."

-

TAG LIST - OPEN

My Neighbor Tag list : @boiled-onionrings​, @sheanaghgoldenheartblog,@allnewimaginecharliehunnam​, @drewmcintyreinarefereeoutfit​, @mc225g​, @supernaturalvikingwhore

Tag list Henry / Geralt : @d14n4ol​, @alwayshave-faith​

Tag list * Geralt of Rivia : @emmalbg​​

[kunderdogs]

Ateez / GF Defending Them Part 3/3

Sorry y’all. I know I was supposed to have this up yesterday but I got drunk at my friend’s party and we went Christmas shopping at 2am at Walmart. Anyway here’s part 3!

Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3

Wooyoung:

Wooyoung was born loud and exuberant. It was a fact of life that his close friends and members have grown to love. Many people who didn't know him mistook him for obnoxious or rude, especially when he exclaimed loudly one night at a local BBQ joint. It wasn't overly crowded; a lovey-dovey couple who were much too close off in the corner ignoring everyone else, a couple of school girls who were nose-deep in thick texts book and piles of coffee cups, and three older men who were throwing back soju bottles like they were about to be discontinued.

You had just walked in behind your bestie, hungry and ready to show her your favorite item after showing her around Seoul for the day. Eight boys in the back caught her attention and she quickly pointed out the one who she found the most attractive as you two found a seat. Just as you looked over, one of them yelled before they all broke out into manic laughter.

They drew everyone's attention for a second before they went back to their own conversations, thoroughly unphased. Except for one of the older men. They had to be in their thirties, probably on some kind of lunch break from their office job, if their business suits were anything to go by. Either way, one of them scoffed, eyes rolling so hard, you could hear it from three tables away.

You and your friend exchanged looks before greeting the server as she took your order. She left with the promise of food in ten minutes as your bestie leaned over to you.

"The loud one with bleach blond hair has been giving you the look ever since we got in here," she whispered with a smirk. "Go talk to him."

You gave her a disbelieving look, "He's way out of my league. I'd just embarrass myself."

Chancing a look at the eight boys in the corner, your eyes made contact with the one she was speaking of before his eyes widened and he quickly ducked his head. You smiled a bit as the two flanking him noticed his blush and nudged him with their elbows, jeering loudly.

This time the office worker slapped his beer on the table, his two coworkers looking nervously between themselves. He turned before they could talk him out of it and locked eyes with a few of the boys, "Yah. Pipe it down over there. Some of us are trying to enjoy a meal in peace."

A few of them looked miffed, yet the loud hottie stood and bowed while loudly proclaiming, "We apologize. Please ignore us."

You thought that would be the end of it but it seemed the man didn't take it well and the next thing anyone knew, he was on his feet. The two near him couldn't reel him in fast enough and suddenly, he was standing in the blond's face.

"Are you mocking me, kid? You should show some respect to your elders."

The boys around him stood protectively, but didn't actively come to defend their friend. It was then you noticed the brightly dyed hair some of them have, along with almost all black attire, baseball caps and face masks that something clicked. They glanced around in a panic as their whispered voices finally tried to defuse the situation. Ah, they are idols. No wonder they looked hauntingly familiar.

"No," the guy growled angrily as one of his coworkers tried to physically move him away. "This little bastard wants to be a comedian so let's hear what's so fucking funny."

Slamming your hands on the table loud enough to have many pairs of eyes on you, you stood and walked over, "They're kids. They get loud, and they apologized. Don't make a big deal out of nothing."

It was silent for a long pause, and the raging guy in front of you obviously didn't expect you to speak Korean but when he recovered, he was sticking his finger in the hottie's face and poked him in the head. "I'm not going to sit back and let some obnoxious brats disrespect me!"

With one hand on your side, you made your way to Wooyoung's side before the other hand pushed the older guy on his shoulder, causing him to take a step back. "Let's not get physical here. He apologized. Accept it or leave."

Turning his anger to you, he grabbed the hand you pushed him with tightly, "Just who do you think you a-"

You gripped his wrist and twisted his arm behind his back in defense while he screamed, pushing him towards his coworkers. "Don't put your hands on other people."

His coworkers worked quickly to drag him outside, and you watched to make sure they were a good distance away before turning to the hottie standing next to you. "You okay?"

He was already staring at you, a blush quickly taking over his face when you spoke. "A-Ah, y-yeah...Thank you, for that. I'm not very good at...confrontation. I'm Wooyoung, by the way."

"Y/N." You smiled. He was really cute up close, especially when he was figiditing. "It's alright. I don't mind saving princes in distress."

His friends burst into laughter while he felt his face heat up. "Aish...now I look so lame! I'm supposed to be saying that to you! Let me repay you by buying your meal then."

Your bestie popped up from behind you with a twinkle in her eye, "OR you can buy her dinner later on? Tell him what I said." Before you could translate, one of the shorter boys (Hongjoong) to the back did with a sly smirk.

The "Oooooh"s and "Aw yeah!"s in the back made you both giggle, but Wooyoung just smiled. "Yeah, I like that idea better."

Wooyoung is all about a strong woman, but he definitely feels some type of way when you defend him. He's torn between loving it and wanting to be the one to protect you. He's absolutely make it about himself, and complain when you're the one always defending him. He'll get over it in a second and then he'll brag to the other members that his s/o can kick anyone's ass so they better be good to him from now on.

Jongho:

Our precious maknae is the strongest of the members, we all know this. And he's so incredibly caring as well. So when he noticed some young teens, around his age, being rude to an elderly man that worked at the corner store, he couldn't sit back and let it happen.

The kids were making a big deal out of the man taking too long to scan their twenty items, to which he just nodded and apologized. You had just walked in, on your lunch break to grab something quick to eat and went to stand behind Jongho. It didn't take long for you to notice the tense muscles in his back or the annoying howling from the teenagers.

"Come on, old man," one of the males nearly shouted. "We've got places to be!"

The other hoodlums chuckled before resuming their conversation, some complaining about him taking too long to get their change.

Jongho could feel the tightness in his jaw start to ache when he opened his mouth to say something. "Shut up. Don't be such assholes."

The ring leader, or at least that's what it seemed like he was since the other teens looked to him as they all turned around, cocked his head to the side. He snatched the plastic bag from the old man, jerking the poor guy forward slightly. Jongho glared at the boy. Seeing this would get interesting, you paused the song on your phone and held your drink with one hand.

"Why don't you mind your own fucking business, punk?" The other teens agreed yet none were stepping up to say more than that.

"The only punk I see around is you. Your parents failed you, raising such disrespectful trash."

Just as you were snickering from behind the taller of the two, the teen pushed Jongho back, which made him stumble back into you. You lost your grip on your phone, dropping it to the hard ground. There was a collective moment of silence as everyone within a ten mile radius watched you pick up the device and flip it over.

A cracked screen. On your new phone. Your one week old phone.

Anger bubbling within you rapidly, you stood, not noticing Jongho's panicked look in his eyes. You stared right past him, glaring at the teen that pushed him. "Are you going to pay for this?"

"H-Huh?" He stuttered before pointing at Jongho, "He's the one who bumped you! Blame him, not me!"

"You pushed him!" The fire in your eyes was nearly an inferno while the teens cowered under the stare. "Do you have no manners?! Do you think you can just push people around? That's how fights start. Do you want to fight?!"

They all looked thoroughly terrified and shook their heads before running out of the store. Their change was still in the clerk's hand and an apple from their plastic bag fell out. You picked it up and called after them, "You forgot your apple, brat!" They didn't even turn around, even as you crushed the apple, effectively breaking it in pieces in your rage.

With hearts in his eyes, Jongho was jaw-dropped as he watched you sigh loudly before apologizing to the clerk and pulling out your wallet. "I'll pay for the apple. I really don't know my own strength some times."

From behind you, a twenty was placed over your hand and Jongho smiled at you. "It's on me. Hi, I'm Jongho. I, also, break apples in my spare time."

[1-800-channie]

Cigarettes & Mint | Chapter 3

→ Chapter: 1  |  2  |  3  | 4 |  5

→ Genre: Very Angst / Fluff / Very Suggestive / Highschool!Au

→ Warning: Strong language; slight eating disorders; cursing; getting drunk; bullying; sexual themes; heartbroken; 

→ Pairing: Badboy!Hyunjin x Innocent!Reader;

→ Summary: When your ego is bigger than your brain, you don’t mind breaking someone’s heart. As soon as the smell of cigarettes and mint invade your nostrils, your heart starts beating faster and your life starts falling apart. I bet you will end up broken.

→ Playlist for the Chapter:

  ↳ Falling for You - Peachy ↳ Last Thing - Jack and Jack  ↳  Just Dance - BTS (J Hope solo) ↳ Slow Down - Chase Atlantic  ↳ No Limit - G Easy ft Cardi B and ASAP Rocky  ↳ Candy - The Rose  ↳ Blue Side - J Hope

→ Words: +4K

→ N/A: Hiii everyone! I just want to clarify that some things that may seem a bit confusing now, will be explained later, please be patient. This chapter is really long and important, the playlist is bigger because i couldn’t choose just five songs…Prepare your heart ;)

[Previous] [Next] [Masterlist]

[01:00 PM/  DAY TWO OF THE BET]

‘Just Dance’ is one of the greatest songs you have ever listened to. J Hope’s voice never fails to put you in an enjoyable mood. Mumbling the lyrics silently and getting lost on the hypnotizing beat, you put your computer and the romance book you are currently reading on your locker, that is full with sticky notes, so you won’t forget important things. Like the movie night that you do every Wednesday with Hendery at his house, where you both cuddle, drink beer and watch memes at 4 AM.

As you finish organizing your locker with the new things you closed the door, only to find an unknown body leaned against the wall, a smirk placed on his filled lips. You weren’t expecting him to be there, causing you to be surprised and scream in fear.

But you had no time to actually. Because his large hand was upon your lips to shut you up. With widened eyes, you finally understood who it was, and you felt your body vibrate just by securing eyes with him. His dark brown orbs were even more impressive just a few inches away from your appearance, and the mole under his right eyelid was the cutest thing you have ever seen.

“Can i take my hand off now?” Hyunjin questioned laughing. “You won’t scream anymore, right?” He jokes, knowing pretty well that he startled you, that’s why you screamed.

The people walking by would be interested in what was going on if it wasn’t Hyunjin, but the tall smoker seems to terrify everyone, so one even dares to speak to him.

You shake your head from one side to the other, telling him, no, to get a reaction out of him. But it wasn’t what you expected. He came closer to your ear and murmured:

“Then should I shut you up with my lips?” The smirk on his lips made it harder not to blush and kinda tempted, your hands took his hand away from your mouth.

You felt warm all over…

“No-no dont do-do that ill shut up.” You stuttered.

That simple action made he tall boy close his eyes, throw his eyes back and bite his lip. God damn, how could you be so fucking ideal? His body really needs you under him, just so the memories of his fantasies would go away.

After he dropped you at home, yesterday, he went straight to bed, the guilt was burning him alive and he needed to overlook it. He lighted a cigarette and laid down on his bed, hoping the faulty feeling would fade away with the clouds smoke.

He fell asleep sometime after, but for his poor luck, you were in his dreams, dressed only in his white T-Shirt, your nipples noticeable and your hair disordered because of him. The images of your whiny moans, your bushy cheeks… He truly was getting crazy.

“Do you need anything?” You ask, bringing him back to his mind. What did he want from you this time?

The truth is that the goal for today is to push you away from Hendery. Starting by going to lunch with you.

“Wanna have lunch with me?” Hyunjin suggested with a genuine smile.

“I always eat with-”

“I heard he had a school trip today, and he isn’t here… May i be your company?” He insisted, interrupting you.

Your head brought the memories of what happened in the canteen just two days ago, and your entire body quivered. He is going to bullie you again… But would he really? Even after yesterday’s phenomenal date?

“Well… Hmmm… I’ll eat alone, it’s alright.” You denied him and started to walk away from him towards the Canteen.

He couldn’t let you go…

Something inside of you, probably your brain, was advising you to walk faster, get away from him. Something is incorrect, your mind knows it… But of course you only listen to your heart, and when Jin called your name you stopped right where you were:

“Please, princess…” That nickname… “I’ll buy you food! Everything you want!” He told you while grabbing your hand, and looking in your deep brown eyes. He knows you are too weak, especially when it comes to him.

“Ok, ok, fine… Lets go.” You agreed giving up.

Hyunjin yelled ‘YES’ making you giggle, he even did a tiny jump, his eyes sealed and a lovely smile on his appearance.

Before you could prepare what was going on he was running and pulling you with him, crossing the noisy and loaded street, arriving at the supermarket just in a few minutes.

“What do you want to eat?” Hyunjin questioned cutely, his arm sneaking his way around your marked waist, instantly making you shy.

“Hmm, i dont know…” You answer flustered, he is paying for the food, so you feel like you shouldn’t waste too much money, and also, if he saw how much you actually eat, he would be disgusted.

“I will eat..NOODLES”  He screamed, making you laugh quietly, and slap his shoulder playfully.

The market has multiple people within, and they dont need a turbulent teen yelling. When he feels your ‘slap’ he pouts and starts fake crying, eyes shut closed.

You are in public now, is he for real? What is the best way to shut him up?

You move near to him, while he still is fake crying and pouting and you peck his lips. It was quick, but enough to make you feel shy. He barely felt your lips against his, but the warmth and softness made it pretty clear that you kiss him.

When he forced his eyes open you were already running away from him, getting lost on the infinite corridors full with food and candy. He bites his lip, cursing at himself, and runs after you, hearing you laugh in an exciting way.

Of course, he caught you simply, your small legs didn’t run half as his long ones, so his arms wrapped itself around your waist and he pulled you against his body. The essence of cigarets and mint invaded your nose, and you smiled, his embrace felt just like home.

You lingered like that for a total minute. You could feel his heartbeat in your back, beating naturally, the opposite of yours, that felt like collapsing with love. Hyunjin used that time to let your sweet perfume invade his nostrils.

“Can you let me go?” You ask, tilting your head to the side so you could see his handsome face. He shakes his head from one side to the other.

“You are such a bad girl… Not giving me enough time to taste you and then running away from me after…” His seductive voice narrates you. “What should be your punishment?” He hmm’s, acting like he was thinking of something, but the shyness was taking your whole body and you escaped his safe arms.

“I’ll eat some fruits.” You changed the subject. “Oh, look… Pineapple.” You said awkwardly, picking up the cold plastic box with the fruit cut in cubes.

Hyunjin shut a laugh that almost escaped his plump lips from your panicked reaction with his hand.

“You are only eating that? Are you crazy?” He said in an annoyed tone. “You will eat noddles, drink some juice and eat the fruits, you understand?” He adverted you pointing his index finger and almost touching your nose.

You nodded shyly.

After he paid for everything, both of you wandered shortly to a park, where there was a children’s playground, bright colors giving a happy aura to it… All around you, there were tall trees full with leaves painted in vivid green, the birds were singing and you loved it, it felt so natural and innocent.

“This is pretty…” You confess amazed, examining the trees and enjoying the fresh smell of the growing grass.

“You never came here before?” He asked sitting on the wooden bench and starting to eat the noodles. At the supermarket he heated some water and shed it on the noddle cup because it needed two minutes to be ready, so he could eat it as soon as he arrived at the spot.

“No… i dont really leave my bedroom…Only to go to Hendery’s place.” You pathetically said, turning around.

In your back, the smoker rolled his eyes and pretended to throw up, on the mention of your perfect best friend.

“You are so rude, didn’t even wait for me.” You pouted, as you sat next to him, starting to eat the tasty food.

“I’m sorry, princess, I’m very hungry…” He smiled shyly. “Next time i will wait for you.” He winked.

Wait, he said… next time? So he plans to be with you again…

You ate the food quietly, the only audible sounds were you and him chewing, the happy laughs of a child playing on the playground, and the chirping of the free birds, that were flying around, above your head.

As you ate everything, your hungriness felt satisfied. You missed this feeling… The feeling of eating without worrying about your parents yelling at you that you are too fat.

You stood up and walked around for a bit, but the sun felt too hot, burning your pale skin in an annoying way and you sat on the fresh grass, laying down your body right after. It felt great, the cold feeling of the grass against your heated body.

Hyunjin laid down beside you, admiring your happy face and wondering what would feel like to be as calm as you, not having worries, not having to be worried to come home and met a drunk mom yelling at her young son because his father disappeared without a sign and broke her heart.

Little did he know what you lived with your dad because your parents were divorced.

“You look really pretty like this, lemme take a picture of you…” He warned you, but you were too caught in the birds flying in the sky to listen. “Woahh~ look how pretty!” Hyunjin recognized you, and when you noticed yourself on his phone you widened your eyes and took his phone out of his hands, ready to delete the proves of this secret moment.

You started to run away from him again, the wind pushing your hair back, his phone on your hands, while you tried to make that picture disappear.

The next thing you felt was your head banging against something hard and your body falling backward on the grass. Hyunjin laughed loudly, almost losing balance as he watched you rub your forehead in pain, a cute pout on your lips and small tears appearing at the corners of your eyes.

He hovered you, resting his weight on both of his forearms, placed by the side of your head, his legs resting in the middle of yours. The position immediately made the pain you felt disappear only to be replaced by a shy sensation that took over your body.

Hyunjin’s experienced lips kissed your forehead, at the exact place where you banged it, and nextly he took a look at your red cheek, you couldn’t look more adorable.

“This time you can’t run from me.” He asserted against your lips and kissed you right after. His margins were gentle with you, they pecked yours a couple of times, so after he could lick your lips to ask for permission to slide inside your mouth without scaring you.

The feeling of his cold lip ring meeting your lip made you moan against his mouth instantly, turning you on unconsciously, and that only motivated him to kiss you harder, but still with care. His tongue playfully fighting with yours.  

You felt his large, veiny hand graze over your stomach, then higher, where his fingertips softly brushed your boob. You whined, biting his bottom lip and gently pulling away, his hand was, now, caressing your cheeks:

“I’ve wanted to do this for a while.” He confesses rolling to the side, falling by your side.

“Hyunjin…” You whispered breathless, your lips glistening from the kiss. “That was my first kiss…” You confess, looking at the clouds, too embarrassed to face him.

“Really?” The big boy next to you asked. “That’s great… I’m glad to be your first.”

This wasn’t what his brain was supposed to let his mouth slip… Shit, he is already getting attached, and it’s only been almost two days.

He needs to make you his fast, so he won’t fall in deeper. The party Minho is throwing today seems the best option, he can get you a little drunk, enough to make you open up and feel less shy, but remember what happened.

“Do you want to come to a party with me later?” He challenges you, licking his lips in hope.

You thought for a bit, you never leave your house, not because your father didn’t let you, but because you feel more comfortable there. Your dad complains that you need to live more, and this seems a great time to try it.

And deep down, this is a fabulous opportunity to get more intimate to Hyunjin…

“Yeah, i can go.” You answer surprising Hyunjin.

“You want to?” He questions in doubt.

“Yeah… When will you pick me up?” You ask staring at his surprised face, thinking how cute he looked with messy hair.

“I’ll be there at 10 PM.” He informs you with a smirk.

‘Well, this was way too easy’ Hyunjin recognizes to himself… Tonight, he will use you, and then he will leave you, so he can move on with his life without being bothered by you.

His thoughts make him smirk, but when he takes a look at your radiant smile, he nearly wants to give up on the stupid bet.

[10:00 PM/  DAY TWO OF THE BET]

Hyunjin waited patiently at the front door of your house, for you, feeling a little more nervous than he thought he should. He wasn’t expecting you to open the door, he thought that your mom or dad would have done it because its what usually happens in movies… right?

You looked simple and innocent, as usual. Your hair was completely straight, falling on your shoulders flawlessly, the makeup you are wearing is the usual, nude lipstick and black eyeliner drawn experiencedly on your eyes, your lashes looked long and graceful. The black plain t-shirt was stuffed under your striped patterned skirt that reached the middle of your thigh, in black and white. On your feet, your high heels were also dark and made you taller and chic.

He expected you to use a tight dress that would make your ass pop out, but this seemed just like you, and still, you manage to look magnificent.

“How am i?” You ask looking at your feet. “I never went to a party so i dont really know what to wear…” You confess shy.

“You look ethereal, princess,” Hyunjin smirks. “So, can you gimme your number, so if i lose you inside i can call you, and go after you?.”

“Oh well, my phone broke and i dont have another one… So hm… It’s useless.” So that’s why he never saw you with your phone, yours is broken.

“It’s alright. That means i will have to stay close to you all night…” Hyunjin replied in a flirty tone. You laughed.

“Dont leave me alone there, please.” You joke as both of you walk back to his car, the streets were illuminated by the city lights, night butterflies flying around them.

When the car was leaving, you took the time to pay attention to him and his outfit. As typical, he looked sinful:

The white t-shirt he was wearing was hidden under a large blue jacket, he was wearing a pair of black ripped jeans, that hugged his legs excellently, especially his glorious thighs. The lip ring was the same silver colored one, just like the necklace he had resting on his chest.

“You are staring, Sun.” He warned you without taking his eyes out of the road but smirking.

“Oh.. I’m sorry, you just look hot…” You confess in middle of laughs, he shakes his head, laughing as well.

The rest of the ride was calm but heated. His hand was sensually resting on your knee, and sometimes, is fingers would travel a little further up in your leg, making you shiver.

Hyunjin loved to see you all shy and in a loss of words.

“Welcome home!” Minho shouted at both of you loudly, the music from the living room was loud, and he could barely even hear himself.

“Yeah, whatever.” The brown-haired boy hissed while taking your hand and dragging you away from his nasty best friend in a guarding way.

“Have fun!” Minho yelled once again, a naughty smirk placed on his thin lips that made you feel in risk.

Hyunjin noticed how your expression changed and he hugged you, your face was hidden in his chest while he wrapped his arms around your waist, his brain was cloudy in fear, guilt, and anger.

“I’ll defend  you, dont worry, princess.” He whispered in your ear and he caressed your hair affectionately.

As soon as he saw the disgusting grin on his best friend face he felt like the fault would swallow him alive. He is starting to feel something for you, and he can’t. He can’t love you the way you do, he can’t be there, you deserve someone like Hendery, not someone like him.

The only way of him to forget this is to drink, even though he prefers to smoke, the alcohol never fails to make him feel better. The worries being temporarily replaced with joy.

“YOU WANNA BEER? COKE?” He asks yelling, the music was way too heavy, and it was echoing inside his head like a spell.

“I ACCEPT A BEER.” You answer back yelling as well. Hyunjin gives you a sign to stay where you are, and you do so.

The music was good, G easy was one of your favorite rappers, and while “Him and I” was playing you mumbled the lyrics perfectly, loving the relaxed atmosphere.

Changbin was watching you from far away, sprawled on the couch drinking some Sprite. A pretty girl all over him, but she wasn’t you… As soon as he caught you alone he stood up and went to talk to you:

“Hey Kim Sun, how are you?” He asked sweetly close to your ear. He is shorter than Hyunjin, but still just a few inches taller than you.

“I’ve been good, thanks, Binnie.” You answer him by his nickname.

Shit, you haven’t called him that in so long… He misses being your friend. He misses your loud laugh, he missed how both of you would spill the lyrics to the best rappers on the English and Korean industry together.

That stupid Hendery had to come and tear you apart from him…

“Hyunjin is being good to you?” He asks close to your ear again, the guilt of agreeing with his friends making him go crazy.

“Yes, he is so friendly and playful…” You tell him, naive.

“Sunny…” He starts by using your favorite nickname. “I got something to confess to you…”

For Hyunjin’s sake, he caught his friend talking to you and got back to your side in a rush.

“Changbin, man. Leave her alone.” Hyunjin says between his teeth. “You can’t see me with a girl that you try to take her away from me.”

The short man rolls his eyes and winks at you, walking away without saying a word.                              

Hyunjin seemed stressed, something in his face was clear that it was wrong. You wanted to ask if everything is alright, but you’re afraid of being disturbing.

“What was he talking about?” The lip ringed boy asks while handing you the beer.

“No big deal, just asking how am i…” You answer taking a big gulp at the alcoholic drink surprising him. “I and Hendery drink beers at his house if you are wondering.” You inform him,  laughing at his shook expression.

As time went by you were lightly drunk, you weren’t feeling flustered anymore, leaving your body do and say what he wanted. Again, G Easy was playing, making an urge to dance fill your veins, so you just sealed your eyes and swung your hips with the beat of ‘no limit’.

You knew the lyrics to all the song, and when you started to yell them while moving your hips around Hyunjin though he was in heaven, where the innocent Kim Sun disappeared and you became a sexy goddess.

His body walked further towards you and squeezed his body upon yours. You leaned your head on his shoulder and made pressure with your ass on his pelvis, whispering in his ear ‘Fuck him then I get some money’ at the same time as Cardi B.

The arousal was trying to take control of Hyun’s weak body, and when you bitted his earlobe he lost it. His big hands gripped your hips and he pressed you harder against him.

The smoke inside the living room was making the scene feel like a dream, the lights were almost dimmed and you looked fucking breathtaking like this.

“Lets get out of here.” He whispered in your ear while dragging you out of the living room and taking you outside to the garden, where a girl was passed out on the grass.

You sat down on the edge of the rectangular pool and took your high heels, emerging your feet inside the not-so-cold water. He looked at you confused, but the moonlight reflecting on your skin was making his drunk body forget everything that wasn’t connected with you.

“You are fun when drunk.” Hyunjin jokes at you, putting a strap of hair behind your ear.

“Hmm, thank you i guess.” You confess sassily, a grin placed on your pale lips.

“I wanna kiss you.”

“Then do it, coward.” You play flirty, eyebrow arched and bottom lip caught between your white teeth.

Hyunjin didn’t think twice, he just invaded your mouth with his. Both of you tasted like beer, but it didn’t bother you. His lips were cold, maybe because it was chilly outside, and the lip ring felt great against your tongue, as you licked his bottom lip.

“Fuck, you are going to be the death of me…” He whispers against your mouths as your lips parted.

You laughed, shaking your head and looking at the sky. The full moon is your favorite thing to admire because it reminded of you. Lonely and underrated.

A wild idea came to your mind, and if you weren’t drunk you would do it, but the alcohol spoke louder than your sober side, and you pushed hyunjin to the pool.

He fell with a noisy, funny, and surprising yell, that made you laugh your ass off. But, sadly for you, as soon as he came up to the surface he pulled your legs and you feel inside too. The temperature of the water is warmer than you expected, because of the icy wind that was out of the pool.

The brown-haired man looked at you in pure desire, you look like the purest yet sexiest angel. Hair wet and lost on the surface of the water, t-shirt glued yo your chest, making it obvious the outlines of your chest and nipples, that were hard because of the sudden change of heat.

He swam towards you, his hands cupped your jaw and he kissed you, hungrily this time, devouring your lips merciless. Gently and without you noticing, he trapped you on the cold pool border.

“Get on my lap, princess.” He demanded you, and so you did obediently, your back pressed against the cold tiles and your legs wrapped around his waist. His lips got attached to your neck and you did nothing to stop him, too lost in the feeling.  His fingers slowly traveled close to your boobs and he massaged them, making your back arch and throw your head back, mouth hanging open and eyes closed shut.

The feeling was indescribable, but you could try. It was like just the simple touch of his fingertips made your body feel on fire, completely burning you alive in desire.

As he bit your collarbones, his slim fingers played with your nipples. You moaned his name loudly, making his ego grow, how he missed this feeling of control:

“Hyunjin~…” You moaned lost in the feeling.

“Tell me what you want, princess…” His seductive tone whispered against your skin.

“I want you to-”

“WHAT THE FUCK IS HAPPENING HERE, KIM SUN!” A familiar voice yelled, scaring both of you. You got off Hyunjin, only to find Hendery in his pijama and a sad expression on his face. “This is why you didn’t come to the movie marathon? To be making out on a pool, with a smoker, in a house that you dont know who belongs to, drunk?”

Your best friend rhetorically asks, and then you remember, today is Wednesday, you should be at his house… You instantly feel guilty.

“Hendery i-” You call him, getting out of the pool and walking towards him.

“No… Dont!” He yells, pointing his finger at you. “You did this. I warned you… I warned you and you still did it.” He says trying to calm himself down, he doesn’t want to hurt you.

Hyunjin also gets out of the pool and stays behind you, admiring the scene.

“HE IS PLAYING WITH YOU SUN! WAKE UP, AN ASSHOLE LIKE HIM DOESN’T KNOW WHAT LOVE IS!”

“YOU ARE YELLING NONSENSE NOW, DAMN.” You yell back, regretting immediately. “You dont know him the way i do… you don’t even have proofs of what are you saying. Please…” Hendery feels the hot tears rolling down his cheeks.

“I will prove it to you.” He says before storming out of there, leaving you broken and confused behind.

You fall on your knees in tears… What did you just do?

[Previous] [Next] [Masterlist]

[straykidsscribbles]

Flower Boy

Just something short and sweet inspired by a tumblr prompt I’d seen ages ago... it was cute and I thought I’d put my own spin on it! Happy Valentine’s Day!

Summary: Jeongin knew he wasn’t imagining things. His flowers were vanishing right before his eyes and he was not going to rest until he figured out who was responsible for the disappearance. 

Word Count: exactly 2000 words (for funsies), Jeongin x neutral reader

Note- this is fluffy and dorky but it mentions a relative who died and if that’s a trigger please don’t read this. 

Check out my masterlist (in my description) for more of my work!

Jeongin frowned thoughtfully as he counted the irises still blooming on the bush. One, two, three, four, five.

He could have sworn there had been at least seven yesterday.

“Jeongin, why are you staring at the bush? If you glare anymore, they’ll catch fire,” Chan chuckled softly from the porch of their house.

“But hyung, they’re vanishing! I’m telling you, there were seven yesterday, and now there’s only five! And the lavender bush looks more sparse too!”

Chan slid his feet into slippers and made his way over to the edge of the garden. After a few moments he let out a small thoughtful noise.  “You’re right. Your flowers are vanishing. Maybe its one of the others playing a trick on you or something?”

“I’m going to keep watch until I find out. I spent hours on the flowers; whoever’s messing with them is going to get it.”

A laugh escaped Chan as he went back inside to the kitchen to check on his pasta. “Call me if there’s blood kid.”

Okay, maybe I won’t make them bleed, but I swear if it’s Minho hyung’s cats messing them up or Kkami tearing things someone is going to pay for this.

Jeongin had a plan. No one was going to mess with his flowers again.

---

Dew was twinkling lightly on the pretty green plants and grass in the front garden. The light breeze was blowing the wind chimes every so often, filling the air with pretty tinkling noises. It felt peaceful and calm, so unlike the normal hubbub that would fill the house once the rest of the boys dragged themselves out of bed.

Shifting slightly behind the stack of soil bags and various gardening implements, Jeongin shivered slightly in the crisp morning air. He’d counted the days that the flowers went missing, and it was always a Tuesday morning when he’d discover the theft.

So naturally, his Tuesday morning was now being spent crouched in the middle of a flower bed with his phone in hand, ready to snap photos of whomsoever was taking his flowers. This way he’d have proof to accuse the pets—it really was unreasonable how Hyunjin believed Kkami was a perfect angel who could do no wrong.

And that was when he heard the humming.

Someone was walking down the lane, humming quietly to themselves as they approached the fence that bordered the garden. Jeongin ducked lower behind the pile hiding him from view; being caught at this stage would probably not be very pleasant.

He peeked out from behind the edge of the shovel, to see a figure in a hoodie and sweats slide their hand through the fence and pick a few of the marigolds growing at the very edge of the garden. “Sorry about this,” the stranger murmured as they pulled their hand back through the fence and turned to go on their way.

Jeongin stared after the retreating figure in shock. He’d expected an animal of some time, but a person? Picking his flowers?

He needed a new plan to catch them in the act.

---

“Jeongin, let it go, they’re just flowers!” Seungmin rolled his eyes from his perch on the kitchen counter.

“They’re not JUST flowers! I spend time on those! I work hard to make sure they stay alive, no thanks to you people. Do you think every college house looks this nice?” Jeongin was spluttering at this point. “Whoever that jerk is taking my flowers they’re in for it.”

Felix grinned from the dining room table where he had his homework all spread out. “How are you planning on confronting them Jeonginnie?”

“I’ll think of something. But I’m not letting my poor plants be terrorized another week.”

Just at that moment, the door swung open and Changbin, Chan, and Jisung entered, dragging their feet after another long night of composing and even longer morning of classes.

“Excellent. Channie hyung help me knock some sense into this kid. He’s ready to set up this elaborate Rube Goldberg-esque trap to stop someone from stealing his flowers. I mean really?”

“Oh cool! I think I built something like that for a high school project!” Jisung bounced over to his room, energy already refueled at the mention of a new project.

“Wait Jisung! Get back here!” Changbin ran after the younger boy, trying to stop him before he tore through the old papers piled under his bed.

Jisung was something of a pack rat.

“Why don’t you just ask the thief what they need the flowers for?” came the mutter from a half-asleep Minho on the couch.

Jeongin looked taken aback for a moment.

“You mean just… wait for them and ask why they’re stealing flowers?”

“Yeah. There’s probably a reason.”

“Huh” Jeongin frowned to himself. “That would probably work.”

“Great now you can go tell Jisung to not get to crazy planning some wild complicated thing,”

“I heard that! Fuck off!”

“Language!”

The house slowly dissolved back into the chaos that had characterized it ever since the nine of them had moved in together. But Jeongin felt slightly more at ease. He had a plan now.

---

You padded down the sidewalk early Tuesday morning, hands jammed inside your pockets to keep them warm in the cold temperatures. Light frost sparkled on the lawns around you, glittering in the dawn light.

You could make out the flower house—as you’d dubbed it—twenty or so feet away from you. Muttering a small apology under your breath, you quickly covered the distance to the flower garden in a corner of the front yard and slipped your hand through the fence to pick the pretty daisies that were lining the edge of the brick retaining wall.

“So. Who are you stealing flowers for? They’d better be really cute to be worth it.”

You let out a little scream, wheeling around and almost falling over. There, in front of you, was a boy. Where did he pop out from?

He was staring at you with one eyebrow raised, amusement and disdain warring on his face. His arms were crossed over his chest and he was tapping one foot against the ground impatiently.

“I was—”

“Well? I’m assuming you’re stealing my flowers to give to someone, and I want to meet them. Might as well see who’s been getting the products of my hard work this whole time.” The boy frowned at you. “Go ahead, grab the marigolds, a couple of the stems are already broken.”

You gaped at the unknown boy. This is the most embarrassing thing that has ever happened in my life. I thought some sweet old lady lived here, not a cute boy.

“Come on then!” Realizing you were still in shock, the boy reached through the fence himself and plucked five marigolds and a sprig of baby’s breath.

“I’m so sorry I just… broke student life you know? I’m really sorry about stealing your flowers…” you trailed off, realizing the boy had never introduced himself.

“Jeongin. Apologies won’t get you out of it that easily. I’m coming along on your date and telling your partner where you’ve been getting them flowers. What’s your name? Or should I just call you flower thief?”

Arguing was probably not going to get you anywhere. The only way out of this was going to be the truth… maybe Jeongin would take pity on you once he saw where you were going.

“I’m ______.”

“Cool. Now that we’re introduced, I can follow you without being a weirdo. Let’s get going, can’t keep your friend waiting for their flowers.”

You nodded slowly and began walking once more. Jeongin fell into step with you, flowers dangling from his long fingers. The two of you walked onwards in silence, turning the corner and nearing your destination.

After a couple of blocks, the graveyard came into view. And you heard Jeongin let out a tiny little gasp as the reason for the flowers dawned on him.

You pushed your way inside the wrought iron gate, taking the now familiar path towards the grave under the oak tree. You knelt next to the headstone and smiled sadly at the worn granite.

“Hi Grandmum. I guess it’s time to come clean about the flowers… Jeongin’s been the one growing them. I’m sorry I couldn’t… but then you know how bad my green thumb is. I’m more likely to bring you half dead cacti.”

Jeongin bent down next to you and placed the marigolds on the grave. He was quiet, no longer brash and belligerent.

“Anyways, I’ll come see you next week… love you.” You wiped away the tears pooling in the corners of your eyes as you stood up and turned to leave.

There was silence as you made your way out of the graveyard. Jeongin followed you quietly, not really daring to even look you in the eyes. You held the gate open for him and then closed and latched it behind him, before turning back to head to his house once more.

“So, pretty enough to warrant me stealing your flowers?” You asked, cracking a light smile at the boy.

It was almost as though a dam had just burst. “Oh my god I am so sorry I had no idea! I was so rude and harsh I—I’m so sorry!” The words flooded out of his mouth, tripping and twisting him up.

Your smile grew a little. Jeongin was pretty cute when he was all flustered like this.

“It’s okay, really. She’s been gone for a few years, but I still try and visit her once a week… thanks for the flowers by the way. I can never keep them alive myself, and when I saw yours… I didn’t think anyone would miss them.”

“About the flowers,” Jeongin scratched the back of his head nervously, before turning to face you once more. “I could maybe teach you a couple of my tricks, and you can grow some of your own? You could help regrow all the flowers you’ve picked from my garden.”

“I’d take you up on that offer, but I’d probably just kill all your flowers.”

Jeongin laughed, a sound that made your heart skip a beat. “Trust me. One of my friends almost killed a potted iris by watering it too much. I think we’ll be fine.”

You looked down at the cracks in the sidewalk, turning the offer over in your head. Maybe it was worth it? Jeongin seemed really sweet and kind.

“Alright, but you can’t blame me when all your green children die.”

“They won’t.”

You’d reached the gate of Jeongin’s house, and he paused next to it. “Are you free tomorrow around this time?”

You felt your cheeks heating up, but you nodded. A bright smile spread across his lips and you couldn’t help but return it.

“Perfect. I’ll see you then for your first lesson.”

He waved as he closed the gate behind him and latched it before running up to the door. You watched him go before turning back towards your own home.

He was really kind of cute. And sweet.

You couldn’t wait until tomorrow morning. Even if you had to wake up ridiculously early just to see Jeongin, you had a feeling it would be worth it.

Bonus:

“So, who’s your flower thief kid?” Minho asked as Jeongin entered the house.

To his surprise, Jeongin blushed heavily, turning towards the kitchen without saying another word.

“Hey! I was talking. No respect from you youngsters these days,” Minho cribbed as he followed Jeongin. “Guys! He’s hiding something.”

“Don’t bother Minho. I saw the whole thing.” Woojin smirked at Jeongin’s blushing face. “So, you’re going to teach your flower thief gardening? Careful they don’t steal your heart along with those flowers.”

“SHUT UP HYUNG!” Jeongin flounced off to his bedroom, cheeks fully aflame now.

Woojin just high fived Minho as they watched.

“You up for teasing the kid after his date tomorrow?”

“Is that even a question?”

[the-blind-assassin-12]

Logan (You pick which one): P: (2, 12, 21, 23), P/F: (4, 7, 16), C: (1, 3, 6, 11), W/E/H: (4, 6), F: (7; for his phone), P: (1, 6), S: (6)

Let’s kick it off with the one I’m currently working on: See You in New York Logan: 

(and these got lengthy so i’ll cut it.) 

Personality:2- Do they have a catchphrase? 

Not really, though he loves to call you a buzzkill or a killjoy… his favorite, in fact. At first he actually meant it and it would come with a roll of his eyes (sometimes a roll of his whole head, making his hair flop out of place…if he was being dramatic). He’d still listen to whatever suggestion you’d given him, but he didn’t like it. But as he got to know you and, more importantly, as you got to know him (the real him, not just the flashy parts) it started turning into a joke and eventually a term of endearment of sorts. Which is nice because he’s never used those terms affectionately for anyone else. (imagine all the people he’s called darlin’ and sweetheart. you’re the only killjoy.) 

12-How competitive are they? 

VERY. This is one of those things that runs through any version of Logan that I have in my head. He pursues things with tenacity. He has a must win mindset. SYiNY Logan happens to be very competitive with himself. Through sobriety he’s learned that what he should always be striving for is to be a little bit better than yesterday. So every day he wakes up and makes a daily goal- whatever it is, it’s something that didn’t or couldn’t get accomplished yesterday, and he does everything in his power to get closer to that goal (even if it takes him a few days). 

But being competitive doesn’t mean he can’t take a loss. Another thing he learned: There are no losers. You either win, or you learn. Loss is part of competing, and instead of getting angry about it (like he used to) now he tries to learn how to better attack the situation next go around. 

21- What sense do they most rely on? 

Does intuition count? Logan’s very good at reading people. He’s very observant and notices changes in body language and the tone of someone’s voice. He knows if someone’s bluffing in a business deal by ho much of that obligatory boardroom water the poor sap is drinking. 

23- What are their pet peeves? 

Not being on time. Logan is a very punctual person and considers it a rude waste of someone’s time if you are more than a minute late to a scheduled meeting or event. He always lets someone know if he is running late for a meeting, but that almost never happens. To him, being on time means being early. 

Past & Future4- What is the most offensive thing they ever said? 7- What is the worst thing that they did to someone that they loved? 16-What past act are they most ashamed of? 

Okay, I hope that you don’t consider this cheating, but all three of these are one and the same. The worst thing Logan ever did to someone that he loved was also the most offensive thing he ever said, and it’s the number one thing that he’s most ashamed of when he looks back. 

When he was detoxing on the second try (this current and FINAL stretch is try #3- the charm.) it wasn’t going well. At all. The withdrawal was horrible and he was so angry. At everything. At himself, at everyone…but mostly at the person who loved him most, and who he loved most, too- Juliet. He called her one night from the facility that she talked him into, head throbbing, legs feeling like thousand pound sandbags, and nothing but blinding anger in his heart, and this is what he said: 

“I just want you to know that when I die in here, it’s going to be your fault. I fucking hate you, Jules.” 

and then he hung up. 

Juliet KNOWS that it wasn’t really Logan talking, and she’s forgiven him hundreds of times over. It’s not something either of them will ever forget, and Logan still feels terrible about it when he thinks of that time. But it’s an important reminder to both of them about how far things have come. Because now? Their relationship is as strong as ever. 

Conflict1- How do they respond to a threat? 

Depends on the threat. Logan is extremely level headed these days, so he’s not going to escalate something that could blow up in his face in any possible way. But he’s also not going to be pushed around. If it’s a life or death or self-defense situation? He’s going to do what he needs to do. But otherwise, he’d calmly try to de-escalate things before simply handing it over to his legal team. Yup, team. And they’re the best in the world, buddy. 

3- What is his kryptonite? 

Well, she hasn’t made an appearance yet, but this man is a softie for his niece. I can’t say too much on this because…you’ll see. 

In other news, if you want Logan to roll over real quick on something, kissing the center of his shoulder blades will make him do anything you want. 

11- Where does he go when he’s angry? 

When he’s angry he goes for a run. A long one, and he runs hard. Pounding the pavement lets him get that excess of anger out. Take it out on the road instead of a person. He doesn’t use a treadmill- ever. Not even if it’s raining. So enjoy that visual.

Work, Hobbies & Education 4- What are their hobbies? 

Logan likes to learn languages. Its good for international business meetings and all the travel he does, but he also really enjoys the challenge and the idea of learning something new. He’s fluent in Italian, Spanish and French, and he’s getting good at Portuguese, too. 

6- Do they have a natural talent for something? 

Aside from language learning? Puzzles. Logan’s always been good at solving puzzles and riddles of all kinds. He solved a Rubik’s Cube when he was twelve and he’s kept it on his bookshelf ever since. 

Favorites7- What is his password (for his cellphone) ? 

11-22-18 

And you’ll find out why soon enough.  

Possessions1- What is in their fridge? 

Logan does a lot of juicing and smoothies for breakfast and lunch. It’s quick, he doesn’t have to think much about it, and he can take it on the go. So he’s always got kale and spinach, berries, apples, and a high protein natural nut butter. 

Dinner is another thing entirely, and he actually doesn’t mind cooking for himself ( or a guest) if he’s got the time. And he’s a decent cook. But because it’s kind of a rarity, he doesn’t keep much on hand, preferring to pick up fresh ingredients if he’s going to spend the time to make something. Of course there’s always staples like eggs and bread and milk. And ice cream in the freezer. Anything with black cherries.  

6- What is in their pockets? 

Very little. His phone (which has pretty much everything that he needs) wallet and his car keys. He doesn’t like to be driven places, he likes to drive. And he likes to be ready to leave whenever he needs or wants to, so he always carries his keys. 

Now in his wallet: the boarding pass from his flight to NY is going to have a permanent home.  

Spirituality 6- Are they superstitious? 

No. Logan’s all logic when it comes to things like that. Scientific, almost. “I’ve had plenty of bad luck and never once broke a single mirror” That sort of approach. 

THANK YOU FOR THESE! It was a really good way for me to get back into this Logan’s head…which is good because P2 starts from his POV.  

[chocoluckchipz]

Dance with Me, Chaton - 8

Read it on A03, WattPad, FF.net

Written for @ladynoirjuly2019

< Previous

8. Homework

“How is your progress on locating Ladybug?” Gabriel asked from the screen of Adrien’s phone.

“Not very successful so far,” Adrien replied. “I followed a few leads in Public Relations and designing departments, but they ended up being dead ends.”

Gabriel let out an exasperated groan. “Why did you go to Public Relations, Adrien? If anywhere, Ladybug would work in the design department. Do your homework. No one apart from that department has seen all the designs.”

Adrien broke the eye contact. Father could’ve told him that from the start. He wouldn’t have wasted his time elsewhere. “I’ve been trying to infiltrate the company in a believable way, Father. If I can earn your employees’ trust, they might lead me to her.”

Gabriel scoffed. “They’ll always look at you as an outsider, Adrien, but do what you want. It’s your future on a line. I must go now. We’re almost at the airport.”

“Father, wait. Just two more questions.”

“Make it quick.”

“You promise you won’t fire her?”

Gabriel groaned. “I already said it once and I’m not repeating myself. Next.”

“I fired Lila Rossi yesterday for assaulting one of your junior designers. Apparently, she’d been bullying her for years now, so I thought it was necessary. Can you write the executive order?”

Gabriel frowned. “Lila Rossi? Who’s that?”

“One of your accessory buyers.”

“And whom and how did she assault?”

“Marinette Dupain-Cheng, one of the junior designers. She’d spilled coffee all over her, following with verbal threats and diminishing after that.”

Gabriel raised an eyebrow. “I know Mlle Dupain-Cheng. She’s quite the talent.”

“Yes. That’s why we can’t have her being bullied on our premises. She might quit, and I thought you’d hate to lose a valuable employee. An accessory buyer is a much easier to replace position than a good designer.”

Gabriel hummed. “Have you’ve witnessed the assault yourself?”

“I did. Both parts.”

Gabriel nodded. “All right. I’ll sign the order first thing Monday morning. Good day, Adrien.”

“Thank you, Father.”

The screen went dark. Adrien flopped back into his bed. The sun was just starting to peak from the horizon, so he could probably catch a few more hours of sleep. He’d need all the energy he could get to figure out how to steal the designs from his father undetected. Because Ladybug isn’t going to trust Chat Noir based on his words alone. He’d need to act no matter how much Adrien didn’t like the idea.

When he opened his eyes again, it was almost nine o’clock. Adrien lingered for a while before getting up and getting breakfast. Then tidied his apartment, did laundry and cooked lunch and started on making dinner. Then he sorted and organized his schoolwork, got rid of the clutter, and when there was nothing else to do, Adrien got to research basic hacking techniques. None of what he saw made much sense, despite him being smart enough to graduate with Masters in Business Management at the top of his class.

Chat Noir: Working on our mission ;3 How are you this morning?

Ladybug: It’s 4 pm, Chaton. Did you have a late night?

Chat Noir: LOL Sorry didn’t notice the time, but no. You? How did the club visit go?

Ladybug: Amazing. As always. You won’t believe what a few hours of dancing can do for you after a stressful week.

Chat Noir: I’m not much of a dancer, but if you insist I can try. Any clubs you can recommend?

Ladybug: Not really. The one I’m going to is exclusive by invitation only and I’ve never really been to any others.

Chat Noir: Oh, like a secret underground society? Fancy.

Ladybug: LOL Something like that. Sorry, I must go now but wishing you all the luck with our project. :)

Chat Noir: Thanks. Have fun.

Luck? Adrien got up to find Marinette’s lucky charm. Maybe that will help him? Poor thing. She got attacked by Lila the next day after giving up her lucky charm to him, and even if she insisted that it wasn’t a big deal, Adrien felt uneasy. He looked at the charm closer, then googled how to make one. It didn’t look as complicated as hacking. The decision was instant and putting their project aside, Adrien left the apartment with a list of the supplies he needed to make Marinette a new lucky charm. Call him selfish, but he didn’t want to give her back the one she gifted him. It would’ve been rude, and he wasn’t a rude person. Plus, he liked that string of colourful beads. However, if he could make her one, that’d be a different story.

Adrien chose a set of blue and yellow beads and even included a cool-looking bird one, as a hint that as amazing as she is, Marinette could fly high, soar above her problems and succeed in everything she wanted. An hour later, he grinned, admiring his handy work. His cell phone chimed.

Ladybug: How was your day, Chaton? Had fun?

Adrien glanced at the clock and swore under his breath. How did it get so late?

Chat Noir: Absolutely. Didn’t notice the time fly by. You?

Ladybug: Same. Went out with friends for ice cream, so feeling fantastic. You know André and his magical, love predicting ice cream?

Chat Noir: Yes! Love it.

Ladybug: He gave me my love ice cream today.

Chat Noir: Intriguing. He gave me one once too. What did yours predict?

Ladybug: green eyes, blond hair. Yours?

Adrien held his breath, warmth spreading in his chest. He had green eyes and blond hair.

Chat Noir: Red lips, black hair and blue eyes.

She took a few moments longer than usual to reply.

Ladybug: I hope it was yummy.

Chat Noir: It was delicious, my Lady.

Ladybug: Good. Gtg again. Just arrived at the club.

Chat Noir: You’re going there every day?

Ladybug: Only on weekends and when the days get really bad. Dancing is a kind of therapy for me.

Chat Noir: That’s a good idea. I should pick up some kind of therapy as well. Ignoring the issue doesn’t always work.

Ladybug: It really doesn’t. Anyway, bug out. Ttyl.

Adrien put the phone aside. He marvelled at the lucky charm he made for Marinette a few moments before putting it aside and trying to focus on his hacking research.

Ladybug’s ice cream had his colours.

Could that mean anything? Because surely there were tons of green-eyed, blond guys in Paris. But then why did she pause when he told her his combination? His heart fluttered. Could it be… No. Probably not. She was on her way to a club. She could be just unable to write for a few moments.

Adrien shook his head. Research, Hacking. Work. Concentrate.

They did click rather fast, didn’t they? She was an amazing person. Smart. Funny, witty. Just fantastic. And they could spend hours chatting about nothing and had fun. How often did people like her come around? Adrien felt like he could trust her with anything. Especially since they've become partners in crime. No. Not a crime but bringing a point across to his Father. Because Adrien doubted he’d listen to a random email himself, but if it was a live person, then it would’ve been a different story. So, really, Adrien was helping Ladybug and his father at the same time. Because if his father would listen, Adrien would do a huge favour to the company because, honestly, all those ridiculous innovations…

Ugh!

Adrien dropped his head on a desk. This wasn’t working and the information on the screen made little sense. It could be because it was late, or it could be because it was too complicated to learn in a few hours. Whatever it was, though, it'd have to wait until tomorrow because as of now, Adrien was going to bed. And he would take Marinette’s lucky charm with him because he needed all the luck he could get.

_______________________________________________________________________

Next >

[strayneoculturekids]

enemies to lovers AU Doyoung x Reader

Summary: Your roommate was the worst possible person ever, always fricking nagging. The only person you’re able to complain to is your online friend, and in return, you listen to his complaints about his roommate. You two find out you got to the same college and finally he tells you his name, turns out he’s actually your roommate.

College AU, enemies to lovers AU

Genre: fluff, kinda slight a little bit angst but like not really, crack(?)

BTW “Y/U/N” means your username and for the sake of the story it can’t be your actual name

You walked into your shared dorm where you found your roommate sitting on the couch, scrolling through his phone. He immediately turned his eyes to you when you walked in as if he was waiting for you to return.

“You didn’t clean up after yourself this morning, so I did it for you” 

Now, normally, cleaning up after someone when they forgot to do it is considered a nice gesture and you would’ve thanked them. With Doyoung though, his tone was so passive aggressive and you were much more than sure that he did it just so he could rub the fact that he’s cleaner than you in your face.

You grumbled a barely audible thanks, quickly going to your room so you didn’t have to look at him any longer.

You’ll admit, Doyoung is handsome. Probably the best-looking person you’ve ever met. But oh god was he annoying. Every second you spent with him was another cell gone from your brain. His constant nagging and passive-aggressive responses to everything were the worst things you had ever gone through.

You made it to your room, shutting the door behind you and immediately getting out your laptop from your bag, sitting down on the floor, placing the laptop in your lap because both you and Doyoung were too broke to afford two desks so you bought one and split the price. But the desk was in the room Doyoung was currently in and there was no way you were spending more time with him than absolutely needed.

You opened your laptop and got up the messaging app you used to message your closest friend. You’re pretty sure he knew like everything about you, and you knew everything about him. Including the fact that you were...pretty kinky. Hey, he was your closest friend, like you weren’t gonna tell him about all that.

[Y/U/N]: hey

[dongie]: heya, what’s up? You seem in a bad mood

[Y/U/N]: how were you able to tell that from one word

[dongie]: cuz i’m smart, unlike someone I know

[Y/U/N]: shuddup, you wish you were as smart as me

[dongie]: yeah yeah, just tell me what’s up

[Y/U/N]: my goddamn roommate is nagging again, he’s so annoyingly passive-aggressive. ughhhh save meeee

[dongie]: trust me, I wish I could but I gotta get to class like right now and unlike someone, I actually care about my grades

[Y/U/N]: wow thanks for making me feel better

[dongie]: I know, I know, I suck but hang in there. Your roommate is just a total dick. I gotta go now, love ya!

[Y/U/N]: love you too you absolute dummy

You smiled when you read his message. You guys told each other that you loved each other pretty much every day. It wasn’t a romantic thing but it definitely got you flustered, even after he had said it so many times.

This was basically routine for you two. You texted all the time but at least twice a day, you both would complain about your roommate to each other. He hated your roommate along with you and you hated his roommate along with him. It was a winwin situation. (A/N: sorry for my shit pun making skills)

Just as you were about to start studying, you heard the door slam shut, making you jump. Geez, could he be any louder? You thought, annoyed but glad that he was gone so you could use the desk.

The next day came around and you were so rudely awoken to the noise of the door being opened and then slammed shut. Again.

“Seriously?! I don’t have any classes until the afternoon! Could you be a little quieter?!” You yelled

No response.

Usually, he would argue back so you can guess that he had just gone to one of his morning classes and in fact, didn’t just come back from staying out ridiculously late after his night class yesterday.

Doyoung sucked. Like really sucked. But he was always on time for rent and never invited anyone over without your permission, plus he wasn’t a party guy and never trashed the apartment. He was just a dick in his attitude, not his behavior. Which you guess is the only reason you tolerated him.

You grumbled, rolling over on your side and grabbing your phone, seeing a message from your best friend.

[dongie]: hey, you up yet sleepyhead?

[Y/U/N]: ya, unfortunately

[dongie]: my roommate just yelled at me while I walked out of the apartment :(

[Y/U/N]: aw, my poor baby, you must be so devastated

[dongie]: I literally cannot tell whether you’re being sarcastic or not

[Y/U/N]: I’m being sarcastic. Anyways, what are you doing right now

[dongie]: I deserved that

[dongie]: and i’m just walking to class

[Y/U/N]: it just occurred that I never asked you what college you go to?

[dongie]: oh yea. I go to insert college name here

[Y/U/N]: ...

[dongie]: ?

[Y/U/N]: ...I go there as well...

[dongie]: ...

[dongie]: so you’re telling me that we’ve been going to the same college all this time and didn’t know?

You sigh, trying to calm down your racing heart as well as trying to prevent yourself from throwing your phone against a wall as hard as you possibly can

[Y/U/N]: yep, that’s exactly what i’m telling you

Immediately, you feel your phone vibrate and look to realize that he’s calling you. Like anyone would be, you were surprised but answered the call anyway.

“Holy SHIT” 

is the only thing you heard before silence and very ragged breathing

“I just screamed that in the middle of the street.”

“Dongie?” you asked, trying to hold back a bit of laughter

“Yep that’s me”

His voice sounded familiar but you couldn’t really put it to a face. It was over the phone so you couldn’t hear him that clearly

“so...are we meeting up?” you asked, trying not to freak out

“I’ll be fucked if we’re not”

You finally let out a laugh and you got a small chuckle in return. The only thing that went through your mind in that second is how beautiful is laugh was and how you wanted to hear more of it.

“I haven’t even told you my real name yet,” he said, slightly breathless “It’s Doyoung”

Your eyes went wide and before you knew what you were doing, you immediately hung up. You threw your phone at your floor, looking at it as if it were the most cursed object in existence

“...fuck,” you said aloud, just about ready to yell at the top of your lungs

You hear your phone vibrate again, most likely Doyoung trying to call back. You pick it up and deny the call, hands shaking.

[dongie]: Y/U/N?

[dongie]: hello?

[dongie]: what happened?

[dongie]: are you ok?

You turned away from your phone, trying to distract yourself. But it just kept vibrating because of Doyoung’s consistent and confused messages.

After a while, the vibrating stopped which you assumed was because Doyoung had reached his class.

About maybe two hours had passed and you voiched for studying on the desk the entire time. Normally you would procrastinate and leave it till last minute like every other completely logical college student, but all you needed right now was something to distract yourself with.

You heard the door open and turned around to see Doyoung, his eyes and shoulders droopy and his lips contorted into a frown. You had never seen him so sad in all this time living with him. It definitely hurt your heart.

“hey” he said quietly, quickly brushing past you to go to his room

You were frozen. You were pretty damn sure that you had never felt this bad about anything in your entire life. Ever.

You took in a deep breath and picked up your phone, your heart beat picking up. Your fingers shakily moved to call Doyoung. As soon as you hit the button, you heard a thump come from his room, as if he had fallen off of his bed and immediately after a very loud and worried hello, which you heard from your phone as well.

“Hey...”

“why did you hang up?! Did I do something?! Are you ok?!” you could hear everything he was saying loud and clear from his room

“yeah, you did”

“What is it?! I’ll do anything to fix it!” he sounded so desperate, making your heart ache even more

“yeah. You nag way toO FRICKIN’ MUCH” you said, getting louder with each word, making sure Doyoung could hear you from his room

There was more loud thumping and suddenly Doyoung burst out of his room, his eyes meeting yours. His hair was dishevelled and his eyes were wide.

“FUCK” he shouted before sighing extremely loudly “THIS IS THE OPPOSITE OF HOW I WANTED TO MEET YOU”

“tell me about it” you said, trying to control yourself, not believing you had never noticed the resemblance between your online friends’ personality and Doyoung’s personality.

You both stared at eachother for a long time. Once the you had both calmed down, it started getting really awkward.

“I- this is too much” he said, confused

“Don’t worry, it took me a while to process it too”

Without warning, Doyoung started walking up to you and put his face at the same level as yours. You could see red rising to his cheeks and he opened his mouth.

“I love you.”

“You- you what?” you said, heat rising to your cheeks as well

“You’re annoying as fuck. I know you think I’m also annoying as fuck. But you’re also funny and you listen to my worries and always manage to make me smile with your utter stupidity, and I know that I also somehow manage to make you smile. I love you.”

you blinked a few times before what he had said completely registered in your brain.

“...I love you too. You absolute dummy” you said, a bit hesitantly

He smiled and pulled you into a slightly awkward hug. You would work out the fact that you two complained about each other to each other without knowing for who knows how long. For now though, let’s just focus on all the things you loved about each other.

[scuffed-wizards]

Mctorious One Shot: Pt 2

And here we are, the second part to the first ever one shot written for this AU. This part was wriiten by Mod PeonyPuff and I fucking LOVE IT!!!

Also, make sure to check out Part 1 if you haven’t...of course.

Thank you guys so much for the support the AU has gotten so far, every like and reblog means so much to us <333333

Okay, here it is, the fluff you have been waiting for. Enjoy!!

The day after the watch incident, Matt bumped into Jay once again. Granted they did have a couple of classes together, but he was still thankful that he was able to find the boy again, especially since he is known for hiding around the castle.

It was his Defense Against The Dark Arts class in which Matt saw Jay again. He was sitting in the far corner of the classroom, clearly trying to sit away from everyone. Looking over at his usual seat in the front row, he quickly shook that idea from his head and sat down next to Jay.

The boy tensed up a bit, quickly closing his book before looking over to see who it was, breathing a sigh of relief once the realization kicked in. “Don’t you usually sit up front?” The Kiwi mumbled, clearly still shocked that someone had sat next to him after being alone almost every year.

Matt was a bit hurt at the comment, his mind triple guessing himself as to if Jay actually enjoyed his company yesterday or not. Apparently, Jay noticed his change in behaviour, and quickly started blurting out his apology. “I’m sorry, I didn't mean to say it so rudely. It’s just...no one ever sits next to me, so it’s just weird to have someone sitting here. And you usually sit up front, I know that, but after me rambling to you yesterday I thought I scared you off a bit and…” His words started trailing off near the end, as he noticed Matt’s unchanging stare on his face. “Sorry I...tend to ramble sometimes.” He muttered, looking back towards his book as the last the of students trickled into the class.

Matt was going to reply, but then the sounds of the professor calling for attention rung throughout the classroom, causing him to take out his scroll and quill for notes. Glancing over at the other, Matt noticed he didn’t even bother to get out a scroll, instead just focusing on writing in his book.

“Alright class, now, can anyone tell me what an Antipodean Opaleye is?” Professor Neywell started off, looking around the classroom until a brown haired girl from Slytherin raised her hand to answer. “It’s a dragon breed from Oceania. Known for its pearl scales that hunters will sell for a fortune.” The professor nodded in agreement, clearly happy with her answer.

“Very good, now the Opaleye is…” Professor Neywell continued on, but Matt stopped paying attention a bit as he noticed how badly Jay’s hand seemed to be shaking. He looked over at the Kiwi, who was staring at the board very intensely as his hands shook badly.

With a look around the room to make sure no one was looking over at them, Matt grabbed Jay’s hand in a loose grip, leaning over a bit as he didn’t notice the colour blooming across Jay’s face. “What’s wrong?” Matt whispered, clearly not wanting to get in trouble for talking. “It’s wrong...it’s all wrong. Creamy doesn’t do that.” Jay muttered, shaking his head a bit as tears started to well at the edges of his eyes.         

The American sent a confused glance towards the Kiwi, clearly confused as to who or what a ‘Creamy’ was, but still trying to comfort his friend nonetheless. He rubbed the back of Jay’s hand with his thumb, half listening to the Neywell’s lesson, the other half just trying to figure out what made Jay tense up so much at the mention of one type of dragon.

“Now...can anyone tell me why hunters started hunting these dragons in particular?” Neywell asked, glancing around the room until a lankly Slytherin boy answered without raising his hand. “The Opaleye Massacre of 1901 in north New Zealand. An Opaleye attacked a city full of muggles and wizards, causing the city to-”

“That’s not true!” Jay stood up abruptly, the wooden chair scraping against the floor at how quickly he stood up. Every eye in the classroom turned to look at him, a few snickers being heard at how tears were running down Jay’s face. Professor Neywell gave a small smile at Jay, clearly a bit pleased that the quiet boy finally spoke up about something. “What about is not true, Mister McWyer?” Neywell asked, clearly a bit excited to hear what Jay would have to say about the matter.

“The opaleye didn’t attack the city by choice...The Opaleye’s owner was a dark wizard, and follower of Morfin Gaunt. He trained the dragon to attack the city by putting it under enchantment, and imprisoning it. Opaleyes didn’t attack wizards before this-” Jay’s explanation was cut off by the professor’s sigh.

“Mister McWyer, opaleyes are known for their violent tendencies, the chances of an opaleye being trained-” Neywell started off, clearly not amused anymore by Jay’s choice to speak up about the event.

“Opaleyes aren’t violent professor! They are-”

“McWyer! Unless you’d like to go to the Headmaster’s office, I suggest you sit down and stop arguing.” Neywell shouted, clearly just wanting to get back to his lesson now.

A minute of silence passed before Jay fled out of the room, tears streaming from his eyes as the sounds of his footsteps faded down the hall. Matt barely thought twice about grabbing the Kiwi’s book from his desk and running after him, the yells of Professor Neywell quickly fading away as Matt ran after the other.

Matt ran down the hall until he reached a wall, which was confusing to say the least. He was positive that he saw Jay running down this way...but there was nothing here but a window and wall with a painting. “It’s quite refreshing to see someone new here you know.” The painting said in a heavy Polish accent, her face contorting into a small smile. The American turned towards the painting, a bit surprised at the statement. “What do you mean?” He muttered, still trying to figure out where Jay possibly could’ve gone to.

“Well I only see a couple people actually visit our hall anymore, and that poor boy who comes here...Always crying from that professor down there. But, I’m sure he’ll be quite happy to know that you’re here.” The painting continued, her rosy cheeks widening into a larger smile.

“I’m sorry to ask, but do you know where he is?” He asked hopefully, a small smile coming to his face as he watched the painting look around for a moment before it flipped open to reveal a small room with a small corridor leading out of the corner of it. The room was well lit with a small window, while the corridor seemed to be lit by distant candles. But that was all Matt could notice before he saw Jay sniffling in the corner, the edges of his robe coming up to wipe the tears off of his face.

Quick footsteps walked over to Jay, kneeling in front of him as the painting quickly shut itself close again. The Kiwi looked up at him, more tears falling from his eyes as he seemed a bit shocked to see the American in front of him. “Class is still going you know…” Jay whispered, hiding his tear stained face in his knees, making himself look as small as possible.

“I know but you...you forgot your book. And you’re…” His mouth was dry as he was trying to figure out what to say to try and explain himself. If he was being honest with himself, Matt would say that he ran after Jay because he couldn’t stand to see Jay cry like that, and he wanted to try and put a smile back on that pretty face. But he didn’t want to admit that aloud.

Shaky hands clasped around the book as Jay took it back, slowly holding it close to his chest. “Thanks Matt...you can go back to class now.” He mumbled, slowly flipping through the pages in an attempt to focus on anything but currently hectic thoughts.

Matt shook his head, moving to sit next to Jay, who immediately tensed up which broke Matt’s heart just a bit. “Well, I’m sorry for my obvious findings, but you seem like you aren’t in the best mindset. So I’m staying until you’re smiling again.” He grinned, grabbing one of Jay’s hands and softly caressing the back of his hand with his thumb like he did back in class.

A giggled filled the silence of the room, warming Matt’s heart up as he noticed a large smile going across Jay’s face. The pair sat there for a couple of minutes, Jay’s little giggles and chuckles filling the room as Matt continued to his thumb along Jay’s knuckles in a loving manner of sorts.

Jay pulled his hand away from Matt’s, much to his dismay, and started to flip through the pages of his book until he reached one about kelpies. “Do you...would you like to hear about kelpies? I was reading about them in class, and I think there is a way you could use their spit for potions.” Jay started, pointing to his notes about the creature that he’d been taking. A smile spread across Matt’s face as he nodded in reply, leaning into Jay’s side as he listened to Jay start to go on about the creature with such happiness in his voice that you could never imagine him crying only minutes earlier. It made Matt’s heart swell as he listened...this was definitely only the start of something great.

[ilovemygaydad]

Friends in Dark Places [ch 11]

pairing: eventual moxiety, eventual logince, background eventual remile, background eventual remy/emile/deceit

WARNINGS: mentions of abusive family members, crying, mentions of self harm, mentions of suicidal ideation, homophobia, gross/rude comments, rumors, swearing, losing one’s temper, yelling, bullying, bruises, injury due to bullying, internalized homophobia, possibly something else

tag list: @hufflepuffgirl01 @cocobearthe4th @cas-is-a-hunter @band-be-boss-blog @theunoriginaldaisy

a/n: so i have to repost all of these in a different format! yay fucking me!!!! please consider reblogging these if you’re a fan of this series because it’s all fucked up now

first - previous - next - companions

consider buying me a coffee (please)

-

Although Virgil had relapsed since he’d been released from the hospital, Patton was still so proud of him. He was making a lot of progress towards recovery, and it was wonderful to Pat that his new friend was feeling better about himself. Virgil was, regardless of his moments of weakness, extremely strong.

Virgil held himself together when Patton had practically screamed at his dad. He’d stayed completely calm when he lifted up the towel from his arms to see a bright crimson stain on the pristine white. The poor kid even calmly explained what had happened to Mrs. Shea when she’d arrived to pick them up from the curb.

It was only when they’d gotten home and into Virgil’s room that he broke down in tears. But that didn’t mean he was weak. Tears weren’t weak. Tears meant that Virgil was healthily coping with his problems. That made Patton even more proud; Virgil’s health was his top priority right now, and any progress on it was fantastic.

“Hey, Vi. Do you want to talk about it? We don’t have to, but it might help,” Patton whispered as he softly hugged Virgil.

“Well,” Virgil croaked, taking a few moments to regain his composure. “Obviously, my dad’s never been around. He was rarely at holidays or special occasions; I can count on one hand the amount of times he celebrated his wedding anniversary. He’s stuck up, and he holds ridiculously high expectations for me. I’ve never been able to meet them. To him, I’m a burden. I’m the epitome of everything he hates: punk-rock attitude, artistic, creative, ‘rebellious,’ and all that fun stuff. I will never please him.”

Patton gave Virgil a little squeeze. “I know this sounds like a bad response, but I still want you to know this: I will always be proud of you. No matter if you fall down. No matter if you mess up. You are the strongest kid I’ve ever met, Virgil. I love you.”

He could feel Virgil shift in his arms so he’d be able to look Patton in the face. Tear tracks ran down his cheeks, and his eyes were red and puffy. To be honest, Virgil looked like a hot mess, but that didn’t matter to either of them.

“I love you too, Pat. You’re my best friend.”

Virgil leaned back into Patton, hugging him tighter.

“You’re my best friend, too.”

---

Somehow, news of Patton’s bad-assery had spread around the school by Tuesday morning.

“You didn’t tell anyone, did you?” Virgil hissed, pulling his hoodie closer around his body.

“No! Well, I told Logan and… Oh… Roman might have accidentally let it slip to one of his other more popular friends.” Patton scrunched up his face, taking note to scold Roman later. Virgil didn’t need all of this drama centered around him in his life, and obviously this was an extreme breach of privacy.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake!” Virgil groaned and tapped Pat on the arm, pointing to a locker. Virgil’s locker. A group of kids were surrounding it, looking like they were about to launch themselves at the pair of friends.

“Don’t worry; I’ll deal with them,” Patton assured as he confidently walked to the group. “Hey, guys! Would you mind-”

“Oh my god. Patton! Did you actually punch Virgil’s dad?” The kid at the front looked like he was standing in front of a super hero.

“What? No!” Virgil had shrunk back at the sudden explosion of voices, but he still came to Patton’s rescue.

“Why did you protect him, Patton?” a cheerleader asked, playfully flipping her ponytail. “He’s a nobody. Oh, or are you two dating?”

Pat recoiled at the invasive questions.

“Oh! I’ve always wanted a gay friend!” a different cheerleader cut in. Both Virgil and Patton were becoming more uncomfortable by the second. A chorus of voices blanketed them in nonstop stimuli.

“Enough! For fuck’s sake, enough!” Virgil yelled, having reached his limit. Everyone in the hallway froze, staring at the normally quiet loner. He ran a hand through his hair regain some minuscule amount of composure before speaking again.

“To answer your question, no. Patton and I aren’t dating. And even if we were, it would be exactly none of your business. I can’t personally speak for Pat, but as an actual queer guy, your kind--yeah, I’m talking about all of you cishet assholes--are not the type people that anyone from the LGBTQ+ community would want to talk to. Ever. We aren’t trivial objects, and we certainly don’t want to be fetishized by cishets. Now get the fuck away from my locker.” Virgil’s voice was oddly calm and smooth, the only true indication that he was angry being the icy cold tone he spoke in.

Oh, was Patton proud of his best friend.

---

For the rest of the day, Patton was bombarded with questions from his classmates. There were even a few teachers that approached him! The whole situation was absolute chaos; the truth had wildly spun out of control, lost in the rumors. Not to mention the fact that Virgil’s whole coming-out-to-the-whole-school stint was beginning to circulate as well. Virgil had texted Patton multiple times every block to vent about “the sheer amount of fucking times these idiots have asked if I am, in fact, queer and if I have a crush on you.”

During lunch, too, hordes of students would come to their table and ask them invasive questions. Some had even been locating Logan and Roman during class to ask them to spill the details. Which, thank god, they didn’t. Roman had well learned his lesson to not--even by accident--tell other people about what was happening in Virgil’s life.

When the boys got home, they flopped onto Patton’s bed and reflected on what the actual fuck had happened at school.

“Did anyone make fun of you?” Patton asked. Their school wasn’t the most tolerant of LGBTQ+ people, despite its large population of them. In fact, it wasn’t really tolerant in the slightest. That was one of the reason Patton was still closeted himself, as were Roman and Logan. And, even though he was so close to Virgil, he hadn’t gathered the courage to tell his friend.

Virgil paused for just a beat too long before whispering a weak “no…”

“Who was it? I’ll fight them!” Patton had his Dad Voice on.

“Pat, don’t worry about it. I can handle some stupid jocks and their homophobic bullshit.” The lie fell completely flat.

“What did they do?” The tone in Patton’s voice was almost scary. Virgil hesitated for a second before he lifted the hem of his shirt to reveal a large bruise blossoming on his chest and stomach.

All the color drained from Pat’s face. “Who. Did. This?”

“I-I can’t tell you. I can’t let you get hurt, too,” Virgil whispered. Patton’s heart shattered at the notion that his friend, who he’d barely known for two weeks, was willing to sacrifice himself to keep Pat safe. It just made Patton want to protect Virgil even more.

As soon as Virgil left the room, Patton called Logan and Roman to formulate their plan.

---

Somehow, they were able to hide the rainbow clothing and accessories from Virgil for the whole right to school. The night prior, Logan, Roman, and Patton had gathered up all of their gear from last year’s pride and agreed to wear as much of it as possible. Logan had rainbow tape around the stems of his glasses (hidden carefully under a beanie for the time being) and at least four rubber bracelets that had “I’m fucking gay” stamped onto them, Roman wore his glittery rainbow Converse and a “gay doesn’t just mean happy” shirt hidden under his jacket, and Patton had brought along a pride flag to wear as a cape.

As soon as they’d entered the school, the hiding went out the window. Lo’s beanie was pocketed, Roman removed his jacket and wrapped it around his waist, and Pat drew the flag around his shoulders. Then Patton turned to Virgil and held out a rainbow beanie.

“Since you were so brave and came out to everyone yesterday, we decided to join you. Meet the ‘Queer Quad!’” Students passing began to stare at the blatant queerness, but for once, Virgil didn’t care.

“Fuck yeah!” Virgil took the beanie and slipped it on before addressing the bystanders. “You know, it’s not very polite to stare. Now scram before one of us gays come to make you ‘one of us.’”

“I mean, this can’t be very surprising to you all,” Roman added with a smirk. “Most of us four are theatre geeks, and you know that drama is the club for the gays!”

The crowd immediately rushed away, most likely to begin gossiping about the newly outed group.

A thought came into Virgil’s mind. “Roman, aren’t you worried about what your teammates are going to say? I mean, they’re not even the slightest bit decent, and there is no doubt in my mind that they won’t take this as an opportunity to ream the shit out of you. The other gymnasts are fucking brutal.”

“Prince Darkling, I’ve been hiding myself and my previous boyfriends from the world for too long. And even if they did want to come after me, I’ve got you guys to back me up.”

Patton pulled them all into a group hug. “I’m proud of us. Now, let’s go live our free lives!”

Soon, the rumors had reached the whole school, but it didn’t even bother Virgil this time.

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