#her shoes got wooden base and make fun click sound when she walks and she loves hopping around in them to make the sound louder

[thinkingnot]

making an oc and she’s so cute

her name’s Droop and she’s a fully grown- teenager <- giving her a rebellious phase as we speak

[vldkeith]

Dolphin Kisses

a/n: This fic is based/inspired from my experience at this boat ride thing I went on some time ago and I just klance-ified it lol. Anyways this whole fic is just some super cheesy stuff my brain barfed up and yeah, I have nothing else to say besides enjoy <33 -Klance Day

☆°☆°☆° ☆

Lance wanted to go on a date with Keith; but not just any date. The perfect date. So Lance finds himself in front of the wheel, driving Keith to the oceanfront. It was a really pleasant day outside. The scent of the salty sea grew stronger as the scenery changed from suburban family homes to tourist attraction stops and stores. Radio songs hummed in the background and filtered out from the open car windows. Lance peeks at his right to Keith, just to make sure that he was having a good time. “‘You excited to be on a boat, mullet?” he asks cheerfully. “For the last time, Lance, I don’t know. It’s my first time.” “I know, I know. You’re worried about getting seasick,” Lance nonchalantly waves off. “But not to worry, babe. If you feel the slightest weakness, don’t be hesitant to fall into my arms.“ Keith scoffs at his dramatics. “Sure.” ☆°☆°☆° They finally reach The White Lion boat ride dock, and Lance parks the car on the old, cracking concrete below it. The two walk out and start heading towards the ticket and tour center, but to be honest, the “center” was more of a big shack with dull yellow and pink paint peeling right off of it. Lance pulls out his phone and shows the lady at the front desk his reservation time. She nods wordlessly and hands him two white tickets. Lance smiles and runs back to Keith, waving the paper slips in the air. “Let’s go!” He points towards the line on the dock to the boats. A few boats line the edge of the water. Lance motions his hand to the purple one with waves. “That’s the boat we’re getting on." Keith grins and scoots a little closer to Lance as more people fill up the wooden platform. Lance plants a light kiss on his head. A few minutes later, a bulky man walks by the clustered line. "The 4:30PM White Lion’s Roar boat tour has been canceled due to an engine malfunction,” he starts. Lance’s heart drops to his shoes and frowns. He glances at Keith, who wears a similar expression. “You can get refunds at the ticket center and come back another day, or book for a another boat at a later time,” the man finishes. “We are sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused. Have a good evening.” As soon as the man walks away, dissapointed murmers ripple throughout the crowd. They all start to disperse and head towards the ticket desk. “I’m sorry,” Lance sighs. So much for a perfect date, he thinks. “It’s okay,” Keith comforts. “We can just go on another boat.” He grabs Lance’s arm and tugs as they walk back to get new tickets. This time, Keith is at the desk, and Lance stays back. He blows out a puff of air, slightly smiling at his boyfriend. Sometimes, he still can’t believe that they’ve been dating for almost four months now. Keith reaches back to Lance to show off their new tickets. He starts to explain, “I got another boat tour for five o'clock. Don’t worry it’s the same price and we got refunded from the first tickets. It’s a slower boat, but it goes farther, and it garuntees dolphin sightings.” Lance smirks. “That’s my Keith,” he responds. ☆°☆°☆° Twenty minutes later, a new line has fully formed for the new, bigger boat. Two kids and a grandma are chattering beside Lance and Keith. “Look, there’s a Poké-Spot on the boat!” one of the kids cheers. “Quit your Pokémon Go-ing,” the grandma snaps. Lance chuckles and turns his attention back to Keith. Soon, people began boarding. Right before they stepped on the boat, a young lady with a White Lion t-shirt stops the two boys. “Excuse me sirs,” she raises her camera. “But we are offering pictures for the boat ride that you can purchase at the end of the ride. Would you like to take a picture?” “Sure,” Lance replies as he wraps his arm around Keith and makes a peace sign with his free hand. “Smile!” The lady clicks her camera. “Thank you for choosing The White Lion boat tours,” she welcomes. ☆°☆°☆° Lance and Keith both decided beforehand that they wanted to go to the second floor of the boat, so they scurry quickly up the stairs in hopes to get a good spot. Thankfully, they manage to grab spots at the front. Lance sits down on the bench and Keith plops right beside him. As soon as the boat starts humming, a voice comes to the speakers. “Hello, and welcome to The White Lion’s Pounce boat tour,” a supposedly Australian man cheers. “My name is Coran, and I will be your guide on this trip. Firstly, let’s go over some safety rules.” The man goes on to explain where the life jackets are, what to do if you feel seasick, and other various things to know when on a boat. Lance can tell the Keith’s attention has already wandered from the peppy voice’s informative talks. Right now, Keith is staring out onto the long stretch of water before them, and Lance couldn’t help but smile. “But Lance! I don’t even like the beach!” He could still hear Keith’s complaints from a couple days ago. “It will be fun, babe! New experiences and all,” Lance persuaded. “Besides, I already bought the tickets, so we have to go.” Lance’s pleading worked, of course. It’s just his natural charming boyfriend skills. ☆°☆°☆° The boat finally made its way out of the dock and through the mouth of the small river into the ocean. People fishing on the edge of the big rocks and stones waved as the boat went by. Eventually, Lance stands up to the railing, and looks out. The boat was gently gliding on the water, rocking slightly with the dips and peaks of the waves. Keith joins him in a little bit, placing his hand over Lance’s, which was already on the rail. Now, the scene was different. The boat is gliding at a steady pace parallel to the boardwalk. From the distance, the people, umbrellas, towels, and small tents looked like blended spots dotting the long stretch of beach. Behind them stood hotels and restaurants varying in size, color, and shape. Lance spots a Marriot, a Hilton, and a Holiday Inn as they pass by. The Marriot looked the newest with its glassy, black exterior. Soon, the long and busy boardwalk mellowed down to the more open, lesser used beach. Hotels turned into private rental houses, and the crowds faded. Lance pointed to a small lilac house. “'You wanna stay there someday for a vacation?” he jokingly asks Keith. The other boy scoffs in response. “As if. More than a day at this sandy giver of salt and sunburns and I will actually die.” Lance giggles. “Okay, you vampire.” Keith glances away as his mouth turns upwards in a slight grin. ☆°☆°☆° A few more minutes pass when the boat halts to an even slower turtle’s pace. The speakers crackle as Coran begins to speak. “We are approaching our dolphin sight-seeing spot, folks!” he says with almost too much enthusiasm. “While you keep your eyes peeled for them, take a moment to look again in front of you to our very own Seagull’s Peak Lighthouse! Originally built in…” Lance’s ears blocks out the rest because his eyes are busy darting around for any signs of dolphins. Finally, a gray fin popped up from the water. “Dolphin!” Lance yells. Keith turns his head around to where Lance’s eyes were staring. “'Looks like we spotted our first dolphins! Ladies and gentlemen, look out for more.” The crowd oohed and ahhed as more and more dolphins appear splash around the boat. Coran continues, talking more about the dolphins. Lance spots Keith grinning excitedly at the intermittent dolphins. He smiles to himself, content with the fact that his boyfriend was enjoying this too. ☆°☆°☆° Eventually, the boat turned around and they were heading back the way they came. Keith had prompted that both of them go downstairs for a change, and Lance happily agreed. The boat was shaking and rocking back and forth as it made its way through the water, so it was hard to balance when walking. Fortunately, Keith and Lance had each other’ hands to hold on to, so they walk to and down the stairs and towards the front much easier. “Woah,” Keith gasps when he sees rests his hands on the railing, looking on to the ocean from a much closer view. “Yeah. This thing’s going pretty fast, isn’t it?” Keith opens his mouth to respond, but was cut off by a random child squealing. “Mommy! Look it’s a rainbow!” Keith and Lance look up to see a faded, but visible arch of colors that the girl was pointing too. Other families took notice and began to stare in awe. “That’s kinda gay,” Lance jokes, lightheartedly jabbing Keith’s side with his elbow. Keith snickers along. He smirks, arching an eyebrow. “You think?” ☆°☆°☆° “And that concludes our boat ride! Thank you, ladies and gentlemen, for choosing the White Lion! Photos are available for purchase at the docking point of the boat. Have a wonderful evening.” The speakers crackle again after the announcement before playing random pop songs as it did at the beginning of the tour. Soon, the air fills with sounds chatting and talking as the passengers filed out of the boat onto the dock. Lance and Keith were among one of the last people to go out, so it was less crowded when they finally step onto the platform. The lady from before handed them their photo from the start of the trip, and soon, the two were back in the car. This time, Keith was in the driver’s seat. “So,” Lance starts. “How did you like it?” he asks in a sing song voice. “It was good,” Keith responds, putting on his seat belt. He should have been happy, but Lance deflates from how monotone Keith sounded. “That’s all?" Keith must have taken notice of Lance’s grimace because he quickly rushed to add a supposedly forced, "It was great! The dolphins and rainbow were very cool!” “I thought you were enjoying it,” Lance reprimands, his lips pursed and brows tight. “I guess not.” “No, Lance, it’s not like that,” Keith trails. “I had a really good time.” “You don’t have to lie about it.” Keith pouts in response, but doesn’t press any further. He plugs the key into the car, and they leave the parking lot in silence. ☆°☆°☆° Lance stares out the window, taking in the busy streets of the oceanfront. He expects that in a few minutes, the sight would be gone as they leave the area, but as more time passes, it seems that they were going deeper in. “Hey, are you sure we’re going the right way?” Lance asks, not even moving his head to face Keith. “Yes.” He hears in response. “But it looks like we’re heading towards the beach,” Lance counters, finally turning his attention to his boyfriend. “It almost seems like that’s the point,” Keith replies, voice sarcastically high. “Are you taking us…?” Lance doesn’t finish his sentence, and Keith doesn’t bother to fill it in. ☆°☆°☆° The car comes to a halt on a sandy parking lot. A couple of children chase and run around eachother as adults pop open their trunks to take out various beach toys and towels. Keith’s seat belt clicks open, and opens the door to come out. He motions his hands for Lance to come out as well, but Lance was still trying to process what they might even be doing here. “Come on,” Keith drags. “We don’t have all day.” “Okay..” Lance tags the word with suspicion. He steps out and joins Keith. The two walk down the sandy ramp to the actually beach. They walk wordlessly, until finally, they reach the water. Keith plops down on the semi wet sand, and pats down next to him for Lance to follow. He sits down. Now, Lance was throughly confused. “What are we doing here?” He finally asks. “You, like, hate the beach.” “Yeah, but you love it.” Lance’s face flushes when he sees Keith give a small smile. “I thought that I could make it up to you if I brought you here. I’m sorry for not being enthusiastic enough,” Keith mumbles. Lance perks up, and he waves his arms. “No, Keith! I’m sorry. I should have trusted you when you said you were having a good time,” he huffs. “I was just expecting a little more response than a ‘It was good.’ But it’s okay, I know you meant well.” He slowly wraps an arm around Keith and pulls him closer. “Thanks for bringing us here,” Lance whispers into Keith’s hair. “I appreciate it.” The Sun dips behind them, creating a soft blend of blues, oranges, and pinks all around the beach. Waves peacefully crash up and down, creating one of the only noises on the lesser crowded beach. Lance pretends nobody else is there but him and Keith as he leans forward to kiss him. One kiss turned to two, to three, to more than he could keep track of. Soon enough, they were both smiling so hard, none of them could continue. The giggle and hug; Lance only occasionally pressing his lips against Keith’s forehead. “Hey, you,” Lance sighs contently. “Hey.” “'Wanna know a secret?” The other boy smirks. “Yeah.” Lance leans to Keith’s ear before whispering, “I love you.” Keith stifles a laugh. “That wasn’t a secret, idiot.” “But it still made your heart race, didn’t it?” Lance light heartedly retorts. Instead of giving a proper response, Keith pulls Lance in for another kiss. “'Love you too,” he finally says with a barely audible voice. Sometimes Lance wonders what he did to deserve someone as wonderful as Keith. He doesn’t know, and probably never will. That doesn’t stop him from loving Keith, though. He’ll never stop loving Keith.

[cakers-2000]

~Late Night Fun~ (Chuuya X Fem!Reader)

I may love Kokoichi Ouma to bits, but Chuuya Nakahara is somethin else I swear

But here’s another Scenario from my Wattpad story until I get Dazai’s scenario finished!

Word Count: 1.4k

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

"I'm not so sure about this Chuuya..."

Chuuya let out a long sigh as he heard more of your protests coming from the bathroom connected to his bedroom. You had locked yourself inside, refusing to let him even peek in at you so he had wasted time by adjusting his own outfit. A beautifully tailored black and red suit, and of course a matching black and red fedora to go with it.

It had been well over an hour and you still weren't even taking one step out of the bathroom. He was admittedly getting a little frustrated.

He adjusted the hat on his head as he spoke to you through the door. "(Y/N) I'm sure it's fine." And moved himself so that he leaned his back against the wooden door. "Just come out already."

"Buuuut..."

"(Y/N)."

His voice was deep, almost as if giving you a warning and that was partially true. He was fully prepared to break down the door if you didn't come out soon.

"Okay, okay I'm coming..."

He backed away from the bathroom door and sat himself down on the edge of the bed, grabbing his boots and throwing them on his feet. He picked up his head as he heard the sound of the door click open and smiled sweetly when he saw you.

"I told you it'd be fine."

You fidgeted nervously in your spot, still not a hundred percent comfortable with your situation.

You were currently holding onto the bottom of a black dress with long red strings embroidered into the fabric that hung down from the waist line. The front was short while the back was long and reached just above your ankles. A black and red bow rested on the side of your head while black cross stitch leggings adorned your legs.

You hardly ever wore dresses to begin with but now that you had to wear one in front of Chuuya you felt completely mortified.

It wasn't as if you could say no. Chuuya himself had gone out of his way to find and buy you this dress. You truly appreciate and love it, you just didn't have the self confidence to be walking around in a dress like this.

He seemed to notice your lack of confidence and smiled warmly in your direction. He slowly got up off of the bed and approached you, intertwining his fingers with your own, though even if he tried to deny it you could see the small blush on his cheeks as he spoke quietly to you.

"You look amazing."

Your cheeks were a tomato red, the awkwardness was too much for you and you could do nothing but laugh at his words and bury your face in the crook of his neck. "Thank you Chuuya."

He allowed you to stay in the same position until you were comfortable enough to continue getting yourself ready, though the only thing you had left was to throw on some shoes.

"Oh that reminds me..." Chuuya's voice drew on as he walked away from you and towards the closet in the corner of his room. He dug through the contents for a bit, quietly cursing to himself as you followed after him.

"Fuck I've really gotta clean this goddamn closet... Here it is." He dragged out what appeared to be a shoe box and smiled sheepishly at you.

"I uh-I found these when I was getting your dress. I thought you could wear them together. Or something..."

You smiled in his direction and took the box from his hands, revealing the black pair of heeled boots waiting for you inside. Your smile grew wider as you examined them before placing a sweet kiss on his cheek.

"I love them."

He let out a small breath of relief and placed a kiss on your forehead before allowing you to throw on the shoes. "I'm glad."

You stood yourself back up once the sides of the boots had been zipped and you smiled down at yourself. The boots were definitely a plus. Sensing that you were as ready as you'd ever be, Chuuya held his hand out for you to grab, a small smirk on his face though you had no idea what it was about.

"Let's get going, everyone's waiting."

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

The Port Mafia always held a yearly banquet.

Though this was the first time you had ever gone or been invited at all. You weren't friends with any of his fellow members and so you spent a majority of the night at his side, listening in on the conversations he had with the other executives.

And even though you couldn't really relate to anything they talked about, you still had a good time. You danced the night away with some girl you soon found out was named Higuchi. Despite his complaints about it he danced with you and you shared a few drinks with his fellow executives.

Now you were currently walking through the empty hallways and back towards Chuuyas room. His arm was wrapped lovingly around your waist while the both of you were a laughing and giggly mess. Your laughing only worsened when you watched him trip over his own feet stumbling into the front door, nearly bringing you down with him.

"It's not funny..." He tried to counter but he himself was laughing with you, completely defeating the purpose of his words.

When you finally managed to get yourselves into the bedroom, still a laughing and bubbly mess he flopped backwards onto the soft blankets and smiled up at the ceiling. "That was fun~"

You nodded in agreement, grabbing his hat that had already fallen off of his head and placing it in the closet. "Lots."

He sat himself up, his legs hanging off the edge of the bed and he held out his arms, beckoning for you to come over to him.

You already knew where this was going.

Chuuya may not have had too much to drink, but he could barely hold his alcohol, you already knew he was just a little drunk.

You approached as he requested and he wrapped his arms around your waist, pulling you in between his legs and smiling up at you. "We can have more fun now that we're home~"

You blushed from ear to ear but lowered your face so that your noses brushed against each other. "You're getting a little adventurous now aren't you?"

He smirked at your teasing tone and with one swift movement pulled you up off your feet and placed you on the bed beside him, laughing slightly as you let out a small squeak. He moved himself so that he was looking down at you, a hand on either side of your head and you felt your blush only worsen.

He knew exactly what he was doing to you, but that only made his smirk grow more. "Come on, no one's gonna know. Why do you think I wanted to ditch early?"

You sighed but it was quickly cut off as he pressed a rough kiss to your lips, effectively stopping you from protesting against him. He pulled away from you when he needed air, but kept his forehead on yours. His eyes were practically pleading.

"Please."

You reached up and cupped his cheeks in your hands, smiling as he knelt into your touch. "Fine... But if anyone finds out I swear to god..."

"They won't."

You laughed at his tone and nodded, allowing him to once again kiss you.

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

As you walked through the halls of the Port Mafia base the next afternoon, waiting for Chuuya to return from a mission you ran into Higuchi. The other girl gave you a polite hello and a small bow but her eyes grew wide the more she looked at you.

"Higuchi, what's up?"

"Um, well, how do I say this... Have you... looked in the mirror recently?"

"What? No..."

She smiled slightly and turned you around, gesturing for you to head back to Chuuya's room. "You might want to."

You practically ran to the bathroom, dread filling your system as you rushed to the mirror. And found the mark he had left on your neck from last night's escapades. It was in such a perfect spot that anyone would be able to see it no matter what you did. He knew what he had done, he had openly ignored your warning and wanted to make sure that everyone would find out.

"GODDAMNIT CHUUYA!"

[dragons-socks]

Baby Bumblebee chptr 4

////////Six Months Later\\\\\\\\\

Bee was walking home from school. Lennox and Ironhide were hunting down Decepticons in Europe, so he didn’t really have a ride today, which was fine. He didn’t mind not going back to the house when Lennox or Ironhide wasn’t there. It’s not that Bee didn’t like Sarah or Annabell, but they just didn’t really get each other. Annabell tried to poke at every nerve Bumblebee had, just testing his patience. And Sarah either babied him too much or acted as if he should already know how to do some complex human thing.

And then there was school. Apparently, Sarah was right about his name. Though Bee still didn’t understand how a girl in his class can be named ‘jasmine’ after a flower, but to be called after the insect that lets that flower grow and flourish… that’s taking it too weird? Not to mention no one in the institute knows morse code, and only a few, including his teacher know sign language. The school said they’d set him up with an interpreter. That has yet to be seen.

“Oh, hey, you’re Honey Bee, right?” Bumblebee jumped as a boy his physical age tapped him on the shoulder. Bee pulled out a small keyring of flash card that said common phrases to help him interact with people who couldn’t understand his other forms of communications. He tapped on the one with his actual name on it. “Oh, well I’m Raven.”

Bee made a saluting gesture; instead of his hand being horizontal and pushed in front of him, his palm was vertical and facing out while his hand moved away to the side of his temple. Then, Bee finger-spelt the boy’s name. Raven looked at his hands with wide eyes.

“Woah, you really can’t speak, can you?” Raven asked. Bee let out angry trills, glaring at the boy. He started to walk faster, getting away from the human. “No, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it like that!”

Bee chittered, turning around and raising an eyebrow. You have one chance.

“I just didn’t want to believe Harvey. He’s always making up things about other people. My mom says he’s a bully.” Raven rambled. Bee nodded in agreement. Harvey was a larger kid in his class who kept trying to pick fights and make fun of Bumblebee. Bee would hand the kid’s ass to him, but he was still an Autobots and harming humans was still a big ‘no’ in his books. “We should be friends. I see you like Voltron. My favorite is the red lion, but the yellow one is alright too.”

Bumblebee shrugged, not knowing what this ‘Voltron’ was, but decided not to try to confuse the other with too complex interactions. This is the most pleasant conversation he’s had since being forced to partake in the human learning institution.

Soon Raven had to split off to go to his own home, but made Bee promise to meet up tomorrow to walk to school. Bee felt lighter for some reason, almost like he wasn’t so alone. Annabell picked up on his good mood as soon as he entered the house. A toy sailed through the air and whacked him in the forehead.

“Hey, Bee.” She smiled.

“Annabell, stop throwing toys. Go sit in the corner.” Sarah gawked. This turned into a ten minute scream-cry feast in which Annabell was forced to spend time in the corner for longer than her original sentence. Bumblebee was already set up at the table by this point, pulling out his homework. “How was school, Bee?” The woman said as she signed the words.

‘Good, I meet a new friend. His name is Raven.’ Bee signed, his feet kicking in the open air under the table.

“Oh, that’s nice, what did you guys talk about?” Sarah leaned over the counter, ruffling Bee’s hair. He huffed and waved her hand away.

‘He kept talking about some lion-show called Voltage or something? Said I liked it too, but I don’t know why he would think that.’

“You mean Voltron? Your bookbag is designed to look like one of the characters on the show. He probably thought you got the bag because you liked the show, not because it was yellow and black.” She explained, lifting up the bag in question. On the back in vinyl letters did read ‘Voltron’. “We could watch it. So you know what your friend is talking about.”

Bee shrugged at this. He’s tried to watch human entertainment, but nothing really caught his interest. Well, he’s only really seen whatever the Witwicky’s watched, and that was just through their living room window as he was parked in their driveway. Recently, Annabell has been making him watch her shows, which were all about learning numbers, colors, and being nice. At least she has her numbers and colors down.

“Yeah, it can be our thing, when you’re done with your homework we can watch a few episodes.” Sarah nodded to herself.

Annabell was returned from her sentencing. She shuffled up to Bumblebee, holding out the wooden block that she had thrown at him earlier.

“M’sorry, Bee.” She toed at the ground and gave him large puppy dog eyes. Bee huffed and took the block from her. He’s learned pretty fast to accept her peace offerings or have her throw another tantrum.

‘Yeah, I’m sure you are.’ Bee signed back. Annabell jumped around to her mom.

“Mom, what did he say?” Sarah shook her head at the young autobot. “He said, ‘apology accepted’.”

It didn’t take long to finish the easy equations or sentence structures his teachers assigned for his class. As soon as he put his work back into his bag, Sarah ushered him onto the couch and turned on their television.

“Get comfortable, sweetie, the first episode is the longest.” Bee wrapped himself in the yellow blanket that he’s since claimed as his own. As the episode went on, Bee found himself drawing parallels of his own life and the autobots to those of these characters. He was so immersed into this stupid cartoon that he didn’t even notice that Lennox had arrived and sat down next to his wife. Not until the episode was paused.

‘HEY!’ Bumblebee turned to Sarah, jumping a little when Lennox was also there.

“Hey to you too, kid.” Lennox said, his voice thick and his face contorted into worry. Bumblebee sat up.

‘Is Ironhide okay?’ Bee signed, trying to twist out of his cocoon to get a better look outside for the mech.

“He’s fine, Bee. But I do have some bad news. The Decepticons found the base. The Autobots had to be relocated and for your safety, we might not be getting their new location.”

‘But what about Ironhide? He still needs Energon to function. How will I find them once we’ve figured out how to change me back?’ Bee asked.

“They don’t think there’s a cure for you, Bee. Optimus thought it best to cut ties. Don’t worry about Ironhide. We’re still going to get shipments of Energon for him.” Lennox pulled Bee into his chest. Bee didn’t have room to sign his frustrations, but he also didn’t have energy to fight off his prison of warm arms. Instead he let Lennox’s voice swirl around his own thoughts that wanted to drown him.

_______________

Bee slipped out of the house. The moon, street lamps, and his blinking shoe steps were his only light to navigate out of the neighborhood and try to find his way back to Optimus. The mech might not want him, but that was where he belonged, and he wasn’t going to take no for an answer.

It wasn’t the first time that he realized that walking was much more time consuming than driving. This was just another time that the notion ingrained itself into his head. This was the first time Bumblebee found himself walking for a long time after sunset. It seemed to take longer in the dark. It took so much longer to reach the school than it usually does.

Maybe it wasn’t the darkness of night that had Bumblebee shuffling his feet. Maybe it was the thought of seeing Optimus and the others after a month of not seeing them. Maybe it was the knowledge that this was in direct opposition of Optimus’s orders. This is the most rebellious he’s been in a long time. Bumblebee finds his feet stopping. He looks around and realizes he’s walked himself all the way just a house past Sam’s. The chill has already settled into his skin, but he’s just noticed his minutely shivers. His teeth are chattering, and he feels tired seeping into the very marrow of his human bones. His feet and legs ache. It must have been half the night gone by now.

A rumbling sound brings the rest of the world back into focus. Cars race towards him, screeching to a halt and boxing him in. At first he thinks its normal bad humans, until he recognizes the cars and notices the Decepticons’ insignias.

“I don’t get it.” Starscream’s voice is audible from his vehicular mode. “There is but a human child where the signal emits. No energon, no Autobots. Nothing.”

Bumblebee’s heart spikes. He backs away from Megatron’s right-hand. The other ‘Cons have switched back to their natural state. They leer down at Bumblebee. One even tries to grab at him. He rolls to the side, and books it for a crack in their formation. Breakdown snagged Bee’s leg, scooping him upside-down, before he could make it. Bee kept hissing and sputtering at the Cons, but they weren’t intimidated.

“It appears, Starscream, that the boy is the origin of the signal. Maybe Knockout’s weapon wasn’t as defective as we had first thought. This human child does have a striking resemblance to their mute scout.” Breakdown muses.

Bee lets out sharp whistles, hoping the sleeping humans around them will awaken, but its almost no use. His vision starts to blur as the Cons start moving away. He doesn’t know what to do. He starts pushing against the metal fist around his leg, but with each shove the only result is his palms getting hotter.

Bumblebee can feel in his gut that Breakdown is about to shift. He can hear the t-cog clicking its gears in the split second preparation of turning into the alt mode. Bee panics, pulling his arm as far back as he could and smacking hard onto Breakdown’s grip. Instead of being halted by the warm living metal, his hand pushed in with no resistance. A shot of blue energy cut a path from his hand to the open sky. Breakdown drops Bee on the ground in surprise. Bee is able to twist himself to land on his back rather than just his head. He ignores the searing pain of smacking into the asphalt and scrambles away from his capture. The other Cons make a quick double-back, but not before Bee is on his feet. His palms and fingers tingle from the heat, but are unharmed from the powerful blast-ray. Cons surround him. He pulls his arm back and lets out another blast, sweeping his arm in an arc and taking out a line of the enemies, and also some of the residential appliances.

“Bee?” It’s Sam’s voice as he scampers out of his house in a shirt and boxers. “Where’s Lennox? Why are you here?” Bee doesn’t answer. He can’t answer. He sidesteps a blast from the Cons. Its not enough, Bee is grabbed again. His arms are pinned to his side in Starscream’s hand.

“I’ve got him, retreat.” Starscream proclaimed, ignoring Bee’s chitters and Sam’s shouts. A ground bridge was opened a few feet away. Starscream watched his men walk into the portal before turning to Sam with a viscous grin. “Till the next time, Witwick-”

Bee was once again hitting the ground. His back is singing and his ears are ringing from the gunshot. His vision is blurry, but he can still make out Mikaela cocking back a rifle as Sam ran to him. Sam carefully moved Bee away from the Decepticon, who was clutching his shot-up hand. There was a moment where it looked like Starscream was going to exact revenge. Luckily the portal behind him started to close and if he wanted a ride back home he couldn’t fight the humans. Everyone sighed with relief until they looked down at Bee.

The worried shouts of his friends were cut short as Bee’s small body finally gave it quits and fell asleep.

[hes-writer]

Girls’ Night

Harry crashes girls’ night

Summary: Harry doesn’t want Y/N to go to her sleepover

Warnings: fluff!

Word Count: 1.6k

Based on: Where she has a sleepover with her best friends but he gets clingy and drives over to them? Like idk I just got these I’m sorry 😂 @ynm1505

Harry walks into his and Y/N's bedroom. He sees her packing a small duffel bag with leggings and a plain t-shirt, some fuzzy socks, and slippers.

"Hey Har, can you get my facial stuff from the washroom?" She says without looking in the direction of the doorway where he was currently leaning all his weight on the frame. His crossed arms drop from his chest, mouth agape.

"How'd you know I was standing here?" He enters the room fully, feet dragging across the soft carpeted floor.

"Your footsteps are not as light as you think," She snorts, heading to the dresser with her make-up bag. Y/N begins placing her travel-sized make up in it before zipping it up once she was finished.

She turns around, seeing Harry's back set foot in the en suite bathroom on his way to grab her skincare routine. There were some noises echoing against the tiled room, a mutter of 'shit' from Harry, and the wall cabinet shutting fairly hard.

"H, you good?"

His lanky frame twists as he comes into Y/N's line of sight again, arms full with various bottles and cotton pads. He was panting exaggeratedly, walking as if he was carrying a heavy boulder.

"Phew, do you really need this stuff? It's just one night," He softly drops the items on the bed, Y/N giving him eyes of precaution invade something spills.

"Yes, I need to keep my skin clear," She grabs her facial toner first and then her face wash, making sure that each product was sealed tight before putting it in a clear ziplock bag.

"Baby, you're already so pretty though," He whines out, eyes gleaming with adoration while he plops on the bed, making the rest of her stuff roll towards him from his weighty.

Y/N only hums absentmindedly at his compliment, not really paying attention.

"Where's my night cream?" She questions, rummaging around her packed items but she's sure that she hadn't handled the white bottle.

"I dunno," Harry shrugs his shoulders innocently, lips going into a slight pout but she could see the indents of his dimples cradling his cheeks.

"H, I told you! I'm going to that sleepover," She rolls her eyes at childishness. "Besides, you're having your own guys night here anyway,"

He releases a deep breath, "But Y/N, I'm gonna miss you too much,"

"You're such a kid, Styles. You think hiding my night cream will make me not want to go?" Y/N places her hands on her pajama covered hips, shaking her down to hide her smile. "Think again, Clare and I use the same night cream. I'll just use hers,"

He gasps, large hands covering his heart, "W-wha? But Y/N ..."

Grabbing her hairbrush, she combs her hair of any tangles before dropping it in her duffel–the last item she needed. She takes her hair tie from her wrist, sloppily tying her hair in a ponytail on her head. She grabs hold of the zipper, the sound making its way into Harry's ears.

"Wait Y/N, I'll cancel guys night. We'll get pizza and watch movies!" Harry tries to change her mind, cutely might she add.

"That's what I'm doing over at Sarah's,"

He huffs incredulously, standing up to his full height. He maneuvers the duffel from her shoulder, placing it back in the bed and giving her a huge, warm hug—burying his head on her fresh scented neck, blowing hot air on it and tickling her. She giggles slightly, wrapping her arms around his lean frame.

The doorbell rings, indicating that the guys had arrived. He groans in annoyance, tightening his hold on her body.

"Okay, time to go!" She wiggles away from him, ducking when he tries to reach for her again. The weight of the bag makes itself known on her shoulder.

She bolts down the stairs, Harry hot on her tails as their footsteps thump against the wood. Y/N slips into her shoes, grabbing her keys and the fruit platter she was to bring over.

Harry opens the door to reveal Mitch and Nick; to name a few.

"Harry! What's up, man?" Nick greets excitedly. His arms in the air hold a six-pack of beer. Behind him was Mitch, quiet and timid with a Tesco bag full of chips.

"Hey Y/N," Mitch greets. "Sarah's right outside,"

She smiles gratefully at him, turning to face her boyfriend who was sporting a pout. The guys made their way into the living room to get comfortable, leaving her and Harry at the doorway.

"Well, I gotta go bubs. Have fun! Call me if you need anything"

She gives him a quick peck on the cheek, swiftly stepping outside the chilly night. She sees Sarah blinking her headlights, hand waving her over. Y/N opens the door to the car, tossing her bag in the backseat, putting her seat belt on.

"Ooh, thanks for putting on the seat warmer,"

"No problem, Y/N," Sarah says, putting the gear shift on 'drive'. "The others are at the house,"

Y/N nods, carefully holding the fruit platter when she hears her phone ring. She groans when she sees the caller ID, Sarah raises her brow at her, pulling out of the driveway.

"Hi Harry, why are you calling me?"

Through the phone, he says, "You said to call if I need anything,"

"And what do you need?"

"You," She bursts out in laughter at his cheesiness, the speaker on her phone belts Harry's whines of 'heeeeey'

"I'm hanging up now,"

—————-

Nick curses at the player on the screen for missing his shot, taking a swig of his bottle to soothe his throat. He looks over at Harry looking a bit glum, not really interacting with the rest of the boys and kept to himself.

"Ey, Styles what's wrong?" The rest of the boys pause their conversation, glancing towards Harry who had a crease on his forehead.

"I miss Y/N," He admits sadly, shoulders slouching even more on himself from where he was sat.

Nick chuckles slightly, finishing the bottle and place it on the wooden apothecary table.

"If you miss her that much, you should go visit her then," Nick says, meaning it as a joke. Mitch provides a 'yeah' along while Adam nods in support.

"You know what? I will," He stands up determinedly, bones cracking from not moving for a good two hours after Y/N left. He steps into the hallway, stepping into his Gucci shoes.

"Oi, mate I was kidding!" He hears him call out from the living room. Harry looks for his keys in the bowl beside the closet.

"Don't do anything stupid!" He yells back, opening the front door and locking it. He unlocks his car, putting the key in the ignition and waits for the heat to blast through the heaters.

Once it does, he steps on the pedal, preparing a mental map of Sarah's house. He whistles along the tune of the radio for about fifteen minutes until he sees the house come into view. He parallel parks as best as he could, walking up to the cute little pathway and pressing the button the doorbell. He puts his hands in his pockets, waiting for the front porch light to turn on.

————

The television continued rolling the end credits of 'The Notebook', Y/N stretches her limbs without sitting up, too comfortable in the position she was in.

"I needed that," Clare says, wiping the small tears escaping her eyes. She blows a puff of air from her cheeks.

"Wow, why can't Mitch be that romantic?" Sarah jokes with a slight chuckle, the rest of the girls laughing along with her.

Y/N stands up along with Sarah to refill the bowl of popcorn for their next movie. Alana, a friend, was given the job to choose the next movie. Sarah grabs the empty cans, aiming to put them in the recycling bin in the kitchen.

The doorbell echoes around the house. The girls look at each other wondering who that would be especially since it was ten in the evening.

"Did you order another pizza?"

"No, I didn't," Sarah answers, brows furrowing.

Y/N takes it upon herself to check who it was. She squints her eyes through the peephole, seeing Harry's frog face protruding because of the fisheye effect. She swings the door open,

"Harry? What are you–"

Harry engulfs her in a hug, walking with her inside Sarah's house while Y/N clicks the door shut. The couple continues to walk backwards, eventually entering the living room.

"This is a girls night," Clare says in a matter-of-fact tone upon seeing Harry's body towering over her friend.

"Yes, I know," He plops down on an empty spot, which was where Y/N was sat before she stood up. He tugs on her arm, pulling her downwards to sit on his lap. She puts her legs on top of the armchair, head resting just above his.

"I got the popcorn!" Sarah walls in with a bowl freshly filled, her voice wavering when she spots Harry. "And Y/N got a Harry, nice."

She sets the bowl down on the table, Alana placing the remote down as well after she plays the next movie. The screen turns black and the Netflix logo appears along with the 'duh dun' sound.

"So what are you doing here, H?" Clare asks, sipping on her new can of pop.

"Just missing my love," He cuddles his face into the side of her should, forearms digging tightly into her when he secures his hold. The girls 'awww' at his sweetness while Y/N blushes from the attention.

"Okay, but just this one time,"

He nods appreciatively, lazily giving a thumbs up with his free hand.

"Oh Harry," Y/N whispers, letting her hands play with his hair, feeling her tummy tingle with butterflies.

————-

can anyone put that Netflix opening sound in words

if you like this, shoot me a message or drop smth in my inbox! ❤️😄

[mamabearcat]

The Importance of Ramen Ch 11

Kagome giggled as she grasped Inuyasha's elbow, steadying him as he almost overbalanced in the geta he was wearing. A frustrated growl slipped past his lips.

"How are you doing this Kagome?" he muttered, watching as she walked along in the raised platform shoes without any problem, the two wooden teeth making a click-clack noise as they met the hard surface of the footpath.

Kagome laughed quietly into her sleeve as he almost rolled his foot again. She felt a tiny bit guilty that she was actually enjoying not being the clumsy one for a change. Inuyasha was usually so graceful in the way that he leapt about so effortlessly; it was novel to see him struggling with something physical.

"Practice", she smiled. "Remember, I've been wearing these to festivals since I was a little girl. Maybe Mama should have bought you flat ones, like Souta wears."

She looked behind her to see Mama, Grandpa and Souta bringing up the rear, each in their festival yukata; Grandpa's in traditional indigo stripes, Mama's in swirls of pale blue and silver, and Souta in pale grey with purple dragons and an obnoxiously acid green obi. Souta clumped along noisily in his flat wooden geta; the wooden shoes slowed his usual bouncing a little, but not much. He tugged on Mama's sleeve.

"I love Bon Odori", he said excitedly.

Mama smiled at him. "I know you do Souta, you've only told me about ten times."

"I know, but I don't usually get to go out at night and look at stalls. Do you think they'll have the corn on the stick this year? The ones with furikake are the best! And the choco-bananas? Remember how last year I won an extra one playing Janken? That was awesome! And I bet Kenji that I could beat him at the Shateki stall." He raised his arms, imagining holding the rifle and aiming his cork bullet at a prize, and the defeated face of his best friend as the stall owner handed him his winnings.

Inuyasha chuckled at Souta's animated rush of words. "Someone's excited. I didn't understand half of what he said though."

Kagome looked at him puzzled, thinking about what he could mean, and then realised all the things that Souta had talked about; corn, chocolate, bananas, playing Janken, and shooting guns had all arrived in Japan after Inuyasha's time. Wait, when did the Portuguese start trading in Japan? Maybe there were guns. She was a little fuzzy on that one, but now was not the time to be thinking of all the dates she couldn't remember from history class.

Kagome looked around to see if anyone would notice, and then shyly took Inuyasha's hand in hers, lacing their fingers together. She was not quite used to the feeling of them being 'together' in public. Sure, she'd held his hand before, but that was as friends, before they were a couple. They were a couple, weren't they? Surely they were, especially after those kisses… An image of a gloating Kikyo holding Inuyasha in her arms popped into her head, and she took a deep breath in, shaking her head and dismissing that thought as quickly as she could. Tonight was about having fun together, and she would not let her stupid overthinking brain spoil it.

"Kagome?", asked Inuyasha uncertainly, taking in her sudden head movement and deep breath. He cursed the fact that his hearing wasn't good enough to check her heartbeat, that he couldn't smell if she was worried or scared. If only he had his usual heightened perception, he would have more of a clue about what might be troubling her.

She smiled back at him, ignoring his concerned look. "I could explain all the things that Souta mentioned, but it would be much more fun to show you." She shook the small pink and red drawstring purse dangling from her wrist, coins jingling. "Mama gave me some money to spend, so we're going to try everything!"

Inuyasha drew a plain black drawstring bag out of his obi sash. "Your Grandpa gave me some paper he said I could use to buy things for you; I wasn't sure if he was joking or not."

Kagome grinned. "We use paper money in this time, as well as coins. If Grandpa gave it to you, I'm sure it's fine." Inuyasha still looked a little unsure. "What's up?" she asked, squeezing his hand.

Inuyasha frowned, tucking the small bag back into his obi. "He said it was in payment for all the help I gave him clearing up his shed. Why would he pay me? I didn't help to get something for it. Mama asked if I could help him, and even though he can be an annoying old fart, he's not that bad, I didn't mind." His thoughts drifted back to Grandpa's tearful face, begging him to protect Kagome. He rubbed the back of his neck, uncertain eyes back on Kagome. "I'm not sure it feels right."

Kagome squeezed his hand again. "I'm sure it's fine. He wouldn't have given you any money if he didn't want to. Even though he won't admit it, he's not as strong as he used to be, and he would never ask Mama to carry something heavy that he couldn't lift himself. He probably really appreciated all your hard work." She giggled at Inuyasha's muttered "Keh" at her words of praise. A sudden increase in the level of noise in front of them alerted her, and she moved her attention back to their surroundings. "Look", she pointed, "here's the festival!"

The large open field in the middle of the park was covered in rows of small stalls with pathways in between. Even with his dulled senses, Inuyasha could smell a range of different foods, both savoury and sweet. The air was full of the chatter of people, talking and laughing, the sounds of meat sizzling on a grill, sellers calling out to people as they wandered in front of their stall. A group of small children ran past them, laughing, all wearing different masks to hide their faces; only the tengu and kitsune masks were familiar to Inuyasha. Behind all the noise of the festival, the steady thrum and screech of cicadas pulsed in the slowly dissipating humidity and heat of the day, the temperature cooling a little now that night had fallen.

A raised wooden platform stood in the middle of the area, lit by strings of coloured lanterns. A group of people were up there, all dressed in colourful yukata, some dancing and singing, some playing taiko drums to keep the beat. A large group of people were grouped in the flat area around the base of the platform, following the dance steps of the women on the stage, moving in a circle around it. Everyone seemed to be having a wonderful time.

Kagome squeezed his hand again, bringing his attention back to her. "So, what should we do first? Dancing or eating?"

Inuyasha sniffed the air, his mouth watering a little. "Definitely eating. What sort of food do they have here Kagome?"

They began walking towards the food stalls. Mama patted Kagome on the arm as her and Souta moved past, Souta tugging impatiently on Mama's other arm.

"Kagome, I'm taking Souta off to meet one of his friends, and Grandpa has a Go tournament planned with some of the older men from the library. Have a good time you two. I'm sure you'll bring her safely home Inuyasha."

They both waved at Mama's departing back, and without missing a beat Inuyasha kicked the wooden geta off his feet one at a time and into a nearby bush. Kagome laughed, hiding her loud giggles behind her sleeve. "Feel better?" she chuckled.

"Oh yeah", breathed Inuyasha. "Those weren't shoes, they were torture instruments." He closed his eyes and wiggled his toes in bliss against the soft green grass, cool against his feet after being rubbed a little raw by the fabric straps of the geta.

Kagome smiled, tugging on his hand to lead him over towards the food stalls again. "So, you were asking about the food. They usually serve the same sorts of things every year. I've made you futomaki sushi and inari in a lunchbox before, remember? And Mama's made teriyaki chicken and yaki soba for you at the shrine."

Inuyasha nodded, mouth watering again. "Yeah, I like both a those."

"How about you try some of the things that you haven't had before?" suggested Kagome. "Let's walk around and you can tell me to stop if you want to buy something to eat."

They strolled along the row of food stalls, Inuyasha sniffing as they went. He didn't think much of the okonomiyaki pancake, so Kagome ate most of it. They both ate a serving of takoyaki balls, which Inuyasha didn't mind.

He suddenly sniffed the air and dragged Kagome over to stop in front of a busy stall, the smell of sizzling chicken hovering in the air. Relenting at his pleading look, she bought him two servings of sticky teriyaki chicken, and he ate both, hardly chewing them in his enjoyment of getting them down as fast as possible.

They stopped in front of a stall selling a long yellow vegetable on sticks. "Inuyasha, you should try this! It's corn, you won't see it again where you come from."

"I dunno…" said Inuyasha. He wasn't overly fond of vegetables as a rule.

"You'll never know if you don't try it!", wheedled Kagome.

They ended up buying one serving to share. Inuyasha didn't hate it but disliked the way it got stuck in his teeth, so Kagome finished it off.

"That was good", she sighed, patting her stomach. Spotting another stall close by, she dragged Inuyasha off to one side, under the darkness of some tall trees and out of the flow of the crowd.

"Before we go to the next stall, I need to teach you a game", she said. "It's called Janken, and on this stall, if you win, you get an extra serve for free."

She curled Inuyasha's hand into a fist. "This is rock." She opened his hand up flat, thumb upwards, palm facing inwards. "This is paper." She curled his last two fingers and thumb back into his palm, so only his forefinger and middle finger were extended. "This is scissors."

She moved her own hand in a similar way, showing him the rock, paper and scissors again. "The way it works is, paper beats rock, because it wraps it, but rock beats scissors because it blunts them. Scissors beats paper because it cuts it. Do you understand?"

"Is there a sign for water, 'cause that would beat all those things", said Inuyasha. "Scissors would be rusty, paper would be wet, and rock would be worn away."

"Um, no", said Kagome, smiling. "I guess you're right about the water though. But what's the point of that, you'd always win?"

Inuyasha tugged her closer and laced his hands behind her back. "What's wrong with that?" he drawled, pushing her backwards gently so she was leaning up against the trunk of a large tree. "I like winning."

She looked up and gasped a little at the slightly predatory look in his brown eyes as he leant over her, dark hair shadowing his face. She glanced around uncertainly, but no one was paying them any attention.

"If we played now, Ka-go-me, and I won, what would you give me as a prize," he teased, bumping his nose against hers, and smiling at the pink staining her cheeks.

A sound behind them made him sigh and drop his arms from around her, as a group of people made their way over to the trees to find a place to sit and eat their food. He grabbed her hand and led her back to the crowd but turned his head towards her at the sound of Kagome's soft voice.

"Maybe, we could play later Inuyasha", she smiled, biting her bottom lip. Inuyasha groaned a little, and turned back towards the crowd, trying not to think about those little white teeth pressed against her soft skin of her lip. Wench! She totally knew how much he liked that. He squeezed her hand, trying to get his thoughts back onto food and away from other activities he'd like to be doing with his mouth right now.

Kagome's heart was beating fast. Would he have kissed her under the tree, with all these people around? She wasn't quite sure how she felt about that. Part of her writhed a little in embarrassment at the thought that someone she knew might see her kissing in public, but another part, the part that ran on adrenalin, was more than a little excited by the idea.

They made their way over to the choco-banana stall where Kagome paid for a banana and asked if she could try to win a free one. The seller, a muscular looking man in his late twenties, winked at her.

"Sure thing cutie", he said smiling. "If I win, do you think I could get your phone number too?"

Kagome's eyes narrowed, but before she had the chance to say anything Inuyasha stepped in front of her, blocking her from view, and holding out his fist in the rock shape, ready to take her place.

"Oho, a little man steps up to the plate instead of his girl", teased the seller. "Alright buddy, let's see what you got."

Inuyasha glared at the man, as Kagome whispered the right words to say in his ear.

"Saisho wa guu!" they began and then, "Janken Pon!" The sellers hand moved to the shape of scissors, while Inuyasha's hand stayed steady as a rock.

The seller grinned good naturedly. "Looks like luck's on your side little man", he said, handing another chocolate covered banana on a stick to him.

Inuyasha took the banana in one hand and Kagome's hand in his other. Leading her away, he glanced over his shoulder at the seller and said nonchalantly, "Luck's got nothin' to do with it, old man. My fist always wins." He bit into the banana, making a face at the mushy texture, but had to smile at Kagome's hysterical giggles.

"Maybe I should teach Janken to Kouga too", she teased, as soon as she had calmed down.

"Nah, not worth it. I already know how to beat him with my fist", said Inuyasha in a dry tone, setting off Kagome's giggles again. After a few more exploratory bites, he decided he liked the banana after all, and finished off the rest of his before Kagome had a chance to eat more than a few mouthfuls.

"Hey Kagome, do you think they sell shaved ice around here anywhere?" he asked.

"Shaved ice?", she repeated, her voice muffled around her last mouthful of banana. She glanced around, then pointed to a long line of people waiting in front of a colourful stall. Blue, red and white banners on the front of the stall flapped in the evening breeze that was starting to cool down the heat of the day, but the dip in the temperature didn't seem to have any effect on the amount of people wanting to buy a frosty treat.

"Are you sure you want to wait in line?" asked Kagome. "I'm starting to get a little full anyway. We could go over and try a couple of the games instead if you like?"

"Nuh uh", said Inuyasha, pulling Kagome over to take their place at the end of the line. "I wanna buy some for you." Seeing the questioning look in Kagome's eyes, he blushed a little and muttered, "Your mama said your papa bought her shaved ice to eat the first time they were at a festival together, and I wanna buy some for you, alright?"

Kagome stepped closer to him, squeezing his arm. "Thanks Yash. I'd really like that", she whispered, her eyes bright. She was more than a little touched that he would think of doing something like that.

She rested her head on his shoulder for a moment. This soft side of him, that she had only just discovered, would it all go away once they went back to the past? She knew she would understand that private moments together would be few and far between, especially travelling with first class gossips like Miroku, Sango and Shippou, but she hoped that there would still be some moments. An image of Kikyou popped into her head again, and she pushed it away angrily.

She shifted from one foot to the other, leaning on Inuyasha a little more as they slowly moved forwards in the line.

"What's up wench?", asked Inuyasha, taking in the way she was leaning to one side, resting her weight against him. "Your leg's hurtin' ain't it. Do you need to go home?"

Kagome sighed, smiling at him. "I can't get anything past you, can I dog boy? It aches a little, but I think I'll be okay if I sit down for a while. Besides, we can't go home yet. Dancing, remember?"

Inuyasha ignored her teasing look and his sharp eyes spotted an empty bench not too far away, under the cover of the trees at the edge of the park. During the day it would be a shady place to sit out of the sun, but now it looked peaceful and calm, away from the hustle and bustle of the festival. He pointed it out to Kagome. "Go sit down now, and I'll wait in line. I'll bring it over to you."

"Are you sure you'll be okay?"

"It's not rocket science", Inuyasha huffed. He wasn't exactly sure what that phrase meant, but Kagome often said it when she thought something would be easy, so it seemed applicable. "Go sit down, before your leg starts hurting more."

Smiling at his use at one of her phrases, she did as he asked, limping a little as she went. She sat down on the bench and stretched her injured leg out. Her thigh did hurt, a dull ache with a pulling, tugging feeling deep within the muscle which she was sure had to do with her body healing, but there was no way she was going home. She was having a wonderful time with Inuyasha, talking and laughing, just like a normal couple would. She smiled a little at that thought. Normal was the last word that she would use to describe their relationship, but there was nothing she wanted more.

She must have been thinking for longer than she realised, because when she looked up again, Inuyasha was standing in front of her, two paper cups of ice held in his hands.

"Here", he said, holding hers out with a slightly sheepish expression, "I forgot to ask what flavour you wanted, so I got all of them."

Kagome looked at the veritable rainbow of ice in his hands. Strawberry, melon, lemon, mango, lime and bright blue syrup decorated the ice in thin stripes. "It's beautiful! I never would have thought to get more than one flavour, but now I can try them all!" She plunged the small spoon into the blue ice at the edge and licked her lips at the sticky sweet flavour. "What did you get Inuyasha?"

'The red one", said Inuyasha, looking at the ice a little uncertainly. He'd never seen food quite this… bright… before.

"You need to eat it quickly, or it will melt", laughed Kagome.

Inuyasha plunged his spoon into the centre of the paper cup and shovelled a full spoon of ice into his mouth. "Cold!", he coughed, spluttering a little. Then the intense sweetness of the red syrup burst across his tongue, and he looked up at Kagome, wide eyed.

"Are you okay?"

"It's a little sweet", he said huskily. He'd never been grateful for not having his full range of senses before, but if it tasted this strong to him right now, he didn't want to think at how it would have tasted on a normal night.

"It's okay if you don't like it you know" said Kagome cheerfully, shovelling spoonfuls of the syrupy sweet ice into her mouth. "We don't all have to like the same things. I don't like pickled ginger the same way that you do."

Inuyasha sat the cup of ice down on the bench carefully, and watched Kagome eat hers. She had eaten a third of the way through, carefully not mixing her flavours, her eyes closed in enjoyment. A sudden idea made him smile.

"Hey wench, can I have that for a moment?" he asked, tugging on her paper cup of ice.

"Hey, get your greedy hands off!", joked Kagome. "Did you want to try a different flavour Inuyasha?"

"No, I just thought of a game", said Inuyasha, holding her icy treat carefully in his hands. "You taught me a game, and now I wanna play a different one. Close your eyes."

Kagome looked at him warily. "This game wouldn't involve that cup of ice down the front of my yukata would it?"

Inuyasha grinned wickedly. "Hadn't thought of that one. Thanks for the idea Kagome, maybe I could try that another time", he snickered. He waved the spoon over the flavoured ice. "No, I wanna see if you can guess the flavour without looking."

"Oh." Kagome looked at him carefully for a moment. It was dark over here, away from the lights of the festival, and a little harder to read his expression. He was smiling, but she didn't think he was going to play any tricks on her.

"Don't ya trust me wench?"

Kagome sighed, and closed her eyes, then opened one rapidly to see if she could catch him doing anything sneaky, but all he had done was placed the spoon into the cup.

"Hey, don't cheat!"

Kagome sighed again and closed her eyes.

"You ready?" She nodded. "Open up."

Cautiously opening her mouth, her tongue tingled as Inuyasha delicately placed a spoonful of ice into her mouth. She rolled the flavour around her tongue – it was a little sweet from the syrup, but mostly tart. "Is it lemon? The yellow one?" she asked.

"Good guess Kagome. Lets see if you can do it again. Open."

The next flavour was much sweeter, almost sickly sweet. Kagome rolled it around her mouth again, licking her lips thoughtfully to catch a small drop of syrup that escaped. She couldn't quite guess the flavour as it mostly just tasted of sweet, but remembering Inuyasha's extreme reaction to the taste of the strawberry, she hazarded a guess. "Is it the red one?"

"Hmm, you're good at this, wench. Let's try one more", said Inuyasha a little huskily.

She parted her lips, ready for another spoonful of shaved ice, and almost squeaked in surprise as she felt the heat of Inuyasha's hands on her cheeks, and the warmth of his mouth on hers. He licked at her lips gently, as if asking permission, and she opened her mouth to him, inviting him in. His tongue swept delicately across hers, feeling almost hot after the chill of the ice, teasing her tastebuds with the sweetness of syrup he had eaten earlier. But before she could respond in kind, he was pulling his mouth away, resting his forehead against hers.

"Sorry", he said, panting a little. "I hadn't planned on doing that, but when you licked your lips, you just looked so…"

Kagome stroked him gently on the cheek. "Hey, it's okay. You surprised me a little, but I liked it." He seemed a little less sure of himself compared to earlier today, and she wanted to soothe him, let him know that she loved him no matter what he looked like on the outside.

Her thumbs ran gently over the hardness of his jaw and across the soft skin of his cheek, and his eyes closed as he leaned into her touch. These last few days had shown her an Inuyasha full of contrasts. Boastful and uncertain. Restless and still. Angry and loving. She wanted to get to know him better, experience all of his moods, feel closer to him. If they were going back through the well tomorrow, there would be hardly any chances like this, and she wanted to grasp it with both hands. That one kiss wasn't enough; she wanted more.

She looked down at the almost empty cup of ice. Her cheeks were burning, a little embarrassed at the audacity of her decision to ask him to kiss her again, but she had never been one to back away from a challenge. She glanced quickly around, but she didn't think anyone would notice them here in the gathering dark, when there was so much light and movement over at the festival. And in truth, the idea that there were people close by, made her heart beat a little faster.

Taking a deep breath, she picked up the cup of shaved ice that was beginning to melt in the summer heat. "Look Inuyasha, there's one last flavour left to try." She spooned a large mouthful of the mango flavoured ice onto her tongue and let it melt, watching his expression with her large doe like eyes, licking her lips. Inuyasha eyes followed her tongue as it slowly traced a path around the soft skin of her mouth. Putting the cup and spoon down, she reached her arms out and wrapped them around his neck, smiling a little nervously but with so much love in her eyes. "Would you like to try this flavour too?"

Inuyasha didn't waste any time on words. His hands moved around her waist as he drew her close to him, his lips moving against hers in a burning kiss, running his tongue around her lips where hers had been just moments before. He chuckled against her. "I think I like this flavour most of all."

Kagome's hands moved from his neck to his hair, scratching his scalp, moving upwards towards where his ears usually were.

"Forget what night it was there for a moment did you wench." Inuyasha's hands lifted her, carefully minding her injury, so she was sitting in his lap.

"Sorry", stuttered Kagome. She moved her hands downwards towards the back of his neck again, as his tongue gently teased hers.

"Don't worry 'bout it Kagome", he said softly, kissing her gently. "It still amazes me that you'd want to touch any part of me at all."

Kagome smiled against his mouth, her fingernails softly scratching the skin behind his human ears.

"I like your dog ears" she whispered. "They're sooo soft. And they tell me more about what you're feeling sometimes than your words do." She placed gentle kisses from the corner of his mouth across his cheek, and then gently bit the fleshy ear lobe of Inuyasha's human ear. "But maybe I like these almost as much."

"Hnn, Kagome", he moaned, as she nibbled her way down from his ear to his throat and licked over his pulse, breathing on the wet skin like he had done to her yesterday. "We're gonna have to take this down a notch."

"Why?", breathed Kagome, kissing her way back over to Inuyasha's soft lips. Inuyasha's reaction to her kisses made her feel powerful. She loved that she was able to make him feel a little out of control. She softly bit down on his bottom lip, teasing him with her teeth.

He answered her with a bruising kiss, his hands on her waist pushing downwards as his hips ground up against her. She moaned into his mouth, her breasts pushing into the hardness of his muscular chest.

"Kagome", Inuyasha groaned, moving his hands from her waist to cup her face gently, and with a loud sigh, pushed her backwards to create a little space between them, placing a chaste kiss on her forehead.

He smiled at her mutinous expression and ran his fingers through her dark mussed-up curls, trying to neaten it for her.

"Slow down my baby girl, we've got all the time in the world. I don't wanna rush this, okay?"

"I thought you said the other day that I wasn't a baby", pouted Kagome, still breathing hard.

Inuyasha chuckled darkly. "No, you're definitely not a baby."

Kagome moved in his lap, seating herself so she leaned against him, her head on his shoulder. She reached out and twirled one of the dark sidelocks of his hair around her finger. Sighing deeply, her bottom lip trembled, and without really knowing why she was crying, a single hot tear rolled off her cheek and onto the thin fabric of Inuyasha's yukata.

"Kagome?", he asked, tentatively.

"Tomorrow we're going back through the well", she sighed. "Everything will go back to the way it was before. Miroku and Sango will tease you, and you'll be embarrassed and won't talk to me about stuff anymore. You'll ignore me and go sit in a tree and then run off with Kikyou the first time her soul collectors turn up. My feelings will get hurt about it, and you'll get upset because I'm hurt and get all defensive and say, 'now's not the time to talk about it Kagome', and I'll keep loving you even though it hurts to even look at you. Then I'll remind myself why you should prefer her anyway, because she's beautiful and can actually use her powers properly like a miko should, and can shoot arrows without looking all…

"Whoa, whoa, hold up there a second", said Inuyasha, turning Kagome in his lap so that she faced him. "How did we move from us kissing to you spouting all this crap? Kagome, for someone who's actually very smart, you can really think some stupid things."

Kagome hit him in the arm, hard. "It's not stupid", she hissed, her bottom lip trembling again. "This is exactly what's been going on. Just because you're too obtuse to notice doesn't mean it isn't happening!"

Inuyasha ran his hand down his face, taking in Kagome's defiant but fragile expression. He hated talking about this sort of stuff. It made him feel awkward, because he couldn't find the words to match exactly how he felt, and opening himself up to anyone emotionally was as good as an invitation for them to smack him down again. But this was Kagome. His Kagome. And thinking all this was hurting her.

"I'm not very good at talking about this stuff", began Inuyasha, and then paused, hurt, when Kagome rolled her eyes at him, and sighed melodramatically.

"Fine", he said, tight lipped. He moved her off of his lap, not roughly, but not with quite the same gentleness as before. "I wanted to talk, but obviously you know better. I mean what would a hanyou know about feelings and relationships and stuff like that when they don't deserve to have them in the first place?"

"That's not what I meant, and you know it you jerk! You always make that excuse, that you're not good at talking about feelings."

"For fucks sake Kagome, I say it because it's the truth! You wanna know why I never spoke to you about Kikyou? Because I didn't know how I felt! How was I s'posed to put it into words if I couldn't even get it straight in my own head? She was dead, and then she was alive. She was a sweet gentle person who I loved, and now she's a homicidal bitch, but it's not her fault because she never asked for this. She never asked for any of this. I can't just leave her alone! She doesn't deserve that. I know what it's like to be lonely, to have no one in your corner who cares whether you live or die. I can't do that to her."

Kagome reeled back as if Inuyasha had slapped her, and slid to the ground, her arms wrapped around her knees. There was a faint noise of static in her ears, and she felt dull, lifeless, emotionless. There was a sharp pain in her chest, as if her heart were actually cracking. How had it all gone so wrong?

"I understand", she said in a monotone voice. "You choose her."

"Dammit Kagome!" Inuyasha dropped to the ground in front of her, placing his palms on her cheeks. When she tried to pull away, he held onto her more strongly. "No Kagome", he growled. "This ends right now!"

At the word 'end', she couldn't help the fat tears that began pouring down her cheeks, or the sobs that constricted her chest. She didn't have it in her to fight anymore. "If you were always going to go back to her, why did you kiss me?", she moaned. "Why did you let me believe I had a chance at all?" She slumped forward and didn't even struggle when Inuyasha pulled her onto his lap.

"Stupid wench", he muttered, his own voice thick with emotion. He tucked her head under his chin, rocking gently to try and calm her sobs. "You better listen now and listen good to what I have to say. I'll say it every day, every hour, every minute if I have to, until you get it into that pretty little head of yours." He took a deep breath.

"When I look at Kikyou, I see death. I see sadness and regret. I see a woman I once cared about who has been abused by evil, and I can't help but want to set her free, but that's all I want. When I look at her, I see my past. But my Kagome, when I look at you…" his voice choked for a moment, and he cleared his throat.

"Kagome, when I look at you, I see strength. I see determination to put things right, even if the odds are stacked against you. I see caring and empathy for others, no matter who they are. I see the first real friend I ever had."

He kissed away the tears that were slowly rolling down Kagome's face. "I see an inner fire that makes me want to fight for you and keep you safe. I see a heart that beats for me, like mine beats for you." He kissed her on the lips tenderly and gazed into her eyes. "I was born to find you Kagome. When I look at you, I see my future. I don't know what else I can say to prove to you how much I love you."

Kagome threw her arms around Inuyasha's neck and hugged him tight. She started crying again, but these tears were healing and happy, not the choking sobs of despair that she had been crying before.

"Oi, stop it with the waterworks wench. I'm pretty sure your mother has a machine for washing clothes, we don't need your tears to do it."

Kagome giggled through her tears and sat back to look into Inuyasha's face. His eyes were red, and he sniffed a little self-consciously. He dabbed at her damp face with his sleeve.

"You're all snotty again wench, but I don't have any tissues to blow your nose for you."

"That's okay", smiled Kagome. "I think I have some in here." She opened up the tiny drawstring bag, and after producing house keys, a phone, lip balm, coins and notes, and band aids, she finally produced a small package of tissues.

"It's like a tiny version of the yellow backpack", said Inuyasha in wonder. "Do you have a medical bag in there too? A packed lunch? Change of clothes?"

Kagome slapped his arm. "Quiet, you." She blew her nose loudly, and then placed everything back in the little bag. "You do realise that I'm never going to believe you again, when you say that you're no good at talking about feelings."

Inuyasha rubbed the back of his neck. "That was a one-time event. Never to be repeated. I don't have anything left in me to say."

"Oh really?", teased Kagome, snuggling up to his chest. "I thought you were going to tell me every day, every hour, every minute?"

He scoffed, wrapping his arms around her. "You get the short and sweet version."

"And what's that?"

"I. Love. You. Kagome."

"I like it. Short and to the point."

Inuyasha kissed the top of her head. "I don't know how good I'll be at saying it in front of other people who aren't you though", he said cautiously.

"That's alright. I'm the only person who needs to hear it." She popped her head up and stroked his cheek. "You know that I love you too Yash, right?"

He smiled at her a little mistily. "After all that, I should hope so."

"So, Inuyasha, are you ready to go dancing now?"

Inuyasha flopped backwards, so he was lying flat in the grass. "You're joking right?" he whined. "After all that, my stomach feels like I've just had Sesshomaru's fist through my gut again. I'm not dancing Kagome, and you can't make me."

"I'll buy you some more teriyaki chicken?"

Inuyasha moaned loudly but sat up again. "You drive a hard bargain wench. Okay. Just one dance, right? Can we go back to the shrine after that?"

"One teriyaki chicken. One dance. Then home. Sounds like a plan." Kagome pushed herself to her feet, hissing a little when her thigh pulled again.

"Kagome, maybe we should…"

"No way!", she said, pointing her finger at his chest. "You said dancing! This is probably the only time I will ever get you to agree to this, so I'm not giving up. You can just carry me home."

"Fine", he groused. "I should get two servings of chicken then. Gotta keep my strength up."

They dusted each other off, making sure they looked mostly presentable, before venturing back into the light and noise of the festival. After pausing to buy two servings of teriyaki chicken for Inuyasha, and a quick stop at the sweet stall so Kagome could buy a gift each for Miroku, Sango and Shippou, they ventured over towards the dancing at the centre of the field. Standing at the edge, watching Souta mucking around with his friends was Mama Higurashi.

"Ah, I wondered where you two had got to. Where were you?"

Inuyasha pointed behind him, towards the edge of the park. "Talking."

Mama fished a leaf out of Inuyasha's hair that Kagome must have missed in the dark. She raised an eyebrow at him, and he smiled at her a little sheepishly.

"Mostly talking."

Stepping in to rescue him, Kagome said, "We were talking. I just had some questions about how things were going to be when we went back through the well tomorrow."

"Ah, I see", said Mama. "And did Inuyasha answer your questions?"

"Definitely", she said. The look of love that she gave him nearly stopped Mama's heart.

"So Inuyasha, I take it that you two are a couple now?"

"A couple?", he repeated cautiously, as if not quite understanding the meaning of the word. He reached out and took Kagome's hand. "Wherever Kagome goes, I will follow. Doesn't matter where, doesn't matter when."

"Ah", smiled Mama. "That definitely sounds like a couple to me. Congratulations." She pushed them both a little, so they moved out into the flow of dancers. "Go dance you two. The festival will be over soon. Dance while you can!"

She laughed at them both, Inuyasha doing his best to copy Kagome's movements, and Kagome getting them wrong because she was laughing too hard.

Mama looked up at the stars. "Doesn't matter where, doesn't matter when huh. Toshi, maybe you could keep an eye on the for me when they're out of my reach. And save a dance for me, dear heart. I will be coming to find you again, some day."

She turned her gaze back down from the heavens to smile at her small son, weaving in and around Kagome and Inuyasha, laughing as Inuyasha finally picked him up and threw him over one shoulder to keep him out of the way.

So, they finally had 'that' conversation. I'm not guaranteeing that it will fix everything to do with Kikyou, but it's a good start. Hope you liked the festival. Most of this was based on Japanese Matsuri festival I've been to here in Sydney, and online research. I hope it sounded okay. I would dearly love to attend Bon Odori in Japan one day.

[prettywordsyouleft]

The Sex Contract - Chapter 18

Genre: friends to lovers au / friends with benefits / mature content / romance / angst

Characters: Shim Changmin x Kaia Ashton (OC)

A/N: Due to the overwhelming request I have followed your encouragement to bring back one of my older stories. This was back in a time where OCs were everything and writing one chapter in each main’s point of view was the trend. I hope that even though I have edited this drastically, that you can appreciate this story comes from my older style of writing. I definitely still read this often and find it enjoyable so I hope you will too.

Prologue | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 - FINAL

Chapter 18 – Kaia’s POV.

It was irrational and fully based on emotions but Kaia promptly decided she couldn’t stay anymore. She took one look around her and went straight for her luggage bag, hoisting it up onto the bed and started to messily pack her belongings into it. The tears soon came and her stomach was eating at itself with guilt. Kaia knew she couldn’t take it anymore; she couldn’t be here watching Changmin live the way he was, remaining oblivious to how she felt. Kaia knew she could tell him but the reality of that was harsh, it was impossible for Changmin to date her. Kaia’s only option was to get out of this contract and hope one day that their friendship would return.

For now though, she needed to escape. After finishing her packing, she tried to quietly depart the apartment, opting to carry the heavy luggage bag so its wheels didn’t sound across the wooden floors. Kaia made it to the front door, and after slipping her feet into her shoes, she opened it. Once out in the hallway, she briskly made her way out of the building, hoping no one had heard her departure. With a final look up at the complex, Kaia wiped away her tears and started dragging her luggage down the still bustling sidewalk. Her pace dwindled, and she eventually found a bench to sit down on. Kaia didn’t know what her next move was. If she went home now, she would be in trouble for not finishing her report of TVXQ’s trip to Japan. However, her front row journalism would be difficult to achieve considering she had decided to avoid Changmin. Lowering her head, she let out a defeated sigh. The contract had damaged so much and they had both been oblivious to the destruction in its path. All the little comments Yunho had been making clicked in her head, and Kaia wondered why the warning bells hadn’t gone off earlier. He had been able to see the outcome before anyone else.

Pulling out her phone, Kaia was slightly relieved that her departure hadn’t been detected after all. Dialling a familiar number, she listened to it ring a couple of times. The recipient cleared his throat before answering. Taking a shallow breath, Kaia played with the handle on my bag. “Jae, I have to leave Tokyo but I hope we can meet in Korea sometime.”

“Tell me where you are? Are you at the airport?!” He was suddenly alert and Kaia grimaced, wondering if it had of better to just text the Korean. Smiling, she knew that there would have been no way to escape Jaewon easily either way. “Kaia?!”

“I’m sitting on a bench on the sidewalk. But I could meet you at our Starbucks?” she answered after a bit and could hear that he was moving quickly around his room.

“I’ll be there, don’t leave until I am, okay?” The phone call clicked off and Kaia slowly got to her feet, heading to the coffee shop she now knew how to get to without little trouble. By the time she reached it, Kaia was surprised to see Jaewon already sitting inside the coffee shop, his dark eyes relaxing when he caught sight of her. She was slightly taken back by his reaction but smiled never the less. Making her way over to the table, she sat down and scooted her luggage bag as close as she could.

“Sorry for getting you up out of bed, I felt I should let you know that I’m heading back to Korea,” I explained and Jaewon nodded.

“When do you leave?”

“I just booked a flight whilst coming over here, it leaves at five-thirty AM.” Kaia sighed and gave a weak smile. Jaewon eyed her curiously.

“Did something happen with that musician you’re here with?”

She shook her head. “Not much, I just can’t hack this lifestyle. And to be honest I actually miss Seoul.”

“You’re running away.” He raised an eyebrow at her. “And you like the guy you came with, but he obviously hasn’t noticed you like that so you can’t handle living his lifestyle when he won’t live yours a little too.”

Kaia blinked, wondering how Jaewon had picked all that up without her even mentioning it. She let out a little laugh, hoping it didn’t sound as phony as it did to her own ears. Kaia pointed at Jaewon and wagged her index finger at him. “Have you been watching Korean dramas, Jae? This is the real world, I wouldn’t even dream of thinking I could get with Ch-- my friend.”

“Well, I’ll miss ya, its been fun having you tag along with promotions. You will keep in contact right? So many people say they will, but then never do.”

“Jaewon.” Kaia smiled warmly and nodded. “How could I forget my hero? Course I’ll keep in contact.”

“Email me your home address,” he instructed and she looked at him weirdly. He smirked and leaned over the table towards her. “So I can come stalk you.”

“You would,” Kaia replied with a chuckle and he laughed with her. She sighed a moment later. “Thanks for everything though Jae, I-”

He shook his index finger. “Don’t make the mood sad again, or I will worry and press you for all the details.”

“Alright, I promise. After this drink, I should make my way to the airport though.”

“Well, let’s make this drink last,” he said with another laugh and launched into conversation.

By the time Kaia reached the airport, the comfort of Jaewon’s company was slowly wearing off. She kept checking her watch for the time and not because she was worried about her flight. She had worked out that Changmin and Yunho would wake up half an hour before the boarding time and although she had estimated it nearly impossible for either of them to make it to the airport, Kaia was still paranoid that they would try and respond before she left for Korea.

Now, who’s the one thinking of Korean drama scenes? Kaia thought in attempts to calm down. She even let out a little laugh; the idea of Changmin coming after her did seem highly unlikely. But there was a tiny part of her, foolish to even think of it, that wanted him to realise her feelings and to chase after her.  Sighing heavily, Kaia knew that would never happen. Even if he wanted to, he wasn’t just Shim Changmin, but Choikang Changmin, one half of TVXQ. The idea became depressing as the time went by. Blinking back her tears, Kaia tried to focus on something to make the wait speed up. After sending a text to Keith and Sungra about returning home, she attempted to play a game on the device and failed to play it correctly. Eventually frustrated, Kaia shoved the phone in her pocket, folding her arms across her chest.

Looking up at the overhead screen, Kaia noticed the plane was open for boarding and got to her feet, heading for the boarding gate. The hostess bowed at her lightly and she handed over her ticket and passport. Kaia barely listened to what she had to say, her eyes looking around the terminal. It was busy, as expected of any airport, but within the sea of faces, she didn’t see any familiar ones. Kaia almost laughed out loud at her foolishness and took my passport back before heading through the doors. She didn’t stop walking until she was in the lounge, taking a heavy seat on a cushioned bench. Kaia regulated her breathing, trying to wrestle with the scolding her rational mind was giving. Just as she was calming down, Kai heard her phone go off, and she froze for a moment, before scrambling for the device in her pocket.

Unlocking it, she was instantly let down when she saw it was from Jaewon. Kicking herself again, Kaia opened the message and blinked several times. Her frazzled mind re-read the simple sentence several times before she took a really good look at it. 

Jaewon: Kaia, I really like you. I hope we can meet up in Korea soon. Jae x

“What is up with today?” She murmured as realisation hit that Jaewon meant he liked her more than a friend. She couldn’t help but smile, imagining how awkward he would be feeling and fretting over getting a response. She realised at that she liked him too. Although Kaia was so wrapped up in her feelings for Changmin, rational thoughts started to occur. She enjoyed Jaewon’s company and found him attractive. He was available to give her more time of the day than Changmin ever would. And he didn’t want her for just sex. The idea of Jaewon’s confession became more appealing by the minute and she was soon grinning, wondering how she should respond. Kaia hesitated for a moment, knowing that things could get tricky for her if he found out about Changmin.

He’s unattainable. You could be with someone who wants you for more than physical needs. Kaia smiled as the thought firmly stamped out her doubts and texted Jaewon back, telling him she was looking forward to meeting with him again.

She boarded the plane with a new resolve to her needs.

“Where are the tears eh? Here I was expecting a friend who looked like a mess after the text I received telling me to come and pick you up four days ahead of schedule.”

“Thanks for the welcome home Keith,” Kaia mentioned as the man who had stepped forth to hug her pulled away. She gave him a strong look. “You’ve lost weight.”

“Fretting over you being in Japan, of course.”

“Hah.” Kaia glanced around her friend and blinked a couple of times, noticing for the first time that Sungra had accompanied him to pick her up. They shared a look before she lurched forward, Kaia’s arms soon clinging to Sungra’s petite frame. Kaia started to cry, a wave of nostalgia hitting her. She had missed Sungra more than she had realised.

“I’m sorry,” Sungra said as the tears slowed down and Kaia looked at her best friend and shook her head.

“No, that’s my line, I’m sorry I was such a shit friend. I should have told you, I was just-”

“Scared that I’d put you into a difficult position, I know.” Sungra smiled. “You were right not to you know, I probably would have asked you to let me meet them just once.”

“Can we still do that?” Keith asked with a grin and Kaia shoved him playfully. “No I’m serious; I’d love to say I met a God.”

“Shush you, let Kai relax first before we ask her for all the goss.”

Kaia groaned and started rolling her suitcase to the exit. “Do I really have to? It’s bad enough I have to face Minah and tell her that I’m unable to finish my job.”

“Minah already knows you’re back in Korea too.”

Kaia gasped and looked at Keith, clamping her eyes shut and stopping in her tracks. Sungra laughed heartily. “Kaia Ashton, you will forever be the most dramatic person I know.”

“I don’t want to get fired from two jobs!” Kaia wailed and then cringed as she felt both of her friends grab an arm each.

“First, we’re going to get some decent coffee. Secondly, you are going to tell us everything this time. No details are to be left out, understand?” Keith and Sungra were both looking at her sternly and Kaia sighed, nodding her head.

She just wondered how she was going to explain the mess she had left behind.

_________________

Part 19

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[timmyrx2000]

Dipper Steps Up: Chapter 11

Chapter Index: (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)

Chapter 11

Wendy tiptoed downstairs early the next morning and woke Dipper. "Hey, dude," she said, sitting on the sofa next to where he lay huddled in a blanket. "Wanna go for a walk and show me your nabe?"

"Uh—what?" Dipper asked, holding onto the blanket a little more tightly.

"Your neighborhood, man!" Wendy said, grinning. "See, I've only ever been to California like three times before this, and we never got anywhere near as far south as the Bay area. I wanna see where you live."

"S-sure," Dipper said. "Where are my, uh, jeans?"

"Here ya go."

He took them. "Th-thanks. If, uh, you know, you might want to step into the hall—"

"C'mon, man! I got three brothers! I gotta take you campin' so you can get over some of these hang-ups! Or—hey, don't tell me you sleep raw?" She playfully grabbed the blanket, and he held on to make sure she couldn't yank it down.

She flipped it up instead. "Yup," she said. "I kinda figured you for a tighty-whitey guy. Get your jeans and shoes on. We don't have a whole lot of time."

She had changed to her normal outfit of green plaid flannel shirt over a white undershirt, jeans, her logging boots—and Dipper's pine-tree hat. He donned her trapper hat, and she chuckled. "Remember, dude, we have a date in June to meet in the Shack and exchange headgear again!"

They sauntered along the rows of houses, Dipper stammering out an excuse that it was only suburbia, after all. "Yeah," she said, "but it's interesting to me! I mean, my whole life we've lived away out in the woods, like five miles from our closest neighbor. This looks friendlier."

He had the inspiration to take her to Piedmont Park, which meandered for a good many acres and featured hills, a small stream (complete with waterfall), a fountain—normal park stuff, as Soos might say. And on the trail, she—she reached out and took his hand. "You were real brave," Wendy said. "Mabel told me all about it."

Dipper shrugged. "Chuck's a good friend. Couldn't let a ghost get him."

"Yeah, but Ford says old Nathaniel always held a grudge in life. You watch your butt from now on, hear? And if you see any sign of him, you get on the horn to me right away. Don't wait until he shows up dragging a chain through your bedroom or some junk."

A couple of fit-looking women in headbands and leotards, out jogging on this early Sunday morning, ran toward them, chatting. They waved and smiled.

When they had pounded past, Dipper said miserably. "Now they'll talk about how I'm way too short for you. And too young. They'll make fun of us."

She squeezed his hand. "So what? Let 'em giggle. And you know, you've grown like four inches since last summer. I think I finally leveled off, so you're catchin' up a little." They stopped in the middle of a wooden bridge, and Wendy added, "Mm, we could almost be out in the woods here. This is nice, man. Hey, let me see if you're really too short for me."

Dipper wasn't prepared. She leaned—just a little—and kissed him quickly on the lips. Then, ruffling his hair and smiling, she whispered, "Mm, dude, not too short at all."

For the rest of the way, he walked on air.

Ford insisted that Mabel and Dipper accompany him and Wendy to the hospital. They arrived a little ahead of time. Though Chuck was sleeping, Mrs. Taylor was already awake, and they found an empty waiting room for a quick conversation. "I keep hearing what a wonderful doctor you are," she said.

Ford shrugged. "Mostly based on a few papers I did for medical journals. I'm not in practice. However, this is—a special case, as you know. Tell me: How much does Chuck remember?"

She shook her head. "Not very much at all. From the time he blacked out, he says he just has flashes, like pieces of a dream that he's almost forgotten. He sort of remembers jumping out the window, but then nothing until Dipper and Mabel pushed him down in the labyrinth."

"That's when the spirit of Nathaniel Northwest was forced out of him," Ford said.

"He—he says he felt—not angry at them, but—but sad, because it was like he'd lost something."

"His own spirit was dormant within him," Ford said. "Believe me, if the kids had been just a minute late, Chuck would have been thrust completely out of his body, fully aware—but invisible. He would have become the ghost, and Nathaniel would have taken over his body completely."

"And that's a terrible feeling," Dipper said. When Mrs. Taylor stared at him, he added, "I know. Don't ask me how, but I do."

A few minutes later, Chuck woke up still feeling a little groggy, and his left arm obviously hurt him. He acted embarrassed when Mabel kissed his cheek. "I, uh—was I talking crazy yesterday, Mabel?"

"Meh," she said, shrugging. "Nothing so cray-cray that I hated it!" She glanced around and lowered her voice. "So—you still want to hang out with me?"

"Yeah!" he said, and immediately blushed.

"You got it," Mabel said happily.

Ford, Dipper, and his mom explained to him exactly what had happened, and he grew pale. But then Ford handed Mabel a thin chain with a tiny gem. "Give it to him," he said. When Chuck took it from her, Ford said seriously, "Chuck, this will protect you. We can't destroy a ghost, but we've dealt him a blow that he'll have to recover from before he can be a threat. As long as you wear this, you're safe. Now, when you're twenty-one, the threat is over. You can take it off the day after your twenty-first birthday—but hang on to it. When you marry, and if you have children, pass it along to your first son."

Now Chuck blushed again. He looked sideways at Mabel. "Uh—what if it's twins?"

Dipper had to turn away to keep from laughing where Chuck could see him. But Ford very seriously said, "One will still be the first-born son, and he's the one you have to protect. Remember that."

Dipper recovered his poise and said, "Until then, tell the guys on the team that a girl—"

"Your girl," Wendy corrected. Mabel giggled.

"Your girl," Dipper continued, "gave it to you and it's your lucky charm."

Chuck sighed. "I—won't be on the team," he said. "Broken arm will put me out for the rest of the season."

"Next year, then!" Mabel said. "'Cause you're no quitter!"

Chuck reached for her hand. "Next year," he said, making it sound like a promise.

All too soon, Ford and Wendy had to leave for the Oakland airport—"Second time I've been in a plane, guys!" Wendy said. "Stanley told me it would be awful, but I like it!"

Practice started again Monday afternoon. The team heard the news and practice went—well, terrible, to be honest. As Coach Waylund patiently pointed out the many errors and problems, Dipper said, "Uh, Coach? Chuck will come back to school on Wednesday or Thursday. Is it OK if he comes to practice? To, you know, watch and advise us?"

"I'll be disappointed if he doesn't," Waylund said. "Tell him that. By the way, Pines, where's your cap?"

"Uh, it, uh, blew off," Dipper said. "I couldn't find it."

"Well, pick up a replacement before Saturday's game," Waylund said. "That fur thing is an interesting fashion statement, but it won't do for playing baseball. Did you go back and look for the cap?"

"I couldn't find it," Dipper said. That was a white lie. A team of horses chained to him couldn't drag him back to that labyrinth.

Chuck made it to Thursday practice, not dressed out, but wearing his own cap. He watched the guys practice fielding, and during a break he called Dipper over. "Take off your trapper hat," he said. Then he clapped his own baseball cap onto Dipper's head. "Here, use mine. I won't need it for the rest of the season."

Dipper touched the brim. "Aw—thanks, man. Up high!"

Mabel had started coming to every single practice—in fact now she sat in the dugout—and she said, "Don't worry, Chuck, I'll buy you a new one myself! And Brobro, don't you ever get rid of that one! That's your lucky charm!"

The Saturday game was against the Palo Alto Pirates—not a game that the team would dread, ordinarily, since the Panthers and Pirates were on a roughly equal footing and had very similar win-loss records.

However, without Chuck . . ..

In the locker room, guys got dressed out and sat in gloom on the benches, muttering to each other and pounding their fists in their gloves. Dipper felt edgy and couldn't stop pacing, his cleats clicking on the tile floor. He had a sinking feeling that everything was about to go wrong—and it would be mostly his fault. He'd been lousy in the last three practices.

He kept adjusting Chuck's cap on his head and telling himself, "Calm down, calm down, calm down!" That only made him more nervous.

Then he heard a couple of guys yell, and he turned to see Chuck grinning, wearing his jersey—except only one button was buttoned, so it could hang over his cast like a cloak. He was high-fiving everyone, Barb, Bobby, Petey, Kenk. "So, who died?" he yelled. "C'mon, you guys, show a little life! The Pirates are pushovers!"

He scooped up Dipper's batting helmet and smooshed it into Hi-Ho's face. "Smells like victory!" Chuck yelled.

"Foo! Victory stinks, man!" Hi-Ho shot back, shoving the smelly helmet away. He hugged Chuck, carefully, avoiding the cast, which now sported dozens of autographs, including the whole team, plus a great big red heart with MABEL in squooshy-looking balloon letters. "Seriously, dude, good to have you here. You gonna sit in the dugout?"

"Duh!" Chuck said. "I'm gonna keep notes, too, so you guys play good, or you'll have to answer to me."

Well, that was a positive send-off. Too bad it didn't last.

The game didn't begin badly. The Pirates won the toss and chose to bat first—always their preference, because their coach believed getting on the board early was a key to shaking up an opposing team. They did score one run, but in the bottom of the second Piedmont not only tied, but got one up when Mike crossed the plate. Unfortunately, the next batter popped out and the Panthers took the field again.

Dipper couldn't shake his attack of nerves. He kept pounding his glove and scraping his cleats as he played second, but he had the panicky feeling that if he went for a line drive he'd miss it. Or fumble the ball when trying to tag out a runner. Do something stupid.

Mabel, who had become a crowd favorite, was working extra hard, boogying, turning cartwheels, leaping, leading enthusiastic cheers. That day, she seemed more a distraction than a morale booster to Dipper. He felt bad that Chuck was watching his lackluster performance and kept thinking how much better it would be if Chuck could stand on the mound.

By the time the fifth inning ended, each team had upped its score, and the teams were locked in a 3-3 tie. And as the sixth started, everything just fell apart.

The first Pirate up to bat hit a clean single, and he led off first base so far that Dipper kept trying to send telepathic messages to Jon-J on the mound: Throw to first!

It didn't work. The next man up smacked a long fly past Petey, the right fielder, who finally backpedaled and misjudged it, catching it on the bounce. He threw to Dipper, but wide, and though Dipper managed—barely—to get to the throw and catch it, the runner was already standing on second base. Dipper threw the ball to the pitcher and watched Jon-J shaking his head and smacking the ball hard into his glove. Bobby, catching, sent him two signals that he shook off.

Jon-J had a good fastball, and he tried it. The batter swung, missing by a mile. That seemed to give Jon-J heart, and he threw a deliberate ball, then sizzled another fastball past the batter for a called strike. He risked one more fastball—and the batter fanned it. The next man up, though, the biggest player for the Pirates, hit another single, sending a man home and putting the Pirates up by one run. And the next Pirate virtually copied the previous one, batting in another runner.

Maybe Jon-J had strained his arm. He walked the next man, loading the bases. And the next batter smacked a weak flyball that Dipper backed up and easily caught, firing it to Bobby for a double play.

The Panthers went in to bat with the score five to three, Pirates leading. Kenk got a single—barely running out the throw to first—but then Mike, who seemed as worried as Dipper felt, misjudged every pitch and went down swinging. Petey popped out. JD and Barb both got singles, loading the bases—and then Jon-J, who looked exhausted, struck out on four pitches, just managing a weak foul tip on one.

At the top of the seventh, Jon-J put his heart into pitching, but he was obviously tired and shaken up. The first Pirate up hit a fly straight into the center fielder's glove. The next one got a single on Jon-J's first pitch. The next hit to right field, where Petey DeFoy, maybe trying to compensate for his weak performance earlier in the game, bobbled the catch, temporarily lost the ball, and then hesitated before deciding where to throw it. The error stretched a single into a double and brought in another Pirate run. Even worse, Jon-J, now badly shaken, walked the next batter, again loading the bases.

To Dipper's surprise, the coach called a time out and motioned him to come in as he walked to the mound. He got there in time to hear Waylund say, "Your call, son."

Miserably, Jon-J said, "I can't concentrate, Coach. And my arm's gone. Pull me out."

"You got it. Good try, though. Pines—take the mound."

"Wh-what?" Dipper stammered. "Coach, no, I can't—"

"Taylor says you can."

Dipper looked over at the dugout. Chuck stood waving at him, and he gave Dipper a thumbs-up.

"Take the mound, son," Waylund said kindly. "Keep your mind in the game and do your best. That's all we're asking."

Dipper warmed up, but he wasn't used to pitching. Bobby helpfully offered suggestions by means of signals from behind home plate. Dipper took them all.

Oddly, his inexperience seemed an advantage at first. He could hit the strike zone, but his pitches were erratic enough to baffle the first man up, who popped a little looper right to first base, where it was caught and fired home before the Pirates could try for another run. The next batter swung at two of Dipper's pitches—not fastballs, exactly, and not curves, but, well, dippers—but then connected for a single. And another run crossed the plate, putting the Pirates up 7-3, with the bases still loaded.

As if from a great distance, he heard Mabel off in front of the grandstand: "Dipper! Dipper! Put him out! That's what pitching's all about!"

Do it for sis.

He took a deep breath and pitched. Swung on for strike one. He considered the second and went for the outside corner, just missing it. Ball one. Strike zone again, but a little high—and the batter got a piece of it, sending a skipping grounder off to Dipper's left. Dipper lunged for it, fielded it, and whipped it to Bobby, who got the runner out as he started a desperate slide.

Then as they came to bat, it was do-or-die time for the Panthers. X-man, who looked exhausted, struck out and plodded back to the dugout. Hi-Ho got a respectable double—though he barely beat the throw to second. Bobby, who acted a little fresher than the rest of the team, hit what first looked like a home run, but it lost altitude going into the slot between left and center field, and the center fielder was just a little too slow and the hit ran out of steam and bounced off the chain-link fence. Still, Bobby, too, made it to second, and Hi-Ho scored.

And there the rally ended. Dub popped out. Dipper stepped to the plate tense and shaking, his hands soaked with sweat inside the batting gloves. He couldn't control his breathing or his pounding heart.

He was just as bad at bat as he had been back in the fall at the first practice. With the sweat of anxiety stinging his eyes, he couldn't judge the pitches and struck out one, two, three, even going after an impossible outside ball.

The Panthers lost seven to four.

And Dipper dragged into the dugout thinking It's all my fault.

He had no option. For the good of the team—

He'd have to quit.

To be continued

Note from the Authors: This was just an idea I had but the one who really worked his magic and wrote almost all of this is none other than BillEase. He’s an amazing author who usually hangs out at fanfiction.net. Don’t pass up on a chance to check out his stuff. This guy is AMAZING. He wrote the story, I just gave the plot.

[that-quiet-girl-who-writes]

State of Grace (RL.)

A/N: Look at that, I had some inspiration. ALSo look at the fricking gif a jsd;kf He is adorable, I can’t get over it. Also, random thing I did today, I asked my friend to give her phone because the wifi wouldn’t work on mine and wanted to look at pictures of Ben Barnes 😂 Lately, he has disappeared from my dash and it makes me sad

Based off: State of Grace by Taylor Swift-Red

Pairing: Young!Remus Lupin x reader

Word Count: 2858

Warnings: Swearing, fluff, bad dancing (it’s pure awkward and that is a worthy of warning)

Masterlist

I was not one to go to dances. Or quidditch games (unless my friends were playing). Or parties. Or school activities. I just didn't like being in such a crowded room with all the yelling and music and the limited space. I would much rather be in the common room or one of my friend’s dorms with them and only them. Especially Remus. He and I had a lot in common and I was sure that when they announced the Yule ball, he would stay back with me while Sirius went and got drunk while listening to James complain about how Lily had rejected his offer to be her date for the night. Turns out, I was wrong. As soon as we heard about the dance, Remus turned to me and asked me if I would go with him as a friend. Of course, going as friends made me a little disappointed (it was pretty clear to me by now that I definitely wanted to be more than friends with the boy that stayed back to read books with me rather than go to a noisy quidditch game), but I was even more disappointed that he wanted to go. I had thought we could have another night alone in his dorm, discussing the latest books we had read and joking around. However I still didn't want to give up a night of hanging out with my favourite gryffindor, so I accepted.

 ~Remus’ P.O.V.~

 He hadn't meant to do it. He had meant to ask her to the ball, but not just as friends. It had come out that way as he had been nervous and was afraid that this wasn't a good idea. Now Sirius was glaring at him from the other side of the table as Y/N continued to eat after accepting Remus’ offer.

 “Can I talk to you for a minute, Moony? Alone?”

 “Sure.” He replied and stood to walk out of the great hall along side his friend.

 As soon as they were out the doors, Sirius hit Remus from the back of the head.

 “Ow!”

 “What the bloody hell was that?”

 “What?”

 “Asking Y/N/N to the ball as friends?”

 “I was nervous.”

 “Go in there and tell her that you don't just want to go as friends.” Sirius told him, pointing at the door.

 “No.”

 “Why not?”

 “I'll get nervous again and who knows what'll slip out when I don't have any other options. I'll end up telling her I don't want to go at all.”

 “Well, you don't.”

 “Why are you reminding me? You're the one who's making me go.”

 “Because you should.”

 “You already told me that. Now, are you going to hit me again or something? Why are we still out here?”

 “Because you refuse to tell Y/N/N how you feel about her.”

 “I will. After the dance, I swear.”

 “Fine.” Sirius groaned and turned around, reentering the great hall with Remus right behind him.    

 ~Y/N’s P.O.V.~

 The night of the ball came quicker than I expected it to and I still hadn’t found a way to get out of going without making it seem like I was ditching Remus. Lily and Alice had practically forced me into my dress and then did my hair and makeup for me, which they had done up way too much for my liking.

 “Y/N, come on. It starts in twenty minutes and the guys are waiting for us downstairs.” Alice said, trying to pull me off my bed.

 “But I don’t want to go.” I said stubbornly.

 “Too late for that now.” Lily told me, “Besides, you're going with Remus! I thought you’d be happy.”

 “He asked me to go as his friend. Not that I’m not happy he asked me, but that still doesn't change the fact that I don’t want to go to the fucking dance.”

 “Fine. We’re leaving. If you don’t come down with us, we’ll tell Remus to come up.”

 “That’s fine with me.” I said, not really thinking about it and flopping onto my bed. I heard the clicks of my friends heels as they left our dorm to go find their dates. In a strange way, I was very happy. I was in bed in a fancy dress, with my hair done up. Oh, and the makeup, but that I wasn’t too thrilled with. I rolled off the bed and crawled over to the table where Alice had left all of the colourful stuff she had used on me. I pulled myself up onto a chair and grabbed a tissue, trying to get at least some of it off. That’s when I heard a knock on the open door. I turned around and saw my date standing in the wooden frame.

 “Remus! Hi.” I said happily. Remus was exactly the person I wanted to be with right now.

 “Hey. What are you doing?”

 “Taking off some of the makeup that Alice and Lily put on me.” I said, rolling my eyes.

 “Oh. Are you coming down?”

 I sighed and looked at myself in the mirror that had been set up during the makeovers. “I guess I have to, don’t I? Or else they’ll come looking for me.”

 “You really don’t want to go, do you?” He said, walking over to me and sitting in a chair next to mine.

 “No, I hate dances. There’s too many people and it’s loud and I’d really rather just be reading a book or something. It would fun if it was just our friends. Actually it would be a mess if it was just us, but that’s what would make it fun.” I laughed a bit.

 He smiled at me, “We could just go for the first song. You know, make an appearance, so that Lily and Alice know that you were there and then ditch the whole thing.”

 “That sounds perfect! Let’s go!” I said, all of sudden very excited to go and get it over with, so that Remus and I could spend some time together. I grabbed his hand and pulled him to where had just came from, but right before I reached the door, I stopped short.

 “Do I have to wear shoes?” I looked at him curiously.

 He chuckled, “I don’t see why you would have to.”

 I smiled again and pulled off the high heels that I was wearing. I hadn’t even left the dorm with them on and my feet were already in pain. Quickly, I ran over to my trunk, pulled out a pair of thick, black socks and pulled them on while dropping the heels on top of the rest of my clothes. Remus gave me a weird look.

 “You won’t wear shoes to a dance, but socks are okay?”

 “It’s so I can slide on the dance floor. Or any floor for that matter.” I replied, grabbing his hand again and rushing out the door.

 As Remus and I walked into the great hall, I was starting to wonder if this was a good idea. The newly redecorated room was packed with people from all houses and other than the currently empty dance floor, there wasn’t a lot of space to move. Remus lead me through the crowd, knowing I was very uncomfortable here. We found our way to the other Marauder’s and stood with them, waiting for the first song to start.

 “She must really love you, Remus!” I hear someone say over the noise. I look over to see that Lily has appeared next to us. “We couldn’t even get her off her bed.” She tells him and then walks away to meet back up with Alice.

 I give Remus a shy smile, slightly embarrassed by my oh, so wonderful friends. The first song started and when I realized it was waltz, I got excited. I loved to waltz, especially fast and in a dress that would catch the air as I spun. Unfortunately, Alice was the only person I knew that could keep up with me. I grabbed Remus’ hand anyway and brought him to the edge of the dance floor which was now filling up with people. I took him furthest away from the small stage that had been set up for the event. We began to dance, awkwardly might I add. I was not the greatest dancer and neither was he. I couldn’t keep a good rhythm unless I was going fast, so I kept stepping on his feet and we were not in sync. After a minute or so, we were laughing pretty hard and I was sure that if we didn’t stop one of us was going to end up on our ass. Or both of us.

 I stopped for a second to regain my balance, gripping Remus’ shoulder as he kept laughing at our inability to dance.

 “Okay, we have made our appearance. We have danced, if you can call what we just did dancing and we have said hello to our friends. Can we leave now?” I asked.

 “Sure, where do you want to go?”

 I just smiled at him and let go of his shoulder. I took off running towards the massive door that led away from the people and to the empty corridors. A few feet away from the door, I stopped moving my legs and slid out into the hall, stopping in right in front of the staircase. Remus emerged a few seconds later, beaming at me.

 “That’s what the socks are for!” I shouted, grabbing his hand again and running towards a passage I knew about, somewhere down this hallway that led up to the seventh floor.

 “So where are we going?” Remus asked me as I pulled him along.

 “Room of requirement!”

 “Of course, where else?” He laughed.

 We finally arrived at the tapestry that hid the entrance to the room of requirement. I paced back and forth until a door appeared. Not really knowing what to expect, Remus pushed open the massive entryway to find a grand piano and about a million blankets laid out in one corner of the room. I walked in and fell onto the blankets. They were incredibly soft and they made me not want to move, but I also wanted to get up and play the piano that I had specifically asked for when thinking about the room.

 “I figured that when the dance is over, we can go find the rest of our friends and bring them up here for an out of the dorms sleepover.” I suggested to Remus, who was making his way over to me.

 “Yeah, that’d be fun.” He said. I sat up and looked at him. I was tired of this. I looked him and that was all I ever did. I wanted to tell him about all the thoughts that I had about him and I. I wanted to so bad, but I couldn’t. The words just wouldn’t come out of my mouth despite the millions of times I had tried. I had to do it, but in some way that I wasn’t actually saying anything. That’s when I caught a glimpse of the piano in the corner of my eye. Fuck it. I was doing this here and now, so I sat up and grabbed Remus’ hand, dragging him over to the piano.

 “Okay, Remus, you know I’m really bad with words, so I’m gonna play something and I want you to know that every word of this song is coming from me to you, okay?”

 “Okay.” He said, looking a little confused, but sitting down next to me on the bench. I was a bit nervous, but I needed to say something. These thoughts were beginning to drive me crazy. I put my hands on the keys and began to play. A few bars in, I started to sing.

 I'm walking fast through the traffic lights

Busy streets and busy lives

And all we know

Is touch and go

We are alone with our changing minds

We fall in love 'til it hurts or bleeds or fades in time

 This was us. Remus and I were stuck in this world of people who wanted to be out and wanted to be the same as everyone else. The world was too busy. You could get caught in everything and never really have your own mind, but Remus and I were careful to stay away from all of it. To stop and remind ourselves that we are our own. I think that’s why we were drawn to each other. Or at least why I was drawn to him. And much like the song, I had fallen in love until it hurt.

 You come around and the armor falls

Pierce the room like a cannonball

Now all we know is don't let go

We are alone, just you and me

Up in your room and our slates are clean

Just twin fire signs

Four blue eyes

 My hands moved across the keys easily. I knew this song by heart. The first time I had heard it, I had immediately thought Remus. It made me happy and so I learned how to play it right here in the room of requirement. Now, every time I heard it, I could only think of the way I felt around him. The way my feelings just sort of hit me one day and hadn’t been able to shake them.

 And I never saw you coming

And I'll never be the same

 This is a state of grace

This is the worthwhile fight

Love is a ruthless game

Unless you play it good and right

These are the hands of fate

You're my Achilles heel

This is the golden age of something good and right and real

I wasn’t even sure if I was really telling him what I wanted to, but I loved this song, so I kept going.

 This is a state of grace

This is the worthwhile fight

Love is a ruthless game

Unless you play it good and right

 I was playing this game right, wasn’t I? I was supposed to tell him that I loved him, right? Honestly, I didn’t care. If this wasn’t right, then I didn’t want to do it the right way. This one line in the song always made me think that this was it. “This is the worthwhile fight”. That line was beyond true and summed up how I thought about all of this perfectly. If things didn’t turn out the way I wanted them to, I didn’t care. It was all still worth it.

 I played the last note, filling the room with a fading ring. I took my hands off the keys, not really wanting to look at the boy sitting next to me. I knew that that song probably hadn’t told him exactly what I wanted to, but it had made it seem easier for me to say my next words.

 “Rem, everytime I hear that song, I think of you. I think of the way you make me feel when I’m around you and I don’t want to keep it to myself anymore. It hurts too much. I hate keeping secrets, especially from you, I have to say this. I think I’m in love with you and I don’t know how you feel about that, but even if you don’t feel the way I do, tonight was amazing and definitely worth it. Even without having your response just yet, I can already feel this weight lifted off my shoulders.” I laughed a bit. I really did feel better. So much better. I was all of a sudden very happy, free from keeping that secret with me. I looked at the piano again and lifted my hand, playing a couple notes and giggling to myself quietly. I had a sense of relief that I had been looking for for way too long. That was, until Remus finally spoke.

 “I think you're wrong.” I heard him say from his spot next to me. I could practically feel my heart drop down into my stomach. I was wrong? About what?

 “What do you mean?” I asked, looking at him and seeing a smile on his face. Now, I was more confused than ever.

 “You said you were bad with words. That’s not true.” Before I could say anything, his face was right in front of mine.

 “Mind if I kiss you?”

 I smiled, “Not at all.”

 His hand went up to my cheek and his lips were on mine. I wrapped my arms around his neck and felt myself being pulled sideways into his lap. After a little while, I reluctantly broke away from him to breath and when I looked at him, neither of us could stop smiling.

 “I know you said we should invite everyone else up here, but what if we just let them go back to the tower and we spend the night here? Alone.” He suggested.

 “I’d like that.” I said, no longer with just a sense of relief, but pure bliss as well.

[mister-maiden]

Layers of Fear: I Wish I Could Paint Like That...

You've walked through countless hallways of revolting images that were simply unexplainable to describe. As you walk through the next door, you come across yet another room, this time with a painting easel and blank portrait in the center. Windows line the right wall as well as beautiful decor of aristocratic color. Closed cabinets lay in the back right corner while several drawers lay dormant in the far center. To your left lay beautiful portraits of women and children...all smiling with the most haunting of guises, their eyes following every movement. You make your way to the front of the easel and notice the paper now had small blots of red paint in the center, a brush with crimson dripping off the bristles lay on the table to your left. Without thinking, you take your instrument, and begin your downwards spiral into madness as you paint your magnum opus of insanity while the room slowly fades to nothingness.This is Layers of Fear. Developed by Bloober Team.

You step in the shoes of an unnamed painter only known as The Artist. You are renowned as an amazing artist who has stolen the heart of a beautiful musician. Together, you began a family and had a little girl. With an enormous fortune, you purchased an incredible mansion and you lived as a happy family. Of course, happiness never lasts, and the darkness slowly consumes all as misfortune falls upon the house. Without spoiling anything, The Artist dives deep into his sub-conscious as he works on his magnum opus in his painting room. The story takes place within the shattered mind of The Artist as he works his way through reality bending horrors. It's the player's job to find and piece together everything that has happened within the time span between marrying The Musician and now. The question lingers of what has happened to force The Artist to see and hear such horror terrors of schizophrenia?

The visuals are amazing. Absolutely incredible. As a game that focuses entirely on the visuals and story, I can say without a doubt the images are by far what you play the game for. Horrific paintings can be seen lining the walls of every hallway. Blood seeps down from the ceiling as the sound of screams fill your ears. Everything simply becomes horrific because of the past trauma that follows The Artist through his life. Ups become downs, apples become rats that scurry at the touch, and more...Though this is also its downfall.

With only being able to rely on visuals, the game loses out on game play, sound, and story. Placing a boundary between what the player knows vs what has happen creates a strange parallel that makes me think no matter what I do, the trauma has already happened. What's the point of traveling through a broken mindscape and looking at what has happened vs looking at what I could possibly do? Horror is all about the illusion of choice, or facing something that is nigh unstoppable. It's the illusion of choice that forces us to realize something is coming and there's nothing we can do to stop it. For example, Alien Isolation has you run through a ship and attempt to escape an unstoppable alien with several obstacles...but what's the point if everything has happened already and there are no obstacles to go through? Which brings me to my next gripe.

The game isn't fun. It simply isn't. In Amnesia you have puzzles and running from a creature to occupy you. Even in Deadly Premonition you have story obstacles, objectives, and more. The game feels empty. All you do is walk. It's like a press W simulator and click to go through doors and check notes at times. I like games that give me a choice, or at least the illusion of choice. If I have no choices, what's the point of trying? I go into one room, wait for something to happen, go into the next room, repeat. It's a bleak outlook, but it consistently happens in every room which really draws its potential back. The ending changes based on what you looked at in regards of notes and doors, but since there is no real way to know that without looking at a wiki, it feels like it's fake. Visual wise, the game is absolutely beautiful. Game play? Not so much.

The story is pretty good and definitely something to have PTSD about. As you travel through the hallways of the broken home in your mind, you find notes and newspaper clippings scattered across the foundations that describe in pieces what has happened. To be honest, it can be a bit confusing since you can possibly miss a few notes here and there and miss out on what has happened; but, if you're persistent and constantly looking for the notes, you'll find that the story is laid rich with dreadful accidents and abuse.

I can't discuss most of this game in the beginning segment of my review because I try to wait discussing the story and spoilers until my discussion and experience section. Since this game is mostly story, it's impossible to talk about it without spoiling. If you wish to know more about the game, check out the discussion section.

7/10 Paintings. The visuals and story are absolutely stunning. You will be incredibly immersed and very enthralled by what happens on screen, but you may feel bored constantly being scared and having nothing else to do but press W to walk forward and press the mouse button. Since there was no actual game play but looking around, I give it a 6 out of 10. If the game had offered some other form of interaction with the surroundings, I would have absolutely loved the game, but I felt tired just walking through halls and seeing something that scared me. Sure it was spooky, but it was boring.

----------------------------------------------------Spoilers--------------------------------------------

My Experience/Discussion: I got this game for free since I owned Twitch Prime and it was given out as a gift. I didn't know what to expect as I made my way through the abandoned hallways and was half expectingly waiting for some form of evil to come at me which never happened. There was no physical manifestation of The Artist's feelings other than how twisted the world around him became. I went in completely blind and felt myself become bored in a few hours because of how lacking the game was in keeping my attention. The only thing I could hope for was getting a new type of scare as I opened each wooden door. I wasn't disappointed in the scares, but boy did I get tired and have to take breaks.

The story basically is about the loving couple and their child coming upon turmoil. The husband begins to become stressed from his work of constantly having to produce brand new paintings and having critics breathe down his neck. He spends more and more time in his painting room attempting to make even more beauty...but can only find himself creating crafts of blood and gore as his mind slowly begins to break from the stress. He begins to go on and on about rats and places them in his paintings. He calls exterminators constantly about the rats in his home but they can't find a single one after their first few visits, so I believe the rats are in his head and are the first sign of his breaking psyche. As time goes on, it appears he has been very negligent to his child and wife and bought them a dog. As all dogs seem to have it rough in horror, the dog is neglected and muzzled after bothering The Artist one too many times. It is unknown if the dog survived...but I like to believe it's just in a better place than that hellhole of a house.

The Musician destroys the paintings of The Artist because she feels he is putting too much time into his art and no time into their family which only feeds into The Artist's breaking mind. With depression and schizophrenia forming, he begins drinking and finally abuses his wife and daughter. Both leave him...but a horrible accident occurs. Fire sparks embers which create chaos. The Musician is left scarred and burned from the fire and lay wheel-chair ridden. Her hands nearly unusable for music. I believe this fire is simply a ways of an end for her love. Her love was always within the music, but with this fire, she is left unable to play the melodies she so loved. The fire also left The Artist unable to truly love the Musician as her deformities prove too much for his shattered mind. He constantly says he loves her through small audio clips and notes, but it is obvious he is never going to be able to see her in the same light...And as the abuse became worse and worse from The Artist trying to deny his own feelings...The Musician committed suicide by cutting her wrists, thus concreting The Artist's descent into insanity. You then later learn he began using her body parts for the paint of the magnum opus. The child is taken by child services, and you're left alone.

You learn the entire story through the notes and items strewn about your nightmare, and remnants of events are presented through the images on the walls and the house's shapes. It seems that notes being left around is becoming a strange staple in horror games. Personally, I have never met someone who writes notes and puts them in random places, but perhaps I'm looking too much into it.

Most areas are unique other than hallways that seem to repetitively appear. That's the one thing that I can remember clearly. When I entered a door, I was disappointed to be met with more normal halls when my senses were assaulted in the last room I was just in. I'm not saying level design was boring because there were many areas that were unique. I think I may just be complaining about the amount of times I went into a normal hallway just to go into another hallway and repeat the action. The areas themselves gives you hints at what has happened. Entering a white bathroom, you can see a knife with blood thrown in the sink, or you can see the affect of fire along the walls.

I think the game definitely nailed what they were going for. Showing the effects of schizophrenia and PTSD in a visual form of entertainment is very difficult and Bloober Team did an excellent job. I'm just disappointed at the lack of things to do. I don't want to just look through memories. I want to experience them! Make them my own. There should be a mixture of what I should know and what I don't, not simply going through what has already happened and not being able to change what happened.

At the end, you are met with your magnum opus which has three different forms.The bad ending: You reveal your grand painting and see it as your beautiful wife. Her gorgeous smile and eyes stare at you, and you let out a sigh of content...only to be shocked in horror as her beauty melts away into a face of burned deformity. You cringe in rage as you grab your painting and leave your room. Your beautiful mansion is torn to pieces, the lights extinguished, the floorboards coming apart. It seems you have been in your painting room for longer than anticipated. You rush to a room and shove your painting inside and see The Artist has been doing this for a long time. The room is completely filled with the exact same picture of his burned wife. He simply can't get over it. He goes back to the room, and begin once more, marveling in his madness.

Middle ending: The same as before, but you also include your daughter in the picture. As you drop the painting in the room with the rest, you light a match and start a fire, burning the portraits along with the home and yourself.

Good ending...?: You have drawn yourself! It seems you have finally broken out of your obsession with your wife and now shall be focused on your work! The camera pans out on the same portrait of yourself and we end with that...Yeah. I mean out of all three endings, this is probably the best one. Sure he's still an abuser, but at least he will be focused on his work?

The game did a fantastic job by showing the slow and gradual deformation of his mind as time goes on. It begins with a small haunting here, and ends with the entire screen going absolutely bonkers. I loved my experience with the game, but I feel as though it could have been different in SOME way.

[mister-maiden]

Layers Of Fear: I Wish I could Paint like that

Rating: 5/10                    Genre: Adventure/Horror                       Difficulty: Easy

TIME SPENT COMPLETING: 3-4 hours

You've walked through countless hallways of revolting images that were simply unexplainable to describe. As you walk through the next door, you come across yet another room, this time with a painting easel and blank portrait in the center. Windows line the right wall as well as beautiful decor of aristocratic color. Closed cabinets lay in the back right corner while several drawers lay dormant in the far center. To your left lay beautiful portraits of women and children...all smiling with the most haunting of guises, their eyes following every movement. You make your way to the front of the easel and notice the paper now had small blots of red paint in the center, a brush with crimson dripping off the bristles lay on the table to your left. Without thinking, you take your instrument, and begin your downwards spiral into madness as you paint your magnum opus of insanity while the room slowly fades to nothingness.

This is Layers of Fear. Developed by Bloober Team.

You step in the shoes of an unnamed painter only known as The Artist. You are renowned as an amazing artist who has stolen the heart of a beautiful musician. Together, you began a family and had a little girl. With an enormous fortune, you purchased an incredible mansion and you lived as a happy family. Of course, happiness never lasts, and the darkness slowly consumes all as misfortune falls upon the house. Without spoiling anything, The Artist dives deep into his sub-conscious as he works on his magnum opus in his painting room. The story takes place within the shattered mind of The Artist as he works his way through reality bending horrors. It's the player's job to find and piece together everything that has happened within the time span between marrying The Musician and now. The question lingers of what has happened to force The Artist to see and hear such horror terrors of schizophrenia?

The visuals are amazing. Absolutely incredible. As a game that focuses entirely on the visuals and story, I can say without a doubt the images are by far what you play the game for. Horrific paintings can be seen lining the walls of every hallway. Blood seeps down from the ceiling as the sound of screams fill your ears. Everything simply becomes horrific because of the past trauma that follows The Artist through his life. Ups become downs, apples become rats that scurry at the touch, and more...Though this is also its downfall.

With only being able to rely on visuals, the game loses out on game play, sound, and story. Placing a boundary between what the player knows vs what has happen creates a strange parallel that makes me think no matter what I do, the trauma has already happened. What's the point of traveling through a broken mindscape and looking at what has happened vs looking at what I could possibly do? Horror is all about the illusion of choice, or facing something that is nigh unstoppable. It's the illusion of choice that forces us to realize something is coming and there's nothing we can do to stop it. For example, Alien Isolation has you run through a ship and attempt to escape an unstoppable alien with several obstacles...but what's the point if everything has happened already and there are no obstacles to go through? Which brings me to my next gripe.

The game isn't fun. It simply isn't. In Amnesia you have puzzles and running from a creature to occupy you. Even in Deadly Premonition you have story obstacles, objectives, and more. The game feels empty. All you do is walk. It's like a press W simulator and click to go through doors and check notes at times. I like games that give me a choice, or at least the illusion of choice. If I have no choices, what's the point of trying? I go into one room, wait for something to happen, go into the next room, repeat. It's a bleak outlook, but it consistently happens in every room which really draws its potential back. The ending changes based on what you looked at in regards of notes and doors, but since there is no real way to know that without looking at a wiki, it feels like it's fake. Visual wise, the game is absolutely beautiful. Game play? Not so much.

The story is pretty good and definitely something to have PTSD about. As you travel through the hallways of the broken home in your mind, you find notes and newspaper clippings scattered across the foundations that describe in pieces what has happened. To be honest, it can be a bit confusing since you can possibly miss a few notes here and there and miss out on what has happened; but, if you're persistent and constantly looking for the notes, you'll find that the story is laid rich with dreadful accidents and abuse.

I can't discuss most of this game in the beginning segment of my review because I try to wait discussing the story and spoilers until my discussion and experience section. Since this game is mostly story, it's impossible to talk about it without spoiling. If you wish to know more about the game, check out the discussion section.

5/10 Paintings. The visuals and story are absolutely stunning. You will be incredibly immersed and very enthralled by what happens on screen, but you may feel bored constantly being scared and having nothing else to do but press W to walk forward and press the mouse button. Since there was no actual game play but looking around, I give it a 5 out of 10. If the game had offered some other form of interaction with the surroundings, I would have absolutely loved the game, but I felt tired just walking through halls and seeing something that scared me. Sure it was spooky, but it was boring. There has to be some way to engage me rather than throw random crazy visuals at my face. 

Now you may say “Cultist, that IS what horror games are!” True. It is a horror game..but I just didn’t have fun with this one. Even writing this now, I can only remember how mind numbing it was to walk around a room until something happened and the door unlocked. There should have been moments of silence. Those moments of bliss where the scares and stimuli stopped...but this one just continually tossed it in your face, and I don’t enjoy that. Studio did an excellent job in visuals though!

----------------------------------------------------Spoilers-------------------------------------

My Experience/Discussion: I got this game for free since I owned Twitch Prime and it was given out as a gift. I didn't know what to expect as I made my way through the abandoned hallways and was half expectingly waiting for some form of evil to come at me which never happened. There was no physical manifestation of The Artist's feelings other than how twisted the world around him became. I went in completely blind and felt myself become bored in a few hours because of how lacking the game was in keeping my attention. The only thing I could hope for was getting a new type of scare as I opened each wooden door. I wasn't disappointed in the scares, but boy did I get tired and have to take breaks.

The story basically is about the loving couple and their child coming upon turmoil. The husband begins to become stressed from his work of constantly having to produce brand new paintings and having critics breathe down his neck. He spends more and more time in his painting room attempting to make even more beauty...but can only find himself creating crafts of blood and gore as his mind slowly begins to break from the stress. He begins to go on and on about rats and places them in his paintings. He calls exterminators constantly about the rats in his home but they can't find a single one after their first few visits, so I believe the rats are in his head and are the first sign of his breaking psyche. As time goes on, it appears he has been very negligent to his child and wife and bought them a dog. As all dogs seem to have it rough in horror, the dog is neglected and muzzled after bothering The Artist one too many times. It is unknown if the dog survived...but I like to believe it's just in a better place than that hellhole of a house.

The Musician destroys the paintings of The Artist because she feels he is putting too much time into his art and no time into their family which only feeds into The Artist's breaking mind. With depression and schizophrenia forming, he begins drinking and finally abuses his wife and daughter. Both leave him...but a horrible accident occurs. Fire sparks embers which create chaos. The Musician is left scarred and burned from the fire and lay wheel-chair ridden. Her hands nearly unusable for music. I believe this fire is simply a ways of an end for her love. Her love was always within the music, but with this fire, she is left unable to play the melodies she so loved. The fire also left The Artist unable to truly love the Musician as her deformities prove too much for his shattered mind. He constantly says he loves her through small audio clips and notes, but it is obvious he is never going to be able to see her in the same light...And as the abuse became worse and worse from The Artist trying to deny his own feelings...The Musician committed suicide by cutting her wrists, thus concreting The Artist's descent into insanity. You then later learn he began using her body parts for the paint of the magnum opus. The child is taken by child services, and you're left alone.

You learn the entire story through the notes and items strewn about your nightmare, and remnants of events are presented through the images on the walls and the house's shapes. It seems that notes being left around is becoming a strange staple in horror games. Personally, I have never met someone who writes notes and puts them in random places, but perhaps I'm looking too much into it.

Most areas are unique other than hallways that seem to repetitively appear. That's the one thing that I can remember clearly. When I entered a door, I was disappointed to be met with more normal halls when my senses were assaulted in the last room I was just in. I'm not saying level design was boring because there were many areas that were unique. I think I may just be complaining about the amount of times I went into a normal hallway just to go into another hallway and repeat the action. The areas themselves gives you hints at what has happened. Entering a white bathroom, you can see a knife with blood thrown in the sink, or you can see the affect of fire along the walls.

I think the game definitely nailed what they were going for. Showing the effects of schizophrenia and PTSD in a visual form of entertainment is very difficult and Bloober Team did an excellent job. I'm just disappointed at the lack of things to do. I don't want to just look through memories. I want to experience them! Make them my own. There should be a mixture of what I should know and what I don't, not simply going through what has already happened and not being able to change what happened.

At the end, you are met with your magnum opus which has three different forms.

The bad ending: You reveal your grand painting and see it as your beautiful wife. Her gorgeous smile and eyes stare at you, and you let out a sigh of content...only to be shocked in horror as her beauty melts away into a face of burned deformity. You cringe in rage as you grab your painting and leave your room. Your beautiful mansion is torn to pieces, the lights extinguished, the floorboards coming apart. It seems you have been in your painting room for longer than anticipated. You rush to a room and shove your painting inside and see The Artist has been doing this for a long time. The room is completely filled with the exact same picture of his burned wife. He simply can't get over it. He goes back to the room, and begin once more, marveling in his madness.

Middle ending: The same as before, but you also include your daughter in the picture. As you drop the painting in the room with the rest, you light a match and start a fire, burning the portraits along with the home and yourself.

Good ending...?: You have drawn yourself! It seems you have finally broken out of your obsession with your wife and now shall be focused on your work! The camera pans out on the same portrait of yourself and we end with that...Yeah. I mean out of all three endings, this is probably the best one. Sure he's still an abuser, but at least he will be focused on his work?

The game did a fantastic job by showing the slow and gradual deformation of his mind as time goes on. It begins with a small haunting here, and ends with the entire screen going absolutely bonkers. I loved my experience with the game, but I feel as though it could have been different in SOME way.

VERDICT: Buy on a sale. The game goes on sale often at a very low price. It’s good for what it is.