#hope i didn't miss colouring a line somewhere...

[impbites]

oc-tober day 8 - past

this is janie (they/she)... um i'm sure she's fine... this event probably didn't leave her with any lasting psychological harm...

[from-izzy]

every day is a lovely day... | tbz lee juyeon

pairing » the boyz lee juyeon x gn!reader (lmk if i missed anything)

trope/au » strangers to lovers, non-idol au!, university au!

genre »​ mostly hurt/comfort(...?), mostly fluff, a pinch of angst (i always say this but i'm kinda confident in this statement this time lmao), deep reflection on life and aspects of the earth, juyeon who basically falls in love with you at first sight, juyeon being kinda confident towards reader, picnic date by the beach after finishing you last exam!, comforting boyfriend chef (not actually his occupation) lee juyeon!

word count, estimated reading time » 2249, ~8 mins

warnings (lmk if i missed anything!) » reader didn't sleep well, reader uses caffeine to battle tiredness, the slightest of academic difficulties (it's just a dash imo), deep thoughts of sea and sky life (not an expert in this field at all), mentions of open water/vast landscapes in the thoughts

navi/masterlist!! 🤍 part of 'especially to you...'

i swear that banner changes colour before my very eyes. because i do understand that it's bright and at first glance, you can barely see the water on the bottom right. but when i change tumblr to a lighter mode, stare at fading wind lines near the top of the image for some time, my eyes adjust and the water becomes very obvious. i think it depends on colour context because on dark mode, it's hard for the 'effects' to kick in. is it just me...? it's messing with me...there has got to be a study about this somewhere...😭 anyway!

(i accidentally released this earlier so for those who saw anything: no you didn't!! 😭)

happy birthday to you @littleroaes !! ngl i was gonna give up on this birthday present but then i was scrolling through and found this little wip and tried to modify it to what you like. i was gonna do f2l like you mentioned you like but my brain stopped making ideas for that as soon as i told myself to write about it 😭 so here's my very first short story on strangers to lovers that thankfully you have appreciation for 🫶 from your profile, i read you like fishes, the colour blue, kimbap, spring rolls and of course, lee juyeon!! 😸 so i tried my best to incorporate these prompts here. i tried something different for the fishes 🐟 topic but i hope this incorporation is fine 💙

here is your boyfriend that will get you through uni! hope you have the happiest birthday!! 🎂🎉 love you!! mwah!!

Everything changed for you when Juyeon walked into your life.

No, literally.

Well, maybe not…literally.

You remember the prominent eyebags you’ve carried for the last month since university started. The new semester has weighed you heavier than the headache that is arising from the lack of sleep and the missed attempt to get your daily caffeine content since you slept through your alarm. At the very least, you’re thankful that everything is now electronic because you are so unprepared to be commuting to campus with a heavy mind, heart, eyelids and straps on your shoulders that would surely give you a very sore back.

That day started horrendously. You really thought that the alarm was the only thing that the universe threw at you for their entertainment but it was the embarrassing fact that you dozed off during class. Your elbows were propped up too comfortably against the desk and the perfect temperature of the lecture room didn't make it any easier for your natural melatonin to kick in. The next thing you knew, your palms cupped your cheek and there was this loud bang that was accompanied by the sharp pain on your cheekbone when you hit the wooden desk.

Everything is going awesome and you just attracted around a hundred students back to you. Thankfully your lecturer didn't take it to offense and shot you an emphatic smile.

You guessed then after that the universe felt bad for the negative attention that you got and they canceled the next class on your filled weekly schedule. Usually, you would be annoyed at the sudden change but this gave you a little hour to bask in the sun, the open green space and your favourite cup of beverage wrapped protectively by your hands.

Only to find out that you left your wallet at home.

“I’m sorry,” you said to the worker who tried her best to reassure you and to take your time as your frantic fingers ran through the items in your bag.

Your knees fell to the ground and sweat started to creep against your forehead and to the side of your head, a silent reminder to be mindful of the long line of students who are mostly probably just as stressed as you are in their university journey. The lighting above you helped with your sight in your receipt-filled bag but suddenly, the long papers with their minuscule printings became hard to read and a deep voice stated his order.

At first, your instinct was to defend yourself, tell the person who cut in line and added an order between you and your caffeine to wait a little bit longer but his choice of words registered into you before you could voice out anytime.

“I'll add an iced Americano with the order, please.” And then the familiar beeping sound of a successful transaction rings.

Your neck cranes up towards the stranger that only made your day easier and you couldn't help but let out a gentle gasp. A sharp pair of eyes yet soft and curious like a cat, his perfectly shaped nose and the slight upturn of the corner of his lips with the smile that beams down on you. 

The chain necklace around his neck dangles above you and you were sure it hypnotised you to say, “It's an angel.” These were your first words to Lee Juyeon.

“Ah,” the recipient of the compliment could only blush first at your words, a hand sneaking up to mindlessly scratch his nape. “We should at least get out of the line.” 

Now it's your turn to have your cheeks heat up at the realisation that you're blocking everyone else’s caffeine intake.

You thought that maybe Juyeon would just walk away and wait for you to join him on the other side of the table with the hanging ‘Pick up orders here' sign hanging from the beige ceiling. Yet, he crouched and helped you sort out your materials, collecting your pencil case and books into one arm, the other swiftly scooping up the straps of your bag along his other forearm.

Your eyes couldn't help but widen at your empty hands, and you were flustered at how he was still holding onto your things even when the customer who stood behind him joined you both after paying. Juyeon’s bangs shook when he refused to give your things back, insisting that you should be the one to carry the coffee instead. 

“Coffee is important.” He convinces you with that warm smile of his. “Don't drop it!”

With the promise to pay him back for another cup, came a few promises to help with common subjects and overlapping knowledge. And with time, came the fluttering feeling in both your hearts that only grew when you comforted each other in the long nights leading to assignments and exam periods that came all too quickly but passed by excruciatingly slow.

Juyeon made it all worth it though. You walked out of the last two-hour prison of the semester to be greeted with your usual reward packed in a paper bag. If it was anyone else but Juyeon, the contents of the bag would be mushed as you hug it close to you but it's the person that you have missed so much that gets your love first.

“You called me last night, bubs,” Hearing his voice not through the help of technology is more refreshing and you couldn't help but tighten your hold around his figure. 

“Every day is missing Juyeon day.” 

“Well for me, every day is a happy day when you're in my life.”

It's a line that he has said to you many times even before he started dating you. Juyeon tried to make the line more interesting each time but one day, mixed with his tiredness and excitedness of finally seeing you, it became the line that revealed his adoration for you.

Hand in hand, Juyeon's thumb caressing the back of your palm, your right arm closely stuck to his left, you both sway and skip to the nearby beach to relish in each other’s company with nature. The light salty breeze scent hits you before you can even see the gigantic natural blue space that seems endless and seamless with the blue sky. As your outfit becomes one with the direction of the wind and the sun is still bright enough for you to know even when your orbs are hidden beneath your eyelids. It’s the little moments like these that the Earth seems to be so rich in beauty and life becomes beautiful although you’ve been studying endlessly for the past three months. 

You couldn’t help but let your mind wander to the body of water that eventually begins to seep into your view as you walk up the small hill. You imagine the school of fish including the friendly dolphins to the misunderstood sharks and all the shapes and sizes of the life forms in there, some dependent on their family whilst some choosing to live alone. 

That’s why you’ve always been so enamoured by the living, along with the sea plants that they harmoniously live with. 

You wonder what kind of thoughts these creatures have as they live in a world much bigger than the land you stand on and if they ever want to explore the whole ocean like most people would love to see the landmarks scattered across the world. If they visit the landmarks of the ocean, would they even remember it? Or would they just swim away, finding it more than satisfactory with the fact that they’re free, especially those who swish through the water with company?

Same with life in the sky, do they ever get tired from flying? Like some people who are scared of a large body of water but are already mid-journey, how do they persevere in their flight and keep going? Do they sometimes look at human transportation and hope that they could bask in that luxury as well? Sleep in the moving vehicle and relax your tense muscles against the cushioned interiors even if it’s just for ten minutes. You want to know the answer to that and maybe, you’ll be able to learn something from the other life form.

You wish sometimes you would be one of them but it’s hard to say so as well because all forms of life experience different hardships and it’s impossible to generalise anything, nor is it truly fair to say one has it better than the other.

That’s when life becomes so complex and beautiful. The fact that you’re so small in the context of the horizon that stretched too far for you to see and comprehend, leaves you appreciating the small things in life.

For you, the arms encircling your middle remind you that no matter what hardships you face, you’ll be able to safely fall back onto someone. That you can freely cry without judgement and that life is lovely whenever he’s in it. Juyeon steals a kiss from your lips before placing another one on your cheek. Your eyelashes flutter open and you swear that Juyeon’s smile is brighter than the sun that smiles down on you both and louder than the crashing waves against the eroding rocks.

And whenever he asks you, “Feeling better?” You know that Lee Juyeon is the one person that you can answer the question truthfully and genuinely.

You both settled with a picnic blanket underneath a substantial amount of coverage from the sun by the park near the beach, the crashing ocean waves still in sight. You observe the tree above you dancing freely in the winds while the birds seem to sing for both of your accomplishments. 

When you look back down by the cue of a single, proud hand clap, you're greeted with numerous small glass containers clinking next to each other. The colours from the neatly presented food only lifted your energy further and your boyfriend’s orbs glimmered more with the help of the sun that still peaks through from the leaves above.

Juyeon complied when you asked him for a bite of his homemade kimbap and spring rolls. The flavours instantly make you nod. “I refuse to believe that your mum didn't make this.” 

Your boyfriend’s smile flattened, dipping further into a frown, “She helped but I did all the cooking and rolling!” 

“Okay, you cute clingy baby.” Leaning in to press a quick kiss against his pouting lips. “I’m just joking around with you.” 

To Juyeon, the peck is way more than just unsatisfactory and his thoughts about it are clearly reflected first from his eyes. Then, his hand landed next to the food box on his far left and made a sweeping motion on the cotton blanket to the right, pushing all of the obstacles between you and him. His knees slide his body closer to you that was once on the other side, and now with your boyfriend only looking at you with the softest, loving gaze between his overgrown bangs, you couldn’t help but purse your lips momentarily. You couldn’t let out a question or comment but that changed in the blink of an eye when leaned in Juyeon, replacing your growing confusion with a muffled chuckle instead.

A soft groan vibrates to your lips, Juyeon complaining about how there was nothing to laugh about—not when his soft lips are between yours. A palm made its way around the back of your neck, pulling your still extensive smile against his more serious ones. Eventually, with the way that Juyeon poured his love into you, you’re determined to do the same to the only person who would only let you claim his lips. A part of his blue and white sweater is now captured in your fist but it did nothing to your heartbeat which starts to pick up whenever Juyeon pulls away to adjust his lip’s position on yours. 

The subtle nose nudges only served your fingers to trail up his arm that held you close, tracing along the vein that started near his elbows and ran his wrist near your pulse on the side of your neck. Now, with the way that your thumb brushes softly on his soft skin, Juyeon could melt further into you, leaning in further to deepen his presence to you. Whenever he pulled back, you would be the one chasing after him pulling on his sweater, wanting to indulge in his loving space even more.

“Who’s the clingy one now?” That lands him a shy hit to his chest that only made him let out a weightless chuckle in the air. “The love of my life and the only one for me,” he whispers sweet nothings as your foreheads kiss each other, a sweet gaze grazing upon your facial features. “I love you, bubs.”

So maybe you weren't hypnotised at all that day. Maybe, the universe didn't hate you after all. Maybe, this was all meant to happen even though you did go through some stress when the sequential events happened.

“I love you more.”

But at least, the universe gave you a free coffee.

Two, you really did meet an angel named Lee Juyeon.

And three, just like how he holds the day when you confess to him that you love him back, you repeat the words that he said to you at the start of all your lovely days, “Every day is a lovely day when you're in my life.”

navi/masterlist!! 🤍 'especially to you...'

tags (send a dm/ask if you would like to be here or removed!): @deoboyznet 📢❤️ @k-labels 💙🤍 @k-films 🤎🎞️ @kflixnet 📺🍿 @sanaxo-o

[lostfirefly]

You’ve Got the Same Dream as Me (Ch.5)

Hello, kiddos! The idea for this fanfic came to me from a dream (again) I had about a month ago. Тhe main characters were Tom Cruise and Henry Cavill (don't ask me why), but with a light hand they have been replaced (sorry, guys). The main action of the dream took place somewhere in the sands. Аlthough this fanfic will feature Sir Crocodile and our beloved Buggy, the action shifts to the desert. No marines, ships etc. Sorry, not sorry :) The devil fruit's abilities are preserved. Catch the Mummy and Indiana Jones vibes :) I have no idea how many chapters there will be. Different titles and names from the original source material will be used to emphasise the general OP's vibe.

Since English is not my native language, errors may occur. As always, feel free to share your thoughts :) 

And thank you to my dear @yujo-nishimura and @laurasoretta for believing in me :)

Description: Catherine, a librarian who is searching for the trail of her sister who went missing on an expedition. Notes in books and diaries lead her to Cairo. There she finds a retailer from an artifact shop who, in exchange for selling her a map and equipment, insists that Catherine take her along. They get into a little (or maybe a big) adventure.. 

Warnings: "F" words, slight tension. Adventures and fun are still here. Buggy x OC, Sir Crocodile x OC.

This chapter was a lot of fun and challenging to write. I'm not very good at describing male squabbles. That's why I'm a little worried. As a perfectionist with excellent student syndrome, I tried very hard not to go overboard with everything. I hope you'll enjoy this chapter.

Words: 2170

The title is taken from «You've Got the Same Dream as Me» (Sonya Belousova & Giona Ostinelli) (One Piece, Netflix)

Taglist: @gingernut1314

I had to added one shitty line. I'm not quite happy with it, but now at least my conscience doesn't bother me 😁

✎﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏

Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4

✎﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏

"Golly Gosh, his left hand looks like a beehive", Catherine whispered in surprise. At the same moment Rika hissed at her. 

The two of them looked at a tall man with purple hair and dark eyes. He was wearing an orange t-shirt, sand-coloured trousers, and massive boots. He was lighting a cigar. 

"We? We're not looking for anything. We're just a little lost", Rika whispered, tucking the book into her bag. 

"Come on, lassies, nobody drives on this road, unless you've got..... What are you hiding, heh?" he noticed Rika putting the book away.

"Nothing. Just my personal things.."

"Show me!" he bellowed and took a step forward. It felt like his movements made the floor shake. 

Catherine and Rika synchronously took half a step back. 

"I said sh…

"Heeey, Crocie!"

Catherine heard Buggy's voice from the front doorway.

"Thanks God!" she sighed in relief, a slight smile appearing on her face. 

"Buggy the Clown", the tall man turned towards the front door, took a cigar out of his mouth and took two steps forward. "I didn't expect you to be here. To be honest, I thought you'd be chilling out in a bar or lying drunk in a ditch". 

"Well, as you can see, I'm full of surprises", Buggy said, spreading his arms.

"By the way, you stole something from me the last time we met. A little black box, remember?" the man leaned over and put the hook around Buggy's neck.

"Crocie, baby, I didn't take anything from you. You got me mixed up with somebody else". 

"I wouldn't mistake your nose for anything or anyone, bastard", he put his other hand on the back of Buggy's head with force and drilled him with his dark eyes. 

"Crocodile, let him go. I'm not gonna let you get into a fight here", Rayleigh said, glancing over Crocodile's shoulder at Buggy. 

"You are so lucky, clown. But remember, there would be no more such exceptions. Now go hide behind those poor girls, because it's the one thing you're best at", he pushed Buggy aside where Rika and Catherine were standing.

"Fucking bastard", Rika said with a whisper. 

"I don't give a shit about those three, or your shop, though I must admit you're making some good whisky in your old age. Probably I'm gonna grab a couple of bottles or three just for fun. But you know why I'm here", said the Crocodile, dropping his unlit cigar on the floor and immediately taking out a new one. "Give me the compass", he said in a whisper, leaning towards Rayleigh and putting the hook on the old man’s arm.  

Rayleigh placed a small hexagonal brown object on the table.

"Here. Take it", he said with a strange wide smile. 

"You see? You’re a good boy. That was easy, right?" Crocodile blew smoke in Rayleigh's face and put the thing in his trouser pocket.

"The compass! I read about it in your sister’s diary", Rika barely audibly whispered this into Catherine's ear.  

Catherine suddenly called out to Crocodile. 

"Hey, tall man, I don't really know who you are, perhaps you are the coolest man in this desert of yours, but could you buy some whisky and let us talk to this grey…haired… gentleman".

"What are you doing? Are you insane?" Rika asked with a whisper.

"Back off!" Buggy tried to grab Catherine's arm, pulling her toward him. She yanked his arm back.

"Rika, you said you read about that compass. So, we need it, right? And you..", she replied, looking at Buggy, "don't stop me!"

"Are you talking to me, lassie?" Crocodile stretched and turned to Catherine.

"Of course, with you, who else", she walked over to the counter where Crocodile was standing. She discreetly tried to fumble for something heavy with her hand. 

"Do you even know who you're talking to? And in that tone of voice?"  he put the hook around her waist.

"Are you the local Prince of Persia or something?" Catherine kept her eyes on him as she continued to run her hand discreetly along the counter.

"Listen, clown. Is she with you? Shit, your girl's boring as you are", Crocodile said, running a hook down Catherine's head. 

"Let her go, Crocodile", Buggy uttered, clenching his hand into a fist.

"What? Did you mumble something, you stupid clown? I didn't hear you", Crocodile put his hand to his ear.

"I said. Let. Her. Go", he took a few steps forward, putting his back to Rika. 

"No, no. like I said, no more exceptions. So, you can give her and her pretty face a short "sorry, good-bye" speech".

At that moment, his hand and leg began to turn into sand.

"What the fuck??" Catherine's eyes darted around. 

"What the hell is that??" Rika yelled. 

At that same second, something fell backwards and dragged Catherine towards where Rika and Buggy were standing. 

"What the fuck is going on?", she stood up quickly and looked at Buggy. 

His one hand was holding her denim jacket, the other was dragging Rika towards the exit. 

"Holy Christ!! What's wrong with you? Why your hands....", she didn't have time to finish her sentence. 

At that moment, Crocodile turned human again and ran towards them. He caught Rika's arm with his hook and brought her down to the floor.

"What the fuck? What the fuck are you? Get off of me!", she tried to get up. 

Buggy stood in front of Crocodile, hoping to protect Rika, Crocodile swung his hook, but Buggy separated his body from his legs.

"What the hell is that?", Rika and Catherine shouted with glee, almost breaking their voices. 

Buggy reattached his body back.

"Crocodile!", a heavy voice came from behind the man with the hook. Rayleigh stood in front of Crocodile, holding a katana-style hilt., "I said, I won't let you pick fights here".

"Shit. Move!" Buggy yelled at the girls, tried to grab them to get them out of the building. 

Crocodile not paying attention to the old man and waved him off, took another swing at Rika but grazed the bag with his hook. 

"The book!" he growled, and his hand began to turn to sand again.

"You know, girls, I think, it’s time to exit stage left", Buggy said, take them by the scruff of the neck and drag them outside.    

After they were outside, they spotted Crocodile walking briskly out of the shop, holding something in his hand. 

"Fuck! The book!" Rika quickly checked her bag and tried to stand up, leaning on her wounded arm. "Fuck!"

"Forget about it, we'll get it back. At least we know where the bastard is going. Although it was obvious enough", Buggy helped Rika up and walked her to the car, "Сathie, honey, are you okay?"

Сatherine was lying on her back in the sand, looking at the sky.

"He turned into sand, he turned into sand.... He just fucking turned into sand. Jesus, tell me it's a hallucination from the heat", she mumbled, shaking her head.

"Hey", she saw Buggy's face above her.

"What in God’s name… you-- you--your body--your hands-- they just did that all…things..  by themselves", she was trying to make some kind of movement with her hands.

"Okay, pie, get up, let's go to the car", he held her by the waist and helped her up. 

"Sand. Hands. His arms. Your arms. Your body. His body.. YOUR body. No blood.. There's nothing. Oh, my God, oh, my God, oh, my God. What was that? Please tell me what that was", tears suddenly came out of her eyes. 

"Let's just say it's a side effect of the devil fruit", Buggy said, sitting her down on the bonnet of the car, checking for scratches. 

"The devil’s… what?" she looked at him with wet eyes.

"Fruit", he wiped her tears with his fingers. 

"The only devil fruit I know is durian", she kept muttering to herself. 

"Yes, but durian doesn't give you chop chop abilities".

"Ability to what?" the girls asked in unison.

"God, Buggy, I've known you for years, but you've never once said anything about your chop chop shit", Rika punched him in the shoulder, "damn....".

"Honey, hold still. That bastard hurt you, but I think you'll live. I'll take care of you. Wait here", he stepped back and reached into the boot of the car.

Catherine sat on the bonnet, trying to focus on Rika. 

"Are you okay? Does it hurt?", she leaned over to look at the wound.

"My first battle wound, sustained in a fight with some man who can turn into the fucking Sahara Desert in a second", Rika cursed.  

"Girls, if you saw Jinbe, you'd be blown away", Buggy laughed throatily, going back.

"God, he's turning into something, too? Food? Tumbleweed? Or what?" Rika asked, her eyes widening. "Shit, my arm!" 

"I said sit still, Rika. I'll sew you up and you'll be as good as new. We should disinfect your wound, but frankly, I don't want to waste good whiskey on you".

"You're very kind, you know that?" Rika said with a slight sneer in her tone.

"I have it!" Catherine said with a squeal. "When I was coming up to this.... what's-his-name. Crocodile... I picked up a bottle of this... Here", she held out a tiny bottle of tequila, about the size of her little finger.

"Yeah, you'd seriously injure Crocodile with a heavy object like that", Buggy couldn't contain his laughter.

"Oh, sorry, I didn't have time to pick out a weapon against a sandman like in a fucking supermarket", she wiped her nose with her sleeve.

"Aaaand, done! Good girl", - Buggy finished stitching up Rika’s arm and checked the steams again. "Good? Good!"

He took her hand and led her to the car.

"Well, pie, are you ready to move on? If that Crocodile didn't scare you, of course", he returned to the bonnet of the car where Catherine was sitting.

"It was very weird. And your chop chop thing is weird too... And..", suddenly she ran her hands lightly over his arms, examining his face and head, "are you okay?".

"Yeah, I'm fine", he gently removed her hands from his head.

"Sorry..."

Buggy cleared his throat.

"So, ladies, how about to get somewhere to camp for the night? After all, I think we need some rest and you still need to come to your senses", he said loudly with a maniac smile on his face. 

"That would be lovely, except.. Helloo! Did you miss something? This fucking bastard stole the fucking book", Rika shouted from the car, lying in the backseat. "Sorry..  And the compass".

"Well…Yeah.. Instead of… he didn't take the compass", Catherine said, fiddling with it happily. 

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"I still can't believe you managed to steal that thing from Crocodile", -Rika said, sipping her beer, sitting by the fire, covering herself with a laid plaid. "No offense, of course, but you don't look like.. the girl... who.... well... climbing into a volcano". 

She tried to say it as softly as she could.

"As someone said today, I'm full of surprises", Catherine said, sipping whiskey from the bottle.

"Ooh! Someone is finally quoting Buggy the Heroic Clown. I'm flattered", he bowed, taking off his imaginary hat. "Honey, do you know you're already on your second bottle?"

He pointed his finger at a bottle and plopped down on the sand next to Catherine. 

"So what? Are you trying to be my mum?"

"God, not again, you guys are boring me. Could you please stop arguing for one night? I’m already sleepy because of you", Rika fake yawned and turned on her other side.

"Hell, looks like that bastard Crocodile got his bloody hook in my head after all", Buggy said, scratching the top of his head.

"Does it hurt?" Catherine asked, checking his head and running her hands through his hair. 

"No, I’m ok", he said, gently taking her hands away.

"You know, that.. your… chop chop thing is.. actually.. pretty cool", she said admiringly, taking another sip of whiskey. She set the bottle aside and nestled in his armpit. "Well, I mean, you can separate your body parts and still leave no bloody marks. That's cool. M-m-m.. S-sorry. Can I ask? Did you decide to become one yourself?"

Buggy's face changed. 

"No, of course not. Let's just say.. it happened, ok?" he cleared his throat and tried to change the subject. "Listen, are you and your sister close?"  

"She's all I have left. Our parents died a long time ago. Why?"

"You.. you just followed her to some unknown destination", he shrugged and placed his hand gently on her wrist.

"She’s my sister. Don't you have someone in your life you'd go on an adventure like this for?" 

Buggy thought for a moment.

"I did. A long time ago. By the way, his hair is the same colour as yours. Red. But we went our separate ways a long time ago", he said in a sad voice, putting one of his hands on Catherine's waist and pulling her a little tighter.

Realizing that she had touched on some difficult topic, she decided to remain silent.

"Thank you for saving my life tonight, by the way", taking a deep breath, Catherine closed her eyes. "Good night, Buggy". 

"Good night you too, my cotton candy".

[socially-awkward-skeleton]

Thanks @derelictheretic @adelaidedrubman and @natesofrellis for the tags!

I've tagged a fair few people in the last few days and my brain is still a fog so I'll leave the tags this time.

Today's the first day I've managed to crawl out of bed and feel partially human again so I figured I'd share some more of Kit's canon timeline stuff I've been working on (still very much a rough draft at this point):

She marched through the wooden swinging door of the bar, her boots crunching through the gravel parking lot. As she approached the vehicle, Boomer's head popped out of the window, his ears flopping as he barked happily at her arrival.

She pulled open the passenger side door and he tore out, his front paws climbing up her jeans as his tail swished frantically back and forth.

"Hey, bud. Did you miss me?" He gave a quick bark and started to sniff at the doggy bag in her hands. "Traitor. Showing your true colours now, huh?" She scratched the spot between his ears. "I'll forgive you. I've always been a sucker for puppy dog eyes."

She hopped up onto the hood of her jeep and climbed up onto the roof. Ripping open the bag, she pulled out the paper wrapped burger. It was hardly the healthiest thing subsisting on fast food but it would be quickly burned off when she was bound to get caught up in another firefight. Boomer was quick to follow the smell of fresh food and hopped up onto the warm metal hood of the vehicle, curling up, tail still happily drumming away.

She stared up at the YES sign above the Holland Valley. She hated that thing with a burning passion, everyday it sat there, mocking her. No matter how much life seemed to steadily be returning to normal in Fall’s End since she had liberated them from the clutches of the cult and one John Seed, that sign reminded her that the job wasn’t over. It had barely even begun. Somewhere, Joey and Staci were still being held prisoner by the Seeds. She could rest a little easier knowing that Earl was alive and well at the County Jail, but her friends weren’t getting off quite so easily.

She scanned through her radio channels, hoping to hear anything, any word at all on how the efforts went for the rest of the citizens of Hope County. Landing on a cry of help from Nick Rye. Mary May had told her about how quick John was to come down on her and Jerome, as well as Nick. Seen as pillars in their community, John came for their throats immediately like a rat backed into a corner. A quick way to sow the seeds of doubt in those who didn't believe was by ruining those who they looked to. It was cunning, but it lacked control in its execution. Something she was finding to be common in the way the Holland Valley Herald handled most things.

–

She pulled up outside the landing strip, surrounded by Peggie trucks. Climbing out of her vehicle she took the rifle from off her shoulder and crept up towards the hangar.

One man ran around like a chicken with his head cut off, trucker hat popping up and down in and out of cover, panicked by the men he was going up against. She picked off several men to clear herself a path to Nick and slid behind the crate he was currently taking cover behind.

“Holy shit, thank you. You’re the deputy folks have been talkin’ ‘bout, aren’t you?”

“Introductions later.”

Kit stood up and pulled a grenade from her belt and threw it over to where the trucks were parked, the explosion caused the whole ground to rumble. Fire quickly spread to barrels along the tree line that burst into flames and set several peggie soldiers alight. Their screams vastly overpowered the sounds of Nick’s radio playing from inside the hangar.

She kneeled back down behind the crate, placing her rifle on the ground beside her, fingers still wrapped around it in a white-knuckled grip. She closed her eyes and gritted her teeth, nails running down her jeans as she took several deep breaths, a shiver coursing down her spine. She squeezed her eyes so tightly that she could see blobs of red and orange swimming in the darkness behind her lids.

Just breathe, Kit. Breathe.

"Hey, are you okay?"

Kit opened her eyes and wiped at her nose with the back of her hand. Standing up with her rifle at the ready she took out several stragglers on the perimeter of the landing strip as bullets whizzed past her.

Bodies scattered the ground, blood soaking into the sand around them.

The pilot stared at her with eyes as big as dinner plates.

"Sure, why wouldn't I be?" She asked flatly.

He said nothing more on the matter but he knew the look, his grandpa used to shut down like that too. His dad had told him it was shell-shock, it happened to folks sometimes when they came back home from war.

[riversimmone]

Risqué

Risqué

RiverOfTheSand

Summary:

No, he didn't want to be shown a good time. No, he didn't swing THAT way. NO, he didn't want to prove it. But there was no doubt in her mind that Sasuke wasn't asexual when she ground her hips. Sakura had him by the short hairs. And Kami help him, he LIKED it. Non-mass SasuSaku.

Notes:

Rated Mature. I hope you all enjoy. :)

.

"Welcome to Club Risqué; the only venue in all of Konoha where the girls are hot, the drinks are cold, and money can buy your sou... oh... uh, I mean happiness."

Sasuke Uchiha frowned at the bouncing, overly excited man who greeted them at the door to the club his brother and cousin were practically dragging him to. The man wore a top hat and formal suit that was riddled with sequins – the latter brightly affirming all the colours of a rainbow, and more. Who was he to talk about what was hot?

He was a civilian version of the infamous Gai-Lee dance routine, with sequins to boot – all it missed was the pelvic thrust.

Sasuke shivered, and turned away from him, hesitant to enter Club Risqué as his cousin now argued in whispered tones with the circus freak that was doubling as the bouncer, and his aniki watched on patiently.

'Why did I ever agree to this?'

This was not an establishment that Shinobi frequented if they wanted to keep their reputations intact. And on top of that, he was an Uchiha. His father would have a fit if he knew he was here. He still couldn't believe that Itachi had actually been here a number of times – Shisui was a bad influence it seemed.

Speaking of the devil – Sasuke watched Shisui surreptitiously slip the bouncer a roll of bills. The gaudy man grinned and waved them through, ahead of the line.

"No responsibilities!" Shisui whistled, waving them over. "No elders, and..." He pointed at Itachi. "No sitting being a fuss pot this time! We're here to get laid, no strings attached." He wiggled his finger at Sasuke. "And that goes double for you, Mr Virgin Kill Joy. You're getting some too, alright? Got that? Good. Now follow me."

Grudgingly, Sasuke did as he was told. Itachi gave him a "don't complain" look. Like he was one to go back on a promise – he'd been hanging around the dobe too long, after all. He was obligated to come here, but not to do anything in this overdone nightclub; turning up and pretending to enjoy himself was what he did best after all.

Sasuke followed his cousin and brother past the velvet ropes, rolled his eyes at the envious looks on those still waiting in line, and resolved himself to a night of boredom and frustration.

The inside was not what he expected. It was actually decent – not a sequin in sight – and despite the fact that the dancers were barely wearing anything at all, the club clearly targeted both male and female clientele.

"I don't want either of you losers as a wingman," Shisui announced, before heading off on his own.

Sasuke snorted and Itachi covertly rolled his eyes. The man just knew he'd be outclassed.

"Aren't you going off somewhere too?" Sasuke asked.

Itachi narrowed his eyes lightly at him. He wasn't here for himself tonight. If something happened, it happened, but he had a blonde to find, and a "business" transaction to make, so he turned and walked away from his otouto, knowing Sasuke would go and find a corner where no-one could see him, and attempt to wait the rest of the night out.

"Whatever," Sasuke snapped at his brother's retreating back.

He looked around, nervous all of a sudden. Curious and lustful eyes were moving toward him, and he didn't like it. A small alcove caught his attention, and he made for it, accidentally bumping into a number of idiots with drinks in their hands – should they really be holding them and dancing at the same time? And it looked like the cover charge included said drinks – maybe just for Friday nights, which would explain what he was seeing. People were taking drinks off of waiters, without paying, and the smartly dressed servers ducked and weaved the more greedy (and therefore drunken) hands with the skill and speed of seasoned Shinobi.

It was actually, and surprisingly so, mildly entertaining to watch.

Itachi watched his brother predictably move away from the crowd, wishing Sasuke would get over whatever had made him like this. Maximum aloofness was a typical Uchiha trait, but Sasuke had always been more expressive than the rest of the clan – with the probable exception of Shisui. He wasn't Naruto Uzumaki (no-one was), but he'd accepted the fact that emotions weren't a weakness. And then on his fourteenth birthday, he did a "one eighty" on his personality and withdrew from his former self.

Sighing deeply, Itachi scanned the crowd, wondering if she was here yet. He hadn't been thinking about taking Sasuke to a brothel, and it had been difficult to convince Shisui that paying for sex wasn't the way to deal with this, but it was surprisingly annoying to him that Sasuke didn't have any social experience. And then of course, Shisui had insisted they get him laid.

Whatever Sasuke decided, Itachi was happy enough with – the only problem would be their incorrigible cousin. There were a number of places Shisui had suggested before agreeing to Club Risqué; Otafuku Gai for example, was a town where people went to lose their virginity, their money, and their pride – and not necessarily in that order. But he would not have his otouto getting dragged into some disease infested brothel just to satiate his cousin's curiosity. So far, the older Uchiha had behaved himself and kept his philandering ways to more respectable women, but there was only so much that Shisui was willing to give up on. He was a hard-ass when he wanted to be.

And respectable was a relative term when dealing with Shisui Uchiha.

Instead, Itachi had timed this outing with Ino Yamanaka, hoping the girl was as persuasive as the rumours painted her. For this very delicate situation, he'd have preferred a more natural/normal setting, but one could only ignore Shisui's nagging for so long.

And he had a certain someone in mind for his otouto. The only girl Sasuke's age that he had shown no contempt for... at some point or other. He smiled as he spotted the familiar bob of pink hair – Kami had answered his prayers. As Ino had promised, Sakura Haruno had indeed just entered the club for the first time ever.

–XXX–

Sakura weaved through the crowd as she danced, trying to get away from the more eager patrons. She wasn't here for the club motto: "get in, get laid, and get out". She had been coerced and tricked into coming to Club Risqué.

How she'd managed to let Ino persuade her to come to this place was beyond Sakura. One minute, Ino was keeping her promise to let the pinkette off the hook about these places, and the next she was ranting and raving about Club Risqué – a new club that was changing the nightclub world, apparently. Even ninja were migrating here, since The Kunai had become so drab and boring these days.

Sakura preferred drab and boring to being stared at by every lecherous man in this place.

But Sakura decided to humour her, if only to shut her up – she planned to spend just enough time dancing and drinking to slip out once Ino had found a new guy to mount. But the blonde was up to something. She hadn't let Sakura out of her sight. Teasing and attracting guys came natural to Ino, but she was pushing them away tonight, albeit gently. Nothing to say, "get the fuck out of my face". Just to say "maybe later". It had Sakura wary, her hackles raised, her Kunoichi senses primed, and her eyes on the door, just in case she needed a quick exit.

This place was okay... she supposed. But getting groped by strangers wasn't her thing. It was so far outside her thing.

Like when a waiter, who was just randomly swerving between the patrons, offered her a Strawberry Genjutsu, she just knew he wasn't being rhetorical. It smelt like someone had spiked it. Ino told her to stop being a bore, and dance.

Strong arms encircled her a moment later; the warm body behind her moving sensually, and in a way that made her sigh rather than pull away.

"Fancy seeing you here, Saku-chan."

The deep baritone took her by surprise. She turned around to face Itachi. She hated being called Saku-chan. "Fancy seeing you here, Ita-kun."

He smirked at her. And he hated being called Ita-kun. "Rumours of my holing up in the Uchiha compound are exaggerated, as you can see."

"Yes, I see."

Ino sauntered up to him, tapping his shoulder. "I remember reserving a dance, Uchiha-san."

Itachi nodded to her. "In a moment – I wouldn't want to give Sakura the wrong idea, would I?"

"I'm all danced out," Sakura insisted, knowing that if she let Itachi run this line long enough, he'd hog her for the rest of the night. Being on Sasuke's genin team, she knew more about him than, well... most people. Under that calm and seemingly uncaring exterior, he could be a gigantic flirt – if he really wanted to, and if one was lucky enough to garner his attention, that is.

He merely nodded to her however, knowing he wouldn't convince her, and was reluctantly allowing Ino to draw him away.

If Sakura didn't already know that Itachi had no sexual interest in Ino, she'd feel sorry for him right now.

She sighed and made her way off of the dance floor. A small corner where the chances of being spotter were minute was sounding attractive right now. She grabbed a Strawberry Genjutsu and headed for said alcove (she hadn't actually accepted the other one).

Sakura stopped after a few steps and groaned.

Sasuke had already stolen her spot.

Sakura watched him closely, her mind whirring. What the hell was he doing in a place like this?

Ino had pretty much proved he was asexual – on her last seduction mission, he'd been a last minute back-up (a tag-along bodyguard, so to speak), and she was adamant that he hadn't reacted to any of the male or female strippers. There had even been geisha. Sasuke wasn't as stoic as his elder brother (when he wasn't being cheeky or flirting anyway), so Ino was confident his lack of a reaction meant he wasn't interested in sex.

So Sakura had reluctantly written him off; she was still a virgin, mind, given that her morals could run circles around Ino's. What girl gave up her childhood crush as an impossible dream? She did. She already had. But looking at Sasuke now, as he shifted to avoid catching the attention of a passing stripper, his eyes roving over the dance floor, she wondered if he even knew this club's more seedy reputation.

She narrowed her eyes at him. He certainly looked uninterested in the entertainment.

Sasuke's official fan club was still in denial, of course.

She grinned at that. Sakura's mind was suddenly made up. She swirled her Strawberry Genjutsu with her forefinger, smiled at her decision, and sauntered over to him. She was dressed the part – her dress low cut, sleek and black (Ino wouldn't let her leave her house in anything that wasn't).

"Not dancing tonight, Sasuke?"

He looked up at her, surprise gracing his face before he schooled his features. "No."

She sat next to him, crossing her legs and leaning forward on her knees; her eyes scanned the crowd absentmindedly as she swished the glass in her hand around. "Seems a waste, to get dressed up and not do anything about it."

"Then go dance."

She turned to face him. "Itachi's already had the pleasure." She winked at him, inwardly chuckling when he frowned.

"You danced with my aniki?"

"That is what I just said, Sasuke."

He grunted softly, leaning backward. "I don't dance."

"I wasn't asking, Sasuke."

"Hn."

She sighed, stood up, downed her drink, handed it off to a waiter passing by, and held her hand out to Sasuke. "I'm telling."

"No."

"Lap dance?"

"No."

She smiled. "It's one or the other, Sasu-chan."

He growled at her for the teasing endearment. He hated honorifics. "No."

"Everyone's going to know, come Monday, that you were here, Sasuke."

"Is that a threat?"

"It's a promise."

Reluctantly, and after a drawn out sigh, Sasuke climbed to his feet. Sakura snatched up his hand and dragged him onto the dance floor.

"You put your hands on me," Sakura instructed, turning away from him to press her back against his front; her hands guided his to her waist. "And you move to the beat."

The flashing of brightly coloured lights from the ceiling fixtures covered the blush now adorning his face, and Sasuke succeeded in hiding it from Sakura, turning his head slightly.

"I know how to dance," he growled into her ear.

She giggled. "Sorry, but this is a little different from the waltz and those other proper dance steps you Uchiha are taught."

"Well what–"

Sakura ground her arse against his groin without warning, one arm going to the side of his leg as she did this. He was shocked by her candour, resisting the urge to groan in response. He wasn't stupid... she had planned this. His body reacted where he wouldn't, and it swayed, and trembled slightly in tandem with hers. He surprised himself, gripping her tighter to him and closing his eyes.

It was one of those moments that you don't see coming, where the decision between flight and fight could change your life. And when it hits you, you either suddenly find yourself devoid of the ability to fight back, or with an overwhelming urge to flee. He couldn't tear himself away from her, so for the first time in his life, Sasuke gave into his base urges, and moved as though making love on the dance floor. It wasn't sex. It was something else. Something more restricted, but no less intimate.

"Sasuke..." Sakura moaned, and the blood in his body pooled in a southerly direction.

She spun around to face him, ecstatic when she saw the look in his eyes reflecting her own lust.

"Let's go somewhere more private," she suggested, and he nodded.

Sakura took his hand and led him away.

And neither of them noticed the two smug looking sets of eyes watching them from afar, as they disappeared from the crowd, heading toward one of the private rooms that made this club so popular.

Itachi was glad. He wrenched himself loose from Ino, and went to find a distraction of his own.

–XXX–

Sakura kicked off her open toed high heels, dropped her pursed by the now closed door and turned to view the room. Set up like a normal bedroom, it even had an adjoining washroom.

Not that she needed it. She was fine.

Sasuke was staring at her and she smiled.

She took his hand. "Come on, we only have this room for a couple of hours."

If he was nervous, he wasn't showing it. Sasuke went to undress but she stopped him, her fingers taking over; he was wearing a black suit, one that complimented his form without hugging it. She undid his tie, threw it over her shoulder, undid the buttons of his jacket, and slid it off. Sasuke watched her intently as she pulled his shirt off, smirking lightly at the look of rapture on her face – she was checking him out. He stopped her from going any further, pulling her over to the bed and half throwing her onto it.

Emboldened by her confidence, he returned the favour, slowly and teasingly sliding the dress down and off of her. She moved to hide herself, suddenly self-conscious of Sasuke seeing her in her underwear, but he caught her hands, pushing them aside.

"No," he growled. "Don't hide from me."

He climbed on top of her, pressing his lips to her neck as she sighed, melting against his embrace. Her hands went to his belt, quickly divesting him of it, and undoing his pants, leaving him in boxers. She groaned as he ground himself into her. His kisses moved toward her neck, travelling south; when he met her breasts, he reached around to unclasp her bra – his fumbling was for naught (it wasn't like he'd ever done this before), and Sakura had to do it for him.

Frustrated at this, he bit her left breast, making her cry out, and smirked into her skin, licking and kissing her better. She wasn't well endowed, but Sasuke didn't seem to care.

"Sasuke..."

"Hm." He looked up at her, into those wide emerald eyes and smiled. "In a moment," he promised. He returned to kissing her body, still moving south. She had a moment of panic when he reached her knickers, but he didn't give her the opportunity to pull away, ripping them off with little to no fuss.

"Sasuke," she growled.

He ignored her anger and dipped his head between her legs.

All fury left her in the next moment, and Sakura closed her eyes; a light headed feeling accompanied the warm breath on her folds. His tongue came out to play, and she screamed. She couldn't think straight. Everything else just disappeared, except for this feeling of euphoria.

When it finally passed, Sasuke moved back up to her mouth, kissed her deeply, rolled off of her and closed his eyes. She glanced at him, worried he wasn't going to go any further. So she climbed on top of him. His eyes snapped open as she pulled his boxers off, the cool air revealing how turned on he was by her orgasm.

Sakura wasted no time, gripping him fiercely; he hissed, but she ignored it. Gentle... probing... sensual... she could do that. No teeth. Ino had told her once, that she shouldn't assume guys liked it rough. She was glad she listened to her.

Sasuke made no groan of pain. Yes, he was definitely enjoying it. She changed tactics, moved her hands and lips while listening to the sounds her lover was making. Blushing heavily, she wondered if she could make him scream. There was only one way to find out.

Sakura released her hold on him and he glared at her. She smirked, much like an Uchiha would, and straddled him properly. He opened his mouth, to say what, she wasn't sure, but then half-screamed instead as she lowered herself onto him.

The stinging sensation spread through her groin, and she winced, unable to hide it.

Sakura watched in jealous fascination as Sasuke's face contort in wanton pleasure from the warmth now surrounding him. He gripped the bed sheets ripping them as he bucked upwards almost immediately.

At some point, the pleasure had to kick in... She just knew it.

His rhythm left something to be desired, but Sasuke was just getting used to the incredible pressure as he struggled not to lose control. Ultimately, he would ravage her, unable to hold back, but for as long as he could focus on that next thrust, he would. He gripped Sakura's hips now, taking control. She was on top, but he wouldn't let her dominate him. His ingrained, Uchiha-given restraint failed him a moment later when Sakura shifted her weight on him, rotating her hips in an attempt to feel something of the carnal gratification that was obviously ripping through him. He responded immediately, almost primal; releasing his hold on her hips, Sasuke roared, arching so high she struggled not to let him throw her across the room.

Slightly panicked, Sakura shoved him down, grinding in uneven motions; again, he responded violently, but this time, she was ready for him.

His gorgeous face remained contorted in pleasure, his eyes having long since rolled into the back of his head, but she could feel it now. His hands returned to her hips, holding her still as he thrust up into her mercilessly. Sakura closed her eyes, her hands gripping his chest; it was sensuous and erotic at the same time, loving but animalistic, and soothing but riveting.

His inexperienced, chaotic thrusts began to slow. He wanted more.

Sasuke growled at her, grabbing her wrists and rolling her onto her back, without pulling out of her. He didn't even miss a beat, continuing his thrusts like a man possessed. He touched their foreheads together, staring into her eyes, watching her reaction, showing her his – he had never felt this alive, this overcome with sensation. It was a whole other world. One he'd been missing out on. But no more.

Sasuke kissed her. Her lips parted as he licked them and he lost himself in her flavour, her warmth.

He sped up, shifting his angle on her as her responses to him quietened; a new depth opened up to him as she wrapped her legs around his waist and she returned to moaning loudly.

His mouth moved from hers, teasing her throat as they rocked together in unison. His hands tightened around her wrists, but she didn't care. His mouth was now moving lower, nipping at her shoulder; his tongue darted out and she shivered and moaned at the warmth. When he latched onto her right nipple, Sakura threw her head back and screamed. He bit her skin gently, in time with his thrusts, and she died... right then. He moved a hand from her wrists to fondle her neglected breast, picking up speed with every pump, again.

Sakura's legs floundered, exhausted, and she unwrapped them from around him; her toes curled, her knees rising as she screamed out – the tightness in the pit of her stomach preceded a powerful wave that tore through her body with relentless fury. She screamed again, Sasuke's name falling from her lips without her meaning it to. Her body shuddered and she felt weak all over.

But he was still going. He wasn't done yet. A few more strokes later, he felt it too.

He growled as his body tightened, coiled and released...

"Sakura..."

He came inside of her, warming every inch of her, and Sakura sighed, hummed, and gripped him tightly.

When had he let go of her hands?

She didn't want to let him go, and he seemed reluctant to move. Instead, she ran a hand through his hair, grasping the dark strands, pulling gently, before letting go and clutching more hair. It was soothing really, and he closed his eyes, just basking. He could barely believe what he'd just done, and with who – he supposed Itachi and Shisui weren't wrong for pressuring him to come here after all.

It was certainly memorable.

Sakura listened to his breathing as it evened out. He fell asleep on top of her, inside of her, and embracing her. Her dreams had come true after all.

–XXX–

Sasuke woke to an empty bed, momentarily startled and disappointed. But then his senses kicked in, the grogginess disappeared, and he was suddenly very aware of Sakura leaning a foot on the end of the bed, having redressed, and now putting her high heels back on. He watched her for a moment, smiling slightly, and realised their time was up. More disappointment rolled off of him as he sat up and climbed out of the bed.

"Uh... Sasuke?"

He looked over at her; her eyes were on his body. Right, he was still naked. He gave her his trademark smirk, watched her blush endearingly, and turned to find his clothes and get dressed.

Silence fell upon them for a moment before Sakura asked the inevitable question: "what now?"

"I'm supposed to meet Itachi and Shisui outside," he said matter-of-factly.

"Oh..."

Finished dressing, Sasuke looked up at her, frowning at the disappointment on her face. "You meant with us?"

"Yes."

He wasn't sure. He enjoyed what they'd done, but honestly, the idea of attaching feelings to it – like he knew she wanted – hadn't been his plan. There was only one thing he could think of saying, that wouldn't piss her off or upset her.

"Let's start off properly," he suggested. "Are you free tomorrow night?"

It would be the first of many dates.

Sakura nodded and smiled.

They parted ways at the bottom of the stairs that led to the dance floor and, not wanting to waste time, Sasuke waited just inside the club exit for his brother and cousin.

A few minutes later, Itachi caught Shisui as his older cousin came down the stairs as well, looking smug as he fixed the buttons on his shirt.

Knowing Shisui, there was a rabid fangirl, still up in that room, painting her fingernails with his signature bottle blue and making up sappy poems. They left for the exit, where a bored looking Sasuke rolled his eyes at Shisui – who was now whistling like a man in love.

"I pray you were discreet," Itachi said, wary of the older man.

Shisui smirked at his cousin. "That depends."

Itachi raised an eyebrow questioningly.

The older Uchiha gave a wicked grin. "On which goddess you're praying."

"On?" Sasuke didn't get it.

His cousin laughed. "Didn't you get laid after all, Sasu-chan?"

"He did," Itachi answered for him, and Sasuke turned beet red.

"Then he should get what I mean." Shisui pretended to pout.

"I hate you both," Sasuke grumbled.

The same man who'd greeted his group when they'd entered hours ago now smirked at Sasuke... knowingly. He waved happily at them as they left and said, "Hope you enjoyed Club Risqué, where the prices are low, the people are high, and the promise of sex has a money back guarantee."

–XXX–

[salmonellaandcheese]

Tag Game To Better Know You!

Tagged by the lovely and talented @lady--lisa (So sorry for taking so long! I didn't forget! I just couldn't figure out a way to copy all the questions easily on mobile)

If you saw the first version of this no u didnt

What book are you currently reading?

I'm halfway through Anne of Avolea by L.M Montgomery and a few chapters into the Colour of Magic by Terry Pratchett. I really should read more, I used to devour books back when I was a kid, but the library I volunteer at is based on community requests so its almost entirely formulaic ghostwritten thrillers (curse you James Pattison). If anyone has book recommendations let me know!

What’s your favourite movie you saw in theatres this year?

I think the only movie I saw was the new Top Gun, which I only watched because my mum loves the original and we went for her birthday. I wouldn't say its fantastic, but I did end up infodumping to my friends about propaganda and pop culture.

What do you usually wear?

Usually loose jeans or other sturdy pants and some variety of print t-shirt with my red flannel. Anxiety kind of made it into my uni uniform, I never thought I'd miss my high school uniform that much. When I'm at home I'm usually wearing shorts and an old singlet that I got in grade 8 or something. Winter means I get to wear big jumpers! I have this horrifically ugly one on it that says New Zealand with a red kiwi on it, I adore it. If I'm reaching out of my miniscule comfort zone I'll wear a funky button up or a more form fitting shirt, I've always dressed quite modestly (although not entirely by choice) and this year I cut my hair off and started to explore my masculinity and being openly and visibly queer. I pretty much only wear natural fibres and very practial/sensory friendly clothing, so most of my clothes are made to last and will be repaired until I deign them unwearable.

Fun fact, I used to actually dress in a style I'd say is somewhere between classic lolita and cottagecore, lots of pinafores and frilly shirts and ribbons. Next year I'd like to step out of my comfort zone and dress in any way that sparks joy, maybe experiment with makeup, different styles or more revealing clothing (ooh a shoulder, scandalous).

How tall are you?

I'm actually not quite sure, between 165cm and 170cm I think (5'5" to 5'7")

What’s your Star Sign? Do you share a birthday with a celebrity or a historical event?

Gemini

Do you go by your name or a nick-name?

I introduce myself with my name but with hopes that I'll get a nickname, I've always wanted one.

Did you grow up to become what you wanted to be when you were a child?

I'm still in uni but by a technicality yes? I wanted to be a scientist but came to dislike science in high school, but now I'm doing archeology (and history) through an arts degree but I could do it through a science degree. I did really enjoy digging in the dirt as a child, so I think little me would be happy about that, even if i was more into paleontology.

Are you in a relationship? If not, who is your crush if you have one?

No. I do have a bit of a crush on my best friend, who I turned down a year ago because I'm the stupidest person alive and can't tell the difference between friendship feelings and romantic feelings.

What’s something you’re good at vs. something you’re bad at?

I'm good with precision and detail orientated things. I love knitting and I've picked up archery and bread making recently. Its actually why I got into archaeology, I wanted to work in restoration and conservation.

I'm bad at remembering to do stuff. It's the ADHD man. Assessments? whoops. Consistent meals? Forgot. Cleaning? sorry not happening

Dogs or cats?

Dogs, I've never had a cat and don't really know how they work.

If you draw/write, or create in any way, what’s your favourite picture/favourite line/favourite etc. from something you created this year?

I knitted my best friend some lovely socks, they're my first pair of socks and my second time doing fair isle.

What’s something you would like to create content for?

Look I know this means fandom but I have to start planning for what I'm putting in the show next year, it's only 6 months away. I'd love to do some more sewing, maybe make a gunne sax style dress (provided my anxiety will let me wear it out of the house) and I want to find something technically challenging for knitting, maybe lacework? Send me knitting/crafting inspo. I was thinking of maybe picking up counted thread embroidery too (yes I hate myself).

What’s something you’re currently obsessed with?

Star Wars. I've got brain worms about it. I've been microwaving it for months. Its been on my mind constantly, yet I have no thoughts. I'm forcing all of my friends to watch it. I'm rewatching all of it. I know nothing but also everything. I'm being excessively autistic about a background character wearing a cable knit jumper.

Good thing is that it makes conversation with men under 25 incredibly easy. I've made industry connections over a conversation about Lego Star Wars.

What’s something you were excited about that turned out to be disappointing this year?

Uhhhhhh. My uni's archaeology society? The history society raised my standards high, they do a lot of fun events, whereas the archaeology one is useful but a lot more industry training and connections focused instead of having regular pizza and power-point nights like the history one.

What’s a hidden talent of yours?

Hmm. I'm not too sure. I can flip an egg without using anything other than the pan, does that count? Like just wiggle, wiggle, throw it up in the air and catch it.

Are you religious?    

Catholic but in a cool and funky queer way

What’s something you wish to have at this moment?

A concrete plan of what the hell I'm doing and how to do it. A solution to my joint pain?

Tagging: (only if you want to) @elprupneerg @rights-for-redshirts @doveyluvey @notaghost3 @swagtalia @radioactivehydronerd @hetaari @arthoe-iceland @ratfish-blues and anyone else who sees this is welcome to join in!

[motherpheasantplucker42]

1, 7, 13, 16, 20, 31, 34 Kotoko, 45

1. I believe it was therpgminx's playthrough of DR1 in 2016 and now I'm mentally unwell about it

7. This is a difficult one because the talent is such a large part of so many characters identity BUT. I would give Imposter something in the vein of ultimate Leader based on how they act in DR2, and I think they deserve an existence that isn't defined by pretending to be someone else. Daisaku Bandai should be literally anything else. Maybe voice actor because his only defining trait (apart from the sterotypes) is his voice being unexpected. I would give Leon drummer because that matches his aesthetic, meets his interest in music, and frees him from baseball. I think Gonta has earned ultimate Gentleman. Finally, Makoto should officially be the (un)lucky student. It's a small detail, but it reflects the way his luck works, and I love how his fortunate and misfortune are mixed.

13. I'm pretty basic with ships. Fuyuhiko x Peko, Toko x Komaru, and Taka x Mondo x Chihiro. Number 1 is Ryoko x Yasuke. Big fan of that whole thing

16. I have had an idea for a tripwire based murder for a while. You align a pressure-held mounted contraption with the temple of the tallest student alive, and eventually, they walk into the wire, launching some object into their head. The delay between set-up and result would make alibis meaningless, would make it easier for the faint of heart to kill, and could lead to some drama if it fails. I think it would be neat for a chapter two.

20. The brain worms that it deploys. It's hard to pin down a single favourite thing, as it is really the combination of vibes, characters, story, and such that combine to make it such a fun thing. If I had to pick, though, it would probably be how it's mostly Junko's story. It is an exploration of her philosophy and its effects on people. I could go on a whole tirade about that but this is already going to be my longest post I've made, so next time.

31. Daisaku, for obvious reasons. One of the only explicit people of colour in the franchise (i.e. can't be written off as tan) and we get Daisaku.

34. She's my second favourite warrior of hope. Her minigame shows a tragic relationship with her trauma. I would imagine a full character arc would be one of the most interesting in the series, but alas. I do think her character would hit harder if the minigame had a less silly paint job, the narrator didn't imply you were enjoying it, and haiji didn't say that one line. She got done dirty.

45. It is probably the game I think about the least. I don't dislike it, but I tend to find the gameplay of Danganronpa as a whole an impediment to the story and character development. UDG has the most true gameplay of any of the main games. I would have liked more time spent on the dynamics of the adults and kids, both within and between groups, more exploration of motivation, and a stronger tie into the rest of the story. Instead we get a few arena fights, some basic puzzles, and slightly more panty shots than usual. Somewhere between not my cup of tea and missed potential, I guess

[kalba9blogfan]

My personal review on Hawkeye:My life as a weapon

⭐️Setting

Setting is simple, American city, I can't say too much about it, it has it's charm to it.

⭐️Story

Went in as someone who knows NOTHING about these characters and I loved it?? It's really more about Clint's thought on everything, his life and worlds perspectieven rather than anything else. But it was fun because Clint is fun. One thing I do gotta say though, lil harsh on the circus part, but if bro's seen it before then I trust that on him.

⭐️Characters

Biggest feat, Clint himself is a pretty funny guy and accurately depicted as a man who's just tired of everything, he's comical and he makes some honest to God mistakes. Kate, when I saw her I didn't know what to expect but she's an absolute beast!! I loved her to pieces and I hope she's in one of those movies because she serves EVERYTHING!

⭐️Visuals

1000!!! I loved the visuals, I'm a huge fan of simplistic art that can tell so much. The artist knows their anatomy and dynamica, so it's satisfying to see and easy to visualize a smooth transition. And I can't forget about how well the lineart is done, it's hard to get somewhere with lines and base coloring but they made it work so so well and I have my most massive respect for that. As for colours, they were a treat to the eye!!!

No review is complete without cons!

I do feel like I was missing something, it was said it would be continued but I don't know where that would be, I'd probably have to find it somewhere,

Also at times they went from a really simple style to this more realistic style which didn't sit right with me personally, I guess it's to show off more diversity in faces but it threw me off at first

[maiaacchiato]

just a bunch of lyrics from the most songs of this playlist that changed the trajectory of my life bc i am bored and i have nothing better to do

call me what you like - lovejoy "i'm not made for you, but what else is new?"

poster boy - lyn lapid "have you found my other lifetime? have you known me all along?"

do you really? - lyn lapid, ruth b. "holdin' my heart that you've sewn up"

us without me - grentperez "why do i fade into that heart of yours? 'cause you still hold a spot in mine"

august - taylor swift "cancel plans just incase you'd call"

you're here that's the thing - beabadoobee "did i forget to mention how long i'd stay? is that a question for another day?"

best friend - rex orange county "love someone for loving you instead of someone really cool that makes your heart melt"

scum - lovejoy "pick up the pieces of me, you can have what's left"

warsaw - lovejoy "i thought i'll do anything you ask of me, that's sure"

it's golden hour somewhere - lovejoy "i'm not sure if the stuff i want is even worth the price it costs"

aphrodite - the ridleys "'cause with the stars i've been dancing along like a fool, so you'd look my way"

eraser - ricky montgomery "meet me at the comedown when no one's talking about you at all"

sunflower - peach luffe "i don't mind if you lie, just tell me that we're alright"

loving is easy - rex orange county "please don't change a single little thing for me"

untitled - rex orange county "'cause i can barely breathe and i don't know how i'll explain myself this time"

all too well (10 min version) - taylor swift "i'd like to be my old self again, but i'm still trying to find it"

star tripping - kevin atwater "you think He made you wrong, i think you give Him way too much credit"

settle down - ricky montgomery "you hurt my head like cheap red wine"

favoritism - sos "you always do what you want, one little blink and you're gone"

cardigan - taylor swift "you drew stars around my scars, and now i'm bleeding"

kiss her you fool - kids that fly "stop waiting for a fairy tale to take you away"

you just didn't like me that much - leanna firestone "i know you didn't mean to. i hope you didn't mean to."

10:15 - leanna firestone "am i only beautiful after 10:15?"

burnt out - leanna firestone "i kissed your scars even after you hurt me"

i won't run - keanu bicol "i don't want to be here any longer"

sweet tooth - cavetown "it's filled with scribbles, tore the page"

#8 - egg "well the rose-coloured glasses are losing their hue"

how was your day? - beabadoobee "'cause i'll be away for a while, i can't remember your smile"

memories - conan grey "i promise that the ending always stays the same"

line without a hook - ricky montgomery "is it worth it? is it worth it? tell me is it worth it?"

midnight rain - taylor swift "but for him it was everyday"

the way i loved you - taylor swift "but i miss screaming and fighting and kissing in the rain"

the perfect pair - beabadoobee "if i told you, you'd know how to go and break my heart in two"

sunny day - beabadoobee "i'll keep you posted, i promise i'm better"

cause for concern - lovejoy "you could kick the teeth into my head"

green - leo. "you're invited to bedroom, feel my tears run down your back, i don't know why you'd stay"

i wanna be your girlfriend - girl in red "oh, hannah, i will follow you home, although my lips are blue, and i'm cold"

bad idea! - girl in red "was such a bad idea, i need to be alone"

october passed me by - girl in red "you were the first to make me feel like i was me"

this december - ricky montgomery "it's just a little bit lonely in this home, it's always colder on your own"

be - gnash "what if we had never met at all?"

she - dodie "'cause even when she's next to me we could not be more far apart"

mr. loverman - ricky montgomery "i've shattered now, i'm spilling out upon this linoleum ground"

clementine - grentperez "color it gray until i forget you"

nobody loves me - mxmtoon, ricky montgomery, cavetown "but i don't wanna let you down, i just wanna hang around"

forget her - girl in red "some things will never fade"

an art gallery could never be as unique as you - mrld "your colors caught me eye and you're my favourite sight to see"

feb 14 - cavetown "but all i ever wanna talk about is you"

the way i spoke - beabadoobee "it was cold with lots of pretty lights"

kindergarten - chloe moriondo "if that's alright with you, do you wanna sit next to me on the bus home?"

[laviejaguardia]

It gets a little too much sometimes. It mounts up, a pressure under Joe’s sternum that won't let up, the world dims around him slowly, so gradually he doesn't notice it until it's too late. Especially if they've been doing back to back missions, or he's had to be away from Nicky a lot.

Nicky notices, but also knows Joe's too stubborn to recognize it. He'll insist he's fine, that it's all good, until one day he's sketching and everything he draws comes out ugly, until he tries to find one of his colourful paints and realizes he doesn't even remember where they are; it's been too long since he used them

That's when Nicky finds him standing somewhere, completely still, eyes and expression vacant but his cheeks and beard already wet with streaming tears.

Then Nicky stands close gently, so as not to startle him, and wraps one arm around his waist, pressing their sides together so Joe can tuck there. When the warmth of his body finally soaks through, Joe turns just a little and presses his face on the crook of Nicky’s neck, hiding from the world that seems so grey and harsh into the one place he knows it's always safe: his husband's arms. Then, and only then, he's able to let go.

"I hated it," Joe confesses against the warm private nestle of Nicky’s neck. Nicky can feel his lips against his skin and the wet press of his scrunched eyes. He hums and cards his hand through his curls, resting his own head over Joe's. His curls tickle his nose so he gives them a kiss. "Every second of it. They made me-" he takes a shuddering breath and pivots so he’s hugging Nicky, their fronts connecting. He tightens his hold on Nicky's back and in turn, Nicky gathers him impossible closer, something soft and broken mending inside of him as Joe rests even more of his weight on him. "I had to do awful things so they wouldn't suspect me."

"I know, hayati, I know." His soul aches for his lover. His Yusuf, so full of emotion and kindness, masking them hurts him, it borrows and festers inside of him like an infection. "But we got them all out. You got them all out." 

Joe's breath hitches with the reminder, Nicky's neck feels wetter.

"It was horrible, so horrible, Nicolò." He pushes himself off and Nicky lets him, meets his big brown reddened eyes when he looks up. The lines around them are deeper, hinting at a fraction of their real age. "How can people still do this?" He asks with a desolation that knows no bounds. "How can they- of all the options in this world- I just- how can they choose to do this, Nicolò?" He pleads, not looking for a real answer. "I'm so tired."

Nicky reels him in again, close and tight to his own body, which has felt like half a life ever since they parted. It's been so long, too long. Neither of them does well with distance. And even though they knew it was the best course of action it didn't mean they enjoyed a single second of this aspect.

"I missed you," Joe burrows further into his skin and Nicky starts to feel his soul start to settle in his body. He clutches him closer, tighter, until there isn't an ounce of air between them. If only he could split his ribcage open and tuck Joe inside, keep him sheltered from all of this world's pains, feed him only with his love and show him only the world's most beautiful things.

But then he wouldn't be his Yusuf. He wouldn't be the man who first leaps into danger, yet never does more harm than necessary. He wouldn't be the man able to find the hope in the darkest of time, the humour -jaded and dark if needed- in the direst of moments. 

"I missed Nile. And Andy. And Booker." He lets out a wet laugh that holds no humour. "I missed this," he says and squeezes him again, dutifully, Nicky squeezes him back, drops another kiss on his curls and rocks them softly back and forth. "I missed your cooking and Andy's teasing and Nile's sarcasm and Booker's opinions on cheeses. I missed my family," that last part dissolves into a sob.

"We're here, Yusuf," Nicky reminds him. "You have us."

"And those- god those girls, Nicky. They will never get to go back to their lives, not in the same way. I shouldn't be complaining."

Nicky frowns and tuts, carding his fingers more tightly in his curls.

"We've left behind our own lives more times than we can count, Yusuf. And thanks to you those girls are getting back to their homes and can start to heal. You know their families will be eternally grateful, you've given them their lives back."

Yusuf sniffles and pets his back, a long stroke from the small of his back to the curl of his shoulder blades. The feeling is so comforting in its familiarity Nicky finds himself blinking back tears. 

"I love you." Joe's lips brush his skin with the words. Nicky wonders for a second how many times has that happened by now. No matter how high the number, it'll never be enough. "So much it’s beyond words."

Nicky huffs a laugh, not dismissive but pleased. Under his hands he can feel how Joe's back has relaxed, his breathing is coming more smoothly. "That's not what you were saying a thousand years ago but okay." 

"A thousand years ago you hadn't learned to cook a stew so good it made me weep."

"Ah yes, the stew of romance," Nicky chuckles and lets Joe push away to reveal his face. "My greatest achievement. Filled our bellies and made you fall in love with me all at once." He gives him a whisper of a smile, lost in the memory.

It hadn't been of course that easy. The stew had been their first meal with meat in months and Nicky had spent more time batting Joe's hands away from the pot than stirring it. When it had been finally done Joe had been practically drooling. At the first spoonful he'd almost couldn't swallow it with the way he was groaning.

"Oh Allah be merciful. Nicolò I love you, please marry me," he'd begged over Nicky's snorting laughter.

Nicky hadn't thought much of the comment at the time, taking it for the jest between friends it had been. It was in the middle of the night, gripped with unusual insomnia despite his warm and full belly that the words had come back to him. It had made him realize how far they'd come, and how he couldn't envision his future without Yusuf in it now. 

The deeper feelings would take longer to surface, but when Joe had asked him when he'd started to suspect there could be more between them, it had been the memory of that night and that stew that had come back to Nicky as clear as the night sky. 

Now that same night sky seems to be stuck on Joe's pupils as he stares up at him. His cheeks are wet and his eyes red. He looks tired on a fundamental level that Nicky knows will take him a long time to rest and recover from. 

Nicky brings a hand to cradle his chin, thumb resting on the curve of chin. He had to keep shaved for the job and it’s been slow to grow back properly, another thing Joe doesn't like. Each glance in the mirror has been a sour reminder.

His eyes hold pleas and apologies that there's no need to utter. Nicky smiles softly at him, his chest burning with how much he loves him.

"I know, tesoro, I love you too. We'll be okay, I promise." He tips Joe's chin closer and seals his words with a soft, gentle kiss.

[urlkssknt]

nanami kento x fem!reader (2.9k)

nsfw!! mdi!!

warnings; unprotected sex, it’s just very soft and vanilla

a/n; this is a scene from a series i might write, i’m not sure if i want to commit to it, please let me know your thoughts, feedback is much appreciated!

The marriage announcement caught you off guard, it felt like someone had thrown you into the deep end of a pool and you didn't know how to swim, drowning slowly in the snarky whispers from the attendants of the party that reached your ear - wasn't he married to Y/n? Poor girl, I wouldn't be able to show my face if I was her. Many eyes around the room turned towards you in anticipation, waiting for some display of anger or a rage-induced outburst. Much to their disappointment, you stood your ground. You wouldn’t let the perfectly crafted mask fall from your face, especially not now, you couldn’t let the woman, who held a leash over your ex, know she caused an effect on you.

From a distance over, Satoru watched you closely through the peripheral of his sharp vision, you leaned further into the dark long haired man standing beside you to whisper something into his ear. Suguru handed you a small rectangular box discreetly. He was equally as shocked as you. Satoru expected Toji to pull a stunt like this, maybe another pregnancy announcement or a business merger. He never expected it to be announced publicly, in a Gojou family setting. Whilst claps of congratulations sounded around the hall, Gojou's cold gaze threw daggers towards your ex-husband, standing beside your parents with a hand on the waist of his fiancée. The sight of gleaming smiles across your parent’s faces made Satoru feel sick to his stomach. The white haired man also took a mental note of the people who seemed genuinely happy for the wretched couple. Those people didn't realise that they had gotten onto Gojou Satoru's bad side and ruined any promising positive relationship with the businessman.

There was a chill in the evening air as you stood on the balcony, you were grateful no one else was outside to witness the devastation on your face, only the night sky being witness to the single teardrop that fell along the expanse of your cheek. The cold air nipped at the bare skin of your arms and neck, raising the fine hairs which run all along your skin. As a thought of regret for not bringing a jacket along with you popped into your mind, you opened the cigarette packet that Suguru handed to you, bringing one up to your lips to rest as you fish for a lighter in your purse, praying that you had one despite having quit the disgusting habit years ago.

The temperature of the chilling air around you rises as a warming presence pressed against your back, you only relax when the familiar scent of rich cologne mixed with cinnamon infiltrates your senses, allowing yourself to melt into the heated hands that run along your naked arms.

"Do you even have a lighter?" Kento questions as you continue to search through your bag, which was so small, the blond was sceptical about it being big enough to fit any necessities.

Peering up through your lashes, your azure eyes narrowed at him as your lips formed into a deep scowl. Kento was right, you didn’t have a lighter, specifically for scenarios like this, where your fingers are itching to grab at the first intoxicant to cloud your mind. Smoking would help calm the stress that scratches the walls of your brain as the tobacco fills your bloodstream.

“Suguru probably has one-“ you mutter under your breath, speaking with the white stick sitting comfortably between your lips before a hand quickly reaches for it and throws the small object off the balcony, out of sight and out of reach. “What the hell-“ there was little time to process the sudden action as your words are cut short with kento’s palms encasing your face to tilt your head slightly and allow him to lower his lips onto yours in a short kiss. The anger that rushed through your veins quickly dissolved, leaving as fast as it was produced.

A small smile creeped along your lips, “maybe I should take up smoking again.”

Kento couldn’t help the chuckle that let up his throat, his eyes crinkling in the same way that the twin’s did. His hands dropped from your face to hold your hips over the silk material, pulling you closer towards him, your breasts pressing against his chest.

“Let's get out of here.”

Earlier, before he followed your footsteps to check on you, Kento felt a strong grip latch on his arm to prevent him from moving further. The culprit was your brother. Satoru held an intimidating aura, his sapphire eyes bearing a look cold enough to pierce skin. The older man whispered short words to Nanami, advising him to take you away from the party, in order to protect you.

As Kento was texting the babysitter he had hired for the night, making sure his kids were safely sleeping in their beds, you were checking in with the two Zen’in girls that were looking after Megumi for the night. Maki and Mai loved spending time with you, when you announced the divorce with their cousin, they were undeniably upset, not because Toji’s heart was broken but it meant they wouldn’t be able to see you as often.

It wasn't as difficult as you thought it might be to locate the hotel room. Thankfully, both of you were in a conscious state of mind, avoiding the sparkling alcoholic beverages being served in crystal flutes. The hand on the curve of your waist held you close to Kento’s embrace. Just from a short glance, any onlooker would be able to know you were his, there was a loving atmosphere surrounding you two which was hard to miss, from the pearly smile painting your glossy lips to the radiant sparkling of gold among the hues of brown. The booked room was found quickly. Anticipation began to bubble in your stomach, you felt excited to spend the night with such a handsome man, again.

All of your hair was pushed to one side on your shoulder, exposing the tender flesh of your neck. A beautiful and plain canvas just waiting to be painted with deep and dark shades of pinks and purples. The plain sight caused a stir in Kento’s mind, he desired to mark you, in a way he knew no one ever would. Acting on impulse, the father of two kissed a spot where your neck met your shoulder so lightly it felt like petals brushing against your skin. A smirk found its home along Kento’s lips when you craned your head to the side, offering more of yourself to him. The innocent kisses progressed into deep bites, a sudden sharp nip against your pulse point causing a gasp to slip into the air. You couldn’t care less if a horrible bruise formed from Kento's lustful ministrations, his scent clouded your mind like a drug, your thoughts swirling into nothing. Your attention was fixated on the hands wandering from their place on your hips to groping your breasts through the silken material of your dress, sending arsoul to pool in your panties.

A deep timbre tone filled your ears, you turned to face the man speaking. “Would you like to know my new favourite colour?” Kento doesn’t wait for your answer, his hands squeeze at your chest again with more pressure, sadly eliciting another gasp from your lips. The corners of Kento's lips turn downwards ever so slightly, he had hoped that his ears would have been graced with a moan. “Sage green.”

The blond guides you to the queen-sized bed, lined with the finest material he had ever seen, Kento didn’t expect anything less from your brother, who handed him the key card. The hotel room was grand, almost as big as his own apartment, which was quite large.

Kento sits himself against the headboard with his suit jacket and tie discarded somewhere on the floor, falling victim to your travelling hands, eager to undress him. The clothing was no longer his concern as you situated yourself in his lap, thick thighs straddling his waist the best you could in the confinement of your dress. “Tonight,” Kento's eyes move from the swells of your breasts, your cleavage in his direct eye line, to meet your gleaming eyes. He was surprised to find his own reflection in them. “I'm yours.” The words felt heavy on his tongue and heart, it felt like he was confessing to you again, proving to himself that it was you that his heart yearns for.

Slowly, you clamber off of the blond man’s lap without voicing your intentions, not missing how his hands reach out to hold onto you for a moment longer, you giggle lightly at the display of clinginess, never expecting such a stoic man to behave like that. It was refreshing. It reassured the persistent whispers in the back of your mind that Kento wanted you like you wanted him. as you stood at the foot of the bed, you kicked off your nude heels, dropping your height by a few inches. A laugh fell upon your ears, Kento was amused, his smile hidden from your eyes behind his palm. However, the light atmosphere shifted when the sound of a zipper filled the room. Swiftly, the dress dropped to the floor from the pull of gravity, leaving you exposed except for the black lace thong, which barely hid anything from his eyes. Kento wasn’t sure if it was a blessing or a curse.

Finally, it was your turn to smirk when your sharp eyes caught the growing tent of Kento's trousers.

Slowly, you crawled along the bedsheets at an agonising pace, it felt like hours before you finally reached your destination. Within an instant, you felt two large palms squeeze at the pudgy skin of your hips. You couldn’t help but press your hands against Kento's chest, fingers running aimlessly as you met his lips, kissing him with such desire, as if you had planned to devour him.

“Do you know what good boys get, Mister Nanami?” you say in a sultry tone, the touches of the small pads of your fingertips tracing unrecognisable shapes along his chest becoming distractive.

The words registered into the blond’s mind, you had previously asked the same question to the three toddlers, in hopes of containing their erratic behaviour in the kitchen. This should have been degrading, yet, despite using the childish question, a rational voice in Kento’s mind screamed at him to just give in for once.

“Rewards,” it was the same answer Sukuna gave you, it was the correct answer. However, Kento's voice only managed to speak just above a breath, finding himself unable to trust his own voice.

“Well done daddy,” you praised him with a sweet kiss, a shiver running up his neck, before making an effort to unbutton the shirt, “treat me nicely and I’ll reward you.”

All the remaining pieces of clothing were thrown off hurriedly, desperate to feel the pure heat of Kento's unbelievably hot body. It stunned you how he was constantly warm, maybe you could make him your personal heater.

Kento couldn’t help but groan loudly as your hips grinded against his dick, coating him with your wetness, he felt himself throbbing against your folds, ever so desperate to fill you to the brim. As if reading his mind, the teasing touches paused as you lined your entrance up with his cock, only after giving the hard member a few pumps with your hand. The broad shoulders of the businessman were used as an anchor, you cling onto him desperately as you sink onto his dick. In the span of a few hours, you had completely forgotten the thickness of kento’s sex, surprising yourself as you struggle to relax yourself to take him in. Wanton moans fell from both parties as you stayed still for a few seconds to get used to the burn from his fat cock stretching you. The hands on your waist squeeze tightly to help Kento ground himself from rutting up into you. Being enveloped with your warm cunt felt too good, especially when the gummy walls clamped around him, you were all he could think about.

Just from the position alone, the soft tissue of nerves which caused you to see stars were grazed upon, you couldn’t stop the moan escaping from your lips. “I could cum like this,” you relish in the feeling of the palms coaxing the movement of your hips and the mouth that latches onto your mound. A sharp nip against your peak leads to you arching into Kento's mouth, desperate for more of his touches. Despite spending the night before together, the pair of you couldn’t get enough of each other. Not when your tits would bounce as you raised your hips and begin a steady rhythm of grinding against Kento’s lap, each slam against his hips hitting a spot that causes your head to spin. The vision of you on top of him, riding his cock like your life depended on it, spurred the coil tightening in the pit of his stomach. The wetness that pooled between your thighs now began to drip down onto the pelvis of the man below you. A mixture of juices squelching and low moans sounded throughout the room. You had no time to feel embarrassed by the pornographic noises as you desperately chased your high.

“You’re making me feel so good angel,” a sense of pride blooms in Kento's chest as he feels you clenching around him from his praise. His hands stretched lower to graze his fingers over your ass, they latched onto you, his nails creating deep crevices in the area that would still be there in the morning.

You could no longer think straight, completely drunk off of Kento's cock, filling you up so well you wished he��d never leave. A numbness started to form in your thighs, creating a painful burn as you continued to move up and down, pushing through the pain and reaching for your high. From the hand gripping his hair and the way your walls were spasming, Kento knew you were so close to cumming, you just needed a little push. The brush of his thumb circling your clit leans you over the edge and causes your orgasm to hit you like a wave. Kento groaned loudly as you creamed his cock and gripped onto him like a vice. The man felt kind enough to let you catch your breath, he was still painfully hard and so close to his own high.

“As much as I’d like to be rewarded,” a cheeky smile spread through Kento’s lips, chocolate eyes sparkling at you with excitement. His playful and cheery expression leaves as quick as it comes, you almost whine in protest as he uses his strength to pull you off of his lap, and gently lays you down against the bed. The giddy look in Kento's eyes darkens to a lustful stare as your blown out eyes meet his. “Daddy wants to cum, so be a good girl and help daddy out.”

It hadn’t been longer than a few moments since your climax, you had barely calmed down. Without a second thought, Kento thrusts into your sopping entrance, your cum still coating his dick which makes it easier for him to slide back into your cavernous walls. A cry emmits from you due to the overstimulation. The feeling of being filled up again overtook the discomfort you experienced, it felt so good that you could cry from it, it was as if kento was made to fit inside your cunt so deliciously. The hands on your hips migrate to your thighs, pushing them up so that your knees are almost next to your head. Somehow, the angle of the position allows Kento to hit deeper into you.

“Fu- fuck,” your mind is lost for words as it completely blanks, no longer have the ability to form a coherent sentence.

A layer of sweat covers the blond’s body. The slapping sound returns as Kento's heavy balls hit against you with every rut. It was astonishing that the bed frame didn’t move with his frantic movements. Each thrust of his hips were more calculated than the next, earning a cry from you each time as his cockhead continuously came into contact with your g-spot. Kento knew he’d only be able to last through a few more thrusts. From the way your thighs quivered, your second orgasm was closer than he thought.

“Cum with me angel,” Kento's lips found yours in a haste of teeth clashing against each other, desperate to feel closer to you. As soon as the coaxing words fall on your ear, your walls clench around him as another climax ripples through you, this one hitting you much harder. The tension finally snapped, a growl ripped through his throat, no longer being able to hold back, as ropes of his cum shot inside your pussy, hips faltering slightly.

Your eyes flutter shut from exhaustion, trying your best to catch your breath and calm your erratic heart. Gentle hands help drop your legs so they could wrap around Kento’s waist instead of being folded in the air. Kento noticed the drowsy haze you were in. He took it upon himself to find a towel in the bathroom to clean up the mess between your thighs. Exerting his strength, the stoic man helps you to move into the sheets, the cold air no longer able to nip at your naked body.

“We need to buy plan b,” you shifted yourself close to Kento.

A kiss is pressed to the crown of your head. “We can worry about that in the morning.”

[robincantfunction]

hiii idk if you’re still wanting sirius requests but i have one :)) basically reader is a slytherin n they have like a friends with benefits situation with sirius but they want more but sirius wants to stay friends because he’s like scared of commitment but she thinks it’s because he’s ashamed that she’s a slytherin and one day she breaks down and he comforts her and tells her how he feels <3

if only you could see yourself in my eyes ✰ S.B x reader

requested: yes/no

warnings: a good old fashioned bit of angst mixed with a lovely bit of fluff, mentions of sex - nothing all that graphic, swearing? i think, not properly proof read and i wrote this at 2:30 am in 30 minutes, it's not gonna be flawless, slight mentions of sirius's abuse and brief mentions of fire and smoke

lemme know if i missed anything <3

summary: y/n and sirius are friends with benefits, but she has feelings for him, she thinks they aren't reciprocated because of the colours of her robes.

a/n: 2 fics in one day? who is she? i love this - i am always in need of sirius requests, that man is just *chefs kiss* i kinda inspired this by the song lost by luz - cause i'm obsessed . thank you for your request! <3 you used she/they pronouns in your request so that's what i've done - i hope that's ok. i just wasn't sure which you would want :)

add yourself to ma taglist <3

heavy breaths and sweaty bed sheets. it was heaven for the both of them. a rush. sirius and y/n had been friends since forever, but they had been somewhere in the middle of friends and lovers for about 4 months. it made sense to both of them, however it stung them both that no matter how much they blurred the lines they were still just 'friends'.

he kissed their hand that he held in his own, pulling her closer to him. it was always important to him - the moments they shared after they were so close, so intimate. it meant a lot to him, she meant a lot to him, she was perfect. he wanted her to know that too. "wow" he whispered causing them to giggle. "you're an idiot" she whispered, smiling through every word. "i'm ok with that." he kissed her once more, and the two went back to laying in the silence. it was always comfortable, never awkward.

it confused them both. how could something so different feel so safe. feel so normal. feel so comforting.

neither of them understood. but in many ways, they didn't want to. both of them were lost in the dark, the other was their light. they shined. he shined. she shined.

excepting their love for each other was like a clearing in the woods, except the rest of the woods was on fire. the forest was in need of an evacuation but sometimes it's just easier to play hero and hide. it's easier for sirius to stay in the burning forest, to let the smoke enter his lungs. to burn in the most freeing yet claustrophobic manner. he never wanted to say goodnight, he always wanted to see her in the morning. to for once not have her leave his room before the others got back. but his wonder was tired, he couldn't wonder what could be anymore. it just stung. like a bullet, like his body was on fire with adrenaline - but he still couldn't risk losing his fix.

it was weeks before they told him. "sirius, i just- i don't know if i can do this anymore. us, i mean." she said, it took him off guard. "ok. i- um, i'm sorry if i made you uncomfortable or anything-" her eyes widened "no! of course not. i just, i can't pretend to not feel something when we do this" they said pointing between the two of them. he wanted to say everything, to spill his entire heart to her- but vulnerability makes it easier to lose the things you love.

if they stayed friends he'd never lose her in his life, but if he told them point blank he was in love with them it would make everything messy. if they broke up, would they still be friends? he kept overthinking it all in his head, he kept trying to stop it from cascading down, because he couldn't lose her.

"i get that, look um- if you ever change your mind my bed is always free" he laughed a short and awkward laugh whilst winking. she smiled trying to hide her disappointment. 'he doesn't feel the same...' was all she could think. it hurt but she understood, "i'll uh- i'll see you in potions tomorrow" she said quickly and quietly before kissing his cheek and walking out of his dorm, and then the common room.

as they approached an empty corridor they let the tears fall, finally freeing herself from the emotions she wanted to scream out.

since that night their friendship took a not quite pause. it was a minor dip in their relationship-they spoke every day as per usual, but every now and then it was obvious there was tension begging to be noticed, pleading the two to stop their temporary awkwardness.

it nagged at every corner of her mind - why wasn't she good enough?

sirius and y/n's family's were always close, the two bonded quickly due to their mutual aversion to their families beliefs. when she got sorted into slytherin, it was noticeable that sirius was cautious.

"sirius i feel terrible! not about being in slytherin. i'm not sorry for that, slytherins dont have bad traits, but their traits can just be easily manipulated and used into doing bad things. loyalty. slytherins are loyal, just sometimes to the wrong people. ambitious, shrewd, cunning, strong leaders, and achievement-oriented. does that sound so bad? no i feel bad because my family is proud of me. whilst yours are tearing you apart because of something you can't control! and i'm sorry that i don't understand. but i'm trying."

and ever since that day they were thick as thrives again. but she couldn't help wondering if that's why. sirius was a stubborn person at heart - was he so stubborn that he couldn't fall in love with a slytherin?

one night, the day before the full moon, she broke. she let everything out. why on this specific day did everything feel so much worse? she found the hoodie he left in their room on the last night. the last time. she couldn't stop herself from putting it on, and that's when they broke. everything crumbled.

sirius was shocked to say the least, the last thing he expected to see was her breaking down in her room. it broke his heart. how could he not realise how much she was hurting before?

he ran up to her and captured her in his arms. and it was then that he realised he was never gonna let them go. ever. "there can't be solace everyone i cry sirius, it's ok don't bother with me. i just- i wish i wasn't in this stupid house. i wish you could see i am a good person. i wish you'd love me. why am i never good enough? for my family? for the marauders? for you? no one loves the birds that don't rise, clearly i'm not an early bird." she chuckled through the tears - still clearly devastated. "love, what do you mean you aren't good enough?" he kissed the side of he head "i just wish i'd be enough for you. but you deserve the world, and clearly that's not me and that's fi-" he cut her off by kissing her. and for a split second she felt normal, happy, free.

"if only you could see yourself in my eyes y/n. you'd see you shine. so fucking bright. i'm sorry i never told you how i feel, i just- i don't want to lose you, ever. and sometimes it's easier to stay out than take the risk. but for you, i want to take the risk. i don't want to hide behind your spine anymore. i want to spend all the long nights with you. i want to hold your hand and never let go. i know you'd never leave me behind, and yet i left you lost. i'm hoping i can be your compass?" she nodded and kissed him. this. this felt right.

taglist: @blackst0nes7077 @siriuslyjanhvi @sassybadqueen @x-heartrender-x @j-cat

[heloisedaphnebrightmore]

Will you accept me? [Loki Laufeyson x Reader]

Title: Will you accept me? Pairing: Loki Laufeyson x Avenger!Female!Reader Word count: 4.1k Published: 19 May 2021 Author: Heloise Daphne Brightmore Notes: Firstly, this is my first ever Marvel fic, so go easy on me. Secondly, Infinity War and Endgame didn't happen in this house. I accept none of that. Summary: [x] In the past three years you’ve been trying refrain yourself from murdering the mischievous God, or so you have been telling yourself that. Your little game with Loki has been driving you crazy and if that wasn’t enough, you had to admit that a part of you enjoyed his company, regardless of how much you tried to hate him.

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Loki Laufeyson was nothing, but a mischievous little boy stuck in a man’s body. His mere presence lit a raging fire within you, wanting to remove that smug grin across his face. God of mischief they said countless times in the past three years, but you could only see a man who found enjoyment in dancing on your nerves.

The first time you met him, it became very clear to you that there would be no boring moments around the man, so when he left earth, you finally felt like you could breathe again as if all your frustration disappeared into thin air. You had nothing against Thor, but you wished he would just stay in one of his many realms and leave Earth forever. Of course, it had nothing to do with him per se, as far as you were concerned Thor could have stayed on Earth and it wouldn’t have bothered you. But Loki was brought along like an unwanted package, making your life miserable as though you were his little toy. So, each time Thor returned to Earth, you didn’t feel like welcoming the God of Thunder because his lap dog was attached to his hips.

As to why Tony Stark decided to give him a place to sleep in the compound, you didn’t understand, after all Loki had tried to wipe out your planet. Tony was one of those who hated Loki the most, but somewhere along the line, as though he had gone mad, he decided to give him a second chance. So, for the past 3 years you have been trying to refrain yourself from carving Loki’s eyes out, from trying to stab him in his sleep when he stayed longer than he should have. It took you a great deal of effort not to murder him in his sleep.

It doesn’t mean you haven’t tried. Oh, you did indeed. Although it took you two years to get to a point where you couldn’t handle him anymore.

One night, feeling brave or reckless, whichever is a more reasonable statement, you snuck into his room, rage building up inside you, wanting to end his miserable life. Oh, but you were naive. As you swung your dagger, stabbing it straight into his chest, it went straight through his bedding set, the astral projection of his body disappearing.

“My sly little vixen, did you really think I would make myself so vulnerable?” He asked as you looked over your shoulder, his dark form seated in the corner of his room. A proud smirk was plastered across his face, his smug smile lit by the lights towering over the large building on the outside, carefully finding their way through the blinds. “But regardless of your intent on taking my life, I’m rather pleased with your bravery,” he chuckled as he stood up and walked over to you, earning a loud groan from you as you held your dagger to his chest, this time feeling his flesh under the edge of the blade.

“I could kill you now,” you hissed through gritted teeth.

He leaned closer, his mouth right beside your ear, his cold lips brushing against your earlobe. “I dare you to,” he whispered into your ear, his hushed voice sending electricity through your spine, making your breath hitch. “I’m waiting, my little vixen,” he smirked. Although you couldn’t see it, you didn’t need to, you could read his tone, his body language, the little games he was playing. He found enjoyment in riling you up and you fell victim to him. He leaned back to be able to look in your eyes, his signature smile still plastered across his face. “You see, I understand that rage within you, feeling exhausted from our little games, but that’s only the surface. If you dig just a little deeper, you will find that even if it’s only a tiny part of your fragile mortal body, but it craves that attention, it enjoys our games. You can deny, oh you have been doing that for the past two years, but a part of you, a part that’s honest and dares to accept the truth knows that I’m right.”

A part of you wanted to argue and push the dagger further into his chest, wishing to watch his gaze become glassy, his soul moving onto Hel or Valhalla, though the latter seemed unlikely. But even against all his manipulation and tactical little games, always steps ahead of you, it was clear even to you that he was right. A part of you, even if it was hard to accept, found your shared games somewhat amusing. But you couldn’t say it out loud, you couldn’t agree with him. It would have broken the spell, the core of your entertainment. It was fun only because you never accepted to enjoy it. If you ever voiced the truth, it would have ended it all.

“You wish,” you hissed through gritted teeth as you dropped your arm beside your body. “I will have many other chances and when you expect it the least, that’s when I will be giving you a chance to go back to wherever the hell you came from,” your lips formed a thin line, your gaze holding determination. Those were the words you said aloud, but nothing like the ones you thought of. “Watch your back, Loki,” you whispered into his ear, before you headed towards the door, ready to scold yourself for the night in hopes of regaining your sanity.

“Good night, darling,” he chuckled silently as you stepped out of his room, shutting the door behind you with a loud thud. You couldn’t care less about who could have heard it, as fun as your little games were, they were also playing with your mind, leaving you flustered and frustrated. Loki affected you in many ways from your body to your mind, physically and mentally. You hated it, but at the same time, a part of you enjoyed it.

You tried to shake off the memory, but some of your encounters often appeared in your mind at the most unwanted times, as though a part of you missed him already. It’s only been months since he has left with Thor again, but since then life seemed somewhat boring. Although it was refreshing to focus solely on your duties as an Avenger and work hard for your people, but at times it felt as though there was a lack of something in you, a tiny part of emptiness.

Leaning back against the sofa, you continued to clean your guns. It was a small task that you could have entrusted F.R.I.D.A.Y. with, but this little chore brought you a sense of familiarity, a calming sensation in the midst of your storming thoughts.

“My dearest, why do you look so upset?” You heard his voice, but you didn’t look up, knowing it wasn’t reality. Another little game that your mind started to play with you, making you feel as though you were going insane. “Have I made you mad?” He chuckled playfully. You lifted your head, eyes growing wide as realisation hit you. He was indeed there. He was standing right beside Thor, wearing a smug grin, your presence seemingly bringing enjoyment to him. A part of you wanted to smile, mirror his expression, but instead you chose to play his game and rolled your eyes.

“Yes, you have. The day you decided to appear on this goddamn planet,” you groaned, concentrating back on your gun, cleaning it with a dirty cloth. Those words that left your lips weren’t the ones you wished to say. But you were afraid, terrified of being honest. You knew as soon as you admitted enjoying his company, he would stomp all over you as though you were a mere bug on the ground. A useless piece of life that he had no gain in caring for. So, you bit your tongue and played along.

“Now, now, my dear, that’s not a nice way to welcome a guest,” he smirked, raising a brow quizzically, finding your tone amusing.

“You are no guest to me,” you huffed as you placed your gun back in one piece. “You are nothing but an itch on my back, a fly circling around me, an annoying presence that I can’t seem to get rid of,” you lifted your head, meeting his emerald-green irises, their colour even brighter than you remembered. His gaze felt as though it was burning you up from the inside, your unrhythmic breathing drying your lips, your heart taking on a dangerous pace.

“Why, thank you,” his smile didn’t falter if anything it grew. “I must be doing something right if you can’t get rid of me,” he chuckled with a playful glint in his eyes. “Tell me, do you think of me often? Do you find yourself remembering all those memories we had the pleasure of spending time together?” He leaned closer, placing his hand on the small of your back, his touch making you shiver, his cold lips brushing against your ear, just like on that particular night you could never forget. “Do you think of me before you go to bed, maybe whilst you are in the shower?” He leaned back with a smug grin still painted across his face. “Or perhaps as soon as you wake up, your first thoughts are occupied by your memories of me? If I’m that hard to get rid of, I’m terribly proud of myself,” he chuckled as he let go of you and stood up. “Well, unfortunately I have to leave, but as always it’s been a pleasure meeting you,” he watched you with an intense gaze as he licked across his bottom lip, before he turned away and joined his brother.

As soon as he was out the door, you had sunk deep into the soft couch, planning a way to clear your head, because you weren’t sure how long you could play Loki’s games before you were declared completely insane. A small part of you just wanted to be honest and tell him how you really felt that indeed you enjoyed his company, that there were more to your feelings than simple entertainment, but a larger part of you knew if that ever happened, Loki would be long gone before a surprised gasp could even escape your lips.

To avert your thoughts, you decided to head to the training room and beat some sense into yourself. Trying to get rid of your frustration meant your body needed to tire out, so for hours you kept hitting and kicking the punching bags, imagining one particular person in its place. You hated him, you despised him, or so you tried to tell yourself, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth. Your feelings were indeed strong, but not of hatred, rather some sort of an attraction that you couldn’t really explain because you convinced yourself that hating him would be the logical decision, regardless of your feelings not matching your thoughts.

Time flew by quickly and before you knew it, the sun had gone down, and darkness ruled over the sky. You headed back to your room, taking a hot shower to clear your mind before you decided to grab a bottle of wine from Tony’s collection and drown yourself in your toxic thoughts. There was no escape, you might as well just give in, at least that’s how you thought.

You leaned against the kitchen counter as you opened the bottle of wine. Ignoring formalities, you didn’t take out a glass to pour yourself from the liquid, you placed it straight to your lips and chugged as much as you could, hoping it would silence your thoughts.

“Darling, you seem to be troubled,” you heard his voice, a sharp exhale leaving your lungs as you turned in his direction. He was leaning against the doorframe, wearing a small smile that you haven’t seen much of. It was usually smug or playful, but in that moment, the expression across his face just seemed soft.

“I wasn’t until you arrived,” you rolled your eyes, taking another long sip of your alcohol, trying to numb your mind.

“Shall I help you relax?” His face changed into his usually smug grin as though he was planning something.

“I think I can manage. As a mischievous God you would just cause more trouble than you could possibly help,” you huffed, knowing he always had a plan a, b, c, the whole alphabet and beyond.

“I’m not a mischievous God, I’m the God of Mischief,” he corrected you with a momentary surprise before he regained his composure.

“Same difference,” you shrugged nonchalantly, earning a silent chuckle from the man.

“If that makes you feel any better, call me whatever you want,” he stepped closer to you, stopping right in front of you as you took another sip of your drink. You watched his green eyes staring at you shamelessly, studying your face as though he was trying to read you.

“Can you stop staring?” You asked with a questioningly raised brow, but it only earned a silent chuckle from the man.

“No, I don’t wish to,” he replied as he stepped closer and with a swift movement, he turned you around. Your head shot back around over your shoulder as you met his playful gaze. “I mean no harm,” he meant to relax you, but you didn’t trust him, nor did you trust yourself in his presence. His cold fingers caused goosebumps on your neck, making you slightly shiver as he brushed your hair to one side and placed his palms on your shoulders, slowly massaging the tense muscles. You gasped at the feeling, the idea of a god massaging you felt unearthly.

“What are you doing?” You asked cautiously, although the feeling of his fingers on your skin made you feel weak in your knees, his breath fanning your skin making your heartbeat speed up. A part of you just wanted to lean into his touch and enjoy the moment.

“I’m helping you relax,” he whispered in your ear as you realised you were completely devoured by his presence. You couldn’t even recall when he leaned so close to you, you could only focus on his cold touch burning your skin.

“Why would you do that?” You questioned his intentions, a silent gasp leaving your lips as he found a tender point.

“Do I always have to have an ulterior motive?” He asked, but you could hear the proud smile in his tone. You turned back around, a deadpan look across your face, his touch leaving your skin.

“Do you really want me to answer that?” You asked, squinting suspiciously.

“Fine, I’m often motivated by certain ideas, but that doesn’t mean I can’t be genuinely helpful,” he tried to convince you, but you shook your head.

“Loki, what do you want?” you tried to just finish the conversation to drown yourself in your bottle of wine.

“How long has it been?” He asked, earning a confused frown from you.

“What are you talking about?” You tried to take a step back, but the kitchen counter stopped your movements.

“How long have you been pretending to hate me when in fact you know it couldn’t be farther from the truth?” His face fell serious, his previously playful expression long gone.

“I haven’t been pretending. It’s not my fault that you think it’s a game. I hate you and I think I made myself very clear from the first time we met,” you attempted to convince him, but his smile returned even wider than before.

“Still adamant I see,” he scoffed as he stepped closer, his arms caging you against the furniture behind you, his face getting closer to yours, only leaving just enough space for you to be able to breath. “So, you mean to tell me that my presence doesn’t affect you in any other way, it only brings you hatred?” He asked as his gaze wandered down to your lips, watching them intensely as though he was an animal wanting to catch his prey. Your breath hitched as his arm wrapped around your waist and pulled you against his chest, a silent gasp leaving your lips as you shivered in his cold touch, still your skin burned feverishly.

“That— that’s right,” you stumbled through your words, your own confidence leaving you vulnerable.

“For once, be honest with me, dear and accept that you enjoy my company,” he whispered against your lips, your mind feeling dizzy, incapable of forming a simple, coherent sentence.

“I— That’s not— I hate you,” you finally composed yourself and pushed him away from yourself.

“Why can’t you just accept it?” He asked, this time more serious than before. “Why is it so hard for you to be honest with yourself?”

“Says you, who can’t be trusted even when you ask a question? Oh, please, Loki, you should know better,” you huffed as you folded your arms in front of your chest. “You say I should accept that I like being around you, that I don’t hate you as much as I say so. But why would I do that?” You asked as you walked up to him this time, standing in front of him sternly. “Let’s say, hypothetically of course, that indeed I don’t hate you per se and a part of me might enjoy being around you from time to time. If that was true, why would it be beneficial for me to accept it? I know you Loki and if I was to agree and say you were right, you would walk all over me and disappear faster than I could take a breath,” you huffed as you shook your head.

“Well, my little vixen, hypothetically speaking,” he started in a humorous tone, “if you stopped acting like you have no feelings for me and finally accepted that your hatred might not even be hatred but something more, we could actually break down this wall between us that you so carefully built and we could enjoy being in each other’s company,” he explained as though it was the most natural thing.

“Loki, you can’t possibly believe your own words,” you scoffed, earning a surprised expression from the man, your resistance catching him off guard.

“And why is that?” He asked curiously.

“The only reason you enjoy playing around with me is because I behave the way I do. In reality, nothing is black and white and so if I was to hypothetically enjoy your company, that means there would be disagreements, there would be fights, there would be emotions and Loki, let’s be honest, you find it even harder to trust people than I do and as soon as things would turn serious, you’d run,” you explained your worries. Even though the conversation was supposed to be theoretical, both of you spoke the truth, but the lack of trust hung high in the air.

“If that was my intention, I would have run a long time ago. I had the option to do so many times before, but I’m still here, am I not?” He asked as he brushed a piece of hair from your face behind your ears, his touch sending electricity through your body.

“I just feel like I can’t trust you,” you shook your head, letting your face fall forward, massaging the bridge of your nose, before you lifted your gaze again “I feel like if hypothetically speaking of course, I accept that there’s more to it than simple hatred, it will end in my feelings stomped on and my heart crushed into piece and I’m not naive enough to let that happen,” you tried to reason with him, but in reality you were trying to convince yourself why not to put your trust in him.

“I have to admit, I would have done so, years ago that is, but the one who I am now wants nothing more than to claim you mine,” he spoke in an endearing tone, his voice serious, but somewhat caring, unlike his usually cocky personality. Your eyes widened at the confession, his words ones you never thought you would ever hear from someone like him. “If it was someone else, I wouldn’t care what happens to them, I’m not a saint after all, but with you it’s different. You are my sly little vixen, my other half and nothing and no one can change that, only you if you wish to of course,” his voice was barely a whisper as he spoke, his words making you feel uncertain about what to do. Your mind and your heart battled against each other, confusing you further. “Will you accept me finally?” He asked with an expectant expression.

“I have been trying to stop myself from murdering you for the past three years, it’s not as simple,” you tried to argue, but the words leaving your lips were more to convince yourself.

“Well, that is very romantic,” he replied with a low chuckle as you mirrored his expression. “That’s a good start,” he pointed out the smile across your face. “I’m not saying it will be easy, nor do I see it will be perfect, but isn’t it worth a try?” As much as you wanted to argue, he was right. If you didn’t accept your feelings, it would forever be a ‘what if’ stuck in your head and deep down you knew you wanted to see where you two could go from there.

You stepped closer to him, placing your hands on his chest to balance yourself, or so that was the plan, but as soon as you touched him, your hands went through his body, his astral body disappearing. “Loki!” You raised your voice in a warning tone, your deadly gaze looking for the man, his silent chuckle coming from behind you. You turned around in a swift motion, hitting him across the chest with gritted teeth both out of frustration and testing if it was his real self this time.

“I’m so sorry, love, I wasn’t sure how you would react, you can be rather unpredictable at times, so I had to have a backup plan,” he tried to explain himself, piling up excuses upon excuses. “But now that we are on the same page, we could get back to what you were trying to do. Did you want to kiss me? It looked like you were about to kiss me. Shall we try again?” He smirked proudly as he stepped closer and wrapped his strong arms around you. You tried to resist, attempting to push him away from your body, but his strength was unearthly, you didn’t stand much of a chance.

“Not happening. That was your one and only time to see a weaker side of mine. I don’t even believe what you ask anymore. I hate you, Loki!” You groaned, trying to get out of his hold.

“No, you don’t,” he replied with a smug grin across his face, dipping his head down to your level, but he didn’t move any closer. Your breath stuck in your lungs, your gaze fixed on his lips, however you tried to battle against your heart, your reasonable thoughts flew out the window as soon as Loki closed the gap between the two of you. His cold lips touched yours, sending a shiver across your spine, thousands of butterflies awakening in your stomach. Could you have resisted? Yes, if you really wanted to. But deep down you were craving for him and when his lips met yours, you melted into his arms and bathed in the physical pleasure his arms around you provided, the feel of his touch on your skin burning, a long-awaited connection bonding the two of you. As you finally parted, you gazed up into his green eyes, a loving look painted across his face.

“I still hate you though,” you added with a mischievous smile, as he mirrored yours.

“You really should watch that tongue of yours,” he warned you as his gaze fell on your lips.

“Why don’t you watch it for me?” You asked with an inviting tone and without a second thought Loki captured your lips again. It was hard to believe that he was holding you in his arms, but you chose to trust him and even though you knew there would be difficulties with the God of Mischief, a proud man being your other half, but not for a second did you think about taking a step back. It just felt right.

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[hobipaint]

Graffiti and Chalk- two

summary: You thought you knew him. You thought him gone. Kim Taehyung was part of you that you had carefully suppressed, keeping his memories to one box near the wall of your mind. That was your fault, though - empty walls demand for art. And who other than your own neighbourhood vandal?

↳ pairing: ex police student turned vandal! taehyung x officer! female reader

↳ genres: angst, fluff

↳ word count: 9.6K

↳ disclaimers: pg15!, vandalism, police officers, criminal past and heavy discussion of it, mentions of character deaths.

one | two

a/n: FINALLY AFTER A MONTH IT'S HERE! This took me really long to write but I'm pretty satisfied with how it turned out : it's my longest work yet, and I feel like it would be among my best as well hehe. a massive thank you to @kookiestarlight because i swear i completed this in the first place because of tasha, @swcetnight who pointed out exactly where I need to elaborate stuff and places in which I was loosing parts of the plot because did I forget the whole storyline while writing this 🤡, @vaekth because this bby is absolutely amazing. she's supported me throughout the process of writing this, thank you so much!! thank you to @taecup-fics for beta reading this at the last minute and pointing out a bunch of grammatical errors because otherwise this would be a mess to read 😭 to everyone who has waited - I'm so sorry that it came this late, I suddenly had a bunch of exams that were announced and had to focus on those. Hopefully this lives up to your expectations!! Enjoy reading :)

Morning often dawns with a feeling of hope. With wistful sights of sunrise. Flowers open up to the golden haze that thaws the frost of the night. Birds roam the skies that had been but mysterious domains in the dark. People wake up with groans about the impending day, hopeful for it to end soon. You hoped for your mornings to always be similar to this- some constants were needed in places where you had cases as bewildering as missing pumpkin plushies piling up in your office. 

Your morning today, though, was much different. Much to your annoyance. 

You held the coffee you had brewed for yourself - another espresso, the universe knows you needed it - and handed one to Taehyung just as the cuckoo perching on the clock shrilly announced that it was eight in the morning. 

"Do you still have no answers for me, Y/N?" Taehyung looked at you. His eyes were sullen - no signs of the cheekiness that had peeked at you last night. Scattered rays fell across his body, highlighting the sunken cheeks, brooding eyes and tight smiles you could now see better in the daylight. 

You sighed- probably for the millionth time this night. "I do not understand your question, Taehyung." 

"You remember it. I've asked you thrice since I saw you again, Y/N. Do you not remember anymore? Do you not care for me? Was our idea of us nothing for you?" He looked at you with a myriad of emotions written all over his face- you looked away, not wanting to see them. 

Sighing, you gathered your thoughts the best you could. "Like I said, Taehyung." You looked at him- looking at the person you once fell in love with. The feeling you felt today, though, was much different. There was a feeling of running towards him, taking him in your arms and remembering who he was to you all over again, but it was overwhelmed by the confusion you felt - should you prioritize a past that wanted answers, or a future that was unsure? For now, you chose none pushing the time to make that decision further ahead. "We were an 'us' for only a few hours. Until you stood me up."

He rolled his eyes."That wasn't intentional, Y/N." 

"And how was I supposed to know that, Taehyung? I thought it was, since you had never told me anything beforehand."

Taehyung's eyebrows bunched together, as if coming to hear the stories that his eyes longed to tell- stories of events that you had never seen and never known. "Would you not hear me out, even once? For the sake of our old love?"

You bristled. "What love, Taehyung?" You got up to stretch your legs out, looking at the patchwork blanket that was stuffed in the corner. You had taken that for your first date with Taehyung, planning to cuddle with him and watch the stars - a date that never happened. "What love? A love where you don't speak to me for weeks, and then vanish for some crime? We were young then, and I got hurt then as it is. There's no need to go over this right now." 

"That was not my fault, Y/N. You know that." Taehyung seemingly sunk back into his chair, eyes downcast. "I had said I loved you. Before I ever went out with you." 

"Like that matters,” you scoffed, “what's the point in reminiscing promises from an old love?"

"At least, hear me out?" He looked up at you with hope sprinkled in the abyss of his eyes. "I don't want you to forget me."

You turned back to your chair, tearing your eyes away from the blanket that was now a pale blue in the sunlight - a few shades lighter than the cerulean colour it would be in the afternoon. "Not now, Taehyung." 

Taehyung sighed, looking at the floor, tension exhaled into the room. He sat silently for a few seconds, the ticking clock announcing each moment clearly to you. "That's fair. It's just.." He looked back at you. "I'm used to thinking of you as the person I loved." He nervously let his eyes pan around the windows, gazing at the sunshine that streamed through the window, before turning back towards your gaze. "I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable, I'm just really grateful for your presence-" 

"Taehyung." You sharply interrupted him. "Two years ago, when your case was reopened for investigation. Who did that?" 

"They told me that it was a well wisher in the neighbourhood. Another jailor said it was for good behaviour." He shrugged. 

You scoffed aloud, more loudly than you would have liked him to hear. 

He frowned, lips drawn in a tight line in annoyance. "Don't believe me? I'll have you know, Y/N, I was among the most well behaved at prison. Absolutely no tantrums. I even ate the salt-less, disgusting food they'd give there. No crying. Nothing. I can show you later on if you want, I think I have a report stuffed somewhere here," He got up, shuffled towards his bag and checked the last zip, hunting for a report you had never heard of. 

"It was me." 

Taehyung whirled around to face you, unruly hair swinging like the seats of a carousel at a carnival, and raised an eyebrow. "What were you?" 

"I was the one who insisted on opening the case for reinvestigation, the case of your stepfather's assault. Went around collecting evidence, searching for people who knew about your family better, getting their voices recorded, finding about the whole deal to frame you and stuff. Nearly got fired." You shrugged, sipping your espresso and wincing- too bitter. "You're welcome, by the way. The coffee is getting cold." 

"I don't care about the coffee." He moved the cup aside - nearly spilling the liquid, roughly settling back into the seat he had been occupying for the last few hours. "You were the one who asked for re-opening the case?" 

"Just said that." 

He slumped back in his seat, and your eyes took in how he spread himself out on the chair, tiredness lacing his figure. "I didn't know that." 

"Now you do." You said, sipping your coffee and watching Taehyung do the same. 

Taehyung stared blankly at you, and you couldn't fathom what was swirling in those ebony orbs of his. "Why did you do that, Y/N?"

"Honestly," you smile softly at him, "I was expecting a thank you."

"You should have expected questions, Y/N. Why did you help me?" Taehyung's blank expression made way for a confused one, eyebrows furrowing and lips pouting. 

"I did what I had to do as a-" You paused here, unsure of what to say. "As a friend, Taehyung, nothing more. I knew you were innocent-"

"How were you so assured?" He pressed on."I could be a complete 180 from the man I met you as. I could be fake. I could be an impostor. I could-"

"You could do a bunch of things, Taehyung." You stared him straight in the eye, trying to keep your emotions at bay. "But you could never tell a lie." 

Taehyung scoffed. "You sound like one of the wishy-washy pick-me kind of girls in the movie. No, I don't lie, but I could." 

You sighed. As much as you cared for Taehyung, you had never really cared for his argumentative attitude. "I went with the assumption that you were the same person I knew, Taehyung. The one whom I respected and trusted. I acted on that feeling." 

"That wasn't trust, Y/N. It was naivety. You were naive to believe me." Taehyung paused, uncertainty lining his forehead as he spoke. "You shouldn't have trusted me." 

You rolled your eyes- you couldn't understand why he was so desperate to make sure that you remained aloof from him. What had you done to be treated like that? What had he done to force everyone away from him? 

You tried to play off his remaining doubts and frustrations as insecurities he developed while in jail, and moved on."Alright then, you impostor. I was naive to trust you. And even more naive to believe you. Happy? Now shush. I don't want to talk about this." You tried to clear your mind of any doubts you had about Taehyung, but his behaviour, the way he interacted with you - it couldn't help but increase the worry and confusion in your mind.

Taehyung leaned forward to look you in the eye before smiling softly at you - you couldn't understand why. You were going to give him a criminal record, maybe arrest him. You were potentially ruining his life again, and he smiled at you. "If you say so, officer." Taehyung said, settling into the chair - leaving your mind reeling with questions you weren't sure you wanted the answers to. 

You opened the laptop again, wearily. "Let's get back to the questions; the sooner we finish this, the better. Where did you source the paint from?" 

"You mean the graffiti? And chalk?" You nodded. Taehyung sighed."Terminology, Officer, terminology. Make no errors." He raised a finger to wave at you, as if to say no. You rolled your eyes -it seemed that you were the only one concerned about what would happen to him after this, because Taehyung quite clearly was not. "I bought it with the allowance money that was kept for me in the bank- as much as I hated that man, his cards proved to be useful."

You raised an eyebrow, skeptical. "You didn't steal it." 

"No. Took it from my step-father's account. Technically, now mine. Apparently he left everything to his children, and I'm the only one alive that I know of. Maybe he had other children- I wouldn't doubt it for a moment if he had, but that doesn't change my right to his money either." 

"Any other members of your family who had been granted access to that account?" You asked, wanting to make sure that there were no loopholes - you didn't want a future possibility of Taehyung being entangled with the wrong side of the law again. 

He rolled his eyes, leaning further. "Curious little thing, aren't you? Like I'd told you last night, most of them are dead. Mom had died a few months before I was arrested - thanks to my stepfather being an alcoholic and taking everything out on her. Grandmother already had massive health issues - she passed away after two years of me being in jail - they had let me come out for her funeral."

"My siblings - a brother and sister, if you remember - were taken in by a distant relative, and the last time I spoke to them was three years ago. I'm not allowed to contact them because I might end up being a 'bad influence'," he air quoted the words, laughing mirthlessly. "Guess they won't be too delighted to see me again. You probably know about my stepfather - got drunk and passed out. Permanently. But yeah, that's all. I'm pretty much the sole benefactor from that account."

Hearing how nonchalantly he spoke about it, you were forced to maintain a strong face and be professional. You couldn't possibly think of even wanting to comfort him in any way. "So, you were absolutely not stealing."

"Nope. No. Not at all. Want any further repetitions?" 

"That won't be necessary," You said, having typed out the information - tracking his expenditures would also be necessary now, apparently. "Any expenditure you make shall be monitored, now. Be careful."

"Always have been." He chuckled, getting back to spinning the glass on the table. "You know me." 

You ignored him. "Your cards will be tracked, and any loose cash will be checked by us. If we feel that there's any room for suspicion, you will have reason to be monitored." 

An odd silence filled the room while you tapped away at your laptop, filling in more details about the incident. Taehyung would be having a criminal record again, you thought to yourself. It was the only thought that echoed in your mind. It made you feel uneasy in a way, but you swallowed your unease down. There's a promotion to focus on. 

"Taehyung, something has been bugging me since I caught you vandalising." You shifted a little bit, before deciding to spit out the question. "Why did you do it?" You leaned forwards on the table, elbows digging into the wood as you tried to grasp the answers from him. 

Taehyung looked you in the eyes, and then looked away. "I don't know."

"You don't know." You raised your eyebrows, leaning back incredulously. "Taehyung, that's not an answer." 

"I did it because I wanted to. It was fun. I'd see kids in the morning pointing at my graffiti work and they would like it. There would be people claiming it looked good. I felt acknowledged and I just-" He pleaded, unable to continue without pausing to recollect his calm. "I felt like doing it. After years of having questions raised at me for committing a crime I never did, I finally had people talking about the work I did. Even if it was just chalk drawings." 

You exhaled in confusion. The Taehyung you had known - he was never like this. Confident, assured, independent. That was what he seemed to you when you were younger. And now, to see him want to be validated by others who never even cared for him- it felt ridiculous to you. Why was his only way of feeling validated involving something against the law? "Okay, then." 

You went through the complaints that had been registered against him, hand resting against your forehead as you asked him the most commonly asked question. "Why the insignia 'V'?" 

"V for victory?" He made a 'V' sign with his fingers, "I liked to think that I won against the world by rebelling against its sense of black and white. I saw everyone talk about it, and I felt like the same people who had once pointed fingers at me, blaming me for something I hadn't done, were now pointing fingers at something I had done - I felt victorious. I didn't need to show myself and possibly want more than I had already let myself have - this was enough for me." 

You pulled your lips in a tight line, and hummed in response - there were two places that together had put in about twenty complaints, so you had to respond to all of them. You kept reminding yourself that neither did you have the space to feel sorry for him, nor did you have the power to say sorry to him. You simply kept your head turned to the screen, typing in answers to all the complaints. 

Taehyung leaned forward after a few seconds. "What punishment do you think I'll get, Officer?" 

"If the chief is feeling good, maybe you'll get community service, with a fine," You looked up at him. "Or maybe some time in jail." 

"How much time?"

"Maybe a month or two?" 

"Oh." Taehyung slumped back into his seat nonchalantly. "Cool then." 

How was he this calm? You thought to yourself. He might be going to jail. For a second time.

"Yup." You shut the laptop, finally, after hours of typing information and recording it. Sighing, you lifted the porcelain mug once again to absolutely drain it of coffee, your rather loud gulps echoing in the silence of your office. 

Taehyung tapped his fingers on the table- probably some old tune he had learnt before. You remembered that he played the saxophone - from nights of serenading tunes that he had played for you with his beloved instrument. "How long do you think the chief will take to reach here?" 

"A few hours, maybe? I'd expect him around ten, to be honest. Nevertheless, let me check." You quickly called the chief on your phone, hearing his ringtone play some old Korean trot song before it was picked up. 

"Hello, yes, yes, Y/N. I expected your call." A gravely, rather rough voice responded to you- like it hadn't been used for a few hours. "I shall be reaching the office around eleven. Keep Taehyung with you." 

"Yes sir," you said, keeping the phone on your table and turning to Taehyung.  "The chief said he'll be here by eleven." 

Taehyung nodded in acknowledgement. 

"It's nearly eight thirty now." You looked at the cuckoo clock again. "Would you like to freshen up?" 

"Where?" Taehyung asked, eyes widening. "Shouldn't I just be at the office?" 

"Yeah, you should. My place is right here- the back of this office is where I live, so you'll be fine." You look down at his clothes, grease, paint and metal shrapnel all over them. "Besides, you look like you need a change of clothes." 

Taehyung stepped into your house with an air of curiosity, to see how his once classmate was living. His head stooped low to enter through the small door you had, eyes widening in surprise when he found that the hall of your house was larger than he had anticipated. 

The house was quaint, a hall with an old couch which doubled as a bed when needed. There was a table in the middle of the room, too low to be a dining table and too high to be a center table. For coffee, maybe? There were maybe five or six magazines scattered haphazardly over it, covering nearly every inch- except for one corner, where Taehyung spotted a shining acrylic blue. 

You, however, spotted what page you had left a magazine open at. Squeaking, "I'm sorry!" you ran to shut the booklet close, afraid that Taehyung would spot your love for shirtless men. 

Picking up the magazines, you grinned sheepishly at him. "Just a moment! I'll be back, a bit of cleaning to be done, sit right here!" You patted the couch, trying to convince Taehyung. 

Taehyung turned away from the pictures he had been observing- was there one of you both? - and nodded, eyes widening in surprise as he saw how you scuttled away to hide the magazines. He looked around again, taking a feel of your house- it seemed like the old you. There was some patchwork embroidery you had left in a corner, atop what seemed to be a showpiece? Taehyung stepped closer to see it in detail, and was amazed at the way you had managed to drag the red thread over and over the pink fabric to make floral designs. It reminded him of the rose he had been trying to complete the previous night, and he grit his teeth. He shouldn't be thinking about that now. That shouldn't be what he does anymore. No more.

You came back, looking quizzically at him. "Take a seat, Taehyung! It's alright." 

"Uh, yeah." He shuffled over to the couch again. "Did you make that?" 

You looked in the direction his finger pointed to. "Yeah. Tried doing embroidery for stress release purposes." 

Taehyung grinned at you. "Stress release?" He asked, bemused. 

"Yup." You said while making sure that the magazines were well hidden. "The department I wanted to be in was forensics, you know?" Taehyung nodded, he had been privy to most of your discussions about the advances in forensic technology and analysis - even if he didn't understand anything, he knew your love for it. "Well, they didn't allow me. So the whole 'stress' thing began." You walked back to him, making air quotes as you emphasized on stress. "My mother suggested embroidery would take my mind off it. So, that incomplete piece you see there?" Taehyung nodded, concentrating on every word that left your mouth. "That started a few days ago." 

"It looks like it's complete, though- are you really good at it?" Taehyung looked at you again, turning back from the embroidery you were now rising to get. 

"Pretty much? It's easy once you get the hang of it." 

"Ah." Taehyung said, a dull silence settling into the room for a few moments as Taehyung looked around your room.  

"That picture." He pointed, and you turned your head around. The picture he was focusing on was on your mantelpiece, resting happily. The frame had butterflies stuck on its corners, two large and two small. The border was white, now off white, and had pink dots in certain places. It was a picture of fireworks- red, yellow and blue mixing together in a dull sky to breathe life into the picture. And right in the middle, surrounded by this liveliness, were you and Taehyung. Beaming. 

Taehyung turned to, finger still pointing at the picture. "That's our picture, right?" 

You hummed in affirmation. "That's us, freshman party. We had known each other for a few weeks at this time."

"And I had stopped someone from asking you out, right?" Taehyung reminisced. "That was fun." 

You snort. "You had punched him in the face when he asked for my name, Taehyung." 

Taehyung smiled. "I didn't want anyone to harm you, Y/N, and he seemed like he would harm you." He spread out his arms and grinned smugly at you. "In a way, I rescued you. That night." 

And so many other nights, you wanted to say. For all the time you had known Taehyung, he had been fiercely protective of you - for reasons he never truly told you. You didn't question it either, basking in the feeling of being wanted by someone. 

You cleared your throat, hoping to clear your mind as well. "You should go take a shower, Taehyung." Glancing at the clock, you noted the time and motioned towards the washroom. "It's nearly nine. Go take a shower, call for me if you need anything. I'll go get some clothes for you."

Taehyung nodded, rising up slowly to go in the direction you pointed. "Towels are inside," you shouted after him, and he yelled in response to say he understood. In some ways, too many ways, he felt like the Taehyung you once knew. 

You went to your room to pick out some clothes, opening your meager collection to salvage something that would fit Taehyung. Your eyes scanned over your uniforms, jumpsuits, jeans, t-shirts and finally landed on the hoodies- probably the largest collection in your wardrobe. Thankfully, you loved large, loose hoodies. You started pulling them out, holding each one up and imagining Taehyung's proportions in them. 

The red one, with blue paw prints. "Nah. Too tight." 

The black plain one. "That's mine, I'm not sharing that." 

The grey ones- nearly three. You skipped over all of them, not understanding how none of these oversized hoodies would seemingly fit Taehyung. He'd gotten humongous, broad shoulders and everything. 

You picked out a few more, trying to see whether it would be a fit. None worked. 

When you picked up the next one, you could already picture him wearing it. It was the hoodie you had taken from Taehyung during the first year you knew each other. You looked at its loose sleeves, stretchy from you tugging Taehyung behind you with it way back then. The green fabric of the hoodie was slightly pale in a certain spot - you had spilled soda all over him in a fit of anger.

During your forensic chemistry class,  the teacher didn't recognise their mistakes in the procedure (they used the wrong test for detecting the sample, and blamed it on you), and you were pretty miffed the whole day. Taehyung had bought sodas for the two of you, having planned to go stargazing later on. And you, in a terrible mood, flipped him off in a way that had the soda spilling over him. You cried, Taehyung laughed, but the hoodie was still stained. You took it with you later on to clean it - but the stubborn stain never left. You were agonized, Taehyung amused, but the hoodie- it was still stained. Taehyung had laughed it off, telling you to keep it with you for as long as you wanted- he could buy a dozen more hoodies to last him till then. 

When you left to head home that winter break, you had taken the hoodie with you. You had taken it on your date, crying on its sleeves when you were stood up. And when you came back, Taehyung was suddenly a criminal. 

You shook your head to remove the memories of that time, holding the hoodie in your hand and gently caressing its sleeves. So many memories were held in these threads that meshed together to form the fabric of your youth. Good or bad? You didn't want to dwell on that. 

"Y/N? Could I get the clothes now?" Taehyung called from the washroom. You picked up a extra large pair of cotton shorts and a hoodie, and passed it to him without really thinking- you'd done it before when he got drunk at college too, having him come over at your place, shower, change, and practically behave like a couple- at least, that's what you had thought of it then. 

Get it together, Y/N, why are you thinking about that? 

"Thanks!" he shouted again, grasping the clothes with his fingers and whisking them away to the confines of the washroom. 

You gripped at your hair and pinched your cheeks. You couldn't keep thinking about the old Taehyung. You didn't know if it was truly him anymore. 

"Uh, Y/N?" Taehyung stepped out of the washroom, the previously oversized shorts clinging to his thighs for dear life and the hoodie snugly fitting his figure. "I think it's a bit tight, but I'll make do." 

Your eyes widened in horror; Taehyung looked like he was moments away from bursting the shorts. "I'll get you new pants, wait a second. These ones don't fit." 

You turned back to your cupboard, looking for the loosest bottoms you could find. "I think the hoodie still fits though, right?" 

"Yeah." You heard Taehyung right over your shoulder, scaring you. 

"Jeez, when did you get this close to me?" You turned to face him, crossing your arms, looking at his hair which still had droplets sticking to its edges. 

"When did you get this far from me, Y/N?" His eyes bore into yours, sweetly intense eyes gazing at you like it was the first time he saw you. "What happened?" 

You shrugged, not wanting to answer it. You picked up a loose pair of denim jeans that you had found stuffed away at the back of your closet. Pushing it into his hands, you told him to go change. 

Apparently, your instructions fell on deaf ears. "What happened, Y/N? Answer me. Please."

You moved your gaze to his clothes, not wanting to focus on the thoughts that rushed back when you thought of him. What had happened? You moved your hands to your sides, resisting the need to hold him and know him all over again. "The hoodie looks good on you. Would you-" 

"So do our hands." He held yours, snugly fitting his palm- your calloused fingers against his calloused ones, heat burning in the sleeping embers of your palm. His eyes gazed at the joint fingertips almost reverently. "They fit well."

"Taehyung, now is not the time-" You begin, cut off by his frantic breathing.

"When is the time, Y/N? When will I get to live? When will I get to feel like a human? When will I be innocent?"

His hand caressed your palm, touching your forearm, your elbow, your shoulder, and your cheek -leaving a burning trail behind him everywhere he touched. You shivered. "Do you know how long I have wanted you, Y/N? Years. Seven years, now. I have loved you for years. I have wanted you for years. I did all sorts of things to remember you while in jail- kept asking for you, kept calling for you. I didn't want to forget you, Y/N. Not you. I couldn't forget you, no." 

He pressed your palm to his chest, and you could feel a dull thump echo through the clothes, reverberate in your palms. "That fire, Y/N. My passion in the promises I'd made to you. It never went anywhere. I always loved you. I always will. You can't make me leave again, not again. Please, no." 

He held your palm up to his cheeks, not regarding the tears that were streaking your cheeks and his. "You feel me, right? It's me. Taehyung. I am the one you trusted. I'm the same. Trust me again. Please." 

You tried to hold back the tears that threatened to slide down your cheeks, not wanting to pain Taehyung anymore. He held your forehead to his, pressing on the back of your head to meet his - upclose, you could see the redness that clouded the shine that his eyes would normally have. You couldn't hold back your tears anymore, nearly whimpering when you saw how broken he was- sirens swimming in the whirlpool of his eyes, singing songs of misery. "You know me, right? Do you know me? Do you recognize me? Kim Taehyung, police cadet. Your friend. Your classmate. You know me, right?" He asked, nose nearly brushing yours. "Do you know me?"He cried, eyes washing over the fire that ignited behind his pupils. You didn't see a vandal, or a criminal, or a friend. You saw a broken man. 

"Taehyung, oh, Tae," you cried, putting your hands on his shoulders, watching him slink down to the ground as his body trembled and shivered. You wrapped your arms close around his figure, unable to understand his pain but just wanting it to go away. 

You sat like that for a while, coaxing the tears and short whimpers out of him as he held onto your fingers, wanting to remember something he once had: you. 

"I always asked for you, you know that?" Taehyung shivered as he spoke, even if the chills of the weather outside barely seeped into your home. "I always loved you. I don't know why they kept me there for so long, Y/N. I didn't do anything wrong. I don't know why I'm made to feel like this…" he trailed away, tears gathering at his chin as they endlessly flowed down his cheeks. 

You glanced a nervous eye at the clock, wanting to make sure that you get to the station- no matter what happens. The bubbling of water distracted you from the ticking of the clock, and you turned off the stove. Scouring your cabinets for a chamomile tea bag was hard, but you knew you needed it. Taehyung always seemed to calm down with tea - you had used it multiple times before. Times of which you have multiple memories. Times you wish to forget. 

Why did I ever love Taehyung? The question kept echoing in your mind as you leaned on top of the kitchen counter top. Things would have been so much simpler if simply looking at him wasn't so hard. His smile, his behaviour, his tears - it was all but a painful reminder of what you could have been if things had gone different. If only. 

You poured the hot water into the mug you had settled on the kitchen top, watching the water bloom into a serene shade of yellow as you dipped the tea bag into it repeatedly. You prepared one mug, then another, hearing the soft declarations Taehyung kept repeating while he was seated. 

All you had wanted to study was forensic science, and that was simply for one reason: you didn't want to interact with people. 

People are complicated, over emotional beings. and you couldn't help but feel helpless every time you had to encounter a suspect. You would constantly be told by your professors to see them as lawbreakers - but all you tried finding was signs of humanity in them. That even the most vicious killers had scope for reform. That's why you stuck to the subjects you wanted - you were good at finding signs of life, not squashing them. You consistently failed those classes, without any doubt. And today, it seemed like all those classes were laughing at you. 

"Here." You handed the mug to Taehyung, who muttered thanks. He rubbed his hands once or twice on the pants you told him to change into and took a sip from the warm tea. You resisted the urge to reach out and wipe the tears that lined his face, and try and wipe the scars of the past that had scarred him so badly - but you couldn't. You were a mere spectator in the game of his life. You couldn't possibly do anything other than hurt him more. 

"Thank you. For letting me express all of it. I could finally say everything that I wanted to before I was forbidden from speaking about it again." Taehyung tapped against the mug, fingernails resting on ceramic as the sun slowly headed westward. "I'm sorry that I've been such a burden to you, Y/N. I wonder if I can do anything to reduce the pain and confusion I put you through - I doubt I can." He looked at you carefully, though you couldn't tell what he was thinking. "Thank you." 

You let his words echo in the room, preoccupied with your thoughts. It hurt you to see him so broken, and you couldn't help but worry about him. 

"Taehyung, I-" You opened your mouth to respond, watching Taehyung pay attention to every move you made - only to be interrupted by your phone loudly ringing. 

"Sorry, this must be important." You got up to get your phone, watching Taehyung slump in his seat from the edge of your vision. 

"It's the chief," you announced, picking up the phone. 

He got straight to the point. "Come to the station, soon. Bring Taehyung with you." he told, his voice laced with a rather sharp edge- a tone that you had recognized in the years you had worked under him. Things were- most probably- not good. 

You responded with a simple "yes", mind dwelling on the impending result that Taehyung would get. You felt that it would be unlikely that he would be going to jail- at least, you hoped so.

Turning to Taehyung, you tried to hide the fear and shakiness that lined your voice. "Let's go." 

Taehyung sighed, playing with the mug as he rose up. "It's time, isn't it?"

"Good morning, Sir." You greeted the chief as he hurried into the small office, giving Taehyung a glance and then facing you. 

"Morning." He gruffly responded, turning to your laptop. "We found an eyewitness for the vandalism, so we are getting them for the interrogation as well." 

"Another interrogation? We've already done it, sir, and all the information is recorded here. I doubt it will be necessary-"

"Please, Y/N," He calmly said. "Leave the decision about it being necessary to me." 

You stepped back, subconsciously edging closer to Taehyung - a move noticed by the chief as well. 

"Y/N," he began, "I need to speak to you. In private. Step outside for a few moments, please." 

You nodded, briskly walking towards the doors and yanking them open. There was a warm gust of wind that blew across your face, and you turned to face the chief. 

"Y/N," the chief began, before pausing for a moment, "Officer Y/N. I'm going to need you to think clearly now." 

"Yes." You set your features as tightly as you could, not wanting to seem distracted in any way. 

"Do you have any type of bias in this case, perhaps due to your past relation with him?" he looked quizzically at you, as if trying to decipher an enigma scribbled onto your face. 

Your blood chilled, for some reason. Were you having any bias? "No, sir." 

The chief hummed - you couldn't make head or tail of his reaction. He kicked at a pebble before continuing. "From the recordings I heard the previous night in the office, and the way you let him come with you to freshen up a bit, one particular thing has struck me: you were trying to find reasons for Taehyung to be justified as a victim, weren't you?" 

You gulped before responding. "Yes, sir. I believe the culprit committed vandalism as a coping mechanism to get over the hurt caused over the years." 

The chief sighed heavily. "Well then," he said, "I suggest we continue with our investigation, and find a way to make sure the culprit in the matter is stable as well. We can't have repeated cases like these - we have a reputation to uphold for the police as well." 

You nodded stiffly. "Yes, sir." 

The chief sighed again, glancing at the street. "Our witness should be here soon." He turned to you again. "Funnily enough, she volunteered as a witness with CCTV backup to claim that Taehyung had vandalized her shop too. Apparently she heard you arrest him last night - so we have to hear her out." 

The chief turned again to the road, eyes narrowing in hopes of spotting the witness soon. "The investigator whom she contacted has said she is a reliable witness, but I'm going to need to verify her statement nonetheless." He turned back, heading into the office.

You stared at the road that the chief was looking at before - the direction from which the supposedly reliable eyewitness would come, before heading back inside. 

Taehyung was still slumped in his seat, fingers tracing drawings all over the pants you had given him. The chief was shuffling around behind the desk, pulling two spare chairs ahead - one for Taehyung, you presumed, and one for the eyewitness - whoever that would be. 

"Mr. Kim Taehyung," the chief began, "there has been an eyewitness who has offered their testimony - whether it is to defend you, or further establish evidence of you vandalizing public spaces, I'm not yet aware. We shall be interrogating them - and maybe you, as well, now." 

Taehyung rose up from the corner he had settled into, and shuffled into the seat the chief had set for him, wordlessly. 

The door opened to reveal an older lady, dressed in a purple shaded hanbok, hair delicately pulled back into a tight bun and eyes peering around the whole office in curiosity. She found the chief, walking closer to the desk where he was arranging the records. "I'm here as the eyewitness..?"She said, looking at both you and the chief. 

"Ah, yes. I presume you're Ms. Park?" The chief asked, pulling the chair out for her to settle into it. Under the light that shined across her face, you could make out the wrinkles that lined her skin and the greys in her hair - not that that was relevant to what would happen. 

"I saw him vandalize the outside of my store a few days ago," she earnestly began, pulling out pictures that she had taken of the design on her window.  "I'm a florist, you see. His designs are clearly inspired by that, aren't they?" She pushed the pictures in front of your vision, and you could see what she meant - the designs of orchids, hibiscus and asters stared back at you, intricately painted onto the glass windows of the florist's shop. 

She pulled out more pictures. "There's been similar instances all over the neighbourhood- the other florist had a rose, the school received drawings full of children's stories and fairy tales, and had their walls painted with similar stories. In fact, the restaurants around here even said that their menus were drawn onto the streets, right in front of their doorstep." 

The chief looked at the pictures carefully, with you peering at them as well, taking in the detail that Taehyung had while he worked while making each of his works- no, vandalising, you corrected yourself. He raised an eyebrow at the eyewitness, who seemed to shrink into her seat. "What does this bring forward as evidence for or against the culprit? We already know what the crime is, and its details. We just have to determine a punishment- either a hefty fine or jail. Do you have anything that can justify him getting exempted from either?"

Ms. Park looked at you and the chief before turning to Taehyung apologetically, placing a hand on his knee - as if consoling him. "I think that at the end of the day, all he was doing was beautifying the neighbourhood, wasn't he? And most of the residents here don't have a problem with it-" the chief looked at her incredulously- "so please, don't punish him or something. A lot of people appreciate his work in our neighborhood, you know?" 

"But we have been receiving complaints about him since the past few days," the chief said. "Why the sudden change in opinion?"

Ms. Park fidgeted with the hem of her hanbok for a few moments, shaking her head nervously. "Some of us shopkeepers were really bothered by it at first, yes, but we also had some customers come over to inquire about the artwork. It looked professional to them. So we came to an ultimatum : we will let this young man paint and draw for us, on our walls, as much as he wants - as long as it's pretty," she emphasized, one hand patting her chest, "we'll pay him to do it." 

You held back a sob as you saw Taehyung's eyes glimmer - a ray of hope shining in them.His knee bounced up and down- a habit you knew was something he had had since years - and he smiled softly when Ms. Park squeezed his hand. You felt like things were finally going to go well. The chief exhaled roughly before rubbing his forehead, glancing at Ms. Park, who smiled at him in the hope that he would understand her reasoning. 

"The law, honestly, doesn't care about intentions- I don't think I really understand why I should even let him go. Vandalism is a punishable offence, and the perpetrator has been aware of its consequences. Why the sudden feeling to save him?" The chief questioned, eyes steely and tough. 

Ms. Park hesitated for a few moments. "I believe he deserves a second chance." She pulled her chair ahead, the metal ends scraping against the tiles, and pleaded once again. "He was arrested for years for something he hadn't even done - and now, might face a few more months in the same place for simply being artistic. I don't think it deserves punishment."

"That's for the law to decide, not you, madam." The chief sternly said. "I suggest you leave such decisions to us."

The room remained tense and quiet for the next few moments, and your eyes were trained on Taehyung. You noticed the quiver in his hands, the way he shrunk into his chair - as if to hide away from whatever the upcoming decision would be. 

Ms. Park was the first to interrupt the loud silence. "Oh, come on. Let me just pay for the boy's bail." 

The clock chose that moment to loudly announce the next hour: was it eleven? Twelve? You weren't paying attention. You only saw the way Taehyung rose up from his seat - in happiness, you thought - with fists sticking to his sides. "No. I won't accept it." 

You felt the chief look with just as much disbelief as you did. Why was he so hellbent on being a perpetrator when he could be free? 

Ms. Park laughed. "No. I'm not listening to that whole self righteous thing that you probably have," she swatted the air with her hand, as if to push away any explanations Taehyung could give.

"Look, ma'am. I have the money to get a bail, or even pay the fine. I don't want you to pay for me and then hold it above my head like a massive favour you have done for me." Fire blazed in his eyes as he spoke up, rather indignantly. "I can take care of myself." 

"To hell with that attitude," Ms. Park said. "I decided to help you because I didn't want you to suffer once again because of misunderstandings." She pulled Taehyung back to sit on his chair, clasping his hand between her wrinkled ones. "You had to go through so much pain at such a young age - no one deserves that. I was a mere bystander at the time you were arrested, and I regretted it then. I still regret it now." 

She sighed before caressing the back of his hand lovingly, thumb gently pressing on the skin- as if to feel the pain those hands had to go through, and you thought you saw a hint of a tear on his cheeks. "So don't question me for 'saving' you, or something - what you did was perfectly fine for me. I love the way my street looks now, and so do the neighbours. All that really remained was the artist's identity- and now that I know it's you, I don't feel any sort of guilt in justifying what you did." 

You were right. Taehyung was crying. It wasn't silent tears that rained gently down his cheeks, it was a whole thunderstorm. You saw the chief turn away, from the corner of your vision, but you couldn't bring yourself to do the same. He was biting on his bottom lip to hold back any of the sobs or whimpers that came, head lowering to hide the tears. 

Ms. Park simply caressed his hand, over and over, till he calmed down enough to wipe his tears with his free hand. And when he raised his head up, you saw him like a new person. The wound up Taehyung you had met again a few hours ago was slowly vanishing - in his stead, there was a free Taehyung who smiled like the world's burden had been lifted off his shoulders. "Thank you," he murmured. 

The chief sighed again. "I still don't understand how it came to this." 

"Neither do I," Ms. Park laughed. "But it is what it is. We'll pay the fine."

"I'll do it," Taehyung started, only to be shushed by the elder lady. "I want to do it. Let me do it." She turned again to the chief, the bubbly happiness giving way to seriousness. "You can make sure he pays the fine, right? Withdraw the complaints for us too." 

The chief looked at you and nodded, and you got to work - carefully opening the laptop again and making sure that you transferred the report from 'investigation' to 'resolved', and that the complaint was withdrawn. 

The chief, meanwhile, made physical records of it, and informed Taehyung of the fine - which, despite his insistence, Ms. Park paid off, whipping out a cheque she had kept ready, somehow. You added the details to his resolved record as the chief dictated them to you, keeping them for future references - which you hoped would only be needed to prove his innocence in any situation. 

Nearly twenty minutes of details, questioning, and a written assurance from Taehyung that he would be liable to arrest if he continued illegal activities, it was done. Taehyung was free. 

The chief read over the details once again, thoroughly, eyes getting heavier and softer with every document he checked. Once it was all done, filed, and you had stacked the records back in the drawers they were placed in, the chief sagged into the chair, hands clutching the steel arms for support. 

"Thank God," he whispered, eyes closed. "You're fine now." He got up shakily, hands wiping at his eyes to erase any traces of the tears that had possibly leaked out. He walked around the table, reaching for Taehyung - as if beyond the lines of that desk, his duties as an officer stopped and those as a teacher resumed. "Don't you dare do that again, Taehyung. Never again." He held his student by the shoulder tightly, gripping him and shaking him a little - like a parent would scold a kid. "Live a good life, please." 

Taehyung nodded frantically, eyes still wide in disbelief as he ignored the grubby tear streaks on his face. "I will, sir." He had his hands placed politely in front of him, trembling fingers clutching onto the rough denim fabric of the old, loose jeans you had made him wear. 

"Live well," the chief repeated again, thumping Taehyung's shoulder once and then turning around to collect the documents he would need to take with him. He bowed to Ms. Park, who acknowledged him before something at a corner of the small office caught her eye, and turned sharply to you. "Officer Y/N," he began, and you tensed a little bit more. "There was an opening last night in the forensic science department that I got notice of," he said, a smile tugging on the edges of his lips when he saw how your demeanor brightened. "Reach the head office tomorrow in the morning at ten, and I'll give you the details. All the best." 

You hastily held back the sudden smile that threatened to split on your face, smartly saluting your senior before he turned around to leave the office. As he opened the door, you felt a burst of warmth all over your body - the heat of the sunshine rushing into the room. 

Ms. Park walked from her corner to Taehyung, taking his palm between hers and squeezing. "I'm happy that you're free now, Taehyung." She looked carefully at his face - sternness making way for soft concern, and said, "Live wisely. If you need money, or a job to get you started, come to my shop - it's the one you painted with orchids. You remember it, right?" 

Taehyung responded with a rather choked 'yes', nodding his head frantically. He placed his other, trembling hand upon the lady's hands, and solemnly thanked her. 

"That's not needed, I told you." She smiled, before patting his cheek. "You deserve to let yourself live, so use this chance well. Work hard." She turned her head to look through the window behind her, groaning a bit at the sight of the brightly burning sun. "I better leave now - it seems that I'll end up getting a sunburn the nearer to twelve it is." She turned back to Taehyung, smiling softly, and patting his cheek. "Turn up at the shop tomorrow morning, we'll figure something out." 

"Oh, and officer?" she faced you, pointing in the corner where she was standing a few moments before. "I think my grandson had left his plushie over here a few days ago - it's this one, right?" You followed where her hand was pointing, finding a pumpkin plushie left casually on top of a table. "Sungwoo told me he had lost it some time ago, so I just thought it was this one," she laughed awkwardly. 

"I think it is his, he had come yesterday to file a missing complaint for it too," you said, causing Ms. Park to laugh. "He really loves it, doesn't he?" 

"He's not slept well since it went missing. Anyways, I better take it with me, if that's all."

"Just a moment, ma'am," you stopped her hastily. "He'd left a note for the plushie too - I believe Peter?" 

The elderly woman laughed at her grandson's antics, taking the note you offered her and grinning as she read it. "Yes, yes, Peter. I'll take the note with me. Thank you so much for everything, officer."

Thank you, you wish to say - unable to understand how she volunteered to be an eyewitness and defend the one person you cared so much for. Maybe words wouldn't be enough for you to convey how grateful you were to her, so you simply bowed to the woman. 

She took Taehyung's hand again, gently pressing on the back of his hand. "Your mother used to help me out in the shop, you know." Taehyung nodded, and she smiled. "Your hands are like hers. Delicate, yet strong. You can craft beauty with this hand, Taehyung." She squeezed his hand, smiling. "Don't just let that beauty slip away from you." 

She patted his hand again, before turning to you and smiling, and heading out. The sunlight bounced off her gray hair to shine on Taehyung as you looked at him - even with a tired expression, he looked more alive than you had seen him in the last few hours. 

"I'm free," he said, saying it aloud and letting himself feel the sensation for a few moments. 

He turned to you, watching the way your eyes told him that you understood everything you wanted to tell him - even the things he himself didn't understand. "I'm free, Y/N," he repeated, carefully examining his wrists that were once bound with handcuffs - no. There were no restraints there. 

His eyes panned around the room. There was no investigator who questioned him about why he simply couldn't admit his crime. No one who made fun of him for seeking comfort in his art - even if it was illegal. "I'm really free," he murmured again.

Taehyung leaped towards you, pulling you close and holding you tight, as if unable to believe that you were there with him: and that he was here with you for as long as he wanted to be. You let your arms circle around his neck, one curling through the hair at his nape and pulling him further into your embrace, and the other spread out over his back - trying to remind yourself that yes, he was here, with you. 

"Thank you," you felt him murmur into your shoulder. 

"For what?"

"Just being here. With me." He sighed, further tightening the hands that rested around your waist. "After so many unfamiliar faces over the years, seeing yours feels like a reward of sorts for behaving well." 

You laughed at him, slapping his back light heartedly. "Don't talk like you did anything wrong all those years ago. It's not good." You let your hands pane across the expanse of his skin, feeling him cling on to you as you tried to calm him down. "I'm happy for you, Tae." 

He held you like that, for a few more moments - like you were slowly pulling him back into what could be his new normal life. Waking up every day in a room that doesn't have steel bars as a door. Not having to crash at the old house that had haunted him for years. Not having to hide his face in the fear that someone would taunt him for his past. Actually doing something that made him feel happy, confident, and alive. 

"I'm happy too," he murmured into your shoulder. You hummed as he looked beyond your frame to see the streets outside the window - seeing how they were illuminated in daylight. How animatedly people were talking about what their plans for the day were. A kid kept hopping on a chalk drawing of hopscotch he had drawn on the footpath, clutching onto a plushie that oddly seemed like a pumpkin. Someone walked around their stall, setting things up for the day. 

You pulled him away from your grip to look at him again - not wanting to forget any part of him in any way. "I still care for you as much as I did all those years ago, you know." You put your hands on his biceps, just as you used to do when you had to knock sense into your friend. "You better not hide anything from me now." 

"I have no intentions of," he grinned. "Thank you very much." 

You giggled, a feeling you hadn't felt in years fluttering around your stomach like butterflies. 

"About us," Taehyung began, holding your hands in his, "You know that I love you, right?" You felt yourself tense up, and probably Taehyung did too, as he squeezed your hands. "I'm not in any hurry. I want to take some time to understand myself and what I want to do before I think of anything with you. But when I'm settled, and I'm someone I can be proud of, I want to come back to you. Be with you forever." He let go of your hands to hold your cheeks, smiling as he saw your big eyes peer at him. "You'll let me, right?" 

Your eyes softened. "Of course, Taehyung."

"Tae." He corrected you, coming closer to press a kiss on your forehead. 

You smiled when he moved back, glancing down at all of him and laughing. "For beginners, how about we get you clothes to change into?" 

He looked down at his clothes, laughing with you. "Let's go, then?" 

You nodded at him, pulling him out of the office, and locking it securely before turning to a widely grinning Taehyung. "I have a feeling I'm going to love the daytime. It's just so positive, and nice, don't you think? Really warm all over." 

"You're just saying that because you lived like a night owl," you laughed at him, watching his eyes sparkle in the sunshine. 

"Yeah, that wasn't the best way to live, was it?" He clicked his tongue and frowned. "Guess I better start living well now. To new beginnings, then, Officer!!" He grinned and poked your forehead. 

You watched Taehyung skip over the pebbles that were lined outside the office, walking freely on the streets, feeling the dread that you had let build up in your heart for so long slowly drain out of you. "Wait for me!" You screamed behind him, running to catch up to him. To new beginnings, you thought. 

a/n: hopefully, this piece of writing was worth your time 😊 thank you so much for reading graffiti and chalk!! I'd love to hear any feedback you have. Feel free to send it in as a comment, reblog, or as an ask! love, hazel 💞

taglist: @taejinnies (the torture is over bahaha), @xiaokoo, @thedarkwinterrose, @shatzkrinslinzki

masterlist

[rendevousz]

not a lonely birthday

teen!actress!reader x platonic!jeremy renner

brief reader x marvel cast

req by @maximeevansblog : The reader (me ) is dating jeremy renner its the readers birtday, and jeremy renner spoiling her, taking to the hair salon and to the nail salon , and the trows a party for her, and he asks her to marry him, and a couple months later the reader is asked to been on say yes to the dress and alot of fluff please (i'm so sorry i couldn't write your exact request. i added the other cast too but it's still mainly jeremy renner so i hope you enjoy this still)

summary: you thought you were gonna have to spend your birthday alone but jeremy had other plans.

word count: 3296

note: i told her i couldn't really write romance because my blog is mainly teen!reader and she said i could just turn it into an x teen!reader so i did. i mean, i can write a non teen!reader but it probably won't be anytime soon so i'm not taking requests that aren't x teen!reader as of now <33

"are you sure you'll be okay?"

"yes, mum, i'll be fine here. i've been doing fine for the past two and a half months, what's another week without you guys gonna do to me?" you told your mother on the phone, rolling your eyes at her excessive, unnecessary worrying.

"we're so sorry about this, sweetheart," you heard your dad speak and you figured he must've been listening the whole time. your mum must've had it on speaker since the beginning of the phone call.

"you shouldn't have to spend your birthday all alone. i promise we'll make it up to you, honey." your mother spoke again and you groaned. "i keep telling you that it's fine. and what do you take me for, a loner? i've got the others here, mum, i'll be fine." you told her, a smile ghosting over your lips at how concerned she is of you.

your birthday was coming in two days and having a whole movie to film meant that you weren't allowed to leave the country for just a weekend to celebrate it with your family. so, they worked around your schedule and planned a trip to visit. unfortunately, your idiot of a brother managed to get himself into a skating accident and had to be hospitalised, affecting their whole plan of coming to celebrate your 18th birthday with you. well, not on the day of your birthday, at least.

"i'll make sure sarah'll bring you out to celebrate, okay? i'm so sorry about this, y/n." you could practically hear the pout in her voice and you held back the urge to tell her off for profusely apologising, you didn't want to receive a beating when she finally arrives here.

"i'll be fine, mum," you whined. "as i said, i'll be filming on my birthday too so i'll at least be with the cast then. it's never a dull day with them. and i'll be waiting for your gift from sarah on my birthday." you teased her. you knew she had a habit of getting birthday gifts way too early. for once, she was grateful for that because she had given sarah—your manager and also a family friend— your birthday present for her to safe-keep in case anything like this happened and she couldn't give it to you on your birthday.

"i'll give you permission to whack your brother once we come." your dad tells you seriously and you laughed. "thanks, dad. i'll be sure to remember it. anyways, i have to get back on set soon. i'll talk to you guys when i can?"

"of course, honey. have fun on set!" your parents bid you goodbye and you hung up with an adoring smile on your face. you missed your family and having been able to hear your parents' voices for a mere five minutes was enough to cure it for even just a little bit. sure, you were disappointed that you weren't going to get to spend your birthday with them but spending it doing what you love—acting— with the people, aside from your family and friends from home, that you love—the cast— didn't sound so bad.

"i'm so sorry about this, darling." you heard someone say, effectively breaking your train of thoughts. you turned to the source of the voice, meeting the hazel eyes of your manager and long-time family friend, sarah. she pulls you in for a hug that you groaned into but still returned. you rolled your eyes playfully when she let go. "i'm not upset, sarah."

"i know. but you're disappointed." she says softly, fixing your costume after the hug messed it up a little. "maybe i am, but it doesn't matter. i chose this life so technically i brought all of this upon myself. i signed up to have a normal life stripped away from me." you told her honestly, internally cringing because you hadn't meant to get that deep.

"y/n," her hands rested on both of your shoulders and she looks down at you with that stern mum glare she'd give you whenever you were being a little troublemaker. she was practically your second mum, having promised your own that she'd take care of you whenever you had to travel for filming.

"i know, i know, i'm sorry. i didn't mean it in a bad way. i love my job but it sucks that i have to be far away from family, you know?" you sighed. "i understand, darling. it's hard but hey, i'll be with you the whole day, okay? we'll go out and have a nice girl's day out together, do whatever you want. that sound nice to you?" she places a gentle hand against your skin, careful not to rub the fake dirt and wound makeup on your face.

"that sounds great, sarah. i have only a half day of filming that day, right?" you ask her, knowing she remembers your schedule better than you yourself do. "yup. anyways, they need you on set 3. get out there and make me proud, darling."

-

"and....cut!" the director called out and you dramatically dropped limp against the wire harness attached to your body, the wires holding up your weight so you didn't drop down to the floor but also didn't have to remain standing on your own.

you heard sebastian laughing, him being the closest to you in the scene you had just filmed. "you tired, y/n/n?" evans chuckled as he walked towards where you and seb were standing. "yeah, i just wanna sleep right now." you told them, standing up on your own when a crew member wanted to get your harness off.

"well, at least you get to rest now. you're done for the day right?" seb asked, the three of you now walking to the snack table together. "yeah but sarah wanted to take me out so maybe not rest but i'll get to relax. that's good enough," you say, peeling off a banana and taking a bite while the two men drank some water.

"she's taking you out later today? is there a special occasion?" chris asked and you smiled at him. "nah, nothing much. she just thought i've been stressed lately." you lied. you didn't want to seem attention-seeking for telling chris and sebastian that it was your birthday so you settled on a little lie.

"she's not wrong. you have been working hard and you deserve a relaxing evening off work." seb agreed.

"oh she's walking over here right now. are you going now?" chris asked, eyes trained behind you as he watched sarah coming closer. you turned around, meeting her frown-etched face and you blinked profusely in confusion. "i thought we're going in two hours?"

"y/n, i'm so sorry. some stuff came up and i have last minute errands to run all day," she told you, offering a guilty expression when your face dropped slightly. "oh.. i– um, yeah, it's fine."

"are you sure it's fine? i promised you though," she frowned. "it's fine, i know you have a lot to handle and it's totally fine if we don't go out today. i'll just take a nap and be on netflix all day, i guess." you joked but sarah didn't laugh. "sarah, it's fine. you know i've been wanting to catch up on a list of shows. when else will i be able to do this?" you assured her, trying to mask your disappointment.

"i have to go now. i'll make it up to you, darling, i promise." she gave you a hug before running off somewhere. you felt bad for her because she probably had to be running here and there all day but it didn't change that you were disappointed. maybe you really did deserve this for choosing this life.

"hey kiddo," you felt someone ruffle your hair and you were almost going to go off on them for doing that before remembering you had just finished your last scene for the day. an arm rested over your shoulder and you looked up to see jeremy taking over sarah's previous spot.

"um excuse me? do we not exist?" chris joked when jeremy didn't greet him nor seb. jeremy rolled his eyes at them, turning back to look down at you. "you did great today, kiddo." he complimented and you smiled, thanking him.

"wow okay, i guess we really don't exist, huh? c'mon seb, let's go somewhere else where people appreciate our presence." evans sassed, glaring at you two as both men strutted away.

"good riddance," jeremy said, dropping his arm so that you two were now face to face. "happy birthday, y/n." he says, handing you a little bronze coloured box. you gasped as you took it in your hands.

"how'd you know it was my birthday?" you asked him, eyes wide in surprise. "of course i know your birthday, kiddo. after all, you are my favourite co-star." he grins, gesturing for you to open the box.

you did and your hand immediately flew to cover your mouth in shock. "jeremy! you didn't!" you gently took out the necklace from the box, examining it closely. the charm was in the shape of your favourite animal and the chain was gold. this must've costed him a fortune.

"jeremy, you didn't have to!" you exclaimed, pouting at him to prevent yourself from bursting into tears right then and there. "kiddo, i love you a lot, how could i not?"

playing clint's adopted, eldest daughter in the films, as well as a member of the avengers, you and jeremy worked together a lot. he helped you a lot with practicing your lines and emotions for specific scenes and you bonded over so many things you two had in common. even off set jeremy still acted like your father so practically everyone knew how close you two were. if sarah is considered your second mum, you'd say jeremy is your second dad.

"so i heard sarah bailed on your birthday date today," he says as he helped you put on the necklace, smiling fondly when you looked down at it happily. "thanks a lot, jeremy. you really didn't have to," you hugged him tight, the man chuckling as he hugged you back.

"and sarah didn't bail. she just has errands to run all day. can't blame her, she's a busy woman." you told him. "yeah yeah, anyways, how 'bout i take you out instead? a birthday lunch and a day out with your favourite cast mate?" he wiggles his eyebrows at you, a smirk playing on his lips.

"you don't have anymore scenes to shoot?" you ask. "i do but i have plenty of time before then." he replies. you agreed happily and he tells you to meet him outside the set in an hour so you two could change out of your costumes.

-

"you ready for the best day ever, kiddo?" jeremy asks as you entered the passenger seat. "best day ever? then shouldn't we invite the rest?" you teased, buckling your seatbelt. "hey! i'm pretty fun too!"

you chuckled at his childishness. "i'm kidding, you are fun. now let's go already, i'm starving." you complained and he started the engine, letting you play whatever songs you wanted as background to your small talk.

you had lunch first at your favourite restaurant but not before you two had a debate of whether you were allowed to because you were supposed to be on a diet during the length of the movie shooting and him ultimately going 'to hell with that diet, it's your special day' and then dragging you in. after that, he said he had a surprise for you and told you to just get in the car.

when he finally stopped somewhere, you realised it was a pretty well known hair salon in town and you tilted your head in confusion. why would he bring you here?

"you said you wanted to dye your hair, didn't you? let's do it." he says nonchalantly, unbuckling his seatbelt before you both exited the car. "are you crazy? we're still in the middle of filming!" you exclaim in disbelief. this man was crazy.

"yeah but it's not like they can't just get a wig of your current hair and use that for the rest of the filming. scar and lizzie wear wigs all the time, you can too. now let's go dye that stupid colour you want!" he cheers, tugging you along with him by your wrist, into the salon. you chuckled at his antics, letting him drag you.

the next hour or two was spent with you worrying that your parents would kill you for this, or worse, anthony or joe. you knew it would be a meltdown for them if you came back with your hair a completely different colour.

jeremy assured you that the russos, as well as your parents, would not get mad at this but you were pretty sure you'd get an earful from both pairs. you made him promise that he would talk to both parties that he was the one who convinced you to do this. but once your hair was done, all worries flew out the window as you admired your new hair.

"you look great, kiddo. this colour looks good on you." he looks at you with a fond smile, trying to resist the urge to ruffle your newly done hair but failing. you pouted at him when he did so, reaching up to fix it again. "sorry, y/n/n, couldn't resist," he states, pinching your cheek.

"alright, next stop now, let's go!" he pulls you by the wrist once again and you let him, used to him doing this already. the next time he stopped, you damn right almost had another heart attack because again, this man was crazy.

he did not just bring you to a nail place. surely he isn't about to let you get your nails done, right? the russos would have your head and his too if you were to get them done and casually get back to the studio.

"no." you said firmly, crossing your arms over your chest as you stayed seated in the passenger seat. "c'mon, y/n/n," he whined, throwing a tantrum outside the car door as he tried to get you to leave the car.

"no, jeremy, they'll literally send me back here to get it off because in case you forgot, in all my scenes, i don't have fancy nails." you reasoned, noticing that jeremy has now moved to your side of the car and the passenger seat door has now been opened, the man continuing to make a fuss closer to you now.

"no they will not, i'll make sure they don't. c'mon kiddo, it's your birthday, let's have a little fun!" he says but you were still unsure about the whole thing. "i don't know.."

"okay fine i guess i'll tell you this now. they didn't want to tell you until later today because they wanted it to be your kinda birthday present but your avenger suit has changed. it's not like the one in the last movie, it's got gloves now! and the rest of your scenes excluding the last few ones are all in your superhero suit right?" your eyes widened at this new information, a smile growing on your lips.

"wait, for real? are you sure they're not just fingerless gloves?" he smiles down at you. "yeah. i planned this day well, okay? put some trust in me, geez," he sassed, moving out of your way as you finally exited the car.

"this better not be a joke, renner, because if it is, i'll have your head." you threatened jokingly. "yeah, yeah. oh also, can you just pretend to be shocked when they tell you about your suit upgrade? because i really wasn't supposed to tell you this." he scratched the back of his head awkwardly as you walked two walked into the nail salon.

the entire time, he awkwardly sat at the side, waiting for you to be done. when you were though, he quickly got up, as if he had been restless sitting down the whole time.

"they're pretty," he says as you walked back to his car. "yeah, i really like them. haven't had my nails done in a long time." you replied, getting in the car and waiting for jeremy to get in on his side. once he did, he immediately started the engine and started driving back to the set where he had to continue shooting and where you knew sarah would be waiting for you.

it was after many different topics and finally arriving outside the set did you decide to get a little emotional. "hey, i just wanna say thanks for today. i thought i was gonna spend the day alone watching netflix all day like some loser but you made this day really enjoyable. you have no idea how much this really means to me, thank you so much jeremy. i love you." you pouted at him, trying not to cry. "aw kiddo, of course. you're an important person to me. couldn't let you be a loser on your special day," he teases, bringing you into a hug where he didn't miss his chance to ruffle your hair.

once you let go, he kept an arm around your shoulder as you both walked in. he opened the door for you both and you almost jumped in place.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!"

your jaw dropped at the sight in front you. every single one of your co-stars, along with some crew members were wearing party hats holding up a banner that said 'HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Y/N'. sarah was in the middle, holding a huge birthday cake with a smile on her face. you slowly walked towards her, hand over your mouth in shock.

sarah gave the cake over to robert before opening her arms up for you. you gave her a tight hug. "you didn't have to do all this," you say, letting go of her. "jeremy and i planned this right when your mother called beforehand and told me they couldn't come in time." she explained.

you turned to jeremy who had been standing next to you the whole time, giving him another hug which he happily accepted. "you guys didn't have to." you told them, trying not to cry at the thought that these people loved you enough to do this for you.

"but we wanted to. and the rest wanted to join in too. now before you start bawling your eyes out, let's get this party started!" he cheered.

"but before that, make a wish, kiddo." robert tells you after evans finished lighting up all the candles. you closed your eyes, making a wish and blowing them all out. everyone cheered before walking away to grab food or to talk to others. or in your cast mates' cases, fighting over who gets to give you your present first.

"you knew it was my birthday!" you exclaimed when you locked eyes with evans, who was in the middle of a brawl with both mackie and robert. he laughed out loud. "yeah! i did! your lie couldn't fool me, child!" he says dramatically, before being pushed aside by robert.

you laughed as they continued to fight right in front of you about who you love more and therefore getting to be first to give you their gift. they even managed to slip in a few compliments about your new hair, while they were literally fighting. you watched in glee, realising that even if your biological family couldn't make it for your special day, you still had a second one to make it special.

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[jonnnysuh]

Never Not - Park Jinyoung

Pairing: idol!Jinyoung x gender neutral reader

Summary: Your bad day is turned around when your childhood best friend, Jinyoung, returns to your hometown and takes you on a tour of your favourite memories together.

Genre: angst, fluff, friends to lovers

Warnings: suggested sexual experience

Word Count: 4.3k

Requested by: Anon

A/N: Hi guysssss. I took a small break from tumblr bc I got super busy with work. I haven’t written something like this in a while, but I actually loved how it turned out. I recommend listening to Never Not by Lauv to get into the mood <33

Effort was hard to make these days. Even the way you walked had an unmistakable slouch. Your exhaustive strides were just a shallow reminder that there used to be a hop in your step. Five more minutes and you were free from the shackles of work. Free to figure out what to make for dinner, and appease the gurgles of your stomach.The seconds on the point of sale system didn't seem to move fast enough as you folded the customer's final item and shoved it into a bag.

When you were a kid, no one told you how exhausting being an adult was, and thus it became something to look forward to. You were so caught up on getting that first kiss, sneaking out to go to parties, seeing people that your parents didn't approve of, that you didn't realize that life didn't slow down from there. It was like you blinked, and you were no longer 16. Instead, you were twenty-something perpetually feeling like life was just an endless pit of "what ifs" and building up the courage to make something of yourself. Another mindless "Have a good day." escaped your lips as you bid a customer bye for the nth time that day. You wondered how many of your years would waste away telling others to have a good day, when you yourself hadn't had one in a while.

You pressed your fingers against your temple to sooth a small growing headache. Working in retail for as long as you had, you knew that the s-curved line of people didn't stop for your discomfort. With a fake smile on your face, you welcomed the next few customers as your eyes wandered around the store looking for the person who was going to take over for the next hour. Fifteen minutes past the hour, your replacement finally came. Externally, you wanted to scream and ask them what took you so long? but you knew that would only make you as good as the worst customer. Graciously, you nodded at them, before walking away to the back room to fetch your things and head out.

...

You stood against the wall at the bus shelter shivering from the cool summer breeze that was disguising just how rapidly autumn was truly coming. Today probably wasn't the best day to forget your coat.  You rubbed your arms for warmth, taking micro footsteps in place.  The pain in your feet made you romanticize the comfort of the sturdy old bus seats as a place of rest. You felt your phone in your pocket vibrate, but you let it ring out. You were determined to get a seat on this bus. A deep sigh escaped you as you surveyed the density of the crowd on the platform- the ride home was definitely going to be longer than usual. When the bus arrived, you queued behind a long line of people. Your phone rang a second time, at this point the crowd was getting larger and you knew you weren't going to get a seat on this bus.

PRIVATE CALLER 

"Hello?" you pressed your phone to your ear. Sometimes your mother used phone booths to reach you, so you expected her voice to be on the other end of the line. "I'm offended I had to call you twice for you to pick up."  The voice was much deeper, and the delivery much more lighthearted than anything that would've came out of your mother.  The absence of a greeting was distinct and direct, but no matter, you knew exactly who this was.

You felt the tenseness of your shoulders drop with just the sound of this voice. "If I had definitely known it was you, I wouldn't have picked up, Mr. Private caller." you jest with the phone  pressed between your ear and the crook of your shoulder.

"You know, I was gonna suggest that I pick you up, but just for that comment, I change my mind."

You poke your tongue at your cheek, coyly. For all the changes that occurred in your life, for some reason you could depend on Jinyoung's quick wit and humour to hit the spot even after all this time.

"That's fine, I just finished work so I was thinking of just going home anyways."  You had no idea he was even back in South Korea. Last you heard, he was on tour somewhere in North America. More than that, you couldn't even remember when the last time you actually talked was. You were curious about what he was up to these days, but you you knew any hint of urgency in your voice would lead to incessant teasing on his part. The line progressed slightly, but you still didn't feel any closer to the entrance of the bus.

  "I'm about to get on a bus home." 

"Well, don't get on." 

"If I don't get on then you're gonna have to repay me for the fare I paid to even get here." You eyed the bus reaching its capacity, and stepped aside. You twisted your fingers in hope that he was being 100% serious, otherwise you were going to have to wait out for the 6:30pm bus.

"I can't believe the cost of your attention is only $2. Do better." the voice quipped. 

"Okay, Jinyoung I guess I'll just get on, then." you threatened, although you had no intention of boarding the departing bus.

"Fine, fine. I'll pay for your fare. Just wait for me."

...

The sky had darkened tenfold since you hung up from Jinyoung's impromptu call. The streetlights glowed gold against the lavender backdrop of the sky. You sat on the bus shelter bench, swinging your feet back and forth as you waited for him. If he took even a minute longer, you vowed to somehow become the president of the Park Jinyoung hate club. Of course, you wouldn't actually, but the idea became more appealing the longer you waited. 

You weren't one to go on spontaneous outings- at least not since your teenage years. Recently, you followed the strict routine of work, home, sleep, and to stray from it seemed pointless. But the fact that he even thought of you when he came back home to South Korea was still not something you could wrap your head around.

In the distance, a glow of headlights appeared, stopping perfectly adjacent to your bus stop. The window rolled down, and there appeared Jinyoung's face in all its glory. To say all the words in your vocabulary disappeared would be an understatement. A part of you doubted he would even follow through. Without missing a beat, he returned a look to you. "You just gonna stare at me, or are you gonna get in the car?"

...

Your backpack was sitting atop your lap, bouncing with the movement of the car. Jinyoung hung one hand over the steering wheel. The orange and purple of the sky twisting, and creating a brand new colour that only seemed to grace the skies at this hour. The music was unidentifiable, but the volume was low enough that you didn't even bother trying to figure it out.

"So what'd you do today?" he asked. 

"I worked, I told you that." you replied, matter-of-factly.

"And how was it?"

"I honestly can't tell the difference between this week and last week. Or even last month. Same old, same old. Annoying customers, stale lunch, forgot my jacket at home even though it's 15 fucking degrees outside." 

"Do you still work at that clothing store you started at when we were 20?"

  Your eyes shifted, following the ever-changing scenery of the highway. No idea where he was bringing you, and yet you were brought to comfort by Jinyoung's habits.  You knew he didn't have a drug deal, or a random party planned.  Jinyoung was always the type to be home before midnight. He was a self-proclaimed goody-two-shoes, but you weren't completely fooled. You knew he could bend the rules if it seemed to serve him.

  "That exact same one."

 "Anything else?"

  You looked at him, the shock settling in that he was really right next to you-- no longer just a figure on a billboard that you used to know. The changes of his physicality were subtle; his face was more defined, but his cheeks still carried the baby fat that had been there since childhood. The shadow of his facial hair loomed on his smooth skin. The mole on the top of his lip, not necessarily gone, but faded. He looked older, but the aura of his presence remained the same.

"And then I was dumb enough to get into a car with a stranger because he said he'd give me $2."

Jinyoung side eyed you, causing you to erupt in laughter. His glare was also unchanging. "Stranger? Your memory's fading already?" He shook his head disappointedly. "I thought you still had a few good years left."

  "Oh yeahhhhhh. Sorry Jinyoungie. Didn't recognize you with all the fame." you pinched and pulled on his ear- both things a relic of your grade school years. When you were kids, you never let him forget the age gap. Granted, it was only 3 days, but that gave you the freedom to refer to him however you pleased, while he was stuck with the honorifics.

As you let go, the curve of his ear flushed red. "OWW.” he cried, swatting your hand away. “You’re lucky I’m driving otherwise I would pull your hair.”

Being raised with Jinyoung meant that you were inseparable but kind of in the worst way. If Jinyoung got  a good mark on a test, his parents would immediately flaunt it to yours. If you wanted to sneak out, he was on your tail telling you to go back home. And if he knew you liked someone, then that person would know soon enough by the words of Jinyoung. All of that warranted ear pulling, and if you did something in retaliation he would pull your hair.

He was one of the few people in your life, who encapsulated a certain time of your life.  The time in your life when you were young, and the world felt so big and everything was possible.

  The car rocked back and forth as it shifted into the elevated ramp of a parking lot. Your eyes widened as you realized where you were.  He lingered in his seat before popping his seatbelt off and exiting the car. You followed him, swinging the passenger door open.

  "So you randomly called me because you wanted to hang out at the...convenience store?" you gestured to the old, orangey building. The bricks were chipped, and the fluorescent lights illuminated the outside through the big glass window.  You remember the days when you and Jinyoung would sit on the parking blocks and split a bag of chips until you were chased off the property by the owner. He pulled on the store door, pressing his back to it and letting you enter first. 

"Well, I wasn't going to come here until you started yanking my ears. That's when I knew you were hungry."

Without stopping, you weaved through the store until you reached aisle 3- the snack aisle had become a home to you and Jinyoung when you were growing up. In grade school, you were both fearful of what was beyond the boundaries of your home and school so you indulged in after school snacks at the convenience to talk about the latest happenings in your life. As you aged, it became the place of solace after exams, or the meetup location for last minute plans.

  He picked up a package of gummy worms, and shook them in your face. "Do you remember what happened the last time we ate theseeee?" Jinyoung smirked. For a moment, you were taken aback by how much he had grown. In your teens, you and Jinyoung met eye to eye. Now, you felt like you had to look up at him in order to be taken seriously.

  You crossed your arms, "Yeah, we ate them in the parking lot and you made me confess who I had a crush on." 

"Chan, right?" 

You nodded, with a sulk as you reminisced. "That wasn't fair."

 "Why? Do you still have a crush on him?" 

"I haven't thought about him in so long. You really think I'd have a lingering crush on a guy I haven't seen in years?"

Jinyoung shrugged, and shifted his feet. "You had a huge crush on him, though. You even stared at him like this." He rested his palm to his cheek, letting out a deep sigh while trying to maintain an enamoured expression. You snorted, hitting him on the chest. "You'd write his name all over your notebooks AND you bullied me into giving you one of my new ones." he added.

You let out a belly laugh. "And then I wrote his name all over that one too."

Jinyoung rolled his eyes. "They were premium quality notebooks. My aunt sent me them from the states!"

 "You had a kabillion of them. Besides, you pestered me for-like-ever to know who I liked, but you never even told me who you had a crush on." You grabbed the bag of gummy worms from his hand and placed it in your shopping basket. Your attention shifted, as you realized you should be in search of your favourite chocolates. You knew that you were far too old to be eating junk food for dinner, but there was something familiar about being hyped up on food that you knew would rot your insides. Your eyes landed on the top row of the wall, and before you could grab your favourite chocolates, Jinyoung stripped it from the wall and dropped it into the basket. He piled on a bag of sour cream and onion chips, and then you both ventured to the drink refrigerators.

  Both of you stared deeply at your drink options. On each level of the fridge, stood several different colourful drinks. If you knew Jinyoung, then you knew he would pick a Coke- it was something he swore by in your younger years. You hummed, mentally deciding between an iced tea or a vitamin water.  You weren't sure why it bothered you when Jinyoung picked up a Sprite, but you tried to hide your dismay. With an ice tea in hand, and a basket full of both of your favourite things, you made your way to the cashier.

  At the last moment, Jinyoung placed a bright yellow umbrella on the checkout counter. He looked down at you, surely, “You never know when it’s gonna rain.”

...

The following car ride to your next destination only lasted about 3 minutes before he parked on the side of the road and dragged you down the street, with the plastic bag full of your foods in hand. 

"I should've known you were going to bring me here." you said, strolling down the familiar gravel pathway towards your elementary school. All colour in the sky had disappeared now, finding it hard to see anything but the outline of each other and some features.

  Both of you settled on the grass field, onlooking the tall school building that was the foundation of your formal years. As soon as you opened the bag of chips, you found yourselves deep in conversation, talking about what life had been for him the last few years. You couldn't help but be in awe when he explained the rush he got when he got on stage, and how he got anxiety when he thought he wasn’t doing his best.  The candidacy of his thoughts drew you in and you were surprised that he trusted you with his secrets. 

All these years, you had always wondered what he was up to, if he was living a life far better than the one he left at home.  To everyone else, he was this huge pop star that had travelled the world 3 times over, but to you, he was your best friend who left home at 16. You had seen him through the bad hair phases, the adolescent temper tantrums, the voice cracks, and the questionable fashion choices both your parents had put you in.

  He leaned back on his arms as he gazed at the school. "Are you afraid of change?" You were silent for a moment as you thought. "On a scale of 1-10?" you rocked your head back and forth. "It's a 15."

Jinyoung raised his eyebrows. You held your legs to your chest, and looked at him. "Why?"

He opened his mouth, but quickly closed it and looked smugly in the other direction. "Heyyy." you poked him repeatedly. "You can't just ask me that and not tell me why."

He enclosed his hand around your finger, forcing your poking to come to a halt. It felt like he was studying your face. Never in your life had you ever felt like you were under the scope of Jinyoung's gaze. The darkness of the sky acted as a mask, hiding your blushing face.

"It was the last thing I asked you before I left." he admitted. "I asked you that when things were about to change big time for us… I always wondered if you resented me for leaving you behind."

  The last day before Jinyoung left to become a full-time trainee, you two snuck on to this very same field. Both of you ran across the grass, picking up dandelions; believing that if you gathered enough and blew on them, that they would fuel your wishes.

  “You thought I could resent you?” He nodded. “Well, for starters, I hate your guts.” You replied sarcastically, causing him to look at the ground with embarrassment and your face softened at the sight of it.

  “You know what I wished for on all of those dandelions, Jinyoung?”

 “Not to fail the math exam.” Even in a soft moment, he couldn’t help but be sly. “No!” You exclaimed. 

“Well, you should’ve. You got a 48.” He sensed your killer look on him. “So what’d you wish for?”

You played with your fingers. You thought you’d take this secret to the grave. “I wished that you’d be successful in whatever you chose to do.” His eyes enlarged, alarmed at your confession. “but maybe I should’ve wished for the math thing.”

  Jinyoung giggled, inching closer to you so your legs were pressed against each other. 

“What did you wish for?” You asked. He smiled with the side of his mouth, shaking his head. 

“I wished that I’d always find my way back home.” “Oh goddd.” You gagged. “you’re so corny.”

 “What about you, huh? You used your wish on me!” he bellowed, his voice echoing against the school playground. 

“Hey, I might just be the reason why you’re famous.” You fought back.

You flipped your phone over, 7:53, the brightness of it only barely illuminating the dark. You thought about what you would be doing at this moment if you weren’t here, if he hadn’t picked you up.  Mmm probably falling asleep to a tv show. Probably dreading tomorrow. Probably not as happy.

"But what did I say? You know… the first time you asked me that question?” You couldn’t even begin to imagine how 16-year-old you answered.

  "You said you were excited to see who we were going to become.” The words of your younger self were so hopeful, yet your current self felt hopeless. Your expression sank, and Jinyoung offered a small smile to revive it. He felt guilty having asked you the question in the first place.

You sat in silence for a bit, dwelling on the excitement for life that you once had. Where was it? And how could you get it back?

“I feel like I’ve let myself down. I don’t even know who I am now.”

Jinyoung blinked slowly, watching his childhood best friend crumble. He rested a hand on your shoulder.  "I just look at you, and in so many ways you're the same. I still know what makes you laugh, and the way you say things. I can still pick out your favourite snacks, and know you’re gonna pull my ears when I do something to piss you off.” he yanked on yours softly. "Everything about you feels just how I left you. I feel my youth when I'm with you. But at the same time I’m comforted by how much you’ve changed.”

“I don’t think I’ve changed much.”

“You don’t see it, do you?” You shook your head no. “Do you remember how scared you were to even leave the house when we were kids? Now you live on your own. You never took anything seriously back then, but you’re now one of the hardest working people I know…” his voice softened. “And you let yourself be vulnerable with me when it used to take hours to drag it out of you.” You laid on his shoulder, and he rested his head on top of yours, snuggling closer. “You fear change, yet you’re changing right before your own eyes. And maybe one day, I’ll come back here, and I won’t even be able to recognize who you’ve become.” You sniffled, the idea of Jinyoung not remembering you broke your heart. You held your chest. “But if that day does come, it’ll be okay. Because I know that the person that you’ve become will have it all figured out.  I’ll always be rooting for every single version of yourself even if it doesn’t include me.” You sobbed quietly, interlocking your fingers with his. He held your hand tightly, rubbing his thumb against the back of your hand. For once, there was an action not done out of habit or relic. It was an action evoked just for this moment, and it was a change that you didn’t mind.

…

Jinyoung held your hand, leading you down a narrow road a few minutes away. The sound of crickets, barking dogs, and distant vehicles could be heard as you stood in the middle of the road of your childhood neighbourhood.

  You hadn’t been here since you moved in 2016. You looked up at the large modern house that sat on what used to be two lots. Yours and Jinyoung’s childhood homes were purchased by a wealthy business man and demolished to build the business man’s dream home. You stared at the foreign house that sat on the place of your childhood dreams and frustrations.

  Jinyoung placed his hands on your shoulders and stopped you at the exact halfway point between what was once his house and your house. You rubbed your arms as a gust of wind rushed by. Without thinking, Jinyoung slipped off his hoodie and placed it on top of your shoulders.

“I remember racing you down this street.” You piped up, pointing down the end of the road. Jinyoung always won that race. No one was faster than him on this street.

“I remember finding that stray puppy and fighting over who got to keep it.” He responded.

“It should’ve been me.” You bickered. Jinyoung laughed, amused at how you were always one to hold a grudge.

“Do you remember that day when it started raining soooo hard and we had to walk shoulder to shoulder under my umbrella?”

You nodded. “Ya, that was the same day with the gummy worms, you dummy.”

“So do you remember what happened right here?” He pointed at the exact spot you were standing. You racked your head for a memory, but nothing stood out to you clearly. You shook your head no. “We always said bye to one another here...but…?” you trailed off.

He took a step forward, both of you standing directly under the streetlight now. You watched his face light up as he likely played the moment back in his head. “So that day, standing under my umbrella, we were about to go our separate ways. You turned into me.”

He took another step closer, popping open the bright yellow convenience store umbrella and holding it over your heads.

You could see it now. It was drizzling so hard, even your hair wasn’t protected from getting soaked.   You wrapped your hands around the handle, just like how you did back then. Chest to chest, huddled under the umbrella. Jinyoung locked eyes with you, your heart beat faster.

“And you looked at me, and I swear I was going to say everything I wanted to tell you right then and there.” Your mouth opened in shock. “This was the place where I almost told you I loved you.”

You studied the eyes of the boy you watched grow up. He looked scared, but sure. There was no doubt in your mind that Jinyoung meant what he said. He lowered the umbrella, not letting his gaze veer from you.

  Your life was just a build up of what if’s and trying to gain the courage to make something of yourself… but you didn’t want that anymore. With your heart beating out of control, you leaned into him, taking the risk and kissing his lips. He wrapped his arms around your waist, deepening the heat of the kiss.

A round of thunder boomed above you, and little by little, raindrops began to pour from the sky.

You and Jinyoung separated to look up at the sky. “I did say, you never know when it’s gonna rain.”

You both ran for the car, shoulder to shoulder, under the umbrella. From your heads to your toes, you were soaked in the rain, but neither of you cared. You silently thanked the world for every bad thing that happened to you today that led to this.

…

You blinked your eyes awake, surveying the damp clothes strewn across your living room floor, and the heat of the bare body laying next to you on the couch. You stared at your sleepy childhood best friend, a smile spreading across your lips. This was a change you were ready for.