#i honestly am very much judging her coaches for letting her a) feel like this and b) ACT PUBLICLY like this. | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

knuffled · 3 years

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Just Practice - Chapter 18

it’s finally over. here’s the last chapter. important notes at the end for those that are interested. thank you all so much for your support. it’s been a wild ride, and i’m glad i got to see it through to the end.

ao3 link

It was perhaps the first time that Annabeth had ever felt nervous standing in front of the Jackson residence. She shifted uneasily on her heels and wiped her palms on her jeans before knocking on the front door. Usually, she felt more at home here than anywhere else in the world, but she felt entitled to a little anxiety given the circumstances. Not long after, Sally opened the front door and showed her inside with a smile.

“Hi, honey. It’s been a while, huh?” Sally said.

Annabeth nodded and offered her a small smile. “Yeah. It has. Things have been pretty hectic lately.”

“Percy told me you were in the hospital for a while. Are you alright?” Sally said, closing the door behind her.

“Yeah, I just injured my leg at a meet,” Annabeth said.

“Oh no, what happened?” Sally asked, furrowing her brow.

“I, um, tore my ACL,” Annabeth mumbled. “It’s still recovering, but I can walk on my own now. It’ll be a while before I can start running again, though.”

“I am so sorry to hear that. I would have visited, but I’ve been out all month doing more of those goddamned book tours,” Sally huffed.

“Oh, it’s no problem,” Annabeth said. “I appreciate the thought though.”

There was a pause and Annabeth looked around the living room without meaning to. Sally gave her a smile and said, “If you’re looking for Percy, he’s upstairs in his room.”

Annabeth flushed and nodded. “Thanks. I’m gonna head on up then.”

“I’ll be taking Estelle out shopping, and Paul won’t be home until later today,” Sally informed her.

Annabeth blinked, somewhat confused. “Oh, alright. I’ll see you later then.”

“You should have plenty of time to yourselves,” Sally said, giving her a knowing look. “I’m guessing that you’ll need it judging by the sorry state that my son has been in the past few weeks.”

Annabeth’s face turned even redder and she nodded and made her way up to Percy’s room. She paused in front of his bedroom door and screwed her eyes and took a deep breath. Annabeth heard him in the shower, which diffused her nervousness before she stepped inside his room.

Percy’s bedroom hadn’t changed much, if at all, over the years. The room was sparsely decorated - almost nothing adorned the cream colored walls. There was still a full sized bed nestled against one corner of the room, draped with a fluffy blanket he hadn’t bothered to fold. Blue curtains framed a window overlooking the willow tree in his backyard, the one they used to climb when they were kids. On the other end of the room was an office chair, piled high with messy clothes, sitting in front of a well worn cherrywood desk. The desk was littered with stray homework papers, half-empty energy drinks, and a bobble head of some athlete Annabeth didn’t recognize.

Annabeth wandered over and looked at the four photos he had taped to the wall above the desk. One of them was with his mother at the beach in Montauk from back when he was a freshman. Another was one of the entire family at an amusement park. There was one with him and all of their friends sitting in front of a bonfire at Piper’s birthday party that past summer. And the final one was one of him with her, his hand thrown carelessly around her shoulder as she leaned into the crook of his neck, a contented smile on her face. The soft look on his face, like she had just hung the moon for him, brought a lump to her throat.

“Annabeth?”

Annabeth jumped back and turned to see Percy standing in the doorway, towel drying his hair. He was wearing an old swim team shirt from middle school and his penguin pajamas. The familiar scent of his body wash clung to his skin, unmasked by the cologne he usually wore. There was a careful expression on his face, like she had caught him unawares.

“H-Hey,” Annabeth said breathlessly.

“I, uh, wasn’t expecting you for another hour,” Percy said cautiously.

“Sorry,” Annabeth said, rocking on her heels. “Should I leave?”

“No, it’s fine,” Percy said quickly. “Why don’t you sit down?”

Annabeth nodded and sat on his bed. Percy rushed over to gather the clothes that had piled on top of the chair and hurriedly stuffed them in his closet. He hung the towel from his open window sill to dry and sat across from her in the office chair.

There was an uncharacteristically nervous look on his face, but it actually comforted Annabeth. She would have felt awkward if she was the only one feeling apprehensive.

“I, um, didn’t see you at school this week,” Annabeth said.

Percy rubbed the back of his neck. “Needed some time off. I haven’t been feeling very good.”

Guilt bubbled in the pit of Annabeth’s stomach. She knew that was her fault, but that he was too nice to tell her that.

She cleared her throat and said, “Sorry to hear that. Are you doing better now?”

Percy breathed a laugh and shrugged. “More or less.”

There was an awkward pause before Percy gestured to her leg. “How’s your knee?”

Annabeth glanced down at it and quickly looked back at him. “Oh, um, it’s fine. I had surgery done a few weeks back and it went well. I’ve started doing physical therapy now, but it’ll still be a while before I can start running again.”

“But you should make a full recovery, right?” Percy asked tentatively.

Annabeth nodded and stared down at her lap, playing with her fingers. “Yeah, the doctors said there shouldn’t be any issues since it was only a partial tear, but we won’t know for sure until I finish therapy.”

“That sounds like good news,” Percy said carefully.

Annabeth mustered a smile and said, “Yeah. About as good as I could hope for anyways.”

There was another brief pause and then Annabeth said, “I, um, also talked to the coach at Berkeley and told him about my injury.”

Percy’s leg bounced up and down. “And what did he say?”

“Well, he wasn’t happy about it,” Annabeth began. “But they’re not rescinding my scholarship.”

Percy made to move out of his seat and give her a hug, a grin splitting across his face, before he thought better of it and sat back down. A crushing sensation formed in the hollow of her chest as his grin waned into a sheepish smile.

“That’s wonderful, Annabeth,” Percy said softly. “I’m sure that’s a huge relief-”

“I’m sorry for how I acted at the hospital,” Annabeth blurted.

The smile slid off Percy’s face, but Annabeth powered through anyways. “You were only trying to help, and I lashed out at you for no good reason. That was awful of me, and I wanted to tell you how sorry I am for that.”

Percy nodded in a clipped manner and said, “Apology accepted.”

Annabeth was surprised that Percy hadn’t tried to downplay the whole thing by saying it wasn’t a big deal. A lump formed in her throat - her words must have cut deeper than she realized.

“It really hurt, hearing all that, but you had every right to say it,” Percy continued.

Annabeth shook her head and said, “No, I- I was just being cruel.”

He offered her a strained smile and shrugged helplessly. “You were still right though. About all of it. There’s no excuse for me not telling you about Kara, for hiding so much from you.”

Annabeth pursed her lips and resisted the urge to argue with him.

Percy hunched forward in his chair and ran his fingers through his hair violently. “I’ve been thinking about it non-stop, trying to figure out why I did that, but I still don’t really get it. I want to tell you, so badly, but there’s a part of me that just can’t. It’s really fucking frustrating and confusing.”

He paused and exhaled forcefully. “Honestly, the only thing it’s made me realize is how fucked up I am.”

The pain and bitterness in his voice tore up Annabeth inside. “That’s not true.”

“It is,” Percy said, shaking his head insistently. “I wish I could just show you somehow. Make you understand-”

“Percy, good person,” she stressed. “Maybe you can’t see it, but I can-”

“Well, you don’t actually know me,” Percy snapped.

Annabeth must have looked as devastated as she felt because Percy’s eyes immediately swelled with guilt and repentance.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that,” he said quietly.

“No, you’re right,” Annabeth admitted shakily. “I don’t really know you. I thought I did, but I was wrong.”

“That’s not your fault,” Percy insisted. “I’m just- it’s fucking impossible for me to ever let anyone actually see me.”

Then who have I been seeing this entire time?

The thought hung heavily in her mind but she forced herself to ignore it. Still, she found it hard not to let despair swallow her whole. She couldn’t help thinking about how Reyna had said that at a certain point, you had to accept that there was really nothing that you could do. She was clearly out of her depth here. Honestly, she stood a snowball’s chance in hell of actually saying something helpful.

She sat there in silence and watched the conflicted look on Percy’s face. His lips were pressed in a thin line and his eyes shone with focused intensity, like he was at a swim meet. If this was only going to cause him so much pain, she never should have told him she wanted to talk. At the same time, she couldn’t help feeling like she needed to do something for him. Whatever he was holding inside was clearly eating at him. She couldn’t just leave it alone and act like it wasn’t her problem. Percy never would have done so if their roles were reversed.

Percy surprised her by punching his leg in frustration and releasing a shuddering exhale before he looked at her and spoke.

“No- No matter what, I can’t help thinking this all points back to Gabe.”

Annabeth furrowed her brow. “Your step-father?”

Percy nodded and said, “I’ve been thinking about him a lot lately. It’s weird, but he’s wrapped up in all this. I just know it.”

Annabeth dug her fingernails into her palms. Percy never talked about Gabe, but Annabeth had more than an inkling of what he did - how some days Percy came to school with a sullen look, wincing when he sat down, and gingerly probed parts of his body when he thought nobody was watching; days when he hardly smiled or even said a word to her and she would wordlessly slide him her homework at lunch to copy.

“You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to,” Annabeth said.

Despite what Piper said about needing to press Percy, Annabeth knew there were some wounds that were better left untouched.

Percy balled his hands into fists and shook his head. “No, I have to. Otherwise, I’ll lose you for good.”

Annabeth’s heart squeezed in her chest, so she took his hands in hers and said, “Look Percy, I don’t want to pressure you into doing something you’re uncomfortable with. It’s fine if there are things you can’t talk about. You have nothing to prove to me. No matter what, you’re still my best friend, and you’re never going to lose me. Okay?”

“Really?” Percy asked quietly.

The way his voice sounded, raw and bleeding, made self-loathing fester in the pit of her stomach.

“Yes, really,” Annabeth said tersely. “I’m so sorry that I forced you into a corner like this. I was wrong about what I said at the hospital. I did something terrible to you.”

“Don’t say that, Annabeth,” Percy said tightly. “It’s not your fault. At all. You’ve been nothing but endlessly patient with me. I- I’m just not strong enough.”

Annabeth shook her head. “You’re the strongest person I know, but you don’t have to do this all on your own. There’s probably not a whole lot that I can do to help, but at least I can help share your burden and listen.”

Percy was quiet for a minute before he looked at her with a hard gaze. “Are you sure about this? It’s not a very fun story to listen to.”

“Yes,” Annabeth said immediately.

“If it ever gets to be too much, let me know,” Percy said sternly.

Annabeth took his hand in hers and squeezed it. “Don’t worry about me. I’m here for you.”

Percy exhaled forcefully and nodded before staring down at his lap. A minute or two passed before he was ready to speak again, and Annabeth could see conflict and pain swirl in his eyes like whirlpools of emotion.

“He was nice at the start, you know?” Percy said quietly. “He wasn’t all that bad the first few months after they got married. Sometimes he’d get me some candy on his way home from work. Teach me how to throw a baseball. Normal stuff like that. But then, at some point, things changed. Still can’t figure out why. Like, was he just hiding how awful he was the entire time or did something change in him? Guess it doesn’t matter now.”

He paused for a moment and said, “The first time I remember him hitting her, I was eight years old. He was really tearing into me about getting in trouble at school, telling me how much of a fuck up I was, how I was a stupid kid who couldn’t do anything right, and mom defended me.”

“At some point, he got so pissed he chucked a plate at my head and barely missed. It shattered on the wall and gave me this,” Percy said, tugging down his shirt sleeve to reveal the crescent shaped scar on his shoulder.

Annabeth traced the scar with trembling fingers and tried to stomach the nausea and rage she felt brewing inside her.

“Mom went ballistic after that, but that just pissed him off,” Percy said slowly. “Gabe hit her so hard her head hit the wall and started bleeding. You can still see the dent downstairs in the living room. Then, he grabbed me by the hair and forced me to look at her, crumpled on the floor. I can still remember the stink of cheap cigarettes on his breath and him whispering in my ear, ‘This is all your fault, kid.’”

“Christ,” Annabeth whispered.

“Yeah, I know right,” Percy said, smiling wryly. “And that’s just one story - I have hundreds of them. Like, remember how I forgot my field trip form to the zoo in 5th grade?”

When Annabeth nodded, Percy said, “Well, they had to send me home because there weren’t any teachers at school that day. Mom was at work, so Gabe had to pick me up. He was super pissed that I made him miss his poker game, so he was bitching at me the entire ride home. At some point, I snapped and told him to fuck off. Next thing I know, he punches me in the stomach so hard that I puked all over the floor of his Camaro. Of course, that only made him even angrier, so he beat the shit out of me and made me clean up the mess.”

Annabeth tried to keep her voice steady. “Tell me you told somebody.”

Percy smiled humorlessly and said, “And who would I tell? My mom? The woman working three jobs, married to an abusive piece of shit that hits her, with a kid who only ever seems to fuck up at school and embarrass her? No, she had enough on her plate as it was. I couldn’t add more.”

“Then the teachers-”

“Annabeth, you remember how it was for me in school. The teachers hated me,” Percy said bitterly. “To them, I was just a trouble-maker. How could I turn to them? And besides, even if I did, what good would it do? Gabe would just deny it and take it out on me or mom later.”

Percy leaned back in his chair and sighed. “Eventually, I just got used to it. He was smart about it too. Always made sure my mom wasn’t around and that the wounds wouldn’t show anywhere someone might see. And over time, it just become something normal, and I got used to never telling someone about it.”

He paused for a moment and clutched at the fabric of his shirt, over his stomach. “Even telling you right now is like physically painful for me. Like my stomach is in knots and every cell in my body is telling me to run. A part of me keeps whispering, no matter how much I try and ignore it, that I’m not allowed to ask for help, that I- that I deserve this because it’s my fault.”

Annabeth took a sharp inhale and bit her quivering lower lip to keep from crying. She had always known Percy had had a troubled life, but she had never expected that it would be this horrific. He was the best person that she knew and he deserved so much more than this. It was profoundly unfair and tragic and wrong and she didn’t know how to fix it or if it was even possible to fix it.

“None of that was your fault, Percy,” Annabeth said tersely. “He was a sick, twisted piece of shit, and you shouldn’t believe a single word that came out of his mouth.”

“I’ve been telling myself that for the past five years, Annabeth, but there’s some part of me that doesn’t believe it,” Percy said softly. “That fucked up shit he did and said to me is still there, rattling around in my head, and I can’t make it stop.”

He balled his hands into fists. “He sort of beat into me that I was responsible for everything. It was always my fault because I was a bad kid or a fuck up. And he was kind of right too. Mom was having such a hard time back then and I never made things easier for her either, always getting into trouble at school. I tried to be a good kid. I really did. It just wasn’t ever good enough. I just kept letting people down and that hasn’t ever stopped.”

Before Annabeth could interject, he looked at her and said, “You asked me at the hospital why I never told you about Kara. The truth is that I hate myself for being so shitty to her. Like, I drove her into a corner and made her feel so insecure and alone that I forced her into cheating on me. I should’ve been a better boyfriend to her-”

“Percy, what Kara did was her own decision,” Annabeth interrupted. “Maybe you could have done a better job, but you can’t force someone to cheat on you. Kara even admitted that it was her fault and said she wanted to apologize to you for it.”

He stared at her for a few beats and a myriad of conflicted emotions flashed in his eyes before he shrugged noncommittally and turned away. Annabeth ground her teeth together and moved off the bed before she even realized what she was doing. She framed his face with her hands and forced him to look into her eyes.

“Listen to me, you are a good person,” Annabeth said tightly.

Percy averted his gaze. “I’m really not, Annabeth. I’m just trying to make up for the fact that I’m- well, me.”

“And I’m telling that it’s okay not to be perfect! Because that’s the standard you’re holding yourself to! We all hurt and let each other down, Percy. That’s fucking normal!” Annabeth fumed.

“What’s the fucking point if nothing ever changes?” Percy shouted, his voice cracking. “I try and try and try, and I still keep hurting the people I care about, and I’m just- I’m so fucking sick of it, Annabeth.”

“People hurt each other all the time, Percy, sometimes just by existing! You’re looking at a prime fucking example of that,” Annabeth shouted, jabbing a thumb at herself.

“Like, how many times have I hurt you through my own carelessness? And yeah, it breaks my heart sometimes knowing how awful I’ve been to you, but I’m trying to be better because you’re the most important person in the world to me and I don’t want to lose you. And I learned that from you! Because isn’t that what you’ve always done? Tried to be better?” she demanded.

At this, Percy was silent, and Annabeth sat back on the bed, sighing. “That’s what actually matters, Percy: the fact that you’ve never stopped trying. You don’t always have to nail yourself to the cross anytime you fail.”

There was a pause before Percy quietly said, “I- I don’t know how not to.”

“Well, it starts by acknowledging that it’s okay to put yourself first sometimes,” Annabeth said, softening her voice. “Your mom once told me that you would rather put yourself in pain to ease someone else’s suffering, that you feel responsible for how others feel. Like, I know that Gabe was the one that taught you that, but that’s really fucking unhealthy. You need to see a professional therapist or counselor to help you process all the shit he put you through and teach you a better way to handle it.”

“And what if that doesn’t work? What if it’s too late to help me?” Percy asked.

“Then we’ll figure it out when the time comes,” Annabeth said, repeating what he had told her at the hospital.

“I’m not sure I’m worth all that effort,” Percy said tightly.

“Well, I’m your best friend and I think you’re the sweetest, kindest boy there ever was and that you’re worth the whole world,” Annabeth said.

She thought he would argue with her again, but she was surprised when Percy scrunched up his face and looked away from her, blinking back tears. He rubbed at his eyes with the back of his hand and nodded with a sniffle. Her heart welled up inside her chest and she felt a sense of fond exasperation rush through her, making her smile to herself.

Oh, you dumb, stupid boy.

“Thank you,” Percy mumbled.

Annabeth shook her head, even though he couldn’t see her. “There’s nothing to thank me for.”

It was a while before he looked at her again, and when he did, he looked up at her shyly through his stupidly long eyelashes.

“D-Did you mean what you said in the hospital?” he whispered.

“Hmm?”

Percy’s face turned a gentle shade of vermilion. “Um, about being in love with me?”

Annabeth’s face turned serious. “Yes. I should have chosen a better time, but I meant it. One hundred percent.”

“Oh.”

She couldn’t help the way her lips curled upwards. “That’s all you have to say to me? ‘Oh’?”

Percy’s face turned even redder. “Um, I’ve been dreaming about this moment for like seven years, so you’ll have to forgive me for the fact that my brain is kind of fried right now.”

Annabeth raised an eyebrow and tried not to look smug. “Seven years, huh? That is a long time to hold your peace.”

“In my defense, you always hated it when people said anything about us dating, so I tried to kill off that part of myself and fully commit to just being friends,” Percy said.

“I’m sorry about that,” Annabeth said seriously. “I must have hurt you a lot.”

“It was painful,” Percy admitted. “But I was happy enough staying by your side.”

“The whole fake dating thing was super tone deaf then on my part, huh?” Annabeth said quietly.

“I should have refused, but I couldn’t help myself,” Percy said, grimacing. “I wanted to pretend, even if it was just for a little while, that you actually liked me back. It was a pretty bad idea, but I even tried dropping a bunch of hints since I couldn’t tell you how I felt, in the hopes that it might change something, I don’t know.”

“Well, it wasn’t all bad,” Annabeth said. “It got me to realize a whole bunch of things. Without that whole fiasco, I don’t think we’d be where we are right now.”

Percy cleared his throat and said, “And where is that exactly?”

Annabeth sat up straighter and folded her hands on her lap. “Well, for starters, I’d like to start dating you. For real this time.”

“Are you sure?” Percy asked, furrowing his brow. “We’ll have to be long distance once the fall rolls around.”

“I’m sure,” Annabeth said firmly. “Besides, we’ll be in the same state.”

“Would be nice if we were closer instead of on opposite ends,” Percy said, sighing.

Annabeth shrugged and said, “It’s a five hour and forty-two minute drive, so not all bad.”

“And you know that off the top of your head?” Percy asked, grinning.

“I, um, checked on Google maps.”

Percy gave her a smarmy look and raised an eyebrow. “Hmm, so you came here today planning expecting to ask me out, huh?”

Annabeth shoved him and bit back a smile. “I checked back in December, you jerk.”

Percy made a show of wincing and said, “Alright, alright, take it easy.”

There was a pause before Annabeth folded her arms over her chest and said, “You still haven’t properly answered me, by the way.”

“I thought it went without saying that I would say yes,” Percy said, blinking.

Annabeth’s face turned a little pink. “I- I still want to hear you say it.”

Percy ducked his chin for a moment and looked at her shyly. “Yes, I would love to go out with you.”

Her heart beat a little faster in her chest and exhilaration washed through her. “Nice.”

Percy blinked for a moment and nodded sagaciously. “Yes, nice.”

Annabeth shoved him again and ended up tackling him off his chair and fell on the floor with him. He wrapped an arm around her and laughed, and the sound reverberated through his skin and warmed her right through her bones. They lay like that for a while, tangled in each other, while he played with her hair.

Eventually, she looked up at him and cleared her throat. “So what happens next?”

Percy raised an eyebrow. “Why are you asking me?”

“You’re the one with all the dating experience,” Annabeth protested hotly.

Percy tried for a shrug and said, “Beats me. We could go get some celebratory shakes at Martha’s maybe?”

When Annabeth was quiet, he looked down at her and said, “Did you have something else in mind?”

“Well, um, if you were open to it, I would like to kiss you now,” Annabeth mumbled.

A beat passed before Percy bit back an enormous grin. “Sounds agreeable to me.”

“Don’t make me deck you again,” Annabeth warned.

“Alright, you absolute terror.”

“Dullard.”

“Always so mean, Chase.”

“Shut up, Jackson.”

“Are we gonna kiss or what?”

“You’re supposed to be the one leading, dumbass. I’ve never done this before, remember?”

“Okay well, for starters, don’t bash your nose into mine like that.”

“Oh my god, I actually hate you.”

“What you have a problem with the way I’m ‘leading’?”

“Just shut up and kiss me, you idiot.”

“Alright, no need to get so testy.”

....

“Okay?”

“U-Um, yeah. Could we, uh, do it again? You know, just for practice?”

“Sure. Just for practice.”

“You’re insufferable.”

“Just so you know: it’s too late for take backs.”

“Too late?”

“Yeah, way too late.”

....

“I love you.”

“I know. Now, can we go back to the kissing, please?”

....

“You’re not gonna break my heart, are you, Annabeth Chase?”

“I won’t.”

....

“And I love you too.”

#percabeth fic #percabeth #percy jackson #annabeth chase #percabeth fake dating au #fake dating au

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readingtherooms · 4 years

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Vanilla

Summary: After a long day, you just want to lay down on the couch. Unfortunately, our resident genius got there first.

Pairings: spencer reid x fem!reader

Requested: nope!! just me being in love w baby spence

Warnings: fluff, so much fluff.

Word Count: 1568

A/N: hey guys! sorry this is a little all over the place, but i thought it was cute. I wrote this with season 1 in mind, but it’s really up for interpretation. I don't currently have a taglist but I think i'm going to start one so let me know if you want to me on it! The moodboard below was made by me however the images are not mine!

It’s almost midnight, and the team is flying back to DC from Seattle. The case had ended well. (Y/n) should be relieved. She wasn’t. She had fought with her brother right before she left, and going home means she’s going to have to talk about it.

“I’ve never been good at that. Talking. I much rather just hug it out, I've always been tactile”, she explains to JJ as she gets out of the car.

Boarding the jet, everyone is welcomed by fluorescent lighting and the overwhelming essence of day old coffee. Spencer quickly makes himself at home on the couch, as Hotch and Gideon settle into a game of cards. (Y/n) tries to read, but after twenty minutes of staring at the same page, lost in her own head, she debates giving sleep a shot. She glances over at Spencer. He’s awake.

“Is there any hope of me convincing you to give up the couch”, she mumbles as she sits down across from her best friend

“Is there any hope of me convincing you to come to the Jacques Delille convention with me on Saturday?” He quickly responded. (Y/n) sighed - her and Spencer had been friends at CalTech, long before she got the job with the BAU. Over the years, she grew quite fond of the eclectic conventions he would drag her to. She loved listening to Spencer go on his signature tangents, it gave her a chance to just listen. Not worry about being awkward or saying the wrong thing, like she did around most people. With Spencer, all she had to do was listen, and she loved it. Unfortunately, she was going to be spending her Saturday in a much less pleasant manner.

“I already told you, I have to go to brunch with my brother” she groaned.

He chuckled, “Well then I’m not moving”.

“You know what, screw it” she thought to herself. She was tired, she kept getting caught up in her thoughts, and if she was being completely honest with herself, she was in desperate need of physical affection.

“You don’t need to move” she stated bluntly.

“Wait, what?” Spencer responded, not even attempting to hide the surprise in his voice. He didn’t know (y/n) to go down without a fight.

“But you can’t stop me from laying on the couch” she countered. He responded only with a slight tilt of his head, and a look of confusion. (Y/n) stood up and walked over to where he had propped himself up.

“Can I lay on you?” she half-whispered, her confidence starting to falter.

“W-What?” he looked up at her with bewilderment in his eyes.

“Nevermind, it was a stupid idea.” She said, barely loud enough for him to hear. The fleeting confidence she had only moments ago, had completely drained out of her. She turned to walk towards the bathroom, attempting to escape the situation.

“Wait” he stopped her, despite still being perplexed by what she had just asked. “You can, uh, lay on me - if that's, uh, what you want.” He clears his throat.

“Are you sure?” (Y/n) responds, equally as flustered. He nods in response.

After an uncomfortably long pause, she begins to lower herself onto the tan leather, leaning back as she does so.

The next three minutes were chaotic to say the least, with neither of them not knowing exactly what to do. However, after those three, awkward, giggle filled minutes, (y/n) found herself lying between Spencer's legs, her head gently resting on his chest. She knew he wasn't always great with physical affection, she kept asking him if he was comfortable. He, in return, continued to reaffirm that he was, in fact, comfortable.

A few more minutes went by, and soon (y/n) felt herself drift asleep, lulled by the soft fabric of his cardigan, and the gentle movements of his breath.

Spencer, in contrast, was anything but peaceful.

This just isn't the kind of thing that happened to him. Pretty girls don't just want to lay on him. His mind was a whirlwind of thoughts. He had just about convinced himself that this was a dream, when (y/n) shifted slightly, snapping him back into reality.

He was suddenly very conscious of his arms. He had them resting lightly over her shoulder blades, in a position which he originally thought to feel natural. Doubt started to wash over him, he had never really done this before. Despite Derek's mocking, he wasn't actually a virgin, but it was in that moment that he realized he had never actually cuddled before. What if his arms were in the wrong place? What if (y/n) is judging him? Wishing she had never asked to lay on him?

He lifted his right arm off of (y/n), and managed to pull his cell phone out of his pocket without too much movement. He really didn't want to do this, but he honestly couldn't think of a better alternative. He cursed himself internally, and reluctantly opened his phone, tapping on his second contact - “Derek Morgan”

Spencer : Derek, please turn around. Do not make a scene.

Spencer sees Derek's head whip around as he reads the message, eyes widening when he notices (y/n). Despite being fairly certain that she was asleep, Spencer shifts his arm so that his phone was out of her line of sight.

Derek : MY MAN!!!!!

Spencer : Don’t be dramatic, I need help.

Derek : Dramatic?! Help?! Man you’ve liked this girl since COLLEGE

Spencer : Trust me, I know. However, what I don't know is how to do this.

Derek : Do what? Cuddle?

Spencer : Yes, where do I put my arms?

Derek : Dude, you just gotta be natural

Spencer : That is completely unhelpful. Are you aware who you are talking to? Yesterday you watched me walk into a door.

Derek : Yes, and I got it on video. Alright I guess I’m going to have to coach you through this.

Spencer : Yes please.

Derek : You owe me

Derek : Okay, take your right hand, and set it right above her waist

Spencer : My right or your right?

Derek : The hand with your phone in it

Derek : Now, your left hand, set it parallel to your right hand

Spencer : Does this look right?

Derek : You’re doing great loverboy, are you finally gonna ask her out?

Spencer : Maybe.

Derek leaned over the back of his seat, clearly taking a photo. Spencer furrowed his brow.

Spencer : Why did you take a photo of us?

Derek : Penelope.

Spencer chuckled to himself lightly. He felt much more at ease than he had five minutes ago. Scanning the jet, he noticed that Derek had gone back to staring out the window. Everything seemed at ease. Hotch was facing away from Spencer, with a passed out Gideon across from him. JJ and Elle were both sleeping across from Derek, JJ lying on the brunette’s shoulder.

Then there was (y/n). She was so peaceful as she slept, Spencer found himself entranced by her. He tucked back a strand of hair that fell onto her nose, and he felt her hum lightly with contentment. She smelt like vanilla, she always has. It was more than just perfume though, she must use vanilla body wash, shampoo as well. Is it possible she’s been using the same body wash since college?

That is how Spencer Reid fell asleep that night, with (y/n) in his arms, thinking about the smell of vanilla.

Two hours later, Spencer’s eyes slowly started to crack open. (Y/n) was awake, nestled into the crook of his neck.

“Hey sleepyhead” she teased. She received only an incomprehensible mumble in return. She looked at her watch, 4 AM.

“We’re going to land in about a half hour, so I’m going to untangle myself and hopefully avoid a disapproving look from Hotch” she whispered in his ear. She placed a kiss on his forehead, before leaving the couch and returning to her original chair.

The kiss was so soft, so light, that Spencer wasn’t even sure that it was real. The morning light was just beginning to spill through the small jet windows, and he waited for his eyes to adjust, before escaping to the bathroom. He was desperately trying to process what had occured in the past few hours. His mind was flooded with questions.

Does this mean she likes me like I like her?

Did she just need the comfort of a friend?

Is Derek going to make a big deal out of this?

IS THIS a big deal?

Hotch was awake, was he watching us? Does he care?

How does she always smell like Vanilla?

He finally realized that he would never find answers to all these questions standing in the jet bathroom. He fixes his hair, and steps back outside.

“Hey (y/n)?”

“What’s up Spence?”

“How do you always smell like vanilla?”

(Y/n)'s face lit up, giggling at his question. Suddenly, all the questions in Spencer’s brain felt like they were melting away.

“Everything’s going to be okay” he thought to himself.

Everything is going to be okay because (y/n) is sitting in front of me

She’s smiling

That smile could grow roses in the desert.

Everything is going to be okay because she’s sitting in front of me

She’s smiling

She’s smiling and she smells like vanilla

Oh, how I love vanilla.

#spencer reid x reader #spencer reid #reidingtheroom #reidingtheroom's writing #reidingtheroom's masterlist #criminal minds x reader #criminal minds

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jd-loves-fiction · 4 years

Text

Kiss Cam

➤ Atsumu quickly regrets inviting you and his brother Osamu, whom you’ve been crushing on since highschool, to one his games once the kiss cam lands on the two of you and he has to witness his friend and brother swap spit onscreen.

➤ genre: fluff

➤ wc: 2k

➤ warnings:

➤ 🌑 I actually don’t know if there are kiss cams in volleyball games but oh well😅

You understood the thought process that led to the situation you would soon have to confront.

You understood why Atsumu did it and why he didn’t think twice about it.

But it really wouldn’t hurt him to learn how to read the room, but more importantly, your tone of clear distress.

“Look, I’m sorry, didn’t think it’d be a problem. And I still kinda ain’t seein’ the problem?” Atsumu said, sounding genuinely confused, which would’ve made you pity him in any other situation because he truly seemed lost, but not in this particular case.

“Ok, you didn’t think it’d be a problem. And now you know it is! Can’t you do anything to change it?” You were practically pleading, pacing back and forth nervously across the length of the stadium’s bathroom.

“I thought ya got over him!” He said, clearly frustrated. “Nothin’ can be done now. Yer just gonna hafta sit with him. Or ya can just go home, if ya want. Wouldn’t hold it against ya.” He spoke over the phone.

Your shoulders dropped. There’s the pity.

“No. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t even be calling you just before the game. I’ll be fine, just focus on winning, alright?” You sighed, defeated.

“’s ok, nothin’ like a lil needless argument to warm up and get the blood pumpin’.” He chuckled, relaxing once more, judging by his voice.

You checked yourself in the mirror again, fixing any stray hairs and wishing you had put more effort into your appearance. If only you had been warned that you'd be sitting next to your highschool crush, Miya Osamu, who you definitely still had feelings for, in the VIP section--

That's enough. No reason to be thinking about that. No time either, as you were already approaching your seat when you came back to your senses.

It had been so long since you'd last seen him. You thought that maybe your memory betrayed you and he wasn't nearly as attractive as you remembered him to be, or perhaps he wouldn't age well. All those possibilities were proven to be completely incorrect the moment you spotted him.

Gone was his warm grey hair, now replaced with his natural black, his shoulders seemed even wider (which didn't seem possible at the time) and he seemed leaner, not at all out of shape but not as filled with muscle as before. It suited him.

You wondered for a moment if he even remembered you (you'd be quite hurt if he didn't) let alone as vividly as you remembered him.

Did he remember you as the shy girl from his class who didn't fall at his brother's feet (and instead fell at his, but he didn't know that) and instead chose to befriend him and find her way into his circle? Did he remember what you looked like? The jokes you made behind Atsumu's back? The lunchboxes shared? How he always seemed to want a pice of yours more than any other, despite the deliciousness of his own? The little game you started where you would try to get him to laugh with the dumbest of methods because you were curious on what his laugh sounded like and why he didn't show it more often?

Did he remember you at all? Sure, those memories seemed significant enough, to you, because you were smitten with him.

He, on the other hand, had a hoard of fangirls waiting on his neck and call much like his brother, and various girlfriends (if the rumors were to be trusted, which they usually weren't, but it had to be true, with everything he had. The body, the face, the personality, the humor).

Sure, him and Atsumu didn't befriend a whole lot of girls, but there were at least a few. Would he confuse you with one of them?

"Y/N?"

Before you could step all over your own heart once more with worst case scenarios, already thinking about turning back and leaving, you heard his low voice call out your name, slow and unsure.

He blinked at you for a moment, wondering if his eye betrayed him, until you waved shyly at him while approaching. His pout immediately turned into a small and soft smile that made your heart flutter.

"Hi! Haven't seen you in a while!" You greeted amicably as you sat down next to him, mentally struggling to come up with topics to discuss. If you remembered correctly, he was never one for small talk, and nothing would be worse than silence right now.

"Right back at ya! How've you been doin'?" He asked politely, still smiling at you. You don't remember seeing him smile for this long (genuinely) before. Oh God, his smile is so cute--

"Oh, nothing much. Looking for a job at the moment." You said dismissively, mentally scolding yourself for making yourself sound so uninteresting. Osamu didn't seem fazed though.

"Well, I'm probably gonna need some help durin' the summer. So, if ya need a part-time job while in Hyogo or something, come by my shop: 'Onigiri Miya'. Sure Tsumu's told ya about it already though, heard y'all kept in touch." He offered, successfully managing to seem calm and collected despite the excitement he felt at the possibility of spending time with you, doing what he loves. That and hide the envy he felt for your having kept in touch with his brother and not him, but then again he could've been the one to reach out so he didn't really blame you.

"Oh! Well I am planning to pass through... Maybe I'll take you up on that offer." You smiled, ignoring how easy it was to talk to Osamu. Who the hell would talk about a summer part-time with their highschool crush after however many years it's been? You two apparently.

But it was nice. Everything about Osamu was nice.

"But honestly, it's real nice to see ya again. Ya look great, I mean it." He said softly, hoping you hadn't noticed the way his eyes had roamed your figure for a moment when he saw you.

You blushed, looking away in response and giving his a meek 'thanks', acting like a highschool girl with a huge crush all over again, but then again, what really had changed?

"You don't look so bad yourself." Was all you managed to say before the game was announced to be starting soon, followed by the fans' loud cheers.

You and Osamu traded comments and jests, poking fun at people in the audience as well as some players (mostly Atsumu), and even though it seemed childish, it made you feel like a highschooler again. Actually it seemed to almost transport you fully onto a very specific day.

You remembered that day quite clearly, for whatever reason. It was during your first year, Osamu had injured himself and had to sit out of a practice match that Inarizaki had against another school. Atsumu (or was it Osamu? You couldn't remember exactly) had asked you to come see the game and "cheer him on". Truth be told, he knew that you wouldn't be doing any of that, and in a way he was glad you wouldn't.

As you entered the gym, you noticed Osamu right away, sitting dejectedly on the sidelines, on the bench, seemingly unbothered and uninterested, but by the grip he had on his shorts and the light tapping of his foot in the floor, you could tell it wasn't so.

The team all knew you by this point, so the coach simply nodded at you as you entered, headed straight to where Osamu sat, eyes wide and glued to the match in front of him, passing in front of him purposely to bring his attention towards you instead.

You placed your bag on the ground before sitting next to it, receiving an odd look from the younger twin.

"Why're ya sittin' on the floor?" He asked as you simply smiled. "Why do you look like you're plotting a murder?" You asked bluntly, to which he gave you a surprised but impressed look, shaking his head and motioning for you to sit with him.

"I'm not. Now come sit with me. Bet it's cold there." He tried tempting your but you merely shook your head, staying where you were.

Reason being that 1. Yes, you were close to most people on the team but you weren't part of it and that's what the bench was for and 2. You had a plan.

"What kind of face do you think that middle blocker's gonna make when Suna spikes?"

"Well..."

You remember making comments about both teams and laughing quietly amongst yourselves, and with where you sat, Osamu had to lean in your direction to hear what you were saying, therefore taking at least a little of his attention away from the game so that he didn't stomp through the floor in restlessness.

The halftime interval was announced finally, each team taking the time to recover some of their strength.

One of the huge screens situated at the edges of the stadium switched on, showcasing a vignette in the shape of a pink heart with the words 'Kiss Cam' at the top, the camera attached settling on two people making them lean towards each other to do as the screen indicated while the crowd cheered.

"Wait. Atsumu told you I was coming? Why? And why didn't he tell me?" Osamu shrugged at your question, seemingly not privy to his brother's thoughts on the matter. Which was a lie.

Atsumu had told him because he knew of his crush on you, and saw this little encounter as the perfect way to 'rekindle the flame' as he put it, as if you were some old couple who were simply bored of each other and not too young adults hopelessly head over heels for the other but unable to make a move.

As you tried to wrap your head around Atsumu's reasoning (useless, knowing him), Osamu took notice of a camera preparing to settle on your position.

Both of your faces appeared onscreen inside the (to some) dreaded pink heart, the crowd cheering once more as you looked around yourself, confused, until Osamu pointed you in the direction of the screen and watched as your face became beet red, before you hid it in your hands.

So that's what Atsumu meant when he told him to 'take any chance to make a move if he got one', the bastard. Osamu glanced briefly at his brother below, looking at his stupid smirk and dumb thumbs up of encouragement. He set this up.

As Osamu turned to you, so pretty, so cute, an image he could never truly erase from his mind fully since highschool, he realized that this was his chance. And he had to just man up and take it. Not repeat the same mistake.

The black haired man placed a gentle hand on the back of your lowered head, ignoring the way the crowd roared louder, and leaned towards you as you raised your head to look at him, being met by his face mere centimeters away from yours.

He looked at you in concern, wanting to make sure that you truly wanted this as much as him.

And you, realizing that fuck it he looked like he wanted it as much as you and you really had nothing to lose, leaned forward to meet him halfway as the crowd's ruckus crescendoed one final time.

The exchange must've lasted maybe a full minute, if that, but it seemed so much longer to you. It seemed like an eternity before you felt his soft, flavoured lips meet yours in a shy kiss, sweet but hesitant. Exactly like two highschoolers would do after confessing.

You parted after a moment, timidly opening to your eyes to check Osamu's expression, only to find him smiling as giddily as you felt inside, hand still steady on your head, simply cupping it and not pushing.

Spurred on by his clear excitement, you leaned back towards him, joining your lips passionately with your eyes closed as the cheering faded from your ears, solely focused on the feeling of Osamu's lips against your own, slow but firm.

As you parted, looking away from each other shyly, you both caught a glimpse of Atsumu, gagging down by the benches.

He was obviously happy for his brother and friend, but he would've preferred to not watch as they locked lips as passionately as they did.

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shoichee · 4 years

Note

So...👉🏼👈🏼 Could you make a headcannon of ( any characters u want ) reacting to their crush, reader. Being the leader and main dancer in the dance club? Like this...

The characters were walking down hallways while having an conversation ( or arguing?). Then, suddenly they hear a music and see their crush, a beatiful but confident female, practicing the coreo with all her club a dance that they would show the whole school during the lunch. If not, then thank you for at least reading my request.

By;; One of your fans and, of course, readers.

hello, my anon! thank you so much for reading my stuff and supporting me <33 without further ado... here are some long headcanons!

[Dancer f!reader]

Kuroko Tetsuya

he usually hangs out with the Seirin basketball team, where they would all often hide behind the hallway corners to eavesdrop on Riko’s and Hyuga’s next plans for training camps

as they all (not so quietly) trailed after the coach-captain duo down the hallway for them to turn left, Kuroko hears a soft orchestral sound coming from the right turn of said hall

his teammates were too rowdy to even discern the tune in the first place and they only cared to find out where their next torture session would be at, so they all took the left hallway

but Kuroko knew that sound from anywhere… after all that’s all you’ve been practicing to for the past month during breaks and after school

this was one of the few occasions he was glad that he had no presence, because he easily slipped away from his friends to find the source of the melody and to find you in particular

he wordlessly tracks down to your practice room, all the while having his head completely in the clouds… though his face was as stony as ever and gave no sign of his lovestruck affliction

the doors were obviously closed but he could still peep into the room through its windows, and there you were, enveloped in sheer tulle and a natural glow of an experienced performer

you were so completely engrossed into your pirouettes that Kuroko, despite seeing your solo routine alone together after school, can’t help but have sparkles in his eyes as he fixates on your passion and form

his mind drifts to the time he first met you after a home game, and he saw you approaching Riko to congratulate her on a preliminary win before you actually noticed Kuroko and directly praised him for his assisting skills as well

and boy was he SHOOK, he faltered a bit before he managed out a polite “thank you”

it was probably attraction at first sight, he’ll admit, but he actually started to fall for you when you would always come to the home games to support Riko (you unfortunately couldn’t come to away games because of your schedule as a club leader for dance), and pretty soon, you got to chat with a few of the Seirin players as well (including Kuroko)

you knew what you wanted to do for your career and you had everything set out and planned, and Kuroko found that really admirable

someone with a cool head, powerful aura, and charisma kind of reminded him of Akashi and he was here for it

and then he completely fell head over heels when he saw you dancing for the first time during club rush week at the beginning of his 2nd year… it was the way your gaze was so focused, and nothing else mattered to you except the performance, similar to how the Generation of Miracles would enter into the zone—

“Tetsuya?”

“A-ah..”

he didn’t realize that he completely zoned out (pun not intended) because it looks like your club was already done with dress rehearsal, and everyone else was beginning to pack up; you were standing right in front of him, holding the door open

“Sorry, am I in the way, (y/n)-san?”

“Naw, don’t worry,” you said. “Just saw you standing there and I was wondering if you needed something from me.”

yes, he wanted you to reciprocate his feelings, as selfish as he knew it was

“Nothing. Just heard something familiar and stopped by to see.”

“That’s very typical of you,” you chuckled. “Say, are you going to watch our showcase during lunch in a few hours?”

“The showcase advertised all over the bulletin, right?”

“Yeah.”

ah, that’s right, your club was planning to do a free showcase preview during lunch in the auditorium to advertise your ballet recital in a week

“Yeah, I’ll be there to cheer you on this time.”

“Pffftt, you’re too serious,” you laughed, ruffling his hair. Kuroko would normally be irked at the action, but with you, your touch was comforting. “I don’t mind coming to your games, I come for fun, and I don’t think of them as obligations. You don’t have to go if you don’t want to. I know most find ballet pretty dull—”

“I want to go, though. I don’t find it boring, (y/n)-san,” Kuroko said with a smile

your eyes widened as your hand in his hair stilled

“Really?”

“Really.”

“Since when were you into ballet?” you hummed, clearly meant to tease him in good fun, and you started to ruffle through his hair again

“Ever since I fell for you.”

Kise Ryota

Kise, even though being an idol-figure himself, is a fanboy of many idol groups and bands

he’s always looked for you during breaks, knowing you’d be in the dance room to practice with your small group of members

why? well, he wants to see you dance, especially when your club does dance covers of other prominent idols

he’s tried (emphasis on tried) to ditch practice once in a while to go see you in your element, even if it’ll always end up with him being pulverized by Kasamatsu himself

this time though, when he heard that your club was going to cover some big-hit performances during the schoolwide pep rally during lunch, he couldn’t resist the urge to get a “sneak peek”

he basically RAN down the hallway, blatantly ignoring the warnings the teachers gave down the aisle, to escape Kasamatsu and to get to you as soon as he could so he could have more time to watch

as he ran closer, his ears register the very familiar hip hop, urban, and pop songs emanating from the room

“(Y/n)-cchi!!!”

“Kise? What are you even doing here?”

“I came to watch your practice—”

“But you always do,” you sighed, crossing your arms in mild annoyance. “Besides, you’re going to see the exact choreography at the rally anyways. Don’t you already know the choreo yourself? Aren’t you a fan of these groups?”

“But I won’t be able to see you up close like thiiiiis,” Kise whines. “You’re always so cool when you dance, is it so wrong that I always want to see you dance?”

there was his signature puppy eyes that would normally make most girls weak in their knees

“I’m flattered,” you deadpanned, managing to stare down at Kise even though he was much taller than you. “But you’re cutting into our time right now, so you should either leave or sit quietly like a good boy and keep it shush.”

“Sheesh, so demanding…” he pouted, but nonetheless reluctantly sat himself on the chair like a petulant child

his petty anger quickly dissipates when your club got into position, with you at the center, and started the entire routine

even though everyone was just lipsyncing to the songs as they performed the dance covers back to back, he really thought everyone, especially you, embodied the essence of a real idol group

you had the aura, energy, passion, and charisma of an idol leader… not to mention the looks

Kise honestly saw you as his ultimate role model and idol, if he was going to be honest

to outsiders, it genuinely looked like you and Kise didn’t get along, but it couldn’t be further from the truth

okay, yes, maybe your first impressions on him weren’t that great

Kise first laid eyes on you when your recently new club performed for the first time at a talent show to promote for more members the following year, and he asked Moriyama if he knew who you were

“Right?? (Y/n)-san is cute! But don’t go near her—”

“Relax, Moriyama-senpai, I was just curious.”

and he started seeing your face popped up more around school, and your name being brought up more frequently among students (particularly his fangirls, who envy and admire you for different reasons)

you apparently started the club yourself (like Teppei with Seirin’s basketball team)

he was then intrigued and wanted to judge you for himself… and that’s when he started to show up to your room after practice to annoy you or would bump into you in the hallways

you, not wanting to deal with his shit, told him off in front of everyone

as much as Kise was shocked out of his wits, he couldn’t believe anyone had the balls to say that while risking their reputation… even Kasamatsu wasn’t THAT confrontational

he fell for you… HARD

he visits you DURING practice from that point on and while you hated it at first and tried to scare him away, he was just too stubborn

so you let him be

and you eventually learned that Kise was surprisingly dependable

he’d always insist on walking you home after practice

while you are still wary of him sometimes, you no longer find him completely unbearable… except when Kise would make it a huge deal to cheer your name OUT LOUD in the audience every time you performed, which was BEYOND embarrassing and headache-inducing

“Wow… I can’t believe you haven’t auditioned for an idol label yet, (y/n)-cchi,” Kise thought… more like he accidentally slipped out

but hypothetically, if you did pass an audition, he wouldn’t be able to get to see you as much anymore…

by now, your club was wrapping up practice and you came over to Kise to whack his head

“I told you to keep it shush, didn’t I?”

“You’re so mean! Your practice is done, isn’t it?!”

“You think I’m going to audition for a company?” you scoffed, but nonetheless mirth danced across your eyes; you knew he was trying to change the subject

“It was just a stray thought,” he mumbled, averting his eyes while pouting

“Really now,” you said, narrowing your eyes. “If I really did become one, I wouldn’t have much time to be here, now wouldn’t I?”

“(Y/n)-cchi! Are you saying that you…”

“On second thought, even if I’d miss class so much, I can at least avoid you and your incessant shouting.”

“Wha—! You’re so cruel—!”

“I’m joking, Kise.”

“(Y/n)-cchiiiiiii!” he fake-cries as he tries to glomp on your figure, only for you to expertly sidestep his lunge

“You better not scream out during the pep rally.”

spoiler alert: he, indeed, kept shouting out your name at the volume of a thousand decibels like a true fanboy during lunch

Kasamatsu Yukio

“I do not like (y/n)-san in that way!”

typical Kaijo team dynamics: during practice, everyone obeys the captain side of Kasamatsu without question, but outside of basketball? everyone picks on him the most

“Sure, sure, senpai,” Kise would often say, with Moriyama giving him consoling shoulder pats

“Screw off, or I’m giving you 5 extra drill runs—”

“Look, look, he’s turning red! He’s turning red!”

needless to say, the hallways were filled with a huge ruckus of chattering and shouts over Kasamatsu’s “problem,” aka you

he never saw you in that light

or at least… he used to not see you in that way

he admired your leadership skills; you were reputed across the school as the leader of the most coordinated group of performers who would travel to other cities to perform on televised festivals, local outdoor shows, and competitions

he would often hear your spartan-like commands to other performers outside, like “you three are off beat on 1, when you should be on the and of 2!″ and “your formations are too cluttered, spread out!”

sometimes, your group borrowed the gym because it’s much more spacious to practice in, and that’s where he REALLY saw you being a leader and a performer

if the Kaijo basketball team was the cream of the crop of all sports clubs, then the Kaijo performance group was the cream of the crop for all visual and performing arts

the group performed in all styles of dance, from traditional to modern and contemporary, and the fact that you seemed to know what to do on every new stage gave him motivation to do more as a captain to not “get left behind” for a lack of better term

he respected you like how he would respect Hyuga, Kuroko, and Kagami, but he never saw you as a “girl”

which was why he was able to talk to you normally and become good mutuals so easily

it’s the way you talked about your interests so passionately, it just made it really relatable and easy to strike up conversation with you, because you and him are similar in so many ways

well… that was… until his own teammates noticed and kept pestering him about the fact that you were a “girl” and that it was strange that he talked to you normally

so now he couldn’t undo his perspective of you, and he became HYPER AWARE of everything about you

so now he was noticing your mannerisms, your habits when you were idly thinking, the way your costumes and attire clinged to your figure or the way the stage makeup accentuated your features… the little things like that just really cemented the fact that you were not just “a dude”

“Drop it already,” Kasamatsu said, glaring at his teammates, who already looked like they’re in tears of laughter

Kise, even through the teasing, wanted the best for Kasamatsu, so he insisted he should just confess

and Kasamatsu is denying to his dying breath how he doesn’t see you that way

here these two are, going back and forth until it escalated into an argument after Kise insults him for being a coward

the rest of the teammates had to pull the two of them off each other so they could both cool their heads off

and Kasamatsu is stalking off alone in the halls, fist and teeth clenching as he figures out how to destroy Kise at practice after school… until he heard a faint oriental-sounding instrumental, and he immediately knew you were near

so he runs to the source of the sound… only to see you practicing alone in an empty club room, which is odd, since you normally practice with everyone

he’s too shy to do anything other than to look at you through the door window, being completely red when he’s, yet again, aware of how your body moved

all of the sudden, you stopped and frowned at yourself and sighed

was there something wrong?

you would never make a harsh expression, unless it was for the sake of acting when you danced, since you were normally so put-together

the want to help you overcome your troubles overrides his self-consciousness of this “crush” of his

“(Y/n)-san,” Kasamatsu called out, letting himself in after announcing his presence

“Kasamatsu? What brings you here?”

“Heard something… so uh,” he paused. “I came to check it out, but it seems like you’re troubled. Is there anything I can… do to help?”

“Ah…” you started. “We have to board the bus soon for a competition during lunch. It’s going to be televised everywhere too… I just want to get some last-minute practice, so nothing goes wrong…”

“I admire you alot,” Kasamatsu said seriously. “You inspire me to keep working harder.”

“Huh?”

“But try not to overwork yourself, your members will definitely notice if their leader is off their game,” Kasamatsu said. “I would know from experience.”

“Are you trying to cheer me up?” you laughed, to which Kasamatsu doesn’t fail to notice

“W-w-well, that’s—”

“Thank you, Kasamatsu,” you smiled. “Hearing your advice makes me want to ace this and make sure our performance will take the win.”

“Y-yeah…” he said, stretching his neck and shoulders out of nervousness

“Make sure you tune into our performance live during lunch, okay?” you leaned towards him playfully with your hands behind your back. “I’d be really happy if I knew you were there supporting me.”

“Y-yeah…”

#ask #anon #knb #kuroko no basket #kuroko x reader #kuroko tetsuya #kuroko tetsuya x reader #kise x reader #kise ryota #kise ryota x reader #kise ryouta #kasamatsu #kasamatsu yukio #kasamatsu x reader #kasamatsu yukio x reader #knb headcanons #knb scenarios

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deascheck · 3 years

Text

A Much Needed Chat

Summary: A/U. The reader is having high anxiety because of an evaluation you’re going to have, and your boyfriend, Lawyer!Sam, takes a break from his work to listen to you and calm you down.

Word Count: 2055

Trigger Warnings: anxiety/panic disorder, medication dependence?, language

A/N: I suffer from depression and anxiety and wanted to write a piece where Sam helps ground the reader (ME!) during a trying time. Please be nice! Feedback and reblogs are amazing! Thank you to the amazing @winchest09 for beta'ing for me!!

Your chest was tight, your breaths shallow and fast. You couldn’t stop thinking about the evaluation. Why the fuck did you have to have a psych evaluation given by the employer you were suing? Truthfully, you knew why. You were pursuing psychological damages from not one, but two workplace accidents. It didn’t make it any easier on you though. In your eyes, this psychologist you were meant to see had been hired by your employer to discredit everything you were going to say.

The more you thought about it, the more your breathing hastened. You wish you hadn’t left your Xanax at Sam’s house. You would give anything to take a few pills right now.

Nothing you were going to be saying to the psychologist was a lie, but her job was to make you sound like you weren’t mentally ill as a result of the accidents- when in fact you really were. Your depression and anxiety had made you a trembling, tearful mess.

You decided to go to Sam’s. Your boyfriend, Sam Winchester, was a lawyer, and currently worked from home. Not only was he a lawyer, but he was your lawyer. That’s how you two had met. He specialized in worker’s compensation cases, and was highly reputable in his field.

On the drive over, you attempted to focus on your breathing, but it was getting harder and harder with each second that passed. Your panic was rising and you felt lightheaded, like you were going to pass out. The pain in your chest grew, making you wonder if you were dying. Your vision started to change and you knew it was time to call for support. Struggling to hold the wheel and get your phone out, you fumbled around until you got to Sam’s number. You pressed the call button and briefly closed your eyes, praying that he answered.

“Hey beautiful, what’s up?” Sam’s calming voice sounded through the phone.

“I can’t breathe,” you puffed. “I need you. I need my Xanax. I think I’m dying... Help.”

Immediately, Sam started soothing you and coaching you. “Ok, I want you to start with five things that you can see. You sound like you’re in the car. Are you in the car? Look for five things on the road- what color cars do you see? What makes and models are they?”

You flicked your eyes around, panicked. “Ummm I see a green car in front of me. It’s a …. Hyundai Elantra. Uh, the car next to me is bright pink… it’s an ugly ass smart car.”

You could hear the smile in Sam’s voice at your judgment of the car as he encouraged you to continue, “Good job, baby. Keep doing that. I’ll wait on the line until you come up with three more.”

A minute or so later, you spoke up, breathless, “I got them. It’s not helping.” Your heart was still going a mile a minute.

“Ok, what are four things you can hear?”

You sighed in an attempt to slow your breathing. “I can hear my own breathing, does that count? I can hear Daisy’s engine.” You paused to continue listening. “I hear a motorcycle coming up behind me. And I hear the wind coming through the cracked windows.” Your heart rate slowed down some, to your great relief.

“Well done, Y/N. That was one of your best identifying sets yet. How are you doing now?” Sam’s voice over the phone alone was helping you calm down, your vision and eye movement returning to normal.

“You’re helping more than the exercise, honestly,” you stated.

Sam chuckled. “Well, whatever works for you, honey. You are on your way over here, I’m guessing?”

“You guessed it,” you chuckled weakly.

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

Ten minutes later, you pulled into Sam’s driveway. He had a modest two story, 3 bedroom house that you couldn’t get enough of. It was a brick house with the front door tucked into a small front porch with two pillars. The love of your life was standing on the porch waiting for you. You loved when he worked from home, because he could dress comfortably. He was in gray sweatpants hanging low on his hips, and a black vneck tshirt that gave you ample view of his chiseled chest. The worry on his face made you smile through the remaining anxiety. You would have been turned on if you weren’t still feeling like your anxiety wasn’t under control.

Quickly, you got out of the car and hurried into his waiting arms. You buried your face into his chest and took a deep breath, inhaling his scent. Sam’s strong arms held you tight, one arm around your shoulders and the other around your lower back. You were body to body, the warmth from his tall frame helping your muscles to relax.

Quietly, he loosened his grip and adjusted so that one arm was draped around your shoulders as he pressed you into his side to walk inside. The aroma that met your nose was your second favorite in the world- besides Sam’s. It was a mahogany/tobacco mix, which you hadn’t expected to smell as good as it did when you first were told about it. The familiar scent had you breathing deeply through your nose as you walked in with Sam.

You left his side and went straight to the bathroom, where your Xanax was. You dumped two in your hand, and after a thought, a third. You swallowed, sighing in relief. It occurred to you after you’d taken them that your anxiety had come down significantly, and that maybe you didn’t need them, especially three of them, but you didn’t care. The mere thought that you had taken them calmed you down.

When you exited the bathroom, you found Sam sitting on the loveseat in the living room. You immediately sat on his lap and pulled your legs to your chest and curled into his body. His strong arms wrapped around you protectively, and you felt his voice vibrate deep in his chest as he asked, “Did you just take your Xanax? Did you still need it?”

You felt slightly guilty as you answered, “Yeah, I took three. That’s one of the two reasons I came over here.” You smiled softly up at him. “You’re the other reason.”

His chin rested on the top of your head as he sighed. He knew you were a little too dependent on the medication, and the fact that you took three worried him. But he decided not to press the matter given the state you’d been in while you were in the car.

“Tell me about what’s going on in that pretty head of yours,” he murmured into your hair.

“It’s this stupid evaluation,” you sighed. “I can’t get it out of my head. It’s in less than two days, as you know, and my anxiety is going crazy. My employer fucking hired this doctor! She’s going to rip apart everything I say and twist it the way she wants it. I’m not good enough on my feet to phrase things carefully enough that she won’t be able to do that.”

Your breathing started picking up again. Your Xanax hadn’t kicked in yet. Sam felt your chest start to heave, and tightened his grip around you. “Breathe with me. Feel my breaths and breathe with me.”

Closing your eyes, you felt for his breathing rhythm. The slow, steady rise and fall of his chest. The comforting movement once again helped you get your breathing back under control. You took a breath with him and let it out at the same pace he did. Your heart slowed down to a resting rate.

“Ok, I think I can keep talking this through without you having to calm me down every two seconds. I guess I’m just worried overall that I will feel invalidated. Like what I’m feeling isn’t real or true,” you admitted. “That it’s all made up in my head. This evaluation I have to go to, in essentially a day, is my employer’s way of attempting to prove that I am NOT as sick as I have become. I didn’t even take a single medication before all this shit happened! I didn’t need to see a therapist! I’m not fucking making it up.” You tilted your head up briefly to look at Sam and his sympathetic smile warmed your heart.

“Sweetheart, I know. But think about it, our job is to prove the severe decline of your mental health. Their job is to prove there was no decline- that it was bad already. If our psychologist says that you have a permanent partial disability of 75%, your employer is most definitely going to hire a psychologist of their own to attempt to disprove that. Seventy-five percent is a large disability! They don’t want to have to pay out for that.”

You sighed. Logically, you knew that. But nothing, you felt, nothing, could really prepare you for the evaluation. It could potentially go on for five hours! It made you think, What the hell? Who spends five hours getting interrogated and tested by a psychologist whose main goal is to discredit me. You groaned.

“I wish I could say I just want it to be over. But I’m as nervous for her report as I am for the evaluation! My coworker, Jay, and I read about one of her previous cases online. Man, she did not help the lady out at all with her report. She essentially said there was no illness whatsoever. What if she does that to me? I’ve got the diagnosis to back it up! And my psychiatrist even wrote a note saying that my depression and anxiety were indeed exacerbated by these accidents. And my psychologist I saw for our side of the case said I have PTSD and ADD. That’s got to count for something to the judge, right?”

Sam nodded against your head. “All of these reports will go to the judge. All the medical records, all the reports, everything, goes to the judge for review. The reports may influence him, but ultimately it’s he who makes the decision on what the settlement will be. Try not to worry too much about her report. Because we already have a very favorable one from our side.”

You could feel your Xanax kicking in. A calm wave washed over you and you felt your body relax into Sam’s for the first time since you had been curled together. You rested your head against his chest and breathed deeply, once again taking in his scent. This stupid evaluation was inevitable. You knew that. You had written in a journal different things you wanted to share with the psychologist, as well as a letter. Nothing you were going to be saying was a lie. She would not be able to catch you with irregularities.

“I guess the best thing I can do is just be honest, ya know?” You ducked your head softly to dislodge Sam’s chin from your crown and looked up at him. “The truth always comes out, right? If only truth always won…” you trailed off, getting lost in your thoughts.

Sam chuckled, the laugh resounding deep in his chest. “Y/N, you have me. And you know I am doing my damndest to make sure we have everything we need to succeed. You’re going to get a settlement, because you have your breathing and wrist problems that have already been identified as caused by the accidents. You know that for sure. Now we’re proving psychological disability to add hopefully a zero or two to that number. Have faith, baby,” he finished, resting his forehead on top of your head. “We will get through this together.”

You sighed contentedly. You would absolutely get through it together. When you were with Sam, nothing could stand in your way. Not even a goddamn psychological evaluation. He gave you strength and his faith in you spurred you on. Sam helped you feel invincible. Fuck this evaluation, you thought. I’m going to do my best, be as honest as I can, and then I’m going to come home to Sam’s embrace and everything else will just melt away.

With that, you snuggled in closer, and closed your eyes, humming softly and happily to yourself.

#supernatural writing #supernatural fandom #supernatural fan fic #supernatural fanfiction #supernatural fluff #readerinsert #sam winchester x reader #sam winchester fanfiction #sam winchester #deascheck

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negansgirl-fplover · 3 years

Text

chapter 6 Jessica vs arat

summary: Jessica fights arat and we see how she met Negan for the first time

WARNING: this chapter contains bullying and mentions of killing yourself.

"hey jess are you ready to kick arats ass and impress me "Negan says as he comes into the bedroom while pouring himself a glass of whisky as he offers me a glass, I honestly needed it because today is going to be quite a day , it kind of makes me think back to meeting Negan

FLASHBACK, meeting Negan

Today is my first day at a new school im honestly terrified I hate starting a new school feel like everyone is judging me , I just hate the fact that I know nobody and I find it really hard to make friends because im not really the type of person who can go up to someone and make a conversation without them coming up to me first because I am quite shy

I head to the office to get my schedule looks like I have gym first with coach Negan, im going to head there early and get ready don't want to be late on my first day

I head inside the gym I don't need to get changed because I've already got sporty clothes on , im wearing leggings and baggy t shirt with spare clothes in my bag for after

"Hi you must be the new girl, been expecting you today im coach Negan" , I look up amazed at how hot my teacher is dam , he was a wearing a black t shirt , black jeans, with a leather jacket and it looked amazing on him, his beared looked perfect , he had a gorgeous smile I was honestly in a trance completely distracted until he started waving his hand in front of my face breaking me out of my trance

" hello , are you okay darling " I look up into his gorgeous eyes still admiring how insanely hot he looks

" ah yes sir, im sorry I erm just got a bit distracted that's all" Negan started laughing and it was the cutest thing ever " and may I ask what was distracting you " Negan says as I started to panic trying to figure out an excuse and my heart started beating really fast, I could barely think.

" relax darling , im just messing you , by the way im not an idiot you don't need to tell me , I know you were checking me out " as he winks , shit I must have been looking at him for too long oh crap

" no I...I..I erm wasn't , I wouldn't do that sir" as I look down trying not to look him in the eye , but Negan lightly grabs my chin forcing me to look at him

" its fine darling you can check me out any damn time you like, I don't mind" as he winks at me again, I got lost into his eyes again until everyone else came inside

"listen up everyone , today we are going to be running laps on the track , I will not tolerate any laziness everyone will try there absolute best , got to get you assholes in shape before we do anything else , also we have a new student please make her feel welcome , lets move out

I head out with everyone else and start running around the track until I see Negan running next to me " hey darling was rude of me to not ask your name since you know mine" Negan says and I stop running to look at Negan " right, im Jessica " as I shake his hand " what a beautiful name for a beautiful girl" did I hear that right did he just call me beautiful

I look away and sprint away wanting to get away because he makes me feel very nervous, I need to control myself

After gym I have a nice hot shower , getting changed into fresh, clean clothes and head out to my next class until a bump a group of guys and a few girls

" well if it isn't the new girl , doesn't surprise me that you have no friends , I mean look at you who in the right mind would want to be seen with you" all his friends start to laugh while making fun of me, my eyes start to stream full of tears " hahahah doesn't take much for you to cry, look at that guys , do us all a favour and kill yourself " before I know it one of the girls punches me in the face and I fall backwards hitting my face on the field as they start to kick me in the ribs over and over not seeming like they would stop

I start to scream for them to stop before I know it someone pulls them off me, I see them punch a few in the face and threaten the rest, I am in too much pain to even move

He crouches down to my level looking at my wounds "hey ......hey jess its okay I got you no one will ever hurt you again"

"negan" but before I can say anything else I pass out

I wake up looking into negan's worried eyes

" hey darling while you were passed out I sorted out the wounds on your face cleaned the wounds so they wouldn't get infected I bandaged them up, how are you feeling" negan says looking very concerned

I try to sit up on my own, but negan helps me sit up " Im hurting really bad"

" I'm really sorry for what happened to you , you didn't deserve that , let's' take a look at how bad your ribs look" Negan says with a lot of emotion which surprises me

He lifts up my t shirt showing badly bruised ribs " ok this looks really bad, im gonna bandage these up but you need to go to the doctor to check that everything is fine , promise me, Negan says pleading for me to agree, i can't say no to that face

" I promise don't worry, negan i've never been so scared before” i start to get emotional and tears start pouring down my face

“ I didn't think the pain would ever stop "i say almost breaking down as he wraps his arms around me and pulls me into his body " I will protect you darling " negan says reassuring me

" Jess I cannot stand bullies and I really hate what happened to you , it broke my heart seeing you like that" as he tightly squeezes me into a hug as i lean against him feeling safe

" could you teach me how to fight , I just need to be prepared if anything like that happens again because you can't always be around to protect me what if they corner me " i plead with him hoping that he will agree, as he turns me so I am facing him with a serious look " I don't feel good about this but I want you to be safe so let's do it, i'll teach some fun extra stuff as well darling, but we wait until you are fully healed first”

The next week I found out it was just bruised ribs , but I didn't go to school for 2 weeks while healing negan managed to sort that out , I rested for an extra week before starting to train with negan , we met at his house

The next few months I would go home with negan everyday and even on weekends we would have dinner watch tv , as well as train

He taught me a bit of jujitsu , I learnt how to do an armbar and a rear naked choke , as well as blocking punches and doing takedowns , I learnt all kinds of different punches and blocks , we even did some sparing but he went a bit easy on me of course

He also taught me archery and how to fire a gun.

back to present time

" im ready to fight now Negan that's do this" i say confidently as we make our way to where we were fighting and arat was already there ready to fight

" alright this is a knockout fight, no killing alright “ as negan smirks at me , “whenever you ready girls " negan says

We both start circling around each other , arat makes the first move and goes for a punch but I manage to block her strike as well as sweeping her leg causing her to fall hard , I mount her , strike her face repeatedly, she manages to sweep me over so that she is now on top and manages to land 5 punches to my face as well as elbowing me in the ribs, as she goes for another punch i flip her over so that i am back on top before grabbing onto her arm going for a armbar , I raise my hips up and pull her arm back, after 10 seconds I fell her arm break as she screams out in pain, I let go knowing I need to knock her out to finish this fight , she comes towards me but I push her bad arm and she lets out a loud scream from the pain and i use that opening to throw a hard punch knocking her out cold, i look up and smirk at negan

Before I know it I hear clapping from negan himself as well as the whole sanctuary, he picks me up and gives me a big hug squeezes tightly he looked so happy " I know you could do it, im so proud of you, guess my training paid off” negan says looking extremely proud.

“ well that does it , doctor sort arat out" negan orders the doctor and grabs my hand while still looking at me with a proud look" welcome to the saviors darling"

“you earned it sweetheart” as he brings me in for a big hug

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mork-lee-bee · 4 years

Text

Broken Lovers VI

Summary: Y/n is a hopeless romantic in love with someone who will never love her back and Jaehyun is helplessly in love with someone who only continues to hurt him over and over again, sounds like a match made in heaven right?

Pairings: CollegeStudent!Jaehyun X CollegeStudent!Y/N X CollegeStudent!Jaemin

Warnings: cursing,

Genre: angst/fluff/smut

Word count: 2.6 k

Masterlist

“Hey, ____?” Miyoung smiles sweetly and you know she wants something so you start to pack your books into your bag.

“I didn’t even say anything yet!” She defends but you knew what she wanted.

“No, but I know you, so just call me when you’re done,” you laugh and a deep red color floods her ears in embarrassment.

“Maybe I was just gonna ask you to go with me to get coffee!” She pouts but she was too dressed up for even coffee, she had a dark red lip and her eye shadow was a dark smokey eye.

“Just please don’t have him here too late, the library closes at 9,” you explained hoping she wouldn’t lose track of time and you’d be stuck having to figure something else to do until 2 am like a few nights in the past.

“I’ll try,” Miyoung smiles making sure you leave the building safely before she’s back upstairs getting ready. You were severely under-dressed for the colder weather at night as you could feel the cold air engulf your entire body, You shiver as you start to walk in the direction of the library on the campus. You and Miyoung happened to be in the newer dorms which were a blessing for the better facilities but were also further from the library. The cold air had a visible effect on you as your arms and legs were covered in goosebumps.

“She owes me,” You mumble under your breath almost jogging to try and keep semi-warm, which turned into an awkward cold sweat that just brought discomfort by the time you got to the Library after being exiled.

It was cold inside almost as cold as it was outside and without any hoodie or sweater you were miserable as you find a quiet corner to set up for studying, there weren’t many people but those that you saw were stressed and cramming or almost passed out trying to study.

Just as you got relaxed you could hear someone sobbing from behind a bookshelf, you could either move or try to ignore it, out of pure laziness you dig through your bag trying to find your headphones only to remember that you left them on your desk at the dorm. You wanted to bang your head on the table at how stupid it was but you resisted instead leaning back at staring up at the ceiling, the library wasn’t huge but it was decently big although it was filled with a bit of cold dead space.

You figured that you wouldn’t be able to focus with the sobs of the girl behind the shelf so you might as well look for a book to help with studies getting up and looking around at the shelves that towered way above you. You were in the History section by the looks at it as most of the books read something about-

“Oh shit,” You hear after bumping into someone and you falling backward extremely hard to the point the breath in your lungs is no longer there.

“Wait… _____?” You can barely see the person through the gathering tears in your eyes but the voice is very familiar as you attempt to blink the tears away while coughing and trying to regain your breath the sharp pain hard to get through.

“I’m so sorry,” The person bends down to your level on the ground and you could feel them mindlessly draw soothing circles on your back trying to help you calm down as he coaches through breathing.

“Fuck- That hurt,” You manage to get out through the breaths, coughs, and slight wheezing. You wipe the tears away that had gathered.

“I didn’t see you,” They try to explain which only makes you laugh slightly at how bad they felt.

“Honestly, it’s fine,” You promise placing your hand on theirs and finally looking over to see who had taken your breath away, literally.

“Jaehyun?” You manage to make out his features easily as a shy dimple smile crosses over his lips.

“You’re correct,” He pats you on the back as you’re slowly starting to be functional again.

“What are you doing here?” You manage to ask and in hindsight, it was a dumb question, a public library on a school night. clearly, he was here to study.

“Can’t a guy go to the library to read about…” He looks at the bottom shelf grabbing a book off the lowest shelf and reading the cover.

“The in-depth History of Psycho by Red Velvet,” Jaehyun scratches the back of his neck before placing the book back on the shelf.

“I mean, if that’s what you read about, I’m not judging,” You finally get to feeling better but your back was still in a bit of pain as Jaehyun gets up from right next to you.

“It’s not my favorite thing to do but, school work is school work,” He stretches lightly glancing down at where you’re sat on the ground looking up at him an all too familiar feeling pounding in your chest as you quickly scramble to stand with him although still in a bit of pain.

“What brings you to the library?” Jaehyun pulls you out of your thoughts but noticed how you reacted smiling to himself as you try to straighten yourself out fidgeting with the bracelet on your right wrist

“Roommate kicked me out for her own… business,” You try not to explicitly say oh you know my friend is getting laid so I’ve been exiled to the library to suffer.

“That’s something I like about having my own room in the frat,” Jaehyun admits and you can’t help but follow him around the maze of bookshelves like a lost puppy enamored by his personality.

“Yeah I can only imagine, the beauty of privacy,” You hadn’t had that in a while it felt like as on more than one occasion Miyoung loved to walk into the bathroom without knocking.

“And no one kicking me out of my room,” Jaehyun aimlessly walks occasionally running a finger along the spines of the books more focused on you of course as you let out a groan of jealously at the thought of being able to relax, while you did love Miyoung her presence could suffocate you with her constant late-night talks on the phone.

“God that sounds wonderful,” You pout thinking of the things you took for granted before.

“I mean sometimes it can be a bit… smelly,” You raise an eyebrow in confusion but a bunch of guys in one place is bound to create some kind of odor so you scrunch your nose in disgust.

“Every place has its ups and downs I guess,” You shrug not paying attention as Jaehyun stops suddenly which you run into him almost falling over again but he catches your arm keeping you held up before dragging you in the opposite direction you were headed suddenly, a bit confused but you follow regardless figuring he remembered why he was there and just dragging you to the correct section.

“Okay, where are we going now?” You question as he looks behind him occasionally as if trying to find something or someone else behind you, his eyes wouldn’t find yours as he looked past you almost like a ghost was there.

“Jaehyun?” You tug at his arm and planting your feet to the ground stalling him and dragging him out of his thoughts that seemed to cloud his mind and every single one of his senses.

“Sorry I was just…” His voice trails off as you see the worry in his eyes.

“Are you always so in your head? You don’t seem to be thinking in the present,” You offer a small smile as he touches the back of his neck nervously as you spot his ears redden slightly.

“Not usually,”

“Come on, let’s go get some ice cream,” You suddenly announce finally taking the lead and letting Jaehyun follow you which he does as he raises an eyebrow in confusion at the sudden change in action.

“Why?”

“Well, Ice cream makes everyone feel better, well at least that’s what my nephew says,”

“But don’t you need to study,” You laugh at this, any excuse not to study was the best.

“Originally, but I’m not in the mood to anymore,” You smile as you get to the spot where you had set up still untouched as you start to place things back into your bag to leave.

“Okay…” He watches you sling your bag over your shoulder before grabbing his hand and pulling him towards the exit, whatever reason he had come to the library in the first place was now completely out of his mind.

You hadn’t realized how long you were actually in the library as you push the heavy door open to reveal the darkness of night, when you had arrived the sun was setting but now it felt colder as the slight breeze hit your exposed arms because of your t-shirt.

“Cold? We don’t have to get ice cream, we could get coffee or something warmer,” Jaehyun offers while letting your hand go and starting to take his hoodie off as soon as he noticed how your hands reached for your arms to warm yourself up.

“Nah, I’ve had way too much coffee today already,” You admit while he finishes slipping off his hoodie leaving him in a basketball Jersey which was even less coverage than you had.

“If you insist,” He hands you the still warm hoodie which you hesitate to take seeing he would be cold.

“Take it,” Jaehyun sees your hesitation insisting that you take it as you slowly grab it from him looking up at him with sad eyes.

“Won’t you be cold?” You point out sadly to which Jaehyun laughs smiling and ruffling your hair.

“You’re sweet for being so concerned but I’ll be fine it’s not a long walk to my car,” He assures you and it was obvious he wouldn’t be taking any no’s so you carefully slip on the dark grey hoodie suddenly engulfed by Jaehyun without him actually hugging you. The Orange smell hit your nose causing you to smile and the warmth engulfed your body with the soft fabric clinging to your body.

“Thank you,” You say before taking a step towards him and wrapping your arms around him hugging him which he returns setting his head on top of yours for a minute just enjoying you.

Eventually, you pull away as he takes the lead walking over to where he’s parked in the parking lot, dimly lit by the overhead street lights that would occasionally flicker.

The music on his playlist was nice, it was the type of music perfect for a calm relaxing night to yourself as he focused on driving humming along to the music lightly as if you weren’t even there sitting in the passenger seat staring at his side profile, his relaxed features made him look kind and approachable which brought you back to when you first met him, he was so angry and seemed so unlike the man in front of you now.

“Why?” You ask, a simple unfinished question as he glimpses over at you raising an eyebrow out of confusion.

“Why what?” He answers with another question,

“Why were you so mad when we met at that party?” You didn’t expect him to spill his entire life story or anything to you when you asked the question and he tensed, his once relaxed hands on the steering wheel held a tighter grip and you could see his veins stick out slightly more as you observed the gears turning in his head on an answer almost like he was looking at some kind of word search looking through the jumble of gibberish to find the right words.

“I was having a bad week and I didn’t feel in the mood for partying…” He admitted loosening up a bit and shaking his head as he pulled into the parking lot of Wayv Ice Cream Parlor Miyoung loved it because YangYang worked here but someone else was working tonight as Jaehyun opens the car door for you.

The little bell rings to alert the staff someone entered as soon as you pull Jaehyun into the small shop that felt all too familiar as you spot the person working look up and smile immediately.

“Kun!” You excitedly run over to the counter, the place was dead empty so it was nice to see a familiar friendly face as Jaehyun made his way over next to you as Kun start to make your usual request.

“Where’s Miyoung?” The man you had gawked at when you had first seen him working because of his visuals asks.

“She decided to stay at the dorm, this is Jaehyun,” You look over to the quiet guy next to you and nudge him to give his order as you take your card out to pay for the two ice creams.

“I didn’t know you had a boyfriend,” Kun speaks candidly as your eyes widen as you turn to correct him.

“Oh, no we’re just friends,” You explain as Kun sets the two desserts down and pulls up the amount due.

“Yeah, we’re just- Hey!” Jaehyun notices how you’ve taken out your card to pay grabbing your wrist lightly to stop you as he slips his wallet out of his back pocket but he’s too late as you switch the hand the card is in and insert the chip watching as the transaction starts.

“Dang that’s too bad you’d be cute together,” Kun wiggles his eyebrows at you which Jaehyun doesn’t notice as he’s too bust shooting glares in your direction as you type the pin in.

“Thanks,” You smile at Kun before picking up the two ice creams and going to sit at one of the two people seating arrangements setting the two ice creams down and smiling at Jaehyun who still looks at you angrily.

“Jae, why are you so mad?” You sit down leaning forward head resting in your hand as you look at him.

“I should have paid for it,” Jaehyun pouts as you roll your eyes and hold up three fingers for the three points you’re about to make.

“One, it was my idea, two you drove, three you let me borrow your hoodie. The least I could do was pay for the ice cream,” You point out before grabbing your plastic spoon and digging in smiling at the sugary taste.

“Fine but next time I’m paying,” He determines as your mind starts to think about his word choice Next time? There’s going to be a next time?

“We’ll see,” You wink sticking your tongue out before another spoonful of ice cream causes you to grip your head in pain at the sudden brain freeze.

“What kind did you get?” You look over to the ice cream he got trying to finger it out, could it be rocky road? Coffee? Chocolate? There are so many flavors it makes it difficult. Yours was obvious with the bit of Oreo crumbs that sat on top.

“Guess,” He smiles as he picks up another spoonful holding it out for you to taste as you lean forward and eating the small spoonful of Ice cream before thinking and contemplating the taste.

“Chocolate?” You tilt your head trying to guess.

“Yup!” he says proudly.

“You’re basic,” You roll your eyes before taking a bite of your own ice cream happily.

“Can I enjoy ice cream without being harshly judged?” Jaehyun glares before digging his spoon into your ice cream and taking a bite letting out a small Mmmmm at the delicious taste.

“No!” You glare holding your ice cream closer to you he can’t steal anymore.

“But it’s good!” He pouts as your phone dings with a notification which you check and see Miyoungie Pop up with the message You can return now!

“After we’re finished can you take me back to my dorm?” You plead with Jaehyun who agrees to as long as you let him eat more of your ice cream to which you groan in response.

“FINEEEE,” You pout as he smiles his dimples very prominent as he steals another bite.

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it may be late but it’s done :)

Next chapter up on 8/19

Tag List (Let me know if you want to be added):

❤️ @yourchasingsunsets ❤️ @Justineasian ❤️ @Captainsjoongs ❤️ @theworld-accordingtocasey ❤️ @yee-hawwwwwwww ❤️ @renjunstarlight ❤️ @soothingjae ❤️

I had a job interview today and I’m nervous to find out if I got the job or not and i do updates are gonna be less frequent :/

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totallypathet · 4 years

Text

Episode Five

So I've been pretty disappointed with Drag Race this year (the pointlessness of episode 1, not having anyone go home until episode 4, the insistence to have a ~gag~ all the time, etc), but I love a ball challenge, and I wanna talk about it, so here we are 😂

I'm not even talking about that mini challenge, it was super dull and just weird. And ultimately didn't even mean anything? Like the winner didn't even get more time to pick materials for the ball, or anything? Super weird.

I think bags is such a cool idea; there's so many different materials that can be used, different colours and ideas and styles, I love it. I also like that they kind of went outside the box with a "pun" look, like it literally gives everyone the space to do whatever they want, and be funny. I loved seeing everyone's different interpretations and sense of humour as well. The Miss Moneybags look, they do everytime, I'm okay with that, I love seeing a sleek chic eleganza. I just wish they hadn't done this weird thing with the Coach bags??? Let's just be honest, Coach bags are ugly. And super boring. I do not understand them being forced to carry an ugly clutch, so I will be excluding all of those bags from my outfit critiques.

1. Denali

I loooved Denali's high fashion crash test dummy! I think "airbag" was a little bit of a reach, but I'll forgive it, she looked utterly incredible. That beige colour of the suit was so ugly, but I feel like it was meant to be? There's something so fashion to me about taking something that ugly and making it cool and sleek. And paired with the black & bright yellow? Chefs kiss.

Her second look was very Cruella DeVille, loved it. I loved the fascinator, I loved the long fingernail with the cigarette holder, and I loved that it was trousers with a big cape instead of a dress. It made it feel so modern, and so elegant. I was living.

I was kind of confused by her bag look. I love that she made this structure over her head out of bags (I assume handles?) That was super cool. I loved her face, using gems to make a Dia De Las Muertas sugar skull was a really cool idea. The dress just seemed a little...boring? Maybe I'm being unfair, they had a day and it had to be made out of bags, what am I expecting? I don't know. I kind of wish maybe there were more gems on the dress because she's used them on her face? I think my misgivings is that there just seemed to be a disconnect between the trellis & her face and the dress. From the neck up it was so cool and fashion forward, and then there was just a cute little dress? Not sure. I mean look, I'm super impressed that she made it, she did a good job in the time they were given, she did the assignment. Tick.

2. Elliott with Two Ts

You know what, I actually really enjoyed gift bag. Was it an incredible look that I gagged over and I'm going to be thinking about for days? No. Was it really cute and did it fit the challenge? Yes. Fair play to her, I respect it.

The moneybags look though? Seen it a thousand times. Seen it done infinitely better than that. Cool, you threw on an 80s power suit, and? I also feel like she walked in wearing that jacket. Come on Elliott, step it up.

I was thinking she was going to be in the bottom...then she came out in that third look. You're telling me that was a beanbag?! And she made a three piece outfit out of it?? In a day??? And it looked like that???? Shook. That jacket was so stunning, the attitude was perfect. Co-ords are very in fashion at the moment, we love a three piece in the same print. I'm so impressed by this third look. But it does make me question the first two - why is it that a look you made in one day out of a beanbag is leagues ahead of two looks you had time to plan and execute perfectly?

3. Gottmik

Body bag was everything. I loved it. My one thing is that I wish she'd kept that clear bag-jacket on just a little bit longer, maybe taken it off when she hit the end of the runway. It was a really cool part of the look and it didn't get it's full moment. Otherwise, it was perfect. Head empty, just love for Gottmik.

Okay, we can pack it up now - noone is ever going to top this look. This moneybags look is genuinely (I think) the best look that has ever been down the runway in 13 seasons of Drag Race, 6 seasons of All Stars, 2 seasons of Drag Race UK, and 1 season of Drag Race Canada. I literally applauded in my living room. The suit and the fringe, but that cut out for the bra, and the crystal pinstripe, and the e-girl hair, and the wide leg pant... everything about it was perfect. I could rewatch that runway for hours.

I was actually underwhelmed by her third look. I feel like, if it hadn't been a sewing challenge, if this had just been a fashion runway, or a rave runway, I would have absolutely loved it. I just feel like it was a bit low effort for a sewing challenge. It is very fashion, it's very chic, it's very modern, but it looked like she just cut triangles from those silver bags and stuck them down her leg. Knowing she went to fashion school, I just was expecting something more from a construction point of view. Its a shame, because her first two looks were absolute tens, and then this just didn't match up for me. I also wonder, would she have gotten away with this if she wasn't skinny? I don't buy that the judges would have gagged over it if it was on someone else's body.

I'm glad that she won, I think that second look alone deserved the win, but I just was disappointed by the third look. When you saw that and Utica's look side by side, it just showed up how much more Gottmik could have done, and I just think she cut herself a bit short. But it was still a great look, and she deserved the win!

4. Joey Jay

IV bag was...a choice. It was cool, in that nobody else did it, it was outside the box, and I appreciate that. It just didn't feel very well thought out. She had that deflated party city nurse hat on, and I was like are you the nurse or the patient? And she was talking about syringe armour, but there was like 6 syringes haphazardly hot glued on, and then the ivy leaves? I was just confused. When Carson made the IV/ivy connection, I got it, and then Joey was like "no, just the IV bag"? So why the ivy leaves? I was confused. Didn't enjoy it.

I didn't love her second look either. It was...a jacket and leggings. It was a nice jacket, don't get me wrong, but I feel like I could buy that look. In fact, I feel like I could make that look out of pieces I already own. Underwhelming.

That third look though. If Lala Ri's look hadn't been out there, this would have been the worst look of the night. It was so boring. You know what else? It looked like umbrellas. If this had been an umbrella challenge, maybe it wouldn't have been so bad. But this was just. Awful.

She deserved to go this week. All three of her looks were underwhelming, her lipsync was just okay, it was her time.

5. Kandy Muse

Bag of tricks was cool, I love that she did actually bring some magic tricks to the runway, and I love that the bag became a cape! I just wish she'd leaned more into a magician look, as opposed to the rabbit. It just didn't feel like she went quite far enough.

I loved her interpretation of money bags! One of my favourite looks of the night. It was so different to what everyone else did, it was so modern, and so clever. The wig, made out of money? Amazing. The notes on the ends of her suspenders? Inspired. The dollar signs on the sunglasses? I loved it. This for me is the best thing Kandy has worn so far, I loved it. I think, without this look, she would have been in the bottom three. If the other two looks had been on par with this one? She would have won.

Kandy. Baby. What was that third look. I give her credit for the top, and the bra being two toned. It looked like there was some good construction there. But the skirt? Honey that was backpacks hot glued to a belt, and I'm not buying it. I was tossing up her and Tamisha for bottom three, because that look was honestly just bad.

I do love that Kandy is confident - although I agree with Tamisha and sometimes she crosses into arrogance - but also you've got to recognise when something is not good, and this wasn't good. When you just think that everything you've done is great because you did it, you're stepping into delusion.

6. Lala Ri

Bag of bones...yeah okay. I did really enjoy the mermaid silhouette being made of the sack at the bottom, that was a cool idea. I just wish she'd made more of the bones? Like I wish she'd made a sort of exo skeleton thing, like had a spine on the back, made a ribcage out of finger bones, had a big shoulder pad made of shoulder bones (the big flat ones, I know they have a name, but I failed biology at school). It just felt a bit rushed. If that had been the one she made, I would have been super impressed with it, they only get a day; but they had time in advance to get these designed and made. It just could have been so much more.

I loved her money bags look! I think it was one of my favourites of the night. It was so beautiful, so well put together, I loved the pairing with the shoes, and she actually was one of the only ones to make that Coach bag look decent. And I love a bald queen. There's not a lot of queens who would be brave enough to go bald with a look like that, but it just added such power and beauty. Absolutely adored it.

If I had "made" what Lala Ri made... I don't think I would have been able to walk it down the runway. I give her credit for actually walking in something that heinous. I just don't understand what she was thinking! Like she knew that she didn't have enough of those bags, so why didn't she take it apart and start again? Why didn't she go and pick up some more materials and do something else? Everything about this was just a nightmare. I feel like I could have made that in 5 minutes. I feel like I could have made something better in an hour. I love Lala so much, but my god she deserved to be bottom 2 this week! She pulled it out in the lipsync, she is an amazing performer. I'm just disappointed in what she made, it literally looks like she got dragged through a bag hedge backwards. I expect to see better next week, Lala!

7. Olivia Lux

Punching bag was gorgeous, but its such a shame Symone had already done basically the same look like 2 episodes ago. It was beautiful, and she looked stunning (as always), I just felt sad for her that this had already been done this season. Also, having seen other photos of her in this look, where she had a black eye and a busted lip, I wish she'd done it more like that. Symone already gave us the model version, I wish Olivia had given us more of a gritty post-fight look - with like messed up hair, a black eye, maybe some rips in the clothes, just something to distance it from what Symone did.

I loved her second look. It was a power suit, but with a beautiful modern twist! I love the cape jacket and capris, it was so chic! And I love that the lining of the Cape matched the tie, that level of detail is what I love about Olivia. It was such a smart choice, and she was the only other queen to make those Coach bags look good 😂

Her third look, it was okay. I love Olivia, but it was a bra and panty. I give her credit for the sleeves, I loved them, but I just wish she'd done a little bit more with the bodice, and added something on the bottom maybe? She looked beautiful, she always looks beautiful, I was just hoping for something a little more.

8. Rosé

I loved bagpipes! Very cool look, very Rosé, she's already told us about her Scottish heritage, this is really on brand - perfect. No critiques; it was clean, well done, she looked beautiful, tick.

I think Rosé was unfortunate that she came out right after Gottmik. I dont know if her look, by itself, was actually that bad, but when you put it next to what Gottmik did, it just looked so boring. And also, 80s powersuit look, again. It was cute, it fit her nicely, but it wasn't fashion or eleganza. It was really disappointing for me.

I really enjoyed her third look, I loved the movement she created with those round bags on the bottom. Again, I feel like she did the assignment, she looked beautiful. I dont know that I would have put her in the top this week. I feel like every look just had something missing.

9. Symone

Funbags was cute! She played it up really well, presented it in a fun way. It was a beautiful dress as well, the feathers of the bottom was a lovely touch. Did she look beautiful? Absolutely. Was it the best look on the runway? No. I liked it, I didn't love it. We've seen better from Symone.

Her second look? This is the level I expected from Symone. The second she turned the corner, I loved it. So sleek, so fashion; it's exactly what I picture the CEO of a Gen Z fashion house to be wearing. I just loved it. This look, for me, saved Symone from the bottom three. It was so perfect.

Symone better have bought Lala Ri a huge drink after this. If not for Lala Ri's, hers would have been the worst construction on the runway. It was veery basic, and the only reason she got away with it is because she's skinny and beautiful. She was saved only by her second look, and Lala Ri. I love Symone, but she's better than this!

10. Tamisha Iman

I really liked the Old Bag! She knew she was gonna be one of the oldest there, she played into it! She did something very different to the others, she's hammed it up, she played a character, I really enjoyed it! The suit was incredible, I loved the big necklace, it was a big tick for me.

Her second look...I love Tamisha so much. She looked like an air stewardess. Did she look beautiful? Of course. Did she look rich and elegant and chic and fashion? No. She also has a thing with these long dark brown/black wigs that are really flat and just sort of hang down. I would have lived an updo with this look, I feel like it would have just elevated it a little bit.

I actually quite liked Tamisha's third look! It was busy, I get that. I loved the top of it though, the bustier and the shoulder, I loved! The skirt was maybe a little much, but she made a complete dress out of bags, it was fitted beautifully, she looked stunning, I really enjoyed it! Her makeup was a little off somehow, I can't quite pinpoint how, but it just wasn't quite right. I don't think she deserved to be bottom three to be honest, but maybe I'm biased because I love her so much.

I also didn't really understand the critiques she was given this week, like it felt like they just said she's not...drag enough? But she gave us so much range? Like there were 3 very distinct looks, she looked good in them, what's the problem? I get that the looks didn't really hit the challenge, and that's why she was in the bottom, but that critique is so confusing to me. Like what is "drag enough"? This show constantly praises queens for being "fishy" and looking hyper feminine, but when Tamisha is doing it it doesn't fly? I don't get it.

11. Tina Burner

I was a little disappointed with Brown Bag. I got the reference, I liked the dress, I loved the mermaid tail being made of bottles, that was super cool. I didn't get the presentation. She was walking like she was wasted, but her hair & makeup was perfect, the dress was still on straight; that didn't make sense to me. I feel like she should have been a little bit more "end of the night" looking, with messy hair and smudged makeup, maybe some mascara tear tracks, because who can get that drunk without crying? Not me, that's for damn sure. It was good, it wasn't great.

Okay, another 80s power suit moment. I liked it more than Elliott's or Rosé's; purely for the hat and the houndstooth. I love a good houndstooth print, it does always look expensive, I get what she was going for. What I found disappointing (and I can't believe I'm saying this) Eureka did it better in season 10. I just feel like I've seen this before, and I'm bored of it.

I was also bored by her third look. It was a red mini dress with suspenders. Like, I'm impressed that she made it in a day, but I just wish she'd gone for something more. I'm really not getting all that much from Tina at the moment, and I just keep hoping she'll pull something out, but so far I just haven't been getting what I want.

12. Utica Queen

Hear me out, I loved Doggy Bag. It was so cool! She looked like a dog without putting on a dog costume, there was just enough hints to give us dog, but it was still a really cool and chic look! Which is exactly what a poodle would wear if they were human! I loved it. My one thing about Utica is that she makes these faces that are so bizarre. I think it's her mouth, it takes it past being a runway presentation into being a weird parody, and I don't think she means to do that. She just needs to tone it down a tiny bit.

I loved her little nod to Chicago. I didn't exactly get "money bags" from it, but Utica is very lateral and outside the box, so it was nice to see her interpretation of eleganza. I liked a lot, but I didn't quite love it.

I was gagged on Utica's third look. She made a gown. Out of sleeping bags. And it looked stunning. The shape of it was gorgeous, the train was amazing, the hood into a collar was incredible. Just every part of this look was exactly what this challenge is about. She took plain old sleeping bags, and made them into a beautiful, elegant and fashionable gown. You know where I wish I'd seen this? At the Camp theme Met Gala. It would have been one of the best looks at that Met Gala, and it was one of the best looks on this runway. I think it was by far the best of the looks they had to make. In fact, I think it's one of the best ever looks that was made in the werk room.

I am so glad that I was wrong about Utica in the first week. I think she's amazing. She's campy, and she's funny, and she's weird, but she's also so beautiful, and she's had some incredible looks on the runway.

This week was such a mixed bag (get it?) of looks - I feel like only Mik and Utica had three really good looks, everyone else was really up and down. I think it was definitely the right two queens lipsyncing, but there was a few candidates who could have arguably been the third in the bottom three - Tamisha, Kandy, Tina, Elliott... I can see the argument for all of them. I also think I would have replaced Rosé in the top three with Denali, I just think her first two looks were better than Rosé's.

I dont really want to get into the Kandy vs Tamisha drama; I think Drag Race is a super high pressure environment, I think its inevitable that tensions will run high and queens will argue. The one thing I do want to say is that in untucked, when Tamisha was saying she didn't really like Kandy's attitude, she said (something like) "that's just my opinion, and who am I? Nobody." And honestly, I respect the hell out of that. Because like, of course we're all entitled to our opinions, but that doesn't mean anyone should listen to them. Like, this whole post is just my opinions on stuff, I don't expect anyone to agree with me, or take any of this as fact. I just loved that Tamisha recognised that her opinion, whilst a valid opinion, is not fact and doesn't need to be considered by anyone else. I don't think Kandy recognises that yet, especially given the way she spoke to Elliott. I think that comes with age and experience though. By the way, that's not me saying that Tamisha's right and Kandy is wrong, I'm just pointing out one specific behaviour that Tamisha showed that I don't think Kandy has yet.

Also, I've seen both Kandy and Tamisha getting ridiculous amounts of hate for this one argument, and that's so unacceptable. Sending hate and death threats to queens over their performance on a reality TV show is disgusting, and if you are a person who has done that, you need to take a good look at yourself in the mirror and ideally get some therapy.

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my-miraculous-headcanons · 5 years

Text

Stand-In Journalist

“You want me to do what?”

Marinette’s vaguely aware that her voice may have been a tad too loud, especially considering the fact that Alya had been attempting to whisper to her just moments ago. She’s also vaguely aware that’s she’s attracted the attention of most students currently walking up the school steps, including that of her crush, Adrien Agreste. Surprisingly, she finds herself unbothered. And more than a little distracted.

“Alya, you’re joking, right? You have to be.”

“Girl, shush,” Alya hisses out, wrapping an arm over Marinette’s shoulders and taking glances around them. It seems a little on the paranoid side, but Marinette isn’t one to judge.

“Listen, my grandma has to go into surgery, so me and my family have to take off for a week. I really, really, wish I could do this myself, but I’ve got no other choice right now. I know you’re busy with all your commissions, and the bakery, and class president stuff, but Nino sucks at talking professionally, and Adrien’s, like, never allowed out of the mansion.”

“What makes you think I’d be a better choice in comparison to literally every other student in our class?”

Alya rolls her eyes at all.

“Marinette, I’ve heard your customer service voice.”

“Ah.”

Right. Helping out her parents at the bakery meant an awful lot of occasions where she’d had to deploy the infamous customer service voice. After all, they do own one of the most popular bakeries in all of Paris, which meant attracting quite a lot of tourists.

Unlike America, the Dupain-Cheng bakery doesn’t take bullshit. She makes sure to let rude customers know that just from the tone of her voice.

If she tells you to leave, you leave. She only needs to say it once.

“Besides,” Alya continues on. “If you do this for me, you can consider all of your IOUs paid off.”

“Do what?”

The two girls look away from each other in surprise, now noticing they had the attention of their resident model. Despite teasingly calling out Marinette as an eavesdropper, everyone’s rather aware of his nosy tendencies. (Not many can blame him, though. He’s not socially incompetent, but boundaries are still not his strong point. Really, considering his only friend for years was Chloé, well… It’s understandable, to a point.)

“And what makes you think that’s your business, Agreste?” Alya smirks, placing a hand on her hip and using the other occupied one to pull Marinette closer.

She’s been doing that around Adrien a lot, testing some theory about Adrien and his touchy-feely habits. Marinette decided she didn’t want any part of that and didn’t ask any further.

“Well,” Adrien playfully smirks back. “I overheard―”

“Eavesdropped,” Alya loudly whispers into Marinette’s ear, who giggles in response.

“Overheard,” Adrien corrects, though he’s clearly smiling. “You pressuring poor Marinette into doing something that she doesn’t seem to want to do. So I was just curious, is all.”

He pauses, glancing back and forth between the two girls.

“This wouldn’t happen to have anything to do with Lila, would it?”

Alya bursts out into a short laugh, not realising the fond look Marinette shoots Adrien’s way or how his shoulders are tensed, maybe even worried.

“No way! This is way more important than that! Marinette’s just filling in for me for one of my, uh… Ladyblog duties.”

Adrien relaxes, then smiles almost knowingly.

“Ah, I see. Nino said you’re going out of town in two days, right?”

“Yup! But you’re not getting any more than that. Now shoo, we got a lot to talk about.”

“Wait, hey,” Marinette protests. “I didn’t agree yet!”

“So you’re not going to take the opportunity to pay off all your IOUs in one sitting?”

The designer snaps her mouth shut and stares off into space for a moment, brows knit together and cheeks puffed up in what seems to be intense consideration.

“… Okay, deal.”

“Yes! Let’s go, then! Bye, Adrien!”

And with that, Alya drags Marinette away before the poor girl realises who she was standing in front of, and accidentally makes a fool of herself as a result.

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Alya had given Marinette most of the material she would need to do the job. Not only that, but she had coached Marinette through lines and responses, and how to use her customer service voice and morph it into a similar but distinctly different interviewer voice.

With all that, you would think that Marinette would be prepared for what she was about to do. But the truth of the matter is that no, she was not prepared. In fact, she was the opposite of prepared. While, yes, the chairs and cameras were all set up, and everything looked neat and tidy, and she was wearing her best professional clothing— a ruffled pink top and grey pencil skirt— Marinette was...

Well, she was freaking out. She had never practiced with the blinding light fixtures or with a camera pointed directly at her face. She never practiced her lines with anyone other than Alya. She only learned how to turn the cameras on today, right when Nino had finished up putting the cameras in place and was about to go home before curfew.

It was just the push of a simple button, so that shouldn’t be something to worry about, but the fact of the matter was that she hadn’t even considered she would be the one responsible for the cameras. Which left the question― What else was she responsible for, that she hadn’t even anticipated?

“Well, this is a surprise.”

Oh god, he’s already here.

Plastering on a forced smile, Marinette turns her attention to a silhouette crouching on a high window. The crescent moon is hovering just behind his head, and his eyes seem to glow in the darkness of the corner he was in. He’s clearly already putting on a show, and Marinette realises with some panic that she doesn’t have a camera lined up in that direction.

Was... Was she supposed to move it? No, no, what if she accidentally breaks it? No, she can’t move it. But what if Alya wants this footage?

“Hello, Chat Noir,” Marinette forces out, stopping herself from prematurely pressing the record button. She... She’s supposed to do something first before doing that, but she’s forgotten what.

The superhero jumps down from his perch and walks into the artificial lighting, smiling easily and swinging his lower body over the back of the velvety red armchair, sinking into the seat cushions.

“I was under the assumption that our favourite ladyblogger would be conducting the interview.”

“She had a family emergency, so I’ll be taking her place this time.”

His smile twitches down a bit, then completely fades away. His gaze grows more intense.

“... I see.”

An awkward silence stretches between them, and Marinette feels her face gradually heat up in embarrassment. Her mind is completely blank.

“Marinette, are you alright?”

It takes her more than a couple seconds to process that question, and when she does, her embarrassment increases tenfold.

“I’m fine, sorry about that. Just got lost in thought. Anyways, are you prepared for the interview?”

Apparently, her response displeases him, because he stands up and walks around the table between them, stopping just beside her. His eyes never leave her face.

“... Marinette, I think you’re either having an anxiety attack right now, or you’re dissociating.”

“Am I,” is her automatic response. He doesn’t say anything, only frowning as though he was given a rather unfortunate answer. He reaches for his baton and opens it up, kneeling down beside her legs. He takes several minutes to check something up, reads through it, then puts the baton away.

“Okay, definitely dissociating,” he mumbles to himself. He stands up again then goes over to the equipment, and Marinette doesn’t do anything to stop him from messing with it.

Abruptly, the lights shut off.

“Marinette, you okay? Do you hear me?”

His voice is soft in the darkness, which is comforting, but it’s still distressing that she can’t see. Yes, the lights were horrible, but now the only thing in her vision is the imprint of a bright, blueish hue, fixed in place no matter how many times she blinks or where she looks.

“Marinette?”

His voice is closer, now, but even softer, just shy of a whisper. She hums in response, then blinks a few more times. One of the light fixtures is moved out of the way, allowing for moonlight to splash over the table and chair in front of her. Her shoulders untense, just a little. There’s still spots in her vision, but she can see now, so it doesn’t matter.

“Do you want me to keep talking?”

Yes, yes, she would very much like that. Her body is beginning to feel a little shaky, but she manages to give the voice a sharp nod. The voice? Who was she talking to again? She couldn’t—

“You know, I lied when I said I was surprised,” the voice says, interrupting her spiralling thoughts. “I knew that Alya was gonna be out of town, I had overheard about it. I also know you’re her best friend, so I kind of expected to see you. I was really excited about it.”

A figure moves in front of her, briefly, before once again getting comfortable in the plush red seat. His lips move in time with the voice.

“I really enjoy talking with you. It’s really easy to trust you with things I wouldn’t tell others, because you’re very respectful and kind. I’m honestly amazed that you never told Alya about that whole balcony thing, the day Glaciator attacked. I didn’t even have to tell you not to say anything, you just naturally understand boundaries like that.”

Chat Noir smiles in a way that’s nothing like all the previous smiles she’s ever seen on his face.

Right. Chat Noir. She’s talking to Chat Noir, because she was supposed to be filling in for Alya, who is out of town, for an exclusive one-on-one interview with Chat Noir. And she...

And she already messed up.

“Oh, God,” she says with sudden realisation. She quickly raises both hands to squish them against the front of her face, covering up her burning cheeks. “Oh, God, I can’t believe that just happened.”

“Hey, it’s alright—”

“No, it’s not alright, because I promised Alya I would get this done, and that it would be perfect, but I totally messed up everything because I couldn’t keep my stupid feelings in check, again, and Alya had worked so hard and deserves—”

“Marinette, stop.”

She flinches back, and sees Chat Noir now seated down on the table, his knees just barely bumping into hers on either side. He leans forward and takes hold of both her hands, placing them on her lap.

“You need to stop thinking about what Alya will think or how she would do this. You’re not Alya. You may be the stand-in journalist, but that doesn’t mean to have to do everything by her rules.”

“But, no, this is Alya’s interview, she—”

“She’s not here right now. You are. Listen Marinette, you can’t do this by pretending to be some imitation of Alya. If you want an authentic, smooth-going interview, you’ll need to go about this your own way. Everything you learned from Alya is going to be your base template. A resource for you to borrow from. You with me so far?”

Marinette presses her lips together and nods. Chat smiles and cups her cheeks, using his thumbs to brush away tears she hadn’t even known she’d shed.

“Good. Now then, tell me how Marinette Dupain-Cheng would interview a superhero.”

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

The light fixtures were back in place, now at a much lower level than they were previously. The table had been moved out of the way, allowing for the chairs to be close enough that either one of them could stick their leg out to kick the other, easily. The cameras were rearranged to film at different angles, now, and no camera view excluded either of the two out of the shot.

Most importantly, Marinette had ditched the file Alya had provided her. She already knew the questions by heart, anyways, in case she needed to use one of them.

“You ready to begin?”

It’s funny, really, that the interviewee was asking that, and not the interviewer.

“Yeah,” Marinette responds. “Let’s get this show started.”

And with that, the cameras start rolling. Marinette grins at camera A, placed to have a perfect side-view recording of both parties from a distance.

“Bonjour, Paris! I’m Marinette Dupain-Cheng, and while I’ve literally never done an interview in my life, Alya Césaire decided that I would be the purrfect replacement in her absence. So, really, you should blame her for this.”

Chat snorts loudly at that.

“Continuing on, today we’ll be asking our favourite feline superhero, Puss in Boots, a few questions. Say hello, kitty!”

“Oh, God,” Chat says in-between a short bout of laughter. “Bonjour, Paris. Just so you know, I did nothing to deserve this blatant mistreatment.”

“Hush,” Marinette says, giving him a light kick in the shin. “I punned for you. I get a pass.”

“What? No way, you can’t get passes for animal cruelty.”

“Oh, you’re an animal now? Way to start this interview off strong for your lady fans, Chat Noir. Please, do go on.”

The interview goes by smoothly. There’s never a lull in conversation, boundaries remain untouched, and the atmosphere remains playful, warm, personal, and overall enjoyable.

But, it isn’t the end.

“Are you sure you want to do this, Marinette?”

She sighs, picking up the file she had previously discarded, squinting due to the bright lights.

“I won’t lie and say I didn’t enjoy doing things my way, but I did promise Alya that I’d do it the way she planned it. So, we might as well film this version as well, right? She can decide for herself which one she likes better. Besides, I...”

She smiles.

“I feel a lot better now. I think I can do this.”

“Alright then,” Chat concedes. “Let’s take it from the top, then.”

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

Alya has watched both videos at least ten times each, and she has to admit, the superior one is rather clear. As much as she doesn’t like it, Marinette was clearly more in her element in the first one filmed, which went on to further charge the chemistry between her and Chat.

And boy, was there chemistry.

That leads to the next problem. If she posts the first video, Paris would practically erupt, a new brand of shippers will jump into the scene, and Hawkmoth may very well place a target on her best friend’s back.

If she posts the second video, her followers would find the interviewer rather lackluster, and possibly make a lot of rude comments that she doesn’t want her best friend to be subjected to.

… Really, the answer to her dilemma would be pretty obvious. Marinette can handle a few internet jerks. It’s no big deal, and, most importantly, it won’t get her targeted by Hawkmoth.

But the thing is... Marinette and Chat Noir want her to post the first video. They wouldn’t have filmed it and given it to her if they hadn’t wanted it to go public.

The ladyblogger leans back into her desk chair and sighs, glancing towards the bedside digital clock while biting down on her thumb. 1:53. She really needs to make a decision, otherwise she’ll never be able to actually go to bed.

Her sleep deprived mind suddenly gets an idea. She latches on to it, posting both videos with different captions, then collapses into her bed with a sigh of relief. She’ll deal with the consequences tomorrow.

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Chat Noir is a little shit and he’s going to pay.

She feels fooled. Bamboozled. A few nights ago, he had been gentle and kind, had given her good advice, and encouraged her to do her best without sacrificing the way she is. That Chat Noir was an inspiration. A friend and an ally. Someone she trusts and could count on.

The Chat Noir of today made her realise that, yes, while he can be all those things, he’s still a little storm of trouble, mischief, and utter bullshit.

And she was not prepared for this.

It’s only been a day since the interviews have been posted, but almost immediately after they had gone public, Chat Noir decided to post a link to it on his social media and make comments.

Ones specifically made to rile up every shipper, analyst, and hero fan in Paris.

If she gets stopped one more time by some creepy adult fan who thinks it’s perfectly okay to grab a little teenager by the wrist, she’s going to kick their fucking ass.

She eyes the expensive fabric scissors with an expression that screams murder. She wonders if it could tear through a magical catsuit. Probably not. Besides, she’d have to pay for it if she gets blood on it, and she only brought enough money to get herself some fabric.

Ugh.

She feels her hands twitch as her phone dings with another update on Chat Noir’s twitter. Begrudgingly, she shoves her hand into her purse and fishes it out, wondering what he could possibly be saying now. Seriously, how has he not exhausted himself yet? Wasn’t he awake at, like, 2 in the morning?

Marinette is not a toy. Quit grabbing her and asking her questions on the street. She’s a person. I SEE you, lady in the blue cardigan at the fabric store. She's 13. Back. Off.

Quickly, she whips her head around to look over her shoulder, catching sight of a middle-aged woman in a navy blue cardigan. The woman is looking down at her phone, silently walking away in embarrassment.

Her phone dings thrice again.

Hey Paris, remember when I DIDN’T need to play bodyguard because you guys were respectful towards teenaged girls who were lucky enough to interact with superheroes? Let’s go back to that.

Seriously, I only noticed like 30 minutes ago when I saw some university guy corner her on the street. What the hell’s going on? @ladyblogger Was this a normal occurrence and me and Ladybug just didn’t know?

I admit I was joking around and maybe fueling some ship wars but I didn’t expect grown adults to take that as a sign to harass a young girl. Knock it off and wake up, real life isn’t the internet.

...

Well, Marinette decides. She supposes the cat will live to see another day.

Ding!

To the TV crew hanging out at the entrance of the fabric store: Filming and interrogating a 13 year old without parental consent is illegal. I WILL apprehend you. Leave.

A minute later, Marinette hears about a dozen curses from multiple people at the front of the store, and the rushed packing of equipment.

With a smirk, Marinette sends out a tweet of her own.

Wassup, Paris, thanks for landing me my very own furry stalker, @therealchatnoir. Much appreciated. Always wanted one of those.

Ding!

?!?!?!? FURRY?!?! EXCUSE ME?!?!

Marinette cackles and pockets her phone, ignoring the resulting dings.

DON’T PUT YOUR PHONE AWAY ON ME, HEY!!! HEYYYY!!!!

I’M NOT A FURRY TAKE YOUR PHONE OUT YOU COWARD

dcvgthgrfCFRVGTBHYGVRFCDEX F I G H T M E

I’LL SPAM YOU DON’T THINK I WON’T DO IT. HEY LADYBLOGGER GIVE ME HER NUMBER I JUST WANNA TALK

Marineeeeetttteeeeee don’t ignore me pleeaaaaseeee ;(((((

He’s a dork. He’s sweet and kind, but ultimately he’s a total dork.

And maybe a little her type.

...

She buys black fabric, that day.

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“Please? Pleaaase?”

“No, Alya.”

“Oh come on, just one with Ladybug!”

“I can’t, Alya. I’m busy that day. Ask Adrien to do it or something.”

“... You know what? I will. He’s free Wednesday morning, right?”

#Maximilian Speaks #Stand In Journalist #Stand-In Journalist #Marichat #Marinette Dupain Cheng #Alya Cesaire #Marinette Dupain-Cheng #Alya Césaire #Adrien Agreste #Chat Noir #Miraculous Ladybug #ML #Dissociation #long post #Maximilian's Writing

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twokinkybeans · 4 years

Text

Stark On Ice Chapter 3: 7 A.M.

7 A.M.: “Seriously, another romantic song? What the fuck, Steve.”

Peter bites down his bottom lip at Tony’s snarky reply to the song reveal. It’s Monday morning, and they’re discussing their plan for the upcoming week. They’re looking at their seventh show already and from now on they’ll have to perform two choreos rather than just one. It’s safe to say that Tony is stressed. He’s tired. Tired of the intensive training for a sport he’d never done in his life. Tired of the country’s eyes on him. Of course, he’s used to being in the center of attention, but never before had his sexuality been such a hot item. Peter knows how much pressure there is on him right now, and he doesn’t really blame him for feeling on edge. However, he will not allow the man to scold their friend and coach just like that. “Tony, come on, it’s-” “Oh,” Tony waves his hand dismissively. “Shut up.”

What?

Peter scoffs and raises from his seat. Tony’s lips part and Peter can see the regret crossing his face. He feels bad for the man, but he’s not going to let himself be treated this way. He doesn’t want to practice lifts when the man is this tense. So he grabs his bag and sighs. “Alright, then. Go home, take care of yourself. I’ll see you tomorrow.” “Wha-” He hears Tony’s dumbfounded voice behind him. Peter simply ignores it and lets out a small breath when the door falls shut behind him. He almost feels guilty about walking away without saying another word. Without giving Tony a chance to speak.

Tomorrow. Tomorrow they’ll discuss it properly.

He heads towards the rink downstairs and smiles at the familiar, comforting cold when he steps inside. It’s not like Tony is the only one who’s made sacrifices to participate in the contest. It’s been too long since Peter just… Skated. No choreo, no teaching, just flowing wherever the music takes him. Since it’s only 7 am the rink is still nearly empty. Peter sits down at one of the benches and slides his feet inside the skates. He doesn’t even bother taping his ankles the way he usually does to protect his skin. He won’t be on the ice too long anyways. He- “Hey, Pete.” Peter turns around and is surprised to see MJ standing on the ice and leaning on the edge of the rink. “Hey hey,” he replies, forcing a smile on his lips. He enjoys seeing her, but somehow the little incident with Tony has crept under his skin. “Trouble in paradise, huh?” “Ugh, Tony’s a genuinely nice man, but he’s awfully stressed out and taking it out on Steve and me.” “So you left?” “Mh-mh.” “Cool. That’ll do him some good. Now get your ass over here and skate with me.”

Peter smiles and gets up, letting his worries glide off his shoulders when he feels the smooth ice allowing him to slide across. This is where he belongs most. This is where he feels free. MJ grins and grabs both his hands. She too is meant for figure skating. Her grace, her passion, her- Peter frowns and tightens his grip on her hands a little. His head snaps up worriedly. Her fingers are rough and chafed. And thin. “Michelle,” he breathes quietly. The girl freezes right where she stands, and he feels the tension rising in her body. “Peter, it’s nothing I swear.” “Then how did you know what I was gonna say?”

MJ presses her lips together and pulls her hands back. She crosses her arms in an attempt to hide them. Peter takes a quick glance at her body and feels panic rising in his chest. He hadn’t been paying attention. Hadn’t seen it coming. Her thin frame is showing more bone than it usually does. He spots how she tried to use a thicker pair of leggings to cover it up, but he knows her. “It’s…” MJ sighs. She knows that he knows. “It’s not as bad as it used to be.” Her voice is small and defensive. Scared. Peter’s heart tugs at his chest and he bridges the gap between them. MJ relaxes slightly in his hold. How hadn’t he seen it earlier? “Has anyone… Said, y’ know, stuff to you?” Peter asks carefully. MJ shakes her head right away. “Not directly. It’s...” Her voice trails off, and she stares at her toe picks. “YouTube is different than national television. People have strong opinions. If they don’t like Clint, they hate me. If they love Clint, they hate me. I… My thoughts… They try to come up with a solution on how to fix that.” “Em…” “Peter, please. Don’t worry about it too much ‘kay? I’ve already told Pep. She’s getting me a referral to Dr. Banner again.”

Peter stares at her in awe and tears cloud his vision. “I am so proud of you,” he chokes out and hugs her again, more tightly this time. She’s been struggling again, but… She spoke to her coach about it. Pepper is fantastic, she’ll definitely make sure MJ gets the care she needs so much. He feels her smile against his cheek, and he sighs. It’s not the first time she’s struggled with food. It’s hard, in the ice skating world. Most skaters have… a handful of bad habits to cope with the stress of upholding their physique and nailing every performance. Peter has a bad habit of not taking good care of his blistered toes until he literally can’t walk. Sometimes, he pulls an all-nighter just to watch stupid movies on Instagram or TikTok or whatever, because the thought of laying down in the dark by himself is too much. It’s not right, but… He thinks he’s still doing reasonably well. Not aiming for the Olympics definitely helps. The thought alone has him shudder.

MJ nudges his side, and the movement has him break from his string of thought. “Wanna skate together?” MJ’s posture stills show how uncertain she feels, but her eyes light up at her mere suggestion, so Peter can’t say no. He never could. Not his skating partner and friend. “Of course, I… Did you eat this morning?” MJ presses her lips together again, but nods. “I… Yeah. I did. Not much, but enough to train. I promise.” “Good. Alright, let’s go through Watermelon Sugar?” “Ohhhh yes, I’d love that!”

Breathe me in, breathe me out, I don’t know if I could ever go without.

After an hour of training, Peter called for a break. In all honesty, he just didn’t want MJ to overtrain. He invited her into his little studio for a second breakfast instead. She’s seated at his kitchen table now while Peter preps their meal. “So about you and Tony-”

Her sentence is cut off by Peter’s phone vibrating on top of the kitchen counter. Incoming Call: Tony Stark. For a split second Peter debates whether he should ignore or pick up. He low-key wants to hear what Tony has to say. He taps the green button and brings the phone to his ear, sliding his other hand through his hair nervously. “Hi, Tony.” “Peter, hey.” Quiet. “Thank you for picking up.” “Yeah.” “I… I am sorry about this morning. I shouldn’t have taken it out on you,” Tony whispers. “Or Steve, of course.”

Peter frowns a little, but a smile creeps onto his face. He honestly hadn’t thought that Tony Stark would apologize this soon. “Mmmh, apologies accepted, Tony. Thank you for calling me. I’m sorry too, I probably shouldn’t have left.” “Would… Would you be up for a cup of coffee later? My treat, of course.” Peter eyes MJ real quickly. The girl, who has already figured out what’s happening, waves her hand quickly. “Go!” she mouths. Peter grins. “Yeah, sure thing.” And feeling a little bold, he adds. “Only if you come to pick me up in one of your fancy cars personally.” Both MJ and Tony snort in unison. “Deal.”

Peter sips his mocha latte and groans quietly when a dot of whipped cream sticks to his upper lip. He sucks his lip into his mouth and sighs contently. Only then he realizes that Tony is watching him. Peter blushes, and-

Oh god. He blushed. He blushed. Nononono-

“I, eh,” he stutters and puts the mug down. He wants to say something but he has no clue what. He can’t shake the feeling that the way they’re hanging out now very much resembles a date. God, especially since MJ showed him this… fanfiction thing earlier this morning. He’s heard of the phenomenon before, but never in his whole life did he think that one day people would be writing about him. MJ told him ever so seriously that she had, in fact, read some of them, and she’d been gushing about this Superhero AU where Peter is a kid with spider powers and Tony a mechanic that built a metal suit to fight off Earth’s greatest villains. As she explained the plot, Peter had to admit it did sound rather creative. No clue why someone would give him weird insect powers, but if it works, it works, right?

It’s just that he… He never quite realized how smitten he is with Tony until MJ quoted a love scene, causing Peter to feel this stab of jealousy in his chest because fiction-Peter could have Tony, and he couldn’t. So now, with Tony watching him like that, it seems like a slight overload of his senses. It has him paralyzed. Good or bad, he hasn’t figured out yet. Thank God it’s Tony who breaks the silence between them.

“I wanted to apologize for earlier today, Peter. I’m not sure what came over me, I… I panicked.” Tony sighs and stares at the floor. Peter’s earlier worries moving to the back of his mind. He feels they’re treading on thin ice. “Y’know Peter, my dad… He was very much against homosexuality. Always warned me. Threatened me. I know he’s not here to judge me anymore but… It feels wrong that the entirety of the US knows now… It’s- I don’t-” Tony can’t seem to find the right words and he casts his eyes down. His fingers curling around the ear of the mug a bit too tightly. His knuckles white, other hand pressed into the wooden table. Peter swallows. Carefully, he reaches out for Tony’s shaky hand. “Hey,” he whispers. “I’ve got you.”

Tony lifts his head slowly at those words. Peter’s heartbeat picks up rapidly when he sees Tony’s longing, no- yearning stare. Could this mean… It feels far too intimate and yet not close enough where their hands are touching. Peter slowly curls his fingers to drag the tips across the back of the man’s hand. Tony clears his throat. “I…” his voice sounds squeaky and tense. “It feels wrong that the entire US has seen how I fell in love with you, and I barely even registered it.”

Peter can’t seem to breathe anymore. He blinks. Once. Twice. Did Tony really just say that? He feels sweaty, hot all over. Flustered, confused. He opens his mouth only to shut it again and blows his cheeks up- a stupid nervous tick. Tony’s hand twitches underneath his own, and then the man tries to slide it back. “Peter, I’m so sorry, I thought maybe-” Peter grabs Tony’s hand more tightly. “ Yes. ” Peter rushes as he suddenly finds his voice again. “Tony... Yes. I feel the same way.”

Both men stare at each other intently. Their hands painstakingly close, yet they both press into each other a bit more. Peter’s gaze drops to Tony’s slightly parted lips. Oh, how he wants to kiss him. How he wants to feel the rough stubble against his cheeks. He wants to taste the dark, bitter espresso lingering on the man’s tongue as they breathe into each other. When Peter looks up, he can see the exact same thoughts crossing Tony’s mind and he gasps. The older man groans and pulls his hand back quickly.

“We can’t. Not… Not in here, Peter.” “Too public, I get it.” “Yeah.” “I-” Peter’s voice is cut off by the sudden loud ringtone playing from Tony’s phone. The man curses under his breath and grabs it from the table. “Shit, it’s Happy. I gotta take this one,” Tony apologizes, and Peter nods. The boy leans back in his chair and licks his lips absentmindedly as he gestures for Tony to pick up. He doesn’t quite follow what Tony says to his assistant. Chauffeur. PA. Whatever Happy’s function is. All he sees is how Tony’s expression darkens and he knows it’s not a good sign. Tony rambles on and then ends the call. Peter tilts his head. “You have to go, don’t you?” Peter sees the way Tony’s expression falters and sighs when the man nods. Confirming his suspicions. “I am so so so sorry, you have no idea how badly I want to stay here, with… With you.” Tony’s voice sounds so soft and gentle, and a downhearted smile tugs on his lips. Peter wants to bridge the gap between them and kiss him anyways. Make him stay. But he knows that Tony runs a business. If it’s important, it’s important. “Go. We have time.” “Yeah,” Tony breathes. He leans forward again and quickly squeezes Peter’s hand. “We do.”

Peter watches how Tony grabs his jacket and gives him one last dazzling smile before hurrying out of the little cafe. Peter huffs a bewildered breath now that reality crashes down on him. He smiles into the distance as he picks up his mocha latte and chuckles to himself when he realizes he’s counting down the hours until tomorrow morning, 7 am. That’s when they’ll see each other again in the rink. He smiles when he realizes that their song is, indeed, yet again, a romantic song.

I been tryna call I been on my own for long enough Maybe you can show me how to love, maybe

---

Masterpost Next Chapter

#adult peter parker #starker #stark on ice #figure skating au #peter parker #tony x peter #peter x tony #tony stark #fanfiction #fan fiction #fandom #fanfic #fan fic #marvel #mcu

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cryptidprimalslayer · 4 years

Text

eh i just wanted to write abit about Ney’s Coerthas doings.

Being a floater is fucking great. i do what i want and go where i please. only obligation is to myself. i usually stay in Dravania cause it’s better then the snow sometimes. but i still need the frigid touch to soothe the fire in me. i set out for tailfeather to get some cloth i need for cleaning my rapier, i had to take it off my arm so i’m one armed. i’ll just have to use my claymore for if I’m attacked. i get to the settlement and find out there’s no cloth i use only this really coarse kind that will surely scratch up my blade, and it’s super expensive as well. i look made of gil to you? fine i guess i’ll have to cross into Coerthas after all, i aint dealing with the Gnath. Let’s hope there’s no overzealous Temple Knight looking to take down a heretic. Honestly can i not help a dragon without being marked for death? this is complete bullshit. They are like family to me, and you always protect family. i had to come all the way to Falcon’s Nest to see if i could get some damn cloth. i was only waylaid by a few Knights but a horde of Her heretics, that woman needs to stop honestly. i don’t give two shits about that damn city i only care about living in this tundra. i was going about my business with a merchant when i was approached and talked to by a Knight. well this can’t be good.

it wasn’t good. i’m actually surprised you didn’t kill me where i stood. i’m being extradited to Ishgard for some trial shit. i managed to shake my captors in central Coerthas then went off to Providence Point to think of how to get back to Dravania. i took a seat on the cliff overlooking that city and leaned against one of the weird rock formations. i’ll need to lay low for awhile, possibly indefinitely, while they are sure to sniff around the Western lands. idly throwing rocks while strategizing i came across an unusual stick with leaves on it. it looks really unassuming and i almost chucked it like the rest of the rocks. Something gave me pause though, i swear i’ve seen this design somewhere before. but where? i pocketed it and reached over my shoulder for the hilt when i heard footsteps approaching. of course someone can see me around these rocks, my ears are like a mile high. when the footsteps got closer i realized the sounded light, this isn’t an adult behind me. a stretch of silence later i emerged from behind the rocks to see an Elezen child staring back up at me. she looked super young and also a bit frightened so i knelt to get eye to eye. “Hey little girl what are you doing up here.” no response, she must be shy. An idea struck me so i pulled out the odd stick. She recognized it and looked relieved to see it. “I take it this is yours then? May i ask what it is?” i hand it over and again got no response. “Where are your parents?” why do i keep asking questions when i know she won’t answer them? i kept fruitlessly asking her things until two sets of footsteps approached. Instinctively shoving the girl behind me i raised to my feet and waited for them to arrive. it was two men, an Au Ra and a Hyur, and by the looks of it are both Dark Knights. Does Ishgard employ this trade? They were both looking down at the girl by my legs so i glanced at her as well. “Do you know these men?”

“Yes so give her back.” i shot a glare at them since i didn’t see who spoke and pushed the child further behind me.

“I don’t remember asking you a goddamn thing!” they didn’t appreciate me holding the child from them but until i am convinced she is safe with them, she aint going nowhere. the girl tugged on my pants so i looked down and she nodded at me that she did know these two. “Are you absolutely positive?” they didnt like coach her into staying with them? is she safe? She again nods so i pushed her forward and watched her run for the Auri. even though i was abrasive towards them the Hyur still thanked me for holding her so i bowed in response. i didn’t see any reason to try to make further conversation so i returned to sitting on the cliff and planning. i think i heard them leave but i didn’t check cause my involvement was done.

wasn’t the last time i’d be seeing them though. i bumped into them several more times evading the Knights after my heretic ass. the child even saved me a time or two with that odd stick. so it’s a conjury weapon, gotcha. i can do a bit of healing as a red mage but it’s not as potent as white magic. after that i didn’t see them for awhile so i prayed Oschon would keep them safe on their travels. i still needed to get back to Dravania to lie low.

i couldn’t run forever i knew that but i didnt dream theyd be specifically looking for heretics tryna cross into the Shroud. it’s out of your jurisdiction isn’t this up to the Shroud officials for if you can clap me in irons? this time the extradition was thorough and i was hauled to Ishgard. what kind of trial am i to be put on? just because i saved a dragon and killed some of your men that were deaf to reason doesn’t mean i’m plotting your downfall. and i told them that. my shouting attracted a few ears and some looks, then i heard someone call out and antagonize the Knights holding me. i recognize that voice. that’s the Dark Knight with that little girl. why are you fighting them when it’s pretty obvious they throw death sentences to anyone who so much as breathes wrong. this is tyranny. Straight tyranny. they carted us off to some building and it appeared like this might be an actual court session. now why would you do this when i already said the aforementioned deaf to reason? i’m sorry what...... you said a trial by combat? sounds barbaric to me. we were called heretics so nothing new, then when told to step forward and claim our right to this combat i learned the man’s name was Fray. interesting name but i cant judge when mine sounds weird as well. whoa hey hang on now we weren’t accused by no men in white why are they stepping up to fight us? i looked over at this Fray but helmets suck for reading emotions. why did i expect them to play fairly? Where’s the Knights that hauled me here? lemme fight them. he drew his giant sword and stood ready so i sighed inwardly and got myself into stance as well. after this i never wanna see this fucking city again.

i haven’t felt that close to death since childhood. it was very uncomfortable. they sent us out and i didn’t need a formal invitation to hightail it the fuck out. i cleared the so called Gates of Judgement, friendly name, and only then did i have to take a knee. gods above my body is heavy as shit suddenly. i held my side and my hand came away bloody. oh well that explains a few things.

Fray

i was making my way back to our little camp when i came across that Viera, Ney, using his claymore as a walking stick trailing blood. quickly catching up to the hobbling man i sat him down to patch that up. “Now what in Fury’s name made you think to just keep walking instead of healing yourself? do you want a pack of wolves on you?” he grumbled at me to shut up and watched me tend to him. “Guess i owe you another one. i would’ve died if not for you at my back. where you headed? least i could do is make sure you get back home without these wounds reopening.”

“Dravania.” You live in the dragon’s land? no wonder they think he’s a heretic. “I live wherever i wanna live for your information.” he’s a rather snappy man. there’s no doubt in my mind this impale wound was meant for me. even the angle it was spells fatal but somehow he’s still alive. escorting this man home truly is the least i can do. I should be dead. i don’t know why that’s weighing so heavily. “I’m feeling it too Fray....... a dance with death isn’t to be brushed off so easily.” He stood and puts his sword away. “and you don’t owe me shit. i took this wound so you could see that little girl grow up. no one should have to raise themselves.” Speaking from experience are we? it was silent as we made our way across the highlands and into Dravania. i dropped him at a place called Tailfeather with him insisting he could make the rest of the way, so i turned and went on my way. What a character, i wish him well.

#ffxiv #fray myste #ffxiv drk #Fray meets the cryptid

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soranihimawari · 4 years

Text

Confessions & Kiss

Welcome back to a short draft/drabble featuring the Karasuno 1st year squad and Delta-y/n (again). This is a continuation of “Constellations & Whistles” where the main pairing is Yamaguchi x Delta-y/n (Hitoka’s childhood friend from elementary - middle school). Time frame is roughly six weeks since Delta was introduced to the team by Hitoka. Enjoy!

Taglist: @m0nstergeneration20xx

<Constellations & Whistles< previous

====

Ever since you came to visit the Karasuno VBC with Hitoka, life for you became pretty rad. For example, you didn’t have to worry about eating lunch alone anymore since you were joined by either Kageyama & Hinata or Tsukki & Yamaguchi on the days Hitoka couldn’t meet up with you; walking in the hallways when you had to deliver the English class notes to the Faculty Room, you were usually stopped by some of the second year senpais like Kazuhito & Ennoshita who would escort you and tell you funny stories about Noya & Tanaka bombing the last exam; and finally on the days leading up to an official match, Shizumi-san asked if you could come watch the match.

“I-I’m not sure if I should go,” you said. You sighed as you closed your locker after changing out of your uniform shoes. It wasn’t that you were nervous about going, however you saw first hand how much the whole team had improved with the late night practices.

“What?” Hitoka asked. She gripped your shoulders in slight shock. “Delta, I know this would take you out of your comfort zone watching the guys go up against Seijoh, but I think the guys would really appreciate it if you’d come...”

You remove her hands from your shoulder and give them a gentle squeeze for reassurance. You give your best friend a half smile. It’s been about a month since now since that first afternoon and perhaps you thought the volleyball club members were extremely kind and attentive to making sure the bullying you endured was reduced (mostly thanks to Tanaka and Sugawara being the founders of “protect our precious lady manager/s squad”.)

“I know you’re the one inviting me, Yacchan,” you said, releasing Hitoka’s hands. About a minute goes by for Hitoka to acknowledge her friend might have begun liking one of the members of the team.

“But you’d rather have the person you like ask you to come?” Hitoka asks sheepishly. The blush forming on the apples of your cheeks warm your face. “Holy moly, I was right,wasn’t I?”

You nod.

“Don’t make such a fuss over this development please. Yamaguchi might not even like me back...”

“Oh, I highly doubt that.”

“Yacchan, I’ll be fine. Besides, did I tell you I’m headed to see the concert tonight at the observatory with Marina-san?”

“Oh? I didn’t know your relative was in town, but have fun! I’m running a little behind to practice anyway.”

“See ya.”

You shake your head to clear your negative thoughts as you turn around mentioning you were heading to the local city science museum since your cousin was taking you to see the Holst Concert ‘Planet’ Series (once or twice a month the local observatory would either stream or have live concerts at the observatory). Your moss green combat boots made you a little bit taller than Hitoka who was gearing up for another last minute practice before the team would be off until game day doing individual practices.

Hitoka pouted, but there was a hopeful expression emerging. Unbeknownst to you, Tsukkishima let it slip during one of the first year study groups his best friend had a crush on Delta.

Kageyama and Hinata were the ones who flipped out the most, cornering Yamaguchi after morning practice with questions ranging from how he was going to confess, when did those emotions come in, and most of them were positive. Hitoka, on the other hand, had come back to the group catching wind of the endless teasing ways her fellow classmates were giving Yamaguchi. Tsukkishima continued doing his work trying to steer his company back into studying, but Hitoka decided to offer some free advice to the boys when it comes to handling a crush (especially since she would essentially personally involved in making sure Yamaguchi’s feelings go answered):

“Sometimes the simplest ways to get the person you like to notice you is if you’ express interest in learning about what makes them happy,“ Hitoka states, going back to working on preparing the lab report for her preliminary biology class. Judging by the silence she was being given as a response (even Tsukki paused his writing for a moment. Truthfully, he did want to help Yamaguchi, yet he had no clue how).

“Yamaguchi, you know how much Delta loves studying the constellations, right?Have you ever asked her about which ones are her favorite or see how worked up she gets when she found a new part of the city to go stargazing?” Hitoka states in matter-of-fact tone. “I gave you her number a couple days ago, message her and see what she says.”

====

[22:08]

『yamaguchi: hey delta. 』

『delta-y/n: hi yamaguchi! what’s up?』

『yamaguchi: mind telling me about the draco constellation?』

『delta-y/n: sure! did you know that draco means dragon in latin? are you busy after practice tonight?』

====

The days leading up the Karasuno rematch against Seijoh caused all members of the team to practice more intensely than before. There was a sort of electric switch between the students on the team. Even the most rambunctious members were eerily quiet when pondering upon different strategies (Hitoka mentioned it to you Kageyama observed one of the Grand King’s practices where the local university club players played a set against the present team.)

During break, you accompanied Hitoka at the request of Shizumi to the gym. The boys were all seen doing spiking drills with both Sugawara & Kageyama on either side of the net while Noya and the was working on his defense. You quietly observed the ambient sounds of the sneakers squeaking against the polished gym floors followed by the echoes of “toss to me!” from the players’ lips.

“Yacchan,” you whisper to your friend.

“Hmm?” Hitoka replies. Her hands are looking at the notes Shizumi handed her when you both arrived.

“I thought they were on individual practice again?”

“They are, but they do need to practice as a team.”

“Can’t argue that logic, Yacchan. I’m going to head back early. I haveTakeda-sensei’s class next & we’re covering Nakajima works.”

You tap the blonde girl’s shoulder paired with a nod and you left, the commanding sound of Sawamura’s voice echoes.

After classes had concluded, you were once again at your locker switching out your school shoes for your boots again. The skies above were cloudy and overcast with the weatherman stating there would be no reason to bring an umbrella until tomorrow. Hitoka mentioned to you that she was on cleaning duty for her class via text, stating if you wouldn’t mind, she was going to send one of the boys from the club to walk with you in her stead. You were honestly surprised a bit because as far as you knew, not very many of them (with the exception of your fellow first year compatriots) knew which neighborhood your parents house was.

You were lost in your own thoughts over thinking about how you did on your science exam as well. You didn’t really prepare for it, considering it was going to be about planetary systems, it should be a breeze. Well, except for the physics involved, but who is counting? your inner voice sasses you. You finish tying your laces and closing the door to your locker to let out a surprised gasp when you saw Yamaguchi walking in your direction. Tsukkishima apparently wasn’t with him considering his individual practice was with his brother’s neighborhood team that evening, allowing for this conversation to happen between Yamaguchi & you.

“Hey Delta-chan,” he greeted. Yamaguchi waved and you did the same.

“Oh hi, Yamaguchi-kun. You’re the one who’s gonna accompany me home?” you ask. I am going to get Hitoka back for sending my crush to walk home with me. Maybe she could buy me chocolate milk for a week, you think.

“Is that ok? I was going that way anyway to speak to Coach Ukai’s friend.”

“Sure.” You comb your hair behind an ear and as you turn around, you and Yamaguchi begin the walk home. “So you wanted to learn more about the draco constellation right?”

When you reach the convenience store, Yamaguchi introduces you to his jump-floater teacher: Shimada Makoto. You wave as a silent greeting before humming along with the song on the radio. Your attention was immediately drawn to the connect the dots magazine having an issue for the fall constellations a few aisles away leaving the student and his master to speak in confidence.

“How are your serves coming along?” Shimada asked.

“I’m improving, but I haven’t quite perfected it, but that’s ok,” Yamaguchi answered. His eyes wander to where you were thumbing through another magazine having a featurette on otherworldly planets from neighboring star systems.

“There is always room for improvement, Tadashi-san,” Shimada explains. Then, he notices how his honorary student glances at his school mate who was thumbing through another National Geographic-Japan issue. “But maybe you might feel more determined after you talk to your friend.”

Roughly twenty minutes later, you and Yamaguchi bid Shamada good bye as you both continue walking to your neighborhood. The sun had already begun to set in the twilight hour. Yamaguchi told you stories of his childhood growing up with Tsukki, being bullied for his timid demeanor; in return you told him about the shared sidewalk chalk with Hitoka and the awkward years in middle school where you found your affinity for studying the heavens. At the park that separates your house from theYamaguchi residence, you fish out your pocket telescope from your bag.

“Care to stargaze for a while with me?” you ask him extending the telescope out to him.

“Only if you come to the game we have coming up, Delta” Yamaguchi says.

His cheeks seemed a little more pink because of the way he phrased his statement. In his mind, when Hitoka had told him you might need a little more convincing to come to the match, he wasn’t exactly planning on asking you the week before it was scheduled. To be fair, it was the first time Yamaguchi also took an initiative in asking his crush to cheer him and his team on. His eyes look away from yours for a moment before you answer him. You lower your hand holding the telescope, baffled by his compromise. Your eyes study Yamaguchi’s face, taking into account how the freckles on his face are mini-star clusters you were eager to memorize. He really is good looking up close, you muse thoughtfully as you take a step forward toward him.

With your free hand, you caress Yamaguchi’s cheek so he can turn his face to see yours. He leans into your palm with a surprised sigh escaping his mouth; his blush deepens on the apples of cheeks. The freckles on his skin remind you of the red hues in the photos published on the NASA website earlier that week from the Guggenheim Conservatory.

“OK. I’ll go,” your voice is gentle like the breeze that stirs the leaves in the park. The time space continuum slows for a bit when Yamaguchi puts his hand over yours to remove it from his face. You don’t tell him how handsome you think he is while being bashful around you nor does he tell you clearly how much he was considering sharing his first kiss with you when you tell him you’d go. He leans his forehead against yours, committing the minute features of your face to memory like the scar on your eyebrow when you fell off your bike in second grade and the beauty mark on the top left corner of your cupid’s bow. With a light touch, he slowly lifts your chin up with the tip of his index finger until your face is uplifted toward his. Your breath hitches in your throat in anticipation when you feel your heartbeat pick up quickens its pace.

Yamaguchi dips his head down as if to kiss you fully, but instead you feel his lips brush against yours in a subtle manner.

“If you’re actually planning on kissing me, I suggest you do it now,” you whispered as you press your lips against his own lightly. This mutual feeling between you and Yamaguchi was as bright as a solar flare; the mutual pining ceased as soon as you felt him return your kiss. Timid Yamaguchi was grinning against your pout like he won a lottery for every time your lips met his. When you two pulled apart after the last one, he pulled you into a loose embrace.

“I really like you,” he confesses, still holding your hand. Yamaguchi’s voice for once, is not shaking because of nerves. It sounded as though there was an air of confidence emit from his vocal chords.

“Me too,” you confess too.

Your lips curl upwards into a smile as you close the distance between Yamaguchi and yourself. When you press your lips against his, you feel how well his lips mold on to yours; he catches a whiff of the light mint flavor of your lip balm. The kiss is innocently short when you two break apart. Yamaguchi is quick to notice how smitten he was with you especially seeing your cheeks slightly redden when he kisses your forehead. You glance down at your shoes kicking a small pile of construction dirt away.

“W-we don’t have to go stargazing today Tadashi,” you offer. “I think I’d like it if you take me to the cafe a few blocks away from my house.”

“OK.”

===

[19:43]

『yamaguchi: tsukki. i kissed delta this afternoon. 』

『tsukki: : huh?! YOU DID WHAT?』

====

[20:19]

『delta-y/n: i changed my mind. i’m going to the match on saturday, hitoka. 』

『hitoka-chan: oh~? that’s great. how was the walk home with yamaguchi?』

『delta-y/n: fine actually...he confessed if that’s what you mean. 』

『hitoka-chan: wha~?! yamaguchi did what?!』

『delta-y/n: hitoka, he kissed me & then we went to the cafe this afternoon...』

『hitoka-chan: i’m gonna call you right now delta and you’re gonna tell me e v e r y t h i n g.. 』

#yamaguchi x reader #yamaguchi fluff #hq fluff #delta-y/n is my [y/n]-san

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heartslogos · 3 years

Text

declassified texts from the inquisition’s elite [168]

(310): It's done, I'm done, goodbye veneer of class and dignity it was nice knowing you -

“It’s cute that Theron thinks he had a veneer of class and dignity,” Kallian says. “It’s cute that all of you think that I care about any of this. I thought after the whole Aedan intervention we were done. Why am I back here? Did you run into legal trouble again so soon? And why does Theron think that, of all people, I’m the one who’ll care the most if he comes crying to me?”

“Is that why your phone wont shut up?” Daylen asks, idly spinning his visitors ID badge around a finger. “I thought it was because someone’s finally come for your life.”

“Will the two of you pretend to be nice and civil to each other?” Leliana asks sweetly, tapping the edges of her documents to get them into alignment. “I invited you as guests to the Inquisition for work. Not so that the two of you could be petty and mean.”

“Should’ve called someone else then, because that’s all I know how to do,” Daylen rolls his eyes. “Come on. I took time off for this Leliana. I’m using up my precious, precious time off. What do you need me for? Don’t you have enough egg heads working under you to do whatever research or experiments you need done?”

“Yeah, I get why you need me. I’m the best lawyer you’ll ever find who’s got a clean background. But him? That washed up has-been?”

“Wow, thank you Kallian. I was so worried that my neck was going to snap from my obviously overly sized ego, but you fixed it right away.” Daylen sneers at Kallian across the table. “Would you like me to do the same for you?”

“If you two could be quiet,” Leliana slaps the papers on the table, “So I could tell you what I called you in for, I would appreciate it very much. Honestly. I don’t know who’s worse at this point. You and Kallian or Morrigan and Allistair. Are you even friends?”

“Absolutely not,” Daylen and Kallian say at the same time.

Leliana sighs. “Look. Kallian, I need you to sign on permanently as back up legal. It looks like our operations in your area will be increasing dramatically as the Inquisition increases its presence in the border zones. I also need you to do some seminars and coaching for some of our regulars. Court room presentation, things to look out for, the usual things. We may need access to some of your contacts for our investigations, if you can let us use any. It would help to build on an existing infrastructure in the area rather than feeling out the place from scratch.”

She turns to Daylen next. “And you’re here because, despite the fact that you’ve landed a job completely contrary to what you want to do and so completely opposite the image you project, you’re actually decent at it. The Maker works in strange and mysterious ways that often make little sense to us. Once your current year is up with your school, would you be interested in working with the Inquisition as one of the child care givers on our insight school and care center for Inquisition employees?”

Daylen’s eyebrows raise. "What, you couldn’t find someone else for that? You don’t need me specifically.”

“What I am about to tell the two of you stays in this room,” Leliana says, folding her hands together and looking at them both with complete and dangerous seriousness. Kallian’s brows furrow as she nods and Daylen sighs, closing his eyes as he nods as well.

“The Inquisition will be doing a massive non-essential employee cut in the next year. It will be slow. It will put us in a very bad position. But it is essential. The Inquisition has been breached by spies. And I need to put people I can trust in strategic positions to assist in holding up the Inquisition while gaps are filled, and people I know have a good sense for how to handle things. Both of you are excellent judges of character and have been through hell with me. I trust that you two can handle yourselves and keep an eye out. Will you help me?”

Daylen reaches into his pocket and pulls out a pack of cigarettes. Kallian holds her hand out and he passes her one wordlessly.

Leliana waits as they both light their cigarettes using Daylen’s lighter in complete silence.

“What the fuck,” Daylen says once his cigarette is half burnt down. “You just gonna lay that kind of responsibility on us, Leliana? Last week our biggest problem was Theron being a closet case bisexual and Aedan having an allergic reaction to having actual emotions. This week you’re throwing out shit like intelligence breach and the Inquisition — the entire continent’s premier intelligence agency — restructuring? That’s escalation.”

Kallian breathes out smoke from her nose as she rubs her thumb against the center of her forehead.

“Fuckin’ Elgar’nan’s balls, Leliana,” Kallian says. “That’s heavy.”

“I know.”

“What am I going to tell Lyna?” Daylen asks. “Leliana, I can’t just not tell my fiancé that I’m fucking off from my job to work with the Inquisition. Lyna’s going to have questions. Next thing you know you’ve got the entire crew coming out of the woodworks. Are you planning on hiring everyone you worked with during the Fifth?”

Kallian, “Oh fuck me, you are planning that, aren’t you? Was the whole Theron-Aedan thing a test to see if we all still have it and can work together? Fuck. Are you going to make us work with each other? We barely managed to work together during the gods damned Blight, Leliana. We had a looming and present threat of zombie plague and I could barely keep myself from snapping Daylen’s neck like a damned stick.”

“I would have liked to see you try that,” Daylen snaps, and quickly turns back to Leliana. “Seriously though. That’s not even factoring in your existing structure. Do you think the current members of the Inquisition can play nice with us? Or we’ll play nice with them? You know how headstrong literally everyone we know are. You can’t get so many characters working together and expect it to go well. Alim Surana alone is…well. Alim Surana.”

“I’m relying on the fact that several of our members are so closely interconnected anyway that it’ll reduce some of the friction. Also, I hope to have all of you spaced out across Thedas enough that you wont start stepping on each other’s toes.”

#heartsfic #gather your party and venture forth

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freddiesaysalright · 5 years

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Dancing With Ben Week 11

A Ben Hardy x Reader Fic Redemption Week - Jive 2.0

Summary: Reader is one of the pro dancers on Dancing With the Stars. It’s her second season on the show, and this time, her partner is none other than Ben Hardy. Will they win the Mirror Ball? Maybe they’ll win something even more meaningful!

Word Count: 3.5K

Tag List: @psychosupernatural, @someone-get-a-medic, @twigleektribute23, @ionlyhavepicturesofflowers, @asquiresofftime, @caborhapch, @iwasnothingbutacityboy, @a-kind-of-magik, @anxious-diabetic, @royalblueviper, @toms-irish-girl, @doingalrightt, @borhapqueen92, @angiefangirlworld-2, @ziggymay, @pink-lemo, @riddikuluslypotter, @wearewiththebands, @i-was-born-like-this, @prince-lucifer-v, @mariekuuuuuh, @teenwolflover28, @minigranger, @7-seas-of-fat-bottomed-girls, @theprettyfandom, @sam-mercurry-sixx, @reddies-stanlon, @irlkell, @deakyismydad, @kimmietea, @lelifesaver, @simmisblog, @crazylittlethingcalledobsession, @kyleetheeditor, @painkiller80, @bensrhapsody, @rrrogahtaylahhhh, @multisuperbananas This story is almost over, but if you’d like to be tagged for the last couple parts, let me know!

A/N: So! Some fun stuff in this one! I included a fun dance for rehearsal since the routine they’re doing is a repeat! I like fun new dance content y’all. Also, a lil BoRhap reunion in this one! Hope y’all enjoy!

Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7 Week 8 Week 9 Week 10

Week 11 here we go!!!

“We made it to the semi-finals!” you cried excitedly, hugging Ben as you entered rehearsal together. “Can you believe it?”

“Hardly!” he returned through a laugh. “We’ve been working so hard, and it feels like it’s really paying off.”

“I know!” you said. “I’m so proud of you, I could scream!”

“Please don’t scream,” he chuckled.

“I won’t, but oh my God! This is amazing!”

You beamed at each other for a moment.

“So, what’s this week’s dance?” he wondered.

“I actually don’t know,” you told him. “This week is the week we re-do a dance we did earlier this season to show how much you’ve improved. One of the judges will meet us here and will tell us which dance they’d like to see us do again.”

“I hope they choose the waltz,” he said.

You chuckled. “But we just did that one.”

He shrugged. “Yeah, but I really loved it.”

“Me too,” you agreed. “But until the mystery judge gets here, I brought some friends to keep us company during rehearsal today.”

His brow furrowed. “Who?”

“Come in, guys!” you called.

Through the door came Rami, Joe, and Gwilym. The latter two had flown in to see the semi-finals and finals of the show and support Ben. They were certain he’d make it to the finals and wanted to be in the audience this week and next. Ben gave a cry of delight and leapt into their collective arms. They all laughed as they embraced him and told him what a great job he was doing. Joe and Rami came over to say hello to you again, hugging you and pecking your cheek. Then Gwilym approached to introduce himself.

“Gwilym Lee,” he said, extending his hand.

“Y/N Y/L/N,” you replied. “It’s wonderful to meet you.”

“You as well,” he returned. “Ben hardly shuts up about you in our group chat, so I’m excited to see you in person.”

You laughed. “That’s funny, he hardly shuts up about the three of you to me.”

Ben bear hugged Gwilym from behind and kissed his neck.

“Thank you for coming all this way,” he murmured.

Gwil patted his arm softly and smiled. “Of course, Ben. We wouldn’t miss it.”

“What dance are you doing this week?” Joe wondered.

You explained to him what you had explained to Ben about it being a redemption week, so neither of you knew yet.

“I hope it’s the salsa,” Rami said. “Maybe you’d get to come back, Joe.”

“I don’t know if my body could take that,” Joe laughed. “That was tough. Although, Y/N is a wonderful teacher.”

“Thank you, Joe,” you returned. “You’re an excellent student.”

You all chatted for a bit while you waited for whichever judge to come in. After about ten minutes or so, you hear the door open.

“Knock, knock,” came the voice of Len Goodman.

“Len!” you cried.

He came over and shook hands with you and Ben. He offered a little wave to the rest of the boys. Then he smiled widely at you and your partner.

“Well, I am glad to see you two,” he said kindly. “And I’m glad I’m your special coach this week. You two have done so well and are at the top of the leaderboard. Oh, and congratulations on making it to the semi-finals.”

You and Ben both thanked him.

“This week, the other judges and I want to see you dance your jive again,” he continued. “We thought your jive was great, but now that you’re a real dancer, you can make it outstanding.”

“Okay,” you said with an excited clap. “I’m ready to get started.”

“Just a moment,” Len said. “You’ve brought some friends, but I’ve also brought friends of my own.”

You and Ben exchanged a confused glance.

“Not to worry, Ben,” Len said. “You’ve met them before. Please say hello to Brian May, Roger Taylor, and Adam Lambert!”

“Shut the fuck up!” you yelled, your hands covering your mouth right after.

The three men walked through the door of the studio and your heart skipped several beats. You thought you might pass out. You actually stumbled but Ben caught you. When you were steady, he joined the other boys in greeting the band. You looked at Len, dumbfounded.

“Wh - how?” you wondered.

“They’re all in town and they offered to come and play the song for you and Ben to dance to,” he explained.

You gave Len a hug and then watched while Ben, Rami, Gwil, and Joe talked with the band. Your heart fluttered again, and you weren’t sure what to do. Your thirteen-year-old self’s head was exploding at the idea of being in the same room as Roger Taylor.

“Y/N, get over here,” Ben said. “Say hello.”

On shaky legs, you approached. You shook each of their hands and they introduced themselves.

“Hello,” you choked out. When had you gotten emotional?

Ben wrapped his arm around your shoulder and squeezed. “Queen’s music means a lot to her.”

“It does?” wondered Roger.

“Yeah,” Ben said. He looked at you and gently nudged you. “Tell them.”

“Oh, it’s...not important,” you said.

“That’s not true,” Ben replied. “Go on, tell them.”

You cleared your throat. “Well, um, my parents met at a Queen concert, so I was raised on the music. My mother passed unexpectedly, and your music was always my way of feeling close to her.”

“What a lovely sentiment,” Brian said.

You nodded. “I’m honestly in shock that I’m even here with you guys right now. I mean, growing up I was this oddball because my friends were all into Justin Beiber and Zac Efron, and I had Roger Taylor on my ceiling.”

They laughed at that. Then they hugged you and you thought your heart might explode because holy shit you were hugging Brian May and Roger Taylor.

You looked at Adam. “And you’re honestly amazing!”

He hugged you as well. “Thank you, sweetie.”

“Well, you’ve got a bit of an audience, I think it’s time to start rehearsal,” said Len.

The boys and the band moved to the side. You looked at Ben.

“How much of the jive do you remember?” you asked.

“All of it,” he said.

You raised a skeptical eyebrow at him. “All of it?”

“Yeah,” he said with a shrug. “You don’t believe me?”

“Not for a second, Hardy,” you said.

“Wanna bet?” he challenged.

“Fine,” you returned. “If I win...I get to tell Joe where you’re ticklish.”

“She knows where you’re ticklish?!” Joe cried indignantly.

“Fine,” Ben agreed with a smirk, ignoring Joe. “If I win, you have to do the routine you did to Body Language when you were captain of your college dance team.”

The others chuckled.

You mouth fell open. “How do you know about that?!”

“Your dad showed me the video,” he returned.

You narrowed your eyes at him. “Bring it, Hardy.”

He laughed. “Let’s go.”

You started the music. You felt pretty confident initially because you did the jive so long ago. Ben had to miss a step. But as you danced, you got nervous. He was doing really well. You briefly considered tripping him or something but you didn’t want to play dirty. If you were going to win it was going to be fair and square.

You suddenly remembered when you were first teaching Ben this dance and you had missed a step. He had teased you for it at the time - and a few times since then - and his eyes teased you now, as if he were remembering it as well. You focused.

Sadly, you lost the bet. Ben did know the entire jive routine from start to finish and performed it well. When the last notes of the song played, you huffed irritably. He laughed as he backed away toward the wall with the rest of your “audience” in rehearsal. Of course, you were doing this on a day when there were tons of guests in the room.

“I can’t believe you’re making me do this in front of Roger and Brian,” you grumbled.

“Shouldn’t have doubted me then,” he replied.

“Okay, let the record show, I was a VERY amateur choreographer at the time and I only did half these moves because there was a boy on the football team whose attention I wanted.”

Ben raised his eyebrows. “Oh, really?”

“Yes, really,” you snapped. “And I gotta say - worked like a charm.”

He frowned and you headed to the other end of the studio with a little smirk of your own. You started the music, this time with Body Language and began.

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The routine was only a minute or so, and was sexy in an almost silly way. It was a lot of pelvic thrusts and hair flips instead of real choreography, but at the time, it was a big moment for you because it was your first routine you had ever choreographed on your own. You were not nearly as proud of it now.

As you danced, though, you couldn’t help but smile, despite the slight embarrassment you felt at performing this in front of members of Queen. It was funny because Ben’s idea was backfiring a bit. He swallowed as he watched you, and heat rose to his cheeks. You lost the bet, but you couldn’t help feeling just a bit victorious.

When you finished, everyone clapped as you took a sarcastic bow. Laughing, you made your way over to them.

“Well, that would certainly have my attention when I was that age,” Roger joked.

“Like I said, it worked,” you replied.

“The guy went out with you?” Gwilym asked.

You nodded. “Yeah. But then he ghosted me shortly after. Not to worry, though, I got him back.”

“How?” asked Joe eagerly.

“Oh, no,” you said. “I’m not telling that story with cameras on me.”

Joe and Ben both opened their mouths to ask more, but Len interrupted.

“Enough messing about,” he said. “We’ve got a dance to perfect.”

You nodded in agreement, and he started giving feedback on the dance again. He offered suggestions about how you could add to the routine here and there to make it more advanced now that Ben was a better dancer. When you incorporated them, you could tell it made the routine a lot stronger. It really showed what Ben had learned.

Also, you added a gap where you and Ben would rest while Brian played the guitar solo. Brian insisted that wasn’t necessary, but you cut him off.

“Sorry, Brian, but it’s too iconic,” you joked. “Legally, we have to let you play it.”

He chuckled and didn’t argue anymore. After a while, Brian, Roger, and Adam left to do their own rehearsal, but not before they all told you how great the dance was. Ben’s castmates stayed. They said a fond goodbye to the band though, and you thanked them again for doing this for you.

When rehearsal was over, the guys were making plans to go to dinner.

“Y/N, you wanna come?” Joe wondered.

“Oh, you guys can catch up,” you said, although you were sad about losing the time with Ben. “I don’t want to intrude.”

“You’re not at all,” Gwilym assured you.

“Yeah, don’t worry about that,” Rami added. “Lucy’s meeting us at the restaurant as well.”

You found Ben’s eyes and he gave you a pleading look. You smiled.

“Alright,” you agreed.

As you all took seats around a table at the restaurant, greeting Lucy as you went, Joe looked at you.

“Alright, I wanna hear the story of how you got that guy back who ghosted you,” he said.

“Oh, God, I was hoping you’d forgotten about that,” you groaned.

“I want to hear this story as well,” Ben said, looking at you.

You sighed. “Okay, this is super embarrassing, but that guy was my first time. He took my virginity, then he didn’t talk to me for four days, when I saw him at a party. He tried to talk to me, but I ignored him and started flirting with his friend. Later in the night, I literally looked him in the eyes while I took his friend upstairs.”

“Holy shit!” Joe cried, an amused smile on his lips.

“That’s amazing,” Lucy said.

“The funniest part is that I didn’t even sleep with his friend,” you said. “I just made him think I did. And they’re still not friends.”

You took a triumphant sip of your drink as they laughed. You enjoyed the rest of dinner with them, laughing and joking as you held Ben’s hand under the table. You were so grateful to go into the final weeks of the competition with such support. Ben’s friends were incredible.

That night, as you lay beside him, your mind ran wild. You were having so much fun with Ben, and his friends, but their arrival just hit home yet again that your time together was dwindling down. You were at the bottom of the hourglass. You looked over at his sleeping form, his chest rising and falling evenly in his sleep, and tried to imagine sleeping without him there beside you. Your heart broke at the thought.

The next day, you had Ben all to yourself in rehearsal. It was nice. You adored everyone who was at rehearsal the previous day, but you truly treasured your time just together now. He was doing really well since he remembered the routine and you were only having to make slight adjustments.

Dress rehearsal and camera blocking was super fun since you got to rehearse with Queen and Adam playing for you. The other remaining couples were jealous of your celebrity performers. They were incredibly kind to everyone and signed a few autographs for people. You had already gotten one for your father. As well as several selfies.

As quickly as it started, the week was over. It was showtime again. This showtime was a lot more exciting since you’d be dancing with Queen and Adam Lambert, but still it felt like time was slipping away from you.

You and Ben were dancing first because the band had to leave before the show ended to catch a flight. Your video package was entertaining because you got to see just how shocked you looked to see the band, even if they did have to bleep out a few words. You smiled at Ben before taking your places. Then you started.

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Dancing with Queen playing felt like a dream come true. And the fact that it was with Ben made it all the dreamier. You dance to your favorite band, with your favorite person in your arms. When you took the break for Brian to play, you couldn’t hold back the yell of support for his talent as you pumped your fist in the air. Ben laughed at you, but quickly recovered to dance again. When you finished, the audience went crazy for the band. Claps and screams and whistles drowned out the ballroom. You and Ben were just as enthusiastic as Brian, Roger, and Adam took a few bows.

When it all died down, you and Ben waited for the judges remarks. Len went first since he was your coach for this one.

“Well done to Queen and Adam, I must say,” he began with a nod to the band. “And you two. Well, it was just fantastic. I mean, you just blew me away. The foot work, your frame, the content of the dance, it was all perfect. Ben, no matter what happens, you’ve won this competition.”

The audience all cheered, and you heard Joe’s voice above the others scream that he loved Ben. Ben laughed and blew him a kiss.

“Ben!” Bruno cried. “The first time you did this dance, we knew you were a serious competitor. Now, you are looking like a champion! Like Len said, your technique was incredible and you really looked like you were having the time of your life out there. Well done, my boy, well done.”

“I’m always having the time of my life with Y/N,” Ben replied, squeezing your shoulder.

You giggled and kissed his cheek while the audience fawned over you.

“You guys are so sweet,” said Carrie Ann during her turn. “Ben, you have proven, week after week, just how much you belong in this competition. And you just proved it again. Perfect, perfect dance, Ben. And if you’re not in the finals then I’m gonna - I dunno - riot in the streets.”

You all laughed. Tom instructed you to head to the skybox to get your scores. Erin greeted you warmly.

“You guys!” she cried. “That was amazing! What was it like to dance with Queen playing for you?”

“Oh, it’s - I feel like I don’t even have words,” Ben said. “Do you?”

You shrugged. “No, not really! It was so amazing!”

“So, Y/N, I wanna ask you,” she said. “You’ve been to this point in the competition before. What do you feel like is different between now and then?”

You considered that. “Well, that’s tough to say. Dancing with Ben is different because we have a connection that is hard to describe. Not that James and I weren’t connected - we were - but Ben is just easy. We dance together and it feels natural and fun and perfect. He’s...everything I could ever hope for in a partner and friend.”

You wrapped your arms around his waist and pulled him close to you. He grabbed your head and kissed the top of it.

“You’re perfect, baby,” he murmured, his mouth avoiding the mic. “I love you.”

“That is so sweet,” Erin said, responding to your words as you broke away from Ben. “This partnership has been such a joy to watch. You guys ready for your scores?”

You both nodded and looked anxiously at the judges.

“Ten!” Carrie Ann cried, holding up the paddle.

“From Len,” Len said. “A ten!”

“Ten!” Bruno added with a punch to the air.

“Another perfect score!” Erin said excitedly. “Ben, what does all of this mean to you?”

He ran a hand through his hair and sighed heavily. “I can’t - I can hardly believe this. I owe it all to Y/N for being patient with me and supporting me and just being the greatest teacher.”

He cradled your face in his hands and pressed his forehead to yours as you both grinned.

“I can’t say it enough, you two are adorable,” Erin said. “Back to you, Tom!”

Tom took the show to commercial. The rest of the show went great and the other couples were amazing, but you and Ben were still at the top of the leaderboard.

At the end of the show, nerves turned your stomach. This was it. If you and Ben survived elimination, you would be finalists. You stood on the stage, holding Ben tightly to you again. You knew that the show was almost over anyway, but even just one more week with Ben was important to you. Every second felt vital.

“The first couple to dance in the finale is…” Tom began, and he announced Emma and her partner.

Ben squeezed you again.

“The second couple going to the finale is…” Erin said. She announced Alan and his partner.

You rubbed Ben’s back and gripped his jacket. It was down to you and Ben and Witney and her partner. They had been trailing you all competition. And they had loads of support on social media. You were actually worried.

“And the final couple heading to the finale, to dance for the coveted mirror ball trophy is…” said Tom.

You buried your face in Ben’s chest. Could this be it? Could you really have made it this far only to lose now? You weren’t ready to say goodbye. Your heart couldn’t take it.

“Ben and Y/N!”

You were so relieved, you could only grip Ben tighter. He released a sigh and lifted you off your feet. You were thankful he did because you feared you might collapse. Tears escaped your eyes and trailed down your cheeks, but Ben gently wiped them away as you both laughed. The roar of the audience sounded quiet compared to the thundering of your heart. You had one more week at least.

As Tom closed the show you and Ben went over to say goodbye to Witney and her partner. They said a kind congratulations to you and Ben.

Then Joe, Rami, and Gwilym were upon you, hugging you and Ben and also shouting their congratulations. You were excited to go to the finale, and the idea of winning the mirror ball was thrilling. But there was still a bittersweetness there. You had one more week together, yes. But that was all you had.

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