#i mean i know sometimes notifications don’t deliver but I’m still embarrassed i even said anything

[explode-this]

Is it the ADHD or the autism that makes me feel embarrassed to be alive? 🤔

[boom-bakugou]

‘Wedding Crashers’ - Katsuki Bakugou

A/N: Sorry for my inactivity but here’s a little sorry and thank you present for me hitting 1k! I love you all sm <3

Pairings: Pro Hero!Bakugou x F!Reader

Warnings: 18+, ooc deku; but it’s more of a headcanon, semi-public sex

Summary: Your ex-boyfriend Izuku Midoriya inviting you to his wedding is a definite stab in yours and Katsuki Bakugou’s backs. But you’ll show him.

Word Count: 5k

masterlist

You had considered your morning to be relatively normal, breakfast not burnt, coffee just that right amount of bitter to stir you awake. But those happy moments of peaceful bliss were soon to be fleeting as your mail arrived. Sifting through the pile to what you assumed would be bank statements and bills; your fingers landed on a cream white envelope. Your name printed neatly in a cursive font that when you followed it with your eyes for too long it almost made you want to puke. Tearing it open haphazardly, you read the perfumed content inside.

‘Dear Y/N Y/LN,

We are very proud to invite you to the blah blah blah wedding of pro hero blah blah Izuku Midoriya and blah blah blah.

RSVP blah-‘

Wait what? The taste in your mouth was pitiful. Yes, you and Izuku had dated years prior and after being childhood friends, yet it didn’t end… swimmingly. But this didn’t feel like inviting a childhood friend to your happiest day, no, this felt like a backhanded swipe at your ex-girlfriend who was well known to the media to be single. Pro-Hero gossip magazines made sure of that.

Throwing the invitation onto your countertop, your eyebrows furrowed with spite. You felt weak almost, watching your ex-best friend grow up to be this bountiful hero with merch in every store that you went to. Though you had triumphed well in the hero charts yourself, nothing ever seemed to compare to him. The golden boy. You never really got over the fact that he ended things because being a single hero was more postable than one who was tied down. Until now. Mr. Big shot getting married. It really made you question your integrity,

Recuperating your thoughts, you realised your phone was buzzing on the couch next to you. Checking to see the influx of text messages, you saw Katsuki Bakugou’s name fill up your lockscreen with notifications.

Bakugou: tell me you got the stupid fuckin invite too

Bakugou: the nerve that nerd still fuckin has

Bakugou: inviting his childhood ‘friends’ after all this time

Bakugou: tch, one big publicity stunt if you ask me

You chuckle as you scroll through the messages, gladly knowing that you weren’t the only one feeling this way.

Y/N: so what’re we going to do about it?

Bakugou: what do you mean?

Y/N: well we can’t show him up at his own wedding but we can sure stir something of our own

Bakugou: well that idiot is marrying some nobody extra

Bakugou: probably to show how ‘great’ he is

Bakugou: so how about if two top pro heroes rsvp’d together?

Y/N: you mean us?

Bakugou: no, midnight and grape juice. of course us you idiot

The idea brewed in your head for a moment. Izuku had always been nice when he was younger, and Katsuki hadn’t exactly been the nicest towards him in return. You were always the mediator in those situations. However when Deku grew and grew in the hero charts he started to lose touch with reality. Not really remembering what being a hero was about besides having his face stuck on a lunch box and raking in the dough for it. It was sad. You didn’t know who he was anymore.

Y/N: fuck it, i’m in

-

“You know, don’t think I’ve ever seen you in a tux before.” You chuckle, arm linked around Bakugou’s as you stepped out of the chauffeured car together. You were here to make a scene. Paparazzi glistened everywhere like a moth to a candle flame. You couldn’t wait for the tabloids in all honesty.

“Shut up.” Bakugou grumbled, almost in embarrassment. But his smile didn’t show a hint of it. “Not looking too bad yourself.”

You had coordinated well. Your maroon dress flowed in the gentle summer breeze and matched perfectly to Bakugou’s equally coloured tux. You two were such a pair it was nigh impossible to not think that you two were together today. And the paparazzi made sure of that indefinitely.

You couldn’t lie about how the service was beautiful, because it was. However you didn’t need to hear the shutter clicks of a camera go off every few words they spoke. It was distracting, and you and Bakugou shared a glance each time it occurred. Stifling a giggle, you hoped no camera would pick that up. Even if they did, they’d probably pin it to ‘look at these other heroes wishing that they were the next to get married!’ they’d eat that shit uplike ambrosia.

“Can’t wait to see the reception.” You mumbled towards Bakugou, your plastic smiles never fading for the cameras. Izuku making a show of himself and his new bride.

Watching him was almost bittersweet. The happy memories of you three as children flashing behind your eyes. Now replaced with a fame hungry number one hero. Where had all the time gone?

“What’s got you so perplexed?” Katsuki asked, filtering your way through the crowd, making your way to the cars that would deliver you all to the reception.

“Just-“ You sigh, allowing the cover of other heroes to hide you from the all seeing eyes of the paparazzi. “I miss him, y’know? Miss how we used to be.”

“Tch.” Bakugou didn’t care about the scowl present on his face, your words ate him up like some sort of bacteria. “Thought you said that he was the most selfish guy you’d ever dated?”

“He was but like-” You watched Izuku’s back as he held his new partner’s hand. Waving to the cameras and not watching her, as lovely as she looked in her wedding gown. “As weird as it sounds, I sometimes miss high school.”

Bakugou’s eyes scanned your face, following your eyesight to Midoriya. Fucking extra. The thoughts swam around his head, polluting his mind. He knew Izuku’s break up with you had been a massive toll on your mental health and your ego. He made you think that you weren’t good enough for him, and Bakugou never got over that fact. How could he pass up on you for anything else?

Breaking apart from the conglomerative of wedding-goers, Bakugou lead you to one of the specially hired cars to take the guests to the reception. Despite Bakugou’s abrasive and rough nature, you couldn’t help but notice how delicately he held your hand. Not tugging you along or haphazardly grabbing you by your wrist, making you follow him. No, his fingers interlaced with yours and you felt the coarseness of his palms due to the explosive nature of his quirk.

“Katsu?”

“Hm?”

“You can let go of my hand now, we’re in the car.”

“Yeah- whatever.”

Catching up in the car, you both realise how little time you have to actually spend with each other. Though you and Bakugou communicate 1000 times more than you do with Midoriya, heroing keeps you both busy. No times like these to goof off and be with each other. You missed it, you missed your hot-headed idiot friend.

“Hope there’s less fuckin’ paparazzi here. Think I’m gonna go blind with those extras pointing them in my face.” Bakugou rolled down the tinted window a smidge to watch as the car drove into an old looking manor hall where guests had already begun to arrive.

Flowers decorated the ground and just as you two got your hopes up, you saw a line of paparazzi at each side of the staircase leading to the double-doored entrance.

“Well, it was worth a try.” You remark to him, patting his back as you chuckled to him.

Bakugou was the first to exit, standing beside the door so he could reach for your hand to help you out while you fixed your dress. Just as the two of you began to reach for each other's arms to walk into the reception together; there was a brusque tug to your dress. Upon further inspection, a member of the shutterbugs had stood on a long section of your dress. Allowing himself to get pictures of it stretched out and flowy.

“Hey!” Bakugou didn’t waste time on pushing him off the tail end of the dress. “Try anything funny like that again with my girl and say goodbye to that shitty camera of yours!”

The man nodded, slowly letting his camera hang loose on his neck. The rest of the cameramen easily caught the scene but you both couldn’t care less. What’s a wedding without a little drama?

“Thanks Katsuki.” You note with a soft smile.

Bakugou’s hand tenderly makes its way around the small of your back until his arm is holding you close to him as you walk inside. His hand sitting in a caring way at your hip to assure that nothing could come between you both. You could not wait for the media to plaster this fake-ness on every outlet that they could! However, you liked the thought of relishing in the attention right now.

Once the dining festivities had come and gone. It was time for their first dance. Watching as he held her under the blue lighting had your heart hurting slightly. The thought that that could’ve been you. But Bakugou was right. He’s probably marrying some quirkless nobody not only to make himself look better, but being with another hero is messy. You both had media eyes on you; but… you couldn’t help but wonder how different your life would be like if Midoriya was how he used to be.

You didn’t even notice Bakugou’s eyes on you the whole time. Not wanting to waste a second of his eyesight on the show Izuku was putting on. You were a sight of your own. How could you not see that you deserved someone better? Someone like him. You always spoke about how everyone was under a facade when supporting Deku, but you never correlated that to yourself.

After a short while, others began to join in on the large dance floor. Perfectly spacious for all the famous faces and their egos. Bakugou’s hand traced down your arm until his hand clasped with yours, gently leading you to the floor yourselves.

“What’re you doing?”

“Come on, who’s to say we can’t have some fun too huh?”

Smiling at him, you followed his lead. His hand occupying your waist before pulling you in closer to his chest. Flowing with the music, you couldn’t help the cheesy smile on your face; nor the one that spread to Bakugou’s.

“Why’s no one ever tied down Mr. Ground Zero then?” Your question takes Bakugou by surprise, showing a small blip in your combined graceful swaying to the music.

“No ones good enough.” Such a Bakugou answer.

“You’re sounding like Izuku, but he probably got that from the old you.” You jested, earning an eye roll from Bakugou. “I’m being serious! Come on you can tell me.”

It takes him a moment to figure out an answer, so much so that he doesn’t focus on dancing anymore. He just stands there holding you before locking eyes again.

“Just haven’t found the right person to deal with my bullshit I guess.”

There’s a beat of silence and your eyes search his face for answers. You didn’t even realise how close you were to him. His breath fanning your face, the smell of oak and fire and burning sweetness engulfed your senses. You also didn’t realise how the two of you sank closer and closer into one another.

“Hey Kacchan, mind if I steal her from you?”

Izuku’s voice almost sends you two flying away from each other like same sides of a magnet.

“Ask her yourself she’s not mine.” You turn from Bakugou to give a friendly smile to Midoriya, allowing your hand to rest in his. “I’ll be at the bar. Free drinks and all.”

His answers are short, curt. Yet before you can ask him if he’s alright Deku spins you and begins to dance with you in his arms at the tempo of the new music track that’s playing.

“Long time no see Y/N!” His manner has always been so chipper, despite the facade of it all. Though Bakugou and you went there to purposefully to cause discourse; you don’t think you have it in you to be mean to Izuku’s face.

“Yeah, look at you! Married man now, must be scary.” You chuckle, almost nervously. It was like speaking to a stranger.

“Well I guess I’ll find out! But come on that’s been the subject of the whole day! I wanna know about you and Kacchan.” You felt like Bakugou right now, the old nickname boiling your blood as it did his. There was no doubt Izuku took influence from Bakugou and his fiery personality; but he took it in all the wrong ways. Using confidence to become cold, uncaring.

“Oh- haha, Katsuki and I aren’t-“

“Y/N. Don’t lie to me! I can see the way he’s burning holes in my tux from over here.”

Turning you to the music so you could face where Katsuki was standing, you peaked behind Midoriya’s arm to see Bakugou with an all too familiar scowl on his face. Chasing down a beverage in a crystalline glass in one easy gulp.

“If you ask me Midoriya he’s always looked at you that way.” You laugh your statement off but you meant it with malice.

“Midoriya? Feeling formal today are we Y/N?” He had completely lost touch of who he used to be. “I used to look at you like that when I saw you with other guys, I know what that look is.”

His comment stops you dead in your tracks, not allowing for him to swing you to and fro to the music.

“Actually Midoriya I don’t even remember you looking me with jealous intent other than when I was higher than you on the hero charts.” Shaking yourself free from his towering position on you, you stormed off to the patio doors, letting yourself be eaten by the oncoming darkness of night.

Crying at your ex’s wedding. Not something you’d think you’d ever do in your lifetime but here you were. Thankfully you couldn’t see any reporters or such outside so for now, it was just you and your tears. Maybe you were too harsh on him? You used to be friends right? What happened to that kid who wanted to be a hero who you looked up to? What happened to the boyfriend you had who kissed you goodnight and ignored you when your face was on the TV more than him or snapped at you when he was announced lower than you and broke up with you because ‘heroes dating are messy!’ No. Bakugou was right. He was a self-righteous bastard now.

“Y/N?”

You half expected Midoriya to come out after you but he was probably entertaining other guests. Luckily, as you turned you saw Bakugou standing outside with you, signature hands in his pockets with a dumb, sympathetic smirk on his face.

“Hey.”

“I promise I didn’t punch that asshole at his own wedding but I can tell you he got a fuckin’ earful from me. Hope the paps got a good pic.” His tone was joking but it hadn’t cracked a smile from you yet.

“S’alright. Wouldn’t give two shits if you did.” You sniffled, collecting mascara tears on your fingers and wiping them on the decorative concrete bannisters of the balcony. “Shouldn’t’ve fucking come. This was stupid I have too much baggage for this shit.”

You turned away from him, allowing yourself to lean out on the barrier, looking into the distance on the warm night. You could hear Bakugou give a small sigh before his arms snuck around your waist, pulling your back into his chest before placing a chaste kiss on the top of your head.

“That fuckin’ idiot didn’t know what he lost and it’s my fault for influencin’ him.” The pain in his voice was evident. Did Bakugou blame himself for the hurt Midoriya caused you?

“Katsu-“

“No. That extra is so blinded by the shit everyone has to say that he’s forgotten what real life is. Doesn’t care about his stupid fans or his friends or the best most understanding girl in the whole fucking world. A girl I know does the best for everyone no matter what her own situation is.” You turn around to face him, not wanting to leave his embrace. “Y/N. No matter how much I’ve always wanted to fuckin’ win I’ve just wanted the best for you. And when that bastard did what he did to you- I- fuck. You look at him, like you’re waiting for him to just notice you; but every time I see you it’s like I’m seeing you set the stars in the sky every fuckin night. You just- you’re fuckin’ everything to me Y/N.”

It was completely silent on the balcony besides the low thump of the music from indoors, but it was deafening. But it all faded when his lips attached to yours. It was so clear. All that pining over Midoriya when he was just copying the one who actually saw you for who you were. He even copied Bakugou’s crush on you, most likely to make him jealous. But your mind had no time to think of that when all you could feel was Bakugou.

It was like you had never been kissed before, never felt the love and sensuality behind it. Soft and moist but breathy and warm. For once Bakugou didn’t wish to win a battle, he wanted unity and to be together with you. His hands danced over the delicate curves of you in your dress; taking in every inch of your perfect body. The gasp that fell from your mouth was perfect entrance for Bakugou’s tongue to mingle with yours. The sparks hot and electric between you both was like liquid lightning.

Just as your hands found home in his hair, you heard the all too familiar sound of today of a photo being taken. Bakugou is the first to break the kiss to find the intruder of your special moment. Your lips already feel blushed and bruised but your heart was nearly pounding out your chest.

“Fuckin’ print that in your gossip magazine you extra!” Bakugou couldn’t help but heartily laugh at the man as he shook with worry after catching the intimate moment. He wanted to show you off. He wasn’t ashamed that his lips had captured you to be his.

“Let’s go somewhere more private.” He whispers into your ear and you eagerly nod, grasping his one hand with your two as the both of you manouvered your way through the wedding guests until you finally found a small closet down a hallway where no one from the party had entered.

Slamming the door shut behind you, your eyes drank in Bakugou’s frame. How had you missed that small boy you once knew had now become this beefy, beautiful man? Who was looking at you with the same awe and intent? Bakugou cornered you against the door of the supply closet, latching his lips together with yours once again as if he was scared he’d never be able to taste you again.

“You’re fuckin’ perfect.” Katsuki’s lips mashed with yours as his hands slid up your dress, the coarseness of his fingers against your soft skin sending shivers down your spine.

All those years of being a hero really showed on Bakugou, he lifted you with ease as your fingers traced scars on the back of his neck; holding on for support. His hips pin you against the door and you feel his cock hardening between the fabric of your underwear and his suit pants, you can’t help the whimper escaping your lips at the friction of him.

Bakugou’s hands slip under the straps of your dress, letting them fall delicately to your sides as his lips ensnare yours. His grunts and your whimpers enough to make any passerby know what was going on in the confined space of the closet. His fingers glide beneath the dress which allowed it to fall further as Bakugou felt the weight of your breasts in his palms.

“God you’re fucking everything princess.” His fingers slide beneath the lacy fabric to thumb your nipples, perking and tugging it with his forefinger.

Breaking the kiss, his head lowers to encapsulate the bud in his mouth. Gently suckling it before rolling it feverishly between his teeth. Your hands snaking through his hair only spurring the assault on your supple flesh. Biting your lip to stop the obvious moans that were threatening to spill out of your mouth. You swore you could see stars as his tongue flicked against the pointed nub- sending your nerves wild.

“Bet that fucking extra never treated you like this baby.” He matched your height, his gaze never leaving your own as he took both of your tits out of your bra; kneading the flesh and buds of your nipples as he spoke. “Just wanted to get himself off, I know how to fuckin’ treat you right.”

“Then do it… Kacchan.” You spoke with such gusto in your breathy state, knowing that the old nickname would make him see red. And god did it send him feral.

His body pressed you further into the door, even if it felt like he couldn’t. The aching feel of his cock rubbing against your clothed core made you mewl in want of him. His fingers slid beneath the hem of your dress and made little pricking motions into your inner thighs until he traced a slit over your panties.

“Shit you’re fucking wet.” The pads of his fingers kneading against where you wanted him most, a chuckle falling his lips as your hips did their best to try and get any sort of relief.

“Katsuki please- please fuck oh my god-“ Your neck craned back as you felt your body take control. The low growl in Bakugou’s throat at the sight of you barely touched and already begging for him.

Tracing his fingers along your décolletage he stopped when he met your parted lips before roughly shoving his fingers in your mouth, pressing down the body of your tongue.

“Please please please-“ Katsuki mocked. “Please what princess? Better use your fuckin’ words or else.”

An insufferable smirk played upon his lips as he felt your cunt clench around nothing at his dirty words. Pulling his fingers from your mouth, he wiped the remnants of your spit across your tits; awaiting for your response.

“Fuck me Katsuki- please you’re all I want. God you’re all I need.” Although said in your aroused state. You meant it- and he knew that.

Not wasting any more of the precious time you two had before you were inevitably found out considering your blatant disregard for being quiet; Bakugou used his hand to tug off his belt. Nearly setting his suit pants on fire as his quirk crackled in anticipation for you.

Your body clung to Bakugou’s for support, his whole body easily keeping your pinned high between himself and the door. Once his lower half was sufficiently stripped, it was easy enough for him to rip the sides of your underwear off.

“Katsu-“

“Shut up.”

Not wanting to disagree; you did. Hips bucking against nothing as the cool air prickled at your hot cunt. Bakugou held his manhood in his hand, rubbing the head of it in your slick and providing stimulation to your clit. Your thighs tightening around his waist like a vice grip at the well needed attention.

“You’re fuckin’ soaking baby. So needy.” Bakugou mumbled against your neck, allowing himself and you to get off momentarily at the friction. You could only nod to his words which were making you more and more wet for him. He was such a tease.

“Come on princess. Tell me you want my cock. Tell me.” His voice growled as he repeated himself, leaving marks upon your nape that would surely bruise because of his harsh bites and sucklings.

“Katsuki I need you- only you. Only you.” Your repetition is barely a whisper but he heard it, and despite his rough nature Bakugou confines your lips in a kiss as he sheaths himself inside of you.

Taking a few slow thrusts to allow yourself to adapt to his size, it’s only a moment before Bakugou completely bottoms out inside of you. He watches your face shiver in pleasure which he mirrors. He clasps your hips so firmly his knuckles turn white; it didn’t even hurt as all you could focus on was him inside you. Your hands find their way to his biceps, gripping on for some tension relief and you could still feel his muscles flex even beneath his suede blazer and the shirt.

“What a good fuckin’ girl, taking my cock like this.” Bakugou’s voice is a low growl as he thrusts into you, the sounds of your clothes brushing against one another and the slaps of your skin interacting was like a sinful symphony.

The smell of caramel danced in your brain as Bakugou worked up a sweat absolutely pummeling himself into your sex. You grasped onto him as if your life depended on it, moaning into his neck as his cock slid in and out of you. You didn’t even know how much time was passing as he rutted himself into you relentlessly- yet as you both came to your highs, you could both barely move from the thrill of it all.

Steadying your breaths back to a regular pace; Bakugou slid you down from where he had pinned you against the door and let you fix yourself as he then did himself. You sorted your dress and pulled any tugs from your hair when he had pulled it before slapping Bakugou’s arm.

“You dick! You ripped my underwear!”

“Hot.” He chuckled, fixing his belt loops and stuffing the ripped panties into his pocket.

“Not funny! I’m not parading about with no underwear on!”

“We’re getting the fuck out of this extras stupid wedding. You can wear my clothes at my place.” Suitably sorted and not looking like you had just had the brains fucked out of you in a closet (despite the reddening bites and bruises that were now appearing on your neck), Bakugou held you close. Yet instead of taking the corridor to the exit, he was leading you back to the main dance hall.

“Where’re we going?” You hashly whispered to Bakugou, your thighs still wet from your slick and the cool air against your unclothed pussy making you heat up from embarrassment.

“Gots to do one thing before we go.” There’s a shit eating grin on his face, you couldn't help but wonder what on earth he was planning now.

Midoriya stood talking to other heroes all dressed in their formal attire and Bakugou (with no consideration of their conversation) roughly tapped his shoulder to get his immediate attention. His arm around your waist was so tight but being see with Bakugou like this made you feel almost proud.

“We’re just heading off.” Bakugou had replaced his smile for his usual scowl, something he had always looked at Izuku with.

“Going so soon? It’ll be a shame you guys!” Izuku’s voice was plastered in falsehood. He probably regretted trying to gloat over you two. Bakugou held out his hand for Midoriya to shake it, your brows furrowed on what was obviously a stepping stone to Bakugou’s plan.

“I know I might not be better at you right now in the hero charts.”

Uh oh.

“I’m glad you’ve finally come to recognise that Kaccha-“

“But I am better at you at something for sure.”

Bakugou used Midoriya’s hand in his to pull him closer, readying himself to whisper in his ear.

“Cause I just fucked the shit out of your ex-girlfriend and I know you never made her come as hard as I did.”

Your face burned with the heat of a million suns, but the glower on Izuku’s face was priceless. And you couldn’t help but see the flash of a camera capture the moment as Bakugou’s hand fell from his and slipped once again around your waist.

[thefanficmonster]

You Never Notice

Sykkuno x Reader (Female)

Warnings: None

Genre: Fluff

Summary: The center of someone’s world is never aware of their importance even when everyone else is in the know. People are hard to understand, no denying, but if we all spilled our truth like how Y/N admitted her feelings to Sykkuno, mutual understanding would be achieved a lot more easily. JK, she needed an eternity and maybe a thousand pushes. What’s important is the result though, right?

Requested by Anon. You are my first Sykkuno request and I wish I could thank you with a tag. Instead, I’m gonna thank you with a fic in which I put my all. Thank you for the request, hope the final product doesn’t let you down. 🥰

Here we go again. Sykkuno’s love life is brought up. This time it’s more frustrating cause I can’t shout how wrong he is about himself and the effect he has on the people around him. He has no room to speak, he hasn’t experienced what I have - one of your best friends living in your head rent-free because you’re just that whipped by them. That’s right kids, some of us never grow past the middle school crushes - they are a constant for some. That can be a good or a bad thing, it completely depends on how you view it.

Currently, him and Rae are addressing some dating rumors that started spreading about them earlier this week while Felix, Sean and I are kicking each other’s butts in Party Animals. We’re not all playing together, actually, we were all playing different games when we hopped into the call and just grouped together after playing solo got boring. Rae and Sykkuno are playing Among Us on a random server, her being the only person who’s streaming right now. She said she just wanted to clear up the dating rumors cause they were annoying to see popping up on her feed on every social media platform she’s active on.

“It’s ridiculous, really. People just look for online personalities to put in imaginary relationships. Are they that bored? I know quarantine is getting to everyone, but damn“ Rae says, laughing a bit to take the edge off her words but I know she’s bothered by this ordeal more than she’s letting on. I know how much it bothers her when people ship random youtubers and streamers together, even when she’s not involved. 

And I agree. Ever since I started streaming I’ve been shipped with my friends left and right. First Corpse, then Dave, Joel...you name them. It gets kinda gross cause these people are legit like siblings to me. Unlike Rae, though, I don’t waste my breath trying to clear those ‘talks of the net’ up. I don’t know if it’s for better of for worse that I remain silent on the issue when I’m involved but am willing to stand up for my friends when they find themselves in a similar situation. Some people think the reason I don’t share my thoughts is because the rumors are true, but the hint is most often taken, resulting in the ship ending. Well, that ship ending, there’s always a new one popping up. As Rae said, it’s ridiculous.

“Why does everyone think I am ever dating anyone? I’ve already commented on this: no one would date me.“ Sykkuno says through a sigh-like laugh.

“Why are you so sure?“ I blurt out without as much as a second thought

My eyes widen just a bit, just a bit. I’m not too surprised with myself. I am slowly losing control of my raging emotions and I’m afraid of what I’ll turn into when all my restraints snap. A mess, that’s the most likely answer.

“Well....“ Sykkuno trails off, clearly more than a little nervous, “I don’t have a girlfriend right now, and I haven’t had one in a while...Nor has a girl shown any interest to be more than friends with me in what feels like forever.“

“I’m sure you just don’t notice the hints girls drop. We can be pretty subtle.“ I try to sound as nonchalant as possible while I’m still in my panicked animal mode. And by animal I mean a cub. A scared cub that is now showing confidence but will run and hide right afterwards. I silently thank the universe that I’m not streaming right now. I can feel the heat on my neck and cheeks which is pure embarrassment and would have been more than evident on-camera.

“Yeah Y/N’s right, Sykkuno. Girls can be very subtle, but they will always let you know if they like you, even through the smallest of gestures. You gotta keep your eyes open.“ Rae backs me up reassuringly.

“Guys never notice anything.“ I say, rolling my eyes. I feel the pressure lessen thanks to Rae’s involvement in the conversation.

“That’s not true.“ Sean protests, “We pay close attention, especially to girls we are attracted to.“

“Yeah!“ Sykkuno pipes in again, “I’m pretty sure I would notice if a girl was dropping signals that she likes me.“

Now that stings. That legit makes me wince and cringe as though his voice delivered an actual physical hit to my chest and stomach. It’s really unpleasant, painful even.

“You never notice.“ There’s something about this triple opportunity - proving him wrong that he’d catch onto a girl’s signals; proving him wrong that girls aren’t attracted to him; coming clean about the biggest emotional struggle I’ve experienced in recent years; - that snaps my last emotional restraints. I will totally regret this later, but after the regret comes the relief which is 100% worth it. 

“What?“ He sounds very puzzled. I can just about imagine him frowning as he tries to wrap his brain around something even I can’t wrap mine around.

“You say you’d notice a girl’s hints of attraction. OK.“ I nonchalantly throw Felix off the submarine in Party Animals while I keep talking, “Would you notice if a girl purposely doesn’t kill you in Among Us when she’s impostor? Or would you notice that a girl always sends you links to videos she finds funny? Or that she always shares music and movie recommendations with you and you only?“ 

Dead silence ensues. I feel like they have all glitched, considering Sean didn’t even try to put up a fight when I lifted him and threw him in the ocean as I previously did with Felix’s avatar.

Maybe I was a tad too specific and made the whole situation hit a little too close to home for me. 

Sykkuno and I have become really close friends and we chat and play games regularly. As I mentioned, I give him movie and music recommendations and I only recently started acknowledging the fact that I’ve never killed him in Among Us. Natural instinct I guess. In fact, I feel the need for vengeance when he’s killed. I refuse to even vote for him unless it’s absolutely necessary.

Now that I think about it, it’s not his fault he has no clue. I just don’t know how to properly drop hints.  

“Um...I mean, I guess I would notice but I’d never think they are that type of hints.“ He finally replies.

On point there, dear. On damn point.

“What does it take for you to be convinced that a girl is into you?“ Who cares that a bunch of people are about to witness this outpour? It’ll make it more real, yes, but it will also help me believe that it happened so I don’t try to crawl back to the point where return is an option. No return now. You’ve already passed two thirds of the way. The last one will set you and your mind free. 

“The only way I can be sure is if she tells me, really.“ He sounds so nervous and shy, like he’s trying to draw as little attention as possible.

He doesn’t have to worry. I’m about to pull all the attention on me.

“Well in that case....you leave me no other choice.“ My screen displays me as the winner of this round of Party Animals - an easy one considering my friends are glitched in real life. “I like you, Sykkuno. I like you a lot. And I know you will see it from every context except the one its meant to be in so I’ll be even more head-on - I’ve liked you, as more than a friend for quite some time now, but buddy, you can be sooo oblivious sometimes. Anyway...“ Here’s that regret I was talking about, it’s already creeping in. “Don’t feel the need to say it back. I don’t wanna hear it if you don’t mean it. And Rae,“ I can’t help but laugh at the thought, “Sorry for making your chat go crazy. Peace!“

And I disconnect from the Discord call.

“See? That wasn’t so hard, was it?“ I say out loud, staring at my desktop. “The cat’s out of the bag and you can move on now.“

I push myself to get some work done in order to get my mind off the mess I’ve created. I’m afraid of thinking about it, I know I’ll get too upset to do anything with the rest of my day if I do.

Suddenly, just as I’m about to open my email, my phone chimes. My brain doesn’t bother to stop my arm from automatically reaching out and checking the notification. A message.

From Sykkuno.

~ I knew you didn’t suggest me ‘My Best Friend’s Wedding’ for no reason

Me ~ So...?

~ So, I’m not the only oblivious one here, Y/N

Me ~ Wait WHAT?

~ ‘Nick And Norah’s Infinite Playlist’?

Me ~ Oooohhhh...I see

It takes him a few seconds to reply, the bubble with the three bouncing dots popping up and disappearing a few times now. I just now feel my heart banging against the inside of my ribcage, my pulse echoing in my ears.

He did seem a little too eager for me to watch that movie...

~ So, movie date?

I laugh, wholeheartedly and honestly. Genuine joy running through my veins.

Me ~ So it is.

The grin that is now decorating my features promises to stay there for the rest of the day. I bite my bottom lip at the thought that pops into my head.

Me ~ Phew, I can stop sparing you in Among Us from now on

He sends me three cry-laughing emojis in return, but I don’t need those. I can just imagine him laughing as he usually does with one hand covering his mouth. And here I thought my grin couldn’t grow wider.

 Imagining him happy makes me smile. His happiness makes me happy. He makes me happy.

Even better...

I think the feeling’s mutual.

[isitgintimeyet]

Just a Friend

Hope you enjoy the next chapter of this story. Thanks to you all for reading this. You comments are lovely to read.

Thanks to @wickedgoodbooks for the beta

Previous

AO3

Chapter 5: From Facebook to Friends

When I was a little girl, Uncle Lamb would sometimes take me into university with him. I would creep into the lecture theatre and sit at the back watching him as he enthused about Phoenician trade routes, or long gone military strategies. I didn’t really understand what he was talking about, but I loved it anyway. The passion he had for his subject matter thrilled me.

And once the lecture was over, I would join him in his office and we would squeeze together in an old armchair, drinking hot, sweet tea while he tried to explain the principles of a three thousand year old civilisation in words a seven year old would understand.

The armchair is now in my office at the hospital. It looks more than a bit incongruous amongst the standard NHS furniture. The rich green velvet fabric has faded to a shabby eau de nil colour and years of shuffling bottoms have left a large depression in the seat cushion. But I won’t have it reupholstered. I love it as it is. It’s a great reminder of my wonderful uncle. I sit in it and somehow it comforts me, like a soothing hug.

**********************

I glance at the clock as I walk into my office, paper cup of hot, sweet tea in hand, and head straight for Lamb’s chair. Gratefully, I sink into its depths and take a tentative sip of the steaming liquid before closing my eyes for a moment. The surgery was long; much longer than anticipated—having taken all morning and most of the afternoon, in fact. It had also been far more complicated—my original plans for keyhole surgery had to be changed, but, eventually, we completed the operation successfully. I’m always proud of my theatre team, but never more so than in situations like this.

And now, after hours of concentration, I feel in need of some light relief. I can go home, have a wonderfully reviving shower and then what? I know that Dougal is taking Geillis out for a meal tonight, so she’s not available. Mary and Anna are both working nights this week, so no joy there. Other friends live too far away for an impromptu midweek activity.  I could go to the gym. I should go to the gym. Or… more likely, I’ll go home, have cheese on toast, a glass of wine and watch ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ for the fifteenth time instead.

I reach for my phone to check for messages.  A notification for a Facebook friend request appears on my screen. I very rarely get new friend requests—other than the odd random gentleman hoping, I presume, to make some sort of connection. I always delete immediately.

And, yes, the request is from a gentleman—one Jamie Fraser. The profile picture is definitely Samsonite Jamie, even wearing the Scotland rugby shirt I fingered whilst foraging through his suitcase. I click accept. Why not? I don’t think I have anything too embarrassing on my posts. In fact, I don’t use it very often at all.

Neither, it seems, does Mr. Fraser. His cover photo shows a very youthful bunch of Scottish rugby supporters and his recent timeline seems to comprise mostly of being tagged in photos by Laoghaire Mackenzie. Is it my imagination, or does he have a resigned look on his face on each of their ‘selfies’?

My tea is cool enough to drink now without scalding my tongue. I put my phone down and take a large gulp whilst considering tomorrow’s workload. My job is a series of highs and lows. Today, for example, started as routine, slumped to a worrying low, before peaking at a very relieved high. Tomorrow appears to be an easier day, certainly—a review of patients’ case notes in the morning followed by an outpatient clinic in the afternoon. All follow up patients, and all doing well as far as I know, so tomorrow is shaping up to be a very good day.

I open up my phone again. Facebook messenger is encouraging me to ‘say hi to your new Facebook friend.’  Without thinking, I send a little waving hand emoji to Samsonite Jamie.

I have no sooner put the phone down than it pings. Waving hand returned. I smile. What are we… thirteen years old? Next I’ll be asking him out for an Irn Bru and a bag of chips.

Ping again.  

You owe me…

Shit! The stain on his t-shirt, no doubt. I watch the dots on the screen. Perhaps he’s calculating the cost of a dry cleaner, or a new t-shirt.

You promised me an ice cream.

You up for buying one for me tonight?

I hesitate for a moment. I hope Jamie doesn’t think I’m after him or anything like that. I mean, he’s not really my type. As I’ve said before, I’ve always been attracted to academic, cerebral kind of men like Uncle Lamb, rather than Viking marauders.

And I’ve never subscribed to the idea that men and women can’t be friends. One of my closest friends at university was a man—Joe Abernathy.  If it wasn't for the fact that he is currently three thousand miles away, working in Boston, I would be arranging platonic ice cream outings with him.

So, deciding I have nothing to lose, I type my response.

If you can get to the kiosk by 6:30, it should still be open

A brief pause, then the response.

Great. See you there?

****************

Even at a distance, I recognise him sitting at a table next to the kiosk. No white t-shirt today, it looks like some sort of check lumberjack shirt. I breathe a sigh of relief. Not what I would call ‘first date’ clothing. Which is handy, seeing as I’m wearing ripped jeans and an oversized Aran jumper. I’m clean, presentable and fresh-smelling but definitely not dressed to impress.

He stands up when he sees me and greets me formally with a handshake. His hands are warm and dry—no nervous, sweaty palms here, which is another good sign. His shirt is blue, red and cream flannel and actually quite hideous.

“I hope this ice cream lives up tae ma expectations,” he says with the merest hint of challenge.

I crane my neck and look him straight in the eye. “No doubt at all. Cherry bakewell, is it? Double cone?”

“Aye. With a flake too. Compensation, ye ken.”

He stands aside to allow me to make the purchases. Before accepting the cone, he picks up half a dozen or so paper napkins and stuffs them in the pocket of his jeans.

“I’m prepared fer ye now. Do yer worst, Ms Beauchamp.”

I ignore his clear inference and follow him to a nearby bench.

“I can manage to eat and walk at the same time, you know,” I say in mock indignation.

“Hm,” he replies. “All the evidence sae far suggests the contrary. I need proof afore I believe it.”

There’s a moment of silence as we both focus on our ice creams. I lick neatly all the way around, trying to prevent any rogue drips trickling down the cone. Jamie pulls the flake from his cone and consumes it in two mouthfuls. He looks at me and laughs.

“Caught me. I’m a bit of a bugger fer chocolate,” he mumbles before swallowing.

“Right,” he continues, much more clearly now. “I suggest we get all the boring stuff out of the way. Ye ken, name, age, family, job, blah, blah blah. I’ll go first, if ye like.”

I nod my agreement.

“Sae, I’m James or Jamie Fraser. I’m thirty years old. Since our last conversation I am most definitely single. I live in Glasgow, obviously, but grew up on a farm near Inverness. My parents still run the farm. I have one sister, Jenny, who’s married tae Ian, my childhood friend. I have one nephew—a grand little lad known as Wee Jamie and a wee baby niece, Maggie . And I dinna think it’ll be long afore they’re joined by others. They all live here in Glasgow. My job, weel, I have a business—FraserFood—recipe boxes delivered tae yer door.”

“Oh, yes, I’ve heard of that. ‘From farm to fork.” That’s you, is it?”

He smiles proudly. “Aye, it’s me and ma family. Looks like ma marketing manager is doing a fine job, then.”

“Oh, forgot tae say, after the blah blah, ye have tae tell one confession. Only a wee one, mind.” He takes a large mouthful of his ice cream.

I purse my lips. “Really, and what if I’ve nothing to confess?”

Jamie snorts with laughter and does a funny sort of blink, screwing up his face and closing both eyes. Is he trying to wink? If so, he’s failing miserably. I try to look angelic and sin free. Judging by the look of scepticism on his face, It doesn’t seem to be working.

“Sae, my confession is, dah-dah-daaaah,” he does a fake fanfare, trying to build suspense. “I wanted tae be yer friend on Facebook because I wanted tae see if there were any photos of ye in Barcelona, with all yer...er… accessories.”

I feel myself redden. I’ve just remembered catching Geillis on Facebook the other day at work and I’m pretty sure I know what’s coming next.

“Verra interesting… in particular, the one with ye and six penis shot glasses. How d’ye manage tae get two of them in yer mouth at the same time?”

I inwardly curse Geillis and her desire to live her life through social media.

“Excuse me,” I reply somewhat primly. “I don’t think we’re at the Q and A stage yet.”

“So,” I continue in a lighter tone. “Me. Claire Elizabeth Beauchamp. I’m thirty two and I’m a paediatric  orthopaedic surgeon, here at the children’s hospital. I love my job so much, I can’t begin to tell you. As of two weeks ago, I am thankfully single. I was born in Oxford and moved up here when I was twelve, when my Uncle Lamb became a professor at the university. He brought me up, you know. Raised me when my parents died in a car accident... I… er...I was four at the time.”

I can feel Jamie looking at me, but I can’t raise my eyes. Telling people about my parents never gets any easier, no matter how many times I say those words. I concentrate on picking bits of wafer off my cone and throwing them to the ducks loitering nearby, waiting for some sort of treat.

“So it always was just my uncle and me.” I carry on talking. “Then he died… seven...seven years ago…” I can hear my voice start to crack as I fight back tears. A hand creeps into my vision and I gratefully accept the proffered paper napkin and wipe my face.

“Och, lass.” He says softly.

I clear my throat. “I'm sorry. We were having a nice conversation and then there I go, getting all teary. It’s just, well, we were a team, Uncle Lamb and I… the two musketeers. He was my hero.”

Blowing my nose in a most unladylike way, I toss the napkin into the neighbouring bin.

“And that’s pretty much me. As for a confession, well… I suppose it’s kind of one.”

He raises one eyebrow quizzically, making a better job of that than the whole winking lark, I think.

"Ok, well,  when I had your case, I tried to ring before I emailed you. I called the number in your case… twice. A woman answered and told me I had the wrong number—"

"Laoghaire."

"I know that now. But she obviously knew how to get onto your phone."

"Why did ye no' tell me?" He smiles as he says this. It's not a reprimand.

"I would have but you seemed to be coming to a conclusion anyway. No need to add more fuel to the fire."

"Happen ye're right."

He notices me shivering and gets to his feet. “Aye, there’s a bit of a chill. Fancy a wee walk tae warm up and we can carry on wi’ round two. It’s a quick fire round.”

I stand up and we move away from the pond. The ducks have already lost interest in us since they realise that we’ve nothing more to offer them. It’s pretty quiet in the park now, the cooler evening air seems to have kept people at home. The gravel crunching loudly under the soles of our shoes, I glance down and notice Jamie’s doing a sort of awkward stuttering movement with his feet. He’s clearly trying to match his stride pattern to mine. Which isn’t easy when his must be a good few inches longer than mine. Nice, considerate gesture, though.

“Sae, quick fire questions and answers. Ye can go first,” he says generously.

It only takes me a moment to think of a question that I have been wondering about ever since I explored the contents of his suitcase.

“What were you doing in Barcelona? I mean the contents of your case weren’t really fun-weekend-away stuff.”

“Nah, ye’re right. It wasna a holiday—flying visit only. I was there on business—talking tae a food wholesale company. Serrano ham, chorizo, saffron, that kind of thing,” he explains, a look of excitement on his face. “We’re expanding our range, starting with Spanish influenced recipes. A full three courses ready tae prepare, plus wine delivered straight tae yer door. Dinner party FraserFood style.”

He can’t stop smiling as he talks about these plans. And his hands move animatedly as he continues to elaborate on his new venture. His business is obviously his passion. Maybe that’s why he hasn’t got the desire for a relationship with a girlfriend—FraserFood seems to be his one love. No girl could compete.

He stops talking for a moment. “And here I am, boring ye.”

I shake my head. “Not at all, it’s really interesting.” I don’t have to lie. It’s the truth. My mouth is watering at his description of albondigas and flavoursome chicken and chorizo with cannellini beans. I’m ready to sign up for this delivery service any time.

“Sae, ma turn tae ask a question. Tell me, d’ye like this shirt?”

I try to stifle a laugh. The question is so unexpected and the shirt so awful. Trying to be diplomatic, I search for the right words, evading the actual question. “I’ve only seen you in white tops before, no colours.”

He sighs. “Ye’ve only seen me twice afore... anyway I dinna think ye need tae say any more. I ken ye’re being polite, but ye’re a terrible liar. I can tell by yer face ye dinna like this shirt. Laoghaire hated it, always made me change it. I did wonder if that was jes’ her being difficult. But apparently no’.”

“Sorry, I didn’t want to be rude.”

“Ye dinna need tae apologise, Claire. Being honest is a good thing, is it no’? And friends should always tell each other the truth. And that’s what I think we’re going tae be, Claire— friends. D’ye no’ agree?”

I crane my neck  and look Jamie straight in the eye. “Yes, I do… friends.”

[arthurmorgen]

A Tale of Two Animals

Prompt: Modern au, where Arthur and reader are self quarantining with each other, and reader catches Arthur playing on her animal crossing island. - sarcasmwithasideofsass

A/N: I tried XD

Fluff

...

Admittedly, self quarantining hadn't been that bad of an experience for you. In fact, it made you feel more than a little guilty. That while you were cooking meals, binging Netflix, and cuddling with the love of your life. People were sick, losing their jobs, and even dying.

But the way the two of you were living, It was  your idea of paradise...that was until the both of you cleared out your Netflix queue.

Then things got a little rough. Arthur was a man of action, and not having anything to do had made him stir crazy. He was quicker to argue, and sometimes he’d say things without fully thinking them through.

He would always apologize profusely, even when it wasn’t necessary. You knew him, and knew that this was really hard on him. Besides, he never hurt you the way he always assumed he did. He was too hard on himself.

One time it was a little argument over a mug you loved. He had put in the dishwasher, when you’d always carefully hand wash the item.

He’d called it a ‘stupid mug’, and you, being locked up and slightly stir crazy yourself, started to tear up. He apologized on and off for the next hour, and promised to do the dishes for the next month.

A promise that so far he’d fulfilled.  

Then you made the grave mistake, one that you’d regret for the next TEN days, you turned it to a local PBS station and got Arthur obsessed with a damn ten-part horse documentary.

They were an hour and forty five minutes a piece. And it wasn’t really that the footage was so boring, it was the narration. The man’s voice was calming, almost too calming, and would put you to sleep within minutes. You’d awake to the sound of the man's voice only to find Arthur still enthralled.

Which, all of this didn’t sound like a big deal, but it threw off your sleep schedule. And when you're stuck inside, with nothing to watch, sleep becomes something you really looked forward to.

And so, it became his nightly ritual to eat his dinner, wash all the dishes, put on his oversized comfy lounge pants, and sprawl out on the couch to watch another episode of the documentary.

On the fourth night of the documentary you had reached your limit. You just could not take one more second of his old monotone voice, and you searched the internet for something to entertain you...or rather something that you could buy, you should say.

It was then you came upon the new Animal Crossing game. You had played it when you were younger and really enjoyed it, so without overthinking it you added it to your cart, paid a little extra for overnight shipping (you desperately needed it before tomorrow night), and purchased it.

After making sure you received your email receipt, you stood from the couch, stretched a little, and kissed Arthur on the top of his head.

He tore his eyes from the television and looked up at you. “You goin’ to bed so early?”

“Yeah, I’m feeling a little tired.”

He moved to stand but you gently pushed him back down. “Finish your show.” You bent down and kissed him lovingly on the mouth.

“I can pause it and save it for tomorrow.” His eyes twinkled with mischief and any other night you would have pulled him to the bedroom, but you were NOT prolonging your torture for another night.

“No! I mean no, I don’t really feel well. Kinda got a headache.”

He frowned and reached up to feel your forehead. “You need me to run to the store to get ya sumthin’?”

You smiled. “No, I’m fine, really just need some sleep.” You yawned trying to convince him.

You were apparently an ok actor. “Well alright. You let me know if you ain’t feelin’ good sweetheart.”

“I will, I promise.”

When he nodded satisfied with your answer, and pressed play,  you almost ran to your bedroom.

The next day you spent not so patiently waiting for your package. Just after you put away the sandwich stuff that you used to prepare lunch, you got the notification that it was delivered.

You ran to the door almost dropping your phone, and retrieved your small box. You ripped through the packaging and waited for it to load on your switch.

And just as Timmy and Tommy were welcoming you to the game, Arthur walked in hair wet and slicked back, wearing nothing but a towel. He smelled fresh and amazing, just as he always did.

“I thought I heard the door slam.”

“You did, it’s fine. I just got a package.” You didn’t look up as you were reading the instructions on the small screen. To be honest you didn’t want to get distracted, and before you was one hell of one.

He frightened you a little as he bent over you curious as to what you were doing.

“It’s just a little game that I wanted to play. Figured it would be a great time since I’m stuck here.”

Taking one look at the graphics you could tell he wanted to make fun of you by the way he opened and closed his mouth a few times.

You decided to stop him short, not wanting another stupid argument. “I played it when I was a kid. It's super nostalgic for me.”

His nod was one of understanding and thanks, glad that he didn’t start something from nothing.

And that’s the last you really paid attention to anything for hours, until he brought you a plate of hot tacos.

You looked up red eyed and confused. “What time is it?” You looked around for your phone.

He handed it to you and chuckled. “Goin’ on eight. Thought you might be hungry.”

You gave a playful pout as your stomach growled smelling the delicious looking food.

“Game must be really good.”

You nodded with a mouthful of taco. A little embarrassed that you ate half of it in one bite. But happy that he knew exactly how you liked yours prepared.

“What’s it about?”

You swallowed. “Eh, nothing really. You just kind of build things and help friends out”.

“Oh well, I’m glad you're having fun.” He said without any malice.

“Gosh Arthur these tacos are amazing.” You took another large bite.

He chuckled lightly “It’s like you say, things always taste better when you don’t make them.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t help. I know it’s been our thing since...”

He raised his hand in dismissal. “You cook all the time for me. It is the least I could do for you. ‘Sides you looked like you were really having a good time.”

Your face flushed slightly. Had he been watching you? You knew you did that thing where you bit your bottom lip when you concentrated. It made you a little self conscious, but he would have none of that.

“You sure are beautiful, you know that?” He gently moved a piece of hair from your forehead.

“Arthur…”

“I mean it. You’re absolutely perfect. Can’t believe I’m so lucky.” He shook his head in amazement.

You were at a loss for words so you replied with the only thing you knew he needed to hear. “I love you so much Arthur.”

He reached down and kissed you hard. Sometimes words weren’t enough for him. He was after all, a man of action.

Things were getting heated, your tacos forgotten, when an alarm started blaring.

You looked at him in a daze and giggled softly. “It’s time for your program.”

He slowly opened his eyes and sighed.  “Yep.”

He stared at you looking drugged by your beauty.

You smacked his arm playfully. “Watch your ponies.”

That sobbered him up. “They ain’t ‘ponies’ they are stallions and mustangs, and..”

“I’m joking.” You cut him short saving his lecture for later you were sure. “Hurry you're going to miss some of it.”

He turned the TV on, and you excitedly picked your game back up. So focused on it, you never heard a word the boring old man said.

It was late. Real late. You hadn’t played a game through the night since you were in high school. But as you admired your island, you felt that it was worth it.

You looked to the otherside of the couch and saw that Arthur hadn’t wanted to leave you. He was sprawled out breathing heavily, obviously deep in sleep.

The sun was rising and you thought it a better idea just to leave him be. He’d be up soon anyhow. You plugged your game in to charge and went to get a couple hours of sleep.

It was around lunch time when you awoke. You hated sleeping in but then again, where did you have to be?

After showering, and brushing your hair and teeth, you groggily made your way to make some coffee.

When you entered the hallway you heard your game. Worried that you had left it on you hurriedly entered the room, and to your surprise, were met with the sight of Arthur, brows furrowed, deep in concentration playing your game.

You smiled wickedly at the sight and cleared your throat loudly.

He jumped like he had just been shot and placed your game quickly on the coffee table. “Oh god! You scared me.” He placed his hand on his chest for dramatic effect.

You walked over to him slowly, hands on your hips, and tried your best to look angry. “Now what were you just doin’?”

“I, I…”

“You what?”

“I was just curious is all.” He nervously ran his hand through his hair.

“Curious?”

“Well, yeah. You were havin’ so much fun, I just wanted to see what it was about. Ya know?”

His voice sounded so innocent and his eyes looked so wide from shock. Arthur Morgan wasn't used to getting caught.

You really shouldn't do it but you couldn't help it, you started laughing. So hard that you actually had to bend over.

He stood up placing his hands on his hips. His hair was an absolute mess, sticking up from all angles, and he actually attempted to look at you seriously.

Which, of course, made you laugh harder. So hard that tears started streaming down your face.

There was something about this large, handsome, intimidating man, sneaking your switch and waiting until you were asleep to play Animal Crossing. And then getting caught all while being extremely embarrassed about it.

Either he finally started to see the humor in it, or perhaps he got joy out of seeing you so happy, he too started to laugh.

He walked to you and hugged you tightly, then playfully threw you onto the couch. Neither of you stopped laughing for a while, not until your sides were splitting and you could take no more.

He nuzzled your neck. “I’m real sorry I played your game without permission.”

You briefly chuckled while stroking his muscular arm. “No you're not.” You whispered back.

“Alright, I’m sorry that I got caught.”

You both kept laughing until, still tired from the previous night, you fell asleep in each other's arms.

A loud alarm woke you both. You snatched his phone from the side table mercifully stopping the noise.

He mumbled. “Don’t worry it's recording.”

You sighed heavily.

[stylessemantics]

AU Harry and you working in the same building and you bring him the mail that was mixed up with urs and he's a clumsy babbling goof who is just so desperately trying to convey he likes you but you're so oblivious and smile and leave a red face Harry in his office, one of the boys grinning cause you're the first girl Harry can't talk around

Rating: All cleanWarnings: NoneCategory: Fluff - First meetings. Request: yes sir, thank you so much! they are closed for now but I’m trying to get old ones out of the way to open them back up soon. Word Count: 2,062

NOTE: this will have a part two? Also feedback is much much much appreciated? 

18. Office Correspondence. 

You had been working here for around 4 months by now. It was fun. It was a new office and thankfully it didn’t take you long to get used to how things worked around there. Your co-workers were nice, at least the ones you’d gotten to meet, the building was big, housing different types of offices for different types of things, so you didn’t really know everyone that worked there just yet.Every morning you’d arrive bright and early and go about your day of filling papers, signing contracts and supervising work.

If he was to be honest, he had seen you before. As he also went on about his busy day, he’d spot faces here and there that he knew, some that he didn’t – which wasn’t often since he’d been working here for around 3 years by now – and it was just a random day when one of those faces he didn’t know, really caught his eye. You. He’d just see you passing and never interact with you which he never understood how suddenly he didn’t know how to speak. He didn’t know why it was so difficult to come drop a small friendly hi but he just couldn’t. All he could do was silently wish that by some sort of magic he’d get the chance and strength to do so and get to know you at last.

And Harry got that magic to work his way. That magic was called the mailman. With whom you’d made good friends with. He was just an old man doing the runs around the block and dropping letters here and there, and with a smile and lots of love you had helped him and kept him company on his rounds before, so by now you considered him somewhat of a friend. You couldn’t deny sometimes he had busy days which is why you understood perfectly when he handed you a wad of envelopes before rushing to the elevator.
“oh” you said noticing the name on a couple of them was not yours and you sped walked behind Mr. Thomas to let him know. “Hey George” the old man stopped midway entering the lift.“What is it sweetie?”
“Just… Think you got this one mixed up, but no worries” you continued quickly, pushing the button to call another elevator up instead of down where George was headed. “I’ll deliver it. Have a nice day!” You chirped and he seemed happy that you offered to help him today as well as he travelled back down and to continue his busy day of mail deliveries which was very similar to you right now. 

You rode the elevator up towards the floor marked on the envelope. Apparently this person worked on the top floors on a completely different area as you, but the name did seem familiar – you were sure you’d seen it pop up in important company notifications or heard it being called while passing through the rooms where meetings were held – but when the elevator doors opened with a ding you are welcomed with the sight of a very busy floor and not even knowing where to start your search.

As for Harry he was currently having a chat with his mates and co-workers in one of their offices. In the middle of laughing he looks out to the floor through the fancy floor to ceiling wall, immediately coughing when he spots you. He can’t believe his eyes. The girl is on his floor looking lost in between the rushing bodies that carry all types of papers and projects as the busy day gets worse.“Oh, god” he mutters while his friends have a laughter, successfully interrupting the conversation.
“What?” Liam asks upon seeing Harry become frozen in his spot resting by the wall. Soon the rest of the lads are aware of the weird situation and turn to look where Harry seems to be so fixated.“Nothing!” He rushes, trying to keep them from spotting what had caused him to freeze and zone out for a second. 

The truth is he hadn’t told anyone about this girl. Number one it’s not like he knew who you were to be able to form a sentence congruent enough to introduce her to his friends, and number two, he was so embarrassed that he liked you so much without having this basic information that he couldn’t bare to tell them and risk eternal mockery. Liam, Niall and Louis looked at the green eyed lad quizzically, was everything ok? His reaction was so weird and sudden they couldn’t help but worry there was something important that he wasn’t telling them, and he stammered over his words trying to convince them otherwise, still flustered with the thought of her and being caught – or rather have his feelings being found out like this. He tried to ease his nerves thinking about how she worked here, she probably wasn’t here for him and nothing forbade her from coming to his floor – even though you never had before – so there was nothing to be exaggerating for. But then from the corner of his eye he could see how someone pointed her in the direction of Liam’s office where he currently stood in the middle of diverting the attention of his friends from the scene at hand. Although if he thought this was a scene, then what came after was a full movie. “Harry, are you-?” Louis was interrupted when you came knocking on the slightly open door letting out a soft excuse me that had Harry’s knees about to buckle whether from lovesickness or agitation he wasn’t sure. You were greeted with three pair of eyes turning to you with calm smiles, while Harry tried to hide at the rear of their bodies so you wouldn’t catch him peeking from behind a nervous hand that covered half his face. Oh god oh god oh god, he kept thinking over and over, this couldn’t be happening. Breathe Harry, he told to himself, mostly to his erratic heart, she’s not here for you and even if she was nothing is happening. Everything is under control. 

He barely got to finish the sentence in his mind when you popped up with a “Uh… Hi, I’m looking for Harry Styles?”
As if rehearsed, all his friends turned to Harry, moving to allow him coming forth to the girl, and that’s when they noticed. His hands were in tight fists as he walked towards her with a low shy chuckle. Suddenly, the three pair of eyes turned back and forth between the two, with piqued interest.
“Y-yeah… T-tha’s me” Harry mustered however he could and your mouth broke into a cute welcoming grin. He was cute, with his bold and interesting choice of clothing that seemed to somehow suit him and the company’s aura perfectly, short brown curls atop his head and bright green eyes that seemed friendly.
“Hi! Turns out your mail got confused with mine, just here to deliver it to its rightful owner” you stretched a hand out with 3 envelopes clearly directed to him. It took Harry a second to reach out and grab them from your hands because he was stuck thinking that you had prettier eyes up close and it was unfair he never got to realize that before. “O-oh… Hahah, thanks”
“No problem! Nice office” the comment was innocent, trying to make some light conversation in the seemingly awkward air. The other three men were still silent, heads moving like fans at a tennis match between Harry and you as you each spoke, and for some reason each time with bigger smirks. 
“Oh! I-its… S’not m-mine” that was the truth, this was Liam’s office. Harry’s was down the hall and a tad bigger due to his position, and even though he knew she probably didn’t care about that information, that didn’t stop him from nervously rambling into details right after “Mine’s d-down the hall… I’m head o-of department” He looked just a bit older than you and you wondered how good he was at his job to have nailed him such a nice position. He continued “and-and we’re v-very b-busy today as… as yeh c-can see. Oh, but! That d-doesn’t… I don’t m-mean yeh hafta l-leave…  right now. I… mean…” 

It was painful to watch – to Niall at least. Liam and Louis seemed to be reeling at how much of a doofus Harry was making of himself – how Harry seemed to dig himself into a hole he was not going to easily climb out of, so he made sure to give him a gentle push, covering it up with a cough, signaling him that he should probably stop talking nonsense about how she can stay and he bet her office is super nice just like the ones in this floor and a bunch more crap that would leave him babbling on for days and regretting it for months. 
“Yeah… New client coming in soon” The blonde signals outside as if saying the chaos that is going outside Liam’s office is a clear indicator of the upcoming business. Knowing exactly what that was like, you nodded with a short giggle “Uh, so what’s yer name?” Niall continued to cover up as Harry fixed his tie and rubbed his hands on the sides of his pants discreetly, a habit that he did when he was extremely out of his comfort zone. 
“I’m y/n, I’m on the marketing team on the seventh floor” with a warm smile you put your hand out for all of them to shake, and they did with a nod, Harry with a specially tight mouth careful not to spill another word, scared it might lead to him endlessly talking about something stupid like this year’s raise in the company’s market shares. “Nice to meet ya y/n. I’m Niall, and these are Louis and Liam. Thanks for uh… bringing Harry’s mail around”
 he finished awkwardly.“Yeah, thank you!” Right after Harry chirped in, Niall pinched his bicep in a nice sign of shut the fuck up. All and all, Harry appreciated it. 
“No biggie! It was nice to get out of my desk for a bit.” Your smile was big and bright and beautiful, and Harry was feeling how his throat itched he wanted to tell you that so bad, but he held his ground and gave you a dimpled smile right back. 

Before he knew it you were saying goodbye and wishing all the men in the luxurious looking space a nice day, making sure to close the door on your way out and wave to them through the glass with their eyes following your steps as you walked to the elevator. And then Harry was left alone with three pair of eyes looking at him with big smirks and telling faces, making heat rise on his.
“So…” Liam started.
“Y/N…” Louis chirped in continuation, making Harry groan and pick up his belongings.
“‘M out if yeh lot are gonne’ start blabbering shit.” His tone was sharp but funny letting them know he wasn’t really mad – yet – at the fact that they were clearly itching to poke fun. 
“Not gonna spit more hogwash than yeh did when she was ‘ere” Louis was quick to interject making the other two burst in laughter. “First lass yeh can’t speak proper in front of… Got to make the most of it” And with that Harry was stomping down the hall with red cheeks, back to his office to try and drown himself in work and not think too much about the fact that he at least now knew your name and that was certainly going to get his mind out of focus for the rest of the day, not to mention opening the mail you brought him yourself. 
“Should we do something about this?” The one who wondered out loud as soon as Harry was out of sight was Louis, and while all of them would love to see Harry go on and try to get himself a relationship with a nice girl like that y/n, Niall quickly jumped in.
“We’re not meddling in his relationships”But Louis and Liam were already thinking up ways they could help a nice relationship bloom during the office hours.’

Smooches- Iv. x

I want to get back to finishing requests so I can open them back up sooner for you guys!! I’m going to try to get part two of this going if you guys want that for like… ASAP? This was nice to work on to get my mind of BIM since I was stuck. Will be working on that and other requests and hopefully have something more to post real soon.

Requests are still Closed for now, sorry :(

Masterlist here

[giraffles]

Hellbent

iiiit’s day two! I’ve actually been working this for a while, but finished it up for this week. \o/ today’s prompt is “favorite battle” so how about a BATTLE OF CONFLICTING EMOTIONS. it starts silly but gets feels-y, sorry. 

prompt that inspired this is here and from the lovely @writing-challenges-and-prompts​

this is set in the modern AU/Lights Will Guide You series!

Hellbent - (Young!Harlock/Warrius Zero)

"We're just friends." Harlock deadpans.

"Friends don't kiss." Kei counters, and she's not entirely wrong.

you can also read it here on AO3! 

"We're just friends." Harlock deadpans. "Friends don't kiss." Kei counters, and she's not entirely wrong. "Some friends do. Like the kinds with benefits." Kei is not amused. It shows in the way her dark eyes glare at him, and the unusual force she puts into organizing the papers on her desk. If he didn't know her better, he might have thought her jealous; but Harlock is very, very aware of her preferences for partners, and they don't include sulky ex-Navy men. "I don't trust him," She says at length, "I don't trust any of them as far as I can throw 'em." In some ways that's a roundabout compliment. Kei Yūki may look sweet and possess a slight figure, but he's seen her take down fighters twice her size. And while outnumbered. So really, she could throw them all pretty far, Zero included. And she's not a force to be taken lightly, like a storm at sea, waiting to sink ships and sink hearts. The two of them aren't related by blood, but sometimes he wonders if she isn't another long lost sibling. Kei is overly cautious from being burned one too many times. He can't say he blames her. The world is already cold and cruel, and it's done a number on all of them. She doesn't often share what happened to her in the period between running away from home and meeting up with the Arcadia crew, and he's not one to press her for details. But he knows enough to realize it wasn't pretty and it wasn't kind. So Kei has good reason to be suspicious of anyone who hasn't gained her respect, and it's a hard thing to earn her trust. The only reason she's here in the first place is because Harlock asked her to be. "Tori likes him," Harlock mentions, "I'd say that's a good litmus test." She shoots him an incredulous look. "That's a terrible example. That bird doesn't even like you." "He likes me enough," Though really, that was only because he fed the dumb parrot, "That totally counts." "What on earth are the two of you arguing about?" Marina materializes out of nowhere, a startling and all too common habit of hers. She comes armed with what look like case files, petty grievances they'll need to take care of if they want to keep their jobs. Before he can come up with an excuse for her, Kei is already counting mutiny. "Someone has been kissing the commander in the fire escape." When she put it that way, it made it sound like they were a couple of teenagers skulking around for kicks. Which, maybe wasn't that untrue, but that didn't mean she had to tell Marina of all people. The one person there who had known Zero the longest, who wasn't often found far from his side, and who always managed to look stunning regardless of the situation. Delivering mission briefings or breaking noses, she never faltered or lost her composure.  "Oh, is that all?" Marina's voice rang true and calm, yet there was an edge of ice to it, "Anyway, look into these security breaches. We need to know how deep they've gone." Then Marina sweeps away, leaving without another word like a receding tide, barely sparing them a glance. Kei throws her hands up. He shrugs. "You trust me, don't you?" He counters, knowing it's a little unfair to pull that card, because she's never been anything less than devoted, "I know what I'm doing. Relax." Kei grumbles something along the lines of 'I don't know why any of us bother with you', and his phone pings that a new email has come through. It's a very specific notification, reserved for anything from the government server they're all wired into, and he frowns when he sees it's from the same M. Oki who was just talking with them. She's also only a few yards off, there's no reason she needs to be messaging him when she can communicate in person like a rational human. He flicks the email open. It's a curt correspondence, no introduction or signature, just her name attached to the top and his in the receiving field. <If you hurt him, there will be consequences.> Few people can get away with threatening Harlock so openly. There are fewer people who legitimately terrify him. Marina is very close to the top of both lists. "What is it?" Kei asks. "It's nothing," Only quite possibly the shortest and most direct shovel speech he's ever gotten, "We should be working." "You never want to work." She points out, but lets the subject go. He doesn't dare look in Marina's direction. Really, he's not sure how much of a secret it all should or shouldn't be; Zero can be so prickly on a good day, to the point that it's hard to decipher between the officer's normal personality or if he's being an ass on purpose. He's so flighty for someone with a reputation for being loyal and steadfast, shying away even behind closed doors and hidden from prying eyes. He's not even sure where the two of them even stand at this point, if there should be labels involved or it's better to keep it off-brand for now. (Fraternization laws probably don't apply in this case, even if they did, he'd ignore them anyway, because to hell with that.) And yet kissing him is so good that Harlock couldn't resist catching him by the back door that morning. Which of course was when Kei wandered by, nearly choking herself to death on her coffee when she saw them. He's probably lucky Zero didn't pitch him out the nearest window for that one. It's not like it had been on purpose, and they were all bound to find out eventually. It's impossible not to, when they're working and living in such close proximity to each other. And they're glorified experts in espionage, for crying out loud, he could find out everyone's favorite color and childhood pet in twenty minutes if he put his mind to it. If he was really determined, he could probably find every dark and embarrassing secret of every person in a five mile radius, and the whole city if Kei and Ishikura helped. So how were they supposed to keep a relationship of all things under wraps, under the noses of individuals trained to sniff out deceptions and half-truths? Only an idiot would try. Or, someone so stubborn and deep in denial that they ran the risk of drowning. Fucking Zero. Harlock had taken a calculated risk with him, when he had asked for his handler to be the same agent who had spent years trying to bring him to justice, but he hadn't expected this. Because, maybe, he hadn't planned on an infatuation, or half jokingly flirting with him, which  may have turned into whatever it is that they've been avoiding talking about. It wasn't Harlock's fault that he was stuck living with someone who was so accidentally attractive. (Except, it was his own damn fault, and now he had to deal with the consequences.) It started as just a way to pass the time, an exercise in seeing how he could get under his keeper's skin, and now he's fallen. Hard. This wasn't part of the plan. None of this was part of the plan. Not that the plan had been fool proof, or even fully baked by the time Harlock had put it in motion. Its still a vague sort of idea, floating about with loose strings he's tying together on the fly, but it had worked out so far. Mostly. Present situation not included. But the plan comes first, it always come first, because he'd die before he'd let a vow go unfulfilled. Even if it was hard to come to terms with the fact that they would eventually be jumping ship, slipping back into the sea once they'd gotten what they came for. What Arcadia members are on this team may not know exactly what's going on, but they're smart enough to realize they're all acting the parts the government wants them to until they're ready to bail, a deception and treason of the highest order. He never said he was an honest man. Harlock sinks low in the office chair.   This would have been easier without lingering attachments. And yet had made them anyway, like the idiot he was, repeating the same mistakes over and over again. You would think he would have learned by now, but there was still that stubborn part of him that was a hopeless romantic. At least it would be good while it lasted. Marina couldn't kill him if she couldn't find him. 

On his way to the vending machine, Zero ambushes him. Which would have been great if it was for some midday fooling around, but instead Harlock has a snarling totally-not-a-boyfriend to appease. "Who did you tell?" Zero growls. "I didn't tell anyone!" "Bullshit." This is it. This is how he dies. In a back closet of an undisclosed office somewhere within the greater-Boston area. There are worse ways to go, and Harlock always knew he'd kick off young, but it's a little disappointing that it won't be in a blaze of glory. It really isn't fair. "I swear to god it wasn't me," He pleads, "If anything, it was Kei." She probably doesn't deserve to be thrown under the tracks like that, but at the same time, she had started it. If he's going to die then he's not going down alone. And technically he hadn't breathed a word of anything; that had been other people's doing. Zero looks both indescribably livid and so very tired. "I hate you. I hate you both," Zero bites out, "You're the worst." Before Harlock can come up with a defense, or a snappy reply, Zero is kissing him. It's not where he expected things to go, but he's not going to complain either. Zero is hellbent on taking every piece of his being and spinning it upside down, even if that defies logic, because it's alway been Harlock who's taken people on rides. Although, none of those had worked out very well in the end, so maybe it's just as well. This is better than any of them anyway. His hands curl in the front of that dumb Navy jacket Zero was always wearing so he can pull him closer, to cut his tongue on teeth. It's so easy to fall like this. It won't be easy to leave.