#i one upped myself from last year and will be sharing them throughout the day to not completely spam the tag

[flamestar126]

Sitting + Chocolates

[battymommastuff]

Tw: you don’t have to do this if it makes you uncomfortable but could you do the bat boys with a reader with sh scars maybe on their thighs. You really don’t have to though! Also I love your writing!! Have a good day/night!

Perfect Imperfections

Batmom x Batfamily

TW: Mentions of miscarraige, self harm, and depression!!

Masterlist

Why was she so patient? Why was she so insistent? These questions kept replaying in Damian's head as he angrily paced the empty batcave. He'd been living at Wayne manor for nearly a year now, and he wasn't having the best time adjusting. His new home life was a struggle. He wouldn't admit it, but he hated having to share his father with his step mother. He also hated how kind you were to him. Talia never treated him with such kindness, so why are you doing the same? Being the mother figure in the house, you should be strict...and harsh with him. 

Instead you were the opposite, and it made him so angry. The second thing he was struggling to adjust to was his school. He was heavily encouraged by his "siblings" to make friends, but no one seemed to want to be friends with him. Instead he was met with judgemental looks, and hushed whispers. Damian hated his new life, and he wanted to go back to his old one. At least he had some respect there. 

All of this led to today's event. You were walking through the manor in search of Damian. Bonding with him had been more of a struggle than any of your other children. You wanted to get to know him and find some connection between then two of you. You found him sitting on his bed crying softly, "Damian?" You called out, startling the boy. He turned towards you with puffy eyes, and a runny nose, "What's wrong?" You asked and reached out to hug him. 

Damian jumped up and put as much distance between the two of you as he could in his room, "It's nothing! Just leave me alone!" He snapped before running from the room. Now he was angrily pacing the Batcave. This sadness and loneliness that he felt made him want to vomit. He constantly felt like a weight was on his chest, and he couldn't get it to go away. Damian wanted to scream...cry...destroy things. He didn't understand what was wrong with him. 

What he didn't know was that you related to him in that way. He didn't figure it out until a week later. It was movie night at the Wayne Manor. Instead of being on patrol, everyone crammed into the living room with their popcorn and drinks. You were the last one to arrive, and you were wearing pajama shorts with a Superman nightshirt on. That causes your husband to pout for a while. Damian noticed several scars on your thighs. They went from the top of your knee and disappeared under your shorts. He could tell that they weren't from battle. No one else seemed to notice or question them. 

All throughout the movie, Damian's focus was on your scars. What did that to you? Was it self-inflicted? Impossible! You always seemed so happy to do something like that to yourself. He then looked back at your face. Did you feel the same things that he felt? 

><><><><><><><><><><

"Y/n?" You looked up from your book to see Damian standing in front of you, "The other night...when we were watching the movie. I noticed the scars on your legs." You looked down to your legs which were covered by your pants. You'd completely forgotten that Damian hadn't ever seen them before, "How did you get them? Was it from a fight?" He asked nervously, and felt guilty for even asking in the first place. 

You let out a shaky breath as you set your book down, "I gave them to myself. It was several years ago..." You felt sick to your stomach as you remembered that time. The mental hell you had been in, and was still fighting to this day, "Your father, and I had found out that I was pregnant. I was two months in when I lost it." A tear slipped from your eye as you remembered the pain you felt that night, "After that night, I couldn't eat...I couldn't sleep. All I could do was cry and cry until I felt numb..." Damian moved closer to you, and sat down on the couch with you, "So numb that I wanted to feel something, some feeling that made me feel alive. So I cut myself...over and over." You wiped another tear from your face and sniffled. 

"What made you stop?" 

"It was about a year after adopting Dick. He was such a happy little boy, and he wanted to show me his report card. He didn't know it was the anniversary of us losing the baby, and I didn't know that he was coming home early. He walked in on me cutting my thighs." Damian felt his eyes start to water. He didn't know what came over him, but he launched himself onto you. A hug so tight, it might be choking you. You hugged him back and couldn't help but cry with him once you felt his tears soak into your shirt. You finished telling him the story. About how you started seeing a therapist, and taking medicine to help. Also about how you started getting better despite the several setbacks you had along the way. 

He then opened up to you about how he felt, and you along with the rest of his family helped him get better as they did for you. Four years later, he was walking towards the back of the manor with a bouquet of flowers in his arm. He stopped at a small headstone with other flowers surrounding it. The headstone for the unborn Wayne child. His potential older sibling. Damian set the flowers down before he crouched down in front of the stone, "I learned that there are an infinite number of universes out there, and I know there's one where we got to meet you. This universe never got the chance to, but Ummi told me that you sent us all to her. If that's true, then thank you. For giving me the best mother, and supporter I could ever want."

[toadallytickles]

NEST 2024 + Gatherings Going Forward (again)

Attended my 4th NEST this year! This is just a quick point-form summary as I’m still dropping and wanted a write-up before I fly out this weekend to see my moms!

Perhaps I wore my “tickle me I’m cute!” shirt on Friday- and perhaps it got me pinned and gang tickled by 4 friends UGH- I haven’t been gang tickled since last June which is WILD honestly. Kinda hoping wishing this June it happens again 👀

Learning that it’s okay to let people touch me. 🙄😒 From my past writing “AUNT 2024 + Gatherings Going Forward,” I shared that I’ve denied myself from playing with friends until everything felt perfect, but recognized that I set the bar way too high and that maybe I just fear that “awkward first session” because I’m really awkward with touching and this fetish. At NEST this year I’ve allowed friends I’ve met and connected with at previous gatherings to tickle me in the con-spaces to break that touch barrier in a fun, familiar way for everyone. I also let myself engage in pick-up sessions with friends to get that “awkward first session” out of the way! I had to reassure myself throughout the weekend that it was okay that they were touching me, and they were touching me because they wanted to~.

My nesting partner is choosy about the gatherings he attends as he wants to focus on those he has connected with already, and can find gatherings overwhelming at times. This NEST made me feel similar- I want to continue attending gatherings, and I love meeting new people, though going forward I’m going to focus on regular attendees and friends I know from previous gatherings. There are a lot of regulars and mutuals I would love to get to know better and potentially play with- I’m just really awkward and don’t know how to approach people, and in turn I feel I accidentally give off a closed-off vibe. I would like to be part of my friends’ friend group, I just don’t know how to integrate! NEST going forward, I would love to volunteer and help out more to continue making the gathering the best it can be!

Oh, I had my first Wawa experience! I tried their Caramel Cookies and Cream Frozen Cappuccino, IT WAS SO GOOD, Starbucks Frapps could never. definitely kept me up way past my bedtime! 😋 Also the mascot is a (Canada) Goose because Wawa was originally a dairy farm in Wawa, Pennsylvania, and the Ojibwe word “we’we” means “Snow Goose.” Now I need a Sheets experience~.

I got to try out @ticklingduck's vibrating tickling rods! @mister-ttt and I did record content including them! They are like a small Pursonic (without it stopping after 2 minutes~)! 😏 I also BOUGHT ONE!! 🎉 @ticklingduck's socials: Etsy, Twitter, Tumblr.

Wore my Geurdo Link cosplay on auction night, even though I was not participating in the auction, and I was extremely shy so I just sat in the audience and didn’t really show it off LMAO!! (Still editing the tickle video featuring this cosplay, previews are in the NEST Server and on my OF~).

I’ve had the literal pleasure of forming a play partner dynamic with a local friend, and he has really built up my confidence, self-esteem, and has helped me be more self-sex-positive. It was exciting to carry that sex-positivity into some sessions this weekend, and I learned that I really like being consensually sexually violated by friends.. 🥴💦 don't look at me.

This weekend really validated my growth and boundaries. Finding this gathering somewhat personally hard to navigate because I wasn’t meeting my exact wants (a me-issue, not NEST's), that helped me recognize that I’m not the same person I was at my first NEST and other 2019 gatherings, and that I’m truly growing. I wasn’t able to navigate NEST like I did in 2019, so now I know I’m on the right path and know what I’m exactly looking for.

And finally on the last day of the gathering, I’m sitting in the lobby in my lazy travel fit, not showered, sporty wind-breaker, capris, my glasses, pink paw print socks + sandals of course, and a guy I’m pretty sure was not part of the NEST group asked me if I was “Kyle-“ and there were other men around. I say no, and guy just wanders back to where he came from. Assigned Kyle at NEST. I have not felt gender euphoria in a long time. 🥹

anyway, the end. looking forward to the next gatherings~

[pandoraslxna]

First of all- wow. Thank you all so much for helping me achieve this milestone that I didn’t thought was even possible!! 😭

This is so beyond my expectations that I had when I first created this blog. 10.000?? Am I dreaming? No way did I think I could even make it to 100.

And now here we are. 10.000 of you who have decided to follow me in my journey to thirst over big blue aliens and I couldn’t be happier and more grateful for all the love, the feeling of a community and the amazing support you have shown me throughout the last year. Not to mention the wonderful people and friends I’ve met on the way that bought so much joy into my life.

From the bottom of my heart, thank you so much. I wish I could smooch every single one of you. 🥹🩵

Of course I also want to give something back to this community, so please feel free to celebrate with me!

🤝🏻 Shout out someone in the fandom or send a fic/art rec! (Self recs are always welcome. For fics and fanart: please include a link so I can give it a reblog.)

❓Ask me anything about one of my fics or about myself.

✍🏻 A line from a WIP I'm working on.

🫐 I’ll post one of my personal predictions for avatar 3.

📝 Give me a Character + a kink / trope and I’ll write a short drabble (100-500 words) for you. (Don’t forget to check my request guidelines first. And please be patient with me, I’m trying my best but it could take me a few days to finish them.)

⚖️ Tell me what or who you wish I would write more / less about.

📸 Tell me your favorite avatar/atwow/fop character and I’ll share one of my favorite pictures of them.

💥 Give me a character and I’ll tell you about a headcanon I‘ve made up for them.

🩵 What made you follow me? Tell me about it!

⭐️ What’s your favorite fic of mine?

(You're more than welcome to send me multiple emojis, but please include them in separate asks.)

[theroyalthornoliachronicles]

Advent Calendar 2023, Days XXII to XXIV: Final Days of Victorian Advent

Hello hello everyone!

Because of being ill and busy, I bring you your last three days of Advent Gifts all in one post!

But before I go and give you more information about the lovely items shared here today, I just want to take a moment and turn the spotlight on @buzzardly28. For each and every gift offered throughout this advent calendar she has been there, helping me clean up my first dress meshes of those dresses I made two years ago, to helping me come up with ideas for textures, and so much more. Some of these dresses made us nearly tear our hair out and drive us to drink, but we stuck together through it all and I hope you all can appreciate the gifts we worked so hard to put together! And thank YOU Buzzard, for being such a good sport despite my chaotic tendencies! <3

Happy Holidays everyone from both Buzzard and myself, and I do hope you enjoyed this little advent calendar from us to you!

Robe de Celestine

A Frankenmesh of @sifix's Alva Dress and the infamous @vintagesimstress 1848 Dress (and a huge thank you to Vintage for helping us stabilise the weights of our top edit! <3)

100 Swatches

Suitable for Teens-Elders

Robe de Patrice

A Frankenmesh of both @vintagesimstress Eleanor Dress and the 1848 Dress

100 Swatches

Suitable for Teens-Elders

Tenue de Phillipe

A Frankenmesh edit of the top of @linzlu's Tommy Regency outfit and bottoms from @peebsplays skeleton suit

100 Swatches

Suitable for Children

My TOU:

Do NOT claim as yours.

Do NOT put edits behind paywalls/early access.

Do NOT reupload my content.

Recolours are allowed, so long as you do not include the mesh and give credit where credit is due!

If you feel so kind, please tag me if you use them! Would love to see your sims! (@theroyalthornoliachronicles)!

Download (Always Free!)

Patreon | SFS | Curseforge (Celestine) | Curseforge (Patrice) | Curseforge (Phillipe)

[hihomeghere]

Hello my new favorite creator! I just saw your response to my last request (the soft y/n dom one) and I'm deffo going to formally request you turn it into a story (if you're not doing that already) I've been reading more of your content and it's quickly becoming an addiction 😅 any way I'll be a big supporter from the shadows <333 -🧛 anon (Naming myself lol)

Routine | Five Hargreeves / F!Reader

Part of the Tesoro series (Can be read as a one shot)

Word Count : 2.3k Summary : After the confession, Five and reader head back to a hotel room. Soft dom y/n. Aged up!Five Warnings/Tags : Smut, handjob, masturbation, piv, cursing, fluff at the end, this is filth enjoy <3 ( I do not own the umbrella academy or any of it's characters )

If Five was anything, he was a creature of habit. His father had ingrained that in him from a young age. Chores, training, studies, hell even his meal times were scheduled. His entire life was based on routine. 

Then he was stuck in the apocalypse, and even though there were millions of things Five could be mad at his father about, he had to appreciate his sense for routine. It kept him alive, he still had a set time to eat (if he had anything to eat), but instead of training he was scavenging. Picking through a wasteland for anything edible, along with trying to find a sustainable source of clean water. While picking through for food, he would also collect anything to help conserve his energy. Things like his bike or wagon, etc. His definition of ‘resting’ was mainly anytime he could sit down. During those periods he would work on equations, trying to find a way out of there and back to his family. And although it wasn’t strictly in his routine, mental breakdowns always seemed to weasel their way into his day. 

Thankfully, both of those routines were a thing of the past. Now his routine consisted of reading up on case files before going into the field. He’d kill whoever he had to and afterwards he’d reward himself with fucking his fist until he fell asleep. Did it make him feel a bit disgusted with himself, yes, but masturbation had been the only stress relief he’d ever had. Again, just another one of his constants throughout the years. What he hadn’t accounted for was you. At first he had marked you off as a nuisance. Like the cockroaches that somehow managed to survive alongside Five, although you were much nicer to look at. 

Five knew he was in trouble when he started subconsciously adding your routines into his. You would start getting hungry around 11:30 every day, like clockwork. So he had started planning his lunches for around 11:30, not because the thought of you eating alone made his heart seize in his chest, just to make his work more efficient. It aggravated him to have to wait for you to be finished with your lunch, only for him to get hungry once you returned. So out of convenience, he started eating lunch with you. Little things like that.

He couldn’t exactly say he was surprised. You were always one to throw wrenches in the works. Although he didn’t account for a deviation of this size into his plan. When he kissed you, a silent confession on his feelings, he knew there would be no going back. You were it for him. He loved you and you seemed to share those feelings. Your lips crashed against his as he fumbled with the key to the hotel room. You giggled into the kiss, something so sickly sweet. His hands were back on you as soon as the door swung open. Pulling the key out of the lock and throwing it onto a side table as he kicked the door close behind you. His hands were everywhere, touching and squeezing. Your breasts, oh god, your tits. He couldn’t get enough of them, his hand flew under your blouse, pinching your nipple through your  bra. You gasped softly, your hands threading through his hair. He stopped, admiring your flushed face as he kicked off his shoes. Your lips parted slightly, hot breath fanning across his face, a light splattering of blood across your cheek. 

You pulled away, and he almost whined at the loss of contact. What was happening to him? Did you really have such a hold on him? He was taken back to his younger years, when his father would read from Homer’s Odyssey. He had never paid much attention to the sirens, that was more of Diegos and Luthers interest. He wished he had listened to Circe’s warnings like Odysseus, now he was sure he had met a siren in person. He was bewitched by you, drawn to you like iron to a magnet. Five was sure you were more beautiful than Helen of Troy, hell even Aphrodite would be jealous of your beauty. 

“I’m going to take a shower.” You smiled, pushing him back onto the bed before kissing his cheek. Another one of your routines, always showering after a mission. You made a show of undressing yourself, slowly unbuttoning your blouse. Then shimmying out of your trousers. You hooked your fingers under your bra strap, pulling them down at an agonizing pace. You unhooked your bra, throwing it onto the chair. Five’s eyes never left your body until you were behind the bathroom door. He gulped, his cock painfully pressed against the crotch of his slacks. He hurried to pull himself free, the buckle of his belt clinking metal against metal. He started to get frantic in his movements, unzipping his pants and kicking them off along with his underwear. His cock sprung up against his stomach. He let out a sigh, spitting into his hand. He grabbed himself, lubricating his dick with his spit. At times like this he wondered if was seriously fucked in the head. But normally once he ran his thumb over the slit on his head any negative thoughts would be tucked away. He arched his neck, letting out a shaky breath as he started to stroke himself. His mind wandering to you, always you. “Fuck,” he sighed squeezing the base of his cock. Your flushed face, a blush painting your cheeks. That slutty fucking skirt you wore, tight around your hips, he didn’t know how you got that little thing over your ass. He groaned, his eyes rolling back as he picked up the pace. How your lips felt against his throat as you ordered him to cum, your tits bouncing with each of his thrusts. His hips jolted up into his hand, he craved more, his other hand gently cupped his balls. He was close, his breath getting caught in his throat. “Y/n.” He whined, his eyes fluttering close.

“Starting without me?” You asked leaning on the doorway to the bathroom. Clad in only a towel, tightly wrapped around your body. He froze, caught red handed with his pants down. Fuck he was so close. He tugged on himself, chasing after his high as it slowly slipped away. You stopped him, swatting his hand away from his dick. “Excuse me?” You scoffed, your arms crossed above him. You stared down at him, his chest rising and falling rapidly. 

“What?” He asked, his eyebrows knitting together. You grabbed his face, your fingers pressing his lips together, his skin dimpling under your grip. His breath hitched, his eyes going wide. “Y/n, what are you doing?” He said through squished lips.

“You started without me.” You repeated, a wolfish grin spreading across your face. He scoffed, rolling his eyes. You turned his face so he was looking at you, his green eyes wide. He let out a surprised sound, “Now, would you like to finish?” You asked with a commanding voice. His eyes flicked all over your face. 

“Y-yes.” He stuttered, his adam’s apple bobbing as he swallowed. You let go of his face, walking backwards until the back of your knees hit the plush chair. You sank down onto the chair, slowly undoing your towel, letting it pool around your body. 

He stared at you, his eyebrows still furrowed. You chuckled to yourself, his expression taking you back to the first night you spent together. So unsure of himself, his hands twitched against the sheets. His dick stood at attention, brushing against his white shirt. His angry red tip made a wet spot on his shirt. 

“Take off your shirt first,” you said, leaning back in the chair, spreading your legs. It was like he had been frozen until your command. His eager fingers moved to his shirt, unbuttoning the buttons quickly. He tore it off of him, throwing it onto the floor. He turned to you for his next instructions, a newfound glint in his eye. “You can touch yourself.” You cooed, immediately his hand wrapped around his cock. Stroking himself with fever, he wet his bottom lip, his hips jolting against his fist. Five was so pretty like this, not that he wasn’t a gorgeous man, but he was so vulnerable. Pride bloomed in your chest knowing that you were the only one allowed to see Five like this. His head fell back, giving you a gorgeous view of his neck. He let out a strangled whine, his lips parting. You sat up, unable to help yourself. You stalked towards him, your hands holding his shoulders. Your lips attacked his neck, nipping and sucking on his neck. Dark spots adorning his pale skin.

“Fuck,” he moaned, leaning into your touch. You reached down, pulling his hand away. He let out a frustrated whine, biting his lip as he stared into your eyes. You smiled sweetly, kissing his cheek over his two freckles, before squeezing his shaft. You began to pump him harshly, sucking a deep mark on his collarbone. His hands flew to your hips, holding them with a vice like grip. “I’m gonna cum.” He said through his gritted teeth, “please let me cum.” He squeezed your hips, his fingers digging into your soft skin.

“You can cum baby,” You chuckled, licking a stripe up his neck. He cried out his hips jolting against your hand as ropes of cum shot out onto your fist. You grinned, working him through his orgasm. A pained expression painting his features. As he came down from his high, he softly rubbed circles onto your hips. 

“That was…” He trailed off clearing his throat, his hands drifting upwards on his body. You giggled, wrapping your arms around his shoulders, pulling him flush against your body.

“Never would have guessed Mr. Five Hargreeves would be so obedient.” You laughed, kissing him. He pulled away from the kiss.

“Are you trying to get a rise out of me y/n?” He said, cocking his head slightly. A smug smile spread across his face, his eyes darkened. You felt like the prey instead of the predator under his gaze.

“I would never dream of it.” You smirked, feeling him get hard against your stomach. “Already?” You chuckled, rolling your eyes. 

“I can’t help that I have the most gorgeous girl in front of me, naked.” He mused, raising his eyebrows. You pushed him back, his back hitting the mattress with a soft thud. He smirked, propping himself up on his elbows. You crawled on top of him, setting yourself over his waist. He leaned his head forward, his lips covering your right breast. You lowered yourself onto him, moaning as he pushed through your opening. He let out a pained cry against your breast. 

“Are you alright?” You asked, stalling your movement.

“Mmm,” he hummed, his eyes shut tight, his hands gripping your hips, stilling any movements you would make. “Just sensitive, tesoro.” He chuckled looking up at you through his heavy eyelashes. You grinned, you wanted nothing more than to have Five under you a blubbering mess. And you were gonna have it. 

You rolled your hips against him, his fingers digging into the soft skin of your hips. He let out a choked gasp, his head falling back against the bed.

“You like that baby?” You asked, dragging your hips up and down against him. 

“Fuck yes.” He whined, arching his back off the bed, wrapping his arms around your waist and burying his head into your chest. You rocked back and forth, Five’s fingernails dragging down your back. You moaned, pushing him back against the bed. You leaned back, propping yourself up on his thighs as you jutted your hips forward again and again. That familiar coil tightening in your stomach. “F-fuck.” He cried, his hips jolting against your pelvis, his pubic hair rubbing at your clit. His eyes shone with unshed tears as he bit his lip, his hands gripping the sheets beneath you. 

“You feel so good, you make me feel so good Five.” You huffed, struggling to keep up your pace. He whimpered a tear falling down his cheek. Suddenly his body jolted, his hands gripping your waist holding you down onto his hips as he came with a cry. You grinned against him, reaching your own orgasm. You moaned, high pitched and breathy as his cock twitched inside you. His cum painting your walls as you clenched down on him

“Christ woman.” He sighed, his arm covering his eyes. You pulled away his arm, wiping away a stray tear.

“Glad to be of service.” You asked sweetly, kissing his cheek before pecking his lips. You slowly got off of his lap, his softened cock slipping out of you. You laid down beside him, lightly trailing your fingers over his chest. He wraps his arm around you, pulling you closer. Your head laying on his chest, feeling the steady beat of his heart against your ear. 

“I love you.” He says, breaking the comfortable silence.

“Are you thinking of someone else?” You tease, staring up at him through your lashes. 

“No.” He says, rolling his eyes feigning annoyance. He sits up, you prop yourself up on your arm. “I’m serious,” he cups your face, “I love you so goddamn much.” He says kissing you. You were sure you had died and gone to heaven. His hand against your face, with his soft slightly bruised lips against yours. You sighed into the kiss, feeling like a love sick teenager.

“I love you.” You giggled wrapping your arms around his neck, “I love you, I love you.” You kissed the corner of his lips, his cheek, his forehead. He chuckled softly, as you met his eyes. “I love you Five Hargreeves.” You whispered, resting your forehead against his.

“And I you.” He smiled. Five would happily add anything pertaining to you into his routine any day. 

[cazzyf1]

James Hunt with his budgie collection

An article about it under the cut

Last weekend, I found myself at the World Budgerigar Championships, held at Doncaster race course. My guide was James Hunt, world motor racing champion for the 1976 season and of late an ardent breeder of budgerigars: greens, grey- greens, sky blues, dominant pieds and the like. In return for carrying my share of his nine chosen birds in and out of the hall he would transport me from Flood Street to Doncaster and back again. We put our budgies under wraps in the Estate boot and drove north. As we drove, James ex- plained budgies, their infinite variety and perfections of type. Looking straight at a show budgie one should not be able to see the eyes; broad- ness of head is commendable, as is a steep lift to the plumage, a long straight back, sleek body and proud tail. The spots under the neck merit special attention. Usually there are six forming a broken ring but false spot feathers can emerge and these have to be tweezered out. Another area of concern is the head plumage, which can develop waxy quill feathers and blood specks.

Budgies moult in October. Doncaster, the most prestigious show of them all, is held annually in early November. It is therefore a race to bring them back into good condition. Ten days before James had visited a couple of top breeders and found their birds in a shocking state. He doubted that they would be ready in time. I commiserated with him on their behalf. We then moved on to the question of breeding. James only shows birds he has bred himself. His prize accolade so far is second place in the Beginner Breeder class at Blackpool, almost as big an event as the one we were heading for. Pairing takes place in late November, so he was absorbed with the permutations. After this season, his second in the budgie world, he intends to put it all on a computer prog- rammed by an acquaintance in the blood stock industry.

`It's like breeding racehorses, only cheaper,' he explained; 'a good budgie can sell for a thousand pounds, more to a German or Swede, not that I pay anything like that. The most so far is a hundred pounds.' James, like many self-made millionaires, is prouder of his caution about money than its possession. If he gets his pairings right this year, the basis will be laid for a first-class stud. Cock it up and he's back at square one.

The action takes place in his back garden, an acre and a half just off Wimbledon Common. As he travels heavily for the BBC during the motor racing season he has a curator, the correct word, of budgerigars. Indoor and outdoor flight pens give his birds the freedom and communion which he believes are essential to their development. Not all breeders agree, holding that show budgies are as far removed from their cousins who flock in the Australian out- back as those dying generations are to Yeat's artifice of hammered gold and gold enamelling. It was not a simile I tried on James as I wanted him to concentrate on the road.

`Under your feet are some supplies for the journey.' I had already heard the odd crackle and rustle. Sure enough, there were packets of crisps and chocolate, all now washed in a litre of orange juice that had spilt from its plastic bottle and in- formed the road map. I apologised for my ineptness, but there was worse to come. Throughout the journey, which was nearing completion in the Doncaster one-way system, James had fretted about his feather-pulling tweezers, hoping they were buried deep in a trouser pocket. This proved not to be the case. They had fallen between his seat and the doings of the German hydraulic system. His hand could not reach them with ease. I volunteered mine as being slimmer. He warned me that if the tweezers fell any further they would be unsalvageable, lost forever. In went my hand, down went the tweezers. 'That's very naughty, Napier. I told you to be careful and what do you do? Charge at it without any thought.' So my first task on reaching the Danum Hotel, Doncaster, was to ask the lady receptionist — still agog at matching her booking name of J.S.W. Hunt to the reality — for tweezers without which our budgies might as well stay in the boot. Thank God for Allens the all-night chemist and their range of broad-, slant-, and curved-headed tweezers at £1.29p a shot.

By the time I returned, James and the budgies were in my bathroom — smaller than his, so less problematic if one escaped. Two needed their heads washed free of quill wax and blood specks. A sky-blue cock had developed an extra spot feather. The tweezers were presented and found adequate. Deftly he probed to the base of the feather and pulled. Out it came and we both felt relieved. Washed and petted, the budgies, each in a black- enamelled portable showcase, looked their full importance. It was time for us to take them to the show where they would spend the night, be judged in the morning and thereafter open to public view.

A night on the town in Doncaster. In our second pub there was a fight. Three girls, about 18, fell to the ground, two tugging at hair while their friend inevitably paid the higher price for interfering. No one else made the same mistake. A pause for breath and acrimony, then back into the routine. The moment they decided that no man was worth such punishment the bouncers moved in and swept them out. Later in the evening we saw the three of them together enjoying a joke. The pub and club centre of Doncaster is small enough to walk round. We kept on seeing the same faces circling and finally asking for James's autograph with lines like 'I know who you are, at least my father does'. In London he barely incurs a glance. But at the night club, Rotters, we found our entrance barred by a further charm of bouncers. `Where do you come from, please, gentlemen? London? What, may I ask, are you doing in Doncaster?'

`We're up for the budgie show.' The door was flung open. Budgies are great levellers.

Next day, James admitted what I had already begun to suspect, that exhibiting budgies was far more exciting than winning a Grand Prix. 'After the first third of a race you usually know you can win, barring mechanical failure. With budgies the adre- nalin is there right up to the moment you walk in and see how you have done.' We walked in. Stretching the length of the Doncaster Race Hall were showcases in three tiered lines, nearly 6,000 entries in 392 classes. It took adrenalin-pumped minutes to find any class James had entered. The world became a clearer place, full of stewards in purple badges, men last seen in our hotel lift, now turned into awesome judges, serious punters in cloth caps with a jaunty budgie feather. The floor was covered in brown seed, scuffed by the birds out of their cages. We passed the cages of successful champions, surrounded by plush velvet boards and trios with red, blue and green rosettes on them and sometimes extra awards from provincial bodies affiliated to the Budgerigar Society. We passed classes with names like 'Recessive Pied Breeder Hens' and swatches of colour the like of which Scott Crolla only dreams. We overheard snatches of conversation: `That's a big bird, champion,' Not enough feather on the little blighter,' and men rattling bars to get the birds onto their perches for a better look or photograph.

At the far left of the hall we reached the Beginner Breeder section and the end of our quest was bitter disappointment. A fourth, a fifth, and two sixth places. Not one rosette to show for it all, let alone the Best Beginner Breeder trophy that had seemed possible.

`Bad luck, James, it's a bloody high- standard show. Nice looking birds, I must say. Wouldn't swop your one for anything but the winner.'

The commiserations in broad and know- ledgeable Yorkshire were far more effective than my plaintive twittering. James took his disappointment well: 'It's all good experience. I now know how good one's birds have to be, so good that there's no dispute.'

`So you'll be coming back then, James?'

`Certainly.'

[spicybutterfly]

Lilac

Summary: On your way to your nail appointment, you run into the cutest, yet strangest boy you’ve ever met. 

Pairing: nonidol!Jimin x fem!reader

Genre: Strangers to lovers, Romance, Fluff, Non-Idol AU

Rating: 18+, MINORS DNI!

Word Count: 2.7k

Warnings: Explicit language, Nonconsensual grabbing (Jimin has no sense of personal space)

A/N: Hi everybody, it’s been a while! I wanted to put this out way earlier but I’ve been stupid busy with work and school so yeah, here it is halfway into the year loll. I proofread this myself so please excuse any mistakes. Also, I made this banner and I think it looks pretty good for my first time so please be nice or else I’ll cry ☉ᴗ☉

*Disclaimer all characters and events portrayed in my works are fictitious. Any similarity to actual persona or events is purely coincidental.*

Copyright © 2023 Spicybutterfly

All Rights Reserved.

Thank you for reading!♡

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It is 12:02 p.m. and you had thirteen minutes to make it to the nail salon for your scheduled appointment. Anxiously, you drummed your fingers against your steering wheel, nibbling at your bottom lip. This red light felt like it had been going on forever. You swear at least three songs have played over the radio already and you still had at least five more minutes to drive before you made it to Luxe Lacquer Nail Lounge. 

You weren’t too picky about your appointment time. A spot during the weekend was preferable, but if that wasn’t available any time after you got off of work would do. Unfortunately, neither of those two options was available to you. For some reason, your go to nail salon was virtually booked out for the next two weeks. Of course with your luck, the only spot they did have available was the most inconvenient to you. Twelve-fifteen on a Wednesday afternoon. 

Typically, on a Wednesday at noon, you’d be at work, hunched over typing away at your computer. The only possible way for you to make it to your appointment would be to go during your lunch break. Thankfully, they lasted an hour and your boss wasn’t too finicky about when you took them, as long as it wasn’t too early or too late in your work day. 

You couldn’t afford to miss this appointment. It had been practically a month since the last time you’d gotten your nails done and showed. You weren’t high maintenance per se, but keeping up your appearance was important and these nails simply were not it. Your cuticles were an atrocious sight, overgrown and brittle. The once neatly painted gel polish has lost its shine, now dull and chipping around the edges. Don’t even get me started on your shape, formerly a perfect square, straight across the top with sharp edges, now sported a rounded and blunt look. Your nails were in dire need of some TLC. 

“Finally,” you sighed out, pressing on the gas pedal as the light turned green. Briskly, you glanced over at the digital clock in your dashboard. 

12:03, twelve minutes left. 

Steadily, you continued your journey on the road trying your absolute hardest not to go over the speed limit. If you did happen to go over a mile or two, no one noticed. After three more excruciatingly long minutes, you eventually pulled into the plaza’s parking lot. 

The area was buzzing with people of all kinds. A group of people dining outside of a restaurant, young adults coming in and out of the grocery store, an elderly couple sharing an ice cream sundae, and a dad pushing his baby through the parking lot in a stroller.

“Come on, come on,” you mumbled, roaming around for a space.

Just ahead a black Chevy Silverado began to back out of its spot. A glimmer of hope spread throughout you as it seemed you were the first and only one to notice and would finally be able to park. Plus it was only two shops down from the salon! You pulled in behind them, giving them enough space to back out but at the same time showing them you were ready to move in. 

Just as they were almost completely backed out, you noticed just across from you an elderly woman driving an older Toyota Avalon. Through your windshield you could see how intently she was starting at your parking spot, inching forward as the Chevy rolled out. 

“Oh hell no!” you protested. This old lady was trying to steal your spot. Not today. 

 As soon as the Chevy was clear out of your way, you jerked your wheel to the left, simultaneously pressing firmly on the gas pedal. Your car swerved into the space before the old woman could even take her foot off the brakes. 

With squinted eyes, you watched as she begrudgingly drove away, flipping you the bird through her passenger window. 

You scuffed. The nerve of some people. 

After putting the gear into park, you shifted the key turning your car off before removing it completely. Snatching your purse from your passenger seat, you swung your driver’s side car door open, at last stepping out onto the concrete. 

The heat from the blazing sun warmed your skin instantly. Being blasted by the cool air from your car vents almost made you forget you were in the middle of summer. Internally, you thanked your past self for deciding to wear a flowy dress today instead of slacks.

12:10, five minutes left. 

If speedwalking in backless platform sandals were an Olympic sport, you'd be a gold medalist. You had no idea you could even move this fast. Rushing down the walkway, you dodged between the people crowding your path. Who knew it would be so jam-packed on a Wednesday afternoon? 

Relief immediately rushed through your body as the sight of the salon came into view. You made it with four minutes to spare. 

Just as you were about to enter the salon, your hand on the door handle, you felt a light tap on your shoulder. 

“Um, excuse me?” a smooth voice rang out.

With your hand still gripping the door handle you turned to face the stranger.

Before you was a man, but not just any man. He may honestly be the most beautiful man, or better yet, person you’ve ever seen.

 He looked around your age, maybe a couple of years older. Dressed in a cool-toned brown sweater and black slacks, he stood tall with quite impressive posture. Thick, fluffy black hair sat atop his head. A few strands lay delicately on his blemish-free forehead. Silver jewelry decorated his skin. His ears sported a pair of simple hoops dangling with every head movement. On his neck was a dainty chain necklace, it looked like it belonged to a designer brand. What caught your attention the most was the many rings that adorned his fingers. They shined prettily in the sunlight. 

The only way for you to describe his face was that of a fairytale prince. His eyes were tender and kind, a complete contrast to his sharp eyebrows but they paired well together. You wondered if he routinely got them threaded. His cheeks were round and breadlike, making you want to reach out and squish them against your better judgment. And don’t even get you started on his lips. They were the softest, plumpest pair of lips you’ve ever seen. You just know he goes through tubes and tubes of chapstick frequently.

 He smiled gently at you when your eyes finally met. Your heart fluttered. Whatever this guy was trying to sell, you just might have to buy.

“Hi, I’m sorry to disturb you but I-” With a voice as warm as his you could listen to him speak all day. But you were on a time crunch and now had three minutes before you had to go in for your appointment.

“Ahh, actually,” you interrupted wincing slightly. “I’m kinda in the middle of something. So if you’ll excuse me.” You turned away again, this time slightly opening the door. 

This time you felt him grip your free hand, intertwining your fingers with his.“Oh! This’ll only take a second I promise.” 

“What the hell!” you yelled, snatching your hand away with a quickness, spinning on your heels to face him again. Straight away this garnered the attention of a few strangers, looking nosily to see what was happening. 

“What is your problem?! I’m not interested in whatever you’re trying to sell!” You don’t care how attractive this man is, he’s definitely lost his mind.

He seemed surprised by his actions, staring back at you in shock with both eyes wide open. “I’m so sorry!” he rushed, waving his hands out in front of him. “I’m not trying to sell you anything, I swear! I just wanted to tell you that I thought you were gorgeous and that your hair looked beautiful! I never meant to offend you, really!”

He was a stranger to you. It was absolutely inappropriate of him to grab your hand without your permission. You had no obligation to believe a word he said. But there was just something about the sincerity in his voice that made it difficult for you to harbor any lingering anger. As crazy as it sounds he seemed genuine and you believed him.

“Oh,” you muttered, calmer now. “Still you can’t just grab people you don’t know, it's rude. And thank you.” You avoided his eyes, instead focusing on the loose thread at the bottom of his sweater. 

“Again, I’m sorry. My friends remind me all the time about how handsy I can be. I’m working on it. And, you’re welcome.” You could hear the smile in his voice.

“I’m Jimin,” the man, or Jimin grinned, sticking his hand out towards you to shake. You looked at his hand before looking at his face. His eyes were nearly completely shut with how hard he was smiling. It was insanely endearing. 

You replied with your name, shaking his hand in return. The softness of his skin didn’t surprise you at all, you could tell he took good care of himself

“Going to get your nails done?” Jimin questioned, nodding his head towards the salon. 

“Mhmm,” you confirmed, looking at your hand as you inspected your overgrown nails. “I’m in need of a long overdue manicure. I actually have to go in for my appointment in about-” You looked at your wristwatch. “Two minutes.”

“Have you decided on a color yet?”

“Not yet. I was thinking of maybe getting-” You cut yourself off at the feeling of Jimin taking your hand in his once again. Ignoring the butterflies that instantly fluttered through you, you watched as he brought your hand in front of his face. You almost giggled aloud at the vision before you. He looked like a mad scientist, examining your hand that close to his face.

“You really do have no sense of personal space, huh?”

“I think you should get…” he paused for a moment thinking to himself. “Purple.”

“Purple?”

“Mhm,” he confirmed, nodding. “But not just any purple. Maybe a pastel purple? Like ..lilac! Yeah, lilac! I think that would look really pretty against your skin.” With a satisfied smile, gently, he let your hand fall back to its previous position. 

You felt your whole body flush with warmth. You know if you were lighter you’d definitely be blushing all over. Thank goddess for your brown skin. 

To mask your shyness, you grabbed your phone out of your purse checking the time. Yeah, you were wearing a watch but you needed to look away from him before you exploded. 12:16. Oh shit! 

“I’m late!” you shrieked, turning back towards the salon. “It was nice meeting you, Jimin, but I gotta go.” It was really nice talking to Jimin, but you weren’t missing this appointment for anyone.

“Wait!” He called, coming up beside you.

 “You should send me a picture.” You raised an eyebrow.

 “Of your nails! You should send me a picture of your nails when they’re done, I mean. You know because I suggested the color. But only if you want to, of course, no pressure!” 

Jimin twisted the ring on his left pointer finger, awaiting your answer. You thought his sudden nervousness was sweet. 

Usually, it would take a lot more for you to give your number out. Especially to a random stranger you’d only met and known for a couple of minutes. You’d seen too many true crime documentaries for that. But Jimin raised no red flags to you. Sure he was a little weird and awkward but he was also sweet and charming. To be quite honest you enjoyed spending these past few minutes with him, and you wouldn’t mind seeing him again. 

“What’s your number?” you smiled unlocking your phone. Jimin grinned again, eyes nearly shut and cheeks raised high, before reciting his number to you.

 ─────•◦❥•◦─────

You were so damn lucky you had history with your nail tech, Sandra, or else you would’ve been out of luck. You didn’t make it to your appointment on time, in fact, you were three minutes late. It may or may not have something to do with you and Jimin giggling over which photo to use as his contact picture in your phone. 

The pure look of irritation on Sandra’s face when you finally did make it inside the salon to check in at the front desk nearly made you visibly wince. You knew you were being an inconvenience, coming in late even though you were standing right outside of the salon. But c'mon, you were only three minutes late! It’s not like you arrived an hour later or no called no showed. Still though, it was rude of you and you made sure to apologize and leave her a hefty tip for being a bother.

Back in the front seat of your car, you admired your nails. No matter how irritated your Sandra was, she still killed this set! You opted for your usual square shape, you couldn’t see yourself veering away from it, it just had such a polished look. For your nail color, you were stuck between three shades of purple that could be considered lilac. Instead of wrecking your brain, you sent a picture to Jimin letting him pick the shade closest to the one he envisioned and he did not disappoint. Delicate yet bold, the lilac complimented your skin tone perfectly. You’re not sure if this was a color you would’ve ever chosen on your own and you’re so glad Jimin suggested it for you. They were simple but cute and you loved them!

Posing your left hand you snapped a quick pic of your new nails before sending it over to Jimin. 

Cute?

He responded almost instantly. 

Jimin (◠‿◠)

Very! See, I told you it would look good :)) 

Whatever lol, I guess you did an ok job.

Jimin (◠‿◠)

I think what you meant to say was. Thank you so much, Jimin!

You rolled your eyes before responding. 

Thank you, Jimin. I don’t know what I would’ve done without you! You are truly god sent!

Just then your phone began to vibrate, Jimin’s contact and goofy contact picture popped up on your screen. You clicked the answer button before it could ring a second time. 

“You’re so very welcome, _____! I’m glad I could be of assistance to you!” Though you couldn’t see his face, the smile was present in his voice. You laughed aloud, thinking of a response. You definitely didn’t want this to be your last time speaking to Jimin. There was an obvious connection between you and it would be silly of you not to explore it. Hopefully, you weren’t reading the situation wrong and he was just as interested in you as you were in him. 

“Hey, um, what are you doing later today, around let’s say 5:30-ish? My appointment took a little longer than expected so I can’t pick up any lunch and I was wondering if you would like to try that new pizzeria downtown with me?” you asked, heart hammering in your chest. You felt like a teenager talking to her crush for the first time. It’s been a while since you’ve done something like this. You’ve been so focused on work recently, hardly allowing yourself any free time. Dating just wasn’t at the forefront of your mind.

Restlessly, you drummed your fingers against your steering wheel awaiting his answer.

Jimin hummed as he thought. “Are you asking me out on a date?” 

Oh shit.“Huh!? A date! I wa- uh I mean-” “Because if you are,” Jimin interrupted, ceasing your rambling. “Then I would say yes. I would love to go on a date with you.”

“Yeah?” you beamed.

“Yeah,” he agreed. “You actually beat me to it. I wanted to ask you out for ice cream after your appointment.” 

“Oh!” you voiced. “Well, we can always go after the pizza?”

“I'd like that.”

“Okay! Cool,” you grimaced at your response. Gosh, why were you so nervous?

“Cool,” he giggled. “I’ll see you there, then?”

“Yeah, I’ll see you there,” you smiled, giddy all over. Bringing your phone from your ear, you pressed the end call button. It took a moment for the realization to set in. Did that really just happen? Before you knew it an elated squeal escaped your lips. Nerves now replaced with excitement, you began your journey back to work, eagerly looking forward to your date with Jimin.

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Copyright © 2023 Spicybutterfly

All right reserved.

Distribution, copying, reposting, or translating of any kind is not permitted. I will take legal action against those who attempt to steal my work.

[stargirlaveblog]

7Seals

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Chapter 1

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• Previous Chapter: Prologue Next Chapter: Chapter 2

•Chapter List

•Content: Levi Ackerman x OC Fem! Canon Verse! Slow Burn!

• Word Count: 1.2k

"Now I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals; and I heard one of the four living creatures saying with a voice like thunder, 'Come and see.' And I looked, and behold, a white horse. He who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer."

━━━━━━ ◦ ❖ ◦ ━━━━━━

In the regiment's relentless rhythm, my days blurred together over six unchanging years. The routine was our relentless master – wake, eat, train, meetings, eat again, and sleep. The mundane melody was occasionally disrupted by Shadis' whims, granting us a fleeting taste of the world beyond the towering Walls.

Our morning table, a sanctuary for the seasoned veterans, bore witness to comrades dropping like autumn leaves. The unspoken question lingered: when would our turn come? While many saw luck in our continued survival, I saw a darker twist. Fate, I believed, lurked patiently, biding its time until we felt secure, ready to shatter the false reality we'd constructed in this hellish existence.

Today, the cruel hand of fate played its cards, mocking our comfort.

"The boys aren't here yet?" Petra's radiant smile broke the morning's routine as she settled across from me.

"Nah," I replied, absentmindedly tearing at my morning bread. "Just Hange and I, probably still asleep."

Petra's grin widened, cheeks tinted with a hint of mischief. "Thank the Wall."

Hange, always perceptive, caught the unspoken secret in Petra's expression.

"I know that look," they squealed with infectious excitement. "Spill."

"Have you guys seen the new recruit?" Petra's playful voice danced through the room.

"Have I?!" Hange's response, a lively squeal, prompted a shared effort between Petra and me to hush them. Yet, if anything, their voice only seemed to gain volume.

"He's a menace! Have you guys seen him in action? He's truly set to revolutionize the Scouts."

One person expected to revolutionize the regiment was a wild accusation, not only wild but big shoes to fill.

"I thought all the recruits died."

"He's the sole survivor. Goes by Levi," Petra disclosed in a hushed tone leaning towards me. "Word has it his entire wing was taken out on the last expedition. Rumor even suggests he took down five titans single-handedly."

"Five?" My surprise echoed throughout the mess hall, louder than Hange had earlier.

"Who is this guy?"

A recruit taking out more than one Titan on their first journey outside the Walls was unheard of. The recruit surviving a Titan encounter was impressive enough, but taking down five was a whole other game.

Petra gestured subtly towards the corner, where Levi sat alone. "A short fella," Hange added with a playful smile.

"But undeniably handsome," Petra remarked.

My curiosity ignited and my intrusive thoughts won as I nudged Petra.

"Go talk to him."

"I'd only fool myself," she sighed. "He keeps to himself, speaks only with section leaders and the commander."

"I don't buy it," I chuckled, glancing in Levi's direction. There he was, absorbed in the morning paper, sipping tea in that peculiar way of his—hand over the rim, neglecting the perfectly good handle on the side of the cup.

"Go see for yourself," Petra challenged with a smug grin.

"I will," I declared, sticking my tongue out playfully before confidently striding towards Levi's table.

He was a recluse no doubt about it. From the moment Petra pointed him out to me, not once has he looked up from his morning paper. I know that nothing that interesting happened in these three walls to keep his attention that long.

Undeterred by Levi's icy reception, I took a seat without awaiting permission. The mess hall seemed to hold its breath, the world stopped moving around me as I gathered the courage to speak.

"What's your name?" I probed, met only with the continued rustle of his morning paper and the measured sip of his tea.

"Not a big talker, huh?" I teased, maintaining a resilient grin. "Well, I'm Iris, been with the scouts for six years now. Sorry for the tardy introduction—"

"Are you a section leader?" he interrupted.

"Oh, no, I'm just—" Again, his interruption cut me off.

"Until you become a captain or commander, don't talk to me unless ordered to," he snapped, his eyes still glued to the paper.

"Until you become captain or commander, don't tell me what to do," I retorted, my smile unwavering. "Until then, I'll talk your ear off as much as I want to."

Finally, he set aside his papers and looked up. His midwinter eyes jabbed at me as they locked onto my own.

"If you're trying to make a friend, save your breath and look elsewhere," he groaned, his gaze cold. "Tell your friends it's rude to stare."

I rose from the table, maintaining my cheerful facade. "Congrats on the five Titans. Until next time, Mr. Grumps."

"Tch," escaped Levi's lips as I walked away, his grumbling fading into the background as I navigated back to my comrades.

Miche Oluo and Alexander awaited my return at the breakfast table. All eyes were on me, especially Alexander's, his light brown gaze burning into mine. There was an unspoken tension, a silent exchange between us that spoke of disapproval and lingering questions.

As I settled beside Alexander, his disapproving gaze burned into my being. "What were you doing with that little freak?" he sneered.

"Hey, don't call him that," I retorted, nudging him playfully.

"What? Freak?" He laughed with a harsh edge. "He's just another underground sewage rat. Nothing but a freak." The disdain lingered on his tongue.

"Kid has a death wish," Miche chimed in.

"I think that kid is older than all of us," Hange interjected.

"There's no way that puny little thing is older than me," Alexander scoffed, dismissing Levi as if he were insignificant. "Just look at him. Nothing but bones under that uniform."

"Now now, Alexander," Hange teased. "I'd think you're jealous of him passing you up."

"Me jealous of that freak? Never," Alexander laughed, a defensive edge in his voice.

"Really? Because he's already at five Titans for his first expedition. I recall you earning three on our first mission," Hange pointed out with a mischievous giggle.

"Listen here, you little shit" Alexander's frustration surged, and he aimed his words at Hange. "I earned my way into the Scouts. That guy is only here to kill Erwin. He's nothing but a thug."

"Alexander, calm down," I attempted to defuse the tension, but his anger was worked up. Hange's teasing had struck a nerve, a fact known to everyone at the table.

"What?" Alexander groaned at me. "Don't tell me you have a soft spot for the freak already."

"Calm down. Hange is just teasing, and we all know it," I laughed lightly, attempting to ease the situation.

The table fell into an uneasy silence as Levi strolled by, his steel-grey eyes fixed ahead with unwavering confidence.

"Freak," Alexander muttered under his breath as Levi passed.

Alexander's sharp words lingered in the air as a bitter aftertaste, and a knot of worry tightened in my stomach. The casual disdain he threw toward Levi struck a nerve, leaving me both surprised and uneasy.

The recruit's gaze met Alexander's, offering an unfazed look. However, Levi's eyes then locked onto mine. I felt a shiver down my spine as his gaze traveled, time seemingly slowing down at that moment.

At that moment, I couldn't shake the feeling that fate itself had chuckled at us, reveling in the disruption Levi brought to our routine. The mess hall buzzed with the usual noise, but an undercurrent of change hummed beneath it all. It was as if Levi's mere presence had punctured the veil of our ordinary existence, inviting uncertainty and curiosity. It was a curiosity I wanted to explore, boundaries I wanted to see be pushed.

If only then I knew how much he would change our little world inside these three walls.

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[ambrossart]

DANCING WITH MYSELF

— PART FIVE

summary: eddie crashes senior prom hoping to steal a dance with his dream girl, chrissy cunningham. instead, he spends the night stuck in the women’s restroom with you—her snarky, insecure best friend. ❖ pairing: eddie munson x fem!reader ❖ word count: 1,546 ❖ genre: fluff with some angst ❖ series status: complete ❖ warnings: no season 4 spoilers, some coarse language, body image issues, allusions to eating disorders, typical teenage insecurities, angst, jealousy, anxiety, secret crushes, childhood memories, happy ending, lots of 80s music one | two | three | four | five | six | seven | eight | nine | ten

Nights were warm and the days were young, and you had fully surrendered yourself to the hypnotic power of David Bowie and his “Golden Years.” 

(Come get up, my baby)

You lost yourself in the crowd as you swayed to the music and sang aloud. Eyes closed. Hands on your hips, on your face, in your hair, floating into the air. You were no longer on the dance floor. Now you were alone in your bedroom, a child again, dancing freely without a care. (Nothing's gonna touch you in these golden years) You had no sense of self. No sense of shape. You were a mighty waterfall flowing out into forever. You were a majestic bird extending your wings and soaring high into the sky, higher and higher, higher and

“Oof!” 

falling hard on your ass. 

(Come get up, my baby)

The crowd parted around you like an ebbing wave, making you feel strangely powerful. Eyes that never once noticed you were now staring down at you with concern. Hands reached out. So many hands. Football players. Cheerleaders. Preps. Nerds. Burnouts. The damn student council president, with his Buddy Holly glasses. He bent down next to you, said, “Whoa… you okay?” and you threw your hands over your mouth and started to laugh. 

Then the crowd parted again, this time for Chrissy Cunningham. She came stumbling toward you in her teal dress, barely able to stand because she was giggling so much. “Oh my god…! Are you okay?”

You looked up at her and smiled a lopsided smile. “I’m a mess.” 

Chrissy said, “No, you’re perfect… C’mon, honey.” 

She took your hands and lifted you to your feet, then continued to dance with you, swinging your arms, singing under her breath: “Run for the shadows, run for the shadows… Run for the shadows in these golden years…” 

You said, “We’re graduating soon.” 

“I know.” 

“I’m terrified!” 

Chrissy laughed. “I know!” 

And you threw your arms around Chrissy’s neck and hugged her tight, almost knocking her off balance. 

Throughout your life, you had probably hugged Chrissy a thousand times. Hello hugs. Goodbye hugs. Happy hugs. Sad hugs. Hugs that made you fall to pieces and then put you back together again. And it dawned on you now, just now, that soon—much sooner than you’d like—you two would be sharing your last hug. You wouldn’t have her to lean on anymore. And that scared the shit out of you. 

You mumbled into her shoulder, “You know I love you, right?”

Chrissy smiled. “I know.” Then she pulled away and pressed her hand to your forehead, as if checking for a fever. “You’re overheated.” 

“Yeah… I think I’m gonna take a break, go get a drink.” 

“Okay…” And as you turned to leave, Chrissy gave your backside a little swat and said, “Go ice your ass,” making you both break up into giggles again. 

You walked off the dance floor feeling exhausted and elated, humming the rest of the song to yourself. Strings of yellow light glistened through the canopy like stars in a cloudy night sky. You stared at them for a minute, breathless, and thought, Yeah… this really is kinda perfect, isn’t it?

Then, somewhere, an indistinct sound broke your focus—a cough, a laugh, a tinkle of glass, you weren’t sure—but something dragged your eyes away from the dazzling lights and drew your attention to the darkened corner of the room, where Eddie Munson was standing awkwardly next to one of the vine-covered pillars, looking totally out of his element.

And now that you were looking at him, now that you saw him, no sound in the world could tear your eyes away. 

It was like you were back in school, sitting in the cafeteria and pretending to listen to all the mindless table chatter happening around you. Really, you were just watching Eddie the whole time. Waiting for him to do something obnoxious and absurdly theatrical. That way, you would have an excuse to talk to him next period. Call him a jackass or something because you were too nervous to say anything else. 

And day after day, insult after insult, you kept digging yourself into a deeper hole. 

Now, six years later, you were desperately trying to climb out of it. 

Because you were running out of time. 

You sucked in a breath, shook the nerves out of your hands, then began your climb. 

Okay… here we go… Pretty in Pink, Pretty in Pink, Pretty in Pink…

You crept up beside him, tried to play it cool. “Guess you found another sucker, huh?”

Eddie flinched at the sound of your voice, glanced at you, then looked away. “Oh… no… nobody would give up their ticket.”

(Climbing, climbing, getting dirt in your nails)

“Oh,” you said, “so how’d you get in?”

He shrugged. “I just, uhh, ran like hell.” 

Your jaw dropped. “Really? Wow!” You pictured Eddie hurdling over the admission table and taking off down the hall like an Olympic sprinter. “And security didn’t tackle you? Well, suddenly I don’t feel very safe…” and you watched the lights dance across his distant face, a painful yearning growing inside you.

(Climbing… climbing… skidding, falling) 

“So I guess you’re a wanted man now, huh?” 

You don’t know why you said that. It wasn’t even funny. 

Eddie said, “Yeah, I guess,” and the conversation died as soon as Bruce Springsteen started singing “Hungry Heart.” 

Way down in your hole, you could barely hear the music, barely see Eddie. They were shoveling the dirt over you now. It showered over you like a heavy rain, getting in your mouth, in your hair, ruining your dress. 

Still, you kept trying to climb. Like an idiot, you kept trying. 

“Bet you’re mad they didn’t ask your band to play, huh?” You posed this question to Eddie with a huge grin and waited for him to react: to smirk, to scoff, to do anything, but he just kept staring at the dance floor. It was like he didn’t even hear you. 

(And how could he? You had fallen so far…) 

You gave his shoulder a light smack and said, “Please tell me you brought your guitar, Munson, because I would pay good money to see you hijack that stage and bust out some Sabbath right now, turn this dance floor into one giant mosh pit.” You laughed out loud, alone. “Come on, man, give the people what they want!” 

“Why?” said Eddie, his brown eyes rolling toward you. “So you can make fun of me?”

And that stung. A lot. 

You swallowed hard. There was a click in your throat. “Uh… no… I just…” 

You closed your mouth, and his eyes rolled away again. This time, you followed them, chased them like a dog chases a tennis ball. What you saw stole all the strength from your arms and legs, and you felt yourself slipping, sinking all the way to the bottom. 

He was looking at Chrissy. Of course, he was looking at Chrissy. Everybody was always looking at Chrissy. She was the Sun, and the entire Solar System revolved around her, while you… 

“I’m invisible to you, aren’t I?” 

The words came out in a broken whisper, barely audible over the music, but somehow Eddie heard them. 

“What?”

He was looking at you now, actually looking at you. Normally, this simple act would make your heart flutter or skip a beat, but right now it didn’t make you feel anything.

“You don’t even know my name,” you said in a stuffy voice. “How do you not know my name?” 

Eddie threw his head back and sighed, like talking to you was so tiring. “Look, I know your name, okay?”

“Oh yeah? What is it?”

“What?”

“What’s my name? You know it. What is it?”

“Oh, come on—”

“What is my name? Not ‘Chrissy’s friend.’ Not ‘the one who rolls her eyes all the time.’ What’s my name, Eddie? You know it. Say it. What’s my name?”

“Look, I—”

“WHAT’S MY NAME?”

That’s when Eddie burst out: “OH MY GOD, WHY DOES IT MATTER?” And you staggered back a little, as if slapped. “We’re not friends. We don’t even talk to each other. So why does it matter if I know your name or not? Huh? Why do you even care?”

You just stood there, blinking back tears. Eddie saw one slip down your cheek, and his angry expression broke into one of utter sorrow.

“Oh, shit, I’m sorry… I’m really not trying to be an asshole, I just… Look, this isn’t why I came here, okay? This isn’t how I wanna spend my night, and I don’t think it’s how you wanna spend yours, either. So can we just take a time out? Please? Just for one night? On Monday, you can go right back to mocking me like you usually do. You can totally rip me apart, okay? Seriously, just eviscerate me. I just… I can’t deal with this tonight.” 

Then Eddie pulled—no, ripped himself away from you and walked off, leaving you alone with your hungry heart.

Get a tombstone. You were done, dead, buried alive in the hole you created. And that, that right there, was your eulogy.

_____________________

PREV // CURRENT // NEXT

[remcycl333]

Hi, I really enjoyed reading your indepth post today on how to fulfill ourselves. I really admire you and the “states girlies” a lot because you guys really know your stuff!

I have a bit of a scenario that i’ve been “stuck” in and in my own head about, if you have time i would really appreciate some advice.

So i’ve been “manifesting” my sp for a little over 2 years now using law of assumption, but in reality i’ve only TRULY been manifesting him using states for the last 8 months. I have a really good understanding of states thanks to you and twitter pages, edward art and neville. I promise I don’t focus on time (until recently when i was making plans for my future which i always assumed my sp would be here for) and I never intended that manifesting takes a long time. I’ve experienced many quick manifestations and I know sp is no different but im not sure where im going wrong. I always catch myself when im out of the state and redirect myself back and have been doing this daily for the last 8 months. I do feel fulfilled in my mind with him since I no longer have a “longing” for him nor do I expect him to take any action in the 3D because thats not my true world. I dont even feel bad/sad when “opposite” things seem to happen (such as him unfollowing me out of the blue) and I give stuff like that NO meaning because it GENUINELY doesn’t affect me since I know in imagination im happily married. I know you’ll tell me that im not truly fulfilled if the 3D is making me feel some type of way, but Im not sure how else to explain that I don’t know why not even the tiny bit of movement has happened (I dont want movement, I want my whole desire, just trying to say how in my physical senses there has been nothing experienced).

I keep up with your posts weekly and I know you’ll tell me that if im noticing the absence im not in the state, that im dominantly still in lack, etc but I truly felt like I was fulfilled. I never check the 3D, I never even have “opposing” thoughts (since thoughts are an indicator of my state) so I thought for months that everything is fine. Even now I am prioritizing my state because I know that by writing this, I am being in an unfulfilled state, but im not sure what else to do. After a while it gets a little weird noticing it hasn’t reflected even though im fulfilled within. Am I doing anything wrong? I dont have a strong desire for my sp anymore because I worked a lot on myself and no longer need him, but I do wish to be with him still.

Thank you rem.

hi love! so im not in your brain, so i don't know every little thing you think/do throughout the day, so im gonna give u some examples of things i was accidentally doing whenever i was manifesting an sp that was keeping my 3d from reflecting, even tho i was sure i was 100% fulfilled. maybe you'll realize you're doing something similar and be able to stop it?

i'd prepare myself for what i'd say to my sp when he finally reached out, or i'd daydream about yelling at him when he did bc i knew before we got back together we'd have to talk about our past issues. this was contradicting the fact that i was manifesting already being in a relationship with my sp. why would i be identifying with those thoughts when i was already with my sp?

i like to daydream in order to fulfill myself, but sometimes i'd stop paying attention and accidentally slip into a state of longing without even realizing it. like i'd be daydreaming about something bc i desperately wanted to experience it in my reality, not because i was experiencing it in my 4D, if that makes sense. what i like to do to combat that is while im daydreaming i just like to tell myself that im re-living a memory and that im so happy this thing already happened/is happening. it helps me think from my desire instead of thinking of it!

my friends have shared that one of their mistakes while manifesting an sp was still wanting their sp to be missing them/obsessed with them/constantly thinking about how badly they wanted to be with them, daydreaming about scenarios of them being jealous, etc. this was making them identify with separation, when they really wanted to identify as their sp's partner.

similarly, an issue i had was focusing way too much on how my sp was feeling about me, instead of focusing on how i was feeling about them. when i'd daydream or imagine, i'd imagine them loving ME or confessing their feelings to ME, but then i realized that how i feel matters more than how they feel, because this is my reality! so instead i'd focus on how much i loved them and how amazing i felt being loved by them. that's why, as i mentioned in my most recent post, i changed from affirming "my sp loves me" to "i love my sp."

while manifesting my sp, i knew the first step of us getting back together would be him texting me, so every time i picked up my phone and i saw he hadn't texted me yet id feel sooo discouraged. what helped me with this was telling myself things like "ofc my sp didn't text me, he's literally in the same room as me why would he text me lol?" this would help me feel like we were already together!

i was still PISSED at my sp. idk what your story is with your sp, but mine was an ex, and i was mad at him for breaking up with me still. i had to forgive him because i was constantly holding onto that anger and fantasizing about yelling at him over it. this one might not apply to u depending on your relationship with your sp idk!

similarly, i'd find myself getting mad at my sp for not "conforming" to my affs? even tho he didn't even know i wanted him back? so once again i focused on feeling positively towards my sp and imagining how much i loved him. once i started focusing on the version of my sp that was such a good and loving and attentive boyfriend, he started showing up that way in my reality. remember, there is NO ONE TO CHANGE BUT SELF! focus on changing how YOU feel about your sp instead of how he feels about you!

i know you say that you never feel negatively about your sp or your situation, but as i've mentioned in other posts, sometimes the feeling of knowing feels like nothing. so while you're noticing nothing is happening in your 3D, you can still be accepting the fact that nothing is happening without it giving you any negative emotions.

my advice would be to implement the distraction technique. this is what helped me finally manifest my sp. i had a favorite person attachment to my sp (bc of my bpd) so i was thinking of him ALL day long, and sometimes i wouldn't be paying enough attention to know if i was thinking of him from the state of the wish fulfilled, or from the state of lack. so instead, every time i thought of him at all (negatively or positively) i'd say "it is done" (which instantly shifted me into the state of the wish fulfilled) and then force myself to think of something else. so many of my followers have had success with this technique! this technique isn't necessary at all (you're 100% allowed to think of your sp) but i found it rlly helpful for my adhd brain. it can also be really helpful for you if you can't pinpoint what you're doing wrong!

i really hope this post was helpful to you!! <3 let me know if anything helped!

[ghostofskywalker]

Here's To A New Year

Peggy Carter/Fem!Reader

Words: 1,492

Summary: Working the night shift on New Year's Eve isn't really that bad, especially not when it's Peggy you're spending time with.

flower and meaning: mistletoe || love, good luck, healing

Note: this is my december fic for the @yearofcreation2023! i know it's technically 2024, but it's been so fun to write things for this challenge, and i really pushed myself to finally complete the year's collection. this month's flower was mistletoe, and i wanted to play on the meanings of it without necessarily doing something that includes the act of a mistletoe kiss, and i had fun writing this :)

Year of Flowers Masterlist • Peggy Carter Masterlist

No one ever wanted to work the night shift on New Year’s Eve, and you completely understood why. You didn’t work for the police, so there weren’t drunken celebrations to keep track of or traffic safety to worry yourself with, and you didn’t usually have cases that required constant attention at this time of year. You would think that people might try to use the distraction of the holidays to make enacting their diabolical plans easier, but that (thankfully) didn’t happen often. At best, the new year’s eve night shift was spent finalizing case reports, filing a few last minute things, and staring at the clock as you listened for the cheerful shouts at midnight.

Holiday shifts like these were usually traded throughout the year in return for favors and secrets, or they were shouldered by the newest agents hired. There were usually a small group of agents who didn’t celebrate Christmas or Thanksgiving, so lately those shifts weren’t bartered back and forth, but this one always was.

You weren’t even supposed to be here in the first place, but Daniel had called you at the last minute and explained that Jenkins had called out sick, and he practically begged for you to fill in. And after negotiating about what you would get in return (which was the next three days off, all fully paid), you finally agreed. But you would have said yes anyway the moment you found out who you would be working with.

And you were pretty sure that Daniel knew that when he asked you.

Although you had never talked about your feelings out loud, you could never deny that you were fascinated with Peggy Carter. Of course the two of you had spent a lot of time together, and since she was the only other female agent in the office she was the one who showed you the ropes of the SSR (and of course, little tricks and ways to make the best of working in this particular situation). You moved out west when Daniel opened up the office in Los Angeles, and you were overjoyed when Peggy moved across the country to work here earlier this year.

You had watched her knock out assailants twice her size without as much as breaking a sweat, and on more than one occasion gotten a little distracted because you were staring at her from across the room. You desperately wanted to tell her how you felt, but a fear of what might happen if she didn’t return your amorous emotions held you back.

You knew that Daniel had probably figured things out about your little crush by now. You knew for sure that his wife had her suspicions, and you wouldn’t have put it past Violet to say something to her husband and try to get him to help you out a little. But you knew that your affections were usually pretty blatant, so you didn’t really blame them.

The door to the office opened and Peggy stepped back into the room, a bag of takeout in her hand and a look on her face you couldn’t quite read. “What’s it like out there?” you asked. This would mark your second new year on the west coast, but it was her first.

“The traffic isn’t as bad as New York this time of year, but it’s somehow still just as infuriating,” she said, returning to where she had been sitting before, which was the desk the two of you had been sharing for the evening.

You laughed. “I’d love to say that gets better, but I really can’t.”

You could see a smile start to form on her face. “It doesn’t in New York either.”

As the two of you unwrapped the food and began to eat, you were the one to break the comfortable silence. “Now that you’ve been here for a little bit, how do you like LA?”

“It’s different than I thought it would be, but I’m happy I moved out here,” she said. “What about you? Have you completely forgotten what it was like to live on the east coast at this point?”

You smiled, pausing before you answered her question. “There are good things and bad things,” you said. “I like the warmer weather, but everything’s too far apart here.”

“I definitely agree,” she said. “I don’t think I’ve ever driven as much as I have since I left New York.”

“I don’t know if I miss the subway though.”

She scoffed slightly. “I definitely don’t!”

As the conversation moved on to other topics, you could feel the atmosphere in the bullpen get brighter. And for the first time all night, you hadn’t looked at the clock in quite some time.

***

The three hour time difference between New York and LA meant that by the time you had finished eating, you were too late to tune into the more official celebrations (such as the ball dropping in Times Square), but you didn’t really mind.

The slightly tinny-sounding radio that resided in one of storage closets was soon brought out, and you couldn’t help the way your heart lifted as music filled the tiny room. There was nothing else to do, and the two of you would be stuck here for quite some time, so what was the harm in having a little fun? After listening for a little while, you began to dance, at first moving your head to the beat of the music but soon having fully gotten up from your seat.

If there was anyone else in the room besides Peggy, you wouldn’t have let loose so easily, and you certainly wouldn’t have asked her to dance, but you did.

“Oh, I’m not any good at that,” Peggy said. “I think I’d step on your toes.”

“I’m not any good at this either,” you said, holding your hand out. “But it’s New Year’s Eve, let’s have a little fun.”

You didn’t give up, and soon Peggy was gently holding your hand as the two of you twirled through the room. It was not graceful or picturesque by any means, as you almost crashed into the desks on multiple occasions, but it was fun, and that was all that mattered.

An upbeat song ended and a slower one took its place, you paused, but Peggy didn’t show any sign of wanting to sit back down. It was a bit awkward to shift your dance to a slower tempo, but eventually the two of you got there.

She was so much closer to you now, and you could see every detail on her face. To you, every hair out of its usual perfect place was a symbol of the way she had let loose a little bit tonight, and you wanted to bottle this moment just so that you could keep it forever.

You didn’t know who moved first, or when the eye contact got a little more intense, but soon the music from the radio had completely faded into the background. You and Peggy were the only two people in the entire world right now, and you didn’t think anything could make this better than it already was.

Until she leaned in, stopping right before her lips made contact with yours. “May I?” she whispered.

“Please,” was your breathy response, and you didn’t even have time to act embarrassed about your forwardness before she had closed the gap between you.

You had dreamed about kissing Peggy Carter before, you’d be lying if you said you hadn’t, but this put every single fantasy you’ve ever had before to absolute shame. You always rolled your eyes when people talked about sparks flying between lovers, but in this moment you were ready to eat every single one of those words. She was utterly perfect, of course her kisses would be immeasurably wonderful as well.

When you finally had to pull away for air, you didn’t know what to say. “Happy new year,” was what came out of your mouth, and it definitely wasn’t your finest moment,.

Peggy looked slightly puzzled. “Is it midnight yet?”

You could not try to backtrack now, even if it was only (your head snapped towards where the clock was hanging) eleven thirty. “It’s midnight somewhere, right?”

Your (not-so) suave line did not have the intended effect. “I don’t know, wouldn’t time zones-”

As she spoke you took a risk, and instead of trying to figure out the right words to say, you just leaned in and kissed her again. Any worry you had about her not reciprocating melted away after the very first moment, because she returned every ounce of passion that you poured into the kiss.

Yeah, there were still quite a few things that needed to be figured out with her, but right now, you were more than happy to just relish in the happiness of the occasion.

All of that other stuff would be next year’s problem anyway.

- the end -

i no longer have a taglist! if you're interested in being notified when i post, you can follow my library blog @ghostofskywalker-library and turn on notifications!

[beomie3]

valentine - choi beomgyu

( book )

pairing - popular!beomgyu x quiet!femreader

word count - about 24k

summary - y/n’s life hasn't been easy for as she works hard to maintain her gpa in order to continue attending a fancy school under a scholarship. But to her surprise, the richest and most popular boy in the school, Choi Beomgyu invites her to his Valentine's Day Party that he will host at the fanciest club in the city. Things unfold at the party when their hidden feeling for each other ignite into fiery love and burning passion.

genre - smut, acquaintances to lovers

warnings - cursing, alcohol use, partying, dirty dancing, fingering, first time, soft!dom gyu, eating out, oral sex, bath sex, lube, pov first person, breast fucking, size kink, and more

a/n - this book is also published on my ao3 and wattpad: zoldyckfreecss03

Part 1

Ding-Ding-Ding!

The minute bell echoed profusely throughout the spacious halls, notifying the students to hurry along to their next class, to which most of them would pay no mind. I hurried down the slick, marble hallway from lunch to my next class; advanced biology lab. It was my 5th period of the day so I was a bit tired, but I had regained some energy from lunch so I didn't feel like a walking zombie.

The halls of my high school were much different from other high schools because mine was, well, very elite. Preppy. Classy. Rich. You name it, any synonym for the word expensive just about perfectly describes this school. The whole building was practically glass. Windows lined every wall, from floor to ceiling, hallways to classrooms. The black and white marble flooring looked almost wet, glossed over with fresh polish every week it seemed. Crystal chandeliers hung elegantly from the high ceilings of every hall, providing a sophisticated gleam to the place. Last but not least, the grand scholarship award at the end of the hall was the cherry on top. Crafted of real gold, the award was carved in the shape of an angel with its large fanned wings, locked away in a glass case with 24/7 surveillance. It really gave the school its mystery, elegance, and competitiveness.

The scholarship would pay a full ride to one new student each year. A lot of the students here didn't really need to worry about expenses, but coming from a less fortunate family myself, I was beyond grateful to be this year's grand scholarship recipient. I made sure to work hard every single day to maintain my grade point average to continue attending this academy under the prestigious scholarship. The award was mostly funded by the school's benefactors. One of the largest contributors being the family of Choi Beomgyu, a student at our school. I didn't know much about him, but one thing that goes without saying is that his family is probably, no, most definitely rolling in dough. Slightly above the award hung a plaque with his family picture on it, consisting of two serious looking men (which I could assume were his father and uncle), and his mother on the other end. Their ash blond-haired son sat in between them, a bright, confident smile on his face, which I always seemed to notice whenever I walked past the award. He seemed pretty popular around here, considering I share a class with him. But I was never in a place to talk to him, or let alone knew what to say.

Finally making it to 5th period, I strolled into the usual freezing cold biology lab classroom, finding my desk at the front right by the window. Due to the fact that we had to wear these preppy school uniforms, the thin fabric never fulfilled my body of it's needed heat, so I quickly wrapped my cozy red cardigan around my shoulders to warm myself up. Soon enough once all the students had filled the classroom, our biology instructor, Mr. Kang began giving instructions to what we would be doing in today's class. For the past week, we had been discussing and preparing for a lab in which we would be getting one assigned lab partner to work with. The lab seemed pretty interesting, involving the dissection of several types of poisonous mushrooms. We were required to wear goggles, lab coats, and gloves to protect us from the potentially harmful matter. Very interesting indeed.

Mr. Kang began excitedly circling around the classroom, stopping at each desk to hand out little slips of paper with a random student's name like he usually did when he was assigning partners. Since I didn't have any close friends in this class, I was feeling curious as to who's name would be on my slip. He quickly came and went from my desk with a toothy grin, dropping a small, folded piece of paper onto my desk. I slowly began unravelling it, hearing the classroom progressively become louder as partners joined together. I held the unfolded paper in my hand, revealing a name that caused a small twist in my stomach.

"Choi Beomgyu."

I quickly scanned my eyes over the small, scribbled letters of his name countless times until my brain processed that I now had to get up and look for this guy so we could start the lab. I was mainly trying to process the fact that I got paired up with the scholarship benefactor's son, aka the prince of the school. Lets see how this goes. I took a deep breath to steady myself.

At that, I stood up and spun around on my heel in search of the tall, ash blonde-haired boy who most likely would be busy chatting with other students, considering his widespread admiration amongst the school.

"Y/n, is it?" I heard a deep, airy voice call from behind me, slightly startling me since it was so unexpected. I spun back around on my heel, now face to face with the boy himself.

His uniform was the neatest I've seen on any boy around here; a crisp, white dress-shirt buttoned up all the way to his neck, perfectly secured by a red striped tie, tucked into some grey pants and a navy blue uniform coat completely free of wrinkles. He looked sharp. I looked up at him, his dark brown eyes staring back at me expectantly. His backpack was slung around an arm casually as he held the small slip of paper in his hand, using his index finger to point at my name.

I nodded, "That's me!" He stuffed the paper into the pocket of his navy blue uniform coat, not an ounce of expression on his face.

"Lets get to it, then." He set his hefty backpack down on my desk, taking my seat.

"You can go get the supplies while I write our names on the lab sheet," he said plainly without looking up once. My eyes narrowed in slight irritation at his coldness.

I let out a breath, turning around to go get the stuff. "Nice to meet you too," I muttered sarcastically under my breath once I was far enough away.

I hope he isn't like this the whole lab. But what am I to expect? I don't even know him.

After picking up two of each lab coat, goggles, and gloves, I headed back to my desk to find him texting on his phone, fingers typing quickly on the screen. I set the lab coat on top of his hands as to give him the signal of my presence, causing him to glare up at me.

"You can text your girlfriends later," I motioned nonchalantly, half joking. I really wasn't sure if he had a girlfriend but I just assumed that, due to the fact that literally every girl is crazy over him. We didn't have time to waste and I wanted to get to work on this project.

He furrowed his brows at me, "What?" he inquired.

I said exactly what I was thinking, "We don't have time to waste. I want to get to work on this project."

A silly idea occurred to me which I thought would get his attention. I clasped my hands together and sarcastically made a pleading gesture, making puppy eyes at him. "Pleaseeeeeeeee."

That seemed to work when he put both his hands up by his sides, admitting defeat. "Fine," he exhaled, "You win."

"Finally," I added, rolling my eyes. He cleared my desk of all his belongings to begin the project. I noticed that the lab sheet, the one he said he would get, was nowhere to be found.

"Where's the lab sheet?" I inquired, lifting a brow at the seated boy. He pursed his lips, darting his eyes over at the table where the lab sheets were stacked. It was evident he hadn't picked one up. I crossed my arms, disappointment written all over my face. Before I could speak, he held a hand up as to shush me.

"Close your eyes real quick," he said, glancing over at the stack. I didn't close them. He tilted his head in confusion, "Oh? I'll close them for you then." He stood up from his seat and cupped a warm hand over my eyes. I kept my eyes open under his fingers, the only thing visible were a few cracks of light which leaked in from the classroom. I felt him shift around momentarily, and then removed his hand from my eyes.

"Ta-da." He enthusiastically cheered, placing the lab sheet on the desk. I was slightly impressed to see he had put in effort to make his cheer actually sound excited. Because from what I had noticed, he wasn't one to show much amusement.

"Now that wasn't so hard was it?" I asked, hands on my hips as I tilted my head at him. "Now, if you will, i'm going to take my seat back." I sat down in my seat, forcing him to pull his own seat out from another desk. Instead of sitting across from me like I had expected, he set it down it next to mine. He slumped down comfortably in the chair, propping a leg up on his other knee. I slid the lab sheet over to him, motioning for him to write his name down. He zipped open a compartment of his black bag, selecting a purple ink pen and leaned over the paper to begin writing, a determined expression on his face.

I read the paper over; Names: Choi Beomgyu

His handwriting stuck out to me, it was neater than my own.

"What's your last name?" He asked, pen still in his hand. I took this as a signal that he wanted to take the lead and write both of our names down.

"L/n," I replied, spelling my last name out for him letter by letter. I noticed that he froze where he was, not moving an inch at the sound of my full name. He quickly swiveled his head to look at me.

"Y/n L/n? You're the winner of this year's scholarship," he remarked, curiosity lacing his voice.

I nodded my head slowly, "Yeah... yeah I am."

A lighter expression washed over his face, lips faintly tugging up at each corner.

"I got the smartest girl in the room- no, in the school as my lab partner, how cool is that." He nodded slowly to himself, returning to the paper to neatly write down my last name. It seemed more like he was talking to himself, but I couldn't help but smile at the endearment. I felt my smile grow a bit too wide, making my cheeks slightly burn. I shook off the feeling and returned to find that my classmate had finished writing my name.

The paper now read:

Names: Choi Beomgyu + Y/n L/n

~

"Ouch! What the- what are you doing? Here give me that," he hissed, snatching the clear goggles away from my grasp as I was helping him put them on at his request.

A strand of his hair had gotten stuck in between the plastic and the stretchy band, causing him to reach up and grab my hand at the tug. I giggled as he scrunched his nose, rubbing the top of his head where I had accidentally pulled his hair.

"Dummy," he said teased, adjusting the goggles over his eyes as I giggled. When his goggles were on, the first part of the lab was complete; safety first.

We both sat there facing one another, lips pursed as we held in our laughs at the sight of each other wearing the silliest looking goggles, huge lab coats, and dishwashing gloves. We looked like mad scientists. As Beomgyu leaned over to checkmark the box on our lab sheet, I couldn't hold it in any longer when he struggled to hold the pen because of how long the fingers of the gloves were on him.

I was the first to release my laughter, which was dying to come out at this point. It echoed loudly throughout the classroom, drawing stares from all around. Shortly after, the blonde-haired boy dropped his head into his arm on the table and I watched as his back heaved up and down in laughter. Our fun was short lived when I sensed the observant presence of Mr. Kang behind us. He stood with a long wooden pointer, patiently resting his hand on the top of it as he watched us breathlessly regain our composure. I tried my best to wipe the prevalent smile of laughter off of my face, wondering how long he had been standing there. Mr. Kang then placed the end of his pointer on Beomgyu, who was still face down on the desk, tapping it lightly on his shoulder.

Thankfully, Mr. Kang was an extremely kind teacher who didn't give us any sort of penalty. He simply brought his rectangular glasses down to his nose, lifting an eyebrow at us which served as a warning to get back to work. He was a quiet man, his gentleness and good nature obvious in his aura. Mr. Kang was definitely my favorite teacher and I didn't want to disappoint him any further. I straightened my posture to convey a more serious demeanor to my lab partner, who peeked up at me through some strands of hair as he continued to lay face down, cheek resting on his arm.

Suddenly, his head jerked up at the sound of his name across the classroom.

"Psst Beomgyu-hyung!" the whisper of a voice came from the table next to us. I glanced over to find a fluffy haired boy with his hands cupped around his mouth to project his voice, a mischievous smile on his face as he whisper-yelled over to our desk.

"What's up Huening?" Beomgyu gave him his attention, whisper-yelling back.

"You excited for the big night tomorrow?" the brown haired boy grinned, raising his eyebrows suggestively.

Beomgyu glanced around the classroom in search of Mr. Kang before continuing to speak with the boy. The coast was clear, so he responded, "Of course man, see you there!" he nodded his head dismissively at the boy before turning back to me.

Big night? I thought to myself momentarily, before dropping the thought because it was really none of my business.

The air fell silent between Beomgyu and I as he doodled a small bear at the top right of our lab sheet, lost in thought. I continued with the lab, examining small fragments of mushroom through a microscope, jotting down notes along the way.

"Hey can I ask you something?" He broke the silence, leaning towards me.

"Sure, go ahead," I gestured with my pen, jotting down one last note before setting it down, giving him my full attention.

"Would you like to come to my Valentine's Day Party tomorrow night?" The word 'my' stuck out to me like a sore thumb.

I weighed my opinions. I could either go to this party and see what it's all about, or spend my Saturday night studying for finals while listening to my favorite music. But I spend every Saturday night doing that, plus it might be fun to do something new for a change. It was a quick decision on my end.

"Sure," I nodded, pleased with my decision. My thoughts began to buzz, curious for the exact details.

Just as I opened my mouth to ask where and what time, he took out a small piece of paper from his backpack and a pink pen, jotting something down quickly. His eyes focused on the paper as he quickly wrote, almost as if it was a very secretive thing. Or at least, that's the vibe I picked up on during his short conversation with Huening.

Not before long, he slid the small paper in front of me, his dainty script immediately drawing my attention.

Choi Beomgyu's Valentine's Day Party Location: The Lake Club, 31301 N Lake Club Ave. @ 7:30 pm

I scanned my eyes over the sheet and then folded it before stuffing it in my cardigan pocket. My eyes were wide, flabbergasted at the location of the event. I had only seen The Lake Club advertised on celebrity's instagram accounts. It was definitely no place for someone like me, who's family had a severely poor financial standing, hardly able to afford living in this city. I pushed my thoughts away with a breath, reassuring myself that it can't possibly be that bad. I was now an invited guest, so I doubt I would have to pay to enter.

"I'll be there," I smiled, and the bell dinged, signaling the end of our class. Beomgyu nodded in verification, the corners of his lips drawing ever so slightly upward. "Cool, I'll see you there."

We both stood to pack up our stuff, then he was off to his desk.

Mr. Kang stood by the door like always, smiling at the students on their way out. Soon, Beomgyu and I were the only two in the room because we were late to pack up.

I heard a few shuffles behind me as I quickly zipped up my backpack and threw it over my shoulder. I turned around only to be face to face with Beomgyu, who had seemingly returned to tell me something. He leaned in secretively, moving his face the closest to my ear he had ever been.

"Oh and...don't forget to wear pink," his smooth voice trickled into my ear as he spoke lowly, as to only be heard only by me. He pulled away, gazing at me once more before spinning around and headed out the door to his next class. I was stuck there, entranced in the moment until I heard Mr. Kang's voice hurry me along.

For the rest of the day, I wouldn't quite be able to focus. The same thought circled round and round in my mind; What will the party be like? I'm so inexperienced with parties. I can't believe its tomorrow night.

I had no clue what I was in for.

~

When I returned home after school, I threw myself on my bed, staring anxiously at the ceiling. What could I possibly wear? The thought buzzed around my mind like an angry bee, pestering me until I stood in front of my closet. This is gonna be a long night. I threw heaps of uniform shirts, skirts, and jackets around in search for a pink outfit. Soon, there was a huge mountain of clothes on my bedroom floor, my closet nearly empty. I was worried I would run out of luck, until my eyes landed on a sheer pink item hiding at the back of my closet.

Jackpot.

Part 2

Cute!

I assured myself as I gazed at the lustrous, pink glow of my reflection in the bathroom mirror. The soft, warm ambiance of the lighting reflected across the marble details of the bathroom, announcing the sheer affluence of the place. Loud, reverberated music echoed from the party outside of the bathroom, bringing a nostalgic feeling deep inside my chest as the beat of my favorite song boomed in the distance.

I traced a finger along the diamond headpiece I wore. It's long strands of silver rhinestones interlacing themselves all throughout my hair, sparkling in the bathroom lighting. The headpiece matched my chunky, diamond heart-shaped choker and earrings since it came together as a set.

As I hummed to the song, I glanced over my makeup to see if it needed any touch ups. The hot pink shimmery eyeshadow I wore glittered in the mirror, along with the silver heart-shaped rhinestone that adorned the top of cheek. Of course, I topped off the sparkly look with my favorite lip tint. My makeup went perfectly with my outfit; every ounce of it pink and glittery, as instructed by my lab partner.

"Don't forget to wear pink..." The memory of his voice trickled into my mind.

So I did as he said; I wore a pale pink, satin crop top with a sheer ribbon that fanned out over my chest, accompanied by a light pink feathery shawl which draped behind my shoulders as it pleased. This combo revealed my skin in a classy way, showcasing my collarbones due to the thin straps of my top.

On my bottom half, I wore a pale pink fuzzy mini skirt and some high heeled, pink faux leather boots which rose to just below my kneecap. I topped the look off with a pair of long, sheer pink gloves which added an elegant touch to my outfit.

Being so used to wearing the same old school clothes, I felt earthshakingly confident for the first time in a while.

I looked down at glowing, circular LED light which was pinned to my top. The pin had a number three on it, the bubbly number shining brightly. Upon arrival to the party, everyone received one of these pins with a different number on it. To my understanding, it would be used for some sort of "event." Or at least that's what the club employee explained as he handed me mine at the door. I was unsure as to what it was, but I was definitely curious to find out.

I unhinged my small pink purse, pulling out a thin glass bottle of a sweet scented fragrance and spritzed a small amount onto the left and right side of my neck, as well as my wrist. Running some fingers through the curls in my hair, I took one last good look at myself before I decided to head back out into the crowded, yet exciting Valentine's day party that Choi Beomgyu himself planned, set up, and was now hosting at The Lake Club.

~

As I walked out of the bathroom into the raving crowds, I realized how impressive the the party decor was. Fluorescent heart-shaped lights, similar to the material of my pin, dangled across the ceiling in their pink glow. As well as shiny, holographic streamers which practically drowned the walls in their shininess. Pink and red balloons floated all around and above the bar, each balloon reading an item off the drink menu. I raised my eyebrows, impressed at the creativity.

Did he put these up himself?

It seemed super professional too. This being my first "real" party I had ever gone to, I could practically feel the lavishness. My reason of astonishment was the location; The Lake Club aka the ritziest club in town which celebrities mostly rented out for their parties and gatherings. I darted my eyes around the place, landing on a long, elevated runway that parted the crowd in two. The runway was connected to the DJ booth. I wonder what the runway is used for?

As my eyes lingered on the DJ booth, I was star-struck at the realization of one of the most famous DJ's in the city, Choi Yeonjun.

He held a headphone over his ear, strategically pressing buttons and maneuvering his equipment while grooving with the beat, rocking his head up and down in rhythm with the catchy music. His DJ booth was perched up above the ecstatic crowd which consisted of the people from my school. I couldn't really recognize anyone, especially with the flashing lights that bounced off of the walls, making it hard to focus on any one person.

All types of bass-heavy music blasted through the crowd as I stood there, observing their silhouettes jump and move energetically in tune with the beat. I watched as some couples danced, almost dropping my jaw at how sexual some of their dance moves were. It was something I had definitely only seen in movies, not in real life. It wasn't something I stared at for long, though.

I moved my eyes around some more to take in all the pink decor, observing as jocks chugged alcoholic beverages under the shiny balloons, and as girls took group selfies in all of their rosy attire. I moved my wonder-struck eyes from place to place, simply taking in all of the ambiance.

And then,

I spotted him.

A pang of nerves twisted their way into my stomach. Yet, I couldn't help but observe him from afar.

He stood there, leaning against a velvet sofa as he chatted with his entourage of guy friends. I spotted Huening amongst the group, his body moving in constant laughter as he jokingly hit another guy on the shoulder. But Beomgyu's stature and pink glow stood out from them all, so similar to one of a prince.

His outfit looked like one of a prince, too. It was striking; he wore a soft pink, lacy textured coat with details of gold sequins on the shoulders and a bright red heart on the left pocket. The coat in itself was dashingly royal. A slightly, more muted pink were the color of his pants, which were tucked into a pair of tall white boots. The combination hugged his figure nicely, accentuating his height.

But that wasn't all. His ashy blonde hair seemed almost purple in the lighting, framing his face perfectly like always, bringing out the best of his features. A thin, black choker tightly hugged his neck, accentuating his adam's apple.

Why am I so tense all of a sudden?

I hadn't realized I was staring for so long when I felt his deep brown eyes suddenly dart over to meet mine. His attention boarded into me, causing my face to burn. I tried to find some sort of comfort but I stood there alone, so I resorted to my phone, looking down at my empty lock screen. After a few seconds, I flicked my eyes back up to him out of curiosity, to discover that he was on his phone too.

My phone began to vibrate as it lit up with a call, drawing my eyes back down to my screen.

Beomgyu (Lab Partner) is calling.... accept | decline

Earlier today, I had discovered that on the back-side of the piece of paper with the party information, his number was written on it in his familiar penmanship. I noticed it this morning as I typed the party address in my phone, I also created a new contact for him.

My heart pounded as I swiped to accept his call.

"Hello?" I answered, forcing my voice loud enough to be heard over the blaring music.

"Y/n. M/n. L/n, are you gonna make me come over there and get you? Because I will." He spoke in a deep, declaring voice over the line. My heart pounded harder at the fact that he pronounced my entire name perfectly.

I shifted around in my heels, daring to glance over at him only to find he was already looking at me. I had been thinking of a reply.

I'll play his little game.

"Ouch!" I slightly bent my ankle, trying my best to mock a mediocre sprain. "Oh no! It looks like you'll have to come and get me," I replied in an innocent voice, throwing a hand over my forehead helplessly. He smirked, lifting a brow. We both obviously knew it was fake. But it made our little game all the more enticing.

The other line beeped as he ended the call, and I watched as he dismissed himself from his friend group, sliding his phone into his pants pocket smoothly.

As he walked closer, I picked up on the little details of his appearance. Small specs of glitter sparkled underneath and around his eyes, as well as some black eyeliner which was smokily smudged along his waterline, making his eyes all the more attractive. His whole being glittered in the pink ambiance of the party lights. I then noticed that his glowing pin read the number thirteen.

Once reached me, he did something I was not expecting- at all.

He hooked an arm under my legs, practically sweeping me off my feet, and carried me bridal-style across the dance floor. I was speechless.

"Beomgyu what on earth are you doing!!!!" I whisper-yelled, hitting his arm begging him to put me down. My cheeks glowed red as I felt stares from the crowd burning into me. He walked over to the bar and set me down on a stool, swiveling it to face him so that he stood in-between my legs. A cold sweat dispersed itself all throughout my body as my heart nearly beat out of my chest.

I think my plan of trying to cutely-fake-a-sprained-ankle backfired on me.

"Oh you poor thing, you obviously couldn't walk because of that ankle of yours, so I carried you." He placed his palm on the bar table and leaned into it, inching his face closer to mine. "And now it's time to drink the pain of that injured ankle away," he added, moving his face even closer. I picked up on his seductive aura, his eyes so deeply focused into mine. He was enjoying our little game.

I had second thoughts. Did it really backfire? Although I was stunned and embarrassed, something in me enjoyed the thrill.

I swallowed the knot that formed in my throat. I wasn't much of a drinker. In fact, I have never gotten fully drunk. The last time I drank was at a small house party with some friends years ago. But, I knew as a fact that it took a lot to get me drunk, since a few beers had close to no effect on me.

So what is there to lose?

"Yeah, you're right," I responded confidently, straightening my posture, not once taking my eyes off his.

Pretty soon, there were two shots before us. Never having done a shot before, I examined the short, clear glass, taking a whiff of the bitter scented liquid. I also paid mind to the small, heart shaped sprinkles floating in the liquid, which I found cute.

It can't be that bad, right?

I looked over at the daring boy, who now sat in a barstool, holding the glass loosely in his grasp.

"Ready?" he looked over at me, expectantly. I looked down at the clear liquid, swallowing the knot in my throat. My heat pounded profusely at what was to come. A million thoughts buzzed in my head; What if I have a bad reaction? My parents cannot find out about this. What if they find out?

I looked back at Beomgyu, nervousness evident in my expression.

"Wait- you've never?" he asked, looking down at my tense hands. I nodded my head quickly.

"Well, of course the perfect princess hasn't had a drink. Always working hard for that scholarship," he cooed, setting his glass down. I was unable to tell his tone of voice, but his aura was darkened in a sort of mystery.

"Here, let me help you since it's your first." He got up out of his seat, picking my shot glass up and stood behind me as I sat nervously in the bar stool.

"Tilt your head back." His voice called from behind me.

This enticed a concern from me, "Wait what?!" I implored.

"Just trust me. Do it," he demanded in a softer voice. I closed my eyes, taking in a breath. Calm down Y/n. You need to let loose sometimes.

I did as he instructed and tilted my head back. Since he stood behind me, the crown of my head now rested on his chest, my heart pounding. I looked up at him and our eyes met. He looked funny from this upside-down angle and I let out a small giggle, noticing his eyes crinkle as he let out a small laugh himself. My heart slightly jumped, cheeks basking in their usual red glow. The only time I had witnessed him laugh was yesterday when we worked on the lab, but I hadn't ever seen his face express as much joy as laughter. It was a sight to see.

Soon, his smile faded, replaced with his familiar sultry expression.

"Open your mouth," he demanded, slightly tugging at my bottom lip with his index finger. My face burned hotter. At his command, I parted my lips, opening my mouth a comfortable amount, not too wide or else I would feel more embarrassed than I already was. I felt his fingers hold onto my chin as he neared the cup to my mouth, the cool glass gracing my bottom lip.

"Bottoms up," he mumbled, and then emptied the glass into my mouth.

I immediately sat upright at the feeling of the bitter liquid burning my throat. Squeezing my eyes shut, I placed my hands on the bar table, bracing myself as I swallowed the liquid in one large gulp. Once it was all gone, I stuck my tongue out as proof of ingestion.

"Blehhhh," I shook my head, wiping my mouth clean with a napkin. I looked over at him as he returned to his bar stool, that rare smile of amusement back on his face.

"You should've seen your face!" He pointed at me, covering the lower half of his expression with his other hand as he let out a giggle.

Why is he covering his smile? He shouldn't do that.

All sense of reasoning must've left my head when I said exactly what I was thinking.

"Why do you always cover your laugh? Don't do that," I blurted, reaching up to remove his hand from his face.

Am I already tipsy?

Just as he opened his mouth to say something back, a group of about five or six girls began crowding around Beomgyu, pushing me out of my seat. I heard a couple of their snickers as they stared at me, envy prevalent in their eyes. One of them touched Beomgyu on the shoulder, moving her body too close to him. My heart rate accelerated.

"Beomgyu ahhh!! Can you give us a shot like that too??" A couple of their high-pitched voices rang, irritating the crap out of me. I was mostly annoyed at their squeaky voices and the fact that I was practically booted out of my seat.

I expected this to happen sooner or later, though. The fact that me, a peasant in the eyes of the filthy rich girls that attended our school was with hanging out with the prince of the school Choi Beomgyu was simply mind-boggling to them.

Before I could do anything to reclaim my seat, I felt an arm sling around my neck.

"Hard pass," he said, practically shooing the girls away with the gesture of his hand. At that, the girls gave me one final glare, like daggers, but I simply didn't care what they thought. A small grin found its way onto my face as Beomgyu's arm continued to hang around my neck.

"Well that was pretty smooth," I chuckled, looking up at him as retracted his arm. "You probably do that a lot," I added, lightheartedly.

He looked at me with the same furrowed brows, the ones he used on me when he had his phone out in class yesterday.

"What's up with you and thinking I've had a bunch of girlfriends?" He inquired, his tone more serious.

"I mean, you are pretty popular around school, no?" I asked, hoping not to come off as annoying. But it was true, he was the most popular guy in the whole school. He looked down at his untouched shot glass, shrugging.

"Yeah, I guess it's true. But I don't really see it that way. I just try to live and enjoy life, no matter my social standing," he added after a moment.

I nodded in understanding at his response. The truth was, I felt the exact same way as him about myself. I probably had one of the lowest social standings in terms of popularity, but I didn't really care. I just kept living my life, focusing on school, and doing things that made me happy. That's why I found myself at Beomgyu's party, sitting next to him while enjoying his company.

"That's why I'm sitting here with you, I like being around people who make me happy," I blurted out, immediately realizing what I had just said. I scratched the back of my head, giving him an awkward smile. I guess this shot has completely taken away my filter.

But it's not too bad, I thought to myself. I'm just simply speaking my mind and I still have almost all of my self-control, which is all that matters to me. I turned to Beomgyu who, for the third time, wore a smile on his face. He looked so pretty in the dim lighting of the bar, his attractive lips curling up, revealing a small dimple on his cheek that I hadn't seen before. His grin was contagious because before I knew it, I was mirroring his expression.

I looked down at his full shot glass, "Aren't you gonna show me how it's done?" I asked, gesturing at his glass with a quizzical expression.

"Oh, I almost forgot. Let me show you how it's done, Miss L/n," he replied, bringing the shot glass out in front of him, gesturing it in my direction as to say "cheers." Then in one smooth motion, he threw his head back and emptied the glass. By the time he brought his head back up, he has already swallowed the liquid, keeping a stoic expression.

"How did you do that!" I exclaimed excitedly, my mouth ajar in surprise. He set his empty glass on the table with a clink, shrugging his shoulders. "It just gets easier every time," he responded.

I giggled and a small period of silence fell between us as we looked out at the scene of the party before us.

"Have you written the thesis for our science lab yet?" I randomly asked as the thought had just passed through my mind. What better time to ask? I pinched the bridge of my nose in between my fingers in annoyance at my own question.

He side-eyed me, not even giving me a response, but instead, offered me his hand.

"C'mon y/n its obvious your life revolves around your studies. Hell, you probably dream about math problems and science theses." I giggled at his remark.

"But I think it's time for you to take a break from constantly thinking about school. I think its time to dance," he added matter of factly, holding his hand hand out in front of my face. I was a bit stunned. I hadn't danced with a guy before, let alone tipsy at a ritzy party.

Before I could allow the buzzing thoughts to enter my mind like always, I placed my hand into his and let him take the lead.

This is going to be interesting.

Part 3

I felt the burning stares of girls as they whispered god knows what, but I simply shook it off. Being on the dance floor with Beomgyu left no room to think about anything else. All I could do was focus on his sparking eyes and watch him move like never before.

I wasn't sure if it was the alcohol or the elation of the moment, but something about Beomgyu seemed different. It seemed like he was happier and more loose, moving his body excitedly with the beat of the song. He had completely let down all of his exterior walls, showing the bright, shining boy that he was deep down. Something about his bright and charismatic aura brightened the room even more than it already was, making him so appealing to me that I simply stared at him in awe as we danced. I wanted to stay right here with him the entire night.

And I did.

Suddenly, the music went quiet and the lights dimmed as several spotlights shined onto the DJ booth. The electronic screen in front and behind the booth shifted to a screen that read 'Buy your Valentine' in cursive font. I wondered what was about to go down.

"I'd like everyone's attention as we officially begin the long awaited Valentine's Day Party!!" I turned to see DJ, Choi Yeonjun strut down the long platform that extended through the crowd like a runway. Yeonjun threw an arm up, enticing the crowd to cheer and clap excitedly.

"Before we get started, I'd like to invite you all to download the app on your phone called CUPIDS PARTY, I'll give you one minute!" An animated clock was projected onto the far wall, beginning to count backwards from sixty seconds.

I didn't ask any questions and just downloaded the app, opening it at the ten second mark to see a blank heart appear on the screen which read; "Select your valentine's pin number."

I remembered the glowing number thirteen on Beomgyu's jacket. Before I could type anything in, Yeonjun continued.

"You will use this app to vote for your valentine; the person you would like to spend the rest of the night with! Whoever puts in the highest amount of money wins that person and they become your valentine!" The crowd cheered, whooped, and clapped.

So its like an auction? My thoughts were halted by the DJ's voice again.

"Cupid is here with us tonight!" he continued as a second spotlight shined onto a tall girl standing on the far end of the platform. She wore a full face mask covered in diamonds, her hair up in a high ponytail to showcase her large, white wings. She held a fluffy, pink bow and arrow, drawing it back to point at the crowd.

"Cupid? I have a question for you. Who will you choose first?" he asked in a quizzical voice, turning to face the winged girl who was now scanning the crowd, ready to release one of her fuzzy arrows. I froze as she pointed in our direction, but I was relieved when she released her arrow at a group of guys standing next to us; the same group which Beomgyu had been with up until my arrival.

The crowd began pointing at a a tall, black haired boy who looked around nervously as his numbered pin began flashing colors. So this is what the pins will be used for, my question was finally answered.

"That's my friend Choi Soobin," Beomgyu chimed from behind me and I swiveled my neck to look at him. His jaw was prominent as I stood practically underneath his chin looking up at his flawless skin, lost in his beauty.

"This is your party so.. you came up with this right?" I asked, genuinely curious as to what was happening. He nodded proudly.

"Does cupid strike any random person?" I continued with another question, scratching my head.

"Yes, any random person." He responded, staring ahead as the tall, black haired boy walked up onto the platform.

"What happens now?" I asked a third question.

"Just watch," he placed two hands on each side of my head, turning it so I faced forward. His hands returned to rest at his sides, occasionally bumping my own hands as the crowd shifted. The raven-haired boy was now on the platform as the crowd went wild, cheering him on. "Let's go Soobin!" groups of guys cheered, encouraging the shy boy to walk proudly.

"Okay okay okay!" Yeonjun interrupted the screaming crowd, "What do we all think of this handsome man?" he questioned, enticing the crowd to cheer even more loudly than before.

The boy smiled at the crowd, awkwardly putting a hand on the back of his neck and heartily laughed in surprise of all the cheers.

"Choi Soobin, I have a gift for you! I am going to gift you.. the runway. Give it your all!!" Yeonjun cheered, lightly pushing the tall boy as a cue to begin walking down the extended platform. The crowd cheered as the shy boy walked as confidently as he could down the runway, laughing occasionally along the way. When he reached the end, he held a peace sign up to his eye which enticed a collectively loud scream from the girls.

I looked to my right to see a girl was typing profusely on the Cupid's Party app, typing in Soobin's pin number and then scrolling over the numbers until she reached the number 1000.

She pressed send, and a pink screen appeared which read; you have paid $1000 for #37. A heart then appeared on her screen which contained the number thirty seven in it. Words appeared under the heart which read, Congratulations! My guess was that she had won her night with Choi Soobin when she began screaming and pumping her fist in the air.

When Soobin's time was over, he exited the runway with a smile and some pats on the back from his classmates. The girl who stood next to me was gone, and she now stood next to him as they happily linked arms.

I looked up and over at Beomgyu who was typing something into his phone, not before long until he stuffed it in his pocket at realization of my gaze. I swiveled my head forward at the sound of the DJ's voice.

"Who's next Cupid?" Yeonjun called out over the microphone, making my heart beat as fast as it possibly could.

Something deep inside of me hoped I did not get called.

But another part was intrigued.

I swore I made direct eye contact with Cupid when I saw her release the arrow directly at me, and I felt a small vibration come from my pin as it was now brightly flashing. The crowd's attention suddenly boarded into me all at once as their immense cheers almost blew out my ears. I looked back at Beomgyu, who smiled at me, giving my hand a small squeeze.

"You got this," he mouthed, as I was slowly carried by the crowd's cheers. Before I knew it, I was walking up the slick steps up to the platform, doing my best to control my hands from violently shaking.

"Ohhh who's this beauty?" Yeonjun's voiced echoed throughout the club and because of how close I was to him, I could hear his real voice as well. I quickly became aware of my nervous posture so I straightened up immediately, putting on a confident front which was difficult, but doable. The good thing about confidence is that no one knows if its real or not. Right now, I was going to make them all believe it was 100% real. I smiled brightly at Yeonjun, leaving him wide eyed.

"Whew! Strut your stuff, babe!" He yelled, enticing a roar from the crowd as I began to strut, one foot in front of the other down the runway.

Being one who got no attention on a day to day basis, this felt so surreal to me. I felt like I didn't do anything special to deserve all of their attention. But I figured I'd live by my life motto to just live and enjoy life, no matter my social standing.

I relaxed as much as I could, progressively getting more into it. I swayed my hips smoothly, side to side as I strutted and threw a hand up in the air which enticed all the more cheers. As I neared the end of the runway, I thought of what pose I could possibly do. As I now stood at the end of the platform, I looked over at Beomgyu, who stared back at me, phone clutched firmly in his grip, bottom lip sucked between his teeth.

I turned in his direction, throwing a hip out to the side as I put both my index fingers and thumbs into a heart, placing them on my lips and them threw my hands out to the crowd, making a heart kiss gesture.

I had no idea how many screams this would entice, until I could practically feel the runway shake from all the jumping from the crowd. As I turned to walk back, I heard some female voices scream things like "Awww!" and "She's so cute!" making my heart flutter in happiness.

As I neared the DJ booth, Yeonjun winked at me and I waved at him, exiting the runway. I had no idea how much adrenaline I had been functioning on until I felt my legs practically go numb as I walked back to my spot in the crowd with Beomgyu. My hands shaked profusely and my legs felt weak. But at least I was good at faking confidence.

As I approached him, his eyes dark as he held out his phone to show me the bright pink heart on his screen; the number three within it with the words underneath which read; Congratulations! I looked down at my pin to confirm that three was indeed my number. I gasped, throwing a hand over my mouth, smiling widely. My heart fluttered at the fact that I got his vote. I was unsure of what to do, so I thew my arms around his neck in a hug. I felt him return the hug, pulling me closer to him. I inhaled his faint sweet scent, simply enjoying the moment until suddenly...

I felt his pin vibrate in between us.

Part 4

Cupid had released her fuzzy arrow at him, making the crowd go wild.

"Your turn!" I giggled, pulling away from the hug as I squeezed his arm. "You got it," I smiled up at him. He gave me a small wink before making his way to the front, my heart racing for him.

When I thought my cheers were loud, I was seriously understating the word loud. At the sight of him walk onto the platform, the crowd went absolutely berserk. From what I could calculate, his cheers were about 1000 times louder and more frantic than mine, which was very much expected. I thought I was going to go deaf when the girl behind me screamed at the top of her lungs. I could've sworn the windows would shatter. Many of the girls began running to the front of the stage, but I stayed in my spot towards the back.

"If you go on wikipedia and look up the definition for the word sexy, the search results will quite literally show the face of this man," Yeonjun's voice echoed amongst the crowd as he slung an arm around Beomgyu's neck, enticing the crowd's screams.

"Everyone, give it up for the sexiest man alive!!" Yeonjun ruffled Beomgyu's hair which only made it look better. The crowd went absolutely wild, mostly screams of girls which thunderously fulfilled Yeonjun's demand. I looked around at the crowd, a small smirk on my face knowing that the man they all fawned over had voted for me. But I didn't let that get to my head too much, I simply giggled at the fact that I only had about $50 in my bank account for the month. There was absolutely no way I would win the vote over these millionaires. For the hell of it, I decided to try and donate $5 just to see what happened. As I was typing in the number thirteen and the donation amount, I heard some girls complaining next to me.

"Why isn't it working??" "Did anyone else's app crash?" "Mine did!" "What's going on with the app?" It won't let me donate!" I heard their voices collectively grow louder. Glancing around to find that almost every girl in the room had a confused expression, I donated my measly $5 to see what would happen. My screen lit up, the number thirteen reflecting off of my eyeballs. The iconic Congratulations! appeared at the bottom of the screen. I smiled down at my phone. I'll discuss this with him later, I giggled to myself and looked ahead to watch Beomgyu's big appearance on the runway.

I focused onto his princely stature as he walked confidently down the platform, his hands stuffed in his pockets. Occasionally, he would wave at the crowd or put up a piece sign, which intensified the roar even more. As he inched the end of the runway, it felt as though time was traveling in slow motion when he struck his pose. He pushed a hand through his blonde hair, exposing his forehead momentarily as the strands fell back in place, showcasing his perfect face. His eyes scanned the crowd, landing on mine. I watched as he moved his hand to his lips, kissing his fingers and throwing his hand out, similar to my pose.

Then, my heart almost skipped a beat when he pointed at me, moving an imaginary spotlight onto where I stood as eyes from the crowd traveled onto me. At such a pose that was directed toward me, I was beginning to feel what seemed like a fangirl moment when I got butterflies at the sight of him, yelling out to cheer for him. He finished off his pose by scrunching his nose and lips into a cute-but-sexy expression, fluttering his fingers out towards the crowd. He spun around on his heel, enticing the absolute loudest cheer I had ever heard in my entire life. In fact, I had to cover my ears to keep my eardrums from practically rupturing.

Yeonjun gave him a fist bump on his way out and I watched as a sea of both men and women ran up to him. Does this boy need his own security or something? I asked myself, entirely serious as I watched him struggle to leave the stairs. I took this as my cue to try and do what I could to help him out of there, so I shoved my way through the crowd.

"Everyone back away from the prince, please," Yeonjun demanded in a stern tone from the microphone. I pushed my way to the center of the crowd, linking my arm with Beomgyu's and pulled him through the crowd.

"Its the hot couple!" I heard a male voice call from the crowd, drawing my eyes to the shy boy from earlier, Soobin. I couldn't help but laugh at his comment, and he smiled down at the ground when he noticed I had heard him.

When we were finally free from the crowd, I walked Beomgyu back to our spot in the back, but he kept on walking, pulling me with him to the bar which was further from the buzz of people.

"Are you getting another drink?" I asked, looking at him worriedly when I noticed how out of breath and overwhelmed he was from the crowd. He shook his head, dabbing the sweat off of his forehead with a napkin.

"Those people are insane, aren't they? Crazy we all go to the same school," he said, resting the side of his head on my shoulder as we sat in the same barstools from earlier.

"Yeah..I think you need your own security, Gyu. Seriously." I added, receiving a breathy chuckle from him. He looked up at me, a small grin on his face.

"I like it when you call me that," he added, resting a hand on the top of my leg. Without thinking, I placed my hand on top of his, thinking about the craziness that had just taken place. My mind stopped on a particular question I had been saving.

"Gyu, how come my app was the only one working when you went on stage?" I finally asked, furrowing my eyebrows curiously. He released air through his nose in a silent laugh, burying his head into my neck. I felt the familiar blush creep onto my cheeks at the feeling of his face on my exposed skin. He slowly inched his way up, moving his lips near my ear,

"Because I rigged it."

I nodded slowly, too focused on his warm breath. Then, his words finally seeped into my brain, causing a smirk to surface on my lips.

I knew it.

Part 5

When the cupid-runway-model-game had ended and the party had returned to its normalcy, I grabbed Beomgyu's hand, pulling him out of his barstool.

"C'mon Gyu, let's continue dancing where we left off!"

He followed behind, eager to dance like we did before. I could've sworn he was a different person from the one who had been assigned my lab partner yesterday. He was so much more affectionate towards me, smiling and dancing like nobody's business. But maybe he wasn't all that different, maybe he was just more comfortable around me now. The most comfortable I'd ever seen him.

But even then, I felt like we shared a connection as lab partners too.

We ran out to the slick dance floor, his hand in mine. As we danced along to the beat of every hype song imaginable, I couldn't help but feel even closer to him after the cupid event from earlier. It was obvious we'd built an even stronger connection just within the night. According to the app, Beomgyu and I were now each other's valentine, instructed to spend the rest of our night together. For right now, I just focused on dancing with him.

When the fast-paced pop songs played, we jumped up and down in the air, pumping our fists as our heart rates accelerated, pure euphoria coursing through our veins. Absolutely no one could remove our smiles even if they tried; my cheeks were even beginning to ache because of how big I was grinning. The lights strobed colorfully across his face, casting beautiful highlights and shadows onto his features as we moved in what felt like slow motion. I grabbed onto his hand, pumping it up in the air and he interlaced his fingers with mine. The moment felt absolutely perfect.

When the deeper-toned r&b songs blasted through the crowd, his aura seemed to shift into a more sultry one, and I could tell by the change in his dance moves as well. He rolled his body, dancing smoothly in tune with the lush beat, making sexy gestures and irresistible sexy facial expressions. He raked his fingers through his soft hair, his eyes darkening as he gazed at me. He motioned two fingers in a "come here" motion as he bit his bottom lip and lifted a mysterious eyebrow at me. My chest fluttered at his gesture; something about the way he bit his lip ignited something within me. I fulfilled his wish and strutted toward him, taking his hand as he pressed me close to him.

"Show me what you got," he whispered in my ear, his hot breath trickling its way down my neck. The moment felt hot as we breathed into each other's skin.

A flash of nerves zapped my stomach as I internally freaked out at his request, not knowing exactly what to do. But I calmed myself with a breath, reassuring myself to be confident and just go with the beat of the song, like I did earlier on the runway. I was beginning to feel like I was in my theatre improv 101 class, being suddenly put on the spot to showcase my skills. But this was different; I enjoyed it because my valentine made it fun.

I relaxed my body, taking a moment to briefly close my eyes and breathe deeply, feeling the vibrations of the bass in the song. I began by moving my hips, pressing them right up against his as I swayed them side to side. Then, I tossed my hair into a different direction, looking up at him through some pieces that messily fell on my face. I could sense that I looked hot, mainly because of the way his eyes were beginning to gloss over with a glint of lust.

The song faded into a darker r&b tune, one that made my skin almost break out in goosebumps as the deep beat interlaced perfectly into each other, making the moment all the more intense. He licked the corner of his lips as I graced his neck with the tips of my fingers, watching him shudder slightly at the chilling touch. I moved my shoulders and hips slowly, in tune with the music as I looked deeply into his eyes, giving him sultry expressions of my own to give him a taste of what it was like.

When I thought the moment couldn't get any more heated, it did. He slid an arm under his thick coat, removing it in one swift motion, throwing it aside onto a table. He wore a black sequins tank top underneath his white button up shirt and pink coat. I wondered if he wore it intentionally if he got hot under his outfit. It was certainly getting hot in here.

I didn't have much more time to think when I saw his muscular arms in the party lighting, which had now faded into a cool purple tone, accentuating the valleys of each muscle. I moved closer to him, gazing deeply into his deep brown eyes, which almost look black in the dark lighting. In this moment, it felt like we were the only two people amongst the raving crowd.

I began to get more into it, swinging my hips with more groove, and I suddenly decided to turn around, my back pressed to his chest as I swayed my hips against his crotch. I reached down to grab his hands, which rested at his sides, and placed them on the sides of my hips. He slightly hesitated, feeling the tensing of his stomach on my back. I turned my head to look over my shoulder up at him, nodding at him in assurance. I felt him relax as I slowly guided his hands to my hips, and he began to move his own hips side to side in tune with mine.

He heavily breathed against my neck as we moved slowly with the deep, echoing beat, his hot breath shivering my spine. I turned to look up at him over my shoulder and discovered that his eyes were closed, his face completely relaxed and his mouth slightly agape. I subconsciously pressed my thighs together at the sight of his beautiful face so close to mine, his plump lips drawing my attention.

But, I quickly had to turn my head forward when he leaned down to rest his chin on my shoulder. Otherwise, he would've crashed his chin right into my nose which would've definitely hurt.

"You're definitely showing me what you've got, y/n." He breathed into my shoulder, his voice melting in my ears like honey. I traced my fingers up his arms, inducing another shudder throughout his body as he let out a small, breathy laugh at his own reaction.

"I can't get enough of you," he breathed again, his husky voice echoing into my brain, bringing a warm flutter into my stomach. His touch was intoxicating and it was hard to decipher if I was drunk off of him, off of this moment, or if it was the little shot from earlier. But I could tell from the pounding of my heart, rational thoughts passing though my mind; I definitely wasn't drunk. These are real feelings.

I turned my body completely to face him, awakening him from my shoulder. His gaze smokily entered mine as we locked eyes, his hands moving to the small of my back. I couldn't help but ask him the question that pestered my mind.

"Beomgyu, are you drunk? Or do you really mean what you're doing and saying," I looked up at him with searching eyes, nervous for his response. My heart pounded so hard, genuinely worried that he would take my question the wrong way. But I really wanted to know if this was a real moment. I didn't want him to forget everything the next day or ignore me at school like i'm sure most guys do at these parties.

He tilted his head to the side, a slight confused look on his face. He shook his head, bringing me closer in his grasp. "Y/n, I hope I made it obvious enough that I don't see you as just a lab partner. Or as just a friend," he finally concluded, almost making my internal gasp audible. The pieces finally started coming together in my head, making me realize all those times I had stopped by the award in the school hallway just to get a glance at his gorgeous smile. He truly had swept me off my feet; both literally and figuratively.

The song slowly faded into a softer, ambient acoustic one, the pale pink lights signaling a slow song.

If it couldn't be more obvious, Yeonjun's voice came over the speaker. "People, it's time for the Valentine's slow dance," he said slowly, a hint of sensuality in his words as he intentionally deepened his voice through the mic.

I watched as several disco balls slowly lowered from the ceiling, their presence casting their silver gleam on the beautiful boy before me. He lowered his hands to the sides of my hips as I moved my arms to clasp around his neck; the typical slow dance arm placement. But this was anything from typical. This moment felt magical as we locked eyes, his doe eyes like a mirror as they reflected the glittering ball which hung above us.

I finally got around to addressing his statement from earlier. "You literally swept me off my feet, you know that?" I tilted my head back at him, my eyebrow raised as I waited for him to address the duality of my question. He dropped his head as a small giggle released from his mouth, looking at our shoes for a moment until he came back to look at me again.

"Yes, I literally swept you off your feet when I saw you and your 'sprained' ankle," exaggerating the word sprained because we both knew it part of our little game. We both laughed momentarily, recalling the moment

"Yes, literally. But figuratively as well, Gyu." He furrowed his eyebrows in perplexity, searching my eyes as he searched his mind. Then, his eyes softened into a smile when he figured it out. "You swept me off my feet," I repeated, the butterflies in my stomach evident on my face as I smiled warmly. I dropped my head into his chest as a sudden laugh burst out of my lips, recalling the memory of him carrying me bridal style across the dance floor while everyone stared, dumbfounded.

"I probably looked so stupid faking a sprained ankle.. you had to walk all the way over there to get me-" I laughed harder, feeling his chest move up and down in laugher as well, the sound of his adorable, bubbly laughter like music to my ears.

"Yeah it was funny, but look where it lead us," he added, a certain softness in his voice. I looked back up at him, taking a while to think about what he just said. We had been together the entire night; dancing, laughing, sharing some not so pg moments.. it had all been too good to be true. I smiled at the thought of our memories together, memories I was not expecting to create at all with him tonight; but it was something I would never ever forget. Something I will remember forever.

"Hey, do you wanna come over to my place after?" He asked softly, his large eyes searching mine as he gently smiled. The question made my heartbeat quicken, almost feeling excited at his asking. I nodded, smiling up at him.

"So, the dashing prince wants to show me his castle?" I wittily replied, giggling as I tilted my head inquisitively. He dropped his head in a small laugh, squeezing his eyes closed at my remark.

"Only if the dazzling princess sees fit," he replied, bending his knee behind him in a charming courtesy. I giggled at his gesture, finding him so genuinely adorable, but hot at the same time. His duality had me on edge, unsure of what his next move would be. I quickly realized that Beomgyu was someone I could spend hours with, without even realizing how fast time was passing. Someone I could always be myself with. I pressed my chin into the crook of his neck as we continued swaying to the soft tune of the slow song, sensing the warmth from his body seeping into mine. The scent of his skin drew me even closer to him in what seemed like a trance, intoxicated by his warmth. I wanted to stay here forever.

When the song ended, only then had I realized that we had been in the center of a spotlight for who knows how long, the sudden burst of cheers and claps awaking me from my trance. There were people crowded around us, and I assumed they had been watching us share our slow dance. I was unsure as to why, but I couldn't help but smile and look around at everyone as they whooped and clapped. I saw Soobin and Huening waving at us from a corner, their smiles shining like a ray of sun on us. I looked up at Beomgyu, his eyes on nobody else but me. He slowly leaned his lips down to my ear, his warm breath trickling onto my skin.

"You look so beautiful." The whisper sent a large flutter through my stomach, his words the most prominent amongst the hollers of the crowd. I looked down at our shoes, attempting at hiding the red tinge of my cheeks. I did my best to meet my eyes to his again.

"Ditto, Gyu," was what I managed to sputter out, brought aback by his compliment, but also wanting to compliment him back without seeming to flustered. I smiled sweetly, my eyes almost closing at how internally happy I felt. He looked down at our shoes, where my eyes had once been. But then he reached his hand up to his shoulder, grabbing one of my hands off and holding it, leading me off of the dance floor. I interlaced my fingers with his, the cheers of the crowd beginning to die down as we exited the dance floor. He grabbed his pink coat off of the table where it resided, slipping it back over his shoulders and we continued walking, hand in hand through the club.

I was unsure as to where we were going, but I just followed along, putting my trust in him. We made our way past the bar and past the bathrooms I once stood at, staring at his handsome princely figure across the lights, carrying my memories with me as we headed to the front door of the club. I could hear the patter of raindrops pelting the glass doors and falling steadily on the pavement of the main street. Beomgyu and I gave each other one look before shrugging and walking out into the rain, the cool breeze blowing onto my bare legs, but I didn't mind it; it felt nice.

"I figured we'd make our great escape from the mob," he chuckled, raking a hand through his hair as he threw his head back, enjoying the cold wind on his face. I agreed, not being much of an extrovert myself, my shoulders felt lighter without the constant vigilance of the crowd.

"Yeah, it was getting stuffy in there too. It's nice out here." I added, throwing my head back like he had done, feeling the wind rake its cool fingers through my scalp.

"My house is this way," He called, giving my hand a small tug, which was still intertwined with his. We walked through streetlamp-filled streets which illuminated the darkness, large houses lining the way. I observed the houses closely, eyes darting around intrigued by the brilliant architecture of each one. I wondered which was his.

Part 6

I watched the warm stream of water as it trickled out of the silver faucet, filling the large tub I lay in. A thick layer of bubbles completely covered the tub, only my head visible above the water. When I figured the tub was filled enough, I turned the knobs of the faucet off, sighing in warm bliss as I laid back, feeling the hot water slowly soothe away the ache of my legs and feet from dancing all night. I glanced over at my pink, high heeled boots which stood by the door in the heap of my clothes, blaming them for the pain they caused me.

Moments before this, Gyu and I had walked hand in hand in the rain, soon arriving at the large, wood-sculpted front door of his house. We tiptoed inside what looked like some sort of millionaire's mansion, my head swiveling in every direction intrigued by all the elegant decor. He told me that his family was away on vacation, which calmed my nerves of being here in the first place. Me; a sore, shivering mess, cold and drenched from the rain, had made it obvious that I was practically an ice cube, frozen to the core. Beomgyu decided it was best that I take a warm bath.

"You'll catch a cold in those wet clothes. Here let me run you a hot bath," were his exact words.

So here I was, warming up in Choi Beomgyu's bathtub. Something I'd never expected in my entire life.

I took a long look around the large bathroom, my eyes traveling over the wooden walls, accompanied by the flicker of candles gleaming against the marble accents. His bathroom was fancy-looking, yet still felt comfortable and homey. I hadn't been into his room yet, which made me wonder if it had the same cozy vibe of his bathroom. My thoughts halted when I heard a small knock at the door.

"I brought my valentine some tea," he called from the other side, his voice muffled by the door. My heart raced at his kind gesture.

"Aww okay!" I realized my tipsiness had completely worn away when my mind began buzzing with thoughts of him coming in while i'm butt ass naked under the bubbles. I was unsure of what to say.

"Give me a sec-" I began, but the door was already swung open as he was walking in.

I chuckled when I saw that he had a hand over his eyes, shielding his view while blindly walking over to the tub with a small, bear-shaped ceramic mug. He took his hand away from his eyes to feel for his surroundings, keeping his eyes sewn tightly shut. My smile grew. His hand blindly felt for the ledge of the bathtub, just inches away from my bare skin, making my stomach twirl in nervousness. He set the steaming mug with a clink onto the ledge of the bathtub.

"Thank you!" I replied to his kindness, my voice echoing through out the bathroom.

He nodded, returning his hand to cover his eyes. I scooted my back to the wall of the tub, bringing my knees to my chest to shield my breast. The bubbles already did a good job at shielding away the rest of my naked body.

"Gyu, it's okay to open your eyes. The bubbles cover everything," my voice echoed again.

His eyebrows rose inquisitively, tilting his head. "You sure it's okay?" he asked, curiosity lacing his voice. "Mhm!" I replied, picking up the hot mug by its ear.

I watched as he slowly inched his fingers apart, barely peeking through them as if he was fearful to look. Soon enough, he took his hand away from his eyes, bringing it down to his side and sighed in relief to see that the bubbles really did cover all of me. I sat there, looking up at him as I sipped my steaming tea.

"Mmm! What kind of tea is this? It's so good," I peered into the cup curiously, genuinely so impressed with the tea as I felt its mintiness cool my throat. I had been so intrigued with the tea, I didn't notice that he hadn't answered my question.

I looked back up at him to find that he was smiling, my eyes landing directly on his. I awkwardly laughed, looking down at the bubbles on my knees as my cheeks burned. It was hard to swallow the fact that I was pretty much naked in front of him.

"It's vanilla peppermint." he finally added, taking a seat on the ledge of the bathtub, increasing the speed of my heart rate.

"You look cute sitting like that, holding my mug," he continued, the same smile returning to his face. My lips immediately drew into a grin, giggling as I looking down at the water shyly.

"Thank you, Gyu," I responded with his favorite endearment of his name, his eyes also shyly falling to gaze at the water.

I couldn't help but think of how handsome he looked in the soft glow of the candlelight. The small glitters under his eye sparkled as the candle flame danced around, also illuminating the red shimmers on his pink coat. I noticed that his black eyeliner was slightly smeared from the rain, making his eyes irresistibly smoky. His hair, also messy and frizzed up from the rain.

To say he looked good would be an understatement.

He looked fucking hot.

I watched the flame of the candles dance in his dark eyes, only now realizing that our eyes had been glued to each other's for quite a while. I shifted in the water and my heart raced at the thought of the bubbles slowly fading away to reveal my body. With the fact that he was so close, I wouldn't doubt he'd be quick to notice it too. I pressed my knees closer to my chest, feeling my heart as it beat quickly on my thigh.

"I had a lot of fun tonight," he broke the silence with his deep, smooth voice, echoing throughout the spacious room. My breathing halted when he gazed down at the bath water, dipping one of his long, dainty fingers in to trace around the bubbles near my leg.

"Yeah, I had so much fun too," I responded after a while, gulping the the knot that formed in my throat from my nerves. I took a slow sip from my mug, continuing to observe his movements in the water.

"You should've seen the way everyone was voting for you when you walked the runway. Hell, even Choi Yeonjun cast his vote," he added lost in thought, looking out at the water.

I raised my eyebrows in astonishment. The DJ can vote?

I kept my eyes on Beomgyu's, now, 4 fingers which skimmed the bubbles.

"And the way you smiled when you realized that I voted for you," he quietly giggled. I warmly smiled at the memory, setting the mug down on the ledge. His giggle had drawn my eyes up to his smiling face, eyes sparkling as he looked down at the water, and then over to meet mine.

"I'm the luckiest guy," he added, gazing directly into my eyes. I felt as though his eyes were pulling me into a trance with their dark mystery, like I was staring into the deep ocean trying to find the bottom. I looked at him in utter and complete awe.

"I'm the luckiest girl," I added, smiling as I reminisced the special moments we shared at the party. After such a long period of pure eye contact, I felt like neither of us had even blinked. Our eyes refused to break apart. I felt his warm fingers, wet from the water, skim mine, which floated by my side. My face grew hot as I watched his fingers trace over my palm.

"Can I ask you something?" he inquired, scanning my face with his dark brown eyes. All I could do was nod. The tension weighed a ton on my shoulders, practically restricting my voice box from its crushing pressure.

His slightly sucked the corner of his bottom lip into his mouth, biting at the soft skin as his eyes traveled down to my own lips.

"Can I kiss you?" he asked, his deep voice almost in a whisper. My cheeks felt like they could catch on fire with how hot they were, burning with the heat of both the steamy water and the seductive man before me. My heart strummed against my chest as the tension reached its all time high.

I slowly nodded. "Yes," I responded in a whisper, almost inaudible to the ear. But he heard it.

He bent over the ledge of the bathtub to cup the side of my face. The warmth of his touch sparked a fire within me, spreading its heat all throughout my body. His face inched close to mine ever so slowly, until the gap between our lips closed.

His soft, full lips wrapped around my own, blissfully intertwining in unison. The fire within me had sparked even more, feeling as my heart pounded with each passing moment our lips locked. Our noses brushed as he slowly pulled away from the deep kiss. I opened my eyes to meet his, which were mere inches from mine, glittering in the candlelight as they searched my own. This was the final piece to the puzzle; kissing him was something I never knew I wanted, no- needed until now. Everything felt absolutely perfect.

I crashed my lips back onto his for a second kiss, slowly intermingling our wet lips into a deep, deliciously intoxicating kiss. He came back for another, and then another, until we weren't stopping for anymore breaks. Our lips danced in one continuous kiss, enticing a steamy make out. I shifted in the tub, sitting up on my knees, not giving a shit that my naked body was now exposed. The fire burning inside me desired to be as close to him as I could. I sensed the cool air hit my torso and chest as the bubbles slid down my skin. I wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling him even closer than before. At realization that I was sitting upright, he placed his cool hands on my bare hips, inviting goosebumps to pelt all around my body.

"Is it okay if I touch you?" he softly asked in between kisses, breathing in each other's heavy breaths. My heart fluttered at the thought of his desire to pleasure me, igniting the flame to burn hotter inside me.

"Please do," I assured him, stroking my fingers through his soft hair as we passionately kissed.

At this, he slowly ran his fingers up my back, wet with bubbles, intensifying my goosebumps even more. His hands found their way to my ass, gently grabbing a handful, before making their way down to the back of my thighs. I slightly gasped as I felt his fingers crawl up the insides of my thighs, welcoming a second heart beat. Soon he made his way to my wetness, gently rubbing my clit with two fingers in a slow, circular motion which coaxed a soft moan from my lips.

He pulled away from the kiss to watch my dazed expression, biting his lip as the sound of my moans echoing throughout the bathroom as he inserted a finger into me, pumping in and out slowly. If it couldn't get any better, he used his thumb to continue rubbing my throbbing clit as he curled his fingers up to my g-spot, a loud moan bubbling from my throat as a result. I arched my back at the immense pleasure of his fingers, holding myself steady with my firm grasp on his shoulders. I ran my fingers down his textured coat, sliding one side off of his arm and he removed the rest, falling with a gentle thud on the floor.

"Is it okay if I touch you?" I returned the question, desperate to please him as much as he was me.

"Of course," he replied against my lips in a breathy whisper.

I took that as my cue to run my hand down his torso, notifying him as to where I was headed. He sighed in delight as I rubbed a hand over the hardness that tented his pants. Just then, an idea came to me.

I gently pulled his forehead to my neck, placing my lips to his ear. "Why don't you join me?" I whispered, nibbling the corner of his ear. I sensed he was all in, when his body jolted at the sensation of my warm mouth on his ear as he began tugging at the material of his sequins tank top which glittered vibrantly against the tub wall. I helped slide his textured shirt over his head in one smooth motion, revealing the toned upper half of his body. I ran a hand down his arm, feeling his muscles under my grasp as I gave them a small squeeze. His body jolted at the sensation of my fingers down his torso, noticing as small goosebumps pelted his skin under my touch.

Then, I made my way to his light pink pants; the ones which drew my attention to his beautiful figure when I first saw him at the party. Before undoing his belt, I rubbed my palm gently over his hardened member, causing him to suck in a breath through his teeth. I looked up at him curiously as I hovered my hand over his pants, watching his eyes fill with even more need for my touch.

At the sight of his dazed expression, I made it my mission to give him all the pleasure he desired and more; to make him feel like he was on cloud 9. When I undid his belt and unbuttoned his pants, hooking a finger under the elastic of his boxers and pulling them down, his member sprung up so quickly it nearly hit my chin before pressing completely flat up against his lower stomach. His tip glistened with pre cum in the candlelight.

I couldn't believe that I had made him this hard in such a short amount of time, but at the same time, I felt the second heartbeat of my clit pulsate rapidly, creating more wetness than ever before. We both wanted each other so bad and it was so obvious by our bodily autonomy.

He stepped out of his pants, and before he could get in the tub with me, I stopped him by gently grabbing his torso, placing a trail of butterfly kisses on his hip bone. Then I trailed more kisses around, leading closer and closer to his hard-on. I looked up at him as I placed a kiss on his tip, slowly licking down his length and back up. At this, he threw his head back in pleasure, a low moan escaping his lips. I took his entire member into my mouth slowly, my lips stretching as much as they could over his size. We locked eyes as his tip hit the back of my throat, my eyes watering as I felt myself begin to choke on his length. His half open eyes glimmered with lust as he brought his hand down to grasp gently at my hair.

"Fuck- you feel so good" he moaned breathily, his deep voice making my thighs squeeze together in the water.

I swirled my tongue around his tip once more before pulling his hand down towards me, signaling for him to climb into the bathtub. He got in, kneeling down in front of me as we sweetly kissed, getting sloppier by the second. He placed his hand on my back, lowering me down to rest my head on the wall behind the tub. With his other hand, he fondled my breasts under the water, the sensation of my nipples between his fingers intensifying both of my heartbeats. He kissed my neck, trailing wet kisses all around and onto my chest, taking one of my breasts into his mouth and swirling my bud around with his tongue. I watched as his plump lips sucked bright red hickeys all over my neck, leaving me infatuated with his pretty markings on my chest.

This sensation was pure bliss, something I'd never felt before. I wasn't sure when to tell him this, though. I just kept going along with what I thought he would like, pretending like I knew what I was doing. As we kissed with him on top, I felt his rock hard member nudge my stomach, making us both aware of another option we had.

"Do you want to?..um," I asked hesitantly into his lips, unsure of his response. But with each of our heart rates beating as quick as the other's, what we both wanted was obvious.

"That's only if you're comfortable with it," he added reassuringly, reaching up to stroke my chin before placing a soft kiss onto my lips. I searched deeply into the smoky abyss of his eyes, knowing for sure this was something I wanted to do. But there was something I needed to tell him first.

"Um...Gyu. There's something I need to tell you," I looked away, unsure of how to formulate the words. He nodded as he awaited me to continue, comfortingly stroking my jaw with the back of his nails.

"I've never um.. this is my first time," I finally concluded, gazing expectancy into his eyes.

He gazed back into mine, taking a deep breath through his swollen lips. "Me too."

At this, I realized that all of my assumptions about him had been wrong. The times he got upset when I assumed he had been with other girls; it all made sense now. Something in my stomach unraveled, feeling relieved that we would both be inexperienced together. I wrapped an arm around his neck, pulling him into my chest, wrapping my arms around his soft back into a tight hug.

"Let's have our first experience together," I smiled against his frizzy, sweet scented hair.

"We'll take it slow," he added, his mouth tickling my skin. I kissed his lips deeply, both excited and anxious for what was to come. Although I haven't known him for long, I don't think time really matters, what matters to me is how comfortable this boy makes me feel. I felt I could trust him with my whole life; the warmth which cradles my heart at the sight of him says it all.

He pulled away, reaching his arm out of the bathtub to the floor where his pink coat and tank top lay in a heap, fumbling with the pocket of his coat for a moment before pulling out a small, pink bag with red hearts on it. To my guess, it looked like a party favor from tonight. He gave me a quick glance as I tilted my head in curiosity at what was in the bag. Once the strings were untied, he pulled out a small square package which shimmered gold in the candlelight. I quickly realized that it was a condom wrapper, making my cheeks flush at the thought of his dick which would shortly be buried deep inside of me. I was also happy to see that he was prepared and respected me enough to use protection. My heart fluttered for him.

I acknowledged his mindfulness with a smile, my curiosity still peaked at whatever else was in the bag.

"What else is in the bag, Gyu? I wasn't able to get my hands on a party favor," I inquired, eyeing the pink bag. He pursed his lips at my question, mouth curled as he was trying to contain a laugh. He rummaged through the bag, hesitant to pull out whatever else was in there. He handed me the bag, letting out a deep laugh in embarrassment as I pulled out several small bottles of flavored lube. I looked up at him with a laugh of my own.

"Its just funny that the party favors were my idea. Someone who's never had sex," he giggled into his the back of his hand. I couldn't help but chuckle at his cuteness. I examined the colorful arrangement of lube, about 6 different flavors ranging from cherry to apple, all intriguing me with their seemingly yummy mystery.

"We can try those if you want..." his voice emerged, trailing off as if he wasn't sure what to say. I liked the idea, nodding my head excitedly as I rubbed small circles on his thigh with my free hand. We both sat there in the water momentarily and I was sure that we both had the same burning question in mind.

"Will the condom work underwater?" I finally asked, doing the both of us a favor by relieving the silence. I had a feeling that he wanted to seem know what he was doing, but when it came to a condom in the water, he was just about as clueless as I was. We both shrugged, giggling as the question dawned over us.

"I'll just drain the water down a bit just in case," he reached behind him, pulling the plug out of the drain, causing the sudsy water to begin disappearing by the minute. Feeling the moment begin to heat up again as I caught him flick his eyes down to my tits, I stuffed the colorful bottles back into the pink bag, setting it on the ledge. As the water slowly drained, I inched closer to him, watching his plump lips glisten in the candlelight as I sweetly pressed mine to his. His tongue licked my bottom lip, asking for permission to enter my mouth. I gave him access, both our tongues now dancing in unison, tasting every bit of him.

His hands traveled all around my body, trailing down my sides and back up, he took one of my hands into his, tightly interlacing his fingers with mine, connecting us on a deeper level. I felt small chills form on my upper half as I noticed most of the warm water had drained, now barely filling the tub enough to cover our thighs. Noticing the water level, he put the plug back in the drain, a cloud of bubbles left in the tub along with the shallow pool of water. Our lips clashed back together like a magnet, feeling my stomach fill with nerves as I sensed what was coming. I pulled him closer, chests pressed together as the moment heated up all the more. Small moans filled the steamy air, both of us getting off just by kissing and slowly grinding against each other.

Lips connected, I sat up, guiding him so that he now sat upright against the tub wall; the opposite of how we had been before. Our noses brushed as I spread my legs over his, situating myself so that I now straddled him. He pulled away from my lips when my breasts hit his chin, drawing his attention to my chest. He buried his face in between my tits, using his hands to grope both of them lightly, fascinated by how they glistened in the candlelight. I watched him, getting more turned on my the second. He looked up at me innocently as he used the tip of his tongue to flick up and down on my nipple, coaxing an echoey moan from my lips at the sight, my mouth agape as I watched him in awe.

"Mhm, you like that?" his deep voice vibrated against my nipple as he spoke in the sexiest tone, my moans growing louder at the sheer sensuality of everything. Everything about him was perfect; his large, doe eyes filled with galaxies, gazing at me intensely, his full lips as he moved them across my chest, voice thick like honey, his blonde hair, now dark blonde as wet strands clung to his forehead. He was like- out of a dream. But this wasn't a dream; he was here with me right now, whispering dirty things across my skin as our hot breaths filled the musky air.

I cupped the side of his face, moving my lips to his neck as I kissed and sucked love bites on his soft, damp skin. His deep groan echoed in the bathroom as I slowly rocked over his rock hard dick, trying to get myself off by grinding my clit against his tip. I moaned against his neck as my throbbing clit found its way to where I wanted it; the sensation of the veins on his cock feeling fucking amazing against my desperate clit.

I pulled away from his neck, turning to face him only to find that he had placed the wrapped condom between his puffy lips, the sight seducing me even further. My heart raced profusely as he shut an eye in a sultry wink at me, the corner of his lips twitching upward. It reminded me of the time we danced at the party; the sexy expressions he made simply made me melt.

"You're so fucking hot," I admitted, pulling his chin closer to me as I bit the corner of the wrapper with my teeth, both of us turning our heads to rip the top off of the wrapper, being careful not to rip the condom. Once it was open, he pulled the condom out with two fingers, discarding the empty wrapper on the bathroom floor by his coat. He slid his hand down my back, bringing me closer to him as he sweetly kissed my lips one last time.

I sat up, a small string of my wetness stretching from his tip to my clit, connecting both of us. He hummed at the sight, a sexy grin on his lips as he used his finger to collect some of the wetness from my folds, sending a shiver up my spine at his touch. He brought his wet fingers to his lips, slowly licking them clean as his gaze boarded deeply into mine. My mouth fell agape at the sight, he really knew all the things to turn me the fuck on. I could hardly breath at the mere sight of him licking his fingers clean of my arousal.

"Fuck.." was what managed to fall past my lips as I watched him, drunk off of his aura. A deep giggle bubbled from his throat as he grinned, bringing me out of my daze as a small smile spread across my lips at the sound of his adorable laugh.

A sudden rush of serotonin coursed through my veins as I sat there on top of him, his face too perfect for this world. "Gyu!!" I jumped suddenly in his lap in excitement, using one of my fingers to pinch his cheeks. I was simply overwhelmed by his duality- how he can be so damn sexy one moment and the most adorable boy the next. His smile grew wider, pearly white teeth making an appearance through his lips.

"What!" his voice had shifted from a deep sexy one into a higher pitched one, my heart melting from his cuteness. I looked away for a second, searching my thoughts of what I wanted to say. There was something deep inside of me that I needed to get out so desperately; and now seemed like the perfect time.

"I.. really like you," my cheeks flushed crimson, surprised at the sound of my own words leave my mouth. When my eyes traveled hesitantly back up to his, they were bigger and even more sparkly than before, his cheeks burning brightly. He crashed his lips into mine, the kiss filled with pure love and emotion. He exhaled from his nose, using his other hand to sweetly cup the side of my face. When he slowly pulled away, his eyes centimeters away from mine, I could swear I was lost in outer space; thousands of stars and galaxies engulfing me with their mystery. My starry eyed boy. So perfect, I almost wanted to cry at how much joy poured into my heart in this very moment.

"And I really really like you," he replied, the tense nerves in my stomach releasing at the sound of his voice fill my ears. I wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling his forehead to mine. It was astonishing to me just how quickly we admitted our liking of one another, even after just being lab partners for one day and sharing some moments at his party. But I knew I was certain. It was something that goes beyond words, beyond what the eye can see. Its what I feel deep in my heart, and I'm sure his heart feels it too, as I felt it beating quickly through his chest against mine. I love this boy. So. Much.

I brought my lips to his again, both of our passion obvious as our tongues glided over each other's perfectly. His hand gingerly traveled over my collarbones, then over my chest again, the sensation of his long fingers over my nipples bringing a certain heat to my body, taking over my senses again. It didn't take long for the moment to catch fire again as I grasped a few locks of his hair between my fingers at the pleasure he was giving me just by slightly stroking my chest. He used his thumb to rub small circles on my clit, then slowly moved his thumb to my opening, pushing it deeply inside of me which made me moan loudly at the feeling. He pumped his thumb in and out at an excruciatingly slow pace, my jaw falling at the sight of his lip between his teeth as he watched me.

"How about I replace this with something else?" his darkened eyes focused on mine as he pulled his thumb out of me, licking it clean. All I could do was nod, my throat releasing small moans at the sight of his sultry expression.

Both of our attention focused down to his hand as he placed the condom on his tip, his painfully hard dick twitching as he slowly unraveled the condom down to the base of his shaft, the latex now wrapped snuggly on him. I grabbed his thumb, which he had sucked clean of my juices and put it in my own mouth, tasting a mixture of his saliva and my arousal swirl around in my mouth. He watched me through several strands of blonde hair which had fallen over his eyes, licking his lips at the sight of me sensually sucking his thumb.

His thumb still in my mouth, I lifted myself off of him slightly, using my other hand to position his tip on my clit, rubbing it in circular motions over my throbbing wetness. Nothing but the slick sounds of his tip on my clit and both of our soft moans filled the air. He slowly removed his thumb from my mouth and moved it to his own, licking the concoction of juices and our saliva off.

He sat up, pulling me closer to him as I moaned into his lips, it taking everything in me not to just completely sit down on his cock. I wanted to make sure he was ready, and I was sure it would probably hurt a bit since it was my first time, considering he was also pretty big. A part of me hoped it wouldn't hurt too bad but another part desperately needed to feel him stretch me out right here right now.

"Gyu I think I'm ready," I breathily moaned against his lips, my fingers crawling up his back. He hummed against my lips, kissing them once more before looking me in the eyes.

"Please take your time," he reassured me in a sweet voice, running his fingers through my hair as he sat back against the tub wall, keeping his eyes focused on my every move. He rubbed small circles on either side of my hips as I sat up on my knees, positioning his tip at my entrance. I sat down slowly, feeling as his warmth of his tip crept into my walls, slowly stretching me out as I sat all the way down on his cock. I gasped as I felt him twitch inside me, a deep moan escaping his lips and echoing through the bathroom. My mouth falling open as I slowly moved back up, both of us watching as his my labia stretched around his dick as I rocked up and down, increasing speed as I bounced on his thighs. He sat up, pressing his chest to mine, eyes rolling back in pleasure. The pleasure surely outweighed the pain as I could feel his length massaging my g-spot, causing a high-pitched moan to escape my throat.

"Beom- oh fuck you feel amazing," I managed to murmur into his plump lips as his mouth was also agape, sharing one breath as we moaned loudly, sure enough to be heard outside of the bathroom. He lowly hung his head in my chest as he shut his eyes closed at the immense pleasure of my tight warmth around his dick. I inhaled his hair, the scent of his shampoo and the lavender bubbles swirling perfectly in my nose.

The small slaps of skin from my ass on his thighs echoed throughout the bathroom as the sloshing from the water in the tub intensified as I increased my pace. I felt his teeth on my neck as he nipped at my skin, leaving red marks on my collarbones, intensifying the pleasure all the more. I spelled out his name by grinding against him, his tip hitting all the right spots as I circled my hips around, nearly wanting to scream at the immense pleasure. My tits bounced against his face as he hung his head low, taking one of my nipples into his mouth, the warm feeling of his tongue swirling on the sensitive bud sending shivers all around my body.

"You're fucking me so good," he moaned against my breasts, his dirty talk making me more fucked out than ever before. I threw my head back in pleasure, shutting my eyes, on cloud 9 at how he made me feel. His hands wrapped around my body, finding a comfortable home on my ass as he squeezed at the skin, using one of his hands to spank one of my cheeks causing a loud slap of skin to echo in the bathroom. I moaned louder than before, picking my pace up as fast as I had ever gone, feeling a knot begin to form in my stomach as his dick slammed perfectly into me every time.

"I wanna watch your pretty face as you ride me," he moaned, gently pulling my head down to his face as he was nearly out of breath. "You look so good," I returned his compliment as I breathily moaned into his lips, 100% honest as the sight of his beautifully fucked out expression was about to send me over the edge. With both hands, he gripped the sides my waist, helping me out by fucking into me. My thighs were burning with soreness, but I didn't give a shit, the pleasure outweighed the pain.

"Gyu I think i'm gonna cu-" was all I could say before he started pounding into me harder than ever before, his thighs meeting mine with the slap of skin as he fucked me at the fastest pace he could, the water from the tub raining on us as it sloshed around violently. It drove me crazy how vocal he was, his moans as loud as mine as they echoed beautifully throughout the large room. Our voices harmonized, strings of profanities leaving our lips as we both came simultaneously. Feeling his dick twitch inside of me, the knot in my stomach unravelling deliciously as a wave of ecstasy washed over my body, back arching as I rode out my high.

We both huffed into a sloppy, passion filled kiss as he wrapped his arms around me into a tight embrace. I giggled into his lips as his soft hair ticked the sensitive skin of my neck, feeling his lips form into a tiny smile. I ruffled his hair with a hand, pecking both of his cheeks excitedly. I felt the happiest with him, and now we felt so much closer than ever before.

"That was amazing.. you felt so good Gyu," I puffed my cheeks, raising my eyebrows at the memory of his dick inside me. The feeling was addicting, especially because it was him. He giggled, swiping his thumb over my lips, removing some of the saliva from the messy make out.

"You felt like heaven," he replied, softly biting my bottom lip as he sweetly kissed me. We sat there for a moment, coming down from our high as our breathing returned to normal, just examining each other, placing small, loving kisses everywhere imaginable on one another's faces. I noticed that his eyeliner was completely gone now, wiped away from the sweat and water from the tub. I gawked over his beautifully bare face. After a while, he broke the silence with a suggestion that caught my attention.

"Lets go to my room," he whispered against my lips, my head quickly nodding in excitement. We both climbed out of the tub, my legs instantly weak and trembling as I stood up, earning a laugh from him. He wrapped a fresh, linen scented towel around me from behind, helping me dry off. He ruffled the towel through his blonde locks, the sight so sexy that it didn't take long for wetness to return to my core. He draped the towel around his neck as he stood there naked, such a beautiful sight I couldn't help but stare. He slowly pranced over to me, my neck swiveling up to look at him the closer he got to me. He pressed his warm, naked body to mine, slowly inching his lips closer to my ear. My heart raced.

"You looked so gorgeous bouncing on my cock," his deep voice melted into my brain, sending so many shivers up my spine and pelting all over my body. He gave my neck an irresistible smooch before locking his dark eyes with mine. Before I could say anything, he hooked an arm under my leg, swiftly picking me up for the second time tonight, this time my legs wrapped around his waist as I straddled him, his hands on my ass to support me. I giggled at the sudden surprise. He walked, using one of his hands to open the bathroom door, kicking it open with his foot. He carried me through the cold air of his house, the white, marble walls and warm lighting providing a beautiful, spacious elegance to the place.

Soon, we arrived at the wooden door of his bedroom, soft light trickling out from the space under the door. He nudged the door open with his foot, revealing the warm glow of his room. As he walked over to set me on his bed, I looked around, taking in all of the pretty wooden accents, candles, and fairy lights that adorned his walls. The sweet pumpkin spice scent of his room engulfed my senses, bringing a nostalgic feeling as it went so well with the cozy ambiance. He set me down on the soft, plaid gray comforter of his medium-sized bed next to a few plushies which were excruciatingly adorable. An acoustic guitar hung on the wall straight ahead, as well as old records which decorated the cream-colored walls like black coffee with the perfect amount of sweet cream. It was all such an aesthetically beautiful sight, giving me a brand new aspect of the Beomgyu I know and love, my heart fluttering even more for him.

"Wow your room is so pretty, Gyu!" I exclaimed as I looked around, dazzled by the decor. I felt even more comfortable here than in my own home, the atmosphere was simply so inviting; I never wanted to leave. He plopped down on the bed next to me, our naked bodies pressing together as he smiled at me at my compliment.

"Not as pretty as you," he replied, caressing my cheek with his thumb. I pressed my lips to his at his darling compliment, filling my heart with joy and butterflies. Without pulling away from my lips, he climbed on top of me as I lay back on the pillowy comforter, his hand hooked around my thigh as his member hardened against my stomach. He hovered over me, hands creating an indent in the mattress by my sides where he held himself up. He placed his lips under my chin, kissing a long strand of kisses from my neck, in between my breasts, and down to my stomach. He nudged at the inside of my thigh, signaling me to spread my legs even wider than they already were. I spread them wide enough to fit his broad shoulders between them, shuddering as he began to kiss all the way down my thigh, arching my back as his warm breath grew closer to my wetness.

He placed the tip of his tongue at the base of my opening, licking a long stripe all the way up to my throbbing clit, hissing through my teeth at the amazing sensation his tongue had to offer. A moan escaped my lips as he flicked his tongue quickly against my clit, pulsating the tip of his tongue in tune with the pulsations of my heartbeat. What made it even hotter was that he looked up at me through the stray pieces on his forehead, his smoky eyes mixed with the sight of him completely devouring my pussy making me want to scream. Keeping his eyes on mine, he shook his head, burying his tongue deeper into me as his nose breathed in my scent.

I maneuvered myself up with my elbows to get a better view of him eating me out, not able to get enough of him. If it couldn't get any better, he stopped momentarily, pulling a pink bag out of his drawer; a party favor. He offered me the bag, and remembering what we had planned earlier, pulled out all of the bottles of flavored lube, arranging them in my palm for him to take his pick.

"Cherry please!" he chimed, happily taking the red bottle from my palm. I giggled as I put the bottles off to the side, focusing my attention back onto him. He unscrewed the lid of the small bottle, pouring a small amount on my clit, slightly flinching as the cold liquid dribbled down to my entrance. I sucked my bottom lip into my teeth at the arousing feeling. Using two fingers, he spread the liquid all over my clit and my entrance, moaning at the sensation of the cold liquid warming up by the second against my heat.

"Mmmh, you look so good," he hummed in a gentle voice, flicking his dazed eyes up to mine. I watched as he slowly slid his middle finger into my entrance, the extra lubrication making my jaw drop, soon becoming a moaning mess as he curled his finger up to my g-spot. "Oh yes" I moaned over and over again making high pitched sounds as he added his ring finger, making a deeper come here motion. His eyes never leaving mine, he began flicking his tongue on my clit, quickening his pace as his fingers maintained slow and steady pumps, fucking into me sweetly.

My mouth opened even wider at the heavenly sensation coming from his tongue and fingers, the low moans coming from his mouth vibrating against my clit, heightening my senses to the max. He removed his fingers and placed his open mouth over my entire pussy, sucking up all of my juices and licking long stripes from the base of my opening to my clit, swirling his tongue around deliciously.

"You taste amazing- with and without the lube," he breathed against my clit. "You feel fucking amazing Gyu," I quickly replied through my teeth, feeling out of breath at the sensation. He rubbed his index and middle fingers along my folds, sliding my clit in between them, applying slight pressure as he continued to rub up and down. The sensation of my clit sliding smoothly between his fingers made my eyes roll back, the familiar ball returning to my core as I felt my climax approaching. "Oh my god Gyu right there," I moaned loudly, notifying him of the immense pleasure his fingers were providing me.

At my request, he kept going, picking up the pace as my legs began to twitch at the sensation of the knot growing tighter in my stomach. I sensed the bed slightly shift when he climbed over me, his fingers still massaging clit perfectly. With his free hand, he poured a tiny bit of the cherry lube over my nipples and I gasped at the cool liquid drip down the most sensitive part of my chest. He then rubbed the slick liquid over both of my nipples simultaneously, stretching his thumb and ring finger to play with both of my nipples at the same time with his one free hand.

I buried the side of my head roughly into the mattress, inhaling the clean scent of his comforter as he simultaneously played with my pussy and nipples, intoxicating me with immense pleasure. I could've sworn I was floating on a cloud, feeling so overtaken with rupture that I couldn't even form a sentence. The walls of his house were quite used to my moans by now and anyone who might hear us from outside most definitely knew his name, due to the fact it left my lips every minute. His name quickly became my favorite name in the world, I felt I could never get tired of hearing or saying it.

"Beomgyu you're gonna make me cum I'm so close," I moaned, biting at the skin on my arm which surely would leave dark bite marks. He smiled at my words, striving to make me finish as he quickened the pace of his fingers and began licking the lube off of my tits, swirling his saliva around on each of my nipples which he knew would send me over the edge; and it did. As I released onto his fingers, he placed his lips on mine, devouring my loud moans as his tongue explored my mouth, the subtle taste of sweet cherries on his lips. My body became extremely relaxed under him as I came down from my high, a euphoric smile finding its way onto my face.

"You really know all the right places, you sure it's your first time?" I giggled jokingly, stroking his soft cheek as he licked his wet lips. A mischievous smile formed on his lips at my inquiry.

"Of course, silly!" he leaned down to peck my lips as an adorable laugh bubbled from his throat. I really couldn't get enough of his laugh, ever since the first time I saw him smile, I had fallen in love with it. In love with him.

"Your turn," I jumped up, wrapping him into my arms as I wrestled him so that he now laid on his back, me on top of him. He rose an eyebrow, a small grimace on his face as he saw me from a new view, my boobs more prominent from this angle. He bit his bottom lip at the sight of me, and I felt his dick twitch underneath my as it practically begged to be touched. I excitedly reached for the pink bag that lay on the edge of the bed. Weighing the 5 options, I ended up going for the strawberry flavor.

"Gyu, close your eyes!" I decided to play a little guessing game with him, refraining to show him the bottle until his eyes were shut. He smiled, curiosity on his face as he fluttered his eyes shut, pressing them tightly together in anticipation. Using this as my chance, I scooted off of him, making myself comfortable on the bed by his hips, gazing at his perfect naked body. I trailed my fingers along his thigh, inviting small goosebumps to form under my fingertips.

His dick was pressed flush against his stomach, a bead of pre cum glistening in the warm lighting of his room, waiting to be licked off. I used the tip of my tongue to gently lick the bead off, tasting every bit of him on my tastebuds. He bit down on his lip as he shifted around on the bed in anticipation for what was next. Unscrewing the lid of the tiny pink bottle, I drizzled a small amount onto his tip, watching as the thin liquid dripped down his entire length, the sight making my mouth water at how good his dick looked. I concluded that I was in love with every bit of him, from head to toe, even his dick was sexy. I am most definitely whipped for this boy.

He placed a hand under his head as his eyes were still sewn shut, the sight of his exposed armpit, his relaxed face, and his body right next to me turned me on so much, he was simply so beautiful. I capped the bottle, rolling it aside before propping myself up on my knees, holding my hair in my fist to prepare myself to go down on him. I started by kissing the warm skin of his thighs, inhaling his scent as I trailed up to his member, licking up his length before swirling my tongue over his sensitive tip.

I enjoyed the sour, yet sweet flavor of the strawberry lube, but either way I was addicted to the way every bit of him tasted, naturally. His deep moans filled the room, not echoing so much like in the bathroom, but still loud enough to make my clit throb at the very sound of his voice. I wrapped my lips around his length tightly, sucking my cheeks in to make him feel as much pleasure as possible. Then, before continuing, I removed my mouth from his dick with a pop, moving over to place my lips on his to continue our little guessing game. His tongue immediately entered my mouth, swirling around mine as he tried his best to pick up as much of the flavor as possible.

"Hmmmm... strawberry?" he questioned as he peeked at me through one eye. I clapped my hands together, nodding my head excitedly to signal his success. He smiled, fluttering both his eyes open.

"Now you get a very special prize for guessing it right," I chimed, giving his lips a peck and I winked at him, making my way back down to my spot in between his legs. He adjusted himself as he propped himself up on his elbows, gazing down at me.

"Now I get to watch your pretty face," he said in an endearing voice, giggling as he gave me an adorable smile, making my heart pound. I smiled as I positioned myself in between calves, now facing his hardened member as it glistened in the warm light, veins making their appearance as he grew harder by the second. I was destined to try something new, unsure of how to do it, but I felt comfortable and free of judgement with Beomgyu so I just tried my best. He watched me, fascinated as I squeezed my boobs together with both of my hands, positioning them over his dick. I slid his member in between my tits, forming a small pearl of spit on my lips, spitting on his tip to create more lubrication. He looked at me in awe, his mouth agape as a loud moan escaped his throat.

"Oh my fuck-" He threw his head back, his adam's apple bobbing up and down every time he released a moan. I quickened my pace, squeezing my tits together harder to form more pressure for him, causing his groans to grow even louder. He looked back down at me, totally infatuated as his eyes traveled from his cock stuffed in between my tits, to my eyes, gazing up at him innocently. He almost wanted to cum just at the sight.

I began licking his tip every time it peaked through the top of my breasts, swirling my tongue perfectly in unison with the thrusts. His eyebrows furrowed upward in pleasure as he made the most fucked out expression, clutching the comforter roughly in his fists. "Fuck fuck fuck!" was what he managed to groan out, along with other profanities mixed with the sweet sound of my name leave his lips. I had no idea how wet I was until I could practically hear the wet sound of my thighs sticking together. I squeezed my thighs together tightly in attempt to get myself off at the sight and sound of sexy moans combined with his absolutely fucked expression, his lip between his teeth biting at the skin roughly.

"I want you to come all over my face, Gyu," I breathily moaned as my clit began to throb between my thighs at the mere thought of him releasing all over my face. This provoked a loud grunt from his throat as he raked a hand through his hair, revealing his forehead. He looked so damn sexy, I just wanted to give him as much pleasure as I could, make him feel as good as he makes me feel. He lazily nodded his head as his eyes rolled back, shutting them tightly as he began thrusting his hips into my breasts. I reached out to grab his hand, feeling as he quickly grasped my fingers in a death grip, his other hand bunching the sheets so roughly I thought he was going to tear it apart.

He began fucking into my tits even harder as I messily licked his tip, enticing loud moans from the both of us. I figured that whenever I moaned against him, my voice vibrated against his tip, making his back arch in pleasure so I moaned louder, his thrusts becoming sloppier by the second as he was reaching his climax. He made the sexiest expression I had ever seen him make as soon as he reached his peak, we locked eyes and he opened his mouth as a loud, husky moan reverberated through the room. Soon, his cum began shooting out of his tip, messily drizzling all over my face, decorating me in its milky warmth. I opened my mouth, sticking my tongue out to receive every last drop that shot out of his twitching dick, some dripping onto my chest as I used my finger to scoop it up and lick it clean.

He simply stared at me in awe, huffing as he came down from his high, watching me through messy pieces of hair that covered his eyebrows. I licked my lips clean, feeling as his cum was now running down my face and getting onto his comforter. I tried to stop it from dripping, so I frantically cupped my hands to try and catch as much of it as I could, enticing a teasing laugh from him as he watched me panic.

"Here let me clean you up," he giggled, jumping off his bed to grab the towel we used earlier from the bath. He returned, wiping my face clean of his cum, and I licked my fingers clean, the sexual tension returning as I looked up at him innocently as I licked my fingers off one by one. My legs were incredibly weak, shaking as my swollen clit throbbed rapidly between my folds. I felt dizzily in need of his touch, grabbing his shoulder, I stood on my tip toes to press my lips desperately to his, puffy from biting down on them.

"Did you like fucking my tits?" I whispered against his throat, licking a stripe from the side of his neck up to his ear, nibbling lightly on the spot below his upper lobe piercing. I felt him shudder under my hot breath, his hand roughly groping my ass as the sexual tension reached its all time high. Now that we weren't virgins anymore, we had both gained more confidence with each other, willing to try anything and everything. Right now I wanted him to fuck me senseless.

"Your tits are so perfect. All of you is perfect," he muttered breathily into my lips, his eyes darkening like the deep ocean at night, a certain mystery washing over his aura as he gripped my ass tighter than before. I trailed my fingers across his back, pressing my chest tightly to his, watching his eyes travel down and back up, gazing at me sensually. Just the feeling of his eyes on my bare skin left me wanting more; wanting all of him. I kissed his cheek sweetly, blowing into his ear, "Only for you," which left his mouth slightly parted, tongue between his teeth. My clit was throbbing, swelling by the minute begging to be massaged by his perfect fingers. We both had an aura of mystery surrounding us, neither one of us able to tell what the other was thinking. Neither of us fought to be dominant; we both were.

"I want you to fuck me so deeply into the mattress that it leaves an imprint of my body. Can you fuck me that hard, Gyu?" My voice trailed deeply into his ear, making him hungrier for the taste of my skin by the second.

"I'll fuck you so hard you'll forget your own name," his deep voice husked against my skin, pressing messy kisses all over my neck as his hands grasped at my lower back, picking me up in one swift motion. I wrapped my legs around his bare hips, feeling his cock pressed against his stomach, already rock hard even though he came moments ago. To my surprise, he didn't carry me to the bed, but over to his dresser, where he set me down on the smooth wood, feeling its surface cool my ass.

"I'm gonna fuck you on every piece of furniture I own," his voice sounded deeper than before, eyes darkening as he looked at me with pure lust. He looked as sexy as always, but in this moment I felt I would simply pass away by how fucking hot he looked as his hair messily fell over the beads of sweat on his forehead, eyes fierce, lips plump, and his aura had me intoxicated. Noticing the condom in his hand, my eyes darkened at the idea of taking him raw, my mouth watering at the thought of being able to feel every little twitch, vein, and throb of his cock.

"Fuck me raw," was all I said, a sliver of concern washing over his features.

"Are you sure?" he asked in a serious tone as eyes widened at my request. I nodded, not an ounce of concern since I had been on the pill for over a year to help regulate my period. There was nothing to worry about, plus I trusted him to pull out anyway.

"I trust you, Choi Beomgyu," the sound of his full name made his face soften, a small smile on his lips as discarded the condom. His fingers trailed up the sensitive skin of my inner thighs, his sweet smile turning into a smirk as the familiar darkening of his eyes resurfaced. With both of his thumbs, he spread out my folds, getting a good look at my soaking wet pussy, licking his lips at the sight. I crashed my lips into his, having been deprived of his touch for the short amount of time his hands weren't on my body. I was addicted to him, feeling euphoric as his hands roughly grasped at the pillowy skin of my thighs.

I left a wet spot on his dresser, becoming unbelievably drenched by the second. I wrapped my legs around his lower back, pressing him closer to me, desperately trying to rub my clit against his dick. When he noticed how desperate I was, a glint of mischief became visible on his face as he held my hips in place to stop me from going any further. He grabbed his cock in his other hand, slowly rubbing his tip in circles over my swollen clit, not applying any pressure which made me whine out. He watched me squirm as he slowed his pace even more, teasing me as he tapped his tip lightly on my entrance.

"Fuck Beomgyu, please- I need you to stuff me full," I whined with begging eyes as he grinned mischievously at me, lifting one eyebrow as listened to my pleads. My heart raced as I anticipated the moment.

"Like this?" he gave in to my request, suddenly thrusting his bare cock into me, watching as his length disappeared all the way into my soaking wet pussy. I tightened around him, the feeling of him stretching me out causing my high pitched moans to fill his room. He began thrusting into me hard and deep, just the way I needed it. I rested my head back against the wall, gripping at the wood of his dresser, the perfect height for him to fuck into me, considering how tall he is.

He placed his palm next to my hip, leaning into the dresser as he towered over me, hungry eyes gazing deeply into mine as he thrusted into me deeply. Our breaths intermingled as both of our moans filled the warm air, grabbing onto his muscular arm as I dug my finger nails into his skin, leaving behind little crescent shapes. He licked a stripe up my neck, then kissed over it, sucking bruising hickeys all over my neck. A string of profanities left my lips as he thrusted so hard into me, my legs wrapped tightly around his waist as the sound of skin slapping echoed throughout his room. He thumbed at my clit, the sensation sending a chill up my spine at how good it felt.

Just as I felt myself climbing towards my climax, his hands reached around my back, hooking an arm under my thigh as he picked me up off the dresser, still fucking into me as he carried me across his room. He slammed my back against the wall with a thud, pressing my bare skin against the cold cream-colored paint. Hooking both arms under my thighs, he held me snuggly against the wall as he continued fucking into me, chest pressed to mine. This position felt so hot, making me ten times more turned on.

"Holy shit you feel so good," he moaned against my neck, his warm breath huffing against my chest. I felt droplets of his sweat drop onto my skin, mixing with my own sweat as evidence of just how hot the moment was. I was a moaning mess, tits bouncing as he held me firmly against the wall, fucking me hard and fast. For this being our first night losing our virginity, I was shocked at the fact this boy was fucking me against the wall, but I had no complaints at all- it felt perfect. I inhaled his damp hair, matted down with sweat as his room grew hotter by the second.

"Where do you want me to fuck you next?" he huffed against my ear, husky voice spilling into my brain, back arching as I felt his dick twitch against my walls as he moaned out in pleasure. I looked over his broad shoulder, searching around his room for our next destination. I spotted a medium sized coffee table next to a velvet chair, which could potentially serve as two places in one. Bingo.

"On the coffee table," I moaned against his shoulder as he gave me a few last thrusts before securing an arm tightly around my back as he pulled away from the wall. My stretched out pussy felt empty when he suddenly pulled out of me, setting me down on the floor in front of the brown coffee table.

"Turn around for me," he whispered into my lips as he kissed them deliciously. I did as he said and pressed my back to his chest as I turned around, facing the coffee table, which came up to about my hips. I felt his palm gently push my back down towards the table, bending me over. I understood where this was going as I pressed my chest to the cool wooden surface, arching my back and giving my ass a small shake as I felt a hand come down across my ass cheek, the spanking sound filling his room. I looked back over my shoulder as he reached a hand around to my throat gently squeezing, not too hard, but enough for me to moan out in pleasure at the feeling.

Suddenly, I felt his tip rub up and down between my folds before he pushed his entire length into me, the sound of my ass slapping against his thighs noticeable amongst both of our moans. Both of his hands fell to my hips as he tightly gripped them in place, fucking into me at the fastest pace he had ever gone. The way he stretched me out, thrusting into me so hard and deep had my eyes watering in pleasure, my moans echoing against the hollow wood of the coffee table.

I looked over my shoulder at him, witnessing as his head was thrown back in pleasure, his sharp jawline visible from this angle, causing me to bite down on my lip. His mouth fell agape when I began fucking myself against his cock, increasing our speed by a lot. His eyes fluttered opened as they met mine, locking as we both wore the most fucked out expressions. I moved one of his hands over to my face, stuffing a few of his fingers into my mouth as I sucked on them. The sight had him biting down on his entire bottom lip, now red and bruised from how much he had been biting it. I grabbed both of his hands, placing them on my breasts and he held onto them, using them as leverage as he fucked me hard against the table. He leaned over me, meeting my lips as I looked at him over my shoulder, placing his wet lips against mine in a sloppy kiss. An idea occurred to me as I spotted the velvet chair next to us.

"How about I ride you on that velvet chair?" I asked against his lips, the idea appealing to him as he immediately pulled out, doing his best to last as long as possible. I pushed him down onto the chair, the soft purple velvet soothing my skin as I climbed over him, crashing my lips onto him as I sat down completely down on his cock. I bounced on him with a steady pace, moaning into his lips as we desperately kissed, a strings of saliva connecting both of us as we came up for a breath. He threw his head back as I quickened my pace, bouncing mercilessly on his rock hard cock, intoxicated with the way he stretched me out, hitting my g-spot every time. His dick was too good.

"Y/n I'm really sorry but I'm so close-" he moaned, eyes shut tightly as his mouth fell open at the sheer pleasure my pussy was providing him.

"No, don't apologize Beomie, lets finish on the bed," I cooed, rubbing the side of his face as I felt my climax approaching as well. He opened his eyes, looking at me in utter desire to unleash at any second.

He stood up from the chair, picking me up with him and carried me over to the bed before setting me on the edge. I laid back as he placed my legs on either side of his shoulders, his dick plowing as deeply into me as he had been. His chest met mine as he moaned into my lips, his pace quickening as I felt his dick begin to violently twitch inside of me, perfectly hitting my g-spot, sending my body over the edge. He pulled out as warm cum drizzled all over my stomach, using his hand to aim into my mouth as I opened wide, waiting for his warm release to drip onto my tongue. I licked every last drop from his tip, placing soft kisses on his cock as he huffed, both of our chests heaving up and down at how tired we were from fucking all night.

I was a sweaty mess, covered in every last drop of Beomgyu's cum. And he was.. well.. just a sweaty mess. A hot, sweaty mess.

As our breathing regulated, we both let out a breathy laugh at what we had just done. "You did indeed fuck me against every piece of furniture you own," I raised my eyebrows, admitting to what had just happened, hearing his deep laugh as he cleaned my chest up with the same towel from earlier.

"I always keep my word," he smiled, shrugging his shoulders as he rubbed small circles on my cheek. As he finished cleaning me up, he bunched the towel, discarding it in the corner by a small pile of his dirty clothes, plopping down next to me with a thud on the bed. I rolled over to face him, and he did the same, an arm holding our heads up as we gazed at each other. He traced his fingertips down my side affectionately as we talked about the events of the night, including the party and how we were excited to go back to school and continue working on the lab project together, laughing at the thought of Mr. Kang catching us. His eyes lit up as he talked to me, gazing deeply into mine as he paid attention to every little thing I said, making my heart nearly beat out of my chest.

Not able to contain my love, I jumped on him, wrapping my arms around his neck into a tight hug as I straddled him, getting an even better grip on him. He giggled at my sudden gesture, wrapping his arms around my upper back, smiling against my skin.

"Thank you for today, Gyu," I mumbled into his shoulder, pulling away to face him. He looked at me with his large, dark brown eyes, deeply searching mine as I searched his. "No. Thank you for coming into my life," he remarked in almost a whisper, slowly pressing his lips onto mine, kissing me so deeply.

He leaned over to flick the light of his lamp off, only leaving the subtle glow of the fairy lights to illuminate his pretty room. We snuggled under the covers like two excited kids on Christmas Eve, feeling euphoric as we cuddled and talked about everything imaginable. We played a little game of nudging each other's feet under the covers, trying to wrestle and see who's feet were stronger. We held hands under the covers as our naked bodies provided warmth to one another, his soft skin lulling me nearly to sleep as I inhaled his scent. Feeling my eyes get extremely heavy, I looked up at him one last time before I could fall asleep, his starry eyes meeting mine. Before I could say what I wanted to, he cut me off.

"I fell in love with you," he whispered, inching his face closer to mine. My lips curled up into the biggest smile, heart fluttering intensely as warm tears stung my eyes amidst the beautiful moment.

"I fell in love with you too, Gyu," I responded, blinking the tears away from my vision. He reached a finger down to my chin, pulling my lips up to meet his, our mouths dancing slowly in unison as we sweetly kissed. A moment later, he snuggled his face into my neck and I found a comfortable place on the crown of his head, breathing in the sweet scent of his hair as I slowly drifted off into a deep, peaceful slumber next to the boy who completed me.

My lab partner,

my valentine,

my lover.

My Gyu.

♡

[synthcult]

Autumn witchery

Hello everyone! I am very excited about fall this year since last year my nervous system was too upset and anxious all the time to let me enjoy the season! This year I’m planning on having more fun and want to share some fun things to do with everyone! Here are some things you can do to get into the fall spirt!

Collect fallen leaves and write down things you want to release. Fall is essentially the preparation before a metaphorical death, where we shed our woes and life begins to slow down. When we write things on fallen leaves and let them go, we’re essentially expelling what might be holding us back. So! Start by gathering the leaves you want! You might find you’re attracted to a certain kind or multiple kinds! Any crunchy, fallen leaf will do. Then, write a couple of things you want to expel from your life onto the leaves. Each item should be one word per leaf. For example, if I wanted to expel self doubt, I would write ‘doubt’ on the leaf. As you’re writing, think of your intention and pour your release into it. Afterwards, exhale a few minutes of thought/meditation and then release those bad boys! Now, there’s many ways to ‘release’ the leaves, and not one way is the right way, so do whatever you please. You can crumble them up and toss them. You can burn them. You can toss them with the leaves you’re raking. My only advice for releasing back into the world however, is to try and use non-toxic writing utensils when writing on the leaves. If you don’t even want to write, you can put thought into each leaf and release them that way! It’s all up to you!

Gratitude journaling on new and full moons. This is something I need to do myself. We often get so busy with our day to day lives we forget to be grateful for what we have. If you celebrate Samhain, you’ll know the the wheel of the year closes in the middle of fall! It’s a great time to take advantage of the new and full moons and think about what you’re grateful for and log it. Gratitude can be anything, ranging from memories, people and pets, to the items you have, to ideas you have, to yourself, to the universe, etc. List what you’re grateful for and stew on it. Inhale it in and relish in the feelings you get. If you’re like me and really creative, maybe even take a page, decorate it, list things you’re grateful for and hang it up for the season! 

Update your altar. I am personally a very avid believe of altars being a good source of our empowerment and energy. The healthier the altar, the healthier the witch. Take this time to dust your altar, cleanse your altar, connect with it and then decorate for the season! It’s the time to get fall colors, to set out stones that attach to fall, to display your favorite fall things and just get in touch with the season. Meditating with your altar can sometimes be very liberating and nice too, so if you’re big on that, go for it.

Use a simmer pot. Simmer pots are used by witches and non-witches all throughout the year! My personal favorite time to use them is during the fall, however, when they have a crispness to them that the warmer seasons don’t offer as neatly. It’s really easy to make a simmer pot and you can put practically anything in it, but most people put fruits and herbs! For fall, apple skins, cinnamon and honey can make the home smell really wonderful and help to bring out opportunity! Put your intention into your ingredients and make it count! 

Visit a cemetery. I honestly see this concept a lot in the fall season and I wanted to bring it up because I was taught there are strict rules when it comes to visiting a cemetery that not many young witches know. When you go out to visit a cemetery, it is wise to always be respectful and be aware of the cemetery’s guardian. Each cemetery has one, no matter how young or old the property and they are always watching you. Some are relaxed and don’t mind trespassers/visitors, but some do not appreciate the living coming in without offerings or at all. A good couple of things to bring with you to a cemetery are: - A couple of coins - A shot of alcohol (if able, take the glass/bottle with you when you’re done or find the nearest trashcan.) - Fresh fruit  - Fresh bread Do NOT bring: Litter, anything packaged that can become litter, anything illegal or anything that can disrupt the cemetery. Be respectful when you visit! 

[besobendito]

"Shepard?"

"Bzzt- Yes, Commander Moss?"

"Start a new log recording will you? I need to settle my thoughts."

Log Number #14 Cycle: 10 Planet: PNF-404

"Despite exhaustion creeping into my very bones, I find myself unable to rest for the night. I need to note what has been happening- to convince myself that I haven't completely lost it... There is something.... strange about this planet, and for each day that passes the feeling grows even stranger. Small mistakes like misplaced items, something that Oatchi and I are very careful not to do- We have been rescuing for how many years and all of a sudden we can't seem to find where the ropes has been placed? Whatever we lose ends up right back in its proper place hours after we've lost it. Shepard clears it with me each time this happens... Those items have never moved from their spot on the cameras. Our frantic search shows up, all the crew members searching high and low- and we just... don't see them...? ......Ah, I don't know exactly how to explain this one. Oatchi joked that I might be haunted by the glowmin("Some invisible variety we haven't discovered yet!" he said) but I can see it in his face. It's happened to him too. We are all walking around... Something. Stepping to the side in an empty hallway, looking down and over my shoulder as to not bump into...Nothing? I keep feeling like there's something missing on the ship, something I can't quite remember. I've tripled checked my things and asked Shepard to list everything out in our inventory just in case. I just can't shake this feeling that...

-that I feel like I'm mourning... and for the love of everything, I don't know what. It's maddening.

I was ready to push it all to the side and continue the mission. The list of castaways only seems to be getting longer and we can't have campfire ghost stories to distract us! That is until I found a log not written by myself in my tablet...... Hmph. See, this is what's stressing me out so. No one but me has access to this tablet, it should be impossible!

The log is... Well it's creepy! From what I can tell, it's taken phrases from one of our Procedure Manuals("Bzzt- It would be the Distress and Urgency Procedures") and the logs from an unknown writer and spliced them together. I've been trying to make sense of it but- yeah I need the others to see this first. My theories wont help now. I'll have Shepard add it to this log for now, might as well...(sigh) Just what is going on...

Mm, right. I already mentioned this in the End of Day report- but I'm not done rolling this over in my head.

The castaway we picked up today- the one who limped out of that dark tunnel towards us. His clothing- you don't see pilot gear that old anymore, and the- the liquid? that fell off of him... I sampled what I could so I wont know for sure untill tomorrow, It looked like gold. I hope he wont mind sharing where he found a pool of gold to roll around in. It would be nice to be able to cover the cost of all the repairs... (Yawn) Ah- right there we go, ok I'm done for now. Have to get ready for- 'Everything' tomorrow, hope I don't sound too crazy. This is Commander Moss, Sleeping snug like a bug on a rug... (Yawns again) - - - Log Number: +#3@##0?/ Cycleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee Planet: PNF-404

(a) If distress [ ] If urgency [ ] Someone or something [ ] a loud BANG echoed throughout the cave. [ ] (b) Name of station addressed [ ] natural enemy [ ] (c) I got careless... [ ] (d) Nature of distress or urgency. and all the Pikmin perished as a result. [ ] (g) Present position [ ] Horrified, I made my [ ] ; or if lost, last known position, time, and heading since that position. Fuel remaining/Number of people/other useful information [ ] accidentally thrown to their demise [ ] crushed on hard surfaces of by some creatures' teeth [ ] I [ ] Me [ ] My [ ] Do not change frequency or change to another [ ] Fly a course toward the destination which the hijacker has announced. [ ] keeps leading me completely off track [ ] adorable leaf at the top of her [ ] (4) If unable to provide this information, [ ] trusty partner.trusty partner.trusty partner. PAN-PAN, PAN-PAN, PAN-PAN. [ ] I am so very tired... [ ]

[assassins-and-hidden-blades]

Apocalypse!AU -- Reunion

Synopsis: Separated from his family after a coup destroyed their old settlement, Jacob spends three long months trying to find them again and bring them home, if they're still alive.

06/03/2024: I feel so bad for writing this years ago and then not posting. However, I'm glad I did, because I could read through it and see how sparse it actually was. I like this piece a lot and want to share it with you guys (proof I'm writing again! Spread the word!! Reblog!). This can be read as a standalone but there is other Apocalypse!AU content HERE, HERE, and HERE if you liked this one. It could be better, but I need sleep and a croissant (hello, priorities), and I just wanted to get something out there. Tell me what you think/if you want more/less/or you like the surprises. I surprise even myself, currently. Feedback is cool, too! Very big fan of feedback. Anyway, here you go!

Warnings: Violence, blood mention

[This is an F!Reader fic]

Word count: 3.2k (not bad, not bad)

The Complete Masterlist

----

Rubbing his eyes, Jacob crossed off another town on his map, leaning over the wooden table in his room. They were kind enough to give him a three bedroom house to reside in, despite having two and a half beds neatly made but untouched. On two of them sat a few different stuffed animals; some new, some familiar. Lily would always share her stuffed animals with Emmett, despite the older brother acting as if he didn’t need the comfort.

He stood up straight and took a sip of his now cold coffee. The mug was sat down amongst a handful of others, showing the true extent of his exhaustion. His return from an overnight supply run with Edward and Arno barely reaped any useful resources, save for some vehicle parts. No sign of anyone camping around. No sign of his family.

A knock at his front door pulled him out of his thoughts. “It’s open!” he called, sniffing to compose himself.

“Jacob?” Evie’s voice rang throughout the hallway, a thread of worry lacing her tone.

“Upstairs!” He chose to quickly knock back the rest of his coffee.

“Jacob, when was the last time you cleaned? Your living room looks like a minefield.”

“I haven’t had the time.”

Evie leaned against the doorway, concern on her features. “You’re exhausted. You need to rest.”

“I’ll rest after we… after…” He sighed. “Later. I’ll rest later.”

The older Frye twin glanced at the table -- at the map decorated with countless crosses, the coffee mugs with their corresponding ring stains. She began to gather them.

“You don’t have to--” Jacob began.

“I was talking to Altair and Kassandra. You’re going on another supply run?” She was quite to cut him off, leaving him momentarily stunned.

“Yeah, this afternoon. And you’re going on an overnight patrol.” Evie raised a brow at that. “I checked the rota.”

“You’re not going on the run.”

Jacob scoffed. “Says who?”

“Says everyone. You’re wearing yourself out -- killing yourself. And for what?”

“For them, Evie!” He was surprised at how quickly his temper flared. “Sorry.” His voice calmed immediately, returning to its original, tired state. “It was my fault in the first place.” Carding his fingers through his hair, he sighed. “I should have protected them.”

Evie’s heart stung at her brother’s demeanour. She glanced at the wedding band on Jacob’s finger, a sole reminder of their shared family. “Altair and Kassandra won’t go with you. They can handle being a man down while said man rests.” She put a hand on his shoulder, rubbing it reassuringly. “There’s no point lamenting the past; It wasn’t your fault, Jacob. We’ll get them back. Go to bed.”

“But--”

Evie gave him a look, shutting him up instantly. “Bed. Now.” She followed his gaze towards the front door. “I’ll lock it when I leave.”

Jacob watched her leave his room, leaving his door slightly ajar. Standing up, he almost tripped over his chair. He moved to his bed, where a T shirt and pyjama bottoms sat. He has been working nonstop for days, and only now realised that he barely had time to look after himself. He never changed out of his overnight patrol gear, mud-encrusted and uncomfortable. A shower would be a smart option, and one he forced himself to take.

Evie was still downstairs as Jacob emerged from the bathroom, drying his hair with a towel. His movements were less than lackluster, seeming to constantly be on the verge of giving up.

Perhaps a few hours of rest would do him some good.

He climbed into his bed for the first time in half a week, and listened to the ambient kitchen noises Evie made. Closing his eyes, Jacob tried to imagine someone else making that noise, but the movements were never quite the same. He pulled his pillow tight against him, closing his eyes. A tear still managed to escape, but Jacob had passed out before it had time to hit the pillow.

Altair and Kassandra dove for cover behind a car. “How are there so many hunters?!” She yelled.

“I don’t know! Just keep shooting!”

“Kill all three of them!” The leader of the group — standing at least ten hunters strong — commanded from across the street.

Altair and Kassandra exchanged glances, confused at the instructions. “Who else is here…?” Altair questioned, and was swiftly answered when gunshots rang out in front of them. Altair flinched against the car, trying to stay protected as he worked out what was going on. He spotted the third person the hunter was talking about fleeing towards an abandoned house, a hand pressed against her stomach. She dove inside and slammed the door shut.

“I suppose we found our answer,” Kassandra said.

“We should kill them all. We cannot let them get to that house.”

“Do you know her?” Kassandra asked, concern beginning to grow for this person.

Altair stood up and fired five shots before ducking again. “No, but she looks extremely familiar.”

That seemed to be enough for Kassandra, and she began to quickly eliminate the remaining five targets with a striking accuracy, likely fuelled by adrenaline and protectiveness. A few moments later, and they were all down.

“We should check if she’s alright. She looked injured,” Altair said, holstering his gun before jogging up to the door and knocking firmly. “Hello?! Are you alright? We want to help you! Are you hurt?”

No response.

He knocked again. “My name is Altair! This is Kassandra! We live in a settlement not too far from here. We have first aid and supplies! We can help you!”

Again, nothing.

“I’m kicking down the door! Please don’t shoot me…” and with that, Altair broke the lock on the door by booting it open. It was clear to see immediately that she had hidden upstairs, shown by the worrying trail of blood she left in her wake.

“Hello?” Altair became nervous; no response after an injury usually didn’t bode well for the injured. They followed the trail, Altair climbing each step purposely but with caution, eyes observing everything from the cracked yellow paint along the wall to the bloodstained bannister.

At the top of the stairs, the trail led into a closed door. He tested the handle; locked. He knocked politely. “Miss? We just want to help you. I’m coming in, alright?”

There were murmurings on the other side of the door, and Altair did the most efficient thing he could think of.

He kicked down the door.

Splinters flew, startled screams sounded out, and his hands automatically came up in surrender as he stood at gunpoint. The woman in question was lying prone on the floor, one hand around her crimson-stained stomach, and the other holding a shaking gun. “Don’t move.”

“We can get you help.” He persuaded calmly. “I can help you; I’m a medic.”

“What faction are you with?”

Kassandra mirrored Altair’s movements. “We didn’t know there were any factions.”

“You don’t dress like cultists… who are you?”

“We’re just survivors. Same as you.” Altair looked around, surprised to see two small figures crouching beside each other in the corner. “You’re protecting your children, we understand, but let us take you to our settlement. We have better medical equipment than here, and it’s safe there.”

“Survivors…” you let your arm with the firearm drop, hitting the wood with a thud. “Why are you here?”

“We’re searching for supplies.” Altair furrowed his brows in thought. That wasn’t the only reason they were out here. He glanced at the two children; one boy and one girl. “Where’s the father?”

“We got separated about three months back. I don’t know if…” she paused. “If he’s still alive.”

“What’s his name?”

“Jacob.”

“Jacob Frye?”

Your eyes lit up through the prevalent exhaustion. “Yes! That’s him. He’s alive? What about Evie?”

Altair rushed to your side, snapped out of his frozen state. “He’s been looking for you since you were separated. It must’ve been fated that the one time we told him to rest was the time where we found you.” He cradled the back of your head. “Lie back. Evie’s fine as well; she’s on an overnight patrol.”

You relaxed slightly, distracted by Kassandra introducing herself to your children. “You both look so much like your parents; I’m your pater’s friend. What are your names?”

“I’m Emmett!” Despite the situation, word about his father’s whereabouts must have excited him. “This is my little sister, Lily.” He grabbed her shoulders and stood behind her, wrapping her in a comforting hug. Lily held onto Emmett’s hands, looking away from Kassandra. “Is it true?! You know our father?”

Altair took some gauze and medical tape out of his backpack, beginning to pack and dress the wound. You bit your cheek to hide the pain from Emmett and Lily. “I can’t do much here without a needle and thread, but we have what we need at the settlement.” He wiped his hands on his shirt. “We need to go, now.” He wrapped your arm over his shoulders and heaved you to your feet. “Kassandra, get to the horses.” She nodded, and took the children by the hands, leaving the room first. You and Altair followed soon after.

Your knees kept buckling every few steps on the way to the front door, causing Altair to adjust accordingly. “Jacob will not be happy with us when we return with you in this state.”

You chuckled, a weariness to your tone. “I can imagine. That man has a tendency to overreact.”

“We’ll just have to beg for forgiveness this time around.”

As you and Altair limped out of the front door, Kassandra had rushed to bring the horses closer, the children both mounted on one of them already. “Okay, ready?” Altair asked, before hoisting you as best he could onto his horse, mounting behind you. Kassandra held both children in front of her, holding them tightly.

“Will Mama be okay?”

“She’ll be fine, little ones,” Kassandra comforted, though an uneasy smile rested on her face as she assessed the blood staining her friend’s hands.

“Stay as still as you can,” you told them, slumping heavily against Altair’s chest.

He urged his horse to turn back the way they came, kicking her into a gallop — sprinting as fast as she could go. Kassandra wasn’t far behind.

——

Upon arriving at the settlement, your pulse had slowed down tremendously. Your bandage (and Altair’s shirt) was almost drenched in blood, and you were slipping in and out of consciousness. Altair skidded his horse to a stop and slid off, taking you with him. He adjusted you up in his arms and carried you hurriedly into the infirmary. “Help! I need help!” A few doctors came out, and upon seeing the amount of blood, dove into action, taking you out of his arms. He looked down at himself, at the crimson soaking the cotton of his shirt, at the dried blood on his skin. A wave of nausea threatened to overcome him.

Gathering himself, he turned to move into the porch of the infirmary building, where Kassandra and the children were waiting, confused and distressed. “I’m getting Jacob,” he told her, sprinting towards the bar. It was the only place the group usually frequented; no doubt the familiarity would be a subconscious coping mechanism. The sun had dipped low under the horizon, chilling the air. Altair didn’t feel cold.

He slammed the door open with his shoulder, slamming it against the wall. The entire room fell into silence, eyes shooting to the scene. Jacob sat on a barstool, a glass of whiskey in front of him. He also snapped his gaze to Altair while pocketing his wallet.

The look on his friend’s face told him everything.

They’re here. We found them.

The blood all over him told him something else, and his blood turned to ice. “Oh, Christ.” Jacob flew off of his stool, running faster than he thought possible behind Altair.

Who was hurt? How bad is it? Are they…?

They sprinted across the street in what can only be described as the longest ten seconds of his life. Reaching the front door of the infirmary, Altair let Jacob overtake him as he threw open the porch door.

He fell to his knees when he saw his children again. “Oh…”

They ran into his arms, and he embraced them tightly. “Are you both alright? Are you hurt?” He pulled away, voice cracking with worry, even as he tried to hide it.

“No.” Emmett said, tears in his eyes. He flung his arms around his father’s neck.

Lily’s had already started falling. “I was so scared,” she whispered, clinging to his shoulder.

“It’s okay, you’re safe now. You’re alright. My gorgeous girl.” He wiped her tears and kissed her forehead, bringing her back into him. “My beautiful boy.” Emmett held him tighter. He never thought he would savour this moment again, holding his children in his arms. Waiting for a moment, he steeled himself. If neither of his children were hurt, that left one possible heartbreak.

He pulled away after a few moments. “I need to check on Mum. You two need to stay here, alright? Stay with my friends, while I go inside. I’ll be back in a minute.” He could tell that they didn’t want him to disappear so quickly, but they nodded anyway. Kassandra took them to a small play area in the corner.

Jacob moved to knock harshly on the door. “Hey! Open up! I need to see my wife!”

The door unlocked rather quickly, the doctor perhaps intimidated by the possibilities of Jacob’s tone. He barged in, freezing at the sight before him; you lying in a hospital bed, your skin tone sickened, your eyes closed. a couple of doctors busied around your wound and were checking your vitals. Two trolleys sat beside them; one of clean bandages and medical equipment, and the other held bloodstained fabric.

Jacob’s stomach dropped, filling with lead. “No…”

Rushing to the bedside, he caressed your head with one hand, and grasped your own with the other. “Y/n, God…” He didn’t need to compose himself anymore, tears spilling down his cheeks in both worry and relief. “I’m so sorry. I’m so, sosorry.”

Semi-lucid, you feebly squeezed his hand. “I found you.”

He laughed, tears brimming in his eyes. “You did.” The light mood was quickly dissipated by the way you were blinking. Slow, fatigued eyes staring slightly out of focus. “Who did this to you?” Anger bled through his gritted teeth.

“They’re dead, Jacob. Don’t chase headless chickens.”

He sighed and couldn’t help but smile at your familiar phrases. A whirlpool of emotions overwhelmed him, constantly switching between anger, devastation, and relief.

He looked up to one of the doctors. “Is she going to be okay?” His thumb caressed your cheekbone.

The doctor kept looking between you and Jacob. “We’ll take care of her.” He walked away quickly, as if fetching something.

“What? What’s that supposed to mean?!” He began to sit up, worried, but you pulled on his hand.

“Don’t, Jacob. Let him go.” Frowning, he instead pulled up a chair to sit beside your bed.

“I’m so sorry I couldn’t find you sooner.” His elbows rested on the mattress, his hands enveloping yours, pressed against his forehead. “I never should have stopped.”

You brushed the tousled hair out of his eyes, smiling at his loving gaze. Concerned and guilty, but loving.

“From what I heard, you were working yourself to death. I’m glad you weren’t there; you would have panicked.”

“But… I could have prevented this.” His lips pressed against your knuckles; a constant kiss.

“You don’t know that. I’ll be fine here, but our children need somewhere to sleep and bathe.” You studied his features, keeping to yourself concerns about his own health. His eyes looked sunken, and if it wasn’t for Evie’s presence you would have been certain that he wouldn’t be eating either.

“I can’t just leave you here.” He breathed a tone of fatigued defiance.

You scoffed playfully. “I’m in the safest place in the world. Literally.”

“But what if—“

“Shhh.” You rubbed your thumb over his knuckles soothingly. “Nothing will happen. It won’t happen.”

He geared himself to leave, but paused at the last moment. Turning to you again, he opened his mouth to say something, but a tearful scoff came out instead. “I thought… I thought I’d never see my family again.” He grasped your hand tighter. “Now that you’re here, I don’t want to let you go again.”

You wiped a tear from his cheek. “We’re not going anywhere. I promise.” A wall of fatigue overcame you, and you found your eyes fluttering closed.

“Y/n?” You hummed, feeling your husband’s hand on your cheek.

“I’m resting, Jacob. I’m okay.”

He sighed, leaning forward and pressing a soft kiss to your forehead. “Sleep well, my love.”

——

“Hey, have any of you seen Jacob?”

Evie found her way into the bar in the morning, having just returned from her overnight patrol. The entire squad had bagged the biggest booth that morning, conversing in relieved and content murmurs. She eyed them suspiciously. “What’s going on?”

Altair regarded her with the most emotion she’d ever seen him wear. “Go find out. He’s in the infirmary.”

“What?!” She turned on her heel and ran. What trap did he fall into this time?

She opened the infirmary door, expecting Jacob to be bandaged up and drugged on morphine (which happened more often than she would like). “Oh my God.”

Jacob was sat in a chair at your bedside, chuckling quietly at one of Emmett’s stories, his actions and facial expressions entrancing Jacob fully as he sat cross legged on the bed. Lily was playing with his hair in his lap. He held her tightly in one hand and held your hand with the other. The children snapped up at the sound of her voice.

“Aunt Evie!”

She dropped to her knees as they bolted towards her. Laughing, she kissed their heads multiple times as they collided into her arms. “Oh my God; you’re here! I missed you both so much!” She couldn’t help tears of joy breaking through. “Don’t cry, Aunt Evie,” Emmett said sadly, wiping her tears.

“They’re tears of joy, darling. I’m so happy you’re safe.”

“They’re tears of pain, really; you naughty rascals are going to drive her up the wall.”

They groaned at their father’s jokes. “No, we drive her down the wall; you’re the one who drives her up it.” Jacob was impressively stunned at Lily’s comeback, while you and Evie laughed. Suddenly, you winced, shifting uncomfortably on the bed.

Jacob’s attention was on you in an instant. “What happened?”

“Nothing, I’m okay. I laughed too hard.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m sure.”

Jacob raised a suspicious brow.

“I promise I’m okay.”

Seemingly satisfied, Jacob smiled softly before leaning down to kiss you ever so gently, as if you were made of porcelain. You couldn’t help but smile back; he radiated so much joy and love in this moment, it was impossible to ignore.

Emmett groaned at your and Jacob’s act. “Aunt Evie, get us out of here!”