#i tried to teach someone how to roller skate a few times

[thetomorrowshow]

Hello! I am attempting to write a ~fanfiction~ for the first time and have absolutely no idea what I'm doing. Would you have any tips for new/advice-seeking writers trying to make words go?

ooh ok so here's a similar ask i answered a little bit ago

but for fanfic specific, i think start by really getting familiar with your characters and their speaking style/habits. I got a lot of really lovely comments on a fic for nailing martyn inthelittlewood's voice, which wouldn't have happened if i didn't watch martyn's videos frequently.

write a couple of short fics before going in on the one that you really want to nail! this can help you find your voice and the stuff that you want to write.

what do you want to write? probably what you want to read! write a fic that you would love reading.

when starting out you don't have to set aside specific times to write, just write when you feel inspiration. i used to write when i finished classwork during high school, because my mind was already in work-mode and all of the materials were right there for me (added bonus is that teachers like students that handwrite constantly. you'll be writing the gayest most depressing fanfic ever and they'll laud you for being studious and paying such good attention).

you can create things for your fic. sometimes i'd sit down to write empires superpowers au and instead just make a billion picrews. it seemed unproductive at the time but it was really motivating tbh it made me want to not give up. i also like making playlists for fics and listening to them while walking across campus so that i start brainstorming

really half the battle is being in the right mindset. find ways to trigger it--light exercise is usually one that works for everyone (ie, going on a fifteen minute walk). my classroom example from above has always been the most productive for me. taking a shower. filling out one of those character-fleshing-out things. talking to someone about what you're writing. etc etc

def check out the linked post for more thoughts i had lol

[freddieslater]

Stranger Things: Elmax | Eleven Hopper x Max Mayfield

"I've been excited for this all week," Max admits, doing up the laces on her roller skate with a flash of a grin at El. "I haven't been skating in ages. Maybe not since I was last in California, actually."

El smiles at her enthusiasm. Truthfully, she'd been nervous about her coming to visit her. For many reasons. One of them being that it's coming up to a year since Billy's death and she figured that her being in California might bring up bad memories. Another being the possibility of Max seeing through the lies El told about having friends.

But now that they're here, that Max is here with her, she can't find a reason to worry. It's like they're back in her room at the cabin, reading comic books and playing with the bottle. She's heard there's another game that invovles spinning a bottle but it sounds different to the one they played. Perhaps she should suggest it to Max later.

"Hey, you okay?" Max rests a hand on her arm. "Are you nervous? You said you've done this before."

El takes a deep breath and tries to fix her expression. She places her hand on top of Max's and shakes her head.

"I'm okay," she says, and it doesn't feel like a lie. "Now that you're here. I'm not nervous."

Max makes a face -- big eyes, a little line between her eyebrows, and a smile that almost looks sad to El. But she puts her other hand on top of El's and connects their fingers tightly together.

"I'm here now. And we're going to have a great time," she promises.

She turns to her right to look over at Will and Mike, in their own little bubble, doing up their skates. El doesn't think she's seen Will so happy like this in a while. Maybe not since they left Hawkins.

Turning back to her, Max rolls her eyes and says, "Boys."

Then she stands, still holding El's hand, and guides her to her feet as well. It's hard not to fall over in the skates but El does her best to look confident as Max gently but knowingly pulls her further into the room, practically skating backwards as she makes sure she's okay at the same time.

It's actually not so bad. It's like when Max tried to teach her how to use her skateboard. Scary and a little but unsteady, but with Max holding onto her, it's not so hard to get the hang of it.

Soon, they're laughing and holding onto each other for dear life as they race around the room, trying not to collide with anyone else. A few times they pass Will and Mike, who are doing almost the exact same thing, only without holding hands. She does notice Mike reach out and cling onto Will at one point though, and she's not sure when he lets go of them.

"See?" Max teases, slowly skating backwards, smirking at her. "You're a natural." She quirks an eyebrow. "You've never actually done this before though, have you?"

El's heart skips a beat, and her guilt gushes out of her in a wave from her mouth, "I'm sorry I lied, I know that friends don't lie, but I--"

"Hey! Hey, it's okay!" Max laughs and stops skating, forcing El to stop as well. She rests her hands gently on her shoulders, looking into her eyes with a much gentler smile. "Sometimes friends tell little lies to look cooler. That's okay. Buuuuut you don't need to do that with me. Okay? You are super awesome already."

El smiles back, though it doesn't last very long. "Not anymore. My powers..."

Max shakes her head. "Doesn't matter."

El blinks. "What? It... it doesn't?"

"No. El, you don't need your powers. You are amazing with or without them." Max drops her shoulders and pulls her in abruptly for a tight hug that nearly squishes the air out of El. It's nice. "You don't have to be someone else with me. I love you for who you are. And you are you. El. Or Jane. Whichever you prefer. I will always love you just for being you."

Tears sting at the back of El's eyes. She hides them in Max's shoulder as she hugs her back to the best of her ability. Her stomach has gone all weird and squirmy. Probably from how nervous she was to tell her the truth.

"I love you, too," El murmurs into her hair, trying not to sound so pathetic as she does.

Max chuckles quietly and says, "I know. Now, we should move before those idiots we call friends crash into us."

El bursts into a giggle, but agrees, and they separate (but remain holding hands) and skate out of Mike and Will's path. They only continue for another few minutes before deciding to take a break to grab some food as Max and Mike complain that they're starving, so El and Will's amusement.

[timeofjuly]

Ngl i lowkey see our mc the type to collect hobbies like pokémon 😭 like i can see them doing dance classes (like those beginner ballet ones) , roller skating , snow boarding, guitar lessons. Fucking even an artist on the side (quinn being her muse most of her time in the past since i remember when they first met mc was doodling so they might be rlly creative/artistic person :D) Their fuvking everywhere doing everything bc of the stimulation and excitement those hobbies give 😭

Love this, YES. They’re happy to try things and give new experiences a go (and as someone who is cripplinglyafraid of failure, it’s refreshing to write from the POV of someone with unfaltering self confidence lol)

I’m gonna rate all the hobbies you listed by how good I think MC would be at them.

Dance classes: decent! They would kill pole dancing classes though. Would feel confident enough to not take it too seriously and be silly.

Roller skating: good! Can’t do many tricks, but likes to go very fast on the rink and then jump onto the carpet like an idiot.

Snow boarding: terrible, ended up face-first in the snow with a black eye and a sprained wrist the one time they tried it. I HC that MC and Quinn’s hometown doesn’t get snow (I have literally no idea where it is geographically cause I’m not from the US) so MC hasn’t had much experience with it. I also may or may not be planning a lil Christmas advent calendar fic for this year that may or may not include a chapter where Rus (SF!Paps) teaches MC to ice skate.

Guitar lessons: learns a few songs and pulls them out as party tricks or to pick up girls. Actually good at this one, I think MC would struggle to get their head around sheet music though.

Art: decent again! MC would excel at sculpture making, actually. Or even pottery classes. Something hands-on. Would probably benefit from art therapy.

And to add one of my own: I totally reckon MC would’ve been a theatre kid in high school (I mean, come on) and I can see them later down the line getting involved in community theatre.

[hargrove-mayfields]

@harringroveweek continues!

My prompt today is another combination! So here’s Roller Skating and Hell’s Bells by AC/DC

After the little brat opened up a new skateboard on her eleventh birthday, a gift from a clueless step-father that knew absolutely nothing about her and picked up the first thing he saw for under three bucks at a yard sale, someone had to show Max how to hold her own on wheels. Susan disapproved of her new hobby, and none of her friends were into it, so that left Billy to teach her. Turn it into a sibling bonding sort of thing.

A long time before he met her he’d had a skating phase like every scrawny preteen loser in California did. Only, he wasn’t brave enough for the board. He had these awful green roller skates that were two sizes too big, the wheels scratched to hell and back from a previous owner.

His mom bought him those skates, and he was damn proud to wear them until the day Neil bashed one into the back of his head for not bringing them inside off the sidewalk. A few stitches later and he was more than over it. It wasn’t cool anymore.

So he’d pretty much had to re-teach himself while also helping Max, which was obnoxious, but the memory of how to skate was beyond burned into his head now, if not just because he’d been so stressed about the delicate balance between getting sibling bonding points with Max and getting in trouble for letting her get hurt.

It was fun though for a while, teaching her all about how to balance and how to fall on her ass so it hurt less.

Eventually she got bored of him fussing over her, which was fair, because she was getting older and he was getting less patient, so they stopped doing it together. He pretty much dropped skating completely and let her do her own thing while he watched, just so Neil couldn’t say he’d been irresponsible and left her on her own.

In part, because every time he tried to skate without the excuse of teaching Max, Neil accused him of some not so pleasant things, mostly relating to being not masculine enough. Any lingering interest after the first injury was swallowed by an open wound, and he gave up completely on something that made him happy. He couldn’t do anything right.

It’s only once Neil is out of the picture entirely, no longer lingering just to make him insecure about everything he’s ever had an interest in, that Billy wants to get back into it. Physically, he’s not as strong as he used to be, for a multitude of reasons, mostly being hospitalized after being skewered by a giant monster, but the acute alcoholism didn’t help either.

He’s on the right track now, thanks to his support system which consists of literally only two people, and to really make the most of his recovery, his therapist suggested a hobby. He’s not quite well enough yet for anything he used to do, weightlifting, basketball, drinking his life away. That’s not really his idea of living anymore anyways.

The idea to get back into roller skating specifically though comes from a VHS copy of Rollerball that Buckley passed onto Steve, the second variable to his sanity, from work.

She’d been assigning him random movies to watch, and since neither of them get out much anymore, he brings them back to Billy and they either make it through only to mock the entire thing or find other things to entertain themselves with the films on in the background.

About halfway through, bored out of his mind, Steve had remarked backhandedly something like, “Honestly, What was Robin thinking with this one? I’ve never even been roller skating.”

Billy didn’t have time to explain the metaphor in Rollerball, because he had pointed out, maybe bragging a little, “I do.”

That was all the more Steve needed to hear to be dead-set on taking him out to try and reignite that old passion for the sport. It felt nice to have somebody be so genuinely interested in what he cares about, he almost forgot it’s been a good five years since he’s even owned a pair of skates, let alone gone and done it, and agreed to go with Steve.

Steve who has never even seen a roller rink in his life. That was when Billy realized he was back to the start with teaching someone else, forging relationships this way. It’s a funny feeling, one that makes him feel all fluttery to know that Steve trusts him that way for real, not just out of necessity. He just hopes Steve is a better listener than Max.

To make things easier, they find a rink that isn’t completely infested with tweens. It’s about an hours drive out of Hawkins, but a place where the vibe is more like stoners and queers trying to find a way to spend weekends away from the surrounding oppressive communities than a bunch of kids and their drama, is totally worth it. The kind with a full bar and seedy bathrooms and flickering neon signs.

Just the thing he’s been missing.

Just stepping into the place reminds Billy of home, then crossing the barrier between the hidden floor and the rink itself, wearing a pair of rental skates that are so foreign but so familiar, he almost feels alive. A spark of something that’s been missing since everything went wrong.

The way Steve, struggling to stay in control of his gangly on wheels, laughs at his own inability and clings to Billy’s jacket. The way the strobing lights feel warm on his face and make his hair go a little frizzy. The vibrations of wheels on concrete floors and a bass heavy stereo system under his feet.

He gets what his therapist was talking about now. Billy feels, for a moment, skating in circles with Steve Harrington and getting to see his warm smile, like he has everything.

Of course, that illusion wouldn’t last long.

Somebody put in a request with the disc-jockey for something heavier than the Cinderella and Poison they’ve been playing. The song changes, and the harsh, echoing sound that comes from the speakers loud enough to shake his soul makes Billy’s blood run cold.

Chiming. Ticking. Hell’s bells.

A guitar solo starts that tells him it isn’t what he thinks it is- just a song, not an omen of death this time- but it doesn’t soothe the rising fear in his chest.

He leans forward on the bumpers, stopping dead on his path, several people blurring past him, some bumping into him, only making things worse. Steve isn’t smiling anymore.

“Billy? You good?”

But Billy can’t respond. That sound, those bells just keep echoing in his head over and over. Louder and louder. At some point, he has to acknowledge that this isn’t the radio anymore.

He panics.

On instinct, he tries to run, but he’s wearing skates. He trips over himself and falls. And he keeps falling. And falling. The music fades to buzzing silence. The rhythmic scratch of turning wheels halted. Replaced by empty cracks of distant storms. Billy is somewhere else now.

Somewhere all alone in a world without color, devoid of life. Another bell chimes in his head, a heavy dread settling over him as it does.

“..Stevie?”

He gets nothing in response but another click, a chime, louder and perfectly clear this time, sharp and haunting as it cuts through the increasingly painful silence. He keeps trying to call out for Steve. To make a connection to somebody in the real world that could stop him from spiraling.

But he knows what’s actually coming next.

And shortly after, the echoing sound of a disgustingly familiar voice in his head.

Even though he’d watched the bastard burn up into pieces, banished back to where he came from, his curse supposed to be lifted for good a whole year ago, it’s Vecna. “You didn’t really think that you had escaped me forever, did you?”

Frantically, Billy looks around, but he can’t find the source. He’s knows what to look for, he just can’t physically see him. He doesn’t see anything but hazy blue, a world created from death, “The fuck is going on?”

The voice just keeps speaking from it’s removed position, “That attempt at keeping me away was admittedly.. unexpected. But easy enough to come back from. I never lost my bond with you, I was only waiting for the right moment.”

Every emotion boils in Billy’s blood at once. Fear for the power he’s up against. Anger for having to do this shit all over again. Sadness for the outcome he’s come to expect. He channels it all into defiance, motivation to not just take this threat at face value, “That ain’t what it is. You’re in my head. And I left you behind.”

“Like I said. I was biding my time. Time which you certainly used to make up for all that you had lost. Truly creating a perfect reality for yourself.” Vecna pauses a moment, in the silence demanding that Billy reflect on his past. He tries not to, his own mind and memories easily a trap right now. He bites his tongue and refuses. So the monster continues, “How much of it, do you think, was actually real?”

That question has been sitting heavy in his soul since day one of his freedom, but he knows better than to believe it now. At least, he’s convinced himself of his surety by now. He spits, “You’re just fucking with me.”

“I could be. But I think we know that in the real world, wherein my power doesn’t have influence, there is no way that they would ever have forgiven you.”

Billy doesn’t falter, but only because of who he’s up against, and what will happen if he does, “They know what you are, and they know I haven’t done shit.”

“Oh. I seem to remember a few incidents, long before I was ever involved in your little story. Perhaps you wouldn’t have been such an easy subject to isolate, if your friends were truly so forgiving.”

Billy puffs out his chest, talking big even though he hasn’t quite gathered the strength to stand back up, “Yeah? Let's put it to the test. Let me go back to them right now.”

A cold laugh, the hair on the back of Billy’s neck stands up. He can feel Vecna now, somewhere close, “I can’t do that, Billy. You’re still my strongest soldier. I need you here.”

“Still haven’t told me for what though. Bullying some fourteen year old kid? Eating rats in a rusty old warehouse? Ooh, maybe today we’ll just sit around and wait for something to fucking happen again.” Billy lips his lips, talking fast, riding high on a wave of panic induced adrenaline that gives him the courage to argue so intensely, “I’m starting to think you don’t even have a real purpose other than being really fucking annoying in my life.”

Out of further monologuing, or apparently tired of Billy not just dissolving to tears like he used to, Vecna reduces to threats, “You seem to forget, it was me who tore you apart last time.”

As if he could forget. Scars litter his body, along with phantom pains and wounds that haven’t healed, will never heal. Just to have the energy to go out with Steve today he had to take a cocktail of drugs. He uses that as his strong point. His fight is always ongoing, why should he lay down and take it from Vecna now?

“But I also know who put me back together, and I know that was real, or else we wouldn’t be sitting here now.” Finally, Billy rises to his feet against the threat, staring in the general direction of Vecna's voice, the occasional blurry image of his likeness moving in his peripheral vision not enough to face.

He continues boldly, “See, you made a mistake, letting me go back. ‘Cause now I know you’re just an illusion. Pictures in my head that can’t do shit to me without your nasty meat monsters. You’re probably hanging from a ceiling halfway across town, nowhere near being able to hurt me. So I ain’t afraid of you anymore.”

“You should be.” Is the warning he gets in response. The shady figure of Vecna turns away, his voice just as loud though, only selling further that this is truly just in his head. They aren’t fully connected anymore, not through the upside down at least. But Vecna promises of something worse to come regardless, “Use your time wisely. You think you know better, but you don’t. Not as long as I am in your head. I’ll be back to finish what I started.”

A final chime, long lasting and distorted. His ears are ringing so bad. But the feeling starts to come back to his whole body, from the inside of his head out.

He opens his eyes and he sees flashes of blinding light. Feels the sensation of quick movements past him. Hears Steve’s voice,

“Billy!” He blinks away the painful brightness. The world reconstructing itself around him. He’s back on the floor of the roller rink. Back to reality. The world is clear again and Steve’s panicked face, flushed with fear and maybe a few tears, is back to ground him.

Steve doesn’t let go of him, a strong grip on both arms that Billy gradually becomes aware of. Before he’d been doing it to ground him, shake him back to reality. Now he just doesn’t want to let him go again, “Did what I think just happened, happen?”

Billy can’t bring himself to speak yet, so he nods a confirmation, registering the feeling of drying tears on his own face. It feels stupid to cry now. But even though he stood up to the projection of that bastard, he’s not ready for the real thing. He’s scared as all hell.

How much of what he said was real?

“But… I thought- What do we do?” Steve’s voice shakes with emotion. His eyes are sad and scared. This wasn’t supposed to happen.

Billy clears his throat, trying to sound more determined than he feels, “Only thing we know how to.”

“We fight?” Steve concludes, hesitant, and Billy nods an equally as unenthused confirmation. He adds, “That and I need my tapes first. Gotta make sure Kate Bush is still spinnin’ too.”

“Actually, first we have to get you out of here. You’re going to get run over just on the floor like this.” Steve stands up first, leaning forward on the rubber stoppers of his skates like Billy taught him. Billy hardly notices the details. He might be proud if he could even process the world around him.

With Billy still in a haze and not much help, Steve somehow gets him standing and out to the car, carrying both pairs of their shoes. Billy only remembers to tune back in once he’s safely in the half-reclined passenger seat. It feels restraining to be in the car, but he doesn’t dare complain about being in his world instead of the other one.

Steve is the first to start speaking again, the sound of his voice both soothing and jarring to Billy in his current state of mind, “What happened back there. What triggered it?”

It feels obvious. He gathers his energy to respond, “Think it was the song. Bells, Steve. Chiming?”

“I’m sorry, I don’t get it..”

That’s a revelation on its own.

“Keep forgetting that that thing never had you.” Billy stares up at the interior, willing the courage to genuinely talk about this, something he almost never does, “When I was.. on the other side, I could tell something bad was coming when I heard bells. It was like all my other senses would fade out for a second and it was just this overwhelming ringing in my ears. It was weird and hypnotic. That was how he got me.”

“So like.. literally, hell's bells. And the song...” Steve reiterates for him, a stepping stone for Billy to make light of the irony, “Yeah. Don’t really want to hear Brian Johnson screaming about the shit that tormented me for a year.”

Hearing him talk like that, even though it’s a sign that he’s coming to, it’s obvious Steve doesn’t know how to respond. He offers a simple, “I’m sorry.”

Billy doesn’t like sympathy though. He tries to make it sound like it’s not a bog deal, “Stop. It’s just one stupid song.”

“That’s not all that’s changed though. I’m sorry that you can’t listen to whatever music you like anymore and you can’t go out as many places and you can’t live on your own.. This was supposed to make you feel better.”

His apology for the inevitable death sentence looming over Billy even now doesn’t need to be mentioned aloud.

He sounds so sad about it, Billy has to remind him, even if he’s trying to be reserved right now he cares about Steve too much to let him be this guilty about something he didn’t even do, ”And is that all somehow your fault? No, it isn’t.”

“But in a way, it is. I could’ve done more to protect you and none of this would ever have happened.” Steve always takes responsibility for everything. That’s what helps him get through it, Billy thinks, is feeling like he’s important, until it backfires and he feels awful about literally everything. Billy wants to fix that.

Not used to being the one who gives advice, but definitely not wanting Steve to take the blame, Billy tries, “AC/DC isn’t even that good. Quit beating yourself up about it.”

“Why do you always try to underplay everything?” It doesn’t work to get him to realize it’s not his fault, but at least he’s not self-deprecating anymore. The next step would be for them to stop dancing around the actual issue of what just happened. But that’s harder.

Billy counters, just to make light of how pointless this arguing is, “Says the one of us that blows everything out of proportion.”

“What, is it a crime to worry about my boyfriend now?”

“If it was, you'd be facing a life sentence by now.” Billy’s back-handedness seems to be what gets through to Steve, because the tension in his shoulders falls away. If Billy wasn’t being harsh that would be more a sign that something is wrong.

Steve doesn’t say anything though, so Billy explains more genuinely, “I’m just saying you can’t be so jumpy about every little thing that happens with me.”

“You could have died.” His tone is blunt, pained by Billy’s attempt at reducing things, “Vecna had you, Billy. I-I’ve seen what happens. You could have died.”

“What’s it matter anyways? We clearly can’t beat it. I doubt the music ever really worked anyways. Everything that fucker does is calculated towards one super fucked up goal that somehow involves me even though I don’t even know what it is.” And there comes the truth.

With a face like stone, Steve demands, “What did he say to you?”

“What?”

“Clearly he said something when you were there that’s bothering you now. I can tell.”

“Nah. We just sat in total silence. Even shared a drink. Really nice guy once you get to know him.”

Steve sighs, exasperated with him. It stings, feels like rejection, but it’s for the best right now, to push him away, “I don’t think it’s really the best idea right now to act like nothing's wrong. I just want to help before something bad happens.”

His ears haven’t stopped ringing. Sitting here and talking to Steve like nothing is wrong but his sense of humor makes him more and more angry. Billy bursts out with, “Why waste my breath? This isn’t real anyways, so you can stop fucking with me and just kill me already.”

And that’s really what he believes. The thought had been with him since the moment they told him they’d defeated the most overpowered space wizard thing on the planet. It’s all been fake, an illusion to keep him appeased and stop him from trying to break free again. Of course it has.

“That’s not- Billy, that’s not true.” Steve denies it, that stern look he used to get answers instantly falling away into a look that is baffled and upset. Billy looks away from it, not wanting to be swayed, more tears forming in his tired eyes.

“The past year. Tell me everything’s been real. Waking up in the real world, the treatments, moving out of the trailer so Sue didn’t have to deal with me, falling in love with you and actually having the balls to say something about it because I’d already died once. Tell me all of that meant anything to the real Steve Harrington.”

Desperate to convince him, Steve takes up both of his hands, stealing his attention back, “It does! That part was real, Billy. I am telling you, we defeated this asshole last time, and I don’t know how he got his powers back but that’s all it is. Everything that’s happened since March of 1986 has been so, so very real.”

The two sides of his mind are at war among themselves. He wants to panic again and believe his instincts, the fight or lay down and die that had been beaten into him his whole childhood really convincing right now. But there will always be a part of him that trusts and adores Steve, more than anything. He wants so badly to believe him, and he tries to, “Promise?”

“I do.” Steve assures, leaning over the seat and pressing a gentle kiss to Billy’s tear-tracked cheek. While he’s invading his spaces he also reaches and pops open the glovebox. His Walkman is in there, the headphones still plugged in and tangled to hell and back from before. It’s been waiting for its time. They never wanted to need it again.

Steve takes it out and fumbles with it, careful to place it in Billy’s hands, “We’ll talk more later. For now, put these on. I don’t like you being vulnerable..”

Without taking the time to undo the knots in the wire, a hesitation which could literally be life and death right now, and which would just add unnecessary frustration on top of everything else on Billy’s plate right now, he puts the headphones on. Clicks in the button on the player and immediately physically recoils at the music that comes through.

It’s not that loud, he can still hear Steve ask, “What? Got a problem with Leo Sayer?”

“I can bear it. It beats Hell’s Bells anyway.” Literally.

But Steve doesn’t laugh at his attempt at being funny, because really it isn’t funny. Now isn’t the time.

“Well when you get to choose, which one should it be? I mean, what music worked before?” Steve probably knows the answer to that already. Billy thinks he’s just trying to ask questions that keep him grounded, without asking dumb shit like his name and who the president is.

So he tries to make a joke, “Definitely not AC-fucking-DC, that’s for sure.. Used to really like that song actually..”

Picking up on the fact that he was trying to be light hearted, Steve matches his tone, “How about the Madonna tape Max used to keep in your stereo?”

“I’d rather just let this thing have me.” Billy’s kind of humor doesn’t ever make Steve laugh, but especially not now.

His face falls, “Billy.. don’t say that.”

Billy just makes himself smaller in the passenger seat, knees drawn clear up to his chest, his face buried in them. He’s done trying to make small talk.

He’s too afraid to look out the windows, afraid of what he might see, what cracks in the illusion he might notice that will send his mental state spiraling again. He hides his face and focuses on the terrible, upbeat music in his headphones.

Silently, Steve starts the long drive home, and Billy braces himself. For the car ride and for the future.

He doesn’t know if he’ll be able to fight this time. He’s so goddamn tired.

The worst part is not knowing whether or not he’ll have to fight. How many more chimes of hell’s bells does he have left until he meets the same fate as all those kids last year?

Probably not very many. The odds of figuring out enough of what’s going on and how to defeat the bastard again before Vecna crushes Billy like a beer can aren’t very high.

He discreetly looks over at Steve, the love of his life, his saving grace and best friend. Seeing him so upset over this, shaking so bad he can barely maneuver the car long enough to get them back home, that’s torture enough on his soul. If something bad were to happen to him he’d never forgive himself for dragging him down into this hell with him as his caregiver, his lover.

The tape skips, and Billy’s heart rate with it. He never thought he’d be that invested in fucking disco music.

That’s another thing about Steve. In the last year, and even well before that, he’s always teaching Billy new things about himself, showing him things he would never have even considered before. Even if in the literal sense, he was supposed to be teaching Steve something today, it’s him who has changed Billy.

He’ll miss that. But where he’s going, he doesn’t want Steve to follow.

The music only buys him more time, only a matter of time before hell comes-a-calling again, and he won’t be able to resist its rhythmic lull. Not forever.

The biggest irony in this situation is that, maybe the song is right: There is no way to fight, and Satan is coming to him. But the irritatingly upbeat love songs pouring through his headphones remind him of something else entirely.

The balance. Maybe that’s the secret to it.

Maybe they can’t beat Vecna by holding hands and dancing the disco, but they won’t do anything helpful by just tearing the world apart either, since clearly it hadn’t worked before to just try to destroy him. Sort of a positive outlook with an edge of darkness. He almost scoffs at himself, but more developed, this could be the key to standing a chance, something they’ve at least never tried before.

Billy glances over at Steve again, this new revelation in his mind making things seem a lot more optimistic. At least they can do what they know. They can try everything they did before again and maybe use Billy’s new theory a bit.

At least they can stick together.

Billy takes up Steve’s hand, the one that isn’t on the steering wheel because he’d been nervously tapping his fingers against the console, and he doesn’t let go.

[wafflesdenweasels]

Me: *beating myself up because I only am moderately good at most of the things I can do and have a hard time staying focused on one thing*

Literally anyone, doing the thing or not doing the thing: Oh that so cool! I’d love to try that/Wanna do the thing together sometime?/ Wanna see the thing I’m good at

Moral of the story, people don’t think about how good you are at something, they just think it’s cool that you do the thing. And if they ARE dicks about it, they aren’t worth your brainspace. I mean, I’m learning bass. O know some super talented bass players who are just thrilled that I’m even picking up the instrument on occasion. They don’t care that I’m not great and that I’m confused. They often teach me things.

When I first started writing, no matter how shitty it was, my grandpa, who is a professional writer, always told me I was doing amazing. So I kept writing. And ya I know I could have never published what I wrote before, but I got better, even though I was only writing little bits at a time.

When I started voice, only one person tried to put me down. A few years later and I had almost ruined my voice, and had totally lost the ability to properly balance it, and was getting swelling in a tendon in my neck because of the tension I was putting on myself to please this person who I was never good enough for. So I walked away and found someone who taught me the skills I needed to bring my voice back to where it should be. Turns out I’m not an alto 2. I’m a soprano 2.

I just took up roller skating. I thought it would be embarrassing learning something new now that I am legally an adult. Turns out people, skaters and non skater, just think I’m cool for even owning them.

I’m going to be starting school for sound tech this fall. I am terrified because I know nothing about it. All I have is my background in music and a few songs I wrote because I like poetry. When I was on my tour, the guy told me “ya know, I only knew a few chords on guitar when I started here” and now he teaches at the damn school.

My brain likes to tell me I’m not good enough to do something. That I need to be the best at it to even do it, so I have to constantly fight with it, and teach it to do things because I enjoy doing them, and not because I need to be good at it. Being good at things comes with time, and even when I am good at something, I don’t really see it anyway. I don’t know if anyone relates to this, but it’s been on my mind a bit and I thought someone might need to hear it too.

I can tell my brain perfection isn’t possible a million times over and never get through to it, but when I give it a thought out, logical reason why, that it can’t refute or spin into some shitstorm, I can actually do things I enjoy without worrying about judgment or harping on myself about being shit at it.

[scarlettriot]

Mina Ashido Headcanons!

@jewel116 requested some headcanons of our Alien Queen and I am here to deliver!

Some of these also could be considered BakuSquad HCs, hope that's alright.

I also went ahead and included some Adult Mina and 18+ Mina Headcanons too. Both are below the cut and clearly stated. Warnings are posted at each header mark.

If anyone has any other requests, lemme know!

Basic Mina Headcanons

Warnings: It's as fluffy as her dang hair! (Swearing)

. Most definitely has ADHD! In class, she is constantly tapping her foot on bouncing her leg as a means of trying her best to keep focused.

. Has a collection of shirts that she has designated for sleep and loungewear because she's burned acid holes in them by accident. Sometimes she'll wear them to concerts and shows if the design is cool enough.

. Loves piggyback rides! Frequently will run and jump on the backs of the guys in the BakuSquad. Even Katsuki himself puts up with it after a while.

. While Katsuki is the 'mom' of the squad, Mina is the one everyone goes to when they need comfort. Denki will curl up in her lap after a long day, Eijiro frequently goes to her when his insecurities creep back in, Hanta shows up late at night and they talk in her room about nothing just because he doesn't want to be alone, and Katsuki, well, he shows up to her room, slams the door and complains for a solid half-hour after reading a particularly heartbreaking scene in a manga while she listens to every word and validates his feelings.

. Mina worries far more than people believe she does. Her bubbly, loud, personality usually masks it but she knows when people are lying to her about what's going on in their heads.

. Sitting properly in a chair physically bothers her. She'd much rather be hanging upside down off it.

. She lowkey likes that the boys get protective over her.

. Mina is the type of person who gets A LOT of random thoughts that pop up in her head and one of the few people who actually will engage with the sheer randomness of the ideas is Shoto. Not only does he engage, he comes up with his own! The two can talk for hours.

. Loves hosting 'spa parties' in the common area of the dorms, everyone is welcome to join.

. When road trips happen, she's making the playlists (technically, she and Kyoka switch off).

. Tries teaching Tenya, Izuku, and Shoto how to flirt. After a very embarrassing first hour, Shoto didn't learn a single thing, Izuku was only good at it when paired with Shoto and Tenya... Tenya had her SHOOK! Man has game and she made sure everyone knew!

. Has weekly meetings with Yuga where they drink tea and spill the tea.

. She is so damn ticklish. Hanta was teasing her one day, she warned him to stop, he received an elbow to the face for not listening.

. Tried to grow her hair out once but it didn't grow down... it grew OUT. Mina thought she rocked it, and she totally did but ended up having it cut back down so poor Tsyu could see in class.

. Wakes up early three days a week to practice her hand-to-hand combat with Eijiro. Mina wants to improve her technique and Eijiro needed to work on his mobility, it benefits them both.

. Just Dance is her favorite game, she dominates.

. Easily forms new interests.

. Won't admit it but she gets jealous super easily.

. Will be the first to attempt to throw hands for a friend! I HC she was picked on as a child for looking so different but it never really phased her too badly, she likes looking different but understands that not everyone thinks like she does. So, if someone were to say something about Mezo's facemask, she's stepping in to defend the guy without hesitation.

. Knows every TikTok dance EVER. If a new one comes out, she's mastered it by end of the day and her account is always up to date.

. (Popular idea but important to reinforce) Mina and Eijiro co-founded a club, Horn Buddies, specifically to make Eri feel more welcome. They take her on trips and group outings. The only horned person who's not allowed to join is Pony because she was rude as heck to Mezo.

. Mina gets extra competitive over board games.

. She can ice skate and roller skate like a champ.

. Mina is resilient, dedicated, and passionate. She has goals and the girl will achieve them.

Pro Hero - Adult Mina Headcanons

Warnings - Mentions of alcohol use and swearing

. Gets several tattoos and piercings.

. Starts a roller derby club with most of the girls from 1A.

. Loves going out to the hottest dance clubs just as much as she enjoys staying in and munching on take-out food with friends.

. The Horn Buddies club she formed with Eijiro has now expanded into regular society and both young heroes couldn't be more proud. Together they've formed a foundation that strives to help those with non-flashy, unconventional, or misunderstood quirks feel welcomed and loved.

. Does her best to shop small whenever she can. Mina wants to help her community in as many different ways as possible.

. Becomes a fashion icon for many small, just starting out, alternative clothing lines. They love her look and the standard she sets.

. Goes to fashion and runway shows with Momo on the regular. While Momo prefers buying right off the rack, Mina goes to thrift stores and buys items that are coming back into style.

. Does her best to stay in touch with her classmates. She really cherished the friendships she made and goes the extra mile to make sure everyone stays connected.

. Has told off Shoto's father. Sent the man an anonymous bag of flaming dog shit as well for making his son so damn stressed. Sorry, not sorry.

. As long as she isn't in the middle of a fight, Mina will always stop to take a photo with a fan or sign an autograph. In or out of costume, she doesn't care.

. In high school, Mina's room was always decked out for the holidays. She goes decoration crazy and it is always done well. But, now that she's an adult with that pro hero money and her own place, she's the best house on the block decorated for each and every holiday! Inside and out! Also throws holiday-themed parties.

. Got absolutely trashed with the BakuSquad one night and taught them all how to twerk. By the end of the lesson, she deemed Katsuki was the best of her students.

. Loves to drink. Is a lightweight. Katsuki and Eijiro have carried her home more times than they can count.

NSFW 18+ Mina HC Below - Minors DNI

Warnings: Drinking, rough sex, mentions of orgies, handcuffs, impact play, and praise kinks. Subtle sexual relations with BakuSquad, Jiro, Todoroki, and Ochaco.

. The Queen of stripteases and lap dances.

. If any of her friends are at a party or some event and they need a fake date, Mina is their go-to person. She's handsy. She's flirty. And has no problem with platonic make-outs.

. Always encourages kissing-themed games at parties. Seven Minutes in Heaven, Spin the Bottle, those sorts of games. Mina also loves to play cupid and has rigged a game or two to get people together.

. Has made out with every member of the BakuSquad at least once as well as Kyoka, Shoto, and Ochaco simply because she was curious.

. Has attempted to start an orgy with the BakuSquad before when intoxicated. Still mentions it in passing just in case they change their minds.

. Has gone further with Katsuki and Eijiro though. Maybe both at the same time once or twice or several times...

. Wonderfully filthy dirty talk. Can even make Katsuki blush.

. (A personal favorite of mine that was in a previous post) When they were first years, Eijiro asked innocently enough, to touch her horns. He was gentle but that didn't matter. Our poor girl was so damn flustered! Her face turned red bright, she felt hot, and she had to go take a very cold shower!

. Ei felt terrible about it. It took them both maturing for her to explain exactly why she reacted that way... and then asked him to do it again.

. Is likely to send NSFW texts and photos while people are indeed at work. She is a Pro Hero though so only certain people are allowed to have those photos. A scandal is the last thing she wants.

. Very good at communication and is not afraid to speak her mind about what she wants and needs out of a relationship and her sex life.

. Loud, very loud, very needy.

. Fuzzy handcuffs in every color she can think of and adores impact play.

. Let her know she's doing a good job, Mina responds well to praise.

. Big cuddler after sex. Wants to snuggle into you and more than likely take a nap.

[cherryskyies]

hello! may i request something for hunter x hunter? may I have some headcanons for gon (or killua, honestly either one is perfect!) where the reader is like a big sister-figure to him? like they are friends, but gon (or killua) sees her as the loving, protective sister he didn't have who just loves him and cheers him on always! thank you so so so much! <3

Gon and Killua with a big sister figure

Hello! Thank you for this request, I enjoyed writing it! I ended up doing Gon and Killua for this. I hope you enjoy!

Main Masterlist

Gon

When you first joined the group, Gon knew he was going to enjoy having you around. You weren’t as energetic as he was, but you were smart, funny, and caring and that was enough for him.

There is just something about you that brings him comfort. Perhaps it’s the way you care for him like his aunt, or maybe it’s just your calm aura. Either way, it didn’t take long for him to consider you his sister

He tries to be extra careful when playing around with Killua because he doesn’t want you to worry the way you do every time he gets injured. Gon truly tries to keep your stress levels to a minimum.

“These are my friends, and the girl over there talking to Kurapika is my sister!” Yes, that’s how he introduces you to everyone, as his sister. One time, you even caught a glimpse of the note he was writing to his aunt and it said, “I consider (Y/N) my sister now, she reminds me of you with the way she worries and cares.” 

Always hugs you goodbye and informs you where he is headed off to (Usually somewhere with Killua) before leaving.

He made you and him matching bracelets one time and neither of you has taken it off yet. Not like you’d want to anyway. You’ll wear that messily braided green bracelet till the day you die and someone rips it off your wrist.

Insists that you teach him all of your cool tricks. His favorite that you’ve taught him so far is roller skating. He’s proud that he can both skateboard and roller-blade thanks to you and Killua.

His nickname for you is “Koi” because he thinks Koi fish are comforting and relaxing to watch.

He loves when you cheer him on with whatever it is that he’s doing. Whether it be dueling Killua or trying to fish, you always cheer him on.

Killua

He never thought a person could be so….caring? It’s such a foreign thing to him due to the way he was brought up. Killua isn't used to someone making sure he ate, drank water, got sleep, and wasn’t injured.

He warmed up to the affection quickly. One does not realize how touch starved they until they've felt a gentle touch.

Killua truly appreciates you and the things you do for him. He might act like he doesn’t care, but the way he still listens to whatever it was you told him says otherwise.

It's nice to have someone tend to his bruises and scrapes, and It's nice to know someone cares about his well-being. 

Living a carefree life with parents and siblings who couldn't care less about anything but power wasn't exactly fun for him. 

You're the reason he gets to know what a normal childhood feels like, to know what having someone that cares feels like. He's extremely thankful for you.

Won't admit it, but he's accidentally slipped up in a few conversations with Gon where he says you're a sister to him.

He tolerates absolutely no slander towards you. If he catches wind of someone talking bad about you, their body is sure to show up on the news the next morning. Nobody will disrespect one of the few people that truly care for him and get away with it.

Often comes to you for advice. Killua trusts you and you're the only one he'll accept advice from, maybe Gon too. Depends on what the advice is for.

Unlike Gon, he doesn't have a nickname for you. Occasionally he will call you "Mom," but it's in a sarcastic way. 

It makes him happy when you cheer him on, even for the small things like when he learned a new skateboard trick.

[sunlightbabe]

Do you have any soft/domestic Damiano hcs? I've had such a unexpected crappy day and I do with some comfort and that's what your writing is to me🥰

i've been 🥺🥰🥺 ever since i got this message tbh!! i am so glad that my writing is a comfort to you and i really, truly hope your day ends on a bright note babe <333333

for existing hcs: a quiet morning when you're not feeling your best, a big bear hug from damiano, a small thing about reading with damiano & a cutesy first kiss

under the cut is just a bunch of cute little moments that i think scream "soft comfort" 💛💛💛

imagine going to a shelter and adopting a pet with damiano?? he would lean towards the cats obviously, and i think you could convince him to adopt a dog maybe, but please imagine damiano falling head over heels in love with the softest little ball of fluff. it's a kitten, all black and fuzzy and with ears that are just a little too big for its head. it's not the first one to come stumbling towards you guys, but it watches you both the entire time and the moment damiano picks him up to say hello?? the little fella starts to purr so loud that his body actually shakes with it and you can see the look in damiano's eyes that This Is The One (bonus points: it also gets a quirky little name, like sneakers)

the first snow of the year!!! the air is cold and crisp and the city is quiet as you both head outside, gloved hand in hand, giggling and hushing each other because it's super late at night and you don't want to wake the neighbors. the snow comes down gently- more like a fine powder than actual flakes, just a serene dusting that sticks to the roads and trees and buildings. you both stick your tongues out to see who can be the first to catch some on their tongue and damiano tries to make a snowball, but it's not wet enough. you can see your breaths coming out in little puffs and damiano's nose is already starting to get cold. it's cute. like, really, really cute, and you can't help but gently smooch the tip of it

damiano would love to share clothes with you, especially soft and snuggly sweaters, i just know it. if you're smaller? he loves how his clothing rests on you, how you seem to get swallowed up by the fabric. same size? makes shopping awfully convenient! he'll raid your closet for that one sweater you always wear on the weekend. you're bigger? perfect, damiano loves to grab your sweaters and wear them, claiming that it's like getting a super long and lingering hug from you. before he goes away on tour, he's sure to wear one around the house the night before. doesn't matter if it's his or yours or one you share, he just knows you appreciate being able to wear it and smell him on it while he's away

please imagine teaching this man how to roller skate. he's confident at first, claims he can learn anything in just a few minutes, brags about how you're going to eat his dust. for someone who wears heeled and platformed boots, damiano does not do well with wheels at all. he's like a baby giraffe, all gangly and awkward, arms flailing about as he tries not to fall down. eventually you take pity on him and gently holding his hands, you guide him around the rink. whether or not he actually learns how to be more stable on his feet is forever a mystery, because once your hands are in his? he's not letting go

[lady-maria-the-wolf225]

Hi love!!! I LOVE your quirky head cannons so I’ve got one for you! What would each guy be like if they took their s/o roller skating? Maybe make one of them horrible at it! 😂 Do your magic girl. 💚

Alrighty! This is interesting! Here we go! Hope you like this one @alittletworaph 😁🥰

Leo isn't really a fan of Roller skating. But taking you to a skating rink for a fun date wouldn't be a bad idea. He would borrow Donnie's hand made roller blades since none of the rentable ones aren't available for his large feet size. He would teach you how to roller blade if you don't know how and it's your first time. He would hold your hands if you feel a bit nervous, or if you feel scared, he would allow you to hold his muscular arm. He would chuckle having fun even though he isn't into roller blading very much. After the fun, you guys would go ahead and eat some pizza to take a break and he would kiss you on the lips making you blush and thanking him for taking you to a fun date. He does hope the beach or a nice shopping spree would be another date idea for a second date though.

Oh lord no! Roller skating!? Raph doesn't know how to! And he always messes up every time! Well taht little nightmare is about to come true cuz you end up asking him out to a skating rink! He would absolutely hate it with a passion. He has taken a few lessons with Casey, but not enough to impress you. Instead, it's enough to embarrass himself. As you both are about to enter the skating rink. He would kinda hesitate and causing a crowd of people behind you both get irritated. He breathes heavily and tries not to panic and fall. You give him a little push, and you both are inside. As you skated, You start to noticed, he isn't moving his legs. And it makes you feel worried. "What's wrong raphie?....you scared?" He chuckles and tries to act tough "what!?....fuck no baby. I'm just.....uh....warming up.....just give me....uh....a full minute." You shake your head and help him skate. You encourage him to move his legs to get used to the rhythm. You notice him following your moves a bit until he finally got the pattern. You smile as you let go of his hand and he laughs enjoying it "I got it! Woo! Look at me baby! I got it!" He was highly distracted until he bumped into someone that was holding a tray of food nearby as he fell off the rink. Raph became a sticky and gooey mess from falling. He got up and brushed himself off despite having stains on his shorts and mask. You skate towards him worried. "Are you okay?" He nods "yeah. I'm good." He apologizes to the guy that had his meal ruined and the two of you head home after having some milkshakes to drink. He kisses you and smiles since he was glad he had a chance to spend time with you. But Never again, He will never go back to a skating rink after that incident. It's better to go to a basketball game or an arcade next time.

A skating rink date? Hell yes! That's always donnie's dream date to take you. You guys head there and as you enter the building, his favorite disco songs start playing. You offer him roller blades to wear, but he smiles and says "oh no thanks my sweet munchkin. I brought my own" you realize they were hand made with some duck tape on them. You were unsure if they were stable enough, but donnie assures you they are strong as steel. He puts them on, and you both enter the rink itself. You both start skating and as the disco music plays, he starts dancing to it as he skates. His moves were impressive. So impressive in fact, it caught the eyes of many people. That is until suddenly, Donnie's moves led to a conga line! It made your eyes wide and Donnie chuckles to himself. He nods and dances to the beat as his roller blades skate him around the rink. You smile and after the music was over, everyone clapped and Donnie took a bow. You both had a great time and decided to eat pizza. He kisses you as you are about to take a selfie with him. You blush and it made you both laugh. After the date was over, Donnie hopes to go back again on the next date for sure.

Much like Donnie, Mikey loves roller blading! Going on a date with him to skating rink is fun like going to the arcade for him. You both head there on a date and he gets super excited! You both rent roller blades and put them on. He sees the rink being large and he smiles wide. You both enter the rink, and you both start dancing to the beat of the song as you skated. He can be a bit of a show off, but it never mattered to you. "Look at me angel cakes! I'm grooving!!" You laugh and thankfully the skating rink was empty. Otherwise he woulda bumped into someone by accident. You figured he must've learned skate dancing from Donnie since Donnie is really good at that type of stuff. After having fun, you both have an extra large pizza, milkshakes, and ice cream to eat since you both haven't eaten a day. He kisses you on the lips and tells you he had a really great time. Hopefully next time, he would love to go bowling, go to the arcade, or hell! Go to medieval times! Swords fights are fun too!

[so-writing]

Sugar, Honey, Ice and Tea- Matthew Tkachuk (19)

all parts

“Hey,” Matthew came up behind you and tapped you on the shoulder, scaring the shit out of you and causing you to drop the stack of folders you’d been holding, “so I was thinking—”

“Holy shit, Matthew! Where did you come from?!”

You interrupted whatever he had planned to say and looked down at the mess of scattered papers laying on the floor in defeat, “fuck, this is going to take forever to put back together.” 

“I can help, if you want.” 

You spun around to face him and noticed that he was dressed in his practice jersey, a pair of joggers and tennis shoes. His curls were a mess and his hands were shoved in his pockets as he rocked back and forth from the balls of his feet to his heels, with eyes refusing to meet yours.

“Why aren’t you skating?”

“It was optional.”

You knew that, but what the fuck? If the skate was optional, and he had opted out, what was he doing there?

“So if you’re not skating, why are you here?”

“I wanted to talk to you.”

“About what, Matthew? Today might be optional for you but it isn’t for me. I have a lot of shit to do.”

You raised an eyebrow at the man in front of you already getting down to clean up the mess before you but you didn’t question it. Why would you? If Matthew was willing to clean up a mess meant for you, who were you to deny him of doing so?

“I know that, but email won’t do the conversation I want to have justice.”

*

Matthew leaned down to try and collect the mess of papers before him but his eyes darted toward her retreating figure more than a few times. 

This was the first step. He was going to form a friendship and, hopefully, develop it into something deeper. Matthew was now aware of his feelings for her and he had to do something about it. 

He knew he wasn’t in love, he would probably never be in love with anyone, but he knew she was something special. She was someone to keep around, not just another one he could fuck and chuck. She was something else entirely and Matthew was insanely eager to figure her out.

So, he gathered the mess of folders that had fallen on the floor and tried his best to put them back together, before he jogged after her to her closet posing as an office.

“Thanks.”

“No problem at all, I caused you to drop them in the first place, so why shouldn’t I help?”

He stood there and watched as she tried her best to organize the folders before eventually giving up and shoving them into a cabinet. 

“I’m here today because I want to ask you if you want to hangout sometime. It won’t be a date or anything like that, just two people that are hopefully going to be friends spending time together.”

“You weren’t being very friendly the other day when you wanted us to be together.”

“Well, uh,” he stumbled over his response, “I want us to be together as friends first, and then maybe more later, if the friend thing works out.”

“So what would we be doing, as hopefully going to be friends?” 

“I was thinking we could go skating, and then maybe grab something to eat after. We’d go in the morning or early afternoon so it won’t be considered a date.”

“People don’t go on dates in the morning or early afternoon?”

“Nope, dates only take place in the evening. It’s a strict rule and must be followed.” 

She was finally looking up at him now, having torn her eyes away from her computer screen, “skating, Matthew? I can’t skate for shit.” 

“Luckily for you, I can. I’ll teach you. So, are you down?”

His heart was pounding in his chest and he didn’t even realize it until he was waiting on her answer. If she didn’t agree, there was a small chance she’d ever give them a legitimate shot and he wasn’t willing to face that just yet.

“Sure, Matthew. Why not?” 

Shit. She agreed. He tried his best to act casual but his whole body was buzzing, “awesome. You free next Wednesday?” 

“I’ll make sure I am. You’ll text me with the details?” 

“Absolutely.”

He left her office with his head held high and might have even done a little victory dance as soon as he was far enough away from her door to be seen.

*

It wasn’t a date but you knew that it actually, definitely was. 

The only information Matthew gave you was to dress casual and to show up at a random address you didn’t recognize at 11am the morning of the ‘hangout’. You ordered your Uber and threw on a pair of jeans, converse all stars and a Senators tee shirt (purely to fuck with him).

The drive was about twenty minutes and while the building was big, it was only one story. There was no way the two of you were doing any ice skating today. 

Everything made sense as soon as you passed through the double doors of the building. Flashing colorful lights hung from the ceiling, spanning the entire room and surrounding a giant disco ball hanging from the middle. A small wall separated the bigger part of the room from the food kiosks, arcade games and tables.

Matthew wasn’t taking you ice skating, he was taking you rollerskating, and, after realizing where you were, you saw that no one else was there.

“You ready to go?” 

Matthew appeared out of nowhere, holding a pair of skates out to you.

“I thought we’d be skating on ice.”

“Nah, I do that all the time.”

You had no idea how he knew your size but you slipped out of your shoes and into the roller-skates easily. 

“There’s no one else here, did you rent this place out? I thought this wasn’t a date?”

“Well, it’s not and we’re not exactly alone. Give it, like, twenty minutes or so.” 

“What the fuck does that mean?”

“It doesn’t matter, come with me?” 

You took his hand and allowed him to guide you onto the wood floor. Whoever was in control of the music was playing early 2000s hits and you weren’t mad about it. Matthew was great at rollerskating, because of course he was, but you weren’t doing too bad on your own. 

“You ready for me to let you go?”

“Yeah, yeah I’m good!”

He took off, skating easily away from you but you were hot on his heels and the two of you sped around the rink, Matthew just a few feet ahead of you the entire time. 

“Might want to rethink that hockey career,” you chirped him, “i’m almost on you on roller skates!

“Nah,” he shouted back, “this is kind of my thing, I pretend they’ve got me and then I’m gone.”

Matthew took off like a rocket and circled the rink, “they never have me, though.”

He easily passed you up and turned around on his skates to make faces at you. 

“You’re annoying,” you shouted at him, feeling more confident on your wheels.

“You love it!”

“Nope,” you barely made your way to the rink when he caught you, wrapping both arms around your waist, “I’m sorry, this is the only way I could make this work.”

“What?”

You didn’t have to wait for Matthew to answer, because the front doors opened and the entirety of the Flames organization and their families poured into the roller rink. 

“I’m sorry, this was meant for just us but I couldn’t swing it.”

The Flames and their families rushed into the roller rink, leaving Matthew with his arms around you, watching everyone flood to the rink. 

“They’re going to think we’re together.”

You didn’t know why you said it because your feelings for Matthew were still so fucking confusing, but you knew that you loved his team and he did too, so what did it matter?

“Let them think whatever they want.”

[classic80sand90smovieloves2]

Meeting and Dating Max Dennison

(Not my gif)(Requested by anonymous)

- You met Max after he moved to Salem. The two of you were in the same History class and sat fairly close to each other. Because of this; and the fact that you’re drop dead gorgeous, he quickly developed a crush on you.

- It doesn’t take long for him to shoot his shot but there is a period in time where he’s waiting for the right moment to say something and just doing the typical “I have a crush on you” things.

- When Max has a crush, he’ll do whatever he can to see them more; making sure he’s behind them on his bike as they begin to walk home, sneaking glances at them in class, strategically sitting at a lunch table where he’ll be able to watch them or standing close to their locker.

- Once he’s had enough of just watching, he’ll move on to using any excuse he can to seem cool and/or talk to them. This is usually when he begins to come up with a plot to ask them out and it’s not long after that he actually does so.

- Max asks you out only about a week or so after he moves to Salem. He was just planning on giving you his phone number or asking if you’d like to hang out sometime but things didn’t really go as planned.

- He’d wanted to go out and explore the town by himself but his parents forced him to take Dani with him while they continued to unpack. So, he begrudgingly let his sister join him on his adventure, figuring that the worst that could happen was her slowing him down and slightly annoying him.

- They’d gotten a good ways into town without a hitch; besides Dani forcing him to pick flowers, and Max had just about let his guard down. Well, that was until he saw you.

- He immediately froze in place, greeting you in surprise as you just so happened to turn and spot them. Dani immediately connected the dots as to who you were, she’d heard her brother secretly fawn over you more than once.

- It was only after you glanced down at his hand that Max remembered he was holding his sisters wildflower bouquet. He laughed nervously, raising his hand a bit and trying to make himself seem less like a loser as he explained he was looking after his little sister …and her flowers.

- While Dani is undoubtedly an adorable sweetheart, she is also somewhat devious. She uses this delightful coincidence to get her way, mentioning that Max was “just about to take her to the park”. He was just about ready to kill her before you chimed in.

“Aww, that’s so sweet!” Bingo.

- He immediately acted as though that was the plan all along and invited you to join them while Dani smiled at her obvious success. A cute boy asking you to go to the park with him and his little sister, why wouldn't you agree?

- So you joined the two of them, laughing and watching on fondly as he played with Dani and getting to know each other more and more whenever she went off to do something on her own. You wound up staying there for hours and probably would have stayed even longer if Dani hadn’t mentioned that her feet hurt and that she was tired. 

- If Max had learned anything at all, he learned that you thought it was cute when he was nice to his sister, so he offered her a piggyback ride as the three of you walked home. When you arrived at your house, he set Dani down and walked you to your door. 

”Well, if you ever want to go to the park again, you know who to call.” He smiled, handing you his number before joining back with his sister. 

“Dani? Have I ever told you that I loved you?” The little girl couldn't help but smile at her goofy older brother. 

- The two of you had your first actual date a few days later. He took you to the movies, then to go get some ice cream, and finally you wound up back at the park you’d gone to, sitting on the swing and eating your dessert. 

- He told you that you had something on your face, smiling as he leant in and kissed the corner of your mouth before slowly making his way to your lips. 

- It was in that moment; with your lips pressed against his, that Max thought to himself maybe Salem wasn’t so bad after all. 

- Innocent pda all the time. He just can’t help himself when you’re standing right there and looking so adorable.

- Handholding whenever you can. You swear he’s gonna learn how to be ambidextrous with how much he wants to keep your hand in his.

- Soft, chaste kisses.

- Cheek kisses. He can never hold back a smile when you give him one.

- He likes keeping his arm around your waist while you walk together. He likes how perfectly you fit into his side.

- Tight hugs. He does that thing where you give the person a squeeze and sorta sway with them while you hug, it’s very nice.

- Hugs from behind. He always presses a kiss to your head before he pulls away.

- This boy literally daydreams about cuddling his crush; he’d adore cuddling you anytime, anyplace. He usually wants to be the big spoon but he’d be up for any type of snuggling.

- He leans his head on yours whenever you rest your head on his shoulder.

- Hanging out with him in his widows walk, stargazing or watching the sunset/sunrise.

- He really doesn’t care what the two of you do as long as you’re together.

- Typical teenager dates: going bowling or roller skating, watching movies, getting pizza or ice cream; things like that.

- He tries to make you laugh with little impressions and exaggerative comedic routines.

- Getting teased a lot. He’ll pop out from behind corners to spook you, jokingly mock you and your little superstitions, and attack you from behind, wrapping his arms around you and growling while nuzzling his face into your neck. He thinks your reactions are cute.

- Watching him play his drums. Sometimes he’ll try and teach you how to play, othertimes he’ll just try to show off.

- He really wants you to think he’s cool and to be in awe of him. He’s constantly trying to show off and peacock for your attention.

- He’s quite fond of nicknames and pet names. He uses special ones though, something uniquely you.

- He keeps your photo framed on his nightstand or tucked under his pillow. He kisses it like every morning and night, occasionally talking to it when you’re mad at him or when he doesnt know what to do in a situation. It’s cute ...in an odd way.

- He’s in awe of you everytime he sees you dressed up or after a long time of not seeing each other. Sometimes he just can’t believe how beautiful you are.

- The amount of doodles he’s made of you while in class couldn’t even fit in a normal sketchbook.

- Dani is always interrupting the two of you, busting into his room and jumping between you as you sit on his bed or forcing her way between you two on the couch. She winds up accompanying you on a few of your dates, especially when his parents are busy. He can’t say he’s completely upset about it though, he likes watching you interact with her.

- You and her are probably best friends and occasionally hang out on your own without Max. She’s definitely spilled some embarrasing facts/secrets about Max whether one front of him or not.

- He’s sort of embarrassed by his family and their shenanigans. He turns bright red whenever they start acting all excited/childish. You cant imagine his relief when you assure him that you think its cute.

- He has a little sister so even though he’s a fairly typical teenage boy; he has that “I actually respect females” mindset. To an extent of course, he still can’t help but think about your yabbos from time to time.

- There isn’t a lot that grosses him out anymore since he was already a little grown up by the time his parents had Dani. He had to go through all those yucky baby phases so he has no problem holding your hair as you puke, bandaging your cuts, dealing with periods, wiping dirt off of you, and so on. Life’s gross, he’s accepted that a long time ago.

- Standing up for him. He finds it both embarrassing and touching at the same time.

- Letting him rant to you about how much he misses LA. He always absentmindedly adds on that you’re the only good thing to come out of Salem and it never fails to make you melt.

- Comforting him. He has a tendency to blame himself when things go wrong or work himself into a fit when something bad happens. You try to make sure he doesn't while also making him feel better. He’s always there for you when you need it as well.

- He’s a sweetheart and an adorable one at that. He’s always trying to make you feel better whenever he can and; overall, just being super nice to you. Making sure you’re happy is very important to him.

- He’s got a hard time keeping his mouth shut; he just cant help but say what he wants and not inconspiciously or very quietly either. You’ll oftentimes have to get him out of a situation before he starts more trouble than there has to be.

- Bringing out the best in each other.

- He sends a glance your way whenever someone mentions lovers, couples, or otherwise romantic things. It’s sort of like he’s saying “yeah, I’ve got one of those” or making future plans for the two of you in his head.

- Riding your bikes together or walking alongside him while he purposefully keeps pace with you on his.

- Going on stupid little adventures. They may be a bit reckless but they sure are fun.

- He’s somewhat of a pushover. He can very rarely resist your pleading/puppy dog eyes, especially when its combined with affection. You could genuinely stop him in his tracks with a single touch.

- You’ve definitely convinced him to let you put a face mask on him, braid his hair or do his makeup. Dani may or may not have been present or at least walked in on the two of you. She has not let him live it down since.

- He’s not scared of the supernatural; at least not yet, or spiders/insects, so he leaps at the chance to “protect you”. He tells you to “fear not” as he “vanquishes the beast”, delicately pushing you behind him and killing the thing or calling out to whatever ghouls may be lurking around.

- He insists in walking you home, mainly because it gives him the chance to spend more time with you.

- A trait he’s developed as an older brother is being protective of his loved ones. He won’t let anything happen to you; if he can help it, and usually has a pretty good plan when trying to get you out of trouble.

- He’s not an extremely jealous person. People being outwardly flirty or interested in you would tick him off but he reasons that you want him, not them and then he’s fine. Old boyfriends don’t bother him either, he’s your new and improved boyfriend; what would you want with them.

- He lashes out when he’s upset so you’ve definitely had your fair share of fights though they never last for very long. He immediately feels bad when he notices he’s actually hurt you and does whatever he can to apologize.

- He starts off with a genuine apology before he trying to explain himself, making a few little comments to try and get you to smile afterwards. Once you seem to forgive him, he shyly opens his arms and smiles as you go to hug him.

- He tells you that he loves you a lot; he just can’t help it. Everything you do makes him want to shout it out to the world.

- Prior to meeting you, he didn’t want to go to Salem at all, but now that he has you? He can’t bring himself to even think about leaving it.

[devildomdoofus]

“Wheely Cool” - Part 2

“Wheely Cool” - Part 1 (brothers)

Author’s Note:

What a way to start off with the Undateables, huh?! I’m SO proud that it’s over Heelys... but also terrified because I‘m dreadful at writing things for them (well, the brothers too, come to think of it) 😣 it’s just.. my own headcanons for them clash with how I’d like for you guys to see them and both of those things clash wITH HOW/WHO THEY ACTUALLY ARE AND- sorry, I’m rambling and complaining 😅

But I hope you all can enjoy what I have for the Undateables so far and look forward to how I improve with them over the future! ❤️

Also, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL OF THIS LOVE AND SUPPORT!! I’ll be sure to do something in return for such kindness ❤️

- DevildomDoofus

👹Diavolo:

Heelys, you say? How very interesting. Please, do elaborate!

If there was a unique invention from the human world and you were interested in it, he was interested. Especially when they seemed so fascinating! Shoes with wheels that pop in and out? Incredible! He had to know more!

When you were telling him about the shoes, the history behind them, their integration into ‘pop culture,’ the memes about them, etc., he was hanging on to your every word.

Yes, he knew about roller skates and rollerblades, but not Heelys. Heelys were a different ballpark. But by the three realms he was going to try them for himself!

Immediately, he had Barbatos order him Akuzon truck loads of Heelys. For himself, for you, for the demon brothers, purgatory hall, the entire school, even Barbatos. He wanted EVERYONE to give them a try.

To be certain that all would participate, he issued a mandatory, all day class on Heelys, describing it as a well needed crash course on Human History.

Sometimes it’s fun being a prince.

First time with them on, he wibbled and wobbled for a few moments before finally getting a good grasp on the technique... and now, he was about to make it everyone’s problem.

Barbatos could feel a migraine approaching..

Diavolo never walked anywhere for a very, VERY long time. It was always him rolling through the doorway with a big smile on his face or scooting up to a group of his fellow, ‘higher up’ associates as their eyes grew wide at him. If he saw you wheeling through the hallways, he’d go toes up, roll your way, and high five you with a follow up of finger guns. He felt on top of the world.

Poor Barbatos had to do the same and use Heelys as his new work shoes.

Sorry Barbatos...

Diavolo thanked you for showing him this whole new world with even more truck load of deliveries of Heelys/Heelys accessories.

⏳Barbatos:

Sincerest apologies, but what might these Heelys be?

Showing him the pair that you had, you explained what they were in full detail and hoped that such a thing didn’t come off as ridiculous to an ancient demon butler who’s probably seen some pretty strange, human inventions over the years... maybe this wouldn’t sound so strange after all?

Unfortunately, it did, but it was for the same reasons as some of the other demons. He saw no use for such a thing when his own pair of feet worked just fine and he had incredibly powerful abilities involving time... needless to say, he’s a punctual man.

except for that ONE time

Heelys serve him no purpose.

He respectfully declines using them himself but is delighted that you have such a unique hobby. Plus, he thinks you look rather charming and happy, wheeling about wherever you pleased.

It made him happy too.

However, Diavolo inevitably caught wind of your cool, new pair of shoes and wanted to be involved.

Which led to Diavolo getting himself a pair.

and that led to him forcing Barbatos to do the same.

At first, they were highly inconvenient as they certainly didn’t allow him to go about his duties as gracefully as he did before, since there were now these chunky shoes with unsteady wheels attached to his feet.

As he was getting used to the new attire, he would often falter and spill things, break objects, or cause other types of destruction while also learning how to go about his daily routines with his shoes and feet constantly betraying him. It was a bit of a nuisance but nothing he couldn’t handle.

He’s dealt with far worse.

Over time, though, he had grown accustomed to them and somewhat appreciated their convenience when he wanted to get from point A to point B a little quicker.

Still, he prefered his original pairs of shoes because they were steady and didn’t weigh his feet down as much.

He asked Diavolo if he could return to his original attire. Diavolo allowed it but with a big pout on his face.

Barbatos thanked you for teaching him about Heelys and was honored to be a part of such an experience.

Just, please... don’t ask him to do it again.

🕊Simeon:

Sorry? Heelys? What does that mean?

Ahhh, how interesting. Humans come up with some of the most strangest and fascinating things.

He observed with curious eyes and an intrigued smile on his face as you explained and then demonstrated what Heelys were. He took the pair you offered him and examined them thoroughly. Finally, he looked back to you and asked politely, “May you teach me?”

Once he laced himself up and straightened out, you took his hand and led him forward, teaching him the ways of Heelys. Whenever he’d start to wobble, he’d chuckle a bit and then apologize for gripping your fingers so tightly.

Eventually, Simeon got the hang of them and could scoot around on his own as gracefully as he walked.

Luke watched as his fellow angel rolled around with his toes up and eyed him in awe... and a little bit in jealousy.

Of course, you had to get Luke a pair and teach him.

Before long, you three could be seen scooting down hallways, up and down streets, and doing little tricks all over the place. Wherever you went, you rolled.

And it made the brothers become green with envy

Or in this case, orange.

Simeon enjoyed Heelys enough to buy all three of you a matching set that had miniature angel wings on the sides of the shoes and wheels that lit up yellow, imitating the brightness of a halo.

He appreciated that you shared something like this with him and Luke and hoped that it would bring you three closer together.

👼🏻Luke:

Huh? Is that a human thing?

Whoa, no way!!

To say that he was shaking with excitement as you demonstrated what Heelys were, would be an understatement. The way you wheeled around so effortlessly and how cool you looked doing it? It made him want a pair of his very own.

He felt and looked like a kid on Christmas.

Please, please, please, PLEASE teach him?!

He eagerly slipped on some Heelys and waited impatiently for your demonstration. You pointed your toes up on one foot and pushed off with the other, letting it follow suit once you got some speed. Luke watched and tried his best to imitate it, but slipped and fell to the ground.

Ugh! It was too hard! and you made it look so easy...

This time, you took both of his hands in yours and told him to lift his toes up enough to let the wheels do the work as you pulled him along.

Hey! He’s doing it, he’s really doing it!

After a few attempts, he was able to move on his own, for the most part, and could even do basic turns.

Stopping was a different story but who’s counting?

Every once in a while he’d slip or bump into things because he was going way too fast and couldn’t stop, but he was far too excited to stop.

Immediately he scooted off in a wobbly fashion to show Simeon how cool he looked.

He ended up running into him, knocking them both to the floor. Simeon just laughed because Luke looked way too adorable when he was this happy and excited.

From then on, Luke would roll wherever he wanted to go, with Simeon being close by to catch him just in case he was about to crash into something or someone.

If Simeon couldn’t be around, you were in charge of ‘Puppy Duty’. But whenever Luke would look at you with those sparkling eyes filled with pure joy because of the gift you had given him of Heelys and wouldn’t stop thanking you for them, it didn’t seem like so much of a chore anymore.

🔮Solomon:

Ahhh, a person of culture. You have Heelys too?

In that case, what would you say to a little friendly competition?

Maybe it was the sophisticated way that Solomon carried himself or the insightful way that he spoke but... you didn’t really picture Solomon as a Heelys kind of guy?

Then again, this is Solomon we’re talking about. He probably has a Skipit, a Furby, Moon Shoes, and who knows what else, hidden away somewhere... you bet he had a Nokia, for sure!

Still, how did he know about Heelys in the first place?

The more you came to know of Solomon, the less it felt like you actually did.

So about that competition...

Fine, but what of the wager?

Solomon smirked and suddenly a feeling of uneasiness settled in your stomach.The words left his lips and you went stiff.

A date?!

Whatever could the counter wager be?!

A week with unlimited use of all of Solomon’s powers, huh?

DEAL.

You two stationed yourselves at one end of a very long hall with Asmo standing just ahead, two silk clothes in his hands, held above his head to imitate the ‘initiator’ at a drag race. The brothers, Simeon and Luke, even Diavolo and Barbatos showed up to watch how the race would unfurl.

Asmo gave the signal and off you went, making your way towards the finish line. Within seconds, Solomon started catching up to you and soon got a few feet ahead.

A date with the sorcerer was a couple of meters away and you were getting nervous.

That’s when a jealous Mammon panicked and pretended to faint, falling right onto Solomon’s side of the hall and dragging an angry Levi along with him. Solomon was about to hop over them with ease until he saw Beelzebub reaching for a piece of candy that was tossed out by Belphegor and had to put on the breaks to swerve around, slowing him down.

You were now catching up.

Still ahead of you, though, and getting closer to the finish line, Solomon was making headway...

Until Satan feigned anger towards his meddling brothers and punched a giant, gaping hole in the floor, right in Solomon’s way. Having taken notice, Lucifer leaped to shield Solomon from Satan’s wrath by flying in between them and using his wings from his demon form to block Solomon’s path..for ‘protection’, of course. Solomon had no choice but to stop as quickly as he could, taking a hard tumble to the floor and letting you zoom past him.

You made it over the finish line and from the other side of the hall, Asmo shouted “MC is the winner!”

For a moment, Solomon thought he could hear all of the brothers simultaneously sigh with relief.

Well... a deal was a deal.

But that didn’t stop Solomon from wanting rematch after rematch, just waiting for the day that he wins and gets a chance at what he’s wanted for a long time...

[lavendersuh]

jaemin x reader | 70′s roller rink au | fluff | 2.8k words 

part of @nct-writers neo’clock event! 

warnings: none

summary: its the era of disco balls and groovy tunes, and you love working at your local roller skating rink. if only na jaemin wasn’t there to annoy you all the time.

note: hi friends!! i recently started roller skating this summer and it’s been so fun!! i finally was able to go to a roller rink (i masked up i promise!) but i wrote this beforehand while i was yearning to go haha. it was so fun and skating makes me so happy. i don’t think i’ve seen many roller skating aus so i hope you all enjoy!!

“Hey! Will you stop going the wrong way? I have kids learning to skate and you’re getting in their way!” 

You huff out a heavy breath from your exercise. It’s always tiring to teach young kids to roller skate, but you enjoy the smiles it brought to their faces. One day soon they would be able to easily join the adults that waltzed across the shiny wooden floors. 

Your job at the local roller rink is perfect. You love the smoky atmosphere and the big disco ball. You love hearing the latest groovy songs play over the speakers. You love being able to zoom around in your favorite bell bottom jeans and best pair of skates. 

What you don’t enjoy is annoying boys that obnoxiously skate around the rink. 

You look back at the boy in question. It isNa Jaemin, of course. The boy has been the bane of your existence since he came to the rink for the first time a little over two weeks ago. 

Na Jaemin, with his blonde hair and constant grin, always so cocksure about everything. You had to admit, he’s an incredible skater, but you could never admit that to him. 

Especially when he is doing everything in his power to annoy you at the present moment.

“Are you even qualified to teach people how to skate?” he asks, with narrow eyes, “Can you even go backwards?”

You know he’s just teasing, just trying to get a rise out of you, and you fall so easily into his trap every time.

“Of course I can go backwards Jaemin! That’s not what I’m teaching right now though!” you reply. 

“Well then, I can do a demonstration!” 

“Jaemin, no.”

“Jaemin, yes.”

You let out a sigh as you watch him show off in front of the kids. They were a nice little bunch, but they were easily distracted, especially when the distraction was putting on such a show. 

Once again, you knew, it would be a long night.

Not even a week later, you encounter the nuisance again. Tonight, someone that usually works the food counter called off, meaning you’re stuck making hot dogs and grabbing bottles of cola for a bunch of little kids and teenagers. It wasn’t the worst job, but it certainly wasn’t your favorite. 

Especially since you can’t just skate away when Jaemin comes around to annoy you.

You spot him skating around the rink with a few of his buddies, doing laps around the younger kids. You can’t help but roll your eyes. 

The last you recalled, Jaemin never ordered much from the food counter when he was at the rink, so you assume he won’t bother you tonight. You couldn’t be more wrong.

You were back behind the pretzel machine when someone came up to the counter, ringing the bell to get your attention.

“I’ll be right there!” you call out, “What can I get for you?”

“A second of your time perhaps?”

You whip your head around to see Jaemin standing at the counter, a cheesy smile across his face. His hair is ruffled and wild, and he seems to be breathing a bit heavy from the exercise he was just doing.

You huff as you walk over to him, “Jaem, if you’re just going to annoy me, go away. Do you actually want any food?” 

He doesn’t miss the small nickname that crosses your lips, but he doesn’t have time to think too hard about it. As always, he is on a mission. 

“I wanted to show you my new skates!” he says, moving backwards a bit to show you the new boots, “Nice wheels, right?”

You can’t help the snort of amusement that comes out. The skates are bright yellow, with orange wheels and laces. They certainly will stand out under the glow of the neon lights and the disco ball over the wooden rink.

He starts moonwalking around in front of you, and you can’t help but marvel with a smile of your own at the skates and the silly boy in front of you. He must catch you staring, because he breaks you out of your trance by coming closer.

He says , “I wonder how fast I’ll be able to go in them.”

He bounds off towards the rink, zipping around the people on his new wheels. He looks back over to see if you are watching, causing a triumphant grin to grace his face when he realizes he still has your attention. 

The only problem is, with his eyes on you instead of where he’s going, he nearly runs into an older lady, and quickly diverts his course to keep from crashing into her. His new skates take him directly towards the wall, sending him on a collision course with concrete. 

His fall is anything but graceful, as his friends laugh at him. You also let out a chuckle of your own at the silly boy who will do anything for even an ounce of attention.

It is once again the end of a long day, and the quiet of the rink surrounds you. The music is turned off, and you’re the last one here, finishing up some cleaning before you finally go home. 

You always loved being the last one at the rink. The roller rink was constantly alive with lots of people, lots of sounds, lots of activity. It was calming to be the only one, skating around the rink with a broom to wipe down the surface. 

As you are making your way around the outside of the rink one last time, you hear a loud noise near the entrance to the building. You can’t help but grip the broom a little tighter, before you see Jaemin come through the door.

He glides over to the opening of the rink, his boombox in his hand. You do nothing but stare as he sets it up on the ground, pressing play before starting to skate. Finally he acknowledges your presence with a casual wave, like he isn’t here after hours or anything.

“What do you think you are doing?” you ask. “The rink closed ten minutes ago, and aren’t you tired? You were here all night.”

You couldn’t ignore the slip up you made, realizing you let it slip that you were aware of his presence all night. You didn’t need him thinking you were looking at him a lot, because you weren’t. Ever. 

“I like skating to my own tunes.” he says, as nonchalant as ever. 

He apparently doesn’t see a problem with the way things are unfolding, and you let out a huff. 

“Oh my god, I’m trying to clean the floor! Can’t you just come back tomorrow?”

“Aw, so eager to see me again?” he smiles as he makes his way to you, “Anyways, I can help!”

He takes your broom, skating around while casually sweeping. You might not have brand new skates like him, but you easily catch up to him, snatching it back.

Why was he even here? Just like you had pointed out, he had been here all night. What was keeping him from going home like the rest of the crowd?

“Go, Jaemin!” you exclaim out of annoyance, “And take your annoying boombox with you!”

His face morphs into a pout at this, “You turned off the music, what was I supposed to do?” 

“Go home?”

You glide over to the portable machine producing the loud disco music, turning off the switch. You manage to pick it up, shoving the boombox towards Jaemin.

“Jaemin, I’m begging you, go home! I can’t clean if you are still here, and I want to go home, too.”

He must see the exhausted look in your eye behind all of your annoyance, because he rolls over to you.

Jaemin grabs his boombox again, “Am I too much of a distraction if I sit on the bench?”

He gestures to the bench just outside of the rink, where little kids often tied their laces. For some reason, he just doesn’t want to leave, so you nod your head. 

He sits down, and turns on his boombox again while doing so. He turns the volume down lower, and looks out at you, jokingly saluting you in a promise to not be bothersome. 

You roll your eyes, finally resuming your cleaning. 

As you clean, Jaemin talks aimlessly. He talks about his classes at the local university next fall, and about how he just can’t figure out how to land a specific jump on his skates. 

While you were reluctant to let him stay, his presence ends up being really nice. His voice is soft as it fills the empty building, and as you both walk out to your cars after locking up, you are grateful to have someone by your side. 

It feels a little weird that you are having nice thoughts about the boy who is constantly a pain in your side, but you ignore the slight upbeat in your heart rate when he bids you goodnight.

You throw him a smile as you get into your car, “Goodnight, Jaem.”

It is once again a slow Tuesday night, and you are almost about ready to fall asleep at the admissions counter. Every so often you are assigned a shift in the ticket lobby, which you don’t mind typically. On a weekend day, you would be busy taking care of admissions for people as they came and went.

The rink is not busy today. 

And you’re about to doze off. 

You sigh. The one day you don’t have a book or a newspaper or any homework to do. 

You find yourself brushing off invisible dust from your new vest and turtleneck outfit when you hear the door chime, signaling a new customer. You look up from your seat.

Of course, it is Na Jaemin.

“Hey, are you stuck out here today?” he asks, his skate laces tied together to rest over his left shoulder.

“Yeah, it's so boring tonight, kinda empty too, but at least that means you won’t plow into a sixth grader again.” you smile.

“That was one time!” he says, also grinning at the memory.

He pulls out some money for admission and you hand him the paper wristband to show he paid and brought his own skates. Just as he is about to walk through the door to get to the rink, he pauses.

“Hey, uh, what’s your favorite song to skate to?” 

“Huh?”

“Yeah,” he scratches the back of his neck. He tries to explain his reasoning, “Maybe if I play it on my boombox, you won’t make me turn it off.”

You let out a chuckle, “I’ll still probably make you turn it off.”

“Y/N, can you please just answer the question?” Jaemin seems serious now.

And while you are taken aback by the change from his normally aloof demeanor, you clear your throat, “Okay, umm, I really love that new movie Grease, right now. Have you seen it? There’s this one song that’s kinda slow, ‘Hopelessly Devoted to You,’ and it’s really pretty and fun to just skate around the rink to.”

You flush out of embarrassment for the cheesy song choice, but Jaemin nods with a smile. You ignore your traitorous heart reminding you that you had definitely played your Grease soundtrack cassette tape a few too many times since meeting Jaemin. There was definitely no correlation. 

“That song is nice.” he says, before turning away and heading into the rink, leaving you alone at the ticket counter once again. 

A few days later you once again are stuck at the ticket counter. And finally, your shift is over. The ticket counter was nice every once in a while, but you feel tired of standing there, especially more than once in a week. You much preferred the satisfying exhaustion that came from being on wheels for your entire shift. 

The staff has mostly gone home, even your boss who just needed to lock up the cash office. You had offered to lock up the building after he left, since you felt like skating for a bit before going home. 

There is something about skating on the wooden floor when no one else is around. It is entirely quiet, with the music turned off, just the sound of your wheels spinning., And peaceful, with the air clear of cigarette smoke and loud screams of children playing. It was calming.

Your calm is interrupted by soft music coming from near the entrance. It’s only when you see Jaemin’s face and his stupidly large boombox that you realize what song it is. 

Your favorite song.

You can’t help the goofy smile that spreads across your face as he skates over, leaving the boombox on the ledge of the rink wall, coming over to you as ‘Hopelessly Devoted to You,’ echoes throughout the building.

He’s mouthing the lyrics as he skates to you, his eyes bright with mischief and something else that you can’t quite place. 

“Hey,” he says once he’s finally in front of you, “Can I join? It seemed a little quiet in here.”

For some reason, this flusters you, as you look at his ruffled hair and jean jacket. “Uh, yeah sure.”

With your approval, he begins skating, beckoning you to follow him. The song ends, but starts up again, and you give Jaemin a questioning look.

“I made a mixtape of this song on loop a couple of times,” he says, running a hand through his hair leisurely, like that’s the most normal thing in the world for someone to do. “It’s nice right?”

It makes you smile regardless. The two of you skate around for a bit, simply going around the rink as you would if lots of people were there. It’s comfortable, you realize, with just the two of you all alone. 

Finally on the third loop of the song, Jaemin comes a little closer, and grabs your hand quickly, as if unsure that he is able to do that. You squeeze his hand in reassurance.

It’s strange, wherever this night is going, but you can’t remember a time that you seemed happier to be at the rink. 

“I recall you mentioning you can skate backwards, yes?” Jaemin asks, after a few moments.

“Yes, of course—” you begin, but stop talking when he spins you to skate backwards in front of him, causing you to let out a slight squeal at the change.

It’s almost like dancing in a way, as he pushes the two of you forward around the rink and you impulsively grip his shoulders to make sure you can keep your balance. 

Eventually, the two of you slow down, and he leads a few spins, which sends laughter through the air and chills down your spine. It's hard to believe just a few weeks ago this boy was the most annoying pain in your side. 

The boombox finally goes quiet after its few repeats of the song, and the building is plunged into silence again, as you stand in front of Jaemin with a small smile and a sweaty complexion. 

The neon lights glow around you and Jaemin’s face turns serious. He readjusts his grip on your waist, sliding ever so slightly closer to you. 

“I’m sorry I was an asshole at the beginning.” he says, just above a whisper to be heard by only you, “I didn’t know how else to get your attention. Finally I changed the plan to this, and I think it’s working out better.”

“The plan?” you ask, your brain cloudy from his proximity.

He has the nerve to look bashful, making his face even more cuter, “I’ve, uh, kinda liked you for a while, and I needed a plan to tell you and see if you felt the same.” 

You smile, moving your left hand from his shoulder to his jawline, stroking his cheeky tenderly. Every piece of him that you touch leaves a burning feeling within your heart, and you finally are thinking you know how to fix it.

With a bold move like when he picked up your hand, you touch your lips to his, letting them sit there for a moment. It’s a chaste kiss, leaving Jaemin to decide what to do next.

He deepens the kiss, smiling as he fully wraps his arms around you and keeps you from sliding away by using his toe stops. 

The disco ball overhead isn’t turning anymore, and the music that typically fills the roller rink isn’t playing, but you’ve never found the rink more spectacular in your life. It’s not the atmosphere of the rink that you love, but the people within.

And right now, the person in front of you is your favorite.

[cabinofimagines]

Falling Face First

bro i’ve never written poly and there was a request for Lercy so yknow i have to at least try :( anyway here’s Leo being a simp and the reader also being a simp but hiding a little better than inferno boy.   - day

pairing: Leo x gn!Reader x Percy

warnings: I mean it’s poly so??? Fluff omg so dangerous, swearing too but that's the norm for me

requests:

imagine being someone who roller skates and dating Percy so going to the skate park for dates + Could I request Leo with a reader who really wants to learn roller skating but is scared to try, since they know they’d be bad at it at first and they’re scared of people judging them for falling/being bad at it? I’m kind of in this situation at the moment 😅 + poly!Lercy aswell, ugh i can't <3 <3 <3 so cuteeee

You shivered and turned into the warm embrace behind you, feeling their chest rumble as they held you. You could hear Leo’s whining still, unfortunately. He was reluctant to come back to the very spot he made a fool of himself in front of his boyfriend. It seemed like he wasn’t aware that his poorly planned scheme actually pushed Percy into your lives, but you were too cold to explain that to him.

Instead, you reveled in the warmth that came from the tall man, his chin resting atop your head as he spoke, “Leo I don’t know why you’re so hung up on that one moment.” He laughed, “there’s plenty to get hung up on!”

Leo cracked a smile at Percy and waddled over in his skates, sandwiching you in a circle of warmth. Leo felt like a fireplace, warming you up after walking home in the snow, and Percy was comforting, like a couch after a long day of work. Oh my gods, did you just compare one of your boyfriends to a couch?

Percy pulled away first, grinning widely and stomping in place, “C’mon! Before the amateurs get here!”

You and Leo separated, Leo giving him a incredulous look, “I’m an amateur, babe. What are you talking about?”

Percy tugged Leo’s hand into his own, gripping it tight, “Sweet, now I have an excuse to hold your hand.”

You scoffed and held Leo’s free hand, bringing both of their attention to you, “You need an excuse to do that, Jackson?”

Leo chuckled, “You guys, there’s more than enough of me to go around”

You smirked when he lost his footing briefly, increasing his grip on your hand to avoid falling. He never got any better at skating.

 - - -

i.

The cold wind nipped at your nose causing you to bury your face in the scarf you had wrapped around your neck. You definitely were not built for this snowy weather, but you were excited to skate and show up Leo’s egotistic ass. Well not entirely egotistical, but he definitely thought he would be better at skating than you despite having never gone skating before.

When the idea was originally brought up to Leo as date night sort of thing, he was a bit too enthusiastic and said you should go to one rink in particular—even though that was much farther than the one you were thinking of going to. Although you were glad, he wanted to go, you were curious as to why he was set on the rink uptown near the Queensboro Bridge.

“I’ve just heard a lot of great things!” He stammered, fiddling with his camp beads, “Very big, very… icy.”

Turns out it wasn’t just because it was very big and very icy, but because Percy Jackson frequented the skate park not far from this rink. Leo had concocted this scheme of throwing himself in the path of Percy to grab his attention and in turn, you as well.

You hated how much you looked forward to how it would turn out. If it went badly, you could laugh at Leo’s hopeless attempts at flirting. If it did work, well…

So, you sat there, freezing your ass off and tying the shoelaces of your skates. You decided to keep your head down and let Leo do all of the pining, it was what he was good at. He was always the one to shoot his shot first and joke about it if he was rejected, he got too ahead of himself when you actually said yes and nearly rejected himself.

Leo hadn’t put his skates on yet and was looking around for his love interest rather obviously. You were just about to reprimand him for paying too much attention to someone who wasn’t his partner when he hurriedly rushed over to you.

“Shit shit shit he’s actually coming, oh my gods I don’t even have my skates on. He’s gonna think I’m stalking him!”

You laughed loudly and watched your boyfriend struggle to tie his shoelaces, “He’s not going to accuse you of stalking him when you’re just tying your skates, dummy.”

You laughed and glanced around the mostly empty rink, seeing couples skating hand in hand and siblings racing each other on the track. You wanted to skate a few laps before the kids got there and to get used to skating again before you had to help Leo. It wouldn’t do him any good if you were getting used to it while he was flailing about.

“I’m gonna make a few laps, okay?”

You didn’t wait for his reply and stepped onto the ice, pushing off and doing your best to remain upright. It would definitely take you a minute to get back into the rhythm of skating but teaching Leo wouldn’t be that difficult. If he’d let you help him, that is. Just as you were turning the corner at the very end of the rink you spotted a tall, dark-haired guy standing in front of Leo holding his hands as he led him forward on the ice.

You really couldn’t leave him for 5 minutes without him getting into trouble.

You hurried over and nearly knocked the pair over much to their surprise. Upon closer look you realized that Percy Jackson was here just as your boyfriend planned and he was more than happy to assist Leo in skating.

Percy looked up at you with a breathtaking smile, “I was wondering where you might’ve been!” His attention went back to Leo who was overplaying how bad he was at skating, “Leo basically fell flat on his face as soon as he stepped on the ice.”

“Did not!”

You hummed and took one of Percy’s hands away from Leo, seeing him flush at the contact, “How about we share Leo? You take one hand and I’ll take the other, so he doesn’t fall on his face again?”

Leo huffed, “I did not fall flat on my face!” He paused and watched as both you and Percy took his hands, interlacing fingers and feeling how cold both hands were against his own warm ones. He couldn’t lie and say that you weren’t smooth about including Percy in on your plans, but he would still take the credit that Percy came over to help him first. So, he saw it as a win on his part.

Percy’s mind was spinning at the interaction though. He was always attracted to both Y/n and Leo, but when they started dating each other, those thoughts never did stop. He wondered if it were possible to date both of them at the same time. Would they be open to that?

He almost missed the mischievous look Leo shot your way and the smile you sent back, the message behind it though clear to the couple were up for interpretation in Percy’s eyes. He made up his mind that today wouldn’t be the last time he went out with these two and he’ll be going out with them more frequently.

ii.

Much to your pleasure, Percy didn’t say his goodbyes after helping your overzealous boyfriend learn how to stay upright. He stayed and talked to you long after Leo mentioned that he needed to sit a down for a bit, accompanying you on your trips around the ice rink. 

You could understand why Leo had a crush on him now, he was too perfect to be real. Of course, you’ve talked to him before, but then it was only in terms of the ongoing war and no real bond had come from that like it had with Leo, though you wish it had now.

He talked animatedly about his little sister, Estelle. He must’ve taken 15 minutes to tell one story completely, but it didn’t matter much to you. You were admiring the twinkle of affection in his sea green eyes and were ashamed to admit that you wondered what it would be like if he looked at you with the same twinkle.

You were so busy looking at him that you didn’t notice a rock on the ice in front of you, although he did. He reached out and grabbed your arm, pulling you to him gently and quickly so you wouldn’t fall over.

“You good?”

You could only nod and give a small smile, your eyes drifting to his lips breifly before coming to your senses. You didn’t want to scare him.

He seemed to notice though and was reluctant to let you go, feeling his face warm up; whether it was from the cold or the interaction he didn’t know for sure.

You cleared your throat and jabbed a thumb over your shoulder at Leo who was doing a horrible job at minding his business, “I’m gonna go check on Lee, he might want some hot chocolate or something to eat soon.”

Percy, finally coming back to his senses stammered out quickly, “I’ll go save us a seat at Astoria’s!” He wasn’t sure if you heard him, but he went anyway, hoping to collect his thoughts if he was away from you for a while.

You fumbled over to Leo who tried to meet you halfway, practically falling into you. His wide grin was infectious and you soon you were doing the same.

“Shit Percy is so cute, dude.”

“See? I told you!”

“My gods you didn’t tell me his eyes sparkled, this is important information Leo.”

“Must have slipped my mind when I was trying secure him as our boyfriend, my dear.”

You took a breath and helped Leo back to the bench so you could both take off your skates and return them. Leo was hungry for Percy content and kept pestering you on the way over, “Well?! What did he say? Was he talking about me? Did he talk about how bewitching my eyes are?”

You scoffed and moved to help him unlace the skates before moving to your own, “Of course he did, who wouldn’t talk about your eyes, babe? He said you had a cute butt too.” 

Leo leaned back on the bench with a quiet gasp, “I knew it.” he mumbled before smiling widely, “But for real, tell me what he said!”

You both stood, intertwining your hands and moving toward Astoria’s. You filled Leo in on the things Percy said, well what you could remember anyway. You were too focused on his eyes to remember every detail.

You were only a few steps from Astoria’s when it finally clicked in Leo’s mind that you weren’t headed home, “Hey wait, why are we going in here--” He made eye contact with Percy who grinned and waved at the pair.

“Why didn’t you say we’re grabbing hot coco with him? I’m not mentally prepared for this.”

“Chill out! Aren’t you supposed to be cool boy supreme or something like that?”

“Right, right.”

The bell on the door chimed as you walked in and headed to the table in the back. Percy looked all too cute bundled up in his blue scarf and puffy jacket, he sat in the middle of the booth so that Leo and yourself would be on either side of him. Which you didn’t mind entirely.

Leo messed with his curls with a small smile, “Hey Perce, I didn’t know you liked hot chocolate.” He blinked at how dumb his own statement sounded but decided to stick with it.

Percy chuckled and leaned forward, resting his head in his palm, “Yeah, yeah I do.”

There was a weird pause and you let out a loud sigh, “Well, sit down already Leo!”

He slid in next to Percy, his eyes looking up at Percy like the tall male just gave him his favorite candy. It was obvious that Leo had already fallen hard for the son of Poseidon and you knew it wouldn’t be long before you followed suit.

After getting some of the best hot chocolate in New York, conversation flowed easily. Leo got to see the sparkle in Percy’s eyes that you were so infatuated with, and you got to see the lopsided smile Leo always seemed to put on his face. It’s a wonder that you all didn’t become close during the war, but with circumstances being what they were, you could understand why it wasn’t a priority to play icebreakers.

“So...” Percy spoke after a short pause.

Both Leo and you leaned in unconsciously to hear what he had to say next, eager to keep talking to this boy for the next 5 hours if he’d let you.

“We should meet again soon?”

You cocked your head in confusion, “Huh? What are you-- are you saying you wanna go out with us again?”

Leo looked toward the flustered boy with interest, “Did you have fun with us today? What was your favorite part-- ow!”

You gave him a look, bringing your foot back to it’s former place. You were pulling for a certain answer and Leo was diverting from him giving it. You’ll apologize for kicking him later; if you remember.

Percy glanced worriedly at Leo but answered you a little nervously, “Yeah like maybe, I don’t know... tomorrow?” After a shocked silence overtook the table he added quickly, “I mean you guys don’t have to and you might already have plans but I have to go soon because my mom made pasta and--”

Leo made a bold move, resting his hand on top of Percy’s and giving a reassuring laugh, “Percy, we’d love to go out with you again tomorrow.”

Percy’s eyes shifted to Leo’s hand and he tried hard to fight the ecstatic grin that wanted to crawl onto his face. He made a quick glance up at Leo’s pretty brown eyes before letting out a happy chuckle, “Cool! We can meet here tomorrow at noon?”

You nodded and shared a victorious look with Percy, “Yeah! Sounds great.”

Another pause, but this one was full of joy from each one of you. Although you could sit in his presence for a few more hours, you remembered that this boy had some pasta to inhale at home.

“Percy, do you need to go? You said your mom was making pasta tonight.”

His eyes widended at your words and looking towards Leo who had moved his hand and scooted out of the booth so he could get out, “Yeah uh, yeah uh I gotta go but--” He slid out and turned to face the table before leaving, “I had an amazing  time guys and I can’t wait to see both of you tomorrow. See ya!”

And he was gone. 

Leo went to say something but you beat him to it, wrapping him in a hug and kissing him firmly on the mouth, “I have never been more grateful for your dorky ass!”

He decided to ignore your remark and relish in this moment for now, both blissfully unaware of the sea green eyes that watched outside the shop. 

Percy had turned back to glance at the couple one last time and saw a scene that made his heart swell up in affection. He grinned and looked away, a silent hope that tomorrow was the start of something new in the back of his mind.

.

.

.

.

.

(a/n: bro i’m deadass about to cry bc i wanna date both of them now)

[violetnotez]

matchup for drew  |  JJK

Request a matchup here

Hey babe! So I match you up with....

 Ｉｎｕｍａｋｉ Ｔｏｇｅ

Look at this pretty boy like ughhh youre so lucky 😭

Inumaki is incredibly loyal-he wouldn’t ever ever give you a reason not to trust him

Also, don’t let his quietness fool you-he is a total trickster/prankster and will always be doing something silly to get you to laugh

He really likes training with you-to him it’s quite therapeutic and a great way to bond with you

But he’s cheeky at times if your doing close combat-he’ll just quickly plant a kiss on your cheeks to get you distracted so he can pin you down 💀

He thinks it’s amazing you’re so skilled in so many sports-it takes a lot to train, and he respects it a lot!

The one he really wanted you to teach him was rollerskating-one day he’d just walk into your room, hand holding a pair of new skates and just plainly saying “Tuna?”

Tuna meaning Please teach me, I know you’re busy but I’m bored and I just wanna have some fun please please please 🥺

He caught on to it really quickly, and in no time you two were blasting music and making trips to the grocery store for some sweets as quick little dates

Inumaki at one point tried to teach Panda and Maki, but Panda was totally decked out in headgear and shoulder pads and still ate shit every 2 seconds 💀

When he first met you, he honestly wasn’t really that intimidated

He still got that nervous rush of meeting someone new, but he was used to meeting intimidating girls-Nobara and Maki being perfect examples of that

Maki was so relieved to have another girl, and you two hit it off amazingly-you two would always be paired together cause you work great off each other as partners and as friends

Panda is just so lovingly protective for you, like if you feel uncomfy in public at times or just feel awkward in general, he’s right there to just give some support 🖤

He just approached you like he would with them, just a quick nod of his head and maybe a reply like “Bonito flakes” to be respectful

He is really intrigued by you-he’s naturally curious, how could he not when he has someone new and pretty in front of him~

But he gave you space, not wanting to intrude or make you uncomfy

But once you begin to open up, OH MY GOD he is so happy!

You get along well with his friends, it’s almost hard to imagine you not being in there friend group at one point-

Whenever something makes you smile, he starts noticing it makes him feel all fluttery inside,,,

Or when he is able to make you chuckle, he finds himself smiling but so grateful he’s able to hide his cheeks with his clothing-

He isn’t oblivious, he obviously knows he caught feelings but he’s super scared to say anything

Cause-how could he even tell you? It’s not like he could just walk up to you and say “Let’s go on a date-“

You could say no and reject him....or even worse, he could make a terrible choice of words and force you on a date by accident with his cursed technique

The 2nd option was too terrifying to him, so he opted to text you a picture of him holding a sign that says “Date?” like a prom proposal, his lilac eyes unable to look at the screen

He definitely begged Panda to take it, cause the picture was pretty fuzzy and theres a furry finger on a corner of the photo

But you thankfully said yes, and Inumaki took you to a roller skating rink, thinking you’d feel comfortable there to hang out. Which was a great plan, until Toge realized he didn’t know how to rollerskate

Panic ensues

The whole time he was desperately trying to repeat to himself “Don’t fall, don’t fall, don’t fall-“ and still look cool at the same time 💀

It was still cute though, and after you helping him out a bit he caught on very quickly

Still did fall a few times, but when you would giggle and help him up he felt a lot better about it 🥺

Needless to say, was probably the main reason he asked you later on to teach him how to skate properly 💀

And also the main reason your guys’ second date was at a very flat forest with little shrines and fish ponds to look into

Inumaki reallllyyyy craves physical touch, but he never forces it upon you

At the beginning of your relationship, it was really delicate touches, from intertwining pinkies to resting his head on your shoulder

But then it slowly became more and more as you two got more comfortable

This dude will just full on run behind you and wrap his arms around you if hes tired

Or snatch your hand and squeeze it tightly if hes afraid you might be in danger

Does this really cute thing where he puts his forehead on yours and stays there for a sec- dont ask him why he does it, he’ll start blushing but he just likes feeling close to you like that  🥺

Songs for Your Relstionship: Paradise by Coldplay,  Beautiful People by Ed Sheeran, Timeless by We Three

Drabble:

“Toge, what are you doing-and when did you get those?” you questioned, your eyes scrunched up in confusion as you eyed the white haired boy in front of you.

Inumaki was standing in your doorway, his jacket zipped up fully so only his violet eyes were visible. In his hands were a pair of roller skates, the wheels a clear plastic while the shoes being a periwinkle blue. 

All he did was simply walked into your room, knowing it like the back of hand from countless visits as he picked up your skates that had been left on the floor from the day before. He simply held out both pairs, one simple word of “Tuna” presented out of his mouth.

Your eyebrows furrowed even more, head tilting slightly as you shifted on your bed.

What the hell did he want you to....

“Do you want me....to teach you how to roller skate?”

You saw him instantly light up, obviously ecstatic you had understood him so quickly. He simply nodded his head once as confirmation, violet eyes wide with relief and anticipation.

Inumaki had been bristling to get back in those skates after he had done such a disastrous attempt at your first date. Everytime he thought about how much he had fallen he always internally cringed, almost able to still feel the bruises on his rear that lasted days after.

You had looked so graceful and so happy that day, like you were gliding on top of water as you did laps around the rink or simply to just pick him off the ground after he had eaten shit. He wanted to be able to do that with you, to be able to have picnic dates at the park or just glide over to a store to buy some sweets and ice cream-he had so many cute ideas planned it was almost overwhleming.

He just needed to learn how to skate without painting his body in bruises first.

“Oh, Toge, Im so sorry-” he heard you saw, his heart falling slightly at the sound of guilt in your voice, “but I have some assingments I have to finish....maybe we can do it this weekend?”

That happy expression he had had a few moments before faltered slightly, his lips pursed and nose scrunched under his jacket. 

But Inumaki was persistent-he wasnt one to take no for an answer, especially when he knew how to get what he wanted with a few dirty tricks.

Toge took a few steps towards you, his knee landing on top of your bed and making it dip under his weight, wrapping his arms around you in an inescapable hug.

Inumaki was pretty clever, as he knew it was hard for you to resist him when he was being clingy. He simply nuzzled his head into the crook of your neck, white hair tickling your jawline, hands squeezing your sides gently.

You sighed, rolling your eyes slightly with an amused smirk as your propped yourself on your elbows and looked down at your boyfriend, who was clearly milking it to get what he wanted.

“Youre not gonna let go unti l say yes, huh?”

Inumaki picked his head up, violet eyes soft yet mischeivously as he shook his head gently-

This brat wasnt going to let go until you did exactly what he wanted. 

You sighed exaperatedly, looking up at the ceiling as you felt Inumaki chuckle against your stomach.

“Fine then...” you gave in, finding it adorable how quickly his face light up.

“-But you have to buy me snacks and be my study partner for the rest of the night.”

Toge instantly smiled, the crinkles of the expression showing around his eyes. Getting you to teach him how to roller skate, and have a study date right after? This day was getting better and better for him.

“Salmon!” he agreed quickly, shuffling off of your form and handing you your skates- you were going to make him a pro after today, and he was more than ready.

I hoped you liked these, and thank you for requesting!! <3

[artificialqueens]

Rollerskating Into My Life (Symone x Gigi) - Strawberry

Summary:

“You’re really pretty, too. But I don’t really know how to skate. Balancing is so hard!”

“Let me get a soda and then afterwards I can help you out?” The curly haired girl offered, and Gigi grinned.

Or, Gigi is at Jaida's birthday party and doesn't know anyone else there. Symone changes that.

A/N: Hi! I originally wrote this for the Rare Pair challenge earlier this year, but I never ended up submitting. I reread it yesterday and was like "Wait, I don't hate this!" so I decided that posting it months later was better than never!

Being at a roller rink with half of her grade was not where Gigi wanted to be.

It was her best friend Jaida’s birthday, and she wanted to go roller skating to celebrate. Being fairly popular, she ended up inviting half of their grade to the party, and Gigi, who was not popular in the slightest, knew absolutely no one well enough to want to talk to and she didn’t want to change that.

However, that meant Gigi would spend most of the night by herself as Jaida went around the rink, talking to everyone. Of course, she didn’t blame Jaida, it wouldn’t make sense to invite so many people and then only hang around the redhead. It also didn’t mean that it didn’t suck.

The two arrived together, meaning that Jaida was her ride back home where they would have a sleepover, just the two of them. Just that made showing up to the big party worth it in Gigi’s opinion, but the minutes were dragging on so slowly. She would’ve been out skating to make the time pass faster, but Gigi was incredibly clumsy and could only stay upright for a maximum of twelve seconds. Skating was not her thing.

Sitting at the bar, Gigi’s eyes wandered from watching Jaida and Nicky skate around, to Rock making a fool of herself in front of Jackie and Jan, to two girls that Gigi didn’t think went to their school.

One was a taller brunette and the other was a slightly shorter girl who had curly black hair. Both of the girls were stunning, but Gigi couldn’t take her eyes off of the shorter girl. She was the prettiest girl the ginger had seen in a long time, and she wished they had the confidence to get up and (slowly and carefully) make her way over to her.

Gigi watched as the brunette slipped and fell after attempting to dance to the Dua Lipa song that was playing and instead of helping her friend up, the pretty girl stood there and laughed.

Her smile was so beautiful.

“Whatcha looking at, G?” Jaida’s voice scared the shit out of her, Gigi placed her hand over their heart as she turned to face her best friend.

“Those girls don’t go to our school, I was trying to figure out if they did. But they don’t!”

“Mhm. You should go talk to the one you think is cute.” Jaida always saw right through Gigi.

“Oh, fuck off. You know I won’t.” She rolled her eyes. Gigi was never one to just go up and start conversations with complete strangers, especially ones that she thought were cute.

“Anything is possible! You actually showed up even though I know you would rather be in bed right now.” Jaida reminded her.

“Of course I would go to my best friend’s birthday party! I’m not a monster.”

“I know! It just really means a lot that you showed up. I know being with large groups of people isn’t your cup of tea.”

“Anything for you, but I think Nicky is waiting for you at the soda machine.”

After trying to convince Gigi to get up and say hi to Nicky, Jaida went off to go see her friend by herself. Gigi pulled out her phone, deciding to see if any of the celebrities she followed on Instagram had posted anything within the two hours they had at the roller rink.

“Hiii,” a voice she didn’t recognize said, and Gigi looked up to see that the pretty girl with curly black hair was right in front of her.

“Oh! Hi,” Gigi let out a nervous giggle. The ginger always laughed when she was nervous and absolutely hated it.

“I saw you looking at me earlier, and my friend just ditched me for a questionable boy, so I’d thought I’d come and say hi. I’m Symone.”

What a gorgeous name.

“I’m Gigi. And where are they? The boy probably goes to my school.”

Symone pointed to where her friend was currently trying to dance with a guy Gigi had history with. “Yuck. Your friend better not hit it off with him. He’s gross.”

“Noted. Is there a school event going on or something?” She asked, looking around at the rest of Gigi’s classmates.

“Oh, it’s my best friend’s birthday. She invited like, half of our grade,” the redhead rambled on while Symone nodded, “I think you and your friend are the only people here who aren’t from school.”

Gigi was never up to talking to strangers, but they wanted to keep talking to Symone. Everything about her was perfect and they were not going to fuck it up by being cold.

Symone made her way to the empty seat next to Gigi, “It feels so nice to sit down. I’ve been on my feet all night.”

“You should definitely rest up then.”

“I haven’t seen you on the rink all night though, I’m starting to think that you don’t know how to skate.”

“So you were watching me too?” Gigi questioned, grinning.

“Yeah. You’re pretty cute, Strawberry Shortcake.”

Gigi didn’t know why, but she liked being called that. It wasn’t new or creative in the slightest, but it gave them butterflies. “You’re really pretty, too. But I don’t really know how to skate. Balancing is so hard!”

“Let me get a soda and then afterwards I can help you out?” The curly haired girl offered, and Gigi grinned.

“Sounds amazing.”

____________

Gigi and Symone did a little more than grabbing a soda. They ended up getting pizza too, and spent a little too long sitting there and chatting.

They might have only met Symone an hour prior, but they really liked her. She was kind and funny and actually seemed very interested in getting to know the redhead a little bit more. The darker girl was an extremely slow eater, so they were there for quite a while, engaging in small talk. They both were interested in fashion and hated boys, it was extremely refreshing for Gigi to meet someone that appeared to be similar to her.

When Symone finally finished up her pizza, she got up and reached out to grab the ginger’s hand. Gigi gladly accepted it, and together they made their way to the edge of the rink.

“Okay, I’m gonna let go of your hand and you’re going to try to balance.” Symone explained, and Gigi hesitantly let the girl take her manicured hand away.

They did not stay up for long. After a few seconds, they had to grab the half wall that separated the rink and cafeteria in order to stay upright. “This is hard!” Gigi yelped, blushing when she saw the amused look on Symone’s face.

“You’re not standing right. You’re putting all of your weight on your heel which is why you can’t stand up for very long.”

Gigi tried balancing their whole foot, and Symone adjusted their body so the ginger was leaning slightly forward. “Try that now. You should have an easier time balancing.”

Symone was right. Gigi had completed the first step of learning how to skate, something they probably wouldn’t have been able to figure out on their own.

“Okay, I think I’m ready to skate.”

“Hold onto me, Strawberry Shortcake. I don’t trust you to not fall quite yet,” Symone giggled, holding her hand out and waited for Gigi to grab it.

They went slow at first, carefully watching Gigi as they went around the rink. Halfway around they passed Jaida who was now skating with Dahlia, and Jaida nearly fell over seeing that Gigi had actually talked to the girl she thought was cute.

After two laps, the redhead was fairly confident in her ability to skate around without holding onto Symone; not that she would tell her that. Gigi was enjoying holding Symone’s hand and she did not want to let go anytime soon.

If the dark haired girl felt the same, she was definitely prioritizing teaching her new acquaintance (what were they? Gigi had no clue.) how to roller skate.

By their fourth lap, Symone was starting to catch on, “I don’t think you need my help anymore. I think you just want to hold my hand.”

Being called out flustered Gigi, but they were proud of what they responded, “Am I wrong for not wanting to let go of a pretty girl’s hand?”

Her new love interest pondered for a moment, “I guess you might have a point.”

____________

They ended up spending the rest of the night side by side, skating around and dancing to music. Gigi was much better at roller skating than they were a few hours prior.

Eventually, Symone’s friend made a reappearance and the people who showed up for Jaida’s party slowly started to empty the rink. Gigi knew that it was time to part ways.

“I had a lot of fun tonight. Maybe we could do it again sometime?”

“Depends. Will you pretend to be bad at skating so you have an excuse to hold my hand again?” Symone teased, getting out her phone and opening up the contacts app, pressing ‘new contact’ before handing it to the redhead.

“I’m never living that down, am I?” Gigi giggled, typing in her name and number into the phone that was now in her hand.

She shrugged, “I’m not complaining about someone as cute as you holding my hand, but I also found it amusing.”

After saying their goodbyes to Symone and her friend Rosy, Gigi made their way over to Jaida who was sitting at the bar, typing away on her phone.

“Hey, stranger.”

Their best friend looked up, smiling at them. “You had a lot of fun tonight, huh?”

“I really did. I’m really glad I came.”

Gigi couldn’t wait to see them again.