#i’m also in the process of finally scraping my life together

[inkykeiji]

clariiii we need a modern!au sukuna-nii fic 😩😩😩 with sukuna being a complete troublemaker

i’m working on one, i promise!!! and it’s a rly fun twist on a classic AU/trope!!!

[kybercrystals94]

Teal Paint

Read here on Ao3!

Angstpril 2024 | Day 18 | Prompt 18: Left Behind

Rated: G | Word Count: 1526 | Summary: Memories left behind... | Character Focus: Hunter, Crosshair, Tech, Wrecker, Omega, Echo

*some slight spoilers at the very end for Season 3*

Tech finds a reasonably tame city to spend their brief period of downtime between missions. It took several months, but they’ve finally scraped enough credits together, and today is the day. The streets are crowded with evening traffic, the Batch walking close together to avoid being separated.

“Did you know,” Tech says, informatively, “that facial tattoos are among the most painful, depending on the location on the face?” 

“Thanks, Tech,” Hunter grumbles, “that’s really helpful.” 

“You’re not going to talk us out of it,” Crosshair adds resolutely.

Wrecker nods. “Yeah, we’re gonna do it no matter what you say, Tech!” 

Tech huffs. “On the contrary, I’m quite eager to observe the process. I just believe that being well informed is beneficial when making a life altering decision.” 

“Maker, Tech, getting a tattoo isn’t life altering,” Crosshair says. 

“It’s awesome!” Wrecker declares. “You should get one too, Tech.” 

“I prefer modifications that can be modified,” Tech retorts.

Crosshair leans close to Wrecker, puts his hand up to shield his mouth from Tech, and loudly whispers, “He’s too scared.” 

“That is not true.” 

“Aww, Techie’s scared,” Wrecker crows, throwing an arm around Tech. “I can hold your hand, be brave for the both of us.” 

Tech tries to extract himself from Wrecker’s grip. “I am not scared! I have stated my reasoning clearly and concisely. Fear has nothing to do with it.” 

Hunter rubs his hand across the left side of his face, a fist of apprehension balling up in the pit of his stomach. He isn’t having second thoughts, he’s almost positive that he’ll be happy with the results. He and Crosshair spent hours with a pad of flimsi sketching and scheming. Crosshair wanted something subtle, meaningful, a reflection of himself. Hunter, to his brothers’ surprise, wanted something bold. A statement. Memorable. Of the Batch, he most resembles, in appearance and speech, a reg. But he is no more a reg than any other member of his squad. He might not be able to easily change his facial structure or vocal pattern; however, inking half his face with the dark contour of a skull seems like a good start. 

“What do you think?” Crosshair asked, holding up the sketch he’d made of Hunter. 

Hunter grinned, taking the pad and admiring the simple lined likeness to himself, the skull motif shadowed deeply with graphite. He loved it. It was perfect. Exactly as he’d imagined it. “Looks good,” he told his brother.

Wrecker, at the last minute, decided that he also wants a tattoo, although his ideas are scattered and untethered to any sort of theme. Even as they approach the tattoo parlor, he is still undecided, claiming that it is going to be a surprise. 

“A tattoo is permanent,” Tech tells Wrecker again, having resigned himself to being tucked under Wrecker’s arm for the remainder of their trek. “You should at least have some sort of idea.” 

“I do,” Wrecker says, “My idea is that it will be the coolest tattoo in the entire galaxy.” 

“That is not an idea,” Tech sighs. 

At Tech’s direction, they turn off on a side street, the crowds petering off the further they walk. It doesn’t exactly feel like a bad part of town; however, it is less kept, the buildings showing their age and wear. Hunter is beginning to wonder if Tech got them lost when they turn another corner and a neon sign blinks the word “TATTOOS” at them, the flashing light practically searing into Hunter’s retinas. 

“They should get a brighter sign,” Crosshair snarks, “we almost missed it.” 

They step inside, and find the business deserted except for a human who stands up from a chair behind the counter. He is covered in colorful ink, his natural pigment completely lost under the tapestry of mismatched designs across every inch of his exposed skin. 

“Now that must’ve hurt,” Wrecker mutters to Tech, but he might as well have screamed it from the rooftops. 

Tech rolls his eyes. 

The man smiles, flashing white teeth. “Only hurts ‘til the pain goes away.”

“Naturally,” Tech agrees sardonically.

“I’m gonna guess you lot are here for some ink,” the man says. 

“They are, I am not,” Tech replies quickly. “I am here to observe.” 

“Not a fan of needles, huh?” the man asks. 

Tech opens his mouth to deny the accusation, but Wrecker gasps out, “Wait, needles?” 

Crosshair groans. “We went over this, Wrecker.”

“Yeah, well” Wrecker says, “it sounds different the way he says it.” 

“How?” 

Wrecker heaves his broad shoulders in a shrug. “I’ll just wait on my tattoo. Until I think of something good, ya know?”

Crosshair steps around Wrecker and jerks his head in Hunter’s direction. “He and I are getting tattoos. These are what we want.” He pulls two pieces of flimsi from his pocket with their chosen designs, pushing them across the counter. 

The man takes them, looking over the details. “Straightforward and to the point. I like that. C’mon around and we’ll get started.”

Hunter takes a deep breath. 

He’s not turning back now. 

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

Hunter and Crosshair decide to add to their armor to coordinate with their new tattoos. The next time they’re on Kamino, they find their leftover paint and set to work, Tech and Wrecker joining them. Inspired by Hunter’s new half skull tattoo, they decide to incorporate the symbol into all of their armor in some way. 

“So help me, Wrecker, if you tip over another can of paint…” Crosshair mutters, snatching up the at-risk bucket from Wrecker’s proximity. 

Wrecker is sprawled out on their barrack’s floor, taking up far more than his fair share of space. His paint brush flicks up, sending a spray of heavy duty white across the room. 

“You’re cleaning that up,” Tech says from his place at the table.

“No one will notice,” Wrecker assures them. “Maybe they’ll look like clean spots!”

Hunter sighs. “That’s not a good thing, Wreck.” 

Wrecker ignores the comment, instead dropping his paintbrush onto the tray Tech ordered him to use and holding up his helmet. “What do you think? It’s a skull.” 

“Not a human skull,” Tech points out. 

Wrecker shakes his head. “Human skulls are boring.” 

“There’s supposed to be red on your helmet somewhere,” Crosshair gripes. 

Wrecker reaches over and plucks Crosshair’s fine tipped paint brush out of his hand, the bristles still dripping red paint. Crosshair sputters a curse as Wrecker happily begins painting with the stolen utensil. 

“Hunter!” Crosshair cries, “Tell Wrecker to give it back.” 

 Hunter doesn’t even look up from his work. “Let’s share our toys like big kids,” he coos, earning a chuckle from Tech. 

“I’m gonna give it back in a second,” Wrecker says. “Almost done.” 

Crosshair growls something rude in Huttese. 

“There!” Wrecker says, tossing the brush back at Crosshair, the sniper catching it from the wrong end, paint staining the palm of his glove. Wrecker turns his helmet again to the room. “See? It’s perfect.” 

The number 99 is brandished across the forehead of his helmet in dripping red. 

“Subtle as usual, Wrecker,” Tech says. 

Wrecker grins. “Thanks!” 

Hunter sits back and admires his own helmet’s new design, carefully imitating his inked face. It’s exactly how he imagined it. 

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

“I like this color,” Omega says, pointing at a swatch of teal paint. “Oh, and this orange is nice.” 

Tech glances at Hunter, clearly questioning the decision to let Omega choose their new armor colors. Hunter shrugs. At least it will look…different. Which is exactly what they want. 

“What about this one?” Wrecker asks, pointing at the yellow swatch.

“Yes! I like that one too!” Omega cries. 

They purchase the three cans of paint and some brushes before heading back to the Marauder. Omega is beside herself with excitement. “Do you think the paint will work on my helmet?” she asks. 

“Sure, kid, ‘course it will,” Wrecker says cheerfully. 

“I’m gonna use orange on mine, then,” Omega says. 

That evening, spread out under the Marauder’s wing, the Batch set about repainting their armor. Wrecker can’t bear the thought of covering up the skull on his helmet, so he settles for removing the bright 99 from it instead, sanding it down and repainting the area white. With Omega’s help, he uses orange and yellow to accent the rest of his armor pieces. 

Tech and Echo decide to monopolize the orange paint, leaving very little to Hunter. With a sigh, he picks up the teal paint, and pries it open. Omega beams at him. “I think that will be a very nice color on you,” she tells him sincerely, and suddenly, the color doesn’t seem so bad. 

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

“All the armor’s been stripped. But we’re still not gonna blend in,” Echo says, tossing Hunter his helmet. 

The colors of his past lives have been removed with finality. He knows it is necessary; however, he can’t help but feel the pang of loss as he stares at the familiar piece of himself he’s had for so long, devoid of the visible memories lingering like ghosts behind him. 

Maybe they’ll paint their armor again, when all of this is over. 

If they all make it back. 

END

@the-little-moment and @just-here-with-my-thoughts 🥳 I can't believe we've only got 4 more stories/chapters each to go!

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[yukidragon]

Just wondering, in terms of the Sunny Time Crew Show, we know who’s Jack, but who are the other characters and what were their respective roles? Where can we find more information on what the TV show itself was about?

I’m afraid our clues so far are pretty limited. What we’ve been able to scrape together so far is some of the teaser tweets and the artwork Sauce made of the cast, one of which is used for official merchandise.

As always whenever I include some of the official publicly posted artwork for the series, I want to give full credit to Sauce for drawing it. They put a lot of hard work into this and deserve to be credited.

Remember, don’t repost the privately posted images from the SnaccPop Patreon. Let’s give our full support to Sauce and the team where we can, okay?

We know the names of the rest of the cast members thanks to a map of Cloudy Town. There were big, big plans, according to this map.

Starting us off is the star of the show, Sunny Day Jack, the main man himself. Even on the map, his school house is right there at the top, drawing immediate attention. It’s in his signature primary colors, though the print shown is worn with washed out colors.

Luckily, Sauce was kind enough to post a version of the map on their twitter that didn’t go through the aging process. Since the twitter is gone, allow me to show it here.

Directly from the school house is Knackadan Drizzle’s field. Quite the name, huh? It’s a pretty sporty place, fitting for a sports themed clown... or rather a coach themed clown?

While nothing has been confirmed for certain, it looks like Knackadan Drizzle was responsible for the lessons on the show that related to sports, likely also teamwork and cooperation as well. Fittingly, he is colored in shades of green and yellow like his field. I imagine even his green mustache might be something of a nod to the green grass on the field.

The playground isn’t associated with any one person, but right next to it is Daisy Chain Jane’s Joke Shop. Like Jack’s school, the joke shop sports primary colors, similar to Jane’s design.

Now Daisy Chain Jane is a pretty interesting character. Those who remember this post I made about the SunnyTime Town AU might recall that Daisy Chain Jane is a character exclusive to that AU rather than the fictional world of the show.

Then again, Buddy existed in the show as a belt puppet that apparently could talk, so it’s possible that Jane might exist in the show’s canon as well.

My guess is that there were plans to have her character introduced during the next season as Jack’s big sister. After all, the map itself was posted with the caption that there were big plans. Jack’s murder certainly scrapped any future for the SunnyTime Crew Show... at least 40 years ago.

Next we have Rory Rainberry’s Bakery in shades of purple, pink, orange, and red. Some of you might know his actor Jean Laurent, but the character he plays seems to be a lot more wholesome than this candid shot.

As suggested by this picture and the map, Rory is a baker. I’m sure he teaches kids about nutrition, staying healthy, eating sweets in moderation, and maybe a few simple cooking recipes they can do at home like putting peanut butter onto celery.

Finally we have Cloudy-Belle Sue and her white, pink, and pastel blue library. Sadly, we don’t have a picture of her alone, but I suspect that she was in charge of story time with the children, likely using fables to teach important lessons that are outside the scope of the more grounded parts of the show.

Overall, the show seems to have been aimed at young children, teaching life lessons in a way they can digest easily, with cheerful clowns in bright colors acting as both their teachers and friends. CloudyTown was meant to be a place of fun and learning. It’s hard to say for sure what the age range of its target demographic was exactly, but I’m sure we’ll find out in the game’s full release when we get a look into the backstory of the show.

I will point out though for those who might not have caught it - the colors of each character’s locations seem to correspond with the main colors in the characters’ clothes and hair. The main colors of the show, as shown by the logo and at the bottom of the map, seems to make it clear that Jack was always intended to be the main character, no matter what he says that there is no leader of the crew during the interview.

@channydraws @earthgirlaesthetic @sai-of-the-7-stars

[lostcybertronian]

Migraine

A Humanformers!Dratchet drabble brought to life from @breakdownsbuttlights AU. I like their thoughts on Drift with migraines and thought the angst/hurt/comfort potential was too much not to do anything about it.

Also: I have five of these planned. They'll all be on my A03 when I'm done.

Also also: migraines with aura significantly increase your chances of a stroke.

---

“What’s going on with you?” It was Ratchet who broke the silence that’d been festering all evening, punctuated only by the sound of his fork scraping the plate clean, and Drift’s fork clanking the plate as he nudged his food around, not eating. He’d have liked Drift to tell him himself what was wrong– of course he’d noticed something was off the moment he stepped in the door, he was a doctor, goddamnit, and a pale, shaky, quiet Drift meant something was off– but Drift remained a stubborn ass, refusing to speak up. 

Ratchet had finally had enough. He set his fork down and stood from his chair, noting Drift’s wince when the chair legs grated across the linoleum floor, and reached out to lay the back of his hand on Drift’s forehead, only to scowl when Drift stubbornly ducked his head away. “‘M fine,” he muttered. “It’s just a little headache.”

“‘Little headache,’ my ass.” Ratchet spat. “You can barely open your eyes, and I’d bet a considerable amount of money you have a fever. You’re taking some medicine, and then you’re going to bed. Ah-” He said, as Drift started to protest- “think twice.”

Drift shut his mouth, and was quiet as Ratchet bustled into the kitchen. Rummaged through drawers. Came back and plunked a glass of water and three Advil tablets on the table in front of him and said, “Drink. If you keep that down you get Tylenol in two hours.”

He did. But the subsequent attempt to help him out of the chair nearly ended up with them both on the floor as Drift’s knees buckled beneath him and he sagged with a pained noise. 

“You’re lucky I love you,” Ratchet told him as he bundled him into his arms, though he was secretly pleased as Drift immediately sank into his touch, curling his head into the crook of his shoulder. Drift’s forehead was damp and clammy where it pressed to his skin, and limp strands of black hair tickled his neck. But Ratchet’s hands were too full to brush them aside. He carried Drift into the bedroom and carefully deposited him onto the duvet without turning on the light. Even the slightest glimmer could be painful during one of his migraines.

“I’m going to undress you, now.” He said, before stripping Drift down to his underthings, bundling his clothes together, and dropping them into the hamper. Drift didn’t say a word throughout this process, merely tracked his movements will dull gold eyes gone glassy with pain.

He did seem more relaxed after Ratchet was done, having tucked him under the covers with the promise of being back after he cleared the table, but just as the doctor was turning to go he snagged his wrist.

“I didn’t want to worry you.” He murmured, shutting his eyes with a grimace.

Ratchet sighed. “You worry me more when you don’t tell me these things, you idiot,” he said, and leaned over to press a kiss to his lips. “What color is my aura today?”

Those pretty gold eyes opened, then squinted. “Green-orange.”

Another sigh. Another kiss. “You’re damn lucky you haven’t had a stroke.”

[ninjagirlstar5]

Protag Teruya AU - [Act 1] The Price of a Forged Bond - Day 1 Part 5

TWs: Recovering Injuries, Discussion of Past Violence and Death

Also, Yuri being Yuri.

AO3 Version

Act I Cover

Act 1 Prologue Day 1: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

Chapters Prologue [The Lost of You in a Strange Place]

Disclaimer: While Sannotori is problematic, it’s a thing in this AU/fic and the dynamic is not the same as it is in canon.

The Protag Teruya AU was inspired by @/anotherprofessional’s post! Beware of Void spoilers though!

Teruya groans, trying desperately not to fall asleep. He had moved from his chair to the empty bed as he was getting tired of sitting in it all day. But it was hard to resist the temptation of sleep. Not without some kind of distraction. Thankfully, Setsuka had gone ahead and gotten him some books to read to pass the time. They were all mystery novels and she handed him some pen and paper so he could jot down his own ideas on solving the mysteries in it. It would also keep his brain from falling asleep. She then left to rejoin the group, leaving him all alone.

And now, here he was, staring at the book in his hands while lying on his back and trying to wrap his brain around what was going on. Teruya was enjoying it, sure, but he had absolutely no idea what the answer was. The clues were there, he had been taking note of it, but he had no idea how each one fit together.

Teruya had flipped a page when he heard a groan.

He sits up, staring intently at Mikado’s moving form. The wizard groans again, turning onto his back before slowly, finally opening his eyes. He stares blankly at the ceiling like he was processing where he was. Teruya shakes as he lets out a breath.

“M-Mikado…!” Teruya jumps out of his bed and drops his book. It hits the mattress as he makes his way over to Mikado’s side, his hands hitting the bed as he leans over. The wizard blinks at him with slow, widening eyes. “You’re awake!”

“A…wake…?” Mikado murmured, tilting his head at him. He lifts his hand and proceeds to touch his face. He pauses, feeling around as if he was searching for something. Upon realizing that it wasn’t there, his breathing went short and his pupils shrunk. “A…Aaah…”

“Mikado? M-Mikado, what’s wrong?” Teruya reaches for him but Mikado immediately turns away, covering his face with his hands.

“M-My…My mask! Where’s my mask?!” Mikado blindly grabs at his surroundings. With those words, it finally clicks. Teruya rushes to the other side of the bed to the table where he left Mikado’s mask.

“I-It’s right here, Mikado! It’s right here!” He grabs the mask and waves it over to Mikado. The wizard pauses, his eyes darting to it and then his face before swiping it from his hand. Teruya winces at the sting from the mask being forced out of his grip but he doesn't complain. He just watches as Mikado turns his back to him and pats down the mask. His breathing slows but he can sense the tension radiating off of his shoulders.

“...It’s broken.” Mikado said matter of factly. Teruya pulls his chair over and sits down.

“Y-Yeah…it split in half when you hit the ground.” He scoots his chair closer, scraping it across the floor. The sound makes Mikado glance at him, but only for a moment as he keeps his back to him. Teruya inhales. “You’re lucky. Really damn lucky that you didn’t have any other injuries. Seriously…I’m…so glad you’re awake…”

“...I…I see.” Mikado runs his fingers over his mask and slowly puts it back on. Once it was settled back over his face, he slowly turned to him. His mask was almost cleanly broken in half, covering up his burn scars but revealing the other half of his face underneath. With the mask back in its rightful place, the wizard’s expression almost seemed…off. It was carefully blank, with half-lidded eyes, eyebrows that were deceivingly relaxed, and a neutral frown. With a blink of his eye, the mask suddenly comes back to life with its red expression. It wasn’t smiling but with the way his real eye moves, he can tell that he’s looking right at him. “...How long have I been unconscious?”

“Uhh…” Teruya looks at his watch. “I’d say nearly a whole day.”

“A whole day…” The mask frowns, and yet, Mikado’s real face doesn’t move at all. Teruya couldn’t help but feel unnerved at the sight. The wizard grips the covers underneath, slowly inhaling and exhaling repeatedly. He sat there awkwardly, unsure of what else he should say or do. Just when he thought to speak up, Mikado beats him to it. “Has anything else happened?”

“Ah, r-right. So, basically…”

Teruya spent at least an hour or so catching Mikado up on what had happened. From everyone recovering from their injuries, including Nikei and his concussion, what they have all been doing and the updates they’ve given him, and how Teruya was trying to keep everything together. He tried to downplay his role as it still felt surreal, thinking that people were looking to him as a leader. But it was a part of the reality he found himself in and he didn’t think it’d make sense to omit it. Mikado is a part of the group, so he’d eventually figure out the shift in dynamics. The wizard himself was mostly silent as he listened, nodding along up until he finished his report.

“So that’s what happened.” Mikado stares down at his lap. He hasn’t loosened his grip on the covers the whole time he was talking. “...So, you’ll be going by the name ‘Teruya Otori’ then?”

“Yeah. If it’s really my name, then I won’t even have to change it.” Teruya said, rubbing the back of his neck. “Besides, I…feel like it fits. When they said my name…” He swallows when his mind flashes back to the two women claiming to rescue them. Or at least, what was left of them. “..I-It just fits. You know?”

“...I see. At least you’ve found a part of yourself, Mr. Otori.” Mikado said, catching him off guard at the formal use of his name. It’s not like he hasn’t been referring to everyone formally, he just…wasn’t expecting it. Perhaps Teruya shouldn’t have assumed that they were so close. It’s only been a day, after all. “And…Ms. Mitsume…you said she’s here? In the Monocruise?”

“Uhh…yeah, she is.” Teruya admits, dropping his hand. “She should be in her room since I doubt Nikei got her to leave. Why?”

Mikado sat up straight.

And then his mask shifts, darkening in color as its red eye glows.

“Why, I’m going to kill her of course.”

“Wha…” Teruya's jaw drops but when Mikado starts getting out of the bed, he immediately moved to stop him. “Mikado, no! You lost the first fight and got hurt!”

“It doesn't matter! She’s forcing us to kill each other, and I won’t allow it! So don’t stop me!” Mikado yells, spitting out venom as he tries to push Teruya away. He even manages to grab at his face. Unfortunately for him, the amnesiac still managed to grab his shoulders and pinned him against the bed. Mikado struggles and squirms underneath, trying to break free even though he could probably use his magic against him easily. “Teruya! She needs to be stopped, right now!”

“I know that! But I’m not going to let you become a murderer!” Teruya snapped. Mikado pauses in his struggle to break free but his expression doesn’t change. No, his mask does but his real face remained the same. Why? Why does his face stay like that? And the mask was narrowing its eye, like it was staring him down even though Teruya clearly had the advantage over him right now. Physically, anyway. The wizard slowly loosens his grip on his face, still grabbing at his cheek but feeling more like a caress than a fight for some kind of control.

A fight that barely got started when it was broken up by the least likely person yet.

“I’m afraid I will not allow you to do that, Mr. Sannoji. It is against the rules.” Monocrow pops up between them, making the both of them jolt at the interruption. Mikado was the first to recover, pushing Teruya off of him and he stumbled to his feet, trying not to fall over. He manages to right himself just when Mikado speaks.

“Excuse me? Are you asking me to kill you, Monocrow?” Mikado almost spat at him, his eyes glowing red with the threat. Teruya shudders but he can’t help but feel confused about Monocrow’s words. And naturally, that led him to ask questions.

“Rules? What do you mean by ‘rules?’ Isn’t this a killing game?” Teruya furrows his brow, trying to understand what he was hearing. Monocrow glances at Teruya and then Mikado, who looked like he was readying another spell of destruction. He then sighs and lowers his head.

“I was hoping to explain everything at once tomorrow. After all, it’d be inconvenient for me to explain over and over again just for a student that was still unconscious. And I have yet to hand out everyone’s e-handbook+s which have all the rules in them to look at whenever you need a reminder. However, since you’re planning to attack Kokoro Mitsume with magic, I have no choice but to intervene now even though I haven’t enforced the rules yet.” Monocrow then clears his…throat? Or whatever is the equivalent for a bird, and rubs his beak as he speaks. “In order to make sure you’re on good behavior, Ms. Mitsume and I have made Rule 16: Any use of magic against myself, Kokoro Mitsume, or used for destruction of property including cameras, drones, and mechs are strictly forbidden. Any violation of this rule…”

He pauses, his red eye glowing as he stares down Mikado.

“...will result in the death of a fellow student.”

The magic radiating off of Mikado immediately dissipates. And Teruya, upon processing the rule, was hit with what it meant for him. For all of them.

In order to restrict the most powerful student among them in the group…

…the mastermind was holding all of them hostage.

Even if killing Kokoro, Monocrow, and every other mech in the vicinity solved their problem, there was no guarantee that Mikado would be able to do it fast enough to prevent someone from dying as a consequence.

Not only that, even Mikado had his limits. He had to split his focus on protecting the class and fighting Kokoro at the same time, which played a factor into his loss against her.

No matter how powerful he is, Mikado couldn’t protect everyone.

And he knew this too, as his mask’s eye went wide in horror.

“You…You’ve got to be kidding me…” Mikado’s soft voice was laced with anguish and, perhaps, helplessness. He grabs a hold of the covers, looking like he was going to rip it in half. “You…You can’t do that!”

“I can, and I will.” Monocrow flaps his wing almost dismissively. “Now, unless you wish to get a student killed, you’ll follow Rule 16…won’t you?”

Mikado’s hands shook. From anger, from fear, perhaps from both.

But Teruya knew as well as him, that there was nothing they could do.

Not without risking another person’s life.

So Mikado let go of the blanket and his mask scowled.

“Fine. Clearly, my hands are tied here.” Mikado concedes, very, very reluctantly. Monocrow chuckles and Teruya had half the mind to strangle him, mechanical bird or not.

“Good. With that settled, I will take my leave. Do not do anything until given further instructions.” And just like that, he flies underneath the bed and disappears. The moment he was gone, Mikado buries his head into the pillow.

“...Damn him! Damn her!” Mikado slams his fist against the mattress, over and over again. “Damn it! Damn it…! Damn it…damn it…”

“Mikado…” Teruya…didn’t have any ideas to work around this rule. Just trying to work around it or even going against it would risk someone else’s life. And he couldn’t see any loopholes they could use. Not that Teruya wanted Mikado to murder Kokoro Mitsume. Even if she deserved it as the mastermind, he didn’t want Mikado’s hands to be stained with blood.

The dark look he had back in the park was the last time he ever wanted to see an expression like that on his face. Mask or real.

“I didn’t…I didn’t want this…” Mikado said, muffled as his face was still buried into the pillow. Teruya hesitates before slowly setting his hand on the wizard’s back. He stiffens but doesn’t push him away, so Teruya quietly rubs his hand up and down his back gently. He can feel the wizard breathing underneath his touch, slowly and carefully with each rise and fall of his back. When he has calmed down enough, Mikado turns his head, no longer hiding his face in the pillow and staring right at Teruya. “...I’m sorry, Mr. Otori. I wasn’t able to stop her.”

“It’s okay, Mikado. Neither of us could have seen this coming.” Teruya pats his back. As amazing as it would have been to stop the killing game before it could even get started, the likelihood of that happening was pretty low. And now, the chances were even lower due to Rule 16 preventing Mikado from outright fighting Kokoro again.

He didn’t hold it against the Ultimate Wizard. No matter how powerful Mikado was, he was still human. And because he was human, he made mistakes, and his off-the-cuff plan just didn’t work.

“Even then…I should’ve been more careful. I jumped the gun and attacked her without being smart about it. I even put all of you in danger.” The mask twists, as if it was about to cry on behalf of its owner. “I’m sorry.”

“Hey, I’m not mad. You tried your best, Mikado. And I’m glad you did.” Teruya kneels beside the bed, making eye contact with the wizard. Well, he was trying to. But Mikado’s real eye refused to meet his. But that’s fine. “It’s just that…this plan won’t work again. Not that I want you to do that. I don’t want you to kill someone, Mikado. Not for any pacifist reasons or anything, I just…” He trails off. His hand lingers beside Mikado’s hair but he pulls away. “I don’t want you to become a murderer. That’s all.”

“...Thank you, Mr. Otori.” Mikado puts his head back into the pillow. “I appreciate your sentiment. But I would still do it, if it meant protecting you and everyone else.”

“...I see.” Teruya murmured. He didn’t feel as disturbed as he was before. Perhaps because he understood Mikado’s own desire to protect everyone. He didn’t want to see anyone get hurt, so of course he’d go after the one responsible behind this entire situation. But that was then, and this is now. So he changes the subject. “Are you hungry? I think the others should be eating dinner by now.”

“...I fear my appetite is currently nonexistent.” Mikado curls in on himself, grabbing the pillow to cuddle it. Teruya frowns.

“Mikado, you’ve been unconscious for an entire day. You must be really hungry by now and none of us know how to use IVs.” Teruya stands and pats down his pants. “At least let me get something you can digest easier. You don’t have to eat everything but you should have something, even if it’s just rice.”

Mikado looks at him, opening his mouth to speak.

Only to get cut off by the sound of his stomach growling.

Mikado stares down at his body for its “betrayal” while Teruya just gives him a flat look. The wizard just rolls onto his stomach and tries to hide his blushing face.

“...I won’t deny it any further.” Mikado muttered, which might as well be the closest to agreement that Teruya is going to get.

“Alright. I’ll be back, then.” Teruya said, patting Mikado’s back one last time before leaving the infirmary. Since he already knew where the dining hall was, it only took him a minute to enter. Upon opening the door, he saw that everyone was already cleaning up. He guessed that the group was eating but maybe he was just a little off on his timing. And it looks like he had walked in on a lively moment.

“Oh, oh! Kanade! Is that a Kemono Friends keychain?” Iroha said, pointing at said keychain which was hanging off of a bag that was apparently hidden underneath Kanade’s sweater. The guitarist blinks her eyes before shyly hiding the bag with a smile.

“O-Oh, yes…I, uh, kinda forgot I had this on me.” Kanade stopped cleaning the table with her rag. “Wh-What about it?”

“I have one, too! Er, I don’t have it right now but I love anime! It’s one of my favorite pastimes! Do you have a favorite show?” Iroha holds her sketchbook close to her chest, her excitement radiating through the shine of her eyes.

“Eww, anime?! That’s so creepy!” Hibiki buds in on this sweet moment, cringing as she puts a bunch of silverware into a cup. “What are you, an otaku?”

“Y-You don’t have to go that far! I just like anime, that’s all!” The excitement fades from her eyes but she keeps her attention on Kanade. The guitarist pauses before brushing a strand of hair behind her ear.

“W-Well…I don’t watch a l-lot of anime. But one of my f-favorites is…Corpse Party.” Kanade gives her answer to Iroha, who quickly goes pale.

“T-That gory series?!” Iroha steps away, almost hiding behind Hibiki. The singer raises an eyebrow at this, but she doesn’t push her away. Almost like she was sharing the same thoughts as Iroha right then and there. Kanade just gives them a sweet smile their way.

“Hey, quiet down over there! There’s no need to fight over something as trivial as a favorite media or hobbies.” Hajime calls out to the three of them, putting down a salmon sushi rice bowl on a tray. While he was doing that, another conversation was happening nearby.

“So you see, as I was sitting there, I decided to…!” Yuri was following Setsuka and Emma, apparently talking about some kind of story. One that Teruya lacked any details about since he walked right in the middle of it.

“You know, Big Sis can handle all sorts of people…” Setsuka tosses some plates into the kitchen sink. She was too far away for him to see her expression, but it wasn’t very hard to guess. “...but this one tires me out.”

“Well, we did agree to have these dinners…” Emma said, tossing away a few napkins. Looks like Yuri was still bothering the girls. What else is new?

“Quiet! QUIEEET!! Let’s all try to clean up in peace!!” Shinji’s boisterous yells echo throughout the room. But unlike the time in the infirmary, it was only adding to the noise rather than dispel it.

“I think my headache is flaring back up…” Nikei was leaning against the table, having propped his elbow on top and covering his face with his hand. Even though he could easily hide his face if he tilted his hat just a little bit.

“Geez, at this rate we might as well be at a concert since no one will quiet down.” Yoruko shakes her head while closing her eyes.

“Yeah, I give up too.” Yuki slumps, gripping his tie as he resigned himself to the mayhem. Teruya felt awkward, just hovering over by the door. But before he could even think of something to say, Yuki turns towards the entrance and brightens upon seeing him. “Teruya! You’re here!”

Those words were enough for everyone to stop what they were doing and turn towards him. Teruya can feel himself breaking into a cold sweat. But he couldn’t freeze up here. They were all looking at him, so it’s important for him to respond in a way that satisfies them. The amnesiac takes a moment to breathe and then speaks.

“Hey, everyone. Have you guys already finished eating dinner?” Teruya asked, sounding much calmer than he really was. A look at the table revealed all that was left was the two trays Hajime had been organizing with food.

“Yep, yep!” It was Hibiki, who had switched from berating Iroha and her sister to her usual cheerful attitude. She waves her hands at him as she continues. “We were just finishing up and are putting together some leftovers for you!”

“Oh, really?” That actually put a smile on Teruya’s face. “That’s very considerate of you guys, thank you.”

“It’s not a problem. But…why are you here?” Yoruko smiles at him but has crossed her arms, raising an eyebrow at him. “I thought you’d still be watching Mikado?”

“Actually, I got great news!” Teruya couldn’t help but be delighted despite what had happened earlier. After all, it was news no one would be unhappy about. “Mikado just woke up!”

“Oh my God, really?!” Iroha’s eyes lit up like a Christmas tree, bouncing around the table to meet Teruya up close. Her cheer quickly calms down, though, as she starts playing with her hair nervously. “How is he? Can he move? Is he still in pain?? Oooh, I hope not!”

“Mikado’s awake?! GREAT!!! Let’s all go see him! Right now!!” Shinji’s yell completely bulldozes over whatever answer Teruya was about to give Iroha, making his way right over to him.

“Oh, great. Looks like I’ll have to deal with another despicable male after all.” Yuri said out loud even though he probably should’ve kept that to himself.

“Will you quit that?? Even a guy like you should be happy that he didn’t die!” Nikei immediately whirled around to chew out Yuri. The astronaut clearly could care less, as he had crossed his arms and pouted with a huff. In fact, it looked like no one’s glares were reaching his heart, not even the girls. Nikei shakes his head before walking up to Teruya with his notepad in his hand. “Now, before I forget…Teruya! Do you wanna be in an article??”

“Uh, an article?” Teruya asked, furrowing his brow.

“An article! For protecting Yuki’s life!” Nikei’s eyes shine like he had found the most opportune scoop yet. It seems like he had completely switched gears now that things were starting to calm down. Teruya smiles but he bows his head.

“Thanks, Nikei. But I’m afraid I’ll have to turn you down.” It wasn’t that Teruya didn’t mind being in one. He just didn’t want that kind of attention spread around like he was some kind of savior. Nikei slumps but then shrugs.

“Well, not much I can do about that. I’m not the kind of journalist that would run around posting things without someone’s consent. Unless they’re corrupt authority figures, then it’s free game.” Nikei huffs, tipping his hat over his head. He almost seemed pleased at the thought alone but the expression quickly faded from his face. “So, Mikado is feeling better?”

“Yeah. I’m glad everyone is receptive to this news, especially since some of you guys want to visit him.” Teruya said, smiling at his group.

“I mean, it is good news! We were all worried about Mikado and if he’ll ever recover…” Yuki joins Shinji, Iroha, and Nikei crowding around him. His relief quickly shifts into what seems to be worry though. “But…no one has seen Syobai all day. Are we sure he’s not plotting something?”

“Don’t worry. I haven’t seen the guy at all while guarding the infirmary. So I think it’s safe to assume that he won’t make his presence known anytime soon.” Hajime was quick to reassure Yuki, having his hand on his hip and joining the growing crowd.

“Have you guys exchanged information?” Teruya changes the subject. He didn’t think it was productive to talk about Syobai right now. He said his piece and then left them alone, just like he said he would. That was enough for Teruya to believe him.

“Nah, not yet.” It was Setsuka that answered him. “We figured it’d be easier to share it with you instead of repeating ourselves all over again.”

“And since Mikado is awake now, we should bring our investigation results to him as well!” Emma adds on with a point of her finger. “Not only would this light-hearted atmosphere help with the tension, it would also keep him in the loop of everything. Nothings worse than feeling like you’re being left out, after all!”

“I feel like everyone’s a little too relaxed.” Yuki furrows his brow, but his comment goes completely ignored by the rest of the group.

“Ah, okay. I think this is a great idea everyone. I’m sure Mikado would be happy to have visitors.” Teruya then cranes his neck to look at the table. “Do we have anything that Mikado can easily digest? He hasn’t eaten anything for almost a day, after all.”

“Oh, yeah. Here, let me help you make a plate.” Hajime walks back to the table, gesturing for Teruya to follow him. He does so and he hears some conversations being picked up again between everyone as they go through the leftovers. After a bit of back and forth with Hajime and what would be best for Mikado, they settle on a plate of japanese rice soup with a small amount of vegetables, mushrooms, and eggs alongside a glass of plain water. Once they were done, Teruya helped put away the rest of the leftovers and then carried his own tray, which had the salmon sushi rice bowl, chicken katsu, and some green tea that Emma made.

With everything cleaned up, Yuki picks up Mikado’s tray and the group leaves the dining hall, making their way to the infirmary. Upon entering, they see Mikado playing with his hat almost despondently. But when he looks up and sees them approaching, he drops it and his mask’s eye goes wide as a circle.

“M-Mr. Otori…? Why is everyone here?” Mikado asked, pulling his legs closed to his chest. Teruya sends him a smile as he sets his tray down on the table.

“I told them that you were awake and they were all so happy about it that they wanted to see you!” Teruya said, sitting back down on his chair. Mikado blinks his eyes when Yuki holds out his tray for him to take.

“That’s…” Mikado looks away from the group, taking the tray from Yuki so he can stare at it instead. “Y-You didn’t have to…worry about my health.”

“Mikado.” Teruya snaps his chopsticks in half, but the break wasn’t as clean as he had hoped as there’s a block of wood on one of the chopsticks. He pouts but focuses on the conversation at hand instead. “You literally stuck your neck out trying to protect everyone, but got hurt in the process. Of course everyone would be worried.”

“Yes, we wanted nothing more than your swift recovery!” Emma adds, crossing her arms as she gives him a look of concern.

“We wouldn’t be good classmates if we didn’t express some kind of concern for you, you know?” Yuki scratches his cheek as he blushes.

“YOUR BRAVERY DESERVES TO BE RESPECTED!!!” Shinji yells again, and just like before, Mikado cringes and curls into himself. Upon seeing this, the firefighter immediately gets embarrassed, his face turning a little red as he looks away. “Uh…sorry.”

“Don’t worry about it, Shin. What’s important is that Mikado is awake and is feeling better.” Setsuka sends a smile Mikado’s way.

“And if you need cheering up, me and Kanade will give you a concert! Right here, right now!” Hibiki points at the wizard, her eyes glinting like she was going to pull out a microphone out of nowhere.

“A-Ah…! If we’re going to do that, I-I’ll need to grab my guitar!” Kanade curls her hands into fists and raises them, quickly sharing her sister’s enthusiasm. Unlike usual, she seemed to be all for this idea despite it being dropped out of nowhere from her spontaneous sister.

“Ooo, I know! I’ll draw you a picture! I’m sure it’ll cheer you up!” Iroha immediately opens up her sketchbook and starts sketching something out with a pencil she actually pulled out of nowhere. Maybe she has a hidden pouch or something.

“Be sure to eat your food! You’ll need all the energy you can get after being unconscious for so long.” Hajime started nagging, like usual, but he was also smiling. Clearly, he was relieved to see Mikado recovering.

“Yeah, if you need anything, I can go grab it for you.” Yoruko plays with her boa scarf. She hasn’t quite relaxed yet, but she seemed to be willing to do anything she can to help Mikado.

“Unlike some people, we do care about your health, at least.” Nikei tacks on, not so subtly sending a glare Yuri’s way. The astronaut notices and glares back.

“Alright, alright. Let’s not start another fight, you guys. We’re here to support Mikado, not cause drama between each other.” Teruya was quick to step in, giving both Yuri and Nikei a warning with his eyes. Yuri, of course, completely ignores him but it wasn’t unnoticed by Nikei, who sputters.

“I-It’s not my fault that he started it!” The journalist was quick to defend himself, but Hajime bumps him with his elbow. Nikei winces and rubs his arm. “Alright, alright, I’ll drop it. Doesn’t mean I’ll let it slide, though…”

“Haha…” The exchange actually got Mikado to chuckle as he stared down at his tray. He plays with his spoon before he starts to mutter in a small voice. “...Thank you for visiting. I’m flattered.”

“It’s not a problem, Mikado.” Teruya said, giving him a smile before grabbing some sushi with his chopsticks. After chewing on the piece, he notices how quiet everyone has gotten. The only other sound was Mikado slowly going through his food, his spoon clinking against his bowl in the process. Remembering the rest of the agenda they had set out to do, Teruya swallows. “Ahem, anyways. Since we’re all here together, how about we exchange investigation reports?”

“You’ve all been investigating?” Mikado tilts his head at the group.

“Yep!” Hibiki said, putting her hands on hips and puffing out her chest. “We’ve been really busy trying to find a way out, so don’t you worry.”

“Th-That being said, we haven’t made much progress…” Kanade admits, tilting her head down as she folds her hands behind her back. Hibiki snaps her head towards her sister.

“Hey! Don’t downplay our efforts, Kanade!” The singer pokes her finger at her chest, which causes Kanade to jolt.

“S-Sorry, Sis!” Kanade raises her hands in the hopes of placating her sister.

“Yeah, let’s share what we’ve been doing right now!” Iroha starts to jump on that idea until her eyes land on Mikado and she starts to backpedal. “U-Unless Mikado isn’t feeling well enough for this…”

“No, I’m fine.” Mikado cuts in before anyone could have second guesses. He sets his spoon down in his bowl and adjusts his sitting position. “I want to know what everyone has been doing. I don’t want to be a burden.”

“You’re not a burden, Mikado. You just lost a fight, that’s all.” Yuki reassures him as he tug on his tie. The wizard glances at him but doesn’t say anything else.

“Well…in that case, let Big Sis start off with the basic information.” Setsuka said, raising her hand while putting the other on her hip. “We’re on an island named Utsuroshima, a.k.a. The Isle of Nowhere. As the name suggests, it’s completely deserted. None of us came across anyone else on this island, and we did a complete sweep of it.”

“It wasn’t that hard to do, since you can circle the entire island just by walking.” Hajime adds on, crossing his arms. “It’s…surprisingly small. But aside from the buildings, it looks like no one has been here for a while.”

“It’s weird…” Yuki speaks up, curling his fist near his chin. “I’ve never heard of an island named ‘Utsuroshima’ or the ‘Isle of Nowhere.’ I can’t even make a guess as to where it is.”

“No one found a map?” Teruya raises an eyebrow as he chews on his chicken. Hajime sighs and shakes his head.

“Nope. Nothing. Not even a compass.” He said, letting his hands fall to his side. “Which also means using the ship or building a raft is out of the question. If we can’t find a way to guide ourselves on the sea, we’ll run out of supplies before we even see a little bit of land.”

“I mean, Japan can’t be that far from us, right?” Hibiki asked, curling her eyebrows. “It’s not like you can kidnap someone and move them halfway across the world in a single day, right?”

“S-Sis…Utsuroshima is a tropical island a-and Japan doesn’t have any t-tropical climates…” Kanade replies to her sister, keeping her head down. She starts playing with the bowtie of her uniform. “It’s probably further south, past Okinawa.”

“...Huh?!” Hibiki turns to her sister with a glare. “Are you doubting your older sister’s logic, Kanade?!”

“Wh-What? No!” Kanade tears up, holding her hands up to her face. “I-I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it like that!”

“Hibiki…please. This kind of open discussion is important if we want to understand our situation better.” Teruya said, verbally stepping in to keep Hibiki on track. Seriously, why does she keep doing that? Well, it’s something to talk about later since now wasn’t the time. Hibiki huffs but crosses her arms and grips her shoulder. Surprisingly, another person speaks up on the matter.

“Actually, I agree with Lady Hibiki.” Yuri said, subtly opposing Kanade’s opinion without outright saying it. The guitarist snaps her gaze at him intently. “It’s too early to conclude that Utsuroshima is a part of the tropical region.”

“Huh? Why’s that?” Nikei raises an eyebrow at Yuri. The astronaut, however, crossed his arms with a scowl.

“Like I’d tell you, you cur.” Yuri turns his nose up and Nikei grinds his teeth. Teruya tries not to sigh and exercises his patience with the astronaut.

“Yuri, please. At least tolerate us for the sake of the girls in the group?” Teruya asked, feeling bad that he had to play into Yuri’s misandry in order to get him to cooperate. Unfortunately, it seems this time that was the wrong thing to say as Yuri turns his ire onto him.

“And if it were up to me, I’d have kicked you all out by now.” Yuri tilts his head at him, almost like there was a darkness shadowing across his face. Teruya couldn’t stop himself cringing at the sight. Dammit, Yuri…!

“Yuri.” Emma speaks, sweeping in to rescue the conversation before it could go even more downhill. “Please explain your reasoning.”

“But of course, Lady Emma!” Yuri immediately brightens up and raises his hands. Teruya slumps and Nikei curses underneath his breath. The astronaut was pretty much the definition of ‘exhausting.’ Yuri points up to the ceiling as he finally clarifies his logic. “Basically, the climate is tropical but the plants and ecosystem are similar to that of Japan’s.”

“Eh? How’s that possible?” Shinji asked, his pupils shrinking as he raised his hand. Something clicks in Teruya’s brain and he speaks up.

“Is it…because the tropical and East Asian climates seemed to have merged? If we're still in Japan, the weather would make more sense here...” Teruya frowns, rubbing his head as he tries to understand how the hell that works. “It does look like a southern island at a glance…and yet, it’s not? Kinda like it’s fake somehow…” He trails off at his own offhand comment but shakes his head. “N-Nevermind, I’m probably mistaken–”

“No. I think you’re both right.”

Teruya blinks, turning towards Mikado with raised eyebrows. Yuri does the same, but he seems far more displeased. Like someone had just stolen his thunder.

Well, too bad for him. He doubts the girls’ opinions will flip around just like that.

“I will say now, that an island like this is impossible to exist. At least, naturally through Mother Nature.” Mikado crosses his legs, his mask frowning as he stares into his bowl. “As Mr. Kagarin and Mr. Otori have pointed out, these facts contradict each other and yet, this is the island we have found ourselves on. Which means, it’s an island made for an unknown purpose by other humans.”

“S-Seriously?!” Yuki gapes, raising his hand in shock.

“Now that you mention it…” Yoruko’s pupils shrink in realization, her hand curling over her chest. “Even though it’s an island, the weather doesn’t feel hot or cold. It’s actually decently cool.”

“You’re right…Even though I’m wearing a fur coat, I don’t feel hot at all.” Emma rubs her cheek, staring at her own coat when she realizes this fact.

“That’s…” Teruya couldn’t hide his unease, his face going pale. His chopsticks nearly fall out of his hand but he quickly reaffirms his grip on them. “Wait, if this is all artificial, how much can we trust our own eyes? Or even our ears? How much of what we’re seeing is even real–”

“Stop, stop, stop!” Yoruko waves her hands back and forth, her own face going pale. “Let’s not go that far! I don’t want to think about how messed up that would be!”

“S-Sorry…” Teruya presses his hand against his chest. He takes slow, deep breaths to calm his racing heart. Now wasn’t the time to panic. He needed to remain as calm as he could, for the sake of his group. Besides, it’s entirely possible that he was overthinking it. For all he knew, it was just an island that was made by humans years ago but was eventually abandoned.

“...Is that it? Do we not have any other updates?” Hajime asked, raising an eyebrow at everyone. Yoruko, very reluctantly, turns to Yuri.

“Weren’t you working on a communications device, Yuri? Have you even started yet?” Yoruko crosses her arms, glaring at the astronaut before her. He smiles at her, but it wasn’t his usual wide grins.

“I’m afraid not, but I assure you it's because I’m still going through the materials I would need for one. I can’t begin without having what I need, after all!” Yuri was relaxed with his words, and was thankfully straight to the point. “I should be able to gather everything from the mart tomorrow morning.”

“Well, at least that’s progress for something, even if it’s from Yuri.” Hajime said, scratching the back of his head. Of course, since he said that out loud, Yuri heard him and clicked his tongue. He starts muttering Russian words in Hajime’s direction, all with a dark glint in his eyes. Probably calling him rude names and such. The boxer completely ignores him. “Aside from that, no one seems to have found anything legit despite searching the entire island.”

“Yeah. I even tried out the swimming idea but after an hour, I realized that I was only seeing an endless sea.” Shinji speaks, his voice lower than his usual volume as he hangs his head. Whether it’s because of Mikado’s sensitivity to loud noises or because he was feeling shame for his failure, Teruya wasn’t sure. “I decided it was too dangerous to go any farther and came back. It…really seems like escape is impossible.”

“Don’t say that, Shinji.” Teruya keeps his expression neutral, even as he grips his chopsticks tightly. The firefighter lifts his head in surprise for the sudden call out. He didn’t like the idea of putting him on the spot but he needed to say it. “If we say things like ‘it’s impossible,’ it’ll only cause doubt and make us feel despair. Hope isn’t found, it’s created. So we must keep our spirits up if we’re going to find a way to escape. Whether it’s by our own means, calling for rescue, or just waiting for an opportunity, we have to remain positive.”

“...You’re right! There’s no reason to give up hope!” Shinji said, grinning and putting his hands on his hips. “Looks like our roles have been reversed, huh?”

“Uhhh, I guess.” To be honest, he was mostly spouting whatever came to mind. But seeing Shinji, the most confident and strong willed person he knew so far, crumble the moment he’s confronted with failure…it just rubbed him the wrong way. Something that nagged at the back of his mind but was unable to nail it down. It was annoying that his own memories just won’t come back to him, remaining as vague feelings he had to take a guess at. But he doesn’t show it, instead sharing Shinji’s smile. “It’s only been a day. It’d be a miracle if we all just found the exit almost immediately, but that’s not realistic.”

“True…” Shinji rubs the back of his neck. “I guess I was hoping for better results.”

“Eh, don’t sweat it, man. We may not have found an exit, but that didn’t mean we got nothing to report.” Hajime crosses his arms. “I looked through the mart again, and nothing had changed from what I can tell. At the very least, we won’t be running out of supplies any time soon, whether it’s from the mart or the pantry on the Monocruise. We’re pretty much able to cook our own meals at any time.”

“Having such an abundance of supplies will keep us sustained, that’s for sure. So that won’t be a concern for everyday life.” Nikei writes something down on his notepad before putting his pen behind his ear. “As for my report, after I failed to interrogate Kokoro Mitsume through the door of her room, I decided to investigate the park next to the mart. You know, the place where everything went down last night.”

“You tried to interrogate Ms. Mitsume.” Mikado raised an eyebrow. Or at least, his mask gave an impression of raising an eyebrow. Nikei huffs, flattening his gaze at the wizard.

“Yeah, but I was pretty much stonewalled the entire time. I don't know how she did it, but eventually my hand was hurting too much to the point that I had to give up unless I really wanna injure myself. I wouldn’t be a journalist if I lost my scooping hand, after all!” Nikei shudders, holding his hand close to his chest like it was his prized possession. Considering how much he seems to love his job, he probably wasn’t far off the mark. Nikei sighed and dropped his hand. “Anyways, about the park…” He hesitates, his eyes slowly drifting over to Teruya. When he raises an eyebrow at him, he speaks bluntly as if he were ripping off a bandaid. “And…well, it’s gone. And by gone, I mean, any remains of the battle that took place last night had disappeared. The fire, the bullets, the rubble…everything. Almost as if it never happened.”

Teruya’s jaw drops.

“Wh-What?!” He jumps out of his seat, his chopsticks scattering onto the tray. “That…That’s impossible! The entire ground was filled with bullets and craters! Hell, even one of the statues was destroyed! Are you saying that the damage was just…replaced overnight?!”

Everyone was quiet at his outburst. They were all staring at him like they were at a loss of words. Not out of shock, but from quiet contemplation. Even Mikado didn’t ask questions and slowly resumed eating. Setsuka was the first to speak.

“I’m sorry, Teru, but…we all saw the park for ourselves.” She tilts her head, scratching the back of her head with a hand on her hip. “Everything Nik just said is true.”

“...Seriously?” Teruya looks at Nikei, his confusion still sticking to him like glue. The journalist just sighs and stuffs his hands into his pockets with a shrug, closing his eyes.

“...If you don’t believe me, you should take a look at it for yourself when you have the time. However…” He opens his eyes, hesitating even though it wasn’t like him. “If you’re expecting to find that Mekaru woman’s body, don’t. It’s…She’s gone, too.”

Teruya stared at him.

And felt as though the rug had been pulled from underneath him.

Rei’s body…is gone?

She’s gone? Before he could even go back for her?

Before he could work up the courage and take care of her body?

Before he could give her something for her bravery? A burial or even a cremation?

Did Monocrow just take her body…and disposed of her like she was trash?

After trying to stop Kokoro Mitsume and rescue not only Teruya and everyone else, she was simply…tossed away? Just like that?

And he just…lost his chance.

He lost his chance to say goodbye to her. To what’s left of her.

Because she deserved something more than what she got.

“...I’m sorry, Teruya.” Nikei sighs. And then grins, his eyes shining as he picks up his pen and notepad. “But hey! If it makes you feel any better, they’re selling some green-tea flavored cola that was pulled off the market ten years ago in the vending machines!”

Teruya just stared at him like he had grown a second head.

“Hey.” Hajime grits his teeth. “Come here so I can hit you.”

“Hey, hey, hey!” Nikei immediately backs away from the boxer, who was just radiating irritation. He ends up hiding behind the nearest person, which just so happened to be Shinji. “At least it’s a positive scoop!” That actually got Teruya to snort but a smile doesn’t break onto his face.

“That reminds me, actually…” Yuki speaks up, keeping the conversation from derailing completely. “Who…were those women anyways? They acted like they knew you, Teruya.”

“...I’m sorry. But my memories are still completely blank.” He lowers his head and he rubs it, cursing his inability to remember even a smidge of his past. Of all the times to get amnesia, it just had to be during this entire ordeal, with the people who apparently recognized him and came to rescue them all getting snuffed out at the drop of a hat. “Even…Even when I feel like I just lost a friend, it’s nothing more than a feeling. Like I’m trying to look through an old camera but the film had been exposed to the light and was ruined.”

“Yikes. That’s one way of describing your amnesia.” Nikei dryly comments. He ignores him, staring down at his feet with shame.

“Hey, don’t beat yourself up too much, okay?” Emma gives him a smile, one that doesn’t reach her eyes but was caring all the same. “Perhaps your memory will return on its own? It may be best not to force it, you know?”

“...You’re probably right. I’ll just have to wait and see for now.” If only there was some way to speed up the process. Or maybe if he just knew more about amnesia and how it works, he might find a way to reverse it. Even if all he could do was apply some home remedies and wait to see if the effects take hold.

“Although…now that we’ve brought those women up, I’m a little worried about the one with the hoodie. What did Mekaru call her again…?” Emma furrows her brow in an attempt to remember. It was Yuri who answered her question.

“I believe she referred to her as ‘Taira.’” Yuri said, saying the name like he had memorized it without any effort whatsoever. Knowing him, that was probably true when it comes to a woman.

“...Taira…” Teruya swallows, a heaviness weighing down on his heart. He presses his hand against his chest in an attempt to calm himself. He still remembers nothing, but hearing that name only brought an uneasiness to himself. Like he didn’t want to believe what he was hearing. The amnesiac shakes his head and adjusts his scarf. “I…want…to believe she’s okay.”

“I’m afraid that’s unlikely.” Mikado was quick to express his doubt, his mask narrowing its eyelid together. “That woman has been sent flying through the sky. Even if she were to land in water, with how high she was and the force of gravity, breaking through the surface of the ocean would most likely shatter her bones. And if she does survive that, she’d be stranded in the middle of the ocean. It’s safe to assume that she probably drowned out there.”

The entire group goes silent at that. Not even Yuri had a rebuttal, let alone an insult prepared in Mikado’s way. After all, his logic was pretty sound, even to those that weren’t familiar with how physics worked.

“...I see. Well, films do tend to rely on suspension of disbelief.” Emma sighs, her face going pale with her arms by her side. “It’s very common for characters to jump into the water like it’s some sort of safety net, but of course that doesn’t coincide with reality. Especially when the character is meant to survive a ridiculous height.”

“Maybe we shouldn’t talk about this any further.” Setsuka crosses her arms, staring at Teruya, who was trying his hardest to hold back tears. He didn't want to cry, at least not right now. “Not only is this an upsetting topic to talk about, it just gets more complicated the more we try to figure out what it all means.”

“...Yeah. I agree.” Teruya sniffles, sitting back down slowly. “Sorry, but we don’t have enough information about them to try and discuss it as a group.”

“Well, as for the locations we found on the island…” Shinji starts speaking again. He was, thankfully, following their lead and Teruya can’t help but be grateful. “There’s a church with a bell-tower, the cabin is apparently a guest house, and there’s some floating houses.”

“...It’s actually a boardwalk with houses, Mr. Kasai.” Mikado corrected almost automatically. Only for Shinji to suddenly flip a switch.

“AND THERE’S NOTHING TO THEM!!!” The yell reverberates throughout the room, catching everyone off guard. Mikado just groans and sinks into his bed, handing his tray back over to a baffled Yuki.

“What the heck, Shinji?! Did you even investigate at all??” Yoruko snaps at him, which quickly causes Shinji to turn as red as his hair. Yuki quickly steps in between them.

“C-Calm down, Yoruko! It’s not like he didn’t try, it’s just…There’s nothing of interest in there anyways.” Yuki raises the tray, realizes his hands were currently full, and then lowers it back down. It was Yoruko’s turn to start blushing.

“I…well…I guess…” She admits it very reluctantly, turning her head away to hide her embarrassment.

“I believe…” Mikado speaks up from the bed, pulling the covers over his body as if he was making some kind of shelter. “...what’s important right now is where we are: the Monocruise.”

“O-Oh…! You’re right! Did you guys explore the Monocruise? Do you know what’s here?” Teruya asked, playing with the buttons on his jacket. It was Iroha who answered him this time.

“Well…since it’s a cruise ship, it has a lot of stuff here.” Iroha sets her arms down by her side. “There’s a game room, a bathhouse, a workout room, a library, etc. Basically, you name it, they probably have it.”

“There’s four floors to the Monocruise, with the third and fourth floors having our rooms.” Yuki adds on, still unsure of where to put Mikado’s tray. It looks like he’s finished eating even though there was still food left on the plate. “They’re all unlocked at the moment…well, except for Kokoro’s.” Nikei tsked again. Yuki ignores him and averts his gaze. “But Monocrow mentioned that this will change as soon as he passes out everyone’s handbooks and explains the rules of the killing game.”

“Handbooks?” Teruya raised an eyebrow. “I…think he mentioned them before. But he never explained what they are.”

“I don’t know. I don’t think anyone was able to ask him any questions since he had left as soon as he brought it up.” Yuki looked at the group, and everyone pretty much nodded their heads. He sighs. “Yeah, I kinda figured…Personally, I haven’t seen him since.”

“...Actually, we have seen Monocrow earlier to explain one of the rules.” Mikado speaks up, but he turns onto his stomach to bury his face into the pillow. Teruya watched as everyone leaned forward in surprise and anticipation. But the wizard refused to look at them as he continued. “It was Rule 16…one that was created to put me on a leash.”

“A leash?” Yoruko raised an eyebrow. Teruya clears his throat, feeling uneasy at revealing this information. But since it’s part of the rules and was apparently something that can be reviewed at any time upon getting their handbooks, they were going to find out sooner or later. It’d be better to get it out in the open than for the group to pile unnecessary expectations onto Mikado.

“Rule 16…to keep it short, Mikado isn’t allowed to use any magic against Monocrow, Kokoro, or used to destroy property…” The amnesiac swallows and rubs his fingers against his goggles. “If he breaks this rule…one of us will get killed in response.”

A heartbeat passes.

And outrage broke loose.

“WHAT?!” Yuki drops the tray and it clatters to the floor, scattering its contents all over.

“Y-You’ve got to be kidding me! Death…to one of us?!” Yoruko steps away, her face going pale once more.

“So, basically, our most powerful ally can’t do shit unless he wants to risk our lives? Great, just fucking great!” Nikei scowled, his face darkening underneath his hat.

“But he is the Ultimate Wizard. Couldn’t he just blast everything to smithereens until nothing can threaten us?” Yuri seemed completely unconvinced, but the furrow of his brow showed the doubt in his own words.

“That’s not the point, Ri-Ri. If he messes up, one of us could end up dead before he could wipe out the enemy.” Setsuka scolds Yuri, gritting her teeth as she stares down at her heels.

“Not only that, Mikado tried to fight Kokoro and lost by sheer numbers. No matter how powerful he is, he’s still human.” Hajime rubs his head. It looked like he was trying to imagine what to do with this information but was coming up with a blank.

“S-Sis…this is bad.” Kanade clings to her sister. Hibiki turns to her with a scowl.

“You think?! If this is one of the rules, how bad are the other ones??” Her nose flares but he can see the tears forming in her eyes. But she quickly wipes it away. “Auuugh…is there really no way to get out now?”

“L-Let’s not panic just yet!!” Iroha chimes in despite her paling face. “Think positively! Think positively! M-Mikado might not be able to do anything, but at least he's alive and awake! Th-That’s better than nothing!”

“Y-Yes…” Emma crosses her arms, even as she nervously glances at the rest of the group. “It’s a messed up rule, for sure. But…that doesn’t mean anything, as long as we can find a way off this island.”

“Y-Y-Yeah!” Shinji starts to yell, but he stutters over his words when he is replying to Emma. It becomes much firmer, though, when he starts addressing the whole group. “The rules won’t matter as long as we get out of here! So forget about that Rule 16 and just find other uses for that magic of yours!”

“Guys, guys, breathe a little!” Teruya speaks up over the chatter, waving his hands back and forth to gain the group’s attention. Thankfully, it was enough for them to quiet down but the panic was still written over most of their faces. He takes a deep breath. “I know this is…terrifying news. We’re already in a killing game, which is stressful enough as is without the layer of being hostages. But…at best, it just means that Mikado can’t use magic against Monocrow and Kokoro, or use it to destroy property.” Teruya then frowns before staring right at Shinji. “That being said…I don’t think we should ignore the rules entirely.”

“Yeah, Shinji, there’s obviously punishments attached to these rules. If we break them, who knows what will happen to us?” Hajime said, putting his hand against his hip and raising an eyebrow at Shinji. “Especially when breaking Rule 16 apparently gets one of us killed.”

“Uh…Sorry. I got ahead of myself.” Shinji looks down, a little ashamed that he overlooked that bit.

“N-No, it’s okay, Shinji. I understand what you mean. Escape is definitely a priority for us, and once that happens, we won’t have to worry about these kinds of rules ever again. Until then, though, we should be careful.” Teruya feels a nag in the back of his head, but it goes away when he tries to reach for it. He frowns. Why is this feeling so…strong? Is it deja vu?

“...Well, at least we have an idea of what these rules are gonna be.” Nikei seemed to have calmed down now, alongside everyone else. He puts his hands into his pockets and closes his eyes with a huff. “With that being said, there are other places we haven’t looked yet. But they’re locked so we left them alone for the time being.”

“I-It’s probably for th-the best.” Kanade was still clinging onto her sister. It looked like Hibiki's snap didn’t bother her this time around. Not to the point of crying, at least. “M-Monocrow mentioned that ‘vandalism’ isn’t allowed wh-when we considered cutting down the trees f-for a raft…S-So ‘vandalism’ might include breaking down the doors as well.” Teruya blinks.

“Wait. Talking about the rules reminded me of something...Syobai said that he’s under surveillance by Monocrow and Kokoro. Do you guys’ know what’s up with that?” Teruya scratches his cheek as he checks everyone’s reactions. Mikado looks up from his pillow, no longer trying to hide his face from the world. But aside from him, everyone was exchanging confused looks.

“Honestly? I don’t know.” Emma was the one to respond first. “I do find it odd, though. When he tried to commit murder, Monocrow wasn’t happy with what he did even though that was the intention of a killing game.”

“...Perhaps the way he went about it was against what Monocrow and Ms. Mitsume wanted? There are fifteen other rules that none of us are aware of.” Mikado speaks up, turning onto his back. Hajime winces.

“I…can’t help but wonder what those other rules are. What if we break one and get into trouble?” The boxer asked. Teruya can feel the sweat growing on his neck.

“Maybe we’re better off waiting for Monocrow’s announcement. Even if he claims to not be enforcing the rules, he’s stopped us twice from breaking one of them. Who’s to say that he’s telling the truth?” Teruya said, pressing his hand against his chest. He can feel his racing heart underneath.

“Yeah, no, you’re right. Monocrow and Kokoro haven’t done anything to us yet, but I’d rather not get myself killed over a rule I didn’t know about.” Nikei agreed, tilting his hat with a tsked. Everyone quickly followed suit as no one would want to get hurt from breaking a rule. “Even then, there’s nothing we can do right now but to continue investigating.”

“Yeah. Not to mention that the Monocruise is a lot bigger than I thought. Maybe we should do a more thorough search of it tomorrow morning?” Setsuka adds in her suggestion and Teruya slowly nods. He hasn’t had the opportunity to do his own investigation either since he was busy taking care of Mikado. The billiards player glances at everyone and then shrugs. “Aaaand I think that’s it.”

“That’s it?” Teruya looks at every single member of their group. They all either shrugged or broke eye contact. The amnesiac slumps in response, unable to hide his disappointment. “I, uh…I know it's only been a day, but I thought we’d have an idea of how to get off this island. Or at least contact help.”

“Yeah, we didn’t really learn anything new.” Hibiki agrees, crossing her arm across her waist and gripping her shoulder. “I wish an escape route would just ‘poof’ into existence right now.”

“I mean…it’d be much easier if we can just use the Monocruise to leave…” Iroha lifts her sketchpad up, curling her eyebrows as she smiles awkwardly. Yuki, a little more calmer than before, kneels down with a sigh as he tries to clean the spill he made from dropping the tray.

“If we could find the control room, then yeah, we can just forget about the killing game and leave. But none of the rooms we checked looked like a place where we can start the Monocruise and if it’s behind a locked room, then we can’t get to it anyway.” Yuki cringes as he wipes the food with an unused napkin. “I doubt Kokoro would let us move the boat anyways.”

“...Yeah. She wouldn’t.” Teruya didn’t doubt it at all. As long as she was in control of the situation, any of the easy solutions would be stripped away from them. They have yet to have the means to establish a connection with the outside world, they can’t find the control room of the Monocruise, and they’re not even allowed to cut down any trees for a raft.

Is it…even possible to escape at all?

“Why are you two making that kind of face?” Teruya blinks, looking up at Shinji as he realizes he has started to slump. Yuki also looks up from his position on the floor just in time for the firefighter to lean down and suddenly scoop him up in his arm. The student gasps, flailing slightly at how easily Shinji had picked him up, quickly approaching Teruya and wrapping his free arm over his shoulders to pull him into a hug. Teruya’s eyes go wide and Yuki gives up on escaping from the firefighter’s grasp. But it doesn’t erase the bright smile Shinji gives both of them.  “We shouldn’t distract ourselves over ‘what if’s!’ It’s only been one day since we got here. Like you said, Teruya, we just need a little more patience and hope to find a way off of this island. Besides, Kokoro has been pretty quiet since last night. Monocrow may be a nuisance but he hasn’t done much to us either. So we’ll find a way to escape for sure!” Shinji sets Yuki back down on his feet but only brings the two of them even closer. “Now perk up, both of you! As your Big Bro, I’ll help you build some confidence as men!”

“Shinji…” Teruya can’t help but stare at him. He has been very supportive since they first met, especially when he immediately proclaimed himself as his “Big Bro.” Shinji even showed empathy when Teruya finally cracked under the grief of losing Rei Mekaru and helped him let it all out. And while he can falter upon experiencing failure, he seems to quickly bounce right back to help other people. But…he supposed he didn’t expect him to take it as seriously as he is now. Teruya can’t help but feel like he’s unused to this kind of treatment, at least when it comes from someone so close in age as him.

It…kinda made him happy, knowing that Shinji was looking out for him and Yuki.

…Even if he thinks it’s impossible for things to go as smoothly as Shinji hopes.

…No, he can’t think like that. It’ll be like setting himself up for failure.

He just needs to have hope that it’ll all work out and do his best.

It’s not much, but it’s a starting point.

“Regardless, Ms. Mitsume is one of the biggest clues we have as she is the mastermind.” Mikado speaks up, bringing the topic back on track. Shinji takes that as his cue to let go of Teruya and Yuki. The latter was all too happy to have his space back, muttering questions about how the heck he got into this. “I don't think it's likely she’d be willing to spill all the details in her plans. But it’s worth the effort to keep an eye on her.”

“That depends if she ever leaves her room, but I can’t disagree with it either.” Hajime adds on as he crosses his arms. “As for that Syobai guy…it’s probably best that we keep our distance. He’s clearly dangerous but he seems to be calm…for now.”

“Speaking of Syobai, do you guys know his full talent and name?” Teruya asked, sitting back down. He had completely forgotten to tell them this morning. It should’ve been the most obvious thing to share, but he was distracted by…pretty much everything up to that point. He still shouldn’t use that as an excuse. He needs to stay on the ball here.

“Yeah, we do. Shinji and Nikei were quick to spread the news to everyone.” Yuki replied, shuddering as he went back to cleaning the tray. At least Shinji and Nikei remembered to spread the word when Teruya didn’t. “I knew Hope’s Peak sometimes chooses criminals to invite as ‘the best of the best,’ but to have one in our class…”

“Um…I have a question, actually.” Iroha speaks up almost timidly. Teruya looks at her and she shyly hides behind her sketchpad at the attention he gives her. “How were you able to come across that information? We all had trouble getting anything out of him unless we paid him. Uh, his words, not mine.”

“Oh, uh…” Teruya felt his face go hot once again. He hopes this is the last time he had to explain this. “I, um, figured out his name…when I mistook his podium for my own.” Iroha stared at him, looking like she was struggling to connect the dots. Before he could explain even further, her eyes went wide as it seemed to have clicked on her own and she smiled at him with sympathy. Teruya moved on before they could linger on the topic any further. “A-And I only got him to say his Ultimate Talent when he came to…’apologize’ and take responsibility for his actions. We made a, uh, verbal exchange of sorts and he complied.”

“...That’s it?” Yoruko said, raising an eyebrow. Teruya just shrugged. She sighs. “Geez, as if being classmates with a criminal wasn’t already bad enough, he has strange principles, too.”

“Ah, so that’s why his name sounded familiar. That ‘broker’ really was him…” Yuri muttered as he crossed his arms. Teruya looked at him but his stare went completely ignored. Thankfully, Setsuka noticed and spoke up.

“Oh? Have you met him, Ri-Ri?” Setsuka scratches the back of her head but Yuri shakes his head.

“Never! He is a man, so I wouldn’t have bothered to get to know him.” Yuri turns his chin up with a huff. Teruya just takes a deep breath to help restrain his annoyance. The astronaut, thankfully, doesn’t add on to that comment any more than he had to. “‘Syobai Hashimoto’ is simply a super famous name in the black market. I think he even has connections to the Russian mafia.”

“...Should I be concerned that you even know about that?” Nikei takes a step back from Yuri…even though he was writing down the information he had spoken out loud in his notepad. Yuri turns his head away, refusing to answer. Nikei narrows his eyes but chooses to ignore him in the end and turns to Teruya. “I still can’t believe a guy like that would come and apologize. Hell, I was there to witness it, too!”

“Honestly, I agree.” Teruya scratches his finger against his cheek. “Hm…maybe, even though he is a criminal, Syobai considers himself a businessman and follows his own set of beliefs? Or maybe some kind of rule despite how shady he is? If that’s true, then we might be able to establish some sort of deal with him and–”

“Absolutely not.” Teruya jolts and turns to see that it was Mikado who spoke up. He was sitting up now, the mask’s expression almost glowing with its narrow eye. His tone was harsh and scathing. “Even if he is good at gathering information, he is still the Ultimate Broker and tried to kill Mr. Maeda. He is far too dangerous and may try to backstab us the moment there’s something that would motivate him to toss us aside.”

“That…seems awfully emotional, coming from you, Mikado.” Emma said, tilting her head at him as she rubs her cheek. Mikado blinks at her but crosses his arms.

“Don’t look too deep into it. I’m merely upset that something like that had happened while I was unconscious.” Mikado scowled, but hung his head. The mask on his expression lightens just a tiny bit but only enough for it to stop glowing. “I also just don’t like him.”

“Can’t argue with that!” Hibiki puts her hands on her hips. “How the hell do you trust someone that goes around trying to stab people in a killing game anyways!?”

“R-Right…the killing game.” Yuki picks up the tray of food now that it’s been cleaned up. But Teruya notices the slight shake in his hands, even when his knuckles are turning white with how tightly he was gripping the tray. “Nearly getting stabbed like that…urgh.”

“Uh…” Hibiki quickly calms down, gripping her shoulder as she sends an apologetic stare at Yuki. “S-Sorry. We were all just…talking about the killing game so casually that I just…said that without a second thought.”

“Uh, don’t worry about it.” Yuki takes a deep breath and sags. “I’ll…be okay. It’s just…I nearly got stabbed and…yeah.”

…Now that she’s brought it up, they’ve been very open in their discussion of the killing game so far. Just another reminder that this is the reality they’re stuck with. A reality where Monocrow told them to kill each other. And if they don’t find a way to get out soon, or make some kind of progress…

Teruya swallows.

He doesn’t want to believe it.

But this instinct, this feeling, was deeply rooted in his chest and he knew.

He knew someone would die.

And he can’t let that happen.

No matter what.

“Hey…try not to worry too much, okay?” Hajime speaks up to try and relieve the tension that was forming in the group. “No one here is willing to commit murder.”

“Aside from K-Kokoro and Syobai, anyways…” Shinji tacks on but quickly clears his throat. “But aside from them, we’re in this together as a group! We won’t fall for their trap as long as we’re together!”

“Y-Yeah…” Yuki suddenly starts to perk up. It almost catched Teruya off guard at how quickly he started to smile again. But should he really be surprised? “Besides, like Shinji said, Monocrow only popped in here and there to regulate the ‘rules’ and Kokoro has been completely silent in her room. No news is good news, as they say. So we might be able to return home if we keep investigating!”

Teruya felt his cheeks starting to hurt and realized he had been smiling at Yuki the whole time he was talking. He rubs at them, trying to relax his face. It was very uncomfortable.

And yet, it was hard not to be a little optimistic when it was Yuki expressing his hope—

Ding dong bing bong!

They all freeze at the sudden sound. Teruya felt his skin go out in a cold sweat as his head snapped towards the TV screen attached in the corner of the room. It crackles to life with static, and as soon as it cleared up, Monocrow appears on screen. He clears his throat, or whatever was the equivalence, and speaks, his voice reverberating throughout the room through the speaker attached.

“Ahem! Testing, testing.” Monocrow taps something off screen with his wing and then stares directly at the screen. “If you are hearing this, then that means the screens found throughout the Monocruise are working and have been set up on the island. From now on, I will be using these screens for announcements, including daily day-time and night-time ones. The day-time announcements are so you can all wake up on a timely schedule while the night-time announcements will be a signal for the Monocruise locking up for the night. Lockdown will begin at 10PM and will last until 7AM. Oh, and one more thing before signing off for night-time: after breakfast tomorrow, I will finally be able to tell you about the Killing School Trip’s rules and passing out your e-handbook+s at Utsuroshima Park. Do not worry about forgetting for I will make a reminder announcement in the morning. But don’t be tardy as I will consider it as breaking school rules and will dole out punishments accordingly.”

And then the TV was shut off, leaving them to digest the announcement.

Yuki, of course, was the first to react.

“A-Already?! It’s barely been twenty-four hours!” He looked like he was going to drop the tray again but he managed to keep it together. “I didn’t think he’d be making a move already…”

“I knew it! I knew it was too quiet up to this point.” Yoruko grit her teeth and crossed her arms.

“Wh-What should we do…?” Kanade speaks up, looking around to see if anyone has any ideas.

“It’s better that we do what Monocrow says.” Mikado was the one to answer her. Shinji frowns at him.

“Are you scared of some punishment, Mikado?” Even though Shinji didn’t seem to be judging him with how there was sweat gathering on his forehead, Teruya couldn’t help but cringe at the question. Mikado just flatly stared at him.

“I mean, I don’t wanna go, but it’s probably best that we do.” Setsuka said, scratching the back of her head. “We don’t know the official rules and it’d be safer to know them just in case, like Teru said before.”

“Not only that, Kokoro did kill Mekaru.” Emma looks down and crosses her arms. Teruya swallows but ignores the pain in his heart. “If the punishment is anything like that, then choosing to stay behind would be a bad idea.”

“Need I remind everyone that this killing game is the same as a hostage situation?” Nikei grumbles out loud as he puts his pen behind his ear. “Whether we like it or not, if we’re not cooperative on some level, we’ll only get hurt for no reason. Or worse.”

The more everyone countered Shinji, the redder his face got from embarrassment.

“I think we all get it, Nikei.” Teruya stands up from his chair as he speaks up. The journalist huffs but doesn’t comment any further. He stares out at the group, all of whom seemed much more uneasy now that there was something planned for them tomorrow. He takes a deep breath and clears his throat, gaining everyone’s attention. “I…I know we’re all anxious at this news. But for now, we should all head back to our rooms and rest. We’re going to need as much energy as we can for our investigations tomorrow.”

“Yeah…I agree. You can’t use your brain if you don’t get enough sleep.” Hajime nods his head. Everyone else murmurs their agreements, and starts to slowly trickle out of the infirmary. Before they go, though, the boxer lingers long enough to look at Mikado. “Rest up, man. I know it seems counterproductive to sleep after you just woke up but you’ll heal faster if you do.”

“Yeah! I don’t know if that’s true but you should focus on getting better, Mika!” Hibiki points at him as she grabs a hold of Kanade to drag her off with her. The guitarist doesn’t fight her and follows her older sister with a sigh.

“Oh! That reminds me! I finished this sketch for you.” Iroha runs over and rips a page out of her sketchpad so she can hand it over to Mikado. He holds it in his hands and Teruya leans over to see what it is…which was just a chibi version of himself with a tiny bird on top. “It’s nothing complicated but I thought you could use something cute and simple!”

“Goodbye. Try not to be tardy tomorrow. Or do, I don’t care.” Yuri dips out the moment the meeting is over, trying to follow after Hibiki and Kanade.

And yet, even with Yuri’s distasteful comment, everyone continued to wish Mikado well. A sentiment that only made the wizard redder and redder. A physical response that not even the mask can hide despite the empty expression on his face.

“Th-Thank you all…” Mikado looks away, holding the drawing close to his chest. “I will be back on my feet in the morning, promise.”

“Good! In that case…” Shinji waves as he turns the corner. “Goodnight, Mikado!”

“See you in the morning, Kado!” Setsuka pats him on the shoulder before doing the same with Teruya on her way out.

“Don’t let the bedbugs bite.” Nikei flippantly waves without looking back.

“Huh – Hey! Wait for me!” Iroha, upon realizing that everyone was leaving without her, immediately runs after the group.

“Here’s some water in case you get thirsty.” Yoruko smiles as she sets the water bottle down, one that she must have gotten from the fridge. She then walks away. “Sleep well.”

“Don’t ‘night’ the bullet while we’re gone!” Emma grins and Teruya scrunched up his eyebrows at her. Despite her only response being a groan from Yuki, she walks out of the infirmary with light steps.

“That had to be the worst one yet.” Yuki muttered before turning to Mikado. Realizing that he had nothing new to say, he just blushes and bows his head. “Uh, g-goodnight, Mikado.”

“Uh, goodnight, everyone…” Mikado, clearly unused to the amount of attention he’s getting, simply waves them goodbye. Yuki leaves the infirmary and now, it was only them. When it becomes clear that Teruya wasn’t leaving just yet, the wizard looks up at him. “...Is there something you need, Mr. Otori?”

“Oh, I just wanted to check on your wounds before...” Teruya hesitates, as he didn’t think it’d be a good idea to leave Mikado like this. He’s obviously feeling a lot better, but that doesn’t mean he can’t take a turn for the worse.

“...I see.” Mikado then raised his arm to him, propping his chin onto his other hand. Teruya blinks but the wizard goes on. “I’ll admit, I am not well versed in healing magic. So I appreciate your care, Mr. Otori. But I’m certain I’ll be fine in the morning.”

“...Even then, you shouldn’t push yourself too hard, Mikado.” Teruya goes along with it, and pushes his chair closer before sitting back down in it. He gently grasps his arms, lifting his sleeves up to examine his skin. Mikado cringes at his touch, almost pulling his arm out of his hand upon the reveal of even more of his burn scars. But Teruya can tell that he’s forcing himself to remain still as he can feel the tension in his muscles. The amnesiac can only give him an awkward smile. “Sorry. I’ll make this quick.”

“Please do.” Mikado said, and Teruya went to work.

While it was pretty obvious that he wasn’t a doctor, he recognized the knowledge he had in his head was at least basic first aid. The good news was that Mikado is obviously responsive being awake as he is, was breathing in and out easily, and didn’t seem to be bleeding anywhere. There also wasn’t any signs of him bleeding from the inside either, as there was a lack of swelling, Mikado wasn’t sweating as much when he was unconscious, and he didn’t claim to be very thirsty. Teruya hums.

“Are there any, uh, symptoms you want to share with me?” Teruya asked, unwilling to pat him down as he didn’t want to invade any more of Mikado’s personal space. He just didn’t have the guts to do so, especially when he’s wide awake and not in a coma, as short as it was. Perhaps another sign that he wasn’t a doctor in his past life.

“Aside from a minor headache and a bit of soreness in my body, I feel quite fine.” Mikado pulls his arm out of Teruya’s grasp, wincing and then gently massaging it. “...Perhaps I am a bit bruised. But with an ice pack and some rest, I will recover by morning.”

“...Alright.” Teruya could do nothing more than this. As long as they were cut off from the outside world and with no Ultimate Doctor in the class, there was very little he could do for Mikado. He couldn’t even use an emergency number as there wasn’t a single phone on this island and he wasn’t sure that he’d be able to get a signal anyways. Teruya sighs and gently, carefully sets his hand on Mikado’s shoulder. “You should lay down and rest, then. Try to keep your movement to the minimum as much as possible to avoid making the pain worse. Okay?”

“Okay.” Mikado does what he’s told and lays down in bed. Teruya takes the blanket and covers his body up to his chest. The wizard stares at him, his face blank while the mask’s grin widens. “You’re quite doting, Mr. Otori.”

“Well, someone has to make sure you’re okay.” Teruya's hands linger on top of Mikado. He didn’t want to leave him alone. He didn’t think it was a good idea. But…he trusted that everyone had gone into their rooms like they said they would. And even if he wanted to stay and keep watch, he’ll only tire himself out with no one else to take over his shift. Just staying in the infirmary all day was exhausting with little to no stimulation. Teruya needed to rest as well, so he’s choosing to trust that Mikado will be fine on his own. He pulls away. “I’m gonna go rest now.”

“Wait.” Mikado suddenly grabs his hand. Teruya stops in his tracks, raising an eyebrow at his friend. He doesn’t sit back up but he does turn his head away. “...I’m sorry. For acting without thinking.”

“Again?” Teruya said, raising an eyebrow. He holds Mikado’s hand with both of his own. “You have nothing to apologize for–”

“Yes, I do.” Mikado squeezes him. His grip was tight and a little painful. “My actions have indirectly put you all in danger. I saw the danger of that mech and those drones, what they did to those two women, and everyone was in the vicinity, and yet, I just…!” He pauses. And takes a deep breath. “...I do not regret trying to stop her. But I do regret having endangered all of you without thinking of the consequences. And for that, I’m sorry.”

Teruya stared at their joined hands, taking in his apology and considering the best way to soothe his friend’s guilt. He loosens his grip on Mikado and then kneels down beside the bed.

“Mikado.” Teruya keeps his tone gentle. Mikado stared at his face as he spoke. “I understand what you did was reckless. But you were only doing the right thing by trying to stop her…no matter what it took. You went as far as to put your neck on the line for everyone. That’s…admirable, even if I don’t want you to stain your hands with blood for our sake.”

“Admirable?” Mikado looks away, but Teruya can see his ears turning a shade of red. “...I may be willing to do everything I can to protect everyone. But murder…there’s nothing admirable about it. Please don’t call it that.”

“Then let me put it this way: I was shocked about Kokoro’s death. Hell, I was mad about it. But when I found out what she’s really like, I wish that Rei Mekaru did stop her the first time.” He pauses before carefully tugging his hand out of Mikado’s grip. The wizard looks back at him as he stands and pats his blanket again. “I don’t…want to say this. But if the mastermind had been taken care of right then and there, we wouldn’t be in this killing game in the first place. That’s a reality I’d have to accept, whether or not either of you had succeeded.”

“...I’m surprised.” Mikado admits with a tilt of his head. “You were so determined to keep me from starting another fight, and yet, your opinion is quite…pragmatic.”

“Well, you say that, but I’m serious about that promise I made. Er, the promise that you were unconscious for.” Teruya scratches the back of his head, feeling a little bit embarrassed. “I promised to protect everyone, so I won’t allow anyone to commit murder. I don’t want anyone to die. And…I just have this bad feeling in my gut that if someone were to murder, it won’t end well. So, please. Let’s not do anything drastic for the time being and keep an eye out. Alright?”

Mikado was quiet.

Teruya patiently waited for his response, allowing him to think for as long as he needed to.

Eventually, he spoke.

“...Alright.” Mikado sighs. “I understand. I don’t like repeating my mistakes anyway. I will refrain from doing anything drastic and follow your lead until the end, Mr. Otori.”

“Oh, um…” Teruya looked away, perhaps a bit anxious at the thought of Mikado following his lead. He…really has become a leader, huh? He couldn’t turn him down, though, so he just tried to give him his best smile. “Thank you for your support. I’ll try not to let you down.”

“Do not worry. I’m sure we can figure something out together as a group.” Mikado turns his head, staring directly at the ceiling now. His arm was laid across his chest, looking like he was going to get lost in his thoughts. Teruya lingered a little longer, thinking on what else he should say. When he finally settled on something, he spoke up.

“Mikado?”

His voice reaches him and he turns to look at him.

“...Even though you have a willingness to kill, you just wanted to protect everyone. So…thank you.” Teruya gives him a small smile. “Thank you for trying to stop Kokoro. You’re a good person, and everyone knows that.”

“I doubt it–”

“No, they do.” Teruya pressed his hand against his chest. “A lot of us expressed worry when you were unconscious. They all visited you in the morning to see how you were doing. And when I told them that you were awake this evening, they all wanted to see you personally. We all saw what you did, and not a single one of us thought badly of you. You see?”

Mikado didn’t respond. But his mask’s eye had gone wide, like he’s been completely blindsided to everyone’s care.

Was that expression genuine? A sign that the mask showed the truth to what Mikado was feeling? To help him convey his emotions?

He…wasn’t sure.

He wasn’t sure if he understood what Mikado was feeling or expressing. Not when he’s wearing a mask that was so…simple and distant.

All he could do was guess and hope he got it right.

Teruya waited for Mikado to respond. But when he made no move to speak and signal what he was thinking, he realized he had nothing to say. This left them in an awkward atmosphere. One that Teruya had no choice but to break as he had nothing else to add except to excuse himself.

“I’m, uh, gonna go find my room now. There’s…” Teruya starts, clearing his throat. “There’s some painkillers on the table if you need them. Okay?”

“...Okay. Goodnight, Mr. Otori.” Mikado glances at the painkillers but goes back to staring at the ceiling.

“Goodnight, Mikado.” And Teruya, after grabbing his books, leaves Mikado alone in the infirmary with an anxious heart. Hoping that he’ll be okay for the rest of the night.

(Left alone in the infirmary, all Mikado could do was think. Teruya Otori was…far kinder than he had expected. And perhaps a bit naïve. He wasn’t sure if it was due to his amnesia or if it was simply a part of his personality. But Teruya is quite trusting, leaving his back wide open to any potential backstabbing.)

(...Mikado won’t allow an opportunity for that to happen. He can only hope he can end this game before it can even get started.)

–♥–

It didn’t take long for Teruya to find his room. He had to make a guess on which floor were the dorms but upon going up the flight of stairs twice, he knew he was in the right place when he saw how simple the layout was with only eight doors in sight, four for each side. Even better, it became apparent that the dorms were split between the boys and the girls, and the boys’ floor was the third floor, the one he was on right now. Examining the portraits above the doors allowed him to see which room was whose, so he didn’t have to take a guess on which one was his. To his left was Yuki, Shinji, Yuri and Syobai’s rooms, and to his right was Hajime, Nikei, Mikado’s…and his own. Testing the knob revealed it was unlocked, just like what everyone had said and he entered his room.

Once inside, he spotted a bed and a desk. He walked over to it, dropped his books and let them scatter across the desk, even allowing them to fall right off. And then, he let gravity do all the work as he fell on top of the bed. It was surprisingly soft to the point that it didn’t hurt at all and he decided to take that as a win. No matter how small it was in this clusterfuck of a situation.

The results of today were…a lot more lackluster than he had hoped.

Yes, it was good for them to gain an understanding of their surroundings. He knew better than to complain about that outside of that one time. And the group did find some interesting things like how the damage of Mikado and Kokoro’s fight was just undone overnight and that they were on what seems to be a human-made island. The implications…were not good, to say the least. But they had a better understanding of their surroundings for the time being.

But they also haven’t found an exit yet, and the ideas that they had wanted to use to escape weren’t feasible one way or another.

Teruya huffs out a breath.

He knows it’s only been one day. It was natural that they hadn't made much progress in just one day.

But he can’t shake away the anxiety clinging to his heart, knowing full well that everyone is probably feeling the same way. They were just hiding it under a veil of normalcy, to try and keep their heads in check as they work to find a way out. But if someone were to break under the pressure…

No, no. He shouldn’t assume that bad things will happen just like that. It’s stressful to be stuck in a killing game, yes. But as long as they try to keep each other in check and support one another, nobody would succumb to murder.

Right?

Right.

Nothing bad will happen.

Not on his watch.

Even when he knew that it would probably happen, Teruya wouldn't allow it.

He’ll never allow it.

Not again.

…Again?

That strange sense of deja vu again.

Why does this feeling keep cropping up?

Teruya searches his brain for any kind of hint. Any kind of memory that would make him think this way. To feel this way.

But he finds nothing but an empty, blank space on where his past memories would be.

Teruya exhales harshly through his nose and turns onto his back, deciding he would only frustrate himself if he kept trying to dig in an empty ditch called his memory. His amnesia wouldn’t make it easy to recall his past but if he could just figure it all out with a few clues…Maybe he’ll have a bit of peace of mind. For now, though, he shouldn’t force himself for the memories to appear. He should just…ease up a little. Relax.

Teruya watches the lights in the room automatically flicker off, taking deep breaths to calm his racing heart. And then he kicked his shoes off, slinging his backpack onto the floor, and the rest of his accessories onto the nearby desk. Teruya didn’t know if there was any extra clothing he could change into, but he decided that was a problem for future him. He then pulls the covers over his head and waits.

He waits for sleep to overtake him.

He waits for morning to arrive.

He waits to see what lies in store for him and his classmates.

Because he knew.

He knew this was only just the beginning.

[cosmichorrorsarestillnicerthanme]

I feel like you mentioned a while back that you wanted to get an ask about Malenia?? Well, either way here is an ask about Malenia. Tell me your thoughts on her, oh stupendous cosmic entity!

My Thoughts On Malenia Blade Of Miquella huh?

Well then I guess I should go ahead and say that my fascination with her, Miquella and the Haligtree Faction as a whole all began when I was trying to win her boss fight, needless to say it wasn’t going well even with my build at the time as optimized as I could’ve gotten it. So after Erdtree knows how many deaths I decided to see what info I could dig up about her lore wise which led me down a rabbit hole of proportions so epic it rivaled the one I fell down when I first got into Bloodborne. So after a day and a half of scraping the lore I could find on The Haligtree Faction together and making sure I understood it to the best of my abilities I went back at Malenia, died like forty or fifty more times before finally beating her first phase with enough Flasks to get through her Second phase.

I swear I know what I’m doing.

She is un-ironically one of my favorite soulsborne characters, only barely inched out by Maria Of The Astral Clocktower, and Ludwig The Holy Blade.

Her story is something that I *desperately* want to have expanded on just like Rykard’s (who in my opinion, has a story that’s a bit too cut and dry for a Soulsborne Game) not to mention the relationship she has with her brothers Miquella and Radahn mostly Radahn’s because both of them seem WAY to chill to have a fight that ended with Caelid becoming y’know Caelid. On the other hand Miquella seems a bit too squeaky clean to me for a Soulsborne Game, while I don’t think that the theory that he’s controlling Malenia or Mohg is true I don’t dismiss the fact that he was charismatic enough to not only successfully convince an entire army worth of people to join him but was also a master of Mechanics and Magic and his design overall just reminds me a lot of Grifith, but most blondes with long hair in games do so take that with a grain of salt (Now that I think about it The Haligtree is a lot like Falconia, but I should probably get back on track, this is about Malenia.) 

Her design is extremely interesting to me because of how extremely simplistic and down to earth it is, especially when compared with a lot of the other bosses like Radahn and his gold and embellished armor or Radagon and all the stuff going on with his broken teacup looking ass. Malenia’s dress is mostly brown and white while her arm and legs are surprisingly spartan despite being seemingly made of gold or a gold like substance. And speaking of her arm the shoulder pad thing she has it just does more to enforce that she’s a soldier or that’s what she views herself as. The only thing that goes against the entire motif she has is her helmet which is extremely embellished and covered in decorations like the wings on the side or the engravings on the top which might’ve been a gift from Miquella but that’s just a theory a GAME- *Get’s shot*.

Moving on from her design we have the aspect she’s probably most known for after being notoriously hard.

The Goddamned Scarlet Rot.

Which right off the bat I think is a misnomer, or at the very least isn’t telling us the full story.

I say this because in the real world Rot is something that is vital to life on earth as we know it, it decay’s the deceased matter from animals, plants and other things like them, allowing the nutrients to be returned to the earth after the decomposition is finished. In a lot of way’s the Scarlet Rot follows this process except on an EXTREMELY accelerated pace with some mutagenic properties tossed in, what i’m saying is The Goddess Of Rot that’s sealed away might not be a goddess of Death but a goddess of Rebirth, but aside from some theorizing with some at best shaky evidence it doesn’t look like we’ll be getting anything solid on that front until the DLC sadly.

I only really have two headcanons for her

the first headcanon is Malenia is definitely touch starved for prolonged physical contact, she "Desperately" craves another person's touch, even if it's just shaking someone's hand or being hugged, but unless they hold one of Miquella's needles or a ludicrous amount of bouleses it is forever a sensation reserved for her dreams.

The Second headcannon is that she's the worse person to choose in all of the lands between (Yes i'm including The Loathsome Dung Eater) when it comes to any form of diplomacy, not because she'd much rather fight but because she turns as stiff as a board when talking to any human being outside of Miquella, Loretta, and her cleanrot knights which she considers apart of her extended family.

[camelspit]

“I know you said you got over a bunch of things after you left the Lost Cities, and I’m sure that probably includes the stuff you told me in your note. And I know you said you’re not looking for a relationship right now—and I get it. But… it makes me a little sad. Mostly because it means I missed my chance to be with this really incredible girl who makes me laugh and always finds ways to be there for me when I need her. And that’s fine. It’s my fault—and I’m not trying to, like… guilt you into liking me again. I just felt like you should know why I might get a little awkward around you right now. I’m trying to figure out how to go back to only seeing you as a friend, and it’s not easy, because I’d just started realizing how much I care about you.”

Sophie kept her eyes squeezed shut when she finished, giving herself a couple of seconds to process the fact that she did it!

She told the truth!

And it was absolutely terrifying.

But also such a relief.

Her brain felt a thousand pounds lighter—even if her stomach kinda wanted to crawl into her throat and—

“Sophie?”

Stina’s voice was barely a whisper—and it sounded so much closer.

She said her name again before Sophie scraped together the courage to open her eyes and found Stina standing right in front of her, staring at her like…There weren’t words for her expression.

But her heart seemed to understand—stretching a little more with every beat, like it wanted to fill every part of her.

“You realize,” Stina breathed, and her navy blue eyes seemed to shimmer as they reflected the twinkly light, “that if we do this… it could get very messy.”

Sophie looked away, kicking her toe against one of the glowing toadstools. “Because I’m unmatchable?”

“No—the Council can feed their match lists to the unicorns for all I care. But… we’re both girls. And.. elves don’t like that very much.”

“Yeah, but I’m pretty sure I’m already an outcast” Sophie reminded her. “And I’m ready for them.”

Stina caught Sophie’s hand before it returned to her side, cradling Sophie’s palm in hers. “That might not be enough to stop them.”

“It might not,” Sophie agreed. “But I’m not afraid of them. And I’m not going to let them control my life. So if mean elves are the only reason—”

“I think we both know they’re not,” Stina said. But she still stepped a little bit closer—close enough that she could feel her breath on her cheeks when she asked, “Would you like me to list off all the complications?”

Sophie shook her head.

She was pretty sure she could guess most of them.

And she didn’t care.

“All I care about is how you feel,” she whispered. “If you’re only doing this”—she held up their clasped hands—“because you don’t want to hurt my feelings—”

Stina twined their fingers together and shook her head. “Trust me—this is what I’ve wanted from the moment I first saw you, in Slurps and Burps. I knew right away that I’d just met someone special—and every minute I’ve spent with you since then has proven how true that is. But is this really what youwant?” Stina squeezed Sophie’s hand, and she could feel her shaking a little when she admitted, “I can’t tell what you’re feeling—and it’s seriously terrifying.”

Sophie’s mind flooded with words.

Promises.

Confessions.

But somehow they felt like too much and not enough all at the same time.

So she tilted up on her toes and leaned forward, meeting her eyes as she lined her lips up with his—careful to leave a tiny wisp of space.

A chance for Stina to change her mind.

Stina closed the distance between them.

And then… everything was new.

The soft press of his lips against hers.

The way their breath seemed to fall perfectly into sync while her heart and her brain screamed, FINALLY!

Some tiny part of her had always wondered if kissing could really be as great as everyone claimed.

But kissing Stina was So. Much. Better.

Stina was the one to finally pull away, leaning back to study her in the shimmering light. “You’re okay, right? No regrets?”

Sophie grinned. “Absolutely none.”

Will be thinking about this for the rest of my life thank you anon you have the done the world i hreat servive i am in awe and in debt to you holy shit i am screaming

[frogtanii]

iwaizumi was... overwhelmed, to say the least.

the past few days had been such a whirlwind of change that hajime could barely properly process, much less appropriately react to it all, so he behaved much like a zombie, saying yes when prompted, signing papers when told, and packing up what was his entire life for the past 11 months.

wow. iwaizumi collapsed on his bed as he scanned his now barren bedroom. he’d been here for almost a year and yet, all his belongings were in boxes within a couple of days.

hajime couldn’t keep the disbelieving chuckle from escaping his chest as he leaned back on his bed, dark brown eyes trained on the ceiling.

it felt like he’d spent such a large chunk of his life trapped in this house, under the foot of the woman who he thought he’d marry but in reality, he’d been in little leagues longer than he’d been in love.

iwaizumi scoffed and rolled his eyes. yeah, “in love”. it’d been about a week since his whole life started to unravel and he had hardly seen, let alone spoken to meiko throughout that entire time.

over text, she’d sworn up and down that she loved and cared about him but as she passed by him packing his things a few days ago, she’d barely spared him a second glance.

hajime wasn’t going to lie. it hurt. he’d opened his heart up to her, something he didn’t do easily, and she’d taken his trust and used it to twist him into her weapon.

he always believed he was stronger than this — he’d never forget his mother telling him so when he was younger. he had fallen and scraped his knee yet he refused to cry to keep from upsetting his mom. iwaizumi existed to live up to what his mother thought of him but here he was, completely enveloped in meiko’s shit, doing her dirty work and following her bidding like some mutt.

god, toorū was right. he really was her bitch.

“i could hear you thinking from down the hall, iwa-chan.” speak of the devil...

oikawa stood at his doorway, leaning against the frame with a posture that seemed relaxed at first glance but if you looked a little closer, you’d notice the tenseness in his shoulders and the tightness of his smile.

hajime quickly sat up on his bed before motioning for his old friend to enter. “uh, yeah,” he began, his voice cracking a little from disuse, “i have a lot to think about.”

the light haired brunette let out an understanding hum before wandering into the room, sharp observant eyes darting to look at all the empty walls. “looks like you’re all packed.”

“pretty much,” iwaizumi nodded before the room fell into an awkward silence, the two childhood friends completely avoiding one another’s eyes.

“look, i-“

“iwa-chan, i’m-“

they both paused for a moment before bursting into laughter, the sound carrying into the hall and throughout the house.

hajime wiped a few stray tears from his eyes, shaking his head at their awkwardness. “you first, shittykawa.”

toorū gasped in halfhearted mock offense before quickly sobering up, training iwaizumi with a completely serious look. “i’m sorry and before you go on some bullshit, self sacrificing rant, you’re not the only one to blame for what happened to our friendship.”

he sighed while making his way to iwaizumi’s bed, sitting down gently beside him. “i should’ve known better, okay? i shouldn’t have let my jealousy and insecurities get in between us but i guess i got swept up in the attention, yknow? meiko is actually charming when she wants to be.”

iwaizumi nodded in agreement, knowing all too well how compelling meiko could be. the room fell into a more comfortable silence as both boys escaped into their thoughts, questions about the future of their friendship flitting throughout their minds.

“oh!” oikawa was pulled out of his own head at hajime’s exclamation, his eyes moving to observe his friend dig through his pockets to procure a thick white envelope. “here. i’d like you to give this yn.”

all toorū could do was nod, his brain short circuiting at the sight of iwaizumi’s apparent kindness to the woman he tormented for so long. “uh, what’s in it?” he ventured to ask, his soft hands toying with the sealed envelope flap.

a soft chuckle came from across the bed. “don’t be so nosy toorū, just give it to her, yeah?” oikawa rolled his eyes but obliged, the bed creaking as he stood to his feet.

“so... this is it, huh?” it was like the reality of the situation was just now sinking in — they hadn’t been close in a while but iwaizumi was still his best friend and he wasn’t quite ready to let him go.

they’d been through so much together, practically growing up together and now, they’d only see each other on holidays, if even then, and then he’d never be invited to hajime’s wedding as his best man as they’d planned and he also wouldn’t be the coolest uncle/godfather of iwa’s children and—

“fuck no,” hajime scoffed with a bright grin on his face. “thought you were gonna annoy me til the end of time shittykawa. don’t tell me you’re quitting your job now.”

the hidden meaning behind iwaizumi’s words brought tears to oikawa’s eyes and before he could stop himself, he launched his body into iwa’s arms. hajime hesitated, his hands stuttering at toorū’s sides as though he’d forgotten how to hug but the feeling passed, his arms winding around his friend’s lithe waist.

“‘m gonna miss you hajime,” oikawa’s voice came out as a broken whimper, his arms tightening around his shoulders.

iwaizumi hummed instead of responding, too afraid of his voice cracking under the weight of his emotions. they stood there for a moment but the honk of the moving truck outside signaled the both of them of their limited time.

hurriedly, oikawa wiped the tears off his cheeks before waving awkwardly at iwaizumi as he left the room with a friendly, “don’t be a stranger.”

and then he was gone.

toorū finally allowed himself to collapse into sobs on his best friends empty bed, his palms pressing into his eyes as he sat there and just let himself feel.

apparently, he wasn’t crying very quietly because it took only a few moments for you to find him, your soft footsteps alerting him to your presence. oikawa scrambled to wipe away what he knew was an unattractive mixture of tears and snot as you got closer.

you were one of the last people he wanted to see him like this.

“hey,” you whispered, standing a few feet away from him. “um, i know this is probably a bad time but i just wanted to thank you for apologizing? back at the awards show?”

toorū sniffed as he looked up at you with confusion written on his face. “what? you shouldn’t thank me for apologizing. ‘s common courtesy.”

you laughed softly, nodding in agreement. “well, not always. so, thank you.” finished with your piece and not too keen on lingering where you weren’t wanted, you moved towards the door but were swiftly stopped before you got there.

“um, here. it’s from iwa-chan.” you gaped at the thick envelope oikawa was handing you before taking it and opening it, a low curse falling from your lips.

inside the package was a dense wad of cash, more money than you’d seen in months. accompanied with it was a letter, written in beautifully loopy handwriting.

you shut it quickly before oikawa could see, stuffing the envelope deep within your pocket where you could access it alone in the depths of your room.

“do you wanna come eat? last i heard, bokuto and tsumu were doing a cooking competition and i’m sure it’ll be fun to watch.” you were severely thrown off by the money and letter but you were determined to show toorū that you’d accepted his apology and were on your way to making amends.

he gave you a shy nod and trailed behind you to the kitchen, the loud sounds of fire and screaming coming from down the hall. you wanted to focus on the fun and merriment but the envelope was practically burning a hole in your pocket.

later that night, you finally got the chance to open the letter and read it, your former manager’s words bringing tears to your eyes.

dear yn,

i’m probably the last person you expected to hear from. you probably didn’t want to hear from me at all if i’m being honest and i don’t blame you. i know there is nothing i can say that could make up for what i’ve done to you but i’d like to try.

i’m sorry. those words don’t nearly express in and of themselves how truly remorseful i am but they needed to be said. there’s no excuse for how i treated you — not meiko, not my stress, absolutely nothing.

you deserved my common decency and respect and i didn’t give that to you. instead, i abused my position and made your life hell. i’ll never forgive myself for that.

uh, i bet you’re wondering what the money is? i promise i’m not trying to pay you off, it’s just all the money i’ve denied you since you moved here. i have a lot of wrongs to right and this is one of them.

sorry, i’m not very good with words but i just wanted you to know that i’m very sorry for everything that i’ve done. and i’m in no place to make demands or anything but i just wanted to ask if you’d keep an eye on oikawa for me.

he’s strong but he’s also vulnerable. he might be a pain in my ass but he’s my best friend and since i can’t keep him from drowning, i was wondering if you’d do that - not for me but for him.

anyways, this letter is shit but i suppose you get the gist. use the money for whatever you want and if you’re as unselfish as i’ve heard, you don’t owe me anything. you don’t owe me money, kindness, or forgiveness.

take care of yourself,

iwaizumi hajime

℗ poker face

so... this is it

series masterlist

(●’◡’●)ﾉ

an - soooo m back :D hopefully this is the last of my mini hiatuses!! this chapter sucked to write but i’m not mad at how it turned out?? pls let me know how i did skjdkd don’t forget to feed me <3333

taglist - if your name is in bold, i cannot tag you

@boosyboo9206 • @geektastic84 • @elianetsantana • @trashy-simp • @infinitebells • @6mattsun9 • @suhkusa • @katsulovee • @kotarosbabygirl • @fucktheworlddude • @insomniacwreck • @calumsfringe • @saltylettuce • @chai-blu • @al3x1ss • @hawksyoongi • @syndellwins • @jooleuuh • @loubells • @kissungjae • @liberhoe • @tetsurocore • @animeoverdosee • @duhsies • @saikishairclip • @afire24 • @premiyagi • @kit-kat428 • @doctorspencereid • @daphnxy • @kyomihann • @maer-333 • @sinoflust19 • @peteunderoos • @peachiikichu • @iidanotlida • @yongboxerrr • @kac-chowsballs • @tanakaslastbraincell • @memorableminds • @risjime • @starry-magicshop • @sugavwara • @smuttyanimeslut • @kiwibirbs-library • @haijkk • @airybnb • @crybabygumi • @iwaisa • @decaffinatedtealover • @notameera • @kawaii-angelanne • @rintarovibes • @urlocalsimp

the rest of the tags will be in the replies!!

[shivada-jade]

soulmates!

soulmate!au because im weak. you're weak too.

characters: bennett, zhongli, diluc ➡ mentions: barbara, lisa, guizhong, hu tao, kaeya, crepus warning(s): bennett luck (he gets hurt a lot), wrote this at 2:48am so my writing may or may not make sense

bennett: feels the same emotions from the other, but the emotions have to be strong and genuine

he never understood your sudden bursts of sadness. it would come at the most inconvenient at times.

for as long as he could remember, the emotions that weren't his are mostly sad. he asked his dads about it and gently told him his soulmate system is feeling emotions from the other.

after crying from an unknown pain, he made it his soul purpose to constantly be happy all the time, no matter how unlucky he could be so you can be happy too.

his dads worry when he falls down and scrapes his knee, but he would always reply with, "i'm not hurt! my soulmate is hurt!"

he would then clutch the fabric on his chest tightly, like he's been stabbed with a sword and say, "my soulmate hurts right here."

he heaves a breath, "it doesn't compare to whatever luck i get."

"this pain is bearable," he convinces himself when he comes out a hilichurl camp in cuts and bruises.

"your soulmate needs you to be happy for them," he chastises himself for shedding a tear when another adventurer wronged him.

he visits barbara to heal his wounds and asks how she always looks so... happy, so smiley.

"all it takes is one smile to make yourself happy. it can be a slow process but it works!" she singsongs, "miss lisa showed me a study about it."

ever since barbara explained, he smiles the brightest of smiles in mondstadt. he refuses to let other adventurers let him down, worried he might hurt you more than it is.

soon, he finds out that he feels no sadness coming from you. he feels no weight on his shoulders. he feels happy after Good hunter ran out of food for him.

these are not my emotions, he thinks, a wide grin creeping it's way to his face.

he lets out the loudest laugh, giggles, and various joyous noises. he's never felt so happy in his life. for once, he feels lucky, because for once, you're finally happy in the other end of his invisible red string of fate.

his luck skyrockets when he sees a person around his age, with a gorgeous smile adorning their features. he knows its you, sitting by the fountain making wishes. he knows it's you when he sees your eyes that hold so much emotion.

it was as if his heart was tugging him to where you sat.

he's never felt so lucky to have you as his soulmate.

"thank you giving the best smiles"

zhongli: every time he passes his soulmate, he hears the sounds of bells ringing

now, zhongli never thought he would have a soulmate because of his past title of 'archon.' soulmate systems are a tricky thing. he knows there are so many ways to know your soulmate system.

the common system was their first words tattooed on themselves. many others had the ability to know when they meet them, in other words, a count down.

but zhongli never had those two, nor did he have faith in the soulmate system until the lantern rite festival.

walking by the busy streets, he muses to himself how pretty liyue is under the blanket of the moon and stars. he hears the merchants call to customers, attracting and waving at them to buy their products. he hears the clink of the mora in their bag is loud; the laughter from the children young and old marry a soft smile to his face.

he freezes, hearing something that should not belong in the lantern rite. the sound of bells ringing. it isn't any cow bell, or school bell. it's the sound of echoing, melodious wedding bells ringing his ear.

he vaguely remembers his friend guizhong mentioning about this rare particular soulmate system when she still roamed teyvat.

a soulmate!

zhongli stands straighter, eyes grazing on the sea of people, trying to see if anyone stopped to hear the bells he heard. he mutters a few apologies when people bump into him with lanterns in their hands, but that doesn't matter to him.

fate brought someone for him to love. it's just that... he doesn't know where.

he walks forward, he walks backwards to where he came from. he walks to the docks then to the top of liyue harbour, but he can't hear the sound of the bells again.

he doesn't panic. he doesn't rush, because he knows fate will bring you back together. he just doesn't know how long until he'll hear the bells again.

it came to him a surprise when he hears the bells everyday after that.

everyday when he sits at third-round knockout he hears the sound of bells behind him, but when he turns, he knows you've left already.

he sighs, blowing on his tea before taking light sips. it seems he won't be meeting you today.

one day, the ringing just stops. there's no sign of you, or your presence. zhongli assumes you're just taking a sick day, or you've decided to rest, but after a week of not hearing the bells, he worries.

archons, how he wanted to look for you, but he doesn't even know who you are. hu tao encourages zhongli to take the day off and look for you, so he did.

walking aimlessly in liyue, doubt crosses his mind. what if you were here for a business trip and left? it wasnt until he passes by a stunning figure he hears the bells again. he stiffens and turns to you when you stopped next to him.

"thank goodness," he says, slightly covering his smile with a gloved hand.

your eyes sparkle as you look at him, "thank goodness indeed."

diluc: lost possesions will come to your soulmate

for as long diluc knows, strange things always end up in his possessions: hairclips, pens, coins, and archons forbid- his soulmate's overdue bills.

his father laughs when younger diluc comes home dragging a wagon and the biggest teddy bear in history, because how on teyvat does someone lose a teddy bear taller than a door. crepus watches his son struggling to drag the big toy home and sees his other son pushing the wagon from behind, also struggling.

"what do you have there?"

all the response he gets are grunts. the side of his eyes crinkle with mirth, seeing his two sons having trouble bringing it home.

"father!" diluc calls out with a grin missing two of his front teeth, "i don't know where it came from. it's like it appeared from the sky."

"it actually did fall out of the sky!" kaeya says, "we were at the vineyard and i saw diluc get crushed!"

"i did not get crushed."

"did too," kaeya retaliates, sticking his tongue out.

that was the first time diluc heard of this certain soulmate system. lost things from his soulmate go to his possession; lost things from diluc go to his soulmate's possession.

crepus glances at his boys and gets an idea. he calls for them to follow him, and they do, obediently. he leads them to his room, pulling out a treasure chest full of frilly clothes, dresses, outfits that range from a farmer's outfit to a noblewoman.

"this chest is where your mother kept her favourite things," crepus pulls out a necklace from the bottom of the case. "this necklace was particularly her favourite."

diluc can see why. he's mesmerized by the ruby sparkle it hangs. the gold chain complimenting the red jewel and making it complete.

crepus clutches the necklace, looking at it longingly before placing it back in the chest. he places out all the old clothes from the container and lays it on his bed.

"you can keep your soulmate's things here like i once did. your pops is getting too old anyway, i-"

kaeya interrupts crepus jumps on the clothes that are on the bed, creating a havoc in the room. he jumps on the bed with so much energy even after diluc tells him about the story of the 5 little monkeys jumping on the bed.

though, crepus is having none of that. he picks up diluc by his small arms and flings him to kaeya, looking like a bowling ball knocking down a pin. the two boys gasp for air, shooting dirty looks at their father before they chase him out of the house.

the corner of diluc's mouth twitch up ever so slightly, remembering when he first knew of his soulmate. it would take a very observant person to notice his smile. he polishes the glass behind angel's share's counter. under the filtered sunlight, the glass glints. satisfied with the cleanliness.

the chest his father game him was fill of trinkets his soulmate had lost over the years, and good grief. his soulmate must be the most disorganized person ever. he remembers walking to dawn winery and a sack of mora drop on his feet. it wasn't a pleasant feeling, but the thing that has diluc worried is how his soulmate tends to lose the biggest things like a 7-foot-tall teddy bear.

diluc is about to place the wine glass on a cupboard until SMACK.

a thick paper hits his face from seemingly nowhere and so he knows that is his soulmate losing the tenth thing for the day. he has a room dedicated for the things his soulmate has lost, and he thinks he might need a second room.

he pulls the paper off his face and his eyes widen in shock. this two-inch thick paper are legal documents. loan agreements. overdue loan agreements.

[Name] [Last Name]

he notes the name in his head. [Name] owes the fatui 35 thousand mora as interest. what kind of reckless person- then it hits his mind. that sack of mora that fell from the sky was that 35 thousand to pay off the loans.

he knows where to go. he leaves the wineglass on the counter for charles to pick up and hastily grabs his coat and leaves the door.

"liyue, liyue, liyue, and the fatui." he chants in his head. loans. he greets his maid before ascending to his room. he snatches the mora that dropped on his feet and sprints out the door to retrieve his stallion.

a few hours at most to make it to where his fated partner was at, and so he sets off.

arriving at liyue is strange, seeing diluc's attire did not match the city, and seeing his hands are holding the reins of his horse tightly. a strange traveler from a foreign land... with a majestic stallion. he looks like a prince straight out of a fairytale.

he lightly pats his horse, urging to go a bit faster from the trotting they were doing until he meets the gaze of a distressed person in front of the fatui.

"i swear! i had the money and the papers just today!"

diluc scoffs, knowing who they were now, and they did not have the money today. they lost it a week ago.

"listen," the masked fatui grumbles. "im just here to do my job. if i don't have the money in my hands right now i'll-"

diluc jumps off the saddle and unloads the sack of mora from the side, dropping it on the fatui's hand with a seething glare, yet still polite.

"i believe they owe you 35 thousand? sounds about right, no?" he says, letting his diplomatic side show a bit. "for the sake of it, why not amuse me and take this, david. hmm?"

the fatui goes rigid, hearing his name. he slowly lifts his eyes up, "master diluc." he curtly nods and skittishly walks away. one time david spilled drinks at a mondstadt political gathering. he spilled it on diluc.

the ragnvindr waits for the fatui to walk away before turning to his, supposedly love of his life.

"you're the one who lost a 7-foot-tall teddy bear when i was six," he points out, waiting for your response.

his soulmate sheepishly smiles, "well- i would have a good defense but hey, did you at least enjoy having a 7-feet-tall teddy bear fall on you?"

"i did, along with a glass mug falling on me as well."

"i just cant believe how you never lose your stuff!" they retort, "the only thing i got was a missing tooth from you."

the tip of diluc's ears turn the same colour as his hair, but still wears a stoic expression. "i'm diluc ragnvindr," he greets, slightly bowing his head.

"and i'm yours"

part 2: with ganyu, kaeya and thoma

[fanficsfromyesteryear]

Hi! Can I request headcanons for dating marcus (deadly class)? Thank you

HEADCANONS FOR DATING MARCUS LOPEZ ARGUELLO

A/N: Just a head’s up, I got a little carried away, so this is kinda long lol. Also, sorry this took forever! I’ve been suuuuuper busy lately :/ I almost had it done before work picked back up, but I couldn’t figure out how to end it. Anyway, I hope you like it!!

Before the two of you started dating, Marcus had no idea that you liked him, and for good reason

You did such a good job with hiding your feelings that sometimes even you forgot they were there, which was kind of the whole point

With girls like Saya and Maria around, sending out mixed signals and dropping subtle hints that they liked Marcus, too, it was intimidating

Add Marcus’s constant cynicism about love, and life in general, into the mix, and it was clear the chances of him actually liking you back were next to nothing

So, you knew it was probably for the best to move on

You used the “if you ignore it, it’ll go away” approach in the hopes that if you simply didn’t acknowledge your feelings, the problem would disappear

All this did, however, was create a whole new issue

Somewhere along the way, you’d begun to take the thought process of ‘ignoring your crush’ too literally

You and Marcus were best friends, so when, out of the blue, you stopped talking to him, he could tell something was up

He had no clue what, though

Naturally, he assumed it was something he had done

Marcus started asking around among your mutual friends to see if they knew anything, but they were all just as out of the loop as he was

You hadn’t told anyone about your repressed feelings for Marcus, and you had no intention of letting the secret slip any time soon, but accidents happen

The truth came out one night during a game of truth or dare when you were up on the roof smoking with the Rats

Your confession came tumbling out quicker than you could even think about reeling the words back in

“You hear that, Romeo?” Billy asked, elbowing Marcus in the ribs. “Y/N’s got the hots for you”

All Marcus could do was laugh nervously as he looked down at his feet, refusing to meet your gaze

To your relief, no one brought it up again for the rest of the game

When the next day rolled around and your crush on Marcus still wasn’t the topic of conversation, you started to think that you were in the clear

Maybe they’d all been too stoned to remember when they’d woken up that morning

Your hopes were shattered by the late afternoon

As you left the bathroom, Marcus spotted you from across the hall

He quickly rushed over and caught you by the elbow, dragging you back through the doorway

“Relationships aren’t really my thing,” he said

Marcus sounded like he had more to say, but before he got the chance, you cut him off

“It’s fine,” you said. “I get it”

“No, no. I mean, I like you, Y/N, really. I just don’t wanna mess it up”

You couldn’t stop the smile that spread across your face even if you tried

“You’re not gonna mess it up”

Before either of you could say more, the bathroom door opened and Petra walked in

She glanced between the two of you knowingly

“Hate to break this up, but if I hold this piss in any longer, I’ll explode”

With that, she pushed past you both, effectively ruining the moment

It didn’t take long after that for you and Marcus to make your relationship official

‘Official’ is a bit of a loose term in this case

For the most part, both of you kept the fact that you were dating fairly under the radar for fear of what others would do with that information

In a place like King’s Dominion, something as small as caring for another person beyond using them as an ally was seen as a weakness that could and would be used against you, and the last thing either of you wanted was to be put in a situation where you were pitted against each other

Of course, there were several instances when one (or both) of you nearly blew your cover

Such as in Martial Arts class

Instead of fighting you, Marcus would try to cop a feel

You’d quickly smack his hand away

“Miss De Luca’s right there!”

“She’s not looking”

In defense of both of you, though, a class in which hormonal teenagers are asked to pair themselves up and wrestle is practically an invitation to break the ‘no sex’ rule

The other classes you shared weren’t any better

Master Lin caught you and Marcus staring at each other instead of paying attention on multiple occasions, earning both of you a smack from his cane

Although Marcus was somewhat known for his smart mouth and talking back to authority, he knew better than to challenge Lin, not mention that if he did, he’d risk exposing the two of you in the process

So, Marcus bit back his insults and held in his tirade until the two of you were safely locked away in his dorm room

“He had no right to hit you like that”

“I’m fine,” you assured him, shoving another tissue up your nose to stop the bleeding. “Besides, he does it to everyone”

“That still doesn’t give him the right”

“Next time, I’m gonna stick that cane right up his ass”

Marcus wanted to shield you from all the violence at King’s, but when it was coming from teachers, there wasn’t much he could do about it

If it was a fellow student pushing you around, on the other hand, there was no holding him back

You loved how protective Marcus was of you, but sometimes you worried that he’d get carried away

Marcus always made sure you were never around to witness the fights take place, but the scrapes and bruises on his face that hadn’t been there when you saw him that morning were all the proof you needed

In such cases, you would insist on patching him up afterwards

The first few times this happened, Marcus was embarrassed by all the attention you were giving him

After a while, though, he grew to love the feeling of having someone fuss over him, especially if it was you

It was nice to have someone care about him for a change

You weren’t much of a fighter, but making sure he didn’t get Tetanus was your way of looking out for him

When you and Marcus weren’t getting into trouble, you were actually a pretty cute couple

Your roommates became accustomed to the two of you being a package deal, which often meant sneaking into each other’s rooms after lights out

Sometimes, it was to make out, but other times, it was so you could have late night conversations that you didn’t get the chance to have during the day

The topics of these conversations varied—they could be deep and philosophical (which was Marcus’s favorite kind), an opportunity to open up to each other about yourselves and your pasts, a time to plot someone’s death (usually only theoretically), or simply joking around

After especially long days, you would accidentally drift off in the middle of these nightly chats with your head on Marcus’s chest, but he never minded

He’d pull the covers up on your side and wrap his arms more tightly around you

While both of you were perfectly capable of pulling all-nighters, whenever you fell asleep, Marcus was never far behind

The sound of your evened-out breathing was like a lullaby to him, so it was safe to say that his sleep schedule drastically improved after the two of you started dating

You’d found that you slept better with Marcus, too, so on the few nights you spent apart, you’d doze off listening to the mixtapes he’d made you in your Walkman, which were full of your favorite songs and songs that reminded him of you (though, these had quickly become your favorites, too)

It was rare that the two of you weren’t together, though

Even during the day, you and Marcus were practically joined at the hip

At lunch, you would hold hands under the table and share food

Of course, this always opened the door for plenty of teasing from your friends, especially Lex

“While you’re at it, why don’t you chew the food up for each other and pass it back and forth like little birds?”

“Fuck off, Lex”

It was always in good fun, though

Actually, the other Rats were relieved when the two of you finally got together because the weird tension that had been brewing leading up to that point went away, meaning group hangouts could carry on normally

They could overlook you sitting in Marcus’s lap if it meant you weren’t being distant and secretive

Just like they pretended not to notice when you showed up to class wearing each other’s blazers by mistake after spending the night together

Or walking in late looking ✨especially disheveled✨

All in all, you and Marcus are King’s Dominion’s cutest couple™️ that only, like, five other people know about, but still-

[thefanficmonster]

Corpse’s Girl

Corpse Husband x Reader (Female)

Warnings: Bullying, Swearing, Derogatory Terms

Genre: Angst, Fluff

Summary: Y/N’s life as a regular college student is forever stripped away from her when her relationship with the famous YouTuber Corpse Husband is accidentally revealed during an online class of hers. How will she cope with the sudden spotlight and the unwanted attention, some of which crosses into bullying?

Requested by my amazing Tumblr friend @itsminniekat 🥰 She’s been reading and liking my works since day one and I honestly couldn’t be more grateful. If you’re reading this, all I can say is thank you, darling. Thank you so much for sticking by my blog even when I posted some crappy fics. I’ll make sure this ain’t one of them. Love you with all my heart. ❤❤❤

P.S. - I named the mean character with my name so I hope no one who reads this has the same name. Wouldn’t want any of you feeling like the villain 😘

Who knew online class would be even more boring than being physically present for a lecture? Seriously, I find myself doing the weirdest of crap to entertain myself - like trying to balance a pen on the tip of my nose for example. I jot down some notes every now and then but that’s basically it. My mind can not fathom the concept on concentrating on whatever my professors are going on and on about. Well, full disclosure, I couldn’t concentrate even if I wanted to, especially with my boyfriend streaming in the other room.

He’s currently playing Among Us with his usual gaming squad. Listening to his input during the discussions, I can always tell when he’s lying. I honestly find it hilarious that his friends can’t pick up when he’s bullshitting them. I sometimes wonder if he has brainwashed them. And that’s one of the main reasons we don’t play Among Us together - he can’t lie to me. Not only do I pick up on his con with ease, but he always says he feels bad when he lies to me which is just the sweetest thing. Also, I refuse to play cause I’m shy. His friends are all well-known content creators and I’m a literal nobody. Every now and then I find myself wondering why Corpse is even with me. He’s always quick to push those thoughts out of my head and make sure they don’t return on a long notice, but they do interrupt my peace from time to time.

“Y/N, do you know?“ The sound of my professor saying my name takes me out of my eavesdropping of Corpse’s stream.

I panic, but quickly improvise, “Sorry, my internet is slow, you cut out for a second. What was the question?” I feel my face heating up, making me glad we are allowed to keep our cameras off.

“Question number 15 on page 82 in your textbook. Do you know the answer to it?“ My professor repeats himself, his tone annoyed.

I look down at the page that’s already opened in front of me. I let out a sigh of relief, seeing that the question is rather easy.

“Yeah, um, it’s...“ Suddenly, Corpse’s laugh reaches my room loud and clear. There’s no doubt my mic picked up the noise, especially since the door to my room is open.

The color drains from my face as I hurry to say the answer and remute myself. My eyes are wide as I stare at my screen, hoping no one will acknowledge that very recognizable laugh.

“OMG Y/N, are you watching a Corpse Husband stream in class?” One of the bitches in my class, Vy, speaks up, “Not a very goody-two-shoe move on your part, dear.” 

I purposely unmute my mic to mumble a quick ‘Shut up, bitch’ that somehow manages to fly under my professor’s radar and the class continues. It’s the first time something like this has happened and I’m not sure if I handled it properly or not.

The class ends shortly after, allowing me a sigh of relief as I disconnect from the meeting. 

“Fucking finally.“ I mumble to myself, leaning back in my desk chair. Tilting my head backwards, I see Corpse standing in the doorframe. I grin, not only because his presence itself makes me ten times happier, but also because he’s upside down from my viewpoint. “Well, hello there! How long have you been spying on me?“

He struts over to me, leaning his face over mine, “Long enough.” His lips linger above mine without any actual contact before he pulls away, allowing me to sit up straight and proper in the chair. “You still have classes?”

I nod my head while disappointedly rolling my eyes, “Yeah. One more. Shouldn’t be too bad since it’s English Lit. You’re done streaming?”

“Yeah, I just have some other things to do. I haven’t done a narration video in a while, I miss making that type of content.“ He plops down on my bed, running a hand through his messy black curls.

“Weren’t you recording some lines a few days ago?“ I frown as I try to recall if what I’m referring to actually happened or my brain is too fried to decipher reality from my bootleg perception of it. Online class, man - messes with your head like sleeping pills - makes you disoriented and exhausted with barely doing anything other than trying to wrap your brain around a lecture or two.

He hums affirmatively, “It’s not a finished project and I don’t even know if I’ll use those or rerecord them. I’ll have to listen to them again before I make a final decision.“

I tilt his chin upwards with my pointer finger, a gesture he has told me he finds very endearing, “I’m sure they’re great and you just refuse to be satisfied. Everything you do is great.“

He smiles a small, shy smile, his fingers gently wrapping around my wrist, holding my hand in place, “You’re biased. You like me too much to tell me when I do some bullshit.”

I scoff, “You know that isn’t true. If someone’s gonna kick your butt in formation, it’s gonna be me.“ I give him a quick kiss on the forehead before pulling away from him, “Go on, now. I have a class to attend. You distract me enough while you’re in the other room, I can only imagine how hard it’d be for me to focus if you were right by my side.“

He smirks, bowing a little as he makes his way out of the room, “You flatter me.”

I playfully roll my eyes, getting my headset back on as I tap the last class for the day. We have an assignment due to the start of the class which we’ll have to present if the professor approved of it. We basically had to write a psychoanalysis of a character from any book of our choice. I chose Heathcliff from ‘Wuthering Heights’ which is one of my favorite books of all time. I’m proud of what I wrote and the way I wrote it, but I’ve always barely scraped by with a B in this class, a B+ if I’m lucky, so I’ve never gotten any major credit, even when I put my 110% in the assignments and projects.

Well, color me surprised when the professor calls on me first to read my work, complimenting it on its detailed and specific nature. I get my printed assignment out in front of me and unmute myself.

“I wrote a psychoanalysis on for Heathcliff, a character from Emily Bronte’s novel ‘Wuthering Heights’.“ Just after I say this line, Corpse’s voice booms throughout the whole apartment, no doubt being picked up by my mic. It doesn’t sound like he’s actually talking, he can’t be that loud. I put two and two together when I recognize the lines he’s saying - the ones he recorded a few days ago. They’re coming from his computer speakers. He probably didn’t check the volume before playing back the recording.

I mute myself as quickly as possible, but it’s too late. The voice dies down as Corpse probably turned down the speakers.

My professor, who is already done with this lecture, just annoyedly remarks, her words overdosed with sarcasm: “Read your assignment and you can go back to whatever it is you are watching.”

“Wow, Y/N! Again?! Are you one of those crazy obsessed fans or something? Is Corpse Husband all you watch?“ This bitch is really poking a stick at me, huh? The only crazy obsessed fan here is her, and my friends but they are allowed. Little do all of them know, I am obsessed but not simply over a YouTuber. I’m obsessed with my boyfriend who just happens to be a YouTuber.

“No commentary, please.“ The professor scolds her, “Go on, Y/N.“

I finish reading without any other disturbances. The professor compliments my essay again when I’m done, the small incident at the beginning forgotten already. Well, not by everyone. One of my friends shot me a quick text to joke about it which only earned an eye roll from me.

My friends don’t know that I’m dating Corpse either. As I said, they are simping HARD over him while I act the most indifferent on the subject. Whenever they ask my opinion on him I either say ‘he’s OK’ or just avoid answering completely. I know saying anything more enthusiastic than that would turn into a snowball rolling down a snowy hill - I’d just keep babbling about how nice, amazing, wonderful and a gift to this world Corpse is, inevitably revealing our relationship in the process.

I’m afraid of revealing my relationship with Corpse in front of these people. They are all run on jealousy and selfishness and I can only imagine how mean they’d be about it. I’m already not too fond of them, it would only be worse if any of my personal life was exposed.

When the class finally ends I remove my headset, putting my forehead down on the desk, barely missing the keyboard. I groan in frustration and anger at myself for not fighting back. I could’ve and should’ve said something - ANYTHING. But what? That’s a question I can’t find the answer to.

“Hey...“ Corpse’s hesitant voice comes from behind me, “You ok?“

I straighten my posture, turning to him with a smile. “Yeah, but these people suck.”

I get up from my chair as he approaches me, basically falling in his arms. The comfort I feel radiating off of him makes me relax, forget the past hour or so. He has always had this effect on me. Like my own personal kryptonite to my anger and anxiety.

“Did I get you in any trouble because of that?“ His voice shows clear concern and guilt. 

I wrap my arms around him tighter, burying my head in his chest. “No, don’t worry about it.“ 

And I really wasn’t in trouble. Not until now that the video is officially posted....

I can call these people dumb all I want but they sure put two and two together awfully fast. They recognized the lines they heard during class as the same ones from his new video that came out almost a week after the incident, aka two days ago. It’s safe to say I haven’t touched my phone or computer since.

“This is all my fault.“

Of all the horrible things I suspected would happen this has to be the worst - Corpse is blaming himself for it. I am prepared to take all the shit these people have to throw at me but seeing Corpse beating himself up over this is killing me. No amount of convincing can change his mind. Nothing I say helps.

“Please, stop doing this to yourself. Non of this is your fault, Corpse.“ I’ve repeated this sentence more than a thousand time these past forty eight hours, each time saying it more and more desperately.

“All of it is my fault, Y/N. I’m so sorry. I hate myself so much.“ Has been his reply single time.

 I can’t watch him be so mean to himself. It’s the most conflicting thing when the person you love most is torturing themselves. It’s easy if it’s someone else doing it, you just kick their ass. But what are you supposed to do when the person you want to protect is the same one you need to protect them from.

Corpse has shut himself away in his recording room these past few hours and though he clearly needs to be alone, he still left the door open just a crack cause he knows I’ll be worried sick otherwise.

While I’m alone in the living room, I’ve finally managed to brace myself and build enough courage to power up my laptop. Last time it was on it was going mad with notifications.

“It’s digital. Only digital. It can’t hurt you too badly if it can’t touch you, right?“ I mumble to myself, already frustrated despite not having yet seen all the horrors that await me.

And horrors there were. Everywhere. Twitter. Instagram. Facebook.

My grades. Some pictures of me no one has ever seen. My school files. People from my class tweeting Corpse to ‘expose’ me for the ‘slut’ or ‘bitch’ I really am. Corpse hasn’t touched social media either and I plan on making sure it stays that way. God only knows how much worse he’ll get if he sees these claims.

And then, like a notification sent straight from hell, an email from my professor.

Practical lectures on Friday. Be here at 9 AM. Don’t forget your mask and gloves.

Good thing I opened my laptop when I did. Friday is tomorrow and I need to prepare for this day. Not only do I need to hit the books but I need to toughen up a bit. I can’t go there looking like I feel - like a mess.

Alright, time to put the brave face on. No more wallowing in it, at least not until tomorrow afternoon.

I make a study plan and hop in the shower. I feel the need to apologize to my hair for washing it so roughly, basically yanking at my strands from frustration that has been suppressed for too long.

I get our of the boiling hot shower, red as a lobster, and change into some clean comfortable clothes and put my ass in study mode. I remove all the scary expectations of the morning to come from my mind and let the information the textbooks has to offer seep into my brain.

                                                            *  *  *

I’m about to head out and, despite my put-together composure, I am a wreck inside. I actually put effort into my appearance, I mean - I even styled my hair. A pretty façade to hide a ruin.

I saw my friends’ texts last night, all three of them ending their friendship with me because they felt betrayed. I haven’t yet decided how to feel about that. Doesn’t matter at the moment, there are more important matters at hand, aka surviving the next three hours.

My college is within ten minutes walking distance from our apartment. That ten minute walk has never been so stressful, not even during exam season. The air feels a little harder to breathe, the path a little shorter to walk. And my moment of reckoning a little too close.

I feel eyes on me the second I start walking through the park of our campus. Sure, I could just be paranoid, but the feeling is too real to be just my imagination in overdrive. I’m glad I have my hair down and a mask on so the redness of my cheeks and neck isn’t on display. That’s a sign of weakness right now.

We have two an hour and a half long classes between which we have a snack break that’s half an hour. I usually enjoy that period but I’m dreading it now. These assholes can only be so mean in the presence of a professor, but during lunch break they can increase that tenfold. 

“Well if it isn’t Corpse’s girl.“ I hear that a lot. The whispers are not so much whispers as intentionally loud enough for me to hear remarks. I’m not bothered by them, it’s the least they can do. If I let such a simple thing get to me, I’d be crumbling by the end of first period.

I hear some shuffling behind me and out of the corner of my eye I see, yeah you guessed it, THAT bitch. She’s standing as close to me as she can without violating Covid regulations. A mask is covering her face but the menacing look in her eyes tells me all I need to know about the interaction that’s about to go down.

“I’d ask how much he pays you for the hour.....“ her long nails tap the wooden desk, “but that’d be rude. I bet it’s tough being a maid. Do you just clean or are you a multipurpose lap dog? No offense, I’m genuinely curious.“

“Vy, would you be so kind as to give Y/N some room to breathe?“ The professor asks as he nonchalantly walks in.

Vy rolls her eyes, batting her eyelashes at me, “Talk to you later, sweetheart.” With a fake friendly wave she’s out of my hair, at least for now.

Remember what I said about these people not being as dumb as I pegged them to be? Yeah, scratch that. These fuckers actually tried getting away with taking pictures of me with flash in broad daylight. Like, HELLO! I have two functioning eyes and a brain, I’m onto you. Sadly, me having figured out their childish but hurtful methods of humiliating me doesn’t change much. They still posted the pics they took, using the most derogatory terms they could find in the English language, always making sure to tag Corpse and me both.

Needless to say, these were the longest three hours of my life.

                                                              *  *  *

Shutting the door to our apartment behind me causes relief of the highest levels. I feel like I’ve locked out all the bad shit I have had to deal with these past twenty four hours. 

I’m tired. I’m fucking exhausted. I feel like a discarded piece of paper. 

And it all starts crumbling. A wall is bound to start slowly falling apart after being hit over and over again, each time feeling the blows with a stronger intensity. 

I slide down the door sitting down on the floor and slowly taking my shoes off. I put my bag beside me and wrap my arms around my knees, hiding my head in the space between them and my chest.

One tear slides down my cheek.

Another follows.

And another, this time accompanied by a choked sob.

A pair of arms wraps around the ball that my body has been shaped into. One of his hands comes up to stroke my hair gently, feeding me the comfort I have been longing for since I left the apartment this morning.

“I saw it. All of it. All the shit they talk about you. All the names they call you. And I’ve never wanted to beat so many people up simultaneously.“ His words make me raise my head from its low position, giving him a knowing look. “I wish I could. I would, but that would land me in jail. Which doesn’t even sound so bad cause I don’t like going out. Only problem is you wouldn’t be with me. I wouldn’t want you to be there with me, don’t get me wrong, I’d never want you to end up in jail. I-...” I cut him off by pressing my lips to his. A quick kiss that says so much but mainly shows the immeasurable gratitude for his support.

Seeing those awful tweets and comments had the complete opposite effect on him. He no longer blames himself but the people who actually deserve the blame - all those jerks from my college.

I pull away, giving him a small smile. “I would never let you go to jail.” 

He smiles back at me, overjoyed that my mood is slowly being lifted, “Come on, I have a nice crowd that would like to meet you.”

I know exactly what he means. Felix, Sean, Rae, Dave, Sykkuno and the rest of his friends. The people I’ve been so shy and afraid to meet since day one. Being shy doesn’t really make sense now, seeing as how they know I exist and that I’m a part of Corpse’s life. 

What do I have to lose?

“Guys, this is my girlfriend, Y/N.“ Corpse’s black avatar runs around my cyan one in the Among Us lobby.

I can’t help but giggle when I unmute my mic, “Hi everyone! It’s so nice to finally meet you.“ They each introduce themselves, expressing how happy they are to be meeting me too.

It’s the first time in what feels like a while that I’m truly having fun. These people are wonderful, each so unique and lovely. They never brought up the scandal nor acted as though they knew about it. I know they did and I am beyond grateful that they never mentioned it or treated me any differently because of it. Also, Corpse was streaming the whole time. I had my phone on his stream, my eyes nervously scanning the chat every now and then. I couldn’t believe it. Corpse’s real fans were just as wonderful as his friends - they were nothing but supportive and happy to have met me.

Now, I can either choose to believe these people were being so nice to me out of sympathy or I can believe they really like me and appreciate me for who I am and not for what happened to me. 

I choose to believe the latter.

And while I’m still getting accustomed to this whole new spotlight, I know I’ll be able to handle it as long as I’m holding Corpse’s hand in the process. All I need is to have him beside me and I’m prepared to tackle anything.

“They love you.“ Corpse tells me once the stream is done and we’ve hopped out of the Discord call, “But I love you more.“

His arms wrap around my waist while mine instinctively find their way around his neck, “I love them, too. But they’re at the number 2 spot.”

He smirks at me, “I wonder who’s at number 1.”

I push up on my toes, putting my lips an inch away from his, “Hmm, I wonder...”

He doesn’t let me finish, silencing my teasing with a sweet, loving kiss.

@susceptible-but-siriusexual  @simonsbluee  @save-the-sky  @hacker-ghost  @bi-andready-tocry  @imtiredaffff  @jazzkaurtheglorious  @hereforbeebo  @fandomgirl17  @chrysanthykios  @maehemscorpyus  @loraleiix  @letsloveimagines  @annshit  @i-cant-choose-a-username-help  @enigmaticmaze  @divine-artemis  @waterlilypat

[hikari3601]

To Inazuma!

Home page

Pairing | Albedo x Reader (platonic-ish) Venti and Klee are mentioned too!

Author’s Note | Just something before the update, Goodluck to everyone wishing!

Warnings | (very) mild profanity, overworked MC, MC is an artist, mentions of art struggles aka symmetry and being burned out(?) and Albedo being a low-key simp.

“You’ve swamped yourself with commissions ever since Y/N, and if all these families truly appreciate your pieces, they’ll understand that you need a break in order to produce quality.”

“Inazuma?” You echoed bluntly, your focus split unequally between the life-sized canvas before you and your closest friend.

Your back faced the blond-haired alchemist who sat a few paces behind you at the window side divan passively, inspecting the subject matter of your large canvas in awe and pride.

“I was quite surprised as well.” He replied, completely enthralled by the scene you were creating with each steady and focused stroke of your small, thin paintbrush.

The scene in question was simplistic -a depiction of three women clothed in old-fashioned Fontaine apparel sitting together around a small tea table on a sunny afternoon beside a shimmering lake adorned with snow-white swans, chatting pleasantly amongst themselves, surrounded by a lush garden of ruby and white roses; and yet the detail you placed into every section of the canvas truly brought it to life.

“How long has it been?” Your flat voice broke through his reverie, immediately reminding him of the task at hand -getting you to leave your studio for much longer than a few minutes.

“A few years I suppose,” He replied, a thoughtful look morphed his features as he considered the current state of the ‘Eternal Land.’ “Although, long enough to shake their entire economy.”

There was a beat of silence between the two of you, while you willed your hand to remain steady as you began to layer the second eyebrow of one of the women.

“That traveller really is something.” You finally breathed, satisfied with the first coating.

Albedo could only hum in acknowledgement of your faint words, worried that anything louder would shatter the stunning world you were still in the process of creating. 

Once again he found himself completely smitten with your entire being – and then, he remembered why he was there, for the second time.

“Jean’s also permitting certain knights to travel to Inazuma since the Yashiro commission is hosting an event for the abolishment of the Sakoku decree.” He began, hoping that you’d catch onto what he was implying.

But of course, that was not the case, with your mind so centred around everything art-related, it came as no surprise to him when you muttered out a small “Really?” in response to his statement.

“Would you like to join me?” He prodded further– scraping the subtle approach.

“Join you?”

It was only at the notion of him leaving, did your voice finally gain some of its vitality, “Are you leaving as well?”

“Yes, although I was only commissioned due to my being Xinqui’s illustrator.”

“Oh that’s lovely Bedo, I’m so happy for you!” You grinned, the same pride that which he held for you, blooming in your chest at the thought of his amazing feats.

“Thank you — so, what do you say?” Albedo proceeded to raise himself from his seat to approach you while you placed the tip of your brush back on the canvas to begin adding the second layer of brown onto the noble woman’s eyebrow.

“I’d love to join you, but I can’t.” Your smile dropped at the thought of all that you’d miss while he was away. “I’ve got three more commissions to complete after this one and I can’t fall behind if I do —damnit!”

You lowered your paintbrush after releasing a hellish howl of anger followed by a string of colourful profanities, instantly alerting the alchemist.

“What’s the matter!?” He rushed to your side, with eyes blown wide in shock at your explosive outburst.

“Her eyebrow.” You huffed turning your head to scrutinise your mistake.

Following your trail of sight, Albedo turned his gaze to the eyebrow as well, trying his utmost best to find a problem with its colour. “What’s wrong with her -oh.” He breathed.

“It’s bloody skew!” You scowled, your soft lips morphing into a nasty sneer.

There was another beat of silence between you two, although this one was far more intimidating and tense compared to the last with your mood having instantaneously dampened, while beside you, Albedo formulated a way to extract your presence from the studio –eventually opting to reinforce his suggestion with your fatigue induced mistake.

“When are the paintings due?” He queried, raising his hand slightly in order to stretch his cramping hand.

“This one has been requested for next month,” You sighed, slumping in the seat next to your paint sets. “The other two for the month of Ludi Harpastum and the final one just in time for Liyue’s Moonchase Festival.”

Oh how you just wanted to crawl into a hole and die.

“You’ve still got some time Y/N. Take a break and come with me before you burn yourself out… again.”

His suggestion sounded blissful, it honestly did, but leisure wouldn’t pay your bills, nor would it complete your commissions.

“But what if I fall behind Bedo?” Rubbing your drooping eyes, you continued. “I can’t risk it, I’ll end up making more of a mess—”

“—If you don’t take a break. When was the last time you weren’t forcing yourself to paint for others, hm? I can confidently say that the last time I saw you smiling while idly sketching was about two years ago.”

He moved to sit beside you, pulling you into a comforting embrace -one that only he could provide you with.

“You’ve swamped yourself with commissions ever since Y/N, and if all these families truly appreciate your pieces, they’ll understand that you need a break in order to produce quality.”

He felt his mission draw to a successful close when he felt your shoulders relax, but as much as he had convinced you to leave with him, he needed to seal the deal. 

“If you really must,” Albedo started, finding it hard to keep the emerging smile off of his poker face, “Take this canvas with you, but only work on completing the three women, nothing else.”

“But I’m almost done with the women.”

“Exactly.”

“And by the way” He stood up to leave, leaving you with the feeling of his lingering embrace and thoughtful words. “Klee and that bard friend of yours will be tagging along too.”

“R-Really!?” You jumped, excitement beginning to bubble in your core, and by the time Albedo spoke his next words he was already out the door and in the corridor –a triumphant smile finally pulling his features.

“I’ll help you pack when I return, I’ve got to check on Sucrose and Timeus.”

Of course, he had to check up on those two, but first, he had to go report back to a certain bard and little elf about their success.

[therealvinelle]

If Edward turned Bella after forcibly aborting Renesmee, how would canon go?

... that was the point of forcibly aborting Renesmée, though. The demon baby was killing hamburger, Edward's whole reason for wanting that abortion was to save Bella. Specifically, to keep her human.

He has this whole scene with Jacob where... screw it, I'll quote it, so you don't have to take my word for it:

“Just back up a second. She won’t let you.” The sarcasm was acid on [Jacob's] tongue. “Did you ever notice that she’s exactly as strong as a normal hundred-and-ten-pound human girl? How stupid are you vamps? Hold her down and knock her out with drugs.”

“I wanted to,” [Edward] whispered. “Carlisle would have. . . .”

What, too noble were they?

“No. Not noble. Her bodyguard complicated things.”

Oh. His story hadn’t made much sense before, but it fit together now. So that’s what Blondie was up to. What was in it for her, though? Did the beauty queen want Bella to die so bad?

“Maybe,” he said. “Rosalie doesn’t look at it quite that way.”

“So take the blonde out first. Your kind can be put back together, right? Turn her into a jigsaw and take care of Bella.”

“Emmett and Esme are backing her up. Emmett would never let us… and Carlisle won’t help me with Esme against it. . . .” He trailed off, his voice disappearing. (Breaking Dawn, page 115)

(Note: this later turns out to be a lie. Carlisle explicitly states that he won't perform an abortion on Bella against her will. Edward has his back against the wall, and is losing his mind.)

“I don’t care about anything but keeping her alive,” he said, suddenly focused now. “If it’s a child she wants, she can have it. She can have half a dozen babies. Anything she wants.” He paused for one beat. “She can have puppies, if that’s what it takes.”

He met my stare for a moment and his face was frenzied under the thin layer of control. My hard scowl crumbled as I processed his words, and I felt my mouth pop open in shock.

“But not this way!” he hissed before I could recover. “Not this thing that’s sucking the life from her while I stand there helpless! Watching her sicken and waste away. Seeing it hurting her.” He sucked in a fast breath like someone had punched him in the gut. “You have to make her see reason, Jacob. She won’t listen to me anymore. Rosalie’s always there, feeding her insanity—encouraging her. Protecting her. No, protecting it. Bella’s life means nothing to her.”

The noise coming from my throat sounded like I was choking.

What was he saying? That Bella should, what? Have a baby? With me? What? How? Was he giving her up? Or did he think she wouldn’t mind being shared?

“Whichever. Whatever keeps her alive.”

“That’s the craziest thing you’ve said yet,” I mumbled. (Breaking Dawn, pages 116-117)

Edward wasn't allowed to be alone with Bella because they knew he'd try this. Even Bella knew, it's why she asked Rosalie for help.

Say, though, that Edward is able to get Bella alone... somehow. He overhears Bella's phone call at the airport, and that's where things get scary because it means Bella can't go to Forks anymore. Wouldn't want Rosalie to get her claws into you, would we, Bella?

Edward contacts Carlisle with an update about the situation, and tells him to fly in with the medical equipment they'll need and make sure Rosalie can't interfere.

Unfortunately for Edward, Carlisle is not understanding about this. He'll do anything and everything he can to help Bella, yes, but he won't abort the baby against her will.

Again, just so no one is taking my word for it (I'm in a quotin' mood today):

“Yes. Bella is already a daughter to me. A beloved daughter.”

“But you’re going to let her die.”

[Carlisle] was quiet long enough that I looked up. His face was very, very tired. I knew how he felt.

“I can imagine what you think of me for that,” he finally said. “But I can’t ignore her will. It wouldn’t be right to make such a choice for her, to force her.” (Breaking Dawn, page 154)

So now Edward has Carlisle on the phone telling him to bring Bella to Forks damnit, they have all the equipment there, and failing that the family is coming down to Rio - but not to abort the baby. And off the phone is Bella, begging Edward to understand that their baby is a miracle.

Edward ends up performing the abortion himself.

Considering what the hybrid pregnancy did to Bella's body, including but not extended to turning her uterus to stone, she was likely doomed from the moment of conception. A simple suction or scrape isn't going to do. Oh, I'm sure he'd try, but Renesmée probably crushes whatever he tries to put in the uterus with her tiny, somehow-already-developed fists.

Edward would have had to perform a hysterectomy.

So we have a vampire with no surgical experience whatsoever performing a hysterectomy and abortion on his wife (And yes, hysterectomies are invasive procedures, you need to know what you're doing) and one can only hope he minded his anestesiology well enough not to kill her that way. To say nothing of the fact that Bella had been turned into a hybrid incubator, this isn't going to be like the textbooks Edward read in the 1950's. (For that matter, people's innards aren't identical to the textbooks. This organ can be bigger than expected and that artery might take a slightly different path than expected. We're genetically varied both on the inside and the outside, so Edward really can't rely on what he learned in school.)

Bella's not getting off that operating table alive.

In canon Edward did bite her in the end, once she was truly beyond saving, but she also did very much give birth Alien style. She wasn't going to survive, and Edward had even had some time to get used to that thought, however much he railed against it. He was desperate enough that in that fateful moment he chose to keep her.

This time, he abducted, drugged, and forcibly aborted her, all of it so she'd live on. If he bites her, that will all have been for naughty.

But if he doesn't, then his world will be a starless night again.

Could be he bites her, could be he doesn't. I can't predict Edward Cullen.

If he does, then Bella wakes up a vampire to find that her husband murdered both her and her child, and now wants her to forgive him. She never does, and Carlisle and Rosalie can't either. Even Esme would struggle with this one. The covens falls apart spectacularly, but at least Bella now has a Tragic Backstory™ to match the others.

If he doesn't, then Alice watches powerlessly this vision of Edward killing his wife, and all the Cullens can do is come in many hours later, when it's too late anyway, and bury Bella. The coven falls apart in this timeline too.

[tripleaxeldiaz]

when you come home, i’d lift you up

read on ao3

It’s dark. Eddie never really wanted to end up in the dark like this again.

It reminds him of the other times — the damp darkness of the well, the weightless black of the in-between he was stuck in after getting shot. But it’s also worse, because it’s compounded on top of those times to make it suffocating. Before, he knew there were ways out. Before, he wanted to fight, like he always did, like he promised he always would. But now, he can’t remember what’s waiting for him in the light. Faint images of glasses and curly brown hair and birthmarks and crooked smiles, but none of it enough to pull him out this time. All he knows is nothingness. It feels like all he’s ever known.

There’s a jolt, and he’s briefly brought back to his body, enough to remember the power going out, the hospital, and that he decided to take the elevator because the stairs were on the other side of the floor. It’s worse now, somehow, because the darkness is still suffocating, but now it has physical confines. Four walls, a floor, and a ceiling that can’t be pushed through with his hands or force of will. He’s not stuck, he’s trapped, and he’s sweating and his hands are shaking and he swears he hears his heartbeat echoing around him. 

But his heartbeat gets louder and louder, and he realizes it’s not a heartbeat at all — it’s footsteps. Quick, heavy footsteps heading his way. They skid to a stop outside the elevator door, and a voice he’d recognize anywhere — in the blackest dark or the brightest white — carries through and lights him up, just a bit.

“Eddie? Eddie, are you in there? Are you okay?”

He swallows his panic enough to let “Buck?” fall from his lips, soft and shattered.

“I’m right here, Eds.” He shouts something else but it’s muffled, far away, like he’s projecting away from the door. “Are you hurt?”

Deep breath, focus. Take stock of yourself. He quickly scans from head to toe, flexing muscles and wigging limbs. “I’m fine. Think I twisted my ankle, but nothing’s broken.”

“Good, great, okay.” More shouting and far away footsteps. “We— we need jaws and some extra hands to get you out but they’re on their way, okay? I promise we’ll get to you soon.”

Ice crashes through him again. “Are you— can— please don’t—” The air suddenly feels too thin, too close to his skin and not enough in his lungs.

“Eds?”

“Please don’t leave me.”

He’d feel pathetic asking any other time, but they’d been in each other’s orbits more than ever the past few months, and not having Buck in his line of sight for this long is making him itchy, jittery nerves mixing with unwavering panic in an unpleasant cocktail. It had felt selfish, at first, always taking up Buck’s offers to stay over and cook and help with Chris, but the one time — the only time — he’d tried to say no, to give Buck a break, he’d looked so wrecked that it just confirmed for him that all the volunteering was as much for Buck’s sake as it was for Eddie’s. 

Call it weird, call it codependent, but this is the longest they’ve been apart in months, and on top of everything else happening at the moment, Eddie’s not sure how much longer he can handle it.

Luckily, he hears the squeak of fabric against the door as, he assumes, Buck slides down to sit. “I’m not going anywhere,” Buck says, softly as he can to still be heard through the door. “I promise, I’m not gonna leave you.”

The nerves subside a fraction, only to remind Eddie that it’s still dark and he’s still trapped. He swallows and nods even though Buck can’t see him. “Thank you.”

“Always.” 

Buck’s radio crackles to life, probably Bobby checking in, but Eddie can’t quite make out what he’s saying. Buck's response is quiet, muffled a bit too, like he turned away from the door again so Eddie couldn’t hear. “Cap, I’d really rather stay here, if that’s okay. He needs me.” 

A tangle of relief and guilt crashes through him, because he does need Buck, but he hates that needing Buck means keeping him from the job.

He must have gotten an affirmative, though,  because his voice comes back to it’s normal, still muffled volume. “Okay, everyone’s on their way, just a little bit longer. How you holding up?”

“Fine,” Eddie says, cursing the tremble in his voice.

Buck definitely clocks it, too. “Eddie, come on.”

Eddie takes a breath that catches all the way in and out. “It’s dark,” he says quietly, weighed down in his throat by shame. “The emergency lights don’t work in here.”

Buck whispers something under his breath, probably a curse. There’s tapping and scraping along the door for a minute. “I can’t— there’s really nowhere for me to get light in.”

“It’s okay,” Eddie says, taking another, smoother breath. “I’ll be alright.”

“You will be. I’m making sure of that.” His radio crackles again, another quick, murmured conversation Eddie can’t hear. “Hey,” he says once the radio clicks off, “we’re having a day Saturday, right? Tell me the plan, what does Chris want to do?”

He’s stalling, Eddie can tell. There’s been a delay, Eddie’s going to be in this box for God knows how long, and Buck is trying to get Eddie to talk about Chris to keep him calm. He sees right through it, but he’s also immensely grateful, because really no one but Buck would try something so obvious with him and actually have it work.

“That traveling food exhibit at the science center,” he says. “Apparently they have samples of very smelly cheese he’s going to dare you to try.”

“He knows I’m always up for a challenge,” Buck says, and Eddie knows for a fact he’s smiling. “What else? Dinner?”

“That taco place off 41st, if you think you’ll be up for it.”

“No amount of bad cheese can keep me from tacos.” Buck says it so seriously it actually startles a laugh out of Eddie. Clearly, the panic hadn’t weighed everything down. Or Buck being here really was lightening the load.

“And then what? Game night? Movie night?”

“Probably both,” Eddie says, because he knows his son, and he knows he’ll figure out how to squeeze everything in. “He’s gotten really good at Clue, though, so prepare to lose.”

“As long as I get to be Professor Plum, I don’t mind.”

“And you’ll stay?” He already knows the answer — it hasn’t changed in almost six months — but he’s currently still shrouded in darkness and fear, and he just wants to know for sure.

“I’ll stay, Eds. Of course I will,” Buck says with a solemnity that might be too much for something so trivial, but it loosens the vice on Eddie’s ribs enough to breathe properly. He’s pretty sure Buck isn’t talking about just staying the night.

Before he can finish fully processing that, or the way it warms him from head to toe like he’s been injected with sunshine, there’s unfamiliar loud voices and thumps outside the door. “Okay, Eds, cavalry’s here,” Buck says. “Can you back up from the door for me? It’s gonna get loud.”

Eddie’s already sitting against the back wall, but he makes himself as flat as possible as the team starts to work. There’s sparks and screeching metal and the whole elevator box rattles so hard Eddie’s teeth knock together. The dark shifts around him, like it’s trying to swallow him whole while it still has the chance.

Finally, salvation: Eddie’s blinded momentarily by the bop-and-weave streaks from various headlights, but when his eyes adjust, Buck is there, lit from behind and reaching down to him like a literal guardian angel, his smile brighter than any man made light could even attempt to manage. Eddie returns it, and he knows it’s tired and probably a little dopey with relief, but he can’t bring himself to care.

Getting up is hard — his ankle hurts a little more than he originally thought — but he hobbles to the elevator door and takes Buck’s hand, lets himself be pulled out to safety, to light, the weight of panic finally dissolving around him. He lands on his knees and falls into Buck’s chest and doesn’t try to move, lets himself melt into Buck, his familiar warmth and scent and life. Buck melts too, arms wrapping around Eddie’s shoulders, forehead resting on the crown of his head. They stay like that, and Eddie breathes enough of Buck in that the darkness quickly feels like a distant memory, even though they’re still technically in a blackout.

“Thank you,” he whispers, arms wrapping around Buck’s waist, refusing to let go. “Not— not just for this, for everything with me and Chris and—”

“Hey, hey,” Buck breathes into Eddie’s hair, “I told you, I’m not going anywhere. I’m here, as long as you need me.”

Forever. I think I need you forever. 

Eddie just pulls him closer and holds on tight as the last of the dark fades from his mind.

[hansolmates]

shiver | 02

banner done by the wonderful @dnrequests

summary; jungkook changed since he moved out of his small town church community and attended college. when he returns for a christmas mass, you suddenly crave a taste of his fun and carefree life. in exchange, jungkook craves a taste of you pairing; bad boy!jungkook x church girl!reader genre/warnings; childhood friends to lovers, brief childhood friends to enemies, fwb!au, catholic guilt, jungkook is a meanie who eventually turns into a soft tsundere, bicuriosity, sexual exploration, virgin!oc, eventual smut—in this installment: mentions of sex w/c; 1.2k a/n; thanks for the overwhelming amount of love for pt1! now that the plot is p much set up in this installment, the drabble updates will be a lil shorter (around 400-1k) i hope that doesn’t deter anyone. hope this is a good start to your weekend babiesss, next installment will be jjk’s pov! [shiver masterpost]

“You live here?” 

“You’re moving in here?” 

Since the boxes started to pile up the doorstep, Jungkook was wondering all day who’d be occupying the room next to him. It’s a corner room, which made Jungkook doubly jealous because they had a great view of the city. Who knew his new neighbor would be the bobbing bunny who’d chase him in childhood (and all the way to adulthood, apparently.) 

Conversely, you’re also shocked. Your parents checked out this place, and said nothing about Jungkook also living here. Then again, not mentioning it may be the point.

It’s the start of a new semester, and you haven’t talked to Jungkook since that whole Christmas fiasco. You avoided Jungkook for the rest of the holiday, refusing to let him play with you like this. No matter how big your crush may be, you have dignity and five minutes of fondling will not change that. 

“Yeah, finally picked a graduate school.” you drop your last box on top of the pile, “this was the only school my family could compromise on.” 

“Congrats,” his eyes flicker over to the boxes, stacked higher than you, “you need help moving in?” 

You weren’t about to refuse free labor, so you open your door and let him set up. Jungkook knows your tastes, years and years of study groups having you and your friend visiting each other’s rooms up until high school. He color-codes your closet for you, diligently making sure to avoid your delicates and unmentionables. The frames are put up at straight angles, not a corner out of place. While the apartment is small and old, it’ll be your new home for the next year. You’re excited. 

“Still needs that touch,” Jungkook holds his hand out like a frame, going over the blank nooks and crannies of your apartment, “something’s missing.” 

Jungkook sees things you don’t see. You heard one Sunday lunch that Jungkook’s studying to be an architect. To you, whatever’s missing in this apartment is miniscule, even nonexistent. 

You think the missing thing is him, although Jungkook doesn’t know it. He’s poking and prodding around, moving small furniture to different corners and then surveying the corners. Jungkook is the bit of home you’ll get when you’re tired and stressed over work. Maybe you two can be study buddies, or get lunch together on campus. The thought has you warm, wondering if Jungkook will be able to see you anything other than a childhood friend turned pretty. 

“I won’t be bringing much here,” you say reluctantly, running your fingers over the polished kitchen counter, “I still have to go home for church every weekend.” 

Jungkook’s eyes quirk at the revelation that you can’t stay in the city due to hometown obligations, and within reason. Jungkook doesn’t go back every weekend, yet your family expects you to. It was the compromise when you decided to go to graduate school here. 

“Well, not this weekend though right?” Jungkook rocks on his heels, black toe socks rubbing against the dark hardwood floor as he meets you behind the counter, “since your parents think you’ll be too busy unpacking?” 

“Maybe?” you throw the question right back at him, unsure of where he’s going with this. 

“There’s a party at my friend’s house Saturday night. There could be some classmates in your major, meet some new friends?” 

Jungkook’s inviting you to a party. Jungkook’s going to take you to a party to help you make new friends and socialize with people other than your nosy uncles and aunts. You don’t even have to answer, the adoration on your face evident. Jungkook will introduce you to people, show you off, get you drinks. 

(Maybe he’ll even kiss you goodnight.) 

You shake that thought off quickly, knowing that kind of desire will get you in trouble. You need to take things slowly if you have any chance of being with Jungkook. Going to the party as friends will be more than enough. 

He tucks his finger under your chin, forcing you to look at him. There’s nothing romantic about the action, no matter how you spin it around. Your eyes are perpetually glued to the floor, painfully meek, “I’ll pick you up at eight.” 

“She’s so weird!” 

You stiffen at the exclamation, clutching your red plastic cup with both hands as you lean against the wall that connects the kitchen to the hallway. They can’t see you if you act like a wallflower, so you hold your breath and wait for the blow. 

“C’mon, church girls are like that,” that’s Park Jimin’s voice, the first friend Jungkook introduced you to when you walked in the house. His voice sounds kind through the R&B music blasting through the flat screen television, yet it still rubs you the wrong way that he refers to you as a “church girl.” Jimin’s no better than the girl who’s talking about you. 

“But Jungkook isn’t like that,” It’s Nayeon that starts this, and it saddens you slightly because you wanted to be her friend. She was all smiles and sweet stares when Jungkook was by your side, but you suppose none of that kindness was directed towards you. “He’s cool. She dresses like a fifties school teacher and has barely said ten words all evening! I don’t know what Jungkook was thinking.” 

Speaking of, where is Jungkook now? It’s been twenty minutes since you’ve last seen him. Twenty minutes of taking sips at a haphazardly mixed drink and twiddling your fingers as you try to insert yourself into a puzzle that you’re not cut into. 

“Besides,” Nayeon’s voice twinkles through the room, clear as day, “He only invited her out of pity. I’m pretty sure he’s fucking Jungyeon in the bathroom right now.” 

Bile rises though your throat like rain in a well, threatening to spill over and embarrass you further. Your fingers crush the plastic slightly, curling and bending at your whim. 

To torture yourself further, you take slow steps towards the bathroom. What you hear has tears spilling over your eyes. Jungkook’s heady voice, a girl’s soft cries that penetrate through the walls and into your ears. It’s not the sex that gets you upset, nor Jungkook’s desire to leave you for another girl. 

You’re not a charity case, you’re not an object to be pitied. You’re not a sheltered church girl. Sure, Jungkook may not feel that way. Yet Jungkook put you in an environment where others are typecasting you, making you feel like you don’t fit in. Jungkook didn’t even warn you when he ditched, a common courtesy that you know for a fact friends do for each other, even though this is your first real college party.

When you bolt out of there and drive home, you don’t go to your apartment. You set the GPS to take you straight home, back to your tiny town. You begin your recovery process early Sunday morning. 

A scalding hot shower, to scrape away the smell of alcohol on your body. 

You spend early morning cleaning the storage room and the classrooms, scrubbing away until everything’s shining. 

You pray and apologize for the pleasure and pain—for giving into temptation on Christmas Day and the toppling results of that. 

Once you get home, you spend a pretty penny on decorating your apartment. Clashing art pieces—anime posters, random florals, a cat mug. Things that you like, things to make yourself happy. 

These are steps in the right direction. You need a cleanse. Specifically a cleanse for Jeon Jungkook. 

[shiraishi-mai]

[10:00pm]

"I will still always love you."

'I didn't say anything," you said, leaning against the brick wall. Your eyes were focused on the orange and red leaves that crunched under your shoes.

"I think I know how you feel. I know how I would feel."

You ignored the stinging in your eyes. How could he know when even you didn't know how you felt? There was a strange something bubbling in your chest. Why did you feel this way? Why did it feel as though your breath was knocked out of you when you saw the invitation with curly silver writing beautifully written on the white envelope. You were happy for him. He deserved the best the world had to offer and you always knew that this was bound to happen. After all, he was never yours to begin with.

"I'm happy for you." You tried to keep the hurt out of your voice and gave him a small smile. Suga walked over to lean against the wall beside you. His lips were pursed and you knew he saw right through you. After all, he was probably the only person who knew you inside out.

"You know, I imagined it before. Whenever you dated someone new, I thought about how it would feel if you got married." He exhaled.

"And it bothered me more than I thought it would. More than it should have. I think I would still mind, even now, in some awful, possessive way." He sighed and looked up at the night sky. "We've never been with each other in that way and it's not like we made any promises."

We both heard the 'but'.

"We knew this would happen," you finally said. "We chose different paths a long time ago."

There was silence. You thought about all the years Suga stood by your side. Always looking out for you, always supporting you. He was your first kiss, the shoulder you cried on many times, and the first face you looked for when you achieved something. He was your best friend and at one point in your life, he was home.

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

A familiar figure walked up to them.

"Y/n?" The boy wore a light, pale sweater with brown khakis and white shoes. His grey hair was a bit tousled and his confused expression mirrored yours.

You whipped around with an accusing glance at your friend who flinched a little under your gaze.

"So it turns out the guy's friend couldn't come...and you and Aera wouldn't come out unless we all went on a date together." Your friend had complained she would leave high school without ever getting a boyfriend and somehow organised this mess that you only agreed to to get her to stop begging.

"SO YOU CALLED SUGA?" you exclaimed.

"Standing right here," he said, putting his hand up. "I am also shocked, thanks for asking."

"You could have just told me he canceled," you muttered, "It's not like I was super excited to do this." Your friend's face was sheepish and her eyes slid over to Suga who had an odd expression on his face. He walked over in front of you and lowered his face, an impish grin replacing the expression.

"Aw come on, is going on one date with your best friend so bad? It'll be the same as hanging out, plus I'm a perfect gentleman." His tone was light and teasing. You rolled your eyes and let out a breath in relief that he wouldn't take this seriously.

Though, you still felt your heart skip a beat when his grinned widened as you agreed.

"Just this one time."

[later]

The girls stared at their respective boys, unimpressed. Your friend's date punched the air and they high-fived each other while Suga and Asahi stared at the ground in shame.

"How can you two of all people be bad at this?" You said flatly.

The scoreboard of the basketball hoop arcade game flashed a 60 while Asahi and Suga had made a measly 10 and 15.

"We're volleyball players, not basketball!" Suga exclaimed.

"I don't think your hand eye coordination should be THAT bad."

The boys grumbled and you and your friends giggled. Suga refused to look at you as you all walked outside of the building into the park after that. Exasperated at his silent treatment, you dragged him over to the ice cream cart as an apology for making fun of him.

"What did you get?"

"Chocolate. What about you?"

"Strawberry," you said happily. "It's really good! Do you want to try?" You held out your cone. He leaned down to take a bite and found himself with ice cream on his face instead.

"First you make fun of me, and then you attack me with ice cream." He shook his head. "Some date you are."

"That's what they always do on dates on TV. It looked fun so I wanted to try."

He gave her a sly grin. "You know, the guy usually gets her back."

You yelped as you attempted to scamper away but a strong arm caught your waist and you struggled to escape. You saw the cone get closer to your face and shrank back - closing your eyes and scrunching up your face.

But the cold sensation never came. Instead, you felt a soft pair of lips peck your cheek and your eyes widened as you turned to look at him.

"You scared me! I thought-" Ice cream was suddenly on your nose. Suga laughed, clutching his stomach. "Your face, oh my god."

You couldn't help but smile at the delight on his face.

When he finally straightened up, your eyes locked and he looked at you with a soft expression. You didn't know when he had started to make your heart pound and your face burn. Maybe it was when he had gently put on a bandaid on the scrape on your knee (he claims to carry a few since you're so clumsy) and briefly swiped his thumb over the plastic, or rubbed your hands and blew on them in the winter, or carried you to your bed when you fell asleep studying together.

He had confessed to you in your second year. You had frozen, unsure of what to do, before blurting out that you didn't feel the same before you could process his words. You had slid down your locker after he waved bye with a smile on his face, saying "no hard feelings", and went to practice. Your thoughts raced. You knew him for such a long time, it would ruin your friendship to date him, right? You couldn't bear to hurt him or end up fighting with him. And besides, when both of you discussed your futures, he had been surprised that you wanted to move out of Miyagi while you were surprised he wanted to stay.

Is this what it would have been like? You thought, as you both sat with your head on his shoulder and his on top of yours. You relished in his warmth and he had a faint smell of laundry detergent. Both of you stared out at the river, enjoying the quiet of the night.

Your hands were intertwined and placed on your lap. Every time you opened your mouth to say something, you found you didn't have the words.

"I made my decision. I'm going to leave after graduation." You finally said.

"Okay," he said softly.

"Like leaving the country."

"Okay." He repeated.

"I don't know when I'll come back."

"Okay."

You squeezed his hand tighter as your eyes suddenly filled with moisture. You peeked at his face to see he was staring at the bright bridge lights with a neutral face and you turned back to look at them too. You heard him quietly take a breath.

"I love you."

You pressed your lips together to keep them from trembling.

"Okay," you said.

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

"In the next life?" You finally turned to look at him. His grey eyes twinkled with humour and mischief. He may have grown taller and changed throughout the years, but his eyes always stayed the same. You both had joked about what you would do if you were born again and agreed that you would meet again.

"In the next life," you replied. "I promise I won't leave you. Ever." You clenched your jaw.

He chuckled. "I'll hold you to it."

The silence between you two as you stared at each other lasted for a brief few seconds but felt so heavy and your nails dug into your palms.

"Come on," he finally said, holding out his hand, "let's go back inside."