#i’ve had this idea for weeks and now that i’m done with my saw paper i HAD to make it

[devilofthepit]

Mikel Koven, 101 Horror Movies You Must See before You Die, quoted in Matt Hills, "Cutting into Concepts of “Reflectionist” Cinema? The Saw Franchise and Puzzles of Post-9/11 Horror," 119 / @3000s / Aaron Michael Kerner, Torture Porn in the Wake of 9/11: Horror, Exploitation, and the Cinema of Sensation, 97 / oafworld on twitter / Kevin Wetmore, Post-9/11 Horror in American Cinema, 102

[songbirdseung]

sneaky / park sunghoon

where your secret not so secret boyfriend climbs through your window to see you after a long time genre fluff, est. relationship, tsundere bf hoon

it was a little past 10 pm, and you were sitting at your desk, drowning in notes, your room dimly lit by the soft glow of your bedside lamp. you were trying to stay focused, but the exhaustion from your long day was creeping in, making it hard to concentrate. the house was eerily quiet, with your parents having gone to bed hours ago. it wasn’t unusual for you to stay up late working, but tonight felt particularly tedious, like time was dragging.

just as you leaned back in your chair, contemplating whether to call it a night, a faint tapping sound came from the direction of your window. your head shot up, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. the noise came again, a little louder this time. cautiously, you stood up and walked over, pulling back the curtains. your eyes widened in shock when you saw a familiar figure standing on the narrow ledge outside your window—sunghoon, grinning like he hadn’t just risked his life to climb up there.

you immediately opened the window, allowing him to slip inside with a little too much ease. “what the hell are you doing here?” you whisper-yelled, trying to keep your voice down so you didn’t wake your parents. “are you crazy?”

“what does it look like i’m doing? i’m here to see you,” sunghoon replied casually, brushing off his jacket as if it were no big deal.

“yeah, i can see that, but you’re climbing through my window? at 10 pm?” you gave him an incredulous look, shutting the window behind him.

he smirked, clearly amused by your panic. “relax, i’ve done this before. it’s not like your parents are gonna check your room.”

“i don’t care! if they catch you, we’re both dead!” you hissed, crossing your arms. you couldn’t believe he thought sneaking into your room was some normal, everyday thing.

sunghoon just shrugged, kicking off his shoes and making his way to your bed. he flopped down onto it with a dramatic sigh, stretching out like he owned the place. “you’re overreacting. besides, i haven’t seen you in weeks. aren’t you happy to see me?”

you rolled your eyes but felt a flutter of warmth in your chest. sure, you were frustrated, but deep down, you were more than a little excited that he had gone through all this trouble just to see you. “well, yeah, i’m happy to see you, but this isn’t exactly how i imagined it.”

he chuckled, propping himself up on his elbows to look at you. “how did you imagine it then? me walking through your front door with a bouquet of flowers?”

“something like that,” you muttered, still shaking your head at his recklessness. “you really are unbelievable.”

“hey, i’m nothing if not creative,” he said, shooting you a playful wink. “come on, you can’t say this isn’t romantic.”

“it’s something,” you admitted with a small smile, trying to stay mad but failing miserably. “but seriously, what if someone sees you?”

“no one’s gonna see me. i’m practically a ninja,” he teased, making himself more comfortable on your bed. “besides, it’s not like i was gonna just sit at home all night. i had to come see you.”

you let out a sigh, unable to fight the grin forming on your lips. “you’re impossible.”

“and yet, you’re still dating me,” he shot back, his voice full of smugness.

you shook your head, walking over to your desk. “yeah, because i clearly have terrible taste in men.”

“hey, now,” sunghoon said, sitting up on your bed and giving you a mock-offended look. “that’s not what you said the last time we hung out.”

you laughed, glancing over your shoulder at him. “okay, maybe not, but that doesn’t mean you’re off the hook for climbing up my window like a maniac.”

“aww, c’mon, don’t be like that,” he pouted, scooting over and patting the space next to him. “i’m here now, so just come cuddle with me. you can finish your work later.”

“sunghoon, i have a paper due,” you protested, even though the idea of snuggling up with him sounded way more appealing than continuing to work.

“you’ve been working all night,” he countered, tugging at your arm until you reluctantly joined him on the bed. “just take a break. you deserve it.”

you sighed but let yourself relax into his embrace, resting your head on his shoulder. “you’re lucky you’re cute, otherwise i’d kick you out right now.”

he let out a low chuckle, wrapping his arms around you. “i know. i’m irresistible.”

you scoffed, shaking your head. “you really don’t give up, do you?”

“nope,” he said, popping the ‘p’ with a smug grin on his face.

the two of you settled into a comfortable silence, your bodies fitting together as if you hadn’t been apart for weeks. you missed this—the simplicity of being close, without the pressures of schedules and distance getting in the way. sunghoon was never the best at showing his emotions, but moments like this, where he went out of his way to be with you, spoke louder than words ever could.

after a while, you glanced up at him. “i still can’t believe you did this. i mean, this isn’t exactly your thing.”

sunghoon smirked down at you, one eyebrow quirking up. “what do you mean by that?”

you gave him a teasing look. “you know, the whole sneaking into my room, rom-com style. usually, you’re more… stoic.”

“are you saying i’m not romantic?” he asked, pretending to be offended.

“i’m just saying it’s new,” you teased, poking his side.

he let out a soft scoff, but there was a hint of amusement in his eyes. “just because i’m not cheesy doesn’t mean i can’t pull off the occasional grand gesture.”

“grand gesture, huh? sneaking through my window at 10 pm counts as a ‘grand gesture’ now?”

“absolutely,” he replied, his tone confident. “i risked my life climbing up here. i’d say that’s pretty impressive.”

you laughed, shaking your head. “okay, okay, i’ll give you that one. but you better not make this a habit.”

“no promises,” he said, his lips curling into a smirk. “i might just have to keep surprising you.”

you rolled your eyes, but the warmth in your chest was undeniable. “fine. but next time, use the front door.”

sunghoon chuckled, pulling you closer. “we’ll see.”

the two of you lay there for a while, the soft hum of the night filling the room. eventually, you broke the comfortable silence, looking up at him with a playful pout. “you know, you still haven’t apologized for giving me a heart attack by showing up out of nowhere.”

“apologized?” sunghoon raised an eyebrow, his tone full of faux innocence. “why would i apologize for being the best boyfriend ever?”

you huffed, nudging him with your elbow. “i think i deserve an apology. and maybe some kisses to make up for it.”

he smirked, leaning down to press a quick kiss to your lips. “fine, but only because you’re so needy.”

you laughed, tugging him back down for another kiss. “sure, hoon. whatever helps you sleep at night.”

he rolled his eyes but didn’t pull away, his lips lingering on yours for a little longer this time. “you’re lucky i like you,” he muttered, though the warmth in his eyes gave away more than he’d ever admit.

“i know,” you teased, pressing one more kiss to his cheek. “and i’m lucky you’re crazy enough to climb through my window just to see me.”

“yeah, well,” he said, his voice dropping to a soft murmur, “i’d do it again in a heartbeat.”

[ramblingoak]

Mr Casino's Bride pleeeease ♡

This is the working title for Secondo’s cowboy fic. I’ve written a few things off and on for it I just haven’t really decided what it’ll be about. I’ll probably get a better idea once I start working on Terzo’s.

Currently it involves Mist hiring the reader as a worker at the casino and it turns out you’re on the run from a former boss. But I was toying with the idea of there being a kid involved because at the time I needed over protective Secondo in my life. Well…he’s initially reluctant about it XD.

So for fun here’s what I wrote MONTHS AGO (so excuse how bad it is):

“Who the fuck are you?”

“I’m Alice.”

“What the fuck are you doing here?”

“I live here.”

The kid gave him a look he remembered a young Terzo giving him many many times and his eye started to twitch.

“No you fucking don’t. Mist!”

“You use bad words a lot.”

“Only when the situation calls for it.” Like right fucking now. “Mist!”

He stared down the kid, Alice, until Mist finally waltzed in. Looking way too calm for Secondo’s liking.

“I could hear you shrieking all the way downstairs. What's the problem?”

“I wasn’t shrieking.” Secondo pointed at Alice who was busy drawing something from where she was still seated on the floor. “Why is this child in my office?”

“We—“

“No, let me rephrase. Why is this child in my casino?”

“Her mom works here.”

“And? That’s not answering my question.”

“Her mom works here and she lives here. So I’d imagine that would explain the kid.”

“This place is a lot bigger than where we lived before.”

Secondo turned back around to glare at her briefly before turning back to Mist. He caught the Ghoulette with a fond smile on her face which she quickly dropped when she noticed his glare.

“I need you to start at the beginning. Now.”

“Well, do you remember a month ago when our housekeeper quit because you yelled at her too much?”

“Define ‘too much’.”

“Then a few weeks ago you got tired of Zephyr bitching about cleaning the rooms.”

“I’m always tired of Zephyr’s bitching.”

“Then last week you interrupted me interviewing a woman for the job and wh—“

“I didn’t interrupt you.”

Secondo’s hand flexed near his belt when Mist glared at him. He’d seen that look many times before and whoever was on the receiving end usually didn’t live much longer.

“You told me to hire her. So I did.” When Secondo gestured at the kid again Mist sighed. “I tried to explain she had a daughter but listening wasn’t on your to do list that day.”

“Why did you think this was a good idea?”

“I didn’t actually but, once again, you didn’t want to listen.”

Secondo groaned and looked down at the floor. Lucifer below. A casino, especially his casino, was no place for a child. This wasn’t going to work. He began to tell Mist this when something tugged on his hand.

“Mr. Casino, I made you this.” When he looked down at her he immediately saw a piece of paper in her hand. Tentatively he took it from her, not taking his eyes off of her yet. She stood up on her tiptoes and poked her picture. “It’s you.”

When he finally looked at the paper he froze. That was definitely his face glaring up at him from her drawing. It was…surprisingly good considering how young she seemed to be. He wasn’t good with kids’ ages.

He wasn’t good with kids, period.

“Wow kiddo, you got his glare down.”

Secondo glared at the Ghoulette out of the corner of his eye. She had moved closer to see what the kid had done and Secondo turned to face her fully. He heard the girl mutter ‘hey’ but ignored her.

“This is no place for a child.”

“This isn’t really a place for anybody, Papa. But their only other option was the street.” He wasn’t used to seeing a soft side to Mist but it was evident on her face that she did care about the new housekeeper and her child. “Or the Medusa Lounge on the other side of town.”

“Absolutely not.”

Secondo’s reaction surprised even himself. It had been spoken with such vehemence even Mist seemed taken aback. He looked back down at the kid, at Alice, when he felt another tug on his coat.

“Mr. Casino I’m hungry.”

“My name isn’t Mr. Casino. It’s Mr. Emeritus.”

“Okay.”

The ‘y’ had been dragged out way longer than necessary. Secondo started having another flashback about a young Terzo questioning everything around him.

“Find her somewhere else to do…whatever. She can’t stay in my office.”

“Yes, Papa.”

~~~ ~~~ ~~~

So anyway I wrote this way back in like May?? So it’s all subject to change. At the very least be written better 😅

Masterpost for the cowboy verse!

[btskitten7]

Silent Grace| chapter two: secrets & property

✎ship: Min Yoongi x Fem Reader

✎au/genre: Mafia!au

✎rating: Mature 18+

✎wc: 3.8k

✎chapter warnings: g!un mention & usage.(no one gets hurt!) Theft!

✎summary: Yoongi gets Namjoon and Seokjin to buy some property to make his 'job' look legit. Meanwhile, you have an odd encounter at work that rubs you the wrong way.

✎tagss: @shadowyjellyfishfest @scuzmunkie @baechugff @manuosorioh @sheylamc @prajusstuff

Chapter two: Secrets & property.

“You found some places already? It’s only been a week.” Yoongi asked, leaning back in his chair, and looking through the papers Namjoon brought him.

“Yes. It wasn’t as hard as we thought. On the first day, we went to get some licensing done and established a true company under the Min name. Most people were excited to give us their property while others needed some…talking to,” Namjoon explained, taking a sip of his iced americano.

“I see. I’m impressed. These homes are beautiful. Where’s Seokjin?”

“He’s currently looking for a few more homes in Japan. He flies in tonight.” Yoongi nodded.

“Well at least now, I won’t be lying to my love.” Yoongi sighed.

“Hyung, I’ve been thinking about that.”

Yoongi hummed without truly giving Namjoon his full attention.

“Why don’t you let yn run the real estate stuff? It’ll keep her occupied and she’ll be all about traveling. It will keep her distracted. She’ll be at the hospital a little less… I’m positive she’ll leave. Real estate is probably more fun and she’ll be paid a lot more than what she’s making now. Even enjoy herself more. She won’t run into our…friends for lack of a better term.”

Yoongi lifted his eyes from the paperwork and towards Namjoon. Amused. He didn’t even think of that. Could that possibly work?

“And if we wanted to go with her to handle business, it’s a good cover-up. She’ll never be dragged into our stuff because she’s doing her stuff,” Namjoon continued.

The wheels in Yoongi’s head were spinning. This was a great idea. If you were busy doing something while still in his presence, he could keep you safe and occupied. You’d be with him but you wouldn’t be out and about with him since you’ll both be in different areas doing different things.

It made sense to him.

“I think I like where this is going. I’ll talk to yn, tonight.”

The hospital had been in an uproar all morning. You’d hardly have time to sit down to chart your patients let alone have a coffee break.

“Yn we need you in three!” You heard over the radio that was attached to your hip. Quickly getting up, you headed to three where a bunch of men in black was surrounding a young man, who was nicely dressed. He was watching another young man, who was also nicely dressed but covered in blood.

“Park! You gotta hold on man. You’re better than this!” The man said frantically. You felt horrible but this was something you saw all the time. Sad to say but you were used to this type of thing.

“Sir, I need you to leave, we have to be able to work on him.” Your aid ordered, trying to get the man’s attention, but each time she would get close, the big men surrounding them would block her from getting closer.

“See? They won’t move! We can’t do anything!”

“How do you expect us to help if you’re in our way? Please we are losing valuable time,” you started, then the man turned to you. “We can help him but you have to give me some space.”

The man looked at you then back at the guy who you presumed was ‘Park’.

“How about we start with names? What’s your name? What’s your friend's name?” you said softly.

“My name…is Taehyung. His name is Jimin, but I call him Park,” he whispered. “You’re sure you can help him? Just you. I won’t let anyone else touch him” he asked sternly.

“Uh..I’m positive but as I said, we’re wasting so much time and really a doctor should be doing this, there’s only so much I can do”

That wasn’t going to do. Taehyung had no intention of letting anyone else touch his brother. If he was being honest, he didn’t even trust you. But since you were the one the others chose to come to, his life was in your hands.

“No, just you. If he dies..then his blood is on you”

You were completely shocked. How was that even logical? You just walked into the situation, you don’t even know what happened or who these people are. But with the chills you got from the look on Taehyung’s face, you just decided not to say much of anything else.

Taheyung turned away from you and waved the guys off to let you reach Jimin. You turned to your aides and told them everything you needed to save this guy’s life. You tried to keep calm, but your aides were scared out of their minds. You were too but you couldn’t show it.

It took a while since you weren’t a doctor and they weren’t letting doctors in, but you managed to get him stable with your skill set. Taehyung watched you along with all the others very closely. It was like he dared you to make one mistake, and it would have cost you your life.

So many thoughts were running through your mind. The first thing you asked yourself was, ‘What type of job needs this many people around them? How important is this guy?’

Taking a quick scan around the room, all eyes were on you. These were big men looking like at any moment, they’d take you out without thinking twice about it. You noticed a few of them had guns tucked onto their waistbands. Your heart rate was through the roof, and you swore that you were going to pass out. You’d stabilized many patients before; it was nothing you couldn’t do, but you always had a team and a doctor around to ensure the safety of the person that’s receiving the help. And you’d never been in this situation, under this much pressure. With so many eyes watching you, waiting for you to make a mistake. Your hands shook as you did your best to remember everything you’d always done. But the more the men watched on, the more everything you knew flew out the window. The pressure was suffocating as you worked, it was becoming hard for you to breathe. Too afraid to leave but too afraid to carry on. You were stuck but no matter the case, you had to do what you could, with what you had. Working without a doctor was crazy, but you needed to protect yourself too.

After a few hours, or what felt like a few hours, you finally got the man to a point where he’d be okay. Luckily, the gunshot wasn’t lethal but it was enough to send his body into shock. “Okay, I have him stabilized. You need to let a doctor come in and check how–”

“He doesn’t need a doctor. We’ll take it from here. Thank you.”

You turned towards the door. There was another guy, and man was he sharp looking in all black. A half-unbuttoned shirt displaying his chest freely tucked neatly into slacks that rested just above his boots, under a long peacoat. He looked like money and everyone around him seemed scared.

“But Sir, he could have internal damage. He needs to get checked out. I’m just a nurse, I don’t know if–”

“You don’t know if he’ll survive? I thought you did all you could?” He said, stepping closer to you. You had to admit, it frightened you, you took a step back but were stopped by one of the guards. The man didn’t stop until he was practically in your personal bubble.

“I–I–I did do a–all I could. I just think–”

“Then you have nothing to worry about…Yn.” He smirked as his fingers flicked your badge. “As I said, we’ll take it from here. Thank you for saving my friend, you’ll be greatly rewarded. You may go.”

AND just like that, his attention was no longer on you. It was on Jimin and Taheyung.

You reluctantly walked to the door, completely taken aback by what just had taken place. Maybe you were taking too long to leave.

“Is there something else? Or did you want your reward right now? I’m not much of an exhibitionist but I’ll make an exception for you,” the man said, his eyes traveling your whole body shamelessly which sent a cold chill down your spine. “I’m pretty sure my men would love the show”

You didn’t dignify that with a response, leaving immediately after that.

You thought about that encounter the whole day, even when you got into the car with Seokjin. Yoongi had texted you at lunch informing you that Seokjin would be joining you on your ride home from work. He was coming home from Japan today. You forgot all about that when your confused eyes met with Seokjin’s happy ones.

“Did Yoongi tell you I would be joining you?” Seokjin asked as you climbed into the car, sitting comfortably next to him.

“Yeah, he told me. It just slipped my mind with all the work we had today” you chuckled nervously. Seokjin hummed, he decided not to probe you for more information than what you were willing to tell.

All throughout the ride, you hardly mumbled a word. Something that was unusual for you. Seokjin has always known you to be a chatterbox, so for you to be completely silent is odd. To be frank, it was making Seokjin uncomfortable. He couldn’t stand it anymore.

“You okay?” Seokjin asked, opening your door.

Thanking him, you got out of the car with your belongings before responding, “Yeah, I just had a weird encounter today…but I’ll be okay. I’m pretty sure it’s nothing.”

You kept it short. The first person you tell should be your boyfriend, who’s super excited to see you. Your eyes met Yoongi’s loving ones as soon as you walked through the door. You tried throwing on a smile but instantly he knew something happened, frowning he asked, “What’s the matter?”

“Um. Something weird happened. I just don’t know how to take it really.”

Yoongi raised one eyebrow, tilting his head. “What happened?” he couldn’t help it but his voice became protective with a hint of worry, ready to off anyone that made you even a tad bit uncomfortable.

“Well there was this guy that came in, he had so many people with him. They wouldn’t let any doctors near him. They left it all up to me and a couple of aides to take care of him. Which was extremely nerve-wracking but I did the best I could and stabilized him. I suggested that they allow a doctor to see him since they could do more than I could. But the man said that he didn’t need one and they would take it from there. The people surrounding him were all dressed in the same black outfits, but three of the guys were dressed extremely well, also in all black. I have never seen anything like it. He wasn’t a celebrity, but you could have sworn they were the way they had so many guards around them. There was one guy that told me I’d be rewarded for my work and–” you hesitated a bit. Just from the little you told Yoongi, you saw the anger grow on his face while worry grew on Namjoon and Seokjin’s faces. You knew that if you told him the man’s little joke, it would send Yoongi through the roof.

“And what?” Yoongi asked. “What else happened?”

“H–he made a little joke that was suggesting something th–that would never happen. I left–I didn’t even respond to him or anything.” You were talking so fast that your words ran together, but Yoongi put two and two together. Real fast.

Yoongi was fuming but he couldn’t let you see that.

“Did he touch you?”

“Not me, but he flicked my badge a little–”

“Seems like I have to go to work with you, doesn’t it?” Yoongi said. He wasn’t thinking about the deeper situation, all he could think about was fucking up the prick that thought it was funny to mess with his girlfriend, missing the clear details. “What does this guy look like?”

“Honestly baby, all I can remember is what the guy I was stabilizing looked like. He had blonde hair, he had lots of earrings…” you trailed off, “that’s all I can remember though. It was a lot of pressure, I was too nervous to actually look around and examine every one.” You said defeated.

Yoongi shook his head softly as he pulled you into a tight hug. His hands rubbed your back, calming your nerves as best he could. You felt so safe in his arms, the craziness of tonight just melted away. It was like tonight never happened.

Namjoon interjected. “Yn, how about you head upstairs and relax a bit? We’ll send Yoongi up to you in a minute,” Namjoon said, patting your back in a reassuring way. Seokjin nodded. Deep down, Seokjin was worried about this encounter. Anyone would assume this could just be a celebrity, but being in this type of lifestyle, they can’t just assume. Not in this line of ‘business’.

Yoongi couldn’t react in any way. If it was just random, it wouldn’t matter. But he has to be careful just in case it was a celebrity or even worse.

Yoongi didn’t have too many enemies, but that didn’t mean they weren’t around. Seokjin knew that there were people around that really would do anything to hurt Yoongi. It’s part of the reason why he suggested he shouldn’t tell too many people about you. If it became known to too many people how much you meant to Yoongi, they would use it against him. Seokjin also knew that Yoongi would give up anything to ensure your safety. An easy ticket to getting anything you want out of a man that has everything you want.

Yoongi watched you walk up the stairs before he began to talk.

“I want to go to the hospital and see who lost their rabbit ass mind,” he mutters lowly. He didn’t want you to hear him. Namjoon shook his head.

“We’ll go and check for you. I don’t think it’ll be smart for you to go,” Namjoon said.

“What’s not smart is someone messing with what belongs to me. That’s not smart,” Yoongi bit back.

“YOONGI!“ Seokjin snaps sternly, “use your fucking head.”

Yoongi snapped his head towards Seokjin but he didn’t back down.

“You don’t want everyone to know about her right? If you go in there making all this ruckus, the wrong person is going to find out. You need to keep your cool and let us figure this out.”

Yoongi sighed in defeat. Seokjin is right. He couldn’t lose his cool.

“We’ll look into it and let you know what we find. Just go and comfort yn,” Namjoon said, patting Yoongi’s back as he followed Seokjin out the door, closing it behind him.

~~~~~

The guys walked through the hospital with a purpose. Sending chills down the spines of every person they passed. Everyone knew not to question their motives. They just knew to stay out of the way.

Namjoon noticed earlier on that Seokjin was irritated after the conversation with Yoongi. Ever since Yoongi got with you, Seokjin has been on edge. A long time ago, when he did have a relationship with his father, he remembered the one very rule that he taught him.

‘Never make yourself an easy target.’

Seokjin never listened to his father but that stuck with him. Seokjin saw how lonely his mother was, how lonely Yoongi’s mother is, and knew he didn’t want the same for you. Even though right now, Yoongi has a bit more time than his father, when the time comes that he’s the one calling the shots, he knows you’re going to feel alone. You aren’t the type to be bought either, so showering you with gifts isn’t going to replace time spent with you. Seokjin’s mother didn’t care. As long as she got what she wanted, and had the house taken care of, she could care less what her husband did. Yoongi’s mother didn’t start off like that.

After Seokjin moved in with the Min family, Yoongi’s mother took him in like he was her own. It was never awkward for him and it didn’t take him much to fit right in. Yoongi’s mother opened up a lot to Seokjin since he was the oldest and Yoongi’s father told him to watch over the house while he was gone, which was very often.

She told him so many stories.

Some of them were fun and interesting. They took Yoongi on so many adventures when he was younger and before his mother knew about the work his father got himself into. Most of them were about the lonely nights and hard times of being a “single parent”.

Maybe he was thinking too far into this, maybe he’s jumping the gun, but he saw how you felt about Yoongi and how Yoongi felt about you.

Seokjin didn’t want to drag you down into this lifestyle.

“Are you alright? You seemed kind of heated back there,” Namjoon asked, following Seokjin throughout the hospital. Seokjin sighed and turned his head to Namjoon slightly before continuing on.

“I’m alright. I just need Yoongi to get his shit together. He cannot keep losing his shit like this, especially if he’s trying to live two separate lives for the sake of yn.”

Namjoon hummed in agreement as they made their way to the security room. Upon entry, the guard immediately stood up and gave his full attention to Seokjin and Namjoon.

“Good e-evening sir, what can I do for you?” he stuttered. This guard was fresh to the Min family, he didn’t know how they operated just yet and he was fairly young. His name was Jungkook. Yoongi stumbled upon him one night trying to break into his car. To this day it’s something the guys tease him about. It was your first anniversary with Yoongi.

~~~~

“Did you really have to get yn so much? There aren't that many days in the year, she won’t be able to wear half of this stuff!” Seokjin joked, sitting back in his seat completely stuffed and satisfied with his meal. Yoongi promised them a good meal if they accompanied him shopping for you anniversary…even though he always treats them to good meals no matter the occasion.

“I like to spoil her. Also, I got things that I want to see her in. Is that so wrong?” Yoongi chuckled, taking the receipt from the waitress and signing his name before returning it to her. Namjoon chuckled along with him and sat up fixing his coat. It’s our anniversary, I have to go above and beyond.

“You do know you are gonna have to keep this up every year right?”

“Thank God I’m wealthy huh?” Yoongi smirked, taking his last shot of the evening.

While they were wrapping up their dinner, Jungkook watched their every move. He noticed them a few hours ago when they had walked out of the store with tons of bags. He saw the three men walk around with a few guards around them holding the bags, piling them into the car. It was a stupid idea but would they miss a few things? He didn’t think so..

Jungkook’s mother was having a birthday coming soon and he wanted to get her a gift worth giving like his brother did every year. His mother never made him feel bad for the gifts he did give her, but he always felt it was a competition between him and his brother. All the designer bags and clothes, tea sets, makeup, even things he knew his mother didn’t even like, his brother got her because it was expensive. It held value and over time it’ll be worth a lot. Jungkook wanted to give his mother something like that.

Jungkook didn’t have the money for that. He worked at a cafe and sometimes he would sing for parties, but nothing was enough to get something worthy for the woman who birthed him. That would end today.

Jungkook wasn’t a thief, that wasn’t his character and he wasn’t raised to be one. He came from a loving family who taught him values, but ever since his brother made something for himself, he felt everything was a competition even though his parents didn’t make it that way. But he was sneaky. He was easily overlooked. Today all that was going to change, he was going to get his mother a great gift and end this pettiness once and for all. He has been looking for someone all day to make his move on but he had a preference. He didn’t want to take anything from someone who was in the same boat as him. He wanted someone that had money, that wouldn’t miss something if it went missing. Someone that wouldn’t even notice if it was gone. That’s when he saw Yoongi and his plan was coming together.

Jungkook wasn’t poor and he wasn’t struggling to live. His family was middle class but they still didn’t shop crazily. They were comfortable. He saw Yoongi walk in and out of the stores, directing the staff to what he wanted and paying for it with no questions. Jungkook had never seen anything like it. But that deemed Yoongi as his target. He followed their every move which stopped at a restaurant.

Jungkook didn’t waste any time, he circle the car. Studying it. Stopping at the trunk, he looked closely to see if there was an easy way to pop the trunk. looking through the bags which to his surprise were full of women’s clothing. He saw dresses, blouses, and some skirts. He even came across some lingerie, but there was no way in hell he was giving his mother lingerie. No matter how expensive it was. Jungkook decided not to grab any of the clothes. They were clearly for a younger woman and he knew his mother wouldn’t wear it. Almost giving up, Jungkook noticed jewelry bags and felt relief. Jewelry is ageless and his mother would love that.

He looked through the bags and found the most beautiful pieces of jewelry he had ever seen. A fourteen-karat, white gold, tennis bracelet and a matching necklace set with interlocking links with full-cut diamonds connecting them.

“This is perfect!” he whisper-yelled to himself. He slipped from the car and quietly closed the trunk he had popped open. Jungkook was proud of himself, he thought he had it all figured it out until…

“What the fuck are you doing?”

Jungkook froze. He couldn’t turn around, he couldn’t even run. The deep voice completely shocked him but the object pressing against the back of his head paralyzed him.

“Can’t you hear? I asked you a question.” The man’s voice was gravelly and low. That sent chills down Jungkook’s spine. Out of the corner of Jungkook’s eye, he saw it was the man he had been following and his friends.

‘Fuck’ he thought to himself.

Namjoon walked up and snatched the jewelry set from his hands, lifting it up to which Yoongi turned his head to look.

“Oh? You were trying to steal from me?” Yoongi chuckled while retrieving the jewelry. His eyes never left Jungkook’s. Jungkook still didn’t utter a word.

“You don’t know how to talk?” Yoongi asked, nudging the gun again to the back of Jungkook’s head.

“I-I-I’m sorry. I-it’s my mother’s birthday a-and I just really wanted her to have a good gift,” Jungkook’s words were jumbled as he was clearly terrified.

“How pathetic, can’t afford a gift for your own mother?” Seokjin snapped. Namjoon scoffed. Yoongi remained quiet as they bagged on the kid. Jungkook just kept his head down and accepted the words. He didn’t fight back nor did he even attempt to just walk away. Yoongi noticed this. His mother meant everything to him and he would steal for his mother’s happiness too. So Yoongi did the unthinkable.

“Here, take it,” he said, holding out the box. Jungkook’s eyes lit up but he quickly refused. “I can’t pay you for it.” Jungkook rushed out again but Yoongi shook his head, choosing not to listen any further.

“Does it look like I need anything from you?” he started, “take it. Give it to your mother. Make her happy.”

Jungkook hesitated a bit but he took the box from Yoongi and bowed to him, thanking him. “Thank you so much hyung, my mother will appreciate this. Thank you so much.”

Yoongi hummed as he waved him off. “Just tell her it’s from you, we never met.”

Seokjin and Namjoon watched as the kid nodded and ran off, thanking him again.

“Are you crazy? He stole from you”

“What has gotten into you?”

Yoongi yawned and shrugged. “We steal from people all the time. It’s no different.”

Yoongi climbed into the car with a nagging Namjoon and Seokjin climbing in with him.

~~~~~~~

“We need you to show us the footage from today. We need to check something” Namjoon said, taking the seat Jungkook was sitting in to look through the cameras.

“Can you get us some coffee?” Seokjin asked, looking over Namjoon’s shoulder. Jungkook nodded and quickly made two cups of coffee.

“Are you checking about what happened to Noona?” Jungkook asked, setting the cups down looking at his new hyungs.

Namjoon continued to look through the cameras and Seokjin nodded. “Yes. She told us something that happened today, we just need to see who it was. Did you see it?” Seokjin asked.

Jungkook nodded, “May I?” he asked Namjoon. Namjoon nodded and allowed Jungkook to pull up the footage.

“Here it is.”

There the three men saw everything yn had told them. Jungkook was oblivious but Namjoon’s eyes widened once he realized who these men were.

“Is…is that?” he asked looking at Seokjin. Seokjin sighed nodding.

“It is indeed…”

[something-tofightfor]

2023 Summer Kiss Prompt #10: Dieter Bravo - A Kiss While Baking

Writing this made me realize how much I miss Locked Down Dieter. This takes place after the chapter I'm currently working on (it's like ... 70% done) ... and it's motivated me to get back to them.

Thank you for requesting this, @jessthebaker - I think I went a little off from the direction you'd anticipated, but I hope you still like it!

No real rating or warnings - but it *is* Dieter, so be aware of his habits.

Word Count: 1,672

You heard him before you saw him. The sound of his voice - low but frustrated - carried from the kitchen to the hallway where you stood. 

“Dieter?” One hand trailing along the wall as you peeked through the open entryway, you grinned at the sight. “Are you … cooking?” 

“Mmmhmm.” He grunted the agreement out without turning to look at you, the set of his broad shoulders determined. “Well… I’m trying to bake, anyway.” Scanning the countertop while crossing the wide-open space, you reached up when you stepped behind him, your hand pressed to the center of his back. 

“What are you making?” 

“Brownies.” He paused, sliding a mixing bowl across the counter to rest in front of him. “Or, they were supposed to be brownies. I think I fucked up and missed a step because this doesn’t look right.” He turned his head toward you, scowling. “I was going to make them and have them waiting for when you got here, but then I got distracted.” 

“I don’t blame you. You had a lot to do last week before you came to see me.” Leaning in, you kissed his cheek. “Can I help? I’m not sure what you’ve already done, but …” Pointing with one finger, you cleared your throat. “I don’t know this recipe, but if you’re already mixing wet and dry, the eggs should probably be out of their shells.” 

He swore, reaching up and rubbing at his forehead. Without saying anything else, he stepped to the side, making room for you. “This is my grandmother’s recipe, and I’ve made it too many times to count, but…” He trailed off, the man’s fingers deftly cracking eggs against the side of the bowl before he split the shells, the contents dropping in with the other mixture. “But today I’m a little … out of it.” 

“The holidays are always harder.” Nudging him with your elbow, you began to grease the pan, sneaking looks at him while you worked. “Especially for you, since you’re trying to wrap up a bunch of stuff in the next couple days and you’ve got a girlfriend that kept you awake really late last night.” 

“Yeah. How dare she.” He huffed out a quiet laugh. “I kinda miss last year, y’know?” He set the spoon down, brushing stray flour from his palms. “When all we had to worry about was whether or not Gunther was going to get pissed that we weren’t following his rules.” You laughed, setting the paper towel that you’d used down, too. 

“It seems like we’ve known each other so much longer than we have, Dieter. If you would have told me last Christmas that we’d be here now, in your kitchen, making brownies together, I wouldn’t … I would have wanted it to be true, but never thought that it could have been.” 

“First of all,” he started, reaching past you for a bag of chocolate chips. “While you’re here, this is your kitchen, too.” He dumped half of the bag into the bowl, paused and then shrugged, dumping in more. Why am I not surprised? “Second of all, if I remember right, last Christmas was when this picked up between us, and  that was about when I started picturing you here.” 

That admission shocked you, but instead of making a comment about it - even as a joke - you stayed quiet. If that’s true then … we wasted so much damn time between then and now. 

 He’d fit into your family’s holiday celebrations with ease - the man charming them just like he charmed so many people he came into contact with on a daily basis. Even though his visit was short, he’d won them over easily, none of your family batting an eye when you’d mentioned that in the new year, you were thinking about exploring the idea of spending more time in California. It’s because I’m already gone so much. It wouldn’t be any different for them.

“Pass me that spatula.” He used his chin to gesture toward the utensil, one hand under the bowl of batter, the other steadying it. “Or, nevermind. Just hold onto it for a second.” Fingers closing around the wooden handle, you waited to see what he’d do next. 

Dieter poured the batter with precision, splitting it between the two greased pans. He focused on what he was doing, the tip of his tongue poking out from between his lips - and you smiled at the sight, eyes flicking down from his face to his hands and then back up. “I could get used to seeing you in a kitchen, Dieter. How’d you hide this for so long?”

“If you move out here, you’d be able to get used to it.” He glanced over, smirking. “And I have a reputation to uphold. Can’t just let everyone know I’m not as inept at taking care of myself as it might seem.” You laughed quietly, turning your body so that you could rest your hip against the counter. When he took the spatula from you and used it to scrape the sides of the bowl, you focused on the flex of his fingers and the way his wrist moved with each motion. I am the luckiest fucking - “Wanna lick?” 

He held the utensil up, one eyebrow raised. “Oh, you’re one of those.” Rolling your eyes, you cocked your head to the side. “Bet you eat raw cookie dough, too.”

“Fuck yeah, I do.” He grinned, extending his tongue to clean one side of the rubber off. “They have that eggless shit now, and it’s supposed to be safe. But it doesn’t taste the same.” He held it out to you again and you took it, fingers closing around his. “Best part of baking is licking the spoon clean, and the most exciting part is the looming threat of food poisoning or Salmonella or whatever the fuck it -”

“Well then, Dieter… guess we’re both gonna risk it. Good thing I’m here for two and a half weeks.” You closed your eyes at the taste of the chocolate as it coated your tongue, groaning as you got your first taste of the rich flavor. “Wait a minute, is there cinnamon in these? I didn’t see you -”

“If I told you then I would have to kill you.” He winked, reaching for your wrist and closing his fingers  around it. “This recipe is a secret. The only way I can give it to you is if you were to become a Bravo.” Oh. Oh, shit. It was the first time he’d brought that up - even casually - and based on his reaction - the slight twist of his lips and a raised eyebrow - you realized that you must not have been able to hide yours. “Do you like it?” 

“I do.” You set the spatula down into the sink, wiping your hand off on your denim-covered thigh. “And I’m no stranger to carefully guarded family recipes, so I get it.” Your heart was pounding despite your voice remaining steady. “I can’t wait to taste them when they’re baked. You put so many chocolate chips in there, they’re going to be gooey and -”

“Her recipe actually calls for walnuts. But since I can’t eat ‘em, she’d…” He swallowed hard, the joking tone replaced with a serious one. “She’d make me my own batch - first, before she made the other one, and replace the nuts with extra chocolate. So now I do the same.” 

Your chest tightened at his admission - and like so many of the other tiny truths Dieter had gifted you with over the months you’d known him, that one hit hard.  “I’m glad you had people to care for you like that as a kid, Dieter. It’s the small things, right? Those are the ones we rememb-” 

He cut you off when he leaned in to kiss you, Dieter’s lips sealing over yours with a practiced ease that not even all the time you’d spent apart could change. You kissed him back, arms going around his neck to hold him close - and when Dieter sighed against your lips, his tongue trailing over them with purpose, you knew that he agreed with you. He pulled back first, the smile still on his lips though it was lazy. “Got some chocolate right… there.” 

He reached out as he spoke, thumb swiping over the corner of your lip and then toward the center, where he pushed it between them. You cleaned it off, focused on the way Dieter’s eyes darkened at the suction - and when you smiled around the digit, he gave you one in return.

“Fucking tease.” Shaking his head back and forth, Dieter moved to step back, but you didn’t let him. “What?” 

“You didn’t put anything into the oven yet, so we wouldn’t have to worry about them burning…” Leaving things open - and the opportunity for him to make the decision - you waited, fingers laced together behind his neck. 

It didn’t take him long to choose, Dieter’s grin growing and his hands dropping back to your hips. He took a step backward and pulled you with him, never looking away from your face. “You’re a bad influence, and coming from me that’s saying a lot..” But you’re not saying no. 

“I’m about to be a worse one.” He stopped moving, hands tightening against your body. “When I saw you baking, I figured you’d be making pot brownies or something, but -”

“Oh, that’s a different recipe.” He wrinkled his nose. “She’d come back just to kill me if I did that to her brownies, so I never have.” He leaned closer, resting his forehead against yours. “But the ones from the dispensary around the corner are much better than anything I’ve ever made. They know their shit. We’ll order some later, if you want. I’m sure they’re wondering why they haven’t heard from me in a while.” 

You laughed at that, Dieter sliding one hand away and then taking yours, palms pressed together. “Sounds good, Dieter. Whatever you want.” As long as it’s me.

—

[fallingforel]

SECRET SANTA: SAM FENDER

just a small christmas imagine for sam: from @abiiors christmas prompt list. I will be posting the 12 from Now until 25th so you get a little christmas pressie from me- El xx

words: 1,965

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⋆｡°✩

Sam, Dean ,Both Tom’s , Heidi, Joe, Johnny, Drew and I were all in Lowlights after Sam’s Last performance in Newcastle before christmas. And we were organising our annual Secret Santa, we had done it every year, adding in everyone else when they had joined our friendship group.

“Okay heids, go and get a glass sam you get some paper, I’ve got a pen, we’ll draw them from a glass in true Geordie fashion” I said after we all agreed and we set a budget and when we were exchanging.

We were set to go into London in 2 weeks for the OD management christmas party and we were all travelling down together so we agreed that we’d do them in a hotel room, before we went out.

“Why the fuck do you Y/N L/N, of all the people have a pen” Sam said with a chuckle. “because in case I need to write things down, Samuel Fender” I replied back.

I had got Sam. He was easy to buy for, I could get him a jokey present but that would just seem like I didn’t care about him I decided I would go all out because sam deserved that especially after everything he had done for me through the pandemic and throughout the many years of us being friends since year 7. Also because I had fancied him, for many years. But no one knew apart from my diary and my mum. As soon as I pulled out his name I knew of the perfect gift that would make his cheeks split.

⋆｡°✩

1 week before Secret Santa- Sam

“who did you get for secret santa?” “heids I’m not telling you, you’ll only want to swap” “I promise I won’t.” “no Because I know you, I have finally got the person I want after waiting years.” “thanks for telling me you’ve got Y/N.” “HOW HEIDS? HOW?” “oh please, you two are so smitten with each other, have been for years. She’s got you too by the way.” “and how the fuck do you know that?”

“I saw it on her face, the same look she gives you when you buy her a drink, the same look she gives you when you lend her your jacket when she forgets hers, the same look she gives you when you insist that she should take the tenner she spent on your food at the shop. the same look she gives you when you both spot her ex out in public and you send them a nasty look. It’s LOVE sam. She’s in love with you, Your in love with her. it’s easy to see. Just grow a pair of balls and get her that 1975 vinyl she’s been nonstop going on about, you know she won’t buy it for herself.”

“THANK YOU HEIDI, you have just given me the perfect gift idea. See you in a week?” I said before placing a kiss on her head.

“see you in a week sam.”

now to plan the perfect gift.

⋆｡°✩

3 Days before Secret Santa

“and your sure it’s in perfect condition, mum”

“certain, your dad never took it out of the packet, it’s brand new, it’s not been anywhere damp, he kept it in the house. he was saving it for the perfect day, no clue when that would’ve been though. It’s only collecting dust here darling. Take it, use it” “I won’t be using it, Sam will though. I knew when I picked his name out this would be the perfect gift.” I said with a smile to my mum “Oh darling, he’ll love it, who knows maybe you’ll gain the courage to tell him this christmas period.” “maybe. depends.” “I think you should just gain the courage and do it. you’re both not getting any younger” she says with a chuckle walking off.

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2 days before Secret Santa- Sam

“and your certain you’ve got a copy mate?” “certain, we get a copy of all the variations in perfect condition so we can announce them” “good this needs to be perfect.” “why? so you can impress your lady friend?” the older boy teases over the phone. “howay man. it’s just….nah yerd be right about that mate. she is my lady friend. And yer sure you’re gonna make it over tomorrow?” “yes mate, wouldn’t miss it for the world, she’s a class girl. you’ve chosen yourself a gooden there sam mate” “reet… best be off, you’ve got a train to catch a thing to find and I have a card to write” “yes, you’re getting us from the train station tonight at 10 right?” “reet. youse are geena have to find yer hiding spots tonight like” “don’t worry we will”

⋆｡°✩

2 DAYS BEFORE SECRET SANTA

Sammy🕺- guys I know we agreed on 2 days time for secret santa, but would you mind doing it tommorow, it’s just cos mines too big to bring with me to London on the train without being noticed. deaaanooo🎸- sam mate, could you not have said this earlier I haven’t even bought mine yet drew🥁-yeah i agree with dean mate, I haven’t bought mine either. heids 💕- fine with me i’ve already bought mine. Dean and Drew, love you both, but you’ve had 2 weeks now get it together, but if you’ve got me just get me a gift card, you know those ones you can get anywhere. Y/n🪩- I agree with heids, you have had two weeks to get a gift for yours, everyone has. but if you have got me, i’d love some penis pasta would go great with my girls nights xx y/n🪩- that was a joke, please just get me a gift card x Joe🎹- what the hell why is Y/n talking about penis pasta? y/n🪩- sam wants to do secret santa tommorrow instead of two days time. please tell me you haven’t been idiots like dean and drew and have already got a gift for your secret santa. the penis pasta was a joke xx. Joe🎹- yeah i’ve got mine, tomorrows fine with me. look lads if you’ve got me get one of those crosswords puzzles, be great to do on the bus or studio during quiet time. Tom U🎸- Just read through the messages, aha I’ll make sure to get you some penis pasta for your birthday y/n. but yeah tomorrow’s great, mines tiny so… Tom C 🎓- yeah tomorrow’s okay, nobody better have gotten me penis pasta, cos that shit will be going straight back. Johnny 🎷- tomorrows good, I love that penis pasta has become the topic of conversation now ahahahah🤣🤣 y/n🪩- you know what I’m just going to assume that Dean and Drew have gone out to the shops now, so their going to come tomorrow, if not two people are going to be left without presents tomorrow…I apologise on behalf of the two idiots xx. Y/n🪩- sam what time are we all to arrive at yours tomorrow? Sam🕺- is 9pm good? we could all go out on the toon after? we haven’t got to get that train until 6 in the afternoon anyway? y/n🪩- Sounds good! i’ll go knocking on everyone’s doors on the way to yours anyway, funny how everyone lives on the way to yours from mine🤣🤣 sam🕺- yeah, the organisers of everything live on opposite sides of the town and then the people they drag along live on the way, funny how life works out huh? 🤣🤣 y/n🪩- absolutely hilarious, see ya at 9 tomorrow xx

2 DAYS BEFORE SECRET SANTA- HEIDI

“You were expecting sam right?” I ask, i’ve seen them all over y/ns instagram, so I know just what they look like and who I was expecting at the north sheilds train station.

“yeah kinda, who are you?” “look, it’s on a need to know basis, it’s just sam had to drag me along to come get you, because he can’t be seen in the papers, because of y/n Yadda yadda. He’s in the car waiting.”

“won’t they take pictures of us though?” the tallest one asks. “no. I’m not famous enough and you boys are wearing caps and sunglasses so I think you’ll be just fine.” I say hurrying them through the barriers.

“now hurry along before Drew and Dean catch us.” “Who?” the long haired one asks while walking down the stairs. “you’ll know tomorrow when you meet the rest of them.” “wait I thought it was just the one person. sam said he only had one person to give the gift to.” the married one says. “yeah well it’s a secret santa and we’re not really meant to know… so it’d be a bit weird if sam gave Y/n her present tomorrow and the rest of us had to wait 2 days…Just get in Sam will explain the whole thing.” I reply opening Sam’s car door for them. “I don’t think we’re all going to fit.” the curly haired one says.

“duh, I was only here for the ride, I need to go find out what drew and dean have bought. I need to make sure it’s not penis pasta. see ya all tomorrow.” I reply shutting them all in sam’s car and walking off into town to find drew and dean.

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THE NEW SECRET SANTA DAY-8 pm.

I was getting ready to leave for sam’s. his present all wrapped up. I was just curling my hair before i had to leave and go and get the rest of the gang. and my phone rang out so i popped my curlers down.

SAMMY🕺

his name appeared on my screen so i answered it

“hey sammy, You okay?”

“yeah i’m good y/n. erm can you look out your window?”

“yeah of course, 2 seconds”

my heels clicked across my lino floor for a few seconds until I reached my bedroom window which I looked out of and found Sam standing outside.

wait... is that?

no... it can't be.

they don't even know each other. I examined them further, it was them. How they knew each other I had no idea. I rushed downstairs and out the door and flew into sam's arms. "do you like your secret Santa, darling?" He says before I break the hug to "like it? I love it. Thank you." I say placing a kiss on Sam's cheek before Matty clears his throat next to sam and then saying "shall we get on with it mate, times ticking?" "yeah we should. Yer got the music?" "course otherwise this would be a fail." Matty guffaws at sam "alreet." and all of a sudden the backing track of Mine plays. and matty starts singing "there comes a time in a young mans life" while sam runs round his car and joins george on the end and then by the time matty reaches the second verse the rest of the 1975 boys and sam hold big a2 posterboard cards up that read "will you be my girlfriend?" I nod and run around to where sam was stood and he pulls me in for a kiss dipping me down, while the rest of the boys whoop and cheer. When he brings me back up I say "I'm guessing you got me for secret santa then?" he nods "good cause I got you too"

⋆｡°✩

"ahh tonnight was well fun" I say reminiscing on that night

"I love that i finally got yer, I remember yer face when Matty gave yer the rare australian vinyl signed" sam says "please my face? what about yours when I gave yer that rare springsteen vinyl? yer were streaming tears like." "yeah, well I'm just gonna get yer penis pasta next year" "yer wouldn't dare" I say gasping while narrowing my eyes at him "Oh I would."

[astrowaffles]

Lights, Camera, ...Action?

General Audiences | Fluff, Chaos

"Megumi-seaurchinhead – that’s a really good name – asks, ‘Why do you have different last names?’”

“Do you know how hard it is to get a name change?” Megumi asked. “Especially if it’s a name you’d already had for ten years?”

“Hard both financially, legally, and emotionally,” Gojo listed. “Plus Megumi Fushiguro has such a ring to it.”

“I guess you could’ve become Satoru Fushiguro.”

“Yah, but I’m famous.”

“Point taken. Megumi Gojo is an okay name I guess, it’s just weird. I’ve been Fushiguro all my life.”

“It’s his mom’s name,” Gojo added. “It would be a shame to swap your mom’s name for your adoptive dad’s. That’s not very #feminism, is it?”

“Did you seriously just say the word ‘hashtag’?”

“Hashtag feminism, dude.”

“Don’t ‘dude’ me. You’re old and wrinkly, and cringe. Next question.”

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

OR: the jjk actor/interview au we all wanted

“Sometimes people ask me if you’re, like, actually mine. And first of all, what do you mean, ‘actually’?? You’re literally my son? And second of all, if they mean biologically, how old do they think I am?! I was ten years old when you were born. And when you were conceived-“

Megumi coughed violently and nodded his head towards the camera. Gojo immediately stopped talking.

“We were rolling? Oh. Well. ….Shit.”

The screen fuzzed out with a loud BEEEEP.

-

-

“Hey, I’m Megumi Fushiguro, and I’m in Jujutsu Kaisen 0 this March.”

“I’m Satoru Gojo! I’m also in Jujutsu Kaisen 0 this March. What a funny coincidence.”

“We’re here today to read your most frequently asked questions-”

“And it’s Father’s Day! So there’ll be lots about our relationship.”

Megumi hummed. “I feel like we should probably explain that first.”

Gojo inched towards Megumi, closing the gap between them on the couch. Megumi, engrossed in trying to find the right words, didn’t notice until Gojo managed to get an arm over Megumi’s shoulders. Megumi jumped.

“Holy fuck, don’t do that,” he scolded, hand over his heart. Gojo snickered and turned to the camera.

“We’re father and son! Hence the Father’s Day interview.” Megumi opened his mouth, but Gojo quickly put a hand over it. “Don’t sweat the small stuff. Peace and love, Megumi! Onto the questions!”

A member of the crew placed two small bowls, full of slips of paper, on the table in front of them. They also handed Megumi a clipboard.

“So, these’re the rules,” Megumi announced, shrugging Gojo’s arm off. “We take a question from that bowl-“ he pointed – “and answer it. Truthfully,” he added, staring at Gojo. Gojo put his hands up in surrender.

“Hey, I never lie! Just bend the truth sometimes.”

“Yeah, whatever. Once you’re done with the paper, put it on the table – and not back into the bowl.” Another stare. Gojo looked away. “If you don’t want to answer the question, you don’t have to, but you do have to do a forfeit.” Megumi pointed to the other bowl.

“How am I supposed to remember which one is which?”

“Does anyone have a pen?”

A woman quickly handed Megumi a marker.

“Thanks.” Megumi picked up the first bowl, and scrawled QUESTIONS on it, and then FORFEITS on the other.

“Woah, Megs, your handwriting is awful,” Gojo commented, inspecting the scribbles.

“Thanks, I got it from you,” Megumi replied. He put the marker down on the table and finished scanning the rules. “That’s about it, I think.”

“You wanna go first?”

“I guess.” Megumi carefully pulled a slip from the bowl. “This is from fishbowlbrain on twitter. ‘Do Megumi and Yuuji actually get along, or is it just acting?’”

“Do they get along? You have no idea,” Gojo groaned. “They’re such menaces.”

“He’s only saying that because we convinced the publicist to sell stickers of Satoru,” Megumi confided to the camera.

“Yeah, stickers of horrible freeze-frame moments!”

“We caught him mid-sneeze,” Megumi cackled. “Ahh. Good times.”

“That was last week.”

“Good times.”

“Seriously, I wish they were just acting. They do literally everything together now. Saw them at the nail salon a few days ago.”

Megumi held up his hand to reveal his green nails. “Aren’t they cool? Yuuji got red.”

“Very cool.” Gojo crossed his arms.

“He’s also mad because we didn’t invite him,” Megumi told the camera. “Come on, Satoru. It’s your turn.”

“Oh, hell yes!” Gojo shoved his hand into the QUESTIONS bowl and rummaged around, spilling a few. Megumi rolled his eyes and collected the spilt questions, putting them back in the bowl once Gojo had removed his hand. “Ooh! This is a good one!” He cleared his throat. “This is a question from … gojosxrayeyes? … on twitter. ‘Did you audition for your roles in Jujutsu Kaisen because of your characters’ relationship, or was it a coincidence?’”

“Satoru didn’t actually audition properly,” Megumi sighed. “They kinda wrote the part for him. I didn’t know he was in it, since I didn’t run in to him during audition week, so it was complete coincidence.”

“I do sometimes wonder if they wrote Megumi’s part for him, too,” Gojo mused. “Why does it fit him so well otherwise? Why are our characters father and son otherwise?”

“I mean, they’re not really father and son,” Megumi countered. “What did they call it? Oh yeah, you’re my ‘benefactor’. You just pay for stuff. Like rent.”

“I love being rich,” Gojo nodded. “And Tsumiki – she’s not related to us at all. She’s really lovely though.”

“It wasn’t hard to act like she was my sister,” Megumi agreed. “It would be nice to have a sister. Someone who can distract Satoru before he drives me insane.”

“No comment,” Gojo said. “Anyway, yeah! Coincidence, although I swear Megumi was a muse for someone involved. Your turn, Megs!”

Megumi picked another piece of paper out. “Yuujislefteyebrow wants to know why you always wear sunglasses.”

“What, in Jujutsu Kaisen? Only time will tell, my friend,” Gojo answered, wiggling his fingers mysteriously. “But in real life, I’m just susceptible to migraines.” He shrugged. “My turn!”

This time, Megumi put a hand to the edge of the bowl to prevent spilling. Gojo grinned and purposefully knocked their hands together as he took a piece of paper. Megumi punched his arm.

“Ow, Megumi! That hurt!” Gojo turned to the crew. “Did you see that? Did you see that? My own son-“

“Please read the question, Mr Gojo,” a woman’s voice said. Megumi sniggered.

“Yeah, Mr Gojo. Get on with it.”

“I am, I am! Ahem. Megumi-seaurchinhead – that’s a really good name – asks, ‘Why do you have different last names?’”

“Do you know how hard it is to get a name change?” Megumi asked. “Especially if it’s a name you’d already had for ten years?”

“Hard both financially, legally, and emotionally,” Gojo listed. “Plus Megumi Fushiguro has such a ring to it.”

“I guess you could’ve become Satoru Fushiguro.”

“Yah, but I’m famous.”

“Point taken. Megumi Gojo is an okay name I guess, it’s just weird. I’ve been Fushiguro all my life.”

“It’s his mom’s name,” Gojo added. “It would be a shame to swap your mom’s name for your adoptive dad’s. That’s not very #feminism, is it?”

“Did you seriously just say the word ‘hashtag’?”

“Hashtag feminism, dude.”

“Don’t ‘dude’ me. You’re old and wrinkly, and cringe. Next question.”

Gojo opened his mouth, then closed it. “You got me there.”

“I know I do. Here’s another question: ‘how do you get yourself to cry at sad moments?’”

“I am an emotional wreck at the best of times,” Gojo laughed. “I just think of a Mitski song or something.”

“Personally, I just get really in character. As Satoru said, my character is very similar to me, so if he’s crying, it’s probably a situation where I’d cry too. That’s sad enough as it is.”

“I don’t think you’ve cried in JJK, though?” Gojo thought for a moment. “I suppose even if you did we couldn’t mention it. It might be a spoiler. Wait, have I even cried?”

“Your character doesn’t really show emotions, does he? I might have cried once, or something. But I’ve cried more in other parts, and the same method worked for them. It’s always a sad moment anyway, so you just have to feel the mood and the emotions of your part, I guess.”

“Of course you have the perfect, actor-y answer,” Gojo sulked. “Now I just look stupid.”

“Listen, I just think Mitski’s more cathartic than sad,” Megumi shrugged.

“Bonus question, what’s your favourite Mitski song?” someone called from the back.

“Call me basic, but I like Francis Forever,” Megumi answered.

“Oh, that one is cathartic. I’m more of a Liquid Smooth man myself.”

“That one’s good too. But is that really one that makes you cry?”

“Nah. Have you ever seen Fruits Basket?”

“Yeah…?”

“Well. Now think of First Love/Late Spring but with Hatori.”

There was a pause while Megumi tried to focus on the image.

“…….Oh my god.”

“Yeah, exactly.”

“Yeah, yeah, I can actually see how this would work,” Megumi laughed shakily, fanning his face. “No, literally, this is working too well-“

“Wait, actually?” Gojo handed Megumi a tissue, obviously fighting a giggle. “I didn’t take you for someone who easily cried.”

“I’m not, I just really like Hatori, okay? They were in love, Satoru!”

“I know, I know. Shall we move on before this gets worse?”

Megumi blew his nose. “Please.”

Gojo rustled in the bowl for a bit. “Sunshineyellow says ‘how does Satoru feel about the possibility of their being a ‘real’ father for Megumi’s character in season 2?’ Woah, one step at a time, sunshineyellow! We’ve only just done season one – and the movie’s not even out yet!”

“Also, there’s a whole thing about what a douchebag he was,” Megumi interjected. “Yeah, the guy would be a biological father, but my character absolutely despises him. Why would we feel upset by that?”

“True, true. I think you do have to bear the context in mind. Also, they’re just characters! Separate real life from fiction, guys. I personally have a fabulous work/life balance.”

“So true. He forces me to lock my scripts away when I get home.”

Gojo gave Megumi a high five. “That’s how it should be!”

Megumi picked another question. “Toadinthehole asked ‘Why did they pair you up to do this interview? Surely Megumi should be with Yuji and Nobara?’”

“And then who would they put me with?” Gojo pointed out. “Most of the adult characters have minor roles and as a teacher, I interact most with the kids. If they put me with Kento or Suguru, it might actually be weirder.”

“Also, it’s Father’s Day. I’m here with my dad.”

Gojo immediately snapped his head to look at Megumi. “Did you just say what I thought you said?”

“Probably?”

“Awh, Megs!” Gojo launched himself at Megumi, wrapping every limb around him. “You’re so cute sometimes!”

Megumi said something, but Gojo was squashed over his microphone. Eventually, a crew member came to peel Gojo off.

“Sheesh, it’s not something to overreact over,” Megumi huffed, attempting to straighten himself out.

“It totally is.”

“I say it all the time.”

“And it gets better every time!”

“Would it deflate you to know that Yuji is doing this interview with Mr Nanami?”

Gojo paused. “They’re not related, are they?”

“No, but they do have a similar dynamic to us in the show, don’t they?”

“I guess so….”

“Yuji literally said that Mr Nanami is his TV dad.”

“He kinda is! That’s so sweet. Does that make me and Kento dad friends…?”

Megumi sighed heavily. “Maybe they should let us do an interview together. Like, the four of us.”

“Let Nobara join too! Wait, she doesn’t have a TV parent. What are we gonna do?!”

“Give her Shoko and let her join…?”

“I like it.” Gojo turned to the crew behind the camera. “Are you writing this down?”

“Don’t be rude to them,” Megumi chided. “But you know what would be cool? One of those interviews where you play with cats.”

“Oh my god, yeah! We could…”

Their voices faded as the screen turned to black. Text appeared in the centre of the screen: they got a bit distracted, so we have to cut out this bit. It’s just them talking about cats for fifteen minutes. Let’s get ourselves back on track …

The image returned and the audio faded back in. Gojo had shifted so he was sitting with an ankle crossed over his knee, arm slung casually over the back of the sofa. Megumi rooted in the bowl for another question.

“Oh, here we go! ‘Beside your own character and each other’s, who’s your favourite character in JJK?’”

“Ooh! Ooh! Nanami! I think he’s really cool. He’s just got a knife, maths, and the power of refusing to work overtime.”

Megumi laughed. “I’ve never heard it put like that before. Personally, I like Yuta – you won’t really know who he is since you haven’t seen the film yet, so I won’t say much. I just think it’s awesome how he keeps winning with the literal power of love.”

“Hell yeah! Peace and love!” Gojo beamed. “Can we do some forfeits now?”

“What, without the questions?”

“Yeah, I’m curious as to what they’re gonna make us do.” Gojo pulled one out of the bowl. “’Do ten star jumps.’ Well, that one’s boring. You can do that one for me.” He tossed the paper to Megumi, who grumbled something about it being Gojo’s idea, but stood up and started doing it anyway. “This one’s better. ‘Tell us the worst thing you’ve ever eaten’.”

“Isn’t that just another question?” Megumi puffed, on his fifth star jump.

“Yeah, but it’s an embarrassing question. And the answer is earthworms, when I was seven.”

“What?!”

“I know! Don’t I seem far too elegant to ever eat worms?”

Megumi collapsed onto the sofa, breathing heavily. “Don’t ever make me do exercise again.”

“Oh, you big drama queen. You and I both know about your 5k before bed.”

“Listen, it’s just relaxing-“

“Yeah, yeah. Pick another forfeit.”

“’Chug a bottle of sprite’. Uh, no.”

“What do you mean, ‘no’?”

“I mean no. I want another one.”

“How about ‘tell us your most embarrassing dream?’ Don’t tell me about your sex dreams, though.”

“You’re my dad, why would I ever do that.”

“We have a close relationship and we’re really close in age, you know. You might feel that I am a safe space-“

“Yeah, no. My most embarrassing dream was the time I dreamt I tried to do a skateboard trick but landed flat on my face.”

“That wasn’t a dream, that happened when you were nine.”

“Was there an audience of mermaids laughing at me?”

“No…?”

“Then it was a dream. A very bad dream.”

“You only have time for one last thing, either a forfeit or a question,” a crew member called out. Gojo pouted.

“Is it because we wasted all your time talking about cats?”

“Yeah,” the cameraman said.

“My bad, sorry,” Megumi apologised, reaching for QUESTIONS. “Let’s do one last question, shall we?”

“Yeah, these forfeits are bad.”

“Don’t be rude. Satorusshinyslipper says, ‘Tell us one thing we probably won’t know about making Jujutsu Kaisen.’”

“What, anything?”

“Anything, I guess.”

They both thought for a minute.

“Oh! I have one. My demon dogs are my actual dogs.”

“Ohhh, that is a good one,” Gojo agreed.

“They’re called Toast and Maple and they are absolute sweethearts,” Megumi smiled. “And they love Yuuji. It was so hard to stop Maple from just running over to him whenever we were filming.”

“Or me,” Gojo added. “Obviously, they live with me and have for ages now, and I’m like their bestie-“

“Keep dreaming.”

“I am! Anyway, it was worse with me because I usually wasn’t on stage during their scenes, so they kept trying to run off camera. We are so lucky Megumi is a master dog trainer or whatever.”

“’Or whatever’,” Megumi mimicked. “You’re so kind.”

“I know.” Gojo turned to the camera. “I guess that’s it, folks! Thanks for joining us-“

“And remember to catch Jujutsu Kaisen 0 ASAP. It’s actually a really good film, even if I do say so myself.”

“He’s right, you know. Like, subscribe, hit the bell – do whatever you gotta do. Keep watching JJK, and keep up with your favourite actors! Peace out!”

“What he said.”

The credits rolled.

A03 | Exclusives | Tip Me | Commissions

[shadowynn]

(preview of yandere!vampire!cult!poly!ateez au wip below the cut!)

merry christmas and happy holidays!! in honor of this festive time of the year, I was hoping to do a short christmasy drabble with in love and lore, but am sorry to announce my procrastination has gotten the better of me to the point it’s just not getting done, at least not in time for this christmas.

speaking of in love and lore, I have hit a rough bit of writer’s block, so I’ve taken a short break to just clear my mind and enjoy the season. the last thing I want is to force things and come to hate writing it. I’ll be visiting my family this week, but once I’m back home, I’ll be back to writing. I have a few ideas floating around in how I want the next chapter to go, and hoping for the next chapter to come out mid-January at the latest.

however, I would like to give you all something, so I have decided to give you all a short preview of a wip that hit me like a storm this past week. It’s based off the movie 1BR on Netflix, with the inclusion of vampires because I just couldn’t help myself. Keep in mind, that this is a very early wip and that it’s still in major development. with that also being said, I do not plan on making this work as big as a project as in love and lore. More as just a series of drabbles and scenarios. like there will still be a plot, but not the world building that my other work has. but who knows, maybe as it develops, it’ll get there.

so, without further ado, I present to you a preview of… The Paradigm Complex

“So, what do you think?”

You were startled from your thoughts at the voice that spoke up next to you. The seat beside you that had previously been empty now occupied by the sweet-talking man who had been your tour guide for the day - Yeosang if you were recalling it correctly. It had surprised you how young he was when you had signed in for the open house earlier that afternoon, and you were once again struck by that very same thought as he plopped down next to you, head propped up by the elbow that rested against the table. 

“It’s very nice,” you replied, eyes once more taking in the scene around. After touring the available unit for the first half of the showing, you had been brought to the center of the complex that was used as a community center. The outside area was enclosed by the building around it and included everything from a garden and greenhouse to a swimming pool and grilling area. “And the community also seems very nice and safe.” 

You referred to the young boy currently sitting in your lap, content with drawing on one of the backs of the application you had been given at the end of the tour to fill out. You didn’t know anything past his given name, Junseo, but he had become attached to you when you noticed him crying on the ground near the garden. While the others in your group had swept their eyes right by the sniffling child, you had approached him, rustling through your purse for the bandages you kept when you noticed the cut on his knee. His mother had thanked you profusely when he led you to her, too busy tending to another part of the garden to notice what had happened. And though you had left him with her, it didn’t take long for him to return to you, preferring your company over the other kids milling around while his mother worked. 

You thought it strange, but the wave the mother sent you when she saw him with you told you she didn’t mind, making you wonder just what sort of community there was here for her and the others to be comfortable with letting their children run free. 

It was just another factor that told how nice this place was. Everything about this place was nice. Nicer than any place you had ever lived in before. It was perfect, everything you could wish for, but-

“But…” As though he had read your mind, the man finished your train of thought, a hint of a smile tracing his lips as his eyes traveled to the papers you had left blank up to this point. The only markings on them from the scribbling Junseo had done along their backs. 

“But it’s a bit out of my price range, I’m afraid.” 

A bit was an understatement; the place was double what you could afford. You had known that going in though. The Paradigm housing complex had made a name for itself within the past few years as one of the most prestigious and highly exclusive apartment complexes in the city, and you had known the price for the available unit would be high above your budget. And yet, you couldn’t stop yourself from signing up for the open house the following weekend when you noticed a few spots were still available. It wasn’t often a unit became vacant, the last one had been nearly a year ago, and the timing had been impeccable. 

You weren’t really looking for a new place to live. You had one in the south end of town with your boyfriend, and yet, that hadn’t stopped you from looking at available housing in the city on your laptop late at night when he was still at ‘work’. You wanted out. You had wanted out for months since you had first caught wind he was cheating, and still cheating, but it had always seemed so impossible. You were still finishing up your last year in school, and even with working enough hours to be considered full time at the bookstore, you could barely afford your half of the rent. A fact he readily reminded you of any time you wanted to leave him. As much as you hated every time he said it, he was right. You needed him. Unless you were willing to sacrifice your own safety and move into a shitty unit in a sketchy part of town, you were stuck where you were. You needed him and he knew it. 

Perhaps it was because of this that you had come out today. He had been scheduled for a weekend shift at the hospital, leaving you free to come to the open house without him questioning you on your whereabouts as you left. The Paradigm was a life you could never afford, and yet, it was nice to escape reality for a few hours. To sit and imagine what your life would be like if you hadn’t landed yourself in such a sticky situation. And yet, you hadn’t expected the stab of melancholy that had hit you as you had roamed the studio apartment available for rent, nor as you sat here in the courtyard with the pleasant buzz of the complex’s current tenants as they roamed through the area. 

“Does that mean you’re looking for a place on your own, then?” he asked, attempting to blow the piece of hair the wind had cast in front of his eye. 

“Myself?” You asked, not quite fully understanding which way he meant his statement and feeling a tad panicked at the thought of leaving your boyfriend to start afresh on your own. Was that something you could really do? “Uh, yeah, it would just be me.” 

“Well, if you ask me, it doesn’t hurt to still apply. We’re always more than willing to negotiate prices for the right person,” he hummed, fingers tapping against the table. “Though it would probably be best if I grabbed you a new copy. Junseo doesn’t seem too keen on letting yours go at the moment.” Junseo looked up at the mention of his name, and matched the goofy smile Yeosang sent his way. 

“That’s very kind of you, but even then…” You turned your face away, fighting the blush the embarrassment your current situation brought. Despite attempting to dress up for the event, you still stuck out from the other people who had signed up. The designer clothes and handbags a stark contrast from your thrifted outfit. Hell, even Junseo had nicer clothes than you to run around the garden in. “To be completely honest, I just really wanted to get an inside peek of this place. I knew I can’t afford to live somewhere like this at the moment, but I thought it might be fun to just see what it would be like.”

You resituated Junseo’s position in your lap, taking in the people milling around the grounds. It was a beautiful day, bright and warm. The perfect day to spend some time outside and enjoy what remained of the summer. You could see yourself fitting in well here. Helping out in the garden in between playing with the few children roaming the grounds. Maybe even take a dip in the pool to cool off from a hard day’s work before lounging in a nearby lounge to soak up the last of the summer sun. 

It was just too bad that was a lifestyle you couldn’t afford on your own. Not while you were still in school and struggling with bills and debt as it was. 

“But you are currently looking for a new place to live, right?”

“It’s not an immediate necessity at the moment, but yes,” you nodded, “if given the opportunity, I would move in a heartbeat. Not just here, but anywhere. As long as it was safe and something I could call my own.”

“Then fill out an application.” He ruffled around in his bag, pulling out another application and pen and pushing it towards you. “I’m close with the owner and can put in a good word for you. Just fill it out, list the rent you can feasibly pay at the moment, and we might be able to work something out. After all, we’re much more concerned about quality than quantity here at Paradigm.”

“You would do that?” Your eyes widened, wondering why on earth this man would do that for you when the rest of your group would be willing to pay twice the starting rent just for the opportunity to say they lived in the most exclusive complex in the city. “Why?”

“I like to think I have a nose for good people,” he smiled, fingers tapping against the application, “and you’re a good person, y/n, I can smell it. So, come on, Junnie,” he reached for the boy on your lap, ignoring the pout that crossed his lips as he took him from your hold, “let’s get you back to your mother so the pretty lady can fill out her application.”

He left you at that, but only made it a few feet before he was stopped by a nearby couple that had been in your group. By the glance they sent your way, you could tell they had overheard Yeosang’s mention of putting in a good word for you and hoped to earn a similar feat for themselves. After all, it didn’t matter who the first person to apply for the unit was or who was the highest bidder when it came to the Paradigm. You didn’t get to choose whether or not you lived here. They chose you. And a good word from the tour guide was exactly what you needed to get in. Not wanting to stick around for the conversation, Junseo wriggled his way out of Yeosang’s grasp and made off in the direction of his mother with one last toothy grin in your direction. 

You turned to the second application he had handed towards you, twirling the pen in your hand as you mulled the decision over. None of it made much sense in your mind. Why would they select your application when there was hundreds of others that would willingly pay triple what you could? But even if that was the case, what did you have to lose by following through with it? If it didn’t go through, and you weren’t selected, you’d still be exactly where you were now. In a shitty situation, but no shittier than it already was. And on the tiny chance it did go through, well, your entire life could change. You would have that fresh start you had been yearning for so long. 

That and, well, there was something charming about Yeosang. It didn’t slip your notice that he had called you pretty in passing, and though you knew it was just the way his personality seemed to be, you still felt a pull towards him. He was someone you felt you could get along with. Someone you would enjoy getting to know and become friends with if you only had the chance to. 

So, before you could give it too much thought and talk yourself out of it, you pulled the application closer towards you and began writing. 

~

You weren’t the type of person to pick up unknown calls, but something about the number that flashed on your screen as you waited out your lunch break in your car seemed familiar. You didn’t want to talk to anyone right now, not after all the shit you had dealt with the first half of your shift, but your finger still hovered over the accept button as you quickly searched your brain for whose number it could have been. Thinking it might have been your doctor finally returning your call for a refill you had been waiting on or even possibly a call on one of the countless job applications you had been filling out the past few weeks, you grudgingly accepted. Figuring it was better to get it over with now instead of living with the stress of what it might be the rest of your shift. 

“Hello?”

“Hi, is this y/n l/n?”

“Um, yeah.” You shifted the phone in your hand, trying to place the familiarity of the voice on the other end. Was it finally a call back from one of the job applications you had put in? “This is y/n.”

“This is Kang Yeosang from Paradigm. I’m calling to let you know that your application for unit 617 has been accepted.”

“Wait, are you being serious?”

You couldn’t hold back the gasp his response elicited, sure this was some sort of joke being pulled. Despite Yeosang’s promise of putting in a good word for you, you had never expected anything to come of it. Not when you had followed through with his suggestion and wrote down the actual amount you could feasibly pay for the place. And though you had held on to some hope something would come from it, you had never truly expected to hear from them again. 

“I can assure you, I’m quite serious,” he chuckled. “I talked with the owner about your application and he was willing to accept it with a few added stipulations I would like to discuss with you if you have the time.”

“Oh, okay.” 

You did your best to hide your disappointment, fearing the worst. Despite Yeosang’s insistence they were willing to negotiate on pricing, you should have known they wouldn’t just willingly drop the rent by half for you just because he had felt pity for you. 

“You see, one of our administrative assistants recently put in her resignation and we’re in need of a replacement. When we looked over your application, we noticed the address of your current residence and place of work are on the other side of the city and figured you would likely be in need of a job with a shorter commute if you were to move here.”

The dread which his earlier statement had caused was slowly being replaced with excitement once more as he continued to speak, eagerly hoping he was beginning to allude to what you thought he was. 

“We’d like to extend a job offer towards you here at Paradigm, which if you were to accept, would cover the cost of your rent plus a biweekly stipend to cover any other expenses you might have.”

“And what exactly would the job entail?” you asked, trying hard to cover the shock his reply gave you and trying just as hard to not let your hopes get too high before you figured out exactly what it was he was offering you. There had to be a catch; the offer was just too good to be true. “I’m finishing up my last year of college online, but I would still need some flexibility in my schedule.”

“Oh, it would just be your typical administrative work. You’d mostly be assisting myself and the other managers here at Paradigm and we’d be more than willing to work around your class schedule,” Yeosang replied without skipping a beat. “When you have time, I’ve sent an email to you that includes a detailed description of the job, alongside the logistics of your pay and housing for you to look through so you can have a clearer idea of what you would be signing up for if you were to accept.”

You were silent, unsure of what exactly to say. What could you say? Everything you had wished for the past few months was finally being extended towards you. A new job, housing of your own, and most importantly, a way out of the toxic relationship you had been stuck in for so long. All of it. Everything you dreamed of for so long, now within reach. 

There had to be a catch, right? It couldn’t be as good as it seemed, right? So what was it? A whole new life in exchange for your soul?

“I know this is a lot to take in, so don’t feel as though you have to accept anything right away. Read through the emails I sent you and just give us a call back sometime within the next two weeks with your answer.”

-

and that is a very rough start to my new project. feel free to let me know what you all think and if this is something that you would be interested in! once again, I hope you all had/have a wonderful holiday/Christmas season. :)

[aristocratic-otter]

I'm determined to post this week, it feels like it's been so long since I did a WIP Wednesday! I've got lots of words to share, so many thanks to @larkral, @letraspal, @rimeswithpurple, @artsyunderstudy, @wellbelesbian, @confused-bi-queer, @you-remind-me-of-the-babe, and @j-nipper-95 for the couple of weeks worth of tags!

With no further ado, the fics:

From Saving Simon Snow:

I wonder briefly if the fall might have shaken some sense into her. I push that thought away. It doesn’t matter. She needs to be contained, for Simon’s safety. And so I can get some fucking clothes on.

I fire off spells, one right after another. “Cat Got Your Tongue” prevents her from speaking any spells she may have at the ready without a wand, and “All Tied Up” pins her arms at her sides so that she can’t cast fire at us (which, like my mother and I, she can do wordlessly). Finally, “Out of Sight, Out of Mind” sends her immobilised body careening out the door of our bedroom and around the corner. 

She’ll make me pay for the indignity of being gagged, trussed up and shoved out of sight, but I can’t care right now. 

From my Simon as a TikTok dancer fic:

Discovering YouTube and the world wide web cracked my world wide open. I spent hours every night learning the moves of various hip hop artists from my tiny screen. When I ran out of hip hop moves to try, I followed a breadcrumb trail of comments and recommendations to find other dancers in other styles (and learning human idiom and slang along the way). There’s so much to learn, I’ll never be done, I don’t think. Which is brilliant, because I want to do this forever. 

Then, after spending all night dancing, I’d spend all morning charging my phone at McDonalds. During that time, I’d spend the cash I’d starting earning from performing on the pier on piles of hamburgers, fries, shakes and pies. And while I chewed my way through mounds of food, I’d skim the net for more ideas, more dances to learn. 

From my CORB, The Heart In The Well

“Don’t move!”

“I’m trying, Snow! You’re not exactly a featherweight!”

My knees wobble and threaten to give out as I stand, balanced on Baz’s shoulders. I want to snipe that he’s got vampire strength so my twelve stones of body weight should feel like feathers to him. But I’m well aware of how he’d react to that remark, and I really don’t want to fall over six feet to the ground. 

From To Heal a Broken Mind (finished! Off to the beta, you should start seeing chapters soon!)

Simon

Baz’s eyes fall shut and he gasps, in relief I think. I watch his face. My thoughts aren’t really clear yet, but I don’t think that’s because of brain damage. I think I’ve just not completely shrugged off the effects of the anaesthesia. 

So, I’ve had my brain cut apart and come through the other side. And Baz is still here, and still loves me. He called me darling. There’s just one question left unanswered, and the open fear I saw on Baz’s face when I woke is the opposite of reassuring. Is he frightened because the news is bad? Or for some other reason?

From Stars, Flowers, and Children:

“What is it?” I ask him, when he takes the thing from me and turns it over in his hands. 

“‘Tis a stereoscope,” he says gruffly. “A picture viewer,” he explains, when I look at him blankly. “Were there cards with it?”

I pull a double handful of paper cards out of the handkerchief and pass them over to Davy. He flips through them swiftly. His eyes open wide at what he sees on several, and, in the end, he shuffles out a majority of the cards and stuffs them in his pocket. “Sinful shite,” he mutters, when I question him. “Not fit for young ‘uns to see.” 

And from Snow Fox (next chapter posting soon!):

I stand up and close my eyes at the popping sounds coming from my spine when I do. I’m too damn young for my body to be betraying me like this. But months of short rations and sleep on hard ground have left me feeling like an old man at times. I shake the stiffness out of my muscles and begin to pace. 

“The only known supply of salt and quinine are with the British,” I say, thinking aloud. “They’ve doubled their guard since our last raid, and I doubt we’d be able to sneak someone in, with half the camp down with illness.”

Penny stands and watches me, wringing her hands in front of her stomach. “I know you don’t want to put him in danger, but—”

I raise a hand to cut her off. Then I sigh. “I know. Baz may be the only person who’s got a chance of sweet talking the supplies we need from Tarleton. Fuck. I didn’t want to pull him in deeper…”

I'll tag a few folks for Sunday. I'd love to see what y'all are doing! @alexalexinii, @alleycat0306, @asocialpessimist, @bazzybelle, @bookish-bogwitch, @ic3-que3n, @carryonsimoncarryonbaz, @dragoneggos, @erzbethluna, @ionlydrinkhotwater, @hushed-chorus, @fatalfangirl, @facewithoutheart, @gekkoinapeartree, @ivelovedhimthroughworse, @ileadacharmedlife, @jbrrring, @jasonfunderberkerthefrogexists, @krisrix, @messofthejess, @moments-au-crayon22, @moodandmist, @frjsti, @nightimedreamersghost, @onepintobean, @prettylightsbigcity, @raenestee, @theearlgreymage, @tea-brigade, @technetiumai, @thehoneyedhufflepuff, @upuntil6am, @vampire-named-gampire, @whatevertheweather, and @yellobb-old

[alister312]

Gregstophe Week Day 2: History/Future

For Day 2, I had a number of ideas, but ultimately settled on drawing a scene from my favorite fanfic of all time: The Well and the Lighthouse

It’s a WWII AU, featuring Gregory as a British soldier and Christophe as the leader of a resistance group in France. The story well crafted and wonderfully told, the characters are all at their best and there’s so many solid relationships (both romantic and platonic), and it’s clear the author did her historical research.

I feel like I’m always singing the praises of this fic, but it deserves it so I will continue to do so until everyone has given it a shot.

More explanation below the cut

My absolute favorite part of the fic is actually the final chapter. I think a good ending is really hard, but The Well and the Lighthouse does an incredible job and I find myself reading it over and over again. Which usually prompts me to just go and reread the whole thing. Since it’s from the end, obviously spoilers ahead but:

The scene I decided to do is Christophe discovering that Gregory has kept the pocket watch he gifted him. Gregory says of course he did, laughing at Christophe for assuming he might’ve sold it. Christophe confesses that he wasn’t sure what Gregory had done with it, as he hadn’t heard from Gregory for months, and figured Gregory was glad to be gone. The tone shifts, the two finally opening up to one another, and Gregory confesses he couldn’t sleep without the watch.

Earlier in the chapter, we as readers saw Gregory depressed and despondent, clinging to the pocket watch and pretending the ticking was Christophe’s heartbeat, just as Christophe had told Gregory to do. Sometimes it’s comforting to him, sometimes it’s heartbreaking, but it’s all he has. It’s such a beautiful concept to me, opening up a whole new world of possibilities based on Christophe’s fixation on watches from the movie. The author was always good at that— taking canon and running with it in a touching and creative direction.

I had initially wanted to do 4 pages depicting the whole scene but my lack of experience in drawing comics combined with busy schedule led to only getting one page done. I’ve got thumbnails of the others, which I’ll include below:

Sorry for the poor quality, these were originally sketched on some colored paper I had lying on my desk. Anyway, as you can see, I initially thought about depicting the scene of Gregory walking into his apartment to find Christophe there (another favorite of mine), but ultimately went with the pocket watch scene. Maybe someday I’ll get around to doing the other pages. For now, I’m pretty happy with how this one page came out. I hope it inspires you to go check out The Well and the Lighthouse, or reread it if you have already :)

[jowrites]

When the Dahlia sings Her Song - 14. Awakening is freedom

TW: Mentions of death, physical abuse, mental illness, depression, anxiety, parental death, verbal abuse, mute disorder, mentions of sex, some smut(in future), cursing

Strangers to Lovers. Lee Heeseung x F!OC(I like giving names).

Masterlist Here. Prev. Next. Jo's Masterlist Here.

taglist: @enhabooks

It was late at night when Heeseung found himself at the bar on top of the hotel. He had a beer he hadn't touched as he waited for the person he needed to see. It’s been 2 weeks and the date was getting closer and closer so he knew he needed to act quick. He heard the elevator ding and knew it was probably his brother who he hadn’t spoken to since their last altercation where he punched him in the face. He was glad Beomgyu actually answered his text and requested to meet up.

“Heeseung,” he heard him call out. “Did you wait long?”

“No, not really,” he said. “Did you want anything?”

“I’ll take a scotch,” he told the bartender. “Now, what’s so urgent that you need to see me? I thought you were done with me.”

“I’m leaving the company,” Heeseung said. “The company and the family.”

“You’re very funny,” Beomgyu nodded to the bartender as he got his drink, taking a sip.

“I’m not being funny, I’m serious,” Heeseung said. “I’ve been preparing for a while now, I’m going to appoint VP Park. I’m announcing it next week.”

“Dad is going to kill you, Heeseung…and I mean literally,” Beomgyu warned.

“Not if he can find me,” Heeseung shrugged.

“You’re going to seriously run away?” Beomgyu asked.

“Not really, but I will be somewhere I don’t think he’ll think twice about,” Heeseung shrugged.

“Wow…so just like that, you’re going to leave me?” Beomgyu raised his voice. “You can’t leave me with this…that…no! I won’t let you! You’re the only one I have!”

“Oh please, don’t tell me now that you’ve ever cared,” Heeseung rolled his eyes.

“I may not be the smartest person or most thankful person ever, but Heeseung you’re the only one I have. Please, don’t leave me!” Beomgyu begged. “I-I know I’ve always been a pest, just an annoying bug in your eyes, and I’m sorry, I’m so fucking sorry! I’m just a stupid kid, okay? But you’re all I have. I’ll seriously die.”

Heeseung sighed, looking at his brother who had tears in his eyes. As annoying as his brother was, Beomgyu was a soft spot for him, that's why he broke the news to him. He didn’t want to leave Beomgyu behind like this, especially in this state and how much his father hated him. He had to do something about it too.

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

“What do mean he’s gone?” CEO Lee raged out at his assistant. 

“He’s disappeared, sir,” the assistant flinched as Mr. Lee threw papers at him. “H-his things at his apartment are gone, he left his phone a-and same for Beomgyu. B-but he left t-this.”

Mr. Lee saw the white envelope being held out to him, he aggressively took the envelope and opened it up quickly reading the contents before tearing the paper up and throwing it. 

“FIND HIM! AND HIS RAT OF A BROTHER!” Mr. Lee screamed.

His assistant bowed and quickly ran out, on a mission to find Heeseung and Beomgyu.

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

“Why did you have to bring him here?” Gyuri groaned as she saw Beomgyu looking around, messing around with some of the trinkets in the shop.

“Hey, I’m not so excited about this either. I had no idea this dude had even been coming here,” Beomgyu defended. 

“Stop touching things,” Gyuri slapped his hand away.

“Make me,” Beomgyu teased out, sticking his tongue out at her.

“Enough, you said you were going to behave,” Heeseung pulled Beomgyu back, handing him a blanket and pillow. “There’s a room upstairs, go make your bed.”

“Wait, you want me to make my bed?” Beomgyu’s eyes got wide. “I don’t know how to make a bed.”

“Oh my god,” Gyuri rolled her eyes, turning around towards Jay who face palmed.

Kai laughed, quickly taking the blanket from Beomgyu and nodding for Beomgyu to follow her. Kai and beomgyu had only really seen each other, not really interacting as much in the past. She led him upstairs to his room as he followed her with his things. Heeseung wasn’t too pleased but he followed and watched them and she began to help him make the bed. 

“Kai, don’t spoil him, he needs to learn,” Heeseung folded his arms across his chest. 

She just shrugged and finished helping him. 

“I like her, she’s nice!” Beomgyu said and Kai laughed. 

“Yeah, too nice,” Heeseung said and she got on her tip toes and kissed his cheek, rubbing his chest before walking out of the room leaving the two brothers alone. 

“Wait, what? Is…is that why you did all this? Bro, you fell in love?” Beomgyu’s eyes got wide. 

“Is that such a shock?” Heeseung asked.

“Uhm, yes! Yes it is! How? When did this happen?” Beomgyu asked.

“Actually…I sort of have you to thank, really,” Heeseung scratched the back on his neck.

“Me?” Beomgyu gasped. 

“When you sent me here to annoyingly do your thing,” Heeseung said. “That’s when I met Kai.”

“And then you came home and punched me in the face,” Bomegyu rolled his eyes. “That hurt, you know?”

“I’m sorry about that, okay? As frustrating as you are, if it weren’t for you I wouldn’t have woken up from that nightmare,” Heeseung said. 

“Ah, glad you finally realized how bad the dark side really was,” Beomgyu said. 

“He really was such a horrible father,” Heeseung said. 

“Been praying for his heart attack every single day, hey, you know what? This might actually set him off, should I thank you now or when the announcement happens?” Beomgyu jokes.

“You’re horrible…now’s a good time though,” Heeseung teased back.

Beomgyu and Heeseung started laughing, both of them finally feeling like they could be themselves for once. Beomgyu finally felt like he was making progress, he had hoped that the relationship with his brother could be mended now that their father was out of the picture. Starting over felt hard, but he was willing to do it if it meant being away from it all and being able to have a real brother. He always felt like this place was special, and he knew he had a lot of healing to do. He was going to try.

[middleearthpixie]

Lockdown

A/N: A Guy of Gisborne/John Porter Crossover, part 4 

The police code here is one I found for my home state and while the first fifty ten-codes are generally used in all 50 states, they can still vary. I may have also taken a bit of license with what the procedure would be in the instance of a school shooting. 

10-20 - advise to location 

Summary:You and John Porter have broken up, but when tragedy hits a little close to home, you’re both rethinking your priorities

Characters: John Porter, Guy Gisborne, Reader, numerous eight graders 

Warnings: Some tension, hints of gun violence in a school setting

Rating: T

Word Count: 3,889

***

You sighed as you tapped your pen against the blank notebook page on the table in front of you. You were between classes, listening to the din coming from the hallways that was sixth, seventh, and eighth graders all changing classes. 

A yawn worked its way to your lips. You hadn’t been sleeping well and hadn’t been for weeks, now. Not since the night you and John broke up. You tried not to think about it. Tried not to think about him. But that was, of course, easier said than done. You’d met on a blind date set up by mutual friends who were a couple and so thought everyone should be paired off. Unlike most blind dates, this one ended on the highest of notes and in a blaze of sinful passion that was the start of one of the most wonderful relationships you’d ever had. 

Maybe you should have seen the end coming, but you didn’t. After all, he seemed so absolutely supportive of your decision to go back to school and get your Master’s in American History so you could maybe teach at the high school level as well. But then as your workload piled up and your free time shrank until it almost disappeared, it took its toll on both of you. You began fighting over the stupidest things, until finally, in a moment of utter frustration, you told him, “Look, we want different things I guess. Maybe we should just take a step back for now.”

“Okay, tell you what. When you decide I’m as important as—” He held up the book you had to finish; All That She Carried, the Journey of Ashley’s Sack, a Black Family Keepsake—“this, give me a call.”

“John, you were the one who told me what a great idea you thought this was, that you’d understand if things got crazy. Well guess what? They got crazy.”

To which he said, “Sounds good. Call me when you’ve decided you’ve got time for me again.”

With that parting shot, he stormed out of your apartment. It was the last time you saw or talked to him and that was almost six weeks ago. He’d left a couple of terse voicemails but you couldn’t bring yourself to call him back. You tried not to think about what he was doing. Angel told you over coffee a week ago that he’d started seeing someone else and both she and her fiancé, Guy hated this new woman. She and Guy were planning their wedding and trying, she’d confessed, to find a way to keep John’s new girlfriend from coming to it. That conversation left you dead inside. You were Angel’s maid of honor. You would have no choice but to see John with your replacement and the thought alone made you want to throw up. 

The bell rang and your students filed in, laughing, chatting, texting without looking up from their phones or bumping into anything—which amazed you as much as it horrified you—and as they took their seats, you stood. “Good morning! Phones away, we’ve got a lot to cover this morning, beginning with your paper topics. Have you all decided what you’re writing about?”

The voices rose as one loud buzz and you smiled. “Okay. Let me try that again. Who here does not have a topic yet?”

With that, the buzzing dulled and three hands went into the air. You smiled. “Okay. Lisa, Deja, and Tyler. Good. The rest of you, take a look the questions I’ve written on the board and start answering them. Lisa, why don’t you come up and we can talk about what you might want to do. Deja, next, and then Tyler.”

The others grumbled, and two of the girls took out their phones instead, to which you said, “Elena, Donna—up here with the phones and into the basket they go.”

“Are you serious?”

“I’m dead serious, Donna. Let’s go.” You moved the wire basket that sat on the opposite corner of your desk to the other side of your desk. “You know the rules.”

They muttered under their breath, but each girl came up to drop her phone in the basket. “Anyone else think they might need to prevent themselves from becoming distracted?”

No one else moved and all phones went away. 

“Good. Now, get to work. Lisa, come on up and—”

The PA system crackled to life to interrupt you. “Good afternoon, students and staff. Brunswick High School is currently in a lockdown. Please lock all doors, shut off all lights, close all blinds, and move to the corner farthest from any doors and windows. Remain silent and mute or turn off all cell phones. This is not a drill. Again, Brunswick Hills High School is currently in a lockdown. Please lock all doors, close all blinds, and move to the corner farthest from any doors and windows. Remain silent and mute or turn off all cell phones. I repeat, this is not a drill.”  

You stood up. “You heard Principal Bailey. Phones off. Back corner, guys. And be quiet.” 

They stood almost as a unit and moved to the far corner of the room, where a low metal bookshelf stood just beneath the windows overlooking the courtyard. You skirted your desk to the door at the back of the room, pulled the shade, and then locked it, then flipped the lights off before moving to the door at the front of the room to lock it and pulled down that shade as well. Then, one by one, each window shade came down and the room sank into darkness.

It wasn’t a drill, but it also wasn't the first real lockdown you’d ever been through. Last year, there were two that wound up being nothing, so you weren’t really all that frightened. Your heart sped up a little, but you paid little attention to it as you moved over to where your students sat.

But then you heard it. 

Pop!

Pop!

Pop!

The noises were faint, but enough to make you jump and none of you needed to be told what you heard. And your heart sped up as you looked at the thirteen and fourteen year old faces in the corner. They knew it as well. 

“Keep quiet,” you whispered, putting a forefinger to your lips. “I’m sure the police are on the way, if they aren’t already here, and—”

“That sounds awful close,” Deja whispered.

More popping sounds. Louder this time. 

You looked around your room. You were on the second floor. The courtyard could only be accessed by way of the first floor, there was no exterior way into it. There were two cabinets that could hold two, maybe three of your kids each. That left fourteen students that would be sitting ducks. 

The commotion in the hallway grew louder. Boots sounded. Voices rose. The popping grew louder. Lisa let out a squeak, and Tyler clapped his hand over her mouth to quiet her. 

“It’s okay, guys,” you said, your voice far calmer than you actually felt. But you couldn't let them see you were scared as well. If you were outwardly calm, they would remain calm as well, and that was important. You knew the drill. You were ready. 

Of course, being ready didn't mean you weren’t scared as all fuck, because in truth? Your hands would be shaking like crazy if they weren’t balled against your thighs. You had to at least appear calm to keep them from panicking. You looked at those scared faces around you, some of whom had pulled their phones out and were texting like mad now, and you were supposed to confiscate the devices, but you couldn’t bring yourself to do it. Stories of previous school shootings flashed through your mind. Columbine. Sandy Hook. Parkland. Some of those texts were the last words their parents would ever hear. 

A shadow passed the back door. Your heart stopped beating as the door handle rattled. And rattled again. 

A hand caught yours. You looked over. Tyler. He was such a sweet kid. He was new to the school and hadn’t quite figured out where he fit in just yet, but the others in class liked him and little by little, he was beginning to bloom.

You put a finger to your lips. He nodded. 

The shadow moved.

To the front door. 

You’d never heard a gunshot up close. It rang out and deafened you for a moment as glass sprayed inwards. A hand came through the hole that used to be a window. 

“Stay down.” You whispered this as you got up. Your heart hammered your ribs hard enough that black dots actually danced before your eyes. You’d never been so terrified in your life, and would have thought you’d freeze in this moment.

But you didn't freeze. You looked over your shoulder at the kids who were instead frozen in place, phones forgotten even as text bubbles popped up on screen after screen. 

“If something happens, do whatever you can to protect yourselves,” you whispered. “The police are coming.”

The hand caught the lock and turned it and you stood there, just waiting, barely breathing. Barely hearing anything over the rush of your own blood through your veins, through your temples. You heart raced. Your mouth was beyond dry. 

You waited.

John’s blood roared through his ears as he and Guy pulled up to John F. Kennedy Middle School. SWAT was already there. Paramedics and ambulances were also already there, just in case. He and Guy really didn't need to be, but as soon as he heard the alert go out, all he could think about was getting to the school. 

About getting to you.

“Shit,” he muttered at the sheer number of responders. Police. Ambulances. All with their flashers going but without any accompanying sirens. This was his first time responding to an active shooter in a school situation and that it was your school… 

He wanted to vomit. 

“Come on,” Guy tugged the keys from the ignition and thrust open his door, “let’s at least see if we can get a status update.”

“I should have called her last night. I wanted to,” John said as he climbed out of the car. “And I can’t explain why, because she’s made it clear to me she doesn’t want to talk to me. But I just had the urge to call her.”

“She knows about Stephanie.” Guy slammed the driver’s side door shut. “Angel told her.”

“Knows what? There’s nothing to know. It’s not like she’s my girlfriend.” At Guy’s long look, John shook his head. “She’s not. I’ve done nothing with her.”

“Really? Not even a kiss?”

John almost smiled at the disbelief in Guy’s voice. “Not even a kiss. It’s just not there for me. I’m not the least bit interested in kissing her or anyone else.” John moved around to the trunk and popped it, then bent over to fish out the kevlar vests with the reflective letters BHPD and Police on them. “Here.”

Guy took his and eased it over his head. “Then fucking call your teacher already, will you? You’re miserable. She’s miserable. And Angel’s pissed at both of you, which means I’m always running the risk of being miserable as well.”

John adjusted the Velcro on his vest. “Guy, I just told you—she doesn’t want to talk to me. I’ve called her about half a dozen times since we broke up and have gotten only radio silence.”

The radio on his hip crackled. “We have the suspect pinned down. Second floor classroom. Two hundreds. He’s got a teacher and about fifteen kids trapped in a classroom. Over.”

Another voice came over. “Ten-twenty. Over.” 

“Room two-twelve. Over.”

Guy lifted his radio. “Unit Fifty-Seven reporting. We just arrived on scene. Status? Over.”

“Unit Fifty-Seven, stand by at this time. Repeat, Unit Fifty-Seven, stand by. We have officers in place. Over.”

“Copy.” Guy lowered the radio. “You okay?”

“No, I’m not fine. I want to storm in there and take this guy out and that I can’t is killing me, man. I have to trust these guys—” he gestured to all of the uniforms around them—“and that’s the last thing I’m really able to do right now. And what about you? You okay? I mean, Angel teaches here, too, doesn’t she?”

“Yeah. But she took a personal day. Wedding stuff. So, right now, she is at any given mall in the state trying to find whatever it was she was trying to find and don’t ask me what because I have no idea.”

John couldn't ignore the way his gut bubbled. “Do you know if she’s doing this wedding stuff alone? Maybe she needed her maid of honor with her?”

Guy just gave him a look. “She’s here, John. Sorry, man. Angel is solo on this one.”

“Shit.” He peered over the top of their car at the officers swarming into the building. School shootings were something he simply was not used to, would never get used to, and he’d be lying if he said otherwise and it took every bit of will he had to remain where he was, because in reality, all he wanted was to get to you.

The gunshots rang out and both he and Guy spun towards the building’s north wing. Their radios went wild at that moment, with officers shouting over the pop!pop! of gunfire and then everything went horribly silent. 

“Officer requesting medical assistance to room two-twelve,” a voice crackled. “Gunman breached the classroom door and just began firing. Over.”

“Copy that. How many victims? Over.”

“Two, but injuries do not appear life threatening. Repeat, injuries do not appear life threatening.”

“And the suspect?”

“Killed at the scene.”

With that, the first responders flooded the building and John was right behind them. He had to see you, and to make sure you were okay. That was all that mattered. 

Everywhere, uniforms swarmed, escorting kids and adults out of classroom after classroom in a relatively orderly fashion. They were all oddly silent, at first, but once they were outside the building, and they caught sight of their parents or other family members, they bolted. Students hugged students Teachers hugged groups of students. Teachers hugged one another. By now, civilians cars—parents, no doubt—lined Maple Street and as kids ran out, parents swept in. Reunions were tearful, with other officers trying to keep parents from going into the building itself.

He took a step toward the building and Guy’s hand met the middle of his chest. “Porter, wait here.”

“No, I’m going in.”

“You’re not. You know the drill. We aren’t needed and we wait right here.” 

“But—”

“Right here, John.”

He glared at Guy. “Would you be waiting if it was Angel in there? Because you know you wouldn’t.”

“No,” Guy shook his head, “I wouldn’t. But you’d make damn sure I did and you know it. Now, I know it sucks, but we wait. Right here.”

John knocked Guy’s hand from his chest and stepped back. Guy was right and John knew it, but that did nothing to calm his nerves at all. He couldn't stand still. He paced. Along the sidewalk to the end and then back, where he said,“Any word?”

Guy could only shake his head. “Not yet. But, they haven’t called for any more medical assistance. Just for the two and those were non-life threatening injuries, so she’s probably fine.”

John didn't reply. The words stuck in his throat. All he could think about was the last conversation the two of you had. He was pissed off because you were supposed to go to dinner and you canceled because your reading for school was piling up and you had to get caught up. He’d acted like a spoiled git because you needed to catch up on things. And why did you need to do so?

Because he demanded you put him first. 

“Okay, tell you what. When you decide I’m as important as—” He held up the book you had to finish; All That She Carried, the Journey of Ashley’s Sack, a Black Family Keepsake—“this, give me a call.”

“John, you were the one who told me what a great idea you thought this was, that you’d understand if things got crazy. Well guess what? They got crazy.”

He sighed now. “I should’ve never walked out. I should have stayed there and insisted we work it out. Fuck.”

“What?”

He looked over at Guy. “We broke up because I was jealous. She was going back to school and all of the sudden didn't have any time for me—at least as I saw it. And I got mad. Told her to get her priorities straight, meaning put me first. She rightfully told me to fuck off and here we are and Christ, now here we are and I don’t know if she’s one of the injured and I’m just supposed to sit here and wait?”

“Yeah, John,” Guy replied softly, “that’s exactly what you’re supposed to do…”

Your hands shook and Tyler tightened his about one of yours as he said, “We made it. We’re okay. It’s over.”

You couldn’t speak. Your throat seized up as you looked first at the hand wrapped about yours, and then at the kids still in the classroom. Lisa. Deja. Donna. Tyler. Suriya. Elena. Nicole. Cameron. Dante. Gil. Samantha. Cody. Jaxon. Mackenzie. They were all there, alive and well and in one piece physically. They all looked shaken up, pale and so very young. But you managed to smile. “Text your parents,” you said softly. “Tell them you’re all okay.”

“Are you all all right?” An officer came into the room. “Is anyone injured?”

“No,” you told him, shaking your head, tightened your hands into fists again to hold the shaking at bay. “We are all fine.”

“Okay. McMichaels,” he looked over his left shoulder, “escort them out to the main parking lot.”

“Got it.” A second uniform came into the room and you tried not to pay much attention to how they just stepped around the prone figure on the floor. Tried not to pay much attention to the blood pool that slowly widened under him. 

The gunman still lay on the floor, half in the classroom, half in the hallway. A small hole in the first window was the only evidence that a sharpshooter from across the courtyard had impressive aim.

“Come with me, guys,” you told them softly, catching Tyler’s hand to help him to his feet. “Don’t look at him. Just look straight ahead, okay? Go on. I’ll be right behind you.”

They followed McMichaels, and you followed them and you tried to ignore the controlled chaos around you of paramedics and stretchers, of shattered glass, expended shell casings, and the lingering acrid scent you assumed was from the gunfire. 

“Right this way.” McMichaels led you down the main staircase and past the main office, out into a deceptively sunny, beautiful November afternoon.

As you stepped outside, you saw John and your heart stopped. You’d never been so happy, so relieved to see someone. He was pacing like a caged tiger, but then he stopped and spun about and as his steel-blue eyes met yours, he made a beeline for you.

“Thank Christ,” he growled as he swept you into his arms, crushing you close, one hand buried in your hair, his other arm so tight about you, you could barely breathe. “You’re all right, love? Tell me you’re all right.”

“I’m fine. My kids are fine and I’m fine,” you managed to grit before your throat tightened and your eyes overflowed. Without thinking, you wrapped your arms about his neck and clung to him, breathing in the sinful scent he always carried—sandalwood, eucalyptus, cinnamon.

“I’m sorry, baby,” he whispered back, squeezing you until you thought he might actually squash you. He lifted you off your feet briefly. “I’m so fucking sorry…”

“I’m okay,” you told him, sniffling as he set you down and you stepped back. “You didn't need to come—”

“Yeah, I did. As soon as the call came over, we were on our way.” He cupped your face in his hands, his thumbs moving slightly along your cheeks in the soft caress that you loved so much. You just gazed up at him, at that handsome, angular face, into those pale blue eyes. He had a way of making you feel so tiny and delicate. Maybe it was his size—he was nearly six-foot-three and all broad shoulders and wide chest. Maybe it was that he was former military and just exuded that confidence about him. You didn’t know and you didn't care. All you knew was you’d missed him. 

“Can we talk?” he murmured. “I mean, once you’re cleared to leave?”

“Do we have anything to talk about?”

“I hope so. I’ve missed you.”

“Really.” You tried not to lose yourself in his beautiful blue eyes. “What about Stephanie?”

“She was a mistake. And will probably be very glad to never hear from me again because she knew my mind was on you the entire time.”

“Bullshit.”

“Ask Guy. I’ve been miserable. I don’t like sleeping alone any more. But, trouble is, the only woman I want to sleep with is you.”

Your heart skipped a beat at that. “John—”

“I was an asshole, love,” he broke in softly. “And I do hope you’ll give me another chance. I promise you, I will make it up to you.”

“John, I—” You sighed softly. “No, you weren’t an asshole. At least, not entirely. I was, too, and I’m sorry. I expected you to just sit and wait until I had time and that’s not fair to you, either.”

“So, why don’t we start over?” He leaned in to brush your lips with his. “Want to grab dinner or something tonight?”

You smiled. “I’d like that, yes.”

“Good.” He swept a light kiss against your lips once more, then as he straightened up, he said, “Come on, let’s get you away from here.”

“Please,” you said, shaking as your adrenaline finally slowed up and a sudden wave of utter exhaustion slammed over you, “I just really want to go home now. Go home and have a strong drink.”

“Are you okay? Do you need one of the medics?”

“I’m fine. Just shaken up. He never got into our room. He got the door opened and then a bullet came out of nowhere and—” The image flashed through your mind and you shuddered involuntarily, your gaze sweeping across the school lawns. You saw a few of your students still there, and your throat squeezed shut once more. “Thank God none of my kids was hurt.”

“From the looks of it, the injuries were all minor. You were all lucky.”

You nodded slowly. “I know, but still…”

“Come on.” He slid an arm about your shoulders and guided you away from the building, whose entrance was being cordoned off with crime scene tape. You had no idea how long it would be closed for, and you really didn't care at the moment. You just wanted to go home.

With John. 

***

Tag List: @tschrist1 @i-did-not-mean-to @lathalea @linasofia @fizzyxcustard @legolasbadass @kibleedibleedoo @xxbyimm @arrthurpendragon @exhausted-humxn-being @rachel1959 @laurfilijames @sketch-and-write-lover @sherala007 @enchantzz @knitastically @notlostgnome @myselfandfantasy @medusas-hairband @guardianofrivendell @jotink78

[podgle]

Tag game

I got tagged by the lovely @einsesk, so here we go :)  1) Describe one creative WIP project you’re planning to work on over the summer.

Ak, I’d like to work on literally anything. I’ve had writer’s block for a really long time now, and have trouble coming up with ideas let alone putting anything on paper. I’m going to go back to my last NaNoWriMo novel, and work with something that already has a structure. I’ve ordered my project-specific pen for it, so I’m feeling motivated :) 

2) Rec a book:

Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson. I had just come off reading The Expanse series and was looking for some more sci-fi, because I was chasing a Mass Effect-alike. I think I saw it recommended on Reddit. It’s hard sci-fi with a lot of technical detail about Mars and how humans would get there and survive there, crossed with a murder mystery. Lots of fascinating characters and psychology at play, I very much enjoyed it. I’m working my way very slowly through the sequel at the moment. 

3) Rec a fic:

Future Souls, by Original Alcy (Mass Effect fanfic). It’s a really fantastic examination of Miranda’s character, what makes her tick, and her relationship with Shepard. I also really like reading their interpretation of Ashley. Much more nuanced than a lot of the takes I see on her. It’s so well written, really well-crafted. I’m not great at longer pieces myself, and the way Original Alcy weaves in all the themes and plot points really impresses me. 

4) Rec music: 

It’d be remiss of me not to mention Odesza for this question. My wife introduced me to their song A Moment Apart a couple of years ago, which I really really like. A few weeks ago, I was looking for a way to spend an evening, and found that the local cinema was showing Odesza’s The Last Goodbye film, which includes footage from their live shows on their final tour. Figured I’d take a punt at it because I’ve done a cinema-based gig before (Muse) and really enjoyed it, and this might be fun. Well, reader, it was tremendous and I had a great time. I have a much greater appreciation of their whole catalogue. 

5) Share one piece of advice.

When you need to proofread something important, read it backwards word-for-word. When you read it forwards, your brain reads for sentence structure and tends to skim the spelling mistakes. Reading it backwards removes the context and you’ll notice those pesky typos more easily. 

[inosukebakugo]

bakutodo ryokan trip fic - Warm During Winter

So I need y'alls help because I've written 6 more chapters and a smut scene and I'm trying not to just dump it on AO3.

Class 1-A decides to plan their own trip over winter break and they go to a ryokan for some R&R. This is a slow burn (for me) and mostly pining and fluff tbh the fucking got cut okay but I'm obsessed with Todoroki having an attitude. Put under the cut because the first chapter alone is 1.7k

As the snow started to fall and bring the first feeling of winter with it, class 1-A were all congregated together in their common room. Across the large coffee table were pamphlets, papers, and two laptops with Momo and Denki sitting on the floor to compare screens. Bakugou sat on the end of the farthest sofa and kept reading his book. He wasn’t even sure if he was going with them yet. Someone had suggested they plan their own trip over winter break and the entire class had run with the idea. At least if it wasn’t a school sanctioned event, the likelihood of being attacked by villains went way down. They were just a class of kids on a trip together at that point.

The whole group chattered away, full of ideas of where to go and what to do. They could travel anywhere by train so all of Japan was open to them. Every one had their own ideas. Yaoyorozu wanted to leave the country entirely to go skiing but that was quickly thrown out as not everyone had a passport. Kirishima suggested some kind of death hike up Mount Fuji but the only person crazy enough to go with him was Uraraka and that was… Scary.  More and more crazy ideas came spouting out of the group until a certain blond lost his temper with their arguing.

“Would you all just pick something and shut the fuck up?” Katsuki yelled from his end of the living room. “Just go do something normal, like an onsen or whatever.”

“That’s a great idea Bakugou,” the first voice to speak was a surprise to everyone except the two of them. Todoroki had spent many evenings asking annoying questions while they were on their way back from remedial classes. Somewhere along the line, at least Shoto considered them to be friends. After all, Bakugou had learned some pretty tough truths about his past too on those nights. “Maybe a ryokan would be good so we could stay there too.”

“See now there’s an idea,” Bakugou scoffed. “Get all of you out of my hair for a week.”

“Are you not going to come with us Kacchan?” Midoriya asked, turning the whole class on him.

“No, and I’m leaving before you extras annoy me too much,” The blond just stomped away from the group and back to his room.

“Well he’s no fun,” Mina huffed as she sat back on the couch. “But he did have a good idea.”

“A ryokan it is!” Kaminari announced happily as he began a new search. “But I’m not going to be the one getting punched in the face to convince Bakugou to come with us. Kirishima?”

“Nope, me neither bro,” The redhead hardened up to back up his point. “I’m not going up there.”

“Well we’re booking it tonight so I need to know if he’s coming or not,” Kaminari complained while everyone else was looking around to see who would be the one to go after the explosive boy.

“I’ll do it,” Todoroki sighed and got up. “You guys really shouldn’t be that scared of him. There’s no way he’d blow up the place where he lives.”

“See you’d think that,” Izuku laughed uncomfortably. “But he’s done it before. I don’t think I ever saw his mom that mad.”

“Hmmm,” Shoto contemplated. “I’ll have to ask him about that sometime.”

“Please don’t!” Midoriya was almost begging. “He’ll know I told you.”

Todoroki just hummed again before leaving the room and punching the elevator call button. He waited patiently and listened. Before long his friends were going back to their conversation about where to stay. Frankly, Shoto couldn’t care less exactly where they end up. He just wants all his friends to have a good time and a week in a hot spring town is exactly what they all need. Bakugou included whether he agrees or not. While he never met the woman, the stories that the blond tells of his mother sound an awful lot like him. Exactly like him, in fact. The look on Izuku’s face when he mentioned her definitely confirms the theory. The elevator doors opened and instead of the 5, he pressed the 4th floor. It wasn’t long until he was knocking on Bakugou’s door.

“What?!” Katsuki snarled as he opened the door but he backed off once he saw who it was. “I’m glad they had the sense to send you; but I’m still not coming with on your nerd trip.”

“Why not?” Todoroki asked and walked into his room when Bakugou stepped aside. He did his best to ignore the light feeling in his chest at the blond’s words but he didn’t do a very good job. “It’ll be fun and relaxing I promise. What could you have to do that’s better than spending a week in an onsen?”

“First of all,” Bakugou even held up a finger to emphasize his points. “It will not be relaxing because the rest of the idiots will be there causing trouble. Second, I was going to take advantage of the empty training rooms while you’re all gone.”

“So you’re going to work yourself to death,” Todoroki’s face would’ve looked neutral to anyone else but Bakugou could see the attitude in it. All disappointment and challenge. “Healing your body is important.”

“Yes and I can do that without being naked around all of you,” Katsuki argued back. “Amazing, isn’t it.”

“Would you go if it was just you and me?” Shoto challenged him again. Maybe the harsh attitude the blond kept up was rubbing off on him. If anything, it was only the fact that he felt comfortable enough with Bakugou to be genuinely curious.

“Yeah because you know how to be quiet sometimes Icy Hot,” Katsuki scoffed but there was also a hint of truth to his response. He would if it were just the two of them, if he could try and see if the fire and ice user felt the same way about him. Hell, maybe Katsuki could make him if he swept him off his feet… But he was also painfully aware of how uncertain he was of Todoroki’s feelings for him. It was a fine line he was dancing and Bakugou hadn’t dared toe it yet. “Listen hot springs sound nice but I don’t know if I can tolerate those idiots every day of my vacation.”

“I have a solution,” Shoto was straightforward as always. “I will make sure one of us gets a room with a private bath.”

“What, so I can be holed up in the room all day?” Katsuki snorted but he was cut off before he could continue,

“Well no,” Shoto didn’t usually bowl people over in a conversation but he learned quickly that it was the only way he could get a word in with his friend. “You could hang out with me and then we could go do stuff with everyone later in the day. It’s the best of both.”

“You really want to hang out with me, huh?” Bakugou hid his blush behind a cocky smile. He looked over at the one person he would willingly call a friend and thought the situation through. The chances of fucking up, of really and irrepairably fucking up his friendship with Todoroki were high. What if at the end of it all, Shoto just didn’t feel the same way? The little nagging voice that sounded just like his mom came from the back of his head, asking what would happen if Shoto did return his feelings. Before he could speak again, Todoroki did instead,

“I always want to hang out with you,” Shoto said bluntly, making Katsuki’s heart beat just a little bit faster. “And I know you’ll have fun if you come with us, even if you’ll pretend to complain the whole time.”

“Only one correction,” Bakugou sighed, knowing he was defeated in the face of a determined Shoto Todoroki. “I’ll have fun if I go with you.”

“I’ll tell the others you’re coming,” Shoto gave him a rare smile. It was wide and warm and all for Katsuki. The blond wanted to melt where he stood but his legs stood firm under him. “Are you going to come back down or are you going to bed?”

“I’m going to bed so watch how loud you are when you come back upstairs,” Katsuki tried to hold onto his usual attitude but for once it wasn’t hitting quite right. The ease of how Todoroki had asked him what he was doing had shocked him and he did his best to stop his whole face turning red. “If you wake me up, I’ll come up there and kill you myself.”

“Sure,” Todoroki had the audacity to roll his eyes before turning to leave and despite how bad Bakugou wanted to keep him, he was allowed to leave. Even when he continued to taunt Bakugou. “So scary.”

The insult Todoroki was waiting for as the door closed never came. He was surprised but not enough to go back, he’d annoyed Bakugou into coming on the trip with them and he wasn’t about to risk it. While Shoto was on his way downstairs, Katsuki was practically beating himself up on his bed. He was basically getting everything he wanted and more but he still had to act like a damn fool. He sounded like an idiot. He was an idiot. Shoto definitely thought he was an idiot. Still, he offered to get a fancy room for them just so Bakugou wouldn’t have to be around the extras all the time. He was thinking about Bakugou at least, that was something. As he stared up at the ceiling, he silently decided that he would try to woo Shoto on the trip but if he was rejected, that was it. He’d let it go. A part of him wanted to call his mom but he didn’t know if he could handle her teasing about having a crush right now. Instead of doing anything at all, Bakugou decided to at least do as he’d said he would. Quietly he got ready for bed and when he went to lay down, Katsuki found a certain scarred face behind his eyelids.

[umilily]

I AM OFFICIALLY DONE WITH SCHOOL I am FREE hi it's shoe :]

I saw your himeru nui!! Darling little thing...i also saw your big merch bundle!! I ordered a big bundle of merch a few weeks ago and it should be here by September! Mostly due to me having to buy from a overseas seller bc I got CN merch and all but I'm very excited nevertheless!

Anywhooo how are you? How are things lately? And do you have any writing ideas and prompts as of lately? I've been thinking about getting back into writing since I'm free now hehe

- shoe

Hey shoe :)

Congrats on being done! So was this your last year/semester in general or are you on holiday now?

Ah, yesss… he’s finally home <3 i was honestly surprised that the shipping worked so flawlessly. Usually my mail gets trapped in customs for at least a week, but i guess the people at the office were extra motivated and checked everything in just a day. What merch did you get? I never ordered anything from CN, but i can imagine the process must be complicated. I hope September and your package arrives quickly :) imo, waiting for mail is always both the most exciting and excruciating thing lmao

I am currently fighting with my dorm management to get the wifi fixed before the weekend. It’s a struggle. I got a bunch of lab reports to write until the end of next week and really need to get some work done over the weekend, so i hope they’ll take care of the issue today. Some more exams… the usual pretty much… counting down the days to my last exam and thus freedom…

As for writing, i have more than enough WIPs (what else is new), but mainly I am currently working on the next fic for the butler AU. Actually I have been doing so on and off since February, but I either had too much work or writers block, so it took ages. I’d say I’m about 75% there and I’ll be so glad once I’m done with this. I don’t even know anymore whether i like the fic or not, but I’ve put way too much work into it not to finish it, so I’m powering through. Other than that, i do want to write something for Kaname’s/oremeru‘s birthday. The fic was originally meant to be for tojou week back in may, but i was so busy during that time that i decided to just postpone it. Hopefully I’ll manage to finish it until the 7th. If not… oh well…

If you do get back into writing and feel comfortable to share, I’d love to read it! I could really use reading something other than scientific papers for a change lol

Anyways, hope you’re doing well, shoe, and enjoy your time off! It wasps nice to hear from you, take care! <3

[ofbluesandyellows]

Five: Jitterbug Love - Eddie Munson/Reader

Word count: 3,982

Previous chapter

“Are you fucking kidding me?” You had just entered Family Video. Monday wasn’t a busy day usually but it was summer so it meant that everyday two of the three musketeers were somewhat occupied, but this was not why you were swearing to the air.

It was Dustin Henderson waving at you from the desk, Steve grimaced when he saw your face, this plan was going to blow in your face, you were sure.

“This was Robin’s secret weapon?”

“Don’t scold me, told you it wasn’t my plan. And you were the one who agreed to it, so just roll with it babe.” Steve rolled his eyes and kept on checking the inventory.

“Stop being so dramatic, I’m here just to help with your little problem y/n. Trust me I know Eddie better than any of you. So don’t be assholes, I know how to proceed.”

“Then give me a plan Dustin.”

“I will, please let’s go to my office.” You followed the teen to the back office.

Last thing you heard was Steve say: “don’t touch anything Henderson, Keith will kill me.”

Dustin cared two fucks of course, he sat on the main chair, put a white sheet of paper on the desk and made a hand gesture for you to sit opposite him.

“Keith knows I use his office from time to time, but he likes to treat Steve like shit just for fun… anyway, let’s talk business.”

“Yeah whatever, is this gonna cost me? Because it wasn’t my idea in the first place.” You argued.

Dustin rested his back on the chair, looking at you as if this was an actual life or death matter, “I won’t charge you because you are friend of my friends but when we get to New York to visit you—which we will—you’ll have to take me to Forbidden Planet, not asking for you to pay for anything other than the commute and maybe a couple of comic books. Deal?”

You weren’t sure they would make it to New York but you hoped they did, these kids were cool and intimidating. With a cocked eyebrow you offered your hand, Dustin took it. “You got yourself a deal.”

“Great, now… Robin told me about you liking Eddie, which is pretty weird because it’s been what? a bit more than a week?”

“I’m regretting this already,” you banged your head on the desk.

“It’s fine, I’ve done stupid stuff too, like once I liked Max. See? Pretty stupid of me, but that’s another story.” clasping his hands together, he leaned on the desk, your eyes found his, “Eddie is one of my best friends, he is really cool and I know he doesn’t fall for girls that easily, yes he jokes about it but he has only been really in love twice, and one of those times he was left heartbroken,”

“Why are you telling me this?” furrowed eyebrow, Dustin only blinked, dead serious.

“Because I want you to tell me if what you think you feel for him is real and not just some ‘love is in the air-summer' kind of shit. He is not like any other guy I’ve met, he is sweet and he cares for others and he is funny and unique…”

“To me that sounds like you are in love with him.” But it made you smile, because yes Eddie was all that, no proof needed you just knew.

“Right, maybe I am. In a way, that’s why we are friends aren’t we?”

“I understand where you’re coming from Dustin, and I don’t know him that much to know everything about him but I’d like to, if you talk to Robin you’d know that I do not fall for any guy just because he has nice hair and sparkly eyes or because he plays guitar and is afraid to ask the girl he likes out because he thinks he is not enough.”

This caught Dustin off guard, his eyes widened, “hmm, so you kind of know him, I see.”

You shrugged, “I’m a good listener,”

“Fine, let me ask you a couple of questions,” you nodded, “what are your thoughts on D&D?”

“I don’t know… never played so it’s whatever.”

“Ok, I’ll accept that, what about metal? Do you like metal music?”

“Not my jam but I can listen to a couple of bands,” this felt like having a job interview but ten times worse, Dustin only checked boxes as his questions kept on coming.

“Final and most important question… would you let, me—Dustin Henderson—hang out with you and said boy from time to time? Yes, no and why?”

“Is that a joke?” he was serious, “oh, well I guess so, I don’t know Dustin why is that relevant? As far as I know—said boy—has zero clue I like him so, yes, no, do whatever you want. Is that enough for you?”

“Hmm… and she has an attitude.” Dustin nodded, scribbling something down, “We’re done here, I’ll see you on friday.”

He made another hand gesture to let you know you could leave, and you did, your expression must have been quite the picture, because Robin and Steve looked at one another, with guilty faces.

“Was it that bad?” she asked you.

“It was pure nonsense, I don’t even know how that is going to help.”

Steve passed you a bottle of water, “the kid is insane but he has good intentions, we can expect something great.”  

“I hope so or else you won’t see me again.” You were half joking but Robin seemed genuinely afraid.

Or maybe she was afraid of something else, “holy shit!” she smacked you on the chest, your boob hurt.

“Shit, Robin careful!”

Steve looked up from the pile of tapes he was placing in the kart. “That little shit did it!”

“What the hell are you guys talking—“ you turned on your heels, facing the entrance of the video store, “DUSTIN!!!!!”

As called, the teen came out of the office, grinning. “See you on Saturday y/n.”

He disappeared through the backdoor, that one couple in the store looked at you funny, “What do I do now?”

“Act normal” Steve said, he almost fell over the kart.

“Shut up dingus, look at you, what an embarrassment.” Robin grabbed you from the shoulders, “Show me your teeth,” you did, “ok all in order, hair is fine, tilt your head back,” you did. “Good, your nose is clean, ok er, Steve where is your chew-gum pack.”

“Beside the phone!”

Robin practically jumped off the desk and threw the package your way. You were panicking big time, when the door’s bell chimed you were almost choking on the minty gum.

“Hello Buckley, you look… startled.” Eddie leaned his arms on the desk. Robin replied something you didn’t hear.

Your feet felt so heavy you didn’t move from your spot in the middle of the store, not even when Eddie’s eyes found yours, not even when he grinned and his whole face lit up, not even when he approached and Steve’s hand pushed you towards the boy with long hair. You almost fell on your face. You recovered quickly, granting Eddie a light chuckle.

“Woah, you okay?”

Fuck no!

“Yeah, just a little distracted that’s all. What are you doing here?” From behind Eddie you saw Steve giving you a thumbs up, your hands were sweating so much you had to clean them on your jeans.

“Um, Henderson called me, he wanted a ride. I was at Gareth's, you know, practicing, and now here I am. But I don’t see him, that butthead is not even here isn’t he?” he looked around the store.

“No, I don’t know, haven't seen him.” You cleared your throat.

Robin was making weird hand movements but you didn’t understand, when you turned to face Eddie, he was looking at you with a little smirk forming on his lips.

“What are you doing here?” he asked.

“Oh you know… hanging out with Robin.” You pushed back a bunch of hair that was tickling your neck.

“Really? This place is dead, aren’t you bored?” he crossed his arms, you noticed how he wasn’t wearing a jacket, and his arms showed his tattoos and the muscles of his biceps.

You gulped, “a little, yeah it’s just that there’s not much to do here.”

“Right, right.” He tapped his fingers on his arm, he watched Steve who was pretending to pile tapes and Robin was attending the couple that had grabbed two tapes, she gave the two of you furtive glances. “Wanna head out? We could drive around or something, this is making me want to strangle myself.”

“Sure, yeah that’d be cool. Let me go grab my… stuff.”

You hadn’t brought anything with you, just a couple of bucks already folded far down your jean pocket. Still you walked to the desk, Steve said hi to a girl that walked in and basically ran to you.

“I’m going with Eddie.” you whispered, pretending to look for your stuff.

“He asked you?” you nodded, “you work fast y/n.”

His arm got punched by you, he whined softly, “shut up,”

“What’s happening guys?” Robin got closer, “Where are you going?”

“She’s leaving us for Munson.” Steve snapped.

Robin’s eyes widened, “for real?”

“Yup, I’m just pretending to look for my stuff but I don’t have anything with me.”

“Take this.” Steve handed you a coupon for 2x1 at the new Scoops Ahoy place.

“Really?” you waved the paper on his face.

“What? I still get those when I take Dustin.”

“It’s fine, it could be useful actually, thanks Steve.”

“You're welcome, see it’s not hard to be nice to me.”

“Shh shh he is coming.” Robin said.

Eddie leaned on the desk in front of Steve, “what the hell are you guys hushing about?”

“Nothing,” the three of you said.

“Sure… ready to go?” his dark eyes shone, you nodded with a stupid smile spreading on your face.

“See you guys.” You waved at them, Robin almost jumping on her spot.

“Hey, Munson!”

Dammit Steve.

Eddie looked back at Steve. “Yes?”

“Careful, okay?” his index finger pointing your way.

“I’m always careful, man.” He gave your friend a fake smile and turned to see you. “Let’s get the hell away from here, shall we?”

His van was not smelling like weed, and he looked even better than what you had seen him the night of the party. Was this part of the whole crush thing? you hated it, it was causing palpitation in your chest and anxiety was building up each second.

“What’s his problem?” Eddie asked you as he drove. “Steve’s I mean.”

“Oh, um he is just being Steve, I think he is jealous you and Dustin are like… friends.”

He hummed, “yeah, I mean Dustin talks about him all the time so I should be the one being jealous, but as long as the kid has someone to talk to it’s all right.”

Eddie being the best big brother Dustin could ask for melted your heart.

“For a moment I thought he was jealous of us hanging out.”

“What? No, nooo… he is just jealous that he can’t leave the store, that’s all. But look, he gave me a coupon for Scoops Ahoy. Do you want some ice cream?” Why would he think that, was he implying something other than friendship between you and Steve, that’s not the impression he had of you right? Maybe you were starting to overthink everything.

It was until you glanced at him, the sun was hitting him right on the side of his face, when he looked back at you he seemed to move in slow motion, you saw his lashes and his eyes and his lips and he was smiling at you. You blinked.

“I’m always up for ice cream.”

The new Scoops Ahoy place had a line, kids, parents, couples and teens waiting. You and Eddie were last, but he happily accepted the wait, meanwhile he explained to you the basics of guitar playing, it wasn’t easy to understand when he was playing air guitar but it didn’t matter to you as long as he kept talking and looking at you for approval.

“You didn’t understand a thing of what I just said, right?”

“Listen, before you get all loud with me, I told you I’m shit at it and doing the fret stuff with the finger placement it was as if you were talking to me in Latin, so yeah I did not get any of it.”

He rolled his eyes, “Fine I’m gonna have to teach you with a real guitar.” Eddie nudged you slightly with his arm, his skin was warm and even during the second yours and his brushed, you felt the warmth creeping up your cheeks.

“It won’t work but if you say so.” you said half a shrugging. Casual, yeah you were playing it cool.

“Honey, you don’t know who you’re talking to. You’ll see, with one class you at least will learn a few open chords.”

“We’ll have to see.” You smirked but it wasn’t your average smirk it was the flirty one you didn’t know you had until you saw Eddie’s reaction.

“Oh, so is this a challenge?” he took a step closer to you, he caught up fast, his face got closer to you, eye to eye level arms still crossed, smug smile on.

Your breath hitched, praying he didn’t notice how your heart was racing against your ribs. “Maybe… that depends.”

Not knowing how you managed to speak without wavering you let a small puff of hair escape as Eddie cocked an eyebrow, “let’s make it interesting then, if I get you to play at least three open chords you have to come to all of my shows this summer, no excuse, but” he put his index finger in the air, “if I lose I’d listen to whatever mellow shit you like without complains.”

It didn’t sound that crazy at all, so you nodded, “okay, I like that.”

“Good because you are going to lose.” He straightened his posture, very self-assured looking at you.

“You’re going to be so disappointed when you see how trash I am at it.”

Eddie played with his hair now, you noticed he did that with Chrissy too, that was the first point you put in a special cloud of thought to gossip with your friends later.

“Come on now y/n you can’t beat yourself up like that, you got me now, at least give it a positive approach.”

“I’ve tried long enough to know better.”

“Okay, forget the bet, we are doing it just so I can see you eat your own words, you are going to play guitar.” You were about to argue but he pushed you with his hip, “don’t dare argue with me, let’s go, it’s our turn.”

Pff, you loved to argue, that was established but Eddie didn’t let you say another word, he let you go into the shop first, a guy greeted you with that horrible uniform, making your forget about the conversation you just had, but you smiled thinking how Steve had looked like with those clothes on, for a fact you knew Robin could pull it off, but Steve? You doubted it.

“Ahoy!” the guy said briskly. “What can I get you today?”

“What the hell are these names?” Eddie ignored the guy. “What happened to the simple terms ‘vanilla chocolate chip’ or ‘strawberry cream cone’” He snorted, trying to read the pretty absurd names, “the fuck is Lumberjack and Union Utopia?”

It was impossible to keep a straight face with him, “Just pick one, that old lady over there is making a face.”

“It’s our turn she can wait for hers… look at that one, Blue Moon , it looks radioactive.” The ice cream was a bright blue. It didn't look appealing. “Hey man, do you happen to have chocolate peanut butter?”

“Oh sure, it’s the Don’t Worry be Happy.”

“Christ! Yeah whatever, just put it in a cone, please.” Eddie made a face that had you crying tears of laughter. “And for the joyous lady…”

“Err, do you have something with vanilla?”

“Of course! We have the Unicorn Poop with cookie crumbles and a rainbow sparkle or the Squirrel Mess, that’s vanilla with hazelnut and cherry.”

You and Eddie snorted so loud the poor guy with the silly uniform almost dropped Eddie’s ice cream.

“Such a hard decision you have there, huh?” Eddie said wryly.

“Wow umm I suppose the Unicorn Poop sounds very delightful. One of those in a cup please.”

The guy looked at you both as if you had just insulted his mom. He handed Eddie his ice cream, followed by yours. Eddie waved the coupon in the air and the guy grunted loudly. The way out was followed by other harsh looks but you were having such a fun time you didn’t care, for once you didn’t care.

“Is your Unicorn’s Poop tasty?” Eddie laughed, “At least it looks pretty.”

“It’s actually really good, wanna try it?” Eddie grabbed a little amount of ice cream with your tiny spoon and tasted the rainbow looking mix, he hummed. “told you! Are you not worried, just happy with your ice cream?”

“Hah, good pun.” Both of you were walking back to the van, didn’t move, just stayed inside with open doors, a nice swirl of air coming in and out occasionally, “I am indeed not worried and very happy right now, thanks for your concern miss unicorn shit.”

You chuckled, and you saw him imitating you, his eyes on you and his cheeks going a little pink, maybe it was just the heat.

“I heard you’re staying only for the summer.” Eddie watched you, “Are you in college?”

“Yes, I’m getting a publishing degree. There aren’t many colleges that offer it which means I can get a job quite easily but I don’t know, it’s boring.”

“Is publishing as in magazines and shit?”

“Exactly, books mostly. I mean it’s fine, I’m learning a lot and I could even start my own little publishing house. I was wondering if Nancy would join, like create a magazine of some kind.”

Eddie beamed at you, as you tried to come up with a solution to your problem, the truth was that you had thought about dropping out from college but your parents had paid a lot for your education to waste it.

“That sounds cool, you two could have like a music magazine, if I may suggest it. Interview bands and you could do all that publishing shit and make it something like the Rolling Stone. That’d be so rad.”

“You think we could have a chance?”

“Hell yeah, I’d read it. Imagine all the female artists supporting you, it would change the industry. Not to brag but we could give you your first interview, Wheeler is cool and smart so I know it’s going to work. And that little boyfriend of hers, the Byers dude can take the photos.”

You grinned, picturing the whole thing, maybe that could work, first you needed to talk to them and find out if you could use that idea for your final project.

“If you’re not too busy with your future tours I guess we can start planning that interview, Munson.”

“Eddie , I thought we were close, just Eddie not Munson. Makes me feel like you don’t like me.”

Second point to note, his hair hid his flushed cheeks, you knew he was somewhat embarrassed because he had done that a few times.

“Sorry, Eddie . I was trying to sound professional.”

“Just do that when we get to the interview, not before.” He chuckled.

The sun was starting to set, you’ve gone around town like three times now, but you were chatting and listening music so pacifically the time felt like it had stopped, golden hour hit on your faces, you felt happy and at ease the feeling of trying to impress Eddie had dissipated and he was being very chatty and kind to you. He even reminded you about his show this Friday, the one show he had invited you.

“You’re definitely coming right?” he looked like a renascent painting with the orange hue surrounding his face and torso, if you only could capture that in a photo.

“Yeah, I said I would, but do you really want me there?” You gulped it was risky to try and find some pleading from him.

God why is he so damn cute.

“You're kidding right?” he knitted his eyebrows together, “you’re like the only cool friend I have here, beside Buckley and maybe Wheeler.”

“And Chrissy,” sometimes your mouth worked faster than your brain, of course you had to ruin the moment.

“Uh, yeah… but, well I’d love to see you there…” he said low, clearing his throat, “even Henderson said he’d come, so you have no other choice.”

The way your stomach had twisted was all the sign you needed to agree, you wouldn’t miss it.

“Are you going to sing something new?”

He threw you a funny look, “yeah why not, it’s a special day. I mean, I happen to have a pretty great voice.”

“Oh you do, right? Okay, then sing something right now.”

He snorted, “Ow you’re for real… hmm okay let me think of something.” Eddie tapped the steer-wheel until he started to laugh, “shit, can’t believe you are making me do this.”

You grinned when he sighed and started.

“We've got to get together, we've got to get together…” his dark eyes found yours as he tried not to lose the inspiration, “Oh yes we have, oh yes we have…”

That song you knew very well, it was form one of your favorite bands, so you sang with Eddie the chorus, his voice being the loudest one, he nodded so you kept on harmonizing with him,  

“Because jitterbug love is going all around. Jitterbug love is going all around now”

“Here it comes agaiiiinnn” Eddie exaggerated the last word making you laugh harder, and yes it was confirmed that he had the voice even after ice cream and no warm ups; raspy, deep and yeah, he had the looks and the talent.

Clapping and bowing at him you just said: “that was amazing.”

“Wait till you hear it with the band. I may as well do a rendition of 20th Century Boy just in your honor.”

“Wow you sure know how to make a girl feel special. I’ll be there in the front row then.” You were practically glowing, going all out for him. You only wished he didn’t notice.

“I wasn’t expecting less.”

As he drove around and he looked too good doing so you realized that maybe this was morphing into something a bit stronger than a crush and it was incredibly terrifying yet exciting and fun.

Eddie left you at your aunt’s place, he did the gentleman thing to open the door for you to get out, and the way you said goodbye was the awkward hand wave and the strong desire to hug him and do something more than that. It was obvious that the tension was there, because Eddie fidgeted a lot and never stayed put, and he always smiled and made everything to keep you laughing.

You ran to your room and before your aunt could ask you where you’ve been all day you just grabbed the phone from the hallway, locked yourself in your room you called Robin, and both of you spent the next two hours giggling and sighing. She had seen Vickie that afternoon too and she was also in cloud nine and also turning around on her bed, like only two stupid girls in love did.

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