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smoochkooks · 3 years

Text

—hymne a l’amour (m.)

⟶ pairing: park jimin/reader

⟶ genre: smut, fluff, tiny bits of angst

⟶ word count: 5.5k

⟶ summary: it’s valentine’s day and your boyfriend decides to surprise you in more ways than one. and when you’re dating park jimin, cocky, smart and obnoxiously good-looking archeologist, you can be sure of absolutely nothing.

⟶ warnings: dom!jimin, sub!reader, big dick!jimin, sir kink, oral (m receiving), thigh riding, multiple orgasms, orgasm denial, ass slapping, dirty talk, use of degrading names, unprotected sex, mentions of jimin having a daddy kink, jimin being disgustingly sweet boyfriend, oc having at least 2 (two) mental breakdowns, cringy valentine’s day presents

this is eldorado valentine’s day special but it can be read as a standalone. enjoy! xx

Spending Valentine's Day in the city of Paris is like walking through the streets of Beijing and smelling the strong essence of soy sauce and chicken every time you take a breath.

Overwhelming.

(Or at least that's what you think is a good comparison, since you've never stood your foot in Beijing before.)

Paris seems to be on another level when it comes to celebrating Valentine's Day. It's because that's the city of love, someone may say, but no, my friend, it's not just that. French grammar isn't the only stupid thing about said country. Citizens are even weirder, in more ways than one. It's the Eiffel Tower and the smell of garlic that disguises it all when you first visit France.

A week before February 14th, restaurants, cafees and grocery shops are all covered from head to toe in red hearts, chubby cupids, big teddy bears, various kinds of roses and, at the top of that – everywhere you focus your eyes on, you spot those huge inscriptions where words ‘love’ and ‘I love you’ are spelled in hundred different types of swirly fonts.

It's all too kitschy for your liking but tourists and locals don’t actually mind it even a bit. Once a year Paris turns into a set of the most cliché rom-com and no matter how irksome it might feel, you just have to survive this festival of boofonery.

You've always despised Valentine's Day with every fiber of your being (mostly because you hadn’t had anyone you could actually spend this day with) but your judgement took a sharp three-sixty turn when certain blond, charismatic man entered your life. Now, while you’re happily taken, a romantic dinner and a bouquet of red roses don’t sound that bad.

But when you're dating someone like Park Jimin, a smart-ass, cocky and obnoxiously good-looking archeologist, you can be sure of abosultely nothing.

It's a little past ten, you’re laying in your king-size bed, a day before the actual Valentine's Day. Jimin informed you he was going to be late for dinner because of some extra paperwork he had to do in the office, so you patiently wait for him. Wrapped like a fancy Christmas gift in a new pair of flimsy, lacy lingerie you recently bought in Victoria’s Secret, all hidden underneath Jimin's baggy t-shirt (the combination of casual and slutty never fails to drive him crazy). The set is cute, in a baby pink colour. The last time you pulled a move like this, Jimin went hard, literally and lyrically.

Let's just say that Park Jimin (and his dick) likes high-quality underwear.

Dating Jimin has taught you a few things, one of them being that his sex drive is insatiable, so you always need to be prepared. That’s why you're now laying here, on your bed, freshly shaved and smelling of coconut, your precious pussy ready to be worshipped by Jimin's mouth.

When you hear the familiar jingle of keys and the door to your apartment swings open, you squeal in excitement, grabbing your phone from the nightstand to scroll through it mindlessly so you don’t come across a girl whose only purpose in life is to get dicked down by her boyfriend.

(Which, right now, is your only purpose.)

“Babe, I’m home!”

You hear Jimin pulling off his shoes and coat, so you shout back, “I’m in the bedroom!”

He seemed to be in a good mood in the morning and if nothing's changed, you're positive about getting some action tonight. A well-deserved orgasm after work it's all you crave. You squeeze your thighs, and wait.

“God, I’m so fucking exhausted.” Jimin announces upon entering the room and as soon as those words leave his mouth, he collapses face down onto the bed. His lifeless corpse smells like sweat mixed with his usual cologne and you wrinkle your nose in disgust.

And that’s on getting railed by your boyfriend tonight.

“Hi, sweetheart,” he murmurs after a moment, voice laced with tiredness. He grunts and lifts himself up to place a chaste kiss on your lips. He tastes like bitter coffee and it makes you cringe, but you kiss him back nonetheless. He pulls off too fast for your liking and nuzzles his head in the crook of your neck instead. He cuddles into your side, mumbling something about you feeling warm.

In your head, you count. When was the last time you two had sex? Right, last Tuesday. Oh boy, what a night it was. Your ass still hurts a little while sitting on a chair, a byproduct of your boyfriend's palm landing smack after smack on your cheeks. Lesson learned: never smile too broadly to the waiter who blatantly flirsts with you. You're sure the whole appartment complex heard that night who makes you feel that good

(As if they don’t already know.)

See? Park Jimin is unpredictable.

“How was work?’’ you decide to ask instead, clearing your thoughts from the inappropriate images of Jimin’s bare body pressed to yours as he fucked you that night. You thread your fingers through his blond locks just the way he likes, massaging his scalp.

He sighs, his words muffled when he speaks. “This new employee can’t do shit. I had to prepare everything before tomorrow's expedition by myself,” he says. “I have to tell Namjoon to fire his ass.”

You falter your movements for a second. Right, the expedition. You completely forgot about it. Jimin's going to be out of town for the whole day, digging in the soil in some French village the name of you cannot pronounce.

It looks like your fancy lingerie has to wait for her big premiere a little longer.

“What time are you planning to be back home?” you ask.

“Dunno. Probably late.” Jimin exhales loudly, his breath tickling your neck. His hand travels to your nude thigh, giving it a firm squeeze. You fight back a moan that threatens to spill from you mouth. You really need to get laid soon. “We set off at 6am.” he adds, tracing circles on your bare skin. Your smile drops.

So the plans for morning sex on Valentine's Day stay where they belong. In your dreams.

“You're so soft. And you smell like coconuts. I could stay like this forever.” Jimin mumbles, circling your waist with his arms and pulling you even closer to him.

You sigh, basking in this situation just for a while, stroking Jimin's hair and listening to his steady breathing until he eventually falls asleep. Still fully clothed, still with his hand on your thigh. Carefully, so you don’t wake him up, you get up from the bed to take off your underwear. You do feel a little disappointed, but it's okay.

When you settle yourself on the bed next to Jimin again, your back facing him, a strong arm pulls you flush to his body. You hear him sighing with relief, and it makes you smile to yourself.

Lights off, everything can wait for tomorrow.

In the morning, just like expected, you wake up alone. There's no sight of Jimin, his side of the bed empty and cold. For your dismay, there’s no bouquet of red roses waiting for you in the kitchen, no box of chocolates or a small, cheesy note with your name written on it. Not even a short “Happy Valentine's Day, baby!” text on your phone. Absolutely nothing.

You tells yourself it’s fine. Maybe Jimin didn’t have enough time, maybe he was too occupied with expedition to prepare something special, maybe the big surprise is yet to come. However, you can’t quite shake off the feeling that something do seem odd and it makes you anxious. Leaving without a single text is not Jimin's style. Not when it's your first Valentine's Day spend together.

You probably shouldn’t worry that much. It's not a big deal, after all you hate those types of annual holidays and Jimin knows it. Yet something about the whole situation makes you uncontrollably uneasy. You have never been like this, vulnerable and sheepish. You hate Park Jimin for turning you into such a softie.

Walking through the streets of Paris makes you feel nauseous. You look at all the happy couples sucking each others’ faces for everyone to see and fight an urge to gag. Someone shouts “Love is in the air!” and you almost throw up. Everytime you see someone holding heart-shaped balloons or flowers, you whip your head in other direction. It's nothing, you keep reminding yourself. A stupid holiday that doesn’t mean anything at all.

But the actual nail to the coffin happens to be the atmosphere in Eldorado headquarters. It drives you absolutely crazy.

It's 12am and still no word from Jimin. You checked: this bastard was online one hour ago, so he just doesn’t want to talk to you. Fine, mister. If this is how you wanna play, try sucking your dick by yourself, beacuse I’m not getting near it anytime soon, you think to yourself, filled with rage.

Yeri wiggles her pretty eyebrows at you and asks about your plans for tonight. You fake a giggle, saying that Jimin will probably surprise you with something when he gets back from his expedition. The words taste bitter on your tongue, especially when the high hopes you had simply melted away this morning. Your friend then starts babbling about the restaurant she's going to with Jungkook after work and you listen to her rant with forced smile on your face the whole time.

Meanwhile, a few meters away from you Hoseok is giggling like a teenager, typing something on his phone, without a doubt (sex)texting his girlfriend. She's out of town and you’re more than sure Hoseok hasn't gone to bathroom ten minutes ago just to take a piss. Even Namjoon is in a pleasant mood today, humming some old ABBA hits under his breath. Yesterday he couldn’t shut up about his date with a girl who’s also his new neighbour. He met her when she came by to give him homemade croissants. Ironically, that sounds a lot like some kdrama lovestory to you, and Namjoon hates kdramas.

During lunch time, you scroll through your Instagram and almost slam your phone on the wall. There's a new photo uploaded on Kim Seokjin's account.

kimseokjin92: Celebrating Valentine's Day on Maldives w @minsuga #couplegoals #boyfriends #valentinesday #loveislove

They are on fucking Maldives. Fucking Maldives! You grit your teeth. It's fine. Completely fine.

But the absolute peek, the moment when you almost break down into tears and curl yourself into a ball of misery, comes in the person of Jeon Jungkook. He enters the office with a bouquet of the most beautiful red roses you have ever seen, a huge grin plastered on his stupid face.

Your heart clenches in your chest. Park Jimin could never.

Jungkook hands Yeri the flowers and she laughs, slapping his chest when he starts declaiming Romeo's monologue from the Shakespeare’s tragedy. He then kisses his girlfriend deeply and lovingly, making her cheeks flush in crimson. Hoseok coos at them, Namjoon following him. You swear you saw Jungkook's tongue in the process of said heavy make out session.

(Jealously is an awful emotion, you've decided a long time ago.)

An hour later, the bouquet stands proudly on Yeri’s desk and you stare at it with melancholy. You briefly avert your gaze to Jimin's desk and the memories flash before your eyes. The same desk he had you bent over, skirt bunched around your waist and cock drilling into your pussy, when you both stayed together at work after hours not so long ago.

You mentally slap yourself. Get your shit together, woman. It's not like he broke up with you. It's just some stupid holiday. It's nothing.

“Something's wrong?’’ Yeri asks you with genuine concern written on her face.

You swallow, forcing yourself to smile. “No, everything's fine. Just a headache.”

She eyes you suspiciously. “You sure?”

“Yeah.” you say. Even though your friend doesn’t look convinced, she eventually stops bothering you.

It's all good. My boyfriend forgot about our first Valentine's Day together but everything's alright. No worries, you want to say instead.

Later that day, when you exit the elevator and walk straight to your apartment, a strange smell of something burning fills your nostrils. Is that food? A real fire? No, that's definitely some meat that stayed too long in the oven.

The closer you are, the smell becomes stronger, like it’s actually coming from your apartment. You furrow your eyebrows.

“What the fuck.” you mutter to yourself.

When you open the door, your jaw falls slack, eyes wide like saucers.

Never, in your entire life, had you thought you would see Park Jimin, your own dearest boyfriend, popping out from the kitchen with his hair disheveled, sweat coating his forehead, wearing a black suit underneath the most ridiculous apron you have ever seen: pink with a big-ass ‘mr good lookin is cookin' written in the middle.

(Can someone remind you why are you dating him? Oh, thank God he isn’t naked underneath.)

He looks completely lost when he spots you, waving awkwardly in your direction. It's probably the first time he touched something in the kitchen that isn’t coffee machine. He’s so flustered that you almost forget he nearly turned your apartment into ashes.

“Hi, babe.” he says sheepishly.

It takes all the willpower you hold not to spit a lung watching your boyfriend who absolutely hates cooking, trying to look unimpressed by the smell of burnt food. He does a pretty poor job though, an apron not helping in the situation.

“Happy Valentine's Day!’’ he exclaims perhaps a bit too enthusiastically, approaching you and planting a kiss on your cheek. And after that, you burst into hysterical laughter.

(Seriously, you almost lose your own breath three times.)

Jimin looks terrified but most importantly – put out. You’re probably hurting his enormous, almost the size of Russia pride right now. (Not your fault Jimin has the biggest praise kink on the planet.)

“Why are you laughing? Is it because of the chicken? Fine, I can’t cook for shit but I tried, okay? I didn’t have enough time and it was the middle of the night in Korea so I couldn’t just facetime my mum for advice and-”

You interrupt his rambling with a searing kiss, effectively shutting him up. He falters for a moment but quickly catches up, pulling you closer to him, placing his hands on your waist and deepening the kiss.

But then, when his about to trail kisses down your throat, you hit his arm.

“What was that for?!” Jimin yelps, looking at you with astonishment.

“I thought you fucking forgot about the Valentine’s Day!” you yell, slapping his chest. “Why didn't you tell me about this?!”

“Because the definition of surprise says you can’t reveal it sooner?” he reponds in a mocking tone.

“Oh, shut up.” you grumble and pull him in for another kiss. You could feel him smiling into it, cheekily biting onto your lower lip. He places a loving peck on your forehead and brushes the strands of your hair behind your ears. There's so much affection in his eyes you could melt into a puddle right here and there.

“I’m sorry. Jungkook told me you looked upset the whole day.” he whispers.

“I wasn't!” you protest.

“He told me you almost cried when he gave Yeri a bouquet of red roses.”

This stupid brat.

You look up at Jimin. “Fine. I was mad. And sad. Everyone was having the time of their lives and here I was, on a verge of mental breakdown because my idiot of a boyfriend supposedly forgot about the Valentine's Day.” you say, crossing your arms over chest with a pout.

Jimin rolls his eyes and takes your hand, leading you to the living room, where a bottle of (your absolute favourite) wine is standing on the table, along with candles and, yes, red roses. It's too cheesy and straight from the cringy rom-coms but you don't mind, because it's Jimin and he poured his heart into this and it's all that matters.

When he approaches you again, he isn’t wearing that stupid apron and you blush at how perfect he looks, almost painfully handsome. His hair needs a cut so it’s pushed back from his forehead. God reincarnated in the form of a smart, cocky archeologist who happens to be your boyfriend.

You're, well, in your black jeans and baby blue sweater and you probably stink, but Jimin assures you with his loving touches he doesn’t mind, never will. He always does that, looking at you with those sparkling eyes which say you're the most beautiful thing in the world for him.

And it doesn't matter how many times you scold him throughout the day, how many banters you have over silly things, because at the end of the day, in each others’ embraces, it feels like home for the both of you.

“Since the chicken chickened out,” Jimin says nonchalantly, filling your glasses with red wine. “We can always get drunk and watch some old romantic movies.”

You smirk. “You cried the last time when we watched ‘When Harry met Sally’.”

Jimin clicks his tongue. “Don't test my patience, sweetheart or you won't get the presents.” he warns.

You raise your eyebrows. You hope one of them comes in the form of his dick. Suddenly, you’re reminded of your lingerie set, so you make a mental note to wear it after the shower. “Can I see those presents now?” you ask, looking at Jimin with pleading eyes. It's exactly three seconds till he softens.

“Fine.” he mutters and heads to the bedroom.

When he comes back, he’s not alone. Literally not alone, because he's caring the most hilarious Valentine’s present you could ever think of. A giant, white teddy bear, almost in the size of him, heart-shaped balloons attached to his right paw.

“This is,” Jimin whips his head to read the name on the bear's chest. “Ted.”

You blink. “You bought me a teddy bear named Ted?”

Jimin opens his mouth to say some witty comment but he stops when he hears you sob. “Baby, sweetheart, what's wrong?” He kneels in front of you, the bear long forgotten on the floor. You burst into tears and Jimin tries to calm you down, rubbing soothing circles on your thighs.

Once you eventually stop crying and regain your normal breathing, you wipe your tear-strained cheeks and look down at your very much worried boyfriend. “You are an idiot, Park Jimin. A fucking idiot. That teddy bear is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever seen and I should humiliate you for giving me that but...” You take a deep breath. “But I can’t. Because I fucking love you, dumbass.”

The corners of Jimin lips lift in amusement but you’re clearly not done with your little speech, so he waits until you finish. “You organized the most cliché date ever. You read all the Grey's books. You can’t cook for shit and this stupid apron you wore? God have mercy,” You visibly cringe. “You declaim Greek philosophers when you shower. Fuck, you persuaded me to do teacher-student roleplay and I kept calling you daddy during the whole thing because you asked me to. You are everything I despise but at the same time I love you so much,” you say, tears once again welling in your eyes. “I’m sorry I’m telling you this now, even though I've realised this a long time ago.”

Jimin’s silent, so unlike him, declaring his emotions with a huge grin this time. He stands up and picks your body into his arms. You wrap your legs around his waist as he walks you both to your bedroom. He places you gingerly onto the mattress, hovering over your figure.

(Your fancy lingerie can wait for another occasion.)

“I love you too, ___.” he says, staring into your eyes. “You’re making me the happiest man in this world.”

You roll your eyes, however there’s no use for that because your cheeks are already tainted red. “Oh, stop being such a sap.”

He smirks. “You love when I’m like this.”

“That is, in fact, not true.”

You’re lying and he knows it, but he always lets you banter with him like this anyway.

“Then what do you want me to be today?” he asks, his hands travel down to your zipper, then pull down your jeans. “Sweet? Loving?” He helps you take off your sweater and you’re left with nothing on beside your underwear. “Or do you want me to be rough? Push you around and fuck you stupid?” You gulp, your attitude successfully shut down. “Come on, use your words.”

Somehow, you manage to gain your composure. “Want you to take off your clothes first.”

Jimin chuckles, lowly and with a promise of more to come if you’re patient and behaving well, according to his commands. “You’re not the one to give orders here, baby.” he retorts. Then, he’s gripping your knees, pulling your legs apart and putting your pussy on full display for him.

There’s already a dark, wet patch forming on your grey panties and he tsks disapprovingly. “You’re wet and I haven’t even touched you yet. You want it that much, huh?”

You nod. “Please, touch me.”

“Try again.”

So he’s in that mood today. You’ve explored a fair share of kinks with Jimin so far and what you know for sure is that he always takes the leading role in bed. He likes to dominate, be the one in charge, railing you into the mattress until you’re crying out so loud your neighbours are banging on your walls.

You slip into your role naturally, your usual confident behaviour gone and replaced with timidity. He relishes in seeing you like this, helpless and vulnerable, a stark contrast to how you act on daily basis.

Jimin pins you with his dark stare and you give in. ‘”Yes, sir.”

“Good girl.”

He rewards you with a feather-like touch of his fingers on your pussy. He finds your clit with ease, rubbing it with practiced strokes until more juices drip down from your hole, wetting your panties embarrassingly fast. Your legs shake with want for more, to feel him sink his digits knuckle-deep into your cunt and finger you like he did that one time in a bathroom on your flight to Japan.

He doesn’t seem the slightest bothered with your state, ignoring your pleading eyes and wanton moans. He hasn’t even taken off your underwear yet and you’re already on the verge of an orgasm.

Jimin knows your body inside and out, probably better than you do, so it doesn’t come as a surprise to you that he can sense when you’re about to climax. He withdraws his hand from your center seconds before your release. You can’t help but huff with annoyance.

“Something's wrong, babygirl?” he asks, saccharine-sweet and annoyingly innocent.

Your retort dies on your tongue the moment he decides to unbutton his white dress shirt. You’re too distracted with delicious lines of his sculpted chest to complain about your denied pleasure anymore. Your hands itch to touch him but you stay immobile, devouring him with your eyes instead.

Jimin notices you're staring and smirks. “Like what you see?”

You nod. “Yes, sir.”

He then stands up from the bed and motions for you to come closer. You oblige without an ounce of confusion, crawling until you’re sitting on your heels in front of him. It’s a rather humiliating position but you can’t help but feel the rush of adrenaline in your veins when he cups your chin and tilts your head up.

“Take off my pants.”

You rush to obey, unbuckling his belt with shaky hands because you know what’s coming next once his pants are pulled down. He’s already hard, the prominent bulge of his cock straining in his briefs.

“Now my underwear.”

You nearly moan out loud when his cock slaps his abdomen, mouth salivating to take him in deep but you don’t dare touch him without a directed instruction. He makes sure your eyes are on him and starts stroking himself, spreading the precum all over his length, hissing when his thumb rubs the sensitive head of his cock.

Jimin groans, low and throaty, and you whimper quietly in response. “What, baby? You want my cock that much?” he asks, his left palm cupping your cheek. You whisper a meek “Please” and he chuckles. “Come on then. Show me what that slutty mouth of yours can do. Open up.”

Your lips part on command and you nearly moan when he guides his cock into your mouth. You’ve sucked Jimin's dick enough times to know what he likes, what brings him to the edge quicker than hitting the back of your throat. You lick the tip of his cock, eyes darting to check his reaction and, just as you expected, his features twist in pleasure.

You relish in a minute or two of the control you have over him before he grows bored with your teasing and decides to fuck your mouth instead. But for now, you make sure to have him suffer a little for that stunt he pulled earlier when he didn’t make you come.

You take him deeper, hollowing your cheeks for extra stimulation. Your hands reach to fondle his balls and you smirk around his cock when you hear a groan leave Jimin's mouth. “Good girl,” he murmurs, stroking your cheek. You lean into his touch, moaning at the praise. “My pretty slut.”

The first hit on the back of your throat makes you gag because fuck, is he big. The only thing bigger than Jimin's ego seems to be his dick, apparently. When he threads fis fingers through your hair you know what’s about to come; jaw relaxed, saliva dripping down from the corners of your mouth, you’re ready to be ruined.

He withdraws, giving you exactly five seconds to breathe and then pushes forcefully inside. Your mind is filled with mental images of him giving your pussy the same treatment later. You would whimper at the thought, if your mouth wasn’t stuffed full of dick. Instead, you give your best, swallowing every inch of him obediently.

“That’s it,” he rasps, clamping one hand on the back of your neck for better leverage. “You’re doing so good, baby.” When he nudges the back of your throat again, you feel him throb. He pulls away from the warmth of your mouth seconds later, panting heavily. He falls back onto the bed and pats his thighs. “Come here.”

You scoot closer to him and crawl onto his lap. He smiles at you from below, pulling you in for a kiss. The hands he previously gripped your waist with now travel upwards, unhooking your bra. Your hips unconsciously move, pussy gliding along the flexed muscles of his thigh.

Jimin notices your desperate attempt at getting some friction on your most sensitive parts and helps you rock your hips. He moves your panties to the side and you moan, felling the delicious pressure on your bare center. He’s watching with amusement as you’re falling apart on his thigh, thumb reaching to rub your clit. You cry out, climaxing so hard you’re almost seeing stars behind your closed eyelids.

He keeps helping you ride out your high until you’re whimpering from the overstimulation. “Did you like it?” he then asks, urging you to look at him. “You were so desperate to come, sweetheart. Fucking yourself on my thigh like a bitch in heat,” You whine instead of responding, earning a harsh smack on your ass. “Use your words.”

Another slap lands on your cheek and you mewl. “Yes, I loved it, sir.”

He chuckles, maneuvering your body so you’re now positioned over his cock. He gives your ass a firm squeeze and you whimper, arousal dripping down the inside of your thighs despite orgasming just minutes ago. “Ride me, baby.” he says.

You hurry to obey, guiding his cock inside you. It's a tight fit but your wetness makes it smoother to push him deeper. “So big,” you mumble, bottoming out. You know damn well Jimin likes to be praised and if the smirk that stretches on his lips is anything to go by, he enjoys what you just said. “That feels so good, sir.” You start moving your hips languidly.

“Yeah?” Jimin quips, hands gripping your waist so tightly it almost makes the skin bruise. “Then show me what a good girl you are for me. Fuck, look at you. You’re so hot.” His palms cup your breasts, thumbs stroking your nipples.

You keen at the praise and quicken your pace. Your thighs start to burn but you ignore that, bouncing on your boyfriend’s dick like there’s no tomorrow. The room is filled with lewd noises, skin slapping on skin. Jimin looks down, staring at his cock coated in your juices as it disappears inside your hole. He curses at the sight.

Your legs start to shake, huffs leaving your lips. “Sir–please,” you whine, feeling yourself getting closer to the edge.

“What do you need, babygirl?” he asks, pinching your nipples. You squeal, your pace losing its previous rhythm.

“I’m so close.” you stammer. “Please–touch me.”

“Where you do you want me to touch you, baby?” He ignores your whimpers, the way your pussy keeps squeezing his cock in a vice grip. “Here?” He touches your tits again and you shake your head violently. “Or here–” His fingers find your clit and you cry out loudly. You feel so full, his cock hits your cervix every time you drop down onto him.

“Yes, yes,” you chant, mouth wide open and eyes squeezed shut. You probably look right now like a professional porn star but you couldn’t care less, not when you’re so close to the climax. “Sir–fuckfuckfuck, please!”

“There you go,” Jimin coos, circling your sensitive bud with his thumb. “Come for me, baby.”

You’re gushing around his dick, arousal leaking out of your hole and coating his thighs with your release. Your upper body gives out and you collapse onto Jimin, your cunt pulsing from the intense pleasure you’ve just experienced.

“Oh god,” you mumble. “I just saw the answer to the whole universe.”

You feel Jimin's chest shaking with laughter and when you look up, you find him grinning at you. “That good?”

“That good.” you confirm, sighing tiredly.

“Are you okay?” You hear him asking. No matter how much he likes to push you around and fuck until you’re seeing stars, he always makes sure if you’re feeling comfortable to continue.

You spare him a nod. “You know I can handle it,” you say, lifting yourself up. “I’m a tough girl, right?” Despite the oversensitivity, you start rocking your hips again. “M-made for you.”

Jimin smirks. “Yeah, made for me,” he confirms and slaps your ass. Your pussy flatters around his cock. “Not like this,” he mutters and turns you onto your back with one, swift motion. “Much better.”

You pout. “You didn’t like it when I was riding your cock, sir?” You’re bluffing, but a girl can her fun too.

He clicks his tongue, guiding his cock through your folds again. “Oh, baby, I was enjoying it very much,” he says, picking up his speed. Your legs wrap around his waist, pulling him even closer. “But now I want it harder.”

He fucks you just like he likes the most; fast and rough, unforgiving. He leans down for a messy kiss that’s all teeth tongue and his eyes nearly bulge out of his head when he sees his saliva dripping down your chin.

(He decides right here and there that he might wanna explore his newfound fantasy soon.)

Soon you’re feeling the coil in your stomach tightening for the second time, embarrassingly quickly so. You moan, cunt squeezing around his dick. “Again?” Jimin asks, voice laced with both mirth and disbelief. Tears well in your eyes and you give him a nod. “Such a fucking slut.” he spits, slithering himself into you even faster than before.

Your third and final orgasm is so powerful and sudden, it nearly makes you black out. Jimin curses, fucking you through it. “Kiss me,” you whimper deliriously and he obliges, slipping his tongue inside your mouth. “I love you.” you whisper into his lips and that’s what sends him over the edge.

“I love you, I love you–fuck.” he groans and spills himself inside, coating your pussy with his seed.

He collapses next you, chest heaving with every exhale. Your legs feel like jelly and you know you’ll have trouble walking tomorrow. Just when you’re about to tell Jimin to call in sick and spend the whole day in bed instead, he suddenly sits up.

“Wait, I forgot I have another present for us.” he says, rushing to pick something up from underneath the bed.

You sigh, pinching the bridge of your nose. “Jimin, I swear to God, if you bought us matching t-shirts–”

He grins like a child, showing you two white pillows, the most basic ones you could ever think of, with ‘his side’ and ‘her side' written on them. It's cringy and ridiculous and you fight an urge to punch him, but you don't.

Because it's Jimin and you will never complain about it.

Because you love him. And that's all that matters.

#jimin smut #btsbookclub #btswritingcafe #ksmutclub #btswriterscollective #bangtanarmynet #smutcentralnet #bangtanhq #jimin x reader #jimin x you #jimin fluff #bts smut #my writing

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thotsforvillainrights · 3 years

Note

How would the league members Giran included react to their s/o wearing their shirt? Like their s/o comes downstairs in the morning casually wearing one of their shirts (if you wanna leave Toga and Mustard out you can)

(I can include Toga and Mustard in this since it doesn’t have to be sexual in any way for them, no worries!)

~LOV/Giran and Their S/O Wearing Their Shirt~

headcanon|scenario|imagine|match-up

-Giran: Instantaneously smirks at the sight of it. He’d be the one to suggest that you keep his shirt on all day long...with nothing else underneath it. More than likely leads to some sort of filthy little game or whatever. Either way, it’s pretty rewarding to wear it.

-Shigaraki: “Why are you wearing my clothes? Don’t you have your own?” He doesn’t too much understand this type of thing at first. He just hands over your clothes or he’ll buy you you’re own. The concept of someone you like wearing your clothes goes over his head or maybe he never really understood in the first place. However, he gets used to it after a while after you keep doing it over and over. To test it out, you wear your own shirt for once and smile as he asks you “What are you doing? Go get my shirt from the dryer. I just cleaned it so it’ll smell like the stupid linen stuff you like.”

-Toga: Thinks you look adorable! This was her plan actually! She took your clothes and hid them this morning while you hopped in the shower (and by hiding them, I mean burned them in the back alleyway). She did it so you’d be forced to wear her clothes. Now that she sees her favorite person wearing her favorite outfit, she’s got some inspiration to buy you some of the same things she wears.

-Dabi: Might be a little annoyed at first until he remembers why you’re wearing it of course. Heat of the moment type of thing. One of those ‘you just got done putting each other through the headboard and now you need to find something to hide your shame’ type of things. “Gotta say, you look real good in my shirt. Maybe you should take it off though. I think you’d look pretty damn good without anything on.

-Kurogiri: Doesn’t notice too much at first until he goes looking for his shirt. When he sees you wearing it, he just makes mental note of it as he asks politely for you to give it back. Maybe a day or two after that he gifts you about two or three shirts he bought that resemble his. When he noticed your face he realizes it’s not exactly what you want. Finally he opts for actually collecting some of his old clothes and puts them in gift boxes for you to unwrap.

-Magne: Both of you had this planned actually. She was firing up the old seeing machine and making some pretty good outfit combinations for fun when you volunteered to be her model. Wearing her shirts that she personally made was a pretty special thing for her. It’s something she lives to cherish over. Creating essential memories with each other is the sweetest thing you can do for someone you care about.

-Compress: Takes it as a compliment and maybe starts to brag about it to some of the other members. Its kinda cute watching him overreact to such a simple gesture. Doing something simple like this makes you wonder what else you can do to make him so happy. It’s probably simple like cleaning his jacket or something. He’s brag about that for weeks

-Mustard: The results of staying up all night and playing truth or dare. It was something he deemed childish but he didn’t want to be seen as a boring, or for you to seek to play the game with some other member...especially not when he had a big crush on you. Therefore, he decided to take part in your game which almost always resulted in a shift to a game of dares. Dare after dare until you reached the ‘switching clothes’ part of it. While he was distracted by the adorable sight of you wearing his clothes, you laughed at the sight of him wearing your favorite shirt/pants/etc.

-Spinner: Becomes flustered at the sight of it. You really didn’t know how much you meant to him. Small things like this really managed to set his reptilian heart ablaze. The image is burned into his head for a very long time and he doesn’t ever seem to get over it. He lives each day waiting to see you wearing his shirt again (even if it was just for one more time).

-Muscular: Turns it into a teasing opportunity as per usual. “Oh you like wearing my shirts eh?” If you haven’t slept with him (in that way) yet, they you probably will eventually. He’s a bit ambitious and persistent so it’s not a shocker that he wants you in that way (despite him being lazy sometimes). It’s really up to you whether or not you want to escalate the relationship or you just like stealing his clothes and wearing them.

-Twice: Will take a million pictures of you in his shirt. Makes a big deal out of it that either flatters you or freaks you out to the point that you don’t want to wear his shirt again. Doesn’t make a difference to him if you make the second option because he’s already sent off to have your pictures printed for him to frame up. He loves it and he loves you so you’ll just have to deal with his oddness.

-Moonfish: Doesn’t know what you awaken in him from that morning but whatever it is, he just goes with it. rom now on you can expect to wake up surrounded by a nest of his clothes any time you come to sleepover with him. Your clothes are nowhere to be found because he’s buried them in alternative options (IE: his collection of various shirts and sweaters)

»—————————–———————————————————–✄

Instagram: @pastelbattydraws & @pastelbattystore

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRNMJH7vHL7APNobUykhK4w?view_as=subscriber

#bnha #mha #boku no hero academia #my hero academia #lov #league of villains #Giran #kagero okuta

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sweater-daddiesdumbdork · 4 years

Text

Even The Grinch Needs A Sidekick

Summary- 4k Mike (Me from Playing It Cool) x You. You have been busy, and today is no different. A children's Christmas Party at the hospital where you work is taking up all your time. Mike calls in Scott for some culinary help so you can have a relaxing night. Mike also finds a new friend and brings him home. Fluff. I really don’t think there are any warnings, but if you all pick up on something, go ahead and let me know. The lovely divider made by @firefly-graphics Happy Holiday Everyone

A/N- This wasn’t what I had planned for this chapter. But you know what, sometimes the story just does what it wants, damned if the writer wants that. I do love it though.

Previous Chapter- Tonight It’s Scrooge McDuck

You tugged on your scrubs, having pulled out your favorite pair with The Grinch dressed as Santa Claus, Max with his single antler and little Cindy Lou Who with her red Christmas bauble. You hummed while grabbing your bell earrings when Mike came into the bedroom, glancing at you all dressed up for the hospital. “What's the occasion?” He questioned while turning you around and looking you up and down.

“A group of us are going down into the children's ward to hand out some presents. I know I'm not supposed to wear the decorated scrubs, but it's once a year. Tomorrow I will go back to those boring as fuck ones.” You leaned up to kiss him swiftly before stepping around him. “But I'm going to be late, and I have an order of cookies to pick up on my way to work.”

Mike followed you out, unlike you, he wasn't in a rush anywhere. It was a few days before Christmas and just as he had promised, he was about halfway done with Brian's script. The detective drama story line spoke to him a bit more than the rom-com scripts he was stuck with last time, and was finding it a hell of a lot easier to spend his day thinking about.

You were busy packing a bag with some stuff you had picked up for the kids, and Mike grabbed a bagel he wrapped earlier, toasted lightly with cream cheese as well as a to go mug of coffee, you were distracted and listing off your to-dos when he handed them to you. “Don't forget to eat, and I got dinner tonight.”

“Oh thank you, I know i have been all over the place the past week.” You paused when you saw what he had and took them to set the mug beside your bag, and pack away the bagel while continuing to talk to him. “You know… tonight is Chopped, and I shouldn’t be late tonight.” You bit your lip in a grin and turned to face him. “We might be able to beat our record.” Hinting at a bedroom game you two played, just for the hell of it.

Mike's eyes crinkled in the corner knowing well what you were playing at, reaching out to grab the front of your shirt and ease you forward into his arms, a grin softening his features as he wiggled his brows. “Think we will beat our time tonight. It's been awhile since we’ve messed around.” His hands slid down to cup your ass cheeks through your scrubs, making you arch into him, and you chuckled while easing your arms around his neck and tilting your head to press your lips to his, teasing darts of the tongue dragging against his bottom lip before pulling away, not letting the kiss get to that deep needing way. That has caused you to be late before and you weren’t going to let yourself be late today.

“That will have to wait till tonight Mike.” You wink at him as he groans as if waiting was not in his plan. “See you later tonight, and smile Baby, no being a Grinch just before Christmas.” You shouldered your bag and backed to the door to stay out of his reach, and slipped out the door with a grin. Mike snapped the door open as you were heading down the stairs.

“Love you to Y/N” He shouted, and you waved back at him before disappearing from sight. Mike closed the door behind him, and pulled out his phone to scroll through his contacts. Hitting Scott’s name, he pressed dial and waited through the rings before a groggy voice answered.

“What Man, it's 7 am, what in the hell do you already want Mike?” Scott snapped out and Mike grinned hearing his best friend.

“Good Morning to you to Scott, are you still up for helping me tonight?” Mike asked and Scott groaned out a yes before hanging up. Whistling Mike grabbed a piece of toast and went to his computer to get to work. A text came through a short time later, a grocery list for Mike to pick up.

Mike was coming back from the store with the ingredients Scott sent him a list of when he heard something shuffling in an alleyway he was passing. His head tilted when he heard the whimper that shifted into a scared woof, and Mike turned partially into the dirty alleyway, a particularly smelly dumpster half blocked it from sight and the light bright street seemed to grow into a darker ominous presence the further he stepped in, listening intently for that noise again. “Hello?” He asked cautiously, and all that filled his mind was somebody stashed behind the disgusting dumpster, and then he would be pulled into questioning by the cops…

I really gotta stop watching those dramas Y/N liked so much he thought to himself as he peered into the edge of the dumpster to see nothing then dirty black garbage bags that had been torn into. Nothing unusual. But under the dumpster came a whine, rather pathetic, and Mike looked down between his feet to see a black nose with streaked white fur peek out with a loud sniff against his shoe, and a tilt had it grabbing at his shoelaces that were half hanging loose. “Hey!” he exclaimed and backed up to see the nose disappear back under the dumpster.

“Here boy… or girl, whatever you are.” Mike called while shifting to a kneel while setting his groceries aside and landing carefully on his palms to lean down and peek under the dumpster. At first there was nothing to see, but then a puppy was trying to wriggle its way out the other side, on its belly with its back legs stretched out behind him.

Mike was quick to bolt around the dumpster to see the puppy almost out from underneath it. Covered in mud and who knows what else, his head much bigger than the rest of his body, Mike was able to nab the puppy on the nape of his neck and pick him up, which he hung there growling and barking, his hind end and tail curled up in the fetal position. “Okay little guy, just hold on. Promise not to bite me and I will quit holding you like this.” Mike folded his arm to cradle under the puppy’s backside, and let him lean against his chest. He weighed practically nothing, it seemed all his matted fur made him appear bigger then he actually was. Once he was supported, he quit squirming and studied the man. All while Mike studied him back, now unsure of what to do with him.

Big brown eyes started to droop as a wet black nose bopped against Mikes, and that sealed the deal. Sure there apartment didn't allow dogs but Mike couldn't just leave him there. “Guess you're coming home with me. I already know Y/N will be thrilled.” He grabbed his bag of groceries and made his way back to the apartment, sure to rush up the three flights of stairs and try to shift puppy, and groceries into one arm to get his keys. The puppy ended up wriggling in his arm and he set him down between his shoes to dig out his keys from his pants pocket while the wide eyed mutt peeked around his leg and bounded down the hallway, yipping. “No! Boy get back here.” Mike shoved the door open, along with the groceries before he sprinted after the fleeing canine to get him back. Scooping him up, he rushed back towards his door when the neighbor poked her head out. “Mike, what are you doing?”

“Uh nothing Mrs. Beatrix… Sorry to have bothered you.” He waved one handed over his shoulder while trying to contain the squirming pup in his arms. Once he dipped into the apartment, half tripping over the bag of groceries, Mike slammed the door shut and set the puppy down, who dropped nose to the floor and started weaving back and forth.

“Listen man… if this is gonna work out, you have to help out.” Mike said, kicking off his tennis shoes and grabbing the bag to bring to the kitchen, right behind him was the pitter patter of nails on linoleum and while he was emptying the bag of stuff for Scott, a pair of paws pressed against the back of his calves. A loud whine issued, and looking over his shoulder, he chuckled. “Hungry, arnt ya kiddo? Okay, lets see if Y/N has any ham left over from the night before.” He turned and searched the fridge, the puppy right there with his head stuck in it as well.

It was much later when Scott came over, Mike was working on his script as well as keeping an eye on the new house guest when his ears perked to Scott entering the apartment, his arms filled as well with a couple bags that he set down.

“Uuuh, are you babysitting someone's dog?” Scott asked curiously while his shoes were getting inspected. And Mike snapped his laptop shut to look over the edge of his desk at them.

“No, I found him wedged under a dumpster. I couldn’t leave him there.” Mike dropped his hand and gave a soft whistle, which the pup gave Scott one last sniff before barreling back to Mike which scooped him up into his lap, scratching behind his ears.

“What do you think Y/N will say?” Scott dropped his bags onto the counter and started to unpack and add his ingredients with the stuff Mike had picked up earlier.

“I think she will be secretly thrilled.” Mike ruffled the pups ears and then set him back down on the floor. He moved to a stand and crossed into the kitchen to scrub his hands clean. “She loves dogs and watch her insist we keep him.”

“Even when your landlord doesn't allow dogs here?” Scott was asking with a slight laugh while peeling open all the spices, and Mike took his time making faces down at the pup while drying his hands.

“Eh, hes hardly around and we will figure it out. Besides, I would like to get out of this building, nothing ever works. Last week the hot water was out for the hundredth time it seems. This block always loses power first and last to get it back. Time for an upgrade, Brian already has another script for me to work on after this one finishes. If I really work on it, I should be done right after Christmas.”

Scott grimaced a bit, but kept himself turned away from Mike while listening to him. “You know… a break afterwards might not be a bad thing, You’ve been writing steadily since before October. I know you're on a streak, but you have to come up for air sometime.”

Mike shrugged at Scott. “Hey, I gotta take the pieces where I can get them right? Money is good and getting my name known will help in the long run. It's nothing I can’t handle. I know I’ve been distant a bit with Y/N, why you are here today, teaching me how to roast a chicken.”

“I don’t know how you convinced me to do this. What person doesn't know how to cook a meal for their partner? You two have been dating for two years and this is the first time?” He scolded Mike while grabbing vegetables to give a rinse in the sink. The pup had planted himself between the two men, his ears perked while swinging his head back and forth to listen.

“Take out, out to dinner, breakfast? I don't know, it just hasn’t happened. But tonight my man, with your help, I’m changing that. Y/N has been working hard the last couple weeks, and I know this will make her feel special.” Mike rolled up his sleeves, preparing to help Scott with whatever he needed while winking at their guest. “And who better to help me then you? You and Neil took all those cooking classes together. So what is on the menu tonight?” Mike leaned in to look at a bag, which Scott shooed him out and reached in pulling out the last thing Mike expected, a whole chicken.

“Roast chicken, garlic baby red potatoes, a nice side salad, and rolls. You really can't get easier than that, and it speaks sophisticated.” Scott informed him while placing the chicken in the sink.

“Easy? Dude that's a whole damn bird.” Mike scoffed while coming around the counter. “What do you want me to do with it?”

Scott was already going through the kitchen, grabbing cooking pans and aluminum foil. “Well you can start with unwrapping the chicken and giving it a rinse.”

Mike gave the chicken a look and took a breath. “No big deal, right pupper?” Mike directed at the puppy, who yipped in excitement and tipped his head back to give a cheeky howl, making both the men laugh at his reaction.

The crash course into cooking had Mike's head spinning. Scott had him chopping, dicing, sprinkling seasonings, tossing stuff together and when he finally got the pans into the oven, he took a deep breath. “Okay what's next?” Mike was now on his toes, ready for the next project but Scott was busy washing his hands.

“Now you wait an hour, check it by popping one of the legs near the joint and seeing if the juices run clear. Also let it rest when you take it out for good, or else it will be dry as hell.” Scott informed while drying his hands. “Also you need to get cleaned up. And give the poor dog a bath.” Scott leaned down where the puppy scooted away from Mike and sniffed at his fingers, giving them a lick first and then a playful bite which Scott shook his finger loose from the tiny teeth. Mike watched a moment before checking his phone.

“Y/N will be home soon, so I will get on that. I bet he's a pretty cute pup under all that dirt.” Mike leaned down to pick him up, and Scott straightened, grabbing his reusable grocery bags and tucked them under his arm.

“Text me tomorrow to let me know how it came out and we on for Saturday at the bowling alley?” Scott approached the door and Mike followed, turning the pup around to wave his paw at Scott.

“Yes Uncle Scott.” Mike mimicked in a joking high pitched voice, leaving Scott rolling his eyes at his friend.

“Bite him would ya? You still got those sharp baby teeth.” Scott let himself out and Mike twisted the puppy once more to face him.

“What an ass huh?” Which rewarded him with a resounding woof in agreement and a nip at the end of his nose. “God damn it, you weren't supposed to listen to him.” Mike grumbled while retreating to the bathroom, knowing the timer would let him know when to check on the chicken. “Okay, what's safe to use on you?” he questioned while setting the pup down in the bathtub and pulled out his phone to google while starting to put warm water in the tub.

You trudged up the apartment's stairs, a few gift bags hanging off your arm from some of the long time residents at the hospital. You were exhausted and really looking forward to opening up that bottle of wine you’ve been saving and crashing on the couch with Mike.

Jingling keys from your coat pocket and letting yourself in, the first thing that you noticed was the smell of chicken and potatoes wafting in from the kitchen, making your stomach roll in hunger and your mouth water. Following your nose, you went to drop off your bags when you called out “Mike? Where you at?” You had expected him to be in front of his glowing computer screen, where he usually was when in the middle of writing a script, but not tonight.

“Will you stop it? I'M IN HERE.” You heard him call from down the hallway, and after you toed off your shoes, you started down to hear something whining and splashing.

“Mike… what's going on?” You question as you stop at the bathroom doorway to see something you never expected to see. Mike was kneeling next to the tub and hanging off the edge was soggy paws and a soapy puppy giving the most pitiful look up at him while wagging his tail, sending a trail of water and soap spreading all over the room.

“I said cut that out!” Mike wailed while reaching to catch the tail and squeeze out the excess water from it before letting it go, which just started the sloppy wagging again and a howl now while Mike attempted to rinse him off. “Welcome home Baby.”

You just melt at the scene, grabbing a towel off the counter and unfolding it while Mike moves to a stand, picking the soaked dripping pup with him and you go to wrap him up in the fluffy towel. “Mike, where did you find this sweet baby?” You croon as you go to gently rub him dry, cupping his face and smiling at him.

“Well… Under a dumpster a few blocks away.” Mike let you take the pup in your arms as your gently swaying him back and forth, still crooning and nuzzling him while hes giving licks to the tip of your nose. “I couldn't leave him there.”

“Absolutely not.” You turned to leave the bathroom, leaving Mike to drain and rinse the tub while you brought your new friend out to the living room. Having him still wrapped in a towel, you settled on the couch and started to unwrap him from the towel, seeing his little yawns as he curled up on your scrub clad thighs. “Who would just leave you out there all alone little baby?”

Mike finished up, taking a quick peek at his chicken, which had turned a deep golden brown, and the scent of sage and butter wafted from the open oven. Pulling it out, he listened to you talking to the puppy while setting it on the counter to let it sit before cutting into it.

“Wine?” He called out while pulling out your favorite glass, already knowing the answer when you resounded a yes from the other room. Pouring it, he went back in to sit down next to you, handing you the wine and tossing his arm over your shoulder to pull you in closer. Tucking in his side, you hummed softly while softly petting the snoring pup in your lap.

“We should think about what we're going to do with him.” You sigh a bit, scritching behind his ear while he twisted in your lap and went belly up, your fingers tickling along the pink of his belly.

Mike considered it, letting his own fingers trail along your shoulder. “Why not keep him? We only have a few months left of our lease. About time we move right? Maybe something bigger.”

You had never heard Mike talk like this, like in the future setting. He had always been in the moment, by the seat of your pants kind of man, and you were always a bit nervous to even bring up the future with him. You cleared your throat a bit while looking up at him, straightening a bit, which jostled the puppy just a bit and woke him up with a whining yawn, stretching in your lap. “You really want that Mike?” You searched his face and he shrugged, a tinge of pink along the top of his cheeks.

“Well I wouldn't mention it if I didn't Y/N.” He teased while reaching for the pup who started to wriggle around in your lap, and set him down on the floor before pushing himself to a stand. “Come, I actually made a real dinner and you still gotta tell me about work. Did that intern drive you crazy today?” He efficiently changed the subject, which you let him. Slipping into his hold, you went to help him in the kitchen. Leaning over the counter as he transferred the chicken, you inhaled deeply.

“You made this Mike?” you asked incredulously with an arched brow, waiting for him to confess that it was an order in and he made it look homemade, but he smirked at you while starting to carve.

“I will have you know I made this myself.”

You gave him the look, the one that demanded the ultimate truth.

“With Scotts help, okay. But I did the work.” Mike plucked a piece of chicken loose and held it to you, which you popped in your mouth, licking at your lip and grinning at how it tasted. Reaching for another piece and plucking a piece to give to the puppy waiting patiently at your foot. “Scott just instructed me on what to do.”

“His classes are paying off. Maybe he can become our free instructor.” You joked while going around the counter to finish helping Mike get stuff ready and for the first time in a while you two sat at the table instead of crashing in front of the tv with junk food. Soon plates were pushed aside, full from the excellent food and tired after the long day, you went to take a quick shower while Mike cleaned up the kitchen.

Coming back out dressed in sleep shorts and a tank, you found Mike laying on the couch with the puppy standing on his back legs, front paws on the couch trying to jump up. Mike scooped him up onto the couch with him, whispering to him. “Looks like your staying boy, what are we going to name you? Buster? You almost look like a Buster.” You approached the couch and Mike shifted enough so you could lay down along his side, half wedged on him and between the couch, laying your head on Mike's shoulder.

“Hmmm, what about Scout?” You wiggle your nose at the puppy, who efficiently ignored both names, proceeding to chew on Mike's shirt, the Christmas lights on the tree being the only glow in the room. You smiled and whispered out. “Hey Max… look at me.”

Which the brown and white puppy immediately perked up, and Mike shook his head. “Max? Why Max?”

You grinned while watching Max perk up every time Mike said his name, your giggle muffled against his shirt. “We needed a Christmas dog name.” Then you hummed out Your A Mean One Mr.Grinch. “Max can be your sidekick now Mr.Grinch.”

Mike gave a laugh, running his fingers along your hips, making you laugh out and trying to pull away. Max growled out, barreling against you and Mike to tug at Mikes hand, and you grasped the pup to set him aside gently so that you two rough housing didn’t end up getting him hurt.

“Seems like he is more your sidekick Baby.” Mike smirked as he pulled you in closer to him, flushing kisses against your neck and rubbing up and down your back. You settled back in against his chest. “Ready for bed?” He asked, calculating how many hours were left so he could write a bit after you fell asleep.

“Mmhh, it was such a nice evening, I hate to end it so soon.” You tilted your head up to press your lips to his and Mike pushed up to a sit.

“We will pick it up tomorrow. Besides, I should probably take the rugrat out to potty, now that it’s dark out.”

Your arms eased around his neck and you gave him a more passionate loving kiss in thank you, and eased up. “I will see you when you come back up Mike.” Max sat there watching the two of you and you ruffled Max’s ears, then headed to the bedroom. Mike watched you go down the hallway and then looked to see Max had ditched him to go check out the tree, sniffing excitedly when Mike's eyes sprang wide to see him pop a squat.

“Max! No!” Mike yelled, springing up to catch the pup.

#playing it cool au #holiday #holiday 2020 #amber writes #sweater writes #chris evans characters #me aka mike #mike x you #max comes to live with them #merry christmas

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forgadgetsandgizmos · 4 years

Text

Malex Drabble

* *

No one had seen Alex in three days.

Which, okay, he left town frequently enough for the Air Force that it could be no big deal. But ever since Alex spent a week in a basement because everyone, including Michael, thought he was at a recruitment job out of town, Alex checked in when he left. Usually with Michael. And Alex hadn’t told Michael that he was planning on leaving, much less checked in.

Michael should’ve let it go. No one else is worried, there’s no dangers around, no lingering threat that could result in Alex being missing or worse. But Michael couldn’t shake the sick feeling in the pit of his stomach.

And he kept circling back to Alex hadn’t told him that he was leaving.

Which is how he ended up here, standing in Alex’s driveway and staring at the old Christmas lights still dangling from the porch, trying to shake off his paranoia without invading his friend’s private space.

On second thought, that’s exactly what he did last time and he turned out to be right. He started for the door. The game plan that time around had been Find Alex, and okay, it was the same here. Whatever, it was a good plan. At least this time he knows where the spare key is kept.

Michael jogged the last couple steps up to Alex’s front door and knocked loudly. “Alex?”

No response. He stood on his toes to peer inside through the glass in the top of the door. From what he could see, none of the lights were on and no one was moving around inside.

“Alex, I’m worried about you,” he tried. He knocked on the door a few more times. “If you don’t answer, I’m coming in. He backed away to dig the key out of a bottle buried nearby. “Using the spare key,” he added. If Alex was inside, it probably wouldn’t be helpful if he thought Michael was going to telekinetically break his lock.

When he was met with more silence, Michael unlocked the door and took a hesitant step in.

“Alex?”

He made his way around the house. The kitchen held a small pile of take out bags and dirty, plastic containers. Alex was here then, and eating. That was always good, Michael acknowledged.

He walked over to Alex’s bedroom door and knocked quietly, cracking open the door as he did and poking his head inside. A blindness darkness greeted him.

Michael blinked quickly, trying to help his eyes adjust as he took in the room. Heavy, drawn curtains blocked any light from the windows. Two large, empty bottles sat on the bedside table closest to the door. It was too dark to be sure, but the thin, tall neck made Michael think it was tequila. The bed held a pile of blankets surrounding a curled up figure in the center.

Michael let out a breath, his shoulders slumping.

“Alex, it’s me. Can I come in?”

He received a faint humm in response.

Taking that as a yes, Michael slipped into the room and shut the door behind him, careful not to make any loud noises. He slowly inched closer to the bed Alex had buried himself in. He wasn’t sure what the protocol here was. Alex was physically fine; Michael could see enough to make out the movement of the blankets from Alex breathing. Strands of hair peeked out of the fuzz pile and the sunlight in the hall shined back at him from Alex’s prosthetic where it was laying on the floor near the bed.

But Alex obviously wasn’t fine. From what Michael had seen, Alex had apparently spent the past three days of avoiding his friends in bed, ordering takeout, and day-drinking. While Michael may not have much experience with avoiding worried friends, he did have a decade spent deep-diving into a bottle or three in his belt, and multiple empty maybe-tequila bottles did not equal fine.

“Alex, what’s going on,” Michael whispered. He sat on the edge of the bed with one leg still on the floor, hand hovering over Alex’s body as he waited for a response.

After a few seconds, Alex reached a hand out of his pile and pulled the blanket closest to him tightly, framing his face.

“What are you doing here,” he croaked out, eyes still closed.

“I was worried about you. You haven’t responded to me or anyone else in three days.”

“I’m fine.”

Michael caught the blanket before Alex could pull it back over his head. “I see that,” he noted dryly.

Alex huffed and opened his eyes. “I am. You can go now.”

“Not until you tell me why you’ve been avoiding everyone in favor of alcohol and shitty take-out.” Michael kicked off his shoes and crawled over Alex onto the bed. He leaned against the headboard and closed his eyes. “I can sit here all day.”

He opened one eye to see Alex glaring up at him. “I’ll just listen,” Michael offered.

Another huff.

Michael closed his eye again and waited. A minute or two later, he felt the mattress moving under him. He opened both eyes to see Alex sitting up beside him and offered him a smile.

Alex’s lips twitched in response and Michael felt his own widen to a grin.

Michael waited patiently beside him.

“I got a phone call,” Alex started. His eyes stayed fixed on the floor well-away from Michael as he spoke. “I loved being in my squadron. Some of the guys were family in a way I hadn’t had before, you know?”

Loved. Were. Michael stopped smiling.

“Flint and Clay always felt really distant. When I was a kid, I thought it was because they remember Mom. And I love Gregory, but we weren’t super close as kids.”

And Flint and Clay were two peas in a Jesse-spawn pod, Michael wanted to add.

“We has to be together all the time, we didn’t have a choice but to get close. There were four of us that were,” Alex tutted, searching for the word. “I don’t know. Saying brothers feels weird considering my real brothers.”

“I get it,” Michael said softly. He and Max and Isobel, they weren’t actually siblings. But Max and Iz were so important to him, to his life on Earth, and to his past, that calling them brother and sister felt inadequate. “They were real. What brothers should be.”

Alex nodded. “Besides me, it was Hunter, Jamie, and Patrick. Hunter and Jamie died in the same explosion that blew off my leg. Which. . . sucked. But Patrick was okay. He stayed with me as long as he could in the hospital in Germany. He missed their funerals to stay with me.” He took a steadying breath. “He had to ship out eventually. He was assigned a new unit and left for an eight month tour about six months ago.”

Alex looked up to meet Michael’s eyes. He schooled his face, trying to project a sense of calmness and security. He just hoped that the grief and pain and mourning he saw in Alex’s eyes wasn’t echoed in his own.

When Alex spoke again, it was so soft Michael had too strain to make out the words. “Patrick’s new unit chief called three days ago. He - he’s dead.” Alex voice shook as he choked back a sob and leaned into Michael.

Michael gripped Alex tightly and pressed his lips to his forehead. Michael didn’t - he couldn’t comfort this. He had lost a whole world. . . but he hadn’t know them. He lost his mom but, so had Alex. She might not technically be dead, but she had left when he was so young and stayed gone so long that she might as well be. The only think Michael had to compare was Isobel and Max and if he lost them. . . well. He’s sure he would be in the drunk tank in a lot worse shape than this.

“Alex,” Michael said softly, turning to press his cheek against Alex’s head, “When I was a kid, I spent years imaging what it would be like to lose Max and Isobel, either when they got sick of me and left or if they got caught and were killed. I planned out how to be alone, as much as it killed me to admit that, since that implies I wasn’t alone with them,” he chucked lowly.

Michael buried his free hand in Alex’s hair, letting the soft, dark strands run through his fingers. Alex stayed quiet. “I stopped because I met someone who was different. He treated me the same way Max and Iz did and no one had ever done that before. In my experience, people weren’t just nice for no reason. Even Max and Iz treated me like they did because they viewed me as their brother. And this guy, I could never seem to drive him away. And I certainly tried my best,” he admitted, “especially after graduation. He was the fucking sun and he made me realize that I wasn’t better than everyone else. It kinda opened up my world.”

Alex stirred at that. “Life isn’t a rom-com, Michael.”

“Okay, but it is a telenovela. I mean hello, alien from outer space here.”

Underneath him, Alex made a sound that reminded him a baby whining.

“You interrupted. There was more,” Michael chided jokingly. He gave Alex a light flick on the head. “I would still fall apart if I lost Max and Iz. That hasn’t changed. But I would want to keep on going now. Because of you. And you don’t have to get over this or be okay because of me, that’s not what I’m saying-“

“Michael.”

Michael shut up. “Sorry,” he murmured.

Alex finally moved from his half-laying down, half-sitting up position and looked at Michael. “I get it.”

“You do?”

“I do.” Alex smiled sadly at him and let his hand hover over the side of Michael’s face. “Thank you.”

Michael’s eyes lightened. “Thank you,” he returned. They were words he’s been waiting to say to Alex for over a decade. Since they were seventeen and stupid in love. He owes Alex so much.

They weren’t seventeen anymore. Picking a place to make-out that wasn’t the pickup of Michael’s truck was no longer their biggest hurdle. Now, that would have to be a toss up between the giant government conspiracy, the alien-DNA-targeting-bomb, and the various murders him and his siblings were hiding.

No, they definitely weren’t seventeen anymore. But as Alex curdled back up under his blanket mound and buried himself into Michael’s side, Michael knew that, for him, that was the only thing that had changed.

#roswell new mexico #roswellnm #Malex #alex manes #michael guerin #fic #malex fic #rnm #I'm very hopeful for the season 2 finale #but this is admittingly unrealistic #ao3 #my writing #alicewrites

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nicole-lynne · 4 years

Text

If You Scare Me, You Have to Kiss Me

This was a request from @armyaghasekpop4ever for a fluffy Peter Parker story. I’m sorry this is so late, but I finally got a little bit of motivation so here’s this. Hope you enjoy and forgive me for it taking forever! I also didn’t proof read this soooooo apologies.

Give a like/reblog/comment if you enjoy this!

The noisy video game blasted from the tv speakers while you and best friend, Peter, bickered about who was going to win the racing game you were playing. Peter kept reaching across the couch to mess with your controller and tickling you so you were squirming around while you kept trying to push him away from you but he just laughed and continued, using his super strength.

"Can you two please calm down." May asked, walking into the living room. Both of you stopped to stare at her, baffled at the slinky red dress she was wearing. It wasn't very often she dressed up but when she did, she could knock the socks off of anyone.

"Wow, May, you look hot! You have a date?" You pretended to fan yourself and she waved you off before encouraging you to continue jokingly.

"As a matter of a fact, I do. It's a man I met who works at the shelter, John. You said you’re staying tonight since your parents are out of town, right? Are you two going to be fine for dinner?"

You nodded reassuringly, attempting to hide the fact that you were psyched to be alone with Peter for the night. He’d been your best friend since you’d moved into the building a few years ago and the two of you spent almost every day together. There was also a tiny part of you that was crushing on him - hard. It would be impossible not to. He was crazy smart, hilarious, kind, attractive, and a literal superhero, not that many people knew that.

There was only the very obvious reason why you hadn’t told him yet. You were completely terrified to lose him if things went bad. Peter and May were always there for you with your parents traveling so much for work and you weren’t sure what you’d do if you didn’t have them to turn to.

"We'll survive. Although you may not have a nephew to come home to if he keeps cheating."

"Hey! I am not cheating, it's not my fault you suck at this game."

"I don't suck, you keep messing me up." You shouted as you threw a pillow at his head which he dodged and narrowly missed before he settled back into his space next to you, the heat coming off his skin making a shiver run down your spine.

"It's alright, hun, we all know that I'm fine as long as I've got my favorite girl." May patted your shoulder and you both started giggling at the shocked look on Peter’s face. "I put some money on the counter for take out later. Please try not to kill each other while I'm gone."

"I'll behave if he behaves. Have fun, May!" You called out after her as she ran out and closed the door. "Now, where was I? Oh yeah, kicking your ass."

Next to you, Peter still hadn't picked up his controller, instead, he was staring at the closed door in deep thought. You started snapping your fingers loudly, trying to get his attention, and his focus shifted to you.

“You okay, Pete?”

“Ye-yeah, I just was wondering if you wanted to watch a movie?”

“What about the game?”

“Eh, I’ve beat you enough for today, gotta give you a chance to rest up.” He teased with a little sparkle in his eyes. Rolling your eyes, you shoved his arm futilely and he chuckled at how weak you were. “Why don’t you go order the food while I pick a movie.”

“Fine, but don’t pick anything stupid. I don’t think I can handle watching Animal House or Die Hard for the thousandth time.” You said over your shoulder, ignoring his inevitable eyeroll.

“Those movies are classics, I tell you, classics!” For as much as he protested your disinterest in his favorite movies, Peter had a different movie in mind and clicked through netflix until he found the one.

He’d been trying, and chickening out, for months to tell you how he felt about you. So instead, he’d been settling for finding any possible way to have you right next to him. Luckily, you were completely terrified of scary movies and he knew, without a doubt, that your soft body would be pressed against him in minutes if he could convince you to watch it.

He queued it up just in time as you walked back in, chattering away to the girl from the Thai place next door.

“Kanya said it’ll be up in ten minutes. What’d you pick?”

“It’s called Lights Out.”

You narrowed your eyes at him, “Peter Benjamin Parker, that sounds like a scary movie. You know I don’t do scary movies.”

“Oh come on, I’ve been dying to see it since it came out. And I spend all my time with you so I haven’t had the chance. It won’t be that bad,” flashing you the puppy eyes, he folding his hands together, “please?”

With one look from his big brown eyes, you knew that you wouldn’t be able to say no to him. You looked around the room, anywhere but him, and he knew that he had you. You almost never looked at him when you were about to give in.

“Ugh, alright! You owe me two chick flicks and dinner from that Italian place I love.”

“No way, I hate that place.” Peter grumbled.

“Do you want me to watch this movie or not? Because I’m perfectly happy to watch something happier.”

He stood still for a few minutes, pretending to think about the options. “Okay, deal. Next weekend, you and me, rom coms, and Magiano’s.” Throwing out his hand, you two shook on the deal at the same time there was a knock on the door.

While you set up the food, Peter shut the curtains, turned off the lights, and draped the blanket over you both. Clicking play, he gave you a small nudge and your heart fluttered at how happy he looked.

~~~

Two hours later, you were smushed right against Peter, hiding your face behind his shoulder, peeking up once in a while to watch the girl on the tv be attacked by the demon shadow thing. Everytime you jumped your nails would dig in his arm and Peter would laugh and rub your thigh lightly to comfort you. Secretly, he’d barely even been watching the movie, only watching you, and loving every minute of it.

The moment you opened one eye to see what was going to happen next, there was a loud crash outside on the fire escape, the sound making you jump out of your skin and start screaming bloody murder. Popcorn flew through the air and covered their laps. Peter instantly pulled you into his arms protectively, on high alert for danger, before he realized the stray neighborhood cat had knocked over a plant.

“Hey, it’s alright, it was just Alley Cat.” The tension melted out of Peter’s muscles, but he kept his arms around you.

“Are you sure?” Your voice muffled against his neck, your warm breath making his eyes flutter shut for just a moment.

“Yes, I’m positive, you’re safe. Plus, you know I wouldn’t let anything hurt you.” He said quietly.

Slowly, you lifted your head up to look up at him, your cheeks burning with embarrassment and your heart thumping erratically in your chest. Carefully, he lifted his hand and brushed your hair out of your face, tucking it behind your ear, studying your reaction closely.

The smell of his laundry detergent mixed with the spearmint of his toothpaste and was fogging your brain. You’d been this close to him before but something felt different and your chest was tight with nerves. Glancing down between your two bodies, you saw that Peter had pulled you onto his lap in the chaos of it all.

“Oops, I’m sorry-” You quickly shifted to get off him, but his arm was still wrapped around your waist and he held you tight so you couldn’t move.

“Don’t be sorry...I like it.” He had never said anything like that before and you searched his face, certain he was joking around with you. His face stayed serious and you knew if you turned the lights on, there would be a hint of pink growing on his cheeks.

“You do?” You managed to squeak in response.

Peter let out a breathy chuckle, “how could I not?”

“Well, because I’m crushing you and this is kind of a close encounter and you think I’m your personal space.”

“Okay, one, you’re not crushing me, you dingbat. You weigh absolutely nothing to me. And two, I like having you in my personal space.” Then he sharply inhaled and his eyes went wide. “Did that sound weird? God, that was a stupid thing to say-”

“Pete,” you held a finger to his lips, stopping his string of babble. “It wasn’t weird. I, um, I like being this close to you.”

Vaguely you could feel his fingers rubbing circles on your back and they had only stopped for a fraction of a second when you said that. You held your breath as the words sunk in to him, your finger falling from his lips gradually. The situation was already intimate enough, might as well add a little more to it.

“You do?” He asked, echoing your earlier question.

“I guess your spidey sense hasn’t been working much lately?” You rolled your eyes, a small smirk playing on your lips.

“Wh-what’s that supposed to mean?”

“Have you not noticed how much you make my heart race or how I get goosebumps every time your skin just barely brushes against mine? How I spend literally all of my time with you instead of anyone else.” Taking a deep breath, you spoke again. “I like you, Peter. A lot.”

His jaw dropped open and you giggled. Lifting a finger underneath his jaw, you closed his mouth but his face still looked mystified.

“You’ll catch flies that way, dork-”

Peter cut you off by connecting his lips to yours in a hurried kiss. Before you could register what had happened, he was pulling away and you were chasing his lips, your eyes still closed with satisfaction. Finally, you hazily blinked your eyes open to see Peter grinning.

Heat surfaced on your cheeks and you let your head drop onto his shoulder, hiding your face from his view. His hand cupped the back of your head and he was pressing little kisses to the parts of your face he could reach.

“I’ve been dreaming of doing that for so long.” He whispered under his breath. “I like you too, have for a while.”

You lifted your head just enough that you could smile up at him, placing a gentle kiss on his lips before slipping your arms around his waist. “I was so worried you would reject me...”

“I’d have to be an idiot to reject someone as gorgeous and amazing as you. You make me so happy. When you moved in a few years ago, I thought I was having a heart attack. Just one look at you made my heart stop, babe.”

Your stomach flipped at the casual use of the nickname. A nickname you’d always wanted to hear from him but never thought you would. You almost had the urge to pinch yourself just to make sure that this was truly happening and not some sick joke from your subconscious.

“I can’t believe I waited so long to tell you when I could have been kissing you this whole time.” Peter tightened his hold on you, keeping you firm against his chest.

You snorted. “I can’t believe I had to watch that scary movie just for you to finally kiss me.”

Peter’s chest rumbled below you with a chuckle. “Well we never actually finished the movie, ya know, so I guess I don’t have to go to Magiano’s after all.”

“No, no, no,” You shot up quickly and thumped him on the arm. “You’re not getting out of Magiano’s, Peter Parker. If anything, you owe me even more because I’m now allowing you to kiss me.”

Smiling sweetly, he brushed his lips against yours again before relenting, “babe, I’ll go anywhere you want.”

#Peter Parker #Fluff peter #spider man #spiderman #tom holland #peter parker x reader #peter parker fanfic #peter parker fanfiction #nicole-lynnerequests #peter parker story

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noona-clock · 5 years

Text

Now or Never - Part 2

Genre: College!AU

Pairing: Jae x You (Female!Reader)

Warnings: Some mature language

Part 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 | Words: 2,210

You had somehow gone a full week without telling Jae that you were texting Kevin... but when Kevin finally asked you out on a date, you couldn’t hold back your secret any longer. You felt dishonest, first of all, but you were also way too excited to keep it in.

“JAE!” you cried when you saw him waiting for you outside of your apartment complex.

Jae jumped a little, turning to furrow his brow at you.

“Guess what I’m doing on Saturday night!” you continued, your lips stretched into a sparkling smile.

“Playing video games with me,” he replied without hesitation.

“No.”

“Eating dinner with me.”

“No.”

“Going to Taco Bell at one AM with me.”

“No.”

“Rom-com movie marathon with me.”

“Big hint,” you said. “It has nothing to do with you.”

Jae’s brow furrowed even deeper, and he narrowed his eyes at you. “Then... what’s the point?” he asked.

“The point is I’m going on a date!” you squealed, grabbing his arm and jumping up and down a little bit.

“A date?” he repeated, sounding incredibly confused. “What? Who are -- Wait. Please tell me it’s not Coffee Guy.”

You simply beamed at him.

“You texted him back?! Y/N!”

“It’s just one date, what’s the big deal?” you chuckled as you slipped your arm through his and began walking toward the nearest dining hall.

“He waited a month to contact you after getting your number. No decent guy does that!” he cried. “If a guy is into you, he’ll text or call you that same day. Guaranteed.”

You knew you should trust Jae because, after all, he was a guy. He knew what he was talking about. But... you were going on your very first actual date, and you didn’t want to ruin it!

“Maybe he was really busy!”

“There’s no excuse,” Jae retorted, shaking his head.

“What if he left the piece of paper in his pocket and then he forgot it was in there and didn’t do laundry for a month?” you pointed out with raised eyebrows.

Jae opened his mouth to reply... but then he let out a soft sigh. “I mean -- that’s plausible, but --”

“It’s just one date,” you repeated, tugging on his arm. “Let me go on one date with him, and if he seems like a dick, I won’t see him again.”

“Yeah, but he’s probably one of those guys who doesn’t seem like a dick but actually is,” Jae argued.

You nudged him gently, holding yourself back from rolling your eyes. “I think I have better judgment than that.”

“I mean, true,” Jae agreed. “You’re friends with me, so you’re definitely smart.”

A smile tugged at your lips at his words, and you briefly rested your chin on his shoulder. “See? I know what I’m doing! One date. If I don’t like him, that’s it. No more dates. Simple as that!”

...It wasn’t that simple.

Your first date with Kevin had gone extremely well -- better than you’d ever imagined a first date could go. You’d gushed about it to Jae afterward, and he’d reluctantly agreed that maybe he wasn’t a dick and maybe -- highly unlikely but maybe -- there was a good reason why he had waited a month to text you.

So, you had gone on another date with him. And another and another and another, but it wasn’t until you’d been dating for almost six months that you realized... Kevin kind of was a dick. He had a way of blaming you for a lot of things and made himself the Good Guy by forgiving you. You, obviously, didn’t stand for that, so half the time the two of you were together, you were arguing.

But the other half? Kevin was kind of the perfect boyfriend. He brought you flowers and made you dinner and called you beautiful.

So... you stayed. Jae told you many, many, many, many times not to. But you ignored him. You assured him everything was fine. Kevin made you angry sometimes, but he didn’t make you unhappy.

And now it was your Senior year. Your final year at university -- you were almost halfway through at this point. You had Kevin, the boyfriend you’d always wanted, and you had Jae, the best friend you needed. Could things be any better?

...Well. Yeah, probably. Kevin and Jae didn’t necessarily... get along. Jae tried, he really did. And Kevin... kind of tried. But they didn’t particularly like each other, and things would be a lot better if your boyfriend and your best friend liked each other.

Just as Jae had tried to convince you many times to break up with Kevin, Kevin had tried to convince you many times to break up with Jae -- break up your friendship, of course. But you were even more adamant about keeping Jae in your life because, truly, what would you do without him? I mean, you especially needed him around because who else would you vent to about your boyfriend if you didn’t have Jae?! He was always there to listen, and he had finally learned to just listen instead of trying to give advice (advice to dump his ass).

No, you would never not be best friends with Jae, and that was that. Kevin would have to learn how to deal with it -- if he hadn’t already.

And something else Jae was always good for?

It was currently past midnight, and you’d spent the past several hours studying for your final exams for the Fall semester. Dinner had been over five hours ago so your stomach was starting to alert you that the time for food was nigh.

And where else are you going to go this late at night? Who else are you going to text a taco emoji and bell emoji and a question mark emoji to?

Thankfully, Jae read your message immediately, and within twenty minutes, the two of you were sitting in your regular booth at the Taco Bell just outside of campus.

“You’re so wrong,” Jae mumbled, his mouth full of a Dorito taco. “Why does everyone say the Brontosaurus is the best dinosaur when clearly it is the T-Rex?”

“Because T-Rexes are scary!” you cried. “Brontosauruses are so cute and they won’t eat you! You’ve seen Jurassic Park, right?”

Instead of replying verbally, Jae simply shoved the rest of his taco into his mouth. So, you shoved your crunch wrap into your mouth.

As you were chewing, your phone vibrated on the table. Jae watched as you glanced at the screen, picked it up, and began typing with one hand (your other hand holding your crunch wrap, of course).

He unwrapped his second Dorito taco and ate silently as you set your phone down... but then you picked it right back up and typed something else. And, half a minute later, you typed again.

As the seconds ticked by, Jae watched as your facial expression became increasingly annoyed.

Obviously, Kevin was texting you.

“What’s up?” he asked, trying to sound as casual as possible.

He really didn’t want to start another venting session about Kevin -- he’d had quite enough of those over the past year, and quite frankly, he was long past over it.

But... you were still his best friend. And... he was still kind of in love with you. He wanted to be there for you, especially when Kevin wasn’t.

“He’s just being weird,” you murmured with a roll of your eyes. “He doesn’t want me out this late at night.”

“You’re an adult, you can make your own decisions,” Jae replied. “Besides. It’s not like you’re out this late at night alone.”

The look on your face immediately gave away that you not being alone was actually part of the problem.

“Yeah, he’s not happy about that either,” you sighed with more than slight irritation.

“...What do you mean?”

I mean, Jae knew the guy didn’t exactly like him (for some odd reason), but geez.

“He just... would rather me be alone than be with...” You glanced over at him with the most guilty look in your eyes, and it clenched at Jae’s heart.

“Than be with me?” he asked, his brow furrowing deeply. “Is he nuts? He’d rather you be out alone after midnight than be with me?”

“I know, right?!” you cried. You turned your phone over on the table before taking hold of your crunch wrap and biting into it. “He knows that we’re just friends.”

Unfortunately, thought Jae.

“I don’t know,” you continued. “He’s just weird.”

Jae took a casual bite of his taco before asking, “So... are we...?”

“No,” you replied without hesitation. “We’re not doing anything we haven’t done for years. He just needs to get over it.”

“Why is he just bringing it up now?” Jae asked. “You guys have been together for, like, a year.”

You grinned over at Jae, but it wasn’t a happy grin by any means. It was more of a ‘I’ve been hiding something and now you’ve figured it out’ kind of grin.

Jae’s eyebrows shot up his forehead, underneath his shaggy blonde locks. “Oh. So... he’s not just bringing it up now.”

You shook your head in the tiniest possible way.

“How long?”

You sighed.

“Since the beginning?”

You nodded.

“Y/N --”

“He just has to deal!” you repeated. “You’re my best friend, you’re not going anywhere.”

Even though Jae would have preferred to be more than just your best friend, your words still made his heart feel all warm and fuzzy. You weren’t going to let anyone come between you -- not even dickbag Kevin.

“I mean, I was here first,” he pointed out with a slight smirk.

“Exactly! You were here first, and there’s nothing weird going on.”

Jae decided not to ask you what you meant by that.

“Besides,” you continued. “Who would I vent to about him if I didn’t have you?!”

Internally, Jae let out the deepest, longest, heaviest sigh. He absolutely hated that that’s what you brought up -- that that’s why you needed him around. So you could vent to him about your boyfriend.

Externally, he simply avoided your gaze and said, “Yeah. Exactly.”

“So,” you said, obviously wanting to change the subject. “What are you doing for Christmas this year?”

Oh, yeah. Winter Break was right around the corner, wasn’t it? Is that why you were up so late? You were studying for finals?

...Jae should probably get on that.

Anyway.

“Just going home,” he shrugged. “I think my grandparents are staying with us again.”

“Oh my god, I love your grandparents so much,” you gushed, pouting slightly and tilting your head toward your shoulder. “They’re so sweet! I wish I could come and see them.”

“You can,” Jae chuckled. You had visited his family over Winter Break the past two years, and unsurprisingly, both his parents and grandparents absolutely adored you.

You let out a long sigh -- almost like the one Jae had let out in his head when you’d said you needed him for your boyfriend venting sessions.

“I can’t this year. Kevin invited me home with him.”

Oh, shit.

“Damn, that’s serious,” Jae murmured, trying to sound impressed rather than depressed.

You lifted one shoulder into a shrug before taking another bite of your crunch wrap. “I mean, it’s been a year.”

“But, still... Meeting the family. Has he met Hannah and Eugene yet?” he asked, referring to your own parents. Jae, obviously, had met them several times before. Enough times to be on a first-name basis with them -- though, he was pretty sure your parents didn’t know he called them by their first names, but... oh well.

“No,” you replied with a soft chuckle. “Not yet. And they’re pretty pissed that I’m not coming home.”

“Wait, what? You’re spending the whole break with Kevin’s family?” Jae spat out.

“Well, yeah!”

“You’re not doing, like, a half-and-half situation?”

“...No.”

“Bro, that’s not right! You need to see Hannah and Eugene for Christmas!”

You need to see me for Christmas!

“Well! I’m sorry! He wanted me to stay the whole time!” you explained, though Jae could have sworn he heard a twinge of guilt in your voice. “What am I supposed to do?”

“Say ‘no,’“ Jae replied immediately.

“All right, well, I’m full,” you said with a little sigh as you began to gather up your trash.

Nice change of subject. 🙄

And Jae wasn’t quite dumb enough to ignore it and insist that you get Kevin to change his plans.

“Yeah, me too,” he mumbled, throwing his wrappers onto your tray. “You got more studying to do?”

“Probably,” you laughed. “But I’m gonna call it a night.”

“Going to sleep on a Taco Bell stomach? Good luck,” Jae teased. And he was teasing, but he also said that because he was hoping...

You raised your eyebrows and shot Jae a curious look. “You wanna game?”

Bingo.

“Hell yeah, man,” he replied with a grin. “We still need that MarioKart rematch.”

“Why even bother? You know I’m going to beat you,” you scoffed. “I always --”

“You do not! You’re such a liar, bro!”

And, just like that, it was back to normal. It was as if Kevin didn’t even exist.

Ha! If only!

Part 3

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rynhaswritersblock · 4 years

Text

the benefits of fake dating | p.p.

summary: although incredibly annoying, flash thompson’s arrogance was just what you and peter needed.

warnings: some cussing, flash being an idiot, and 5K WORDS I POPPED OFF SO HARD

+ + +

"Flash, I don't know how you got into this school with that pea-sized, misogynistic brain of yours, but somehow it still leads you to think that you telling me how I feel is attractive. Just fuck off, please," you sigh, shutting your locker with a bang.

"Alright, for now," the boy says, smug smirk on his face. "although I know you're just denying your undying love for me. I'll wait."

Your eyebrows furrow. "Did you not hear a single word I just said?"

"Nope," a new voice pops in and you turn to see Peter, words and expression monotonous as he stares at Flash.

"Aw, and the protector swoops in to save the day. Aren't you two a cute couple?"

"Oh-" the two of you blurt at the same time.

"We're not-"

"a couple," Peter finishes for you, roses blooming on you guys' cheeks.

"It's the only explanation for little Y/N's 'disinterest'. See you later, babe," Flash nods, walking off with a wink that only bewilders you more. You and Peter look at each other.

"Did he just call me babe?"

"Apparently," Peter shrugs.

Peter should be in theatre considering the acting he does around you. It enrages him to see such a jackass bother you constantly, and the pet names only make him even angrier. If it wouldn't ruin his hero image, he'd totally wipe Flash out during one of his patrols.

"I swear, that kid makes me question things I shouldn't have to even worry about. For example, why isn't part of the requirements for getting into this school common sense?" you ask, shaking your head.

"No clue," Peter sighs. "Sorry to cut this off, but I gotta go to-"

"Physics now, yup. See you later, shithead." you nod, shoving him the other way, laughing as he almost crashes into the cheerleaders.

You resume your way to AP Calc, letting your mind inevitably fall back into your conversation with Flash. Every freaking time Peter steps in, he immediately calls him your boyfriend. But, honestly, the thought of that didn't sound too bad.

+ + +

"MJ, you're not helping."

"All I'm saying is: you tell Flash he's your boyfriend, he leaves you alone. In addition, dating Parker doesn't seem so bad, especially to you, right?"

"MJ!" you groan, falling back onto the pillows of your bed. "It's fake dating. It's not like we'd..."

You suck in a breath.

"It's not like we'd actually date."

"Yeah," she scoffs, "tell that to the prolonged hesitation in the middle of that sentence."

Goosebumps ran across your skin at the gust of cool midnight air that rushed through your window, but you didn't bother close it. You were too comfortable.

"Whatever, MJ. I'm just saying, if Flash and the rest of the school thought we were dating, not only would that jackass leave us alone, but everyone else would. And maybe even Tony and the rest of the team."

And it was at that point that Peter, donned in his Spider Suit, landed on your fire escape. You didn't notice though, too preoccupied in your conversation with MJ to change your focus. He peeked through the window, the words "fake dating" immediately making him spin around against the brick wall, telling Karen to project your conversation to him.

"Imagine having the Avengers ship you with your partner in crime. Couldn't be me."

"MJ," you groan, "It's not like they actually think Peter and I like each other."

The boy's eyes widen.

"They just saw the opportunity and took it. We're each other's age and work well together. Seems like an easy target to me. Plus, they were probably getting tired of making fun of Nat and Bruce," you explain.

A small pain rips through Peter's heart. Even though he didn't act like it, he loved the way everyone acted like they were dating. It made him feel like it was real.

"Whatever you need to tell yourself to get you to believe it, Y/N. But seriously, I don't see anything bad coming out of a fake relationship with Peter Parker," MJ states. You can practically see her shrugging smugly right now.

"Well," you say, firing up, "something bad that could come out of a fake relationship with Peter Parker-"

The poor boy outside, already looking stupid and stalker-ish, becomes even more flustered.

"- is that I could lose control of the feelings I already have, MJ. Do you realize how much that would mess up our friendship?"

Your words sting like icy-hot. On one hand, it sucks to Peter that you sound totally opposed to a relationship with him, but on the other hand, he's now 99% sure that you like him too.

He couldn't bare standing there any more. He swung home, all-consumed by his thoughts.

It would be a long night for Peter Parker.

+ + +

The bags underneath Peter's eyes were enough of an example of his insomnia last night. As if his brain didn't already love to overthink, the conversation he eavesdropped last night was enough to send him into overdrive, going over possibilities, how the two of you'd act, and just the very concept of fake dating itself.

Little did he notice, you shared the same look of under-eye bags (which you failed to cover with concealer), kept up by the same conversation.

The two of you were, obliviously, on the same page. You both thought that it was a pretty smart solution to the dilemma, but both were terrified of confrontation.

For being Avengers, the two of you sure were cowards when it came to love.

The school day passed quickly and slowly at the same time, the two of you fighting to stay awake as your history teacher rambled on and on about the Sokovia Accords. It was a Thursday, so the two of you kept your weekly plans to hangout at Peter's after school to study and just hangout. Needless to say, you two almost failed to miss your stop on the subway due to your sleep deprivation.

You enter the apartment, immediately greeted by May.

"Hi, you two," she smiles, grabbing her keys off the counter and swinging her purse over her shoulder as she talks. "I have a shift in a few minutes, so you'll be on your own, but I trust you."

"Thanks," you smile.

"Of cour-" she frowns. "Y/N, did you sleep at all last night?"

You feel the blood rush to your cheeks and cringe. "What? Oh, yeah, I did, I'm just... stressed, is all."

"Okay.." she eyes you, half-playful, half-serious.

"She's fine, May," Peter nods, which eventually eases the woman.

"Okay, fine. Don't keep her here too long, Peter, you both need some rest."

You give him a look and the two of you say goodbye to her before you go to his room. You eye him closely.

"Peter!"

He jumps. "Goodness, what?"

"Why do you have bags under your eyes?" you furrow your brows.

"I should be asking you the same thing," he huffs.

His attitude catches you off guard. "I asked first," you retort.

"Okay, okay, fine. I couldn't sleep."

Well, that was slightly underwhelming. "Why not?"

"I was... thinking about stuff," Peter shrugs. "not that big a deal."

"What stuff?"

A sigh of exhaustion and desperation falls from his lips as he shuffles through his bag, not looking for anything in particular, but rather a distraction. You clear your throat and hear his breath hitch.

"Do you want to date?"

Whoa there.

...

What the fuck?

The breath catches in your throat before your voices finally regains itself, a bit louder than you meant it to be. "What?!"

"No-" he sputters, eyes wide, "Like, fake date."

By some force of nature, his correction of fake dating surprises you more than just straight-up asking you to date him. Your mind becomes invaded by thoughts; questions about how he thought of that and oh shoot did he hear me last night? You sit down on his bed.

Silence fills the room that sends Peter into a thought spiral similar to your own, just about to make him break into a nervous sweat before you pipe up.

"Did you hear me last night?"

His chocolate eyes widen.

"You heard my call with MJ, didn't you?"

"How.. how would I even do that?" he stutters, rubbing the back of his neck with the hint of a crooked smile. You give him a look and he sighs. "Okay... maybe when I was on my way home from patrol I stopped on your fire escape, and maybe when I was about to come in through the window I heard you say my name, and just maybe that made me hide and listen to the rest of your conversation. And maybe I got Karen to hack into the call so I could hear it."

You shoot up from his bed excitedly, "Gotcha!"

"Whatever," he jumps back, startled, but with a smile.

You raise an eyebrow at him and plop back down on the bed, letting your back fall against the mattress. Peter marvels at how your hair is sprawled across the mattress before he, too, lays down next to you with a thud, making you laugh.

"So, fake dating, huh?" you tease.

"You're the one who came up with the idea in the first place!" he scoffs. A huff falls from your lips and Peter looks over at you. "Do you actually wanna do this?"

You shift your head to look at him. You feel that familiar feeling of the tingling in your stomach; the butterflies fluttering, the fireworks going off. Still, you hide it. "Eh, why not?"

The two of you sit up on the bed, legs criss-crossed and your foreheads less than a foot apart. Words began to fill the air as the two of you devised an intricate plan to fool everyone- well, except for MJ. And maybe May.

You came up with a set of rules:

1. No exposing yourselves to the public (duh) 2. Make it seem AUTHENTIC (hand-holding, nick-names, kisses on the cheek) 3. Go to and from school together 4. ONLY kiss on the lips if put under pressure and make it QUICK! 5. Love letters (????)

These were all scribbled on a scrap piece of paper from your journal, donned in your messy yet legible handwriting.

The whole process of coming up with this was a bit weird for the two of you. On one hand, you were super awkward with romance; your dream relationship was one where you could make fun of each other and laugh at rom-coms. On the other hand, as much as he hated to admit it, Peter Parker was a hopeless romantic. He wanted to be able to show you off and make you smile. Hence, rule #5.

He'd seen Instagram posts with clips of To All The Boys I've Loved Before. And, although he knew that movie didn't make sense to you, he found the idea of writing you love letters every day an incredibly good tactic to get you to fall in love with him.

Because, let's be honest, a huge reason that he was doing this was in hopes that just maybe the two of you would actually date. For real.

Little did he know, you felt the exact same way.

With a sigh, you folded up the scrap paper and handed it to him, getting a puzzled look in return.

"What?" you ask. "If anything, you're the one who's gonna mess up about this."

He perks up, an offended look painted on his face. "How would I possibly do that?"

"I don't know, you'd probably accidentally let it slip that this isn't real-"

Ouch.

"- or go too far with it. I've seen the look in your eyes whenever we watch rom-coms, Petey." you raise an eyebrow.

Jeez. Not only did you hit him with the already incredibly enforced friendzone (again), but you called him out for his love of rom-coms and called him Petey, a nickname that pulled at his heartstrings every time.

Guess he'd be hearing that name a lot more now.

He scoffs and shakes his head. "Whatever."

The paper crinkles as he unfolds it, scanning over the list one more time.

2. Make it seem AUTHENTIC

Hmm.

"Y/N?"

You hum.

"How are we gonna make it seem authentic if you can't even hear the word 'babe' without making a face?" he asks.

"Yeah, that's a good question. Maybe we should... practice?"

As soon as the words leave your mouth, you cringe. A crooked, smug grin tugs at Peter's lips and you scold him, only getting a boyish laugh in return before he pounces onto you, teasing you with lovey-dovey words and tickling you.

"PETER I WILL NOT HESITATE TO SEND A POWER BLAST RIGHT INTO YOUR CHEST RIGHT NOW!"

Your words make him freeze and he hovers above you, chocolate curls hanging over his forehead as the two of you pant, slight smiles on your lips. You raise a brow.

There go the butterflies again.

Peter's eyes light up and he plops down beside you, beginning to wrap his arms around you. You slap his wrist.

"What?" he asks accusingly.

"I should be the one asking that! What do you think you're doing?" you question, slightly bewildered.

"Jeez, Y/N, I'm trying to cuddle with you."

His blunt words practically knock the air out of your lungs, but you and your stubbornness refuse to let that happen. You relax slightly at way his eyes give you a look of "just let me do this" and you give him a small sigh and nod of approval.

Peter tries to hide his happiness and content as he turns onto his side, turning you with him. His arms wrap around your waist gently and pull your back to his stomach, lacing your fingers together.

As much as you hated to admit it, this was nice.

And it was especially nice when you felt him bury his face in the crook of your neck, letting out a relaxed sigh.

A few minutes pass and you lay there, eyelids getting heavier by the second.

"Pete?"

He hums.

"Are we supposed to fall asleep?"

He shifts, opening his eyes drearily. "Yeah, that's kinda the point."

"Alright, dumbass, I was just checking," you say with a smile, pausing for a moment. "Okay, my turn."

Peter furrows his brows at your words before he feels you shift in his arms, turning to face him and settling into his chest. He lets out a soft hum that makes you scrunch your face with a smile, feeling him pull you closer and entangle his legs with yours.

So, who's the one that made Peter Parker a god at cuddling?

You ignore your thoughts and eventually let sleep pull you in, relaxed by the soft breaths of the boy you were so close to- not just as best friends, but now physically.

When May got home late that night, she walked into her nephew's room to catch the sight of you two, having to slap a hand over her mouth to keep from letting out an excited yelp.

Naturally, she left the room with at least fifty pictures of the two of you.

+ + +

Despite the deepest sleep you two had ever had, your restfulness was broken within a split second by the piercing noise of Peter's alarm. You shoot up, eyes wide, only to be dragged back down by Peter's strong grip.

"Peter!" you yell.

"What?" he muffles into your hair, pulling you closer.

No time to fall into that. No matter how hard you want to.

"It's morning!" you exclaim, finally receiving the reaction you expected.

The boy practically flies up, expression matching yours. His eyes shift over to the clock, which, although inanimate, makes him jump out of the bed and begin hunting around his room.

"May!" he yells.

You snatch your bag and begin rummaging through it for your phone when Peter's door busts open, a very tired-looking May appearing in the doorway.

"Peter, what is it?" she pants, messy hair correlating with her exasperated expression.

"You let us fall asleep!" he exclaims, running his fingers through his hair.

Which- not that you notice- somehow looks even better in the morning. You completely ignore how its normally styled chocolate curls have gone wild and how it makes him even more attractive to you.

Yup. Totally ignored.

"Oh, honey," May sighs, a tired smile pulling at the corners of her mouth, "I called Y/N's mom last night to let her know she was sleeping over. I couldn't stand to wake you two up, especially considering the position you were in."

You whirl around to look at her, cheeks bright red as she wiggles her eyebrows playfully.

"May," Peter groans.

She laughs. "Not sorry!"

The door shuts and you two let out a collective sigh. You begin putting your bag together, feeling a bit out of place. The sounds of ruffling in the background makes you furrow your eyebrows.

"Pete, what are you doing?"

"Oh, uh," he turns from his dresser, shirt in hand. "I didn't think you'd want to go to school in the same stuff you wore yesterday."

Your breath hitches as he tosses you a t-shirt with a science pun on it. Classic.

You hum, smirking.

"Thanks, babe."

His expression is priceless.

"What? Might as well get practicing now," you shrug innocently.

Peter lets out a small laugh and the two of you resume with your routine, leaving the apartment with lunches from May and intertwined hands.

And, in addition, a sweatshirt from Peter that smelled just like him.

The two of you walk to school, sharing headphones and getting mildly surprised looks from the other daily commuters on the subway, surely pondering about how the quiet schoolboy from Queens was holding hands with a new mystery girl.

The looks only amplify once the two of you step onto campus.

Your hands are sweaty, fingers having been locked together for a solid twenty to thirty minutes. Still, it's easy to ignore when suddenly you're getting looks from mutual classmates whose gazes now have a weird magnetic pull to your hands. The two of you are mere inches away from your locker before MJ veers in front of you, smirking and clearly satisfied.

"Looks like the idiots finally got their heads out of their asses," she smiles.

"Michelle."

Her eyebrows raise in (impressed) surprise. You never call her Michelle.

"Fine, whatever, I know what's up," she shrugs.

Peter squeezes your hand reassuringly, a silent message of "everything's okay."

"However-"

Oh boy.

"Let's not waste time pretending you both don't want this to be real."

"MJ-" Peter blurts, pleading in his voice.

Right in time for Flash Thompson to enter the scene. Both MJ and Peter can practically hear your annoyed groan at his presence.

"I'll take that as my leave," the curly-haired girl winks before she beelines the other way.

"And that'll be my entrance," Flash smirks. "Parker, I see you've taken the whole protection thing up another notch?"

You practically feel the boy next to you puff his chest up in pride (whether it was fake or not was beyond you). "Well, as her- um- boyfriend, I'm pretty sure it would be a problem if I didn't stand up for Y/N."

You look up at him, smirk on your face. Maybe you were a little peeved at the idea of having to have a boy stand up for you, but you'd let it slide in this situation.

"Boyfriend, huh?" Flash asks, a hint of confusion written in his expression that you pick up on immediately.

"Boyfriend," you nod firmly.

God, if you and Peter were alone right now you'd totally intimidate him to get rid of his rising ego.

"Well then. If the two of you are dating, why don't you kiss her, Parker?"

Or Flash can do that for you.

You look over to see his cheeks bright red. He stutters for a second before Flash raises an eyebrow, prompting Peter to lean over and plant a quick kiss on your cheek.

There.

"On the lips, dumbass."

Nevermind.

"I... uh," Peter chokes out. He's not the only flustered one anymore.

"Oh, don't be a wuss, Parker. Just give Y/N a kiss or I'll do it," Flash smirks.

Whoa there, bud.

You squeeze Peter's hand both anxiously and reassuringly, frantically trying to silently tell him to just do it. Thankfully, he gets the message, taking a deep breath and turning to face you, fingers still loosely intertwined. You give him a slight nod and he slowly leans down, minty breath lightly fanning over your lips before a loud yell erupts in the hallway, making you two jump, as well as everyone around you.

"Eugene Thompson!"

You two, free-handed (which feels refreshing), look up to see Principal Morita speeding over to the boy in front of you.

"You're coming with me," he mutters angrily, grabbing a spluttering Flash by the wrist and dragging him down the hallway.

Grateful smiles bloom on you and Peter's faces and you laugh, resting your head on his chest.

"This isn't the end of this!" Flash shouts, pointing back at you two.

"Yeah, okay, Flash!" Peter yells back, donning a boyish grin. He speaks again, whispering, "What are we gonna do?"

"I don't know," you mutter, resting your head on his shoulder and smiling as he wraps his arms around you softly. "Jeez, cuddlebug."

Peter's face burns at the nickname, but he smiles, drawing circles on your back with his thumb.

"Whatever," he murmurs. "We're definitely not bad at PDA, though."

He got that right.

+ + +

You had everyone fooled.

The news spread quick, to both the school and the Avengers team.

You and Peter became relationship experts, holding hands in the hall, giving the other occasional cheek kisses, following all the rules you two had layed out.

Essentially, you both were living out your dream relationship.

You'd both be lying if you said you weren't trying to somehow make the other fall in love in hopes that the relationship would turn into a real one. You both went the extra mile- in your own ways. You'd make sure to give him plenty of kisses on the cheek- which he'd return- and call him Petey, all while wearing his clothes and using TikTok videos to guide your way (hehe). Peter would take extra thought into every word he wrote in his love letters and made sure to keep them interesting, writing them on leftover bags, old notes, or gum wrappers.

You open your locker, alone for the first time today after spending every second possible with Peter and talking to friends about your "relationship." A small, folded piece of notebook paper flutters to the ground and your face lights up, realizing it was your first letter from Peter. You unfold the paper with a smirk on your face.

"My favorite element is Uranium because I'm in love with U.

- Peter ;)"

The air in your lungs flies out. Of course he'd use a nerdy pickup line, but god, if it didn't make your stomach flutter.

"Hey."

You spin around.

"Speak of the devil," you say, waving the paper in the air.

He lightly smiles. "Was it good?"

"Are you made of Copper and Tellurium? 'Cause you're Cu-Te," you respond, getting a confused look from Peter before he's struck with realization.

"Nice."

"I know."

It almost made you want to write notes to him, but you'd figure you'd find a better idea rather than steal his.

The two of you walked into the Avengers Headquarters, fingers intertwined (as always).

"Well, well, well," Sam says, shifting his gaze from the TV over to the two of you.

The group was split in half when you and Peter announced the "news" about your relationship. One half was immediately ecstatic, running up to you with bright smiles on their faces and asking hurriedly about details. Opposingly, the other half didn't buy it one bit. When they heard the news, they gave each other wary looks and analyzed the two of you.

"Hi, guys," Peter greets, giving your hand a slight squeeze of anticipation.

"What on Earth-"

Tony is cut off by the sound of squeals from Wanda, Bucky, and Bruce, the group eagerly running to you with the biggest smiles you'd ever seen.

"FINALLY!" Scott yells as he runs down the stairs, ice cream covering his mouth and bowl still in hand.

It was a bumpy road.

You lay on your stomach, working on a physics worksheet, nearly falling off the bed when you heard a knock at your window. You raise your head to see Spider-Man gazing in. A sigh falls from your mouth as you roll off the mattress, stumbling over to the window and sliding it open.

"Peter, what are you doing here?" you yawn, falling back onto your bed and nearly crushing all of your papers.

He pulls off his mask. "Why are you so tired?"

"Pete, it's nearly one in the morning."

"Oh," he says quietly. Late nights never got to him.

You close your eyes. "Why are you here, again?"

"Well.. I uh," he hesitates. You grumble and he continues. "I was thinking about this whole relationship thing and it's authenticity and I don't know I kinda missed you and I was thinking maybe we could cuddle just cause it might help with the chemistry and stuff you know-"

"Just get in bed, Peter."

He shuts his mouth immediately, hesitating before piling your papers and neatly placing your things on your desk. Then he looks down at himself.

"Do you by chance have any-"

"Top drawer."

He pulls open the drawer to see a pair of his sweatpants and a t-shirt you'd stolen from him a few weeks ago. A smile pulls at the corners of his mouth at the knowledge that you'd worn these and kept them. He glances at you before pressing the spider at the center of his chest, feeling the suit loosen and fall to his feet.

You open your eyes.

Of course, you and Peter had seen each other in just underwear; you'd known each other for ages. But it was different now.

Your eyes scanned over his body, just donned in a pair of plaid briefs as he dressed himself. You look away as he turns around, clothed.

The boy then walks to you, picking you up lightly and adjusting you on the bed, pulling the covers and sliding underneath them behind you. You let out a sigh of relief, easing into him and letting sleep overcome you.

+ + +

You should've seen it coming.

Sure, you did, but you never acknowledged it. Your subconscious was playing a manipulative game and you desperately wished to have a talk with it.

You were in love with Peter Parker.

It was known well within you, but you'd never fully registered it until now, here, in the middle of a training session.

Heavy breaths flew out of you as you panted, sweat dripping off of your forehead. Peter stood a few feet away from you, in fighting stance, panting and sweating just how you were. His front curls were getting soaked in sweat, hanging over his forehead as he bounced on his feet. You couldn't help but let your mind get pulled away from your session and towards the fact that he looks so incredibly hot right now.

And then you got angry.

It made you mad that you'd held these emotions in for so long. You'd loved Peter your whole life and never once thought about making a move. It was stupid.

You didn't even give him the nod you normally do, throwing a punch and just barely skimming him in the gut. His eyes widened.

"Jeez, Y/N! You know I have fast reflexes, but that doesn't mean you ignore the signal," he pants, exasperated.

Your hard gaze meets his soft one for a split second before you begin laying it on him, the hardest the two of you had ever sparred. The poor boy was trying to talk to you the whole time, letting out pleads between his pants of desperation, trying to get you to calm down.

"Wow, you two really like getting at it, don't you."

You pull back, snapping your head over at Sam, open door behind him and smirk on his face.

Peter stops. "Uh, now's not a good ti-"

"Get out, Wilson, or I'll shove my finger up your nose so hard that-"

"Okay, okay, jeez," Sam smiles, walking out and shutting the door behind him.

An exhausted huff falls from Peter's lips as he looks at you.

"Y/N," he pleads, "what's wrong?"

You shake your head, entering fighting stance again. He sighs, doing the same before you resume your session, taking a swing at him and barely missing.

"What's wrong," you huff, knocking him out from underneath and pinning him to the ground. "is that I'm in love with you, dumbass."

His eyes widen. You let out a sigh, relief and sympathy immediately washing over you. You look down at yourself, practically straddling the boy on the ground.

And then he flips you around, hands on opposite sides of your head and his breath fanning over your face. He has a soft look, mixed with exhaustion and what seems to be relief and joy. Finally.

Peter Parker smiles, tilts his head down, and lays his lips on yours.

Fake relationship my ass.

+ + +

goodness gracious that took so long to write

#peter parker #tom holland #peter parker imagines #marvel #mcu #spiderman #peter parker x reader #spiderman x reader #fanfic #fluff #writing #peter #parker #thomas holland

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winchester-with-wings · 4 years

Text

Pampered Birthday

Dean Winchester x Reader // Patron Benefit Fanfic!

Author's Notes: Slowly but surely getting back into the writer life! Trying to catch up with season 15 and every time it reignites my love of Sam and Dean! This one is for @abbessolute

Summary/Request: Birthday fic with Dean! Again season 15 had a bathtub that inspired this fic. It's fluffy!

Word Count: 1850ish

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The velvety bellow of a blues song on vinyl echoes through the halls of the bunker. The place is dim, any lights that are on are giving off a soft, warm glow.

You feel like you’ve gone back in time and in this world of supernatural beings, the chances of that were not zero percent. So your guard is up and you stay quiet as you go deeper into the bunker. You perform a sweep, walking slowly through the library and then to the kitchen. You put your groceries on the table and move on. Sam’s room is empty; he’s out of town, checking in with other hunters. So is yours.

The song changes to something more familiar, classic rock. Something you know belongs here. Those are Dean’s records. It must be coming from Dean’s room. So maybe there’s nothing wrong?

But hadn’t Dean said he was going out for ammo supplies before settling in for a night of making devil’s trap bullets and rock salt shells. He’d invited you help but you’d declined, preferring to take a long bath and read a book.

It was your birthday after all.

Sam had expressed his regrets for not being in town, promising to make it up to you when he returned. But what was Dean’s excuse? Did he even know it was your birthday? Was your life becoming a scarier, sadder version of 16 Candles? Dean definitely qualified as your Jake Ryan. The handsome hunk who didn’t realize you were pining for him. You’re convinced he sees you as a sister rather than a woman. And forgetting your “sibling’s” birthday...it was definitely plausible when you recall that he’d once forgotten to acknowledge Sam’s birthday. Sam never let him live it down either. But you wouldn’t hold it against Dean. You hadn’t exactly broadcast the impending date.

You’re a little more relaxed as you approach Dean’s room. Since you’re all like family, you don’t even bother to knock. The light is off and there’s no one in here.

“Dean?” you say into the dark. There’s no answer. The music continues to play, perhaps even the volume turning down a little. Your guard is back up, you reach for the sheathed knife you always keep on your belt.

You realize that the air feels warmer as you approach the bathroom. It smells like cinnamon. It’s enough of a comforting aroma that your grip on the knife falters. The closer you get to the bathroom, the more confident you are that this is where the sound is coming from. Candle light flickers on the wall before you round the corner and enter the large bathroom.

You stop in your tracks, taking in the sight of the man in a dark gray robe hovering over the bathtub, lighting another candle.

“Dean?”

He curses as the flaming match burns his fingers. “I thought I had a little more time,” he laments as he stands up and turns around. He’s wearing flannel pajama pants and a plain t-shirt underneath the robe. He spreads his arms wide, directly your gaze to look over the room.

“What? What is this? What’s going on?” Dean’s record player is in the corner, a stack of your favorite records beside it. The large bathtub--it’s built to stay in place in the center of the room with two steps to get in and wide ledges on every side--is being filled with steaming hot water, an open bottle of your favorite bubble bath is on one of the edges. There are candles everywhere, enough that most of the lights in the room are off and you can still see.

“Happy birthday, Y/N,” Dean beams at you.

“Wh-D-Dean, you didn’t have to do this.”

“Ah, but I did. It’s your birthday and this is what you wanted to do tonight right? Take a hot bath and read?” He picks up a book. A romance novel. “I bought this one because the half-naked cowboy on the cover looks like me,” He smirks and you can’t stop yourself from giggling. “I’ve seen you read romance novels before and I know you and Sam love your rom-coms, so I figured I’d follow his example.” You blush at the thought of Dean purchasing the item.

“This is too much.” You fight off the hot tears brimming in your eyes. Dean shrugs.

“I mean, maybe I went a little overboard on the candles. But I’m sure we’ll use them again for something.” It’s only a slight reminder of the world outside of this room where rituals will be performed and the world will need saving. Dean notices the tears forming in your eyes. “Hey, hey, what’s wrong?”

“I just...Dean, I’m not worth all this. All this effort. It’s just a birthday. We have bigger things to focus on.” Dean gets closer and reaches out for your hands. You still hadn’t let go of the knife on your belt. He looks proud for a second before separating your grip.

“Just because Chuck is a dick and the world is going to shit...doesn’t mean we can’t stop to enjoy the simple things. And honestly surviving another year as a hunter is a big deal. We should really be throwing you a big party,” he chuckles as your eyes widen.

“Oh god, please, no!”

“That’s what I thought.” Dean gives you a soft hug and a kiss on the head. “Now I’m gonna turn around and you’re going to get in that tub.”

“What? With you still in here?” All sadness has melted away, your body filling with warmth and happiness as you truly take in the sight of Dean’s handiwork. He really does care for you.

“Eh, don’t worry, the bubbles will cover you up...unfortunately.” He winks at you before turning around. Dean mumbles along to the music playing while you do as instructed. You double check that he isn’t looking before shedding your clothes and undergarments. All the while you’re thinking to yourself, what the hell am I thinking!? Getting naked in the same room as Dean Winchester?

You sink slowly into the water, it’s almost too hot--which means it’s actually just right. You manipulate the bubbles and even add some more to make sure you’re covered before letting him turn back around.

“Okay, I’m in.”

“Good. Now scoot forward.”

“What?!” Dean shirks off his robe and rolls up his pajama pants until his knees are revealed. His legs have a slight tan to them like his shoulders and arms. It has you imagining him in board shorts on a beach chair with suntan oil. It’s enough to have you distracted as he comes up behind the tub and starts climbing in, framing your shoulders with his legs as he sits on the edge.

“Now lean back.” You follow the instruction but he takes the opportunity to unsettle you and dunk you underwater. You come up sputtering and wiping the soapy water from your face.

“What the hell?”

“M’gonna wash your hair. So stop squirming,” Dean laughs, squeezing your shampoo into his hands. He must’ve stolen that from your private bathroom.

“Are you serious?”

“Shh and just let it happen. Sam will never believe you if you tell him I did this so enjoy it while it lasts,” he grumbles. You look up as he starts to card his fingers through your hair. He’s focusing on his technique it would seem, but he’s smiling at you watching him. His fingers feel amazing as they massage the soap into your scalp. You let out a small moan, sinking lower into the water. You wrap one of your arms around Dean’s leg to anchor you. “Am I doing it right?” he says softly, though the smirk can be heard plainly in his voice.

“Mm-hm…”

Dean dips a cup into the water and leans your head back. He curves one of his hands over your forehead to protect your eyes as he pours the water over your head and down your back. He does it a second time and then grabs a washcloth to rub over your shoulders. He dips it into the water and runs the fabric down your back. It’s intimate and perhaps even a little hesitant. But you lean forward, accepting the gesture and releasing another sigh.

“Is there anything else that would make this a good birthday? There’s pie in the fridge?”

“No, Dean. This...this is amazing.” You half-turn around in the tub, exposing your collarbone and maybe just a hint of the top of your breasts. “It’s more that I ever could’ve asked for.” You rest a hand on his knee. “Thank you, Dean.”

“Of course. We’re not done fighting but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t seize every moment, right?”

The idea is more sentimental that you’d expect from Dean, but then again you’d never expect this handsome man to be leaning forward right now. His hand, warm from the water, cups your face and turns it up towards him.

He presses his lips to yours, soft and tentative. When he feels your lips pucker to meet his, he kisses you again, your mouths lining up like they’re puzzle pieces, meant for each other. He ignores any straining in his back from leaning forward until it’s too late. You hear an odd noise as Dean’s foot suddenly loses its grip on the bottom of the tub and he slips into tub alongside you.

“Sonuva…!” he hisses, searching for something to grab hold of but it’s too late. Water sloshes over the sides as you scoot back to the other end of the tub. It’s big enough to accommodate the second body but I’m sure Dean isn’t thinking about that. Although you can’t help but remember that you’re naked and he’s...not. His shirt and pants are completely submerged with him and bubbles are now resting on the tip of his nose.

“Oh my gosh, are you okay?” you giggle and reach out wipe the bubbles away. He’s cross-eyed for a moment as he watches you do it. He sighs and starts to strip off the wet fabric of his shirt. It’s heavy as he throws it across the room and lands on the ground with a splat! His sun-kissed and freckled shoulders move up and down as his hands work under the water. “W-what are you doing?”

His pajama pants emerge from the water and he throws them in the same direction of his other shirt.

“Taking a bath apparently.” He pauses to dip his own head under the water. You’re mesmerized by the water droplets that stay on his lashes when he comes back up. “But don’t worry, the underwear is staying on. Now, c’mere,” Dean reaches out for you.

He grabs your wrist and pulls you across the tub, laying your naked frame on top of his. The bubbles still hide what’s underneath and one of his arms coils around your waist, the other cradles your head as he pulls your in for another kiss. With your lips parted and his tongue delving into your mouth, it’s far from a chaste kiss.

#my writing #patreon fanfic #dean x reader #dean winchester x reader #dean winchester #dean fluff #spn fanfic #patron fanfic #patron fic #supernatural #supernatural season 15

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ayellowcurtain · 5 years

Text

His mom is finally back home. Robbe couldn’t believe she was actually home. Just a day before Christmas. Jens, Moyo, Aaron, and Sander came to help him clean the entire house yesterday, it took the entire day and most of the night and it was exhausting, but Robbe was beyond happy to see everything clean and working again.

For the longest time, Robbe was postponing making a decision. His plan was to tell everyone he was going to go to their Christmas parties just so they could stop asking about it, but Robbe’s actual plan was to stay at the flat, alone. And now he’s home. His mom is home too.

All the Christmas decorations were bought at the last minute, so it’s a little messy, but it definitely feels like Christmas and that’s all that matters. None of them know how to decorate. Robbe wanted to make it feel like nothing changed, that it was just another normal, calm Christmas.

Sander kept texting him the entire night to help him not freak out. His mom was feeling better, but they were still awkward around each other, it would take time to get back to their routine. Robbe doesn’t remember what’s like to have a routine, but they’ll find out. He just wants to make this transition back home as smooth as he can to his mom, so he bought most of the food and the rest he made himself, trying to recreate some dishes that he remembered from where he was a kid, eating with his parents and grandparents.

With all the cleaning and the decorating, Robbe didn’t have time to buy gifts, so Jens went shopping for him and bought some things that are now underneath their tiny Christmas tree. Robbe is not too sure about what Jens bought, he only has an idea based on Jens’ poor descriptive skills.

He saw his name on some of the presents when he went to turn the Christmas lights on and Robbe is sure he didn’t ask for gifts, so he’s anxious to see what all those gifts are.

Sometimes the silence becomes a little too heavy, too weird and Robbe decides to put some music to help fill their home. Zoe and Jana made a long Christmas playlist and so he decides to give it a try.

His mom seems to like it, smiling and singing a little while they eat. Robbe’s food is not terrible, he thinks it’s just...a little too basic for Christmas, but his mom disagrees, saying that it’s delicious. She even gets up to get some more food for herself. Robbe is already full, saving some space for the desserts.

It’s just the two of them, Robbe definitely made too much food, but at least that means Robbe won’t have to do it all over again tomorrow morning. He’ll be able to sleep a little more. He leans against the chair, looking at the kitchen, his mom is still busy, opening every pan so Robbe grabs his phone, taking a photo of his Christmas table, sending it to Sander.

to Sander: Merry Christmas <3

The three bubbles come and go, but before he can see a reply, Robbe feels warm arms around his neck and his mom’s cheek pressed against his. He almost drops his phone but manages to put it back inside his pants. He doesn’t remember the last time they shared a real hug like this. She hugs him tightly, kissing his cheek.

“Thank you for tonight, my love, but you’re my son, you understand? I’m the one that has to take care of you, not the other way around. So I’m gonna clean up and you can go out, see your friends. I’m sure Jens invited you to come to his place.”

She’s not wrong, Jens did invite him (and his mom) to spend the night at his and Robbe is tired of having to be the responsible one, but he’s also very happy. He counted the hours to have this back: a somewhat normal life, with his mom, inside his own house, not having to worry about when he’ll have to find another place to live.

“It’s okay. I wanna stay here tonight. And I’ll see Jens tomorrow.” His mom smiles again, kissing his cheek, pressing her hand against his chest before she lets him go and grabs his empty plate, taking it to the kitchen.

Robbe unlocks his phone again, but someone knocks on the door, stopping him from checking his messages. They didn’t invite anyone, but Robbe will punch his dad if he had the audacity to come to see them tonight. There’s no way he’ll let his dad ruin their first Christmas together.

His mom comes to the kitchen door and Robbe gets up, shoving his phone inside his pocket, opening the door.

“Merry Christmas…” Robbe’s heart always starts racing whenever he sees Sander and he can’t control how he smiles just to see his boyfriend right there, looking so good with his fancy black shirt and a big puffy coat, offering Robbe a big box in Christmas themed wrapping paper.

“What…”

“I couldn’t wait until tomorrow.” Sander is still outside, he’s clearly just as nervous as Robbe. He knows Robbe’s mom is right there, inside their house and he’s not sure how much about him she knows so he just stays outside, hoping Robbe will at least accept his gift and they’ll see each other tomorrow.

Robbe looks at the box and then to the floor, but just for once second. Sander exhales when he sees Robbe’s smiles getting bigger and he shakes his head, looking at Sander again, holding his wrist and pulling him inside, closing the door behind them.

Sander puts the box under his other arms as he lets Robbe drag him inside. Sander has only seen his mom in pictures and he couldn’t stay late last night so he’s only now seeing the tree and all the decoration. Robbe opens his mouth to start explaining, but his mom smiles, walking up to them.

“Let me guess...you’re Sander.” They both freeze on the spot. Sander didn’t know she knew him and Robbe was ready to have an honest conversation with her. He told her about Sander a couple of weeks ago, but he wasn’t sure how well she remembered that conversation. A lot happened after that and maybe she was still a little overwhelmed to be back home after so long, but she doesn’t seem bothered, coming to hug Sander right away.

Robbe holds his own gift while Sander takes his coat off, leaving it at the door, there’s snow in his hair and Robbe helps him with it, pressing his fingers against the back of his neck when he’s done.

Robbe pulls Sander to sit on the couch, there’s enough room for the three of them, but his boyfriend stops before they can sit, carefully putting the last gift underneath the tree and then he comes to sit right next to Robbe, leaving his other side for his mom. Robbe sit even closer, almost on his lap. His mom is in charge of choosing the Christmas movie they’ll watch first. Robbe is trying to stay in the moment as much as he can, saving every special moment so they can start recreating every year. He’ll finally have traditions too.

“You’re going to sleep here tonight,” Robbe turns his face, whispering against Sander’s cheek when he notices that his mom is completely distracted with all the movie options she has. Sander smiles, putting his arm around Robbe.

“I just came to give you another gift, but I guess I’m staying.”

“Yeah, you are. I need some explanations about all these gifts with my name on it.” Sander looks at the tree and to Robbe, kissing the corner of his lips.

“It’s not all mine. Some are Jens’.” He points at the piles and Robbe rolls his eyes. He bought something for Sander too, but it’s just one stupid gift and they had a deal of no gifts this year.

The movie finally started and his mom rushes to turn off the lights, sitting on the couch too. The living room is completely dark, except for the fairy lights that change colors every few seconds, giving their new living room the cozy feeling that it was missing. Sander quietly moves and Robbe can see that he’s checking to see if Robbe’s mom is paying attention to the tv and she is, hypnotized by the rom-con she chose, so Sander pulls Robbe even closer, resting his head on Robbe’s shoulder.

Robbe already watched this movie, but he tries to pay attention and he’s sure rom-con is not Sander’s favorite type either, but he’s trying too, even talking about in between scenes with Robbe’s mom. This is the best moment of the night. Sander and his mom are getting along - agreeing that the main girl of the movie deserves better than the guy she’s falling in love with - and maybe Robbe will be able to live this night again every year, just the thought gives him some peace of mind that at the end, surprisingly, he’ll be fine.

The desserts will have to wait. His mom is tired when the movie ends, it was a long, emotional day for them, so Robbe gets it. She apologies a bunch of times and Robbe says it’s okay, getting up to give her another hug just to make sure she’s real and she’s home, healthy and ok.

Sander gets up too and she hugs him just as tightly, asking him to stay the night to keep company for Robbe and he nods his head, saying he’ll stay.

Both of them quietly lean against the back of the couch, watching Robbe’s mom go to her room and when she closes the door, Sander pushes Robbe to lie on the couch, and he stays in between Robbe’s legs.

“Just the two of us now…you wanna eat dessert or you wanna go to bed?” Sander’s voice gets a little deeper and slower when he’s tired or drunk and Robbe’s body has a natural response to it, always pulling his boyfriend even closer when he’s talking like this.

“Bed, but you have to behave.” Robbe pushes his head even further against the couch, trying to see the hall upside down behind him, making sure that his mom is still in her room and Sander has full access to his neck, leaving gentle kisses all the way to his jaw.

“You say like I’m the one straddling you every morning, whining and demanding kisses.” Robbe smiles, looking back at Sander, pulling him closer for a kiss. This is the best night of his life. And Robbe can get used to these new traditions: making dinner for his mom, watching a movie with her and Sander, going to bed with his boyfriend, kissing for hours before actually falling asleep.

“Don’t open your presents without me.” Sander whispers against his neck when they’re settled in bed, tired of kissing and Sander is already falling asleep, hiding his face against Robbe’s neck.

#wtfock #robbe ijzermans #sander driesen #robbe x sander #sobbe

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sugamoonv · 5 years

Note

2 with Tae or Jin please?

Prompt: childhood best friends au

Word Count: 2.7k

Warnings: drinking

You both sprint back to Jin’s bed when you hear heavy footsteps approaching his bedroom door. You land on top of each other in a fit of giggles and pull the blanket from underneath your bodies to throw it over your heads. You can make out the lighter flecks of brown in Jin’s eyes with your close you are and lift your gaze to the blanket over you when Jin’s door opens. Both of you hold your breath, lips pressed together in anticipation to stop from laughing. Your’s and Jin’s hair stands when the blanket is suddenly ripped off of you and falls flat down in a static mess. You and Jin stare up at his older brother, Seok Jung, with wide eyes.

“If you both don’t shut up, I’m calling Eomma and telling her to bring Y/N home,” Jung glowers down at Jin.

“No!” Jin loudly whines and stands on the bed so he’s the same height as Jung. “Don’t call Eomma. We’ll be quiet, I promise.”

Jung rolls his eyes and tosses the blanket back onto the bed next to where you’re sitting. “I mean it. Don’t make me come back in here,” he holds Jin’s gaze as he turns to the door, only breaking when his back is fully to you. “And stop taking my stuff!”

You don’t see what Jung grabs in his hands before he leaves Jin’s room.

Jin steps down from his bed and stomps over to the door that Jung left open to slam it shut, this time locking it.

“Sorry I got you in trouble,” you meekly look at your lap. This was only your third or so time being at Jin’s house and the first time having a sleepover since yours’ and Jin’s parents went out together and Jin’s older brother agreed to watch you for some pocket money.

“It’s okay, he’s just being a butt,” Jin comforts you while pulling a bin from his closet, “When we get married, he won’t be able to tell you to go home.”

You look at Jin, who’s focused on finding something in one of his bins, a giddy feeling rushing through your stomach. You don’t know the term for it but you know that it stems from what Jin just said and you know you really like the feeling.

Jin looks at you with big eyes and holds up two toys, “Which one do you want?”

“Jin, wait!” you shout down the sidewalk, your backpack slamming against your back as you chase after Jin. It became a routine for you to go to his house after school and work on homework until your parents got out of work and picked you up.

He whips his head over his shoulder to look back at you, smiling, before he increases his pace. A pathway is made clear on the pavement as Jin runs through fallen cherry blossoms. They swirl around your feet as you catch up to him.

“Seok Jin!”

You hear Jin’s mother shout as he storms through the front door and goes to his room.

“Y/N!” she shouts again, slamming the wooden spoon in her hand onto the counter as you rush past her behind Jin. You ignore her muttering as you reach Jin’s room and shut the door.

Jin’s ears are bright red, probably the same shade as your cheeks, and your heavy breaths become syncopated. You grin at him and throw your bag onto the ground before rushing at him and shoving his shoulder. He laughs and another blush darkens his cheeks as he squints his eyes in happiness. Not knowing how to deal with the fluttering in your chest, you shove him again; this time, he grabs your arms and pushes them away in order to dart his hands to your sides where you’re most ticklish.

“Stop!” you shriek and attempt to block Jin’s advancements with a smile. He’s close enough now that you can feel his breath upon your face and smell the body spray him and a few others in your school use to mask the scent of their body odor. You typically use a different one than him but occasionally you’ll steal his.

“That doesn’t sound like studying to me,” Jin’s mother reprimands, shouting across the house.

Jin’s fingers pause at your side and his nose lightly bumps into yours. He presses his lips together as he holds in a laugh and you breathily giggle. You want to stay like this forever, you don’t know why, but you know that it’s meant to be you and him.

“Y/N, stop,” Jin snaps hunched over his notebook and his textbook lying in front of him. If his mother were to see his bad posture, she would have marched over to him and put her knee in his back and pulled his shoulders towards her.

You drop the ball of paper you were about to throw at him. Other balls of paper littered the carpet around the desk he was sitting at. “Sorry.”

You dig around Jin’s blankets for your phone to busy yourself. Your finished essay was placed a bit away from you along with the half-finished assignment sheet you were taking a break from.

Jin looks over his shoulder at you, “You finished already?”

“Yeah.”

When you glance up, you see a frown marring his face but he turns back to his work before you can ask ‘What’s wrong?’. You go back to your phone but after a few minutes when you hear Jin sniffling into his hands, you hesitantly lift yourself from the bed and walk over to him.

“You okay?” you softly ask him, resting your chin on the back of your hands flat upon the desk.

“I need to finish this but I can’t focus,” Jin laments. Around his eyes were beginning to turn red as his eyes became glassy with frustration.

“Hey,” you lightly place your hands on his cheeks and guide his face so he’s looking at you, “Take a break, you’ll be okay.” You wipe a stray tear from his cheek with the pad of your thumb. He sniffles before nodding and you stand and grab his hands to bring him to bed and away from the essay.

You clear your bag and books to the end of the bed and lie on your back with your head propped up. Jin immediately crawls onto the bed and half lays on you with his head on your chest and arms squeezing around your waist. When your hands find his hair, he sniffles and closes his eyes as he relaxes further into you.

“If it makes you feel any better,” you start off-handedly, “if this essay really is bad, I don’t have to go to college. I’d be perfectly content working at a convenience store with you.” You suddenly gasp in excitement, “Or maybe we can get jobs at a fancy restaurant and then we’ll eat gourmet food every night.”

“Don’t say things like that,” Jin whines and turns his head so his words become muffled into your shirt sending tingles down your spine. You fall quiet again and your deep breathes soon match each others’.

“Wait, what?” you pause typing on your laptop and look up at Taehyung.

You had met Taehyung in your first semester of sophomore year in a shared class. You bonded and soon became best friends after completely understanding a project you were paired for and then presenting to a lecture hall of dumb-founded students and promptly receiving a D+ because while it was “well-done, none of the prompts given were completed.”

“Did you not know?”

“No!”

“Oh,” Taehyung freezes and looks at you with wide eyes, “Oops.”

“Why wouldn’t he tell me he had a date?” You fight the newfound feelings of betrayal and rejection. You had both taken a vow your first year to stay together and to be completely open with each other about your dating lives but it seemed that Jin decided to break that vow. Some twisted part of you always felt a small sense of relief when Jin would tell you about his failed dates or when he would turn down potential relationships but the sudden secrecy in this made you worry that maybe Jin actually was interested in this person.

“Who is he going with?” you interrogate Taehyung, who’s innocently stirring his ramen.

He only looks up from the bowl as he’s taking a bite. “I don’t know. I think someone from one of his classes,” he shrugs.

Damn Jin for choosing to major in business. After your first year, all of your classes differed from each other so you had no idea who this person could be.

Taehyung takes another bite of his noodles, “I wouldn’t worry about it. Everyone knows he’s in love with you.”

Your face burns and you guffaw at Taehyung. “Jin is not- why,” you sputter past the explosion of butterflies in your stomach, “Who told you that Jin was in love with me?”

Taehyung laughs, “No one. Y/N, you’ve been best friends since you were kids and this is the first official date Jin has gone on. It’s so obvious, even Jungkook was able to tell.”

“Yeah, well Jungkook’s always watching rom-coms.”

“Okay, but remember the first meeting Namjoon showed up to? Jungkook was too nervous to talk to him for two months.”

You smile at the memory of the younger boy in the same music club as you. Jungkook had joined first because he loved to sing. Yoongi and Namjoon shared the same music production classes and Yoongi had dragged Namjoon to a meeting a little into the semester. Jungkook had gone from outgoing to shy the second Namjoon stepped into the room. Jungkook was able to build up confidence after some time but he was still too nervous to talk to the tall nerd. It was Jimin that pushed Jungkook into getting coffee with Namjoon. After that, Jungkook began to start going through a phase where he would try to exploit his own strength to show off. He constantly offered to carry people, open windows, would do back-flips and handstands, and brag about his taekwondo skills. Namjoon, the sweetheart he is, of course, entertained Jungkook.

A few hours go by with radio silence on your phone. Not that you kept checking. Taehyung put on a t.v. drama in the background while you continue to work. You mull over in your head whether to text Jin, opening and closing your messages, but decided it would be meaningless. Jin would be too busy to text back.

“Are you almost done?” Taehyung moves so he’s standing in front of you and the chair you’re sitting in.

You stare at the sentence that spills onto the next page of your document and close your laptop. “Yeah. I don’t want to work on this anymore.”

You check your phone again. Nothing

Your head spins with the feeling of deja-vu as you stand in the kitchen. A few glasses and a bottle of Soju sit on the countertop. Jimin is giggling into Jungkook’s shoulder as Jungkook smugly looks at Taehyung who is reeling from the most recent round of shots. Jimin and Jungkook’s close proximity allows Jimin to snoop onto Jungkook’s phone as he types. Taehyung glances over and notices their disinvolvement.

“Is anyone else coming?” Taehyung takes small sips of his plain soda.

“Hoseok might. Yoongi and Namjoon are working on a song for their class, and Jin said he would come later.”

Suddenly, the burn of the alcohol still stinging your throat was nothing compared to the stinging in your chest. You check your phone again. Nothing. The anger working its way up your body gives the false pretense of sobriety and so you find yourself preparing another shot.

Time passes by quicker you find when the world is fuzzy and you’re sinking into the couch cushions. You don’t feel the stickiness on your hand from the last shot that flowed over the rim but you do feel Hoseok’s weight on your side. His laugh is amplified in your ear by the drunkenness. You tell the time by the degree Hoseok slumps against you, not by the numbers on one of the digital clocks in the apartment.

Jimin’s and Taehyung’s cheer sounds distant when the door opens. Jin walks in, cheeks rosy from the wind and a chuckle on his lips after one glance at all of your current states. Jimin’s clinging onto Jungkook still and Taehyung’s devouring the easy-made meal he struggled to cook.

A nauseous feeling builds in the pit of your stomach. Though you’re not sure if it’s from the alcohol or the thought of this mystery person being the cause of Jin’s rumpled shirt and dark pink lips. It grows when your mind spirals that the smile on Jin’s face is a remnant from his date. Did this mystery person hold his hand? Make him laugh? Would they learn his ticklish spots or about that time a professor yelled at Jin for winking at him because Jin was nervous about his oral exam?

Bile rises in your throat.

Did they kiss his lips?

Wait, no, you’re actually going to throw up.

Hoseok face plants into the couch cushion when you shoot up and sprint to the bathroom. The smell of the toilet bowl makes you gag and that’s the final factor that pushes your stomach over the edge.

“Drink too much?” Jin’s hand lightly touches your back.

“Fuck you,” you spit, keeping your eyes closed and your head tucked into the crook of your elbow.

“That’s not nice,” Jin laughs not understanding the actual malice you currently had for him behind the words.

You take a shuddering breath and once you’re sure your stomach is settled for the next thirty seconds, you speak. “Why are you even here, hmm? I thought you were on a date?”

Jin stays silent and waits for you to stop throwing up. Before he can speak, you interrupt him.

“Thank you for telling me by the way. Really appreciated finding that out from Taehyung… And you text everyone else but me?”

“I didn’t text you because I didn’t want to,” Jin stops you slightly frustrated.

You bite your lip to slow the tears. You hope that your arm and position prevents Jin from seeing your face.

“Y/N,” Jin sighs and pauses before he shifts to flush the toilet. He lifts your shoulders to help you avoid getting splashed in the face. “I’m sorry for not telling you. I wanted-”

“Can you just go?” you softly plead. You embraced the warmth of his hand rubbing your back but desperately wanted to be alone for when you were no longer able to hold back your sobs.

“Y/N,… I’m not going to leave you.”

You shake your head in your arms, “Just go, Jin. Please go.”

“No, I won’t”

“Jesus Christ, Jin. Leave me alone.”

“I’m not leaving-”

“Why!?” you stupidly lift your head to look at Jin and repeatedly blink as you’re met with the harsh brightness of the bathroom lights. He cradles your face and forces you to focus on him.

“I’m in love with you. That’s why I’m not leaving. I’m also afraid that if I do, you’ll puke on the floor and since I’m the only sober person here, Taehyung will make me clean it.”

“Really?” You stare at him with wide eyes. Everything he said after his declaration was lost to you.

Jin’s face softens and he lightly rubs his thumb across your cheekbone. “Yeah.”

You try to keep your eyes open for a little while longer, to remember Jin exactly in this moment. But your body and the alcohol still in your system demanded you clench your eyelids shut. It did nothing to get rid of the nausea but it gave your eyes a moment to rest.

“Jin, I don’t feel good,” you whimper as you slowly move back to rest your upper body on the toilet seat.

“I know,” Jin comforts and resumes rubbing your back. He leans in close enough to be able to press a kiss into your hair, “I know.”

“…Can I kiss you?”

“Tomorrow.”

Permanent Tags: @eshika0102 / @detectivebourbon / @omgsuperstarg / @luna-xial / @strawberry-leche / @yoongiismytruelove

#jin x reader #childhood friends au #childhood friends #bts x reader #jin x reader fluff #jin x reader angst #bts prompt #jin x reader prompt

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1dffexchange · 5 years

Text

Here You Come Again

To: Hannah @primetimewritings

From: Fran @fromherlips

Warnings: Alcohol

Summary: kiernan reid, in truth, had no idea what she was doing. she just wanted to graduate college, find a place of her own, and try to do it without having a breakdown. but with her three meddling best friends and a complicated friendship/relationship hybrid with liam, that was starting to seem less possible with each passing day.

a (short) story about college, confusion, and copious amounts of wine.

Author’s Note: hi hannah! i’m happy the official last thing i ever write is for you!!!! love you to pieces <3

“Never have I ever seen Kier naked.”

Kiernan wasn’t sure who chucked a chunk of pizza crust at Niall first, but she saw Liam rolling his eyes in Niall’s direction before putting his remaining finger down. They both shared a look as Liam took a sip of his beer and their friend Carmen picked up the next card from the ring around the can of Natty Light in the center of the table.

King’s Cup was a staple part of any Saturday evening for Kier’s friend group. It was the pre-game before the proper pre-game which typically preceded a party which was the last step before anyone still sober enough to stay upright would head to the bars in Brooklyn or occasionally in the East Village. While some people’s goals were to get everyone beyond trashed well before the Ubers were called, Kier and Liam seemed to be the only two people smart enough to order pizzas and breadsticks for their ever-growing group of friends, sending Venmo requests out the moment they got their receipts so no one would forget.

“Six is chicks!” Carmen cheered.

“I thought six was dicks,” Niall said, his beer already in his hand before Carmen could even set the card to the side.

“We do this every single time we play,” Kier said, shaking her head. “Everyone, drink."

Nobody complained, following through the motions of the game. Liam was next to grab a card, pushing his empty pizza plate underneath the table to shield his drink from Carmen’s loose limbs. Her lightweight tendencies made her more clumsy than usual and typically sent her back to her apartment before anyone even left for the party.

“Eight is date,” he said, flashing the card to the circle. Kier knew what was coming before he even his mouth, so she grabbed her poorly made vodka soda and held it out in his direction to cheers. “Kier, you know me so well.”

“If only she was your real date,” Niall sighed, propping his chin onto his closed fists while he batted his eyelashes at them.

Kier and Liam ignored his antics while they took their respective drinks. They weren’t any strangers to Niall’s comments. They had started sometime during the spring semester of their freshmen year and hadn’t seemed to stop since, long after Liam and Kier stopped being a “thing.”

Well, she would use a “thing” loosely. Being A Thing meant that they were exclusive and together. Kiernan and Liam were, in fact, never together. Not officially, that is. They spent a lot of time in each other’s beds and hanging out casually, but she thought the terms “friends with benefits” and “no strings attached” were much more appropriate.

That was, until they decided to call it quits. Liam dated someone else exclusively for six months before she broke up with him after she graduated and Kiernan had a string of short-lived exclusive relationships which usually led her to not feeling sad enough about her failed romances yet still somehow ended drunk at a bar where she’d makeout with someone new, even if she didn’t want to.

Their friends tried to ask if things were weird between them ever but Kier usually just laughed. Things couldn’t be weird if they weren’t actually together. As Kate Hudson famously said as Andie Anderson, “you can’t lose something you never had,” a line that Kier recited one too many times during her rom-com bingeathons with Carmen and their friend Lydia.

Besides, as far as she was concerned, she still “had” Liam, whatever that meant. They just didn’t fuck anymore, which was fine with Kier.

“Only in your dreams, Niall,” Kier finally said, rolling her eyes at her meddling friend. It didn’t go unnoticed that Niall, Carmen, and Lydia each exchanged a look. She ignored it, taking another sip of her vodka in hopes of building up her buzz before they moved onto the next party. “Come on, let’s keep the game going.”

Kier wasn’t sure who was sitting next to Liam. He must’ve been new to the group, or maybe he came with someone else. With a straw clamped between her lips, she swayed lightly to the blaring 90s music in the background, some TLC song she’d no doubt belt out if she was out a club with her friends. She must have been caught in a tipsy trance because Liam had his eyes squinted with his gaze on her until she finally stopped swaying.

“You good?” he mouthed. She stuck up her thumb, nodding a few times. It seemed like the best way to prove her point, but in retrospect it probably just made her seem a lot more drunk than she was. Was she even drunk? She’d go with tipsy over anything else.

Kier didn’t even have to think when she saw that the guy drew another jack, immediately sticking up her three fingers to let another rousing round of Never Have I Ever commence. He looked around the circle, as if he was trying to think if he could take anyone down with a single strike, a targeted attack that tended to be the best part of the game, hence Niall’s previous remark.

She barely even heard his statement, keeping her finger up along with basically everyone else in the group. The game was starting to die down like clockwork, kickstarting the transition from the pre-game to the next stop. She waved her hand around, trying to get Liam’s attention without yelling out his name. It didn’t take long for him to notice, mostly because Kier wasn’t sure he had ever really looked away.

No, that would be silly. Maybe she was drunk.

Liam nodded in her direction, setting the empty can of beer down in front of him. Kier followed suit, finishing her vodka soda in one long sip before nearly burping when she was done. The game ended up being less eventful than usual, mostly because nobody was nearly as plastered as they usually were and neither Carmen nor Lydia allowed targeted attacks against them because they were both seeing new guys and didn’t want anyone, namely Niall or Kier, exposing the secrets of their past. There were some threats involved that neither of them seemed to test, letting the new couples enjoy their honeymoon period for a few weeks before they brought out the big guns.

“Kier, are you going to the party or what?” Carmen asked, trying to straighten out her mini skirt. “Julian and I are going to start walking soon we think.”

“Don’t leave without me,” she said, pulling up the waist of her skintight jeans.

“We’ll find you and Liam before we go.”

“Go where? To the party?” Liam asked, walking up behind Kiernan.

He slung an arm around her waist, pulling her back against his chest. Kier didn’t even try to wriggle out of his grasp, melting against his body. Besides, she was drunk, she decided. They were always too close for comfort, toying the line of friends and decidedly not just friends. Nothing had happened in a while. Even then, it was just one night. Or two nights. Kier knew it wasn’t any more than four nights, but she still stood by the fact that it was only three because all they had done the last night was fool around a bit because they were too drunk to finish.

“I think their apartment is right around the corner from Rocka Rolla,” Kier replied.

“We’re staying in Brooklyn tonight? Interesting,” he hummed. “Thought we were venturing to the East Village to hit up an NYU bar on 2nd.”

“Don’t act like you’re not happy that you don’t have to go all the way to Manhattan just to come all the way back to Brooklyn drunk as hell in an Uber Pool that you still can’t afford.”

“Ouch,” he said. “I’m hurt.”

“We’re all poor, babe,” she told him, patting his arm. “Now round the troops, or at least make sure that Niall and Lydia are accounted for.”

“Will do, Kier.”

She hummed a response, unsure of what else to say in the moment. She was just happy to be leaving the apartment. There was only so much sitting around she could do on a weekend before she got antsy. She spent most of her time in a classroom, library, or coffee shop just sitting around doing work. She had a part-time job at an office not too far from campus to keep her entertained and pockets somewhat (see: barely) lined with disposable income. Most of it went into her savings though in hopes that someday she would leave the nest, also known as her parents’ house in Greenpoint.

It wasn’t far from where some of her friends lived in Williamsburg, making it an easy walk from her childhood home. They once had an apartment somewhere on the Upper West Side when she was a toddler, but then her parents had another kid and needed more space so they ended up in the land of the G-train and she just didn’t see any reason to leave when rent was free and school was too stressful and expensive to deal with her own place.

All it meant for her was crashing at Lydia or Carmen’s more often than not and making sure that whoever she hooked up with had chill roommates. She’d only had Liam over a few nights in her childhood bedroom but was too mortified by the possibility of her parents or siblings hearing that she couldn’t finish and snuck Liam out at 1 in the morning instead.

“Earth to Kier,” Carmen said, waving her hands directly in front of her face. “Lydia is heading home with Shiv.”

“Too drunk to continue?” Kier asked, cocking her brow.

Carmen shrugged. “My guess is that she’s just tipsy enough where she’s super horny,” she replied. “Can’t blame her. I’ve heard Shiv is quite the giver in the sack.”

Kier snorted, shaking her head at Carmen’s comment. “I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that,” she replied. “Lydia’s a lucky gal.”

“If you’d just start seeing Liam again you could have that too,” Carmen said.

“I was never seeing Liam,” Kier corrected her friend. “But also that’s over, for good. It’s mutually beneficial but it’s also a bad idea.”

“Bad ideas can become good ideas,” Carmen pointed out.

“Give me a good example and I’ll blow Liam right here, right now,” Kier deadpanned.

Carmen rolled her eyes at Kier, ignoring her comment before waving Niall over. “Let’s go, Kier’s getting sexual."

“Kier’s getting what now?” Liam chimed in, pulling his red and white plaid flannel back on over his loose t-shirt.

Kier flipped off Carmen, shaking her head. “Kier’s getting nothing, that’s what,” she said. “Let’s go before my buzz wears off.”

* * * * * * *

“October is the best month in the city,” Liam announced. He had long since shed his denim jacket in the coffee shop, leaning back in his seat while he stared out the window at a group passing by on the side street near campus. “It’s not too hot, not too cold, and everyone seems slightly less miserable.”

Kiernan snorted, losing her place in the textbook she was scanning. “People here aren’t as miserable as they seem,” she said. “You non-natives always think the worst of us New Yorkers.”

“I mean, you’re tolerable most of the time,” Liam replied. He nudged her shin under the table with the tip of his shoe, a smile stretching across his lips. “I forget that you’ve never lived anywhere else sometimes."

Kiernan merely shrugged, giving up on the assignment she was supposed to be working on. “New York has everything you’d ever need, why would I need to live anywhere else?” she asked. “I mean, you’re here from wherever in the Midwest you’re from. I don’t know anything west of Jersey, so…”

Liam laughed at their long-standing joke, rolling his eyes at Kiernan’s comment. “I still stand by the fact that you would enjoy a weekend in Minnesota during the wintertime,” he said.

“In all that snow? Unlikely,” she replied. “I love the fact that you love Minnesota so much though. I think that’s enough love for the both of us, don’t you?”

“Get back to work, you menace,” he said, pointing down at her textbook.

“Could say the same to you,” she replied. “Have you even typed a word of that essay yet? I’ve heard you say a lot of shit, but I don’t think I’ve seen your fingers on that keyboard the last two hours."

“I can’t get work done when you’re around,” Liam replied. “You distract me too much.”

“And yet you continue to work with me off campus,” she said. “Don’t blame me for your own lack of an attention span.”

“Kiernan Reid, your words hurt like fists,” Liam said, clutching his hands to his chest. “I’ve been wounded.”

She rolled her eyes, flipping the page in her textbook. “So dramatic,” she muttered. Her eyes were focused on the top of the page for a split second before she flickered her eyes up, catching a glimpse of Liam staring out the window. When he shifted in his seat, she averted her gaze back onto the textbook to try to make sense of the words in front of her.

Liam and Kiernan were taking completely different classes, but their schedules were somewhat similar. Their work schedules didn’t always line up, but it at least meant a day or two a week that they could hold each other accountable and try to get some work done together before they went their separate ways out of Manhattan, Kiernan to her house in Greenpoint and Liam to his apartment in Bushwick with three other guys.

He wasn’t wrong though. Kiernan did distract him too much, but in all fairness, he wasn’t innocent himself. If anything, they continued to “study” together just as an excuse to hangout. Sometimes Kiernan was worried if they spent too much time alone together that she’d just slip back into their casual routine of sleeping together whenever it was convenient. And for a while, it was just that: convenient. But convenience didn’t mean that things couldn’t get complicated. Feelings always get involved, the lines between lust and love become blurred, and it stops being fun.

Hanging out at a coffee shop with schoolwork though was easy. They couldn’t fuck on the floor of a coffee shop the same way that they could easily hook up if they were watching a movie at his place. So maybe their studying dates at whatever coffee shop they could find with outlets and space were a waste of time because nothing was accomplished, but at least it gave them time to be just friends and nothing else.

“How’s that book?” Liam asked.

“Really interesting,” Kiernan replied without looking away from the book.

“Must be, considering you haven’t flipped the page in over five minutes.”

She narrowed her eyes, slowly looking up from the page. “Did you seriously time me?” she asked.

“Either you read really slow, or you just lied straight to my face,” Liam said.

Kiernan snorted. “As if I haven’t lied to you before,” she said.

Liam pursed his lips. “Like when?”

She flattened her palms against the glossy pages of her textbook, staring forward straight at Liam. “Mmm, oh yeah, I’m so close, right there Liam, right th–“ she moaned, loud enough to make Liam’s cheeks flush red. For a moment, she thought he’d be mad but it only took a few seconds for him to burst out laughing instead. Kiernan ignored the glances from the people sitting around them, more focused on the fact that Liam seemed to be amused.

“Like fists, Kier. Like. Fists,” he said, still smiling. “It was never for lack of trying.”

“Never for lack of trying, mostly just because of alcohol,” she replied. “You’re shit after you’ve had too much to drink.”

“You accidentally bit my dick once when you were drunk,” he pointed out.

“Probably wasn’t an accident, I was mad at you because you were dancing with another girl at a party and I was hammered and jealous,” she said.

“You told me to dance with her!” Liam replied.

“Girls are weird, what do you want me to tell you?” Kiernan replied with a shrug. “Now, enough about our previous shared sex life, I have to read about…I don’t even know what I’m reading about because you’ve been distracting me this whole time!”

“Okay well why you try to finish that page you’ve been reading for ten minutes now, I’m getting something to eat,” he announced. “If I get a cookie will you eat some?”

“As long as it–“

“Doesn’t have raisins in it, I know,” he said.

Kiernan didn’t smile until she knew his back was turned to her before she focused on her textbook once again, finally finishing the page she was stuck on. She still wasn’t sure what she was reading about, but in the grand scheme of things, that didn’t really matter.

* * * * * * *

Kiernan was running approximately half an hour behind schedule but she refused to take the blame. Her younger sister was hogging the bathroom when she desperately needed to shower and the dish she was bringing to Friendsgiving ended up not being done until ten minutes after she was supposed to leave. How she managed to fuck up mashed potatoes she would never know, but she didn’t want to cop out and buy anything store bought which everyone else no doubt did. In her defense, she lived with her parents who actually had cookware that she could use. She wasn’t even sure half of her friends owned any sort of pots or pans aside from maybe a skillet to cook grilled cheese on.

She started to stack the containers on top of each other, trying to find the insulated bag that her mom set out for her. It was supposed to be on the counter or maybe it was on the kitchen table.

“Aha!” she announced to no one, spotting the red bag collapsed onto the table. She was already sweating through her outfit, a plaid mini skirt and a cream-colored turtleneck. She made a mental note to stick to white wines only, knowing that red wine would be a disaster with her light colored outfit. It was a last minute buy at some sale in SoHo specifically for Friendsgiving. This was their third year doing it, but it was the first year Liam and his roommates were hosting.

Kiernan went over to his place two days prior to help clean it up, though they were fairly tidy for four guys. She hoped to god they hadn’t become incredible slobs over the course of two days and knew better to at least do one more tidy the morning of to ensure that nobody was eating in absolute filth. Not that anyone would particularly care. Their friend group was about as chill as chill could get, even if Lydia did have the tendency to be a bit over the top. In all fairness, Niall was her male equivalent and tended to always push the envelope towards everything becoming extra.

It took her five more minutes to make sure her hair and makeup looked okay before slipping on her tan jacket and white calf-high boots that she borrowed from Carmen the week before specifically for this outfit. She would take them off as soon as she got to their apartment, but at least she could make her entrance in the full ensemble. Not that she had anybody she had to make an entrance for.

She wasn’t the only person carting around what appeared to be some kind of dishware containing their contribution to dinner. She spotted a few oddly proportioned bags on her multiple subway rides to Liam’s apartment. In truth, it was only a twenty-minute trip or so door to door, but the G train was useless to her until she transferred to the L. It did save her the extra time it would take to walk from Greenpoint to the L line though, especially in the impractically high booties she was sporting for sartorial purposes.

Even whilst running thirty minutes late, there were still a few missing faces at Liam’s apartment when Kiernan finally arrived, her skin feeling a little frost-bitten after walking around in the cold without a pair of tights on. That was her mistake, but she realized last minute that she’d ripped holes in every single pair (or rather, some of her male courters had), rendering them useless to her. So, she bare-legged it through the city and had to hope that Liam’s apartment was slightly warmer due to the fact that they were cooking the turkey and there would be a group of people crowding the tight space.

Kiernan knocked on the door with the tip of her boot. She knew the code to their building but having a key to their apartment was another story. It took a few seconds for someone to come to the door, but she could already hear the sound of some kind of commotion inside.

“Hey Kier,” Liam’s roommate James said, holding the door wide open for her to come in. “Liam, Kiernan’s here.”

“Hey James,” Kiernan said, keeping her boots on momentarily while she searched for someplace to set down her serving dish. “Any idea where I should–“

“I’ll take that, Kier,” Liam said, swooping in before she could finish her sentence. He didn’t even stop before he grabbed the bag from her hands, taking it into the kitchen before setting it down onto the counter. He was back seconds later, his hands free of any kind of dishware with a smile on his face. “You didn’t have to dress up. I feel like garbage next to you now.”

Liam was just wearing a pair of black jeans and a black t-shirt, it was hardly garbage. She rolled her eyes at him before bending down to slide the boots off. “Any excuse to not wear the shit I wear to campus,” she replied, pulling down the hem of her skirt. She felt about four inches shorter, which sounded about right considering the death trap shoes she decided would be appropriate to wear for a total of two minutes inside.

“Well, you look nice, that’s all,” he replied. “Well I mean, not that I have to tell you but make yourself at all. Lydia, Carmen, and Niall are all late, go figure but they’re the only three we’re waiting for. Uh, sit wherever and the wine is over in the living room already."

“You might catch me there all night,” she said. “I made sure it was well stocked.”

Liam snorted. “Yes, yes you did,” he said. “I think Trader Joe’s owes you a personal thank you note after all of the money you must have dropped at the wine shop in Union Square before you came over early this week.”

“My arms stopped being sore yesterday after carrying that many bottles, but it will be well worth my Friendsgiving buzz,” she told him. “I better see your indulging today, mister. It’s no fun when you leave me to be wine drunk by myself.”

“Someone’s gotta make sure you’re okay in your wine drunk state,” Liam pointed out. “Wine drunk Kiernan is on another level. The only thing worse might be tequila drunk Kiernan. She’s the fucking worst.”

She shuddered at every recollection of those tequila drunk nights, almost all of them no doubt ending up with vomit. “In all fairness, you benefitted from some of those tequila drunk nights,” she said.

“Just go drink your wine, Kiernan,” Liam said.

And that she did.

Kiernan wasn’t sure what portion of dinner was the turning point in her drinking or how many glasses she had actually had. She had her own, but then she kept stealing some of Carmen and Lydia’s and had Liam get her some refills. By the time she served herself food, her plate seemed to become 90% carbs in her attempt to soak up the alcohol. Even after mounds of bread and potatoes were consumed, she still found herself bloated on the couch, her face flushed and vision fuzzy.

“Hey Kier, you doing okay?” Liam asked, sinking down next to her on the couch.

She wasn’t sure how long she had been sitting there, but Lydia, Carmen, and Niall had all hugged her goodbye long before. They’d had a nice conversation at dinner. Or at least Kiernan thought it was nice. She made a mental note to get together with the girls before they all went their separate ways before the holidays and when the semester was finally over. They needed some well-deserved girl time, mostly because she wanted to make sure their new boyfriends were treating them well and that they were doing okay after their penultimate semester from hell.

“Splendid,” she replied, following her statement with the final sip of wine in her glass. “Were my mashed potatoes okay?”

“They were great, Kier,” he told her.

“I made them myself,” she said. “Peeled ‘em, cut ‘em, boiled ‘em, mashed ‘em. All of it. Not store bought! I mean, I bought the stuff at the store to make them but I made them. Kiernan Marie Reid made them.”

Liam snorted, draping his arm loosely over Kiernan’s shoulders. Or maybe he was just resting it along the back of the couch they were sharing. Did the heating come on earlier than usual in their apartment? It felt awfully hot. She wasn’t even wearing tights and her legs felt like they were on fire.

“You outdid yourself, Kier,” he finally said.

“Did everyone else leave?” she asked, eyes surveying the room.

“Not everyone,” he replied. “There’s still a few people left if you needed to chat to anyone in particular.”

She shook her head. “Nah, I like chatting with you,” she told him. “I finished my wine.”

“I can see that,” he replied. “Do you want me to take your glass?”

“To refill it?”

“To wash it,” he said.

Kiernan pouted, furrowing her brows at his comment. “I haven’t had that much.”

“Okay,” he said, refusing to argue. “How does this dinner compare to your family’s Thanksgiving?”

Kiernan shrugged. “We go to our family’s house out in Long Island. I hate Long Island, but it’s way better than Staten Island so I guess I can’t complain.”

“Are you going to bless everyone with your homemade mashed potatoes?” he asked, nudging her gently in the side.

“Only for you,” she replied. “We just bring the wine and sometimes my mom makes a pie if she feels like it. My aunt and uncle are very particular about Thanksgiving dinner but it always tastes amazing so like, no complaints I guess.”

“Sounds like my parents,” Liam replied. “We host at our house. It’s always a nightmare until everyone arrives and then it’s like none of the stress ever happened.”

Kiernan widened her eyes, her head turning to face Liam. “Do I stress my aunt and uncle out?” Kiernan asked.

Liam laughed, shaking his head at Kiernan’s panicked question. “I don’t think so, no,” he assured her.

“Did I stress you out? Because you hosted today?”

“You always stress me out, Kier,” he told her.

“Aren’t you gonna take my glass away?” she asked, tilting it back and forth in her hands.

“Yeah, I can do that,” he said, reaching his free hand across her body to grab it.

But the moment he started to stand up and his arm draped around her shoulder began to lift, Kiernan abruptly interrupted, “Wait!”

Liam froze, almost squatting above the sofa before he decided to just sit back down. “You okay?” he asked.

“Yeah,” she replied, unable to think of anything else to contribute. “Sorry, I forgot what I was going to say.”

“Okay Kier,” Liam said, still looking at her skeptically out of the corner of his eyes. “Were you going to take the train home tonight?”

She nodded, drumming her fingers against her legs. “Should probably leave soon,” she said

“I think you should just stay here,” he suggested. “Or you should call a car.”

“Why?”

“I mean, you’re drunk,” he pointed out matter-of-fact.

“Do you worry?”

“Of course I do,” he replied.

Kiernan’s lips lingered in a small ‘o’ shape while she thought of something to say. But instead of an intelligible response, she merely muttered, “Oh.”

“I just have to clean up but you can just hang here or just lay down in my room,” he offered. “Or if you decide to call a car, can you just let me know? I’ll walk you down and make sure you get into the right car.”

“What do you want me to do?” she asked, cocking her head to the side.

She wasn’t sure why she even bothered trying to examine Liam’s expression or body language. She could barely see straight, let alone try to decipher context clues about his feelings. Even if she was sober she’d still struggle. She and Liam had never been very good at reading each other in most contexts. They knew almost everything about each other, but when it came to feelings, they just couldn’t figure it out.

“I just want you to do whatever you want to do,” he finally said.

“How long will it take you to clean?” she asked.

“Not very long because I cleaned before dinner and helped set up, so it’s James and Grant’s turn to clean,” he explained.

“Can you help me to your room?” she asked.

Liam nodded, getting off of the couch first. He discarded her wine glass onto the nearby coffee table before stepping directly in front of her. She held out her hands for him to grab, gently hoisting her up until she was on both feet. Kiernan felt wobbly as she walked with Liam, but she tried to keep her balance as they made their way slowly down the hallway towards his bedroom.

“I have to pee,” she announced, the thought dawning on her as they passed the bathroom. “Wait outside.”

“Aye aye, Captain Kier,” Liam said, letting go of her for the first time since she got off of the couch.

She was only gone for a few minutes, but she felt pathetic clutching onto the bathroom sink to keep herself upright until she got back outside to Liam. She made a mental note to never trust herself when it came to buying excessive amounts of wine again, a promise she made to herself every single time and never followed through with.

They didn’t talk as they stumbled into his bedroom, a familiar act that wasn’t ending the way that it used to. He guided her to his bed, letting her fall gently backward until she was sitting on the edge of the mattress. Kier tried to center herself, wishing her head would just stop spinning for a second so she could look at Liam. He seemed to be busying himself near his dresser, disappearing out of the corner of her eyes. She could hear him rummaging through a drawer closely followed by the gentle slam.

Liam didn’t say anything as he presented Kiernan with a pile of clothes, a pair of sweatpants with a coordinating sweatshirt that she had worn plenty of times before. She hadn’t seen Liam wear them in years. She assumed they became her comfy clothes at his apartment when she either didn’t wear or bring any of her own.

“Thank you,” she told him, setting the pile down on her lap.

“I also found, uh, these makeup wipes in my drawer,” he said, handing over the light blue packet. “I know it drives you crazy to sleep with your makeup on. I don’t have any of that micellar water or cleanser stuff that you like but–“

“Liam,” she said, interrupting his ramble. He paused, pressing his lips together. “Thank you. I’m sorry I got drunk at Friendsgiving again.”

“It’s okay,” he told her. “Why don’t you get changed and lay down. I’ll bring you water soon.”

“Are you going to stay?” she asked. “In here, I mean. It’s your apartment after all.”

“Yeah, I can stay in here if you want me to,” he replied.

If you want me to.

I just want you to do whatever you want.

Kiernan’s fingers played with the clothes in her hand, flicking through the edges while she sat on Liam’s response. She could see his fingers drumming at his sides, but she just couldn’t get the words out fast enough. This wasn’t like her. She acted quicker and wittier. She didn’t pause or stumble. She just wasn’t sure she could blame it on the alcohol this time.

“I’ll leave your side empty,” she finally said. “I’m going to get naked now.”

Liam laughed, beaming at Kiernan. She couldn’t see much, but she could always make out his smile even in her drunken hazes. “Okay Kier, you do that.”

* * * * * * *

“Didn’t we just have Friendsgiving?” Lydia asked, tossing the throw pillow she had in her hands back onto the shelf at Urban Outfitters. Lydia and Carmen dragged Kiernan out to shop in Manhattan for their Secret Santa gifts for their big annual exchange within their friend group. “And why did we agree to let Niall host?”

“Because his begging was pathetic,” Carmen replied, looking over her shoulder for a brief moment before she focused on the candle in front of her again. “Not every man has an apartment as tidy as Liam and his roommates do. Live with it, Lyd.

“Liam is very tidy,” Lydia agreed. “Right Kier?”

Kiernan sighed, rolling her eyes at her two friends. “You two are ruthless,” she said. “We’re friends.”

“Okay,” Carmen replied, nearly snorting as she said it. “The two of you are very clearly not just friends and never have been.”

“You can be friends with a guy and have it be platonic,” Kier pointed out.

“Well of course you can, all of us are friends with Niall and I don’t know about you, but I’ve certainly never thought about having him dick me down,” she said, earning a grimace from Kiernan. “But you and Liam aren’t the same as you and Niall and not just because you two used to fuck on the daily.”

“It was not on the daily,” Kiernan argued.

“It might as well have been on the daily!” Lydia chimed in.

“You’re both ridiculous,” Kiernan muttered. “I thought we’ve talked about not discussing this subject.”

“We have, but sometimes we just need to remind you that pretending that you’re not attracted to Liam is stupid and you’re depriving yourself of someone who could be good for you rather than you trying to find someone better at a bar,” Lydia explained. “Which, you never have. You’re batting 0 for 4 right now, Kiernan.”

“Can we just shop for our Secret Santa gifts?” Kiernan asked, wishing they could just drop the subject once and for all.

Lydia wasn’t wrong though. They didn’t talk about it that much anymore, not since Kiernan had a drunken breakdown about it the previous semester during spring break. What Kier did wasn’t fair, but she had one too many frozen margaritas at Hotel Tortuga at dinner and not nearly enough of the free chips and salsa. She was scrolling through Instagram Stories and saw that Liam kept posting videos with some girl. He had gone to Miami with Niall and a couple of their mutual friends, but she didn’t recognize the girl from New York. It only took a quick search on Liam’s Instagram to find her at the top of his ‘Following’ page and even less time for the envy to set in.

It was unfair for her to get upset about it, but she was drunk and admittedly the tiniest bit jealous. She ended up crying on the subway about it to Lydia and Carmen, confessing god knows what to them. All Kiernan remembered was begging them to not talk about Liam like that and for the most part, they kept up with their end of the bargain.

“Fine, but only because I want to get the fuck out of Urban Outfitters and find a bar,” Carmen said. “My treat, by the way for surviving the semester but also because I found out I’m somehow getting a tiny bonus at work which means we all deserve a happy hour cocktail.”

Kiernan only tagged along for emotional support. She got Liam, no doubt a sign that god was trying to fuck with her. Even still, she’d found his gift by happenstance the week prior when she was browsing a small boutique in the West Village. She might have spent ten dollars over the limit, but she couldn’t choose between the bag of overpriced coffee that Liam always raved about but never bought for himself and the candle that not only had Minnesota on the label but supposedly smelled like the state. It was one of those Homesick candles that she never really needed because she never left her hometown, but she knew that Liam always missed the Midwest one way or another, even if he enjoyed living in the city.

She dodged all of his nosey questions after they all picked names, rolling her eyes at him every time he asked when they were studying earlier that week. They were holed up in a café in Greenpoint, neither of them particularly feeling like staying near campus that day. It wasn’t too far from Kier’s place if it ended up being too crowded for them to study in. It was the day before both of their last finals for the semester and neither of them seemed too keen on studying, even if that’s what they both desperately needed to do after a semester of some serious slacking off.

Kiernan wouldn’t budge, refusing to blow the surprise even if she hadn’t chosen Liam by accident. He would just have to wait like the rest of the group until their holiday party later in the week before everyone started to disperse for the holidays. They did White Elephant the previous year but it was too disastrous to organize and everyone forgot the rules ten times throughout so they decided it’d just be easier to do a Secret Santa purely because it was hard to fuck up, aside from the whole keeping it a secret thing.

It was clear by the time their friend group all got together in their festive attire that some people had spilled the beans, including Niall who had chosen one of Liam’s friends that he didn’t know all that well. Instead of embarrassing himself and picking some shit gift, he decided to just ask him what he liked and went from there. Still, Kiernan refused to tell anyone who she had chosen, mostly because the only three people she would consider spilling to would’ve made a huge ordeal out of it.

She arrived at Niall’s alone with just her gift in tow. Okay, and a bottle of red wine and spiked eggnog. It was her personal stash, or at least that’s what she said as a joke when she handed them over to Niall the second she walked into the door of his apartment.

“You really outdid yourself with the tacky décor,” she told him, noting all of the multi-colored lights that seemed to adorn any surface possible. Or rather, any surface possible that was near one of the outlets that were far and few between in the apartment. “Nice sweater, too.”

He looked down at the red and green monstrosity, smiling wide at his sartorial accomplishment. “Thanks, Kier,” he said. “Yours is…not ugly, what the fuck?”

“It was cheap at H&M, what do you want me to say?” she replied. It was a holiday-themed sweater at least. It was tan and just had Winterland written in red text with a few diamonds. It was subtle but she just didn’t have the time to find a truly heinous sweater that she hadn’t already worn before.

“You’re just trying to show us all up, huh?” he joked, nudging her arm with his elbow. “Red or white wine?”

“I’ll start with white,” she told him. “Now scram so I can put my present in the pile without you trying to peek at the name.”

“The holidays make you cranky!” Niall yelled over his shoulder while he walked away from the living room and into the kitchen. Kiernan rolled her eyes, making sure her box was still concealed by its bag before she walked over to the small pile of presents and hid Liam’s amongst the rest. He wasn’t at Niall’s yet, but in all fairness, Lydia, Carmen, and a few of their mutual friends were still missing in action as well.

By the time everyone had arrived (she pretended not to notice that Liam was last and hated herself when she felt her body perk up at the sight of him), Kiernan was a glass and a half of wine and two and a half sugar cookies deep into the night. In retrospect, eating a full meal before coming would have been a wise idea, but she made the mistake she always made by not doing that, not even in the slightest.

She was mid-bite when Liam squeezed his way through Niall’s roommates to join Kiernan near the tree. She’d decided it was her spot for the night, mostly because it gave her the perfect view of the room so she could survey everyone and essentially just people watch all night long. As long as she stayed sober enough to see straight, that is.

“Did you decide to just stick up a big middle finger to the Ugly Christmas Sweater thing?’ he asked, pointing at her fairly cute sweater.

“I’m part of the resistance, what can I say?” she replied with a shrug. “Feeling any better than earlier this week?”

“That final scarred me for life, I thought I said never to mention it ever again,” he said. “I’ve never been more excited for a semester to be over.”

“Well, hold that thought because next semester is our last semester and then we’re free,” she reminded him. “Just to celebrate that thought, time to finish this glass and get myself something fresh.”

“Dare I ask how much wine you’ve had on no doubt an empty stomach, or at least just a sugar-filled stomach?”

“Nope,” she replied, smirking over the rim of her now empty glass. “Get a drink with me, come on.”

Kiernan wasn’t sure if she and Liam both had steam to blow off after their respective semesters, but they kept a bottle of wine and eggnog to themselves and holed up in the corner on the floor near the tree until someone announced that they were going to start the gift exchange. Was it Lydia? No, she would know Lydia’s voice–

“Fuck, should we be mixing wine with spiked eggnog?” Liam asked.

“Probably should’ve asked that question before we were multiple glasses into this bad decision, now shouldn’t you have?” she replied, cocking a brow. “If both of us keel over during Secret Santa, then we can take equal blame.”

“Sounds like a deal to me,” he replied, shifting off of his butt and onto his knees so he could hoist himself off of the ground. With his glasses discarded on the ground still, he knelt down to help Kiernan up. “Should I push Niall off the couch so we get a comfortable seat?”

“Usually I’d say yes but since I’m buzzed I can tolerate him. Let’s just sit on the floor,” she told him. “I mean, that’s what we were doing before so our asses are gonna be sore anyways.”

“Why are your asses going to be sore?” Niall asked, somehow picking up on their conversation from across the coffee table that had previously housed a bunch of wine glasses and plates of snacks, replaced by all of the gifts instead. “Are you two trying anal again?”

“Niall, I swear to god if you don’t shut up I will throttle you through the wall,” Kiernan threatened. “Can someone just choose their present first before tonight becomes Niall’s funeral? Thanks!”

“Kier is mean when she drinks,” Niall said.

“Wanna test that theory even more?” she asked, cocking a brow at Niall. He shook his head immediately. “Good, now someone pick their gift and let’s let the unwrapping and guessing commence!”

It would have been wise for Liam and Kiernan to stop drinking when presents were being opened, but they had to do something to entertain themselves during the lull, namely when people tried to nicely unwrap the gifts instead of tearing through the wrapping paper like heathens. Instead, they clinked the rims of their glasses together every time it was someone else’s turn to open a gift, blowing through a few more glasses between the two of them before the circle finally came around to them.

Momentarily, Kiernan forgot that she was the one who had given Liam his present, blissfully unaware while she took the last sip in her glass of red wine. There weren’t many gifts left in the pile, but there were still enough people left in the circle where she thought he might not get it right away. It’s not like it was an inside joke between the two of them, or at least she didn’t think it was. His home state was common knowledge and anyone who had ever been to his apartment would have known what kind of coffee he had, right?

“Hmm,” he hummed, his eyes scanning over his name written on a sticker on the front of the box. He didn’t tear through the wrapping paper and make a mess, but he certainly wasn’t as careful as everyone else had been in trying to get to the present. He pulled the candle out of the large box first, taking a second to recognize the state printed on the label. With his other hand, he pulled the coffee out, balancing both of the gifts in his hands.

“Don’t burn the apartment down with that candle this time,” Liam’s roommate Zane said.

“Ooh, guess! Guess! Guess!” Lydia cheered, clapping her hands together.

“I mean, I’m not sure this is fair because I recognized her handwriting from the box but…” he paused, setting the gifts back into the box before he turned to his right to look at Kiernan. “I’m not sure what Minnesota is supposed to smell like, but thank you Kier.”

“You and your Midwest pride, what can I say?” she replied with a small shrug. “Please don’t burn your apartment to the ground though, now I’m worried that I should’ve gotten you a fire extinguisher instead of a bag of coffee.”

“A bag of my favorite coffee is much, much more important than fire safety,” he replied. “Thank you, Kier.”

“No problem,” she replied. “So, I guess it’s my turn, huh?”

Kiernan ended up getting a bottle of red wine that wasn’t from Trader Joe’s, which meant it was much nicer than she usually treated herself to and a set of glasses that she recognized from Anthropologie. It turned out that Carmen had tipped off one of their mutual friends Ilya. They had been in the same circle of friends since freshmen year but they probably only hung around in larger groups, which is why she finally just had Ilya reveal himself instead of embarrassing herself trying to guess.

By the time Secret Santa finished, the Christmas music was back on and blaring and everyone had dispersed with their gifts. Kiernan hid hers from herself, placing them in the canvas bag she used to carry Liam’s present and putting it near her jacket at Niall’s front door. Besides, she still had some spiked egg nog that was calling her name despite not needing another sip of alcohol to keep herself going for the rest of the party. She was already sufficiently buzzed and Liam didn’t seem too far behind if he wasn’t already at her level.

Kiernan was in the kitchen pouring herself a small cup of eggnogg when she felt an arm around her waist. She didn’t have a chance to turn around before they grabbed the cup from the counter and took it for themselves. She recognized the watch on their wrist, realizing it was Liam a second too late

“Dammit Liam, get your own egg nog,” she complained.

“I’m not sure you need any more,” he told her, setting the empty cup back down.

Kiernan turned around with his arm still around her waist, leaning her back against the edge of the counter. “I would’ve shared, but you just went on ahead and declared that glass as your own, now didn’t you?” she asked, tilting her head to the side.

“It’s very loud in here,” Liam pointed out, pointing towards his ears. “Couldn’t quite hear ya. Did you say ‘I’ll share with you any time, Liam?’”

“You’re irritating,” she muttered.

“What?” he asked, cupping his hand around his ear, leaning down closer to Kiernan’s face. “Come to the bathroom, I wanna talk for a second.”

Keirnan didn’t even question it, she merely nodded and waited for him to lead the way. The door to Niall’s bathroom was wide open thankfully, leaving them to slip right in instead of waiting outside and drawing attention to themselves. Anytime the two of them slipped away, she could practically hear Niall, Lydia, and Carmen’s meddling from wherever they were. It was all in good fun, but sometimes it drove Kiernan nuts.

“So, what’s up?” Kiernan asked, wandering over to the sink. She hoisted herself up onto the counter around the sink, the back of her feet immediately swinging back to hit the cabinet doors underneath.

“I just wanted to thank you for the gift,” he replied. “It was really thoughtful, that’s all.”

“Am I supposed to bring Ilya into the bathroom to thank him for my wine too?” Kiernan asked, quirking her brows at Liam. “You’re welcome, Liam. I saw it and thought of you. Probably would’ve gotten it for you even if I wasn’t your Secret Santa, so this game really saved me some money this holiday season.”

Liam rolled his eyes, still laughing at her comment anyways. “Strongly considering not sharing the coffee with you next time you come over to my place and want some.”

“Well that’d be rude,” she replied. “You would never deprive me of that. You love me too much.”

Either Kiernan was way too drunk or time seemed to freeze in the room. Kiernan folded her hands in her lap, lips frozen in a faint ‘o’ while she waited for Liam to say something.

It turned out that Liam didn’t really have much to say at all. Instead, he took a short step forward until he could slide his leg between Kiernan’s. There was no hesitation on either side after he placed his hand on her cheek, drawing her face closer to his until their lips met. It had been months since the last time Kiernan was this close to Liam, her arms draped loosely around her shoulders while she ignored his stubble brushing roughly against her chin and cheeks every time their lips moved against each other.

It was irresponsible and just a terrible idea but every time Liam pulled gently on her legs to bring her body closer to his, Kiernan forgot for a split second that what she was doing was unbelievably stupid. There wasn’t a single thing bad about kissing Liam, aside from the sinking feeling she got in her stomach when they finally pulled apart. Someone was knocking loudly on the door and Liam tried to ignore it by kissing down Kiernan’s neck but the knocking just kept getting louder.

“Fuck,” Liam swore, letting his forehead rest against Kiernan’s.

“This didn’t happen,” she said, placing her finger under Liam’s chin. “Okay?”

He didn’t even respond with words, merely nodding before taking a step back to give Kiernan her space.

* * * * * * *

Kiernan and Liam hadn’t spoken at all since their makeout at the Secret Santa party. She tried not to dwell on it because she knew that he had gone home two days later for the holidays, but it didn’t make her feel any better about the situation. Other than a ‘Merry Christmas, Kier’ text from Liam, it had been radio silence between them and it was driving her crazy. It was silly, she knew that, but she couldn’t help but wonder if she was too harsh or if she just should’ve stopped it before it could even happen.

Still, even on New Year’s Eve, Kiernan felt even worse when she was drunk on champagne with her chest pressed against somebody else’s. She vaguely knew him as a friend of a friend, but his name escaped her. It was either Brad or Bruce or something that began with a ‘B’. He seemed nice enough and was one of the only people at the party that was somewhat interested in talking to someone who didn’t go to the rest of their colleges or run with their crowd all of the time.

They didn’t share a particularly amazing kiss at midnight, but it didn’t seem fair to Brad/Bruce when she just kept replaying her kiss with Liam in her head instead. He was fine at kissing and it felt nice to be wrapped in somebody’s arms, but she knew the feeling in the pit of her stomach was guilt and she couldn’t shake it. Brad/Bruce looked disappointed when Kiernan broke away from their kiss and excused herself, making a lie up about having to go to the bathroom.

It wasn’t until she was walking out of the apartment and out into the hallway that she saw a text from Liam, a simple two sentences that made her eyes watery.

Happy New Year, Kier. Miss you & can’t wait to see you next week.

She didn’t tell anyone about it, but even if she did, she just would’ve blamed it on the champagne. Always blame it on the alcohol whenever possible. Always.

* * * * * * *

The thing that Kiernan learned about both she and Liam is that they were both resilient. Or at least, their complicated relationship was. She tried to convince herself that their friendship wasn’t complicated, not in the slightest, but there was only so much pretending that she could do. Going from friends to friends with benefits to friends who saw other people to teetering on the edge between friends and not-just-friends was starting to become more than she could handle without faltering and needing some space.

But not seeing Liam for nearly three weeks throughout the holidays was too much space, not that she’d ever admit it to anyone. Everyone had gotten together for pizza and movies (no wine, just beer which Kiernan detested), the perfect buffer for the two of them being face to face again after not talking about the fact that they made out at their holiday party and didn’t seem to hate it.

They made it through both movies without Kiernan feeling uncomfortable for a second, not even when they hugged goodbye and Liam’s arms seemed to linger a second too long around her frame. Not even when one of the movies that Niall no doubt chose on purpose was No Strings Attached. And definitely not even when someone made a comment about Liam not following Kiernan to the bathroom this time when she left between movies to pee.

They couldn’t spend the rest of their time constantly surrounded by other people, especially when they spent so much time during the semester just the two of them, whether it was studying after classes or meeting up on their simultaneous lunch breaks from their respective jobs only a few blocks apart. So when Liam asked what Kiernan’s hours were at the office job she worked, she didn’t lie and pretend she was swamped with work. In reality, she never really was. A friend of her dad’s was doing her a favor and keeping her semi-employed so she could save money to move out and for her inevitable student loans.

Kiernan started babysitting for family friends when she was around 15 and did it on the side until she was 21. She only lasted two years in retail before she got fed up with rude customers and got paired up with a friend of her father who needed help filing papers and just general administrative tasks at his office. Sometimes she organized his office and helped clear it out of decades worth of documents that he kept and assumed were important (she wasn’t sure how important blank cards were, but she never brought it up). Work wasn’t necessarily unpleasant, but she would happily take the opportunity to not eat lunch at her desk and see Liam instead.

She met Liam outside at 12 on the dot, wasting no time as she not so casually rushed out of the office with her faux fur teddy bear coat and purse. It was the perfect day in January, for New York at least. It was chilly, but there was no wind in the air and the sun was consistently shining, a rarity in the winter as of late.

Liam was waiting outside with his hands in his pockets and headphones still in. Kiernan tried not to startle him when she walked out of the building and placed a hand on his arm, trying to get his attention without jumping in front of him or saying his name loudly to get his attention over his music. He didn’t seem to flinch, slipping his headphones out of his ears and tucking them into his pockets.

“Hey Kier,” he said, enveloping her into a one-armed side hug. “Usual place for lunch?”

“I’m fine with that,” she replied. “It’s funny, I really like it there but I only go with you. Feels wrong walking in by myself and getting it to go."

“Weirdo,” he replied, playfully nudging her in the side. “Let’s go, it’s cold in the shade.”

“Wear a scarf every once in a while,” she joked, tugging on the shearling cuff of his worn out aviator jacket. “That should solve your problem.”

“At least I don’t look like the mascot for a detergent brand,” Liam countered.

“Did you just accuse me of looking like the Snuggle Bear?” Kiernan asked. “Rude!”

“But accurate,” he replied, looking over his shoulder. “C’mon, let’s try to beat the lunch rush.”

They only had to walk two blocks to get to their usual café, but it tended to get crowded during lunch with students and workers from the area, meaning they wouldn’t get a good table, or really any table. It was a small place and sitting anywhere but near the windows was just a bummer, especially on a sunny and somewhat warm day.

“In my defense, it is considerably warmer here than it is in Minnesota so this feels like a heatwave,” Liam said, swerving to the right to avoid colliding with someone walking between the two of them. “In fact, I should be in shorts and flip-flops right now.”

“That would be offensive to the eyes,” Kiernan said, scrunching her nose. “Nothing says heterosexual like that ensemble during the winter.”

“The shit that comes out of your mouth sometimes, I swear,” Liam said, shaking his head at Kiernan’s comment. He still laughed though, which made Kiernan smile. “I got almost three weeks without being bullied by you.”

“Oh come on, I do not bully you,” she argued. “And don’t use your usual ‘people in the Midwest are just so much nicer than people in New York’ line on me. You’ve been using that for the past three years, it’s lost its charm.”

“I forgot how easy it is to rile you up sometimes,” Liam said. “It is nice to be back though.”

“Well, it’s nice to have you back,” she replied, rounding the corner on the block the café was on. “The city is kind of lonely when you guys are gone.”

“Yeah?” he asked. “Well, someday we won’t have as much time off as we do now to be home for weeks at a time.”

“Ugh, don’t remind me,” she groaned, lingering outside of the café with Liam. It looked fairly empty inside, they could afford a few minutes outside to finish their conversation. “This time next year we’ll be like eight months out of college doing god knows what.”

Liam sighed, his warm breath blowing out into the cold air. “Weird,” he said. He let his comment linger before he finally opened the door to the café, holding it for Kiernan before following closely behind her.

It was significantly warmer inside than it was out on the street, the two of them shedding their coats the minute they walked in. They both gravitated towards the same two-seater table near the window, draping their coats over the back of the chairs. It was quiet for a weekday afternoon, but Kiernan always noticed that it was much less crowded when the weather was cold or rainy, most people deciding to just stay inside during their lunch hour rather than venture out.

“Do you want to sit and I’ll order?” Liam asked, pulling his wallet out of the back pocket of his jeans.

“Well hold on, let me grab some cash–“

Liam interrupted her before she could even begin to rifle through her purse. “It’s my treat,” he replied. “Don’t you even dare Venmo me your portion either."

“This is unnecessary but I’m only agreeing because I’ll just get you back sometime soon for drinks or something,” she said, slumping down into her seat. “Mark my words though, I will be getting even.”

“This sounds so much more like a threat than you just paying me back for one measly lunch,” Liam said. “Do you want your usual?”

“Of course,” she replied, sliding her phone out of the back pocket of her purse. “Thanks, Liam.”

“Anytime,” he said, maneuvering through the cramped tables while he made his way toward the counter.

Kiernan mainly scrolled through Instagram, replying to a few stray texts from her friends that she got in the morning and hadn’t had a chance to get to while she was at work. She knew her boss wouldn’t care, but she felt weird slacking off when she was lucky enough to have a job that kept her off of the floor at a store and far away from customer service. Besides, in reality, it was a few hours of peace in her day, even if those peaceful moments were spent near a computer or filing cabinet.

Kiernan had gotten sucked into watching 60 second makeup tutorials with the sound off, letting Instagram autoplay one video after the next. If Liam hadn’t plopped back down into the seat across from her with their tray, she’s not sure when she would’ve put her phone down.

“Instagram black hole?” Liam asked, nodding towards her phone.

“You know it,” she said, locking her phone and placing it face down on the table. “Did you switch up your order today? What the hell?”

“You know, I was just really feeling soup today, what can I say?” Liam replied, grabbing his bowl and bread from the tray before pushing it closer to Kiernan so she could grab her sandwich and iced tea. “Still can’t get over the fact that you like iced drinks during the winter.”

“What am I supposed to eat with a sandwich? A hot coffee? That sounds vile,” she replied. “Besides, it’s cold outside, not inside. Let me enjoy my iced drink in peace!”

“As I do recall earlier, you said that it was nice to have me back,” Liam said, stirring his plastic spoon around in his bowl. “Do you retract your statement?”

“Absolutely,” she said. “I take it back, all of it. Who’s the bully now?”

“Still you,” he replied. “But that’s okay. I still lo–”

Liam paused mid-sentence, his mouth still agape while the rest of his statement hung in the air. I still love you for it. It was the very word that got them into trouble the month prior. Kiernan told Lydia and Carmen that she loved them all of the time. Hell, she constantly joked with Niall that her quirks were what he had to love about her. Liam was just as much of a friend to her as anyone else she said it casually to, and yet every time it came out of their mouths, it felt different, like it had an entirely other meaning.

It didn’t though. It couldn’t.

* * * * * * *

“It’s so weird seeing you some place without Lydia and Carmen,” Niall commented, filling up Kiernan’s wine glass nearly to the brim with rosé. At this point, Kiernan thought her friend group just wanted any excuse to drink during the week without just going on a random Thursday night binge so instead they planned a Valentine’s Day party for all of the single friends in their group to get together and apparently drink their sorrows away. Nobody at the party seemed particularly upset about being single though. In all fairness, she was one of the two girls at the party and she hardly ever hung out with the girl that was there. Tish wasn’t a huge fan of Lydia, Kiernan knew that much, but she typically steered clear of the three girls just out of their association with her.

“They just had to go on and get boyfriends that they’re actually happy with, what a drag,” Kiernan joked, taking a long sip of her wine. Even if it was an entirely male party (essentially), she made sure that everything was pink and red, toxic masculinity be damned. Liam let everyone come to his apartment, mostly because all of his roommates were single so nobody needed it to woo their significant others, so Kiernan set up all of the bottles of rosé and candies before everyone arrived. Liam had even instructed the pizzeria to make the pepperoni in the shape of a heart, which in theory would have been cute if it wasn’t for what Niall called an “Anti-Love Party.” Kiernan knew he was just particularly bitter because he had gone on a few dates with a girl he was super into who then got back together with her ex instead of continuing to see him.

“At least we have each other, right Kier?” Niall asked, slinking an arm around her shoulder.

“I’m not having drunk pity sex with you, Niall,” she replied.

He merely laughed, bringing the rim of his beer bottle to his lips with his free hand. “I wouldn’t dare come between you and Liam, anyways,” he said before he took a sip of his drink. “It’s inevitable.”

“It is not inevitable, it’s impossible,” she replied. “I think you’ve had a bit too much to drink during your self-proclaimed Anti Love party, Ni.”

“Sober, drunk, I’m right regardless,” he said with a shrug. “You’ll see. And now I must go before you beat the shit out of me in front of all of my friends. Besides, I see a slice of pizza left that’s calling my name.”

“Get outta here, Niall,” she replied, jokingly shoving him towards the pizza.

“Just remember what I said!” he yelled over his shoulder.

Kiernan just rolled her eyes at him, turning on her heel to survey the rest of the party. In reality, it was just a bunch of twenty-somethings procrastinating whatever assignments they had due and drinking while they could still get away with it. Not that this reality would have stopped her, she was in the same boat. Graduation was impending and the only thing Kiernan knew that would happen after she walked across that stage was a dinner with her family.

Everything else was a blur and she tried her hardest not to let that bother her every single day. Some days it was easier to ignore than others, but without Carmen and Lydia by her side, it made her wonder if this is what things were going to be like after college was over and everyone went their separate ways. She knew she was staying in the city, but everyone else’s plans were up in the air, all dependent on where the job offers were coming from.

“Hey Kier, you look like you’re worried or something,” Liam said, walking directly in front of her.

She blinked a few times, snapping out of whatever daze she’d gotten herself into. “Ah yeah, sorry just got a bit distracted,” she apologized, immediately taking a sip of her drink. “This party is kind of weird. And sad.”

“Yeah,” he replied, nodding as he watched everyone chat in their designated groups of three. “Seems like a weird reason to have a party and Niall’s name for it doesn’t help.”

“Well, that’s just him being bitter, that’s all,” Kiernan said. “I’m just here for the wine, so.”

“And here I thought you were just really excited to come to my place and see your good ole pal Liam,” he replied. “I’m hurt, truly.”

“You’ll get over it,” she said. “Come on, I see an opening on the couch and I’m getting too lazy to stand and wander around any longer.”

He merely shook his head, following Kiernan’s lead over to the empty sofa. He sat down in the corner, Kiernan plopping down next to him, close enough for their thighs to touch. She shifted back and forth, pulling down the hem of her heart-printed skirt until she got comfortable. She fought the urge to let her body rest against Liam, keeping her back almost straight against the back of the couch instead. It was uncomfortable, but every time she got this close to Liam, things always tended to cross the line one way or another and it was far too cliché for it to happen on Valentine’s Day.

She tried to shake Niall’s comments out of her head, but the word inevitable keep surfacing. The more she drank, the more she thought about it. She mentally cursed Niall for plaguing her mind with thoughts of her and Liam. It was hard enough to fight her subconscious. She couldn’t control her dreams at night and every time Liam popped up, she felt like she didn’t look at him the same the next time that she saw him.

“I think we spent last Valentine’s Day like this,” Liam commented, resting the bottom of his glass on his thigh.

“There were considerably less people, if I remember correctly,” Kiernan replied. She shouldn’t have played along, but she was starting to feel the wine and Liam’s subtle cologne was intoxicating enough on its own. “You even cooked, mostly because neither of us could afford takeout.”

Liam laughed, bringing a hand to his chest while he seemed to sink back into his seat. “My culinary skills are lacking but at least I know how to make pasta,” he said.

“With your pasta and my mashed potatoes, we could have a full carb meal,” Kiernan replied. “Such a balanced diet.”

“The poster children for health, right here ladies and gentlemen,” Liam joked. “In the moment, you seemed slightly impressed.”

“Nobody had ever cooked for me before,” Kiernan admitted.

“Well, I was glad to be the first,” he said. “Hopefully the experience didn’t scar you forever.”

“It was probably one of my best Valentine’s Days,” she replied, regretting the words before they even left her mouth. “Besides that time in fifth grade where Freddie Lucas gave me my own valentine, a piece of chocolate, and a big ole smooch on the lips after lunch.”

“Well I mean, how could I ever compete with Freddie Lucas and his incredibly smooth moves?” Liam replied. “I’m just happy I’m even ranked.”

“I mean, it is one of the highest honors,” Kiernan said.

“Oh, I’m fully aware,” Liam replied. “I would never take it for granted.”

Kiernan laughed, her body curling towards Liam until she nearly tucked her face into his neck. “I’m happy we have this established now,” she said. “What was your best Valentine’s Days?"

“I mean, I didn’t ever get to kiss Freddie Lucas so I guess it has to be last year’s,” he replied. Kiernan wasn’t sure when he had slipped his arm around her shoulder, but she certainly didn’t push him away when he gently nudged her body closer to his. “But I guess the one thing Freddie Lucas can’t do is kiss you right now.”

“And what makes you think that you can?” Kiernan asked.

“Well, I wouldn’t do anything that you didn’t want,” Liam replied.

Why was it always what Kiernan wanted? She didn’t know what she wanted. Did she want to be just friends? Or did she want to take Liam back to his bedroom and pretend that there wasn’t a party happening just outside of his door? She knew she couldn’t have both, but in the moment, she thought maybe, just maybe she could get away with it and nothing would go wrong.

“I think in order to do what I want, we might have to find a change of scenery,” she finally said. “Just don’t make eye contact with Niall.”

“Same goes to you,” he replied. They lingered in their embrace on the couch for a few more moments, but not long enough for Kiernan to regret what she had said. She merely followed Liam’s lead, keeping her head down so she didn’t have to see Niall’s smirk. Maybe it was inevitable, but at least it was by her stupid choice. She wasn’t sure she could blame it entirely on the alcohol this time. She would have to take responsibility, something she wasn’t sure she was ready for.

“Is your room ever not tidy?” Kiernan asked, her perfect view of Liam’s room immediately cut off by his face. He inched forward, leaving Kiernan to close the door to his room with her back. His hand glided against her hip, brushing past her body to turn the lock on his door before it settled onto her hips.

“Your fascination with my clean room never fails to amuse me,” he murmured, brushing her hair off of her shoulders with his free hand. Kiernan tilted her head back in anticipation, her lips left parted while they basked in the moment. Liam followed her cues, pressing his lips gently against the skin of her neck. They had a perfect system, yet Kiernan had never gotten bored of his teasing. “I’ve missed you, Kier,” he said, his warm breath spreading across her skin.

“Will you show me too?” she asked, grinding her hips forward. She could feel Liam’s laughter, his chest pressed tightly against herself.

Liam’s fingers disappeared under the hem of her skirt, toying with the lace edges of her underwear. With his fingers hooked around the left side, he started to tug them down gently, always careful not to rip or tear anything after an incident during one of their first hookups. Kiernan spread her legs to make his job easier, the fabric gliding against the skin of her thighs until they got stuck around her knees. She shimmied her legs, letting them fall to the floor, still hooked around her ankles.

Kiernan initiated their kiss, placing one hand on his cheek and the other on the back of his head. Her fingers threaded through his hair, tugging gently to keep his mouth anchored to hers. This was different than their kiss back in December. There was a sense of urgency like never before, their bodies melding against each other after almost a year apart.

“Bed,” Kiernan muttered between kisses, breaking apart only for a split second before she trapped Liam’s top lip between hers again. He obliged without question, taking short steps backwards until the back of his shins hit the edge of his mattress. With an arm wrapped around Kiernan’s waist, Liam started to fall backwards, using his free hand to feel for the mattress beneath him. Even when he was trying to be gentle, the two of them still fell against the mattress with a loud oof, Kiernan’s body draped limply over Liam’s.

“That wasn’t as smooth as I would have liked,” Liam groaned.

“It’s fine,” Kiernan said, adjusting her legs until they were placed on either side of Liam. She bent her knees slightly until she was straddling his waist. Her fingers trailed down his chest until they touched the bare skin of her legs. With Liam’s eyes on her every movement, Kiernan tiptoed her fingers towards the hem of her skirt, pushing it further up her legs until it barely concealed any of her thighs.

“Kier,” Liam said, his voice low and gruff.

She pushed her hair behind her ears, her hands now resting gently across his chest. Her lips were curled into a faint smirk when she looked down at Liam, planning what her next move would be. That was, until she saw the look on his face. Liam’s gaze didn’t falter from Kiernan at all, his lips left slightly agape while he waited to see what she wanted to do. She swallowed the lump in her throat, the smirk slowly fading from her lips.

Kiernan couldn’t ignore the look in his eyes. It wasn’t the way that someone looked at their friend and it certainly wasn’t the way someone looked at their hookup either.

“I…I don’t think I can do this,” Kiernan said, pushing herself away from Liam. He seemed stunned for a moment, unmoving as she struggled to get off of the mattress and back onto her feet. “I’m sorry, I have to go. I…fuck where are my underwear. Shit, shit, shit.”

Liam watched wordlessly as she swore, spinning in circles around his room until she found her underwear crumpled up on the floor near the door. She didn’t even check to see if they weren’t turned inside out before she slipped them back on, using the door as support while she balanced on one leg at a time. She didn’t have the heart to turn back and look at Liam. She knew it was wrong, but she couldn’t do it, not when he looked at her like that.

She had seen that look once before. It was late in the summer and they were sitting on her building’s rooftop with spiked lemonade. They were just sitting and talking, not a single physical thing happening. But there was nothing more intimate than the way Liam looked at her when the sun was setting, like there wasn’t a single other thing around him that deserved his attention. She knew he almost said it then, those three little words that people longed to hear. She could feel it because she wanted to say them too. Instead, she just pointed towards the sunset and made a comment about its colors, ruining their moment because she couldn’t cross that line.

Kiernan ignored Niall when she left, barely taking the time to pull on her boots and grab her coat. She wanted to call Lydia or Carmen, but they were both enjoying nights with their boyfriends. The only other person she would have called was Liam and she couldn’t exactly talk to him about something that directly involved him. She felt pathetic shivering on the sidewalk alone, trying to call a Lyft to get her home before she started to cry in public.

Part of her thought Liam might chase after her. That’s what happened in the movies, anyways. Liam would come outside in the cold without a jacket on and maybe she’d cry and admit that she was done playing her stupid little game and they’d kiss and everything would fix itself. But that’s not what happened in real life. Liam’s job wasn’t to come in and fix everything when Kiernan pretended that her feelings didn’t exist. It wasn’t only up to him, but she couldn’t muster up the courage to go back inside and talk to Liam face to face. So she stood outside alone in the cold and cried to herself, waiting for her Lyft to come whisk her away from the mess that she caused.

* * * * * * *

Four weeks and three days.

That’s how long it had been since Kiernan and Liam had last spoken. Liam tried to call twice, right after Kiernan stormed out of his apartment on Valentine’s Day. He tried twice more the next day, but Kiernan skipped class and stayed in bed all day with the blankets over her head until she felt sufficiently numb. She didn’t blame him for not putting any more effort into it after that. It would have been pointless. She was impossible to deal with. She could barely even put up with herself, why would she expect anyone else to?

Lydia and Carmen could barely get a word about it out of Kiernan. She was so upset after that night that all she wanted to do was surround herself with her best friends and let everything spill out of her. But, like clockwork, Kiernan did was she did best–she bottled everything up and pretended it never happened. They didn’t have a moment. Kiernan didn’t feel anything in the pit of her stomach when Liam’s arms were around her. Kiernan didn’t feel anything because there was nothing to feel. They were friends, strictly friends.

Her friends were patient for the first month. They didn’t mention Liam or try to push or pry when it wasn’t welcome. As much as they enjoyed making their comments in the past, Kiernan knew that Lydia and Carmen would never make a situation worse by trying to rush it. But they also knew Kiernan all too well, enough to know that sometimes they had to push her boundaries to knock some sense into her. She was stubborn in her ways, keeping herself guarded to save herself the heartbreak in the end. But what use was it staying so guarded when she still felt hurt after what she had done to Liam?

The trio skipped a party at Liam’s apartment to have a girls’ night in at Carmen’s place while her roommates were out. They were in almost identical ensembles, a pair of black leggings and various oversized sweatshirts that they had all nicked over the years from the men in their lives. Kiernan’s thankfully wasn’t Liam’s, but she had trouble remembering which ex she had stolen it from.

“It’s been so long since it’s just been the three of us,” Carmen gushed, plopping down onto the small arm chair angled towards the couch that Lydia and Kiernan were sharing. “I missed my girls.”

“I thought the last semester was supposed to be easy,” Lydia complained. “Or do they make it harder just to see who they can break right before graduation?”

“That’s what it feels like,” Carmen said. “Kier, I swear, I’ve never seen you work harder on something than your capstone project. You’re always in some coffee shop or the library!”

“Just trying to keep myself busy, that’s all,” she replied. “I’m so used to procrastinating that it feels nice to get some of it out of the way, even if I’ll still probably be scrambling to get everything put together at the end.”

“Ah, the beauty of college,” Lydia sighed. “Are we going to miss it when it’s over?”

“Probably the parties over the schoolwork,” Kiernan replied. “I don’t know how much longer you can get away with binge-drinking on Wednesday nights, unless you’re a finance bro or some shit.”

“True that,” Carmen said. “So, you’ve just been working really hard on your capstone project? Come on Kier, last time we talked you just let me and Carmen talk about Shiv and Julian the whole time and barely chimed in with anything of your own.”

“Guys, I know what you’re alluding to but I’m really not–”

“Really not in the mood to talk about it, we know,” Lydia said, finishing Kiernan’s sentence. “Kier, we’re honestly not trying to push you but we’re also kind of trying to push you. Okay, I’ll admit it. But it’s not to tease you or to be like, malicious with it. It’s truly out of love and concern for our best friend who clearly just doesn’t know what the hell is going on. Which is fine! None of us do!”

“Lyd, look, I appreciate it but I just…I can’t talk about it,” Kiernan said.

Lydia sighed. “Kier,” she said softly, shifting her body so she was facing Kiernan. “You don’t have to pretend with us, okay? Just for once, can you let yourself have feelings in front of other people instead of waiting until you’re by yourself? It doesn’t have to be as lonely as you make it.”

“I don’t even know if they’re feelings,” Kiernan replied, looking towards the ceiling. She ran her fingers through the hair near her temples, pulling it upward until it fell in frizzy waves against her cheeks. “I just don’t know anything at all.”

“Welcome to the boat,” Carmen said, chiming in from her seat. “Kier, I don’t know where you’ve been, but nobody has their shit together. Not you, not me, not Lyd, not my thirty-year-old neighbor, not a single person. If everyone had the answers to everything, then what would the fun or challenge be in life? How dull would every day be?”

“It’d be a hell of a lot less painful,” Kiernan said.

“It hurts because you’re trying to keep everything in,” Carmen replied. “And because you already have a predetermined idea of how everything is going to play out. For someone who is fairly optimistic, you don’t see your own relationships longterm and it’s upsetting. Just because you don’t 100% see you and Liam going the distance for whatever reason, you’re afraid of being with him except you really want to be with him so you try to find loopholes where you can have him in your life as a friend but also get to like see him naked and shit, I don’t know what gets you off, that’s your business.”

“It’s not that,” Kiernan tried to defend herself, but it was a weak argument.

Carmen wasn’t wrong. She wasn’t necessarily correct either, but that was partially because Kiernan couldn’t even keep her reasoning straight. She spent the greater part of the past three years trying to figure out where she and Liam stood without ever including him in the conversation. They never had “the talk” or really pushed each other to making the move. It genuinely was, from the outside at least, just a perfect scenario of friends who also had sex purely out of convenience. It was what was beneath the surface that would tarnish the pretty exterior. The jealousy (Kiernan would deny it until the day she died), the secret pining, the feelings, everything in the equation did not add up to platonic, no matter how hard Kiernan tried to make sure it all made sense.

“Then can you please tell us what it is? We’re just as lost as you, Kier, but we want to help,” Lydia asked.

“It’s…I don’t know, maybe it is all of that,” she said, finally giving in with a huff of frustration. “I’m not like, guarded because an ex-treated me like garbage. I’ve had exes and no we’re not friends but in the grand scheme of things, they were okay guys, things just didn’t work out. But with Liam…I don’t know. I don’t know if I’m afraid of losing him as a friend or just don’t think that I deserve someone like him.”

“Kier, that whole ‘someone like you is too good to be with someone like me’ mentality is Hollywood bullshit,” Carmen said. “It is. Total BS. You’re an incredibly gracious friend with a warm heart and Liam is equally as gracious and warm except he is a bit tidier than you are.”

Kiernan couldn’t help it, she snorted at Carmen’s comment before she could even open her mouth to reply. “I just…he’s just…it wasn’t supposed to happen like this,” she finally said. “It was a perfect system.”

“It was a flawed system,” Lydia replied. “You two were fucked from the start. And not in a bad way. It’s just…you two were never going to be just friends. I think eventually you two were going to come together–not like that, but also like that–with time. You guys just kind of complicated it by fucking on the daily and pretending like you two were just best friends who weren’t doing kinky shit behind the scenes with each other. And now here you are years later trying to sort out three years’ worth of complicated feelings that you’ve been convincing yourself didn’t exist when they like, very clearly did.”

“It’s really not that kink–okay, that is beside the point,” Kiernan replied, choosing her argument wisely. “I just…look, I’m just afraid that if one day down the line if either of us decide that we’re sick of each other then that’s it. It’s over. We can’t just go back to us being just friends who are now exes who were formerly just friends with benefits who were pretending they didn’t have feelings for each other the whole time.”

“Kier, that’s just what happens in life sometimes,” Lydia said. “Not to play devil’s advocate, but whether or not you and Liam decide to figure what the fuck is going on with your emotions, you’ll be friends. You’re either going to be whatever weird version of friends you are now or you’re going to decide to just do the damn thing and be together and still be best friends. You could lose him either way. People have friend breakups all the time, just like they have romantic breakups. Does the possibility of having a friend breakup stop you from making friends?”

Kiernan knew it was a rhetorical question, but she answered it for herself in her head.No, of course not. “Why are feelings so complicated?” she asked.

“Because they are, I don’t know what you want me to tell you, babe,” Carmen replied. “Listen, this is the last thing I’m going to say, okay? I don’t know about Lyds, but this is it for me. You and Liam separately are great people and together, even just as friends, are incredible. I think–and have always thought–you two would be great together, but understand that sometimes things need time. The two of you have zero plans of leaving the city after graduation. You say you don’t know what you want, which is fine if you truly don’t, but don’t try to bottle up your feelings if you’re having them, okay? Holding them in makes something that’s not supposed to be painful hurt. I don’t want that for you. Lydia doesn’t want that for you. And Liam most certainly doesn’t want that for you. So for once, just don’t bottle these things up. Let it out, Kier. You’ve been keeping it all in for so long. Just do it when you’re ready. Only you will know when the time is right, but you know damn well the two of us will try to nudge you along.”

* * * * * * *

Lydia and Carmen were true to their word. They didn’t push or nudge Kiernan before she was ready to face the truth. She needed more time. This time, it wasn’t to try to talk herself out of it. She just had to think everything through. She’d already fucked it up twice (more times than that, if she really thought about it). She wasn’t sure how many more times they could go through the motions just for one of them to back out last minute, too afraid to make the arbitrary next step.

She missed hanging out with Liam one on one. She spent a lot of time at home studying rather than holed up in their favorite coffee shops around the city. They saw each other still at parties and out at bars, but things weren’t like they were before Valentine’s Day and Kiernan wasn’t sure they could ever go back to normal until she made sense of what was going on in her head.

There was only a month left in the semester and Kiernan was focusing mainly on her capstone project and getting through her last couple of finals over anything else. Schoolwork was the perfect distraction, something she had never said throughout her entire college experience. Spending time in the library was the easiest excuse to get out of things, even if she didn’t feel proud about doing it. Part of her felt like she was ignoring the issue, but even Carmen said only Kiernan would know when the time was right. She was just having a hard time deciding when that was. Would there ever be a perfect time to do it or did she just have to rip the band-aid off?

Kiernan knew she could reach out to Lydia and Carmen again, but they couldn’t make decisions for her. They could just listen and try to guide Kier as best as they could. No matter how many conversations she had with her friends, the only person who could make the decision was Kiernan. She just had a hard time admitting it to herself.

Maybe it was just best to go back to the beginning, back before everything got convoluted with time and feelings.

It all started with a text message. Well, it really all started with being lab partners in their required biology class during their first semester. They exchanged numbers on the first day and Kiernan didn’t really expect much out of it besides having to work together on things throughout the semester. Then she ran into him at a party with Lydia and Carmen at the end of September and she got a text from him the next morning asking if she could help work on a lab report with him.

It hit her on a Friday night. She chose to stay in rather than heading out to a few bars in the East Village with her friends. She couldn’t get in the mood to go out, too unmotivated to change out of her leggings and loose sweater ensemble that she sported anytime she was in the comfort of her own home.

She wasn’t sure what came over her, but she certainly didn’t stop herself when she found Liam’s contact in her phone. She barely hesitated when she tapped the message bubble, opening up their previous text thread.

Hey Liam, are you around tonight? I’m not going out with everyone else but need some motivation to work on my capstone.

The blue bubble lingered in sight, her finger tapping the screen every time it started to dim. She knew she shouldn’t have obsessed over it, but the nerves were starting to set in. Maybe it was too soon or maybe she had missed her chance, taking too long to start to sort everything out.

Kiernan tried to distract herself. She pulled out her notes for her capstone project, her eyes glazing over while she read the same paragraph over and over. It was pointless to even try, her mind was still focused on the fact that her text still went unanswered. She knew it was ridiculous to assume that he was waiting by his phone, eager for a text from the girl who has been confusing him incessantly since they first met.

She was embarrassed to know that it took thirty-five minutes to finally hear back from Liam. She all but jumped when she saw her screen light up again, a new message notification in the center of her screen.

I’m just at home studying. The guys are all gone for the weekend so I figured I could attempt to get something done. Do you want to come by?

Do you mind? Only my dad is home and he’s watching basketball really loudly in the living room.

Of course not. You know the code, come over whenever you want.

Cool, thanks Liam.

Kiernan didn’t bother with changing her outfit or her hair. She merely gathered up her books, tossed her laptop into a tote bag, and all but rushed out of the apartment before she could talk herself out of it. There was no use in prolonging it anymore. She just couldn’t think about it. The more she stayed in her head, the easier it was to talk herself out of it. She wasn’t sure that was an option anymore.

Even still, she could barely keep her legs from bouncing while she sat on the subway, letting her eyes wander around the train car in search of any distraction. There was a baby in a stroller, someone balancing their guitar case while the track rocked back and forth. She counted every single stop, anxious to get off and make the three block walk to Liam’s place. She wasn’t even sure what she was going to say or when she was going to say it. Kiernan was just really banking on Carmen’s assurance that she would know when the time was right. She just had to hope that she could follow her own cues instead of forcing something to happen when it wasn’t ready yet.

Her legs didn’t stop shaking by the time she got to the front stoop of his building. She lingered on the front steps in the brisk night air, pulling the lapels of her jacket closer together while she took a few deep breaths. She was already there and told Liam she was on her way, going back now would make it look suspicious.

She felt like she was floating when she walked up the two flights of stairs to his apartment, her mind wandering at every opportunity to switch topics from Liam. She tried to think about her capstone project, what her plans would be for the next day, literally anything that could come to mind to keep her from obsessing over the one thing that she kept coming back to.

There was no turning back when she was face to face with the door to his apartment, her hand already curled into a fist and lingering over the wooden surface. Once she knocked, something had to happen, whether it was the conversation she was planning all along or an awkward night in with Liam. Either way, she knew standing outside of his apartment door wasn’t the way to go about it, so she finally just knocked, two soft raps against the door.

It didn’t take long for her to hear footsteps on the other side of the door, but she still felt her heart start to beat faster as the locks clicked. Kiernan saw a sliver of the inside of Liam’s apartment before she saw his face, her nerves settling momentarily until her eyes landed on his face.

“Hey,” Liam said, opening the door wide for Kiernan to come inside. “Is it still cold outside? I’d be lying if I said I left the apartment today.”

“It’s pretty nice, still kind of cold though,” she replied, letting the door close softly behind her. “In all fairness, I barely left the house today as well though. Wasn’t really up for it.”

“Well, I’m glad you decided to venture out,” he said. “Do you want anything to drink? I think I have wine around here somewhere…”

“Water is fine, honestly,” she replied, earning a quirked brow from Liam. “Wine and studying don’t mix.”

“Right,” Liam said, nodding at her explanation. “Well, I’ll get you some water then. Feel free to make yourself comfortable. I mean, not that I have to tell you that but…”

“I know the drill,” she replied. “Blanket Hog Reid is back in business.”

Liam laughed, shaking his head before disappearing into the kitchen. Kiernan kicked off her sneakers at the door, dragging her bag into the living room. She grabbed the knitted throw blanket off of the back of the sofa, draping it over her legs while she settled into the left side of the couch, setting her bag down on the floor.

When he came back into the living room with two glasses of water, he didn’t seem surprised at all that Kiernan had claimed the only blanket as hers, merely setting the glasses down onto the coffee table before he took a seat on the center cushion. “On a scale of one to ten, what are our chances of actually getting schoolwork done?” Liam asked.

“I’m 99% sure that everything in my bag right now is merely just a prop,” she replied. “I thought the word ‘study’ was just our code for hanging out.”

“One of these days I thought we might actually get some work done, but I guess we only need to worry about that for another month,” Liam pointed out. “What’s going to be our excuse when we graduate?”

“I don’t know, maybe we should just stop pretending that we need an excuse,” she said.

“I think that could work too,” Liam replied. “Probably should’ve done that all along so we didn’t seem so lazy.”

“Well, you know, everything seems like a better idea in retrospect,” she said with a shrug. “Not sure when it started or why it stuck. Well, I mean, I guess I know why it stuck but–”

“You really don’t have to…we don’t have to…” Liam stuttered, interrupting Kiernan before she could finish her sentence.

“But we should,” Kiernan said. She tried to seem calm, but her insides felt like they were twisting in knots. Her cheeks were no doubt flushed, the heat running from her chest straight up to her head. “I...I missed you, I guess? Is that a stupid way to start?”

“Kier, it’s me, you can just…talk,” Liam told her, sliding his hand across the sofa so it was within arm’s reach.

She sucked in a deep breath, letting it out in one long sigh. “Sometimes I think I don’t know how to act around you anymore. Which like, doesn’t have anything to do with you and has everything to do with me. Which is so fucking cliché but…sorry, I’m rambling. Am I rambling?”

“Kier,” Liam said, flipping his hand so his palm was facing up. She looked down, her eyes scanning over the faint lines in his skin. Without hesitating, Kiernan slid her palm into his, letting his fingers close gently around her hand.

“I don’t know what I want, Liam,” she said. “I don’t know what I want in life, in anything, but…I just don’t want that getting in the way anymore.”

“Of what?” he asked.

Kiernan was almost laughing, every single kind of emotion expelling from her. “Of us, of life, of anything,” she explained. “I’m sick of second-guessing everything I do around you because I’m afraid of making a mess out of our lives. Or rather, even more of a mess. I mean, what the fuck was Valentine’s Day? Or Christmas? Or that time on my roof over the summer? We get so close just to have me fuck it all up in the end. It’s just…it’s not fair.”

“I don’t know why you’re blaming yourself for anything, Kier,” Liam said, keeping his voice low. Kiernan’s shoulders were starting to shake, her breath becoming more sporadic. She didn’t want to make a big scene, but everything she tried to bury started to surface and she wasn’t sure she could control it anymore.

“Because if I don’t blame myself for anything, then what was all of this for?” Kiernan asked. “Why have we spent the past three years doing everything in our power to be together but also not be together?”

“Because we weren’t ready, Kiernan,” Liam said. “We needed time to just...be.”

“But what makes now the right time? How do we…how do we ever know?” she asked.

“We don’t,” Liam said. “But you’re here and you’re actually talking about it instead of running away so I mean…I’m taking it as a good sign.”

Kiernan couldn’t help but chuckle, using her free hand to dab under her eyes. “For fucks sake, I’m crying,” she swore, trying to stop the tears before they fell. “I was just sitting home alone and I just…I don’t know, I guess I just finally needed to let it out…let you know…whatever this is.”

“Come here,” Liam murmured, pulling his hand back. He held his arms open for Kiernan, adjusting his legs on the couch so there was room for her.

She merely nodded, leaning forward until her knees were pressed into the cushions of the sofa. She crawled forward, letting herself fall into Liam, his arms immediately wrapping around her waist. Kiernan’s chin rested on Liam’s shoulders, her face tucked into his neck while she tried to catch her breath.

“I think…I’m just tired of pretending, Liam,” she said, letting out a heavy sigh. “I’m just tired.”

“I know,” he replied, smoothing out the end of her hair with his palm. “Kier I just need to know if this is going to stick. I can’t…there’s only so many times I can do this.”

Kiernan nodded, taking in one last deep breath. Slowly, she slid her hands from his chest up to his shoulders. Her fingers bunched together the fabric of his sweatshirt, her head slowly raising out of the crook of his neck. This wasn’t new for them, but Kiernan hadn’t felt this close to Liam in a long time.

“This isn’t like the other times,” Kiernan murmured. Everything felt like it was moving in slow motion. The tip of Kiernan’s nose brushed against Liam’s, her right hand sliding off of his shoulder towards the back of his neck. “I don’t want to mess this up.”

“You’re not going to mess anything up,” Liam told her, rubbing gentle circles into the small of her back. Liam’s eyes were closed when Kiernan finally leaned down, angling her head so their noses didn’t bump. “Kier…” he murmured, his hand now firmly pressed against her back.

There wasn’t any time for talking when she finally gapped the distance between their lips. The last time they had each other like this, they were urgent, like it was something that might not happen between them again. This time, everything felt raw, less calculated, like she wasn’t afraid of everything she was feeling in the pit of her stomach.

“Would it…be wrong…to ask…if we could…move to…your room?” Kiernan asked, breaking their kiss to try to spit the question out.

Liam didn’t bother to respond with words. He merely planted his feet firmly on the ground, holding tightly onto Kiernan’s waist while he stood up. She squealed when he hoisted her up higher, her legs wrapping around his waist while he started to stumble through his apartment.

“Thank god we’ve practiced this part,” she joked, brushing a stray piece of hair out of her eyes.

“Thank god indeed.”

* * * * * * *

Kiernan was certain if she tried to unload more one cardboard box, her arms were going to fall off. She knew how much of a nightmare moving was from Lydia and Carmen but she didn’t realize how sore she was going to be just after two days of trying to make her apartment livable. All she wanted to do was unpack her clothes and books and have something to sit on, but all she accomplished was filling her room in with boxes and creating a mess with the belongings she managed to get unpacked without realizing she had nowhere to put them.

“Liam, I think I’m dying,” Kiernan complained, kneeling down on her mattress on the floor before collapsing onto her chest. “Who let me decide that moving out was a good idea?”

“I believe that person was you,” Liam pointed out, breaking down the box of books that he just unpacked onto part of her IKEA shelf. “You were very adamant about moving after you got that job offer.”

“It was stupid,” she groaned, her voice muffled by the mattress. “I’m going to be poor and sore.”

“We were already poor before you moved into your own place,” Liam pointed out. “And the sore part? Well, that I can’t really help you with.”

For as many things that Kiernan didn’t know in her life, things had a way of falling into place after graduation. She upped her hours at the office while she tried to sort out the details of her professional life, saving up every cent for the day that she was ready to leave the nest and live away from her parents for the first time in twenty-two years. She could only assume an act of god helped her get an entry level job at an agency at the end of July. It took her two weeks of working full-time to realize she couldn’t live the life she needed to while she was living at home.

Kiernan, admittedly, spent a lot of time after (and before) graduation at Liam’s place, but she didn’t want to rely on his apartment solely for a moment of privacy. At least, privacy away from parents and siblings. As much as her parents loved and adored Liam, she wasn’t sure their change in relationship would make the situation any different.

The second act of god turned out to be one of Lydia’s friends that Kiernan knew only by association and running into her at a few parties. She needed a new roommate at her apartment in Williamsburg near the bridge. It had no elevator and they lived on the third floor, but Kiernan was just excited it wasn’t on floor six. There were only three girls in the apartment including Kiernan and at one point or another, they had all met and drunkenly complimented each other, which automatically meant they were suitable to live with.

“Stop being productive and come lay down with me,” Kiernan said, rolling over onto her back so she was no longer struggling to breathe with her nose pressed against the thin fitted sheet she put on her mattress so it wasn’t just bare on her floor.

“Fine, but I’m all sweaty and you’re going to complain about it,” he replied. Kiernan braced herself for his landing, knowing he was going to do the same thing he always did. Without fail, Liam pretended to fall forward onto Kiernan, sticking out his arms at the last second to catch himself.

“You’re annoying,” she said, pushing his shoulders so he could roll over onto his back next to her rather than straddle her while they were both hot and sweaty. “But I still love and appreciate you anyways for helping me move and for building furniture in the near future when it all arrives.”

“What good would I be as a boyfriend if I didn’t at least help you try to furnish your room?” he asked. “Though, I would like to state on the record that even if we weren’t dating right now, I would still do it for you because you’re my friend and that’s just what friends do.”

“Well, that’s very sweet, Liam,” she told him, using the back of her hand to pat his chest gently. “I think I’m already ready for a break and we’ve only been unpacking for a few hours today.”

He chuckled, his shoulders brushing against Kiernan’s. “At this pace it’s going to take you two months to move in,” he pointed out.

“Then so be it!” she replied. “You’ll still be here to build whatever I need.”

“In two months? I sure as hell hope so,” he said.

“Good,” she replied. “Glad we’re on the same page then.”

“Finally,” he added, nudging her in the side.

#1dff #exchanges

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harryswanderlust · 6 years

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Carnival

warnings: fluff

requested: nope

masterlist

“We should name him Nemo,” she says, holding up a plastic bag with an orange goldfish swimming around in the middle of it. She’s smiling as she admires the tiny pet that she has won for herself.

She and Harry had decided upon going to a carnival a few miles outside of town for their one year anniversary, wanting to try and do something a little different. They had been talking about it for weeks before she suggested the idea, almost bursting from so much excitement. A small town, makeshift carnival wasn’t Harry’s first choice for how they could celebrate, in fact he would have loved to have had a quiet night in, just the two of them. Maybe snuggle underneath a few blankets together and watch a silly rom-com or two, but Harry doesn’t mind. Truthfully he’ll go anywhere she wants as long as it entails him getting to be with her.

“I think nemo’s already taken, love. What about Kevin?” Harry suggests, reaching out to lace his fingers with hers. The ones that aren’t grasping the fish that’s captured almost all of her attention.

Harry’s not entirely focused on the moment either though. His mind keeps taking him back to when he first kissed the gorgeous girl standing next to him and how he already knew he was in love with her. They were sitting in his car, the atmosphere slightly awkward as their first date was coming to an end, and Harry knew he had to kiss her. He just had to. She was wearing an old hoodie of his that he’d been meaning to get rid of for while, but never got around to it. He had given it to her to wear when he noticed that she was a bit cold that night and told her to go ahead and keep it when she tried to give it back. “Looks better on you, love,” he had told her. That’s when decided to kiss her.

Harry doesn’t believe in love-at-first-sight or even love-at-first-kiss for that matter, but she just had a certain effect on him. Harry can’t complain though. She’s unlike any girl he’s ever even dreamed of.

“What if I named him Harry? Harry The Fish. I think he might be a lot cuter than you,” she teases. Harry laughs and gently pulls her into him. He rests his hands on her waist.

“He doesn’t give better kisses than me,” he argues, planting one on the side of her head. His grip on her tightens a little as she laughs at him.

“Absolutely not,” she says before pushing herself up on her tiptoes to gently connect their lips. Harry could kiss her all day if she’d let him. He swears he can never get enough of her. Swears she always leaves him wanting more.

“You know, I totally let you win. Could’ve easily used more strength to win that fish for ya if I wanted to.” Harry smirks, watching as she rolls her eyes and pulls away from him to give him a light shove. He’s cold now that she’s stepped out of his embrace, despite wearing a sweater, but it is nearing the end of fall, and winter is right around the corner. Another reason why he wanted to stay in. Y/N is always warm and he wouldn’t mind keeping her as close to him as humanly possible.

“Sure, Harry. I won because you let me, and not because your girlfriend is capable of kicking your ass,” she says sarcastically.

Harry shakes his head, but he smiles. “Nope. I was only being a gentleman.”

She arches a brow before she starts giggling at him. Harry’s heart melts as the sound rings through his ears. He watches her intently, the side of his mouth curling upward into a gentle smile. He’s rather smitten with her and believes she’s the most wonderful girl he’s ever been lucky enough to meet. He loves the way she makes his head spin and chest ache to be with her. The way her eyes shine so bright, as if they hold every good thing in the world, and he loves the subtle creases by her lips from smiling all the time. Harry makes sure she’s smiling all the time. He never wants to see her upset, which is why he can't stand it when she gets frustrated from all the studying she’s always doing. Although, he does have to admit that it’s the cutest thing in the world when she pouts as a result of it. He can’t help but steal a kiss from her when she does that.

Her hair falls in front of her face a moment later and Harry reaches out to brush it behind her ear. He wraps his arm around her shoulders, pulling her into his side again, before asking, “You wanna ride the ferris wheel, love? You mentioned it earlier.”

She shakes her head, leaning into his chest. “I’m actually pretty tired, H. I think we should go. We could head back to your place and watch a movie for the rest of the night,” she says.

It’s somewhere between ten o’clock and eleven, and the two of them arrived a little after seven so it was understandable that she was starting to feel drained. They have been around the whole park playing games and eating food, even trying some strange ones. Y/N tried funnel cake for the first time and it’s beyond Harry how she’s been alive all this time without trying the popular fried dessert. They have done everything they planned to do except for one thing, which has apparently slipped Y/N’s mind. Harry was reluctant about the carnival at first, but he’s been looking forward to the firework show after closing time ever since they agreed to stay for it.

“What about the fireworks, baby?” He asks as they sit down on a nearby bench to rest. She doesn’t answer him, and he thinks she’s falling asleep on him. He kisses her forehead to get her attention, which causes her to stir.

“I’m so tired,” she murmurs. Harry sighs as she moves her body closer to him, and shifts in an effort to find a comfortable position. She settles for laying her head back on his chest, her eyes fluttering shut.

He wants to give her what she wants. There’s no doubt that Harry wants to take her home and be able to hold her. To cuddle her. He loves when she’s lying beside him, with one or both of his arms draped around her somehow, while the tv or random music hums in the background and they enjoy each other’s presence. They won’t be saying anything, only sharing a few kisses here and there as they briefly fall in and out of sleep. It’s not that he doesn’t like listening to her talk or appreciate having a conversation with her, no. Frankly he could listen to her talk for and never find it boring, but he loves just being with her as well. The silence between them is just as comfortable to him as all the other romantic stuff they do.

There’s a different part of him telling him that they should stay. It’s telling him that if they make it a little while longer, they won’t regret it. Harry knows it’s not going to be anything like a Fourth of July show, but he wants to do it all with her regardless. They’re celebrating tonight and he doesn’t want to leave a single thing out, especially not something he was looking forward to. Even if it might not be that big of a deal.

“I know you are. I am too, but we really wanted to see the fireworks. Please?” Harry pleads. He rests his chin on top of her head, giving her a soft squeeze.

“Yeah, okay,” she yawns, shutting her eyes.

Before long, lights everywhere are starting to shut off as workers close down their booths, and the excited laughter and screams coming from all around the park begin to dwindle as everyone makes their way home for the night. Or if they're like Harry and Y/N, heading to the front lawn for even more fun.

She’s still cuddled into Harry’s arm, fully asleep. Harry shifts on the bench causing her to stir awake and groan at him. Harry playfully rolls his eyes at her.

“Time to go, sleepyhead.” He lifts himself off the bench.

She doesn’t budge. Instead she holds an arm up as if she’s telling him to carry her. Harry sighs at his girlfriend, almost having trouble believing how ridiculous she is. He picks her up anyway, taking her by her arm for her to wrap it around his shoulders and swiftly sweeping her up by her legs. She giggles as she pecks him on the cheek. It’s a little sloppy given her tired state.

Soon they’re outside the gates of the park, joining the other people standing around and waiting. Harry sets her down and she immediately lays herself down on the ground. Harry scoffs before decided that he’ll go ahead and join her. He lays right beside her, a twinkle in his eyes from the moon as he scans over her features. She so beautiful, and she’s all his.

“I think I’m going to spend the rest of my life with you,” he whispers just above her ear.

“You only think?” She aks, starting to giggle again. Harry adores it.

“I am definitely going to spend the rest of my life with you,” he says.

“What makes you so sure?” She turns her head, rolling on her side in the process.

“Because I’m going to marry you someday,” he answers, face completely serious now. No grin, no signs of a smirk. He means every single word.

“And what if I say no?” She quirks one of her eyebrows, challenging him. She moves, throwing one leg over him and resting on his legs.

“Then I’ll do this,” he says, flipping the two of them over so that he’s now on top of her. A shriek emits from her mouth as Harry bends down and starts tickling her. Her laughter is uncontrollable as her arms swat at him to get him to quit.

“Harry stop!”

“Tell me that you’ll say yes,” he teases.

“Okay, okay, I’ll say yes! Just stop!” She squeals. Harry stops his actions, pulling himself off of her and flopping back down on the cold grass.

“We’re only seventeen, Harry. There’s no need rush things,” she tells him, panting out the words because she hasn’t caught her breath yet. She’s not looking at him or where their hands are fitting together so perfectly that the two of them swear they were made for each other, but rather at the stars. They both hear fireworks begin to go off and paint the sky in an array of pretty colors and while she is enraptured by it, Harry’s busy staring at her. She’s the prettiest thing underneath the night sky.

“I know, but whether we’re seventeen or eighty-two, I’ll always love you,” he says, before planting soft kisses into her hair and eventually her lips, the entire world falling away from them.

Feedback is appreciated & requests are open! All the love xx

#harry styles fluff #harry styles au #harry styles imagine #harry styles #harry styles blog #one direction #harry styles angst #harry styles blurb

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cosmic-cactus2 · 4 years

Text

laws of attraction | spencer reid x reader | chapter two

Description: "The law of attraction is the attractive, magnetic power of the Universe that manifests through everyone and through everything. It is part of the creative power of the Universe. Even the law of gravity is part of the law of attraction. This law attracts thoughts, ideas, people, situations, circumstances, and the things you think about." She was cynical about love. She didn't believe in soulmates, or fate, or that the universe brought you together. She believed in science, facts, and statistics. Her experience had taught her that love didn't exist, so she wasn't hell bent on finding it. But when she gets bumped up to a job working for BAU as a personal forensics analyst at Quantico, she meets someone that might just make her believe in love again. He might have too. {SET AFTER SEASON 13 OF CRIMINAL MINDS}. Warnings: adult language, some adult themes. Couple: Spencer Reid x Female Reader. ————————————————————

Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three

not-so-flattering first impression

⊱⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯⋯⊰

The breeze coming through your window was almost comforting, and the sound of your alarm clock left you with pure excitement and joy for the first time in a long time. You practically threw the plush sheets off your body before hopping up, starting the water up in the shower and turning it on as hot as was tolerable. You sang loudly in the shower, blasting out any note that came to your mind as you started to wake up from the water. You turned the water off and dried quickly, using a blowdryer to make sure you didn't waste any time.

When you'd gotten the job, they said they'd recommend you dress business casual, but the dress code was pretty loose. You put on a pair of black dressier jeans, tucking in a grey band t-shirt under the hem. You made it look a little more dressed up by adding a blazer and heeled boots, slipping a long dangling silver necklace and matching bracelet on. You grabbed a donut on the way out, making sure not to forget your satchel and your copy of Introducing Chaos before heading out the door. Your keys jangled from your hip as you hopped down the flights of stairs to the parking garage, approaching the dark blue Jeep you drove to work. When your keys turned in the ignition rock music blasted through the speakers, leaving you bobbing to the music as you pulled onto the road.

About 15 minutes later (maybe 20, thanks to traffic) you arrive at the FBI building, showing the security guard your badge. You took the elevator up to the 4th floor, taking in a deep breath right before the doors opened. People bustled around as you gawked at the pristine glass doors leading into the BAU, preparing yourself for whatever was to come with this new opportunity you'd been handed. You clutched the book to your side and adjusted your bag, stepping out of the elevator doors. You walked forward with a pep in your step, flinging the glass door wide open-

-and right into a passing figure, sending coffee all down the front of his sweater vest.

"Oh my god, I am so sorry!" You sputtered out almost a million apologies a minute, searching in your bag for napkins which you hastily handed to the man. He assured you it was no big deal and that "on the bright side, the stain wouldn't show anyway since it matched the color of the fabric". You still felt terrible for it, continuously apologizing. You didn't realize you'd dropped your book in the scuffle, both of you reaching down to pick it up at the same time.

Delightful cliche rom-com trope. Too bad life isn't like the movies.

Your hands brushed for only a second before he picked it up for you, a blush rising on your cheeks. When you stood up, you got a good look at him and his features.

His eyes were a comforting hazel color, a warm smile on the bottom half of his face. His hair was long, dark, and curly and you took notice that he'd occasionally run his hands through it to push it back. He was right about the whole stain thing; you couldn't really see it on his brown sweater vest, but a small bit of the coffee stain was noticeable on his white button up that was underneath it. He wore a suit jacket over the top and a tie, making you suddenly feel very dressed down. Everything about him screamed sophistication, and everything about you screamed grow out of the 90's grunge phase already. He was attractive, no doubt about it. His eyes glanced down at the book.

"Chaos theory?"

"Y-Yeah. It's one of the many topics I find increasingly interesting. Well, it's the latest in personal research topics I've taken up to keep my mind busy."

"You have personal research topics?"

"Shocking I know, but I find that keeping the mind sharp and invested in some sort of grounding topic helps to focus. Mine just happen to be scientific and philosophical." He laughed a small bit, making you laugh in return. "Oh, I should probably introduce myself. I'm Y/N L/N. I'll be working as an on-site forensics specialist and lab analyst."

"Dr.Spencer Reid. Prentiss didn't tell us that we were getting an analyst."

"Analyst? What? There's someone knew I didn't know about? How is this possible, I know everything." A very colorful woman came through the doors, standing taller than you due to her heels. Her blonde hair had various decorations strewn about in it, accompanied by many bracelets and a matching colored dress with a bright pattern. She held out her arm aggressively for you to shake, and you took it.

"Penelope Garcia, technical analyst. Nice to meet you." Her smile was warm and inviting, and you could tell this was someone you'd be easy to get along with. And truth be told, that was rare.

"Y/N L/N, forensic specialist and lab analyst. Nice to meet you, as well Penelope." You smiled back at her before putting your hands in your pockets. You heard your name called and turned, seeing the only familiar face of Emily Prentiss smiling at you with her hand outstretched.

"Agent L/N, nice to see you again. I see you've met Garcia and Dr.Reid?"

"Uh, yeah. I have. And please, call me Y/N. I really hate the formalities."

"Of course. I hope your okay to jump right into things with the rest of the team? We just got a new case in."

"Of course. To be truthful with you I've been waiting pretty much all week for this."

"Great. Follow me and I'll introduce you to everyone else." She started walking towards a small set of stairs and you followed her, the two other agents following behind. As they did, Garcia leaned over and semi-whispered to Reid.

"Did you know she was coming?" Spencer shook his head slowly as his eyes stayed on your confident and almost overjoyed demeanor and walk. The way you carried yourself spoke to him that you were more excited about this than anyone else here, which was odd considering you'd be up close and personal with all the blood and gore being a forensic specialist and all.

"No, Emily didn't tell me anything." His eyes never left you as your hair swished back and forth, hands not quite sure whether they wanted to rest in your back pockets or the ones in your blazer. He found it especially unique that you wore a simple t-shirt under a blazer to work, but it was just another thing that made you stand out. He didn't snap out of his observation session until Penelope snapped her hand in his face.

"Helloooo? Earth to Dr.Reid. Why'd you just zone off for like a good few minutes there? You almost tripped up the stairs." He didn't notice they were stopped at the bottom of the stairs leading out of the bullpen until just then.

"I, Uh, don't know-" Penelope let out a gasp.

"You think she's cute, don't you?" Her face lit up like a Christmas tree as Spencer started rambling.

"What? N-No we just met. I mean, yes she's attractive but I-"

"Ohhhh, you totally do." She ran off up the stairs giggling. Truth was, yes, he did find you attractive. The way you profusely apologized about accidentally making him spill coffee all over himself even after he told you repeatedly it was fine made him smile a little bit, and your eccentric nature was a nice reprieve from both the horrors of the job and the sometimes overbearing uniqueness of one Penelope Garcia. It was like you were certainly more extroverted than him, but not quite so much as Garcia. He found it to be a nice balance. Of course, he barely knew you, only having talked to you for about 5 minutes about a book he hadn't read in a few years. Although that did intrigue him too; you were easy to jump into conversation with, and for once he'd met someone who shared similar interests and reading habits as he did. To him, your presence was a bit...refreshing.

He entered the room and sat down at the table in his usual spot, which you now sat across from. The rest of those who hadn't met you look slightly confused at your presence. Prentiss stood up as you followed suit.

"Everyone, I know this is an unexpected surprise but meet Y/N L/N. She's going to be our onsite forensics analyst and specialist, since recently lab results have been unnecessarily slow in the recent cases." You waved shyly, feeling all eyes on you. Everyone else in the room smiled, offering a wave back. "Y/N, these are agents Luke Alvez, Matt Simmons, David Rossi, Jennifer Jureau-" The blonde haired woman interrupted briefly.

"You can call me JJ."

"-and Dr.Tara Lewis. Y/N is going to be joining us in the field from now on to assist with crime scene analysis and reconstruction."

"Fair warning, I'm used to being behind a lab desk so if I seem a little overwhelmed at first don't be surprised." You sat back down, scanning the room again. There were a few chuckles from some people, and the man sitting across from you held a wide and welcoming smile, as if to say 'Welcome to the team.'

"Alright, lets get started."

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dustin-parrish-blog · 7 years

Text

Not a Date | Dustin & Quinn

Date: Tuesday, 14th February 2017

Dustin didn’t care what he looked like. He didn’t care what he looked like. So what if he shot a quick glance at the side mirror when he exited Quinn’s car? So what if he had chosen to wear a shirt that came straight out of the washing machine and looked a little nicer? It wasn’t because he cared what he looked like, no. He just figured that you probably shouldn’t turn up in a restaurant in your worst clothes. That was all. Quinn didn’t care what Dustin looked like, either. Because he’d seen him like a thousand times before at school. Shooting the other boy a small glance, he pushed open the door to the entrance of the Thai Tanic, the restaurant Quinn had suggested. Inside, the entire room was filled with warm orange lights and colours. It looked cosy, but he had expected that since he’d been here before. What was new though was the board on the wall that usually suggested today’s specials proclaimed that they had a bunch of “dinner for lovers” specials just for this day. Dustin quickly glanced away, just as a waitress approached them, her smile wide as she greeted them. “Welcome to Thai Tanic and happy Valentine’s Day!” She was still smiling at them. Dustin gulped. Did she think the two of them were a couple? “Do you have a reservation?”

He just didn't want to spend the day alone. That was the real Reason Quinn had asked Dustin to go grab dinner tonight... right? Yeah, definitely. His sister had plans somehow, he was still a little dubious about them, and he didn't want to spend Valentine's Day alone playing video games or doing some more hacking. So why was he so nervous? And why did Dustin actually look really good in that outfit? Quinn had tried to dress a little nicer, just because they were going out to eat, not because he wanted to impress anyone. He tried to push the thoughts aside when he walked into the restaurant, but looking around he could already feel his cheeks heating up in a blush. Maybe this rebel Valentine's day thing wasn't so great an idea. There were couples all at the tables, and it was clear the restaurant was in a mood for the holiday. He'd figured this was safe bet. "Ugh... yeah," he said, looking up at the hostess with a small smile. "It's under Quinn," he said, scratching the back of his head. Biting his lip, he glanced at Dustin and then back to her when she was speaking. "Right this way," she said with a big smile, ushering the two to a table in back. Of course they had to pass all the couples at the tables on their way their, making doe eyes at each other.

Making their way to the table, Dustin had no idea where to look. Everywhere his eyes went, it was like he was disrupting a very important scene in the middle of a rom-com or a romantic drama. Most of the people sat at the table were men and women somewhere in their twenties, thirties or older. He felt just a little bit weird as he followed the waitress to their table, both because he was only sixteen and he felt a little silly having dinner for the first time with someone who wasn’t family, but also because he and Quinn weren’t a couple. Except everyone probably thought they were, right? He wasn’t sure how exactly this protest Valentine’s Dinner was working out, but he figured at long as they supported a small business and didn’t buy any Valentine’s Day candy in the store, they were indeed rebelling against corporate Valentine’s Day. Trying not to let any of his thoughts on his face, he took a seat at a small table for two somewhere in the back of the restaurant, opposite Quinn. Dustin didn’t know where to look, so he just focussed on the waitress who lit the candle in the middle of the table and then handed them their menus. Dustin opened his, glancing down at the selection of dishes, a little lost, then looked back up at Quinn from across the table.

Quinn tried to keep his eyes forward, and not on the couples all around him, but finally when the reached their table took a little sigh of relief. The hard part was over right? They wouldn't actually have to deal with all of those couples and could now just have dinner. Nodding slightly, to himself more than anything else, he took a seat at the table and took the menu from the waitress. He frowned when the candle was lit, but didn't mention anything. Most restaurants did that didn't they? He couldn't remember if this one did it normally. "Ugh, thanks," he said to the server with a small, slightly nervous, smile and glanced at the menu. "Ugh... so what are you thinking of having?" Quinn asked, when the waitress finally left. Though she kept looking back at them as she was walking away with a weird look in her eyes. He shook it off. "I mean, everything I've had here is pretty good," he said, trying his best not to be awkward, and hoping it was working.

Dustin gave him a small, awkward shrug, a little overwhelmed by the big selection of dishes in the menu, all with names he had never heard before even though there was a small English description of the dish underneath every single Thai name. “I was thinking maybe something with rice?” he said, even though in the end it sounded more like a question than a statement. “Do you come here often then?” he asked him, wondering if Quinn did this a lot, going to restaurants with a friend. Or maybe his sister? “The last time I was here is so long ago, I can’t even remember what I had,” he told him, turning the page of his menu, then looking up. “It’s nice though,” he mumbled. For some reason, he had a feeling like people were looking at them. He didn’t know if they were though as he wasn’t brave enough to check, so he kept his eyes on Quinn instead. He looked nice. But he couldn’t say that, could he? It was just a statement, but he had a feeling that would make it weird. “Do you know what you’re having yet?”

Quinn looked at the menu again, curiously. He recognized a few of the things he'd had before. "Not really often," he said with a shrug, glancing around again. It was weird being in here like this. Were people looking? He could have sworn he saw some people turn their heads away as he glanced around the room, but he focused back on Dustin. "A few times with family and stuff. It's good though," he nodded. Maybe he'd just go with the pad thai. That was always a good choice. "Yeah, it is. Kind of... more Valentine's Day-y than I thought," Quinn said with a small laugh, scratching the back of his head. "I think the pad thai," he said, setting down his menu. "Unless there are good specials. I didn't really look at the board," he admitted, watching as the waitress approached again.

Dustin nodded. “Yeah, me too. I mean, I’ve also been here with my family,” he replied. He wondered if Quinn could guess that this was the first time he’d been “out” in a restaurant with someone else. And it wasn’t even a real date. “Yeah, I’ve noticed. Everyone is just so… in love,” he said in a low voice so that the tables closest to them wouldn’t be able to hear him. He didn’t want to accidentally offend anyone. Dustin was about to open his mouth to ask him what the pad thai was, not really wanting to tell Quinn that all the specials on the board had been specials for couples, when the waitress returned, a small paper notebook and pen in her hand. “Are you two ready to order?” she asked. “We’ve also got a few specials just for today that are not on the menu, it’s a three-course or two-course meal for two people with a small selection of Valentine’s Day mains and of course, our ‘Happy Ending’ dessert just for today.” Dustin coughed, looking right down into his menu so the waitress couldn’t see his face. Whose idea had it been to go out to a restaurant today, on this date? Oh right, it had been Quinn’s.

"Yeah, we haven't been here in a bit though," he conceded. He didn't want to tell Dustin that he hadn't really gone out to eat with anyone who wasn't family. Mostly because he rarely talked to people. Quinn smiled softly when Dustin lowered his voice, and then laughed a little bit. "Yeah, they are," he said with a grin, hiding it once the waitress came over. He looked over when she mentioned the specials and immediately felt his face go red. That was definitely a couple's thing, not just friends. "U-ugh," he stammered. "I-I," his face stayed red as he looked at the memo. "Oh, no," he said, scratching the back of his head. "I'll have just the pad thai," he mumbled, glancing up at Dustin quickly and then away again.

Listening to Quinn stammer, Dustin shot a quick glance at their waitress. She looked a little taken aback, maybe confused, by the way that Quinn had reacted to her telling them about the Valentine’s Day special. In the end, Dustin was really glad that the other boy had been the one to reply to her though, because it meant that he didn’t have to say anything about the special to the waitress. He wasn’t sure he would have done a better job at speaking than Quinn. “I’ll, uh…” Dustin stared back down at his menu, flipping through the pages quickly to find one of the dishes that had sounded interesting. “I’ll have the Khao Pad Moo, please.” He glanced up to see the waitress scribble down his order onto her notepad. “What can I get you two to drink?”

At least Dustin wasn't laughing at his stammering, and he could feel his cheeks starting to return to their normal color. Taking a deep breath, he looked up at Dustin again and then the waitress as Dustin ordered. "No, um, I'm good," he said with a small smile. "With water I mean. Water is good," Quinn said, feeling a little better now. The waitress, although certainly a little confused, wrote down the order quickly. "Right," she said, putting on a smile. Quinn breathed out a soft sigh of relief, once more, as she left to put their order in, and looked back at Dustin. "Sorry. I don't really do well with... people," he shrugged with a soft laugh.

Dustin was more than happy when the waitress finally left. For once, she probably thought the two of them were a couple, which just felt really weird. To have her look at Quinn and think that he was his boyfriend when they were both more than single. But also, he felt like she was intruding a little. Because he couldn’t talk to Quinn like he normally did when someone else was standing next to their table, watching. “Uh, nothing to say sorry for,” Dustin mumbled. That was awkward, was one sentence he wanted to say. Thank you for handling that, was another. “Besides, I’m not sure that’s true, like, entirely,” he continued. “You do well with me.”

"Yeah well," Quinn mumbled, and just shrugged, looking around quickly before focusing back on Dustin. He was though. It was just people he was comfortable with that he could talk normally with. It was a result of the years of focus on computers and his, for the most part, seclusion from people in real life outside his family and a few people. "Yeah well, you're different," Quinn said, looking down at the place setting before him and then glancing back up at Quinn. "I just hope we don't really have to deal with that waitress much more," he chuckled, looking around to make sure she wasn't there. It was awkward. "But, let's just pretend it's not Valentine's Day and be normal," Quinn said, sitting up straight a bit and smirking. It was easier to think that when he wasn't looking around and the waitress wasn't there.

Dustin glanced down at the table cloth and smiled faintly. Different was good, right? “I don’t think we do. I mean, we ordered already, she’s going to bring us our food but I think after that she’ll leave us alone, right?” He wanted to ask if maybe she thought it was weird that two guys were having dinner together. But in the end, he wasn’t brave enough to ask that. “Yeah, okay, let’s pretend. And let’s not think about how, like, half of these people in here are probably going to have sex after going home.” He furrowed his eyebrows in slight disgust, then looked right back at Quinn, shooting him a quick smile across the table. “So, anything weird going on lately? Did you get attacked by bigfoot while picking me up? Or did you run into a Basilisk last night, by any chance?”

Quinn shrugged. He supposed that she would leave them alone. That's usually what happened at least, and the restaurant was fairly crowded. "Ew," Quinn said wrinkling his nose but laughing anyway. This was getting easier. "I don't want to think about that, definitely not," Quinn said, feeling himself relax a little bit more. "No, thank God," he said with a slight groan. Other than the memories that were still continuing, but that was starting to become not quite as weird, despite how horrific they were. "After I got those files it seems like things are calming down. Which is great. Maybe the supernatural knows that I know a little more about it now and is content?" Quinn shrugged, taking a sip of his water and glancing back at Dustin. "What about you? Any weird shit going on?"

Dustin was happy to hear Quinn laugh. He had a nice laugh, and besides, this was a sign that things were starting to get less awkward. He didn’t think he could survive a whole dinner with the awkwardness of walking into the restaurant and speaking to the waitress. “Sorry,” Dustin mumbled sheepishly and started playing with his paper napkin, trying to think of any weird stuff that had happened to him recently. “I mean, the better question is, what isn’t going on. A few weeks ago Lea apparently spotted a couple of moving snowmen? And I ran into these weird creatures that looked like half-rat and half-turtle and I keep having these weird dreams.” He sighed before raising an eyebrow at Quinn. “Well, maybe things have been calm, but now you totally jinxed it by saying it. I think we should expect to get attacked by a dragon the second we leave this restaurant.”

"Oh yeah, those Snowmen," Quinn mumbled. He'd seen that too. But it was a while ago. Sometimes it seemed like things happened so much and so long ago, when it was really only a few weeks. "Ew, those sound pretty weird and gross," Quinn chuckled, humming as he tried to picture them. But it wasn't exactly a great image. "Really? What kind of dreams?" he asked, blinking curiously. "Fuck," he laughed. "I should have thought of that and just said shit's been going on," he said. "Maybe it won't be a dragon though. What if it's like, something cute? Like a bunny with horns or something that won't try to kill us?" he asked, glancing up as he caught a movement out of the corner of his eye. He groaned slightly, it looked like the waitress was coming back over.

“They were really gross,” Dustin confirmed. “And they were also really dangerous. I really don’t want to see one of those again.” When the other boy asked him about his dreams, Dustin paused, wondering how much he should tell him. “It’s kind of just this face, this person, talking about stuff. I don’t know. And it’s not just dreams, it’s also sort of daydreams? Which isn’t really the right word because I don’t choose to think about this stuff. It feels more like memories, but they can’t be. Because it’s also stuff from my childhood, stuff with my dad, that hasn’t actually happened.” He wasn’t sure this was a good explanation for what had been going on inside his head, but he hoped it was close. “A bunny with horns? That sounds sort of terrifying, actually.” He chuckled, looking at Quinn from across the table. “What if we run into a unicorn though? I mean, it’s possible, we are both virgins and-“ a movement to his left made him glance up, his eyes widening as he realised that the waitress had approached the table and he hadn’t noticed until she was in earshot. Dustin could feel his face turn bright red. All he wanted to do was take back the last sentence he said. Or somehow disappear through the floorboards.

"Okay. Good to know. Run away from creepy rat turtles," he said, making a mental note and smirking. "Daydreams?" Quinn mumbled. That sounded awfully like his own memories, from the creature. Not that he knew any way to get rid of them. "Weird," he mumbled, with a slight huff. "I didn't mean, like, one that could attack. But like, you know, antlers or something. Isn't that some urban legend of something?" Quinn chuckled. "A Unicorn would-," he began, but he also felt his cheeks flare up when the waitress came by with their food. "Here you boys are," she said, seemingly unfazed by Dustin's pronouncement of their lack of sex. "Now, does this cute couple need anything else?" she asked. Quinn stuttered and his face went, if possible, even redder. She was definitely doing this to tease them. There was no way someone would do that if they didn't enjoy torturing people in their restaurant. "W-we're not," he began, before just shaking his head and keeping his eyes straight down at the food on the table in front of him.

Dustin nodded. “Definitely run from the rat turtles. They bite. And apparently they can smell food on you.” He shrugged. “Yeah, daydreams. Like you remember something that never happened, but it’s strangely vivid. So it feels like it did happen.” It was the best explanation he could give. “I’ve never heard of that urban legend!” He watched a plate being set down in front of him, risking a small glance up at the other boy, whose cheeks resembled his own in colour. Shit, he hadn’t meant to make this more awkward. When the next words left the waitresses mouth, Dustin jerked his head towards her, rendered speechless for a small moment. He hadn’t thought his cheeks could turn any darker, but right now it felt like all of the blood in his body was going to his head. He heard Quinn start to correct her, and he wondered if he should say something like that, too, but what would he even say? He didn’t think that the concept of protest valentine’s dinners was very well known in town. “No, thanks, we are good,” Dustin quickly said, forcing a smile before staring down at the food in front of him. For a moment he wished he knew how to do powerful mental magic so he could manipulate her to just go already.

"Great...," Quinn laughed. Why weren't there any nice things around? That'd be a nice change for once. "Yeah, that's what happened to me when the smoke creature touched me," he said with a small frown. He hoped that this would stop happening sooner rather than later. "Really? I can't remember where I heard it but it's definitely a thing. Quinn kept his eyes down as his hands fidgeted in his lap. He could see that the waitress hadn't left yet, despite his silent prayers that she would go. He glanced up and saw her looking down at them with a patronizing look. "Oh, of course, my mistake," she said, as if she didn't believe for a second they weren't a couple. Quinn just let out a soft groan of frustration. She left after a minute though, and Quinn looked up at Dustin, his face still red. At least he wasn't the only one embarrassed. "This... might not have been the best idea,"

Dustin let out a small sigh of relief when the waitress finally left their table. He didn’t think they had done a good job convincing her that they weren’t together. For a brief moment he wondered if it was embarrassing for Quinn that others thought he was his boyfriend. “Yeah,” Dustin let out a small chuckle. “I don’t think many friends go out to eat on this day,” he said. “Especially people our age.” He picked up his fork. The food in front of him looked delicious. One thing that went right at least. “Well- still, being mistaken for your boyfriend is not exactly the worst.” As soon as the words had left his mouth, he immediately regretted them. He hadn’t meant to say that out loud. He lowered his gaze as he picked at his food. “I mean, it’s not an insult or anything,” he tried to clarify, feeling his cheeks flush with colour.

"Yeah... even in a protest dinner," Quinn said with a small smile. He felt a little better now. Picking up his fork as well, Quinn took a bite of his food, grinning. At least the food was good. And he liked spending time with Dustin anyway. "Yeah, I mean, everyone our age out today is probably together," he said. "Oh," Quinn said, the fork halfway to his mouth. He felt a fluttering in his chest at the comment, and he knew that he was grinning widely. "Thanks," he said, biting back a smile as he looked down at his food and took another bite. "Well, same for you," he said once he finished chewing.

“Quinn, I think there might be a slight possibility that we are the only people protest-dining today,” Dustin replied with a smirk, shoving some rice onto his fork before bringing it to his mouth. Fuck, this was delicious. He should come here more often. But with whom? They couldn’t protest silly corporate holidays every day. His cheeks still burning, he risked looking up from his food to observe Quinn’s reaction to what he’d said. Surprisingly, the other boy looked happy. And instead of awkward silence, Quinn was being nice about this. Dustin reached for his glass of water and took a sip from it to hide his smile.

"I think it's a high possibility actually," Quinn replied with a small smile. Quinn continued eating for a moment, before looking back up at Dustin. "So, before we were rudely interrupted by the server," he said with a small grin. "You mentioned something about memories or something? And unicorns? Are they real too? Because I don't know anything about them and it would be pretty cool," Quinn said, getting back into the swing of normal conversation. Well as normal as supernatural conversation could be.

"I wouldn't say that. I mean, some others might have had the same idea as us," Dustin replied as he took another mouthful of his dish, smiling at the other boy mid-chewing. "Unicorns?" He let out a small groan. "Ugh, don't remind me that I just told our waitress we're virgins. But no, I don't think they exist. Or, I don't know. They might." He shrugged. "You're the one with all the files. And yeah, I've had super weird dreams and stuff when I was awake they felt like memories, but they can't be. And then you said something about the smoke monster?" He raised one eyebrow at Quinn in question.

"Maybe," Quinn said doubtfully. "Yeah," he said with a shrug. "Yeah, you did do that. Maybe we should not let everyone know that though. I think that's a good plan," he teased, feeling better about it now. "I didn't get files on everything, just a few files. The guy totally wouldn't let me take everything," he said. Quinn could have gotten them, and could probably go back and get them whenever he wanted, but right now he had what was necessary. "Yeah that's what mine feel like. They suck," he mumbled, taking another bite as he tried to think of things that weren't himself covered in blood. "Yeah, that's what gave me the memories I think,"

"Really? I think we should, like, announce it at school. Be open about it. I bet that would make us really, really cool. Everyone would start inviting us to all the parties. Definitely." Dustin grinned. "Let me know if you find anything about unicorns in them. Which reminds me, I wanna see the other files! I've only read the one about witchcraft, and while that was-" Useful, was what he meant to say. "-interesting, I'd like to know more." He shot a questioning glance at the other boy. "Yeah, why? What are they about?" he asked, reaching for his glass. "What makes you think it was the smoke creature?"

Quinn just laughed and rolled his eyes, knowing that Dustin was actually kidding about that. As much as he didn't like high school or the shitty social structures there, he didn't want to put himself in a worse off position there. "Oh, yeah I can give you them," Quinn said with a small smile. "Just don't show them off to everyone," he nodded. "When I was with Brett the monster touched me. He knew what it was and told me. Plus I got the file on the creature too," he said, taking another few bites of his food.

Dustin smiled. "Yeah? Okay good. I knew I was friends with you for a reason," he teased him. As if hanging out with Quinn had anything to do with those files. Although he'd be bummed out if he chose not to share the rest of them. But mostly because that would mean that somehow, Quinn didn't trust him with them. "Who would I even show them to," he mumbled. "I mean, I don't think anyone would believe me. Or they would ask where I got them from." He looked up at Quinn. For some reason, he had completely ignored the question about the contents of his 'memories'. Maybe they were embarrassing? But he wouldn't laugh at Quinn. Not in a mean way, anyway. "That is one file I am definitely dying to see, " he said, digging the fork into his meal. "I need to know what those things mean. They're weird and I don't like them."

Quinn shrugged. That was probably true. Most people would think those files were just made up, which was a good thing. But he didn't need it getting around to the Scribes that he somehow had gotten their files. Not when Molly already knew it was Q who had gotten them. Quinn didn't answer the question about his memories, and was glad that Dustin didn't pry. "Yeah, I'll send it over when I get home," Quinn said with a smile. "Yeah, they suck," he said simply, taking another large bite of food so he wouldn't have to talk for a moment.

"Thanks." Dustin smiled at him. "I wonder if there's a way to get rid of them. 'Cause they just get weirder and weirder, if you ask me." He wondered what the meaning of them was. For some time, he had thought that maybe they were visions of the future, but that was impossible. He took another bite of his food when Quinn said that they sucked, without elaborating why they did. He didn't ask him why. The memories, or visions, or whatever, felt strangely intimate and personal. Maybe it was the same for Quinn. Sometimes, he asked too many questions, because he was curious, and that scared people away. He didn't want to scare Quinn away. "This is really fucking good," he mumbled once he had swallowed his food. "I don't think I've had anything this good all year."

"Yeah, I dunno. I hope so, that'd be nice. Maybe the Scribes know or something. But there didn't seem to be anything that file so," he frowned, chewing slowly. Quinn ate in silence for a moment, finishing up his dinner and pushing the plate a little further onto the table. "Oh, yeah it really is," he said, grinning happily at Dustin. Looking around quickly, he let out a low groan. "Come on, does she need to come back?" Quinn whined softly, eyes flicking to the waitress and then back down at his empty plate. He just wanted to finish dinner in peace with Dustin.

Dustin nodded, wondering if maybe he should ask Molly about the creature. Maybe she knew something important. "Glad you thought so, too," he said, taking a few more bites of his nearly empty plate. "This place is really nice. A bit packed today, but nice. Except for the-" he stopped his sentence the second he saw her walk into his field of vision, eyes flickering to the two of them as she approached their table. Speaking of the devil. "Everything alright here with you two?" She was smiling. Dustin wished she wasn't. Fuck, this was the person who had heard him talk about his virginity... "Can I get you anything else? Something else to drink? Or to eat? We have a range of desserts, if you are interested. I can personally recommend the Rambutan with ice cream or the orange sorbet. Any dessert can be ordered to be shared to come with two spoons." Dustin tore his gaze away from the smile playing around the corners of her lips as he looked at Quinn in a silent cry for help.

Quinn kept his eyes mostly downcast when she started speaking, though he looked up at Dustin a few times and was able to catch the look of help that was directed towards him. "Ugh, no. I think we're good," he said, glancing up only for a moment at the woman before looking away again. It was weird the way she was looking at them. "Just the check please," he said. "Are you sure? Every other couple is getting a dessert tonight. It's a special day after all," she asked, a smirk on his lips. Quinn just shook his head, his face growing red again and repeated his "No thank you,"

Dustin was more than thankful to hear Quinn's voice, telling the waitress that they were good and didn't want dessert or anything else. Maybe she was just trying to do her job, attempting to get them to spend more money on their meal. But why did she have to keep smiling at them? It really didn't look like the polite, almost bored smiles the waitresses usually gave his family when they went out for dinner. Was it because she thought they were a gay couple? Or because they were teenagers? It maybe had not been the smartest idea to come here on Valentine's Day. Of course she would think they were together. Because two boys couldn't possibly be getting dinner together without being a couple. "Yeah, we're sure," Dustin added. "The food was a lot, but it was nice, so thank you."

The waitress's smile didn't falter, but she nodded and began to take their plates. "Thanks," Quinn said, giving her a small, weak smile. She walked away with the plates and Quinn was able to breathe easy again. "I dunno what it is with her," he mumbled to Dustin, leaning in a bit to whisper so she didn't hear them. "But once we get the check we can get out of here and do something else. Something where people won't keep calling us a couple or anything," he mumbled, though in truth he wasn't minding it as much as he thought he would, it was just embarrassing.

Thank god the waitress had no reason to stay once they had declined dessert, so she finally took their plates and left, probably to get the check. Dustin smiled, eyes flickering to Quinn's face when the other boy leaned forward a little so he could speak in a whisper. "That sounds perfect," Dustin replied with a small grin. He hadn't thought about what they were going to do after dinner. Part of him had thought that Quinn would simply drop him off at home again right away. But he was glad that apparently he wasn't, he liked spending time with Quinn. "Not sure we'll find a place like that though. It is Valentine's Day after all. And we sadly forgot our 'no homo' hoodies at home."

Quinn smiled brightly and nodded. "Okay cool," he said, glad that Dustin was down to do more stuff, even with the rather bad experience at dinner that they had. "Yeah," Quinn said with a hum, thinking about what they could do. There was always the option of going back home to play video games or something, but they always did that. "I dunno, it's not as cold as it had been, maybe we could go walk? It'll be pretty empty outside I bet. The docks are nice?" he asked. The docks were also probably far safer than the parks were at night with all the creatures about in town.

Dustin nodded. He wasn't a big fan of the cold, but thankfully the weather wasn't as bad as it had been in January. And walking around the docks actually sounded nice. It would be good to be able to talk to Quinn without having to constantly feel the eyes of the other guests or the eager waitress on them. "I like that idea," he replied, a small smile on his lips, which promptly vanished as he could see the waitress approach their table again, carrying the check. Dustin reached around until he found the pocket of his coat to take out his wallet. Now that they had decided what to do next, he really couldn't wait to get out into the fresh air.

Quinn nodded happily. If Dustin was happy about it then he was too. He watched as Dustin pulled out his wallet, grabbing his own as well. This wasn't a date so that meant they were splitting it right? The waitress came over again, and this time actually was fairly quick in dropping off the check. Someone at another table had called her over before. "Well that's a relief," Quinn muttered, glancing at the paper and putting down some money for his food, glancing up at Dustin. Wait was he still expected to pay? Since he had been the one to ask Dustin to dinner. But it wasn't a date so... Fuck.

Dustin was very happy the waitress left so soon and didn't stick around to comment on them splitting the bill. Because that was happening, right? Since it wasn't a date. Besides, when it was two guys, who was supposed to pay anyway? With a girl and a boy it was easy, the boy was supposed to pay. Which was maybe a bit outdated. But two guys? Glancing at the piece of paper, Dustin put down the money for his food plus a little bit for a small tip. It wasn't like he wouldn't have paid for Quinn's meal, but the other boy had already put down some money and besides, that would have made it awkward, right? Because this wasn't a date. No matter how many people mistook them for a couple.

Quinn was relieved when Dustin put down money as well. That made things easier and he didn't feel quite as bad or nervous. Or just weird in general about being called a couple so frequently by this waitress. He didn't want to confuse Dustin or lose a friend because of it. "I think we can go pay up front," Quinn said, grabbing the money and leaving the rest for tip. "This way we don't have to deal with her again," he said with a big grin, which was always a good option in his mind. "So if you're ready?" he asked, reaching down to his jacket with a small smile.

Dustin gave him a big nod, putting his wallet back into his coat and got up. "Yeah, I think I'm happy not dealing with her again," he said, a smirk on his lips. "Let's go before she calls us cute again. Can you believe it? 'Cute'. We're not cute." He put on his coat and started buttoning it up. "If we were together we'd be a very sexy and incredibly manly couple. Never cute." With a small chuckle he started making his way towards the front of the restaurant, turning his head to make sure Quinn was following him.

Quinn just nodded, opening his mouth, about to say something about Dustin actually being cute before shutting his mouth and flushing red. He hid his face as he pulled on his jacket, standing up and making his way over to the front of the restaurant. He chuckled as Quinn continued talking, hurrying up a bit behind Dustin. When they reached the front, he handed the hostess the money and nodded to the door. "Let's get out of here," he said with a grin. He sent one final glance back into the restaurant as he opened the door, spotting the waitress rushing between tables. "Let's make sure she's not here if we come back,"

"Yeah, let's do that," Dustin agreed, turning his head towards the waitress before walking out the door. He was instantly hit with the cold, but after living through the January of hell this wasn't too bad. "I hope that if I ever come back here with my family she won't be the one serving us," he mumbled. "Or that she wouldn't remember me. It would just be incredibly awkward if she did." He turned towards Quinn with a smile. "So we're going to the docks, right?"

Quinn was glad that, although cold, it wasn't quite as bad as it had been. Certainly not like when he and Dustin had been Christmas shopping. "I bet she does though. Which is the worst part," Quinn groaned. They weren't exactly subtle were they? Two guys on Valentine's Day who kept stuttering and blushing. Not great. "Yup, that way," he said, pointing towards the river. Fortunately it wasn't particularly far away. Quinn stuffed his hands into his pockets to keep a little warmer and began his way towards the docks.

"I guess I'll just have to keep my family from coming here again though. So I can save my parents from having a heart attack when she comes up to us being like 'Oh hello, nice to see you again! Where did you leave that cute boyfriend of yours?'" Dustin had to smirk as he tried to imitate the waitresses voice, walking alongside Quinn as the neared the river, pulling down the sleeves of his jumper a little so he could shield his fingers from the cold wind of the river. "Soo..." he started, glancing at the other boy. "How have you been? With everything, I mean. Now that you've had a little time to get used to the fact that the world isn't what it appears to be."

"Oh, yeah, wouldn't want that," Quinn said with a small chuckle, mostly at Dustin's imitation of his voice. Dustin shuffled a bit as they approached the water, it being a bit cooler there. "Ugh... you know," he shrugged, looking over the water for a moment. He thought he'd seen something and wondered if it had been something supernatural or just a fish. "I mean, I've gotten a little used to it but it's still weird you know? That you live in a town so long and don't realize it? It was right there and just... for some reason," he shrugged, sighing softly as he walked over to a bench and plopped down, resting his hand on the cool wood and tapping it lightly. "It'll be nice if things just settle down,"

Dustin looked at Quinn's profile for a moment as he looked out onto the river, nodding along to his words. Everything he'd seen in the last couple of months had been with no doubt weird. More than weird. He watched him sit down on a wooden bench, slowly stepping closer before sitting down right next to him, making sure to avoid the wet patch of wood on the end of the bench. "I mean, I've lived knowing something's up a little while longer." That was an understatement right there. "And you keep finding new things, new creatures, and it's weird and scary sometimes. But I'm, just, so sure that things will settle down if you want that. And not everything strange out there is out there to attack you. I mean, it's not all evil snowmen and weird demons, it's not..."

When Dustin sat down next to him, Quinn suddenly became aware of how close they were together. Part of the bench was wet, true, but his arm was pressing lightly against Dustin's and his hand was close to his. He suddenly felt heat rise to his cheeks when he realized how warm Dustin felt against him. "Ugh, yeah, I'm sure. And just really hope that things will be nicer soon," he said, looking out onto the dock and trying to focus on that, instead of how much he liked being this close to Dustin.

For a moment, looking at the other boy, Dustin wondered if maybe he should reveal the truth to him, to tell him that his whole family was somehow involved in it all and about what amazing things he could do. Quinn deserved to see some nice things for a change. But in the end, he didn't say it. Quinn wanted things to settle down, which probably didn't include finding out that his friend was a warlock and had been keeping it from him. Dustin rubbed his hand against his thigh for warmth, trying to ignore how the motion made his arm brush against Quinn's. "Yeah, but things are nice now, aren't they?" he asked, then bit down on his lip, tearing his gaze away from Quinn towards the river. Shit. Maybe this had been an awkward thing to say.

And there it was again. Dustin's arm rubbing against him. Even through their several layers Quinn was feeling odd about it. It was nice to have, they'd never really touched much before, except for that night they had been drinking. He'd liked it then too. Part of Quinn really wanted more of that contact. He shook is off though, despite the image of him reaching out to take Dustin's hand. Maybe it'd help keep them warm? He shook his head and focused on the river out in front of him. "Yeah, no. This is really nice," he said with a small smile. "Like, really nice," he laughed.

Dustin smiled when he heard Quinn's reply, leaning a little closer against him, arm pressing against arm through the hundreds of fabrics they were wearing to protect themselves against the cold. He suddenly didn't know what to say. Why didn't he know what to say? He always knew what to say. There was literally zero reason for him to feel nervous around his friend, but yet he did. He turned his head to look at him for a second before looking back out towards the river, eyes focussing on the birds flying low across the water. "Yeah?" he asked.

It was quiet, and the silence wasn't terrible. Maybe a little awkward. He felt like he should say something, but he wasn't sure what. What Quinn did know was that he was hyper aware of their arms pressing together, and how close his own hand was to Dustin's. He wasn't quite sure what caused him to do it, but he shifted a bit, the side of his hand pressing against Dustin's. "Yeah," he said simply, still looking out, but more than a few times glancing over to look at Dustin.

Suddenly, there was something warm brushing against his hand. Taking in a small breath, Dustin cast a quick glance down towards his hand before looking away again. Quinn was close enough that their hands were touching, just a little. This was an accident, right? It was probably an accident, Quinn had probably just shifted a little, causing their hands to touch. Maybe he wasn't even aware of it. But what if it wasn't an accident? Dustin knew that he should probably pull his hand away, or shift a little enough to create a little space between them. But for some reason, he was reluctant to do so. This felt nice, sitting close to Quinn on the bench, even though he could swear his heart was going just a little bit too fast for him simply sitting on a bench, not moving. Dustin didn't move his hand away. He pressed his hand right against Quinn's, very lightly. If this was an accident, Quinn could pull away now.

Quinn felt like he was breathing far too heavily right now. He also felt like his heart was pounding out of his chest. Why was he so nervous? And why did it feel so good to just have their hands touching like this? But what if Dustin didn't like it? He'd pull away right? Then he would know and it'd be easier. But instead of pulling away, he felt Dustin's hand press against his again. Flushing just a little, which he could blame on the chill in the air, Quinn smiled. That definitely wasn't an accident right? Still, he was nervous. Quinn shifted his pinky just a bit, enough to brush against Dustin's hand and then rest atop Dustin's pinky. This was the make it or break it moment.

Dustin didn't look at their hands as he felt one of Quinn's fingers move against his pinky, continuing to look out at the river as he felt it rest on top of his even though he was dying to see the expression on Quinn's face at this exact moment. You didn't just put your finger on top of your friend's on accident, right? Brushing against each other, that could happen on accident. But not this. Pulling his bottom lip in between his teeth, Dustin started moving his pinky, brushing lighly against Quinn's hand in return. A part of his brain was telling him to stop this, what was he doing, he needed to move away, he couldn't lead Quinn on. But the bigger part of his brain simply didn't listen as he moved his pinky slowly along the top of Quinn's pinky, brushing against one of his knuckles.

It felt like forever while he waited for Dustin to respond. He had half a mind to just pull away and pretend it didn't happen. Hell, part of him wanted to run off. But then Quinn's mind calmed again when he felt Dustin touch his hand back. He couldn't keep the wide smile from growing across his face as he felt Dustin's finger brush against his. "Um," he said, not really sure what he was going to say. Instead he moved his and a bit more, letting his fingers wrap around Dustin's hand and blushing red as he looked over at Dustin.

At the sound of Quinn's voice, Dustin turned his head, suddenly feeling brave enough to look at him. He let out the breath he didn't notice he'd been holding when he saw that the other boy was smiling widely. And then he moved his hand a little, but instead of moving it away there was suddenly even more contact. This counted as holding hands, did it not? Almost instinctly, Dustin moved his own hand so it fit better with Quinn's fingers, and fuck, he was holding Quinn's hand, was he not? He wasn't supposed to hold his hand, but fuck, there was no way he was letting go. "Hi," he said quietly, trying to fight his smile, but that wasn't really working.

As Dustin's hand shifted in his, for a moment Quinn though that the other boy was going to pull away and he was going to make a fool of himself. But instead their hands were close together and he was grinning even more. He didn't know why this was happening, or even really how, but Quinn liked it. "Hey," Quinn said, smiling just as wide, and glad to see that Dustin was as well. Was it weird that, maybe he wanted to lean in and kiss him? Not on the lips, on the cheek or something. Dustin just looked very cute right now.

Dustin was really, really glad that this was happening in February and not in another time of the year because at least he didn't have to worry about his hand suddenly getting sweaty. It was still so cold, the wind was freezing across the back of his hand, but Quinn's hand was a nice source of warmth. After returning Quinn's gaze for a while, smiling, he eventually turned his head to look back at the river, the tip of his index finger brushing carefully across the back of Quinn's hand. This wasn't a real date, no it wasn't, they were friends, but in this moment he couldn't help but feel like it was. Actually, if he was completely honest with himself, he was sort of hoping that maybe it was. Which was completely irrational and not-good, but he couldn't do anything against how nice it felt to hold Quinn's hand.

#touchofchatzy #chatzy #quinn #not a date

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