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kristoffsloveisntfragile · 4 years

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Snow Day Spent Shoveling Away. Part 1

Rating: T (some swears, kissing scenes, mostly fluff)

Pairing: Kristoff/Anna

Summary: Modern AU; Anna calls Kristoff in desperation, as she needs to shovel her apartment complex’s front and back steps, along with the sidewalks in the front of the building. It was a promise she made to her sister that the landlord needed help with the incoming storm, but she went away for the weekend for her job. Her being the procrastinator she is, its the last day she has to do it and the snow is piled up. Will they be able to do it in time?

Notes: If you saw my tumblr post (a while back-sorry about that) when I shoveled the snow on the first snow day in my state, it read that I had a fanfiction idea brewing in my head the whole time I was shoveling. This is my first real time that I’m writing Kristanna fanfiction, I’ve written little stuff in the past, but it never made it past my notebooks/laptop. So this is the real first published piece. I hope you enjoy! (also i really tried with the title, idk if I like it still but there you go lol.)

~~~

*Vvv* *Vvv*…*Vvv* *Vvv*

Kristoff’s phone would not stop going off. He would answer it in a heartbeat too, if he wasn’t in a deep nap.

Soon enough though, his phone kept buzzing to the point it didn’t stop, and that woke him up. Being confused as to where the noise was coming from, he rubbed his eyes and face to shake the sleep out of his body. He found his phone slowly moving on the coffee table next to the couch he was on, being annoyed, thinking it was work trying to call him in. But it wasn’t, he looked at who was texting him and who were the missed calls from. All 43 messages and 4 missed called, all were from Anna.

Now 44 messages.

“Krisssss!!!!!!! WHY AREN’T YOU ANSWERING?!?!?!?!”

He chuckled, what could he possibly be dragged into now?

He sat up and dialed her up and put the phone to his ear. “Hey Anna, what do yo-”

“WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN, I NEED YOUR HELP BADLY IM GONNA DIE I’M IN SO MUCH TROUBLE!!-”

“Woah, woah, woah, relax...and what? What’s going on why are you in trouble?” Kristoff said with genuine concern, even though he knew Anna is probably just being overdramatic and she’ll be fine with his help.

“Oh my God, so basically this weekend Elsa told me that I needed to shovel the front and back stairs because our landlord is off on vacation for something this weekend, and Elsa would’ve helped too but she also has to go away too for her job or whatever, so she left just me in charge, but I completely forgot about it until right now and she gets back in the morning and she’s gonna KILL ME if she finds out I didn’t do anything this weekend!!!!” Anna rambled on.

Kristoff was still trying to process everything she said, you know, seeing how he just came out of a nap. He took his free hand and ran it through his hair, knowing what she was going to ask of him to do, but still curious how much a job it was going to be.

“So anyway….can you come over and help me shovel the front and back stairs?” Anna asked, but held back a little, thinking that he was going to say no and she’ll just have to suffer and do it herself.

He sighed a little, hopefully not too loud or too long for her to hear, and said “Yeah, give me 5-10 mins and I’ll be over.” He started to get up to put on his jacket and boots, when he heard a squeal through the phone and a resounding “THANK YOU SO MUCH KRISTOFF I LOVE Y-..SEE YOU SOON!!!” And she hung up. He smiled as he put the phone in his pocket and continued putting on his shoes.

His smile grew bigger as he realized that she started to say “I love you.” He was sure that it was just in a friendly way, because he was also sure that Anna didn’t feel the same way as he did. That thought made him go sour so he decided to stop thinking about it.

Oh well.. at least he still gets to spend time with her, right?

~~~

Kristoff drove to Anna’s apartment and took a space in the parking lot. Anna was patiently waiting in the hall inside the apartment to get started, and saw that he was pulling in and ran out the door to see him.

He got out of the truck and was instantly met with a leaping Anna, somehow managing to get through the snow that was up to her calf, jumping into him and hugging him and saying “Thank you so much again for doing this with me!” Anna let go of Kristoff, even though he barely had time to give back the hug. “I was literally going to breakdown and cry if I had to do this by myself.” Anna looked into Kristoff’s eye with grateful eyes.

“Well, you know me, always here to help.” He shrugged and then laughed, she joined the laugh, and quickly turned around to go back to the front hall and get the shovels, and he followed.

“So is it just these steps and the back?” Kristoff asked over the wind as it started to pick up.“Yeah, and maybe just a little bit of the sidewalk, so there can be a path for the people so they can get to the parking lot.” She said with a little uncertainty in her voice, still hoping Kristoff wouldn’t back out of it this early into it. But he still was going with it, like he said, he was there to help.

Anna went back into the hall and got the two heavy duty shovels “We’ll get different ones when we have to do the stairs, seeming how they’ll be smaller.” Anna turned to Kristoff and handed him a shovel. Kristoff looked at what they had to do and back to Anna. It was just flurrying out, and some snowflakes were gently placed on her hair, and scattered all across her hat. And you couldn’t tell from a quick glance, but since Kristoff was already looking, he could see the flakes that landed on her eyelashes and some on her cheeks, but some had melted, probably because of her warmth, Kristoff assumed.

Anna was gazing out at what they had to get done, and suddenly got a boost of confidence and said, “We can do this, it won’t be that long!” Anna jumped down the stairs. Kristoff was more worried if she was going to hurt herself with all this snow and possible black ice underneath.

“What area should I focus on?” Kristoff asked.

“Uh, from here to here,” she pointed to a section of the snow to the street, “That’s the sidewalk, and of course right here, so you know, you don’t have to jump from the stairs to the sidewalk. And a little pathway over there,” pointing to where they trudged through earlier, “So people can get to the parking lot.” She finished with a worry look creeping up on her free. Kristoff knew to her it looked like it was more than she can chew.

“Hey, it’s gonna be fine. I’ll start the sidewalk, why don’t you do the stairs here.” Kristoff suggested as he went down the stairs.

“Oh the easier work, huh?” Anna pouted but still had a hint of a smirk, and came close to Kristoff, like she was trying to intimidate him.

“Well do you wanna be sore doing all the more tough work?” Kristoff smirked back.

“...No.” Anna scrunched up her face and went to the stairs.

They started their section and were pretty quiet as they were just trying to get all this work over with. Up until Anna came across a bump in the ...snow

“Ugh I hate it when this happens…” Anna kept at it trying to do it up. Kristoff looked over and admired the hard work she put into the stairs so far.

Anna started chipping away the block with her shovel until she decided to use her hands. Dropping the shovel, crouching, she began pawing at it like a dog. Kristoff chuckled and came over to help, dropping his shovel in the snow too.

“Here, try this…” Kristoff lined the block, dogging at the edges to separate it from the ground. Anna decided to let him have it. Almost thinking, ‘Less work for me though, right?’ And then she caught glimpse of Kristoff face. They’d been out there for sometime so his cheeks and nose were a rosy pink. Anna admired it, it looked like he was constantly blushing, and she thought it was cute. She didn’t realize she was staring for so long until finally got the block separated from the stair.

“Ah, there we go.” Kristoff gasped, then lifted the snow block. It was as big as Kristoff’s chest.

“Well no wonder I couldn’t get it, it’s as big as you!” Anna exclaimed. Kristoff rolled his eyes, “Thanks.” then laughed and tossed the block to the pile that both him and Anna started.

“I mean that in a good way. Why do you think I asked for your help? You’re the strongest man I know. And look.. You’ve got most of it done! I say that’s a job well done. “ Anna rambled on, probably saying more than needed.

“...Thanks Anna.” Anna couldn’t tell if he was actually blushing now, but it definitely put a smile on his face. He retrieved his shovel and went back to it.

Anna smiled too, but then realized that she made it sound like she was using him...she hoped he actually got the compliment she was trying to give. She turned to see him work, bit her lip, but turned to get back to the stairs.

Another while passed and both of them were at a point where they couldn’t stop sniffing from the sold and they were fatigued so much they were breathing heavily.

For her, Anna took one big sniff and breath and got the last piece off the stairs to the other big pile.

“Agh, yes I finished the steps!” Anna didn’t have the energy to jump around and be happy, she was breathing heavily, but very relieved. Kristoff was looking at her and did have a smile, but it was an exhausted one from the work he had done. He got the sidewalk to be visible but he had barely started on the pile in front of the stairs.

“Oh right, well let’s get this part, I guess.” the excitement dying in her voice. But then she looked to Kristoff where he was stretching his lower back, and then his shoulder.

“Are you okay?” Anna asked with concern in her voice and face.

“Hm? Oh yeah, it just gets a little tiring after a while.” He was still stretching his shoulder.

“Yeah, I’m starting to feel it too.” Anna stretched her back and the sound of cracking went all down her back. “Damn…And my hands are like, stiff from the shovel.” She stretched out her fingers too.

Kristoff sympathized and then really looked at Anna. She was pretty bundled up, but he could tell she was starting to freeze. He was thinking about just taking a rest, but he knew Anna would flip and say they have to get it done before the night is over. It was already starting to get dark out, and they still had the back stairs to do. They were both starting to get a little worried.

Then all of a sudden, an idea he wish he thought of earlier, came to him.

“Oh my God,” He started to laugh at himself as he was patting his jacket for his phone.

“What?” Anna asked.

He found his phone and headed to the hall in the building, and found the person he needed and called them. Anna was confused as ever, but a hint of worry as she hoped nothing bad was happening and he had to leave her to the rest.

“Hello?” A voice came through the phone.

“Hey, Sven!” Kristoff happily replied. “Hey, are you still at work?”

“About to clock out, what’s up?” Sven asked.

“Well, I’m here with Anna helping shovel her apartment building and stairs and such. I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind coming by with one of your plow trucks and help us out?” Anna’s face changed to pure happiness as she realized he was getting help.

“Yeah! That’s no problem at all! I have to take one home anyway to do my own driveway.” Sven replied an Kristoff was relieved he could help.

“Oh man, thank you so much, I owe you one!” Kristoff said.

“Awe, no you don’t… or maybe, I haven’t decided yet.” Sven laughed. “Just give me the address and I’ll be there 5-10 minutes.”

Kristoff was giving the address as Anna was bouncing next to him, being so happy that he did this.

“Alright I’ll be there soon, bye!” Sven said and hung up, and Kristoff put the phone away from his ear but immediately got attacked by Anna’s hug.

She jumped and hugged him and wrapped her legs around his waist and tightly squeezed. “Thank you Kristoff Bjorgman! I am in you debt!” She basically screamed into his ear. Kristoff returned the hug, mostly just to keep her from falling, but he was blessed with this hug, he felt like.

God only knows how long they hugged for. After a minute or two it wasn’t in excitement of getting help, it was just them wanting to hold each other. They soon realized it could get awkward any minute so they let go of each other, Kristoff putting Anna to the floor, but both of their hands still on each other. Anna’s on his shoulders, still sliding slowly to his chest, Kristoff’s on Anna’s waist. They looked at each other, both smiling and both looking deep into each other’s eyes.

‘Is this really happening?’ Kristoff and Anna thought, probably at the same time.

Anna cleared her throat as another thought entered her mind, deterring them from anymore thoughts of Kristoff.

Kristoff was concerned about why she looked away so fast, but it was probably for the best that they stopped what they were doing.

“Uh, how long do you expect until Sven gets here?” Anna asked, refocused on the task both of them were there for.

“Uh, let’s see…” He checked his phone and saw the call time was about 3 minutes ago. “It’s only been 3 minutes, he said about 5-10, so probably not that much longer.” He said

“Hm, well we still have to do the backstairs, but these shovels are too big for them, there’s more shovels in the basement. I’ll be right back.” She went to the door that leads to the basement.

Kristoff looked out the window to see if Sven would arrive soon. But he got lost in his own thoughts about how Anna’s mood totally shifted, like something in her head just switched. But that would’ve been a perfect moment for him to kiss her. God how he wanted to kiss her. They were practically close enough that a swift movement would close the space and seal the deal. But it didn’t happen. Would it ever happen? He wouldn’t know and don't know when he will.

Anna came back with two smaller shovels, definitely made for stair shoveling and waited with Kristoff by the window. It wasn’t long until Sven came, he parked by the sidewalk as Kristoff and Anna were coming out of the hall, met by the even colder wind than before.

“Hey guys!” Sven had a big bright smile on his face that you couldn’t help but smile too.

“Hey!” they said in almost unison.

“So where exactly do you need the snow to go?” Sven asked them.

“Well, I need this pile and pathway clear, and a path to get to the parking lot end to the back stairs.” Anna gestured with each place she needed plowed.

“Easy work! It’ll be done in no time!” Sven got out of park and went to work, and Anna and Kristoff went back on the stairs to get out of the way.

Usually plowing in a pretty small and enclosed space like Anna’s apartment is hard, but Sven made it look easy.They marveled at the job and were happy to see the black/grayish stone ground again.

Anna was beaming, but that didn’t stop her from being cold. Her teeth started to chatter and soon the cold air slipped into her jacket. She shivered for a bit.

Kristoff noticed her shiver, and asked “Are you cold?”

She looked up at him, “A little…” and then back at Sven’s works. Kristoff debated it it would be weird if he hugged her so she would be warm. But she seemed a little distant ever since earlier. He decided against it.

Sven stopped and called out to Anna through the passenger window. “Hey Anna, how much of a path you want?”

Anna walked over and looked down where the parking lot and the side of the building was. “Just do your best to get it all the way down, but make sure to put the snow in that corner. It’s a parking spot, but no one uses it.” She said to Sven.

“Gotcha!” Sven started up again, and Kristoff came over to observe.

Sven and his truck worked like magic, he got the parking lot done in no time. He drove up to Anna and Kristoff and said, “All done!”

Anna jumped in happiness. “Yay! Thank you so much Sven, you shaved off a couple hours for us!” Anna exclaimed.

“It was no problem at all. Well, I gotta do my own home now, see you guys later.” He stuck his hand out to shake Kristoff’s hand, which he reached out to meet it.

“See you soon and thanks again.” And with that, Sven drove off.

“Well we still have the back stairs. That won’t take long, let’s go!” She said with enthusiasm in her voice.

“I see your excited again.” Kristoff followed her where she was getting the shovels.

“Yeah, because when we’re done, we can have hot chocolate! Now, I can’t wait!” Anna bounced her way to the back of the building.

Kristoff chuckled, then realized, ‘..We?..’

#kristanna #kristoff #anna #frozen #frozen2 #kristanna fanfiction #fanfiction

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confetti-bones · 5 years

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Boss 1

Pairing: Yoongi X Reader X Jimin

Genre: Office au, Ceo Yoongi, Boss Jimin, there might be smut I don't know yet.

Warnings: Swearing

A/n: Hey everyone! I decided to make an office au thing of Yoongi and Jimin, I hope you all like it. If any of you want to be added to a taglist just let me know...

You've been working for the Min company for years.

You were a hard worker that's never taken a vacation or sick day. Not that you didn't want to, but it's more like you couldn't.

You had bills and student loans to pay. You simply just didn't have the money to take vacation. You even had to do overtime almost everyday; and don't forget your second job.

You sighed as you worked on another nonrealistic article of some celebrity couple.

The Min company is a magazine company. The company basically sells crappy gossip magazines that likes to spread false rumors.

It hadn't always been this way.

Before the the company decided to start this magazine, The Min company was just a normal book publisher.

They sold fantastic stories that you loved to read, and that's what made you decide that you wanted to write and work for this company.

A little after you were hired the quality of the books went down. Ceo Min got greedy and decided to make the gossip magazine that you write for today; seeing that it made more money and was more popular at the time then the wonderful stories that your co workers made.

Thus why your here now.

As you worked on your article you heard a door slam shut. So you looked up to see your co worker Kim Seokjin barge out of Ceo Mins office, clearly frustrated. 'the Ceo must of yelled at him again' you think as you watched Seokjin stomp back to his desk.

You felt yourself feel a tiny bit of sympathy for the man, but quickly discarded it with a small shake off your head.

Seokjin was a suck up. He constantly tried to get on the Ceo's good side, following Ceo Min around making sure he had everything that he needed and wanted; and when he wasn't following the companies Ceo around he would be arrogant and brag. You've personally never had a conversation with him, but you've overheard him talking to coworkers, and you can confidently say that you don't want to talk to him.

As you were lost in your thoughts, you mindlessly stared at Seokjin for a few minutes not realizing that he noticed your stare until he was in front of you with a smirk on his face.

"I know I'm handsome, but that doesn't mean you should stare at me like that" Seokjin says. You sit quietly unsure of what to say.

"Do you not have manners? It's rude to not respond when someone is talking to you," Seokjin says annoyed.

"Ah sorry…. I just wasn't expecting you to talk to me" you mumble.

"Oh? Well I'm glad you know better, I usually wouldn't speak to someone so-" Seokjin then takes a second to look at your outfit for a few seconds,

"Poor looking. You look like trash. The only reason I'm here us to tell you to keep your eyes on your work. I don't need someone so gross staring at me. I'm surprised that you even got hired. Ceo Min has high expectations you know, and that's why he hired me." Seokjin says arrogantly. You felt a little bad about his words but try not to think about it to much mumbling a quick apology and turning to face your work.

Seokjin scoffs and says,

"Ugh I should report you to human services, your so rude and annoying" before walking off back to his desk.

As soon as Seokjin was gone you give a quick sigh of relief before continuing to work wishing that you could go home.

After a while of working you heard a door open to see the companies very own Ceo walk out. He had a coffee mug in his hand and a tired expression as he started to walk towards the break room.

As he headed towards the break room Seokjin shot up from his desk and walked over to the Ceo with what seemed to be a fake smile.

"Hello Ceo Min, do you want me to get some coffee for you?" Seokjin asks holding his hand out ready to take the coffee mug from the Ceo.

Ceo Min sighs and rolls his eyes taking a quick glance around the room before looking at Seokjin again.

"No I want you to work. I wanted your article about that one celebrity scandal done two days ago. You have yet to finish it because you've been so busy kissing my ass." Ceo Min says bluntly. Seokjin chuckle's at this and Ceo Min looks at him blankly for a few minutes before saying,

"Get to work or I'll fire you Seokjin." walking off. Seokjin shakes his head and sighs mumbling something about never getting fired before sitting in his seat again.

Some people giggle at the interaction while others start to work again.

While you worked you heard yelling from the break room. 'Ceo Min must be having a fit again' you sigh.

Ceo Min is a very successful man. He started the company you worked at, and managed to make millions from it.

Ceo Min was just as arrogant as Kim Seokjin if not more, for obvious reasons. He seemed to only care about making money.

If an article an employee wrote wasn't good enough, he'd have the employee come to his office, and he'd scream at them, constantly making them redo their work till he considered it perfect.

You'd like to say that you haven't had to go through that same treatment but you did; and it was terrifying. You went a full week of the Ceos yelling before you managed to make an article that he deemed perfect.

Hours went by with you typing away and looking at your computer screen, until you felt a tap on your shoulder. You sigh and look up to see one of the floor supervisors, Hoseok.

Hoseok, was arrogant and rude like the other two men mentioned, but still just a slightly bit nicer.

Out of all the higher-ups in the office he was the most bearable.

"Ms.(last name) you've worked overtime almost everyday this week." Hoseok says.

"Yeah I know. Is there something wrong with that Mr.Jung?" You ask.

"Yeah we can't have you do overtime like this everyday, there are rules about overworking that we have to follow. So you have to leave now, your official office hours ended ten minutes ago." You sigh and nod your head. Hoseok flashes you a quick what seemed to be fake smile before walking off leaving you to pack up.

Once you gathered all your stuff you walked to the elevator and got on.

After a few seconds before the doors close two people get on. The companies Ceo and Kim Namjoon Ceo Mins second hand man. Also the other floor supervisor.

Kim Namjoon was known as the brains for the company. He was very intelligent with an IQ of one forty eight.

Namjoon was the guy who made the suggestion to start a magazine company, and he often helped come up with ideas for different sections and articles that could be written.

When the two men got on the elevator you nodded your head politely before staring at the floor not wanting to make eye contact with either of them.

There was an awkward silence in the elevator for a few moments before Namjoon decided to speak,

"Ms.(last name) how has your article been going so far? Is it up to standards?" You stiffened at hearing Namjoon and looked up to see him staring at you.

"It's going well Mr. Kim" you mumble. Ceo Min looks over to you quizzically.

"Just well Ms.(last name)? I thought we went over how your article should be perfect a few weeks ago" Ceo Min said bluntly. You took in a breath feeling even more tense then ever.

"I- umm, It's actually fantastic, I have a few things here and there that I need to fix but my article is actually great. I was just saying that I felt like I was doing a great job at writing it. " You stammered. Ceo Min nodded his head pleased with your answer before pulling out his phone.

Eventually the elevator hit the bottom floor and the doors open.

"Mr.Kim make sure Ms.(last name)'s article gets sent to me once she considers it perfect. We all know that her definition of the word is clearly much different from mine" Ceo Min says turning to look at your appearance.

"Have a goodnight Mr.Kim, Ms.(last name)" the Ceo says before walking out the elevator.

You turn and give Namjoon a quick nod before scurrying out of the elevator with a sigh, feeling more relaxed now that your out of that situation.

…………………………

"I'm telling you, Jimin everybody in that office is a dick" you huff while cleaning the bar counter. Jimin laughs at this before saying,

"Well what are you gonna do? Their all office pricks who only want money."

"I want money too but I'm not an ass about it." You say walking over to a customer and refilling his drink.

"Sorry to tell you this sweetheart but that's just how some people are",

"Hey (y/n) can I get a beer for table six?" Jungkook says walking up to the counter.

You nod your head and grab a beer handing it to Jungkook.

"So what are you complaining about now? Do you have to write another one of those fake scandal articles?" Jungkook asks scrunching up his face.

"No, well yes but that's not what im complaining about. Just the usual bosses." Jungkook nods his head.

"Am I a boss you complain about (y/n)?" Jimin asks playfully. You shake your head,

"No if anything you're probably my favorite boss" you sigh. Jimin makes a noise of delight and gives you a cute smile,

"Awwwww, your my favorite too (y/n). Come here so I can give you a hug." Jimin says holding his arms open. You giggle and shake your head, and Jungkook looks over at Jimin offended,

"Hey what about me!" Jungkook says. Just as Jimin's about to respond, you hear someone yell,

"Hey where's my beer?!" Jungkook sighs and shakes his head.

"My customer is already getting impatient I better go" you nod your head and turn back to Jimin.

"I should probably go too (y/n) I have some paperwork, to fill out and I can't distract you from anymore customers." Jimin smiles. You nod your head and smile back before Jimin walks away to the back room of the bar leaving you alone.

This is your second job. You work as a bartender for the bar Serendipity. Overall the job was really nice. You got lots of tips and enjoyed your fellow coworkers. Not to mention at this job your boss is actually nice and sweet.

Your bosses name is Park Jimin. He's a handsome carefree man. Jimin was given the bar by his uncle when he was in highschool. His uncle wanted to move away by wasn't willing to let go of his business so he decided to give it to Jimin.

As soon as Jimin graduated he happily took over the business hiring you and a few other people as well.

One of those people being Jung Jungkook. Jungkook is still a high school kid himself, but he needed some extra cash to help pay for a car he's been wanting so he decided to take up a job as a waiter for the bar.

At first he was really awkward and shy not really speaking to you. Every Time he saw you he'd walk away as fast as he could to try and avoid you, making you feel awful.

Jimin later revealed to you that Jungkook was slightly scared of girls, and made the poor boy start talking to you, putting the two of you on the same shift so he's have to go to you for orders.

Later as time went on he slowly grew more comfortable with you and your happy to say that your friends with him now.

Another employee that works there goes by the name Kim Taehyung.

He's a college student majoring in art. Taehyung is in charge of cooking in the back so when he's not busy he usually goes to the bar and talks to you occasionally drinking a beer or two.

Taehyung and you get along fairly well, except for when he pranks you.

The man doesn't prank you that often anymore, after an incident that happened a few months ago that resulted in him almost being fired, but he occasionally does small pranks like putting too much salt in your food or drink.

"(Y/n) order ready for table four" Taehyung says placing a plate with a hamburger and fries down.

"Alright I'll take it down myself." You say grabbing the plate from the counter and walking over to the said table.

"Here's your order miss" you say setting the food down. The woman who orders says a quick thanks and gives you a smile before you walk back to behind the bar.

"(Y/n) I need your womanly advice on something" Taehyung says taking a seat on front of you.

"Don't you have orders to be making?" You sigh.

"Nope that was my last one." Taehyung says with a grin.

"Alright hit me"

"Do you think id look good in the colors blue or pink?" Taehyung asks. You sigh again and look at Taehyung for a few seconds before responding,

"You'd look good in both, was that your question?"

"Yay! Yeah it was!" Taehyung says while making jazz hands and giving you his famous boxy grin. You shake your head and smile back at Taehyung.

As you were about to speak again you suddenly hear a voice,

"(Y/n)?" You instantly feel yourself stiffen from the familiar voice and turn to look at the person who spoke.

"Namjoon…."

#yoongi au #bts yoongi #min yoongi #yoongi x reader #suga #jimin #park jimin #bts jimin #jimin x reader #jimin au #ceo yoongi #boss jimin #bts office au

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silvrwore-blog · 5 years

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---------- OOC.

hi im mitch : ) im a big f*king idiot, too. let me preface this by saying it is currently uhhhhhh 6 AM est and i still haven’t slept yet !!! i thunk i started this around 10 PM last night but im slow. really slow. everything about this ??? a hot mess ™ . it isn’t going to make a lick of sense !! but thanks for stopping by sdkjsadklsd. anywhomst im mitch, i’m twenty, in the est, and im ready to rock and roll buckaroo. my guy here? he’s an idiot. but he’s my idiot. therefore, i have to love him. the history is long ( i know because i started there first ) so ill make a little tl;dr with some simplified notes on him. i think that covers ??? everything ?? so far ? im always down to plot in the DMs or i have discord at oovoo javer #4855 mwuah !!

---------- APPLICATION.

( jack lowden, twenty-seven, cismale, he/him ) – have you seen bennett sharpe, the financial strategy student around oxford yet? i hear they can be conforming and convivial, but those who know them insist they’re reminded of beige turtlenecks and plaid blazers, eraser shavings on an old oak desk, and eagerly belting out the latest tunes when they’re around. rumor has it that due to stress, he had a breakdown in high school that put him a year behind his peers and his family has tried to cover it up. is it true? only time will tell… ( mitch, twenty, she/her, est )

---------- HISTORY.

THEY’D ALMOST STRUCK GOLD with bennett sharpe. smart enough not to have to buy your way into college, but not smart enough for his peers to despise him. the gusto of an entertainer and the charm of a damn good politician ------------ but they’d never been quite able to buff out that chip on his shoulder.

the sharpe’s were an interesting case. too good to slum it with the poor folk but not rich enough to always be able to sit at the BIG table. a family who paved their way in law and then literature. blood in the supreme courts and in those scandelous little novels that housewives sipped a glass of wine over. at least that had been his mother’s contribution to the family fortune ----- a wonderful dinner conversation.

--------- “ oh mother, what raunchy debauchery are you slaving away at now ? “

bennett was the oldest of three ( followed by one girl and then another boy ). he was a good son. would have been a real golden child to anyone else --- well, with a little love, care & patience. normal family things. from a young age he had a memory unmatched and a love of strategy games. a youth who loved to test his brain. which was fine and dandy, however, it wasn’t quite leading up to being a judge. he wasn’t following in his family’s footsteps. he’d gotten a little... off track. he had just been better with numbers. money crunching. equations. it had been a tough pill for his family to swallow but swallow it they would. afterall, it hadn’t been their biggest concern when it came to their oldest son.

it had always been there. carefully covered up with the occasional “ he’ll grow out of it “ or “ stop it. nothing is wrong. “ maybe that had been the real giveaway to why he’d never amount to anything big. “ he’s FRAIL. no spine. “ a good and competent doctor would have had him diagnosed and taken care of. seventeen and he’s missing classes but not for normal rich kid things. the world’s bigger and scarier than it ever was. college and a future right around the corner, parental pressure, it snowballs until it is all too much. one day of important testing and bennett sharpe never shows. he had not been on campus at all. sometimes when the panic became too much, it did him well to distract his mind ---- go outside. count the blades of grass or the birds in the sky. breathe. it’s what he had done that afternoon. left and tried to sate his mind. but nothing had done it for him that day. nothing to cure him. the world? bleak. the future? uncertain. weapy and tore down. the little devil on his shoulder named ‘ desperation ‘. he needed out. his parents phone and the message becomes crystal clear...

--------- “ i can’t do this. “

so he’d ‘” turned tail and ran “, branded some sort of listless coward. he didn’t know what was wrong with himself, nor did his parents. the only thing they were certain of was that they would not have a son coming apart at the seams. they’d grilled him. no one was going to take him seriously or he’d never find himself in any important position if he was always going to go chicken. a breakdown never looked good. it did not matter to the rich or the poor, one would still be ridiculed. but corporations wanted someone steely, confident, put-together. all the things bennett was not becoming. so they’d contacted his school - wrote it off as a vacation. save face. “ oh i got bored. decided to go to switzerland instead ! couldn’t miss it, you see a chance of a lifetime had just presented itself to me, so.... “. however, no donations or pleading on his parents part were going to make up lost time. bennett was held back a year for being unable to complete the necessary testing and exams. oh how he would have to sell that vacation. but it hadn’t quite been a vacation, had it? long days trying to put together the pieces. some days were easier than others. some time to try and buff out that chip. the chip remained.

years down the line and one enrolment to oxford and he’s a lot better than where he started. he’s found ways to cope. some good. some bad. he’s more indendent than ever which has led him to branch out and take care of himself. no watchful eye of mother and father needed. perhaps that’s why he now has therapy pamphlets tucked away inside untouched textbooks. away from prying eyes. just an idea, maybe one day he would water it and watch it grow. go see someone. anyone. now he’s cheery. lively. a staple at parties. heeds his father’s advice and brushes shoulders with the right people. finds himself in the right places. the future is looking bright. oxford may soon to be a closed chapter in his life, but the years had been good to him. until, well, they weren’t.

the riot club had been for the best. extravagant. a little bit of chasing the finer things in life. that had worked out just well for him. death had never been a thought --- or at least it was always kept at a distance. never upclose or personal. a relative here or there, miles away, he’d barely given it a thought. a funeral and they were gone. parties and death were not supposed to intermingle. maybe that was why it was so jarring. the world is a little heavier, bearing down on him once more. he tries not to pay it any mind when he has to excuse himself twice more than usual for a smoke outside. brushes off clammy hands like they’re nothing. accidents happened. he’d find solace in that word --------- accident.

---------- SPARKNOTES / TL;DR.

voted most likely to be that annoying fuck outside your dorm at 3 am who doesn’t know how to turn down the volume

dumb enough to try anything once

despite some tough times he’s just ??? full of life ??? life is a PARTY. and he’s making the most of it now, thank you very much.

“ are you not ENTERTAINED ? “

he’s not the worst,,, but he’s not the best. yknow?

nice enough to get drunk and talk to just about anyone but snobby enough that you bet he’s going to make some insensitive comments. it’s that -- not rich rich enough to be totally elite, but not hurting enough to be able to sympathize with people who aren’t bringing in a f*ck ton of money.

his family ( on his dad’s side ) has always been involved in law. typically judges, and some who have made it to be top dog in their fields. his mother is a writer who does rather well. she’s published a handful of book and his father has also published law-related books which brings in money. his dad is pretty high up in the field but bennett’s got his suspicions that some of the income might just be payoffs. i wouldn’t envision his father as being someone hard to be bought. he might want to grill his son for being spineless or weakwilled but i’d imagine that’s just a family trait inherited.

which uhh brings me to my next point. bennett can be a bit of a follower. there’s not a whole lot of “NO” in him. which may also hurt his relationships because he’s not going to stand against injustices or anything if it is going to put him in harm’s way. which may help perpetuate that rich or snobby idea surrounding him because he’s not about to stand up for the common folk if they’re being belittled for their threads or schooling.sure, he might talk to them here or there in the right occasion but he’s not going to stand for them. he’s sitting pretty. he’s not looking to ruin that.

essentially he’s not going to have your back unless it benefits him.

as far as his secret goes, i think he’s worried about the stigma around mental health and how he’d be perceived but i think a lot more has to do with his family. because he knows they won’t be happy if it gets out or if something further happens. they just ain’t supportive in that department, chief. but he doesn’t want to be cut off or anything and not just because he’d be worried about who was putting money in his pockets. he just doesn’t want to stir the pot any further, even though he should really seek help. i kind of vagued on it but i’d say he has gad ( generalized anxiety disorder ).

---------- CONNECTIONS.

am i picky?? nah. if he can fill something, slot him in. we can chit chat. mwuah

i already know this section is gonna get so neglected because im too tired to think

uhh give me an under the wing sort of relationship ?? listen if bennett can’t repair himself maybe he can touch up someone else. someone he might see something in. buds ? who knows ? not me. but it could b cute.

long time friends !!! doesn’t have to be since childhood but someone(s) he’s known for a while now and they click.

anything angsty ? is good too.

typical friends / enemies plots too !! spice things up.

i need sleep : ) good night !!!!!!!!!!

#no amount of hair gel #suits or ties #will ever cover up the fact he's a f*cking moron #mental health tw #smoking tw #drinking tw #ive been awake 17 hours #sounds like a good time to call it quits #oxfordintro #i will be back in a bit to do dms !! :')#after i snooze a lil

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cynoirsure · 5 years

Text

sweetener | jjk

pairing — jungkook x reader

word count — 12.4k

genre — bakery!au, fluff

summary — running your up and coming bakery with an attractive boy named Jeon Jungkook turns out to be harder than anything you learned in pastry school.

warnings/tags — none!!

a/n — im telling you now, i’ve been thinking about this fic since september. i had this as a bulletpointed idea but after seeing bts live i’ve been uhh looking like the kermit furiously typing gif. i have not written a fic in a HOT second so this might be a lil mediocre!! also publishing a fic for the first time!! big scary!!

“Add 70 g of egg whites into a bowl, when the egg whites become frothy, add half the sugar,” You mutter to yourself, before pausing. “...and multiply the recipe by 40.” Ever since your best friend left your co-owned bakery for grad school, you’ve been feeling spent by the amount of work being done at your bakery by yourself. You and your friend had never felt the need to hire anyone else since you two were pretty productive, but since you were alone, you took on a lot of responsibilities at the bakery now, including but not limited to: finally nailing the macaron recipe, actually confronting your fear of making croissants, and even sucking it up and actually making the damn tart crusts.

You sighed, zoning back into the macaron shell recipe that your friend had written down, and you realized you really couldn’t do this alone. The bakery could only be open for so long with only one person in the back of the house and also working the cash register. You stopped the stand mixer, walking into the office and typing a simple sign that did the job: Now Hiring Bakers!

The next few days were filled with numerous hopefuls, including teenagers with similar ambitions of yours when you were in high school, amateurs who only knew how to make box cake mix and chocolate chip cookies (you shuddered at the fear of inaccuracy), and other people who only wanted to work because you were cute. After shoving the last person out for said reason, you hit your head on the stacks of resumes in your hand. You were beginning to lose hope in whoever would aid you in helping out the bakery, and at this point you were thinking of switching locations to a smaller storefront so you could manage it all by yourself. Just as you set down the stacks of papers, you hear the door’s bell jingle, and a man who couldn’t be much older than you walks in.

And you couldn’t miss how cute this guy was. He walked in with a simple outfit on, a simple white t-shirt and black jeans, but you could tell that he was fit from the way his arms contoured as he pushed through the door.

“Good uhh...afternoon!” He starts off, pausing halfway to check his watch for the time to make sure he was accurate with the time. “My friend Hoseok was telling me about how one of his favorite bakeries was hiring and I was curious if the position was still open?” His fringe fell in front of his eyes and you were faintly reminded of a coconut.

You hummed in approval, smiling softly. “Ah yes, Mr. Jung and his love of strawberry shortcakes, my own specialty! Well, we are still hiring indeed,” you nod towards the table with the stacks of resumes still stacked. You both take a seat at said table, and he rummages around in his backpack before giving his own resume to you.

“My name is Jeon Jungkook, I’m fresh out of undergrad and I would like to help out in the kitchen!” Jungkook introduces himself to you with a small smile, and you gloss over the resume that he had just given you. He recently graduated from one of the top schools in the nation and his previous job experiences have all been working at Michelin star restaurants. Quite honestly, you were shocked. Whatever deity above had planned for you, you were pleasantly surprised with the outcome. Your mouth opens to a small o as you set down the resume, blinking at him.

“You graduated from one of the best schools in the nation, used to work at a Michelin star restaurant, and now you’re here? Why?” You questioned carefully, not to sound too harsh with your word choice. Jungkook’s ears went pink and he looked down into his lap.

“I… Really like the small bakery concept.” He says quietly, his voice suddenly softer and lacking the confidence that was once in his voice. You had to lean in a little more to hear what he was saying, intrigued. “I found my passion of baking when I studied abroad in France my junior year of college, seeing all the different ways this art had come along.” You smile softly, the memory close to your heart as well.

“What’s your favorite thing to bake, Mr. Jeon?” You asked after a pause of comfortable silence. He smiled to himself, before looking up at you. “I love making tarts!”

And with that, you knew the search was over. A cute guy with a passion to making tarts, something you could never nail yourself? “Welcome to the team, Jungkook!” You grinned, holding out your hand.

—

Hiring Jungkook was arguably the best and worst thing to happen to your bakery. On one hand, he was bringing in a lot of customers, the bakery was more busy than it has been before, you could get him to carry most of the deliveries in, and you could finally reach the Good Stand Mixer that your friend put on the top shelf, for some reason. Maybe it was so that the next person you would hire would have good muscles, or by some miracle, you’d grow a bunch so you can reach the top shelf.

However, since the bakery had been getting more busy, you couldn’t be as lax as you were before. With the amount of girls coming in to ogle at Jungkook when he would work at the counter, you had to wake up 2 hours earlier than you would usually to make enough to last you to at least 2:30, and your bakery opened up at 11 AM every day.

Not to mention, he wasn’t just a distraction to the girls coming in. You couldn’t stop yourself from watching his muscles flex while he stirred the last of a cake batter together, or feel a slight twinge of jealousy when he would arrive before it’s time to open up the shop and see his snatched waistline before he put on his apron over his outfit.

You couldn’t blame him, though. He was as equally as dedicated to the bakery as you were, as shown from the multiple times you’d come into the bakery early and he’d already be there, working on something in the kitchen, his oversized black shirt covered in flour.

“Oh? You’re here early, Jungkookie.” You muse, sipping from the mug of cherry blossom tea that you brought down. You lived in the apartment right above the bakery, so you were comfortable with coming down in the morning in your pajamas before Jungkook would come in to help finish off what you had started to decorate. He grinned at you, revealing what he had been working on so early in the morning.

“Ta-da! Try this, it’s a blueberry basil tart!” He smiled so hard that the crinkles in his eyes appeared, a different kind of smile than the one he would show the girls who would come in. You set down the mug, walking over and grabbing a pair of forks for you and him. He already had grabbed a knife to slice a piece of tart for you, beyond excited for you to try the tart. You hold out another fork with him, clinking the forks together before taking a bite of the tart.

You knew this boy said he was famous for his tarts, but what he had put in front of you was like nothing else of its kind. You looked up at his smile, eyes wild in bewilderment.

“Hey Jungkook, do you think you can make like… 4 more of these, full sized? I think I might put them on the menu for today…” You start off. You had never even entertained the idea of a pastry of the day until he came along. His eyes lit up and he grinned at you, suddenly enveloping you in a hug.

“Thank you for giving me a chance, this is what I was truly missing in the Michelin star restaurant experience.” He whispered into your ear, you still being frozen from the sudden hug. You awkwardly hug him back, patting his back and nodding slowly.

“No problem, Kook. Now get to work! We need to put this on the menu.” You pulled away, giving Jungkook two thumbs up and going to the front of the house to find the whiteboard marker to write on the mirror behind the cash register. Jungkook went into full concentration mode, and you started to clean in preparation for the wave of girls that were to come in soon.

—

Turns out that Jungkook making new pastries every day brought out your own creative side as well. Often times, instead of waking up early, you would make some cold brew coffee in the morning and drink it while you were brainstorming ideas to make at night. Jungkook would also stay up with you to a certain extent, but you found out that he lived an hour away from the bakery and when 10:30 would hit, you’d practically push him out of the bakery and wait for his bus with him before going up to your apartment to sleep.

This would become a regular occurrence, even if it meant he would try to pout his way through asking you to stay over. However, one day, you forget to do so. You and Jungkook were super invested in making an earl grey lavender panna cotta that you had seen in a recipe book beforehand but didn’t remember any of the measurements that came along with it. Needless to say, the last 7 hours were tweaking the perfect earl grey to lavender ratio, as well as scooping out the usual popular cookie flavors so you could just pop them in the oven tomorrow morning.

“Let’s take a break, yeah Kookie?” You arched your back, hearing your spine pop in satisfaction before grabbing your phone. He picked up his phone as well, shooting a look at you when the clock read 1 AM.

“Were we really… Grinding for 7 hours for opening today?” He questioned, confused. You raised an eyebrow, checking your own phone and your eyes almost popping out of their sockets. You were pretty sure that the buses weren’t running anymore and you didn’t know how to get Jungkook home since rideshares in your area weren’t always the best.

“Uh, do you have a car or something to take you home?” You asked, leaning onto the counter when he ruffled his hair, shaking his head. “I can call you an Ube--” “Is it possible for me to stay over tonight? I don’t wanna worry my my mom if i’m in an untrusted car,” he smiled, pinching your cheek. “And I don’t want you to worry either. What if I get kidnapped?” He jokes lightly, but your eyes widen in realization that he’s probably right, what if he had died on his way home? You couldn’t bear to lose another beloved worker, especially one that had done way more for the business than you would like to admit.

“I haven’t cleaned in like, a week, but I guess you can come up and crash on my couch for the night?” You were skeptical. Not to mention, Jungkook would be the first boy (that isn’t your best friend’s boyfriend) that would be up in your apartment, and needless to say, you were extremely nervous. Not like your apartment wasn’t dirty, you liked to keep it pretty tidy, and even all your Rilakkuma bears were arranged pretty nicely on your bed and couch.

Even so, you couldn’t drive and it would be cruel to send him home so late. “... Mayhaps, but you still have to show up for work tomorrow, yeah, Kookie?” You say sternly, and he smiled happily, nodding.

“Thank you so so much! I owe you my life, mon petit chou!” The nickname slips out of Jungkook’s mouth and his eyes widen, covering his mouth.

You blink, tilting your head. “A small cabbage, how cute.” You laugh softly, going over to the door that led upstairs. “Well, what are you waiting for? Are you gonna stand there shocked all night or are you coming up?” You ask, making Jungkook snap out of his shocked state and follow you up the stairs. You fumbled with the keys for a quick second before opening the door and toeing off your shoes. Your apartment was a small one bedroom apartment with a futon couch in the living room with 3 bear plushies on it. You went to go grab the spare pillows and blankets in the bedroom closet, gently reminding Jungkook to take off his shoes before setting up his bed for the night.

“Why don’t you go shower so I can set up your bed? I can get you a towel and something to change into?” You turn to Jungkook, who was currently taking off his sneakers. You smile, ruffling his head and opening the door to the bathroom. You grabbed a towel and large shirt that you hoped would fit him as well as some flannel pants, both acquired from when your friend moved away, and set it in the bathroom. As Jungkook went in to shower, you set up the couch to be bearable for at least one night.

When Jungkook came out of the bathroom, you were half awake, watching Great British Bake Off on Netflix and wrapped up in the fleece blanket you had set for him to sleep with, already changed into your sleepwear. He smiled softly, sitting on the opposite side of the couch.

“Are you having fun, petit chou?” He laughed softly, you nodding in and out of your sleep. You were too tired to form a response, you two watching together as they struggled to bake their roulades in time. By the time the episode was over, the room was more quiet than usual. Jungkook stretched his limbs out and sat up to ask you a question, however, you were knocked out, curled up in a warm fleece ball and hugging the Korilakkuma plush close. He smiled, rearranging you so you were laying down on the couch, laying on the floor and preparing himself for a less comfortable night than what you attempted to prepare for him.

��

You woke up the next morning, unfamiliar with your surroundings for about 5 seconds before realizing you were on your couch. You relaxed back into the couch, before freezing up once more. Why were you on the couch?

You sit up on the couch, turning towards the TV and noticing the sleeping figure on the floor. Jungkook had fallen asleep on the floor, one arm cushioning the back of his head and the other one lazily wrapped around his waist, making you feel terrible. Gingerly stepping around Jungkook, you started to make breakfast for the both of you. You plugged in your headphones and started playing music as you took out the ingredients for Nutella crepes.

Jungkook woke up half an hour later, sitting up and watching you wrap up the crepes before clearing his throat. You didn’t pay attention to the sound, Shawn Mendes’s In My Blood blasting in your earbuds. One moment you heard Shawn’s voice loud and clear, and suddenly, one earbud was gently tugged out of your ear, but enough that it startled you.

“Jesus, Kookie, can’t I enjoy Shawn Mendes in peace?” You frown up at him. He flashed a grin at you, shaking his head. He stepped away from you and walked around to go stand at the opposite side of the table, grabbing a plate and thanking you for the breakfast. You both eat in a comfortable silence, your headphones long discarded in favor of the quiet morning with Jungkook.

After breakfast, you got ready while he washed dishes, much to your protest. You also figured out over breakfast that you would be in charge of the front of the house, so you went into the bathroom to put on your face of makeup and putting in your contacts before coming out. You were mesmerized by the way his muscles moved while he was doing simple things such as washing the dishes. He catches you staring, grinning when you blush and turn away, shaking his head.

“I’m gonna go downstairs and start baking off the cookies, yeah?” You say, still not looking up at him. “You go wash up, you smell, Kookie.” You waved to the younger, laughing awkwardly. You didn’t want to make eye contact since you knew Jungkook had that stupid shit-eating grin on his face. “Don’t forget to lock the door before going down, yeah?” You were putting on your shoes, checking if you had everything one more time (even if you did live upstairs from where you worked).

And it baffled you as to why you suddenly got extremely jealous with every girl that walked through and flirted with Jungkook that day.

There are 14 days in 2 weeks. In the last 14 days, Jungkook stayed over 10 times.

You weren’t complaining at all, however. You were kinda glad that the weird tension from the first time that Jungkook had stayed over had gone away, and even if he was staying on the couch, it wasn’t weird. You two even stayed up sometimes running to the 7/11 near your house to pick up some things that you could easily distinguish as his in your house including a child’s toothbrush of Ryan, the Kakao Talk character, some bunny slippers for wearing inside the house, and a bunch of candy that you guys could snack on while watching The Great British Bake Off.

Some nights, however, you felt lonely, even if there were two people in your one bedroom apartment. You would fall asleep thinking about if Jungkook was in the empty space next to you, cuddling into your bear plush harder and wishing it was the brown haired boy instead. You would dream about doing extremely domestic things with him, waking up and bitterly drinking a cup of coffee within the same boat as your emotions.

You couldn’t even get started on seeing him in the morning. While he was at the stand mixer making the first batch of meringues for the day, you had to refrain from hugging him from behind. You know he probably wouldn’t mind you back hugging him but to be safe, you just stood next to him and quietly leaned on him. You didn’t miss the soft smile that would curve onto his face and the arm that wrapped around you to pull you into a side hug. Your heart was beating so loud that you feared that he would hear and tease you, but he never said anything about it.

As the days passed by, you noticed that Jungkook would bring upstairs more and more of his personal items before work began (if he went home that previous night), and the sun started to set before 6:30. This was the prime time to finally make a move that could change gears on your relationship with Jungkook. “Ah, the autumnal equinox. The rise of pumpkin spice, chai tea, apple flavored baked goods, and cuffing season.” Jungkook saunters into the bakery bright and early, his voice snapping you out of your thoughts. You turned to him, squinting at all of the things he had just listed. He grinned at your reaction, peeking over your shoulder to see the words flavor of the day: chai spice macarons written on the announcement mirror.

“And I see you’ve fallen victim to at least one of those things.” He chuckles and you roll your eyes, turning back around with the whiteboard marker in hand. You continue to mind your own business decorating said mirror, humming along to Don’t Forget by Crush and Taeyeon playing in the background. A few beats pass before you feel a pair of arms wrap around your waist, his brown hair coming into view on your right side as his chin rests comfortably on your shoulder. Typically, the height difference would’ve been a lot more noticeable, but since you were standing on a stool to write on the mirror comfortably, the difference was bearable for once. You freeze up a little and you bump your head lightly into him, heat rising to your cheeks.

“Do you need something, Kookie?” You question, and he squeezes his arms lightly around your waist. Since the weather was cooling down, you opted to wear a fluffy knit sweater over some high waisted shorts, and when he squeezed, you could feel his arms around you instead of just the fabric lightly pressing into your skin.

“Do you think… I could sleep with you in your bed tonight?” He asks softly, and your eyes widen, dropping the marker in your hand. Upon seeing your reaction, his own eyes widen for a second before he laughs. “No, not like that, silly! Unless you want to-” he starts, before you start to wiggle out of his grasp.

“You’re disgusting, Kook,” you laugh off, hiding your embarrassed expression and shaking your head. He grins, squeezing you tighter in his grasp. “... But since you asked so nicely, I guess. Don’t expect me to cuddle you, though! I would still prefer to cuddle with my bear rather than you!” You joke lightly, the lie going right through your teeth. He grins, nuzzling into your neck and making you blush even more. This was the first time that he’d ever been so affectionate with you aside from the casual side hug, and you weren’t sure if it was because of the favor or if he was being legitimate with laying on the affection so heavy.

“Mhm, but you’re still warm nonetheless so don’t be surprised when you wake up and I’m spooning you.” He releases his hold on you, grinning and going into the kitchen. You were stuck in your place, hearing the pans start to bang in the back and you just sighed, burying your face into your hands. Tonight will be a long night, and you’re not sure whether or not you’re on board with it or you’re against it.

—

“Hey, I think we should head up, yeah?” Jungkook nudges you as you pull out your latest attempt at your friend’s famous recipe for apple cider donuts. You purse your lips, looking at your watch. The watch read back 2:30 AM, and you realized that meant by the time you got into the bed (with Jungkook, you mentally reminded yourself), you would have to wake up in 3 hours.

“Kookie, why didn’t you tell me earlier? You knew we would have to get up early to finish the cakes anyways!” You huffed, pouting at him. He laughed softly, pulling the tray of donuts from your hand and placing them onto the speed rack.

“I’m sorry,” he smiled, taking your hand as you both headed towards the door that led to the upstairs apartment. “You just looked super in thought with whatever you were baking, I didn’t want to interrupt.” You noticed the way he held your hand, as you guys both went up the stairs. “I was also busy with closing up the shop, since you were in the back of the house all day. Why don’t you wash up first, hm? I’m gonna make some tea for us.” He patted your head, going into the kitchen, toeing off his shoes on the way. His uniform was still on, you noticed, making you smile as you went into the bathroom to prepare for the night.

Once you were out the bathroom, you could hear Jungkook on the phone when you waddled out in your pajamas, and he turned when he heard your feet padding through the hallway. He bid goodbye to who he was on the phone with (his mother, you presumed) and he held out the mug full of sleepytime tea to you. He had taken off the apron, and his hair, once styled to reveal his forehead, had been reverted back to his natural hairstyle. You waddled over, taking the mug with a silent thanks and you sat across from him at the bar table.

“What’s your fondest memory?” You ask him after you finished half your tea, making him look up from absentmindedly scrolling on his phone. He purses his lips in thought, before sighing.

“When I studied abroad during my junior year, I was stuck at the train station and I didn’t have enough money to get home. I didn’t know what to do, so I set down the hat I was wearing at the time and I started to sing.” He nodded, taking another sip of his tea. “I only say it was fond because so many people gathered around to hear me do this mediocre cover of Sofa by Crush, and so many girls offered to pay for me. I’m pretty sure I couldn’t even hit most of the lower notes.” He laughed softly, finishing the tea in his mug, watching as you also finish your tea. “What about you?” He questions after setting both mugs in the empty sink, you standing to join him at the other side of the table.

“I think my fondest memory has to be opening up this bakery. Me and my best friend had always talked about opening up a bakery together, and seeing it all come together seems like it happened so long ago, when in reality the bakery’s only been open for two years, going on three in February.” You smile fondly at the memory of the first day, leaning on him. “I’ve always been super dedicated to the bakery, if there was a day that passed that I didn’t want to work to open it, I feared I would lose the passion to open it...” You were beginning to fight the sleepiness, and he could tell.

“Let’s get to sleep, yeah?” He picks you up, your arms wrapping around his neck on instinct. You clung to him like a sloth, nuzzling your head into his neck. Once you two got into your room, he laid you down gently, pulling the bear you promised to hug from where he was to lay and into your arms. He went to go change into his nightwear, and soon enough, you felt the bed dip and a certain pair of muscular arms encircle you, as well as a soft whisper of your name.

“Goodnight, mon petit chou.”

“Shut up, Jungkook”

—

When you woke up the next morning, the bear you promised you’d cuddle all night had ended up on the floor, the bed sheets tangled between your and Jungkook’s legs, and you were cuddling into his chest as much as you could. He was still fast asleep, holding onto you like you were about to fall apart in his arms any moment. The warmth that you two created was too comfortable to move, and you contemplated closing the bakery for the day to stay in bed all day with him.

An alarm went off what felt like 10 minutes later, Troye Sivan’s Youth playing throughout the room. Of course that was Jungkook’s ringtone. You laughed at the thought but when you saw that he wasn’t waking up immediately, you took matters into your own hands. Rolling over him so you were on top, you sat up straight before shaking him a little.

“Kookie, it’s time to wake up for work!” You chirp, seeing a grin rise on his face. Suddenly, you were pulled down from arms that snuck up to your face. You yelped in surprise, wiggling wildly when he laughed softly against your struggle.

“You make too much noise in the morning and you’ve barely moved.” He says into your ear, one arm letting half of your body free as he snoozes his alarm. “Let’s just stay in~ I don’t want to leave the bed.” He grinned, nuzzling your neck. Right as you were about to answer him back, you hear your text tone go off, your best friend’s name flashing across the screen. You sit up on top of Jungkook, pursing your lips in curiosity of what they had wanted so early in the morning.

“I think we’d have to close today anyways, we’re busy!” You grinned, showing him your screen. Your friend had sent a message about a cake for a locally famous artist, Kim Taehyung. Jungkook raised an eyebrow as to question why you would need his contact. “My friend and I have been in talks with Taehyung since we opened this place, and we’re in charge of making the star of his next gallery opening, the most over-the-top cake you can imagine!” You were ecstatic, much like a kid being given an unlimited budget in a candy store. Jungkook smiled at your excitement, happy for you as well as the bakery.

“So we’re closing up shop today so we can work on this cake with the artist?” Jungkook questioned. He wanted to know more about this Taehyung character and your relation to him. He knew of the artist from some of his shows at art museums around the city, since Jungkook was also a fan of art. You crawled back into the bed with Jungkook, nodding and smiling up at him.

“Yep! And not to mention, since it’s only the appointment today, we can stay in and sleep a little longer.” Your arm lazily draped around him, giggling as he pulled you closer and enclosing you in his arms.

“Oh? More time with you is always great.” He grinned down at you. You couldn’t look at him long, since you knew you’d get lost in him if you stared any longer. You felt something soft brush the top of your head, and as quick as it was there, it was gone. “What time do we have to be downstairs then, hm?” He asks quietly, stroking your hair slowly and you felt yourself falling asleep under his touch.

“We go down when the bakery typically opens, and we just talk with the client,” you say sleepily, snuggling into him, “and then we draw up the cake and make the dream come true, since we only get a 48 hour notice, unless it’s a wedding cake.” You two fall in a comfortable silence, and when Jungkook realizes your breathing has gone even and you were fast asleep, he smiles, kissing your forehead and bidding you a goodnight before falling asleep himself, his head resting comfortably on top of yours.

—

Jungkook’s first love was you. He always thought that falling in love hit you immediately, but he fell in love with the way you did small things, how you used to wait with him for the bus home, telling him to text you when he gets back, and even the way you looked when you were so deep in concentration while decorating a single dessert. It was one of his own mottos that living without passion is like being dead, and it filled his heart with joy to see how passionate you were about the bakery.

He didn’t understand why it was so hard for him to make eye contact with Taehyung when the three of you were in the room together. You and Taehyung had clicked and when he decided to zone back into the conversation, you two would be reminiscing about your high school days. From the information that he gathered, you two and the original co-owner of the bakery were the inseparable trio during high school, and while you were drawing out the cake, he noticed that sometimes Taehyung would take the pencil from you and draw some of his own things, and he wasn’t sure if you were totally okay with that.

The hour consultation felt like years to Jungkook, and when it was over he was more than relieved. You and Taehyung said your goodbyes and once Taehyung left, Jungkook wanted nothing more than to wrap his arms around you and never let you go.

“What’s up, Jungkook? You seem a little off.” You frown, poking at Jungkook’s side. The time after Taehyung left, Jungkook had been uncharacteristically silent, literally punching into the fondant while he was kneading it out. You figured the poking was going to do nothing, so you went with the second thing that would definitely get his attention. Your arms wrapped around him from behind, the younger boy immediately going tense. He stopped kneading the fondant, sighing and turning to you. He enclosed you in a warm hug, nuzzling his nose into your hair.

“I don’t know, I felt super out of place when you and Taehyung were talking.” He admits, not wanting to look at you. He didn’t want to see how sad you would get when both of you would make eye contact. You blink, trying to figure out why he was so sensitive about Taehyung, when it all clicked in a second.

“Kookie~ Are you jealous of Taehyung?” You giggled, pulling away and scrunching up your nose at him. “Why would you be jealous of Tae?” Jungkook’s ears went red. He turned away from you, the embarrassment creeping up on him quick. You laughed softly, shaking your head at him.

“I don’t know… I didn’t like the way he was looking at you and stuff. It sounds stupid, we’re not even dating, let alone roommates, but like--” Your laughing caught him off guard from him spilling his feelings, and for a split second, he was offended. You made eye contact with him, a mischievous glint in your eyes.

“Kookie… He’s gay and we’ve been best friends for years, it’s nothing big, okay?” You patted his head, pulling away completely. He stood there shocked, mouth wide open. You tilted your head slightly in curiosity, a slightly amused look on your face as he started to stutter. “Enough of that, Jungkookie! Let’s get to baking this cake! The event is tomorrow and I’m not letting you stay in my apartment to just gawk at my friends and their sexual orientation!” You grinned, going back to trimming the cakes. Jungkook shook his head, going back to kneading the colors into the fondant. He really should’ve asked more about Taehyung preceding the consultation, but what was done was done, and he just made a big fool of himself in front of you.

----

The cake that Taehyung wanted was requested as such: “This is my first solo show, and a lot of my pieces are based off of my trip to Italy. Can you make something reminiscent of the Spanish Steps in Rome? But in a fashion that it incorporates mostly this one specific blue palette! Oh, and the cake flavors could be chocolate cappuccino torte!”. Even if you did love Taehyung with all your soul, him being the missing third in your best friend trio, his request was insane and you had to brainstorm the final idea 4 times before both of you compromised on the final look.

You and Jungkook worked nonstop on the cake, only pausing when an alarm went off at 7 to eat food instead of just sustaining off of small pieces of cake and other various leftover desserts that were left in the fridge that had not spoiled.

As you guys ate dinner, Jungkook had a million questions about Taehyung. Such questions included things as how you met, craziest thing you had done together, and if he ever kissed you, which you couldn’t help but look at him as if he was insane. The conversation was so extensive that it had gone into past dinner and into your round two of throwing the cakes in the refrigerator and molding fondant flowers.

You couldn’t help but look over at Jungkook’s concentrated state, watching him delicately thin the edges of the petal and attach it onto the rest of the fondant flower. Taehyung had chosen the crocus flower for this cake, a flower that both you and Jungkook were unfamiliar with. You took it upon yourself earlier to google what the flower was and it what it looked like. The crocus flower is a late blooming flower, an autumn flower that represents youthful joy, which you thought was extremely fitting for Taehyung. Once you and Jungkook saw the image, you set to work with the fondant, teaching Jungkook since he had never made fondant flowers before.

The quiet of the bakery seemed to be too much for the both of you, so a while after dinner, you turned your phone back on to blast music in the back of the house on the overhead speakers. You two worked all night, leaving the fondant flowers out to dry, doweling the cake, and making the basic structural components to the cake. Time seemed to pass by faster when you were working with music, sometimes you would catch Jungkook staring at you while you were working, and while you joked with him to get back to work, you also couldn’t help but stare at him when it was his turn to be busy.

A pot of tea later you and Jungkook had finally finished, watching the sun rise through the window and the early morning businessmen speed walk their way to the train. The clock read 8AM as you both went back up into your apartment, not even bothering to change as you both wiped out on your bed, your head resting on Jungkook’s chest and his arm wrapped around your waist.

By the time you had woken up, it was 3PM, and the lack of warmth from underneath you had woken you up. You smelled something coming from the kitchen, which automatically registered as fear in your brain. The last time Jungkook had cooked in the kitchen, he ended up burning the scrambled eggs that he tried surprising as breakfast in bed for you, and you had woken up just in time before your kitchen (your most sacred area in the house) had burned down. You immediately kicked off the covers, speed waddling into the kitchen to be met with Jungkook’s back, bent over to the oven to pull out a pan of roasted brussel sprouts, potatoes, and beets. Jungkook turned around, flinching a little by your presence, but laughing at your surprised reaction because of him cooking with ease.

“I googled a recipe, if you were wondering.” Jungkook smiled, setting the pan down over the stove and removing the oven mitt. You breathed a sigh of relief, walking over to Jungkook and grabbing bowls and forks from the cabinet.

“We shouldn’t eat a lot, Kookie. If we have a lot of time tonight, I’ll make dinner, okay?” You passed him a bowl, pulling out a spatula to spoon some of the vegetables on the pan onto your plate. You and Jungkook ate in silence, and you took into account the different spices he had used, each differing with the vegetable he had used. After your meal, you both went back downstairs to put the cake into the box, carrying it into the car. The cake ended up being 4 tiers and if you were honest, one of the best cakes you had done. You felt a surge of pride as you and Jungkook went back, a smile so wide on your face that Jungkook couldn’t help but notice.

“What’s with the smile, hm?” Jungkook pinched your cheek lightly, your attention going back to him. He seemed to beam when he was opening the door for you, the sun setting by the time you went back into the store front. You gestured to go back upstairs, your smile less wide but still with as much heart as before.

“I’m just really proud of this cake, as stupid as it sounds. I’ve made and decorated a lot of cakes in the short time of me being a professional baker, but this one really does hold a special place in my heart because of the aesthetic Tae was going for. I went to Italy for a semester abroad in college and just seeing how similar it looks to when I went, I feel proud with the outcome of the cake.” You smiled, unlocking the door and kicking your shoes off immediately. As you walked over to the couch, Jungkook couldn’t help but feel his heart surge with a new wave of love for you.

“Let’s go to Italy someday,” Jungkook blurts out, making you turn around. His eyes widen and he’s quick to follow up “... soon! Like as a friend vacation or something, we can bring along like, Hoseok and Taehyung or something.” He scratches the back of your head. You blush at the idea of going out to Italy, just the two of you on a gondola, leaning in for a kiss--

Your text tone snaps you out of your thoughts, a specific sound only set aside for texts from Taehyung. You whip out your phone, unlocking it quickly to see the message.

[From: Taehyungie 4:15 PM]: heyyyy bb forgot 2 tell u

[From: Taehyungie 4:15 PM]: yr invited tnight!! bring ur bf

[From: Taehyungie 4:16 PM]: cocktail party, not too formal, dont forget the cake

You furrowed your brows at the text, completely disregarding the second part of the second text. Taehyung must have something up his sleeve if he was inviting you along, but you knew you couldn’t get it out of him. You knew Taehyung was good at one thing particularly, and that was the element of surprise.

“Ah, looks like we were invited? It’s not out of the ordinary, but I don’t know if you brought any semi-formal clothes?” You looked up at the younger one, who’s current outfit was his usual white shirt and black pants, only instead of it being clean, it was covered in flour, freeze dried fruit powder, and powdered sugar.

“Oh, I think you mentioned it to me, I can go see what I brought? You can change first, I’ll just change after you.” He nods, watching you type away on your phone. You quickly typed a response, making sure Jungkook couldn’t see your phone. You got up from the couch, walking into your room and into the closet.

[To: Taehyungie 4:23 PM]: o,,, ok

[To: Taehyungie 4:23 PM]: hes not my boyfriend tae

[From: Taehyungie 4:25 PM]: ok but dont blame me when i claim his as mine :P

[From: Taehyungie 4:26 PM]: set up the cake in the main room and then come into the main gallery, you wont miss much with the way you work!!!

You looked up at the dresses that were hanging in your closet, opting for a black halter neck keyhole dress. You hurried into the bathroom, changing quickly and grabbing all the makeup and your contacts, doing your makeup in the vanity as Jungkook went in to change into whatever he pulled out.

When the bathroom door opened once you were done doing your makeup, you knew if you weren’t gone before from what charms Jungkook had, you were definitely a goner by now. Jungkook walked back out with his hair styled to reveal his forehead, a little makeup on, with a fitted all-black tuxedo look, dressed down a little with a few buttons unbuttoned so that it was more casual than having a tie on over the black dress shirt. You don’t think you’ve ever seen a man dress up this nice and this well, and you’ve gone to numerous opera nights where the dress code was formal. Your face went red as he turned to face you, a smirk on his face. It was different than the shit eating smile that he would give you when he wanted something from you.

No, this was some kinda Big Dick Energy smile you had only seen once before. You shuddered when he checked you out, a lazy grin on his face. This was not the first time Jungkook had teased you like this. He’d only done this once before when you were seeing him off one night at the bus stop, after he asked for a kiss on the cheek goodbye.

“You clean up pretty well, mon petit chou.” He chuckles, and you had to hide your blushing face from him. Your hands quickly flew to your face, and all you could hear was his faint laugh. “Why won’t you look at me, hmm?” He typically didn’t like to play around like this, but seeing you all flustered over his look made him feel more confident in the look.

“There you go with the cabbage thing again! Why do you keep calling me a cabbage?” You pouted up at Jungkook, trying to wiggle your hands out of his grasp. He chuckled, letting go of your hands.

“I’ll explain later, but for now, we have an event to go to, don’t we?” Jungkook grinned, standing up and extending his hand to you. You sighed, rolling your eyes and grabbing his hand. Once he pulled you up from the bed and you rearranged your dress, you both went to go slip on your pair of easy black heels, and respectively, his own dress shoes (which you had never seen till today? Jungkook was full of surprises). When you were coming up from fastening your shoes, you felt something wet brush your cheek, making you go red once more. Jungkook had just kissed your cheek and you were trying your hardest not to freak out.

“I bet you’ll be prettier than the art there.” Jungkook says softly, his body ridiculously close to yours. He was being ridiculously flirty, and if he wanted to play like that, well, two people can play that game. You grinned, biting your lip and looking up at him.

“Careful Jeon, you might distract me from the art.” You giggle upon seeing Jungkook’s shocked reaction to flirting back with him, grabbing his hand as you both go down the stairs, almost forgetting to lock the door on your way down.

The car ride there consisted of small playful banter and small flirting back and forth. You couldn’t miss the way how one of Jungkook’s hands rested on your thigh for the ride there, but your mind was stuck on how much you still had to put together at the venue, most of the flowers that you had made still not on the cake in fear of them falling over and breaking during transport. As if Jungkook could feel your worry radiate off of you, he would draw small circles on the flesh of your outer thigh where his hand rested near your knee, calming down your nerves.

The venue was on the opposite side of town, so while you and Jungkook drove down the scenic highway along the lake, you couldn’t help but roll the windows down and let the wind blow through your hair. You heard Jungkook laughing while you watched the skyline come into view and disappear down the highway, marveling at the city. Had it not been for the changing scenery from blues to the yellow leaves on the trees on the way down, you would have thought this was a normal summer night between a couple teenagers.

Once you two got to the venue, you found a cart to wheel in the cake while Jungkook found the last of the fondant flowers in the back, safe from any damage even if the ride down to the venue was smooth. You and Jungkook wheeled in the cake, carefully putting it on the table. The space you and Jungkook were in was quite empty, which gave you a nice ambience so that you could finish the cake.

Rather, you take out the fondant flowers while Jungkook put them on the cake, since he could actually see to the top of the cake. After placing the last few flower buds on the cake and doing some last minute touch ups, you two went into the main room, as Taehyung had instructed in his text. Before opening the door to the gallery where bossanova jazz played softly, Jungkook held out his arm for you to link with, a soft smile on his face. Grinning back, you swallowed your heart back down as you linked arms with him. He kissed your cheek, to your surprise, and when you looked back at him, he chucked softly.

“Let’s give them something to talk about, mon petit chou.”

The gallery itself seemed smaller than you remembered from when you were younger, a lot of ridiculously large prints of photos and abstract oil paintings contributed from Taehyung’s collection. There were some you had recognized from older exhibits where his art had been featured, and seeing how his art had grown made your heart swell. You had known Taehyung for a ridiculously long time now, and just seeing where his art had taken him made you extremely proud.

As you and Jungkook marveled at Taehyung’s work, you heard someone yell your name in the venue, and hurried heel clicking. Before you could register who could be yelling your name, a body slammed onto yours and a familiar laugh filled your ears, one that you hadn’t heard since Jungkook came into your life.

“I didn’t know you’d be here!” Your best friend, Ji Hae, who you had opened up the bakery with beamed at you. Ji Hae looked Jungkook up and down, and it only took her a split second to recognize him. “And you must be the new baker that every Yelp review is talking about! I’m Ji Hae, co-owner of the bakery!” Ji Hae held out her hand to shake Jungkook’s hand. Jungkook’s arm around you slipped off and shook her hand, smiling.

“Ah, I’m Jungkook, it’s nice to meet you, Ji Hae.” He smiled. After he introduced himself, Ji Hae snaked her arms around your waist, grinning.

“You won’t mind if I borrow her, right? I need to catch up with her.” Ji Hae didn’t leave any time for Jungkook to reply as you were pulled away from him. You were completely confused but once you realized you were moving, your senses kicked in.

“Ah, Jungkookie, if you wanna go home and I’m not back, just text me!” You called out before your friend pulled you to another part of the gallery. Jungkook shook his head, going back to admiring the photograph in front of him. It was only a few beats before a flute of champagne was held in front of him. The flute was being offered by Taehyung, who was also holding a glass himself.

“Did they leave you alone? I told Ji Hae not to do that…” Taehyung tsked. Jungkook accepted the champagne from him, nodding.

“Ji Hae surely is a character… The both of them get along well.” Jungkook chuckled, looking over at Taehyung. Jungkook took a sip, watching Taehyung in his peripheral vision nod thoughtfully.

“How much do you know about your co-worker, Jungkook?” Taehyung questioned, Jungkook almost spitting out his champagne. He blinked slowly at the older man, Taehyung looking back at Jungkook with a raised eyebrow. The younger brown haired man coughed a little, wiping his mouth a little from the champagne that threatened to escape his mouth.

“W-well, I know she knows minimal french from high school, her birthday, her favorite tea is herbal and she only has real coffee once a month--” Jungkook rambles before Taehyung holds up a hand, shaking his head.

“No no, what do you know about her? All that stuff you just listed out is basic. Is there anything that catches your attention? It doesn’t have to be big and glaring, small things are things as well.” He grins at Jungkook. Jungkook tilts his head in confusion before it finally clicked in his head.

“Well, when she’s deep in concentration, she tilts her head just slightly, even if the orientation of whatever she’s working on is completely straight. Her favorite color and the colors that she’s attracted to are completely different, and if anyone sings around her, her nose scrunches, although I’m not sure why…” Jungkook trails off, thinking harder about your little nuances, but Taehyung’s chuckles snapped him out of the thoughts before he could delve deeper.

“That sounds so classic of her. You know she was a music major in high school? She’s an amazing singer and it’s sad she doesn’t use her voice all that often anymore. I think you’re the only person to know that about her outside of anyone who knew us back then. I have also never heard of any guy observe her that hard.” Taehyung nods. “Do you spend a lot of time looking at her?” Jungkook goes pink, matching half of Taehyung’s half-and-half pink and blonde hair.

“I’ve been uh… Living with her for the last few months, maybe 3?” This time, it was Taehyung’s time to sputter at the comment. He looked at Jungkook, jaw slack. “So yeah, I guess I’ve been looking at her a lot.” He chuckled nervously.

“I saw her come in with you and she was clinging onto your arm. Is she always that touchy with you or was it just for show tonight?” Taehyung was completely intrigued with your relationship with Jungkook, and Jungkook didn’t know how to avoid the questions, this was Taehyung’s show and he couldn’t go anywhere else without you. You’d probably punch him or something.

“Well, we sleep in the same bed, nothing goes any further than hugging, but sometimes she’ll reach out for my hands to hold, or she’ll automatically lean on me when we’re doing something together.” Jungkook shrugged casually, finishing the champagne that was given to him earlier. Taehyung’s eyebrows raised in surprise, before he set down his half empty glass. He scanned the room before leaning into Jungkook.

“She’s being really touchy and she hasn’t said anything about liking you? Are you sure you aren’t dating?” He reaffirms with Jungkook, who just nods in return. “Just shoot your shot, Kook! She probably does like you, but she doesn’t think about it because she’s so into the bakery.” He flashes Jungkook a boxy grin, punching Jungkook’s arm. Jungkook looked at Taehyung in disbelief, and he was skeptical about Taehyung’s advice. Surely, you couldn’t be into him, right?

“Ah, there you two are!” You came back, automatically going to stick on the side of Jungkook. Taehyung shot Jungkook a look and only wiggled his brows. “Let’s go see the other art!” You smile happily, lightly tugging Jungkook away.

You two continue your night right where it left off, a little bit of flirting here and there, and soon enough, the cake that you two had created was cut. Jungkook noticed that your grip loosened a little, so he took it upon himself to grab a piece of cake off the table and cut off a bite size piece.

“Hey, Earth to mon petit chou, say ah~” Jungkook cooed, snapping you out of your trance. “You’re really distant, are you okay?” He smiles at you, his fork in front of your mouth. You gladly accept the cake at first, watching as his hand sets down the fork on the plate and his arm travels down to hold your hand, squeezing it lightly. You lace fingers with him, nodding a little and smiling. You swallowed the bit of cake before replying to him.

“Yeah, just a little sleepy, should we head back?” You yawn a little, emphasizing on your exhaustion. “I think this is the most human interaction I’ve had in a minute.” You giggle, leaning into Jungkook.

You two congratulate Taehyung on the art show once more, and after numerous hugs and goodbyes are said, you and Jungkook finally make it into the car. Jungkook puts on music once more, but it’s more calm music instead, lulling you to sleep in the car. Once he stopped at the stop sign, he looked over to you, smiling softly as you fall asleep with one of his hands linked with yours. Once you two pull up to your apartment, Jungkook stretches in the car seat and sighs once more. You were dead asleep in the seat, and he figured he would have to carry you back up. He unbuckles his seat belt, cutting off the engine. Getting out of the car and opening your door, he made sure that you wouldn’t fall out, scooping you into his arms bridal-style.

Jungkook fumbles with the keys for a split second, but he managed to open the door with you not waking up, which is a personal surprise for himself. Slipping out of his dress shoes, he opens the door to the bedroom. He lays you down on the bed, taking his time to change into his sleepwear. He kept thinking about Taehyung’s words about how you might like him back, as well as the other facts that he had heard from him.

Jungkook walks back out, frowning when he realized you were still in your party clothes. It didn’t vibe with him for you to sleep in the clothes you had gone to the party in. He nudged you gently, watching you stir to face him.

“Hey, don’t you want to change out of your contacts before we sleep?” Jungkook’s voice rang in your ears. A groan escaped your throat as you stretched out in the bed.

“You don’t live enough, Kookie.” You grumble, sitting up so that you could go change out of your contacts and your dress. You padded over to the bathroom, grabbing all the necessary items such as your makeup wipes and your pajamas, slowly getting ready for bed. Once you were back out of the bathroom, you spotted Jungkook lounging on your bed, checking his phone once more and turning on his alarms. You crawled onto his side, pulling the sheets over your shoulders.

“Goodnight, Kookie~” You cooed before falling back asleep by his side. Jungkook’s heart skipped a beat, gulping nervously at your sleeping figure. Maybe he could entertain the idea that Taehyung was right for a second, that you were in love but you were too oblivious to see it.

Jungkook wasn’t sure how he could live out this imagination, and his heart told him not to pursue anything. He wouldn’t want to ruin anything with the best thing to happen in his life.

----

It was an uncharacteristically slow day at the bakery, you guessed it was because it was finals week for a lot of the schools around you, but nonetheless, a bit too quiet in the bakery. It was actually so quiet that you could hear your thoughts over the soft jazz music that always played at the front of the house. Pursing your lips, you went over to the stereo and turned the music up a little more, bobbing your hair to the music while also rearranging the baked goods.

“First in, first out.” You chanted softly as you rearranged the macarons, making sure to set aside the broken cookies (how did they manage to break?) and the less appealing tarts. Jungkook walked out into the front of the house, seeing you bob to some bossanova before grinning. He goes over to the stereo, turning on a certain album that both you two enjoyed. There was no one in the bakery at the time, so when the song’s beginning started playing, you were thrown off from your flow.

“Jungkook, what the hell?” You sighed, rolling your eyes. You weren’t mad about the music change, but there was a mischievous glint in his eyes when he wrapped his arms around you.

“You don’t have the urge to sing along? We’re too busy to go to karaoke and I’ve never heard you sing, only occasional humming from time to time. Didn’t you go to an arts school for voice?” Jungkook teased, remembering the conversation he had with Taehyung at the gallery opening. Your face flushed, which he took as a positive and he started to sing along first. It was Daniel Caesar and H.E.R’s Best Part, and due to the copious amounts of times you had listened to that song, you memorized the lyrics. The chorus came up quicker than you thought, and you found yourself singing along with Jungkook.

“I just wanna see how beautiful you are…” You start singing along in the octave that H.E.R is singing in, only tuning in a little to hear Jungkook’s lower register. You grin and sing along to the rest, wiggling out of his grasp. You never took the time to actually sing full on anymore, and you felt a little rusty singing along. A little while later, you peeked over to Jungkook, who had apparently stopped singing. He was staring at you in awe, his eyes wide. You sauntered over to him after you were done cleaning out the display case, resting your arms on his shoulders, slow-dance style.

“If you love me, won’t you say something?” You smiled up at him. Your heart swelled when you felt Jungkook’s arms wrap around your waist, slow dancing with you as he found his voice to sing back to you. He touched foreheads with you, closing his eyes as you closed yours. You both savored the moment, his breath on yours. You could feel your heart beating as if you just ran, and you opened one eye, starting to lean in. The bell on the door suddenly interrupted both of you, Jungkook flying off of you as you turned away from the door, face as red as the raspberry macarons.

“W-welcome to--” Jungkook cleared his throat, silently gesturing you to go to the back of the house while he regained his composure, saying the name of the bakery as you went into the back, fanning your face. You watched as he helped out the mom with her baby, a soft smile on your face.

The music in the bakery continued to play one of Jungkook’s R&B playlists, a Sabrina Claudio song playing next. As you continued to watch him clean up where you left off, you couldn’t quite place the feeling that Jungkook gave you, and you weren’t sure if you liked it or not.

According to a lot of love language profiles, your heart usually warmed with the idea of someone surprising you with little things, acts of service, to be specific.

It was a trend with all of your romantic partners in your past, you usually felt extremely appreciative when they did small things like make your cups of tea, wash the dishes, or other extremely domestic things along that sort. In return, you would always try to help them out, but you never felt a click with the people you dated.

You never noticed it, but Jungkook would always do these things for you. He would make you cups of tea and remind you to eat when you would go long hours without any breaks, making you your favorite tea when you were having a down day, or even making you a quick sandwich that sat by your side as a gentle reminder. By the time you would notice these things, he’d always be back to the task at hand, whether that be entertaining the girls in the bakery or making more goods to put out.

The winter season where your bakery was located felt like they started from mid October to April. When November hit, you could feel yourself struggling to get out of bed, the motivation in your body slowly decreasing. Jungkook had started to notice this in you, but he wasn’t sure what was wrong. You usually were extremely happy and upbeat, but for a few weeks, you would barely talk in the morning and would prefer to work in the back of the house. Not to mention, you were a lot more touchy and would typically lean into Jungkook more or back hug him when you had the chance.

Although he didn’t mind, and he would typically reciprocate the touchiness, but he wanted to do more, and worried himself about you to the point where he fell under the weather. You seemed a lot more distant when both of you were upstairs, and you would typically stay downstairs for a little while longer, dismissing Jungkook to go upstairs so that he could sleep earlier and not be so sick coming into work.

You didn’t want to tell Jungkook that you would dismiss him upstairs so that you could meet with other people without worrying him. Although you liked Jungkook a lot, you were scared of how he would look at you if you confessed to him. You didn’t know if he even liked you like that, so it was better to be safe rather than sorry. You’ve been distracting yourself from falling further into the seasonal depression and in love with Jungkook by throwing yourself into the world of online dating, swiping absentmindedly when Jungkook worked front of the house. You had a date tonight, and you attempted to look better than normal before closing up the shop and waiting in front.

You had planned on going out with this guy (His name was Kim Seokjin, a nice guy, really) twice before, but he had always rain checked before you could go out with him, and you guys were planning on going to the holiday market downtown. The meeting was supposed to go that you guys met at the bakery and then make your way down, since the train near your bakery went directly down to the market. You both agreed that you would meet at 7:30, 30 minutes after the bakery closed, but once the clock hit 8, you were losing faith in meeting up with him. You waited for him for another hour, and as much as you wanted to not believe it, you had just been stood up.

Admitting defeat, you sulked immensely, going back up to your apartment. This wasn’t the first guy to do this to you, and you were actively seeking for love from people you thought you clicked with. Your brain started to fill itself with self deprecating thoughts as you opened the door, the soft sounds of the Netflix series Nailed It! playing. Jungkook looked up from the couch, already all showered and ready to go to bed, but on nights like these he would wait for you to come back before you both went to sleep. That, along with all your other overwhelming internal dialogue seemed too much that you started to feel the tears well up in your eyes.

“I’m home…” You barely managed to get out from the overwhelming emotions that washed over you. The TV had no noise coming from it, meaning that either Jungkook had paused it or muted it. You avoided eye contact in the general direction from where he was, the tears falling silently down your face as you yanked off the scarf and fumbled with the buttons of your pea coat. Jungkook noticed the way you rubbed furiously at your eyes almost rhythmically, after every button on your coat was becoming undone. He frowned, sitting up on the couch.

“Is everything alright, chou?” He wanted to stand up, but something in him told him to keep rooted. Jungkook was about to turn back to the tv when he heard something rushing towards him, and suddenly you were in his arms, your own arms wrapped around him tightly as you openly sobbed on him. You had never cried on Jungkook, and here you were, bawling on him. Jungkook started to rub your back gently, squeezing you. He had learned somewhere that during a panic or anxiety attack, you should squeeze the person in order to ease their anxiety. He didn’t know what was wrong, but obviously it was something bothersome enough that it would send you into tears like this. He whispered words of reassurance in your ear, continuing to rub your back slowly.

You both stayed like this for a while, your breathing evening out before Jungkook rolled you over so that you were on the couch. He slowly peeled away and before you could protest, he smiled softly at you and stroked your cheek. “I’m gonna get some stuff, okay? I’ll be back soon. Don’t miss me too much.” True to Jungkook’s word, he came back quickly, your blanket, some milk tea that was sitting in a thermos (he probably had made it earlier for you to have when you came home), and a plush that you thought was hidden from him, a little black bear with a heart shaped patch. He sat down next to you again, you automatically curling into him as he wrapped you both in the blanket and made the little bear plush kiss your cheek before setting it in your lap. His arms wrap back around you, stroking your hair softly. “If you’re comfortable, you can tell me what’s wrong, yeah? No rush.” He reassures you. You both sit in a comfortable silence before he hears a sigh come from you. You curl closer into him, the bear being a slight barrier between you and him as you spill to him about the whole date ordeal.

“Jungkookie, I’ve been taken for granted for so fucking long… I always give so much and I never get it reciprocated. It’s almost cruel how scary that giving and receiving ratio is. I’ve been stood up so many times, I’ve never clicked with any of the people I have dated, and I just think something is wrong with me, or maybe I’m too dedicated to this bakery that I can’t ever date.” You bite your lip, smushing the face of the bear in. You had to keep your hands busy so that Jungkook wouldn’t see the trembling in your hands. You couldn’t prevent it for long, however, since Jungkook looked down at your hands playing constantly and held them in his own. You couldn’t look at his eyes, but you could feel his frown. His hands squeezed yours and tears began to resurface. “I just don’t know if anyone will love me for me, in all the times that I’m here running the bakery, love me even with the lack of time.” You could barely get the last part out, hiding your face in Jungkook’s chest once more. Jungkook lets go of your hands, squeezing you once more so that you wouldn’t say any more.

“That’s not true, you have so many people that love you. You have so many friends and I’m sure that they would all hate to see you so sad.” He starts off. There’s a reluctant pause in his voice, a space where he would say he loves you, but before he could say more, you open your mouth.

“I know that there’s that kinda love, but Kook,” you start to emphasize, sulking. “I want someone that I can imagine in my life that kisses me awake and stuff. You have so many girls doting over you, I want to feel like that for someone, you know?” You whine, “That’s just never gonna be me with anyone so I’m just-” He cuts you off by squeezing you again, pressing his forehead against yours.

“You need to hush sometimes, you know?” Jungkook sighs softly, his heart about to burst from what he’s about to say. “I know you won’t give love another chance, but I want to be the one to show you how love can be reciprocated.” His cheeks dust a light pink and you didn’t know how to react. “I promise I won’t break your heart intentionally, I love you too much for that to happen.”

You were in complete disbelief over his confession, because that confession was something that you thought would never happen to you. You would’ve thought that eventually, Jungkook would’ve gotten a girlfriend (that wasn’t you) and would have to quit the bakery and leave you alone once more. For a split second, you thought Jungkook was lying before you realized he was a man of his word. Even with the smallest promises, Jungkook would always be able to live up to the promises.

“It’s always been you, mon petit chou.” He smiles softly, wiping the last of the tears that were on your face. That was the last thing you heard before you pulled him in, a sweet kiss that tasted like the earl grey vanilla tea. He gladly returned the sweet little kiss, pulling away from you.

“I kinda… wanna bake with you for like a long time. Maybe forever.” You blush, covering your eyes at your stupid confession. You didn’t know how else to phrase it, and the way you said it made Jungkook chuckle.

“Is that so, mon petit chou? Well I’m glad you feel the same way.” He cooed, pulling you into another kiss.

The rest of the night was a blur, nothing further than a few kisses here and there, but nonetheless, a night that turned bad events into things that made you smile instead.

“You know how I call you mon petit chou?” Jungkook was currently hunched over the worktable, carefully peeling away the chocolate decorations from the parchment paper. Since it was the holiday season, you two had gotten a sudden influx of requests for yule log roll cakes (“that’s not all we make, but they always ask us to make it!”). Jungkook’s friend, Jung Hoseok had also requested for one, but specifically requested for you to make it, despite Jungkook’s protests that he made roll cakes much better than you.

You perked up at his voice, setting down the whipping cream that you were weighing out for the filling of the roll. “Yeah, I thought you just wanted to call me a little cabbage because of how short I was.” You chuckled, shaking your head at the absurd term of endearment. You heard Jungkook’s soft laugh as you poured the whipping cream into the stand mixer.

“No no, not chou as in cabbage, babe. Mon petit chou means my little cream puff. Your favorite dessert are cream puffs, aren’t they?” He hummed, rearranging the chocolate he had just peeled away on the log he was finishing up. “Plus, you’re sweet. I thought it was fitting, and when I was in France, my host mom said I should only use that name with someone I love. And I love, well, you!” He grinned, a light dust of pink on his face.

You couldn’t help but smile at the way he explained the nickname, covering your mouth from smiling too much.

“Jeon, you better get back to work before I kick your derrière.”

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chloehl10 · 5 years

Text

I was tagged by the lovely @pocketsunshineharry, thank you so much, love!

All answers should be about works published in 2018. (Skip any questions you don’t want to answer, but please leave them on the list so that others can answer them if they want.)

1. Number of stories (including drabbles) posted to AO3: 29. Oops. Lol

2. Word count posted for the year:

1,725,628. That’s 1.7 million words. I have no excuse.

3. List of works published this year (in order of posting):

A Lot Of Fight Left In Me You Bring Me Home Wonder How I Ever Made It Through Don’t You Remember? I Got Me An Appetite Tell Me That You Want Me Tonight Piece by Piece Hallelujah You’re Home Lucky Ones To Carry Love (I Can Show You How To) Slow Dance I Will Answer All Your Wishes You’ve Got This Spell On Me Look How Far We’ve Come My Baby Baby, Honey It’s Coming Home You’re My Only Hope Right Here Waiting Remedy I Knew You Were Waiting For Me With The Strength To Carry On Baby We Could Be Enough Lost Without You We’ve Already Won Feels Like Christmas Let Me Be Your Star Made From Love Fairytale of New York You Were Made To Be Mine (wip)

4. Fandoms I wrote for:

One Direction 5. Pairings:

Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson 6. Story with the most

Kudos: You Were Made To Be Mine (wip) - 2,125 / Let Me Be Your Star (complete) - 1,177 Bookmarks: You Were Made To Be Mine (wip) - 532 / Lucky Ones (complete) - 403 Comments: You Were Made To Be Mine (wip) - 3,111 / Let Me Be Your Star (complete) - 1,212

9. Work I’m most proud of (and why):

There’s two. You Were Made To Be Mine because I love it, and I think I’ve really created a world for these two characters, and Jacob is just one of my favourite characters I’ve ever written. Also Let Me Be Your Star. This was written on a whim after something on Twitter, and it’s just been so well received. I was proud of how accurately I wrote Louis, even before we saw on him on X Factor, and I’m just really proud of how it all went.

Oh and I have to mention my first long fic A Lot of Fight Left In Me. My heart and soul went into that story, and I love it so much. And Piece by Piece, this fic will always be so special to me.

10. Work I’m least proud of (and why):

I don’t want to say. I do have one, and in a way, I am tempted to orphan it. But hey.

11. A favourite excerpt of your writing:

This was hard. I’m going for this from YWMTBM chapter 56. “Lou….” Harry shuffled their bodies until his own legs were out in front of him, Louis’ body against his, silence broken by only Louis’ sobs, and Harry’s breaths. “Louis… you know it’s okay to not be okay, right? It’s not a weakness, sweetheart… you’re just, you’re just human.. Don’t ever be ashamed of hurting because I want to be the one you turn to… not the one you run away from, yeah? I want to share your burdens, wipe away your tears… hold you when you cry. Because I love you, Louis… so much, you have no idea how much.”

“Harry, I-”

“No, it’s my turn. Listen to me, please?” Louis nodded, more tears falling as Harry started to speak. He didn’t know if there was anything Harry could say to change his mind about this. No pretty words to fix it.

“You need to trust that I’m not going to run away when things get a little bit tough. Because I’m not, not now, not ever. You’ve been pushing me away, Louis, so fucking hard, and it hurt so bad because you wouldn’t let me in when all I wanted to do was help. I just want to be there for you-”

“But you nearly weren’t-” Louis whispered, the words falling from his lips. “You nearly left me, Harry… I… you nearly died, and you nearly left me. I had to listen to a doctor tell me that they didn't know if you were ever gonna wake up. I was nearly alone again, like before. I’ve never been so scared, Harry. I can’t bear the thought of you being taken away from me. I don’t want you to leave. It’s been easier to push you away, knowing that you would leave by your own free will, than losing you any other way.”

“I didn't want to leave… you have to know I never would have wanted that, Lou...” Harry was crying again now, reliving those awful memories, things he’d pushed deep down long ago, realising with horror that Louis had never moved on, had never really talked about how he felt when Harry had had his accident… how he’d nearly lost his husband. “But I’m here now, yeah? I don’t want to leave you, Louis. I want to grow old with you, and hold your hand every single day. I want to wake up to your beautiful blue eyes, and I want to share your pain, and your hurt. I want you to trust me, to let me do that for you.”

“You were there for me when I had my accident. You were my rock. You kept me going when I wanted to give up. When the physio was too much, I just wanted to give in, but you made me strong, Louis. You encouraged me… you believed in me. But now it’s my turn. It’s my turn to support you, to believe in you, like I promised when I married you. Please let me be there for you-” Harry’s voice cracked on the last word, meeting Louis’ eyes.

All Louis could see was honesty and love. There was a sincerity in Harry’s words that he just believed, and finally, he reached down, watching as his smaller hand sat on Harry’s, their fingers mingling gently, cautiously, as if they were afraid to touch. Louis bent his fingers, letting Harry clasp his hand in return. What seemed like such a small step seemed enormous to Louis, but he knew Harry was the only person he would ever want to be vulnerable with.

Despite everything… despite how hard Louis had tried to push him away, Harry wasn’t going anywhere. Harry loved him, and he loved Harry, more than he could ever say. He looked back into the eyes of his husband, the one who loved him in spite of his faults, who loved him because of them. Harry didn't see a broken man who he needed to fix. He just saw his Louis. Louis’ bottom lip wobbled as he stared deep into Harry’s eyes, as if he were looking into his soul, seeing the other half of himself.

12. Share or describe a favourite review you received:

Some of the comments I get make me want to cry, honestly. I’m not sure people know how much leaving a comment on AO3 means to authors. I’d be hard pressed to find just one, but anything where people can relate to my writing in their real life is always very touching. Here’s one that moved me deeply recently from my christmas fic Feels Like Christmas:

“Im not gonna lie, I had to take breaks reading this because it was SO SAD in parts, in between being so beautiful.Harry was just like an angel of Christmas in this and your Louis seemed, to me, to be VERY realistic. I can't imagine how losing Jay has affected him in general but especially on his birthday and at Christmas. She was such a beautiful mum and it still breaks my heart to read of her. The cemetery scene was perfection but heart-breakingly sad.I loved Harry delivering treats to the "neighbour" who turned out to be Louis. I wish I had a Harry :)Your writing was so sensory - which is something considering I'm Australian and rarely seen snow lol But the smells, sights etc of Christmas were just amazing.Terrific job, loved it :)“

13. A time when writing was really, really hard:

I went through a period of getting negative comments on YWMTBM and that was very hard to push through and tell the story I wanted to tell. But I did, and I am proud I did, because I write for me and that’s the most important thing. I have a story to finish, and I’m determined to. I also found the scenes in the middle of YWMTBM very hard and emotional, and I got caught up in Louis’ mindset for a while, which was very tough.

14. A scene or character you wrote that surprised you: I wrote a section of YWMTBM where Louis was struggling a lot with his mental health, and I surprised myself by delving into a subject like that. It was quite different for me, but I hope I did it justice, and that people could understand Louis’ actions. Also I wrote an mpreg birth scene which I never expected to do lol.

15. How did you grow as a writer this year:

I feel my writing as a whole got better, I got more confident, and I was more able to craft stories.

16. How do you hope to grow next year:

To not take on so much lol, although I love writing so much.

17. Who was your greatest positive influence this year as a writer (could be another writer or beta or cheerleader or muse etc etc):

I’ve worked so much with @thecompasspointstohome, one of my closest friends and she’s so much of an inspiration to me, no matter how much she ignores that I tell her that. She’s amazing, and my work would be a mess without her. I am forever grateful to have her.

18. Anything from your real life show up in your writing this year:

Yes, a bit of a sad one. A child in my class in battling leukaemia at the moment, and he was the inspiration behind Mia and her story in A Lot Of Fight Left In Me. He still has his down days, but he’s an amazingly strong child and I hope he has the ending that Mia, Olly, Louis and Harry have in that story.

19. Any new wisdom you can share with other writers:

Write for you. That’s the most important thing I’ve found.

20. Any projects you’re looking forward to starting (or finishing) in the new year:

My BDSM fic, and my Harry Potter exchange fic. I also have my fic for the Fanworks for Charity to write, as well as updating YWMTBM. I also have a few other stories in the works so wait and see :) Oh, and my tearjerker fic which I’ve been teasing forever on Twitter, oops...

21. Tag three writers whose answers you’d like to read.

Anyone who wants to do it, please do so!

#my fic in 2018 #my 2018 on ao3 #larry fic #lovelarry10

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mackenzie-wolf · 6 years

Text

I'm Here all Week p.2

MC = Emily/Milly

- Emily meets some new writers and a few new friends who are taking a keen interest in her, much to James' dismay -

Part 1

----

James passed Emily the key-card to her room. As she took it, her nerves started to settle in.

"Hey, James?" She said abruptly, gaining his attention as he walked towards the next door. "You... you really think I should be here? I mean I know I've had a few successes, but... I don't know. Impostor syndrome?"

James took a tentative step towards her and placed his hands on her arms, gingerly brushing them with his thumbs. "Emily, you may not see it, but your writing is well above the average monotonous pages that are published every day." He smiled at her but she never met his eyes. Instead her head was hanging, but James could easily see the blush that she was trying to conceal. "If I'm honest, when I finished the second book of your series, I tried looking for your other works; I was sure that you had written before."

"Why?" She finally looked up at him. Her eyes were tearful as self doubt took its toll on her confidence.

"Because, when I first started writing, it was texts like yours that I aspired to. To hit off with a winning series on your first try is amazing enough. But the intricate way you write is something that would only be expected from seasoned authors."

"You're supposed to say that... You're my friend." At the sound of her words, James' thumbs stopped brushing the soft skin of her arms.

"Yes I am. Which means I owe it to you to tell you if your books are terrible. And when you release one that I dislike, I'll do just that" He said, ever reassuringly. "And furthermore, as your friend, im taking it upon myself to buy the first round tonight. We can meet some other authors, or just drink. Its your choice."

"Ok.." she grinned with new energy. "Give me an hour and I'll be ready. Meet you in the lobby?"

"See you soon" he smiled as he turned back towards the door to his room. As he closed the door behind him, James let out a long sigh that seemed to have been trapped inside of him. He thought about Emily sitting next to him, the whole car ride over, soaking wet. Her clothes clinging to her skin... the way that.. 'Damn it! I can't think way!' James thought to himself.

'Sure we've flirted but she's never admitted to being interested in going further than friends. But...' His mind wandered again. James thought back to the first and only other time he and Emily had gone for a drink.

James checked his phone again, rereading the text that Emily had sent him, giving him directions to the bar. As he saw it come in to view, James gave a laugh when he noticed the sign.

MacKenzie's Bar & Video Arcade

As he walked inside, his eyes strained against the flashing lights of the machines. Walking through a small crowd of people he glanced over at what had their attention. Just over the heads of the crowd, he could see a mess of wavy, brown hair being thrown back and forth to pounding music. James made his way to the front of the assembly and saw Emily playing on the dance machine with practiced ease. The short guy playing opposite her was struggling to keep up. Taking note of the plastic cup of beer in Emily's hand that she was somehow managing not to spill, James went to the bar and ordered two more before walking back to the machine. As the music came to a stop, Emily was the winner by more than double her opponent's score. The short guy flung his arms around Emily, yelling cries of defeat. As Emily turned, she saw James stood a few feet away from the crowd. Finishing her beer, Emily linked arms with her friend and walked over to where James was waiting. Before she had a chance to say hello, her friend said something to her, just out of reach for James to hear it. Then he gave her a long hug and a quick kiss on her cheek before running off and calling back. "LOVE YOU, MILLY!"

"LOVE YOU TOO" Her words made James' stomach sink. He hadn't come here just because he was interested in getting closer with Emily, he genuinely just enjoyed her company. But still...

Emily practically ran the last few steps towards James, enveloping him in a tight hug. James returned the hug. "Hi Emily" He said with a smile.

"Hey James, thanks for agreeing to come. I planned a night out with Zack, but as you saw, he ditched me."

"Oh, I'm sure he must have had a good reason?"

"Knowing him, he's got his eye on someone who he'll be too shy to ask out all night until they eventually catch on and give him their number just because of his big sad eyes."

"Oh. I thought.. isn't he your..."

"Oohhhhh" Emily laughed loudly. "Sorry. No he's definitely not. He's my roommate, and you're more his type than I am" she winked.

"Well he is very handsome" James mused.

"Want me to go get him for you?" She asked with an arched eyebrow before the two of them shared a laugh. The evening went quickly. Emily confided in James that she was under pressure from her publishers to finish her most recent book but she had no idea how to end it. James listened and reassured her. Giving her advice right now would be pointless. She was at least 4 beers in and full of an endless energy.

Nearer the end of the night, Emily had taken to the pinball machine. Her movements were blurred by the alcohol. Looking over her shoulder, she called back. "Hey James, give me a hand"

James positioned himself around her as she studied the movement of the ball. Her fingers linked in with his, making his heart beat harder and harder. As the ball almost fell, Emily managed to hit the button just in time. The jerking motion snapped James out of his slight daze. As she played, Emily seemed to be moving closer, closing the small space between James and her back. As she pressed against him, James let go of her hands. The game ended.

"Is... something wrong?" Emily sounded embarrassed through her slurred words.

"No. Not really, but I don't want to do... that. Not when you've been drinking."

"James, give me some credit. I'm perfec.. perfectly in control." She stammered.

"Even if you were able to speak properly, it wouldn't be fair. For either of us. But I wouldn't mind revisiting this." He said with a laugh. Emily's embarrassed look dissolved in to a warm grin.

James set his bags aside after pulling out the well stored clothes he had brought. He hung them over the roof of the four poster bed before turning on the shower.

He waited in the lobby of the hotel. Having arrived 5 minutes early he sat down on one of the armchairs to wait comfortably. As minutes flew by, James checked his watch. '20 minutes late.' He quickly remembered Emily's earlier nerves and got up to go and make sure she was ok. Upon turning the corner back towards the elevator, James feet stumbled as he suddenly stopped, nearly knocking over Emily. James was speechless as he looked at her.

Emily's was wearing a black dress that hugged her body with the back done up in a corset. Her hair was pulled back and styled in an intricate series of plaits. Her smokey eyeliner matched the dark lipstick she was wearing, making her pale skin more prominent.

James' eyes moved over her body. The dress was classy but not without alure, the hem of the skirt sat around half way up her thighs. Her flat stomach gave way to the curves of her hips and breasts that the black material did little to hide the shape of.

"Emily.. you look..." Words didn't often escape James entirely, but he was at a loss.

"Dammit. Did I overdress?" She asked timidly, rubbing the top of her arm in a nervous way.

"Not at all. You just caught me off guard. You look beautiful Emily." James grinned at her. Emily's confidence was still shaky but she believed that James had meant what he had said.

"You're looking pretty hot too" She mockingly fanned herself with her hand.

"Pretty hot? I suppose I'll take that in stride" he laughed.

The two of them sat at the bar and nursed their drinks, looking over the function room that would tomorrow, be bustling with all manner of writers. A few people were dotted around already. Some were laying out the furniture that the room would be using.

Emily looked around the room, taking in all of the signs and posters that had been put up. She was is awe of the names she recognised, as it dawned in her that she would soon be conversing with them.

As the evening wore on, Emily noticed James' attention falter. "Is everything ok?" She asked with a concerned tone.

"Everything is fine" He said stifling a yawn. "I think the journey here took it out of me."

"I hope you're not staying up on my account" she said sheepishly.

"Not at all. Im staying up because I enjoy your company. That's on me."

"James..." she smiled. "Remember we have all week together." It was music to his ears to hear her say it. James considered that maybe he had gotten ahead of himself. They did have all week and there was no pressure to pursue anything right now.

"Prehaps you're right." He said, somewhat reluctantly. "Besides, we should be on top form tomorrow." He stood up and offered Emily his hand.

"I think I'll drink some water first. If I wake up with a hangover tomorrow, this hotel is going to go very Shining very quickly."

James laughed. "I don't doubt it. If you need me just knock. Im a light sleeper anyway"

"Got it... no overnight guests" she laughed. James wrapped her in a tight hug before bidding her good night.

Emily sat at the bar, waiting for the bartender to step back through the divide that lead to the next function room. Her phone began to ring. Trying her best to shake off the effects of her drink, Emily answered.

"Hello?"

"Emily? Hi, this is Maddison from D&E publishings."

"Hi Maddison, whats up?"

"Oh, not much. I just got back from my vacation to China. Have you ever seen a panda cub? They're amazing! Like little black and white balls of...."

"...."

"You mean, why am I calling don't you?"

"Yeah kind of" Emily laughed

"Sorry. It was a great vacation though" Maddison said nostalgically.

-- "MADDISON!" Another voice called across the phone. "Stop treating our clients calls like they're social engagements. --

The line went quiet for a short while.

"Hello?" Emily asked tentatively.

"Hello. Who is this?" The other voice answered.

"Emily Murphy..."

"Ah yes. Hello Miss Murphy. This is Rebecca Davenport."

"Hi Rebecca. Is everything ok?"

"Everything is fine, we just need your authorisation on the final edits to your book. Annoyingly it's not something that I can get over the phone or by email. I need your signature on the original documents. Can you come in at some point tomorrow to sign?"

"I'm actually out of town at the moment. I've been invited to a convention and..."

"Say no more. Send me the address and I'll mail you the papers."

"Thanks Rebecca, what are your thoughts on the book?"

"I don't really read horror novels."

"Oh.. ok" Emily said, disheartened.

"But if I did, I'd tell you that Devon should end up with Stacy. And that the idea of keeping a crow as a pet is weird."

"So does that mean that you..."

"I'll have them sent out tonight Emily. Have a great week"

"Oh, thanks. You too Rebecca."

"You can just call me Becca" she said, almost flirtatiously before hanging up the call. Emily's attention turned back to the bar where the bartender was waiting with a patient smile. As Emily's eyes landed on him, the quickly swept over his tall body. The dark jeans he wore making the bright white tshirt almost glow as it fit tightly to his abdomen. Emily's eyes were held on the shadows of definition that the muscles underneath were causing. As she met his eyes with her own, she noticed the small tuff of hair that hung down over the olive skin of his face.

"Need another?" He asked. His voice was strong and deep. Looking down at her glass, Emily noticed that she had finished her drink.

"Um.. sure. Why not" she smiled.

"What are you drinking?"

"Whiskey, neat" she said, gesturing toward the bottle of Jameson's just behind the bar. He took the bottle and poured her a generous helping. As she lifted the glass, he leaned back on his hands and let out a long sigh. "Is something the matter?"

"Isn't that what I'm supposed to say? People don't go to bars to listen to the bartenders problems" he grinned at her. His teeth caught Emily's attention. Pure white and perfect. It was a strange thing to focus on, but the smile they produced was blinding.

"If I don't listen to the plight of the bartender, then who will?"

"You must be a saint" he laughed. "Its nothing really. Just a busy night." Emily looked behind her at the nearly empty room before turning back and raising her eyebrows at him. "Oh you don't believe me?" He said, approaching the door to the other function room. He pushed it open slightly and the loud bass of the music almost shook Emily where she sat.

"Wow... so that's..."

"Pretty loud?"

"At least it sounds good" she smiled at him.

"You're a punk music fan?"

"I don't know about that, but I like what I hear."

"Want to join in?" He said, opening the divide of the bar.

"I..." Emily looked around her. With a short sigh, she walked behind the bar where the man stood waiting with a charming grin. "I'd love to."

"By the way... I'm Zig." He said confidently as his hand extended to her.

"Emily." She said, placing her hand in his. Zig raised her hand to his lips, touching them gently to the back of her knuckles.

"Very pleased to meet you Emily."

#the freshman #the sophomore #kaitlyn liao #play choices #choices stories you play #fanfic #fanfiction #playchoices #the freshmore #becca #kaitlyn #pixelberry #chris powell #james ashton #zig ortega #milly's Musings

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glowstickhaloboy · 7 years

Text

smoothie klance au?? i guess

you would not guess how many half-written AUs i have in my drafts that become WAY TOO LONG for me to ever consider publishing in a text post. yes this is a short one.

keith makes smoothies for a living. it isnt a big deal until it is.

one night, this dude comes in. who cares about build-up, we all know its lance, and he looks frazzled. he sits at the counter and orders the fruitiest smoothie on the menu. keith makes it and doesnt think much of it, except to note that something about this kid is just... weird?

1: hes coming in alone, which people their age usually dont. 2: hes dressed pretty nicely. 3: hes just sitting there??? drinking a smoothie??? not even scrolling on his phone or anything, just looking around and slurping. okay weirdo. 4: he seems off. keith does not use the word “aura” on a regular basis but lance has an aura. (which does not make sense to keith, who barely understands his own emotions, let alone someone else’s.)

lance thanks keith, and leaves like thirty minutes later. hes certainly not the weirdest customer keith has ever served, but for some reason that random, singular dude sticks out in his mind.

but the shifts come and go, and gradually keith forgets about lance.

until he comes back in again.

its a lot like it was before. lance is dressed nicely, seeming miffed about something, or not miffed, exactly, but hes clearly not happy, and this time he orders a peanut butter and chocolate smoothie, and hes just as quiet as before, only this time hes rapidly tapping away on his phone instead of memorizing the inside of the restaurant, and keith is almost glad because it means he gets to sneak glances at this guy more casually??? like, hes had weird people in here before, and lance definitely isnt the weirdest, but enigma customers are intriguing to keith and he takes what he can get

the third time, its raining. lance is drenched, droplets running down the side of his face and under the collar of his (white, button-up) shirt. he smiles sheepishly at keith from across the room and sits at the counter, nearly having tripped on the way over because he didnt bother to wipe his shoes on the interior mat and created on the floor as he crossed the room.

he orders a strawberry and banana smoothie. keith has been preparing for this. he attempts small talk.

“nasty weather,” he says.

lance nods. “yep.”

god, that was horrible.

keith hands lance his smoothie, his change, and hides at the far end of the counter. lance alternates between staring at his phone and watching the rain hit the windows and slide down the glass. sometimes, he sighs.

the fourth time, its the middle of the day. keith is just getting off his shift, but he imagines himself whipping around and demanding to stay later just so he can serve this random kid he knows nothing about???? his eyes are trained on lance as he walks out the door. he thinks lance glances at him. for the first time, keith wonders if lance comes in when keith is not there.

months pass, and lance comes in on the regular. its clear now that when he comes in, he is not happy. in fact, he seems to be getting less and less happy, judging by the fact that he starts to order mega-sized blueberry blitzes.

and then lance disappears

and keith isnt obsessed with the guy, he doesnt, like, notice except for the fact that he totally does. where the fuck did lance go???

but, you know, whatever. a customer is a customer. keith thinks about him sometimes, but lets it go for the most part.

until he doesnt.

its four more months before lance comes in again. leaves have fallen off the trees and scarves recently appeared in the street overnight. and now, all of a sudden, in an autumn sunset, lance stumbles through the door and throws himself into the nearest chair. keith can hardly believe his eyes.

“what can i get you?” he asks lance, and he thinks lance understands that keith recognizes him. still, lance takes a moment to answer, like he has to pick every part of himself off the ground first. he drags a hand down his face. looks up at the menu. looks down at his hands.

“fuckin... i dont know, man. you ever experiment with ingredients and stuff? like, on your break, you make yourself a smoothie thats not on the menu?”

keith cannot say that he has. “you want something thats not on the menu?”

“yeah...” says lance. “something with chocolate, though. i dont care how much it costs.”

its completely out of place for keith to ask why lance looks like utter shit. hes a smoothie maker, not a bartender. also, he still doesnt even know lances name. and yet.

“what am i trying to fix with this smoothie?” he asks. “rough day? heartache?”

“bingo!” says lance, a bite in his words. he laughs like he wants to die. “dont skimp on the chocolate, man, please.”

keith nods and tries to remember things that lance has ordered in the past (its never been the same thing twice) so he can use that to guess what lance would like. chocolate? what went well with chocolate??? strawberries--people dipped strawberries in those chocolate fountains. and bananas went well with strawberries. strawberry-banana with chocolate. it might be disastrous, might be passable. keith improvises a little on the portioning, delivers the finished product to lance with a pained face.

“i have no idea how this will taste.”

lance shrugs, pays the man, and sticks a straw in it. though keith has other customers, he waits for a reply. lance doesnt give him one. his face is stubbornly unreadable. but, he doesnt choke it back up, so keith doesnt make him anything else. he, regrettably, must now face the other distractions customers.

hes never focused less on what he was making. his goal is to get the order and send it out the door. in the meantime, lance sits at the counter, sucks down his smoothie, and stares at the back wall of the room as though he has recently been hollowed out. keith wonders just what the hell has been going on in this dudes life the past three months.

finally, the line empties out. keith scoots back to lance’s seat. “can i get you anything else?”

lance sets down his 3/4 finished glass (keith has to act fast) and shakes his head.

“we have cookies,” keith offers.

lance snorts into his shoulder. “man, how pathetic do i look? pity eyes and cookie offers and free conversation.”

keith drops all pretense. “what happened?”

lance hangs his head, his shoulders slumping. “i was really hoping that i wouldnt be coming back to this goddamn place for a long time.”

keith doesnt know what to say to that. he knows that it isnt about the smoothies, but he doesnt want to pry directly into lance’s life, so he says, “the smoothies arent that bad.”

“no. the smoothies are great. perfect pick me up. it just sucks that im back to needing pick me ups.” he takes a long sip of schroedinger’s disaster-passable smoothie, and instead of saying anything, keith remains silent, an invitation for lance to explain more. “i used to come in here all the time a couple months back."

“i remember,” says keith, unprompted, because he feels like lance will respond well to honesty right now.

lance raises his eyebrows but doesnt comment. “okay. well, its super lame, and youre going to think im a total loser considering you remember me, but its sort of a personal tradition for me to come in here... after i have a bad date. but i met this dude and we hit it off and we’ve been a thing for almost four months now. and then today...” he makes a soft, sad noise as his hand plummets and crashes on the counter. “he broke up with me.” keith frowns.

“that sucks.”

“yeah,” says lance. “it really, really does. so fuck guys and girls and dating in general for a while. lancey lance is going to take care of himself from now on.”

keith blinks in surprise. lancey lance. “your name is lance?” he asks.

“since day one.”

keith offers what he hopes is an encouraging smile. “keith.”

“well, keith,” says lance, standing, “keep up the good work.”

he slides a five onto the table and heads for the door. keith frowns down at it for a moment. as lance leaves, he calls over his shoulder, “its a tip!”

after that, keith doesnt see lance for a while, but now, knowing why, thats a satisfying thing.

but also, knowing that lance is into dudes and actively looking for love is a worrying thing. keith would have to be blind not to see how attractive lance is, and after their brief but insightful conversation, lance’s happiness is on keith’s wish list. lately, a particular train of thought has been running repeatedly though keith’s head: lance wants someone who is not a jackass; i am not a jackass.

but it would be totally weird for keith to ask lance out. besides, lance isnt coming into the restaurant anymore. keith physically cant ask him on a date. perhaps that is for the best.

and then, one saturday afternoon, the planets align. keith has had a confident morning, business has been steady all day, and he rolled out of bed looking good. lance walks in. contrary to keith’s power mood, lance looks like hes been recently hit by a bus and scraped off the pavement. he makes eye contact with keith on the doormat and gives a rueful smile. keith smiles sympathetically in return.

“maybe im just destined to die alone,” lance says, halfway through his coconut-key-lime whatever. “or i’ll find true love when im like thirty. which would be a bummer. im cute now.”

keith grins. hes leaning nonchalantly on the counter, a cleaning rag tossed over his shoulder. “the world is full of idiots,” he says consolingly.

lance’s eyes bug out. “im one of them!” he protests. “clearly! what am i doing wrong? keith? buddy? my man??? today, my date walked out in the middle of the movie. it wasnt even a bad movie! i have no idea what i did, but clearly she just had enough. i tried texting her, but my messages wouldnt deliver. i think she blocked me.”

“what movie did you take her to see?”

“die a virgin 3.”

“i think i might see the problem.”

“its a tasteful movie!” lance protests. “the whole franchise gets a bad rap because of one bad scene in the first movie, but this one is great! it has keaton lovinsten in it. who doesnt like keaton lovinsten? i was practically drooling over him from the first-- oh. oh. i think i know what might have turned her off.”

keith snorts. “i certainly wouldnt like it if i went out with a dude and he started eye-fucking someone else.”

casually slip into the conversation that you like dudes. good one, keith!

“i wasnt-!” lance turns beet red. “it was a movie! hes a celebrity! and there is no way it was that bad.”

“she clearly thought it was.”

lance’s head falls onto the table. “im hopeless,” he says, but he seems to feel better about saying it now. something in keiths chest settles. he thinks about the alignment of the planets and decides that he cant do this yet. hes going to let the universe keep on rotating, and he’ll catch his opportunity the next time. for some reason, he wants to take this slowly.

so lance continues to make keith’s workplace his lovelorn HQ. keith continues to give him sympathetic pats on the back, one time even literally, and eventually he feels comfortable referencing lance in conversations with others as “my friend lance...”

meanwhile, lance goes on date after date with countless people who are not keith. the jealousy is starting to eat at keith, but he can endure it because he only ever sees lance on the tail end of these tragic romantic encounters, when all lance wants to do is complain about their big noses and loud chewing. still, keith starts to feel like hes playing with fire. on any random day, lance could find someone who makes him very happy, and he would suddenly disappear for good.

on a snowy thursday, lance enters the restaurant with a shiver. he pulls off his mittens and waves to keith, who smiles and waves back over the pigtails of a little girl. when its lance’s turn to order, he appears pleasant, if worn down. he orders extra whipped cream.

“what went wrong?” keith asks good-naturedly, lounging an elbow on the counter.

lance hesitates a moment before answering. he unwraps his whole straw, sticks it carefully in his smoothie, and drinks, before saying, “actually... nothing. i mean, not nothing, but... it wasn’t a bad date this time, it was just, i dont know, weird.”

keith prickles. he doesnt like the idea of lance having a date that wasnt overtly bad. “what made it weird?”

“what was weird was that it was good, but it was with someone bad. well, not bad. hes not bad, he was never bad, but, like, he kind of broke my heart, so...”

keith flashes back to the night lance told him about his bad-date-tradition. he frowns. “your ex?”

lance stirs his smoothie pensively. “yeah. he apologized for a lot of stuff and said hes changed, and, like, i dont know what to do with that. i thought i moved on, but considering im still not seeing anyone, maybe its a good idea to try again. i mean, if its what he wants, and its what i want, then what could go wrong? its not like he was a dick, he was always nice to me when we were together...”

lance’s voice fades out. keith is trying to think of all the ways he can coolly scream THAT IS THE WORST IDEA without sounding suspicious or biased. its a damn good thing that lance is staring into his smoothie instead of at keiths face, because keith is not keeping it together. he had taken too much of his sweet time, and now lance was heading back into a relationship, and keith had to decide if he was going to try to break that up, or watch lance fall in love again.

“how do you know hes changed?” keith asks carefully. “how do you know the same thing wont happen again?”

lance eyes keith for a moment instead of replying. then, he goes back to stirring his drink. “he seemed different. it felt like he had changed. he looked good...”

“you look good,” says keith. lance’s eyes flash up to him, and keith feels his face burn, his mind shouting, idiot! idiot! idiot! “i mean! i mean that you have changed, too, so you shouldnt be hasty about this decision. you should... look at all of your options.”

“do i even have other options at this point? my other option is stay lonely and unhappy.”

“or.” keith licks his suddenly dry lips. “you could try going on a date with me.”

silence rings loudly in his ears. he cant look at lance. he cant believe he just did that. he just said it, just like that, just put it out there for the world to hear. for lance to hear.

lance asks, “do you mean that?”

keith finally looks at him, and takes it as a very good sign that instead of revulsion or discomfort, he sees surprise. surprise and something happy. it gives him the courage to smile.

“yeah,” he says. “i mean it. you could finally see me out of this stupid apron. i mean! you could see me in my normal clothes.”

lance coughs hard into his hand, and keith’s soul withers with the knowledge that they are both currently thinking about keith naked.

lance recovers, albeit with a heavy blush on his face. “i’d like that,” he says. “but, um, just so you know, if it goes badly and you decide you hate me, im buying a blender and making my own smoothies after that.”

“that’s fair, but i dont think it will go badly,” says keith. “let me give you my number.” he pulls a napkin from the dispenser and scribbles on it with a pen, slides the napkin over to lance. when did it get so hot in here?

“thanks,” says lance, folding it and putting it in the pocket of his sweatshirt.

neither of them know what to talk about now.

“um, when are you free?” keith offers. “theres a new exhibit at the gallery that my old art teacher contributed to. its space themed, i think. we could go see it.”

lance nods. “that sounds fun. oh man, this is so awkward. im so sorry. im just still trying to register the fact that you actually asked me out. i did not think that was ever going to happen.”

keith cant help but think, me either. shiro is going to be so proud of him.

and, in a moment of bravery, he decides that he likes to see lance so bashful and awkward. he cant help but press his advantage. keith sticks out a hip, leans forward on the counter, and says, “was i too subtle before?”

but it seems like keith accidentally started speaking a language that lance understood. immediately, lance turns on the charm, a smile stretching over white teeth. keith is only shocked for a moment, and he doesnt let it show. lance says, “a little. thats okay. i like shy boys.”

keith wills himself not to get flustered. “how do you feel about motorcycles?”

“motorcycles?” lance repeats, genuinely interested.

“yeah,” says keith, still smiling. “i could teach you how to ride.”

lance gags a little bit on his straw. keith laughs and leaves him sputtering to tend to a pair of kids who just came in. by the time hes finished making their drinks, lance has disappeared, and in his place is a little napkin with a smiling face and the line: am i your bike? because its easy for you to get my motor running.

keith swipes it out of public sight, grinning, and stuffs it in his pocket.

the date does not go badly. it goes very, very well. keith shows up on his motorcycle, and lance is both impressed and excited to ride it. he hugs keith tight around the middle, whooping loudly, and when they pull into a parking spot, he stumbles off the seat like a champion, drunk on adrenaline, eyes shining. keiths heart sprints. they check out the exhibit and lance amuses keith by making ritzy, intellectual comments such as, “the artist has a certain je ne sais quoi, a, how do you say, need to fuck the canvas” that have keith choking back laughter in an effort to remain respectful. it goes so well that keith has the courage to take lance’s hand halfway through the exhibit, to which lance looks down and says, “gay.” afterwards, even though they didnt plan to, they go out to eat at a diner and split a large order of fries. lance has a unique, deeply personal drink (1/3 mountain dew 1/3 cherry coke 1/3 pepsi with a shot of dr pepper) which he graciously allows keith to try. keith periodically catches himself imagining scenarios wherein he and lance show up on each others doorstep for surprise dates or lounge together half-asleep in pajama pants, lance playing video games while keith watches vine compilations on youtube. afterward, because neither of them want to go home, keith takes lance for a spin on the motorcycle just to feel lance hold onto him, and they end up parking outside a place that is very familiar to them both.

“what are we doing here?” lance asks. he frowns at a large milkshake painted on the window. inside is the counter he’s has spent much of the last six months moping at.

keith checks over his shoulder. “i thought it would be rude to ask if you were coming here after, but if you wanted to, i figured it would be polite to drop you off.”

lance shoves keith in the side, laughing. “shut up, you bastard. you damn well know that this was a good date. take me home.”

keith obediently revs his motorcycle, and they take off together. over the roar of the bike and the wind, keith does not hear lance say, “the best date.”

they arrive back at lance’s house. lance is still awkward clambering off the bike, but its better this time. keith boots down the kickstand, and when he turns back up, lance is right there.

“the best date,” lance says, knowing full well that keith is going to hear him this time. he pulls off keith’s helmet, steps close, and keith only has a flash of realization for whats about to happen before lance kisses him.

“the best date,” keith agrees, awestruck.

“i’ll text you,” says lance.

“can’t wait,” says keith.

lance’s hands are still fisted in keiths jacket. “i think this is the part where you drive away.”

“or it’s the part where i ask if i can see you again. are you free this weekend?”

“if im not, i’ll move plans. count on it.” lance lets his hands fall. “you look good out of the apron, by the way.” he hands keith his helmet. “safety first. dont ruin your face, or i might not go out with you again.”

keith rolls his eyes. “its been a privilege.” he wants to kiss lance again. “see you friday.”

he starts his motorcycle, checks over his shoulder, and kicks off onto the road, leaving lance watching after him. he cant believe its only wednesday.

#klance #klance au #fic #i guess #dont know what else to call it #but take it god its out of my hands now #also dont blame me for the content its 1 AM

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unproduciblesmackdown · 7 years

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aparoxysm · 7 years

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3,5,7,8,9,12,15,18,19,20

✿ Does anyone in real life know about your RPing hobby and what, if anything, have they said about it?

My parents know, because for as long as I’ve been on the internet, they’ve known that I like to write and write with friends overseas. My dad still calls it fanfiction somtimes to other people, like he’s proud of me or something, and that’s enough to make me want to never talk to him again out of embarrassment, ha, but I deal with it. Because I truly do love writing more than anything. Other than that, my boyfriend knows, but he doesn’t care about it / ask questions and I don’t really like to tell him about it either. I’m not as embarrassed about RP as I used to be, but I still feel like it’s just something for me that other people wouldn’t really understand the mechanics of. The only times my boyfriend and I do acknowledge it is when I start talking about an RP friend he hasn’t heard about before like a real life friend, so he’s like who dat and im like oh, new rp friend from > insert country

That being said, he actually did surprise me the other week and I have been holding onto it for fear life. We were complaining about a friend who literally just sleeps and watches Netflix all day when she’s not working, and he’s like “I don’t get how you can do that” and im like “Well I have friends online who claim to do that a lot. Me, personally, I’d get too bored.” and hes like “I just don’t get how people can do nothing all the time? Like at least with you and your online stuff, that’s still doing something. I just feel like that’s actually a hobby.” and I kind of didn’t hear whatever else it is he said because he actually ??? referred to my RP addiction as something valid and worthy??? and all this time i’ve assumed he didn’t get it and thought it was dumb??? IDK, it made me feel good.

✿ Have you considered writing professionally or do you have plans to?

Always. But I never will, I don’t think.

✿ How do you handle the toxicity sometimes found in the roleplaying community, particularly in fandoms?How has roleplaying, specifically, impacted your life?

I use tumblr savior to blacklist a lot, because it really gets too much for me to be exposed to it a lot, and it makes me feel shitty and not want to rp with certain people because of how they behave, or makes me feel guilty for how I behave… I usually drift away from things that give me major negative vibes, otherwise I become in great, exponential danger of saying something i’ll regret. I’ve hated Tumblr RP a lot in this last year. It’s nowhere near as relaxed as it used to be, and I know there’s a lot of political debate on the topic of equality but I am not comfortable in a space where I have to edit everything I do and say or just not do or say it at all. When it gets like that level, a good dose of the unfollow button and keeping my mouth shut is what I find the most helpful.

✿ How has writing improved your life and do you see yourself sticking with it?

When I graduated high school, I went to college for art and animation, and it basically ruined my creative life. Before RP, I used to be an avid drawer, I sketched every day, I improved my skills and motivation so much, everyone knew me as the girl who drew in class instead of did her work, the girl who was going to grow up and be a famous artist, and when I went to college, it killed that for me. My ego took a big blow because the tech side of the course absolutely annihilated me, i couldn’t do it. so after that (and that was 2 years ago now) i haven’t really drawn since. but the silver lining was that I took on RP more dedicatedly after that, and found that I truly adored writing. Try as I might, I’ve never really comitted to a personal writing project, and it’s only in the recent times that I’ve taken the pressure off for me to do it, but. RP makes me happy, it makes me feel like I’m doing something good when I reply to people or make new friendships, it makes me feel like I’m wanted and needed, that my characters and plots are valid and that other people would care if I’m here or not. It was a big boost for my self confidence, and it’s also made me so much more privy to the creative world, which i needed after that. so yeah, i see myself sticking with writing.

✿ Is there a quote from a piece of literature that holds great value to you? What is it and why is it important to you?

She stood in front of her closet mirror in her T-shirt and twisted this way and that. What’s wrong with me? She wondered. There was nothing the matter that she could see. She was tall and leggy, like her mother, with full breasts, small waist, and slim hips that curved enough to show she was female. Her skin was gently golden; it was always golden, sun or not, and her tawny hair was thick and long and wild. So why was it that groups of girls stopped talking when she approached them at school and answered her openings with tense words that killed the conversations she tried to start? Was she too good-looking? Was that possible? Was that the threat they saw?

Legitimately, this was the first and pretty much only female protagonist I had ever read about who fully and whole-heartedly loved herself where it mattered. Sure, she still had her shortcomings and moments of weakness, but god damn, Vivian was so proud of herself and what she stood for, and that was so refreshing to see during that period of young adult fiction. It’s why she became my first favourite character from a book. And has pretty much inspired me to write feirce, aggressive, self-assured female characters ever since. I was just so inspired by her way of thinking as a young girl, it appealed to me so much and so that moment in the book plus a whole lot of others, really stuck with me.

✿ What do you typically look for in a roleplay partner?

Cliche, but chemistry. And not always in the writing kind but a lot in the OOC kind. I like people who I can talk to super easily, who write in the same tumblr language I do, who reference memes and are not afraid to hit me up with IMs and head canons, etc. I just love it because it makes me feel comfortable with a person, and like I’m not being a bother. The better I get to know a player, the better I get to know their character away from IC interactions. Likewise, I adore it when players get to know me so well that they read the patterns in my characters easily, and I don’t feel like I have to explain them all the time? It’s like they just know, and they know what path I want to put them on. I also look for honesty, people who are down to tell me what they’re feeling about a situation or whether something bothers them, or is able to voice if I’m doing something wrong. Most importantly though, I look for decisive people. Not overly decisive but it’s just so important for me to have someone who is like “yes that sounds good, i can start a thing for you if you want” or “i dont think that really fits, how about this plot idea instead?” I really cannot stand sending IMs to people about plots and characters and them just agreeing off the bat the whole time, but never really deciding on anything either, and so it makes me feel like i’m just paddling in a circle until i make all the decisions for us. To me, that’s not what RP is about. It involves teamwork, and effort, and to me, that’s not putting in effort. It gets me really frustrated.

✿ What made you want to join the roleplaying community?

I kept seeing bios in celebrity tags, and so when i sussed out what group rp was on tumblr, i was like holy shit there is a name for the thing i have been doing with friends over email for so many years???? and you can use PICTURES? i gotta get on this.

so somehow, i found a group rp that allowed mythical creatures, i wanted to be a peter pan mermaid, and the rest is history~~

✿ What one piece of literature has been most inspirational/life changing for you? Why?

(( Blood & Chocolate, by Anette Curtis Klause — because of the main character, as per mentioned. She’s inspired me to write full-on, aggressive, assertive, don’t-tell-me-what-i-can-and-cant-do female characters without apology. ))

The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen — it’s hard to explain exactly why, and it doesnt even just involve ONE of her books either, but they’ve kind of shaped my whole general character story directions?? her books always follow a pattern and i really admire that pattern, even if it is repetitive, and i am secretly a hopeless romantic so i really like how her love stories evolve. it’s always slow burning, the boy is usually a direct surprising love interest, and the girl always gains new friends and family out of it, and the stories always involve a nice little reoccurring theme. In the Truth About Forever, it’s a game that she and a boy plays throughout the entire book, which eventually leads to a shift from friendship to something more. THAT PLOT HAS APPEALED TO ME EVERY SINCE. the example of a teeny, tiny, otherwise-completely-average moment greatly impacting the rest of a characters life with someone else… i am weAK for this concept ok. her females are always usally feircely independent too and that gets me ♥

✿ Who are your top three favorite fictional characters and why?

Vivian Gandillon (Blood & Chocolate) — i swear i could go on repeat forever haha, but i’ve basically already mentioned why.

Jace Herondale (Shadowhunter Series) — back when the first like, two books had only been published, i super fell hard for this series and it was straight up because of the commentary done by Jace and his ability to senselessly bicker with everybody in his path. his comments to me, were always absolutely hysterical. i was so in love with his wry and witty comments, especially the way he kept at ease and casual through super distressing situations, and i really wish id kept reading the rest of the series as it was published, but i seriously fell behind. then the movie came out. then the netflix series. now i’ve grown too far out of it and having to see the cast on my dash every second of every day makes me want to burn the books.

Shane Collins (Morganville Vampire Series) — this is an oooold old series that i used to read religiously, and it was more in the style of anita blake and buffy vampires~ rather than twilight and true blood -esque content. it got really weird and complicated though so i gave up on it, but for a time, i adored it. and i loved shane because he was hilariously human, he hated everybody except his housemates (though sometimes that could be questioned) and nobody held a grudge better than him. he had a knack for getting in trouble, usually on his own accord, was feircely protective and spent most of his time just being a genuine nuisance and temper tantrum thrower. i saw a lot of me in him, and idk. i just like people with tempers, i think it makes them super fun to read.

#me af #psa; ooc #psa; my library #shehasnoears

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10 inspiring female writers you need to read

New Post has been published on https://writingguideto.com/must-see/10-inspiring-female-writers-you-need-to-read/

10 inspiring female writers you need to read

As a response to Gay Taleses failure to name any inspirational female writers, we asked our readers to explain why and how these authors changed their lives

It is hard to believe that this piece is still necessary. We long for the day when we dont have to single out authors or anyone of any walk of life, for that matter for their gender, but here we are again. Last weekend, author and New Journalism father Gay Talese was asked to name women writers who had inspired him at a Boston University event, to which he answered: None. He reportedly went on to say that educated women dont want to hang out with anti-social people, according to what journalist Amy Littlefield, who was in the audience, told the Washington Post.

Undoubtedly, the hashtag #womengaytaleseshouldread started bubbling on Twitter, and plenty of suggestions were made here is a tiny selection from authors:

Neil Gaiman (@neilhimself) April 5, 2016

Women writers who inspired me: Enid Blyton, Richmal Crompton, PL Travers, Margaret Storey, Ursula LeGuin, Baroness Orczy, Diana Wynne Jones

Neil Gaiman (@neilhimself) April 5, 2016

More women writers who inspired me: Wilmar Shiras, Shirley Jackson, Lisa Tuttle, Mary Shelley, Anne Rice, Scheherazade, Judith Merrill…

Neil Gaiman (@neilhimself) April 5, 2016

Even More Women Writers Who Inspired Me: Joanna Russ, Hope Mirrlees, Joy Chant, Angela Carter, Madeleine LEngle, James Tiptree Jr, Kit Reed

John Scalzi (@scalzi) April 4, 2016

And Now, An Incomplete List of Women Writers Who Inspire Me: https://t.co/mxrYOFFE5r pic.twitter.com/7H8JaWgTgQ

roxane gay (@rgay) April 2, 2016

I hope no one expected Talese, who doesn’t wear jeans, to think well of women. IDGAF about his opinions.

We have celebrated female authors on the Books site before, but we contacted some of our readers and asked them to tell us which female writers shaped their lives. Here are 10 of the most mentioned authors, in no particular order, and what our readers had to say about them:

1. Doris Lessing (1919 – 2013)

Doris Lessing working at a typewriter, circa 1950. Photograph: Paul Popper/Popperfoto/Getty Images

In my twenties, I was a foreigner in London. Reading Lessings subtly brilliant short story Out of the Fountain, I had that Keatsian feeling of a new world coming into view. As I read my way into the books of this fellow exile, her range and depth emerged from psychological portraits in granular detail, to vast explorations of cataclysm and survival. Class, sex, old age, childhood, the inner workings of politics, the wilder shores of the psyche she embraced complexity and got under the skin of the human condition with piercing acuity. This was writing from the frontiers of experience and utterly mind-stretching.

The two landmarks, for me, are Shikasta, her monumental portrait of humanity, and The Four-Gated City (part of the Children of Violence series), Lessings visionary mapping of London and the no-mans-land between psychosis and sanity this book opened doors for me. Her understanding of resilience and transformation in the midst of upheaval is profound. In our obfuscating times, we continue to need that eye. barbkay.

Start with: The Golden Notebook Hailed as one of the key texts of the womens movement of the 1960s, this study of a divorced single mothers search for personal and political identity remains a defiant, ambitious tour de force, wrote Robert McCrum.

Further reading:

I was the cuckoo in the nest Writer Jenny Diski tells the story of how she lived with Lessing as a teenager

My hero: Doris Lessing by Margaret Drabble Doris would invite herself to lunch with me in Hampstead, when the mood took her. I never dared to say no

Doris Lessing in her own words on the Guardian books podcast

She helped change the way women are perceived, and perceive themselves by Guardian Review editor Lisa Allardice

2. Toni Morrison (born 1931)

Toni Morrison in a 1982 image. Photograph: Reg Innell/Toronto Public Library

When we asked readers for their favourite books by women, many replied with anything and everything written by Toni Morrison. Here are but a few.

Toni Morrisons Beloved is the best book I have ever read. A horror story in every sense. I re-read it as soon as I had finished it. Chilling, difficult, painful, but absolutely brilliant. afiercebadrabbit

Beloved. Its odd reading a book at which you are simultaneously repulsed at how you feel and yet you understand exactly why you feel that way. Shes a terrific writer. getebi

I love every word shes written, with Beloved at the top of my list. Im also sad to see few writers from non-Anglo Saxon cultures listed as there are so many superb writers from other traditions. The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy is my favourite book of all time, and I also adore Elif Shafak, whose fiction and essays as well as her talks are outstandingly fresh and insightful. Read The Flea Palace and The Bastard of Istanbul. spraos

Start with: Beloved If Beloved represents the terrible pain and suffering of a people whose very mother-love is warped by torture into murder, she is no thin allegory or shrill tract. This is a huge, generous, humane and gripping novel, wrote A S Byatt

Further reading:

Im writing for black people I dont have to apologise interview by Hermione Hoby

Tea with Toni Morrison, by SL Bridglal

Toni Morrison on her novels: I think goodness is more interesting

Her 1993 Nobel lecture

3. Ursula K Le Guin (born 1929)

The Earthsea trilogy is absolutely magnificent: poetry, wisdom, sadness, satisfaction, fantasy, realism. Far better dragons than Tolkiens or George RR Martins, far better written the whole shebang, except for humour. But then, Tolstoy didnt go in for jokes much either. She taught me that there is nothing wrong with life or with death: the one is to be delighted in, the other accepted Daniel Mccormick in Coatbridge, Scotland

The Earthsea books by Ursula K Le Guin, which as an adult I find have greater moral depth than Tolkien and are better written and more focused than George RR Martins. QuesoManchego

The Earthsea Trilogy by Ursula Le Guin has been something of a personal bible since I was a child. punkmonkey

Ursula Le Guin during an interview in San Francisco in 1985. Photograph: M. Klimek/Bettmann/CORBIS

Start with: The Earthsea series or The Left Hand of Darkness they are some of the very few titles which I would be confident enough to name as true classics, novels that will endure well beyond our lifetimes, wrote Alison Flood

Further reading:

My inspiration: SF Said on Ursula Le Guin

Ursula Le Guin: Wizardry is artistry

Gentlemen, I just dont belong here her fantastic 1987 letter, responding to a request asking her to write a blurb for a science fiction anthology that contained no female voices

4. Virginia Woolf (1882-1941)

To the Lighthouse, The Waves, Orlando, Jacobs Room. Virginia Woolf. Because you can taste every word. Lope82

Mrs Dalloway, elegant and lyrical stream of consciousness that I prefer to Joyce. alloleo

Virginia Woolf. Photograph: George C. Beresford/Getty Images

I would like to put in a word for Virginia Woolf, and especially for the under-appreciated Orlando, where the long-lived protagonist starts out as a young nobleman before becoming a wife and mother. The book runs from Elizabethan England to 1928 and says a lot about the position of women while being both clever and funny. Perhaps Woolf is a bit too literary for some tastes, but Mrs Dalloway, To the Lighthouse , The Waves and A Room of Ones Own must surely speak to many. I think (hope) she will come to be recognised as one of the greatest writers of the 20th century. JackSchofield

To The Lighthouse, it had a huge impact on me when I first read it. It really made me consider and reconsider how I think and find direction. I loved Lily Briscoe and that devastatingly matter-of-fact middle chapter/section that splits the novel. There are so many books by women that I love, but TTL is my favourite. daveportivo

Pretty much all of Woolf, whom I read voraciously during the late 90s and still dip into now and then for a quick dose of writerly inspiration. Hard to pick any one favorite, fiction or non-fiction. But A Room of Ones Own changed my life.Jenny Bhatt

Start with: Mrs DallowayWoolfs great novel makes a day of party preparations the canvas for themes of lost love, life choices and mental illness, wrote Robert McCrum

Further reading:

Portraits of Virginia Woolf: here, the true face of the modern writer

Virginia Woolf should live on, but not because of her death, by Holly Williams

Woolf it down: on how the Bloomsbury set shows they were almost as obsessed with eating as with art

5. Clarice Lispector (1920 – 1977)

If a writer such as Clarice Lispector is to be considered significant from a feminist point of view, then it would probably be due to the absence of anything in her work or life which could be said to resemble the stereotype of the Lady Novelist. As well as living like a sort of secular hermit, her writing is elusive and mystical, being much less concerned with plot and character than with abstract ideas, such as The Apple in the Darks consideration of the nature of artistic creation or Agua Vivas obsessive focus on trying to isolate single moments in time. Although she could write movingly about womens experiences (especially in The Hour of the Star), her almost stubborn unworldliness otherwise gives the lie to the awful old clich that women are somehow deficient in considering the abstract, and shows that women are as unrestricted in subject matter as men. She really is one of the oddest and most individual writers Ive read.Jacob Howarth in Oxford

Clarice Lispector. Photograph: Courtesy Paulo Gurgel Valente

I heard of her just a month ago, from a Korean American friend. All I can say about her at this stage is that she knows me better than I do. I am reading The Complete Stories published 2015, which is full of lovely and shocking surprises. I finish one of her stories with a huge grin that lasts all day, another story may leave me arguing with myself … each one is having an profound impact on me.

She inspires me more than any other author in this second half of my life. Her uniquely fluid style reveals a mind so perspicacious, so permissively poetic and utterly radical. As a feisty feminist, I find peace in Lispectors reveries; she defies convention at every level by writing from deep within her psyche, embracing human flaws and foibles as perfectly natural. Her trademark self-acceptance is so refreshingly robust that I have found myself at times interrupting my reading with whoops of awe and admiration for her freedom of thought and spirit. Mars Drum

Start with: The Hour of the Star all the Brazillian authors talents and eccentricities come together in her most famous, final novella about a poor typist in Rio, says Colm Tibn

Further reading:

A brief survey of the short story, part 56: This darkly addictive Brazilian writer is more concerned with perceptions of objects than conventional plot structures, wrote Chris Power

The True Glamour of Clarice Lispector, by Benjamin Moser for the New Yorker

Brazils Virginia Woolf, by Brenda Cronin for the Wall Street Journal

6. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (born 1977)

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichies Americanah has moved me like no other in recent memory. I would describe it as transformational because it provided an insight into the reality of what it means to be a young, ambitious, highly intelligent, sometimes single black woman in contemporary America. Its an honest book about race, identity and the constant longing and nostalgia one feels for this metaphorical place called home. I was also moved by the story because it touchingly describes the loving relationship between the two central characters, showcasing that neither space nor time can erase love.

We usually go back to the same desires and preferences we had as 15-year-olds, and Americanah captures this sentiment. Moreover, it is a transformational book because it portrays Nigeria as a place that is mythical, marvellous, chaotic and slightly dangerous, yet also wildly fascinating, with a magnetic power to attract its brightest emigrs back to its shores. Reading this has made me realise that some of the most powerful narratives in contemporary fiction have been written by young, highly educated female African writers, who are tired of the old clichs frequently bandied around about Africa. Ngozi Adichie is a new, powerful and incredibly talented voice; her novel Americanah is the expression of a different African tale, of a continent and its people that have many more magnetic stories to tell, as well as critiques to raise about the so-called enlightened West. beograd

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, photographed in 2007. Photograph: Felix Clay for the Guardian

Start with: Americanah a superb dissection of race in the UK and the USA, wrote Elizabeth Day

Further reading:

I decided to call myself a Happy Feminist her world-famous TED talk

Dont we all write about love? When men do it, its a political comment. When women do it, its just a love story interview by Emma Brockes

Every 16-year-old in Sweden will receive copy of We Should All Be Feminists

7. Margaret Atwood (born 1939)

The Handmaids Tale by Margaret Atwood. She predicted all that is happening today in that book. shofmann

Everything about it is scarily easy to imagine. Her descriptions of how women began to be punished for abortions reminds me of legislation happening right now in the USA, for example. getebi

Start with: The Handmaids Tale Atwoods chilling tale of a concubine in an oppressive future America is more vital than ever, wrote Charlotte Newman

Further reading:

Haunted by The Handmaids Tale – Atwood on the legacy of her iconic novel

Margaret Atwood webchat her answers to your questions

I set myself a schedule of three to five pages a day Atwood on writing

8. Zadie Smith (born 1975)

White Teeth, by Zadie Smith. Could read it over and over again. Sarah Hassam

Zadie Smith, photographed at the Edinburgh books festival in 2001. Photograph: Murdo Macleod for the Guardian

On Beauty by Zadie Smith is absolutely brilliant. Smith is often categorized first by race and gender and thus is never considered the peer of other modern literary fiction writers like Franzen and Rushdie, but she easily beats them at their own style. emason1121

Start with: White Teeth, a novel on the lives of various multicultural families living in London; an audaciously assured contribution to this process of staring into the mirror, wrote Caryl Philipps

Further reading:

Fail better: What makes a good writer? Is writing an expression of self, or, as TS Eliot argued, an escape from personality? Thanks to Jenny Bhatt and MildGloster for pointing us towards this 2007 essay.

Windows on the Will: Smiths essay about watching the new Charlie Kaufman film Anomalisa, and Arthur Schopenhauer, was recently published on the New York Review of Books. I went to see Anomalisa, largely because of how interesting Smith made it seem, shared MildGloster.

9. Elena Ferrante (born 1943)

Of the many beautifully wrought themes explored in Elena Ferrantes masterful Neapolitan series, one that especially speaks to me, as a woman, is the question of what it means to attain presence versus what it means to disappear. Lila and Len, the central characters, each struggles to not disappear, despite the forces of class, history, and violence conspiring against them as women. Each tries to avoid what Lila loathingly describes as the problem of dissolving margins, when the outlines of people and things suddenly dissolved, disappeared. Reading Ferrante has led me to wonder: How many times have I, as a woman, faced being erased in relationships, in career, in the larger social order? How many far less-privileged women, in hostile corners of the world, face the threat of vanishing completely, dissolving into the boundaries of others without a trace? Veronica Majerol, New York, NY

Start with: The Days of Abandonment, a short novel Ferrante wrote before her famous Neapolitan series a great taster, and brilliant in its own right.

Further reading:

Elena Ferrante: the global literary sensation nobody knows

Elena Ferrante: Anonymity lets me concentrate exclusively on writing an interview by Deborah Orr

10. Angela Carter (1940 – 1992)

When I was at university I saw someone give a paper on Angela Carters dystopian masterpiece The Passion of New Eve. It was probably another year or so before I got my hands on a copy but I was not disappointed.

The premise alone a man captured by radical feminists and surgically transformed into a woman so that he may bear the messiah was enough to pique my interest, but it was Carters hallucinatory prose and rich symbolism that made this novel unforgettable. elbartonfink

Start with: Nights at the Circus the story of winged circus performer Sophie Fevverss travels through 19th-century Europe, that was named the best-ever winner of Britains oldest literary prize, the James Tait Black award.

English novelist Angela Carter sitting on a park bench in Paris in 1988. Photograph: Sophie Bassouls/Corbis

Further reading:

Angela Carter: a portrait in postcards

A brief survey of the short story: Angela Carter, by Chris Power

Femme fatale: Angela Carters subversive take on traditional fairy stories in The Bloody Chamber is as shocking today as when the collection first appeared in 1979, wrote Helen Simpson

We are painfully aware that this list could go forever. So, please, add more authors to the conversation by leaving your thoughts in the comments.

Read more: http://www.theguardian.com/us

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