#in the same way I'm exaggerating when i feel my heart skip a bit when people don't listen to me saying no or deciding for me

[erraticroses]

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[layanasstories]

Cause of pain

Part 17

Before Jake can even open the door, there is another loud banging. "Jesus! Calm down!" He sticks his head out into the hall as he shouts at the front door. Then he looks at me again "Wait here okay, let's see what they say first.". My cheeks bulge and I nod yes. Once Jake has closed the room door behind him, I finally exhale. Silently I listen to what is going on in the hall. "Finally you open!" It's Dan who doesn't even greet.

The voices get louder and closer, then I hear the door close. "Hi Mark, I tried to calm him down, but he's on a mission." Lilly's voice is somewhat subdued, although her tone is making it clear that she thinks Dan is exaggerating a bit. "It's all right, I've known him for a while now." Jake jokes a little. "Hey, there are more important things! Have you heard from Layana today?" The fearfulness in Dan's voice makes me open the room door and step out into the hall. "Oh." There is an undertone of jealousy in the way she says this.

Neither man noticed, but I did, raising my eyebrow at her. "Thank God!" Exclaims Dan with relief, only to then chew me out. "Why didn't you let me know, where you were? I've been worried all day. And then only now do I find out you're here? Who knows what could have happened!". Before he can continue his tirade Jake steps between us. "That's enough, Dan." His deep authoritarian but protective tone makes my heart skip a beat. This is exactly how he must have sounded when he stopped Thomas from begging me to go to the mine. The same thing is happening now too. Dan looks at him in surprise; as far as he is concerned, I have known Mark for just a day. Lilly looks just as surprised, she had been silent the whole time until now. "Sorry Mark, but we have known Layana for a long time, much longer than you have known her. And what she had to do today is not just anything. It affects us too.".

The panic I had been feeling had finally subsided a little, but by her words it returned just as hard. "Seriously Dan?" frustrated, I slap my hand to my forehead "You told her about today?". "What else was I supposed to do? She spontaneously showed up at my doorstep to help me clean up. Only I was so distracted that she kept asking me why." he wanted to start the discussion but I interrupt him. "Mark?" I turn to Jake "If we make some drinks in the kitchen and then we can tell them everything?". Dan and Lilly look surprised again, first at us and then at each other. "That seems like a good idea." Says Jake to me before turning to the other two "You know the way, take a seat.".

When the two are in the living room, we step into the kitchen. We don't do anything with drinks yet but look at each other. "Jake" I start whispering while getting a little closer to him, only he interrupts me whispering too. "You have to tell Lilly.". A little panicked I try to get clarity on what he means "What exactly should I tell? That you're alive or that you're ...". He doesn't let me finish the sentence "That I'm alive. Tell her the real truth. But only her. Then we can tell Dan today's 'truth'.". Questioningly, I pinch the bridge of my nose "Are you sure? The more people know about this, the more likely it will leak out.". "Yes, she has almost as much right to an answer as you had.". I let out a sigh "You're right.". He wraps his arms around me in a hug and kisses my head. "It will be fine, okay. Let me take care of Dan.".

We both walk into the living room with two drinks in our hands. Dan and Lilly are waiting for us expectantly. Immediately Dan starts trying to get information out of us as soon as we step inside. My hands tremble a little as I set the drinks down on the table. Lilly notices right away "Are you OK?" She asks me almost soundlessly. "Not really." I answer her just as quietly. "Dan, can you shut up for once?" She sneered at him. "You know what, Layana come with me." She gets up and walks into the hall, towards the bathroom. As a goody two shoes I follow her, as this was exactly what I needed to split the two.

[jaeminscoffee]

Let me in. (m.)

Pairing- Lee Donghyuck x reader

Genre- Fluff, Smut, tiny bit of angst..?

Word count- 6.03k (ily I'm sorry oof)

Warning- sexual themes suggested, written horribly, slight corruption kink, bestfriend!haechan, slight possessiveness , fingering, praise kink, friends to lovers trope, cliché af. Also definitely not proof read.

Summary- When you let him in, paradise unfolded is an understatement.

(literally the first time i wrote based of a song and it was a really challenging but! fun experience so thank you for requesting this! This also gave me an idea of closing off my previous prompt as starting a song prompt..? )

➳ listen to Ooh La La La by Exo.

When i turn my head

My eyes meet yours

Once again I'm staring at you

That smile is a bit too much for me

It's hard being friends with a girl, so beautiful, so generous and giving and still not having her all for yourself. Or so was how Haechan felt. 

You were so close to him, yet so far. You always looked out for him as though he was your top priority, and that boosted his ego. You were his, to an extent. It's when Haechan thought it'd be the best to have you come over to the party his frat's throwing, wanting you to loosen up a little, he couldn't hold himself back. 

After the last bell to class rang, Haechan immediately started packing his bag, remembering Mark, his other half as you exclaimed had warned him not to be even a second late, saying something along the lines of 'apparently Johnny won't DJ for us unless we actually give him something materialistic' or something.

You watch with a wide smile, your best friend frantically reaching out under his desk to get out all books only to shove them carelessly into his bag, 

"Calm down, Hyuck. You still have 2 hours to reach there and the frat house' barely half an hour away" Haechan let out a curse having dropped around 3 of his books alongside that one pen he carries around, he turned towards you with his eyebrows furrowed.

Seeing you smile wide at him, laughing even at his misery weirdly had his heart skipping beats. It was a normality now to him. It wouldn't take a genius to guess he's whipped for you, everyone, other than you apparently knew about that. 

Filled with an ease leaving me to burn

I can't breathe when i see your eye smile 

It's like you know that's your charm

"Hey don't smile at me like that! What type of a friend are you even?" Haechan exclaimed dramatically, completely ignoring how his heart had started beating just a little faster, breathing growing just a little frantic, face heating up just a little. 

"What?? I'm not supposed to smile now?" you ask with the same exaggeration, lifting your hands up to hit him softly when he got a hold of your hand, pulling you in for a hug,

"Don't ditch me at the party, I'll be waiting, love you bye!" he said it all in one breath, patting your back, placing a peck on your forehead before leaning down and picking up his  bag before dashing out of the door. 

You stood there still, bringing your palms up to your cheeks to calm the heat down. 

It's the thoughts or prejudice that you had that friends are supposed to stay friends that had you constraining your feelings for the lad. You'd be an idiot to have a whole package of what a good, ideal man is supposed to be like right beside you but still not fall for him. That's impossible even, worse than mission impossible.

"Love you too.." you say out low, mostly to yourself as you give yourself a second to calm down before moving forward to pack your own things up, leaving the classroom as soon as you're done to go set things up before the 'party' tonight. 

It didn't take long for you to decide what to wear. Simple, a skirt and a blouse. They were your usual fit anyway and you didn't like all those jazzy, flashing, revealing clothes people usually wear to parties. A pleated white skirt that fell mid thigh, a black and white striped long sleeve turtleneck shirt which you paired with a silver butterfly pendant, ending it with  black suede boots. 

 Sandra, your neighbor ergo a close acquaintance of yours, offered you a ride to the venue, having her boyfriend DJ there. She informed you how she'd be one of the ones to serve the drinks, adorning a shocked expression when you told her you don't drink. 

"Friend's with Lee Haechan yet you don't drink? No way" the elder exclaimed, you let out a laugh, remembering the last time the said boy had forced a drink down your throat, an action he regrets till date. "He might be a heavy drinker, i think the max i can handle is either a glass of wine or a bottle of breezer, nothing more and nothing less" 

You arrive at the frat house relatively faster than usual, thanks to Sandra's amazing driving skills, but you were immediately abandoned as she spotted her boyfriend, Johnny, in the yet to fill room. No doubts you had arrived early as the boys that you recognize as Felix, Han, Renjun, Jaemin, Jeno, Yangyang, Mark, San, and three others you didn't know quite well off, were arranging the red party cups and bottles on the kitchen counter. 

You scan your eyes all around the room to locate your possible crush, well, best friend in the crowd. Eyes landing at the figure leaning against the wall towards the stairs as he spoke to Hyunjin, a white tee tucked into his usual black knee slit skinny jeans topped with a blue checkered oversized t-shirt which was left unbuttoned made him look absolutely breathtaking. Not to mention, his hair was gelled back, with only a few strands let loose to hover over his forehead. Godly. The only word that could describe him. 

Maybe you might've stood there looking at him for way too long, potentially drooling even because he should've felt your intense gaze upon himself, as he turned his head away from the long haired boy, looking all over the place mimicking your actions from before to spot the gaze, landing upon you. 

Haechan physically shudders, how could one look that flawless? He pats his friend on the shoulder, making his way around him with slow strides towards you. It's hard to keep his feelings intact when you look like that, that ethereal, and his hands to himself. That's a catch. He loved seeing you in your plaid skirts. But he hated that it's not just him who gets to see you like that. Haechan wanted you to dress up for him. Look pretty for him. Be pure for him. Be his. And maybe, just maybe, tonight he'd have enough courage to ask you out. 

Your eyes are whispering to me

It's like they're asking me to approach. 

Intoxicated by his looks, being able to see no one but him, you make your way towards him too, replacing the fangirling face with a smile that he adored oh so much. 

"Hyuck! Hey!" you walk faster stepping out of your daze, pulling him into a hug, before hitting his shoulders slightly, "Next time, learn to pick up your phone" you exclaim, pulling away not too far, having his hands rest on top of your hips as you look into his eyes. Haechan mumbled something incoherent under his breath, shaking his head subtly. "sorry sorry, my phone was in the other room and pretty sure you called me when we were checking the music systems" 

"you're lucky Sandra lives like, right next door. I was actually planning on ditching the party and just binge watch the office" you playfully nag at him, hitting his shoulder this time. You push yourself away from him, involuntarily, wanting to cherish his warmth a little longer, but that'd be sketchy.

"Anyways! How do I look?" you wriggle your eyebrows before doing a twirl, which had your skirt slightly lift up a bit, Haechan visibly gulps, stopping you with your hand, "ugly as usual" he said, sarcasm dripping from his voice. Seeing your face dim down a bit, he lets out a chuckle, "do you really need me to tell you that you're beautiful, doll?" he pulled you in again, lifting his head up when he heard sounds of gagging, a sign of disgust from somewhere around the pair of you. 

" 'do you really need me to tell you that you're beautiful, doll?' oh cut it out you filth." exclaimed a voice in a distorted manner behind you. You turn around to face a senior of yours, a close friend. "Mark!" you extend your hand out to do your infamous handshake, that lasts at least for over 15 seconds that had Haechan roll his eyes. 

"says the filthiest himself" he let out, making you snort in a not so attractive way. "Hey, at least i'm not the one flirting with my best friend here" Mark pointed out, fingers wrapped around the party cup with god knows what drink. "you flirt with anything breathing" you add, laughing as he sends a wink your way. 

"You look stunning, Y/n" "Now who's flirting huh?" Haechan said, suddenly all up his guard. "woaw, not flirting because someone would whoop my ass later, but stating facts is all i did" Mark smirked, turning back as someone screamed out his name, "well I'll catch up later, gotta blast! Byeee!" he let out hurriedly, making his way towards the back of the house.

"I'll go get us some drinks, cranberry? Or lemon?" he asked, knowing the obvious answer. "Cranberry, duh" you reply with sass to which he let out a loud laugh. 

"You got it"

Maybe you believed that it's time you break your own limits, or maybe you just wanted to seem cool to Donghyuck. Whatever the reason was had you drink more than what your tolerance allowed you to. You felt euphoric and sick at the same time. You weren't completely gone just yet, you were still sober, surprisingly. The actual surprise is that Haechan, the usually 'I'll end all drinkers carrier' type of guy, stopped at just a bottle of beer. 

Reaching out to the glass Renjun held out towards you as an offer, you felt your hands being swatted away, making you flinch slightly. 

"That's enough drinks for her tonight" he said, shoving his friends hand away slightly as you whined. "i can handle a drink more" you reply, reaching out again, "no you can't, and no you won't" he insisted, raising his eyebrows at you in a challenging way, wanting to see if you'll oppose him. 

It might've been the intoxicating liquid in your system at the moment, but staring back at Haechan had the bottom of your stomach churning. You look away with the same speed you initiated the eye contact with. 

"You're not my dad.." you mumble, puckering your lips into a small pout as you hear his friends laugh at your slight quarrel. 

"but i am your boy- best friend. And for a fact, i know you'll fall unconscious if you take another drink" Jaemin starts hooting slowly at Haechan's slight slip up.

"Tsk, whatever" you reply, rebelling against him and taking the bottle out of Renjun's hand as he stared at you, amusement clearly evident on his face. 

"Feisty. I like how you don't listen to hyuck, maybe we should be best friends" he let out, holding out his fist to fist bump yours, which you do, sticking your tongue out at your best friend. 

"Okay! Let's play, put a finger down if you have!" Yangyang suggested, eyes scanning all your faces to see if anyone's not feeling the game today. Seeing everyone do nothing but nod, he starts dictating, asking them to put up five fingers. The first person to lose out apparently has to either take shots or confess their deepest secrets. 

The first rounds went well, easy questions which made you feel bored, slight headache striking in, making you rest your head on Haechan's shoulder. Sensing weight on his shoulder, he turned his head towards the side, looking at you with concern, a glint of 'I told you' shining through the orbs. 

"tell me off later, my head hurts real bad" you mumble, soft enough for only him to hear before he could nag at you. Saying nothing else other than shifting closer to you for you to get comfortable he said, "Just sleep, I'll take you home".

The moment you close your eyes after his words, you hear Jeno blurt out the next question, it being his turn to do so. 

"put a finger down if you've ever been head over heels for your best friend", His other friends chuckle, while Jeno smirked at Haechan, too tired to open your eyes to see who put a finger down, you fail to notice Haechan put a finger down, looking down at you all worn out on his shoulder, his circle feigning disgust. 

The game was probably long done, the party might've also ended, you must've fallen asleep because the next time you open your eyes, you find yourself in your best friend's bedroom, still feeling tired. Looking outside the window, seeing it's still dark outside, you turn to the side, flinching just a bit when you find Haechan at the side of the bed, arms folded over the sheets as he rests his head on top of it. It must've been uncomfortable kneeling on the floor for that long. 

You take the chance to look at him properly, well, better than the past god knows how many years into your friendship. You take your time to roam your eyes all over his facials. Gawking at the moles adorning his tanned skin, lifting your fingers up to feather over them. Your hands then move to the scars at each corner of his eyebrows, chuckling as you remember how he got them. 

You brush his dishevelled hair out of his face, the action making Haechan stir in his slumber which had you stop your moments completely. Running your fingers through his hair one last time, about to pull your hands away from him to not wake him up you feel his hands grip your wrist, holding it in place. 

You yelp, not expecting him to be awake, "why did you stop? I was about to fall asleep" he whines out, getting up from the floor, standing to his full height which makes you shift, leaning your back against the headboard to look at him more comfortably. 

"Did you carry me up here?" you asked, voice a little hoarse as the alcohols after effects had your throat burn. "Nope, you just zapped here. Of course I carried you" he replied, masking his flustered look at how you looked, face glowing, eyes hazed and on bed. His bed. 

"Does it hurt for you to reply normally for once..?" you open your eyes a little wider in genuine curiosity 

Oh la la la, please allow me 

Oh la la la, into your imagination 

I'll go right in, so let me in

I'll dance in your eyes 

Oh la la la, the moment our gazes meet. 

Replying is hard, keeping his eyes away from your lips is hard, to stop himself from slowly leaning forward was hard too. You're killing him. The alcohol in his system did nothing more than fuel his desires for you.

It's weird, how one moment, you're whining at your best friend being a sarcastic hoe to how your breath gets caught in your lungs the next moment at the sight of your crush leaning closer to you. 

It's weird how all those thoughts of, 'friends should stay friends' were thrown right out of the window when he was now, just inches away from you, noses grazing each other.

The proximity was that where you could feel his breath fanning your lips. Now that's weird too, weren't you just having a normal conversation? 

Haechan snaps out of it, you're probably drunk. He pulls away just as you close your eyes, ready to bask in the feeling of his lips against yours. 

"I can't.. You'll forget all this by tomorrow, I'll wake you up before class, have some rest." He said, avoiding eye contact as you felt a pang of disappointment hit you. 

That night, all Haechan could think of was your slightly parted lips, eyes fixated on your lips and your slow, shallow, small breath. 

You've never felt awkward around Haechan, neither do you want to feel awkward around him, but each time you see him, all you're reminded of is how close you were to change your friendship into something else. 

On the other hand, Haechan wanted to hit himself for cowering out once again. He was so close to finally making you his. But now all he's left with is a sexual tension so thick that could be cut by a knife. He wanted you. He craved you.

It only started working him up more the day you called him over to your studio apartment for a movie night, ignoring all past events over the week. Them being, Haechan becoming a much touchy friend. He's always been a physical affection shower either ways. 

Haechan complied, arriving at your place with a large bag of Doritos. Greeting you with a huge smile, ignoring the fast beating of his heart when you reciprocate the same expression. 

"Heyyy! Missed me? I know! I missed me too" Haechan said, making his way around you quickly to hide the crimson that took place on his cheeks, not wanting you to see it. 

"I did" you say quietly, closing the door as Haechan made himself comfortable on your couch, having set the chip packet in the kitchen counter. 

He mentally took a note of your outfit, plain black shorts that were a little too short for the sake of his heart not falling right out, and a white shirt, a crop top, to be precise.

"It's your turn to choose the movie" you say, making your way towards the other side of the couch. "Monsters inc?" he answers as you whine, having already regret the choice of giving him the liberty. 

"Hyuck we watched that movie about like, 5 times, when will you get over it?" you ask

"Never so stop whining and watch the movie with me." he replied with the sass you were oh so familiar with, making you roll your eyes. 

Ah, it's going to be a long night. 

You were lost in your own thoughts, not paying attention to the movie much as you remember the night at the frat house. It's impossible to get Lee Haechan out of your mind. It's impossible because you know he has his eyes on you right now. Looking at you, oblivious to the fact that you knew of his gaze. 

"Hyuck.. " you call him out, turning to face him from your side of the couch. Haechan looks away momentarily, flustered as you caught him stare at you. He hums in response, keeping his eyes fixed on the screen. 

"About that night in your room" you start, turning completely, your body facing him as you sit criss cross. Haechan visibly tenses up, thinking you're about to tell him off for crossing the line, "Y/n, about that, i'm- i'm sor-"

"Do you like me?"

Right now, in this moment, the space between us

Is filled with this strong trembling 

Becoming a rhythm and drawing me in

Let your body move to it however you'd like. 

Haechan was caught off guard by your question, blinking, once, twice, even shaking his head to see if he's imagining things, "Huh?" he asked just for confirmation. 

"Do you like me..?" you repeated, slower, heart racing in anticipation as you lean forward a bit, waiting for his reply.

"What are you going to do if I say.. Yes?" he asked, eyebrows raised as he leaned forward a little too. You had the strong urge to want to lean back from the proximity, feeling blood rush up to your cheeks but you stood your ground, wanting to do this right here. Right now. 

"Then I'll continue what we almost started" you exclaim, the smile he loves so much finding its way onto your face.

"Will you? Really?" he asked, scooting closer to you, something about his eyes switching gazes when you lean further, making your shirt come down a bit. You nod, that's when he pulls you forward by your arms, making you let out a sound of surprise as you crash onto his side, looking at him with your eyes widened. 

"Then yes." he whispered after leaning close to your ears, you feel yourself growing hot each passing second. The position is extremely intimate. You pull away to look into his eyes, to spot any signs of all this being nothing more than just a joke. You lose it when he looks at you with a strong gaze, eyebrows slightly raised, lips drawn into a small smile, immediately pressing yours onto his after staring it for way too long.

His hands found their way around your waist, tugging at you slowly, gesturing you to get onto his lap. 

An odd smile that doesn't let on

Seeing through the curiosity driving me on

And sending a sign

You oblige, as your lips move in unison, Haechan shifted in his seat to a better position, man spreading to let you sit better on his lap all while still not letting go of your lips. 

His hands find their way under your crop top, letting his arms wander the bare skin of your back, his cold touch in contrast to your warm body making you gasp. Haechan takes the opportunity of your parted lips to enter your mouth, tongue pressing against yours making you whine. 

You pull away only when you feel your lungs practically begging for a puff of air even, tugging softly at his slightly grown hair, letting out an airy giggle at the sight of your lip color smeared at the corner of his lips. 

"That was way better than all I've imagined it to be" Haechan smiled at you, pressing his forehead against yours, pulling you closer by the hips. You look away from his gaze, "you've imagined kissing me?" you ask softly, playing with the charm hanging off his neck.

"way too many times to keep a count" he replied, placing another peck on your lips, pulling away immediately, laughing as you subconsciously follow his lips. 

He finally let's you press onto his lips once again, groaning as your teeth clash from how fast you were at finding his lips. You whimper when his hands squeeze at your sides.

You jerk forward, testing the waters as you move your lips from his lips, to his neck, peppering the skin with kisses, giving extra attention to those moles you adored that were scrawled all over his skin, occasionally nibbling at the spot you left a wet trail at. 

It's like you're telling me to open the door

To your slightly open heart and come right in

Please allow me 

Into your imagination 

I'll go right in, so let me in

I'll dance in your eyes

The moment our gazes meet. 

He sighs in content  at the feeling of your plush lips pressed against his skin, "I won't be able to control myself if you keep going, doll" you continue your ministration.  Then don't" you say, trying to sound as sultry as possible. Having waited so long to have Donghyuck as more than just friends had you desperate for any sort of contact from his side. 

You could sense his slight hesitation, maybe he didn't want to rush things, maybe he just couldn't get himself to do it, or maybe, he was just nervous.  

Should I really try making a move now? 

What should be the first thing I say? 

The moment I hesitate, thinking it over

You get up and walk away. 

You stand up, from his lap, looking at his eyes, nodding so softly that he'd miss it if he'd blink as you make your way towards your bedroom, smiling. You tug at your shirt, slowly, above your head, not daring to turn to look back at Donghyuck's reaction, a triumphant look washing over your facial as you hear him growl with that honey voice of his. 

He must've stared at your back a little too long, seeing your hair cover the top half of your torso as you turned towards your bedroom, looking at him one last time before entering the room which was illuminated with just your fairy lights. 

Even as I look at your bold back from far away

Your slow pace is telling me to follow

Girl just tell me what you like

It's like you're telling me to hurry

"she'll be the death of me.. " he ruffled his hair, before getting up to walk down the same pathway as you. 

Walking into your bedroom, Haechan was more than sure that the sight before him was the most ethereal sight he'd seen his entire life. 

You sat by the foot of the bed, adorned in only your black lace bra, the black shorts, and your hair left open in all glory. He swallows the lump forming in his throat, mood switching so fast because the boy you walked away from, Lee Haechan, the one hesitant to take it this far, was now replaced with the Lee Haechan, walking towards you with long, confident strides. 

As he comes to stand in front of you, he bends down, snaking one of his arms around your waist, pulling you up and close to his body. 

"tell me, have you been dreaming about me just the way I've dreamt about you?" he leans closer to the nape of your neck, running the tip of his nose along the unexpectedly sensitive skin up to your ears, nibbling at the earlobe. 

"Have you waited for all this just as much as i have? Tell me, princess" he rasps out as you place your hands gently by the belt loop of his jeans. 

Please allow me

Into your reality 

Not trusting your voice, you nod, wanting to feel his lips against yours once again but Haechan held onto you with a firm grip, 

"Tell me, baby. Words, those are the keys. Use your words" He moved from nibbling onto your earlobe to marking territory onto your skin that had you jerking forward, further into his body. 

I'll approach you, so hold onto me

Tell me that you were waiting

The moment i reached you

You huff out, opening your mouth the exact moment he took hold of your chin with a gentle grip, looking at your orbs with so much expectation, so much adoration, so much love, so much lust. 

"I've waited a long time too." you start 

"I waited for so long; the day in your room, during that night, I was so happy when you approached me, but then you pulled away. You made me wait enough Hyuck, please let me feel you now? I want you. No. I need you" 

You didn't pay attention to his heaving chest, or how his eyes were turning into a whole darker shade of ebony, instead, stood on your tip toe and engulfed his slightly puffy lips with yours. 

Haechan didn't deny the kiss, dying to take you quick there itself when the first sentence left your lip, but he wanted to take it slow, he wanted to show you how much he's waited for this too. How much he likes you and he wanted to make sure you felt it from each action of his. 

He urged you to move backwards, closer towards the edge of the bed, not breaking the kiss even for a second, his hands securing around your waist as he slowly bends down to place you on the quilt. 

His hands make their way back, fiddling with the hook of your bra as he breaks the kiss with one last peck at the corner of your lips. "i need you too, doll. I need you just as much as you need me, maybe even twice as much" he mumbles against the soft skin of your collarbone, tapping at your back with the tip of his finger once he had the hooks undone to pull the material away from your body. 

Shyness suddenly overpowers all lust, you bring up an arm to cover your now exposed breast while Haechan is busy throwing your clothing behind him. 

Turning around, facing you, he smiles at you, gently prying your hand away from your chest leaving your torso bare naked in front of him which had you shut your eyes with embarrassment. 

"Look at me, baby." Donghyuck urges you. 

You give yourself a second, inhaling sharp as you flutter your eyes open, looking straight into his eyes. "You have no reason to hide yourself from me" he pulls away after placing a peck in the valley of your chest. He tugs at the edge of his hoodie, pulling it over his head before discarding it behind.

"Here. Now we both are half naked" he smiles at you as you mirror his expression. 

Donghyuck wasn't all that built, he wasn't not built either. Ever since Renjun started forcefully dragging Haechan to the gym, he'd lost that baby stomach that you loved to poke at during class just to annoy him, now replaced with very faint ab lines which, you were sure you'd grow a liking for pretty soon.

You whimper at the feeling of his lips graze over hardened nipples, jolting forward when he lifts hands from above your hips to your neck where he'd previously left his mark, tracing the reddish purple/brownish skin. 

He latches his lips onto one nib, swirling his tongue around the hardened muscle, his free hand making its way south, waiting for any signs of protest before dragging the short down, shifting his attention over to the untended nipple. 

"beautiful.. " he mumbles against your wet nipple, blowing onto it later, all sensation making you feel ecstatic.

"Hyuck, I need-..need you" you choke out.

"I know, princess. But we need to prepare you a little, hm?" he lets out, voice a few octaves deeper than usual, as he finally tugs your panties down your leg, letting it slide itself onto the floor.

Haechan looks at you, expression blissful from all the attention you're getting. You quickly nod, looking at him giving him a hundred percent access to do you however he likes when you notice his eyes silently ask for consent. 

He feathers his thumb over your clit, smiling at how responsive you are to his touches. He slowly starts drawing circles onto the sensitive bud, pressing his lips to the side of your face, whispering sweet nothings into your ears. 

"Haechan!" you whine out, his words only adding to the pleasure. Experimentally, he moves his finger down to your slit, feeling your slick wetness coat his fingers making him let out a throaty sound of satisfaction. 

He did this to you. 

That had his ego boost shoot right up the roof. He let the tip of his middle finger poke at your entrance, cooing at you while pressing it inside of you. "So wet, baby. All for me?" he questions, slowly moving his wrist back and forth.

You nod frantically, "Hm? Words?" he pushes, slightly picking up the speed. 

"All for you, H-haechan. It's.. It's -all for you" you cling onto his forearm, as he coax you closer to your orgasm. "That's right baby, it's all for me" he presses his lips against your cheeks once again.

He adds in another finger when he knows you're close, speeding up even further, curling the digits in you which had your eyes roll back. 

Your orgasm washes over you with so much intensity the moment he engulfs your nipple once again. Slowly helping you ride out your orgasm, only removing his fingers from within you when you started to writhe from overstimulation. 

"You did so well doll, can you take one more?" he asked sweetly as you calmed down. That's when you realized how selfless he'd been, now looking down at the dent on his jeans which looked a little painful. 

You get up after nodding as you watch Haechan unbuckle his belt, removing the jeans along with his boxer, adding it to the pile of clothes behind him, you lean forward, "Your turn" you tell as Haechan's face contorts into confusion. 

Finally realizing what you mean, he smiles at you, pulling you into another loving kiss as he runs a hand down your messed up hair. "Maybe another time? I just want to feel you around me now, princess, i can't wait longer" 

With that, he made you lay back down, "condom?"

"It's fine, I'm on pills" you rub your hand up and down his hands that were beside you, balancing his body above yours. The thought of going raw inside you made Haechan's member twitch. 

He runs his member up and down your wet sex, coating it with your essence before letting the head poke at your entrance as it expands with each inch he enters in, the wetness making it so much easier to enter. 

He lets out a groan that sounded so much like a whine, finally having been able to feel your walls perfectly fit around his shaft. He leans down, now balancing himself on his elbows as you finally give him the go ahead sign. 

He interlocks your lips with his as he slowly starts moving his hips into yours. "You feel so good for me, doll. Fuck." he rasps out against your lips. 

He had to hang onto the last of his rationality to not ram into you, you just felt that good around him, and he felt so good inside of you. 

Haechan slowly picks up the pace, now moving a little faster against your hips as you reduce down to a moaning mess, chains of his name leaving your mouth continuously.

"Hyuck, i..I'm close" you moan out, the little sensitivity you'd left from your previous orgasm slightly striking in. Your moans encouraged Haechan to go faster.

Testing the water, he pull moves back completely to a point where only his tip's inside of you, "Yeah?"  he questioned while slamming back inside of you, making his tip brush against your soft spot which coaxed you closer to your high. 

"Yes-" you whimper, when he finally let go and snapped, desperate to chase his high. The new pace having him constantly hit the pleasure spot. 

You start clenching around his member, not wanting to orgasm before him. "Fuck baby, me too. I'm close too" 

"Haechan im.. I'm coming-" you let out a long loud moan as you feel yourself being thrown towards your edge, face contorting into that of pure bliss, as the constant clenching helped drag him towards his high. 

"Shit, Y/n" he immediately pulled out, feeling his own high wash over his, pumping the wet shaft a few more times before spurting ribbons of his essence all over your lower abdomen. He kept going until he felt himself grow soft in his grip. 

He clashes down beside you once wiping his hands down on the sheets which you most definitely have to wash the next day. 

"Don't fall asleep on me baby, i want to ask you something" Haechan lets out quickly as he finds you blinking slowly, most probably out of exhaustion. 

"I'm not.." you hoarse out. 

"I mean it when i say, i like you, Y/n. Heck, i think I'm in love with you" he starts flipping so that his back was on the sheets with you on top of him. 

"So.. Will you.. Will you be my-"

"Yes!" you reply fast, suddenly having sparks of energy flow through you. 

"you didn't let me complete my question though" he chuckles, pressing a peck onto the crown of your head. 

"Yes. I will be your girlfriend!" you make yourself a little clearer this time around. Girlfriend. His. 

"That.. Means.. You're mine?" he asks, unsure if he should ask so or not. 

You nuzzle further into his chest, tightening your grip around his bare torso. 

"I'm yours"

Now i approach you,

You and I have grown closer.

[julyarchives]

Skinny Love

→ Pairing: Jinho x Female Reader

→ Genre: fluff.

→ Words:  1.3K

→ Contains: Friends to lovers; Jealousy; Roommates to lovers.

→ A/N: We loooved writing this, it's so cute 🥺🥺 thank you for the request, we hope you all like it!

When you started sharing your apartment with Jinho you didn't expect him to bring so many friends over so often, but they were all so nice and friendly that you became an acquaintance to the group. Tonight was one of those nights that they got together to brainstorm new ideas for work, and you assumed the role of the hostess, bringing food and drinks to the boys while they worked hard.

"Jinho is so lucky to have you as a roommate" Hongseok exclaimed, with a long sigh, holding your waist sideways in a childish hug when you brought them sandwiches.

"I know, right? These are delicious." Wooseok answered with his mouth full.

You patted Hongseok's soft hair and laughed.

"It's just food, guys, you are exaggerating"

"Y/n" Hui grabbed your hand, pulling you away from the other "please be my roommate, I want your food every day"

"I can't, sweetie, Jinho would starve to death without me" you cooed, running your fingers through his hair just like you did to Hongseok, and everyone laughed.

"Guys, leave her alone, we have work to do and she's not your maid, geez" Jinho rolled his eyes

You were taken aback by his attitude because you've never seen him acting like this before. And so apparently did everyone, the conversation dying and everyone awkwardly focusing again the their tasks.

The living room was packed, some of the boys even laying down on the carpet, and you found yourself a free armrest to sit down and quietly scroll through your phone as they did their thing.

Changgu rested a hand on your thigh to get your attention.

"Can you pass me that note pad" he whispered

You quietly did so, not missing Jinho's side-eye.

You were so confused with the way he was acting, the snappy remarks were never something that you were used to see coming from him. You were afraid your presence was doing that, getting in the way of their business, so you excused yourself to the kitchen, getting your mind occupied with the dirty dishes.

you were still bothered, feeling a little anxious about upsetting your roommate, so you sneaked a text to Kino, asking if he thought Jinho is mad at you. Mot 5 minutes later he showed up next to you

"I don't think Jinho is mad at you, y/n" smiling sweetly.

"You know you could've just texted me back, right?" You chuckled.

"Yeah, I just wanted an excuse for a break." He shrugged. "Seriously though, he's just stressed with work, I guess."

"You think so?" You pouted dramatically

"I'm sure of it. He's always gushing about you, he adores you, there's no way he would be mad at you" He reassured you "now, come on, you don't have to run away from us'

Kino grabbed your hand and pulled you back to the living room, ignoring your hushed protests.

"you're awful" you whispered to him when he only let go of you when you sat down again on where you were before.

"Anyway-" Jinho said a little louder.

You sank a little further into your seat, your phone buzzing right after it, with a text from Kino "stop worrying! Is not about you!". You looked at him, who was watching you and laughed quietly, shaking your head.

The rest of the night passed smoothly and now everyone was getting ready to leave. You started picking up after them, and Shinwon stood back.

"Let me help you." He offered.

"it's ok, I got this" you offered him a smile "thank you, though"

"Yeah, I can help her, don't worry" Jinho entered back, his tone a little dry.

"Ok…" Shinwon said awkwardly, scratching the back of his head" see you guys around then."

You pinched Shinwon's cheek, trying to ease the mood.

"You're the cutest" you cooed "I'll walk you to the door."

When everyone left, you and Jinho cleaned up the rest of the dishes and took the trash out, not exchanging words, and that didn't soothe your anxiety from earlier, especially the frown that didn't leave his face, and you decided to take a shower to relax a little bit.

He had already retreated to his bedroom when you got out, but you weren't happy with how things were left. You knocked softly at his door and he immediately told you to come in, and so you found him sitting in his bed, back resting against the headboard, earbuds hanging on his neck with some loud music coming from it.

"I'm sorry I bothered you guys earlier," you sat on the edge of his bed. "Next time you need a meeting I can go out to the library or something."

His features soften for the first time since they left, a small smile peaking at the corner of his lips.

"You never bother, y/n" his soft voice completely different from anything that happened earlier.

"Ok" your voice was almost a whisper, and you weren't sure what to do next.

It was Jinho who moved to sit by your side.

"I'm sorry if I was a jackass earlier, I didn't mean to be rude."

"No, it's ok, I understand."

"No, it's fine, I know it's not ok. I just…"

He took a deep breath, nervousness written all over his face. You ran your fingers through his hair, trying to calm him down.

"Don't be nervous, you can tell me anything." You said softly "I promise I won't be upset"

You were convinced that he was actually bothered by you intruding in his friend group, especially during work, so you were getting ready to be told off.

You pulled a strand of hair out of his face, realizing that he looked so cute with his hair growing a little longer.

"It is stuff like this, you know?" He held your hand that was touching him and clasped it securely between his both.

You didn't miss the way your heart skipped a beat.

"I saw the guys being so comfortable touching you, and you doing the same to them, I guess I just felt jealous."

"You don't have to be jealous, Jinho, and you can always feel comfortable with skinship, you know I'm a very touchy person."

"Yes, but I want you to be like that with someone else." He confessed.

You blinked a couple of times in silence, tilting your head in confusion.

"What do you mean?" You asked

"I love how affectionate you are and I basically melt when you touch my hair. And I hate seeing you do that to someone else."

Everything went quiet. The blush on his cheek was adorable and you had the impulse of planting a kiss on the soft skin where it rose pink.

Jinho's eyes widened but immediately after his eyes turned into two crescent moons that adorned the beautiful smile on his face before he returned the kiss, his warm lips on your cheeks making the butterflies on your stomach flip around.

You stared at each other with matching smiles, and you cupped his face, caressing it with your thumb. This time you two met halfway, and his hand shyly caught your waist. When your lips touched a tingly feeling ran through your whole body like it was waiting for that for a long time. The kiss was shy and soft, both of you uncertain of boundaries. It was Jinho who deepened the kiss when you sighed in content. Your fingers caressed his nape and his hand squeezed your waist. He pecked a couple more times before leaning back to look at you.

"You won't do that to the other boys too, right?" He asked with a pretty smile, making you chuckle.

You kissed him again before answering

"What are you asking me, Jo Jinho?" Your grin was hard to hold back

"I'm asking if you would like to kiss me more times?" His charming ways made you swoon. "Maybe go on a date with me?"

"You're something else." You smiled and shook your head.

[yzkhr]

Love Language miniseries for Shinran!

I dedicate this corny and cringe worthy miniseries to @meitanteisachi for giving me inspiration through her gifset and her wonderful fanfictions.

-

Acts of Service- a language that can best be described as doing something for your partner that you know they would like, such as filling up their gas, watering their plants, or cooking them a meal.

"Not sick, huh?"

Shinichi glared as Ran leaned back from the table, unamused. He was working on a difficult case in their—now only his— mansion, when she showed up unannounced after he forgot to attend school. He was wearing his school uniform but lost sense of time being too absorbed at the new case Inspector Megure gave him.

"I told you I'm fine." he avoided her scrutinizing gaze, being stubborn. Ran wouldn't have any of it however, bringing her left hand to her waist like a stressed mother.

"Fine? You're burning hot and your face is even redder than a traffic light!" she argued and his face produced an even darker shade, acknowledged.

He wanted to protest and retaliate how can it not be when she literally put her face in front of his without any sort of warning, brushing his unruly bangs upwards with her soft hand and letting their foreheads touch as he froze while she remained unbothered.

The detective restrained himself however, not wanting any further embarrassment to occur.

He heard a sigh from Ran, forcing him to turn around. She was now arranging the stack of messy papers and documents, bringing them to side.

"Oi, what are you doing?" he frowned as he stood up from the swivel chair and held Ran's hand to stop her. It didn't go unnoticed how Shinichi flinched at the coldness of her skin.

Ran eyed their physical contact before giving him a stern gaze.

"I'm fixing all of these so you can rest. You won't be touching files until your fever's gone." she effortlessly shook his hand away, continuing.

"Ran, I told you I'm fine. I have to end this case cause if I don't---"

"Then you can let Megure-keibu and the other officers to handle it until you're well again." she was consistent at putting all the paperwork aside, not even sparing a glance.

"I told you I'm fine didn't I? It's just a fever."

Finally done with her task, Ran faced him with an expression that resembled his mother way too much for his own comfort.

"You're not fine. You have a horrible fever and along with it is a terrible headache. You didn't actually expect to read all of these with those blurry eyes of yours, did you?"

She squinted, gesturing at more than fifty papers on the side. He opened his mouth to deny her claims but retreated seeing her eyes squint even more, as if challenging him to lie. Ran was right. He'd been trying to ignore the throbbing of his head and the haze in his vision while reading through the entire case.

He sighed as his misty eyes finally having the time to observe her. She was still wearing their uniform, which means she went here as soon as classes were over. He suddenly remembered an important thing.

"Wait, don't you have an upcoming Karate competition? You have training everyday after school right?" he smirked internally, finding out a plot hole.

But instead of seeing a look of panic and rushing out the of the doorway like Shinichi expected her to do, Ran simply grabbed his hand towards the door making his cheeks turn red out of surprise and something he would never dare name of.

"I'll just skip it for today. Besides, I have something more important to take care of." she squeezed his warm hand, hinting what—or who— important thing she meant.

Blushing even more at the implication certainly did not make his illness any better.

-

After a few stumble here and there, they finally got to the bedroom in one piece. Minutes seemed like an eternity, with his headache feeling like he was being hammered. He was freezing and sweating at the same time not knowing if he should undress or add more layers. It was good thing that Ran immediately slumped Shinichi down the bed, and started removing his blazer.

Wait, what?

"Umm..." he spoke weakly, but still complying and accepting her help. He thought that she was done but she suddenly kneeled in front of him and leaned in, making Shinichi hyper aware of everything around him. Her hands went straight to his uniform which he did not predict. She was now untying his neck tie, making their faces inches apart. She was so close that he could feel her breathing at the open part of his longsleeve. Despite his mind telling him not to, Shinichi's eyes went directly to her face, which seemed too focused at her task, with her slightly furrowed eyebrows and violet orbs concentrated at undoing the knots. He would never admit it, but Ran looked too innocent and pure that it was killing him.

It didn't help that her scent was literally intoxicating him. A combination of honey and lemon, Shinichi noticed. Flustered and a bit shameful, he looked up,having butterflies in his stomach with his childhood friends' soft and nimble hands slowly removing the fabric from his neck.

He jolted awake when she begins unbuttoning his polo however. On instinct, Shinichi took a hold of her hands before they can go further. Shocked and confused, Ran looked up.

"I," he breathed heavily. "I think I can do this myself, Ran."

As if broken by a spell. Her face instantaneously turned crimson red at the realization that Shinichi might have thought she was the one with the fever. She stood up straight away, turning around and making a beeline to the door. She had been uptight all day that he was a bit glad the usual Ran came back.

He wanted to laugh at her reaction but was too tired to do so. Even slightly moving drained him, but it didn't mean he wasn't capable of undressing himself.

"I-I'm sorry! I got lost in my thoughts! I'm going downstairs!" she squeaked and left in an instant, closing the door with a loud thud.

Now alone, Shinichi struggled to move his shaking hands to undo the buttons. After a few more attempts, he was finally able to fully strip and drag himself to the closet. Nauseated and feeling like the world weighed on his shoulders, he randomly put on a white pajama and went straight to his bed, curling a bit like a kitten. His eyelids getting heavier and heavier, Shinichi closed his eyes, immediately falling asleep.

-

"Shinichi? Shinichi?"

Hearing a faint voice from behind, Shinichi turned around languidly and opened his eyes, meeting a concerned Ran.

"Hmm?" he hummed, still sleep deprived.

She brought up a steaming hot bowl of food, smiling.

"I cooked you chicken soup. Sit up, you have to eat." she ordered gently.

Despite feeling pain all over his body, he obeyed, knowing that he needed energy. Sitting up groggily, Shinichi faced his caretaker.

Ran sat beside the empty space of his bed, chicken soup in her hand. He frowned at the sight of the food.

"You still cooked my favorite style? Even though you know I won't be able to taste it anyway?" she shrugged as a response, bringing a spoonful near her and blowing weakly.

"Well, you might not be able to taste it but your stomach will surely enjoy it, so why not?" something in his chest swelled after hearing such words. Still, he kept it to himself.

After a few more blows, Ran brought the spoon near his mouth, gesturing for him to eat it. Face flushing and coughing slightly, Shinichi took a bite at the soup. Albeit tasteless, he couldn't help but smile mildy, knowing the effort put in.

Ran laughed a little looking at him as well, but said nothing and continued feeding him.

After five minutes or so, the bowl was finally empty. She told him that he could have just ate half but Shinichi argued that he was hungry(he really wasn't but he would never stand having a food Ran cooked for him go to waste but he'll die before she even find that out).

He was now inclining back to the comfort of his own bed when Ran spoke.

"Seriously, don't overwork yourself Shinichi." she berated, masking her worry with exaggeration as she arranged the plate and the soup, slowly making her way outside.

"I wasn't, I just got a little busy that's all." her saw how Ran rolled her eyes at his excuse as she replied.

"A little busy? You rarely get sick. I was so close to believing you were invincible to fevers." he scoffed at her remark, being defeated with yet another fact. Maybe the pain he felt was a lot worse than he expected.

"Look, I'm glad that you're trying to save as many people as you can but you also can't forget about yourself." he winced at the obvious disappointment and seriousness of her scolding. Instead of meeting her gaze that bore holes into him, he averted his stare into the lamp.

"I'm fine."

"No you're not. And besides, if you don't take care of you, think of all the people that will need you but won't have you." he stayed quiet, getting her point. Shinichi knew it was irrational being stubborn and pushing himself to the limits but he just couldn't help it. He may be a cocky bastard as a lot of people call him, but he wasn't someone that can stand not being able to help when he clearly can.

He sighed, giving in.

"Fine. I promise I'll take better care of myself." his answer seemed to satisfy Ran as she smiled contently.

"Good." as he heard the creaking of the doorframe, Shinichi instinctively flipped his head towards the sound.

"You're leaving?"

He didn't know why, but an infallible amount of upset coursed through him at the thought of Ran leaving. She paused by the door and looked back, inclining her head to the side.

"You want me to stay?" she teased in a light-hearted manner, making Shinichi's cheeks flushed.

"N-no, just wondering.." he played it cool by keeping his voice even, now being reminded how pathetic he must have sounded like asking her if she was leaving.

"I'll stay. After all, someone has to make sure a certain mystery otaku doesn't go back to the library just because he's feeling a little better."

He glared at her jesting and turned to the other side, lying down.

"Barou, it's not like I can do that with my entire body in pain."

Ran laughed, knowing she annoyed him enough.

"Then that's more reason for me to stay right?"

Before he can even think of a reply, she already closed the door and all Shinichi could hear were the sound of her shoes walking downstairs and the erratical beating of his heart he hoped was a side effect of the fever and not..... entirely something else.

[diaco1968]

Sidechicks

Oikawa Toru x f!Reader

Warnings! Nsfw/smut, bj, unprotected, a little bit of choking and hair pulling, but mostly manipulation and angst!

Note: Oikawa is a mean manipulative player in this and reader sadly gets attached to him. And I just had to get this idea out of my head >_<

"You what?"

It was probably the first time you saw concern in his face. Even if it was just a tiny fleeting moment. Was it concern or was it something else?

"You heard me."

Your voice was as stern as you had planned but you just couldn't bring yourself to close the door in his face. As much of a jerk as he was, you had missed seeing him. He was indeed a nice catch. If anyone could actually hold on to him.

"I did, I was just giving you a chance to try and not sound so dumb."

"Excuse you?"

He took the moment of hesitation to slip inside through the door way as if he was actually invited and insisted to go in.

"Who goes back to their ex!"

He exclaimed exaggerating as he looked around the room, almost same as he had left it months ago. Much cleaner though. What he really meant was 'who leaves ME to go back to their ex' but of course eventhough his pride was striked he was not dumb enough to not know he was on thin ice here.

"Well someone who might've made a mistak in leaving him in the first place, Oikawa."

Ouch not off to a good start so far.

"Whatever happened to Toru?..."

"Same thing that happened to I promise I'll call you this time sweetheart."

He didn't know exactly what you were referring to, only 'when'. But he was glad you reminded him of what your personal pet name was, cause as usual he had forgotten. But... were you perhaps just trying to get on his nerve by saying you'd go back to your ex? Cause if you did and he actually fell for it... he would be even more pissed.

"I know... I'm so sorry! I was just hit by some heavy work load and tight schedule, deadlines... I wanted to call so many times but something always popped up... if you only knew how much I've been thinking of you."

Whatever your plan was, you were not going to win this. He was the player here. And lying was fair game for his side bitches.

"... right."

You rolled your eyes but the deep sorry tone of his voice got to you, making you subconsciously close the door behind him anyway. You knew he couldn't have meant it. You knew. But you also knew this was just a game. And even though you were hurting, you couldn't help but want to pretend he was being truthful. Thst he actually cared about you like you had come to care about him...Just for a moment or two.

"You don't believe me?"

His sharp eyes had noticed the fresh flowers on the kitchen counter. You were moving on, this was not a drill.

"That I've been thinking about you every moment of every day,"

"I um-..."

He had turned around and was in your personal space with 2 long steps before you knew it, staring into your eyes with deadly eyecontact as he grabbed your hand and pulled it up to his lips as he leaned down, placing a warm open mouthed kiss on your knuckles that had you reddening immediately.

"These beutiful elegant hands,"

When he came back up he had already his fingers hooked under your chin, tilting your face up to him.

"Your beautiful (e/c) eyes,"

His thumb ran over your cheek as his long fingers moved to rest on your neck, creeping to the back of your neck, making goosebumps rise on your skin.

"Your delicate skin,"

His voice dropped ever so slowly that you almost didn't notice as his eyes moved down your face stopping at your lips, his own parting as his tongue sweeped over his bottom lip before he captured it between his teeth, pupils going wide like a cat staring at his favourite toy.

"Those delicious, soft lips..."

He was whispering on your lips now and you were so flustered by the compliments the little touches and the hot breath in your face that you couldn't take it anymore as you closed the distance between you two and crashed your lips onto his.

'Got you now.'

He was not at all suprised by this outcome but he let out a soft hum and slwoly wrapped his arm around your waist, his other hand slipping into your hair and cupping the back of your head to hold you in place as he moulded your lips together hungrily. His tongue swiping at your lips and you denied his entrance with a tiny moan.

Now one thing you probably didn't understand was that he was indeed hungry for this kiss, but not quite the way you wanted him to be. He had definitely thought about you and all he mentionded and desired you accordingly, but right before he had decided to change his way and come pay you a visit cause he was in the area and had nothing else to do. As in, just about 15 minutes ago. He did think about your elegant hands, desperately grabbing onto him. Your beautiful eyes, glazed over and looking up at him dripping with need.

Your delicate skin as it reddened under his hands.

And your soft abused lips, wrapping around his cock.

He had indeed thought about those, and had shivered in delight.

But that was all this was. You were a good fuck. One of his carefully picked out side bitches. But just because you were his side bitch didn't mean you were allowed to move on from him. He owned you. What the fuck were you thinking? Annoying.

His fingers tightened in your hair harshly positioning your head so you were craning your neck up towards him, lips parting and he rudely took his chance to push his tongue into your mouth, and his other hand placed heavily over your hip pulling you against himself.

Your hands shot up against his chest to try and steady yourself, feeling as if you were drowning in his scent and his heat, his touches, every where.

You hummed softly, hands moving down his torso, over his abdomen and to his button, tugging and pulling at it till it was undond and loosely hanging on his hips making him hum back to you in approval.

His hand moved from your neck to grab your jaw and firmly press your lips together one last time before he let go and press down on your shoulders. Complying he made you bend down and kneel in front of him, pressing your face to his still covered crotch giving you time to nuzzle onto his clothed dick as you looked up at him through your lashes.

"Fuck sweetheart, the things you do to me with those eyes..."

'Makes me want to fuck you raw right now'

You batted your lashes at him as you pulled down his underwear, his cock springing free. You grabbed onto it, fingers wrapping around the base as you licked it up to the head, leaving a kiss at the tip before sucking him in your mouth slowly, a little at a time.

He was watching you so intensely as his fingers raked through your hair, gently gathering the strands out of your face while you reached the back of your throat and swallowed around the head trying to get used to the length in your mouth.

"And you're always such a good girl for me~ you deserve much better than that lousy bastard."

He hissed looking down at you with half lidded eyes, wrapping all the strands he was previously so gently collecting, tightly around his fist, using it to pull your mouth off of his cock before slamming you back onto it and setting a rough rhythm of you slurping around his shaft trying to suck him off faster as he fucked your throat, watching your eyes tear up as you tried to suppress your gag reflex.You hated it. He knew. But you never protested. He knew that too.

"Such a pretty little thing you are, hmm, sucking me off so so good, ngh, god you're so amazing..."

Little praises and groans rolled off his lips as he watched you whimper before pulling you away completely this time, grabbing his dick with his other hand.

"That's enough sweetheart. Now let me take care of you."

"Toru..."

As he lowered you back on the couch, standing between your legs and pulling your clothes off slowly, your hesitation was visible in your eyes.

"Yes, baby? Oh my god I missed hearing you say my name like that..."

"I just... maybe we shouldn't... I mean..."

Your voice was understandably hoarse and your eyes were still watery. He placed his lips over your bare ankle as he gently moved your legs over his shoulders. Your tense posture was making him have no other choice but to throw in his ultimate lowest card.

"Am I going too fast for you, baby? I'm sorry... it's just..."

"What's wrong Toru?"

You watched him curiosity pouring in and mixing with the worry in your eyes.

"I love you so much I find it hard to hold back... but it's okay... I know I can be pushy, I'll stop..."

Your heart skipped a beat as your eyes widened in shock watching his face for confirmation of what he just said. He looked genuine. Ignoring your common sense completely, And as your heart swelled with happiness to your horror he was already pulling away. Your reached out and grabbed his collar pulling him back to you.

"No! Fuck are you... a-are you serious?"

He blinked a few times in confusion before pouting a little.

"What do you mean? Of course I am."

"I l-love you too!"

He smiled and cupped your cheek.

"I know, sweetheart. I know. you don't have to go through with this to show me."

This time he went to remove your legs from his shoulders but you pulled him closer again.

"No, no! I want to... I... uh... I need you Toru~"

His eyes darted from your eyes to your lips a few times opening his mouth to say something but unable to find the words and closed it again.

"Fuck... you have me wrapped around your finger, don't you?"

He smiled as you giggled and nestled between your legs, thumb slowly rubbing your clit through your soaked through panties, making you jerk with a quiet moan. If only you knew what narcissistic pleasure he was hiding behind his seemingly innocent smile. He fed off of the fact that you thought you were in charge while you were just a puppet in his games.

His fingers slipped past the hem and gathered up your running moisture, smearing it back onto your entrance before pushing it back in with his fingers.

You whined and gripped his forearm, melting under his intense gaze as his fingers found their way deep inside you the discomfort slowly replaced by sharp jolts of pleasure as he kept grinding them against your sweet spot, switching between thrusting them or just keeping them inside as far as they'd go and bending them around. As soon as you started clenching around them he pulled them out though, causing a protesting whine.

"No baby girl, not without me."

You felt his tip rub between your folds a few time before he slipped it right in unceremoniously making you gasp and arch your back. He was quick to press you back down into the couch with his body as he layed it over yours, cupping your cheek.

"Sorry, love... my bad. I just can't wait to feel your hot pussy wrap around my dick. So fucking wet for me."

You nodded unable to form proper words with the depth of his thrusts trying to force you to accomodate to his size, as his thumb was running over your lips, pulling it out before letting it pop back in place.

"Oh but you don't need to forgive me. I know you like it like that."

You looked up at him gulping.

"You fucking love it when I go wild with you. You love me when I'm a fucking animal."

His hand wrapped around your neck as his hips snapped up into you, silencing your loud moan.

"You just love being manhandled like this. Such a naughty dirty girl. Hm?"

He started pounding into you, his hand on your throat preventing you from bouncing away from him so you were taking in the full force of his thrusts, only able to mewl and whimper. And sure enough it wasn't long before your eyes were rolling back inside your head from the pleasure.

"You are mine, baby, aren't you?"

He let go of your neck letting you breathe as he slowed to help you come down from your high. Gently laying back over your body running his fingers through your hair.

"Only mine. You know that loser isn't for you... he'll just won't know how to treat you right... he'll screw up again."

It did run through your hazy mind why he was bringing up your ex now but you were too caught up for the moment so you ignored it.

"Do you love me, baby?"

You nodded your head as you wrapped your arms around his neck.

"And you're only mine, aren't you?"

"Yes Toru, only yours."

'That's right little bitch-chan.'

With a fist full of your hair he tilted your head up, exposing your neck to him as his hips started pivoting into you again, deep slow thrusts mixed with his pelvis rubbing against your throbbing clit. He started nibbling and sucking roughly on your neck but with all the other stimulation that was going on you really didn't care as you came a second time, scratching down his back.

He hated it. He hated it when you left marks on him. But it was strangely arousing to him this time.

'One last trophy.'

He had to pull away from you and pull out quickly only to spill his load over your belly only seconds after. He lazily stroked his shaft over your panting sweaty body a few more times before cleaning and tucking himself back in his pants.

"Wow... stay put, love, I got you."

The gentleman he was, he came back with some warm wet tissues, cleaning you up before picking you and taking you to your bed.

"Do you have any idea?"

"What?..."

You looked up at him questioningly as you lay there catching your breath.

'Do you have any idea how easy you are?'

"Do you have any idea how amazing you are? I love you so much."

He smiled kissing you in the top of your head making you smile with a blush but before you could reply his phone buzzed and he glanced at the text before pulling away from you.

"Sorry, I need to take this, sweetheart."

He dialed a number and walked out of the room, leaving you to your own mess of thoughts.

In reality he didn't call anyone, he just left the room to take a breath and think of a plan how to slip out not to be too suspicious. All that was left of his plan was a grand exit. He grabbed a piece of paper and a pen.

He came back in the room a few minuted later already dressed back up neatly, ready to go. Seeing your pout he smiled and cupped your cheek.

"I'll be in touch this time."

"... you said that last time..."

"You know what? I left my number on the table. How about you call me instead then?"

You perked up grinning and stood up to hug him and give him a goodbye kiss. Which he returned before saying goodbye and leaving.

The sound of the door shutting had you remembering the last times and you sat there in silence for a long time before you remembered that you didn't tell him that you loved him back.

Sure enough there was a neatly folded paper on the coffee table next to the couch, you grabbed and unfolded it once finding the number, not wasting a second to dial it.

With the phone between your ear and your shoulder you unfolded the paper one last time.

'We are over, sweetheart. XOXO'

"The number you are trying to reach, does not exist-..."

"Fucking asshole...."

You crumbled the paper in your hand as angry tears started to pool in your eyes, grabbing and staring at your phone screen and the message the operator kept repeating.

Words could not describe how used and how dumb you felt. But your clenching heart and quivering lips could. You wanted to disappear into thin air as the realisation hit you like a train. He was playing you and you sat there doing everything he wanted you to, while he was probably laughing at you the whole time.

You were a good fuck to him. That was all you would ever be. No less but never more either.

The screen had shut off as your phone hung up automatically and in the reflection you could see the dark hickeys running all over the length of your neck.

Of course... it was Toru's parting gift. After all, no one was allowed to move on from him.

The screen turned on as the phone vibrated in your hands with a notification.

'Hey, I hope you liked the flowers. Thanks for giving me a second chance. I swear I'll make it up to you. Are you free tomorrow dinner? I'll come after you :D '

"You fucking asshole!!!"

[xenolithium]

Silent Confidence (America & Romano)

Lovino rubbed furiously at his eyes, listening absentmindedly to the clicking of his own heels as he sped off down the hall. What a joke, what a fucking joke. Was repeating itself over and over in his mind. He was the one who put all the effort into that presentation, not his brother and yet no one bothered to let him speak!

He turned a corner, just barely ducking past a startled Tolys as he did so. Continuing to walk, even when the other said something to him in concern for his well-being. Though the brunet didn't seem to care enough to follow, simply letting him be as he tried to find some place quiet to sit and have himself a cry. 

Some people called someone like him over dramatic and over emotional. And he told people like that to shove it. He didn't need to hear shit from those who barely gave a rat's ass about him. 

He swung open a random door with a clack, hoping it wasn't a broom closet as he hadn't been paying attention but luckily it wasn't. It was a small break room that most of the other nations seemed to be avoiding, or perhaps they didn't know it was there. It was decked out with everything one might need to relax for a few moments. It had a fridge, counter space, stove, sink, kettle, microwave, the whole nine yards. In the center of the room, currently bathed in sunlight from large windows nearby was a couple of couches, facing each other on either side of a coffee table. Lovino's eyes froze in their exploration as they landed on a person's form. 

Alfred was sprawled out across one of the couches, his suit jacket and tie cast aside. From the doorway, Lovino could see he was fast asleep. Sunlight dotting his thick blonde lashes and his hand rising and falling where it was placed atop his stomach. He stretched slightly in response to Lovino slamming the door open, but otherwise he remained unaware of his surroundings. 

"Idiot. What the hell is he doing here?" He whispered to himself as he closed the door a little bit more softer than he did when opening it. Walking up towards the plush carpet in the center of the room and plopping himself on the couch across from America. From there he crossed his arms and glared daggers into the sleeping American's face, tears still brimming his eyes as he silently blamed Alfred for all his problems even if that wasn't true in the slightest. He still didn't try to help though!

Alfred twitched again in his sleep, his lips parting to make way for his tongue momentarily before he turned his head towards Lovino and went still. "Where's your stupid brother, huh? The maple bastard. Doesn't he know you're here?" He asked, but garnered no response to no one's surprise. Alfred was out cold and it would take much more than a few mumbled words to get him going again. Though Lovino didn't expect a response, nor did he care for one. "Did he ditch you because you've got shit for brains? Wouldn't blame him, you're a fucking loser." For some reason it felt good to curse and insult someone without having any negative repercussions. It was almost therapeutic in fact.  

Lovino laughed wetly under his breath, "no response? Whatever, I bet someone like you couldn't come up with anything worth my time any way." He swallowed thickly, wiping his tears from his eyes again. "So how was the meeting? Pretty great, huh? It's pretty fucking great that no one notices the work I do!" He slapped a hand over his mouth and stiffened when Al shifted again, holding his breath and cursing himself internally for being too loud. But when Alfred stilled, he breathed a sigh of relief. 

"Don't fucking wake up, you hear me, asshole? I'm not done telling you how shitty you are." This time his voice was a bit strained and muffled by his hand, but it's not as if it mattered since no one was listening. 

He stared for a moment after saying that, his gaze growing more and more blurry as he focused on Alfred's face. His stupid, dumb, beautiful face. Why was he crying? It's not as if it was that big a deal. He sniffled, his chest shaking as his body was wracked with silent sobs. Curling in on himself a little as he let his emotions wash over him, gripping his thighs with his hands until they turned white. 

"Someone like you couldn't do anything, you understand that, America? Nobody notices you, nobody cares. You're just this expendable loser that gets tossed aside in favour of your brother, every single time." He paused to swallow and take a breath before continuing. "Even when you try your best, no one cares. You got that? You got that?" He closed his eyes, taking in shaky breaths to try in vain to reel in his emotions, but nothing of the sort ended up happening. "Nobody loves you…"

When Lovino finally got himself to look back at Alfred, he was making a face in his sleep. Not of anger or hurt, but concern, his eyebrows knitted together as he tried to understand whatever was happening in his dream. His lips parting again as he whispered something. "Don't - don't say that...don't say that. I love you."

Lovino's heart skipped a beat and his eyes widened as he stared at Al in shock, having not been expecting a response, let alone that. Even if the words themselves weren't genuine, they were enough to have him quiet down his sobbing and stare at the man across from him in disbelief. "What?" He whispered dumbly, jumping when suddenly the room was overcome with a loud beeping. 

Alfred suddenly slamming his hand down on the phone next to him to shut it up as he opened his eyes. "Already?" He mumbled to himself, sitting up and stretching before turning to look at Lovino, blinking stupidly for a moment until he realized something was missing, picking up his glasses from where they were resting next to his phone to put them on. He then returned to starring for a moment before putting on his usual stupid grin and waving lazily, "yo, what's up?"

"Don't, yo what's up me, shit stain!" He snapped, Alfred not phased in the slightest by his grouchy attitude as he tried to hide that he had been crying. 

"What crawled up your butt and died?"

"I could ask the same of you!"

"Wait…" Alfred trailed off and Lovino stiffened, thinking for a moment that Alfred had heard all the things he had been saying to him while he had been asleep, feeling almost guilty because he hadn't meant them (not towards Alfred any way.) "I didn't think anyone noticed!" He whined, seemingly embarrassed over something. 

"Noticed what?" Lovino asked exasperatedly, unsure of what the hell America was on about. 

"My stomach really hurt, okay? I didn't mean to." It took Lovino a second to realize what the hell Al was saying, but when he did he picked up the nearest object (which happened to be a stapler) and threw it at his head. 

"You're disgusting! Maybe if you didn't eat nothing but garbage that wouldn't have happened!"

Alfred caught the stapler in midair, placing it next to him with a pout. "I don't eat garbage."

"Yes you do. I see the shit you eat!"

"If you wanted some, you could've just asked~"

"In your dreams, as if I want to smell like a walking landfill everywhere I go!" 

There was a silence between them as the only thing that filled the air around them was Alfred's laughter. Lovi glaring at him while he laughed until he felt something tug at his own lips, rubbing at his eyes as he let the carefree atmosphere wash over him. 

"Why were you crying though?" The blonde male suddenly piped up. This was one of the few moments when Lovino wished Al was actually as stupid as he acted sometimes.

"I wasn't crying."

"Uh huh and the sky isn't blue."

"Don't sass me."

There was another bout of silence as Alfred leaned back and crossed his arms, raising a brow and waiting for Lovino to continue with something more but that never happened. Instead he was met with the Italian turning to look at anything but him. 

"Well it has to be something."

"That something is none of your fucking business." 

Alfred sighed, realizing he wasn't getting anywhere fast and he probably wouldn't be anytime soon. Why did he feel like he missed out on something important while he was fast asleep? 

"Fine, keep your secrets," Al shrugged, Lovino seeming disappointed in the fact that he gave up so quickly but not pushing him to continue pestering him either. "Anyway, our break is over soon."

"That's nice," Lovino snapped. 

"Are you going back to the meeting?"

"No." Lovino turned to glare at something outside one of the windows. "It's not like I'm needed any way."

Alfred blinked in understanding, realizing he was being given a hint here, even if it was small and off-handed. "Who told you that?"

"No one had to tell me."

"So then you don't really know if it's true."

"..." Lovino opened his mouth, but then promptly closed it again. Not really knowing how to respond to this. His lips pressed tightly together as he thought those words over. "What exactly did I do to make anyone think otherwise?"

"What exactly do I do to make anyone think otherwise?" Alfred repeated, raising a brow. 

Lovino barked a laugh, "I think we all want to know the answer to that question."

"Lovino, I'm being serious."

"You're America for fucks sake, what kind of question is that? I'm not even half a country," Lovino immediately argued, making an exaggerated gesture at the blonde male to accentuate his point.

"So? It's not like I'm doing anything different from you in a meeting. I don't get the red carpet rolled out for me, we all sit down and do our thing. Besides, your presentation was really good."

That last comment caused Lovino to grow stiff once more, but this time out of shock. As he inspected Alfred curiously, trying to figure out what secrets he held to be able to know such information. "You knew it was mine?"

"Yeah?" It took Alfred a moment to realize why he didn't think that was the case. "Just because your brother presented it, doesn't mean it's not your work. I can figure out your handiwork from a mile away. I mean you used to work for me, remember? I don't forget that kinda thing."

Lovino was blushing softly, staring down at his hands which were placed in his lap snugly as he took in this information. To think Alfred bothered to remember little things like that about him made his heart feel warm. Sniffling as he relaxed his shoulders and finally felt a little better about himself and what he had done. Because someone had acknowledged it. "Thank you."

"Huh?"

"I'm not repeating myself asshole, open your ears next time," he huffed. "I didn't think you were creepy enough to remember things like that though."

Alfred chuckled, "well, I am. So, since we're ditching the meeting--"

"We're?"

"Yeah, since we're ditching the meeting, how about we stuff our faces!"

"I thought you said your stomach hurt?" Lovino replied suspiciously, squinting at him in annoyance.

"So?"

Lovino stared at him for a long moment in disbelief, before sighing. "Fine, but I'm choosing what we eat."

"Sounds good to me~"

"Anything food related sounds good to you," Lovino spat.

Alfred grinned at him with that wide, friendly, pearly white grin he gave everyone it seemed. But despite knowing that, he found himself attempting to give one back. Even if it was wonky and hardly noticeable. To others he was still mostly scowling, but it was that quiet effort that Al seemed to key in on the most. 

"See? Now you're getting somewhere!" He jumped up and reached over to give the Italian a pat on the back. Which was way more rough than Lovino wanted a pat to be (curse America's ripped, muscly body that he never got to see) and also unwanted. He quickly shoved Al's hand away, glaring at him for suddenly thinking it was a good idea to touch him. Alfred chuckling sheepishly and rubbing the back of his head as Lovino got up and cussed him out under his breath before storming towards the door. America watched him like a lost puppy, thinking that now the whole ditching the meeting to eat brunch was off the table because of what he did. 

"Well? Are you coming, shit stain? Hurry up before I leave you behind."

"I'm coming, I'm coming. Just let me get my stuff," Alfred said, his smile returning, quickly reaching around the room for all his belongings. 

"That's it, I'm leaving you behind."

"Lovi! No, Lovi, wait!" He called as the Italian left the break room. Smirk upon his lips, having completely forgotten the reason he was crying in the first place. Well, not completely, but enough to start feeling good about himself again. Stupid American and his stupid words that always had him feeling better about himself. Did he even realize he was doing it?

---

A random plot bunny that came to me the other day and I finished this morning. I don't know why this specific scenario came to me, but it did lol!

Al wasn't dreaming about Lovi when he said he loved him, btw. He thought Matt was telling him all that. But we can pretend. XD

[mistaeq]

Hol Horse: Not so Terrible

TW // killing is mentioned

I can't possibly know you're sad without doing something, @golden-narcissus :( this is the in-character interaction you had with Hol Horse on my blog, but rewritten into a smol fic and with a cute ending added !!

Where Hol Horse starts to realize his partner in crime is better than he thought.

WORD COUNT: 1.5k

"Hey... did you really mean everything you said, Hol Horse... about me?" The man looked at you, his eyes had never been more serious and you could tell. He had opened, told you he felt good around you and comfortable with you being the one he was teamed up with by Lord DIO. A pretty good sensation for you, really.

"Are you asking because I teamed up with a lot of different people?" he slightly smiled. You probably thought he told this shit to every person he met, or maybe tell white lies to every person he would have needed in the future. "I mean everything I said about you. Every single one." he paused for a second. "I know I care about being the said second one in a couple, because I admit I'm... not that courageous. But you never made me... you know, feel weak for it." Hol Horse lifted up his gaze towards you, an almost ashamed look in his eyes. Unusual. So unusual. "Listen, I know I flirt a lot and I tell many lies just because I would need to be helped in the future. But I'm not lying with you." The way his hands were figdeting with each other and his leg was bouncing told you he was being honest.

But at those words, you shook your head. "No, it... that's not it. I just haven't been told anything like that before." you swallowed, remembering your not so relaxing past. "I've come from so far away in order to serve Lord Dio... I am just glad someone appreciates my work like you do." your eyes ran over his hands, up his muscular - probably warm in hugs - arms and finally in his own gaze. "You're very strong, Hol Horse, and your stand is quite powerful... I am honored that you accepted to work with a weak stand like mine..." you rambled, biting your lip when you realized you probably had started talking too much again, forgetting your main task. "Shit... sorry, I'm just going on... we should be focusing on beating the Joestars."

But if you're pleasantly surprised by his kind words, well, Hol Horse was pleasantly shocked by yours, as well. The cowboy was literally speechless "Me? Very strong and... powerful?? Well... a lot of cute girls I lied to on my road told me so, not knowing me well. I didn't really care about them." he confessed, maybe implying he cared more about your opinion? You thought. "But hearing it from someone I work with... makes me feel respected and stuff... I don't want you to be my second, though. In our team we'll be right on the same level for me, if you're fine with it, of course." he rested his arm around your shoulders, as if it was the most natural thing to do. And you couldn't tell if he was trying to purposely flirt or if he was just like that. You liked him anyway. "Come here." He invited. "We can relax a bit. The Joestars can't be everywhere, and we know they're not here right now. Some fellow stand user like us is probably taking good care of them." he genuinely chuckles, his free hand on his mouth.

Your heart soared to the Moon at his words, and you smiled like an idiot when he draped a strong arm over your smaller - compared to his - shoulders. "Yeah, you're right... maybe this time will be different, and we won't have to kill anyone?" you asked, honestly waiting and hoping for an affirmative response. "I'll confess... I don't do well under pressure... or around a ton of blood..." you looked up at him, with a slight tilt of your head, as if you were about to ask a question. You actually did. "So.. your stand, Emperor, shoots... so if the circumstances aren't in our favour... I distract them and you kill them? This is it?" He nodded in response.

"Yes... this might be it, if we manage to create a good plan." the hand of his resting on your shoulder - because of his arm around you - suddenly started caressing your shoulder with its thumb. That small touch was so adorable and loving. So unusual, from Hol Horse. "Can I ask you how did someone so pure and sweet like you end up in Lord DIO's hands? If you feel okay with telling me about it, I mean." the cowboy asked, as his brown, curious eyes met yours.

At his question, you suddenly remembered things and feelings that made you need warmth. You leaned into Hol Horse's touch, feeling safe enough with him to do so. Your eyes drifted from his after he exposed his curiosity, and you let out a sigh. "The life I was born into just wasn't something for me..." you started in a low, serious voice. "I got picked on as a child for just about anything i did. I wanted to begin a new life in Egypt... and i met our Lord DIO..." you smiled, just a little. It brought you into terrible situation, but remembering the first time somebody had finally comprehended your messy mind always gave you a little happiness. "He understood my pain, and took me under his wing, introducing me to a group of people I learnt to call my friends..." your eyes darkened. "They are terrible people. I was too naive... you too saved me, Hol Horse." his jaw fell. His heart started beating faster, without a... true reason.

"I... you don't find me terrible, too?" Hol Horse istinctively held you even closer, like a reflex. You looked like you were comfortable with him, so he tried to freely give you his affection. You couldn't deny your heart skipped a beat, too. "I don't think I'm really admired, among our... fellow stand users in DIO's hands. But hey." a finger of his patted on your soft shoulder for you to look at him. "If you don't like them, you don't have to emotionally lean on them to be understood." the cowboy withdrew his arm from your shoulders, and started fidgeting with his hands, trying not to think to the blush that was probably gonna form on his cheeks. "What I mean is... if you need someone to listen to you... you don't need Lord DIO, or other people working for him. I am right here. I mean I do work for him too, but... I'm me. And you're you." he started to stumble on his own thoughts. "Oh, fuck it, I don't expect you to understand what I mean... I'm a mess." he gave up. But the sound of you chuckling brought him back.

"Of course I don't think you're terrible, Hol!" you immediately answered. "You have been very sweet ever since we met... and I genuinely thank you for that." you finally looked up at him when he prompted you with his thumb's sweet touch on your shoulder. "Hmm... thank you for supporting me..." you mumbled, your voice's volume a little lower. "You're one of the only people who have truly learnt to understand me, and i admire you very much, for this."

The cowboy immediately reacted to your confessions, stuttering but managing to pour his heart out properly. "Well, I... I admire you for being able to bear with my behavior, I'm not so easy to handle, and you've never made me feel wrong, I mean..." without a precise reason, it seemed like Hol Horse was nervous. His hands were shaking and sweating, and he took off his hat, totally revealing his fluffy blond hair. "Also... don't underestimate your stand, it can be really useful, plus... when it lets its cry out I find it so... cute." he admitted, now avoiding your gaze. Shy Hol Horse? Not a common thing. You must have been really special. But you had noticed it, and took advantage of it when you leaned towards him and sweetly kissed his cheek.

"Thank you, Hol. This really means a lot to me." you smiled, probably furiously blushing as much as him, just before standing up and grabbing his hand, to pull him towards his horse. "Do we get to have a little fun and go around with your baby here, in the meantime? I see no scary Joestars, around." you giggled, exaggerating the scary in a mocking - towards DIO - tone. Hol Horse laughed too, suddenly picking you up and sitting you on the saddle.

"Every wish of yours is an order, your sweet majesty." he giggled, finally sitting right in front of you. Then, the cowboy whispered. "You better hold onto me, this is gonna be wild." Hol Horse kicked with his heel, the horse rearing up before starting to gallop. "Yee-haw!" he screamed, making you giggle and gasp a little when you held onto his torso when the horse reared up. And so you went, on your own bizarre adventure. Was there love? Yes.

Just give them time.

[beetlegoose01]

forget about love (one shot)

Summary: In which Scorpius and Rose discuss love.

It was a clear, crisp spring day at Hogwarts. Classes had long ended, and several students were enjoying the sunshine by the Great Lake. Some students were relaxing under the oak trees nearby, dozing off from the cool shade instead of the heat from the sun. Textbooks and sweet wrappers were discarded lazily in several piles, some open, others not touched at all. It was Friday, after all. No one except the extremely studious would bother doing homework on such a lovely day. Especially not on a Friday.

Rose was by the sparkling lake, shoes and socks tossed aside as she dipped her toes in the refreshing water. Concentrating with all her might, she picked up a flat stone and flicked it across. It skimmed a good three times, before plopping into the water. The circular reflection surrounding it as it fell into the deep lake. She sighed, lost in thought. She had finished all of her homework hours ago, so she didn't really have any plans. There wasn't any Hogsmeade this weekend either, nor any Quidditch games. Sure she could spend time with her friends, a gaggle of girls she often gossiped with, but whenever she did talk with them, she felt as though she was wasting time.

'Shouldn't you be doing something right now? Why are you relaxing? You're so lazy.'

'Stop it.' She thought to herself. 'I'm allowed to relax- I'm allowed to-' She flung another rock into the water. This time, it skimmed five times. Impressed with herself for a brief moment, she smiled.

Something disrupted her concentration. A group of students cheered loudly.

"Rose!" Polly Chapman waved from farther away. "Yann is going to do a backflip for us. Wanna watch?" She batted her eyelashes at Yann, who grinned cheekily as a kiss was planted on their cheek.

"Back handspring." Yann corrected sheepishly.

"No one cares what it's called." Karl rolled his eyes. Yann scowled, swatting their hand at the Hufflepuff's head.

"Shut up, Karl." Polly snapped.

"Sorry Polly."

Rose smirked. "I'll watch, just ...don't break your neck."

But whatever gymnastics trick Yann did, Rose wasn't watching. Her mind was back at the water. She flicked the stone across. Six times.

"Yes!" She cheered silently.

"How do you do that?"

Rose jumped, startled by the sudden noise. She faced Scorpius, who was behind her. Had he grown taller? He seemed to tower over her every day. Casually holding a textbook in one hand, his other hand in his trouser pocket. Less awkward, more confident and pristine with his perfectly placed platinum hair. If she was attracted to him, or boys in general, she might have found him attractive.

"Sorry," He said, sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck. "I thought you heard me."

Rose shrugged, never admitting that she had been startled, let alone scared. Thinking he was referring to Yann, she said: "Oh Yann's been doing gymnastics since they were three. I suppose just lots of practice and-"

"No, no. I meant your rock throwing." He gestured with an exaggerated wrist thrust. "That."

Rose blushed, still puzzled. "Um. My mum taught me ages ago. How to skip stones, I mean. You get the hang of it with practice. " Her dark brown eyes glanced back at the water. "Do you need something?" She hadn't meant to come across as snippy. She was stressed, a bit irritated and always wary of Scorpius, who had been flirting with her for the past few years. Now that he was dating Albus, that had stopped, but that didn't mean things weren't awkward. Admittedly, she had no idea how to react in front of him, and cold, short responses seemed the easiest way for him to stop bothering her.

"No." Scorpius shook his head. "I just wanted to talk."

Well that was unexpected.

"Talk?" She echoed.

"Yeah," He chuckled, fiddling with his hands. "As friends." He added hastily.

Rose gave him a funny look, but sat down on the damp dew grass, gesturing him to sit beside her. He happily obliged, avoiding a patch of mud in between them.

"Your hair looks nice today."

She snorted in amusement. Her hair looked exactly the same as it always did, two afro puffs on each side. She never saw any point to change it, she liked it how it was. Still, it was a nice thing to say when he didn't have an alternative motive.

"Thanks, yours does too." She said teasingly.

Scorpius dimpled. "Cheers, Rose."

"So, what did you really want to talk about? Not that I'm complaining, but usually you're off frolicking with Al." She paused, choosing her words carefully. "You two didn't have a row, did you?"

"No!" Scorpius exclaimed. "Everything's fine. I was just..." He frowned, trying to find the words. "Do you know what being in love is like?" He asked, rather bluntly. Scorpius was never one for being subtle.

Rose looked uneasy. "For the last time, I'm never going to go out with you."

"Yes, we've established that." Scorpius joked. "When you kicked me in the shin."

Relieved, she smiled softly. "To answer your question, yes I do."

"Oh. With-"

"It doesn't matter who it was." She said quickly. "It was a long time ago." To be fair, there were quite a few girls who made her heart flutter.

"Noted. And how did you know?"

She frowned. "What's this about, Scorpius? Is there a point to this?"

"There is."

"Then what-"

He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I don't know if I'm in love with Albus." He looked troubled, and the minute the words left his lips, he backtracked. "Wait. I mean I love him lots, but I'm worried that I don't love him, love him."

"You've been dating only a few months, I don't think that's uncommon."

"I know it doesn't make any sense." Scorpius said. "But lately I've been having doubts. If my feelings are real. Even though I love him."

"I don't follow. You love him but you're worried you don't love him?"

"Yes, and no."

"What makes you think that?" Rose raised an eyebrow.

"Well, we've been through so much together. We're practically attached at the hip. I'd do anything for him. He's brilliant. Smart, caring, so so handsome and...he makes my heart melt. Like, actually feel melting. Maybe it's his eyes. They're green like emeralds and beautiful to stare at..."

Rose raised her hand. "He's also my cousin."

"Right, sorry."

"That was quite obvious." Her lip twitched. "So, what's the problem? It sounds like you care about him."

"Yes, but we've been all matey since first year. What if I just admire his friendship? What if these feelings are fake? I can't imagine hurting him if I say this but-" He looked close to tears. "I can't lose him."

Rose was uncomfortable, a reaction she had whenever someone cried in front of her. "Look, I know feelings are ...difficult to understand. Especially for people like us." An unspoken understanding of what she meant dawned on them both.

Scorpius looked down miserably.

"Love is a very complicated emotion that even I don't fully understand. I guess my answer to your question is: When you're in love, you feel different. A certain amount of joy that makes you willing to stand by that person or people no matter what. It's not something you can just...control. It happens as is.

But, you're also sixteen and you don't need to understand this shite completely. So live life, let your hair down, enjoy being with my cousin, sipping butterbeer with heart shaped foam." She teased.

Scorpius gave a watery laugh. "Yeah,"

"But, for what it's worth...I've never seen a relationship quite like you and Albus." She shrugged again. "I'm probably the last person to talk about romance. It's not really important to me." She looked back at Polly and her friends thoughtfully.

Those thoughts had to wait.

"So, are you ready for next week's match? Gryffindor's going to crush Hufflepuff." She smirked confidently.

"I'll be rooting for you." Scorpius assured her, immensely pleased for his friend.

"You'll come to the match?"

"Of course, and I'll wear red and gold even though it does /not/ look good on me."

She laughed. "Great! Thanks..." She trailed off.

"Rose?" Scorpius asked, puzzled, looking in the direction she was facing. "Are you alright?"

A group of girls were approaching the lake, wearing bikinis and giggling and squealing as they touched the water. A tall Gryffindor girl with wide hips and golden hair dove underwater with a splash. Rose blushed and turned away.

"Isn't that Frankie Longbottom?" He smiled. "She looks nice."

"What?" She said, still a bright crimson. "I've got to go---study." She darted away, nearly dropping a stack of books as she practically sprinted back inside.

Scorpius' eyes widened in realization, then chuckled. 

[lu-undy]

100th Sniper/Spy short - The honeymoon 2

Here it is, the final request! Made by my dear friend, Vana, bless him.

Here we go!

"Ready for your first day in my country?" 

"Yeah, show me your home, darl', let's go!"

"Wait, before we go. You know why I took you here?" Lucien asked. 

"Yeah." Mundy smiled, his cheeks turning pink. "For… I mean because…" He looked at the ring on his hand. "Our honeymoon." 

"Then I need to say it before we proceed."

"Say what?" Mundy asked. 

"I love you." Lucien looked up with those ice-drop like eyes at his husband. 

"So do I, darl'..." 

Their lips met, they needed it like a period to their sentence. Lucien and Mundy exited their hotel and on they went under the bright sun of… Bordeaux!

"Some would argue she is the capital of the South West of France." 

"Are you part of those 'some'?"

"Oui, I am. Bordeaux is what Paris would die to be, but never will." 

They strolled along the streets.

"Paris and Bordeaux have very similar architecture styles. The difference is the mentality of the people, the rhythm of life and look above your head…"

"The sky?" 

"Oui. Blue sky here, while Paris has pollution, rude people and almost more tourists than rats!"

"Sounds like you don't really like yer capital city, eh?" Mundy said with a smile. 

"It is cultural. Paris thinks they have the elite and the rest of us are peasants. We know that they are played like fiddles, working like sheep, while we get the good weather and the smile on our faces." 

"I see…" 

The visit lasted the entire day. Churches, places, squares, parks and of course, vineyards! They did it all. Come the evening, they finished their dinner in a restaurant by the quays of the river, La Garonne, and decided to stroll along the riverbanks. 

The buildings along La Garonne were brightly lit with their yellow lights, slicing through the blue of the night. The street lamps were made of intricate wrought iron laces and some shed multicolored lights. 

They dragged their feet lazily on the quays, their gaits waving left and right, exchanging their usual banter, the one that made them more than friends. 

"Gosh that was one hell of a long day…" Mundy said. 

"Are you tired?" 

"A bit yeah."

"Let us sit down somewhere. Is this bench over there alright?" Lucien asked. 

"Sure." 

They stopped and took a seat. In front of them, the river reflected the city lights, deforming them slightly under the current of the stream like an oil painting. It was fairly calm now and the quays had their success in the evening. Passer-bys of all ages, families and couples were enjoying the same warm evening than Lucien and Mundy.

"That's quite a lot of bridges you have over the river." Mundy noticed. 

"Indeed and the traffic is always dense on them. The right banks used to be full of factories while the left ones were where the selling of the products would happen. But nowadays it has all changed. The factories became ultra modern apartments and the buildings you see behind us, those made of those beige stones, part of them are a museum and the rest is fancy offices." 

"Ah, I see…" 

Silence fell and they could now hear someone playing the guitar somewhere behind them. The quays had been converted to a space for all. There were playgrounds, gardens, benches, spaces for picnics…

"Lu'?"

"Oui?"

"D'you think… things happen for a reason?"

"To some extent, oui, I do. Why?" 

Mundy took a deep breath. The air smelled of the river passing in front of them mixed with the flowers that laid along the quays. 

"I don't know, it's just… I think that's it."

Lucien raised an eyebrow. 

"That's it, what?" 

"That's it, I'm happy." Mundy answered. "I spent my adult life alone, hunting because that's the only thing I know, and look at me now…? I'm here in France with you and I'm… I'm bloody married now!"

Lucien chuckled. 

"Indeed you are, and so am I. But I understand your point. Oui, it seems that the life of running and killing is over, or for you, driving and killing. What I find comical is that it all took me back where it all started, in Bordeaux."

Lucien's eyes went on the river, the lapping sounds of the current, on the surface. 

"I love you, Lu'."

"So do I, with all my heart." 

"You know, my mind's been a bit stuck on the vows we took." Mundy said.

"Ah, the wedding vows? Strong words, hm?"

"Yeah… Strong words. I thought it was just a movies' thing, y'know, all made up and exaggerated and all… But no. When I said I'd stay with you and only you till the end, I meant it. I meant it in a very serious way, it wasn't jokes or made up."

Lucien smiled and leaned his head on Mundy's shoulder. 

"I meant my words too, Mundy. For better and for worse, in health and in sickness." The Frenchman repeated. "Because I know all too well that 'home' isn't a place. It isn't a flat, nor is it a house. Home is when I'm with you, regardless of what is around us. Today we are in Bordeaux watching La Garonne flow, but who knows where we will be tomorrow…?" 

"Still in Bordeaux cause the return ticket is for next week?" Mundy answered with a chuckle. 

"I guess, oui, but you understood what I meant."

"Yeah, I do." Mundy took Lucien's hand and sandwiched it in both of his. "Gosh I can't think about anything else but you. It's like I've met you and I know I'm in love with you but we didn't meet properly yet and you don't know what I feel for you. You know, those days before you tell someone you love'em, when you're just obsessed, and it's all only in your head, cookin' and boilin' on its own…!"

Lucien smiled. 

"Oh I know what you feel and I feel it too. Although in my case, this is quite a first."

"First marriage?" Mundy teased. "You plan on havin' others?" 

"Non…!" Lucien laughed on Mundy's shoulder. "That is not what I meant. It is the first time that I sit in front of the river and show her the face of a happy man. I doubt she even recognises me with the grey hair and the tired eyes with lines at the corner." 

"I'm sure she does." Mundy answered. "Hard to forget them."

"Forget what?" Lucien asked. 

"Your eyes." 

The Frenchman felt it in its core, the warmth. He slid his fingers between Mundy's and he felt the ring there. It brought some pink to his cheeks. 

"Merci."

[Thank you.]

"Thank you too. You're a good guide, y'know." 

"You sound surprised." Lucien said. 

"Yeah, nah, I don't know. The more I know you, the more I find things that I like in you."

"Have you found something that you didn't like so far?" Lucien asked. 

"Your music taste." Mundy answered. 

"What?"

"You have a problem with your music, I swear you must be the only one likin' French stuff from the fifties!" 

"Non I am not! It used to be hugely popular and it still is!" 

"Popular? Stuff from the fifties? In French? Nah… Only an old frog like you could like that."

"Ah…" Lucien sighed. "The younger generation has no taste whatsoever." 

"Oi, I like some good stuff!"

"American pop songs that are broadcast on loop on the radio and dull your senses? The same that have no lyrics, or barely any meaning, no poetry? This is no taste, Mundy, I am sorry." 

Mundy chuckled and tilted his head to lean it on Lucien's.

"Funny old man." 

"Acceptable young one." Lucien teased. 

"Acceptable? Really?"

"Look here." Lucien said and Mundy looked down at him. "Oui, acceptable and only by me."

In the dark of the night, their lips met between their smiling lips and their closed eyes. When they parted, they added to the lapping sounds of the river. 

"You will be the end of me." Lucien said. 

"Can I be everythin' before that too? I feel like we're skipping quite a lot of things before we got to that point."

"Of course you can, and you are. I love you." 

Mundy softened and tightened his grasp on Lucien's hands.

"Love you too, darl'. You're everything." 

[etlunainmorte]

"You really sure you don't wanna come?"

"Yeah, I'm good. Thanks for inviting me, anyway."

"Alright, then! See ya!"

You waved goodbye at your new colleagues, wishing them well, and watching them with a slight smile as they went, in groups, to the theatres to see the latest Marvel movie.

What was it again? Oh. Doctor Strange, The Multiverse of Madness.

"Would you like that movie?" You asked yourself in a low voice as you turned around and walked straight to the opposite direction. "Huh,... V?"

As a matter of fact, you would never know the answer to that question. Or maybe you could, if you invite him over to see it with him. The man has an undeniably great taste in the arts, you couldn't help but wonder what his reaction would be upon seeing it.

If he would come, that is.

For one thing, he's always busy with his work as a Devil Hunter. Second, said job ate most of his free time.

Third, he lived far away from you.

You sighed as you noticed the young couple sweet talking with each other inside your favorite coffee house to your left. Clicking your tongue and cursing yourself with your luck, you decided not to torture yourself and skipped your favorite frappe for the day.

How could anyone blame you, though? It's not as if you wanted to move away from him in the first place, no.

It's this job. This job you've been dreaming of for years. Well, you loved your previous job, yes. But, the moment this great opportunity came knocking on your door, you just couldn't help but accept. However, it required you to move away from your boyfriend.

Well, the distance would mean nothing to you if the new job was only a few blocks away from home but, no. It required you to move three districts away from Red Grave. Past rustic Swan Lane and rural Gaol Town to a bustling district called Wifmann.

Your heart twitched in pain the moment you remembered V's face when he found out. Of course, the man was beyond sad, and because of that, you were willing to refuse the offer. Hell, you just can't choose career over the person you loved, no!

However, he made a selfless decision and told you it's alright to grab this once in a lifetime opportunity. He was well aware of your dreams, and he wanted you to succeed in your chosen career. And in life. 

And so, here you were, living your daily life without the man you love, waking up each morning without him by your side, going to work without him to kiss you, going back home without him to hug you, and going to sleep without him to whisper sweet nothings to your ear and lull you to sleep with his soothing voice as he read to you your favorite poems.

Sometimes, you were wondering: was it really a good idea to live like this? Sure, you were getting the best things in life, your dream job, an amazingly generous pay check, the most friendly and competitive colleagues, decent bosses ( at least ), a wonderful urban neighborhood that was so different from what you were used to in Red Grave, and, very soon, a house you would call as your very own.

But, all these wonderful things,... in exchange for your one true happiness in the world.

It was very easy to say that, with each passing day, you were steadily getting bored of your monotonous, successful career woman schedule. With each passing day, you found yourself getting closer, and closer, to the inevitable. All that glitters is not gold, indeed. For once, you were lured by this shimmering bait, and now, you felt nothing. You were no longer happy with this empty existence.

And exactly eleven months later, you've had enough. You have made your decision, and you would definitely see this through.

Tomorrow, you would pass the resignation letter you made the other night. You would pass it and go home to V. You couldn't care less that you're turning your back on this so - called wonderful dream life. You're going back to your real home, and that's it.

Back to where your true happiness is.

Suppressing the tears that was brought upon by mere thoughts of your beloved, his deep, calm voice, his ever - charming smile, and his gentle green eyes, you entered the quiet suburban neighborhood and walked straight to the right where your little house was. You opened your hand bag, and took the key from it. You were about to open the door when you heard an achingly familiar sound coming from the living room inside. It was the sound of a violin, and a piano accompanying it. Someone entered your home! And,… not just someone!

The music,…

Was it,... Elgar?

Wait, if it is Elgar, then that only means - !

You grabbed the brass door knob, yelped when the door, itself, fell off its hinges, as if something forced it to open, and bolted inside, not bothering to take off your coat and bonnet,...

And there, standing in the, once, tidy kitchen and making a complete mess of it, was the man, himself, and his two familiars, who were most probably the suspects to blame for your damaged door, standing ( or flying ) right next to him, watching whatever he was making.

"I think you should put in the egg yolks, first, Shakespeare." The demonic bird instructed, as if he knew everything about baking.

"I,... don't think that's what the,... manual,... states." Came his deep voice.

"We should have watched a tutorial on the internet like what that noisy mechanic says,..." The bird answered, and as if something burned his back, he looked behind him and realized you were standing there, eyes blurry with tears and lips trembling with mirth. "Hey! Hey, V! She's here!"

The man called V turned around, green eyes wide with surprise, and pale face and jet - black hair a bit messy with flour and bits of some mysterious gooey – like red substance. And when he saw how,... emotional,... you were upon finally seeing him after such a long time, he couldn't help but tear up a little, as well.

"I,... ah,... " V stuttered, a hint of pink coloring his once pale cheeks. "Oh, my,... I,... please forgive me about the mess! I - "

"And the door," You cut him off. "And the sink. And the floor."

"Forgive me, I could clean afterwards - "

"And the music. And the surprise."

"Oh, dear! I hope you don't mind Elgar, my love,..."

"And the speaker." You sighed and smiled, finally letting your tears fall freely from your tired eyes. "Oh, V,..."

"Well, I - "

Everything happened in a matter of seconds. You running towards him and throwing yourself at him, wrapping your arms around his neck and pulling him close to you without even a single care for your pristine clothes. And him reciprocating the warm hello you gave him as his arms went around your waist, holding you close, and burying his face in your fragrant hair.

Then, giving your head a tiny kiss, he whispered to your ear, his emotions overflowing in his voice, "Salut,... d'amour."

"Hello to you, too, my love." You answered, kissing him on his flour - powdered cheek. Then, looking up at him with a raised eyebrow, you asked, your curiosity getting the better of you, "What are you making?"

V gulped nervously. Letting you go for a while, he looked back at the mess that he and his familiars have created on the kitchen counter, and said, "I was,... going to make you a pie. Do you,... perhaps,... love cherry, my love?"

"Cherry pie, huh?" You said, and with a smug look on your proud face, you removed your bonnet, threw it carelessly aside along with your signature handbag, rolled up your sleeves, and tied your hair up in a ponytail. "I'll gladly help." Giving a sly look to the demonic bird on V's arm, you added, "What could a Demon bird possibly know about baking?"

"HEY! AT LEAST, I'M HELPING HERE!" Griffon squawked. Then, pointing with his wing at the feline familiar who elected to rest on the floor next to the table, he said, "LOOK AT THAT KITTY! SHE'S USELESS!"

You gave out an over exaggerated sigh as you placed your hands on your hips and hummed, wondering how to patch up your beloved's mistake. Somehow, he has already messed up the whole process of making the dough, and the cherry filling he has prepared and set aside for later looked suspiciously like Slimer's middle - aged elder sister.

"But, you're tired, my love." V said as he hugged you from behind, the thing he always does to distract you whenever you're busy doing something in the kitchen. Either to tease you or do something else entirely. Either way, it always worked in the past. But, not today. "I'm sure you want to take a rest."

"Yeah, let Romeo and I handle the rest, Juliet." Griffon agreed.

"No can do, Iago." You answered with a smile as you took a clean bowl and some of the eggs from the carton. "Let me help. I insist. You've come all this way to visit me, so I want to feed you a proper meal." Turning to V and giving him a sweet smile, you added, "And I think it's about time I teach you how to bake, V."

"Would it,... take long? You must be famished by now." The man asked, tightening his hold on you as if he doesn't want to let you go anymore.

Ah, how you missed his touch, his voice, his warmth,...

... his smile and his caress,...

You missed V so, so much,...

"It doesn't matter." You simply answered as you focused on the task ahead. "We have time. We would have all the time in the world, I promise."

It took him a few moments before he realized what you just said, and when he did, his eyes widened and burned at the same time.

Did you just - ?

But, what about - ?!

"I missed you, V." You told the man, your face away from him, your eyes starting to blur once more with tears of happiness.

V smiled, feeling the same emotions as you did, and pressed his lips against your left cheek. "I missed you too, my sweet, little lady."

"I love you, V."

"I love you more, (Y/N)."

***

🌸 My short but sweet prize for @dreaming-gamer . I hope I did justice to your request. 😅😅😅🙈🙈🙈 Did a little twist. I hope you like it. ❤❤❤😊😊😊 🌸

***

🌸🌸🌸

***

[bubbyleh]

I See La Vie en Rose - Chapter 5

cw for mentions of an attack. no specifics are given, but if that’s bad for you, skip coomer’s whole speech.

Chapter 5: Something About You

Darnold closes his old notebook with a sigh. “I got nothing. What about you?"

"Uh." Tommy looks down at another notebook. "Potion of taste good?"

The two of them are sat on the floor of Darnold's apartment next to a bookshelf. Sunkist lays next to them, snuggled up next to Darnold and every so often offering him a kiss.

Tommy may be a little jealous of the dog.

"No, that won't work," Darnold laments. "I based some of my first experiments off that one." He sighs and falls against Sunkist, who offers a few happy licks and tail thumps. "What else is in there?"

Tommy flips through a few pages. "Potion of- of levitation?"

"We are not inventing fizzy lifting juice."

"Potion of grapes?"

"That's, er… that's actually really dangerous. It turns things into grapes."

Stifling a grimace, Tommy looks forward in the book until something catches his eye. "Potion of… trans your gender?"

"Oh," Darnold's eyes widen, and he shoots up and snatches the notebook from Tommy. "I'm… I didn't realize that was in there." He hugs the book close to his chest.

"No, I- what does it- it do?" Tommy can't help but ask.

Darnold stammers. "I, uh… when I was younger, I had some issues during surgery, so I wanted-" He takes a deep breath. "I wanted a different option."

The implications of what Darnold says hits Tommy like a train. "That's the- the recipe for a transitioning potion?"

It may be that Tommy’s excitement is contagious, but something seems to assure Darnold, to spur him on. “Yeah! It… it doesn’t work immediately, takes a few doses, but…” He smiles to himself, placing the notebook down between himself and Tommy. “It was one of the first potions I made.”

Tommy’s brain is thrown for another loop, because holy fuck. “You made this?”

Darnold laughs nervously and rubs the back of his neck. “It’s not perfect, and I should really revisit it one of these days, but it works!” He sighs. “People don’t really like buying potions from strangers online, you know? So the potion of trans your gender didn’t really take off.”

The way Darnold looks towards the ground, biting his lip to stop himself from saying anything more. His complete and utter dejection breaks Tommy’s heart, and without thinking he grabs Darnold’s hands.

“This is the- the most incredible thing I’ve ever heard of!” Tommy says. He pauses before adding, “I wish I had that potion.”

Darnold blinks. “Really?”

With a smile, Tommy nods. “Really.”

They keep reading through the notebooks together. It takes them half an hour to realize that they’re still holding hands, but neither of them say anything.

☆○☆○☆

These days, it’s rare to find Coomer without Bubby right by his side. With the increasing cultist activity the last hundred or so years, the two of them spend most of their time tracking down any camps together. And when they aren’t doing that, they’re probably somewhere being the bane of someone’s existence.

But Coomer’s the one who finds Tommy, sitting upside down in his chair next to the Viewing Pool and staring at the pavilion ceiling. It’s really more of a throne, but Tommy doesn’t care much for it. It’s just a stone that he sits on sometimes.

“Ah, good afternoon Tommy!” Coomer shouts, stopping in front of him. “You know, you’re a little early for the meeting later.”

Right. The meeting. Tommy’s pretty sure he already knows how that one’s gonna turn out.

Tommy shakes his head. “I’m not- I’m thinking.”

“Oh? What about?”

Tommy looks at Coomer, who’s beaming down at him as if something’s funny. And, weirdly, for the first time in his life, Tommy thinks, ‘Maybe Coomer can help me with this’. He’s so off put by it that he almost doesn’t ask.

Almost.

Tommy swallows his pride. “It’s, uh… You met- met Bubby when you were mortals, right?”

“Oh, what memories!” A twinkle appears in Coomer’s eye, and he sits down next Tommy, leaning against his chair. “Is there a reason you ask?”

“Why did you- how could- even-” Tommy stumbles over himself.

Coomer places a hand on Tommy’s shoulder, even though it’s quite an awkward angle. “Take your time, Tommy.”

Might as well just say it. Tommy sighs. “Mortals die.”

In an instant, Coomer’s cheerful smile fades away. “Ah, I see. This is about your boyfriend Darnold, isn’t it?”

“He’s not my-”

“Hush now, Tommy.” Coomer points at Tommy, but quickly his attention is elsewhere. He’s… scanning the area around them. “Good, nobody is here. Dear Bubby would hate it if he knew I told you this.”

Secrets.

Coomer is about to tell Tommy secrets.

And just like that, Tommy is sliding out of his chair to sit right next to Coomer, because no way is he missing even a second of this.

“The first time I met Bubby, I was immediately infatuated with him.” Coomer smiles to himself. “You should have seen him in his prime, Tommy. The strongest and most promising mage I had ever met, and for some reason I’ll never understand, he would spend time with me! Some random knight, barely any magic to my name…”

His tone shifts, barely. “He would have changed the world, back then, I know it.”

Tommy doesn’t like that.

“There was an… incident, you see,” Coomer chooses his words carefully, but he quickly starts spiraling. “I didn’t hesitate for a moment, I had to save Bubby, but-!” He stops himself. “Sorry, that- you don’t need to hear about that.”

Wouldn’t be the first time Tommy's heard that.

“Bubby was injured. Those fiends,” Coomer mutters the last bit. “They had it out for him after that, in part for revenge. But his magic was never the same. He couldn’t defend himself as well as he used to, he-” Coomer pauses. “I chose to stay by his side, and he chose to let me.”

“Uh, I don’t-” Tommy frowns. “I don’t understand.”

“Tommy,” Coomer grabs his hands, and it’s kinda nice. It reminds him of when he was a child. “I knew that staying with Bubby, I may see him hurt, or worse. But I’d been through quite a bit by then, enough to know that I could never forgive myself if I didn’t at least try.” Coomer looks him dead in the eyes. “So try, Tommy.”

Try.

Something flutters in Tommy’s chest, like butterflies. He nods. “Okay. I’ll- I’ll do that. I’ll try.”

☆○☆○☆

Before the meeting, Tommy sent Sunkist off to watch Joshua while the grown-ups talked. Which, Tommy thinks, was an

excellent

idea, because now neither of them are here to witness the shitshow that is the divide between Gordon and Benrey’s work life and their home life.

“None of you guys tell us anything!” Gordon shouts, waving his arms in exaggeration. Unlike everyone else, he’s standing in front of his seat.

Benrey scoffs. “I tell you loads of things.”

“Yeah? Like what!?”

“Liiiiiiiiike… I love you,” Benrey practically sings.

Gordon’s eye twitches. “One of us is heading down there tomorrow, and you won’t even-” He pinches the bridge of his nose. “What did they do that was so bad that society basically got FUCKED two-thousand years ago!?”

A silence hangs over them, a silence so loud it’s basically ringing in Tommy’s ears. He sits up, because maybe, just maybe, Gordon got these nuts to crack.

“Who’s heading down?” Bubby questions, clearly steering the topic away.

Tommy slumps back down in his chair. Of course.

Coomer claps his hands together. “Wonderful question Bubby! I do believe it’s either Gordon or Tommy’s turn.”

“That- you guys,” Gordon tries, but he’s clearly lost his steam. He falls back into his chair.

“I, believe it’s. Tommy’s turn,” Gman says.

Tommy sighs. “I, uh, can’t. I have a- a lunch thing tomorrow.”

“Lunch thing,” Gordon mutters under his breath. Seeing nobody volunteering, though… “Fine. I’ll cover for you. But you’re taking the next one.”

Tommy grins. “Thanks.”

The silence is back. Tommy can feel that everyone’s eyes are on him and Gordon, and it would be uncomfortable if it wasn’t how most meetings ended these days.

“Actually, you know what Tommy?” Gordon slaps his thighs and stands. “I think it’s time to put Joshua to bed. Do you think you could help me convince Sunkist to give him up?”

Tommy can’t hide his disappointment. Why does he let himself get his hopes up everytime that they’ll say something? He should be used to this by now, but it must just be in his nature to desire information.

“Yeah,” Tommy rises from his own seat.

The two of them walk out together. They try to ignore the fact that, once they’re far enough away, they can hear the others start talking again, even if they can’t make out what they’re saying.

“It sucks, man,” Gordon sighs. “I mean, they’ve been doing this ever since I ascended. Were they ever frank with you?”

Tommy shakes his head. “Not- not really. This has been my whole life.”

Gordon laughs, but not in a way that sounds at all happy. “It’s funny. When I first started dating Benrey, I thought, man, finally these guys are gonna tell me stuff! So I’m not just running around blind down there.”

“How’d that- that turn out for you?”

“Benrey and I have been together for thirty years,” Gordon says. “What’s tonight tell you?”

Hm.

Tommy watches his feet as he walks.

[hubbyseby]

"Nothing Without You" series.

1- Rescuing You

Mob! Sebastian Stan x Reader

Run-through: you'll be done with high school in exactly three months. Wanted to celebrate early, you're innocently invited to a party in your little town. Dangerously beautiful and attractive, you didn’t know what it was but you knew that something was going to be different. Something happened. And this something will change your life. Forever.

Warnings: violence, language.

A/n : hi everyone! So it’s my first time writing here! I wasn’t that enthusiastic because I was kind of shy and scared that you do not read it, but my dear friend @sinner-as-saint rescued me and encouraged me! I think I should do a series with it. What do you guys think?? I love you guys. Enjoy it!

*

You were exhausted with the day you had at school and you were tired of it. You didn’t have much friends, those you had were much more experienced than you though. In so much ways. In each break, you were sitting alone and was eating peacefully your food with your earbuds, listening to music. Alone in your house, you didn’t care too much about eating, all you wanted was your bed and feeling your sheets against your body. You went upstairs and you slowly undressed yourself before entering the shower. The second you put your feet inside it, you felt relieved when you felt the water running on your body. You didn’t take that much time and got out the shower. Sitting on the bed, drying your hair in a distracted way, the vibration of your phone make you come back to reality. Taking the phone, you look at the screen, it was Samantha, one of your few friends:

“Samy!” you said.

“Hey Y/N. How you doin'?” you heard her said.

It was like she wasn’t alone because there was other voices transferred to you on the line.

“I'm good! What’s the matter, Samy?” you asked, feeling a little bit better after the shower because before taking it, the fatigue was imminent.

“I was just wondering if you wanna come out tonight with us? You know, we're going to leave school soon and we… you know… kinda wanna begin to celebrate earlier!” she said while your eyes were closed, listening to her carefully.

You take a look at your clock on the top of your bed, it was almost nine. It wasn’t too late than that.

“So… Where are you guys going?” you asked with precaution.

“It’s just a party, Y/N. C'mon it’s going to be fun!”

You couldn’t answer yet. You felt something about going out tonight. You didn’t know what it was. It wasn’t the first time that you hangout with your crazy friends, but you felt tonight would be different. You didn’t understand but didn’t pay any attention.

“Y/N??” you heard Samantha’s voice, waiting for an answer and you come back to reality.

“Where is that party?” you just asked.

After she just told you, you were thinking if you should go or not. You didn’t want to and you layed down on your bed, your towel covering your body.

“I don’t know, Samy. I think I'll stay home. You should enjoy yourself with the others. I'm so tired!” you said.

“C'mon girl!” Samy cried with a desperate voice, begging you.

“I'm really sorry, I can’t!”

Disappointed, she let go and you hung up the phone. You looked at your screen and let the phone on the bed before standing up. You were still thinking about the call you had a few seconds ago.

“Should I go?” you asked yourself with a little voice while looking at yourself in your large mirror on the wall. You bought a dress a few weeks ago but you hadn’t have the occasion to wear it yet. It was a beautiful red dress, short, and really uncovered. It was a sexy red dress. You bit your bottom lip with a smirk. It would not be this bad to go relax yourself after this hard day. You thought you deserved it. A few moments from your call, you were all dressed up and looked yourself in the mirror.

“Oh…” you breathed while turning around to see your naked back which you thought was exaggerated.

But you didn’t care. All you wanted was to have fun, in a good way though. You could take one or two shots with your friends who were much crazier than you are. You rolled up your eyes trying to remember yourself that you were only comfortable alone but around people, you were so shy. You couldn’t even take a compliment without blushing like a child! But tonight, your shyness didn’t matter. All that matters was to relax and to let go for once. You put your black heels on. You take a last look at your hair which was still wet, wrapped in a high bun, which make your face look more longer. You took your purse and took your phone. You were going to call Samy back to let her know that you were coming after all, but you gave up with a smirk. “I am going to surprise her" you thought while leaving your bedroom, make it downstairs and closed the entrance of your house before going to your car. While turning un the engine, you felt the increase of your heartbeat. You weren’t sure of what is was, but all you know it was going to be a crazy night, a unforgettable one.

You didn’t had to worry about the address because Samy had already told you where the party was during the call, and you knew the place. After parking your car, you took your purse and got out the car, eyes on the little house where the party was. You walked carefully while two men were looking at you with a horny gaze. Your heart skipped a beat. You walked faster as you reached the door of the little house where some loud music came from. As soon as you opened it, there was a bell who took everyone’s attention, and their eyes were at the door. To be more precise, their eyes were on you. You felt your blood running rapidly into your veins, embarrassed. You heard a voice you knew damn well in the crowd:

“Ladies and gentlemen, please, help me welcomed my dear shy friend: Y/N!

You couldn’t help but blush when you saw that everyone was applauding you while you made your way between them to reach your friends. As you walked, they were looking at you with a smile, and some, not. There was this girl, jealous of your beauty. She was in the same class with you, and she hated hearing that you were beautiful. She hated how all the boys in the class were looking at you even though you were shy and thought that you were not that interesting to look at. Her and her friends looked at you badly when you feel a tight grip around your shoulders. It was Samantha!

“What a surprise! I thought you were not coming, you brat!” she said while she was hugging you while you took the hand that Jess was giving you to say hi with a smirk.

“Oh I didn’t want to come over! But you know… I couldn’t resist! I was about to call you but I wanted to make you a surprise!” you said, trying to control your shyness at your dress while there were people still looking at you.

“Damn girl! You’re on fire tonight! It’s the first time that I see you in that kind… of clothes!” Jess said while turning you around to see the whole thing before dragging down your dress because of your arm which was lifted up by your friend in the action to turn around.

“You look so beautiful!” said Samy while smiling at you.

“Thank you girls! I feel so weird!” you said while laughing.

You recognized some people of your school, and they were drinking. Some of them had already left the school, but they were stopping by often to reach their friends. They were drinking and having fun while dancing like crazy while Samy was giving you a little cup filled with alcohol. You think twice because you hated drinking in public, by mesure of precaution. But you were with them, and they would fight for you. They will always have your back. Weirdly, you felt like you had a gaze on you. A gaze that you couldn’t see, but was there. You felt an eye on you. You felt observed. Watched. Mentally undressed. “Maybe it’s the sip that I took already" you thought out loud. Your friends were talking about their boyfriends. You didn’t have one. You thought that you were unattractive.

“Last night I took every inch of him" Jess said while she was getting her lips wet.

“That’s why you were late this morning! Ah I got you! You lied to me!” Samy yelled at her while laughing out loud.

“Y/N, when will you tell us when you had fucked for the last time?” Jess asked, making a shot with her cup.

You weren’t expecting this question. Your eyes widened while taking a sip of your cup.

“I'm sorry?” you asked.

While she was going to answer, the lights of the little house shuts down. And everything was dark. Your heart missed a beat while you were holding on tight to your friend Samantha.

“what the hell is going on here?” you heard a masculine voice yelled before hearing gunshots hitting the walls of the house, and soon, piercing the windows to get inside. Everyone was panicking, and everyone was screaming. They were moving faster, running everywhere just to get out the house. You were shaking and someone hit you, making you both, you and Samy, losing contact. Lost, you were scared. You feel a hand holding you hardly by your elbow and you couldn’t see the face, but by his posture, you realized it was a man. He was near enough to smell his cologne and to feel his sweet hair under your hand who was definitely trying to press him to get away from him, let go and run, but he was stronger.

“STAN!!!” Everyone heard while the door was opened. There were men with guns trying to see only-God's-know.

“What the hell is Stan"? You asked yourself while shaking against the stranger who held you tight against him.

“If you don’t get the fuck off here, we will shoot everyone in this room!”

"Everyone in this room" was the only sentence which was repeating all over your head. You heard the stranger cursing under his breath while taking you with him, taking a direction you didn’t know. It was still dark and you didn't see his face. The fear was bigger than the hope to survive. You wanted to talk but you were sobbing. You were a total mess. All you wanted was to be safe. And this man? What is he going to do to me? You asked yourself. You couldn't say anything, but weakly and sobbing, you talked with the little voice of yours.

“P-Please… don’t… don’t hurt me…” you beg, crying, shaking, scared, feeling that you were going to faint, and thinking of you dead was not reassuring at all.

You felt a large hand drying your tears. And the contact give you goose bumps. You could feel how warm he was, and weirdly you felt good.

“I'm not going to hurt you, doll. I'm getting you out of here. Once outside, don’t look back.” You heard his charming voice said while he was dragging you to a door, opened it and puts you out of the house. There was a light that was weakly shining out there. He didn't show himself. He could see you, but you couldn't see him. You could feel his gaze on you. On your body. Your eyes were wide open and you couldn’t see anything. He held the door which the light hits, and you saw his hand. All his veins and his beautiful nails, freshly done. Not long, normal and clean. He had long fingers. You didn't understand why he was helping you.

“W-Why are you doing this? And my friends? They… They are inside” you asked.

“They will be okay, they will be out as well. Don’t worry, doll. Go. Now". He said while he was closing the door on your face while you took off your heels to run faster. You looked around and you were in the back of the house. The parking wasn’t that far and you looked at your purse to take your phone when you felt nothing. Not believing yet, you were still searching when you realized that you lost it inside.

“Damn it!” you said, scared while taking the keys of your car. You didn’t know how were your friends but you remembered the man's words, that they will be okay and out of here. Weirdly you trusted him. A perfect stranger. You get on your car and turned on the engine to press the gas pedal without any warnings. All you wanted was to get out of here and go home. Your only preoccupation was your friends. Your thoughts were wide, couldn’t focus on one, just a urgent question crossed your shaking lips:

“What the hell just happened?”

[intobangtan]

Blankets and Soju

Type: Fluff 🌼 ; Imagine/Drabble or whatever this is called :)

Matchmaker game: Describe yourself in three sentences and I'll ship you with one of the members and add an imagine with the things you've written.

Skip to the × to read the drabble

~

@soolyoo heyy idk if I'm way late but here it is.

I ship you with Bangtan's sunshine Jung Hoseok. I believe, you'd match in a lot of ways. He seems like a spontaneous person to me and people who like sticking to routine wouldn't like too spontaneous relationships. But Hobi would do late night picnics with you in the park, abrupt dates to random cafes or just casual places to hang out. Real quality time.

He'd make you feel precious and would explore the world with you and through you - especially through your creativity.

He is extremely open minded and active and supportive. Everything an extrovert like you would ever want, I believe. But at the same time, Hoseok can be serious and smart. He would listen to all your late night thoughts and let you express yourself. He'd be an ultimate boyfriend. *sigh* *dreamy eyes*

~~~

× Blankets and Soju

Pairing: JHope x Reader

You stared at the night sky as you swung back and forth. You were on the playground in your neighborhood. You looked around. The small playground on top of the hill had stayed the same for over 10 years. You had always come here to play when you were little. And now that you'd grown up, you came when you needed to be alone and clear your mind.

The swing screeched as you moved. It was the only audible sound in the breezy summer night. The city was under your feet. The view was amazing.

But your thoughts were a mess. You sighed as silent tears left your eyes, rolling down your cheeks. Your face felt hot as the salty drops stroked your skin.

You had fought with him again. You didn't understand how you managed to get into a fight with someone like Hoseok. Your boyfriend was loving and caring yet you made him lose his temper and you didn't even know what you did wrong.

"Maybe," You talked to yourself, mumbling, "He was just looking for a reason to break up with me." You shook your head rapidly as this thought crossed your mind.

You loved hobi. And-

He loved you back, right?

"But-" You gulped, trying hard not to cry out loud. "He must be fed up with me. I can be difficult sometimes but would he really go through all of this to break up with me?!"

"Never." Your head snapped to the side, to the source of that familiar, sweet voice. He stood a few feet away, his hair waving as the wind blew through it.

"I could never break up with you."

There he was with his hands buried deep in his pockets and you could see the worried, upset expression on his face even though it was dark.

You jumped off the swing, slowly stepping forward. Your heart beat against your chest. You loved him with everything you had but you had hurt him.

"I'm sorry," Your voice cracked at the end. "I shouldn't have said," You sobbed, "What I said on the phone."

Hoseok stretched out his arms, pulling you into a tight embrace. He buried his face in your hair.

"And I shouldn't have brought you to that certain point."

You stood there for a while, hugging. His hand caressed your back slowly in a relaxing manner. He waited patiently for you to stop crying and when he noticed that your breathing was steady again, he pulled back, kissing your forhead.

"I won't even ask you how you concluded that I would want to break up with you." His stare was intense and you blushed, feeling stupid for exaggerating the situation.

"How did you know I would be here?" You asked, still standing securely in the hold of his arms.

Hoseok chuckled, "Did you think I wouldn't know where my girlfriend goes when she feels upset?"

You smiled shyly, stepping up to peck his lips. But it didn't last with a small peck. Hoseok cupped your cheeks, kissing you properly. Your lips moved in sync as if molding into each other, your mind flying to cloud nine. A slight moan escaped you when Hoseok pushed his tongue in between your lips. It turned into a battle between the two of you, tongues tangled as if trying to dominate the other. Your hands moved down to unbutton the first bit of his shirt as his fingers travelled down your neck.

But when he abruptly pulled back, your chest ached at the sudden loss. You groaned annoyed, trying to pull him back again desperately.

Hobi only chuckled, staring at you with his eyes full of love and affection.

"We can continue later," he started, making you roll your eyes. "But I brought you something." He then rushed to his car that was parked on the other side of the road.

Hoseok took out a small basket from the back of his car. He came back with blankets and two bottles of soju. Your boyfriend just knew what the both of you needed to make up. Just cuddles.

It was nights like these that made you fall for him all over again.

You grinned widely as you both laid down on the blanket, staring at the stars with your legs tangled in each other. The scent of his cologne captivated you, making you lean closer to him.

Hoseok began trailing gentle kisses on the side of your neck as his palm stroked your stomach under your shirt.

"Never leave my side, YN." His breath fanned your skin. "I will never leave yours." And you knew this was a promise.

~

~

~

matchmaker

masterlist ❤️

[sadisticsmiles]

Beyond a Thief’s Power Episode 7

In Order to Survive

"Kenshi? What's wrong?" Rina had noticed Kenshi's silent state. "You don't look well. Is something troubling you?"

The others also gave their undivided attention to hear what the firefighter had to say.

Kenshi was staring down at the counter. His shoulders were slumped and he let out an exaggerated breath. His face began to fill will pinkish-red tints of color, giving him a mad blush. "I'm not exactly sure how to say this, but…" Then, he gulped. "I think… I've fallen in love with Sayuri."

Hiro's eyes immediately widened with great shock. He could not believe his ears. "WHAT?!"

Unlike Hiro, however, everyone else inside Le Renard Noir was calm about the situation. They stared blankly and seriously at the firefighter.

"Kenshi," Riki began with a stern expression, "Are you really sure you actually have any romantic feelings towards her? You might just be mistaking how you feel with a large admiration and respect for her appearance."

Rina sighed. "No, I'm positive he's actually developed feelings for Sayuri. He was lost in thought for a while now, Riki. It was different than before, so I don't believe Kenshi's gotten the wrong idea."

Kenshi looked at Riki and gave a light nod with his head. Then, he looked down at the floor. "Yeah. The way she looked tonight was so beautiful, I was captivated by her entire being. Her wings also glowed with a bright white light and they were extremely elegant. It was like she sent feathers down to my body, heart, and soul when she was in the air. Her movements and agility were also astounding, I couldn't believe she was really there. She looked so hot—"

"Stop!” After swiftly standing up from his seat and walking over to where the firefighter was, Riki had closed his eyes and put his right hand out, right in front of Kenshi's face. "That's enough out of you, Kenshi." He seemed distraught by the spiky-haired brunet’s blabbering and felt as though his whole face was about to twitch any second now. A sigh came out of his mouth and he placed the same hand on the top of his forehead. "I know you really like her, but you have got to let things go. All this talk about Sayuri is making me irritated, so don't add on to how sexy you think she is." He opened his eyes, displaying his frustration and annoyance. "It sounds so wrong coming from you."

"It was pretty disgusting to hear about near the end," Takuto commented indifferently. "I thought I was going to puke."

Hiro nodded with a sickening expression. His frown and eyes made him appear as if he was a puppy on the verge of tears and illness. "I have to agree with Takkun and Riki there, Kenny. My stomach doesn't feel so great when you say it like that."

Kenshi's eyes widened in surprise. He didn't think everyone would act with opposition towards his output. "W-What? Am I really that repulsive when I put how I feel in words? I just thought it'd be fine to let you guys all know what I was thinking, that's all!"

"But tell me, Kenshi," Atsumu urged in a stern voice and had a corresponding facial expression, "Do you really feel that way about Sayuri? If your emotions and words are genuine, I believe it's okay for you to like her for the time being. Although, I'm not sure how long that will be. If she doesn't leave your mind, then I think you can continue loving her for the rest of your life, and perhaps even beyond. It's up to you to decide how you really feel about her."

Kenshi smiled warmly at Atsumu's words. "Boss…"

Rina frowned with her arms folded across her chest. "But to think you've fallen for Sayuri, rather than a normal girl. It's truly worrying, Kenshi."

"Huh?" Kenshi asked in a perplexed manner. "What do you mean, Rina?"

Rina turned her back towards the counter. She glanced at Kenshi and told her fellow thief and friend something for him—along with everyone else—to hear. "Kenshi, not only have you grown feelings for a magician, but you've begun to harbor them for a Magician of Fate."

"A Magician of Fate?" Kenshi inquired further.

"Mitsuki-san's already told you all this—after she met you guys years ago—that in Neon, magicians are classified under three categories: Intelligence, Power, and Fate1. Those under the name of Fate are the magicians who many are pulled towards," Rina explained. "Sayuri's beauty and wings have created a romantic effect on you, which in turn, has caused you to fall in love with her. Though it may sound like an illusion, it isn't. Your feelings for her are indeed the real thing, so it's no doubt you kept thinking about her after we came back. Anyone who is attracted to a magician similar to Sayuri's aura and powers in a sexual direction is going to fall for them no matter what. It is inevitable, and there is a high chance you may never be able to fall in love with someone else even if you wanted to as a means of forgetting a Magician of Fate."

"So, that means Kenny's almost forever stuck with liking Sayuri that way?" Hiro asked with an astonished expression on his face. "Then, he'll probably never get a girlfriend!" he exclaimed with zeal toward Kenshi's unfortunate circumstances. "Alright! Seeing as Kenny won't be able to stand a chance against any guy who has Sayuri's heart, he'll be doomed from ever attaining her love. Yay~!"

Kenshi felt as though he was going to burst from the inside outward. "Hiro, that's pretty cruel of you to say right now!" He frowned uneasily, and asked, "Can't I at least get some support from you guys on this? Boss is the only one who's given his okay so far, and I'm really in a pinch when it comes to Sayuri."

"Well, we're only letting you know our emotions and opinions on the subject," Hiro stated. "Plus, even if you wanted to go out with her, everyone will instantly acknowledge the fact that you two would be the most unfit pairing out of all of us. I can't say I'm fine with that thought myself. It just makes me sick to think of you and Sayuri ever being together."

Rina narrowed her eyes. "Sorry, Kenshi, but I can't give you my approval for this, either. Sayuri is a magician, after all. You don't seem to be suitable for someone out of your league. In fact, I have to be honest and tell you my outlook on your hopeless case. I think an ordinary woman would be the best choice for you. Of course, I know it's a bit harsh of me to say this, but considering what it's like to be around you, maybe it's better if you married a human girl instead."

"See?" Hiro laughed. "Even Rina knows what's right and wrong at a glance. You're a good person and all, Kenny, but you're more like the guy next door. You're just an average person in the universe, and you can't change that about yourself. It's all about luck and having a set life2. You should know that by now since you don't really have anything that makes you an elite like Riki and Takkun, who both tend to make more money than you with their careers."

At that second, Kenshi could sense a raincloud over his head, allowing all the bad things to pour down on him as small droplets of rain. "…" A conflicted expression overtook his face; his eyes faded. Inside, it felt like he was dying, rotting to the core of his body—his heart and soul. He knew Hiro's words were true, but he didn't want to admit it.

Riki breathed with a strained smile, letting himself relax while he looked at Kenshi. "In love with the enemy, huh? That's something I never would have imagined in our group, but I guess it's just like Kenshi to be the tragic one of all. Poor guy. It must be pretty rough to be in his shoes. He seems even more exhausted than before."

Takuto was still as stoic as he usually was at times like these. "It can't be helped in his case. He was born to be less than a star-crossed protagonist and we can't do anything to adjust his life to how he wants it to be. He's going to have to deal with it, rather than sulk under a cloudy, gray sky." Then, his playful grin came onto the scene. "But that's what he gets for letting his guard down while we're executing our missions. I bet he's been up all night playing his horror RPG games again."

Rina glanced at Takuto with a quizzical facial expression. "Like The Beast's House3?"

"I was thinking more of The Twisted Man4 or Death Demon5, but that works, too," Takuto mentioned. "But maybe he's more into Mutilation Party6 even though it's got different versions."

Rina frowned. "That's the one where a bunch of kids and other people get transported into another dimension, right? I don't like the amount of blood and carcasses in the game. They freak me out; in fact, they'll definitely creep any magician out."

"Don't worry," Takuto reassured his ex-girlfriend. "If Kenny ever asks or tells you go over to his house to watch him play that game, call me and I'll punch him right in the face for giving you a scare. I can land a powerful hit in no time." Another grin formed on his face due to his enjoyment. "I should try beating him at his own hobby sometime. It's been a while since I was over at his house, so it'll be a good warm-up for me."

Rina held her right hand near her face, and it was already curled into a fist-like structure as she giggled. "Thanks, Takuto."

The instant he saw his ex-girlfriend's serene facial expression which was full of gratitude towards him, Takuto's eyes widened in astonishment. He was stunned as his heart skipped a beat, making him reminisce about his feelings for the blonde magician. "…!"

As the light blond continued to stare at his former lover, Hiro was somewhat uncomfortable about that, seeing as his eyes were narrowed a bit. "Oi~, Takkun. Hello~? Earth to Takkun~. Answer me already!" Then, he frowned in a slightly frustrated manner. "…"

Rina had taken notice of her ex-lover's long gaze at her and was drawn in towards it as she stared back into the former's golden eyes. Shortly afterwards, she shifted her own gaze downwards, showing a faint frown. "T-Then let's move on with our missions… We still have several orbs to collect and send out, so keep in mind about our current situation. There isn't enough magic to sustain the magicians residing in different cities in Japan, which means that we’ll have to get to the rest of them very soon."

Riki nodded. "Rina's right. It's also putting a lot of effort on her part to participate in them. We don't want the worse-case scenario to happen, so let's call it a day and take a good rest until tomorrow."

"Then, I'll walk you home tonight, Rina," Takuto proclaimed. "Unless…" He had a devilish grin on his face. "…you want me to carry you there in my arms?"

Takuto's preposition made Rina blush furiously, and she was becoming infuriated at her ex's behavior. "W-What are you saying at a time like this, Takuto?! I can walk home by myself!"

"You don't have to refuse, you know," he continued with the same expression stuck on his face. "We used to date, so it shouldn't be such a big deal to get carried home at night."

Rina's anger was flaring up even more. "No thanks! I don't need my ex-lover to do anything like that for me, so you can just leave it and go home by yourself."

"Ooh!" Hiro perked up. "Things are sure getting steamy in here!"

Riki started fanning himself with his dominant hand with an uncomfortable look on his wonderful visage. "Tell me about it. I can feel chili peppers coming from those two. Ugh… It's getting too hot in here."

Indeed. The heated bickering on Rina's part, along with Takuto's sarcasm, were much more difficult to bear for the leader of the Black Foxes. Riki felt like his body was on fire, and Kenshi couldn't agree more.

"Whew!" the firefighter exhaled. "Maybe I should get the fire department to make a special case for those two. I can see plenty of flames sparks flying back and forth between them. It's getting too much to handle at the moment—actually, within each second!"

Atsumu took out a bamboo folding fan and waved it towards the lit-on pair. "I wonder if things will be okay." He was wearing his usual smile on his face. "I haven't seen this happen between them before, myself, so maybe I should try grilling some food near those two."

"Don't," Riki panted. "The food you make will be burnt to crisps. Ah, geez!" The government official began to cough, covering his mouth with his left hand. Then, he regained his breath again after a few seconds only to cough a bit more. "Will you knock it off, Takuto? You started the fire, so put it out." Another set of coughs made their way out of Riki's throat. "Hurry!"

Takuto's indifference returned when he heard Riki's complaints. "Fine." His shoulders dropped and he looked at Rina. "Suit yourself. Whether or not you decide to go home is fine with me."

Rina disappeared in an instant and the heat died down. It felt cool again inside Le Renard Noir and everything returned back to normal.

"Wow, Takkun," Hiro said. "You really upset Rina. She was totally blazing just now!"

Riki started to catch his breath once more with some remaining pants. "Guess… something really did happen… while I was asleep a few days ago." His respiration was soon back to its usual self, but he was quite exhausted. "Rina's never this angry and we all know it."

Kenshi sighed. "Yeah, I figured. Things weren't looking too good when she got so flustered. Everyone could tell something was going on." He glanced at Takuto and asked, "Takuto, did you do something to her a while back? It didn't seem like anything you two would have normally said to each other."

Takuto frowned and averted his gaze towards the floor.

Atsumu smiled lightly. "Takkun, be honest. If there's something going on between you and Rina, you should at least say what's on your mind. You know we're all here for you, don't you? We're all ears for anything you want to relay to us."

"That's right," Kenshi agreed. "We're partners in crime, Takuto! A member of the Black Foxes is still part of the same team as the rest of the other members. We all think of you as a nonpareil friend and there's no one who could ever beat you at your job. Each and every one of us has something the others can't completely fulfill when we're apart. Isn't that what makes us a band of thieves at night, while we're working on our own careers during the day?"

Riki grinned. "I hate to admit it, but Kenshi does deserve some credit for saying something as commendable as that. It makes me want to knock him out myself."

The spiky haired brunet's shock had immediately gotten to him. "What? You'd hit me right here and now, Riki? I can't believe you would consider doing something like that when we're all together."

"I'm playing around, you idiot," Riki replied with his usual sedate expression implanted on his face. He placed his left hand on his waist and hip. "Are you trying to suggest that I should put a punch on the side of your face when we're alone together? Man, you can be pretty sickening sometimes."

Hiro laughed. "Haha! Picking on Kenny is actually fun when you think about it. It makes all the serious stuff go away."

"So, are we lumping him in with Beardy over there?" Takuto asked. "I'm not saying it's a bad thing, but Kenny's on a whole different level than an old barf who's got no sense of commitment to anything or anyone."

Atsumu's eyes popped opened a bit higher. "Hey! I've always been committed to Shinobu and the bar. If I wasn't, I wouldn't be here right now, would I?"

"Not like you've shown your worth," the light blond bluntly countered. "Riki's got better commitment than you. Just look how happy he is in love and work."

Riki smiled contently with closed eyes. "What can I say? I try to make everything a success, so I guess it really does work out in the end for me."

"Not like I was complimenting you or anything," Takuto retorted dully once more. "I was just stating the facts."

Riki glowered. "Tch. Should've known you were the one to ruin things whenever you wanted to break the ice, Takuto. But, anyway. It's about time for you to tell us what happened between you and Rina."

Takuto looked at Riki with an apathetic expression on his face. "Riki, do I really have to? I don't have the energy to talk about it."

"Yes, you do," Riki answered in a composed manner. "And it's not that you don't have the will to speak about it; it's because of your personality, Takuto. You refuse to talk about Rina much since the break-up, and it kills the living hell out of us. Don't you think it'd be a good thing to rely on us every time something bothers you to the point where it gnaws at your shoulder or the back of your mind? Besides, the way Rina was a little earlier wasn't common, if you catch my drift."

Takuto looked down at the floor and stared at it, and he knew what his best friend meant. "It's not as easy as you think it is. There's still too much to apologize for and I haven't done anything to convey that feeling yet."

Hiro's eyes lowered with sorrow when he saw how much Takuto was suffering. It was as though a knife went straight through his heart. "Takkun…"

Kenshi lowered his head. "I bet it really makes you feel guilty, doesn't it? But it's still something we need to know, Takuto."

Atsumu smiled helplessly at the group of men sitting on the chairs in front of him and his bar counter. "I can think of a certain day in particular." His expression became serious as he looked at Takuto. "Takkun. It was right after you went after Rina a few days ago, wasn't it? I could sense you two had something connecting your bond with each other, due to the amount of time you guys were gone. I'm positive you must have done something that affected Rina in a few ways possible. While you all weren't here, she kept getting lost in thought for several minutes. Luckily, she didn't get off track before a customer showed up, so it was only before we opened Le Renard Noir. It was as if something in her system was full of bugs."

Riki grimaced at that last sentence. "Boss, she's not a robot or computer. She's a living young woman who has extraordinary qualities."

"I know what I'm talking about," Atsumu responded casually. "Still, Rina wasn't like her usual self earlier as well. I wanted to ask her about it, but I figured it was best not to. There seemed to be a lot on her mind, so I left her alone to think for herself. I know you might not appreciate the thought of any of us meddling into your affairs, Takkun, but it could help mend things between you two."

Takuto nodded as he kept his indifference. "I know, but… I'll only cause trouble for everyone if I say anything about my problems."

With his eyes closed, Riki sighed. "You really like keeping us in the dark, don't you? Don't hold back on a conflict if it's about to kill you, Takuto. Besides, how long do you think we've known each other, anyway?" He relaxed a little with his eyes opened. "If you say that we don't understand you at all, then you're wrong. You and I are best friends, despite our age difference; however, the eight of us are practically family, since Mitsuki and Rina have been with us as well, so don't forget we had Shinobu before they came to Earth; even in death, she's still remains in all our hearts."

Hiro's face brightened when he heard the word 'family.’ He, too, wanted to cheer Takuto up and support him. "That's right, Takkun! We're like brothers, so you don't have to take in all the pain for yourself to handle. We're always with you no matter what!"

"Don't forget the good and bad times now, Takuto!" Kenshi smiled energetically. "We've gone through plenty of difficult times together, haven't we? There's no way we could abandon anyone in our team!"

"There you have it," Atsumu concluded with a content smile.

The other fours' words made Takuto realize how close they truly were to one another. "You guys…" He smiled back at them and allowed himself to speak the truth, which was a rarity not many knew about. The next thing he knew, he was looking back to what occurred not too long ago with unsettling emotions. "To be more precise, after we walked to Rina's apartment, I…"

  ~The night of March 26, 2007~

  Rina gazed into Takuto's eyes when she found out (unintentionally) about Takuto's feelings. "Takuto, do you still love me?"

Takuto was unable to meet his past lover's gaze, so he averted his eyes from Rina's. A whirlpool of emotions overflowed within his body, and his appearance was resolute soon enough. "Yeah, I'm still in love with you, Rina. I've never stopped loving you, even after we broke up."

I still love you, but I could never say that before, Takuto thought. It always hurt to see your sad expression, but I had my reasons for breaking up with you.

Several feelings from the last few years were sending themselves into Rina's heart as she looked at Takuto with sad and uncertain eyes. "Takuto, I—"

She was soon cut off with a soft, warm sensation on her lips, which came from her former lover's, and her overwhelming emotions became one big surprise when she realized what was happening. Takuto had kissed her—something he had not done since the day they broke up—and that hit her pretty hard. Once he pulled away, she looked down at the floor of her apartment and the ground with disorientation.

"About that kiss just now…" she brought up. She was very flustered at that instant and could not look at Takuto at all. "I… Um…"

Takuto only nodded and told Rina, "Those are my true feelings. Whether or not you believe me depends on what you decide in the end. Anyway, I'll take my leave, so you don't have to get me anything. I'll be at the bar to get Beardface to reheat my pork noodles." He held up his right hand in a wave and turned around, making his way towards Le Renard Noir. "Well, bye. I'll see you later."

 XXX

 Hiro's eyes widened in shock and surprise at Takuto's confession of the night that took place a few days ago. "You kissed Rina?!" It was still novel to him and the others what they had heard from Takuto's mouth.

"Takuto, you—" Riki started to say before stopping himself. He let out a sigh and understood the situation. "I see. So that's what pulled her trigger."

Takuto gave a light nod with his head. "Yeah. It's not like I meant to set her off, but I couldn't help myself from kissing her that night, so I guess it must have come off as a huge shock to her when I did it."

"Of course it did," Hiro frowned. "Anyone would be surprised when someone they used to be with kisses them out of nowhere, and without any warning, too. I can certainly tell you that it only makes a person more self-conscious when someone decides to plant a sucker on their lips." He exhaled in a sigh. "I think Rina's been going through too much because of it. She's probably trying as hard as she can to concentrate on everything, including our missions."

Kenshi placed his left hand on the back of his head. "I feel bad for Rina, but there's just too much to think about right now." He had an unyielding look on his face while observing the others. "We have to help out the other magicians who are here on Earth, along with her and Saionji. They're not going to last long without the help of those orbs, and we're slipping away from our duties as members of the Black Foxes. Didn't we learn anything at all tonight?" he asked calmly—as calm as his voice would allow him to.

"Kenshi's right," Riki declared. "We have to do something for their sakes. Magicians survive on magic which those orbs contain, and yet, we're running out of time."

Atsumu nodded firmly. "Right. We can't let them die out. I'll see if Rina and I can locate them during our break at work and before we all meet up, so we can take on a mission tomorrow night."

"I'll ask Seiko if she's seen or heard anything about them," Hiro offered. "There has to be something before then."

"I'll check out if anyone from work knows anything or can help find some information about them," Takuto announced nonchalantly. "If not, we'll just meet here and hurry to a location we can find."

Kenshi glanced down at the floor. "Maybe the orbs won't appear in front of anyone. They could be in a hidden place like the cave we were at a few hours ago."

"So they could be at an area such as, the top of a mountain?" Hiro asked with a surprised look on his face before frowning with his lips pressed firmly. "But we won't be able to run all the way there on foot!"

"We could use Rina's teleportation to get to wherever we need to be, like we did tonight," Riki reminded Hiro. "As long as she's not carrying any one of us, we'll be fine. For now, we should get to bed. It's already pretty late, so we're practically wearing out our bodies."

Atsumu yawned. "Perfect timing. I was just feeling sleepy, so I'm turning myself in to my room."

Kenshi nodded tiredly. "I'm getting exhausted myself." He stood up from his seat and gave a wave with his right hand. "Good night, guys. See you all tomorrow."

It was a matter of minutes before the entire group went to sleep for the night. Taking a place to stay in the bar, they permitted themselves to lay down on a bed and finally had some shut-eye.

  XXX

  The next night, the Black Foxes were gathered inside of Le Renard Noir. A clarification was about to be told by none other than Rina herself.

"I still can't believe this," Rina breathed in exasperation. "To think an enormous amount of orbs suddenly appeared throughout the whole area." She took a sigh. "Anyhow, I have enough energy to teleport us to the mountain. Just take a sprint towards the door and let's hurry!"

Everyone nodded and followed Rina's instruction, preparing to run over to the entrance. Atsumu, however, was staying behind as usual. Once the other five began to dash, they were immediately teleported to the mountain summit they were supposed to arrive at. The members of the Black Foxes were on what appeared to be a battlefield, and the trembling sensation they felt added to its image in their minds. They steadily walked further, several feet away from being near the edge of the cliff.

"Is it just me, or does it feel like we're on the death grounds of countless soldiers from decades ago?" Hiro asked, shaking at the thought of someone—perhaps an army or a regular group of men—passing away right at the spot they were standing on.

Riki shook his head. "No, I don't think it's only you, Hiro. But something feels out of place about this location. It's as if we're going to encounter someone soon."

"Uh, Riki," Kenshi put forth, "I don't want to burst your bubble, but I think it'd be better if you didn't say something to jinx us tonight. We've already had enough failures now, so we don't want to have any more."

"Sorry," Riki apologized. "It's not like I can really help it, either, Kenshi. The atmosphere gives it that kind of feeling."

Takuto scanned the area as he held his laptop. "My laptop's telling me the orbs should be around here, but I don't see them anywhere."

"I can sense them and their presence is getting stronger the farther we go," Rina informed. "Maybe we should walk a bit more."

Hiro frowned once more. "You mean, go to the edge of the cliff? Are you sure about this, Rina?"

Rina's shoulders dropped and her face clouded over with an indefinite expression. "Not entirely. I don't really know if we'll see something under there, but it's worth a try."

"Hopefully we'll be able to find something," Riki remarked. "Black Foxes, let's go. It's show time."

They all agreed and made their way towards the inner surroundings of the area. Hiro was anxious, but continued with the others who were by his side.

"Well?" Riki asked. "Find anything down there?"

"No," Kenshi voiced his disdain. He had searched where he was standing and even looked down, but did not see any of the orbs. Only the crashing sea with its waves and eroding rocks were visible. "There's not much over on my side. What about you?"

Riki gave a shake of his head. "No, not here, either. Why aren't they, though? I thought the orbs were supposed to be somewhere on the mountain, but is the signal off?"

"There's definitely an indication from this point," Takuto affirmed after taking another look at his laptop screen, which displayed a red dot flashing repetitively on a grid. "It's pretty high, so there's no doubt about it."

Hiro stood in place. "I have a bad feeling about this. There's no telling where the orbs are, so maybe we need to inspect the mountain some more."

"There's a vast pull coming from here," Rina mentioned. "It's like I'm being taken down."

Hiro tilted his head to his right. "I don't feel anything, though."

"Oh, but you will," a female voice said from behind.

The Black Foxes turned to see who it was, and they had known by the sound of the voice. Sayuri was right there in the air with her extravagant wings, floating in front of them from a distance.

"Sayuri!" Hiro shouted with surprise displaying in his eyes.

Riki placed his left hand on his hip. "So, it's you. Why are you here? Did you already take the orbs?"

"Who can say?" Sayuri questioned in a deliberate, toying manner. "All I can really articulate to you is that you're not wrong about them being in this place. However, you're not going to be able to find them if you just dilly-dally around all night."

Hearing those words made Riki smirk. "Well, aren't you a mysterious lady? You know, you could be a great addition to our team. What do you say?"

A look of fury overcame Sayuri's sophisticated calm fashion in a matter of seconds and all hell broke loose. "Me? On the side of the renowned Black Foxes?! Who the heck do you think you're speaking to?! I'm a magician who's on the side of the law, not a troublemaking criminal like you! As if I would ever wish to join you band of thieves!"

Sayuri's wrath was enough to blow the guys away, as she utilized her wings to create giant gusts of wind towards the men standing in front, not counting Rina as a thief. In addition, the winged magician’s powers had destroyed Takuto’s laptop in a matter of seconds. Riki and the others were about to be blown away by the time Sayuri flew off and were struggling to keep their feet on the ground.

"Ugh!" Riki yelled. He, Kenshi, Hiro, and Takuto weren't going to be able to stay on land for long, and it was only getting worse for them.

At that moment, Rina started to glow with a yellow light. "Riki! Everyone!"

A bizarre power ceased the Black Fox members from nearing their falling deaths and held them back from the cliff's brink. It was as though a miraculous force was upon them. Just as they were being saved, Rina's body gradually slipped toward the cliff and her eyes began to close in a gradual motion. Soon, she reached the border, and started to fall down toward the sea.

The guys' eyes widened as they saw Rina's unconscious body dropping.

"Rina!" Takuto shouted. He felt his heart sink as he and the others witnessed the scene, and a feeling of terror and trepidation immediately seemed to asphyxiated his entire body.

  XXX

                 1) This is a reference to 77 ~And, two stars meet again~, a galge by a company named Whirlpool.

2) Hiro’s words refer to fate.

3) This is my shout-out to The Witch's House; the other three shout-outs are to 4) The Crooked Man, 5) Ao Oni (however, I didn't use a Japanese word for a different color to substitute Ao in the name), and 6) the Corpse Party games.